Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and events from J.K. Rowling's wonderful Harry Potter books. I am writing this for my own enjoyment and hopefully for the enjoyment of readers. Anything you recognize belongs to JKR. The rest belongs to me.
Chapter 18: Holiday Happenings
The students who were going home for the holidays took the Hogwarts Express. They spent their time laughing and talking about the adventures from the first term. As the train pulled into King's Cross the students bundled up and scurried off the train to meet their families. A ticket agent was waiting at the gateway to make sure the coast was clear to pass through.
When Lily passed through she thought at first her parents had forgotten to pick her up. Then she heard someone cry out to her right and saw her mum running toward her. Lily was scooped up in a tight hug and she was overcome with the scent of roses. When her mum finally let go she felt herself getting crushed in her fathers arms.
"Mum! Dad! I missed you so much," cried Lily.
Her parents beamed down at her. "We missed you too, honey. We got all of your letters. Fascinating system, using owls that is," her father said.
Lily looked around. "Where's 'Tunia?"
Her parents gave each other a quick glance before replying, "Oh, she's coming down with a cold so we had her stay in bed. She really did want to come though."
Lily got the impression that there was something more, that her parents were not being completely truthful. She decided to let it go and enjoy being back. To her left she heard loud laughter and when she turned she saw Potter and Sirius being greeted by what must have been Potter's mum and dad. Potter looked just like his dad except his dad's hair was much neater.
Mr. Potter turned and put his arm around his son and started to guide him out of the station. When Lily saw his right hand a beam of sunlight caught a ruby that was set in a ring. The red gleam caused a stir of excitement in the pit of Lily's stomach. She couldn't explain the feeling and yet she couldn't tear her eyes away from its source. As the Potters and Sirius walked away the gleam disappeared and Lily soon noticed her mum tapping her on the shoulder.
Lily shook her head and turned to her mum. "Did you say something, Mum?"
Mrs. Evans looked toward Potter and Sirius' retreating figures and back at Lily. She smiled and said, "Honey, you haven't heard a word I've been saying. Who are those boys?"
Her dad jerked his head around and said, "What boys?"
Lily shrugged and said, "James Potter and Sirius Black. They're friends from Hogwarts. Can we go now? I really want to see 'Tunia."
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Sirius was on edge because he was about to meet James' parents however you could never tell by looking at him. He was very good at playing cool. Still, James' parents must have heard of the Blacks and he knew that there would be some discomfort at having one amongst them for a family holiday. When they walked through the barrier Sirius saw a couple who had to be James' folks approach them. They each gave James a hug as Sirius stood back. He felt a pang of jealousy at the compassion they showed their only son.
Soon James' mum looked up and noticed Sirius standing behind James. She stepped towards him and smiled warmly as she took his hand. "You must be James' friend, Sirius. James wrote to us and told us all about you."
Sirius sent James a fleeting glance and saw him smirking. James said, "Don't worry, mate. Only told her the good stuff."
Mrs. Potter glanced at her son and grinned before turning back to Sirius. "Don't worry, I figured that you are probably a troublemaker like my son. We love him, anyway. We will be delighted to have you with us for Christmas."
Sirius hesitantly spoke up. "Did James tell you about my family?"
Mr. Potter answered, "Yes, he mentioned you are a member of the Black family."
"Does that bother you?" Sirius asked.
"I may have issues with some members of your family but I do not judge you based on that. If you are a friend of my son then you are certainly welcome in our house," Mr. Potter replied.
Sirius finally felt like he could relax and was able to turn on the charm. "I'm looking forward to the visit, however I should warn you that even though you're happy to have me in your house I'm sure James won't be." He noticed James looking at him questioningly. "That is, I'm sure he won't be happy when I tell you about all the trouble he's gotten me into, the mischief maker he is."
They all laughed and Mr. Potter turned and put his arm around James to guide them out of the station. On the way Sirius turned and saw Evans staring at James. He paused as he noticed the expression on her face. It was odd, really. He was about to wave at her when her mum tapped her on the shoulder and started speaking to her.
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As soon as the Evans' returned home Lily rushed up the stairs and into her sister's room. "Hey, 'Tunia! Are you in here?" she gasped as she threw open the door.
Petunia was sitting up in her bed reading. Her nose was bright red, her eyes were watery, and there were tissues scattered about the bed. When she saw her sister rush in she didn't know what to feel. She was happy to see her yet it had been different not having to be live Lily's shadow for the past 3 ½ months. She had felt more important and with that came a bit of confidence that allowed her to make a few friends. Now Lily was back, her sister who had been her best friend and confidante, yet it was only for a short visit before returning to that strange place.
