Stolen Innocence

Stolen Innocence

"Don´t let me see mistakes and lies,

Let me keep my faith and innocent eyes."

(Delta Goodrem and V.Pizzainga, Innocent Eyes from Innocent Eyes)

Chapter One - In the beginning....

*~* 1963 *~*

Sirius

Sirius Iain Black looked proud with himself. He was fairly sure that he could not be found in his little hidey hole. He was very good at playing hide and seek and gave the House-elves of Black Manor a very hard time indeed.

Sirius was hiding.

He was going to hide until his parents weren´t around and then he was going to run away.

His parents didn´t love him anymore.

They were too preoccupied with the baby.

MADDIE.

He hated that little thing. People didn´t pay any attention to him anymore; they were all too preoccupied with the baby.

Sirius considered the baby a gift to him from the devil himself. He wasn´t quite sure what he himself had done wrong, just that he had done something terrible to deserve this.

He heard his parents make their way upstairs. To look after Maddie. Now was his chance. He snuck towards the door with nothing but his tiny little cloak. He would be sorry to leave the Black Manor. It was a nice place to live. But he couldn´t stay there with the baby. It was either him or the baby and it seemed that the baby had won this round.

He had almost reached the door when suddenly a house-elf sprung out in front of him.

`Where are you going Master Sirius?´ asked Trixie.

`Running,´ he replied quickly. `And you can´t stop me, no matter how hard you try.´ Sirius began to try and run around her, however Trixie was too quick for Sirius.

`You´re coming with me,´ the house-elf grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him upstairs.

`Master Iain,´ she said. `Here is young master Sirius. He was trying to run away again.´

Iain Black walked over and picked up his son.

`Why do you keep trying to run away?´ he asked. `Don´t you like it here?´

`Baby,´ Sirius spat. He wasn´t even going to say the baby´s name. It didn´t deserve that.

`So you want to leave?´ Iain asked his three-year old son. `You want to leave your home and family?´

`Anywhere is better now Mummy has silly baby,´ Sirius said.

`I see,´ Iain replied. `But I don´t want my only boy to leave. Then I´d be outnumbered. You see my problem?´ Sirius nodded. `Hmm, I think I know what to do. How would you like to go on a little holiday then?´

Sirius became curious.

`Where?´ he asked.

`How would you like to go to Skye for a couple of days?´

`Like Bonnie Prince Charles!´ he began singing. `Speed Bonnie boat like a bird on the wing, over the sea to Skye.´ He couldn´t remember the rest of the words of the old Scottish Song.

`Why don´t I see if you can go and visit a friend of mine for a couple of days? He has a little girl to play with, but I think she´d be a bit more fun than Madeleine.´ Iain asked his son.

Sirius nodded, and then watched as his father walked over to the fireplace.

`Alasdair MacLeod,´ he said. Sirius giggled as the head appeared in the fireplace.

`Ah Iain,´ the head said. `It´s so good to see you. What do you want today?´

`I know you don´t have a match on for a while,´ Iain began. `So, I was wondering if you and Nathaira could take Sirius off our hands for a couple of days. He´s not coping very well with Madeleine and I think Heather just needs a couple of days to get organised so that she can give Sirius the attention he demands.´

`I can answer that one straight away Iain,´ the head said. `Nathaira is away for a couple of weeks for work, so I´ve got a little girl here with no one to play with who I´m sure would love a companion. Bring Sirius over as soon as you have his things ready. I´ll tell Saraid that Chrystal will be expecting a playmate and she´ll take care of both of them.´

The head disappeared and Sirius laughed again.

`You´re going to Skye for a coupe of days my lad, but not over the sea, we´ll go through the fireplace. Trixie, go and pack a bag of things for Sirius.´

On his father´s command the house-elf scampered away to pack Sirius a bag. Iain took Sirius into the nursery to say goodbye to his mother. While his parents backs were turned he looked at the baby with seething hate.

`When I get back, if you are here I am going to kill you baby,´ he whispered.

*~* A week later *~*

Sirius returned from his few days away without the need to want to kill his sister, as after spending the four days without his mother in such a large castle with a two year old girl were enough for him to never want to run away from home again. Ever. The little girl had pulled his hair, punched him and taunted him. In return he had hit her and had once managed to kick her as well. He decided that a playmate who wouldn´t bite back was a good start. And besides, Sirius had really missed his father and the times that they would normally spend together. When he returned, he was quite content to sit at his sister´s cradle and watch the full moon rise.

