captofthesswolfstar:

ncrissablack:

Reminder

The entire generation of the marauders grew up with war, it began in 1970 when most characters in the era were between 12 and 19 years old and it lasted for 11 years.

But especially the Black family, and probably the other sacred 28 families as well, spend 15 years or longer in that state of war.

Because the official beginning of the first war was in 1970. But death eaters became active long before that. Let’s say 1965.

In 1965, Bellatrix Black (the eldest) was 14. Andromeda was slightly younger, and Narcissa was 10. Sirius and Regulus were 6 and 4 respectively.

When the war ended, they were 30, 26, 22, and 20 if he’d lived.

All of them except Regulus grew up in the war. Bellatrix joined a cult before the war, when she couldn’t have been older than 18, likely younger. Andromeda ran away somewhere between her 16th and 18th probably, already knowing there was no escaping an upcoming war.

But for the younger ones? Who hadn’t started hogwarts yet when the death eaters became a thing in the shadows?

Narcissa started her first year at school, knowing that every small decision was going to matter, was going to matter far more than an eleven year old should be responsible for. Who she sat next to during the opening feast, which professors liked her best and with which students she spend too much time making small talk. She never got the chance to be a reckless teenager because there was going to be a war and she was going to be involved and she’d known it since she was 10.

Sirius started hogwarts the year the war officially broke out. And unlike most others he knew how the death eaters were, because he’d seen them. He openly defied his family even if not by choice with his sorting and you bet your ass he knew how big of a fuck up that was. Because he knew even if he hadn’t decided to fight against his family just yet, he knew how dangerous lord Voldemort was, better than anyone in his year.

And Regulus? He was 4 when it began, 9 when the war started. Nine. When he started Hogwarts, his sister and father and soon to be brother in law were all death eaters and no one knew. No one knew who was from which side but he did if only to a certain extent. He’d grown up with some of those death eaters, had grown up being told what a wondrous job they’d do. Had grown up with the idea that this war was going to be great.

The eldest two Blacks were made to grow up to fast in their respective ways. But the younger three were robbed of their childhood before they even knew why.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