What a Friend Should Be
Disclaimer: yadda yadda, shall we get on with it???
A/n: I love you all who reviewed! And answering FooLisH's review: umm I'm sorry if I didn't say this, I really meant to! James' parents have been on business trip together; they just came back for the Evans' funeral. Just to clear that up...
To all those who reviewed: thank you so much!! I love you guys so much! You totally make my day! I'm sorry its taken me FOREVER to write this chapter, I'd had half of it done for about a good three months.
R/R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please?????????
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Lila lay awake in her bed. She kept thinking about what Sirius had told her. It didn't make sense. She knew that Sirius and her weren't related but what did that dream mean?
She rolled over but the thoughts wouldn't go away. She squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again but her brain was still poking questions at her. Unable to stop them she threw off the blanket only to be met by the cold. She shivered slightly and pulled on a dressing gown. She looked at the digital clock and sighed. Only 4:59. She quietly crept out of bed and opened her door noiselessly. She peeped out and saw to her relief that no one else was up. She needed some alone time. She made her way downstairs unaware of where exactly she was going. A few minutes later she found herself in front of the fireplace in Lily's living room.
"Why are you here?" she heard a low growl from behind her. She jerked around and saw Sirius standing in the doorway looking solemn. "Back to tell me more about my no good family?" His voice was filled with sarcasm and bitterness.
Lila's eyes were wide, "No...s-Sirius...never..."
"You must think it hilarious that parts of my family die for you," his voice barely a whisper, but hit Lila like a cannon.
"NO SIRIUS NO!" she yelled staring to cry without reason. "Why would I do that?" she whispered standing so she was face to face with him.
"You tell me," Sirius asked, "How is it, that something I could never even tell my best friends about, you suddenly know?"
"I don't know Sirius!" Lila pleaded, "I don't know! I want to find out just as much as you would. I want to know the secret behind my past! Sirius, you are my friend, I would never hurt you. I wish you could've realized that by now."
She dropped into the chair overtaken by sobs. Sirius reached out to comfort her, about to rest his hand on her shoulder, but stopped. He got down on his knees and put a hand under Lila's chin.
"Belle, I'm so sorry." Lila nodded missing the fact that he hadn't called her by name.
Sirius sighed, "You don't know what it's like at my house. Everyone blames me, I'm not exaggerating. My entire family's been in Slytherin for lord knows how long, then I came and got into Gryffindor. My mom was furious. Then she went around saying I was making friends with the 'wrong sort' of people, aka anyone not a pureblood. They said...they said it was my dirty blood, that...that killed my father."
Lila gasped. "But, but...you were just a child! How could you have done anything?"
Sirius hung his head, "I don't know. B-but if I really d-do have d-d-dirty b-b-blood, then I guess Voldemort sensed it...but its gotten better, I've moved in with James..."
Lila wrapped her arms around him. "And when I told you my dream, it was like a reawakening?"
Sirius nodded.
"Oh lord Sirius! I'm so sorry!" Lila cried harder. "This is all my fault! If I had never reminded you of your past...."
"Lila forget it," Sirius mumbled, "come on, please? This is my fault, I shouldn't have gotten mad."
"But Sirius," Lila started. Sirius shushed her.
"Now Lila, all I want is to find out what exactly happened that day. Come on, we're going to go visit my family," Sirius declared.
Before everyone woke up, Lila and Sirius packed all their things and tied them to the end of Sirius's broom (located conveniently outside) and left.
~*~*~*~*~
2 hours later-----
Melanie was the first to wake up and come downstairs. She gave a yell when she found the note from Lila and Sirius on the kitchen table causing the rest of the household to come rushing downstairs.
All at once a bunch of things happened. Lily tripped and fell down the last few stairs bumping into Remus who was at the foot of the stairs, causing Remus to yelp in surprise. Then Remus ran into the kitchen upsetting a flower vase and knocking it into the ground, spilling its contents everywhere. James who happened to be next to the vase had caught it so it wouldn't smash, but was so surprised when he DID catch it he dropped it to the floor making it break into thousands of pieces. Everything went dead silent for a minute, everyone trying to comprehend what had just happened. They all managed to make it into the kitchen to find out why Melanie screamed.
"They're gone!" Melanie yelped.
"Who, what, where, when, and why?" Lily gasped getting up off the floor.
"Reparo," James said to the broken vase, putting it back together again, "yes, who'd gone where, when did they leave, what happened, and why?"
Remus nodded eager to know.
"Sirius and Lila...took off." Melanie said looking disgusted.
Remus let out a low whistle, "Whooh, knew Padfoot would sweep his lovely lady off her feet someday, but I didn't realize that he would be literally kidnapping her."
Melanie made a face at him and handed Lily the letter to read.
"They've gone to...go and meet Sirius's family? What the heck?" Lily read aloud.
James and Remus exchanged dark glances. "W-what else does it say?"
Lily glanced through the letter. "For us not to worry and that they'll be heading straight to Hogwarts afterwards, so we shouldn't wait for them."
