A/N: Sorry, I was a little late in updating this chapter. Thanks as always to my amazing beta, MissBubbles. Hope you all enjoy reading it and that you all had fabulous holidays. Please review!
Summary: Lost and sick in the middle of nowhere, Sirius falls into the hands of a woman whose secrets will tie inextricably into the fate of his godson. What will happen when he finds himself attracted to this strange witch?
The Complexities of the Heart
By katemary77
Chapter Three
"Two
may talk together under the same roof for many years, yet never
really meet; and two others at first speech are old friends."
Mary Catherwood
A couple of days after the Weasleys arrived at Grimmauld Place, Anna found herself unable to sleep once the bright streaks of sunlight that signalled the beginning of a new day invaded her room. Sighing, she rolled toward her bedside and snatched up her wand, performing a complicated jiggle which resulted in fine grey ribbons bursting from her wandtip and twining in the air to form the current time. "6:01:25 AM," She growled into her pillow, knowing it was futile to attempt to find sleep again. Groaning, she pushed herself out of bed and onto the floor, wrapping her woollen dressing gown around herself and heading downstairs.
When she reached the basement kitchen, Anna was unsurprised to find it completely empty; it was a Saturday morning, no doubt the household would sleep in until at least mid-morning. Anna sighed and made her way to the kitchen counter, where she made herself a piece of toast and a piping hot cup of coffee. She stood for a while, absently chewing on her breakfast, when a second entity suddenly invaded her awareness. Brow furrowed, Anna took her cup and toast with her as she mounted the stairs out of the kitchen, following her instincts to find this new presence. She was like a hunter, Anna mused, and then laughed at her apparel; a fierce hunter in a nightie and dressing gown carrying a cup of coffee and marmalade toast.
Reaching the foyer and being sure to keep quiet, Anna moved towards the door and opened it, leaning against the doorframe as she watched her prey. A girl with wild brown hair was struggling along the pavement with a large trunk that was seemingly filled to burst, muttering under her breath and occasionally swiping a wisp of curls from her forehead with her hand.
Anna watched as the girl paused right in front of the house, her head sweeping from number eleven to number thirteen dubiously. She bit her lip and dug around in her pocket for a moment before bringing out a small slip of paper with a triumphant, "Aha!" Her brow furrowed, the girl studied the piece of paper and looked up, her face betraying her wonderment as number 12 Grimmauld Place materialised in front of her.
"The Fidelius Charm!" she said in awe, before starting as she noticed Anna, who gave her a wide grin and beckoned her into the house with a finger on her lips for silence.
"I'm Anna," she whispered, pushing her toast between her teeth to offer the girl a hand, which was promptly shaken. "You must be Hermione," Anna muttered around her meal. "We have to be quiet or everything will wake up!" Drawing her wand, Anna levitated Hermione's heavy trunk into the air and pushed it toward the kitchen.
The poor girl looked more confused than ever but followed Anna, gratefully relinquishing her hold on the heavy trunk.
"Thank you."
Once they reached the kitchen, Anna allowed the trunk to drop to the floor with a soft plop! and gestured for Hermione to take a seat, quickly finishing off her toast.
"As I said, I'm Anna Fair," she smiled.
"Hermione Granger," the girl offered. "I'm sorry I've come so early – my parents wanted to beat the morning traffic."
"That's okay, Hermione," Anna replied. "You're lucky I was awake!"
Hermione grinned; "Yeah, I was a bit worried when I couldn't see the house, but the Fidelius Charm!" she exclaimed excitingly. "Did you see Dumbledore perform it?"
Anna nodded; "Yeah, about a week ago. It was the first time I'd seen it done."
"I've read all about it!" Hermione told her. "I wrote a paper on Ancient Magic last year for Professor Vector – she's the Arithmancy teacher at Hogwarts – and about how it draws on the emotions of people – it's so very interesting!"
"Ancient Magic in Fourth Year, Hermione?" Anna smiled, "That's very advanced! What did you base the paper on?"
It seemed that Anna had opened the proverbial can of worms; for the next three hours until the other members of the household awoke, Anna and Hermione sat discussing everything under the sun, from advanced Arithmancy to the coming war to the difference between the Muggle and Magical worlds. In a few moments, they had become the best of friends.
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After showing Hermione around the house – with a significantly long pause in the library – Anna led her new friend back to the basement where Molly Weasley was preparing lunch.
"Hungry, Hermione?" Anna asked, pushing open the door into the kitchen.
