THE GLASS ORPHAN
By Miss Mysteria
30th of December 1981
Number Four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging
"Petrificus totalus!"
Both Black's watched as Petunia Dursley's limbs straightened out, locked together and with horrid fascination, stared as the disagreeable Muggle woman slowly teetered back until she hit the carpeted floor, stiff as a board.
Well, Pollux stared with horrid fascination.
Cassie on the other hand, could not have looked more pleased with the outcome, stepping inside and around Dursley's body lying in the middle of the hallway.
As she made to step forward further into the house, Pollux seemed to finally snap back into himself, lashing out and snatching at his sister's upper arm. "Cassiopeia! What- Harry Potter?!"
Cassie lifted her eyes to the ceiling, exasperated, and tugged her arm out of his grip. "Yes, Pollux, Harry Potter is here, and we are here to collect him." She smiled meanly at him. "Congratulations, you are finally in on the plan."
Still too shocked to put his feet into action, Pollux stayed rooted in the porch and watched as his sister began to poke around the Muggle house. "You… why is he here, of all places?"
Before Cassie could answer, he continued, "Were those… those measly wards his protection?"
"It would appear so, yes." Cassie replied, pressing her wand at a strange owl-like children's toy which rested on a shelf, her brow furrowed in confusion as it made a small squeak but didn't move.
The Dursley woman's eyes followed her and moved quickly back and forth between the wand and the woman behind her misfortune. She did not seem to be frightened of Pollux, no doubt accepting his obvious unknown participation in this plan.
A brisk gust of cold wind blew in through the open front door and caused a ripple of goosebumps to appear on Cassie's arm and an automatic shiver down her spine distracted her from further examining the Muggle hallway. She turned and frowned at the door, before waving her wand from left to right causing the door to slam shut, click to locked and, with an invisible push, forced Pollux further inside.
"Right then," Cassie said, rubbing her hands up her arms in an effort to warm up as Pollux stumbled at the new footing, still looking lost and confused about the situation. She turned to Mrs Dursley on the floor and grinned. "Tell me, Muggle, where is my great nephew?"
Cassie twirled her wand in the direction of the woman's mouth and did not look surprised as she took a large breath of air and began to screech.
"HELP! HELP ME! Vern-VERNON! HELP ME! FREAKS! INTRUDERS IN OUR-"
Pollux quickly waved his wand and Dursley was once again silenced. Cassie went to say something but halted when he held up a finger to his lips and pointed to the ceiling.
They stood in silence for a only a few moments before a heavy thud sounded through the ceiling.
Cassie's eyes widened with glee while Pollux levelled a strong glare in her direction. "Don't you dare."
"Another accomplice reveals itself."
"Cassiopeia-"
She rolled her eyes at him, "Saying my name in that tone is not going to stop me from cursing whoever that is into a pile of slime, brother dearest."
Pollux, ignoring her, slowly brought up his wand as the footsteps upstairs got closer to the top of the staircase. There was the sound of someone clearing their throat and a gravelly, sleep ridden male voice rang out.
"Petunia? Pet, did you yell for me?"
Cassie crouched down next to Petunia's head and the woman clenched her eyes closed, a single tear escaping down the side of her cheek. "Merlin above he's useless, isn't he, Petunia." If she hadn't been silenced, the woman would have whimpered as Cassie whispered delicately in her ear. "We could be serial killers, or rapists, and he would not have single clue."
"Well currently you are acting no better than one!" Pollux's furious whisper reached her ears and he crossed the room quickly, pulling Cassie back up by her arm and pinching her there. She scowled at him.
"They have Harry Potter here, Pollux. This is not a silly game-" She shot him a loaded look, paused as though she were weighing the thing she was next about to say, "-not like the ones you used to play."
A great look of surprise washed over Pollux's face, "How do-"
He stopped mid-sentence and an even larger look of shame passed over him and his shoulders slumped. His eyes glanced down to the Muggle laid helpless at their feet as his mind flashed with memories of several other moments that started just like this. "I regret those days and those nights every day of my life." His voice was heavy and strangulated as he looked to his sister. "I- I'm not sure of how you are aware of what happened, but you know that I, now, would never-"
"Yes, I know." Cassie did not look ashamed of herself for bringing the topic up, nor did she appear sympathetic; instead she appeared righteous. "Which is exactly why you should be helping me with this. I did not go to Lucretia or Cedrella-"
"Why in Merlin's name would you voluntarily go anywhere near Cedrella-?"
