The Lost Black

Prologue: Regulus A. Black

Regulus Black had left Voldemort behind early in the year of 1979, and he was slowly unraveling the lies of Voldemort and the Death Eaters. To keep his cover he hid himself in the Muggle world, doing what little he could to earn a wage as a muggle hotel assistant, and he rented a small single room flat above an old tile shop with a small bathroom attached, he tried to use magic sparingly so as not to be detected and spent his time researching, researching Voldemort’s past, that’s why he was often found sitting in a small cafe nearby his work drinking his favorite Darjeeling and trying to make out what little he could from the scraps of information there were about Horcruxes. Sometimes he thought he caught a girl who worked there sneak a glance at him but when he looked over she was seemingly oblivious to him. On one day however, there was no one but her working the shop as it was very early so even the rush of morning coffee soaked office workers hadn’t come in yet. 

“What was that I saw you reading yesterday,” the girl asked.

“Book about birds and frogs and things,” he said with a smile.

“That’s why it was called, The Slayer of Britain, The Most Evile Wizard from our Green Isle,” she chuckled, “Those must be some gnarly frogs,”

“Yea they are, crazy things, you never expect frogs to be violent but yea they’re kinda scary,” he said.

“Would you wanna get a cup of Darjeeling with me some time, you can tell me about the Slayer of Britain, I might not look like it but I probably listen to more punk than even you, with your wizard books.”

Laura Welles and Regulus Black made frequent rendezvous to Regulus’s flat after work. Through the summer of ’79 they fell deeper into each other’s life, soon she was spending more nights with him than in her own bed. Even still though he had such an aura of mystery about him she never really knew what to think. He had never lied to her so far as she knew but his answers didn’t make any sense. All she knew was that whatever he was up against seemed like sirius business. By autumn he seemed to be gone more often than not and he would come back sopping wet or with strange injuries. Sometimes he would ramble on about the cave, the cave Kreacher wouldn’t go back to, he said it was the key to ending all the insanity and the cruelty. On one day in mid November Regulus told her that he may have found the key and asked her not to hate him if he never came back.

“That’s ridiculous,” she had said, “you’d better be back tomorrow night because I’m making biscuits and I want you to try them,”

The next morning she struggled to get out of bed, though a morning person she felt drained of energy, even with the sunshine streaming in, her chest felt swollen and painful, she didn’t even want to leave the bed but her heart skipped a beat when she realized what it could mean. She rushed over to her cabinet and pulled a pregnancy test. Needless to say it read positive. Laura anxiously waited for Regulus to get back by evening, the biscuits for there part had already been made and partly consumed by her but there were enough left for him. By 9:30 though she had lost hope and was sleeping again when Regulus suddenly came back. He was properly soaked and smelled like the sea, he took off the massive coat he was wearing and gently kissed her.

Laura awoke suddenly. 

“My gosh you’ve had me worried, theres still some biscuits left,” 

“I found what I’ve been looking for, Kreacher finally helped me,” he replied.

“I know this is important to you but I think there’s something more important to worry about,” she said with a weak smile.

“What do you mean, has something bad happened?” he asked.

“Not something bad, it’s wonderful, we’re gonna have a baby,” she grabbed the test from the bedside table and thrust it into his hands.

Regulus looked shocked but smiled and kissed her seemingly a hundred times. 

“Meissa,” he said, “We should name her Meissa,” 

“How do you know it’ll be a girl?” she asked.

“I can tell Laura and she’s going to be wonderful.

The next week or so Regulus prepared for his final fight as he called it. He said he would come back as soon as it was done. He never came back however. And soon the clock struck 12 and the year was 1980. Time marched on but Laura Welles never forgot about the love of her life, Regulus Black. 

A girl was born to her on August 3rd of 1980 and, on the request of the girl’s late father, she was named Meissa Arthur Black. Meissa for the star, Arthur for Laura’s late uncle and Black for Regulus’s family. 

------<>------

Laura did not get along well with her parents and, after some friction between them after three years of living there she decided to move to Virginia with her brother Todd. It wasn’t the most comfortable life but Meissa received a decent education and turned out to be a sly yet shy girl. Although on occasion Meissa noticed strange happenings connected to her, no wizards ever came and so she lived through her childhood unaware of her abilities. However, in the spring of 1993 when she was 13 tragedy struck her mother once again. Though her and her mother never quite got along Laura still loved both her parents and so when Diane Welles eventually passed away Laura decided to move back to England and support her father, especially considering Meissa was old enough to look after herself so Laura could work and take care of her father much more then she could when Meissa had just been born.

