Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns the setting and everything that you see in the Harry Potter books. Thanks to Rowling for a brilliant world to write of. However, I do own a few original characters and ideas. If anything in here seems related to another story/fanfic, sorry! It's really not.
--
---Chapter One: What Could Have Been---
--
"Look over here, Faye."
I did as the cameraman ordered and turned my face towards the blinding light to where I knew the camera was situated.
"Smile a bit more. Cute, remember? You breathe cute, you see cute, you hear cute… you are cute."
What a dork. Nevertheless, I forced my aching cheeks into an even wider smile, hoping that it didn't look as fake as I felt.
"Great. Keep that smile…."
My cheeks were screaming at me to stop the torture.
"Just three more! Hold still. That's it!"
Oh, goodie. Just three more pictures to take before I could let my body melt into the pile of boneless junk it was begging to become.
"And… we're done! Nice work today, Faye."
I relaxed my cheeks, immensely relieve that today's shoot was finally over. Thank the bloody lord. I was aching all over, and so tired that I could hardly keep my eyes open. My limbs were heavy with fatigue, and the pats of encouragement and voices of satisfaction kept sliding in and out of focus, like a badly tuned radio. And… oh, my cheeks. I swear I was going to get wrinkles by 20 if I kept on smiling that much. I needed some rest….
But no…. I couldn't go rest yet. I still had to go and hustle on to my next job. Slowly, wearily, I packed up my things, at the same time loosening my hair in the do it had been up in. God, these styling hair people had some strong spells if they could get the thick bush I call my hair up in a do for several hours. My hair was now a bit past my shoulders after I'd had to hack most of it off when a stupid kid, Derek, spat gum in it.
"You looked great today, Faye," a light cheery voice at my shoulder said. Normally, I would have whipped around in alarm, but now my limbs were too dead to manage anything but a slight twitch.
"If you say so, Maggie," I sighed with the air of someone putting up with an annoying pet. Well, essentially I was. I was very reluctant to turn around to face the stunningly gorgeous and buoyant face of Maggie Hennessey. I was not in the mood to look at more smiles. In fact, I was ready to kill if I could only wipe her smile off her face. It was always there, always pasted over her perfect features. It was so frustrating to have a happy person around when my life was so far from happy. Especially when the said happy person was as brainless as an empty peanut shell.
Heaving another great sigh, I stuffed the rest of my things into my dingy bag before slinging onto my shoulders. Giving a half-hearted wave to a bouncing Maggie, I trudged out of the bright studio filled flashing cameras and brilliant lights.
Maybe I was going to go blind before I was 20 as well. I couldn't bloody focus on anything after those lights!
I rubbed my eyes and slipped out the door into the crowded Diagon Alley, fighting my way past busybodies who seemed to have not a care in the world.
How I hated them.
I didn't care that I was being bitter and jealous and hateful by wishing unhappiness on others just because I was so miserable. I was entitled to have my own thoughts and feelings.
Once I reached my job at Florean Fortesque's Ice Cream Parlor, I dumped my things in the little locker room provided for employees and changed into the serving uniform—the unbearably short skirt and jaunty cap.
I walked out and took my place at the front counter, relieving my coworker—what was her name again?—from her shift.
The minutes trickled away slowly. Before even half an hour had gone by, my legs were feeling sore already. The tick-tocking of the clock on the counter was driving me insane. It was as bad as the long line of people waiting to place their orders. I worked mechanically—smile, ask for their order, write it down, and move on. It was like a dream.
So when someone addressed me about something not related to ice cream, I didn't respond at first.
"That's a really short skirt you have on. Prewitt."
My head jerked up when I heard my name. The person I saw was one who I hadn't thought about at all in the weeks following the Incident.
Sirius Black stared back at me, a mocking smile tugging on the corner of his mouth. He looked just the same as ever: handsome dark eyes, casually falling black hair, and the most perfect face I had ever seen on any male specimen. I opened my mouth to give a retort—but I had nothing. My mind blanked out on me as it took a nice little trip down memory lane, leaving me to gape like a fish.
