At 12 Grimmauld Place, stood a house naked to the muggle eye. A simple looking two-story house blended in with the rest, as if it had been there for years and years before. In a way, it had been.
With it's shoddy looking exterior, a heavy, haunting door was centered behind a cobblestone walk way that lead in from the sidewalk. What lay behind the door was another story, was another code, was the Order of the Phoenix.
Sirius Black stood at the bottom of the stairway, with an exhausted look over his face. He casually ran a hand through his thick black layered locks, like he always did when there was something he felt had no words to explain.
The old Sirius that was once thin and gaunt, wearing tattered clothing and untamed messy long dark hair, had drastically changed. Now, in his place, stood a man fresh from his thirties, venturing on into his early forties, with the spirit of a man in his twenties. His torn prison attire had now been replaced with dark Italian shoes, fitted sweaters and slacks in every shade of black, grey and charcoal. With a lean and toned physique, a man who had been able to defy most odds when it came to age stood in Sirius Black's place. His once untamed hair was now shorter, layered and back to it's rich brown black. Since Sirius had fallen into the Veil, he had returned a new man. A man that was now cleared of his once tongue clucking name and a thirst for a new life…as soon as he could get out of the house.
Sirius's long layered locks fell back into his sightline as he shook his head with slight impatience with the woman that stood above him.
Molly Weasley, fellow member of The Order, was trying to "compliment" the rest of the house with the largest piece of mistletoe anyone had ever seen. She stood as high on her toes as her chubby little legs could lift her, adjusting the weed-like monstrosity on the first landing of the stairs. Like something out of a muggle mail order catalogue, the house was draped from ceiling to rug in every piece of festive holiday decoration that could be found from London to the Isle of Wight.
As he put one hand on the banister, his body leaning against it as if to give him strength to deal with this woman, his cousin, he watched on as she insisted on this extra piece. He stood there in absolute silence for a few minutes, taking in the sight, letting a small but simple smile cross over his lips. Once a convicted killer, once feared by many wizards and muggles alike, he felt powerless against his cousin as she dedicated her final minutes without children to this gaudy decoration
Oh, how mother would have been pleased with the positively cheery place Molly has turned this house into. If one person rings that bell to wake her up, she's going to have a lot more to say than call us mud blood lovers. "Really, Molly, take a break. You've been at this for hours." he said, with long dark locks falling into his face. Reflecting the face of a man just beginning his forties, he still showed that rugged appeal that made him so youthful. Easily mistaken for someone ten years younger, he basked in his wit and charm to defy his age.
"Sirius, I want to get this done before the children all get here. Listen to me, " she paused for a moment to meet his eyes as her own words donned on herself, "I still call them children. Anyway, I want to get this done so I don't have to fuss anymore about it."
"Molly, I appreciate what you're doing, I do. But, do you really think it necessary to hang the biggest Christmas weed between my two favored book shelves?" a slight chuckle over the situation began to erupt in his voice. Molly had reached as tall as she could, her chubby legs holding her up further and further, just so she could make it perfect.
"Well, I want it to be visible for everyone to see. I'm just trying to throw a few people closer together, because it's about time the kids started to settle. I'd love to see some excellent pairings within the Order…Ron and Hermione, Harry and Ginny, Remus and Tonks-"
"Remus and Tonks? Now that's one I would never have thought of."
"Well, you never know who'll end up with who. There! Finished!" She started down the steps towards her distant cousin and when she neared him, she placed a hand on his cheek with a smile. "Sirius, you know how important this holiday is. It's the first time that the children have all been here for Christmas. Just bear with me, okay?"
"Yes, Molly. I always do." He sighed, knowing deep inside this holiday meant the world to him as well.
She passed him and turned around the railing to go into the kitchen, "It's not every day one defeats You-Know-Who and gets his name cleared from murder." She turned around before pushing into the kitchen and gave him a sweet wink.
Sirius smiled back at her, giving himself a light little chuckle. Deep down, he was also very excited for the holidays, but just had a better way of hiding it. For twenty long years, he had carried the burden of a wrongfully convicted murderer. Proven guilty to charges of killing several innocent muggles, selling out his best friends, and abandoning his own godson, Harry Potter. Upon his escape, the rebirth of The Order of the Phoenix, and a fall through the mysterious Veil, he'd been able to hide out in his family house, practically alone, for five years. Now that the feared Lord Voldemort had met his doom, Sirius Black was a free man and Peter Pettigrew was awaiting the Kiss from the Dementors.
As he stood still for a few moments alone, listening to the house settle around him, and hearing Molly drop something that created a loud crashing sound, followed by a curse under her breath from the kitchen, he smiled to himself. He was surprised in this feeling of being content. He was surrounded by many supporters, he had the rest of his life ahead of him, he had cheated death twice and now had the good family he was always deprived of. Being the first in his blood to be a Gryffindor, he often wondered if maybe the sorting hat had been wrong all those years ago. Why was he chosen for good? Why didn't he follow in the steps of those before him that had turned towards the Dark Mark? It didn't matter, now. For, he was content with what he had, at that very moment.
