A Glimpse of Sorer Days
He used to watch her out of pure necessity. Pokes from James mostly, in his constant pursuit for her gossip, Sirius habitually kept an ear out for James' name on her lips. Sirius wasn't unaware of Lily's beauty, brains, among other things. James was a lucky man. It must've been three years since she, not bothering to pull James aside, gave him a coy smile and said, "I'll be there at six." James' astonished eyes went as round as the hole in is mouth. Sirius wanted to give a long, toothy squeak as he grabbed his friends arm tight enough to leave red marks for a couple hours. He nearly bounced on the spot as James looked after her and couldn't say a word.
It was early on a bright Monday morning. Sirius' intention was to find James as soon as he was out of his first exam but here he found Lily instead. After he had stopped his bike in the yard of the Ministry School, his pale eyes stared softly at her from afar. Only the motion to brush his hair from his brow broke it. He dismounted the enchanted Harley with Muggle ease and made his way toward the woman of his best friend's dreams.
There had been jokes of James cheating on Sirius with her at Hogwarts. All this messing about mounted until he and James woke up in wedding attire. Not a Gryffindor missed it. Wormtail and Mooney had been sure not to be the only spectators of their little gag. At least James was fortunate enough to have the less embarrassing position in a tuxedo, cufflink, carnation and all, although, he was the more angry of the two about it. The comment boldly spoken by Remus, as soon as they spotted each other when they were awoken with a simple spontaneous spell for two, "Now you may kiss the bride," followed by a room of laughter was enough to wound good old Prongs' pride for a week. And though he brought it up for months to come, swearing he'd get them back, so far never had.
Those days felt like decades ago, so simple to him now than they seemed then. An Order had been called, an Order against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and Sirius' dear friends were members in it same as him. The threat was more realistic day by day. Not so much new threats but ones that were overlooked within the innocence of younger years, only augmented by time. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, the dynamic quad, were fighting real villains now!
Lilly remained distracted from her studying. Cradling one hand in the other, she stared at her nails, which was a curious motion for her to do. She rarely painted them and was not one to bite out imperfections. At a stride Sirius came to the roots of a birch tree where Lily sat. He drank in Lily's permeating beam, the brilliant waterfall of red down her back and how the sun on the grass jealously tried to match her eyes.
"Hello, Lily," his voice dropped a bit deeper as it tended to around girls. Old habits are hard too break.
Lily's heart leapt and she outwardly started when he spoke. Her eyes turned to him with the remaining surprise. "Sirius, I'm so glad you're here. I have something exciting to tell you," she grinned withal fervor. Sirius' almost laughed at her excitement, for her to interrupt was uncharacteristic. This must be good.
"What?" he sat up. His mocking mouth was still good natured as he jumped with crazy eyes of goofy interest.
"James and I— AH!" Lily staggered. If some large shadowy form hadn't clobbered the two of them as it apparated between them Sirius would have gasped for joy. She didn't have to finish; he knew what she was about to say. However this particular lad who was trying to pass for some jack in the box was enough to dampen even that joy. It was fitting for this certain student to aim for such an entrance because he loved nothing more than to astound people. His name was Artemis. He was scrawny, pale and scant like he missed a lot of meals, but he didn't let it take away from the murky cloud that seemed to loom around him.
"Hello Lily," Artemis' voice was very unpleasant, like the sound of a hive of bees.
Sirius perked up as though his ears made motion forward, dog-form. Lily's brow creased in confusion, "Artemis?"
"Yes," he whispered as though he'd been called… as though he was invited Sirius thought.
"What is it?" her attempted politeness didn't cancel out Sirius' glower. He knew something Lily didn't. Artemis fancied her.
It was no doubt that Artemis was top notch oddball at the MSMA. It was well known, his talents in Divination and Occlumensy. He was perfecting them, collaborating them in an art he called "life-walking." No one knew how he augmented his powers. Defense only just touched on any such atrocious arts, and even then it was detached bookwork, but he managed to find acceleration in them, so much that he had been suspended from Hogwarts for using his powers on another student there. And now he had been allowed to practice it even with that kind of reputation.
"I have something to tell you," his black eyes glimmered with menace as equal as when his voice sung the words. Sirius sided with Lily at once, "Alone."
"Whatever bit of business you have with Lily is my business too," said Sirius.
Artemis' glint burned out into a glare. "Very well then. I guess I should get right to the point then." Artemis raised his wand into the air.
"What are you doing?" Sirius asked with urgency. The end of Artemis' wand burst forth a bluish cloud that surrounded him, Sirius and Lily. They're feet felt as though they had left the ground. Lily gave a small scream. They felt very much like they were apparating.
"If you remain with James this will be your fate, surly as the sun rises each day." Sirius knew Artemis well enough not to doubt that he had allowed those clouds to whirl around them as he spoke for pure dramatic poise.
