༶•┈┈⛧┈♛ "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞." ♛┈⛧┈┈•༶
The cracking of plastic bags echoed. Giggles streamed out of the kids, their smiles widening.
Sitting next to each other, the little girl opened her bag, filled with vibrant sugar-coated candies and lollies. Her pigtails danced back and forth, an audible gasp in reaction. Dancing in her spot, she looked at the boy beside her, curiously waiting for his reaction.
The little boy smiled, jumping like it was Christmas. When he saw his bag, his eyes landed on a candy ring, sparkling in the sunlight. Green in colour, he displayed the ring with pride.
"Princess look! A candy ring!" His voice rose an octave, showing her the shiny jewelry in his hand.
Her eyes dilated at the sight, "Wow." Jessica awed.
She looked down at hers rummaging through it. Her shoulders slumped.
"I don't have one." Eyes trailing to the floor, her smile turned upside down.
Sirius looked at her sad face, glancing at the ring and giving it to her. "Here!"
Looking at him and back to her bag, her eyes softened in reaction. "Really?"
He eagerly nodded, "Yeah- wait!"
Dramatically kneeling on one knee, he looked at her, staring at her caramel eyes. "Jessica! Will you do me the biggest plea- pleas- honour of marrying me?"
His voice was pure, so kind and caring. Sirius smiled at her widely, the sun hitting him on the face.
Looking up, a finger on her chin, she thought about it before knowing her answer. "Yes! I do, Sirius Black!"
"Yay! We will have a wedding tomorrow!" He threw his hands up in celebration, giving her the candy ring and a big hug.
♛♛♛♛♛♛♛
"Fine."
Sending a glare to Andrew, she walked to the other side, sitting next to Sirius. Mimicking her, Andrew rolled his eyes, plopping into the seat next to Wormtail.
Pads looked at both of them, "Alright!" He clapped, enthusiastically looking at everyone in the cart. "Who wants to start?"
Andrew raised his hand.
"I'm Gerald."
As much as she was mad at him, she smiled. What an idiot. Shaking her head, her laugh was as light and gentle as feather. Her laugh is beautiful. Sirius thought, turning to glance at her.
Gazing at each other, light smiles were on their faces. His dark brown eyes looked chocolate, losing herself in them. Sirius's eyes reminded her of the memories they had. It felt sacrilegious to forget them.
The girl next to him glowed beautifully. Admiring her, her eyes looked like honey, her skin flawless. Vision trailing to her lips, she looked unreal- a dream come true.
"CLICK."
Flashing back to reality, both of them looked away from each other. "D-do you want to go?" Padfoot stammered, surprising himself. Why am I talking like that?
Putting a hand through her hair, she grinned, "Um- sure." Merlin, her smile.
"I'm Jessica Blanc. Nice to meet you guys."
He couldn't stop smiling, "Great! Love, this is Peter." Sirius pointed to the boy across from her. Wormtail waved to her briefly, a thin smile plastered on his face.
"Remus." The boy with the scar grinned.
Before Sirius could continue, the boy with the glasses offered his hand, "James, Potter." He introduced himself.
Sirius looked at the hand and back at James. "Yeah..."
Jessica nodded, accepting the hand with a grin, "It's nice to meet you."
A playful glint in her eyes, she gave Sirius a knowing look. "And you don't need an introduction don't you, Black?"
He smirked, "I just have that effect, darling."
As the train started to go faster, time went slower. A hand on her cheek, her eyes followed the bundles of grass they passed, quickly becoming wisps of green.
The running tracks of the train created white noise. If only I could take a picture. Her body was relaxed and her breathing slowed. There was nothing stopping the moment, one so beautiful and serene. I haven't had this in a while. Silence gave her a moment of relaxation, allowing her to appreciate the green pastures.
They reminded her of France, so beautiful and delicate. It reminded her of home, one she wasn't re-entering. Looking at the beautiful blue skies, she watched the shapes of the clouds. Home, Hogwarts was her new home, not Beauxbatons. Her history, her work, as the train got farther from France, she felt it all slipping away. Slipping away, the good and the bad of her history were slipping away, stripping her of old memories. All of the old memories left her as Hogwarts got closer, renewing her chances of a restart. Was this new start worth losing everything? Her work, her scars, her memories.
All the thinking tired her, eyes starting to droop. Drafting into space, her breaths slowed, leaning on the glass.
I could sleep right now. Right as she thought that, her body agreed, yawning in response. Second by second, her body became numb. The lids of her eyes started to close, exhaustion was taking over. I wish I could watch the view and sleep. Her mind wanted to do the impossible. Drifting, she tried to get comfortable under the warm sun.
