The Marauding Five : Year Five

Lori : Troublemaking twisting love life? I'm trying it in this chapter, but you wouldn't like it, I think. It's too… [*looks into brain waves*] er, I haven't mastered the romance terms yet [eg. Mushy, corny…etc] and I really don't know how should I describe it ^^; maybe you can explain them to me, yes?

Caitlin Black : Aw… an early birthday song! It's so sweet of you!!!! and I reviewed your story for you! :) it was nice!! Better than my silly Golden Unicorn thingy anyway *stares at the stack of papers binded in a green file, titled Harry Potter and the Golden Unicorn* *Reads a few lines of the last chapter* Yeah, definitely better.

Kitty Kat Potter : Great dreams? Me? Now those two shouldn't really mix… And just recently I have one on Harry, Hermione and Ron being lost in a shopping mall, playing some sorta treasure hunt. Really comical ^^

Parvati Brown : I bet your teacher told you that your works are good because you're not half as insane as my mind is :) No, it's a good thing, really, and no offense is intended! And Sirius? In leather? *cough* Pardon. I was wondering what's so special about leather, though. I never seen much things in leather except a few handbags and shoes :)

Lita of Jupiter : Know what? I'd just decided that you SHOULD kill me as soon as you can. I have a really bad mind stress at the moment and I really couldn't coop up with life any more. I am seriously considering suicide but since I'm afraid of blood and strings, I figured that you could do a better job at that :)

Noelle : I love your cards!!! You were the first to send me one!!! And I guess Tally and Dan are still fighting. They probably will end up fighting all their life. Besides, it's because my stories are insanely hilarious that my teacher's against me :P in one essay, I wrote about this lady who had a big mouth [and provided a great theory and a laugh to my classmates – hmph!]. She gave me an A minus for good impression and a few grammatical errors. Wherelse my friend [she's Sarah_Michelle—a great writer!!!] got A for the same grammatical errors and an interesting story. Hah.

Lily's Friend*Jess : I do agree that no one's perfect. Even if there's someone who's really perfect [take our genius Marauders for example], they'll die early [*sniffles*]. Yeah. That's a great idea. Kill them as soon as I'm finished with Voldemort. *nods and began scribbling on a piece of paper*

Jinskid3 : This one's sequel to The Marauding Five – Year Four, which is sequel to Year Three, which is sequel to Year Two, which is sequel to Year One :)

thank you very much to those who'd sent me cards!!! they're wonderful!!! *sniff* some wrote to me wishing me, too!! you're all really super duper hyper sweeeeeet!

Disclaimer: Not mine to claim. *walks off singing "happy birthday to me…"*

The Marauding Five : Year Five

Chapter 6: Quidditch: Hufflepuff vs. Gryffindor

  Lily ran into her dormitory, laughing madly. This had all heads up. Tally tried ignoring her insane friend and returned to her work. Sita was trying to calm Lily's disturbing laughter by throwing some water at the girl. Nina yelped in surprise and threw her bottle of muggle nail-polish, which landed in a splat on Adele's Transfiguration essay. pertsy was trying to do her star-chart but, for some reasons, couldn't seem to do it properly. Adele was trying to control the burning desire in her patience to bomb Nina for destroying her essay. And Lily was still laughing madly after Sita tried calming her with the cold water.

  When she finally subdued, she went to bed, not much said.

  'Lily?' Adele said, peeking carefully into the curtains when everyone else blew off the candle. 'Lily, are you okay?'

  No answer.

  'I know you're awake, Lily. and I know you have some problems. You can tell me, Lily,' Adele said.

  Still no answer.

  'Can I come in to talk about it?'

  Adele felt a strong sense of power which levitated her onto the bed and shut the curtains up tightly. Adele stared around in the dark, hoping to see Lily's green eyes. She was just wondering if Lily's eyes can shine in the dark like a cat's when a small white light formed in a pair of trembling hands.

  'Lily!' Adele exclaimed. 'You don't have to frighten me like that! It's not Halloween!'

  'Sorry Teddy,' Lily said shakily.

  'What happened?'

