A Family Secret

I slammed my pen down on my desk and held my aching head in my hands. I felt my head throb in protest to the work I was putting it through, but I was adamant to prove mum wrong.

My mum had dared me to study non-stop for a week, and I was only allowed to stop for food, sleep and to visit the toilet. Of course I would never back down from a dare. So here I was, two o'clock in the afternoon of an almost unnaturally sunny day, cooped up in my stuffy room with the blinds and curtains shut and my floor and desk littered with study papers and books.

I glanced to the door to make sure mum wasn't about to jump in and catch me, and quietly walked over to the window. I sat down on the window seat and peeked through the blinds. I sighed heavily as I caught sight of mum talking animatedly with our next-door neighbour Mrs Green. Rather odd, isn't it? That the Black family lives next door to the Green family.

Mrs Green said something and mum burst into a fit of laughter. Mrs Green beamed at mum and said something else, which made mum laugh more.

I shook my head, trying to forget the fact that my mum was a weirdo, and looked about the garden. Mum must have been hanging out the washing, because half our washing was flapping gently in the breeze, while the rest of it lay in a crumpled heap in the washing basket.

My black cat, Pancakes, was sneaking around the back shed, narrowing her eyes at possible prey. There was a blissful silence and the only sound was the chirping of the birds and the clicking of the crickets, until I heard a violent hiss and Pancakes returned from behind the shed, licking her lips wiith a slight bounce in her step.

I sighed again and looked back at mum. She had stopped talking to Mrs Green and was continuing with the washing. I needed out. I needed some fresh air. It had been five long days and it really annoyed me that mum was getting pleasure out of me being cooped up. She seemed much happier, and had more time to relax, I noticed that much. I even caught her chatting up a guy down the main street during the first couple of days, which really annoyed me.

Hours later, when I was absorbed in my studies and was lost completely in the world of Transfiguration, mum knocked on my door and waltzed in. She grinned down at me and I glared.

"Having fun?" She cooed merrily, flicking her bouncy blonde bob out her shining hazel eyes.

I groaned and fell onto my desk, banging my head on my books.

"I'll take that as a yes," Mum beamed. "Dinner's out. I'll be nice tonight though, I think I'll give you the night off."

I grinned despite myself and cried, "Race you!" I leapt from my seat and bolted out the door and down the wooden staircase. It was several seconds before I heard the banging of mum's feet as she ran after me and her cries of delight as we acted like complete idiots.

I threw my arms in the air as I entered the kitchen and shouted, "I win!"

Mum appeared in the kitchen doorway, clutching her chest and panting slightly, "You cheated! You never gave me enough notice!"

I stuck my tongue out at her and sat myself in my seat, ready for dinner.

I loved days like these; the sort of days where mum was actually aware of how great she was. She doesn't talk about it much, but after dad left us when I was only three, she doesn't seem to see just how amazing a mum she is. Sometimes I think mum feels the need to flirt with guys, she thinks she needs a guy to complete her, or a father to fulfil my life, which is complete rubbish of course.

My dad, Reggie as mum liked to call him, was an all round cool guy as far as I can remember. At times he was just as unsure of himself as I always am. It's amazing that I can actually remember as much about dad as I can, considering how young I was when he left. I suppose the way mum talked about him every now and then, and the way he looked in photo albums helped kick-start my memory, because I remember what he looked like, how he acted, what he loved to call me, everything, as though he were still with me.

Mum doesn't like to talk about him much because it's too painful, but whenever she does talk about him, she is never mean towards him. She told me every detail about their relationship, and how dad made her happier than she had ever been, and how he completed her. It sounds stupid I know, but it made sense.

Apparently dad, coming from "The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black," was under a lot of pressure to become something he wasn't. Mum was a friend from school and helped him when his family upset him, and before long she realised she liked him as more than a friend. However, since mum is a muggle-born, dad's family hated her and him for associating with her. So he told his family he had nothing to do with her, and their relationship became secret.

When they left school, they got married in secret. More for the excitement of having a secret relationship than anything else. However, soon dad got mixed up in people he wasn't supposed to, and he knew mum was no longer safe with him. So he was going to break it off with her and get a divorce to keep her safe, but then mum found out she was pregnant with me and everything changed. From then on mum never existed, I never existed, and dad was single. But dad built us a secret house and paid for everything to keep us going. If he were daring enough, he would stay over with us. At one point, he stayed a whole month without anyone finding out.

I remember the night he left us. He came by and told mum he was leaving the people he hated and that they would go after him and kill him and us if they found out about us. Mum tried to convince him to stay but he was determind. So he left.

A couple of weeks later he was found dead. And with him went his money. So mum and I were poor with nowhere to stay.

For a while we lived in a hotel, and mum worked in the local bar to bring in money. Before long we had enough money to buy a cottage in mum's hometown in Scotland. When I was five, we moved into the cottage and mum started decorating and turning the cottage into a home.

When I was eleven I got my Hogwarts letter, but we both agreed that it would be better if mum tutored me at home so that no one found out about me and mum, just in case.

So here I was, seventeen and in my last year of home schooling with mum. I loved it. I had never been very good at socialising so not going to school and having only mum as a friend suited me fine.

"Can you pass the sauce?" I passed mum the sauce with a smile and sighed in happiness; sometimes people like Mrs Green took pity in me not having a father, but I enjoyed my life with mum and although a life with a dad would be just as good, I couldn't complain about anything.

"Josh was asking after you," Mum said casually, popping a carrot in her mouth.

"Oh right," I pretended to smile; Josh, Mrs Green's son, went to Hogwarts like every other average kid and apparently had a crush on me. I never saw how he could, as we never talked and never hung out and we were not friends.

