Chapter 13 The true strength

Lucy sat on a log watching Ginny from a far. The younger girl was definitely shaken by her ordeal, though she was dealing better than many would have. Harry would have been proud. She herself was not doing so well. Seeing the spirit of her father's sixteen year old self had given her the shakes. It seemed that even as a kid he had been dark and evil. What made a wizard so evil? "How is she doing?" Sirius asked sitting down next to her. Lucy sighed.
"I'm afraid to take my eyes off her. I don't want to lose her again." Sirius nodded.
"Understandable," Sirius said. They sat in silence for a few moments before Sirius picked up her hand and ran his thumb over her engagement ring. "Oliver has good taste in jewelry. And girlfriends." Lucy smiled weakly.
"I wonder what he'll think about this new found talent I've got"
"Parseltongue?" Sirius asked her.
"You must be disappointed," Lucy said. Sirius was surprised.
"Why would I be disappointed in you. Because you can talk to snakes"
"Because it seems Lily wasn't the only parent I inherited something from. That maybe if I'd attended Hogwarts I would have been in Slytherin rather than Ravenclaw." Sirius sighed again.
"I think there are some things you and I need to straighten out. Lucy I never expected you to be Lily. I never meant to give you the impression that you had to live up to some standard you think I've set"
"It's not that I hate being told I'm like my mother. I know how much she was loved, and how wise and powerful she was. Being like her is a like a way of knowing her. But when I can't even get a simple potion to work I feel like I'm letting her down and you, and Harry. Now all of a sudden I find out that I have something in common with my father and it scares me"
"Just because you have his blood in your veins does not mean you will turn out like he did"
"No one knows this," she said. "But after I discovered who my father was, I searched through every book in the library on who Voldemort was. There are a lot of similarities between us. Muggle orphanage, gift for potions, need for independence, and now the ability to talk to snakes. How can I be sure"
"Because there is one gift that you have that is completely beyond Voldemort's understanding"
"Oh, and what's that?" Lucy said rolling her eyes.
"Love," he said. "Lucy it was not your mother's skill with a wand or her ability to make potions that made her a great witch. It was her heart. That is what I see when I look at you. Her heart"
"I don't understand"
"When you were on the roof with your father, and he offered you power if you gave him Harry, why did you make the choice that you did"
"I could never have let my father hurt Harry," Lucy said.
"Why not?" Sirius asked. "What did you owe Harry? You could have been the most powerful witch the world has ever known"
"Harry is my brother. I couldn't let him be killed"
"But you had no problem letting your father be killed"
"I didn't want him killed," Lucy said her voice shaking, "I gave him a chance to live"
"That is how I know that you are nothing like your father," Sirius said. "Your father cared nothing for others, only himself. He craved power, and didn't care who he had to hurt to get it. You see Lucy it is not merely our abilities that define who we are. It is our choices. You chose to defy your father and save your brother, nearly at the cost of your own life. That is the exact same choice your mother would have made. And then when Harry's life was put in danger again you did not hesitate to put your own life on the line to save him. You have a good heart Lucy. I saw it the moment I met you and I see it whenever you and Harry tease each other, or when Oliver comes over, or when you teach Hermione different potions, or when Ginny comes over to talk about girly things I don't want to know about." Lucy grinnned. "It's not your talent that I admire and respect Lucy, and while I do see a lot of Lily in you I love you for who you are not who she was. You could have no powers at all and I would still love you." Lucy leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her knees.
"I haven't been very fair to you," Lucy said. "I think my own insecurities have made me a little sensitive. I think I owe you a second chance"
"Once we find Harry, and get out of this dreadful place, we'll both give each other a second chance." Lucy smiled.
"I'd like that." Ginny came running up to them at that point.
"Come on," she said. "We've got to get moving." They stood up and started back on their journey. Though this quest was a long way from finished, Sirius had a feeling he'd accomplished a great task. He'd begun to heal the rift between himself and the young woman he loved as a daughter.