A/N: You people (CuteTpie and LilyWitchcraft) who had similar dementor stories truly cracked me up. I guess we need to work on our patronuses! Haha, anyway, thanks for the laughs! :D :D :D
The Chauvinistic Stag
Chapter 12
James and Lily stayed on that rock until the sun hung low in the sky. The breeze was chillier and the town was quieting down for the evening. Less people were milling from shop to shop. James was sitting with his arm around Lily, and she was resting her head on his shoulder.
"We probably should get going soon," she said, not making an effort to get up.
"Yeah, we should," James replied, not moving either. He pulled her slightly closer to him, and kissed her on the top of the head.
"I really don't want to go back," Lily sighed.
James didn't respond. Lily couldn't see his face, but her statement made him frown.
"You okay, James?" she asked, lifting her head off of his shoulder, curious of his silence.
"Er, yeah," he replied, averting his eyes away from her.
She looked at him quizzically, eyebrows raised.
"Okay, you still don't want to tell the school?" he asked.
"Oh, not really, honestly," she replied.
James nodded, though he really wasn't sure why. He definitely did not understand what she was thinking. Was she really still not sure that she wanted to date him?
"I just don't really want the attention of the whole school, you know. Teenagers can be ruthless, and they'll just be waiting for us to screw up. You think we should tell them?" she asked.
"Yeah, I just think it could bite us in the ass if we don't," he replied.
Lily laughed. "Listen, James, I'll do whatever you think is best. If you want, I'll march over to that school and tell Sirius. Within fifteen minutes, the rest of the student body will know."
"You will?" James replied.
Lily smiled. "Of course. James, I'm completely committed to you, and I trust your intuition here."
James smiled back at her. "Say that one more time?"
"Er, Okay. I trust your-"
"No, no. The other part," he said.
"Oh, um, I'm completely committed to you," Lily mumbled, blushing slightly.
James beamed. "I'll be right back," he said, and he stood up and walked around the boulder.
Lily saw him take out his wand, and within a few seconds, heard a high-pitched screeching from where he was now standing, but she couldn't see what he was doing. She debated in her head for a moment whether she should wait for James to come back or go investigate what he was doing, and naturally, her curiosity won the battle. She slipped off the boulder and tiptoed over to James. She had to stuff her hands over her ears as she got closer to him, the noise was now so loud.
"What are you doing?" she hollered, but he ignored her. He continued his work for another few minutes, and then backed away.
"Finished," he said, looking back at the boulder. Lily's jaw dropped slightly as she saw what he had done. He had carved into the boulder:
J + L
27-10-1977
"What did you deface the rock for?" Lily asked, surprised.
James smiled, sheepishly. "Well, I've been having trouble believing that today is actually happening, and I know tomorrow I definitely won't believe it, so this is proof, really, for myself."
Lily rolled her eyes, but laughed. She walked over next to him and he slid his arm around her.
"It looks good," she said. "I like it."
"Why, thank you," James replied, and he tilted her head up to his and kissed her.
After he pulled away he said, "So I've been thinking about Sirius."
"You kiss me and think about Sirius?" Lily asked. "That's special."
James laughed. "No, no, before I kissed you I thought about this. Haha. What I mean is, I've changed my mind about us going public. I don't think you should tell Sirius."
"Serious?" Lily asked.
"Er, yes, Sirius. You know, shaggy black hair, huge blabber mouth-"
"Er, no, I mean, 'seriously?'," she chuckled.
"Oh, ha," James laughed. "But yeah, I don't think the school needs to know about us."
"But aren't you afraid of - how did you put it? Oh yeah- getting 'bit in the ass'?" Lily asked.
"That won't happen - not if I can help it, at least. I don't own the marauder's map and an invisibility cloak for nothing. It'll be like the ultimate prank, keeping a secret like this," he smiled, mischievously
"Oh so now our relationship is a prank to you. Lovely," Lily laughed. "But I'll admit, it sounds fun."
"It's settled then," he replied.
"Well, we really should probably head back to town," Lily said. The sun was only a few inches above the mountains in the horizon.
"Still up for the three broomsticks?" James asked.
"Definitely," Lily replied.
Hand-in-hand, they walked down the hillside, James helping Lily as they went. As they walked through town, the last rays of sunlight were zigzagging across the sky, illuminating the clouds in purple and blue hues. James held the door open for Lily, and she walked inside. Madam Rosmerta smiled at them from behind the counter.
"I'll grab the drinks, you can grab a table," James said, and he went up to the counter. Lily found a table for two near the window. Within a few minutes, James came over with butterbeers, foam dribbling down the sides of the mugs.
"Cheers," James smiled.
"Cheers," she replied, and she took a big gulp. There was nothing more warming for the soul than a butterbeer.
"Is that Malfoy?" James asked, squinting out the window. Lily cupped her eyes to the window to reduce the glare. There was no mistaking his long blonde hair.
"Yeah. What would he be doing here? He graduated, what, four years ago?" she replied. "Wait, is that Severus, too?"
"Yeah, and Nott," James said.
"You don't think they're meeting Voldemort, do you? You know that conversation we heard a few days ago?" Lily asked, fear evident in her voice.
"I don't know." James took a big swig from his butterbeer. "Come on, let's follow them."
"What?" Lily gasped, as he grabbed her by the hand and pulled her up from the table.
He led her out of the pub, keeping hold of her hand, and stealthily tiptoed to where he had seen Malfoy, Snape, and Nott disappear. He pulled Lily into a dark doorway, shielding them from view from passerby.
"Where do you think they went?" he asked.
"I thought they went that way," Lily said, pointing further down the road, towards a shabby looking doorway. "I don't know if this is a good idea though, James. What if Voldemort really is there?"
