The week after Halloween was passing slowly. The tensions in the Gryffindor common room were incredibly high for the 6th and 7th years, and for once it had nothing to do with James and Lily. James and Lily had been successfully avoiding each other (which many of the Gryffindors were grateful for), but the same could not be said for Tyler and Candice. Neither was talking the other, only glaring from across the common room. Tyler could not admit that he was jealous and overreacted and Candice was not prepared to forgive him; especially without an apology from Tyler, where he admitted what he did was wrong. Overall, it made for a chilly environment that put everyone on edge.
The 6th year Gryffindor girls had tried to help their friend, but it was proving to be quite difficult, especially with the amount of work they were being assigned. They were spending their free time listening to her rant and providing comfort food. By the time Wednesday rolled around the girls were dreading Transfiguration. They knew that they were going to get even more homework, as Professor McGonagall had warned them about the project they were going to have that Monday.
"She said she was randomly assigning partners," Alice whispered, worried, "Who do you think you'll get?"
"With my luck, it'll be Potter," Lily mumbled, hoping she was wrong.
"Probably," Gemma said, laughing at her friend's misfortune, "I'll probably get stuck with a Slytherin though…"
"Maybe I'll get Peter," Adaline said, wistfully.
"Maybe then he would ask you out!" Adrian giggled, wiggling her eyebrows at her sister.
Adaline blushed, but said nothing. They all knew that she was hoping that would be the case. No one knew why Peter was putting off asking her to be his girlfriend, but they knew their friend was getting impatient, even if she would never say anything.
"I for one, am hoping to get Connor Hunts," Adrian said, while turning to look at the dark haired Ravenclaw, "He's got the beauty and brains."
"You would get that lucky," Lily said laughing, while Adrian winked at her.
In the back of the room, the 6th year boys were having a similar conversation.
"Who wants to take bets on who we get as partners?" Remus said smirking.
"Person who guesses the most correct gets free drinks for the entire next Hogsmeade trip," Peter added smiling.
"Alright," Sirius said before adding, "Progs will be with Evans, Peter will get Adrian, Remus will get Connors and I will get Snape."
"Good guesses," James said, "However, you will be buying a round of butterbeers because I will be partnered with Evans, Remus will get Adaline, Peter will get Snape and you will Erica Sparks, hot but too crazy to sleep with."
"Now, you are both wrong," Peter said, "I will get paired with Adaline, Remus will get paired with Alice, James is going to get Snape and Sirius you will be partnered with Adrian."
"Hmmm," Remus said, looking pensive, "James is going to get Sparks, Sirius will get Lily, Peter will get Adaline and I will get Gemma."
The boys all shook on their bet, each sporting a confident grin.
All of the chatter stopped the minute Professor McGonagall entered the classroom. Everyone curious about who their partners would be. Friends were looking at each other with hopeful eyes and people were staring wistfully at their crushes. Everyone was hoping for a good partner and dreading the worst. Lily was looking straight at Professor McGonagall, refusing to look back to meet James' stare. Both certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that they would be stuck together.
"As you all know, today you are assigned your project. For the rest of term, you and your partner will work together to write a 2-foot essay. I expect the essays to be detailed and accurate. To be fair, you will be picking your research topic out of the bowl in the front of the room. There will be no switching of partners. Is that understood?"
"Yes," the class chorused back in unison, even the Slytherins were sitting up straight, hanging on to her every word.
"Very good. Miss Adaline Prince, you will be working with Mr. Pettigrew," Professor McGonagall began.
Adaline and Peter shared a big grin at the announcement, while their friends obnoxiously wiggled their eyebrows and winked at them.
Professor McGonagall continued on, "Mr. Lupin and Miss Ryan, you will be working together."
Gemma and Remus shared a victory smile. Lily could not help but feel slightly disappointed, since he was someone that she would have enjoyed working with. She knew that he would pull his weight.
"Mr. Potter and Miss Sparks, Miss Prewett and Mr. Peters," She added.
Both Alice and James groaned at the thought of working with their partners, Lily however was relieved that she was not partnered with Potter.
