The end of fifth year, 1976
Lily Evans - the Lily Evans, James' obsession since third year and who he swore would one day be his wife- was sitting in the Marauder's dorm room. But she was not in the company of the boy who oh-so loved her, but of one Remus Lupin. Lily had begged Remus to tutor her in Arithmancy, which he seemed to be the only one to understand in the entire school. She begged her good friend for weeks, but he was always too busy those days preparing for his own OWLS or helping his fellow bloody Marauders doing whatever it is they did. Alas, he gave in, the only open time being a Friday night and only place he could focus being his quiet, empty (thank Merlin) dorm room.
The two, who had been close friends since second year, as they bonded over being the only ones seemingly interested in actually learning something, sat cross-legged across from one another on the boy's bed.
"I still don't get this at all," She told him, growing increasingly frustrated. Firstly, she bloody hated the subject and deeply regretted partaking in it. They had been going over Remus' notes, which Lily noted were extremely neat and organized, making hers look like cat scratch, for over an hour, and nothing. Nothing was clicking. Secondly, she was on edge. James fucking Potter could enter the room, his room, at any given moment. But, as Remus had pointed out earlier, the common room and the library were too full, and Lily needed complete silence when studying.
"Could you go over it once more?"
"Yes, of course, you just have to think about it like-"
The dorm room door busted open and three smiling figures walked in.
"And then she said, 'piss off or I'll fucking shrink your willy', it was hilarious!" The giddy voice of Peter Pettigrew said. Peter, Lily could stand, he was sweet and shy, however...
James snorted (very attractive, definitely) "Oh, I would literally have paid to see that shit." James laughed as they entered the room, oblivious the red head sitting on his friends' bed, who was looking at the three with a blushed face. None of them had seemed noticed her yet, or Remus for that matter, too engrossed in a retelling of a tale.
"It was quite funny." Lyra-Jade said, a slight smile on her face.
"It wasn't just funny, LJ. Prongs, mate, don't listen to her. It was bloody fuckin' hilarious."
"You suppose he'll leave you alone now," James asked, "Now that L threatened the shit out of his di- oh." He stopped short when his eyes finally settled on Lily.
"...the fuck..." He muttered, eyes wide and mouth hanging agape. What was his Lily Evans doing in his dorm room? On his mates' bed?!
Lyra-Jade frowned. What was pretty miss perfect prefect doing all cozy in her Moony's bed?
"Hello, Potter. Peter, Black." Lily replied shortly, looking down back at her notes with attempted indifference but sporting an ever-growing blush.
Both Lyra-Jade and Peter gave Remus a confusion look. James couldn't stop staring.
"We are studying for the Arithmancy test. LJ, care to join?" Remus said to break the awkwardness for, well, everyone's sake.
She snorted, "Fuck no, I'm going to bed. I'll just wing it. Anyone mind if I crash here for the night? Don't feel like walking all the way back." She asked. Of course she knew they would say yes. They always said yes.
"'Course." Peter and Remus chanted in unison.
"James?"
"Huh?" He was still starting at Lily.
"Fucks' sake Prongsie, pick up your mouth from the floor, will you?"
He and Lily both blushed crimson as Peter busted out in giggles, and Remus tried to suppress a smile.
James shook his head of his Lily induced daze and set down his satchel on his bed, "Um, yeah, 'course."
"Great."
"Where's Pads?" Questioned Remus.
"Probably knee deep in one Candance Vance by now." Peter smirked.
Lyra-Jade gagged, literally gagged. "Oh, shut it! I don't want to hear that, Wormy." She crossed the room and smacked Peter across the head. "That's disgusting."
"Ouch."
"Fucker."
Lily tried to focus on her paper and Remus's words, but she couldn't. It was all too odd. And James Potter wouldn't stop ogling her.
She always knew that Sirius' sister was constantly hanging around the four Gryffindor boys, which meant occasionally her friends and herself as well. She had always been confused, yet intrigued, about the dynamic of the fives relationship. They acted so, so very close- closer than even she, Marlene, Mary, and Dorcas.
She watched as Lyra-Jade made her way back over to her brothers' part of the room. She opened his dresser and shuffled around its contents, pulling out a grey, worn sweatshirt with what Lily recognized as a Quidditch team logo on its front. She tossed it on the bed and continued shuffling, letting out a groan when she couldn't find what she was looking for. "Anyone got any sweats?"
"Yeah, top drawer." Remus called to her over his shoulder, still looking over his notes.
Lyra-Jade walked over to his dresser and opened the top door, humming in delight as she pulled out some dark color sweatpants.