James look at her, realizing he had just responded naturally to the situation – seeing what mischief Slytherins were up to had been something him and Sirius had done regularly. But this was more than just Slytherins plotting plans of mayhem at the school. This was possibly serious dark wizardry.
The door Lily had pointed to suddenly opened, and out walked Snape, Nott, and Malfoy.
"Thank you again for coming," Malfoy said. "The Dark Lord is very pleased, and I look forward to working with both of you." He held out his hand and both Snape and Nott shook it.
Snape and Nott then turned and started walking towards where James and Lily were hiding in the shadows.
"That seriously hurt," Nott said to Snape, rubbing his mid-forearm.
Snape didn't respond. Lily felt herself hold her breath as the two walked by where she and James were hiding. They continued walking down the street, stopping outside Zonko's.
"You go ahead," Snape said to Nott. "I'll meet up with you."
"But where are you going?" Nott asked.
"That's not your business," Snape replied.
"Whatever," Nott muttered, and he rounded the corner just past Zonko's. Snape stood still for a few moments.
"Don't tell me they know that passageway," James mumbled. Curious about what James was referring to, Lily wanted to respond, but didn't. Snape had now turned back around and was walking towards them. He whipped out his wand so fast, that Lily had little idea of what was happening until James fell over, stiff as a board.
"Taste of your own medicine, Potter," Snape spat.
"What are you doing?!" Lily exclaimed, diving down to James and pulling out her own wand.
Snape rolled his eyes. "Expelliarmus," he muttered, and Lily's wand flew out of her hand and into his. She turned and looked at him, rage blazing in her eyes.
"You unfreeze him right this instant," she demanded.
"So you're with him now, are you?" Snape asked.
"Dumbledore asked us to do a favor for him," Lily responded, grinding her teeth.
"I saw you in the Three Broomsticks. You looked pretty cozy," he replied.
Lily folded her arms in front of her. "What's it to you anyway?"
Snape inhaled deeply. Lily wasn't denying that she was with James. Snape knew that this meant that she was. He felt the floor fall from beneath him. He had been watching James and Lily's relationship develop over the year, and he couldn't believe his worst fear was actually coming true. Lily had picked James. James. He felt his insides bubble with fury. Lily had picked James. He looked down at the body-bound dark-haired individual. The person he hated most in the world had beat him for the heart of the person he loved most in the world.
Snape looked back at Lily. She looked gorgeous when she was passionate and angry. But she would never want him like he wanted her. He now realized this.
He had made the right choice tonight, joining Voldemort. He sure as hell didn't need to do what Lily thought was best. In fact, he'd never listen to a word of her advice again.
"I don't need you," he said.
"I know. You've got much bigger friends now, don't you?" she replied.
Snape just shrugged, and tossed her back her wand.
"We're done," he said, and he turned to walk away.
"Wait," Lily said, taking a few steps toward him. She put a hand on his arm. He froze, but did not turn around.
"Severus, don't do this. Don't join him," she breathed, still touching his arm.
"I already have," he replied. He still hadn't turned around.
"Well, then please be careful," she whispered, and she let go of him.
He stood there for a moment, his back still to her. She saw him twitch, like he was going to turn around, but instead he began walking towards Zonko's. He never looked back.
Lily felt a tear trickling down her cheek as she watched him round the corner. It appeared she had truly lost her oldest friend. They had been growing apart for so long, but this, this was it. The boy who had been her childhood playmate, who had introduced her to magic, who had stuck up for her, who had been her first real friend, he was leaving her for good. He was choosing Voldemort. She wiped the tear away, and turned back to James. Realizing he was still frozen, she quickly rushed over to him and undid his body-bind curse.
"Are you okay?" Lily asked, helping him to his feet.
"Yes," James grumbled. "I hate him."
"I know," Lily said.
"I don't know how you can be friends with that creep," he vented.
"Well, I don't think we're friends anymore," she replied. She couldn't hide the sadness in her voice.
James looked at her, and saw that she was vividly upset. As much as he hated Snape, he knew Lily knew Snape in a way that he never could.
"Come here," he said. And he pulled her into a tight hug. He hugged her for a long time.
"I'm sorry, Lily," he whispered into her ear.
"It's okay," she mumbled back.
"Can I take fifty points from Slytherin? He wasn't supposed to be here, you know."
Lily laughed. "Please do."
She pulled away from him and looked at him earnestly. "Thank you, James. For everything today."
"What are secret boyfriends for?" he replied.
She smiled broadly. "I sure like the sound of that."
"Me too," he smiled back. "We ready to go?"
"Yeah," she replied. She glanced quickly at the corner where Snape had disappeared. He was definitely gone. James held out his hand for her. She smiled and took it, and together they walked towards the carriages that would take them back to Hogwarts.
***********
A/N: Sorry! Shorter chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it. Poor Snape!
So you know, the end is in sight. :) YAY. I can't believe I may actually finish a story!! Correction – WILL actually finish a story. Any input on what you want to happen? I have a general idea where it will go – kinda.
And does anyone know how the beta thing works, too? I'm interested in finding one, but don't know how to do it.
Heads up – It'll take me longer to get the next chapter out. I have a ridiculously busy week approaching, and I've gotten weirdly obsessed with editing my other story 'The Rivalry,' so I have a feeling my little free time will be spent working there. Apologies, but I will pick this back up the following week for sure.
Oh, and sorry for the Sirius/Serious banter in this chapter. I hate when I read them, but I can't resist writing them. Hypocritical, I know.
Of course, REVIEW PUH-LEASE. Happy Superbowl Sunday! (Go Saints!)