If Professor McGonagall was aware of her class' disappointment, she ignored it, "Mr. Snape and Mr. Malfoy, Miss Arian Prince and Mr. Hunts, Miss Black and Miss Alexander and Miss Evans and Mr. Black."
Lily resisted the urge to groan, sure, she had avoided Potter, but she had gotten his best friend, which was almost just as bad. She looked up to see Sirius smirking at her. Sirius himself was excited to work with Lily, hopeful that she would do most of the project to avoid spending time with him.
"Please go sit with your partners, I will be passing the bowl of topics around. You may not switch topics with those around you," she said, nodding her head to indicate that the class should move.
The 6th year boys all turned and looked at Remus, stunned that he had guessed everyone correct.
"I saw her sheet when I came in yesterday to ask her a question," Remus said, smirking at his shocked friends, "I never said I was playing fair."
Grumbling the group looked around before deciding where they were going to move.
Lily and Sirius were staring at each other, playing the game of wills, who would get up and move. Sirius casually leaned back in his chair, motioning at the empty one that James had just vacated. With a huff Lily got up and made her way towards a smirking Sirius, mentally preparing herself for what was to come.
"I hope you are prepared to work Black," Lily said as she sat down, glaring at him.
He rolled his eyes at her, "Of course…"
When the bowl came around, Sirius quickly reached his hand into the bowl, grinning victoriously at Lily as he pulled out a piece of paper.
"Our project is going to be on animagus transformations," Sirius said, smirking at a scowling Lily.
"Let's set a time to meet in the library to get started," Lily said, getting right to the point, "When works for you?"
"To be in the library?" Sirius said, raising his eyebrows, "Never. I don't go to the Library."
"You will for this project," Lily said, looking at him sternly.
"I can do tonight at 8," Sirius finally said, after realizing that Lily wasn't going to budge.
"Very well," Lily said, "I will see you then."
Sirius nodded, already internally debating if he would show up or not.
"And Sirius," Lily said in a sickenly sweet voice, "If you even think about not showing up, I will make this project hell for you."
Sirius' eyes widened, not expecting that from Lily, but then he smirked at her, debating testing her bluff.
"Well played, Evans," he said, smirking at her.
At the table behind them James and Erica Sparks were not working any better.
"So, I hope you don't expect me to do any work," she stated outright, "I'll find someone else to help you…"
James just rolled his, deciding not to dignify it with a response. Reaching into the bowl he pulled out a sheet of parchment that said 'History of Transfiguration'.
"Do you want to do before the 1500s or after the 1500s?" James asked, "That way we can each write a foot of the essay and not have to worry about working together."
"I'll do before, I suppose," she said, loosening her Slytherin tie.
"Excellent," James said sarcastically.
When the Transfiguration class was over, the class walked out, everyone talking about the project.
"This is going to be so much fun!" Adaline said, "Peter and I are going to be working Metamorphmagus! It is going to be so fascinating!"
"Lucky you…" Lily muttered, "I'm stuck with Black- who may or may not decide he wants to help with the project…"
"What topic did you get?" Adaline asked excitedly.
"We're working on Animaguses, which will be fascinating," Lily said, finally cracking a smile, "It's supposed to be extremely complicated."
"Lucky…" Gemma said, "Don't get me wrong, I lucked out in the partner department. It will be great working with Remus, but we are working on animal transfiguration. Not that interesting, but at least we have a lot of background knowledge."
"How are Connor and Alec?" Lily asked the other two girls.
"Oh Connor is great," Adrian said, "I think he and I are going to have a lot of fun working on this project if you catch my drift…"
"Oh hell yeah!" Gemma said, laughing and high fiving her friend.
"I think that Alec will be great," Alice said, "He seems sweet, and he is really cute…"
"He does have gorgeous hazel eyes…" Gemma said, smiling, while Alice nodded dreamily.
When 8 o'clock rolled around, Lily was already sitting at a table near the transfiguration area, a stack of books right next to her. She was impatiently tapping her foot and waiting for Sirius to arrive, if he didn't she would write her own essay, and then leave him to write his own. They could just tell Professor McGonagall that they wanted to be extra thorough. Though, she wasn't sure that she could convince him that she didn't already write the essay. Lily Evans was not known to procrastinate work, in fact, she was known for being one of the first to finish projects.
