Review Replies:
Geekymom: yeah, Luna's a brilliant character. It will be a little while until we see her but she will be in the story ;), and thank you.
TheGirlWhoSawImangination: So it does , and yes, you never know what those pesky reporters might be up to. I will not be revealing his house (not going to lie I'm not fully set on one myself but I have a rough idea) but I love to see everyone's opinons on where they think that they should go. Yes, Lucius has the diary but that will not come into play for a little while yet; you'll have to wait and see until second year for weather or not Ginny will have it and I'm glad you've mentioned Theodore as you'll be seeing him very soon.
Ariel Night: Thank you , I thought it was far too unrealistic for a five year old to be able to cope with the mental strain of not only having another person's 60 odd years of memories – not to mention that said man is Voldemort! – and simply be fine. He's got to be able to sort the memories and control when he sees them and what he sees else it will scar him for life. I wouldn't be too sure about the twins if I were you ;) and you'll see about Walburga within these chapters.
Child of Dreams: too right! What is the Harry Potter world without our favourite ginger duo?
LottaVH: you'll be seeing Tracey in this book :), still unsure as to what sort of a role Hermione will take but she'll be in too!
Nadasnape: don't worry, Sirius is my bae, he won't be dying yet XD, or perhaps at all… maybe, we'll see what goes best with the plot!
Krabi: Sirius will not be freed yet but soon we will start working towards it, though he won't be set free immediately, after all, he is a convicted murderer. And Dumbles will be around for a while longer ;)
AshleyKagome15: oohhh some good choices there! I hope you enjoy this chapter too!
Can Hardly Wait: thank you so much it really, really means a lot to me! And yes, you have mentioned that you're hooked but I'm so happy about that fact! I actually preferred Bellatrix in the book 'The Order of the Phoenix' as it made me think of her in a different light, that perhaps she isn't just in control but being controlled with the slight remorse she shows towards Sirius' death; and I 100% agree with you! I love both Harry and Sirius in the books and films but, if you had to choose, book Sirius or film Sirius? ;)
Crankypants16: Thanks! :)
Mizzrazz72: yes he does! And don't worry, you'll be seeing more chapters with Remus in to come!
WhiteEagle1985: thank you! I can't wait for you to read more either :)
ChimericSoul: you'll find out ;) and you'll be seeing more and more of Sirius; but I'm afraid you'll have to wait for dear Bella, there will be tensions though after what she did to Ceres!
Cerezo11: new update is here!
ZodiacsKlaroline: thank you! And btw I ship Klaroline too :)
I.C.2014: :)
Delia cerrano: aww thank you so much that means a lot to me; and yes I absolutely love the older generation and we'll be going a lot more in depth with them too! I decided to keep to the Roman style of Malfoy names that's why there are names such as Ceres and Meissa ;) I know, poor Meissa! Meissa and James will be talking soon!
Guest: there is absolutely no James Bashing within this story. Yes, he married Meissa whilst engaged to Lily but he didn't have a clue what he was doing and, as you'll find out, he told Lily about hooking up with a random woman (who he didn't know he's married) and the solution you've put up is not possible, I'm afraid, as that would made the twins far older than Corvus.
PLEASE READ:
HI GUYS so this chapter is largely character building, introducing you to why Walburga is the way she is, some Corvus and Aurora bonding and most of all, you get to see Sirius!
This chapter is also me getting back into character with them all and readying you for the massive twists and turns that you've all got to come!
Next chapter we'll have more Dumbles plotting, Walburga perhaps growing in character, more occlumency as well as more Sirius… and maybe some James! Enjoy :)
The Black Heir
Chapter 7: memories of freedom
February 19th 1986
"Discipline your mind!" Walburga barked out at her only grandson as she walked around him like a hawk stalking a mouse.
Since finding out it was Lord Voldemort's memories that would fill his head, Abraxas Malfoy had drilled in the factor that he would not settle until his grandson – the only child of his darling daughter and, though he would not admit it, his favourite child – had occlumency nailed down to a 'T'.
And to the annoyance of everyone eager to know about what the Dark Lord had done, all of his secrets: Corvus was terrible at occlumency.
Legilimency, which Walburga had decided to teach him to accompany his learning of occlumency as the two went hand in hand, Corvus was easily and steadily improving at but occlumency? No chance.
Sebastian Potter seemed to be the polar opposite of Corvus; happily gloating about his occlumency skills before Corvus raised an elegant eyebrow and muttered 'legilimency' while Sofia could boast prowess at them both, smirking before running off to burn down another bookshelf of Aunt Cassie's when she took away her cookie.
