Chapter 9
Flashback..
As the boys all laughed and joked how the new baby boy's first words had to be snitch, quidditch, and quaffle, Aurora said quietly in the room watching Lily rest. Little Harry giggled or cooed from his cradle occasionally. Only 1 day old and he was already the center of his father and godfather's world.
"Aurora?" Lily said quietly.
"Yes Lil," she answered startled out of her daydreams. "do you need something?"
"No, I'm fine," Lily replied. "I wanted to ask you something. You know that we asked Sirius to be Harry's godfather." Aurora nodded her assent and Lily continued. "Well, Sirius is an airhead and I know that there is no way he could watch after Harry on his own. James and I, or rather I know, that Harry needs a godmother. And he needs one with a good head on her shoulders."
"I agree," Aurora yawned, exhausted from sitting up with everyone all night. "Who are you choosing?"
"You, Aurora," Lily answered.
"Me?" she squeaked. "What about your sister? Surely she is better than a seventeen year old kid?"
"You would be surprised," Lily answered dryly. "You are what balances Sirius. I know that you two will never willingly be apart from one another. I know that you would risk everything to care for Harry just as Sirius would. I want you to be his godmother and so does James."
"Lily, I am shocked," Aurora said. "And honored. Of course I will do it." She jumped out of her seat and ran to the hospital bed to hug Lily. As she pulled away, she looked at little Harry lying in his baby bed, fast asleep. He looked so sweet and innocent.
Lily and James were only nineteen. They had been married for one year when they found out that Lily was pregnant. And they could not have been more excited. Sirius was like a kid at Christmas, running to Diagon Alley to go shopping for baby sized quidditch robes, child sized brooms, and stuffed animals for his godson. Of course, both James and Sirius were convinced from the moment that Lily found out that she was pregnant that it would be a boy. Just think, one of them would say, in a mere eleven years he can pick up where we left off and wreak havoc on Hogwarts.
The only one who seemed distant was Lily. As Voldemort rose to power, she became more and more strained. Aurora knew what was wrong. She feared bringing a child into a world where evil was gaining ground each and every day. The only thing that calmed her was the fact that she knew Harry would have people to look after him if something happened to her and James.
But that never happened, Aurora thought glumly. After James and Lily were murdered, she never even got to see Harry before he was sent off to his relatives. Rubeus Hagrid came that night on the headmaster's orders and took Harry to Number 4 Privet Drive. Just thinking of that night made her hold her breath and become clammy.
A knock at the front door awakened her from her sleep. Just a few months out of Hogwarts, she was working with for a company that researched wand improvement and alternatives for wand cores. For the time being, Aurora had insisted on having her own place and not living with Sirius. Her mother would not have been pleased to discover them living together without the benefit of marriage. So, to keep up appearances, they each had their own place. Though rarely did either of them spend the night alone, Aurora could tell her mother that she was not living with Sirius.
Sirius was constantly busy working with the original Order that he seemed to just come to Aurora's and fall asleep. But he was still there, she thought gratefully. But on that Halloween night, she woke up to the pounding on the door and rolled over to find that Sirius had not crept into bed. She glanced at the clock to find that it was almost midnight and grabbed her dressing gown to go to the door. Always look to see who it is, Sirius preached to her as if Voldemort would knock first or something.
It was Remus standing at the front door. He looked terrible. She answered the door quickly and he looked around nervously as he came into the room.
"Where is Sirius, Aurora?" he asked in strange voice.
"He's not here, I haven't seen him the whole night," Aurora told him. "He might be at his place."
"I checked there first," Remus sighed. "You need to sit down, Aurora." Lupin led her to the sofa and took a deep breath. "I've just come from Godric's Hollow. Voldemort has been there. James and Lily are gone."
All the color went out of her face. Gone? He means dead, she had to tell herself. "How did he find them? The Fidelius charm? Sirius was the." her voice trailed off. And at that moment, she felt her heart shatter into a million pieces.
"Where is Harry?" she croaked when she finally found her voice.
"Dumbledore has apparently sent him to stay with Lily's sister," Remus answered. She nodded and then she broke down, unable to keep the pain and shock inside any longer. Fifteen years later, she still had no idea how long she cried or when she finally pulled herself up off the floor where she has crumbled to the floor when standing up became too difficult.
The next few days were the worst of her life. She vaguely recalled finding out the Peter was gone, too. She vaguely recalled a room filled with hushed tense voices. She tried to keep her head up. She kept thinking that now they would all get an explanation that would make sense. Sirius would explain now, she thought. They led him into the room, those things that glide and made you feel so cold inside.
Sirius looked horrible. He had huge dark circles under his eyes. As he came before the man seated at the bench with he other members of the court, the charges were read. Then, the words, "no trial" came out and Sirius began to protest, to demand a trial. But the only response he got was his sentence to life imprisonment in Azkaban. He was led away but before the Dementors could drag him through the door leading out of the room, he glanced over his shoulder and looked at Aurora with a mixture of fear, pain, confusion, and, Aurora hoped, love.
Remus helped to get her out of the building quickly. She promised him that she would owl him as soon as she got home. But as she walked through the door and realized that tonight, Sirius would not sneak into her room. Aurora realized that she would never again feel him slip into bed behind her or see his smile. He was gone just like Lily and James. Frantically, she felt her anxiety start to rise. Pulling out her wand, she transfigured all the belongings in her flat to fit into a small bag. Then, she ran out the front door and never looked back. A few minutes later after she fled, Remus Lupin walked through the unlocked front door and found that she was gone. It would be fifteen years before he would see her again.
