In The Life of Skye Black

Chapter Nine

Author's Note: Website: http: / slytherclawx. webs. com / index. htm (type it in without the spaces) I'm going to make a SKYE website when I get the time… it will include character profiles, and some Author pages (what could have been/almost was, behind the scenes, etc.)

This takes place in mid-to-late July. The previous chapter was 7 July, just to be clear.

XxX

Dad had, luckily come out of his delirium a day later. Hermione had come to stay with us for the rest of the summer because she was in a fight with Ron, and, as such, had no desire to go to the Burrow.

There was a banging at the door. It was noon on Saturday, 13 July, and Dad was still asleep.

"Hurry!" I heard Remus yell.

I opened the door and he looked completely distressed. "Skye, get your parents and tell them to go to St. Mungo's… it's Emmeline."

I nodded and ran upstairs to get Dad.

"Dad! Get up!"

"Wazzat?"

"Remus is here and he said that Emmeline's at St. Mungo's!"

Dad shot up. "Give me five minutes to get ready."

I ran back downstairs. "Five minutes," I told Remus. "Now, what…?"

"She's been attacked."

Attacked. What an odd word to use, especially from him. Unless it really was…

"Hermione, Skye, do you want to go over to the Burrow?"

"No," Hermione and I answered in unison. I was pissed at Ron, too.

"Would you mind staying here? I don't think you'd want to go."

"No," Hermione admitted, "and I've got some school work to do, anyway."

"I want to go," I said.

"Skye, I don't think…"

"There's a war going on, and it's not like I'm not going to see violence."

"Skye, listen," Remus started quietly, "Emmeline wasn't attacked by just any Death Eaters. She was attacked by Bellatrix Lestrange and… and Fenrir Greyback. The healers aren't sure she'll make it…"

"I want to go," I repeated. "It's getting worse every day, I'm not stupid, I'm going to see worse. I need to be prepared."

That was when Dad came running down the stairs. He was jumping them two at a time, and I was surprised that he didn't fall.

"Let's get going."

"Sirius… Skye wants to go, and…" Remus trailed off.

"She should go. But Skye, this isn't going to be pretty."

"I'm going to be an Auror, Dad, I need to be prepared."

"Well… Hermione, you can manage on your own, right?" She nodded. Dad continued. "Aza, you go with Remus, I'll take the Floo with Skye."

XxX

They were right, it was bad.

Martin was almost as bad. He was holding onto this old, beat up stuffed dog and seemed in his own dreamland.

"Remus Lupin?" A man asked.

"Bertram Aubrey."

"Yeah, I'm a Healer…"

"You've seen her, then?"

"Yes. They weren't kidding, it's some of the worst I've seen… The last time I saw anything this bad, I was just out of school, and it was a massacre."

"Aubrey, what brings you here?" Dad asked sharply.

Suddenly, the name clicked. Bertram Aubrey, a boy Dad and James had hexed when they were in school. He was hanging around Lily, from what I could tell.

"I'm a Healer."

"They let you in here?"

"Sirius," Remus said quietly, but firmly.

"If you're still on that I made Lily cheat on James, Sirius… we were just friends."

"Remus, you believe him?"

"Yes, Sirius, I do. And even if I didn't… now's not the time."

"Right," Dad said quietly, then sat down on a chair.

I was confused, as I usually was when talk about James and Lily came up.

"Uh… Dad? Right, well, uh, I've got Arithmancy homework, and I know I should've dropped that class, but I have to go home, and Dr. Peterson's watching the Closed Ward, but she needs to go, says Emily's got an appointment with a Muggle dentist? Granger? And well, there won't be anyone there, so…"

Bertram Aubrey turned around to face a girl I'd seen, but never spoken to. Helen, I think her name was?

"Helene, if you could watch the Closed Ward until Dr. Mancuso comes in, I'll let you drop Arithmancy. This is really important, so…"

She grinned. "Right."

Helene Aubrey. She was a Ravenclaw, if I remembered correctly.

She half-glanced at Martin before walking off to the Closed Ward.

XxX

Emmeline died not long after.

Mum, Dad, and Remus were all upset, but, thankfully, none of them went into a delirium. Martin was out of it. He was living with Lizzy Poe until the Ministry could find a more suitable home.

"Hey, Fred, Ron, want to go to the cinema? Ginny, Hermione, and I are going."

"What movie?" Ron asked looking up from an article on the Chudley Cannons in Quidditch Monthly.

"Gone With the Wind, it's playing again."

"Have you ever seen it?" Fred asked. "Isn't it some sappy romance?"

