Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter...seeing as I am not blonde and tall like J.K. Rowling, there can be no mistake...so don't confuse us...it'll cause problems between us and then thry'll send me a lawsuit and right now I don't have time for that...oh dear, I'm babbling. Yes, I'll shut up now.

The Color of Black

Chapter 7

Finding out the Truth, part 2

Sirius looked over them," Anne? Is that you?" he asked, his voice hoarse. Anne looked like she was about to faint and Daphne felt her wand arm fall limply to her side.

"Hello, Black." Anne croaked, her voice icy, controlling her emotions, "Did you touch my child? Hurt her in any way?"

"Oh...your child?" Sirius said turning away, hurt on his face. Daphne could see Anne fighting the urge to comfort him and felt her face become misshappen with the hate she was feeling.

"Why did you do it?" Anne whispered, finally giving in and walking to him.

"I didn't, Annie, love. I swear it! I was framed by that little worm, Peter Pettigrew- you remember him?- he killed them. He killed them! My best friend!" Sirius slammed his fist onto Anne's table.

"Sirius! You watch my furniture!" Anne said, finally raising her voice to more than a whisper, breaking the mask that had taken over her face.

"I'm sorry Annie," he said, walking over and caressing her pale arms. She flinched, turning away,"Don't touch me, Black. Don't call me Annie. You're a horrible lying coward and I'd rather not have your grime touching my skin."

Sirius stood agape for a moment, his mouth moving wildly, almost like a fish. Daphne watched different emotions rage over his gaunt face as he chose what to say; hurt, anger, disbelief, sadness and freezing when it returned to anger.

"Oh, I'm the coward? I'm the liar? You go off and get pregnant less than a year after I'm gone! And I'm the liar? We were married and I'm the liar…pah, you never could face your parents, could you? Mummy and daddy's disapproval too much for you? Let me ask you, did you get pregnant before or after I left?" he said, disgust filling his voice.

"Excuse you! Are you accusing me of cheating? I was more faithful than you ever were to me! Did you know on those days you didn't return home I'd pray you hadn't died! And then I came to find out out all you were doing was cheating on me!"

"I never cheated on you!" Sirius argued hotly, his face turning a bit purple.

"What about hat girl from Puerto Rico calling from that bussiness trip?" Anne yelled shrilly, her hands balled up in fists.

"She was my boss's sister! I told you when she called! But it's a surprise to me that I didn't cheat with all the doubt you had against me…"Sirius roared, his voice rising even more. Daphne could almost hear the vibrations around the house but could see both of the adults hadan oddglint in their eye...like they had missed yelling at each other.

"Oh shut up both of you! You guys are so loud and your rows are just aggravating...I'm sure the neighbors will come knocking to check and make sure mum hasn't killed anyone. And you can bugger off, you arsehole!" Daphne shouted over them, finally sick of all the noise,"My mother was more faithful to you then you will ever know or ever deserve. For you to ever consider her cheating on youor you to ever consider cheating on her is appalling and shows what a low slimebag arse you really are!"

Sirius turned, as though seeing her for the first time,"What would you know about her. Or me, for that matter. You want to tell me she was faithful to me? You're not very convincing as she justsaid you were her brat."

Daphne felt herself bristling, "I wouldn't insult the only person in this room with a wand..." she said, her voice low and dangerous, picking up her wand and tapping it against her lip,"It wouldn't be particularly wise in my opinion...you having been a wizard should know the dangers one wizard can give to another."

Sirius looked down, noticing for the first time her wand,"You're a witch?" he looked a little amazed.

"Well, yes, I am...don't look so suprised. But that's not the point...why are you here? In London." Daphne said, brushing aside any questions he might have as to who her father was and taking the reigns of control firmly in her hands.

"Well, that's a rather long story..." Sirius said uncomfortably,"and I really don't think you need to hear it,as it really is none of your business," and with that he sat down, stubbornly refusing to speak.

"Oh good God!" Daphne yelled, throwing her hands up in frustration. 'I'm this close to finding out how Sirius Black could elude the ministry, dementors, muggles and everyone else in the whole damn world and he's acting like a pouting child!'. She scowled ferociously at him, "You stupid, ignorant thing! You have no right to come roaring back into my mother's life whith no explanation!"

"I-er...well, her witch-for-a-daughter doesn't need to know my secrets. Especially if your a witch...I don't need some hoity-toity girl turning me in...not now," he looked thoughtful, looking over Daphne as though trying to see if she would turn him in now anyways.

She sighed, rather angrily, and told him in the tone of someone suffering intense agony, "I won't turn you in..."

"Sirius," Anne spoke up again, "She has every right to hear this story and be trusted not to repeat it if you don't wish. I did teach our daughter some manners." Daphne looked over at Anne, her eyes glaring daggers at her. 'He didn't need to know that!' she sent the thought angrily in her direction, knowing she wouldn't hear it anyways.

"Well, as well as you- wait...our daughter?" Sirius looked over between Daphne, who looked back at him disdainfully, and Anne, who wouldn't meet his eyes, "So now I've fathered a daughter? I think that's a little suspicious as you were just telling me she was your child and now your telling me she's mine...I think you're trying to get information out of me! You're going to suck me dry and then turn me in-"

"Well,telling an accused mass murderer of fathering my child wouldn't seem to be the smartest thing to me," she said wryly, showing a small smirk and choosing to ignore his last comments.

