Chapter 10: Year 3, Part 3

The weekend after the team try-outs was our first Hogsmeade trip. It wasn't a practice Saturday, so everyone slept in. Around nine, Janet and I trudged down to breakfast, meeting the boys there.

"Morning," I yawned as I plopped down next to James.

"Morning!" Sirius said cheerfully from across the table.

I stared at him blankly from under heavy eyelids. Turning to James, I said, "Right, how much sugar has he had already?"

"Not sugar!" Sirius exclaimed indignantly. "I'm a morning person, Lils; you should know that by now."

"Know it, yes; understand it, no," I grumbled as I buttered a muffin.

An hour later James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Janet, and I were lined up with the rest of the students third year and up, waiting to be checked off by Filch, the caretaker. Mean old bloke; never liked him.

When he came upon me I handed him my slip. He looked it over, but I didn't like the smirk that formed on his cracked lips.

"This isn't signed by your parents," he said, looking up at me.

I squared my shoulders and replied like I was trying to explain surgery to a two-year-old. "My mum's dead. The Potter's have custody of me."

"What about your old man?"

"I don't have to see him if I don't want to," I snapped back coldly. He was riding my nerves.

"But he's still around. I'm sorry; you have to get his signature." He didn't sound sorry at all, more triumphant.

"Why you—"

"Is there a problem, Argus?" interrupted a calm voice. Dumbledore walked up to us.

"Miss Evans here doesn't have a parents signature. I can't let her through," he explained.

Making sure he didn't get the upper hand, I quickly said, "Headmaster, you know my father. And you know that Abby and John are my guardians. I don't see why their signatures shouldn't meet satisfactory."

Dumbledore seemed to think a moment, as if trying to remember whom I lived with. I don't blame him; there's got to be over a thousand students attending Hogwarts. Surely it's a trick to remember them all and their parents. Finally, he nodded, like he remembered my situation. "Yes. Argus, Abigail and Jonathan Potter are her rightful caretakers. I approve of their signatures." With that he nodded once, then gracefully turned away.

I met Filch's eyes and smirked superiorly. Patting him on the shoulder, I said cheerfully, "And good day to you, sir!" Holding back a snort until I was a good distance away, my day was certainly looking better already.

Then it went quickly downhill.

"I think you've officially put yourself on his 'list', Janet commented as we started down the path to the all-wizard village. "Is it true he hangs you up by your toenails?"

"Nah," Sirius answered. "The worst he's ever done to us was making us clean all of the toilets in the castle with a toothbrush. No magic. But, of course, he made it worse when he didn't let us clean the girls', too." The boys all snickered.

"Yeah, you just wait," I muttered to Janet. "They'll find a way to our side of the Tower soon enough."

Remus coughed and I spun my head around to look at him. The four boys were biting their lips and the inside of their cheeks trying to suppress smirks. I narrowed my eyes and stopped walking. After a few paces, the rest did also and turned to look at me.

"What have you done?" I demanded to know sternly. Janet, the clever girl, had already suspected what I was thinking and came up to stand next to me. She had her arms folded across her chest, and I had my fisted hands stemming from my hips.

The boys glanced at each other and snorted. Sirius stepped forward and immediately put on an innocent, puppy-dog face. "Whatever do you mean, Lils?"

Suddenly I had no patience, no tolerance for them. I don't know where it came from, but I just couldn't stand them. I sniped, "You impudent little jerks, have you gotten into foul territory?" Years ago we had established places the opposite gender couldn't wander. Like the boys couldn't go into the girls' part of Gryffindor Tower, since they can't be trusted, but I can go into their dormitory whenever I needed one of them, James to be precise, because they could trust me not to purposely walk in on them while they're taking a shower.

From the guilty-but-not-sorry looks on faces, I fixed my own conclusion. Giving them a look of utmost disgust, I marched past them and continued on the trail. To my luck, Janet had followed me.

"I can't believe them!" I burst. "They know where they can go and where they can't go, but do they listen? No! Do they tell me, warn me, get my permission? No!" I let out a strangled screech of frustration. "Sometimes I just can't stand them!"

Janet didn't say anything. She was a bit miffed, too, but she thought I was kind of exaggerating. She had an idea of why I was suddenly so sensitive, but she'd wait until I settled down to tell me. But she knew I would need to get a lot of chocolate from Honeydukes.

She and I entered the village and paused. "Well, where to?" she asked me. I glanced around, licking my lips. There was Zonko's Joke Shop, Honeydukes, Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, Gladrags Wizardwear, Dervish and Banges, The Three Broomsticks, Madam Puddifoot's, the Hogs Head, the Post Office, and the Shrieking Shack.

I didn't need new robes; I had gotten fresh pairs of everything before school this year. I didn't need any school supplies, I didn't need to mail anything, I didn't need anything fixed, and I'd heard that the Hog's Head isn't the nicest of places to be. That left Zonko's, Honeydukes, The Three Broomsticks, Madam Puddifoot's, and the Shrieking Shack.

