Chapter 29

A Locket

Disclaimer-Not mine.


Julia sat on a royal red couch in the common room, her legs crossed and a Transfiguration text book in her lap. She flipped the page, skimming it. Feeling the cushion next to her sink she looked up from the book, realizing Sirius had planted himself down next to her.

"Hey you." He said with a smile.

"Hi." She replied before returning to her book.

"Why are you doing homework now? We don't have classes for almost two weeks." He asked.

"Well," She began. "We may have winter break now, but a few days after we get back to class midterms start."

Sirius eased the book from her hand and snapped it shut, taking it away from her. "School can wait."

"Yeah? Do you want me to fail my exams?" Julia asked as she tried to grab the book back.

"You're going to fail them all anyway, so why bother study?" He teased, holding the book behind him so she couldn't reach it.

Julia narrowed her eyes at him. "You can forget about getting any Christmas present for that comment."

Sirius smiled, "You're getting me a present."

"Got you a present." Julia shook her head after accidentally letting that slip. She grinned and corrected herself. "I mean I was going to get you a present."

"If you already bought it, then it would be a waste not to give it to me."

"Nah. I could give it to James, or Remus or Tom even. Or I could return it." Julia said with a shrug.

Sirius chuckled and reached over Julia, placing her book on the small table next to the couch. Julia caught a whiff of his cologne and let out a deep breath as it brought back memories. She quickly shook any thoughts of what Sirius and her used to be out of her mind. He cheated on you...She reminded herself.

"You love me too much to do that." He said, not realizing what it implied. He had just meant it as a purely 'friend' comment and he really didn't think of it as otherwise.

James plopped down on the armchair across from the couch, saving Julia from having to say anything to that. "Hey." James greeted, as he leaned his head back on the chair and closed his eyes.

"Hello." Julia replied.

James peeked an eye open at the two before asking, "Sirius, are you coming over my house for the holiday?" He asked, figuring he would after what happened between him and his father. Sirius knew his family was furious with him.

"You don't mind?" Sirius asked, he had spent so many weeks at the Potters', he didn't want to be a burden.

"Course not." James replied.

Julia grabbed the Transfiguration book from the table and pretended to read it. She frowned as she did. She was hoping Sirius might stay at Hogwarts for the break. It would have given her someone to talk to, seeing as she would be just about the only Gryffindor staying there.

"What about you?" James said, interrupted Julia's thoughts.

"Huh?" She replied.

"Do you want to stay at my house for the holiday?" James asked making a smile cross Julia's face.

"I'd love to." She replied, happily. She paused a moment before frowning again. "Actually, I don't think I can."

"Why not?" Sirius asked.

"Well I-." Julia began. "I don't want Tom to be here by himself."

"He can come too." James replied without hesitation.

"But I don't want to-." Julia started but James interrupted her.

"It's fine. My parents could care less." He said with a small smile.

The smile returned to Julia's face. "Okay, yeah. I'll talk to Tom about it."

Sirius smiled at her response and asked, "Tom's gonna let you stay at James's house, while I'm there?" He pulled out a bag of Bertie Botts Jelly Beans and tossed a handful into his mouth.

Julia nodded slowly, "Yeah, it was weird but he said he actual likes you now." She shrugged lightly. "It's bad timing seeing as we're not..." Her voice trailed off inaudibly.

"Dating." Sirius finished, looking at his hands.

"Yeah." She softly said.

"Did he tell you why?" Sirius asked, curiously. He was wondering if he had let on to anything that had happened the other night.

"No. That's why it was weird."

Sirius looked up at James, frowning. James shrugged in response. The three stayed awkwardly quiet for a few seconds before James broke the silence by saying, "Lily's coming too."

Julia grinned at his attempt to start conversation, "I figured she would."

"So is her family." He added.

Sirius nearly chocked on the jelly bean he was eating. After a few coughs, the jelly bean dislodged itself from his throat. Sirius chewed it and swallowed, much to the disgust of Julia, and replied, "No way."

James nodded, "Yeah they are."

"Why?" Sirius asked bluntly.

James shrugged, "My parents invited them." He replied.

"You must be nervous." Julia said, imagining what that situation might be like.

