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CHAPTER NINETEEN:
A (NOT SO) CHEERY FAMILY REUNION
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Silence ran through the Great Hall. Hogwarts ended two weeks early and it seemed as if every single parent had come in through the doors and collected their children. There was a few students who stayed, most of them being in Gryffindor and Hufflepuff who stayed right up until the last day.
Hogwarts had become sad. Loosing a student felt like loosing an organ. It was a quiet two weeks, rarely any work was done and many people didn't come to classes. Cedric Diggory is — was a hero. He was a student who everyone would always remember. The kindest, bravest Hufflepuff she had ever had the pleasure of knowing. Someone who the Dark Lord took away to soon. Someone who didn't deserve the tragic and wicked fate that was given to him.
She hoped someone would get revenge for him.
Aurora watched him die. She remembered hearing his father's screams as they returned with his body. She remembered Cedric's last words. She remembered the way he looked before he died. She remembered every last detail about him. She remembered Harry refusing to leave Cedric's body as Hogwarts watched with empathy. She remembered Dean and Neville having to drag her away from him. She remember Edward and Sammy comforting Luke.
She remembered it all in explicit detail: it replayed in her head almost every moment since it all ended.
Luke had left the moment after the events of Triwizard tournament after getting wind of his grandmother being ill.
Aurora didn't remember much from that night. She remembered how Professor McGonagall stayed with her for hours in the hospital wing. She was the only one too except Luke. Everyone else was with their families. She didn't have one of those.
Nor did she want one.
However she was wondering why exactly she had been kidnapped by the man. Why did he try and take her blood? He tried to put her into the same cauldron he'd put Voldemort into.
She couldn't make any possible reason other than her relationship with Harry and she was an Aleksander.
But did that mean the Dark Lord was after her? Hardly. She wasn't boy who lived. Neither was Luke for that matter either. So the confusion as to why they were at the graveyard would remain a mystery to them.
It was terrifying. Heart throbbing. It felt as though every time she shut her eyes she saw the Dark Lord's face and how he stared at her. His eyes were snake like. The Second Wizarding War was rising and she wouldn't even begin to think about what that meant for Harry.
"We'll see you in June, yeah? For the party?" Standing outside the doors of the Great Hall were Dean and Neville. She briefly saw Luna carry Neville's bags out the door and mentioned how they were visiting one another for the first week of Summer. Seamus was dragged out by his mum straight away.
"Yeah." Aurora pulled away from Neville as she gave them both a tired smile, "Have a good summer, you two."
"Give Harry are best. He wasn't around to speaking when we left. You stay safe Aurora." Dean reached out and abruptly pulled the girl into a hug. She was hesitant at first but did wrap her arms around the boys back. Dean was a good hugger, she realised, a comforting one.
"Have a good summer, Rory. See ya soon."
(Unaware her summer was going to be a lot more different than hers)
"Not likely." She mumbles, watching them go. She wished Luke was here more than anyone. They barely got to say goodbye before he was taken out of Hogwarts with the news of his grandmother being sick. The bad thing was she knew she wouldn't be able to see his throughout the summer.
It was afternoon by the time she made it back to her dormitory. She spent a few hours with Edward and Sammy discussing Luke, all of them worried about his grandmother being ill: she was the last person he had left. Then she spent an hour wandering the hallways before McGonagall brought her into her office for a cup of tea and biscuits.
"The Walkman, would you like to keep it?" Hermione offered, holding up the device with the red wires attached to it. They were packing their trunks for the end of the year. They were the last two students to do it.
"Only if you're not keeping it." When Hermione shook her head, she let out a grin, the first genuine one in days, "Thank you. I've really wanted to get my hands on one of those for months."
Maybe she could drown out Rotandia's voice with this music.
Maybe she could wrap the earphones around her neck and strangle her.
"Why don't you ask your grandparents for one?" Hermione asks interrupting her happy thoughts.
"Eh, good point. Never got around to asking for one."
"You can still have that one."
"Thanks."
"Good afternoon. I see you're almost finished packing." A voice says. Both Aurora and Hermione flinch in there spots when seeing Dumbledore stood outside the entrance of the dormitory. She hoped he didn't know about the jinx she put on the stairs. "Miss Black, Would you mind accompanying me to my office?"
