To be utterly blunt, the next morning had been a blur of chaos to Lily Evans, for fierce questions were fired her way every two seconds, questions she, with the help of James, avoided carefully. Though Lily loved her friends dearly she could not confide one of her, now deepest, secrets to any of them, not even Roxanne...
"LILY FRICKEN EVANS!" Sirius Black shouted audaciously, flinging himself out of his seat at the Gryffindor lunch table and lunging toward the red- headed beauty.
Lily Evans entered the hall calmly with her two apprehensive friends trailing in her wake; a cringe appearing on her porcelain features as the handsome Marauder bounded toward her excitably.
"Black! Leave her alone!" James shouted after his best friend, though, like many of his commands, it did not seem to penetrate Sirius' thick skull, which happened to be topped with masses of brunette hair.
James huffed in indignation and continued to eat his thin pancakes whilst watching the events concerning his friends unfold. Today was going to be interesting, especially with all the outrageous questions he and Lily would have to elude.
Sirius enveloped Lily in a constricting hug; Lily felt like a particularly obese and savage snake was strangling her. The hall's attention turned to the maniacal boy seemingly consuming his female friend, causing many whispers to circulate and girls to whimper.
"I WAS SO WORRIED!" Sirius yelled dramatically over Lily's shoulder, gaining many smirks from onlookers, "I WOULD HAVE THROWN MYSELF OFF THE ASTRONOMY TOWER IF YOU HADN'T SHOWN UP!"
"Don't worry, Black," Roxanne said cheerily, a coy grin dominating her face, "there is still plenty of time to attempt that,"
"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID CLONE!" Sirius fired back, pretending to cry into Lily's shoulder, "did you hear what she said, Lillykins? I'll never be the same,"
"Clone?" Remus asked questionably; James shrugged his shoulders and flippantly pushing Peter out of his seat as Lily neared the table, causing Peter to glare at James viciously and take a seat beside Remus instead.
"Stupid prat..." Peter mumbled, rubbing his backside before taking a seat.
"You alright this morning, Lily?" James asked softly, filling Lily's empty plate with breakfast foods like eggs, bacon and fritters.
Lily scooted onto the bench beside James and chuckled at the way he was babying her. When was the last time she had to have another person cut her bacon for her, six?
"I'm lovely, thanks," Lily said, rolling her eyes and shooing James' hands away from her breakfast plate, "I haven't suffered brain damage, I think I can feed myself,"
James smirked and turned back to his food, a pleasant twinkle lingering in his eyes. Sirius, Roxanne and Erica situated themselves at the Gryffindor table as well, everyone longing to tuck into their appealing meals.
"So, Lily," Remus started, dabbing the corner of his mouth with a napkin, "James came in last night, telling us all you were back and safe. However, he didn't explain where you disappeared to,"
"O, did he not?" Lily inquired, faking stupidity as she cleared her throat to stall time, "well, it's a funny story, really... I sort of was looking for some-?"
"SOCKS!" James added quickly, clearing his throat uncomfortably as everyone's intrigued and confused faces turned to him, "she was looking for some socks and-,"
"And I went into my closet," Lily started, her nose scrunched up, pretending to recollect a horrible event.
"BUT IT LOCKED BEHIND HER!" James blurted, a huge grin spreading over his face as he thought of the stupidest, dorkest lie he had ever concocted.
"Why wouldn't she be searching for socks in her trunk?" Erica whispered in Roxanne's ear, her face looking disconcerted.
"Lily is hiding something, and I am going to find out what it is," Roxanne whispered back, turned her attention back to the group conversation.
"You were locked in the closet?" Sirius asked loudly and skeptically, his facial expression contorting abnormally, "that had got to be the dumbest thing I have ever heard,"
"Which is quite significant, because Sirius says stupid things every time he opens his mouth," Roxanne said pointedly, eyeing James and Lily distrustfully.
"Exactly!" Sirius exclaimed triumphantly, as if that statement had settled all matters.
"At least Lily doesn't get stuck up chimneys, Sirius," James said casually, his chocolate eyes sparkling mischievously as he tried to deflect the conversation away from Lily.
"You promised not to mention that, James!" Sirius hissed, avoiding eye contact with all the grinning friends surrounding him, "besides, I had good reason,"
"He needed bat wings to concoct a potion that would make his "assets" a little big-," James started to say to his eager friends, all of whom awaited his explanation.
"NO NEED TO CONTINUE, JAMES!" Sirius sputtered, his eyes narrowing as a small blush crept onto his cheeks.
"Ok, ok," James said, grinning cheerily, "basically he was looking in my chimney for bats and got lodged in there somehow. My dad had to blast him out of the smokestack!"
The group of friends started to roar with laughter, but no one louder then Roxanne. The imagery that sprung up in her mind was enough to send her into a fit of giggles.
"What-haha-I would have paid-haha-to see-haha-his face," Roxanne said between gasps of laughter, tears of mirth streaming down her cheeks as she pointed at a flustered Sirius.
"I ate a lot of mash potatoes that day, ok?" Sirius said in a pout, crossing his arms and holding his nose high in the air, "honestly, it all went to my hips,"
The group of babbling and blustery friends eventually calmed down, and as breakfast continued a picture of Sirius flying out of a chimney was fresh in all their minds. James and Lily had successfully dodged all questions concerning the night before; therefore pleasant smiles adorned their faces.
Well, Lily was also smiling because James had decided to let his left hand roam up and down her right leg; James had received a prompt slap when his hand ventured to close to her inner thigh.
"We should head to Potions, the bell will ring soon," Remus said sharply, checking his magical watch as the friends cleaned their plates and headed down to the dank and dreary dungeons.
"What do you reckon we will stew in class today?" Erica inquired innocently, inwardly grinning as she felt Remus toying with her hands as they walked down the stone hallways leading toward the Potions classroom.
"Maybe we will stew a potion that will make our "assets" bigger," Roxanne exclaimed offhandedly, a smirk curving on her lips at the uncomfortable look on Sirius' face.
