She thought her life was over – but fate gave her another chance, in a world of magic. Now, running around Hogwarts with James Potter and his friends, she's about to make choices that will change the future in ways she never thought possible…
Marauder's Phase
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
Bondage
"So let me get this straight – Regulus helped you get out of the house?" James' hazel eyes were very wide behind his glasses, and he was looking at me with a mixture of disbelief and shock.
I nodded. "That's what I said, didn't I?"
"Well, yeah, but…" James looked uncomfortable. "We all know how Regulus can be…s'hard to trust someone like that, you know."
"Yes, I know," I said, leaning back on my pillow, which happened to be Sirius' chest. "I have no idea why it happened, it just…did."
It was late the same night. Maggie and Reginald – who had welcomed Sirius with open arms upon their return earlier this evening – had already gone to bed and now James and I were talking to our newest family member in his room, and we'd been recounting the events of the day. James was sitting on the window-sill, practically silhouetted against the rising moon, which made me think about the full moon, which made me think about Remus…
"Madness," Sirius mumbled, playing with my hair as we contemplated the things that had happened. "That's what this bloody well is – what the hell is Regulus playing at?" He sounded angry.
I sighed. "Stop it Siri, we owe him a great deal. He could've told your mum that I was there." The thought still chilled me, as I remembered the things that Walburga had said.
"Yeah, and the fact that he didn't is what gets me worried," Sirius told me.
I sat up, looking at him, pretending to be shocked. "You? Worried? The poster child for 'why-should-I-worry'?" I shook my head. "Honestly Siri, don't be such a drama queen. It'll be fine…if I can just figure out what Voldemort wants with me, that is, then we'll be on easy street, no worries." I got up. "Really, it's fine. I'm sure of it."
"You'd better be sure, considering…" James trailed off.
"Yeah, well, I am sure that we have Regulus to thank for my escape this afternoon, and I'm living one day at a time." I replied, making my way over to the door.
"When I get my hands on Regulus…" Sirius muttered under his breath, but I heard him.
I turned around at the door and said: "Well, you've got two whole months to figure out what you're going to do with him, but just remember this – your brother effectively saved my life. That means something to you, I'm sure."
***
Over the next few days, by some unspoken agreement, none of us mentioned Regulus Black or his family. Sirius and I had adapted to life with the Potters, so much that I soon found myself thinking of Reginald and Maggie as more of my parents than my real ones back there had ever been. I could tell Sirius felt the same way (actually, he told me this in secret on Friday night, but I already had the feeling that he did). Sirius and I were seriously starting to freak ourselves out – all these little, unexplainable things kept on happening. For example, I was upstairs in my room when I felt a horrible scalding pain on my forearm – next thing I knew, Maggie was screaming because Sirius had spilt boiling water on his arm. Or the time at dinner when I was thinking that a few Butterbeers wouldn't go astray, and the next thing I knew Sirius had said exactly what I was thinking. We had both written these events off as coincidence, but there can only be so many coincidences until it starts becoming something more…
Something sinister…or amazing.
Either way, I had no idea what it meant until I got the promised letter from Remus, in my second week of life living with the Potters.
It was early in the evening, so the sun was still bright. James, Sirius and I had just spent the day de-gnoming the garden, and I don't think I've ever spent so much time under the shower as I did after that. Now I was wandering across the driveway followed by the Potters' cat, absolutely pointlessly and just pacing for the hell of it. Sirius' motorcycle sat parked in the driveway, and we'd taken a ride on it the day before. It was very exciting, but I felt we both should have been wearing crash-helmets, even more so then when one was playing Quidditch.
"Double, double, toil and trouble," I sang the song from the third movie, attempting to reach all those tricky high notes, and coughed. "Ahem…double, double, toil and trouble, ah yes, that's better, fire burn and cauldron bubble. Double…" And then I broke off, because I'd just spotted a very large, and very awkward shape moving toward me from the sky.
I blinked, watching the shape, as Tabitha (the cat) began hissing, and I was just deciding whether I should run inside or not, when the advancing object moved out of the sun, and I realised what the shape actually was.
