we cheer when stars fall

Lucy/Lysander

I found a love in me
I always somehow knew that it existed
it just needed to be set free

bon voyage

the lining is silver, relient k

i.

Percy Weasley is thirty-three and still young when his second daughter is born.

Her mum is weak, even he can tell as he stares at her in worry. She's thin, fragile, and with a stretched frown, the healer tells Percy, "I don't think she's going to make it."

He looks, terrified, from the healer to his wife, who's lying in the bed, circles under her eyes. "And the baby?"

"She's going to survive, if we get it out of her first," The healer explains.

"You're magical!" Percy explodes, trying very much to keep his careful composure but failing because this is Audrey, this is Audrey and he loves her more than anything in the world, except maybe his daughter Molly. "You're magical, and she's a Muggle, and can't you people get anything right? You should be able to heal her; you should be able to fix it…"

The healer simply pats his back, as if it is something that can be healed by a pat on the back, as if it's not the incompetent healer's fault in the first place- Percy's sure that if it was up to him, Audrey would be completely healed. He's going to have to talk to someone at the Ministry about their lack of worthy workers.

When the birth actually happens, he can't bring himself to even come near the room. All he remembers afterward is the doctors coming out and saying "she didn't make it", and the tears that trail down his face, and then the doctors asking if he would like to see little Lucy (that's what Audrey named her before she died, after her own Muggle mum who died when she was a child). The doctors put a little bundle in his hands.

Looking down, he sees the intense blue of her eyes (and they say all newborns' eyes are blue, but this must be magic because no one's eyes are that blue, the same as Audrey's) and the tufts of brown curls. She's like a little Audrey and- no, he can't handle this.

He hands Lucy back to the doctor with a nod and he debates what to do. No, he can't let Lucy grow up like this- growing up in the shadow of her father's regret. Molly will already have to live with that and he can't subject a child to that kind of torture, no matter how evil people say that he is. With a frown, he realises what he has to do.

The day that Lucy is released from the hospital (in perfect health, go figure), he leaves little Molly with the Scamanders and Apparates to the nearest orphanages. Wiping the stray tears from his eyes because he's supposed to keep up his reputation, he places her, wrapped in the blanket with the stars on it, on the doorstep of the orphanage. Then, pressing a quick kiss to her forehead, he Apparates off.

The last time he sees Lucy Weasley, she has a hint of a smile upon her plump pink lips.

ii.

Lucy. Her name is Lucy, that's all she's ever told.

She's brought up in the orphanage and she doesn't know anything else. They hand her the letter that was attached to her basket, and all it says is, her name is Lucy. Expect the unexpected, please.

She blinks and thinks that he could've done it a little better (obviously it's a he, by the handwriting). But maybe it's just her flair for the dramatic that secretly wishes that the letter would declare that he (her father, she thinks) loves her very much.

But the thing is, he's absolutely right. With Lucy, they've learned to expect the unexpected.

She looks innocent. The young girl has long brown curls, big blue eyes, and pale, freckled skin. Actually, she's awfully pretty. And she's usually a completely sweet girl to everyone she comes across, caring too, and intelligent. But the thing is, she's dramatic and she's a dreamer and her head is never where it's supposed to be.

During lessons about the classification of animals and all of that stuff that she'll surely need to know later in life, Lucy dreams about flying through the sky and touching the stars. She makes up worlds, worlds made of candy, licorice sunsets and marshmallow clouds, worlds where everything's happy and everything's just fine.

But when they ask her the capital of England, she feels like shrugging and telling them that she doesn't know, but she scrambles to make something up. "Um, E?"

"Lucy," The teacher admonishes, not using her last name like she does the other children (because she doesn't have one). "This is no time for witty jokes. What is the capital of England?" Her voice is harsh, the kind of voice that makes Lucy want to burst into tears.

Titters break out from across the room. In a shaky voice, Lucy tells the lady, "I- I don't know."

"London. You live not two hours away, Lucy. How are you so stupid?" The lady yells in a mocking voice.

With wide eyes, Lucy shakes her head, glancing in fear up at the clock. Only two more minutes…

Finally, the bell rings. Clambering to her feet, Lucy grabs her bag off of the ground, hoping to rush out of the school before anyone has the chance to stop her. But of course, things never really go the way she wants them to.

"Oh, look, it's Little Orphan Lucy," calls a mocking voice. "Stupid Little Orphan Lucy, doesn't even know the capital of England."

"London," She yells back, trying to keep her voice from trembling. "It's London!"

"See, stupid Lucy's finally learned something," The boy's voice hardens.

"Oh, leave her alone, would you," a voice butts in. Her adopted brother and best friend at the orphanage, Jonathan Wallace, walks up, pushing his glasses further up his nose. He's a year older than Lucy, but he's a bit dorkier and his life revolves around school for the most part.

"Ooh, look, Lucy, your boyfriend is here to protect you," one of the boys calls in a mocking voice.

"He's not my boyfriend," Lucy declares desperately.

The rest of them just laugh, coming closer and closer as if they're going to hurt her or something. Jonathan steps protectively in front of her, like he's willing to fight them (which is insane because they're bigger than him). The boys just laugh and take a step closer to Jonathan.

"Jon, don't," She whimpers, wishing that she was big enough to take them or that she had some way of going against them.

"Lucy, they-" He protests.

It's then that an adult, one of the neighbors or someone, comes storming out there. "What are you children doing?"

"Just talking," The boy says with an angelic smile. "We'll be on our way now." With wide eyes, all of the boys take off.

"They're cowards," Lucy reminds him with a dreamy smile. "Ignore them."

"I'll surely try," Jonathan promises her, laughing as he runs up ahead and she follows him, watching as the autumn leaves fall from the trees. The autumn leaves are her saviours, the only things that save her barely-there sanity.

iii.

When she's nine, Jonathan asks her if she's ever thought about acting.

"Acting?" She blinks innocently. "You mean like, lying? It's not nice to lie, Jon!'

