Something Wicked This Way Comes

6. A Message From The Great Beyond


Sometimes Lily thought she might want to be a Healer when she finished school. It was another five years of training after Hogwarts, but her aptitude for charms, potions and medical magic made her an ideal candidate for Healing. She contemplated this as she waved her wand in an intricate pattern across Lilibeth Clearwater's face, whispering an ancient spell like a song.

Lilibeth had been out cold for seven hours since the attack in Hogsmeade, but she had been luckier than some villagers. A stray blasting spell threw her straight through a shop window and into the snowy street, leaving her with a nasty bump on the head and some vicious cuts and scrapes but still alive and breathing.

Frank Longbottom and his Auror partner Gideon Prewett arrived shortly after the Dark Mark appeared above Hogsmeade. They were still piecing together what happened, but from what Lily gathered, four Death Eaters had entered the Magic Neep Grocery and murdered its two Muggle-born proprietors before making their escape. The lead motivation seemed to be that the shop sold Muggle chocolate, which Lilibeth happened to be buying when she was struck with the blasting curse.

She was a pureblood Clearwater after all, in the wrong place at the wrong time, not a blood traitor.

Lilibeth shifted in her sleep and Lily paused in her incantation, waiting to see if the younger girl would wake but she only breathed a soft snore so Lily carried on with the intricate spellwork.

The aftermath of the attack had been intense and terrifying. Lily had just left the Three Broomsticks looking for James—she'd had just about enough of their childish, extended falling out, and intended to have it out with him before the day was over. But then she'd found James outside the pub in the snow, staring up at a huge, sinister Dark Mark curling into the overcast afternoon sky.

With Amelia and her brother Edgar (who had appeared at random on the streets of Hogsmeade) at their sides, Lily and James apparated to the Magic Neep to find the bodies of Mr and Madame Lhau inside, while Lilibeth's limp and bleeding form lay crumpled in a shower of glass in the snow.

"Bloody hell!" James yelped, spotting Lilibeth. His face turned gray and he dropped to his knees beside her.

Edgar set about doing some sort of investigative Auror work, casting spells Lily had never heard before while Amelia went to get help.

Lily kneeled beside James in the snow. "James, it's alright," she said softly, taking one of his shaking hands and moving it away from Lilibeth. She knew enough medical charms to discern what was wrong and treat uncomplicated magical ailments, which luckily included swelling of the brain in Lilibeth's case.

By the time Amelia returned with a small group including Frank, Gideon, McGonagall and Flitwick, Lily was weaving a complex spell to keep Lilibeth alive and comfortable. Once they got her up to the castle Madam Pomfrey took over, telling Lily her spellwork was excellent and she should consider training to become a Healer. When Pomfrey looked like she was about to fall off her feet a few hours later, Lily took the wand back and instructed her to get some rest, much to Pomfrey's amusement.

"You're quite good at that, aren't you, Evans," Lily looked up to see one of the Prewett twins—she was pretty sure this one was Gideon—watching her work.

"Thanks," she said with a shy smile. "It's handy."

"I hear you're good in a fight," Gideon said lightly, his eyes trained on the patterns she drew with her wand.

Lily laughed shortly. "Who told you that?"

"Potter," Gideon shrugged, then sent her a cheeky wink. "Dumbledore backed you up though."

"Oh," Lily found herself blushing, but whether that was because James, whom she'd been thinking about a lot lately, was going around telling people she was good in a fight or because the great and powerful Albus Dumbledore was, she wasn't quite sure.

"You ever think about Auror work?" Gideon pressed.

"Well, yeah, sure," she said cautiously. "Don't take this the wrong way, but it sounds like the Auror Office isn't in the best condition..."

Gideon paused, letting Lily go back to her spellwork, then moved to sit on the other side of the bed so he was facing her over Lilibeth's prone figure. After a long silence where he was clearly mulling something over, he finally spoke. "You're right. But it isn't just the Auror Office. It's the whole Ministry."

Lily kept her eyes trained on Lilibeth's face as she listened, feeling like she was about to learn something important.

"My brother and I are still working at the Ministry, but many of our colleagues have abandoned the Auror office in order to work on a more... freelance basis against the Dark Lord."

Lily's head shot up at that, and she met Gideon's blue eyes. "Yes," she said quickly.

Gideon raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, observing her. "Yes, what?"

"Yes to whatever you're asking me," she elaborated, returning her gaze to Lilibeth's face. "I won't be going to work for the Ministry when I finish school, and there won't be much of a Wizarding World left to live in if we don't come up with a solution to... Voldemort. So whatever it is, yes, count me in."

Chuckling, Gideon nodded happily as he got to his feet. "Alright, Evans. I'll be in touch."

Lily had many, many, many more questions for Gideon but she let him go. For now she needed time alone with her thoughts, and concentrating on repairing Lilibeth's brain was the perfect way to keep her focus.

Some time later Madam Pomfrey returned from dinner, bringing a letter with familiar loopy handwriting and a Muggle stamp.

"Muggle post for you, Ms Evans," She smiled warmly at Lily and withdrew her own wand. "I'll finish up here with Ms Clearwater, you get yourself to bed. You've had a long day."

Lily nodded wearily, her big, comfy private Head Girl bed was calling to her across the castle. Once the nurse had taken over she escaped through the double doors into the hallway outside the hospital wing and looked down at the letter in her hand. It was her mother's handwriting, and after a momentary hesitation Lily ripped into it, a small smile forming her lips.

My Lovely Lily,

Your professor McGonagall wrote to me to say that there's been some trouble at the school. She told me not to worry, that you would write if there was anything terribly wrong. I may not understand everything in your new world, but I beg of you to please share with me what you can. You are a powerful young woman, Lily. Not just in your strength of character, but the unique and rare power you discovered on your eleventh birthday.

If there's any way you can call me, or perhaps contact me through the fire place like you were once able to when Petunia had her appendix surgery, I would be so happy to see your beautiful face.

All my love,

Mummy x

Lily felt a wave of guilt thunder through her. Lily's father had died some years earlier and Petunia moved to London over the summer to start a typing course, leaving Rose Evans alone in Cokeworth. The idea of her mother rambling around their old house on her own drove Lily wild with guilt. She hadn't so much as written her mum once since September, primarily because Lily knew her mother was terrified of owls and she hadn't quite worked out how to get her letters into the Muggle post yet. Besides that, her attention had been focused on the nearly constant trouble plaguing Hogwarts as a result of the war.

