An Alternate Universe

Chapter 1

Disclaimer, anything that seems remotely familiar doesn't belong to me sadly. It's all property of J.K Rowling and I'm simply having fun with the playground that is Harry Potter fan fiction. Enjoy!
July 26th, 1990:
Black Manor, Dublin, Ireland.
Abi was reading The latest release of Witch Weekly, and Lillian was busy writing a letter to her betrothed,  Blaise, when a sullen-looking owl tapped on their bedroom window. Lilliann, rather excited,   jumped up from her bed almost spilling her ink pot in the process and strolled over to the window, letting the bird in. She saw the letter attached to its  leg  and with a huge grin,  she hastened  to relieve the animal of its burden. With slightly shaking hands, she Tore the envelope open and scanned the first few lines.
"OMG, Abi, guess what this is! I can't believe it, It's my Hogwarts letter! It's finally come."
You see, Lillian had turned 11 nearly a month ago, but her Hogwarts letter had not arrived. Her mother was so close to calling Dumbledore and demanding  to know what was going on. All the black children had their names put down for Hogwarts as soon as they were born.
"I have to tell ma'ama,  she'll be so pleased,"
"I'm happy for you Lils, this means you'll definitely be able to come to Hogwarts with me this year. We can even go and buy our things for school together in Diagon Alley," Abi said,  smiling at her sister over the top of her magazine.
"Absolutely, we can meet Draco, Blaise,  Teddy and the girls  there as well. Oh I just have to go and tell mama right now," Lillian said,  practically skipping out of the room, her letter clutched tightly in her hand.
Finally outside Her mother's room after walking almost  to the other side of the manner, she knocked on the door excitedly.
"Lillian,  darling,  is that you?" asked Narcissa from inside.
"Yes,  mama, May I come in?"
"Of course dear."
Containing her excitement as best she could, she opened the door.
"What is it, darling? You look as if Yule  has come early. I know for sure that Blaise isn't here or else Melinda would have sent me a patronus message, so that can only mean one other  thing," narcissa said,  smiling broadly.
"My Hogwarts letter! It's finally here," Lillian said,  smiling just as wide.
"Oh that's wonderful,  my darling, professor Dumbledore did send me his patronus with an apology for the lateness. He claims that they didn't know about you being a witch. This is absolute nonsense of course, as I had you registered straight after your birth.
I don't trust that man. I want you to have your guard up around him when you go to Hogwarts. Only trust aunt Minny and your father, as well as professor Flitwick if need be. but now you must open it," narcissa said,  glowing with pride.
Lillian smoothed out the parchment  and began to read.
" Hogwarts school of witchcraft and Wizardry. Headmaster: Albus Percival Wulfric  Brian   Dumbledore.
Order Of Merlin first class, grand sorc. CHF. Warlock. Supreme Mugwump.
Dear Miss L.  Black-Snape, we are pleased to inform you that you have   a  place at  Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and wizardry. Enclosed is a list of books and items that you will need. Due to certain circumstances, you are not required to send a response back. We look  foreword to seeing you on September 1st.
Yours sincerely,  Minerva  McGonagall.
Deputy headmistress.
"Now, you have to Remember that we have a reputation to uphold. Try not to make it obvious that you are closely related to Minerva. However you and your sister may spend time with her and your father during weekends  if you wish to,"
"Of course, is there anything else I should know?"
"Yes, you have a god brother  who is also starting in September. He is living with Sirius. His name is Harry Potter.  I have not seen much of him since he was five years old so I do not know what he is like anymore. Therefore I advise you to keep your guard up around him until you know he can  be trusted. I hate to say it, but you know what cousin  Sirius is like already,"
"Oh no need to worry about harry. I thought I'd told you. We've been exchanging letters for the better part of a year now," Lillian said, grinning.
"How?" Narcissa asked,  slightly shocked.
"Aunt Andromeda had Harry over the last time Abi and I stayed at her house, that time when you were sick? We started talking a lot. Catching up and then we started writing letters a few months later,"
"I should've known. That sister of mine..." narcissa said,  rolling her eyes.
"You know she means well mama.
But if that is all I should probably go and get ready," Lillian said,  giving her mother a quick squeeze.
"Oh,  is Abi taking you to Diagon Alley to get your things?"
"Yes she is. And we decided that we'd meet up with everyone else as well," Lillian
said standing up, still smiling wide.
"Brilliant. Have fun," narcissa said,  with a smirk.
"Whatever..." Lillian muttered,  blushing as she left the room.
