Disclaimer: I own what you do not recognize, JKR has the rest.
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, everyone. For those of you who are disliking James… well, this is for pretty much everyone - you're going to hate James in this chapter. Utterly and completely. Sadly, that's just the way the story goes. I really hope you enjoy the rest of it, though!
Of Cowards and HeroesChapter 6
November 1972, EnglandBlue eyes scanned the newspaper, the lips just below them curving up into a pleased smile. So Juliana Malfoy was dead…what, she thought, a lovely piece of news. Her features triumphant, she continued to read, only to be interrupted by a rather loud snort from the man seated across from her.
"Were you in need of something, Michael?" she asked sharply, her eyes flashing.
He smirked, obviously amused as he leaned backing his chair, looking intently at her. Gabriella Black – no, it was Gabriella Zabini, now, was an extremely beautiful woman; even more so when she was annoyed, and he knew just how to rile her.
"Gabriella, dear," he began. "I take it that you are partaking of the Prophet's main article this morning?"
She raised an eyebrow at his manner, but continued her reading nonetheless. "But of course, Michael." She smiled, forcing down her irritation. "It would seem that there is good news today."
He scowled slightly, and Gabriella suddenly felt a lot better. "Not good enough, Gabriella. Now, if Stephen Potter was dead too, yes, then life would be good."
Gabriella almost grinned, then. Goodness knows that she'd love to see Potter dead too; both of them had lost too many family because of Potter and – this she was certain of – Juliana's betrayal of her true family. Still, though, now that Juliana was –
"Presumed dead, my dear, presumed."
Gabriella's head snapped up, her eyes resting on Michael, her face quitedeliberatelyemotionless. In the silence that followed, a baby began to cry; and both man and woman turned to the door, where a flustered maid appeared.
"Why," Gabriella spoke first, sounding immensely annoyed. "Why, pray tell, are you not upstairs with Adéla?"
"Beggin' your pardon, miss," the now frightened girl bobbed a shaky curtsey. "But I think that she wants you, miss."
Not daring to look over at her husband of a few months, she slowly got up from the table and made her way upstairs. No doubt he would only have said something about 'a woman's duties,' and she would have only hated him more for it, hated him and the little girl she was now going to. And always, even though she hated that the baby had ruined her life, forced her to marry Zabini, her heart melted as she picked up the child, holding her close.
'Presumed dead? For her sake, she'd better well be.' She thought, until her attention was diverted by a gurgle from Adéla, and then she smiled at her, lightly tracing her soft baby skin. 'No, you, my daughter…you would never betray us like Juliana did. You're a Zabini, and a Black, darling, and we know who we are.'
Adéla simply stared up at her, eyes so similar to her mother's, before breaking out into a toothless grin and reaching up for a long, dangling lock of her mother's dark brown hair.
"Don't let go, sweetheart," Gabriella whispered. "Don't ever let go."
England, 1981
"Don't be ridiculous, Remus!" the young woman laughed, practically dancing around him in excitement. "See what I mean? You got the interview!"
Remus rolled his eyes at the vivacious girl, but grinned at her and pulled her close to him. "You just couldn't resist saying 'I told you so', could you?"
She looked up at him with dancing eyes, a small blush creeping across her face before she grinned cheekily at him. "Well, I was right!" Standing on tiptoes, she reached up and kissed him lightly. "You shouldn't doubt yourself, Remus."
She kissed him again then, wrapping her arms tightly around him, letting him gather her small frame up in his arms and pull her close to his tall one. Suddenly, though, she gasped and pulled away, eliciting a groan from Remus, who tried to hold her close.
"Cass," he murmured. "Cassandra…"
"Cassandra?"
Remus sprang away from her then; Cassandra, who had already been pulling apart from him, stumbled backwards, finding her footing just before she went tumbling to the ground. Remus, however, completely horror struck, didn't even notice – he was far too busy staring at Peter Pettigrew, who was eyeing him with equal shock.
He had only just managed to stammer a weak "P – p – peter," when Cassandra abruptly seized control of the situation, years of upbringing coming to her aid as she swiftly recovered from her surprise.
"Remus, this was practically just begging to happen," she said calmly, going to his side and rubbing his back. Turning to Peter, she smiled brilliantly.
"It's Peter Pettigrew, right?"
The blond man, the eyes bulging from his head implying a distant aquatic ancestor, could do naught but nod, still struck dumb by the information his brain had just received.
"Cassandra," Remus began, seeing that she was moving towards Peter, but she paid him no heed.
"Cassandra Rosier," she said firmly, holding out her hand to Peter, who squeaked before stepping away from her.
"Er, look, Remus…I'll just…I'll be back later." He stammered, and disapparated, distinctly muttering the name 'Rosier' as he left.
Remus closed his eyes, sighing heavily, and stifled an internal wry laugh; he heard Cassandra's intake of air and found he could predict exactly what she was about to say.
"Don't say I didn't try, Remus," she snapped, before stalking out of the room.
