Chapter 15: Motorcycles & Maladies

Sirius admitted, to himself in the mirror when no one was listening, that he could be oblivious. It wasn't because he was purposefully thick headed git, but rather because he often was distracted by his own swing of enthusiasm or worries. But even he could tell something was wrong with Calamity over the next few days. Those who didn't know her, like Ted & Andromeda, likely didn't notice. She was just as charming and fun as she had been. Nymphadora even appeared in the kitchen one morning looking like Calamity's identical twin. But Sirius could tell by the small frown that appeared on Calamity's face in between conversations. He could tell by how she just smiled at his playful teasing rather than laughing. He could tell because she hadn't picked up her Brave New World book since Diagon Alley and seeing Christopher. Sirius wasn't very good at talking about feelings. It wasn't something the Blacks had ever done willingly and James, Peter, and Remus knew each other well enough that there was a sort of understanding of emotions. They all knew Remus worried they'd abandon him, they all knew James' eyes flashed with determined anger, and they all knew Peter's sly smile when he was lying.

It wasn't until the day of Mrs. Evans funeral that Sirius finally got up the nerve and tact to ask. He and Ted had been working on the new motorcycle all day and night and it was nearly ready for a test drive. From the garage Ted handed Sirius a wrench as Sirius looked over at the book of instructions. He glanced up and could see Calamity leaning against the house, looking off in the distance thoughtfully, a slight frown on her face as if she was not at all pleased with her thoughts. Sirius pushed himself from under the bike.

"I think I'll take a break," Sirius explained. Ted shrugged and continued reading the instructions, muttering to himself about a gasket he needed to find and charm.

Calamity moved into the large garden and Sirius followed dodging a few gnomes running towards their holes. When Sirius finally caught up with her, she was leaning against the far fence. Sirius could feel the crackle of magic in the air. A strong protective charm was there, perhaps making the house unchartable. He remembered what Andromeda had said about Bellatrix. Would he have to start thinking about these sort of protections?

"You look worried," Calamity said bringing Sirius back to the present. Sirius leaned on the fence, their arms grazing one another.

"I was going to say the same to you," he said with a smile. "You've been off since we saw Christopher and James. Is everything okay?"

Calamity paused then reached into her pocket and pulled out a news article. She handed it to Sirius who glanced at it,the headline read in big bold letters

St. Mungo's Healer Found Dead

Elizabeth Blackwell, age twenty-nine, was found dead outside of the Leaky Cauldron in Muggle London. Witnesses report that she had left St. Mungo's for a break and did not return. When a fellow Healer went to find her, he was told the last sighting was in the Leaky Cauldron. Hours later a passing muggle stumbled upon Blackwell's body. The Identity was confirmed as aurors arrived on the scene. Though the Ministry is still investigating the incident, Blackwell's death is similar to the confirmed murders of Gregory O'Brien and Victoria Smith. The Ministry has confirmed that both O'Brien and Smith were murdered by deatheaters.

"I'm sorry," Sirius said handing back the article. "I know you knew her. You did everything you could by telling Christopher where you'd seen her."

"That's not all," Calamity said softly. She tucked the article away in her pocket. "When I saw her she was acting odd. She..." Calamity looked suddenly uncomfortable, but she steeled herself and continued. "She told me she was working as a Healer for You-Know-Who. She was trying to recruit me to join."

Sirius felt a rage swell in his gut, but he bit it back. She had more to say and he was worried if he interrupt she would lose her nerve. He had to wait patiently for a few minutes.

"She brought up my father," Calamity said finally.

"Why?" Sirius couldn't help it. He had never heard about Calamity's family. He didn't much like talking about his, so he hadn't pushed when she seemed to do acrobats around the topic. Calamity ran her head across her forehead in thought.

"Did you ever read about the muggle war that went on while the UK was worried about Grindewald?"

"Remus told me a bit about it. Some psychopath tried to take over Europe and get rid of a bunch of people in death camps."

