Chapter 12: Confrontation

July 30, 1980

Chateau Noir, Lyons, Rhone-Alps Region, France

Arcturus Black lounged regally behind the desk in his study as he allowed his gray eyes to rake over the form of his oldest grandson. The last time he had seen Sirius Orion Black the boy had been a brash young seventeen-year-old who angrily insisted that he wanted nothing to do with his family, that he disowned himself from the family Black. The Sirius Orion Black standing before him now was no longer a boy. He was a man. His shoulders and chest were broader due to Auror training and time spent in the field battling evil Wizards and Witches. He was still a graceful creature, but then Arcturus had never seen a child of the House of Black without grace in their movements. The blue eyes that looked at him, watched him and measured him just as Arcturus watched and measured Sirius, looked far too pained for his comfort.

Arcturus inwardly cursed himself a fool. He had rarely seen pain in his grandchildren but when he had, he had always sought to alleviate their misery. He could not give Sirius what he had come here to demand. The future of House Black could not be trusted in the hands of this grandson; Sirius had, by his actions, made that all too clear.

He had known that Sirius would eventually come to his door demanding answers. He had hoped it would be later than this, but he supposed that it was for the best that it had not happened sooner. In truth, Arcturus had always known that Sirius would learn that he had a son and he would come to him with demands. They were demands that Arcturus would not grant. For Leonis' sake he would not let Sirius become an influence in his life.

Sirius finally broke the silence, as Arcturus knew that he would. "You know why I have come." Sirius nearly hissed out.

Arcturus raised an eyebrow at that. Sirius had seemed outwardly calmer but it seemed his rage was simmering dangerously within. So his grandson had not yet mastered himself after all. "I do believe it might have something to do with why you have been harassing Cassiopeia Black." He replied in a mild tone.

Sirius scowled. "She refused to speak with me." He frowned. "She is keeping my son from me."

Arcturus smirked. This was the grandson who had left him, left them. The boy that ran away because he thought them evil. The boy did not know the first thing about evil apparently. The boy was due some lessons and Arcturus very much feared that one day Sirius would learn just how wrong he was about his family, only then it would be too late. Sirius always learned too late.

"Cassiopeia is the guardian of Leonis Black. As such she has every right to decide just whom can and whom cannot have access to the babe." Arcturus said without preamble. "It was an agreement between the Lady Macmillan, Cassiopeia, and myself. Lady Macmillan wished for her child to grow in safety and she knew the babe was the heir of the Black's. She did her duty but with stipulations. One of those was that Leonis would not be raised by Walburga and that Walburga would never be allowed to be alone with Leonis. With the death of Regulus so very fresh I consented. House Black needed an heir and you did your duty and provided it, though of course you must always do things your own way."

Sirius grit his teeth at his grandfather's bland tone. "That being the case, since I did indeed do my duty to the House of Black there should be no objections to my seeing my son."

"I very much object to you being anywhere near Leonis." Arcturus said suddenly with a voice of steel.

Sirius glared at him. "Why do you object so strongly?"

Arcturus smirked. "Leonis is still quite young. He was removed from his mother's care but she still visits him a few times a week to keep him healthy with the bond of child to mother. However, you were not there during his growth and as such the bond he has to you is slim at best. It might hurt him."

"That is a flimsy excuse and you know it." Sirius scoffed.

Arcturus stared at Sirius. "Leonis is magically sensitive, just like Regulus was." He watched the barb strike home. Sirius frowned in thought as he leaned back in his chair, all youthful indolent grace.

"Regulus was not magically sensitive." Sirius denied, but the denial lacked heat. It was weak.

"Oh yes he was." Arcturus informed him. "It was discovered during his first year at Hogwart's. Surely you wondered why your little brother had been confined to the infirmary for a week?"

Sirius shook his head. "I knew he had been in the infirmary for a few days but I did not know why." He was forced to admit.

Arcturus nodded his head. It was as he had thought. The rift between Sirius and Regulus had started before the younger boy had arrived at the school. No matter. Regulus was no more and Leonis would not relive that life. Leonis would not have to deal with an exuberant Sirius waltzing into his life and then out of it again when it pleased him.