"Thanks Moony." She said, jumping on his bed behind him and ruffling his hair.
"Yeah." Lily noticed how upon her touch, Remus' cheeks turned slightly red and his smile sheepish. She also noticed how he watched her gallop across the room to her brothers' bed.
Then, the Slytherin did something that deeply surprised Lily. She began to strip.
The Black heiress kicked off her chunky Mary-Janes with a grunt, then pulled down her black stockings. Lily's eyes widened as the other girl unbuttoned and removed her plaid skirt, leaving her in only a pair of simple black pants. What surprised Lily even more was that no one else in the room seemed to think twice about the de-clothing girl. James was pulling out his homework, eyes still stealing glances at Lily. Peter was shuffling through his dresser, and Remus was still studying his notes, trying to tell Lily about this and that, but she was too baffled to listen.
Lyra-Jade, only clad in her underwear and white blouse, walked across the room and over to the bed that Remus and Lily sat on. What the bloody hell?
"Moony," she said, lifting up her bare left leg and resting is on the bed beside Remus. "Fix my knee, will you. Scrapped it up helping Reg practice."
"Serves you right, enemy..." muttered James from his bed.
"Piss off, 'enemy'. I don't even play Quidditch."
"Yeah." Remus had already set down his book and pulled out his wand, hovering it over her knee and muttering what Lily recognized as a healing charm. Soon, the rough red and pink skin on Lyra- Jade's knee began to heal and scab over.
Of course, Lyra-Jade, being an exceptional healer herself, could have easily done the charm on her knee. However, she didn't like Lily Evans, and she didn't like how close Lily Evans sat near Remus. So, yeah, she sauntered over to him, in front of Evans, in just her knickers. Sue her.
"Thanks, Moons." She said, pulling her leg back down and kissing Remus' cheek.
He went pink. So the half-naked girl does have an effect on someone in this room, Lily thought.
Lily watched as Lyra-Jade turned and sauntered across the room. Her legs were extremely pale and extremely thin, Lily noticed. Her blouse was a bit cropped, revealing a pale and much too thin navel. From what Lily could see, Lyra-Jade looked a bit like a skeleton.
She almost envied her.
She would regret envying her later on.
Lyra-Jade pulled on Remus's pants and tied the string as tight as she could, though they still hung loose on her waist. The sweatpants envelopment her, and it looked very funny to Lily. When Lyra- Jade began to unbutton her shirt, Lily finally adverted her gaze.
"L, you're making Lily uncomfortable by getting all naked." James said.
"I'm not getting all naked, I'm changing."
Lily blushed red once again and James giggled. "Well..." She muttered.
Okay, maybe, just maybe, Lilly didn't completely fancy the idea of James Potter seeing another girl naked. But, just maybe.
Lyra-Jade pulled the sweatshirt over her bare chest and glared at the red head. "Well what?"
All the boys head swiveled from girl to girl.
Shit.
"Well, I just kind of found it odd that you... a girl... are changing in front of three boys."
"They're my friends, Evans. I spend most of my bloody time in this dorm room. They're half naked most of the time." She sneered, pulling out a hairbrush from Sirius' drawer and beginning to take out her braid.
"Trust me, none of us want to shag LJ. That'd be incense." Peter laughed.
She glanced over at Remus, across from her, who was looking down at his paper. Are you sure about that Peter?
"Incest, Wormy.
"Oh, yeah. Ha, ha."
"Well L's family is not too shy of incest, right?" James giggled out.
"James, shut the fuck up."
"Aren't both your parents also your cousins?" James asked with a sly fucking grin, eyeing Peter. "And aren't they also cousins? So are you and Sirius cousins, too? Why don't you call your mum MotherCousin? Or Sirius BrotherCousin? You're a whole big family of cousins!"
James and Peter were in hysterics. Remus was suppressing a laugh. Lily was confused.
Lyra-Jade was not amused. "If you don't shut the fuck up, James, I'm going to stick my wand far, far up your arse." They just laughed harder.
"A whole family of cousins!" Peter squealed, his body shaking with laughs.
"So, is your cousin your... cousin-cousin?" James barked, much too proud.
"I think they're just her cousins. Or maybe secretly her mum and dad and sister and uncle too." Remus said, eyes still on his paper, a sly grin, similar to James', on his face.
"Will. You. All. Shut the fuck up about the inbreeding!" Lyra-Jade yelled at the giggling boys before her. "It really, truly is not as humorous as you all seem to believe."
After intense glaring on Lyra-Jades part, the giggles died down and Remus resumed lecturing Lily while the others got ready for bed.
