Summer of Third Year
Lily dragged the other seven to a café near Bristol, where she lived. Arabella, Sirius, Remus, James, Violet, and Peter were all looking around the places curiously, while Lily and Jennifer, having Muggle blood in them, nodded knowingly at everything. Passersby looked strangely at the children, for normal people don't exactly don shabby robes (Remus), old-fashioned, medieval dresses (Sirius), and funny clown hats (Peter). The boys had dressed horrendously when they came to Lily's house at the beginning of summer vacation, and Lily had started laughing when she saw the funny sight.
"Where are we going, Lily?" asked Arabella, still staring interestedly at a small girl's lollipop.
"To the café, Bella, how many times have I told you?" answered Lily, exasperated. "Mum said we could all get a nice cup of coffee or tea, with scones and biscuits."
"And what does this…coffee do to you?" said James curiously.
"Well, it's a stimulant, so it makes you more awake."
"What's a stimulant?"
"Something that stimulates your body."
"What does 'stimulate' mean?"
Lily sighed helplessly. "Never mind, you. Come on, this place has the best coffee! I assume you all know what tea is, though?"
Everyone nodded, making a face. Evidently, thought Lily, none of these weirdos like tea. Well, I don't blame 'em; I hate tea, too.
"How do you open this door?" demanded Sirius, shattering Lily's musings. He pushed the door with all his might, earning disbelieving looks from people passing by.
"Oh, Sirius," said Lily, sighing once more, "it says here to pull, not push."
Remus snorted with laughter, clutching his stomach, while Jennifer grinned. Sirius made a face at them and pulled open the door, whacking his nose in the process. Now everyone started laughing, while a pouting Sirius rubbed his red nose. Lily rolled her eyes and opened the door for everyone. Inside, it was nice and cool, unlike the scorching weather outside. A soft melody was playing, and the cling of cash registers rang in the atmosphere, as busy cashiers served the customers.
"Oh, do hurry up, Lils, I'm starving," whined Sirius.
"Sirius, we just had lunch an hour ago, and besides, cafés aren't supposed to mollify your hunger; it's supposed to just provide you with a nice snack. Goodness, is this line slow!" Lily tapped her feet impatiently as a young woman at the front of the line struggled to find a few coins in her purse.
"Why are we waiting here?" asked James, also getting annoyed.
"Well, why do you think, Potter? You think that you can just slap a table, and coffee appears out of nowhere?" snapped Lily.
"Well—that's what we do at Ministry balls," replied James, confused.
Lily slapped her forehead. "Potter, open your eyes. This is the Muggle world! We don't have any magic to make life easier! When we go somewhere, we don't Apparate or use Floo Powder; we drive, ride a bike, or walk. When we need something or lost something, we don't just say 'Accio', and the object comes to us; we have to go look for it or get it ourselves. Understand?"
James was taken aback. "But—that's hard!" he spluttered.
"Well, James, welcome to the real world," muttered Jennifer. Violet stifled a laugh.
Arabella started to giggle. "Really, Sirius, you didn't need to put on a dress; Muggle men and boys wear pants, not dresses."
"Humph! I don't care at all," said Sirius airily.
"Can I help you, miss?" asked the cashier, peering down at Lily.
"Yes, please," said Lily politely, and ordered them all a cup of coffee, and a whole plateful of biscuits and scones.
"Fifteen pounds," said the cashier, looking a bit strained, as he handed her two trays. Both Lily and Jennifer carried them to a nearby table and set them down.
"Well, help yourselves," said the latter cheerfully.
Sirius immediately drained his coffee down, but spat it out quickly. "This is nasty stuff! What do these Muggles think of?" However, he quite enjoyed the sweet biscuits and blueberry scones.
Arabella ate and drank with perfect manners of a lady, which impressed many of the customers at the café. When a group of boys were drooling at her from a nearby table, Sirius had noticed them and snapped immediately. The boys jumped and proceeded to their business, not daring to look at her again.
