A/N: I boosted the rating because of Raiye's episode in the bathroom. This
story will probably go up to an R rating before its done. Just warning you.
By the way, knocked for six means shocked, amazed, ect. Yes, I know it's a
stupid idiom. Oh and I can't believe I forgot a disclaimer.are they even
really necessary? Well here goes; I do not own Harry Potter. There, happy
Rikki ^_^
'Oi! Get up!' Raiye jerked awake to see Fred and George lighting the lamps in her room. 'Breakfast's in the kitchen.' The two of them pulled the blanket off Hermione and left. Bleary-eyed and miserable, Raiye slunk out of bed and off to the bathroom. Ginny toppled off the edge of the four poster in an attempt to detangle herself from the sheets and Hermione groped for her quilt. Ginny chucked a pillow at her. After the three of them had dressed, groomed and breakfasted Mrs. Weasley summoned them to the drawing room.
'Oh very Vogue,' drawled Raiye sarcastically, referring to the tea towel tied about Mrs. Weasley's head. Harry, Ron, Fred and George were in the process of tying their own.
'Come on now,' said Mrs. Weasley. 'Cover your faces and take a spray.' She gestured to three bottles of black liquid on a spindly coffee table. 'It's doxycide,' she explained as Raiye, Hermione and Ginny covered their mouths and noses. 'I've never seen an infestation this bad. what that house elf's been doing for the last ten years.'
'Taking mad orders from Grandma Black most like,' said Raiye.
'Kreacher's old,' said Hermione reproachfully. 'He probably couldn't manage.'
'You'd be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to,' said Sirius entering the room carrying a bloodstained bag of rats.
'Been feeding Buckbeak?' asked Raiye. 'Where are you keeping him anyway?'
'In my parents room,' replied Sirius, tossing the bag onto a sagging, lumpy armchair. 'Molly, this writing desk,' he dropped to his knees to examine a locked cabinet which was rattling slightly. 'I'm pretty sure this is a Boggart, but perhaps Mad-Eye out to take a shifty at it.'
'Right you are Sirius,' said Mrs. Weasley. A loud, clanging bell sounded from downstairs, followed by the same tumultuous screams as the night before.
'Why the hell don't you tell them not to ring the bell?' growled Raiye at Sirius. He rushed from the room. Mrs. Weasley bent over 'Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pests.'
'Right you lot,' she said briskly. 'Doxy bites are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote but I'd rather we not need it. When I give the word, start spraying. I expect they'l fly at us, but it says one squirt should stun them. Once they've been petrified, toss them in this bucket.' Mrs. Weasley gestured to a heavy wooden pail. She positioned herself in front of the curtains. 'All right, squirt!' They had only been spraying for a few seconds when a fully-grown doxy came soaring out a fold in the material. It went for Raiye, its shiny wings whirring, tiny needle sharp teeth bared and tiny fairy like legs flailing. Raiye shrieked and leapt backwards. Harry caught it full in the face and it fell to the floor with a surprisingly loud clunk.
'What are you doing Fred?' asked Mrs. Weasley sharply. 'Spray it at once and throw it away!' Fred was holding a struggling doxy between his finger and thumb.
'Okay,' said Fred brightly, spraying the Doxy in the face so that it fainted. The moment Mrs. Weasley's back was turned, however, he pocketed it. The de-doxying of the curtains took most of the morning. It was past midday when Mrs. Weasley finally removed her protective scarf. The curtains lay limp and damp from the intensive spraying. At the foot of them lay the bucket of unconscious doxys beside a bowl of black eggs, at which Fred and George were shooting covetous looks. The clanging doorbell rang again.
'Stay here,' said Mrs. Weasley firmly, as Mrs. Blacks screeches sounded again. 'I'll bring down sandwiches.' She left the room, closing the door behind her. Everyone dashed to the window to look down onto the doorstep.
'Mundungus!' said Hermione. 'What's he brought all those cauldrons for?'
'Looking for a place to keep them most likely,' said Harry. 'That's what he was doing the night I was attacked wasn't it? Picking up dodgy cauldrons.'
'Mum isn't going to like that,' said Fred darkly. 'Three, two, one.'
'We are NOT running a hide out for stolen goods!'
'It's a nice change hearing Mum yell at somebody else,' said George, opening the door a fraction of an inch.
'-Completely irresponsible! As if we haven't got enough to worry about!'
'Oh shut the door,' said Raiye hotly before sinking onto a moth-eaten sofa. George made to shut the door, but before he could do so, Kreacher edged into the room. He took no notice of them and took shuffled; hunch backed steps towards the back of the room.
'. smells like a drain and criminal to boot, but the nasty old blood traitor with her brats messing up Mistresses house, oh the shame,' croaked Kreacher.
'It's Sirius' house Kreacher,' said Raiye firmly. He turned to bow at Raiye.
'Kreacher did not see young Miss,' he added, still in a bow. 'Or her nasty mudblood companions.'
'Sorry,' said George. 'Didn't catch that last bit.'
