Why hello there, you gorgeous...person...you.
Anyway! So, I've been messing with this idea since around June, but haven't been able to pieve it together in a way that makes sense. But after listening to Tell Me You Love Me by Demi Lovato, and soundtracks from The Greatest Showman, Pitch Perfect 3, and inspiration from the old TV show Bunheads and the MCU, this sort of tumbled out of my brain.
This is just the brief introduction, the first chapter will be a sort of prologue-esque sequence following the brief love story of our main character's parents.
So, do please enjoy what little I have written thus far.
14th of June, 1676
The Caribbean
Sarin, Darling,
It's been far too long since your last letter. Though I must confess, the blame dost fall upon me, however, in majority dost impose itself upon this dreadful scenery I'm told is an island.
How Aleksandr can stand to be here for so long is, quite frankly, unknown to me.
The climate of this sordid place is absolutely wretched. Much too hot for my tastes. Not that that seems to be taken into consideration, not with the absolute filth that roams this vile island so freely.
Just yesterday I had my mid-morning stroll, only for my path to be crossed by tawdry muggle filth. The scarlet woman was all but exposed, Sarin. Much farther than ankles dear, I assure you.
The scandal many a wife hissed.
I've sunken so low as to listen to the squanderings of pathetic witches claiming love is nothing if not poetic. If that were true, then why fit over a husband's wandering eye?
Nonetheless, idle chatter is not the sole reason for my owl, I'm afraid.
Your cousin would be the reason for this letter.
This is none of my business, I'm much aware. But Sarin, I've heard and seen terrible things – things that can cost an entire family their reputation. Surely you of all people can acknowledge that fact.
Now I know we were not present for the Engagement of your cousin and Andraste Ànsruthair, so I'd like to believe my basis of the woman is wholly unbiased in this situation.
Having not met me in person nor seeming to know my name, Miss Ànsruthair has been rather cavalier in my presence, confiding in me her. . .accounts with some sparrowed pirate lunatic that seems to be more infatuated with a woman's undergarments than anything else.
She failed to mention his blood status, though piracy has all the answers anyone needs.
The woman also tells me of Castor's trysts with a mudblood wanton and his growing desire to flee his post.
I tell you this not as a means for advancement, but as your friend.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall. That is something not even the Black Family can escape, this you understand?
Sarin, I urge you to do what you can to mend the problem, should word spread, it would be ruin.
Sincerely,
Wilhelmina Wylkaard
Miss E. Thayer
The Middle Compartment
Palimpsest Carriage
The Callithumpian
Currently Travelling Westward
31st of October, 1717
Manchester
Lyra,
I did it! I finally did it! I finally did magic!
It was so amazing and I'm so excited! Surely I can attend Hogwarts next year, right? I do hope so!
Mother and Father were excited. . .sort of, at least. I made that Goblin's vase that Mother loves so much crack. It doesn't look too bad, but they weren't very happy with it.
I will be at Hogwarts next year, won't I? What will happen if I don't? I won't be blasted off the tapestry like Cousin Caelum will I?
I know you're busy, but please write back soon,
Ara
To a Miss Ebony Thayer,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into Ilvermorny's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find the enclosed list of all supplies and equipment needed for the 1990-1991 school year.
School begins on the last Monday of August, all modes of transportation are expected to depart the day before depending on where you are currently located. To see how you will arrive to Ilvermorny, please see the various schedules provided.
For any further questions, please contact Mr. Delphinius Orizaga here at Ilvermorny.
For any No-Maj born First Year students, a date has been provided along with your supply lists in which an Ilvermorny representative will escort you and your family to buy school squipment and uniforms.
We personally extend the warmest welcomes and regards. This is the first step in your journey in the magical community. Congratulations!
