Warning(s): Mentions of death and (extremely tiny) alcohol use (like I literally just say that somebody used alcohol, nobody's actually drinking it in full-on detail)

     Helena Potter watched as her mother began barricading the door after setting  Harry inside the cot. She heard loud sounds from downstairs and suddenly became frightened. But she was a brave young girl. She wouldn't throw a tantrum and make things inconvenient for her mother. As Lily backed up, blocking Harry's cot while tightly gripping onto Helena and stroking her hair, the door burst open. A strange, hooded man entered, brandishing a stick that Helena associated with bright sparks of color that her parents often played around with. However, this man wasn't here to play around, and Helena knew it. Helena didn't understand much, but she heard snippets of her mother's words.

     "Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"

     The tone of her mother's voice and the slight shake in her words were enough for Helena to understand that the man was bad. The man in question spoke in a cold, emotionless voice.

     "Stand aside you silly girl, stand aside now."

     Helena babbled quiet words of encouragement, causing her mother to take notice of her. Lily, keeping an eye on the man, gently set Helena in the same cot as her brother. Kissing her daughter on the head, Lily whispered to her.

     "Take care of your brother for me, okay? Promise that you'll never leave his side? Can you do that for mummy?"

Helena didn't speak, but Lily knew that her daughter would keep her promise until the very day she died.

     Moments later, Lily was hit with a bright green flash from the man's strange stick, and the man was turned toward Harry. Helena vaguely heard him mutter something that sounded like,

     "That, Severus, is a sign to choose a pureblood next time."

     Helena was too young to understand pureblood supremacy, so she didn't care. What she did care about, was her brother, who she knew was in grave danger. As the man raised his stick in Harry's direction, causing the infant to begin crying, Helena scooted in front of her brother. (That's unrealistic coming from an infant a bit older than one, but oh well)

     "No," she said stubbornly.

     'No' happened to be one of Helena's first words. If it were up to her father, he would've taught her every swear word in the book, but Lily thankfully took charge and taught her something helpful instead.

     "Like mother, like daughter," the man mumbled, moving the hair out of Helena's face to examine her carefully.

     The small action didn't settle well with Helena, who smacked his hand away.

     "No," she repeated.

     The man's face hardened as he shoved Helena aside and raised his wand again.

     "Avada Kedavra!"

     The green light flashed again, but this time, the strange hooded man got hit and burst into sparks before disappearing. Immediately, Harry began crying. Helena was watching him and the door at the same time

     Soon enough, a second man entered the room. By then, Helena was prepared for danger, so she attempted to hide her brother from view. However, this man was more interested in her mother than the twins. He let out a heartbroken sob, one that shook Helena's heart, and he immediately cradled the dead body of Lily Potter.

     "He promised!" the man wailed to seemingly no one.

     As Harry continued crying, the man finally took notice of the infants. Dropping Lily's body gently back onto the ground, he approached the cot and first looked over the crying young boy beside Helena before looking back at the curious girl. He lifted her up, and like the previous man, moved the hair out of her face to admire her eyes.

     "Just like Lily," the stranger murmured softly. "But with his eyes," he scoffed with an afterthought.

     He set the girl back before leaving the room in a sweep of black robes. Helena was relieved; she could finally be left alone with her brother in peace. Baby Harry had a terrible scar on his forehead; the siblings wouldn't forget this. Helena waited a few more minutes, hoping that someone could help them, and help soon arrived.

     Help, in the form of a large, hairy man. He let out a whimper upon seeing the dead body of Helena's mother, but he only bowed his head at her before reaching the cot. He lifted up the siblings without a thought and carried them through the house and towards the front door.

     Helena caught sight of her father on the floor and began babbling excitedly. Her father was here! He could just jump up, shoot some sparks, and save them! As though reading her mind, the large man shook his head sadly, his beard brushing over the infants' heads.

     "He's gone, Helena. They're both gone, and there's nothin' we can do 'bout it."

     He continued walking. Outside the house, there was a man on a motorcycle. He had shaggy black hair and dark eyes. Helena immediately recognized him and her hazel eyes lit up with joy.

     "Pafoo!" she exclaimed happily as Harry kept bawling at the top of his lungs.

     The man smiled kindly at her, though there was a tinge of sadness to it.

     "They're dead, aren't they?" he asked the large man.

     "Yes."

     Tears streamed down his face. The large man hugged him and whispered words of comfort. It may have been a bone-crushing experience, but plenty of emotions went around. Finally, 'Pafoo' came closer to the babies and stroked Harry's hair soothingly as he pressed a kiss to Helena's forehead. There was a sharp intake of breath as he noticed Harry's scar.

