The Tree of Blacks (English version)

Number twelve, Grimmauld Place

"I see... Anyway, that's our headquarters." said the blond boy, pointing to the bench.

"This? Headquarters... for what?" asked Tommy, unable to hide his curiosity. The situation was becoming a little interesting.

"It's a secret!" the boy with red hair spoke up, in protest.

The blond boy suddenly took on a serious expression.

"You must be part of the group to know it." he declared, in an uncompromising tone, which seemed to admit no objections.

"And we don't even know your name!" the chubby boy exclaimed.

Tommy took a while to answer. In silence, he carefully scanned the three boys and girl, without saying a word. Then, his mouth widened into a smile.

"My name is Thomas Murray, but you can call me Tommy. Nice to meet you." he said, introducing himself to the kids, "And I would really like to join your group. As I said earlier, I recently moved here and I don't know anyone yet. You seem nice and I'd like us to become friends."

All four the kids looked at each other, surprised because they were not expecting such a request. The blond boy (who was supposed to be the leader of the small gang) seemed to be pondering the matter intently. Finally, after receiving a couple of nods from his friends, he approached Tommy with his hand extended towards him.

"I'm Jim, nice to meet you. And this is my sister Lindsay." he said, pointing to the girl with braids, who smiled shyly.

"I'm Jack." the red-haired boy waved his hand, but kept his expression serious. Tommy thought he looked a bit odd.

"I'm Luke. Nice to meet you!" concluded the chubby boy.

Tommy smiled to everyone, delighted. Then, he asked:

"Does that mean I'm in the crew now?"

"No... not yet!" Jim answered with an enigmatic smirk on his lips.

"Why not?" Tommy replied, confused.

"You see, the fact is that people in this group are tough and brave guys. If you really want to join us, you have to pass a test..."

"A test?" repeated Tommy, slightly frowning. He scanned all the members of the small band in front of him. None of them looked that tough or brave as Jim had said.

"Yep. A test." explained Jim, speaking quietly, "A sort of proof to prove that you are truly worthy of being one of us."

Tommy stared at Jim a little suspiciously. Nevertheless, all that mystery intrigued him. He wanted to know more. So, after a few silent moments, Tommy decided to play along.

"Ok, I'm in. Let's do it!" he exclaimed firmly, accepting the challenge of Jim and his friends.

The others smiled satisfied and Jim asked Tommy to follow him.
And so, compactly, the group of kids walked along the scruffy street of Grimmauld Place.

A leaden sky overhung them, the sun was completely obscured by a thick blanket of dark clouds. The road was deserted, there was not a soul but them. Jim, his sister, and the others walked dumbly, without saying a word; Tommy followed them as a slight tension began to lick his stomach.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked, trying to sound less fearful than he really was.
In Tommy, the doubt began to spread that perhaps it was not a good idea to accept the challenge of those children. After all, he'd just met them and didn't have the faintest idea what their intentions were.

"You'll see... We are almost there." Jim answered cheerfully.

A few minutes passed, after which Jim and his friends stopped in front of a filthy, shabby house, like any other building in the neighborhood.