Hey guys. Read on. More Tuesday, probably (I swear on Dennis's grave--he's my dead goldfish that my neighbor boiled to death, but that's another story!--that I will have more posts on Tuesday/Wednesday).
Posted: Nov. 5th, 2004
Recap: Sirius leaned forward, all four legs of the chair back on the floor. "Oh, I'm sure we can find something fun to do."
Tonight wasn't as chilly as before, when Sirius had been out here with Remus looking for Linda. But there was still a certain bite in the air of Hogsmeade, and Linda slid an arm through the crook of Sirius's elbow, keeping close for warmth.
"Do you mind coming back to the village?" Sirius asked cautiously, wondering if this was such a good idea after all. Linda might remember how she felt lost, cold, and alone, and maybe even being watched. "I mean, it was just the other night..."
"It's fine," she replied, smiling to reassure him, tugging on his arm. "I'm not alone this time."
Sirius grinned at her, brushing his fingers back through his chocolate brown hair.
"But whatever fun you wanted to conjure up, did it have to be outside, in 20 degree weather?" Linda asked, her breath becoming whiter and whiter in the air in front of her. "It's freezing, and—"
"Well, then let's get to the Three Broomsticks, and you can get warmed up—" Sirius stopped walking and cut off his sentence. He looked up at a few gathered houses and seemed like he was watching something. "Blimey, is it Friday night already?" he asked, not really expecting an answer back, smiling more to himself than anyone, because of what seemed like an inside joke only he understood.
But Linda got curious. "What's so bloody funny, Sirius?"
"Come here," he pulled her forward to see what he saw. They were fairly close to the wizards' cottages, but far enough not to really be seen. They stood a few yards away, behind an oak tree, with hardly any leaves left.
Sirius's tone became a softer hush, which fit his voice perfectly. He pointed to two of the cottages in particular. "See the one on the right? Look through the window." Linda didn't get it, she didn't get it at all, and there was something sort of forbidden about looking into other people's windows, but she couldn't help it; Sirius made you face the dare. "There's an older wizard, in the bedroom, standing in front of the mirror. Do you see him?"
Linda saw him. He had a short dark beard with a bit of white, and was wearing dark purple robes. He looked about forty, or forty-five. He was...primping? Like he was getting ready to meet someone.
Linda nodded to answer Sirius's question. She nodded to him, "Is he going out on a date or something?"
Sirius smirked again, that half-smirk Linda recognized as his I-have-a-secret look. His inside joke. "Right. He wishes. Well, I suppose in a way he is." Sirius seemed to get comfortable, leaning against the tree, blowing on his hands to warm them up, and then held Linda's to keep hers warm. "See, every now and then, usually on Friday night for some reason, this old wizard gets fixed up, combs his hair back," when Sirius mentioned this, Linda noticed the wizard in his cottage actually did come his hair back, right on cue. "Then he'll straighten out his robes, and step out of his house."
And so the man did. Straighten his robes, gave one last look in the mirror, and stepped out of his cottage. It was like Sirius was telling the story first, and the wizard was the character who acted out the narrator's words.
Sirius continued confidently. "After he locks the door, like he's doing now, he's going to look around the front garden for a flower, like a daisy or something, but then he remembers it's winter." Linda watched, and when the man didn't find a flower, he took out his wand, and conjured up a crimson red rose, such a splash of color against the dark grey night and white shadowed snow.
Linda turned to Sirius, a quizzical expression on her face. "Who are the flowers for?"
"Keep watching," he answered. When Linda turned back, she saw the older wizard on the porch that neighbored his own cottage. He lifted his fist to knock on the door, and it seemed as if he did, but Linda strained her eyes and noticed that his hand never actually touched the door. "He wants to knock, but he's afraid, I suppose. I never understood why." Sirius pointed again, and Linda tried to follow. Where was this all leading? "The home he is skulking in front of belongs to a prettyish older witch. He goes to see her, but never enters." Linda saw the older man fidget momentarily, and then leave, and rush back to the safety of his own house. Sirius laughed bitterly to himself. "He fancies her, you see."
