"I'm just happy they're going to be okay," Lily sighed, leaning her head against James's shoulder comfortingly. "That must have been so scary, though. Seeing them like that? I'm almost…almost happy that I didn't have to see my parents in pain, you know? That it was quick and painless for them."
James nodded. "It was hard to see them looking so weak. But getting them home was good. Tildy is taking really good care of them. Must have been harder for Delle and Sirius, though, seeing as they ran away and left me alone with them," James added with a wink at Sirius.
"That's not why we went to my apartment," Sirius said happily. "We went so we could fu–"
"– Yes, Sirius. Thank you, I think we get it," Lily interrupted him, looking at Adeline pointedly. Adeline just chuckled, shaking her head indulgently at Sirius.
"What?" Sirius asked, innocently. "Not like we didn't catch you and James fuc–"
"Sirius!" Lily cried, outraged, her face flushing scarlet. "James, aren't you going to say something?"
"Oh, come on, Lil. He's just teasing you," James said placatingly, pulling Lily to his side and pressing a kiss to her temple.
Mary made a noise in the back of her throat. "Merlin, it's impossible to be around you lot lately. Alice is practically married, Delle and Sirius are making sex eyes at each other more than usual, and now you two are being so sweet it's making my stomach hurt. Pettigrew, Lupin, don't you feel like we're intruding on the couples?"
Remus chuckled and shrugged, sitting across from Mary. "I'm just happy my mates finally got their girls."
Mary groaned again, dropping her head into her hands. "Come on, Pettigrew, back me up here!"
Peter didn't answer, causing everyone to turn to him expectantly. He was staring out of the window next to the fire in the Gryffindor common room, clearly not paying attention to the conversation. He turned, looking confused, and said, "Sorry, what?"
Adeline had noticed, upon returning to the castle this evening, that Peter looked dreadful. He had bags under his eyes that were so pronounced, it looked as if he had two black eyes. His skin was pale, his hair was greasy, and every movement he made was twitchy. She and the boys had been gone a couple of days, and yet Peter still looked as sick as he had during the Christmas feast.
"Peter, mate," Sirius said, sitting up on the couch to look at him closer. "Are you alright?"
Peter's eyes flicked over to Sirius. They were so bloodshot, Adeline couldn't even tell what color they were – though she knew they were an icy blue. He was gazing at Sirius, but his eyes were unfocused; he looked like he was about to pass out at any moment. "Not feeling great still…I think I'll head up to bed."
He scurried away with those words, leaving James, Remus and Sirius looking at each other in concern. Adeline looked at Mary, Alice, and Lily – they were staring after Peter with similar expressions of concern. There was an awkward silence that lasted for several moments, the noise from the rest of the Gryffindors bursting into the Marauder's bubble.
Alice spoke hesitantly, looking up through her lashes at the group. "Well, I did have something I wanted to tell you all," she said quietly, startling the group. "It's funny that you mentioned that I was practically married, Mary, because…well…" She held up her left hand, which, the group now realized, was sporting a simple wedding band, nestled against her engagement ring.
Lily, Mary and Adeline squealed, launching themselves out of their seats to swarm Alice. Lily pulled Alice's hand into hers, turning it this way and that so she could see the ring in every angle. Mary was hitting Alice in the shoulder, screeching, "You held that in all night! You little tease!"
All three of the girls continued squealing, their voices getting higher and higher as they babbled about how Frank pulled off the wedding, and was it romantic, and were her parents excited? As the four girls got closer and closer, their voices higher and higher, the three remaining boys exchanged horrified looks. "Right, well, congratulations Alice!" James said loudly, interrupting the girls, who all looked at him contemptuously. "I think we'll head off to bed, right, boys?"
"Right!" Sirius and Remus agreed quickly, getting up immediately. They looked relieved to have an excuse to escape the squealing girls.
"Night, Lil," James said, leaning down to kiss Lily on the cheek. She waved him off impatiently, turning back to Alice and pulling her hand back into her lap so she could continue examining the ring.
Sirius leaned down as well, pressing a kiss to Adeline's lips. "Goodnight, love. Try not to tell too many lies about me tonight, eh?" He turned to Lily, Alice and Mary, saying in an mockingly affronted voice, "If she tries to tell you that my dick is small, just remember that I am happy to show it upon request to preserve my reputation, alright?"
