Chapter Text
The rest of the Gringotts trip passed in a blur for Harry. They didn’t stay much longer; Sirius opted to take the documents they needed to look over back home so they could do it there. Harry was about to protest when Remus cut in and told Harry that they’ll be back before the end of the week – their work there wasn’t finished quite yet.
Sirius had almost pushed Harry into bed upon arriving back at Grimmauld Place, and the boy couldn’t even argue – his new found magic was exhausting him.
Harry woke up hours later feeling much better. His magic was less overwhelming. It had settled while he slept, and while he could still feel it much more than he was able to previously, it felt comforting, protecting. He sat up, rubbing his eyes and found he was not in the room he had been sharing with Ron, no, this was a totally new part of the house. Stepping out into the hall, he saw a clear line where the clean, new part of the house met the dirty part that Harry had grown accustomed to the past few days. He wondered why he had never seen it before, or why it was seemingly clean when the rest of the house was impossible. He headed down the stairs, but stopped short at the voices coming from the sitting room.
“I can’t believe this, Padfoot, Albus really blocked his family magick, family magick ! It’s a wonder he’s survived all this time without it!” That was Remus.
“I’m aware, Remus. Lady Magick must have intervened on his behalf. I’ll have to thank her when I can.” Lady Magick? Harry shook his head. Who was she? Some sort of deity? The reason they have magic? If so, why wasn’t this taught at Hogwarts?
He walked into the room, and the conversation stopped. “Hey, pup!” Sirius set down the paper he was looking at, and stood up to steer him towards the couch he was sitting on. “Feel better?”
Harry sat down, hands fidgeting in his lap, “Yeah, loads. My magic’s not overwhelming me anymore.”
“That’s good, cub.” Remus smiled before standing up. “It’s the full moon tonight, I’m gonna head out. You and Sirius will likely be busy tonight, but I’ll catch back up with you in a few days.” Harry jumped to give his old Professor a hug, and Remus was off, promising he’ll be okay tonight on his own.
Sirius sighed, “I hate leaving him alone tonight, but this,” he gestured to the mass of papers on the table – Gringotts records, no doubt– “Is much more important.”
Harry felt kind of awkward now that the two were alone. He had never really spent time fully alone with Sirius, and while he loved his godfather, Harry found himself unsure of what to do. He decided to break the ice, “Hey, where was it that I woke up, and why was it clean?”
Sirius barked out a laugh, “When Albus asked to use this place for headquarters, I agreed, but warded off most of the house for family and friends only. I don’t want people wandering into places they don’t belong. As for why it was clean..” Sirius trailed off sheepishly, “We have more house elves than just Kreacher, you know, and they cleaned up that part. But I left this part of the house dirty, because I wasn’t exactly wanting everyone to feel welcome here.”
“I thought you invited the Weasleys to stay?”
“No, pup, I didn’t. Molly invited herself, and Albus wouldn’t let me refuse.” Sirius muttered, through gritted teeth.
While Sirius wasn’t exactly fond of his childhood home, he wasn’t exactly ecstatic about uninvited, non members of the family staying here, even though he knew his sour mother wasn’t happy about it. Years ago, he would’ve done it to spite her, now it just pissed him off. Sirius shook his head, “Enough of that, we have a lot to discuss. I was able to remove Albus’ proxy as your magical guardian, so that’s sorted.”
“What is a magical guardian? I’ve never even heard of it before.”
“You should have.” Sirius snapped, noticing Harry’s flinch at the harsh tone. He looked his godson in the eye, “It’s not your fault pup, it’s Dumbledore’s. If was going to take over magical guardianship, he should have at least done his job.” Sirius shook his head again, sighing. “A magical guardian is like a spiritual mentor, they help teach you about family magick, preparing you for lordship, so on and so forth. They are meant to guide you spiritually, and help you commune with Lady Magick, until you’re old enough to do so yourself. Like I said, unless you’re a muggleborn, it’s going to be a godparent, or grandparent, but a muggleborn’s magical guardian is either a professor, or they’re appointed one. It’s a valuable resource that’s been mostly kept in pureblood tradition, as most muggleborns keep their muggle faiths. Some however, don’t. Your mother, for example, was never a Christian, and was very interested in our religion and culture. Your grandmother, Euphemia, became Lily’s once she started dating your father.” Harry nodded along, mostly understanding, but there was that name again.
