$1
"Your tea, miss," Leemey laid down a cup of steaming drink in front of her. In the kitchen, she was not allowed to talk to him, since her parents would not tolerate it, yet, if he sometimes visited her in her room, she would talk to him. He was the only one who didn't look at her like air.
"If you drank your soothing tea miss, go out into the garden. At the behest of my great lord."
"Alright Leemey," she sighed as she hold the cup in her hands. She knew something was going to happen, since she wouldn't be removed from the immediate vicinity of the manor for no reason. There are no questions, we do not question the decisions of Abraxas Malfoy and we fulfill his instructions without a word. Those were the first things she really learned. She didn't know much about her mother, usually locked herself in her room for days. The only person she could really talk to and always count on in the past was her brother Lucius. Although since he started her studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he hasn't had almost any time left for her.
"Are we expecting guests?" She asked the blonde-haired boy who had just entered the kitchen.
″Yes. But as far as I know, our father's express request is that you stay away from that—
"So that I don't even accidentally stir up trouble, I know brother. I thought you were helping me with one of your old papers because I don't quite understand it.
"Don't be so disappointed Roxanne," he stepped next to his sister and patted her shoulder, "it's not for you anyway. Now get out of here, you can be in your room if you promise not to come out of there at all.″
"Okay" she stood up indifferently, though it hurt her a little that she was being excluded from everywhere, "I'll be upstairs. If I had to.″
She never really understood why it was good to introduce to each other those who would not marry until many years later. A whole delegation arrived so that his brother could meet the perfect wife assigned to him. Sitting on her balcony, she watched as Aunt Druella, whom she had the good fortune to get to know, arrived at the Malfoy Mansion with a group of children. Bellatrix, the eldest daughter who was cruel and proud of it, was already known, but not her sisters, and the fact that she had two younger brothers completely surprised her.
"Druella sweetheart!" she heard her father's voice with played out enthusiasm ″it is always a pleasure for us to see you.″
"We don't need this pretense, Abraxas," said the witch smiled and let them kiss her hand, "could we perhaps go inside?"
Soon silence settled in the courtyard again, but she was not in the mood to go back into the room. If she no longer chose the courtyard as the site of her temporary exile, at least that way she could stay in the open air. With her eyes closed, she enjoyed the sun's warming rays and let the wind ruffle her carefully combed hair. She wasn't sure how long she could sit there alone, and since she wasn't expecting a visitors, she was quite surprised when they knocked.
″ Can I?″ she heard the voice of an unknown boy.
She cautiously peered into the room in search of the stranger.
"You shouldn't be here," she said softly.
"I’m sorry, but down there, the conversation between Aunt Druella and your dad is very boring.″
"Are they planning the wedding?"
The black-haired boy froze for a moment, then a faint smile appeared on his face and he began to laugh softly.
″To Merlin Malfoy! They're not there yet. Now only Narcissa and your brother were introduced to each other.″
"Don't get mad," she backed back towards the balcony to get as far away from the unknown boy as possible, "I don't know how it really works and I don't like being called Malfoy," she added as quietly as possible, but the disheveled-haired boy seemed to hear even that.
″Oh, sorry. I don't know your name, only that you're Lucius Malfoy's sister and″
″Roxanne.″
The boy was silent for a moment.
″Sorry?″
"My name. My name is Roxanne.″
"You have a nice name. I'm Sirius. How old are you?″
"I turned eight in April."
"I'll be eight in November!" he said cheerfully, though he wasn't asked.
″Are you Bellatrix’s brother?″ she asked curiously. Sirius looked at her like she was insane.
″Gosh, no. She is my cousin. I have a little brother″
″The other boy?″
″Yes. His name is Regulus″
Someone shouted the boy's name, and the cheer immediately evaporated.
"I think I should go. I hope I see you again, you don't look like the others.″
″Yes. I think too″
″Bye Roxy!″ he waved from the door, but turned back from the threshold one last time ″okay if I call you Roxy?″
″No problem. Bye Sirius.″
The black-haired boy didn't come to visit more than once, though luckily neither did Bellatrix. She didn't know her other siblings, but she didn't feel any lack of it either. In her dreams, Sirius would occasionally visit and looked at her with those huge gray, sparkling eyes, full of serenity and silence in what he was telling. They were perfect opposites of each other, yet she didn't mind that. The boy's curly, disheveled black hair offset the girl's snow-white, long straight hair, especially when the moonlight gave her a silky, shimmering effect. Sometimes when Roxanne looked in the mirror, she thought she was seeing a ghost. She loved being in the sun, yet her skin didn't get nearly any color. In contrast, even in winter, Sirius looked like he had just returned home from a long day at the beach.