"Okay..." Melanie started.
"Well since we've got nothing to do...why not make a stop to Diagon Alley for a while and meanwhile I'll owl Dumbledore and ask him if we may also return tonight to Hogwarts." Lily thought aloud.
"Sounds like a plan." James said.
~*~*~*~*~
At Diagon Alley----
'Where did James and everyone go?' Lily thought to herself. 'Hmm, Melanie said she'd be in Flourish and Blotts to check out a book, and Remus went to Gringotts to deposit something, so that leaves James."
Lily meandered the street of Diagon Alley looking in through the windows of the quaint little town.
She was outside The Leaky Cauldron when she heard a very familiar voice coming from Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor.
"Hey Hope, what are you doing around here?" came the deep, mature voice from under one of the brightly colored umbrellas.
"Hi!" came an unfamiliar, cheery, melodious voice from the doorway of the pub.
Lily got closer to the Ice Cream Parlor, trying to spy without being seen. She could make out a tall blonde looking cheerfully at something hidden to Lily.
"And what might a lovely lady not unlike yourself be doing around here?" the masculine voice sweet-talked. This time Lily pinpointed it to be from behind a lime colored umbrella.
The girl giggled a little then replied, "I could ask the same of you."
"I'm here for a little unfinished business, you?"
"Oh just, you know, stuff" the girly voice answered back.
Lily tried to shift around so her vision could accommodate not only the girl Hope, but also whoever was sitting behind that umbrella. It took Lily a few moments to recognize that Hope went to Hogwarts; she racked her brain for a memory. She then remembered Hope to be a flirty girl who was mostly a good student, but a bit of a snob, but overall nice. Lily edged closer.
"I actually have a question for you darlin'," Her floaty voice floated out.
"Shoot."
"Is the rumor true?"
"What rumor?"
"Haha, like you don't know..."
"Then, enlighten me gorgeous!"
"The one about Evans..."
Lily stood absolutely still, upon hearing her own name, or maybe it was Lila's name...her ears perked up.
"What about it?" came the male voice, it sounded kind of strained.
"You know, the one about you and her...er...umm 'hanging out'.."
Lily noticed the male voice hadn't responded from behind its green wall. She heard Hope's voice again.
"Because as I remember it Potter, you told all of us, the a...what was it? Oh yes, Orange-peel haired nerd and muck like her could never be, umm what did you say? Oh right, in OUR league..."
Lily caught her breath. She felt a sharp pain in her stomach, and a wave of nausea overcame her, so they HAD been talking about her!
"Relax Hope!" the voice said, "what in the WORLD would make me hang out with trash such as that?"
Lily felt her face burn and her hand clench her bag harder. The pain had spread from her stomach to her lungs and now up to her neck.
"Junkie trash like Evans and me? What possessed you to even fathom such a theory?" the voice was low and seductive with a touch of huskiness, not like the strained voice before.
"I mean think about it. Am I going to risk MY reputation and status for...for a dork?"
Lily heard Hope give a short floaty laugh. "I should've known better than to listen to rumors. At least you've got your priorities straight Potter. See you later."
Lily heard a door close and then there was no more movement. She could barely feel the pain in her fingers because they'd gone so numb clutching the bag so tightly. She had a slight ringing sensation in her ears and the tears running down her face weren't even detected. Then, as if a change in the wind, her mood changed, instead hurt, pain that she'd felt a moment ago, she was replaced by anger and fury.
She gathered all of her stuff and walked over to the lime green umbrella. She turned to the person sitting at it and waited.
-----*------
James saw a shadow behind him. He turned quickly in his seat only to come face to face with a very off looking Lily.
"Oh lord Lily! What happened? Why are you crying? Are you okay? Are you sick?" he asked concerned.
He put his hand up to check her forehead for a temperature but he got the shock of a lifetime when Lily slapped it away, hard.
James could make out Remus and Melanie coming towards the Ice Cream Parlor.
"L-lily?"
"DON'T YOU DARE!" she shrieked. James cringed noticing also that Remus and Melanie had stopped dead in their tracks to see what was happening.
"How could you? How dare you!" She yelled.
James looked confused, "What are you TALKING about?"
"Don't play games with me, James," she had a sad looking grin on her face, "Like you don't know. Like you'd even CARE for that matter."
James was befuddled. "Lily, I have absolutely no id-"
Lily cut him off, "Oh don't give me B.S. Potter."
James cringed again at her tone.
"You tell me a bunch of lies about how sorry you are and how you've 'seen the error of your ways' and a bunch of crap and I believed thinking you had the common decency that is expected of normal people. But maybe that title is too much of a high expectation from you. That's pathetic. YOU are pathetic. I hate you so much James Potter, I never want to see your deceiving, cheating, lying, two-faced, untruthful, double-dealing, turncoat of a face near me AGAIN! Do you UNDERSTAND ME, JAMES POTTER?" She screamed.
