Hello all, apologies for taking such a long time to update. I swear, I never meant to go on a hiatus but as I mentioned last time, I was studying abroad in London and there were classes and sightseeing and traveling to other countries so I had no time to write or to even really think about writing. I will say that London was amazing and one of the last things I did was to go Warner Bros studios where they filmed the movies and I literally died and went to heaven. I just...there are no words because in an odd way it was emotional seeing the sets and the costumes and some of the molds they had of character and monsters. For example, for those who have never been there, there is James and Lily's house in Godric's Hallow how it looks after October 31st. Some other things that really got to me were the Great Hall, the cupboard under the stairs, Fred's body dummy from the Battle of Hogwarts, and finally, the model of Hogwarts at the end. It truly was magical.

That being said, now that I am back home and I have time for this again, I hope to update every week at the latest though I am going to try my best to update every few days or so. We'll see how that works out. Getting feedback and seeing your comments definitely help with the writing process because as a writer, you know your readers like what they are seeing.

Anyway, I'll keep this short so you can get to this incredibly overdue chapter. Cheers!

Lily found James standing in the middle of the Quidditch Pitch the following morning. Though it was spring, there was a slight chill in the air, forcing her to don a sweater. He was simply standing there, leaning against his broom, his wand outstretched in front of him moving it in the most ridiculous pattern that could not have been a spell. Lily could not figure out what he was doing until she looked up and saw a figure on a broom chasing after a Quaffle that was following James's directions.

As she walked onto the field behind him, Moira was laughing as the Quaffle was always just behind her no matter how quickly she spun. "Wotcher, James," she greeted when she was close enough.

"Evans. Fancy seeing you here." He responded as he let the Quaffle fly off on its own before turning to her.

"I'd imagine you would fancy me being here."

"Imagine? Dear, I'd fancy you being anywhere in my general vicinity."

"Charming as always."

"I aim to please."

"It's a good think for Gryffindor that your aim's a bit better when throwing a Quaffle."

James feigned being wounded but laughed all the same, Lily joining in. "What about you Lily? Ever have any Quidditch aspirations?"

She shook her head, "No. I'm not a fan of heights."

"You must hate Remus then. Tell me, how does it feel doing Rounds with a giant?"

"I don't know. I'll have to ask him how it to share a room with a porcupine." Before James could react she reached up and messed up his hair even more.

James stared at her dumbfounded. "Um…yeah…that's good."

Lily burst out laughing, "I think I've done it, I've broke the infamous James Potter!"

James just laughed along with her, ruffling his hair a little bit more.

"Truly, why are you here? Not that I'm complaining but this isn't your usual location."

Lily answered simply, "I heard Moira was getting released from the infirmary today. When I went to visit they said that you came to get her first thing this morning. I figured that you two would end up here at some point."

James nodded, accepting her logic, "Are we that predictable?"

"I don't think so. I think I just know you well enough."

"Perhaps."

The stood in silence while watching Mary chase the Quaffle of the other end of the field.

"I feel so useless," Lily admitted. James voiced his disagreement so Lily elaborated. "There is more I could be doing. I'm muggleborn. I am the person they deem not worthy of magic and life. I should be out there fighting, doing something. Instead I'm patrolling the hallways giving out citations to Ravenclaws sneaking out after hours to get a pudding from the kitchens. I feel useless."

James practically heard Dumebledore speak to him and tell him not to do it. He heard Ursula's threats for endangering her friend. He could only imagine what Remus would do to him when he found out that Lily knew before him. He even had a moment of self-doubt if he should pull her into the world he was currently residing in. It was gone in barely a second as he realized how stupid he was being.

"Lily, there's this thing happening. It's not something we're supposed to tell other people about but…"

"We?" She questioned.

"Originally it was just supposed to beUrsula, Sirius, and I but Ursula told Ben as well," he clarified.

"Not Remus, Elyse, and Peter too?" Lily questioned incredulously. What was so serious that James hadn't even told half the people he trusted above all others? More specifically, what was it that he would then tell her?

He finally met her eyes, "There's this organization called the Order of the Phoenix."

"And what does this Order of the Phoenix do?"

Lily watched before her eyes as the prankster and carefree boy she had known the last six years disappeared.

"Lily, we're going to fight the Death Eaters. We're going to kill Lord Voldemort or die trying. End of."

Without a moment's hesitation, Lily said, "I'm in."

"Damn, that was quick. Are you sure about that?"

