"Isn't this what you wanted Lily dearest? A unique one-of-a-kind birthday present?" he snicked, pushing me onto the king sized bed.
In any other circumstances, it would have been beautiful. A white bedspread with pale purple lilies adorned all over it. There were gauzy white curtains to surround it, momentarily tied up to the pillars.
"No, get away from me!" I screamed through my sobs, backing away as far as I could from him as I clumsily crawled backwards.
He smirked.
"I always get what I want," he said and caught at my hands, his legs holding down mine so I couldn't kick him away.
I screamed again, trying to move away from him, but it was useless. I wasn't as strong as him, and he had his advantage. Ripping through my thin baby blue summer dress, I was exposed. At a later date, I would look back and curse myself for letting my family talk me into buying it. I had wanted to get a new pair of jeans and a shirt. I had just turned 10. I was young and carefree, innocent to the world. Now I am no more. In the years that passed, those words would haunt me.
'I always get what I want…'
Lily Evans pushed back her wavy red hair, putting it up with a green clasp. She brushed away the remainder from her face. The carriage door opened and she looked up curiously at the newcomers. Four males, who seemed her age, but weren't. It wasn't they who were the wrong age, but her. She had seen horrors none of the could begin to imagine, but as long as the door was open, she didn't mind. When they just stared at her unblinkingly, Lily stared straight back with the calmness she had inherited from her mother.
"Hello," she said politely.
"Hey," replied one of them.
He seemed overtired and gave a wane smile. The other two, both with black hair but a different cut, stared at him in surprise, and then laughed. Lily raised an eyebrow.
"Mind if we sit here?" he asked.
She nodded with a shrug.
"Sure, just don't shut the door," she answered.
All four of them sat down and began to chat excitedly to one another. She caught a few names. Peter... Remus... Sirius... James... Looking out the window, she only heard bits of their conversation and, with her back turned, never noticed the boy with the messy black hair move closer towards the door.
"So what's your family like, Sirius?" asked Peter, turning to Sirius, who's look blackened instantly.
He ignored the question.
"How was your summer, Remus?" he asked, who looked at him in mild surprise.
Having spent only 5 minutes with them, Remus was already being accepted into their lives. He didn't want to spoil it by letting them figure out what he was just yet, so he just smiled weakly, having been drained of most of his energy two nights ago.
"It was... painfully boring," he admitted.
When she finally turned around, it was because of a laugh.
"I always get what I want," said the messy black haired boy, laughing.
Lily slowly turned around slowly, silently. The other three boys joined in with his laughter as he aimed his foot to kick the door closed. They were watching, waiting for her reaction and, to their pleasure, she gave them one. Open mouthed she looked as the door edged slowly until a click was heard. Then a loud, piercing scream echoed through the whole train. They all laughed, thinking she was just another silly little girl who shrieked at the smallest of things.
James nudged Sirius, causing both of them to laugh. Remus noticed that James was nearing the door, and shook his head, smiling a little.
"So James, did you finally get that broomstick you wanted?" asked Sirius loudly, obviously hoping for Lily to turn around.
When she didn't, James attempted to laugh loudly.
"Of course, I always get what I want..." he practically yelled.
When Lily finally turned around, he banged the door shut and all four gasped with laughter at her scream.
When they finally realised she had finally stopped and was staring at them with a pale face, they began to feel uneasy.
"Hey, you ok?" asked the prankster.
Lily just stared back at him in horror. When he attempted to approach her to get her away from the open window ledge where she sat, she looked as if she was about to let go and jump off, and he quickly retreated. Remus opened the door quickly.
"See, look? It's opened," he said hastily.
Giving them all one last look of pure fright, she leapt from the windowsill and ran out the door.
"What was that about?" squeaked the smallest of the four, resembling a mouse.
They all looked at him and gave a shrug, deciding it was a girl thing.
