A/N: Once again, thanks to everybody who r/r ed! Surprisingly, a bunch of ppl have read this, ranging from my English teacher to people I don't even know!
And, because I love reviews, I am going to wait until I get at least five more before posting the rest!
One last thing- what do you want in this story? Drop me a line and I'll try to include your wonderful ideas.
Because I can find no more things to pester you guys with, on with the story!
Part 3, Section 2
Lily stared at the Quidditch field before her. "What have I gotten myself into?" she moaned.
"You wanted to do it yourself, you know," James reminded her.
"I'll be scorekeeper!"
"Nice try."
Lily looked around for another excuse to not play. "I don't know how to ride a broomstick!"
"We learned last year."
"There aren't any extras!"
"Have you checked the broom shed?"
"Um, yes!"
"Yeah, right."
"I'm afraid of heights!"
"Don't look down."
"Will you ever let me just forget I said I would play?!"
"Nope." James hid a grin. "Come on, we're choosing teams!"
He pulled Lily across the field to where Sirius and the others were standing.
"Oh, come off it, James," Lily tried desperately. "I'll just watch!"
"Not a chance," he replied.
"Hey James. It took you long enough!" Sirius greeted. "It's girls against boys."
"Hey, c'mon," Darcie said, grabbing Lily's sleeve.
"What's the position with the least amount of playing?"
"The seeker," Darcie promptly replied.
"That's me!" Lily said triumphantly. Then after a moment's hesitation, added, "So what do I do?"
"Oh, you just catch this little ball. No big thing, really," Mei Long said, trying to reassure Lily.
"WHAT?!" Mei Long elbowed Darcie in the ribs. "Er, right. Just fly around and look for a little gold ball. Then try and catch it. We'll do the rest."
"Alright!" Lily thought happily. James can't make me do anything hard after all!
Lily kicked off with the rest of them, but flew above the game, despite her fear of heights. There was absolutely no way she was getting caught up in the game below, and besides, the little yellow bird she was following was pretty.
"Hey, Lily!" yelled someone.
Lily turned her head, and her broom, in the direction of the speaker.
"Ah!" she screamed, barely missing him.
"What do you think you're doing?!" James demanded.
"I can't fly that well!" Lily defended. "And you were the one who called me."
"Well I was going to ask you, what are you doing up here? The ground is like fifty feet below!"
"Ja-ames!" Lily said loudly, holding her broomstick so tightly her knuckles turned white. "You didn't have to tell me!"
James laughed. "You should've seen the look on your face! It was priceless!"
Lily glared, and tried not to look down. I'm not so high up, she told herself.
"Is poor Lily scared?" James taunted. "You can always forfeit, you know. But then your team will lose. Oh well- it'll be quicker."
Lily glared furiously at James. "You think that I'm going to listen to-" Lily broke off in mid sentence and held up her hands. Something was speeding directly towards her face. A small ball-like thing slammed into her hand, and she closed her fingers around her.
She opened her eyes and found James to be staring at her. Lily held the Snitch in her hand.
"Hey, Mei Long?" she asked, flying down towards her friend. "What happens when I catch the little gold ball?"
"You caught it?" Darcie demanded. Lily held up the ball in answer.
"We won!" Mei Long shrieked, grabbing Lily in a hug. "We won!"
"You had better try out for the team!" Darcie yelled in Lily's ear. "You won against James!"
"Why would that matter?" Lily asked.
"Cause he's the best seeker in this damn school!" Darcie answered.
When they had all arrived safely on the ground, much to Lily's relief, she rounded on James.
"Nice try," Lily smirked, tossing him the golden ball. "Maybe next time."
~*~
James never forgot how Lily had beat him at Quidditch.
"It was an accident! She held up her hands to block herself and it hit her!" James told Sirius, but he still thought James should've beaten her.
Word had gotten around fast, and all the girls teased James to no end. He learned to like his room a lot better than the common rooms.
"You may resume working on Cheering Charms with your partners," Professor Flitwick said. "But please try to do it correctly this time. Madame Pomfrey is in the hospital wings if there are any more mistakes."
James looked around the room for Lily, but she wasn't there.
"Professor? My partner isn't here," James said.
"She isn't?" Flitwick looked even more stressed, if that was possible. After taking a quick look in his attendance book, he answered. "Oh yes. She is currently in the hospital wing."
"But she was there for the last two classes," James muttered.
Flitwick continued as if he didn't hear James. "For the time being, you may work with another group."