"Did you hesitate?" Lily questioned.

He shook his head.

"Exactly. If someone hesitates stopping that man then they aren't the kind of person who should be fighting him."

"You might be scared of him. He has killed hundreds already. I can understand the fear."

"A few days ago you said that people who pureblood and not doing anything disgusted you. Now you're saying that you understand why they wouldn't want to fight," Lily asked.

He shrugged, "I understand. I was angry that people like Andromeda Tonks and the Weasleys weren't fighting. They are all purebloods and while the Weasleys aren't particularly wealthy and Andromeda got disowned from the Black family, they still carry significant weight in pureblood circles. But then I realized something earlier today when Ursula got a letter from Molly. She was exhausted from having Minister White in her head and going through it all again but she still opened the letter. Molly had twins last week, two boys named Fred and George. Ursula's their Godmother and some uncle on Molly's side is their Godfather. Andromeda and Ted have a daughter Nymphadora who just turned three if I remember correctly."

"They have children," Lily interrupted, realizing the same thing that James did this morning.

He nodded, "They can't join the Order because if they do die, they are leaving their children behind without parents. I can't imagine making that choice, fighting or being a father."

"I think you would still fight." Lily commented.

"What makes you say that?"

"I would rather die for my child than let my child grow up in a world where people would want him or her head because they have me for a mother. I think you're similar. You're a fighter, James. You would never let anyone do the fighting for you."

"You would fight? Put your life on the line?"

"James, my life has been on the line the second I made flowers grow in the palm on my hands."

"And your parents? Petunia? Do they know what is going on?" James couldn't imagine being the only one in his family that was magical; no one to relate to or share concerns.

Lily shrugged, "My parents are enamored with magic. They already have a list of things they want me to do once I get back at the end of the semester. I was never able to do magic at home but I've told them stories and shown them pictures and my school books. From what I understand of Arthur Weasley, my parents are essentially the reverse of him. They cannot get enough of magic. Petunia is exactly the opposite. She hates magic and I think, to some degree, me."

"No one could hate you," James teased, bumping her shoulder.

She laughed and shoved back, "Pretty sure there's an entire war being fought over hatred for people like me. And I am partially to blame for why Petunia doesn't like me. I told you about the letter but I didn't say that I found it because Snape and I went through her room before she left and found a letter she wrote to Professor Dumbledore practically begging to be let into Hogwarts. Obviously that didn't happen and when I accidentally let it slip that I found the letter, it's been downhill. She's dating some bloke named Vernon Dursley. Mom says that they are serious and thinks that Tuney is going to marry him. Dad said he is more boring than watching white paint dry; painfully boring, ordinary, and normal. He's everything Petunia wants."

"Sounds dreadfully dull," James grimaced.

"Terribly so."

Commotion behind them ended their conversation as the Ravenclaw team came onto the pitch for their practice. The game next weekend would determine if Ravenclaw or Slytherin would face Gryffindor for the House Cup. James whistled, summoning the Quaffle back down while Moira chose to remain in the air. She waved at the duo before flying back towards the castle.

After exchanging pleasantries and a few pointers to the Ravenclaw players that were there, James and Lily started their trek back towards the castle.

"You never explained what the Order of the Phoenix does specifically or when they meet." Lily pointed out.

James nodded and was about to start explaining when Lily nonverbally silenced him. "How about we meet at Hogsmeade next weekend and get some butterbeer before heading over to the Quidditch shop. I'd imagine I'd need a good broom once I graduate. I'd like to brush up on my flying skills before term ends."

When he responded, James would swear up, down, left, not right but diagonally, and around that the pitch of his voice when he agreed to the proposition was because of the silencing spell. Lily would later tell the story to Ursula and Elyse the tale that James's voice cracked so terribly that he might as well have been a twelve year old boy. James accepted the teasing since the promise of spending the day with Lily was too perfect that he dared not do anything that would anger anyone.

"Fantastic," James squeaked, flinching when his voice broke. After clearing his throat and turning an impressive shade of red, he offered up his own proposition, "If you don't have any plan tonight, Elyse has an idea that will be good for all of us, I think. Want to join?"

After she agreed, James dramatically offered Lily his arm. She looped hers through his and thus began their trek back to the castle (that is, after making a stop at Hagrid's Hut because they heard a questionable explosion that ended with them staying for two hours and suffering through rocks that were masquerading under the assumed name of biscuit).