"Lyra…he likes you…why don't you just give him a chance?" Mum asked me, giving me the puppy dog eyes.

I rolled my eyes and took a drink of my water, "Because I barely know him and because I only ever see him during the summer. What's the point?"

"Bertha told me today that he broke up with a perfectly nice girl," Mum continued. "He wrote to her the other day telling her. Apparently he just can't concentrate on his school work and can't bare to date other girls when he knows you're still back here."

I rolled my eyes again, "I know his type; he doesn't like me at all."

"Lyra Black! You don't know any types! You haven't ever been at school to know what his type is!" Mum laughed.

I shrugged and pushed away my empty plate, "Still, I can't be bothered with boys."

Mum rolled her eyes with a smile and started clearing away the dirty dishes, "How could I get landed with such a weird child? When I was your age I couldn't stop thinking of boys."

"Oh don't I feel loved," I laughed and walked over to help dry the dishes as mum washed them.

"Oh, sorry chicken," mum kissed me on the forehead and flicked her wet hands at me, splattering my face with dirty water.

I squealed. I dipped my hand in the sink and splashed mum back with water and she splashed me, until the dishes were abandoned and we were competing in a water fight.

"Mum! No! Have mercy!" I cried hysterically as mum stopped splashing me and started tickling me.

"Mwah ha ha!" Mum shouted in a mock evil laugh.

"Merlin you're weird!" I said between giggles.

"Ahem."

We both turned to look at the open back door with shocked faces to find Mrs Green smiling at us. I collected myself and wiped the suds off me and mum cleaned off her hands to meet Mrs Green.

"Bertha," Mum smiled warmly as she stood at the door. "Do you want to come in and have some tea? I'm afraid we've just finished dinner, but you could join us in pudding."

"Oh no I can't stay long Amy, dear," Mrs Green apologised. "I must get back and finish cleaning Josh's room; he's awfully messy you know. No, I got a rather unexpected visitor, 'fraid he got the wrong house and thought I'd bring him over just in case he got lost." Mrs Green winked at me, and I couldn't helping sniggering; our house and Mrs green's house were the only other houses for about five miles radius.

"Oh, right," Mum smiled nervously.

Mrs Green stepped back slightly and gestured to a tall gentleman behind her, "Amy this is, well, I'll let you introduce yourselves, you must already know each other anyway. I'll see you later Amy, Lyra."

With a smile and a nod, Mrs Green turned and walked swiftly back to her house. I looked back at the gentleman at the door with a look of puzzlement; he looked rather familiar.

Mum was gazing in awe at him, and was apparently unable to say anything. The man had black hair that fell over his hypnotising grey eyes in a very nice way, and he had a few scars across his face. He looked rather pale, however, like he hadn't seen daylight in years. His face was thin and his body was lean, he smiled pathetically at mum and said, "Amy."

Mum covered her gaping mouth with her hand and grabbed my arm to keep her upright. "Mum?" I asked her, unsurely. "Are you alright?"

"S…Sirius…" Mum stuttered.

"I'm sorry I had to just turn up on your doorstep, but, well, I'm in a bit of a tight spot and I need help," The man named Sirius smiled gently at mum, who continued to gape back.

I cleared my throat and, seeing that mum wasn't going to say anything any time soon, I stepped forward and held out my hand, "I'm Lyra, Amy's daughter. Sorry, who are you?"

Sirius' sharp grey eyes turned to me and I felt myself squirm uncomfortably under his gaze. "Lyra?" He asked thoughtfully. He paused for a moment, before saying, "You look so like Regulus."

I gasped silently, my eyes bulging in shock as I lowered my hand. "You knew my dad?" I asked quietly.

Sirius chuckled slightly and smiled at me, "You could say that."

Mum cleared her throat and said, "Sirius, what are you doing here? I thought they put you in Azkaban?"

Sirius' eyes darkened and his face paled as he said solemnly, "You know what really happened, I take it?" Mum nodded. "Well, I escaped. Everyone's looking for me, I've yet to get in touch with Dumbledore, but until then it's better I lay low."

Mum gulped and nodded shakily, "Well then, you can stay here. I hope you don't mind sleeping on the couch because this cottage only has two rooms."

"No problem, I've slept in Azkaban, after all, so a couch would be luxury," Sirius smiled and mum actually smiled too.

"Come in," Mum walked round Sirius and closed the door behind him. "You already know this is Lyra. Lyra, this is, well, this is your uncle."

I gaped slightly, my face probably screamed that I didn't understand what was happening and that there was no way this man could be my uncle.

"B-but mum, you said all of dad's family were evil gits!" I looked back at mum.

I saw Sirius smile slightly in the corner of my eye but I ignored him. "I, er, well…I wasn't including Sirius. Sirius was your father's only brother and was practically banished from his family when he was sorted into Gryffindor. He's a good man, and your father looked up to him. Just, please let's talk about this later. Sirius, I don't suppose you have any things with you?"

Sirius shook his head and mum nodded firmly, "Well, I'll throw something together for you, I don't even want to know what Azkaban fed you but it obviously didn't do any good."

Mum walked to the cooker and started "throwing together" a meal for Sirius. She turned to me and said, "Ly can you show Sirius about? He'll be staying with us for a while so show him where everything is."

I stuttered a few times before sighing in frustration and stomping out the room, not caring if Sirius followed me.

I tree myself on my bed and glaed at my cloud covered ceiling. I let out a frustrated cry and turned over, slamming my face in my pillow.

"So this is you room?"

My head snapped up and I spun over to find that Sirius man standing in my doorway.