"Why? Unhappy with your body, darling?" Sirius asked aloud, his eyes sweeping over her and choosing to ignore her jib. He wasn't about to let her win, that was for sure!
"No, my body is fine, thanks," Roxanne fired back, unhappy Sirius wasn't getting irritated and flustered by her sly comment.
"Yes, I think it is fine too," Sirius said, winking seductively at the flaring brunette.
As the two brown- haired spitfires continued to verbally spare, the others entered the poignant classroom and took their seats punctually. Professor Slughorn was scribbling what resembled instructions on the black board, reserving a merry wave for every important student that entered his classroom.
"Lily! James! Sirius!" Slughorn piped in an ebullient tone, gaining half-hearted smiles from James, Lily and Sirius. However, the Professor only received annoyed frowns from Erica and Roxanne. Peter and Remus seemed to care less about Professor Slughorn and walked by the teacher without comment.
"Well I never!" Roxanne exclaimed in a huff as she took a seat beside Lily, "I'm a pureblood and my parents are famous explorers, why don't I merit Professor Slughorn's attention?"
"Who cares? You merit Sirius' attention, isn't that enough?" Lily commented with a crafty smile on her face as she pulled out her notebook and green colored quill from her backpack.
"Belt up, you!" Roxanne said laughably, hitting Lily lightly over the head with her Potions notebook, "I don't need you joining the dark side with him,"
"Hey, girls!" Sirius said in a hissed whisper, interrupting them and poking Lily in the back annoyingly as the rest of the students entered the classroom, ready to begin.
"What?" Roxanne and Lily inquired simultaneously, turning around in their seats to face James and Sirius.
"You have my permission to start a cat- fight amongst yourselves," Sirius said, grinning idiotically as he observed them bickering, "and feel free to take off your tops too!"
"Why you little-!" Roxanne jeered, searching for a large object to hit Sirius with.
However, she was beaten too it by none other then the dashing James Potter. Sirius rubbed his skull ruefully after James had smacked him up-side the head with his Potions textbook.
"I knew they should have made those things in paperback," Sirius murmured, glaring at the hard- cover textbook, "whaddya do that for, FOO?"
"Your head was in the way, Sirius," James said, grinning happily, "I wanted a good view of the girls taking their tops off,"
Sirius started to roar with laughter as Lily and Roxanne glared daggers at the lop-sided grin curving on James' face. James reserved a small wink for Lily, causing her lips to betray her and give a small smile.
"Remus!" Roxanne exclaimed loudly, leaning in toward his desk, "have I told you lately that you are BY FAR the best marauder out of this lot?" Roxanne said cheerily, pointing to Sirius like he was some foreign insect she wanted to squash.
"Thank you, Roxanne, I'll have to agree with you there," Remus said, sticking out his tongue at a grumpy looking Sirius and continuing to fiddle with Erica's delicate fingers.
"Woman, are you blind?" Sirius barked at Roxanne gruffly, a deep frown etched onto his face, "I am BY FAR the hottest marauder out of them, even ask the magic mirror that tells me so every night!"
"Who are you? Bloody Snow White?" James asked in amusement, ruffling his hair nonchalantly and absent-mindedly staring at Lily.
"Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the dumbest looking wanker of them all?" Roxanne sang in a sing song voice, "SIRIUS BLACK!"
"Not true!" Sirius said, pounding his fists childishly on his desk, "if we had some type of Marauder competition I bet you I would win!"
"That sounds intriguing," James said, watching his friend's antics with bewilderment, "we should have a friendly competition, it would settle matters, I think. Would you be up to it, Remus, Peter?"
"No thanks, I've got to spend some quality time with Marcus tonight. I think he is coming down with an illness," Peter said, pulling at his collar self-consciously as the others looked at him in amusement.
"Peter, I really hate to break this to you," Sirius said, pretending to seem sorry as he looked at his friend in concern, "but Marcus is a...turtle,"
"I know that," Peter said indignantly, avoiding eye contact with all those curious persons present.
"Ever considering receiving therapy?" Sirius exclaimed with a huge grin on his face. Sirius and James had quite a difficult time restraining themselves from laughing hysterically; James has his smile buried in his hands.
"O, leave him alone, Sirius!" Roxanne said huffily, crossing her arms like a pretzel, "I think having a pet turtle is a very sensitive and cute idea,"
"THEN SOMEBODY GET ME A WRINKILY AMPHIBIAN QUICK!" Sirius shouted loudly, playfully looking under his desk for a green creature that could make him seem sensitive and cute.
"Very funny," Roxanne said crossly, glaring at the laughable Sirius, "I should turn you into a frog and then step on your toady ass!"
"No, no darling!" Sirius said brightly, flashing his pearly whites, "you have the nursery tale all wrong! If you kiss the frog it will turn into a prince, but if you kiss the prince he won't turn into a frog!"
"What is your point, Black?"
"My point is, PUCKER up and kiss your prince, baby!" Sirius yelped loudly, his seductive eyes tracing Roxanne's figure.
"Why you disgusting-!" Roxanne started angrily, beginning to pull her wand out of her robe pocket.
"Remus, did you want to be in our little competition?" James cut in quickly, hoping to distract the two feuding brunettes, "you better tell me quick, these two are bound to start sparring again soon,"
"Of course I'm in," Remus piped in quickly, receiving an eager smile from Erica, "I wouldn't give up a chance to make you two look like foolish flobberworms,"
"O, IT'S ON NOW, REMUS!" Sirius said loudly, gaining the classes' attention, including the flustered and frustrated Professor's.
"Excuse me, Mr. Black, but I am trying to conduct a lesson," Professor Slughorn said simply, though she didn't sound stern, "I would highly suggest you copy down the note on the board,"
"It's all up here, sir," Sirius said arrogantly, tapping his head lightly and smirking knowingly as he leaned back nonchalantly in his chair.