"Did I do something wrong?" She replied quickly.
Dumbledore smiles gently. "You are in no trouble." She didn't believe that.
"I'll finish your packing — go, go." Hermione encouraged quickly. She rose a brow at her enthusiasm and gave her a look. When she met her eye, the girl wore an almost nervous look and didn't meet her eyes. Shrugging it off, she flattened her jacket and nods, before following Dumbledore out the door.
Before she leaves the Dormitory, she grabs her coffee mug off the nightstand and strolls out of the Common Room alongside Dumbledore.
"I suspect Madam Pomfrey gave you something for your ankles? I believe the ropes used must have pained you quite a bit." Dumbledore asked and when she nodded, he added. "You were in the Hospital wing for a few days. I did inform your grandparents of the situation."
He didn't ask a question. "They're busy people."
"Of course." Dumbledore agreed. "These times are a challenge. I would like to remind you, Aurora, my office is always open if you need to talk."
"I don't need to talk about anything, professor." Aurora didn't look him in the eye and continued to walk in line with him. "But thank you for the offer. Perhaps Harry will take you up on it."
Ron comes down the stairs as they are walking up, his gentle eyes go towards the drink in her hand.
"How hot is your coffee?"
" It's coffee so pretty hot." she replied ignoring how he reached across, grabbed it out of her hand and, then walked away without a second word.
Okay, she thinks, strange but not that strange. Ron was a weird boy. Dumbledore spoke again before she could even think what that was for.
"I wish to venture your thoughts about the Daily Prophet. Do you believe everything you read in the Daily prophet? I am aware there has been a few articles made this school year about you and some others."
He was suggesting all the articles about her and Harry. The thought sat oddly in her stomach. She felt almost sick at the idea. She didn't know how to describe it? It made her feel like her head was dizzy and the air felt stuffy around her. She did not like people guessing her relationship with Harry. He was her best friend.
"I suppose not. Those articles aren't true anyway. The ones written about me and Harry anyway." She told him aimlessly and the look he threw her seemed suspicious. "I don't believe anything most people say these days. A lot of people are liars."
"I agree. Stories can be spun and the truth can be manipulated. It is a pity the world we live in can be so cruel to some." Dumbledore says after a few moments. "Tragic things happen every passing moment—"
"Right. I was wondering if Cedric's bench had been put up yet?" She had come up with the idea to add a memorial bench for Cedric outside. Every time she remembered looking at him, he was outside, laying back on one of those benches.
"I can assure you, it will be the first thing you see when you arrive back to Hogwarts in your fifth year. That is, presuming, you are returning?"
The thought never crossed her mind. Of course she was returning. Ultimately, Hogwarts was her home. The only place she could escape to and not feel entire feel. The only place her body felt safe enough to sleep at night. The people here were the only people she had. Ron, Harry, Luke, Hermione: they were all technically her 'family'. She had to be here, not even for herself but them.
"I'll be returning." She replied instantly.
Dumbledore nods seemingly very glad at that. "This is good to hear. I believe Harry needs you very much at this moment. Might I ask if you have your wand on you?"
" No." Aurora lied.
Dumbledore then looked towards his door, "Chocolate pudding." The door swung open within a few seconds.
Aurora knew what he was talking about as they entered the office. She kept her eyes to the floor and she knew she had been wearing her guilty look.
"Fine! I know what this is about." She threw her hands up. She turns around and looks at Dumbledore. "We can stop the small talk! I know what's happening."
"You do?" Dumbledore questioned.
Aurora still hadn't looked up.
" Yes." Aurora stated. Not noticing how quite it was. " It's about the whole homework thing, I mean I know I shouldn't have been getting the other students to do it but I can assure you they all kind of like it-"
" It's not about that, Miss Black, would you mind looking-" Dumbledore interrupted, looking rather worried.
" Is it about the sneaking into Snape's office?" she furrows her eyebrows confused.
" No it most certainly isn't."
" The Slytherin's food?" Aurora quizzed.
