Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Harry Potter.
PROLOGUE: YOU CAN'T GO BACK IN TIME
"Time is free,
But it's priceless.
You can't own it,
But you can use it.
You can't keep it,
But you can spend it.
Once you've lost it,
You can never get it back."
-Harvay MacKay
"So," Athena started, "you're here to teach too, Remus?" Remus smiled wryly and nodded.
"Dumbledore offered me a job and being what I am, I had to take what I could get." She laughed.
"Same here. No one really wants to associate with my kind either. I'm more of an assistant rather than an actual teacher. I'm just going to go around and help out with other classes."
"You always were an exceptional student. Dumbledore gave me the Defense Against the Dark Arts position."
"Careful with that one, Remus," Athena warned. "Apparently, the last two teachers didn't end well. The first one is dead and the second one is currently in St. Mungos with some of his memories erased."
"I'll try my best," he answered. A silence fell over the room. Athena bit her lip and Remus nervously and scratched the hair at the nape of his neck as a thick tension began to suffocate them. Finally, Athena let out a sigh of frustration and ran her hand through her hair.
"Merlin, Remus… What the hell are we doing?" she asked. Remus grimaced at the look of utter despair marring Athena's usual cheerful expression. "Oh, good Godric, Sirius has escaped Azkaban, Remus! What are we going to do?!" Her breaths began to get uneven and tears slowly dripped from her eyes. Remus' heart ached at the sight. Athena was such a bright and happy student at Hogwarts, and to see her like this…
Athena was close to himself, Sirius, and James, but never seemed to have liked Peter. She was also best friends with Lily. Athena was the type that was well-rounded and could get along with almost anyone, except the Slytherins, of course. She would pull pranks with Sirius and James and talked literature with Lily and Remus.
But now… she was so stressed and although beautiful, the agony and pain made her look years older.
"Athena…" She closed her eyes.
"Remus… Is it awful if I admit that I don't believe Sirius is a murderer?" Remus sighed.
"Athena. We've been over this…"
"I know…" she whimpered. "But Sirius was so close to James. James meant the world to him."
"I didn't want to accept it either." Athena took a shaky breath.
"So… that boy… Harry Potter… H-he's James and Lily's son, isn't he? Sirius is his godfather… And I'm Harry's godmother." Remus nodded slowly, as if he were afraid that she would break into a million pieces if he made any sudden movements, but it seems his efforts were in vain, for Athena had started to sob. "Oh my god, Remus! He looks just like him! He has James' dark, frighteningly unruly hair and god awful eyesight! Except… he has Lily's gorgeous eyes! I loved her eyes… They were so pure and honest…"
'So are yours,' Remus had wanted to say, but found that he couldn't get the thought passed his lips. So he had just sighed once again and sat down on the couch next to her. He didn't protest when she laid her head on his shoulder.
"This reminds me of back then." Remus chuckled.
"You were always so affectionate. You gave us hugs, kisses, and latched onto our arms. Heck, sometimes you crawled into bed with us!" Athena laughed fondly, but it slowly died out as a sad smile spread over her lips.
"…I miss the old days… when everything was so much simpler…" Remus rolled his eyes.
"It was never simple, even back then." She giggled nervously.
"Yeah, there was always so much drama…"
"I just wish that we could somehow go back in time and change everything..."
"Well, we can't," Remus said sharply. "What has happened, happened... and there's nothing we can do to change that. Not with spells, curses, or even Time Turners... We can't ever go back in time... The only thing we can do... is to move on... and continue living for them... For Peter, Lily, and James."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: If you liked it FOLLOW, FAVORITE, and REVIEW! The next chapters will start the Marauders' Era. After all of the Marauders' Era is finished, I will eventually go back to Prisoner of Azkaban and continue with the series until Deathly Hallows. I hope you guys will like this story!
