Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. This work is merely for leisure and not for any profit whatsoever.
A/N: THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVS AND FOLLOWS! You guys made me so happy! Here's the second chapter for Stars in the Silences. I hope you guys enjoy it and please leave a review. Reviews are much loved and appreciated! :D
Summary: London is a big city. In cities of such size, many small details pass by unnoticed by most of the crowd. Homes become invisible, shops are glanced over and ignored, strange events and people are written off as one-time occurrences, and anomalies are unknowingly brushed aside. SI/OC.
Stars in the Silence
Aquila Eris Black
Aquila was an odd, deliberate baby. In contrast, her brother was wild, rambunctious and was happy to throw caution to the wind.
She seemed to have slept the first eight months of her life away, while Sirius seemed quite delighted to showcase his new entrance to the House of Black.
.
She remembered drowning. The feeling of her senses shutting down one by one, until all that's left was the biting cold of seawater surrounding her and the fire burning in her lungs. In the end though, even those sensations drifted away, leaving her feeling only numb. She was truly grateful for Sirius; his crying and screaming seemed to always coincide with when her thoughts were turning particularly dark and morbid, always dragging her out of them before she completely lost herself (she'sdrowningdrowningdrowningdrowning-). Perhaps it was a twin thing, she mused. That or magic. Yes, she had worked out magic was real; seeing her mother sort out her gifts via levitation by flicking a stick and having her diaper changed by a servant of some sort by a snap of its (his?) fingers clued her into its existence. So she copes by sleeping whenever she can, curled next to her twin, swathed and bundled in silk blankets that never quite keep the cold from seeping into her bones.
.
At nine months she was sitting up by herself, crawling and babbling, much to Walburga's (deeply buried) amusement. Despite her newfound freedom, she never strayed far from her brother, who just couldn't quite keep up with her mobility.
.
When she was awake, she spent the time exercising her muscles. A twitch here, a flex there and over time she regained control over her limbs again. It was frustrating work; she remembered being able to run for miles, weaving and navigating through half-opened windows and over rooftops, scaling fences and walls without breaking a sweat, and yet raising her arm to touch the other without first smacking her face was all she could do for months. But a baby's body, with its newly developed neurons, was not meant to be able to execute the impulses sent by an adult brain. And yet her mind knew how it felt to be in control of every action, and this was her body. Her mind knew; her body would have to just learn to follow. So she made do with what she had, exerting tremendous amounts of control, fuelled by sheer willpower, over her body day in, day out, and she babbles and babbles, because the tongue is a muscle that will form her greatest tool, words. Words that she had used to a devastating degree before, in her previous life, and would continue to use to the same extent in this life as well.
.
When Sirius and she received their gifts on their first birthday, she thanked her extended family with quietly but confidently and, while Sirius stumbled slightly over his own thanks, their parents preened in response.
.
Aquila glanced at the children present, her three cousins from her mother's side as well as heirs and heiresses of the other pure-blood houses. She filed away the smiles that hid daggers as Ladies praised Walburga for her lovely children, and noted the calculating glances Lords placed on her person as they spoke to Orion on how the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black had produced yet another strong generation that would 'aid in the betterment of the Wizarding World'. She glanced over the names of the families who had gifted Sirius and her presents and committed their names to memory. Malfoy, Rosier, Nott, Carrow, Crabbe, Goyle. The names tugged and pulled on an old memory, which does not resurface until after the party had ended and Sirius had fallen asleep. Only then did she realise just exactly where she was. She spent the next week planning and plotting.
.
By eighteen months, Sirius and she were exploring the House, driving Walburga (subtly) mad with worry every time she walked into their room and found their crib empty.
.
