Disclaimer: See my profile

Seventeen

"There must be some misunderstanding. I can't leave. I won't leave. And there's no one on Earth who can make me," Lina said in barely more than a whisper. Onónion, whom she now knew was her father, grinned at her.

"Hello, Celina, my dear. It has been years since I have seen you thousands of years," he said.

"Why did you bring me here, if only to take me back?" Lina asked, her voice trembling as much as her hands.

Her Father sighed and said, "Because we thought you should grow up amongst your kind."

"But you were my kind."

"Not exactly. You are one of the Elves, of course. But you are also a witch. It had never happened before that an Elf was born with the powers that a witch has. We felt it was our duty as parents to let you learn everything you were capable of learning, so we brought you to the orphanage in the Medieval Times. Little did we know that you would be adopted and grow up in this school. We thought you would be an apprentice to another different witch," he explained.

"But your plans went wrong. You cannot take me away from my family, my friends, from R –" She stopped, recalling that her adoptive father was in the room. He was not supposed to know about Remus. "You can't just take me."

"Oh, but I must," Onónion said quietly. "Many, many, many years ago, before you were born, I stood in battle next to Lord Elrond, the King of Rivendell. The battle was vicious and bloody, and I had little experience, for I was younger and this was my first battle. Although I was considered a skilled warrior, I had never actually been in combat against someone who wanted to kill me – only against someone who wanted to teach me how to fight. So when I came face-to-face with one of our enemies, I froze in fear. I was so scared that I could not move.

"My opponent raised his blade to strike me down. I could almost taste the blood. But then I heard the clashing of metal against metal and looked up to see that Lord Elrond had dove in front of me and stopped him with his sword.

"After the battle was through, many were slain, but it had been a victory for us," he went on to clarify. "Both myself and Lord Elrond were extremely weak and tired. But I promised him my service and the service of my family for all generations until death take him or until the debt be repaid in return for him saving my life. He agreed, although rather warily. He did not like the idea of my serving him."

"Then why don't you just leave me here instead of forcing me to go?" Lina cried, tears glittering behind her eyes.

"Because, my child, a promise is a promise, and he is my King. I cannot break a promise to him. I am sorry," he said weakly, although he did not look the least bit sorry.

"But . . . but . . . you cannot let him do this to me, Dad!" she shouted, turning to Dumbledore. She was horrified to watch him step away from her.

"He is right, my dear, there is nothing more I can do. You must go with him," he said reluctantly.

"No! No, you cannot make me!" Lina screamed.

"You have until tonight to say good-bye to all of your friends. I am sorry it was so sudden, but we must go," Onónion said.

Lina looked from Professor McGonagall to her adoptive father to her new, real father. She no longer cared about whether or not the tears would make her look foolish. She let them fall. They spilled down her face, her neck, on to her face. She ran out of the room, absolutely distraught.

How could they expect her to say goodbye to everyone in just a few hours? How could they expect her to leave her friends, the only family she really ever felt like she had? And what about Dumbledore, the only father she had ever truly known?

She arrived at the Common Room and muttered the password.

"My goodness, dear, you look absolutely horrible! Is something wrong?" the Fat Lady asked. She let out a large sob and ran into the Common Room.

Inside, the Marauders and Lily were waiting for her, but she did not want to talk to them. She didn't want to have to explain it to them.

Remus saw her covering her face, mascara leaking from the corners of her eyes. "Lina, are you alright?" he asked. She just covered her face again and cried. His face made her feel worse.

He took her hands and said, "Oh, Leen, it'll all be okay. I'll always be here to comfort you. It's okay."

"No, it's not!" Lina shouted. "You might be here to comfort me, but I can't be here to be comforted!" And she turned and ran up to her bed.

"Lina, what the hell is going on?" she heard him shout back up to her, but she couldn't face him. It just made her heart hurt.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Lina was still crying. She knew she should be saying goodbye, but she didn't want to have to.

"Celina, are you alright?" a voice called to her. She recognized it as Lily's voice.

"No, I'm not," she said inaudibly.

"What's going on?" Lily asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

She turned to face her friend and said, her voice shaking, "I have to leave."

"And go where?"

She sighed. "I . . . I don't really know. But I don't know if I'll ever be coming back."

Lily looked at her, completely awestruck. "You need to find Remus," she said quietly, looking at the clothes Lina had attempted to pack.

"But I can't face him. He wouldn't understand."

"But he knows you wouldn't just leave without an answer or a reason. And you can't leave without saying goodbye to him," Lily said. Lina knew that she was right.