"So what's the problem?" Linda asked, not fully understanding what just happened. He brought her out here to watch a guy not ask out his neighbor witch?
"He's agraid of getting hurt," Sirius answered simply.
"Maybe he will." He probably will, she wanted to ammend, but didn't. Linda felt on some level she could relate.
Sirius looked at her and then turned away. "Or not. See, look into the witch's cottage. Inside the bedroom window. Do you see her?"
Linda did, and she saw a woman in not overly pretty robes, but a bit too nice to be wearing just to lounge out at home. And her hair looked combed through neatly, it seemed like she was waiting for someone. The man next door?
"See. She fancies him, too," Sirius told her. Linda could tell out of the corner of her eye that Sirius was looking at her. She didn't look back, though. Neither said anything, and Linda wasn't sure if she felt happy for the wizard because his feelings were not unrequited, or incredibly sad because if things went on like this, the lonely wizard and witch were destined to stay just that. Lonely.
Then somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard…howling.
Sirius suddenly (as if on cue) laughed playfully, breaking the silence. "Come on," he told her, grabbing her hand. "On to the pub, where it's nice and warm. You look absolutely frigid, my dear."
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Linda was downing her second butterbeer. It was sweet on her tongue, and warm down throat, and felt like a warm fire compared to the glacial cold outside.
"Try not to get too tipsy, Linley," Sirius joked, astonished at the rapidity with which she was drinking the butterbeers. "If you have enough of those, it really does give you a sort of buzz."
"Then keep 'em coming," Linda joked back. She hadn't felt this laid back and playful in a long time. So she smiled at Sirius, but was sure he couldn't really understand why.
"You should feel flattered, you know," he told her, sipping his own drink, rubbing his hands together. "I never even told James or Remus about that old witch and wizard."
Maybe she should've been surprised at this, but she really wasn't. It wasn't something guys shared. They might think the great Sirius Black was daft or something. "How did you come across them, anyway?"
He explained that it was just by chance, that sometimes on his frequent walks around the village, he'd stumble upon an old man who wanted to woo this old woman, but failing miserably. He must have gotten very interested, since he seemed to keep loose tabs on them.
"Well, I suppose now we share a secret," Linda mused. Sirius just shook his head, smiling inspite of himself.
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The library was unbearably quiet. She couldn't take it. It felt fake to be here... studying. Studying? How could she study when she wanted nothing more than to throw a stack of books down, and if she had could, light them on fire. She wanted to scream. She wanted to see her parents. She wanted to slap her parents. She missed James. She wanted her best friend back.
She wanted it all to stop.
"Lily," Thaniel spoke tentively. "Are you alright?"
"Why do you ask?" Her voice was tight, but she couldn't help it.
"Because your face is turning red, like you're mad," Thaniel replied bluntly, pretending to keep his eyes on the notes in front of him, like this was the most casual of conversations. If Lily didn't know any better, it seemed like he was afraid of pissing her off even more. "You know, Lily, you don't have to help me study for Charms anymore tonight, if you don't want to. I mean, it is kind of getting a bit late."
Lily shook her head, feeling a bit guilty. "No," she shook her head, her fingers rubbing her temples, like she had a migraine. "It's ok. I can keep helping you. There's nothing I can do about what's bothering me anyway," she admitted.
He closed the thick text in front of him, and offered his full attention. "You want to talk about it?"
Um...perhaps not. Lily wasn't sure this was the kind of topic you spoke about with acquaintances. It hit pretty deep, she just talk about it, casually? "I dunno, Thaniel. Thank you, it's sweet to offer, but..."
"Come on," he smiled at her dazzlingly, and leaned back easily. "It'll make you feel better, I think. You can trust me, you know, Evans."
Lily was grateful, if not for anything else, for his words. "I know, Thaniel. But it's a pretty long story." Her parents' letters, the problems at home, the divorce, how she felt about it all, her family being torn apart now, the problems it raised... James. She wasn't ready to talk about him.