"-I came to you, brother. Because this is how we redeem ourselves for our misdeeds." Cassie talked over him, their voices still in low tones as the man upstairs finally began his descent. "We take the child from this… place, and to Gringotts Bank. Then, we go to Arcturus with him in tow."
Pollux was torn and the emotions of the past were obvious on his face. "But why? Is Potter not safe here? What did you see inside that squibs head? And, well… why does Arcturus want the boy?"
Scoffing, Cassie took hold of his forearm, dragging his attention there and away from her eyes. "I think it is quite obvious that he is not safe here, as we have found him rather easily. And everything else will reveal itself soon enough. Pollux," Both pairs of grey eyes shot to the staircase where they could see the large legs of the other inhabitant of Number Four slowly hobbling down the stairs, "Trust me."
Just as the man reached the step that would allow him to see over the banister and into the hallway, Pollux gave his sister a resigned nod and a familiar, shark-like smile stretched across Cassie's face. She elbowed him in the side, gestured towards the unknown man and quickly laid her wand flat in the palm of her right hand.
She whispered, "Point me, Harry James Potter," and the wand began to spin.
The second inhabitant of Privet Drive looked over the staircase banister and his beady eyes, engulfed by the massive size of his face, widened comically at the same time Pollux raised his wand.
"What-!"
"Incarcerous!"
Thin black cords shot from Pollux's wand, and the next moment the large man was bound and gagged, balancing dangerously on the stairs, wide eyes blinking in confusion. Pollux swished his wand again and gently levitated the man down the stairs and onto the floor of the hallway.
He gave the man a welcoming nod, the action causing his already pinkish face to turn a deep vermillion and he winced as the man began to give great, booming shouts that were muffled behind his gag.
"Am I correctly under the assumption that you, sir, are Mr Dursley? Breadwinner of this fine abode?" Pollux asked conversationally, ignoring the way the man's eyes narrowed into slits. He reached up with his free hand and ran two fingers along the very top shelf of the few that lined the hallway.
Bringing his hand back down, Pollux examined his fingers and scrunched his nose in disgust at the layer of dust he found there. Out of his trouser pocket, he pulled a delicate silver silk handkerchief with the initials P.L.B embroidered in lovely black calligraphy.
He spared Petunia a pitiful glance, but the woman was not looking at him, rather staring directly behind him at whatever it was Cassie was doing. Pollux turned his attention back to the man. He waved his wand in a tight, coiled gesture and watched as the gag was removed from his mouth.
He spoke before the man could get a word in edgewise. "Do you have a name, sir?" Pollux subtly pointed his wand at the man from his side and a slight blue spell hit him in his ankle.
Dursley was none the wiser.
"None of your blood… blo…" It was amusing, to watch the Muggle's eyes widen in panic as he realised he would have no choice but to answer. A prank spell, one that he had learnt from… well. A spell he had learnt a long time ago. "V-V-Vernon. Fuck you, you… you… you freakish-!"
Pollux waggled his finger in Vernon's face as he fought a chortle. "Ah, ah, ah, Vernon, my friend. It seems you and your wife have limited vocabulary. Let's try and be civil, shall we? Cassie?"
When his sister didn't answer, Pollux turned, opening his mouth as he went to repeat his question. But he closed it instantly with a snap when he saw her standing dead still, staring at a cupboard door under the stairs with wide, unblinking eyes. Her wand was still in her palm as it had been when he had spoken to her last, and it was pointing directly at the cupboard.
He moved slowly to her side, careful not to spook her out of whatever daydream she was in and placed a tentative hand on her shoulder. "Cassiopeia. What is it?"
Cassie's brows furrowed. Her voice was quieter than it had been previously. Pollux leaned in to hear her speak. "The squib hasn't seen him in weeks."
"What?" Pollux asked, his voice wavering as he too stared at the cupboard door. He hoped she did not mean what he thought she meant.
"The… uh-" she cleared her throat, "the squib. Figg. She… in her mind I found memories of her watching them walk past her window; the woman, their child and Dorea's boy. Merlin knows where the man was, but they walked every other day. And then… they stopped. Or, he stopped. She and her boy continued. Pollux," Cassie looked up at him, eyes for the first time looking worried, "what if he's… what if there's something-"
Pollux's grip tightened on her shoulder to what he thought must have been a painful degree. "If they have laid even a finger on one of our blood, they shall be met with the wrath of House Black like never before seen." His throat was tight as he gestured with his free hand towards the cupboard. "Is he definitely…?"
Cassie nodded but didn't move.
