Good things never last. Remus wished he had given heed to this phrase before. If he had done so, he would have known to make the most of the happy moments which at that time had flown past, unaware. The past week was great. The marauders didn't pull any memorable pranks or go to any magnificent and fruitful detours at night. They simply enjoyed each other's company but that was enough to keep them happy and...Whole.
Things came to an end, direly.
The first day of the next week; Monday the happy things came to an end. The marauders were prepared for another happy, careless week. The marauders do not always get what they want and things went off to a bad start. A raven, ebony black owl swopped into the great hall along with all the other post owls at breakfast. Many people turned their heads skywards. The owl looked peculiar trooping with a pack of brown or white owls. Black owls were rare.
The owl landed in front of Erica. Letters from home, there was nothing unusual about that. Erica's expression told a different tale. Her lips twisted in disgust and her eyes narrowed in anger. She snatched the thin, tiny scroll from the owl's talons and slammed it on the table backwards in an attempt to hide the sender's name. Her effort was futile, Remus glanced just in time. Written in middle of the folded letter were the words:
My beautiful daughter
-dad
she snatched up her quill from her bag and wrote in big, block letters "PISS OFF". She tied it back to the owl's outstretched leg and it swopped away.
"Who was that?" James asked.
"Someone who is really desperate to be in my life" Erica said through gritted teeth as she moodily stabbed her toast. The matter was closed by her...but not to Remus. He was going to get to the middle of this, he had to know what was bothering her.
OOOOO
Remus and Erica were standing in the library, in the charms section. James and Sirius had refused to come along. Supposedly they had a reputation to take care of. Peter tagged along with them, typical. Remus was actually glad this time. He had been wanting to speak to Erica ever since morning, alone.
She had never told him about her family. She seemed to stubbornly ignore the topic. He vaguely recalled telling her about his but when he had asked her about her she had said that she had to use the lavatory and fled. He remembered the time she had rushed out of breakfast after receiving a letter. The owl which had delivered the letter, had it been black? Sadly, Remus couldn't remember. Still, why was she ignoring her father? What could a father do to deserve something like that from his daughter?
Something bad...
She stood on her toes as she retrieved a book from a dusty shelf. She blew the dust away and examined the cover. Cracking it open she began scanning the index to see if the book held the information she needed for her essay. Remus snatched the opportunity. "You know...you never told me about you family" he said pointedly leaning in to gauge her reaction.
She visibly stiffened and pursed her lips. She shut the book with more force than required and smoothly slid it back onto its shelf. "Didn't I?" she said feigning surprise.
"So..., you got any siblings? Are your parents together. Come on! Tell me"
She took out the same books she had put back a few moment ago. She turned to face him and he was surprised to see tears swimming in her tears. Remus stepped back, surprised. An apology was at the tips of his lips, he hadn't wanted to hurt her. She stopped him as she said in a trembling voice "everything was normal".
She began walking away but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back. He had already pulled the wriggly mess of secrets out of the bag. Better get this over with. "What do you mean by that? You told me you were a..you know what. What could be worse?"
She pulled her arm away at glared at him "think for yourself! What could be worse than such darkness?" she spat at him, unsettling him. She turned and walked out of the door but he followed her.
"So everything was normal, then what happened?" he urged her.
She turned to him and spoke in a low, threatening whisper "Murder was what happened".
Her answer was too surprising. He fell back and she moved on leaving him alone in the dark corridor. He looked at her retreating back and suddenly he got a flashback...
"It was my mother's favorite" she said, clutching the book protectively against her chest.
No!
Poor Erica...
OOOOO
Remus' words echoed in her head like a mocking mantra. Are you parents together? She had felt anger bubble as soon as those words left his lips. Yes, they had been a happy, small family and her parents had been very happy together. She felt an overwhelming memory nagging her memory, her last happy moment with her beloved family...
Erica wiped the sweat away from her forehead as she raced into the house, leaving her father behind in the dust. "Hey! Slow down for the old man will you" she heard her father cry in the distance and laughing she pushed the door open and ran straight into the kitchen. Her mother looked up from the stove and smiled at her.
