It was approximately one week since Azalea had claimed her Potter heiress ring, and all of the notices of the Potter will have been sent out, seen and responded to, or otherwise. Azalea was heading to Diagon Alley to get yet another new book to read, as she had read her way through the age appropriate books at the manor, and to gather her supplies she would be needing for the upcoming tutoring year. She would be having much of the same classes from the year past. The only thing that would be added was another language, seeing as she was beginning to comprehend Gaidhlig a lot better, as were Theo and Neville. They were having fluent conversations more often, and they found that the more they spoke, read, and wrote in it, the easier it was becoming too.
"Thig còmhla ri Theo, chan eil sinn airson grèim fhaighinn!" Azalea called out.
"Isn't it you who always gets separated, Azalea?" Theo corrected his little sister.
"But big brother! It's not my fault you guys can't keep up with me!" Azalea pouted.
"Come on, Azalea, keep up!" Arcturus Black said as he appeared, along with the unmistakable Cassiopeia Black.
Neither of the children realized at that very moment that they were being watched by a pair of deep amber colored eyes.
Remus Lupin's head was spinning. There was only one Azalea that he knew of and that was poor little Azalea Potter, his best friend's daughter. James Potter's daughter. This couldn't be. He had looked. He had looked. Everywhere. And here she was, under his nose. And she was with the Blacks and a Nott of all people? Internally, his wolf was screaming.
'Pup. This is my pup. My cub.' His inner werewolf was growling, over and over and over again.
There was one thing he and his inner wolf agreed on, which was a rare thing indeed. They had to get to her; they had to make sure she was safe.
He stuffed his inner werewolf's thoughts down deep to analyze for another day. He needed to keep his head in the game and get out of Diagon Alley before it became too crowded, most of the wizarding folks didn't like werewolves, let alone were willing to go near one. But first... he needed to go to Gringotts bank. He had a summons, in half a fortnight, to the reading of his best mate's will and testament. He had thought Dumbledore had seen to that, and he had many questions to ask the goblins, if they would be willing to answer.
Meanwhile, Azalea had no clue she was being studied. She was as carefree as always. Theo scanned the area, a force of habit that came with being the son and heir of a dark family. He noticed a man out of place, in disheveled tattered trousers and a faded, ripped up button down shirt. He noticed no jacket, and shoes that had been mended a bit too many times. Everything about that man screamed 'don't look at me' so, of course, Theo paid more attention. He mentally jotted down his description in case he saw that particular man again. He noted that the stranger had entered Gringotts bank. He would alert Arcturus or Cassiopeia as soon as possible, without alerting Azalea.
And so the day continued, with one child on high alert, and one none the wiser. They went home, and Theo quickly pulled Arcturus aside.
"There was a stranger watching us today." Theo stated plainly, as if talking about the weather.
Arcturus froze. "Stanger? What did he look like?"
"Tall and lanky. Disheveled tattered clothing. Sandy brown hair, oh yeah, and amber eyes." Theo stated again, this time looking directly at
"Hmm, amber you say?" Arcturus said, acting unbothered. Internally, he was going through the very short list of whom the person would be. He almost immediately crossed Fenrir Greyback off his list. That would be too obvious. And then he remembered someone mentioning Potter's best mate being Lyall Lupin's son. Lyall Lupin, hunter of werewolves... whose son tragically had an accident at age four, was turned by Fenrir himself. It must have been him. He'd have to keep a closer eye on Azalea and Theo when they went out into public, at least until he and Cassiopeia had created a plan, or the man had approached the Blacks at the very least.
The interaction slipped through Theo's mind, now that he knew Arcturus would take appropriate actions to protect the children from harm's way.
Eventually the day of the reading of the will had come, and Theo was beside Azalea in the floo room, where she was fidgeting in place at the hem of her dress shirt. For once she wasn't wearing a long flowy dress, it seemed. She was always wearing dresses.
"Come along children, it's time. We have an appointment at Gringotts that we cannot miss, they won't read the will without us there, at the very least."
"So we have to go?" Azalea did not quite whine, but had a complaint to her tone.
"Yes dear child. I know and understand today will be tiring and difficult, but you might just find out that more than you already know."
"Fine... I guess we can go."