     "No, no, no," he muttered suddenly, shaking his head in denial. "They can't be dead," he said.

     He ran into the house, and shortly after, let out a dog-like howl of despair. Even from outside, his words were audible.

     "Prongs! No! Mate, you have to wake up! Your kids need you! Godric, I need you! And Remus! C'mon, it isn't funny anymore, James. Just bloody wake up!"

     Moments later, he came back, tears tracing his face. "Let me keep Harry and Helena, Hagrid. I'm all they have left. I'm their godfather."

     "No can do, Sirius," Hagrid responded. "Sorry 'bout that. Dumbledore's orders."

     "First Marlene, now James and Lily! I can't lose them too! Merlin Hagrid, Dumbledore knows how much those kids mean to me!" Padfoot exclaimed.

     "They're supposed ter stay with Lily's sister, their aunt."

     "Petunia?" Padfoot shrieked. "Merlin, has Dumbledore ever heard the horrendous stories Lily told us about her?"

     "I'm sorry, Sirius," Hagrid apologized again. "That's jus' wha' Dumbledore said. 'Bring Helena an' Harry to me. The safest place fer them is with their aunt an' uncle.' I wasn't given a choice. Besides, don't you already have a kid ter look after?"

     "Capella, yes," Sirius said impatiently. "She's at home, but she'd love to have playmates!"

     Hagrid simply shook his head.

     "Fine," Sirius relented. "But at least take my motorcycle. That way, you'll reach Petunia's faster."

     "Oh– thank you, Sirius," Hagrid responded, surprised that it didn't take much persuasion.

     Soon, Helena found herself wrapped up next to Harry in a bunch of blankets, flying over cities. Harry fell asleep and Helena was beginning to feel herself doze off. However, the infant knew that now wasn't the time. She'd have to wait a bit longer.

     Just long enough for her to make sure Harry's safe. As the motorcycle dipped down and began to move slowly, she spotted two figures. One was a woman with square-framed glasses, black hair tied in a neat bun, and an emerald cloak. The other was an elderly man– no, scratch that– a practically ancient man with bright blue eyes, half-moon spectacles, a long, crooked nose, high-heeled boots with buckles, long robes, and a purple cloak.

     The motorcycle came to a stop and Helena and Harry were brought forward by Hagrid, causing the man and woman's attention to be drawn to the bundle of babies.

     "Hagrid," the man said. "At last. And where did you get that motorcycle?"

     "Borrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir. Young Sirius Black lent it to me. I've got 'em, sir," he added.

     "No problems, were there?"

     "No, sir– house was almost destroyed, but I got 'em out alrigh' before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristol."

     "And the girl?" Professor Dumbledore asked, he and the woman peering into the bundle of blankets to examine the children.

     "Still awake," Hagrid responded.

     "Is that where–" the woman interrupted with a gasp, looking at Harry's forehead. "Sorry," she added.

     The conversation proceeded to go on about Harry's scar. Then, Professor Dumbledore took Harry and Helena towards their aunt and uncle's front doorstep, just as Hagrid spoke suddenly.

     "Could I– could I say goodbye to 'em, sir?"

     Upon seeing Professor Dumbledore's nod of approval, he kissed both twins on the head, causing Helena to whine at the tickly feeling and Harry to stir lightly in his sleep. Suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl similar to Sirius'.

     "Shhhh," the woman hissed at him. "you'll wake the Muggles!"

     "S-s-sorry, but I c-c-can't stand it– Lily an' James– dead, an' poor little Harry and Helena off ter live with Muggles!" Hagrid sniffled, bringing out a large handkerchief to blow his nose loudly.

     The woman patted him gingerly on the shoulder. "Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found."

     Dumbledore walked up to the Dursleys' front doorstep and left the bundle of two babies along with a letter. Noticing that Helena was still awake, he smiled softly.

     "You can sleep now, Helena. No harm will come to you here, I promise you that. You and your brother are safe."

ϟ

     "HELENA!!"

     Pounding on the door, but no response.

     "HELENA!! WAKE UP!!"

     Suddenly, the door burst open, and a boy ran in. He was rather large for his age and had a mop of messy blonde hair. His watery blue eyes glittered with excitement as he attempted to wake his sister up.

     "HELENA!!" he hollered again, jumping on his sister's bed.

     "Ugh, Dudley, what time is it?" she asked sleepily.

     The girl sat up weakly, pushing her vibrant red hair out of her face before rubbing her hazel eyes sleepily.

     "I don't know, why should I?"

     "Because you woke up first," Helena shrugged.

     "Huh," Dudley said, scratching his head in confusion as he considered the possibility that maybe he should've checked the time the moment he woke up.

     Suddenly, hearing his father walking past the room, Dudley ran out to join him.