The last time I had thought about him and my failed self-improvement program…
The last time I saw his face…
The last time I heard his voice…
"Aw… you're so happy to see me that you can't find the words to express your joy," he said, a sardonic edge to his voice.
And I just gaped at him some more, making the customers in the back starting complaining. This jerked my mind back to the present.
"Can I take your order?" I sighed, choosing to ignore his comment.
"Yes, I think you can." He grinned at me.
Nitwit.
"May I take your order?" I grated out.
"Yes, you may. Hm… I think I'd like a double scoop fizzing strawberry sundae."
Just as I was about to tap the menu box to alert the ice cream maker's of the new order, Sirius spoke up.
"Actually, on second thought… I think I'd like a blueberry swirl pop."
"Are you sure?" I asked tiredly.
"Yes… wait, no! The popping cookie dough sundae is obviously the one for me." Sirius smiled at me cheekily while I resisted the urge to slap him. The urge wasn't that hard to resist, since my arm didn't feel up to it.
"Anything else?" I couldn't even summon a frown for Sirius! What was wrong with the world!
"No. But I'll let you know once I decide." His grin hadn't gone, and he leaned in over the counter towards me, in what he probably supposed was a sexy pose. "And I want you to serve it to me."
"Whatever, Black," I sighed. "Now can you please move so that I can help the other customers?"
He stared at me, and I could tell that he was surprised from the way his eyebrow twitched. Surprised at what, I wondered. But the job didn't offer the luxury of thinking time, and soon after Sirius left the counter, my mind went back to computer mode. I didn't want to think about what Sirius was trying to do… annoying me like this. I needed this job, so I couldn't afford to get riled up at him.
"Faye!" I heard my manager call my name.
"What is it, Florean?" I turned around wearily to look at him.
"That guy over there." He jerked his head, and my eyes followed the direction, only to land on… Sirius Black. "He wants you to serve him."
"Why?" I asked exasperatedly. "My job's at the counter."
"I'll put Sophie up here," he assured me. Damn him. "Now scat. Besides, he looks like a nice boy. Perhaps he's just very taken with you. Go have some fun. Best do it before you get too old and lose those looks." Florean winked at me. I appreciated his understanding of younger people… but in a situation like this it was just creepy.
So I had no choice but to get his order and give it to him.
Walking up to one Sirius Black, who was still sitting ice cream-less at a table, I practically dropped his ice cream down in front of him. "What's with this, Black?" I asked.
He grinned up at me innocently. "Nothing. I'm just enjoying some ice cream and a beautiful waitress." I gave him a Look, since I felt too tired to really do any physical activity. "I'm not bothering you at all."
Rubbing my temples to try to ease the growing headache there, I sighed deeply. I looked up and prepared to beg him to lay off. "Listen, Black. I don't know why you're here, trying to pretend like we're mates or whatever, and frankly, I don't care. But what I do care about is my job. I need this money. So will you please, please, please just… leave me alone?"
After I was done with my plea, I stuck a spoon into his ice cream, avoiding his eyes all the while. "Enjoy, and please come back soon," I said in a fake, jovial voice, quite aware that Florean could be watching my conduct. Then I left to pick up more orders.
The next time I looked around for Sirius, he was gone.
ll----ll
It was only a few days since I had seen Sirius, but I had managed to push all thoughts of him out of my mind.
"Faye?" a soft voice asked. I barely heard it over the general bustle and chatter of the ice cream parlor.
I turned around wearily and searched the room for anyone whom I might recognize. Surprisingly, my gaze landed on Lily Evans. She looked the same as ever, a friendly smile on her pale, freckled face, and her back ramrod straight with her hands folded neatly on the table. I felt, as I was standing there in my uniform with a bowl of ice cream in my hands, a tad bit embarrassed.
"You work here?" Lily asked. Even though there was a smile on her face, I felt… stupid. And unbearably exposed.
"Yeah." I shifted uncomfortably.
"Does this mean that I get free ice cream?" She had obviously noticed my tension, and her light tone seemed a bit forced.