Yours Sincerely,
Agilbert Fontaine
Headmaster
24th of May, 1759
Cepheus Hyperion Black
Salle d'ébène
Manchester, England, Great Britain
Final Notice of Intent to Foreclose
Account Loan Number: 648254598
Vault Number(s): 182, 247, 429, 478,
Property Address: Salle d'ébène, Manchester, England, Great Britain
This notice is for resident CEPHEUS HYPERION BLACK in regard to past due payments of acquired loans for the months of DECEMBER through APRIL 1758-1759. Wizard must pay the total due, including late fees, no later than 15 JULY 1759. If total due, including late fees, is not received by 15 JULY 1759, Wizard and all other residents must vacate the premises by 16 JULY 1759.
The total due, including late fees, is as follows:
Loan Payments: 5,544,758 Galleons
Late Fees: 2,423,242 Galleons
Total: 7,968,000 Galleons
Nagnok,
Gringotts Wizarding Bank
Diagon Alley,
Charing Cross Road,
London, England, Great Britain
Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Uniform
Three or more sets of daily robes (Blue and Cranberry)
At least one set of dress robes
One pair of protective gloves (Dragon Hyde or other)
One Winter Cloak (Black, Blue, or Cranberry)
Please label all uniforms with your name
Course Books
Chadwicks Charms: Volume 1 by Chadwick Boot
Tantalizing Transfigurations: Volume 1 by Claudius Cattermole
Magical Theories and Philosophies: Volume 1 by Alexander Waffling
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyillda Spore
Distinct Drafts, Tinctures, Potions and Draughts by Anna-Gretta Lee
Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard
Basic Defense and Protection by Charity Wilkinson
Charting the Cosmos by Tesla Manning
Moon Map: Understanding the Phases of the Moon by Luna Strella
Guiding Gemstones: Gemology Comprehension by Peridot Jasper
Reiterating History by Jacoby Quahog
Other Equipment
One Cauldron (standard size 5)
Set of glass or crystal vials
Set of brass scales
One Telescope
*Students may bring pets; either an owl, cat, toad, etc. DO NOT BRING A BEAST UNLESS CLEARED BY MACUSA SCREENING PROCESS
*Please note that First Years are not allowed broomsticks
Rigel Black
5th of March, 1801
I'm losing my mind. There's no other way around it. I'm losing my damn mind. Merlin, what the hell am I to do?
Ebony Thalia Thayer,
D.O.B.: 04/24/1979
Transportation: Underground Railroad
Administrative Representative: Agilbert Fontaine on: June 3rd 1990 at 9:30 A.M.
As you are based in UNKNOWN, you will be required to report to LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, LOS ANGELES, CA. by no later than 12:00 P.M.
Please enter the elevator located on the North End of Terminal 5 and hit the ground floor button to the tune of "Mount Greylock, Ilvermorny." From there you will board the underground railroad. Enclosed is the No-Maj airplane ticket that will be checked through the No-Maj section, as well as on board the railway.
Thank you, and we look forward to your attendance this Fall!
Delphinius Orizaga
Head of Administration
Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Carina Black
23rd of April 1801
We don't speak of it, but there's a certain weight to be carried with the name Black.
A Black must be poised, fierce, unyeilding, cunning, ambitious.
A Black must be a warrior of the highest regard. But we must feign ignorance; must remain demure at the appointed times. Man or woman, we must hold our name above all else, flourishing our reputation with our magical prowess. Should you possess no magic, it is decided that you are not fit for the name.
You must be quick, clever, and cautious.
Always have an end in mind when beginning a game.
To enter a situation blindly is to be weak.
We are not weak.
To be weak in this world is to be dead.
It's an almost impossible pressure we're under, but we dare not speak of it. Because it is an honor to uphold the name Black. We are a Most Noble and Ancient House, to besmerch the name equates to dismissal.
A fate worse than death.
Pride, Grandfather Cepheus once told me, is the bane of a Black. And with this, it is to be understood that every Witch or Wizard, even we, can fall. Can bend and crack under the weight of our own success. Or our failures.
I fear Rigel is at his breaking point.