"See Evans," James said, strutting over and practically siting on their papers. "L's not like other girls," He told Lily, "She's...LJ." He hummed with satisfaction at his groundbreaking conclusion.
Lily just looked at him with a perplexed and irritated look.
"I wish I was." A voice muttered from her brothers' bed. Four heads snapped to her direction.
"Huh?" James asked, a confused look on his face.
"I said I wish I was. Like the other girls. Soft and pretty and kind. But I suppose it was not meant to be." She looked back and forth between James and his Lily-flower.
"Oh...ok." James stated, returning to his homework. She just resumed detangling her hair.
"You say the strangest things, LJ." Peter thought aloud, earning a snort from James and a foul look from Remus.
"Suppose so, Wormy."
Lily observed the group of friends with awe and bewilderment. To her, their dynamic just kept on growing odder and odder each second she was in the dorm room. And the nicknames, what the fuck were those nicknames?
Lyra-Jade walked over to Remus' bed and plopped down on her back right next to him. Her head was right above his knee and her shoulder and arm pressed against his thy. Her black locks sprawled out across the comforter, the ends almost touching Lily's foot.
"I'm finished with The Bell Jar." She said, looking up at him with her big grey eyes.
"Oh really!? How did you like it?" He put down his book and peered down at her with a smile lacing his lips. Remus' attention was obviously no longer on the revision. That was Lily's que to leave.
"Not sure," She said, grabbing his hand and playing with his long fingers, "Need to ponder it some more." He tickled her neck and she giggled. Lily had never, ever heard Lyra-Jade Black giggle.
"Ok then silly, once you're finished with your pondering, tell me how you liked it. Isn't what she wrote when- Oh Lily, are you leaving?"
The red head had already begun to gather up her notes and books from the bed. "Yeah, it's getting quite late. Don't want to get caught after curfew."
"Aw, ok then," Remus said, his hand absentmindedly playing with Lyra-Jade's hair. "Do you feel more confident in the text?"
"Yeah, yeah, for sure. Think I'll at least pass now." She stood at the side of his bed with her bags. "Don't forget we patrol tomorrow."
"Won't you stay longer, Lily-flower? Fancy a game of chess?" James smiled hopefully at her. She snapped her head to him and scoffed.
"Evans doesn't want to play chess with you, Prongsie, she wants to punch you." Lyra-Jade said, looking at Lily upside down. Remus was still playing with her hair.
"Yeah, LJ's right, I do fancy punching you."
All the smiles dropped, and Lyra-Jade suddenly sat up and twisted her body to glare at Lily.
"Don't call me that."
"Oh...sorry. What am I meant to call you?"
"Not that." She scoffed. "People call me many things. Lyra, Lyra-Jade, Lying Lyra, Bitch, Cunt, Who-"
"Why doesn't she just call you Lyra-Jade for now!?" James interrupted, nervously smiling.
"But only my family calls be LJ." She finished.
Lily was perplexed once again. "But, they," She waved her hand at the boys in the room, "Aren't related to you, or-"
"Family doesn't have to mean who you're related to, Evans."
Awkward silence.
Then, "Oh, yeah, I suppose. Okay, sorry. Um, goodnight Remus."
"Um, yeah. Night, Lil. See you tomorrow." He shot a strange look to Lyra-Jade, who sat on his bed looking intently at her nail buds.
Lily exited the room and could hear from the other side Lyra-Jade being scolded.
"You scared her off, L! You're so bloody mean to everyone!"
"She was leaving anyways! Your fucking ogling scared her off!"
Lily shook her head in irritation and made her way down the boys' dorms stairs.
She ran straight into Sirius Black.
He steadied her, grabbing her shoulder. "Alright, Evans? Coming from my dorm, I see." He wiggled his thick brows.
"Studying," She scowled, walking around him, "With Remus."
"Sure, sure." She rolled her eyes and continued her descent. "Hey, Evans, how's McKinnon doing? She missing me?"
***
October 1976
Marlene McKinnon was by far the world's most beautiful woman, Lyra-Jade had concluded early on. Lyra-Jade wouldn't deny that, during her third year, she went through a period of time when she thought constantly about the Ravenclaw and her dark, long locks (with a hint of auburn, if you looked close enough), and beautiful, mono-lided honey colored eyes coated with the longest natural eyelashes she had ever seen. Marlene reminded Lyra-Jade a lot like her brother. Not in looks, obviously, but personality. They both were loud, witty creatures who thirsted for mayhem and thrived off attention. Maybe that was why Sirius was always trying to get into Marlene's pants, forgetting that opposites attract, not alikes.