  'I don't get it.'

  'Huh?'

  'I really don't get it,' Lily said, shaking her head regretfully.

  'You can cut that out and tell me now. What happened???' Adele demanded.

  'I don't know.'

  'Well, what is it that you don't get???'

  'Me.'

  'You? There's nothing wrong with you, Tinker.'

  'Well I- I think I'm lost! I'm gone! As in mad!!' Lily said. 'I want to cry, but I can't cry cause it's not that time yet. Besides, it was only in the summer when I had last cried, not two years ago.'

  'What are you talking about, Lily? You're here,' Adele said in puzzlement. 'Not in summer. You're in winter. Not summer, get me?'

  'Of course! I know I'm in early winter!' Lily retorted. 'It was only a week ago when I was raking leaves for detention!'

  'But you said you were lost.'

  'I meant that I'm goners, Adele. Definitely bonkers,' Lily said quaveringly. Adele wondered if Lily was just exaggerating things. 'I just can't believe it!!! It's unbelievable!'

  'Lily Rose Evans, get a grip on yourself!' Adele scolded. 'You know you can believe anything you want to, right? You're not living in the muggle world!'

  'And because of that, I'm scared,' Lily said softly.

  'What? Tell me! It's just not you to keep complaining like some raving lunatic,' Adele said.

  'It's frightening!'

  'What is frightening?'

  'My- my dream.'

  This had Adele's interest piqued up. She loved to know about Lily's dreams, because all of them come true. And all of them are rather joyful, too. She just have to know what the Marauders will end up doing next!

  'Tell me about it,' Adele said.

  'I- I was sleeping a while ago, and I dreamt a dream. I dreamt that Voldemort was destroying things. People. Villages. An entire city of muggles,' Lily said eeriely.

  'Go on,' Adele said, leaning back. Probably Lily'll tell her that the five of them came out of nowhere, defeat Voldemort and lived happily ever after. Just like those muggle cartoons she watched in James's house the summer before.

  'I saw the Dementors, Adele. They were frightful. And the towering giants. And the Death Eaters. I saw that third year Slytherin. Lucious Malfoy, he was addressed. I saw Snape. I saw practically half of Slythering house. And, worst of all, I saw us,' Lily's lower lip trembled, when she uttered the last syllable. Adele shivered. They were going to be killed by Voldemort??

  'What?!'

  'I saw us, Teddy. You, me, James, Sirius and Remus. All five of us are in black robes, just like those Death Eaters. But- but it just isn't us,' Lily said. Adele don't like how this dream was turning out.

  'What isn't it us?' Adele inquired.

  'It just isn't. I mean, they look a lot like us, right to my very tip of my hair. The resemblance was uncannt. But I know it just isn't us. Our- our faces weren't that hard, right? Our eyebrows aren't in that arching, cruel way, and- and out eyes aren't blank, are they?' Lily asked nervously. 'That's either a premonition or something I had to interpret. Or better still, some harmless nightmare.'

  'Ssh! It's only a harmless nightmare, Tinker. Besides, I don't think naps are dreams that come true, right?' Adele said comfortingly. 'Get some sleep now, okay?'

  Lily nodded mutely and Adele went back to her bed.

**

  'Do you think we'll get it? Do you? Do you?' Lily asked eagerly, skipping around Morton like a frisky lamb. Morton gave a little chuckle.

  'It really seems odd to me, Lily, that you should skip around me like that,' Morton said. 'Please, Lily, give me a break, okay? I can't tell if McGonagall would assign you a detention for pining up Sybil like that! She's out of detentions again, I must say. The summer holidays hadn't done much good to her creative detentions.'

  'So is that a yes or a no?' Lily asked impatiently. Morton gave it a thought.

  'The boys are improving tremendously well,' she replied solemnly.

  'I know that!' Lily said, stamping her feet impatiently. She knew, owe to the fact that she had given them a boost to speed up their process in learning. The Marauders knew that they had to take their OWLs this year and planned to play more pranks on the other fifth years, just to remind them how bad hell might be (or even worst) to prevent them from saying 'Oh, I can't do this! I'll die now! Ohh…!' And with the boys studyiing their Blue and Red magic robs half – no, ¾ - or their precious time.