He laughs, shaking his head. "No, like going up on a stage and pretending to be a character acting. It's different, y'know. "

"You mean, acting like you're a character?" Lucy replies dreamily. Visions of her upon a stage, pretending to be whoever she wants to be fill her head. No limitations, just dreaming and putting life into a character. "I'm in, I'm definitely in! Do you know somewhere I can sign up?" She bounces on the tips of her toes.

"Actually, I do," Jonathan tells her with a grin, so, with Lucy by his side, he goes down to the local theatre and helps Lucy to sign up for the free acting lessons.

The next week, she returns there with a big smile. The teacher decides to throw her into an improv just to test her skills. "You're a poor orphan girl looking for love," she whispers into Lucy's ear, because all she knows is that her name is Lucy (Wallace) even if it's not really. She doesn't know that Lucy's actually an orphan looking for love.

Lucy knows how to play that part best of all.

She becomes herself, that side of herself that she tries to repress- the side of herself that has only ever wanted to be loved by someone. With wide, watery blue eyes, she begs the man for a place at his mansion, nearly throwing herself at him. When he knocks her back to the ground, she lies there like a wounded puppy, pretending that she's deeply hurt until the man comes back and takes her. She expresses the pure joy that she would feel upon being adopted.

At the end, applause fills every corner of the room. Beaming, she stands up and grins.

The teacher walks over to her. "Lucy, have you ever acted before?"

Blushing, she shakes her head. "Not really, I haven't really had the chance."

"You've got so much raw talent," The teacher says with a grin. "I can see you as a star in a few years."

Lucy the star, she repeats, and she beams because she's always been just Lucy and she's always been told that she's completely useless but maybe now she can be good for something.

The next time they hold auditions for a play, she shows up with her brown hair pulled into a bun on top of her head and her blue eyes sparkling. Then the teacher ends up giving her the role of young Lucy Pevensie in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.

It's then that she dreams of finding a way to get to another world, because her world is not the one she feels she belongs in.

If Lucy Pevensie could find a way, why couldn't she?

It's then that she chooses her last name, since she doesn't know her own. From then on she's known as Lucy Pevensie the Second.

iv.

Nameless Lucy ceases to exist. Lucy Pevensie starts her career as an actress.

The orphanage is not her family, she knows. She doesn't belong there; she's different. She's not an idiot like the rest of them and sometimes weird things happen with her around.

Like once she gets angry at this girl for calling her Useless Lucy once again, so she turns around to glare at her and the girl's shoes catch on fire. No one can prove anything but Lucy knows what happened and the guilt pretty much eats her alive, even if she has no idea what happened.

But on the inside, she craves a family. A sister, maybe, and two happy parents, maybe a brother if she's lucky.

It's impossible, she knows.

But one day, things start to change. It's on Jonathan's eleventh birthday that an owl soars down to the orphanage, an owl. She's never seen an owl before, in real life- only in the books that she pores through while in the orphanage. And strangest of all, it's carrying something in between its sharp claws. That something looks to be something like a paper.

Owls don't carry papers, do they? She has to wonder.

But the owl soars down anyway, straight over her head, right to Jonathan. It carries with it the news that Jonathan's a wizard.

He tells her in privacy one day. Apparently his parents were normal humans, but there was a genetic malfunction along the way- at least that's how he explains it- and now he's a wizard. He's going to go off to some school for wizards the next fall and leave her all alone at the orphanage.

At least, that's how she hears it.

She believes it with all of her heart- in her mind, anything is possible, so of course a school of wizards is too. But she hopes and hopes that the next fall she'll get a letter too. Because that could possibly be her escape from her world of uselessness.

v.

The next year, she throws herself completely into her world of acting as an escape from the orphanage, where the bullying increases tenfold without the protection of Jonathan. Each day, she's something new. Sometimes she's a princess, sometimes she's queen of the world, and sometimes she's just a worthless peasant.

But every time, it never lasts. Every time, she has to go back to the orphanage and play the role of Worthless Lucy again.

She's tired of playing roles, of pretending to be someone else, of pretending she's okay when really she's dying inside, missing Jonathan, missing having a family- though you can't really miss something you never had, can you?

So she continues on with life, pretending that she's just fine and taking the abuse like a pro, escaping whenever she has the chance and landing lead roles in every play possible.

That is, until her eleventh birthday in March, when an owl arrives at the orphanage. With wide blue eyes, she runs out to meet it, yelping as if it's the most amazing thing ever. That is, until she takes the piece of paper out from the owl's claws and realises it's only a letter from Jonathan. Disappointment washes over her and she doesn't know why- after all, she'd been hoping that he'd write to her, right?

Lucy,

School's started already. I've been sorted into a house, it's called Gryffindor. Only the brave people go there. I didn't think I was brave. Apparently I am.

One of the guys took me under his wing. His name is Lysander Scamander. Lysander is funny. But he is also really cool. I think you will like him.

Maybe you will be a Gryffindor too.

I hope you can come. There are not many bullies here. Only the Slytherins and they're gits anyway. It's not like they matter to the cool people like me and Lysander! You can be friends with us.

The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws are cool too! But not as cool as us, of course!

I'll be back for the summer and we'll celebrate over your letter then!

Your older brother,

Well, who else? Jonathan Wallace

She clutches the letter tightly in her hands and wonders how she's supposed to explain to him that she didn't get any letter on her birthday.

That is, until another owl soars through the window. At first, she thinks it's some sort of weird return owl that's supposed to make her reply to Jonathan, but then she sees a flash of paper between its claws and she nearly squeals.

Prying the piece of paper from between its claws, she skims past the return address and all of the stuff she doesn't really care about before her eyes land on the important part.

Dear Ms. Lucy Pevensie,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall
Headmistress of Hogwarts

The letter falls from her hands to the ground and she begins to jump up and down. She's a witch, she really is, and she's going to be able to escape her world. She'll be able to go to school with Jonathan and his buddy Lysander; everything will finally be okay…

The rest of the year, she pulls completely away. No longer is she worried about people not liking her or making friends. In fact, she's only concerned about her acting for a few months. Because it doesn't matter if she has friends, it doesn't matter if people don't like her, because she's only there for a few more months and then she's going to go off to the school of magic. Everything will be different there, she just knows it.