James automatically got up and walked towards Sirius' group.
"I'm working with you again," he muttered.
"Oh good," Sirius grinned. "Let me practice on you."
Five minutes later, James was on his way up to the hospital wing feeling extremely sick.
"It's an C, Sirius, not a B," Darcie said.
James rolled his eyes. At least one person was worse than him in Charms.
"Hello?" James called.
"What's wrong, dear?" Madame Pomfrey clucked.
"Cheering charm gone wrong," James said. "Sirius again."
"Sit down, and I'll fix you up."
James sat down in a chair and looked around until a voice startled him out of his thoughts.
"What are you doing here?" Lily demanded, striking her usual pose with her hands on her hips.
"What are you doing here?" James asked back.
"I asked first."
"So?"
"You answer first."
"Sirius messed up on his Cheering Charm again," James muttered.
"Oh."
There was silence for a moment, before James said, "Now you."
"Oh, I keep doing stupid things." Lily laughed, or tried to.
"Like what?"
"Just stupid things."
"Lily, you can tell me what's going on you know.
"What are you talking about?" Lily looked at him oddly, trying another laugh. "I always knew you were off your rocker."
"About the bruises. That's why you're here, isn't it? You said you hit yourself when you turned off your alarm. You don't have one."
Lily stared at James, her cover blown.
"It's nothing, okay?" Lily said quietly, gathering her bag. "You should stay out of it. I don't want you to get hurt too."
"What do you mean?" James demanded.
Lily smiled sadly at him and walked out of the door.
"Here, let me help you, dearie," Madame Pomfrey said, handing him a potion. "Drink this."
James choked down the potion, which tasted like a bad variation of cough medicine.
"Thanks," he said, jumping up and running out the door. "Got something to do."
~%~
James eyed Lily from across the table the next morning. She looked normal, if pale, but was laughing as usual. Whatever cover she had lost in the hospital wing had returned.
Lily remained composed all throughout the meal, ignoring James' analyzing stares, until mail came. An unfamiliar owl dropped a letter in her lap. She stared at it as her stomach lurched.
Carefully, she unfolded it and paled to a dead white. It was him again...
James watched her as she opened the letter. She looked faint, and her eyes spoke the doom she felt.
"Are you okay Lily?" he asked. All eyes turned to her.
"Oh, I'm fine," she lied hastily. "I just left something in the common room. I'll be right back."
Without another word, Lily left the table.
~!~
Lily ran along the hallways. She wasn't a big believer in Divination, but she remembered Professor Ninjin's words.
"I am quite sorry to inform you, my dear, but both of the things you are dreading will come true."
One was unfolding before her very eyes, but the other... What was it?
Without realizing it, Lily had sank into one of the soft chairs in the common room.
She grabbed her Divination and Defense Against the Dark Arts books, her next classes before the break, and ran into James as he entered the common room.
Lily stared at him for a moment before rushing out of the common room.
James stared after her. He turned around to see what she had been doing and found that her black bag had been left behind.
He picked it up to give it back to her, but everything spilled out. The many concealers and foundations tumbled onto the floor, as well as a piece of parchment. James picked it up and read the spell it described. "A Charm to Disguise Bruises..."
~#~
James was vacant all day, or so it seemed to Sirius. He never answered Sirius' questions unless he was poked violently. Sirius decided to try one more time.
"Hey James, wanna set off a dungbomb in the hall tonight?" This was James' favorite thing to do, it set the caretaker off his hinges.
James didn't answer.
Sirius sighed and faded back into the stupor that came with the History of Magic.
~&~
James knew something was seriously wrong. First the lies, then the disappearances, now the letter, charm, and (he shuddered) make-up. Suddenly, James thought of something. The letter she got, it might still be in the common room.
He would corner her after he read the letter and she would tell him everything. Whoever was hurting Lily, James thought, he would kill.
Then he mentally recoiled. What am I saying?! He thought, but it was obvious. He already knew.
~$~
Mei Long looked worriedly at the clock. Lily had promised to meet her in the common room at 5:30 to visit Leila, but it was already 6:01.
"James?" Mei Long asked. "Have you seen Lily?"
James shook his head. "She doesn't usually tell me where she's going."
"Are you sure?" Mei Long persisted. James could tell she was close to tears.
"I'm sure she'll be back soon," Darcie said, coming up behind her. "Why don't you go get the book for Leila?"
"Okay," Mei Long replied shakily and walked back up the stairs to her room.