     Helena strode over to the door and shut it, sighing as she fell backward onto her bed. Another day, the same situation. Every morning, she woke up to her annoying brother, Dudley shouting at her to wake up so they can do something. 'Something' usually meant tormenting Harry, her cousin.

     Speaking of which, she wasn't even sure if Harry was her cousin. She didn't even think Dudley was her brother! Helena was simply told that she was a Dursley, period. No further explanation of why she didn't look like the rest of her family, nor an explanation of why there was an entire year of her life missing from the family photo album.

     She thought that she was adopted at first, but after glimpsing a picture of her 'mother's' sister, she thought otherwise. As she looked at the picture, she noted how she and her 'aunt,' Lily Evans, looked exactly the same except for their eyes. Helena had the strangest feeling that she was her true mother. That became the purpose of Helena's life: to find her family while hiding the discovery from her aunt, uncle, and cousin. She felt guilty hiding it from Harry if there was a possibility that they were siblings, but Helena had to know for sure before trusting him.

     Helena got ready to join her family for breakfast. She quietly tiptoed down the stairs in case Harry was still asleep in his cupboard, unlike Dudley who took the time to jump loudly on every step. As she entered the kitchen, a pungent smell filled her nose. She decided not to question it and simply walked toward her usual seat.

     "G'morning, Mum, Dad," she greeted politely, just as she did every morning.

     "Helena!" Petunia exclaimed warmly. "You're up!"

     "Morning," Vernon grunted, reading the newspaper.

     Just as she was about to take a seat, there was a click as the post came through the slot.

     "Get the mail, Dudley," Vernon said, not paying attention.

     "Make Harry get it," Dudley complained.

     "Get the mail, Harry."

     "Make Dudley get it."

     Helena shot Harry an annoyed look, raising her left eyebrow. He shrugged back at her as though he didn't know what she was on about, causing her to roll her eyes at him.

     "Poke him with your Smelting stick, Dudley," Vernon advised.

     Helena exhaled loudly in irritation and she glared at Harry as if to say 'you always make me do this.'

     "No worries, Dad. I'll get it!" Helena said quickly, dashing toward the front door.

     "What a kind daughter I have! We need more children like this in the world," Vernon praised, causing Helena to roll her eyes.

     "You have a kind nephew too, if you ever cared to notice, Dad," she muttered grumpily.

     She collected the post, and while walking back to the kitchen, she looked through the stack. The usual stuff– and a letter for Harry. Underneath it was a letter for her. Something was off about the addressee, though. 'Miss Helena Potter,' the envelope read. Potter. Not Dursley like she was used to seeing. Assuming the sender was correct, that would make her Harry's sister, proving her theory correct. Helena believed it.

     Both letters were addressed from the same place: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She knew that Petunia and Vernon were against anything remotely unordinary, so they'd confiscate the letter. They may 'love,' her, but that wouldn't stop them. Harry, on the other hand, could make his own choice and read the letter if he wanted to.

     Helena stuffed her letter into the pocket of her trousers and then walked back into the kitchen to give Vernon the post. Sneakily, she passed the letter to Harry, conveniently ignoring the confused look he sent her way. She sat back down and watched Harry carefully and quietly tear the envelope open. He wasn't careful and quiet enough, however, since Dudley heard him.

     "Dad!" Dudley hollered. "Dad! Harry's got something!"

     Suddenly, Vernon jerked the letter from his hand. Helena gave Harry a sympathetic look and mouth 'sorry.'

     "That's mine!" Harry protested.

     Vernon sneered at Harry and glanced at the letter. His face paled and he looked horrified. Dudley attempted to snatch the letter but failed miserably. Helena snickered to herself. Calling Petunia over, Vernon and Petunia stared at Harry in horror.

     Finally, Petunia spoke in a shaky voice to Helena. "Helena, darling, did you receive a letter too, by any chance?"

     "No, mother," Helena lied convincingly. "Why're you asking?" she asked curiously, hoping to get a clue of what was in the envelope.

     "No reason," Petunia muttered, looking back at Vernon with relief.

     Dudley coughed slightly and tapped Vernon on the head with his Smelting stick. Oh, how Helena wanted to smack the stick on Dudley's head herself and whack him until it broke.

     "I want to read that letter!" Dudley announced.

     "I want to read it, as it's mine," Harry argued.

     "Get out, all three of you," Vernon croaked, shakily stuffing the letter back into its envelope.

     Helena immediately ran out, happy to have an excuse to read her letter. Once in the safety of her room, she quietly shut the door and pulled the envelope out of her pocket. She stared at the elegant wax seal before tearing the letter open.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, Internation Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Miss Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1st. We await your owl by no later than July 31st.

