Strands of untidy jet-black hair were pushed away from round-rimmed glasses. Green, almond shaped-eyes were free to examine the door in front of him.

With extreme caution Harry turned the knob and pulled opened the door very slowly fearing that if the portrait was there his ears would bleed from the screaming of the insane Walburga Black.

When the door opening was big enough he popped his head through. Only a foot away from his face was the familiar moth-eaten velvet curtain. He could be hear the muttering behind her curtain. Someone had created a closest space to enclose the portrait. In his amusement Harry had let go of the door knob and a loud creak was released as the door pressed open further.

A loud shriek ripped through the small closest space and the shouting insults began.

"FILTH! HALF-BREEDS! BLOOD-TRAITORS BEGONE FROM MY HOUSE!"

Harry immediately slammed the door shut and noticed that the screaming stopped. Not only was the portrait now in a separate room but there was also a silencing charm cast on the room.

"Bloody Brillant" Harry said in amazement. The young man wondered if his godfather had silenced the portrait to make living here easier for him.

It certainly would be much quieter for future Order of the Phoenix meetings. But Harry didn't see himself living in 12 Grimmauld Place without Sirius. He couldn't bear it. The house would serve as a constant reminder of the promise they made to live together in the future – together as a family.

When Harry examined the hallway again he realized the walls were a crisp white where his memory said they'd been a vomit brownish yellow with large patches of peeling wallpaper. The row of chandeliers no longer had cobwebs and the hallway was brighter than ever . The row of shrunken house-elves plaques mounted on the wall had been removed. Also the ugly troll-leg umbrella stand which Tonks never failed to trip over was nowhere in sight.

"Who redocorated?" he asked himself as he made his way down to the kitchen.

When he made it down to the bottom of the steps Harry was shocked to see the kitchen. All the appliances and structures in the cavernous room remained the same. But the kitchen no longer had the old dark and gloomy appearance, the now white-painted cabinetry, table and ceiling looked anything but cold thanks to the warm wood flooring and countertops. Harry's eyebrows scrunched together as he walked through the kitchen. Peering inside the glass surface of the cabinets Harry could see a rainbow of teapots and cups of all shapes and sizes. Lined up on top of one of the cabinets was a row of clear glass jars filled with different spices and tea leaves. Pots were conveniently hung overhead within reach.

"I don't understand…Sirius wouldn't have done all this" Harry muttered to himself before running back up the stairs.

Gryffindor banners and colors covered the room head to toe. It was barely possible to see the wallpaper. Sirius's room embodied his rebellious sentiments against his family. The last time Harry had visited the room was dusty and cluttered. But now the floors were spotless and a new bed had been moved in.

It was surprising to see a large bookshelf run along the wall in front of the bed. Sirius had never been the type to sit down and read for leisure. Scanning the book titles it was puzzling to find an array of coffee, tea and baking recipes.

"Sirius doesn't bake…"

Harry shook his head and started walking around the room again.

Unbeknownst to him one of the wooden boards was slightly raised out of place and Harry met with the floor.

"Ughh!"

Wincing angrily Harry looked down at his attacker

"What on earth?"

The board he had tripped over had become even more out of place and revealed a small opening.

Curious Harry peered inside to find the edge of a book peaking out. With a flick of his wand the entire board removed itself from the floor and set itself aside. Picking up his new discovery and dusting it off, Harry realized he had found a small black leather photo album.

The very first photograph made was from his parents wedding. There was his mother radiating with happiness as she wrapped her hands around his neck kissed his dad. A smiling Remus and Sirius stood on the steps behind them with their arms grasped by the woman in between them. She had long wavy black hair and gave Harry a wink.

Harry didn't recognize the woman.

"Probably just an old friend they lost contact with?"

Harry looked at the next photograph. He froze. There were the Marauders laughing gaily at him as they bumped their mugs of butterbeer together spilling the drink everywhere. His mother gave the boys a reprimanding glare but shortly gave into laughter. His lips curled downward as he saw Peter Pettigrew hold onto his glass sheepishly. Before he could let his anger grow further his eyes fell on the same mysterious young woman, laughing uproariously next to his mother.

"She's here again?"

The following photographs were baby pictures of him.

In one of them his dad was levitating Harry in the air with his wand. Sirius was making funny faces up at the floating baby. Remus was down on his knees with his arms outstretched ready to catch the baby if anything went wrong. In the background his mother was shouting at them while being held back playfully by the raven haired woman.

Another photo showed him only days old sitting in his dad's lap at a table. Sirius, Remus and the unnamed woman were standing up clapping their hands and singing while his mother lit the candle to his birthday cake.

Onwards the photo album was filled group photos with the raven haired woman in many of them.

She would be knitting with his mom, engaged in a chess match with Remus, arguing with James while wearing opposing Quidditch team colors and drinking coffee with Sirius. But the pictures of Sirius and the mysterious woman together grew. Playful glances and soft touches filled the remainder of the pages.

The last page of the photo album made Harry at a loss of words. The woman tilted her face, touched a hand Sirius's cheek and kissed him. As they pulled away and smiled at the camera a shine around their necks had Harry examine the photograph closer.

"They're both wearing rings? Sirius never mentioned anything about having a lover or wife."

Shaking his head Harry closed the album and hurried to the drawing room.

Branches weaved throughout the entire room connecting one face to the other. The Black Family Tree Tapestry contained connections dating back as far as the Middle Ages. Nevertheless the golden thread with which it was embroidered still glinted brightly.

Large words at the very top of the tapestry read: "Toujour Pur".

"Always Pure" harry said with a bitter laugh. The Black family considered themselves to be elite and blessed with perfection. Their blood after all was pure. Anyone who married outside of the Black's ranking or dared to defy their beliefs had their names burnt off. Imperfections had no place in the tapestry. Sirius was no exception. Sick of the formalities, oppression and dark loyalties Sirius turned his back on the Black family. His mother did the honor of blasting him off the tapestry.

"So how is this possible?" Looking around he couldn't find any black scorch marks. Andromeda Tonks. Alphard Black. The Weasleys. Harry traced his godfather's name. Someone had weaved the disowned members of the Black family back in. Neither Sirius nor any member of the Order had enough affection for the Black family to fix up 12 Grimmauld Place.

"Who would do this?" Harry whispered to himself.

As Harry's eyes fixed upon his godfather's name again he noticed a new branch connecting a woman with long black hair to his godfather's name.

"The lady from the pictures!"

Whoever had attended to the tapestry had not added the name of this mysterious woman.

He gripped the photo album tightly.

"For someone who seems so close to my family and godfather…why I haven't I heard of you before? And where have you gone?"

"A picture is a secret about a secret, the more it tells you the less you know."
― Diane Arbus