From Beginning to End

Chapter 23: Inherent Wickedness

  "Blimey!" Sirius exclaimed one morning in the first week of December.

James, toast dangling from his teeth, glanced to his left where Sirius was staring shocked at a letter.

"What?"

"Andy's pregnant."

"Who's Andy?" asked Peter after he'd swallowed his milk.

Sirius' hands were shaking and a smile stretched across his face. "My cousin. She was disowned this past summer 'cause she married a Muggleborn but now she's having a baby!"

It was incredible. Sirius was going to have a new cousin. Better yet, that cousin would not be raised with restriction, wouldn't have threats being breathed down their neck at every moment.

He hoped that Andy was happy with Ted and that they had a perfectly happy family. Maybe once he was of age and free to go where he wished, he'd visit them.

"That's brilliant!" James said, "Do you know if it's a boy or girl?"

"Nah, Andy's waiting til the birth to find out, hopefully it's a boy."

A girl would be fine, but Sirius would like a young lad to shape and show the world to. He'd just have to wait until May to find out. The next five months would be excruciating.

"Yeah that'd be cool," Peter agreed.

The winter holidays descended among the adolescents with haste. Soon everyone had returned to either their homes or their dormitories.

Each Hogwarts student was given the opportunity to spend the holiday on campus if their home life was rocky or travel was too difficult. Not many took this opportunity. The majority of students had relatively happy families that they wanted to visit and spend time with. Only a handful from each year stayed.

This would be the first holiday Sirius would have without Andy to distract him from his parents' prejudiced conversations.

Sure, Regulus had always been fun to hang around before, but now that Sirius was in Gryffindor and the latter in Slytherin, the boys had slowly parted. He hoped that perhaps the distance from house rivalries would make their relationship better but he doubted it. Reg idolized their parents and their parents hated Sirius for his vermillion robes.

So unless his baby brother had suddenly decided to think for himself, Sirius would be spending the holidays wholly alone and ostracized.

    Mary sighed as she watched her friends pack. She would be staying at Hogwarts this year. It was for the best, her adoptive-grandmother was ill and so her parents needed to focus on her without the twelve-year-old getting in the way.

She'd have fun, somehow. Besides, this gave her more time to do holiday shopping for her friends.

      The platform was bustling with chatter as parents and siblings greeted one another.

James was quick to rush over to his mum and dad who stood, arms open, smiles adorning their faces, ready to embrace their pride and joy. James laughed and waved, making sure to call loud goodbyes over his shoulder to his mates as he made his way over to his two favorite people in the world.