And so they made their way to Gringotts Bank, but this time, when they went to the teller, who happened to be Griphook this time, Cassiopeia was not the one to talk, but it was Arcturus.
"Heiress Potter is here for the reading of her late parents' will." Arcturus's smooth cultured voice rang out across the entire room. You could hear a pin drop for a moment, it was so silent.
Griphook looked down at little Azalea, flanked by Theo Nott and both the Lord Black and his younger sister, Lady Black with an absolutely feral grin. Oh, this would definitely be shaking up a few family trees, and knocking some bad apples down at the same time.
"Ahh, yes. Come along, we've been expecting you." Griphook said and snapped his claw like fingers. Two very distinguished looking goblins that Azalea had never seen before appeared as if out of thin air. 'They aparated, huh.' Azalea thought to herself with wonder. She knew that wizards could travel by teleportation, and house elves could as well. It never occurred that other mythical creatures could as well.
They were led to a familiar room, one that Azalea had actually been in before. It was the room she was first taken to, that first office where she found out she was indeed rich and that she was a Potter-Black. She was back in the office of Bloodfist, one of her first goblin experiences. Arcturus entered the office, and everyone followed. Theo looked around, as it was his first time in the office of Reader of Wills and Heir Tests. After all, he was born into the wizarding world and his family, his father, was still alive. There was no reading of his mother's will, after all, why would there be when Thorros was still alive.
Bloodfist nodded to Azalea, and she bowed to him in respect.
"Ahh, Azalea I had wondered when you would be returning back here. I did not expect it to be this soon. I see you are indeed with the right kind of people as I had suspected. Come, get comfortable. Today will be a difficult day for you, regardless of the outcome." The goblin did in an uncharacteristically kind moment. It was not something to be expected or to get used to, but it seemed that everyone had a soft spot for the little girl.
Theo and Azalea plopped down at either end of a plush brown leather sofa, while Arcturus and Cassiopeia sat more eloquently in a pair of wing back chairs. They were so far the only ones in the room, but Azalea knew that would change at any moment, and it seems she was right.
Augusta Longbottom was the first to arrive, and she elegantly glided as she usually did over to where the four of them were seated, and was followed closely behind by her grandson, Neville. Azalea felt a bit more relieved that both of her best friends were with her. She was terribly nervous. What if something in the will changed her living arrangement. What if she was taken away from Cassiopeia and Arcturus?
Next came one of Azalea and Theo's teachers, oddly enough. Andromeda Tonks née Black arrived as elegant as ever. Arcturus waved her over and she came to sit beside the three other adults.
Then came into the room a tiny man, no taller than three feet at the most. He had a shock of white hair, and wore deep forest green wizarding robes. He stopped to look around the room, and became noticeably emotional when he saw Azalea sitting there. He walked right up to her and said, "Oh little Azalea Potter, I am so sorry. I am so sorry. I knew James and Lily when they were students at Hogwarts, and I was with them in the Order until they went into hiding. I am-"
"Filius, that is enough. Do not bombard the child, especially when it seems she has no clue who you are or what you are talking about." A Scottish woman said in a thick broag from the door. It seemed that people were arriving quickly now, and a quick look at the clock on the wall told her it was indeed almost time for the meeting to commence.
"Oh Minerva, I had no clue you would be here too. It's such a pleasant surprise." The man blithered on.
"Pull yourself together Filius. She probably has no clue who you, or I am." The woman repeated.
"Oh yes, of course." And he turned back to Azalea and bowed.
"My name is Filius Flitwick. I am a Hogwarts Professor, I teach charms. I was your mother and father's teacher and friend."
"It's nice to meet you." Azalea said politely.
"And I, young woman, am Minerva McGonagall. I am also a teacher at Hogwarts. I teach transfigurations." Minerva said as she entered the room more, and took a seat at the nearby table, a seat down from where Filius made himself comfortable.
It was a few minutes later, when a quiet disheveled man appeared at the door, and Theo froze. It was the amber eyed man from before, the one watching him and Azalea in the alley.
"Ahh, Remus. I see you were called upon too." Minerva greeted the stranger whose name must have been Remus."
"Hello again Mr. Lupin. It's been many years since we last saw you." Filius greeted him as well.