'Kreacher said nothing,' he gurgled, turning to Hermione. 'And there's the mudblood, standing there, bold as brass. Oh how my mistress would cry.' Kreacher turned to gape at Harry. 'There's a new boy, Kreacher does not know his name.'
'This is Harry Potter, Kreacher,' said Hermione politely.
'The mudblood is talking to Kreacher as if she is my friend.'
'Don't call her that,' snapped Raiye. Hermione glanced at Raiye in surprise. 'What do you want in here?' said Raiye, not taking her glare off Kreacher.
'Kreacher is cleaning,' he replied evasively.
'A likely story,' said Sirius, entering from the door behind Harry. At the sight of Sirius, Kreacher flung himself into another bow.
'Stand up straight,' said Raiye, her voice dripping in ice.
'Why Young Miss loves Master so, Kreacher will never know. Master is an ungrateful swine, who broke his mother's heart. But she got her revenge, oh yes!' Kreacher croaked. Sirius' eyes darkened.
'Go away Kreacher,' said Raiye, in the same frosty tone. Kreacher shot Sirius a dirty look before shuffling out the door. Sirius slammed the door shut on the elf.
'He's not right in the head Sirius,' said Hermione pleadingly. 'He doesn't realize we can hear him.' Raiye pulled herself off the sofa, and hugged Sirius.
'It wasn't your fault,' she muttered into his ear.
'If he's such an annoyance,' said Hermione hopefully. 'Maybe you could just set him free?'
'He knows too much about the Order,' said Sirius curtly, still looking rather upset. Sirius walked across the room to where the tapestry Raiye had protected the day before hung. The others followed. It looked immensely old, and was faded in places. Nevertheless the golden embroidery still glinted brightly enough to show them a sprawling family tree dating back to the middle ages. Large words at the top of the tapestry read
"The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black
Toujours Pur"
'Toujour- ' Harry started to ask.
'Always pure,' explained Raiye.
'Where are you two?' asked Harry, scanning the bottom.
'I used to be here,' Sirius pointed to a small hole in the tapestry. 'My sweet mum blasted me off when I ran away.'
'You ran away?'
'I'd had enough when I was sixteen,' said Sirius. 'I went to your Dad's place and your Grandparents sort of adopted me. I got a place of my own when I was seventeen. Uncle Alphard left me a decent bit of gold. He's not on here either I see.'
'But why did you leave?' asked Harry, still staring at the tapestry. Sirius laughed derisively.
'I hated the whole lot of them. My parents with their pureblood mania, convinced that to be a Black made you practically royal. My idiot brother, soft enough to believe them.'
'That would be my dad,' said Raiye softly, pointing to a spot on the tapestry. She jabbed at the name 'Regulus Black. A date of death was embroidered, dated to fifteen years ago.
'He was a year younger than me,' said Sirius. 'And a much better son as I was constantly reminded.'
'But he died,' said Harry.
'He was a coward,' said Raiye shortly. 'You don't get cold feet if you want to be a Death Eater. It's a lifetime of service or a painful death.'
'Mother thought Regulus was a right little hero for joining up,' said Sirius bitterly. Raiye's finger moved from Regulus to the name beside it. Airis Seagrate was connected to Regulus Black by a double line. Like Regulus, Airis' name was followed by a death date. Unlike Regulus, hers was only two years ago.
'Weren't they going to add in the Seagrate line?' said Raiye, now looking at her own name.
'There's not enough space,' said Sirius. 'The Seagrate line goes back farther.'
'I haven't seen this since I was five,' said Raiye reminiscently. Sirius began to point out names.
'There's Phineus Nigellus, your great, great, great grandfather, see? He was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had.'
'Creepy Cousin Elladora,' said Raiye, also pointing out names. 'But where's Tonks?'
'You and Tonks are related?' Harry asked, surprised.
'Yeah, her mother Andromeda was my favourite cousin,' said Sirius.
'Andromeda's not on here either,' said Raiye, pointing to a small burn between Bellatrix and Narcissia.
'Andromeda's sisters made lovely pureblood marriages. But Andromeda married a muggle-born, Ted Tonks, so.' Sirius mimed blasting the tapestry with his wand. Harry stared to the right of Andromeda's burn mark. A double line of gold embroidery joined Narcissia Black with Lucius Malfoy and a single, vertical gold line lead to the name Draco.
'Why didn't you live with Andromeda once Airis died?' Harry asked Raiye.
'She was in St. Mungo's,' replied Raiye. 'She had an allergic reaction to a doxy bite and almost died. Narcissia was the closest relative I had left.' Sirius' gaze had returned to Airis' name.
'But you didn't have Godparents or anything?' asked Harry.
'I did,' said Raiye giving Harry a significant look. She reminded Harry of Dobby when he was trying to say something without speaking. 'But they had died twelve years before my Mum.'
'I hate being back here,' Sirius muttered, tearing his eyes from the tapestry. 'Of course it is ideal for headquarters. My dad put every security measure known to wizard kind on it.'
