Chapter 11: Back to Hogwarts

 

Her grandparents left for home on Boxing Day, and Lily was quite sad to see them go. Elizabeth's parents had always been her favorite grandparents. She barely knew her dad's parents at all, and couldn't even remember the last time that they had come to visit. The rest of the holiday passed in a bit of a blur. She sent letters to Alice and Amelia, letting them know that she had been through all of her books, and hadn't found a single promising charm. They owled her back that they, too, had had no luck. Vicki Tonks came over a few more times, and Lily had let it slip that she wasn't actually attending school overseas, as her parents were claiming. Vicki didn't believe her until she'd seen some of the books that Lily had brought home, but she promised not to tell Lily's secret to a single soul. Lily taught Petunia a few more spells, and the two of them had whittled a couple of wands to use when practicing. All in all, it had been a very restful holiday, but as she sat in her compartment on the Hogwarts' Express, she had to admit that she was very glad to be going back to school. She had missed her friends terribly, and couldn't wait to resume classes.

Neither Alice nor Amelia were riding the train. In Alice's letter, she explained that she was visiting an aunt that lived in Hogsmeade, and would meet the train at the station, while Amelia was riding the Knight Bus with her brother. Lily had no idea what the Knight Bus was, but assumed it was some sort of wizarding transportation. So Lily settled into a compartment by herself and opened up her Transfiguration book, determined that this term would go better than the last one had.

After she had been reading for quite some time, Lily decided to freshen up. As she made her way back to her compartment from the restroom, she heard the voice of Lucius Malfoy coming from the compartment one door down from hers. She hesitated, unsure whether or not she should risk getting caught eavesdropping. As the possible repercussions of getting caught occurred to her, Lily made a decision. She was a Gryffindor for a reason, and Malfoy could unknowingly provide her with some information regarding the Dark Lord, the stolen book, or Frank's missing father. The opportunity was too good to pass up. She pressed herself against the wall, and inched toward the compartment door, her heart hammering louder and louder in her chest with each step. She finally got as close as she dared to go, and strained her ears, listening to the conversation within the compartment.

"He'll help sure enough," Malfoy said with a drawl.

"I don't know what makes you think that, Lucius," said a woman's voice that Lily recognized as Narcissa's. "The Longbottom family's been with Dumbledore since he was a student at Hogwarts."

Malfoy chuckled. "The Dark Lord has ways," he said in a sinister tone, "of making even the most uncooperative wizards do his will."

A third voice that sounded a lot like Snape's friend, LeStrange's, now joined in the conversation. "But why Longbottom?" the voice asked. "He had to know that the Ministry would have a job of convincing everyone that was a random disappearance, and he doesn't want the aurors alerted to his presence just yet, does he? Not until he succeeds, anyway."

"You're right about that, Rodolphus," Malfoy said. "But Longbottom's the only Ministry wizard who has the skills the Dark Lord needs. He can't do the entire ceremony himself, so he had to take a risk." Malfoy now chuckled. "It's not the first risk the Dark Lord's taken, but he's smart. He got that book away from Dumbledore with nary a soul knowing about it—"

"Hiya, Evans!" a voice behind her said. She jumped in surprise, and at the same moment, the train lurched, sending Lily falling against the door of Malfoy's compartment. She uttered a word that would have shocked her parents to find out she knew, and then grabbed the arm of Potter and pulled him down out of sight, just as Malfoy's face appeared at the window.

"Who's out there, Lucius?" Narcissa asked.

"I don't see anyone," he said, shutting the compartment door firmly.

Lily stayed crouched on the floor, motioning for Potter to stay quiet and do the same. They stayed there for a few minutes, until she was sure it was safe, and then Lily hastily made her way into her own compartment, Potter following her. She made sure the door to her compartment was shut firmly and turned to face him. Had she not been so angry at him for nearly getting them caught, she would have laughed at the look of utter confusion upon his face "What in the bloody hell was that all about?" he asked.

Lily glared at him. "What kind of person just shouts out 'Hiya Evans!' when the person they're shouting at has their ear pressed against the wall to eavesdrop on someone else's conversation?" she asked furiously.