"Lord Black, that is him." Theo alerted Arcturus quietly, while they were distracted.
"That's him?" Arcturus confirmed, just as quietly. Azalea was too busy watching the strangers' interactions with each other to notice.
"Yes sir."
"Here Remus, take a seat. It's no wonder why you're here. You were James' best friend." Minerva pulled the frozen man over and into an awaiting seat.
Suddenly it all made sense to Theo. That man, he was watching Azalea, not Theo. He would have to study the man deeper, trying to figure out why. He had the urge to put himself between the man and Azalea, and he had no clue why just yet.
Remus stood at the doorway, with the door closed. He was in front of the Reader of Wills office, and he was confused. Dumbledore had promised that there was no will. That James and Lily hadn't had time to make one, let alone get it officiated. And yet, here he was, with the summons paper in his hand, crumpled and smoothed out with worry. He had more questions than answers and the only way to get some of them resolved was to go in, it seemed. And so he entered the office and froze at who greeted him.
Two Hogwarts professors he had not seen since the war ended, Filius Flitwick and Minerva McGonagall. But it was the people past the two teachers that had him frozen, not quite in shock or fear, but in something unnameable.
It was her. It was Azalea. That girl he saw in Diagon Alley with the two Blacks and that Nott boy... It was her. He had finally found her at last. He had found little Azalea Potter! He wanted to jump for joy and run up to her, but he paused and thought for a second. His wolf was warning him. 'Danger. Do not approach. Wait until later when she is alone.' it growled out on repeat. Something was wrong. But he could feel eyes on him, multiple pairs at that, he had to act calm and rational, at least for the moment.
'Now is not the time, wolf.' Remus reminded himself.
Quietly he greeted his old teachers, and sat down beside them for the first time in almost a full decade.
It was time for them to begin soon. This was going to be its own special kind of painful. He had lost his pack mates, his family.
The last person to arrive was a tall thin woman, with platinum blonde hair and an air of icy cold indifference. Her expression was completely blank and impossible for Theo to read. She nodded once to Arcturus and Cassiopeia and continued to look dead ahead, not quite meeting anyone's eyes. It was as if she didn't quite belong.
"Okay, it is time. If everyone is here and seated the reading of the will and testament of James Charlus Potter and Lily Jade Potter née Evans-Rosier." At the announcement of Lily's full name, there were the beginnings of an outcry.
"If I am interrupted, you will be removed and barred from the reading, do I make myself clear."
But before he could continue, the door slammed open, and a fiery redheaded woman appeared at the open door.
"Sorry I'm late. Got caught up in my... Got caught up in some things that you don't need to know about." She looked around the room, noting that both Arcturus and Cassiopeia Black were there and got a sour look on her face.
"Oh, Elizabeth... I thought..." Cassiopeia said softly. She was always rather fond of the girl, but after the tragic accident, and then her father throwing her out after her first transformation... She had lost sight and track of where she had gone off to.
"Hmph, it's Aquilla now. You'd know that if you cared." The woman said in a rather standoffish manner.
The goblin glared at the two of them and cleared his throat. "If I may continue, if there are any more interruptions, you will be barred from the room. Do I make myself clear?" Bloodfist nearly snarled out.
"Yes sir. It won't happen again." Cassiopeia said smoothly, holding a hand up to silence her distant grandniece. "We will talk later, Aquilla."
"I will now read the will and testament of James Charlus Potter and Lily Jade Potter née Evans-Rosier. Are the following people here:
Sirius Black (Life status: Alive)
Peter Pettigrew (Life status: Alive)
Remus Lupin (Life status: Alive)
Evan Rosier (Life status: Alive)
Elizabeth Prewett (Life status: Alive)
Frank Longbottom (Life status: Alive, in stasis)
Alice Longbottom (Life status: Alive, in stasis)
Augusta Longbottom (Life status: Alive)
Minerva McGonagall (Life status: Alive)
Filius Flitwick (Life status: Alive)
Narcissa Malfoy (Life status: Alive)
Andromeda Tonks (Life status: Alive)
But before he could finish reading the list of people attending and invited, there was an outcry from Remus Lupin.
