Chapter Ten
Disclaimer: I do not own Any Harry Potter characters. J.K. Rowling does. Not me. Never me.
A/N: Terribly sorry for the delay. I've been gone for a few days, plus this awful bout of writer's block that has been consuming my plotting abilities. Argh. But, I think I have beaten it down for the time being. So, here is chapter ten in all of it's glory. Well, perhaps not glory, but you understand. Please review. I need it right now. Makes me feel so much better. Haha.
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Chapter Ten
~~**~~
"You look cheery. What happened? Did you get top marks on that Potions homework?" Laura raised an eyebrow as Lily entered the Great Hall, settling into a seat beside her. Lily had a rather large smile on her face, in Laura's opinion. She waved her hand in front of Lily's face, trying to gain her attention.
"Will you stop that? I heard you, and no, I didn't."
"Sorry, but if you had seen yourself, you would have approved," Laura giggled. She had her long brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail and was wearing a bit more makeup than usual, Lily noticed.
"Ah, trying to win the affections of Sirius?"
Laura opened her mouth in mock indignation, "I'll have you know that he asked me to go to Hogsmeade with him this weekend," she said, "and is there something so shocking about me wanting to look nice?"
Lily suppressed a laugh and smiled, "No, nothing. I'm sure you two will have a marvelous time."
"What do you mean by that? She set her goblet down and stared at Lily, her eyes demanding a response.
"I just don't think I could handle that many hours with Sirius Black. I'd pull out my hair."
Laura frowned, "Well don't worry about it, Lily. At least I have someone to go with."
Lily bit her tongue, fighting the impulse to shoot a comment back, and toying with her food instead. Laura mistook her silence for hurt, and softened a bit.
"Hey, Lil, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just, well, being defensive."
"I know," Lily said, "forget it."
Laura smiled and resumed eating, her face lighting up when Sirius entered the Hall, alongside his comrades, and sat across the table from them.
"Lily, didn't anyone ever tell you not to play with your food?" He teased, falling into his seat and winking at Laura.
"Funny, I seem to remember a certain gravy incident that arose from just that…" Lily replied coolly, a hint of a smirk at the corners of her mouth. Her eyes lifted calmly to James's as he took his seat, facing hers. Their eyes connected, an unspoken exchange taking place, completely undetected by the group around them.
Peter snorted, "He could have gotten you back for that one, but-"
"But I'm waiting," Sirius grinned, lifting his goblet to his lips.
"I'll be sure to watch myself, now that I have a Marauder plotting revenge on me," Laura laughed.
A loud clang from the group of fourth-years seated at the end of the Gryffindor table caused them to lookup. A fair-haired boy had jinxed two plates to act as symbols and they were now clamoring noisily to the intense dislike of the students sitting near him. It wasn't until McGonagall tapped him on the shoulder that he realized she was behind him. He turned around guiltily, the plates dropping back to the table. From their seats, Lily and Laura could make out the words "detention" and "ten points from Gryffindor." They watched as the girl sitting next to the plate-jinxing boy smacked him in the back of the head and continued to assault him verbally. Sirius laughed and turned back to his food, shaking his head.
"I wouldn't like to be him right now," he chuckled, "she's far worse than McGonagall."
Laura raised her eyebrows, "Serves him right, making all that racket. Worse than a first-year."
Remus smiled, "Yet you can levitate food and it's perfectly acceptable?"
"Right," Laura grinned.
Lily glanced at James, her eyes glowing warmly, wanting badly to break away from the group, to have a few moments with him. Finding time to be with him was becoming progressively harder, with Sirius and Laura being the two most frequent interruptions. She wished it were easier to merely walk with him, or to have a quiet conversation, but at the same time, they both knew that the longer they prolonged the mutual secret between them, the harder it would become.
"Didn't I tell you, Lily?"
She glanced at Laura, not having the slightest clue what she'd said, "Yeah."
"See," Laura said triumphantly, "I was right!"
Lily, having no idea what Laura was "right" about, tried to focus once more on the conversation.
~~**~~
Lily leaned against him, turning the page of her book leisurely. James was either deep in thought or fast asleep. Probably the latter, she guessed, judging by the steady rise and fall of his chest. She craned her neck to look at him, smiling when she found her assumptions to be true. Shutting her book and laying it down beside her, she carefully shifted positions, her eyes roaming over his face as he slept. She leaned over and kissed him softly, amused when he didn't stir. Trying once more to wake him, she moved to whisper in his ear, "Quidditch has been permanently banned from-"
He woke with a jolt, looking alarmed, and realizing Lily was laughing, settled back into the couch.
