The Prince and the Pauper
(A Marauder Story)
Chapter Thirteen: Tragedy
A/N: Just to let you know, note about who Deana was for those who don't know at the end. And when I say 'Tragedy' I mean it…no comedy in this, it was all depressing…enjoy!
~*~
Her friends followed her as quickly as they could, Sirius and James leading the race of kids, which is why when she stopped dead in her tracks, they nearly crashed into her.
When they looked up to wear Lily was frozen in her steps, they gasped.
There, gliding over towards Deana, was a black hooded creature.
~*~
"Deana!" Lily shouted, and ran towards the older girl.
James quickly regained his senses and sent Melodia, Peter and Cass in search of the train monitors. Bella took out her wand and said, "Expecto Patronum!"
Lily had read up on advanced charms, so she instantly recognized the spell as the Patronus charm. It was exceedingly difficult, and hardly anyone could perform it. Now, Bella was a great witch and student, but it was unexpected for her to have mastered it.
Lily leaned over Deana's still body. She was breathing, but there was a blank look in her eyes. Lily broke down in sobs. She'd been too late to save her friend.
She tried to imagine Deana as she first met her. It was only a few months ago. She was full of life, especially when she made that bet with James and Sirius. That stupid bet, that they could out-prank that Weasley kid. Of course they could, she thought, but it hadn't been tallied up yet.
"Lily, come here," Sirius said, and gathered her up and got her to sit on a seat. She was shaking with sobs and buried her face in Sirius' cloak.
Bella, James, and Remus were crowded around Deana. Bella had gotten rid of the Dementor, but its victim remained.
When the train monitor entered the compartment, Bella quickly explained the situation. A gasp was heard from the hallway, and everyone turned. There was Benny Weasley (whom Lily had interrogated) and two other girls. Lily remembered them to be Deana's dorm mates.
"Dee?" Brown-haired girl asked tearfully.
"I'm sorry," the train monitor said.
"She's dead?" Blue-robes girl asked, trembling.
"Not dead," the monitor sighed. "She's been…Kissed."
Benny, his face pale, nodded. He took a deep breath and got Brown-haired and Blue-robes out of the room. With a last longing glance at Deana, who stared back impassively, he followed them.
The rest of the train ride was spent trying to coax Lily into explaining how she knew, and attempting to convince her that it wasn't her fault. When they arrived at the castle, Professor McGonagall was there to greet them. She then whisked Lily off to the Headmaster's office.
~*~
Professor Dumbledore was quite used to strange happenings. He had taken a liking to them, if truth be told. Uneventful days just added up to worthless lives. Besides, distractions made life interesting.
However, as interesting as some events might be, tragedy filled most of them these days. It was quite a shame.
When he had been informed that a student had been Kissed on the train, it had kept years of practice to keep up his calm, in control façade he tended to wear. People looked up to him and (despite his hate for that) he needed to convince them not to panic.
Deana Slate. Gryffindor Fourth Year. No reason to be targeted. No reason to have no soul. No reason to have no life to live. Her life was, however awful it might sound, over. It would almost be better for her to have died. If her parents make the right decision, they'll let that happen.
He needed to talk to the spotter of this…which was Lily Evans. A Gryffindor First Year. A Muggle-born orphan, but extremely bright girl. Friend of the already infamous Marauders. And she'd be here…in a matter of minutes. Most likely a wreck. The poor child.
Dumbledore sighed. Fate certainly was throwing in some unexpected happening in his path of life, and for once, he wished it hadn't. He knew this would only lead to more awful tragedies…all because of one man.
Tom Riddle. Former Slytherin Head Boy. Half-blooded orphan. Extremely bright boy. Extremely stupid boy. Of course, he'd never been too fond of him, even as a student. One of these days he'd convince the Ministry of Magic that he, not Rubeus Hagrid, was responsible for those attacks a few decades ago.
A knock on the door interrupted Professor Albus Dumbledore's thoughts.
~*~
Lily entered the Headmaster's office. It was full of wondrous things and the best of all the professor's offices, but she hardly noticed.
If only she'd gotten there sooner.
