XXXVII: A Nice Family Dinner

Chapter XXXVII: A Nice Family Dinner

It was raining Kneazles and Crups when Snape made his way to Grimmauld Place, and the weather fitted the Potions master's mood perfectly. He was, for once, the bearer of good news, but he knew that with Charis' recovery came Dumbledore's insistence on telling the girl the truth. And this could, in Snape's opinion, only lead to more trouble.

He found Dumbledore by the fireplace in the sitting room with a pot of tea and a huge carrot cake.

'Ah, Severus, what a surprise.'

Snape did his best not to sneer. As if anything would ever surprise Albus Dumbledore. The old wizard seemed to know everything about everybody. Certainly, he even knew what kind of underwear the Minister of Magic was wearing or what Voldemort had eaten for breakfast. And he had probably known that Snape was on his way for quite some time.

'Tea? Cake?' Dumbledore asked, his blue eyes twinkling and his lips curled into a smile. 'Please, have a seat. Take off your boots, if you like. It wouldn't surprise me if your socks were drenched. We have had such terrible weather today.'

Ignoring Dumbledore's comment about the state of his socks, Snape took a seat, secretly enjoying the warmth the fire lent. 'Tea would be... acceptable,' he replied as Dumbledore once more made an inviting gesture towards the pot and the cake.

The old man poured them both a cup of divinely smelling herbal tea, cut off an enormous piece of carrot cake and put it onto a plate right under Snape's nose. 'Cake lifts the spirits, Severus.'

'As should the news I am bringing you,' Snape stated and demonstratively crossed his arms in front of his chest. When would Dumbledore understand that he would not eat in this house? 'Miss Byrne was dismissed from the hospital wing last night.'

'That is wonderful news indeed, Severus,' Dumbledore exclaimed, brushing cake crumbs from his beard. 'Wonderful.'

'As for Mr Morrissey, he is apparently stable,' Snape continued. 'He will, however, be kept in St. Mungo's for some time.'

Dumbledore fixed his Potions master with a piercing look. 'Only you could deliver such agreeable news with a frown on your face, Severus.'

Snape raised an eyebrow. 'I would have thought that by now you had realised that this is my natural expression.'

'Don't try to fool me, dear boy.' Again, there was that look in Dumbledore's eyes that made Snape's skin crawl. 'What is on your mind?'

Since Dumbledore had asked such a direct question, Snape decided to give him a direct answer. 'I have reservations regarding Miss Byrne being told of her heritage.'

'Don't you think Charis deserves to be told, Severus?' Dumbledore asked, peering over his half-moon glasses characteristically. 'After all she has been through?'

'What if that knowledge places her in even greater jeopardy?' Snape shot back. 'It took some quite advanced methods of persuasion to keep Bellatrix from storming Hogwarts to finish what she had started. I told her that the girl was terrified after her ordeal and that I had used a memory charm on her so she would forget about delving into her ancestry. Still, Bella is anything but happy.'

'I assume you were able to... take her mind off things?' Dumbledore asked tactfully.

'I suggested she should lead the operation at the Ministry to retrieve the prophecy with Lucius,' Snape confirmed.

Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully. 'I assume dear Bella bought your suggestion at once. She would be only too happy to snatch the glory from her brother-in-law. Unfortunately for her, there will be no glory. The Order is ready. We will be awaiting them.'

A poor consolation, Snape thought. But at least, both Bella and Lucius would hopefully be in Azkaban by the beginning of summer. Of course, they would be sent there for breaking into the Ministry and not for their crimes against Charis and Morgana. But as long as they rotted behind bars, Snape would be content.

'Say, Severus,' Dumbledore suddenly asked. 'Do you have any plans for tomorrow evening?'

'You mean aside from dusting off potions phials?' Snape answered in a wary tone. What did the old man want him to do now? Steal an egg from a dragon?

'I would like you to join us for dinner,' Dumbledore explained. 'Molly is making Rumbledethumps. She and Arthur will be here, and Remus, Alastor, and Tonks. A nice family dinner, so to speak.'

'Is my presence quite necessary?' Snape asked, hoping against hope that Dumbledore would say no. Suddenly, stealing a dragon egg did seem quite appealing after all.

