Chapter 53: Bully for Remus

"Have you seen Mooney?" Sirius demanded quickly.

"Wha?" he asked, confused on so many levels.

"He's not here, all his things are missing. I have no idea where he might be. He's just… gone."

x

Lily took the mirror calmly out of James' hands and told Sirius reassuringly "I'm sure he's just moved into the new place."

"What do you mean? He lives here."

"He decided to take the accommodation offered by his new employer."

"New employer? New place? You had better start explaining yourself better before I lose my temper," he barked

"He didn't tell you?"

"Cariad... Final. Warning," he growled through clenched teeth.

"Sorry!" she apologised quickly before hurrying on. She didn't want to incur his wrath. "There's not much to tell. He found work and has decided to move out. So... you see; there is no reason to worry."

The moment she said it she knew it had been the wrong thing.

"Ha!" This mocking laughter was anything but happy. Lily could tell Sirius was bitter, not only for not being told about Remus' new job but also for the fact that he had been caught worrying. Embarrassed, he was angry rather than relieved to hear his friend was alright. "Who's worried? Bully for him! But you'd think that the inconsiderate hairball might have mentioned to his own room mate that he got and job and was moving out. But noooooo. Discretion was always Moony's game. Well let's see him discreetly dodge my fist as it flies into his face."

"Sirius..." Lily said admonishingly. "I'm sure he was going to tell you. It's been a busy these past few days for us all."

"And if he wants to go off without a word he's more than welcome to. He's free to do whatever he wants. Not like he owes me anything." The smile was sparkling white and frightening. She was reminded forcibly of a hungry canine who has spotted a weakling in the heard. One that knows he is about to make a satisfying kill.

"It's not like he meant to keep it from you," Lily tried again. "He wouldn't do that. Give him a chance to explain."

"Oh look, here is our lying lycanthrope now. We will have words, he and I..."

"Sirius wait!" But it was too late; the beautiful man's face had already faded from the mirror.

"They'll be alright, won't they?"

"Oh that's just Moony and Padfoot. They have a good row every few months. It's a natural thing, like the first falling of the leaves in autumn and the first snow in winter. They'll be fine," he said casually, like Athos explaining the continuous contretemps between the zestful Porthos and the subtle and subdued Aramis. His calmness seemed to assuage Lily's fear for Remus' immediate health, but she was still concerned for the other musketeer.

"And Sirius?"

"He just needs to work out his temper. Remus is tough, he can take a beating."

"A beating!?" Lily asked aghast, fear swinging back in full force.

"Don't worry about it," James said getting up and stretching languorously. "A few broken bits of furniture, a split lip and a couple of bruises here and there is the worst that ever amounts to. Padfoot'll run out of steam soon. His tantrums putter out quickly."

"After 5 minutes?" Lily grinned slightly despite herself.

"About that, yeah," James replied with a smile.

"Well, I hope that after everything Sirius will be happy for Remus. He's finally found work."

"Yeah," James said shortly. He sympathised with Sirius' being angry. If Moony could tell Lily then surely he could have told his best friends. "You'd think that he would have shared his good news. If, in fact, it is good news."

"How do you mean? How could this not be a good thing?"

"Let's just say that Remus doesn't have the best track record with past employers. I'm surprised he decided to move in. He generally carefully guards his privacy... what with his furry little problem and all."

"But his boss already knows."

"He... what? How?"

"Remus told him. Thought he'd be better off confessing at the first so as to avoid any nasty shocks later on."

"As I said. His employment history isn't shining. No one will give good references to a werewolf, or give him a job even if he had them."

"Well it looks as if his luck is finally changing."

"I only hope it lasts..." James said darkly.

"Why are you being so unenthusiastic?"

James put a hand on her head. "It's cute when you're naive, Red. I, on the other hand have been with Remus a long time. I know how the world works, how he is viewed."

"Don't give me that 'naive' rubbish!" she said pushing his hand away. "Is it so impossible to believe that there might be a few people out there other than your precious Marauders who aren't bigoted? Or do think you and you alone are great and wise enough to rise above the rest and treat him how he deserves? You think that you are the only people that like him? That you are doing him some grand favour by being his friend and sticking with him? He's not that badly to be pitied, you know."