Sighing sadly, Lily re-read her mother's letter twice more and then packed it away safely in her robes. She determined that she would convince McGonagall to allow her mum access to the Floo Network—it may have been dangerous to travel with the Death Eaters watching, but surely they weren't interested in every boring conversation between students and parents?

Wrapped up in her thoughts, Lily nearly ran straight into James as she made her way back to Gryffindor Tower

"Shite, sorry, Potter!" She exclaimed, blushing furiously, though she wasn't sure why.

"No worries, Evans," he smirked but it looked tired and forced, not his usual cocksure arrogance. He was carrying a single tulip that looked rather depressing on its own. "How is she? I was just going to say hello..." He looked forlornly down at the lone tulip in his hand.

Lily grimaced—she'd nearly forgotten that it was James' girlfriend laying unconscious in the hospital wing after being attacked by Death Eaters. "Still asleep," she told him gently. "She'll be out until morning at the least."

James nodded, looking sullen. "Thank you. I don't think I thanked you before. For helping her."

Lily peered up at James, wondering what was running through that clever mind of his. "That's okay, Potter," she said carefully. "I know how much Lilibeth means to you."

A pained look passed over James' face and Lily was certain she saw him wince. "Yeah," he agreed, distractedly ruffling his hair.

"She'll be okay, James," Lily put a tentative hand on his shoulder and offered a reassuring smile but he shrugged again, looking distressed.

"Sure," he nodded, his gaze trained on the wall beside Lily's head. She'd never seen him look so down.

Lily frowned, concerned. "Are you alright, James? You seem... quite out of sorts."

"Do I? Ah, bugger," James exhaled loudly, mussing his hair again and then smoothing it back down anxiously before he met Lily's eyes. She realized what the conflict she saw there was: guilt. "I was going to break up with her yesterday," he admitted. "Right before I found out she'd been, ya know," he mimed thumping himself in the head.

To her horror, Lily felt a swell of pleasure rise up in her chest, followed swiftly by crushing disgust in herself. How truly wretched to be pleased someone was ending their relationship! That another person's heart would be broken! What was WRONG with her?! Lily knew she was doing a terrible job disguising the emotions crossing her face, and she only hoped that James wouldn't realize what an awful person she was.

"I'm sorry," Lily managed to say once she'd gathered her composure. "I know you care about her."

James shrugged dispassionately. "I'm an arsehole, Evans. That's the long and short of it."

"Come on, Potter," Lily gave him an affectionate swat on the arm. "We're seventeen, remember? These things weren't made to last. Maybe wait until she's out of the hospital wing to do it though..."

His lips quirked upwards in an amused almost-smile at that. "Thanks, Evans," he sent her a significant look. "I've been an arsehole to you as well. I'm sorry about that. Can you ever forgive me?"

Lily waved him off, though inside she was dancing. "I was being stupid too. I can't even remember why we rowed in the first place."

"Exactly," he agreed ruefully, his eyes lighting up with their familiar mischief. "So how was the rest of your date with Kettletoft? Death Eater attack put a damper on it?"

Lily groaned and rolled her eyes. "He's the worst."

James did not bother to hide how happy this made him, releasing a delighted bark of laughter.

"Probably for the best, Evans," he teased, smirking. "People would start saying you only fancy Quidditch captains."

Lily felt her cheeks grow warm, his words hitting unsettlingly close to home.

They parted ways, James carrying on to the hospital wing to give Lilibeth her tulip while Lily made her way back to Gryffindor Tower. Even when James was out of her sight she had a hard time bringing the flush out of her face. She was unusually relieved that things between them were alright—and knowing that he would be single in the not-too-distant-future brought an unexpected wave of giddiness sweeping through her.

After the terrible events of the day it hardly seemed the appropriate time to be worried about such things, but Lily was finally forced to admit something to herself that she would never ever have imagined possible.

She fancied James Potter.

Even if she didn't plan on doing anything about it.


The morning after the Hogsmeade attack James was on the Quidditch pitch before dawn. He'd tried to get Sirius to join him, but his best friend had moaned something about a delicious dream and rolled back over with a promise to be down later for proper practice. James didn't mind, he could do with the silence after the last few days and extra secrets he was now keeping.

He looked in on Lilibeth in the hospital wing before heading down to the pitch, but she was still unconscious. Everyone was saying she'd be fine, including Lily, but that did very little to ease James' conscious. He'd been mean and callous and now she was in a hospital bed.

But James' love life was the least of his problems. He'd been turning over what he'd overheard Amelia and Edgar Bones discussing outside the Three Broomsticks and desperately wanted to tell at least Sirius, but probably Remus and Peter as well. Between the four of them there was a perfect balancing act—Sirius was bombastic, Remus level-headed, Peter cautious and James, well, he would say visionary if that didn't sound exceedingly arrogant. Who was he kidding. Visionary was accurate.

Apparently he wasn't especially visionary when it came to keeping innocent wizards like Mr and Madame Lhau safe from Death Eaters, he thought miserably.

James directed his broom into a dramatic dive, plunging towards the earth as he thought about the two bodies lying dead in the Magic Neep Grocery. Murdered because they sold novelty Muggle biscuits and chocolates in their store. It was a kind of hatred he couldn't fully comprehend but somehow, James decided, he would need to understand it if he was going to be any use in this fight against Voldemort.

In happier thoughts, he'd managed to fix things between himself and Lily. She had been exceedingly kind and supportive when he ran into her the previous evening, reassuring him that he was making all the right choices even though she only knew a fraction of what was happening. James was almost more keen to tell Lily everything than he was the boys—he craved her opinion and feedback. If she delivered it with a comforting hand on his arm and a smile that told James she believed he would do the right thing, then all the better for it.

Once the sun had fully risen over the mountains James forced himself to land, one of his least favourite activities, especially when he was using flying to distract himself. He took a quick shower in the Gryffindor changing rooms before heading back to the castle, deciding a punishing day of Quidditch practice was what the Gryffindor team needed... not least because James intended to thoroughly crush Kettletoft and the Hufflepuff team at the match in six days time. The world was crumbling but there was still Quidditch, and Quidditch was still within his control.