'In fact, it is, Severus,' Dumbledore started to explain. 'Seeing as Grimmauld Place is Unplottable, I need someone to escort the girls.'

Snape felt the muscles in his jaw tighten. 'The girls? And which girls might they be?' Maybe, if he played dumb, Dumbledore would realise how nutty the idea was. Unfortunately, it seemed to amuse the old man instead.

'Sometimes you are surprisingly slow, Severus. I am, of course, talking about Charis and Morgana.'

'And just why are Miss Byrne and Miss Belakane invited to this... family gathering?' Snape asked with narrow eyes. The old man was clearly up to something. Could he not resist meddling in other people's lives for even a moment?

Dumbledore, however, seemed in no hurry to answer Snape's question. He simply closed his eyes in delight as he took a bite from yet another piece of cake and then slowly sipped on his tea.

'If this is about your insane idea about inviting them to the Order...' Snape burst out, but Dumbledore cut him short.

'Insane idea? I am giving them a choice, Severus.'

Now it was Snape's turn to interrupt. 'A choice?' he spat. 'Just like you gave me one?'

Dumbledore slowly placed his cup on the saucer. 'Remember that it was you who approached me, Severus.' Dumbledore looked hard at the younger wizard for few moments before continuing and casually refilled his cup. 'But that is another matter. Charis and Morgana are already involved in this war. Introducing them to the Order provides them with a safety net. They will know that we are right behind them and will protect them, whether or not they decide to join us. Bring them around for dinner so they can meet everyone. Let us introduce them to the family.'

'Introduce them to the family.' Snape sneered. 'You have no idea how much you just sounded like the Dark Lord, Dumbledore.'

'Has Tom ever offered you such delicious cake?' Dumbledore asked mildly. The insult had run off him like water off the Giant Squid. 'But if you'd rather not come, I can always send Remus around to fetch the girls...'

Snape shot off his chair as if stung by a Skrewt. 'You will do no such thing.'

'Won't I?' Dumbledore asked innocently.

'If Umbridge catches a whiff of a werewolf at Hogwarts, she will have him in Azkaban so fast his knackers will be swinging like a Newton's Cradle.'

Dumbledore leant back in his chair and looked up at Snape. 'And since when are you concerned about Remus' welfare?'

Snape took a deep breath to calm himself. He should not have flared up like this. 'I am looking at the bigger picture here, Dumbledore. Lupin is famously one of your most vocal supporters, just as you are famously tolerant of his lycanthropy. If he gets caught at Hogwarts without invitation, that will be yet another nail in your coffin. Umbridge will tighten security; there will be yet another decree...'

'I can count on you to bring around the girls around by seven then?' Dumbledore replied, cutting Snape off mid-rant, and Snape folded his arms with a silent hmph. Once more, he had walked right into Dumbledore's trap.

'Charis will have to go to Diagon Alley to acquire a new wand,' the older wizard continued. 'I would like you to accompany her and Morgana on Saturday. Of course, this will mean that you will all have to spend the night.'

Snape's stomach turned at the thought. Not only would he be forced to eat at Grimmauld Place, he would also have to sleep over! What next? Would Dumbledore ask him to bunk in with him or instead lay tightly spooned against the Black hound?

'Molly will make up a room for you,' Dumbledore announced, as if in answer to his unspoken question. 'The girls, I suppose, will not mind sharing one of the big beds upstairs.'

When Dumbledore returned his attention to his cake, Snape considered himself dismissed and left with hurried steps. Thank Merlin he was a brilliant Occlumens. He would have hated to explain to Dumbledore just what kind of thoughts the mentioning of Charis and Morgana sharing a bed had awoken in him.

* * *

'Why don't we let Silvy decide?' Morgana suggested. She and Charis had discussed the choices for their Friday-Girls-Only-Dinner for about ten minutes now. And not only was it making her more and more hungry, it was also making her grumpy. Before she could call her elf, however, there was a rap knock at the door.