James held his hand out for her, trying to figure out what was going on. Lily looked at his hand with utmost loathing and hate then she swiftly turned and slapped him.
James felt his face burn with the imbedded fingerprints.
"But Lily, WHAT did I do?!"
Lily gave him a look of scorn, "Oh look at me, I'm little Jamesie, maybe I'll go behind Lily's back and totally degrade you because it's so much more hurtful to do it behind her back! You make me SICK."
Lily took a step back and then punched James in the nose. Before James got a chance to respond he was doubled over from the pain in his face. Lily kicked his shins as hard as she could, hearing a small but satisfactory crack. She turned to away not noticing the looks of shock and surprise on Remus and Melanie's faces and quietly told James, "I hope you and HOPE," she emphasized the name, "have a fun time together in a world of, what did she say? Oh yes, Orange-peel haired girl MUCK. Stay away from me you gormless oik. Because that's what people like you ARE, you think you're so cool and have all that, when you don't even have compassion for the decency on mankind, nor the humanity. You know its people like you that only help support the followers of the Dark Lord. Not just those muggle-haters. Have a dead-beat life Potter, and stay the heck away from me and my friends. But I will make sure that from today onwards you and your posse will regret ever having met me."
She stormed off leaving James in the plastic chair still doubled over in pain. She didn't bother acknowledging Remus or Melanie and went through the Leaky Cauldron back to the muggle world.
-------*-------
"Oh lord, James! What did you do?!?" Remus cried.
James mumbled something long and incoherent. Remus and Melanie exchanged glances.
"What?" Melanie asked.
"I said, I apologized to her yesterday for being a jerk, then today...I guess she overheard my conversation with Hope...and...I sort of...um..."
"Said what?" Remus coaxed.
"Well...in simpler terms I totally insulted her and turned my back on her...again." James replied not taking his eyes off the ground.
Melanie took a step back from James, "Then she had every right to do so. I'm sorry James, but at this moment my FRIEND needs me. Maybe you should look up the meaning of that word in a dictionary."
She gave him a disgusted look and followed Lily out.
Remus gave his friend a withering look. "You know she's right, right?"
James didn't reply.
Remus continued, "But since I can't abandon you here without medical assistance, lets get you back to Hogwarts, I'll have Melanie bring our stuff back for us."
Remus managed to owl Dumbledore and get a floo connection with The Leaky Cauldron and the twosome were off by evening.
Melanie returned to Lily's house and comforted a now nearly hysterical Lily. "I thought he had changed!" Lily wailed. "I thought he was back to the same old best friend I used to have! That insensitive jerk! I HATE HIM! Ya hear that James Potter?!?! I HATE YOU! I hate you! I hate you...."
Lily fell into near faint and Melanie left her on the couch.
"Okay, enough in enough. I think there's been way too much excitement for one week. We're going back." Melanie said to no one in particular. "Great. Now I'm talking to myself. Perfect. On top of everything, I am now credible insane."
She quickly owled Dumbledore and got the Evans's household connected to the floo network. Melanie gathered up all of their belongings, including the guys' and woke Lily up and they were off.
Upon reaching Dumbledore's office, Lily actually did faint and had to be carried to the hospital wing. Melanie was on her own to go to the Gryffindor Tower.
She had walked up the stairs so many times that she didn't pay attention to where she was going. Her mind was so lost in her thoughts that she was barely looking at her surroundings.
Her feet carried her to the Fat Lady's portrait. She automatically said, "Tinkerflights" and the door swung open. Melanie walked all the way to her dorm in the same stupor.
A tall girl yelling a bit then running over to her and hugging her awoke her from her trance however. It took Melanie a few minutes to realize that this ecstatically hysterical girl was Lila.
Upon demanding to know about her and Sirius's sudden flight, Lila began a strange tale.
"Well for a while now, I've had these strange dreams" Lila started and explained to Melanie in detail about the weird dreams.
"Well, last night I finally told someone about them." Lila continued.
"Sirius?" Melanie guessed and Lila nodded.
"So anyway, back to my story..."
----*----
(What happened aka after Sirius and Lila took off....)
Upon reaching Sirius's house, Lila felt a chill of cold air pass over her. She glanced at Sirius who was staring straight ahead at a space between two houses, his handsome face set in a look of determination.
"Think about Number 12 Grimmauld Place...." He barked to her and she jumped in surprise at being addressed.
She followed his order and before her eyes a strangely large house appeared between numbers eleven and thirteen. She followed Sirius as he went straight up to the door and knocked on it twice.
"Who's there?" came a raspy voice from behind the huge old doors.
"It's Sirius Black and a friend, Twinky. Tell mother we need to tak to her about The Tragic...." Sirius barked to the wheezy voice.
"Master, Twinky will open the door in a moment..." there was a scurrying noise and the door was pulled open to reveal a very untidy looking houself and a long dark hallway. "Master, Mistress has been very upset, very upset, since your departure. Twinky is glad to see Master of course, and has a message for him."