He looked in on Lilibeth again on his way back to the Tower; she was awake this time with her friends and Professor Flitwick fussing over her. After an appropriate amount of time expressing (genuine) concern and (sincere) relief that she was alright, James returned to the Tower to round up his troops.


James was grinning caddishly at Lily, making her feel flustered and silly.

"So," he drawled, all easy charm and lazy elegance. "How was the rest of your date with Kettle-twat?"

Lily giggled shyly and looked up at James from beneath her lashes, being sure to flutter them girlishly. "He's the worst," she admitted, blushing.

"Probably for the best, Evans," James teased, sliding closer to her. He lifted his hand to brush her long red hair behind her ear, and Lily felt her belly quiver from being so close to him, the warmth radiating off of him and that specific James smell that drove her wild…. "People would start saying you only fancy Quidditch captains," he grinned suggestively.

"Only one Quidditch captain," Lily breathed, swaying closer as her eyes descended to his mouth. He had a lovely mouth, always smirking and grinning with soft-looking lips that she would love to kiss.

James' hand moved from her hair to neck, caressing her as he leaned closer. A wonderful, anticipatory heat pooled between Lily's legs as James' mouth came closer to hers. "Oh Evans, you naughty girl," he whispered, his voice husky and…

A shrill, piercing scream brought Lily crashing back to consciousness. Her eyes shot open and she audibly gasped, trying to get her bearings as the dream faded away and reality set in. She was in her room, alone, without Potter, and someone was screaming their bloody head off.

Lily jumped out of bed, grabbing her wand off the side table and then her dressing gown as an afterthought as she tore out of the Head Girl's chambers and down the hallway where the other Gryffindor girls' dormitories were. Some girls were poking their heads out, looking shocked, scared, or just plain annoyed to be woken up early on a Sunday.

"Will you shut the hell up!" Oona Bellington, the fifth year Seeker for Gryffindor came stomping out of her dorm, yawning and grumbling to herself as she pulled on her Quidditch pads. "It's only a bloody Patronus!"

Normally, Lily would have docked points for cursing, especially in front of first years, but she ignored it for now, dodging into the seventh year girls' dorm where the screaming had now faded to an embarrassed groan.

Sylvia was sat up in her bed, her sheets and duvet clutched to her chest while Marlene petted her hair in an attempt to calm her down. Mary was pulling on her training gear, blinking rapidly to ward of sleep. Trotting around the room was a smokey, silver Patronus in the shape of a stag.

"Wakey, wakey, tea and cakey!" The stag sang in James' upbeat tenor. "Rise and shine MacDonald! Get your arse down to the pitch!"

"Charming, isn't it," Marlene deadpanned, glaring at the stag. "He scared Sylvie half to death, for fuck's sake."

"How's he even doing that?" Mary asked, now digging through her trunk for her gloves.

"No idea," Lily mused, watching as the stag cantered around impatiently for a moment, shouted something crude to Mary in James' voice, then took off out of the room with Mary on its heels. "But impressive..."

Once Lily managed to calm down the Gryffindor girls still startled by the silver stag with James Potter's voice prancing around their dormitories, she went back to her room and contemplated getting a bit more sleep. She deserved a bit of a lie in after the previous day's harrowing events—healing spells could really take it out of you—but one look at her tangled bed sheets and Lily was brought back to the dream she'd been having.

Flirting shamelessly with James Potter. Touching James Potter. Kissing James Potter. Curious and slightly ashamed of herself, Lily slipped one hand into her pajama pants and knickers, tentatively feeling herself. With a gasp, she quickly yanked her hand back when her fingers came away warm and wet.

No, she would not be going back to bed that morning.

Instead, she decided to sort out communication with her mother—she had been dreadful about keeping up with her since returning to Hogwarts. She sat down at her desk with a fresh piece of parchment.

Mum,

I'm so sorry I haven't been in touch since I returned to school. I feel really awful about it, and I'm going to do what I can to set you up with the Floo Network or figure something else out. It would be wonderful to see your beautiful face as well!

There has been some trouble here but I'm fine, though it means more challenges for being Head Girl...

Lily paused her. What did she tell her mother about the war? That one of the most dangerous dark wizards ever known was taking over the country, specifically with an agenda against people of her background? She resolved to be honest without going into the horrid details.

Challenges I am proud to take on. There is hatred and prejudice in our world, just as there is in yours, and there are certain people growing powerful who wish to lead by cruelty and fear rather than unity and strength. I will do all I can to make sure unity wins out in the end; I cannot sit on the sidelines and watch as evil men and women corrupt our society, which I believe, unfortunately, would inevitably lead to the corruption of your world too.

I love you so much, Mum, and I'm thinking about you all the time. I promise to write you more often (without owls!) and if I can get a message to you another way, I will.

All my love,

Lily x

After she'd addressed and sealed the letter to her mother, Lily decided she should write to Petunia as well, first transfiguring the parchment into Muggle-style lined paper and charming her quill so the ink would appear as if from a ball point pen.

Dear Petunia,

How are you?

I hope you're enjoying London. Did your flatmate Sally-Ann end up being alright in the end?

I wanted to let you know that I will likely be going to see Mum at Christmas and I hope you can too. Perhaps you can bring Vernon?

I'm rather worried about her, you know. She's all alone in Cokeworth and I'm wondering if we shouldn't try to get her going to a book club or a bridge club or something. What do you think?

Love,

Lily x


Lily found professor McGonagall grading papers in her office—not a huge surprise, even though it was a Sunday, with Dumbledore being gone so frequently of late.

"Professor?" Lily knocked on her office door, which was only just slightly ajar. "Could I have a minute?"

McGonagall set aside a stack of parchment and folded her hands on top of her desk, leveling Lily with an appraising look. "What can I do for you, Ms Evans?"

Lily slipped into the office, closing the door behind her. "Well, it's my mum. She's a Muggle so she doesn't have access to the Floo Network or owls, but I was hoping perhaps we could connect her so I can chat to her occasionally? She's getting on a bit and I'm worried she's on her own too much..."