"Don't believe him, sir," Roxanne cut in, still sore about Sirius' earlier comment, "his head is as hollow as the empty cauldron in front of him,"
Many chuckles could be heard from the Slytherin portion of the class, though they were reluctant to laugh at anything Roxanne had to say. Professor Slughorn shook his head doubtfully and returned to writing notes on the black board. Roxanne, Lily, Remus and Erica immediately started to copy down the board notes on spare parchment.
"I can't believe she said that," Sirius mumbled to James, the expression on his face looking somewhat put out, "I wouldn't insult her in front of the whole class,"
"Don't worry about it, Padfoot," James said reassuringly, patting his friend on the back, "besides, we have to create our little marauder competition,"
"I wonder what we should do," Sirius said, trailing off into another world that included a scantily clad Roxanne.
Meanwhile, Professor Slughorn had assigned the class to stew the Wit-Sharpening Potion and had written the ingredients necessary on the board.
"I'll fetch the scarab beetles, ginger roots, and armadillo bile from the store cupboard, shall I?" Lily inquired moodily as Roxanne made no sign of motion.
Lily approached the open cupboard, eager to collect her ingredients, when she felt a taller, broad- shouldered student shove her out of the way. Lily looked up in muted surprise and glared into the face of Lucius Malfoy.
"Out of my way, Mudblood," Lucius spat coolly, wiping his hands roughly on his robes, "I shall have to wash my hands and burn my robes now that I touched you,"
"Well, if you need anyone to set you slimy hair on fire, you can find me in the Gryffindor Common Room, ok?" Lily retorted savagely, sick and tired of bullying Slytherins taking advantage of her heritage.
"You little bit-," Malfoy started before someone forcibly ran into Malfoy, sending his potion ingredients stumbling out of his hands and onto the clean, stone floor.
"Malfoy, you clumsy fool," Sirius said, shaking his head sternly at the mess on the floor, "you might want to take a shower, there is armadillo bile all over your unattractive face,"
With that straightforward comment, Sirius linked arms with Lily and escorted her back to his desk. James was no longer situated beside Sirius, but instead beside Erica. Remus and Roxanne were also sitting together, chatting merrily amongst themselves.
"What's going on?" Lily asked in confusion as she took a seat beside the startlingly handsome Sirius Black.
"We decided the way in which we were to prove who was the best Marauder," Sirius started, chopping up his scarab beetles into thin, cylindrical discs, "you, Roxanne and Erica will be the judges. We each have a day to be as nice as we can to the girl we were assigned, and in the end you three will discuss whom deserves the title of BEST MARAUDER EVER!"
"So, I'm your "victim" then?" Lily inquired, chuckling at Sirius' mock-insulted look.
"You betcha, Lillykins!" Sirius said gleefully, leaning in toward Lily's ear, "but I must admit, James was quite disappointed you weren't his victim,"
A small blush crept onto Lily's cheeks and she meekly started chopping up her potion ingredients without comment. Sirius smiled at Lily's shy reaction and decided it was best to finish their potion.
Meanwhile, James was fiercely scribbling a small note on a piece of parchment he had ripped out of his notebook; Erica watched him in puzzlement. James scrunched the note into a messy ball when he was done and whipped it across the room, hitting his intended target on the head.
"What does Potter want?" Crabbe asked a disgruntled Malfoy gruffly as the ball of paper bounced of Lucius' head and onto the desk before them.
"How should I know what that muggle- loving jester wants?" Malfoy spat arrogantly, his silvery eyes sparkling with intrigue.
Malfoy narrowed his eyes at the glaring Potter sitting across the room from him and quickly unfolded the note that had so brashly hit him.
To the blonde prat,
Touch Lily again and I swear to god I will shove a flaming Filibuster Firework up your arse, savvy?
J.P. D
Malfoy immediately banished the scrunched up note and went back to work, a calculating smirk wallpapered onto his smug exterior. It was coming more and more apparent that the messy- haired boy had deep feelings for the saucy redheaded muggleborn.
James would have boxed Malfoy in the nose had he been near Lily at the time, but Sirius had already been on his way to the cupboard, so James begrudgingly stayed in his seat.
"Er...James? Could we possibly get back to work now?" Erica asked sweetly, poking James' side to get his attention.
"Yes, of course! Sorry about that," James muttered, rapidly flipping to the correct page in his textbook and reading the potion instructions aloud.
°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸
The class had turned out to be quite a subdued affair, and when the group of friends exited the musty dungeons their focus turned to the "Marauder Competition".
"Hey, Erica! Want a piggy-back to lunch?" James inquired happily, flashing her a toothy grin she returned contently.
"Ok, that should raise a few eyebrows once we enter the Great Hall!" Erica replied, getting increasingly giggly at the thought.
"We'll catch up with you guys later, ok?" James exclaimed, directing him comment towards a begrudgingly jealous Lily.
James headed toward the Great Hall, Erica laughing merrily on his back as he broke into a run. Remus had suavely asked Roxanne if she wanted to have a picnic by the lake, an invitation she was more then pleased to accept, leaving Sirius and Lily alone.
"Frick, those two are already winning!" Sirius started, frowning as Remus and Roxanne departed for the grounds "now I have to do something that will absolutely dazzle you ma'dear!"
"Did you have anything in mind, Mr. Black?" Lily inquired somewhat flirtatiously, though she was only joking with the dark- haired male.
"Hmmm, follow me, darling!" Sirius said excitably, grasping Lily's hand firmly as a completely astonishing idea sprang up in his mind.
Sirius seemed to get more and more animated as they walked down an unfamiliar hallway located near the statue of the one-eyed hag statue, the same statue that lead into deep into Hogsmeade.
"Sirius, where are we going?" Lily requested, her breathing labored as she kept up with Sirius' rapid pace, "and can we get there soon, because I'm starving!"
"I want to show you something, you're appetite will have to wait!" Sirius said before stopping abruptly before an elaborately patterned tapestry.