James was staring out the window, where cars and buses were honking each other noisily, while people rushed in and out of buildings in a hurry. He had grown up and spent his whole life in the wizarding world, so he had never experienced or known how Lily's life was in the Muggle world. No Apparating or using any sort of magic—because there was none! The mere thought of not using magic at all for any purpose was a very foreign and frightening thought to James. However, he attempted to enjoy himself just the same, since he saw Lily chatting merrily with the three girls, as if this was nothing different than at Hogwarts.
"Why so quiet, boys?" she asked enthusiastically. "Enjoying your coffee?"
Remus and Peter nodded mutely, while Sirius shook his head vigorously. James was silent.
"What's gotten into you guys?" exclaimed Arabella, surprised. "Usually you guys are plotting and planning your next pranks at school! Oh wait, I know…" She looked at them sympathetically. "You guys miss the wizard—our world, don't you?"
The four boys nodded mutely, and James finally spoke up. "Look, it's really nice here—but it's not like home. I can't imagine life without using magic. You girls are getting used to it, but I don't know if we can." He glanced around at the rest of the Marauders.
"Look, Potter, I understand," said Lily, in a calm voice. "I know it's different and I know how you feel. I felt the same way you do at our first year at Hogwarts. Everything was so different: ghosts existed, magic was around every corner, and creatures such as centaurs and unicorns, which are imaginary in this world, existed in your world. So, if you feel that you need to go home…" She gulped.
"We won't leave you and the girls, Lil," said Remus, trying to comfort her. "Don't worry we'll get used to it." And to confirm his statement, the other three boys nodded over-enthusiastically. They didn't want to hurt Lily's feelings because of their own selfish reasons. After all, she did invite them to her home warmly, providing them food and shelter for the whole summer.
Lily gave them a warm smile. "Thanks, guys. I didn't want you guys to ditch us girls here all alone. After all, you're a great source of entertainment."
"Really?" The boys' faces brightened, and Jennifer grinned.
"Come on, Remie, surely you don't want to leave me for the whole summer, do you?" she asked coyly, her fingers intertwining with his.
"Yeah, Siri, what about your poor Bella, huh?" said Arabella, pouting.
Lily shook her head, smiling, though James saw pain in her green eyes. He knew that she probably wanted someone to cuddle next to her like Arabella and Jennifer had, and to comfort her when she was sad or kiss her when she was happy. He sighed. James also wanted that type of girl, but…there wasn't much of a chance that he'd find her. Nearly all the girls at Hogwarts, excluding the Slytherins, chased him around like lost puppies. He knew that they only liked him for his looks and his reputation, and cared not a whit about his personality. If only he would ever find a girl that cared more about the kind of person he was instead of caring about "that cute pout and the adorable eyes".
Arabella and Sirius, seeing their friends' troubled faces, smiled evilly at each other. "Those two need to get together," whispered Sirius.
"They're not even friends yet; how could they?" hissed Arabella.
"Well, they need each other, Bella. Poor Jamie-boy never can find his true love, since the girls who chase him around are a bunch of stupid airheads, who go for a guy's looks instead of his personality."
"Wow, Sirius, I think that was the most sentimental thing you've ever said in your life," said Arabella sarcastically.
"What?" asked Jennifer.
"Aww…finished your snog session with Remie, Jen?" Arabella smirked.
Jennifer blushed. "We were not snogging, were we, Remus?"
"Of course not!" exclaimed Remus, scandalized at the very thought of "snogging".
"See, Bella." Jennifer stuck her tongue out at her friend.
"Blah…Lils, this coffee is nast-y and I hate tea, so is there anything else to drink?" asked Sirius hopefully, making a face at the cup of black liquid in front of him.
"Sure." Lily went up to the cashier, and came back a few minutes later with a glass of cranberry juice and a platter of cinnamon-and-raison bread for Sirius.
"How come he gets the good stuff?" demanded James, as Sirius ate and drank hungrily. "Aww…do you have a little crush on my best friend?"
Lily glared at him. "No, Potter, I was actually just sick of Sirius whining all day about how nasty coffee and tea is. And now he's shut up considerably nicely, thanks all to me."
