Cygnus Black didn't quite know what to think as he looked at his third daughter.
She was so tiny, tinier than either Bellatrix or Andromeda had been when they had been born.
Bellatrix and Andromeda had been born on schedule.
This baby girl, however, had arrived two months early.
She wasn't exactly a sickly-looking baby, but it was clear that she wasn't as strong as a Pureblood baby ought to be, even if she was a girl.
To put it simply, this baby girl looked fragile, as if the slightest breeze would be enough to knock her down and shatter her as if she was glass.
"I am sorry, Cygnus," Druella Black spoke from another bed. "I know that you had wanted a boy."
Cygnus looked at his wife just long enough to nod his head at her. It was true that he would have preferred a boy to carry on the Black name. But at the rate that they were going, three girls in the row, it was looking as if it would be up to Orion and Walburga to ensure that the Black name lived on after their deaths.
The fact that this baby was a girl instead of a boy, however, was not what was really causing Cygnus to pause to think.
Cygnus had never given either of his two other daughters much thought. The only time he really had anything to do with them was whenever Druella was having problems with disciplining them. For the most part, however, Cygnus was more than happy to leave the child raising to his wife. She was a female Pureblood, which meant that she knew what was expected out of other female Purebloods. She knew what her daughters needed to be taught.
Unlike Bellatrix and Andromeda, though, this daughter was different. It wasn't just the fact that she was so tiny and pathetic looking. It also was the fact that her head was covered in blond hair. Bellatrix and Andromeda had both been born with the dark hair of a Black.
If Cygnus had not been so sure of Druella's propriety, he would have wondered if some other man was actually this girl's father. But no, Druella had been better bred than that, so there was no doubt in Cygnus's mind that this girl was his daughter as well. For reasons unknown, however, she was different.
"Can you go figure out where the Healers are at?" Druella asked, her voice clearly annoyed. "I'm ready to leave this place. I can smell the Mudblood filth all around us."
"The Healers still wish to run more tests on our daughter to make sure that she's healthy enough to go home," Cygnus responded, surprising himself slightly. He wasn't one to care much about his daughters, after all. He didn't, though, want to see any of his family members die before they had the chance to pass on their pure blood to the next generation. The preservation of blood purity had always been the most important thing to him.
"If she is a mistake, then she is a mistake," Druella returned, her voice cold. "Besides, it isn't as if we don't have two children already or that we can't have another in the future. Perhaps the next one will finally be a boy."
Cygnus looked at his wife for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. He knew that Druella was right. Even among Purebloods with their excellent breeding, there could still be the occasional mistake.
At that moment, a group of Healers walked into the room. Cygnus stepped back as they surrounded the tiny bed containing his tiny daughter.
The Healers waved their wands over the little girl's body for several minutes. Then, one of them turned to address the two Blacks.
"She's perfectly healthy," the Healer spoke. "There's no reason why she can't go home by this afternoon. What is her name going to be?"
Cygnus once again turned to look at his wife. Neither had yet decided on a name. They had waited with Bellatrix and Andromeda as well. Druella liked the idea of seeing the child first before deciding on name for it, and Cygnus had no problem with that. The children, after all, were primarily her responsibility.
Cygnus, however, found himself thinking about which star would be appropriate for their third daughter.
What is the perfect star for someone so tiny and fragile, for someone so different from the rest of the family?
"Narcissa," Druella spoke. "Her name will be Narcissa."
Cygnus looked at his wife in surprise. Narcissa was not a star.
Cygnus, however, didn't make any comment about this. This was no business of any of the Healers.
As soon as the Healers had left the room, though, Cygnus turned to fully face Druella.
"There is no star named Narcissa," Cygnus spoke. "Our daughter is a Black. What would cause you to want to go against my family's tradition?"
"Look at her," Druella hissed. "She is so tiny, so fragile. She does not have the strength of a Pureblood, much less a Black."
"No Black is weak," Cygnus snarled.
"I meant no offense, Cygnus," Druella responded, her voice now softer and gentler. "Perhaps she won't prove to be fragile as she grows older. Perhaps Narcissa will one day prove that she deserves to be respected for both the Pureblood and the Black that she is. Her name can go either way."
Cygnus just nodded his head before turning to once again look at Narcissa.
She really was a tiny, fragile thing.
Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing after all that Narcissa was a girl. A tiny, fragile Pureblood boy would have been completely unacceptable.
A tiny, fragile Pureblood girl, on the other hand, could be allowed a little more leeway. She was just a girl, after all. It wasn't as if she was going to pass on the Black name to her child. No, it would be her husband's name that would be passed on to her child. She was just there to carry that child. She was just there to ensure that her husband was able to pass on his family name to the next generation.