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Hello everyone, here is chapter thirty-six. Readers, please review. Thanks!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. All (well, most, anyway) characters are from J K Rowling's brilliant best-selling series.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Hans Neumann
November soon gave way to December, as the weather grew steadily colder and rainier, until one day, Lily woke up to find the entirety of the Hogwarts grounds covered with a layer of pure white snow. She stood next to her window to take in the breathtaking sight, thinking about how she'd be home in a few days, and not looking forward to it very much; going home meant the sullen and annoying company of Petunia, something which she could've done without.
Still, the thought of spending her holidays with her parents cheered her up. She remembered with a tight knot in her stomach the disaster that the last Christmas had been; her present to Petunia had been received with as much relish as one taking a dose of nasty, bitter cough medicine. She was taking no chances this year; chocolate was all her sister would be getting from her. Her presents to her parents were far better.
She got dressed and made her way to breakfast with Marlene; they had a free period before Potions that morning, which was why Liz and Mary had decided to sleep in (Lily and Marlene had given them up as lost causes before coming to breakfast). To Lily's surprise, Marlene looked alert and active, as opposed to her usual sleepiness every morning at least until the end of the first class.
"You're up early," she pointed out to Marlene, who rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah, I know – I was really tired after practice yesterday, so I crashed pretty early. It's not like it's going to happen every day, is it?"
"Yeah – if it does, your reputation as a sleepyhead will be ruined," said Lily, grinning, and Marlene jokingly hit her on the arm. "Anyway – what're you going to do during the holidays?"
"Well – I'm mostly going to spend it with my family," replied Marlene, "We usually go out somewhere every Christmas – but this year, we're just going to stay at home and have a quiet little Christmas. And hey –" she suddenly sounded like she'd just realized something, "—you should come over! For a few days, at least – have you been to London?"
"Well – unless King's Cross is situated in Paris –" Lily began, but Marlene smacked her lightly on the arm. "No, Lil – I meant – have you really been to London? As a tourist?"
"Er – no," said Lily, frowning. "I mean, I came to your house last summer, but that was only for tea – and I do have an aunt who stays there, but I haven't exactly toured –"
"Then it's settled!" Marlene exclaimed. "I'll have a word with my parents – and let you know when you can come!"
"Thanks, Marlene," said Lily cheerfully. "And you should come to my house, too – we're having this big family dinner on Christmas day, but Boxing day would be great! I'll invite Mary, too!"
"Sounds great!" said Marlene enthusiastically. "But Mary's going to Spain for most of the holidays – so she won't be here. And what about Liz?"
"Well – Liz is going to Brazil," said Lily, a little enviously. "Mr Huntington's got a distant cousin who works for the Brazilian Ministry of Magic, who's invited them to Rio de Janeiro for Christmas! I'm so jealous – I've heard that New Year's Eve in Rio is the most celebrated one in the world – and she gets to go there!"
"Nice, that'll be fun," said Marlene appreciatively. "Well – since our friends are being so inconsiderate to us – we should have our own fun," she added with a hint of sarcasm, and Lily laughed. She liked Marlene, and looked forward to a different kind of holiday this year.
They entered the Great Hall and took seats at the far end of the table, and ate a leisurely breakfast. Liz and Mary arrived soon, and once they were done, Lily lifted her goblet of water – but to her surprise, the water flew right at her, and she caught a faceful. There was a hoot of laughter from behind her. "Wow, you clearly haven't mastered the art of drinking water, Evans!" came the familiar voice of Sirius Black, and she gritted her teeth before looking around her.
Elsewhere, all over the Great Hall, people were recoiling as water or pumpkin juice flew out of their goblets and drenched the ones too slow to react. A ripple of laughter echoed across the Hall, and Lily looked up at the staff table to see an amused-looking Dumbledore talking to an irate Professor McGonagall. Next to her, Liz wore a smirk on her face as she glanced up at Black, saying, "Your doing, I presume?"
Black smiled and said, "My lips are sealed, Hunt. I claim no knowledge of –"
"Nice one, mate!" said Peter, coming up to Black just then, his watery-blue eyes full of amusement. "I wasn't sure if we'd timed it right – but now, it looks like we did!"
"Thanks a lot, Pete," said Black huffily, with a sideways glance at Liz and a still-sopping Mary, who narrowed her eyes as she tried to dry off her robes as quickly as she could. Lily giggled and applied a quick Drying Charm over herself. I seem to be doing that a lot this year, she thought wryly.
"Where's your usual partner in crime?" Marlene asked Black as she wiped the juice off her face.