Taking his hand off of his sister, he moved towards the door. Barely acknowledging Vernon squirming from beneath his bindings and shouting madly, whatever he was saying was silenced instantly by a swift spell from his wand; he didn't think that Cassie could focus on anything but the possibly of the Potter child being… well, Pollux placed his left hand on the knob of the cupboard door.
It was cool and he could sense no wards, not that there would be considering the lack of protection that whoever had put him here had placed already.
He twisted the knob and felt it click open before he saw the door slowly creaked ajar. Just inside the door were stacked shoes and umbrellas, a broom, several badly hung shelves with tins of shoe-shine and what appeared to be a few extremely old bags of unopened pasta.
When Pollux pulled the door open fully wide, he caught a glimpse of something sat right in the centre of a rickety old cot with makeshift white painted railings that were peeling at the sides.
His legs almost gave way as his eyes adjusted to the low light and they finally landed on his great Nephew.
He looked exactly like James, Charlus and Fleamont Potter - unsurprisingly considering, following the Blacks, the Potters were well-known for their strong genes. With caramel skin that was a nod to his ancestry, unruly dark hair and the same thin nose, with his eyes closed Harry James Potter could be any of his three ancestors. But as the seventeen-month-old blinked up at him with emerald green eyes, so much like the eyes of Lily Potter, Pollux could see the reflection of Dorea Black in him. The high cheekbones, almond eyes and full lips were oh so much three Black traits.
Pollux ignored the thrum of pride that ran through his body as he leaned in close to the boy, holding out a gentle hand to his hair which sunk into the soft curls with ease. When Potter pressed up against him after a moment of looking unsure at the contact, Pollux leaned further forward and picked him up underneath his arms and tucked him into his side.
He turned around, expecting to see Cassie stood where she was before, but instead she was stood directly in front of Vernon Dursley, her wand tip pressed firmly against his temple as Petunia Dursley, still frozen on the floor, stared up at her husband in terror.
With Harry Potter on his hip, Pollux closed the cupboard door behind him and tried to ignore the way the boy's much-too bony leg dug into his side. The diaper Harry had on was full and stank, but in his mind all he could feel was relief that he was safe and not irreversibly harmed.
The Dursley's obviously didn't care for the boy, and for whatever reason Dumbledore, or whoever it was, had placed Harry in their care, Pollux knew that they would be taking him from this place, and he would never return.
Pollux made to step over Petunia Dursley, ready to go and wait outside for Cassie to finish… doing whatever it was that she was doing to Vernon, when the light from the lampshade above hit Harry's face just right and Pollux's heart dropped to his stomach.
A scar.
A large, sheet white, incredibly beautiful, twining scar shaped like multiple bolts of lightning striking down into his right and left brows branched out over Harry's dark forehead, standing out vividly.
Pollux let out a short breath, running his finger along it with awe.
So, this was where the Dark Lord had tried to…
Fascinating.
After the news had reached him of the downfall of the Dark Lord, Pollux had collapsed up against Arcturus and almost crushed Irma's hand as he gripped it in relief.
Following his father's death in 1977, Pollux had lost the protection Cygnus I's allegiance with the Dark Lord had given him without realising, and the man had begun to target him and demonstrate his more ruthless side, the side Pollux had only witnessed.
It was only after he had attempted to recruit his granddaughter Andromeda and had succeeded in luring her sister Bellatrix to his legion of fighters, that Pollux had awoken from the dream of delusions he had been under. He only just managed to avoid the youngest Narcissa becoming directly involved within the Dark Lord's schemes by requesting Arcturus write a betrothal contract between Lucius Malfoy, Lord Abraxas Malfoy's son, and Cissa.
It had been a delicate situation, but now only one of his granddaughters was a certified Death Eater, another was just married to one and the last one was… well Andromeda had always been too intelligent for her own good and had managed to escape the Dark Lord without her incompetent family's help.
Irma had not been against the Dark Forces until Narcissa was at risk. She had always favoured her darling girl over the two oldest, thinking 'Dromeda and Bella could take care of themselves.
But once Narcissa was involved and becoming a person of interest at the end of the her sixth year at Hogwarts, Irma had maintained firm in her stance with her husband and marital family against the Dark Lord.
Of course, now Bella was in Azkaban, Andromeda was living with her Muggleborn husband wherever she was and remained silent even after his apologetic, begging owls to her after her fight with her parents over her loyalties to her pure-blood two years ago.
Pollux's own son and his dastardly wife, the two who had brought the three siblings up and instilled in them whatever ridiculous ideals they had, Cygnus II and Druella, had never given an opinion into the lives of their children once they had left Hogwarts. Of course, Cygnus had been furious when Andromeda had left to marry the Muggleborn, she apparated right off the grounds of his Manor after he had demanded that she marry Rabastan Lestrange, and both he and Druella had demanded Arcturus to blast her off the family tree and disconnect her from their bloodline.