No longer is she the identity-less Lucy. She's Lucy the Witch and that's fine with her.

vi.

Summer comes, finally, and it makes Lucy very happy. At last, Jonathan returns. With a grin, he sweeps her into a big bear hug and she tugs at the tie around his neck. Gold and red. "What's this, Jon?"

"My house tie," He declares proudly with a grin. "It shows everyone that I'm a Gryffindor."

Laughing, she realises that she doesn't really like the Gryffindor house colours. Silently, she wonders what will happen if she's put into another house- not Slytherin, but Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. Will Jonathan stop talking to her? Will she be alone once again?

But she swallows her indulging fears and lets Jonathan bring her to Diagon Alley, where she's apparently supposed to buy all of her stuff for her first year at Hogwarts. The shopkeepers fit her for robes that actually fit her, unlike the clothes that hung off of her at the orphanage. She buys brand new books with the money that the orphanage supplies her (to get her out of there) and laughs as Jonathan treats them both to something called a Butterbeer. It tastes good in her throat and it's really a treat for her.

There's only one thing she's really worried about with her transition into the wizarding world, so she decides to ask Jonathan about it. "Can I still act at Hogwarts?"

He blinks, surprised, as if it is strange for her to want to keep acting even though it's Lucy and acting is sort of her thing. "I, um, well, you should be able to. I'm not entirely sure, but it's sort of one of those why not things."

She grins and nods her head. "Well, I suppose I'll have to start it up at Hogwarts then."

The summer flies by, packed with good memories that she packs in her trunk to lug along with her to Hogwarts. The orphanage director drops them off at the train station with a 'good riddance!'

Lugging her trunk behind her, she follows Jonathan. With a glance at her ticket, she realises that it says, 'Platform 9 ¾.' "What does it mean, 9 ¾?" She asks with a confused frown.

"You'll see," Jonathan replies with a delighted laugh. "I had to learn the hard way, too."

But once they get to where it should be, there's only a wall. He grins at her, telling her, "Watch this!" and running through the wall. She screams, waiting for the thud as his body hits brick.

But there's nothing. He just disappears to the other side.

It doesn't look like a lot of fun. Lucy knows that. But she has to try, right? Frowning, she shakes as she picks her trunk up in her arms and holds it tightly to her chest. Then, she takes off running and passes straight through the barrier.

Once she gets to the other side, she nearly falls to her feet, overwhelmed. Jonathan laughs and helps her up, and together they board the train.

"Oh, Merlin, Luce, I forgot- I've got to go help a friend with something, I'll be right back!" Then he takes off running, leaving an unhappy Lucy to stare after him.

She walks down a bit, footsteps echoing as she searches for a compartment. Finally, she finds one that seems empty and flings the door open. Relieved, she sits down on one of the benches and sighs, putting her head into her hands.

That's when the door flies open. A boy that she feels that she should recognize stands on the other side, arms crossed as if he believes himself to be some superhuman or something. With a nod at her, he says, "Sitting alone?"

"What's it to you?" She retorts defensively before looking down. "I'm a first year."

"Oh, first year, that makes sense then," The boy grins and walks in to the compartment, as if she's invited him or something, which she hasn't. "I remember my first year; it was entirely too awkward. Anyway, I forgot to introduce myself, didn't I? How silly of me. The name's Lysander Scamander," He offers her a big smile. "And you are?"

Suddenly, it hits her. This boy who is in here, talking to her- he's the boy that Jonathan all but idolizes, the one he spoke of constantly. Now he's in here, talking to her, Lucy, as if it's the most normal thing in the world (even though he's a third year Gryffindor and they have no reason to be interacting). With wide eyes, she mutters, "I'm, um, well, I'm Lucy."

"Lucy, huh? Are you related to anyone in the school?" He wonders with a bit of a grin.

"Not that I know of," She replies guardedly. "Y'see, I'm sort of an orphan…"

He just keeps on grinning stupidly like he's some kind of idiot. "I know, your little friend Jonathan told me. I was only wondering if you had any relatives that were just stupid and wouldn't take you in."

"I don't know of any, why?" She smiles uncertainly.

"I was only asking because- well, there's this girl that I grew up with, her name is Molly Weasley," He explains with a shrug. "And the two of you have some similar features, not to mention eyes that are the same exact colour. I was only wondering if the two of you were related somehow."

Molly Weasley. The name tugs at her heart somehow, as if she should know it but she doesn't. Instead of telling him this, she shrugs back. "I suppose I wouldn't know if we were related. But I don't believe I've ever heard of her, anyway."

"Coincidence," He laughs. "So, Lucy, what house do you hope to be sorted into?"

For a moment, she considers, before grinning at him. "I don't know. I haven't heard much about the houses, really…"

"Muggle-born?" He wonders knowingly.

"No, well, I dunno, maybe, I just grew up in the non-Magical world knowing nothing about this school," She replies with a small smile. "A Muggle is a non-Magical person, right? And what are the houses? Jon told me that Gryffindor is the best and Slytherin is a bunch of gits, but I don't know much about Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw… are there any problems with them?"

He grins at her. "Yep, a Muggle is a non-magical person. There's absolutely nothing wrong with either Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. My twin brother Lorcan is actually in Ravenclaw. And Gryffindor, well, it's obviously the best if I'm in it, but all it really means is that the members in it excel in bravery, and well, confidence, sort of."

"You don't reckon I'll be in Gryffindor?" She wonders. A terrifying thought hits her then. "What if I'm a Slytherin?"

He looks as if he is considering. "I don't know if you'll be a Gryffindor- the Sorting Hat often surprises me. But not Slytherin, I can tell already. One of my friends, Dominique, is a Slytherin, and you're not really anything like her at all. Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw, maybe. Hufflepuffs have a reputation for being sweet and loyal, but the underdogs. Ravenclaws are really the intelligent ones, the ones that can be know-it-alls but there are quite a few sweet ones. They're witty and fun to hang around."

"Thanks, Lysander," She says with a grin.

"You can call me Ly, it's no problem," He replies with an even bigger grin. "And I'll call you Luce."

