Separate Universe (HP/MCU)

Chapter Twelve

      Remus began to worry when Nanala never returned, especially when the late night fell and she didn't make an appearance. He knew she was nervous, but he doubted she would've disappeared. She'd never leave James, Sirius, or Remus alone, especially now that she was pregnant. They were her family, and she'd never leave her family behind. She knew too well how it felt to be left behind by her own family, so she wouldn't leave anyone else behind.

       The next morning when James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter went to breakfast and still didn't see her, Remus knew something was wrong. He searched around for her, but frowned when nobody was seen with her. Everyone's eyes widened when the Great Hall's doors opened to reveal the newly married, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. The couple walked to the front, and soon Dumbledore stood with them. He spoke quietly with them, before he waved his hands and the tables cleared. The students turned to Dumbledore and the entire Hall went quiet.

"Students, it is with a heavy heart that I have to announce the passing of Nanala Malfoy. In the late hours of the night, Nanala was attacked and she was too severely injured to come back from her injuries. I am gravely sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, for your loss, as well as all of her friends. Ms. Malfoy will be greatly missed," Dumbledore said, as Nanala's friends bursted into tears.

        James sobbed into Sirius's shoulder, as Sirius tried to stay strong for his friend. Remus and Peter cried, as did Lily and Marlene, even though they weren't truly friends with the girl. Remus could tell something was off though. He knew death eaters were around, he'd be a fool not to, but he had a feeling Nanala was too strong to be attacked and killed by death eaters. She was bright and strong, and she had a baby to fight for, so Remus wondered how she could've been attacked so severely.

        Besides, Nanala was a pure blood, and a Malfoy, any death eater would believe they could switch her from the side of good to bad. He doubted a death eater would attack her, or if they did, they wouldn't have left her for dead, they would've taken her with them and tortured her until she switched sides or until she was insane.

"She can't be gone!" James cried, as everyone stared at him with remorse.

"Boys, you lot can go back to your dorm. You can have a few days to mourn, and don't worry about falling behind. This matter is more important than a few reports," Professor Mcgonagall said, as she laid her hand on James's shoulder.

      Sirius practically had to carry the crying boy out of the Great Hall, since he could barely stand on his own. Remus glanced back once more at Dumbledore and the Malfoys. He could see something in the Malfoys, especially Narcissa. Something was wrong, but he didn't know what it was. Dumbledore had lied, that much he could tell, but there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. He couldn't tell James, since James was a wreck, and he couldn't tell Sirius, since Sirius felt responsible for the girl. He believed if he would've protected her better, she would still be with James and she would be happy and alive.

        As he laid in his bed crying silently, he broke more as he listened to James sobbing his heart out. Sitting up, Remus sat down on the floor near his bed and reached his arms under. He knew about Nanala's secret box of galleons, and his heart dropped when he realized the box was gone, but the other box wasn't. He had kept a box of memories of Nanala over the years. He opened the box to find pictures of the boys and Nanala. He also found some of her letters to the boys, as well as a few random things of hers, like bracelets, necklaces, and her favorite shirt that she had worn so much it had tattered holes at the bottom.

       Remus called for the boys and showed them the box. He allowed them to crowd around him, as they looked through all of the memories. When Remus found a black bracelet with a Playboy Bunny woven into it, he smiled. The bunny was real gold, and had Nanala's name engraved on the back. It was Nanala's favorite, since she absolutely loved the Playboy Bunny emblem, but after she lost the bracelet one too many times, she gave the bracelet to Remus for safe keeping.

"You should have it, to remember her," Remus said, as he untied the bracelet and put it on James's wrist.

        Once the bracelet was secure, James put a permanent sticking charm on it, so he'd never lose it and nobody could take it from him. There were other things in the box, like necklaces, rings, etc, but the bracelet meant the most to Nanala, and now James had it.

"We should get a photo album for these pictures," Peter commented, and Sirius quickly jumped to his feet.

      Sirius transfigured an old book into a photo album, before handing it over to Remus. As they looked through the photos and reminisced about their memories, they were able to wear sad smiles, as tears still ran down their faces.

"Does anyone have a quill?" Remus asked, and James nodded.

      James leaned over and grabbed the quill Nanala left on his bedside table.

"This was Nanala's," He murmured, and Remus nodded.

       On the last page Remus wrote: In Memory of Our Best Friend; Nanala 'Kitty' Malfoy. May she forever be in our hearts and in our memories. We'll love her forever, as much as we did yesterday, today, tomorrow, and always. He then skipped a little space before putting: In Memory of Baby Malfoy-Potter; though they did not get to see the light, they'll forever be our light.

"Baby?" James asked, his eyes wide.

"She was going to tell you last night, Prongs. She was meant to tell all of you," Remus said, causing James to let out a loud sob once again.

        Remus placed Nanala's quill in her box of memories, as he watched his friend breakdown over the loss of his love and his child. Everyone was hurting, and Remus knew just how much the pain was going to grow as the years passed and the war came to their world. The boys were startled when they heard a knock on their door, and when Remus opened it, he seen Lily and Marlene.

"Here are her things, we figured you guys would want them. Some of her things weren't there, but we couldn't find them. I think Narcissa might've taken stuff for her own memory of Nanala. We're sorry for your loss," Lily said, tears evident in her eyes.

       Once the door was closed, the boys went through her things. They packed everything up to keep. They would miss her forever, but her memory would never be gone. They had bits of her, even if it was only small bits. They weren't going to let her memory fade away, especially after Remus duplicated the photo album three times so they could all have one to remember her. He just wouldn't duplicate the box. That was his box of memories, and he couldn't let them go...

END OF PART ONE!