The 12th of May was a very special occasion in number twelve of Grimmuald place,the residence of the main line of House Black.
Pollux,the oldest child of Cygnus Black,had just turned eleven years old. The young child could not wait for his Hogwarts letter.
Infact,He had been sitting in front of the window of the living room for two hours straight. He probably would have stayed there for longer had his Grandfather not decided to ruin his mood.
"Boy! Stop sitting there like a lazy dog. Blacks do not show such childish behaviour." Phineas barked out before throwing a hex at his second youngest grandson.
Pollux yelped and jumped up from the stool he had been sitting on. "A-apologies, Grandfather. It won't happen again." He mumbled with his head bowed as he rubbed his arm where the stinging hex had landed.
"It better not. Now go find something more useful to do." The Lord Black commanded his grandson before going off to the ministry,probably for a Wizengamot meeting.
Pollux sighed and plopped back down on the stool. He really liked coming to Grimmuald to his cousins' house.
It meant he could spend time with his cousins and get away from his own house. Also his father paid less attention to him because he was too busy fighting with his brother or father. And Cousin Lycoris would keep his sister Cassiopiea busy so she wouldn't annoy him.
But the cons out weighted the pros. By a lot.
Even though he didn't have to watch out for father as much,he had to for Uncle Sirius and Grandfather Phineas. They were always watching him like a hawk so they could catch something wrong with him and punish him. They also delighted in pointing out his imperfections and flaws to his father which would make him flush in embarrassment and curse Pollux badly when they got home. Honestly,he thinks they enjoy hearing his screams.
One time when Pollux was getting punished,he swore he saw his Uncle grinning and his father laughing in the background through his blurry vision.
Sadistic bastards.
"Don't mind what he says. He's like that all the time." A voice called out behind Pollux and he turned around,only to see his cousin Arcturus Leaning in the doorway,staring at the fireplace their Grandfather just left through with disdain.
Pollux perked up when he saw him. Sure Arcturus was a whole ten years older than him but they still got along quite well. "Yeah,I know. Regulus complains about it all the time." He muttered.
"It's okay,Pol. I get why you're excited. Really,I was more excited than you are on my eleventh birthday. Besides,who could blame you for being happy at the chance to be away from this wretched family?" He shrugged,sitting down on the sofa and gesturing Pollux to sit next to him.
Pollux obliged.
He opened his mouth to speak but just then a black blur sped into the room. Pollux only had a second to widen his eyes a fraction before it slammed into him,knocking the breath out of Pollux.
"HAPPY ELEVENTH BIRTHDAY,COUSIN!" Regulus shrieked,hugging Pollux before going to sit on the armrest next to Arcturus. "Must you be so loud,Reg?! You know Grandmother detests it when we are loud." Arcturus hissed,warily looking towards the open door as if he expected Grandmother Ursula to come through,holding her wand with a curse on the tip of her tongue.
Maybe he did. Because Pollux certainly did.
She didn't and Arcturus closed the door with a flick of his wand.
"Sorry. I'm just so excited! I'm going to have another cousin other than Callidora at Hogwarts." Regulus exclaimed,grinning madly.
"That is,unless Pollux here ends up being a squib." Arcturus interjected,shrugging carelessly.
Pollux stiffened.
The twelve year old son of Sirius Black noticed this and punched his brother in the arm before looking at Pollux. "Don't mind what this tosser says,Pol. There hasn't been a squib in our family for several generations. Come on,how much chance is there that you're one? Besides,you've done accidental magic loads of times." Regulus chirped,smiling confidently at his cousin.
Pollux felt himself relax at his cousin's words. Yeah,he'd done magic. Like that time he'd made all the teacups crack when he got in a fight with Cassiopiea and when he'd made Regulus and himself float.
"Hm,I don't think so." Arcturus drawled,earning himself a glare from both the boys. "You've never done accidental magic alone,have you? What if the teacup incident was done by Cassi? What if Regulus had been the one to make you float? What if that time you summoned that cookie jar from the shelf was actually Marius' doing?"
Oh. Oh bloody hell Arcturus was right! He'd never done magic when he was alone!
Pollux felt sick. And he probably looked sick too,judging from Regulus' expression. "No no no,Pol. Don't listen to him! You're a wizard,I'm telling you."
Pollux nodded and tried to smile confidently at Regulus. From the assuring grin he got in return,he probably failed.
Then suddenly,a loud screeching sound filled the silence that had enveloped the three cousins and Pollux looked up just in time to see a majestic brown owl soar into the room through the open window. It circled the room three times before landing in front of Pollux and extending it's leg.
There was a letter tied to it with the Hogwarts emblem on it. Pollux gulped and looked towards his cousins,only to see both of them grinning encouragingly at him. Pollux weakly smiled back and carefully untied the letter from its leg.
While he stared at the letter in amazement,Arcturus had beckoned the owl towards himself and was now feeding it owl treats he got from Hecate knows where.