"Dreamland," said Black promptly. "We tried to wake him up but he shooed us away – rather unlike him to miss a – I mean, he must be tired… He can be late to Potions if he wants to…"
Lily rolled her eyes and stood up. "Well – we'll be late if we don't leave now – so, let's go!" she said, picking up her bag. Black grinned and said, "Yeah – another morning of Slughorn fawning all over you – should be fun, eh?"
"Essentially, Friday," said Liz, her tone sardonic, and everyone laughed as Lily blushed crimson.
"You're jealous," she returned promptly, and he laughed. "No way! A Marauder will never be a teacher's pet!" he said passionately. Lily rolled her eyes and set off towards the dungeons, and the rest followed.
They walked into their classroom and took their usual places, with Lily sitting next to Severus. "So, what're you going to do for the holidays?" he asked her as he took out his textbook.
"Oh, you know – the usual," said Lily. "Go home, have fun with my parents, maybe visit Matthew – and have a 'who-can-be-meaner contest' with Petunia, for nothing completes a holiday without that!" she added dryly.
"You're going to lose that contest," he returned, his tone just as dry but his black eyes glinting with amusement. She laughed and said, "That's one contest I don't mind losing!" He smiled back and said, "I don't think you'll beat anyone at that – you're too nice." She blushed and turned away, just in time to see Potter enter the classroom in a rush, with one odd addition to his usual appearance – a grey, woolly hat covering his hair completely. He immediately took his place next to Black, who smirked.
"Trust Potter to make a grand entrance," said Severus scathingly, "The bloody, attention-seeking twat!" She frowned and said, "Hey, come on, the bloke's running because he overslept – I don't exactly think he woke up this morning and decided, 'Hey, I'm going to make a grand entrance in Potions today!'"
"You never know," said Severus darkly, his eyes full of loathing as they observed Potter set up his cauldron. Lily shook her head; sure, Severus held a grudge against Potter, but why was he so intense about it? And they say girls are complicated, she thought wryly as Professor Slughorn walked into the classroom and beamed around at them all.
"Well, well – since this is the last class of term, I thought we could have some fun!" he announced as they all sat up to pay attention. He continued enthusiastically, "How about we brew the – Essence of Hunger? A gobletful of this funny little Potion and someone who has just eaten will feel hungry enough to eat a full meal again!"
"That's a useless Potion for Peter, Professor," said Black loudly, and a ripple of laughter ran throughout the class. Slughorn chuckled richly and said, "Also – you all will work with new partners today – just to see if you can work well together with someone whose working style is unfamiliar to you. Now, now –" he added as the class gave a collective groan, "—this exercise should be at least a little challenging, shouldn't it? Here's who will partner up today –"
Lily fervently hoped that she wouldn't be paired up with Mulciber, Avery or any other despicable Slytherin in their year, especially after setting Mulciber's robes on fire and causing him to be the object of ridicule for at least a fortnight after that incident. Luckily, Slughorn seemed to be pairing boys off with boys and girls with girls. "Miss Evans – with Miss Bond," he read from the list in his hand, and Lily's spirits lifted slightly; after all, Ashley Bond often partnered with Liz, and she'd worked well with her for three years. "Mr Snape – and Mr Potter," Slughorn continued, and the class went deadly quiet; nearly everyone knew that the last time Potter and Severus had come face-to-face, the latter had been hit with a Bat-Bogey Hex – these sorts of things spread through the school faster than the wind.
She quickly looked at Severus before chancing a glance at Potter; it was hard to tell which face showed more anger and hatred. Shuddering slightly, she gave Severus an encouraging smile as Slughorn called, "That's that! Now, get ready – find your partners and give me a nice Potion in the next hour. Fastest pair gets a bar of Honeydukes' best chocolate!"
"Good enough for Pete to put in an effort!" Black said loudly once again, and there was another titter of laughter as Peter went pink. There was a sudden scraping of tables and chairs as people got up to go and sit to their partners for the day. "It'll be over soon," said Lily to Severus, who only nodded moodily in her direction and stalked off towards the back of the classroom where Potter sat rigidly. She followed him with a worried gaze. I hope they don't kill each other, she thought sardonically.
"They really don't like each other, do they?" said a soft voice, and Lily turned around to see Ashley Bond slide gracefully in the seat next to her. She was quite good-looking; her dark hair fell past her shoulders, and her light-blue eyes were amused. "A Galleon says that someone's nose will be broken by the end of the class." She laughed.
Lily shrugged and said, "As long as it's not Severus's." Ashley laughed again and said, "We'll see – my money's on Potter breaking Snape's nose."