"Leonis has been tested. The healer confirmed that he is magically sensitive. As such Cassiopeia is the perfect guardian for him. She lives, as you know, at Ivy Hall. She has plenty of land for the boy to play on and she can regulate who comes to her home to visit. When Leonis is older she intends to begin to slowly integrate him into playing with other children."

"He's my son." Sirius growled. "I have every right to see him. Had I known that Olivia was pregnant, I never would have…"

Arcturus cut him off. "But you did Sirius." He said darkly. "You knew she loved you and you pushed her away. Tell me Sirius, did you figure out you were in love with her before you pushed her away or was it after? Or maybe it was when you discovered that she was married to Malcolm?"

Sirius growled low in his throat. "My relationship with Olivia is none of your business."

Arcturus nodded. "Very well. It is the end result of it that was my business. Leonis is my heir and he will not be placed in your hands." He promised Sirius. "There is no court that will give you custody of the boy. You have denied your lineage, turned your back on us, you pushed away your pregnant lover, no Sirius, there is no court that would give you what you want." Arcturus took delight in telling him. It soothed some of his need for vengeance against this grandson. "I would have given it to you once. Had you come to me sooner I would have accepted you back with open arms. You would have been the Heir Black and Leonis would be set to follow you." He shook his head. "That is not what has happened though. You have come here now to make demands that you have a right to see the Heir Black." He scoffed at the last part. "You have no rights to the Heir Black."

Sirius' blue eyes glittered with malice. "Is that your game then?" He asked in a voice that was hard as stone. "To blackmail me into returning to the House of Black? All I have to do is return to you, tell you I was wrong, beg your forgiveness and then you will let me have my son?"

Arcturus leaned back in his chair and smirked as he watched Sirius. "No." He stated calmly. "This is no blackmail Sirius. I am not holding Leonis over your head as a means of making you return to the family." He told him honestly. "I harbor no such desperate hope of your returning, though your grandmother still does." He admitted.

Sirius looked confused for a moment. "Then what is it that you want from me?"

Arcturus wondered briefly if it would be worth it to give voice to his dearest longings involving this grandchild. He doubted that Sirius would care, that he would truly take the words to heart, but Arcturus also realized that this might be his final chance to reach Sirius at all. With that in mind he chose to speak his heart to Sirius.

"I want you to use your head. You are an intelligent young man Sirius, but you never seem to realize the truth of things until it is too late for you to undo the damage of your actions." Arcturus began. "I want you to realize that you are wrong and want to return to your family. I want you to realize that not all which you have learned from Albus Dumbledore is the truth."

Sirius scoffed at the mention of Dumbledore's name. "Dumbledore may not be perfect, but at least he's no blood purist."

Arcturus glared at Sirius. "He might not be perfect and that is alright with you. Yet you would demand perfection from us. No blemishes, no prejudices. However, you follow Dumbledore blindly and he makes his own prejudices all too clear." He snarled at Sirius. "You turned your back on your family for Dumbledore and his rhetoric."

"No." Sirius denied. "I turned my back on my family because of my mother and my uncle and all of their nonsense." He snarled. "Muggles should be killed, they told me. Muggle-born's should be killed as infants, the better to be rid of them swiftly, they would say." Sirius repeated the words of his mother Walburga Black and of his uncle Cygnus Black.

Arcturus glared at him. "Two people, Sirius." He said the words quietly though through clenched teeth. "Two people. That is all you have to blame for your abandonment of your brother and your cousins?"

Sirius' blue eyes widened. "I did not abandon my brother." He protested.

"Didn't you?" Arcturus demanded to know but then shook his head. It mattered not. Talking of Regulus would get them nowhere.

"How did he die?" Sirius demanded to know. His voice gave away the fact that Sirius had wanted to know the truth ever since he had learned about his brother's death. It was there in his eyes as Arcturus studied his face. Sirius needed an explanation.

Arcturus stared hard at Sirius and knew that he would have to lie. It was strange that he felt almost guilty in lying to Sirius instead of telling him the truth. The truth would never serve in this case. Sirius might become even more possessed of the desire to see his child if he knew that the child was actually Regulus. It would appease Sirius' guilt to raise his brother who had been returned somehow to infancy. Arcturus would not allow it. Sirius could not know.