That had been their first mistake. Demanding the Lord of their House to do something was like demanding Merlin himself to shine your shoes; it was not done. And in their emotional states, they had lost their heads.
After Pollux had refused to see eye-to-eye with the Dark Lord's schemes following the danger it had placed on his family, Cygnus and Druella had locked themselves away; shamed with the sinner that was their eldest and shamed by their Lord of House for stepping out of place, Pollux had not seen his son and daughter in law for several years.
In short, it had been a massive relief for him when this small babe in his arms had somehow destroyed the tyranic dark Lord who had reigned havoc on his life.
And he, woe he was to admit being similar to people with lesser status, would be forever grateful, as would the rest of the magical world.
"Pollux!" Cassie hissed in his face and Pollux fought against the surprised jump as she shook him out of his reverie.
His arms felt lighter and he looked down to see Cassie had taken the Potter boy off of his hands and onto her own hip. The boy was sucking on a broach pinned to her dark cloak and his sister was trying her hardest, he could tell, to not push him off.
He looked over to the Dursley's and was once again surprised when he found them both missing. His shock must have shown on his face as Cassie scoffed and finally gently pulled Potter away from her broach.
"They're upstairs, probably in bed. I told them to make sure to tell no one of what happened tonight until they receive a letter from a Miss Dorea White giving them permission to do so."
"You didn't… the imperious?"
"No, Pollux. Of course not, you think very low of me. Just some harmless coercion."
Haraumphing, Pollux sad, "I'm assuming you're keeping the alias of Dorea White?
Cassie nodded. "You assume correctly."
"When will you send the letter?"
"When the time is right."
Pollux sighed, "Could you be any less specific."
"I could." Cassie ran her finger down Potter's scar. "This scar is… beautiful. He will carry it with him for life, there is no doubt."
"Well, one doesn't survive the killing curse without battle scars."
Cassie gave him a look. "One doesn't survive war without battle scars."
Shying away from the heavy look she gave him, Pollux turned and faced the rest of the mundane Muggle street. The lampposts were not longer lit, which signified the early morning time.
"Where to now?"
"You're sure you don't want to get back to Crabby?"
"No, Cassiopeia." Pollux signed, resigned to her snide tone. "I do not. Not tonight. I will stay at Black Manor."
Cassie nodded, a smirk toying at her lips. "Hmm. As you wish." She lifted Potter's tired arms around her neck and then used her free hand to snap her fingers. "Tippy!"
There was a loud crack and a house elf appeared from thin air right in front of them. A lightbulb lit in Pollux's mind at the sight of the familiar elf. He recognised it, but he didn't know where from.
"Mistress Cassie!" The elf squeaked, seemingly sobbing with apparent relief. "Tippy has been so worried, yes he has! Master Si-"
"Yes, thank you Tippy." Pollux's interest peaked as his sister talked loudly over the elf. "Please inform Lord Black that myself and Pollux have retrieved the boy and are on our way to the Goblins now."
"Yes Mistress!" He turned to Pollux, tucked back his little uniform tails and bowed to Pollux, "Mister Pollux, sir." And with that the elf was gone.
Pollux raised his brows. "Svart Slott. Norway was an interesting choice, sister."
Cassie huffed and pulled Potter tight into her chest before spinning on the spot an apparating away with a loud crack.
30th of December 1981
Svart Slott, Oslo, Norway
While Cassiopeia and Pollux were moving forward with their secretive mission in the early hours of the morning in Britain, across the channel in Norway, Sirius Black was fast snoozing away in the guest bedroom of the second floor at Svart Slott
In the same position he had been in for hours, after moving reluctantly from the bed to the overstuffed lounge chair, Sirius' legs were thrown haphazardly over the arm, with his new blackthorn wand resting comfortably on his chest and his left forearm was thrown over his eyes.
The pile of summoned items on the table next to the chair was missing, and if one looked around the bedroom, you would be able to see everything was back in their original places. Instead of the table being piled high with all the junk, there was a small tray with a cup of steaming hot tea and a few sandwiches. It was obvious that Tippy had left these here when Sirius had fallen asleep, avoiding the man's disapproval at his continued care.
A soft bird cawing from outside the window managed to seep through a small crack in the glass and Sirius shot awake so violently, it was as though an invisible foe had screamed right up against his eardrum.