"You must be wrong. Pettigrew is alive? He can't be, Sirius Black killed him." You could hear the pure anguish in his voice, the raw emotion. It was the only thing stopping the goblin from kicking him out of the room.
"The list does not lie. It is a magical document that tells the whereabouts and life status of everyone written into it. It is a magically bound contract. It knows. Now if there will be no more interruptions, I will continue."
Last will and testament
We, Lillian Rhona Potter née Evans-Rosier and James Charlus Potter, being of sound mind declare that this is our Last Will and Testament. We revoke all previous wills we had previously made.
We appoint Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore to be our administrator and ask that he be permitted to serve without court supervision.
First let it be henceforth known that Peter Allen Pettegrew was our secret keeper so if you are reading this then all three of us are deceased. If he is still among the living than his bequeathed is null and void.
We bequeath the amount of 20,000 galleons to Remus John Lupin non-rejectable. You deserve this Mooney, and we won't have you reject it due to your pride.
We bequeath the amount of 5,000 galleons to both Filius Flitwick and Minerva McGonagall. We want to thank you for mentoring us when you did not need to.
We bequeath our family photo album to Sirius Orion Black along with a monthly stipend of 200 galleons for the care of our beautiful little girl Azalea Dorea Potter.
We bequeath the amount of 10,000 galleons to Frank Silvainus Longbottom and Alice Elizabeth Longbottom née Fawley. Use this to give a gift to our godson each year after our passing. We want him to know that we loved him before he was even born.
We bequeath the amount of 1 knut to Peter Allen Pettegrew. If he is alive to receive this, arrest him.
We bequeath the amount of 8,500 galleons to Elizabeth Karina Prewett. We may not have known you long little eagle, but you are family nonetheless. Remember family sometimes makes mistakes, sometimes it's hard to let go of grudges, but it is freeing in its own right. Don't clip your own wings with hatred.
We bequeath a letter that is held in the old vault of Lily Evans to Evan Rosier
To our little girl we leave everything that we have ever had. We love you Azalea dear, never forget that. Everything is yours now, use it as you see fit and grow up to be the best you. Don't let anyone shove you into a role that you do not want and don't let anyone make you someone you are not. You are perfect the way you are.
Azalea is to never be given to Petunia Agnes Dursley née Evans due to her hatred of anything magical, unfit to her standards.
The list of people who are acceptable are listed below in order of most desired:
Sirius Black
Alice Longbottom
Frank Longbottom
Cassiopeia Black
Andromeda Tonks
Remus Lupin
Elizabeth Prewet
Minerva McGonagall
If none of the aforementioned people are capable, Narcissa Black is even preferable over Petunia Dursley.
Listed below are of people she must never be put with:
Severus Snape
Albus Dumbledore
Molly Weasley
Bellatrix Lestrange
Petunia Dursley
Peter Pettegrew
Absolute silence rang out in the office. Everyone was too shocked to say or react to anything. It was deafening. And then all hell broke loose. Everyone was shouting over each other, at each other's throats arguing about what was written and stated. It was a completely spectacular sight to Azalea, and like any logical nine-year-old child who just was overloaded with information, she quietly began to cry. Theo noticed at first, and began to comfort her. The second person to notice was Cassiopeia, and that was all it took. She stood up and slammed her fist onto the wall next to her.
"You people are despicable. Look at all of you squabbling like petty children in a school yard. Look at what you are doing!" And she drew attention to the children before her. Theo and Neville looked murderous. Azalea was still crying, just as silently as before, but now she was crying harder. The shock had worn off. She was mourning for the parents she never got to meet, the abuse she had lived with when there was an entire list of people who she should and should not be placed with, and it was all so confusing and overwhelming to her. And these adults were supposed to be the ones who were to take care of her? She was rather glad it was Cassiopeia that she had found, or who had found her.
Again, all of the adults in the room froze, this time not in shock but in disgust at themselves.
"Are you proud of yourselves? You made a little girl cry at her parents' will reading!" Cassiopeia continued.
"Lady Black I-" Remus started.
"No! I don't want to hear it! Out. All of you, get out. You can claim your bloody money at another time." She said firmly, pointing to the door.