“Who is ‘Lady Magick?’”
Sirius closed his eyes, silent for a minute, before lightly grabbing Harry’s shoulders. “You might have heard of her as Morrigan. We refer to her as Lady Magick, because she is the one who imparted the gift of magic onto us, a long time ago. We are, what I believe muggles refer to us as, pagans.”
“Like the Celtic Gods? Brigit, Alator, Albiorix, and all those?” Harry asked.
“The very same,” his godfather nodded. “You’ve heard of them.”
“Well,” Harry blushed, “I found a book about them a long time ago when I was young, and I was very intrigued with them. Aunt Petunia made me stop reading about them, though.” He heard Sirius take a deep breath beside him.
“You are never going back to them, Harry. Too many people have kept you from the culture you should have been raised in, and that ends now. I am going to find a way to clear my name, and you will never have to go back there.”
Harry felt tears well in his eyes at the determination in his godfather’s tone, and let himself believe it. He would help however he could.
He looked down at the inheritance test, a name catching his eye.
“Who are the Peverells?”
Sirius stared at him for a long moment before sighing. “I suppose you’ve never heard of the Tale of the Three Brothers?” Harry shakes his head in confirmation. “You probably wouldn’t have, I suppose, with it being a children's story.” Sirius’ eyes glazed over for a second. “Your father used to read it to you as a baby. It is your family history after all.” Sirius’ expression turned melancholy, and Harry realized that Sirius had to mourn his best friend, his brother, just as Harry was mourning his father. Sirius soon shook his head.
“There’s different versions of the story throughout the years, and I’m not sure if any of them are fully correct. The full, correct version would probably be in the Peverell grimoire.” Another term Harry was unfamiliar with. “But, the story goes like this. Three brothers once came across a deep river, anyone who tried to swim across would die, but the brothers were trained in the magical arts, so they conjured a bridge to cross the river. Before they could cross, a hooded figure stopped them. It was death. Death congratulated them for outsmarting him and offered a reward to each of them. The oldest asked for the most powerful wand in existence. The second brother asked for something to call back his loved ones from the dead, which Death fashioned out of a stone from the riverbank. The youngest brother did not trust Death and asked for a way to hide from him. Death then took a piece of his own cloak and gave it to the brother.
“The eldest brother, mad with power, killed a man he had quarrelled with in a nearby village, bragging to everyone how he was the most powerful man to have lived. That same night, a man came and killed him in his sleep and took the wand.
“The second brother was able to recall his lost love with the stone, but it could never recall her fully. She was just a spirit. He eventually offered himself to Death by his own hand, wanting to be reunited with her truly.”
“And the third brother,” Sirius looked at Harry and smiled. “The third brother used his invisibility cloak to hide from Death, living a very long life. When he was ready, he passed on the cloak to his first son, and met Death with open arms.”
“ My invisibility cloak?”
“The very same.” Sirius confirmed. Harry sat back in his seat, speechless. “James knew, of course. He’s the one who alluded to me that the story we heard as children was changed and sanitized for children’s ears. He would read the story to you, but he planned to tell you the truth eventually.”
“You said it was in the grimoire? What is that?”
“Every family has one.” Sirius admitted. “It’s a collection of knowledge the family keeps. The history, spells someone may have created, potion recipes, the works.”
“Do the Potter’s have one?” Harry wanted to make sure before he got his hopes up.
“Absolutely they do.” Sirius smiled. Then, his gaze softened. “We’ll go get it for you. You deserve to know.”
Sirius let Harry go explore, claiming he had to finish going through those documents, and he had to write a letter to someone, although the animagus would not tell Harry who it was, assuring him it was safe to do so. Harry found himself in the library again. Harry would probably never know exactly what compulsions Dumbledore had him under, but recently Harry had a thirst for knowledge he had never seen before. Granted, he’d been like that too with the Dursley’s, just unable to act on it. If he got better grades than Dudley, there would be hell to pay after all. He had done his homework while he was still stuck at Privet Drive, unable to do much else, but he’d checked it over, and ended up fixing parts that were not done correctly. He’d never cared before. Hermione would usually help him with that. Harry wasn’t sure Remus’ theory for when the compulsion broke was correct. He wasn’t like this last year. It had to have been recently.