"Miss Evans?" a soothing voice said.
Lily looked up to find the Headmaster staring at her intently. She knew what he wanted-an explanation. That's what her friends wanted as well, but she couldn't give it to them. She didn't know herself what had happened, for one. And even if she did, how could they possibly understand.
"Lily, my dear," Dumbledore started, "I know it was hard."
There it was. Lily wanted to hate him for forcing this out of her, but it was hard. It was hard, because his awful statement was true. He did know it was hard. He knew it. He knew it, yet he was still going to squeeze out the day's events.
"I had a vision," she blurted out quickly.
"Did you?" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. It was so awful…it-it leaned over Deana, and I ran, she was at the other end! Maybe if I hadn't stalled, hadn't asked her friend, but I did…it was too late. Bella did the Patronus, I don't know what hers was…but it went away, but he stole it! She's as good as dead, she's…" but Lily couldn't go on.
Dumbledore stood up from his desk and went to the young girl's side.
"What you need, my dear, is some rest. Go to Madam Pomfrey, get a sleeping potion. Your friends will be informed, Lily. Go on, you had a rough day," the Headmaster said to the young, shaking girl in front of him.
With that, he signaled for Minerva McGonagall, who was still standing in the doorway of his office. She nodded at him, and took the redhead by the shoulders and escorted her out of the office.
~*~
"Hey guys, have you seen Lily?" Melodia asked James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and
Cass. Bella was sitting with the other Ravenclaws at her table.
"No," Peter said, looking upset.
"Not recently," Remus said slowly, yawning in the process. He'd been looking rather ill lately. Melodia made a mental note to investigate once she found Lily's location.
"Nope," Sirius said after a moment, as he had been concentrating on getting the pet flobberworm he'd found into the girl-next-to-him's hair.
Cass wasn't answering, and neither was James. Melodia sighed. It seemed the three of them were up for a game of major hide-and-go-seek.
"You two coming?" she asked, and Cass jumped up right away. James exchanged a look with her, and agreed.
"Right behind you Mel," he answered, and ducked her fist as she yelped: "My name is NOT Mel!"
~*~
Lily, meanwhile, had just reached the hospital wing. She had straggled up slowly, and when she reached the matron at last, she collapsed on the floor. Madam Pomfrey gasped in alarm and picked the girl up right away.
Albus had said she'd need care, but this much, really? Madam Pomfrey tutted as she quickly checked the girl's temperature and other important things. She had a pulse, heartbeat, was breathing, not feverish, or clammy for that matter, she looked perfect. Which lead to one thing- she was doing it to herself. She wasn't physically ill at all. Maybe drained, but that would be gone with a bit of chocolate. No, this was purely psychological. She was forcing herself to a breaking point unconsciously. While right now it would seem normal, Madam Pomfrey was no amateur nurse. She knew exactly how this would end up-the poor eleven year old would take on the blame and slowly wear herself down to the point of it being a true physical condition.
Which was most definitely a problem.
The matron gave the redhead a sleeping potion, which she needed help draining, and when it was finished the small girl went limp. She laid on the bed, still and peaceful of the moment. The nurse, with her own sort of maternal wisdom in her eyes, gazed at the sleeping girl.
"You'll have tough times in for you, sweet. Just you make sure you don't let them pull you down. Don't let them suffocate you. You seem the sort to fight it, Lily, so fight it. You are a strong girl, no sissy. Good luck, child."
And with a final look, she went quietly into her office.
~*~
"Where on earth has that girl gotten to?" Melodia asked out loud. She had been searching for three quarters of an hour already, and there was no sign of her friend. The Astronomy tower, Gryffindor tower, grounds, and library had all been covered and Cass had started to get fidgety half an hour ago. As James had warned her when it started, a fidgety Cass was no joke. She'd started just skipping slowly. Then speeding up and then slowing down, which normally wasn't annoying. But then, Cassidy Figg was an expert at bothersome habits. From there, she started counting doors. And as Hogwarts was a huge, magically inhanced castle, this was no easy feat. Afterwards it had slowly turned into humming. Humming nonsense tunes that got stuck in ones head. Right now she was on 'I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves.' True to its title, Melodia was so close to cursing Cass into next week while they were heading for the infirmary. She was clutching her wand tightly trying to restrain herself when James held up an arm to stop her from walking.
