~"When you marry someone, you marry their family too." — common proverb
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~ Corvus Black - POV ~
~ Kings Cross Station, London ~
As the Hogwarts Express finally starred coming to a complete stop at the platform a handful of individuals started making their way towards the exit Nymphadora and I were already standing at. We hear the conductors voice call out the stations name before the doors finally open for the passenger's to step out. Nymphadora and I are among the first to alight upon the platform before moving slightly to the side so we're not in the way of other students and some smattering of other witches and wizards who took the train from Hogsmeade to London. At one point I had to grab onto Nymphadora's arm when she almost tripped over her own trunks somehow.
"Thanks." She begrudgingly said quietly as I stopped her from faceplanting on the platform, her hair that same vibrant redish-pink. Well more pink than red this time. Which she followed up by asking me why and how I wasn't even remotely as clumsy as she was. Knowing that I was a Metamorphmagus as she was, one of the few people that actually knows that about me other than Arcturus and Kreacher, and the being the main factor of her clumsiness that doesn't affect me.
"Hmmm, how about introducing me to your parents first and I'll tell you then. Well introducing me to your dad at least as I'm already aware of who your mom is. They'd probably want to hear my thoughts on the subject anyway. Plus I wanted to chat with your mom about something anyway. How about it, Nym?" I answer her question with a charming smile plastered on my face while using the nickname I prefer when I'm not using her full first name to annoy or tease her.
"Why would you want to talk to my parents? You know what, nevermind, it doesn't matter when I consider the upside of getting the secret to not tripping over my own feet. Just don't be an ass, if you can even help it." She starts off with a suspiciously raised eyebrow at my request for an introduction to her parents. Probably momentarily considering my status as a Pure-blood scion and her father's status as a Muggleborn, before shooting that down as she knows that I don't have any prejudices against Muggleborns as most Pure-blood noble families are known to have.
As for how she knows that, it's as simple as that she'd been keeping her eyes on me throughout the school year anytime we were in the same vicinity. Something that she probably hadn't considered anything more than keeping an eye out for the guy who kept annoying her every single time we ran into each other, but others would consider it her keeping track of her crush within the halls of Hogwarts. Anyway, within that year she's spotted me interacting with enough Pure-blood's, Half-blood's, and Muggleborn's to know that I don't discriminate between any of the aforementioned groupings. It's also something she's asked about once in one of the rare occasions where she and I were alone together in the castle's library.
My response was, to her shock, both thought provoking and lacking in any Pure-blood grandstanding of 'I'm better than my lessors because I come from this or that family that's been wizards for this amount of generations.' All I had to do was break down why the Pure-blood rhetoric was nonsense and a cop out for the nobilities hoarding power and authority within the wizarding community. I then topped it off by using her own existence as an example of what makes Muggleborn's such a necessity within the wizarding world.
'Take yourself for example Nym. Because of your mother's marriage to a Muggleborn, you have inherited a Black family trait that had seemed to have disappeared from our bloodline, the ability of being born an Metamorphmagus.' I said to her quite passionately in the corner of the library where we were sitting together. She of course then pointed out the contradiction of my theory by asking how I was a Metamorphmagus. To which I just replied to with a mysterious and charming, at least to me, smirk and wink before saying nothing concrete other than that I was just 'built different.'
After which we would have a few more clandestine meetings in the library or somewhere else within the castle grounds. Our topics of conversation wouldn't always be so heavy or interesting, but it was still a good start to an interesting relationship that I was looking forward to. Though I didn't plan on making any actual advances until we were both much older, maybe by our fourth year I'd properly ask her out on a date. For now I'd rather keep getting to know her as more than as my fictional childhood crush while continuing to tease and annoy her.
As I thought back to our time together as first year Hogwarts students, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Andromeda and Edward 'Ted' Tonks standing with other parents and family members waiting for their children, siblings or whatever else. Andromeda and Ted seem to have already spotted Nymphadora and I together going by the concerned looks upon their face, though to varying degrees.