McGonagall's hard expression wavered into something soft and sympathetic. "I understand what you are asking, Lily, but I'm afraid it's too dangerous to have any of the fireplaces at Hogwarts connected to the Floo Network now that the Death Eaters have control of it. I certainly would not want to grant them access to your mother's home either."

"Oh," Lily agreed faintly, thinking she should have seen this coming. "Could we look into having a telephone installed perhaps? I'm not trying to be a bother but... she's my mother and it takes so long for owl post and Muggle post to connect..."

"I understand, dear." McGonagall got to her feet and stepped around to the front of her desk, her eyes trained carefully on Lily the entire time. "I think I may have a solution for you, at least temporarily. But what I am about to teach you is... technically not Hogwarts curriculum."

Lily's face lit up at this. Secret tuition from Professor McGonagall?! "Oh, thank you, Professor!" She exclaimed, feeling like she wanted to leap forward and hug the older woman. "You have no idea what this means to me."

McGonagall cleared her throat, trying to bring back her usual sternness as she drew her wand from the long sleeves of her robes and Lily mirrored the action.

"The Patronus charm has many defensive purposes, as you well know Ms Evans. But one not widely known is the Patronus' ability to communicate classified messages," McGonagall explained, as if giving a lecture to a whole classroom instead of just Lily. She waved her wand in a wide arch. "Expecto Patronum!"

A silvery tabby cat leapt from the end of McGonagall's wand and got a few good pounces in before it came to heel at McGonagall's feet, as if waiting patiently for a treat. Lily watched, fascinated as McGonagall waved her wand again and began to speak directly to the Patronus.

"Lily Evans!" McGonagall said in a loud, clear voice. The cat sat up at attention, its back straightening and its ears pointing towards the ceiling. "I sincerely hope learning this method of communication is helpful for you, Ms Evans," she spoke directly to the tabby cat in an authoritative tone that must have been for the spell's sake, for her face and words were much kinder. "I'm sure to hear her daughter's voice would make your mother very happy."

The tabby cat spun towards Lily, it leapt into the air and vanished for a split second before appearing again at Lily's feet. It opened its mouth, just as James' stag had done earlier, and repeated McGonagall's message in her own voice, just as James' Patronus had.

Lily tried to imagine how her mother would react to seeing her dolphin Patronus speaking and hoped it would be with the same positively and intrigue with which she encountered most things from the Wizarding World. But her mother had never even seen a Patronus before, let alone one in the shape of a dolphin, floating in mid-air, speaking with Lily's voice. Still, it was something...

"That's amazing," she whispered, watching as the tabby cat vanished into a wisp of smoke. She smiled appreciatively at McGonagall. "Thank you for showing me, Professor."

"Give it a try, Ms Evans" McGonagall gestured for Lily to repeat the spell. She returned to her seat behind her desk and watched patiently as Lily drew her wand and gathered her thoughts.

"Expecto Patronum!" she cried, and from the end of her wand a silver wisp of smoke began to take a corporeal form. But instead of her usual dolphin, the wisp grew four legs, a long neck and short antlers until finally a beautiful silver doe stood before her.

Lily stared at the doe, unsure what to make of it. She'd read about Patronuses changing over time, but she couldn't identify anything within her soul that may have shifted to force a change in her corporeal Patronus. Why a doe? Dolphins were clever and in touch with their emotions... does were.

It hit her like a ton of bricks.

The doe was a stag's counterpart.

"Ms Evans?" McGonagall was peering at Lily with confusion and some concern, but Lily was certain she also saw amusement there, as if the old lady knew exactly what Lily was thinking.


There was one thing James knew about Quidditch: it was a full body sport. And that was why he was presently hanging upside down by his knees from his broom in the middle of Quidditch pitch, and why every five seconds he was curling upwards to touch his elbows to his knees though his stomach muscles were pleading with him to stop.

"I can't believe you make me do this!" Sirius complained. He was also hanging upside down but more just hanging there, swinging back and forth instead of working out.

"Shut the hell up, Black!" Mary barked from where she was hanging upside down. She tried to scowl but was breathing too hard through each crunch for it to have quite the impact she wanted. "Just do the sodding work!"

Sirius swung sullenly, not bothering to pull himself up, and soon grew very interested in chewing on a thumbnail.

"Potter, that's not bloody fair!" Salaam Hussein, Gryffindor's third Chaser whinged, trying to twist to glare at James while also pulling himself up. "Why doesn't Black have to work just cause he's your mate!"

James could only laugh at the picture his team made: hanging upside down from their brooms, working their abdominal muscles and thoroughly miserable about it. Mary was more adept at Muggle exercise than some of the team—she'd been Chaser with James since second year and had dealt with their former captain Dougie McGregor's punishing fitness regime. McGregor was a Muggle-born, and before he'd gotten his Hogwarts letter he'd been a football prodigy, whatever the hell that meant. Some Muggle sport. But it resulted in a Gryffindor team that was more physically fit than the rest of the school, and had certainly contributed to their winning the Quidditch cup five out of six years in a row since McGregor and James had been in charge of the team.

James glanced around at the rest of his team. Both his Beaters, Angel and Oakham, were the strong silent types (the perfect sort for Beating) who were sharing mutinous looks with one another but getting on with the training without complaint. His Seeker, Bellington was exhaling loudly through pursed lips and grunting furiously as she did the exercise; she was in line to take over as captain and was keen to prove herself.

It worked too. Bellington had a terrifying six pack that rivaled James' and she could fly like a bat out of hell. James had even gifted her his last racing broom, a Nimbus 250.

"Almost there, lads!" James announced, still grinning. "One more set!"

Hussein began growling dramatically, growing louder and louder as they finished the last ten reps; it sent Sirius into a fit of laughter that rendered him even more useless much to the team's irritation.

"Three! Two! One... Mount your brooms!" James ordered, and in unison the Gryffindor team swung up on to their broomsticks. "Give me ten laps in the air and ten laps on the ground!"

They were off like a shot, Bellington taking the lead on her Nimbus while James brought up the rear to shout at the stragglers. Bloody Merlin, he loved leading practice almost more than he loved flying itself. James had frequently been told he was a natural-born leader (though he suspected he was a bit too much of a troublemaker to lead anything more serious than a Quidditch team) and there was something truly wonderful about getting his team in top shape. Not to mention, it was a wonderful distraction from real life.