Taking a look at the books covering the many shelves, he eventually found one that caught his eye. Introduction to Dark Magic. He recalled the test saying he had Dark magic, and although Sirius had assured him it wasn’t anything to worry about, Harry still didn’t know what that meant. He took the book off the shelf. It was quite interesting. The book helpfully explained how Light and Dark magic originated – the Light taking its power from the sun, and the Dark the moon. People’s magic manifested in one of those two ways. That was just how it was. It didn’t say anything else about you. Practicing Dark magic wasn’t a bad thing, for anyone. According to the book, it was incredibly useful in duels, especially ones aimed to kill or incapacitate. It was easier for those with Dark magic, but anyone could harness it correctly.
Black magic was the worst kind of magic. That was stuff that would mess with your soul. The book made sure to note that anybody with family magick probably wouldn’t be able to practice Black magic, the morals of the magick itself wouldn’t allow it. That was fine with Harry, he shuddered at the thought of using it. He wondered if Voldemort had. Remembering the ritual used to bring him back, that had to be Black magic, if Harry had his guess.
He put the book off to the side, thinking he’d sneak it into his room for further reading later. He wanted to find something about the blood adoption Sirius had mentioned. He immediately felt drawn to a specific shelf in the corner of the library, and he easily found what he was looking for. Familiar Rituals & More. He quickly found the chapter on blood adoption. It seemed fairly straight forward, just like Sirius had described. The next chapter was more interesting for him. Godparent rituals. Apparently, in the Wizarding world, there was more to being someone's Godparent than just being given the title. There was a ritual involved, giving the child and Godparent a deep connection, similar to the one with their own parents. They had to swear on their family magick to protect the child as best as they can, and never cause intentional harm to the child under threat of losing their family magick at best, or all their magic at worst.
That’s it, Harry thought. His heart suddenly racing. He knew how he could prove Sirius’ innocence. Even if they couldn’t find Pettigrew to prove Sirius hadn’t killed him, he could prove Sirius hadn’t betrayed his parents! He did still have magic, and his family magick after all.
He needed to contact Amelia Bones. Sirius mentioned she knew his parents. She would hopefully help.
—
He received his reply from Amelia Bones the next morning. Sirius and Remus had looked at him quizzically, but Harry assured he would tell them later. He knew they wouldn’t go so far as to demand to look at his mail, after all.
Mr. Potter,
Thank you for your letter. I was meaning to send one myself to apologize for your trial before the Wizengamot. That was not meant to happen. You were supposed to have a private meeting with me, as the head of the DMLE, but the Minister pulled strings to have it changed at the last minute. Nevertheless, I am looking into it, as well as looking into how Dementors found their way to Surrey in the first place. I do not believe it was a coincidence. I do not share the Minister’s same beliefs over what happened this summer.
I have to admit, I am shocked that you have written to me about Sirius Black. I am not sure how you know details like this, but rest assured I will not jump to find you or him. At the evidence you presented to me, I looked into his file, and discovered he never received a trial. Such misjustice does not sit right with me, guilty or otherwise. However, with the evidence provided, I believe he might not be as guilty as once claimed to be. You alluded in your letter to having more evidence, offering to provide memories, and I can tell you I am interested in hearing about this.
I am working on getting Sirius Black the trial he should have gotten years ago. I would assume you have contact with him, so please tell him to get legal counsel as soon as possible. I would have him contact me directly, but that would be unsafe, so any correspondence will have to be through an attorney.
Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.
Stay safe,
Amelia Bones
Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement
Harry was so incredibly relieved. His godfather was going to get a trial! Not only that, but she believed him about Voldemort returning. He looked up and saw Sirius watching him read the letter, obviously wanting details. Wordlessly, he handed over the letter. Watching Sirius’s face fall more shocked as he kept reading.
“Y-you wrote her about me, pup?” Harry immediately felt embarrassed about it. Remus’ eyes immediately snapped to Harry.
“Nothing specific, I promise!” He hastened to say with their wary eyes. “You mentioned she knew you and my father, a-and I figured she could help.” Harry shrugged. By now, Remus was reading the letter.
“What evidence did you give her?” Remus wondered aloud.
Harry flushed. “Uh, well, I was doing some reading in the library.” The two men shared a look, they knew Harry had hid away the rest of the day reading. “And I found a book about the ritual you do to become someone’s Godparent.” Sirius nodded. “And, well, if you did the ritual and you betrayed my parents you wouldn’t exactly have magic right now.” Harry finished, sheepish. The thought had apparently never dawned on the dog animagus or the wolf, jaws dropped staring at Harry.
