the siphon | h. potter

~five~

Quick A/N
Attached is Bohemian Rhapsody, for the best experience while reading this chapter I suggest playing this song when Cassandra presses play on the boom box. You'll understand what I'm talking about in a bit ;)

cassandra

Sirius and Cassandra played a few rounds of Exploding Snap before the Weasleys returned from St. Mungo's. Cassandra liked Sirius. Funnily enough he wasn't a very serious person, instead he reminded Cassandra of a class clown.

The large group came bursting through the door with smiles across their faces, their trip had obviously been a good one. Cassandra's eyes moved to Harry who was trailing behind the group with Remus and a woman she had never seen before. The woman was the exact opposite of Remus. Her long brown hair was dyed hot pink at the tips and her mouth seemed to permanently curl upwards at the ends, giving off a mischievous appearance.

The group began to walk towards the kitchen but Sirius stopped them, "Why don't we sit in the living room."

"You can sit in there with your lovely mother, mate. I on the other hand, would rather not listen to her bloody screaming," joked Fred.

"That won't be a problem anymore my friends, Cassandra and Dumbledore took care of that small problem for us," Sirius pointed out the painting of his mother on the floor.

"Bloody hell, how'd you mange to do that Cassandra?" Ron asked in disbelief.

"Two wands are better than one," she shrugged, quoting Dumbledore.

"Well alright then, lets sit in the living room," said the colorful new woman. She then turned to Cassandra. "Thanks for getting rid of that horrid woman, I'm Tonks by the way," she smiled and extended a hand to Cassandra. Cassandra took her hand and shook it.

After learning the living room was not a Mrs. Black safe zone, everyone moved to take a seat. Cassandra however chose to stay standing against the archway. Something about the new warmth in the living room made Cassandra feel out of place. Although not all of the people in the room were related, Cassandra knew they were all one family. As she watched the family in front of her laugh and share, she couldn't help but feel like an intruder.

Cassandra turned away from the living room and quietly ran up the stairs. She could feel tears burning in her eyes and she couldn't bear to let another stranger see her cry. Cassandra entered into the study Sirius had shown her earlier. It was the only place that didn't serve as a bedroom for somebody else. By the time she had closed the door, she could barely breathe. The air was crushing her and every time she attempted to draw a breath the air refused to fill her lungs. Cassandra collapsed to the floor and placed her head between her knees and began to sob.

She cried for the first real time since the night her mother died. Her body shook with sobs and failed attempts of breathing. She saw the family downstairs behind her closed eyelids. Cassandra longed for a family of her own, but she knew it was impossible, her family was dead.

So focused on her sadness, Cassandra didn't hear the door open. However her thoughts were soon interrupted by the feeling of a hand on her knee. Cassandra snapped her head up and found a familiar green eyed boy sitting next to her. With the sleeves of her sweater, Cassandra attempted to wipe away her tears in a hurry. "I'm sorry..." she muttered.

"Don't say that," Harry replied quietly. Cassandra could tell by his sharp breaths that Harry was nervous, but he continued anyway. "Mrs Weasley told me about your mother, and when I saw you go upstairs I knew why. I lost my parents when I was a baby and I used to feel the same way on Christmas, until I met the Weasleys." He paused and looked Cassandra in the eye, "I just um came u-up here because I thought you sh-shouldn't be alone," he said nervously.