Three… Poor Turkey…
"Oh, hello, Lily." Michelle said brightly as I closed the door to the hospital wing quietly behind me. I smiled at her; my mood had improved greatly since the beginning of the day… Not only was all my work done, but James helped me do it.
"Hey, Michelle." I waved at her.
"You know Zoe Henderson, right?" She smirked mischievously at me and flipped her curly hair over her shoulder.
I smiled at her. "We've met. From what I hear, she worships you." I knew what she was getting at…
"And you, apparently." Michelle sat up eagerly. "James Potter, too."
"Oh, I gathered as much. Feeling better?"
"In fact, she came to visit me a bit ago… Yeah, I'm fine."
"Is that right? And here I was hoping to be the first to come see you." I tried to keep my face serious and like we talked about this little opinionated Hufflepuff everyday.
"Said a few very interesting things to me… I had hoped you would come visit me first today, too, but it seems you had some… studying to catch up on, no?" Her eyes were laughing at me.
"Studying, yes. In the library… That's where I was."
"Even with one very tall, smart, handsome, funny, and charming Head Boy?"
"You do realize that Remus isn't Head Boy, right?"
I'd always loved ribbing her about her forever-long crush on Remus Lupin. Really, I had no right to, as I'd had one on him as well… In fifth year (and maybe sixth, too), when we were prefects together. He was one of James's other best friends- one of the Marauders. Remus was rather handsome, but not overly so… Light brown hair (sandy, really), tall, and eyes like none I had ever seen before… they were the colour of amber, and very deep… I don't think there was a single person in Hogwarts who could look in his eyes and not feel something.
He was a little on the quiet side, but everyone liked him better for it. He seemed almost afraid to let anyone close, to let anyone know the real him… And he was. Not many people knew why, except his closest friends. The Marauders knew… And I did. I hadn't even meant to find out, really, but I had… And then, I'd had to ask him about it. I'll never forget the look on his face when I asked him if it was true… I had to ask him if he really was a werewolf.
After that, it was easy to see why he never told anyone his secret. Witches and wizards had always known to fear and keep away from werewolves- anything but associate with them. I, for one, had never believed in prejudices like that, and I knew it didn't change who he was. I still liked Remus for Remus.
And he was thankful for that, I knew.
"Remus? What do you-"
"Yeah… That's how you always describe Remus, isn't it? Tall, smart, handsome, funny… What was the other one? Oh, yes! Charming…" I snickered, falling on the bed next to hers.
She had the grace to blush. "Well, that's true. But is that really all you two did, study? You didn't talk at all?"
"Well, I think he was worried a bit about what all I heard Zoe say before I walked over to say hi…"
"How much did you hear? She told me what they were arguing over."
"Is that right?" I laughed. "I heard a bit… Not much, though."
"You heard it all, didn't you?" Michelle grinned.
"Not everything… Besides, he was so embarrassed when I walked over, I didn't want him thinking I'd heard anything he said…"
"So how did the match turn out?"
"It isn't over yet… Ravenclaw had better be winning, though." I shrugged. "If Slytherin does, you just know their egos will all explode."
"Oh… Well, Pomfrey says I can't leave until tonight- and she told me I couldn't have any more visitors… She's in her office right now, talking to some old guy by floo… She'll be coming back soon, though." Michelle sighed.
I looked at the door to Madame Pomfrey's office. "Yeah… I'll see you at dinner, okay?" I picked up my bag and hurried to the end of the ward. I looked back at Michelle and waved.
*
After a week, I was beginning to wonder if I'd imagined the day in the library. The only reason I knew I hadn't was because Zoe sought me out every other day or so to come talk to me. I was beginning to really like her. She followed Michelle around a lot, but neither of us really minded. She was chatty, sure, and very opinionated, but as long as she was around, there was never a dull moment.
I had all but two classes with James, but we hardly ever said anything to each other. I wanted to walk over and sit by him some time at dinner, but he usually never stayed long, or wasn't there at all.