Sirius saw her move, eyes fluttering open and closed. She must be knackered. Black hair appearing golden in the sun, she leaned on her hand.
"You're tired?" He whispered, asking her gently.
Turning to him, she lightly nodded, meeting his concerned gaze. "I don't want to fall asleep."
Scrunching his eyebrows, his head tilted slightly, prompting her to continue.
"The view reminds me of France. It's just- I'm not going to have anything like this for a while." She whispered, "I don't want to miss the beautiful view."
Turning to the corner to yawn, her voice was muttered. That isn't the only beautiful view. He thought.
"Princess, I think you need some sleep."
Looking at him and back to the view, she gave in. "Fine, Black. But one day you better show me a prettier view than this."
Shifting to the wall next, she leaned on her hand, resting on it while her eyes closed.
He smiled at her words, "I promise, Darling."
She quickly fell asleep, her breathing becoming lighter. Her black hair rested to the side. Her tensed shoulders relaxed and she looked comfortable in her place.
Watching the two, Remus became curious. They definitely knew each other. His eyes went to Andrew, sleeping in the corner- a newspaper covering his face.
"Sirius, how do you know her?"
He watched her like a blossom in the sun. "Through family."
"You don't act like that around family friends."
"She's someone special, special to me."
James watched Sirius, understanding how he felt. Leaning toward him, Prongs whispered. "You should've let her sleep on your shoulder, mate."
Maybe it would have been a better idea, to let her sleep on his shoulder, but he looked at her, peacefully sleeping in the corner.
"I don't want to disturb her. Now shush, she needs to sleep."
♛♛♛♛♛♛♛
The rain pattered down, meeting with the grass to make a light sound. Reading, she tried to focus on studying spells -waving her hands- hoping something would work.
"Wingardium Leviosa." She whispered, her tiny voice determined. Her hand lifted, watching the feather in front of her.
Her father looked at her, with a kind but expectant gaze. "Honey, believe in yourself."
She groaned, falling back onto the couch. They sat here for hours, trying to learn the one spell she did when she was three. It felt like she was devolving, becoming worse in her magic.
"I'm getting worse!" Jessica claimed, angry tears running down her face.
His hand brushed them away, "You're not getting worse." Justin soothed, "It's hard redoing things we did. Not everything is easy."
She sniffled, rubbing her red nose.
Her gaze went straight to the table, the stationary white feather on top. Slowly, it started shifting, floating to her father's side of the couch. She tried analyzing it, only to watch in amazement while her father moved it around.
"Here's the trick."
He started to take his hands and twirl the feather in the hair, spinning it as a light breeze would. In amazement, she chuckled, seeing the feather dance in the air. Whisping closer to her, the feather gently wiped her tears away. Tickling, she smiled at her father, his face reflecting her joy.
"You have to imagine the feather moving."
He made it soar into the sky. "Your mind is the only thing stopping you."
Twirling his hands, his gestures were soft like he was conducting music.
"You cannot force the feather- If I forced you to do something, would you do it?" He looked at her, a knowing look on his face.
"...Maybe," She sweetly lied.
Justin turned to his daughter, "Maybe?" His eyebrows lifted, jokingly heightening his voice.
Jessica giggled, knowing her answer was a lie. "You never know," She shrugged, putting her little arms up.
Justin chuckled, using one hand to mess up her hair, "Ok, tomorrow you better eat your vegetables Ms. Maybe." He teased, dropping the feather to the table.
She glanced at the feather and at her father. "Close your eyes."
Taking one deep breath, she imagined the feather lifting up. Opening her eyes she lifted her hand, feeling nothing but serenity.
The feather lifted with her hand, fluttering back and forth. Jumping, she looked at her father in excitement.
"Look! Look!"
Using both hands, she lifted it to the ceiling, twirling it as her father did. With a large smile on her face, she jumped up and down.
"Good job, Jessica!" He hugged her, "Athena come see this!"
♛♛♛♛♛♛♛
Sirius brushed a hair off her face, waking her up from her sleep. Groggily opening her eyes, she looked at the window, the pitch-black sky waking her up. We must be here now. Jessica rubbed her eyes, squinting at the light in the compartment.
"It's so bright," She complained, covering her eyes.
Sirius chuckled at her, looking at a matching sleepy Andrew. "Wake up you two. We're the last ones here."
Andrew stood up, giving his cousin a hand. "Rise and shine." He mockingly sang.
Jessica looked at both of them, grabbing Andrew's hand and standing up. Turning, she grabbed her luggage and walked out, waiting for Sirius and her cousin to guide her.