"I wouldn't be half so worried if she wasn't disappearing all week," Darcie sighed. "Or if she hadn't been so vacant."
"Yeah," James agreed, looking around. "Where was Lily?"
The two waited in silence for a moment before Darcie spoke. "I'm going to see what Mei Long's up to. It doesn't take this long to go get a book."
James nodded.
By the time 6:30 had rolled around, Mei Long and Darcie had left to see Leila on their own. James had promised to keep on the lookout for Lily.
Sirius, Lupin, and Wormtail had gone up to their room and, by sound of it, were trying to levitate the bed.
James was trying to carry on a conversation with a giggling first year when the portrait swung open.
~&~
Lily anxiously checked her watch. It was 6:10. Lucius and his Slytherin friends should be here by now.
She waited by the shadows of the wall and shivered slightly. It was cold out, and the Quidditch field wasn't what Lily would call the warmest place to be.
Three people walked onto the field and towards Lily. Despite herself, she shuddered.
"Well, well, well," Lucius sneered. "If it isn't our little Lily."
Lily glared at him, but refrained from talking back. Crabbe and Goyle where standing menacingly behind him.
Lucius had been doing this since she had refused to go out on a date with him. First it was threatening letters and Howlers, then it was blackmail, now this. Lily had decided she wouldn't put up with it anymore.
"We told you what would happen, you know," Lucius said. "I gave you several chances. But I'll offer you again."
"I wouldn't go out on a date with you if my life depended on it, Malfoy!" Lily snapped.
"Well, if that's the way you feel." He said airily, stepping back. "Crabbe? Goyle?"
The first time one of their massive fists made contact, it wasn't so bad. But soon Lily was trying to shield herself, to no avail.
Soon the pain was riding away on a little cloud...the little cloud that was right in front of her eyes.
Suddenly, she remembered she had her wand. "Impedentio," she whispered and a small white light drifted out of her wand and around her foe's heads.
"You fools!" Lucius snapped. "That was me!"
Lily ran, ignoring her throbbing head, as fast as her legs could carry her into Hogwarts. The Gryffindor tower seemed so far away...
Finally, after an eternity, Lily was stepping into the portrait. The happy chatter suddenly turned to silence.
James was standing nearby, his jaw hangiing.
"I'm still not telling you," Lily said weakly, then collapsed in a dead faint.
And, because I love reviews, I am going to wait until I get at least five more before posting the rest!
One last thing- what do you want in this story? Drop me a line and I'll try to include your wonderful ideas.
Because I can find no more things to pester you guys with, on with the story!
Part 3, Section 2
Lily stared at the Quidditch field before her. "What have I gotten myself into?" she moaned.
"You wanted to do it yourself, you know," James reminded her.
"I'll be scorekeeper!"
"Nice try."
Lily looked around for another excuse to not play. "I don't know how to ride a broomstick!"
"We learned last year."
"There aren't any extras!"
"Have you checked the broom shed?"
"Um, yes!"
"Yeah, right."
"I'm afraid of heights!"
"Don't look down."
"Will you ever let me just forget I said I would play?!"
"Nope." James hid a grin. "Come on, we're choosing teams!"
He pulled Lily across the field to where Sirius and the others were standing.
"Oh, come off it, James," Lily tried desperately. "I'll just watch!"
"Not a chance," he replied.
"Hey James. It took you long enough!" Sirius greeted. "It's girls against boys."
"Hey, c'mon," Darcie said, grabbing Lily's sleeve.
"What's the position with the least amount of playing?"
"The seeker," Darcie promptly replied.
"That's me!" Lily said triumphantly. Then after a moment's hesitation, added, "So what do I do?"
"Oh, you just catch this little ball. No big thing, really," Mei Long said, trying to reassure Lily.
"WHAT?!" Mei Long elbowed Darcie in the ribs. "Er, right. Just fly around and look for a little gold ball. Then try and catch it. We'll do the rest."
"Alright!" Lily thought happily. James can't make me do anything hard after all!
Lily kicked off with the rest of them, but flew above the game, despite her fear of heights. There was absolutely no way she was getting caught up in the game below, and besides, the little yellow bird she was following was pretty.
"Hey, Lily!" yelled someone.
Lily turned her head, and her broom, in the direction of the speaker.
"Ah!" she screamed, barely missing him.
"What do you think you're doing?!" James demanded.
"I can't fly that well!" Lily defended. "And you were the one who called me."
"Well I was going to ask you, what are you doing up here? The ground is like fifty feet below!"