  'Lily Evans! Hie! Lily! quidditch practices coming right up!' a sixth year called. This, fortunately for Morton, had Lily's attention distracted. Hurriedly, Morton slipped off into an unknown room in the wall. Lily turned to the caller.

  'Which house are we against for the first season, Chip?' Lily asked her captain, Chip Clunk.

  'Ravenclaw, but they backed down. Lousy birds. Hufflepuff's our first match,' Chip said. 'I bet you five galleons those Raven-dolts admitted defeat to Gryffindor's best team! Me, you, James, Sirius, Remus, Charite and Jeremy! Best team ever! Hoorah!'

  'Face on it, Mr Show-Off,' Konglo Merat, the Hufflepuff team captain, said sniggeringly. 'We're sure to win this match! Hufflepuff will regain its lost glory!!! HAHAHAHAHA!'

  Lily and Chip watched him as he strutted off, still laughing with his nose stuck in the air. He was so busy laughing that he forgot to see where he was going, and bang straight into the large pillar that supported the statue of Knight Kit-Kot.

  'Weird guy,' Chip tutted, when Merat yelled in pain at his broken nose. 'You tell your friends, kay Lily? Tomorrow the field's ours for the day and be up by six for practice!'

  'Six!!! What on earth for?' Lily exclaimed in pure horror. She want her beauty sleep, James wants his beauty sleep, Remus wants his beauty sleep, Sirius wants his beauty sleep, Charite wants her beauty sleep, Jeremiah wants his beauty sleep, Chip wants his beauty sleep… heck! The whole team need its beauty sleep!

  'You heard me, Evans. Six in the morning,' Chip said. 'Or perhaps five would be more practical… Yes, five in the morning will do. You tell them that, Lily.' And he went off without another word.

  Lily glared spitefully at him. She was now wondering if she should just sleep in tomorrow, modify Chip's memory, purposely forget about it or just pretend that this meeting she had just had with him was just his dreams. But all these means an even higher risk for Hufflepuff to gain its glory. And Gryffindor team hasn't really been practicing these days.

  Also, the Hufflepudd Quidditch team isn't what you'd like to refer the word 'nice' to.

  They were almost as bad as Slytherin house themselves, only they played better than the Slytherins and the amount of fouls they made were far less.

  'Unfortunately, none of the Hufflepuff team has any fifth years,' Lily sighed. 'They're what you'll call real Hufflepuffs. Sometimes I wonder if that Sorting Hat did a mistake in its million sortings. Nice Gryffindors like Thomas MacMillan should be in Hufflepuff with his Hufflepuff friends instead of being teased by Dan.'

**

  'Haaaaaa,' James yawned sleepily, clutching his broomstick as he tried to stand up straight. when Lily told them that Chip said five in the morning, none of the boys believed her. Well, Sirius and Remus don't. Only he was thick enough to believe it. Maybe he's just too stupid.

  And maybe he should sit. It's easier than standing.

  'Ouch!' Lily's voice yelped when she stumbled into the dark pitch with her broom in her hands. The girl muttered a couple of curses and the stone she fell on broke into tiny, powder of fine sand, blown away by the wind.

  'G'morning, Li,' James yawned. 'Where're the rest of them?'

  Lily said nothing but stumbled her way towards James, using her broomstick to help her tired legs go on. Upon reaching her friend, she fell heavily on him. James sat her up next to him.

  'Lily, get a grip on yourself!'

  'Am so… so… ti… red…' Lily yawned.

  'Like I'm not. Get up, Tinkerbell!' James said, helping her sit properly.

  'This is so very ridiculous,' Lily chattered in the cold October wind that had decided to blow at that time. 'Atishoo! 'scuse me…'

  'Get up, Lily! look, you're making me wide awake and I still want to sleep! I haven't finished my dream of eating a hundred suet puddings!!!!' James complained. Lily sneezed in reply. 'Dimwit. Didn't you bring a cloak?' James scolded.