'Not like the Seagrate Manor,' said Raiye. 'The only spells on that are muggle repellents, and even they're awfully weak.' Raiye's voice cracked a bit. 'S-Sirius, d'you think I'd be allowed to go and visit my old house? You could come with me, as Snuffles of course.' Sirius shrugged.
'I can talk to Dumbledore,' he replied. 'I've already asked if I could escort Harry to his hearing. If I'm able, I expect a trip to the Seagrate Manor couldn't hurt.'
'If I am expelled,' Harry asked Sirius. 'Can I come back and live with you? Sirius offered Harry a crooked smile.
'We'll see.' Sirius glanced at Raiye, as if hoping for her to ask to live with him too.
'Lunch!' called Mrs. Weasley. After lunch they focused on the glass- fronted cabinets, although most of the objects seemed very reluctant to leave their shelves. Sirius sustained a bad bite from a silver snuffbox, within seconds his bitten hand had developed a crusty covering, like a brown glove.
'It's okay,' he said, studying it with interest before restoring it to normal with a tap of his wand. They found an unpleasant looking silver implement, which looked like a pair of many-legged tweezers. There was a musical box that emitted a faintly sinister tinkling tune when wound. They all felt themselves becoming weak and sleepy until Ginny had the sense to slam the lid shut. Raiye refused to throw it out. Mrs. Weasley kept them all working very hard over the next few days. The drawing room alone took three days. From the drawing room, they moved to the dining hall where they found a nest of dead puffskiens in a drawer.
'Gross!' said Ron, prodding the nest. 'The puffskiens were all infested with chispurfles!' Raiye leapt away from the drawer, sneezing violently.
'Allergic,' muttered Sirius, tossing the drawer and contents into the dustbin and sealing it with his wand. Raiye quit sneezing. The doorbell rang several times which was cue for Mrs. Black to start screaming again. Snape flitted in and out of the house several times and they even caught sight of Professor McGonagal. The tension between Raiye and Hermione had eased a bit and Harry had been able to push his hearing to the back of his mind. The night before his hearing, Raiye had returned from a day of shopping with Ginny, Hermione and Tonks with a gift for him.
'Ginny and Hermione helped pick these out,' said Raiye, depositing a bag into Harry's hands. 'They said your muggle clothes were rubbish. Well at least you'll make a good first impression.' Raiye smiled and went to put her other bags in her suite. Praying inwardly that Raiye did not expect him to dress in a poncho or something of the sort, he opened the bag. It contained crisp blue jeans and a dark green sweater. Harry made a mental note to thank Hermione for going shopping with Ginny and Raiye.
Supper that night was carried out in the same fashion it had for the past few nights. Raiye pushed food around her plate in a very non-energetic fashion; Sirius scowled and tried to force her to eat while Ginny giggled over Fred and George's antics.
'Really Raiye, just eat a few bites more,' prodded Sirius. Raiye stared at her plate as if it were some impossible conquest. Harry had already finished his second helping.
'Fine,' she snapped at Sirius. She pulled back the sleeves on her frilly muggle blouse, and Harry noticed, for the first time, a blue pattern circling her wrist.
'What's that?' he asked, pointing to her wrist.
'Oh, that,' said Raiye. 'Its crescent moons, arranged to look like waves. I got it when I was thirteen. I love it. I have another tattoo on my shoulder. See?' She pulled on the collar of her blouse to reveal a spiky shape on her right shoulder. Harry was reminded of Hermione's ancient runes book.
'What's that one mean?'
'Oh, nothing,' said Raiye, not meeting Harry's eye. 'I just thought it was pretty.'
'Thanks for the clothes by the way,' said Harry.
'Oh it was nothing,' replied Raiye. 'I wanted to get you this cape thing, what was it called? A poncho?' Her eyes twinkled merrily. 'Just kidding. I'm not completely stupid.'
'Well since you're not eating anyway,' said Sirius. 'You could give us some music. I'll get Kreacher to bring the harp down.'
'I don't want too,' said Raiye edgily.
'You play the harp?' asked Harry, having not been present at Raiye's last performance.
'Yes, but I'm not in the mood,' she said, glaring at Sirius. He shrugged and returned to his plate. Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry from across the table.
'I want you to put your clothes out tonight so I can iron them, and I want you to wash your hair too. A good first impression can work wonders.' Ron, Hermione, Fred, George and Ginny all stopped talking and looked at him. Harry nodded, trying to look unconcerned.
'How'm I getting there?'
'Arthur's taking you to work with him,' said Mrs. Weasley gently. Harry looked over at Sirius, but before he could ask, Mrs. Weasley had spoken.
'Professor Dumbledore doesn't think it's a good idea for Sirius to go with you.'
'When did he tell you that?' asked Harry.
'He was here last night,' muttered Sirius, stabbing moodily at his plate. Raiye fidgeted uneasily.
'May I be excused?' she said quietly.
'Of course dear,' said Mrs. Weasley. The table fell so silent that they could hear Raiye's individual footsteps as she climbed the stairs and opened the door to her suite.
'You should go up to bed too Harry-' said Mrs. Weasley, Sirius interrupted.