Needless to say Corvus felt most disheartened but none the less put all the effort he could into sealing off the memories of years of emotional and physical abuse from his tyrant of a grandmother; his only success had been protecting them, but everything else was open game for Walburga, and it was only a matter of time before she could smash through his weak shields that the old bat had yet to discover.
"Discipline, Corvus! You're as hopeless as Sirius!" Corvus scowled at the maliciousness within her tone as she talked of his father but none the less concentrated, squeezing his eyes as she pillaged her way through his mind easily.
"Discipline! Discipline! Useless boy!"
"Enough!" Corvus yelled out, the famous Black and Malfoy temper erupting from him like a volcano; the sheer hot headedness that had once possessed both Ceres Dione Malfoy and Sirius Orion Black coming out all at once as he forced his way into his grandmother's mind.
"Daddy, what if I'm not in Slytherin?" A little girl – a rather beautiful child at the age of four queried of her father as she stood in his office, a beautiful porcelain doll clutched within her right hand, raven curls falling down her back.
The cold looking man barely looked at her, no love to be shown within his dark eyes, "then we'll disown you. And it's father, Walburga."
Grey eyes of storms that were the same that Corvus and Sirius possessed welled with tears, "but Anne calls her father Daddy, they also say 'I love you' a lot. I love you, Daddy, do you love me?"
"Blacks do not love, Walburga, we close our hearts and never let anyone in. Our children are just the carriers of the next generation, nothing more; we marry for obligation. We never love, it is a weakness and you will learn to close your heart. I do not love you, nor will I ever. No give me that wretched doll, I will not have my daughter being soft," he tore the doll from the young girl's grip and tears poured down her cheeks as she tried to reach for it. Her dolly was her family; her mummy and daddy may not love her, nor may they ever, but her dolly was always there for her; Maggie was always there for her.
But for her efforts she was backhanded, slamming into the table she screamed out in pain as the older man towered over her, "you will not love, and, Walburga, nobody will ever love you."
-TBH-TBH-TBH-
A beautiful woman stared down at the child within her arms, but her eyes did not shine with love; her eyes held the same coldness they always did. When she had felt that swell of love growing when she had first been handed him she had crushed it like a bug, she was a Black. They did not love and nobody should love them.
But if one would look closely they could see the shimmer of a tear within her eye as the newborns fingers wrapped around her own thumb with a tight grip.
She didn't cry because she loved – no, she couldn't and would never love. But rather because she couldn't.
-TBH-TBH-TBH-
Walburga Black scowled and clamped her hands to her ears as her youngest son wailed again, she had ordered Kreature to deal with young Regulus but apparently he could not.
She did not love either of her sons, in fact, the woman barely felt any attachment to them at all; her thoughts mirrored her father's from years before, they were a means to an end. Blacks loved and were loved by no one.
She did not hear the small footsteps of her five year old son, her eldest, padding along the floor as he appeared in the doorway.
The boy's looks practically mirrored hers, only his mass of waves that sat upon his messy head rather than full on curls separated the two; Orion being the one possessing elegant, dark waves whereas she midnight, wild curls that she had heard many mutter mirrored the madness within, even her own husband.
"Mummy," the little voice spoke up, his voice scared as he voiced the inquiry that she had done so so many years ago, "what if I'm not in Slytherin?"
'Mummy', a word she had thought would never be addressed to her. Had hoped would never be addressed to her, "then I will disown you. And Sirius, it's mother, not mummy."
However, unlike Pollux Black it physically hurt Walburga to say such a thing; for in that moment she knew a piece of her would always love her son, the son who was so much like her, the son who loved her even though she demanded not to be loved, who would never understand the rules of being a Black.
"But I want to; I love you, mummy."
She vowed to harden her heart, for the slightest inch of hesitation to repel his words would mean that she was betraying being a Black.
TBH-TBH-TBH-
"How dare you, you brat!" Walburga Black roared as she marched across the room to where Corvus stood, but he didn't move. She glared down at him and raised her hand.
Only a blow never came. Instead there was a slam of a door as Walburga Black left, leaving Corvus standing alone and wondering what had happened to the little girl who loved; and what it would truly now mean for him being a Black.
-TBH-TBH-TBH-
"I do not think that she will forgive me, grandma," Corvus informed Aurora Malfoy nee Gaunt miserably as the two sat outside upon that afternoon, looking up at the witch sadly.
He may not have liked his grandmother Walburga much; they (Sebastian, Sofia and even Draco) had all called her 'old bat' and names as such but he had never had a true familt before; and like her or not she was a part of it.