"Starved," was the reply, as Hermione entered the room and was greeted with a chorus of hugs and hellos from the Weasleys.
"You remember Sirius, of course?" Anna asked, gesturing to the dark-haired man who gave Hermione a small hug.
"Of course she does!" Sirius exclaimed. "She saved my life!"
Anna raised her eyebrows and said, "I'll have to hear that story some time. And Remus," she gestured.
"Professor Lupin," Hermione said, giving a small wave.
"Please, Hermione, it's Remus. I'm not your teacher anymore," the werewolf smiled.
"Remus, then," Hermione replied, turning to Molly Weasley who graced her with a warm hug.
"When did you arrive, Hermione?" the matronly woman asked.
"Early this morning. Anna and I chatted for a while and then she showed me around the house."
The group sat around the table as Molly dished up her famous shepherd's pie, politely questioning Hermione about her holidays so far. After answering, Hermione posed a question of her own; "When will Harry be coming?"
"We don't know yet, Hermione," Arthur answered.
"Soon, I hope," commented Sirius dejectedly. "I know how much he hates it there."
"Yes, but Dumbledore knows best and it is for Harry's safety," Molly cut in.
"I suppose," Sirius said slowly. "But if it's safe enough for the Order here, surely it's safe enough for Harry."
Molly gave him a warning look, but all too late.
"Order? What Order?" Ginny asked innocently from her place at the table. The Weasley clan had only been at Grimmauld Place for a few days, but the subject of just what the old, decrepit place was housing had not yet been raised, although Anna knew Ginny, Ron and the twins had been collecting information through their Extendable Ears.
"Nothing, Ginny," Molly answered hastily, sharing a look with her husband.
"This wouldn't be the Order of the Phoenix you're talking about," Hermione asked, eyebrows raised.
The adults in the room turned to glare at Anna, who sat up in her seat.
"What? Don't look at me, I didn't tell her anything!"
Ron smiled at Hermione, clapping a hand on her back.
"Well, Hermione, you'll just have to tell us all about that later on." Hermione blushed slightly at the contact and Anna grinned when Ron's ears turned pink.
"Come on, Mum," George pleaded. "If we're going to be living here then we'll find out eventually. And Fred and I are of age! You might as well tell us now."
"He's right, Mum," Bill added in. "It'll be better if we just tell them straight out what the Order is, because they'll find out another way if we don't," he said with a pointed look at Fred and George. Anna smiled; obviously Bill was aware of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.
Molly sighed and collapsed into her chair; "I suppose you're right. But only what they need to know!" she directed to her eldest son.
"The Order of the Phoenix is a secret group of wizards and witches that Professor Dumbledore formed to fight against You-Know-Who during his last rise," Bill began. "After June, the Headmaster was able to recall the Order and we've made this house our Headquarters, thanks to Sirius who donated it, because it's basically impenetrable. We're working now to stop You-Know-Who's second rise, or at least as much as we can."
"That's quite enough!" Molly cut in, her cheeks flushed.
"Oh, Mum!" Ron complained. "We need more than that! Hermione probably knew all of it anyway!"
"Were you and Dad in the Order last time?" Ginny asked her mother, ignoring Ron.
Arthur shook his head; "No, we weren't. We had five small children to take care of back then. You have to understand, being a member of the Order is very dangerous, which is why you two can't enter!" he finished sternly, anticipating his sons' thoughts. "Your mother and I are worried enough about Bill, Charlie and Per – " Arthur cut himself off, staring at his wife who had turned white. "Molly?"
She nodded numbly.
Anna was confused and surveyed each Weasley, who were all feeling various degrees of misery.
"What?" she asked. "What happened to Percy? Bill?"
The eldest Weasley son gazed steadily at Anna and explained; "Percy's decided to turn his back on his family in favour of the Ministry," he said stonily. "He left The Burrow a few weeks ago."
"He – he left?" Hermione asked, mouth agape.
Fred and George nodded, equal expressions of anger adorning their freckled faces.
"You never mentioned he left in your letters, Ron," she accused.
Ron shrugged.
"I – I didn't want to worry you," he said finally.
Hermione stared hard at Ron for a moment before her face relaxed.
"Okay," she said softly. "Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasly, I'm so sorry. I didn't think that Percy would do such a thing."
"None of us did, Hermione," Bill answered, as his father moved to place a supportive hand on Molly's shoulder, who was wiping tears from her cheeks.