Lily stopped herself, realising that she wasn't just talking about Remus anymore. She felt as if she had to justify herself as well. She knew that pure blood and muggle born relationships were frowned upon. In fact, unnecessarily associating with muggleborns at all was generally avoided. She couldn't stand the thought of James thinking he was doing her a favour by being with her even though she was a 'mudblood'. James loved being the hero, she knew he did. He was addicted to doing the right and noble thing, honour bound to the last. She and Remus, the muggle born and the werewolf, the mudblood and halfbreed, were excellent demonstrations to show how shining James' noble soul was. They were his own little trophies, his own personal charity cases.

What was worse was that Remus actually agreed with this line of thinking. He felt like a charity case; that he was a burden; that he didn't deserve what little goodness he got, and felt guilty for having friends in the first place. He felt inferior and, despite all her best efforts to be the best witch she could be, she did too. He could do no more about being a werewolf than she could about being muggleborn. Being Head girl and top of the year were accomplishments to be sure, but she had only achieved them to fulfil her need to raise herself up from her lowly position, to improve herself, to try to make others see someone wonderful, not a mudblood.

Not that it had worked. How could she possibly fool herself that way when she saw daily proof of how much she was despised? She sighed and looked at the floor. She was wrong to have put words into James' mouth like that. She had been pushing her own insecurities onto him and then scorned him for his condescension. In reality, she was entirely grateful for the protection and warmth of pure blood James Potter. She loved his damned noble attitude and his unwavering loyalty to Remus. She knew that when James looked at her, the state of her blood wasn't even considered, and that he was a close friend to Remus both before and after he was a werewolf. Things like that didn't matter to him, and she knew it.

"I do not think like that," he said quietly but steadily. He sounded slightly cross and she couldn't blame him. A few moments passed before Lily could bring herself to speak again. Facing him was difficult after the insulting and unjust accusation she had just made.

"I know you don't." She lifted her head and tried to force a smile but it didn't stay due to a lack of conviction. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I said all that." Damn it why was she starting to cry? Angrily she wiped away the two tears that had fallen and turned around so he couldn't see her. She didn't want to unfairly soften him with tears when he should be justly angry with her. "I think I just hate myself because I do think that way and no matter what I try I can't seem to stop."

"Are you sure we are still talking about Remus?"

"I don't know. No. Yes. Him and everything else."

"Everything else? That's quite a bit to talk about," he said more lightly. "Why not narrow it down to one or two manageable topics, hmm? Moony and... you, for example?"

"It seems that things are finally looking up for Remus," she said decidedly as she turned around. She wanted to redo the conversation entirely and start afresh.

"Lily, I'm not being pessimistic, I'm being realistic. While it's great that it seems that Moony's employer is unconcerned about his condition you can't deny how rare it is. Remus' position is a precarious one, always has been. Things seem to be going well now and they seemed to go well in the past too, but there is always a fall, and he is always packing his things and turning his back to the shouts and abuse. I just don't want you to get your hopes up about this."

"Don't you see that's exactly what I need? I need to be able to hope. I don't want to believe that Remus is a lost cause. I need to be able to think there is some goodness in the world we can still cling to. That werewolves and muggleborns won't always be hated." The tears were back, stinging her eyes. "It's hard enough not to be completely discouraged sometimes. I'm not strong enough on my own. Recently just staying afloat would have been impossible if I hadn't been able to depend on..." She hiccoughed loudly, swallowing the last word. She blinked out a few more tears and finished the sentence only with her eyes. 'You.'

x

James was certain that no one was as skilled as Lily Evans in making him feel like a complete and utter ass. Since they first met James knew how Lily felt about being a muggleborn during these dark times. He knew, even though she had never admitted it, how much she relied on him to keep her from getting discouraged. He knew how hopeless she felt, and how hard it was to muster up that little hope she did have. And what had he done? Gone and dashed it to ribbons. She had lost her parents in this war. Of course she needed to know that there was a hope that what she was fighting for wasn't impossible.