Her mother; Dorea Higgins was a beautiful woman. She had a straight, sharp nose and round, dark brown eyes which Erica had inherited from her. Sadly, she had also inherited her mother's dark brown hair which her mother had miraculously managed to tame into graceful waves with age. According to her father, it had been as bushy as a bird's nest when they had started to date. She could still hope to get rid of the abomination she called her hair...
"How was the game?" her mother asked referring to the match of quidditch she and her father had with the neighbors. It was a daily routine. Her mother gave her lessons in the morning and when she had to cook lunch, Erica had a short break. Since her father was in charge of her during the break, quiditch was the only thing they ever did.
Speaking of her father. The back door opened and Ross Higgins walked in. He was a handsome man of 35. He had straight blond hair which he had fashioned into spikes along with grey eyes. He had a strong, muscled body partially to him being an auror and partially because of his love for quidditch. Usually her father was scarcely home but these days he was on a short break. He had been injured during the last raid and so the ministry had seen fit to grant him leave.
"The game was great" her father said enthusiastically, winking at his daughter who passed him a glass of water with a laugh.
"That's good" her mother mumbled "otherwise I would have to deal with a moody Erica for the rest of the lessons..."
"Mom! Can't we skip them" Erica moaned looking at her father for support. Her father zipped his lips, they had agreed that Erica would only be homeschooled of her father didn't interfere with her mother's teaching style. Terrified at the mere thought of not being able to see his favorite kid in the whole world for one year, he obediently kept his mouth shut.
Her mother didn't even answer as she handed Erica plates and spoons. Erica caught the drift. Her mother was silently telling her to shut up and set the table. Her mom was mean. She stuck her tongue at her father who apologetically smiled at her. She began setting the table. Lunch was a quiet affair. With more lessons looming over her head, Erica wasn't in a mood to talk. Her father did try to strike a conversation and he and her mum talked for a while but soon they too lapsed into silence. It was not an uncomfortable silence.
After lunch Erica's mum dragged her towards the study and her father got up and moved towards the door.
"Where are you going?" her mother inquired.
"I left my jacket in the field" her father called behind his back "I will be back in a moment".
He didn't come back for a long, long time
with each remembrance, each flashback, and each echo of his voice. It became harder to stay mad at him.
OOOOO
Remus had never felt guiltier in his life. He wished he had let the topic of her family rest. He hadn't found out the deadly secret and succeeded in making Erica mad at him. Perfect. During lunch, the others gazed at them suspiciously. He and Erica didn't talk, they just sat together quietly. Maybe she was hopefully not too mad, she had sat beside him after all.
Sirius leaned in and asked him "you guys have a fight?"
"I don't know" he answered truthfully.
Sirius looked confused, looking at him oddly.
After lunch Erica pulled him back. Sirius winked at him as if wishing him good luck and pulled the suspicious guys away. Remus had to be thankful.
"arm...we should talk about. You know..." she began nervously, fiddling with the hem of her shirt.
"I am sorry" he blustered out before he could stop himself. Taking a deep breath to calm his ragging nerves he continued "I shouldn't have pressed you. I just...I dunno...I thought I could help I guess. If I knew what was bothering you..."
"I might tell you" she said quietly. She put extra emphasize on "might", dashing all his hopes. "Just give me some time, some space..." He nodded and let out a sigh of relief when she smiled, he hated even thinking that he had hurt her. He knew he wasn't fully forgiven but this was better than nothing...
"So...ready for defense?"
OOOOO
In defense against the dark arts, they received a surprise. Upon opening the door instead of meeting the annoyed scowl of Professor Salter they were greeted with the warm smile of a middle aged man. His curly blond hair was neatly combed back and his light blue eyes were warm and friendly. At all of their confused and surprised reactions he quirked his eyebrows and asked "what? Didn't Professor Salter tell you he was only filling in for me? No? How forgetful and inconsiderate of him".
Guys I am so so so so so so so so sorry I didn't write for like FOREVER. Well my sister dumped a bucket of water on our laptop so….well it is safe to say that the old laptop will not be working any time soon. My brother bought a new one so I hope I will be able to upload more now. School is a curse for sure! REVIEW PLEASE
~levy~