"Do tell, Twinky," Sirius said, his voice softer now, almost in a caring way.
"Twinky knows things, has heard them mostly, but knows that she must tell Master, Masters' cousin is arranged to be married."
Lila noticied that Sirius, who had been holding on to the door handle, had become very pale and his knuckles were white. "You mean...Bellatrix?"
Twinky nodded her eyes staring at the floor. "To someones...someones called the Lestranges..."
Lila heard Sirius growl deep in his throat, much like a dog. "Thank you Twinky, for informing me.."
Twinky bowed and scurried out.
"Let's go and find Mother," Sirius said.
Sirius led Lila down a few hallways and past many doors and stairs until they came to stop outside two columns surrounding a pair of white oak doors. Without bothering to knock, Sirius banged open the doors and strode on in, wand in his hands. Lila walked in cautiously behind him.
Inside the room was beautifully decorated with a mix of antique and modern furniture. There was a muggle look to the room, except for the owl cage, speaking mirror and moving pictures, and of course the wand lying on the magnificent cedar bed. The bed was covered in red silk sheets with silver yarn embrodiary. The cusions were all of matching color and the hangings around the bed of a silverfish material. There were two floor-to-ceiling windows behind cream colored curtains and on one side of the humongous bedroom was a closet and a chest of drawers while the other had a dressing table and mirror.
Sitting at the mirror was a beautiful, if not gorgeous woman, with elegantly swept up raven hair and piercingly blue eyes.
'Sirius's eyes...' Lila thought. It was Sirius's mother.
Sirius eyed her coldly. "How are you doing, mother?" He asked her through gritted teeth.
The woman sighed exasperatedly. "Sirius Black, don't you dare try to act up when we all know you're not worthy of it."
Sirius rolled his eyes, "That's not the point, my LOVELY mum. I have someone here who might be of interest to you."
"Its not one of those dishy bimbos is it? To take care of me?" She said waving an arm.
"No Mother," Sirius said, again through clenched teeth. "She's a friend. Soemone who has..er...connections with The Tragic...."
Mrs. Black whipped around faster than you could say balderdash.
"She has what?" She shrieked. "You girl, what is your name?"
Lila looked stunned at being asked something, "Me? I'm Lila. Lila Evans."
"I don't know any Lila Evans. What rubbish nonsense are bringing to me Sirius?" Mrs. Black looked positively annoyed.
"Mum! She's been having dreams..about her past....and she can describe word for word a more accurate than veritaserum account of what happened that night..But that's not the point. What I need to know is..what SHE needs to know is...Mother, who was that baby we were hiding that night?" Sirius looked impatient.
Mrs. Black looked surprised at this revelation. "Why that baby is nothing. She was adopted two months later. What does that have to do with anything?"
"Everything," Lila breathed, "because...because..I think, I am that baby."
Mrs. Black looked her over with a strict eye, "You can't be. Why she must have been about.."
"15 now?" Lila asked smiling.
"Y-yes...and, no you can't be....because that baby and that baby alone has the pendant...the pendant of Trinity."
Lila looked downcast and then she looked up again. "You mean this pendant?"
She reached inside the collar of her shirt and pulled out a white gold chain. Hanging off the chain were three small, triangular diamonds all interconnected.
Mrs. Black saw it and gasped. "You're...you're...her?"
"Mrs. Black, who's her? Who am I?" Lila asked desperately.
"You...you're the Trinster...I mean the third...it's the word for the third child who has the power...Wait let me start at the beginning, it won't take long. Nearly seventeen years ago, a spell was cast in which three children, three very special children, were the chosen. These three were the ones destined for greatness. And with obstacle, I can't tell you everything here, only Dumbledore can, what I can tell you is, Sirius and you are two of those three, and that's what the pendant represents. You were my best friend's daughter. Her name was Darcie, and she had to go into hiding to save you. You were to stay with us until she returned." Mrs. Black looked downcast. "After the attack on Jeff, we got a strange letter from your mom telling us to give you the adoption agency and send you to a family called....I can't remember...but after we realize that that letter had come from, the Dark Lord, we tried to trace you, but you were gone..."
Lila and Sirius exchanged looks. This time Lila saw compassion, rather than hatred, in his eyes.
They bid good-bye to Mrs. Black, Lila promising to come back, and Mrs. Black promising to try and find out where Darcie was. They set off for Hogwarts on their brooms, or rather on Sirius's broom.
----*----
(Back to the dorms)
"It was a very...er...quiet trip home...I mean here...but that's it..." Lila finished letting escape a huge yawn.
"Let's get some sleep, and we'll talk in the morning, with Lily." Melanie suggested.
~*~*~*~*
The light was filtering into the Hospital Wing on the Saturday morning. Lily awoke to the soft pounding of feet outside the Hospital Wing.
'Where am I? How'd I get to the Hospital Wing?' Lily wondered.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
sorry really long chapter.....its prolly the longest chapter I've ever written. Enjoy and REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!
I think you get the GENERAL idea....right? please? For meeeee?
