The girls stayed outside for nearly an hour, sitting in the field without speaking. Neither wanted to talk about the Weasleys, but neither could think about anything else. Finally Cassi saw George walking toward them, hands shoved in his pockets and staring at the ground. Wordlessly she stood and began to move toward him. Leaving Hermione sitting by herself, Cassi met George halfway.
They stopped moving when they were about five feet apart. For a moment all was silent, then George shifted and scuffed his shoe on a rock. "So...we're nearly ready to leave, I think," he said quietly without looking up from the ground. Cassi nodded, then replied just as softly, "I'm ready too, I'll let Hermione know." She slowly backed away, searching George's face to gauge his emotions, then turned and began to walk back to Hermione.
She relayed the message as lightly as she could, but she still saw Hermione's lip tremble when she mentioned it. Hermione nodded, and Cassi helped her up. Together they walked back to where George was waiting, then all three of them started toward the house. Though his face betrayed nothing, Cassi could have sworn she heard George sniffle every now and then. Her heart broke as she tried to imagine the pain and anger all the Weasleys must be feeling, particularly the twins.
A melancholy group it was that assembled in the kitchen at the Burrow. There had clearly not been a satisfactory reconciliation. Mr. Weasley's eyes had lost the irate fire that they had held earlier, now revealing a sadness and a hurt that Cassi knew was so far beyond emotion that it was physical pain, too. Mrs. Weasley looked frightened and broken, no longer the independent, bustling woman everyone loved. Fred sported a bloody fist, and Cassi's heart broke just a little bit more at the hurt and confused expression on his face that must have been hiding under his facade of anger and violence earlier. George was the most composed of the lot of them - the only emotion he showed was in the depths of his eyes, which were cloudy and brooding. Ron looked torn between the desire for peace in his family and the urge to punch something, but with his primary target no longer around, he was beginning to realize how serious a blow this was to the family as a whole. Ginny was downright furious, though she was restraining herself admirably, and Cassi knew that she had been the least attached of the Weasleys to her brother, so she naturally showed the least regret for his loss. Hermione was still struggling to keep a firm hand on her tears, knowing that sympathy at just this moment would only escalate tension and anger, and do little to alleviate the pain.
And what did Cassi feel? She didn't know perfectly well herself; she knew she hurt for the people affected by this rift, but she also knew that her feelings would change nothing, so why bother crying over spilled milk? The old Muggle saying came to mind, and she knew now more than ever how true it was. So many chances she had had recently to test its veracity - Harry's name being chosen for the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Snape refusing to see her, and now this. She held tightly to Mrs. Weasley's trembling arm as she berated life for being so cruel to those who deserved nothing but the best.
Mr. Weasley mechanically checked to make sure everyone was where they needed to be for their trip to...wherever they were going, then gave a quiet signal. The world spun, dissolving the Burrow into photons and rearranging them into a place Cassi had never seen. They were standing in a good-sized room with two large windows whose curtains had been drawn, causing a dusky gloom to lay thickly over the whole place. After a moment Cassi could make out the outlines of a multitude of chairs and a long table nearly stretching the length of the room, and she deduced that they were standing in the dining room of a large, richly-furnished house. But the lack of lighting and the events of earlier seemed to dim the attributes of the place, as each member of the Weasley family began to fall away, exiting quietly through the heavy double doors before them. Eventually only Cassi, Hermione, and Ginny were left. Then Ginny broke the silence by reaching for her trunk and saying quietly, "I'll show you our room, Hermione." Slowly the two of them left, abandoning Cassi to the darkness of this strange place. She pulled out one of the chairs and sat on its edge, not trusting herself to go wandering about trying to find the twins. They probably didn't want to see her anyway.
She was only alone for a few minutes, though - soon the heavy doors swung open again, this time boldly and impatiently. A dim outline paused in the doorway, and Cassi could tell it was a tall, slim figure, and it was peering into the darkness and looking for something. She thought of standing and saying something, but for the moment she was rather frightened of talking to a stranger when so many strange things were already happening.
