Lacerta Black -- James Potter --

1

Nothing had been the same since Sirius' departure from Grimmauld place earlier that week. The fireplace was closed off by a thick, iron grate and anti-apparation charms all around the home to prevent anyone from getting in or out. At night, their rooms were locked with a powerful spell that burnt the skin of their palms whenever they so much as brushed against the handle. Their parents had been stricter than usual, which was shocking to say the least.

Their first appearance as a family of four was to none other than the Rosier's annual summer ball that they held in their grand backyard. Their son was a boy in Regulus' year, as Lacerta was born in the summer of 1960 and barely made the cut to attend school the same year as Sirius. 

They sat in the middle of everyone, their mother always said that the Blacks were like royalty and needed to be treated as such. Lacerta was in a modest ballgown with a corset wrapped around her like a cobra killing its prey. The neckline was an itchy lace that felt like tiny bugs on her skin. Regulus was in a stiff suit that made him look more like a board of wood than a human.

"You should be out dancing, Lacerta," Walburga chided. "Your Uncle Cygnus was engaged at thirteen."

She turned her head to subtly roll her eyes, careful to hide the action from her parents. "I don't like anyone here, Mother. None of them have any personality beyond a full bank account at Gringotts."

"Mind your manners, Lacerta," Orion sneered. He looked around warily to make sure no eligible bachelor heard his daughter. "What about Selwyn? You two had been getting along last I heard."

Her face flushed crimson red with unimaginable anger, no one had known what had conspired between the two and she planned to keep it that way. "I would never dream of being with a self-obsessed prat like him."

The siblings breath caught in their throat as they saw their Mother's hand flicker toward her waist were her wand was tucked away. Regulus intervened, "Lacerta, would you mind accompanying me to the dance floor? I planned on meeting Evan and I'm sure we'll run into Natalia."

Walburga and Orion nodded in approval at the familiar pureblood names, waving them away as their cousins Narcissa and Bellatrix approached the table. She grabbed his elbow as her brother escorted her to a secluded corner by a large rose bush. They snuck behind it, where their friends were waiting with a bottle of firewhiskey. Their posture slackened as she took a seat on the grass. 

Across the garden, James and Sirius looked around for any signs of the latter's brother or sister. As soon as he had arrived at the Potter's mansion, he'd regretted not asking Lacerta or Regulus to join him. James was the one to have come up with the plan to find them. 

"This is no use, mate," Sirius sighed, keeping a close eye on his family so that no one would know he was there. 

"How about we split up?" James suggested. He ran a hand through his messy black hair as he scanned the area for any signs of the infamous Black siblings. He stood out like a sore thumb in the crowd of pristine people who didn't have a strand of hair out of place.

"Ok," he hesitated. This wasn't a good place for a blood-traitor like James Potter to be found wandering alone and not allowed to use a wand. "But meet me back here in thirty minutes."

"Deal," he agreed before they parted.

As the mom friend of the Marauders, he felt like he had to keep it together for his friends. Sirius for obvious reasons, Remus and his struggle with lycanthropy, and Peter whose parents had just gotten divorced. His break up with the one and only Lily Evans seemed miniscule compared to their problems. 

He'd spent around ten minutes weaving through people before he stumbled across a tispy Lacerta with her arms wrapped around another girl.

She looked as gorgeous as ever with her naturally curly hair straightened and styled in a painful bun. Her natural fox eyes were lined with a smudged black liner. Her curves were hidden by the hideous gown but she glowed like an angel with a pink flush to her pale cheeks.