Disclaimer: As usual, I own nothing except the story plot, the Parkers and Daniel.

Nervously Jessica followed Alice up the stairs, the gravity of her friends' tone echoing in her head. How was it even possible that Alice knew what Nora was up to when she didn't? She didn't have to wait long for the answer to that question.

All too soon, they reached the landing and Alice ushered her into the bedroom. It was only once they were seated side by side on the bed that Jessica realized she was very nearly speechless with fear. When she did finally manage to speak, it was only in a pitifully shaky voce.

"What's this about Allie, where is Nora?" Alice' expression reflected a hint of pity by now, a fact that was quickly turning Jessica into a nervous wreck. She couldn't remember ever worrying about her sister this much before.

"It's kind of a long story," Alice began to explain at long last. Her tone was as grave as ever forcing Jessica to repress a shudder.
"Long story or not, I have to know where she is right now," she declared firmly, albeit not in as intimidating a tone as she would have liked.

"Alright," Alice gave in. "Basically she came over to my place to get baby food, though I'm guessing the state my house was in must have been a little bit distracting. Anyway, soon after telling me about the attack on Godric's Hollow we heard someone Apparating onto the front lawn."

She paused there for dramatic effect, visibly enjoying the suspense she had created, especially considering how reluctant she had been to spill the beans in the first place. Jessica narrowed her eyes menacingly; "Get on with it; I'm not kidding around here!"

The smirk slid of Alice' face like water of a ducks' back and she continued her recollection hurriedly; "Okay, I'm sorry. So, as I was saying, this stranger walks in all of a sudden and tells Nora that Albus has summoned a bunch of the Order members to Hogwarts to get a brief for their latest mission. Apparently she knew who this guy was, because she went with him after telling me to bring the food for Harry here. And of course you know what happened here after that."

Once Alice had finished the tedious explanation, silence reigned for a moment, while Jessica digested everything she had just learnt. Finally she said; "Nora isn't the type to just go off with strangers. Did you hear what this mystery mans' name is?"
"Only vaguely," her friend replied apologetically. "If I heard right, Nora called him Danny." To her surprise, Jessica's eyes sparked with recognition alongside slight incredulity. "Do you know him too?"

"Of course I know him and so do you. Don't you remember our cousin, Daniel Mariano? He was a year above us at Hogwarts and the Head Boy in his final year there. I'm just a bit surprised to hear that he showed up here, that's all. He went abroad for his Auror training as soon as he graduated and I haven't seen him since."

Alice nodded thoughtfully; "I do have vague memories of him as Head Boy, now that you mention it," she agreed, but trailed off at the sudden look of horrified realization on Jessica's face. "What's wrong Jessie?"

She was just beginning to feel unnerved by the distant look in Jessica's eyes, when her friend spoke at last; "I just realized something," she said fearfully. "Nora's area of expertise is normally the theory of jinxes, hexes and curses. Why is she taking to the battlefield today?"

Alice looked at her awkwardly. She had been hoping to avoid the discomfort accompanying this part of the story. "I think she was just taking drastic action against how down in the dumps she was when she showed up on my doorstep," she suggested slowly.
Jessica frowned at her; "Are you calling my sister suicidal, Al? Because let me tell you that's certainly what it sounds like right now!"

"I'm not calling Nora suicidal, Jess! I'm just giving you the probable reason for why she acted so rashly all of a sudden," Alice protested indignantly. She would have argued further, but they were interrupted at that moment by a tentative knock at the bedroom door. Both girls fell silent and turned towards the door as it creaked open.

Lily was standing in the doorway looking grave. "Jessie, you had better get downstairs, now! An owl just arrived from Andromeda Tonks. Apparently Albus put her in charge of the casualties of the latest Order mission and Nora's in intensive care as we speak."
"What? Oh no, this cannot be happening, I have to go!"In seconds Jessica leapt to her feet and pushed past Lily and down the stairs.

Lily looked expectantly at Alice;"Are you coming down too, Allie?" she asked. Her friend simply stared suspiciously at her. Lily rolled her eyes, trying not to let Alice read her mind like she always could.
But such mind-reading skills were simply in the job description of being a best friend, as she would learn soon enough. "Something is bothering you Lils," Alice stated rather than asked, before demanding; "Was there anything else in that letter, hmm?"

Lily sighed and plopped onto the bed beside Alice; "Nothing gets past you, Al. As a matter of fact, a note from Albus came along with Andromeda's letter. He said this particular mission cost so many Order members their lives that there's going to be a memorial service for all the deceased at Hogwarts in three days time."
Alice looked at her blankly; "So, what does that have to do with you?"

"I'm coming to that, hold your Hippogriffs, Al!" Lily replied impatiently."Albus asked me if I wanted to have the funeral for James that day as well. He said the entire Order will be there and I can invite whomever else I want. It does seem like the ideal situation at first glance, it was just such a sudden proposition. I don't know what to tell him, because to be honest, I haven't thought about the funeral even once!"

She turned away when she had finished explaining so that Alice wouldn't see the tears in her eyes as she added shakily; "I'm not ready to say goodbye, Allie! It hurts so much just thinking about it."
"Oh Lily, saying goodbye for the last time isn't going to be easy no matter how long you put it off for. Probably the only thing you'll get out of waiting is a rotten corpse; you know the preservative spell can't last forever."

Lily nodded sadly; "I know, so I should probably accept the offer, right?"
"I think you should," agreed Alice. "And don't worry about not having anything special planned. Not even a funeral can be dull when Sirius was the deceased's best friend."

Lily smiled in spite of herself as she hugged Alice gratefully. "That's true, he really is amazing. Thanks Al."
"Anytime Lils, just remember you aren't going to have to go through that funeral alone. It's a good thing you managed to retain your friendships from our school days. They will help you get through this now. Padfoot, Moony, Jessie and I will all be there for you, alright?"

Lily was just about to express her gratitude again, when the door creaked open for the second time and Sirius walked in holding Harry. He had evidently overheard the last part of their conversation, because he said grimly; "Alice is right in saying that you won't be alone during the funeral service Lils, I just wouldn't count on Jess being there if I were you."

Lily and Alice both looked confused, so he elaborated reluctantly; "She just called from the hospital. I brought Harry upstairs so you girls can watch him now. Jess asked me to stay with her until her cousin wakes up. He was seriously injured apparently and he's now the only family she has left. It was too late to save Nora, she's dead."

With those words he handed Lily her son and left the room, leaving a horrified silence in his wake.