A/N: So… Ah! All my English homework is due tomorrow! Sorry, that had no relevance whatsoever. I'm just a little panicked, since I've had, like, all year to do it but I haven't done even half yet. Yeah. Another chapter uploaded, thanks to reviewers zippyfox, writerchick13, Raekitty13, webling-girl05, Luna32, indescribablyBee and PremzaWitchOfWeirdos… you know the drill. And sorry for the uneventfulness, again, of this chapter! I promise they'll get more interesting!
Disclaimer: JKR, so far as I know, doesn't crack up in hysterical, irrational laughter every time someone mentions the "Boar Joke". (Cracks up in hysterical, irrational laughter).
"Ja-ames?" Lily asked, tapping her boyfriend on the shoulder. He turned.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"Remus and Peter want to talk to you." She replied, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder at the two Marauders.
"And… why didn't they ask me themselves?"
"Apparently," said Lily, "I'm the only one that can distract you from your Grand Final whatever-you're-doing."
"Oh," said James, his face flushing faintly in a way that Lily thought was hilarious. She could just imagine his face if she'd said that out loud. "Yeah, I guess that's true."
"I'll meet you guys at dinner, around six o'clock." She said, and they nodded.
Lily walked off, leaving them alone. As she left, she heard them talking rapidly in the same distorted version of English that they had used when telling Kim about Remus' 'furry little problem'.
She decided to go to the library and study. Like there was much else to do at five in the afternoon on a Wednesday. With James absorbed in Quidditch-ness (although, apparently, he was talking with Remus and Peter now) and Kim and Sirius off out on the grounds somewhere, undoubtedly snogging, she couldn't really do much, but homework. And though she was fantastic at procrastinating if she needed to, she needed to do the homework more.
The library was filled with giggling fourth years. There was nowhere to sit. Scanning the room a second time, and failing to find anywhere she could sit, she went into one of the isles of books. It wasn't ideal, but perhaps once she finished the reading part, some of the fourth years would have disappeared, and she could use a table to write on. She turned into a row when she saw Alice, sitting on the floor, book in lap.
She looked up quickly as Lily's shadow fell across her page. "Lily, it's you! You scared me!"
"Sorry." said Lily. "I had the same idea as you."
"What?" asked Alice. Well, duh. Thought Lily.
"Reading here, and not out there." She explained. Alice blinked.
"Oh. I didn't… I just couldn't be bothered to carry the books out there. Most of them are useless."
"What're you reading?" asked Lily, sitting on the carpeted floor next to her. And here comes the procrastination…
"This." said Alice. She lifted the cover so Lily could see it. It was a black, plain volume. Embossed in gold were the words Weather Oddities in Magical History.
"I'm guessing that it's not homework, then?" said Lily slowly.
"Yeah. The weather's just been getting so cold… I was checking to see if there was any useful information in there."
Lily felt a little shocked. But then she mentally scolded herself. I was stupid to think that I was the only one that wanted to find out what was going on. Or suspected that something was up.
"Found anything?" she asked eventually.
"No, and this is my fifth book." groaned Alice. "Unless it has something to do with lunar radiation and it's affects on the seawater in contrast to the north and south poles… and even I don't understand what that means."
Lily laughed. "Well, maybe you could send an owl to Frank." she suggested. "You know, ask him if they've got any leads at the Ministry or anything?"
"Good idea!" exclaimed Alice. "I'll do it in the morning."
"Hey, how is Frank, anyway?" said Lily, grinning. Alice bit her lip in apparent embarrassment. She was silent for a second, thinking, then;
"He's great." she gushed. "I haven't seen him in forever, you know. But he owls me every week… he's so sweet. He's really enjoying his Auror training, well, I mean, why shouldn't he? And apparently he's made friends with this other guy who's training with him – Kingsley something – and…"
Lily listened attentively. She realised she'd hardly ever actually talked to Alice properly before. Well, of course, she'd talked with her, and been partnered with her in class once or twice, but never actually had a proper conversation with her. Not by herself.
Their conversation moved onto NEWTs, and then careers, and then parents, and then before long Madam Pince came around, shooing them out and exclaiming that they were being 'far too loud!'
"Oh, I've got to go meet Tara and Emmeline." said Alice, checking her watch. It was just past six. "It was nice talking to you, Lily."
"Yeah." said Lily. Unable to think of anything remotely interesting to say, she simply added; "I'll see you later."
Alice waved and she walked off. Lily smiled and, realising she couldn't go back to the library, and had said she was meeting the Marauders around now, decide upon going to the Great Hall. She went up a couple of flights of moving staircases, and eventually reached the Hall. She passed the Ravenclaws, and was about to sit down at her usual sort of a spot when she realised.
Kim and Sirius weren't back, but she hadn't expected them to be. No, the problem was that none of the other Marauders were there. And it would have had to have been at least ten minutes since she'd agreed to meet them there.
Lily shrugged, and, supposing that they'd be there soon enough, sat down, helping herself to some dinner.
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"Barba argentum." said Lily. The Fat Lady swung open and Lily entered the Common Room, ready to yell at James, Remus and Peter for never showing up at dinner. However, as she found out as she climbed through the portrait hole, her job was already being done for her.
"How can you have just… why did you even… ugh!" Sirius was holding his arms up in exasperation. James, Remus and Peter were all facing him, standing a few feet away with sheepish expressions on their faces.
"What's happening?" asked Lily, walking up behind James. Sirius gave her a glare. Remus gave her a look that clearly meant; He's mad, better go away.
She wondered if she should have apologized to Sirius, as she climbed the staircase. She knew she wouldn't have liked to be interrupted in a lengthy rant. Sighing, she pushed open the door to her dormitory.
"Hey." said Kim from over on her bed. She had a potions book open.
"Hi." said Lily, plonking herself down beside her. "Your boyfriend's a good glarer."
"Is he still at it?" asked Kim with a sigh. Lily nodded. "And you were stupid enough to intervene, right? Never interrupt him when he's yelling."
"I just wanted to know what was going on!" Lily said indignantly. "What is going on?"
"No idea." said Kim vaguely, turning a page of her book. "We got back and I came up here. A second later I heard Sirius yell. I went down to check it out, but unlike some people, I wasn't stupid enough to say anything."
"Yeah, well I don't know him as well as you do." said Lily, and sniggered.
"Oh, shut up." said Kim half-heartedly. "It's probably something stupid, like Quidditch."
"Probably." said Lily.
"Grand Final on Saturday…" added Kim.
"You know who I reckon should commentate?" asked Lily.
"A lot of people." said Kim, to Lily's annoyance.
"Remus." she said.
"Yeah, he'd be a good commentator." Kim agreed. There was a silence for about half a minute. "So who do you think is gunna win on Saturday?"
"Well…" Lily considered it. "Probably Slytherin. But don't tell James."
"Hmm." hummed Kim.
And she went back to her book, and Lily took it as a signal to shut up and do her own studying.
A/N: Of course, we all know that the thing Sirius is mad about is the Map getting nicked by Pringle. Unless you didn't figure that out. In which case… oops. Oh well, I s'pose you would've found out next chapter anyway… lol…
And there's a real Grand Final on Saturday, too, for anyone else down here in Australia. Footy! Go the Eagles! Even though I barrack for Carlton… but the Swans suck, so I'm going for the Eagles on Saturday. Yeah, OK, I'm shutting up.