  Lily didn't reply. James was about to ask what happened to the others when Lily fell onto him again. James turned to push her up and saw Lily snoozing on his shoulder. His jaw fell.

  'Tinker! You made me wide awake at five in the morning and now you're sleeping on me??? Are you trying to make me jealous 'cause you got your sleep and I don't???'

  'I'm cold,' Lily muttered, snuggling closer to James.

  'It's your punishment for not bringing a cloak. I'm not that stupid,' James muttered cruelly. But he laid his cloak on Lily's shivering body. He might as well wait for the rest of the team members here. He slumped onto his broomstick.

  'James?' Lily whispered.

  'What now? If you want a hot water bottle, you can well dream for it in your sleep for I haven't got one here,' James said.

  'Do you love me? Honestly? In that way?' James felt his cheeks colouring.

  '… What?'

  'Do you?'

  'Why do you ask?' James aked cautiously.

  'Because…'

  'Because?'

  'I do,' Lily murmured, snuggling closer. James rolled his eyes. Oh, typical. Romance on the Quidditch pitch at five in the morning. This is sooo ridiculous.

  'Do you, James?' Lily asked.

  'Are you awake, Lily?' James asked.

  'Yes.'

  'How many fingers am I holding?' James asked. He hadn't held up any of his fingers.

  'You don't have fingers to hold.'

  So she can think logically in her sleep, James mused. That's something. Not many can.

  'Well, how many? You know perfectly well what I mean.'

  'Two?' Lily guessed.

  James is now confirmed that Lily is sleep-talking.

  'Um, right.'

  'Do you love me, James?'

  'Um, give me a minute, Lily.'

  'Okay. Please tell me honestly, Big Bro,' Lily murmured, giggling a little. James was almost like her big brother, as were Sirius and Remus. It had been a joke for long and a bond they like to hold on to at some times.

  James had a full minute to think about what Lily asked, because amazingly, Lily asked him the question again in exactly 60 seconds. And James still isn't sure of his answer.

  'One more minute,' James promised.

  'You really don't have to think, James,' Lily murmured. 'All you have to do is look right through. Look deep in and you'll find it, James. Thinking takes more than 120 seconds.'

  'I hate it when you turn sensible,' James muttered.

  'Hmm?'

  'Lily, I—'

  James's throat was stuck. It was as if his heart went right up to his throat and choke him with his flying emotions. It wasn't exactly pleasant, because he felt like throwing up any minute.

  'What is it?' Lily asked gently.

  'Alright, Lily. I love you, um, too. I love you for long, Tinker, and I just hope you're really really sleeping and NOT pretending,' James said. 'And yes, I did chose that Dragani for your form because I kinda like that creature. It just reminds me of you. Although you never asked this, I think you might wanna know so… whatever.'

  'That's… nice…' Lily whispered, snuggling even closer to him for his body heat. Her lips gave him a short brush on the cheek before she cuddled snugly in his arms.

  Never will James ever forget the day where Chip Clunk made Lily and him come to the freezing Quidditch pitch for some stupid practice no one cared much about but the thick couple. And how the sleepy Lily had fallen asleep on him and her talking in her sleep.

  But all in all, James will never forgive Chip for paralyzing him with the bitter October frost on that "Romance on Quidditch Pitch" day, as he'd called it.

**

  'You liar!!! I came and you slept in!!!' Lily yelled, thowing the stones she picked up from the pitch when she woke up at the scrambling Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. James was hurling curses and hexes at the sixth year mercilessly. Both had just gotten back from the Quidditch Pitch at seven and found Chip in the common room, sleeping behind a comic book on the couch.

  'Come back here! I will NEVER forgive you for not coming!!! What d'you think I am, huh? A yeti???' James yelled, hurling a curse after the fleeing boy.

  'Now, now! kids, do slow it! Ek!' Chip yelped, when one of Lily's humongous stone flew towards him and hit him sharply on the elbow.

  'KIDS!!!' Lily shrieked. 'You take that back!!! We are no kids and you'd better remember that fact!!! I'm going to make you regret!