Elyse found Ursula easily. She didn't even need to consult the Map because the door to the balcony was open. Since Ursula was the only person who could do that, it was a very simple search. Elyse grabbed their blankets and pillows from their room and dragged the fabric up the stairs while keeping the bag that contained the pudding from the kitchen.

"Hey, Muse," Elyse greeted as entered the balcony.

Ursula was sitting up on the ledge of one of the windows. One leg dangled precariously off the edge while the other was bent so that her arms were hugging it. Initially her head had been tilted back against the stone with her eyes closed but she didn't seem surprised by Elyse's presence.

"What's up, Lucky," Ursula offered in greeting.

Elyse dropped her bundle to the ground and moved to sit on the opposite corner of the large window. She mimicked Ursula's position for the most part but instead of dangling her leg off she crossed both of them in front of her.

"It's a beautiful view. Spring's finally here," Elyse commented as she looked out into the beautiful forests.

Ursula nodded, "Too beautiful sometimes. I can never get over it, growing up in London. Then to see this…"

"It's different from home," Elyse added. "The colors 'n stuff. I can't imagine compared to growin' up in teh city."

"I don't even really know. We didn't really get out much. Everything was about going to visit other pureblood families in their mansions. I remember when Lucius Malfoy's cousin got married to some Blaze bloke. It was hosted on Malfoy Mansion grounds. There were white peacocks roaming around. The flowers were the brightest, purest colors. It didn't look natural. The inside was dark but undeniably beautiful, immaculate, but still sinister. It was like home."

"Yeh don't talk much about yer home growin' up." It was a statement but the question behind it was blatant.

Ursula snorted, "What's there to talk about? I have a two brothers who were my only sanity, my parents hated each other and me and my twin, and I was surrounded by people who were constantly disappointed in me. What's there to talk about, especially since they were all right about me?"

"How?"

That caused Ursula to pause a moment. She had been expecting Elyse to refute it or to argue with her that she wasn't really like her family. But instead she just accepted what Ursula thought.

"Well, look at what I've done. I've hurt people. I've done things that people like you or Remus would never think of doing to other people. All because I was angry and my default instinct is to cause as much harm as I possibly can."

Elyse nodded, "Yer not wrong but yer not right either."

Ursula rolled her eyes, "that makes absolutely no sense."

"Yeh seem to think the worst of yourself. All teh time. Doesn't it get exhaustin'? How is it yer scared of yer own magic? Ye've always known yeh had this power. Imagine me, this wee little lass who was floatin' books 'n seein' teh future! I was bloody terrified of me magic 'cause I didn't know what was goin' on. Yeh knew but yer still scared."

Ursula paused as she tried to put her thoughts together. Elyse didn't press for an answer and it was a full ten minutes before Ursula decided to respond.

"One of the first times I used magic as a child I made a bunch of trees grow in the park from mere saplings to study trees across the way because some muggle children were talking about how they wanted to make a swing. I watched from behind some bushes because contrary to what you may believe, I was painfully shy around muggle children because I didn't understand them. They were like weird…animals for a lack of a better term, that I had never observed before. So I watched as one ran home and got some rope and another went and got a plank. They quickly tied up the swing and they were having the best time. So I decided that I wanted to join. When I went over, they were horribly cruel to me. Looking back it made sense. They were all in summer clothing and here I was in all black with a robe on with hair that looked like a bird's nest. I was strange and they didn't like that. I got angry. I thought that my parents must have been right about how muggles are worse than us. I was so angry that I didn't realize as I stormed back to Grimmauld Place that I set the ropes of the swing on fire. The little girl on it flew through the air and landed badly on her legs and had burns on her hands where she was holding the rope.

"I felt terrible. I rushed back and before any of the other kids could leave to get help, I put my hands on her leg and I fixed it before grabbing her hands and doing the same. They rightfully had no idea what was going on when she screamed as the bone popped back into place. A boy, her brother I think, pushed me over and punched me. But once his sister stood up and was fine they seemed to understand that I helped her. They thought I was magical and asked me to play with them the rest of the day. It was the happiest day of my life. I was invited to play the next day. When I told them I had two brothers, the kids said that Sirius and Regulus were allowed to join. I went home ecstatic. I stupidly told my mother. That was the first time she beat me."

Elyse sat in silence, horrified at the story that was spilling from her best friend's mouth. She didn't say anything. What could be said to that? Nothing.

