Ch 28 The Last Day August

Tomorrow was the day I was meant to return to Hogwarts. Everyone expected me to return. Every part of me wanted to return. But how could I leave Emily, all alone, with Dad? How could I do that? I couldn't. I just... couldn't.

"Jaycee! Please! You have to go back! You have to." Emily said, standing by my desk where I was sitting.

"But you told me you needed me not to leave again. I'm staying, Em." I slumped over my half written letter to Dumbledore explaining that I was not coming back to Hogwarts.

Emily pushed me off the letter and grabbed it. "I know. I wasn't thinking. You need to go back. What's here for you?" She said softly, tearing the letter in half, then fourths, then eighths.

I sat up and looked at her hard. "You."

"I'll be fine, Jace. I have school too. I am nine years old. I can look after myself. I-I promise." She met my look with one of her own.

"Ok." I whispered, defeated. "I'll go."

She nodded and tried to smile. I couldn't look at her. In avoiding the sight of the expression on her face, I looked down, glancing at the booklist for fourth year that had arrived a week ago. Suddenly, I had an idea.

"Em! Do you want to come to Diagon Alley with me? Since I'm... going back now... and... yeah.." I trailed off, hoping I had said the right thing. I grinned as her eyes lit up, brightening her entire face. I still had one thing that would lift any 9 year olds' spirits, no matter how distraught they were. Magic.

"Can I?" She grabbed my arm, forgetting her exhaustion in an instant.

"Of course you can!" My face hurt, I was smiling so wide and my heart swelled. Emily was jumping for joy around the room. Happy.

Suddenly she stopped and whipped her head around, beaming with excitement. "Can Sirius Black come too?"

I laughed, something I hadn't done for weeks. "I'll ask, ok? But he's probably already bought his stuff."

"Yay! Yay! Yay! Sirius Black!" She giggled finally collapsing onto my bed. I pushed back my chair, took a running leap and landed right next to her with an Ooomph and a bounce.

"Sounds like someone has a bit of a crush on a certain wizard," I chuckled and tickled her feet. She squealed, still giggling.

"Nah-UH" Emily said firmly, hiding a smirk. "But someone in this room does."

"WHAT! What is THAT supposed to mean!" I exclaimed, indignantly. She made a show of shutting her mouth and shaking her little blond head.

"I see how it is, you sod. Go get ready. I'll owl Sirius for you."

She giggled again and skipped out of my room. I watched her long hair whip through the door after her. I couldn't have been happier. Emily was giggling again. I'd missed the sound of her tinkling laugh.

V V V V V V V V V V V V V V V

Emily stood on her tiptoes, craning her neck. "Where is he, Jaycee? He's late!"

"Calm the farm, Emily. He said he'd meet us here at 11. It's still only 10:45." I ruffled her hair and sighed at my impatient little sister.

We were leaning against the wall between a record store and a fish and chip shop. I could quite clearly see the little wizard's pub called "The Leaky Cauldron" situated on the other side of the record store, but I wasn't sure if Emily had even noticed it. We were sharing a pack of chips. Actually it was more along the lines of I managed to score a chip or two from the hungry beast that had emerged in Emily.

Ten minutes and another pack of chips later Sirius turned up, right on time, grinning his infamous grin and sporting the leather jacket he had worn last time I had seen him. Emily raced towards him and practically leaped into his arms.

"Hi Sirius!"

I face-palmed with the hand not clutching the almost empty chip pack.

"Hi you crazy kid." He slung her over his back, fireman style and joined me in next to the record store. "I think I have something of yours? And..." He glanced at the chips. "I think you may have something of mine. Swap?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's ok. You can keep her. I'm happier with the chips, thank you very much."

He frowned and thought for a moment. "NO DEAL!" He grabbed the chips and pretty much threw Emily at me, she, laughing the whole time.

I glared at him. "Fine. Have them, bum. They're cold anyway."

Emily tugged at my incredibly... there is no other word for it... "floopy" jumper. "Can we go now PLEASE?" She begged.

"Ok ok! We're going!" I laughed. Sirius was getting a bit excited too. Though he had already bought his books, he had said he was always looking for an excuse to go to Diagon Alley. At the current moment he was impatiently tapping his foot in front of the Leaky Cauldron.

"Let's go!" He shoved open the door, excited. I watched as Emily's jaw dropped, finally noticing the pub.

"Has this always been here?" She asked, shocked, as I dragged her through after me.

"Yes, and it gets cooler, trust me." Sirius yelled from the room which held the entrance. We quickly followed, I not liking the looks we were getting from some of the drunker lifeforms.

Sirius was murmuring to himself, tapping the stone bricks in the wall. Emily watched in awe as the bricks shuffled around until a large archway was created leading onto Diagon Alley.

