Before Amelia knew it, Friday rolled around. She realizes how eager she is to start the quidditch season as she walks down to the changing rooms next to the quidditch pitch.

She removes her shirt and glares at the Dark Mark that seems to smirk back. She places her fingertips over it and makes a motion to rub it off.

A vision appears before her, she sees her brother bowing before Lord Voldemort and kissing the man's hand. Do not fail me, Lucius. His voice is demanding, deadly and not open to negotiation. Voldemort turns his attention in her general direction, Loyalty above all else. You will not disappoint me.

The blonde haired girl feels as if she is slammed back into her body. She looks around the changing room, relieved that none of her teammates have arrived yet. The mark burns painfully, but subsides by the time she reaches the pitch.

"Alright, tryouts. We have positions for a beater and a chaser." Amos says.

"That's it?" a second years whose name Amelia didn't know spoke.

"That's it. The rest of the positions are filled and each member is preforming at the level I need them to be at."

Amelia tunes out as she turns to Jeffery Bones. "Ready for a Beater to train?" she asks softly.

"We will be the dream team." Jeffery replies his voice matching her own.

"Any potentials?"

"That Fleet bloke looks like he can hit it." Jeffery nods his head towards a stocky boy who is built like a tank. He has broad shoulders and big arms, a square jaw and a mop of dirty blond hair."

Amelia's eyes widen slightly. "What year is Fleet again? Has he gotten bigger?"

"Aye. A fourth year, mentioned to me that he was going to the gym every day to get ready for the tryouts."

"Looks like a beater"

"Alright Bones, run through some drills with him. I'll be watching, so you'd better not mess up of I might have to replace two Beater spots instead of one." Amos barks.

"Looks like Amos is getting a bit of an ego." Rolanda mutters to Amelia.

"I heard that, Hooch." Amos snaps.

As Bones predicted, Herbert Fleet turns out to be a hell of a good beater. "Merlin's beard." she hears Amos mutter as Fleet takes the head off of one of the training targets.

"Looks like you got yourself a beater." Rolanda says with a smile.

Amos nods dumbly.

"Hooch, you're in charge of the Chasers." he immediately breaks out of his obvious fantasy of Bones killing a Slytherin.

Amelia pats Rolanda's arm sympathetically, she hears her teammate mumble something about why Suber isn't being forced to take to the sky instead.

"You did that on purpose." Amelia mutters as she moves to stand next to Amo, Suber on the Team Captain's other side.

"You bet your ass I did." Amos answers.

The three remain silent. Watching, listening and occasionally wincing. Every few minutes Rolanda screams at a team hopeful "Off my pitch!" the hopeful lands dejectedly.

A half an hour later, a windswept Rolanda lands, a third year named Maxine O'Flaherty shortly after. "You're new Chaser."

Amos shares glances with Suber and Amelia. The other two nod in agreement- O'Flaherty has great aim and can throw the quaffle at least half way across the narrow part of the pitch. She isn't as fast, but you don't need to be fast to have good aim and a strong arm.

"Welcome to the team" Amo says holding out his hand.

As the Hufflepuff team trudges up the hill towards the castle, Amelia catches the four marauders out of the corner of her eye. She pauses and looks at the three of them curiously; they all feel her eyes on her and turn like deer in headlights. She puts a finger to her lips and Sirius Black gives her a wolfish grin and a wink before the four troublemakers vanish.


It's Sunday night and a procrastinating Malfoy finds herself in the library attempting to both start and complete her homework from McGonagall. Transfiguration is her worst subject with charms coming in a close second. She is glaring at the book on the table before her, trying to make heads or tails of the assignment when Lily Evans plops down beside her.

"Transfiguration?" Lily asks with a smile.

"How'd you know?"

"It was either that or Charms, but you tend to give your Charms book dirty looks as opposed to the blatant death glare that you give your Transfiguration book." the redhead teases.

"I just can't figure this out. Why the hell would you want to change Cauldron Cakes to Cabbages?" Amelia rants.

Lily laughs. "It's just the example."

"Then why can't we do it the other way around. McGonagall is just being mean. I'd certainly try a lot harder if I could change the bloody cabbage into a cauldron cake."

Lily laughs. "You waited until the last minute didn't you. Want help?"

"Please."

Amelia smiles as she watches Lily unpack her own textbook and notes from her bag. Witches and wizards like Lily Evans are at the top of the list for Voldemort and his followers to target. Despite how talented and intelligent she really is, she is of lesser blood and for that must be eliminated. Amelia can't help but let her smile falter slightly.

A giggle from behind causes Amelia and Lily to turn. Mary Macdonald is playfully pulling Sirius's arm in the direction of the restricted section. Black isn't putting up much of a fight as the two disappear in the shadows of the library.

"That was fast." Lily mutters.

"What?"

"Usually Sirius waits a couple of weeks before choosing his latest prospect. But he and Macdonald did have a snog right before the end of term."

Amelia hums in response, too busy trying to make heads or tails of Lily's notes.

"Good Godric Lily. House Elves have better hand writing."