"What, James?" she asked him. It was then that she saw what he was looking at with wide eyes. Lily. On one of the beds. And she seemed to be dead to the world. Cass stopped her humming abruptly and ran into the ward. James and Melodia needed no further invitation and followed her hurriedly. As they came to a halt besides her bed, they let out three simultaneous sighs. She was alive. Breathing, at least, which was a good enough search for anyone. She opened her eyes slowly, and looked at them.
"Hey Lils," James said softly, and she just looked at him. She gave no sign of recognition at all, just stared at him. Her normally lively jade eyes possessed no emotions as she looked at James. He sighed and turned shortly.
"Get Madam Pomfrey."
Cass hurried to obey, and within moments the matron appeared. She was looking concerned as Cass murmured to her the previous exchange. The nurse nodded once at Cass, and then said, "Lily, dear, how are you feeling? I expected you to still be sleeping."
Lily gave her a blank stare.
"Lily, sweetheart, why don't you tell us how you're feeling. Maybe you're
hungry for some food, we can get some sent up here. Or perhaps you want another
sleeping potion?"
Once again she was greeted only with a vacant gaze. Melodia felt her eyes start to burn and looked away. The lifeless girl on the hospital bed bared no resemblance to the normally vivacious Lily she knew. She looked like, for all intents and purposes, a Kissed victim. Which wasn't right, as it was Deana who was Kisses. Not Lily….
"Well, sweet, why don't you lay down?" Madam Pomfrey said, and to her immense relief, Lily laid down. She then turned to her three shaken friends and with a nod towards her office she mouthed 'Come with me.'
James, Cass, and Melodia followed the nurse to her office and as soon as she shut the door they started speaking at once.
"Madam Pomfrey, what's wrong with her?"
"Is she
okay, Madam Pomfrey?"
"Lily's never like this, never, what's going on, is she sick?"
"Will she be okay?"
"What if-"
And then James made a comment that stopped the rest.
"This has something to do with the Dementor incident, hasn't it."
It wasn't a question.
The nurse sighed and answered, "Yes, Mr. Potter, it does. I believe that nothing is physically wrong with her. But she's mentally drained. She might get better, she might not. There really isn't anything anyone can do for her right now. She is doing this to herself, unconsciously, of course. She went through a lot…having a vision is scary, and the fact that she was too late to stop it…" she trailed off as she realized that she'd just revealed that Lily had had a vision. She hoped in vain that they wouldn't have noticed her slip, but Cass immediately pointed it out to the others.
"Wait, wait, wait…rewind a bit. Lily had a vision? But she's no Seer! They test for Seers, even if you aren't aware of it at the time! My mum told me about it because-because my aunt was one. She died too, because of a vision…but, Lily just can't be one, because someone would've known."
"Yes, and we all agree with you Miss Figg, that she is not a Seer, but she for some reason or another had this vision. She'll be staying here until she is recovered. You may visit her periodically, but not all the time. I'm very sorry girls…boy…but all we can do is make sure she's comfortable and hope for the best. You'd better get down to the feast; it's required that you attend, and you don't want Professor McGonagall to take points off Gryffindor already, do you?"
"No, ma'am," the three children responded. Cass and Melodia silently traipsed out of the room. With a last glance at the girl on the bed, James nodded to Madam Pomfrey and left as well.
~*~
The months were trickling by slowly. January turned into February, which led into March, and then April, as it always does. Day after day, week after week, the Marauders, Melodia, Cass, and Bella would sit with Lily, speak to her, and try to act normally around her in the hospital wing. When the Marauders planned a prank, Lily was always the first to hear of the plans. When Bella and Cass would fight, they'd always try to get Lily involved in it. Melodia sat humming a lullaby this particular April evening. Lily was sleeping, as she seemed to always be doing.
"Good night my angel time to close your eyes
And save these questions for another day.
