Chapter Text
~ Thirteen Years Earlier ~
“Sirius, no!” I cried out in alarm as the Department of Magical Law Enforcement arrested the love of my life.
There had been about six officers at the scene. Two were holding Sirius, one of them was writing notes, two were holding me, and one was trying to calm me down by speaking in a soothing voice.
“We are taking you to Azkaban.” said one of the women as she directed her comment towards Sirius.
Tears welled up in my eyes. “Please, don’t do this! He is innocent!”
“Miss, calm down.” another officer tried to reassure me.
“He is a murderer. We are doing our job,” The chief added.
Three no-mag’s hollered, shouting from the sidelines.
“I saw it with my own eyes!”
“He killed many innocent people!”
“He deserves to go to prison!”
The chief motioned his subordinates to take Sirius away.
Sirius was hauled away and roughly shoved and locked up inside the van. My heart was beating so hard I could hardly breathe. I was in a state of shock, racked with sobs.
The last words I heard from him were, “I love you, Clarice.”
“Sirius!” I managed to scream out to him, ”I love you too!”
The two officers holding me released me immediately and moved off. One hesitated, then looked over his shoulder at me and warned, “I suggest if you don’t want to end up like him and get arrested, you leave…now!”
I fell to my knees as I watched them drive away. The no mags watched me briefly before disbanding. I was left out on the streets I was utterly alone. I don’t know how long I was there but it was quite some time.
I was approached by the Dark Lord himself only when the coast was clear and all of the onlookers had left and the street was completely empty. I didn’t look at him but I could feel his aura behind me. It was black and cold. I shivered.
“Seems like your precious fiance is a murderer now,” he commented. His voice was full of malice.
I turned to face him. My makeup was ruined, and I knew I looked like a mess. “What do you want?”
“I can bring him back on one condition.” He circled around me and reached his hand out.
I narrowed my eyes and didn’t say anything, curious to know what he would say.
“If you kill the Potter boy, then I will set Sirius Black free.”
I may be considered an air-head by my peers, but I was not a fool.
“Never,” I cried out as I launched my attack.
He was just too fast for me. His wand appeared instantly in his hand, and before I knew what was happening, he hit me with a curse that immediately rendered me useless.
“Caecitas Aetna,” he had called out viciously.
The last thing I saw was his fiendish face. I couldn’t see anything after the curse hit me full in the face.
I was surrounded by darkness and pain. I closed my eyes automatically at the attack but when I opened them again, I could see nothing at all.
“Now, you will never see him again.” I heard him cackle; then his aura disappeared from my mind’s eye.
I was on my hands and knees on the ground and began to scream with terror but no one came to help me. I had no idea what to do. My gut instinct was to transport myself to Remus.
I needed support and one name came into my head: Remus Lupin, I needed to get to him and knew he would provide the emotional support that I needed at that moment. I used an Apparition spell to get myself to him.
I felt his presence nearby as I recognized his royal blue aura. I was on my knees on his floor and sobbed with relief - it had worked. I could not see him but knew he was there.
I heard him yell and a crash of furniture being knocked over. I assumed it was his chair as he had not expected me to appear randomly in his home.
“What the -” he started, shocked. “Clarice, what happened? What is going on?”
I felt Remus‘s aura get closer to me. He touched my back and assisted me in sitting down on a chair. He soothed me, shushed me, and helped me to calm down.
“I’m blind,” I cried, taking in deep breaths, “You Know Who attacked me.”
“Where is Sirius, wasn’t he with you?”
“The Aurors hauled him away. He was framed for murder.” I shrieked, distressed. “He didn’t do anything.”
“I don’t understand,” Remus said as he tried to calm me down.
“Peter Pettigrew attacked us. He used an explosive spell and killed twelve no mags.” I automatically covered my face with my hands even though I couldn’t see anything.
“That bastard.” There was a pause. He took my hand gently. “But don’t worry. This curse is curable.”
I wiped my eyes. “It is?” I managed to blubber out.
“Yes. I could take you to Hogwarts and talk to Poppy. She can brew the potion that will restore your eyesight.”
He gave me a reassuring hug, which I needed, along with his calming words.
“Give me some time to calm down first.” I didn’t wish to appear hysterical in front of my colleagues as many already thought me quite emotional.
“I understand.” His voice was soft and comforting.
I placed my hand over my racing heart. I was dripping with sweat and my hands were shaky. It took a few moments for me to calm down and stop panicking.
Remus brought me a tumbler of water that helped me cool down. He offered me tea but I refused, the water being sufficient.
When I felt ready, I took a deep breath and announced, “Alright, I’m ready.”
