CHAPTER TWO - The Art of Brown Nosing
When Lily reached the common room at 7:30 the next morning it was to find a very angry James Potter glaring at her, arms crossed, Sirius hovering nervously behind him.
"Morning," Lily greeted pleasantly. She couldn't think for the life of her what she'd done this time, unless...her blood ran cold. Had he found out about her password? But she'd think he'd be upset so much as pleased about that... "Well, spit it out, James, I honestly have no idea what you're so pissed about this morning."
"Really?" He did indeed spit. "Drop the high and mighty attitude, Evans."
Lily raised an eyebrow. "You're acting like a killed your owl. I didn't, did I?" She took on a fake anxious expression. "I thought I checked that it was someone else's..."
Sirius rolled his eyes. "What my drama queen of a best mate is trying to say," he said, with a pointed look at said best mate, "is that you're skiving off on your Head Girl duties and we're not a day into term yet."
Lily tilted her head. "What an earth are you talking about, Black?"
"Rounds," James spat. "We were supposed to patrol together last night, Evans. You ditched me."
Lily's mouth fell open into a perfect O. Her horror was written all over her face. "Oh Merlin," she said, when words returned to her. "I forgot—I completely and utterly forgot. Potter, I'm so sorry." She had been so wrapped up in her own issues she'd forgotten other people even existed. Petunia really was right; Lily was selfish and inconsiderate. She tugged at her hair. No thinking of Petunia, she told herself firmly. Petunia was off-limits.
James' anger seemed to be faltering. He seemed to be under the impression that Lily's despair was solely directed at him. "I'm not that mad, Evans." He sounded alarmed.
"All alone," she said. "I shouldn't have made you be all alone."
Petunia, Petunia, Petunia. Guilt was enveloping her. Why had it taken her so long to realize how horrible she'd been to her own sister? Of course it wasn't as one sided as she'd always thought. Petunia was wrong and laughable, she was completely innocent.
"I—yeah, well, I'm used to roaming the corridors by myself."
Oh, right. Patrols. "I'll do it all by myself tomorrow, I swear! I'll do it alone for the rest of the week, even!" Lily's hands were in her hair, her face bright red. "Shit, shit, shit...I can't believe I forgot!" Tears were glistening in her eyes when her head raised again. "Potter, I am so sorry."
"Lily, you don't have to do it alone," James said gruffly. "It's fine."
Marlene Abbott and Alice Prewett appeared at the bottom of the girls' dormitories. "Lily?" Alice asked, coming over. "What happened?"
"Nothing," Lily said, trying desperately not to cry. It was ridiculous, she rarely cried over anything, let alone something as stupid as this. "I messed up—"
"It's really fine," James insisted.
Sirius let out a bark-like laugh. "You should have opened with that, mate," he said.
"This is about your sister, isn't it?" Marlene said in a low voice. "Mary told me—"
"She shouldn't have told you anything!" Lily hissed, fully aware that the worse half of the Marauders were standing right next to her. "That was confidential and...and personal!"
Marlene rolled her eyes. "We live together. Nothing is personal."
"Petunia is," Lily said. "I don't like to talk about it."
"Er...Evans?"
James was still standing there, only now he looked confused. "Well...I'll see you later, then," Lily said in a falsely bright voice, following Alice and Marlene out of the Portrait Hole and into the corridor.
"What the hell was going on back there?" Alice demanded as the girls began down the stairs. "You never cry, Lily."
"I know!" Lily said. "I know I don't—I'm just...Mary would say it's because I'm in a 'fragile state' but I'm not, I swear, I'm just stressed..."
"Do you need a calming draught?" Marlene asked.
Lily shook her head vigorously. "On the first day of school? I don't think so!"
"It's understandable. You have a lot of pressure on you," Marlene said wisely but unhelpfully. Lily glared at her.
Alice took Lily's shoulders in her hands. "Lily, over the past six years you have always taken care of us—made sure we ate our vegetables, did our homework—it was ridiculous, really. You don't have to feel like everything is your responsibility."
Lily's hand slid along the banister, her fingers tapping as she thought. "I know," she said finally. "I haven't been myself lately. I've been a wreck. Can we talk about something else?"
"Sure," Alice said. "How about Celestina Warbeck's performance this summer? Did anyone see it?"
Marlene shook her head. "The tickets are all snatched up and sold on the black market, I don't know anyone who's actually seen her live."
"I listened to her records," Lily said wistfully, grateful for a change of subject. "My mum loves her—but she still maintains that her favorite is Ella Fitzgerald."
"Who?"
Marlene and Lily launched into an explanation of muggle music for the pureblooded Alice, who found the entire thing weird.
"I don't get why there has to be a distinction between muggle and magical music," she insisted. "It's just sounds."
"Celestina has songs about magic and potions—it'd break the Statute of Secrecy," Marlene argued.