James sniffed disdainfully. "You think you're so perfect and wonderful, Evans. Well, you're not."
"James Potter, how can you say such a thing?" cried Violet, standing up. The whole café went quiet, but she took no notice. "Lily has welcomed us, even you, who's been her enemy for so long, into her home for the whole summer, and now you're insulting her! How can you dare?" She sat down again, her eyes glazed.
Everyone at the table was silent, even Jennifer, who didn't make her usual comment of congratulations to Violet. James bit his lip and opened his mouth to apologize to Lily, but she didn't want him to talk.
"Don't apologize, James," she said sharply.
"But Lily—"
"James, just shut up!"
"But—"
"Now!"
James shut up nicely, though he was extremely hurt. Why hadn't Lily wanted him to apologize? After all, he had insulted her like Violet had stated.
Meanwhile, Lily was furious at James. Why couldn't he ever keep his fat mouth shut? He always insulted her and wounded her self-esteem, though she rarely did so to him.
Arabella and Sirius exchanged nervous glances at each other, while Jennifer and Remus ate their sweet bread and scones in silence. Violet was still fuming over James, while Peter placed his hand on hers as a sign of comfort. She smiled wearily at him, though she was still livid at James.
And so that was how the afternoon passed—slow and silent.
-
The next day, James had attempted to apologize again, but Lily ignored him like he didn't even exist. Mrs. Evans was extremely troubled that Lily and James weren't speaking to each other, though she still wasn't told about the prophecy of Lily and James marrying, so she didn't fret all day. Mr. Evans always raised his eyebrows questioningly at either James or Lily whenever they passed him throughout that day. Petunia was out with her Dursley friends, Marge and Vernon, for a week, because she didn't want to hang around the house with eight "freaks". And so it was only the Evans, and Lily's friends at the lonely residence.
After a hearty breakfast of blueberry pancakes, muffins, and scrambled eggs, Arabella had cornered Lily on the way to her room.
"You have to accept James' apology," she begged. "He's been trying to apologize to you all yesterday and today so far. And you call Sirius and me stubborn!"
"Potter just can't stop insulting me, can he, even after I invited him to my house!" rambled Lily. "I mean, really, I 'dislike' him, and yet I was kind enough, out of the generosity of my heart, to invite him here for the whole summer."
"Well, he did invite you to his mansion last summer," added Arabella timidly.
Lily looked as if she were about to explode. "Yes, I suppose he did, but we were on good terms then…" She trailed off, knowing that she had lost the verbal battle.
Arabella snorted. "Lils, you've never been on good terms with James, ever."
"Better terms than now, then," she said quickly.
"Better terms with who?" asked Sirius, who saw his friend and girlfriend discussing seriously at the front of Lily's room.
"Lily's not going to accept James' apology," said Arabella, sighing. "If only she was slightly less stubborn now—"
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Really, Flower, Jamie didn't mean any harm; he never does. He just never thinks before he speaks, so he injures so many people emotionally. Don't worry, if you think you're suffering, then think again, because he is too. He kept me, Remie, and Pete up all last night moaning and complaining that you will never forgive him and that Harry will never be born. It was mostly just rambles, but it did keep me from my beauty sleep. And Remus hates to be interrupted from his sleep."
"Well, I'm sorry if you didn't get enough sleep last night," said Lily sincerely, "but it wasn't my fault; it was Potter's, so don't blame me."
"What was my fault?" They turned around to see James peering at the threesome curiously.
"Mind your own business, Potter," snapped Lily nastily.
James was taken aback. "Whoa, I didn't mean to offend you there, Ms. Popular. I was only trying to find Sirius so we can discuss some private matters." He emphasized the last two words.
"Well, go ahead, take him, I've no need for him," said Lily coldly.
As soon as James reached the room where he was sharing with the other three boys, he slammed the door angrily behind him.
"I can't stand Evans!" he bellowed.
Remus and Peter were startled. "James, calm down," said Remus.
"I can't, Remie. For God's sake, why won't that girl just accept my apology? I didn't mean what I said, honest!"
