the_debt_of_time

"I've lost everything." Lily let out a shaky exhale, her normally bright green eyes
were dim and no longer sparkled like emeralds in the light. She leant against the gates and
slowly slid downward until she was sitting on the ground. "My home, my family―"
"Your family is right here," Sirius insisted, kneeling in front of her.
"Sirius is right," Mary said as she linked arms with Alice and knelt down to Lily's
side. "Don't let it go to your head, Black." Turning her attention back to Lily, she reassured,
"We get to choose our families, and we've all chosen you, don't you know?"
"Exactly. In fact.. ." Sirius said with a thought and quickly tapped his wand against
the gold bracelet wrapped around his wrist. Mia knew that it was one of two items he never
removed under any circumstances, the other being the silver chain around his neck. He
looked up at Mia as though asking for approval, and she smiled sweetly down at him,
understanding.
Turning back to Lily, Sirius gently clasped the bracelet around her wrist, turning it
so that she could see the House words engraved upon it.
Lily protested, "Sirius, no! This is expensive!"
"It wasn't even mine to begin with," he told her. "So, it's not like I spent money on
it."
Mia smiled at her friend. "Just an old heirloom we had lying around."
Lily took a slow breath and looked down at the bracelet, her hand still held by Sirius.
"Animo et astutia," she read aloud. "These are the words of the House of Potter."
"By Courage and Craft. Mia gave this to me when I lost my own family," Sirius
explained, though he kindly left out the rest of the detailed story about how he had shagged
her rotten shortly after. If such was a tradition after receiving a new bracelet, Mia was glad
to leave it to her brother to handle later. "She gave it to me when I became a part of the
Potter family; now it's your turn."
"I'm not a Potter, Sirius. I can't accept this. Take it back."
"Nope."
"Mia.. ." Lily looked up at her friend.
"Nope." Mia shook her head, cutting Lily off. "I agree with Sirius. You're my sister.
That makes you a Potter, or maybe a Black since Sirius is the one giving it to you." She
laughed and knelt down opposite Mary and Alice, cocooning Lily between them all. Still
standing, Frank put his arm around Peter's shoulders, both boys smiling at the scene.