Corvus Black and the Timeline

“Wait, this is for real?”

“Yeah! Isn’t it great?”

“Of course it is, just unexpected is all.”

“I’m going to be an older sister!”

Corvus didn’t have any time to react as Narcissa threw herself at him and hugged him as tight as she could. It was as if he had just said that he and Octavia were going to have a child and she’d be named as the godmother. Not that he’d been thinking on how she would react to that kind of new or anything… not at all.

But back onto the topic at hand. Apparently, Uncle Cygnus and Aunt Druella were going to have another child, most likely another daughter, and in around seven and a half months.

This… was good news. Yes, this was good news.

Timeline be damned, another member of The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black was always a good thing, and hell, maybe they’ll finally have a son.

“I’m surprised that our parents are even having another child.” Andromeda said as they continued to walk down the hallway.

“It’s not surprising at all. It was bound to happen eventually.” Narcissa said and she practically skipped alongside Andromeda.

Corvus smiled as he watched the two of them. This new sibling was something that was going to bring them all together and a small part of his mind was working in overdrive to see of it all fit into the wider picture. If he could keep all the Black sisters together that would give the family a better chance when the war started.

That future child might just have made his job a whole lot easier.

“What do you think they’re going to name her?” Narcissa asked.

“How do you know it’s going to be a girl?” Corvus asked.

“Because… just because. We’re getting a baby sister.”

“I’ve never heard reasoning so sound before.” Corvus got an eyeroll in response.

“She’s going to be the cutest baby you’ve ever seen. She’s going to be blonde just like me and-”

“Hold on.” Andromeda said as they turned a corner and continued down another hallway. “How come she’s going to be blonde? She’s obviously going to be brown haired like me.”

“That is not going to happen. She’s going to be blonde and beautiful.”

“She could have black hair like Bella.” Corvus pointed out.

“That’s not going to happen either.” Andromeda said.

“What do you think they’re going to name her? Obviously, she has to be a star like the rest of us.” Narcissa said.

“But your name isn’t based off a star.” Corvus said.

“Beside the point. What about Lyra? Oh, or maybe Ursa? What about Carina…”

“Does it have to be based on a star?” Andromeda asked.

“Maybe Petra? What if we just use Elladora again? Her portrait would get a kick out of that…”

“I couldn’t really care less to be honest.” Corvus said.

“There is always Iola, oh but she was disowned. Oh, what about Maia…”

“You haven’t thought about it? I always thought you would have at least put some thought to it.” Andromeda said.

“We could always just call her Virgo, but that might not be the best name…”

“I mean I have some ideas about what I’d like to call my future children, but nothing definitive yet.” Corvus said.

“What about Mira, that sounds nice, and it fits the star theme…”

“Well, I have the perfect name for my future daughter. Nymphadora.” Andromeda said.

“We could name her after Aunt Cassiopeia… wait, you’re going to name your daughter Nymphadora?” Narcissa stumbled out of her rambling.

“Yes, it’s a beautiful name.” Corvus noted that Andromeda got a bit defensive about it.

“Does it even mean anything?”

“Of course it does. The name references the nymphs, who were beautiful and divine figures.”

“It still sounds a little weird, and that’s coming from people who are called Corvus, Narcissa, and Andromeda.” Corvus said.

“It’s a perfectly fine name.” Andromeda said.

“Do you have a name for your future son?” Narcissa asked.

“Of course, I’ll call him Taranis.”

Corvus and Narcissa stopped walking and just looked at Andromeda. How could someone related to them think up such weird names. Taranis? Corvus was fairly sure he heard the name in some Germanic mythology. Or was it Celtic mythology?

“Really Andy?” Narcissa whined.

“It’s a good name!” Andromeda said.

“Taranis? That sounds like a name of a dinosaur!”

“I’ll have you know that Taranis is the god of thunder in Celtic mythology.”

“We aren’t Celtic, we’re British.”

“If you want to use mythological names, why not use Greek and Roman ones?” Corvus asked.

“That’s so overdone though. I’m not going to name my son Tiberius or Augustus.” Andromeda said.

“Well, what about uh… Pallas. God of…warcraft?”

“That’s at least better than Taranis.” Narcissa said.

“I still like Taranis.” Andromeda said.

They turned another corner and continued on down another hallway.

“Have you talked to Tonks about the names? I’m pretty sure he’d like a say before you start naming your kids Nymphadora and Taranis.” Narcissa said.

“We did talk it over.” Andromeda said with a slight blush on her cheeks. “He’s the one who recommended Taranis.”

“So, you both are ridiculous, glad that we’ve established that.” Corvus said. He’d need to knock some sense into Tonks if he thought Taranis was a good name for a boy.

“What are you saying? You don’t like them?”