"Have you ever meet them before?" Sirius questioned.

James nodded, "Once. And I set Lily's sister's hair on fire."

"Way to make a good first impression." Julia joked.

"Yeah really." Sirius added.

James looked at him and rolled his eyes, "Oh and you're excellent at first impressions."

Sirius smiled in return, because he knew he was bad at them, his best example being Julia's brother. "I know." He joked.

"But why do your parents want to meet hers?"

"You're not getting married are you?" Sirius asked, half-jokingly.

James chuckled, "No we're not."

"Aw," Julia joked with a frown. "You're never going to get married?"

"Well I-." James began, a small smile creeping across his face. "Not now."

"So then you are getting married?" Sirius asked as he watched a red-head approach the group.

James shook his head, "I don't know." He replied.

"So you're having regrets about going out with Lily?" Sirius asked.

Lily heard him as she took a seat next to James, "What?" She asked, turning to James.

James laughed and explained, "No Sirius, of course I don't." He said, gently kissing Lily.

"Ewwwww..." Julia teased as she covered her eyes with her hands. "Cooties."

Sirius laughed and said, "Please no snogging in public. None of us want to watch that."

"That wasn't a snog." Lily replied. "This is snogging..." She leaned in towards James and both their lips collided perfectly.

Sirius made a face and stood up. "Come on." Sirius took Julia's hand and led her across the common room.

Julia tried hard to ignore the fact that they were holding hands and walking across the common room together. It doesn't mean anything...

A small mischievous smile crossed Sirius's face as he squeezed Julia's hand. Things are going to change...He thought confidently.


A loud knock could be heard echoing through the entrance way of the Potters' house. James set down the book, Quidditch in the 18th Century, and headed towards the door.

"I got it." He told his father, who was also heading for the door. James unlatched the locks and opened the door. He smiled at the two twin-like brother and sister standing in the doorway. Their dark hair and coats were speckled with pure white snow.

"Julia. Tom." He greeted as he stepped aside to let them in.

Tom entered the house, carrying a worn brown trunk, shortly followed by Julia. "Are you sure you don't mind us staying here?" Julia asked for the ump-teenth million time.

"Of course we don't mind." James assured her.

The warmth of the house stung the sibling's cold pink cheeks. "You're house is amazing." Tom said as he looked around the extravagant entrance way.

"Uh thanks." James said, scratching the back of his neck. It was weird, to James, to have someone compliment his house, especially when the complimenter lived in a small apartment in downtown London.

Julia, noticing James was uncomfortable, changed the subject. "I thought Sirius left school with you. Is he here?"

James nodded, "He's in my room wrapping presents."

"Presents?" She said, a smile crossing her face. "Did he get me anything?"

"Julia." Tom said sternly, fulfilling his roll as a 'parent'.

James grinned in return and answered, "Of course he did."

"Any idea what he got me?"

"I have more than an idea." James replied.

"And?" Julia persisted

"And you'll have to wait until Christmas to open it." James replied, turning around to lead the two to their rooms.

"Julia." Tom hissed under his breath.

Julia chuckled at Tom for thinking that James and Julia's conversation was anything more than them just joking around. "Sorry." She muttered, all the same.

James looked over his shoulder and shot Julia a smile as he started up a spiral staircase off the the left of the doorway.

"Do you remember where you stayed last time?" James asked Julia.

Julia nodded, "Kind of. I have no idea how to get there though."

James smiled and replied, "Well you're staying there this time too. And Tom, you can have the room right next to hers."

James took the siblings to the second floor and showed them each their rooms. Julia entered hers and dropped her trunk at the foot of the bed. She hadn't brought much with her. Just a few outfits and her friends' presents really. James apologized when his mother called for him from the room down the hall. "I'll be right back..." He told Julia as Tom entered his own room to unpack.

She unlatched the trunk and began to put her already folded cloths into the bureau on the other side of the room. As she was, she heard the door squeak open. She looked up to see a black haired boy standing in the doorway, holding a small box wrapped in gold paper.

"Hey you." Sirius said as he entered the room.

"Hey to you too." She replied, sliding the drawer of the bureau shut.