"Ha. Ha."

"So do I need a Cauldron cake?" Amelia teases as she narrows her eyes at Lily's notes trying to figure out if it's the word cat, hat, rat, or that.

"No" Lily sighs

"What about for motivational and comforting purposes?"

Lily smiles patiently and begins to explain the process to Amelia.

An hour later, Amelia has a basic understanding of the process and a strange craving for a cauldron cake.

"I don't know if I can do this." Amelia moans holding her head in her hands.

"Oh Lily." a voice singsongs.

"Shit." Lily mutters.

"Look at the time, looks like I should be leaving." Amelia smirks as she moves to stand.

Lily grabs her wrist roughly. "Don't you dare"

James Potter sashays to the table that the two girls are occupying. "Well if it isn't the two prettiest girls in the school. Hello Evans. Hello Malfoy."

Lily rolls her eyes.

Amelia can't help but smile at the look of pure and utter devotion on James's face. She'd always hoped to meet someone and have someone look at her the way that James does Lily. She mentally waves those thoughts away, no one in the right mind would want her now that she's been branded. That or a loveless mi

"Lily, I really need to get back to the dorm." Amelia says as she rips her arm from her friend's grasp and begins to pack her shoulder bag.

"Amelia, you're leaving? Well in that case, I will keep Lily company." James smiles as he plops down next to Lily.

If looks could kill, Amelia would be a pile of ashes. "Have a good night!" she calls as she quickly exits the library.


Two of the three Black sisters immediately fall into step with her. Amelia feels her heart sink when she realizes that Andromeda is no longer with them

"Amelia, we were hoping to run into you." Bellatrix says as she loops her arm through Amelia's own.

"How has your first week gone?" Narcissa asks linking her arm through Amelia's other.

"So far so good. Of course McGonagall assigned a Transfiguration assignment for the weekend and I can't make heads or tails of it."

Bellatrix and Narcissa exchange sympathetic glances over Amelia's head, the two girls are well aware of Amelia's struggles with the subject. Ironically, it is a tense truce between Lily Evans and the two Black sisters- get Amelia to pass her NEWTs so that she could go onto the next course.

"Are you playing quidditch again this year?" Narcissa asks attempting to change the subject.

Amelia smiles more than happy to change topics. "Absolutely. Rosier, LeStrange, and Avery still on the team?"

Bellatrix gives Amelia her trademark cat in the canary cage smile. "May the best house win."

"Any news from Andromeda?" Amelia asks as the three girls head in the general direction of the dorms.

There is a pregnant silence.

"Our sister is dead to us." Narcissa says softly.

Amelia pauses her arms falling from the two sister's grasps. "I'm sorry, what?"

"She has tainted the Black family name by marrying that half-blood Tonks. She is lucky that was only disowned." Bellatrix spat.

"But she is your sister." Amelia says incredulously .

"My sister is Bellatrix. I have no other sister." Narcissa replies slowly and softly as if repeating the mantra enough will make the statement true.

"She made her choice, Amelia. The Dark Lord has made his teachings very clear." Bellatrix explains as the three continue walking down the hallways.

The silence between the three pureblood girls makes Amelia tense and weary. To her relief they arrive at the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room. "This is my stop." she exhales hoping she manages to hide the look of relief from her face. She bids the sisters a quick good night before she enters the common room.

Taking a seat on one of the plush black couches across from the fire, Amelia allows her thoughts to wander.

After being sorted into Hufflepuff, the Malfoy family was humiliated, something both her mother and father and relayed. She'd seen the look of disgust, disappointment, and even a little anger that he didn't try to hide when the sorting hat announced her house. Her parents had done everything short of send her a howler, although she'd heard that Sirius Black did indeed receive a howler. At least Hufflepuff isn't as bad as Gryffindor.

Ted Tonks was the first to notice how lost she had become. He immediately took on the role of older brother for Amelia, even pushing her to try out for the quidditch team. He was her best friend and the older brother that Lucius immediately quit being.

Then he met Andromeda Black.

Amelia had known Andromeda for years and had to admit that she too adored the young woman. Despite being born and raised in the Noble House of Black, Dromeda inherited the clever and determined side of the Slytherin characteristics. She also has a certain disregard for the rules. That much was obvious when she fell in love with Ted Tonks.

Amelia did her best to help the two continue their forbidden relationship-passing notes, setting up secrets meetings, distracting the rest of the Sacred Twenty-eight. The two were in love. Soulmates.

Three days after the two graduated from Hogwarts, they eloped. Amelia sat with them on the train ride home and gave them her wedding present. Two bracelets made of rose quartz, tiger eye, and fluorite, charming the bracelet so that they would never break "For love, creativity, and protection." she had explained as she clasped them on each of their separate wrists. Andromeda had openly cried while Tonks wrapped his arms around her, his own body shaking with unshed tears. All three of them knew that this was goodbye.

And when they find out that she is a Death Eater, goodbye forever.

She twirls the ring around her finger, feeling the initials carved initials J.M.D caress her nervous fingertips.