Chapter Nine: The Tour
The girl was bleeding heavily.
"Kit? Kit are you okay? Kit, answer me!" Harry was beginning to get scared. His friend hadn't moved since the unicorn had left. "Kit! Kit! Wake up!" Harry was getting hysterical.
Just then Draco spoke up. "I'll keep guard over her, make sure she's alright," he said. "You go. Grab Dog-man. Say come quick. Grab others too. Wolf-man especially. He know what to do. Go!"
Harry raced off toward the house, running as fast as he could, tears streaming down his cheeks.
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Sirius was seated in a large armchair opposite the huge windows, when he heard his godson's shouts.
"Sirius! Terry! Alex! Jon! Kevin! Professor Lupin! Come quick! Kit's hurt!" Sirius bolted to his feet, grabbed a jacket and tore outside, spinning Harry around in a circle.
"What happened?" asked Sirius, running towards the stable and leading out a giant black unicorn. "Hop aboard."
Harry did so, explaining the situation. The two raced off to where Harry said the injured Kit lay.
"Damn Nifflers," muttered Sirius angrily as they sped across the grounds.
"STOP!" yelled Harry, spotting Kit. Sirius dismounted quickly. Draco looked up as they approached. Sirius knelt, carefully inspecting his younger sister.
"She okay Dog-man?" asked Draco worriedly.
" I don't think so," said Sirius. "Harry, I need you to go and get Kevin. Tell him to go and get Remus and Jon from work. Then you and Alex need to come to the spare room on the fourth floor. "
"Okay," said Harry.
"I'll take Kit. Go and get Kevin, Little Man, and hurry!" Harry raced off again, not having half a clue where Kevin might be.
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Somehow Sirius managed to get Kit back to the castle. She hadn't moved at all, and Sirius was starting to get very worried. Sirius had set his sister on the gigantic bed, and had taken a seat in a nearby armchair.
Then the door opened, and Rem, Terry, Jon, Alex, Kev, and Harry walked in.
"Is she okay?" asked Kevin in a small voice. He and Kit were probably the closest of all the siblings, even besides Alex.
"Remus?" asked Sirius, worry in his voice.
"She'll be fine. I need some of that healing potion I've got in my study. Can you grab it for me Kevin?" Remus was smart, Sirius decided, watching Kev leave the room. He knew that if Kevin stayed in the room too long he'd get hysterical.
Kevin returned with the bottle a few moments later. Carefully Remus poured some down Kit's throat. The girl's cuts and bruises healed instantly. Then she coughed, sputtered, opened her eyes and said, "What the heck was that?"
Remus laughed. "She'll be fine, you guys. Just give her some rest. Go on now." Carefully he shooed everyone out of the room. Then he turned off the light and let Kit sleep for awhile.
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"I suspect either Kit or Kevin has given you a tour of the house. Am I right?" Remus asked an hour later, as they finished lunch.
"Actually, all I've seen so far is the outside," Harry admitted.
"Really? Well then, you must see the house. The Blacks used to be of nobility here, which is why the house and estate is so large," Remus said, leading Harry through the marble halls. "Each of the bedrooms are magnificently done. Kit and Kev, the artists in the family, designed them themselves."
Harry noticed that now they were on the second floor of the vast house, in a large hallway with windows on one side, and doors on the other.
"In here is Kev's room," said the werewolf, knocking on the door.
"Yeah?" came a lazy drawl from inside.
"Kevin? It's me, Remus. I'm taking Harry on a tour. Do you mind if we come in?"
"Door's unlocked," came the short reply. Remus frowned slightly, but opened the door nonetheless.
Kevin's room was rather large, decked in a beautiful bright blue. The floor was hardwood, polished so that they could see their reflection in it. Kevin's bed, unmade though it was, had to be the center of attention. Made out of mahogany wood, the king-sized bed stood over next to the huge windows, facing the sloping lawns of the Black estate. A desk stood to Harry and Remus' left, covered in papers, scraps of parchment, quills, and books. A large owl cage, holding a sleeping Scorpio, was suspended from the ceiling. A cauldron, big and jet-black, was filled with some sort of half cooked experiment. An arcade system was rigged up in the corner and surrounded by cushions and futons.