After that, it were as if they attempted to overcome their guilt by playing even more tricks on Lily, who had attempted to bury and hopefully suffocate, herself under the pile of homework she had to do. If that was not enough, she hid in the library to read even more. When that was impossible, she asked her mother to owl her any books she could get her hands on, just never anything on love or anything that hinted of even the smallest possibility of a relationship about to begin. Lily couldn't stand it. She'd just send the book back as fast as she could home and ask for another.
For this the 'Marauders' picked on her and taunted her. She hated them all. Especially James Potter. Especially the one who had closed the door, the one who had repeated the forbidden phrase and the one who had attempted to advance towards her. The only person of the Marauders she could relatively stand was Remus. He also seemed older than his appearance, like her. He was the one who talked to her, who opened the door and let her out.
"Hi, I'm Rose," offered a petite blonde with several streaks of what seemed to be a pink-blonde colour in her beautiful wavy hair, cascading down her back.
Lily smiled unsurely. Ever since she had gotten into this school, her saviour, she hadn't talked to anyone, and it had already been a month.
"I'm Lily Evans," she finally replied.
Rose seemed to take that as an opportunity to introduce her to everyone else.
"This is Ying Fa. When her name's translated into English, it's actually Cherry Blossom so I call her Cherry," she said, stepping aside to reveal a pretty little Asian girl with straight black hair tied into two pigtails.
She smiled and nodded her greeting. Lily followed her example. Rose continued to rave about something completely off the topic and Cherry rolled her eyes to tell Lily that it happened a lot. Lily giggled and eventually got out of her seat and allowed her two new 'friends' to lead her around and be formally introduced to the others of the Gryffindor house.
"Hey Evans," said a voice, his fingers tapping her gently on her shoulder.
"What?" she snapped back in annoyance.
She knew who it was. There wasn't anyone's voice she knew better. She knew every detail of it. The sound of his arrogance, his laughter, his cruel remarks, cutting into her skin. She'd heard it all. Cherry looked up, seemingly calmed, but only a trifle less annoyed than Lily. She'd needed her friend's help with her outside-class charms.
"Yes?" she asked in an icy tone, interjecting before her friend blew up.
"Go flirt with Sirius, Ying, I'm not talking to you, am I?" he said in a careless tone.
Cherry's beautiful dark brown eyes turned icy and almost black with rage. She didn't move, though. She wasn't about to abandon Lily just because this brainless airhead requested it.
"So, you want to go to Hogsmeade with me?" he asked.
Cherry raised an eyebrow at Lily. Lily was bristling with unleashed rage.
"Smart move," she drawled to James, who continued to ignore her.
"No," Lily replied, biting back her temper for now.
James looked surprise.
"Excuse me?" he said, bewildered.
No one had turned down James Potter in the past. Not if he wanted them.
"I said no, Potter, or is your brain too tiny to understand the two letter word?" she demanded sarcastically.
"Keep your shirt on, Evans," he said with disgust and walked away, almost dejectedly.
The two girls heard a laugh and the sound of James' grumbling as he passed his money over to Sirius.
"Hey Rose!" said Sirius in his usual bouncy way.
Rose smiled good-naturedly at him.
"Hey, how's it going?" she asked with a smile.
"Well, we gave the Slytherins pigtails and purple bowties, and thanks to your friend Evans, my day's just gotten better!" he replied with a grin, throwing up his prize and catching it again.
Rose groaned.
"Oh Sirius, when will you learn?" she muttered, hurrying past her family friend and into the common room where, surprise, surprise, Lily sat with steam coming out of her ears and Cherry trying to persuade her to go to their dormitory.
As fourth years, they were lucky because the twins who had otherwise inhabited the same room, had left, make-up and all, for some finishing school or other.
'Yeah, no one likes a woman with books and no looks or culture,' sniffed the elder one.
Rose shook her head slightly at the memory. Surprisingly, it wasn't Lily, but Cherry, who had a quick temper when it came to dealing with them.