Adeline pushed him towards the stairs after James and Remus, laughing at his ridiculousness. She turned back to the girls, shaking her head to herself, only to see all three of the girls looking at her with varying degrees of confusion.
"Why would he say that? We've never asked about his dick before – why would he assume we'd talk about it tonight?" Mary asked, her eyebrows raised.
Adeline sighed, but resigned herself to telling the truth. "Oh, well, probably because he and I had sex."
Alice and Lily looked at each other, but Mary was staring at Adeline, confused. "Yeah…so?" She asked, waiting for the rest of the story.
"I mean…he and I had sex for the first time. Yesterday," Adeline admitted, smiling in embarrassment.
"WHAT!" Mary screamed, startling the group of first years who'd been playing chess in the corner of the common room so badly that they knocked their board onto the ground. Lily smiled at them apologetically, waving her wand and restoring the board to the table, their pieces back in place where they'd been before Mary's scream.
Mary didn't even spare them a second glance, grabbing hold on Adeline's knee and pulling her closer. "What do you mean, for the first time? Haven't you two been shagging for like, months?"
Lily smiled at Adeline kindly. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Adeline shrugged, looking down at her jeans. "I just… After Bertram, I just wanted to make sure, you know? I wanted to make sure it was right. And it was. It was absolutely insane and goofy, but somehow romantic. And I asked him who else he'd slept with literally seconds before we did it, but at the end of the day…that's me and Sirius. So it was perfect."
Alice smiled as well, grabbing Adeline's hand and squeezing it before letting it go. "Well, I'm happy that you waited until it felt right. Frank and I did as well, and it made it that much more special."
Mary's mouth dropped at Alice's revelation. "Bloody hell, am I the only one who's not doing it?"
Lily wrapped an arm around Mary's shoulder, hugging her to her side. "There's no rush, Mare. It'll happen when it happens."
Mary chuckled. "Oh, I know. Actually…I have sort of, been seeing someone. Andrew Long? You know…"
"Bert's best friend?" Adeline asked, chuckling. "When did that happen?"
"He's in Divination with me. That class is so ruddy boring, that we started passing notes back and forth and it just kind of spiraled from there. I didn't want to tell you until I knew it was something serious, and well… he asked me to be his girlfriend over the break. Sent me a really beautiful necklace for Christmas, and a note along with it asking me."
Alice and Lily squealed, hugging Mary between them. "That's amazing, Mare!" Lily said, excitedly.
Mary smiled bashfully for a moment, before she looked up at Adeline, her grin falling slowly. "Delle…is it okay that I'm dating him? I know it might be weird because he's friends with your ex."
Adeline contemplated for a moment, but realized quickly that she didn't have any lingering feelings for Bertram, and was completely okay with it. "Yeah, Mare, I'm okay with it. I'm so happy for you! Plus, Long always seemed really nice."
Mary grinned again, blushing. "He's the sweetest. I'm so happy that I finally told you guys; I don't know what I was worried about."
The girls spent the rest of the night giggling and gossiping about their boys, eventually making their way to their dormitory, where Mary and Alice fell asleep in Mary's bed after hours of catching up. Adeline tucked them in, before grabbing the blanket from her bed and crawling in with Lily in hers.
She curled up next to Lily, cuddled under her blanket. They were laying forehead to forehead, Lily's green eyes sparkling with contentment. Lily smiled at her, pulling her own blanket up further, so that all that was visible were her eyes. Adeline lay there for a moment, soaking in how content she felt to be laying there with Lily, having just spent the night giggling with her best friends; having just spent the night they way normal girls did – girls who weren't worried about a psychopathic mass-murderer who wanted to kill everyone they loved.
Finally, Adeline said, "James told you what happened, right?"
Lily nodded, her green eyes growing sad.
"I hate that Finnegan is involved with them," Adeline hissed, softly.
"I know," Lily said, lowering her blanket so that she could speak.