“Andy, Tonks’ name is Edward. That’s about as British as it gets, and it’s also the only normal one that you two have in your hypothetical family.”

“And you guys shorten it to Ted.” Narcissa added in.

“Well… you should hear what Bella wants to name her kids!”

“As long as it isn’t Taranis.”

“We’re not talking about Bella though, and she promised to name her firstborn son Corvus anyway, we’re talking about you Andy.” Corvus said.

“You both just don’t know how to appreciate good naming.” Andromeda said.

“I think we’re going the wrong way. We should have made a left at the last intersection not a right.” Narcissa said.

They all stopped and Corvus actually paid attention to where they were walking. They had made a wrong turn, and so they all turned around and headed for the right direction.

“Alright, we’ll table the baby name discussion for a later date. What we need to focus on now is the political situation in Hogwarts.” Corvus said.

“Umbridge is going to lose the duel and we all know it. The girl sits side saddle on her broom!” Andromeda said.

“Hey, I sit side saddle.” Narcissa pouted.

“Well, that’s different. You’re a Black and… need to be more ladylike.”

“It’s a wonder that the sorting hat put you into Slytherin Andy.” Corvus said.

“Alright it was a bad thing to point out about Umbridge. But the girl can’t duel. I’ve never even seen her run.”

“I don’t think she sweats either. There is no way that anyone can wear that much pink fur and not start to sweat. She even wears it in the green houses.” Narcissa said.

“Clothing choice aside, no one has seen her duel, so she’s an unknown.” Corvus said. “We’ve got Fiona on a training regimen and some of the best tutors that Hogwarts’ student population has to offer, so we should be fine.”

“You brought in the Gryffindors?”

“What? Of course not, don’t be silly.”

“But maybe Wood knows something. He is Supreme Grand High Wizard of Gryffindor after all.”

“A ridiculous title if I ever heard one, and how does that make him a good duelist?”

“He’s the one who bore the sword or something like that.”

“Maybe Gryffindor chooses its leaders through feats of strength.” Andromeda said.

“I’m not asking Jonathan Wood for help.” Corvus said.

“Is that the Slytherin pride I see coming out. I thought you were immune to it?” Narcissa said and gave him a smug smile.

“Please, I’ve got Fiona’s training in hand. The duel is a month away and I’ve given her the Holy Grail of Dueling to help her along.”

“I still can’t believe you two called it the Holy Grail of Dueling.” Andromeda said.

“Let’s just say that it was a night of several cups of tea and around a hundred dueling dummies destroyed. We may have also run into Cousin Araminta on our way back from Diagon Alley that one time.” Corvus said.

The three of them shuddered at the mention of Cousin Araminta. She was a distant relative of the Black family and seemed to have gone off the deep end for pureblood supremacy. She was a vocal advocate for muggle hunting and getting rid of the Statue of Secrecy for Merlin’s sake.

“But holy grail?” Narcissa asked.

“My other cousins liked it. They thought it was a great title.”

“Clarissa said that because she may or may not still be in love with you.” Andromeda said and counted with her fingers while also ignoring his sputtering. “Brigitte and Béatrice said they liked it because the twins are just like that. Augustina liked it because she enjoys a good book. Angelica liked it because she’s just so cute when she gets all excited. Etienne liked it because he plans to be a master duelist.  Henry liked it because he’s just as obsessed with dueling as Bella is. Arabella liked it-”

“Okay, I think you’ve made your point.” Corvus said.

“I’m just saying that maybe your reviews for the book title were a little biased.”

“Alright I’ll give you that. But it’s still a great title. Holy Grail of Dueling.” Corvus said and motioned with a hand while he said the title.

“It still sounds a little pretentious.” Narcissa said.

“That means you haven’t read it yet, but luckily we’ve arrived.” Corvus said and opened the door to the dueling room. “You’ll get to see it in action with your own eyes.”

He opened the door and was immediately met by the sight of what was not dueling.

“Holy Grail of Dueling huh? Seems you’ve gotten it confused with tea party cousin.” Andromeda said.

“Excuse me.” Corvus said as he drew his wand. “It seems I’ve been remiss in the proper motivation of my dueling students. Allow me to rectify that.”

It was safe to say that the problem was rectified.

It was on a bright and sunny Tuesday morning that two men and one woman exited the car.

It was a decidedly muggle thing, but apparently the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow was a car that suited their standing. Alphard had to admit that it was a rather comfortable ride, though using the flew network would have been quicker.

As it was, he and Arcturus stepped out of the car and onto the sidewalk. Their driver was Cassiopeia, who Alphard now knew to never let drive another car again. His aunt didn’t know the meaning of moderation apparently, and muggle driving laws were mere suggestions than laws.

