At first, Welsh witch Rhea Davies thought Raphael Zabini was the perfect husband.
He was wealthy, urbane, and charming -- until the ring was actually
on her finger. Then she discovered he wasn't looking for a wife and
a partner -- he was looking for a subservient brood mare to bear him
purebred children (especially sons), be sexually available whenever
he felt the urge, and generally wait on him hand and foot. And, perhaps
worse, he was a Death Eater, and planned to raise any children to
that path. The day she realized she was pregnant, she ran.
Hidden in the muggle world, for the first six years of Blaise's life, he
didn't have a father, he had a bogeyman. His mother, psychologically
scarred and increasingly paranoid, painted a picture of a cruel and
hateful monster, her constant nightmare the thought of Raphael catching
up with them. And one day that nightmare came true. She fought, of
course, but he was far more powerful, and far, far more ruthless.
The outcome was never really in doubt, and he dragged a weeping Blaise
away from her lifeless body.
It was the last time Blaise ever cried. Such displays of weakness were not
permitted, especially not on a woman's behalf. Raphael taught him
a different way, that of discipline, a twisted kind of honor, and
a concept of ubermench that would've made Hitler proud. He taught
him swordsmanship and magic, too, but when the invitation to Hogwarts
came -- despite the presence of muggleborn and muggle-loving wizards
there -- he was ordered to accept.
Partly for the chance to assess the capabiities of other up-and-coming wizards,
and partly for the thorough grounding in wizardry it would give him,
training to go on to be an Auror (and Raphael's spy) in the Ministry of Magic.
At Hogwarts, Blaise kept to himself, concentrating on his studies and observing
other students. He found watching how others played Quidditch more
educational than playing it himself. A bright young man, Blaise enjoyed
his time at Hogwarts, despite some cognitive dissonance generated
by sneaking respect and liking for muggleborns like Hermione Granger
(female into the bargain!) and half-bloods like Harry Potter. There
was also the difficulty of viewing purebloods like Draco Malfoy as
erratic and undisciplined.
Blaise told himself these were merely distractions, he had the clarity of
a life goal laid out for him, and he was genuinely looking forward
to becoming an Auror. Then, the war came, and his family was on the
losing side. His father wound up in Azkaban, and, ironically, it was
only a chance decent impulse during the battle at Hogwarts that saved
Blaise from a like fate. On his way to join his father, he saw a giant
attacking a pair of first year students. Still not sure why, he turned
aside to attack it, buying their escape with a clout from its club
that took him out of the fight.
Still, though free, Blaise went almost overnight from a scion of wizard nobility
with an assured future to a dishonored and penniless outcast. No wizard,
let alone the Ministry of Magic, was going to trust the son of a known
Death Eater. Angry and adrift, he's now seeking to find his way in the world.