Lily tried to recall what she knew about Ashley. Sure, on occasions that they had to work in pairs in Potions, Liz worked with her. Liz had told her that Ashley was one of the few Slytherins who didn't seem to be prejudiced against Muggleborns, and she was reasonably good at Potions – but other than that, she didn't really know much. However, Liz hadn't said anything bad about her – which spoke volumes in itself, considering her best friend's general prejudice against Slytherins.
"So, d'you want to get started?" she asked Ashley, who snorted. "This is a class, so I think that is what is expected," she said dryly, and Lily felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. Maybe working with a Slytherin other than Sev wouldn't be so bad after all.
They brought their ingredients and began to work on their Potion. "Really, apples?" said Ashley, frowning over the instructions in the textbook. Lily smiled and said, "Apples contain fructose – it's a hunger-inducing substance, so – makes sense, doesn't it?"
"It's like you don't need the textbook!" Ashley exclaimed in mock admiration, and Lily rolled her eyes. "No, really – how come you're so good at Potions? It's like all this comes naturally to you!" Ashley added.
Lily blushed faintly and said, "You're not so bad yourself, Liz told me."
Ashley snorted and said, "Liar." She began to cut the apples with lightning-quick speed; the knife was almost a blur.
"No, really," said Lily earnestly as she began to boil the water. "Liz said you do the complicated stuff like cutting things to equal sizes very well – plus your hands are a lot gentler than hers, so you do all the skinning and peeling."
Ashley looked surprised. "Huh. That's odd, I always thought she didn't like me. Oh, she's nice and all –" she added quickly, catching Lily's eye, "—but, I dunno, I always felt she'd rather work with anyone else than me. It's a pity, really – I think Liz is pretty cool."
She's perceptive, thought Lily. Or maybe Liz isn't as good at hiding her prejudice as she thinks…
"I think Liz is pretty cool, too," she said stoutly, as Ashley added the diced apples to their potion and began to chop Gentian roots into equal sizes.
There was a pause, and Lily quickly shot a glance at Potter and Severus, who stood as far away from each other at their table, with (to her surprise) a cauldron each in front of them. It looked like they were making separate potions.
"I dunno what you think of us Slytherins, Lily," came Ashley's soft voice, and she turned again to face to other girl, who continued, "But not all of us have a bias against – you know – someone who isn't a pureblood. Take me, for instance – I'm half-blood, my mother's parents are Muggles."
"Oh?" said Lily politely, raising her eyebrows. Ashley nodded and said, "Yup, Daddy and Mummy got together in school – and Daddy works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement – he's a Hit Wizard, see?"
"Er – what is that?" asked Lily curiously, stirring their potion as Ashley added the Gentian roots. The potion fizzed and bubbled, before turning a faint yellow-green colour, as described by the textbook.
"You see – a Hit Wizard is like a highly trained Auror whose main job is to catch and apprehend dangerous and violent criminals," explained Ashley. "Daddy likes it – you can tell that he lives for the thrill." She wrinkled her nose in disapproval. "It's a dangerous job, too – Mum's constantly worried sick, and he's got a bed reserved for him at St Mungo's – the Wizarding hospital," she added quickly, catching Lily's confused look.
"Wow – sounds awfully risky," said Lily, shuddering slightly. Ashley nodded solemnly and said, "It really is – but Daddy was always very particular about putting the bad blokes in Azkaban."
"Now – that is not the point of this class," came the disapproving voice of Professor Slughorn, and Lily and Ashley wheeled around to see their Professor standing to Severus's and Potter's table, an uncharacteristic frown on his face. "You are supposed to collaborate, not compete. Now, it looks like Mr Snape has advanced further than you, Mr Potter – so why don't you add your thistle seeds to his potion?"
"But Professor – he didn't contribute to this!" Severus protested vehemently, indicating his cauldron. Slughorn shook his head and said, "He is doing a good job on his own, Mr Snape – so that's quite all right. Now – work together, boys." He walked away, and Potter reluctantly moved to Severus's cauldron and added thistle seeds to it. Severus grudgingly began to stir the potion, not even looking at his partner, who seemed content to ignore him back.
"The tension at that table is thicker than the November fog in London," Ashley said sardonically from next to her. Lily shook her head worriedly and said, "I just hope Sev keeps his head."
"How come you're friends with him?" asked Ashley curiously, as their potion bubbled even more slowly turning a leaf-green colour which was its last stage.
"Well – we live in the same town, and he was the one who told me I'm a witch," said Lily. "He's always been nice to me, too – despite his other – friends." She couldn't keep the viciousness out of her voice as she spoke, and Ashley grinned. "You'd have made an awful Slytherin," she said, her tone wry. "You're too forthright."