"That... that... Thing is so unbearable! Who does he, no, it, think he, I mean it, is?" she demanded with a cry of annoyance as she practically flounced onto her bed.
"Come on Lily, you know James. He's always been like that, always will. He won't change, can't. Not for anyone. Just ignore him," advised Rose.
"That's not true," interjected Cherry, which surprised the other two.
After Lily, she was possibly the only other girl who hated the Marauders with all her heart after they had taunted her about her family, who had lived in China. They passed away when she was 8, but she took a stand and successfully lived her life as well as she could with what she had.
Lily and Rose admired her for her strength, but the Marauders didn't seem to notice what a wonderful quality it was.
'You've never lived a day outside your world of happiness so don't you dare judge me!' she yelled before running away.
That had been the only time anyone had ever seen her lose control like that.
"What?" she asked, "Someday, those 3... I mean, 4 players will learn to love, have their hearts stolen, and attempt to win the girl, even if it does mean changing," she said softly.
Both Rose and Lily just blinked blankly at her.
"Cherry, we love you and all, but where do you get all this weird stuff from?" asked Rose in a mock bewildered voice, causing the other two to laugh.
"You'll see," she finally said after the laughter died down, "You'll see I'm right in the end," she finished confidently, earning a shrug from the other two and a pillow aimed at her face.
The Florettes laughed. They hadn't thought up the name, but it was given to them after they returned to school in 5th year with their new 'look'. At the time, Lily's hair had been adorned with white lilies, enchanted to last as a hair ornament. She looked stunning in her new yellow shirt with a glittery picture of a lily on the front, worn underneath her white school blouse which had only been done up halfway to reveal most of the picture. She wore a matching yellow mini skirt over her jeans and white platforms. Stylish yet not at all revealing.
Cherry had gotten a pastel pink halter neck top with white Chinese characters written over a picture of glittery pink cherry blossoms, matching the ones she had pinned into her slightly wavy hair. She wore a denim mini skirt with a sparkly white scarf tied around her waist and bangles around her wrist with the same white platforms Lily had bought. Rose wore a silken red top with diamond straps and the same denim skirt as Cherry's. A metal chain of roses hung around her waist, roses plaited into her beautiful pink-blonde, and she wore white stiletto heeled sandals.
The dramatic changes that took place made the whole hall silent as they made their grand entrance, walking slowly, hips swaying in time as they walked towards the Gryffindor table. Lily could still remember her smirk when she passed the Marauders, purposely shaking her head slightly to give her hair some extra bounce.
"Those were the times," murmured Rose thoughtfully.
"It was only about a year and a half ago," pointed out Lily.
"Shut up," she mumbled back, playfully hitting Lily on the shoulder.
A sigh from Cherry brought them out of their fun and laughter.
"What's wrong Cherry?" asked Lily. "Trouble at ten o' clock," she replied.
"Yours or mine?" asked Rose, looking around.
Lily rolled her eyes.
"Both. You're looking the exact same way as each other," she pointed out.
"Oh..." replied Rose as if it had just dawned on her, which it probably did.
"What day is it today?" interrupted Lily.
"Two days past the full moon, remember?" replied Cherry gravely, eyes darkening.
"I see," she said softly.
It would explain their lack of hyper-activeness, not that anyone else noticed. They were far too overactive in the first place.
"Hey there Lily-kins, how about we..." began James, but Lily cut him off.
"No," she replied automatically.
Her sympathy for his friend didn't reach that far. He frowned then turned to Rose and Cherry.
"No," they replied in unison.
"Who said I was going to ask you anyway?" demanded James in a huff.
"Because you're James," replied Rose simply.
James pretended to pout. Pouting always worked for all the girls... except for the 'Untouchables', another nickname they'd gained. Rose laughed.
"Aw, poor little James not used to being rejected yet?" she said with an innocent pout and mock sympathy.