Less than a fortnight ago he near killed himself going through Father's ledgers.
It was a rare moment to see my brother crumble under the burden of our blood. A burden Father so easily passed on in his end.
I worry for him.
Not yet out of this wretched castle as already he bears the weight of "Lord Black."
I worry of his mental state. I worry of his views should they change like sails on the wind.
I worry for myself.
Who am I but a naive child in times like these?
And yet my hand has been offered far more times than I'd like.
I worry for Rigel. Because if he burns to an end, that leaves only me.
And if he were to fall, then surely so would I.
And that is unacceptable.
We are the last members of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black.
We do not cower. We do not crumble. We do not break.
In the game of life we are the masters that create the rules and set others to bend, to yield, to crack, to break.
But never us.
I fear for the day we will.
The Last Will and Testament of
Regulus Arcturus Black
28 February 1961 - 15 July 1979
12 Grimmauld Place, London
I, Regulus Arcturus Black,
Hereby declare that this is my last will and testament and that I hereby revoke, cancel and annul all wills and codicils previously made by me either jointly or severally. I declare that I am of legal age to make this will and of sound mind and that this last will and testament expresses my wishes without undue influence or duress.
I hereby nominate, constitute, and appoint Ebony Thalia Thayer as eventual Executor of my will. Until she is of legal age and sound mind, I appoint Ragnuk the Fourth of Gringott's Wizarding Bank to serve as my Executor; delegating all financial and property matters of the Black Family in accordance to previously set parameters.
Pending the distribution of my estate my Executors shall have authority to carry on any business, venture or partnership in which I may have any interest at the time of my death.
I, Regulus Arcturus Black, current heir apparent of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black upon my death, bequest and appoint Ebony Thalia Thayer as the next heir apparent, to assume the title in it's entirety upon reaching legal age.
Should the current Head, Arcturus Phineas Black, the current heir, Orion Cepheus Black, and I be deceased at the time of her acession, Ebony Thalia Thayer shall take ownership of the Black Estate in it's entirety; Vault numbers 182, 247, 429, 478, 536, 539, 585, 612, 613, 614, 615, 616, and 714, the earlier vaults holding Black artifacts, property deeds, and so on. As well as the vaults, all buildings, business ventures, investments, possessions, and house elves under the ownership of the House of Black will be acquired.
All specific instructions and guidelines for the proper managing of the Black Estate have been left in the hands of Ragnuk the Fourth, and can only be given to the previously named heir apparent, Ebony Thalia Thayer.
Born on the 24th of April in the nineteen hundredth and seventy ninth year, Ebony Thalia Thayer, daughter of former heir apparent Sirius Orion Black and American muggle Sara Aletheia Thayer holds rightful claim to the title of Heir Black by birth, and can only be stripped of the title should she so choose, being of legal age and of sound mind.
Appointed as her magical guardian as proven by blood and intent, should I pass before she is of age to attend school, I appoint Agilbert Fontaine as the magical guardian of Ebony Thalia Thayer, and him alone. Should any unforseen circumstances occur, the new magical guardian should act according to the previously agreed upon measures, of which has been Vowed.
I direct that on my death, should I have found remains, that they be incinerated by a wand of Aspen, that my ashes be where my heart there lay.
Signed on this 15th day of MAY 1979 at the location of GRINGOTT'S WIZARDING BANK, OFFICE NO. 463 in the presence of the undersigned witnesses.
SIGNED, Regulus Arcturus Black
As witnesses we declare that we are of sound mind and of legal age to witness a will and that to the best of our knowledge REGULUS ARCTURUS BLACK, the creator of this will, is of legal age to make a will, appears to be of sound mind and signed this will willingly and free of undue influence or duress. We declare that he signed this will in our presence as we then signed as witnesses in his presence and in the presence of each other witness, all being present at the same time.
WITNESS 1: signed Orion Cepheus Black
WITNESS 2: signed Ragnuk the Fourth