"One day this Man's walking along the road, you know, and he falls into a hole. The walls are steep and he can't get out. So then a doctor walks along, and the guy yells up, 'Hey, can you help me? I'm stuck down here!' So the doctor writes out a prescription, throws the paper down, and moves on his way. Then a priest walks by, and our guy tries again. The priest writes down a prayer, sends it down, and walks away. Then a friend walks by, and the guy says, 'Hey, Joe, it's me down here buddy! Can ya help me out?' So the friend jumps down in the hole with him. Our guy says, 'What are you, an idiot? Now we're both stuck down here!' and the friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before and I know the way out.'"
Ch 4 Music Boxes
The next day Sirius decided to skiv off History of Magic and sneak into Hogsmede. "I still need to get Lily's present." He told Remus and James when they asked where he was going.
"But I though you were going to owl away for that book?" Asked James, obviously puzzled by Sirius's sudden urge to shop for Lily.
"That isn't enough." Sirius said simply and his friends let him leave it at that. "Look," he said. "I'll beback around...4, okay?" He added hastily to keep them from getting to suspicious. The truth was that he had no idea what he was going to find at this Melodies place, and he wasn't sure how long it would take him. As it was they were he didnt end up getting into the villageuntil it was already 2 o'clock. Sirius vaguely remembered seeing the shop along an older side street full of smaller shops when he was in Hogsmede a while ago. He swiftly headed off in the general direction of the store, keeping his eyes peeled as best he could. After fifteen minutes or so of hs wandering he came to the front of what appeared to be a trinket shop. The sign baring the name "Melodies"was nicely polished and surrounded by bright little musical notes. A bell lightly tinkled as he entered the shop.
"What can I do to help you?" Asked a cheery store keeper.
"I'm just looking, thanks," replied Sirius casually. He wasn't quite sure what it was he was looking for yet.. So, after acknowledging the shop keeper, he decided to explore the shop and hope for some inspiration. From what Dumbledore had clued him in on, Lily's sadness had something to do with music. Looking around, he noticed that the shop was full of music boxes. However, the trouble was he had no clue whatsoever which one to get...or why.He opened several different ones. Some played loudly, some played softly, and some of them had beautiful pictures engraved on the front. None of them were right though. Sirius had that gut feeling that all students got when they took advice from Albus Dumbledore. The headmaster would not have steered him wrong, and he couldn't ignore the soothing vibe that he got from the store. If anyone needed soothing, it was Lily, and he knew that if there was anyone to bring her back out of her shell again, it would lie within this shop. Sirius wandered in circles throughout the store, getting more and more frustrated as he opened more and more music boxes.
"Ahem," said the store keeper who had offered him her services when he had entered the shop. "I'm sorry dear, but I can't help but noticed you seem a bit...lost." She said smiling at Sirius.
"Well..." Sirius began reluctantly, not sure whether or not to ask this woman for help. "I'm kind of looking for a gift for my friend. I want a music box, but not just any music box, it has to be..." he trailed off.
"Go on." Encouraged the woman.
"Well miss, it has to be special." Finished Sirius. 'Great mate,' he thought to himself. 'Now you just sound like an idiot.' Almost as if reading his mind the woman began to speak again,
"I see," she said. "That's perfectly understandable. In fact, let me let you in on a little secret. Not every music box is special. You're very perceptive to realize that the right one has to be owned by the right person in order for it to 'come alive' so to speak." She said warmly.
"Come alive?" asked Sirius.
"Ah," said the woman. "Most of the boxes you see out here all work in the same exact way. You wind the key and open them up and they play. However, the secret behind a music box that has found the right owner, is that if you can find the right box for the right person, the melody inside will never fade, and it will never fail to calm or sooth that person. If you tell me something about the person you would like to purchase a music box for, I'm sure we could come up with the perfect one." She gave Sirius a radiant smile and he found himself becoming very optimistic indeed. So Sirius began to describe Lily for the woman.
"Um...she's medium height, very petite, she has these bright green eyes, and her hair is the most magnificent shade of red...oh and she's good at charms..." and as Sirius warmed to his topic he rambled on and on about Lily. "...And now she's very sad about something that happened a long time ago which had something to do withmusic and her mom and her little sister." He finished forlornly. "Ithink that if she hears the right music again, she can get back to being the same old Lily again."
"I see said the woman. She sounds like a very lucky girl to have such a fine gentleman looking out for her." She said wisely, if not a little suggestively.
"Oh," Sirius blushed. "It's not like that Lily is James' girl." He sighed. "But James' or not, we all love her to death, and she's like a sister to me. I would do anything for her, and if you could help me Miss, I believe that this really will help bring our Lily back." He finished up with a flourish.
"Please," she said, "call me Melody.
"Thank you Melody, I'm Sirius." Sirius smiled at the woman. He could tell that she was one of those rare people in the world, just like Albus Dumbledore, who would do anything for anyone if you gave them the chance to.
"You're welcome Sirius. And I will be more then happy to help. In fact, based on what you said, I believe I may have the perfect music box for Lily. If you follow me we can take a look." With that Melody stepped behind the counter and tapped a painting on the wall with her wand. A door suddenly appeared, and she beckoned Sirius to follow her into it.
A/N: Well that's it for now, but I'll work again soon!