Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Author's notes: Parlez-vous francais?… you'll see why….

Chapter 10

Classes were becoming more and more dreaded for Lily, as she fell more and more behind in her studies. She'd been so unlike herself lately, that she felt like she hardly knew who she was anymore.

Her attack on Camille had brought her to a realization. She wasn't her normal self at all. The recent events had ruined her. Once one of the most talented students in her year, she now scraped by, barely passing. Typically friendly and easy-going, she was now uptight, solitary, and what many people would probably consider paranoid.

She sunk deeper and deeper into depression. There was nothing to occupy her time; no friends, no hobbies. How she would have loved to take a refreshing fly over the grounds, but she, like the rest of the school, was restricted to the castle. Not only that, but as December neared the weather grew bitter cold and snowy.

So Lily spent most of her time alone and miserable, either sitting in the common room, or lying awake in her bed. She'd become little more than a walking zombie.

Sometimes, she did wonder to herself if she was imagining some of her reasons for suspecting Camille, but she couldn't bring it to conscious consideration. The one thing that kept her going was her certainty in Camille's wrongdoing.

Occasionally, she received a letter from home, but not as often as she would have liked. Her mother never actually came out and said it, but it seemed Petunia was causing her parents an awful lot of trouble with Vernon. Not only that, but her mother was spending lots of time caring for Mrs. Aubrey, Chris' mother, who had been a widow before Chris died, and was now completely alone.

The muggle world had never felt further away from Lily. Neither had the wizarding world. She wasn't really living in either one. As far as she could tell, she must have been stuck in some ridiculous nightmare, unable to make herself wake up.

Lily may have been neglected since Camille arrived, but there were still people concerned about her well being. One day in transfigurations, McGonagal asked her to stay after class.

After the other students had left, McGonagal asked Lily if she'd please have a seat in her office. Feeling as though she was probably going to be punished for nearly killing Camille, Lily reluctantly sat down.

"Miss Evans, it hasn't taken much for me to notice that you've been acting very different in class this year. I have spoken to the rest of the staff, and they agree with me. I understand the circumstances surrounding the deaths of two of your close friends last August. Death can be a difficult thing to deal with, but it's been nearly four months, and you've shown no signs of improvement. At first Dumbledore instructed us to keep our distance, and let you recover on your own, but I'm afraid it's been quite a long time. Is there anything else bothering you, Lily? Anything you might like to talk about?" Lily stared at her a few seconds, unsure of what to say.

"No, Professor," she said finally.

"You're certain?" Lily nodded.

"I guess this has all just been really hard for me, that's all."

"And your friends, Miss Evans. I can't help but notice that you and Miss Berkeley never sit together anymore in my class. Is there some sort of problem you'd like to talk about?" Lily froze. She couldn't tell McGonagal that her problem was Camille.

"No, ma'am, there aren't any problems. Rae and I have just sort of drifted apart since Camille arrived."

"I see," said McGonagal. "Lily, I want you to be honest. Do you ever feel, how do I put this? Do you ever feel envious of Camille? I notice she seems to accelerate at school, as you had until this year."

"No. I am not jealous of Camille!" Lily spoke a bit louder than she'd intended. McGonagal lowered her glasses and looked at Lily without them, her eyebrows raised.

"Are you sure about that, dear?"

"I'm not jealous of her. We might not get along so well, but I'm not jealous."

"Are there reasons why you two don't get along?" McGonagal asked.

"I'd prefer not to talk about it," replied Lily.

"Very well then." McGonagal sighed. "You're free to go. No use keeping you here." Lily felt slightly uncomfortable leaving. She'd been so close to telling McGonagal everything. But she just couldn't do it. She quickly picked up her books, stood up and left the office, before her mouth had a chance to speak again, without consulting with her brain first.

On her way back to the common room, Lily made a decision. She couldn't go on the way she had been. She might not have had any friends, and she might have still been suffering from the loss of Chris and Lauren, but one thing she did have was her intelligence.

If she did nothing else, Lily decided, she would at least dedicate her time and effort to her schoolwork. Maybe if she worked hard enough, she could grow back into the person she'd once been, she reasoned.

Back in the dorm, she gathered up her books, and headed for the library to work on some essays she'd been ignoring.

As she entered the library, she spotted a very peculiar sight. Madam Pince was aiding a student in the restricted section, and not just any student. It was Camille. She had her arms full with about five books Madam Pince had plucked off the shelf. What could she possibly need those for? Lily wondered. She tried to see if she could read any of the titles, but they were too far away. Not wanting to make herself look to obvious, Lily continued into the library, trying to keep Camille off her mind, and stay focused on what she was doing.

Nothing refreshed Lily like some good, focused, researching. It got her mind thinking. It pulled her away from the problems plaguing her life, and gave her a change of pace. After three solid hours in the library, her history of magic essay was finished, and her transfigurations essay nearly complete.

Feeling better than she had for months, she walked back towards the common room, her mind still on fifteenth century wizard government. She absent-mindedly gave the password to the fat lady and entered the common room. It was nearly full, so she headed to the dorm with her things.

She quietly swung the door open. She heard Camille's voice on the other side, but it wasn't a language she understood. She tiptoed in, feeling suspicious.

"Et apres, je suis allée dans le forêt, ou j'ai trouvé… Lily?"

"Sorry, Camille, am I interrupting something?" Lily inquired sarcastically.

"No, no, not at all," said Camille calmly. Lily saw what she was talking to in her hand. It was a tiny, red glowing ball, which appeared to have wings.

"What's that?" Lily asked, trying not to seem too demanding.

"This is a parlasieau," Camille explained. "I was talking to my mother."

"To your mother?" Lily asked, looking doubtfully at the red glowing ball.

"Yes. You see, the parlasieau has the ability of repeating whatever you say to it to the person of your choice. It is easier than a letter because one does not have to read, only listen. I also like it personally because it will only repeat itself to the person you instruct it to repeat to. Otherwise it won't say a word."

"Sounds convenient," said Lily. "For someone whose got something to hide."

"I do not understand you Lily Evans. I try to be kind to you, and yet you accuse me of wrongdoing, even when I am only talking to my own mother."

"Well, then why were you speaking in… in…?"

"In French," explained Camille. "My mother is French, of course, and she does not understand English so well, so I talk to her in French so she will understand." Lily nodded her head.

"I see." Perhaps this time she really didn't have any reason to be suspicious of Camille, although there was something about that parlasieau that she didn't like. And there was the incident that had happened in the library, but Lily didn't want to bring that up. Perhaps when Camille wasn't around, she'd have a quick peek at what those books were.