"Zhen shi hen sha ah," (He's) Really stupid... ((Sorry, my mandarin is hopeless, but bear with me because it's not the exact translation... )) added Cherry with a delicate shake of her head.
"You realise that I hate it when you start speaking in a different language, right?" asked James with a raised eyebrow.
Cherry sent him a wicked grin.
"Yep," she replied cheerily.
Lily didn't say anything, just stood there, fuming silently.
"Come on," said Lily, coldly, turning sharply and marching to the dormitory, Rose and Cherry almost running to keep up with her pace.
"I hate you, James Potter!" she yelled at the doll, her hands around its neck as she strangled it to no end.
The fabric there was beginning to sag under the pressure it had been put through for the past few days.
"Let it go, Lily, you've gone through about 20 of those make-shift Potter dolls in less than 2 months. That's a new record for you," advised Cherry with a steady voice, sewing the next one.
It resembled James from his messy hair to his lop-sided grin to the shoes he wore practically everyday. On a shelf in the room, there were 3 more of James, 2 of Sirius and 1 each for Remus and Peter.
"Yeah. James isn't that bad once you get to know him," added Rose with a smile.
Cherry's sewing stopped. Lily turned to look at her friend sharply.
"What did you say?" she demanded.
"Nothing," she replied quickly.
'Smart move,' thought Cherry, finishing off the stitching and moving onto her Potions homework they'd just gotten.
Lily had forced both of them into doing their homework early until it became second nature to them.
"You know, fluorescent pink doesn't really work with the Slytherin robes," remarked Rose.
Lily turned and gave an amused smile, but quickly hid it when the Marauders suddenly appeared.
"Like it?" asked Sirius, grinning.
Rose grinned back at him. Lily just glared.
"What did they ever do to you, Potter?" she demanded.
James gave her a hurt look.
"Why, they hurt my pretty little Lily, of course," he replied innocently, "Don't you like it?"
Lily restrained herself from hexing him.
"I can take care of myself, thank you," snapped Lily, still glaring at her arch nemesis.
Turning around sharply, she stomped to the Gryffindor table, Rose and Cherry at her heels.
"So, Hogsmeade on Sunday, you want to come with me?" asked James casually, leaning against the table.
Lily kept her patience.
"Potter, the day I go out with you is the day Rose confesses her undying love to Sirius and Cherry goes out with Remus, understand?" she replied coolly.
Her voice was strained and she looked ready to throw a punch at him. Rose spat out her drink so that Sirius was covered in coffee and Cherry choked on her tea, although the only way they knew she was choking was because of the way she hit her chest lightly and a few faint coughs.
"And that's not possible?" demanded Sirius, wiping away the drink from his face with his sleeve.
Remus blushed.
"Definitely not," replied Rose flatly.
Cherry didn't say anything, just sipped at her tea with a thoughtful look. She knew not to predict the future before it happened.
"Hey, we have to go," said Cherry, putting down her drink at last.
Rose and Lily blinked.
"Go? Go where?" they asked.
Cherry rolled her eyes.
"Quidditch? I swear, Potter's trying to kill us," she muttered.
Cherry was one of the best chasers there was and had been since she started in their 2nd year. Rose played keeper and Lily's feet were kept rooted to the ground. She hated flying. The first and last time she flew on a broomstick was back in 1st year when Snape had decided to put a hex on the 'mudblood's' broomstick so that it flew towards the Whomping willow, then flung her off. She ended up in the hospital wing for a whole month. Lily shuddered at the thought.
"Yeah, you guys go ahead. I got a few prefect duties to attend to anyway," she said with a smile, turning away to finish off her breakfast.
Sighing, she picked up her bag and left. They had a free period and James decided to force the Gryffindor team to practice, which meant she would see less of her friends.
"Damn Potter..." she muttered under her breath, "The day I'm stupid enough to fall for you is the day I find out you actually care for someone other than yourself."
((What a bad beginning... Sorry!))