"I know I heard something in here; Kreacher, is that you?" came a man's voice. He sounded rather exasperated, and Cassi thought it best not to try his patience by pretending not to exist. "Excuse me, sir, I'm in here," she volunteered as she stood quietly. The man in the doorway quickly began to move toward the covered windows, but was forced to slow his pace as his foot connected with a heavy and very solid object. Stifling a low curse, he eventually gained the windows and flung open the curtains, chasing off the dim blue haze with bright sunlight. Cassi blinked for a moment, curiosity wanting to see who the man was but her dazzled eyes making her slow down. As she became accustomed to the light, she was surprised at what she saw.
As she already knew, the man was tall and thin. He wore a brown coat and waistcoat, which perfectly matched his long wavy hair. His face was long and pale and looked as though the last few years had aged him more rapidly than they should have. But it held the mark of nobility - a regal face, with strong lines and a lofty glance. He had dark brown eyes that had once been mischievous and full of life, but now a tired and confined look had covered up all but a tiny sparkle of light that lay in wait for the perfect moment to spring out and play some joke on an unsuspecting passer-by. Cassi was reminded of the twins.
"And who are you, who seems to be enjoying the use of my kitchen?" he queried, a light note and a wary undercurrent to his tone. She rushed to resolve his supicions. "Excuse me, sir, my name is Cassandra Renner. I'm here with the Weasleys." At that, the man's eyes lit up a bit. "They're here, then? Well, it's about time, too! I was expecting them at two, and here they are showing up at a quarter to four! I've half a mind to find Arthur and ask what the blazes held them up so long - Moody was nearly ready to send out a search party, and-"
"Oh, please, sir, that would be a very bad idea right now," interrupted Cassi in alarm. The man looked at her curiously. She knew she sounded rude, but the Weasleys were not to be disturbed right now. That was the least Cassi could do for them. "I'm sorry, sir, I didn't mean to interrupt...it's just that the Weasleys are rather indisposed to talk to anyone right now, I think."
"But they'll talk to me, I've known Arthur and Molly for ages," the man said confidently as he turned and strode toward the door. "If you'd just be so kind as to tell me where Arthur is-"
"No!" The man paused, then slowly turned to look at Cassi, who had jumped up, darted toward him, and grabbed his arm without realizing it. She blushed faintly and let go of his arm, but said emphatically, "I think I can safely promise you that no matter how long you've known Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, at the moment they don't want to talk to you." Her words and expression finally seemed to sink in, and the man's eyes grew worried. "Is someone hurt?" he asked, now grabbing her arm. "Are they alright? What's going on?"
Cassi knew it wasn't her place to go around telling people about others' private problems, but she also knew that she had to keep this man from interrupting her friends right now. "Family problems," she said simply. The man watched her face intently for a moment, muttered to himself under his breath and let go of her arm. "Well. Family problems are certainly ones I've had enough of in my time, so I suppose I really don't need to go around getting into other people's, too." He moved away from her a little bit, looking at a picture frame that was empty. Cassi wondered what had once been in it to make the stranger glare like that.
Soon the man seemed to catch himself brooding, because he turned to her and assumed a more pleasant expression. "Well then, since you seem to be the only one here who will talk to me," he said with mock bitterness, "allow me to introduce myself. Sirius Black, at your service, Miss Cassandra Renner." Sirius Black...Harry's godfather, she knew, and falsely accused of the murder of thirteen Muggles. Sent to Azkaban for 14 years, recently escaped. "It's an honor to meet you, sir, Harry's told me a lot about you." She held out her hand to shake, and was surprised into a small laugh when he took it and bowed low over it. Gently brushing a kiss to her knuckles, he released her hand with a flourish. "Don't call me 'sir' - makes me feel old. Sirius will do; or 'Mr. Black', I suppose, if you insist." She responded in kind. "Then you've got to call me Cassi, I hardly remember to answer to my full name."
Sirius gave her a smile, which she thought made him look years younger, and replied, "Well then, Cassi, let me show you around my humble abode. Welcome to Grimmauld Place." He held open the dining room door and bowed as she smiled at his antics and walked through, ready to discover this new world she'd been thrown into. If Sirius was any indication, she thought she'd like this place very much.