AN: I do not own Harry Potter, and the old fairy tales are no longer within copy right. Remember, my version of Grimmauld is slightly like an insane version of a sentient building.

Grimmauld Nursery Tales

Hermione leaned over the desk, gently blowing dust off of the cover of a heavily worn book of fairy tales.

For all that Kreacher had clearly kept Regulus' room clean and in precise condition, he hadn't cleaned the rest of the house. However, what he had done was leave apparently beloved belongings in their former owner's preferred locations. They were currently in a young child's room. It was certainly one of the pleasanter rooms that they had walked into with it's light yellow walls. A baby blue quilt decorated with hawks, crows, owls, and hippogriffs in alternating squares. A desk with a chair, on top of which were typical children's books - fairy tales, beginning to read books - and a basic penmanship book, was against the wall mostly under the window. The curtains were white with a sunny yellow fringe. Silver grey carpets were on the floor on top of the ancient hardwood.

Grimmauld certainly had to have wizarding space applied to the inside, otherwise there was no way the vast amount of rooms that they had cleaned could fit into the muggle townhouse the building was either hidden as or began as. Either it was that, or the stair case acted as a portal to another, larger building, for all that the main floor belonged to the current location.

Harry turned as he heard Hermione blowing.

"So what are you treating so gently this time?"

"A really old thing of fairy tales. I wonder if any are like the muggle ones."

"I don't really know the muggle ones. Durselys, remember?"

"That is so unfair. You must have started even further behind than I did, before I learned that magic was real. Did you know that certain fairy tales in the muggle world are actual historical facts or teach actual facts about magic in the wizarding world? Take Thumbelina, for example. A lady that really wants a child goes to a witch, and is given a tulip to plant in her house. When it blooms, a girl the size of her thumb is found in the center. I think that one means that you cannot make a full size person from a plant, no matter what magic you use. Thumbelina in the end marries a fairy. There are all sizes of magic folk in the wizarding world. Though, to be honest, I think only Luna views fairies as people if I think about people in school."

"Huh. I mean, I did hear about some things from Cedric and his parents about magic that are taught through stories, but I didn't realize there were more teaching stories. I guess it's something that I need to read, to know some more basics?"

"Of course, Harry. I know you have an aversion to books, but you do need to study if you are going to learn more about the world we've been in now since we were eleven."

Harry groaned.

"I'm not going to get out of this, am I?"

"Nope. I will read it aloud to you if that is what it takes."

"Fine. If I ask you to read it to me, would you?"

"Of course! Oh by the way, have you done your summer homework yet? I am wondering what you thought the second topic for Professor Snape's essay was about."

"Sorry, I must have missed it."

"Oh, that's not good! How are you going to understand what he will be teaching this year if you don't do the preliminary work? This is our OWL year, after all, and this is one of the tests that employers and masters looking to take on apprentices will be looking at. It's also important if we want to leave school after this year and still be able to use our wand. Not that you're getting out of it, Harry James Potter. You have a mad man after you, and as much as you tend to get attacked once a year by the defense professor, you need to learn how to defend yourself. Voldemort has what, fifty years on you? I know he seems to be underestimating you so far, but I wonder if it's because he's been keeping to our grade level and the unforgivables when he duels you. There's got to be a lot more magic that he knows that he hasn't used when you aren't around. I mean, look there's so many books here, and only so many are about the history of the Black family. There's got to be books on defensive magic and other things they studied from their family when they died. I wonder how much we could use?"

Harry was a little desperate at this moment for a change of topic. So, like a typical panicked person, he decided to use what was right in front of him: the room.

"So, baby blacks didn't grow up around a massive amount of green."

"Oh," Hermione's lit again as they did when a recently favorite topic came up, "I did a little bit of research this past year. There may be a good reason for that. Did you know that the old way to die wallpaper or some other things green was arsenic? Obviously, they wouldn't want anything that could poison the child to be in the room that the child stayed in most of the time. Not saying that all the green wallpaper currently in Grimmauld is dyed with arsenic, but it could be."

"Could that affect their children's brains? It's just that we hear a lot about the madness of the Black family."

"That... actually makes a lot of sense. It also makes sense why Sirius has been purposely been painting over the walls in the rooms. It would create a barrier over the arsenic so that we wouldn't breathe it in. No wonder the rest of Sirius' family went crazy."

"Well, it's a good thing we're wearing scarves to protect ourselves from breathing in all the dust already."

"I'm not sure how much of a help they do, but at least it's something."

AN: Please make sure you are wearing the correct PPE for dealing with various chemicals and substances. Please do not poison yourself. If you cannot wear the correct type of PPE, please wear something that would help that you won't react to. And yes, take breaks for breathing if you have to.


Professor Snape slowed his steps as he heard Granger say, "and only so many are about the history of the Black family."

He paused and listened to Granger talk about finding defensive magic and other things that the Black family might have books on in the library and Harry's slightly panicked diversion of her rant once she got going.

He didn't care for the brat, not that he cared really for most students that passed through his class room. However, he was supposed to be protecting the boy. Well, he was protecting the boy by being out of his sight and being aggravated more than necessary. Though, the diverted topic was really important as well. Were they poisoning themselves, the entire Order, by living in a house with poisonous green walls, literally? He resolved to take a piece of the wall paper and test it to find out. Not that he cared over much, but he really didn't want his comrades dying from living in the current safe house. He didn't want to get the Black madness anymore than the next man, and if it was preventable, he would do what he could.

He should probably bring it up to Dumbledore as well. Who knew how many times the Headmaster brushed off the concerns of those below the age of adulthood? He knew he wasn't much better, but that was because he scared the rest besides his house from coming to him in the first place. He had enough to do, what with supplying and teaching and his Head of House duties.