This update wasn't expected, but I'm sure all of you were wondering what's up with Lily and Xander, so I decided to make a little chapter dedicated to them. This is probably going to be one of the chapters you guys will like the most, but the real good stuff is coming up real soon. But the best way for it to come sooner is for you to... review review review! Haha! Anyways, I really, really, really hope you enjoy this update. make sure to tell me what you guys think so I can improve! Okay, thanks a ton, you guys are great! Now enough of my blabbering!

ENJOY!

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Chapter Nine

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It had been exactly a week since Lily and James' detention in the library, and Lily had finally recovered from her muscle exhaustion. James couldn't help but only feel a little bit bad about what he had caused in his sister, but his guilt was long forgotten. It was relatively early in the morning, and James, Lily, Xander, and Albus were all sitting in the common room, just talking among themselves when James stopped everyone. "So... Lily, tryouts are this week."

The moment James had started speaking, she had turned back to her book. She flipped the page, her eyes flicking across the pages before she turned them again. No one could actually tell whether or not she ever read any of the books she had. "How long are they going to last?"

"Three days," James said, not taking his eyes off his sister. "We couldn't possibly get through all the people who want to tryout, so McGonagall gave us an extension. Every team gets one now."

"Okay," Lily said, still reading her book. Before James could respond she folded the corner of the page she was on and closed the book. She smiled up at her oldest brother, though it wasn't a normal smile, and he could see that. Ever since his apology in the library, they had both acted noticeably different around each other. "I'll tryout before the time is up. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go. Come on, Xander, I have to show you something."

Lily quickly grabbed Xander's hand and pulled him out of the common room. When they were gone, Albus raised his eyebrows and looked at his brother. James raised his hands as if in surrender.

"Don't look at me mate. I'm just as confused as you are."

"Did you really want to show me something?"

Lily turned her head and smiled at him. "Well, yeah I guess. I don't know if you've seen it yet, though I doubt it."

She giggled, obviously knowing something he didn't. He smiled to himself and continued to follow behind her. She had let go of his hand when they had left the common room, finally noticing that she was still holding it. He felt his cheeks warm as he thought about how her hand felt in his, and how much he had liked her holding his hand. He shook his head to clear it. He needed to stop thinking about things like that. They were just friends... even though he hoped for something more. As they walked, his eyes fell on the wrist she wore Eris's bracelet on. His heart clenched painfully in his chest, that coming back to him full force. Eris wouldn't tell him what Lily's wish would do exactly, or if she would even be able to take it back once she had made it. Xander had read about genie's before, because he had never actually heard of one until now. He had never even known they existed, but they had been around for a while. Like Eris had said, they were best known for their trickery. In history, a genie would only grant one wish, and most of the time, they would try and make you wish for something you never wanted. And unless they felt like it, or held a certain respect for you, you could never change your wish. Xander involuntarily shuddered. If Lily made her wish, would she ever be able to change it?

"... and that's why I probably should go there, but it's my favorite place to be," Lily glanced back at Xander, her face alight with excitement, but then she frowned. "You weren't listening."

Xander flushed a deep red. "I-I'm sorry, I was just lost in though."

Lily shrugged. "It's okay," she paused. "What were you thinking about?"

"Wha-what w-was I... oh u-um I-I was j-just th-th-thinking-"

She smiled. "Xander, calm down and stop stuttering. I can barely understand you."

"O-oh, yeah... s-sorry." Xander mumbled, looking down at his feet.

"It's okay. Anyway, we're here."

Xander looked up, finally taking in their surroundings. They were far away from the castle, walking along the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, just near the lake. Lily walked along the shore, wiping their footprints away as she walked, guiding Xander in front of her. They reached a bank of rocks, and Lily grinned again. She jumped up onto them before Xander could stopped. She leaped among them smoothly as if she'd done it many times before.

"One, two, three, four..." she counted, touching random stones. They obviously meant something, but Xander still didn't know what she intended to show him. "five, and six marks the X."