In what insane world was it ok to crush hope? How thick was he that she actually had to remind him not to be an unfeeling brute? Why had he said that? Of course she wasn't naive. How could she be after her own parents' murder? After all she had helped him do, and all he had already taught her? After (he shuddered at the thought) she had been tortured by the dark lord himself?

Well, he was slow to catch on sometimes but at least now he knew. To Lily, this wasn't just about Remus. It was about fighting for a better world, and wondering whether they were losing that fight... and that world.

When put like that, James found himself hoping as well. Perhaps Moony's luck really was improving. Perhaps this time there would be no fall.

He stepped towards her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and resting his head on top of hers, as they usually did. She had said she depended on him. He needed her just as much. She was his cause after all. Any creature could make him feel human, any muggle could make him feel like a wizard, any woman could make him feel like a man, but only Lily could truly make him feel like James.

"It seems that things are finally looking up for Remus," he said conversationally. Lily half chuckled half hiccoughed into his chest.

"Sorry for coming off so girly on you," she said pulling away and dabbing at her eyes.

"Don't worry about it," he said plopping down on the couch, consequently taking her along with him. She landed rather ungracefully on top of him and his arms snaked around her waist. "'Cause I wouldn't like you half so well if you were a boy," he said grinning wolfishly at her.

"No no no, we don't have time for that. It's almost dinner."

He was slightly disappointed by this, but at least he had food to look forward to. He could momentarily ignore one appetite to gratify another. "Shall we head down then?"

"They won't be serving just yet. And besides, I have to change first."

"Why not wear what you have on?"

"Because..." she began regretfully, as if she really didn't want to be explaining. "I have to wear my uniform just like all the other students at the welcome back feast."

He immediately stiffened. He had forgotten that before Padfoot's urgent mirror about Moony and the subsequent scene, he had been panicking. How could he keep forgetting about this? He tried to clear his throat and say something and even though he wasn't exactly panicking anymore he still couldn't think of what to say. Instead he rose to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I know you don't want to talk about it and frankly neither do I but we've got to," she said.

Again, James cleared his throat to make way for something wonderfully insightful... that of course didn't come.

"What do you want to do? Whatever it is I'll go along with it." She searched his eyes for an answer his mouth wouldn't provide but found nothing. She sighed and said disappointedly, "You should probably go."

He didn't.

"You didn't bring the cloak. Leave now before the train arrives, if it hasn't already."

He still didn't move.

"Oh just... GO! I'll see you tomorrow morning."

It seemed to James as if she were prodding him out the door. Whether it was wandless magic or the intensity of her stare that finally forced him out of the portrait hole he couldn't be certain. He rather suspected it was magic.

As he walked down the hall he rumpled his hair agitatedly. 'I'll see you tomorrow morning," she had said. Tomorrow morning. She was obviously not best pleased with his inability to contribute anything useful. Or anything at all for that matter. If they had actually been living together he would be sleeping on the couch tonight, he had no doubt. She was denying him her company for that evening, and who knew how many more. He had yet to decide whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. At least it would give him time to think.

x

By the time Lily had calmed herself and dried her eyes for the third time that evening she was bordering on running late for dinner. She tried to enter the Great Hall inconspicuously, but with no success. Once again, Lily felt the stares of her fellow students on her, judging her. She had had nightmares like this. The Hall fell silent for only a moment before it burst into a raucous din again. Lily was taking her seat next to Rupert when she realised that all the noise was not only about her, but actually directed at her. People were shouting questions she could barely make out over other people's loud and intrusive inquiries. Even her fellow Gryffindors were shouting at her, asking her to explain what happened in Dover, if she really did kill Togglepike, whether she really was working with Potter and the Ministry. Had she actually seen 'You-Know-Who.'

Lily tried to ignore them and turned to Rupert and the rest of the Quidditch team, all of whom were gallantly trying to pretend that they didn't hear any of it. They smiled awkwardly but encouragingly at Lily, who smiled back. She tried to ask them how their holidays had been but none of them could hear her over the racquet.

"What? What?" they shouted. Lily looked to Rupert in sad desperation. He gave her a condoling look, but of course was unable to do anything. She was starting to get panicky. Her hands began to shake and she was looking about the room nervously, eyeing longingly the only exit.