"I don't know how anyone thinks murdering people is justified. How does anyone actually believe that shit? And my own brother? It really makes me sick. He could have killed James – my brother could have killed one of my best friends. Or my boyfriend! My brother did kill my best friend's parents. How fucked up is that?"
Lily reached her hand out, rubbing Adeline's shoulder consolingly. She didn't even flinch at the mention of her parents – a true testament to how good of a friend she was. "I think the same thing when I think about Sev. I can't believe that the little boy who was my first friend at Hogwarts has taken such a dark path. But all we can do it move forward. We can't change their choices; all we can do is try our best to combat them."
Adeline nodded. "I'm sorry about Snape, Lil. I know it's been a while, but I know it must still hurt."
Lily's eyes watered slightly. "I miss him. I know I shouldn't, but I do."
Adeline smiled at her sadly. "I understand. I miss Finnegan, too. I don't know if we'll ever not miss the people they used to be. Or at least, the people we thought they were."
They didn't talk much for the rest of the night, falling asleep in each other's arms, cuddled underneath their blankets, foreheads still touching.
Wednesday came before Adeline knew it. She went to the library with Sirius and Mary before dinner, where she purposely left her favorite quill behind. After dinner, she made a big production of realizing she'd left it behind, pulling apart her entire bag looking for it.
"I'll come with you," Sirius offered, hesitating near the staircase, where James, Remus and Peter were waiting for him, squirming around anxiously. The four of them had been itching to get outside and fly, and Adeline could tell on Sirius's face that he really didn't want to come with her, but was offering to be nice.
"No, love, that's okay. I'm just going to run to get it and then head back to the common room. You go fly!" Adeline said, turning him down with a smile.
He grinned and kissed her, running up the stairs after the boys, who had left him behind, heading to the common room to collect their brooms.
Lily, Mary and Alice all offered to come with her as well, but she shook her head at them, insisting that she was only going to be a couple of minutes. She finally managed to shake them off, peeling off on the floor of the library while they all continued upstairs to the Gryffindor common room.
Adeline pushed open the oak doors to the library hesitantly, trying to make as little noise as she could. It was mostly empty; break had just ended, so very few people were so behind already that they needed the library this late at night. She entered, walking purposely over to the table where she'd left her quill, which was well-hidden in a dark corner. As she walked, she looked around for Regulus.
As she came upon the table she'd sat at earlier, she was surprised to see that Regulus was already sitting, holding her quill between his long, thin fingers, playing with it aimlessly. His eyes were unfocused, glassy. He barely reacted when she approached, until she sat down across from him, crossing her arms. He smirked, holding the quill out to her. "I think this belongs to you?"
"Yes," she said, grabbing it from him, and shoving it into her bag. "What am I doing here, Regulus?"
Regulus didn't answer, but pulled his wand out. Adeline started, her hand jumping for her own wand, but Regulus just rolled his eyes, pointing it over her shoulder and muttering something that Adeline couldn't understand.
"What did you just do?" She asked, suspiciously.
"Made sure no one would be able to overhear us. Also cast a disillusionment charm, because I'm really not looking to get questions about what we were doing together, are you?" Regulus asked, condescendingly.
"No. I don't even know what we're doing together."
"Right, well I'm about to get to that," Regulus said, suddenly looking nervous. He picked at his fingernail, something Adeline had never seen him do before. "Look, I don't even know why I'm going to tell you what I'm about to tell you, but I need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone – no one. Not even Sirius. Dumbledore is the only one who can know."
Adeline shook her head. "No. I can't promise that. I won't keep secrets from Sirius again, especially not secrets that concern you."
Regulus sighed loudly, slamming his hands down on the table angrily. Adeline jumped, startled. "This is more important than your issues with your boyfriend, Yarbury. What I'm going to tell you is something so important, it could change the tide of this war. I need someone who can help, someone who can involve Dumbledore. Because we need Dumbledore, and I…"
He ran his hands through his hair, frustrated, pulling at strands. Adeline grabbed his hand, pulling it out of his hair. "And you can't go to Dumbledore yourself because your master will find out."
Regulus looked up at her, his eyes wide. He nodded. "He'll kill me. And he'll kill my parents, and Sirius. I can't risk it. Plus, if he finds out that I know…he'll make more."
