Dawson and Bukater
September 1,1971
Platform 9 ¾
“Lily, remember everyday. I need to know what it’s all like, I’ll miss you, a lot.”
“Everyday i promise. I’ll even send pictures. One last hug ok Grace?”
She dropped into her sisters arms feeling warm and safe as her sister’s red hair fell over her shoulders.
“Now then goodbye Grace, i love you. You’ll write too right Petunia?” She saw as her sister’s bright green eyes looked over to their older sister hopefully as a shrug released itself from their older sisters shoulders who’s brown dull eyes had focused on the ground.
“Well, bye mum,bye dad”
As her sister walked onto the platform accompanied by Severus who had just escaped his own mother, Grace reached for Petunia’s hand. As their hands slipped into one another's, her sister bent down to meet her sister’s face and slowly wiped away the tears stained on her little sister’s cheek.
“It’s only Lily, she’s the only freak in this family, you’ll continue attending school with me and we will have each other, just you and i. Won’t that be nice Grace?”
And although Grace didn’t agree with calling Lily a “freak” she nodded her head and watched as the train pull out of platform 9 ¾ wishing she could have followed Lily on.
September 1, 1971
Platform 9 ¾
“Goodbye Sirius, I’ll see you over winter holiday right? And you’ll write often?”
“Of course Reg, as often as i can, now hold down the fort for me will ya? Au Revoir Regulus!”
He watched as his brother left him with a wink and ran onto the train, he kept his face hidden by his long black silky hair draped over his face.If his mother were to catch a glimpse of his teary eyes and pink cheeks he’d be reprimanded for crying, even more so for doing such in public. His mother took his hand and in a swift crack the bright colors and loud commotion of platform 9 ¾ were replaced with the grey family tree stretching throughout the living room and unbearable quietness of the number 12 Grimmauld Place.
November 12th 1971
The Evans Home
It had been two months without Lily and Grace sat on her bed shuffling through the various photos and letters she had been sent. There were several photos of Lily and Severus in the gardens or by the lake, they had been sorted into different houses, Lily was sorted into Gryffindor, the house of courage and bravery, along side Mary Macdonald, Willow Clearwater and Marlene McKinnon, all of which were her dorm mates. Also in Gryffindor Lily mentioned Remus Lupin who was described as “such a sweet boy” and his friends, Peter Pettigrew,Sirius Black and lastly a boy she claimed to absolutely detest, James Potter who had apparently gotten into an altercation with Severus who was sorted into Slytherin, the house of ambition and resourcefulness.
In her letters Lily explained the matter of blood status and how she was a “muggle born” and that the Slytherin house at Hogwarts contained mostly “pure blood” students who seemed to dislike her simply because of said blood status. Grace thought that rather stupid, the idea of judging a person based off their blood status, weren’t they all still in the same school? The most important thing Lily had sent Grace was a small book labeled “Early signs of Magic in children”. At night, hidden away from Petunia, Grace would read and reread every page and try to attempt the magic she learned of in the book until one night as she read through the pages she realized they were turning without the use of her hand.
November 12th 1971
Number 12 Grimmauld Place
Three letters. Regulus had received a total of three letters within the two month span Sirius had been away. The first letter was great, Sirius had been sorted into Gryffindor, he had joined a friend group of boys who all conveniently shared a dorm room with him in Gryffindor tower. He was happy and Regulus was determined to keep it that way for as long as he could. The letter was kept hidden and tucked into his pajamas at night so that their mother would never see it. The consequence of a son from the “Noble Most Ancient House Of Black” being sorted into Gryffindor after every member had been a Slytherin was something Regulus could not even stand to imagine. Eventually she had found the letter, he had fallen asleep with it in his hands instead of tucked away and she had found it one night while making sure he was properly tucked away for the night. She learned of Sirius’s sorting, his blood traitor friends and worst of all she had learned that Regulus had kept it all a secret. Both boys were punished, Sirius was sent a howler at school and strict instructions for when he was to return home, the rules mainly consisted of not tainting his younger brother with his fraudulent behavior. Regulus was given his first taste of how truly cruel his mother could be, he was locked in his room for a week with no food, sink water and no access to a shower. It was a cruel punishment for a ten year old boy but it had shaken him up enough to hide the following letters significantly better. The next letters were sent in secret and burned immediately after reading. He desperately missed his brother but the thought of following in his footsteps and not being sorted into Slytherin made him all the happier to wait a year for his arrival to Hogwarts.
February 21, 1972
The Evans Home
Grace had spent the entire day before waiting in anticipation to see if her Hogwarts letter would arrive or if everything she had recently begun to do was all truly just in her head. Petunia also spent the day waiting, but not for the same reasons, she waited anxiously for the confirmation she had not been left behind, that Lily was the only one,Lily was a freak, Grace was normal just like her, Lily had just been a small mistake. That had not been the case. A letter arrived delivered by owl on February 21, 1972 at exactly 11:00 am.
Addressed to Miss Grace Evans
Second bedroom on the left inside the Evans home.
Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Grace was overjoyed and had accidentally sent the rest of the mail up in a twirling wind. Her parents embraced her lovingly and immediately sat down to write to Lily about the good news. Petunia on the other hand was furious and stormed up to her room. Grace slowly opened the door to see Petunia curled up on her bed silently crying.
“Petunia?” Her voice wavered slightly unaware of how to approach her older sister and the reaction she had given towards the letter.
“You are nothing but a dirty freak Grace!” spat her sister the words immediately sending tears down both the girls faces.
“You can’t possibly mean that Petunia, it’s still you and i.” stuttered Grace hoping her sister could sense the truth in her statement.
“I do too mean it, of course I bloody mean it, both you and Lily are dirty nasty unnatural freak, leave, leave me here in my room now and then leave me to follow Lily to Scotland I’ll be much happier without the two of you to up and ruin my good life with your unnatural way of living!”
The weeks following that argument bleed into months and Petunia had yet to speak to Grace properly aside from small talk at dinner solely for the eyes of their parents. When Lily returned for holidays Petunia didn’t dare go near her and when Lily would leave again Grace spent her days reading through the book Lily would send of Hogwarts and the vast entirety of the wizarding world.
May 12th 1972
Number 12 Grimmauld Place
There in the middle of the dining room sat his letter. His long black hair had been tied back into a neat pony tail, although he was young his jawline was sharp and held high as he approached the table. His mother sat on the opposite end eyeing him up and down searching for something to alter or fix.
“Happy birthday Regulus.”
“Thank you mother.” His grey eyes remained sternly connected to hers, he could feel his chest begin to tighten and the familiar ache of tears rise in his throat but yet he remained still and collected as he awaited his mothers instruction.
“You will be attending Hogwarts starting this September, you will be sorted into Slytherin or you and your brother will not return home. I will not have another son disappoint me, disappoint the most noble and ancient house of Black. Is that understood Regulus?
“Yes mother.”
“Your brother barely holds his position of heir, fall under his impression and you will soon be very familiar with the customs of your blood.”
“Yes mother.”
His letter was levitated towards him and into his robe pockets. The following months he burned the letters Sirius would send before even reading them, when Sirius returned from Hogwarts he hardly ever saw him aside from the rare occasion Sirius would sneak into his room with a bag of candy from the trolley and they would talk and laugh as brothers, something they were often being told no longer mattered. He watched as Sirius left back to Hogwarts holiday after holiday and waited for the day he would follow him and return as the boy his family was hoping for or not return at all but be Sirius Black’s brother.