Slam! Their feet were on the ground again and they found that they were somewhere else, far away from the Ministry School. It took them a while to take in their surroundings. The air wasn't right, sounds were more acute. Everything around them seemed too metallic to be real or normal. But it was just a room, a room with a baby carriage, harmless. Sirius and Lily approached it together to see a fuzzy-haired baby squirming beneath a blanket. "Oh, Harry!" Lily's voice cooed lovingly. But Lily hadn't spoken, Sirius had not seen her lips move. He turned toward the voice and there another Lily came through the door of the room where Lily was already leaned over the crib. This Lily of the alternate world neared the crib and leaned in no through Lily and Sirius to pick the child up. He gasped and jolted back in alarm rubbing the pace in his arm where she had gone into. "What is this Artemis!"
Everything froze so suddenly they felt it under their feet. And he gave Lily a dark glare, "Your future, should you marry James."
"What is he talking about?" Sirius demanded.
"I don't know," the material Lily said as though in a partial trance. She wasn't seeing the bad side. It all almost made her smile, "Artemis—"
"Watch!" Artemis pointed his wand and they were jerked again, into night. Their feet hit the ground firmly once more.
A wind blew a tree against the baby's window and the little infant whined. The other Lily was still there. She pulled the baby out of the crib holding it close. "It's alright, Harry," she whispered with what seemed like unprovoked anxiety.
"Lily!" a voice appeared. Sirius and both Lilys' turned. It was unmistakably James. A blur of him rushed into the room close to his dear wife, "Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run!" Lily's face filled with uttermost terror and despair and her breathing became broken and her eyes were tearing, "I'll hold him off." At this Lily made a desperate attempt to grab James around the elbow and draw him in but he distractedly pulled away and ran through the baby's doorway like a portal to his doom as a screeching cackle emitted in all of their ears. The observing friends covered their ears in spite of themselves.
"James!" Sirius called. Something wanted him to warn James about Artemis and he called his name again.
"He can't hear you, you great buffoon!" said Artemis with a brogue.
Nevertheless, Sirius ran to the doorway and watched speechless as a dark figure neared his friend who's arms flew in the air, protective of the second half of the hall, wand in hand, "James! No…" The being had raised a wand. At first thought Sirius was sure it was Artemis…but the figure was so tall.
"Avada Kadavra!"
"JAMES!" Sirius screamed. Two female screams to match his sounded behind him.
But it was too late. James had fallen to the floor with a deafening thud.
This wasn't real! Sirius stepped to go to his friend aid, but this thing was coming toward him, looming over him and he fled in fear. His denial screamed inside him. Sirius could hear the weeping of the alternate Lily. Both women knew what had happened. And he ran to his Lily instead… more important. How could he be in this and be able to do nothing?
The present Lily now watched her other self protect the struggling child in her arms muttering something inaudible. "Run," Lily barely whispered to her alternate self.
A shadow fell on the room and all the candles flickered out.
"Run!" She told herself as the hooded man came in. Both Lily's gasped but only one knew what danger she was in. Sirius, Lily, and Artemis backed into a corner of the tiny room as though their eventual fate equaled James'.
"No!" the thing raised its wand. "No! Not Harry! Please!" She had placed the child back in the crib against the wall and guarded it, "I'll do anything" she sobbed putting her arms out and doing the only thing she could think of without seeming threatening… she paced back and fourth with her back to the crib to block the figure from Harry as it tried to get around her.
"Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!"
"No, please. I beg you. Please!" she cried. Even prepared to turn to the dark side… if that's what it took.
This fiend growled fiercely and the curse fell again. A huge flash of green light made every immaterial person in the room feel as if they had been turned to corpses just as they heard Lily give a deafening scream and fall to the floor. The younger Lily was weeping in torture now. Her knees had given way and her hands were placed on either side of her shadow's dead face, looking up at her.
"END THIS NOW!" Sirius howled.
"I don't start things without finishing them, Black. Watch!" Artemis demanded, but his face was filled with a human horror. Not the kind when one sees a real life murder. It was more like he was watching a frightening Muggle picture show.
Sirius felt the death curse crawl down his spine again and turned to see the wand pointed at the child. Lily looked up to see the sad fate of the baby, to week to move, knowing that she was powerless against something immaterial. The spell was called again the light blinded them. A shrill hiss was heard but it was of no child. There by the fallen Lily's side the body fell, twitching. Upon contact with the ground the hood fell back and the face of Voldemort was revealed to them. And the child… he lived. Crying, sad, alone, and parentless, he lived. And Voldemort did not. Every single one of them was in shock, including Artemis. The dream faded away into what felt like yesterday and the last thing Sirius and Lily saw was a single drop of blood drip from a small sharp slit in the child's forehead.
They found themselves again on the lawn. Lily was still on the floor bent over nothing. Sirius took her in his arms almost hastily and she took his shoulder for her violent tears. Immaterial as it was, nothing could be found so terrifying to her.
"There, there." Artemis walked around them, "That doesn't have to happen, sweet Lily." He took a lock of her hair in his fingers. Lily hushed hopefully, and yet the catch was lingering between them, unspoken, "Take me and my hand and you will live a long and fruitful life… I have foreseen it," he coaxed slimily, a wretched smile stretched on his pockmarked face.