_______
Back in the sisters' room, Abi was picking out an outfit when Lillian ran in and plopped back down on her bed, finishing her letter in quick succession, she   sendt  it off with the family owl.
"Alright, time for me to get ready and you better behave this time woman, I don't want a repeat of last time,"  Lillian said,  glaring at her sister.
"It wasn't my fault! It's not my fault  that Draco wanted to go to Knocturn Alley..." abi said,  crossing her arms over her chest.
"I don't care, you're the oldest out of all of us   and you should've stopped him or at least let one of us know where you were going."
"Whatever lady, get off my case and go and  get ready."
Lillian laughed softly and went into the bathroom to have a shower.
10 minutes later, she came out and went over to her wardrobe to pick out an outfit.
She decided on wearing a pair of  black denim shorts and  a blue tank top, with a sky blue traveling cloak. She put her hair into a ponytail and looked over to her sister.
"Your turn to get ready sister dear. I'll go and let Mia  know what we want for breakfast," Lillian said,  sitting on her bed and slipping her feet into a pair of black studded sandals.
"Okay okay,  I'm going," Abi said,  with an exaggerated groan as she stood up and trudged to the bathroom.
Lillian rolled her eyes and left the room.
______
In the dining room,  she sat down at the round glass table and called her personal house elf.
"Mia!"
A house elf with long dark brown ears, light brown skin and bulging golden  eyes appeared.
"Good morning,  Miss Lillian. Is you's wanting breakfast?" Mia asked,  smiling up at Lillian.
"Yes please Mia. Abi and I would like blueberry pancakes, bacon and toast please. Oh and some butter beer,"
"Mia will be bringings your food very soon," Mia said,  still smiling.
And with a small pop, she was gone.
15 minutes later, Abi came into the room.
"Oo I love your outfit. And I know someone else who will very much appreciate it," Lillian said,  smirking at her sister.
"Oh shut up," Abi said, scowling, although she did smile a second later.
She was wearing dark blue jeans, a sparkly purple tank top with a light purple traveling cloak and dark blue sandals.
Mia came back with their food and they dug in hungrily.
Once they'd eaten their fill, they made their way to their mother's room to say goodby to her before leaving to go to Diagon Alley.
Even though they were only 11 and 12, Narcissa trusted them not to need an adult chaperone.
Knocking on the door and hearing their mother telling them to enter, they went into her room.
"Hello my lovelies. Leaving now?" Narcissa questioned,  smiling fondly.
"Yes,  ma. We'll be back around 5," Abi replied,  going over to her mother and kissing her cheek.
"See you later,  mama.,"  Lillian said,  doing the same.
"Alright, that's fine. It's 12 now. See you later, mes chéris,   look after each other. Remember your mirrors just in case something happens,"
"We will," the sisters said in unison,  as they turned to leave.
Going back to their room, they grabbed their two-way mirrors and lillian also got her list from on top of her pillow.
Exiting their room they went to the parlor and through the floo to Diagon Alley.
______
The Leaky Cauldron___
Lillian dusted off her pants before taking her sister's hand and leaving the pub.
Abi took out her wand and tapped the bricks to get into Diagon Alley.
Lillian had been there before, but it still took her breath away.
"All right, we're supposed to be meeting everyone at Flourish and Blotts,"  Abi remarked,  as they passed Gringotts.
"But we haven't got our money yet," Lillian responded,  with a slight frown.
"Yeah, I know, that's why we're meeting outside.
We're gonna then go to Gringotts together before splitting up.
We'll be able to get our shopping done quicker that way."
"Dray,"  Lillian squealed suddenly,   letting go of her sister's hand and running over to hug her God brother.
"I've missed you so dam much!" She said,   hugging him tight.
"Oi, What about me? I'm your betrothed," Blaise exclaimed,   with a pout.
"Yeah, I'm very much aware of that, but I haven't seen Dray in  two whole months. I saw you last week," Lillian  said matter-of-factly.
"Fine then..." Blaise mumbled, sulking.
Draco smirked  at him over Lillian's  shoulder.
"I missed you too Lils, but please give your boyfriend a  hug quickly, or else I'm afraid he  might kill me later once  we get back to his house," Draco said,   with a chuckle.
Lillian giggled,  letting go of Draco and walking over to her betrothed.
"Miss me?" She said,   wrapping her arms around him with a smile.
"Very much,"  Blaise said,    pulling her close.
"Finally, now I actually get a chance to greet  my own betrothed," Abi said,   taking Draco's hand and kissing him on the cheek.
Hermione coughed  lightly.
"As lovely as this is, we have shopping to do. And we're not all betrothed like you two..." Hermione said,   crossing her arms.