"Cruel," he muttered, "completely heartless."
Lily grinned, "It was a second resort. You slept through the more favorable alternative." She glanced at the clock, "It's late. We have a transfigurations exam tomorrow and we're both going to sleep right through it."
"It won't make much difference," he smiled, "the score will be about the same. What was it that I managed to sleep through?"
Lily returned his smile, her mouth hovering only inches from his, when she heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Every time, James thought, every single bloody time…
She moved away from him on the couch, the pair glancing to see Sirius enter, surprisingly wide awake. He disregarded Lily and looked directly to James.
"You just got an owl," he said, his face empty of the usual lighthearted grin that was so common there. Lily saw something in his eyes that worried her, and stared from James to Sirius silently, watching as James rose slowly to his feet. James had instantly picked up on his friend's unease and had already begun to feel a hard knot forming in his stomach. He gave Lily a half-hearted smile and followed Sirius as they climbed the stairs, leaving Lily only to wonder.
~~**~~
"It's from mum," he said quietly, turning the envelope over in his hands. Sirius stood watching him, only serving to increase his worry. James sat down on his bed, opening the envelope as the other two of the Marauders slept. He was fumbling, finding it extremely difficult to open a letter for some reason. A frown line creased his brow as he read.
~~**~~
The soft light of dawn crept onto Lily's face, waking her from the few hours sleep she'd managed to get. She's waited in the common room, hoping he would return, tell her it was fine, that there was nothing to fear. But, of course, he didn't. James had left her with a grave look on his face that she rarely ever saw, and that may have been what troubled her the greatest. She finally given up, tossing and turning in her bed and trying to fall asleep, and somehow, must have done so eventually. She could not remember when she'd actually drifted off.
Now, slipping out of the room and shivering at the feel of the icy floor, she crept down the stairs in her robe, hoping to find an explanation. As she reached the foot of the stairs, however, she realized the room was deserted. It seemed years since she had sat in there one morning, unable to sleep, and watched as James returned from Quidditch practice. Yet now here she was, clad in a robe and fretting about someone she would never in her life have thought would matter to her. Life was ironic.
She made her way up the stairs as silently as she'd come down, crawling back into her bed and waiting for the minutes to pass. It seemed forever…
"We're going to be late, Lily!" Laura crossed her arms impatiently, standing by the bathrooms and calling to her friend. "I'm hungry…you know I can't think on an empty stomach!"
"Can't think on a full one either," Lily muttered, pulling her hair back. She entered the room gruffly and was already halfway down the stairs before Laura had realized she'd gone.
"Hey, wait a sec! Lily, will you hold on a minute?!"
"James," she replied, "I need to talk to him."
"Great. Wonderful. But can you just wait?! I don't think he's going anywhere, Lil. I mean, what's he going to do, leave the country?"
"I don't know," Lily said, exiting the portrait hole in a frenzy, "do you think he'd be at breakfast? I have no idea….." she trailed off, leaving Laura to stare in confusion as she rushed down the corridors. Laura gave up, standing outside the portrait hole and looking at the Fat Lady.
"What do you reckon has gotten into her?" She looked to the portrait, who simply shrugged.
Lily scanned the Gryffindor table, letting out a sigh. It was really no shock he would not be there. Remus, however, was sitting solely at the end of the table and she moved to sit beside him.
"Good morning, Lily," he said, offering her a smile. His eyes were tired, it seemed.
"What happened last night?"
"Last night? I've no idea. Why, what's the matter?"
Lily stared at him blankly. "You have honestly no idea whatsoever about what I'm talking about? Where is James? For God's sake, someone TELL me what is going on!" A few heads turned to look at her, including a few at the professors' table.
Remus said comfortingly, "Lily, believe me, if I knew anything, I would tell you. But you are not making much sense."
"James got a letter last night," she started.
"In the middle of the night? That's strange," he said, his eyebrows furrowing.
"You really don't know," she said flatly, "I've got to find him." With this she rose from the table, catching Dumbledore's eye and leaving Remus deserted once more.
