Squib On The Run (sequel to Squib In The basement)

47. A House Of Red

The days that followed were long and tedious.
Cassiopeia and Sirius spent their time inspecting the house, and seeing which parts were actually usable in their current condition.
The house had been neglected for 14 years and was an absolute state.
Even though Kreacher had been living there, he certainly hadn't been keeping it very clean.
Cassiopeia was rather embarrassed to have guests over, because of how unseemly the place was.
But when Molly and the rest of the Weasleys arrived, none of them blamed Sirius or Cassiopeia for the state of the place.

Molly set them all straight to work, to try and make the place livable again.
They started on the main rooms first, like the kitchen and living room, since those were the spaces which would be used to hold the Order meetings.
Each person was responsible for tidying the bedroom they were staying in, but everyone was expected to chip in and help clear out the pest infestation that had taken over the house.

Even though Cassiopeia hadn't wanted her family's floor touched, when Sirius suggested putting Buckbeak in their parents room, she agreed it was a good idea.
She hadn't wanted a human staying in there, as she felt that her mother's presence would make whoever was staying there, very miserable.
But she was perfectly fine with a Hippogriff staying in that room, as it meant over time her mother's belongings would all soon be destroyed. And removing her mother's stain from the building was Cassiopeia's top priority.

It turned out that Walburga had put a permanent sticking charm on her portrait, which meant it couldn't be removed.
So the siblings had resorted to putting up a pair of curtains over the portrait, and having everyone tiptoe around that part of the house to avoid disturbing her.
Everyone took to these rules rather quickly, as they all soon learned just how horrible Walburga really was, and no one was eager to have the portrait shout at them.

"I still can't believe we are staying here" commented Ginny one evening.
"You say that almost every meal time" reminded Cassiopeia.
She liked having the Weasley kids around, as they brightened up the dreery place.
But as she spent more time with them, she couldn't help but wonder what her own son would have been like, if he had been able to grow up.

"I know I say it a lot during dinner. But it's only because we are so busy during the day that we don't really get time to stop and think. It's only at dinner that I get to truly appreciate that I'm living in a mansion" admitted Ginny.
"It's not really a mansion, it's just our family's town house. All of the proper Black family mansions are in the countryside, in the middle of nowhere. This place was originally built to temporarily house members of the Black family who had business in London. I don't know why we grew up here instead of one of the real mansions. Perhaps my parents just liked living near London, Merlin knows why" replied Cassiopeia.

"Blimey. Exactly how many mansions does your family have?" Questioned Ron.
Sirius shrugged, "I'm not sure. 5 maybe".
His mood had begun to drop, as being locked inside really didn't suit him.
Dumbledore didn't want him or Cassiopeia to leave the house, as he had decided it was too dangerous for them to go out and about anymore.
Which meant that if they wanted to see Remus or Andromeda, they would have to convince their loved ones to come to Grimmauld Place to visit them.
This didn't sit well with Sirius or Cassiopeia, but they had no choice but to obey Dumbledore's commands.

"Did you get to stay in all of the mansions?" Asked Ron.
"Not all of them. I lived with my Uncle Alphard for a while in one of them. And when I was still a valued member of the family, we regularly visited my cousins at the Black Manor, which was the main seat of power for my family. All of our family homes are empty now, as the people that lived in them are all dead. And the buildings are probably in worse disrepair than this place" admitted Cassiopeia sadly.
"Must be nice to have multiple mansions" mumbled Ron.
"Having wealth and big houses isn't everything. I would have given all the money in the world to have loving parents like yours, when I was younger".

"Let that be a lesson to all of you. Having money isn't everything" reminded Molly.
An uncomfortable silence filled the room, as everyone thought about the person who was currently chasing money and his career over his own family; Percy.
He had argued with his parents, and refused to accept Voldemort's return.
Percy had decided not to accompany his family to 12 Grimmauld Place, choosing to get his own flat in London instead. And before he left, he had blamed his father for their family always being poor.
Molly was heartbroken by her son's behaviour, and everyone felt like they were walking on eggshells around her, since it took very little to set her off.

"Now, don't forget, the Order of the Phoenix has their first meeting tonight, so I want you all in bed by 9, and I don't want to hear a peep out of any of you, unless it's an emergency" warned Molly.
"I thought we would get to participate in the meeting" frowned Fred.
"Absolutely not. You will all be in bed when the Order get here" replied Molly.
"Why can't we stay and hear what's going on?" Asked George.
"Because you are just children" reminded Molly.
"Me and George are adults now. We are 17" countered Fred.
"Yeah, so you can't tell us what to do" added George.

"I am your mother and you will do as I say. You are not in the Order, so you do not get to participate in Order meetings. The things we are going to discuss, are for our ears only. We will be discussing sensitive topics, which are not suitable for children who are still in school to hear. You may get to meet several of the Order members over the next few weeks, some will even be staying here. But you are not to ask them questions about what the Order are up to. Order missions are top secret. Do I make myself clear?" Questioned Molly, sternly.
The children around the table frowned, but they all nodded their heads.

"Hey, cheer up, Hermione comes tomorrow, so that will be one more person for you lot to hang out with" reminded Cassiopeia, as she tried to raise everyone's spirits.
"When will Harry be coming?" Asked Ron.
Cassiopeia sighed, "Dumbledore doesn't want Harry joining us until the end of the school holidays. And until then, he doesn't want Harry to know about the Order, or any of this".
"That doesn't seem very fair" admitted Ron.
"I agree with you. But Dumbledore is just trying to keep Harry safe, so we must do as he says, because Harry's safety is our top priority... Now, you lot should all head to bed as we have another busy day of battling the house tomorrow. And you will all need your strength for that. So goodnight".