I think I know what you've been asking me.
I think you know what I've been trying to say.
I promised I would never leave you,
And you should always know
Wherever you may go, no matter where you are
I never will be far away."
Her mother was a big fan of a Muggle pianist and vocalist who sang the song, and Melodia had always loved this particular song. She continued on singing, feeling the comfort of the familiar melody.
"Good night my angel now it's time to sleep
and still so many things I want to say
Remember all the songs you sang for me
When we went sailing on an emerald bay
And like a moon out on the ocean
I'm rocking you to sleep
The water's dark and deep inside this ancient heart
You'll always be a part of me."
Her voice grew stronger and she sang out the next verse, all the months worth of frustration and hurt easing in the soothing calmness of the song.
"Good night my angel now it's time to dream
and dream how wonderful your life will be
Someday your child may cry and if you sing this lullaby
then in your heart there will always be a part of me." Her voice broke off, and she sighed.
"Someday we'll all be gone but lullabies go on and on
They never die that's how you and I will be…"
Melodia turned, shocked, and stared at Lily. The girl had just sung the last two lines of the song. The redhead had tears on her face, and she said, "Melodia?"
Melodia gave a wild gasp of joy and ran to her friend and wrapped her in a hug, rocking her as Lily broke out in sobs.
"I'm sorry, Melodia, I'm so sorry," she cried. "So sorry."
"For what Lily?" the girl said, looking puzzled through all her joy.
"I'm just-sorry. I really am," she cried, and wouldn't say more than that. Madam Pomfrey, having heard all the ruckus the two girls had caused, dashed in to see what was going on.
"Lily! You're awake, and speaking, how wonderful! Miss Noches, if you don't mind, please go alert the Headmaster. You can gather your friends after and they may visit Miss Evans, for a short while only, she's been through a lot these past months."
"Months?" Lily asked, looking shocked. Her face was bright red and she was still crying, although she was able to choke out her astonishment.
"Yes, sweet, it's been months…well, it's been three months. Today's April first. Your friends have been terrorizing the school all day. Why, we woke up at five A.M. to banshee singing, they've equipped Peeves with spray cheese of all things, and naturally, he's been with that all day, 'decorating' students and staff alike! At lunch all Hufflepuff students started floating towards the ceiling, and they had to call in a Charms expert from the Ministry to help Professor Flitwick get them back down. And afterwards we had some irate Slytherins in here, screaming for me to get rid of their snake tongues and scales."
Lily giggled. That was enough for Melodia, who scurried out of the room in a hurry. Madam Pomfrey set about checking Lily out, and when she declared her better-although nothing was wrong in the first place-Dumbledore stepped into the room.
"Why, Miss Evans, how lovely of you to finally wake. Your friends have been most forlorn these past months…though I suppose you've heard of the ruses they've been up to today, have you? Yes, yes…well, we're so happy to hear you've awoken at last. How are you feeling?" The headmaster's eyes were twinkling, and he smiled fondly at the girl.
"I'm fine Professor, honest. But sir! Melodia's parents, I had a dream sir, it was awful, and…" Lily started to whimper again. Dumbledore's eyes sharpened quickly.
"What happened, Lily?" he asked urgently. The small girl looked up at him.
"I tried to stop them. Or at least scream out. But I couldn't, sir, and I was too late…"
BAM! The door of the hospital wing banged open, and in came seven students, three girls, four boys, all running towards the bed Lily was on.
"Lily! You're okay, we've been so worried!" "How're you feeling?" "I can't believe—" "Is she—" "We're so glad—" "I'm so glad—" "Did you hear what happened to the Slytherins today?" "It's April Fool's Day, you know—" "Oh, Lils!"
The pandemonium hit with true force, and for a moment all the children chattered on until one of them (Remus, actually) seemed to notice that Lily was crying, and staring at the window.
"Lily?" he asked slowly, and they all quieted down and looked towards whatever she was eyeing. In the window was a black owl, that had a somber sort of respect in it, if it were possible for an owl to have traits such as that. Peter walked over to the window after the others were still watching it hesitantly. No one could explain the unease that had settled over them. The owl was carrying a formal looking letter in its beak, and as Peter opened the window, it flew inside and straight to Melodia.