Sirius composed himself first. “You, my beloved pup, are an absolute genius.” He stared at Harry with so much love that Harry squirmed in his seat, blushing at the praise. “How did we not think of it before, Moony?”
“I don’t know,” Remus muttered, taken aback by how obvious it seemed.
“This is good, right?” Harry asked, hoping he hadn’t messed something up by going to the head of the DMLE about this. He hadn’t specifically said that he knew where he was, or even had contact with him, but she correctly assumed. She didn’t seem hard pressed to do something about it though.
Sirius beamed, clapping his shoulder softly. “This is perfect, pup. This helps a ton. She’s getting me a trial!” Sirius exclaimed, jumping up and doing a small dance. “This worked perfectly with what I had already contacted Narcissa about.”
“Narcissa?” Remus asked.
“Like Malfoy’s mum?” Harry questioned at the same time.
Sirius nodded. “She’s my cousin, pup, not sure if you knew that. She obviously knows I’m innocent, and I asked if she could help me get started clearing my name. She responded back, and she’s happy too. I knew she was loyal to the Black family, "he said, shaking his head. Then, for Harry’s sake, he amended, “After Andi went and married that Tonks boy, she was forced to marry Malfoy in her stead. Despite what a majority of our family went and did, Black’s do not bow. Certainly not to a Dark Lord. I still question why Grandfather didn’t disown the lot of them.”
“But Malfoy is a death eater, and she married him.” Harry pointed out. Lucius was at the graveyard after all. Sirius sighed and sat back down.
He took Harry’s hand in his own. “Listen, pup. Lucius didn’t have a choice from his father to join the Dark Lord’s side. He certainly didn’t want to, I can tell you that for certain. But those are the cards they were dealt. They now have a part to play. Lucius plays his cards right in order to survive, but I can guarantee the Malfoy family is nothing what you think it is.”
Harry’s eyes narrowed, “Malfoy is still a jerk to me at school. He bullies Hermione for his blood status, Sirius!” Sirius indeed flinched at that, but was unwavering.
“I know, but that is the part that Draco has to play, Harry. If it got back to others who are truly loyal to the Dark Lord that Lucius was letting his son go off and be nice to people of muggle blood, it would not bode well for them. You’ve never spoken to Draco somewhere less public, have you?”
Harry shook his head, “Why should I?” Sirius sighed, supposing that was fair.
“Tomorrow I am meeting with Narcissa, and I’m sure she will be meeting Draco. If you’d like to meet him, truly, this time, you can come with.” Harry wasn’t sure this was a good idea, but decided to trust his Godfather this once.
“We’re not meeting here?”
“Oh, no, Harry. This place is under Fidelius and I am not the secret keeper, Albus is.” Sirius gritted his teeth. This was his house, and someone else should not have control over it. “We’ll be meeting at another property owned by the Black family. A summer home in Wales. It’s unplottable to anyone but our family. Gringotts doesn’t even know about it.” Harry supposed that was alright then. He sighed.
“I’ll come with you. But if Malfoy is still a prick, I’m never listening to you again.” He warned. Sirius laughed, and ruffled his hair, much to his dismay.
“I think you’ll be surprised.”
–
The next day Harry found himself in Wales, at the admittedly beautiful summer house his godfather had mentioned the day before. House wasn’t the right word. No, this was a castle.
“Really, it’s a small palace.” Sirius admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Small?” Harry inquired. This was a castle if Harry had ever seen one. Not half as big as Hogwarts. A small castle, he relented. But still a castle. It had been built in the sixteenth century specifically for the Black family.
“If you think this is big, wait until you see the Potter ancestral home, pup.”
Harry paled. He never would have thought that the Potter family had different homes and lands throughout the country, though he did think it was quite silly of him to assume that they didn’t. He was, after all, the last member of an Ancient and Noble house. His family had been in England for centuries, of course they would have properties. For a boy whose only home had ever been his school, it was quite unnerving to think about the sheer wealth and real estate he technically owned, in name, if not yet by law. Harry was shaken out of his thoughts by Sirius’ hand on his shoulder as they approached the entrance hall.
