September 1, 1971
Dear Diary,
Sirius and I are finally going to Hogwarts today. Oh, how excited I am to go. I have been waiting for this day for ages now. It feels like just yesterday we saw our cousins getting ready to leave for Hogwarts, and now we will be doing the same.
Everyone is in their rooms getting ready to go to Platform 9 and 3/4. I'm so nervous I wouldn't be surprised if I left some books behind by mistake. My cat, Midnight, is not very fond of having to be stuck in a cage for the day, but I'm sure she will be fine.
I am hoping to be sorted into Slytherin. After all, that's where everyone in the Black family has been sorted. Oh- mother just said we need to hurry and get downstairs. I am hoping to write more once I've settled into my new dorm after sorting.
A.B.
-
From what Harry could tell, Astrid was only 11 years old when she first wrote in the diary. Glancing at the writing, he noticed a word scribbled to the bottom of the page.
"Ostendo"
After reading the word, Harry noticed how the diary started to glow as smoke began to fill the room. It covered every inch of the room and soon, Harry could no longer recognize his surroundings.
Once the smoke finally began to clear, Harry found himself shocked at what he saw before him. He was no longer in his dorm. He was in a bedroom.
The room was decorated with black furniture and silver accents on the wall. There was a young girl that laid flat on her stomach on the bed that was in the middle of the room.
Harry had never seen this girl before, and it appeared that she was scribbling in a journal. The journal looked similar to the one that he had just been reading.
The girl had a young, innocent face. Her black hair fell over her eyes while she tried to write into her diary. Her gray eyes squinted as she concentrated, making her look as if she was writing the most important thing in the world. To her, the diary probably felt the most important thing in her life at the time.
As he approached the girl, Harry noticed that she had not acknowledged his presence at all. It was almost as if he wasn't there. Harry noticed how the girl had a trunk next to her bed, one that he assumed she was probably going to take to Hogwarts.
Before Harry can reach her, an older woman barged into the room. "Astrid," shrieked her mother, "Stop it with your nonsense and get downstairs this instant."
Harry recognized the women: Walburga Black. He remembered seeing her on the Black Family Tree where she placed next to her husband, Orion Black. Walburga wore the same stern face she had in her portrait, one that would probably scare children as she walked by.
The girl, who Harry learned was Astrid, jumped up before grabbing her journal and rushing to get out the door.
"Yes mother," answered Astrid as she finished writing in her diary and stuffed it into her trunk.
"Kreacher," she called out. A younger version of Kreacher popped out in front of the girl. While this version wasn't much younger than the one that Harry knew, this Kreacher didn't look as glum when he saw Astrid.
"Kreacher, can you please bring my trunk downstairs?"
"Of course, my lady," Kreacher agreed as he vanished with the trunk. Astrid ran out of the room as Harry tried to keep up with her.
The house was just the same as Harry remembered it from his time. Not much was different, except how much cleaner everything was. As Harry followed Astrid, he noticed a boy that popped his head out of a room down the hall.
The boy had black hair and piercing blue eyes. He appeared to be younger than Astrid and did not seem happy with having to go downstairs.
"Do you have to go Astrid? You can always stay another year and start with me. I swear, I doubt anyone would even notice," said the boy pleading. Harry assumed that the young boy was Astrid and Sirius's younger brother, Regulus Black.
"Oh, stop your whining Regulus. You'll soon be going to Hogwarts next year. I would quiet down unless you want the father to hear you," said another boy who popped around the corner and wrapped his arms around Regulus's shoulders in a teasing matter.
After close inspection, Harry took notice of the boy's long, black hair and dark eyes. He has seen those eyes before. Realization fell over Harry's face as he continued to look at the boy.
"Oh, stop being rude to him Sirius. You're just jealous that mother prefers him over you," teased Astrid as she took note of her brother's jealousy over Regulus.
Harry was marveled at the scene before him. Harry not only had Astrid in front of him but also a younger version of Sirius and a brother that Sirius hadn't mentioned before. Harry began to feel overwhelmed with information as he watched the siblings walk down the stairs and towards their parents.
"Children, time to go. Kreacher is already taking care of your belongings. No fooling around. Time for you all to take responsibility for being a Black and act accordingly." Orion Black threw a harsh glare at Sirius as he spoke.
Even before Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor, Harry could tell that Sirius was always the disappointment of the family. He could only imagine how much worse it would get once his parents found out where he was sorted.
As they began to head out, Harry noticed Astrid slowly reach over to Sirius and grab his hand.
"Don't worry Sirius, you know how father gets," said Astrid with a soft voice. Harry noticed the slight frown that was painted onto her face.
"It's alright, I think it's about time I embrace being the family disappointment," Sirius spoke with confidence as he puffed out his chest and masked his emotions from his sister.
Before going to the fireplace, Sirius turned to Astrid and whispered into her ear. "Promise me we will never turn out like them. We will stick together."
Astrid smiled and slowly wrapped her arm around his. "Don't worry Sirius, we aren't like them." Little did the pair know that this was the last, nice moment they had together before they were split apart by the sorting hat.
With that, Harry watched as they all disappeared into the flames and left him all alone to processed what he just witnessed.
YOU ARE READING
Keep Breathing ♢ James Potter
同人小说"I want you to understand something, Harry...James loved Lily. He truly did love you and your mother. But what Astrid and James had was more than just love. It was all things above love. It was a sacrifice. It was putting each other first. It was m...
