Beautiful Mistake Chapter Sixteen:
The Make-Up
"I have your birthday present at school – you must remind me to give it to you when we get back." Lily reminded Chloe at breakfast on the morning of her birthday.
"Don't worry about it Lily, just give it to someone else." Chloe said, feeling as if she needed no gifts at all.
"I am not going to argue with you Chloe, just accept the gift and call it a day." Lily protested a fiery look in her eyes.
"You two talk like an old married couple." Danielle joked. Since Lily had come to the house, she had started to warm up to Chloe again, though she never talked to her directly. But Chloe could deal with that, eventually Danielle would forget the whole argument and talk to her again.
"Let's just stop the bickering all around," Mrs. Roberts said entering the dinning room where she had prepared a grand breakfast. She placed a platter of pancakes in the centre of the table and the girls dung in.
Chloe took one and cut it up to little pieces on her plate, and then gave them to Ryan, who ate them eagerly. It was his favourite breakfast, and when ever his grandmother was nice enough to make them, he would try to eat more then his fill.
"He is such an adorable little boy," Lily marveled.
"Haven't I been telling you that?" Chloe joked, now eating her own breakfast.
"Well," Lily started with a grin, "I always assumed he would be cute considering who his parents are – but he is just so much cuter then what I remembered!" Lily laughed.
Chloe grinned, not hiding the fact that she should have been offended or upset about the statement. It didn't go unnoticed by Mrs. Roberts, but Chloe was glad to see that her mother did not recognize it aloud, and neither did Danielle.
They were soon joined by Chloe's Aunt, and they continued on with their breakfast. Nothing had been planned for the day, just a simple dinner for the girls, and the single guy in the house. Chloe had already received gifts from Remus, Kathy, and Nadine, all of which she had opened when she woke up. From Remus she got a Muggle book that she hadn't had the time to read what it was on. Where as Kathy and Nadine both went the safer route, Kathy getting her an embroidered bag, and Nadine giving her a set of fancy coloured quills, all of which were approved by Chloe as great gifts.
"It's such a shame that your birthday is in the winter time, because we could go for a walk with Ryan or something right about now." Lily rambled after breakfast, when the two girls had moved into Ryan's bedroom, where he roamed the floor playing with his many toys.
"I don't know, I kind of like having my birthday in the winter. Something about snow just makes me happy." Chloe disagreed. "Besides, we could still go for a walk if you'd like." Chloe suggested.
Lily shook her head. "No, don't worry about it. It's far too cold for my liking to go for a walk now."
And so they stayed inside for the rest of the day until dinner time, when Chloe's mother served up a grand meal of roasted pork and potatoes, along with steamed and boiled vegetables and other things. All of which, Chloe loved and ate in great amount. By time it came to cake time, Chloe was surprised she still had room in her stomach for more.
Crawling into bed that night, Lily on the floor on a cot next to her, Chloe sighed happily. It had been a perfect birthday, and perfect end to a great and lazy day. Ryan was in the next room sound asleep, and next to her was her best friend. There had been no surprise visits, and for once everything seemed to be peacefully heavenly.
"I cannot wait to go back to school," Lily murmured in the dark.
"Why?" Chloe asked, curious.
"Something to do," Lily replied sleepily, before at last falling asleep.
Knowing it would probably be better just to go to sleep when she was still happy, Chloe closed her eyes and fell asleep before the threatening thoughts of life overwhelmed her.
The train moved fast across the tracks, and Chloe remained silent as it rattled on. Lily sat across from her, reading a book as she often did, not noticing the sad look in Chloe's eye. It had been a fear of Chloe's – to go home and see Ryan, and then having to leave him again. She was surprised with herself, as she had been quite sure it would be near impossible for her to leave him again. But she had kissed him on the forehead, and watched him for a while in his sleep before she left, and that mental image seemed to be what pushed her to it. For that image in her head, was the reason why she was finishing school – to have a proper education that would get her a proper job.