All eyes were on the girl as she opened the envelope with a shaking hand. Lily's sobs were heard in the background. Melodia took out the letter and read it. As they all-the matron, the headmaster, the Marauders, and the girls-watched, her eyes widened with disbelief. She took a last look at the letter before dropping it and running out of the room.
Slowly Bella went and bent down to pick up the dropped parchment. She read it with a trembling voice.
"Dear Miss Melodia Noches,
We regret to inform you that at six fifty-two this morning your parents were killed by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The house was wrecked in the attack and the property and most possessions destroyed. Your brothers have been notified. The Ministry of Magic will be transferring your case to the Victims and Casualties of Dark Supporters (VCDS) office and they shall contact you with summer holiday living arrangements. If possible your extended family members will be to take your brothers and yourself in. A different arrangement will be made if necessary.
In the reign of terror, many wizards and witches will fall prey to the Dark Lord's schemes. United we shall overcome them. Feel free to send us any questions in a reply. We offer you our most sincere condolences for your loss.
Respectfully,
Geraldine K. Horace
Ministry of Magic representative
Bella looked up. "Someone should go after her." Cass nodded, her smile having dissipated the moment her sister had started to read. James and Sirius were frowning too. Remus and Peter looked somber, and Madam Pomfrey was clutching her face. Lily burst into a fresh bout of tears, and Professor Dumbledore alone looked calm.
"Why don't you and your sister do that now, Arabella. Boys, please go back to the Gryffindor common room. You may visit Lily again later. Lily, calm down, it was not your fault. I need to go speak to her brothers now. I'll see you all later on this evening."
He glided noiselessly from the room.
Bella and Cass gave Lily a feeble smiled and quickly went to find Melodia. Peter, Remus, Sirius, and James headed for the door after them, and were leaving as Sirius blurted out, "Lils, I'm glad you're better." James stopped in his tracks and looked at the redhead who was crying silently.
"Don't, Lily." His voice was calm, and soothing, but Lily couldn't stop whimpering. "Please, Lily. Don't. It's not your fault, really. Look…I know what it's like to beat yourself up about things, so just…just don't. Don't, Lily." And without another word he left the hospital wing as well, with Sirius and Remus flanking his sides and Peter trailing just slightly behind him.
"I'll try, James."
~*~
James sat in a corner of the Gryffindor common room. By some odd miracle, the room had been almost completely empty when the Marauders arrived in it, a rare occurrence. He wasn't in the greatest mood at the moment, so the blessed silence was a gift at the moment.
"What were you playing at, James?" Sirius asked seriously. (A/N: No pun intended, guys, really! Imagine reading this with a British accent so its less pun-y)
"What do you mean," James said, but it was not a very convincing question. He knew what Sirius was talking about. He should not have burst out in that. Although, in all fairness, Sirius was the one who had started it, saying he was glad she was awake. Which was innocent enough. Of course Sirius was glad. They were all glad. But seeing Lily there, crying and feeling all that guilt got him upset in ways most things didn't.
"You know perfectly well what I mean, James. Listen, you know it wasn't your fault, right?" Sirius asked, not kidding around, which was saying a lot for him.
"Drop it, Sirius," James said sharply. Remus and Peter looked up from their chess game curiously. (A/N: Anyone else notice that whenever you need character present you have them playing chess? Just wondering…)
"But—"
"Drop it! I'm going up to bed. You guys coming?" James asked moodily. Peter got up quickly and Sirius sighed as he walked over to the staircase. They three were about half-way up the stairs when Sirius said, "Hang on a tick. Where's Remus?" The clambered down the stairs quickly and went back to the common room. No one was there.
"That's weird," James frowned.
"Maybe he went to the bathroom or something?" Peter asked, but he looked doubtful.
"Well, in any case, he'll be back soon enough. Let's get to bed," Sirius said, and the two others agreed.
~*~
Flashback to March (last month)
"Hey James," Sirius called out to his messy-haired friend. "Wait up for a minute."
