A/N: This story was written for The Houses Competition, Year 3, Round 3.
House: Gryffindor
Year: Head Girl
Category: Additional
Prompts: Discovering you're not who you are. 4. [Object] Thimble
Word count: 697 words (written on Google docs)
Betas: Thank you to the amazing Aurora (Aurora-Star-Merry-Harry-Ricci), Lynne (Inlibris) and Shiba (Shiba-Lyfe)!
If my previous judge reads this, please know I am so so so grateful for you taking the time to read the other story—made my day! And thank you to all judges for the time you spend reading each entry (um, literally not sucking up, just feeling very touched :')) :)
I sincerely hope I interpreted the prompt properly... I know it's a bit of a stretch (discovering she's not as great a mother as she thought), but fingers crossed lol
This is slightly AU in that it's my headcanon that Violetta Black loved her Squib son, since all we know is that he was burned off the family tree for being a Squib. I hope you like this take on it.
A Thimble to Protect
If there was one thing Violetta Black could be proud of, it was that she knew that she was a great mother. Whilst it had pained her beyond measure, she had done what she could to protect her little Marius and had made it so that he could now enjoy a new life with other non-magical children.
This much became all the more obvious as she sat on her rocking chair, finishing her needlework and listening to her husband drone on and on.
"I still cannot believe we have a Squib in the family. A Squib! Why, if I had known earlier, I would have… I would have…" Cygnus took out his wand and aimed it at the tapestry on the wall. Within a second, Marius' portrait was burned from the Black family tree.
Violetta's heart grew heavy, but she continued with her stitches. Using a silver thimble to protect her thumb—her movements becoming sharper and heavier with each word Cygnus spoke—she finished off the 'M' on her own version of the family tree.
Beside her, her eldest daughter sighed. "Do I have to continue, Mother?" Cassiopeia asked, glaring at her own knotted thread.
Pressing a finger to her lips, Violetta turned her attention back to Cygnus.
"Well, at least I have one hope for this family. Pollux, take out your wand; we're going to improve your spellwork."
"Yes, Father," Pollux said, grinning.
Her husband's eyes glinted as he clapped their son on the shoulder and began to instruct him on various spells and curses. He had never done the same for Marius—instead, he had always cursed whenever the boy had failed to show any signs of magic. It made Violetta even more sure that she had made the right decision to send Marius away.
Cassiopeia sniffled, and when Violetta turned to her, she saw that her eyes were slightly red. She was holding her thumb where a tiny bead of blood was welling on the tip. Her gaze, however, was focused on her father smiling down at Pollux.
Violetta sighed; she had told Cassiopeia many a time to concentrate on her work to avoid such an injury.
She looked down at her own sewing and smiled. She had now stitched Marius' name in neat letters above his picture, right where it was supposed to be on the tree between Cassiopeia and young Dorea. It wouldn't bring him back by any means, nor would she be showing Cygnus her work, but it did go a little way to mend the hole in her heart.
"Well done, my boy!" Cygnus shouted.
Beside her, Cassiopeia sniffled again.
Violetta cut off her thread and sighed, turning to her daughter. "Now, now, crying is not becoming of a lady, especially over something as simple as needlepoint. You need to be more gentle."
Cassiopeia shook her head. She glared over at her brother and father as the latter cried, "Finally, a child I can be proud of!"
"Why can't Father ever say that to me?" she whispered.
Violetta felt a pang in her heart as Cassiopeia's brown eyes filled with fresh tears. She had been too busy lamenting over Marius' leaving that she hadn't realised that her other children needed her, too.
"Come now, dry your eyes," she said, pulling out a handkerchief and handing it to the blonde. She waited until Cassiopeia dried her eyes before clearing her throat. "Now, I suggest using smaller strokes closer together, and holding your thread to the side."
Violetta made sure her voice was loud enough to cover any further praise Cygnus threw at Pollux. Thankfully, Cassiopeia allowed herself to be distracted, and with a final sniffle, she picked up her needle. It almost stuck into the girl's thumb again, and Violetta held out the silver thimble.
"Place this over your thumb to protect it from the pain," she said, locking eyes with her daughter.
Cassiopeia nodded, slipping the small, round tool over her thumb.
Violetta watched her with a sad smile. She had thought that she was a good mother, but now that she knew she wasn't, she was determined more than ever to protect all of her children in whichever way she could.