Lily raced to the bed and flung her arms around Petunia who couldn't help but hug her back. After a moment Petunia shoved Lily aside and grabbed a tissue before letting out a string of high-pitched sneezes. She turned back to Lily who was frowning.
"Mum and Dad told me you were ill. How bad do you feel?" asked Lily.
Petunia wiped her nose and cleared her sore, scratchy throat before replying, "Pretty miserable."
"Oh, that's too bad," Lily said shaking her head. "I was hoping we could go out and do stuff, like seeing movies…just like we planned before I left for Hogwarts."
Petunia made a face at the mention of Hogwarts. She looked at her younger sister more closely. There was something different about her. Something that must have been due to that freakish stuff she studied. Why did Lily shake her head like that? Was it her fault that she was ill and couldn't go out? "Well," she said stiffly, "I'm sorry I ruined your plans."
Lily noticed her sister's mood and shakily added, "Well, that's okay. We can hang out here and spend time playing games or chatting."
Petunia's eyes watered a bit more before she laid down and turned away. "I'm a bit sleepy. If you don't mind, I would like to be alone." Lily stared at her sister a moment before getting up and leaving the room.
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The next morning Lily heard her mum calling to her to wake up. She forced her eyes open and turned her head to the clock on the nightstand. It was 10 o'clock. Lily was surprised she had slept in so late. Usually she was up by 8 o'clock. She sat up with difficulty, as her head felt like it weighed 100 pounds. She rubbed her temple and went into the bathroom to shower and get dressed. When she came downstairs her head throbbed as she heard the loud wail of the vacuum cleaner coming from the living room. Her mum turned it off as she saw Lily enter the room.
"Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?" her mum asked.
"Yes, I can't believe I didn't wake earlier," Lily replied with a frown.
"You were probably tired from the trip back and coming home after being away for so long." Mrs. Evans turned toward the fireplace.
Lily looked at the carpet and notice some soot had rubbed into the carpet by the fireplace. "What happened here?"
"I'm not sure, really. When I came downstairs this morning I found soot all over the floor here. Probably was just a bird flying down the chimney," she replied. "Why don't you go have some breakfast? I left you something on the counter." She turned back to the vacuum and with a roar the machine started to inhale the soot.
Lily trudged into the kitchen and grabbed the breakfast her mum had left her. She picked at her food as thoughts began to gnaw at her. There was a strange feeling that had overcome her when she saw the soot on the floor. If a bird had caused the mess then why did that bother her? It was not as if she had caused the mess.
Her father strolled into the kitchen and kissed Lily on the forehead before sitting down at the breakfast table. "Decided to sleep in today, eh?" he asked with a smile.
"Yeah, I guess so. Usually I don't sleep in so late," Lily said thoughtfully.
"Well, you were up pretty late last night," he said.
Lily turned to her father and asked, "What do you mean?"
"Well, I was in bed, then went into the hallway on my way to the bathroom when I heard a noise. I poked my head out and saw you coming up the stairs. I whispered out to you but you didn't hear me and walked into your room. I assumed you were up getting a glass of water," he added.
Lily nodded and gulped down her orange juice. She could have sworn she went to bed at 9 pm. Had she been up later? Maybe she had been thirsty. If she had been she couldn't remember.
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James and Sirius were forced out of bed early the next day because they were leaving to go to James' uncle's house for the rest of the holiday. At breakfast James noticed a frown on his dad's face as he read the newspaper. "Alright there, Dad?"
Mr. Potter glanced up at the boys and said, "Things are becoming more tense at work. This dark wizard who has been terrorizing Muggles has been gaining more supporters. The attacks are becoming more frequent."
"Do you have any idea who this dark wizard is, Dad?" asked James.
Mr. Potter eyes tensed before he looked at his son and said, "We're working on some leads."
Mrs. Potter frowned and said, "You boys had better hurry up or we'll be late. You know how your Uncle Louis is about schedules."
The Potters and Sirius flooed over to Louis Prewett's house. As soon as Sirius arrived he saw a man and woman who were a little older than Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Standing off to the side were two boys Sirius recognized from Hogwarts. He remembered seeing them play on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. He couldn't quite place their names until James arrived and started the introductions.
