Opening the Door

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

Chapter 3 – Like You

"Eve, darling, I need you to come to Diagon Alley with me and pick out a dress for the ball."

"Its okay, Mom, I can wear one of my old ones." Evangeline muttered, her head bowed and her hair falling towards the swirling bowl of milk and soft cereal. Also known as Evangeline's breakfast, that morning.

James, Sirius and Remus had, unfortunately, just entered the kitchen in time to hear Evangeline say this.

Sirius and James each raised an eyebrow at Evangeline, who, upon seeing them, turned slightly pink.

Mrs Potter 'tsked' her daughter in disapproval.

"Eve, really, when was the last time you had a new dress? Especially for a ball?" she asked, in a no-nonsense tone.

Evangeline looked down at her cereal again and said nothing.

Mrs Potter beamed at her daughter's unspoken answer.

"Excellent! We'll leave at one o'clock, dear! Go get ready!" she called, bustling about the kitchen again, before leaving.

Stay low.
Soft, dark, and dreamless,
Far beneath my nightmares and loneliness.
I hate me,
For breathing without you.
I don't want to feel anymore for you.
 The Marauders sat down at the table, James and Sirius going either side of Evangeline, Remus opposite her.

"Aww, c'mon, Eve." James told her brightly, watching as his sister returned to her cereal silently, tears threatening to fall. "How bad can it be?"

Evangeline shot a glare at him, stood up sharply, and swept from the kitchen furiously.

James, Sirius and Remus watched her go, blinking at the unexpected show of rage from the otherwise emotionless girl.

Evangeline sighed...

…Again.

It was the night of the ball and she was sat on the sill of the open window, looking out over the roof and across the darkened sky, sounds of laughter and music from the ball below her floating up.

James was there with his new girlfriend – Cara.

Evangeline always knew who James was dating, and never bothered to hide it. Girls after her brother would come to ask her if rumours of his love life were true or not, and Evangeline would always have an answer.

Her secret? Observation.

Grieving for you,
I'm not grieving for you.
Nothing real love can't undo,
And though I may have lost my way,
All paths lead straight to you.

Evangeline knew what was going on with James – and, very often, Sirius and Remus too – because she watched and listened, picking out the 'lucky girl's' gleeful squealing to her friends, telling them not to spread it just yet.

Evangeline snorted: people always overheard them, spread what was then known as a rumour, and then, after a day or so, people would start asking Evangeline about it. And she could always tell them.

With Remus and Sirius she wasn't always so precise, not caring for either boy as much as she did James.

I long to be like you,
Lie cold in the ground like you.

She had thought, at first, that if people came to her for advice (or answers about her brother) she could make friends with them due to it.

But that was never going to happen, and now Evangeline answered in an emotionless tone, always smirking at the fact that they would 'lower' themselves to asking her.

But she supposed that was her place, now.

Evangeline sighed once more, and quietly began to hum, before breaking out into gentle, quiet song.

------

Below her, Remus paused, glancing up at the roof, as a soft melody drifted down, over the loud music behind him.

He smiled and closed his eyes to listen.

"EVANGELINE POTTER! You weren't even at that ball last night, were you?!" screeched Mrs Potter, glaring down at her daughter.

Halo,
Blinding wall between us.
Melt away and leave us alone again.
Humming, haunted somewhere out there.
I believe our love can see us through in death.

Evangeline sighed and looked at her mother's shoes again, still not really listening.

"No…" she murmured absently, knowing that the Marauders were round the corner, snickering quietly at her misfortune concerning her mother.

And boy, could she ever yell.

"EVANGELINE! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!" Mrs Potter yelled, her hands in perfectly manicured fists.

Evangeline's head snapped up at this, her eyes wide in shock. Mrs Potter sighed, before glaring at her again.

I long to be like you,
Lie cold in the ground like you.
There's room inside for two and I'm not grieving for you,
I'm coming for you.

"Evangeline, you didn't even go to the ball last night!" she exclaimed sadly, watching as Evangeline hung her head again. "Why not, sweetie? You've always gone in the past…" she trailed off, thinking. She glared at Evangeline again.

"No, Mom, I never went to any of the balls." Evangeline told her coldly, tears wavering on the edge of her emotions.

Mrs Potter knelt down in front of the sixteen-year-old, sighing. "Oh, but why? Is because you never got a partner…?! Ugh – me and your father offered to help you so much! Why didn't you say anything, Evie?" she cooed.

Evangeline shook her head, standing up sharply.

You're not alone,
No matter what they told you, you're not alone.
I'll be right beside you forevermore.

"No! I never went because I hated them!" she screamed, "You always made me go! Always! I never liked one stinking ball and when I told you, you made me go to the next one, and the next and the next!" she yelled.

Mrs Potter gaped her, open-mouthed.

A tear dropped to the floor, and a few seconds later, Evangeline had run from the room, crying.

The next few days were hell for Evangeline.

I long to be like you, sis

Lie cold in the ground like you did.
There's room inside for two and I'm not grieving for you.

Mr and Mrs Potter, along with James, Sirius and Remus all knew something was wrong, and thought they could 'help her'. Evangeline pushed them all away, getting up early to get food from the kitchen for the day, and staying in her room, crying, cutting and writing.

She wrote several poems, and bordered on writing another song. And while she was pretty much out of control with her writing, Evangeline had vice-like firmness on her cutting, keeping the wounds as small and shallow as ever, using a spell to hide the other scars, though her most-recent cuts were harder to hide.

And as we lay in silent bliss,
I know you remember me.

--------

Evangeline smiled to herself as she lifted the lid of the piano. She had begged her parents to keep it for her, and they, in their concern for her, agreed.

She began to sing, unaware that Remus Lupin was stood right outside the locked door, listening to her.

"I long to be like you,
Lie cold in the ground like you.
There's room inside for two and I'm not grieving for you,
I'm coming for you."