Potter blinked at her. "You needn't yell at me!" he said, his mock-hurt look firmly in place, then, "hang on." His eyes widened in understanding. "You were eavesdropping on Malfoy?" he asked in amazement.

Lily took a deep breath, trying to calm down. She knew that her adrenaline was running high from almost getting caught, and realized that there was no way that Potter could have known what she was doing. Still, he could have been a little more careful. It should have been at least somewhat evident that she wasn't just out for a stroll. "Sorry," she said, "Yes, I was eavesdropping on Malfoy. I was hoping to find out something about the book."

Someone knocked at the door, causing them both to look up. Black was bouncing up and down in front of the window like an overexcited puppy. Potter laughed and opened the compartment door. Black bounded in and sat down next to Lily.

"I see you found her, then," Black said, indicating Lily. Lily looked at Potter quizzically.

"Why were you looking for me?" she asked.

"To find out if you'd had any luck finding a language charm over break," Black said. "Have you?"

She started to answer, but Potter interrupted her. "Who cares about that?" he said impatiently. "What was Malfoy talking about?"

Black's eyes lit up. "You overheard Malfoy?" he said excitedly.

"Yes," Lily snapped, "and if the two of you would shut up for a minute, I could tell you about it!"

They both looked at her as though shocked. "I was hoping that Christmas would have mellowed you out a little, Evans," Potter said finally. "I see I was wrong."

She glared at him, again breathing deeply. "Sorry," she said again. "I'd appreciate it if the two of you would stop interrupting me."

Potter glanced at Black with an expression of glee. "That's the second time she's apologized to me today, mate. I didn't even know she knew those words."

Lily glared at him. "Do you want to know, or don't you?"

Potter and Black both looked at her expectantly. "Go on then," Black said, waving his hand and bouncing up and down in his seat.

"All right, then." Lily checked to make sure the door was shut tightly, and then related to them the conversation that she had overheard. When she was finished, Black had stopped bouncing around, and Potter was looking thoughtful.

"I wonder what skills Malfoy was referring to?" Potter said thoughtfully.

"And what ceremony?" Black added. "I don't think I know of any spells that require more than one wizard to do them." Lily shrugged. She didn't know what to make of any of it.

"Well, it seems like the first thing we need to find out, well, besides what the book's about, I mean, is what Frank Longbottom's dad does at the Ministry," she commented. Potter and Black nodded in agreement. Easier said than done, though. They couldn't just come out and ask Frank; they all had more compassion than that. They sat in silence for a moment, all three deep in thought.

"I'll write Alice's Grandpa again," Lily said finally. "He'll be wanting to know what I overheard, anyway."

Black jumped up, "That's settled then. Now if you don't mind," he said turning to Lily with a bow, "I'm going to steal James here away." Black walked out into the hallway and motioned for Potter to follow.  Potter looked at Black with an eyebrow raised inquisitively before turning to look back at Lily with a look she couldn't figure out, then he trailed after Black without a word. As the door slid shut behind them, Lily heard Black saying, "I saw a Slytherin friend of ours sitting by himself toward the back of the train."

Lily sighed in annoyance, and picked up her Transfiguration book to continue studying.

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"LILY!"  She heard the screech before she saw the screecher, and turned just as Alice tackled her in a huge hug.  "How was your vacation?  Mine was incredible.  You'll never believe what mum and dad got me, Lil.  My OWN broom!  Isn't that great.  It's a Nimbus, too.  They're a brand new company, it's the prototype model.  I can't wait to get on it.  Of course, I couldn't bring it back because of the stupid 'first-year's aren't allowed broomsticks' rule but I practiced on it all of break and, oh!" she gave Lily another huge hug.  "It's so good to see you again!"  Lily laughed and took a step back. 

"It's only been a few weeks, Alice," she said, although she felt much the same way.  She hadn't realized how much she'd missed Alice until just now. 

Alice nodded.  "I know, but it's felt like ages longer, with only Anna around to keep me entertained.  And of course she doesn't want anything to do with me.  She's 13 now, you know.  Entirely too cool to have a little sister hanging around," Alice looked around the platform.  "Was Amelia meeting us here, or at Hogwarts?"

Lily also glanced around.  "At Hogwarts, I believe.  I'll wait until we find her to tell you.  It's not safe to say anyway."