Usually, Sirius was off with him, with left the two remaining Marauders to themselves. More often that not, I asked them to sit with us… partly for Michelle's benefit, partly for mine. That way, my best friend got to sit near her crush (Remus), and if mine came down, he would have the very appealing option of sitting near me.
"Lily, are you all right?" Nora asked me one night, after taking a slice of pumpkin pie. "You're looking a bit peaky."
Michelle (who almost always sat at the Gryffindor table with us) looked up. She was the only one of my friends who knew that I liked James- or about that day in the library.
Remus turned his amber eyes to me curiously, too. I wondered if James had ever said anything about me to him. I hoped he had… And from the look I was getting, he just might have.
I bit my lip. "I'm fine."
"Eat some more of that turkey, then."
"I don't like turkey, Ken." I said patiently, dipping my quill in my ink pot; I'd been putting off my Arithmancy paper for almost a week.
"I'll eat more turkey!" Zoe said eagerly, reaching for the platter. I laughed at her and pushed it within her reach. She smiled happily.
"You are a turkey, Zo."
"But I don't have feathers."
"No, but you're still a turkey."
"Oh! I know how to transform things into turkeys, though, and James said I don't need any more lessons-" Zoe stared up at something behind me. "James!" She bounced in her seat.
"Hey, Prongs." Remus said, without looking up from his plate.
"Hey, Moony… Zo… Erm- Lily… Dumbledore needs to talk to you. And you, Zoe." James said uncomfortably.
"Right now?" I asked. Zoe jumped up, all thoughts of turkey forgotten.
James nodded. "It's urgent…" He looked sad. I left my quill and books on the table.
"We'll be back in a bit, guys."
Remus, Peter (I'm sad to say it, but he always freaked me out), Michelle, Kendra, and Nora watched us go quizzically.
James led us to the entrance hall in silence.
"James?" I said quietly. "What's so urgent?"
His back was to me, as he took the marble stairs two at a time, but I heard him sigh. "I'm not sure… exactly."
We reached the top of the stairs and he took a painful glance back at Zoe, who was watching the portraits as we passed by them with obvious interest. "I've never been to Dumbledore's office." she mused.
Then it hit me: it was something to do with Zoe… and her family.
My jaw dropped and I stared at James; he looked at me and nodded. I groaned inwardly. Why was I going, too? Only once had I seen Zoe unhappy- one day, not long ago, she came to me, crying. She was worried about her family being attacked by Death Eaters. She knew more and more people were dying at the hand of Voldemort… She also knew that her parents were openly against him… Very open. Mr. And Mrs. Henderson were Aurors at the Ministry, and very good ones at that. I'd heard much about them in the papers and from other children of Aurors. I suddenly felt very protective of Zoe… She was only a first year.
"It's a neat place, Zo, you'll like it." James said dully.
"Why do you both look so sad? Do people only go there when they're in trouble? I've always liked Dumbledore. He seems nice. Is he nice, Lily?" Zoe's curiosity was back up. Maybe she was half expecting the worse, and it wouldn't be too hard on her… But I knew better than to think that. Zoe was the bubbly, happy type- but I was almost positive that once she found out about her parents, she wouldn't be so bubbly or happy anymore. "Lily?"
I'd seen it happen to students before- I'd been at Hogwarts for almost seven years, after all. People's parents were killed all the time- for a while in my sixth year, there had been a least two or three a week. Things had calmed down a bit, but there was still the occasional death. It scared me, because I knew my parents were at high risk of being murdered… As long as I was at Hogwarts, they were in danger.
My mind was buzzing by the time we got to Dumbledore's office. I didn't even remember James answering all Zoe's questions, or him saying the password to the sour looking gargoyle. All I knew was that I was about to see Zoe's face fall… She her crying… She that lost, confused look on her face. And I knew I might be the next person to look like that.