"Perhaps she's just sick of you teasing and taunting her, James," said Remus softly. "Maybe you guys should—become friends. Give her a break, for heaven's sake. You guys are arguing every day about something."
"I can't help that she's so disagreeable."
"James, Lily will accept your apology when she's ready," said Sirius seriously. "In the mean time, what about our Animagi potion? It said in the book, How to Become Animagi that it takes nearly half a year to prepare the potion for drinking. So we need to get a move on if we're actually going to become Animagi before we graduate from Hogwarts."
"Sirius," said Remus quietly, "do you think it wise to become Animagi at all? I mean, I know we've gotten this far, but—it's dangerous become Animagi just for me. What if someone finds out that you're illegal Animagi, since you wouldn't be in the chart? And—it's not worth being arrested just for me." He looked down at his feet.
James was the first one to speak up. "Remus, we'd do anything for you. We're your friends, and we really want to help you. I mean, I know how hard it is being a werewolf, since there are so many dense people in this world who are prejudiced against werewolves. So we want to make your worst experiences the best ones you'll ever have in your life." He went over to embrace Remus like the brother he was.
Remus smiled at James, with tears in his eyes. "Thanks, James. You know"—he looked around at Sirius and Peter—"you guys are really the best friends I've ever had, and will ever have. I never knew that this world would have such good people who don't judge me by what I am, but judge me by who I am. You guys are the best." The four boys went into a tight embrace, until they were met with the amused eyes of the four girls.
"Well, if this isn't such a nice little reunion," said Lily, laughing. But when they walked closer, she saw that Remus had tears in his eyes.
"Remus? Why are you crying?" asked Jennifer, alarmed.
Remus smiled. "It's nothing, Jenny. The weather's just a bit humid, and Sirius here—er—fed me an onion, so—er—I started to have tears in my eyes." He said the first excuse that came into his mind.
"Oh." Jennifer didn't look as if she believed him, but didn't push him in further discussion. "We just wanted to ask if you guys wanted to go shopping with us."
"Shopping?" repeated James. "Shopping for what?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Just plain shopping, Potter. Honestly, you don't expect me to wear the same clothes as I did last year, do you?"
"Well, that's what we fellows all do," replied James shrugging.
"Well, are you coming or not?" asked Arabella impatiently.
The four boys looked at each other and somewhat through telepathy, came up with an answer. "All right, we're going," said Peter.
"Good," said Lily, grinning. "Then we can get you guys some decent Muggle clothing, since Sirius here is still wearing some sort of opera singer's dress. Mum nearly had a heart attack yesterday when she saw a boy wearing a dress."
Jennifer laughed. "I know…you see? You guys entertain this whole household! You four are great!"
"You mean the three of them, Jen," said Lily, her eyes turning coldly towards James. "Surely, Potter, you don't think you stand a chance in being a part of the Marauder group, do you?"
"I am the one who came up with the group and the group name, Evans," said James icily.
"Oh, what an accomplishment, I'm sure it took ages," said Lily sarcastically.
Violet looked nervously between the two and said, "Er—perhaps we should start going."
Lily looked at her friend. "Yeah, you're right, Vi, we should get going. Come, Potter, let's go. I mean, you seriously need new clothes—just look at them now!"
"There's nothing wrong with my—" began James, but Lily cut him off.
"Well, what are you waiting for, hurry up, chop, chop!"
James rolled his eyes. Evans is one heck of a girl – and she's as stubborn as a mule, too.
***
"Ouch!" cried Remus, as Jennifer piled another bag in his arms. "Really, Jenny, I think this is enough.
"Enough? Remus Lupin, are you mad? A girl can never have enough clothes!" cried Jennifer, as she eyed "Victoria's Secret" eagerly.
Lily dragged her two meager bags. "Come on, Jen, I'm not exactly the richest person in the world. You're not spending all my money, you know."
"I can lend you some," offered James in a small voice.
Lily shot him a nasty look. "I don't need your charity, thank you very much, Potter."