"I like being in Gryffindor," said Lily, a little defensively, and Ashley shook her head, laughing. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. And I understand what you mean – I mean, the blokes in our year –" she lowered her voice, "—you'd have to look around in the four corners of the world to find stupider people. That Wilkes – he had the nerve to ask me out before our first Hogsmeade weekend. I mean, can you imagine? Ew!" she exclaimed, her nose wrinkled. Lily laughed.
"Severus is one of the clever ones," added Ashley. "We worked on our Defence project back in second year, and I could see that he knew his stuff. I'm so glad I was paired up with him instead of the other idiots."
"Yeah, I hear you," said Lily fervently. It was nice to see a Slytherin who was sensible, at least.
"No, you idiot – not yet! Get away!" came an annoyed shout, and she turned around just in time to see Severus shove Potter away from their simmering cauldron. She watched in alarm as Potter balanced himself and gave Severus a firm push as well; Severus retaliated by trying to hit Potter's shoulder, and within seconds, the two of them were fighting.
"No, stop!" she yelled, and began to march towards them briskly, as Slughorn called from the opposite end of the dungeon, "Mr Snape – Mr Potter! Stop fighting at once! Ten points each from Slytherin and Gryffindor!" Lily watched with narrowed eyes as the boys from both Houses began to egg their respective combatants on, not even trying to break the fight. Idiots, she thought as she made her way to their table.
Just as Lily arrived, Potter pushed Severus, who tried to balance himself by grabbing the first thing that was within reach – Potter's hat. That didn't really work, and Severus fell to the ground, but not before succeeding in pulling Potter's hat off completely.
She stopped in surprise as Potter stood there, frozen – and the reason was pretty obvious. There were antlers sprouting from Potter's head, giving him a rather weird appearance. He flushed as the class began to laugh at his appearance, before gnashing his teeth and pulling Severus to his feet, ready to punch him – but to Lily's relief, Slughorn arrived at their table at that very moment.
"Detention, boys – outrageous behaviour," he thundered, and Lily shuddered at the anger in the usually-genial professor's voice. "Potter – go to the Hospital Wing, and get those ridiculous horns removed at once. I don't know what you're playing at, but I will be speaking to Professor McGonagall about this. Go – now," he commanded, and Potter glared at him silently before throwing his things in his bag and marching out of the classroom without a backward glance at anyone else. With a last concerned look at Severus, Lily returned to her spot.
"Damn it, no one broke anyone's nose," said Ashley, and Lily glared at her, not finding the statement particularly funny. "Oh, lighten up – I'm only joking," said Ashley, her tone quelling. "Though Potter seems to be getting into the Christmas spirit early, don't you think? Reindeer antlers, I ask you," she added, grinning.
"Yeah, I wonder what that was all about," said Lily thoughtfully. "And how did he hide them so well?"
Ashley shrugged. "Undetectable Extension Charm, I guess," she said, and Lily nodded. There was a pause, following which Ashley spoke again. "Er – our potion is ready, Lily – want to show it to Slughorn?"
"Sure," said Lily, a little distracted. The class ended with Slughorn showering praise over the two of them, and giving them each a bar of tasty-looking chocolate. "Nice working with you, Lily – thanks to you, this was the easiest chocolate I've ever won," said Ashley cheerfully, and began to pack up her things.
Lily blushed and said, "You were quite good yourself! See you!" Ashley gave her a small smile and a wave before filing out of the classroom with the rest of her friends, all of whom regarded Lily rather appraisingly as they passed her. Lily hung around, waiting for Liz and the rest.
"That was pretty awful of Snape," said Liz furiously as they walked towards the Great Hall. "James wasn't even doing anything – just trying to add some stuff. Who made Snape the boss?"
"Well – Severus is better than him at Potions, isn't he?" Lily pointed out, and immediately wished she hadn't, for Liz rounded on her instead. "Yes, support him – why am I not surprised? How did you forget that he led you into an ambush in Hogsmeade?"
"That's not true!" exclaimed Lily. "It was those prats Mulciber and Avery – Severus was trying to stop them!"
"Without lifting a wand, that's pretty effective," said Liz snidely. "I dunno how you're still friends with him, Lily –"
"Drop it," said Marlene, her tone commanding. "Let it go, Liz – Lily's old enough to decide who she should be friends with." Mary nodded vigorously, looking distressed. Liz looked like she still had an opinion to share, before shrugging and falling silent. Lily gave Marlene a grateful smile, and Marlene nodded back as they walked towards the Great Hall for lunch.
