CHAPTER 5; NO PLACE LIKE HOME
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"If you give me just one night
to meet you underneath the moonlight"
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New Light John Mayer
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Ever since Sirius had left last Christmas, she couldn't help but notice just how empty the house felt. It was quiet now. It was never quiet when Sirius was there. Their parents would always be screaming at him and because he was a Gryffindor, he would be screaming back. As much as Ophiuchus hated the fights, she hated the quietness that lingered over the house now.
Before there was screaming, there was laughter. The three Black siblings used to enjoy each others company and to think they would enjoy each others company now was ludicrous.
Their household was only a 20 minute walk from Kings Cross so her parents now trusted her and Reg to make it home alone safely. The two made small talk and the occasional joke as they lugged their trunks behind them. However, when they stood on the street in front of 11 and 13 Grimmauld Place, the talking ceased. Silently they watched as their home was revealed before making their way inside.
"Regulus, Ophiuchus, glad to see you home so quickly." Their mother appeared in the hallway in front of them. Her greying hair was pulled into a tight bun, it made her pinched nose appear more upturned than it already was. "Kreacher will take your things to your rooms. Dinner is ready."
Walburga's heels clicked along as she walked away from them. Both kids were surprised she'd even said more than two words as a welcoming. It was different from the surprised look she had every time either walked into a room, almost as if she forgot they existed.
Ophiuchus and Regulus followed her into the houses dining room. All the best family silverware was on the table and sitting in the seats, were all the most prized members of the black family.
Their cousins Narcissa and Bellatrix had a seat, Narcissa's boyfriend Lucius taking up a place next to her. Ophiuchus's aunt and uncle were across the table from her cousins, her father at the head and her mother to his side. There were three seats left at the end. Everyone knew who it was for and everyone knew it would never be filled again.
She now understood why her mother was acting particularly warm to her children when they arrived. It was all for show. Ophiuchus took a seat across from Narcissa and Regulus took the one beside the older cousin. Politely and quietly, Ophiuchus answered all their questions about school and other irrelevant subjects that made her want to stab her eye out.
She found herself having to force put fake laughs when her family joked about the worthlessness of muggles and the impurities of mudbloods. It wasn't that she didn't agree, she found that she really couldn't care at all about the lesser beings. She thought that all they were really doing was giving them more power by continuing to bring them up. Ophiuchus disliked them as much as the next pureblood but she couldn't see the point of always talking about them because all it did was make everyone angry.
"So, Ophiuchus, seeing as Sirius turned out poorly, it's up to you to mend the family name." Orion Blacks voice was strict and orderly. He never spoke in a different tone. The only things he said were straight to the point, it was hard to recall the last time he told a joke.
Ophiuchus looked up from her dismal plate of peas and potatoes. Glancing at all her family members, she could the expectant looks on their faces. "Mend the family name?"
"Yes. Sirius tarnished it the second he was sorted into Gryffindor. You need to fix it."
"How am I meant to do that?"
"You're aware there is a war on the rise. You need to make it known what side we are on. The right side."
She felt her pallor go paler than it already was. It was like chalk on a rough piece of white paper. There was always a part of her that knew it was coming, she just didn't expect it to come so soon. Bellatrix was grinning, her wild eyes darting between everyone at the table. Narcissa looked nervous yet she was hiding it well.
"I'm not even seventh year yet," Ophiuchus laughed timidly. "Surely I should finish school first."
"The Dark Lord needs all the support he can get," Bellatrix spoke is a hushed yet vibracious way. "It will happen in the summer, you'll be seventeen by then."
Ophiuchus had no choice but to nod. There was nothing she could say, or at least, nothing they would find to be acceptable she busied herself by drinking her entire goblet of water in one go. She made eye contact with Regulus and that's when she noticed how scared he looked.
"May I please be excused?" Ophiuchus all but whispered as she stared at the table.
"You are excused." Walburga said pointedly as she watched her daughter stand from the table and rush up to her room.
There were few times in her life Ophiuchus was scared. Once when she was seven and stuck up a tree, once when she was ten and overheard her parents speaking in hushed tones about their worry of how she had displayed no signs of magic yet, once when Alfrenzo didn't return from a night of hunting and then there was now. Now, she was scared because her suspicions had just been confirmed.
Ophiuchus didn't want to be a death eater. She never liked Bellatrix and she'd always secretly wished she'd never turn out like that. Her superiority complex was large but not large enough to even consider willingly becoming a follower of the dark lord.
Leaning against her bedroom door, she ran her hands down her face and tugged at the ends of her hair. The heart beat in her chest belonged to that of a rabbit running for its skin. A personal hurricane swirled around in her chest, rising to her throat and threatening to become a public affair.
No, no, Ophiuchus Black was strong. She didn't panic and she didn't fret. Ophiuchus stuck her ground and she pushed her way through anything and everything. In through the nose and out through the mouth, she breathed with a steady rhythm until her heart beat at her usual pace.
Alfrenzo weaved between her legs, pushing the side of his head against her and letting out a soft meow. She smiled small and picked up the slender black cat, sitting on the edge of her large bed. Underneath her the dark green silk sheets felt strange.
It was so different to the cotton that Hogwarts provided. It was so different to the feelings she had living in this house. The sheets made her think she should be feeling grateful that she lives in the lap of luxury. In reality she felt out of place and she had such a strong longing to leave. To where? She had no idea.
Sighing as she stroked the sleek animal and he purred beneath her touch, she felt trapped. Her large room had never felt so small and she would kill to get away from it.
Times like these she wished Sirius was still here and that they were still friends. Sirius was always her reason of logic when she was upset. Truth be told, she didn't hate him anywhere near as much as she let on. However, she had a reputation and the families name to uphold. If her parents knew she was anything but hostile with him, they would disown her just as quickly as they did him.
Suddenly, there was a roar from her fireplace as green flames erupted and lit up the whole room. As the fire died down, Cassian was revealed as he stepped out of the mantle and into the room.
"I could've been naked."
"Well, you weren't."
"Could've been." She smirked.
Cassian laughed slightly before sitting next to her. "My parents told me what yours were going to tell you."
"The whole bloody schools gonna know before the end of break at this point." Ophiuchus grunted slightly and sighed.
"I mean it's not like people already thought you- nevermind." Cassian cut himself off when he saw the pissed off look on her face.
"I don't really want this." She spoke quietly. "I feel so stuck, I don't know what to do."
"I don't understand exactly how you're feeling but I get it. It'll be okay. I'll help you and so will Reg and Fern and Al. We're all here for you, Phi."
Ophiuchus smiled slightly and hugged him, melting into his touch as he returned the embrace. The two relished in the silence of the moment as she found a new sense comforted within him.
"By the way," Cassian broke the air between them. "Even if you were naked it's not like I haven't seen it before."