"So you believe me? You're not going to turn me in?" he asked hopefully, hope filling his dark eyes with a feverish glow.

"Yes I believe you and no we aren't going to turn you in." Anne said, giving Daphne a look that said clearly I still am the elder and I make decisions for this family...you do have to obey!

"I don't even know why I bother!" Daphne said melodramatically, throwing her hands up in the air.

"Stop being so melodramatic, darling." Anne said reprovingly, turning back to her husband.

"But why wouldn't you tell me? My daughter...my little baby daughter. I never got to see her born, walking, speaking...I didn't even know! How could you not tell me, your husband! Did you not trust me?" Sirius asked, his voice raising with emotion, oblivious to thesilent argumentbetween Anne and Daphne.

"No...I tried to, but you told me you had to go somewhere that night and I thought you were going to some woman or maybe all night out to drink and you wouldn't let me tell that I was three-months-"

"I wasn't going out to drink, you should know that by now! If you were pregnant, you should have just yelled to me or something" his voice once again filled with anger and accusation.

"Don't try and convince me that you never went out and drank, leaving me alone to fend for myself-"

"You make it sound as though I had housed us in some peice of crap neighborhood or something!" He was once again on his feet, arms crossed in front of his shrunken body.

"Well, being pregnant and alone with my husband going out to wizarding bars that I could never enter, leaving his pregnant wife-"

"I said I didn't know!"

" -alone, hormonal and you couldn't even notice how moody I became! Or my thickening waistline!Oh wait, you did say I should lay off the pizza if my jeans weren't fitting and that maybe it was affecting my moods, too!" she yelled back, looking at him pointedly and Daphne sat down, expecting a long row and not wanting to have to stand through the whole thing. 'Obviously they listen when people tell them to shut up!' she thought sarcastically.

"Well, how was I supposed to know there was a reason for you yelling at me all the time!" he exclaimed, "It's not as though you never yelled at me before!"

"You must've talked it over with James! Did he not tell you that there might be the possibility of a freaking pregnancy! Did you forget that his freaking wife- my freaking best friend- had had a baby and might know what I was going through? Oh no, you just told me to stop PMSing!"

"Good God Annie! Do you think I would go running over to Jamesall the timeand whine because my wife yelled at me that I am a 'snot-faced rat-assed stupid crawling maggot'? Some things I don't like to share with other people...like when my wife calls me a maggot!"

"Hmph, well if you think I never told Lily when you were being an arsehole-" she started.

"And if you think I never told James when you were nagging me," he grinned at her and she smiled back half-heartedly.

"I missed you so much and I told myself you were an arse who never thought of other people, but it never worked!" Anne said, a little tear falling down her cheek.

"I thought of you every minute and after a few years of the dememntors sucking me dry of every memory of you until all I was left with was the memories of you telling my you hated me, our rows, everything bad that ever happened between us, I began to lose myself like all the other crazies in there..." He reached over to her and kissed her.

Daphne looked at her watch, partly out of boredom and partly because what else was there to look at...8:06. 'Hmm...I think I should get ready to go home and get ready for bed...wait, get ready? Oh my God! My dinner with Harry!' She jumped up, shocking her parents.

"What Daphne?" Anne asked worriedly.

"I'm late! Oh my God, he must think I've stood him up...ohmygodohmygodohmygod..." Daphne was rushing around, grabbing her keys and purse, looking around to make sure she didn't forget anything. 'Ohmygod! How could I forget? He could try and kill himself...I mean, he just went through a traumatic battle and now he thinks I've stood him up! Sure, I'm not a catch and all, but it must hurt even more if an ugly girl appears to have forgotten your date! Oh screw it, I gotta send him an owl and explain.'

"Daphne, you need to stay here, I have something urgent to tell you, you being my daughter and all," Sirius said, grabbing her arm.

"First of all," Daphne said annoyedly, raising her eyebrows at him and lighltly pulling off his hand, "Right now I need to talk to someone myself and I am afraid he might commit suicide if I don't tell him I didn't stand him up. Second, I don't need to do anything for youas I don't really feel like your daughter," and she turned,heading towards the door.

"Well, try to stop by later! This truly is important...more important than you might think. If you have to, bring your depressive friend!" Sirius yelled after her. Daphne slammed the door in response and Sirius turned to Anne, "Is she going to come back? It really is important...she has to know this!"

Anne shrugged, "I gave up predicting what she's thinking the moment she said her first word."

Sirius looked at her curiously, "Why?"

Anne gave a small smile, "Cause even without you there it was dada."

Author's note: This is the update! I'll be gone next week so I won't be able to write/type anything over the following week...hope you guys enjoyed this chappy! Send me a review if you did and send me a review if you didn't (Just no flames...see my bio...there's a long rant there about them)! Hope you americans have a nice 4th of July!

Glaze: Thanks for the review and I understand about the inspiration thing...I hope you update a story soon (I haven't gotten around yet to reading your Questions one...)