Disclaimer: I may not own any characters you recognise, i.e. Lily and James, but I do in fact own Jacques. :P

Author's Note: Not particularly imaginative or creative, but a little fill-in chapter about l'histoire de Jacques. Mwahaha.

Love or Hate:

The Tale of Red Snitch

Chapter Ten: The Story of the Past

Lily looked around the room. It was highly decorated with gold and intricate designs. Its chandeliers swung from the high, domed ceiling and the windows breathed fresh air. But she was here to admire the decoration. She was here for only one thing.

"Madamoiselle," said Jacques' husky voice as he kissed Lily's hand. "What a pleasure to meet you again."

"The pleasure is all mine," Lily said, and with a smile raised his hand to her cheek. "Oh, how I have missed you!"

"I assure you that you cannot have missed me as much as I have missed you," he replied.

Lily felt a light tingle spread through her body. "I…" she began, but she did not know what to say.

"You… you are with James Potter, I understand?"

"No, no! I mean… yes I am… but I do not love him. I do not love him as I love you, at least!" Lily's heart was thumping slightly now. What if Jacques did not think that she loved him as he loved her?

"I see." Jacques' voice was an echo.

"Please forgive me for I know not what I do. Let me make it up to you! A chance is all I ask for."

"Then a chance is what you may get. I have a challenge."

Lily was taken aback. "What kind of challenge?"

"One that will prove that you love me, and not that traitor James Potter." His voice was so serene, yet at the same time Lily could hear the resent in it.

"Of course!" she answered at once. "Anything."

"Then kiss me."

"Kiss you?"

"That is what I said."

"But…"

"But what?"

"But I do not want to betray James, and I cannot kiss you without having betrayed him."

"If you truly love me you will accept the challenge."

"I love you, Jacques, believe me I do!"

"Then accept."

"I… yes. Yes, I will."

Lily clung to him; she was afraid he would leave. "Yes, I will."

She felt the satisfaction in the man opposite her. She looked up to his chiselled face; his sweet, calm smile; his love. And with a smile, she raised her chin to his and—

With a loud thump Lily woke up to find herself on the floor, next to the duvet which was half-on, half-off the four-poster bed. She rubbed her eyes, trying to remember what had just happened. The dream. The terrifying dream. Well, terrifying for her.

Why oh why was that stupid French ex of hers haunting her dreams? Haunting her thoughts was enough, and even that seemed to be becoming a problem. Was there something Lily had done that she was subconsciously feeling guilty about, relevant to Jacques? She tried to remember. Surely not. Or was there something else? Had he made her keep a promise, which she had broken? Again, unlikely. Or was there something else…? Was there something that she had kept shifting to the back of her mind whenever it drew clear, a secret? She did not know.

Lily got up, and padded across the dormitory, being quiet to avoid waking up the rest of her roommates, to the window. Silently she crept up and sat, curled up, on the window-sill as she stared out at the beautiful, if dark, Hogwarts grounds. Below her, the lake was shimmering in the moonlight. Lily started to remember…

-xXx-

Jacques was thirteen when his parents divorced.

His mother, the Muggle-born witch Anne-Marie, had been famous in the village they had lived in: for her exceedingly good cooking, her daintiness when it came to dancing, and her beauty. She was a typical 'blossom'. Her parents had been from a family of gypsies that had travelled all over Europe, resulting in Anne-Marie's rather exotic appearance. That was why his father had fallen for her, Jacques supposed. It could have been the only reason.

His father was an important, influential figure, with some job Jacques couldn't remember the long and complicated title of. A wizard, pure-blood, Monsieur Jacques Belvoir Sr. was from a traditional family that believed that men should earn the money while the women stayed at home, occupied all day long with domestic chores.

Anne-Marie of course did not agree with this—another reason for being known amongst the other villagers. She had stood up to her husband; refusing to obey his commands, arguing for what she was worth, being firm and stubborn. For years Jacques had to put up with constant screaming and shouting in the Belvoir household, until the fateful day that his parents announced the divorce.