Lady Mercury, of knowledge and frost

Shower this human with your cruel force!'

Lily cried, pointing an accusing finger at Chip.

  Chip had paused to stare at Lily's odd incantation (it was definitely never heard of before), wondering what on earth that was meant for. James was still deciphering (he hadn't memorized everything yet) the meaning of Lily's incantation when a blizzard of bitter frost bit Chip coldly, turning him blue.

  'Morning!!! Wonderful, isn't it?' Sirius greeted cheerfully, coming down the stairs. 'What time is it, Moony?'

  'Eight,' Remus replied. 'Why is Chip dancing in a snow storm? Why is there a snow storm in the common room?'

  'Lily,' Adele yawned. 'Besides me, only Lily memorized those stupid incantiations. That one uses Mercury's power of ice, absurd to you as it may seem.'

**

  'Considering that our practices turn into chit-chat sessions, I have hardly any confidence to win this game,' Charite Chase said, glaring sourly at Chip.

  'Yeah. You, him and Jeremy,' James said, slumping onto the bench.

  'Well you're taking your OWLs this year,' third year Jeremiah Chase said. 'And Charite and Chip were, um, preparing for their NEWTs.'

  'Sorry, reason not accepted,' Sirius said.

  'You need to be more practical,' Lily nodded.

  'Alright Lions! We'll just knock those Badgers off their brooms!' Chip said cheerily.

  'And they say animals don't fly on brooms,' Remus muttered.

  'Well… just do your best, kid – I mean, people!' Chip said.

  'Unless, of course, Hufflepuff team decides to quit,' James said sourly, wiping his glasses. 'Which is a definite no.'

  'And now, presenting the Gryffindor team!!!' the announcer, Solan Trift of Ravenclaw, called in his magnified voice.

  The Gryffindor team went rather sullenly to the Quidditch Pitch where their opposing team were sniggering unpleasantly at them, making rude signs and insulting faces. Lily glared, but refrain herself from attacking. It wouldn't be a fair game if she injure them, even a little.

  'On with it, Trift!!!' Adele called from the stands. 'Cheer up, guys!!!!! you'll beat those Hufflepuffs like pancakes!!!' and she slammed her hand to express how flat a pancake is.

  'You don't know what happened to our practice sessions,' Lily grumbled.

  'Clunk, Chase, Chase, and the school's famous foursome!!!' Trift cried.

  'Oh, Lord, if Janet sees me lose…' Lily muttered, searching over the stands for Professor Morton. She left her sentence hanging, anyhow,and stared properly at her sister. The small, girlish face was smiling; but her eyes were as hard as stone slabs. It was a sort of evil smile that make your spine shiver. Lily felt like shuddering, but she was too frozen with shock.

  'Whatever, Lily. We don't want to know your consequence of dignity,' Remus muttered. 'You'd better wish me luck. I just hope I can save those Quaffles.'

  'Good luck, Moony,' Sirius and James said gloomily, as if wishing him the lose he was foretelling.

  Phweet!!!!!!!!!!!! went the shrill whistle. Fourteen sleek broomsticks soared into the air, in which seven of them are sweating to the extent of their "sweat factory" beneath their skin surface. Trift was commentating on the game.

  'Chaser Chase chases the Quaffle – interesting one there – and oh!!! Chaser Koal of Hufflepuff snatched it! – the Bludger sent by Beater Black of Gryffindor banged right on Seeker Jenning's nose – ouch! A bruise there, Jasper! – oh! Koal passes the Quaffle to Chaser Falke, and Hufflepuff scores the game!!!! 10-0 in favour to the Badgers!' Trift yelled as the Hufflepuff errupted in cheers.

  'Remus!!!' Chip yelled at his Keeper.

  'Excuse me, but if the sand hadn't gotten into my eye at that very moment, I would've saved it just as fine as I can fly on the broom!' Remus retorted with a hint of sarcasm in it.