Lily turned and made an X in midair. She stepped forward, and disappeared. Xander's jaw dropped in awe. "Lily?" He tried walking along to rocks to reach her, but he stumbled a lot. "Lily!"

He was just about to fall when she appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his hand. She giggled and pulled him with her. "I found this place last year, when I was a fourth year. I ran from the castle because I was upset about something James had done and I was just looking for somewhere quiet, and I stumbled upon this place. Pretty cool, huh?"

It appeared as though they had stepped into a cave from the inside, but from the outside, they just completely disappeared. Lily released Xander's hand so he could wander and look around the cave. It was perfectly rounded and the stone looked nearly black. Xander ran his fingers along the wall, the stone smooth, but also strangely rough beneath his fingers. About ten feet away was a set of blankets, showing that this place was obviously occupied. Close to the blankets was a small table with a few books stacked neatly on it. He walked over to the table and examined the books.

"Yeah... pretty cool..." He murmured. He turned to face Lily. "But I still don't understand... why is the cave... invisible?"

Lily shrugged, her vibrant green eyes the brightest thing in the muted light of the candles floating about their heads. "I dunno... but I like it here. This is where I go whenever I need to think or I just need some place quiet to relax. If you can't ever find me, this is where I am. Magic can't detect this place, I've so many spells. It's like a safe-house... but it's a cave."

Xander nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets as he looked around. "How do you suppose the cave was turned invisible?"

"I'm curious about that too. While I was in the library, I tried looking through the charms and hexes and jinxes, but nothing seemed like it could turn an entire cave invisible, you know?"

"Yeah,"

"So, I just decided to let it be. It's a nice place to hide out."

"Definitely..." Xander nodded. "So... now that were here, what do we do?"

Lily shrugged, not really sure herself. "I don't know. I guess we could just talk? I haven't known you for even a month so..."

"That's true..." Xander murmured. He walked over to the blankets, grabbed one, and then spread it on the floor, assuming that's what they were used for. He sat down, leaning back against the wall, and patted the space beside him. Lily smiled and sat down, folding her hands in her lap. It was very quiet while they both waited for the other to strike up some conversation.

"Are you really going to try out for the Quidditch team?" Xander finally asked. It was the question he had wanted to ask her, but it was a start. Lily nodded.

"Yup, I think I have a pretty good chance. I'm trying out for the Beater position. I was told I was pretty good, so I have a good feeling I'll get it. And besides... it's something that I might just be better at than James, and I know he wouldn't be able to stand that."

Xander laughed. "Yeah, I don't think he would like that. Hey Lily... if I may ask... what exactly did James do to you in your fourth year that resulted in you finding this place?"

"He raped me." She deadpanned.

Xander's eyes went wide, but then Lily laughed. "I'm only kidding!"

"You have a weird sense of humor..." Xander mumbled, but he was smiling as well.

"Come on, you have to admit, it was pretty funny. But, in all seriousness... he pulled a prank on me, and he took it a little too far. It lasted for a long time, over the course of a few weeks, and finally I snapped and I skipped a whole two days of school, which is rare for me. It had everyone in a panic trying to find me. James didn't really get punished that bad because he made it seem like I was the one in the wrong for 'running away' as they put it."

"But he was the reason why you did in the first place..." Xander said.

"I know! It doesn't make sense! But James is the first born, the smartest, the fastest, the most handsome, the most advanced, the bravest... when our mum told us about the war, you want to know what my brother did? He leaped out of bed and started yelling about how he'd have beaten the dark lord if he had been alive then. Do you want to know what I did?"

Xander waited for Lily to finish, but she was silent for a long time. He sat their quietly and patiently waiting. She pushed her hair back and sighed out her response. "I hid under the covers like the baby I was and cried. It terrified me, the idea of war. Killing, bloodshed, hate, fear, death... that's what my mother and father knew practically their whole lives. They lost people they loved. But I was raised on love, hope, life... there wasn't a whole lot of killing that I knew about. And being the youngest, the war had already been over for a long time by the time I was born."