Their crib was really boring. So while she was sure the crib had spells on it to notify their parents on their status, it didn't stop her from trying to escape. The first time she was plucked off the railing she was perched on by their father, who then proceeded to give her a very stern talk on how that was not respectable behaviour, eyes pinched with worry. The second time she did it, their mother stopped her. By the seventh attempt their parents had given up trying to stop her and hovered at the doorway, wands drawn to catch her should she fall. She didn't, and gave her parents a cheeky smile while Sirius laughed and clapped. Of course, when Sirius attempted to copy her, their parents fell back onto old habits. It took Sirius two months of daily trial and error – and many, many tears – before he too was able to escape their crib with Aquila. Walburga finally gave up trying to stop them by the twenty-something time they escaped – Sirius' accidental magic had acted up and vanished their entire crib – and placed tracking charms on them, ordering Kreacher to keep an eye on them.
.
At two years old, the twins were started on their penmanship lessons, and were speaking in full, if simple, sentences.
.
Aquila decided that she hated quills and mentally cursed wizards for being so backwards. She wanted pens and paper dammit, not quills and parchment. Even Sirius agreed with her that quills were annoying and he'd never known pens. Hell, she'd take the indignity of having to write with a pencil if it meant that she wouldn't need to use quills. Seriously – "No, not you Siri!" – she must have blunted at least a dozen quills, mauled hundreds of pieces of parchment and smeared half the table with ink already. Thank Merlin for Repairing Charms and Cleaning Charms or her parents would have probably hexed her already. As it were, she and Sirius got off with moderate telling offs, one of which evolved into a conversation about whether they'd like a younger sibling. It didn't take the twins long to figure out the hidden meaning, not to mention they could see a faint undertone of worry on their parents' faces. Much to the relief of their parents, they simply shared a glance before grinning and chorused, "We're going to spoil him." ("For all you know," Orion pointed out, "the baby could be a girl." To which Walburga replied, "I do believe Aquila and Sirius are correct. It's going to be a boy.")
.
At two-and-a-half, the twins were speaking eloquently, much to their parents' (deeply suppressed) delight, and they welcomed the birth of Regulus Arcturus Black, their baby brother.
.
After enduring Walburga's screeches for the better part of three hours, Orion merely huffed a laugh at Walburga's tired, but smug, grin at the sight of their youngest son. He placed a gentle kiss on her head as he called for the twins to enter. Perched on top of the bed, the twins stared at the little bundle held in their mother's arms. "He's tiny," Sirius mumbled, grey eyes equal parts loving and in awe. Their mother, surprisingly, replied gently, "Both of you were smaller when you just came into this world." Another rare, genuine smile played on the Lady's face as she stared at baby Regulus. Aquila remained quiet, mentally reshuffling her plans to include their newest addition to the House of Black.
.
Aquila may be odd and Sirius a bit too carefree, Walburga mused, but there was no doubt that her daughter was special and her sons powerful. As she and Orion reclined in the lounge room, she kept a watchful eye on the twins as they tried to coax Regulus to say either of their names.
("Aquila. Ahhh. Quiii. Laaa."
"Your name's too hard! Come on Reggie, say Siri. Seeee reeeee. Seeee reeeee."
"Kiii!"
"Nononono, Siri, Reggie! Seeee reeeee!"
"Kiii! Kiii!"
"Guess we know who the favourite is."
"Reggie we boys have to stick together! Say Siri little brother, Seeee reeeee!"
"Kiiiiii!")
Walburga hid a fond smile. Despite how her life had been so far, she was grateful that she'd been blessed with Orion as her husband and Aquila, Sirius and Regulus as her children. Her little stars would lead the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black to greater heights than ever before.
A/N: For the record, HP wikia says that Walburga was born when her father Pollux Black was thirteen years old. Rowling stated that it might have been a miscalculation on her part, but I personally think that it wasn't. It would explain why Orion and Walburga were in an arrange marriage together, despite being second cousins (that's cutting it really close, even for pure-blood standards, no?). Also, it could be why Walburga was so adamant that canon!Sirius and canon!Regulus be perfect pure-blood wizards. Any thoughts on this? Also, anything you guys want to see in the Black trio's childhood years?
Thanks for reading, please leave a review! :D
