Chapter Thirty-Seven:

Back At Hogwarts

"Have some more bacon," Marlene suggested, pushing forward her plate.

"No, thanks," I said. "I'm full."

"Are you sure. It tastes really good," Dorcas said.

I stared at them. "I'm sure it does, but I'm not hungry."

Marlene winced. "Lil, you're so thin..."

"That's what happens when you're locked in a cellar. Look, I promise, I'll be healthy again in no time," I assured them.

"I still think you should have stayed at St. Mungo's a few more nights...the Healers thought it was a good idea," Dorcas said.

"James's mum let us go. Do you really think she would have allowed her son to come back if he wasn't perfectly healthy?" I told them irritably.

As I waited for Dorcas and Marlene to finish their food, I became very aware of the fact that several people were staring at me. I'd only arrived back at Hogwarts late last night and I knew to expect a few stares, but this was a little out of hand. It seemed that everywhere I looked, people were pointing, whispering. Blushing, I put my head down, wanting to avoid any eye-contact.

"What's the matter, Lily?" Marlene frowned. She always noticed when something was wrong with me. It was something I both hated and loved about her.

"Can we go?" I muttered. "People are staring."

Dorcas made an impatient noise with her throat. I looked up to find her glaring at me.

"What?" I asked.

"I just think that's it's bloody rude when people stare," she said loudly.

I felt my face burn, but all around me, people seemed to have gotten the hint. They quickly turned around, embarrassed.

"Thanks," I muttered.

"You still want to go?" Marlene asked me gently.

"Yes, please," I said, throwing my backpack over my shoulder.

Dorcas and Marlene nodded and they began gathering up all their belongings.

"Lily?" Somebody tapped my shoulder. I turned around to find Nate staring at me, looking relieved.

"Nate!" I squealed, throwing my arms around him. He hugged me back tightly.

"I'm so sorry, Lil. This is all my fault. I should have never told you to go after James. If I hadn't said anything, then they wouldn't have ever gotten the chance to get you. And I never should have agreed to help you sneak out in the first place. It was so stupid of me—" he rambled, grasping my shoulders, and looking me straight in the eye. His eyes were wide and anguished.

"Nate!" I yelled, cutting him off.

"Yeah?" he said weakly.

"Don't be stupid. I was the one who was stupid enough to sneak out. I was the one who ran out into the street without any protection. Besides, if we want to blame anyone, then we blame those bloody death eaters."

"Those death eaters do seem to have a pattern of causing trouble," he muttered.

I laughed. "Yeah, they do."

Nate gave me a small smile. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Me too," I said, smiling warmly at him.

"And erm...Sirius and James...they're alright too?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Those two idiots are probably already planning their next big prank. They're absolutely fine," I assured him.

"Good. Good."

"Well," I said, gesturing to the awaiting Dorcas and Marlene, "we're actually leaving. So, see you around?"

"Of course. Come find me if you need anything," he said.

"Oh!" I exclaimed before I could forget. "Nate, transfiguration!"

He rolled his eyes. "Of course you're worried about school."

"What'd I miss?" I asked.

"Nothing big. I'll help you catch up later," he promised.

I grinned. "Thank you!"

I turned around, walking over to Dorcas and Marlene.

"Nate was really worried about you," Marlene commented.

I smiled. "He's a good friend."

"We still have another hour before our first class," Dorcas told us, checking her watch. "Where do you want to go?"

I thought of James, who was probably still sleeping. "Let's go back to the common room," I suggested.

"Okay." Marlene shrugged.

We walked all the way back to the common room, Marlene and Dorcas filling me in on what happened in the past couple of days. They told me all about how the Slytherins took advantage of the fact that James and Sirius were gone to punish poor Pete. They had sent him to the hospital wing several times. Dorcas even recalled seeing Peter sprout tentacles all over his face at one point. She said that if it hadn't had been so sad, it would have actually been quite funny. They told me all about how Remus was probably the most worried out of everybody. At one point, he and Dorcas were planning to run away from Hogwarts and go find us themselves. Marlene had stopped them, of course, telling them to be rational about it all.