The team landed and ditched their brooms to start running laps around the pitch. James trotted backwards beside the slower-moving Oakham and Angel.

"Come on, lads, I know you can do better than that," he smirked and beckoned them closer like one would encourage a child to move faster. That got them moving.

Even if Oakham and Angel complained during practice they did very well off the pitch—neither had been single since they'd joined the team. Something about those strong Quidditch bodies making them desirable to the female population of Hogwarts...

"Prongs!" Sirius called, once again doing the least amount of work in last place.

James often thought his best friend's incredibly spoiled (though very traumatic) upbringing had rendered him unbelievably lazy, both physically and mentally. If it weren't for his naturally quick reflexes he would have been a rubbish Keeper, and if not for being innately clever and talented, Sirius would easily have been at the bottom of the class. He also relied on the Hogwarts' House Elves for his daily tasks far more than would be considered polite or reasonable.

James slowed down to jog in place while he waited for his mate to catch up with him. "Padfoot, I'm gonna need you to do better than that, mate."

"Oh, what's the sodding point," Sirius whinged as he came up alongside James. "I'm on a broomstick, not this Muggle running rubbish."

"Mary and I explained to you when you joined the team what the point is," James told him pointedly, only faintly annoyed because he was so used to this behavior. "Besides, it's a bad look if I let you get away with it just cause you're my best mate. Come on, faster, keep up with me."

Sirius groaned but obliged James, increasing his speed so they were jogging instead of Sirius' preferred pace of speed-walking. "Fine, but we need to talk."

James slowed down some and sent Sirius an amused look. "Are you breaking up with me, Padfoot?" He joked.

"No way, Prongsie," Sirius chuckled. "But I haven't seen you since all that shite yesterday. What the fuck happened to you?"

James groaned his displeasure with this topic; he was physically exerting himself for the sake of not thinking about what had happened. "Shouldn't we wait to speak with Remus and Pete as well?"

"Look, I know it's rubbish but if you're going to make me fucking run 'round in circles like a twat the least you can do is distract me," Sirius insisted petulantly.

James bit his lip. "Alright," he agreed reluctantly. "For one thing, Marlene McKinnon's girlfriend is definitely in the Order."

Sirius' head jerked in James' direction. "What makes you say that?"

"I overheard her speaking to Bones. She's undercover at the Ministry or something," James sighed, pushing his hair off his forehead; it promptly fell back into his eyes. "She wants to tell Marlene but Bones was saying if Marlene were to be taken by the Death Eaters they'd torture it out of her."

Sirius stopped in his tracks, shocked, but James carried on jogging, not for the sake of practice but the idea of not moving made him feel ill.

"Fucking hell," Sirius murmured, catching up to James again. "And what if she doesn't know anything and they torture her anyway?"

James glanced sideways at Sirius, his face grim. "That's the point, Padfoot. She gets tortured, she doesn't know anything, Amelia and the Order stay secret."

"Fucking hell," Sirius repeated. "That is dark as fuck."

"Yeah," James agreed sullenly. "But are they wrong?"

Sirius didn't say anything in response to that.

"They're keeping things from us," James continued. "I can't decide if that's for the best. I see the logic but I fucking hate not knowing things..."

"Surely if we know things," Sirius shook his head, frowning deeply. "Then we fight better. We can strategize."

"That's just it though, isn't it," James pointed out moodily. "They don't want us strategizing. Dumbledore's asked us to gather intelligence and keep an eye out."

Sirius' lip curled, not liking the sound of that at all. "Well... that's bloody stupid," he managed to say at last. "But I suppose... it's Dumbledore."

"Exactly," James agreed. He paused as Bellington came sprinting past them, her head down and gaze intense. When she was out of ear shot he continued. "So what I'm thinking is if we just happen to find out some things we're not supposed to well... then fuck it, we keep it to ourselves."

"Oh, I like your style, Prongsie," Sirius grinned and threw an arm around his best mate's shoulders. "What happened with Lilibeth last night?"

James rolled his eyes and shrugged Sirius off. "I went to find her to end things, and then when I did she was unconscious and bleeding in the fucking snow."

Sirius cringed. "Bad luck, Prongs."

"I was a useless git about it," James continued miserably. "But Lily was there and she... saved Lilibeth."

Sirius stopped jogging in surprise, then reluctantly caught up to James again. "Well that's rather... lucky...?"

"Hmm," James agreed, not sounding overly happy about it. It was really lucky she'd been there because James had been fully fucking useless. But why did it have to be Lily with the exceptional talent for healing instead of, say, anyone else on the planet? "She was with her all night while I spoke to Frank and Mad-Eye," he continued, thinking back to the conversation he'd had the night before in Dumbledore's empty office. "They think it was Vera Crabbe's brother Vincent and a few of his Death Eater mates."

"That fucking family are as bad as mine," Sirius grumbled. "I wouldn't be surprised if Bella was with them. She loves a good murder."

James hummed his agreement and waited for Hussein and Mary to pass them, both glaring at their much slower speed, before continuing.

"What did Evans think about all of this?" Sirius asked, and then laughed loudly when he saw James' face contort into a dreamy smile. "You fucking ponce," he accused affectionately.

"Fuck off," James rolled his eyes but kept grinning anyway. "She was bloody lovely about it. We made up and she was all nice and supportive and... calling me 'James'."

"Bloody hell, someone call the wedding planners!"

"Fuck off!" James was still grinning. "She also hates Kettle-tosser, thank fuck. Wanker."

"Total wanker," Sirius agreed, always supportive of his best mate. "So what, you reckon you've got a shot with Evans now?"

"Doubtful." James chuckled humourlessly. "And even if that was on the table... now isn't exactly the best time to start something with her of all people."

"Eh, you never know Prongs," Sirius smirked. "She may just come around. You deserve a bit of good news."

James shrugged and increased his pace slightly. The last thing he needed was to get caught up in pining for Lily again. "I'm not gonna pursue it," he said decisively. "It would be a distraction, and so far being distracted has ended up with five people dying."

Sirius stopped running then and grabbed James by the arm, forcing him to stop and look at him. "James," he said seriously. "That's bollocks. How the fuck would you have been able to stop any of these Death Eater attacks?"