When 8:15 arrived and there was no sign of her partner she decided to start writing down interesting facts that she found in the books that she had grabbed. Cursing Sirius Black and his inability to work or be on time. She started mentally preparing herself to do this project alone.
Suddenly, the chair next to her was pulled back and Sirius sat down with a stack of books from the restricted section.
"Sorry Evans, I was grabbing some books. Theses ones really go into the process of becoming an animagus," Sirius said, smirking as her eyes widened in shock.
"Excellent. I was thinking that I could write about the process of becoming an animagus and you could write about the history? Then we could both work together on our introduction and conclusion," Lily suggested.
"Actually, I was hoping that I could write about the process of becoming an animagus? I was really interested in it in 4th year and I think I know a lot about the process already," Sirius said, chuckling at himself like it was a joke.
"That's fine," Lily said, still in shock.
Together, the Gryffindors got to work in silence. Lily researching and Sirius starting to write his part of the essay. Sirius couldn't help the small smile that came to his face as he remembered when she used to drag him and James to the Library.
About thirty minutes into their work a third person joined them at their table.
"This project really sucks doesn't it," James said, smirking at Sirius, "Wait, did you get animaguses? Really?"
"Yep," Sirius said, "Lucky me."
Together they laughed like it was an inside joke. James started opening his book and got to work, mumbling about how boring the history of transfiguration was.
"Hey Evans, I think I'm done for the night," Sirius said, after about an hour of working.
"Alright, can you manage to not lose the piece of parchment?" she asked him knowingly.
"Probably not, why don't you take it," he said chuckling, passing his paper over.
"Wow Black," Lily said, as she glanced over his work, "You really know your stuff. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if you have tried it, it seems like the type of thing you would do."
James choked back a laugh as Lily laughed at her own joke, having no idea how right she was.
"Well Prongs, shall we?" Sirius asked, while James nodded and got up.
"Later Evans," they both said in unison as they left the Library, leaving a speechless Lily alone at the table.
A few tables away Frank Longbottom smiled, happy to see the 6th years appearing friendly again. He had not thought that he would see the three of them sitting at a table in the library together ever again. Sure, there wasn't as much laughter as there was years ago, but in Frank's mind it was a start since there was no shouting. At least some people were getting along, he thought bitterly.
"What are you smiling at?" Julie asked, looking up at her boyfriend, noticing that he wasn't working anymore.
"Oh nothing," Frank said, before getting back to work, "Just saw something funny."
She shrugged and went back to her work.
Friday morning was the start of early morning Quidditch practice. This caused chaos in the 6th year girls dormitory. Gemma's alarm went off promptly at 5am, waking everyone in the room except Gemma, which caused Alice to swear loudly, while rolling over to cover her head with her other pillow. Adrian got up and literally dragged a groaning Gemma out of bed. The thud woke up Lily, who was more amused than anything.
They tried to walk around their room in the dark, which caused lots of noise as they ungracefully bumped into things. Gemma clumsily fell when getting her uniform on and Adrian cursed herself for not putting all of her gear out the night before. As they closed the door to their room all they could hear was Lily's sigh of relief and Alice's muffled snores.
Out on the Quidditch Pitch the rest of their team did not look any better. Elyse had missed a chunk of blonde hair when she had pulled it back into a ponytail and Keith had on two different pairs of boots. James appeared to be the only one excited to be there, even Sirius could be seen glaring at his best friend.
"Let's get started!" James said, with great enthusiasm.
He was met with the groans of his team.
An hour later, Adaline heard her alarm go off, and much like before, Alice swore and rolled over, decidedly not getting up yet. Adaline quickly turned the incessant beeping off and quickly made her way to the shower to get ready for her day.
As she was finishing up, she could hear Lily moving around and getting into the neighboring shower. It wasn't until she was fully dressed and grabbing her backpack that Alice finally moved towards the bathroom. With a chuckle, Adaline headed down towards breakfast, she liked being one of the first ones there because it meant that she got all the good food.
