Disclaimer: I am not J.K Rowling and would not even attempt to impersonate her with Polyjuice Potion. Therfore this is not her work.
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It was my family.
The
bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect
and joy in each other's life.
Rarely do members of one family
grow up under the same roof. –
Richard Bach 'Illusions'
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You curl and yawn on the faded sofa, your head nestled amongst a colourful array of cushions, your feet tangled in a common room blanket. You had been lying there since Peter's amazingly enthusiastic snores had awoken you in the dormitory and you had angrily stomped down the stairs to try and get some rest elsewhere. You had dozed in and out of dreams, but mostly you kept your grey eyes shut and let your mind wander.
You thought about family mostly, what that word actually meant. To you it could not mean 'blood relations' because that was where all this anger and hatred had stemmed from. All of these ridiculous notions of 'pureblood' ancestry, insect more like it. It was a terribly ignorant assumption to think that wizards and witches could only marry wizards and witches, there simply was not enough to go around!
Family also couldn't mean your blood relations for another reason; you were no longer a part of that family. The sorting hat had placed you in Gryffindor yet you had known before the hat that you did not belong. Besides your dark hair and chiseled cheekbones, your ability to be a great quidditch player and your last name, you simply had nothing in common with those that were labeled 'family'. They wanted it to rain, and you wanted the sun to shine. Two conflicting ideas that could not mould together.
Sometimes you wondered why you were even born into the Blacks, what cruel twist of fate brought you there? You often thought that it was because you were meant to change them, to save them from their evil and ignorant ways, but lately you had admitted that it was an impossible task.
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You use to talk to Regulus about how your family ideals were wrong, you would both lie on your backs on the grass in the small courtyard of Grimmauld Place and look at the stars, you pointed out the stars you were named after:
"There's me! I'm the big Dog Star; I am the brightest star in the sky." You pointed to the star that you were named after and smiled at its presence.
"Where am I Siri, show me where I am!" Regulus wiggled on the grass beside you.
"There you are, see you are in the Leo constellation, you are like the heart of the lion. You are really bright too, but not as bright as I am."
"I am too!" Regulus protested, "show me the others!"
You pointed to other spots in the sky, giving each their name.
"And there's Andromeda, that's what Andy was named after. She is named after a Greek princess, she was a ruler of men! And there's Bellatrix, her star was named after a female warrior. There's Dad, he's the hunter."
Your arm was getting tired from reaching out to try and touch the stars, the members of your family.
"Stars are like big burning balls of plasma, they make up galaxies. That's like us Reg; galaxies are like families, grouping together."
You little brother smiled into your shoulder, "I'm sleepy."
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You pulled the blanket higher over your legs, shivering slightly at the fond memory, which was all you had now, memories and dreams.
So you thought on your other definition of family, the people that made you feel at home, the people you trusted and loved. James, Remus and Peter. When you had left your 'blood' family, they had all supported you, Remus had slung his arm over your shoulder and pulled you close, James had not hesitated in saying that his home was your home, Peter had said that we choose our families, and he had chosen you.
And so it did not do to reminisce about the constellations and how you once thought that your family was like a galaxy. The bond you shared with your best friends was stronger and closer than the stars in the heaven, which you could never seem to reach.
They were here beside you, imperfect and wonderful. Peter with his loud snores, Remus with his habit of humming all the time and James with his hand messing up his hair. And you, you with your quick temper and rash decisions.
You moved groggily to your feet, the dawn was beginning to throw a mellow light over the chairs in the common room, stumbling back up the stairs you shuffled back into your dormitory.
Peter's snore echoed around the room, yet you smiled.