Chapter 1: Meissa A. Black

Remus Lupin, long forgotten by even those who knew him well, sat alone in his rundown concrete flat. Though on the seventh floor it had only a small sliver of a window which showed little more than an equally bland concrete wall opposing. He had received a letter earlier in the day requesting from Albus Dumbledore, he would apparently be arriving at precisely midnight. Lupin doubted it could be about anything good considering the recent prison break by his former friend Sirius Black, either way Dumbledore would come though. Lupin was slumped over at a small dining table with a glass of amber liquid in his hand. He was inspecting the light reflecting through, waiting for a knock. His wristwatch made a quiet chime and he looked up at the door. 

Knock knock knock.

Lupin drank the last of it and rushed over. A tall man in a pair of Lavender robes and half moon spectacles surveyed the room. 

“Might I come in Remus,” he asked.

Lupin motioned at a disheveled armchair in the claustrophobic sitting room. Upon sitting he pulled his wand from his robes and from thin air drew a bottle of brandy and two glasses.

“Please sit down Remus, I’m afraid I must be here a while as there is a large number of things to discuss.” he said softly.

Lupin took a seat on a small wooden chair and took his glass of brandy. 

“Are you here to discuss Sirius, Professor,” asked Lupin anxiety swelling.

“It is one of a number of matters to discuss tonight,”

Lupin nodded slowly.

“I would like you to return to the school Remus, I am afraid my previous Defence against the Dark Arts teacher was recently admitted to St. Mungo’s. Also I expect you to watch over and guide young Harry Potter especially now with the escape of Sirius Black.

“You mean you trust me,” Lupin asked.

“I do Remus, and I think you will make a fine addition to our staff,”

Lupin sat for a moment in thought.

“There is something else as well Remus,” added Dumbledore.

“Is it something bad,” he asked.

“I don't think so, it is about another member of the Black family, one whose whereabouts I only presumed before,” he continued.

“What other black, a cousin of his? as far as I know his three cousins are Narcissa, Bellatrix and Andromeda, is it his mother?” 

“His niece actually, the daughter of Regulus, estranged from the Black family for at least a decade, recently returned to Britain however,”

“Well what would you like me to do professor?”

“I would like you to speak with her, and her mother, you knew her father’s family, you could explain to her that she is a witch and that she will attend Hogwarts.”

“I suppose I could do all that but do you think its a good idea, me being at Hogwarts,” he asked.

“I have already asked Severus to make the Wolfsbane potion for you, I’m under the impression that issue is the main one concerning you,”

“Yes Professor, I think that may help the situation,” Lupin chuckled. 

Dumbledore left him a note with the address to ‘Meissa Black’s’ grandfather’s residence, along with some details as to what he would do. he was also given a Hogwarts acceptance letter to personally present to Meissa. 

Lupin set a time for 3;37 PM on August the 3rd, Meissa’s birthday, to make the call. He put on the only thing you might consider a suit of all the clothing he had tucked in his closet. it was a light tan and was not well ironed but it would do the job for today. He soon found his way to somehwere in Sutton. Little brick houses line the street doubled up with small slivers into the back gardens. Most people were still gone at work but at 209 South-Brigend Street the yellow Vauxhall was still sat in the drive. It was time. 

------<>------

The move was not too pleasant, it was not that Meissa disliked her mother but on occasion her way of doing things were at odds with Meissa sensibilities, moving to England was definitely one of those things. Meissa had never met her grandmother nor her grandfather besides as a baby and she was quite comfortable in her life in the US. When her mother explained they were moving back to England because her grandmother had passed she was shook. Meissa wanted nothing in her life to need changing, she enjoyed being in control of what little she could be in control of and making the best of that, now it was a new place wherein she needed to find control and comfort once more. 

Upon arrival they were driven at once to a little neighborhood of boring brick houses where her grandfather lived. Her mother hugged him and cried and her grandfather showed her a small bedroom that he said had once been her mother’s. It was strewn with magazines of ghastly dressed men and women with spiky hair and lip piercings. The black painted walls were decorated with posters of much the same sort of individuals. Meissa chuckled at how her mum used to have been. 