The girls stared at each other for a moment, neither of them moving. It was still the Easter holidays and the castle was still pretty much deserted. Who could it be? Had Umbridge returned early and somehow found out that Morgana had more or less moved to Ravenclaw Tower? Surely, that would violate Educational Decree two thousand and twenty-seven somehow.

'You open it,' Morgana said eventually, sternly looking at Charis. 'It's your common room, after all.'

Charis reluctantly peeled herself of the cosy armchair she had spent the better part of the afternoon in and made her way towards the door. 'Peeves, if that's you...' she started in a weary tone.

'It is not Peeves, Miss Byrne!'

The Potions master's voice made Charis stop dead in her tracks and Morgana jump off the sofa. What, by Merlin's saggy scrotum, was Snape doing in Ravenclaw Tower?

After a moment of shock, Charis hurried to open the door. 'Sorry, sir. Peeves has been a little active over the last few hours,' she blabbered. 'His latest trick is leaving green slime all over the door handles. It's quite disgusting.'

The look on Snape's face suggested that he had some of said slime on his own hands, and Charis quickly lowered her gaze. She hated it when he looked at her that way. She wanted him to look at her... well, as if he cared about her.

Blushing slightly, she gestured for Snape to enter the common room, but he kept standing in the door.

'You are both invited, at Dumbledore's request, to attend dinner this evening,' he announced.

The news made both girls raise their eyebrows in surprise. But before they could interrupt and ask any questions, Snape swiftly continued.

'You will be spending the night, so you will need to pack an overnight bag. Tomorrow I will escort you to Diagon Alley so you, Miss Byrne, can buy a new wand before term commences.' He looked down his nose at the girls with a judging expression on his face. 'We are expected for dinner in half an hour, so I need you two to powder your noses very quickly. I will be waiting for you here. There is no need to dress up.'

Leaving the girls feeling confused, Snape turned on his heel and with a bang, he slammed the door shut behind him.

Charis turned around and looked at her friend with a puzzled look on her face. 'Why would Dumbledore invite us to dinner? And to stay over for the night? Stay where?'

Morgana shrugged. Dumbledore involved in dinner invitations and Snape as an escort had not proved to be a good combination for her in the past. But she decided not to say anything, although she could think of millions of nasty comments. She was also puzzled as to why Snape had been chosen to escort Charis to buy a new wand instead of her own Head of House. But instead of voicing her concern, she urged Charis to haste.

'Judging by the scowl on Snape's face, we won't have much more than ten minutes before he kicks down the door and drags us to dinner. Let's hurry and not ask him any questions.'

Five minutes later, Charis and Morgana stood ready in front of their Potions master. They had each packed an overnight bag as requested. Morgana's had been brought to Ravenclaw Tower by Silvy along with the black trousers and matching blouse she was now wearing. Charis, on the other hand, had chosen a modest, dark blue dress. Snape, however, did not seem to care what either of them was wearing. He just gave them a curt nod and billowed down the stairs ahead of them. They had to jog to keep up with him, and once they had arrived outside the gates, they were both slightly out of breath.

'As I cannot divulge our destination to you, we will have to use Side-Along Apparition,' Snape announced and raised both his arms. 'I suggest you both hold on tight. I have no desire to deal with any Splinching tonight. And trust me, this is just as awkward for me as it is for you. Now get moving.'

Charis took hold of Snape's arm first. She felt the sinewy curve of his bicep and could not help but imagine how it would feel to touch his bare skin instead of the fabric of his robes. Oh, to touch his muscular upper arm, to trace a line down his manly chest with her fingers... Charis blinked to clear her mind. The mere thought sent a shudder of pleasure through her.

Morgana, however, was more cautious. She had always hated touching people and that feeling had become stronger over the last couple of months. Now it extended even to Snape, one of the people whom she trusted more than anyone else. But she had no choice.

'Hold hands,' Snape commanded and exhaled sharply as the Charis and Morgana joined their hands right in front of his stomach. Having them so close felt both good and uncomfortable at the same time. Uncomfortable because he himself was unused to prolonged physical contact and tried to avoid it whenever possible; good because those two were his girls and having them standing on either side of him made a warmth rise inside his chest that he had not experienced in years. Did they want him still, he wondered? Would they, if he lifted his arms and pulled them into an embrace, forget about Dumbledore's invitation and follow him to the dungeons instead?