The compartment door slid open and Remus entered. A smile was on his face, and Chloe nearly fell to the ground when she jumped from her seat to hug him.
"Easy there," Remus laughed. "I didn't expect that." He said, squeezing Chloe hard around the middle.
"I haven't seen you for a while – I missed you." Chloe admitted, and pulled away. "How was your Christmas?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.
"It was great for the most part." Remus said while hugging Lily. "How was yours – you never wrote back you know!"
"I was busy, if that's good enough of an excuse." Chloe tried to explain. It was mostly the truth.
"I'll answer for him, no it is not." Lily laughed, sitting down. "Though she has been kind of distracted from letter writing, Remus, I'll give her that." Lily smirked.
Sitting down, Chloe patted the seat next to her. "Come on, sit down and let's have a nice chat."
"You can be such a prat sometimes." Remus laughed.
"Your best friend, the prat!" Chloe corrected, jokingly.
"Right," Remus started, "What ever you want to call it Chloe." He chuckled. "So how was your Christmas – getting back to the original topic."
"It was fabulous. Ryan was all giggles and smiles Christmas day, and he liked every gift he got. My birthday was peaceful – just what I wanted. And New Years was a great way to start a new year." Chloe explained in general terms.
"Did anything of interest happen?" Remus asked, looking curious.
"Can you please just cut to the chase with this questioning, Remus?" Chloe begged, feeling a long-winded conversation coming on.
"I just want to know what Sirius gave you for Christmas." Remus asked, specifically this time.
Chloe rolled her eyes, looking at Lily who was curious now as well. She quickly realized she hadn't even told Lily about the locket, and looked between her two friends. She couldn't admit to this, could she? Then they would want to know what led to the gift. She wasn't sure if she wanted to talk about that, especially after it had become this little thing only she and Sirius knew about. It was there own secret.
"We don't have all day, Chloe; could you just tell us what he got for you, why did he get you a present?" Lily urged.
Chloe sighed – she knew it was pointless. Pulling the locket from underneath her robes, she took it off her neck and handed it to Remus first. Breathing in deeply, she told them what it was. "It's a locket he gave me, with a picture of him and an engraving on the inside." Chloe explained.
"And how did it come about?" Lily asked impatiently, now holding the locket.
"We've been talking for a while now." Chloe admitted.
"Really?" Remus asked, surprised. "He didn't even mention that to James." Remus said looking from Chloe to Lily.
"How do you know that?" Lily asked. "For all you know, James does know, but they're just keeping you out of the loop because your Chloe's friend and they don't want you to get mad because Chloe didn't tell you in the first place." Lily ventured.
Chloe and Remus stared at her incredulously. "You over think things sometimes Lily." Remus commented dryly, and turned back to Chloe. "It's just that normally I figure it out without either of them telling me – but only if both of them know. It's easy enough just because I'll always catch them whispering to each other, and quickly switch the subject and get very loud." Remus reasoned.
"Yes, because I am sure they would sit in there beds and whisper about me like two little gossiping girls." Chloe debated.
"You know what I mean, Chloe," Remus grumbled.
"Who cares, we still don't know how this all came about!" Lily blurted out, handing the locket back to Chloe.
"Like I said, we started talking. We decided after that huge fight Remus and I had, that it would be best to be friends again. Sirius wanted me to talk to you again, saying that I shouldn't let him be the reason why we stopped talking, blah, blah, blah. We're just friends now that is all I can say about it really." Chloe simplified, trying to stay away from specifics.
"So what are you going to do now?" Lily asked, looking worried. "With Ryan and all, it's going to be hard to stay in touch with him after school and keep your secret." Lily elaborated.
Chloe bit her lip, and avoided both her friends' eyes. "That's the thing," she started, and looked up at both of them, "I think I may tell him about Ryan."
Lily's eyes widened, while Remus continued to stare at her as if he had heard nothing. Neither said anything, and Chloe was beginning to wonder if she might have been completely crazy when she made the decision. Putting her hands up in defence, expecting a full out argument against, she went to defend her decision. But to her surprise Remus broke out into a smile, and it looked at if Lily would cry from her happiness.