Two owls, both holding up a third, soared toward me and, on an impulse, I jumped aside.
The owls landed on the soft patch of grass I had been standing on, and the one in the middle immediately keeled over.
"Oh Haphazard!" I cried, recognising him at once, for his little grey body was heaving with the exertion of it all. He had lighter marking around his eyes, like glasses, and a heart-shape on his chest. Tied to his leg was a letter.
The other two owls I didn't recognise. One was a large handsome tawny owl, which was carrying a huge parcel that looked like a book. The other, a screech owl (I think) had a letter and a parcel both, and was wearing a little red, white and blue tie around its neck. As soon as I'd taken what it was carrying, it ruffled up its feathers, before taking off into the sky. The tawny owl followed in its wake, once I'd relieved it of its parcel, leaving just me and my own owl (who looked like he was about to die) and the cat on the front lawn.
"Oh boy…" I murmured. "Can't carry all of this by myself…"
"May I be of service, Madam White Fang?"
I looked up to see Sirius standing there, smirking at me.
I rolled my eyes. "White Fang doesn't need help, but Emma certainly does."
Sirius laughed. "Lucky I'm here for both of them then, isn't it?"
***
I sat on my bed later that evening, looking down at the mail I'd received. Haphazard perched, resting, in his cage.
I took the letter I'd received from the screech owl wearing the tie first, and discovered the meaning behind the tie straight away when I opened Lily's letter.
--
Dear Emma,
--
I had no idea you could send owls from here in France, but there's a small little alley near our hotel that's full of all these wizard shops! Mum, Dad and 'Tuney couldn't see it, at first, but then when I led them through it they were able to see everything. I imagine there must have been a protective charm on it, similar to the one outside the Leaky Cauldron. I found a place that deals with owl post, and they're all colour-coded depending on where you want your letter to go and how fast. It was all very fascinating, and France has a lot of interesting information about witchcraft as well. I'm finding a lot of material for my History Of Magic assignment. I hope yours is going well.
I hope your holidays are going well. I'm terribly sorry for the way my sister acted at the station last week, it's just how she is sometimes. I'm going to try and talk to her about it later on, when we get back home.
How are the Marauders? I hope they're staying out of trouble, although I know Remus, at least, will attempt to do that. He was so tired during our last few weeks of term, and I do hope he's alright.
Meanwhile, here are some sweets I found in a little French shop, for you and James, and Sirius if he comes over – they're called Le Chat.
You'll see why.
--
Lots of love,
Lily
--
I read the letter silently, and then opened up the parcel from Lily, to find a boxful of cat-shaped gingerbread cookies, decorated with frosted white icing and with such a great taste that I had to remind myself that they were for James and Sirius too.
"Thanks Lily." I smiled, and then turned my attention to the other letter and parcel, both of which were from Remus.
I read the letter first:
__
Dear Em,
--
I hope you're having great holidays, and that Prongs (and Padfoot, if he's there) aren't getting you into any trouble. Trust me when I say, they have a certain talent for it.
As promised, here is the information I have found for you about Bonds. I was going to just send you the information I have gathered, but then I realised that there was a lot more in the book than I could possibly write and still have you waiting patiently. When I realised that Haphazard wouldn't be able to carry the book by himself, I borrowed my father's owl to help. Haphazard flew through a stained glass window on his way out two days ago, and we had to wait for his wings to heal.
I'm terribly sorry for making you wait, but I hope that you find this information very informative.
It was for me.
--
I look forward to seeing you next.
Love,
Remus
--
I read the letter twice, letting my eyes savour Remus' neat, perfect handwriting, and then I opened the parcel containing the book, which was called The Old Magic. The term 'old magic' was very unfamiliar to me, but I realised at once that it must've been how magic itself began. Whatever Bonds were, they must've been from the olden days.
The book itself seemed very old, and I knew that Remus' parents must have owned a copy too, just like the school library. Otherwise, how else could he have sent it to me?
I turned to the first page Remus had marked for me, which was twenty-seven out of four thousand two hundred and ninety-six, leaned back against the pillows resting against the bed-head, and began to read…
.*.