A muscle twitched right under Snape's right eye, and he mentally slapped himself. What in Hades was he thinking? Those girls were about to be lured into joining the Order to fight in a war in which they should never have been involved. And here he was, fantasising about taking them both to his bed? How low could one sink?

'Are you ready?' he growled and drew himself up to his full height. 'We will Apparate on three. One, two ...'

* * *

'Welcome, welcome to both of you.' Dumbledore greeted both girls with a warm handshake and an even warmer smile. 'I am so glad to see both of you up and about. Severus, thank you for bringing them here.'

Snape just nodded curtly, and the girls peered curiously around the hall. Snape had not told them where he was bringing them, and the procedure to get into the house had been peculiar to say the least. As far as they could understand, there were several spells put on the house to keep unwanted persons from entering and even from seeing the building.

Whatever was so special about that place, they wondered. And why all the fuss to keep people away? The entrance hall itself seemed unfriendly enough to make anyone want to leave again. It was gloomier than the darkest corridors of the dungeons at Hogwarts, the carpet was worn and the wallpaper was peeling off. The only specks of colour were Albus Dumbledore's purple robes.

'Dinner isn't quite ready yet,' Dumbledore explained. 'So why don't we go and have a little chat in the...'

He was interrupted by a deafening shriek.

'Mudbloods! Filth! Blood traitors... '

The tantrum of the woman in the portrait at the end of the corridor stopped as suddenly as it had begun, and she just stared at the people standing in front of her with her mouth hanging open. Charis and Morgana stared back at her with slightly puzzled expressions on their faces. Dumbledore and Snape, however, exchanged meaningful glances.

A door flew open and rushing out of it came a rather good-looking, if somewhat rugged, man. He had long, wavy, dark hair, which fell over his shoulders casually, and his appearance was only marred by dark circles under his eyes.

'Who managed to shut up the hag?' he asked and covered the portrait swiftly with heavy curtains. Then his grey eyes fell onto the visitors.

'Sirius,' Dumbledore started. 'Our guests of honour have arrived. Morgana, Charis, I'd like you to meet the master of the house, Sirius Black.'

Instinctively, both girls took a step backwards. Sirius Black? What, by Hades, was Dumbledore playing at? Sirius Black was a convicted murderer on the run.

Charis narrowed her eyes. Sirius Black was also Harry Potter's godfather, she had learned from her brief involvement with the DA. And he had, according to Harry, right-out accused Snape of being a Death Eater. How dare he? Dumbledore, however, seemed to trust Sirius Black. Why else would he hold a dinner party at his house? But Charis was wary. For the time being, she did not trust the man one bit.

'I wish people would stop flinching at my name,' Black grumbled and expectantly looked at Dumbledore. The old man, however, seemed suddenly terribly interested in a piece of wallpaper that was peeling off the wall.

Charis was the first to pipe up. 'Professor Dumbledore, sir, um... I don't mean to be rude or anything but why exactly have Morgana and I been invited... here?'

Stroking his beard, Dumbledore turned towards the girls and smiled. 'You have been invited to dinner.'

'Are we to expect a Ministry raid around dessert?' Everyone looked at Morgana, who stood with her arms crossed in front of her chest and her eyes blazing. But with everyone looking at her, she just shrugged. 'What? That would seem natural whilst having dinner with two of the most wanted men in Britain.'

Snape didn't know if he should award Morgana House points for her honesty or deduct some for her being insolent. So he just gave her one of his darkest scowls.

Dumbledore, however, smiled. 'I very much doubt the Ministry will find us today. They have failed so far. But yes, it is time we explain to both Charis and Morgana why they have been invited here today. I think we should all have a seat in the drawing room.' He pointed towards the door Sirius Black had stormed out of only minutes before. 'Severus, I would like you to join us as well.'

Once upon a time, the drawing room had certainly been exquisite, but now it looked just as rundown as the corridor had. The pelmets, by the look of it, had seen a recent Doxy infestation, and the embroidered carpet was now tattered and frayed in places. Not even the crackling fire in the large ornate fireplace managed to lend the room a cosy atmosphere.