The train was nearly empty, the yellow lights gave her a comforting feeling. She didn't know why but it seemed nice - being alone on an empty train. Eyes perusing, looking in each compartment, they all looked soothing, rustic and homely. Putting her purse on her shoulder, she looked through the window, to the dark trees and lamps planted on the roads. Home sweet home.
Following the two boys in front of her, Andrew turned. "You have everything?"
"Yup, do you?"
"Yeah."
They always checked if they lost something, practically paranoid about their possessions. It was a ritual, one that was installed by both of their parents.
Running out of the train, Andrew walked toward his friends, leaving Sirius with her. Giving Jessica a hand, the noirette gratefully took it- a smile on both of their faces.
"Are you excited?"
Her eyes went to him and back to the road, taking a large exhale, "Kind of."
He was surprised at her words, she loved meeting people and, nonetheless, talking to them.
"I thought you loved people."
She chuckled like she was looking back at memories, "I am just careful who I meet now. I mean, I am comfortable around you and Andrew but starting over? That's a little scary." If only you knew...
Sirius nodded, observing her wrap her arms around herself. "You know I am always here, right?"
"Of course I know, Siri." Walking near him, she smiled. "I haven't seen you in two years." She chuckled, finding it hard to believe.
Two years and you still are the same, my safe place.
You changed but you're still you, the one I admired.
"I missed you," She admitted, placing her head on his shoulder.
Like it was a reflex, he wrapped his arm around her. "I missed you too."
The patting of wet leaves echoed, leaving them in silence.
"You know, I'll never be used to calling you Blanc."
Jessica shook her head, her black hair moving slightly. "van der Blanc. It's such a long last name. Even Andrew calls himself Blanc."
"You know what you can do?" He had a small smile on his face.
Her smile grew. She was waiting for his answer, unsure if it was real guidance or a joke.
"What can I do, Sirius?"
"You can take my last name." She could see his smile grow even more.
Punching him jokingly, a light laugh echoed. "In your dreams, Black."
He threw his hands up, a hand through his hair. Sirius laughed at her reaction, "I'm serious!-"
"-You are Sirius-"
"You wanted my last name at our wedding," He teased, showing his empty left hand. A large smirk was on his face, flashing back to their grandiose ceremony. He remembered.
She rolled her eyes, her smile wide. "Yeah, when we were seven?"
His voice was raised, "Exactly! When we were seven- what did you say? Oh Sirius, I love you! To the moon and back."
Her body shrank into him, cringing at what she said, a pink flush on her cheeks. "Shush, Sirius!"
"I love you, Sirius!" The boy continued, mocking her little voice.
An idea flashed into her head, perking up like a bunny. "You know what you said?" Her eyes flashed with mischief.
His smile almost dropped, "You're not."
"Maybe your mates need to hear too," Her smirk grew, running out of his arms.
"Princess!" Sirius hollered, running at her and grabbing her waist.
Lifting her into the air, she giggled. "I love you so much, Jess. More than the moon!" She laughed, losing her breath while Sirius threw her over his shoulder.
"Jessica van der Blanc, I love you!!" Jessica continued, strings of gentle laughter while Sirius spun around, making her dizzy.
"Love put me down!" She declared, holding onto Sirius tighter. Birds are circling my head.
"Only if you say you love me." He dealt. I can hear the smirk in his voice.
"...That's a bad hand."
"Then I am not dropping you, Princess."
She heard her cousin in front of her. "Is that Jess? What are you doing?" He laughed. Her cousin stopped, running back to Sirius to say hello to his cousin.
"How's the weather up there, Cus?" Thanks for the help
With black hair on her face, she shook her head. "I hate you." Her voice was holding her laugh, watching her cousin pat her on the head. I am being bullied.
Feeling her kidnapper's steps quicken, she thought about getting out. "Love, aren't you tired? I mean carrying me must be exhausting."
He shrugged, "No, you're not heavy." Oh- thanks?
Seeing three boys behind her, they all looked slightly concerned. James smiled at Sirius. "Attaboy Padfoot!" He wooed. Peter cheered in the distance.
"Wow, you guys are great!" She exclaimed, pushing her hair out of her face. Her eyes travelled to the soil, holding Sirius tightly. If I fall it is going to hurt.
Remus looked up, chuckling. Remus, please help. "Padfoot, come on, drop the poor girl." THANK YOU!
Sirius chuckled, "Okay!" Her eyes widened. Uh oh.
His arms were released from her waist, letting her go. Slipping out of his grip, she landed feet first, momentum pulling her whole body down. Slightly annoyed, she stood up.