We apparated to Hogwarts, and Remus assisted me up to the hospital wing. When we arrived, I couldn’t sense anyone’s aura except Remus’s. Poppy must be elsewhere.
“Poppy? Are you here?” Remus called out, his voice echoing around the corridor of the hospital wing.
I heard a bell chime, and a door opened. The aura I felt was a pale yellow.
“Yes.” She answered.
Her aura drew closer. “Oh! What seems to be the matter?”
We explained the situation to her. She was quick to respond. “Don’t worry, dear, I can fix you up that potion in no time. Give me a few minutes.”
Remus reassuringly put his hands on my shoulders, “It's going to be alright, Clarice.”
I said nothing, still distraught. After five or so minutes, Poppy returned. She placed a glass in my hand. It felt small, similar in size to a shot glass.
“Drink this,” she instructed.
Without any hesitation, I downed the potion. It tasted like cough syrup. I swallowed and scrunched my face up in disgust.
“Take five of these.” She handed me another glass. The taste got worse with every chug. By the third one, I felt as if I was going to throw up.
“You're almost done, Clarice.” Remus encouraged.
I took deep breaths before downing the fourth glass. This time, I drank slower. Finally, I was able to finish the entire potion.
“Give it a few moments to take effect,” Poppy said.
It felt like an eternity. I could hear the clock chime, indicating an hour had struck. I was still unable to see.
Impatiently, I asked, “Can I have some more? I don’t think it worked.”
“That's odd…” Poppy’s voice sounded confused. “I could have sworn the ingredients were unicorn horn, stewed mandrake, and wormwood…I’m not a brewer. Perhaps I could ask someone for advice. Please wait one moment.”
Poppy exited the room and returned shortly with her assistant, Ester Flame, a potions expert and healer.
“Yes, these are the right ingredients,” Ester commented as she checked her book of potions. I heard the book close. “Try more unicorn horn; it has purifying qualities. But you should probably wait a while. Too much unicorn horn will put her in a coma.”
I bit my lip impulsively. “How long is a while?”
“Let's say about eight hours or so?” Ester suggested.
“Alright,” I sighed. I was on edge. My hands were shaking, my breaths quickened. “What time is it now?”
“It’s just after six o’clock in the evening,” Remus answered.
“Alright…” I said again.
I spent the night in the infirmary. Remus said he would come back for me as he too was going to research the curse. I couldn’t sleep as the events kept reeling in my mind. I heard the clock chime indicating an hour had passed…then another hour. Frustrated, I called out to Ester.
Ester ran into the room, worried. “Are you alright, Clarice?”
“I can’t sleep. Can you make me a sleeping potion?” I asked.
“Of course. I brewed more stock this morning. Let me get you a vial.” She returned momentarily and handed me a shot glass full of the potion. “Only one.” She instructed.
I drank it. It had a lavender-flavored liqueur taste to it. I fell asleep within seconds.
~
In the middle of the night, Poppy shook me awake. I let out an exhausted groan. “What is it?”
“Ester made more of the optical potion. Try this.” Poppy whispered and handed me the glass. I drank the entire thing, but slowly, as I didn’t want to gag again. I was still under a sleep enchantment, so I couldn’t tell if the potion worked.
Later, when I woke, I felt heat coming from the window and assumed it was the sun shining through the window panes.
I held my breath as I opened my eyes and was deeply disappointed that I still couldn’t see. I was on the verge of tears again. I heard the door open and was alerted that it was Remus and Dora due to their voices as they walked into the room.
“Clarice?” Dora cried out with hope in her voice.
“It didn’t work.” I said with despair, “The potion didn’t work.”
“I don’t understand. That potion should have worked.” Ester remarked, coming into the room.
“What am I going to do?” I wailed.
“Tell you what. You can stay at my place. Dora and I will look after you until your sight returns.” Remus suggested.
“And what if it never comes back?”
“It's a curse. There must be some way to break it,” Remus said. There was a pause. You have my word, Clarice. Even if you remain blind, we shall look after you.”
“Do you really mean that?”
Remus put his hand on my shoulder, comforting me. “Clarice, you are one of my dear friends. You have our word.”
“Thank you, Remus.”
We apparated back to Remus’s house. Dora assisted me in orienting me with my new surroundings. She assisted me in getting dressed in some clothing she had transformed for me and gave me privacy to use the bathroom. Together, we headed downstairs to breakfast.
I familiarised myself with my table setting and sniffed, it smelled like buttered toast on my plate. I was delighted when it was proved correct.
Remus was reading the paper. I could tell by the way it rustled. He let out a disgruntled sigh and muttered, “This isn’t good.”
The paper cracked loudly and I could imagine him moving his arms, irritated at its contents.
