Chapter Two
Diagon Alley
Lexi followed Dumbledore's directions and found Diagon Alley without any trouble. She looked around in amazement.
There was a shop with a broomstick on display in the window. This wasn't the kind of broomstick that Lexi had used to sweep the floors at the orphanage. This was a sleek and shiny racing broom with a gleaming mahogany handle. There was a hint of surprise in her eyes as she admired the broom. Witches really flew on brooms, just like in the children's stories she'd read.
There was an owl emporium. Lexi stopped at the window and peered in. There were owls, cats, and reptiles. Lexi had always loved animals. She liked animals better than people. People always let her down. Animals didn't.
Lexi had a kitten once, but she only had it for a week and a half. It was a black kitten with white feet. She named it Socks. It had been a birthday present from Niccole on her seventh birthday. Socks was a friendly and playful kitten that followed Lexi and Niccole around their apartment. And then, one night when Lexi was asleep and Socks was annoying Niccole and Niccole's boyfriend, the boyfriend had let Socks outside in the middle of the night. Lexi woke up and Socks wasn't there. She spent the entire day looking for Socks, but he was nowhere to be found. That night she cried over the kitten and yelled at Niccole. My cat is gone! You always ruin everything! Niccole yelled right back at her. Niccole hadn't been sorry. Not then. Not when she was high. She was always sorry after, but she never changed. Looking through the window of the owl emporium, Lexi wanted another cat. If she had any money left after she bought her wand and books, she would come back here and get one. This time she wouldn't let Niccole anywhere near her cat.
There were also shops that looked surprisingly ordinary. The bookshop looked just like any other bookshop in London, although the books it had couldn't be found anywhere else. The robes shop looked like your average dress shop.
Lexi's first stop was the wand shop. If she could do magic without a wand, she wanted to see what she could do with a wand.
There was only one other person in the small shop – a tall, slim woman with blonde hair and blue eyes. The woman looked up from the shelves of wands when the tinkling bell rang. Her expression was cold and disinterested, but changed into one of shock as soon as she saw Lexi.
Narcissa Malfoy couldn't stop staring at the young girl standing in the doorway. She felt as though she'd seen a ghost. In a way, she had. The girl was an exact carbon copy of Bellatrix and Andromeda when they were children. She had to be a Black, but how? Narcissa would know if Bellatrix had a daughter. And this girl was too young to be Andromeda's daughter. She supposed Sirius could have fathered a child before he was sent to Azkaban.
Lexi was starting to feel uncomfortable under the blonde-haired woman's gaze and was very glad when an old man appeared from the back of the shop.
"Good afternoon," Mr. Ollivander said in a soft voice.
"Hello," Lexi said. She took a step forward and made eye contact. She wasn't exactly shy. "My name is Lexi. I need a wand."
"Are you here alone?" Mr. Ollivander asked, glancing at Narcissa.
"Yes," Lexi said simply.
Mr. Ollivander walked over to her and looked at her closely. "But you are a Black." It wasn't a question.
Narcissa looked from Mr. Ollivander to Lexi with wide eyes. It wasn't just her. He saw it, too.
"How does everyone do that?" Lexi said loudly. "My mother couldn't tell me a single thing about my father, and now everyone knows who he is! You're the second person today who has told me that my father's name was Black."
"Was?" Narcissa repeated softly, speaking for the first time since Lexi had entered the shop.
Was. Past tense. That could only mean Regulus had fathered her before he died. Sirius was still very much alive.
"Yes, was," Lexi said shortly.
"You must be Regulus' daughter," Narcissa breathed. "But who is your mother?"
"You wouldn't know her," Lexi said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Niccole's not a witch. Well, not unless you change the w to a b."
Not a witch? Regulus wouldn't touch a Muggle – unless the Muggle had been a victim of Death Eaters. Yes, that must be it.
"That's no way to speak about your mother," Mr. Ollivander said in a stern tone.
"You wouldn't say that if you'd met her," Lexi said. "So, do I have to have a paternity test before I can buy a wand, or can I just buy a wand?"
"Ah, yes." Mr. Ollivander pulled a long tape measure out of his pocket. "Now, which is your wand arm?"
"Erm…well, I'm right-handed," Lexi said.
"Hold out your arm," Mr. Ollivander said.
Lexi did, and the tape measure measured her from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit, and around her head while the man took boxes down from the shelves.
"Right, then, Ms. Black, try this one. Elm and unicorn hair. Nine inches. Take it and give it a wave," Mr. Ollivander said.
Lexi took the wand and waved it around, but nothing happened.