Sirius examined the tapestry for mere moments before gathering it up in his hands and revealing a quaint, wooden door behind it.
"What's in there?" Lily inquired curiously, her interest peeking pleasantly.
"Tickle the doorknob and find out, why don't you?" Sirius urged softly, his eyes glassed over at the thought of what lay behind the insignificant door.
Lily did as she was told and tickled the doorknob. The door handle immediately started to giggle childishly and turn in a counterclockwise motion, revealing a room in which Lily was surely never going to forget.
Lily stepped into the mysterious room and was met by multiple images of herself. Sirius entered as well, letting the tapestry fall behind him to conceal their whereabouts. The whole room, including the floor and ceiling, was made out of spotless mirrors. The room was in a hexagonal shape; therefore eight tall mirrors provided the facets of the walls.
"Wow," Lily muttered incoherently, observing the pristine mirrors and unnatural light illuminating the room, "where... are we?"
"Well, I don't know if the room has an established name," Sirius said, grinning contently, "but I like to call it the Room of Memories,"
Lily turned to Sirius and saw his eyes were shut tightly and his face was wrinkled in deep concentration. Lily thought it best not to disturb him and turned her attention back towards the mirrors. However, her reflection no longer looked back at her, but a beautiful forest scene.
"How...? What happened?" Lily asked aloud as she gaped at the spectacle that lay before her eyes.
"I shall show you as opposed to explaining. Are you ready, Miss Evans?" Sirius asked curtly, holding out his arm like a true gentleman would, long tresses of brown framing his face handsomely.
Lily decided to cease asking questions, but when Lily took Sirius' arm she was quite distressed to see them walking speedily toward the imaged mirrors. They were going to crash into the thick, reflective walls and make a huge mess, Lily was sure of it!
"Sirius! NO!" Lily screamed as she closed her eyes and felt a cool sensation pass over her face and body.
The impression was not uncomfortable, but numbing. Lily's eyes were shut tightly; she still felt Sirius beside her and in her ears was a soft, buzzing noise. Lily felt weightless, like she was floating. It lasted only a few seconds, however, for the buzzing in her ears vanished and was replaced by the song and chirping of robins and sparrows.
The duo stopped, Sirius unlatching himself from Lily and the redhead opened her eyes when she felt solid earth beneath her feet. Lily was stunned to see the two of them standing in a large, enchanting forest.
"O my giddy aunt," Lily said delicately, observing the green trees and blooming flowers in awe, "what the hell just happened?"
A floral, natural scent wafted throughout the air pleasantly, tickling the end of Lily's nose. The trees swayed slowly in the wind, creating a perfect, lethargic atmosphere. It looked to be early morning, for the birds twittered noisily and the sun was still kissing the horizon.
Sirius laughed imperceptibly at the stunned expression that dominated Lily's features and couldn't help but glimpse the reason James was so fond of her. She was so pretty when she smiled and she looked down right goofy with that flabbergasted look upon her face.
"The room acts like a pensieve," Sirius said, basking in the rays of sun that shone through the tiny spaces among the foliage of the trees, "all you have to do is walk into the room and immerse yourself in a memory,"
"Wow," Lily thought, angelic smiles lighting up her face, "where are we exactly?"
"I'll tell you once we've reached my intended destination," Sirius said whimsically, enjoying the feel of crunching leaves under his shoes.
Lily could tell whatever memory she was emerged in it was one Sirius truly cherished. Lily wondered why Sirius would want to share such a personal thought with her...
"It's just in the distance," Sirius said, hiking up a hillock with Lily dawdling in his trail, "I remember it residing in the north,"
As Sirius passed one particularly ancient tree, Lily noticed someone had carved his or her names onto the scratched trunk. In spindly, messy letters were the names Jamie-poo, Sirwus, Petey and Remmy.
"Horrid spellers, weren't we?" Sirius softly whispered, stopping to observe the tree with a nostalgic twinkle in his eyes.
"Yes, just awful," Lily said, tittering as she carefully traced James' name with her finger. Lily really did feel as if she was submersed in a dream.
Sirius continued up the hill, Lily catching up with him, and smiled joyfully as the object of his interest came into view. There, sitting comfortably in an old, oak tree was a rickety, wooden tree house. It was obvious that it had been constructed in a hurry, for it looked ready to fall apart at any moment.
"And there, Lily, is the Marauder headquarters," Sirius exclaimed proudly, looking upon the tree house like a father would look at his new baby boy.
"That's the cutest thing," Lily said, giggling at the sloppy appearance, "is it safe to climb?"
"Of course! James' dad put some sort of charm on it so it would never topple with the gang all sitting or playing on it," Sirius said, recollecting the memory sweetly, "I remember James' mom being so insistent that it be completely safe,"
Lily smiled prettily at the thought of James' parents and started to scale up the mangy ladder that led into the tree house. Sirius ascended up the ladder after her, cherishing every moment he spent in his memory.
"Is this forest part of James' backyard or something?" Lily asked gently, feeling it unnecessary to raise her voice in such a serene environment.
"Yes, this is but one of hundreds of acres James' property is situated on," Sirius said, watching wonder pass over Lily's features again, "I don't think you really know how much money James has to his name,"
Lily sat in an abandoned corner of the tree house, leaning awkwardly on a protruding branch. Sirius sat beside her and kept sending curious glances towards the entrance of the tree house.
"Why did you not build a roof for your tree house?" Lily asked, chuckling at the lack of walls and roofing. The only thing the tree house really possessed was a floor and ladder leading up to it. It was more like a floating platform than a tree house.
"We tried once, but we weren't the best builders at the age of six," Sirius said, grinning and looking above him into the glaring sun.
Lily admired the lush landscape wildly, her thoughts centering around James once more. It was true; the thought of James being filthy rich hadn't quite registered with her because, to Lily, it made no substantial difference. Now that Lily had glimpsed only a portion of James' property she felt somewhat ashamed. What must he think of her humble, modest house?
