Disclaimer: Nothing's mine but the plot!
A/N: Final Chapter! Of course it will be sad because Lily does have to die but I hope I made it good (well, you know what I mead) Read and review and as always enjoy!
Chapter 6 (final)
Lily's head nodded against James's shoulder- she and Narcissa had somehow managed a perfect score on the Polyjuice assignment without so much as exchanging a glance for over a month. It had all been made possible by Lily's ingenious observation on the day after Narcissa's confession that the blonde had completely disconnected herself from the project.
The confession.
She hadn't even told Remus, and she wouldn't until she figured out what Narcissa's exact feelings had been. From her words, Narcissa Black definitely had more than material feelings for her, but from her frosty glare and cold shoulder, Lily had been led to believe otherwise.
A tiny screech owl zoomed through the window which some great buffoon had forgotten to close in the middle of December. Without even opening it, she recognized Slughorn's excited scrawl. Groaning, she buried her face in James's chest.
"Another date with the Slug Club?" he asked, raising an eyebrow amusedly. "What's the occasion?"
"A very Sluggy Christmas," Lily stated sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "But at least I can bring a guest- I think I might ask Remus."
"You're a riot, Lily," James stated as he moved out from beneath her, leaving her whining for him to come back. "Not 'til you say you're sorry."
"I'm sorryyyyyy," Lily moaned, shivering violently, groping for James, who came back within her reach after another second of icy torture. Ever since the incident with Narcissa, Lily had become determined to rely more on James- if she could make herself fall in love with him again, maybe she could make herself fall out of lust with Narcissa Black. Lily gazed down at the ring that glinted up at her as if it were mocking her indecision.
She had been surprised at how easily the transition had come, but there had been a reason she fell for him so many years ago. He was a sweet guy, and sensitive to her wishes, though he'd never admit it.
But still, something was missing- it came almost too easily. There was no chase, no pain- surely it couldn't be all bad, but the only time Lily ever truly saw the sun was when her eyes were closed. Narcissa haunted her dreams, though she'd never say it out loud. She'd never say she was in love (with Black) - and she wasn't.
Right?
Lily's muscles tensed as soon as she stepped into the dungeons, James's strong hand clamped around hers.
Narcissa Black stood off to one side, her pale hand running through her silky hair with that same cruel nonchalance that had forced Lily to hesitate months ago. Now Narcissa's eyes had landed on the two of them, and, unless it had been a trick of the horrid light, a shadow of something more had flashed over her face.
Determined to find out just what that something was, Lily lead James over to the corner of the room where Slughorn was chatting with Peter- "I don't know why we keep him around," James noted, disgusted. "He's bloody strange."
"Be nice," Lily chided mildly. "Hello Professor!" She fought the urge to grin victoriously as Narcissa's eyes were now clearly burning with an icy jealousy. Lucius seemed as oblivious as ever to her right as he talked to that ape Goyle.
"Quite well, quite well," Slughorn replied jovially. "But it seems you have gotten yourself into a little bit of a fix." He pointed to the ceiling, where a clump of mistletoe hung. "It's powerful stuff, you know- enchanted it myself!"
Rolling her eyes exaggeratedly, Lily kissed James sweetly and tried to go over to the punch bowl to no avail- slowly, she turned her head and discovered that her worst fears had been confirmed. Narcissa stood, her arms folded over her chest, a less-than-amused look displayed across her face. "I don't have all night, Evans," she snapped, exasperated.
"As if I'd bloody kiss you, Black," Lily shot back- she didn't miss the slight slump of Narcissa's shoulders at her harsh words.
But the pureblood recovered quickly and did something that completely shocked Lily- she drained her goblet of firewhisky and leaned forward, capturing Lily's lips in a hot, passionate kiss right in front of her fiancé. "Let's see your prat boyfriend compete with that," she hissed in Lily's ear as she pulled away, and Lily couldn't help but grin triumphantly- Narcissa was jealous.
"Fiancé, actually," Lily replied, wagging her ringed finger beneath Narcissa's nose. "He proposed last week."
Several emotions flitted across Narcissa's face in a matter of seconds- first the shock, because who would have guess that boy wonder finally grew a pair? Then the white-hot anger and then…finally, Narcissa's face fell and stayed there, and Lily felt almost heartless before she remembered who the guilty party really was. "Bully for you, Evans- we'll stick to our own then," she said dully, swirling the champagne around in the crystal goblet.
"More's the pity," Lily replied sarcastically, then, just to rub it in Narcissa's face a little bit more- "Shame you couldn't control how it all turned out, isn't it? Kind of like your life, right?"
Narcissa's eyes flashed and Lily didn't have time to comprehend exactly when the heiress had the time to press her wand to Lily's neck but there it was. "You ought to keep your abnormally large nose out of the business of the aristocracy," she hissed, though Lily doubted it made any difference- the whole room had gone deathly silent. "Take it back- I would prefer not to dirty my name with mud."
