This idea's been kicking around in my head for a few weeks now, so here you have it, my newest method of procrastination.

Enjoy!


Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace,
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
Thursday's child has far to go,
Friday's child is loving and giving,
Saturday's child works hard for a living,
But the child that is born on the Sabbath day
Is bonnie and blithe and good and gay.

Traditional Nursery Rhyme


Monday's child is fair of face.

Narcissa Black was born on a Monday. It was a quiet, unassuming day – bright, but not overly so, and warm, but not quite hot enough to go outside without a light jacket – in short, it was a terribly common day to be born.

Bellatrix, who remembered the day of her other sister's birth very well (it had been cold and snowy – certainly a strange sight for mid-August) and who lived under the assumption that she had been born on a night of torrential rain and thunder, found Narcissa's birthday much too average for her liking.

But Bellatrix didn't dare voice such a concern in front of her parents, for she was still in trouble for the comment she had made at her Aunt Walburga's house. (I hate the playroom! It looks like a muggle decorated it!) So, in an uncommon show of gentility, she kept her comments to herself as she and her sister Andromeda were led by their nurse to the room where their parents were cooing over the newborn.

The nurse didn't tarry, instead pushing the sisters gently inside and scurrying out, not wanting to intrude on the family moment. The room was bright and airy, painted a soft shade of green and fitted with pale wood furniture quite unlike the dark woods that outfitted the rest of the house. Inside, Andromeda rushed immediately to her mother's side to peer at the child asleep in her arms.

Bellatrix hung back, unsure. Andromeda had screamed and cried when Bellatrix had come in and insisted on holding her, and the none-too-gentle rebukes she had received still flashed in her memory. It was Andromeda's little gasps and cooing that enticed Bellatrix closer. In spite of her apprehension, she was deathly curious to know what the baby looked like. With quiet little steps, she took her place at her mother's other side to examine the baby.

The baby was a she. And although Bellatrix knew she should have been praying for a boy, she'd been secretly hoping for another girl. Boys, she thought, were boring and not at all fun to play with. Girls were smart and boys were dumb, and so she was secretly buoyed by the birth of her sister.

As Bellatrix was wrapped up in thoughts of all the things she would teach the newest addition to the Black family, Andromeda spoke.

"Maman?" Her voice was soft out of concern for the baby. "Maman, why does the baby not look like us?"

By 'us' of course she meant her and her sister, for the child bore a striking resemblance to her mother.

At Andromeda's words, Bellatrix took a second look at the baby.

"She's blonde!" Bellatrix cried, much too loudly.

"Bellatrix! Shh!" Her mother hissed sharply, then her tone softened and she said, "Yes girls, your sister does look different from you. But not all siblings look alike."

Bellatrix frowned at the child, forehead creased in concentration, as if willing the child's hair to darken. But as she stared at her sister, the creases on her forehead began to fade and a strange calm washed over her. A calm she hadn't felt when Andromeda had been born, looking like a miniature version of herself.

"Maman," Bellatrix whispered, suddenly conscious of how loud her voice could be, "she's beautiful!"

Druella Black smiled at her daughters.

"So she is."


So, what do you think? Review, please! =)