The worst part was that Ursula wasn't finished.

"Sirius and Regulus heard Walburga and heard my screams. At this point they were still getting along. They ran to the third floor where there are a bunch of family heirlooms. Sirius and Regulus grabbed some fancy dinner plate that belonged to some great-great-aunt from the 1700s. They threw it out a stain glass window. Walburga ran up the stairs to hurt them but in panic, Regulus made himself invisible and couldn't figure out how to undo it so Sirius got the entire blame. In his anger, Sirius made the drapes catch on fire. Regulus was unknowingly hiding behind them. He thankfully wasn't burned since he ran out as quickly as possible but he had some blisters on his arms from the heat. He was six and Sirius and I had just turned seven. That is one of my earliest memories of magic."

"Damn."

Ursula nodded and looked back out the window, "Yeah, damn pretty much sums it up."

"On a completely different topic, I saw Prongs earlier 'n he said that yeh got a letter from Molly. Did she have teh babes?"

A wide smile crept up on Ursula's face. She reached into her pockets and dug out the envelope, "Yeah. Fred and George, born on 1st April. Gingers, twins, and born on April Fool's Day; it was perfect for me to be named Godmother. Look, they sent a picture."

Elyse reached over and took the offered photo. The twins were obviously hours, maybe days old. They were perfectly identical except for the two different colors of yarn wrapped around their wrists. One had green and one had purple. "They're precious! Which's which?"

Ursula snorted, "According to Molly, the purple is George and green is Fred. In the post script, Arthur swears that they are somehow switching the colors already because they won't move the twins but George will be on the right when they leave them for naps but then George will somehow be in the other crib. Molly post-post script says that the boys are just hours old and are not using accidental magic just yet. Arthur's post-post-post script informs me that they are already making nappies disappear and Charlie's favorite dragons somehow ended up surrounding Fred in the middle of the night."

"They already sound like a handful, like another pair o'twins I know."

With a burst of laughter, Ursula dipped to the side to grab a pillow and threw it at her friend's face. This began a pillow fight that last lasted nearly half an hour. Four pillows were sacrificed to the window, three were doomed to explosions, and only two made it out completely unscathed. Out of breath, they collapsed on the nest of blankets that Elyse had brought up with her.

Once they were able to breath normally again, Ursula asked, "You know, I've been meaning to ask, how's your head?"

"Fine." Was the short reply.

Ursula didn't say anything further instead just nodded, "We'll go to Madame Pomfrey in the morning to check it out."

"Who said that they're back?"

"The fact that you keep on rubbing your head and you look like you want to kill James at practice every time he blows the whistle."

Elyse conceded defeat and from her bag pulled out a bottle of butterbeer and two glasses. After topping them off, the girls clinked their drinks together before leaning back. The sun had set and the stars were absolutely stunning. The sound of the water from the Lake was calming.

"Are you okay after this morning?" Elyse asked softly nearly an hour later.

Ursula nodded, "yeah, I'm fine."

"You 'n Ben gonna be alright?"

"You tell me," Ursula joked, "you're the one that can see the future."

"What is this about the future I hear?" Sirius taunted as he landed on the balcony. Quickly following him, the rest of the boys flew up on their brooms, each carrying a variety of things. James had a basket of something from the kitchens, Remus has more pillows, Ben had his violin, and Peter had what looked like six paper lanterns. Sirius, on the other hand, had six bottles of butterbeer and firewhiskey held against his body.

Ursula raised an eyebrow, "Seriously?"

Sirius snorted before placing the bottles safely on the ground and then diving into the blanket nest (but mostly landed on top of his twin), "You should know dear sister, I have never been anything but."

"Except that week after we were born that Walburga and Orion called you Phineas."

"Piss off," Sirius shot back.

James nearly lost it, "Phineas?! That's the best!"

"James, I swear—"

"What was that Phineas? I didn't hear you over the pretentiousness of your name."

"Prongs, I'm going to bloody murder you if you don't stop." Sirius near growled back.

James just continued to laugh, "A bloody murder, a bit messy, don'tcha think?"

"That pun was horrible and you should be ashamed of yourself."

"I would have thought that after six years of knowing me you would know that I have no shame."

"It's more like an abundance o' arrogance than lack o' shame," Elyse chimed in.

Remus decided to interrupt at that moment and said, "Lily went to go grab Alice and Marlene. They should be here in a few."