Remus bowed his head, and quietly got up and left the room. He had blown it. It was his chance at getting his cub back, and he blew it. The rest of the guests quietly left, with the exceptions of Narcissa, Aquilla, and Andromeda, and of course Augusta and Theo and Neville.
"Now what?" Aquilla said to break the tensioned atmosphere. She was ever the conversational icebreaker. She couldn't stand awkward moments and this was definitely one of them.
"Now, we talk. But not here. Say... My manor in the highlands, in two hours?" Cassiopeia offered to her very distantly related cousins. Narcissa, Andromeda and Aquilla were all members of the Black family after all.
"Yes, let's. It seems we all have something in common. We will talk, but I agree, not here. Even the halls of Gringotts have eyes and ears, dear." Narcissa agreed.
And so they went home. Azalea went to her room with Theo and Neville to decompress from the intense overload of information. She simply sat on her bed and stared down blankly at her book. She was seeing the words but was not reading them. She was far too stressed for that. Theo and Neville sat quietly with her, just offering her silent support until she decided she wanted or needed their comfort. Neville was in his own state of shock as well. Azalea's parents... They were his godparents? He had never known that. But they left his parents' money. They loved and cared for him.
Meanwhile, the adults had gathered out into the war room. It was the only room that Azalea, Neville, and Theo were not allowed entrance into unless absolutely necessary. Therefore, she had never been there. She had no want or need for war, she was a little girl. They were all little. But the war room was the perfect room for them to meet in. There was no access by floo, so no way to spy. There were no wizarding portraits either, for added protection. The room was encased in muffling spells. The walls were lined with various weapons ranging from magically enchanted maces to poison coated daggers and swords. There were four living sets of armor, enchanted to attack at a minute's notice. Opposite of the suits of armor, were four large and heavy hutches, made of dark stained cherry wood, loaded full of books of tactical information and the history of the different wizarding families, as well as information on both the muggle and wizarding wars and worlds. There was a single tall matching black cabinet full of alcohol and glasses, for just in case of dire emergency. In the center of the room, dead in the middle, was an interactive war map of wizarding Europe, complete with little men in various colors and positions. Around the south half of the map was a U shaped table in dark cherry as well, with black old gothic style plush chairs spaced out around the outside of it. The entire room itself was circular in shape, so you could see everything from wherever you sat in the room. It was all designed for tactical advantage.
Cassiopeia sat down at one end of the table, with Arcturus sitting on the other end, so he was sitting a few feet apart, but next to her. They sat as a united front, the Lord Black, and his sister Lady Black. Augusta sat the very nearest next to Cassiopeia, and Aquilla sat next to Arcturus, leaving Andromeda and Narcissa sitting in the very center.
"So, it seems we have many things to discuss. Shall we?" Cassiopeia stated.
"Yes, it seems we do. Where shall we begin." Arcturus said, facing her.
"Okay, cut the bull crap and let's get this over with. Who are Peter Pettigrew and Sirius Black? What's so important about those two people?" Aquilla said, blatantly ignoring the dagger filled glares from Narcissa and Andromeda's very bothered look.
Cassiopeia looked at her distant cousin, Elizabeth, or as she preferred, Aquilla and stood tall and proud in her seat.
"Now, on the topic of Azalea. This is what we know, and these are the actions we took against the muggles that were mentioned, Petunia and Vernon Dursley. Petunia was her muggle guardian. We disposed of her and her husband in the most fitting way we could think of, of course after we had a bit of fun with them. No one, and I mean no one will ever harm a hair on that child's head again. Cassiopeia has since taken custody of Azalea through a goblin and ministry approved blood adoption ritual. All we had to do was point out she was the rightful heiress to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, as well as the Heiress to the Most Ancient And Righteous House of Potter, as well as both the heiress to the Noble and Cunning House Of Rosier and the Ancient and Revered House of Peverell. It was in their best interest to not make enemies of myself and Cassiopeia. After all, I am Lord Black, head of the Black family." Arcturus began.
"So it was true, what was published in that rag of a paper... She was abused at the hands of those filthy muggles. At least I know they got what was coming to them, if it was at your hands Arcturus. Is Azalea aware of the nature of her Aunt and Uncle's disappearance?" Naricssa said quietly, her delicate face screwed up at the mere thought of a muggle or anyone for that matter hurting a wizarding child.