James raked both of his hands through his hair anxiously, shaking his head. "There were four of them against ten of us, Padfoot. And three kids ended up dead."

"Yeah, because they were using Unforgivable Curses," Sirius pointed out, thumping his friend on the arm to knock some sense into him. "If you'd whipped out the old Avada K on any of those tossers before they could kill those kids, would you be feeling less guilty now?"

James pursed his lips, avoiding Sirius' gaze. "I should have done better," he insisted stubbornly. "I should have known what they were planning."

Sirius' eyes grew wide in disbelief. "How the bloody hell would you expect to do that?"

"I don't know Padfoot!" James shouted suddenly, losing his temper. "But I better fucking figure it out before more people die on me!"

"Alright, alright," Sirius held his hands up in surrender and started jogging again, hoping it would clear James' mind enough to have a rational conversation.

"So, what are we gonna do about these Carrow-fuckers?" he asked after a few minutes of silence, trying to cheer his friend up. "Some good old fashioned map-and-cloak espionage?"

It worked. James smirked at Sirius, nodding happily. "I think that's about right, Padfoot."


Lily spent the rest of her Sunday practicing sending messages with her Patronus. So far she'd managed to get the doe to repeat things back to her (which was a bizarre experience) but when she tried sending it to Marlene and Sylvia, whom she knew were studying in the common room, the doe would vanish and then return moments later to give Lily her own message rather than delivering it to them.

After a few frustrating hours of this there was finally a knock on her portrait entrance and Lily jumped to her feet, excitement flushing through her. She threw open the portrait to find Marlene, Sylvia and Peter waiting for her on the other side.

"Did it work?" She beamed excitedly, but Marlene simply raised a confused eyebrow while Peter and Sylvia exchanged a look. "Oh..." Lily muttered, disappointed, and pushed the portrait open further to allow them in.

"Did what work?" Marlene frowned as she plopped down on the couch in Lily's private common room.

Lily sighed and moved to sit beside her, waving Sylvia and Peter over as well. "Just something I'm trying out for McGonagall. What did you lot want?"

Sylvia sat in the arm chair across from them. "Your room faces North," she explained happily, and began unpacking her book bag on the floor in front of her.

"Er... does it?" Lily frowned and looked at Marlene and Peter who seemed amused and concerned respectively.

Marlene grinned mischievously. "Lily... we're going to have a seance."

Lily had to choke back her laughter so as not to hurt Sylvia's feelings. She was a true believer in Divination, reinforced by the fact that her great-great-great Grandmother had been the famous seer Cassandra. But Lily and Marlene— like Hogwarts' own Divination teacher, Professor Bhani—thought the subject was a load of bollocks.

"My sister Sybill says a North-facing room is best," Sylvia explained, as if it was the most reasonable thing in the world. Using her wand, she levitated a good thirty candles out of her bag into the air, letting them settle around the room where their wicks promptly burst into flames. "You don't mind do you? We need four people so Marlene's helping too."

Sylvia beamed appreciatively at Marlene and Marlene shook her head, chuckling in disbelief. "You bet I am, Sylvie," she confirmed good-naturedly.

Lily looked at Peter, raising her eyebrows in a silent question and he cringed. "I really need the extra credit in Divination," he admitted, turning pink.

"Don't worry, Peter," Sylvia reassured him, scooting off her chair to sit on the thick scarlet rug covering the flagstone floor, and waved for him to join her. "You may not have the sight but that's alright. It's wonderful that you're trying to better your spirit."

Peter looked thoroughly bewildered by this half-compliment but joined her on the floor anyway, followed by Lily and Marlene, who were only just managing to keep from giggling while Sylvia set up their seance materials. She dimmed the candelabras so the candles provided all of the light then set up a copper basin to which she added sage, ginger, milk and salt before splitting a loaf of bread in two and placing half on either side of the basin.

"Yum," Marlene snickered, but quickly stopped when Lily shot her a pointed look.

"Peter, can you draw the salt circle?" Sylvia asked sweetly, pulling an ancient leather book in her lap. Peter complied nervously, circling their group and leaving a trail of salt in his wake while Sylvia flicked through her book

"Who are we reaching out to, today?" Lily asked, trying to keep her tone respectful.

Sylvia found the page she was looking for and smoothed the book out in front of her before looking back up and holding her hand out to Lily. "I thought we'd try my great-great-great Grandmother Cassandra," she said proudly. "She was a great seer in her time, you know. Perhaps she can give us some insight into these terrible times."

Sylvia's eyes took on a far away look at that, and Lily took her hand quickly, giving it a reassuring squeeze so her former roommate would look at her.

"I think that's a wonderful idea, Sylvie," she told her genuinely, and forcefully grabbed Marlene's hand as well, sending her a look that clearly said, 'don't you dare take the piss'. If there was ever a reason to conduct a bollocks seance, trying to make sense of their crazy world was it.

Peter finished the salt circle and sat down awkwardly beside Sylvia, taking hers and Marlene's hands and looking a bit twitchy about it.

"So, we're just talking to your Nan, right?" He asked nervously. "Not like... Grindelwald or something."

"Grindelwald's not dead yet, Pete," Marlene rolled her eyes and Peter's eyes grew huge as if he'd only just realized this for the first time.

"Alright everyone, let's find our centers and close our eyes," Sylvia interjected. "Clear your minds and your hearts. Find your truth and let your spirit shine free from your mortal coil."

Though Lily had her eyes shut she could still feel Marlene trying to stifle her rude giggles, so Lily gave her hand rough squeeze to snap her out of it before she began focusing on finding her center as Sylvia instructed. Breathing in through her nose, out through her mouth, thinking about the sun and stars and moon above, the trees in the wind, the earth beneath the castle, the sea in the distance and all the fish living beneath its surface.

It was genuinely quite relaxing once you got past the... slightly silly nature of what Sylvia was saying... and Lily thought maybe she would try out 'finding her center' next time she was feeling overwhelmed.

"Oh beloved spirit," Sylvia said in a soft, dreamy voice. "Beloved spirit of my Grandmother, Cassandra. We bring you gifts from life into death. Commune with us, Grandmother, and move among us."