Black positioned himself by the fireplace, leaning casually against the mantle. Dumbledore took a seat in a dark green armchair opposite the couch on which he had bidden the girls to make themselves comfortable. Snape, just like Black, kept standing, but by the windows. From there, he could observe both the movements on the street in front of the house as well as the people in the drawing room. This was bound to be interesting.

'The Blacks have always been incredibly proud of their heritage, and this was once the most important room of the Black Mansion,' Dumbledore started, making a sweeping gesture around the room. 'Family heirlooms were kept in the cabinets over there. And whoever doubted the purity of the Black family tree only needed to have a look at the tapestry on that wall to see how far back lineage went.'

The girls followed Dumbledore's hand with their eyes. Only a blind person could miss that tapestry. It covered the entire wall and had certainly been a sight to behold once. But as everything else they had seen of the Black house so far, it had lost its glory. The colours had faded, and here and there black holes disfigured the tapestry. They looked like burn marks.

'Did someone try to set the thing on fire?' Morgana asked, wondering why anyone would treat their family tree like this. There was a similar tapestry in Lucius' office at Malfoy Manor. One day last summer, she remembered, an elf had accidently broken off a piece of golden thread while dusting. The poor thing had received twenty strokes with Lucius' cane.

'My dear mother, whom you have had the pleasure to meet in the corridor, had the rather nasty habit of blasting off family members who didn't live up to the Black standard,' Black pointed out sourly. 'Puff!' he said and mimed an explosion with his hands.

'Sirius here was removed the day he was sorted into Gryffindor,' Dumbledore explained. 'Another reason to be removed is marrying below family standards. Yet another is to be born a Squib. This is why you won't find your great-grandfather on the tapestry, Charis.'

One could have heard a needle drop in the drawing room at Grimmauld Place. Even the fire seemed to have stopped crackling. The first one to move was Sirius Black as he sauntered towards the tapestry.

'Marius Black,' he said and pointed towards one of the holes. 'My great-uncle and your great-grandfather.'

Charis stared at Sirius with big eyes. Was he seriously saying that she was a Black?

'I understand that this must come as a shock to you, Charis,' Dumbledore said calmly. 'But it is important that you know the truth.'

Charis was still unable to tear her eyes of the tapestry. 'Is that why ... because of ... but how ...'

She was unable to form a coherent sentence. Thankfully, Dumbledore understood what she was trying to ask.

'You and Jack were on the verge of discovering one of the best kept secrets of the Black family. The documents you picked up at the WORM contained all the information you needed to find out that you are a direct descendant of Phineas Nigellus Black, just like Sirius.'

Suddenly, Dumbledore was holding both the envelope from WORM and Charis' bag and held them out towards Charis, who took them without really knowing what she was doing. She was still staring at the gaping hole where once the name Marius Black had stood.

'Marius married a Muggle and had one daughter, Callista, who later married George Byrne,' Dumbledore explained.

Finally Charis' brain kicked into gear again. 'George Byrne was my grandfather,' she pointed out.

Morgana rose from the sofa to scrutinise the tapestry. 'You are related to the Malfoys?' she suddenly asked and turned towards Sirius, her blue eyes glittering.

Black nodded. 'Cousin Narcissa is married to Lucius Malfoy, yes. All pure-blood families are interrelated. Your choice of partners is severely limited when you are only allowed to marry pure-bloods.'

A knock on the door interrupted the conversation. 'Sorry to disturb you,' Remus Lupin said as he poked his head inside. 'Alastor and Nymphadora have just arrived. And Molly says dinner is ready.' Then he smiled shyly towards the girls. 'It's nice to see you two again.'

Dumbledore at once rose from his chair. 'We don't want to keep Molly waiting. Come on, everyone.'

He left the room swiftly followed by Black and Snape, who ushered the girls out of the door in front of him. Neither of them said a word. It seemed absurd that they, only a couple of weeks ago, had been joking about Charis being related to Draco Malfoy just to find out now that they were indeed third cousins.