“You are never driving us anywhere again Cass.” Arcturus said.

“Come now Arcturus, you can’t say that it wasn’t fun.” Cassiopeia said as she closed the driver side door. She was wearing a rather fashionable pair of trousers and blouse and stood in stark contrast to Arcturus and Alphard himself, who were both wearing three-piece suits.

“I have to agree aunty. I’m starting to wonder if you know what the brake pedal is for.” Alphard said.

“Oh, you two need to calm down. We made it in one piece.” Cassiopeia said and gestured to the townhouse that the three of them were now standing in front of.

“The point still stands. I’ll be driving us back to the Black Manor after this.”

“Alright now come along. Let’s see what Clearwater is so secretive about.” Arcturus said.

The three of them walked up to the modest looking building. Red bricks and a small porch with a front door. There were three sets of windows and every one of them had the curtains closed.

As they passed through the simple looking metal gate Alphard felt something in his magical core. Ah, the wards around the house, that’s what it was. They were let in without any trouble, though Alphard couldn’t remember even speaking to Lord Clearwater. They were all just keyed into the ward scheme?

They walked up to the door and after a short two knocks, they were met by a short little girl. She looked similar to Fiona Clearwater, though Alphard knew that Fiona didn’t have any siblings. Most likely a cousin then.

“Is Lord Clearwater home? We’ve a meeting with him.” Arcturus said to the little girl.

The girl just stared at them with her blue eyes and blank expression.

“Does she speak English?” Alphard whispered to Cassiopeia.

“She looks old enough. Mayhaps she’s just nervous to be meeting strangers.” Cassiopeia whispered back.

“Little girl? Do you know if the owner of the house is home?” Arcturus asked.

They got another blank stare in return. It was eerie how it seemed to just penetrate the soul.

Alphard was starting to wonder if they had gotten the wrong house when a voice sounded from inside.

“Claire! There you are, you can’t go wandering off like that.”

They all looked up to see a woman walking towards the door. Arcturus seemed to recognize her, and they all stepped inside as the lady grabbed Claire’s hand.

“Lady Clearwater, it is good to see you again.”

“Oh no need to be so formal Arcturus, just call me Joanna. Now come along, we’ll talk in the sitting room.”

Lady Clearwater led Claire by the hand, and they all walked down the hallway filled with paintings and pictures to the sitting room. Alphard spotted family paintings and pictures on the walls, as well as one that had his son Corvus in it. A rather recent one by the looks of it.

“Claire here had a calming draught to help her sleep, though it seems that it’s wearing off.”

“No worries, Joanna. Just a slight misunderstanding at the door.”

They entered the rather spacious sitting room and took seats around the coffee table. Joanna Clearwater went off with Claire to somewhere and left the three of them waiting around. It was a rather nice home, with walls that weren’t variations of black, grey, and green. There were potted plants and flowers all around and Alphard noticed Steinway grand piano tucked away in a corner.

The entire place seemed, homely. It felt warm to be here.

“This seems rather lackluster Arcturus. The way you described it; I expected a real emergency here.” Cassiopeia said.

“Julian wouldn’t say what it was. Just that he had skeletons in his cupboard and that they were more numerous than others.” Arcturus sighed.

“What could he possibly have? Clearwaters are a light side family and have been for years.”

“Well, whatever it is, he’s taking it seriously.”

The fireplace in the room came to life and out walked Lord Clearwater himself. He was wearing rather normal looking wizarding robes and looked a little surprised to see them in his home. It was a quick look however, and soon his expression switched to that of a more reserved one.

“I wasn’t expecting so many for this talk Arcturus, but everyone will know about it eventually, so it makes no difference.” Julian Clearwater said and vanished the ash and dust from his clothes.

“Julian.” Arcturus said and gave the man a nod.

Clearwater took off his robes and put them onto a nearby coat hanger before heading over to the liquor cabinet and getting himself a drink. Alphard watched with a raised eyebrow as the man downed two consecutive shots before clearing his throat and returning to them and taking a seat on one of the couches.

“This story is not going to be for the faint of heart.” He warned.

“We’ve lived through Grindelwald. I think we’ve seen everything there is already.” Cassiopeia said.

“There are things about that war that haven’t reached the light of day. Though it appears that its being brought back into the spotlight.”

“Would you just tell us what it is Julian. It can’t be all that bad.” Arcturus said.

“You’re going to regret those words by the end of the day Arcturus. You don’t know what things Aunt Lilian did during the war.”

Going by the way the man spoke of the woman, Alphard wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

When the briefcase was brought out and the document and letters revealed… Alphard had to fight to keep his stomach in check.

The contents were not cursed in a magical sense, but the words and images they contained were.

By Merlin and Morgana… what the hell happened to Lilian Viviana Clearwater?