Lilly, Slughorn, and a Fight

A/N: Hello dear readers! Just trying to get as many chapters in as I can before exam month! xD Plus, state testing's this week. AKA, less hw! Yay! It won't last :( This (RARE) back-to-back update, brought to you by Queen Ana the Awesome, should keep you satisfied for a while, because I will not be able to touch fanfiction next weekend (maybe if I write during the week...), as I'm super busy.

Enjoy the next chapter of, 'The Meaning of Life!' :)

Harry: the Burrow

Harry stares at the note carefully and angrily, reading it once more for confirmation.

Lina-flower,

What kind of a name is Lina-flower, Lina isn't even a type of flower! Slimeball. And probably a Death Eater. No, definitely a Death Eater. Who hangs around Lina, and she doesn't seem the least bit fazed that she has contact with a bloody Death Eater that could turn on her any second! For all Harry knew, Malfoy could be using Lina so he can bring her to her father! Yes. That's probably it.

Meet me at the last compartment, the one with the big curtains that no one uses. I don't know, tell Saint Potter and co that you have to use the bathroom or something. I need to tell you something. Things have been rather…dark in Malfoy Manor since the initiation.

Oh no, he wouldn't be meeting her anywhere. Lina was better than a million Malfoys, and he shouldn't be anywhere near her. Harry crumples up the note and throws it in the trash bin, having no clue that Malfoy could simply write her in the journal.

The meeting would still go on, possibly under Harry's nose. Or not. He could always go there and eavesdrop…after all if Malfoy was using Lina, Harry had better know his enemy so he could stop it.

"Harry, mate, you alright?" Ron calls.

"I'm fine!" Harry says back.

"Then come on! Mum called for dinner five minutes ago!" Ron insists.

Harry blinks a couple times. "She did? I didn't hear her. I'm coming…"

Lina

The summer passed by quickly after that. Gossip of Percabeth's proposal spread around the rest of the Camp like wildfire, and everyone was thrilled.

"I can't believe you're all leaving me here," Piper says. "With…her." She motions to Drew.

"Make Mitchell your second in command instead," I suggest.

"I can't, Mitchell doesn't want to challenge Drew," Piper says.

"I have an idea. Mitchell!" I call across the cabin. "Could you come here a moment?"

"Sure, Lina. You need anything?" He asks.

"Do you want Drew as second in command?" I ask him.

"Gods no," He shudders. "But there's no other choice, I mean, I'm in line for second in command after Drew. And Piper's command overrides hers, but she's still…"

"Let's make Drew powerless before I leave," I grin evilly. "Okay, so hold my knife."

"Okay, what are you going to…?"

"Just hold the knife." I say firmly. "And make a really threatening look. Ooh, like that. Yeah. She's scared of anything. Drew! Mitchell would like to challenge for second in command!"

"What—Lina, I never agreed to that!" He hisses. "She'll kill me!"

Drew stares at him, sizing him up. "Remember what happens when you break my rules, Mitchell sweetheart. Garbage patrol," She simpers.

"You won't make me do any damn garbage patrol ever again," Mitchell says furiously, gaining his bravery. "I've done it for two years and now I'm done. She's right, I am challenging you, and I won't let you bully innocent campers anymore. I challenge you to a duel. You barely fought in the Titan War, just sat around and waited for us to do it, so technically, I completed one more quest than you. So, I challenge you to a duel." Mitchell took my knife and points it at her.

"Fine," Drew huffs before flouncing off. "Sooner or later, the Camp will realize that the dear head counselor Lina, along with her second in command and third in command are all a bunch of psychotics." She looks at me for a long time, as if expecting me to retort or attack her.

"You can't ruin my day! I'm leaving, Percabeth is getting married, and you can't bully innocent new campers anymore! What more do I need?" I call after her.

"And that is how we make Drew powerless," I finish, high fiving Piper, Anne, and Hermione. "Good job standing up to the cow." I pat Mitchell on the back.

I turn to Piper. "You also have Percy and Annabeth, they're not going with me this time. You'll be fine."

"You're right," She finally says.

"Alright, let's go," I say. We had said our goodbyes to everyone before we left through the floo. I was holding both Anne's trunk and my trunk as we run towards the station. "We don't want to be late and we have to show Anne the barrier!"

"Alright, Anne-Banana," I say as we reach the barrier between platforms nine and ten. "This sounds weird, but you have to run through this barrier. Hermione, show her that you don't crash when you get there."

"It's very simple, Anne," Hermione says kindly. She grabs her trunk and runs straight for it, disappearing inside.

"She went to platform nine and three quarters, didn't she? A magical platform," Anne asks.

I nod. "She did. It's really amazing the first time."

"Together?" She asks.