'What was that?' Just barely audible, was Raiye's retching. Ginny gasped. Sirius jumped from his seat and dashed up the stairs. Mrs. Weasley returned her attention to Harry.
'Don't worry about the dishes,' she said kindly.
'Thanks,' said Harry, stifling a yawn and rising from his seat.
'I'll be up soon,' said Ron, as Harry climbed the stairs. When he reached the corridor he heard Sirius and Raiye talking in low tones.
'What's the matter Syrenne?' Harry heard Sirius say. Interested, Harry inched closer to the barely open door. He saw Sirius and Raiye sitting on the four poster with their backs to the door.
'Nothing,' said Raiye. 'I just didn't feel well, that's all.'
'You've been doing this often, haven't you?' asked Sirius calmly.
'No,' said Raiye stoutly.
'The look on Ginny's face said otherwise,' replied Sirius. 'Tell me the truth!'
'There's nothing to tell!' snapped Raiye. She suddenly turned around and stared at the door, she caught Harry's eye through the crack in the door.
'Is their someone there?' asked Sirius.
'No,' said Raiye quietly. 'And you can leave now.'
'Are you pregnant?' asked Sirius seriously. Raiye burst out laughing.
'I'm not bloody pregnant!' she chuckled. Sirius was now glaring at her.
'Well your actions at school would suggest otherwise,' said Sirius angrily.
'Oh so I'm some harlot now?' said Raiye dangerously, her laughter turned into vicious sarcasm. 'Like you were loads better! You kept to one girl the whole time and then you married her right? You didn't shag her until you were married right? Oh and you'd never live in sin with ANYONE, especially after her husband had died.' Sirius stood up from the bed so quickly Harry suspected whiplash.
'You shut your mouth!' he said, shaking violently, looking as though he would very much like to strike Raiye.
'Hit me then!' she said recklessly, getting to her feet. 'It'll make you feel better I'm sure. Hit your sixteen-year-old niece just because you can't deal with your past. Maybe you could hit me so hard, I'll miscarriage and lose my IMAGINARY BABY!' Harry jumped at her sudden change in volume.
'Calm down you brat!' said Sirius, trying to force her to sit back on the bed. The second he put his hand on her she shrieked and lashed out with her fingernails, leaving a bloody track across his arm. Sirius cursed and turned to leave the room. Harry rushed out of the doorway and into a hall closet, to avoid being seen by Sirius.
'You can come in now,' called Raiye. Harry jumped and left the closet. He inched into the girls room, feeling ashamed for listening to their argument. Raiye was sitting on her bed, with her face clasped in her hands.
'I've got the worst temper,' said Raiye, sounding distraught. 'But he can be so pushy. I am a brat.'
'Err, sorry,' said Harry, feeling thouroughly out of place. 'I didn't mean to eavesdrop.'
'That's fine,' replied Raiye, removing her face from her hands. 'The whole house probably heard anyway.' She looked at Harry, her face was flushed crimson and her eyes looked swollen.
'Nah, you weren't that loud,' lied Harry, backing slowly out of the room.
'Good luck tomorrow,' said Raiye, morosely. 'I hope they give you a decent judge.'
'Err thanks,' said Harry, hovering in the doorway. 'Night then.' He turned and shut the door behind him. Raiye cursed inwardly.
'Great, now he thinks I'm some psycho,' she thought, swallowing a wave of self-loathing. 'Wait,' she thought again. 'I don't care what he thinks of me. It's not important what anyone thinks.'
'Shut up you liar,' came another part of her mind. 'That's all you care about. You can't bring yourself to hate Harry, or anyone here because of what Sirius would think, or even your mother, if she were alive.'
'Well she's not,' said the rebellious part of her again. 'She's gone and Sirius only gives a damn about you because you remind him of her. The Malfoy's have never treated you like he has. They aren't near as pushy or nosy-'
'Or caring,' interjected her other half. 'Lucius or Narcissia would've and have just left you to continue barfing your guts out. Sure they've been kind, but did they ever offer you any guidance?'
'Well not really but they have always-'
'What? Given you galleons and taken you shopping. Provided you with every possible material comfort known to wizard kind. Face it, Narcissia treats you as one of her sisters. Lucius only treats you well because he hopes to marry you off to some Death Eaters son. Sirius treats you like a daughter.'
'Uh, Raiye?' said Ginny tentatively, entering the room behind Hermione. Raiye snapped out of her thoughts.
'I'm fine!' she said, jumping off the bed and dashing to the bathroom to scrub her face.
'What happened to Sirius' arm?' asked Ginny, lightly tossing a nightgown at Raiye. 'It was all swollen and purple, Lupin had to pour some nasty-smelling potion on it. Did you hex him or something?' Hermione and Ginny came into the bathroom and reached for their toothbrushes. Hermione was looking suspicious again Ginny looked distressed. 'What kind of hex was it? Lupin kept asking if he felt faint.'
