Chapter 11: Belated Apologises

Marlene actually cleaned out her trunk, she found that when she need to think about something or if she was upset then tidying helped her clear her mind.

By the time Lily returned Marlene had started cleaning the windows and dusting down everyone's bed posts.

"Angry, depressed or thinking?" Mary asked as she walked into the room behind Lily. She dumped her bag, then went and sat on Marlene's bed; purposely messing up the freshly made sheets.

"Thinking." Marlene said putting her cloth down.

"His name is Hester Bagcroft." Rebecca announced, entering the dormitory with a twirl and a bow.

"6th year Hufflepuff prefect?" Lily queried.

Mary nodded, "He's my favourite for Head-Boy next year. Bex thinks is going to be our very own Remus Lupin. Care to join the sweepstakes?" She added pulling out a small tin and rattling it.

Lily looked amused, "I'm with you, Mary, Hester is very diligent and is a hard worker."

Mary nodded and made a note on the piece of parchment that lined the top of the tin. "That's two Galleons. Winner gets the lot."

Lily nodded and dug out the money from her purse. She handed it over and Mary turned to Marlene.

"Up for a little wager Marl?"

Marlene shrugged and put two Galleons in. "James Potter."

"What?" Three voices came back at her, all strangely high pitched and strangled.

"His Father is a school governor and is highly respected also I don't know if you've noticed but he is a bit more grown up this year. I've known him for as long as I can remember and I'm sure Lily agrees with me that he has changed and maybe if they give him head-boy it will encourage him to be even more responsible. They gave Remus prefect in a hope to knock some sense into the boys."

"Very wisely said." Mary remarked writing James' name on the parchment.

"What about head-girl?" Bex asked taking a look at the names over Mary shoulder.

"I thought we'd agreed there be no point as most of the school think Lily will get it." Mary stole a glance at the blushing red head.

"So what were you thinking so hard about that made you need to clean?" Bex asked pulling out her pyjamas and slipping into them.

"Defence essay." Marlene said the first thing that popped into her head, she knew Mary and Becky didn't take NEWT defence against the dark arts and wouldn't ask her to elaborate. Her only wish was that Lily didn't question her abrupt exit from the boys dormitory in front of their room mates. Her wish was granted however when the talk turned to Apparation lessons, Quidditch matches and upcoming Hogsmeade weekends.

January soon turned into February. The days were getting slightly longer and a few students had to be treated for sunburn when the sun made rare appearances and reflected off the snow covered grounds.

The topic of Marlene's mysterious boggart seemed to have disapparated into thin air for no-one questioned her and life at Hogwarts was slowly returning to normal.

Apparation lessons were the talk of all the sixth years and Marlene was going to spend the quiet Saturday mornings catching up on homework or a bit of Quidditch practise without the captain breathing down her neck. Ravenclaw was playing Slytherin soon and in March they were having to play either Hufflepuff or Slytherin depending on the outcome of the Ravenclaw match.

The first day of the lessons Marlene wished her friends luck and took her broomstick down to the pitch hoping to get in some flying time before anyone else appeared. It seemed she wasn't the only one to practise that morning.

She exited the changing rooms and was about to mount her broomstick when a lone figure emerged from the opposite changing room. Shielding her eyes from the sun as it broke free of the clouds she though she saw Sirius. Grinning she waved and ran over to him only to realise it wasn't Sirius at all.

Pretty stupid to think it was Sirius when you know he's in the great hall with everyone else your age. She thought bitterly as Regulus Black sized her up as if she was a piece of meat in the butchers.

"What you doing out here McKinnon?" Regulus spat kicking a random bit of grass.

"The same thing you are. Have you got your whole team?" She asked cautiously. If Regulus was holding a training session she might stay and take notes.

The Slytherin Captain shook his head. "Just me. Why aren't you with everyone else?"

Marlene rolled her eyes she was beginning to get tired of explaining herself, in a way she wished her father hadn't got her those lessons for her birthday.

Regulus sighed when she didn't answer, but didn't press any further, he didn't really want her to go running back to Sirius and have him come down on him like a ton of bricks. He decided to be friendly. "Want a race?" He asked thinking that a race on broomsticks could still be classed as training and meant that neither of them had to leave the pitch and spend their time in the library.

Marlene agreed and they spent the better half of the day racing up and down the pitch, they even charmed a golf ball to act like a snitch so they could see who could catch it first. It ended in a tie and when darkness began to set in they gave up and Marlene summoned the golf ball and put it with all the other training materials.

They walked slowly back to the castle not really wanting to be found by their class mates that they had spent the day together.

"Thanks for today." Regulus said, surprising Marlene with kindness.

"No problem it's very hard to practise our roles, sometimes it's best with someone else."

Regulus nodded in agreement and stopped before they stepped out into the open courtyard where they would be spotted. "You go first, I'll double back round and go in a different way, I don't think my friends will appreciate me walking in with you and I value my dignity far to much to be yelled at by my brother."

Marlene let out a small laugh. "Thanks." Something had been bothering her for a while, since the last time she had spoken to the fifth year Slytherin. "Sorry about last time." She muttered, fiddling with a loose twig on her Nimbus 1500.