She wanted nothing more at that moment than to be gone from Hogwarts.

x

James watched on, anger and worry increasing equally with every passing moment. Her eyes were wide, wild, and darting about the room. She looked afraid and desperate, like a cornered animal.

Determinedly he got to his feet and strode to the headmaster. "Can't you do something? This is ridiculous! Unacceptable!"

McGonagall, who sat next Dumbledore, gave James a commiserating look. The headmaster nodded and James sat back down at his place rather huffily.

The hall immediately fell silent at Dumbledore's request for order.

"I had wanted to save the announcements until after everyone had filled their bellies but it seems as if it can't wait. Firstly, I'd like to welcome all of you who have decided to return back to Hogwarts." He made an announcement about a slight change in the timetables and also about needing a new Head Boy. Then came the part that everyone wanted to hear.

120 seconds. That was all the headmaster needed for his explanation. To James, so much had happened regarding Dover it would have taken two hours, but the headmaster seemed to succinctly sum up the entire situation with the utmost tact in a mere two minutes. He said that Lily, from a friend in Gringotts had come across some sensitive information and asked Professor Potter, who by now she and everyone else knew to be a Ministry Auror, to go with her to investigate, resulting in an encounter with the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters.

James was aware that everyone's eyes were on either him or Lily, which made secretly trying to watch her reaction more difficult. Finally deciding he didn't care if people saw, he looked over to find her slumping low in her seat, Rupert leaning forward in an attempt to put himself in between her and curious onlookers.

x

When Dumbledore had finished the announcements a silence followed that seemed just as oppressive and intrusive as the clamour had been. When people finally started eating again she rose from the bench.

"I'm not very hungry; I think I'll just go back to my room."

"I'll go with you," Roo offered. She was about to tell him 'no thanks,' but remembering that the short letter she had written over the holidays at Sirius' behest was the only communication they had had in a month, she agreed. Once they left the Great Hall she was feeling much better and glad she had decided to let him come. He told her about his holiday, what he had given his family for Christmas. "Oh, and Evie wanted me to tell you Happy New Year. Actually I think she just like saying it. She was shouting "Happy New Year" long before midnight and continued long after. I think she was looking for any excuse to say it. Kids," he said shrugging, but a loving smile warmed his face.

Lily couldn't help but smile too as they walked through the portrait hole. She loved listening to Rupert talk about his family. So whole and happy. She recalled well enough her own New Year. It had been a full moon and the wind that blew across the astronomy tower had been bitterly cold.

"And what about you?" he asked tentatively. "I mean, I know what Dumbledore said and everything but he left out the most important part."

"What was that?"

"How you are," he answered. "It must have been rough. What was it like? Are you alright? I mean that article in the Prophet was just insulting. How did you endure it?"

"I had actually forgotten it, with all the other things that have happened."

"What? What could have possibly happened that was so momentous that it made you forget you had fought with the greatest dark wizard of our age? Not to mention being considered dead and charged with a load of crimes. And being falsely accused of murder too, of course."

"It wasn't a false accusation. That's the only thing the Prophet did get right. Oh, and the falling off the cliff bit I suppose."

Rupert stared at her, flabbergasted. Apparently he was waiting for her to tell him it was a joke, that she hadn't killed anyone and the falling off a cliff was an exaggeration. Naturally she couldn't give him those assurances. When he realised they weren't forthcoming he asked, dry mouthed, "What?"

Lily considered the boy in front of her. She trusted him, she did, but could she really tell him all? She didn't doubt his secrecy; she doubted his ability to cope with the truth. But that should be his decision, not hers.

She leaned in towards him, steadily probing his eyes with her own. With her face mere inches away from his she asked in a low voice, "How much do you really want to know?"

x

James watched Lily and Ferris leave the Great Hall together and looked down at his plate. Nearly half of his meal remained, the food that had been completely ignored since Lily had walked in. He half-heartedly finished the rest before excusing himself. As he strode toward the Hospital Wing he patted his breast pocket to make sure he still had his notebook with him, and that he hadn't left it in Lily's common room. Finding it, he pulled it out and flipped through the pages. He had intended to discuss this with her tonight, but apparently it would have to wait.