Later that night, she lay on her bed, wide awake. Something is bothering Liz, she thought. It was not like her to be so passionately subjective – especially when both parties were at fault. Lily had chewed Severus's ear off for allowing his temper to get the better of him earlier that evening… But Liz's overall reaction had been quite contrary of her usual level-headedness. Why was Liz acting like this?
She shook her head. I have to find out, she thought. Maybe I'll do it after the holidays…
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It was nearly eleven o' clock on a cold, snowy night in early January when Lily sat at her desk, penning a letter to Severus. She was going to send it with her present to him, a green jumper with the words 'Potions is like cooking – never lick the spoon!' embroidered on it in silver. She was sure he'd get a laugh out of it, so she'd had it custom-made when she'd gone to Diagon Alley with Marlene and her brother, as Mrs McKinnon had insisted that the girls not go there alone in these bleak times.
Lily dipped her quill in ink and began to write.
Dear Severus,
Happy birthday! And a Happy New Year, too! How are you doing? I hope you'll like the present that is being sent with this letter – I certainly did!
I'm having a great holiday – though it feels odd, not having seen Liz for the last couple of weeks. Christmas dinner went well without incident, thankfully – you know how Petunia can get when I'm at home – but of all people, Matthew kept her entertained. I think he saw the tension, Sev – so he was his usual clownish self, and Tuney was even laughing by the end of the meal, though she did occasionally glower at me. I don't think she's forgotten last year's Christmas, either.
Marlene came over on Boxing Day this year, and she got along extremely well with my parents. I was surprised that she bonded with Tuney – before you ask, no, I'm not joking – when I stepped out for about half an hour to buy some groceries. By the time I got back, Tuney was showing some of her paintings to Marlene! It was astonishing, to be honest – Marlene told me later that she just asked Tuney what she liked to do in her spare time, and Tuney told her about her art – I guess she didn't want to make a scene because Mum and Dad were there, too – and then Mum suggested that Tuney show her paintings to Marlene, and Tuney agreed to do that. It was a bit awkward for Marlene, too – but she was too polite to refuse…
I went to her house a few days later, to attend a New Year's Party. I remember my feelings when I went there last summer for the first time – Marlene had told me earlier that they all lived in a tiny apartment, because of family gold being distributed over generations – but as it had turned out, Marlene probably thought that elephants are tiny (Yes, I made this exact same joke back then, too!). You see, that 'tiny' apartment is nothing short of a huge penthouse with a breathtaking view of the Thames from the terrace. The living room is bright and spacious, as is the kitchen – and there're so many bedrooms!
Well – a lot of things happened over the next three days, Sev. Marlene and I went roaming about in London, with her brother and sister. We went to the Tower of London, the Westminster Abbey and the Buckingham Palace, too – my, they're all so grand! London is such a beautiful city – I want to come back once again at leisure, so that I get some more time to see everything. We even went to the Piccadilly Circus, the London Eye, and the Big Ben. It was like – well, I dunno, I can't really explain it so well – but it felt great to be a normal tourist for a change, Severus. I guess I miss my Muggle life a lot more than I thought.
There is one more thing, Sev. You see – I think I may have mentioned Hans once to you – that Beauxbatons bloke I met at the Quidditch World Cup final? I've been in touch with him over the past few months (only Liz, and now, Marlene, know about this) – and I say, he's a pretty interesting bloke. He plays the piano, Quidditch and he claims, at least, that he's a pretty good cook! He likes Potions, too – his last letter gave me a nice hint on how to brew an antidote for adder venom. Anyway, the point here is that he asked me if I'd be in London during the holidays, because he was visiting relatives there – and to be honest, Sev, if Marlene hadn't invited me, I'd have made up an excuse to go to Aunt Jenny's (my London Aunt), anyway. As it turned out, though, Aunt Jenny is currently in Australia on a vacation, so I got lucky! We made plans to meet at the Leaky Cauldron on New Year's Eve. As soon as I told Marlene (she wouldn't stop badgering me – apparently, I blush at the smallest things! Ugh!) about Hans, she got all excited and teased me mercilessly. But we cooked up a plan – Marlene's brother, Allan (he's so cool, Sev – I sometimes wish I had an elder brother who was a wizard, but I got a jealous and snide elder sister instead) agreed to cover for me, so once we were done shopping, Marlene spent the rest of the day with him just loafing around in Diagon Alley, while I made plans to meet with Hans at the Leaky Cauldron for an hour or two. And as for how that went…
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Lily sat at the corner table nervously as the time inched closer to four o'clock, according to the clock over the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron. She quickly took out a piece of parchment from her bag and read it yet again; assuring herself that it said four o'clock on December 31st, she folded it and replaced it in her bag. It had come as a rolled scroll – Hans had explained that he'd been too lazy to find an envelope – but she'd read it so many times that it was now quite flat.