There was a long pause, only the sounds of the candles gently flickering filled the room. Though Lily hadn't really been expecting anything, she was surprised to find herself a bit disappointed that there had been no response... Sylvia would have made a very convincing Gypsie con artist if she were a Muggle.

"Beloved Grandmother!" Sylvia tried again, her voice louder and more desperate this time. "Great Cassandra. We bring you gifts of nourishment from this life. Commune with us, Grandmother. Move among us, show us the way through these dark and dreadful times! Oh beloved-"

Sylvia stopped short in the middle of her speech, and suddenly she began to choke and gasp, unable to continue speaking.

"Sylvie!" Lily's eyes shot open and she moved to reach for her friend but Sylvia was holding her hand in an vice-like grip as she continued to choke, her eyes shut tight.

Lily looked to Marlene and Peter; Marlene looked frozen in shock, her eyes huge and her mouth forming a perfect 'O' while Peter stared down at where Sylvia was still clutching his hand so hard it was turning white, his lips quivering in fear.

He looked at Lily. "What do we do? She won't let go!"

"I can't either!" Marlene gasped, finding her voice, and Lily realized her hand was practically glued to Marlene's as well.

"Shit," Lily whispered, looking around for her wand—it was only on the couch behind her but she could tell she wouldn't be able to leave the salt circle, let alone break free of her friends' hands. Instead she used her feet to kick the old leather book towards her, the sounds of Sylvia choking and gasping becoming louder and more disturbing. Lily looked down at the page—diagrams and strange shapes covered it, meaning absolutely nothing to her.

"What do we do?" Peter whimpered frantically.

"Sylvie!" Marlene tried, her face crumpling as she shouted across their circle. "Sylvia! How do we help you! Oh fuck, Lily, what the fuck do we do!"

All at once Sylvia stopped choking and her head dropped down so that her chin rested on her chest, her hair falling around her face. She was perfectly still for a few seconds, and her friends could only stare at her in wide-eyed terror until she started to breath again; long, deep, ragged breaths, like someone who had not breathed on their own in a very long time.

Slowly, Sylvia lifted her head, and though it was her Sylvia's youthful face and Sylvia's blue eyes staring out, Lily could not help feel that the way she held her mouth, with a slight curl to her upper lip, the way her shoulders were hunched and her eyes narrowed... that this was not Sylvia Trelawney she was looking at.

"Sylvie?" Marlene tried again, and finally Sylvia looked at her, blinking slowly.

"You called me." The statement was made in a voice that was not Sylvia's, but that of a much older woman with an old-fashioned, mid-Atlantic accent.

Marlene appeared transfixed by their... possessed friend while Lily and Peter stared at each other across the circle, unsure what to do.

"Are you Cassandra Trelawney?" Marlene asked gently, nervously.

Sylvia nodded slowly and then turned to Peter who had gone so white he looked like he was about to pass out from fright. "Wormtail," she said in a low, accusing voice. "The traitor."

Peter's eyes bulged, and he could only manage to respond with a few short breaths and a whimper, falling silent once Sylvia turned her eyes towards Lily.

"You," she whispered, cocking her head to the side and narrowing her eyes as though she were inspecting Lily, and Lily felt a shiver of fear run through her so fiercely she was almost shaking. "You have a touch of destiny about you, Lily Evans."

"Oh?" Lily managed to whisper, unsure what to say, trying to control her body from shivering. She glanced at Marlene and then Pete, both of whom were watching with enraptured terror on their faces.

Sylvia's eyes bored relentlessly into Lily's, like she could see right through her, right into her heart and soul. "A scar..." Sylvia continued in a low, eerie voice. "A son... a stag..."

Lily felt like she'd been punched in the stomach, the wind knocked out of her. "A... a stag?" She repeated, her voice wavering. "Could you... could you tell us about Voldemort?"

Sylvia nodded slowly, thoughtfully, and they all leaned in eagerly, hoping for some revelation from this incredibly strange affair.

"The Dark Lord's reign will end," she intoned solemnly. "A scar... a son... a stag..." She shut her eyes tight then, and all of the candles in the room instantly blacked out, leaving them in darkness and making both Lily and Peter yelp in surprise.

Marlene yanked her hand out of Lily's abruptly and a huge gust of wind blew through the room. "Lumos!" Marlene all but shouted, her voice shaking, and the candelabras came back to life showing a white-faced Peter still holding Sylvia's hand as she swayed back and forth, her eyelashes fluttering.

Lily threw herself in front of Sylvia, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her. "Sylvie! Sylvie!" She reached for her wand to cast enervate but before she could speak the incantation Sylvia's eyes snapped open and she was breathing deeply through her nose, looking around the room in confusion.

"Ah, damn," she sighed, in her normal voice. "Did it not work?"

Peter dropped his head into his hands, groaning something about 'bloody about extra credit' while Marlene grabbed Sylvia and hugged her close.

Lily sat back on her knees, trying to make sense of what she'd heard. The part about 'a son' should have weighed heavily on her mind, and it did, the notion of having a son was... not possible for her to comprehend at her age... No, instead it was 'the stag' that was making her clench her hands into nervous fists while she watched her friends embrace.

Sylvia was, understandably, very excited that she had channeled her great-great-great Grandmother, the seer Cassandra, but was disappointed that her Gran hadn't been more forthright about the war.

"At least she said his reign will end," she pointed out, scribbling notes on a piece of parchment. Lily was unable to convince her not to write an essay about what they'd just experienced, not least of all because Lily did not want anyone to know that she, Lily Evans, and a scar, a son and a stag had something to do with Voldemort.

"What do you think that means?" Marlene asked, frowning. "It's so cryptic."

"That's the dead for you," Sylvia shrugged happily. "Does it mean anything to you, Lily?"

Lily bit her lip and shook her head.

"James!" Peter suddenly exclaimed, his face regaining some colour.

Marlene made a face. "Potter? What does he have to do with anything?"

"Well... a stag," Peter fumbled, looking like he was choosing his words carefully. "Um, er, well, his Patronus is a stag."

Marlene sucked in a loud, shocked gasp of air and turned to stare at Lily with an unbearably smug smile. "Potter's Patronus is a STAG!?"

Lily rolled her eyes and tried to feign disinterest. She waved her friend off with a dismissive hand. "Plenty of people have stags for their Patronus."