"Miss Evans… Miss Henderson… Mr. Potter." Dumbledore sounded almost as bad as I felt. I couldn't even look him in the eye, knowing what he was about to say to Zoe. I could already feel my heart breaking, and I'd never even met Zoe's parents.
"I have some terrible…news." His icy blue eyes drifted to Zoe, and they were filled with sympathy and concern. I knew he dreaded to say the words as much as we dreaded to hear them.
Zoe froze. I think the idea of why she was in his office had dawned on her. Her brown eyes widened and she stared at Dumbledore breathlessly.
"Miss Henderson, I've had to say these exact words to dozens of students here, at Hogwarts, and it never gets easier… Your parents are-"
"Dead." Zoe finished for him. She bit her lip and let her head fall.
"Voldemort went to your house around midnight last night, while everyone was sleeping…"
"What about Sammy and Joe?" Zoe asked, her voice strained.
"Sammy is at St. Mungo's right now. The Healers think he's going to be just fine. Aurors heard that something of this nature might occur, so they were able to get there in time to save him…"
"And Joe… he's…" She closed her eyes.
Professor Dumbledore didn't say anything. James and I glanced at each other. He looked on the verge of tears. I already had tears coming down my face.
When I looked back at Zoe, she was shaking and swaying on her feet. I wanted to go over and put my arms around her, but I didn't know what she'd do. I didn't know if the fact that her parents were really gone had sunk into her head yet… I bit my lip and looked up at Dumbledore, just as she ran to the door and wrenched it open.
In a flash, James and I were down the spiralling stairs, after her.
*
"Zoe?" I called softly.
To my right, I heard a quiet sob. James and I immediately turned in that direction.
There she was, curled up at the foot of a towering maple tree on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. We went over and knelt at her side. I pushed a few golden curls away from her face. "Zoe…" I took a deep breath.
"Joe was only four." she choked. "He had just learned how to ride a broom… I was going to teach him a few tricks on it when I got back for Christmas… He was so happy when I got into Hogwarts. I taught him how to write this summer- just little words, of course… but he sent me a letter last week, wanting to know all about school…" I looked at James. He looked more serious than I had ever seen him. "And tomorrow was mum and dad's anniversary…" She sounded so miserable, I couldn't help but put my arm around her. "Sammy is eight… And he had to see it all!" she cried.
Zoe looked up at me, eyes flashing. "I hate him. I'm going to kill him!" she said angrily. I knew she meant Voldemort.
She had every right to hate him.
*
After taking her to her dormitory, James and I walked slowly up to Gryffindor Tower in silence. I didn't really know what to say and I felt he didn't either. I was worrying about my family… How they were doing. If anything happened to them... I didn't know what I'd do.
"Dandy Dandelion." I said sadly to the Fat Lady. The portrait hole swung open, revealing a cosy looking common room. A fire was burning merrily in the fireplace and the random rolls of parchment lying about gave the impression that someone was in a hurry to leave… Probably thinking of something better to do than homework. The entire room was too cheery for my liking.
"You really like her, don't you?"
James was standing a bit behind me, hands in his pockets. I smiled weakly. "Yeah, I do. She's like the sister I never had."
"I thought you had a sister." James frowned.
"I do." I shrugged. "But she hates me… Or says she does. We used to be pretty close, until I got accepted here." I looked around the over-cheery room. "I like knowing that someone feels they can come to me and just talk if they want… Like Zoe. Even if she just likes to talk to anyone who will stand still long enough to listen." I smiled sadly.
"She really likes you. You're all she talks about, you know."
I fell into the nearest armchair. "I'm so tired…" I muttered.
"Does he ever scare you at all?" James asked softly after a pause.
"Who?"
"Voldemort."
"No. I'm not afraid of him." I said. "But I am afraid of what he can do… to my family."
"Lily…"
I stood up suddenly. "I'm going to bed… Night." I whispered. Now, more than ever, I wanted to go home and hold my family in my arms… What if something happened while I was at school?