~~**~~
Disclaimer: I do not own Any Harry Potter characters. J.K. Rowling does. Not me. Never me.
A/N: Terribly sorry for the delay. I've been gone for a few days, plus this awful bout of writer's block that has been consuming my plotting abilities. Argh. But, I think I have beaten it down for the time being. So, here is chapter ten in all of it's glory. Well, perhaps not glory, but you understand. Please review. I need it right now. Makes me feel so much better. Haha.
~~**~~
Chapter Ten
~~**~~
"You look cheery. What happened? Did you get top marks on that Potions homework?" Laura raised an eyebrow as Lily entered the Great Hall, settling into a seat beside her. Lily had a rather large smile on her face, in Laura's opinion. She waved her hand in front of Lily's face, trying to gain her attention.
"Will you stop that? I heard you, and no, I didn't."
"Sorry, but if you had seen yourself, you would have approved," Laura giggled. She had her long brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail and was wearing a bit more makeup than usual, Lily noticed.
"Ah, trying to win the affections of Sirius?"
Laura opened her mouth in mock indignation, "I'll have you know that he asked me to go to Hogsmeade with him this weekend," she said, "and is there something so shocking about me wanting to look nice?"
Lily suppressed a laugh and smiled, "No, nothing. I'm sure you two will have a marvelous time."
"What do you mean by that? She set her goblet down and stared at Lily, her eyes demanding a response.
"I just don't think I could handle that many hours with Sirius Black. I'd pull out my hair."
Laura frowned, "Well don't worry about it, Lily. At least I have someone to go with."
Lily bit her tongue, fighting the impulse to shoot a comment back, and toying with her food instead. Laura mistook her silence for hurt, and softened a bit.
"Hey, Lil, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just, well, being defensive."
"I know," Lily said, "forget it."
Laura smiled and resumed eating, her face lighting up when Sirius entered the Hall, alongside his comrades, and sat across the table from them.
"Lily, didn't anyone ever tell you not to play with your food?" He teased, falling into his seat and winking at Laura.
"Funny, I seem to remember a certain gravy incident that arose from just that…" Lily replied coolly, a hint of a smirk at the corners of her mouth. Her eyes lifted calmly to James's as he took his seat, facing hers. Their eyes connected, an unspoken exchange taking place, completely undetected by the group around them.
Peter snorted, "He could have gotten you back for that one, but-"
"But I'm waiting," Sirius grinned, lifting his goblet to his lips.
"I'll be sure to watch myself, now that I have a Marauder plotting revenge on me," Laura laughed.
A loud clang from the group of fourth-years seated at the end of the Gryffindor table caused them to lookup. A fair-haired boy had jinxed two plates to act as symbols and they were now clamoring noisily to the intense dislike of the students sitting near him. It wasn't until McGonagall tapped him on the shoulder that he realized she was behind him. He turned around guiltily, the plates dropping back to the table. From their seats, Lily and Laura could make out the words "detention" and "ten points from Gryffindor." They watched as the girl sitting next to the plate-jinxing boy smacked him in the back of the head and continued to assault him verbally. Sirius laughed and turned back to his food, shaking his head.
"I wouldn't like to be him right now," he chuckled, "she's far worse than McGonagall."
Laura raised her eyebrows, "Serves him right, making all that racket. Worse than a first-year."
Remus smiled, "Yet you can levitate food and it's perfectly acceptable?"
"Right," Laura grinned.
Lily glanced at James, her eyes glowing warmly, wanting badly to break away from the group, to have a few moments with him. Finding time to be with him was becoming progressively harder, with Sirius and Laura being the two most frequent interruptions. She wished it were easier to merely walk with him, or to have a quiet conversation, but at the same time, they both knew that the longer they prolonged the mutual secret between them, the harder it would become.
"Didn't I tell you, Lily?"
She glanced at Laura, not having the slightest clue what she'd said, "Yeah."
"See," Laura said triumphantly, "I was right!"
Lily, having no idea what Laura was "right" about, tried to focus once more on the conversation.
~~**~~
Lily leaned against him, turning the page of her book leisurely. James was either deep in thought or fast asleep. Probably the latter, she guessed, judging by the steady rise and fall of his chest. She craned her neck to look at him, smiling when she found her assumptions to be true. Shutting her book and laying it down beside her, she carefully shifted positions, her eyes roaming over his face as he slept. She leaned over and kissed him softly, amused when he didn't stir. Trying once more to wake him, she moved to whisper in his ear, "Quidditch has been permanently banned from-"
He woke with a jolt, looking alarmed, and realizing Lily was laughing, settled back into the couch.