"Ahh yes, that leak was disposed of rather quickly, but the damage was already done. That bug was thankfully squashed out quickly. And no, fortunately she has not asked once about those two vermin since she had arrived at the manor, although that might change one day, and when it does, I will tell her the truth, as much as I can at whatever age she requests the information at."
"What about Theodore Nott. I have noticed the way Heir Nott and Heir Longbottom comfort the girl. I expected as much coming from a Longbottom, but not a Nott. Does Thorros know Theo is here, and of his actions with Azalea?" Narcissa continued. She had many pressing questions, and with the room secured, she could drop her indifferent mask that she was forced to wear in the public's eye.
At what she said, Cassiopeia got a very dark look on her face, dark enough that even Arcturus looked over at her in concern.
"Thorros Nott is scum of the earth, and he will be dealt with accordingly. He has hit Theodore, one too many times. Theo came to us one day, covered in barely concealed bruises on his face, with a nearly perfect imprint of the Nott head ring scratched into his cheek. He has been here, as in staying here at the manor almost the entire summer. Thorros has not come once to look for his child, nor has he contacted me or Arcturus. Theo will get his revenge as soon as he approaches me. I will wait for it to be on his terms this time." Cassiopeia said passionately.
"What about Dumbledore?" Aquilla asked loudly.
"That is a different animal entirely. I was aware that Dumbledore was formerly her magical guardian, I am aware that he was neglecting his duties severely. I was unaware that he was the designated administrator of the will. It does explain many things though. There have been several withdrawals of large sums of galleons from her vaults over the years, at times where she would still be very unaware of the magical world. There was a consistent stream of galleons being withdrawn and converted to British notes to pay the Dursleys to take care of Azalea, a job they did quite the opposite of. There are more transactions, looking over the paperwork from her vault. I will have to approach her on the subject and get her permission to investigate. I highly suspect that her vault was being used to pay off other wizards before Albus Dumbledore was cut off completely." Arcturus said carefully, the words forming intricate shapes in their minds.
Albus Dumbledore was becoming less and less of a good man in their eyes, in fact... The image he had carefully created for himself as the kindly old man who cared about everyone, was crumbling before Aquilla's very eyes. After Aquilla had been turned into a lycanthrope she had been shunned by many, being turned the fall after her graduation from Hogwarts. No one, not even her father and mother had wanted her. Her father all but threw her out, but Uncle Arcturus was kind enough to give her a fully converted wizarding cabin in a plot of woods to live and reside in. Her mother had kept in contact with her through the owl post until her mother was murdered in cold blood in a suspected Death Eater raid gone wrong.
"Onto that matter. What are we going to do about Dumbledore? What actions can we take currently?" Andromeda asked, chiming in for the first time since the meeting began. She was content to sit back and let her sister interrogate Arcturus in the way that only her Cissy could. She had tried her best to keep in contact with Narcissa over the years, but daily letters became weekly, which became once a fortnight and then once a month or two. Eventually all correspondence stopped, as Naricssa's relationship with Lucius Malfoy bloomed and developed into romance. She had been disappointed at first, but then she met Theodore Tonks and had fallen hard for him, a muggle-born wizard. It was completely scandalous. A pure blooded Black and a muggle-born mutt wizard getting married, having a child together. Oh, it was unheard of.
"The time for revenge against that corrupt man will come soon enough. Certain things we will need Azalea's consent for, but the plan had been forming in my mind since the very beginning. We will have to be careful about it, of course. I will need to swear you three into secrecy. A vow on your bloodline's magic will do."
Narcissa and Andromeda completely expected such a move on their part. They vowed right away. Aquilla thought for a moment, but followed suit quickly. Once they all swore in, Arcturus continued.
"First, with Azalea's permission, we will request a full audit of her vaults. All transactions both in and out will be halted immediately. This will give us a breadcrumb trail of where to start at, where to investigate first. It will tell us who he's using Azalea's money to pay off. I have suspicion that there might be the Order of the Phoenix involved."
"Who is the Order of the Phoenix?" Aquilla asked curiously.