Alice squealed again.  "Oooh!  Did you find a—,"

"Shhhhh!" Lily said, bringing her finger to her lips.  "I said it's not safe to talk about here."

Alice blushed.  "Right, sorry.  It's just that I'm ever so excited to be back.  Where's your owl?  I think it's so great that your folks got you one.  I begged for one when we went to Diagon Alley over the holiday, but my parents kept insisting that Archimedes was enough," Alice snorted to indicate her disgust with this.  "Of course, I'd much rather have a broomstick, anyway, since we do already have an owl."  Her gaze caught the cage sitting beside Lily's trunk and she grinned.  "He's just beautiful.  Hi Romulus!"  Alice pulled a treat out of her pocket and offered it to him.  Romulus snapped it up, and hooted appreciatively.

Lily laughed.  "I think he likes you!" Lily noticed that most of the students around them were now climbing into the many horseless carriages that were waiting next to the platform, and motioned to Alice.  "Come on, I suppose we'd better find a carriage."

They climbed into a nearby carriage, and began trading stories about their breaks.  As they talked, the door of the carriage opened, and a messy black-haired head poked into the carriage, grinning.  "Ladies," Potter said, his eyes dancing.  "I'm afraid this is the only carriage remaining with two seats, so we'll have to join you."  He began to climb into the carriage and Black's head became visible behind him.

Black groaned as his eyes met Lily's.  "You sure you want to sit here, Jamesy?" he asked.  "She's just gonna lecture us for what we did to Snape."

Lily's eyes flashed.  "What did you do to Snape?" she asked. 

Potter smiled at her, and patted her on the knee before looking at Black.  "What Evans doesn't know," he said with a grin, "isn't going to hurt her," and he climbed in, settling himself across from Alice. 

Black leapt in beside him, sitting across from Lily, who couldn't resist asking, albeit more nicely this time, "So what did you do to him?"  Black and Potter just looked at each other and laughed.

"Nothing permanent," Black said with a mysterious look.  Lily scowled. 

"So, did you hear anything about Frank's dad over the holiday?" Alice asked, changing the subject.

"Not a word," Potter said with a sigh.  "I sent him an owl with a casserole from my mum, (She figured that his mum wouldn't feel much like cooking) but he didn't write back."  Potter leaned back and folded his arms behind his head.  "Not that I expected to hear anything.  If I were him, I'm not even sure I'd be back for next term."

Black's eyes glinted jealously.  "Wish I knew what that was like," he said bitterly.  "Better yet, wish it'd been MY dad that was taken.  And my mum, too, while they're at it."

Potter gave Black a sympathetic look, but Lily was horrified.  "That's a horrible thing to say!" she said.

"You don't know Black's mum," was all Potter said, but Alice was also looking appalled.

"I don't care what she's like!" Alice said indignantly.  "If it weren't for either of them you wouldn't be here right now."

"In that case," Lily said dryly, "I wish she'd have disappeared 12 years ago."

Alice and Potter both looked at Lily in surprise, then all three of her carriage-mates began laughing, though whether it was out of surprise that she had said such a thing or because what she had said struck them as funny, Lily couldn't tell.  "And that's not a horrible thing to say?" Potter asked when he could finally talk again.


Lily shrugged, and started to answer, but the carriage suddenly jolted to a stop.  "We're here!" Black said, opening the door and climbing out.  He stood outside and helped Potter out with a flourish, then turned and bowed to the two girls, holding out his hand to help them down.  Lily couldn't help but laugh.  His hair was falling into his face, and his eyes were dancing.   Alice and Lily exited the carriage, and both accepted Black's help as they climbed down.  As they all turned to face the castle, Black murmured, "Home at last."  Lily silently agreed.


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"So what did you find out over break, Lily?" Alice asked, taking one of her robes out of her trunk and hanging it into her closet. Over supper, Lily had told them that she had found out some information, but couldn't say what it was, because the risk of being overheard was too great. Alice and Amelia had both been anxious to find out what it was, and Lily supposed that they were safe now that they were in their own room.