The boys had just gotten out of Transfiguration class. Sirius had been kept late by Professor McGonagall. For some strange reason, she wanted to give him detention. He really didn't see why, of course. He had only been enhancing his Transfiguration skills by turning Snape's books into a porcupine that just happened to land on Snape's seat as he was sitting down. Honestly.
James waited impatiently for Sirius to catch up to him. It was his turn to stay by Lily during her delirium. That's what they'd taken to calling it, anyway. Sirius finally was next to him, panting and wheezing as he fought to catch his breath.
"What do you want, Si? I'm in a hurry. I had to insist that I had nothing to do with that stunt you pulled about ten times to roughly six fat Slytherins, I'm not in the mood."
*Well* Sirius thought. *Apparently not.* These days a lot of things had been getting to James, getting him angrier and less patient than ever.
"Look, it's about Remus. See, I'm worried about him. Like last month he was supposed to watch Lily that night, but he all of a sudden had this letter from home, saying his grandmother died."
"So? Sirius, if your grandmum died I'd expect you to go home. Wait. It's you. Nevermind."
"No, really, James. And just last week he disappeared for a day, and when he came back on Monday he said that his cousin had gotten married and he needed to be there. When I asked him why he hadn't told us before, he got all snappish and said 'Sirius, I don't need to tell you my whole agenda.' Like I was some big pain."
"You are," James grinned, and Sirius smiled reluctantly.
"I guess I set myself up for that one. Still though…maybe I'm paranoid over nothing. But something is amiss, I'm telling you, James. You're my best friend, and I might be a prankster, but I swear over Andie's life, over Lily's…over anyone who has a worth that this is not just weird feeling. Something's not right."
"Sirius, you're getting yourself all worked up for nothing! "
"No, I'm not. Listen, I was trying to figure this out before…December. Remember we asked if he wanted to come early before New Year's, for Boxing Day, and he said yes at first. But then when it was time to come, he all of a sudden came down with the flu. January…we were going to go hunting for secret passages this one night, and he all of a sudden had detention. From McGonagall. Remus Lupin does not get detentions! And if he did, I'd have one too. So that was just rubbish. November…that was the month his dad was ill and he went home for a weekend and came back all tired. October…he left for awhile, claiming that his mum wanted to take a vacation to France to tour Beauxbatons, and that she was taking him with her. September…well, that was the first month we knew him, so I can't remember, but still. James, don't you see a pattern? Something. Isn't. Right."
James still looked unconvinced, but his eyes betrayed a slight ray of confusion. "Well, it's our friend. We'll just have to trust him. If something were really wrong, I'm sure he would let us know. Until then, we'll keep an eye on him. You can write a log if you want. I'm sure it's just a whim."
"Alright. I'll keep watching then. And I'll write down what I know." James nodded once at Sirius' reply and turned to head towards the infirmary. "And James?" He turned and looked questioningly at Sirius. "Yes?"
Sirius looked at him. "Don't stay there too late, okay?"
~*~
James tossed and turned in his bed. He really couldn't sleep. He had a lot on his mind, and the last was whether or not he had passed his Charms assessment. It had been tough, but that was the least of his worries. He couldn't sleep, not at this rate. First, Lily had woken up. Which was great news. Than Melodia had gotten that owl…he swallowed. That was unexpected and horrible…he couldn't imagine what that must be like for her. He was sure Bella would tell him tomorrow.
After that was his tense conversation with Sirius. He shouldn't have done that; he should not have spoken to Lily and said what he had. The past is the past, and there's nothing anyone can do to change it. You can either run from it or learn from it. (A/N: Yes, I'm quoting Lion King. It fits James' feelings, sue me)
Or so they say. But honestly, nothing was ever that easy. Life is full of shades of gray, wasn't it? Not black and white. Never. How he wished things were simple-good or evil. Morning or night. Happy or sad. Dead or alive.