Giggling, she shakes her head. The rest of the train trip they spend together, the little first year and the medium-sized Gryffindor, and it's so natural- he's so easy- that she nearly forgets all about Jonathan. He's ditched her, she realises, biting her lip. For a second, she then wonders why Lysander is even here with her- she's just a little, boring first year, isn't she? He probably has lots of friends, why isn't he with them?

"Lysander," She says, chewing on her bottom lip. "Why are you here with me? What about your friends? I'm just a first year, and I'm kind of boring, so…"

"No, I'm here because I want to be," Lysander grins at her. "My friends are boring and sometimes overly annoying. I was interested when I first heard about you, the little orphan Lucy, and I wanted to talk to you. So here I am."

She smiles back tentatively and he gives her a tiny hug.

From then on, they're the best of friends- breaking all age boundaries.

He's also not surprised when she's sorted into Ravenclaw, and it's okay because the blue and brown looks stunning with her eyes and hair.

Who knew Lucy the Stupid could be so smart, anyway?

vii.

She meets Molly Weasley the Second not too much later. It's about time for her first class, Potions, and she can't seem to find the dungeon for the life of her. The girl's about on the verge of giving up and bursting into tears when she's found by someone she doesn't really know, someone with bright red curls and… the same eyes as her.

"Are you okay?" The girl asks gently. "Lucy, right? Lysander told me about you. Apparently you go by Lucy Pevennsie, like the one in the Narnia series, and oh my gosh, I'm rambling."

"I can't find my classroom," Lucy says apologetically. "Yes, I'm Lucy, and yeah, I go by Lucy Pevensie. I love Narnia. And, um, who are you?" She blushes and bites her cheek, hoping that she doesn't sound rude- stupid Lucy.

"I'm Molly, Molly Weasley. You look sort of familiar," She beams from ear to ear. "I love Narnia too! Well, it's served as inspiration for me- um, I'm sort of a writer. Muggle profession, I know. And I can help you find your classroom if you want! I suppose not everyone pored over Hogwarts, a History for hours on end before they came here." She giggles.

"Molly Weasley, yeah, Ly told me about you," She glances down and blushes again. "You do too. And I'm an actress, Muggle professions are great. And they have that? I want to read it! I never got a chance."

Molly nods with a grin. "An actress, that's so cool! Yes, they do- my Aunt Hermione suggested it to me, I found it boring as heck and resisted the urge to throw it out the window, but to each their own, I suppose. Maybe you'd find it entertaining?" She begins to walk. "Follow me."

Nodding, Lucy does as she's told, feeling completely at ease around this girl she's only just met for some reason. "Thanks, not many people think that. I sort of like history and learning. Guess that's why I'm a Ravenclaw…"

"Guess so," Molly nods proudly. "And it is cool! Oh, look, we're already here, you weren't actually that far away…. oh, well, it was great to meet you, Lucy. We should talk again sometime!" Molly grins at her.

"Thanks, Molly," Lucy says with a nod, watching as the redhead flounces away, wondering if she could possibly be related to such a ball of fire.

viii.

"I met Molly," Lucy says softly, kicking her bare feet against the grass.

Lysander glances up from the broom he's been polishing to grin at her. "Oh, and how did that go?"

"She pretty much talked my ear off," Lucy says lightheartedly. "But in all seriousness, I saw her eyes, and do you think we could be related?"

"Anything's possible," Lysander hums, tapping his fingers against his broom in an off-key beat. "Your eyes are exactly the same, I can tell."

It's then that a boy who looks a lot like Lysander walks up. Eyes widening in surprise, Lucy sits up, glancing from Lysander to this impostor who's just arrived. With a frown, she asks, "Who are you? Lysander's clone? Did you use Polyjuice Potion or something?"

Shaking his head, Lysander laughs, and so does the clone. "Calm down, Luce. This is my twin brother, Lorcan."

"Prove it," She demands, voice still shaking, glancing from Lysander to the boy who they've claimed is named Lorcan.

Laughing, the boy who is apparently Lorcan withdraws a blue and bronze striped tie identical to Lucy's from within his shirt (which he's wearing instead of the standard Hogwarts uniform). "Really, Pevensie, we're in the same house, I would've thought you would've figured out my name by now."

Turning red, she looks down. "Oh, yeah, I think I remember you now." But it comes out all jumbled.

Lorcan just raises an eyebrow before turning to Lysander. "Anyway, idiot, I need to talk to you. Lily's all mad at me again and I don't know why."

"Lily?" Lucy asks, feeling a lot like an idiot. "You mean Lily Luna?" She feels proud of herself for actually learning someone's name- back in the orphanage, she would call people as she viewed them. There was Chubby Boy, Greedy Girl, etc. She never really bothered with names- they were only a waste of time unless she planned on getting to know the person, and she didn't plan on getting to know any of them.

"Yes, I mean Lily Luna," Lorcan rolls his eyes, as if she's some big idiot or something.

She nods and looks down as Lysander responds. "Oh, bigger idiot, don't be so harsh- she's only a first year like your precious Lily. And she's probably mad at you for the way you've been acting, as if she's nothing."

"But I haven't been, have I?" Lorcan asks, looking miffed at even the thought of this. "I've been treating her as I usually do…"

"Oblivious Ravenclaw as always, Lor," Lysander replies, frowning at his brother and winking at Lucy.

Lucy jumps in. "Um, well, I think it's obvious that Lily has a bit of a crush on you and she wants to spend more time with you. Just hang out with her and she'll get over it eventually, promise."

Lorcan snorts. "I'm not oblivious, cocky Gryffindor, and how do you know, Lucy?" He seems interested, for once.

"I'm a girl, remember? Apparently we all think alike," She cocks a small smile.

"Right, um, I'll try that," Lorcan replies with a tiny bit of a smile at Lucy. Clapping Lysander on the back, he asks with a grin, "You aren't going to wish your amazing twin brother luck with that little crazy one Lily Luna Potter?"

"Luck, Lorcan," Lysander rolls his eyes at his twin brother. "All the best of luck to you. Maybe once Lily's finally old enough for you to go out with you'll stop bugging me."

Lorcan just laughs, cocks an eyebrow at Lucy, and grins. "Sure, that'll happen. Anyway, see you later, brother."