"I overheard a conversation between Malfoy, Narcissa and Snape's friend, that LeStrange character, on the train," she said, sending her robes flying across the room and into the closet using an unpacking charm that she had come across during break. Alice and Amelia both watched her enviously.

"How do you do that?" Alice asked, now trying to mimic Lily's wand movement.

"Never mind that," Amelia said, pulling her schoolbooks out of her trunk and stacking them on her desk. "What did you hear?"

"I missed doing magic over break," Lily said, sending her books flying onto her desk with another flick of her wand. Alice and Amelia both glared at her.

"Are you going to tell us?" Alice prompted, after Lily began directing her hats into the closet after her robes.

Lily closed the closet with a swish of her wand and then sat down on her bed, repeating the conversation. As she talked, Alice and Amelia continued to unpack, but were listening intently. By the time she was finished, both had stopped unpacking and were staring at her.

"What did Malfoy mean, 'ways of making the most uncooperative wizards do his will'?" Alice asked. She was now chewing on her lower lip, something she had a habit of doing whenever she was worried about something.

Lily shrugged. "I've no idea. I was too busy trying to figure out why he wants Mr. Longbottom." Lily suddenly noticed that Amelia had gone pale and was trembling. "Melly, are you okay?" she asked.

Amelia shook her head. "No," she said. "I'm not. Narcissa's right. Frank's dad will never agree to help this wizard. Never. Which means he'll have to…" Amelia trailed off, shuddering.

"'He'll have to' what, Amelia?" Alice asked, now staring at Amelia.

Amelia shuddered again. "He'd have to use an unforgivable curse, wouldn't he?" Lily gave her a blank look, but Alice gasped.

"You don't think he'd use one of those do you?" she asked.

"A—an unforgivable curse?" Lily interrupted. "Sorry, I don't know what those are."

Amelia nodded. "No," she said, "you wouldn't. We haven't reached them yet in Defense Against the Dark Arts. That's fifth or sixth year for most students. I just know because I read about them in a book of magical law my Dad gave me. The worst unforgivable curse is—" here Amelia lowered her voice, as though a little afraid to speak it out loud, "Avada Kedavra." Lily felt a shiver run down her spine at those words. "It's the killing curse. There's no countercurse or anything that can be done to save someone whose been hit by it." Lily couldn't stop herself from imagining how terrifying it would be to have someone pointing their wand at you, and hearing those words, knowing you were helpless to stop what was about to happen.

Alice spoke, trying to sound confident, but her voice was shaking. "He couldn't use that. It sounds like he needs Frank's dad to help him too much to kill him."

Amelia nodded. "He couldn't use that until he'd used him for, whatever it is he needs him for. The second unforgivable curse is the cruciatus curse. It causes immense pain. So much pain that if it's done repeatedly, the victim can actually go insane from the torture."

Alice's eyes were now widened in horror, and she looked as white as the snow on the ground outside. "You don't think he'd use that on him, do you?" she barely whispered.

Amelia looked sickened at the thought, but continued nonetheless. "I don't know if he'd want to risk Frank's dad going insane," she said thickly.

"There's always imperius, too," Alice said. "That seems more logical."

Amelia nodded in agreement. "It's more likely he'd use the imperius curse, you're right. You can make someone under the imperius curse do whatever you want them to, Lily. Even kill people. It's horrible." She shuddered.

"I overheard Grandpa talking about some of the things people've done under imperius, once. Some of them go crazy themselves, because they can't live with the guilt. That's the one he'd probably use. But it can be fought, so if it doesn't work, he'd have to go with crucio…" Alice trailed off, noticing that Amelia was nearing tears, and Lily looked sick. They all sat silently for a few moments.

"Poor Frank," Alice said quietly.

"Poor Mr. Longbottom," Lily echoed.

Alice and Amelia nodded in agreement, and they fell silent again.

"But that doesn't explain why they wanted Mr. Longbottom," Alice said finally.

Lily nodded her agreement. "We need to let your Grandpa know, Alice."

"Lily's right," Amelia concurred. "He's the only auror taking the whole dark wizard thing seriously. He's Mr. Longbottom's best chance."

Alice was now as pale as Amelia had been a few moments earlier, and her hand was shaking as she pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill. Lily and Amelia huddled around her as she began to write.