Chapter Text
“Please do not say anything that will bring shame or embarrassment to your name,” Mrs. Marchbanks muttered under her breath, only loud enough for Amber to hear.
“I said I’ll try,” Amber said through gritted teeth as she tried to yank her hand free from her mother's firm grasp. She was currently being pulled toward Number 12, Grimmauld Place, The Black Family’s house.
“Well trying, is not a good enough answer. I want you to behave,” her mother said, her sneering voice close to Amber’s ear.
Amber moved her head away, disliking the feeling of hot breath in her ear. She kept her mouth shut. If her mother was so worried that she would misbehave, then why did she bring her here in the first place? The day would be so much more enjoyable if she would have stayed home and not been forced to go to some creepy looking house in the middle of a muggle town.
When they reached the front door, standing silently on the front porch, Mrs. Marchbanks used the knocker to knock twice before waiting politely for an answer. Almost immediately, the front door was opened and there emerged the most hideous house elf Amber had ever seen. He wore drabby clothes that did not fit him, had long ears that dropped all the way to his shoulders, and had a big nose that was almost as long as his ears. The house elf had thick white hair growing from his ears and his nose, and a few stray strands of hair grew on his almost bald head. He was scowling, showing off crooked teeth with brown plaque stuck on them. Behind him, the most beautiful woman--in stark contrast with the house elf's ugly features--stepped out from the shadows. She was tall, taller than Amber’s own mother, and had dark black hair that tumbled all the way down to the middle of her back. She had high and prominent cheekbones, and sharp brown eyes that rested deep into her skull. Her skin was fair, though mostly covered by her dark black dress and high buttoned collar. There wasn’t a single imperfection on her perfectly smooth skin. Amber noticed her veiny delicate hands, and the emerald gemstone ring that rested on her ring finger. Her nails were long and shaved into a sharp point. Her nails were colored emerald, to match her ring.
Amber stood a little straighter, intimated by her beauty.
“What a delight, Walburga,” Mrs. Marchbanks exclaimed, holding her arms open for a hug that was never returned.
“How great of you to turn up,” Mrs. Black said, moving aside and letting Mrs. Marchbanks and Amber come in. “I am delighted that you have come all this way, and naturally, so is my dearest Sirius,” Mrs. Black continued as they made their way to the drawing room, where two boys were sitting neatly on a large sofa. “Sirius has not stopped talking about how excited he was to finally meet your dear Ambrosia, and I think you’ll agree that they will make a lovely pair of friends.”
“Oh yes, I agree completely, and so does Ambrosia,” Mrs. Marchbanks turned to her daughter and gave her a firm nudge. “Don’t you, Ambrosia?”
“Sure,” she mumbled, avoiding her mother's stern look.
Amber looked around the room, it was very much prim and proper, nothing like her own house. Everything was very dark, the furniture a dark grey, and the drapes a fine black. Her eyes traveled toward the two boys sitting on the sofa, staring at their mother or else at their feet. They had dark wavy hair that fell to their shoulders, and pale skin. Amber would have thought they were twins if it weren’t for their height difference and build. One of them was just slightly taller and had broader shoulders and chest, she was guessing that was Sirius.
“Please, sit down,” Mrs. Black said, gesturing toward the dark grey loveseat.
Amber and her mother sat down, and took the tea they were offered by the ugly looking house elf that sneaked Amber a dirty look.
“As you know, Sirius will be starting his first year at Hogwarts very soon,” Mrs. Black said, taking a seat herself.
At the mention of his name, Sirius sat up straighter and gave a curt nod.
“I thought it would be beneficial for you and me, Mrs. Marchbanks--”
“Oh please, call me Ivy,” Mrs. Marchbanks interrupted with a little laugh.
Mrs. Black cleared her throat and took a sip of her tea. “As I was saying, Mrs. Marchbanks, I think it would be beneficial if Sirius already had an established relationship with your family, since your dear Ambrosia will also be starting her first year at Hogwarts next year.”
“Oh! I agree completely!” Mrs. Marchbanks said in a delighted tone, ignoring the way Mrs. Black said her name.
“Excellent.” Mrs. Black's lips curled into a thin smile and she set down her tea cup. “How about while we talk a little more we have the children go upstairs to play?”
Amber clambered up the high stairs, feeling winded when they finally reached the top. She was following Sirius and the other boy, who she learned was Regulus, to the playroom. The playroom wasn’t much of a playroom in Amber’s opinion. She was expecting a lot of toys, since they were so rich, like plastic trains and puppets and board games. Instead, it was a few “educational” board games, and some ugly brown blocks for building.
“Is this it?’ Amber asked, grimacing. She kicked lightly at one of the blocks with her foot, inspecting it. She really shouldn’t have been surprised, since their whole house was boring and dark.
“My mum got the blocks to help with my fine motor skills,” Regulus said, his voice monotone. She noticed one of his front teeth was growing in.
“What’s that?” Amber asked, making herself comfortable on the floor and picking up a few triangle shaped blocks.
“I dunno.”
“Let’s be honest here,” Sirius started. He was staring out the dusty window to the houses outside, the sharp light casting a dramatic shadow behind him. “My family and I find regular toys to be a bit boring. You see, I have a very active imagination and therefore I don’t need any brain enhancers to have fun. I can play with simple boring blocks and have the time of my life.”
“I brought an action figure,” Amber said, ignoring Sirius’ dramatic remarks. She pulled it out of the pocket of her dress, where she had kept it hidden from her mother. It was a superhero action figure, the head a little scratched up from beating it with a hammer.
“Let me see!” Sirius gasped, turning away from the window and snatching the action figure from her hands. “Oh my Merlin, it’s in perfect condition.”
Amber nodded her head.
“Where’d you get that?” Regulus asked, picking his nose.
“Oh, you probably never heard of it. It’s this store like super downtown. Only the real ones know of it,” Amber said cooly, shrugging her shoulders. She had really stolen it from this annoying boy's house on his 10th birthday.
“You know… I’ve always wanted one of these,” Sirius said, brushing his fingers through the action figures' long cape.
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah, it’s actually my favorite…”
“I thought you liked blocks?”
“Sharing is caring, you know.” Sirius was side-eyeing Amber, his grip tight on the action figure.
Amber shrugged again. “It’s cool, you can have it I guess. I have like ten more at home anyway.” She did not. “Besides, I think these blocks are just way cooler.” She picked up a triangle block and stacked it on top of a square block. “This is actually so fun, I’m having so much fun playing with these brown blocks.”
“And they help your fine motor skills.”
Sirius glanced from Amber, to the action figure, to the blocks, back to the action figure. He sighed a heavy sigh, throwing his hand over his head. “You’re playing with the blocks all wrong.” He sat next to Amber, dropping the action figure between them. He picked up one of the wooden blocks and suddenly tossed it across the room, letting it smack the wall. Amber noticed all the other indents that were no doubt made from tossing the blocks.