Rubbing her leg, "Remus, out of all of those words you picked that?"
You could hear the laugh in his voice, "It sounded best for the situation." He put his hands up in surrender, shrugging.
With a small smile on her face, she rolled her eyes.
They started nearing the carriages, only one left and waiting.
Hearing steps next to her, Remus appeared, "Jessica, do you mind if I ask you a question?"
Turning her head to him, she nodded, "Of course, you don't have to ask."
He smiled at her answer, "Do you have... supernatural qualities like your cousin?"
"Funny enough my uncle married my father's sister." Jessica chuckled at his face, "Yeah my mother introduced her brother to my aunt on my father's side- So we have the same qualities."
Remus tilted his head, "If Andrew's last name is van der Blanc- your father took your mother's last name?"
Jessica nodded, a light smile ghosting her face. "My father took it as a romantic gesture."
"Pardon me for asking so many questions–."
"- Don't apologize. You're just curious-"
"- I was wondering – vampires need blood to survive. Do you have something to replace muggle blood?"
She opened her mouth, stopping herself to think. "My father's side is a different sub-species of vampire. Like wizards, they are born with an abundance of magic but have the ability to take more power from nature- since everything has magic in it. The dark vampires in the defence against the dark arts are unable to take power from nature and instead feed on muggles since they have trace amounts of magic. My species of vampires -siphoners- take power from nature and learn how to amplify their magic even more."
He nodded, "Does it range how much magic a siphoner is born with?"
She shrugged, "It matters how pure your bloodline is or how strong both of the parents are." Jessica put a hand through her hair. "If you have any questions I could ask my father. Siphoners are ancient magic- I only know the surface-level stuff."
Taking a few steps forward, the brown-haired boy asked another question. " Do you and Andrew take energy?"
She shook her head, "We are half-siphoners. I don't have to. I believe it's because my mother is able to amplify the amount of magic I was passed down through my father. Siphoners also have abilities like better hearing, better sight, and faster reflexes."
Remus nodded in understanding. "That's why Andrew is a good chaser."
She chuckled at his assessment, "I guess so."
Getting used to the darkness, Jessica rubbed her eyes, seeing black carriages and what looked like pegasi carrying them. Those don't look like pegasi... I've never seen black pegasi before.
Taking faster steps, she walked closer to it, her thoughts laced with concern and curiosity. The horses looked malnourished, their wings thin like paper. It's like a bat.
"Jessica!"
Why aren't they feeding the horses? Do they not care? Walking faster, Jessica's eyes widened, its ribs poking out from its body. The spine of the horses had sharp ridges, starting from its head to its tail. Its legs are pins. Finally meeting the horses, she became breathless. These aren't pegasi.
Cowering over her, its eyes were milky white, sending shivers down her back. What are you? Her eyes trailed the divots on its head, a skull of a horse. The mussel was a beak and a hole the shape of a heart replaced its nose. Skin overlapped bones, a horse's skeleton.
Staring at it, she started to lose herself, amazed by what was in front of her. Are they feeding them? It seems malnourished.
Looking at the group- who were running after her- she yelled, "Guys look at this!"
While they slowly stopped, all of them looked at her weirdly- Sirius being the first to talk.
"Princess, what are you talking about?"
Jessica rolled her eyes, "Haha very funny, don't you see this?" She gestured.
Sharing glances at each other, Black answered. "Love, are you okay?"
Andrew walked closer to her, highly concerned. "Jess. There is nothing there." His voice lowered. He's not being serious, is he?
"Guys I'm not joking." She stayed stern, looking at all of them.
Remus pipped, "Jess, it's pulled by magic."
What? They don't see this? You probably do look bonkers right now. Her frown turned into a smile, she started giggling. "Gotcha!"
Jessica waved her hand, missing the horse and flinging her hand through the air. "There's nothing here. You should have seen your faces." She chuckled. Play it off.
They all shook their heads, laughing at her. Opening the door, James hopped onto the carriage. "Jess we need you in some pranks of ours this year- you and Blanc put up a good act."
Jessica looked at Andrew, smiling. "Sure, why not?" Jessica accepted. "Who doesn't love a good prank?"
Sirius wrapped an arm around her. "That's the spirit."
"Wait!"
Jessica hopped in, about to close the carriage door before she saw another witch running toward her, a girl with auburn red hair.
"Wait, please!"
The brown-haired girl held the door open, "It's open!" She yelled back, seeing her right in front of the carriage.
James looked at her and smirked.
"Miss me, Evans?"
𝑨/𝑵: 𝑯𝒊! 𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆. 𝑰 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒂 𝒍𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒅𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒆- 𝒊𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒎𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘!