Serendipity (S. Black)

TWENTY-FIVE

"you can't expect to be old and wise if you were never young and crazy"

*

Eva drank her coffee black. No sugar, no cream, no artificial sweeteners. Just plain black coffee she'd constantly bewitch to stay warm until she finished.

Black coffee reminded her of her father. He always smelled like black coffee, sweat, and the sea. She didn't even particularly like the drink, but she always felt closer to him when she drank it.

So when Lily asked how she wanted her coffee, she said she wanted it black.

Lily, precariously balancing two very full mugs, found the blonde girl sitting cross-legged on her bed, immersed in The Daily Prophet. She kept flicking the edge of the newspaper irritatedly, though Lily could tell the girl didn't know she was doing it.

"You okay?" The redhead handed her the cup before sitting down.

Eva tossed the paper aside, an expression of disgust crossing her face. "It's just an article I found in here. Two supposed Death Eaters put on trial, both pleaded innocent. Both declared innocent, too. What a waste of time."

"The Ministry just wants to look like it's doing something," Lily reasoned.

"It's just so depressing. Their priorities are so messed up."

"So stop reading the news," Lily advised. "It's all trash."

"I suppose you're right."

Both girls knew that neither of them would actually stop reading. Each day, they opened up the paper and scanned the headlines, praying that the names of their families wouldn't be caught in the crossfire of the media. Half of the news anymore seemed to be Muggle families dead with the ghastly Dark Mark hovering above the house.

They didn't continue reading because they wanted to. They continued reading because they needed to.

Eva blew on her steaming drink before taking a sip and grimacing slightly at the bitter taste. "Have you heard from your sister recently?"

Lily's expression immediately hardened. "Not since Christmas, and that visit didn't really go well. Tuney and I aren't exactly close anymore, you know."

"I know," Eva mumbled. Her thoughts strayed to another article she'd read. An entire family killed in Bristol, save one daughter. "I think you should send her a letter."

"Merlin, have you lost your mind?" Lily asked, staring at her friend in disbelief. "You know how it is with the two of us. She hates me anymore. She'd just chuck my letter in the fire, I bet."

"I just think it might be a good idea. With everything going on, I mean. The world's on fire, Lils. I'm not sure we should be living with regrets anymore."

Lily's hands, which had previously been busy folding some of her robes, stilled as Eva's words hit her. In the six years since she'd began Hogwarts, the Evans sisters drifted apart rapidly. Lily knew it was Petunia's jealousy that began the rip of a once-close relationship, but her own stubbornness continued the estrangement until they were bonded by nothing but blood. And blood isn't strong enough to keep two different people together.

Memories flashed across her mind. Making sandcastles at the beach, playing dress-up with their dolls, and dancing around the kitchen in their pajamas to whatever music played on the television. Lily swallowed as she realized exactly just how much she missed her older sister. But even though she wished they could regain their relationship, she also feared rejection and further tormenting from Petunia.