Disclaimer: yadda yadda, shall we get on with it???
A/n: I love you all who reviewed! And answering FooLisH's review: umm I'm sorry if I didn't say this, I really meant to! James' parents have been on business trip together; they just came back for the Evans' funeral. Just to clear that up...
To all those who reviewed: thank you so much!! I love you guys so much! You totally make my day! I'm sorry its taken me FOREVER to write this chapter, I'd had half of it done for about a good three months.
R/R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please?????????
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Lila lay awake in her bed. She kept thinking about what Sirius had told her. It didn't make sense. She knew that Sirius and her weren't related but what did that dream mean?
She rolled over but the thoughts wouldn't go away. She squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again but her brain was still poking questions at her. Unable to stop them she threw off the blanket only to be met by the cold. She shivered slightly and pulled on a dressing gown. She looked at the digital clock and sighed. Only 4:59. She quietly crept out of bed and opened her door noiselessly. She peeped out and saw to her relief that no one else was up. She needed some alone time. She made her way downstairs unaware of where exactly she was going. A few minutes later she found herself in front of the fireplace in Lily's living room.
"Why are you here?" she heard a low growl from behind her. She jerked around and saw Sirius standing in the doorway looking solemn. "Back to tell me more about my no good family?" His voice was filled with sarcasm and bitterness.
Lila's eyes were wide, "No...s-Sirius...never..."
"You must think it hilarious that parts of my family die for you," his voice barely a whisper, but hit Lila like a cannon.
"NO SIRIUS NO!" she yelled staring to cry without reason. "Why would I do that?" she whispered standing so she was face to face with him.
"You tell me," Sirius asked, "How is it, that something I could never even tell my best friends about, you suddenly know?"
"I don't know Sirius!" Lila pleaded, "I don't know! I want to find out just as much as you would. I want to know the secret behind my past! Sirius, you are my friend, I would never hurt you. I wish you could've realized that by now."
She dropped into the chair overtaken by sobs. Sirius reached out to comfort her, about to rest his hand on her shoulder, but stopped. He got down on his knees and put a hand under Lila's chin.
"Belle, I'm so sorry." Lila nodded missing the fact that he hadn't called her by name.
Sirius sighed, "You don't know what it's like at my house. Everyone blames me, I'm not exaggerating. My entire family's been in Slytherin for lord knows how long, then I came and got into Gryffindor. My mom was furious. Then she went around saying I was making friends with the 'wrong sort' of people, aka anyone not a pureblood. They said...they said it was my dirty blood, that...that killed my father."
Lila gasped. "But, but...you were just a child! How could you have done anything?"
Sirius hung his head, "I don't know. B-but if I really d-do have d-d-dirty b-b-blood, then I guess Voldemort sensed it...but its gotten better, I've moved in with James..."
Lila wrapped her arms around him. "And when I told you my dream, it was like a reawakening?"
Sirius nodded.
"Oh lord Sirius! I'm so sorry!" Lila cried harder. "This is all my fault! If I had never reminded you of your past...."
"Lila forget it," Sirius mumbled, "come on, please? This is my fault, I shouldn't have gotten mad."
"But Sirius," Lila started. Sirius shushed her.
"Now Lila, all I want is to find out what exactly happened that day. Come on, we're going to go visit my family," Sirius declared.
Before everyone woke up, Lila and Sirius packed all their things and tied them to the end of Sirius's broom (located conveniently outside) and left.
~*~*~*~*~
2 hours later-----
Melanie was the first to wake up and come downstairs. She gave a yell when she found the note from Lila and Sirius on the kitchen table causing the rest of the household to come rushing downstairs.
All at once a bunch of things happened. Lily tripped and fell down the last few stairs bumping into Remus who was at the foot of the stairs, causing Remus to yelp in surprise. Then Remus ran into the kitchen upsetting a flower vase and knocking it into the ground, spilling its contents everywhere. James who happened to be next to the vase had caught it so it wouldn't smash, but was so surprised when he DID catch it he dropped it to the floor making it break into thousands of pieces. Everything went dead silent for a minute, everyone trying to comprehend what had just happened. They all managed to make it into the kitchen to find out why Melanie screamed.
"They're gone!" Melanie yelped.
"Who, what, where, when, and why?" Lily gasped getting up off the floor.
"Reparo," James said to the broken vase, putting it back together again, "yes, who'd gone where, when did they leave, what happened, and why?"
Remus nodded eager to know.
"Sirius and Lila...took off." Melanie said looking disgusted.
Remus let out a low whistle, "Whooh, knew Padfoot would sweep his lovely lady off her feet someday, but I didn't realize that he would be literally kidnapping her."
Melanie made a face at him and handed Lily the letter to read.
"They've gone to...go and meet Sirius's family? What the heck?" Lily read aloud.
James and Remus exchanged dark glances. "W-what else does it say?"
Lily glanced through the letter. "For us not to worry and that they'll be heading straight to Hogwarts afterwards, so we shouldn't wait for them."
