CHECK YES JULIET ▷ JAMES POTTER [1]

𝟔𝟎. 𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒

(60 : THESE VIOLENT DELIGHTS . . .
HAVE VIOLENT ENDS)

✧࿐ ཾ✧

     JULIET'S WORLD FELL APART ON a Saturday. It was then — more than a year after she had last even seen James — that she received an owl that changed everything, the creature swooping in with such urgency that it knocked her wine glass to the floor. Absentmindedly, she thought about how furious Sirius would be when he noticed the blood red stain on his cream carpet as she tore into the letter that was ominously addressed to 'J.'

Her eyebrows knitted together when she found the letter was blank. As she turned the parchment over in her hands, she debated if it was one of Sirius' pranks. Not that he was ever around much anymore. Since Sirius was always at Order meetings and Regulus had to keep up appearances with the Death Eaters, Juliet's days typically consisted of drinking until dark, all by herself. It actually made her long for something to subdue her crippling loneliness — even something as utterly childish as a practical joke. Yet, the war was ruthless and seemed to take a toll on the strongest of friends, meaning humour was usually few and far between.

"Aparecium," she thoughtfully muttered, tapping her wand against the parchment.

For a moment, the parchment shimmered white and then two words in the familiar handwriting of Regulus Black revealed themselves. It simply read:

'Potter. Tonight.'

Fear punctured her heart like a gunshot, wholly unexpected. It had been so long since they went into hiding that she — stupidly — believed they were safe. Grateful as she was that Regulus had kept his promise, there was an uncomfortable sinking feeling in her gut as she realised there was nothing she could do without the location of the Potters. If they were under the Fidelius Charm, hope was lost and fate was cruel.

     Juliet didn't even notice she was sobbing until the ink from the parchment had started to run, staining her fingertips black, black like James Potter's fate. Of course she couldn't change anything because she was a nobody in the war. A face amongst the forgotten and a spineless child, Juliet Fawley was never the type to change the world.

      On occasion, James made her feel like she could. Like her existence mattered in the grand scheme of things. More tears splattered against the parchment and something akin to guilt wrapped itself around her heart like a noose. She knew him, she knew him better than she knew herself, so why didn't she know where he would hide? In a desperate action, she combed through her memories in search of a hint, a clue, anything that would lead her to him. Then, the memory of their first date in the snow set her mind ablaze and a small gasp burst from the base of her throat.