Chapter 19 (A Girl Born, A Girl Dead)
"I am going to join the Order." She told him, "Tonight."
"Welcome to the fighting pits, Mrs. Potter." He said. "We invite you in…..unwillingly but we invite you in."
He didn't want Lily to join the fights. But, Lily was an excellent witch and they needed every person they could get.
"Well, I am happy to join you in the war." She told him.
"I wish you didn't have to." He whispered. "I wish you didn't have to watch your back when you walked around. Or Rainie or anyone."
"It's okay. The time will be over and we'll be happy." She stood up. "We'll be happy in these unhappy times."
Holding her hand out for him,
"Yeah, how?" He took it and stood up.
"Because, we have an odd but the happiest family in that house. In your house." She smiled, kissing him. "We have each other."
And, they both disappeared.
James Potter was standing in St. Mungo's almost two years after his wedding. It was odd coming back here. But, he was happy that it was a happy occasion and not the death of a person he once loved. He was going to meet his firstborn today. He had just come straight from work when he had gotten the message that Lily had gone into labor. He would have come quicker but he was on an important assignment, putting in extra work so he could have a couple of days off with Lily to help with the baby. He went outside to send a message to Remus and Sirius to come to the hospital. He was just about to go back inside when a patronus came rushing back. It was a dog and James recognized it immediately. Padfoot.
"Attack at the Hogwarts Express, coming to St. Mungo's with victims. Looking for Rainie."
A message came to James. He recognized the voice. This was no hoax. It was Sirius alright. It shook James's entire world. From being the most happy he grew fearful. His heart raced as he sat in the waiting room. His feet refused to get up. And, as Sirius said the train attack victims were routed directly to St.Mungo's. He watched stretcher after stretcher being taken into rooms with nurses shouting out names to expecting parents in the waiting rooms.
"Mason, Cooper." A nurse shouted. "Darren, Marylin."
Thé stretchers rolled down the hall with people running after them.
"Norman, Sienna."
"Sanders, Kieth."
"Black, Adriana." James's heart stopped.
Sirius Black wasn't here, he was still at the station helping children. He hadn't yet heard about Rainie. James ran towards the nurse.
"If there is any info on Black…Tell me." He said, quickly.
"Who are you?" She asked.
"James Potter."
"Who is this girl to you?" She asked.
"A sister."
"What?"
James had to slip her a galleon to persuade her to give him information that was reserved for family. He assured her that he didn't want to hurt her. He was just a friend ... .a guardian…a brother…..he had no idea how to describe the relationship he had with Adriana Black who was Sirius Black's cousin.
He waited for what seemed like years when two nurses simultaneously came out of two doors on the opposite sides of each other.
"Mr. Potter?" They both said.
James turned around.
"Congratulations."
"I am sorry."
"It's a girl."
"She is no more."
James Potter didn't know what to say. A girl, born. A girl, dead. A Black girl died and a Potter girl was born. A daughter came into his life and a sister left on the same day. He didn't know what to feel. He didn't know what to say. He nodded in the directions of both nurses. One who gave the news he was eagerly waiting for and one who came with a news that he had been dreading from the day his parents died.
He quietly walked into the room where Lily was.
"What's wrong?" She said, immediately after looking at his face once.
He didn't say anything, instead he came towards the baby lying in the cot nearby. He picked her for a brief moment and placed her back. He took a seat in front Lily, his head in his hands as he pulled his hair out. Tears dropped from his chin on the floor. He made no attempt to wipe them off or hide them.
"James?" She was getting worried.
He looked up.
"James! Say something." She panicked.
"An attack was made on the Hogwarts Express about an hour ago." He said. "And, Rainie was in there."
"Oh my God, what happened?" She asked.
"Gone." He whispered. "All gone. She's gone."
"James?" She whispered,
"She's dead." James got up and walked to the window. "Dead. She's dead."
"James…." She got off the bed,and walked towards him.
"It keeps happening…" He turned around. "Why does this keep happening?"
His hands shook. His face and eyes were red.
"I need…..I have to go."
James walked out of the room,
"James…" Tears welled up in her eyes as she sat down on the bed.
James walked past the corridor and saw Sirius coming inside.
"Hey…" He walked through the crowds, "What happened? How's Lily? Did you hear anything?"
"Yeah…a girl."
He hugged James.
"Congratulations, Prongs! You are a father." Sirius's eyes shone, "Where is she?"
"Yeah….I have to tell you something."
Sirius noticed the sad expression on his face.
"Yeah, what is it?"
"It's Rainie." James's eyes shone with tears.
"Where is she?"
James showed him into a room. Many people lay under white covered blankets. James looked one after the other to look for Rainie.
"Here she is." Sirius murmured.
James came towards the bed Sirius stood next to. Adriana Black was lying lifeless on the bed with her wand grasped tightly in her hands, her face frozen into a permanent grin and cuts and grazes over her arms.
"She went down fighting." James said.
Sirius was dumbfounded. He knew to expect this. He was told to expect anything. He had seen James's soul broken into a million pieces at the death of his parents. But, he never knew the pain of losing someone he loved. Rainie was the only family he had. She was the only Black family member who knew exactly how he felt. She was the only Black family member he loved. How could this happen to him? In that moment, he realized how James must have felt when he had nothing. When he gave a promising career to help the orders he came to a house with dead parents. The Potter manor saw its third funeral in six years. Parents. Ex-girlfriend. And a sister. It was kept small. Just the Marauders (with the exception of Peter) Lily and a few other people.
The funeral was concluded very quickly.