* * *

'Eat, girls, eat,' Molly Weasley encouraged Charis and Morgana as she filled their plates for the third time.

'Are you trying to fatten them up for Christmas?' Alastor Moody grumbled into his own bulging plate. His comment earned him a look from Mrs Weasley that could have made a troll shiver.

'Alastor is right, Molly,' Lupin agreed. 'They won't have any room for your famous chocolate cake if you keep refilling their plates. And that would be a shame indeed.'

Snape looked up from his plate which, against his will, also had been refilled twice. As much as he appreciated a good home cooked meal, his stomach had started to rebel. He never ate that much for dinner these days, and if he wanted to be able to go to sleep before midnight, he would have to wash the meal down with a healthy measure of Firewhisky. His eyes came to rest on Charis and Morgana, who were sitting opposite him, between Black and Lupin. Neither of the girls seemed especially eager to empty the plates in front of them. Sitting between two of the Marauders would spoil his appetite as well, Snape thought, but he doubted that their dinner partners were what kept them from eating.

Charis was every now and then glancing up from her plate to look at her new-found cousin. Snape didn't need to use Legilimens to sense her confusion. Dumbledore had certainly not beaten about the bush back in the drawing room. He had not, however, offered any explanations. Obviously, he counted on Charis to be able to ask the right questions and once more figure out everything herself.

Morgana on the other hand had not looked up once during the whole meal. She was harder to read. She, too, seemed confused, but there was another emotion which Snape couldn't really put his finger on.

'What will you two girls be doing once you've graduated from Hogwarts?' Nymphadora Tonks suddenly asked brightly, grinning across the table. Her hair was bubblegum pink that evening and clashed violently with her bright orange T-Shirt.

Both girls looked at her as if she had just awoken them from deep sleep.

'I haven't decided yet,' Charis answered. 'I have been looking into Healing, but I am not sure it would be right for me. A position in the Ministry would be nice, though.'

'You will have to pass an insanity-test to work at the Ministry,' Moody growled. 'Fudge is going loopy and requires his staff to do the same, it seems.'

'Don't start again, Alastor, not at the dinner table,' Mrs Weasley interrupted.

'Last time Moody discussed Minister Fudge, he got so excited his eye popped out,' Sirius whispered into Charis' ear, and she giggled despite herself.

Snape, who hadn't heard what Black had said, scowled. What right had Black to whisper things into Charis' ear?

'How about you?' Tonks continued, now addressing Morgana, who slowly folded her napkin and then placed it beside her plate. Before she could give an answer, however, Moody spoke.

'That one has applied to Auror training.'

Snape cocked an eyebrow. That was total news to him. Last time he had spoken to Morgana about her career choices, she had needed a letter of recommendation to seek apprenticeship with Slug and Jiggers in Diagon Alley. Auror was a dangerous job, and Snape couldn't help but wonder if Morgana was deliberately putting herself into danger. His musings were cut short by Dumbledore raising his glass.

'High goals for two excellent students,' he proclaimed. 'Let us drink to their success. May Lady Fortuna always smile on them and help them make the right decisions.'

* * *

Shortly before midnight, Snape poured himself a third glass of Firewhisky. It was normally against his principles to get drunk in a place that wasn't his own, but that night he couldn't care less. He was in dire need of alcohol, and it had little to do with Molly's dinner laying in his stomach like a set of bricks. All he wanted was to get drunk enough to sleep without nightmares.

He had realised something during the course of the evening, something unsettling. He had realised that Charis and Morgana, his girls, were growing up. Soon they would leave Hogwarts and enter a world where he could not protect them. Both of them had chosen a dangerous road to travel on: Morgana was about to fight Dark wizards, and Charis seemed to be leaning towards applying for a position within the Ministry. Couldn't they both pick a career that kept them out of the line of fire instead? Couldn't Charis stick to her plan of becoming a Healer and Morgana to hers of becoming a Potioneer? Did neither of them understand that there was a war coming and that they were both in danger? And that the Ministry itself would be under threat?

Snape sighed. Of course they understood. They weren't dumb. But what difference did it make what career the girls chose? They were in danger anyway. Both due to their damn blood status.