"Bye," Lysander calls after him with an eye roll.

For some reason (she knows it can't be too terribly fun to fight with your sibling, but still), Lucy feels a certain longing for a family of her own. She doesn't have any siblings, the closest thing she's ever had to a brother is Jonathan and she hasn't seen him in forever. Now she has Lysander, but it's different with him somehow. She feels a bit more self conscious around him, but she's still completely comfortable and completely herself.

Anyway, she sees the happy, light-hearted teasing between Lorcan and she decides she wishes that she had a biological sibling, or at least one parent- preferably two, but one's okay. It might not be the average wish, but she's definitely not your average girl.

Lysander sees the look in her eye and smirks at her. "You know, Molly doesn't have much of a family either."

Sitting up abruptly, she splutters, "How did you know I was thinking about that?"

"Luce, you're kind of easy to read even for me," he sniggers.

She rolls her eyes and drops it, not wanting to talk about how easy she is to read- it might have something to do with those darned drama genes. Speaking of which, she rather misses acting… "And what do you mean, Molly doesn't really have a family? She has all of the Weasleys; they're that one big happy redhead family…"

"But Luce, within her small family, she only has her dad," Lysander says, sympathy lacking from his voice but he's a boy and he's bound to be an idiot, anyway. "Her mum, well, her mum sort of died in childbirth. She was giving birth to a baby girl who apparently died then too."

"What do you mean, apparently?" Lucy wonders cautiously.

"Apparently meaning they never found the body, she could still be alive," Lysander cocks an eyebrow at her suggestively. "And you have the same name as Molly's maternal grandmother, you know…"

"Ly, you've got some crazy conspiracy theories there," Lucy replies, trying to laugh off the fact that he could be on to something there. "There's no way that Molly is my long lost sister. I'm an orphan, remember? I don't have a family…" Her voice trails off wistfully.

"Do I?" He laughed, getting to his feet. "I don't really think that they're conspiracy theories, and it's entirely possible that you have a family. Anyway, I have to go; I promised Dom that I would meet her tonight to talk to her…"

"Wait," She calls as he stands up. Blushing, she stammers, "Um, Lysander, do you know of any acting places anywhere near by?"

"You mean like a theatre?" Lysander asks dubiously. When she nods, he grins. "Sure, there's one at Hogsmeade, if you want to go there sometime."

Nodding, she grins at him. "Thanks, and bye, Ly!"

"See you, Luce," He calls, breaking into a sprint as he runs toward the school. She watches him forlornly as he runs, trying not to think about what the heck he's going to do with Dominique.

He's not hers to control anyway.

With a sigh, she sinks back into the grass, staring up at the sky where stars are finally beginning to dot the seas of black. She remembers late nights spent on the roof of the orphanage and compares it to now, to her new world, where she belongs at least a little bit.

As some star streaks across the sky, she wishes for a family and hopes that Lysander is right.

She hopes that there is still hope for her.

ix.

At the first Hogsmeade weekend, she's not actually allowed to go, being a first year. But sweet little Lucy decides that she can't take it any longer and that she just has to sneak out.

Jonathan's still not talking to her for whatever reason, so she decides that her only other option is the all-Gryffindor, all-rebel Lily Luna Potter who's obviously in love with Lorcan.

Walking up to her nervously, Lucy says, "Um, hi."

"Hello, there," Lily greets her, twirling a red hair around her finger and putting a hand on her hip. "Lucy Pevensie, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Lucy replies nervously. "And I kind of, sort of need a favour from you."

"And why should I help you?" Lily asks, exuding attitude from every pore of her body.

Lucy stammers. "Um, I can, um, help you to get with Lorcan? Not now, of course- we're still young- but when you get older. I won't forget; Ravenclaws don't forget…"

Her eyes narrow."How did you know that I might think that Lorcan is a bit cute?"

"Well, Lorcan told me that you were mad at him and I assumed as much," Lucy offers her a shy smile.

"Whatever you say," Lily says dismissively. "Anyway, I'll help you, on the condition that you promise you won't forget."

"I promise," Lucy tells her sincerely. "And I want to sneak out to Hogsmeade."

With a nod, Lily's dark brown eyes light up. "I know just the person."

So she ends up in some sort of office looking room with Lily, Lily's older brother James, and their cousins Fred, Roxanne, and Louis.

"Why am I here?" Roxanne asks in a bored voice.

"Does anyone else think that Lucy looks like Molly and Uncle Percy?" James cries desperately.

Almost half of the people there raise their hands, and Lucy blinks. Lily rolls her eyes. "James. The point of this meeting is not to discuss whether or not Lucy is our cousin; it's to discuss the best way to break her into Hogwarts."

"Well, she's got a bunch of different options," James says with a grin at Lucy. "See here, there's all these routes…"

They help her out for quite a while, discussing the best ways, and then the next weekend she ends up in Hogsmeade, feeling freer than she's ever felt. The sun is shining with the reminder that it's almost the end of her first year at Hogwarts. As she steps down the street toward the theatre that Lysander had told her about, she grins, absorbing the warmth.

Once she steps in, they greet her with big smiles and tell her all about the services they offer. They allow her an audition, and by the end of it, she gets a standing ovation. She bows, grinning, and realises that she's forgotten how amazing acting really feels.

But now Lucy Pevensie is back and bigger than ever.

x.

The next summer, she's forced to go back to the orphanage, as apparently they still don't allow students to stay at Hogwarts for the summer. Lysander offers to let her stay with them, but she knows she'll feel incredibly guilty if she ditches Jonathan completely for the summer too. Besides, she rather needs to talk to him.

Once they get there, it's awkward- she's grown up from being Stupid Lucy to Lucy Pevensie, who has at least a bit more confidence. They all stare at her, at her hair which she's gotten cut shoulder-length, at the fact that she can glare at them and not feel guilty at all.

But she's still the same Lucy on the inside, because she can't work up the courage to talk to Jonathan.

She spends her days at the theatre again as she did while he was off at school, acting and forgetting her life, feeling a bit guilty all the while. The stage becomes her life- act, pretend, play the part like the good actress that she is and forget that anything is real. She acts and pretends that everything that's going on in her life isn't real. She acts and forgets about Lysander, Lorcan, and Jonathan.