"Hey! Goldy! D'ya remember your booklist?" He asked suddenly, before tumbling through the archway eagerly.

"Yeah yeah, do you really think I'd be that stupid?" I pulled the list from out of my pocket, dragging a completely speechless Emily behind me.

"Well..." He averted his eyes and smirked. I narrowed mine.

"What're you trying to say?"

"Noooooothing!" He sang and pulled the list from out of my hand. "ONWARDS TO FLOURISH AND BLOTTS!"

"No wait!" I grabbed his arm and pulled him backwards. He landed very heavily on his backside. I burst into laughter. Emily wasn't paying any attention as she was exploring the street with her eyes, taking it all in. Wide eyed and open mouthed.

"Why would you do such a thing?" He feigned hurt and covered his eyes with his hand.

"Don't be a retard. And I wanted Emily to see everything before we start shopping. Actually there was one place I definitely want her to see... You know... for her benefit entirely." I bit my lip and smiled guiltily.

I pulled him back up and we exchanged glances. Sirius bent down and looked into Emily's face. "For you, dear Emily insert middle name here Aigleigh, me and your beloved sister are going to show the most wondrous place on Earth." He beamed.

"Your beloved sister and I." I corrected under my breath.

"I'mnot the beloved sister. That's you." Sirius scratched his head, confused.

I gave him a withering look and waved my hand as if to say, continue. He did so.

"ANYWAY. We're going to a nice little place most of the wizarding community likes to refer to as Florean Fortescue's Ice-cream Parlour."

I could no longer contain my excitement. "They have ALL sorts of flavours there! Stuff you've never heard of before! They've got all the normal flavours and then they've got essence of amortentia-"

"Which is bloody amazing, despite the gay name and-"

"Sirius don't swear in front of my sister. They also have-"

"Cockroach cluster! Don't try that one." He made a face.

"Stop interrupting me!" I slapped his arm.

"OW! And no!" He turned back to Emily smugly. "My favourite flavour's chocolate frog. It's the best flavour, but your silly big sister likes canary cream."

"As if it is, Black! Canary cream is far far superior! It's all happy and yellow! Chocolate frog is all... brown." I said indignantly.

"Well DUH! It's chocolate!"

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, let's show Emily around."

He grabbed her other arm and together we pulled her down the street, bouncing with excitement. I tried to see the Alley for the first time. How Emily, a muggle, would see it. I watched her marvel at the woman in the streets selling dragon liver, the colourful robes the adult wizards wore, the way a young mother repello-ed a box of Ice Mice from her son with her wand, the names of the shops and the promises they held inside them.

It was crowded, being Saturday and Emily, being short, was finding it difficult to see over heads. I let go of her hand, as did Sirius, and let her hop on my back. She gripped my neck tightly and whipped her head around eagerly, feasting on everything.

I could see Sirius, now walking beside us, was watching her closely too. He had been giving a running commentary of every shop, everyone, and everything. It amused me that he was clearly having just, if not more, fun than Emily. I suppose he had never seen someone experience magic for the first time, being a pureblood. I knew myself how incredible magic was, from firsthand experience. It had never once become old or tiring. Sirius never got that though, as magic had always been a part of his life. I was glad he was able to see the magical world the way I saw it. And now, the way Emily was seeing it too. As truly... magical.

"Knockturn Alley's down there. You don't want to end up down that street. Trust me." He said, forebodingly. "That's where all the bad wizards like to hang."

Emily widened her eyes and looked down at him. "There are bad wizards?"

I immediately thought of Lord Voldemort. He was on the front page of the Prophet again yesterday. Alice's cousin's family had been murdered in their home for refusing to join. It was the first time someone I knew had been directly affected by this coming war. Suddenly Voldemort seemed very, very real.

Sirius nodded grimly. I could tell he was thinking along the same lines. I huffed, fed up with sadness. He took my hand, laced his fingers through mine and smiled softly. Emily slipped a little, me now only having one hand to support her. Don'tworry.It'llbeok.His smile said. I closed my eyes, not believing, but clung onto his hand still.

We walked in silence down the rest of the street. Emily could even feel the tense atmosphere, though I'm sure she had no idea what was going on.

"We're here." Sirius broke the silence. "Let's go get a cheer up icecream and forget about stupid Voldemort for a little."

I grinned and let go of his hand to help Emily off my back. "I think a happy yellow ice-cream is in order. Unless you'd prefer to stick to your murky brown."

"CHOCOLATE RELEASES ENDORFINS! ENDORFINS MAKE YOU HAPPY! I WIN!" He yelled.

"YELLOW IS SUNNY! SUN MAKES YOU HAPPY! I WIN MORE!" I yelled back.