Lily's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of crunching leaves and petit voices approaching in the background. Sirius perked up immediately and leaned over the side of the platform, hoping to catch a glimpse of the forthcoming figures.
"I already told you three babies, it wasn't my fault the box of toads got loose!" a tiny, brown- haired boy shouted loudly, trouncing over sticks and leaves that lay in his path with a giant grin.
"My mom threatened to offer up my head as a bludger to the English Quidditch team because of you!" a messy- haired boy of six retorted, poking the other boy's belly with a sharp stick as he frowned.
"OOWW! Quit that stabbin', Potter!" the rebellious toad- boy whined, rubbing his hands over his tummy and sprinting awkwardly toward the tree house with his fussy hair flying wildly.
Lily's eyes opened widely and her mouth parted in a gasp as she observed four, little boys trailing throughout the expansive forest.
"Is that you and James?" Lily inquired as she looked upon the two adorable boys bickering.
"Yes," Sirius said laughably, smiling, "and that is Remus and Peter lagging in the background. I believe they took a bit longer because Peter insisted on stuffing another Turkish delight in his mouth before departure,"
Lily laughed lightly and continued watching the two, little boys carefully. She couldn't get over how SWEET they both were!
"James, your mommy should be sayin' thanks," Sirius started as he began to climb the ladder leading to the tree house, "the dinner party was boring and we made it fun,"
"She don't like frogs in her soup, Sirius!" James scolded sternly, his brows furrowed as he wiped his dirty hands on his white shirt, "she is gonna curse me!"
"Then you should run away from home, dopey!" Sirius said as if it were the answer to all of James' problems, "I'll live in the tree house with yah!"
By this time, both the young Sirius and James were on the platform with Lily and the present day Sirius. Lily glimpsed Remus and Peter throwing large rocks and acorns at flustered birds in their nests below.
"Got em' in dah FACE!" Peter exclaimed happily as he chucked a rock that ricocheted off the tree lodging the disconcerted birds, "I broke'd his beak!"
The six-year-old Remus shook his head as he watched the hyper Peter bob up and down in excitement. Even at six Remus was incredibly intelligent, for he had already deciphered that Peter was incapable of doing anything right. If Peter were to attempt cursing him, Remus would be more concerned for the fellow standing beside him.
"I can still barely understand a word Peter says these days," Sirius whispered to Lily as he moved beside her and watched the hilarious events unfold.
Lily chuckled offhandedly, for she was emerged in the comical conversation occurring between James and Sirius.
"My dad said the other day if I don't be good nobody will marry me," Sirius said flippantly, nudging a small, green inchworm scooting across the platform, "but I says to him, I says, "Girls are gross and yucky!" and he says, "Just wait, just wait." What does that mean?"
"Dunno," James mumbled, looking at Sirius in a clueless fashion, "I'm never gonna' marry cuz I don't like girls much,"
Lily put her hand over her mouth in order to suppress her laughter. James and Sirius were the biggest bachelors in Hogwarts; it was hard to imagine them ever-disliking women!
"Sokay, me and youz will live in our tree house forever! Never have to worry bout' nothing!" the young Sirius said smoothly, tucking his hands behind his head and leaning against the tree trunk supporting the platform.
"BOYS!" a booming, female voice echoed across the forest loudly, "YOUR SNACKS ARE READY! IF YOU BRING ANY WILDLIFE IN THE HOUSE I WILL BECOME VERY ANGRY AND DO SOMETHING VERY RASH! Come home, now!"
"Is that James' mom?" Lily inquired curiously, realizing she had enhanced her voice with the Sonorus spell in order to gain the boys' attention.
"Yes, she often stood on the back- door stoop and yelled across the forest for us to come home," Sirius said, his eyes glazing over, "her snacks were always so tasty too..."
The younger Sirius quickly started to descend from the tree house, a bewildered James clambering clumsily after him. The pant knees of both boys were severely grass-stained.
"You said we were going to live in the tree house!" the little James shouted, "we can't go back home!"
"But I am hungry!" Sirius protested, joining a sensible Remus and frenzied Peter, "you can stay, BUT I WANNA EAT!"
Sirius, Remus and Peter dashed into the forest, eager to return to the Potter mansion and eat their snacks. James sprinting after them, stumbling upon some stones along the way. James' slow, childish run was exceedingly sweet.
The last thing Sirius and Lily heard before the boys disappeared in the woods was, "Will the snake in my pocket will make your mom mad, James?"
°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸
With the blink of an eye, Lily was no longer lounging on the scruffy tree house located deep within the Potter woods, but she was standing beside Sirius, her arms still linked with his, in the middle of the mirrored room. The verdant forest no longer reflected in the glass surrounding them.
"Wha- what?" Lily stuttered unintelligibly, staring in a dumbfounded fashion at the walls encompassing her and Sirius.
"We never left this room, Lily," Sirius said, grinning at the girl's flabbergasted expression, "you conscious mind as well as mine were thrust into my memory, not our physical bodies,"
"But we ran into the mirror!" Lily protested, trying to understand the concept of the room.
"It was a trick of the intellect, your conscious mind walked through the mirror, but not you," Sirius explained, "which demonstrates the dangerous part of what we just did,"
"Someone could tamper with our bodies while we are unknowingly within the memory?" Lily inquired skeptically, crossing her arms.
"It is a possibility," Sirius commented numbly, twisting a lock of his hair around his finger, "and because it was my memory, I can terminate it at any time, bringing us back to reality,"
"It took a split- second to do it too! One minute I'm up in a tree, the next I am once again inhabiting a mirrored room!" Lily said audaciously, utterly intrigued.
"Yes, it took some time until the Marauders and I figured it all out," Sirius said, pulling back the tapestry and ushering Lily out of the room.
Lily and Sirius exited the room in silence, both thinking about the memory they had just left. It really was special to Sirius, Lily could tell by the far- off look present in his alluring eyes.