But it wasn't. James knew that. He was only eleven, true, but he had learned certain lessons the hard way. Ever since his mother had died he'd been left with half a father, as reliable as the winds. (A/N: Or my computer/printer. In other words, NOT VERY. How many author notes is this now? Leaving…) In other words, not reliable at all. He grinned slightly. A better comparison would be 'as reliable as the Cannons were likely to win the European Cup. Or even the League Cup. His smile faded as he remembered his mother…her memory was fading rapidly, at an alarming rate. He couldn't believe that he already forgot the sound of her voice, and if his father hadn't preserved it in a music box its melody would be lost forever for him. It was his fault she had died…he rolled over again. I won't think of that, I won't think of that…he told himself. But that's what he'd told Lily, wasn't it?
And lastly, there was Remus. Where was he this time? James thought back to the odd conversation he'd had with Sirius last month. True to his word, he'd been watching Remus, and this evening was another weird occurrence. It had to be close to two in the morning, and Remus had yet to return. As he told Sirius, James had written down the dates of Remus' illnesses, excuses, and disappearances, trying to find a pattern. What he hadn't told Sirius was that he'd found a pattern. One he didn't care to investigate. Because if it was true…well, then this whole situation was about to triple-at least!-in its complexity.
IF the patterns were correct, and IF he hadn't been off, IF this wasn't just a coincidence, and IF his suspicions were true…then Remus J. Lupin was a werewolf.
~*~
Author's note: Whew! That was doosy. Is that a word? Anyway, I can't really apologize for the time this took for me to get out. I really can't. I'm truly sorry, and there's no excuse for it. You probably all hate me-if you do, it's my loss, I was the bad person in this case. I didn't mean to not write. It's just that I've been caught up…I mean, I last update in May *winces* and I was in study-mania. Then summer…well, I worked on ANV (which hasn't been update in July, which is bad again), and went away a lot, and well…I started a new fic. Which won't be out until it's finished, to copy Harmony Slytherin's example. And then school started, and with one thing and another…well, I never had a plot for this. I've been playing it by ear…eye…whatever. So, I'm sorry that it took this long, but I really could not help that. It's pretty long…13 pages of story, I believe. You guys were amazing as always with reviewing, and if you guys are still with me, sorry about that semi-cliffie…but hey, I have a weird fondness for 'em.
***Ok, people, EXPLANATION HERE! Some of you had NO idea who Deana Slater was. Well…if you remember-and if you're reading this, you don't-she was a fourth year (?) who was friends with Benny Weasley and made a prank bet with them. Not a huge character. She wasn't the point, Lily seeing the vision was the point.
***ONE MORE THING! Sorry, but I forgot…I'm sorry about getting rid of January-April 1st, but I had no inspiration. So that was my way of almost getting rid of the year. The next chapter will (finally!) be the end of year one. I'm excited.
Thank you all:
*Angel* *^* Sorry about that, yeah the date was pitiful…I'm terrible to you guys! Thanks for reading
Ava orcon *^* Good question. Why is Sirius the silly one? I don't know. He seems the type, doesn't he? And if he weren't, the Sirius-serious pun would go to waste, and we can't have that, can we? Lol
Chaos/Rini *^* I know, the movie wasn't that great was it? *knocks on wood as Movie 2 comes out in a week exactly* Hope you got this far and liked it!
Cquill13 *^* Ok, you reviewed under Emerald Eyes, but I know you as this, so…yeah. Thanks so much for the review! Am I caught up with you or no? Let me know!
~*Crystal Lily*~ *^* Why oh why do I always have such a problem with your penname? I can never get the ~ and the * right. *sigh* moving on. Thanks for the review!!!
Destiny Phoenix *^* Hey! Sorry about the not-so-soon-ness of this chapter…maybe it's good? *smiles nervously* Right…thanks for the review.
Diana Snape *^* Hey Di. Thanks for the review. Did you ever wind up naming your pens? (Just wondering lolz) I need to talk to you…why, I don't know. I'm in the mood lol. Right, leaving…
Dreamer the Mistwolf *^* Ok, you changed your penname…what was it? 2 P's…2 P's…Saphire! Ha! I'm good! Thanks for reviewing!
Elea *^* Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked this!