Flashback..
As the boys all laughed and joked how the new baby boy's first words had to be snitch, quidditch, and quaffle, Aurora said quietly in the room watching Lily rest. Little Harry giggled or cooed from his cradle occasionally. Only 1 day old and he was already the center of his father and godfather's world.
"Aurora?" Lily said quietly.
"Yes Lil," she answered startled out of her daydreams. "do you need something?"
"No, I'm fine," Lily replied. "I wanted to ask you something. You know that we asked Sirius to be Harry's godfather." Aurora nodded her assent and Lily continued. "Well, Sirius is an airhead and I know that there is no way he could watch after Harry on his own. James and I, or rather I know, that Harry needs a godmother. And he needs one with a good head on her shoulders."
"I agree," Aurora yawned, exhausted from sitting up with everyone all night. "Who are you choosing?"
"You, Aurora," Lily answered.
"Me?" she squeaked. "What about your sister? Surely she is better than a seventeen year old kid?"
"You would be surprised," Lily answered dryly. "You are what balances Sirius. I know that you two will never willingly be apart from one another. I know that you would risk everything to care for Harry just as Sirius would. I want you to be his godmother and so does James."
"Lily, I am shocked," Aurora said. "And honored. Of course I will do it." She jumped out of her seat and ran to the hospital bed to hug Lily. As she pulled away, she looked at little Harry lying in his baby bed, fast asleep. He looked so sweet and innocent.
Lily and James were only nineteen. They had been married for one year when they found out that Lily was pregnant. And they could not have been more excited. Sirius was like a kid at Christmas, running to Diagon Alley to go shopping for baby sized quidditch robes, child sized brooms, and stuffed animals for his godson. Of course, both James and Sirius were convinced from the moment that Lily found out that she was pregnant that it would be a boy. Just think, one of them would say, in a mere eleven years he can pick up where we left off and wreak havoc on Hogwarts.
The only one who seemed distant was Lily. As Voldemort rose to power, she became more and more strained. Aurora knew what was wrong. She feared bringing a child into a world where evil was gaining ground each and every day. The only thing that calmed her was the fact that she knew Harry would have people to look after him if something happened to her and James.
But that never happened, Aurora thought glumly. After James and Lily were murdered, she never even got to see Harry before he was sent off to his relatives. Rubeus Hagrid came that night on the headmaster's orders and took Harry to Number 4 Privet Drive. Just thinking of that night made her hold her breath and become clammy.
A knock at the front door awakened her from her sleep. Just a few months out of Hogwarts, she was working with for a company that researched wand improvement and alternatives for wand cores. For the time being, Aurora had insisted on having her own place and not living with Sirius. Her mother would not have been pleased to discover them living together without the benefit of marriage. So, to keep up appearances, they each had their own place. Though rarely did either of them spend the night alone, Aurora could tell her mother that she was not living with Sirius.
Sirius was constantly busy working with the original Order that he seemed to just come to Aurora's and fall asleep. But he was still there, she thought gratefully. But on that Halloween night, she woke up to the pounding on the door and rolled over to find that Sirius had not crept into bed. She glanced at the clock to find that it was almost midnight and grabbed her dressing gown to go to the door. Always look to see who it is, Sirius preached to her as if Voldemort would knock first or something.
It was Remus standing at the front door. He looked terrible. She answered the door quickly and he looked around nervously as he came into the room.
"Where is Sirius, Aurora?" he asked in strange voice.
"He's not here, I haven't seen him the whole night," Aurora told him. "He might be at his place."
"I checked there first," Remus sighed. "You need to sit down, Aurora." Lupin led her to the sofa and took a deep breath. "I've just come from Godric's Hollow. Voldemort has been there. James and Lily are gone."
All the color went out of her face. Gone? He means dead, she had to tell herself. "How did he find them? The Fidelius charm? Sirius was the." her voice trailed off. And at that moment, she felt her heart shatter into a million pieces.
"Where is Harry?" she croaked when she finally found her voice.
"Dumbledore has apparently sent him to stay with Lily's sister," Remus answered. She nodded and then she broke down, unable to keep the pain and shock inside any longer. Fifteen years later, she still had no idea how long she cried or when she finally pulled herself up off the floor where she has crumbled to the floor when standing up became too difficult.
The next few days were the worst of her life. She vaguely recalled finding out the Peter was gone, too. She vaguely recalled a room filled with hushed tense voices. She tried to keep her head up. She kept thinking that now they would all get an explanation that would make sense. Sirius would explain now, she thought. They led him into the room, those things that glide and made you feel so cold inside.
Sirius looked horrible. He had huge dark circles under his eyes. As he came before the man seated at the bench with he other members of the court, the charges were read. Then, the words, "no trial" came out and Sirius began to protest, to demand a trial. But the only response he got was his sentence to life imprisonment in Azkaban. He was led away but before the Dementors could drag him through the door leading out of the room, he glanced over his shoulder and looked at Aurora with a mixture of fear, pain, confusion, and, Aurora hoped, love.
Remus helped to get her out of the building quickly. She promised him that she would owl him as soon as she got home. But as she walked through the door and realized that tonight, Sirius would not sneak into her room. Aurora realized that she would never again feel him slip into bed behind her or see his smile. He was gone just like Lily and James. Frantically, she felt her anxiety start to rise. Pulling out her wand, she transfigured all the belongings in her flat to fit into a small bag. Then, she ran out the front door and never looked back. A few minutes later after she fled, Remus Lupin walked through the unlocked front door and found that she was gone. It would be fifteen years before he would see her again.