" Slytherin's food?" Dumbledore repeated, " Wh-"
"Nothing." She quickly answered, becoming worried as to why she was in his office. What was so important? Dumbledore's eyes went behind her. "If that's not it then why did you call me here-"
When she turned, she felt an instant feeling of utter fear.
Then her eyes landed on the person siting in the middle of room.
And for the first time in fourteen year grey met grey.
A short black haired man sat nervously on the chair in the room, undeniably handsome man with chiseled cheeks bones. His face was thin as a result of staving himself to be able to escape in the first place. His body was frail and that was very noticeable: if she had seen him the night in the Shrieking Shack, he was barley a person, just bones. He was wearing a leather jacket, an old one he found in storage at the worn down apartment he and his wife used to share: that's where he was sleeping now. He had the same colour eyes as his daughter who stood in front of them.
Sirius had instantly felt utter suffering when he saw how much fear spread through his daughters face in just one look.
Instinctively she reached down to grab her wand which was tucked in her other sock for a change, however it was gone. Panicking she then looked around. Sirius has no time to react as she suddenly had picked up the closet thing to her which happened to be one of Dumbledore's glass vases and threw it directly at him. It smashed on the ground as he quickly got up from his chair.
Dumbledore shouted a spell she barely heard, stopping her from throwing another thing at him. The anger radiating off the girl was enough to make any sense of emotion other than sadness wash on his face. Her fists gritted against one another in anger.
This person standing in front of her killed Harry's parents. The reason that boy was an orphan. The reason he stayed at the Weasley house. The reason he grew up with an aunt and uncle who hated him to pieces.
She looks like she was about to kill him.
Sirius, Sirius Black was there. Her father was standing he front of her.
Aurora debated on screaming as went to open the door only to realize it was locked. And that she was trapped in the room with a murderer.
She slowly turned to Dumbledore realising he had not reacted. "What—Why are you just standing there....."
Although Aurora had just screamed in the mans face, he still looked calm as he simply gestured towards one of the seats in the room.
" What the fuck is wrong with you?" she used to much force on the door she was sure the handle was good to fly off.
Then her eyes landed on the wand across the room ignoring the fact he hasn't moved in his spot. She refused to look at him. What was happening? She reached forward to get the wand.
"Rora wait-!"
She only paused when hearing Harry's voice and when she turned he came out from his invisibility cloak. He quickly steps in front of him making her do a double take as she reached forward grabbing him by the wrist harshly as she yanked him towards her. Why was he here? Was he here the whole time? Was he mad? How could he have not have noticed Sirius Black sitting across the room? If anyone should have killed him first it should have been Harry. . .
"Harry what are you doing? That's Sirius Black. He killed your mum and dad." Slowly she was starting to notice something had been wrong. "He killed my mum."
Sirius winced at that.
Harry looked down at her, and his hands reached out to her shoulders. It did not calm her down. His eyes are full on concern, and she can see he wants her to listen to him. Something was wrong, something was very much wrong. She reached her hand up to pull his hand off her and takes his hands into her own.
"Aurora just listen. We — well I we need to tell you something—"
The fact her father was stood in the room was clouding her mind. She had to keep warning herself not to look over at him.
Oddly enough, for some reason when she met his eye she got this unrecognisable feeling.
"Harry what are you talking about? What's wrong with you?
Harry what? Have you been poisoned? Jinx? He - he killed-"
"He didn't kill my parents."
Before he can even react to his false words, Dumbledore walked over, making the two pull apart. She stepped back from Harry, his eyes were melting in hers. She wished he could tell her what was happening, just him.
"Aurora please sit down." Dumbledore requests politely. "This is a day that has been long overdue for some time now. You believe your father killed your mother and Harry's parents. You need to know the truth about your father."
" The truth? What's wrong with you?" she was on the verge of shaking at this stage as she had took a viscous step forward towards Dumbledore with narrowed eyes.
Dumbledore seeing how the hot tempered girl in front of her wasn't going to listen decided to speak up anyway.
"Being caught in the moment is a tragic thing Miss Black, especially when you're not guilty. At the time of your father's imprisonment, there was no trial. There was nothing to prove his innocence. Your mother and father were married—" A picture appears in her hand. She looks down at it and there was a photo of two very happy people on their wedding day. "They were very happy."