Sirius Black was now free to walk the streets as a normal wizard, without the fear of being hunted like the animal he transformed to. His own godson, as proud as he was of Harry, was coming home like he always did between his big cases as an Auror. Ron Weasley, his godson's best friend, was coming home from romping around in Romania with his brother Charlie chasing dragons. Hermione Granger, his godson's other best friend, was coming back to spend the holiday all together after a long extended education of "muggle studies" in America. And last, but not least, several other remaining Order members that would be sharing the house.
Grimmauld Place would be filled to max capacity in a matter of several days, filled with young people, older people, powerful wizards and headmasters alike to share the holidays with a triumph against the Dark Lord. Sirius was looking forward to a wonderful family atmosphere again, where he could now truly be himself. Even if the old "self" still contemplated the risk of getting into trouble. Now, as an adult, he couldn't be told otherwise, but he did risk becoming a bad example in front of the younger ones.
Who cares?
Sirius smiled to himself, a beat in his once blackened heart now skipping like his feet were as he took two stairs at a time, "I'll just make sure the rest of the guest wing is ready."
The loud doorbell rang and Mrs. Black, the painting that hung on the wall, started to yell and curse over the household. Sirius stopped in his step and turned around to quiet down the portrait of his mother, before anyone opened the door.
"Coming! Coming!" Molly sung in from the kitchen, wringing her hands like she was going to wring Mrs. Black's neck in the portrait, before going to the door. As she made a beeline for the door, she looked back at the lingering house owner, "You can answer it now, you know."
Sirius waited on the stairs, a few steps below the landing where the mistletoe hung, to see who it was. He heard Molly right, but just gave her a nervous little grin and answered, "Old habits die hard. Maybe the next one." He still wasn't quite ready to face the truth of it yet. It was too new in his mind.
Sirius caught a small piece of lint on his shirt and focused on it a bit, when he heard the door swing open and women's voices jeering in the doorway. Sirius batted away the piece of fluff and saw the blonde hair swing around the girl's head and hug Molly down in the opening.
"Hermione! Oh, it's just wonderful to see you, dear. You look absolutely beautiful. So, grown up. America has done you well. Come in, come in. Just set your bag here, dear and we'll take care of it."
"It's good to see you, Mrs. Weasley."
"Molly, dear, Molly. We're friends, you're not a child."
Hermione Granger, the once gawky looking thin girl that had befriended Harry and Ron their first years at Hogwarts had now bloomed into a sophisticated little lady. Her hair was now in controlled curls that hung low over her shoulders, her figure, still thin, had a very nice build to it. She was older now. Her eyes scanned the house and up the stairs where she saw a very familiar face.
"Hello, Sirius," she said in a very sweet, but matured voice. Her eyes were fresh and clear, and a smile crossed over her mouth when she realized how good it was to see him. The excitement of being back there, their success over Lord Voldemort and the freeing of an innocent man had overwhelmed her. After giving Molly a hug, she immediately went up the stairs to grab Sirius for a hug.
He saw her first, as that brilliant young witch when she was only thirteen. She blossomed over the years into her teens, looking absolutely stunning the day she graduated with honors (Sirius having seen her by transforming into a dog and witnessing his own godson's graduation from a secret room that had been prepared by Dumbledore), and then she was only seen in pictures as she corresponded with the Order from the US as a spy over there. Though pictures can say a thousand words, he was left speechless before the woman that still showed that girl-like face. He watched as she practically skipped up the stairs towards him, and couldn't help but meet her half way.
Hermione never stopped on the step before his, she went right up to him, sharing his own stair and pressed up against him for a tight hug. She pressed a kiss to his cheek, much like the feeling of a new butterfly tapping on a flower, and nuzzled her head around his neck into a hug.
Seeing her at his door was just fine. Hearing her adult voice was fine, as well. Seeing her move up the stairs with such sophisticated grace, kind of set him off for a moment. Feeling her body press up against him the second she was close enough, kissing him lightly on the cheek and then pulling away to see his face – that he wasn't ready for.
As if seeing color for the first time after being blind for so many years, was him seeing Hermione Granger all grown up. She wasn't something men would fall over themselves for. She wasn't something that radiated "sex kitten". She was just someone that he knew had a beautiful mind, a caring heart and not a prejudice bone in her body. He was seeing someone he'd known for five years for the first time, with his own honest and free eyes. Maybe this was just a reaction to the realization that he was released from the convictions, and wrong beliefs, but what he remembered was that he wasn't ready to look into those deep brown eyes of hers when she pulled back to speak to him.
Hermione seemed to bring back those feelings of content. As she wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly as they embraced for the first time, she represented something to him. She was the proof that people would finally see him for what he was. From all those meetings in The Order, not being heard, not being very valuable, not available to take a chance, he was finally being seen. He was being seen for what he stood for, what he had done and now a very pretty woman was acknowledging just that.
But, this was Hermione Granger.
"It's really good to see you, Sirius. Congratulations." She said, pulling out of her hug with him, and gracing him with a perfect smile.
"You too, Hermione. Thank you. I'm glad you could join us over the holidays. It'll be like old times, again."
She shook her head, "No, not old times, Sirius. New times! We'll make new times together, all of us, because you're free now. We're all free now!"
He smiled back, pulling her for another hug. Yes, we were free. He was free.