Chapter 18

Chapter started: May 1, 2013

Chapter finished: May 5, 2013

Chapter posted: May 5, 2013

Thanks to the people that read the previous chapter and a plate of cookies goes out to escap1st who reviewed first. I know this story is taking some time and I really appreciate any and all the feedback I get via reviews or PM's.

Disclaimer: I own no part of Harry Potter and earn nothing from the sale of the materials. Rights belong to the genius creator J. K. Rowling. The original characters, Aria and Sage, and the plot are from my own imagination.

Last time

Lily felt her small family unit breaking apart little by little and it was breaking her heart and beginning to splinter her mind and control into small fragments a bit at a time. Aria would return, but the only question was whether Lily would still be sane enough to let her in willingly.

Now

Aria passed through the next few days on autopilot, not thinking about what was going on in her life and not speaking to Sage or Lily. The void that was growing inside of her was getting bigger and harder to ignore as time passed. She knew that something was going to give, but she wasn't sure what it was at that point. Only when she was sitting by herself in the dark at night after everybody else had fallen asleep did she allow her mind to wander. Thoughts of her best friends were mixed in with images of herself alone.

The brunette and redhead that were featured in her thoughts were acting similarly. They were not their usual selves and the rift had the students around them making bets on why. It was almost unheard of for the three girls to be apart, let alone not speaking.

The marauders were at a loss. They didn't know what to do, so they did the smartest thing and stayed out of it. As the days turned into a week and one week turned into two and October became November, Lily began to lose periods of time. They would just disappear from her memories. One moment they would be there and she could recall them at any time and the next it was just an empty memory. That was dangerous as her fine tuned control was also getting shakier by the day. Since the day that she and Aria had split she hadn't been able to wield the power the same way. Her emotions were going through the roof and plummeting below the floorboards within the time span of a few minutes. It reached a point that James was the only one that was able to bring her out of her emotional distress. Her mind was fracturing and it was all stemming from the perceived rejection. She would live through it, but she would not be totally stable in the end.

Seeing her friend like that was ripping Sage apart and she decided to do what she could to help. Entering the dorm room that she had not entered in weeks displayed Aria leaning against the wall with her back to the door staring out the window.

"What do you want?" The blonde's voice was monotonous and she didn't turn her head to see who had entered.

"You need to talk to Lily. She is losing it."

"She doesn't need me. She's got James."

"Elementals need more then just their mates to survive at full capacity. If you had read about what she was you would know that. Regardless she does need you and, judging from the way you look now, you need her as well."

"Why do you care that we talk?"

"I care because the two of you were my life lines through some of the darker points in my life and I wouldn't be the person that I am today without the two of you. I hate being between you guys and just want you to see that it is the same for both of you as well. Even though we are different people there is so much overlap in our lives that we are more similar than people think. When either of you is in pain I hurt for you and I know it's vice versa as well. How many nights did both of you stay awake so I wouldn't be by myself in third year? Why would you have done that if you didn't care?"

Aria's only response was silence as her eyes misted over. Since Sage was behind her the tears went unnoticed and Aria heard Sage sigh and mutter before she left the room.

"Stubborn pigheaded girl. I give up."

Alone with her thoughts again the blonde sat on her bed and glanced at the table beside it. There were pictures of the three of them throughout their years together. Each image caused the memory to rush to the front of her mind. Her favourite picture didn't have an exciting story behind it, just the three of them walking away from the camera heaving textbooks behind themselves with the sun shining on the castle in the distance. It had been taken at the end of fifth year while they had all been studying for their OWLs. Wanting a break from the library she had begged and pleaded until Lily and Sage had given in and said they could sit beside the lake. They had stayed there for hours reading and taking notes, sitting in almost silence, but that was the best time that she could remember while actually getting work done.

Another picture grabbed her attention and she was immediately back in first year at their first breakfast in the castle.

Flashback

"Wow! How does all of this food just appear? Is there a spell or a charm for it?" the small redheaded Lily Evans looked on in wonder as the empty table soon became overloaded with food. Insatiable curiosity was one of the things that Aria had already noticed about her. She was always looking around and trying to figure out how the magic made things around them work.

End Flashback

Just watching Lily had made her smile and look at the world that she had grown up in through new eyes and she had seen that everyday things were really amazing and they were fortunate to have magic in their lives. It appeared as if the redhead was always teaching her without knowing it. Opening her eyes to things she had never thought about before by just being who she was. As Aria's thoughts drifted so did her eyes and they landed on a photo from the fourth year. This was the only picture on the table that didn't move because Sage had taken it with Lily's muggle camera and they had decided to leave it uncharmed. The scene portrayed was chaotic to say the least. It showed herself, covered in feathers and honey, about to leap on a running Sirius who was holding two buckets with a shit-eating grin on his face. James was on his broom above Lily's head with another few buckets and Sage had caught the image right at the moment of impact. James wore a gleeful smirk and Lily appeared as if she didn't know what was going on as she was covered with the same mixture as her friend.

