Discovery

72.

"Sirius?" I said hesitantly.

"Yeah?" he turned to face me.

"I didn't mean it."

He gave me a confused look.

"At the Ministry...I said— I said it was you and not her...I didn't mean—"

"I know, Ella." he assured me. "Even if you did mean it, I wouldn't hold it against you. You've known your sister your whole life; she's more your family than I am."

Before I could respond, he left the room.

***

My days mostly consisted of reading in the study with Mum, eating meals with Sirius, and playing Wizard's Chess with Fred. It wasn't much, but it was enough for me.

I was extremely grateful for Fred's company. Even though the twins had just opened the shop, he took time off to make sure I was ok. I told him that wasn't necessary, but he wouldn't change his mind.

"Lee's covering for me, and I would rather be here anyway." Fred assured me.

"If you say so," I rolled my eyes, but I was secretly thankful he decided to stay.

"So, listen," Fred said, moving his rook to take my pawn, "Mum wants to know if you'd like to come over soon. Bill just got engaged, so she's cooking a big dinner."

"Bill? Engaged?" I repeated in disbelief, moving my knight to protect my king. "To who?!"

"Remember Fleur, the Beauxbatons Champion from the Triwizard Tournament?"

"Her?" I said. "What did she want to do with your brother?"

"Beats me," Fred shrugged. "I don't think Mum likes her, though. So, will you come?"

"I dunno..." I looked away from him. "I don't think I'm ready for that yet."

Fred reached across the table and took my hand in his. "I get that, Ella. If you're not ready, you don't have to come, but I think it could be good for you. Just think about it, ok?"

***

Before I knew it, it was my sixteenth birthday. If it was up to me, I wouldn't have celebrated at all, but Sirius and my mother were adamant.

When I woke up, my room was covered in streamers and confetti. There were parcels sitting at the foot of my bed, along with a couple envelopes. I didn't feel like heading down to the kitchen just yet, so I dove into the pile.

The first parcel was from Lee and George: a handful of products from the shop. There were Edible Dark Marks (They'll make anyone sick!), Instant Darkness Powder, and a Patended Daydream Charm.

Thought you'd enjoy our latest additions to the shop, George had written.

You should stop by when you can. Fred insists you get a discount on everything, but if you don't show up soon, I'll consider revoking the deal.

All love, George

— and Lee too!!

I also received letters from Ginny, Harry, Ron, and Hermione; all begging me to come stay at the Burrow for the rest of the summer. I wasn't sure how I felt about leaving my family so soon, so I put their letters off to the side.

The other parcels included: another book from my Mum about the history of Metamorphmagi (which I didn't plan on reading, since I hadn't been able to change my appearance since the incident), a star necklace from Fred, and a photo album from Sirius.

I was too scared to open the album; afraid that the pictures would remind me too much of my sister. I wasn't ready to come face-to-face with my grief, so I tucked the album into a drawer.

The only other piece of mail I got was from Hogwarts, which could only mean one thing:
O.W.L. results.

I immediately tore open the envelope and skimmed the parchment:

Ordinary Wizarding Level Results

Pass Grades
Outstanding (O)
Exceeds Expectations (E)
Acceptable (A)
Fail Grades
Poor (P)
Dreadful (D)
Troll (T)

Elladora Lily Hart has achieved:

Astronomy A
Ancient Runes P
Charms E
Defense Against the Dark Arts E
Herbology E
History of Magic D
Muggle Studies O
Potions A
Transfiguration E

I knew Mum would be thrilled, so I trotted off to the kitchen to show her my achievements.

When I walked through the door, I saw Sirius comforting my mother as she cried. I froze, almost hoping they wouldn't see me. But I was spotted, and my mother quickly wiped away her tears and gave me a weak smile.

"Happy Birthday, darling." she said quietly.

"Happy Birthday, Ella!" Sirius smiled, looking a bit more enthusiastic than Mum.

"Thanks, I just came down to show you my O.W.L. results." I pushed the parchment toward them.

As they skimmed the words, the corners of their mouths turned up.

"Congratulations!" Mum stood up and gave me a hug. "I'm so proud of you."

"Well done!" Sirius chuckled. "Seven is more than James and I had together."

"You're joking," I stifled a laugh. "You can't be serious!"

"I am Sirius, and no I'm not joking." he smirked. "If I remember correctly, I received two and he received three. Remus wouldn't stop nagging us for weeks! That bloke got eight! What a show off..."