lucky hand | remus lupin

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏.

          lavanya was a proud girl, much too proud to be a sickly child of just eleven years old. she was the first born daughter of the prestigious fawley's, a long line of pureblood witches and wizards who owned several businesses overseas. she was the firstborn of the family, expected to take over the family businesses upon the removal of her trace.

she was proud, in a sense, because it meant she would become head of household within just six short years because of fawley rules, it meant that once a person turned of legal age, they would be granted head of household. after so, they would be married to a pureblood of their parents choosing, and be urged to produce an heir, no matter how long it took. then, the responsibility would then be passed to their eldest child upon their coming of age. the upcoming heir could not be disowned or switched to the next child, save for death of insanity, so it would be guaranteed to go to lavanya herself.

lavanya was proud of her ability to grasp magical concepts that were explained to her nearly immediately. pureblood mannerisms came to her in an instant and she was proud she could absorb it with gusto. concepts that involved history or the space around them bored her to death.

she was proud of being able to make friends with every student at her primary school. prior to sending their children to higher education schools such as hogwarts, beaxbatons or durmstrang , they would send their kids to wizarding primary schools much like lavanya's alma mater, sonara primary school for wizarding children.

the girl was proud of her magic and that she was a wizard. her family, at least, a small chunk of it held great regard in her heart. especially her brothers and sisters.

however, as a proud girl of only eleven. she held many things she was not proud of very dearly with what she held gracefully close to her heart.

her parents for instance , were one case of this discontent. her father, vikas ii's ghastly infatuation with the dark arts, and the old-fashioned ideals of purebloodism sickend her. the way he treated those with less than 100% blood purity made her feel ill. and her mother, an artist, a peacemaker, silent at his feet. a quiet woman, neha, who didn't speak up against a single thing he had done, preferred to keep herself locked away. she wasn't proud of their harsh words, their obsession with the blood that would look the same as the other when spilled upon the ground.

she wasn't proud of when some of the other kids would cower in fear at the name, how she would make friends, but they'd be gone overnight after hearing what family she came from.

she wasn't proud of of the illness coursing through her veins every night that sent sickening swirls through her body. and how the illness nearly let her cough up a lung entirely, and how blood she'd coughed up painted her throat with red. she knew what it was , but would never say.

and she wasn't proud that despite knowing many, she had never been able to maintain friendships with nearly every other child at sonara.

lavanya wasn't proud of her father. she wasn't proud of what he subjected her and her family to. and her mother was no better, letting him get away with tossing unforgivables as much as he tossed slurs.

but yet, here she sat, under a pile of sheets , in the room she shared with one of her sisters, listening as her father recited the words of "a pureblood's guide to etiquette" to her sister. the words pounded in her brain like nails. after having heard it so many times, for so many years, the words went in through one ear and out of the other. never had lavanya been so happy to finally be sent off to school.

"nanagaru(dad+honorific)?" she heard her sister whisper.

"asha, dear, you're interrupting the works of nott." her father sternly repeated.

"but it's..important.."

"alright." he sighs, and glances towards lavanya before turning back to asha.

"okay..well.." asha pauses for a moment. "what makes us so much better than the muggleborns.." upon hearing that, lavanya holds her breath, bracing herself for her father's answer.

he tilts his head, a little taken aback by the question, and suddenly, his face hardens. "we were the first to have magic, and we keep it well within the confines of those like us. the mudbloods however, are magic thieves. don't let me hear you ask that again. and call them mudbloods, that's their proper term. "

he scoffs, and turns so that lavanya is also in his line of site. "you know well to not make friends with those people when you go to hogwarts, girl. that halfblood future headmaster of yours will try to spread his mudblood sympathiser bullshit, but you know what you have to do right kanna(darling)?" lavanya quickly nods, not wanting to anger him.

vikas ii stands to get up off the edge of asha's bed and walks towards the door. he turns around to face the two girls once more. "you both should know the importance of unifying ourselves with other purebloods, the black family is coming for lunch tomorrow with their sons, behave." he twists the knob slowly, and closes it behind him, and the lights dim to darkness as he leaves, leaving the two girls in the dark room.

lavanya lays back in her bed, and closes her eyes but her readiness to sleep is distupted by a quiet whisper, "akka(big sister)?" she turns to face her wide-eyed sister who was laying just feet away in her bed.

"yes?"

"why is nana like that?"

"I couldn't tell you meri jaan(my life)."

"akka?"

"yes?"

"are you still feeling sick? need your medicine? do you think you can handle lunch?"

lavanya coughs, feeling bile rise through her throat, and swallowing it back. "i can handle anything meri jaan. i've taken my medicine already, don't fret. besides, if i'm not able to handle these things by myself, how am I going to do without you all when i go to school?'

"i'm going to miss you, and so will everyone else."

"i know." lavanya bristled. "go to bed asha, the black brothers are coming tomorrow."

"goodnight."