Mercury
Jean Granger tugged at her current boyfriend's exposed forearm. "Severus... What is this?"
The woman's behavior was a shock not only to her daughter but also to wizards accustomed to the fact that she was always calm. None of them had ever seen a single scratch appear on her impassive mask, indicating that sometimes Hermione's mother gets carried away by negative emotions.
The former Gryffindor looking at her knew that the woman was move. Apparently she didn't know what ideology was behind the Dark Mark. She was surprised that her future stepfather didn't tell her.
"I told you about my past. This is one of the remnants of the times when I decided to follow the wrong man. I thought you'd noticed it... Before... Under different circumstances."
Jean smiled at the blush appearing on her beloved's face. - "Forgive me, but with your skills it's hard to focus on anything other than the pleasure you give me. So... What is it?"
"The sign of the organization I belonged to. The sign of the organization some of us belonged to."
Hermione couldn't bear the satisfied smile on Sirius Black's face. The two courted her mother's attention after she was ready to move on after she was finally allowed to come out of her grief over Richard Granger's death. However, she had the impression that Sirius had courted her mother only to spite Severus and take her away from him like James had taken Lily from him.
To the surprise of all the wizards present in her living room, Jean Granger laughed. - "It seems to me that you will be able to help me solve a mystery from years ago. This case has plagued me for over twenty years."
"A mistery?" - Lucius Malfoy was intrigued and surprised at the same time. - "What are you talking about, my dear?"
"My dear? I can be my dear for Severus and not for you." - she growled - "When I was in college, I found a battered man in the woods with my friends. He didn't have any documents with him and he was dressed in something what resembled an outfit from a theater or fantasy movies. His only identifying mark was a tattoo on his right forearm. After we brought him to the hospital, it turned out that he had been subjected to prolonged torture." - She took a quick breath before continuing. - "I know he's still in coma. He only woke up once. Before falling asleep again, he said his name was Regulus. I will never forget the color of his eyes. Their color resembled liquid mercury."
Jean Granger was unaware of the storm she had caused. Severus Snape missed his friend. Narcissa Malfoy missed her cousin. And Sirius Black… He couldn't forgive himself for the way he had cut off contact with his brother. It wasn't until years later that he realized that his escape had pushed his brother towards fulfilling his family responsibilities. Despite his disappearance, they knew that Regulus was alive. The date of his death has still not appeared on the Tapestry. However, no one could find him.
Lucius Malfoy, Hermione's father-in-law, was the first to regain his voice. - "Are you telling me that the missing Lord Black is currently in a coma in a Muggle hospital?"
"If we're talking about the same man, yes. I still wonder what that light that turned green when he touched my belly meant... I was so afraid that this event would hurt Hermione. I was pregnant at the time, you know?"
xxx
But the story didn't start at that point. The story began the day Regulus Arcturus Black thought he didn't want his family magic to die. Women couldn't pass their magic on to their offspring, for pureblood customs bound her during the marriage ceremony. So he couldn't count on his cousins. Unfortunately, he couldn't count on his brother to father a child either. Not with his obvious weakness for Remus Lupin.
The child growing in the womb of the woman who had saved him was worth joining them with their family magic. He felt that the girl's magical core could hold the extra weight. The weight of magic and the weight of his family name after his death.
He reached out his hand towards the woman and brushed her belly with his fingertips. He mumbled a spell that his mother said could only be done as a last resort. After completing the task with a smile on his face, he blacked out again, knowing that the Magic of the Black Family didn't end with him.
xxx
This is probably the last bunny that I had to release to be able to focus on older works;). It's hard to write one story when the imagination runs to completely different areas. Regards, Katie Krum