"More what?" Adeline hissed, her voice low but harsh. "What does he have that's making you this scared?"
"No, I'm going to need you to promise me – and I mean really promise me. I mean the Unbreakable Vow," Regulus said gravely. "I can't risk anyone else finding out about this. I'm already risking too much involving you, but I need Dumbledore to know, which means I have to include someone; someone who can be the messenger between me and Dumbledore."
Adeline's initial reaction was to refuse. Why would she make an Unbreakable Vow with Regulus Black? What could he possibly know that would be important enough to warrant such an enormous commitment? Adeline was about to refuse, tell him no, when she really looked at him. What she'd taken as indifference and boredom when she'd first sat down, was actually anxiousness. His skin was paler than usual, waxy looking beneath limp hair. He had dark shadows underneath his eyes, and he was exuding so much nervous energy, that every movement he made was twitchy and broken. Whatever it was, it was something that was affecting him in a way that nothing else had ever affected him; if it was something he was willing to risk his master's wrath for, it must be important.
"Why tell me?" She asked finally. "Isn't that just as suspicious if your master finds out?"
Regulus looked embarrassed, his pale cheeks reddening slightly. "He…already believes that I have a…soft spot…for you. If he sees you in my mind, he'll just think we're sneaking around…behind Sirius's back. I'm a pretty good occlumens, so I don't think he'll be able to tell why we're sneaking around, just that we are. The worst I'll get is mocked for having feelings for a blood traitor."
Adeline's eyes shifted, ignoring that last part and allowing Regulus to believe she hadn't heard it. She didn't know if he actually meant it or not, but if he had she didn't want to broach that subject right now. She contemplated what she wanted to do, but at the end, the burning curiosity to know what he knew won out. She looked up at him, nodding once.
He immediately looked relieved, nodding at her gratefully. "We'll need to make a scene," he said matter-of-factly.
"What?" Adeline asked, taken aback. "What are you talking abo…"
But Regulus had already taken down the concealment spells, and had stood up from the table, pushing his chair over in his haste. "YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A FILTHY BLOOD TRAITOR, YARBURY!" He screamed at her, his hands flat on the table as he leaned over towards her, intimidatingly.
Adeline stood as well, catching on to his plan quickly. "AND YOU'RE A PREJUDICED, DARK ARTS-LOVING, DEATH EATER!"
"YOUR BROTHER WAS RIGHT TO DISOWN YOU, WITH A MUDBLOOD-LOVING SISTER LIKE YOU!" He screamed, pulling his wand out at her.
Adeline pulled her own out, "SAY THAT AGAIN, BLACK, AND I'LL HEX YOUR BOLLOCKS OFF!"
Regulus was about to open his mouth again, a slight smirk giving away how much he was enjoying their fake fight, when a screech from behind them cut him off. "How DARE you two disrupt the peace with such disgusting language. Off you go! To the Headmaster' office. NOW!" Madam Pince had come rushing from behind a bookshelf like a bull chasing a matador. She pulled Regulus by the ear towards the door. Adeline had just enough time to grab her bag before Madam Pince caught her by the arm, dragging her behind them. She marched them to the stone gargoyle that stood guard outside of Professor Dumbledore's office, muttering under her breath the entire time.
"Bertie Botts," she hissed angrily. "Now, I hope the you two learn a lesson from this. Screaming in the library, what were you thinking? And those disgusting accusations!" She continued muttering under her breath and she stormed back down the corridor.
Regulus gestured for Adeline to step onto the moving stairs first, stepping behind her. She heard him chuckle, and she turned to see him holding back laughter. She quirked her eyebrow in question, and he tried to stifle his laughter. "You're gonna hex my bollocks off?"
Adeline huffed air out of her nose, in an attempt to quell her own chuckle. She shrugged, turning back around. "I threaten Sirius with it nearly daily. Just slipped out."
Regulus adjusted himself uncomfortably. "Poor bloke. You're a terribly violent witch."
They'd made it to the top of the steps, and Adeline reached out her hand to knock on the door, but it swung open before she had a chance. Regulus gestured for her to go first, which she did hesitantly. Professor Dumbledore stood near the window, his back to the two of them. He didn't turn when they came in, but he spoke in a soft voice. "Beautiful night. The thestrals have been enjoying the cool air."