"Christmas was boring. I celebrated alone, even though Leemey had made me hot chocolate″ she had enthusiastically shared the events of the past few months with him, even though she knew it wasn't the reality.
"Lucius didn't come home, my father didn't really mind, he told us every day how proud he was of his firstborn. I only met Mom once, but we didn't really talk. I'm not an expert Sirius, but I think Mom might be sick. She has very white skin and although it is quite warm here, she is still cold. Do you think she's okay?″
Although she never got an answer, he was her only friend for a long time, but after a while she started to believe that she made it all up for herself so that she wouldn't be so lonely.
Years passed since her brother first met Narcissa and she has to, she confesses, the blonde-haired, pure-blooded witch hasn't really stolen herself into her heart. She expected that whenever she came to visit, she would be warmly received. She occupied one of the guest rooms, so to speak, the Malfoy girl's home became her second home. She always spent half of the breaks with them and soon realized that it wasn't just a nightmare for her to have the Slytherin girl here. Roxanne felt most sorry for the house elf, Leemey.
Ever since Lucius took their family's fate and his studies more seriously, he had almost forgotten that he had a younger sister so she could only count on the company of the elf.
″Happy Birthday to me!″ she blew away the only match she found in their chamber after a long search. The kindest house elf she had ever known had pleased her with a mug of hot chocolate. She loved him, really. He had a lot of things to do, yet he took the time to make a surprise for her. His father wasn't home that day, and his mother spent her time at St. Mungo's, so she was the only Malfoy in the whole house.
When her father came home from work, he didn't even appreciate her, so she wasn't surprised that he had forgotten about her birthday. As every year.
"So, did you get it?" he growled in front of her the moment he reached the labyrinth of their huge flower garden.
"First of all, hi to you too, it's nice to see that you're in one Sirius. Secondly, did I get what?
"Oh Roxy, don't be silly, the letter!"
″I don't understand. What letter?″
"The Hogwarts'. Everyone gets it on their eleventh birthday.″
″I really don't know what you're talking about. I did not receive any letters.″
″But.. we.. you.. Are you that?″
″Am I what?″
"You know," he sighed and stepped closer. He caught his voice in a whisper ″Squib.″
"Squ, huh?"
″Squib. A child born into wizarding families just doesn't have magic. Roxy you don't have your parents teach you anything about our world?″ Asked the boy with messy hair.
″As a matter of fact, Sirius, not really. They also won't let me read the Daily Prophet.″
"There's a lot of lies in that," he shrugged, "it's a pity, even though that's why I accompanied Narcissa to see your cool school letter. Where are you going if not at Hogwarts?″
″Hmm... I forgot which one father was talking about, but I'll ask. Don't worry, I'm not a squ- magicless″ she herself didn't know if what she said was only half or completely a lie.
The blonde-haired Black girl had spent the first half of the summer with them again, so she was even more afraid to ask the question that had been on her mind since talking to Sirius.
″Father!″ she said, but as if nothing had happened, everyone continued to have dinner. It was one of the rare occasions that her mother joined the dinner.
″Father″ she tried again, a little louder, but the expected attention was again missed – am I a squib?
The question caused all the cutlery to stop in the air and a chilling silence settled around the entire table, even Leemey stopped.
"Where did you hear that word Roxanne?" the older sour cream blonde Malfoy looked at the girl with a very angry look ″how dare you assume such a thing about one of the purest blooded families in the wizarding world?! Of course you're not. You can't be! Where did you get such nonsense from?″
The younger witch hadn't gotten so many questions and attention in the last eleven years, she was a little nervous and it took her a few seconds to answer.
″I.. only… just... I didn't get a letter from Hogwarts.″
"Well," Abraxas let out the air he'd been holding in his lungs, "that's possible Roxanne Malfoy because that's not where you start your studies. Durmstrang welcomes you with open arms. Let's hope you finally get a proper upbringing there. And now, not a word more about the school!″
She hadn't slept much that night, wondering all along why she had to go to one of the most barren schools, where there were hardly a handful of female students among the boys.