𝑨𝒎𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒕 - ʜᴊᴘ x ᴏᴄ [𝐌𝐀𝐉𝐎𝐑 𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆&𝐑𝐄𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆]

𝟒𝟗

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

ᴅᴀᴅᴅʏ ᴅᴇᴀʀᴇꜱᴛ

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

"What?" Cassie's voice cracked, disbelief clawing at her throat. "No, that's... that's impossible. Why would you even say that? Please tell me this is some kind of cruel joke." She let out a hollow laugh, but it felt forced, unnatural.

Her grandmother didn't answer at first. Instead, she handed Cassie a photograph.

Cassie's hands shook as she took it.

The image showed Aurora, younger and radiant, standing beside a man she barely recognized—Sirius Black. He was holding a baby. Her. His face, usually so guarded in the newspapers, was soft, almost unrecognizable with the way he was gazing at the child in his arms. Aurora stood beside him, her hand on his shoulder, smiling wide and bright.

Cassie's stomach churned. "No," she whispered, shaking her head. "No, this can't be real. I don't—I don't understand. Why would you let me believe my whole life that Athena was my mother? Why would you make me think—"

A sharp inhale made her freeze.

Cassie turned to see Aurora standing in the doorway, her face pale as if she'd seen a ghost. Her blue eyes, always so steady, now shone with something Cassie couldn't place—grief? Guilt?

"Aurora," her grandmother started, but Aurora held up a hand, her gaze locked on Cassie.

"Cas," she said softly, stepping closer. "I was going to tell you. I swear I was. Just not yet."

Cassie's stomach twisted. "Tell me what?" Her voice trembled, and she could barely get the words out. "What's going on? Why didn't you tell me sooner? Why... why didn't you tell me the truth?"

Aurora's face crumpled as she took a step toward Cassie, her expression full of sorrow. She stopped just short, as if afraid to cross an invisible line. "I never wanted to hurt you, Cas," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I never wanted you to find out like this, but—"

Cassie shook her head, her heart pounding in her chest. "Why? Why didn't you trust me? Why let me believe Athena was my mother all this time? Why—" Her breath hitched. "Why didn't you tell me that my father is Sirius Black?"

Aurora flinched, her eyes shimmering with tears. "Because... I thought it would be easier for you if you didn't know. I thought if you grew up thinking Athena was your mother, you wouldn't have to carry the weight of his name. You wouldn't have to deal with the stigma. The hatred." She paused, her voice breaking. "I didn't want you to grow up hating your father. Or me. I didn't want you to feel like you were burdened by his past."

Cassie's throat tightened, and her mind raced as her grandmother's voice echoed in the back of her head. The stigma of his name. The weight of his choices. The words felt like they were pressing in on her from every side, suffocating her.

She glanced at the photograph in her hand, her eyes locked on the smiling faces of Sirius and Aurora. The soft, loving look on Sirius's face as he held her—her—in his arms. The image made her feel like the ground beneath her was crumbling, like she was falling into a world she didn't understand.

"How could you keep this from me?" Cassie's voice cracked, and she could barely hear herself over the rush of blood pounding in her ears. "How could you let me think everything was a lie?"

Aurora stepped closer, reaching out to her, but Cassie pulled back, shaking her head violently. "No," she whispered. "I don't... I don't understand. How could you lie to me all these years?" Her hands were shaking, the photograph trembling between her fingers.

"I wasn't lying to you, Cas," Aurora said softly. "I was protecting you. I thought... I thought I was protecting you from a life that could have torn you apart. I thought if you never knew, you could have a normal life. A life without fear and hatred." Her voice faltered, and she stepped forward again, her hands outstretched in plea. "I never meant to hurt you."

Cassie couldn't stop the tears that blurred her vision. "But I do know now. How am I supposed to live with that? How am I supposed to look at you, at everything you've told me, and not feel... betrayed?" Her voice cracked with the weight of the words.

Her grandmother's eyes softened, and she placed a hand on Cassie's shoulder. "We never meant to hurt you, dear. We thought we were doing what was best. But now, you deserve the truth. You deserve to know everything."

Cassie took a deep breath, holding herself together with every ounce of strength she had left. "What about him? What about Sirius Black?" She shook her head, still in disbelief. "Is he really my father? The man I've heard about in the papers—the one they call a murderer?"

Aurora's expression darkened, and she nodded, her face pained. "Yes. He is. But he's not the man they say he is. Not to me, and not to you."

Cassie felt like the room was spinning. "What does that mean?" she whispered, her voice hollow.

Aurora didn't answer right away. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a stack of old, worn diaries. "I kept these," she said softly, handing them to Cassie. "They're mine. I started writing them when I was younger, in third year, and I wrote in them until... until everything changed." Her hands trembled as she passed them to Cassie. "Read them. They'll explain everything."

Cassie took the diaries, her mind swirling. She looked at Aurora, then at her grandmother, who stood silently, her face full of regret.

Aurora's voice was barely above a whisper as she added, "I know you're angry, Cas. And I know you feel betrayed. But I swear, I was trying to protect you. I never wanted you to feel the way you do now."

Cassie looked down at the diaries in her hands, her heart heavy with the weight of the truth. "I don't know if I can ever forgive you for this," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"I understand," Aurora said, her voice thick with emotion. "I understand."

Cassie stood up shakily, the tears streaming down her face. "I need to be alone," she whispered. Without another word, she turned and fled from the room.

She didn't know where she was going. She didn't care. Her entire life had just crumbled, and she had no idea how to pick up the pieces.

When she reached her bedroom, she collapsed onto the bed, clutching the diaries to her chest like a lifeline. How could everything have been a lie? How could Aurora—her mother—have kept something so important from her? How was she supposed to understand a truth this big?

As the weight of the secrets pressed on her chest, Cassie closed her eyes, feeling more lost than she ever had before.

She was no longer sure who she was.