Remus

The little boy with mousy-brown hair couldn´t sleep. He pulled himself out of his bed and walked out of his room. He didn´t understand why his mother had put him to bed so early anyway. He wasn´t the least bit tired and besides it wasn´t fair that he had to go to bed early.

Remus wandered out into the hall. He could hear his parents whispering in frightened voices.

`Do you think we´ll be safe in here?´ his mother asked.

`As long as the windows keep we should be fine,´ Tom Lupin tried to reassure his wife.

`How long do you think it´s been out there?´ she asked.

Remus could hear the fear in his mother´s voice. He wondered what they were talking about.

`The villagers seem to think it has been around for the past couple of months,´ he replied. `Of course they´re a superstitious bunch, but I think these Muggles might have more of an idea of what the animal is than the Ministry. I won´t be too long. It shouldn´t take long to find it. I´ll be careful, don´t worry.´

His father gave his mother a kiss on the cheek and walked out the door carrying his special gun that he always took hunting.

Remus walked into the room where his mother was sitting on the couch with a look of fright on her face.

`Don´t worry Mama,´ the little boy said. `Daddy´s gone hunting.´ Remus looked proud of his father.

Mary Lupin smiled at her son.

`How did you get out of bed?´ she asked him.

`Climbed,´ he said proudly.

She couldn´t remain angry with her son for too long. He was far too precious, and besides she would prefer company until Tom got back.

`Come here Remusdarling,´ she said and indicated to her son to sit in her lap.

`What´s Daddy hunting?´ he asked.

`A werewolf,´ she answered. `A very dangerous werewolf. It´s already killed three Muggles. And because it won´t turn itself in your father has to kill it.´ She sighed, spying the look of confusion on her son´s face.

`Why does Daddahave to kill it?´ he asked innocently.

`Because a werewolf is very dangerous,´ she replied. `Once a month, when the moon is full, the person transforms into a werewolf and they are hungry. They need to eat people. If they actually bite someone they could either kill them, or that person themselves could turn into a werewolf.´

`But the poor werewolf can´t help it,´ Remus said.

His mother laughed.

`If only it was that simple,´ she replied.

Mary got up and walked towards the window, looking for any sign of Tom. She hated it when he was assigned an animal like this one. Especially on a night like this. It had begun to storm. The wind was howling madly. Rain was pelting towards the ground and visibility outside was poor. Tom would be lucky if he found it tonight and then if he made it home safely.

Suddenly Mary heard a crash. She hadn´t realised how long she had been gazing out the window. Remus was no longer in the room. She took a deep breath as she went to investigate. She could hear her son laughing. She entered the dining room where she caught a glimpse of her son.

`Look Mama,´ Remussaid when he spied her. `Tell Dadda I found the wolf.´

At that moment Mary spied the wolf in the corner of the room. Her heart leapt into her throat.

`Don´t move,´ she whispered to her son. She quickly spanned the room with her eyes, located the silver carving knife that she and Tom had received as a wedding gift. She crept over towards it, the entire time keeping her eye on the wolf. He seemed to be eyeing Remus.

Mary felt the cool of the knife in her hand. She grabbed it quickly and lunged at the wolf. Unfortunately it was the same time as the wolf lunged at the little boy who was giggling at the wolf.

Mary gathered all he strength to try a second time. She moved and jammed the knife into the wolf´s back. She could hear the screaming coming from the wounded animal. She had done it. She took a deep breath of relief in. She had saved her son from the wild beast.

She then went to pick up her son to put him back in bed. It was only then that she realised he was whimpering.

`What´s wrong darling?´ she asked him.

`Wolf bit Mama,´ he relied. `It hurt.´ He pointed to his ankle.

Mary Lupin screamed.

All her dreams for her son, they were over in an instant. He had become a monster.

*~*

Innocence Lost

*~* 10 months later *~*

`We´re going to have to move,´ Mary said to her husband. `I think the neighbours are beginning to suspect something. For such a little boy he really is so loud. If they were witches and wizards then I could tell them and they would understand how we keep him under control, but trying to explain to Muggles that our son is a werewolf.´ She burst into tears.

Her husband moved to embrace her. He felt so guilty about going to work that night that it was eating him up inside. It was tearing him and his wife apart. The only thing they had in common was to protect their son at all costs.

