A/N: Don't own, don't sue. Sorry that I haven't posted in forever, but I started high school on Monday, so I'll be busy and won't be posting as often during the school week. Sorry! Read and review please. Enjoy. Just for clarification, Remus DID NOT bite Starr.
Chapter 9
"Lils?" Starr called cautiously, creeping into the nearly empty Gryffindor common room.
"I'm here, Starr," Lily said, looking bemused. "I wouldn't ditch you, even though I did have to postpone my date with your brother by an hour."
"Sorry," Starr apologized. "Since I don't want to delay your snogging session any longer, I'll get right to it then. I need your help."
"With what?" Lily questioned, cocking a red eyebrow at her friend. Starr looked anxious, combing her fingers through her silky black hair and Lily noted another similarity between the siblings. Both James and Starr played around with their hair when they were nervous.
"I want to become an Animagus," Starr said quickly, as if she were afraid that someone would hear her.
"What?" she gaped. "You can't, you're not even of age, Nova."
"I know, Lils, I know. But the Marauders pulled it off. Look, being as close as I am to them, I need to know that I have something to fall back on if something like that ever happens again," she said, referring to her encounter with Remus nearly a month ago. "You should become one, too."
"I don't know, Starr," Lily sighed. "You know we'd be in a ton of trouble with the law if we were caught."
"If my brother and his friends can do it, so can we," Starr said firmly, jutting out her hip and placing a fisted hand on it. "Whatever they can do we can do better."
Lily's mouth twisted into a smile as she made up her mind. "And we can do it in a skirt," she added. "Let's do this."
Soon Lily had found a book in the Restricted Section of the library (she had kissed up to Professor Slughorn quite smoothly for the permission) and was getting to work on it with a great amount of Starr's help. The two brightest witches in Hogwarts put their heads together and set their mind to the exact same illegal goal: becoming unregistered Animagi. Lily was walked into the Heads' common room rather late on night to find James out cold on the couch. She laughed at his half-open mouth and his loud snored. "James?" she whispered, shaking him gently. He woke with a start and promptly rolled off of the couch, landing on the floor ass first.
"Damn," he muttered, rubbing his buttocks tenderly.
"Why were you asleep on the couch?" Lily asked, helping him sweetly to his feet.
"I was waiting for you," he explained, wrapping strong arms around her waist and drawing her to him. "Have I told you that I love you, Lily?"
"Only about a hundred times since dinner," she giggled, their noses rubbing against each other's. "But it's nice to hear it again and again."
"I love you," he said, pressing his lips to her passionately. Unlike most of their kisses, this one was more passionate, more demanded. His lips moved against her in pent up emotion and passion and love as he pressed her up against the wall. She moaned as she parted her lips, granting him entrance to her mouth. He sighed happily as he explored her mouth, thinking about how long he had dreamed of doing this. Her hands reached under his shirt, feeling his finely tuned muscles. He pulled away, resting his forehead against hers, swollen lipped and breathless.
"I love you too," she panted, her fingers trailing down his cheek slowly.
He moaned, saying, "Lils, do me a favor, would you?"
"Anything, James," she whispered fiercely.
"Remind me to make sure Sirius and Starr get married and that Remus marries some fit, brilliant witch, because that's the only way I'm ever going to repay them for getting us together."
"Good morning, love," Sirius greeted Starr at the Gryffindor table the following morning at breakfast, draping an arm around her shoulders.
"Morning, Padfoot," she replied, her lips brushing against his cheek, feeling the slight stubble on it. He felt his cheek tingle where she had kissed and blushed slightly.
"What did you do last night?" Sirius asked, piling food onto his plate alarmingly fast.
Starr bit her lip, thinking about what she had indeed done the night before. She had been working with Lily, plowing through the book that was sure to help them become illegal Animagi. She didn't want to lie to him, saying, "Well, I, er…"
She was saved by the arrival of the owls, carrying the daily post. A jet black owl landed in front of her just as James took the seat across from her. "Hey there, Thunder," James said, allowing the owl to nibble on his finger affectionately.
Starr untied the letter from Thunder's leg and tore it open unceremoniously, her hazel eyes growing wide and filling with tears as she read it. "James," she whispered, softly, handed him the letter. A few tears threatened to spill from her eyes.
"What's wrong, Nova?" Sirius asked, looking at her in extreme concern. It was quite unusual for Starr to cry; it happened about once in a blue moon.
James read the letter, his face now matching Starr's. Without saying a word, the siblings glanced at each other before fleeing the Great Hall, turning left as they departed, ignoring, Lily's, Sirius', Remus', and Peter's calls for them to come back.
Sirius and Lily burst into Dumbledore's office to find James and Starr sitting in front of Dumbledore's desk. "I knew you'd be here," Lils said calmly. She sat next to James, wrapping her arms around him. Sirius sat next to Starr and she leaned against him heavily, her hot tears wetting his shirt.
"What's wrong?" Sirius asked, pressing a soft kiss to her black hair.
"I am sorry to inform you that Mr. and Mrs. Potter have been murdered," Dumbledore said, looking extremely grave behind his half moon spectacles.
"What?" Lily gaped. Sirius' eyes began to fill with tears as well; the Potters had been better parents to him than his actual parents had.
"Their bodies were found in their bedroom and the Dark Mark had been set over their house," Dumbledore added. Lily felt James' whole body tense up and Starr looked up at Dumbledore, a fierce look in her eyes.
"I'll kill them," she whispered fiercely, her hazel eyes flashing.
"Now, Ms. Potter, let's not move too hastily," Dumbledore said.
"She's right," James said angrily. "They deserve what I'll give them."
"Do you really believe your parents would've wanted you to become murderers just for them?" Dumbledore asked. An uneasy silence fell upon the four of them.
Finally, Starr shook her head, replying, "No."
Dumbledore looked pleased with their decision. "Excellent. Then our first order of business is the funeral."
