Chapter 3
Number Twelve Grimmauld Place (Cont'd)
Alexis swiftly followed Sirius into her new home, stepping over the threshold into the long, narrow entrance. The space was illuminated by a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Moss green and white tiles lined the floor, with a paisley grey runner down the middle. At the end of the hall was a grand staircase that seemed to wind its way up the various levels of Grimmauld. The room was not entirely welcoming for an entryway, as the wallpaper was dark grey and the walls were windowless and void of natural light, but with the soaring ceilings, she still thought it was grand.
Sirius set her backpack down on a bench near the entrance and gestured for her to follow up.
As they made their way down the entry hall, her father stopped midway and, to their left, slid two heavy pocket doors open and stepped inside. His dragon-hide boots tapped against the shining hardwood floors. Alexis followed him through the doors and gasped. The room was spacious, with floor-to-ceiling windows draped in beautifully upholstered curtains. A long dining table took up a majority of the room, which could easily seat 20 people—it was adorned with a long silver and green silk runner with variable sizes of candlesticks set in the middle. On one end of the room stood a large China cabinet that held the Black family dining set, crystal, and flatware; on the opposite end was an ornate marble fireplace with a large antique mirror hanging above it.
“The formal dining room?” she inquired.
Sirius nodded and leaned against one of the wallpaper-covered walls closest to the exit. “My family rarely used this space growing up. Mostly for dinner parties, holidays, that sort of thing.”
“Makes sense.” She walked to the table and ran her fingers along its top. “Back home, we had a formal dining room similar to this. Obviously not as grand, but same concept.” She stopped at the end of the table, 10 seats down. “Sometimes my mom would let us eat Chinese takeout on its floor. She’d vanish the dining set and conjure a plush rug and several oversized pillows.”
She looked up and saw her father smiling at her. His grey eyes looked sad, but they quickly cleared up. “Perhaps we’ll have a proper go and eat takeout in this room in her honor.”
“I think I’d like that,” she replied.
Alexis followed her father back into the hall and closed the pocket doors behind her.
“You should have seen the state of this place prior to your arrival.” Sirius moved past her and down the entryway hall. “Peeling wallpaper, layers of dust, serpent decorations and hardware, bogarts and doxies and spiders making the furniture their home.”
She tried to picture what she had seen so far as derelict, but her imagination could not conjure it.
“You don’t believe me, do you?” She shook her head. “Well, there used to be an umbrella stand made from a troll’s severed foot right there.” Sirius pointed at the corner across from the front door where a No-Maj looking umbrella stand and bench now stood. “And over by the stairs, mounted house-elves heads.”
House-elves heads and a troll foot—what kind of family were the Blacks? She frowned at the description. “But it’s so clean and elegant. Why was it in such disarray?”
Sirius paused for a moment, and his lips formed a thin line. “As I’m sure you’ve been made aware, I was gone for many years, and the house sort of fell to the wayside."
She wondered why the Black family house-elf did not keep up the maintenance. Maybe it had died and had been mounted on the wall, too. She shuddered at the thought. She wanted to know more about her father’s absence, but she could tell that was all he was going to offer at the moment.
Sirius interrupted her thoughts. “Would you care for some tea after I show you around the house?”
“I suppose you don’t have anything stronger?” she asked dryly as her hand skimmed across the wallpaper.
A knowing smile spread across Sirius’ face at her counteroffer, and his eyes twinkled. “Oh, you’re absolutely my daughter.”
Alexis was surprised at his words, but she found herself smiling at the thought and continued to make her way towards where her father stood.
“Kreacher!” Sirius shouted.
A disgruntled and ancient-looking house-elf wearing a cream-colored tea towel cracked into existence. He bowed deeply. “Yes, Master Sirius?”
“This is Alexis, my daughter and your new mistress. Listen to her and treat her with respect. I will not have you treating her as you do me.”
The old elf unhurriedly turned to her and bowed, his nose almost hitting the tiled floor. When he came back up, his round eyes widened, and he gasped. “The new Black heir?! Oh my! Oh, how my Mistress would be so relieved and happy to know that her noble and ancient house has not died out! Her pure-blood line is continued and no longer muddied…”
Alexis looked at her father questioningly. “Who is the Mistress that he’s referring to?”
Kreacher continued his loud ramblings about his Mistress and the new Black heir as Sirius shouted over him.
“My mother. Your grandmother. She… well… it’s a long story that I'd rather not get into at this moment.”
She nodded, not quite understanding, but knew when to stop prying. It seemed there were a few things that her father decided he would rather not discuss with her.
“Kreacher,” Sirius said imperiously to pull the house-elf out of his rant. “Go down to the kitchen and prepare tea for Alexis and me.”
Kreacher’s long nose wrinkled in annoyance and slowly shook his head. “Kreacher would prepare tea for his Master and young Mistress, but Kreacher has been banned from the kitchen.”
“What?” Sirius balked. “What do you mean you’ve been banned? I didn’t ban you.”