"No," I said. "I haven't seen it. But, I've read the book. And it's more survival. A girl, Scarlett, she's sixteen in the beginning, and she's bloody rich and doesn't give a care to anyone, but, a war changes all of that, and, basically, her entire life gets flipped upside down. The whole thing spans over twelve years."

"And Ginny, Ron, and Hermione are going?"

"Yes."

Ron opened his mouth, but Hermione walked over, "Are we going to the cinema?"

"Yes," Ron and I chorused.

She smiled. "Ginny's going to meet us there. We should get going. We can't Apparate, or fly, we have to walk."

Fred rolled his eyes. "Just tell me: are there devilishly attractive redheaded twins in this movie? And does a beautiful girl fall for them?"

"I don't know about attractive," I began, "but there are the Tarleton twins, Stuart and Brent."

"I'm in," he said.

Of course he was.

"Let's get going!" Hermione rushed us.

XxX

Hermione, Ginny, and I were all crying by the end. Ginny was sobbing, Hermione had tears streaming down her face, and I could feel tears running down my own face.

Ron and Fred weren't good with crying girls anyway, and when girls were crying over a movie… well…

"Skye? Are you okay?"

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, I'm fine. The movie makes it even that much more…"

"Poignant?" Hermione suggested. "Emotionally moving?"

"Yeah."

There really wasn't any help for Ginny, though.

"Let's… just go home?" Ron suggested.

"The Tarleton twins died," Fred muttered when we were walking back. He and I were in front of everyone else. "But, they were cool!"

I rolled my eyes. "You never cease to amaze me."

He grinned. "And why is that, my dear?"

I raised an eyebrow. "One: the Tarleton twins died how early on? And two: you just called my your dear. Of course, there are loads more reasons, but I don't think we should get into that just yet."

His grin grew wider. "I knew you loved me, Skye."

I laughed. "Your ego is huge, Fred."

"So, what? You don't love me?"

"You're my best friend," I laughed. "'Course I love you."

"Marry me?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I'm not even seventeen, but, yes, I'll marry you!" I exclaimed sarcastically.

"Fine, fine, you don't want to marry me. Wanna go get drunk and have a one night stand so things will be awful and awkward?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Fred?"

"Yeah?"

"Hell no."

He laughed. "Didn't think you'd say yes."

"Obviously."

XxX

When Harry came, I was asleep. But Hermione just had to wake me up.

"Our O.W.L. results should be here today," Harry said dully, "Dumbledore told me…"

Hermione shrieked.

I winced. She was loud, and I was tired. It was bloody four-forty-five in the morning and she'd gotten me up to announce that Harry had arrived about ten minutes ago. "Merlin, Hermione… you know you'll get all O's… maybe one E. One. Ron's the one who should be worrying."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Right, well, I'm going to go to sleep now." He half-ran up the stairs to his room. It really was a shame he had to stay at the Dursleys for the first month of every summer.

"Our O.W.L.s! The results! I know I did just awful, I know I missed that question on the History of Magic O.W.L." Hermione took in a deep breath. "I bet I'll get a T!"

"Mione, you're losing it!" I cried. "You, a T? I don't even doubt that because: it's impossible! You'll pass everything, I know."

I wasn't too worried about my own marks. As much as Snape hated me because of my father, I was brilliant at Potions. Everything else was fairly easy, a fact which, had I been stupid enough to voice it, would have made Hermione shriek (more) and Fred, George, Katie, Ron, and Harry declare me completely mental. I didn't really feel like putting up with that.

"But what if I missed an important question? Or an ingredient in a potion? Or if I messed up a spell…" She promptly began hyperventilating.

"Hermione Jean Granger, the only bloody spell you've ever had trouble with was the Patronus Charm, and they certainly didn't ask us to do that spell during the O.W.L.s. So calm the bloody hell down, already!"

Hermione took in a deep breath. "Okay, okay. Thanks, Skye, I needed that."

"Now, since you won't be able to sleep and neither of us feel like going to the Burrow this early, what do you say to us making breakfast?"

"Yes, that sounds good; it'll take my mind off of current things."

"What d'you know how to make?"

She raised an eyebrow. "I know how to make a lot. What do you do when you're here alone?"

"Call Kreacher."

"You force the poor House Elf to do your cooking?"

I'd been expecting that. "No. I ask him to help me. I think I've given him a total of five orders in the past five years… for some reason Kreacher likes me. And can you keep it down? Dad'll have a heart attack if he knows Kreacher listens to me."

She smiled, obviously in spite of herself.

"Before you ask, no, I will not join The Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare."