I grinned in spite of myself. "Do I look like I'm made out of money? And I don't like you that much." We laughed together, and the tension was broken.
"Well, I shouldn't keep you here," Lily said regretfully. "You should get back to your job."
"Actually," I said, glancing at the clock on the wall, "my shift's almost over. Wait for me?" I didn't know why I asked her to wait. It just… spilled out of me. I didn't want to go back to my empty room in the Leaky Cauldron and just… sit there. It left too much time for thought.
Lily didn't look too surprised. "Sure."
I hurried off to finish up my work and then changed back into my normal clothes. In a few minutes, I had gathered up my things and taken a seat at Lily's table.
"When did you start working here?" Lily asked conversationally.
I shiftily cast my gaze around the room. "Few weeks back."
"Faye, are you alright?" Subtlety had never been one of Lily's strong points.
"No. I mean… no, I don't want this conversation to turn into another discussion of my problems," I said. I could remember all those previous talks… with Grace, with Andrew… it had all been about me and my bloody problems. It wasn't going to stay that way. "So… you're here to get your school supplies?"
Lily just shot me a quizzical look that I defiantly met before she submitted. Probably because she knew I wouldn't be able to stand a verbal lashing from her. "Arabella and Alice had to leave earlier though; said something about a ball."
I wrinkled my nose in disgust. When I was just about to make a reply, Lily suddenly shifted and glared. For a frightening moment, I thought she was angry with me, but then I realized—as a guy came up and offered himself a seat—that she was glaring at James Potter. I bit back a groan; I didn't want more drama.
"Lily," James said.
"Since when did you call me that?" she snapped.
"Since now." He winked cheekily.
"We were having a nice conversation before you came strutting in." Lily's eyes were already narrowed maliciously. Ohoho… I really didn't want to get involved in this. I was content enough to let Lily handle it.
"Oi, James, where are you?" an all-too-familiar voice called.
Ah. I should have known that James bloody Potter would never be anywhere without his trusty sidekick, Sirius sodding Black.
"Right over here!" he called. The crowd seemed to part too easily for Sirius as he came striding up with two huge ice cream cones.
"Oh, yes, just leave me to lug your ice cream around whilst you come flirt with two beautiful ladies. Thanks a lot." Sirius shoved one ice cream cone at James before sweeping a gallant bow. "Pleasant surprise seeing you two here."
I glared at him, and he seemed to falter. But then he took a seat next to James, and in the next five minutes, both boys were verbally sparring with Lily. Bored already, I figured I'd at least stay until Lily left. Do the polite thing. Ugh.
"Are you quite done yet?" Lily growled. "I didn't come here to be flagged down by you, Potter." She grabbed her bag of new supplies and turned an apologetic face to me. "I'm sorry, Faye. I just realized that my mom will blow if I'm not back soon. Don't want to give my sister another incentive to gloat. See you at school!"
"Yeah," I said glumly, gathering my things as well. "Well, with you gone, there's no good reason for me to stay." I noticed James follow Lily out of the corner of my eye, not even finishing his ice cream.
My mind was already on the problem of when I would be able to visit Melanie at St. Mungo's as I prepared to leave. But then… someone grabbed my arm. Guess who. Sirius grabbed my bag off my shoulder and fell in step next to me. And since my shoulder was aching anyway, I let him do it.
"What do you want?" I sighed tiredly.
He shrugged. "What do you want?"
"What makes you think I want something?"
"You look like you're searching," he said simply.
"Well then… yes, I do want something. Money. And lot's of it. Can you give it to me?" I snapped.
He glanced at me, frowning. "I never thought you were one to want wealth."
"I don't! I just need it to—" I stopped myself and took a deep breath. "Whatever. I don't need to explain myself to you. It's not like you have the money anyway."
"True," he agreed. And we walked on in silence, until he broke it.
"Faye," he said abruptly. "I kind of want to apologize. For the last time we talked. Everything I said… I didn't mean it." Oddly, he sounded truly contrite. My mind rewound to the last time we had spoken—all the way back at the end of sixth year.