'I don't know,' lied Raiye, spitting out toothpaste. 'I just kind of pointed and yelled. I was really upset so my wand kind of did its own thing.' Hermione made a noise of disbelief and left the bathroom. The three of them crawled into bed, Raiye and Ginny into the four-poster and Hermione into the cot.
'Oi! Get up!' Raiye jerked awake to see Fred and George lighting the lamps in her room. 'Breakfast's in the kitchen.' The two of them pulled the blanket off Hermione and left. Bleary-eyed and miserable, Raiye slunk out of bed and off to the bathroom. Ginny toppled off the edge of the four poster in an attempt to detangle herself from the sheets and Hermione groped for her quilt. Ginny chucked a pillow at her. After the three of them had dressed, groomed and breakfasted Mrs. Weasley summoned them to the drawing room.
'Oh very Vogue,' drawled Raiye sarcastically, referring to the tea towel tied about Mrs. Weasley's head. Harry, Ron, Fred and George were in the process of tying their own.
'Come on now,' said Mrs. Weasley. 'Cover your faces and take a spray.' She gestured to three bottles of black liquid on a spindly coffee table. 'It's doxycide,' she explained as Raiye, Hermione and Ginny covered their mouths and noses. 'I've never seen an infestation this bad. what that house elf's been doing for the last ten years.'
'Taking mad orders from Grandma Black most like,' said Raiye.
'Kreacher's old,' said Hermione reproachfully. 'He probably couldn't manage.'
'You'd be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to,' said Sirius entering the room carrying a bloodstained bag of rats.
'Been feeding Buckbeak?' asked Raiye. 'Where are you keeping him anyway?'
'In my parents room,' replied Sirius, tossing the bag onto a sagging, lumpy armchair. 'Molly, this writing desk,' he dropped to his knees to examine a locked cabinet which was rattling slightly. 'I'm pretty sure this is a Boggart, but perhaps Mad-Eye out to take a shifty at it.'
'Right you are Sirius,' said Mrs. Weasley. A loud, clanging bell sounded from downstairs, followed by the same tumultuous screams as the night before.
'Why the hell don't you tell them not to ring the bell?' growled Raiye at Sirius. He rushed from the room. Mrs. Weasley bent over 'Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pests.'
'Right you lot,' she said briskly. 'Doxy bites are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote but I'd rather we not need it. When I give the word, start spraying. I expect they'l fly at us, but it says one squirt should stun them. Once they've been petrified, toss them in this bucket.' Mrs. Weasley gestured to a heavy wooden pail. She positioned herself in front of the curtains. 'All right, squirt!' They had only been spraying for a few seconds when a fully-grown doxy came soaring out a fold in the material. It went for Raiye, its shiny wings whirring, tiny needle sharp teeth bared and tiny fairy like legs flailing. Raiye shrieked and leapt backwards. Harry caught it full in the face and it fell to the floor with a surprisingly loud clunk.
'What are you doing Fred?' asked Mrs. Weasley sharply. 'Spray it at once and throw it away!' Fred was holding a struggling doxy between his finger and thumb.
'Okay,' said Fred brightly, spraying the Doxy in the face so that it fainted. The moment Mrs. Weasley's back was turned, however, he pocketed it. The de-doxying of the curtains took most of the morning. It was past midday when Mrs. Weasley finally removed her protective scarf. The curtains lay limp and damp from the intensive spraying. At the foot of them lay the bucket of unconscious doxys beside a bowl of black eggs, at which Fred and George were shooting covetous looks. The clanging doorbell rang again.
'Stay here,' said Mrs. Weasley firmly, as Mrs. Blacks screeches sounded again. 'I'll bring down sandwiches.' She left the room, closing the door behind her. Everyone dashed to the window to look down onto the doorstep.
'Mundungus!' said Hermione. 'What's he brought all those cauldrons for?'
'Looking for a place to keep them most likely,' said Harry. 'That's what he was doing the night I was attacked wasn't it? Picking up dodgy cauldrons.'
'Mum isn't going to like that,' said Fred darkly. 'Three, two, one.'
'We are NOT running a hide out for stolen goods!'
'It's a nice change hearing Mum yell at somebody else,' said George, opening the door a fraction of an inch.
'-Completely irresponsible! As if we haven't got enough to worry about!'
'Oh shut the door,' said Raiye hotly before sinking onto a moth-eaten sofa. George made to shut the door, but before he could do so, Kreacher edged into the room. He took no notice of them and took shuffled; hunch backed steps towards the back of the room.
'. smells like a drain and criminal to boot, but the nasty old blood traitor with her brats messing up Mistresses house, oh the shame,' croaked Kreacher.
'It's Sirius' house Kreacher,' said Raiye firmly. He turned to bow at Raiye.
'Kreacher did not see young Miss,' he added, still in a bow. 'Or her nasty mudblood companions.'
'Sorry,' said George. 'Didn't catch that last bit.'
'Kreacher said nothing,' he gurgled, turning to Hermione. 'And there's the mudblood, standing there, bold as brass. Oh how my mistress would cry.' Kreacher turned to gape at Harry. 'There's a new boy, Kreacher does not know his name.'