"Okay..." Melanie started.
"Well since we've got nothing to do...why not make a stop to Diagon Alley for a while and meanwhile I'll owl Dumbledore and ask him if we may also return tonight to Hogwarts." Lily thought aloud.
"Sounds like a plan." James said.
~*~*~*~*~
At Diagon Alley----
'Where did James and everyone go?' Lily thought to herself. 'Hmm, Melanie said she'd be in Flourish and Blotts to check out a book, and Remus went to Gringotts to deposit something, so that leaves James."
Lily meandered the street of Diagon Alley looking in through the windows of the quaint little town.
She was outside The Leaky Cauldron when she heard a very familiar voice coming from Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor.
"Hey Hope, what are you doing around here?" came the deep, mature voice from under one of the brightly colored umbrellas.
"Hi!" came an unfamiliar, cheery, melodious voice from the doorway of the pub.
Lily got closer to the Ice Cream Parlor, trying to spy without being seen. She could make out a tall blonde looking cheerfully at something hidden to Lily.
"And what might a lovely lady not unlike yourself be doing around here?" the masculine voice sweet-talked. This time Lily pinpointed it to be from behind a lime colored umbrella.
The girl giggled a little then replied, "I could ask the same of you."
"I'm here for a little unfinished business, you?"
"Oh just, you know, stuff" the girly voice answered back.
Lily tried to shift around so her vision could accommodate not only the girl Hope, but also whoever was sitting behind that umbrella. It took Lily a few moments to recognize that Hope went to Hogwarts; she racked her brain for a memory. She then remembered Hope to be a flirty girl who was mostly a good student, but a bit of a snob, but overall nice. Lily edged closer.
"I actually have a question for you darlin'," Her floaty voice floated out.
"Shoot."
"Is the rumor true?"
"What rumor?"
"Haha, like you don't know..."
"Then, enlighten me gorgeous!"
"The one about Evans..."
Lily stood absolutely still, upon hearing her own name, or maybe it was Lila's name...her ears perked up.
"What about it?" came the male voice, it sounded kind of strained.
"You know, the one about you and her...er...umm 'hanging out'.."
Lily noticed the male voice hadn't responded from behind its green wall. She heard Hope's voice again.
"Because as I remember it Potter, you told all of us, the a...what was it? Oh yes, Orange-peel haired nerd and muck like her could never be, umm what did you say? Oh right, in OUR league..."
Lily caught her breath. She felt a sharp pain in her stomach, and a wave of nausea overcame her, so they HAD been talking about her!
"Relax Hope!" the voice said, "what in the WORLD would make me hang out with trash such as that?"
Lily felt her face burn and her hand clench her bag harder. The pain had spread from her stomach to her lungs and now up to her neck.
"Junkie trash like Evans and me? What possessed you to even fathom such a theory?" the voice was low and seductive with a touch of huskiness, not like the strained voice before.
"I mean think about it. Am I going to risk MY reputation and status for...for a dork?"
Lily heard Hope give a short floaty laugh. "I should've known better than to listen to rumors. At least you've got your priorities straight Potter. See you later."
Lily heard a door close and then there was no more movement. She could barely feel the pain in her fingers because they'd gone so numb clutching the bag so tightly. She had a slight ringing sensation in her ears and the tears running down her face weren't even detected. Then, as if a change in the wind, her mood changed, instead hurt, pain that she'd felt a moment ago, she was replaced by anger and fury.
She gathered all of her stuff and walked over to the lime green umbrella. She turned to the person sitting at it and waited.
-----*------
James saw a shadow behind him. He turned quickly in his seat only to come face to face with a very off looking Lily.
"Oh lord Lily! What happened? Why are you crying? Are you okay? Are you sick?" he asked concerned.
He put his hand up to check her forehead for a temperature but he got the shock of a lifetime when Lily slapped it away, hard.
James could make out Remus and Melanie coming towards the Ice Cream Parlor.
"L-lily?"
"DON'T YOU DARE!" she shrieked. James cringed noticing also that Remus and Melanie had stopped dead in their tracks to see what was happening.
"How could you? How dare you!" She yelled.
James looked confused, "What are you TALKING about?"
"Don't play games with me, James," she had a sad looking grin on her face, "Like you don't know. Like you'd even CARE for that matter."
James was befuddled. "Lily, I have absolutely no id-"
Lily cut him off, "Oh don't give me B.S. Potter."
James cringed again at her tone.
"You tell me a bunch of lies about how sorry you are and how you've 'seen the error of your ways' and a bunch of crap and I believed thinking you had the common decency that is expected of normal people. But maybe that title is too much of a high expectation from you. That's pathetic. YOU are pathetic. I hate you so much James Potter, I never want to see your deceiving, cheating, lying, two-faced, untruthful, double-dealing, turncoat of a face near me AGAIN! Do you UNDERSTAND ME, JAMES POTTER?" She screamed.