Since he wouldn't be seeing her til morning, and therefore had the rest of the evening free he thought he might as well be productive and talk to Madame Pomfrey about what Lily had suggested. Not only did he agree it was a good idea, but working on Lily's project made him feel that even though she weren't with him, they were still working together. They were still a team.

Lily had said she had discussed the idea with Madame Pomfrey already, but he didn't expect the healer to be so eager.

Embarrassedly she admitted, "I didn't think I would ever actually use them, but when Miss Evans first started working here and mentioned the idea I made a few notes, just in case."

It wasn't just a few notes, but a full lecture and lesson plan. How long had she been waiting for this chance? Despite her own desire, would she have continued to sit back and let the system go unchanged if Lily hadn't done it for her? She obviously had been longing to do this, so why hadn't she?

He didn't ask her this though. Instead he arranged for her to take classes that week. James assured himself that he wasn'tbeing a coward, and that Madame Pomfrey taking over for a while was in no way a method for James to avoid teaching Lily in class, and that he was simply eager for his students to learn the very important matter of healing.

He shook her hand and was about to leave when she called him back.

"Potter!"

He stopped and as he turned back around to face her said, "Aye?"

"Tell Miss Evans I would like to see her tomorrow morning before classes start."

James had nodded in agreement before he realised that he wouldn't be seeing her before classes either. Another realisation struck and he squinted at the healer suspiciously. Why would she presume that he would see Lily between now and then to even give her the message? Or perhaps he was over thinking it. Maybe Madame Pomfrey simply meant for him to tell her at breakfast. Studying the woman's face and remembering all that she had done for both Lily and himself he decided he didn't care what she had or hadn't inferred. With their privacy policies, healers were excellent at keeping secrets and although she might act differently, James knew Pomfrey was extremely fond of both them. He smirked slightly and gave her a respectful bow (if one can be respectful and sarcastic at the same time) before exiting.

'Now for a quick trip to the kitchens and then back to Lily's,' he thought, and then added aloud. "'Tomorrow morning' my wand."

x

Leaving out certain teeny tiny details, such as Voldemort's stone; the muggle Tom; Severus' intervention; the Order of the Phoenix; and her relationship with James, Lily recounted both exploits in Dover including how and why she came to be there. She had to go much farther back than she thought. She started with finding the howling chest in the dungeons. He interrupted her more than once as she related everything.

"They know when we apparate?" he asked, horror-struck. She nodded gravely.

"Which is why we couldn't travel using any method regulated by the Department of Magical Transportation."

She continued on, explaining as much as she dared until her mouth was dry, her throat sore, and Rupert too shocked to take in anything else. After several moments of contemplative silence where they simply stared into the dying embers in her fire place Rupert finally spoke.

"Why you?"

"Pardon?"

"Why are you helping the ministry?"

"I'm not exactly helping the ministry. It can't really be trusted. I'm helping justice."

"You're helping Potter."

"We are fighting the same fight."

"You've been doing things for him all along. He told me so when you wouldn't wake up in St. Mungo's. Any danger or trouble you've been in this year has been because he dragged you into it! It was his fault you were in the lake! It was his fault you might've been killed in Hogsmeade. His fault you were nearly killed by You-Know-Who! Twice!"

Lily didn't often get mad at Roo, but he had pressed a rather sensitive button and she couldn't stop herself from lashing out.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" she shouted. "It's not his fault there was a cursed necklace in the lake. He tried to keep me out of Hogsmeade but I insisted on going despite his protests. And I was the one who dragged him to Dover! Not the other way around! So stop blaming him; he's the best thing that ever happened to me!"

The expression on Rupert's face after that last pronouncement caused every last ounce of anger to evaporate. Feeling exposed and embarrassed at her own revealing outburst she added, "That is... he gave me the opportunity I so desperately wanted. I'm finally doing something. Before this year I did nothing with my time but study, nothing with my talent but useless mischief, nothing with my spirit but mope and mourn. Everything is different now. And you are right, it is because of him. And I am better off for it. What I have now is more than I ever could have hoped for. He's given me my chance and I'm going to make the most of it."

x

All this time he had been wanting to think that Potter had been using her. It only just now occurred to him that it might be the other way around. Using her influence over him (for she obviously had one) to get her chance. He remembered that Lily had remained unmoved with the young handsome new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor when all the other girls were dazzled. She had only shown an interest in him after she learned he was an auror.