She looked at the man in the picture and noticed straight away it was a youthful version of the black haired man in the room.
The woman, however, she did not ever seen before. "Who is this?"
The room was quiet and she never seen such an upset, pitiful look pass through Dumbledore's face. "That is your mother, Miss Black."
All of them watched as not a single reaction passed her rage at that. She handed him the photo back without looking at it again.
"Your father is not a murder. He was wrongly in prisoned. The crime committed was by Peter Pettigrew. He was the one who betrayed Harry's parents and indeed framed Sirius for it. Last year when Sirius escaped-"
"That's a lie, Peter Pettigrew is dead." she says icy. "He killed him."
"On the contrary, he is very much alive. He was hiding as Ron's rat scabber's for over a decade in his animagus form. You saw him at the graveyard, the man who killed Cedric Diggory under Voldemort's orders. He is the one who did kidnapped you under Voldemort's orders we believe. Lupin, as I'm sure you know, saw this on the map that you have in your back pocket. You see Aurora, Peter was a friend of James and Lily's back in school which is how he made it into knowing where they were staying. No one suspected he was working for the dark lord. Your father, Lupin, Peter, James, your mum, they were all friends. Your father did not betray James and Lily—"
Harry was watching her reaction. She ignored that for a moment. "But ...." This was wrong. No. This was all wrong. She did not feel good.
"Pettigrew sold Harry's parents out to Voldemort. Sirius would have never done something like that. The Potters were his only family. Last year your friends all somehow found themselves in company on the night of a full moon, unfortunately you weren't in the castle at this time. And Pettigrew confessed to what he had done. Lupin can confirm this."
Sirius couldn't stop staring. It was different seeing her than in his animagus form. Instead of seeing a slightly blurry figure, he saw a young girl with eyes than resembled burnt out coal. It was obvious, she had taken after him in many ways, wearing her robes which had been messily wrapped around her, a way her mother used to wear them as well, he would have said personality but he didn't know what she was like. He knew what she liked. But at the end of the day he didn't know anything about her personally.
And that hurt him beyond words.
"Wait," She paused and raised a hand for a moment. Dumbledore stops talking and she vaguely catches the word 'secret keeper'. Her mind was on one thing. "You just said friends. Friends? What do you mean by friends?"
Naturally her eyes went from Harry to Dumbledore. Harry did not reply at first until she gave him a look that told him he better talk. His mouth opened to hut Sirius spoke.
" W-When I broke out my first instinct was to find you. Naturally I thought you would be with Remus but then you weren't. So I waited for the summer to find you and then I saw you, from a far one day on your way to Hagrid's. And I realized I couldn't be your father, you looked happy, I presume you had classes because you were looking around as if you were going to be caught but you were happy and me? I was on the run, living out whatever food I could find, I didn't have a job, and I couldn't just up and go with you-"
Sirius tried to catch her eyes at least once but failed when her eyes were slowly, very slowly (in the same way her mum's did,) started to peer into Harry's with question.
Aurora slowly turned her head sideways to look at Sirius. Sirius recognised that look immediately, disappointment.
"What makes you think I would go with you?" She shouted making them all flinch. Every passing moment they could see her temper rising. "No answer me the question.!Why would I actually go with you? I don't even know you. Y-You lied. You lied. Not me."
She was looking at him with such pure hatred, he'd never once seen her as angry as she was when she was a baby. She'd always been a happy child, and looked at almost every stranger with adoration. She had some aggressive moments - like constantly hurting and throwing toys at Harry when they were children, but she was never an angry. And Merlin, was she utterly terrifying when she was mad.
"I didn't want you to be ashamed of me—"
"Too late."
"Aurora, I'm sorry—"
"So just to clarify, you went to Azkaban for a crime you didn't commit but broke out to go commit that crime?"
She did not give him a chance to answer and instead turned to Harry who was trying to stumble some form of words out since the start.
"Please, don't tell me you knew."
Harry nodded, eyes on hers. "I did."