Finding an empty spot at the Gryffindor table she looked around the relatively empty hall, and sighed happily. She poured herself a cup of tea and reached for the eggs. From her seat facing the door she was able to watch as the different students came into the Great Hall. From the excited first years to the grumpy seventh years who had clearly just pulled an all nighter. This kept Adaline entertained until the post arrived.
Adaline took one look at the title on the first page of the Prophet and instantly felt sick. She quickly gathered her things and rushed out the Great Hall and towards the bathroom. She could feel her body shaking as all her worst fears were confirmed.
A little while later a clueless Lily and Alice made their way into the Great Hall. They were greeted by the typical quiet hush as the school read through the paper. The ladies looked around the table for their friends, and were surprised to see that Adaline wasn't there. The only person that they saw was Peter, who looked very distraught. With a shared look they walked towards him.
"Hey Peter," Alice said gently, "You alright?"
Peter just shook his head and passed the girls his paper.
The Dark Mark Spotted Again.
What is being called the Dark Mark was spotted over a small Muggle town just north of London.
There was reported to be a loud explosion around 2 in the morning, of which there were no survivors. The Muggles are saying that it was a gas line break, however, the presence of the Dark Mark tells a different story. A man by the name of Voldemort is taking credit for the attack and those similar to it.
While we do not yet know why the town was chosen or targeted, and we will keep updating with any new facts that come from the investigation. Our source in the Auror Department stated that the town is the birthplace to many Muggle Born witches and wizards inside the Ministry of Magic. This could be one of the suspected motives.
Anyone with information on this terrorist and those working with him are urged to come forward. Please contact Abraxas Malfoy at the Ministry of Magic with any information.
We would like to restate the importance of being vigilant, especially at night when you are alone. All Muggle Borns are encouraged to always travel with someone and to not go out past dark. We would also suggest warning families about the events that are occurring and encouraging them to be vigilant as well.
Lily's heart sank and she instantly knew why Peter was upset. Adaline had been telling them that their 'family friend' had decided to take on the name of Voldemort. That meant that he was responsible, and both families were likely involved. That also meant that the Malfoy's were likely involved, so any tips that went to him would be dismissed.
One look at Alice and Lily knew her friend was thinking the same thing. Her blue eyes were wide with concern, looking between Lily and Peter.
"Oh Merlin…" Lily said, not sure what else to say.
Peter just nodded, looking pale, "I just...I'm so sorry Lily…"
"Why are you sorry Peter?" Lily said, looking at the blonde boy in confusion.
"My family...they're mixed up in this...they're views on Muggle Borns…" he said, his voice wavering, "It's just awful."
Alice's jaw dropped in shock, not expecting this reaction from their housemate. Lily's emerald eyes started to tear up.
"Oh Peter," she said, reaching over to squeeze his hand, "You have nothing to be sorry for. You are not your family. You don't need to apologize for them."
He smiled gratefully at the kind red haired witch.
"Peter," Alice said, "You are one of the kindest people I know. Just because your family is mixed up in this doesn't mean that we will think any less of you."
Peter nodded, thankful for the two girls he considered friends.
"Hey guys," Remus said, sitting down to join them.
After noticing the distressed looks on his friends' faces, Remus picked up the paper and read. The group watched as his face lost what little color it had.
"Oh," was all he could manage.
Alice just nodded, both looking at their two friends who were more involved in this than they were.
"I don't know what to do…" Peter said, looking to the group for ideas.
"How much information do you think you have?" Alice asked, curiously.
"Not much, my family isn't as involved as... others," he said.
"You could take what you do have to Professor Dumbledore? He might know what to do with it," Lily suggested.
"Yeah, I might do that. Thanks Lily," Peter said, before quietly turning back to his breakfast.
They ate in relative silence. Everyone wondering where Adaline was and looking for their friends to return from Quidditch practice.
Adrian and Gemma rushed off the pitch and towards breakfast, desperate to get some food in their systems before class. They knew that they were cutting it close, but they really wanted food after the grueling practice. Just as they were about to enter the Great Hall a small Ravenclaw boy rushed out, the paper clutched in his small hand.