"Why did you want to show me that memory, Sirius?" Lily asked softly as she followed Sirius down the abandoned hallway.
"I'm not sure, really," Sirius said, his eyes glazing over, "to me it demonstrates the bond the four of us had even when we were young...I thought I would show you what the Marauders were like back in the day,"
"You were trouble makers even then," Lily sighed, chuckling at the proud grin that appeared on Sirius' face.
Sirius led Lily over to the hunchbacked, one-eyed witch adjacent to the elaborate tapestry and tapped his wand on her hump. With a silent incantation, the hump popped open, leaving a petit hole the two friends could squeeze through.
"We are off to Hogsmeade, then?" Lily assumed, climbing down the hole and landing awkwardly on the stone floor belonging to the darkened tunnel.
"I figured if I loosened you up with a few Firewhiskeys I could rent out a room at the local motel and prove I am by far the best Marauder," Sirius said mockingly, igniting the end of his wand and winking seductively at Lily.
"I'm sorry, but I do not succumb to perverts," Lily retorted cheekily, dashing down the gloomy tunnel blindly, Sirius laughing and chasing after her with their only means of light in his hand.
It was rather a stupid thing for Lily to do, running down a dark tunnel without knowing what she may trip on or run into along the way. Unfortunately for her, she was about to learn this lesson in a rather shocking and disturbing way...
"Lily! Wait up!" Sirius whined, squinting as he tried to make out the form of the retreating girl in the darkness.
"Not on your life, Black!" Lily yelled out playfully, her laughter echoing in the tunnel.
Lily's childish game was soon cut short, for her foot caught on an unidentified object beneath her, causing her to trip and land on it. Lily's sharp scream and annoyed "Oomph!" alerted Sirius of her situation, causing him to rush to her side. He hoped she didn't scrap anything.
"You alright, Lily?" Sirius asked, pointing his wand toward her in order to illuminate her surroundings.
"I'm fine, just a little clumsy," Lily grumbled in irritation, getting up off the ground and facing Sirius, "it's funny how often I seem to embarrass myself,"
Sirius' attention was not focused on Lily's embarrassment, but the red liquid trailing down her face and creeping down along her exposed neck. She seemed unaware that her face had blood smeared all over it.
"Did you bang your head?" Sirius asked in urgency, outlining his wand around her face and neck, checking for a wound.
"No, I don't think so," Lily said, wiping some blood off her forehead and examining the glistening consistency on her fingers in panic.
Lily quickly snapped her wand out of her robe pocket and illuminated the tip of it. Lily and Sirius pointed their wands at the object Lily had tripped on, both jerked back in horror at the sight that met their eyes.
"It's a...a dead body," Sirius choked out hoarsely, his eyes growing wide in disgust as Lily let out an ear- piercing scream that echoed menacingly throughout the darkened tunnel.
"GET THIS FRICKEN' BLOOD OFF OF ME!" Lily cried shrilly, ripping off her school robes as Sirius quickly made the congealing blood on her face vanish with his wand.
"Calm down, Lily! Stay still!" Sirius said, trying to vigorously wash away the filth on her face, "I can't get it off when you are squirming like that!"
"WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF A DEAD CORPSE'S BLOOD WAS ON YOUR FACE! Lily screamed in hysteria, her face looking very pale and clammy.
Sirius managed to clean the blood off of Lily's face, neck and hands with difficulty. Guilt was bubbling in Sirius' stomach as he watched Lily silently sob in fright. Sirius wrapped his muscled arms around Lily, letting her rest her head on his shoulder. They both sat against the bricked wall of the tunnel; it was a fair distance away from the body.
"What do we do, Sirius?" Lily whispered, her blood- shot eyes focused on the dead being before them, "we just found a dead person..."
"We could pretend we never saw the body," Sirius started to say in unease.
"SIRIUS! We couldn't possibly!" Lily exclaimed angrily, "there is a dead person in Hogwarts for god's sake!"
"Ok, ok! I will have to report this to Dumbledore then," Sirius said solemnly, his brow furrowed, "but in doing so I will land in big trouble. Not only are we skipping class, but we are in a secret passage leading to Hogsmeade,"
"What? I'm not letting you report this alone!" Lily exclaimed in a challenging tone, "and don't you dare ask me to pretend like I wasn't here!"
"Lily, don't be insane!" Sirius barked, running his hands through his bushel of hair, "there is no point in getting you in trouble too! You are a prefect, think of what this could mean for you!"
"I don't care about the bloody badge!" Lily hissed, getting up off of the ground with Sirius at her side, "I couldn't in good conscience let you take do this alone! I mean, god damn it, we found a murdered person!"
"Screw your bleeding conscience then!" Sirius snapped, "it's my fault we landed in this mess, I refuse to let you get in trouble!"
"There is nothing you can do or say to stop me, Black," Lily said flatly, narrowing her eyes at the handsome Marauder and turning up her nose, "I willing obliged to go to Hogsmeade with you, therefore it is not your fault,"
"Fine, there is no use fighting with you," Sirius said, sighing in frustration and igniting the end of his wand again, "let's go see Dumbledore then."
Lily was taken aback with Sirius' agreeable attitude and warily followed the Marauder down the dank tunnel and out of the humped-witch's back. The duo remained silent, Lily's heels clinking on the stone floors providing the only source of noise. Lily peered out of one of the windows and noticed it was still shining brightly outside. Her stomach lurched as her gaze wandered over to the willow tree by the lake, for James, Remus, Roxanne and Erica were all running around like mad people, most likely playing a game of tickle tag.
"I'm such an idiot," Sirius murmured as he too spotted the group of friends laughing and playing on the green, grassy fields of Hogwarts.
"You are being too hard on yourself," Lily said, staring into the eyes of Sirius, "we are doing the right thing here,"
Sirius offered a feeble smile before continuing to walk toward Dumbledore's office. His head seemed to hang low, his stare remaining on the floor. It was odd to ever glimpse Sirius in such a forlorn state.