"It was all I could do from keeping those two form storming out of the place," Marlene recalled.

"Dorcas, I believe, but Remus?" I said in disbelief.

"He nearly went mad. You three are like his family." Dorcas reminded me.

I smiled sadly, making a mental note to give Remus a big hug later.

"Password?" the Fat Lady asked.

"Gurdyroot," I told her.

"Right you are," she said, "and welcome back," she added before swinging open for us.

I climbed through the portrait hole just in time to see Remus, Sirius, and James coming down.

"Hey!" James smiled upon seeing me.

"Hey," I said before he pulled me into a deep kiss.

"James," I muttered, pushing him away, "not in public!"

"Aww, you two are so cute," Marlene gushed.

"Yeah, we are," James agreed, wrapping his arm around me.

"Hey, had anyone seen Pete?" Sirius frowned.

Remus shrugged. "He's been disappearing quite a lot lately. I wonder where he's been going."

"Maybe he has a secret girlfriend," Dorcas suggested.

"You think?" James wondered.

"Well, I wish he was here." Marlene sighed. "You guys, do you realize this is the first time we've all been together since...the kidnapping."

"You know, I hate what happened to the three of you, but it's really brought me a new perspective on everything that's been happening," Remus said.

"I know what you mean," I told him. "It's like...I always knew there was stuff happening out there, but I'd never actually been personally affected by it before...it really changed me. I want to be out there, you know? Fighting...defeating You-Know-Who."

"Voldemort," James, Remus, and Sirius corrected me at the same time.

"V-Voldemort," I conceded. James looked at me, surprised I had been willing to say the name.

Sirius nodded. "That's why I'm joining the Order after Hogwarts."

"Me too," James agreed. "I want to be like Dad. He's an auror and a member of the order at the same time."

Marlene nodded fervently. "I want to join...and watch out for Mum and Dad...they're not as young as they used to be. I don't like them fighting..."

I shook my head. "I don't know, Mar. Your parents were pretty good out there."

"They all were," Sirius said, remembering the fiery and skill the Order had. I remembered too. The way they worked together, almost as if they could read each others minds. The way they blocked spells easily, as if it were as easy as breathing. The way they caused those ruthless death eaters to shrink back in fear. I'd been awestruck.

"I just hope I'm good enough," James said quietly. I looked at him. It was one of the few time James allowed us to see his vulnerability, to see that he wasn't nearly as confident as he pretended to be.

"You will be," Sirius assured him. "We'll all be."

Remus was quiet. "I just hope we all survive this..."

"Remus!" Dorcas squeaked. "Don't say that!"

I smiled sadly. "He has a point, Dorky. James, Sirius, and I barely made it last time...we need to be prepared when the time comes. I don't want to come close to dying again. And I especially don't want to come close to almost losing one of you again."

"I don't think you'll have that problem, Evans." Sirius chuckled. "I saw the way you handled yourself with those death eaters...you're good..."

I blinked. "Me?"

"Lil, give yourself some credit." James rolled his eyes.

I felt my face burn and I knew I must have resembled a tomato. I'd always been fairly good at dueling, but I was nothing compared to the marauders (well, except Peter; he's quite rubbish at dueling). I'd seen Sirius, James, and Remus all at work in DADA class, and even in real life, and they were quite skilled. I felt a sense of pride and honor at their approval.

"Merlin, we should probably get to class," Remus muttered, looking at his watch.

James grinned. "Excellent! We have Transfiguration! Oh, how I've missed my dear old Minnie."

Sirius stared at him. "You're excited for class. I knew Evans would be a bad influence on you."

"Hey!" I exclaimed, not sure whether or not I should be offended.

"The only reason he's excited is because he knows he's McGonagall's favorite. She'll probably be so happy he's back, she won't even assign him homework," Marlene said bitterly.

Remus scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I don't know...McGonagall's pretty tough..."