She laughed. "I didn't expect you to. Now, what about crepes? I'm sure we could get them done before anyone wakes up."

"Dad and Harry sleep until ten at least," I said, raising an eyebrow.

"It won't take six hours, don't worry. But they're very good, and the only breakfast food that I know how to make."

"Fine. Just tell me what to do."

XxX

Hermione and I were laughing hard by the time Mum came down an hour later.

"Please don't tell me you two got into the firewhisky."

"We didn't, Mum," I assured her. "But the kitchen might be a bit messy."

Hermione grinned. "Yeah, we tried to make crepes, and…"

"Mistress Skye, Kreacher is done."

"Thank you, Kreacher. You can go back, now."

The Elf bowed before Disapparating.

"…How messy is the kitchen?" Mum asked, an amused smile on her face.

"I didn't ask Kreacher to clean it up," I said with a nervous laugh.

"I thought I'd remember how to make them," Hermione said.

I laughed. "I think we need to get showers." Hermione's bushy hair was full of what was supposed to have been the filling, and my face was smudged with the crepe mix.

"What smells so good?"

Hermione and I looked at Mum, surprised. "Dad's up at this hour?"

"Yes, Skye, I am, indeed, up at 5:49 in the bloody morning. Your mum was going to force me to make breakfast, but it sounds like you and Hermione got there before I did."

Hermione knew better than to say that Kreacher made breakfast.

"What's to eat?"

"Crepes," Hermione and I answered in unison.

"Oh… well, whatever that is, let's eat. Harry can wait… he is here, isn't he?"

"Yes, Sirius. Hermione and Skye let me in."

"Bloody hell, everyone's up before six. Here. I think I might faint."

Harry grinned. "I think it just might be a sign of the Apocalypse."

XxX

"What are owls doing here this early?" Dad whined.

"Owls?" Hermione shrieked, standing up. "Oh, sorry. It's the O.W.L. results!"

"How many O.W.L.s did you get, Sirius, Aza?"

"I got five," Dad said proudly.

"And I got seven… I failed History of Magic and Care of Magical Creatures. Astronomy was drilled into our brains before we could talk."

"Strangely, I got the Potions O.W.L.… Slughorn did question how when I was partnered with Snivellus and had to make Veritaserum… the cauldron might have exploded."

"Hermione," I sighed. "You asked why Snape hates me. Look no further than the man sitting next to my mother."

Dad frowned. "It's still not right for him to carry on a grudge."

"Not to stick up for him, but," Hermione began, "Sirius, if Professor Snape had a kid, wouldn't you hate them?"

"Fair point."

My dad really was like an overgrown teenager.

Hermione shrieked again as the owls came in through the window. She offered no apologies, because she was too busy ripping open her letter. Harry raised an eyebrow and tossed my letter to me.

"Oh, no," Hermione groaned.

I looked at her results. "One E in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Ten O's. Probably far better than mine."

I opened my own letter and read it.

Ordinary Wizarding Level Results

Pass Grades:
O- Outstanding
E- Exceeds Expectations
A- Acceptable

Fail Grades:
P- Poor
D- Dreadful
T- Troll

Skylar Lily Black has achieved:

Astronomy………………….……………E
Care of Magical Creatures.………….A
Charms….………………………………..O
Defense Against the Dark Arts…...O
Divination………………………………..A
Herbology………………….………..…...E
History of Magic……….……………….E
Muggle Studies………….……………..O
Potions……………………………………O
Transfiguration…………………………O

"Are–are these my results?" I asked.

"What'd you get?" Harry asked. "I only failed Divination and History of Magic. I got an O in Defense."

"That's not obvious," I said sarcastically, handing Harry my results.

"You did better than me!"

"And I don't know how," I said, seriously.

"What'dja get?" Dad asked.

"She passed everything," Harry said. "The twins and Ron won't be very happy with that."

"Five O's, Three E's, and Two A's."

"Really?" Hermione asked, surprised. I didn't blame her.

"Yeah, and it looks like I'm going to be taking every N.E.W.T. class… except for Care of Magical Creatures and Divination. I don't particularly want to die young, or be told I will."

Dad laughed. "Trelawney still mental, then?"

"Yes," Harry, Hermione, and I chorused.

He laughed.

XxX

Author's Note: this is a VERY long chapter.

Or it just looks like it. It's mainly dialogue, and the O.W.L. results.

Who's surprised?

AND: I have to reread HBP, and, as I'm in the middle of the first LotR book, I can't do it just yet. So, there might not be updates for a while.

Now, suggestions/guesses still accepted

Review.

Or something bad will happen.