"That's great Chloe," Remus said, half hugging her. "I'm so glad that you have finally figured everything out, and now you know what you want."
"When are you going to tell him?" Lily broke in, gripped Chloe's hand.
"I don't know… I haven't thought that far ahead yet." Chloe admitted.
"Don't worry about that quite yet, Chloe, it will all come in time." Remus assured her.
Leaning back in her seat, Chloe looked side to side at her friends. She didn't know what to do now, and it all seemed more over-whelming then it had when she had come up with the idea. All she had been thinking about was how Sirius would react, and how to tell him. When to tell him – well that was something she had just never thought about in great detail. It was always 'some day' or 'when the moment is right'. It wasn't good, and she knew that, but at least she was making some kind of decision.
"Can we just change the subject; I am too tired to make any important decisions right now." Chloe pleaded.
Backing away, Lily and Remus nodded their agreement. Feeling as if she could breathe again, Chloe relaxed in her seat, and got comfortable. Now that she had told her friend's all about what had been happening in her mind the last few days, she was eager to focus on something other then her own life.
"So Remus, tell me about your Christmas vacation?" Chloe settled upon, leaning against the glass pane to face her friend, and listened quietly to his story, hoping that the train rid back to Hogwarts would take longer then usual.
Sitting at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, Chloe was quiet as she watched the other students leave the Hall. Dinner had finished, and Chloe was surrounded by her friends. All of them. To her left sat Lily, then Remus, then Kathy. Across from her sat Sirius, then Nadine, then James, and then Peter. All eight seventh years were talking and chattering about their break, but Chloe was silent.
Her head had filled with fuzz, and she was completely oblivious to her surrounding's. She couldn't think about anything, and she couldn't hear anything. On numerous occasions Sirius had tried to start conversations with her, and failed when Chloe would only answer with two or three word answers. So as to fill in for Chloe, or possibly ignore James, Lily talked to Sirius about there break, while Chloe floated in outer space.
It wasn't the matter that Chloe was tired, though she was, nor was it the fact that she was sitting with all of her friends. No her head had filled with fuzz because she had caught Severus Snape staring at her. It seemed he had been watching her for quite some time and she had the feeling they were thinking about the same thing. He knew about Ryan, and he was willing to wait for what ever reason to spring it on James or Sirius.
"We should probably go now." James said to Lily.
Lily stared at him. "Why?" she asked, bewildered.
James' brows rose. "It's time for patrol – we took the first one of the new term."
"Oh," Lily muttered, looking embarrassed. Nodding, she stood up, and James followed. Looking at Chloe she gave a half smile. "I'll see you in the Common room later?" she asked, hopeful.
Chloe nodded, shaking herself out of her reserve. "Yes, of course." She said, and Lily moved away.
"I'll see you later," she said, and Chloe nodded, watching as Lily and James left the Great Hall along with the other students.
"Want to go too?" Sirius asked, looking at the others, stopping at Chloe. He looked at her worried, and Chloe smiled encouragingly.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Chloe agreed, and stood up. Leading the others, Chloe and Sirius walked next to each other out of the Great Hall. Chloe was quiet, not being able to find anything to say to Sirius.
"Are you okay Chloe?" Sirius asked, as they entered the entrance hall.
Chloe looked at him. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"You seemed worried about something." Sirius went on.
"It's nothing you need to worry yourself over," Chloe told him, hoping he would take the hint.
"Okay, I'll leave you alone." Sirius omitted. "I want to know how your Christmas was."
"It was great, Lily visited, and we had fun." Chloe told him.
"Did you get my gift?" Sirius asked, sounding hesitant.
Chloe looked at him and smiled. "Yes, it was really sweet, Sirius. I didn't expect it at all." Chloe told him, and her hand traveled to the locket under her robes. "I haven't taken it off since."