“What is it, dear?” Dora asked as she placed what felt like cutlery into my hand. I felt a knife and fork. I was pleased my other senses were still working.
“Sirius was sentenced to life in prison without a proper trial.” He angrily barked out..
I let the cutlery fall to the floor as I slammed my fists down hard onto the table, causing the crockery to rattle.
“That's bullsh*t! He’s innocent. There must be something we can do to fight this.”
Dora let out a sad sigh. “We really can’t do anything.” She whispered under her breath.
“Remus, you have to help me to get him out of there.”
“Are you mad? You expect me to break Sirius out of a maximum security magical prison?”
“Yes,” I cried out, annoyed with him. I made my final plea, which was a bit below the belt, but I did not care. I wanted to hurt him. ”He is your best friend, after all! Isn’t he?” I felt tears well up, and I tried to blink them away.
I hear his gasp of shock at my words.
“Of course, he is my best friend. Don’t you think I’ve wracked my brain on how we can get him out of that hellish place?”
“No one has made it out of Azkaban and survived,” Dora added.
“What if I testified for him? I was there!” I pleaded. “Surely that could help his case?”
I felt satisfied with myself. I thought I was the key to freeing Sirius. No mags were not allowed inside any magical court. But surely they would have believed a witch who was at the scene and who had witnessed everything.
I changed the subject. “Did you find out anything further about the curse?”
“No. Dora and I have searched for an answer. Even Madam Pince helped. She knows that library inside and out. We read through many books featuring various curses and spells relating to blindness. I am sorry to say we found nothing to help. But Madam Pince sent out an owl to search in other magical libraries so there is hope.”
“Have you thought of maybe summoning your patronus?” Dora suggested. “Perhaps it would guide you in some way.”
I shook my head. “I’d be lucky even with my vision to summon it. I fail at being a witch, and I am unable to think of any happy memories at this moment in time.”
I wasn’t trying to be self-deprecating. This was a fact. I didn’t discover that I was a witch until very late in my childhood. I was fifteen and was no mag born. Because I didn’t discover my powers until late, I was held back two years because my magic was out of control. After I graduated, I still didn’t feel confident in my magical abilities.
“You aren’t a failure,” Dora said, rubbing my back empathetically. “If you were, you wouldn’t have become a well-respected professor.”
She had a point, but at the same time, I felt bitter. The only reason I had this job was because of Sirius. When I first met him, he saw potential in me. He said my knowledge of the divine arts was beyond advanced. Hogwarts didn’t have a divination professor at that time. He convinced me to apply for the post and I was successful and got the job.
I missed having Sirius beside me. As I sipped at a calming cup of tea I vowed to get him back.
A few days later, Remus took me to the Ministry of Magic and the experience was a disaster. One solicitor clearly did not want to hear me out and kicked us out of her office because of my foul language. I couldn’t help it. I was angry.
As we were about to leave, a different, more sympathetic solicitor offered to take the case. I was relieved…however, she never followed through. Whenever I asked her for an update on Sirius’s case, she would say, “I’m still looking into it.” She kept dismissing the situation.
I considered what to do next as the curse was affecting my life, impacting my work and what I wanted to do in life.
I had consistently called off work and eventually decided to resign. My colleagues were taken aback at first, but they understood.
I had more magical professionals examine me throughout the following months, and all were left stumped. It was beyond their comprehension. I even had one healer joke, “Maybe true love’s kiss would help?”
While he was joking, that got me curious. What if he had a point? After all, sorcery does exist. Maybe spells like that do exist as well. When I got home, I summoned my oracle cards and asked for guidance.
While I couldn’t see physically, I could tell with my mind’s eye what card was in my hand. These weren’t ordinary oracle cards printed by some spiritual person in a factory. These were created for oracles, such as myself. The card that I held was called “Time.” The card radiated with a vibrant energy that could make one’s heart melt with joy.
The vision I saw was of Sirius and me. We looked much older. He had grown his hair out and was quite skinny. He looked rugged and worn out, as if he had just escaped imprisonment. He brushed my hair back and said gently, “Clarice, it's me.”
“Sirius?” The vision of myself looked confused momentarily then gasped as she had just recognized him by his familiar voice.
He planted his lips against the vision of myself.
I gasped in horror at the sight of my vision. The blindness curse had caused them to turn completely white. No one had informed me of this. I know I wore dark glasses when out, but why had Dora or Remus not told me?
I turned my full attention back onto my vision.
A giant smile was plastered onto my face. The love of my life was back.
“I can see!” I shrieked with joy and pulled him in for a long hug before I kissed him soundly. The passionate kiss continued, and I watched this happy vision of Sirius and me. I didn’t want this vision to end.