"No, you don't favor the same wood and core as your father, eh?" Mr. Ollivander said, taking the wand from her.
"Did my father get his wand here?" Lexi asked.
"All of the Blacks bought their first wands here," Mr. Ollivander answered, exchanging a glance with Narcissa, who was still watching Lexi.
Lexi tried a few more wands, all made from the same wood and core as a relative she'd never heard of, and nothing had happened. Absolutely nothing. She was starting to get frustrated. She'd never been the most patient person.
"What exactly are you waiting for?" Lexi snapped.
Narcissa gave Lexi a disapproving look that the child ignored.
"The wand chooses the witch," Mr. Ollivander said, opening another box for Lexi. "Walnut and dragon heartstring. Eleven inches."
Lexi took the wand from the box and felt a sudden warmth in her fingers. She raised the wand and brought it down. Dark green sparks shot from the end like a firework. She watched the sparks dance around the shop, transfixed.
"Very good," Mr. Ollivander said softly.
Lexi sighed in relief. She wanted to get her wand and get out of there, and as far away from the blonde-haired woman and Mr. Ollivander as she could. She felt like she'd been under a microscope since she set foot in the store.
"How much do I owe you?" Lexi asked.
Mr. Ollivander stepped behind the counter. "Seven galleons."
"Erm…galleons?" Lexi opened the leather money-pouch that Dumbledore had given her and dumped the coins out on the counter. She stared at the coins blankly.
"Galleons are gold," Narcissa told Lexi, walking over to watch Lexi count out the coins. She realized at once that Lexi didn't have enough for everything she would need and frowned.
"Thanks," Lexi said, glancing back over her shoulder at the blonde-haired woman.
Lexi turned around to leave. Narcissa hesitated. If the girl was a Black, she was family.
Narcissa hurried after Lexi and caught up with her on the street outside the shop. "Wait!"
Lexi didn't know who the blonde-haired woman was, but she had been staring at her in the store and was following her now. She didn't know what the hell the woman wanted.
Lexi sighed heavily and turned around to face the blonde-haired woman. "What do you want, lady?"
Narcissa raised her eyebrows. She was surprised that the child dared to speak to her like that. It was rude and disrespectful. It was clear that this Muggle mother hadn't taught Lexi manners.
"I want to talk to you," Narcissa said.
"My mother told me not to talk to strangers," Lexi said a little sarcastically with a bit of a smirk.
"My name is Narcissa Malfoy. My maiden name is Black," Narcissa said.
"So that makes you Aunt Narcissa?" Lexi said, looking at Narcissa with raised eyebrows. There was still a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
"I suppose you may call me Aunt Narcissa, or Aunt Cissy. It is better than lady." Narcissa gave Lexi a long, hard look. "But I am not your aunt. I am your second cousin. Your father was my cousin."
"Oh," Lexi said. There was a disappointed look on her face that only lasted a second. When her mother was arrested, there was no family to take her in. It would've been nice to have an aunt and uncle or grandparents. A second cousin wasn't a close relative. She would probably never even see Narcissa again. "Have I got any aunts and uncles? Grandparents?"
"Your grandparents are dead," Narcissa said.
Narcissa didn't think Sirius was worth mentioning. He had been disowned. He was no cousin of hers. And, even if she had still considered him family, he was in Azkaban.
"Oh," Lexi said, looking down at the street.
"But I can tell you about your father," Narcissa said. "You must have questions."
"Do I look like him?" Lexi asked softly.
Lexi didn't look like her mother. Her mother had copper hair, green eyes and porcelain skin. The only thing she got from her mother was her size. Her mother was skinny, though that might have been from cocaine, not genes. Lexi had always been tiny.
"You look like our side of the family. Your have your father's coloring - dark hair, dark eyes," Narcissa said. "But you look more like my sisters than anyone else."
"What was he like? My father?" Lexi asked.
Narcissa didn't want to stand out on the street talking. She looked around and saw Fortescue's just down the street. "Let's go get ice cream, and I'll tell you about him."
Narcissa ordered a cup of vanilla ice cream with berries in it for herself, and Lexi ordered a vanilla and chocolate swirl ice cream cone. Lexi tried to pay for hers, but Narcissa insisted on paying.
"Thanks," Lexi said as they sat down opposite each other at a table.
"You're welcome," Narcissa said, watching as Lexi put the leather money-pouch away. "You don't have enough money for your school things. You'll need to go back to Gringotts."
Lexi stared at Narcissa. "Back to what, now?"
"The bank," Narcissa said impatiently.