"An vigilante group created by Dumbledore in the last war, to fend off the Death Eaters. The ministry tried putting a halt to it, but Albus was always somehow one step ahead. Lucius always suspected that he had spies in the ministry, but it was never confirmed." Narcissa said in a slightly detached voice. Talking about the Death Eaters, knowing her husband was high in the ranks, it made her slightly uncomfortable to talk about, but it was necessary. Aquilla was a young teen when the war had broken out again. She sheltered away in her cabin in the woods, secluded from the world outside.
"But what does that have to do with Azalea? Why would some group that Dumbledore had run be interested in the child?"
"That is something we will have to discover." Arcturus answered Aquilla's question before anyone else could. There were things that were on a need to know basis and that was most definitely one of them. He had a theory, formed from rumors and whispers, and he hoped to Merlin that he was wrong. There were whispers of a prophecy that featured Azalea and the late Voldemort. He was hoping it was false. The girl was only nine. She didn't need to be involved like it would imply she would be later on in her lifetime.
"This leaves the most interesting topic for last. Peter Pettigrew. He's alive?"
"So it would seem. The will implied so, it did not list him as deceased as it did the others. And goblin magic cannot be tampered with by wizards, and the goblins have no reason to lie to us over this. It's safe to assume then, that Peter Pettigrew was the true secret keeper for the Potters. Sirius Black must be innocent."
"But the trial-"
"About that. There was no trial. A bunch of Death Eaters, him included, were rounded up like cattle and thrown in Azkaban with a life sentence without a trial. It was horrid. Lucius only got out because of his position within the Ministry." Narcissa said bitterly. She resented her husband for his connections. While he was a free roaming man, she and her son were not safe. She feared that they might never be.
"What!? Sirius Black, an innocent man, was thrown in Azkaban Prison, home of the dementors, without a trial? This is civil injustice! This is blasphemy!" Aquilla began to protest. Her infamously short temper was showing its ugly head.
"Calm yourself Elizabeth. You are no longer a school child." Narcissa chided the adult as if she was a young child.
Aquilla looked away, still flush with anger. She was indignant that she was being reprimanded like a naughty kid, but as she calmed down, she realised that her anger would get her nowhere with her current company.
"How do we get Sirius a trial?" Aquilla asked curiously.
"Simple, we locate Peter Pettigrew. We need him alive." Arcturus said, pointedly looking at Andromeda and Narcissa. Andromeda only looked innocent. She was, after all, a Black.
"Oh I do not know what you are talking about. Narcissa, do you still have the scrying crystal I gave you?"
"Yes, I transfigured it so Lucius wouldn't know I kept some of the gifts you gave me." Narsicca looked away, a rare bit of emotion slipping through her deadpan mask.
"You kept it? Why-"
"Drop it Andy." And that stopped both of them in their tracks. Without noticing, they slipped right back into the playful banter they grew up having between themselves. They weren't always distant. At one point, the middle child, Andromeda, and the youngest, Narcissa, were close siblings, with Bellatirx always being the most distant.
"Excellent. We can use that as a start. If that doesn't work, I'll try to locate a focus stone. I think there is one in one of the many Black family vaults. It will help me to strengthen a summoning charm."
"Won't that fail? What if he hits a wall? Wouldn't he go splat?" Aquilla butted in.
"I... I had not thought of that. Scratch that plan. We will try to locate him through scrying. If that fails, we will contact a bounty hunter at Gringotts." Andromeda came up with the plan, steady and headstrong as always.
"I know of a good lawyer we can contact. Her name is Isold Kaiser. She helped with Lucius. I can owl her..."
"I think that would be a good start. It's important that we do this legally." Arcturus reminded the two women plotting before him. He, along with Cassiopeia and Aquilla , looked slightly lost. It seems the two sisters were back in the full swing of their relationship, like time had never passed and nothing had ever changed.
"Splendid. It seems we have a solid plan with room for leads to form. Shall we call this meeting adjourned for now?" Cassiopeia said after some time, while discussion had broken out between Narcissa and Aquilla as they got to know each other.
After a while, the only ones left in the room were Augusta, Cassiopeia and Arcturus. Augusta turned to Arcturus.
"Are we absolutely sure about this? Sure that they won't just kill Peter Pettigrew?"
"No, not really but we must hope." Arcturus finally said after some thought.