--Flashback--
"You're a bloody hypocrite!" Black yelled in my face. I had to keep myself from flinching. "You tell ME not to come prancing in to be a hero, but that's exactly what you do for that undeserving git right there!" He jabbed a finger at Severus. "You think that everything you bloody do is right—you probably view the whole world as your plateful of dinner! What the f is wrong with you!
"And don't you dare say that my friends don't care about me. They care about me more than your pathetic excuse of a friend will ever do for you," he hissed, so quietly that I was sure only I could hear him. My legs were shaking. "Does Thompson bloody care enough about your sodding self that she's out here right now? Take a look around! She's not here."
He was right. She wasn't here….
"And do you know why?" Black whispered. I stood frozen to the spot, unable to shake my head yes or no. "Because you don't give a damn about her. One day, you're going to look back on your pathetic life and realize that's it's all your fault that you're alone."
Everything seemed to stop. All that was going on in the turmoil of my mind was that Black was wrong… wrong, wrong, wrong! I did care about Grace! I did!
But not enough, a voice whispered cruelly in the back of my mind. Do you bother to note that she might want to talk to you? Do you bother to notice that she's been dwelling over Leah? She freaking gave up Leah for your sake… and what is your thanks? To avoid talking to her because YOU are afraid of a confrontation. Black is right, you are a self-centered, narrow-minded bitch.
I found myself gulping back shameful tears. He was right, that damn voice was right…! I was disgusting. I was low. I was selfish. I was a disgusting human being… just like Henry and Diana and Fiona had always told me.
Disgusting.
Shameful.
Selfish.
Fraud.
Unwanted.
Rubbish.
Filth.
The world was spinning around me. The only thing I registered was Black's satisfied voice, with anger still laced in with his words, "You know what? Almost all the time, you leave me looking at your back, with your worthless words in my ears, eating me from inside out. This time I think I'll return the favor. Have a spiffing day, Prewitt."
--End Flashback--
I looked up at him miserably. "Don't apologize. You were right about me. Every last word."
Sirius actually flinched. "No, I wasn't," he insisted.
That brought a bitter laugh out of my throat. "How would you know? All you know of me is that. Hate. Rubbish. And… there's really nothing more."
Sirius stopped walking and regarded me with a strange look on his face. "That's not true."
Impatient to get back to my room and away from his company, I shook my head and made to grab my bag back. But he refused to let it go. "Yes, it is!" I snapped. "Everything you said is true, which goes to show how fucked up the world really is… LET GO OF MY BLOODY BAG, YOU SCOUNDREL!"
At this, he finally did let go, but unfortunately, I had still been pulling hard, and once he let go I went tumbling down to meet the cobblestones of the street. People passing by pointed and stared. I glared at them. "What's the matter, never seen a stalker on a mission before?" I indicated Sirius.
I got my bum off the ground and brushed myself off, regaining my composure rapidly; thank Merlin for that. And lo and behold… he was still standing there, just looking at me. His next question caught me completely off guard.
"Is your sister Melanie all right? I haven't seen her in ages," he said. In a pleasant tone, like we were friends.
I closed my eyes and sought calmness. Why was he asking after Melanie now? He'd only met her once, months ago during Christmas…. "She is… she's…" I fumbled for a word, "She is as well as can be expected, given her circumstances." There. Not a lie. Why did I find it hard to lie to Sirius?
He had his head cocked to the side, eyes studying me intensely.
"Are you okay?" he asked softly.
In a flash, I knew. I knew he knew. Sirius knew what happened. Maybe not the details, but he knew where I had lived… he could read newspapers. Even though I knew it hadn't mentioned any names. But he could add two and two together. I didn't want him or anyone to know; I didn't like seeing that pitying, sympathetic gaze…. This is was he had apologized for what he had said two months ago; it wasn't a sincere apology at all. He was just feeling sorry for me.
"I'm fine," I said, starting to walk back to the Leaky Cauldron. "Now leave me alone."
"Where do you live?" he asked, ignoring my dismissal of him.
What was he trying to do? What in the world did he want from me? What the hell did he want! I struggled to keep calm. When I spoke, my voice didn't even tremble. "Why do you want to know?"