Xander didn't know how to respond to that. He didn't want to appear insensitive. He bit the inside of his lip and hesitantly grabbed Lily's hand. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, squeezing his hand lightly. She smiled then and looked up at him, but he could see the anger, betrayal, defeat, sadness, and happiness in her eyes. She was like an open book to him. He could see all of her emotions displayed clearly as if they were spelled out for him. He smiled as well and lightly squeezed her hand back.

"Okay, so enough about me. I think we've heard enough of my sob stories. What about you? Do you have any brothers or sisters? Mother and father?"

Xander shrugged as if he didn't care, his happy mood suddenly turning sour. "My mother and father were taken away from me. I live with my aunt. She can be nice, but she has a lot of children and a lot of men coming in and out of the house. Not the best environment, but it's the best they've got unless I want to live in an orphanage, where I really will be alone."

"Oh, Xander I'm so sorry. My problems must seem so stupid next to that-"

"No, it's okay Lily, I've learned to deal with it. And besides, I only have the rest of this year and next year and then I can get a job and get away from it all. So it doesn't bother me at all, because I know something better is waiting for me."

Lily smiled and nodded. "That's good, I'm happy you think that way."

"Me too... I try to look at the positive side of things. Like... one positive thing is that I get to be here with you today."

Lily blushed and looked down at their hands. Their fingers were laced together, and she couldn't help but notice how warm her hand was in his, and how comfortable she felt around him. She had never confided in someone so much. And she didn't even know him that well. They had only just met a week or so ago, and already, they were exchanging life stories. Lily didn't trust easily, and she could blame James for that, but there was something about Xander that she knew she could trust and rely on. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it was there. And she liked it. She liked it a lot.

"It is a very good thing..." She murmured. Xander's heart raced as he used his other hand to lift her face up towards his. He leaned in towards her, and closed his eyes. He waited for a rejection, but he never got one. Their lips met, and his heart skipped a beat. Lily giggled and pulled back, pressing her lips together. She looked down, her cheeks as red as her hair. Xander smiled to himself and felt his stomach do little back flips. He had never felt this way about a girl before. So why now, and why Lily?

"That was unexpected," she murmured, still smiling. "But... nice."

"Really?" Xander asked, worry lacing his voice.

She smiled up at him "Really, really. So... does this count as a date... or...?"

Xander's heart felt like it would beat it's way out of his chest at any moment. "Well, I guess it could be a date..."

She smiled again, and in a rare act of confidence, stood up on her knees and leaned in and kissed him again. This time neither were as shy as the first time, and Lily wrapped her arms around Xander's neck. She had never kissed anyone before, but she felt like she knew exactly what she was doing. It helped that Xander seemed like he knew what he was doing as well.

She pulled back with a small gasp, trying to breathe properly. She leaned her head back for a moment and stared up at the roof of the cave. She had never felt this way about a boy, and she hadn't even realized she felt anything for Xander until she had grabbed his hand back in the common room. Did this mean they were together?

"Lily?"

She lifted her back up to face him. His eyes were wide with worry and happiness. She smiled at him to ease his fears and smoothed his hair back away from his face. She hadn't really noticed him, like really noticed him until now. His hair was a light brown, and very curly, and always getting into his eyes. His eyes were a deep, warm, trusting brown. He wasn't pale, but he was tanned either. She was lighter than he was, her skin much more fair. He was much taller than her, probably by about a foot. They were so different, and yet exactly the same in so many ways.

"Does this mean we're..." Lily paused. "Together now?"

Xander shrugged lightly. "I don't want to push you into anything you don't want to do. I would like it v-very much if you were to be... t-to be m-my g-girlfriend."

Lily smiled at the use of the word and nodded. "I would like that very much, too, Xander."

"Really?" He asked hopefully.

She grinned and kissed his cheek. "Really, really."