Remus found himself having to hold his tongue, instead following her into the dingy hallway of the small apartment.
"Will you be back later, Cass?" he asked, and she rolled her eyes before leaning forward and kissing his cheek.
"Yes. But you'd better have cleared up all this nonsense with Peter."
She shook at finger at him as she disapparated, the telltale 'crack!' of apparation slightly louder than usual. Remus winced; while she wasn't necessarily angry, he knew that he was still in trouble.
This fact truly dawned on him when Peter returned, knocking timidly at the door instead of apparating as he'd done earlier.
"Pete," Remus said heavily, but the smaller mad had already rounded on him.
"Cassandra Rosier?" he hissed. "Are you out of our mind, Moony?"
Remus held his hands up in the air, trying to placate his friend, but Peter would have none of it.
"Rosier, Remus…Rosier! Do you know what that family is – what it stands for?"
"SHE'S NOT LIKE THEM!"
Both men stopped dead in their tracks; Remus stunned at his own outburst, Peter's mouth open in an 'o' of surprise. Remus was the first to recover, flushing red.
"I'm sorry, Pete," he earnestly apologized. "Really, I am, but it's just that…Cass, well, Cass is great, Pete. And she and I…we've been together for years, Pete; I would've said something, I really would have, but…"
"She's a Rosier?" Peter interrupted sarcastically, and Remus's face darkened momentarily before it became pleading again.
"Please, Pete, you've got to understand, you've got to…what would James and Sirius say? Don't you see? How could I tell you all – especially – now with her…brother."
Peter shook his head and turned away from him. "Rosier!" he grumbled. "She's Evan Rosier's sister! And she's seeing you!"
"Pete, look, I know, mate, I know, but you've got to keep this quiet, alright? James and Sirius will have a fit, you know they will! They won't be quiet about it either; and then someone will find out, someone who shouldn't, and where does that leave Cass? Tell me, Pete, where does that leave her? It's not safe; she won't be safe if a Deatheater finds out!"
Peter backed slowly away from the now enraged Remus, carefully ensuring a safety perimeter around himself. Remus, breathing heavily, moved closer, his fists bunched at his sides.
"Alright."
Remus stopped, the air he'd just breathed in suddenly rushing out as Peter spoke. "What?" he asked, more than slightly confused at the sudden turn of events
"I said alright, Moony."
"Alright?" Remus repeated weakly, and Peter smiled kindly at him.
"I get it, Moony. I'll keep it quiet. I understand. James and Sirius would lose it completely, but…you could've…you can trust me, Remus! Sure, I was a little stunned; but I wish you had told me."
Remus stared at the floor, unable to look Peter in the eye with the guilt that was flooding in, completely overwhelming him.
"And Cassandra," Peter continued. "I'm not an expert on women, Remus, but don't you think that she hates being…well, hidden?"
"Pete," Remus croaked out, his voice hoarse. "Pete, I'm sorry, I am…stop, please…I just want to keep her safe."
"Don't worry, Moony," Peter said, his look earnest. "I'll take care of it."
Privet Drive, 1996
"Take care of what?" Harry asked, staring at a rather confused looking Remus.
"What do you mean, Harry?"
Harry sighed, annoyed at what he perceived to be the older man's evasion of the question. "You were just telling me what happened when Peter walked in on you and Cassandra Rosier…Peter would take care of what?"
"Well, Harry…" Remus began, and paused, his brow furrowed. "I…don't know." He admitted, looking strangely at Harry. "I never asked him to do anything except stay quiet…I…"
Harry tilted his head to one side, looking quizzically at him. "No? And you've never thought about it? I mean, even now that you know it was Pettigrew who ratted everyone out?"
Remus looked pained as he spoke, twisting his hands together. "I didn't want to think about it, Harry. I don't want to think about it."
Godric's Hollow, 1981
"Pete," Lily said gently. "You have to tell us; it's important."
Peter stared at the floor. "He…no…I promised him, I can't."
Sirius, who was leaning casually against the fireplace, snorted derisively. "Promised? Ooh, so he promised, I mean, really, Wormtail – how can you fall for such shi-"
"What Sirius is trying to say, Pete," James interrupted. "is that we can't afford not to be honest with each other right now."
Peter was quiet for a very long time, and Lily looked up at James, shaking her head sadly. After some time, thought, slowly, haltingly, Peter began to talk, the words flowing freely after the first few stumbled out.
"Remus…he's…he's been seeing …this girl…"
Lily grinned widely, exhaling in relief. "See?" she told the two dark-haired men. "You were both just being ridiculous. He's got a new girlfriend, and he's shy about it."
"No," Peter interrupted, before she could say any more. "No, she's not a new girlfriend. They've been together since seventh year."
Silence reigned in the small living room, until Sirius, who'd suddenly moved from the fireplace to the chair where Peter was seated, spoke up.
"For what, four, five bloody years, then? And he hasn't said a thing!"