27.
BONDS
From the Old Magic came Bonds, literally meaning 'two or more who are joined together1'. Usually this stemmed from a deep relationship with someone, deep because it came from the Old Magic, which was more powerful than any other kind.
People Bonded together achieved such a status in various different ways, not all reaching the same result. While some Bonds were mutual, deep and ever-lasting, others remained undesirable, leaving one or more members of the Bonded party with a scar on their very soul.
Bonds were, at one time, very greatly researched, as many believed that such a concept involved strong magical powers2.
.*.
392.
TYPES OF BONDS
The different types of Bonds were limited only by the depth in which the relationship between those Bonded went – as the relationship grew, so did the Bond3. Many a witch and wizard have struggled to piece together how such things could occur but, due to the rare nature4 of this form of Old Magic, detailed information is not present.
To further complicate the task of gathering such information, came the ways and means in which these Bonds are achieved. Some could be acquired by use of magic, others by a particular event5, but many Bonded people tended to either ignore or not fully understand the signs of Bondage6.
.*.
393.
To fully begin to delve into the magic of Bonds, one must first look into the emotions and feelings of mankind. Such ideas broken down can begin to be correctly matched up to a particular Bond, and then natures of that Bond can begin to be understood.
EMOTIONS7
Humans are said to feel emotions such as love, hate, lust, friendship, protectiveness, sorrow, happiness, anger, trust, comfort, pride, worship and envy, which can then be broken down into further categories, depending on the nature of such emotions. Emotions tend to overlap with one another, but not necessarily merge. One may feel very close to a friend8, but if that emotion then becomes something else, something much stronger then it can grow to be love9. This is not to say that the emotion of friendship is not powerful in its own right, and there have been incidents where a Bond of friendship will outlast a Love Bond. Also, it should be noted, that while they may seem very similar, Bonds involving love and Bonds involving lust are regarded to be two entirely separate things, and shall be treated as such here.
.*.
762.
BONDED PEOPLE
The belief that Bonded people can only be wizards and witches has been proven wrong, for there have been incidents where Muggles have succeeded in Bonding, sometimes even without the presence of magic. This is not to say, however, that Muggles have any awareness of the Old Magic. But it would seem that the Old Magic does not limit itself to just our kind.
Bonded people depend on the type of Bond that is created. Familiar Bonds include those with friends, lovers, relatives or rivals. An Unfamiliar Bond can occur between complete strangers, and is usually an undesirable form or Bondage. The only cases of these have occurred when one is forced to create a Bond with someone. These usually involve the human emotions of hate, sorrow, anger, envy or lust.
.*.
1000.
FRIENDSHIP BONDS
The Bonds of Friendship occur between people who consider themselves to be friends, and feel the emotions of friendship, trust, comfort, happiness and protectiveness, with friendship of course being the primary emotion. This is, surprisingly, one of the most uncommon forms of Bonds. But, then again, when you think about the amount of people who fall in love with their best friends10, it is amazing that Friendship Bonds survive the emotion of love11. These Bonds are generally only achieved by a particular event that takes place, although achieving the Bond through magic is not unheard of.
.*.
WORSHIP BONDS
Often mistaken at first for Love Bonds, Worship Bonds could be excused for being a 'one-sided romance', with the worshipper often believed to be in love with his/her hero. These bonds can be quite dangerous, because the worshipper will be utterly devoted to his/her hero, but may lose sight of the fact that it is not a matter of love. It is even more dangerous, however, because the hero's commitment to the Bond extends only as far as the regular emotions he/she feels for her worshipper, and may not feel the same way toward his/her worshipper in terms of love and friendship. These are generally achieved by a specific event, causing the worshipper to consider the other Bond member as a hero.
.*.
1001.
PARENTAL BOND
Parents often become very attached to their children if an event occurs when they feel their child is threatened, or may be taken away from them. When a Parental Bond occurs, this feeling is intensified, causing the parent in question to become extremely protective of his/her child. Not much is known on this Bond, as it is almost impossible to distinguish it from the normal feelings a parent has for their child. As such, no one is quite sure if these Bonds are limited just to a particular event, or if they can extend to reach magic as well.