"Together," I say firmly. We both grab ahold of our trunks and run for the barrier, disappearing through it and landing at platform nine and three quarters.

"Welcome, Anne," I say breathlessly. "To the Hogwarts Express."

"Lin-Bean, this place is amazing!" Anne gushes.

"That's exactly what I thought the first time I came here," I say. "Although I had no clue where I was and I landed on top of two awesome twins." I nod thoughtfully. "The ones at the joke shop." I add.

"I have to go to the Prefects meeting," Hermione says, hauling her trunk into a compartment. "Tell Harry hello when you see him, and have fun, Anne!" She hugs the both of us before scurrying off.

I heave Anne's trunk and my trunk on top of a compartment window. Anne clutches Sapphire in her arms. "Can I sit with you for now?" She asks.

"You don't even need to ask," I assure. Anne and I walk through the train until we find a compartment consisting of Harry, Neville, and Luna. I knock on the door. Harry gets up immediately and lets me in. "Lina, how was the rest of your summer?" He asks, pulling me into a hug.

"Pretty cool, Percy proposed to Annabeth," I inform him. "Could Anne sit with us?" I ask, gesturing to her.

"Of course," Harry smiles, "First year?"

Anne nods.

"What house do you think you'll get into?" Harry asks, making conversation with her.

"Well, I read about it in Hogwarts, a History…" Anne starts.

"Hermione the second," Harry and I mutter.

"…And I'm hoping to get either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. I can't see myself in Slytherin, and I guess Hufflepuff would be alright, but I don't see myself as one." Anne finishes.

"Ravenclaw is lovely," Luna spoke up dreamily. "I'm Luna Lovegood." She introduces. "A fifth year in Ravenclaw."

"I'm Anne Prior, a first year in…I don't know yet," She says.

We all make conversation for a while until a soft knock is heard from the door. Luna stands and walks over to open it. "Hello," She says vaguely.

A girl who was a bit on the tall side with blonde hair and blue eyes enters. "Hello," I say politely. "Do you need anything?"

"I…um…I'm new here," The girl says.

"New?" I ask. "Dumbledore let you in?"

The girl nods. "I'm a half-blood. I was homeschooled until now, and I wanted to get a taste of boarding school for two years, and so here I am."

"Something about her makes me feel uneasy," Anne mutters, but wasn't heard by anyone.

"Oh, well, welcome to Hogwarts." I tell her. "I'm Lina Quimby, what's your name?"

"Oh, I'm Lilliana Schrodinger," The girl introduces. "Please call me Lilly. Is it alright if I sit down?"

"Of course Lilly, go right ahead," I pat the empty seat next to me.

Lilly smiles gratefully as she takes the seat.

"So…" Harry says. "Lilly, what do you know about Hogwarts?"

"Oh, well, my father told me about it, so pretty much everything," Lilly shrugs.

The door opens again, and Ron and Hermione enter. "Wish the lunch trolley would come soon, I'm starving," says Ron as he takes a seat beside Harry. Hermione takes Harry's other side.

Ron scans the people in the compartment. "Hi, Neville. Hi, Luna. Okay…so I remember you from three years ago…" He gestures to Anne. "And…who're you?" He asks Lilly, gazing at her with what looked like a love-struck expression.

"I'm Lilly, I'm new here and I was homeschooled," Lilly introduces.

"Oh." Ron says, nodding.

But Hermione wasn't done with Lilly. "Homeschooled? Dumbledore doesn't just let anyone in Hogwarts. She says suspiciously. "It states in Hogwarts, A History that you can't transfer into Hogwarts past O.W.L. year."

"Well, he let me in, you incessant know it all." Lilly says, her voice hardening.

"Lilly…don't call her that. Hermione, just leave her," I sigh. "She's new. He let Percy, Thalia, and Annabeth in last year."

"I know, but the circumstances were different," Hermione argues. "He let them in to protect Harry. I have no idea why he let her in."

"Just leave it," I sigh.

Ron continues to try and make conversation with Lilly, causing there to be a very pissed off Hermione. Ron then turns to Harry. "Malfoy's not doing his prefect's duty. He's just sitting in a compartment with the other Slytherins, we saw him when we passed."

"What did he do when he saw you?" Harry asks.

"He gave us the middle finger," Ron grunts. "Not like him, is it? Well, the middle finger part is—but why isn't he out there bullying first years?"

"Dunno," Harry replies.

My mind was racing. It's just like a slick git to bully first years. But he isn't bullying first years…so what is he doing?

"I need some air," I announce. "Anne, Lilly. Will you be fine staying here or do you want to tag along with me?"

"I'll be fine," Anne replies. "Luna's really nice. Go ahead."