"Well, I don't have any plans tonight," he replied, crossing his arms loosely over the closed book, and leaning forward. "So it doesn't look like I'm going anywhere."
And she didn't know how. She didn't know when, or even why, but she started to just...talk. Apparently she needed to vent. Lily hadn't even noticed how much she had needed to...she thought she was strong enough to keep it in. Be reserved. But here she was, telling this guy—someone she only sorta knew—everything.
Almost She couldn't tell him everything. She couldn't tell him—or anyone—about James.
Holler ya'all. Aurora here, to give some shout-outs.
Sam—Feeny. Fee-nay if you yell it. LoL. That's me. Didn't you ever watch Boy Meets World? TELL me you have!
Keeks—hey hey there. Wassup? Oh, you love Sirius? Hm, I never woulda guessed. LooL. And what do you mean by asking if you can have a cookie after breakfast? You can have a cookie any time. Even before you swim. That's right. BEFORE. ::Writes "How to be a Rebel" book, due out this January::
Vick—LoooooL, all good questions that will be answered in due time. So stick around. And Ooh, look, FRESHLY baked chocolate chip cookies. (And I'm not even just kidding, I really do have fresh baked c.c cookies by Nestle with me). Try one. Or seven.
Kelly—You watch the O.C too? Am I the only one on planet Earth who has never seen an ep? I really feel out of the loop. And YES, I admit, I was inspired by the Topanga story line, but there's a lot more going on in that camp, that's coming up. ::Kisses:: Mwa, love ya.
Kirstin—That's your email? Duly noted. Thanks, now it's in my "L2B crew" special contact list thinger. LoL. Congrats on getting accepted to your number one choice! But don't be so happy to go—college is great and all, but you always miss your highschool years, no matter how much you say you won't. Just remember to take loads of pictures! Those are memories, baby.
Laurel—Laurel, Laurel, Laurel. What kind of story would this be if all the couples were together, hunky-dorey? Well, maybe one day they will be, but until then, I want to screw with their heads a bit. LoL. But I'll take those bribes! ::Snatches cookies:: Love ya lots.
Arabian nights---thanks a lot for reading, I hope to see you around more.
Baywalk234—thank you, too, for reading! You guys are so great. Thanks for the review, doll.
Megz—LooooL! "No it does not have to be James, it could be...well not James!" LooL. That's how we'd run our lives: give up everything else, but not that fine man of James. Woot, woot. LoL, love ya lots sweetie.
Missers—Well, nice long review! Love it. LoL. That was the funniest review. You were like...reading as you were reviewing. LoL. Hilarious. And you SWORE! Missy...I'm shocked. Actually, I'm not, I'm tickled pink. ::Slaps five:: We curse like pirates, and we're not ashamed! And don't worry, I want to write a lot of drama, just to keep you entertained. LoL. Call me. You know the number.
Amanda—Whoo! Aren't you a tad feisty? ::Nods:: Right on, sistah. Represent. Congrats on the new glasses—I love my glasses, too. Today I thought I lost them and was nearly at the verge of breaking down, but then I found them before the end. THANK GOD. I couldn't see for like...a full 20 minutes. But you don't care, LoL, moving on. Anywho! What's an ipod radio transmitter?
April—Nutella? What do you mean, you ran out—restock, honey! I keep Starburst. And sometimes Hershey's chocolate. Total comfort food. And that whole "Dr. Evil Meha" thing...Austin Powers reference, right? I was just joking about that movie today. When he's like "One billion...million...fafillion...shabidoobe...::gibberish::" LoooL. Love it.
Rrunner22—Thank you, darlin'! That's so sweet of you and I hope you see you around loads more. What's your name, and (only if you don't mind) your email/sn? I like to chat with everyone. Toodles.
Love you ALL lots, and keep on reviewing, I love to hear from you. Honestly, it makes my day.