Harry could see right away how Kevin and the Weasley twins could be best friends. All around him were Filibuster fireworks, dungbomb materials, and other concoctions. Kevin was sprawled across a large armchair opposite the door reading a stack of comic books and chewing on what looked like a piece of one of Mrs. Weasley's pies. Upon finishing the book he was on, Kevin glanced over and quickly raised his chin, as in some sort of greeting. Harry stood there, quite unsure of what to do. No one at Hogwarts ever did anything like that, and Dudley certainly NEVER would even have thought of it.
Kevin sighed and explained, "It's a type of greeting. You sorta raise your chin, like I just did, and it's like a hello."
"Oh," said Harry feeling rather foolish.
"Come along then, Harry, we haven't even begun the tour yet," said Remus cheerfully.
Their next stop was Kit's room, which was one door down. Her room was just as large as Kevin's room, though less cluttered, far neater, and much more airy. The entire room was decked in jade green, a gorgeous light rose, ivory, and mahogany wood. The floor was polished and shone brightly in the midday sun. The open windows, facing the sprawling beauty of the estate, had silky jade and light rose drapes that fell to the floor. Kit's bed, which was located over towards the wall, was neatly made, in its jade comforters and ivory pillows embroidered with roses. A Jarvey bed, holding a sleeping Cassiopeia, was like a miniature trundle bed, pulling out of Kit's bed. One entire wall of her room was bookshelves, filled with thick volumes. A desk, standing near the door, was equipped with all of the necessary studying materials. A shelf over the desk held schoolbooks. An ornate wooden sign, hanging over the door, read: Dragonspawn. A large easel leaned against the far left; nearby were painting and drawing materials. The room was filled with sunshine and fresh air.
"Greetings!" the two jumped. Draco had entered the room unnoticed and was cheerily smiling up at them.
Rem smiled and stroked the Jarvey's soft head. "I'm taking Harry on a tour, want to come?" he asked.
"Yessiree half-wit!" replied Draco, hopping onto Remus' shoulder. They left.
Three other rooms, bedsides the beautiful bathroom, were on that floor. These consisted of the library, which was stacked with volumes of both muggle and magical books; Sirius' study, piled with papers and documents was next; a guestroom, located next to Kit's room, would be Harry's for as long as he chose to the stay there. A huge staircase at the end of the hall led to the third floor.
The rest of the house, and the bedroom, were pretty much done in the same style as Kit and Kevin's rooms. Other "extra" rooms consisted of the family room, where Remus said the entire family relaxed after dinner, the other older boys' studies, an observatory, and indoor gym, a greenhouse, filled with exotic plants, and at least five extra guestrooms.
The older Black boys Harry liked on the spot. Twenty-five- year-old Alexander's wry humor and sarcasm made him funny, though rather alone. The third eldest boy in the house, he was the one who kept everyone one their toes with his jokes, laughter, and phrases. He was also almost always in trouble with Sirius, as Alex was a real partygoer, who loved dancing and clubs.
Terence, the second eldest at twenty-eight, was the supreme ruler. No one messed with him. He had assumed a lot of responsibility while Sirius was in Azkaban, and Sirius was happy to let his little brother keep it.
Jonathan, at twenty-three, reminded Harry a lot of Ron's older brother, Percy. He too had a job at the ministry, working as an undercover spy in foreign nations. However, when not in work mode, Jon usually acted as the buffer between his older and younger siblings.
After the tour and dinner was over, Kevin came into Harry's room to help him unpack. Downstairs, Harry could hear Alex and Terry happily, though noisily, doing the dishes. Next door Kit, who had recovered, was singing as she painted. Sirius and Remus were in Sirius' study, discussing things in quiet voices. Jon was in the library, studying for the next leg of his education, a wizard college by the name of Lacigam.
As he and Kevin traded jokes, Harry felt a weird feeling inside of him. It wasn't until after Harry was done unpacking, Kevin had gone back to his room, and everything was quiet, that Harry understood what it was. For the first time in the fifteen years of his life, Harry James Potter, one of the most famous wizards of all time, had a real family.