"NUH UH"

"YAHUH"

"NUH-"

"SHUT UP!" Emily covered her ears and screeched. "I just want an ice-cream! It can be brown, yellow, pink, green, black even!"

We laughed, grabbed her hands and swung her by her arms through the door. Sirius quickly jammed his hand over her eyes and guided her to the counter where a good 100 flavours were displayed. All colours of the rainbow. All imaginable flavours. My mouth was watering just thinking about what was sure to be a delicious Canary Cream ice-cream.

"Your wish..." he started, uncovering her eyes, "is my command."

I couldn't help but giggle at the look of pure glee that quickly formed on Emily's face. She opened her mouth to say something, but was struck speechless by the wonders that lay in front of her.

"Hello, you lot. What can we get you today?" Florean Fortescue himself bustled out of the store room smiling widely.

"Hi. It's my little sister's first visit to your store." I gestured to the still flabbergasted Emily. Florean Fortescue's smile doubled in size.

"Is that so, dearie? Well, how about I let you pick first? Silencio just came in this month. Named so because it's so good it silences anyone who tastes it." He chortled at his own cleverness and handed her a tasting spoon.

"Noooooo she has to have chocolate frog! It's the best!" Sirius whined. Florean chuckled and handed Emily another spoon.

"She's MY sister, Sirius! She's having Canary Cream. And we've been through this more times than I can count now!"

Emily got another spoon. She was beginning to struggle with them all, trying to savour each one.

Sirius and I ordered our cones, while Emily decided which flavour to take. She stood at the counter for AGES until finally, FINALLY, deciding on Rose.

"Thank you, Mr. Florean." I said, handing him the money.

"No trouble at all. Thank you." He smiled again and gave me my change.

We left the shop and meandered back down the alley, heading to Flourish and Blotts. I was double checking the books I'd need this year as Emily, hurried ahead, pushing the door open. Inside it was loud as mothers and children argued over books, salespeople tried their best to convince poor innocents that they desperately needed this year's addition of "Wizarding Feats," and toddlers shrieked as they ran around, waiting for their siblings to find their school supplies.

"Just Standard Book of Spells Grade 4" I mumbled to myself, running my fingers along the Charms section.

"Well well... look who it is." I heard a snakelike voice from behind. My fists clenched and I felt Sirius stiffen beside me. "The Mudblood, the blood traitor and what I can assume is their muckblood daughter."

I spun around, fully set on punching who I assumed was Malfoy in the face. Sirius, however, beat me to it. By the time I'd pushed Emily safely behind me; Malfoy had an incredibly sour look on his face and blood dribbling from his mouth.

"Fuck off, Malfoy. And take your death eater sidekicks with you." Sirius spat, indicating towards Nott and Avery, standing next to Malfoy.

"But we like it here." Malfoy jeered. Nott swung his huge fist angrily. It made a sickening crunch as it connected with Sirius' nose. He wiped the blood from his face and squared off with the three, Avery and Nott being much larger than him.

"Sirius don't be stupid! And for the love of Merlin, don't swear in front of a nine year old." I dragged him back.

"That's right." Malfoy said, sneering at us. "Listen to your Mudblood girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend." He muttered, glaring furiously. "And don't talk to her like that."

The shopkeeper appeared next to us, looking infuriated. "WHAT is going on here?" He said, narrowing his eyes at us.

Malfoy spat at my feet and slunk away with Nott and Avery.

"Sorry, sir. It was an accident?" I said uncertainly, restraining a lethal looking Sirius. He looked unimpressed, shook his head and told us it had better not happen again.

We bought the books quickly and soon after left the shop. Sirius was still fuming. Emily was yet to speak.

"He SPAT at you. How dare he! When I get back to Hogwarts I'm going to-"

"No you won't." I said firmly. "Because if you do, you won't be at Hogwarts for very much longer."

He looked at me, sulkily. I nudged him gently with my shoulder. "Thanks for standing up for me, though. Here let me fix your nose."

He beamed at me, pleased that I had noticed, assumedly . I thought I saw him blush, but it must have been a trick of the light. Sirius Black doesn't blush. I pulled out my wand, not prepared to show the entire street I was a Vigorater and muttered 'episky.' The bleeding stopped instantly. I handed him a tissue to wipe away what blood was left

Emily had been very quiet for a while now. She looked up at me and asked, "Who were they... and what's a mudblood?"

"They were some horrible boys that go to our school. They're in Slytherin. That's the evil house I told you about. And a mudblood's a bad name for someone who's not a pureblood. I told you about them too, remember?" I explained in the simplest way possible.

She crossed her arms and made a face. "I didn't like them."

"We don't like them either." Sirius scowled, glancing at me again. "Er, what's next on your list then?"