"Open it." Regulus urged Pollux,poking him in the ribs. Pollux winced and glared at him before he slowly opened the letter,taking care to not break the seal. He heard Arcturus chuckle and Pollux turned towards him in confusion.
At Pollux's questioning look,Arcturus elaborated. "I was just remembering how Regulus was last year. He'd ripped open the letter in a second."
Pollux nodded before he opened the letter and pulled out the parchment from inside.
*To Mr Pollux Black* it read
*The second story bedroom*
*12 Grimmuald place*
*London*
*Dear Mr Black,*
*We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.*
These lines made Pollux grin like the cat that had got the cream. Regulus,who had been reading the letter over Pollux's shoulder,grinned and punched him on the arm. "See dummy, I told you. Honestly,the Black family hasn't had squibs in centuries. It's not like we're going to have them now."
Pollux grinned back at him and was about to read the rest of it when the door slammed open,making both of them flinch and Arcturus stiffen.
He looked up to see his Uncle Sirius and Father standing in the doorway,glaring at each other. After a few tense seconds,Father backed down and directed his venomous glare towards Pollux,making him flinch once more.
"What's that in your hand,boy?!" He barked out and Pollux stood up. "I-it's my-my Hogwarts letter,sir." He stuttered. Father grinned and turned back towards his oldest brother. "Ha! See that,Sirius? My son is not a squib,despite what you may seem to think."
He walked towards Pollux and held out his hand,making Pollux reluctantly hand him the letter. His father inspected the letter before handing it back to him. "Good. I'll send you to Diagon Alley with an elf in some days to get your wand and your pet. While you do that,the elf will pick up your supplies."
Pollux deflated at that. He'd thought his father might take him there himself. Don't be stupid Pollux. He doesn't love you. Why would he waste an entire day with your pathetic self?
"Actually Uncle Cygnus,I am due to take Regulus to Diagon in three days. I suggest that maybe I can take Pollux with me as well?" Arcturus interjected,coming to stand next to Pollux,his face blank of any expression though his eyes shined with brotherly love as he looked at Pollux.
Pollux tried not to get his hopes up but he couldn't help it. A whole day in the company of his cousins in a place where their relatives weren't breathing down their necks!
Pollux looked at his father who had a thoughtful look on his face. Then he huffed and nodded. "Ofcourse nephew,take him out of my hair for a few hours."
Pollux and Regulus had always noticed that he would call Cousin Arcturus 'nephew'. They suspected it was because he wanted to feel as if he was in a higher position than Arcturus, despite the fact that Archie was the Heir to House Black.
Ugh,his father was so annoying.
Anyhow,Pollux could barely stop himself from doing a little victory dance.
Yes!
Uncle Sirius coughed loudly,reminding his brother they had somewhere to be. Father rolled his eyes and walked towards the door his brother was now standing beside.
They both walked out and the sound of two almost identical pop sounds filled the air as they apparated away.
Regulus groaned and slumped. "Honestly,the amount of tension in a room when they're together is so thick you can cut it with a knife." He remarked,making Arcturus nod.
Just then,the door opened and a figure timidly made his way inside and towards the couch.
Pollux smiled as he saw his little brother. "Hey there Marius! Come look,your brother just got his Hogwarts letter." Regulus enthusiastically informed his little cousin.
His brother's soft silver eyes lit up at the mention of Hogwarts. The seven year old gasped before turning to his brother. "Really?" He whispered,a smile tugging at his lips.
Pollux grinned. "Really!"
Marius gasped once more,making Arcturus chuckle,and sat down next to Pollux. "Lemme see! Lemme see!"
Pollux handed over his letter to his brother,with much less reluctance than he had when handing it to Father. Marius beamed as he read the letter before turning to Pollux. "Oh this is lovely,Pol. Congratulations!"
Marius wrapped his arms around Pollux's torso,making him grin as he hugged him back. "You know,Cassi kept saying you'd be a squib." Marius whispered,as if scared that if he said it out loud, it might come true.
Pollux huffed. "Cassi's being a lying brat,Marius. The Blacks haven't had squibs for centuries."
"So that means I'll be a wizard too? I'm not a squib,right?" Marius asked uncertainly. "Ofcourse not,Mari. You'll be a great wizard just like us." Arcturus reassured him,ruffling his hair.
Marius' face lit up. "Yeah! I will be an awesome wizard that all of you will be proud of." Regulus laughed. " 'Course you will silly,you're a Black. Now let's go celebrate."
With that, he stood up and dragged his cousins and brother to find Lycoris,Cassi and Dorea so they could celebrate properly.
Pollux smiled as he followed his cousin.
"You know Pol,I'm going to miss you. You'll be so far away." Marius pouted,holding his brother's hand.
Pollux smiled softly and draped an arm over his shoulders,pulling him closer to himself. "It's okay Mari,three years then you'll be in Hogwarts with me." Pollux reassured him with absolute certainty.
"You promise?"
"Yeah! I promise."
Unbeknownst to them, there was a storm brewing just beneath the surface,ready to devour the siblings whole. And this day was just the calm before the storm.