"Okay..." She trailed off, she could be fine with that. Naturally, after the tournament Dumbledore must have decided to tell him. He spoke as if it was in the past that he found out, so perhaps he was told sometime this month. She was still mad about that. "When did they tell you? Last week?...."
His face became very still quickly, and she knew by his expression he had let her down.
"I found out a year ago." He says and he hated how it sounded. He hated how he made her feel: he could see her eyes pass through about a hundred stages of surprise, hurt and betrayal within a second. "I-I, we found him in the Shrieking Shack, with Lupin and Pettigrew. You weren't around at the time, it was when Ron broke his leg—"
"So when you came to me that day and told me Ron broke his leg on the staircase....you were lying"
Ron knowing had been a new type of betrayal she didn't expect from someone like him. He was loyal and unknowingly to him, she thought highly of him.
"And why didn't you tell me? How could you not tell me?"
Aurora felt utterly betrayed and she had never held back tears as much as she did right now. Out of everyone, Harry was the last person she expected to ever hurt her like this. He was standing in front of her, but she no longer recognised him. He and Ron lied to her face for a year, almost longer. He completely and utterly went against her. Her chest was tightening more with the second.
She thought she meant more to him than that.
She was wrong. Then she realized, the owls, the constant letters he was receiving all year were from him. The lying he did to go and visit him probably. For an entire year. He didn't tell her for a whole year and then Sirius thinks he can walk back into her life. She had never felt so hurt and angry by someone.
Harry on the other end, felt as though someone had punched him in the throat as her grey eyes stared at his. He found himself unable to speak. The thought of her being angry at him was unbearable. Then the thought of her not talking to him crossed his mind as she stepped back.
"I asked them not to." Sirius spoke up after seeing how the two teenagers were looking at one another. He certainly did not want to the reason for them falling out. After all the times, Harry asked him this year to tell Aurora, and the way he spoke about her, Sirius could see his clear affection. "I didn't want them to tell you. I didn't want you to know me until I was a person! I asked them all—"
"So you choose a man you had just met over us? Someone who you didn't even know yet over our friendship?" She shouts, she moved away from him when she stepped forward so quickly it caused a moment of surprise from Harry. She hated him. She knew it instantly. She utterly hated him.
"No, no I didn't!" He tried to sound sincere but he failed terribly. If that's what she thought, he never meant for her to believe that. Out of everyone, he would choose her. He wanted to choose her. Having Sirius in his life was one thing, one happy moment, but loosing Aurora even as a friend was an entirely different moment. "I wouldn't—"
"Stop talking." She said so slowly to him that he felt obliged to. "Just stop talking."
Harry thought it couldn't get any worse but then he noticed she had tears in her eyes. His chest pained. This was wrong. It had all been wrong. He should have told her from the start.
Sirius stood up quickly, and went to reach out to console her but she had flinched so quickly he withdrawn his hand. "Aurora, Aurora I am so sorry. I never wanted any of this for you. All I wanted was for you be safe, the last thing I've ever wanted to do was hurt—"
"I find that hard to believe."
Sirius frowned deeply. "I'm sorry."
" Did Hermione know?" the voice crack in her throat was evident.
Wow, she thought bitterly. If it was possible to make anything worse. It wasn't just Harry and Ron who had lied but by their reactions, she did too. She knew she should have never become friends with her. That information had caused the tears in her eyes to fall almost instantly.
Harry, in all his years, had never seen her cry: not when she was sorted in Gryffindor after wanting to go to Slytherin, not during the Quidditch World Cup when she was hurt, not even after everything that happened two weeks ago. She never cried, and she was going just that right now. He had hurt her so incredibly much.
She turned to Dumbledore, wiping her eyes. "Can I go?" She rephrased it a second after. "Open the door."
"Aurora, I'm sorry." Harry whispered, and her eyes stilled on him. She did not reply and instead her eyes peered into him.
"No you aren't." Her eyes flickered to Sirius. "Neither of you are. You're both just sad that I didn't have the reaction you wanted me too. You made your decisions that night in the Shrieking Shack, you choose one another. That's fine. Good for you."
"What would you like to do, Miss Black?" Dumbledore asked.
"Open the door back up."