Yours Sincerely,

Professor McGonagall (Deputy Headmistress)

     That was it. That very day, Helena found out the truth about her strange life. She didn't need any persuasion to believe that she was indeed Harry's sister, as she had suspected it for a while, much less that she was a witch.

𓅓𐂂⏃ ϟ ⚯ ϟ ⏃𐂂 𓅓

     Capella Black was crawling around the floor, having a great time. Suddenly, her father picked her up and carried her toward her cot. Carefully setting her down, he kissed her forehead.

     "Dada!" Capella exclaimed happily.

     Her father sighed. "I'll be back, Mini-Me. Dada won't forget you."

     With that, he left. Capella was confused the first few minutes that he was gone but then decided that she could wait. She entertained herself by playing with a teddy bear, but by the time a few hours flew by, became bored and fell asleep. So much for 'never forgetting her.' Minutes after she drifted asleep, a man entered the room, and he certainly wasn't Capela's father. He had a long, silver beard, half-moon glasses, and a strange outfit and hat. Capella tilted her head curiously.

     "Hello, Capella," the man said kindly. "I'm here to take you to your aunt and uncle."

     "Aut an' uncl?" Capella asked, struggling to pronounce the new terms.

     "Yes," the man continued patiently. "Their names are Aunt Narcissa and Uncle Lucius. They have a son your age, too. Draco, Draco Malfoy."

     "Draco!" Capella repeated happily, the name being much easier on her tongue.

     The man smiled at her, lifted Capella up, and immediately apparated away. It was a new experience for her, and she felt quite uncomfortable. She felt as if her insides were being squeezed and she began to whimper in fear. Seconds later, the feeling went away. Young Capella blinked in confusion and looked around. She and the man were in front of a huge mansion with wrought-iron gates. As they approached, the gates began speaking.

     "State your name and purpose."

     "It is I, Albus Dumbledore, here to deliver Capella Black to her aunt and uncle."

     The gates magically opened up and Dumbledore continued carrying Capella until they reached the front door, which too opened on its own. A woman was standing not far behind the door. With her neatly-styled hair, perfect face, formal clothing, and elegant posture, it was quite clear that Narcissa Malfoy was not a woman to mess with.

      "Professor Dumbledore," she greeted politely with a slight bow of her head. "Lucius will be down with us in a minute. Draco is currently asleep."

     "Shall I accompany you to your sitting room?" Dumbledore asked.

     "Of course," Narcissa agreed graciously.

     Dumbledore followed Narcissa to the sitting room where he immediately sat in an armchair close to the warm fireplace. Narcissa sat across from him, now staring at the bundle in his arms.

     "That's Capella?" she inquired, tilting her head. "Sirius' daughter?"

     "Yes."

     "Her mother?"

     "Marlene McKinnon," Dumbledore replied. "I'm sure you know her from school?"

     Before Narcissa responded, a second much colder and less welcoming voice came from the entrance to the room.

     "Neither Narcissa nor I associate ourselves with half-bloods such as her," the man said. "So Black's daughter is a half-blood?"

     "Lucius," Dumbledore greeted.

     "Answer."

     Dumbledore sighed softly before nodding. "Yes, she is. I believe that Sirius and Marlene fooled around and became too careless, and upon realizing that Marlene was pregnant, decided not to get rid of the baby. The two took care of Capella until Marlene died, and then Sirius was in charge of her. On that topic, I expect that you treat her well. That is, if you and Narcissa accept your role as Capella's legal guardians, of course."

     Narcissa immediately turned to her husband. "Lucius–"

     "Fine," Lucius interrupted.

     "Wonderful!" Dumbledore beamed. "Raise her as Draco's sister until she receives her Hogwarts letter. I'm sure that she will have questions about her surname being 'Black' rather than 'Malfoy,' so stay patient with her."

     "Of course," Narcissa whispered, staring mesmerized into Capella's young and innocent face.

     "Well then, I will be off," Dumbledore said, standing up and handing Capella over to Narcissa.

     With that, Dumbledore left the Malfoy Manor, leaving Narcissa and Lucius to raise two children instead of one.

ϟ

     "Good morning, Dray! Did you sleep well?" a young girl asked her brother.

     "Yeah, I did," he responded. "How about you, Ella?"

     "The usual," she responded.

     "Children!" the voice of their mother called. "The house-elf has just left breakfast at the table for you!"

     "Coming, Mother!" Capella said back. "C'mon, Dray, we can talk later. We're going shopping in Diagon Alley later!"

     Draco's face brightened up. As the siblings raced down the stairs of the large manor and made their way to the dining table, Capella stopped at the bottom of the stairs and frowned slightly. She turned her head to her brother.

