Chapter Three Memories Askew

"James!" Remus yelped. "You're here! You should have owled!"
"What is it with people and showing up unannounced..." muttered Sirius to himself.
James stared at them darkly and paused before he answered, "I was in town and thought I'd come to visit my mum and Sirius; I didn't expect to see you here Moony, nor did I expect to overhear this conversation."
"What conversation Prongs?" Sirius said proudly.
James temper was rising inside of him; he moved his jet black hair away from his eyes, "Do not play stupid. Where did you see her?"
"Who?" insisted Sirius.
"You think she's dead..." James muttered out loud.
"Who?" he insisted yet again.
"God damn it, you know well who! Lily!" James yelled, his temper finally getting the best of him.
Sirius shook his head, "Let's not start this off like this, why don't we go get something to eat or something?"
James shook his head, "No, no I can't."
"People don't just walk back into your life like that," Sirius muttered.
"Well, I just did that. You didn't expect me home."
"Where's Marie?" Remus asked, attempting to change the subject.
James looked away and gave a nonchalant shrug, he sat back in a worn, grubby couch, and "I had to get out of there. It's strange, really."
"What is?" Remus replied back, shifting his weight.
"How a memory of one person can change things." James covered his face with his hand. "I've gone to three shrinks in the past three months. Things were going all right for me, I was-or I mean-I've been seeing this one girl for almost one and a half years, I practically forgot her until these past recent months. I've gotten dreams, flashbacks--it's horrible."
Sirius summoned tea and a new candle, light was running low.
"And then, I come here and there's still talk of her..." he stopped and looked up. "That has to be a sign that she's alive."
Sirius shook his head, "Coincidence."
"Don't be stubborn, have hope." James said to him, getting up. "I'll be back. I'm off to see my mother. Where is she?"
"Upstairs, second corridor-to your left." Sirius instructed, when James was out of earshot he then hissed over to Remus, "Mention that bloody Flower and I'll blow you off the ground so far that you'll be seeing a whole lot more of a full moon."

Flower stayed still on her less-than-cozy bed; she could feel the springs on her back. She felt embarrassed for herself for throwing the drink on that person. She needed that money, now she had to go find a new job.
Job hunting is a very risky business, Flower was a bit of a smooth talker so she usually got very handy jobs and she was very determined so she usually made a very good first impression.
She grabbed a quill and a piece of parchment and wrote:


Heather,
This really isn't going the way I planned it would, but don't expect me to go back any time soon. Do you mind coming to visit me for a short time?
-Flower



She tied the letter on her barn owl, recently adopted named Stag, and watched him sail his way across houses and trees.

She put on jeans and a nice black warm robe over; it had been snowing so she cast a spell over the robe to keep it nice and warm.
"How's job hunting?" questioned Frankie, as she stopped by to pick up her last pay check. She shot him a 'don't-even-ask' sort of look. "That bad, okay well I know somebody who can get you a job in the ministry."
"With no ministry job experience?" questioned Flower skeptically.
"Well, he's looking for a secretary." He added. "His name is Sirius Black, he has something to do with wizard sports and the daily prophet, I don't know. The bloke is sort of a mystery."
"He sounds familiar..." Flower thought, a vision of a large shaggy dog came to mind, so did the scent of peppermint.
"Well, you did pour a drink on his date and her friend." Frankie said laughing.
"That was him!" Flower felt her face blush. "I can't go to him for a job now! He'll mock me!"
"Everyone and their Mum already mock you, love." He teased.
"Shut up Frankie, you are so not helping."
"So are you going to take it?"
Flower shrugged, "Might as well, since I need a job and everything..."
"Do you need his address? He works at home most of the time ... weird right?"
"Why don't you talk to him and set up a meeting with him and tell me when it is?"
"Yah, I guess I could do that for you."
"Don't guess, just do."

James stood in front of the maple, honey brown, door. He stood watching it, as if it was going to move itself. He hadn't seen his mum in quite some time now and he was too afraid to face her. He remembered back when he was in Hogwarts, his mum was like a pinup model. She looked just as beautiful as a step-ford wife. She had jet-black hair, like James, in long curly ringlets by her neck with swayed bangs over her right eye; she had pale skin, flawless, with small cherry lips and dazzling blue eyes. His mum was special to him, they were very close.
He closed his eyes, he didn't want to remember her the way he was going to see her now, he wanted to remember the step-ford wife, not the sickly one.
He backed away from the door and headed back into what was his old room and locked the door. He knew his mum knew he was here; he just didn't seem to care.
Everything was just wrong. Nothing was like it was supposed to be. He was supposed to have already gotten over Lily, to be living happily ever-after
with Marie, and his best friends weren't supposed to be talking about Lily. Everything was just wrong.
James sighed as he flopped down on what once was his bed. Things just had to pop up again didn't they? The Fates just weren't content on him living his life as normally as possible; they had to make it constant misery for their own sick pleasure.
Maybe Marie was right, he was a little off his rocker.
He pulled a silver box out of his pocket and stared into it, the blue sapphires shone off it like little blue flashlights. It was the music box.
Years it has been since he last listened to the tune inside, Lily had the key to it around her neck...where ever she was. James swallowed, closing his eyes.

"Sirius is doing what?" James bellowed in outrage. Peter looked down and shrugged. Serves him right, James secretly thought. If he wasn't such a damn wanker, it wouldn't have to be so bad for him.
"I-I-I tried to stop him Prongs, but you know Padfoot... he won't listen to me," Peter swallowed, his chin bouncing as he spoke.
"Serves Severus' right, I mean that wanker is so damn nosy." James huffed and went back to his book, he heard Peter let a sigh of relief. He looked up and saw Lily staring at him, shaking her head. She knew.
Her green eyes were narrowed at him, she looked disgusted with him. He blushed and looked away.
He looked towards Peter, "Where is he?"



"Where is he Sirius?" Marie said to him in a tense voice. "He hasn't even owled!"
"He's been going through things right now, flashbacks..." Sirius sighed patiently.
"Oh dear Merlin!" panic running through her shrilly voice. "He's going to end up like his mother!"
Sirius narrowed his eyes at her and said slowly but thickly, "Don't refer to her like that." He treated James mother as if it was his mother.
Marie shook it off, "You need to get him help, take him some place... I was doing so well persuading him to search for help when he was with me... I can't bear to see him locked up."
"This is a phase, not a sickness; he went through it when we first moved to Paris after Hogwarts. He's fine. Just give him time." Sirius said in a mellow voice.
"Sure, but when you see him locked up--"
"Actually Marie, I came just to pick up his stuff. He decided to stay a few days longer then he thought he would need." Sirius snapped at her.
Her eyes blazed, "His stuff isn't going anywhere and neither is he. You better get him help soon because if I end up getting him help, mark my words, you won't be seeing James. Ever."
"If anything, James isn't the crazy one. You are." Sirius said in a slow harsh tone.
"What's making him behave this way is his past but if I can erase it then we can start a new life without any of you to shift it!" she screeched.
"You can't change the past, Marie, nor can you change James."
"Watch me."