"It's not charity, I'm always willing to help a fr—" James stopped talking and put his hand to his mouth, horrified at what he had just said.
"Help a what, exactly?" asked Lily suspiciously.
"Er—never mind," he said quickly.
Lily shrugged. "Fine then. Wow"—she looked around the mall in a daze—"I can't believe we're actually in our fourth year now. I mean, time sure flew."
"Yeah…" said Jennifer dreamily. "I met the only boy I'll ever love in my whole life at Hogwarts." She smiled at Remus, who flushed bright red.
James sighed. If only I will find my true love at Hogwarts like my friends.
"What's wrong, James?" asked Remus, concerned.
"Oh…it's just that I wish I could find my true love here at Hogwarts, Remie. I mean, you and Jen did, as well as Arabella and Sirius and Violet and Peter. But what about Lily and I? I mean, Evans will definitely find her soul mate; every guy's after her. Me, however—everyone's afraid of us Potters, because of what we are. Many a Dark wizard has been after our family for generations, so hopefully there aren't any Dark wizards around nowadays."
"I heard about one, though he's not very strong," said Remus. "He fashioned some stupid name called 'Lord Voldemort', and wishes everyone to be afraid to speak the name. Quite stupid, actually. But he has a few followers, though not many. I heard that he's killed a few wizards and Muggles, but not enough to attract the attention of the Daily Prophet. Still…he may turn into something bad, but I doubt it."
"I sure hope not," said James, shuddering. "Then my parents would be deeply involved, since they're top Aurors, and there's a likelihood that they may…die because of it." He gulped.
Lily's heart suddenly softened for the enemy. She knew that it would be hard on James if his parents died—she would sure mourn if her parents died fighting some evil wizard. Suddenly, she wondered if that was the Dark wizard that killed her and James in their dreams. But Remus had said that this Voldemort didn't sound too serious—
"WHAT THE HELL!" screamed James suddenly. The whole mall became quiet, surveying the scene with interest and horror.
"Potter, what are you screaming about?" asked Lily, annoyed. "Really, in broad daylight, you should be keeping your language decent."
"Sirius and Arabella are gone, is what I'm screaming about!" shrieked James.
Lily shrugged. "Probably snogging in some broom closet, who knows."
"No, I mean really, they're gone. Some guy at the speaker said that two children have been kidnapped, and that it was a boy and a girl. The boy had long, black hair and the girl had brown curls, and both looked to be about thirteen or fourteen. And since we haven't seen them both anywhere earlier, I think that we can conclude that they've been kidnapped by some mad Muggle!"
Lily felt that her heart had been chilled. What will the Blacks and Figgs do to me when they find out that Muggles kidnapped their children? She tried not to panic at the moment, though it was extremely difficult not to.
"What do we do now?" asked Jennifer nervously. "Oh, Lily, we should ask the guy from the speaker…"
"Yes," said Lily distantly, and without thinking, she dragged the three of them along. They spotted Violet and Peter, who both looked very white, and went in search of the man on the speaker. They found him at the highest tower of the building, and begged him to tell them details.
"Well," he said, scratching the back of his head, "those two young ones were chatting and kissing and whatever crazed teenagers do, and all of a sudden, these three cloaked figures take them away. I don't know why they did so, and I told them to stop in the name of the law, but they wouldn't listen. So I called all of y'alls over the speaker to see if you knew those two teenagers." He had a Texas accent, smooth and carefree.
"They're our friends," said Lily desperately. "Do you, by any chance, know where they were taken?"
"Kidnappers took them straight out of the entrance, miss."
"Thank you, sir. We'll be looking for them."
"Why"—the man looked surprised—"aren't you going to call the police, little lady? Surely a bunch of you teenagers can't handle a kidnap crime like this. May I suggest—"
"Sir, I can assure you that we can handle it," said Lily firmly. The man argued no further and pointed them out the entrance.
"Good luck!" he called after their retreating figures.
-
"This is all my fault," moaned Lily, as the six of them ran after the black-cloaked figures that held a screaming Arabella and Sirius.