"When you denied all knowledge of your brother?"

Marlene nodded, "I think it sort of startled me that you knew about my brother, then I realised that he had been in your house so it's really not surprising that you knew about him. That and the fact that he was a seeker, captain and head boy, kind of make him rather well known. So anyway, sorry about storming off like that. I completely understood what you meant when you said he's been round at your house, but I think part of me wants to forget you said that and hope that I just jumped to the wrong conclusion." Marlene didn't wait for Regulus to make any returning comment. "Thanks for training with me tonight, I promise not to go easy on you when we next battle it out, however rest assured I won't let you win."

Regulus cracked a smiled and gestured with his hand towards the castle. Marlene nodded her head and jogged into the courtyard carrying her broomstick over her shoulder she took the steps two at a time and disappeared into the warmth of the castle.

Regulus sighed as he watched her go. He could see what his brother saw in the girl. He also saw on the Quidditch pitch why the Dark Lord was so interested in her. In some way he sort of felt sorry for the sixth year.

"Where have you been all day?" Sirius exclaimed as Marlene slid into her seat at dinner, her hair still wet from her shower. "We came out of the lesson and you weren't in the library nor the common room, we thought you might have sought permission to nip home but McGonagal denied that as well."

Marlene just shrugged unperturbed by Sirius' worried rambles and helped herself to a serving of vegetable curry. "I did a little bit of Quidditch training, only meant to stay out an hour but before long it started to get dark. I'm starving, I missed lunch."

"Quidditch without us?" James asked in mock horror as he leaned over for the bowl of sour cream.

Marlene grinned, "It was great, there was no annoying big-antlered captain breathing down my neck every time I performed the sloth grip roll wrong."

Sirius snorted into his pumpkin juice and James just glared at them. His antlers weren't that big.

Marlene looked up and down the table and was surprised to see Lily sitting next to James, talking animatedly to Remus about next weeks charms essay. She smiled happy that her friend was tolerating James a bit more.

Sirius pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear and leaned forward. "What are you doing for Valentines day?" He whispered tracing a heart on the underside of her wrist.

"Considering as it's a Monday, homework and lessons. However next Saturday I'm spending the day with a gorgeous hunk." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively at James and he almost choked on a carrot. Lily slapped him hard on the back before returning to her conversation with Remus. Marlene turned smiling back to a stunned Sirius. "What do you have planned?"

It was Sirius' turn for payback. "You'll see just meet me in the Entrance Hall after my Apparition lesson and we'll have Valentines Day a few days early."

"Lily your owl is here!" Bex called as Marlene entered the dorm slightly light-headed and out of air.

"Is Marlene there or is she still snogging Sirius in the common-room?" Lily called from the bathroom.

Marlene blushed and walked towards the window to let the owl in. "I'm here." Marlene extracted the letter from the beak of the white snowy owl and watched it fly away before reading the envelope. She snorted when she read the address:

Miss L Evans

Lion Tower

Hogwarts

Highlands

Scotland

IV

Mary looked at the letter in Marlene's hands. "Lion tower?" She quoted.

Lily emerged from the bathroom a toothbrush in her hand. "It'll be Tuney she never remembers which house I'm in only that it's mascot is a lion."

"What about ivy?" Bex asked eager to know why Lily's muggle sister had sent her a letter with stamps on it.

Marlene answered that question. "I V is the start of the postal code for people living in the Inverness area."

Lily shook her head at her sisters antics then ripped open the letter.

Lily.

I suppose I better start by saying: Happy Birthday. It has taken so long to write because Vernon and I are getting settled into our new house. I heard from mother that your seventeenth birthday is a big birthday in your world. I really didn't get you a present other than my belated apology.

Vernon and I think it's best that we cut all ties with you. Not only for our safety but also for the safety of the family we wish to start. We would therefore appreciate it if you or any or your lot didn't come to our wedding.

My apology is purely for what happened at the dinner table on New Years Day. Vernon didn't mean to say what he said, but it was you who forced us out into that cold night where so many things happened.

In more ways than one I hope this letter never reaches you, but if it did then consider this the end.

Petunia

"What a Bi..." Lily shoot Mary a vile look as she re-read the letter.

"My birthday was last Sunday." Lily muttered as she sank on to her bed and crumpled the letter up. The incident had probably traumatised them so much that it didn't really faze Lily that she would probably never speak to her sister again. It was just the fact that Petunia wrote to Lily to tell her that shocked her. It would have been okay if they had just drifted apart, but to be told that they were breaking ties, hurt. Lily chucked the letter in the rubbish bin and put on a brave face as she looked at her friends. "I feel very sorry for any offspring of Vernon Dursley."

Marlene who had met the walrus-like man burst out laughing which immediately lightened the mood. Lily dug out a picture of Vernon and Petunia and before throwing it in the bin with the letter passed it around so Mary and Bex could laugh at Vernon's expense as well.

A/N: I have a confession to make. None of the characters (except Becky and Hester) are mine *evil laugh*