"Ja-ames!" Lily said loudly, holding her broomstick so tightly her knuckles turned white. "You didn't have to tell me!"
James laughed. "You should've seen the look on your face! It was priceless!"
Lily glared, and tried not to look down. I'm not so high up, she told herself.
"Is poor Lily scared?" James taunted. "You can always forfeit, you know. But then your team will lose. Oh well- it'll be quicker."
Lily glared furiously at James. "You think that I'm going to listen to-" Lily broke off in mid sentence and held up her hands. Something was speeding directly towards her face. A small ball-like thing slammed into her hand, and she closed her fingers around her.
She opened her eyes and found James to be staring at her. Lily held the Snitch in her hand.
"Hey, Mei Long?" she asked, flying down towards her friend. "What happens when I catch the little gold ball?"
"You caught it?" Darcie demanded. Lily held up the ball in answer.
"We won!" Mei Long shrieked, grabbing Lily in a hug. "We won!"
"You had better try out for the team!" Darcie yelled in Lily's ear. "You won against James!"
"Why would that matter?" Lily asked.
"Cause he's the best seeker in this damn school!" Darcie answered.
When they had all arrived safely on the ground, much to Lily's relief, she rounded on James.
"Nice try," Lily smirked, tossing him the golden ball. "Maybe next time."
~*~
James never forgot how Lily had beat him at Quidditch.
"It was an accident! She held up her hands to block herself and it hit her!" James told Sirius, but he still thought James should've beaten her.
Word had gotten around fast, and all the girls teased James to no end. He learned to like his room a lot better than the common rooms.
"You may resume working on Cheering Charms with your partners," Professor Flitwick said. "But please try to do it correctly this time. Madame Pomfrey is in the hospital wings if there are any more mistakes."
James looked around the room for Lily, but she wasn't there.
"Professor? My partner isn't here," James said.
"She isn't?" Flitwick looked even more stressed, if that was possible. After taking a quick look in his attendance book, he answered. "Oh yes. She is currently in the hospital wing."
"But she was there for the last two classes," James muttered.
Flitwick continued as if he didn't hear James. "For the time being, you may work with another group."
James automatically got up and walked towards Sirius' group.
"I'm working with you again," he muttered.
"Oh good," Sirius grinned. "Let me practice on you."
Five minutes later, James was on his way up to the hospital wing feeling extremely sick.
"It's an C, Sirius, not a B," Darcie said.
James rolled his eyes. At least one person was worse than him in Charms.
"Hello?" James called.
"What's wrong, dear?" Madame Pomfrey clucked.
"Cheering charm gone wrong," James said. "Sirius again."
"Sit down, and I'll fix you up."
James sat down in a chair and looked around until a voice startled him out of his thoughts.
"What are you doing here?" Lily demanded, striking her usual pose with her hands on her hips.
"What are you doing here?" James asked back.
"I asked first."
"So?"
"You answer first."
"Sirius messed up on his Cheering Charm again," James muttered.
"Oh."
There was silence for a moment, before James said, "Now you."
"Oh, I keep doing stupid things." Lily laughed, or tried to.
"Like what?"
"Just stupid things."
"Lily, you can tell me what's going on you know.
"What are you talking about?" Lily looked at him oddly, trying another laugh. "I always knew you were off your rocker."
"About the bruises. That's why you're here, isn't it? You said you hit yourself when you turned off your alarm. You don't have one."
Lily stared at James, her cover blown.
"It's nothing, okay?" Lily said quietly, gathering her bag. "You should stay out of it. I don't want you to get hurt too."
"What do you mean?" James demanded.
Lily smiled sadly at him and walked out of the door.
"Here, let me help you, dearie," Madame Pomfrey said, handing him a potion. "Drink this."
James choked down the potion, which tasted like a bad variation of cough medicine.
"Thanks," he said, jumping up and running out the door. "Got something to do."
~%~
James eyed Lily from across the table the next morning. She looked normal, if pale, but was laughing as usual. Whatever cover she had lost in the hospital wing had returned.
Lily remained composed all throughout the meal, ignoring James' analyzing stares, until mail came. An unfamiliar owl dropped a letter in her lap. She stared at it as her stomach lurched.
Carefully, she unfolded it and paled to a dead white. It was him again...
James watched her as she opened the letter. She looked faint, and her eyes spoke the doom she felt.
"Are you okay Lily?" he asked. All eyes turned to her.