"Because I want to help," he said. From his tone, I knew that he knew that I knew that he knew about my predicament.
"I don't need any help," I retorted. To my relief, I encountered the brick wall separating Diagon Alley from the Leaky Cauldron. "I remember telling you to leave me alone."
"Don't worry; I know you don't mean it." His tone was light, and my quick glance at him told me his eyes were trained elsewhere.
"Yes, I do!" I said, entering the Leaky Cauldron and making a break for the stairs. "Just leave me alone! We're not even friends, so don't go pretending we are. Don't think that my situation changes anything between us."
"I just want to help!" he called after me. I didn't even stop climbing the stairs.
"And I've already told you, I don't need any help," I muttered under my breath. Slamming open the door to my room, I tossed my bag carelessly onto the ground before collapsing on my bed and staring up at the ceiling, as I seemed to be doing so often these days.
I mentally sifted through my schedule. I only had free time on Sunday… so that's when I would go visit Melanie… this thought led me to reassess my situation.
As much as I wanted to deny it, I had lied to Sirius. Of course I needed help. I needed help in the form of money. I just didn't want help from Sirius. Because of my damnable pride. Cursing softly, I wondered what sort of help Sirius had to offer. If I met him again and he offered again, I would swallow my accursed pride and listen. Because at the moment, I needed all the bloody help I could scrounge together.
I sighed and closed my eyes, feeling fatigue drag at me. Perhaps tomorrow would be a better day, a day that didn't leave me feeling as if I were crap.
ll----ll
I sighed as I stared at my calendar. Tomorrow was Sunday. The day Fiona, Henry, and Diana would be leaving. There was a restless feeling inside me. Should I go see them off?
I dismissed the thought as soon as it entered my mind.
But still… something nagged at me. It was relentless. Perhaps I wanted to find out more about my mom. I didn't know what I wanted anymore. As usual, there was an empty feeling inside me… a feeling that just wouldn't go away. Sirius was right… I was searching. For something. I just didn't know what.
Sighing painfully, I walked out of my room and down the stairs, hoping that listening to other people would ward off this horrible feeling inside me.
But alas, alack, this didn't happen.
I wound up meeting the person I least expected. Especially on this night. Her hair shone in the dim light, and her eyes were wide with anxiety.
"Fiona." I inclined my head.
"Faye," she said back, biting her lip and looking down. "I knew I'd find you here."
"Why are you here?" I asked, feeling emotionless. Thinking back to our last meeting, Fiona's actions were starting to confuse me. Was she sincere, or was she… just trying to appease a need inside her, like almost all the people in the world….
"It's just… I know you're not coming to see us off tomorrow, and I wanted to…" She seemed to struggle with her words.
"There's nothing to say between us," I said flatly.
"Yes, there is!" she insisted. "There are so many things for me to say… I don't know where to start."
"Then don't." I shrugged and cast my gaze up at the ceiling.
"I have to."
"To soothe your own guilt," I laughed bitterly. "Everybody wants to do that."
"Look, I know what I've always done to you wasn't easy for you to go through. But you have to understand." She had a pleading expression on her face.
"Why are you explaining things now? This would have done a lot more good just a month or two ago." I was telling her the truth. In light of Tracy and David's deaths, everything else but Melanie seemed to dim and fade. And getting angry over trivial things was just a waste of energy, since in the long run… none of it mattered.
"Faye… please, I just want to say I'm sorry."
"'Sorry.' That's what everyone says," I said. "But it doesn't change anything."
"Look…"
"Just shut up. I don't want to hear any of this anymore."
"You never want to hear anything." Fiona said. "You never try to understand. You always think you're in the right! Don't you ever think that there are so many reasons why people do the things they do? Situations are what make a person! And you played a part in making me who I am today!"
I stared at her. How did I make her the person she is now?
"You were so cold. From the very beginning, you decided that I was an enemy, just because Diana liked me better." She shook her head and hunched her shoulders.
"So you're saying I'm the reason why you made my life hell." Like anyone would buy that. She had a choice… everyone has a choice. A choice to either hurt or heal… and she chose to hurt.