"Lily, it's all right, we'll get them," said Jennifer, panting, as she sprinted down the sidewalk, trying to catch up with Lily.
"STOP!" she screamed at the figures ahead. "Stop, I tell you! I'm armed!"
The figures pointedly ignored her shouts and entered a small forest just in back of a house. Lily, James, and the others followed, clue-less to what would happen to their friends and who the three mysterious figures were. Finally, the figures stopped running and clutched a now silent Arabella and Sirius to the six teenagers.
"Potter," one of them muttered. Its voice sounded oddly like—
"Malfoy!" hissed James, stepping forward. "Lucius Malfoy! What are you doing to my friends?"
"Dear me, Potter, there is no need to jump into conclusions," came the silky voice of Malfoy. "All we ask for is a bargain."
James raised his eyebrows suspiciously. "What kind of bargain?"
Malfoy grinned. "We'll give you back your little—er—friends, if you're willing to sacrifice someone from your little circle."
"What?" exclaimed James, confused. "What are you talking about?"
"You can have your friends back if you give yourself up, Potter."
There was an eerie silence following Malfoy's silky voice. No one spoke a word; instead, everyone looked at James' pale face. Lily was twisting her hands nervously, regretting the fact that she's ever hated Potter before.
"Fine," came the final reply.
Sirius managed to twist himself loose from the second black-cloaked figure. "James—no!" he cried. "It's all a trick…they work for the Dark Side!"
James turned sharply to Malfoy. "Is this right, Malfoy? You're doing this for the Dark Side?"
"Our Master wants you, Potter, seeing that you're the youngest and strongest Heir in your whole family."
"Heir?" echoed Lily, stepping forward, too. "What Heir?"
Malfoy sneered at Lily. "Ah, Mudblood, perhaps you don't know your boyfriend's little…let's say, secret?"
"Secret?"
He laughed. "The Potters are the last Heirs of Gryffindor, Mudblood. Soon after our Master slaughters the whole Potter clan, he'll want the last and strongest Potter of them all—dear J.H. Potter, here."
James reddened. "Look, I don't know what the heck you're talking about, but I have to warn you that—"
"Careful, Potter, my Master does not like outspoken little boys."
"All right, who is this 'Master' of yours, huh? Let me ask you something, Lucius. No sane person has a master. And I don't know why you idiots want me! So, please elaborate on your stupid doings."
Malfoy's eyes flashed. "For your information, Potter, you're insulting my Master. Who is my Master, you ask? Why, none other than the Dark Lord himself, of course! Dear, dear, and you do have a lot of that foolish Gryffindor boldness to ask and belittle my Master. Have you ever heard of Lord Voldemort?"
James glared at him. "Of course I have. He's the nutter that believes everyone's afraid of speaking his name—Voldemort. Ha! What's so scary about that name?"
"You know, Potter, I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you," came a new voice. The second cloaked figure pushed down his hood, revealing none other than Severus Snape.
"Snape? What are you doing here?" snapped James, surprised.
"Why, teaming up with Lucius and Evan here, of course," replied Snape, smirking. "Surely you don't expect me to miss out on all the fun, do you?" He glanced around at everyone, until his eyes rested on Lily's. Then he did a double take and stared at her.
"Lily?" he croaked. "What are you doing here?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Well, Snape, this happens to be my hometown, you know. I live here, you dodo!"
"Then why is Potter and his gang here with you?"
"Well, I've invited them over my house for the summer, Severus."
Snape glared at James jealously. "So—you've got yourself another girlfriend, eh, Potter? Tired of all the rest?"
"Why you little—" snarled James, but Rosier cut them off.
"Really, Severus, I expected better of you!" he chided. "Arguing with Potter about some stupid Mudblood. Come, we have to do our job."
James suddenly stepped right in front of the three Slytherins and hissed, "Don't any of you dare call Lily a Mudblood again. You Slytherins are a disgrace to the name of wizard."
Rosier snorted. "Get away from us, Potter, you're giving us your Gryffindor germs." All three of them laughed menacingly.
