Loquacious\\ Harry Potter Marauders

Twenty Three\\ The Wonders of Sirius Black

"The truth is rarely pure and never simple."
- Oscar Wilde

Adelaide was a well liked person. She could be rude, snappy, and incredibly cutting to people she didn't like, and sometimes the people she did, but overall, most people liked her. The relationships Adelaide had with people fell into one of three categories- they loved her, they esteemed and respected her, or they hated her. Most fell into the second category- people were drawn towards her. They fell into her web of natural charisma and charm.

Dumbledore liked her too. He had always thought her interesting, since she was a stubborn first year. But she had been at Hogwarts for seven years now, and in that time he had watched her carefully. He saw her grow and expand, becoming more clever every year. He saw how she learned to look out for herself and how her beliefs changed. Dumbledore recalled how she used to scorn the Hufflepuffs until almost the end of first year, when her mind opened and she accepted that they weren't just the weak pushovers of the school. She had learnt the hard way, but Dumbledore respected her ability to move on and grasp new concepts. Through second and third year she became more daring and adventurous, her confidence building. When fourth year came he noticed a change in her attitude, and as more of the boys and the girls began thinking of each as more than friends, the way she handled boys- and indeed girls- she didn't like was something that did not slip his eye.

Finally fifth year came and Adelaide was a different person. Fifteen and beautiful, talented, confident, everything Slughorn valued in a student. She was charismatic and witty, and even in sixth year, when worry creased her face and made her more prone to sudden fits of anger, she remained as magnetic as ever.

That was why Dumbledore never told her the truth. Not until the time was right.

It had been three and a half weeks since Adelaide's family had been killed. Three and a half weeks in which Adelaide slowly found her feet again. The funeral had been a dull affair, all meaningless words and false tears. Adelaide and her Uncle were the only two who really cared. He had met her at the Hogsmeade Station and they had apparated to the funeral in a graveyard in the country. It had been where her father and Aunts grew up. Adelaide had stayed at the graves for half an hour after the funeral, beside her uncle, dressed in black, talking quietly, tears slipping down their faces.

It was her last goodbye. Finally Adelaide cracked a smile when her Uncle Albert offered to be her guardian until she was old enough. He was a good man.

She was back at Hogwarts now, and slowly, she began to smile more, began to laugh, began to leave her room more. She didnt leave her bed the first week, unless it was to smoke out the window or go to class, where she ignored everyone, even Lily, who had alwyas had a special way with Adelaide. She didn't cry, she didn't speak, simply let the world pass her by and lived on in excruciating silent pain.

Until one day when she went to dinner, and the next when she made small talk with Melissa. Slowly, very slowly, she began living again. Began to talk, begam to behave like her usualy charming self, going out more and socialising. Not that she could go out anywhere, exactly, but up until the end of November, guilt had gripped her every time she had wanted to do something. It was as if she could feel her deceased family frowning on her, as if she couldn't and shouldn't have fun while they were dead.

It was Lily Evans who managed to rid Adelaide's mind of these thoughts, after she found her crying in the library one day.

Although Adelaide pushed a lot of people away, and it wasn't easy for her to admit how scared she was. But there was something trusting about Lily Evans. Adelaide knew she was safe with her. Little by little, she felt better and better. It started with leaving her room and showering twice a day, taking long walks by herself, feeling the crisp air outside. She soaked up the Christmas cheer as December drew nearer, and talked to people she hadn't spoken to in weeks.