"I'll make Lilly feel comfortable," Ron immediately volunteers. If I would have looked to my left, I would have seen Hermione's eye twitch in anger.

I walk across the train and I hear someone scream. "STOP! STOP!" Two burly Slytherin seventh year boys were levitating a little boy in the air. People were just passing by, not wanting to get on the wrong side of the boys.

So first I saved a first year girl from Malfoy last year, and now this? Am I suddenly the first year saver?

I clear my throat. "Put the boy down." I command.

One of them turns around and stares at me, while the other one continues levitating the boy. "Oh, yeah, and why should we listen to Gryffindors like you, eh Quimby?"

"If you don't tell your friend to put the boy down I will hurt you." I snarl.

"Hey, Bole! Lift him up higher!" He taunts.

The little boy screams.

"If you lift him any higher his head will bump the train ceiling!" I yell. "Furnunculus," I say calmly. He falls to the floor, clutching his…area.

I point my wand at the boy who was levitating the first year. "No…please…I'll put him down. Relashio!"

The little boy lands gently on the ground.

Someone clears their throat. We spin around to find a man I hadn't seen before. His hair was greying. He looks around at all of us. "Please explain what happened," He says kindly to the first year boy.

"Okay, so I had to use the bathroom and then these two pop out of nowhere and tell me to give them all their money. I told them I didn't have any on me and then they levitated me. Then she came and told them to put me down and when they didn't she hexed one of them," The boy finishes.

"Thank you, you may go," He says to the first year boy, who shoots me a grateful look before scampering off.

"That was very wrong of you boys," The man says disapprovingly.

"My father told me about you," The one that I didn't hex says. "You're Horace Slughorn and you favored Slytherins back in the day."

"Horace Slughorn?" I ask.

"He doesn't associate with the likes of you," The other boy sneers at me, finally pulling himself up.

"On the contrary, actually," Slughorn says firmly. "Lily Evans was a Gryffindor and one of my finest. Such a shame what happened to her…you will not do this again?" He says to the two boys.

They nod vigorously.

"Off you go," He says and they leave. I was about to leave too, but Slughorn holds me back. "Which hex was that?" He asks me intently.

"The boiling hex," I murmur.

"And you used it on one of the boys?" He asks me.

"I did." I say.

"And you aimed for his crotch?" He asks.

"I don't regret it," I tell him, expecting him to give me a detention.

"What is your name and year, dear?" He asks me.

"Lina Quimby and I'm in sixth year." I say.

"Come join me and a couple others for a bite of lunch." He says.

"Wait, what?" I blink in surprise. "A…a bite of lunch? Right now?"

He nods.

"Um, okay. Who are these other people?" I ask him.

"The other people joining us are Harry Potter, surely you know who he is?" He asks.

"Of course I do, he's my best friend," I say.

"Oh, excellent, now that I put my finger on it, I think Harry has mentioned you a couple times," says Professor Slughorn. "And I assume you know Neville Longbottom?"

I nod. "Yes, Neville is in my year and an acquaintance of mine."

"Here we are," Professor Slughorn hums as we approach a compartment. "Sorry I'm late, everyone. There was a bit of a holdup a couple compartments away, but it was all for the good as it brought us this wonderful young lady! Everyone, this is Lina Quimby, did I get that correct?" He asks me, and I nod. "You already know Harry and Neville. Blaise Zabini is in your year, of course." Blaise gives me a curt nod. "This is Marcus Belby, and Cormac McLaggen…and you know Ginny Weasley…"

My insides run cold at the name 'McLaggen.' I reminded myself that Cormac was not his brother.

I walk over and take a seat at the wide space between Harry and Blaise. Blaise leans over towards me discreetly. "Draco says he wants to talk to you. Did you get his note?"

I shake my head. "He never gave me one."

"He wants you to meet him at the last compartment, the one with the big curtains that no one uses," Blaise says.

I nod. "Thanks for telling me."

That was the end of any conversation between the two of us as I focus my attention on Harry, Neville, and Ginny.

"Well, this is pleasant," Slughorn says. "A chance to know you all better. Pheasant, Belby?"

Belby took the pheasant and Slughorn starts talking about his Uncle Damocles who invented the Wolfsbane Potion. Then Slughorn starts talking about Cormac's Uncle Tiberius. Then he starts talking about Blaise's mother. Then he starts talking about Neville's parents, which understandably made him feel uncomfortable. Then it hit me. Ginny and I share a look.

Everyone here is connected to someone well-known or influential, except us. Well…my father doesn't count.

Then he starts talking excitedly about Harry and what he did, before Blaise gives a tiny little cough indicating amused skepticism.

"Yeah, Zabini, because you're so talented!" Ginny burst out angrily.

"At posing!" I finish off.