  'Chaser Evans now snatched the Quaffle – vicious girl there – and sends it to Chaser Potter – Wow! Nice catch, Potter! – and he sends it to Chaser Chase, who scares into – aaah! Keeper Mince saved the game!!! Oh no, now Evans regains the Quaffle and sends it at high speed towards the goal! Really geniune vicious girl, that Evans. 10-10!' Trift cried. The Gryffindors cheered, yelling at their top of their lungs as some even made a barn dance in their seats.

  'Vicious,' Charite said mockingly to Lily. Lily felt her cheeks burn. However tomboy-like you are, no one'd like to be tagged "vicious" at all.

  'He'll be getting his… vicious, then,' Lily said in a controlled voice, glaring coldly at the box. She secretly pulled out her wand and muttered a spell under her breath befor smiling smugly at the commentating box Trift was in.

  'Eeek! Beetles! There's a beetle in here!!!' Trift's magnified voice yelped. A loud scrabbling and a few – no, let's rephrase that – a loud scrabbling and a whole load of loud, off noises were heard from the school's Quidditch Commentating Box.

  'What is going on here, Solan Trift???' McGonagall's booming, dictative, crisp and dangerous voice yelled loudly as she stomped into the box. It echoed around the pitch.

  'B- bee- beetles! It's b- bee- beetles, professor! Loads of 'em! Aaaah! Bugs!!!!!' and with a loud clunk and a faint thud, the spectators and players and teachers guessed only one thing: Solan Trift fainted. This proves obviously true, since the Transfiguration master later yelled:

  'Poppy!!! Oh, Poppy! Trift has fainted!!!! Poppy!!! POPPY!!!' McGonagall yelled shrilly. 'Time-out, you Quidditch players! Someone – but preferably Poppy – Trift fainted!!!!!!!!! Help!!!!!!! Out! No game anymore!!!!'

  'Oh!' the Gryffindor team cheered happily, each dropping to the ground at once.

  'Whoever thought the game would be called because because the commentator, of all people, fainted?' James said in amusement as Sirius, Lily and Remus made a tight bear hug around him.

  'This is our luck!' Jeremiah whooped happily, jumping. 'Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tied!'

**

  'Minerva?' the Marauders heard Dumbledore say. 'For calling off today's match, your detention is scrubbing the new trophies that had just arrived. Mind you, don't remove your brass. And I want them shining marvelously.'

  'Yes, Professor.'

  'And no magic,' Dumbledore added.

  'But—'

  'No magic, Minerva.'

  'Yes, Headmaster,' McGonagall replied sullenly. The five Marauders began giggling hysterically, pulling themselves far from the mirror's hole in their circular room. The look they had imagined on McGonagall's face was a memory to remember.

  'I never imagine that them teachers still receive detentions,' Lily said with a happy sigh, once her laughing side faded.

  'Now you do,' Sirius said.

  'I bet it's because of those drastic actions,' Adele said reasonably.

  'Drastic? That's life-saving! I nearly thought we'd lose!!!' James said.

  'You think of loads of rubbish, that's all,' Remus said flatly.

  'I don't!'

  'You do!'

  'Don't!'

  'Do!'

  'Don't!'

  'Do!'

  'Don't, don't, don't!!!!!!'

  'Do, do, do!!!!!!'

  'The next full moon is next week,' Adele cut. 'Where will we be going? The shack is getting boring now. once is enough, and I can't see how Remus can stand in there for years!'

  'Tour Hogsmeade?' Sirius suggested.

  'With us looking like odd creatures that aren't commonly found?' Lily said. 'A dragani, a wolf, a stag, a dog and a panda. Can anything get worst?'

  'Um… no. How about exploring those dusty corners?'

  'Where?'

  'Shrieking Shack.'

  'I've been there for more than four years, as Adele had so kindly pointed out,' Remus wailed.

  'Ssh!!! Minnie might still be around!' Adele hushed. They waited silently for ten minutes until Lily finally announced that no one is nearby save the stupid painting of Sir Cardogan and a dinky rusting armour, which proves to be nothing at all.

  'How about blindfolding outselves?' James said. 'And we walk and walk to see where we'll end up at?'

  'That's ridiculous!' Adele scolded scornfully. 'We'll be dead, killed by some stray wizard officer!'