     "Dray... do you know why Mother and Father didn't let me read my letter?"

     "Because you didn't have to," her brother shrugged. "Thanks to all the stories they told us, we've both memorized what the letter says. Besides, Mother already has our shopping lists."

     "But they let you read yours!"

     "Children! Draco? Ella? Oh–" their mother said suddenly, noticing them just then. "You're here," she smiled, embracing them both in a warm hug.

     "Hello, mother," Draco greeted her. "Ella and I were just talking about how you and Father didn't let her read the Hogwarts letter that arrived yesterday.

     Capella groaned softly. Narcissa suddenly looked worried.

     "Ah, yes, I suppose we have to discuss that. Let me talk to your father first, alright?" she asked kindly.

     "Of course," Draco nodded.

     "Sure," Capella shrugged.

     "No need to wait," a deep voice said from behind the kids. "I'm here right now."

     "Father!" Capella exclaimed happily, turning around and running into her father's outstretched arms.

     Draco joined her and the two of them hugged their father tightly. Lucius chuckled and muttered a quiet 'good morning.'

     "Good morning, Father," Capella said.

     Draco simply grinned widely.

     Narcissa smiled at the sight before looking seriously (or should I say... Siriusly? 😂😂 okay, okay, bad joke, I get it) at her husband. 'It's about... her,' she mouthed, tilting her head toward Capella.

     Lucius' beam faded and an unreadable look fell upon his face. Staring at Capella, he couldn't help but feel dread at the thought of what might happen to her after they revealed the information she wanted to know.

     "Ella..." Narcissa sighed, "Let's sit down and I will tell you everything."

     Capella exchanged a confused look with Draco before obeying. The children stared with rapt attention at their parents.

     "On the night of October 31st, 1981, a man came to visit us," Lucius began.

     "That's the night Harry Potter defeated You-Know-Who!" Draco exclaimed excitedly.

     "His name's Voldemort, Dray," Capella corrected.

     Narcissa and Lucius looked nervously around as though they expected Voldemort to appear that very second.

     "Ella, please don't say his name," Narcissa reminded her.

     "Sorry," Capella muttered. "Please go on with the story," she added.

     "Very well. This man came at a bad time since we'd just gotten Draco to fall asleep. He owled us about half an hour earlier telling us that he'd arrive, but we were still confused about why he was even visiting," Lucius explained.

     "Where was I?" Capella wondered.

     "We're getting there. The man was Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts!" Narcissa added.

     "Professor Dumbledore?" Capella asked, amazed.

     Her parents nodded.

     "Why did he visit you?"

     "He was carrying a bundle of blankets and we immediately let him in. He proceeded to tell us that the baby in the bundle was to be ours if we chose to adopt her."

     "Which we did."

     "And the baby was me...?" Capella whispered.

     Narcissa and Lucius exchanged another look before nodding at her.

     "Okay?" Capella asked, sounding more confused than surprised or angry.

     "So she's not actually my sister? She's adopted?" Draco inquired.

     "She is your cousin, Draco."

     "What's my real name, then?" Capella asked.

     "Capella Marlene Andromeda McKinnon-Black."

     "Why do I have a ridiculously long name?" Capella wondered, frowning.

     "Sirius evidentially thought that wouldn't be a problem," Narcissa sighed, shaking her head with a slight smile at the thought of her cousin.

     "I'm sorry, what?" Capella asked. "Sirius as in Sirius Black?"

     "Yes," Narcissa whispered quietly, mentally readying herself for all sorts of reactions.

     "Like the Sirius Black, that's currently in Azkaban for killing Peter Pettigrew and twelve other Muggles?"

     "Yes," Narcissa repeated.

     Capella's next question was rather unexpected.

     "Can I call you Aunt Cissy, then? Since you're my aunt, not my mother?"

     Narcissa sharply sucked in a breath. Closing her eyes softly as Lucius put his arm around her shoulder comfortingly, she said something so quietly that Capella nearly missed it.

     "Please don't call me Cissy. Only Bella ever did that."

     Seconds later, a single tear traced down the length of Narcissa's face.

     "Don't cry, Mother," Draco consoled her, quickly running to his mother's seat to hug her. "I know that was hard to say because you love Ella. I know you miss your sister too."

     Still teary-eyed, Narcissa looked up at her son and niece. "I'm so thankful to have children as kind and mature as you two."

     "And I'm so thankful to have an aunt and uncle so kind that they treated me like a daughter for nearly all my life," Capella grinned, joining Draco in hugging her aunt.

     "I'll call you Aunt Cissa, then. And Father– I mean Uncle, I'll call you Uncle Lucy."

     Lucius closed his eyes in horror. "Please never call me that ever again."

     Capella let out a small laugh. "I was joking, Uncle Lucius. I'm not that bad!"

     The cousins giggled and Narcissa and Lucius smiled at them. To anybody else, they'd look so normal and so happy. Nobody would expect that just the word of a shabby talking hat (I wonder what that is... *cough* the Sorting Hat *cough*) would tear that family apart.

𓅓𐂂⏃ ϟ ⚯ ϟ ⏃𐂂 𓅓

     Ruby Lupin was having a normal day. A normal day, meaning that she'd be forced into her cot for at least six hours as her depressed mother would go to a club and drink until it would seem impossible that she'd ever be sober again. That cycle went on for quite a few months– a little over a year, actually, ever since her father left her pregnant mother.

     Rachel Willows was an incredibly smart, kind, and remarkable woman. However, her fear took over and made her an entirely different woman. She was still the neat freak and bookworm her schoolmates and teachers remembered she was, but she became a heavy drinker. Remus Lupin, on the other hand, felt ashamed of himself for leaving her with an infant. Both were too afraid to approach the other, leading to the infant in question having a rather terrible childhood.

     Ruby always wanted a playmate, someone she could frolic with or even just hug. She couldn't remember the last time her mother hugged her.

     She sat in her cot for hours, at least until the lock clicked and the front door opened. It was rather early, so Ruby was confused about why her mother was back already. It wasn't her mother, however. It was the neighbour, Mrs. White. Mrs. White was an elderly lady who often dropped by the house to deliver cookies or watch Ruby for a bit. The woman walked straight into the nursery and to Ruby's cot.

     "Hello, dear," Mrs. White greeted warmly. "Your mother is in the hospital, having another baby! And I get to watch you! Isn't that wonderful?"

     Ruby didn't respond and instead lifted her arms up, eager to be let out of her tiny cot.

     "Oh, somebody's excited, huh?" Mrs. White exclaimed. "Let's go to my house!"

     Needless to say, Ruby had the best few days ever at Mrs. White's, at least until her mother came to pick her up. A week after Mrs. White brought her home, the doorbell rang. The elderly lady left Ruby in the living room to answer the door. Immediately, the voice of Ruby's mother came, sounding exhausted, and for once, sober.

     "Hello Mrs. White, I'm here for Ruby. Thank you so much for watching her the past week!"

     "Oh, it was no problem, darling. I've missed having company at home, so I enjoyed myself with your daughter," Mrs. White explained.

     "That's lovely," Rachel smiled.

     "How's the baby?" Mrs. White asked. "Did you name her yet?"

     "She's okay, but admittedly, she could be doing better. Her name's Elizabeth. Elizabeth Sage."

     "What's her surname?" Mrs. White wondered.

     "I don't know," Rachel muttered sheepishly. "I was drunk when I got pregnant. I don't know who the father is."

     Mrs. White gasped. "That's terrible!"

     "I know," Rachel sighed. "On the bright side, I managed to contact Ruby's father, and he's willing to adopt both girls."

     "Why are you giving them away?"

     "Well, I haven't been the most responsible parent lately..."

     "I get it. You do what's best for you, dear. What did you say Ruby's father's name was?" Mrs. White asked.

     "I don't think I ever mentioned him, but his name is Remus Lupin."

ϟ

     "Dad! Beth stole my hairbrush again!"

     "Fight for it, Gem!" Remus urged, trying hard not to chuckle as he flipped the pancake over on the stove.

     "Ow!" a second voice complained.

     Remus sighed and turned off the stove, moving the pancakes over on a plate. He folded his apron and went up the stairs in his cosy little cottage to check on his daughters.

     "Gem! Beth! What's going on up there?"

     11-year-old Ruby Lupin walked over to her father, causing him to burst into laughter.

     "For Merlin's sake, Dad! Don't laugh about it!" she growled in anger.

     Ruby's hair, as it was every morning, looked worse than a rat's nest. It stuck up in all angles, and even if it was short, had tangles. And every morning, Remus would laugh his head off at the sight.

     Elizabeth, Ruby's sister, came over with a hairbrush. "Sorry Ruby, here's your brush."

     "Don't do it again or you'll regret it," Ruby threatened.

     "Should I take the brush back?" Elizabeth taunted. "Or maybe one of your books?"

     "You bloody idiot! Asshole! You–"

     "Ruby," Remus said with a slight cough, "What did I say about swearing?"

     "That only you can do it because you're a childish parent," Ruby responded immediately.

    "Ye–" Remus cut himself off suddenly. "Wait, that's not what I said."

    "Yeah, Ruby, you have to listen!" Elizabeth teased.