The best lies were always heavily laced in truths.

"He had been under increasing strain and pressure since you ran away to live with the Potter's." Arcturus pointed out. "When he turned seventeen it was expected of him to take the Dark Mark by his friends as well as by his mother. Regulus refused the mark and it cost him his life." Arcturus lied easily, protecting the real secret of Regulus "demise".

Arcturus watched as Sirius sat still for several moments, processing his words. Sirius slowly took a shuddering breath fighting against the urge to cry. "I had wondered if it was like that." He admitted softly.

Arcturus watched his grandson closely for a few moments longer before admitting. "The House of Black has declared vendetta against Voldemort and his Death Eaters."

Sirius' head jerked up and he stared hard at Arcturus. "You are either very brave or very stupid." He declared.

Arcturus smirked. "What? Do you think you Gryffindors' have the market cornered on bravery?" He asked with a slight scoff. "Oh I admit that declaring myself so early in the game is not perhaps the best strategy, but it was a necessary evil."

"You could speak with Dumbledore." Sirius pressed his grandfather. He recognized that it would be a great coup for the Order of the Phoenix to get their hands on members of the House of Black.

"I think not." Arcturus said shutting down his grandson's mentioning of him having anything to do with Albus Dumbledore. He distrusted Dumbledore as dearly as he distrusted Voldemort. In fact, Arcturus could admit that he distrusted Dumbledore more than Voldemort. There was something perfectly honest and straightforward about a megalomaniac wanting world dominion. Voldemort's methods were more straightforward than Dumbledore's own. Voldemort would set himself up upon a throne. Not so with Albus Dumbledore. The Headmaster of Hogwarts was far more than the doddering happy educator. He was a puppet master. He gained puppets and then pulled their strings controlling them. He would never set himself up upon a throne but he would be the master behind whomever sat upon said throne.

Sirius was a puppet of the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Arcturus' great regret was that he had not seen it sooner. If he had known that Albus Dumbledore had shown such favoritism to Sirius, allowing him to break school rules, getting away with bullying, and attempted murder, Arcturus would have executed his rights as Lord of House and removed Sirius from Hogwart's school and thus from Dumbledore's influence.

Arcturus wondered how Dumbledore felt about Sirius no longer being in line for the Lordship of the House of Black? He also wondered how Dumbledore felt about Leonis Black? He would speak to Cassiopeia in time about Dumbledore and Leonis. The boy would need to be prepared against Dumbledore and his cronies before he ever set foot in the hallowed halls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Sirius frowned then pursing his lips together. "Why are you so stubbornly set against attempting to work with Dumbledore?" He asked his grandfather. "If you are truly in Vendetta against Voldemort then you and the Headmaster are on the same side."

Arcturus shook his head slowly. "Dumbledore and I might have a common enemy but that does not mean we would work well together Sirius." Arcturus informed him. "I am bound by the laws of Vendetta and Dumbledore would attempt to curb me and all members of House Black every chance he gets."

A thoughtful expression formed over Sirius features. "Vendetta." He murmured. "You have a kill order against Voldemort and all of his followers. This order must be obeyed by all of the blooded Black's."

Arcturus nodded, pleased for once with Sirius' understanding. "Yes. House Malfoy has likewise sworn Vendetta and to stand with us against Voldemort and his Death Eaters." He informed Sirius enjoying the look of surprise on his grandson's face.

"Malfoy?" Sirius was quite surprised. "That is not a name that I would have expected to hear."

"The Prince has sworn himself against Voldemort as well." Arcturus said. "He and Lucius have taken the rite of Blood Brothers. Severus Snape-Prince is also the first God-parent of Narcissa's little boy, Draco."

"Draco?" Sirius growled and then he stood and began to pace. "Narcissa let a monster like Severus Snape near her newborn son?" He demanded.

Arcturus smiled at Sirius' agitation. "Yes. Apparently Severus was instrumental in the birth process." He said waving a hand idly. "Lucius and Abraxas were each at meetings of some sort and Lucius had wisely asked for Severus to come to Malfoy Manor to just sit with Narcissa and entertain her whilst he would be away. She was already a month past her due date and it had caused her great anxiety. She went into labor with Severus at the Manor and he immediately sent house-elves for her healer. Even so he seems to be a Medi-wizard as well as a Potion's Master. He assisted the Healer and he was the one who first held Draco."

