Sirius Black's Twin

Escaped

"He escaped," Remus said, years after that fateful night.

Remus layed the Daily Prophet on the table between him and Lyra Blue. Lyra looked up from her bowl of pudding and stared at Remus, not looking at the Daily Prophet.

"Who's escaped from where?" Lyra said, talking around her full mouth.

"Black escaped from Azkaban," Remus said. "He's gone. Everyone's looking for him but there's been no sight."

Lyra's expression became strangely stoney. "Escaped?"

"Yes," Remus said. "And I think you should stay low for a while."

"You think I'm in danger?" Lyra scoffed. "Why would he harm me? I'm his sister?"

"And James was his best friend," Remus said. "Why would he harm him?"

Lyra bit her lip. "What about you?"

"Dumbledore's offered me a job as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts," Remus said, unable to keep the pride out of his voice. He always wanted to become a professor.

"Congratulations," Lyra said, giving him a tight hug. "Make sure to give Lynx and Will O's in everything."

"I'm not going to give anyone special treatment," Remus shook his head, but by the look on Lya's face he hurriedly said. "But I will up their grade just a bit."

"Good," Lyra said, pleased. Though her children were good witches and wizards, Lyra would love for them to be top in their classes. "Then you'll be a great professor. . . "

"What?" Remus said, noticing the look on his best friend's face.

"What about your condition?" Lyra said tentively. "You're going back to the shreiking shack? I've heard from Dumbledore that Harry Potter and his friends are aware of almost everything that goes on in Hogwarts, don't you thing they'll find out? Especially if your howling and screaming all night long?"

"Snape is going to make me Wolfsbane," Remus said.

Lyra looked at Remus sharply. "Snape? Why would Snape be at Hogwarts? Better yet - why on earth would you trust him?"

"Snape is Potions Master at Hogwarts," Remus said, his lip twitching. "And he wouldn't dare slip poison into the potion right under Dumbledore's nose."

Lyra looked skeptical but couldn't respond to that because her children rushed into the room.

Lynx was twelve and she looked just as beautiful as Lyra did when she was her age if not more. Lynx had lushous black hair that past her shoulders and fell down to the middle of her back gently, she had high cheeckbones and pretty brown eyes, she was tall and slender and had an air of confidance that seemed to make her more beautiful.

Will was a year older then Lynx and he looked just like his father, Nick; but instead of having Nick's plain looks, Will was very handsome. Will had curly brown hair and was really tall and slim, but he had Lyra's beautiful grey eyes.

Lyra sighed as she looked at Will. He looked so much like his father, and every time Lyra looked at him she felt both pride and sorrow. Nick didn't live with her anymore, he lived in a place far worse. . .

"Morning, Mum," Will said, giving his mother a kiss on the forehead. "You really should stop eating so much pudding, it's not good for you."

"You eat as much pudding as her," Lynx laughed, grabbing a bowl of pudding herself from the refridgerator. "We all do. Even Remus."

"Yes but a woman at her age. . ." WIll blushed when Lyra's head snapped towards him. "You're right, she can eat as much pudding as she wants - she's young. . ."

"You make me feel middle-aged," Lyra shook her head. "I'm barely past thirty."

Will didn't bother to say anything else, instead he was looking at the Daily Prophet and staring at the man on the picture. "Sirius Black? Mum, he looks just like you."

Lyra stiffened and Remus gave her a look. One that obviously said; you should tell them, or they'll find out themselves and won't be pleased.

Lynx looked at the paper too. "What are you talking about? He looks nothing like Mum. He is all thin faced and badly groomed and vampire-ish."

Will held up the paper so that he could compare it with Black and Lyra. "No denying it. If this guy does his hair and eats a few square meals he'll be a male version of Mum."

Lynx still looked sceptical but recodnised the last name 'Black'.

"Wasn't that your maiden name, Mum?" Lynx said, looking at her mother's guilty face quizzically. "What have you been hiding from us? Who is Sirius Black?"

Lyra sighed, knowing she should tell them. "Sirius Black is. . . well - excuse me for being blunt - your uncle."

Will and Lynx stared at their mum, who loved to play jokes on them, and they waited pateintly for the punch line.

It didn't come.

"WHat do you mean he's our uncle?" Will said slowly. "You said you only had one other sibling, and he died years ago. Regulus, was it?"

"Have you been hiding an uncle from us?" Lynx looked offended. "You hate it when we keep secrets from eachother!"

Lyra had the grace to look ashamed. She looked at Remus for help and he sighed.

"We'll ell you the whole story," Remus said, making Lynx stop glaring at her mother and turning to him; her curiosity pequed. "But only if you try to be understanding on your mother's behalf."

"Well, we'll try," Lynx said, but when Will nudged her she sighed. "Fine. We'll try our best to understand."

As Remus told the tale of Sirius Black the faces Lynx and Will were making would have been comical if it wasn't for the fact that it was all real. Lynx's offended attitude towards her mother turned into sympathy but before she could comfort Lyra, Will was already there with his arm around her.

"So Black betrayed Harry's parents?" Will did not look pleased. Though he and Harry weren't the best of friends, it didn't mean that they weren't good friends.

"And that's why you didn't tell us," Lynx sighed. "FIne. I understand. I kind of wish that I didn't hear the story - but I guess it's better hearing from you two then hearing it from other sources."

"I can't believe your own brother - twin brother - betrayed you," Will shook his head. "If I were you, I would have visited him in Azkaban. I would have asked why he did it. There had to be a reason."

"I tried," Lyra said, her face suspiciously blank. "But back then no one trusted me, and they thought I might try to break him out of Azkaban."

"They might be thinking that you just did," Lynx said.

Will and Remus looked sharply at Lynx, Lynx was usually the one that had tact out of the four of them.

"What?" Lynx said defensively. "They might think that he had help breaking out of Azkaban and Mum will be the first suspect! I might suggest laying low for a while, Mum."

"Laying low," Lyra scoffed. "I'm not a child, I will not stay in my house like a coward. They can think what they want and I won't care."

Will admired his Mum when she was like that, and wished he was more like her. Will cared what people thought of him, he wanted them to think he was civilized and smart, and they did think he was civilized and smart enough - but he wished that he didn't care what they thought.

This was how Lynx and Lyra were more alike then their looks. They both didn't care what people thought of them, just as long as no one tried to throw a hex at them then they were fine. Most likely people would be warysome around Lynx and Will this year, but Lynx would keep her head high and a smile on her face.

"So you'll be taking them to Diagon Alley, I suppose?" Remus asked.

"Yes," Lyra got to her feet. "Lynx, Will, go get your school booklist, we're going today."

"Good, Ginny wanted to meet up," Lynx said cheerfully and she raced her brother up the stairs - Will won.