Chrystal

*~*1964*~*

Chrystal Àille-MacLeod smiled at her mother who was watching her from the garden. Nathaira Àille had been reluctant to allow her husband to teach the small child how to ride a broomstick however the little girl seemed so keen to learn that Nathaira just couldn´t turn her down. She always had a weakness when it came to small child who was a miracle in itself. She knew her child was special. She had started manifesting accidental magic very early in life so Nathaira knew her daughter would be able to handle a broom. She was quite confident that her daughter would be ready for the old wand that she had hidden underneath her bed. She intended to make her child a force to be reckoned with. She knew her child would be very powerful given the right instruction and she knew that it must commence as soon as the child was ready.

It would not be easy to hide it from her husband, however she felt fairly confident that when he was away on Quidditch tours she and Chrystal could have some decent time spent studying Charms, then by the time she was ready for Hogwarts, Nathaira intended to teach her daughter dark magic to allow her daughter to have the world. After all her child was descended from the Ravenclaw´s of old and was already showing signs of Celtic power. The world was her oyster.

Chrystal waved at her mother again, as she was impatiently waiting for her father to give her the broomstick.

`Right now lassie,´ he said as he gave it to her. `I want you to put the stick on the ground, place your hand over the top and say up.´

She did as she was told.

`Up,´ she said giggling.

The broom remained still.

`Try it again without laughing,´ Alasdair MacLeod said to his daughter with encouragement.

`Up,´ she said as seriously as a three year old can, with a look of determination on her face.

She laughed as the broomstick flew into her hand. Before her father could do anything, she had swung her legs over the broom and was in the air.

Flying was fun. Even if she was only a metre above the ground because the broom wouldn´t let her go any higher. She didn´t ever want to put her feet on the ground again.

Eventually she was dragged back down to the ground by her father, asking her once more who the best Quidditch team in the world was. The little Scottish girl wasted no time in telling her father that the best team in the world was the Prides and one day she was going to be their Seeker.

`Seeker?´ her father asked. `Wouldn´t you rather be a Beater like your Daddy?´

She shook her head so hard that her pigtails began to whip her face.

`No way!´

*~* One and a half years later *~*

She pouted for an entire week when her father went on Quidditch tour. Her mother still wouldn´t let her fly unsupervised, even though she had been able to handle a broom on her own for over a year now. Her mother was going to have a baby and that apparently meant that she couldn´t watch Chrystal fly. By the end of the week Nathaira Àille had had enough. She located the spare wand she had under the bed and pulled the child into an empty room in the castle.

`Right Chrystal,´ her mother said. `Today we learn magic. And I will teach you magic every day that your father is away. But only if you keep it a secret. Understood?´

The four year old nodded, understanding the serious tone in her mother´s voice.

`Today I will teach you how to levitate a feather,´ her mother said as she began to instruct her.

By the end of the week Chrystal had managed to levitate the feather. Her mother watched with pride as she began to groom her child to follow in the path that she herself could not have taken.

*~*June 1967 *~*

Alasdair ran to the fireplace as fast as he could.

`Iain Black,´ he said quickly.

Chrystal silently watched from the corner as her father spoke. She knew she had done something terrible, something that her parents would probably have to punish her severely for. Perhaps they would take away her magic. Could they do that?

`Alasdair, what can I do for you?´ the head in the fireplace asked.

`I need you take Chrystal off my hands today,´ he said quickly. `We gave Saraid the day off and something´s happened to Nathaira, she´s gone into labour very early. I´m taking her to St Mungos immediately.´

`I´ll take Chrystal,´ Iain replied without hesitation. `I´m going to visit friends with Sirius and Maddie but I´m sure they won´t mind another. I´ll Floo over immediately.´

Iain appeared almost instantly.

`What happened Alasdair?´ he asked in a quiet voice that Chrystal had to strain to listen to.

`Someone´s cursed her,´ he replied flatly. `I don´t want charges pressed but I know who it was. I´ll deal with them in a legal fashion at a later date. Right now, all I´m worried about is Nathaira and the baby.´

Iain took hold of Chrystal´s hand and she followed him gladly. She didn´t want to know what her father was going to do with her.

They arrived at Black Manor and Chrystal was immediately greeted by Maddie who was sitting on the carpet in front of the fireplace with her dolls.

`We´re going to visit Bill,´ she said. `One day I´m going to marry Bill.´

`Really,´ said Chrystal thinking very carefully about what Maddie had said. `One day I´m going to marry Sirius then.´

At that moment Sirius appeared at the bottom of the stairs with a handful of dungbombseyeing Chrystal carefully.