"Alright,,  let's go people,"  Lillian  said,    taking a hold of Blaise's hand, just managing not to roll her eyes. 
"Everyone grab a partner and follow us."
Despite Lillian  not  actually being  the oldest in the group,    everyone knew  not to argue with her.
With Lillian and Blaise in the lead, the group of pre-teens made their way to Gringotts.
_______
"Does anybody not need to go down to their vault?" Lillian asked,  glancing over her shoulder.
Hermione, Draco, Theodore and Ginny raised their hands.
"Ok great, that makes things considerably easier,"
"Lils,  how about You, Blaise and I go in one cart together since our vaults are closest to each others, while Luna goes in one on her own?" Abi said,  from behind Blaise.
"Lulu,  is that ok with you?" Lillian questioned,  turning to face her friend,   as they reached the bank.
"Yes,  that's fine by me," Luna replied, smiling.
Entering the bank, those who didn't need to visit their vaults stood to one side,  while everyone else walked up to the counter, Blaise and Lillian in the lead still.
"Good day, sir, may your enemies cower  at your feet and your weapons never fail you.  I'd like to visit my vault and so would my companions," Lillian said,  with a closed-mouthed smile,   nodding politely to the goblin.
"May your gold always  flow and your successes be celebrated," the goblin replied, smiling back with an answering nod.
"Keys?"
Lillian moved to the side slightly and everyone held up their keys.
"Those all seem to be in order,"  the goblin said,  before looking over his shoulder.
"SilverTongue!
Take Misses Black and Mr Zabini to their vaults please," the goblin barked.
"Right away, sir," SilverTongue said, coming over.
"Follow me please."
Blaise, Lillian and Abi went off with SilverTongue while another goblin called Ironblade,  took Luna down to her vault.
10 minutes later, they were back and left the bank with Draco and Abi in the lead this time.
"Alright, so where do we need to go today? Lets think about that before we split up," Abi said,  as they arrived back at Flourish and Blotts.
"Well,  we need books, potion ingredients, pets, robes, wands and then we can take a break for lunch. We also need trunks and teliscopes from Wise Akers  for those of us starting this year. As well as  stationary," Draco said,  ticking each thing off on his fingers.
"Draco and I might as well start off with our books," Abi said.
"Ginny and I will go and get our robes," Hermione added,  linking  her arm through Ginny's.
"Ok. Teddy,  Luna, Blaise and I will go and get our robes too, since we're going to Twilfitt  and Tattings," said Lillian.
"Actually in the interest of getting the shopping done faster, shouldn't Luna and I go to Slug and Jigger's?" Theodore  said softly.
"Yes, you're right. Ok after that we can rotate till we all have what we need.
Am I right in assuming it's only those of you that are starting at Hogwarts this year who need pets?" Blaise  asked.
Everybody nodded.
"Ok, we'll meet up at the Leaky for lunch.
in any emergency call your personal elf. Ginny and Hermione,  just try not to get hurt or anything," Blaise continued and they all laughed.
"Lils and I also have our two-way mirrors so if we need an adult for some reason, either of us can contact our mother,"Abi added.
"That's even better. Alright, see you guys later."
After that they split up.
________________
Draco and Abi  made  their way into the bookstore.
Walking around the shop, the couple got all their books for the upcoming year.
"Wait,  Dray,  before we go and pay I want to get a few extra books on Transfiguration and one on Runes," Abi said,  going into the Runes section.
"Do you plan to take Runes next year then?" Draco questioned, raising an eyebrow as he followed.
"Yep," Abi said,  grinning when she found the book she wanted.
They turned back to go into the transfiguration section again and she selected a few more books, before they went to pay for their purchases.
____________
Hermione and Ginny walked into Madam Malkins' Robes for all  occasions and were immediately greeted by the owner.
"Hi dears, Hogwarts?" She asked,  beckoning them over with a kind smile.
"Only for Ginny mam, I'm in need of a new winter cloak," Hermione said,  going over to the racks.
"Alright, just let me know when you've chosen one."
A few minutes went by and Ginny had finished getting her robes.
She went to join Hermione who was still trying to choose a cloak.
"Gin,  I need your help. Should I go with this red one or the lilac one?
They're both so pretty and come with permanent heating charms," Hermione explained,  frowning.
"Then just get them both silly.
You have enough don't you? Plus your birthday's coming up. Think of it as an early birthday present to yourself," Ginny responded,  sounding amused.
"I guess you have a point. Alright, I'll get them both," Hermione said,  with a small smile.