Sirius grinned. "Glad to hear it – I thought you would just leave in its case. You never liked gifts."
Chloe shook her head no. "I couldn't do that to you," Chloe refuted, "Not once I saw how much thought you put into it." Chloe murmured the last part as Remus and Peter came up beside the pair. Kathy and Nadine had both disappeared.
"What are we going to do on this fine day back to school?" Sirius asked, smiling.
"Certainly not pull any pranks, I hope." Chloe said looking to Sirius seriously.
"No, we're not." Remus agreed, looking at Sirius. "Not without James – he'd be furious."
"You ruin everything, Remus." Sirius complained.
Chloe rolled her eyes. "Let's just go back to the Common Room; I'm too exhausted to do anything else." Chloe begged, as she climbed the stairs.
"Fine, have it your way then." Sirius agreed, and looked beside him to Peter, who seemed distracted. "What's wrong with you Peter?"
Peter's head snapped towards Sirius, looking on edge. "I just remembered…" he trailed off, stopping at the top of the steps, Chloe, Sirius, and Remus still walking. All three stopped noticing Peter's behavior. Turning back down the stairs, he shouted something incomprehensible as he went.
"What the hell was that all about?" Sirius asked, looking to Chloe and Remus.
"I'm not really sure if I want to know." Chloe muttered, starting down the fourth floor corridor.
It was too easy for Chloe to get used to having Sirius around, and being free of persecution. She was aware that the most of the student body – mostly those who could not remember Chloe when she had first been at Hogwarts – was watching her and Sirius where ever they went, but she didn't care. She had him as her friend again, and that's all the mattered. But when they entered the Gryffindor Common Room, laughing a joke Remus had made, Chloe could no longer ignore whispering people and the staring girls.
"Let's sit here," Sirius said motioning to the burgundy couch that he loved so much.
"Sure," Chloe said, letting Sirius and Remus go ahead. Much to her relief they sat on the couch, and she had to pull a chair over to sit on. She wasn't sure if she wanted rumors that she and Sirius were back together to be spread around.
"Do you think they will ever get back together?" Remus wondered aloud.
"Of course," Sirius decided boldly. "Eventually Lily will stop being stubborn and see that James has changed."
"He hasn't changed, he's just grown." Chloe corrected, putting her feet up on the couch arm, and stretching out. She looked at Sirius and smiled. "Would you care to enlighten us with what James gave Lily for a Christmas present?" she asked, as she felt the locket slip under her shirt.
Sirius gave a sly smile. "Oh, so Lily hasn't opened it yet. I didn't think she would – it just seems like something Lily wouldn't do."
"And what is this gift that Lily won't open?" Chloe asked, rolling her eyes.
"Please give us a straight answer, Sirius." Remus added.
Sirius rolled his eyes, sliding into the couch a little bit more. "All right, I'll tell you. He got her a promise ring to be her friend for as long as she wants him to be."
"That's it?" Chloe asked, surprised. "That's his sure fire way to win her back? A promise ring, which could basically be considered a friendship ring."
"Yeah, that doesn't so amazing and creative as James was making it up to be." Remus had to agree.
Sirius sat up quickly, ready to defend his friend. "Actually, it's quite creative, I think. It shows that he wants to be her friend, that he values that over anything. It's his way of showing that he'll try and listen, and not talk so much."
"As James is so good at talking," Chloe nodded, realizing that it was probably a good gift. "What does this ring look like?" she asked, having to know.
"It's a white gold band with a emerald in a rose. It has an inscription in ancient runes that says 'friendship is the strongest love' on the inside of the band." Sirius said simply.
"Ah, that is perfect." Chloe grinned, feeling happy just thinking about Lily's face. "She'll love the inscription," she exclaimed, feeling a chill go up her spine as she thought about the meaning. She knew for sure, that when or if Lily ever looks at the gift, she will not be able to deny James any longer. Those words will see Lily through her stubbornness, as it is just the things she needs to hear.