V V V V V V V V V V V

A few hours later Emily and I arrived back home, laden with my new school things. I tiptoed through the house checking if Dad was home. Luckily, he was out. Probably drinking again. He was going to drink himself to death if this kept up.

Not that I would have minded... No! That's a terrible thing to think. Of course I'd mind. A bit twisted he may be, but he's still my father. I hated him for hurting Emily, but I didn't want him dead.

Did I?

Shaking these thoughts from my head, I dumped the bags on my bed. Emily followed suit. She hadn't stopped raving about how amazing magic was since we had arrived home. I nodded and smiled at her, but wasn't really listening. A fresh flood of thoughts streamed through my brain. About Sirius. When he'd said goodbye before we left...

"Bye Goldy." He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me tightly. I leaned against him, not wanting to let go. "I'll miss you."

"We'll only be apart for a day, silly." I flicked his ear. I wriggled around, noticing Emily waiting a little impatiently next to me.

"Yeah... but still." He let me go and brushed my hand with his.

Suddenly I felt my stomach drop, like I'd just begun the descent on a roller coaster. I blinked, confused. Where had that come from? That was new...

He waved and Emily and I waved back, walking in our separate directions to our stations, but he was still on my mind. What WAS that feeling? It was so weird. It's not like he hadn't touched my hand before. But this was entirely new. I felt my cheeks grow warm as I realized I had sort of liked it.

"Jaycee! Are you even listening to me?" Emily poked me sharply.

"Uh sorry..." I tapped my head. "Totally out of it at the moment."

She frowned. "I was saying I think Sirius likes you."

"No he doesn't!" I replied indignantly.

"Well I think he does. He was so nice to stand up for you. And you two are always arguing. It makes me laugh. OH JAYCEE! Do you remember the animal shop? Did you see all those owls!" She suddenly changed topic, her brain speeding through the entire trip over and over again.

But I was still thinking about her former thought. Sirius didn't like me. How could he? Of course he didn't. Even the notion was ridiculous. I was nothing like the girls he usually went out with.

Why did I care?

I didn't. Of course I didn't. Doesn't matter to me at all.

Right?

I know this wasn't that good, but I was writing though a block here. Hopefully it'll get better. And pardon any spelling errors. I was rather tired when writing this. I do have good news though! I've finally figured out exactly how I'm going to format this story. Well, it's more good news for me, but I thought you might be interested too XD It's my goal to finish the pre-war part of this story by December. My goal. That'll be the end of The Healer. THEN I'll start posting the sequel. Which'll be during the war. I haven't come up with a name yet. If anyone has suggestions revieeewwww :DD (Keep in mind I'd like to keep up with the whole "The [insert name here]" thing. THEN there'll be the third and final part. Which'll be after the war. Again, no name as it is. I know the general plotline for each of these parts as well, so there won't be much of a wait. Hopefully I can write a lot over the Christmas holidays and start posting the sequel as soon as school goes back. Again, this is my goal.

Anywwwaaayyyy, just some author ramblings that you probably didn't need to read. Let's get reviewing guys! Thanks so much to all those who have been, it means a lot. A lot a alot alot! I do miss some of my old reviewers who seem to be MIA at the mo I miss you a lot.

Luli Cullen: Thanks for the review! Yes, I'm glad too haha

LittleMissDreamer7: Yay for imagination! Lol :D You're sooo welcome! Thanks for reviewing! :D

xLoveHarryPotterx: Looool that would be so funny... actually... probs a little scary :/ but still thank you sooo much for the review :)

thebritishone: Wow that was such a long and lovely review! Thanks so much for the huge compliment (and the flapjacks XD) I don't even know what to say. I'm so glad I managed to get that unfairness across. Cause I've kind of always seen Harry Potter as more of a war story than a fantasy. And when I talk about all the war-ish stuff, people look at me like I'm mental... which isn't entirely inaccurate but whatever! So yes, there are things to come for Emily. That's for sure. Thanks again for the review! It really made my day reading it!

UnperfectButLovingIt: Thanks so much :D

Ivori: hahahaa thanks so much! Yeah I definitely don't want to lose the Siriusness of Sirius! Your review was so nice, thanks a hundred times!

RMH RMH: Thanks And all in timmeeee allll in timmmeeee tehe

Jaisler: Thanks so much! I'm so glad you like it!

Sonofafluffymuffin: Yay! Happy that you think so! Haha. And thanks a gazillion for reviewing! You're totally welcome! I love love love updating (almost as much as I love revies hehehe)

TWHATT18: Thanks so much

.Black (Yani): Thanks so much for reviewing! It was great to hear from you again! Ah you're sooo lucky I wish I had an older sister! Hahaha of course he does! But does he realize it? That's the burning question. And it seems to be that she does like him back ;) Thanks again, I love your reviews!