.*.
TWIN BONDS
Perhaps the most common Bond of all, although limited due to the rare occurrence of twins, the Bonds between twins extend to certain acts of telepathy and psychic links. Twins who become Bonded are very close and, if they are witch or wizard, then their magic is intensified whenever they are together, and even more-so when they are touching.
.*.
1002.
POWER BONDS
Perhaps the least known about, and the most frightening of them all, is the Bond of Power. Limited entirely to our kind, this kind of Bond links together powers, sharing magic and strengths, weaknesses and energy. Those Bonded together by power tend to share a little piece of each others soul, and this kind of Bond has been achieved through brutal and sometimes Dark means.
.*.
LOVE BONDS
The most mysterious12 and alluring13 of all the Bonds, by far, would be the Bond of Love14. Those Bonded together by love have a very powerful source of magic on their side, however, this is not to say that this kind of Bond overpowers all others. Perhaps the most amazing part of this Bond, after all, is the fact that it is limited only by the love held by those involved15. As that love grows, so too does the Bond, and the magic of those involved if they are of our kind. Love Bonds are sometimes carried on into Marital Bonds16 and involve the following kinds of experiences: the ability to know when the other is in danger, a strong feeling of protectiveness toward the other involved17, telepathy and a strong sense of devotion18 and comfort. Those Bonded by love are in danger if the one they are Bonded to should die19 and, perhaps even more so, if the one they are Bonded to should reject them20 in any way, shape or form. Those Bonded by love do not like to be apart from each other21. If witches and wizards who are love Bonded are made to fight each other in a duel, then the results can often be catastrophic.
.*.
--
I stopped reading there, after getting up to Remus' hand-written number twenty-one next to the underlined words, and retrieved the second and third pieces of parchment that had come with his letter, hoping for an explanation.
My hands were shaking.
--
1. It is my belief that you are Bonded not only to me, but also to Padfoot. I am not sure of this yet.
2. Strong magical powers seems to be repeated throughout these details – what could this mean?
3. As relationships grow, so too do the Bonds. I believe our relationship is growing slowly but steadily, effectively strengthening our Bond.
4. These are supposed to be very rare – I have never met another witch or wizard who is Bonded.
5. It is my opinion that our Bonding was caused by a particular event. I believe it was the first night we met, when you were able to stop me from attacking our friends, but certain other events may have strengthened it over time.
6. There's no point denying it anymore.
7. Emotions that I feel toward you are love, friendship (to a degree until it extends into love), protectiveness, trust and comfort.
8. I felt a strange connection with you, from the very first moment we met…
9. But, that day in the classroom, when we were practicing the Patronus Charm, I felt it become something more. Whether this was strengthening or changing, I am not sure.
10. I think I've fallen in love with you, but you'd still be my best friend through and through.
11. Our friendship may have strengthened THROUGH love – what do you think?
12/13. Mysterious and alluring are words that I could use to describe what you seemed to me on that first night. Oh, yes, I remember everything that happened. I'll never forget it.
14. Emmy, as you may have guessed now, I think we are Bonded by love, but I could be wrong. I also don't know how any of this involves Padfoot, except to refer you back bullet point one.
--
I couldn't read on after that, because point sixteen was screaming at me. My heart ached, my mind was a mass of confusion. I couldn't think of anything but Remus and I, Bonded by love. I just dropped the piece of paper like a hot potato and ran downstairs, ignoring my nighty, ignoring the fact that what I was about to do was rash and I hadn't thought it through.
Me and Remus…Bonded by love…
I ran into the living room and grabbed some green powder from a pot by the fireplace.
Nobody else was awake.
I dashed into the fire, and threw the green powder at my feet as I said: "Remus Lupin's!"
Bonded by love…
As the green flames enveloped me, and I remembered my last experience with Floo Powder, I just prayed to God that there wasn't more than one Remus Lupin out there. And that the family had connected their fireplace to the Floo Network.
Love…