Taking both of the cloaks off the wrack, they went over to Madam Malkin who was just finishing with another Hogwarts first year from the looks of things.
The boy smiled at them and the girls smiled back.
Paying for their purchases they left the shop and went to Flourish and Blotts.
_________
In Slug and Jiggers, Theodore  was getting both his and Luna's ingredients while Luna was talking to Mr Jigger about the ingredients he sold and what inspired him to start the shop.
He was telling her how it had been a family business, running for over fifty years now, when Theodore  tapped Luna on the shoulder lightly.
"I've got everything, ready to go?" He asked,  smiling at her fondly and handing everything to Mr Jiggers.
"Ready when you are," She replied, blushing.
"It was great talking to you,  Luna dear. Feel free to come back sometime when you're not shopping and I'll finish my story," The store owner said,  with a friendly smile and a wave as they left.
__________
"Hello Miss Lillian, Mr Blaise. It's so lovely to see you both.
I assume you're hear for your school robes," Taysharni," The store owner, a kind, motherly-looking woman with short black hair and hazel eyes said, stepping down from a ladder.
"Yes mam.
I'd also like to get a winter cloak and a light traveling cloak," Lillian said,  walking over to the wracks.
"I'm just here for some traveling cloaks, mam.
Hogwarts robes still fit me well," Blaise said,  following Lillian with a smile at the woman.
"Well lucky for you,  Miss Lillian, I already have your school robes made. Your mother came here last month and gave me one of your robes to go off of," The store owner said,  going behind the counter and producing a neatly wrapped package from under it. 
"Oh brilliant. Thank you so much," Lillian said,  coming over to the counter with three cloaks under her arm.
She had  chosen one   sapphire blue  traveling cloak, another traveling cloak that was blood red and made from acromantula silk  and a deep purple winter cloak with gold embroidery on the sleeves.
"Very nice choices,"  Taysharni said,  with a wide smile.
"Lils,  emerald green or periwinkle blue?" Blaise  called from the wracks.
"Periwinkle blue, it would look great on you," Lillian called back.
"An excellent choice," Taysharni chimed in, with an approving smile,  as Blaise came over.
Paying for everything they left the robe shop and made their way to Slug and Jigger's.
Once they'd got their potions ingredients, Lillian suddenly stopped and turned to look at Blaise.
"I've just thought of something.
Since there's so many of us we should all just get our wands and pets together.
It would save even more time,"
"Yeah, you're right.
How are we gonna get the message to everybody?" Blaise asked.
"I'll call my elf.
Mia?"
With a small pop, Mia  appeared in front of them.
"Young mistress Lillian be calling Mia?"
How can I be helpings young mistress?" The house elf said,  with a wide smile up at Lillian.
"Hi, Mia. I need your help in telling my friends and sister something.
We want to meet up at Jimmy Kiddel's wonderful wands.
Can you let all of my friends know please? Tell them not to worry if they haven't finished shopping, they can continue after we've got our wands and had lunch. 
I just think it would save time for us to get that out of the way now,"
"Mia can be doings this.
Where are young mistress's friends at the moment?" Mia asked,  clasping her hands together.
"I'm not sure who will be where, but I know you'll find all of them in either Twilfitt and Tattings, the apothecary  or Flourish and Blotts. Whoever you don't find will already be in the wand shop.
We split up into pairs.
Come and find us again after," Lillian said,  smiling down at Mia.
Waving, Mia was gone with another small pop.
"Alright, I assume we're going to the wand store ourselves now then?" Blaise said,  as they started walking again.
"Obviously," Lillian replied, sounding remarkably like her father,  which made Blaise laugh.
"Hey, guys," Theodore said, as they entered the shop.
"Hey, Teddy," Blaise and Lillian said together.
"I just got my wand, Ash wood, unicorn tail hair," Theodore   said,  with a grin.
"nice one," Blaise said,  clapping him on the back.
Lillian smiled at him and he returned it.
Luna ended up getting a wand made from apple wood with a dragon heartstring core.
After trying a couple wands, Lillian ended up with a wand made from Alder wood, with a feather from  a griffin.
"Who's next?" Mr Kiddle said,  at the same time as Mia reappeared.
"Missus Granger and Weasey are on their way, young mistress,"
"Alright,  Thank you very much for your help, Mia. I'll call you again when we're ready to come back home later."
The elf gave Lillian a bright smile,  before disapparating.
A minute later, Ginny and Hermione arrived and Ginny was choosing the components for her wand.
She ended up with a wand made from Aspen wood, with a hair from a Kelpie for the core.
They all left  the wand shop, meeting Abi outside.