'This is Harry Potter, Kreacher,' said Hermione politely.
'The mudblood is talking to Kreacher as if she is my friend.'
'Don't call her that,' snapped Raiye. Hermione glanced at Raiye in surprise. 'What do you want in here?' said Raiye, not taking her glare off Kreacher.
'Kreacher is cleaning,' he replied evasively.
'A likely story,' said Sirius, entering from the door behind Harry. At the sight of Sirius, Kreacher flung himself into another bow.
'Stand up straight,' said Raiye, her voice dripping in ice.
'Why Young Miss loves Master so, Kreacher will never know. Master is an ungrateful swine, who broke his mother's heart. But she got her revenge, oh yes!' Kreacher croaked. Sirius' eyes darkened.
'Go away Kreacher,' said Raiye, in the same frosty tone. Kreacher shot Sirius a dirty look before shuffling out the door. Sirius slammed the door shut on the elf.
'He's not right in the head Sirius,' said Hermione pleadingly. 'He doesn't realize we can hear him.' Raiye pulled herself off the sofa, and hugged Sirius.
'It wasn't your fault,' she muttered into his ear.
'If he's such an annoyance,' said Hermione hopefully. 'Maybe you could just set him free?'
'He knows too much about the Order,' said Sirius curtly, still looking rather upset. Sirius walked across the room to where the tapestry Raiye had protected the day before hung. The others followed. It looked immensely old, and was faded in places. Nevertheless the golden embroidery still glinted brightly enough to show them a sprawling family tree dating back to the middle ages. Large words at the top of the tapestry read
"The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black
Toujours Pur"
'Toujour- ' Harry started to ask.
'Always pure,' explained Raiye.
'Where are you two?' asked Harry, scanning the bottom.
'I used to be here,' Sirius pointed to a small hole in the tapestry. 'My sweet mum blasted me off when I ran away.'
'You ran away?'
'I'd had enough when I was sixteen,' said Sirius. 'I went to your Dad's place and your Grandparents sort of adopted me. I got a place of my own when I was seventeen. Uncle Alphard left me a decent bit of gold. He's not on here either I see.'
'But why did you leave?' asked Harry, still staring at the tapestry. Sirius laughed derisively.
'I hated the whole lot of them. My parents with their pureblood mania, convinced that to be a Black made you practically royal. My idiot brother, soft enough to believe them.'
'That would be my dad,' said Raiye softly, pointing to a spot on the tapestry. She jabbed at the name 'Regulus Black. A date of death was embroidered, dated to fifteen years ago.
'He was a year younger than me,' said Sirius. 'And a much better son as I was constantly reminded.'
'But he died,' said Harry.
'He was a coward,' said Raiye shortly. 'You don't get cold feet if you want to be a Death Eater. It's a lifetime of service or a painful death.'
'Mother thought Regulus was a right little hero for joining up,' said Sirius bitterly. Raiye's finger moved from Regulus to the name beside it. Airis Seagrate was connected to Regulus Black by a double line. Like Regulus, Airis' name was followed by a death date. Unlike Regulus, hers was only two years ago.
'Weren't they going to add in the Seagrate line?' said Raiye, now looking at her own name.
'There's not enough space,' said Sirius. 'The Seagrate line goes back farther.'
'I haven't seen this since I was five,' said Raiye reminiscently. Sirius began to point out names.
'There's Phineus Nigellus, your great, great, great grandfather, see? He was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had.'
'Creepy Cousin Elladora,' said Raiye, also pointing out names. 'But where's Tonks?'
'You and Tonks are related?' Harry asked, surprised.
'Yeah, her mother Andromeda was my favourite cousin,' said Sirius.
'Andromeda's not on here either,' said Raiye, pointing to a small burn between Bellatrix and Narcissia.
'Andromeda's sisters made lovely pureblood marriages. But Andromeda married a muggle-born, Ted Tonks, so.' Sirius mimed blasting the tapestry with his wand. Harry stared to the right of Andromeda's burn mark. A double line of gold embroidery joined Narcissia Black with Lucius Malfoy and a single, vertical gold line lead to the name Draco.
'Why didn't you live with Andromeda once Airis died?' Harry asked Raiye.
'She was in St. Mungo's,' replied Raiye. 'She had an allergic reaction to a doxy bite and almost died. Narcissia was the closest relative I had left.' Sirius' gaze had returned to Airis' name.
'But you didn't have Godparents or anything?' asked Harry.
'I did,' said Raiye giving Harry a significant look. She reminded Harry of Dobby when he was trying to say something without speaking. 'But they had died twelve years before my Mum.'
'I hate being back here,' Sirius muttered, tearing his eyes from the tapestry. 'Of course it is ideal for headquarters. My dad put every security measure known to wizard kind on it.'
'Not like the Seagrate Manor,' said Raiye. 'The only spells on that are muggle repellents, and even they're awfully weak.' Raiye's voice cracked a bit. 'S-Sirius, d'you think I'd be allowed to go and visit my old house? You could come with me, as Snuffles of course.' Sirius shrugged.
