A Marauder's Guide to Falling Forever

Chapter Twenty Three

Romance would need to wait.

"You pick the door this time," he whispered into her lips.

On the third door they entered into a long, rectangular room that was illuminated by bright, sparkling white lights casting rainbows on the walls and ceilings like diamonds reflecting off the light. It was a stark contrast compared to the dim, bluish lighting they had grown accustomed to. Marlene involuntarily squinted as her eyes adjusted to the change and beside her Sirius drew in a sharp breath.

"I think these are time turners." He was looking at a large cabinet filled with small globe shaped pendants hanging from gold chains. There were at least a hundred of them, and Marlene moved closer to take a look. Three gold rings encaged a small hourglass shape; gold grains of sand filled one half of the glass figure eight. Yearning to touch one, her fingers reached out. "Probably shouldn't touch them," Sirius warned while watching her, and she withdrew immediately.

"You're right," she sighed.

The rest of the room was equally as mesmerizing. It was obvious that the room was devoted to the study of time, and she decided that time itself could easy get lost by spending too long within its walls. The most captivating artefact was a large bell shaped jar at the far end of the room. A bird, glowing amidst the sparkling light inside plucked at its feathers. Its beady glowing eyes surveyed Marlene as she stood admiring it. It was unexplainably intriguing.

"There's a door at the back here," Sirius called at her from the opposite length of the room where he had been analyzing varying sizes of golden colored clocks.

"Let's see what's in there then," she said as she hurried towards him.

Sirius pushed on it and it wouldn't budge. "That's strange," he muttered, "I think it's locked." He continued to throw his weight against it as Marlene pulled up next to him. "Maybe we should try one of the other doors back in the other room."

"I'd really like to see what's in this one." She bit down on the corner of her lip, concentrating. Sirius tried one more shove with no success.

"Alright then." He directed his wand at the door, "Alohomora."

Nothing. Like Cassandra's house so many times before, the door was immune to magical enchantment.

"It's locked Mar," he sounded frustrated. "Let's go back."

"Let me try." She stepped forward and he moved aside to give her room. She placed her small hand against the black door, identical to all the others they'd already encountered, and gave a small push. It opened effortlessly.

"I thought you said it was locked," she teased him, looking up at him from behind her dark lashes and smiled coyly. He let out a small growl and she observed that he was only focused on her lips. "Not now, Sirius. We have work to do."

"Don't flirt with me then," he grumbled. Marlene stood on her toes to press a gentle kiss to his cheek. Then she turned her focus back to the door and led the way inside.

And at last they found it. Like the rest of the Department, the Hall of Prophecies was strikingly cold and illuminated by the same ominous blue lighting. The ceiling was high enough to cover at least three or four Ministry levels and rows upon rows of old, dusty shelves encompassed thousands of spun-glass spheres. The candles within the room reflected off the glass making them appear as though each one were glittering.

"The Hall of Prophecies," Marlene informed Sirius. "This is the place."

"So is this the part where you finally tell me why we've just broken into the Ministry of Magic and are staring a thousands of old, strangely glowing crystal balls?" His expression was full of scrutiny and Marlene couldn't really blame him. She had dragged him through quite an odd adventure without so much as a trace of explanation. She supposed that a room full of glass balls seemed hardly worth the secrecy.

"Look I'm not really sure how much of this I'm supposed to be telling you," she said. Marlene didn't only mean Dumbledore, she was also thinking about Cassandra's warning about how meddling in the business of the future can have dire consequences. She didn't want to risk Sirius's life like that.

"Okay well let's start with something you think you can tell me," he pressed.

Marlene thought about it. "These are prophecies," she began to explain.

"I mean, I sort of gathered that when you called this the Hall of Prophecies," he said, rolling his eyes teasingly.

She ignored him, "Well when prophecies are made - any prophecy - they become stored within these glass orbs. I guess this place is sort of like a library of sorts; it stores all of the information."

"So if we're at the library then are we looking to check out a book?" he played along.

"I'm actually not sure," she answered truthfully.

In fact, as much as Cassandra's promise that she would know what to do, it did not extend to the particular reason she needed to find the Hall of Prophecy. She already knew that the one Voldemort sought was safely stored somewhere within the hall...

"I think it's this way," she said suddenly. Her feet started moving without her consciously willing them, autonomic in response to some instinct she wasn't yet aware of. Rows upon rows of the same towering shelves passed by as they made their way to row 81.

They stood in front of the shelf where the small spherical object sat; a dazzling hue of blue. Marlene anchored her attention on the way the colors swirled around in the glass like an intricate dance. But more interesting was what was inscribed: C.V.V. to M.E.M. Marlene McKinnon, James Potter, Lily Potter, Sirius Black.

"Why are our names on this?" Sirius reached out to grab it.

"NO!" she shouted, and his hand drew back immediately in alarm.

"What's the problem?"

"You can't touch it," she told him.

"Why not?"

"I don't know," she said. "Just – don't."

"Do you know why my name is on it then?"

"I don't know," she said quietly. Without listening to it she had no certain way of confirming whether or not it was the one from Cassandra. But given the inscribed initials C.V.V. to M.E.M., Marlene would wager a guess that it was the same. Cassandra Vlbatsky to Marlene Elisabeth McKinnon.

Cassandra's warning flashed through her mind once more. She didn't wish to burden that sort of information on Sirius. She watched his critical analyzation of the mysterious crystal, the wheels evidently turning in his head. She decided that she couldn't risk his future. Sirius would have to live his life not knowing anything more about what that particular prophecy pertained.