"Admit it, Faye. Your attitude didn't make anything easier for me." Fiona's face was angry now.
The phrase suddenly transported me back in time. I had heard her say that before, the exact same words. For a moment, cold winter air touched my cheek, and I could feel the anger in me as Fiona, her face looking lovely even when twisted with anger, told me exactly why I had always been a bitch to her.
"I can't help but be a bitch whenever I see you watching Henry beat the crap out of me," I answered evenly. It was amazing how cold I felt. "You have no idea what I had to go through. You don't know, so stop making it seem like I should have conducted my attitude better."
"I'm sorry…. I just want closure on this," she said. Her voice was unsteady.
"We can't always get what we want," I drawled.
"I know that as well as you do."
"What have you ever wanted that you couldn't have? You've always been handed everything on a silver platter," I said bitterly.
"Look past your prejudices for just a moment! That's all I'm asking. I did not have everything handed to me! True… Diana did indulge me… but that doesn't mean everything was easy for me! I didn't ever—I couldn't—I couldn't—" She shook her head helplessly as words failed her.
"Couldn't what? Find it in you to stop being a bitch?" I goaded.
"No, that's you," she snapped. Then she took a deep breath, visibly trying to calm down. "I didn't come here to argue with you."
"You should have known that it was what you would end up doing."
She ignored my statement. "Do you remember when we were young?"—I didn't even deign to bother cooking up a response for that— "Diana would always pile me with presents… things I didn't need. And she refused to give you anything. That wasn't my fault, but you grouped me with Diana as an enemy…. I just—I don't know. You hated me before you or I fully understood—"
"So you're going to blame me for all the things you've—"
"No! I don't want to sound like I think it's your fault," she cut in quickly.
"Really?" I asked coolly.
"I-I don't know. But by the time I started feeling empathy for you, you were having none of me…. And then it just seemed easier to ignore you. And later… to…" Fiona stopped here, licking her lips nervously.
"To what?" I asked, even though I already knew. But I wanted to hear her say it.
"When we got to school… I got jealous of you."
I laughed harshly. "Jealous? Oh, please."
"I was! You were always so strong, no matter what Henry, Diana, and I did and said. You always did whatever you wanted, and you didn't have any expectations to live up to but your own. Beautiful, smart, brave, strong…in spite of everything. Witty… you could shoot down whoever made you angry. You were… so unbelievably strong. What I wanted, you always had… so I made myself feel better by making you feel worse," Fiona said, her voice quivering.
"But did I have parents?" I shot back. "You'll never understand what it means to be me."
"And you don't know what it's like to be me!"
Silence stretched between us for a long time after Fiona said that. I contemplated her words and tried to see what she was trying to tell me.
It was Fiona who broke the suffocating silence. "Look… I liked Tracy and David, too. But I suppose it's different for you…. I can tell how much this changed you. And I didn't come here to argue, or shout, or make you feel horrible in any way. I guess you're right… I did come here to try to lay my guilt to rest. I know that everything that happened between us will never, ever be forgotten. I know you hate me, and sometimes I really hate you, too. But then… I remember the times when I used to hear you cry at night…."—I twitched at this— "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I was part of the reason why you cried, and why you are who you are now. I was a bitch, and there's no excuse for that. I just want closure on this part of my life, as I'm sure you do." Now Fiona looked me straight in the eye, and I could see honesty in the set of her face.
I looked up at the dingy ceiling before replying. "I think I've had enough closure conversations, with myself, with Henry, and now with you. I think it's enough for you when I say I know you're sincere about this. But what you already know is I can't ever forgive any of you. You're going to have to live with that. Wonderful people with a heart of gold would be able to, but I'm not one of those people."
Fiona opened her mouth to say something, but I rushed on, determined to get all my jumbled thoughts about this straightened out. "What's done is done. The more you think about it, the sadder you'll get. Just leave it alone, and you'll get your closure."
