sois libre - sirius black

chapter i

listen to young and beautiful by lana del rey

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧* .・゜゜・ ・゜゜・．

Vivienne de la Roche stood before the ornate mirror in her opulent chambers, her reflection cast in the soft glow of candlelight. Her gown, an indigo masterpiece of tulle and lace, contrasted her fair skin, the intricate star-like shimmers sprinkled across the expanse of the dress making it look as if she was sparkling. With practiced hands, she smoothed the delicate fabric, smiling softly as she took in her appearance. Behind her, Dizzy, her house elf, worked her elf charm on the rear of the dress, putting the finishing touches on the ensemble with meticulous care. She then clasped on a beautiful diamond necklace onto Vivienne's neck, matching the earrings she had put on earlier, taking a step back to admire her work.

"Tu es magnifique, Mademoiselle Vivienne!"

"Merci, Dizzy. You did a wonderful job," she smiled at the beaming house elf.

Shortly after, Dizzy rushed off to tend to other matters as Vivienne admired her reflection once more, feeling a mix of excitement and slight nervousness. Tonight was incredibly important, as her family was hosting a ball in their newly purchased second home in England, inviting all of the wizarding elite to lavishly celebrate. Not only was it important for her family, but since they had just moved, it was crucial that Vivienne connect and make friends with people of her age, whom she would accompany to Hogwarts, which made her incredibly anxious.

Until one month ago, Vivienne was deeply accustomed to French life. Born and raised in France, she never knew a place apart from it, and that scared her. Due to the changing state of the world, her parents believed that moving among the British pureblood crowd would increase their power and position in society, as if they weren't high enough already. Vivienne hated the move, but as the calm and obedient daughter that she had been raised to be, she made no protest as her parents shifted her to a place where she felt completely isolated from everything she had ever known. Despite her isolation, she only ever cared about the well-being of her family, something else that she had been raised to believe, so she tried to make the most of the past month, filling her days with reading, playing the violin, and horse-riding. Eventually, however, her boredom had taken over, the only thing exciting her being the ball that her family was hosting.

Now that it was the day of the ball, she found her nerves to be quite on edge, though she quickly brushed it off by fixing her hair, straightening her back, and taking a deep breath to steady the trepidation in her chest. She smiled at herself in the mirror and left her large chambers, making her way to the ballroom, following the orchestral music growing louder as she grew closer.

The second she stepped into the grandiose and extravagantly decorated room, she caught sight of her parents, their regal presence practically commanding attention. Her mother, Gisѐle de la Roche, was a beautiful, elegant woman, only getting finer with age. She was a pureblood who had come from an enormously wealthy family, marrying into the even wealthier de la Roche dynasty.

Her father, Charles de la Roche, was known in the wizarding community for his ownership of many wizarding banks across Europe, even partly owning Gringotts (the goblins' refusal of his a non-goblin owning the bank prevented him from fully owning that as well). His banking empire was largely inherited from past generations of the de la Roche family, causing their wealth to only increase overtime, making them one of the richest families in Europe.

"There she is!" Vivienne's father delightedly announced to the guests that he had just been entertaining, kissing her forehead. "My beautiful daughter! You look wonderful, ma cherie,"

Vivienne shyly smiled at her father and then gracefully curtseyed to the guests in front of her. "Hello, my name is Vivienne,"

"My, Charles, you didn't inform us of how absolutely stunning your daughter is! She must have suitors lined up at her feet!" a woman exclaimed, the other guests following in suit with compliments. Vivienne blushed and thanked them politely, causing them to praise her once more for her manners.