As soon as their classmates see the ring on her finger and realise what it means, rumours start springing up like rabid weeds. In a school as insular as Hogwarts, water and sunlight and dirt aren't hard to come by, so the hateful whispers have no shortage of nutrients to breed from.
She must be pregnant, they say with condescending smirks. Why else would they be getting married so young?
She didn't seem like the type for a shotgun wedding, others say with masks of polite concern hiding their smug satisfaction.
I guess what they say about Muggles being extra fertile must be true, still others say as they try to use it to justify their prejudices.
It doesn't take long for it to circle back around to her. Within a day, conversation has been clogged up by the insidious rumours, all other topics of interest suffocated by their sheer force of persistence. It bugs her that her reputation is being smeared, but she forces herself to ignore it. Unless or until someone actually confronts her about it, she sees no point in addressing the matter. The two of them know better, and their friends know better, and the professors who approached her in concern to discuss arranging alternate schooling know better, and everyone else can get stuffed.
It's with this mindset that she approaches James without compunction when she notices him leaving the Quidditch pitch with Sirius and Remus. Only one other student is around, but Lily still feels like she's trailing a cape of fire as she marches across the grounds to see him. It would be tempting to conjure one up just to make her point, if only she thought there were a chance the others would get the joke.
And then she realises who the other student is, and her focus deflates in an instant as anger flares up within her. Rita Skeeter. She's a gossip and a liar who has caused nothing but trouble throughout her time at school. She started out by meddling with Lily's friendship with Severus, trying to make everyone believe they were star-crossed lovers in an attempt to humiliate them both, before moving on to attempting to 'discover' the truth about why Remus is away so often. If anyone could trump Lily's hatred for underage Death Eater wannabees, it would be her.
Her eyes glance up, and she meets Sirius' intense gaze as it flicks from her to the other girl. Go on,he seems to be saying. I dare you.
Mischief alights in her eyes as she starts to sprint towards her fiancé. Calling out his name as if physically pained by their time apart, she leaps into his arms, startling a loud, "Oof!" out of him as his arms come up to catch her. Smoothly, she wraps her legs around his waist, deciding to ignore the discomfort of having her skirt bunched up around her thighs for the sake of the prank.
"Go along with it," she whispers into his ear. Then, as loudly as she can without being obvious, she brightly exclaims, "James, darling. It's so marvellous to see you! I was hoping to tell you the news before dinner, and now I can!"
"News?" he asks. His eyes are focused – his expression tells her he realises this is a prank – but confused as he stares up at her.
"Yes! I spoke to Madam Pomfrey, and she said it – sorry, he – is a boy!"
"What?" Remus asks, looking at her like she's an alien.
She sends him an exaggerated wink, hoping that he too will get the hint. She doesn't want to risk outright telling him in case the other girl can overhear, so that will have to do even if he doesn't.
"Congratulations!" Sirius shouts as he runs at the couple, arms wide open, almost knocking them over with the force of the collision. His arms wrap around them, engulfing them in a tight embrace. "This is so exciting!"
"Isn't it just? James, dear, what do you think? I know you wanted a girl, but…"
Rolling his eyes, James shifts one hand until it's gripping the back of her head and uses it to pull her towards him. Their mouths fuse in a passionate dance that has Sirius winking at Remus even as he continues to hold onto them like a koala clinging to a tree. When air deprivation starts to become an issue, James pulls away, shooting Sirius a filthy look to reprimand him for his lack of personal boundaries.
Still, his eyes are rife with amusement when he turns his gaze back to his fiancée. "Fluffybutt had the kittens, then?"
"Is Skeeter gone?" Lily asks, avoiding the question, and realisation dawns in Remus' eyes at their words.
"She's running back to the castle now," he says, shaking his head slowly. "You didn't have to do this for me. You know the rumours will be even more brutal now."
"Let them be," she replies dismissively. "Everything I said is completely innocent, so I'll just maintain that she purposefully misconstrued my comments. And yes, James. They're all boys. Madam Pomfrey said we can come down to meet them anytime we like. Her siblings are going to take most of them out to their farm so they can grow up with more space and less disruptive children, but she said we can have our pick of the litter."
James has already started walking by the time she's finished speaking. "We'll go now."
"Put me down," she tells him, laughing, even as she tightens her grip around his neck so she won't fall. A mischievous grin lights up his face as he shakes his head at her, and she lets her forehead drop down to rest against his. "Please," she says sarcastically, timing her words to avoid the worst of Sirius and Remus' chortles. "This is extremely impractical, you know. We'll get there much faster if you – "
At that, his arms pull away from her, giving her the space to uncurl her legs and drop to the ground. As she slides her arms out from around his neck, he catches her left hand in his, absentmindedly playing with the engagement ring in a gesture that neither of them have seemed able to control since she first accepted his proposal.
"Of course that is the thing that convinces you to let me down."
"You know me well."
"Onwards to Fluffybutt!" Sirius declares, high on the excitement. Roaring with infectious laughter, he sweeps them all along with him as he leads the charge to the infirmary.