"Lily, I-"
I turned wearily to look at him. "Hmm?"
"Nothing. It's nothing. Good night, Lil."
I smiled at him, thinking dimly that he called me Lil, even though I told him not to. I found that I didn't mind so much.
*
I woke up, the next morning, a little after eight. I sighed deeply- it felt good to sleep in late. I hadn't since… well, since school had started. It was nice.
Until I remembered it was a Monday and I had class. I jumped out of bed, cursing, and ran to the bathroom. Why hadn't Kendra and Nora gotten me up?!
After doing a quick makeup charm and pulling my hair into a ponytail, I grabbed my bag and sprinted down the girls stairs.
Outside the portrait hole, I tripped over something in the floor. "Bloody h… Zoe?!" I picked up my book bag. "Are you okay?" I asked.
She looked up at me. Her eyes were swollen and her cheeks were red and streaked with tears. "Lily… My parents… and Joe… I got a letter they sent." she whispered. "A day or so ago…"
"Come on, let's talk a walk. It's better than a cold corridor, right?" I smiled encouragingly.
She sniffed loudly and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. I helped her up and we walked slowly down the corridor. "Now, what was in the letter?" I asked softly.
"They… they just wanted to say hi… Joe even wrote some. He wanted to know all about riding brooms and doing spells--my classes… and you, Lily."
"Me?"
"In one of my letters, I told them about you… And Michelle and James and they liked you all too." She sniffed again. "They told me to tell you hi."
"Oh, Zoe…"
"I just want my family back." She sobbed.
"I know. I know, Zoe, I do…" I sighed and put my arm around her. "Did you know that my parents are muggles?" I asked.
Zoe shook her head and looked up at me.
"Well, you know that Voldemort doesn't like them at all… So I'm always afraid that something is going to happen to my family. At least your parents were able to fight for themselves, Zoe. They helped a lot of people. I've read about them in the paper, you know. They were brave- and they want you to be brave, too." I smiled. "My parents… anything could happen to them at any time, because of me… Because I'm at Hogwarts. And there isn't anything I can do about it."
"But they're just muggles. They didn't do anything. Why would he want to hurt them?"
"Because, Zoe, he's... twisted. He just likes to hurt and kill for fun. You and your family didn't do anything wrong, either, you know that, right?"
"I… I guess…"
"You should just remember how brave they were- and think about all the fun things you did together…"
"Like what?"
"Hmm… Do you remember telling me about that time a toad got lost in your house, somehow- and it took everyone ages to find it? Well, wasn't that fun? Think about that."
"It was funny, seeing daddy's face…" She looked a bit happier. "And Joe wanted so bad to be the first to catch it. He looked everywhere for it… He even made a special hat, just for finding that toad. He called it his 'Scavenger-Hunt-Hat.' I didn't even know he knew such big words." Zoe sighed. "And the way mummy laughed when I told her what happened before I lost it. I'd found daddy's wand earlier that day, and I'd wanted something good to try some magic on, so I found a toad from the garden and took it in the kitchen… But when I poked it, it got all fat and big and had bubbles coming out of his skin."
I smiled. "See? That was fun for everyone."
"Oh… Lily, isn't this your classroom?" Zoe asked, as we rounded the corner to the Defence Against the Dark Arts corridor. I looked down at her.
"Well… yeah, it is… But do you want me to walk you to your common room? Much as I'd rather stay out here… I've been in trouble for skiving before- not something I'd like to repeat…" I sighed.
"No… I'm going to go see Professor Dumbledore. I'm going to ask him if I can go see Sammy soon."
"Do you want me to go up with you? I'm sure my professor won't mind."
Zoe paused. "Well… I- no… I want to talk to him by myself. I can do it."
"You can." I smiled. "I'll come find you later, okay?"
Zoe nodded and turned to walk back down the corridor.
I felt like part of my heart was being dragged alongside her.