TIME; SIRIUS BLACK

002.

"It's nice meeting you," Charlie said, taking the hand offered to her by the ginger girl. "I'm Charlene, but call me Charlie, otherwise I'll have to hex you."

Lily chuckled at that, not realising that Charlie was being serious, already having hexed one or the other person for calling her Charlene.

"So, who are Potter and Black? And how do you know they did this?" Charlie asked Lily, interested in the individuals who were able to come up with such an enduring spell (and who ruined her cute hairstyle).

Already looking annoyed just by the mention of these two names, Lily threw a glance back to the exit. "How about we go somewhere else, I don't like this bathroom. Myrtle always listens in on conversations and she really doesn't know how to keep her mouth shut."

"Sure, that's fine by me, but who's Myrtle?" Charlie asked as she followed Lily outside.

"She's this really annoying ghost who has no idea of privacy, personal space or social interactions in general," Lily explained, "Of course her story is tragic and all but honestly ..." Then she trailed off, remembering something important.

"Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry, I totally forgot, you have colour all over your face and hair," Lily exclaimed, "I just always get so angry when it comes to Potter."

Charlie chuckled, she already liked this girl, especially since Lily talked enough for two. This was ideal, especially because Charlie preferred to listen, rather than talk. "It's alright. But do you know how to get this off? I tried and couldn't do it."

"I can try," Lily offered, taking out her wand. "My friend, Severus, always gets pranked by them so I know a few charms, which could help."

Charlie let Lily do what she wanted and just hoped the colour would go off her face and hair without leaving any stains, because she invested a fortune into her blonde hair and wasn't willing to let some assholes ruin it, especially since her trusted hairdresser currently spent his days in Beauxbatons, still learning how to dye hair with magic (she guessed that, she actually had no idea how old Louis was in 1976 and what he was doing at that time).

"Severus? As in Severus Snape?" Charlie asked, her mind reeling. She knew this name and knew what would happen to him, then it finally clicked and she realised who that girl was.

Charlie just wanted to throw up.

All these people she was meeting here were destined to fight in a war, most of them wouldn't survive it and leave everything behind, even their own children.

She wanted to take Lily by the shoulder and tell her to take James (and future baby Harry) and go to the U.S. or something to get away, before they would die; but she couldn't.

She wanted to search for her grandparents and tell them they should leave, get away from this hellish place, but really if they did that, what would happen then? Would her father even be born? Would she even exist? It all made her head hurt.

Just her being here was dangerous enough, if she also began to tell people about their future everything would be turned upside down and the future she knew would be destroyed. Maybe there wouldn't even be a future to which she could return to.

Too much was at stake, so Charlie just fiddled with her ring and decided to keep quiet, otherwise something would accidentally slip through or she'd say something stupid.

"You know him?" Lily asked enthusiastically. "Oh, yeah, you're also in Slytherin, right? I guess then you do know him." She blabbered on and on about her friend, Severus, the mean pranks of James Potter, father of the chosen one, and Sirius Black, wrongly accused mass murderer; both people Charlie knew from her father's stories, both people who met tragic ends.

"I'm sorry, I only got the colour away from your face, but the green glitter is still stuck in your hair," Lily apologised. "But honestly, it looks kind of good."

"Thank you so much, Lily," Charlie thanked as she looked at herself in the mirror. "Okay and now we'll have to think of what to do with Potter and Black, I won't forgive them for ruining my blonde hair. If you want to help me," she asked, looking unsurely at Lily, not knowing if she still wanted to help her.

"Of course," Lily said, nodding seriously. "I actually have a list of things we could do, it's just ... nobody ever wanted to help me."

Charlie smirked, "Our meeting was meant to be, then."

"Probably," Lily replied, smiling back at Charlie. "Okay, I'll get the list and we'll talk about it tomorrow after breakfast."

"Why not during?" Charlie asked, "We just need to sit as far away from them as possible."

"What do you mean during breakfast?" Lily asked, not getting what the blonde (well, right now she wasn't all that blonde anymore) was getting at.

"You know, I can just come over to your table, it would be easier, since we won't have to look for a spot to sit at," Charlie explained, though her enthusiasm faltered as she noticed Lily's bewildered expression.

"We can just sit with people from other houses?"

"I guess so, is there a rule against that?" Charlie asked, now not all too confident anymore. In the four years she had attended Hogwarts, it had never been an issue when people from different houses sat together, it was only mandatory to be sat at one's own housetable during the welcome back and the good-bye dinner.

"I don't think it's a rule per say, more like an unwritten law," Lily said, not sounding all that confident.

"I hate rules, you know," Charlie stated, a grin lighting up her face. "Let's break this one."

"Sounds like fun," Lily responded, her grin tense as she could already see her housemates' stares and glares when she sat at breakfast with a Slytherin next to her.

Oh, and what Potter and Black would say, Lily didn't even want to think about it. However, she was also kind of looking forward to the expression they would make, it will be priceless, that was certain. 

HOPE speaks ! 

I hope y'all liked this chapter and are looking forward to Sirius and Charlie finally meeting next chapter :)

love you lots <3