"How about we venture through Zonko's, then Honeydukes, swing by the Shrieking Shack, and stop by for one of those famous butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks?" I suggested.

"Alright," Janet agreed.

Right off the bat I knew the boys' favorite shop would be Zonko's. It wouldn't take Albert Einstein to figure that one out. An evil smirk appeared on my face when I thought of how much Filch must love it when students return with their pockets full of Zonko's merchandise. I made sure I had my own personal supply of most of the things in there.

Honeydukes was my fourth heaven. Behind Hogwarts, the Potter's, and Flourish and Blotts in Diagon Alley. Candy of all sorts lined the shelves. Ice Mice, Chocolate Frogs, Acid Pops, Bertie Botts' Every Flavor Beans, Jelly Slugs, Fizzing Whizbees, Sugar Quills, Toothflossing Stringmints, Droobles Best Blowing Gum, Pepper Imps, and a whole other section of "Unusual Tastes". Although to me, everything here was rather unusual, of course. Janet and I made sure to stuff our pockets to the brim with anything chocolate.

On our way to the Shrieking Shack, we passed the boys. They were looking quite ashamed of themselves, and gave us guilty, apologetic looks. I raised an eyebrow and walked right on by, clearly meaning, "Don't bother; I'm still miffed." I think Janet smiled at them though; she never really seemed all too offended to begin with. I still don't know why I was.

She and I walked up to the fence and leaned against it, staring at the tattered old building Remus visits once a month. I felt so sorry for him; to be cursed with a burden like that has to be true hell. He loses control. Doesn't know who he is, who his friends are, what he's doing. Janet's joined the hunt for finding the way to help the boys become Animagi. We're still taking notes. There are potions they have to drink, physical maturity they have to achieve. I don't think we'll be able to do anything for a couple of years yet.

After a couple moments the two of us wordlessly turned back toward the village. We were lost in our own thoughts when I suddenly doubled over in pain. I groaned as Janet calmly came to support me and sighed, "I've been expecting this." When the stabbing in my abdomen ceased momentarily, she led me into the Three Broomsticks and into the bathrooms there. Making sure no one was inside, Janet took something out of one of the inside pockets of her cloak and handed it to me. I gave her a perplexed look, and she explained what I do with it. I felt so embarrassed, but I'm glad it was Janet that told me and not someone who was walking by and saw red on the seat of my pants.

We made are way to the bar and climbed up on stools. We didn't have to wait long before the owner of the pub came to take our orders.

"'Lo, dears, I'm Rosmerta. What'll it be fer yeh?" she asked with a big welcoming grin.

"Er, two butterbeers, please," I answered uncertainly. It seemed to be the right thing to say though, for the stylish woman skittered off as soon as I had finished the last syllable.

I looked around the pub. It was jam-packed with Hogwarts students. There were also some things I couldn't quite recognize. Looked like a hag, maybe, and something else that kept to the shadows. I shivered, pretty sure it was a vampire, and the bright crimson liquid in its tankard was blood. These things were to be expected, I assumed, for this was the only all-magical village left in Wizarding England.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw someone wave. Turning around so I could get a better look, I inwardly groaned when I saw it was Jordan Hawke and his Ravenclaw mates sitting at a table. He was flashing me his 'charming' smile again, and I suddenly turned to Janet and poked her in the side surreptitiously.

"What?" she hissed.

"Pretend we're talking," I replied through clenched teeth. "I'm excited for the Halloween feast tonight aren't you, Janet?" I asked her louder.

"Oh, I certainly am," agreed a much deeper voice than Janet's. Turning to the left on my stool I faced Jordan, who was leaning his back against the counter next to me, arms folded over his chest. "You been enjoying the sights, Evans?" he asked as Rosmerta served Janet and me our butterbeers.

"Mmhmm," was my answer as I took a swig from my bottle. A warming sensation coursed through my body, from my head down to my toes. "It's simply marvelous." I grinned at Rosmerta as I paid her for my and Janet's drinks.

"Yeah, I thought so—" Before he could go any farther though, I pretended to 'accidentally' knock over my butterbeer. Straight onto his lap, that is.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" I gasped. I jumped up and grabbed a bunch of napkins from the counter, throwing them at him. "It was an accident! Here, dry it off before it gets sticky!" Almost ready to burst with laughter, Janet as well, I grabbed my bags of things I had gotten at Zonko's and Honeydukes and ran out of the door. Luckily, Janet followed.

When reached the gate at the edge of Hogsmeade, she and I laughed freely.

"If that doesn't shake him off, I don't know what will!" I gasped.

"It was so obvious, Lily! Anyone could tell you did that on purpose!"

"Yeah, well, what it takes."