He shook his head, knowing it wasn't that simple. Love is never that simple. Even though she wouldn't admit it to him; that was clearly the issue here. He had known for a long time. As had Black. She was stuck in a very dangerous place and no one could bring her back. She didn't even want to come back. She was lost forever. He grew melancholy thinking of the day when Lily Evans' luck would finally run out. How many times could she fight and yet still evade death? One more time? Two? How much time did she have? How much time did anyone?

x

"You know I was a prefect last year," Rupert stated randomly after several moments of rather awkward silence. Lily turned to him, the tilt of her head and the expression on her face seeming to say 'of course I know that but what does it have to do with anything?' "I was thinking... I could be Head with you."

She gasped. "Would you really?"

"Well... yeah. Why not, right?"

"Well it is a bit of a responsibility, and we would have to start working on the plans for the dance immediately."

"Dance?"

"Dumbledore's idea. A bit of a pick me up for the students. And of course there are the prefect meetings, they generally handle patrols but we have to do it occasionally. We are the students' liaison with the faculty and we attend staff meetings on the students' behalf."

"Sounds like fun," he said in a tone that clearly indicated that it did not sound like fun at all.

"Well if you don't want to do it you don't have to."

"No, I'll do it. I want to be involved. Can't let you keep everything to yourself, can I? No. I am determined to be as helpful as possible. There will be no getting rid of me now."

"I don't want to get rid of you, Roo."

"Even though I can't promise you evil encounters or... or duels with Death Eaters?"

Lily embraced him tightly, saying nothing. Rupert sat there, allowing himself to be hugged. "You'll go with me, then?"

"Go where?"

"To the thing."

Lily knew this to mean the dance. "Of course. No one else with whom I could go."

"All the better for me. It'll make it easier to keep an eye on you."

"Keep an eye on me indeed. It's a dance, Roo, not an undercover mission."

"Not for you perhaps. You never know who might be lurking in tails or dress robes, waiting for a chance to slip poison into your punch."

"Rupert Balthazar Ferris!"

Rupert pulled out of the hug and held Lily at an arm's distance so he could look clearly into her face. "I'm worried," he said simply. "After all you've done, and all that they have already tried to do." His eyes rolled to the ceiling and he heaved a sigh. He returned his gaze to her and regarded her sincerely, eyes considering every aspect of her face without really seeing it. Shrugging helplessly he admitted softly, "I'm terrified."

"No," she whispered. "Be anything but afraid. Not for me."

"I'll feel better knowing I'm with you. Too many times I've come too late, been the last to know. Either by gossiping students or by reading it in the paper. I can't stand it. At least this way, being on the scene all the time, I'll know what it is I have to worry about."

"So the reason you want to be Head Boy is..."

"I said I wanted to help, didn't I?"

"I thought you meant..."

"Decorating?" he provided, snorting sarcastically. She smiled sheepishly.

"There's no on else I'd rather have by my side. No one I could better count on. I'll tell Dumbledore."

"No, I'll do it. I was going to head that way," said a voice. Both Lily and Rupert were surprised to hear another person in the room, but neither was surprised that the other person turned out to be James Potter.

How long he had been there they didn't know.

"Merlin, aurors really know their stuff," Rupert whispered under his breath. The Professor's sudden appearance had startled him more than he would like to confess. His face remained calm, even if his heart was beating like a war drum.

Potter strode in professionally, plate in hand, with a notebook under one arm and a silky looking cloak under the other. He placed the plate down in front of Lily.

"Eat," he commanded, then revised his statement. "You should eat something." He removed the notebook from under his arm, bending over her he placed it carefully in her lap. Straightening back up again he said, "Look at it..." His eyes darted from her, to Rupert, and then back to her again without blinking. "Later."

Meaning 'when she was alone.'