And no matter what, after his experiences with the Dursley's Corvus would always treasure family.
"She feels humiliated, Corvus," Aurora informed him, smiling at him, for within this moment he reminded her much of Ceres. After Ceres and Abraxas had had an argument, her youngest daughter having always been a daddy's girl, she would come to her to talk things through. To make it right. It made Aurora feel like she had the family she had never had when she was young; and after Meissa was taken from her and Lucius growing to be so cold and controlling she became almost dependent upon those conversations with the young Ceres Dione, "Walburga never showed emotion, especially not within her school years; if you saw something private, personal, something with emotion then she will feel humiliated. The Blacks are taught to never, ever love, Corvus; and your father and great-grandfather Arcturus were very rare exceptions."
"But why, mummy says love makes you stronger," Corvus stated, remembering the conversation with his mother's portrait, the conversations he had been having almost daily. After so long of being alone he could not bring himself to not call her 'mummy', for he was gripping to whatever childhood he had missed.
Aurora looked upon him with shining eyes, "it makes you as strong as it makes you weak, Corvus. She doesn't know the extent of what you've been through, Corvus. Hell, you haven't told anybody the true extent of what you've been through but from what you're Aunt Cassie has said, you lived a lot like her. Abused, unloved. Relate to her Corvus, if you are ready then show her what you've been through. It's about time that someone thawed her frozen heart."
TBH-TBH-TBH-
February 23rd 1986
Wind whirled around the tower as haunted scrams echoed through the barred building; the sounds of demontor's whooshing and the sadistic laughter of the prisipn guards invoking fear and infuriation into the prisoner's hearts.
In the corner of a cell lay a man, no name was given to identify him but the number 390 followed by the writing of symbols that translated to 'more or less human'. But despite no name upon him any passer-by would know who he was; for he was the notorious mass murderer: Sirius Black.
And he could barely be described as a man anymore. Every rib could be easily counted as they made themselves known from within his malnourished body, his once beautiful, wavy dark locks stuck to his head with grease and sweat whilst his face was decorated with black and purple from the abuse of bored guards, eyes of storms filled with a look of haunting and madness as every now and again, a laugh bubbled from his throat, shaking his malnourished body.
However every now and again four words could be heard falling from his lips: 'James', 'Lily', 'Harry' and, most of all, 'Ceres'. The later word said with fondness and hurt, love and hate, redemption and betrayal.
As a guard walked past his cell they grinned at him, throwing down the paper, "you don't look so good, Black. And neither does your Death Eater bitch or your son when we get our hands on the dark brat."
Paper was thrown into the cell as Sirius' chanting stopped. Ceres was alive, she was alive, he reassured himself, she had just ran away from him. Probably off somewhere with a better man than him, one that could offer her a better life. Off with children of her own and happy.
And he had no son.
Through the last lights of twilight Sirius Black was thrown a paper, his eyes scanned the page on which the guard had thrown it upon, the mystery of Mister Corvus Polaris Black upon pages fourteen to fifteen.
THE MYSTERY OF MISTER CORVUS POLARIS BLACK
Corvus Polaris Black is the son of Ceres Dione Black nee Malfoy and notorious mass murderer Sirius Orion Black.
Our insider reports that Ceres Dione Malfoy, who eloped to the then Heir Sirius Orion Black – who is no longer an Heir due to imprisonment - in late 1979, fled to France after being pursued by the Dark Lord in 1980; leaving behind her husband with the knowledge that she was pregnant.
She lived in St. Raphael in France, giving birth to Corvus Polaris Black on the 31st July 1980 during a visit to Southampton, England; before returning to Southern France soon after.
Death Eaters had seemingly tracked her down and Ceres Black nee Malfoy was murdered by an onslaught of twenty Death Eaters; she managed to kill twelve before she was tortured to the brink of death by Lady Bellatrix LeStrange nee Black and then killed by being bled out to her death, an unknown spell causing such a death.
It is unknown as to where Mister Corvus Polaris Black went next but we do know that he was found by Madam Cassiopeia Amalthea Black on Christmas Eve 1985 and is now being raised by both families Malfoy and Black.
For a moment the prisoner sat, simply sat as the sun finally fell beneath the skyline and the moon began to rise before laughter madly bubbled out of his mouth.
He laughed, he broke because she was dead. Because he had loved her more than anything. He laughed because he would never see his son grow, never even knew of his existence. He laughed because he wasn't there to protect her, for the brutal death she had undergone.
But most of all, he laughed because he had lost everything.