Then, one day, at the theatre, she gazes out at the audience and her eyes fall upon a pair of brown eyes. Jonathan Wallace is out in the audience, watching her. She shoots him a confused look.

After practise, she rushes down from the stage. "Jon, what are you doing here?"

"I came to watch you," He mutters, glancing down.

"Right, after ignoring me for a whole year, you just came to watch me," She mutters sarcastically.

"What's going on with you and Scamander? Lysander Scamander?" He asks abruptly, with no forewarning.

"He's a good friend," She replies with a frown. "What's wrong with me being friends with Lysander? He's a good boy, and a great friend."

"So you might say he's become the new me?" Jonathan wonders with a scowl at her.

"No, wait, is this what this all is about? You're worried that Lysander has replaced you? So now I can't have friends without them automatically being my new best friends that are going to take your place in my life?" She rolls her eyes sarcastically. "Honestly, Jonathan. That would never happen."

"It's already happened," He argues back with a frown. "I'll see you, well, maybe in a while. Have fun with Scamander," He spits, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Well, have fun with Weasley," She retorts, glaring back at him because she's seen the way he looks at Dominique Weasley.

"Don't bring Dominique into this," He growls, staring at the floor.

"Don't bring Lysander into this," She retorts, glaring at him. Coolly and sweetly (because no matter what he says, she's still Lucy and she's still sweet), she tells him, "I hope we meet again when you've matured a bit more."

With that, she walks out the door, and catches the nearest Knight Bus. She asks them to take her to the Scamanders.

There's no way she can survive being at the orphanage any longer, without an ally. It would just be complete and utter heck.

Once she arrives at the Scamanders', Lorcan grins at her before calling for the rest of his family. Lysander welcomes her with open arms that she rushes into. Mrs. Scamander (or Luna, as she says to call her) tells her that she's the exact likeness of Audrey Weasley (which she finds weird, because she didn't even know an Audrey Weasley existed). Mr. Scamander shakes her head and tells her that he's glad Lysander finally found someone that would put up with him (which she finds even weirder).

But for the few weeks that she stays with the Scamanders, it's almost as if she has a family.

xi.

It's not until third year that she realises that she might just have feelings for Lysander Scamander.

Really, it should've never have happened- they're best friends and nothing more- but he's in fifth year now and she's almost fourteen and the way that his blonde hair falls into his blue eyes is more intriguing than it should be.

But it's also in third year (his fifth) that Lysander gets his first girlfriend. Really, she should have seen it coming; it was bound to happen eventually. He's a sweet boy, handsome too. It should have been obvious that the girls would start to crawl all over him.

But it was just the girl that got her.

The girl that he goes out with is the Veela girl, Dominique Weasley.

She's not sure what to think of this- she's heard from him over and over that they're just friends- but she tells him over and over that she's happy for him, that she doesn't care (even though she really does).

It's one day in the library that she notices Lysander kissing Dominique over by the bookshelves. Wincing, she walks over and plops down across from someone, not bothering to look and see who it is. She turns to see Jonathan and sighs.

"Having a good year?" She asks, her tone subtly teasing but her face downcast.

"No," He hisses, but then he frowns once he sees her expression. In a softer tone, he says, "I told you not to fall for Scamander."

"Did you? I don't recall that," She frowns at him. "But too late now, and now we're both in the same boat. Might as well get used to it, right?" She smiles a wavering smile.

"Might as well," He agrees, blinking and nodding. "But really, who would've guessed that Scamander went for Slytherins?"

"Not me," She says in a soft tone, adding in her brain, I thought he might go for Ravenclaws. Guess I was wrong.

"Lucy," He tells her in an undertone, "You can't stay hung up on Scamander forever. He's not worth it."

"What do you suggest I do then?" Lucy replies, her voice taking on an icy tone.

"Move on, try to keep living," He laughs a little bit, giving her a big grin.

Her eyes travel back across the library to where Lysander's attached at the lips to Dominique. They don't seem to be paying the many others in the library any mind. Then finally, Dominique detaches herself from Lysander, giggles loud enough that everyone in the library can hear, threads her fingers through Lysander's and pulls him out of the library. Lysander looks dazed but entirely pleased and… happy.

If he's happy, well, she'll leave him to his happiness. Because she loves- no, wait, likes- him enough to give him his space and his happiness. She likes seeing him happy, even if it's killing her inside. From the expression on Jonathan's face, she knows he feels the same way.

She nods. "I'll try." She grabs his hand and squeezes it once with a sweet smile. "Thanks, brother. I miss you."

Then she stands up, leaving her words to hang in the air between them. With a last grin, she walks out of the library, thoughts clouding her mind.

xii.

Her solution is one carefully devised by a Ravenclaw- if she can't have one Scamander, she'll delude herself into thinking that the other one is the Scamander that she wants. In other words, she has to get Lorcan Scamander to ask her out.

She smiles at him from across the hall and starts to realise that she's getting the same smile back, one that's usually only reserved for his darling Lily. Then he asks her to study with him, and she shows off her smarts to the best of her ability each time she's around him, and ugh-

What she's doing is so evil and so un-Lucy-like that it scares even her.

But she's always been a good actress, anyway, so she pretends that he's Lysander and not Lorcan.

One day, he asks her out. She should be ecstatic- her plan has worked- but instead, she just feels terribly guilty. But she nods yes and tries to give him a Lucy smile (but it doesn't work because it's so fake, all of it is).

After that it's all tense between Lucy and Lysander, and Lysander and Lorcan, and Lucy and Dominique, and basically everyone. It's like a battlefield- tensions are high and bombs could explode at any minute.

It's not a fun feeling, the feeling that half the school is against her, including her ex-best friend.

And the guy that she's still in love with (even though she's using his twin to get over him).

xiii.

She's wandering down a corridor, lost in thought, when she runs into someone. Someone with bright red hair. Upon seeing that it's Molly, she jumps back and smiles, as over the years they've grown sort of close. "Hi, Molly."