'I can talk to Dumbledore,' he replied. 'I've already asked if I could escort Harry to his hearing. If I'm able, I expect a trip to the Seagrate Manor couldn't hurt.'
'If I am expelled,' Harry asked Sirius. 'Can I come back and live with you? Sirius offered Harry a crooked smile.
'We'll see.' Sirius glanced at Raiye, as if hoping for her to ask to live with him too.
'Lunch!' called Mrs. Weasley. After lunch they focused on the glass- fronted cabinets, although most of the objects seemed very reluctant to leave their shelves. Sirius sustained a bad bite from a silver snuffbox, within seconds his bitten hand had developed a crusty covering, like a brown glove.
'It's okay,' he said, studying it with interest before restoring it to normal with a tap of his wand. They found an unpleasant looking silver implement, which looked like a pair of many-legged tweezers. There was a musical box that emitted a faintly sinister tinkling tune when wound. They all felt themselves becoming weak and sleepy until Ginny had the sense to slam the lid shut. Raiye refused to throw it out. Mrs. Weasley kept them all working very hard over the next few days. The drawing room alone took three days. From the drawing room, they moved to the dining hall where they found a nest of dead puffskiens in a drawer.
'Gross!' said Ron, prodding the nest. 'The puffskiens were all infested with chispurfles!' Raiye leapt away from the drawer, sneezing violently.
'Allergic,' muttered Sirius, tossing the drawer and contents into the dustbin and sealing it with his wand. Raiye quit sneezing. The doorbell rang several times which was cue for Mrs. Black to start screaming again. Snape flitted in and out of the house several times and they even caught sight of Professor McGonagal. The tension between Raiye and Hermione had eased a bit and Harry had been able to push his hearing to the back of his mind. The night before his hearing, Raiye had returned from a day of shopping with Ginny, Hermione and Tonks with a gift for him.
'Ginny and Hermione helped pick these out,' said Raiye, depositing a bag into Harry's hands. 'They said your muggle clothes were rubbish. Well at least you'll make a good first impression.' Raiye smiled and went to put her other bags in her suite. Praying inwardly that Raiye did not expect him to dress in a poncho or something of the sort, he opened the bag. It contained crisp blue jeans and a dark green sweater. Harry made a mental note to thank Hermione for going shopping with Ginny and Raiye.
Supper that night was carried out in the same fashion it had for the past few nights. Raiye pushed food around her plate in a very non-energetic fashion; Sirius scowled and tried to force her to eat while Ginny giggled over Fred and George's antics.
'Really Raiye, just eat a few bites more,' prodded Sirius. Raiye stared at her plate as if it were some impossible conquest. Harry had already finished his second helping.
'Fine,' she snapped at Sirius. She pulled back the sleeves on her frilly muggle blouse, and Harry noticed, for the first time, a blue pattern circling her wrist.
'What's that?' he asked, pointing to her wrist.
'Oh, that,' said Raiye. 'Its crescent moons, arranged to look like waves. I got it when I was thirteen. I love it. I have another tattoo on my shoulder. See?' She pulled on the collar of her blouse to reveal a spiky shape on her right shoulder. Harry was reminded of Hermione's ancient runes book.
'What's that one mean?'
'Oh, nothing,' said Raiye, not meeting Harry's eye. 'I just thought it was pretty.'
'Thanks for the clothes by the way,' said Harry.
'Oh it was nothing,' replied Raiye. 'I wanted to get you this cape thing, what was it called? A poncho?' Her eyes twinkled merrily. 'Just kidding. I'm not completely stupid.'
'Well since you're not eating anyway,' said Sirius. 'You could give us some music. I'll get Kreacher to bring the harp down.'
'I don't want too,' said Raiye edgily.
'You play the harp?' asked Harry, having not been present at Raiye's last performance.
'Yes, but I'm not in the mood,' she said, glaring at Sirius. He shrugged and returned to his plate. Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry from across the table.
'I want you to put your clothes out tonight so I can iron them, and I want you to wash your hair too. A good first impression can work wonders.' Ron, Hermione, Fred, George and Ginny all stopped talking and looked at him. Harry nodded, trying to look unconcerned.
'How'm I getting there?'
'Arthur's taking you to work with him,' said Mrs. Weasley gently. Harry looked over at Sirius, but before he could ask, Mrs. Weasley had spoken.
'Professor Dumbledore doesn't think it's a good idea for Sirius to go with you.'
'When did he tell you that?' asked Harry.
'He was here last night,' muttered Sirius, stabbing moodily at his plate. Raiye fidgeted uneasily.
'May I be excused?' she said quietly.
'Of course dear,' said Mrs. Weasley. The table fell so silent that they could hear Raiye's individual footsteps as she climbed the stairs and opened the door to her suite.
'You should go up to bed too Harry-' said Mrs. Weasley, Sirius interrupted.
'What was that?' Just barely audible, was Raiye's retching. Ginny gasped. Sirius jumped from his seat and dashed up the stairs. Mrs. Weasley returned her attention to Harry.
