What If Series: The Black Prince

by Miss Mysteria

Chapter Four

The potion was not simple. Several of the ingredients, if they were not Black's and had an almost endless galleon supply, would be impossible to get. A cauldron with just the boiling water needed to simmer on a flame for thirty minutes before adding a crushed bezoar to counteract the poison in the next added ingredient of bloodroot. After twenty minutes of boiling on the flame, the potion maker must add dry and shredded boomslang skin at the same time as lacewing flies that have been stewed in Knotgrass Mead for three months straight. Then, the potion should be a dark green and if not, the potion maker must start again or it may have dangerous effects on whoever is drinking it. Leave it to simmer for two hours, but keep a constant watch to make sure it doesn't boil or burn. Then, add essence of the new "parents", three drops of blood should do it, not more or less. Stir anti-clockwise for seven cycles, clockwise for two and watch as the potion turns a deep blue. Take off of the flames and place on freezing surface so that the potion cools from the bottom up. Once the potion is cool, which takes around three full hours, measure out one hundred millilitres and have the person drink. It was uncertain how long it would take for the potion to come into effect, but it was within a twenty-four hour period.

Overall, the potion making would take them five and a half hours, which wasn't bad for a potion that would be changing Harry's genetic's. Sirius had wanted to make sure that Lily would remain Harry's biological mother, even if James couldn't physically. Harry needed to be a Black, and his grandparents had been slightly shocked at Sirius' outright yes answer, Arcturus having informed Melania as soon as the decision had been made. But Sirius knew it was the best cause of action. He would still always be Harry Potter to Sirius, but in reality and to the rest of Wizarding world he would be a Black. New names were a hard part. He had wanted to keep Harry, but obviously having a son called Harry or something similar who was the same age as Harry Potter would not be good. Especially with the stories that had already come out.

It had been four hours since he had arrived at Black Manor, and whilst he, Melania and Arcturus were sat around the dining table discussing plans and how to get the ingredients without being caught out (the potion wasn't exactly legal), emergency breaking news owls from the Daily Prophet had flown in, before dropping four papers down onto teh table and flying straight off again through a ceiling window. The headline had made Sirius' heart stop.

'Harry Potter - The Boy Who Lived!'

Harry James Potter, son of Lord James and Lady Lily Potter, it has been announced by Albus Dumbledore on this night of the 31st of October, 1981, defeated You-Know-Who. The Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow had been found in ruins by the Headmaster of Hogwarts and his gamekeeper, Rubeus Hagrid, and on inspection, they found the deceased bodies of James and Lily Potter. Lord Potter is expected to have tried to fend off You-Know-Who and died in process, and whilst his wife and Lady of House Potter, Lily Potter, nee Evans, tried to protect her son, she too perished at the end of the monster's wand-

Sirius stopped reading and pulled the second paper closer to him.

'The Boy Who Lived - KIDNAPPED'

As finding out only ours ago that our world had been saved by a one-year-old Heir to an Ancient House, the Daily Prophet is unfortunately reporting that Harry Potter was kidnapped from his crib only moments after the death of You-Know-Who. The man or woman who has not yet been identified was seen only momentarily by Gamekeeper of Hogwarts, Rubeus Hagrid. The person was described as being around six-foot three, dark hair and was wearing dark clothes. Unfortunately Mr. Hagrid was not able to get a clearer view of this vicious and clearly deranged monster.

Arcturus snorted and Sirius' eyes flew to him. The older man had thrown the paper that Sirius had been reading into the middle of the table, clearly dismissing the words. "They paint you well, do they not, Sirius?"

Sirius rolled his eyes, and scanned the front page, "Oh yes, 'deranged' and 'vicious'. Thats me down to a tee."

"Yes, they certainly paint a picture don't they." His grandmother said, before asking for a house-elf and requesting sheets of parchment and an ink pot and quill. When it appeared, she immediately began to pen letters to the Potion stores in both Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade and Appleby village. The different request to the different stores would mean that if anyone looked into her orders, they would not get suspicious (as though anyone would dare to cross her and demand her order records, she was Lady Black and known widely for her prowess with a wand). The ingredients would arrive in a matter of days, no one would keep the Black family waiting more than that allotted time. In the mean time, Arcturus knew, he would need to run damage control.

And run he did.

In the days following October the 31st, whilst Melania looked after Harry as Sirius grieved properly and fully, finally allowing himself to cry in the corner of a room, Arcturus was in the news constantly. Donations to St. Mungo's, the newly established James and Lily Potter foundation helping those who suffered loss in the war, Ministry Departments. Speeches about how in this time of grief and relief, the wizarding community of Europe would need to pull together, would need each other's shoulder's to lean on. Wizengamot meetings and trials on captured Death Eaters, of course some of them were even his own family, but he made sure to keep his face stern and disapproving, even when cousins and nephews spotted him in the Black seat and begged him to help them. The Black's would need to become a neutral family, that he knew. They had been Dark in the past, and now, with most of their family firmly planted in Azkaban jail cells for the rest of their lives, they needed the support of the public. Of course, there had been a bump in the road and Sirius had needed to be escorted to a trial. Well, not a trial per-se.