Another silence stretched out, and again it was Fiona who broke it. "I guess you're right." She hesitated and looked away before speaking again. "You're the exact kind of person Sirius Black would fall for, you know that? I should have known. Maybe I knew all along that I never had a chance."
Before I could respond to the jealous tone in her voice, she had already headed for the exit. "This is goodbye."
"For good," I added. She nodded at me, and then opened the door. With a swish of her blonde hair, she was gone.
I went back up to my room calmly, already pushing her conversation into the back of my mind. It wouldn't do for me to start dwelling on everything right now… or else I knew I'd start crying over everything that could have been.
ll----ll
There were no more surprise meetings with my so-called family. Thank God. Now they were totally and completely out of my life. But seeing as it was only a few weeks until the start of the new school year, I kept on seeing several familiar faces around. I ran into Gideon and Fabian Prewett one day, and skillfully avoided Severus Snape on another day. A much more pleasant surprise waited me one day when I stepped out of my room and made my way down the stairs.
"Remus? What are you doing here?" I gaped openly. He was just sitting there, drinking some butterbeer and reading the newspaper. I hadn't expected to see him here. Reflecting upon that, I wondered why. Remus was a wizard and perfectly entitled to come here… but he just didn't seem like the type to go out much.
He looked up and smiled at me, and I noted that although his eyes were tired, they were also crinkled up in a hidden laugh. "Hey, Faye! I didn't know you were here!"
"Oh… well, I sort of… live here," I muttered, running a hand through my hair.
"Really?" Remus asked, inspecting me closely. "That's… new."
"Yeah," I sighed, slumping into a seat next to him. "So what are you doing here?"
"Oh, just reading some stuff, relaxing," he said, waving his hand. We conversed for a while on little, everyday affairs while I reveled in the fact that this calm, down-to-earth person could be such good friends with Sirius Black and James Potter, the two most mischievous boys known in Hogwarts. During a brief lull in our conversation, Remus suddenly leaned forward and regarded me with a hopeful eye, as if he'd just thought of something. "Listen, you need a better place to stay that this"—he waved a hand around, indicating the Leaky Cauldron— "residence?"
Startled, I sat back in my chair. "Well… that depends."
"See, I have a friend who has a pretty nice flat near here, and he's a right old slob. Can't keep anything neat to save his life. So he's been looking for a… uh… maid. Nothing big, just cleaning up and making three square meals a day. And there's free board involved. Just for a couple of weeks, until he gets settled in his new place." Remus said all this quickly and eagerly.
Free board! The idea was like heaven. God knows how much money I spent everyday living in the Leaky Cauldron, money that could be used for other things, like the savings for an apartment of my own, and St. Mungo's bills…. It would save me tons! If this person could do that for me… well then I'd put up with him even if he were someone like Sirius. Or even worse, Sirius himself!
"When can I see the house?" I asked excitedly. Remus looked heartily relieved, for some reason, and he made a great show of looking at his watch.
"Well… I'm free right now, so I can take you there. Unless you have something to do," he said.
I quickly ran over my schedule in my mind. My modeling shoot wasn't for another three hours, and Florean had let all his staff off for yet another random vacation day (not that I was complaining). And I was going to visit Melanie in the late evening…. But I had been planning to actually get my school supplies. Ah, the school supplies can wait, I told myself. "No, I'm free. Let's go!"
Remus was smiling hard. "Alright. Have you learned Apparation yet?"
I sighed regretfully. "No time."
"Well, I'll just Apparate us both, don't worry about it," he said brusquely, suddenly very business-like. "Give me your hand."
I did as I was told and experienced a moment of ear-popping darkness before I stumbled out of the eerie place. Stumbling over my feet, I grabbed onto Remus's shoulder before I could fall flat on my face.
"Sorry," I gasped. "Never experienced that before."
"It's quite all right," he assured me.
I grimaced at him before looking around to catalogue my surroundings. I was in front of a small but comfortable-looking flat with neat hedges and large windows. It didn't look too bad—it was certainly not as dingy as the Leaky Cauldron appeared to be.
"The idea is to actually go see the interior of the house," Remus said, flicking my shoulder.
"Thanks for pointing that out, Mr. Obvious," I laughed.