He was glad, in a way. He knew that whatever pain the family may have suffered and were suffering, it would have been ten times worse had his parents stayed together. And although it did sadden him deeply, he hid it all for years to come.

Just before his parents agreed on divorce, Jacques' father had come home with the news of his promotion. His new job would involve an awful lot of travelling, and as much as it pleased him it displeased his wife. Jacques remembered that day. It had been the last argument in the Belvoir house.

Once divorced, Monsieur Belvoir moved to England; it was the main place he'd have to visit for his work. Jacques opted to go with him—or rather, was forces to. His father had been very proud of his grades at school for the past few years, and declared him to have excellent potential in a place like Britain. So Jacques agreed with his father's wish and went to Hogwarts, where he met an extremely kind, sweet and good-looking girl called Lily Evans.

He'd been Sorted into Ravenclaw. He was a quiet, brainy, easy-going guy and so did not stand out from the crowd in any way. Instead, he'd simply blended in with the rest of them. Nobody noticed him. At first the teachers had been warm and welcoming, but soon the novelty had worn off and Jacques had no-one to turn to. Not that he could exactly converse with them easily. He had been taught a little English at Beauxbatons, but he hadn't learned enough to socialise with other teenagers.

That was until Lily came along.

It had been a rainy lunchtime, when Jacques had had enough. Enough of having to be perfect for his father, who'd payed about as much attention to him as a passer-by; enough of being away from his mother and the home he'd grown up in; enough of being ignored, shunted to the side; enough of having to hide his emotions; enough of being alone. Enough.

So he'd made his way up to the Owlery when the rest of the school were in the Great hall, carrying a single note addressed to his mother. Explaining what he was about to do. He watched the owl fly away into the distance with grief. But he had to do it.

He was just about to jump from the second-highest window up in the school, when she walked in.

After a momentary sweep of silence, she spoke. "Qu'est-ce que… qu'est-ce que tu… fais?" she asked in her simple interpretation of French, though she knew exactly what he was doing.

Jacques shrugged, but returned to his place when he realised it wasn't a teacher.

"Non. Tu pas faire…. Tu ne pas faire… Tu ne vas pas faire. Viens. Parles… avec moi," she said, hoping rhat her French was right and she'd been able to say, "No, you're not going to do that. Come, talk to me."

Jacques however remained where he was, though he looked at the girl with uncertainty.

"Parles avec moi," repeated the girl.

Jacques didn't know what to do or say. Ignore her? Reply in English? Reply in French? Jump? The questions were spinning around his head. He felt faint, especially if he looked down to the grounds below him from where he was standing. Dizzyness. Lurching fear. He couldn't do it. With a strangled sound somewhere between a gasp and a yelp, he stepped—or fell rather—onto the Owlery floor.

-xXx-

Lily talked to him for a while in her limited French until she told him, in English, that she was bringing him to the Hospital Wing, which is where Jacques woke up a few hours later.

From there their friendship began to build. Little by little, Jacques learned English while Lily learned French, and before long they started dating.

They suited each other perfectly, or at least it seemed to be so at the time. James Potter of course had a different view.

Jacques was devastated when, in the middle of their fifth year, he received a letter from France. His mother had fallen seriously ill and was currently taking residence in a hospital. He left the next day to go to France, but sadly his mother grew worse and worse, and he had to make the decision to stay in the same country so that he was near for whenever she needed his help.

Jacques and Lily tried to keep in touch, but they both knew deep down that their now long-distance relationship wasn't going to work. Despite having managed to keep in contact for a few months, they eventually decided to end their relationship and move on. Lily had been distraught, but with the help of her friends had been able to slowly get over Jacques. Or so she felt—looking back now, it seemed to her that she had rather convinced herself that she was over him than anything else.

But she was going to Beauxbatons soon, and he would be there. What if he didn't recognise her? What if he did, but didn't care? What if things were awkward between them, and he ignored her? What if he didn't? What if he wanted her back, and she realised how much she'd missed him, and…?

END OF CHAPTER 10!HHis m