A/N: Hi all, hope you enjoy this story. It is my first attempt at an AU in Harry Potter, to say it is intimidating is a massive understatement, so I welcome any help or input. Hope you give my OC a chance, I know it can be rough waters for original characters but I hope you like Delphi. I have played around a little with the ages of some of the characters from the Marauders' era as you will notice. If any other facts appear glaringly wrong, please let me know through review or pm me. I appreciate the input. Alright, well then, all that is left to say is 'enjoy'. - Cat

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, its contents, characters or anything affiliated with it. (Although having it in the world has made many lives brighter, including mine, and for that, we thank you J.K. Rowling)

Chapter One

Delphi came out of Flourish and Blotts in a rush, knowing she was running behind. This was a disaster, if there was one thing their father hated more than anything, it was tardiness… well, there wasn't a whole lot that Delphi's father didn't hate. But tardiness was most certainly up near the top... especially from his daughter.

If she wasn't in front of Gringotts in two minutes she would most certainly get the very long lecture (one of many) about 'letting time pass by unattended, not only lets him down but the family down'… so on and so forth. She already seemed to be walking on egg shells with her father as it was. All summer it had been like that. The last thing she needed was to send him over the edge now. Not when she was so close to escaping back to school... although this year... this year she didn't feel quite the same as usual at the prospect of returning to school, no, this year... it would be different. There was a certain amount of repressed dread approaching with her departure from platform 9 and 3/4. The downpour of torrential rain that had accompanied them from the country into the city was not helping to lighten her mood in the slightest.

No, today she could only deal with so much. She had to hurry, and had she been paying attention she wouldn't have dashed out into the middle of Diagon Alley. Had she not been terrified of letting her father down she would have seen the young man about to enter the shop with his head down, buried in what appeared to be his school supply list. And she most certainly would not have run smack dab into him dropping all of her brand new books into the middle of the soaking street.

"Drat!" She hollered, stomping her foot, only to find a puddle and soak through her brand new pumps and stockings. Her lower lip trembled and she took a deep breath trying to compose herself, 'No sense losing your head completely in the middle of the street, then you really will be disowned', she couldn't help but think to herself, it didn't take much to send her into tears this summer.

"Oh, sorry Love, wasn't paying half as much attention as I shoulda been, 'specially when there are lovely looking birds such as-" He stopped dead as if choked on the word 'yourself' and instantly recognizing him Delphi couldn't help but quickly look away at her dropped books, as her heart stopped beating in her chest. This day just continued to become worse and worse. "Why hello," The young man said with that insufferable confidence he seemed to have so ingrained in his very personality. You would think there was constantly a little group of girls following him around positively squealing…. which in all fairness wasn't that far off the mark when they were at school.

"Oh not you," She spat scowling; Delphi tucked her long black hair behind her ears and bent down to pick up her books.

"And wonderful to see you to Love," He said crouching down to help her.

"I don't need your help thank you very much, and STOP calling me 'Love,' if there is one thing I am not in this world, it is your 'Love'." She snarled shaking her copy Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration. She considered looking at him but the thought terrified her more than facing her father after being late.

"Alright, alright keep your hair on," He responded sighing, Delphi stood up and braved a glare at him, how dare he act irritated with her, if anyone was allowed to be angry, it was her. "Geez, you have enough literature here to stock a library, think you got enough?"

She glanced at him, it irritated her that she still found him engrossing. That despite her snarky response, she didn't just push past him and get on with her life. His hair was now shoulder length and fell in his face, which his mother would probably hate if she ever saw it. His eyes were still just as dark and just as big. He did look rather fit, muscular and tall, nearly a head taller than Delphi. He looked very good as a matter of fact, very good, he looked genuinely ... happy. Like she had never seen him look before. It made her heart sink further into her chest, which in turn made her feel guilty and she did her best to swallow past the lump in her throat. He went to hand her her brand new copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.

"Thank you," She said snatching it back. She scanned it for water damage, he must have grabbed it before anything substantial could happen to it.

"So," He put his hands in his pockets and rolled forwards on to the balls of his feet, "Sixth Year!? It's a big deal, looking forward to it?"He looked genuinely interested, which caught her even more off guard. How could he pretend like everything was normal? Didn't he know things were bound to change between them? As if his deafening silence all summer was not enough of a hint as it was, what was he playing at?

"What on earth are you talking about?" She glared into his face which for once looked open, not that she would really know what he looked like on a day to day basis, ...well not any more. She felt like she was walking into a trap, and there he was looking all calm and interested, looking fantastic in black slacks, black shirt and his stupid red and gold scarf. How she hated that scarf, as if it meant to leap off him and strangle her. Delphi went back to studying her books intently.

"Well it's kind of a right off year, sixth is. Don't really have to bother much about academics, just on having a good laugh before last year, you know when you really have to try and all." He glanced at her as if expecting a response. Delphi could see he had a half smile in the corner of his mouth as if he was expecting her to giggle, and had it been last year she would have. Giggled, probably touched his arm, all that seemed so preposterous now... now it wasn't funny.

"Mmm." She made a noncommittal noise and glanced back at him unable to glare any longer, looking at him now made her chest positively ache. She shook her head, "I have to go." She snapped awkwardly. Delphi walked around him but he only fell into step beside her. She took a deep breath to keep from screaming, her fists clenched around her bag's strap to hide the fact they were shaking. She just continued to look ahead. She could see the white pillars of Gringotts rising ahead of her, so close, she had to lose him or else her father would have a total heart attack if he saw her walking with this particular young man.