"Uh huh," Marlene shook her head. "Or maybe, Sylvia's great great great Gran was trying to tell you that you fancy Potter."

"I do not!" Lily yelped, too loudly, her face turning pink with embarrassment. "Besides this is about the war not who I fancy."

"What would be so wrong with fancying James?" Peter asked quietly, trying to look innocent.

Lily scowled; perhaps she could tell Marlene and Sylvia that she fancied Potter but there was no way in hell she was going to let that information slip to Peter, who would then definitely tell Potter, who would then torment her till the end of time—either by taking the piss out of her or by asking her out— the latter of which she was starting to acknowledge she wouldn't mind so much, but would nonetheless be unable to accept.

There was a sodding war on! And Lily did not have it in her to fight and have her heart broken at the same time. It was just like she'd told James outside the hospital wing. They were seventeen. These things weren't meant to last.


There were two houses occupied by magical folk on Spinner End. The first was the home of the late Eileen Prince, now owned by her seventeen-year-old son Severus Snape. Across the way was a more dilapidated house that was currently inhabited by a rotating host of witches and wizards tasked with watching the Snape household.

Presently, Caradoc Dearborn and Fabian Prewett sat over cups of tea spiked with brandy while they watched. It wasn't a particularly tasty drink, but it kept the cold at bay and helped ward off sleep.

"Look at 'em," Dearborn grunted, sneering as they watched one hooded Death Eater after another slip into the house now owned by Snape. "Not even bothering to hide."

There were two loud cracks and the figures of Armand and Magda Carrow—parents of Marius Carrow, who had been released by the Ministry despite ample evidence that he had used the Imperious Curse on Bathilda Bagshot—appeared on the street outside. They both resembled their son; Armand with his stocky shoulders and Magda with her broad, flat nose. Both had permanent sneers that seemed to afflict all members of the Carrow family. That the wives had adopted it suggested it was a learned trait rather than genetic.

"I like Evans," Prewett said suddenly, watching the Carrows enter the house across the way. "She's smart. Fierce. But I can't for the life of me understand why she was mates with that Snape boy." He shook his head in disbelief.

"She's got one of them hearts, hasn't she," Dearborn sniffed, dumping a bit more brandy into his tea. "Wants to see the best in people. Always wants to forgive"

"I didn't get that impression from her," Fabian looked away from the window, frowning at Dearborn. "She seemed talented, clever, capable. The sort of witch you'd want in a fight. Not naive or gullible."

Dearborn chuckled and sipped at his tea. "You having a laugh, Prewett?" He scoffed. "Does a wizard have to be an arsehole to win a duel? You give up kindness and love and you turn into those bloody monsters." He gestured out the window where Vincent Crabbe was now waiting to enter Snape's house. "Bastard," he sneered at the wizard who had killed two innocent shopkeepers in Hogsmeade only the day before.

Fabian shook his head, baffled that he was getting a lecture in humanity and kindness from a self-declared "bitter cunt" like Dearborn.

There was another crack, and then a second, and both former-Aurors peered out in the darkness of the cobblestone street.

"There they are," Fabian said quietly, pointing out Alton and Drycella Carrow, parents of Amycus and Alecto, the most recently suspected students to be recruited by the Dark Lord at Hogwarts. A third crack and Bellatrix Lestrange spun into existence, her heavy lidded eyes squinting suspiciously as she glared up and down the street. Dearborn and Fabian moved back from the windows, shielding themselves in the blackness of the sitting room they were staked out in.

It was a near certainty that Bellatrix was mad, known to be obsessed with Lord Voldemort above all other Death Eaters. There were even rumors that she was pregnant with his child. A terrifying prospect. It was for this reason, her sheer unpredictability and insanity, that both Dearborn and Fabian clenched their wands a little tighter.

"You want to keep an eye on her, or shall I?" Dearborn grunted.

Fabian watched as Bellatrix entered the Snape home, throwing one last dangerous glare up and down Spinners End before she backed into the house and slammed the door shut.

"You're turn, mate."

Dearborn nodded and got to his feet, tucking his wand away. He rolled his neck and it cracked satisfyingly. Then he turned on the spot and apparated away.

Moments later Dearborn reappeared only a few short miles away, this time outside a much friendlier looking house with white with blue trim and a small front garden laden with bushes that had lost their leaves for the winter. A small wooden sign decorated with carved roses hung from the post box, declaring this the home of the Evans family. Through an upstairs window Dearborn could see a slim figure moving against a soft yellow light in one of the bedrooms.

He cast a spell that helped him blend into his surroundings— it was a handy glamour spell but it couldn't beat an invisibility cloak. He crossed his arms and settled into the position he'd be standing guard in for the next few hours.

The light on the upper floor turned off, submerging the house into darkness, but still he watched. After a few minutes he pulled out his flask of brandy and took a long swig. He would stand there until he received Prewett Two's (as he affectionately thought of Fabian) Patronus, telling him those more ruthless Death Eaters had disapparated away to where ever the hell they'd come from. Those who couldn't be trusted not to murder Hogwarts' Muggle-born, Head Girl's Muggle mother, simply because the felt like it.

He didn't like this waiting, watching, collecting intelligence. Dueling was more satisfying. But this was not a war fought on a battlefield, nor was it about his satisfaction. This was a war about people, about fighting for their way of life.

And so he continued to watch.


A/N: This one goes out to TrueHomeiePip who has left me awesome reviews. Also, ThePurpleNinja00, holyheadsnitch, Kristi Ann, Gioanis, NotAMuwump, Fluffybunnybutts76, reut44, Ella Ann 4, Glimmering Angel it0takers0skills0to0beme, and Leabhach for favouriting/following the story AND for having the best screen names ever. Cheers guys. People may actually read this shit now.

I *loved* writing the Quidditch practice. As a very non-athletic person I sympathize greatly with the idea of wizards being forced to exercise when they could probably just transfigure some muscles onto themselves for the sake of vanity but not athleticism. Lol.

Also, I definitely googled 'How to conduct a seance' :P

And finally, this chapter was written to a combination of Autre Ne Veut and Austra. Check them both out.

PLEASE REVIEW - PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. More reviews = more readers :)