"Brilliant," Ursula said. She stretched her arms upward and grabbed onto Peter's hands to pull herself up. He made to release her hands once she was on her feet but Ursula instead wrapped her arms around him. During the hug, she whispered, "Thank you for being there that night. Really, Peter. Thank you." After a quick kiss on the cheek, she released him and walked over to where Ben was trying to discreetly enchant the violin to play on its own.

She nudged his shoulder gently to get his attention without scaring him. Judging that he nearly jumped a foot in the air, Ursula was able to surmise that she had failed miserably in her intention, "Wotcher, Ben."

"Ursula! Hi, how—are you—did my dad—what I mean—"

Ursula laughed for what felt like the first time in years. She threw her arms around Ben and just held him as he took a few shuddering breaths.

Once he was able to speak coherently, he said, "Dear God, Ursula, I am so sorry. I couldn't stop thinking that they hurt you and I panicked and Sirius and I just reacted. I'm so sorry. I love you, my darling."

"And I love you, my idiotic boyfriend. I can't always assume that you'll be there when something like this happens and you can't assume that I'm going to end up like Annabelle." She said simply.

"Now wait a tick, I never said—"

The look she gave him silenced him midsentence. "Ben, do I have to spell it out for you? We were both sorted into Gryffindor. She was a chaser and I'm a chaser on the Quidditch team. Quite literally, I am wearing her gear on the field. We both dated ginger haired fools who loves us more than we probably will ever comprehend. She joined the Order; I plan on it. It was a comment your dad made earlier. He said that sometimes when he finds out some of the not so good things I've done, he would swear that he has matching letters for things Annabelle had done. I never really realized the similarities between us. And you lost her and that destroyed you."

"I can't lose you," Ben admitted. His voice cracked as he continued, "It may be lame and James and Sirius may tease me forever but I am nothing without you."

"That's stupid because you are something without me just like I'm someone without you. We aren't halves of a whole or any rubbish like that. We are two whole, complete people who have chosen to be complete as possible together. And please, let's not start the 'I don't deserve you' crap. We would run circles around each other giving reasons why the other deserves better."

Ben laughed, "Really now? So what can be said about our love?"

Ursula shrugged, "If it's true love then I don't think nothing needs to be said." She leaned over and gave him a kiss. "You know I never believed in love like this growing up. With arranged marriages and my parents for examples, I never thought I would never find someone I truly loved and who loved me in return. If Annabelle's life taught me anything it's that we're at war and life is too short to not act. So I'm going to be selfish and not let you go no matter how badly you mess up because trust me, I've probably done worse."

Gently pulling her into his arms, Ben kissed the top of her hair, "That would imply that I would let go first. And let me tell you something about me, Miss Ursula Black, I like to hold onto the things I care about."

"You better rephrase that sentence so that I'm not referred to as a 'thing' quickly or I may just step of your foot," Ursula grumbled.

Feeling the weight of the last few days fly off his shoulders with the familiar banter with his beloved, Ben immediately responded, "Anything for you, love. I love to hold onto the people I care about. Why do you think I still put up with Prongs during Quidditch season? If I followed through with half of my plans, we wouldn't be on speaking terms."

Ursula laughed, knowing how intense James could get during practice and how often Ben would bite the inside of his cheek to not make a comment. "At least you're usually on the other end of the field. I play the same position as you."

"You chose to be chaser though. You literally were asking for it."

Ursula swatted him on the arm before moving away from him. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Well, I think that the girls have taken too long so I'm going to go check on them. Do you need anything from your room?"

After replying with a negative, Ursula said, "You know, no matter how many similarities there are between Annabelle and I, I think there is one major difference."

"And what would that be?" Ben decided to humor her.

With a smirk that sent his heart racing and a quirk of the eyebrow that made him fear for his sanity, she leaned forward and whispered, "I would say yes the first time," against his lips. With a wink, she spun on her heels and was gone to check in on her roommates, leaving Ben standing there with his jaw unhinged and his mouth feeling like it was full of cotton balls.

Sirius walked over and clapped him on the shoulder, all the while munching on a bag of pretzels, "Still in the dog house with the missus?" He asked.

Ben gulped. "I think," he admitted, still very much in a state of shock, "I think that Ursula just agreed to marry me."

And that was how Sirius (formerly Phineas) Orion Black, heir to the noble and most ancient house of Black, brave and daring Gryffindor, and fearless Marauder nearly met his unfortunate demise by choking on a pretzel.