James held his hand out for her, trying to figure out what was going on. Lily looked at his hand with utmost loathing and hate then she swiftly turned and slapped him.
James felt his face burn with the imbedded fingerprints.
"But Lily, WHAT did I do?!"
Lily gave him a look of scorn, "Oh look at me, I'm little Jamesie, maybe I'll go behind Lily's back and totally degrade you because it's so much more hurtful to do it behind her back! You make me SICK."
Lily took a step back and then punched James in the nose. Before James got a chance to respond he was doubled over from the pain in his face. Lily kicked his shins as hard as she could, hearing a small but satisfactory crack. She turned to away not noticing the looks of shock and surprise on Remus and Melanie's faces and quietly told James, "I hope you and HOPE," she emphasized the name, "have a fun time together in a world of, what did she say? Oh yes, Orange-peel haired girl MUCK. Stay away from me you gormless oik. Because that's what people like you ARE, you think you're so cool and have all that, when you don't even have compassion for the decency on mankind, nor the humanity. You know its people like you that only help support the followers of the Dark Lord. Not just those muggle-haters. Have a dead-beat life Potter, and stay the heck away from me and my friends. But I will make sure that from today onwards you and your posse will regret ever having met me."
She stormed off leaving James in the plastic chair still doubled over in pain. She didn't bother acknowledging Remus or Melanie and went through the Leaky Cauldron back to the muggle world.
-------*-------
"Oh lord, James! What did you do?!?" Remus cried.
James mumbled something long and incoherent. Remus and Melanie exchanged glances.
"What?" Melanie asked.
"I said, I apologized to her yesterday for being a jerk, then today...I guess she overheard my conversation with Hope...and...I sort of...um..."
"Said what?" Remus coaxed.
"Well...in simpler terms I totally insulted her and turned my back on her...again." James replied not taking his eyes off the ground.
Melanie took a step back from James, "Then she had every right to do so. I'm sorry James, but at this moment my FRIEND needs me. Maybe you should look up the meaning of that word in a dictionary."
She gave him a disgusted look and followed Lily out.
Remus gave his friend a withering look. "You know she's right, right?"
James didn't reply.
Remus continued, "But since I can't abandon you here without medical assistance, lets get you back to Hogwarts, I'll have Melanie bring our stuff back for us."
Remus managed to owl Dumbledore and get a floo connection with The Leaky Cauldron and the twosome were off by evening.
Melanie returned to Lily's house and comforted a now nearly hysterical Lily. "I thought he had changed!" Lily wailed. "I thought he was back to the same old best friend I used to have! That insensitive jerk! I HATE HIM! Ya hear that James Potter?!?! I HATE YOU! I hate you! I hate you...."
Lily fell into near faint and Melanie left her on the couch.
"Okay, enough in enough. I think there's been way too much excitement for one week. We're going back." Melanie said to no one in particular. "Great. Now I'm talking to myself. Perfect. On top of everything, I am now credible insane."
She quickly owled Dumbledore and got the Evans's household connected to the floo network. Melanie gathered up all of their belongings, including the guys' and woke Lily up and they were off.
Upon reaching Dumbledore's office, Lily actually did faint and had to be carried to the hospital wing. Melanie was on her own to go to the Gryffindor Tower.
She had walked up the stairs so many times that she didn't pay attention to where she was going. Her mind was so lost in her thoughts that she was barely looking at her surroundings.
Her feet carried her to the Fat Lady's portrait. She automatically said, "Tinkerflights" and the door swung open. Melanie walked all the way to her dorm in the same stupor.
A tall girl yelling a bit then running over to her and hugging her awoke her from her trance however. It took Melanie a few minutes to realize that this ecstatically hysterical girl was Lila.
Upon demanding to know about her and Sirius's sudden flight, Lila began a strange tale.
"Well for a while now, I've had these strange dreams" Lila started and explained to Melanie in detail about the weird dreams.
"Well, last night I finally told someone about them." Lila continued.
"Sirius?" Melanie guessed and Lila nodded.
"So anyway, back to my story..."
----*----
(What happened aka after Sirius and Lila took off....)
Upon reaching Sirius's house, Lila felt a chill of cold air pass over her. She glanced at Sirius who was staring straight ahead at a space between two houses, his handsome face set in a look of determination.
"Think about Number 12 Grimmauld Place...." He barked to her and she jumped in surprise at being addressed.
She followed his order and before her eyes a strangely large house appeared between numbers eleven and thirteen. She followed Sirius as he went straight up to the door and knocked on it twice.
"Who's there?" came a raspy voice from behind the huge old doors.
"It's Sirius Black and a friend, Twinky. Tell mother we need to tak to her about The Tragic...." Sirius barked to the wheezy voice.
"Master, Twinky will open the door in a moment..." there was a scurrying noise and the door was pulled open to reveal a very untidy looking houself and a long dark hallway. "Master, Mistress has been very upset, very upset, since your departure. Twinky is glad to see Master of course, and has a message for him."
"Do tell, Twinky," Sirius said, his voice softer now, almost in a caring way.