"I ruined today for you, Lily," Sirius said, his gaze not meeting hers, "Roxanne was right, I am just a dumb wanker,"
Lily saw the expression on Sirius' face and inwardly gasped. He seemed really put out when he mentioned Roxanne, for the hurt on his face was enough to make her cry.
"Sirius, Roxanne doesn't mean half of what comes out of her mouth," Lily offered softly, "if you ask me, she is just putting on an elaborate show to hide the fact she has a major crush on you,"
"Do you honestly believe that?" Sirius asked gutturally, his expression perking up, "because if Roxanne does like me she has a funny way of showing it..."
Lily chuckled softly, yet her stomach tottered awkwardly as Dumbledore's office statue came into view. Lily prayed that her punishment would be light, for not only was her perfect badge at stake, but she could possibly be suspended.
"Sirius, girls rarely ever display what they're feeling," Lily said quietly, rolling her eyes, "you've got a chance with her, you just need to keep trying,"
"Lord... Lily, you are making me feel awful!" Sirius said, shifting his aloof stare to the ajar, broom cupboard mere meters from the falcon statue, "do you mind if I apologize well in advance?"
"Apologize?" Lily asked curiously, scrunching up her nose in intrigue, "apologize for what?"
"THIS!" Sirius said somewhat regrettably, shoving the petit redhead into the broom closet and shutting the door firmly behind her. With a swift flick of his wand, Sirius had the cupboard locked and sound- proofed.
Lily forcibly smacked into a dozen brooms and mops that scattered to the floor and clattered against the gritty sandstone walls. It was pitch black within the closet; one of Lily's feet was wedged uncomfortably into a water pail. The smell of soiled, soggy mop heads wafted in Lily's nostrils, making her cringe and plug her nose in disgust.
"SIRIUS BLACK!" Lily shrieked in a high- pitched tone, battling with a rogue duster tickling her neck, "OPEN THIS DOOR IMMEDIATELY!"
"Sorry, Lils, but I won't let you get in trouble on my mischievous account," Sirius exclaimed loudly, not hearing Lily's protests, "I'll have James fetch you soon, I promise!"
The last thing Lily heard was Sirius' breakneck, diminishing footsteps nearing the jagged falcon statue down the granite, lackluster corridor...
°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸
Lily's back was propped up against the wall of the cluttered broom closet about two hours later, her neck rubbing up against a particularly rough sponge hanging on a hook on the wall. About an hour ago she had been fuming and spouting out smoke like a rusty steam engine, but now Lily had given up trying to maneuver around the tin buckets littering the floor and had resorted to waiting patiently for a rescuer.
Lily heard prominent footsteps nearing the closet, and when the door opened and she was exposed to light her eyes squinted uncomfortably.
"Fancy finding you in a broom closet," a sexy, masculine voice said silkily as Lily heard the door creak open, "mind if I join you in here for awhile?"
"And why, Mr. Potter, would I ever want to inhabit a broom closet with you?" Lily retorted back in a teasing voice, grasping James' outstretched hand and getting up off of the closet floor.
"How offending!" James announced in a mocking tone, pulling Lily up and closing the closet door, "how long were you in there?"
"Two bloody hours!" Lily shrieked in outrage, causing James to clamp his hands over his ears, "did you have to take your bleeding time getting here?"
"I only found out five minutes ago of your whereabouts, Ms. Evans!" James snapped, though he did not seem angry, "apparently Sirius is in some sort of trouble. He got back to the common room a few minutes ago and I found him packing some of his things. It was before he left that he told me you were locked in a closet somewhere,"
"O my giddy aunt! Where was he going with all his things?" Lily asked in fright, hoping Sirius had not been suspended, or worse, expelled.
"I was hoping you could tell me that," James said, his expression turning to one of thorny worry, "and why the blooming hell were you locked in a closet?"
Lily looked meekly puzzled for a moment; she didn't know whether to scream and find Sirius before he took all the blame or fall to the ground and cry.
"James," Lily started, her eyes filling with tears, "something awful has happened,"
"What? Are you alright?" James asked, panicking at the sight of Lily's watery orbs.
James lightly reached out for Lily's right hand and stroked her palm, hoping to sooth and calm her. James hated seeing Lily in such an upset state, but it seemed he was glimpsing this side of her quite often now.
"I'm... fine. Sirius and I were on our way to Hogsmeade, but we never ending up getting there," Lily said in almost a whisper, clutching James' hand tightly, "I was running down the passage leading into Honeydukes, but I tripped on something along the way,"
"Tripped? On what?" James asked, barely able to ingest the suspense.
"A...corpse," Lily said throatily, her porcelain skin turning paler at the thought of the bloody body abandoned on the soiled, tunnel floor.
"A...what!" James inquired in stunned disbelief, his eyes narrowing in curiosity, "as in a dead, or murdered person?"
"Yes, James!" Lily cried, distress painting a picture on her face, "I tripped on the body and got blood all over my face and hands,"
Lily couldn't help but let an anguished sob emit from her lips as her eyes met James' worried ones. James pulled Lily tightly to his chest and tried to sooth her trembling by stroking her hair and rubbing her back. He himself could barely believe the story Lily had just told him. Why did Lily always have to be the one exposed to terrible events? It ached James to see Lily so distressed lately. All he wanted to do was protect her, but so far he was doing a lousy job.
James and Lily remained in their tight embrace for awhile, thankful no unwanted guests had come dashing round the corner to disturb them. James cradled Lily's head with one of his hands, he loved the way her head found solace on his muscled shoulder.
"Come, I'm taking you back to Gryffindor tower," James whispered softly in Lily's ear, pulling away from her and holding her hand tightly in his own, "we will get you some food, a hot shower and some sleep,"
Lily let James lead her up the grand staircase and into the empty Gryffindor Common Room. It was about suppertime; no one was occupying the tower. Lily's face was tear streaked and her hair was in disarray, though she didn't mind James glimpsing her in such a vulnerable state.