Someone entered the pub just as the clock struck four and Lily quickly focused on the newcomer; with a most unfamiliar flutter of her heart, she noted the tall, handsome boy wearing a black-and-white winter jacket. Her heart-rate increasing, she waved to him as he made eye-contact with her, and felt a blush spread across her face as he waved back at her animatedly and grinned before heading to her table and sitting down in front of her.
"Hallo," he greeted her; his voice was deep and rich. Lily felt an involuntary grin spread across her face as she said, "Hi." Why was she suddenly sounding so breathless?
"I hope you haven't been waiting long – I must apologise for my lateness," he said, and she laughed. "You're joking, right? You said four – you're here not a minute late! It's not surprising, though – you are German, after all." Once she'd spoken, however, she kicked herself mentally. What a stupid thing to say, she thought furiously. Can't you – not – stereotype – for once?
But to her relief, he laughed. "Well – I'm Indian – but born and raised in Germany. So, yes – whatever you've heard about us Germans is true – we keep time like atomic clocks!" he said, the smile on his face widening as he spoke.
"And you have relatives in England?" she asked him.
"Yep," he replied, "Again, that's the boon of being Indian – there aren't too many placse in the world where you won't find people from India. As for me – my Aunt – that's my Dad's younger sister – she lives in England. She attended Beauxbatons, just like Dad – but my Uncle is English, see? I decided to visit them for Christmas – my parents are at my other Uncle's house – my Mother's brother, that is – but my cousins are annoying, pampered little princes, so here I am." She nodded, drinking in all this information; he'd talked without drawing in a single breath, and she marvelled at his talking abilities.
"So, what about you? What brings you to London?" he asked her, and she quickly shrugged off her train of thought.
"Well – I'm visiting my friend Marlene – and today, she wanted to go to Diagon Alley – that's the place to buy all of our school stuff, see? Anyway – she's shopping right now, so – here I am!" She played with her hair as she spoke, looking deeply into his warm light-brown eyes. She noted his moderately-high cheekbones, dimpled chin, and a little soul patch just below his mouth. He was certainly handsome.
"I see," he said, a little thoughtfully, as Tom the barman himself approached their table. Hans looked at her enquiringly, and asked, "What would you like? A Butterbeer, tea, coffee?"
"Coffee," she replied promptly. He nodded and said to Tom, "Two coffees, please – cream, no sugar for one of those." Tom nodded and grinned – Lily noted that half his teeth were gone. He made a note, bowed, and walked away towards the pub's kitchen.
"So," said Hans, "I think the quickest way to get to know someone – is to play a game. Not Quidditch, obviously," he added, and she laughed, a little higher-pitched than usual. "I already know some stuff about you from your letters – but trust me, this'll be fun!"
"What's the game?" she asked curiously.
"It's called – Schnellfeuer," he said, and she raised her eyebrows. He laughed and said, "In English, that's Rapid Fire. You see – we take turns to ask each other questions, and answer the first thing that comes to our mind. Do you want to play?"
"Of course," she said, smiling; this game sounded interesting. She added, "How about I ask you the first question?" He grinned and nodded. "Please," he said courteously.
"Er – favourite colour?" she asked.
"Blue," he returned promptly. "You?"
"Orange," she returned. He grinned and asked, "I thought you'd say green – or red. Well – dawn or dusk?"
"Dawn," she replied. "I like getting up early, how about you?"
"Dusk, no doubt," he said with conviction. "I'm more of a night owl!" He laughed, and she joined in.
Time seemed to fly by as they played Rapid Fire. Hans was right; they did find out more about each other than through their letters. She learned that he liked Muggle music, spoke four languages, liked trains better than Apparition, and would rather go to the French Riviera on vacation than the Alps. He knew quite a bit about Muggles, too ("You'd be surprised – there's quite a few Muggle-borns at Beauxbatons! My best friend Jacques is one of them!"), and he talked about the Beauxbatons castle as well – its grand hallways, non-melting ice sculptures in Christmas, and its colossal Quidditch pitch which occasionally hosted the French Quidditch League matches. He told her that he played Chaser on his House team – there were six Houses at Beauxbatons, so the inter-house Quidditch tournament was a pretty big deal. His dream was to become a world-famous Quidditch player, like his idol Diane Müller (who, he said, had delayed retirement by a year and was still playing for Puddlemere United), but he wasn't sure if not following a career in Research of Defensive Magic would be a right choice. Oh, and he was a foodie, too…
Lily found himself liking his sunny, merry personality. He seemed to have a perpetual smile on his face, and he listened attentively as she told him about her life at Hogwarts, her friends, and her overall aptitude towards Potions and Charms. She wasn't really sure what she wanted to do with her life – the kind of career path she wanted to pursue, that is. He asked her about the war, and if she faced any kind of trouble at school. She said yes, sometimes she did face trouble – but nothing she couldn't handle. He laughed and said that the best way to respond to such people was not giving them any attention – but she shouldn't hesitate to retaliate if they hexed her. She replied that she had no intention to do so, and narrated the incident in Hogsmeade earlier that year – within seconds, they were both laughing uncontrollably. They ordered food, and talked about a few more non-specific things. It was a most enjoyable afternoon.