Sirius frowned as he continued his pacing. "So out of gratitude Cissa named him a God-father." He said with disgust.

Arcturus smiled. "Careful Sirius, I might just begin to believe that you actually care about Narcissa and her offspring."

Sirius scowled at him but he did not try to deny that he did actually care about his cousin. "Who are the other two God-parents of Draco?" He asked instead. It was common knowledge in their world that each magical child born was given three God-parents. Male children received two God-fathers and one God-mother and female children received two God-mothers and one God-father.

Arcturus studied him for a moment before relenting. "Belladonna Zabini nee Violante and Tiberius Pucey."

Sirius snorted at the mention of Belladonna Zabini. "Belladonna, I know she's one of Cissa's first female friends that was not family but really she is too flighty of a sort to ever make a good God-mother for Draco." He insisted. "At least Tiberius is a good sort, dangerous though."

"Belladonna might be flighty but she loves Cissa and I have heard that marriage to Julius Zabini has settled her nicely." Arcturus said.

Sirius shrugged. "So Narcissa gave birth in July." He said softly.

Arcturus nodded. "Yes. July the fifth." He informed Sirius as he watched him closely. Sirius now seemed somewhat worried.

Sirius looked into his eyes and then shook his head. "Nothing for you to worry about." He told the Head of House Black. "I would like for you to consider the possibility of me seeing my son."

"No." Arcturus said immediately.

"You said that he had next to no bond with me but yet the bond is there." Sirius protested. "Allow me visitation with him so that I might nurture that bond with him. It is permitted for Olivia to visit with him, you said so yourself. I ask for no less than that. I will not remove him from Ivy Hall where he is protected." Sirius frowned. "I am an Auror and an unwed one at that. It would be wrong of me to remove him from an environment where he is loved and he is safe." Sirius clenched his fists at his sides and stared deep into his grandfather's eyes. "I just…he's mine." He said softly. "I want to hold him. Please, let me see him, let me hold him."

It was the please that nearly broke his resolve. Arcturus looked away from Sirius turning his back to him to stare out of the window of his study. What was the right thing to do in this situation? Sirius was like the wind, blowing this way and that, pulled forever in one direction or another. Was it right to expose Leonis to that when he was still so young and so sensitive? It had been damaging to Regulus, and Arcturus had no proof that it would not do the same amount of harm once more to Leonis. It was Leonis that he must think of first and foremost. He was an infant and in need of protection. Besides that, Leonis was a member of the House Black. Sirius was a traitor whom had left them behind.

He turned back to look at Sirius. The young man attempted to remain stoic but he could not keep the eagerness, the need, and deep seated longing from his blue eyes. Arcturus smiled at his Grandson, a sad sort of smile. "Would you return to the House of Black and be the Heir Black once more foreswearing your allegiance to Albus Dumbledore? Do these things Sirius and you will be given unfettered access to Ivy Hall and to Leonis."

Sirius took a step back as though Arcturus had struck him. Arcturus eyed him carefully as the silent war waged within Sirius. In truth Arcturus did not know what answer he wanted most until Sirius finally delivered his answer and Arcturus felt the crush of defeat.

"No." Sirius said in a voice that wavered slightly due to the force of his emotions. "I cannot." He said. "I am not a traitor to my friends. And I won't be a traitor to the light."

"Dumbledore is not the light." Arcturus attempted one final argument. In vain.

"He is in comparison to you, to all of you." Sirius sneered in anger. His default emotion when dealing with his blood kin.

Arcturus shook his head sadly. "No. Leonis is light." He said gently to his grandson. "Not that you will know it." He said the last with pity in his voice. "You have taken up enough of my time Sirius Black. Be gone. Do not attempt to approach Ivy Hall for the House-Elves have been warned to be on high alert against you."

Sirius glared at Arcturus. "You cannot keep my son from me." He declared. "I will find a way. This is not over." He turned away then and stormed from the room.

Arcturus felt a chill go down his spine and he wondered as he stared at the door in which Sirius had just departed if this might have been the last time he would see his grandson.