"You bastard," Sirius hissed.
Artemis' expression dropped. And Sirius released Lily, catching Artemis by the collar and slamming him against the tree, "There's not a curse in this world next to torturous enough to punish the pain you've caused!"
"Sirius, no!" Lily stood wiping her face. Artemis grinned as though he'd just been named bridegroom, but Sirius didn't release him.
"Artemis, you foul serpent. I'll die in honor. I'd rather have worms eat my flesh than have you slither near me the rest of my life."
Artemis broke from Sirius, knocking him to the ground. He hissed at her and disappeared in a puff of grey smoke. "You will be damned Lily! Damned!" echoed around them for a moment.
Sirius had risen from the grass. And Lily's bloodshot eyes gazed into his. Almost parallel pain mirrored. If anything hers cut more deeply. He didn't feel bad that James was the name floating in his mind now because he knew it was in hers as well. What would she do now… she would die… would she tell the Order?
"Lily…" Sirius' whisper wavered.
"Sirius," her voice shook with a different cord. She knew what she had to do, "I need you not to remember this." She was sure he'd do all he could to stop it, ever defiant Sirius. But she couldn't let him. She loved Sirius dearly as he loved her and James. He would certainly die to save them and that… poor little boy… was it Harry? "Harry," Lily's lips mouthed the name, Voldemort's bane. Lily's mind went racing as the realization of what relevance that aspect of her future contained. "We all live for our purposes..."
"Purposes! Lily! He was lying! This isn't you talking!" Everything inside Sirius was screaming protest.
"And what if he was not!" her voice had taken on an unnatural firmness, "What if that is the only way to defeat You-Know-Who? Through that… through my little boy… through me…"
"What?" he didn't understand.
She wasn't sure herself… But she barely heard as Sirius barreled on.
"…Lily, he had to be lying," Sirius quavered and he lost control of himself, "And if he wasn't there's no way in hell that I'm letting you die! Tell the Order, tell Dumbledore!"
"And what? So we can continue to live on false hopes that there is some other way?"
He took Lily by the arms and looked directly in her eyes. "Now listen to me. He's given us information that we can use to our advantage."
"Sirius, we don't even know what day to expect it! It's impossible to know for sure. It's the only way!"
"How do you know that?"
"I just…" she felt it. Something, but really she didn't know.
He turned away angrily, "Why can't I know?"
"Because if you know you will try to save us and You-Know-Who won't die that night… He may even be able kill Harry. I need to die for my child."
"You're mad! That child will be miserable without you."
"Not if you take care of him." This wasn't very reassuring.
"Lily, I don't want you and James to die." He turned away in denial and hatred. A bottomless growl poured from his throat, "And I won't let you die by the likes of HIM! CURSE YOU ARTEMIS! YOU WRETCH! YOU BELONG IN HELL-"
"Sirius!" She pulled him to her, holding his head over her shoulder. At first he didn't surrender to her, he pulled away like an incoherent stray. But as he felt her weeping he drew her in. He held her for a long while, and wept with her. His brow creased in his hate, fear, sadness, love. Curse Voldemort—Curse Artemis!
Lily broke away looking into his eyes with pain enough to shatter him. Slowly she pulled out her wand and looked into his anti eyed face. "I'm sorry," she wept. The memory spell was quick and barely lit in his eyes. She watched as animation returned to his blank face and wiped the tears from her hers, forced her most convincing smile and said, "Sirius, James and I are going to get married."
Sirius' eyes were filled with tears and he couldn't understand why but it must have been that his best friend and the woman he loved were going to live happily ever after.
The End
Accolades
I do not take full credit for this. My friends who, with me, engaged in this role play, I as Sirius (hence why it is mostly in Sirius' point of view), were extremely talented and full of spunk, must've known what they were doing before they entered that chat room. At least Artemis did. I kept the names they role played with in here in hopes that I might find them again. You may be on my Neofriends list but there are so many I may not be able to find you but I continue with my search. Lily, you were gallant in every sense of the word, you made the romance and the thoughts invoked in us who participated all worth the time spent writing it (Especially when Rowling divulged that there was something about Lily that we would all be surprised about in book six or seven… Good Call). Artemis(/alternate Lily, James, and Harry), my respect and thanks for most of the breakthrough ideas in this story that made it as beautiful as it was. Rhoda, I'm sorry that I cut you short because you had a large part in this story and the powers your character used to influence Artemis in this role play made it able to end as well as it did, but you were Lily's fight between taking life and allowing death. As Lily's friend I wasn't sure whose side you were on but you gave us controversy that I could not put into words literally, however wonderful I could not remember them. I'm sorry. Yes, Sirius' crush on Jenna was cut for length and the fact that it just seemed so less important but perhaps you can remember this better if you know that. Please drop a line if you run into this, any of you. I'd be glad to hear from you again. I hope you like it… and I've dedicated to you.
As you knew me,
AnimagusBlack