______
"Before we go anywhere else, I thought we could have lunch now if we're all ready to eat," Lillian said.
They all agreed.
"Where should we go?" Theodore asked.
"What about Mr Randel's buffet in Celestial Alley?" Draco suggested.
Everyone approved of that suggestion so they made their way into Celestial Alley and to the restaurant.
______
Ginny held the door for everyone to enter, all of them thanking her with a smile. Taking charge as the oldest, Abi spoke to the man just inside the doors.
"Hi, please can we have a table for eight?" Abi asked, smiling slightly at a man in a purple shirt with the restaurant's logo on it and a clipboard and quill in his hand.
"Sure. Wait one second please and I will get one of my colleagues to show you to your table," the man replied.
Producing his wand from a clip-on holster attached to his pants pocket, the worker cast the patronus spell and an owl shot from the tip of his wand, looking at him inquiringly.
Tell Grace, *There are eight people here wanting a table together. Please can you help.*
The owl flew off.
"If you don't mind me asking, is knowing how to cast a corporeal patronus a requirement for being able to work here?" Hermione asked.
"Not at all. It's preferred, but if you can cast a memo message spell that creates a paper message in the shape of any animal of your choice and produce it correctly with the message you intended, then you'll still get a job here. That spell is quite advanced so they expect you to be able to cast it a few times before they confirm whether you get the job or not," the man replied.
"Thank you."
At that moment, the lady, Grace had arrived and smiled warmly at the group.
"Hi guys, here for a break from supply shopping?" She asked, spying their bags,   as she led them over to a table.
"Yes. We decided it would be better to come today before all the rushing around starts up. Get it out of the way.  That and my sister's letter arrived late," Abi responded.
"Ah, I see. That happened to me as well. I was a Ravenclaw. You're Narcissa Black's daughter right?"
"Yes, how did you know?"
"She started at Hogwarts in my fifth year. I helped her study a few times before I graduated. We were friendly but not particularly close unfortunately. Anyway, do you all know what you'd like to drink?" Grace asked, once they had all taken their seats round the table.
Blaise, Draco and  Lillian asked for butterbeer. Luna and Ginny asked for pumpkin juice and everyone else opted to have sparkling water.
"I'll be back with your drinks in about 10 minutes. Feel free to get your food in the meantime," Grace said, with a smile before she left.
"To save time, should we go up and get our food in pairs? Maybe the pairs we've been shopping in so far?" Abi asked the group.
They all nodded. Hermione and Ginny went up to get their food first. They both took a bit of everything. When they returned, Blaise and Lillian went up. Draco and Abi were next with Luna and Theodore going just as Grace returned with their drinks.
"That all looks great. Enjoy your food. I cooked some of it," Grace said, passing out the drinks.
"I'm sure we will. Thank you very much," Abi replied,  smiling.
_______
The group had an enjoyable lunch, only talking occasionally, as they were all so engrossed in eating. Ginny, Draco, Blaise and Luna went up for seconds and thirds but everyone else was satisfied with their one plate.
"How are we paying?" Draco asked, when he had finished his dessert.
"I was thinking each pair could go halves on the total of their combined meals? Also would anyone like to switch pairs for the rest of the afternoon? We have the Menagerie, Wise Akers for trunks, teliscopes  and school bags and Wendolyn's whimsical   writing world for stationary, right?"
"That's right. If it's okay with you,  Draco, I'd like to spend the rest of the afternoon with Abi," Hermione said.
"Sure, that's not a problem. Gin, are you alright coming with me?" Draco questioned.
"Sure," Ginny replied.
"Great. I'll just get the attention of a waiter so we can pay," Abi said, calling her wand to her hand.
She shot purple sparks into the air with her wand. She had been here a few times before with her sister, mother and Lillian's father and knew that was how you were supposed to get the attention of waiters. She thought it was fun and fit nicely with their purple theme. Grace returned  to their table, a box shaped machine in her hand.
"Hi, are you all ready to pay?"
"Yes please. We've decided we'll pay in pairs and split the bill, will that be possible?" Abi asked.
"Yes of course. Each plate of food is 6 galleons. Who will be paying first?"
"We will," Lillian said.
"How many plates did you two have between you?"
"Four," responded Blaise.
"That'll be 12 galleons for each of you then," Grace smiled.
"Will you be paying with a Gringotts card?"