'Don't worry about the dishes,' she said kindly.
'Thanks,' said Harry, stifling a yawn and rising from his seat.
'I'll be up soon,' said Ron, as Harry climbed the stairs. When he reached the corridor he heard Sirius and Raiye talking in low tones.
'What's the matter Syrenne?' Harry heard Sirius say. Interested, Harry inched closer to the barely open door. He saw Sirius and Raiye sitting on the four poster with their backs to the door.
'Nothing,' said Raiye. 'I just didn't feel well, that's all.'
'You've been doing this often, haven't you?' asked Sirius calmly.
'No,' said Raiye stoutly.
'The look on Ginny's face said otherwise,' replied Sirius. 'Tell me the truth!'
'There's nothing to tell!' snapped Raiye. She suddenly turned around and stared at the door, she caught Harry's eye through the crack in the door.
'Is their someone there?' asked Sirius.
'No,' said Raiye quietly. 'And you can leave now.'
'Are you pregnant?' asked Sirius seriously. Raiye burst out laughing.
'I'm not bloody pregnant!' she chuckled. Sirius was now glaring at her.
'Well your actions at school would suggest otherwise,' said Sirius angrily.
'Oh so I'm some harlot now?' said Raiye dangerously, her laughter turned into vicious sarcasm. 'Like you were loads better! You kept to one girl the whole time and then you married her right? You didn't shag her until you were married right? Oh and you'd never live in sin with ANYONE, especially after her husband had died.' Sirius stood up from the bed so quickly Harry suspected whiplash.
'You shut your mouth!' he said, shaking violently, looking as though he would very much like to strike Raiye.
'Hit me then!' she said recklessly, getting to her feet. 'It'll make you feel better I'm sure. Hit your sixteen-year-old niece just because you can't deal with your past. Maybe you could hit me so hard, I'll miscarriage and lose my IMAGINARY BABY!' Harry jumped at her sudden change in volume.
'Calm down you brat!' said Sirius, trying to force her to sit back on the bed. The second he put his hand on her she shrieked and lashed out with her fingernails, leaving a bloody track across his arm. Sirius cursed and turned to leave the room. Harry rushed out of the doorway and into a hall closet, to avoid being seen by Sirius.
'You can come in now,' called Raiye. Harry jumped and left the closet. He inched into the girls room, feeling ashamed for listening to their argument. Raiye was sitting on her bed, with her face clasped in her hands.
'I've got the worst temper,' said Raiye, sounding distraught. 'But he can be so pushy. I am a brat.'
'Err, sorry,' said Harry, feeling thouroughly out of place. 'I didn't mean to eavesdrop.'
'That's fine,' replied Raiye, removing her face from her hands. 'The whole house probably heard anyway.' She looked at Harry, her face was flushed crimson and her eyes looked swollen.
'Nah, you weren't that loud,' lied Harry, backing slowly out of the room.
'Good luck tomorrow,' said Raiye, morosely. 'I hope they give you a decent judge.'
'Err thanks,' said Harry, hovering in the doorway. 'Night then.' He turned and shut the door behind him. Raiye cursed inwardly.
'Great, now he thinks I'm some psycho,' she thought, swallowing a wave of self-loathing. 'Wait,' she thought again. 'I don't care what he thinks of me. It's not important what anyone thinks.'
'Shut up you liar,' came another part of her mind. 'That's all you care about. You can't bring yourself to hate Harry, or anyone here because of what Sirius would think, or even your mother, if she were alive.'
'Well she's not,' said the rebellious part of her again. 'She's gone and Sirius only gives a damn about you because you remind him of her. The Malfoy's have never treated you like he has. They aren't near as pushy or nosy-'
'Or caring,' interjected her other half. 'Lucius or Narcissia would've and have just left you to continue barfing your guts out. Sure they've been kind, but did they ever offer you any guidance?'
'Well not really but they have always-'
'What? Given you galleons and taken you shopping. Provided you with every possible material comfort known to wizard kind. Face it, Narcissia treats you as one of her sisters. Lucius only treats you well because he hopes to marry you off to some Death Eaters son. Sirius treats you like a daughter.'
'Uh, Raiye?' said Ginny tentatively, entering the room behind Hermione. Raiye snapped out of her thoughts.
'I'm fine!' she said, jumping off the bed and dashing to the bathroom to scrub her face.
'What happened to Sirius' arm?' asked Ginny, lightly tossing a nightgown at Raiye. 'It was all swollen and purple, Lupin had to pour some nasty-smelling potion on it. Did you hex him or something?' Hermione and Ginny came into the bathroom and reached for their toothbrushes. Hermione was looking suspicious again Ginny looked distressed. 'What kind of hex was it? Lupin kept asking if he felt faint.'
'I don't know,' lied Raiye, spitting out toothpaste. 'I just kind of pointed and yelled. I was really upset so my wand kind of did its own thing.' Hermione made a noise of disbelief and left the bathroom. The three of them crawled into bed, Raiye and Ginny into the four-poster and Hermione into the cot.