    "You bitc–"

    "Never mind that," Remus said hastily, interrupting Ruby. "I have a surprise!"

     "A cat?" Elizabeth asked immediately, looking quite eager at the thought.

     Ruby caught her father's eye and refrained from snorting. Instead, she settled with rolling her eyes.

    "No," their father sighed. "Your Hogwarts acceptance letters. But I'll give them to you at the table," he added quickly, noticing the girls' eyes staring at the hand that hid behind his back. "There's something important we need to discuss related to the letters."

𓅓𐂂⏃ ϟ ⚯ ϟ ⏃𐂂 𓅓

     Elizabeth Pettigrew was just a few days old when she moved from one house to another. Her mother, Rachel Willows to her stepfather, Remus Lupin. Needless to say, the only life she remembered having was one with Remus and her half-sister, Ruby. She only remembered her mother kissing her head and whispering,

     "I love you, Elizabeth."

     At any rate, Elizabeth hated being called by her full name and went by 'Beth' instead. She remembered the one time her sister, Ruby, called her Elizabeth. They were both seven years old at that time and had just begun developing signs of magic. That morning, Remus was more tired than usual since there was a full moon that night. The girls made their own breakfast: buttered toast, scrambled eggs, and bacon.

     "Hey, Elizabeth!" Ruby hollered. "Can you pass me a knife?"

     "I'll do you one better," Elizabeth snarled. "I'll pass you a punch!"

     She never went through her threat, since Remus chose the perfect moment to walk through the door, looking weary and exhausted. At the sight of their father, both girls jumped up in concern.

     "Dad!" Ruby exclaimed, running over and helping Remus into a chair. "Are you okay? How was the transformation? Was it painful? Merlin, I completely forgot to leave breakfast out for you! Here–"

     "Gem, I'm fine," Remus assured her, smiling lightly up at his daughter.

     "Have my breakfast," Elizabeth suggested. "I'll make more for myself."

     "But–"

     "No buts!" Elizabeth huffed. "I always wanted to say that," she giggled.

     Remus shook his head before accepting Elizabeth's food and eating. Elizabeth walked over to the fridge, pulled out an egg, and began preparing scrambled eggs.

     "Honestly, I'm so lucky that I have you two," Remus sighed.

     "Yes, children make the perfect slaves," Ruby agreed sarcastically.

ϟ

     Elizabeth woke up one morning and felt rather mischievous. So, she snuck over to her sister's room and stole her favorite, and only, hairbrush. Then, she hid the brush under her bed and got ready. That's how Remus came up the stairs to hear his daughters shouting at each other.

     "Beth! What did you do to my hairbrush?"

     "Nothing."

     "Don't lie! I know you have it! Give it back!"

     "I would, but I don't have it."

     "Dad! Beth stole my hairbrush!"

     "Fight for it, Gem!" their father hollered from the kitchen.

     Elizabeth made a grotesque expression toward her sister. Smack. Ruby placed a well-aimed slap on Beth's face.

     "Ow!" Beth yelped, holding her hand up to inspect her face for blood.

     "What's going on up here?" Remus asked, creeping quietly up the stairs to observe the scene.

     Ruby dashed up to him and gestures toward her hair wordlessly and Remus burst out laughing at the sight. Beth quickly ducked her head under her bed to fetch Ruby's hairbrush. She came back out of her room and handed Ruby's brush back.

     "Sorry Ruby, here's your brush."

     Ruby smirked at her behind Remus' back. In return, Elizabeth stuck her tongue out again as she handed her sister's brush back.

     "Don't do it again or you'll regret it," Ruby threatened.

     "Should I take the brush back?" Elizabeth taunted. "Or maybe one of your books?"

     "You bloody idiot! Asshole! You–"

     "Ruby," Remus said with a slight cough, "What did I say about swearing?"

     "That only you can do it because you're a childish parent," Ruby responded immediately.

     "Ye–" Remus cut himself off suddenly. "That's not what I said."

     "Yeah, Ruby, you have to listen!" Elizabeth taunted.

     "You bitc–" Ruby growled.

     "Never mind that," Remus said quickly. "I have a surprise!"

     "A cat!" Elizabeth exclaimed excitedly.

     Ruby rolled her eyes and Remus shut his for a second before sighing.

     "No," he sighed. "Your Hogwarts acceptance letters. But I'll give them to you at the table. There's something important we need to discuss related to the letters."

     "Aw, Merlin," Elizabeth sighed.

     "I'm your dad, not Merlin," her father reminded her, a playful smile flickering across his face.

     "Really?" Elizabeth asked. "I didn't notice. It's an expression, Dad! Honestly, adults these days," she rolled her eyes.

     "Okay, I guess I won't give you your Hogwarts letter," Remus shrugged.