They both nodded in confirmation. Lillian handed her card over first and when Grace had handed it back along with a receip, Blaise handed his over. The others payed one by one. Luna, Theodore, Abi and Draco also paying 24 galleons between them with Ginny and Hermione paying 6 galleons each. Before Grace could leave, Lillian made eye contact with her sister and mouthed to her that she'd like to tip Grace. Abi agreed with a smile and told the others while Grace was talking to Luna. They all put together 24 galleons between them, those who had money bags on them lending money to others.
"Sorry to interupt, but we'd like to give you something. We all really appreciate how great you've been and we wanted to tip you. I know that's not done much here but we don't care," Abi said, holding out the money with a slight blush.
"That's really sweet of you all. Thank you very much," Grace said, accepting the money with a gentle smile and putting it into a bag resting round her neck.
After that, the group left the buffet and made their way back into Diagon Alley. Hermione and Draco switched partners and they stopped outside Wendolyn's Wimsical Writing World.
"Is everyone still happy with rotating till we finish?" Abi asked.
They all nodded.
________
Hermione and Abi entered WWWW and shared a grin. They both loved coming here as Wendolyn always had a great selection and knew what they both liked. She greeted them both cheerily as she spotted them.
"Hermione, Abi, it's so nice to see you. You're early this year. Did Lillian receive her Hogwarts letter then?" Wendolyn asked, with a wide smile.
Wendolyn was a good friend of Narcissa's.
"Hi, Wendolyn. Yes she did. I thought we might as well go today, as she was so excited and decided to make it a group event to save us all time next month,"
"Makes sense. I have your favorites in stock, so feel free to head straight for the ink aisle."
Both girls headed off, still smiling.
"Would I be right in thinking you're running low on purple ink?" Hermione asked her friend.
"Of course. I use it to write to aunt Dromeda, cousin Tonks  and cousin Siri when he's not being an ass. Oo, I also want the sea foam green ink up there," Abi said, spotting a pot of ink on a shelf just above her head.
Calling her wand to her hand, she accio'd the pot of ink. Reholstering her wand, she accepted the pot of deep purple ink from Hermione and waited for her friend to get her own ink. After a few minutes, Hermione had chosen black ink, which Abi had opted to purchase  as well, not wanting to run out during the second term. Hermione had also chosen pots of  midnight blue and light pink ink for recreational use. Moving to the quill aisle, the two friends picked out three knew quills each along with a quill sharpener. Going to the counter, they stopped briefly to select a pack of highlighters for note taking and exam season.
"Found everything you wanted?" Wendolyn asked, when they reached the counter.
Both girls nodded enthusiastically. They payed for their purchases before leaving and making their way to the Leaky for a quick drink before going to Wise Akers.
______
In Wise Akers, Lillian was engrossed in looking at the selection of telescopes. She loved Astronomy a lot, probably as the result of her mother telling her stories about her family and their naming tradition. She had already chosen her school bag. It was dark gray and cyan blue with white moving flowers that flittered around her initials that had  been spelled onto the middle of the bag. She couldn't decide on which telescope to get. Blaise knew it was best to leave her to her thoughts and that she would decide eventually. He was talking to the store owner. Almost twenty minutes went by and Lillian still hadn't made a decision, so Luna who was also in the store, just having chosen out her school bag, told Theodore she was going to talk to her friend.
"Lili, time is getting on. Would you like me to help you choose one?" Luna asked gently, gesturing to the teliscopes.
Lillian jumped, her eyes shooting to Luna.
"Um, yes please, Lulu. I got  lost  in my head. Thanks for getting me out," Lillian said, smiling at Luna gratefully.
"You're welcome. I like this silver one," Luna said, taking a silver telescope off  the shelf and handing it to her friend.
"That was the first one that caught my eye. You know me so well," Lillian said, grinning slightly.
They made their way to the counter and everyone payed for their purchases. Just as they were leaving, Abi and Hermione arrived.
"Should we wait outside for you so we can all go to the Menagerie together? Ginny and Draco are already there," Theodore commented.
"Yes please, that would be great," Abi replied.
The four friends waited for their two remaining friends to do their shopping, talking amongst themselves about plans for the rest of their summers.
________
The group made their way to Magical Menagerie, where they met up with Draco who was outside.
"Alright, since everyone but Draco, Blaise and I aren't getting pets and I already know Blaise is going with Lils to find her owl, the rest of you just stay in the pairs you're in now. Draco and I will stay outside," Abi said, taking her betroths' hand and squeezing it in welcome.
"Are you sure you don't want to just go onto the Leaky?" Lillian questioned,  glancing at her sister.
"Yeah, it's fine. We'll wait."
Draco nodded and gave his godsister a reassuring smile.
______
"Am I right in assuming you want an owl?" Blaise questioned,  as he and Lillian walked around the store.