Adeline didn't know how to respond. Regulus made a noise in the back of his throat, but didn't speak. They hovered in the middle of the room uncertainly; after a moment of awkward silence, Dumbledore turned and floated back to his desk. He gestured to the chairs in front, before sinking in to his own gracefully. He folded his hands together, watching Adeline and Regulus inquisitively.
When he spoke, it was in an eerily calm voice. "Why did you cause a disturbance in the Library?"
Regulus and Adeline exchanged bemused glances. How did Dumbledore even know why they'd been sent to see him? Madam Pince hadn't come up to explain. Not for the first time, Adeline realized that Dumbledore really did know everything that went on in this castle.
Adeline spoke before Regulus could. "Regulus has information for us…regarding You-Know-Who."
Dumbledore turned his gaze towards Regulus, seeming to almost look right through him. He narrowed his eyes slightly, as though frustrated that he wasn't getting what he wanted. "I see," he said finally. "Well, Mr. Black, I'd be interested to hear…"
"Not until Adeline has taken an Unbreakable Vow, and not until I have some reassurances," Regulus said, interrupting Dumbledore.
Dumbledore didn't look insulted to have been interrupted. He merely quirked his head politely, asking, "Whether or not Adeline feels comfortable to take an Unbreakable Vow is up to her – it is an extremely serious thing that you ask her to do. May I ask why you feel it is necessary?"
Regulus sat up in his chair, looking directly at Dumbledore. "She's dating my brother. I have to know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Sirius won't find out about this."
"Why?" Dumbledore asked, in that same eerily calm voice. It almost seemed like he already knew the answer, but needed to hear it said out loud.
"Because He'll kill anyone who knows. Anyone who knows will need to be protected – and I know that you can offer Adeline that. I actually insist that you offer her the best protection you can. Sirius – Sirius won't be able to stay rational if he knew. Sirius needs to be out there, in the middle of everything. He'll be in even more danger if he knows about this. I can't…"
"You can't risk your Master finding out that you care for your brother," Dumbledore said, in a knowing voice. "He already knows that you care for Adeline – he may even expect that you would beg me to protect her. He'll assume it's because you're worried about her brother coming after her; not because you know his secret. But if he finds out that you care for Sirius…well, now that is something he can really use against you."
Regulus simply nodded. Dumbledore smiled at him, kindly. "Well, then it is up to Ms. Yarbury if she wants to take…"
"I'll do it!" Adeline said quickly, cutting him off. She turned to address Regulus. "I love your brother, and I worry about him enough already. I don't need him to have an extra target on his back, if I can help avoid it. However, I want to be able to tell him the truth eventually. After we've used the information, I want to be able to tell him."
Regulus nodded again, and looked to Dumbledore. "Will you be our bonder?"
"Of course," Dumbledore said, standing from behind the desk and walking around it. Adeline and Regulus got out of their chairs, kneeling so they were facing each other. Dumbledore placed his wand on their hands.
Regulus swallowed nervously, but when he began it was in a strong, clear voice. "Will you, Adeline Yarbury, promise to keep the following conversation secret, speaking of it to no one but the occupants of this room, until such a time that Lord Voldemort is gone?"
Adeline took a deep breath. "I will." A flame of fire shot out of Dumbledore's wand, wrapping around their conjoined hands.
"And will you, when the time comes, help me in any way that you can to use this information to bring about the downfall of Lord Voldemort?"
"I will." Another flame of fire.
"And will you promise to do everything in your power to keep my brother, Sirius Black, from finding out what I am doing, until such time that I tell you that you can?"
Adeline hesitated, knowing that there was no loophole around his words. Through gritted teeth, she said, "I will." A final flame of fire wrapped around their hands, until all three combined in to one. It squeezed their hands together, almost painfully, before Dumbledore removed his wand and it disappeared slowly.
Adeline and Regulus stood up, looking at each other for a moment, taking in the severity of what they had just done. Almost in unison, they turned towards Dumbledore, who stood towering both of them.
Hesitantly, Regulus asked, "What do you two know of horcruxes?"