"Lucy," She greets her warmly. "So, I hear you're dating Lorcan Scamander?"

"I am," Lucy says, eyes tracing the ground.

"He's a good guy, you'd better treat him right," Molly tells her with a small smile. "You don't look too sure about this, Lucy."

"I'm not," Lucy sighs. "I don't know. I think that I'm making some bad decisions, and doing some things that I thought I wouldn't ever do, and it's killing me on the inside. This isn't me. I'm so messed up."

Nodding, Molly whispers, "I understand," and pulls Lucy into a tight hug, rocking the girl back and forth. Suddenly, Lucy starts crying, and Molly holds her closer.

Pulling away, Lucy asks her, "Molly, did you ever think that we could, um, be sisters?"

"Sisters?" Molly's blue eyes meet her own. "I don't know, wait, why?"

"Mrs. Scamander said that I look exactly, well, um, like your mother," She says quietly, knowing that Molly's mother (and possibly her own) is a touchy subject, but that's the only way she can think to say it. "Do you think…?"

"That you're the sister who's supposedly dead?" Molly asks, her frightened eyes meeting Lucy's before Molly musters up all of her Gryffindor courage and smiles. "You know what, Lucy? Next Hogsmeade weekend we're going to go to the little hospital that's opened up there and get them to do a paternity/maternity test. Then we'll solve all of this debate."

Wordlessly, Lucy nods, her terror written across her face.

Molly grins at her, and takes her hand into hers, and they sit like that, the maybe-sisters considering what will happen if Lucy is actually Molly's sister.

Lucy Weasley. It has a particular ring to it, but Lucy's always been Lucy Pevensie and she's never had a family so this is entirely new for her. She's never belonged everywhere.

"Oh," Molly whispers, "And by the way, Lucy, everyone knows that you're in love with Lysander, not Lorcan, and that Lily's in love with Lorcan, so you might as well dump Lorcan now."

Lucy laughs because it's so true (and she can't even deny it), and, smiling at Molly, puts her head on her shoulder.

Sure, it's kind of weird, but it's them and Lucy's always been the sweet type of girl.

xiv.

Lucy goes back to the theatre during that period.

They're doing a play in which a girl is torn between two brothers, one who she loves more than life itself but is dating another girl, and the other who is the easy choice but who she doesn't love in the same way. She's able to put her whole self into the role because she's going through something very similar and it's just so easy to do.

For the first time, she starts crying during her role when she sees the brother she loves with another girl. Everyone glances at her, as if she's crazy, but then they probably just assume she's throwing herself into the part and keep on going. It's not unusual for Lucy to do weird things in order to get into her role.

In the end, it ends up being her best performance yet, according to many.

That's when she starts to get offers for the first wizarding world movies- they'd love to have her as an actress, of course, and some Muggle companies who have seen parts of her plays are interested too. She doesn't know what to say other than to tell them she'll think about it.

Sure, she wants to escape to another world- but she doesn't know if this new world of film is better than the one she is living in right now. She's heard it's just as dramatic, if not more, and is that really what she needs in her life, more drama? She's already dramatic enough and she doesn't live anywhere near a film set.

Once she gets back home, she tosses the Romeo & Juliet script they've given her to the ground.

Screw star-crossed lovers; say hello to heartbreak.

xv.

The day that Lucy breaks things off with Lorcan is a momentous occasion.

They both know it's not working, but neither of them is daring Gryffindor so they just avoid it, avoid the end, until it all spirals away from them and they know that the relationship has gone on far too long. Lucy is the first to do something about it, because even though she's also Ravenclaw, she has a clear sense of right and wrong and she knows that this is so, so wrong.

So she decides to end it. Biting her lip, she pulls Lorcan aside. "Can I talk to you?"

"Of course you can," he says in that caring way that only Lorcan can do (because Lysander, lovable as he is, has no sensitive side at all).

Sighing, she lifts her watery eyes to meet his and sighs. "I'm really sorry, Lorcan, but I can't do this anymore. I can't pretend that there's nothing wrong with this relationship when really, you're meant to be with Lily and I'm meant to be with Ly- someone else," She nearly catches herself, and frowns, but continues on, "and this just isn't going to work, Lorcan. We both need to go our separate ways and find other people. I'm really sorry, but I don't love you that way. If it's any consolation, you'll always be like my big brother. I'm really, really sorry," she offers again, because she's still Lucy and she still hates being mean (especially after what the kids in the orphanage did to her).

He just stares at her for a bit, as if he's in shock, and she can't imagine why- he had to have seen this coming, right? But then he blinks and, with a sly smile, says, "Your older brother that you snogged."

Then she laughs, he laughs, and he pulls her into a hug. Putting his head on top of hers, he whispers, "Don't worry, I already know that you're in love with my brother. I guess… I suppose I just wanted something to hang over Ly's head because he annoys me like nobody else. You know like, look, Ly, I've got Lucy."

"I know what you mean, I was kind of doing the same thing," She admits, feeling guilty already but a bit relieved.

"Because he's dating Dominique, right? Believe me, they won't last. They'll destroy each other," Lorcan reassures her, and then she nods, biting her lip.

He's right, of course- it's not a few weeks later that Lysander breaks things off with Dominique. Then he pulls her close and they both apologise, like some sappy Muggle movie, because they've both fallen and they need each other to get back up.

She tells him quietly about her and Lucy's suspicions, and how they're going to get tests done to find out who her parents are. She tells him about the offers she got from all of the film companies to come and sign with them. She tells him about her breakup with Lorcan.

Like the wonderful boy he is, he just pulls her close and listens, and at the moment, that's all she needs. He nods at the right times and tells her that she's doing the right thing. As long as she does that, that's what matters.

After all, he reminds her, she's already suffered enough. She's lived in an orphanage, never met her family (except maybe she has), and had her talent suppressed.

Why should she not get the chance to show off, too?

xvi.

Their plan for the tests doesn't go through until the next year, when Lucy's fourteen already, almost fifteen, and Molly's starting her sixth year, because apparently you need permission and a reservation beforehand. It doesn't make any sense to her, but she convinces Molly to reserve a day, and they make plans to go on a Hogsmeade day.