"Oh, I'm fine," she lied hastily. "I just left something in the common room. I'll be right back."
Without another word, Lily left the table.
~!~
Lily ran along the hallways. She wasn't a big believer in Divination, but she remembered Professor Ninjin's words.
"I am quite sorry to inform you, my dear, but both of the things you are dreading will come true."
One was unfolding before her very eyes, but the other... What was it?
Without realizing it, Lily had sank into one of the soft chairs in the common room.
She grabbed her Divination and Defense Against the Dark Arts books, her next classes before the break, and ran into James as he entered the common room.
Lily stared at him for a moment before rushing out of the common room.
James stared after her. He turned around to see what she had been doing and found that her black bag had been left behind.
He picked it up to give it back to her, but everything spilled out. The many concealers and foundations tumbled onto the floor, as well as a piece of parchment. James picked it up and read the spell it described. "A Charm to Disguise Bruises..."
~#~
James was vacant all day, or so it seemed to Sirius. He never answered Sirius' questions unless he was poked violently. Sirius decided to try one more time.
"Hey James, wanna set off a dungbomb in the hall tonight?" This was James' favorite thing to do, it set the caretaker off his hinges.
James didn't answer.
Sirius sighed and faded back into the stupor that came with the History of Magic.
~&~
James knew something was seriously wrong. First the lies, then the disappearances, now the letter, charm, and (he shuddered) make-up. Suddenly, James thought of something. The letter she got, it might still be in the common room.
He would corner her after he read the letter and she would tell him everything. Whoever was hurting Lily, James thought, he would kill.
Then he mentally recoiled. What am I saying?! He thought, but it was obvious. He already knew.
~$~
Mei Long looked worriedly at the clock. Lily had promised to meet her in the common room at 5:30 to visit Leila, but it was already 6:01.
"James?" Mei Long asked. "Have you seen Lily?"
James shook his head. "She doesn't usually tell me where she's going."
"Are you sure?" Mei Long persisted. James could tell she was close to tears.
"I'm sure she'll be back soon," Darcie said, coming up behind her. "Why don't you go get the book for Leila?"
"Okay," Mei Long replied shakily and walked back up the stairs to her room.
"I wouldn't be half so worried if she wasn't disappearing all week," Darcie sighed. "Or if she hadn't been so vacant."
"Yeah," James agreed, looking around. "Where was Lily?"
The two waited in silence for a moment before Darcie spoke. "I'm going to see what Mei Long's up to. It doesn't take this long to go get a book."
James nodded.
By the time 6:30 had rolled around, Mei Long and Darcie had left to see Leila on their own. James had promised to keep on the lookout for Lily.
Sirius, Lupin, and Wormtail had gone up to their room and, by sound of it, were trying to levitate the bed.
James was trying to carry on a conversation with a giggling first year when the portrait swung open.
~&~
Lily anxiously checked her watch. It was 6:10. Lucius and his Slytherin friends should be here by now.
She waited by the shadows of the wall and shivered slightly. It was cold out, and the Quidditch field wasn't what Lily would call the warmest place to be.
Three people walked onto the field and towards Lily. Despite herself, she shuddered.
"Well, well, well," Lucius sneered. "If it isn't our little Lily."
Lily glared at him, but refrained from talking back. Crabbe and Goyle where standing menacingly behind him.
Lucius had been doing this since she had refused to go out on a date with him. First it was threatening letters and Howlers, then it was blackmail, now this. Lily had decided she wouldn't put up with it anymore.
"We told you what would happen, you know," Lucius said. "I gave you several chances. But I'll offer you again."
"I wouldn't go out on a date with you if my life depended on it, Malfoy!" Lily snapped.
"Well, if that's the way you feel." He said airily, stepping back. "Crabbe? Goyle?"
The first time one of their massive fists made contact, it wasn't so bad. But soon Lily was trying to shield herself, to no avail.
Soon the pain was riding away on a little cloud...the little cloud that was right in front of her eyes.
Suddenly, she remembered she had her wand. "Impedentio," she whispered and a small white light drifted out of her wand and around her foe's heads.
"You fools!" Lucius snapped. "That was me!"
Lily ran, ignoring her throbbing head, as fast as her legs could carry her into Hogwarts. The Gryffindor tower seemed so far away...
Finally, after an eternity, Lily was stepping into the portrait. The happy chatter suddenly turned to silence.
James was standing nearby, his jaw hangiing.
"I'm still not telling you," Lily said weakly, then collapsed in a dead faint.