Lexi flushed. "I haven't got any money. This is all Dumbledore gave me. He said I might have to buy some things secondhand."
Narcissa looked horrified. "You are a Black. You are not going to buy anything secondhand."
"Okay, look, I'll go to the bank, but I'll bet you my father didn't leave me anything." Lexi shrugged. "He probably didn't even know he had a daughter."
"I will take you to Gringotts and make sure you can get into the Black vault," Narcissa said.
"You're welcome to do that, but you're going to be disappointed when they tell me that my father didn't leave me a thing," Lexi said. She paused. "What happened to him anyway?"
"He died during the war. He was very young. You would have been a baby," Narcissa said gently.
"Oh," Lexi said, keeping her eyes on the table.
And here she'd been wondering what her life would've been like if her father had been in her life. Now she knew that she still would've been an orphan.
"He died fighting for a noble cause," Narcissa said.
"What was he like?" Lexi asked. Her attention was completely focused on Narcissa.
"He went to Hogwarts. He was in Slytherin-"
"What's Slytherin?" Lexi interrupted her.
"There are four school houses – Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor," Narcissa said. "You'll want to be in Slytherin. All of our family has been in Slytherin."
"Slytherin. Got it," Lexi said.
"My son, Draco, is starting Hogwarts this year, too," Narcissa said. "He's getting his robes. You can meet him today."
"I didn't know you were here with your son," Lexi said, an apologetic note in her voice.
Narcissa waved her hand dismissively. "My husband is here. He can stay with Draco, and I will help you get your things."
"I don't need help," Lexi said.
Lexi didn't want Narcissa to help her because she felt like she had to. She didn't. And Lexi didn't believe Narcissa wanted to help her. Why would Narcissa want to be with her when she could be with her own son?
"Draco wanted to do his shopping alone, too." Narcissa smiled. It was a highly amused smile. But there was no malice in it. There was a warmth to her smile.
"Well, I'm used to doing things for myself," Lexi said testily.
Lexi didn't appreciate being compared with Narcissa's son. She doubted if Narcissa's son had ever had to do anything for himself, and Lexi always had to do everything for herself.
Narcissa just smiled.
Narcissa threw her empty cup away as they left Fortescue's, and then led the way to Gringotts. Lexi stopped to stare at the goblin standing guard outside Gringotts.
Narcissa leaned closer to Lexi and put a hand on the young girl's shoulder. "Don't stare," Narcissa whispered.
In the bank, there were more goblins. Narcissa and Lexi stood in line and approached the counter.
"Madam Malfoy, how may I help you today?" The goblin behind the counter asked.
"My cousin here needs to enter the Black vault," Narcissa said.
"Do you have the key, Madam?" The goblin asked.
"I don't have it with me," Narcissa said unapologetically.
The goblin eyed Lexi warily. "And your cousin is a Black?"
"Of course," Narcissa said impatiently. "Lexi, give me your Hogwarts letter," Narcissa said to Lexi. She held her hand out for the letter, and Lexi placed it in her hand. She glanced at the name on the letter and handed it to the goblin. "You see, Alexia Black. The letter will have to do for identification. She is just a girl."
"Very well," the goblin said. Normally they wouldn't let anyone access a vault without the key, but Narcissa Malfoy was a very old customer and a very good customer. "If you will follow me, I will take you to the Black vault."
They followed the goblin toward one of the doors. He held the door open for them, and allowed Narcissa and Lexi to step into the narrow stone passageway first. They climbed into a small cart, and it hurtled deep within Gringotts. The older and wealthier the family, the deeper the vault. Finally, they stopped and the goblin unlocked the door to the Black vault. It was filled with coins, silver, jewelry, and potions in crystal flasks. As Narcissa put some money in a bag, Lexi looked around.
"Don't touch anything," Narcissa said.
Lexi ignored Narcissa and looked around. She found a necklace she liked and picked it up. It was a gold necklace with a diamond star pendant. It was probably worth more than everything Lexi owned combined.
"I figure he owes me. I'll consider this eleven years worth of birthday gifts," Lexi said, holding the necklace up.
"I said, don't touch anything," Narcissa said sharply. "Put it back where you found it, and do not put it on."
It wasn't that she didn't want Lexi to have the necklace. Narcissa just didn't know if the necklace was cursed or touched by dark magic. Knowing her family, it was a definite possibility.
Lexi put the necklace down and glared at Narcissa. She really looked like Bellatrix when she did that.
"My sister invented that look. I think I am the only person that she cannot bully into doing what she wants. It will not work on me," Narcissa said. "Now, come here."