`You´re not taking them,´ Iain said sternly. `Molly has enough on her hands with a new baby as it is, she doesn´t need you disrupting the peace.´

He emptied Sirius´ pockets before getting hold of each of the children, sprinkling some powder on the fireplace and saying;

`The Burrow.´

They arrived at a house that both Chrystal and Sirius found amazing. They had never seen anything like it before. They looked up and saw a smiling red-haired man.

`Arthur,´ Iain Black walked over and shook hands with the man. `You know Sirius and Madeleine; this little girl is Chrystal, Alasdair MacLeod´s daughter. I´m taking care of her today. I thought you wouldn´t mind an inclusion to our excursion.´

`Not a problem, I´m Mr Weasley,´ he said to the girl. `I´ll go and get Molly and the boys and we´ll be off.´

Mr Weasley reappeared several minutes later with a woman with curly red hair, who was carrying a baby and a little boy of about three.

`That´s Bill,´ Maddiewhispered in Chrystal´s ear.

The group went on a picnic in the local village. There was a park nearby, so the children were allowed to run off and play while the adults admired the new baby. Maddieran off with Bill, leaving Sirius and Chrystal to play together.

`Why did you come today?´ Sirius asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

`Because my daddy needed to help Mummy,´ Chrystal said quietly. `She´s going to have a baby.´

`Babies are bad,´ the seven year old replied. `Your mummy won´t love you anymore.´

She won´t love me anyway, after what I did.

`I cast a spell on her to get rid of the baby and it made her sick,´ Chrystal said.

Sirius looked at her suspiciously.

`You cast a spell?´ he asked curiously. `You don´t even have a wand; you´re not allowed one until you´re eleven. That´s the rules.´

`Used hers,´ Chrystal replied. She wasn´t going to let Sirius tell her what was right as much as she liked him. `Anyhow, I know lots of charms, Mummy taught me.´ She didn´t add where she´d overheard the charm that she had used on her mother. `I can make feathers float and fly a broomstick and what can you do Sirius Black, nothing.´ She stuck her tongue out at him and ran behind a bush, hoping he wouldn´t follow her.

Sirius did follow her around the bush.

`I can fly a broomstick,´ he said. `You´re wrong.´ He was about to start tormenting her when he sensed the little girl was upset. `What spell did you do?´

She looked up at Sirius, who seemed genuinely interested in her answer.

`I´m not sure what it´s called, but I heard it on the Wizarding Wireless,´ she replied. `I can´t even remember the words.´

`Okay,´ replied Sirius. `Tell me what spells you do know.´

This cheered Chrystal up. She spent the afternoon telling Sirius about the different charms she had tried. Later that evening when they arrived back at Black Manor Sirius managed to locate an old wand and commanded that Chrystal teach him a few charms. She was more than happy to do this. Finally the time came when her father came to take her home. She did not want to leave. She thought about throwing a tantrum, but she figured that she was in enough trouble already.

And she was.

As soon as they had arrived home, her father had made her sit on the couch and began to ask her questions.

`Where did you get that wand Chrystal?´ he asked.

`Under Mummy´s bed,´ she said. `She told me to get it from there.´

`Why?´

`Because it was time for our magic lesson.´

`How long have you had magic lessons?´

`Since I was four. Mama´s been teaching me.´

`Where did you learn that charm?´

`Which one?´ she responded.

`The one you used on your mother.´

`I heard it on the Wireless,´ she replied. `Mummy was listening. The man said that if you want to get rid of a baby, you don´t need any fancy spells, all you need to do is point your wand and say Crucio.´

The look on her father´s face changed suddenly, in a manner that frightened her.

`You didn´t want the baby,´ Alasdair asked.

`Mummy wouldn´t love me anymore,´ she replied.

`That´s not true, Chryssy, okay?´

She nodded.

`Do you think all witches and wizards are good Chryssy?´ her father asked.

`Of course,´ she replied.

`What about Grindelwald? Was he good?´

`He was bad,´ she replied. `But everyone else is good.´

`I want you to listen to me Chrystal,´ her father said very seriously. `Not all witches and wizards are good. Some turn very bad. Those wizards on the wireless are bad wizards. Only a bad wizard would suggest using that curse on someone. There´s a reason that witches and wizards are not allowed wands until they´re eleven. It´s because they´re not old enough to understand what they could do with a wand. Chrystal, it´s not completely your fault that you hurt your mother, you didn´t understand what you were doing. But that curse you tried to use, that curse is called the Cruciatus Curse. It´s a very dangerous curse Chryssy; it puts the person under the spell in a lot of pain. It´s what´s called an Unforgivable Curse. There are only three of them, but if you perform one on someone you could spend the rest of your life in Azkaban. Is that what you want?´

Azkaban!

