Sirius Black's heart was pounding as he read the letter that had been delivered to him only moments before. The elegant, cool script seemed to mock the seriousness of the words written in it.

Come now. Belladonna has had your child. –Rosemary Lyra Whitmore

He hadn't even known that Bella was pregnant, he realized as he transported to the imposing doors of the Whitmore Manor. The young wizard ran through the doors and up the stairs, where Mrs. Rosemary Whitmore was waiting for him. "Belladonna is in there." An elegant hand laden with jewels pointed at a door. Sirius raced in to find Belladonna wailing about the loss of her figure while glaring at the newborn baby girl in her arms. He plucked the baby out of her mother's arms and, with a few soft words, soothed the child's crying. He could not help the grin that spread across his face as he thought about James and Lily's reaction to having a new goddaughter and how much he planned on spoiling the little girl whom he was already head-over-heels for.

Rosemary walked in impatiently and glared pointedly at the cooing child in Sirius's arms. "What are you going to name her?" "Rosemarie Belladonna-Lyra Whitmore-Kingston." Belladonna ran off the long name, hoping that by naming the child after her stepmother and giving her Belladonna's elderly fiancée's surname, that the baby would be raised in a nursery under the elder Rosemary's care, be claimed by Edward Kingston and leave Belladonna free to continue her numerous affairs and partying. Although both she and her daughter were both illegitimate children, Belladonna felt nothing for the recently named Rosemarie Belladonna-Lyra Whitmore-Kingston, except boredom and irritation.

The elder Rosemary gave a sniff. "It's a fancy name for a child like her but it will do. I'll take her into the nursery and get a house-elf to take care of the brat." She reached for the baby, but Sirius stepped back and cuddled his daughter more tightly to him. "No." "Sirius," whined Belladonna "The baby will be fine. And since you're here…" she let the sentence trail off suggestively. "No." he repeated more firmly "Her name will not be Rosemarie Belladonna-Lyra- whatever the hell it was. Her name will be Alexandria." He had always liked the name; it contained just enough elegance and feistiness "Alexandria Victoria Black and I will raise her." He turned to walk out the door when an angry shriek came from behind him. While Belladonna didn't want her daughter, she'd be dammed before she'd let Sirius take her. "Sirius, please!" she wailed, though her plea fell on deaf ears.

"Mr. Black." Rosemary's voice came at him coolly. "Your home is not fit to raise a child in. I suggest that you let us take care of the bastard-" Sirius turned around and pointed his wand dangerously at the woman. "Do not ever refer to my daughter by that word or so help me, I'll hex you into oblivion." "The child. Let us take care of the child until your home is properly prepared." Rosemary's tone was frigid, as Sirius lowered his wand. He gently lay the newly-christened Alexandria down in the cradle and kissed her forehead before turning to Rosemary. "Make the Unbreakable Vow." He held out his hand towards her.

Rosemary sighed and was about to argue when she realized that she would only be bound for a few months at the most. Shrugging, she held Sirius's hand in her own and nodded towards Belladonna to begin the ceremony. "Do you vow to take care of my daughter, Alexandria Victoria Black, until I am able to? Do you vow to call her by the name she has been given? And do you vow to allow no harm to come to her?" "I do."

His daughter's protection and fate sealed, Sirius gave her once last cuddle and kiss on the head and whispered "Love you, Alex." After handing her to Rosemary, he left the Whitmore Mansion. The minute the front door closed, Rosemary walked into the hallway and called "Menorah!" The young house-elf appeared and asked quietly "Yes, Mistress Rosemary?" "Take this child to the nursery and care for her. Don't decorate the nursery unnecessarily. She'll only be here for a few months at the most."

Sirius's mother (who was still in the house he would inherit) refused to let him and his illegitimate daughter live under the same roof as she, and Sirius's tiny apartment was no place to raise a baby girl. He began to look for a proper house, with a big yard to play in and a spacious nursery that was right next to his own room. He found such a house but had to get around the business of selling his apartment, which no one seemed to want. While he still visited little Alexandria, he was becoming more and more busy. Finally, the night when he was about to buy the house, Lily and James died. Sirius Black was arrested on false accusations and sent to Azkaban. And Alexandria never left the Whitmore Manor.