"Er, Lily?" a tentative voice came from behind her, and she wheeled around to see Marlene standing next to her chair. "Er – I don't mean to be rude, but we said we'd return by six, and it's already – er, six-thirty," Marlene said awkwardly, but her cobalt-blue eyes were amused. Lily blushed and nodded. She turned to Hans and said, "Er – I'm sorry, Hans – but we, er, have to go now." Hans grinned and stood up, saying, "No problem, Lily – in fact, I must get going, too, there's a party at my Aunt's. Hallo – I'm Hans," he added to Marlene, who smiled back at him brightly. "Marlene," she said, a little breathlessly.
"Nice to meet you," he said politely. He shook hands with Marlene before turning to Lily and saying, "I had a great time, Lily – sehr toll! I'll write to you!" He opened his arm, and she responded in kind to bestow a perfunctory hug on him. "You will get home, right?" he asked her, and she nodded. "Marlene's brother is right there, talking to Tom." Hans nodded and said, "Well – Happy New Year in advance! Until we meet again, then. Auf Wiedersehen!" And with a cheery wave he was off, stepping out of the pub with a final glance and smile at her.
"Wow!" exclaimed Marlene the moment Hans stepped out, "He's gorgeous!" She punched Lily lightly on her shoulder. "You didn't say he was this handsome!"
"Well – handsomeness isn't really something you can quantify," said Lily, once again feeling a little breathless. Marlene rolled her eyes before asking her, "You like him – don't you?"
Lily hesitated. True, their interests did seem to match quite a bit, and he had certainly been nice and charming for the last couple of hours. But did she like him? She thought about his light-brown eyes, his short, straight hair, and his muscular build. She thought about how effortlessly funny he was – how he talked so easily, how he'd put her at ease almost immediately – how he'd been so very courteous. She remembered how her heart had beaten a little faster as she'd seen him for the first time that evening, and how the gloomy, snowy day had seemed loads brighter once he'd arrived – how she'd subconsciously played with her hair, and how it had felt the most natural thing in the world. It was obvious…
"Don't bother answering – your face gives you away every time!" exclaimed Marlene, her eyes glinting with amusement. Lily felt her cheeks grow even hotter. "I – I think I do," she said nevertheless, and Marlene grinned wickedly. "Ooh, the others are going to have so much fun," she said, and Lily felt mortified; she was going to have to endure a merciless spate of teasing during the next term. She was spared from responding by the arrival of Marlene's brother. "All set?" he asked them, and they nodded. He smiled and said, "Let's hope Mum doesn't do her nut – we're nearly an hour late, and we still have to get ready!"
"The party is at eight, Allan!" said Marlene, rolling her eyes. Allan grinned and said, "Yes – but we were supposed to help with the decorations, weren't we?"
Marlene shut her eyes tight, and Lily drew in a sharp breath. "Oops," said Marlene, her voice low. Allan laughed and said bracingly, "Come on – better late than never!"
They proceeded to the fireplace, preparing themselves for a possible onslaught from an irate Mrs McKinnon, but Lily's thoughts were elsewhere. She'd had such a great time… I hope to meet him again, soon! she thought as she stepped into the fireplace…
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Lily got up and retrieved another roll of parchment from her school-bag. This is turning out to be like a short story, she thought sardonically as she began to write further.
Anyway, that New Year's Party was amazing! There were so many people… Lots of high-ranking officials from the Ministry, mainly. I borrowed a set of dress robes from Marlene (Yes, it was a formal occasion) and tried to mingle with everyone. Marlene forgot to mention that Potter (antler-free, thankfully) and Black would be there (she did tell me later that her family and the Potters are old friends, and because Black was already at Potter's house, he tagged along, too), but thankfully they managed to stay out of my hair. It was unusual, Sev – I mean, Potter never loses an opportunity to annoy me, but he was – kind of – well, distracted. Also – it looked like he was trying to put up a façade of some sort – his smile was definitely forced when he wished me a Happy New Year. Plus, he wasn't playing the fool with Black – OK, OK, enough about those two berks, I know you don't care, haha!
