Potter | 𝘚𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬

Chapter 141

         As he held her, stroking her long hair, Sirius frowned again. "I don't deserve you," he whispered mostly to himself.

        "Oh, don't be so dramatic." Jenna laughed.

       She then pulled slightly away just to go on her tiptoes and place a kiss on his lips. Sirius finally felt his smile coming back to his face as he looked down at her.

        "You know what I was thinking?" Jenna mused, playing with his slightly long black hair. "You know what would make your new motorbike and leather jacket look more badass?"

       "What?"

        Jenna smirked. "A couple of tattoos."

***

After the next Order meeting, the eight Gryffindors went back to the Potter manor for dinner. The youngsters still hadn't been sent on a mission, but the only two people who were complaining were James and Sirius.

        "Dumbledore still thinks there's a few more things you ought to learn," Mr. Potter tried to reason as they had all gathered in the living room after they were done with their meal.

        "We know enough!" James protested. "And what was the point of joining the Order if all we do is show up to its meetings!?"

        Mr. Potter opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut short when Mrs. Potter walked into the living cheerfully, carrying something in her hands.

         "Found it! Found the photo album!"  She sang happily, sitting on the couch.

        James and Jenna suddenly tensed up, their eyes widening in horror as they caught sight of the familiar album.

        "Oooh, baby James and Jenna!" Marlene said excitedly, jumping to her feet along with the others to gather around Mrs. Potter.

          "Ah, this is like a dream coming true," said Remus with a cheeky smile, leaning over the couch to have a closer look. "This album has enough photos to use as blackmails for a lifetime."

        The twins were the only ones who hadn't joined the group as they stayed seated on their spot, frowning grumpily.

        "We should've burnt that album when we had the chance," Jenna grumbled and James nodded, both looking highly irritated.

          "This is when they were two years old," said Mrs. Potter, pointing at a moving picture. "Jenna turned her face red to scare James, and so he started crying."

         Lily and Alice giggled as the rest of them sniggered.

        "Oh, and this is for when they were four," Mrs. Potter said enthusiastically. "Jenna had eaten James's Halloween candy and that's why he's crying — again."

       "Mrs. Potter," Sirius started, smirking, "I would pay you a hundred and fifty Galleons for this album."

        "Oh shut up, Padfoot!" James snapped, making them all laugh.

        After the most embarrassing hour of James and Jenna's life, Mr. and Mrs. Potter left the living room to go up to their room and rest.

       But the moment they left them alone, a deadly silence fell among the group, as if they all shared the same sense of fear.

        "They came after us, you know." Marlene finally broke the silence after long seconds. "Asked us to join them... thankfully Mum and Dad were there to fight them off with me and that Marvin was at Hogwarts. It was only one of them, so we were able to handle it. I don't know what I would've done if anything happened to any one of my family."

        "They got us too," said Alice sadly, throwing her gaze down. "Frank and I had just gotten out of the Ministry. They threatened us that we'd either join them, or they'd kill us."

         "What happened then?" Lily asked her apprehensively.

         "Frank got stunned, but a few Aurors arrived in time to stop the Death Eaters," Alice explained. "We got Frank to St. Mungo's. But he's all right now. It was horrible."

        "I wasn't home when they got to our house," said Remus guiltily. "They had no business with my parents, but threatened them all the same. I — I haven't really gone back home after I found out."

       "What!?" James exclaimed. "Then where the hell have you been all this time, Moony?"

        "Leaky Cauldron," Remus answered in a small voice. "I can't go back home. I can't put my parents through any more trouble than I already have. And my mother's sick... I-I can't let them get hurt because of me."

        "Then why didn't you just tell us?" Jenna asked him.

         "I — I didn't want to give any of you trouble —"

         "Oh don't be ridiculous, Moony," said James. "You know you can count on us, no matter what."

       Remus smiled, but it didn't seem too genuine. "Thanks, Prongs."

        "And you, Peter?" Lily asked softly, turning to face the boy. "Did they give you any trouble?"

       Peter gulped in fear as he saw seven pairs of eyes turn on him. The truth was, the Death Eaters had indeed approached him just like everybody else in that room, asking him to either join them, or die.

        But unlike his friends, Peter hadn't put up a fight.

        So mustering all that he had within him, Peter shook his head, muttering, "No. They didn't."