“We’re about an hour early. It gives you enough time to look around first.” Harry nodded absently, taking in his surroundings. The entrance hall was nothing special. To the left was a small sitting room, presumably for guests once they arrived, equipped with a fully functional floo. There was a large room to the right, the double doors closed. There was more to the ground floor, but Harry’s eyes fell upon the large staircase in front of him. Before Harry could run off to explore, a house elf popped in.
“Master Siri! Yous is back?”
“Dipsy!” Sirius smiled. “I’m glad you’re still here.”
The house elf flushed. “I’s be keeping the house ready for sirs.” Sirius smiled fondly.
“This is my godson, and heir, Harry.”
Harry waved to the beaming elf. “Hello Dipsy. It’s nice to meet you.”
The elf looked surprised, but smiled brightly at him. “Dipsy’s never met a master as kind as you before. Yous be needing anything?”
“Not right now, Dipsy.” Sirius said. Dipsy’s smile fell a bit at not being able to help her masters. “Narcissa will be here in about an hour for a meeting. We will need a small lunch and perhaps some tea?”
“Mistress Cissa is coming!” The elf rejoiced before nodding excitedly. “I’s can be getting that for yous!” She popped away before anything else could be said. Sirius chuckled to himself.
“You know, I sorta missed this place.” He mumbled quietly, quickly shaking his head. “Why don’t you go explore, kiddo. I’m going to be looking over some documents I brought.” Sirius headed up the stairs supposedly to the study of the house. Harry walked past the staircase which led him out to a garden.
It was flourishing in the summer weather, and very obviously maintained by the sweet house elf he had just met. He walked through it for a bit. He thought he spotted a quidditch pitch in the back, and headed towards it, stopping short when he saw a patch of white flowers. Lilies. He knelt before them, gently caressing one with his hand. He’d realized he’d never really seen lily flowers before. Sure, he knew what they looked like, but he’d never come across them. His aunt refused to plant them in her garden, which Harry supposed he understood. They smelled sweet, and for a fleeting moment a memory came back to Harry. Nothing specific, with how young he’d been, but he realized in this moment that his mother smelled like the flower she was named after. This was what his mother smelt like. He blinked back the tears that welled.
“I miss you, mum.” He whispered. A short gust of wind fell over him, the air warm. He hoped his mum could hear him. “I want to make you proud of me.” The wind picked up again, making the flowers look as if they were nodding at him. As if to say, Don’t you know, sweet child, that we are proud of you, and always will be?
Harry sniffed and sat back on his heels. He decided to just sit here. The presence of his mother felt so strong right here, and even if it wasn’t real, Harry yearned for his mum. He wanted to sit with her in any way that he could.
“Please tell me you haven’t taken up gardening, Potter.” He froze. That was Draco. His voice wasn’t the haughty mocking tone he’d come to expect with the boy. It was… amused. He turned around to see the boy standing a few feet away from him. He shot the Slytherin a sheepish look, realizing he’d been kneeling before these flowers for a while. Draco’s eyes fell past him to the flowerbed itself, and his gaze softened. Eyes borderlining pity. “Lilies.” He said simply, nodding.
Harry wasn’t quite sure what to say. He still expected Draco to fall cold, to mock him. The mockery never came. Instead, a hand came in front of his face. He stared at Draco, untrusting for a moment. Draco just gestured to the open hand. Harry took it and stood up, dusting his jeans off. Draco bounced on his heels, and opened his mouth to say something. He wrung his hands.
“Potter,” He began, sounding every bit as uncomfortable as Harry felt. “I know we got off to a bad start. I’ve said some things that I regret-” Harry scoffed. Draco shot him a glare. “I want to apologize.” His eyes fell to the ground. “ I’ve been a right bastard to you, a-and your friends.” Draco’s eyes met Harry’s for a split moment. “I’d like to start over.” He finished simply, holding out his hand again. Harry eyed him suspiciously although he realized Draco looked genuinely nervous. The boy looked like he’d melt if Harry declined him. So, Harry shook his hand. “I’m Draco.” The blonde said, secretly elated.
“I’m Harry.”
Draco sat down on the bench beside the flower bed of lilies. Harry followed, making sure to sit a respectable distance away. “Like I said, I want – no – need to apologize to you.” Harry sat silently, waiting for the blonde to continue. Draco took a deep breath. “I know I’ve been awful to you and your friends. And I really don’t have an excuse for it. I- I was jealous.” Draco admitted sheepishly. Harry’s eyes widened.
