Serendipity (S. Black)

FORTY-THREE

When she finally finished, Eva wiped away a few tears with her thumb. "I feel so stupid," she confessed.

"Why?" Kriss asked gently.

"I don't know." She let Marlene wrap her in another hug. "Maybe Sirius was right. Maybe I was being too reckless."

"Reckless?" Marlene asked sharply, sitting up so quickly that Eva tipped over. Passionate energy entered her gray-blue irises. "Was it reckless to want to study alone outside for a while?"

"No," Eva whispered.

"Was it reckless to be good enough at Quidditch to make the others jealous?"

"No."

"Tonight wasn't reckless, Eve," Marlene said. "Not by a long shot. The world is just a crummy place and Sirius is just being a protective arse."

"Marlene!" Lily reprimanded, then reconsidered. "Actually, that's justified."

"Merlin, I'm mad at him," she muttered. "All of them, really. Except for Remus and Regulus."

The girls all assured her she had every right to be upset at them, specifically Sirius. After a few minutes, Eva closed her eyes, wishing she could just go back in time. Back to a time where her future only held excitement, where the world didn't scare her, where she could write a letter to her mother for comfort. But there was no going back. Their reality had changed.

"Tell me something good that happened to one of you today," Eva asked, her eyes still closed.

Lily thought about her request for a moment. "I tutored a few second years today. They brought cookies."

"I beat James in Exploding Snap five times in a row," Marlene added, smiling at the memory.

"Hagrid let me come help take care of some bowtruckles," said Kriss. She nudged Eva gently with her shoulder. "Your turn."

Her mind felt foggy as she groped around it for a positive moment, and she opened her eyes for the reaction. "Marley is playing seeker this year."

Marlene's mouth fell open. "What?"

"You made the team," Eva said with a small smile. "I was gonna put the list out tomorrow morning. Congratulations."

"Jeepers, Marlene, I think you dropped your jaw on the floor somewhere over there," Lily joked, pointing across the room as Marlene engulfed Eva in yet another hug.

"Thank you for getting me on the team!"

Eva shook her head. "You got yourself on the team. I just wrote out the list."

"You won't be the only girl on the team anymore," Kriss pointed out.

"Yes!" Marlene cheered. "FEMINISM!"

The girls all dissolved into giggles at Marlene's shout. They fell into silence a few minutes later, but then one of them would start giggling and it would start up again. This went on for an hour until all four of them dozed off on the same bed.

*

James stared broodingly at the Marauder's Map, waiting for Eva and Remus to make a reappearance. He figured they were in the Room of Requirement, considering he couldn't find either of them, but his attention split between the parchment and his very agitated best friend.