"There was this famous terrible doctor, Mengele, and he did all these experiments on Jews and the prisoners in those camps," Calamity explained. "Like sewing people together, and torture, and that sort of thing."

"Right, the name sounds familiar."

"My dad wasn't a fan of the Nazis or Mengele, since they're muggles and he wouldn't respect that, but he did get some inspiration from the experiments."

"You mean he did experiments too?"

"On muggles. They were horrible- at least that's what the court report says. I never saw any of it since my mum and I moved out, but the report had pictures. I looked it up when I was fourteen. He spliced them together, practiced all sorts of blood charms and curses on them, even combined them with animals. He wasn't a fan of anesthetic."

"What happened to him?"

"He's in an American magicked jail. Awaiting his final meal. Probably sometime this year."

"Blackwell thought you'd be interested in joining because of your father."

"Yes," Calamity said. "I said no," she added glancing at Sirius as if he would shrink away from her. He nudged her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. For a moment she was stiff, unsure. Then she relaxed and lay her head against his chest.

"Calamity, you're not like him at all. We can't choose our family- Andy and I are a good example of that." He kissed the top of her head. "James and I are suppose to meet in a few hours. Want to join us for some fun? We can make him sit in the sidecar."

"No, it's okay. You go," Calamity said with a smirk."I have a tea party scheduled with Nymphadora."

James and Lily listened intently as Sirius explained the situation with Elizabeth Blackwell and the family history of the Erza-Mahoneys. Finally, after taking a sip of Butterbeer James said, "who would have thought you'd end up dating a girl your family actually would have approved of?"

Lily nudged his shoulder halfheartedly. They were still both dressed in their funeral attire, but had opted to go for butterbeer in Hogsmeade after the wake. James had been willing to stay longer, but Lily had wanted to leave. Her sister and her sister's fiances were less than thrilled with the magical types. Sirius felt like that Vernon Dursley looked more like a blimp than a man who had any ground to be judgmental, but he held his tongue out of respect for Lily.

"On a more serious note, this means the other side is starting to reach out and recruit seventh years," Lily said with a frown. "That could mean they are weakened by the Ministry's recent activity or that they are stronger and need more people for their growing plans."

"Unfortunately, it's probably the latter," James said with a frown. "Dad's said there have been more disappearances and deaths than the prophet can report. The Minister has been pressing them because some of the deatheaters use the news to recruit- show their power and all that."

"Have they tried to recruit you," Lily asked glancing at Sirius. He shook his head.

"I haven't been approached. Bellatrix is a member of the inner circle, so I imagine she has discouraged it. I've never been quiet about my feelings about the dark arts and You-Know-Who."

"You never know," Lily said with a shrug. She looked at her watch. "I'd better go back. Petunia will be out of her mind cleaning and I should help."

James stood to let her get out from the booth. Sirius watched as James walked her outside, finding an appropriate place to apparate. He could see them talking through the window- James pushing up his glasses and smiling down at Lily while Lily said something. Sirius took a sip of butterbeer, but almost spit it out as he saw Lily take James' hand shyly, looking up at his through her lashes. Then she stood on her toes to kiss him gently on the lips. Just a brief peck, as if it were a natural occurrence. James' face flushed in surprise. She pulled away before he could react, which was probably for the best, thought Sirius. When he came back into the booth Sirius let out a loud whooping noise.

"'Bout time, mate," he said smacking James on the back. His face dropped. "This means Wormtail won the bet again!"

"He's a good read of character," James said absentmindedly. His face was still pink. "Blimey, who would have thought."

Sirius made another sound of approval finishing his butterbeer.

"Come on, I'll treat you to dinner."

"You mean Andromeda will treat me to dinner," James smirked. Sirius shrugged. "My family will treat you to dinner, Prongs. So I'm treating you to dinner."

Sirius hopped on his motorcycle as James looked at the sidecar.

"We can't just apparate?"

"Look, I rode this to meet you, I can't just leave it," Sirius said. He motioned to the sidecar. "Come on, it's just for you! I'm thinking of calling it Potter's Pedestal."