"Sirius," Lily tried to calm him, "Sirius, I'm sure he has his reasons…"
"Who is it, Pete," James said, his voice low. "Who is she?"
Peter stared up at them, his eyes wide. "Cas…Cassandra…Rosier."
Sirius simply stared at Peter, shaking his head whilst his mouth moved wordlessly. James began to agitatedly pace the room, muttering furiously under his breath.
"Pete," Lily said quietly. "Are you sure? Cassandra Rosier, Evan Rosier's sister?"
"I walked in on them," Peter said dully. "And she introduced herself."
Lily breathed deeply. "I think you should go home and get some rest, alright?"
Peter nodded gratefully, disapparating after a quick goodbye to the others. Sirius left soon after, saying that he couldn't think just then, that he couldn't believe that Remus would do such a thing.
Lily sighed as she watched James, still pacing around the small room. "James...look, this doesn't have to mean anything."
He whirled around, stopping in front of her. "Doesn't have to mean anything?" he repeated. "Doesn't have to mean anything? Sometimes, Lily, sometimes, you are just so…naïve."
Lily's eyes flashed angrily. "Naïve?" she asked him. "Naïve? Just because someone has less than desirable family doesn't mean that they're steeped in their family's ways!"
"He's probably up to his neck in the dark arts by now," James muttered. "I should have known it'd be him."
"James Potter, will you listen to me!" Lily demanded. "I've met Cassandra, back in school, and she's a nice girl!"
"Who knows, maybe she was a nice girl back then," James sneered. "That's probably how she reeled Remus in, being a nice girl, and then she turned him, turned him away from us, and now look! He's betrayed us, Lily, don't you see? It's him, Lily, he's the traitor."
"No!" Lily insisted. "No, James, he can't be. He can't. How could Remus, our Remus, be the traitor? Why would he ever betray us? No, Cassandra didn't 'turn' him, James. Why can't she be different from her family? Look at Sirius!"
"DON'T YOU DARE COMPARE THAT WOMAN TO SIRIUS!"
Lily stepped back from James, her eyes wide, slightly fearful but determined as she looked up at him.
"Well, it's true, James…"
James closed the space between them in seconds, grabbing Lily's arm and yanking her roughly to him. "You take that back, Evans," he hissed at her. "Take that back."
"James," Lily said, her voice clear but slightly shaky. "James, let go of me."
"What? Let go? Not until you take that back, Lily – Sirius is different, and you know it. How dare you say that about him, how dare you!"
"James," Lily cried. "James, you're hurting me!"
He sneered at her then, his eyes so angry that Lily was afraid. Suddenly Harry, upstairs in his room, cried out, and James let go of her, surprised. Lily darted away from him quickly, giving him one last, scared look before fleeing the room. Later on, James would go after her, apologizing profusely, but it wasn't the same, anymore. Both of them knew it, even when after a month of cold silence, they ended their feud, that they'd gone past the point of no return, and there was nothing they could do.
A/N: Okay, hands up who hates James? What's that – everyone? I thought so. Anyway, thanks so much to those who reviewed – you all continue to absolutely make my day every time I see a review in my inbox.
Draco vs Romance: hmm, let me see...well, it'll be, er, a while in coming, to say the least – roughly about 4 months time from present time in the story. And talk about the final blow…ah well, you'll definitely just have to wait and see for that! (Cookies? Mmm, hungry)
tweeny-weeny: I'm going to do my best with updating, but I'm in the middle of exams so it's down to once a week now. And that's an interesting question, you know – would she still love him? Now that you've raised that, I may work it in – it's an interesting point. And yes, James feels like absolute hell that he up and left Harry – trust me, that'll come out later. I don't think the same thing happened to James that it did to Harry, cause then James would have been the one to defeat Voldemort. More about that to come!
Cherrysinger: Sorry! I didn't mean to confuse you! I thought that chapter helped (shrugs and blushes sheepishly). Adéla knows about Lily because James has told her. She also knows that James has a son, but ...well, that'll be in a chapter coming soon. I feel sorry for me too! I've worked out how the story is going to go, and I've fixed the plot holes in the outline, but because it doesn't follow a normal chronological scheme, I have to make sure I don't forget something important. And I really wish that I could download that song…but I'm a poor uni student and I don't have a sound card! I usually listen to Coldplay's The Scientist when I write this…it just seems to fit so well. But if I find that song, I'll give it a go! (whoo, long response! You're rubbing off on me! P)
XoXMelJayXoX: Hopefully this chapter took care of your question! But for the other one…no, he doesn't know that James is alive. In fact, at present, no one but Juliana and Adéla do. Soon, however, that might change!
Fiona: glad you liked it – hope you like this one!
Midnight Lilly: Oh, does he ever. Harry forgive him? (snort) I sure wouldn't. But we don't know the whole story yet (no pun intended) so things may change!
So, everyone, please review, even if it's only to tell me that James should die a very slow and painful death! I love hearing what you think – Laren.