Shades of Silver and Black

EXTRA 4

THE TOP EIGHT THINGS LYRA LEARNT FROM TRAVELLING SO FAR:

— Spells recited in parseltongue are incredibly powerful and dangerous which is why most of them require obtaining formal permission from the respective country's Ministry before they are performed. For example, fiendfyre (parseltongue version) burned a toxic shade of green than bright auburn and once set free on a specific target, could only be controlled or exhausted by the one who had performed the incantation.

— Lucius preferred sleeping on the left side of the bed with the windows open.

— It absolutely sucked when as a healer, all you could do was your best but sometimes, it's not enough. Especially when your patients put their faith in you or worse, knew they weren't going to make it but appreciated your efforts anyway.

— Lucius liked his eggs sunny-side-up.

— Her barely a year abroad allowed her more relief than her entire life in Britain yet homesickness beckoned her like the lulling of a Siren into treacherous waters.

— Lucius should only be trusted to go on trips related to work with a definite amount of money. Otherwise, he'd realise their lovely home had a great lack of old objects that smelt odd and like the dead—it's almost like Lyra, despite insisting otherwise, didn't want any present, but that couldn't be it— and try to rectify it.

— The stars looked and felt different depending on where they were. In Britain, they looked scrutinising and felt mystical. In Peru, they looked far and felt warm. In Argentina, they looked affectionate and felt comforting. In Malaysia, they looked like big, shining balls of gas and felt like light.

— For Lyra, distance helped stitch up open wounds better than time did.

I recently got a question on why the title of this book is "Shades of Silver and Black" + the relevance of the different parts so I thought I'd explain it here, in case anyone else was interested ~ I'd also love to know your interpretation as well if you feel comfortable enough to share :)

There are five parts to this book, each used to separate various stages in Lyra's life and mainly, so I don't have to publish five different books to showcase her journey.

"Shades of Silver and Black" which is the book title (which is also the heading of part one) relates to Lyra because, well, she's a Black and it is in this part that she is introduced as the Silver Queen, which is a major part of her identity. She's also the prefect of Slytherin, which has the colour of silver. Lyra's hair is black, (so is her humour at most times) and in this part, both silver and black constitute her equally.

"Shades of Silver with Black" follows Lyra in her sixth year. She's still the Silver Queen and she is still a proud member of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black. However, silver is slowly seeping in. Now, her relationship with Lucius Malfoy—who is all silver in his hair, his eyes, his attitude—is adored. Her silver tongue is also present in the court scene that occurs here when she stops a bill from being passed. The difference between 'and' and 'with' is that 'and' implies that it is two separate things in one and 'with' implies that it is two things co-existing in one; if that makes sense?

For part three, when I wrote "Shades of Silver in Black" I imagined the night sky. The eternal stretch of darkness and the twinkling lights scattered sporadically—the shades of silver in black. Lyra's in her last year at Hogwarts, this will be the last year she gets to be Queen. The glory of her youth is taking a back step as she faces reality and demons that come in the form of impending war and irritating dark lords. She's proud to be a Black, and the beauty of her journey as a Slytherin and the Silver Queen is shining dots—stars—in the enormous tapestry of her life.

Part four is "Shades of Silver between Black." It's Lyra Black travelling with Lucius Malfoy. It's Lyra feeling betrayed by the Blacks—her family—and dying her hair silver as a silent rebellion. It's Lyra re-discovering an identity that doesn't just consist of her surname. It's Lyra allowing her hair colour to return to black. It's Lyra walking down the aisle under the stars that she and the rest of the Blacks impersonate and accepting the name Malfoy.

Next, we have (the last part until maybe I change my mind and decide to write more) part five, "Shades of Silver after Black." Here, Lyra's hair is black, her magic is black, her intentions are black, but her eyes are grey, her heels are diamond, her soul is silver and her daggers are metal. Now, she'll use the Malfoy name but her lips will always speak of the stars as home. Now, I'll be sharing Lyra's odyssey after she had to discard the name 'Black'.

(—but don't worry, being a Black is more than a name. It's a behaviour. All you have to do is be a little wicked, a little insane, a little ruthless, a little charming and utterly beautiful—)