"Grab me a muffin?" Adrian asked.
"Of course," Gemma said, before continuing her way towards the door.
Adrian, on the other hand, turned around and raced after her younger brother.
"Henry," she shouted after him.
She watched as her brother entered an old classroom before following him into the room.
"Henry, what's wrong?" she said, her heart breaking at the sight of his face.
His blue eyes were full of tears that he was trying not to shed and he was shaking. He held out his hand with the paper for his sister to read. Adrian nervously took the paper and started to read.
When she finished she looked up at her brother, who seemed to have calmed down a little bit in the presence of his sister.
"It's Tom," was all Henry said.
Adrian felt sick, looking at her younger brother who meant the world to her.
"I know," she mumbled, feeling ready to cry, "Is he still at the house often?"
"Of course," Henry said, "Our family is in this deep Adrian."
"I shouldn't have left…" Adrian mumbled, looking at the younger brother she abandoned.
"No, leaving was the right thing for you to do Adri," Henry said, looking at his sister in surprise, "They would have killed you, you know that. After all the trouble you got in being spotted out riding a motorcycle with Sirius, associating with Muggles... You would have never been allowed to leave."
"I know, but I left you, Abigail, Jamie and Adaline," Adrian said, "I could have done something...taken you with me. Maybe then Abigail and Jamie would have had a chance at least…"
"You know you couldn't have done that," Henry said, "And we were all glad that you got away. We will be just fine Adrian, don't worry about us. Be vigilant though, you know our family doesn't forgive or forget."
"I will," Adrian said, hugging her brother, "When did you get so smart?"
"Hey!" he said, glaring at his sister, "I was always smart!"
Adrian laughed and together the Prince siblings made their way to their separate classes. Each feeling better, but both still a little uneasy.
"I don't know why you insist on morning practices Prongs," Sirius said, looking over at his messy haired friend.
"Because, the Slytherins hate morning practices and we get less spies," James said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Sirius just rolled his eyes, "But it means that we don't get breakfast..."
"Quit your whining, Padfoot," James said, smirking at his friend, "We both know that we will just stop by the kitchens and grab food after first period."
"Yes, but then I have to be hungry during Charms."
"You are hungry during Charms even when you do get breakfast…" James said, rolling his eyes at his best friend.
"Well, I'll be more hungry now," he said, trying to sound serious.
"I think you'll live…"
The boys continued walking down the almost empty hallways, picking up their pace to try and avoid being late. However, both boys froze when they saw Adaline Prince moving quickly in the opposite direction with her head down.
"You go ahead Prongs, I'm not much in the mood for Charms anyways," Sirius said, before discretely following Adaline.
James nodded and continued on his way towards Charms. When he entered the room (before the bell even) the 6th year Gryffindor girls all snapped their eyes to him. He watched as their faces turned straight to disappointment.
"Not excited to see me?" He joked as he passed, stopping only when he noticed their faces.
"What's wrong?" he asked, looking at all of them.
"Did you read the paper?" his cousin asked, her blue eyes still at the door.
"No. Why?" he asked.
Lily reached into her bag and passed him her copy. The girls watched as his face turned to rage.
"We were hoping you were Adaline," Alice offered, "None of us have seen her this morning. We're getting worried."
"Sirius is with her," James said, "We spotted her in the corridor. This explains why she was heading in the opposite direction of her favorite class."
The girls' shoulders all sagged with relief knowing that Adaline at least had a friend with her. It was that moment that Professor Flitwick entered the classroom, and they were forced to work on something else. However, all the girls kept one eye on the door, hoping that their friend would join them.
Adaline wasn't sure where she was going, she just knew that she wasn't going to Charms. When she spotted a giant window at the end of the hallway she decided that was her destination. After reading the article she had decided to hide out in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, hoping to be left alone. However, she could only take so much of Myrtle's crying, so she decided to walk the hallways instead. Trying to calm herself down and keep the tears at bay, but knowing that wasn't going to be possible.
Adaline felt as though she was in a daze, as she sat down facing the window. She hugged her knees to her chest and finally started to cry. Her mind was moving so fast that she could barely keep up with it.