Lily considered it. "Yes, but muggle music is full of metaphors—no one would even think twice about it!"
"It'd be too specific though, someone would get suspicious."
Their argument continued until they reached the ground floor of the castle and crossed the Entrance Hall. There their conversation turned to lamenting the fact that Gryffindor was currently in last place.
"I know—Lils, give me twenty points for being such a good friend," Marlene said.
Alice laughed. "No, give me fifty as congratulations for dating the same bloke for three years."
"I can't just do that," Lily protested. "As much as I'd like to, I actually have to log all point deductions and additions in a huge book in the Head Offices."
"That's bollocks."
"I didn't know you had an office!"
Lily grimaced. "It's tiny and smells weird. I haven't been there yet this year, but I'm hoping to spend as little time there as is humanly possible."
Upon reaching the Great Hall the three girls joined their dorm mates—or former dorm mates, in Lily's case—at the Gryffindor table.
"Lily," Hestia said, looking up from her toast and jam. "We missed you last night. You were supposed to bring the chocolate."
"I was supposed to do a lot of things last night," Lily said flatly, pouring herself a glass of pumpkin juice and throwing it back as if it were something stronger. She slammed it back on the table. "What? I can pretend."
Alice rolled her eyes. "Someone's still in a bad mood."
"You know what our common room password is going to be next?" Lily asked, a smile tugging at her lips. When she didn't say anything, Mary tentatively asked,
"What, dear?"
"Lily Evans is a twat!" Lily said forcefully, causing several people to look up from down the table.
Marlene shook her head. "Too easy to guess."
Lily swatted her on the arm.
"Oi, Potter!" Marlene called.
James had just entered the Great Hall, accompanied by the other three Marauders. He looked over, surprised. When his eyes fell on Lily, however, he hurried over. "Abbott! What can I do for you?"
"You're not going to make me try out for the team again this year, are you?" Marlene gazed up at him suspiciously. "For the past three years you have, and I've always beaten the rest by a mile."
"Ah, Abbott." James ran a hand through his hair, his eyes still on the back of Lily's head. "You never know. An incoming second year might actually beat you."
Marlene rolled her eyes. "Sure. Please, Potter. I don't need the additional stress right now. I have to take care of Lily."
"No you don't," Lily said, speaking for the first time. "I take care of you, Marlene."
"Sure." Marlene looked back up at James. "She's in denial. So please, do me a favor. Don't make me try out again."
"Only because you're my star player, Abbott. After me, of course." James grinned. "You still have to come to tryouts, though."
Sirius scowled. "Have fun replacing me."
"Why did you get kicked off the team again?" Mary asked, showing interest in the conversation for the first time.
The Marauders joined the girls at their end of the table.
"Too many detentions," Remus answered, at the same time Peter said "Medical issues."
They both looked at each other, and Sirius grimaced. "We're not exactly at liberty to say."
"Christ, Black, what did you do?" Marlene shook her head. "McGonagall would do anything to avoid messing with the Gryffindor Quidditch team."
Lily noticed Sirius and Remus were avoiding each other's gazes. She had a sneaking suspicion she knew exactly what had happened, because she'd heard from Sev that he was attacked by a werewolf, and she only knew one of those. How Sirius played in, though, she wasn't sure.
Remus, of course, didn't know that Lily knew about his condition. It hadn't been that hard to figure out, to be honest. Even without Severus' constant insistence she could have come to her own conclusions. It only went to show all the misconceptions about werewolves, really—Remus was the sweetest and most mellow person Lily knew. Werewolves were supposed to be evil and frightening.
"Lily," Alice said. Lily blinked and looked up. The Marauders were gone, and so were Marlene and Hestia. "You've been zoned out all morning—are you sure you're all right?"
Lily nodded. "Sorry. What do we have first again?"
"McGonagall dropped off our schedules while you were having a staring contest with your plate." Alice handed Lily the parchment. "We have Potions together, and we'd better be going if we don't want to be late."
Lily grabbed her bag from where it lay at her feet and slid off the bench, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. This year was going to be a nightmare.
As the bell rang, Slughorn shouted, "Two rolls of parchment about the uses of Amortentia and its history! I also want dangers and potential risks-you're my seventh years, you know what to do!" As the class groaned, he added. "Due on my desk in two days!"
Lily's heart sank. She still needed to sort out some semblance of a patrol schedule and who knew what other homework. Time to use her position as the Favorite to use.
"Er...excuse me? Professor Slughorn?" She bit her lip and tried to look hopeful but anxious.
"Yes, m'dear?" Slughorn replied jovially, turning to see her. "Your work was marvelous today, by the way. Not that it isn't usually!" He winked.
Lily smiled broadly. "Thank you so much, sir! I don't know if you've heard, I've been made Head Girl—"
"Of course! I didn't expect it to be anyone less. I had rather hoped you and Mr. Snape would be Head Students together, but alas..." he shrugged. "What can I do for you?"