"Not Calamity's Chariot?"

"Can't name a flying motorcycle after a girl named Calamity, Prongs. That's asking for trouble."

"And goodness knows you NEVER go looking for that." James climbed into the side car and looked up at Sirius, whose smile had broadened to a comical size. "Shut up, you git," he snapped.

The bike roared to life and Sirius revved the engine while James looked as relaxed as one could when squeezed into a slightly small sidecar, his knees up a bit closer to his chest than is usually intended. They zipped down the dark road, icy wind blowing through their hair and whipping Sirius face. He felt a thrill of adrenaline. Even on the ground it felt as if he were flying. This was far better than floo or apparating. He checked the speed, then flipped open a latch on the handle. The motorcycle jumped forward in speed as the wheels began to leave the ground. James peered over the edge of the sidecar, then back at Sirius.

"Better stay in the clouds and out of sight, Padfoot," he called over the roar. Sirius nodded and they broke through the misty gray above. In the open air the roar sounded fainter as Sirius' ears popped. He let go of the handles and raised his arms, feeling the cool air hitting his leather jacket. He slowed the bike to a steady pace so that they could enjoy the ride. Apparition would have taken seconds, but this ride would take about forty-five minutes or an hour and he wanted to enjoy it. James was reaching out and grasping bits of cloud, watching them disappear within his hands.

"It's a pretty good toy," James called. "Nice and relaxing to be away from the world below."

"Just you and the night," Sirius replied with a bark like laugh. "I think I'm in love with it."

"Poor Calamity," James smirked. His smile faltered as he peered over his shoulder. "What the hell?"

Sirius glanced over his shoulder. There seemed to be fast approaching black dots.

"Speed up, Padfoot," James called. "I don't think it's a flock of birds."

Sirius leaned forward and the bike roared, picking up the speed, but the dots continued to grow closer.

"Any faster?"

"I'm trying, what's it look like?"

"It's as bad as it could be."

"Wizards?"

"In masks. I've never seen a deatheater in person, but if I had to imagine it...Arresto Momentum! Arresto Momentum! Arresto Momentum! "

Three gold lights shot out of James' wand and out of sight.

"Got one, but the others dodged it," he yelled. "They're gaining."

Sirius spotted a dark cloud below and leaned forward, urging the bike to increase its speed. They ducked into the cloud but couldn't see anything outside. Sirius grasped his wand, muttering a muffling charm followed by a concealment charm. He moved the bike slowly beneath the cloud. James looked behind them, seeming to relax.

"Lost them."

"What the hell was that," Sirius called, he slowed the bike. They could see the lights of the villages and towns below. They must be fifteen minutes away from Andromeda's. James turned to answer Sirius, but instead he shouted.

"Avis Oppugno!"

A flock of birds flew from his wand, zipping so close to Sirius that they skimmed his ear. Sirius looked up to see the birds attacking a tall looming figure, reaching from his broomstick, silver mask on.

"Hit the ground," James yelled. The motorcycle bumped with such ferocity that Sirius thought they were going to fall off. James shot another curse, but missed the remaining figures. Sirius pushed up the speed. Now on the ground the motorcycle pushed forward, almost relieved to be in its natural state. They skidded around a tight corner, but the deatheaters kept tabs, diving out of the way and shooting purple and red hexes at Sirius and James. James was forced into defense, shielding them between his own curses.

"Can this thing go faster," called James.

"I'm already at 136 kilometers per hour," Sirius yelled over the roar. They zipped passed a drive way and blue lights and a siren sounded.

"Are you kidding me," yelled James throwing a shielding charm up just in time to protect the back wheel of the motorcycle.

"We're almost there. Get rid of the gits before we pull in," yelled Sirius. He wasn't sure how the protective charms around Andromeda's house would work if they led deatheaters straight to it. And he knew the cops following them would complicate dinner a bit.

"LEVIOSA CELER!"