We entered the house—Remus even had the key with him—and I was pleased with what I saw. It was small, yes, but comfortable. And the mess scattered across the rooms only gave it an appealing, lived-in look. Remus led me to the room where I would supposedly be staying in.
"This is great," I breathed, looking around me. The room wasn't horribly cramped at all. In fact, it would have held all my possessions and have adequate space for drawers and a bed. "When can I meet the owner?"
Remus, for some reason, squirmed uncomfortably. "Um… soon. Listen, he trusts me, and he said that when I find someone suitable, they can move in without his say-so."
I looked at him and smiled. If I moved in today, then it would be one less day to pay for at the Leaky Cauldron. "So when can we do this?"
I ignored the little voice in my head telling me that I was rushing into things. Hello! Free rent!
--
A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! So… guess who the owner is! Guess, guess, guess!
Anyway… on to the thanks….
Radiant: Yes, I'm sorry, it might happen. But thanks for being understanding about it! Thanks for all your reviews! Fairy of Obsession: Thank you so much for your review of Hidden Flames as well. I liked reading your opinions about my characters. I know the whole realistically unromantic thing with Faye and Sirius can really get to people… but I'm glad you understand! Hehe, I'm glad you liked the sleep scene… I planned it out with my sister when she couldn't sleep because our mom took over her bed… xD Dreams of darkness. Bond4154: Yeah… everybody gets tired of the arguments… xD Thanks for your review! LMTran. MSE. Larien Galathil. Fires-of-Ember: Thank you. Her mother's death will play a larger role later. Melanie is going to stay in St. Mungo's. Bunny of Despair: I like your penname! XD Person: Had Faye died, her name would be in the newspaper. Here I'm hazarding an assumption: that newspapers would release names for witches and wizards but not muggles. Arano Honou. Rupertissexy. Kadasa-Mori. Marija. Midnight-fox-55: Did you like it? xD can'tburnme: Lol! Thanks for your concern! Haha. The Egyptian Sand Quill. AvidReader. Justxforxfun: I'll just let the suspense kill you for a little longer… haha! Snowflake Prongsette: Whoa… really? I'm really honored! The REAL cheese monkey. Down0with-love. Vanessa-Black and Zabini. Fall of the angels: Thank you. I'm glad you liked the twist with her mother… it has been planned for so long and is actually more important than you might think xD Flamestar. Xaien. tricia luksich - now AARDVARK: Lol! You'll be seeing that hate before long! (hopefully) Tina: Thank you! You really made me glad that I put in effort in this story! Thank you, thank you, thank you! After I read your review, I went on a major writing spree xD SwimmerGirl. Aztecgold882. madpoet08. Torri-Chiobie. Amber: yeah, I don't like that validation thingy xD. Chibi. Lainia26. No More Words: eh… A Fossil in the Mud is in yet another block. I don't know when it'll be updated. Sorry! Starsweepforme. Saxifrage: Yay! I love reading your reviews! Faye's in denial about her need for Sirius xD. Melanie is in St. Mungo's, since she does have magical relatives. As for your question about Fiona… and your opinion of Henry, for that matter… well, I wanted to let my writing actually express it. I wanted to show that so many other people have their own problems and sufferings, do you get where I'm going with this? I'm sorry I can't implement your idea… but I did have fun fantasizing about it xD I love the Sirius action figure! It's the best present yet xD And yes, I did draw the picture on my profile xD Selenes Song. Sam. RueNeko. Aha! You spotted that bit of foreshadowing! Faye's mother is another sign of… well, I can't say! Hehe. Me. Aubreianna. Charmed. HazelNutChocolate: I spent forever waiting in line for the HP book! I didn't actually like this one a lot, though. Goldfish682. Massie. 404. Randomisation. Vanatheeveryoung: Lol! Well, Sirius is back here… but he'll be more important later!
Ah… that took a long time xD Anyway, I just wanted to say that I MIGHT be taking a break from Firestorm. Sometimes I just get it, sometimes I don't… and a break might be just the thing to help me get it more xD Sorry!