"Look, I've already spotted your parents, and your dad already looks like he's considering where he's going to hide my body. Ready to introduce your new boy-friend to them?" I point them out to Nymphadora as I tease her with the phrasing of my word's.
"Wha–, that's not... shut it, idiot! Stupid teasing bastard!" She exclaims before noticing my teasing smirk. She then punches me in the arm before she starts heading towards her parents, but not before stopping to look back at me with a receding blush on her face and asking if I was coming or not. With a small chuckle I catch up to her before she decides to change her mind and save herself the headache that is little old me from meeting her parents.
As we make our way to them I pick up the stark contrast to their slightly furrowed browes. While Edward Tonks concerns our obvious and more about my obvious status as a noble Pure-blood probably going by higher quality rodes and dragon leather boots, Andromeda Tonks née Blacks concerns seems to stem from knowing or suspecting exactly which noble family I hail from. Both are also probably worried about what the scion of a noble house is doing with their daughter, especially when said daughter is blushing and seems to be close to said noble family scion.
"Mom, Dad, this is my 'FRIEND' Corvus Black, who for some odd reason wanted me to introduce him to you. Corvus, these are my parents Andromeda and Edward Tonks. Now hurry up and tell me your secret method." She quickly says while vehemently stating the word 'friend' before getting to her payment for the introduction.
"Seriously Nymphado-" her wand quickly makes it way into her hand and it's pointy end into my face before I finish saying her name. "I mean, Nym, you could actually let me greet them first before asking for compensation. It's not like I was just going to leave right after and not say anything. I'm starting to feel like you don't have a good opinion of me." I quickly say as I raised my hands in surrender.
"Who ever said that I actually ever did have any opinion on you, good or otherwise." She, as quickly, fired back while putting her wand away and crossing her arms. All the while avoiding making eye contact with her parents.
"Weren't you the one that just introduced me while enthusiastically calling me your friend. You must really have a low bar for friends if that's the case."
"What! That's not why I was... Shut up, moron. You know exactly why I was doing that."
"I don't seem to remember, why was it necessary to emphasize the word 'friend' while introducing me?"
"You!... hmph!"
After a quick back and forth which I seem to have won with Nymphadora left speechless and pouting, which is dangerously cute, probably why I enjoy teasing her so much. I finally turned to her parents whose faces have considerable relaxed. Andromeda was now even sporting a slight gleeful expression seeing her daughters flustered and blushing face after losing our little verbal sparing match. While Ted, even though more relaxed, looked like he had just swallowed a bitter pill.
"Anyway, it's a pleasure to finally meet the both of you. Mrs. Tonks, Arcturus has told me much about his favorite granddaughter. And Mr. Tonks, I'm sorry to say Nymphadora hasn't said much about her father in our conversations, other than that you are a law-wizard. I look forward to getting to know you." I say while taking Andromedas' hand and briefly nearing my lips on her knuckles as etiquette dictates and shaking Ted's hand normally while pretending that I couldn't feel his hand trying to crush mine. Andromeda had a fleeting sadness pass on her face when I brought up Arcturus but otherwise didn't react much, and it seems like her former training as a Black hasn't faded from her as she executed a flawless curtsy while offering me the back of her hand.
'Finally meeting my future in-laws. Hopefully, nothing goes wrong.'
"Nice to meet you as well Heir Black." Andromeda, as the obvious leader of the small family, began after taking note of the heirship ring on hand before I interrupted. "Please, just Corvus, let's not stand on formalities and ruin this meeting of my 'FRIENDs' parents." I said with my most charming smile as I continued poke fun at the still pouting Nymphadora.
"Corvus then, you may call me Andromeda; or Andi as my cousins, your elder brothers used to call me. Now what is this about a secret method you're going to be telling our daughter about?" She acquiesced and offered before shooting her daughter a look when asking about the so called secret method.
'So far, so good.'
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