A/N: Okay, first of all for those who read my attempt at Haphne fic, despite that story being inactive for so long, it's not dead and I do plan to resume it. Right now, I am inspired by this idea though. And of course, Disclaimer: All characters, events, plot etc etc belongs to QUEEN JKR and her amazing Potterverse.
This story might deviate from JKR's timeline. Also I don't plan this to be a very long story, maybe ranging up to ten or fifteen chapters. It would only have significant events that affected the relationship of the two main characters not their whole story.
Eight year old Bellatrix Black closed the book she was reading (Memoirs of Sirius Black: My discovery of the darkest and most exotic arts in Nigeria) with a thud. She hated babies. They were the most annoying things to grace Merlin's magical earth. They cried and they whined and they interfered in everything. She could barely stand two of her baby sisters and didn't understand why she had to have two. Wasn't she enough for her parents? She was going to grow up stronger and more powerful than both of them.. no, all of the family combined.
Bellatrix Black was a witch. A witch, who is still being deemed too young to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It was such a stupid rule. She bet within a month of magical training she can do better wand work than half the third years in the school, if only she was allowed to go. Even now, even without a wand of her own, she has learned how to channel her emotions and use her 'accidental' magic whenever she wanted to.
Another shrill cry woke her up from her train of glorious thoughts.
"This one seems to be even more annoying than Narcissa and Andromeda" She thought, clearly annoyed.
The crying, screeching bundle of nuisance is her new baby cousin; the son of her uncle Orion and Aunt Walburga; the eminent heir to the Black family fortune. It was ridiculous. Just because her father was born younger to Orion Black, should not mean that little creature would one day get to be Lord Black? Hasn't she shown even at age 8, that she was the perfect pureblood daughter and potential heir? Hasn't she shown her strong magical prowess and superior intellect?
Bellatrix was quite fond of her aunt Walburga. The woman was strong, domineering and had her priorities straight. She even let Bella play with various magical artifacts when her parents weren't around. She told her stories about the glorious time when Grindelwald stood to eradicate the magical world from mudblood filth. She told her stories about great Black heroes of the past. And now, she had a baby boy of her own; the family hair, no less. That little rumpled, heaving pile of dirt would rob her not of her deserving place as Black family heiress but also the affection of the only relative that Bellatrix cared about and in turn cared about her. Her parents loved Narcissa who even at age 3 was the epitome of girly and prim and proper. Uncle Orion pampered the ridiculously sweet, unbecomingly helpful little brat Andromeda. Only Aunt Walburga saw the potential in Bellatrix.
And now she was going to be robbed of it.
Now she would always be branded second best because despite all her hopes and prayers to Merlin, on this night the baby had been born.
Only goes to show that Merlin is a myth.
Right now, everyone was gathered downstairs taking turns, carrying the baby boy and she knew she was expected there as well. She had better just get it over with. She was not fearful of any punishment or reprimand she might get. But she did want to salvage any possible closeness with her aunt. Sighing in an annoyed manner, she dropped the book which her aunt had given her for Christmas on her bed and got up. It was about one of the greatest of Black heroes. Sirius Black II, son of Phineas Nigellus (Headmaster of Hogwarts.) Sirius had pushed the boundaries of dark arts further than it has ever been pushed before and he was one of the ancestor that Bella really hero worshipped, not just because of all the new spells and potions he had invented but because he was ambitious, meticulous, cold and calculating; traits that were endearing to her.
She straightened her dress, walked out of her room and proceeded down the stairs. Her suspicion was right. The entire family was gathered around the couch in the grand Black family hall. Her Aunt Walburga who spotted her the moment she walked down the stairs called out to her beckoning her forward.
'Bella,' She said. 'Come here, my dear. We wondered where you were. '
Bella walked elegantly, pushing her way through the gathered extended family members, giving her sister Andromeda little shove in the process. Her Aunt, Walburga who was lying on the couch appearing positively bored. There was a look of relief in her eyes as Bella moved to stand by her head. Bella's mother was cooing to the bundle in her arms trying to get him to remain quiet. With a tiny relief, Bella noticed that Aunt Walburga didn't seem to care too much.
Her mother moved to stand next to her and said in a bubbly voice, 'Bellatrix, meet your newest cousin. Isn't he cute?' Bella looked at the bundle in her arms, disinterestedly. There was not much to see. It had dark raven hair and its face was crunched up because it was still crying inconsolably. It was wrapped completely in green and Black.
'You should hold him once, Bellatrix,' said Uncle Orion. 'Let his magic bond with yours.' Bella knew that it was family tradition for new babies to be held by each member of the family; hoping for the magical cores of each individual to learn the other in the family at a ripe age, to strengthen the ties within the family.
It all sounded more of an old wife's tale than fact for Bellatrix but with a slight glance at her Aunt who was studying her silently, she obliged, taking the baby from her mom's hands uncomfortably.
To all their immense surprise, the baby stopped crying as soon as it was on Bella's arms. It looked up at her with big grey eyes, full of interest and Bella looked right back, a little curious too at this point. The baby retrieved a tiny hand from the bundle and reached out to grab a lock of Bella's dark black hair which so resembled the baby.
The entire family looked uncomfortable and Narcissa shivered on the other side of her mother. It was known that Bellatrix didn't like people touching her hair and even at the age of 8, people tried to make sure they didn't annoy Bella because bad things happened to those that annoy Bella. With a nervous look on her face, her mother moved to reprieve the baby from Bella's arms but was stopped by a silent Aunt Walburga who laid a reproaching hand on her arm.
Everyone held their breath as the baby boy, continued to grasp Bella's hair and the big grey eyes looked at the narrowed brown ones. Then the baby broke into a laugh; chuckling loudly and peacefully. Bella continued to look at her baby cousin curiously before her face broke into a rare smile; it wasn't a smirk or a forced smile like usual but a genuine smile. She poked the baby's cheek with her index finger, holding him a little closer to her. She felt her heart lighten and a euphoric happiness gripped her; all jealously, all distaste wiped away. She continued to smile at the mischievous little baby boy in her arms, his grey eyes dancing up with glee as he continued to hold that one lock of Bella's hair.
'He is going to be a rebel,' Bella said looking up and grinning at her family. Then she seemed to realize her own demeanor and quickly masked her face and regained her composure. He looked directly into the eyes of Walburga Black, who now had a small smile playing on her lips.
'His name is going to be Sirius Black,' she announced with a determined force, laced in her words.
A/N: All comments, feedback, suggestions welcome. :) Expect a quick update, this time around thought it might not always be the case.