"Yes. An eagle owl like Draco's. The grumpy look they have is adorable.
That and they're just beautiful owls," Lillian said,  with a soft smile.
They went round a corner and came upon the owls.
"Oo that one. The female owl next to the little baby," Lillian said, her smile widening.
"She is kind of cute," Blaise admitted,  with a small smile of his own.
"What are you gonna call her?"
"Not sure.
Would you mind getting one of the owners so I can meet the owl while I think of a name?"
"Sure. I'll be right back," Blaise said,  giving Lillian's hand a squeeze before letting go and going back the way they came.
When Blaise had come back with a worker in toe, Lillian had decided on a name for her owl.
"Hi,  lovely.
Your friend here tells me you'd like to take this beauty home with you?" The lady said,  walking over to the cage with the mother and baby in it and opening it.
"That's right.
Will she be ok without her baby?" Lillian asked,   biting her lip in worry.
"Yeah, she'll be fine. The little one's nearly at its maturity," the lady said,  with a reassuring smile.
The female owl flew gracefully out of the cage and landed on Lillian's shoulder with a soft hoot.
"Hi there, I'm Lillian. Would you like to come home with me?" Lillian said, stroking the bird's beautiful feathers.
The owl butted her head agains Lillian's gently, making her smile. She was black as coal with orange and yellow patches on her wings, and baby blue eyes.
"How about we call you Freya? After the Norse Goddess.  What do you think?"
Freya hooted again.
"Perfect.
I'll just get you a new cage if you come back to the front of the shop with me," The worker said,  closing the cage Freya had been in and leading the way back.
They got Freya into her own new cage and paid for it ,along with her and some owl treats, before joining Draco and Abi outside.
__________
The other four had decided to stay together, as Ginny and Luna both wanted kittens and Theodore wanted a Tawny owl.
Going to the cats section first, Ginny chose a grayish blue, British shorthair that she decided to call Skuld, after a Nordic Goddess.
Luna chose a Spynx cat which she decided to call Sparkles.
Theodore  found a male Tawny  owl that he decided to call Oden, after the Norse God.  He was brown, with dusk colored feathers and dark brown eyes with blue gray eyelids. Everyone picked out the food and cages or baskets their pets would need, as well as some toys in the case of those who had gotten cats,  before going to pay.
_________
They made their way back to the Leaky Cauldron and stopped outside to say their goodbyes.
_______
"I'll see you on the first," Lillian said, kissing Blaise on the cheek.
"I need a hug to keep me going till then," Blaise teased,  wrapping his arms round Lillian.
She giggled and returned the hug, burying her head in Blaise's neck.
Meanwhile Draco and Abi were having a similar goodbye.
After everybody got into a huge group hug, which lasted awhile.
Pulling back there were waves and calls of,  "See you on the first!"  As they all went their separate ways.
"Mia?" Lillian  called,  once all their friends had departed.
With a pop Mia appeared.
"Are young mistresses wanting to go home now?" Mia asked,  with a smile.
"Yes please," Abi said.
The girls  both held onto Mia and with another  pop, they appeared seconds later in their bedroom.
"Thank you,  Mia. We'll see you later," Lillian said,  with a yawn.
"Yous Is   welcome.
I's will  let  Mistress Narcissa know that you're home safe," Mia said,  before leaving again with a soft  pop.
The sisters chatted about a number of things while they unpacked their purchases.
"Oh no! No no no, I'm such an idiot," Lillian moaned, putting her head in her hands.
"What is it?" Abi asked,   confused.
"I  didn't get the trunk    I wanted," Lillian moned  into her hands.
"Oh crap, I completely forgot about that.
If I get it for you at Christmas, would you be ok using ma's  trunk till then?" Abi questioned.
"Are you sure?
You don't have to do that," Lillian replied, raising her head and looking over at her sister.
"I want to," Abi said smiling.
"Thanks. Yeah, I don't mind using mama's," Lillian said,  smiling again.
"I'll go and get it and explain the issue to her    while you fold everything so it can be put in straight away," Abi said,  getting off her bed and walking to the door.
"Alright. Thanks again,"
"Don't mention it," Abi said,  ruffling her sister's hair on her way to the door.
_______
Abi came back to their shared room and handed their mother's trunk over to Lillian.
"Ma said it has a lock that can only be opened with your blood, so it's extra secure," Abi said,  going over to her wardrobe.
They each had a wardrobe to themselves which had extension charms on the inside.
"Great, I'll pack my things now and then i'm going to write a letter to Harry.