Marlene had a wicked grin that made many butterflies explode in many stomachs. She was curvy and full and thin in just the right places, causing mouths to drool. She wore thick head bands and short skirts on the weekends. She was much taller than Lyra-Jade, standing at an assumed 5'7 or 5'8. She had nicely toned arms and legs, due to the fact that she had been Keeper for Ravenclaws Quidditch team since her second year.
Many wondered how Marlene was placed in Ravenclaw, when her attitude fitted in much better with that of Gryffindor. She was constantly seen walking in late to class, giggling. Lyra-Jade knew from seeing the honey eyed girl receiving tutoring from Remus on several occasions that she wasn't the best in school. What she lacked in wits, she made up for in creativity, another staple Ravenclaw trait. Lyra-Jade had first seen the girl draw in her third year while she sat in the Gryffindor common room with the boys. That night, Marlene had taken out a leather-bound sketch book and begun to draw Lyra-Jade, who sat across from her. Lyra-Jade had kept wondering why on earth Marlene McKinnon had kept looking up at her, but her questions were answered before she left to go back to her own common room. Marlene strolled up to her with her oh-so long legs and grinned down at Lyra-Jade, handing her a piece of paper before grabbing Dorcas's hand and strutting out the common room. The younger, bewildered Lyra-Jade had looked down at the paper, only to see her face staring back at her. She still had that drawing, she kept it hidden between the pages of her stolen copy of The Poems of Sappho.
Mary Macdonald, roommate to Lily Evans, was another girl that hung around her brother and friends. She had deep, dark brown skin that glowed in the sun like she was an ethereal being. Her thick dark hair fell to her shoulders and bloomed outwards like a flower, making an O shape surrounding her circular head. She held herself with regal grace, Lyra-Jade had always noticed. She was a halfblooded witch who, well, Lyra-Jade didn't know much about. She was quiet. Not as quiet as herself, but quiet nonetheless. Lyra-Jade did know that Mary was all about Muggle music and fashion, having been brought up in the Muggle world. Mary was the one in their first year that figured out how to charm a record player to play her vinyl at school, and it was constantly playing in the Gryffindor common room ever since. She dressed like an American Hollywood star, Lyra- Jade thought, with bellbottoms and vest and scarfs and patches. Mary had somehow figured out (probably do her quietness and tender attitude towards professors) how to get away with personalizing her school uniform a bit.
Upon talking to her, one wizard would assume Dorcas Meadows to be pureblood by the way she presented herself, but no, the girl was from two minorly poor Muggles from Brighton. She never let it bother her, though, her family's poorness or lack of Wizard blood. Dorcas was another intriguing Ravenclaw. She was a roommate to Marlene but seemed to be closer to Mary. She had dirty blonde hair, which she had always kept short, dangling just below her chin. Her face was skinny, her nose the perfect buttoned shape. Dorcas was all laughs with snorts, giggling behind her hand, and blushed cheeks. Lyra-Jade had learned that Dorcas liked to talk everybody's ear off. Many did seem to mind her talkative tendencies (including Lyra-Jade), but her friends most certainly did not. She talked fast, much too fast for Lyra-Jade's brain to comprehend. Among the chatter, she did decipher that Dorcas loved magical creatures. Which was funny, because Lyra-Jade thought that Dorcas looked kind of like a pixie. She was small, but still had two or three inches on herself.
And then there was...Lily Evans, who Lyra-Jade wouldn't necessarily classify as someone she loathed, per se, but perhaps someone that she very much did not enjoy the company of. Since the first day they met, the two did not get along. They were very unalike; Lily was smiles and smarts and reassuring words, where Lyra-Jade was frowns and really, truly not caring for school, and rude words, if not silence. She never understood her brothers' (Well, James') infatuation with the girl.
Sure, she was definitely pretty (though, to Lyra-Jade, not as pretty as Marlene), what with her dark red shoulder length hair, practically perfectly symmetrical face, and bright green eyes. And she was probably the smartest witch at their school (she definitely was). But, she seemed very stuck-up to Lyra-Jade, bossy, and rude to James, which definitely did not get her any marks in Lyra-Jade's book. There was also the fact that she seemed to be close to Severus Snape, who she fucking hated.
However, the four girls made quite the quartet, indeed. They complimented one another nicely and had captured the attention of Hogwarts sometime during their third or fourth year, soon making them a very popular bunch.
So why were they coming up to her?
It had been a few weeks since her "incident", along with her vow of temporary silence, which she certainly kept to.
The year was already so much unlike like the previous. She was alone, constantly, which she sought out, she wanted, whereas during her fifth year, she was constantly with at least one of the boys.