     "Noooo, I want it!" Elizabeth wailed. "I'm sorry for being rudeeee! Please forgive meeee!"

     Ruby smirked. "How 'bout you go on your knees and beg for your letter?"

     "No!" Elizabeth and Remus protested together.

     "Let's just go down. I prepared pancakes and sausages for you girls!"

     "Oooh, pancakes!" Ruby perked up, racing down the stairs to get her plate.

     "Race you, Dad!" Elizabeth exclaimed, running after her sister.

     Thanks to Remus' werewolf abilities, he easily beat Elizabeth to the table and grabbed his cup of coffee and plate of food. Ruby was already digging into her pancakes and had her mouth stuffed.

     "Ith soh goobh!" Ruby said through a mouth full of food.

     "Chew first, talk later," Elizabeth suggested.

     Remus glanced between his daughters before speaking. "Here's your letter, Ruby."

     Ruby politely held out her hands to accept her letter. The envelope had her name neatly printed in black ink with the Hogwarts crest. She eagerly tore open her letter and began reading.

     "Wait," Remus told her.

     Ruby looked up.

     "Beth, I have your letter, too. The reason I wanted you both here was because the envelope didn't say 'Elizabeth Lupin.' It read 'Elizabeth Pettigrew."

     Ruby gasped immediately. "Like your friend! Peter Pettigrew!"

     "Exactly," Remus confirmed.

     "How is that possible?" Elizabeth asked. "I thought you were my dad!"

     "I thought so too," Remus agreed. "But, I owled your mother–"

     "–What? My mother?"

     "–And she still doesn't know who your father is, Beth, but she did reveal that she was pregnant a bit before Lily and James died, making it a possibility that Peter is your dad."

     "My letter uses the surname 'Pettigrew,' so that basically confirms your theory," Elizabeth realized.

     "Yes," Remus agreed. "And that makes you and Ruby half-siblings."

     Silence.

     Ruby had her fork up halfway to her mouth, staring in shock. "We're half-sisters," she muttered. "I'm shook right now–"

     "You kids and your modern phrases," Remus rolled his eyes.

     Ruby chuckled, still looking 'shook.' "I didn't even realize I had a mother," she commented. "I only knew you as my dad and that was that."

     "Same here," Elizabeth agreed. "Honestly, I don't even care that I have a 'real' dad, because you're still my wonderful father. Blood-related or not, we're still family and I still love you." Remus looked touched. "Was my real dad– well, Peter– a good friend?" Elizabeth wondered.

     "I was probably the closest to him," Remus said thoughtfully. "Padfoot and Prongs didn't want to do much with Peter. He was usually there just because he was talented with simple spells such as 'Incendio.' Y'know, those sorts of spells."

     "Incendio isn't a simple spell!" Ruby said immediately.

     Remus chuckled. "For us, it was. Spells such as Lumos and Alohomora? Child's play!"

     "Woah!" Elizabeth said excitedly. "Dad, was Peter an Animagus like Uncle Padfoot and Uncle Prongs?"

     "Yes," Remus responded. "He was a rat. I thought I mentioned it before, actually. It's a fact I find ironic since your favorite animal is a cat."

     Ruby laughed at that. "You're probably so excited to go to Hogwarts just so you can have a pet cat, huh?"

     "Um, of course! Cats are awesome!" Elizabeth said with total duh energy.

     "Maybe you can get a cat," Remus told her, "but in case you forgot, we already have a dog." He gestured to the family dog, a fluffy, black, German Shepherd named Foot. A very questionable name, but he was named after Padfoot.

     "My cat and Foot will be very good friends," Elizabeth huffed. "Don't fall for the common misconception that all dogs and cats fight with each other."

     "Whatever," Ruby groaned. "I just can't wait to go to Hogwarts!" she exclaimed.

     "Me too," Elizabeth agreed.

Omg y'all! I don't know when I'll publish this, but it's completed as of July 12th, 2022. It's currently at nearly over 6.6k words!! Whenever you're reading this, I hope you enjoy it. Please vote and comment! The attention means a lot. Do note that I appreciate constructive criticism, but please no hate comments. If I see any racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or other forms of hate comments, they will be deleted. Thank you!!

August 4th: I'm about to publish this! Anyways, I hope you like the chapter! I just edited it so if there are any mistakes, whoops. Thank you for reading, lovelies! <33

August 9th: There were mistakes, but they should be fixed now!! I'm so awesome for that *dramatic hair flip*

August 31st: I went through and fixed some more stuff, so yeah 😃 There's an itty bitty little change in the dialogue but it doesn't really affect anything.

September 11th: I added a new character; Foot the German Shepherd!