"Sirius, these are the Prewetts - my Uncle Louis and Aunt Elizabeth and those two," he said pointing at the two boys, "are my cousins, Gideon and Fabian. They are in their sixth year at Hogwarts and are in Ravenclaw."
As Sirius greeted them something suddenly registered. "I remember you! I saw the look Dumbledore gave you during his speech at the feast. You guys were the ones who set the flobberworms on the old Care of Magical Creatures teacher!" he said in awe.
Gideon and Fabian exchanged knowing glances before shrugging and grinning.
"Any relation to the Head Girl?" asked Sirius.
"Molly?" said Gideon. "Nothing close. I think she's a distant cousin or something like that."
Elizabeth Prewett finally spoke, "Boys, why don't you show James and Sirius where they'll be sleeping? I want to greet Joseph and Marianne when they arrive."
As Gideon and Fabian led James and Sirius upstairs Gideon asked, "Was that you who charmed the suits of armor to sing?"
James and Sirius glanced at each other and James said, "It might have been. Was it you that transfigured McGonagall's hat into a Christmas tree?"
Fabian grinned and said, "It might have been."
Sirius whispered to James, "Your cousins are great! We have to compare notes!"
James replied, "I agree, though don't forget our mission - they need to realize who the kings of pranks are."
Sirius nodded in reply.
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Christmas was fun in the Prewett household. Sirius and James had a lot of fun hanging out with James' cousins. They played Quidditch and hinted to each other about some of the things they had pulled at school. On Christmas morning James had rigged a few gifts to spray pumpkin juice at Gideon and Fabian as they opened them. Fabian, in retaliation, charmed all the clothes that James and Sirius received to become pink. There was a lot of laughter around the household but James noticed his father was unusually quiet. He had been quite subdued during the holiday.
After the gifts had been opened they walked toward the dining room for breakfast. Joseph Potter lingered in the living room and called to James to wait a moment before joining everyone.
"What is it, Dad?" he asked.
Mr. Potter stared at his son a few moments before telling him to sit down in the chair next to him. James approached cautiously, wondering if the antics between him and his cousins had gone too far. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked.
"No, son. I wanted to give you another gift, in private." He held out a small box for James to take.
James examined it for a little bit before opening it. He gasped and right away looked at his father's hand. "Dad! Your ring! I don't understand. Why are you giving this to me?"
Mr. Potter smiled as he said, "It's been in our family for a long time. My father gave it to me, though I was a little older than you are now."
James took the ring out and studied it. There was a large ruby set in gold and a lion was carved into the gold on each side of the gem. "Why are you giving this to me now? It's too large for me to wear."
Mr. Potter's face became serious again. "I just felt that now is the best time. Listen to me, son. It is very important that this ring stay in our family. It has great value. Wear it and guard it well." He pulled out a long golden chain from his pocket. "Until you are big enough you can wear it around your neck."
James slipped the ring on the chain and put it around his neck. Remembering his dad's instructions he hid the ring and chain under his shirt.
"Well, we had better get into the dining room before your friend eats our breakfast. I've never seen such an appetite on a boy," smirked Mr. Potter.
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The holiday soon came to an end and the Potters' and Sirius had to return to the Potter household before the boys could go back to school. James flooed over right after his father. When he tumbled out of the fireplace he was quickly pulled up by his dad and ushered into a corner.
"Stay here! Don't let Sirius or your mother leave this room until I check out the rest of the house!" he ordered as he rushed out of the room.
When James looked around he saw that the room had been trashed. Tables were turned over, cushions were on the floor torn open, lamps were laying broken on the floor. Sirius arrived and once he saw the state of the room he looked at James and they had the same thought - this reminded them of when their dorm room had been trashed.
James' mother arrived shortly thereafter and cried out as she saw the room. She frantically looked around and gasped in relief when she saw James and Sirius in the corner. James relayed to her what his father had said and they waited for what seemed like an eternity before Mr. Potter came back into the room with a weary look on his face.
"No sign of whoever did this. I put some protective charms on the house and grounds," he said.
"Is anything missing?" Mrs. Potter asked.
Mr. Potter glanced at James before replying to his wife, "No, nothing."
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Hmmm, interesting things afoot at the Potter and Evans' households, eh? What do you all think?
Thanks to the latest reviewers: itsme63 (x2), Harrysgrl (x2), sweetie513, KaitPotter21, and KinSlayer. Replies are in the review section.
Next chapter: The students return to school. Lily caught Petunia's cold but has an interesting symptom. Valentine's Day arrives!