We caught our breath and picked up our things again. "Here." I took out my wand and said a charm that made the bags light as feathers. "That'll make this easier for us."

We started up the path that would lead us back to school, each bursting into giggles every now and then, still trying to get over the pub incident. The laughter seemed to have been my remedy for my temper, and now I was starting to wonder where my other best friends had gotten. Casting a glance back at the village, I decided to just wait until they met up with us in Gryffindor Tower or at the feast.

Janet and I went straight up to our dormitories to put our things away. Then we went down to the common room to finish a bit of homework and wait for the boys. There were only first and second years and a few older students around that hadn't wanted to go to Hogsmeade.

An hour later though, around three o'clock, they didn't come back alone. Accompanying them was none other than Emi Chang, who was hanging onto James' arm like a lifeline. Janet and I met their five pairs of eyes, and everything froze. The silence was deafening. My mouth came open slightly and my eyes got wide with hurt and shock. Janet just looked shocked as she shot a wary glance at me. Emi looked triumphant with a smirk. James looked like a deer caught in the headlights, one that was thinking very fast. Remus stiffened and I could tell he had spotted the problem before anyone else. Peter looked downright frightened and shrank back into a shadowy corner. Sirius looked a mixture of Janet, James, and Remus: cautious of me and my reaction, guilty of the situation they were caught in, and trying to figure out what to say.

Before anyone could do anything, though, I slowly stood up from my chair at the table where I had been doing homework. My bright emerald green eyes shown with very hurt tears as they stared unblinkingly into James' ashamed hazel ones. Then I numbly turned, rigid as a board, and walked quickly toward the girls' dormitory staircase.

This movement seemed to snap everyone else into action though. Emi started jeering, Sirius and Remus shouted incoherent explanations, and Janet yelled at the boys. But James shook off Emi and ran to me, grabbing my arm as I was climbing up the first few steps.

"Lily, listen to me, it wasn't what it looked like—" I jerked out of his grasp and went up a couple more steps. He stayed at the bottom, knowing he couldn't go up these stairs, and grabbed all that he could reach yet, my hand. "Listen to me, Lily. Let me explain—"

I jerked out of his hold again and turned to look him straight in the eye. "No." With that I hurried up the rest of the steps, swiping at the tears that had just spilled over.

I couldn't believe it. He had promised me that he would be on my side, stick with me no matter what. Now guess what happens! She's probably his girlfriend or something. Well, I'm happy for them. Bitterly.

Meanwhile, down in the common room, whispers and murmurs stared to go around the other students as James stared at the spot Lily had just disappeared from. He felt heartbroken and cheated. Damn Emi!

A hand clutched is arm and he was spun around to face a furious Janet. "What the hell was that?" she whispered viciously. James glanced around at the curious stares of the other students and nodded to his three best friends. Leading Janet toward the boys' dormitories, he had almost made it when Emi inquired sweetly, "James, dear, where are you going?"

"Go away, Chang," he said coldly. She may have just ruined his friendship with the most amazing girl he had ever known and the one he had just recently fallen in love with. She will pay.

"But—"

"Sod off," Sirius sneered as he followed his three other mates and Janet up the boys' dormitory staircase. She looked quite offended; that's what he had been aiming for.

As soon as they had locked the door and were sitting down on or around James' bed, Janet demanded to know what that was all about.

James sighed. "She followed us up from Hogsmeade. Clung to my arm like a leech as soon as we reached the Fat Lady. I was about to tell her to stuff it when you and Lily saw us." He bent over and pulled at his hair with his hands. "What have I done?"

There was silence for a moment, and then Janet asked Remus and Sirius for confirmation. They nodded grimly. She gave a sigh of her own. "I'll see what I can tell Lily, then." She quietly got up and left.

Another moment of silence passed before Sirius moved to kneel in front of James. "Mate? You all right?" James was rather pale and breathing funny.

He looked up and the other three had to hold in gasps. At thirteen years old, James Potter had tears in his eyes. "I don't want to lose her," he whispered before lying down on his bed and turning his back on them.

In the third year girls' dorm, Janet had found Lily asleep in bed. Tear trails stained her cheeks.

Needless to say, none of the six joined in the Halloween festivities that night.

Revelation:

Okay, I was reading this book called Ghosts and inside it says:

But there were other forerunners of death that lent themselves to no natural explanation and that couldnever be dismissed with a shrug or a show of indifference.

Such were black dogs, night walkers feared throught the British Isles. The dogs that preceded death were given various names -- Black Shuck in East Anglia, Skriker and Trash-hound in Lancashire, Padfoot in Yorkshire-- but all were of the same fell race. They appeared on dark nights in country lanes, loping easily along, eyes searching for solitary travelers who should have been safe at home.

It instantly reminded me of The Knight Bus chapter, pages 31-33 in the American hardcover edition of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Cheers, Danielle