“The new house-elf that young Mistress must have brought with her won’t let Kreacher in the kitchen.”
Alexis wanted to snort at his confession but kept her face neutral. “Tippy!” she said. Immediately, her petite house-elf materialized in the hallway.
“Oh, Mistress Alexis is finally here!” Tippy threw her arms around Alexis’ legs and gave her a tight squeeze.
Kreacher looked exasperated at Tippy’s informal interaction. Sirius looked amused at the whole scene.
“Mistress, I did as you asked as soon as we arrived. Mistress’s trunk and belongings are in her room. Mistress’s Coal has been let out and fed as well.” She bobbed up and down on her heels excitedly.
“Coal?” Sirius asked.
“Oh, my familiar. He’s a British shorthair. Extremely amiable for a cat. Acts more like a dog, though.”
Sirius snorted and then cleared his throat. She looked at him briefly, wondering what his reaction was about, but decided not to ask. She turned back to her house-elf.
“Thank you, Tippy. Now, what is this about banning Kreacher from the kitchen?”
Her elf sighed and shook her head in irritation at Kreacher. The ancient house-elf sneered back. “The Black family house-elf has not kept the kitchen up to Tippy’s standards, and there are no plans for dinner or the remainder of the week’s meals, so Tippy told Kreacher that Kreacher was forbidden until the kitchen was cleaned and fully stocked.” She said the last part defiantly.
She looked over to Sirius apologetically. “I’m sorry, she really doesn’t mean to cause trouble. She’s fairly independent as Mom, and I kinda gave her full reign when running our house.”
Kreacher moved in front of Tippy and pushed the stubborn elf behind him. “Young Mistress Black, Kreacher will attend to you now that you live at your ancestral home. It is Kreacher’s duty to serve the noble House of Black.”
Tippy looked appalled and sidestepped the senior elf. “Mistress Alexis knows who will be attending her.”
“I think I’ll enjoy this new setup,” Sirius smirked with delight. “Why don’t we finish the tour, Alexis, while our elves resolve their differences.” He casually clasped his hands behind his back and began walking towards the staircase at the end of the hall.
Alexis waited for her father to give both house-elves directions, but none came. “Alright, Tippy–” she turned and knelt at eye-level with her attendant, “—you must let Kreacher in the kitchen. Work together, please. We’ll be down for tea shortly, and I’ll call for you if needed.”
“Yes, Mistress.” The petite elf smiled pleasantly, her tone anything but. She lightly curtsied and then vanished with a loud pop. Kreacher immediately followed suit.
Alexis hurriedly met her father at the end of the hallway. He pointed to the stairwell that led down to the kitchen, where he mentioned that he took most of his meals, and then he showed her the ground floor's formal receiving room, where a large marble fireplace was connected to the Floo Network.
As they turned to climb the grand staircase carved out of of a rich, dark wood, Alexis noticed a large black curtain hanging on the wall. It was an odd place for a window, and she was not sure what the window faced, but as she walked by, she swore she heard a languid sigh coming from behind it. Curiosity pushed her to peek behind the curtain, but she thought better of it. Although this was now her home, she was new and did not want to overstep. Asking Sirius would be okay, though. She was about to ask him what was behind the curtain, but she noticed he had already disappeared up the stairs.
She began climbing the winding staircase when she saw her father’s head peer over the second floor banister.
“Up here, Alexis. I want to show you to your room first. We’ll walk around the other floors when we’re done.”
Alexis tilted her head up and nodded at him. She wondered what the other floors held, and some excitement settled into her bones.
Upon entering her room, she felt touched by her father's thoughtfulness. The room’s theme was Ilvermorny’s school colors: blue and cranberry. A full-size bed covered in a plush blue duvet was placed next to a floor-to-ceiling window draped in a light blue sheer curtain. An armoire, full-length mirror, and desk with floating shelves were arranged on the walls opposite the bed. And in the corner of the room, she noticed what she knew to be a No-Maj stereo and a stack of CDs. Fresh flowers adorned the bedside table, and a large, fluffy area rug covered most of the hardwood floors.
“Sirius, this is…” her voice trailed off as she turned around to face her father, leaned against the door frame, observing her as she took it all in. “It’s perfect, thank you.”
“I had some help picking out the colors and setting everything up. We hoped it would ease the transition from one home to another.” Sirius moved to her bed and sat on its edge, patting the spot beside him. She made her way over and gently plopped down, sinking into the plush mattress. “It’s your home now, love.” Her heart squeezed at his term of endearment. Her mother had called her that all the time, and hearing it from her father seemed to calm her nervousness. “I want you to feel as comfortable here as you did in New York. I’m sure you’ll be homesick—this is an entirely new country with plenty of unfamiliar things—so if there is anything I can do to make the change more bearable, just let me know. Alright?”
A rush of emotions overwhelmed her as she processed his kind words. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and let her emotions fall back behind her walls.
He patted her knee and stood from the bed. “Shall we continue on our tour?”
Alexis stood and glanced around her room before following her father out into the hallway.
