She was given the name Andromeda, named after the stars, just like I was. She was two years older than me and we seemed to be in the same boat. We were from all pureblooded families, cousins with the same last name, intermarriage, incest, scandal, all kept under wraps, under control by our familial manipulative power. A long line of Blacks going back as far as the earliest magical families could date, in our young minds and in the minds of our families, that made us magical royalty, top of the social hierarchy, above everyone else. We were really brainwashed, raised to think this, the whole lot of us.
Even among our families we had a superiority complex, our Slytherin ambition causing fierce competition between our parents and the other cold-blooded, pureblooded families. Being a Black was tough business. When Andromeda was born it was meant to be an important day. Her older sister Bellatrix had been a complete disappointment, not being a boy to be the Black heir of fame and fortune, pureblooded tradition and everything else that went along with The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. So the big day came and she was a let down. I'm sure in years to come it was somewhat devastating for her to know her parents didn't care, none of our parents really cared so long as we never shamed them and grew up to be just like them. I was never like them, I came to find, and neither was Andromeda, but for a while she hid it so well.
My aunt and uncle named their new disappointment Andromeda, after a constellation, they though it a clever name, only to be outdone by my family two years later when I came along, a boy. My name is Sirius Black. Sirius after the dog star, Canis Majoris, an amusing, yet fitting name for me, but Sirius had a ring to it, the brightest star in the sky I was told. I was meant to outshine Andromeda, to outshine them all with coldness only a Black was capable of. I was never cold, I ashamed them. But this story is about Andromeda.
Andromeda seemed to me a very serious name, and quite frankly a mouthful. I called her Andy. Her name was ironic; I don't think her parents ever realized that her name predicted her fate. The Andromeda of the stars came from a myth. She was an Ethiopian princess, born into royalty with overly proud parents, not of her, but of themselves. Her mother, Cassiopeia was boastful and foolish. She bragged that she was more beautiful than the queen of gods and the Nereids, Juno. This angered the god, Neptune, for it was an insult to his nymphs. In retaliation, Neptune sent a sea monster to ravage the Ethiopian coast. The kind, her father, consulted Ammon, the oracle of Jupiter. The oracle said that Neptune could only be appeased with the sacrifice of Cassiopeia's beautiful virgin daughter, Andromeda, to the monster. She was chained to a rock on the coast, fully exposed to the monster.
This is where the hero steps into the story, well in this case flies. Perseus came flying by after having defeated Medusa when he saw the princess with her arms chained to the rock. He almost mistook her for a stone before he saw her hair move in the wind and her tears streaming down a beautiful face, and he fell in love without realizing it. He was so amazed by the sight of her rare beauty that he stopped in wonder and almost forgot to keep his winged shoes moving. Stopping, he called out, "You should not be wearing such chains as these—the proper bonds for you are those which bind the hearts of fond lovers! Tell me your name, I pray, and the name of your contry, and why you are in chains."
Andromeda was silent for she dare not speak to a man, as it was not proper for a girl. Perseus persisted, questioning again and again, she became afraid, lest her unwillingness to talk might seem due to guilt. So she told him the name of her country and her own name and about her beautiful and overly confident mother. Before she could finish the monster came. Her parents were in distress. Perseus made a deal with her parents that he would kill the monster if they agreed to give him their daughter's hand in marriage. They consented. Perseus killed the monster and, of course, they were married and lived happily ever after.
Andy's story is much different, though she does find her Persues and live happily ever after, that's the good part, but so much came before that. This is why we begin with the birth of Narcissa Black, the third and last Black sister.
Narcissa was born a girl, leaving any hope for a boy behind, I came along a year later preventing any need for more Black children, and three girls was already much too much to handle for my dear aunt and uncle. Children were unwanted and much too much work for little reward. Adults were just fine, but children were annoying and helpless in the eyes of the Blacks, it wasn't until Andy was much older did any gain any respect from her parents.
So our parents were cold and distant throughout our childhoods. When Narcissa was born the gossip began. Bellatrix had been dark colored, black hair, black eyes, with a normal tone of skin. Andromeda too had darker coloring, brown hair, and brown eyes. Narcissa however was a different case. She was pale. Pale and beautiful, they were all quite handsome really; there was no denying that looks ran in our blood. Narcissa was blonde, different from the rest of our immediate relatives; both my aunt and uncle had distinctly dark colors for eyes hair and normal skin tones, quite like Bellatrix and Andromeda. Narcissa, however, brought whispers upon the family, whispers of unfaithfulness of our mother to our father. We never did find out if Narcissa was a product of infidelity. Narcissa grew into a world of secrecy though she may very well have been the child of both parents, since there were many blonde purebloods who we were related to, the Malfoy's, for instance, were our distant cousins. She, along with Bellatrix and Andromeda was foisted upon the house elves and taken care of when care was needed. The three sisters grew close in this fashion, each craving companionship and love, which was hard found among the Blacks. I never did fit quite into the equation, but I was born a year later and became close with my cousins, not quite as close as they were with each other, and I was never as close with my own little brother as they were to each other. Regulus was an accident; he wanted to make my parents proud.
From their births, the Black sister were instilled with a sense of societal superiority, from a young age they were taught to mistreat others, especially those of lesser blood, so I suppose they were bread to be that way, as was I. We turned out differently, Andy and I. We were always with each other, and they were never alone. They were so close in fact that it was a fatal blow when it was time for Bellatrix to go to Hogwarts, the oldest and the first to make her own path, however strong it was. Bellatrix was smart, the three of them were, though no one ever thought anything of Narcissa until she had already established herself in Hogwarts, no one except Andy and Bella that is. I know for a fact these sisters wrote each other every day and Narcissa and Andy slept in each others beds every night for a year, because Bella wasn't there to protect them, and there were no adults to stop them. They kind of raised each other, Bella looking out for everyone. Bellatrix, I must admit, looked out for them well in the younger years. She was strong willed, a very strong personality, always. Though she may not have seemed it, Bellatrix was very loyal, loyal to her family and to her beliefs, later to her master.
We grew into dark times; political corruption swirled above our heads only to crash down upon us as we grew older. Bella knew which side she was to be on always, it's Andy who wasn't so sure.