Pulling an old knitted blanket from the chair, and wrapping it around herself, Chloe pulled her legs underneath her, and leaned towards the burning fire. Remus and Sirius were talking about the upcoming Quidditch match, and Chloe lost interest and stared into the red and orange flames. Her head filled with thoughts as she remembered her decision to tell Sirius about Ryan. She had no idea when she should tell him, and wondered if it would be better just to wait until the end of the year, when she wouldn't have to face Sirius at school. But that would cowardly, and she didn't think she could handle waiting that long.
Laughter filled Chloe's ears as Sirius and Remus laughed at something, but she ignored it as she turned to stare at the portrait hole door. It was nearing nine thirty, and in another half hour Lily and James would be returning, with most likely depressed faces and Chloe would be dragged upstairs behind Lily, and then hear all about how James is an insufferable idiot most of the time.
So for half an hour Chloe watched as the door swung open and closed and Gryffindor students of all ages came and went. Some in groups and some alone were carrying books and other things. Probably making last minute stops to the Library to finish any homework they had over the Christmas break before the new term officially started. Chloe tried to think if there was anything she had to do, as she didn't feel like talking much, not that it really mattered. Sitting and staring at the door was something to do, she supposed.
The portrait door opened again, and Chloe hazily waited for the person or people to enter the Common Room. At first she didn't really pay much attention to the girl with fiery red hair, and the boy with glasses and black hair, until she noticed they were holding hands, smiling, and were walking over to where she sat with Remus and Sirius.
"What's this?" she asked loudly, and many of those who were still in the Common Room turned to look at what Chloe was talking about.
Sirius and Remus both turned to look, while Lily and James tried to ignore the whispering that had started in the Common Room as people noticed they were holding hands. It was quite obvious that they were back together, and it took a moment for them to start to explain.
"We decided we should get back together," Lily said simply, though I could see in her eyes I would soon get the full story.
"Is that all you're going to tell us?" Sirius teased, pretending to look disappointed.
James gave him a severe look that Lily didn't see, as she went on to say, "There's nothing else to say."
Leaving it where they did, Sirius decided to back off. It was easy to see that he would get the full story later, whether he truly wanted it or not. Remus, following Lily's need to change the subject wondered aloud where Peter was, as it was past curfew and he still had not turned up in the Common Room.
"We didn't see him on our rounds," Lily said, sounding a little worried. "I didn't think Peter would go off on his own? He has always sort of… followed you guys." She trailed off, feeling guilty.
James and Sirius shrugged at the same time. "He is probably in the Library, or where ever Kathy and Nadine are." James suggested.
Chloe didn't know what to think. She had noticed Peter's distance from the group, but hadn't pointed it out as none of the boys seemed to worry about it. Even now, it didn't seem to phase anyone of his disappearance, and Chloe frowned. She went to say something, to chastise the boys when the Portrait hole door opened and Peter walked, looking tired and ready for bed.
"Peter!" Lily exclaimed, showing her worry more then the others. Peter looked surprised by this sudden outburst, and he looked a little cautious as he came towards the group around the fireplace. Chloe noticed, that the six of them were the only ones in the Common Room. "We were wondering where you were." She added.
Peter looked slightly nervous. "You were wondering where I was?" he asked nervously. "I was… I was just in the library returning a book. Ma-Madame Pince saw me, and she – er- made me stay so she could me a… a lecture." He stuttered on his words, which seemed strange to Chloe.
But nobody else noticed this. Sirius stood up from the couch, and so did Remus. James had turned to Lily to give her a quick kiss, and slowly he drifted over to the stairs leading up to the boy's dormitories. Sirius and Remus both said good night to Lily, and they both looked at Chloe. Everyone was looking at Chloe.
"Are you coming, Chloe?" Sirius asked, looking a little worried.
"What?" Chloe sputtered, and then realizing what he had said, she stood. "Sorry, yeah, I'm coming." Faking that she was all right, she followed the others, falling in the back of the group with Sirius. He put his hand on the small of her back, and slowly pushed her towards the stairs with Lily.