“Jealous? Of me?”
Draco shook his head. “No, not of you. I- I was jealous that you didn’t want to be friends with me.”
“That was your own fault, Malfoy.” Harry retorted coolly.
Draco flinched. “Yes. I- I thought that you would find a friend in me. With my father being as politically savvy as he is, I figured I would be a great stepping stone for you. But you weren’t interested. You found companions in the Weasleys.” Harry noticed that Draco hadn’t said that name with the same contempt he usually did. “I thought once you turned twelve, and took up your heirship you would see the value I had, but you never did. I was angry at you for that, and I took it out on you and your friends.”
“I didn’t even know about any heirships until a week ago.” Harry admitted.
“What?” Draco asked, looking horrified at the prospect. “How could you not have known you were the heir to an Ancient and Noble house?”
Harry shrugged, “Nobody ever told me.”
Draco let out a breath. “That’s – Now, I am really sorry.”
“Huh?”
“I never even considered you had no idea. I’d assumed you were raised the same way I was, preparing for the lordship.”
“I was raised by muggles.” Harry supplied.
Draco seemed to blanch at this. “Your mother’s parents, no? That’s what I had always assumed. Surely, they would be able to tell you a bit about your place in this world?”
Harry shook his head, “My grandparents died before I was born. I stay with my aunt and uncle. They–” Harry sighed. “They’d probably confirm everything you think about muggles.”
“Were–” Draco hesitated. “Were they unkind to you?”
“Unkind is definitely a word for it.”
Draco grimaced. “Hopefully you don’t have to go back. My mother and your godfather are currently discussing how to get his name cleared.” Harry nodded. He assumed that’s what this meeting was about. “Still, nobody else told you about your inheritance? Dumbledore?”
Harry shook his head. “Nobody, until Sirius did a week ago.”
“Well,” Draco sighed. “That answers my most pressing question.”
Harry hummed. “What?”
“Why you let the proxy vote on the Traditions bill go through like that.” Draco said as if it needed no other clarification. Harry cocked his head to the side.
“ What ?”
“Your Wizengamot seat is held by proxy, I admit that I’m not sure who it is. There was recently a vote on a new bill.” Draco paused. “They want to make it illegal to celebrate the ancient holidays, and follow ancient wizarding traditions.”
“What? Why would they want to do that?” Harry grimaced. He hadn’t even known there were ancient holidays or traditions.
“At school,” Draco began, somewhat bitterly. “We celebrate the Christian holidays, but many pureblood families still celebrate the ancient holidays. The wheel of the year.” Harry nodded.
“I didn’t even know wizards had their own holidays. Although I know of the wheel of the year.”
Draco sighed. “That’s an absolute shame. Knowing so little of your heritage.” He shook his head. “It was changed by Dumbledore to make muggleborns more comfortable.”
Harry was miffed. “Why should we change our culture though? Why can’t muggleborns just learn about our holidays? At least have the choice to celebrate them.”
“I agree. We shouldn’t change our culture and tradition to placate the incomer.”
“Why isn’t this stuff taught at Hogwarts?”
“Dumbledore.” Draco replied, shrugging
“What’s the next wizarding holiday? I assume you celebrate.” Harry was fully intrigued. There was so much about this world he had no clue about.
Draco nodded. “It’s Litha – the summer solstice. It’s on the 22nd.”
“What do you do for it?”
“It’s a ‘light’ holiday.” Draco admitted. “We celebrate the longest day of the year. Light magic is at its strongest. It’s a good time for light protection rituals. We usually celebrate as a family with a bonfire as well.” Harry nodded.
“Do you have Dark magic?” Harry blurted before he could stop himself.
Draco didn’t look offended or even phased by the question. “I do.” He said simply. “I assume you were informed that that distinction is basically meaningless?”
Harry flushed at the admission. “I just found out I also have dark magic.”
Draco’s eyes widened incredibly at this. “You? You have dark magic? You’re the champion of the light.”
“I never asked to be.” Harry muttered.
Draco sighed, putting his hand gently on Harry’s forearm. “I know. That’s exciting, though.”
“Exciting?”
“You could really change the stereotype around having Dark magic.”
Harry nodded hesitantly. He could, couldn’t he?
