Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Sad days. All hail the Queen!

Return to Grimmauld Place

Harry Apparated to the alleyway at the end of the street. Even though it was very late, he didn't want to risk a Muggle seeing him. May was slowly beginning to fade to June, bringing with it the warm damp air of summer. Harry straightened his glasses and made his way onto the street. Grimmauld Place was quiet and dark, several of the streetlamps needed replacing and most all lights in the houses were out. Harry stopped in the place between number eleven and number thirteen and waited until number twelve came completely into view. He climbed the rotting steps and made a mental note to fix those soon. He tapped his wand several times on the front door and pushed it open. Harry was met with the musty smell of neglect. It had been nearly a year since he, Ron, and Hermione had used this place to hide out from the Death Eaters; before that it had been abandoned for over year after Dumbledore died. The work he and the Weasley's had put in during the summer holidays before fifth year seemed to have been for naught as Harry wandered through each room of the house, noting the most pressing needs. He stopped short as he reached the topmost floor which was split between two bedrooms. The door to the right was marked Regulus Arcturus Black, and the left Sirius Pollux Black. His breath hitched in his throat as he pushed open the latter door. He had been in Sirius's old bedroom once before, when he found half of a letter from his mother, but Harry was still caught off guard be just how very Sirius the room was. The rest of the house was dark and dull, but this room was brightly decorated, though faded with age, in Gryffindor maroon and gold, a few posters of bikini clad Muggles, pictures of motorbikes, and even a few posters for Muggle rock bands. He cleared his throat and left, shutting the door gently behind him, and made his way back down stairs to survey the kitchen.

After nearly a week of nonstop cleaning, with the help of Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and even Kreacher, the bottom two floors were completely cleared of all dust, grime, and manner of magical pest. Harry had allowed Kreacher to keep a few of the less sinister of his former masters' belongings which had made him very happy and much more willing to help with the restoration of the house. Harry had set the girls on the task of redecorating, including new wallpaper and carpets. Harry and Ron continued to work on the third floor while the elf took care of the kitchen. The boys had split up, each taking a different room in hopes of finishing the third floor that day. Harry was cleaning under the bed when a scream pierced the silence.

"HARRY!"

It came from the room across the hall. Harry shot up, rushing to the aid of his best friend. There was no telling what kind of creature he had stumbled across. Harry burst into the room, wand raised, looking around frantically for the source of the fright. He spotted Ron hunched on top of a wardrobe in the corner, holding his knees and shaking violently.

"Ron, what is it?" Harry still had not managed to see the creature.

Ron pointed a quivering finger at the bedside table where a tiny spider had built its web between the furniture and the wall. Harry looked from the spider to his best friend and fell to the floor laughing. Ron made a sort of angry grunt but stayed on his perch.

"Shall I call Hermione up here to take care of it?" Harry breathed between laughter. "I think this may be beyond my skill."

"Yeah, yeah. You're hilarious, mate. Just kill it, will you?!"

Harry, still trying to control his laughter, took a tissue from the box on the nightstand and wrapped the spider and web in it and squished it in his hand. Ron jumped down from his hiding place.

"Thanks mate." He clapped Harry on the back.

"Not a problem." Harry tossed the tissue at Ron who jumped and shrieked.

"Not funny," Ron growled.

"I thought it was."

A special thanks to TheShulesLovinPsycho for reviewing and hermioneglee143, natalie1668, and RosarioGiralda for following and favoriting!

Written for Musical Prompts- Fear of Spiders

Word count: 706