Albus Dumbledore had vouched that Sirius Black had been the secret keeper to the Potter's and that he was to blame for their deaths and most likely had taken Harry. This sparked Rufus Scrimgeour and Madam Minister Bagnold to call for his immediate arrest, which Arcturus obviously and quickly deterred into a small meeting in the Minister's office, where Sirius was taken under the influence of veritaserum and, with some subtle confunding done on Arcturus' part, within half an hour Sirius was declared innocent and was being congratulated and sucked up to by the Minister and her undersecretary, Cornelius Fudge, for becoming the rightful Heir to House Black. Scrimgeour had not been happy, suggesting quietly to the Minister that there had been foul play involved in the questioning and 'how could they be sure that Black didn't take Harry Potter' as they hadn't asked any questions about the child (Arcturus had been manipulating the conversation away from there). Peter Pettigrew, having been announced by Sirius that he was the real man they were looking for, died mysteriously in a gas pipe explosion almost as soon as the news broke that he was guilty, taking thirteen muggles and his entire body with him, except his finger.

By the time November the 13th arrived, the potion was sat, cooled on Arcturus' desk in his study with the man himself sat in his normal office chair, Melania stood by the potion, pouring the allotted amount into a cup and Sirius was sat on one of the chairs, with a bouncing and happy Harry on his lap. They had gone over the precautions and the plans a number of times and they had finally decided on a name. Once he hit fifteen, Lorcan Hadrian Black, named after Sirius' great, great, great grandfather, would take his place as Lord Potter on the Wizengamot, being the only person related nearest enough to Harry Potter's grandmother, Dorea Potter, nee Black. Once Arcturus had...passed on, Sirius would take his place as Lord Black, and Lorcan would become his Heir as well as Lord Potter. He would, well...he would always be Harry Potter to Sirius. He would always be his Godson, and James would always be his dad. But, he knew that if it were the other way around, that if he had died protecting his son and his wife, he would want James to take his son in just as Sirius was doing. He knew that. It didn't make it any easier. He wanted Harry to still have James' floppy black mop of hair, his lithe structure, his chin. He was praying that he would still have his mother's eyes. They were distinguishable from others, Sirius knew that also, but that would come at another time.

He tightened his hold on Harry as Melania handed the child the cup, keeping her hand underneath and tipping it up to his mouth. And Harry, well, he downed it in one gulp, making Arcturus snort and Melania roll her eyes gently. He would have no idea what was going on. Sirius would make sure that Harry would know that he was not his father, that James was. He would tell him the story of how he met James, Remus and Peter. How his father met Lily on the train, pulled her pigtails and how she had smacked him straight across the cheek. The eleven year old had proclaimed he was in love.

Later, when he put Harry down to sleep in his crib and ran his fingers through the outrageous curls one last time, he smiled fondly as a rush of wind from the window pushed his hair back from his forehead and a familiar scent washed over him; broom handles. James was giving his blessing. And that was all Sirius needed.

In the morning, when he had gone to wake Harry up, he had been startled by the boy's completely different appearance. He was practically Sirius' double; slick, jet-black hair that was silky soft, pale porcelain skin, the same thin nose, cheekbones, long neck. But when the child opened his eyes, Sirius could see the vibrant green of Lily and breathed in the scent that had stayed the same; Lavender and Broom handles. Mixed with a little something of leather.

And Lorcan Hadrian Black, son of Sirius Black and Lily Potter, Godson of James Potter, was born.

A/N: Now, quickly I want to explain why I put certain ingredients into the Blood Adoption Potion as a lot of research went into it and I want to share with you guys the reasons why.

Bezoar: to counteract the poison in bloodroot.

Boomslang Skin: J.K. Rowling added it to Harry Potter to represent a shedded outer body and a new inner and it is also used in the Polyjuice Potion and the Beautification Potion, changing people's appearances.

Lacewing Flies: Was chosen by J. K. Rowling to add to Harry Potter as it represents "an intertwining or binding together of two identities", as suggested by the word "lace" in the name. They had been stewed in Knotgrass Mead for three months as Knotgrass is defined by J.K. Rowling as being tied to another person and the time frame was because that is how long it takes for a woman to get into her first trimester of pregnancy, and if you think about it, you are essentially creating a new person with this potion.

Bloodroot: bloodroot is poisonous and its extracts kill animal cells however, if the poison was inactive, it aids reproduction.

Stirring anti-clockwise first for seven cycles: Anti-clockwise is to "undo" the person that is drinking the potion and I chose to have seven cycles (turns) as seven is the most magical number. Clockwise for two to balance and bring in to play the new person that they are becoming.