"But she definitely does favors James," Dorcas said decidedly.

"What are you talking about?" James exclaimed. "McGonagall gives me detention nearly every week."

Sirius nodded in agreement with James. "If any teacher shows favoritism, it's definitely Slughorn with Lily."

"He'll probably burst into tears when Lily walks into class," Dorcas said as she climbed through the portrait hole.

I rolled my eyes. "He only did that once! And it was just because I had been kidnapped for nearly a week."

"He didn't burst into tears when he saw me," James pointed out, following me out of the portrait hole.

"I bet McGonagall will make us do all the work we missed anyway. She won't care that we were locked in a dirty cellar for days. I bet she has all of our assignments ready for us as soon as we walk in," Sirius grumbled.

I shrugged. "Nate already promised he'd help me catch up."

"Nate?" James questioned lightly.

I bit my lip. "That's not a problem, is it?" I asked quietly, allowing the others to walk ahead of us so nobody would overhear.

"He's your partner in that class. Why would it be a problem?"

I nodded. "Well, you didn't seem to like him very much earlier."

"Well, that's because he fancied you."

"You don't think he does anymore?" I asked hopefully, eyeing Marlene's distancing figure. I knew Marlene thought Nate was fit. They would make an awesome couple. Much better than Marlene and Jason.

James shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure he still does, but I don't blame the bloke. Plus, I trust you."

I stared at him. "You never cease to surprise me, Potter," I finally said with a small smile.

He shrugged. "Like Sirius said, you've been a bad influence on me."

I was about to retort, but Amelia Bones suddenly appeared in front of us.

"Lily!" she exclaimed delightedly. I'd known Amelia since I was eleven years old. She was a pretty powerful witch, and I had deep respect for her.

She often gave off this cool and poised manner, but underneath it all, she was just about the friendliest and bravest person I knew. She was in the same year as me, but she was a Hufflepuff. I always wondered whether she should have been a Gryffindor or Ravenclawe what with her brains and bravery.

Amelia had probably been my biggest competition for Head Girl, and I was genuinely surprised when I won over her. I just hoped Dumbledore knew what he was doing when he made that decision.

"Amelia," I said with a smile, "it's good to see you. You know my boyfriend James?" I asked, gesturing to James.

"Of course," she said. "Good to see you again, James. Oh, I'm so glad you're okay, Lily. Both of you!"

I grinned. "Thanks, Amelia."

She checked her watch anxiously. "I have to get to class, but we can talk later at the Prefects meeting."

"Brilliant," I said, waving as she ran off to get to class. "Oh, isn't she just the sweetest?" I sighed, turning back around to James.

He grinned stupidly at me.

"What?" I asked self consciously, wondering if there was something in my teeth.

"You called me your boyfriend."

I rolled my eyes. "What did you think you were, you prat?"

"I just like the sound of it that's all. James Potter: Lily's handsome and charming boyfriend. I like the sound of it."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on," I said, pulling him along. "Let's get to class."

James, however, pulled me back and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"James, we're going to be late..." I mumbled, glancing over my shoulder at the empty hallway.

"Well, your boyfriend wants to kiss you," he replied, leaning in.

"You're never going to let the boyfriend thing go, are you?" I sighed.

He grinned, his face inches away from mine. "Nope," he said before smashing his lips into mine. My body reacted immediately, and I pushed myself closer to him, closing any space between us. I felt myself being pushed up against the wall, but I didn't mind, because all I could think of was James and the feel of his lips on mine. He lifted me up slightly, and I wrapped my legs around him.

And then the bell rang.

"James!" I gasped, jumping away from him. I looked around the empty hallway, grateful nobody had seen my momentary loss of sanity. James looked slightly flustered, running his hands through his hair.

"We're late," he finally said.

I bit my lip, remembering how seconds ago, James was pushing me up against the wall, kissing me like no bloke had ever kissed me before. "We'll finish that later," I told him. His face broke into a cocky grin. Rolling my eyes, I grabbed his hand, and we ran for class.