Bad was an understatement when it came to describing the relationship between James and Lily for the first six years of school, but no matter what had happened they had always been a part of the others life. They had never just ignored the other or pretended that they didn't exist. Even when the thoughts weren't good they had always made sure that the other was thinking of them. This revelation made Aria's mind fly and it didn't take much more to change her mind about the situation.

A new frame on Sage's bedside made Aria stand and move closer. It had to have been taken by a random bystander as they were all in the moving shot. It had been taken a few weeks before the blow up. The three of them were walking down the hall towards class and three of the marauders were coming the other way down another hallway. In the shot Lily stopped to pick up a piece of fallen parchment and when she stood she bumped into the man that Aria now knew was her mate. His arms immediately flashed out to brace her so that she wouldn't fall and hers fell to his elbows. They didn't say anything, just looked at each other before moving on and going their separate ways. Their hands clasped and released reluctantly as the distance between them grew and just before he was out of the shot he turned around to watch her go.

The scene was one that she hadn't even noticed at the time, but watching the two of them made it obvious that there were some deep emotions involved there. Such a small moment could put everything on display, but nobody else noticed in the hallway. The people around them just continued walking. Only the person that took the photo saw something worth stopping for.

Her brain was flipping past thoughts quickly, but the common theme was that even when she had been with James there hadn't been a difference between the Lily from before the last summer and the Lily then. Maybe everybody was right and she hadn't changed because of him.

If that was truly the case then Aria had some work to get done. She began planning and slept well for the first time in weeks that night.

A few days later found an emotionally and physically unstable girl trudged out of the charms class room and wanted nothing more then to go back to her dorm and lay down with her mate at her side, but a hand on her arm had her turning and the person standing in front of her made her snarl with rage.

"Lily! Can we talk?" Aria asked quietly, eyes flicking around on her face searching for any sign of forgiveness. Finding none she found her courage wavering, but she straightened her back and stood her ground. She needed to get her words out, no matter what the redhead said.

Lily ripped her arm away and snarled, "what, so you can tell me that I should be dead instead?"

"No! You have to know it didn't mean what I said. I would never wish you to be dead! You are my best friend. You know everything about me and still choose to be beside me as my friend. You didn't turn your back when you found out my darkest secret and that showed me that I could always trust in you. You believed in me and that faith gave me the strength to move on and continue with my life. I forgot that at the moment when it was most important. The only wish in my heart right now is that you can forgive me for the mistakes I've made."

Lily's green eyes narrowed in anger and the spark that had been laying dormant in them since the blonde had cut herself off flared to life.

"Forgive you? What makes you think I would do that? What thought could you possibly think could possess me into letting you get close to me after you told me I would be better off dead? I'm pretty sure that passes the point of no return."

Aria held out her hand and said, "take my hand Lils. Let me show you that I will stay by your side and not let you down again. Your friendship means more to me then anything else at this point in my life. I don't know if I deserve a second chance, but I will do my best to be the person you thought I was. The person I know I want to be."

"You have one chance." Those were the only words the redhead spoke as she placed her hand in Aria's.

"That's all I will need."

Lily found that the longer she was in contact with the blonde her head became less and less fuzzy and her memories became clear again. By the time that the pair reached the dungeons she was almost back to her old self. A simmering cauldron caught her eye and she moved forward until she stood beside the red liquid. The knowledge that she recognized the potion floored her.

"Aria, why is this potion here? We aren't supposed to ever make it again."

"I had to prove to you that I don't want to lose you as a friend and if the only way to do that is to brew and drink the nightmare potion then I will do it. I know that our bond is not the same as the one between you and James, but I'm confident that you will be able to bring me out of it. Our friendship was, is, strong enough for that." As she spoke Aria noticed Lily shaking her head.

"No. I can't let you do that Air. I saw what it put James through and I would never with that on anybody else, not my best friend or my worst enemy."

"Then what can I do to prove it to you?"

Lily's smile was small, but it was still a smile. "You just did. I could sense the conviction in your mind and that alone is enough to show me. I only ask that you give me the time to explain myself that way I should have back in September. I was the one to blame behind everything that happened and I'm more sorry then you could ever know about that."

"You didn't do anything Lily!"

"Exactly, I didn't tell you what I knew when I figured it out. I didn't have the faith in you that you just showed you have and have always had in me. The worry that I was going to lose you when you found out was enough to shake my belief in you and our friendship. Never again will that happen. I'm so sorry Air."

"Hakuna Matata." Aria shrugged and Lily burst into giggles.

I hope you enjoyed that chapter. It took long enough to come into existence. Aria was definitely the focal point in this chapter, but there is a reason for that. It will be revealed later.

Thanks to everybody who reviewed the last chapter; Escap1st, Weasley02, snickerdoodlesXinfinite and Cassia.

Anyways, tell me what you thought about it in a review or a PM to amber-eagle .

I also want to mention my facebook again, Amber Eagle, with a profile picture of three mermaids on a rock… a foreshadow? Maybe. Add me and you may find out.

Amber Eagle