Well, took me long enough - I just couldn't get back in the mood to write until after I saw GoF. I'll try not to be quite so long between chapters next time, but no promises ;).

Disclaimer: I have no claim on any Harry Potter character - all belong to others

From the Ashes - Chapter 3

It was two weeks until Harry's seventeenth birthday, and there was nothing left for him to do but wait. He'd called Hermione as soon as he'd reached the Dursley's to set her to work on tracking down Seraphine Black, but she'd found nothing so far. He called her several times a week , but every time the answer was a resounding (and increasingly annoyed) 'not yet'. His belongings had been packed for the better part of a week, and his decision not to return to Hogwarts' next term meant that until Hermione's answer changed or his birthday rolled around, waiting was all that was left for him.

A brief glance at his watch showed the time as a quarter to seven - Hermione would be home by now from her summer job helping out with the office records at her parents' dental clinic. By now he'd called her so often he no longer had to look up her number.

"Hello, Granger residence..."

"Hey, Hermione."

"Harry..."

"I was just calling to see..."

"Harry, you call me almost every day to ask if I've found her yet."

"Yes, I know."

"And every time you call, I explain to you that Seraphine is a relatively common name in the wizarding world, and that I don't really have access to records of witches from outside England, and that if she's muggle-born, the last name Black might just be a coincidence, and there won't be many wizarding records on her anyway."

"Yes, I know."

"And if I hadn't found her just a little before you called, I'd be quite cross with you right now."

"Yes, I...what! You've found her?"

"I finally found a notice saying that Reichenbach Alchemy in Diagon Alley would be re-opening soon under the management of its new owner -- Seraphine Black." A note of triumph rang in Hermione's voice.

"Reichenbach? I've never heard of the place."

"I've been in once or twice. They specialize in the rarer and more specialized sort of items - not to mention more expensive. It's not the sort of place students or casual shoppers have much call for."

"Could you find anything else on her, how she might be related to Sirius?"

"Nothing. I went through twenty years of back issues of the Daily Prophet, and that's the only mention of a Seraphine Black in London. Even checking Sirius' family records didn't mention anyone named Seraphine who hadn't been dead for at least fifty years."

"Maybe she was disowned, like Tonks' mother and Sirius were."

"Possibly. The Blacks do seem to have a talent for disowning people very thoroughly."

"Are you free tomorrow? I'd like to talk to her as soon as possible."

"I'll tell my parents, and I'll meet you at noon as close as I can Apparate to Privet Drive."

"All right, I'll see you then."