Snape snorted and emptied his glass just to refill it a moment later.

Dumbledore had not yet offered the girls the opportunity to join the Order, but that was only a formality. They had met the gang and were, in Snape's opinion, already getting far too friendly with some of them. Charis had been talking to Black all night, and although she seemed reluctant to at first, it appeared they were now getting along like a house on fire. Of course they would. They were family after all. But that didn't mean that Snape had to like it. And Morgana had been discussing Defence Against the Dark Arts with Lupin for hours. She was concerned that Umbridge's teaching methods would keep her from performing well at Auror training, and Lupin had offered to train her over the summer. Snape, of course, didn't like that either.

But as usual, nobody cared what he liked or what he was thinking about the whole situation. As usual, he was supposed to do what Dumbledore told him to. He could question his orders but would in the end have no other choice than obeying. So he had spent the evening listening to Moody's latest conspiracy theories and doing his best to turn down Molly's chocolate cake without coming across as too rude.

When Moody and Tonks had said their goodbyes around eleven, Molly had decided that it was time for everyone to retire, especially the girls. In her opinion, teenage girls needed three helpings at dinner and eight hours of sleep. Black had gone to the backyard for a smoke, and Lupin had joined him. Snape, with no desire to make small talk with Dumbledore, had nicked a bottle of Firewhisky from the kitchen cabinet and had retired to his room. Surely, Charis and Morgana were now sat giggling in their room down the corridor, talking about their new friends and the adventures that awaited them. Surely, neither of them were wasting any thoughts about their old, grumpy Potions master.

Little did Snape know that neither of the girls were in the mood for giggling.

Morgana lay alone in the big four-poster bed that she was supposed to share with Charis for the night, staring at the ceiling. She was quite glad that Charis had snuck downstairs once more to look at the Black family tree. Being alone in the room gave Morgana the chance to try and sort out the unbidden emotions that had bothered her all evening.

It was just not fair. Charis already had a family. Sure, her parents didn't seem to be the most loving couple in Britain, but having squabbling parents must be better than having no parents at all, right? But now Charis had a second family, one she had always dreamed of: a Wizard family. And not just any Wizard family but the Blacks, one of the oldest and noblest Wizard families in the country.

Morgana drew the blanket up to her chin and scowled. Fine friend you are, Morgana Belakane, she chided herself. You're supposed to be happy for Charis. Instead you're being jealous. Get a grip.

She fluffed her pillow and settled down to sleep. If she was still awake when Charis returned, she would congratulate her friend on her confirmed blood-status. And she would actually mean it!

But Charis had no plans of returning to bed any time soon. She had managed to sneak back into the drawing room without being seen by Mrs Weasley. There, she had pulled up one of the armchairs and was now sitting right in front of the huge tapestry, examining her family tree in the dim light of a candle. She could barely believe it. She had long hoped that there was a witch or wizard hiding in her family somewhere, but never had she dared hope that she was part of such a noble family.

'The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. You really should have chosen a better family to belong to.'

Charis spun around. She had not heard the door open and was therefore startled to see Sirius Black standing in the room.

'I... I'm sorry, Mr Black,' she said and scrambled off the chair. 'I didn't mean to intrude.'

Black smiled. 'You're not intruding. You're part of this family. Hence, you should be calling me Sirius.'

He pulled up a chair of his own and settled beside Charis. He must have been a handsome man once, Charis thought as she looked at him up-close for the first time that evening. But the years in Azkaban had not been kind on him.

'Phineas Nigellus Black, our great-great-grandfather,' Sirius started, pointing at the tapestry. 'He was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had, you know. Rumour has it, Dolores Umbridge is doing her damndest to steal that crown now.'

Charis giggled, and Sirius smiled once more. His smile, too, was handsome.

'There are some nasty characters in our family, Charis,' he continued. 'A cousin of my mother's tried to force through a bill to make Muggle-hunting legal. And the funniest thing my aunt Elladora knew was to behead old house-elves.' He narrowed his eyes and examined the tapestry. 'Actually, most of the people you can see here are nasty characters. The decent ones have been blasted off a long time ago. Tonks, for example...'

