Venus

42- Coffee From A Bowl

The house was a complete mess. Therefore it wasn't long before they were all put to work cleaning it up.

"No one has lived here since my mother died." Sirius explained one afternoon as he and Venus were sat alone in the drawing room.

"What's that?" Venus had been looking at the large tapistry on the opposite wall.

"That's the Black family tree." Sirius said.

"They're all names of starts and planets." Venus observed as she looked at in greater detail.

Sirius nodded and smiled, "the only family tradition that I actually liked. You're named after my grandmother." He pointed to a burn on the tapistry. "My mother didn't like her, so she was my favorite."

"I can't see you." Venus frowned.

Sirius gestured at two other burn marks, "that's me, and that's you." He pointed, "you see the tapistry is magic. My mother couldn't stop it expanding to include you, but she could burn you out."

Venus cocked her head. Looking at her blackened burn mark.

"Lovley woman my mother," Sirius mused.

"I've gathered that from the painting." Venus nodded.

"She did that when I ran away." Sirius nodded at his burn mark.

"Where did you go?" Venus asked.

"I stayed with James." Sirius looked wistful, "I was always welcome at the Potter's."

"SIRIUS!" Molly's voice boombed through the corridor.

"I am being summoned." Sirius grinned. He and Venus made their way to the source of Molly's voice.

"What in Merlin's name is this?" Molly demanded.

Sirius scratched his head, "I believe that it is a dead ghoul."

"That is disgusting!" Venus held her hand over her noise to block out the smell of rotting ghoul.

"How didn't you spot this earlier?" Molly demanded.

"Well I didn't go in this room earlier!" Sirius said in an exasperated tone.

"Why ever not?" Molly's voice rose.

Sirius and Molly hadn't been getting along very well since the Weasleys had moved in to Grimmald Place.

It was quite a surprise to Venus. But Sirius had told her that Molly blamed him for Venus's lycanthropy.

Sirius confessed that he didn't blame Molly for this and that he also blamed himself for not being quick enough to save Venus.

Venus wasn't entirely sure how to respond to this, and matters were made even more awkward when Remus Lupin arrived at the house. Which left Venus stuck between her mother, Sirius and Remus. Who were all feeling guilty, despite the fact that she has assured them on numerous occasions that she was absolutely fine.

But most of the time she didn't have the headspace to worry about this. All of their time was taken up by trying to clean the house.

The adults weren't telling them anything, which annoyed all of the children so much that they were determined to listen in on the meetings of the Order.

Fred and George had been developing their joke shop ideas and had created 'Extendible ears'.

When Hermione arrived she suggested that they use the ears to listen in on the meetings.

"-we need to keep a guard on the weapon at all times-" Sirius was saying.

"What's the weapon?" Venus hissed.