"Planning a lot of very big parties which, you know, only the best will be at them," He was hinting at her. Surely he didn't want her to be desperate enough to invite herself to his parties did he?

"I am so sure. Look, don't you have somewhere to be? Someone to...I don't know, harass with your little gang?"

" 'Little Gang?' " He scoffed looking at her with a genuinely amused expression.

"Yes, as in away from me?" She glared at him.

"I don't think I would rather be anywhere else right now." He said sounding pleased with himself at irritating her, but there was something else in his voice as well, a huskiness that she knew meant he was being truthful. He shouldn't be doing this to her, it was just cruel.

"Well, I think I would rather you just dropped-" She stopped dead in her tracks, having just broken through the crowd and facing the front of Gringotts. All the colour drained from her face.

"A less honourable part of myself thinks you were going to say drop dead," He said in her ear and his breath tickled her skin but Delphi couldn't take her eyes off the front of Gringotts. There was her father standing with her two older brothers speaking to the person she wanted to see just about least in the world, the person who seemed to be visiting her family estate more than warranted this past summer, even if he was her oldest brother's nearest and dearest friend... Lucius Malfoy.

"Oh no," She whispered. The young man standing next to her tensed.

She supposed he saw her expression and the change in her tone. He had always been able to read her like a book, even when they were little. He followed her eyeline. "Here," Just as Lucius was looking away from her father and scanning the crowd, just before Lucius' eyes would fall on Delphi, the young man grabbed her arm and pulled her back into the crowds and somehow her legs followed him.

He artfully guided her through the people and into a small alley between two shops that smelt strongly of pickled newt. "What not interested in seeing lover boy?" It was almost a snarl.

Delphi's head snapped around to glance at him, he was trying to maintain that joking look on his face but his eyes looked guarded, that irritated her even more. "Oh? And what would you know about it?" She snapped at him wrenching from his gasp, she hadn't realized he was still holding onto her arm.

"Oh come on, I know the life, the families, of course that would be your fathers next choice. You and Lucius Malfoy, its ridiculous, isn't he like a million years old?"

She scoffed crossing her arms protectively over her chest, "It's none of your business how old he is." She skirted the first part of his statement.

The boy in front of her, who was changing into a man with every passing year laughed a hard laugh, almost a bark. "Whatever, he is still heartless scum of the earth." He looked at her and she could tell the boy who had been interested in her answers to his questions was gone again and she wondered vaguely if she would ever get the chance to see him again the boy who thought everything could stay the same, despite all odds. But then what did it matter? He didn't care about her or anything that mattered to her, that had been made abundantly clear.

Anger bubbled in Delphi's chest, "Oh yes? Scum of the earth? Just like your family? My family?" He looked a little surprised, "That's what you think isn't it? At least there are some people who think I am worth the time of day, rather than turn their back without a second thought. There is nothing left to be said between us, Sirius so please do the half way decent thing and leave me alone." With that she turned and left him staring after her.

"Dell..."She hesitated mid-step at his long time pet name for her. He saw her shoulders go up almost as if her had thrown something at her, but then she dropped her shoulders and without looking back at him she walked away.

And Sirius Black watched her go, go right up to the doors of Gringotts and stand beside her father, and her older brothers, Rodophus and Rabastan, and smile politely at Lucius Malfoy, and he realized just how far apart they were now. His choice at the end of last term, it wasn't supposed to effect her, running away hadn't been about running away from Delphi.

Suddenly he was five years old again, looking across the parlour at the tall couple who had spent so much time in the Black family home. Their sons stood on either side of them, one nine years old, the other six, and their five year old daughter stood in front, she stood tall just like the others but he noticed her hands were clenched into fists, clinging behind her on her fathers robes. Her hair was long, with those thick sausage curls and black, almost blue, like a clear nights sky he could see out of his bedroom window. Her big dark blue eyes stared across the parlour and looked directly at him. And they watched each other.

Orion Black sat behind his grand desk and surveyed their house guests with a pleased eye, "Yes, I think this shall suit both our families extremely well, and from what I hear Walburga and Lucrestia have both determined the childrens temperaments and personalities similar enough, the rest shall come later of course,"

"Of course," Spoke Ragnar Lestrange, towering over his family, "Just as we both have found."

Orion smiled jovially, "Yes. So as to the agreement, upon your daughter, Delphi's seventeenth birthday she shall wed our son, Sirius, and so bind our families in familial love." After disentangling himself from his daughter, Ragnar crossed the parlour and shook hands with Orion. Delphi, whose hand had found Rodolphus's, looked over again at Sirius. And he couldn't help but send the little girl a small smile.

Now he watched her walk away from him towards her family. She was brilliant and beautiful and had been the one bright spot in his world…. no, not his world any more, he had made sure of that, separated himself from it. And with it her unintentionally.

As she spoke to Malfoy he felt his blood boil, how could she stand to be in his presence, even be near such a man? As he thought this she turned and looked over her shoulder. She looked directly at him, didn't even need to search to find him, she just seemed to know he would be there, watching her. He shook his head. He didn't know her, didn't know her at all, so why did it matter?

With that Sirius Black turned and walked away from Delphi Lestrange's glance. She watched him until he disappeared in the crowds.

A/N: Alright all, hope you enjoyed this story, please review to let me know what you think! thanks -Cat