The conversation changed eventually to quidditch, with Draco filling Harry in on the summer’s scores. They talked amicably for a while. Harry never even stopped to consider he was sitting here having a civil discussion with Draco Malfoy of all people. Maybe Sirius wasn’t wrong.
—
The moment that Draco headed off to find Harry, Narcissa took her cousin into her arms, tearfully declaring, “Oh, how I’ve missed you, Siri.”
“Cissa.” Sirius croaked, holding onto her robes as if his life depended on it.
“I’ve got you, cousin.” Neither of them wanted to let go. They had been estranged for too long. Eventually, they had to pull away. Narcissa kept a hold of his shoulders. “I wanted to help you. I had Lucius look into the matter, but there was no evidence besides our own memories of Pettigrew and-”
“I understand, Narcissa.” Sirius interrupted. “It’s not your fault. It’s the ministry’s, and Dumbledore’s.” He spat, leading his cousin to the small table where Dipsy had already dropped off tea.
“I am surprised to hear you speak ill of Albus Dumbledore.” Narcissa commented coolly.
“I’ve recently come across some information that I believe warrants it.” Sirius stated. He told Narcissa everything – the blocks on Harry’s magic, the proxy seat, the compulsion charm, everything.
Narcissa sat back in her seat, shocked. “That is-” She closed her eyes for a brief moment, collecting herself. “I knew the man was conniving, but I never imagined he would go to such lengths.”
“He blocked Harry’s family magicks, Cissa. It’s a wonder Harry has any power at all.”
Narcissa shook her head. It was unthinkable to block someone from their family magick, unless they were to be cast out from the family entirely. “I trust they have been removed?” Sirius nodded.
“He has Dark magic.” He said.
Narcissa’s eyes widened, and she quickly put her tea cup down, hands falling in her lap. “He does?”
“He does.” Sirius grinned. “I’m not entirely surprised.” His cousin prompted him for an explanation. “We all know James had Light magic, but I’ve never been quite sure about Lily.” Her magic felt too familiar to him to not be Dark. He doubted she ever officially got tested, however.
“I thought all Potters were of the Light.” Narcissa said. It was an unspoken tradition to marry within your magic. However she supposed with Lily Potter being muggleborn, she might not have known or realized. Magic affinities weren’t something taught in school anymore, courtesy of Albus Dumbledore, of course. Therefore, the knowledge was kept in pureblood circles now.
“James’ grandfather, Charlus, had Dark magic as well.” Sirius shook his head.
“He married into House Black, yes?”
Sirius hummed his affirmation, sipping his tea. “He was close with Arcturus as well.”
“Ah, yes. I recall his stories now.” Narcissa smiled fondly. If you had asked Arcturus himself, he would have bitingly exclaimed he merely tolerated Potter’s existence, but members of the Black family knew that Charlus’ death had shaken something in the Black Lord. He had spoken at Charlus’ funeral, referring to him as ‘a dangerous opponent but an irreplaceable and fiercely loyal friend’. “I am to assume you were made the legal heir?”
“You are correct.”
“The House of Black needs to be revitalized.” Narcissa sighed. “As much as it pains me to say it, we need you to do it.”
“Now, Cissa.” Sirius said, mock hurt and playful. “You have doubts I could head the family?”
Narcissa shook her head. “Not so much as doubts, cousin.” She looked contemplative for a moment. “Although I had assumed Grandfather would name you heir, I never thought you would take up the mantle.” She grabbed a biscuit from a plate in front of her.
“I have every intention to take up the mantle, as you say.” Sirius replied. “I have to do it to protect Harry.”
Narcissa nodded. “I figured that would be your motive.”
“Harry wrote to Amelia Bones.” Sirius stated conversationally. “She is getting me the trial I should have gotten in the first place.”
His cousin’s eyes widened. “You were never given a trial?” It was unbelievable to think anyone would be sent to Azkaban without trial, let alone a member of an Ancient and Noble House. The heir to an Ancient and Noble House.
“I assumed you knew.”
“After the war, my focus was my husband. When I saw the headline about you, I assumed you had gotten your day in court like the rest of them.” Narcissa breathed. “Lucius and I will assure you receive justice.” Suddenly, her eyes sparkled with mischief. “Do not fret, dear cousin. We will remind the Wizarding World why you don’t mess with House Black.”
Oh, how Sirius had missed his cousin.