Chapter 3:

Oh no, the princess is locked away

Will the prince save her, or will she decay?

Why would this happen, who'd do such a thing

What horrible witch, what evil old king?

In truth it was her parents, seeking her best for sure

(Though they could have done something more mature)

So now it's up to the prince, to change her fate

But to save the princess, the danger will be great.

Marlene was so mad at her parents, she locked herself in her room.

She really did it too. Not like some rebel teenager, who locked the door only to unlock it later. There were certain spells that were permanent, no matter what her parents would do, they couldn't get rid of the permanent sticking charm she'd put on her door. It was shut for good.

Her parents were furious with her, of course, and they attempted to unstick it (even though they knew it was pointless), as parents are wont to do. Yet no carpenter they hired succeeded (obviously) and Marlene was stuck away from her parents, locked in her room. They told her to climb down through the window, but she refused. They tried to come get her themselves, but she threatened to put a permanent sticking charm on her window, and so they abated. The only interaction she planned on having with them was having them bring up some food for her every few days, and even those she planned on passing without a word from her mouth.

In fact, she wasn't all that mad with her parents, not really. She just wanted them to let her do what she wanted, to listen, for a change.

Maybe if they were annoyed with her, they'd send her back to Hogwarts, just to get rid of her.

It was a thought, at any rate.

And so she expected to pass as least a week (or three) alone in her room. That was fine because though Marlene could be very sociable when the time called for it, she was a solitary person by habit, and thus being alone wasn't a problem. So it was much to her surprise that, only a day into her solitude, an owl flew into her window. Followed by another, and then a third, all in quick succession.

The last two she recognized, as the owls of Dorcas Meadowes and James Potter respectively (she assumed Lily had borrowed James' owl, as the Muggleborn witch didn't have her own). The first one however, jet black and small, like a particularly violent bludger, she didn't recognize at all.

Honestly, she knew her friends liked her, but she didn't expect such long and detailed letters from the girls, especially considering how Dorcas' had tears all over it, smudging over half of the writing. Yet she was touched and she decided to redouble her efforts to annoy her parents. Anything to get back to Hogwarts.

Like many of the castle's students, she considered Hogwarts her true home.

After replying to her friends and sending their owls (and her replies) back to Hogwarts (pitying the owls for the long trip) she took the letter from the third one. It was admittedly much shorter than the other two, but it made her think a lot more.

Want me to come get you?

Sirius

She knew what this was too. Not only an offer, but a secret. The truth that he really did care for her. Whether he'd only realized it now, or whether he'd hidden it under his superficial lust for her all these years she didn't know, but she believed him. Sirius Black was many things (handsome, intelligent, humorous… handsome) but he didn't lie to his friends.

She thought about how she'd answer for long time, giving the letter its due worth. Then, finally, she penned him back a note, below his own writing:

Yes.