minnow // sirius black

thirty-one

31: orphaned

The vision, one I had been expecting since they started but dreaded the entire time, came two weeks before Lily and James were supposed to get married.

Esme was just under four months old, and was already sitting up on her own. I'd been holding her in my lap, talking to her about how loved she was, and how special of a little witch she would be. I told her about Hogwarts, and how she'd love it there. I told her that I'd do anything to protect her, as would everyone around her.

Albus Dumbledore had come by the day before to meet her, commenting that she looked a lot like me, before he asked if James, Lily, Sirius and I were interested in joining the Order of the Phoenix. We'd asked what it was, and when Dumbledore explained that it was a 'secret' society dedicated to protecting the world from Voldemort and his Death Eaters, as well as fighting them, all four of us immediately agreed to join. He said that the other three would be required to attend meetings, and that as soon as I was healed, I would be asked to attend important meetings - especially ones that required my specific set of skills.

Dumbledore admitted that my visions were necessary for the Order, but that he was extremely interested in using my heightened sense of magic for special missions. He was most interested in the magic detection ability I had, saying that it would save lives.

I agreed, as I held Esme and admitted I'd do anything to create a better world for her to grow up in.

Albus left shortly after, saying that he'd contact us via Patronus when we were needed.

So the next day, one of the worst days of my life, I'd been holding Esme, telling her how she had even more people looking out for her.

I had stood up, taking her to her crib as she'd fallen asleep, when I felt a strong surge of magic. It was incredibly intense, and it was coming from me.

"Lily!"

She was in the kitchen, pouring apple juice for her and I when I called her name.

She dropped one of the glasses, shattering it on the floor as she turned to look at me. I tightened my grip on Esme as my face went blank. Lily's eyes widened as she screamed for Sirius and James. She ran as quickly as she could to me, grabbing Esme out of my arms as I fell back against the floor.

I hit my head on the coffee table as I let Lily pull my daughter out of my nearly limp arms.

It was like my mind had warned me, because I was holding Esme, and I felt nothing but gratefulness for that particular abnormal occurrence.

James had taken my head into his lap, border-line freaking out when he saw the blood pooling against his lap, as Sirius tried to keep the rest of me from frantically flailing around. They said it was the worst one they'd ever seen, I was flailing around so uncontrollably that they were worried that I was having an actual seizure, not just a vision.

But when I came out of it, I met James eyes with a pain in my own that he saw immediately.

"Jemina, don't-"

"It's Mum and Dad," I said as I apparated quite literally out of their arms. I put all of my strength into not taking them with me, and apparating through the magic applied to the house. When I landed in the front yard of my childhood home, I praised myself. I had apparated through apparition prevention magic.

I wasted no time, drawing my wand from the small pocket on the ankle of my pants as I ran into the house.

The living room was destroyed, the furniture turned upside down and broken, I stopped for a moment, my heart crushing itself more and more, before I heard a window break. I ran towards my parents bedrooms, fear clawing at my throat.