Sirius smiled, lost in her dark brown eyes. They were so dark that you could barely see the pupils. Sirius tilted his head slightly. Julia took a step towards him. Now, he could just barely make out the pupils and only because of the light entering through the window next to her hit her eyes just right.

"Sirius?" Julia asked after he didn't respond to her question.

Sirius shook his head, "Uh sorry?"

"Who's the present for?" She repeated as she nodded to the gift in his hands.

Sirius looked down at it and stretched his arm to her. "You."

Julia took the gift from him. "But I thought we were waiting for Christmas to exchange gifts."

"We are. I just thought you might not want to open this present in front of people..."

Julia frowned, "Please tell me you didn't get my underwear or something..."

Sirius chuckled and shook his head. "No, nothing like that. You'll know what I mean when I open it."

Julia looked at him suspiciously and shook the box gently. She heard a light sound of something hitting the box. "Underwear doesn't make that noise." Sirius said as he plopped down on her bed.

Julia looked down at the gift in her hands and slowly tore off the paper. Sirius sat watching her, twisting his hands nervously. He hoped she liked it, yes. But he hoped even more that she wouldn't be mad at him for getting her it.

Julia dropped the wrapping paper on her bed and sat down next to Sirius, who had made himself comfortable on the edge of it. She pulled off the top of the black box and nearly dropped the whole thing as she saw what was inside.

"Oh my God..." She mumbled as she shakily took the locket from the box. It was a worn gold heart engraved with swirls on both sides. She flipped the locket over and ran her finger over the engraved year 1912. It was a locket. Her locket. Her locket before she had even met Sirius.

She held the box in one hand as her other hand went to her mouth. "Where did you find this?" She mumbled through her hand. She had recalled the night it was first given to her with clarity...

"I have something for you Julie." A soft feminine voice had said to her as she ascended the stairs in her pink foot pajamas covered with broomsticks and snitches. Julia turned around and bolted down the stairs.

"A present?" She asked, hoping up on the couch next to her mother.

"Yes, like a present." She replied, pulling her daughter closer to her.

"I want a present!" Whinnied a voice from the top of the stairs.

Julia looked up at her brother and stuck out her tongue. "You can't have one."

"How come she gets one and not me?" He stomped his foot and crossed his hands over his chest. Their mother shot her husband a look and her husband nodded.

"Come on Tom, I have something for you upstairs..." Tom jumped up and down excitedly as his father led him into his bedroom.

Julia turned to her mother and asked excitedly, "What's the present?"

"Calm down Julie." She chuckled and pulled a box off the coffee table. "I didn't wrap it but-." She started but Julia had the box open before she could finish.

"A necklace!" She squealed as she took it out of the box.

"This used to be my necklace." Her mother explained as she took the necklace from her daughter and gently put it on her daughter's neck. "My mother gave it to me when I turned seventeen."

Julia pouted at the thought of her grandmother. "I miss Grammy."

Her mother quietly said, "Me too." After clipping the necklace on, her mother said, "Grammy's mother gave it to her when she was seventeen too. And so did her mother."

"When they were seventeen?" Julia asked as she looked down at the necklace she was wearing. "But I'm not seventeen." Julia looked up at her mother and covered the necklace with her hand. "Don't take it back though!"

Her mother chuckled and shook her head, "No I want you to have it now, in case-." She stopped her sentence abruptly.

"In case what?" She questioned, tilting her head to the side.

Her mother shook her head, "Nothing." She looked down at her hands, a single tear falling from her eye.


"Mommy are you crying?" Julia asked, lifting her mother's chin up with her small hand. "Why are you sad? Because you have to give your necklace away?" Julia reached behind her own neck to unclip the necklace. "You can have it back if you want."

Her mother shook her head, "No. no. That's not why I'm crying."

"Then why?" Julia asked. Her mother debated what to tell her. Not the truth, certainly. Not that this could possible be the last time she ever talked to her daughter. Ever saw her daughter.

"It's a happy tear." She lied. "I'm just so happy that you like the necklace."

Julia smiled, relieved that her mother wasn't sad. She threw her arms around her mother and said, "I love you Mum."

Julia closed her eyes, trying to breath slowly. She opened them. "Where did you find this?" Julia repeated.