"Dear, dear, Lucius, Severus, Evan, I expected you to hand me over the Potter boy already," hissed a soft voice from behind the trees. James jumped.
"Of course, Master," they murmured, seizing James and pulling him to where the voice came from. Arabella and Sirius were abandoned now.
"James Potter," said the voice, "I have so wanted to meet you. After all, Heirs should meet each other, should they not?"
"I don't know who you are," said James loudly, "but I'm ready to call all the Aurors at the Ministry here to throw you into Azkaban. Who are you, you nutter?"
The figure behind the trees tensed. "Ah, just like the rest of your family, Potter. Boisterous and rude to anyone who is of lower rank. Really, James, I did expect better from the most powerful wizard alive in our world today."
Silence followed. James spluttered, "I'm—I'm what?"
"You're the Heir of Gryffindor," said the voice coolly. "Heirs are the most powerful wizards, but the Heir of Gryffindor is most powerful. But, of course, the prophecy can be wrong. After all, I don't see how powerful a scrawny thing like you are. But I can prove how powerful I am. After all, no one's afraid to speak your name out loud, Potter. However, they are frightened to speak mine." He grinned widely. "I am the most powerful wizard in the world—the last Heir of Slytherin, Lord Voldemort."
"Ha! You're Voldemort, is it?" asked James mockingly. Voldemort tensed at being called by his name.
"A bold thing, aren't you? Well, I expect more manners from you, boy. My name is not Voldemort when spoken out of your mouth, it's 'sir' or 'my Lord'."
"Oh really? And who are you supposed to be, chiding my manners—my father?"
Lily suddenly felt an air of gloom and danger around Voldemort. She ran towards James and grabbed his arm. "Please, James, don't anger him."
James pried her off him gently. "Don't worry, Lily, he's just some stupid fraud," he whispered.
"Ah…if it isn't your little Mudblood girlfriend, Potter," sneered Voldemort. "I suppose you would die for her?"
James glanced at a tear-streaked Lily and glared boldly at Voldemort again. "You know, I still don't know what you want with me."
"Why"—Voldemort's red eyes widened in surprise—"I want you to join me, of course, my dear lad."
"Join you?"
"Join me, my boy, and we'll do great things together."
James narrowed his eyes. "If you're asking me to join the Dark Side, then my answer is NO. I'd never become evil, when my family and friends could be at stake."
Voldemort paled. "You'll regret this decision someday, Potter," he spat. "I'll do anything I can to not have you go against me, including killing the ones who are preventing you from joining me." With a whisk of his cloak, he and the Slytherins were gone.
Everyone stood there in stunned silence. Lily felt extremely uncomfortable. So this is how she and James was going to die! Killed by a nutter wizard! James, however, was nervous about what Voldemort had said: I'll do anything I can to not have go against me. What did he mean by 'anything'?
Arabella's crying broke the silence. "Oh, Lily, James, I'm so sorry that Sirius and I ran off! If we stayed together…" She trailed off, sobbing.
Lily went to put her arms around her best friend. "It isn't your fault, Bella. I mean, that Voldemort could have easier taken any of us without the others knowing. Don't cry, please."
James shook his head. "No, it's my fault. It's all my fault." He looked at everyone. "Yes, I am the Heir of Gryffindor, and ever since I was born, I had magical powers that normal wizards could never obtain: wand-less magic, the ability to learn and know magic easily without having to study too much." He looked straight at Lily when he said this.
"That's why Voldemort is after me. He wants me to join his Dark Side, so that I can help him revive the Dark Order again, because of my powers. But I'll never join the Dark Side. It's only for wizards and witches who are too cowardly to not become evil."
Lily clutched his hand in comfort. "Come on, let's go home."
***
"This is a beautiful sunset," murmured Lily, smiling, as she stroked her golden retriever's fur. Goldie looked at her imploringly and put her face in Lily's hands.
"Lils?" She turned around to see James smiling nervously at her. "Can I join you?"
"If you have no one to snog with, then sure," joked Lily, looking over at her friends, who were all snogging…even Violet and Peter.