See how he's getting on and stuff," Lillian said, biting her finger to split the skin, then rubbing it against the lock of the trunk which opened with a click.
"You know, I could've helped you with that right?" Abi said,  looking at her slightly surprised.
"Yeah, I know. I wanted to do that though," Lillian said,  with a laugh, making her sister roll her eyes playfully.
"Alright,  well, while you get on with that I'm going to have a bath," Abi said,  dropping her clothes onto her bed as she went past it.
Lillian packed her trunk while humming softly.
Once finished, she sighed happily and sat at the desk which was situated on the opposite side of the bedroom door.
"Mia?" She called into the silence.
Mia appeared, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
"How can Mia be helpings young mistress Lillian?"
"Please can you get me some parchment, one of mama's eagle feather quills and a glass of milk?"
Mia snapped her fingers and the requested items appeared on the desk in front of Lillian.
"Thank you,  Mia, that will be all,"
"Dinner will be served soon, mistress," Mia said,  before disappearing with a pop.
Taking a sip of her milk, Lillian then started writing her letter to Harry.
Dear Harry,
How are you? It's been a few weeks since I heard from you last.
I hope you're not getting into too much mischief with cousin Sirius.
I went to get my Hogwarts supplies today. I was there with Abi and the others. It's a shame we couldn't meet you there.
I assume Sirius is taking you on your birthday?
Are you nervous about your sorting?
We both know you're probably not going to end up where Sirius wants you to, despite his opinions on the matter.
Remember, whatever happens you have me. You also have Abi, Draco and the others.
Is Sirius still having his slip ups?
Your birthday's coming up, happy birthday in advance. I won't be able to get your present to you before your birthday, but it'll definitely be with you by the end of next month.
We can't wait to see you on the train on the 1st. You know you're sitting with us so no hiding.
We'll get a prefect to enlarge the compartment for us.
Have you heard from Remus recently?
Write soon, you know I worry about you even if there's no logical reason to.
Love, the best cousin ever, Lillian.
Slipping the letter into the envelope Mia had helpfully left for her under the parchment, Lillian left her desk and went over to Freya's cage.
Opening the cage, Freya flew out and shot straight onto her shoulder.
"Hey,  girl, I have a letter for you to deliver for me," Lillian said,  softly, stroking Freya's feathers.
Freya hooted quietly and nibbled Lillian's hair making her giggle.
"Enough of that. Off my shoulder so I can tie this letter to your leg."
Freya did so and Lillian attached the letter to the owl's leg and patted her head.
"Take this to Harry Potter for me."
Opening the window by her bed, Lillian let Freya out and watched her fly off.
She spun around when she heard a small pop behind her.
"Mistress Lillian, dinner is being ready," Mia said,  smiling as usual.
"Thank you for letting us know. We'll be there soon," Lillian said,  recovering quickly  from the  shock and  noticing her sister had come back from her bath.
_________
They had roasted duck with rice. Lillian and her sister had butter beer while Narcissa had a glass of white wine.
That night, the girls slept well and were Already  counting the days till they would go to Hogwarts, or back in Abi's case.   The last few weeks  before Hogwarts were spent visiting Lillian's father for the day, on the 31st of July, as well as visiting their aunt Andromeda Tonks and their godmother at her cottage in Glasgow for a week. When they were home again, they went out for day trips in the mundane world with their mother. Visiting museums, restaurants and the theatre once or twice.  On the evening of   August 31st, the girls could be found   helping the elves cook one last meal, which the whole family enjoyed. It included the elves, Severus, Andromeda, her daughter and husband  and Minerva. The two professors had made excuses to leave Hogwarts for the night.  The sisters' had grown up with most of the elves  being around and liked to help out in the kitchen a few times a month. They assured the elves that their cooking and baking sessions would continue, even with Lillian also attending Hogwarts this year. September first came around and the occupants were both happy and slightly emotional at the thought of both girls leaving for Hogwarts this year.

Author's Note.

Hey y'all, here's the new and improved version of chapter 1. I hope you enjoyed it. I hated how short the original version was so I and my co-author worked together to improve it. I believe I made all the additions to this chapter but they did all the editing so a huge thanks to them for that. For those of you wondering, Abi is adopted.
After I finish writing book 1, i'll be writing her backstory.
About How she ended up with the Blacks etc.
It'll be a companion piece to book 1.
Another thing, in my version of things Narcissa is a single parent and didn't marry Lucius obviously. Also the blacks and Malfoys aren't in any way related.
I believe that's everything and I've gone on for long enough so if you have any questions feel free to leave them in the comments.
Edited 13/04/23.
A, XX.