Even to those closest to her, Althea was as much a mystery then as she is now. As a girl, she was driven by her ambition and thirst for knowledge to a place very few could follow, and she didn't hesitate to leave them behind. But now, after living a...
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"I'VE NEVER SEEN HIM LIKE THIS."
"James!"
The moment Althea had returned to her home, later than she normally had each evening, she was frantically searching for James. After seeing Sirius's mother burning his spot on the Black family tapestry, she and Regulus had run out into the Muggle neighborhood surrounding the most noble house of Black, and had searched for Sirius for nearly three hours. But they hadn't been successful. Sirius was gone.
"James!" she called out again into a house that, despite being the complete opposite of the Black household in terms of liveliness, seemed to be empty. "Ja- "
"He's not here."
Althea, frozen for a moment, turned and found the man of the hour standing in the doorway of the sitting room, leaned against the frame with his arms crossed and his eyes in slits. Althea took in a shallow breath, terrified by the confrontation that was likely about to happen.
"I think he and your parents are in town," continued Sirius Black. "I wonder where they think you are."
She held out her hands as a means of caution. Though he was speaking calmly, Althea could sense his anger, and she knew it was directed toward her. "Sirius - "
"What the hell were you doing there?" his voice boomed. He took large strides into the room, and Althea took strides backwards, half expecting him to pull out his wand. She already had a hand on hers. "How did you even get in there? My mother would never allow a Blood Traitor into her home!"
"Sirius, please, I - "
"You're with Regulus, aren't you?" His voice cracked as he said this, and Althea thought he might be hurt. Her grip on her wand tightened. "That was the guy you and James were talking about outside of the library, wasn't it? Not Fenwick - my fucking brother! This is a new low, even for you! Seeing a soon-to-be Death Eater? Maybe you're no better. Maybe you're - "
"Oliviate!"
The house grew quiet again, and watching his eyes, Althea could see the memory - the memory of her at Grimmauld Place - fading from his mind. She was shocked at herself as she quickly put her wand away, but she knew she had to do it. Everything would have changed if she hadn't.
"Thea?" he called out in a soft voice that nearly broke Althea's heart. He took a stumbling step back, looking around confusedly. "I'm sorry, I - I don't remember what I was saying - "
"You were looking for James," Althea filled in. "I was just telling you - he and my parents went into town." She watched him carefully as he sat on the arm of the sofa, looking around as though he were trying to get his thoughts in order. Althea suddenly feared the spell hadn't been strong enough. "Are you alright?"
Sirius looked up at her, and it was clear that he wasn't. Hesitantly, she closed the distance between them, gently taking his arm and sitting him beside her on the sofa. "I need to talk to Prongs - James. I need to talk to James. When'll he get back?"
Never before had she seen Sirius as vulnerable as this, and she wondered if it was just the work of her memory charm, or if the spat between him and his mother was more taxing on him than she initially believed. For as long as she's known Sirius, he's seemed to hate his family, but as she thought back to what she had found his mother doing, she knew this was the final straw. There was no going back there now.
"I don't - " she began, but in the middle of her sentence the two heard the front door opening, James and her parents returning from town. Althea looked worriedly at Sirius, who was not looking at her, and quickly stood, walking to the entryway.
"Oh, Thea!" her father greeted. "When'd you get home? We would have waited for you, but we figured the Woods invited you to stay for dinner." As he was still taking off his Muggle overcoat, Fleamont Potter was the only one who had not yet noticed the state his daughter seemed to be in. James and Euphemia were frozen with worry by the time he had noticed. "What's happened?"
"I-It's Sirius," she started shakily, her eyes scanning over her parents before they landed on James. "Something happened - he's not okay - "
James had pushed past her before she could explain more. She was left with her parents, who with wide eyes, wanted an explanation.
"He got here right after I got home. I was just about to go looking for you." The lies came easily to her, but she felt more guilt with each word. "I've never seen him like this. What do you think could've happened?"
By then, her mother's arms were around her. "I don't know, darling," she was saying, "but whatever it is, we're going to help him through it. Don't worry, he's safe here."
As she said this, Althea tightly shut her eyes, causing a tear to roll down her cheek. For the first time, Althea doubted her mother's words of reassurance. She didn't know if he was safe here, because she was here.