Sirius Black stood at the corner and watched as his childhood friend broke down. He didn't know why she was crying, but he vowed then and there that he would destroy whoever had made her cry. Even it was Peter, who he considered a brother. Sirius couldn't remember the last time he had seen Adaline cry, but he decided that he couldn't just stand there any more.
He slowly made his way over to her small frame, took a seat next to her before wrapping his long arms around her pulling her in for a hug. She looked at Sirius with her water filled eyes, and tried to shoot him a grateful smile. Sirius nodded at her in acknowledgement, and let her continue to cry on his shoulder.
They sat in silence for what felt like an eternity, with her silently sobbing and him holding her. It was during this time when Sirius reflected on how bad of a friend he had been to the other Prince girl. Since he had been kicked out last year he hadn't seem much of Adaline, and looking at her now, he couldn't help but notice how much she had changed. She looked more frail than she had the year before and he could no longer see the fire in her eyes that used to be so similar to her twin's.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Sirius said, finally deciding to break the silence.
"Did you see the paper?" Adaline asked, wiping her tears, which seemed to be slowing down.
"Not yet," he said, surprised that this is what had upset her so much, "Why?"
Adaline passed the paper to him wordlessly, not ready to explain.
Sirius read the paper, his knuckles getting white with anger as he kept reading.
"This is terrible," Sirius said, "But it doesn't explain why you're so upset Ada."
Adaline looked at him in shock at the use of the old nickname, "Voldemort is Tom Sirius. Surely you remember him…"
"Of course I do," he said, shaking his head, "I don't think I'll ever be able to forget the creepy bastard."
"So it means that our families are involved," she said, before adding "Well my family."
"That's right Adaline, you're family. Not you," Sirius said, "This has nothing to do with you."
"IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH ME!" she said furiously.
"How?" Sirius asked calmly.
"I stayed Sirius. I listened to all the bullshit that Tom said, taking it in silently. I knew it was wrong and untrue, but I said nothing. I just sat there like the good little girl my parents wanted me to be."
"That makes you a good older sister Adaline, nothing else. Adrian told me that the two of you were planning on leaving when you turned 17 and could take your siblings with you. She was so mad at herself for leaving early and abandoning you."
"She made the right choice," Adaline argued, knowing how upset Adrian had been to leave.
"And so did you, for the time," Sirius said, "You wanted to be a guiding voice to your siblings, and look at how Henry is doing."
At the mention of her brother, Adaline finally cracked a smile. Sirius was relieved that she had stopped crying.
"But now I have all this information, and I don't know what to do with it," Adaline said.
"Bring it to Dumbledore," Sirius said, "He'll know what to do."
"That's a great idea," Adaline said, her face lighting up, "The only problem is I don't know where his office is…"
"You don't know where his office is?!" Sirius said in shock.
"Nope," Adaline said, shrugging.
"Luckily for you, I've been there a few times…" Sirius said, getting up.
He held his hand out for Adaline, who grabbed it. They took off in silence, walking towards Dumbledore's office.
"Thank you Sirius," Adaline said, grateful for the older Black brother.
"That's what friends are for Adaline," he said genuinely.
When they reached a gargoyle Sirius stopped, before saying the words, "chocolate frogs". The gargoyle moved to the side, revealing a spiral staircase. Adaline started moving towards it, mentally preparing herself for what she was about to do.
"Hey Adaline," Sirius said, she turned to look back at him, "Please be careful. Now that you're sharing information...if they ever find out, they will kill you."
"I'll be careful," Adaline said, "I promise."
With that, Adaline squared her shoulders and walked up the stairs. She was ready to make a difference and to stop sitting silently by.
She had no idea that, in time, this decision would get her killed.
Wow. That was kind of a dramatic chapter. There were some fun, light and fluffy scenes that I was going to add, but the chapter was already pretty long, so they are going in the next chapter. Also there was a lot of Sirius in this chapter and we got some more information on other characters. What did you think?
Please review and make your predictions. What do you think is going to happen? If anyone guesses correctly, I will give them a snippet from the next chapter!