Lexi hesitated for a moment, and then walked over to Narcissa slowly. After all, Narcissa was the one with the money.
"You need to know about our money. This is a sickle. There are seventeen sickles to a galleon." Narcissa said, putting a generous amount of the silver coins in the bag. She had already put galleons in the bag.
"This is a knut. There are twenty-nine knuts to a sickle," Narcissa said, adding some bronze coins to the bag.
When they were outside the bank, Lexi looked at Narcissa.
"Were those goblins?" Lexi asked.
"Yes," Narcissa answered, her lip curling. "Filthy creatures."
"And not very bright, are they?" Lexi said. "I mean, they let us in the vault without a key. Anyone could walk in there and rob them blind!"
"They don't let just anyone into the Black vault. They know me," Narcissa said smugly.
"Oh," Lexi frowned. "Can I get in by myself?"
Narcissa narrowed her eyes at Lexi. "You have more than enough for everything you need this year."
Narcissa had given Lexi enough to buy her school supplies, books, and clothes. Lexi should have money left over for pocket money for the year. She didn't want the eleven year old to clean out the Black vault. Not because she wanted the money. She didn't. She had more than enough for anything she could ever want in the Malfoy vault. But she knew Lexi would have to make the money last for awhile.
"Okay," Lexi sighed.
Having all the gold in the Black vault was too good to be true. The amount in her bag was more than Lexi expected anyway.
Naricssa seemed to know what was on the supply list without looking at it and knew where everything was. They were in and out of the Apothecary and bookstore in no time at all. They spent a long time in Madam Malkin's. Lexi left with five black Hogwarts robes and dress robes that were pale pink. Madam Malkin had tried to tell Narcissa that Lexi wouldn't need dress robes until her fourth year, but Narcissa ignored her. Narcissa loved shopping, and it was more fun to shop for a little girl than Draco. Draco complained non-stop every time she took him shopping for clothes.
"Right. Now, we just need your animal. We will get your trunk last, so you don't have to carry it around," Narcissa said as they stepped out onto the street.
They went into Eeylops Owl Emporium, and Lexi made a beeline for the cats. Narcissa strode after her.
"Don't you want an owl?" Narcissa said. "Everyone else will have one."
"No. I want a cat," Lexi said.
"Are you sure?" Narcissa asked.
If Narcissa had told her she couldn't have a cat, Lexi would have left with a cat. But, instead, Narcissa let Lexi decide. Narcissa told her why she would want an owl if it were her and pointed out the long line of eleven year olds that had owls.
"Don't you at least want to look at owls?" Narcissa asked.
Lexi followed Narcissa over to the owl cages. Narcissa was telling Lexi that Draco wanted an Eagle Owl, but Lexi wasn't listening. Lexi was staring at an odd-looking owl. Most of the owls had jewel-colored eyes, but this owl had dark eyes. She had white and grey stripes, horizontal on her chest and vertical on her belly. She was beautiful. Narcissa walked over to stand behind Lexi and see what the girl was looking at.
"She's a Hoot Owl," Narcissa said. "Do you want her?"
Narcissa looked down at Lexi and smiled. It was written all over the child's face that she wanted the owl.
So Lexi left Eeylops Owl Emporium with a beautiful Hoot Owl that she didn't quite know what to do with. She tried to imagine Mrs. Hannigan's reaction when she turned up with an owl and laughed. Narcissa spared a glance at her, but didn't ask what she was laughing about. Lexi was reminding her more and more of Bellatrix. Bellatrix was always laughing, too. Narcissa was used to it.
When all of Lexi's things were packed in her new trunk, they met up with Narcissa's husband and son in the Leaky Cauldron. Lexi didn't know how Narcissa knew where the other Malfoys would be. Narcissa's husband had long blonde hair, gray eyes and a pale pointed face. Their son looked like just like him. Both of them looked at Lexi curiously.
"Lucius, Draco, this is Lexi Black, Regulus' daughter," Narcissa said.
"I didn't know Regulus had a daughter," Draco said, giving Lexi a cold, appraising look.
"No one did," Narcissa said.
"Who is your mother, girl?" Lucius asked in a cold voice.
Lexi opened her mouth to answer, but, before she could say anything, Narcissa spoke.
"Her mother is a Muggle," Narcissa said in a hushed voice that no one sitting nearby could overhear.
Lexi got the feeling that Narcissa didn't want anyone to know about Niccole.
Lucius cringed slightly, and Narcissa gave him a warning look.
"Erm…sorry, but what's a Muggle?" Lexi said, frowning.