"Oh dear!" Slughorn chuckles. "You want to be careful, Blaise! I saw this young lady perform the most marvelous Bat-Bogey Hex as I was passing her carriage, and I saw the other young lady perform the best boiling hex I'd ever seen! I wouldn't cross either of them!"

Blaise merely raises an eyebrow.

Then Slughorn talks more about Harry, then about a long-winded reminiscence about famous people that took who knows how long.

I hear a buzz in my journal.

Coming?

I got invited to lunch with Slughorn. Slughorn is boring us with stupid stories on famous people.

How the hell did YOU of all people get invited to that?!

I hexed somebody and he liked the hex.

…Of course you did. That explains it. So, I, a Malfoy, top of the year, does not get invited but YOU do because you lost your temper? Insufferable and unbelievable.

It's the most boring thing ever. Be glad you're not here.

Did you get my note?

No. Blaise told me.

…You didn't get my note? That's not good. It could end up in the wrong hands. It could end up in…POTTER'S!

Relax, slick git. Highly doubt it. Oh good, he's letting us leave. I'll see your unfortunate presence ASAP.

Think you can go a day without insulting me?

Nope.

I thought so.

I leave the compartment, deciding first to stop by mine and quickly change. "Hey everyone," I say, slipping in behind Harry. "I'm so sorry. I got invited to the lunch thing…it's a long story. Let me change really quickly before going to meet…Mandy." I finally say, pulling over my robes. "Where is Anne-Banana?" I finally ask.

"Oh, she met a first-year girl," Luna says. "They hit it off."

I nod happily. "Good. It's good she's making friends. I was a bit worried about that." I close the compartment door. "Harry, what're you doing out here with your invisibility cloak?"

"I needed some air," Harry says quickly.

I nod and hum before leaving towards the last compartment. I hear footsteps behind me. I look around. Weird. I take my wand out and hold it just in case before entering the compartment.

"Well, slick git, I'm here," I say, entering and sitting down.

"I see that," Malfoy says. The door opens. No one was there. "Damn door," He mutters, closing it.

"What does the Dark Mark really look like?" I ask him.

"See for yourself," Malfoy says, rolling up his sleeve. I see it. The skull. I finger it carefully.

"Lina Quimby," A scathing voice in my head says. "Death Eater consorter. Associating with them is just as bad."

I ban the voice. This is different. This is an unwilling Death Eater. "You know there are other options," I say quietly.

"You don't understand," His voice hardens.

"Then help me to. I may hate you—okay, I do hate you, but I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy," I tell him.

"I can't!" He snarls.

"Slick git!" I snarl back.

The compartment door swings open, and Lilly stands. "Oh, I am so sorry, Lina!" She gasps. "I didn't know there were people in here, I just needed a place to think. I…um…I'm sort of nervous about the Sorting and what House I'll be in."

"Hello, Lilly." Malfoy says, his voice cold.

"Draco." Lilly replies icily.

"You two know each other?" I ask, dumbfounded.

"We've met," Malfoy laughs bitterly.

"We have history," Lilly says loftily. "But it was a long time ago, wasn't it Draco?"

"Right," Malfoy clenches his teeth. "A long time ago."

"You have nothing to worry about," I tell Lilly soothingly. "It doesn't matter the House. One of my best friends was a Slytherin last year."

"I'd better get going," says Lilly, closing the compartment door shut.

"What was that about?" I ask him.

"It's none of your business," Malfoy snaps. "Just…watch your step around her."

"Watch my step? She seems lovely," I argue.

"You oblivious, insufferable idiot!" Malfoy burst angrily. "Just…never mind. Just go."

"Go? YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING TO TELL ME SOMETHING, SLICK GIT!" I yell.

"WELL, MAYBE I SHOULDN'T!" He yells back.

"IS IT BECAUSE I'M OBLIVIOUS AND INSUFFERABLE, PICK ONE OF YOUR CHOOSING?" I retort. He didn't say anything back.

"Your safety is on the line, Lina-flower…" Malfoy begins, his teeth clenched.

"Since when has it not been on the line? I'm sixteen bloody years old! I can take care of myself!" I argue.

He mutters something that sounds suspiciously like 'not sure about that.'

The train halts at that time. "You'd better go," He finally says.

I give him a vicious death glare before storming out of the compartment, slamming the door behind me.

A/N: That was the chapter! We meet Lilly! Gah, Draco's right, she is oblivious xD Hermione and Anne will both be cautious around 'Lilly.' Next will be Anne's house, the feast, and (maybe) first day of classes! xD

I hope you liked how I integrated Lina into the Slug Club ;)

I hope you liked the chapter! Thank you for all the lovely reviews!

Please R&R :)

-Ana