They were keeping their distance, certainly, which again, she sought out, she wanted. Well, all accept her brother, who did not respect her silence. In every class they shared, he called her name over and over again until the teacher gave him dentition for disrupting the class. He had racked up quite a few. James and Remus had to physically hold him back from running after her after classes and in the hallways. She hadn't met one of their eyes since that first day of sixth year.
And it hurt them, Merlin did it fucking hurt them; two more than the other two.
But it was what she thought she needed, so they (at least three of them) let it be (for now).
She was writing letters to Remus, though, which in retrospect was very silly. He was very confused when owls started dropping him of letters addressed from her. He hid them from the others, almost, selfishly excited that she was giving him attention, just him.
She just wrote down memories for him. That, or her analysis of the book she was reading. He always wrote back, also feeling silly taking a letter to the Owlery addressed to the very building he was in. But he would do what she did, and he wrote about his favorite memories or about the book that he was reading.
And, of course, as she vowed to do for the rest of his life, on that September full moon, she walked herself to the hospital wing when the sun came up and helped Madame Pomphrey heal and dress his wounds (which weren't as bad as they used to be). And she did begin being the school's medi- witch's assistant, healing (wordlessly) hurt students and brewing potions, and (silently) she was learning much from Madame Pomphrey, who understood (somehow) that Lyra-Jade didn't need to speak to get her job done.
And she sat with Regulus, she did. She sat in the common room, picking at her bandaged arm, petting Apollo, listening to her baby brother and his friends talk. And she helped them, silently, with their homework, and if anyone gave her a strange look, Regulus would glare at them, because he knew her silence game, he knew her Black hole. And she would sit with them at meals, but would only ever nibble at her food, staring at the table or at a book. And in class, nothing really changed. She was never called on, anyways. And if a teacher was being a dick and called on her, she quite literally just glared at them until they moved on.
So that was the past month or so; and not once had she even shared the same air as one of the four girls walking with intent towards her. So, why?
"Hey Lyra-Jade!" Marlene said, skipping over to where she sat against the cement trimming the fountain, a book about Muggle Diseases in one hand, nursing a cigarette in the other.
When Marlene spoke, Lyra-Jade still got butterflies (although smaller than they used to be). She stared up, moving a hand in front of her eyes to block the sun. She wasn't sure what to do, so she just nodded.
"Can we sit?" Dorcas asked, coming up with Mary and an awkward looking Lily beside Marlene.
No, she wanted to say, you may not. But she didn't say anything, and they all sat around her anyways.
Silence.
Then, "So, how goes it?" Dorcas asked, twisting the beads on her necklace.
Mary smacked her arm, "You bint, she obviously is not talking, is she, so how would she be able to answer?"
"Oh." She gave Lyra-Jade a sheepish, lopsided grin and shrug. Why the fuck were they here?
She took a long drag from her cigarette, frowning at the girls. Although, internally, she was quite amused when her cigarette smoke had made its way to Lily and the red head made an ever so disgusted expression, making a point to hold her nose.
Marlene seemed to read her confusion.
"We just saw you, you know, sitting over here all alone, and we all thought, maybe she wanted some company. Right?"
Her brother probably fucking sent them.
"Right!" Mary and Dorcas said in unison.
"Right." Lily muttered with a small cough, with much less enthusiasm.
Silence.
Then, "So whatcha reading?" Dorcas smiled. Lyra-Jade inwardly grimaced as she held up her book.
"Oooh, disease, funnnn!" She said in a singsong voice.
"You're Pomphrey's assistant this year, aren't ya?" Marlene asked, leaning back on her hands with her feet spread out before her with casual grace. Lyra-Jade nodded. "Yeah, my brother was just in there last week, broke his arm being a dick out on the grounds with his friends. Name's Matty, you remember him?"
She nodded again before staring back down at her book. They obviously weren't getting her message.
All four girls shared a look.
Then, "Hey, Lyra-Jade," Mary said in her soft voice, "We know, like, not much, but that stuff's, you know, happening and what not. And we just wanted to come over here to tell you, that, you know, you can talk to us, girl to girls. And we won't go telling the boys, or whatever, so-"
Fuck them.
She interrupted Mary, quite rudely, quite Lyra-Jade-ly, by smacking her book closed and shoving it in her bag with a deep frown on her lips which loosely held her ciggy. She stood and stepped around the sitting, confused girls, and walked away back towards the castle.
"We were just trying to be nice!" Lily fucking Evans shouted after her. She didn't look back, but flipped them the bird as she walked inside.
***
"I understand a fury in your words, But not the words."