Harmony Slytherin *^* Can you say short review? What am I supposed to comment on? Well, I guess I'll just say…MONKEYS! No, um, really…update your story?
IluvHenry *^* Do you now? Who's Henry? Lol. Sorry. *coughs* Right. You LIKE cliffies? Wow! *applauds* How original! Never heard that…thanks for reviewing!
Jeanne *^* Hey girl! I know I'm mean. It's natural. How bout YOU update, k? I love your story so hurry it up! Yes, I'm a hypocrite…ouch…wow…this is bad…lol
Lavender *^* Well, you didn't get this far, but thanks for reviewing chapter one! Lol Bye Lav! *waves*
Ley *^* You win most creative review. Hey, I suppose I deserve the pitchfork. Scratch that, I know I do. Just make it painless, k? lol Thanks for the review.
Lily's Friend Jess *^* Wow! Someone read my BIO? I put it on hold because no inspiration came. Nada. But here's a new chapter. Can't guarantee how long it'll take for numero catorce.
Lollipozz *^* Thank YOU for reviewing! Hope you like this if you're still with me!
Mage of Fire *^* Thanks for the 'wrap' correction. I make a billion mistakes, I'll be the first, second, AND third to admit it! Hope you like this.
Me *^* I see your point about cliffhangers, and I agree one hundred percent. They suck don't they? Which is why I write them. Since I don't update frequently I end in cliffies that will make you consider reading this again when I *do* update.
MidnightLily *^* Not soon, but thanks for reviewing!
Naavi *^* OMG I'm so sorry I haven't written you OR reviewed you yet. I have a whole long excuse that I'll tell you later, I swear, I'm so majorly sorry! *Gets on hands and knees to beg forgiveness* Thanks for reviewing…
Phoenixheart *^* Slow? Are you kidding? More like molasses slow! Extremely slow! Up-to-chapter-thirteen-and-the-year-still-isn't-over Slow! Lol but I'm glad you like my story and that you've been reading this for so long…over a year since it started!
*~*Prongs*~* *^* That took effort to type…grr…hmm…is she a Seer? I sort of left that hanging for now. Next chapter, most likely. If you're still here, hope you like!
Puddles *^* Glad you liked the chapter…hope you like this one! Thanks so much for reviewing!
SAKURAnTOKYO *^* It was good? Yay! *cheers* If you're still here, thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter.
Sierra Sitruc *^* I read a lotta bios! They're fun! Well, usually crazy in my case…although right now mine isn't, miracles upon miracles. That's 'cuz my friends haven't corrupted it yet…thanks for your review!
Silent-wishes *^* I stopped there because I'm horrible. Really. Thanks for reading and reviewing, I appreciate it so much!
SPW *^* Sorry for abbreviating. I'm lazy. You'll live. Thanks for the review chica…Hey! Niffler! I forgot about that! Wow, when you last reviewed, you were just telling me about that! Time flies…
Star*dust *^* *blinks* Wow…interesting review. Now, I just realized, that was when you only just knew that NY does indeed have chocolate marshmallow ice cream. As does Pennsylvania, btw. Anyway, thanks for the review I'm glad you liked this.
Woofyness *^* One of the best? I'm blushing, but you can't have read much! If you haven't read Cassandra Claire's stuff, go to schnoogle.com and do so. If you have, check out my favorite list! You'll get better stuff!
Disclaimer: Billy Joel owns Lullaby (Goodnight My Angel). I love that song! Um…Lion King reference, I mentioned it…HP is owned by JK Rowling & Co. Anything else owned by anyone else was forgotten, and I obviously don't own them.
BEFORE YOU GO AND HOPEFULLY REVIEW!
Would you all kill me if in chapter…15 I skipped to 4-5th year? See, romance can start to brew then, and more stuff can happen, because inventing 7 years of nothing is dull and I want the plot to pick up desperately! Let me know if this is absolutely horrifying to any of you in a review! If not, I'll take it as an 'Ok, Britz, go right ahead…*dubious look*' sorta thing.
Thanks again guys! I love you all! Sorry for the delay…*winces*
Always,
Britz