His arm which had been thrown across his eyes to shield them from the low ambient lighting echoing from the side-table lamp, jolted as his entire body seemed to go through five stages of shock as he woke up. Sirius sat up, his back sliding up the armchair and his neck twisting around like a lost owl, searching for familiarity.
Finally, after a few moments of silence, Sirius blinked himself awake and coughed the rawness from his throat.
The soft scent of chamomile tea almost immediately invaded his nose and despite the lagging of his mind, Sirius reached out blindly for the tray, his hand crawling along the cool wood of the table before reaching the cup and hooking two fingers through the handle.
Bringing the cup to his lips, preparing himself to feel the warm comfort of hot liquid pouring down his cold throat, Sirius smiled softly and enjoyed the fact that his cheeks no longer hurt with the effort.
But then, the calming moment was shattered as the sound of a rushing fireplace reached his ears.
His heart-rate ticked up a notch, and Sirius tried his hardest to not overthink the situation right away as a set of footsteps followed. Of course a few months in Azkaban, and before that, years in an unsafe conflict environment, was going to make him feel on edge and suspicious.
Maybe it was nothing.
And yet... maybe it was something.
It was best to check, Sirius thought, as he carefully placed the teacup back onto the tray and tapped his wand nervously against his thigh. He cleared his throat into the silence of the bedroom. "Tippy?"
There was no answer. He tried again, glancing worriedly at the hot cup of tea next to him. "Tippy, you there?"
When he was met yet again with silence, Sirius made up his mind.
Well, he had been asking after a challenge, hadn't he, he thought humourlessly to himself.
With his muscles and joints complaining from being in the same position for a while, Sirius stood slowly from the chair and stumblingly made his way over to the closed door of the bedroom. The door handle was cool the touch as he closed his palm over it and gave an experimental tug, expecting it to remain locked.
It didn't.
Instead, the heavy white painted mahogany slowly creaked open and revealed the castle beyond to him for the first time. The section of the hallway he could see through the doorway was lined with ancient furnishings; black oak panel floor covered in several Persian rugs, which Sirius supposed were placed to prevent the Kneazles, that he was sure his Aunt owned, slipping and sliding on the wooden floor. There were soft lamps which lined the wall and were hung against the soft pastel brown
As Sirius steeled himself and stepped out of the guest bedroom, he peered down the dark corridor, lighting his wand with a muttered lumos. He noticed that the hall went only a few more doors down from him to the right, before stopping with a large, floor-to-ceiling window that showed off a spectacular view of the waters edge, lit up by deep blue and violet fluorescent lights. No doubt for the enjoyment of Muggle tourists.
He turned and looked to the left of the bedroom to see a set of twisting wooden stairs, lined with a red velvet carpet and five Muggle, motionless portraits. He figured they were probably from the era when Muggles had full control of the castle.
A loud cough from downstairs had Sirius' heart jumping up into his throat and reminded him of why he had ventured from the safety of the bedroom in the first place.
On shaky legs, he made his way slowly towards the staircase, carefully picking out spots on the carpet so as to make sure the floorboards didn't creak underneath his uneven steps.
Reaching the top of the stairs, he crouched down and peered through the gaps in the banister, spotting the fireplace roaring a bright green which signified the recent arrival of a patron into the drawing room.
So, there definitley was an intruder, because as the person cleared their throat once again, the voice did not sound like his Aunt Cassie.
Sirius straightened back up, whispered, "Nox," and started his tentative ascent, ignoring the dull, throbbing ache in his lower back and thighs as they protested all this sudden exercise after his struggle to get across the bedroom the past day.
Wand aloft, he finally reached the main floor and what he recognised as the Entrance Hall of Svart Slott. The official front door, which was off limits due to the Muggles believing it to be broken with time and unfixable, was to the right of the intruder's position and Sirius' eventual destination. He stepped mindfully through the Entrance Hall, keeping his wand arm up and ready to fire whatever spell he was capable of in the moment of action, and his grey, dead-set eyes remaining on the shadowy figure.
It only took him a moment to tiptoe to the drawing room entrance, before he narrowed his eyes in concentration, nudged the door slightly more ajar than it already was, and pounced with much more agility than he should have, considering the way his back muscles rippled in objection.
The dark figure, illuminated by the shadows of the roaring fire, spun on their heel and gasped in shock when they felt Sirius Black's hand wrap around their neck and saw the tip of his wand glow a bright red, almost fizzing with the promise of drastic injury.
His voice was akin to Padfoot's growl when he spoke:
"Who the bloody fuck are you and what are you doing in my Aunt's house!?"