She nodded ever so slightly. She recognised the notebook. It was the one he had been scribbling in constantly for the past two weeks. No doubt it contained his plans and ideas for how to thwart the security of the Department of Magical Transportation. With sad nostalgia she recalled that it also contained a bawdy sonnet, written only the day before. Perhaps he had taken it out. Or perhaps there was a new message. A letter or something finally telling her what he felt they should do. Regardless of what it may contain, she would have to wait until Rupert left before she could do anything about it.

He was marching back toward the door, looking every ounce an officer of magical law enforcement, when he turned around to look at her once more.

"Oh, and I have a message from Madame Pomfrey."

"Yes?"

"She said to find her at breakfast tomorrow." The professional steel in his eyes melted to the usual warm amber she was used to. "I think she might be wanting to look at your ehm..." He cleared his throat and put his hand to his own middle. Lily wondered how she would explain to the healer the sudden absence of those burnt marks around her waist, wrists and ankles.

He cleared his throat again. "Goodnight Ferris, Lily," he said to each of them, then withdrew the cloak from under his arm and brought it about him, vanishing completely. The portrait hole eased open and closed again. He was gone.

"A... a real invisibility cloak. I... I didn't think they actually existed," Rupert said, amazed. "Do all aurors get one?"

"No. I think his may be the only one." She supposed that perhaps James considered it less exposing to reveal it to one person rather than run the risk of being seen leaving her room by several. She had no doubt that a few curious classmates would be lurking until curfew.

"Is... everything alright between the two of you?" Rupert asked uncertainly.

"Yes."

"He seemed a bit..."

"It's been a long week. And it just keeps getting longer."

"You aren't quarrelling?"

"No," she replied flatly, growing wearier of this short dialogue than she had from the entire previous conversation.

"So nothing's wrong?"

Lily chose this time to dig into the plate of food James had brought her. It was rude to eat and talk at the same time, so she chose only to eat, staring determinedly either at her food or at the blazing fire in the hearth. Rupert took the hint. He too stared at the flames.

Minutes later he said, "Well it's almost curfew and I haven't done any of the homework yet so..."

"What a splendid Head Boy you'll make," she teased, although her heart really wasn't in it.

Rupert smiled back. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"G'night."

"Night."

Lily showered quickly and applied herself to the task of James' notes. She read the entire notebook through, making comments and concentrating hard on the material she was given. She went through it a second and third time, pouring over it for hours, making sure to notice every detail. She told herself that it was out of the sake of thoroughness that she was so meticulous, but deep down she knew she was just checking for a private message that she might have missed. She had smiled when she saw that the colourful verses were still there, but frowned at finding nothing new. She still continued reading, trying to think of more new and productive things to add to his own ideas. She didn't want to stop, despite her drooping eyelids. So long as she was still working on his notes it was as if (although they weren't actually together) they were still working together. They were still a team, still together on one level at least. That much had communicated by giving her the notebook. Was that what he had meant by all his professionalism? From here on in, it's strictly business? She desperately went through the notebook again.

'Nothing,' she thought as she gnawed on a chicken bone and stared at her now empty plate. No note whatsoever. No apology, no 'I know it's a difficult situation but don't worry I still love you,' not a thing to let her know that he still wanted to find a way to be together. She crunched through the bone. Startled at her own viciousness, she placed the bone pieces on the plate. She froze, suddenly exhilarated. 'Stupid girl,' she thought. The message hadn't been in the notebook, it had been in the food. Rather, the message was the food. That was how he showed he cared. A smile warmed her face as much as the fire did.

The fire. It had been dying when she and Rupert had begun their conversation and now it burned strongly. It had to have been James' doing even though she hadn't seen him take out his wand. Another silent statement.

His visiting Madame Pomfrey, signalling his working on the DADA/healing project, his revealing the cloak's existence to Roo was his own display trust and solidarity. His offering to tell Dumbledore about the Head Boy-ship himself was his seal of approval. They were all messages.

He had said his piece without uttering a word. It was subtle but all the more powerful for its secrecy and profundity. Just as their relationship would be. She liked this method better. They wouldn't talk about it. They didn't need to. They knew what was important.