"Come on, he's waiting for you downstairs."

"No," Lina said. "I'll say goodbye to him last. Tell him to wait. I want to say goodbye to everyone else first."

Lily sighed and said, "Alright."

Lina continued to pack until Lily came up and said that the coast was clear. She went downstairs, but not before taking off all of her make-up. She did not want to come downstairs and find that they were all staring at her because her mascara was running.

"Ashes, what's wrong?" James asked, concern growing in his voice.

"Please don't call me that. I can't be a Marauder anymore."

Sirius walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Well, why not?"

"I have to leave. I don't know where I'm going, or when I'll be back. I may never be back," Lina said so quietly that she thought they mightn't have heard her.

"You're . . . you're leaving?" Peter squeaked. Lina nodded glumly.

"B-but you can't leave! We're not the Marauders without Celina Peterson!" James cried.

"I know, I know!" Lina shouted. "But there's nothing I can do. Believe me, I would much rather stay here. You guys are some of the only people who haven't thought of me as weird, who have accepted me for who I am. I don't want to leave, but I have to."

"Oh, Lina . . ." Sirius murmured. He drew her into a hug. She had never hugged Sirius before, but somehow she felt it would be the last time that she would ever hug him, even if she did come back.

"Good-bye, Lina. I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, Sirius," she murmured. She turned to Peter. He was sniffling up a storm, and he seemed incredibly jittery. "And I can't forget Peter," she sighed. She went over and hugged him, though gently. Somehow, she felt like he was the one who liked her least. She didn't quite trust him, but he had been a friend nonetheless.

James just stood there, wringing his hands. "Lina, you can't leave!" he said defensively.

"I don't want to, James, I don't. You've got to know that I've done everything I can to stay, but it's just not long enough. Think of it as an early graduation," Lina said.

He ran over to her and hugged her tightly. "I'll never forget what you helped me to realize – that I love Lily. Somehow, I think you've helped me to shape my entire life." She hugged him tightly back, because, like Sirius, she felt that it would be the last time she would hug him, even if she did return to this world someday.

Lastly, she turned to Lily. Lily needed no words. She had been an amazing friend, the one who had helped her realize that she loved Remus so much. She just hugged her tightly as they cried into each other's shoulders.

Once they withdrew, James took Lily's hand. They were all crying, except for Peter, who simply stood there.

"We have to get to class," James stuttered. "We'll miss you, Celina."

"I'll miss you all, too. More than anything," she whispered. She watched them turn away and walk towards the portrait hole. It seemed as though time had slowed almost to a stop, like a movie being played in slow motion. James and Lily looked back at her. She felt a stabbing pain in her heart, and her fears were confirmed. She knew that would be the last time she ever saw them.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Remus came to her just as she was about to leave. She had already said goodbye to her adoptive father, the one who had taken care of her for the past 120 years. Now, it was time to say goodbye to the most important person of all.

"Lina, where are you going with him?" he asked, running up to her.

"I'm going home, to my real home."

"You were expelled? What did you do?" he asked incredulously.

Lina laughed, despite the tears that were forming in her tearducts. "No, I wasn't expelled. I have to go home, and I may never see you again."

She turned to look at Onónion, who nodded and walked away, leaving them alone in the dark Corridor. She gently took his hands into hers, not knowing how long it would be before she felt them again.

"I'm not sure of where I'm going, Remus, or what I plan to do there. In fact, there's only one thing I am sure of, and that's that I'm not sure of anything. This life is taking me on a different path than I would have chosen, but right now, I need to leave you.

"But I promise to you, Remus – I swear on my life – that one day, I will come back for you. I may not look the same, and you certainly won't look the same, but I will be the same person inside, with the same immortal flame burning within me."

"Lina, what are you saying?" he asked, the one to cry this time.

She leaned forward and kissed him softly. It was long and deep and passionate, and she took in as much of it as she could. She tried to pretend that they would be able to kiss again sometime soon, but her longing inside took over and she knew in her heart that she may not ever be able to kiss him again, even when she did come back for him. For he might not believe it was her.

"I'm saying good-bye, Remus," she whispered. "Until we meet again, always remember – I love you, Remus."

She turned away from him, her heart pounding against her ribs. She did not want to leave him. She did not understand why she was or where she was going. She just knew she had to leave. She followed Onónion, who beckoned with a long finger, as she listened to him calling her:

"Lina! Celina, wait!" But she could not turn back.

The last thing she heard him say was, "Celina Artemis Peterson, I love you, too!" before she turned the corner. And she couldn't help but think, That's not my real name.