"Well," Hermione began awkwardly, "I guess I should go and unpack. Ron, will you come with me?"
The redhead nodded and stood, following Hermione from the room. Anna watched the two friends leave the room, catching a glimpse of Hermione taking Ron's hand, turning to him stricken, as the kitchen door swung shut.
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"Oh, is this house ever going to be clean!" Ginny Weasley exclaimed angrily as she threw a pile of junk onto a steadily growing pile of rubbish.
"Oh, stop complaining, Ginny," Bill groaned. "You kids wanted to help the Order!"
"Yeah, but, we didn't think that it would involve cleaning!" Ron muttered under his breath.
"It's not that bad," Anna said, from where she and Bill were magicking the long, heavy curtains clean.
Sirius nodded, levitating another pile of rubbish onto the pile. "And you're really helping us out; I don't know what we would've done without you."
"We could at least play a game, to help pass the time, you know," Fred put it.
Ginny's face grew wary.
"Oh, I don't like the sound of that."
"Oh not, it's nothing like that!" George said, taking out his wand and summoning a small orb into the room which he set atop the coffee table. "Of course, if we were playing it with a more adult group," he said, staring pointedly at his younger siblings, "It could be a little more entertaining."
Ginny opened her mouth angrily, but Fred cut her off; "Now, what happens is I tap this little orb with my wand and it begins to ask a series of questions that everybody has to answer; easy stuff like, 'What's you're favourite colour?' Stuff like that."
"That sounds pretty simple," Bill commented.
"Yeah, well, this is just a prototype," George answered. "In the real game whoever can't answer a question has to take a shot of whatever it is the group is drinking or alternatively has to act out a dare."
"Why would someone not be able to answer a question?" Hermione asked curiously.
"Because some questions are trivia questions which some may not be able to answer – whoever is the first to get it right wins and the others take the shot," George replied.
"And some questions," Fred said with a grin, "Are rather personal, in which case some might not want to answer."
The others in the room began to look decidedly uncomfortable as Fred and George's faces split into identical, evil grins.
"So what's going to hold this game together?" asked Sirius who, in contrast to everybody else, didn't look terribly nervous. "I mean, we can't exactly bring out a bottle of Firewhiskey and if Molly finds out that we've foregone cleaning this house for a game of truth or dare, I don't think she'd be too impressed.
Fred and George looked disappointed for a moment, pulling their heads together to murmur incoherently for a few minutes, before they grinned triumphantly.
"Got it!" Fred said triumphantly. "I'll do it, Gred," he addressed to his twin.
"Rightio, Forge."
Fred concentrated for a moment, taking the orb in his hand and waving his wand around it, muttering, "Revela deprehensa secretiori!"
"A modified Revealing Charm?" Hermione asked, eyes wide.
Fred nodded.
"Don't look so surprised, Hermione. We may not have gotten many OWLs, but we're good at what we do!"
"So what'll happen now?" Ron queried.
"It'll reveal an embarrassing secret," Anna answered him.
Fred and George nodded; "Whenever someone chooses not to answer they have to touch the orb with their wand and it will, as Anna said, reveal something embarrassing about that person," Fred supplied. "For the trivia questions I guess…" he thought for a moment. "The desire to win?"
"Okay, let's play!" George said, clapping his hands together, clearly eager to being. "Whoever wants in on the game has to touch their wand to the orb now."
Nobody moved. After a few moments of silence, Ginny sighed and, pushing her shoulders back, marched toward the orb in Fred's hand and touched her wand to it. Eventually, everybody else followed suit, and the game began.
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There was a burst of laughter as the orb revealed its latest embarrassing secret.
"You really had the sex talk with McGonagall?" Sirius cried mirthfully, doubled over from laughing.
Anna's hands were covering her face as she nodded; "In fourth year. I couldn't look at her for weeks!"
Another round of laughter spilled forth from those playing the game.
"Well it's not as if Severus could tell me about sex!" Anna burst defensively, sending Sirius into another wave of giggles.
Ginny hiccupped and paused in her sweeping to pat her brothers on the back.
"Fred, George, I never thought I would say this, but you two are geniuses. I love this game!"
They bowed proudly. The group had been playing the game for a few hours, taking the orb from room to room as they attacked Grimmauld Place.
"If you could be any animal, what would you be?"
"Monkeys!" Fred and George answered together.
"A dog!" Sirius cried proudly.