She put on her slippers and cloak and tucked the notebook under her arm and stole out of her common room, dodging into the first available secret passage just in case. If anyone tried to tail her she would lose them there. They couldn't follow her in without the password, nor would they know where it came out. Perhaps she was being overly cautious but it was better to be safe than sorry.

This was especially true, considering that her tactics succeeded, and the person watching from distant shadows had no choice but return to their room, thwarted and disappointed.

x

Neither of them said anything as she slid into bed beside him. He simply pulled her in and kissed the back of her head. With his arm around her middle and face in her hair, James finally fell asleep.

xx

At that same moment hundreds of miles away near London, two men descended a grey stone staircase. The passage was lit intermittently by too few candles. Wax dripped from the candelabras onto the steps, making them slick. It was apparent no one ever bothered to clean this place.

One man was used to this kind of filth, didn't even notice it. The other was constantly making note of everything he saw, good, bad, clean, dirty, dark or darker. He stored it all away into some back log in his mind. One never knows what piece of information might come in useful when making an escape.

"Which way now, do you reckon?" one of them asked when they reached the bottom of the staircase to find a hallway. There was no straight, one could only go right or left. 'Or back they way we came' he thought to himself. But no, that wasn't an option. Not yet, anyway.

"Don't know. Didn't hear anything about this." Their voices seemed to echo in the stone corridor. It made them both uneasy. Their grips (already on their wands) tightened reflexively.

"Should we split up?" the man with the gaunt face and blackened eye asked.

"No," the other replied. He remembered what happened the last time someone had suggested separating. He had allowed it then and it had ended badly. "We'll try one way, then another. Fly of follow?"

"I'll fly," he said taking position in front. His friend followed behind, guarding their rear. "Merlin where did you hear about this?" he asked after several minutes of following the seeming unending passage.

"Same way every one else does, I'd imagine. Family connections," he answered drily.

"What 'family connections'?" the thin man asked mockingly.

"It's been years since I've heard anything. Perhaps it's not even meeting anymore," the more elegant man said, taking a moment to rewrap the bandage around his recently sliced hand.

They stopped at the same time, hearing the same sound. The rumble of voices behind a door at the end of the passageway fell upon their eardrums with all the urgency of a wasp wings' hum. They turned to each other.

"Well this is it. How do I look?"

"Different," he said, looking his friend up and down, approving the disguise. The only thing that remained was that bruise around the eye he himself had given him earlier that day.

"Sorry about the face, mate."

"Don't be. I think it adds to the overall effect," he said lightly.

"Shall we?"

"Let's."

Both men approached the door, knocking three times and then stood there waiting. The voices within died down and they heard footsteps approach.

The door opened and a man appeared, wand out and at the ready. The two visitors kept their wand hands in their pockets.

"Well?" the doorman asked.

One of them stepped forward, offering his sliced hand for inspection. His blood as well as his gleaming family ring offered the assurance they needed. After one look at that serpent coiled around an emerald the doorman nodded in approval.

"What about him?" he asked, tilting his head to the other visitor.

"A trusted family friend."

It took the man a while to decide whether or not the man with the bruised face was worthy of entering or not. But that ring seemed to carry enough weight. The family was renowned for being so very careful about the company they kept. Both were finally allowed to pass through.

They stepped inside and looked around. A more unpleasant bunch they had never seen. All faces in the dim candlelight turned to them, eyes squinted in scrutiny. The man with the bandage and ring stepped forward, somehow smiling confidently as if nothing gave him more pleasure than being there. He held out his bandaged hand in salutation, palm facing the crowd. He swaggered down a few steps into the much larger main chamber where he was greeted with surprise but enthusiasm by men who now considered him as one of their own.

His friend with the black eye remained a moment on the platform, staring down at the huge crowd. He hadn't expected there would be so many. It was dark inside the room, but it didn't matter to him. He could still see quite well the expressions on everyone's faces. Their shady eyes, he knew, only looked so wholly black because they were so widely dilated to allow in what little there was. Still the effect made everyone, even his friend... look evil.

'Padfoot what have you got us into?' Remus thought helplessly.