“So,” Sirius began as they headed towards the staircase, “there are five floors to our home. Well, I suppose seven if you count the basement—with the kitchen and potions lab—and the attic. You’ve seen the ground floor. On the topmost landing, there are two bedrooms. Mine and—” he stopped mid-sentence before clearing his throat “—well, it doesn’t matter. The second room on that floor is off limits.” His voice was final which only piqued her interest. “The master suite and smaller guest rooms are on the third floor, while your and Harry's bedrooms are on the second floor.”
“Harry? Who is Harry?” Alexis continued to follow Sirius down the steps to the first floor. Did she have a brother? Her lawyer never mentioned anything about a sibling or her father having more children.
A broad smile swept over Sirius’s features as he paused on the steps and turned back to face her. His grey eyes shone with what she thought was pride. “Harry is my godson. Hopefully, he’ll stay with me… us in a few short weeks.”
A godson? She wondered what her father’s godson was like. By his expression, she could tell that her father and his godson were close, and Alexis felt a tinge of jealousy toward Harry. She quickly pushed the feeling down—how could she envy someone she had never met? But despite her efforts, the feeling still lingered.
“—and this is the first floor.” Her father gestured down the hallway. “There is a large drawing room, a smaller sitting room, and an extensive library, which may or may not have some darker subjects, so be careful if you choose to explore the shelves.”
Her ears perked up at the mention of the library and its darker tomes. Her mother did not shield her from darker subjects growing up. Although her mother did not actively support the Dark Arts, they were also not exactly prohibited from their home.
The first room Sirius led her into was right off the landing. It was the sitting room. Against the wall across from the door was a black marble fireplace. There were two couches facing each other in the center of the room and a black baby grand piano towards the back by the room’s entrance. The space was decorated in the same dark colors that seemed to be a theme in her new home.
She walked over to the piano and lightly touched its keys, her fingers brushing over the aged ivories.
“Do you play?” asked Sirius. She could see the wistfulness in his eyes, wondering what hobbies or talents his daughter might have that he missed out on.
“Only a little. Mother said it was important to learn an instrument, but by my First Year at Ilvermorny, I had stopped taking lessons.”
“I never played,” he offered, running a tattooed hand through his wavy hair. “Well, no, I played poorly, and it was not by choice. Your wretched grandmother forced me to learn the piano. She hounded me with lessons and made me practice for hours. I wasn’t good, but my younger—” he cut himself off again and thrust his hands in his pockets. It was something Alexis began to realize that he did when he felt uneasy. “If you ever wish to play the piano and bang around on the keys, please go ahead.”
He tapped his knuckles on the top of the piano, then strode out of the Sitting room, Alexis close on his trail.
They walked across the hallway to a pair of double doors. Sirius opened them with a flick of his wand and led Alexis into the Black Family Library. Her eyes widened at the sight. The room was covered in dark wood paneling and brocade wallpaper. A large, tiled fireplace was to the right of the entrance, with worn leather armchairs in front of it, and a long table for research in the middle of the room. Countless bookcases filled with all different shapes and sizes of tomes lined the space in rows.
“This is going to be my new favorite spot.” Alexis moved to one of the worn armchairs and sunk into it with a sigh. The room smelled of old parchment and ink.
“Yours and Moony’s then. It’s my least favorite,” Sirius chuckled.
Moony? Yet another person he had mentioned and she had no clue about.
“Is there any organization to the shelves? A system of some sort?” She pushed herself up from the armchair and walked towards the bookcases.
“I think it’s by subject and then by author, similar to the Muggle library system, which, if you knew your family better, you would know that was highly unusual.”\
With one final look around, Alexis walked out of the library and continued on their tour.
As they made their way to the drawing room, a thought occurred to Alexis. She could not believe she had forgotten to coordinate where her house elf would sleep.
“Sirius,” she called out a little apprehensively from behind him. She fidgeted with her wristwatch as she thought of what to say. She did not want to over-step, but she had to ensure Tippy was cared for.
“Yes, love?”
“Can we set up a small room for Tippy? It’s just—at home, she had her own quarters.”
Sirius hesitated in his steps before turning around, shaking his head, a small smirk settling on his face. “Bloody hell, it seems that I have a bleeding heart for a daughter,” he muttered to himself. “You and Hermione will get along splendidly.” His tone was a bit sarcastic, and she was not quite sure who Hermione was and what to make of his tenor. He paused, rubbing his chin, then nodded. “Alright, we can set up a small bedroom in the attic for her.”
“What about Kreacher?”
Her father bristled. “What about Kreacher?”
She continued treading carefully. Frustration was the last thing she wanted to cause as it seemed that the mention of Kreacher annoyed him. “Just curious where he sleeps.”
“The boiler room, in the basement.” Sirius had the decency to look a bit sheepish. “But Kreacher is an ancient elf of habit. He won’t want to move into a different room.”
“I suppose you would know.” Alexis made a note to check on Kreacher’s room and make sure he at least had a small cot and clean bedding after they finished her house tour and had their tea.