Sirius looked away from her, thinking she was mad at him. "The night you told me about your parents, you mentioned a necklace. But I'd never seen you wear it so I asked your brother and he said you had to sell it." He paused before blurting out. "I'm so sorry I should have never-."

Julia shook her head and removed her hand from her mouth, her eyes glistening. "This is the best present anyone has ever given me."

Sirius looked up at her, his eyes locking with hers. "Really?"

Julia closed her eyes, trying to keep herself from crying. Crying is stupid...She told herself. She opened her eyes and nodded. "I haven't seen this in four years. I thought I was never going to see it again."

Sirius, now lost in her eyes again, said quietly. "Your brother told me you had to sell it." He paused before continuing, "He also told me how much you loved it but you offered to give it up anyway because you knew he needed the money."

Julia nodded, a tear trickling down her cheek. She flipped the locket over and looked at the worn engravings on the back. She remembering rubbing the back of the locket whenever she wanted to talk to her mother and couldn't. Her thumb found it's old place and she gently started rubbing it again.

"Did you-" Julia's breath got caught up in her throat so she tried again, "Did you buy it back from the woman?" She looked up at him, unable to control her tears. She remembered the night she gave it to Tom to sell. She had dropped it on the kitchen table, pretending like she didn't care about it. Tom left that night to try and sell it and all Julia could remember was that she spent the entire night wishing she still had it. It had been the only thing she had had left of her mother's.

Sirius nodded, looking over her tear stained, freckle covered cheeks. "Yeah." The woman sold it back to me.". The woman had been quite a pack rat which was good for Sirius or else she might not have still had the old necklace.

"Can you-?" Julia chocked out as passed him the necklace and turned around, holding her hair away from her neck.

Sirius took the necklace and gently placed it on her, clipping it shut in the back. Julia's hand went up to the necklace. She still couldn't believe she had her necklace back. After so many years without it, thinking she would never see it again, she had it back again.

The initial shock slowly wore away as she looked down at the necklace and another shock took over her. Sirius had gotten her necklace back. Sirius. He had given her possibly the most thoughtful gift she had ever received.

She was overwhelmed and didn't know what to say. She just couldn't believe it. So Julia leaned forward but stopped as she realized what she was doing. She would have kissed him. A full fledged passionate kiss too. But that little voice inside her reminded her, he cheated on you. Sirius studied her eyes as she stopped. He was so close.

Julia shook her head lightly before settling for a kiss on the cheek. She threw her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. "Thank you so much." She mumbled, sniffling.

"Anything for you." He whispered back, resting his hands on her back.

Julia was the first to break the hug. She met his eyes and repeated, "Thank you."

Sirius nodded slightly, his eyes now landing on her lips. Julia seemed to realize this as she dropped her face and looked at her hands in her lap. Sirius leaned towards her, his eyes focused on her pink lips. Julia knew what would come next and she didn't know what to think about it. There was a war going on in herself. Part of her wanted it, the other part wanted Sirius to rot in hell. Julia turned her head ever so slightly away from him. Sirius didn't miss this. As soon as she did it, he stopped.

"Um." Sirius said, backing away from her. He stood up from his seat on the bed and said, "Well I should be...uh going." He hurried out of the room and as soon as he did, his hand went up to his cheek where Julia had kissed him.

Julia covered her face with her hands and laid back on her bed. Why was it that only Sirius could make her cry? She didn't know what to think about him. He cheated on her. But why did everyone, all of the sudden, like him? Lily had told her he had done something the night she ended up at Saint Mungo's. But Julia never found out exactly what it was. Maybe it had nothing to do with that...Thought Julia. Maybe it had to do with the necklace. Tom would have known about it because Sirius asked him where to find it. And Lily could have heard it from James. Could the necklace be why everyone was forgiving him?

Julia sighed, but that didn't fit quite right. But if there really was a reason to forgive Sirius for what he had done, she really wished someone would tell her. Because, even though she would never admit it to anyone but herself;

"I still love him." Julia whispered.


A/N Thanks everyone that reviewed! I also noticed that I accidentally posted the wrong document for chapter 28. I uploaded the document before I had saved the changes I made to it. I'll have the right one up soon.

Please review!

Kait