  'Aaaaah!' Lily yawned. 'Am tired. Let's just discuss this some time later, okay? I'm going to sleep in here tonight. Duplicatus!'

  And to Adele's surprise, Lily's clone appeared suddenly, after a twirl and a wiggle of a wand stick. She had obivously not known of this spell before. No one showed or demo it to her anyway.

  'Take her to my bed and tell her to sleep, Teddy,' Lily said, crawling into her bed in the small room. 'And don't be surprised if she disappears by sunrise. I might let her go earlier, though. It depends. And it's just my duplicate. G'night!'

  Dumbfounded, Adele blankly led the Lily-doll-clone to the Gryffindor girls's dorm. Sirius and Remus climbed out after the girl, declaring that they have a war with the kitchen elves to see who can raid the most food: them or the elves.

  James stayed.

  'Lily, I want to ask you something,' he said with utmost solemness.

  'I want to sleep, or don't you understand that very simple phrase?' Lily said in annoyance, sitting up in her bed. Her mind felt and odd zilch and she can tell that she might not like how this conversation will turn.

  'No, I want to ask you something,' he repeated.

  'What is it? And don't look like this question decides your fate, kay? You're freaking me out!!!' Lily said.

  'Do you, um, love me? In… that way?' James mumbled.

  'What?!' Lily hadn't been able to hear his mumblings, but she read the question in his thoughts.

  'Do you?'

  'Er…'

  'I want an honets answer,' James said. 'And don't lie.'

  'Um…' Lily said decidedly, thinking deeply at this sudden pop of question. She never expected this. Or better, she had expected this, but not just yet.

  'Well?'

  'Why did you ask?' Lily asked suspiciously. James never was one to ask this type of question suddenly.

  'Because you asked me that. When you fell asleep in the middle of the Quidditch Pitch at five in the morning.'

  'I did? Then I must've answered too, didn't I?'

  'You did, but I just want to know if what you said that day was true, or just some brainless mumble. Do you remember anything from that day? At that time?' James asked, vowing himself to raise up the barrier in his mind.

  'No,' came the honest reply.

  'Even better. So I shall repeat the question you asked me when you were sleep-talking in the middle of the field. Do you love me? Honestly? In that way?'

  Lily stared slowly at his determined brown eyes, unsure of how she should answer this startling question that might choose her fate from her parents and true fact. She stared searchingly into them for what seemed like ages. Finally, she bit her lower lip decidedly. She stepped out of her bed and went to James. She hugged him tightly before drawing him into a deep kiss.

  'I won't answer you,' Lily said before going back to her bed. 'I won't answer you, because I just can't yet.'

  'Why not? That is so unfair!'

  Lily shrugged carelessly for a moment. 'Good night, James.'

  And she went to sleep without another word.

AN: Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me~ yep!!! It's my birthday!!!!!!!!!

 Okie, the romance you all had been bugging me about [I promised it, anyway] is here, in a rather… different way, I must say. I was, am and never will be a romance writer because I don't think I'm that fit for that category [I promise I'll give another shot at this romance thing. If it works out, you're lucky. If it backfires… who cares?] ^_^; it just isn't me, I know, if something is too dull for my own sense of humour [it's weird, weird, WEIRD!], like that other story I was writing: James Potter and the Unogua Board. Believe me, I had troubles writing that, because I had to keep Lily's character, I have to keep the sense of curiousity, the solemness and it's all very hard! I feel like making Lily say 'Look, Sirius, stop buggering me or I'll turn you into a hedgehog pie for my next supper, and that isn't going to be easy for you, cause I'll torture you by pulling off your needles FIRST before devouring you!' Hahaha.

 No, this AN isn't ending yet. Please, read on!!! I was planning to post chapter 7 alongside with this chapter but guess what happened? This computer of mine deleted it! Yes! It deleted my chapter seven! The one with detentions in it. *sigh* it was such a great chapter too [to me]. And yes, this is finished. Please review!!!

Carrots and Lettuces with Seaweed and Chocolate goes to Seaweed and Lettuces - for those who know, good for you, for those who don't, try figure it out :)