That scared her. She certainly didn´t want to go to Azkaban. All the pictures were scary and those Dementors looked horrible.

`No Daddy,´ she said as she began to sob.

Her father stood up and picked her up and carried her upstairs and put her to bed. He performed a quick memory charm so that she wouldn´t remember hurting her mother. He then left the room and hope that Chrystal would go to sleep.

She, however, didn´t want to sleep, so she quietly followed her father into the room where her mother was lying.

`What the hell were you playing at Nathaira?´ he yelled at her mother. `Giving a four year old a wand. Teaching her charms. Don´t you understand the consequences?´

`There was no harm to teaching the girl some magic,´ her mother replied. `She´s going to learn eventually. I was just giving her a head start.´

`She´s not mature enough to understand what she´s doing. She could seriously hurt someone.´

`That´s stupid. I wouldn´t teach her anything dangerous, and she´s not old enough to go and look up curses in a book.´

`Do you even know what curse she tried on you?´ her father bellowed. `Evidently you can pick up curses from the Wizarding Wireless. I don´t know what you were listening to, but you are never to listen to that in front of my daughter again.´

Her father was holding her mother´s nightgown with hist fists. His face was close to hers.

`She´s my daughter too,´ her mother spat.

`And I will not have you turn her into a criminal,´ he was yelling even louder now. `She tried to put the CruciatusCurse on you.

Her mother turned white.

`The CruciatusCurse,´ she stammered.

`This is what´s going to happen now Nathaira,´ her father said more calmly. `You will dismiss Saraid tomorrow. I don´t trust her anymore. Chrystal will go to the village school in Portree. I will take her to and from school everyday. When I go on Quidditch tours she will come with me. And there will be no more magic tuition in this house. Understood?´

Her mother nodded as her father walked out of the room, not noticing Chrystal in the corner. As she was wondering how she was going to get out without being seen, she heard her mother´s voice.

`Chrystal, I know you´re in here somewhere,´ her mother said. `Come here and sit on the bed.´

She did as she was told.

`You want to ask me a question?´ she asked.

`Why were you teaching me magic when you weren´t allowed?´ she asked.

`I´m going to tell you something very important,´ her mother said softly. `Your mother comes from a very powerful witch family, which unfortunately most of the people were slain. Why doesn´t matter; but you and I are the last of a line. We are not only witches, but we are Celts, which makes us very powerful. I was only trying to help you use that power. Do you understand?´

Chrystal nodded.

`Good, now go to bed. But you must not tell anyone what I just told you.´

She did as she was told, having no desire to tell anyone.

Nathaira Àille watched the little girl potter out of the room.

Her child had tried to curse her with the Cruciatus Curse.

She couldn´t believe it.

All she had wanted was for her daughter to be powerful. For her daughter to have every opportunity in the world. And it had backfired.

The look on the face of Alasdair came to mind. It was sincere hatred. The shock of it all, as well as losing her son had rendered her unable to react. If she had thought about it, she could have manipulated him. Perhaps she would manipulate him to allow her to stay. And eventually she could get to be alone with her daughter.

She shuddered as she thought about her daughter.

Nathaira didn´t know whether or not she could ever look at Chrystal the same way again. After all it was her fault that her husband hated her and she could never have another child.

*~*

Innocence Lost

*~*

So the little girl´s private magic tutoring ceased, she began to attend the village school and learn how to interact with other children. When her father went on Quidditch tours, she accompanied him, watching every game he played and learning the art of playing Quidditch. The entire team adored the little girl and the spark of life she brought into their lives, despite the extraordinary amount of accidental magic she would do. They loved to teach her how to fly and gave her pointers on how to catch the Snitch when she told them she wanted to be a Seeker. The Prides´ Chaser, Catriona McCormack became a sort of adopted mother for Chrystal when on tour. When she was at home, she was never allowed to be alone with her mother. If any friends or visitors thought that this was strange they never commented, it was an accepted fact that Chrystal was her father´s daughter. But it was only Chrystal who could tell that there was something drastically wrong with her parents´ relationship. She did not know what it was, but the little girl could sense that things weren´t quite right at home. Determined to protect herself from anything bad that might happen, at the age of eight Chrystal began sneaking books of Charms, curses and magical history up to her room to read before she went to bed. She may not be allowed to do magic yet, but she could still learn. And she was particularly interested in anything to do with Celtic witches.

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