"Get some sleep," he murmured as they went their separate ways. Alone in the stair well, Chloe followed Lily and waited to ask her what had happened with James until they passed the third floor landing.
"Oh, well, he made me open it, the present. I er – well, I was carrying it around in robes with me all day. I kind of – oh I don't know, I guess I just was trying to find a reason to open it. And walking with James…" Lily trailed off, when Chloe started to laugh.
Stopping outside the seventh year dorm, Lily faced Chloe frowning. "What is wrong with you?" she accused.
Chloe calmed down to explain. "You're acting so embarrassed by the whole thing. It's cute."
Lily rolled her eyes, and pushed open the door to the dormitory, and the two of them fell into their evening routine while Lily continued to explain, in more detail, without the embarrassment. "It was almost the end of our patrol, and James had been nothing but good to me. He didn't talk much, and agreed when ever I said we should split up. But when I was on my own, I took out the present from my pocket, and as I turned a corner, I didn't see him and he caught me looking at it.
"He immediately froze, and asked if I had opened it. I told him no, and he asked why. So I told him because I was afraid of what it would be. He didn't understand that, so I explained that I was afraid it would make me regret ending things. He grinned at that, and told me I would never know unless I opened it. I couldn't resist anymore, and when he told me that it made me laugh. So I opened it, and Chloe, it is the most wonderful thing. It was white gold ring, an emerald in the center of a rose, and an inscription that was on the inside." Lily paused to look at Chloe who was already in her bed. She stood near the edge of her bed, gripping the covers she was pulling back. Chloe looked at her friend, with a slight smile, and waited for her to finish.
"It said," Lily grinned, as she sat down on her bed, and showed her right hand to Chloe where the ring was, "iFriendship is the strongest love/i." She finished dreamily, and got under her covers. Lying on her bed, she turned to Chloe, smiling. "Then I cried."
Chloe let out a laugh. "You cried?" she repeated, wanting to know more.
Lily nodded. "I just couldn't believe it, and James took me in his arms and said to me that he was sorry for everything and that if he couldn't be my boyfriend he wanted to at least be my friend. And he let me talk. We went outside, and sat in the courtyard, and he let me talk all about how I was worried about Petunia, how I was afraid that Severus was planning to join the Dark Lord. He didn't get mad, he didn't say anything. He just listened, and told me he was sorry I felt so down. And then we kissed." Lily trailed off again, as his reveling in the moment in her head.
Looking at her, a knot tightened in her stomach. What Lily had, was what she wanted. She wanted to be able to give into Sirius, and have him for her own, just like he wanted her.
Lily looked back at Chloe. "So, have you and Sirius had a moment alone?" she asked, curiously.
Chloe looked at her and shrugged. "No, we haven't. It's probably for the best, because who knows what could happen if we were left alone long enough. We could have a full blow out, and the next thing you know Sirius won't ever speak to me, and Ryan will loose any chance at meeting his father." Chloe answered sadly.
Lily frowned. "Don't think like that, Chloe. Just figure out you want to tell him, and let him know. Sirius isn't one to run away, and even if it turns out bad between you two, he won't just forget Ryan. He's an honorable guy, he'll fulfill his responsibilities." Lily assured Chloe.
Knowing that Lily was trying to make her feel better, she decided it was best not to burden her anymore with her problems. Tonight was to be a good one for Lily, and she had made up with James, and her life was starting to make some sense. Smiling at her friend, Chloe sighed. "Just forget about my problems, don't let them bother you. Your back with James, what you wanted, and everything is going good. Don't let me drag you down." Chloe told her.
"You won't ever drag me down." Lily replied, and Chloe couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Good night, Lily," Chloe mumbled, rolling on her other side.
"Good night," Lily said back, and Chloe heard her roll over as well.
It wasn't long for Lily's heavy breathing to fill the room, and Chloe's eyes to start to droop. Forgetting any worries, or thoughts she had in her mind she fell asleep.