"Twinky knows things, has heard them mostly, but knows that she must tell Master, Masters' cousin is arranged to be married."
Lila noticied that Sirius, who had been holding on to the door handle, had become very pale and his knuckles were white. "You mean...Bellatrix?"
Twinky nodded her eyes staring at the floor. "To someones...someones called the Lestranges..."
Lila heard Sirius growl deep in his throat, much like a dog. "Thank you Twinky, for informing me.."
Twinky bowed and scurried out.
"Let's go and find Mother," Sirius said.
Sirius led Lila down a few hallways and past many doors and stairs until they came to stop outside two columns surrounding a pair of white oak doors. Without bothering to knock, Sirius banged open the doors and strode on in, wand in his hands. Lila walked in cautiously behind him.
Inside the room was beautifully decorated with a mix of antique and modern furniture. There was a muggle look to the room, except for the owl cage, speaking mirror and moving pictures, and of course the wand lying on the magnificent cedar bed. The bed was covered in red silk sheets with silver yarn embrodiary. The cusions were all of matching color and the hangings around the bed of a silverfish material. There were two floor-to-ceiling windows behind cream colored curtains and on one side of the humongous bedroom was a closet and a chest of drawers while the other had a dressing table and mirror.
Sitting at the mirror was a beautiful, if not gorgeous woman, with elegantly swept up raven hair and piercingly blue eyes.
'Sirius's eyes...' Lila thought. It was Sirius's mother.
Sirius eyed her coldly. "How are you doing, mother?" He asked her through gritted teeth.
The woman sighed exasperatedly. "Sirius Black, don't you dare try to act up when we all know you're not worthy of it."
Sirius rolled his eyes, "That's not the point, my LOVELY mum. I have someone here who might be of interest to you."
"Its not one of those dishy bimbos is it? To take care of me?" She said waving an arm.
"No Mother," Sirius said, again through clenched teeth. "She's a friend. Soemone who has..er...connections with The Tragic...."
Mrs. Black whipped around faster than you could say balderdash.
"She has what?" She shrieked. "You girl, what is your name?"
Lila looked stunned at being asked something, "Me? I'm Lila. Lila Evans."
"I don't know any Lila Evans. What rubbish nonsense are bringing to me Sirius?" Mrs. Black looked positively annoyed.
"Mum! She's been having dreams..about her past....and she can describe word for word a more accurate than veritaserum account of what happened that night..But that's not the point. What I need to know is..what SHE needs to know is...Mother, who was that baby we were hiding that night?" Sirius looked impatient.
Mrs. Black looked surprised at this revelation. "Why that baby is nothing. She was adopted two months later. What does that have to do with anything?"
"Everything," Lila breathed, "because...because..I think, I am that baby."
Mrs. Black looked her over with a strict eye, "You can't be. Why she must have been about.."
"15 now?" Lila asked smiling.
"Y-yes...and, no you can't be....because that baby and that baby alone has the pendant...the pendant of Trinity."
Lila looked downcast and then she looked up again. "You mean this pendant?"
She reached inside the collar of her shirt and pulled out a white gold chain. Hanging off the chain were three small, triangular diamonds all interconnected.
Mrs. Black saw it and gasped. "You're...you're...her?"
"Mrs. Black, who's her? Who am I?" Lila asked desperately.
"You...you're the Trinster...I mean the third...it's the word for the third child who has the power...Wait let me start at the beginning, it won't take long. Nearly seventeen years ago, a spell was cast in which three children, three very special children, were the chosen. These three were the ones destined for greatness. And with obstacle, I can't tell you everything here, only Dumbledore can, what I can tell you is, Sirius and you are two of those three, and that's what the pendant represents. You were my best friend's daughter. Her name was Darcie, and she had to go into hiding to save you. You were to stay with us until she returned." Mrs. Black looked downcast. "After the attack on Jeff, we got a strange letter from your mom telling us to give you the adoption agency and send you to a family called....I can't remember...but after we realize that that letter had come from, the Dark Lord, we tried to trace you, but you were gone..."
Lila and Sirius exchanged looks. This time Lila saw compassion, rather than hatred, in his eyes.
They bid good-bye to Mrs. Black, Lila promising to come back, and Mrs. Black promising to try and find out where Darcie was. They set off for Hogwarts on their brooms, or rather on Sirius's broom.
----*----
(Back to the dorms)
"It was a very...er...quiet trip home...I mean here...but that's it..." Lila finished letting escape a huge yawn.
"Let's get some sleep, and we'll talk in the morning, with Lily." Melanie suggested.
~*~*~*~*
The light was filtering into the Hospital Wing on the Saturday morning. Lily awoke to the soft pounding of feet outside the Hospital Wing.
'Where am I? How'd I get to the Hospital Wing?' Lily wondered.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
sorry really long chapter.....its prolly the longest chapter I've ever written. Enjoy and REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!
I think you get the GENERAL idea....right? please? For meeeee?