"What's a Muggle?" Draco repeated. He stared at Lexi in disbelief. He couldn't believe that anyone wouldn't know what a Muggle was.
"Anyone who cannot do magic," Narcissa told Lexi in the same hushed voice.
"Oh. Right," Lexi said, feeling stupid.
There was a moment of awkward silence.
"You must be starting Hogwarts, too," Lucius said in a halfhearted attempt to be polite.
"Yes, sir," Lexi said.
Lexi didn't know where the sir had come from. She had never called anyone sir before in her life. But she felt a strange need to impress Lucius.
"And what house do you want to be in?" Lucius asked.
"Erm…Slytherin," Lexi said, looking at Narcissa for support. "Narcissa said all the Blacks have been in Slytherin."
Lucius nodded once in approval. "Well, if you are in Slytherin, you will surely be seeing more of Draco," he said in a drawling voice.
Lexi took the hint that Lucius was done talking to her and said her goodbyes. "Well, it was nice to meet you. I should go now."
"I suppose I'll see you at Hogwarts," Draco said.
Lexi picked up the cage holding her owl in one hand and pulled her trunk behind her with her other hand. She had only taken a few steps when Lucius' cold voice stopped her. "Wait, girl!"
Lexi turned around to face him.
"Won't your Muggles find it strange that you have an owl as a pet?" Lucius said quietly, his cold gray eyes focused on the cage in her hand.
"They're not my Muggles," Lexi said. "I like them about as much as you seem to."
Lexi didn't really like anyone from her previous life. None of the orphans actually liked Mrs. Hannigan. She made it crystal clear that she didn't care about them. And Niccole had been a failure as a mother. Half the time she didn't even remember that she had a daughter. Lexi, in turn, tried to forget that Niccole was her mother. Niccole had done less for her in the past eleven years than Narcissa had done for her that afternoon. And that was just sad.
"But to answer your question, yes, they will think it's strange. I don't really care what they think, though," Lexi said with a small shrug.
Lexi turned around and walked out of the Leaky Cauldron without a single look back. If she had looked back, she would have seen Lucius' gray eyes glittering with amusement.
Lucius Malfoy disliked Muggle-borns. Everyone who knew him knew that about him. Muggle-borns hadn't been brought up to know their ways. They didn't know how to act. They didn't know anything about their history. They didn't know the first thing about magic. The professors had to dumb the lessons down for them. The children who came from wizarding families were bored. Draco had been flying since he could walk, and yet the first Flying lesson would be about how to grip the broom because the Muggleborns had never even laid eyes a broom before. That was just one example. There were plenty of other examples. And that was the main reason why Lucius firmly believed that Hogwarts should not let Muggle-borns in.
Lucius hadn't decided how he felt about Lexi yet. She wasn't a Muggle-born. She was a half-blood. She had Black blood, and the Blacks were one of the oldest pureblood families in the wizarding world. But she was still raised by Muggles. And yet she disliked Muggles. So, that night after Draco had gone to bed, Lucius asked Narcissa about the girl.
"I had no idea that Regulus deigned to be with a Muggle," Lucius sneered.
"I don't think he would have. He believed in purification. He supported the Dark Lord, as you very well know," Narcissa said. "Her mother must have been a prisoner," Narcissa added quietly.
Death Eaters, especially the younger men, had been known to torture and rape Muggle women, but they didn't usually let their victims live.
Lucius tilted his head, considering. "Perhaps. Are you sure she is Regulus' daughter?"
"She is a Black," Narcissa said. "I knew it at once when I saw her. And her Hogwarts letter was addressed to Alexia Black."
"I wasn't implying that she is not a Black. However, her personality is more like Bellatrix than Regulus," Lucius said silkily.
"She is just like Bellatrix, isn't she?" Narcissa smiled faintly.
"Yes," Lucius said slowly. "I shall be interested to see if she is in Slytherin."
"I think she will be," Narcissa said calmly, taking a sip of her elf-made wine.
"Andromeda's brat was in Hufflepuff," Lucius sneered.
"I'm willing to bet that Lexi will not be in Hufflepuff," Narcissa smirked. "Snape is a half-blood, and he was in Slytherin, wasn't he?"
"He was," Lucius said. "But he was brought up to know our ways. Lexi was raised by Muggles."
"And yet she doesn't care for Muggles," Narcissa pointed out.
"Yes, why is that?" Lucius asked curiously.
"I don't know," Narcissa murmured.
Lexi had made her opinion of her mother crystal clear, but she hadn't said what her mother had done that was so terrible.
"Well, I suppose we will see her mother at King's Cross," Lucius said.