She's the Girl | A Marauders Love story

Chapter 51

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Hailey put the last box down in the bedroom and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She and James had officially moved in together, and had both learned how hard moving was. It had taken a lot of work to convince their parents that they were responsible enough to move out, and especially, move in together. Finally, everyone had come to the agreement that a two bedroom flat was a good enough compromise. Once they had agreed on everything, they found a flat in a convenient location for both Hailey's and James's work, and then they had to move in. Hailey had learned that moving was incredibly difficult, and very time consuming. Between her work at St. Mungo's, where she was now a paid intern, and James's Auror training, they hardly had the time to pack up all of the boxes and move them, not to mention going out to get new furniture. Hailey had been incredibly surprised to find that James was really good at interior design, and trusted him with almost all of the decorating. Even though she liked the way he decorated, he still wanted her to be present when they got new furniture. Because of their conflicting schedules, they had only been shopping a few times, meaning their apartment was still bare. So far, they just had clothes and personal possessions, along with a mattress.

The front door opened, and she heard James walking up the stairs.

"I'm back!" He called, opening the door. Hailey smiled and stood up, hugging him. He kissed the top of her head.

"Everything going smoothly?"

Hailey nodded.

"I got all of my stuff out of my parents' house, so now we just have to get a real bed, and couches and stuff. How was the ministry?"

James shrugged.

"Same as always, I suppose. Nothing interesting really happens there. And Sirius wasn't there today, so that made it even more boring."

Hailey nodded. Sirius had moved out of the Potters' a few weeks before James and Hailey had, after one of his uncles had left him a large sum of money. He was living just a few blocks away from where Hailey and James were moving in, and had caught some kind of flu that kept him from going to the ministry for training. Needless to say, James was incredibly bored.

"I think the real problem is that you two refuse to make any other friends. If you knew a few other people in the program, it wouldn't be that bad." She pointed out. James shrugged.

"It's no fun to make friends. It's better if you already know them."

Hailey sighed.

"Have it your way. We need to get a bed today, though. I'm sick of the mattress on the floor."

James nodded and smirked.

"It's worse for me. You kick in your sleep."

"I do not!"

"You wouldn't know."

Hailey hit his arm.

~~~~

Hailey sat down on the couch and sighed. James was gone again, and she was home alone again. Sirius and Remus were coming over for dinner, but that wasn't for hours, so she was free to relax. She closed her eyes, and her thoughts wandered to James. He had been leaving the house early and coming home late, and had become much more secretive with her. Sirius had also noticed his change in behavior, and had come over to ask Hailey if she was pregnant, just in case. When she had assured him that she was not carrying James's child, they had both decided that James would tell them when he felt like he should, and that trying to pry and snoop around would only end in hurt feelings. So they had tried to make it clear that James could talk to them, and then they had left it, hoping that James took the hint and discussed what was bothering him.

At first, Hailey had been scared that James had gotten involved in something dangerous and didn't want her or Sirius to know, but had quickly dropped that idea when she and James joined the Order. Right now, they didn't have any big assignments, just keeping their eyes on people that they associated with often at work, but Hailey and James enjoyed doing something to resist You-Know-Who. Hailey thought it was a bit ridiculous, being so afraid of one person. He hadn't been a problem just a few years ago, and now, he had all of Europe afraid to even say his name. It was curious, to say the least. Surely, one person couldn't be so dangerous that they were undefeatable. If more people stepped up and joined the Order, or any cause working against him, certainly they could beat him.

But that was wishful thinking. People were too afraid for themselves or their loved ones to openly fight against him. The threat of The Dark Lord and his Death Eaters was too scary for most people.

Hailey got lost in her thoughts and quickly fell asleep, feeling the sun streaming down on her face.

"Babe! I'm home!" James's voice brought Hailey out of her slumber. She sat up, rubbing her eyes. Realizing the sun was going down, she quickly stood up, heading to the kitchen.

"What time is it?"

"4:30, love. We have an hour and a half before Remus and Sirius come over, don't worry."

Hailey relaxed, but continued to the kitchen, James following her.

"Was work busy? They kept you for quite a while." She commented. James tensed slightly, then relaxed.

"No, I just went to visit my parents after." He said. The comment was casual, but Hailey felt the tension in his voice.

"How are they? I haven't heard from them in a bit." She commented. James sighed.

"I don't really know, actually."

Hailey turned around.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when I went to get some of my stuff, I found a letter from St. Mungo's, saying that Mum and Dad had tested positive for Dragon Pox. And when I asked them about it, they said it was nothing to worry about, but Dragon Pox is basically fatal for people their age. I just, I don't want to lose my parents." He finished, his voice wavering slightly. Hailey wrapped her arms around him, letting him rest his head on her shoulder.

"It'll be okay. I can look into how they're doing tomorrow, if you'd like. And we can visit them soon, and have a real discussion about it."

James's arms wound around her waist, pulling her closer until their bodies were flush.

"Thank you Hailey. I love you."

"I love you too. We also have to make dinner before Sirius gets here, because I don't want to deal with his little man-tantrums."

James chuckled and pulled away.

"Alright."

Hailey leaned up and kissed him gently.

"We're going to get through this, I promise."

"I know."