The first week there she hardly slept. First they attended the funeral and it was a sad ordeal, her uncle Todd came as well and many other family members she had scarcely heard mention of before. Then it was moving, little was brought over from their house in the US but what little Meissa had brought of her own she made at home in her new room. She gradually picked apart and put away each of her mom’s old things until only the black walls remained. But for their part they made the room match her hair what with its long dark sheen. By the time June turned to July she was finally feeling in control of her environment, most importantly her room where she spent considerable time reading novels. She was also fond of a park nearby and she walked their frequently, sometimes she would run into other children but they hardly seemed to notice her and considering she only went their to read under the trees she didn’t have much use for any friends. The walk home was her favorite though, she would wait till dark to take it and hardly anyone was out, just the quiet of still night with the crickets and the hooting owls. But one night, while rounding a corner she felt even those noises melt away replaced only with the incredibly faint sound of a dripping tap in the distance, it was unsettling, she felt like something was watching her, observing her. She stared into a small alleyway between two houses and thought she could just make out a shape. If there was a shape she hardly wanted to move but she wasn’t quite sure what else to do. Just then a car came down the drive and for a moment a light flashed by the alleyway illuminating a great shaggy black dog. But it didn’t scare her, if anything she felt like it was protecting her, welcoming her home. Home she thought, this was home now. 

Her summer passed very quickly, much more quickly than expected she thought. All the new things made it difficult to sit down and do nothing. And so, July turned to August and Meissa’s 13th birthday was upon her. It was afternoon and she was sitting with her mother and grandfather in front of the beautiful cake her grandfather had made for her. On a tabel nearby was a modest stack of presents that Meissa was dying to open. Just then however, just before they lit the candles, a knock came on the door.

“Whos that,” her Mother asked, “did you invite someone for your birthday?”

Meissa shook her head and looked inquisitively at the door, “maybe the postman?” she said.

Knock knock knock

Once again it came, whoever was there they were confident they needed to reach them at this very hour. Her grandfather stood up and open the door. On the porch stood the tall red-haired disheveled man named Remus Lupin.

“You must be Todd Welles Senior,” said Lupin with a smile. 

“Yea that’s right, do I know you,” he replied.

“I’m afraid not but let’s remedy that, I’m Remus Lupin, I’m here to talk to Meissa, I knew her father,”

Meissa, who had scarcely heard about her father, only that he was tall and dark was now up from her seat watching Lupin intently. Lupin for his part merely stepped into the house past the slightly shocked Mr. Welles and outstretched his hand for Meissa to shake.

“Remus Lupin, and you’re Meissa Black I presume,”

Meissa shook his hand slowly and nodded her head.

“Might I sit down,” he said. Meissa didn’t reply but Lupin found his way to one of the wooden dining chairs. He noticed the cake waiting on the table. He produced his wand from his jacket pocket and waved it over the cake. Instantly the candles were ignited. Remus cleared his throat and began singing.

“Happy birthday, happy birthday, all the snails do cry, happy birthday to the witch who still will not die! Happy birthday dear Meissa, if you’re not insane, happy birthday to the witch of South-Brigend lane!”, Meissa and her family had tried to sing along but they stopped mumbling along by the second verse and look awkwardly at Lupin as finished. Meissa leaned forward and blew out the candles nonetheless and with another wave of his wand four slices of cake cut themselves out and floated onto their plates. 

“Ah, Chocolate and Strawberry, one of my favorites,” said Lupin. “You’re no doubt the baker,” he said looking at Todd Sr.

Todd’s eyes were still fixed on the cake that had magically been cut.

“I’m sorry but how did you cut that cake and light those candles,” Meissa asked, “That looked like magic,”

“Oh yes, it was. I’m. wizard you see, and you Miss Black are a witch,” Lupin smiled at her and handed her the letter to Hogwarts.

“A witch,” Laura asked, “you mean she can do magic? I’m still a bit confused,”

“Well you no doubt noticed her father was a wizard right,” asked Lupin.

“I mean he was a bit strange but he never did anything magical,” 

“Oh I see,” said Lupin, “I actually attended school with Regulus he was quite good at magic and great on a broomstick even if we never got along too well,”

“If you didn’t like the man what’re you doing coming here,” asked Todd.

“Well you see Meissa’s uncle Sirius was my best friend at school and it just so happens that he has recently broken out of prison, he is not someone I consider my friend anymore you see,”

“You mean Sirius Black the escaped murderer that’s been on the news is Meissa’s uncle,” asked Laura.

“Sadly yes, I wish I could say its been a mixup but sadly not. Meissa would you mind opening that letter,”

Meissa who had been listening to Lupin intently now looked the envelope.

Miss Meissa A. Black

The Parlour

209 South-Brigend Street

Sutton

Greater London

She ripped it open and quickly read aloud what it said.

Dear Miss Black,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall 

Deputy Headmistress

“31st of July, but thats already passed,” replied Meissa.

“Well you will be starting two years later than the other students so we’ve made some exceptions,” said Lupin. “The cake was lovely sir,” said Lupin with a smile towards Mr. Welles. He then rose from his chair and waved to them all.

“I’ll fetch you in a week so we can go get our school supplies, and Happy Birthday,” he said and walked out the door.