From Hogsmeade, it's a bit of a walk, a couple of kilometers, but then they arrive at what looks like a cave. Inside, instead of cave paint like she'd been expecting, she sees tables, doctors, and nurses- in fact, it is a regular healer's office.

Molly leads her over to a healer, who checks her name off on a sheet. "Lucy Pevensie, come with me."

She smiles at Lucy, then walks off, and Lucy does as she is told until they reach a tiny room with a bench. Lucy sits down on it and, biting her lip, wonders exactly what is meant to happen from there.

"Do you have any adverse reaction to any spell?" The healer inquires.

"N-no," Lucy stammers.

"All right then," The healer replies, and with a wave of her wand, she starts to perform spells on Lucy. Lucy doesn't understand most of them, but from the looks of it, Molly certainly does. She sits there, nodding and frowning.

Then, finally, the healer stops. "Your results will be back to you in a few minutes, thank you."

So the healer hurries off, leaving the two of them in silence. Molly puts an arm around Lucy and they wait nervously to see if they're actually sisters.

Finally, the healer reenters the room. "Lucy, your results have come back. We've discovered that your actual last name is Weasley, and your parentage- you were born to Percival Weasley and Audrey Toscano. You have one biological sister, Molly Grace Weasley- I'm guessing that would be you?"

Molly nods, obviously in shock, and then she looks to Lucy as if she's seeing the most beautiful thing in the universe. Lucy meets her gaze before she dissolves into tears. Clutching Molly tightly, she sobs into her shoulder, "Sister."

"Sister," Molly repeats, holding Lucy tightly. "My younger sister, the Ravenclaw."

"I always wanted a sister," Lucy tells her through her tears. "I- I just can't believe it, I'm not an orphan. In fact, I'm a Weasley, one of the biggest, warmest families- and I never knew."

"You don't look it," Molly teases, pinching a strand of Lucy's brown curls between her fingers.

Lucy just laughs, and right there with Molly, she feels content and not alone for the first time in a while.

xvii.

She tells Jonathan first, as she always swore she would. He hugs her tightly and tells her that she deserves it; his little sister definitely deserves to have a family even if he doesn't. She hugs him tightly and tells him he's bound to find one someday.

But when she tells him, Lysander seems rather surprised.

"So you're a Weasley, but you were in an orphanage for a while?" Lysander asks. "And you were bullied there, not treated right, all of that?"

"You don't believe me?" Lucy replies, an eyebrow shooting up because how can he not believe her? The evidence is everywhere.

"No, I believe you, it's just so strange," Lysander replies, but he steps a step closer to her. "Are you happy, Lucy? You have a family. You're not an orphan, Lucy Weasley."

"I'm Lucy Weasley," She repeats, her eyes sparkling. "I can't believe this, it's just crazy. I wouldn't have thought that I could ever have a family, much less a sister of my own that's related biologically. You caught it first, Lysander- guess you're smarter than I gave you credit for."

"I am, aren't I?" He laughs and takes a step closer to her. Then, looking into her eyes, he leans even closer.

And then, with one fluid movement, he leans forward and presses his lips to hers.

It's everything she'd dreamed of, sweet and powerful at the same time, completely Lysander. She pulls herself closer to him, feeling that spark that was missing from Lorcan's kisses. His felt wrong but this felt so right.

"I love you, Lucy," He whispers to her, winding his arms around her neck. "I think maybe I always did, even before I knew you had a family, and far before I knew your real last name."

"I love you too, Lysander," She smiles at him, and leans up to kiss him again.

It's something like a fairytale, because she's the orphan girl who was never expected to go anywhere in life and he's her knight in shining armour.

But it's an abstract fairytale because she's not your typical princess, nor is he your typical prince.

xviii.

That summer, Molly decides for her that they both need to go home, so that she can see her biological father. Molly informs her that Percy (that's his name) will be at the train station so that they can really 'meet' there.

Her heart pounds on the train back home that summer, but Lysander squeezes her hand, and Molly grins at her in encouragement. They walk off the train, all three of them together, and Lucy separates herself from Molly to go talk to her father for the very first time (and it sounds so wrong but it's so true).

"Molly!" Her father hugs his oldest daughter tightly before turning to Lucy. "And who is this? Friend from school? Fellow Prefect, maybe?"

"No," Molly says in a tight voice that sounds as if she's going to cry. "She's my sister."

"What are you talking about?" Percy replies, his eyes wide.

"This is Lucy Weasley, Daddy," Molly informs him before she starts to cry.

Percy turns to her, his eyes wide, taking in Lucy's features- her soft brown curls, her piercing blue eyes- and all he says is, "Lucy, oh my, Lucy. My daughter. You've returned."

Then he pulls her into a tight hug and she cries into his chest, saying, "Daddy," as if she's five years old because she never got the chance when she was five. "Why did you give me away?" she sobs.

"Worst decision of my life," He says through the tears he tries to get to go away. "I was stupid and I thought I couldn't handle you because you look just like your mother, Lucy. You really do."

But Lucy just clings tighter to her father, and Molly joins in the hug. Suddenly, Lucy realises she now has a father and a sister. While it's not her ideal family, it's definitely good enough for her. She suddenly remembers the star that she'd wished on back in first year and she thanks it repeatedly, because she finally has a family.

Lysander comes up and catches her in another hug, wiping away her tears, and then from across the station, she spots Jonathan snogging Dominique and realises that they'll soon be related in some way in another if this keeps up.

Everything seems perfect for once, and she's glad that this time she's not left with a handful of broken dreams.

Finite.

A/N: You know, I don't even know.

A LUCYSANDER 10K. Clearly something is wrong with me. This took forever. And I don't even really like Lucysander- but now I sort of do, after writing this. I think it was a really fun idea to play with, though, orphaned Lucy. =)

And ach, I love this Lucy.

This is for Janey, because she's had a Lucysander coming for a while. =) And this is also for the NGFs because I've been going through some tough times and they've always been there, encouraging me.

I love you guys.

And really, if you want me to feel better, all it takes is a review!

Okay, I'm joking there. But really, reviews make my day and encourage me to write, so. Please review =)