"My blood's only as dirty as your precious, noble family, Black," Lily shot back- James and Lucius watched with open mouths as their respective girlfriends went at it all by themselves.
Narcissa's lip curled and her wand pressed deeper into Lily's throat. "Last chance, Evans." I'm not them.
"Sod off, Black," Lily scoffed. "We both know you wouldn't hex the hem of my robes off, so why don't you crawl back to your ickle Lucius while your dignity's still intact?"
Gasps were heard from all four corners- or maybe it was only one, echoing throughout the silent room. Lily squeezed her eyes shut, positive that she had done it and then…
The uncomfortable pressure was released at once and she opened her eyes again to see Narcissa staring down at her, her hand still clenched around her wand, though it was at her side once more. "You'll have a nice life, won't you, Evans? With no one to tell you who to wed?" she asked so quietly that even the nosiest eavesdroppers couldn't make out her words. "You'll grow old and die with Potter and have ten children and a nice little pigmy puff, won't you?"
At this point, Slughorn, who was beginning to catch on, began ushering the other students away. "Come, come, it's a party, for Merlin's sake! Have fun!"
"Are you mocking me, Black?" Lily asked quietly, her eyes flashing dangerously. She could no longer hear the students around her and could only conclude that Narcissa had cast a notice-me-not charm over the two of them. Her theory was proven when the Slytherin reached up and touched her cheek lightly, looking down at her with those unreadable silver eyes.
"And what if I am?" she asked quietly. "Would you hex me?"
It was a challenge.
"I wouldn't waste the energy, Black," she spat finally, refusing to succumb to Narcissa's charade. "You're not worth it, lying little trollop like yourself."
The blonde arched one eyebrow. "I'm not? But you've hexed James."
"And whose bloody ring am I wearing, Black?"
Lily could tell she had struck a nerve as Narcissa visibly cringed. But it didn't matter, because she was not in love with a Slytherin, especially the queen and a girl, for Merlin's sake, and she was most certainly not mirroring Narcissa's reaction every time she looked at the ring herself.
"But you won't forget me, will you, Evans?"
The sudden question- or was it really a question?- took Lily by surprise and she let her guard down for just a moment.
And Narcissa was on her like the serpent she was, pressing Lily against the stone wall in front of a room full of people who could not perceive them in the slightest and as the queen's lips collided with hers for that last time, Lily knew why she was wearing the ring. Because if she wasn't in love with James then it was Narcissa and she simply couldn't be in love with the Slytherin queen because that would be completely implausible, totally wrong, and, to be frank, utterly wonderful.
When Narcissa pulled back, she was smiling- not smirking, though that may have been the message she had been attempting to get across- but smiling down at the fiery Gryffindor who had sabotaged her with a kiss all those years ago. Narcissa tucked a strand of flaming red hair behind Lily's ear and left her hand there for a moment as she leaned forward, her cool breath lapping at the Gryffindor's soft skin. "Maybe I've been forced into a life that I don't particularly desire," she murmured, "but you're marrying Potter, aren't you?"
"So?" Lily asked shakily, still trembling from the force of the kiss and the realization that had come along with it. "What's that got do with anything, Black?"
"Everything."
It was years before Lily Evans understood Narcissa Black's solitary last word as she was standing before the crib of her baby boy as the hooded figure with the piercing, empty eyes glided closer.
Narcissa Black had gone on to marry Lucius Malfoy and she never did break free of the family name that had trapped her like the Devil's Snare. Remus never did confess to Sirius, nor had he broken up with Tonks. And Lily had married James.
"…you're marrying Potter, aren't you?"
"What's that got to do with anything?"
"Everything."
Lily had settled for James because she couldn't settle for more- because her blood was dirty and Narcissa's name was Black.
And so she put every ounce of her love into her baby boy, the only thing she truly had left ever since that final word.
And Lily Evans died with her eyes closed because she didn't want to see the silver band that she had traded it all for. She didn't want to watch as the world finally crumbled around her in a flash of green light.
Because when Lily Evans closed her eyes she saw a pair of piercing, silver orbs gazing back at her.
It's only everything.
Narcissa Black read about the Potters' death in the Prophet and she laughed along with Lucius because really, that boy had to was bound to get his comeuppance sometime. At a second glance, Narcissa hadn't recognized the name- there was no Evans, after all.
But the picture was splayed out over the entire page two and Narcissa laughed and laughed until tears ran down her porcelain cheeks because Evans had married Potter, hadn't she?
Stupid Lily- how many times had she warned her not to marry him? And it was all Lily's fault that she ended up dead because she should have listened, but she didn't because she was Lily Evans and Lily Evans was too good to listen to anyone but herself.
It had to be Lily's fault because if it wasn't, Narcissa would fall to pieces because that was the last thing left of Lily- the last piece of herself that she had to hold on to.
It's only everything.