The secret couple ascended up to the Girl's Dormitory and Lily quickly popped into the bathroom and had a much-anticipated shower. Lily was extremely disturbed and alarmed to see the water seeping through the shower drains tinged with hues of red. James waited patiently on Lily's bed, and when she exited the washroom in her pink pajamas and soaked hair he embraced her again.
"Are you alright, Lily?" James inquired again, brushing strands of wet, red hair out of her face with his gentle hands; "can I get you anything?"
"You have done enough already, James," Lily in a genuine, yet fatigued voice, "I'm worried about what trouble Sirius is in,"
"He locked you in that closet, didn't he?" James asked soberly, making a mental note to thank his friend profusely for doing so and sparing her extra trouble.
"Of course he did," Lily said sadly, placing her hand on James' knee, "I should receive the same punishment as him. I can't let him endure this trouble alone,"
"Lily," James said in almost a begging tone, "don't do anything rash. Sirius can handle this; he made this sacrifice for you because you are his friend. You may land him in more trouble if you come forward now,"
"How do you figure that?" Lily asked in challenging puzzlement.
"He undoubtedly told Dumbledore he was alone when he found the...body. You don't want to make him out to be a liar," James said, trying to sound intellectual and save Lily from unnecessary problems.
"I suppose you're right...but I feel so awful," Lily said softly, looking downcast, "it is noble of Sirius to tell Dumbledore about the corpse even though he could suffer consequences,"
"It'll probably be splashed all over the Daily Prophet tomorrow morning," James said logically, tracing Lily's spine with his hand as he spoke, "I wonder what details will be released to the public,"
"Imagine, a murder in Hogwarts...if it even is a murder," Lily said, a far-off look occupying her expression as she enjoyed the feel of James' touch.
"Well, I very much doubt whomever that is died of natural causes," James said, scrunching up his nose in thought, "I'd like to know who the poor bloke is,"
"I think I'm already a tad too familiar with him," Lily said, shuddering at the thought of her blood stained hands and face.
Deciding it best to explain to their friends the events that had taken place, James wrapped Lily up in a thick, quilted blanket (which she begrudgingly adorned) and the two made themselves comfortable in front of the common room fire. Lily and James leaned up against an arm of one of the plushy davenports and awaited the return of their friends.
"There you two are!" Erica exclaimed calmly, popping her head from behind the portrait and entering the room with Remus, Roxanne and Peter, "were you not hungry?"
"I've lost my appetite," Lily said, doing her best to block out the horrific images in her mind.
"Come sit for a moment, we have something to tell you," James said, beckoning over the group, "it concerns Sirius,"
"I was quite surprised not to see him at dinner," Remus said, taking a seat around the fire, "it is not like him to forgo a meal,"
"What's wrong? Where is he?" Roxanne inquired curiously, trying her best to not seem to engulfed within the conversation as she too took a seat.
"Really, Roxanne! Your concern for him is so touching," James said, cracking a small grin, "I must tell him how you fretted about his whereabouts!"
"You do that, Potter," Roxanne started, a menacingly twinkle in her eye and a sly smile crossing her lips, "and you will not be in a fit state to play in your next Quidditch game."
"You are a scary woman, Roxanne," James said simply, making the group, including Roxanne, laugh.
"So," Remus started after the conversation had turned serious once more, "what happened to Sirius exactly?"
James began explaining the events that had taken place a few hours back, Lily filling in the parts he was sketchy about. Lily remained quite pale through the explanation, but Roxanne and Erica's pigmentation could easily rival hers.
"I can't believe he went to Dumbledore alone," Roxanne said, a far-off look in her eyes, "he locked you in that closet to save you from trouble..."
"Such a gracious thing to do," Erica said gently, entangling her hands with Remus', "I hope he won't be punished, I mean, he is reporting a murder!"
"Lily, do you know who it was that was killed?" Remus inquired, wondrous possibilities swimming in his mind.
"No, I didn't recognize the...body," Lily replied uncomfortably, squirming underneath the warm duvet, "I wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible, but I remember he look sort of young...dark hair? For some reason he reminded me of someone..."
"But where is Sirius now?" Roxanne asked again, starting to lose her patience and disregarding the identity of the deceased person.
"We don't know," James said solemnly, leaning back and resting his head on the arm of the chair, "all we can do now is wait,"
One by one each friends drifted to sleep around the crackling fire, Erica with her hands still entwined with Remus' and Lily with her head resting on James' shoulder. Peter had left for the dormitories, leaving Roxanne alone with her conflicting thoughts.
Hours ticked by and Sirius did not cross the threshold of the portrait hole. His jolly air did not fill the emptying common room, his ridiculous sexual jibs didn't reach the ears women, and his cocked eyebrows did not bounce upon his forehead when appealing, silhouetted girls strutted by.
"Stupid bugger," Roxanne mumbled in a subdued whisper, laying on one of the upholstered couches in the common room, still wide-awake, "Sirius...where are you?"
°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸ °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸
»-(¯v´¯)-»AUTHOR'S NOTES»-(¯v´¯)-»
Hello everyone! P
So...I haven't updated in almost two
months...that has caused some awkward reviews. I really am sorry
about that, but my life is so hectic and busy I barely ever find time
to write at all anymore. But you guys have to admit this was a pretty
long chapter! D (one of my longest even!) Now, who can guess
whom the murdered person is? I left a few clues in the chapter,
nothing to obvious though so you will have to exert a lot of
imagination to guess whom was killed. I would adore reading guesses
in your reviews:D So, please review everyone, for I am
confidant the next chapter will be out sooner next time around
because I am going to thoroughly enjoy writing the next
chapter! PLEASE CONTINUE READING AND REVIEWING! D
(if you
post any questions in your reviews you can bet on a speedy reply from
me!)
pratty prongs princesse