"Cruel," he muttered, "completely heartless."
Lily grinned, "It was a second resort. You slept through the more favorable alternative." She glanced at the clock, "It's late. We have a transfigurations exam tomorrow and we're both going to sleep right through it."
"It won't make much difference," he smiled, "the score will be about the same. What was it that I managed to sleep through?"
Lily returned his smile, her mouth hovering only inches from his, when she heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Every time, James thought, every single bloody time…
She moved away from him on the couch, the pair glancing to see Sirius enter, surprisingly wide awake. He disregarded Lily and looked directly to James.
"You just got an owl," he said, his face empty of the usual lighthearted grin that was so common there. Lily saw something in his eyes that worried her, and stared from James to Sirius silently, watching as James rose slowly to his feet. James had instantly picked up on his friend's unease and had already begun to feel a hard knot forming in his stomach. He gave Lily a half-hearted smile and followed Sirius as they climbed the stairs, leaving Lily only to wonder.
~~**~~
"It's from mum," he said quietly, turning the envelope over in his hands. Sirius stood watching him, only serving to increase his worry. James sat down on his bed, opening the envelope as the other two of the Marauders slept. He was fumbling, finding it extremely difficult to open a letter for some reason. A frown line creased his brow as he read.
~~**~~
The soft light of dawn crept onto Lily's face, waking her from the few hours sleep she'd managed to get. She's waited in the common room, hoping he would return, tell her it was fine, that there was nothing to fear. But, of course, he didn't. James had left her with a grave look on his face that she rarely ever saw, and that may have been what troubled her the greatest. She finally given up, tossing and turning in her bed and trying to fall asleep, and somehow, must have done so eventually. She could not remember when she'd actually drifted off.
Now, slipping out of the room and shivering at the feel of the icy floor, she crept down the stairs in her robe, hoping to find an explanation. As she reached the foot of the stairs, however, she realized the room was deserted. It seemed years since she had sat in there one morning, unable to sleep, and watched as James returned from Quidditch practice. Yet now here she was, clad in a robe and fretting about someone she would never in her life have thought would matter to her. Life was ironic.
She made her way up the stairs as silently as she'd come down, crawling back into her bed and waiting for the minutes to pass. It seemed forever…
"We're going to be late, Lily!" Laura crossed her arms impatiently, standing by the bathrooms and calling to her friend. "I'm hungry…you know I can't think on an empty stomach!"
"Can't think on a full one either," Lily muttered, pulling her hair back. She entered the room gruffly and was already halfway down the stairs before Laura had realized she'd gone.
"Hey, wait a sec! Lily, will you hold on a minute?!"
"James," she replied, "I need to talk to him."
"Great. Wonderful. But can you just wait?! I don't think he's going anywhere, Lil. I mean, what's he going to do, leave the country?"
"I don't know," Lily said, exiting the portrait hole in a frenzy, "do you think he'd be at breakfast? I have no idea….." she trailed off, leaving Laura to stare in confusion as she rushed down the corridors. Laura gave up, standing outside the portrait hole and looking at the Fat Lady.
"What do you reckon has gotten into her?" She looked to the portrait, who simply shrugged.
Lily scanned the Gryffindor table, letting out a sigh. It was really no shock he would not be there. Remus, however, was sitting solely at the end of the table and she moved to sit beside him.
"Good morning, Lily," he said, offering her a smile. His eyes were tired, it seemed.
"What happened last night?"
"Last night? I've no idea. Why, what's the matter?"
Lily stared at him blankly. "You have honestly no idea whatsoever about what I'm talking about? Where is James? For God's sake, someone TELL me what is going on!" A few heads turned to look at her, including a few at the professors' table.
Remus said comfortingly, "Lily, believe me, if I knew anything, I would tell you. But you are not making much sense."
"James got a letter last night," she started.
"In the middle of the night? That's strange," he said, his eyebrows furrowing.
"You really don't know," she said flatly, "I've got to find him." With this she rose from the table, catching Dumbledore's eye and leaving Remus deserted once more.
~~**~~