I haven't heard from Liz yet, which feels odd – she's the one who has gone to another country, not me. She should've written to me – maybe she thought an owl would be too tired to fly trans-Atlantic – I dunno, she should've Floo called me at least! I dunno – something doesn't feel right. Maybe she didn't find the time, maybe they're all touring – OK, OK, I know I'm overthinking again – so I'll just – stop. There, happy?
How were your holidays? What did you do at Hogwarts? And don't you dare say same old, same old – I want a detailed account like I gave you, understand?
Once again – happy birthday! I hope you like the present!
Cheers,
Lily
Lily tied the letter to Cavana's leg, gave her an affectionate pat, and sent her off into the night sky. She shut the window immediately and watched her owl soar against the moonlight, thinking carefully… She was particularly worried about Liz's stony silence – Liz would've done something to wish her a Happy New Year, wouldn't she? It didn't make sense – was Liz avoiding her? Lily remembered some other stuff, too – like how Liz had showed off at the Quidditch match, and how her temper seemed a lot shorter than usual –
No, said a firm voice in her head. You're overthinking again… But she was determined to get to the bottom of Liz's new attitude. It wasn't – it just wasn't Liz. She was smart, kind, snarky and unflappably calm. But of late…
She had to ask Liz what was going on. She just had to…
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"But I told you – I didn't have enough time!" Liz said exasperatedly as they walked back from Care of Magical Creatures on the first Monday back after the Christmas break. Lily rolled her eyes and said patiently, "Come on, Liz – one Floo call? Five minutes? I didn't even know where you were staying, or I'd have called you myself! But you did –"
"Yes – but like I said, I was busy," said Liz, gritting her teeth. Lily drew in a deep breath, but before she could say anything, a shout came from behind them. "Don't shove!" came the voice of Sirius Black, and Lily and Liz turned over just in time to see Black give Potter a firm push. With a yelp, Potter flinched – and slipped over the snow and fell backwards. Lily wrinkled her forehead – but Liz's reaction was astonishing.
She laughed.
She burst into laughter at the sight of Potter in the snow, as Marlene and Peter helped him to his feet, while Remus restrained Black, who roughly shook himself free and started to march off to the castle. Potter just glared at her as he, too, began to march off – followed by the others. But Lily lagged behind with Liz, who had finally stopped laughing.
"OK – What was that?" she asked her best friend promptly.
"What was what?" asked Liz, nonplussed.
Lily took in a deep breath and said, "You laughed. It's not like you – every time there's a fight you usually break it up, not add fuel to the fire!"
"Oh, God, Lily!" Liz suddenly burst out. "What has gotten into you? Why are you scrutinizing every little thing I do? What are you – some kind of investigator?"
"I'm not –" Lily started to say, but Liz cut her off. "You've been like this since the Quidditch match. You accuse me of showing off when it was actually a darn good catch, with the Sloth Grip Roll, no less. You whine that I wasn't in contact over Christmas, but like I said – I was busy. You even ignored all the chocolates I got for you from Brazil! And today – what, a friend can't laugh when their friends fall? That's what makes them good friends!" she shouted with high dudgeon.
"So what're you saying, I'm not a good friend to you?" Lily asked her incredulously. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"I'm saying – you – nah, forget it," said Liz dismissively. "You'll just make a big deal out of it, too!"
"Out of what?" Lily asked her, suddenly angry. "Out of what, Liz? Come on, say it!"
"Fine, I'll say it," Liz replied, her sea-green eyes hard, "You and I – it's like an unbalanced friendship, Lily! I've always respected your opinion – I've even come to you for advice so many times! But there's one thing – Lily, how can you even think that Snape is a good sort? And possibly, a better person than Potter? He's a Slytherin!"
So that was what this was about. Lily felt tears come to her eyes. "How many times have I told you – he's one of the good ones!"
"No, he isn't! Look at the company he keeps – an obvious fact you completely ignore! And I – am tired of telling you what you just refuse to see. Your opinion has always mattered to me – why can't it be the other way around?"
"It's not like that," Lily began, hurt that Liz could think like this. But Liz shook her head. "I've had enough, I'm leaving," she said stonily, and began to storm off towards the castle. Lily stood rooted to the spot, unable to fathom why Liz had reacted like this. More tears came to her eyes, and she began to make her way towards the pumpkin patch, away from the castle. She had to get away…
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Author's note: Sorry, this took a while. I've been busy with my final semester, and I shall graduate soon! Thank you all for reading and following this story!