"A dolphin," Hermione answered.
Ginny was next; "A horse."
"A lion," Ron said, "What about you Bill?"
He thought for a moment, eventually saying, "A cheetah. Anna?"
"A bird," she answered.
"What Muggle African American civil rights leader was assassinated in 1968?" the disembodied voice asked next.
"Martin Luther King," answered Hermione, who was winning the trivia by far, having the advantage of being the only Muggle-born present.
"Oh, why did you put in Muggle questions?" Ron complained, not for the first time.
"We've told you Ron, anyone at all playing should have some sort of advantage," Fred answered.
"What does the spell Tarantallegra derive from?"
"The tarantella," Anna answered, shaking her hips to an imaginary beat. "The dance of southern Italia."
"Where was the wizarding game Quidditch first played?"
"Queerditch Marsh!" Ron said quickly, poking his tongue out at Hermione.
"You are such a child," she muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes derisively.
Bill laughed outright; "Ah, Hermione, you remind me so much of Anna when I first met her at Hogwarts."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, my first day at Hogwarts I became incredibly lost on my way to Transfiguration," Bill recounted. "And this bossy little ten-year-old promptly informs me – completely uninvited, mind you – that I'm going the complete wrong way and that I should get to class soon because 'Professor Minerva' gets very upset when students are late to class; she knows because she used to spy on the classes when she was a girl. And so Anna takes my hand and drags me along to the Transfiguration classroom, sits me down, tells me to be quiet, and we've been friends ever since."
The group laughed.
"Yep, that sounds just like our first meeting with Hermione," Ron affirmed fondly.
"Enough of that, enough of that," George said. "I believe the orb has something to say."
Just in time, the disembodied voice called, "At the present moment, who do you like in a more than platonic way?"
"Angelina Johnson," Fred said easily.
"Katie Bell," George answered. "Ginny?"
She cleared her throat.
"There may be someone."
"Who?" Ron shouted.
"I refuse to answer if Ron is going to be a jerk."
"Oh come on, Ron," Bill placated. "Don't be so overbearing."
"Overbearing!" Ron cried indignantly. "I'm not overbearing!"
"Yes, you are," came a chorus of seven voices.
Ron huffed.
"Well?" George asked. "Who's the lucky guy?"
"Michael Corner," she responded, holding her head high and shaking back her mane of red hair defiantly.
"Michael Corner!" Ron began. "Ginevra Weasley! Since when?"
"Shut up, Ron," came another chorus.
The redhead reddened and dropped his head.
"What about you, Ron?" Ginny asked sweetly.
"No one."
The orb glowed red, indicating a lie. Ron glowered.
"I refuse to answer this question!"
"The last time Ron Weasley wet the bed was only five years ago."
Ron went beet red and stormed from the room. Hermione, sighing, made to follow him"
"Hey Hermione," Fred called. "You haven't answered the question yet!"
"Whatever," she returned. "I forfeit the game."
As she left the room, the disembodied voice remarked, "Hermione Granger has a peculiar affinity for redheads."
The group laughed and turned to Bill.
"I refuse to answer the question!" he spluttered.
"Bill's girlfriend calls him 'Willy.'"
"Well," Anna said nervously, clasping her hands together. "I think this game's over."
"I agree!" Sirius quickly said. "Why don't you kids go and scrub up before dinner? We'll finish up here."
The Weasleys left the room, leaving Sirius and Anna in an uncomfortable silence. They shared a long, awkward look before Anna turned, focusing on the cabinet she was reordering.
"You don't – you don't want any of this Sirius?"
He gaped, horrified at her.
"What, Anna, no – I just…" He trailed off.
"The cabinet, Sirius," she confirmed, looking over her shoulder at him. "Do you want me to save anything in the cabinet?"
"Oh. Oh, no, it's all junk anyway."
She nodded; "Okay."
For a few minutes they worked in a silence that was broken, finally, by Anna turned around and faced Sirius.
"What did you think I meant?" She posed the question innocently, but Sirius could see a hidden agenda in her dark eyes.
"I thought you meant – I just can't… don't worry about it, Ann," he finished lamely.
She nodded and gave him a curious, watery smile.
"Okay, Sirius." She gestured to the cabinet behind her. "Well, I'm done. I guess I'll see you at dinner." She walked out the door and Sirius was left alone in the room, wondering what on earth had just occurred.
A/N: Please review! I'll wrap up Sirius in a box with a bow and send him to you if you do...