"Well, you see, I hate to ask, Professor, I really do." For a moment Lily was afraid she was laying it on too thick. This was, however, Slughorn. He practically lived for sickeningly sugary butter-ups. "But I've got so much work for being Head Girl, and I'm not sure I'll be able to put as much thought into your essay as I'd like with it all...is it at all possible for me to request an extension? Only by a day, I promise!" Lily bounced on the balls of her feet, her hands twisting in a calculatedly nervous gesture.
Slughorn smiled genially. "Of course, my dear girl! In fact, take a week. We'll be working on Amortentia for a while, you won't be behind. In fact, I don't think you can be behind!"
Lily thanked him profusely, then hurried out the door. Transfiguration was in five minutes.
"You know, Evans, that was quite the Slytherin move."
Her head snapped up. Sirius Black was leaning against the wall, as if he'd been waiting for her. "What do you want?" She asked, trying not to sound impatient. "It's only that I've got to hurry off, I'm sorry—"
Sirius grinned. "You can stop now, Evans."
"Right. Get out of my way, Black, I'm running late."
"That's more normal." Sirius fell into step beside her as she began her way out of the dungeons. "I didn't think you had it in you, playing on a poor teacher's affections. James would be proud. He's rubbing off on you."
Lily scoffed. "I've always been like this. You just haven't been stalking me to see it."
"True," Sirius mused. "That's usually been James' strategy."
"Not that I haven't enjoyed this chat, but really, what do you want?" Lily came to a halt at the bottom of the staircase that would take her up to the ground floor .
Sirius laughed. "James is trying to get you to agree on his 100th."
"Birthday? You know, I'm really not surprised he's that old. I always did think he dyed his hair."
Lily could have sworn she heard someone inhale in pain. She narrowed her eyes. "You're never alone, Sirius. Where are your cronies?"
Sirius looked genuinely offended. "I don't have cronies. And to answer your question, James has totaled to about 85 times asking you out. He wants you to agree on the hundredth time."
"Have you told him it won't work?" Lily's eyes were sweeping around the area, though there didn't appear to be anyone there.
Sirius shrugged. "You never know."
"James is horrible at Quidditch," Lily said suddenly. Sirius looked surprised, and mildly annoyed, but she couldn't be concerned with that, she was listening...
There it was again! That sharp inhale, like she'd insulted—
Her arm flew out, and grabbed onto something to Sirius' right.
"Ow, ow, ow—blimey, Evans, you don't need to yank—" The invisibility cloak fell away, revealing a sheepish James Potter. Lily did not, however, relinquish her hold on his hair.
"An invisibility cloak?" She shouted. "Why am I not surprised?"
Sirius was laughing now, and James was pleading. "Keep your voice down, Evans, not everyone has to know—"
"I've three minutes to get to Transfiguration and now I have to worry about you spying on me under a bloody cloak of invisibility? How long have you had that thing, anyways?"
"Er...how long ago was my eleventh birthday?"
Lily gave a small shriek of rage. "Alright...alright...here's the deal. I'll keep quiet about..." She waved her hand in James' general direction. "All that, and you have to write up patrol schedules by tomorrow."
"Why tomorrow?" James whined.
"Because that's when the bloody meeting is!" Lily's face was burning red. "You can't have forgotten!"
James was smiling again, and it only served to make Lily more angry. "I didn't forget—I already did it."
"When?" Lily demanded.
"Er. Last night? During patrols."
"You were supposed to be patrolling!"
James waved a hand. "I used the ma—"
Sirius elbowed him in the stomach, hard. James' mouth opened and closed a few times, then he said, "The...Mary. Mary helped with rounds."
"No she didn't," Lily said suspiciously. "She went to the dorm and joined the first day back party the girls always hold. She was in charge of appetizers."
"The girls throw parties that we don't know about?" Sirius demanded. "Why weren't we invited?"
"Because our parties are classy," Lily snapped. "I'll let you determine how you did or didn't do your rounds while I head to N.E.W.T.s Transfiguration!"
James snorted. "I'm coming too, Lils, wait up."
Lily, who had already climbed four steps, scowled. "I will very well not wait up, Potter. I've got a minute 'til class." She turned back around, her long hair swinging behind her, and took the stairs two at a time. At the top she turned one last time. "Good luck with your grand 100." She slid into her seat as the bell was ringing, and Professor McGonagall awarded James a detention for coming to class two minutes late.
A/N
Thanks so much to everyone who read and favorited and followed! I didn't expect much of a reaction at all, that was a really pleasant surprise! Anyways, here's the third chapter. I'm not going to promise one every day, but I'll see what I can do. :)
Disclaimer: I'm still not JK Rowling. Unfortunately.