Sirius hissed as a purple spell ran across his shoulder and another grazed his back, right where his burn had once been. The police sirens sounded distant for a moment, then there was a loud crash as it reconnected to the ground.

"That scattered them. Pull in before they regroup!"

Sirius turned into the drive way and the bike careened into the garden, pushing up grass. Sirius felt his body move forward over the handlebars and everything went black.

Sirius awoke with a hiss of pain as something burned suddenly on his shoulder. He tried to sit up, but his forehead was pushed back down by a hand. There was a wet cloth dabbing his face. The room began to come into focus.

"Prongs," Sirius said suddenly remembering the crash. He tried to sit up again, but was pushed down more forcibly. Ted's face came into view, his hand holding the cloth on Sirius' forehead.

"Your friends alright, Sirius. Just a bit shaken up. I modified the sidecar with some extra safety features. You're much worse for wear."

Sirius felt his side burn and he let out another yelp of pain. He tried to look down, but was only able to see that he was shirtless, his shoulder covered in a greenish-white paste.

"I'm sorry Sirius, but your lucky this just grazed you. I think they were trying to maim or kill you," Calamity said, appearing from her place on the floor where she had sprawled in order to reach his injured side. She had a jar of the paste in her hand. Sirius moaned again as both cuts now throbbed with pain.

"Who attacked you," asked Ted. Calamity closed the jar and took Sirius' hand earnestly. She blew on the paste softly and the air current relieved the throbbing, even though it was only a momentary relief.

"Deatheaters," said James. He appeared in the door. Ted was right, aside from some scratched on his face, he looked as he always did. "Came out of nowhere."

"Is there any reason you'd be targeted by Deatheaters," asked Ted.

"We didn't- they didn't find us here, did they," Sirius asked. Calamity glanced at Ted.

"No, Sirius, our charms warded them off. Not to mention the police car your friend James threw at them. Not a great way to improve muggle-wizard relations, but certainly effective."

James looked sheepish for a moment.

"You think this has something to do with Regulus," asked Calamity.

"More likely it has something to do with Avery," James said. He explained their nighttime interrogation of Avery and the letter, strategically leaving out the bit about Wormtail being an animagus.

"Sounds to me like you might have stumbled onto something big," Ted said.

"But we didn't even find out anything," Sirius said.

"Maybe you did and don't realize it. You told Dumbledore?"

James nodded.

"I'll write to him and add this new development to his set of clues."

Ted helped Sirius sit up, then walked from the room. Sirius gave Calamity a weak smile.

"Boy, does this bring back some memories, eh," he said. She looked confused. "You know, last time you took care of me, we got ice cream."

Calamity's smile broke through her concerned face. "You have a knack of getting hurt don't you."

"Just keeping it interesting," Sirius said, he winced at a sudden stab of pain on his shoulder. "How else will I keep you around?"

"Most people just say 'I love you' to show they care, but I suppose you're not most people," Calamity said with a laugh. She ran her hand along his cheek affectionately. "Maybe you could stop almost dying, though."

Sirius glanced at James, who was suddenly very interested in the cushions of the couch. Sirius looked back at Calamity and touched her hand, pulling her gently towards him so that their foreheads touched.

"I do love you, Clara."

"I know, Sirius," Calamity said kissing his nose softly. "I love you, too."

"Well, now that that is all cleared up," James said standing and clapping his hands. "Let's have dinner, shall we? Nymphadora is torn up with worry and I bet she'd like to see that Sirius is all better!"

"Potter the mood killer," Sirius smirked as Calamity helped him stand. He winced again at the pain in his side.

"It'll be sore for the week, but you'll be better after that," Calamity assured him.

"Definitely a faster recovery than your bike," Ted said putting plates in front of the three teens, Nymphadora, and Andromeda. Nymphadora threw a large smile at Sirius, pleased to see him alive and well.

"Oh no," Sirius said hitting his hand to his forehead. "My bike. How bad is it?"

James took a bite of his potatoes before looking up with a devilish grin. "It looks like it had a date with the Womping Willow."

A/N:Review!