She goes to leave the room, but there was one more question on her mind. The one she could barely even begin to think about because if he did, she might just leave Hogwarts come next year. She could not bare the thought of this questioning being answered with a yes.
"Did Luke know?"
Harry shook his head. "No. He has no idea."
"Should have known." Aurora replied, swallowing. "He was always the better of you three." Her hand went around her wrist, unclasping her bracelet she threw it at him. She left Dumbledore's office and quickly went down the stairs case and made her way through the abandoned hallways. She quickly wiped her tears with her sleeve.
She couldn't stop crying. Her throat felt heavy and she was struggling to breathe. She could hear her heart pounding in her ears. It all felt so wrong. She brought her shaking hands up to wipe her tears. She felt vulnerable for crying in such an exposed area. Anyone could have walked by. She stopped walking and put her hands up to the wall to try and steady her breaths.
He was innocent, yet she only seen him as guilty right now.
She heard rapid footsteps and when she looked Harry was coming. She'd never seen him look as worried.
"I hate you," She whispered, stepping toward to him. She looked up at him through watery eyes. "I hate you so much, more than I ever thought I could hate anyone. You're not my...we're not friends anymore. You mean nothing to me."
"I'm sorry." He responded breathlessly. He didn't mean for any of this to happen. Seeing her crying brought of a feeling in him he didn't think possible. "I didn't want this to happen. I ever wanted to hurt you."
She couldn't even look at him right now, she turns away from him but his hand reached out to her wrist. The touch had always brought her comfort. Now, it was different. When he touched her hand, rather than feeling the pulsing rate of her heart shot up, she felt nothing.
"What did you think is going to happen?" She whispers, pulling her hand back. "That's we'd remain friends?"
Harry frowns, something in his stomach was making him feel sick. The way she was looking at him with such hatred was the worst thing he ever felt. " Y-You said we would be friends through anything that I did wrong. You told me it didn't matter what I didn't—"
"How dare you throw those words back in my face? I meant those words to the person I was saying them too: the Harry I cared about, the one who I trusted with my life. I don't know you anymore."
"Sirius didn't want us to tell you!"
"I thought you cared about me? I should have known no one really does do they?" she asks bitterly.
"I do care about you, more than anyone!" He says, and the two of them continue to look at one another. "I love—"
"No you don't!"
"I'm sorry," he whispers when he sees this. Harry had never seen her cry. "Aurora, please just come back in and we can talk, you and me-"
"There is no you and me!" she sniffles, there was brief second when they met eyes, "Not anymore."
"I understand that you're mad-"
"I can't believe you've done this to me. After everything I've done for you. I stood by you for years even when I didn't entirely agree with anything you did, I still stood by you because you were my friend and I cared about you. I cared about you more than Ron and Hermione. I have lied for you, defended you, I even almost died for you-"
" I never asked to do that-"
Before he could continue he was given a harsh slap to his left cheek from her.
Aurora choked out a cry at his words, whilst Harry rubs his face. He thought that little of her. How could she be so foolish to trust people? To trust him? To grow to care for him.
"Everyone I know always has a way of letting me down. I never thought you would be added to that list."
With this she turns and leaves.
Not only leaving a broken hearted father who wanted nothing more than to hug her and promised everything would be alright but also leaving a boy who had realised he was completely in-love with her.
Sirius. .her father was innocent.
But no matter how hard she thought, she couldn't forgive them, or shake off the feeling of anger.
She didn't want to.
She never would.
She made it to the Common Room where she was greeted with Fred and George, who instantly looked towards her worried. They probably knew too. Everyone knew. She heads up to the dormitory and took out the Walkman leaving it on Hermione's suitcase. Hermione lied to her. Ron lied to her.
Harry lied to her.
She needed one person right now and it was Luke. He had his own problems. She couldn't tell him about this.
And she left the common room, leaving behind the friendship she thought she had. Along her way she passed Hermione whose smile wiped off her face when she saw the look she gave her, but didn't have time to say ask why as she had walked directly passed the girl.
And for the first time in her life she was actually looking forward to leaving Hogwarts.
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HOW MANY OF Y'ALL HATE ME RIGHT NOW