Cursed Child Years 1-4 | Marauders Era

92 | New & old Wounds

Mending old Wounds

"Please welcome this student back with open arms!" Dumbledore waved a hand forward towards the doors and every pair of eyes followed as they swung open.

Elizabeth didn't see anyone at first. She looked to Mary, then to James, and then to Peter, but when a great gasp sounded from the Hufflepuff table - the house table nearest to the entrance doors - she quickly shot her eyes over to the doors.

When she saw who it was, she felt the colour drain from her face within seconds. Elizabeth felt half the hall's eyes turn to her and she couldn't help but stare in shock.

There, standing between the Ravenclaw and the Hufflepuff table, was Jake Selwyn.

Elizabeth felt time freeze for a moment. Because there he was, her brother. She had forgotten that he was alive, forgotten the pain of the resurrection spell, the scar to her neck, the memory of him holding her in the fireplace of the Selwyn library. Elizabeth had forgotten she had nearly died to bring back her brother, forgotten that half her Magic now belonged to him.

His eyes scanned the hall and instantly connected with hers. Elizabeth gripped the skin around her neck, holding her breath as their eyes connected. They weren't vacant, they weren't draining the life out of him. It was him, before everything, before all the deaths and the killings. Bright blue and full of life again.

When Jake finally did move and turned away from her to make his way to the Slytherin table, she watched as Andromeda jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his neck and half laughing, half sobbing into the crook of it. Elizabeth watched as he held her back and then Radolphus stood and then Lucius. She watched as her brother hugged every single one of his old friends; Bellatrix, Amos, Cassilda, Rabastan, Evelyn.

Elizabeth couldn't help but stare.

"I know this must be a great shock to many of you," Dumbledore's voice cut through her thoughts, lunging her back into reality.

"I am aware that many of you were under the impression that Jake Selwyn had died. He had forgone a terrible injury - that should have been fatal - but recovered well. Mr Selwyn has spent the past year restoring his body, Magic and mind to its full potential and has now been deemed fit to return for his final three years of education here at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore went on to explain Jake and his 'recovery' along with the lies Elladora and Divicci had spun to the old headmaster.

She drowned it out, staring at him across the Great Hall. Jake stared back. His friends were all smiling at him and staying close, so grateful to have him back after so long of having him gone, and he was just staring at her. She wanted him to look elsewhere; to Jonathan, who had no knowledge that Jake had been alive for the past two months. Elizabeth had and she'd forgotten.

Eventually the chatter filtered in and the food was presented in the center of the four tables as usual. Elizabeth broke eye contact with her brother and turned to the food in front of her. She wasn't hungry, far from it, but helped herself to the food anyway as a means of distraction.

"So..." James started but couldn't seem to finish the sentence.

"He's alive?" Marlene asked bluntly.

"Yes, it appears so," Elizabeth mumbled into her hand.

"Did you know?"

Elizabeth looked up suddenly. "What?"

Sirius sighed. "Did you know that he was alive? That he was coming here today?"

"No. I didn't know he was coming here today." That wasn't a lie, her parents had not specified when Jake would be returning. Only that he would be sometime in the near future, she hadn't thought that would mean today.