Study Date | James Potter

Chapter 43 - "The People I Love"

The next few days were spent cleaning up the house, mostly by hand. Petunia arrived on the third day, and though she clearly disapproved of the boys, Rose was glad that she at least maintained a thin veil of politeness. Any conversation between Petunia and her sisters was notably strained, but she helped them with the house and sorting their parents' belongings without complaint.

James and Rose were cleaning the bathroom when they heard a blood-curdling scream from the floor below. They rushed downstairs to find Petunia, a hand pressed to her chest and the other pointing wildly towards the doorway she'd just backed out of.

Rose drew her wand and rushed into their father's office to see a bloody hand lying on the floor. Her stomach turned, but then with a loud crack, the hand became a body.

She knew that he was only just past the doorway behind her, consoling Petunia, but Rose's mind couldn't connect the fact with the image of James's corpse lying before her. He lay, pale and unnaturally still, wand loosely held in a limp hand, and eyes open and empty. Rose's hand flew to her mouth and a choked sob escaped her as she saw a large bright red patch, of what was unmistakably blood, staining his shirt over his chest.

Sirius and Remus burst in behind her. The former paled and stumbled back at the sight of his brother on the floor, making a noise like the air had been knocked out of him. Rose's breaths were coming short and fast and her vision was soon blurred, though by tears or lack of oxygen she wasn't sure. Remus stepped forwards, a snarl on his face, letting the boggart focus on him instead. A second loud crack split the air, and this time it was a huge, slavering beast before them, baring its fangs. Its fur was the same sandy brown as Remus's hair, and its eyes the same amber.

He waved his wand. "Riddikulus," he said, and the wolf became a small stuffed toy. Remus laughed humourlessly, and the boggart vanished into thin air.

Something blocked Rose's line of view to the now empty wood floor, and then James's face appeared through a haze.

"I'm here, Rose. I'm alright. It was just a boggart." His words began to break through to her, and her breathing soon slowed to shaky gasps of air as she wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in his chest.

"It looked like you," was the first thing she murmured once she'd recovered.

"I know love. But you know I'll never leave you, right?"

Rose nodded silently, pushing down silent fears of unkept promises.

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Petunia had planned to stay for two days, but left swiftly after the incident. James couldn't say he was particularly hung up over her leaving, although he did feel sorry for her being the one to discover the boggart.

Everybody was at least a little shaken for the rest of the day, and all made an unspoken agreement to stay together until they collapsed in the living room that evening. Lily went down the road and brought back fish and chips, which they wolfed down eagerly before settling into their usual routine of card games before bed. Gin rummy had become a firm favourite once James and Sirius had understood how to play, though, as with everything, it tended to get overly competitive. Remus was threatened with hexing six separate times, Lily four, and James and Sirius three each over the course of their games. Rose feigned attention, but the way she kept accidently showing James her hand, and the way she never won told him she was distracted, and it was reasonably safe to assume what by.

He himself had only caught a glimpse of the boggart - he had been checking Petunia was alright while Rose dealt with whatever was in the room. James had seen her reaction to it from the back, just as Remus and Sirius had come rushing down the stairs. It had only taken a brief glance and a nod between the three of them before they were ploughing into the office to back Rose up. Petunia had kept wailing, leaving James to pat her on the shoulder awkwardly. (He hardly knew the woman after all, and she'd more simply tolerated them than been nice.)