'You're... I mean, WE are related to Tonks?' Charis asked with surprise.

'Yes, her mother Andromeda is my favourite cousin. She married a Muggle-born and so...' He mimed blasting the tapestry with his wand and winced. 'It's amazing that a nice witch like Andromeda can have such a hag for a sister.'

Charis followed Sirius' wand with her eyes. Beside the hole where Andromeda's name once had stood, she found the name Bellatrix. Just reading the name made the hairs on Charis' neck stand upright and sent shivers of fear down her spine.

'So that is why she wanted to get rid of me,' she whispered. 'Bellatrix, I mean.'

Sirius nodded. 'Marius having been a Squib has been a well-kept secret for many years. And now his line has produced another witch, a very talented witch from what I've heard. Bella couldn't have that, of course.'

Charis swallowed. 'She'll try again, won't she?'

Sirius fixed Charis with his grey eyes. 'Don't worry, Charis,' he said solemnly. 'You're not alone anymore. We will protect you.'

Charis gazed back at her cousin and offered him a small smile. In that moment, she knew that what lay ahead would not be easy. But she also knew that whatever it took, she would fight tooth and nail against the people like Bellatrix, and now she knew she had people around her that would fight for her, too.

Sirius poked the tapestry with his wand, looking rather grumpy. 'Really nice family you picked,' he growled once more. 'Being a follower of Voldemort is more of a rule than an exception.' He took a step back to get a good look at his family tree. 'Malfoys, Lestranges, Crouch, Yaxley, Crabbe. They are all on Voldemort's pay list in one way or the other. Some are Death Eaters, others are just hangers-on.'

Suddenly he turned around and fixed Charis with his grey eyes. 'Come on, ask.'

Charis swallowed. There had indeed been several questions hanging on her tongue the whole evening, but so far she had not dare ask. Family or not, Sirius Black was a stranger. 'Are you... I mean do you have...?'

Sirius saved her the trouble and pulled up his left sleeve to reveal his forearm. 'I have never even been tempted to take the Dark Mark,' he explained. 'I have never been interested in power or riches, and I don't believe in the supremacy of purebloods. Voldemort had nothing to offer that was of any interest to me. Still, he managed to take everything from me. He killed my best friend, and I went to Azkaban for twelve years for a crime I did not commit.'

Charis frowned. As so many others, all she knew of Sirius Black was that he had somehow been involved in the deaths of the Potters, killed Peter Pettigrew and a whole bunch of Muggles with him. But none of it added up. He was Harry Potter's godfather, and Harry seemed to think highly of him. So did Dumbledore, obviously.

'You... you didn't do it then?' she started gingerly. 'You didn't kill those people?'

'Of course not!' At once, Sirius raised his hand in an apologetic gesture. 'Sorry, Charis, I didn't mean to yell. But no, I did not kill those people.'

How terrible a fate to be locked up in Azkaban for murders someone else committed. How much had the man in front of her suffered, Charis wondered.

'Why haven't you been cleared yet?' she asked. 'Officially, I mean?'

'The people who know the truth aren't the most respected at the moment,' Sirius pointed out. 'I doubt the Minister of Magic is going to invite Dumbledore to tea any time soon.'

'But Dumbledore must be able to do something, right?'

Sirius gave a tired smile. 'I'm quite happy that Dumbledore believes me. Not many people do. But then again, Dumbledore is known to give people second chances. Half of the people at dinner tonight have jobs and a place to sleep thanks to Dumbledore's goodwill. Take Remus, for example. How many people do you know that would employ a werewolf?'

Charis nodded thoughtfully. But Remus Lupin was not the one she had been thinking about. Instead, her mind had once again wandered back to a conversation in the Room of Requirement a couple of months ago. Harry had said that Sirius had told him that Severus was a Death Eater.

Was Severus one of those people Sirius had been talking about? One of those people who were only tolerated because Dumbledore had given them a second chance? But before she had chance to voice her thoughts, Sirius had bidden her goodnight and left her once more in front of the huge tapestry with only a candle for company, and she did not have the courage to call him back and ask him about Severus. What if he told her something she did not want to hear?