"Does that mean I can't snog with you?" he asked teasingly, seating himself next to Goldie.
"Nope. If you came here to snog, I suggest you go find Petunia's friends. Poor Petty had a hard time yesterday convincing her friends to hate you, but it was no use; they're totally in love with you now." Her voice sounded oddly bitter.
James smiled. "Is our ickle Flower jealous?"
"No!" cried Lily, a bit too quickly. "Why would you say that?"
"Lily, Lily, Lily." James shook his head. "How would you like—to become friends?"
Lily looked at him, surprised. "Well, we're not ready yet now, I know, but when the time comes, we'll be the best of friends—besides with Arabella and Sirius, of course." She referred to their best friends hastily.
"Good. We don't…hate each other like we used to back in our first and second year, do we?"
"Of course not. We're just on speaking terms at the moment. But—James, I think we can be friends someday. Just not now."
"Can we at least call each other by our first names occasionally instead of never?"
Lily snorted. "What kind of a question is that? We already do!"
"Oh, do we? Because it's been more than one hundred occasions when you've called me 'Potter' with a vengeance."
"Well, Mr. Potter, if we stop playing pranks on each other, perhaps we can reach to some sort of agreement."
James looked horrified. "Impossible!"
"Then we'll be calling each other 'Potter' and 'Evans' for the rest of our lives, then. I thought you didn't want that."
"I don't."
Lily sighed. "Then perhaps a truce? Not to be pure enemies again?" She held out her hand, and James shook it.
"Truce."
"Why," came the incredulous voice of Sirius, "is this Lily Evans and James Potter shaking hands, agreeing to be friends, or at least on speaking terms? Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed an extraordinary event here!"
James grinned. "Oh, shove it, Siri-boy."
"And what's this? James Potter becoming playful and Lily Evans not retaliating? Oh, ladies, perhaps the James you've all been fighting for has only eyes for Lily Flower!"
Lily looked at Sirius with amusement. "Oh, really Sirius?"
"Wait—what's this? Lily Potter hasn't said anything to make the famous lady-killer, Sirius Black shut up. Five…four…three…two…one…"
"SIRIUS BLACK, I AM NOT LILY POTTER AND WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT UP!"
"There we have it, ladies and gentlemen," said Sirius in a smaller voice. "Lily Potter screaming at innocent bystanders, who only have witnessed she and James bonding together under the sunset…how romantic…"
Arabella walked over to her boyfriend and cuddled against him. "Really, Sirius, I think this is enough teasing for one day. It's getting late, we should be getting to bed."
"And look at this, ladies and gentlemen! Sirius Black's very own gorgeous girlfriend, Ms. Arabella Figg is telling him to quit it for the night. All right, I will be seeing you tomorrow, folks, do not fret!"
Arabella shook her head and giggled as the friends headed back into the house. "Oh, Sirius, now I know why everyone loved the Quidditch commentaries when you did them in our first year."
"Hey!" cried Remus, who was walking with Jennifer behind them. "I resent that!"
She laughed. "Oh, Remie, it's not that you're bad or anything, it's just that, well, it's a bit dull when you do it. You sound like Professor Binns when you say the commentary and not as enthusiastic or funny like when Sirius does it. Put in more life when you do it for the first match of the season this year."
Remus shrugged. "I don't like exhibiting my weirdness in public, unlike Sirius."
James laughed, and Sirius pretended to look hurt. Arabella shook her head once more and dragged a pouting Sirius inside.
James was lingering around until it was Lily's turn to go inside. He pulled her back and said, "Look, I never really appreciated your hospitality this summer by inviting me over your house and stuff. I just wanted to say"—he took a deep breath—"that I'm sorry about the mean things I've said before, because I really didn't truly mean them. Forgive?"
Lily stared at his sudden outburst, open-mouthed, but then smiled. "Of course. Apology accepted. And I never did thank you properly myself when you invited me over your house last summer."
James smiled at Lily and kissed her hand. "You already did by inviting me over this summer."
She thought for a moment, pondering on his meaning. "Well…I suppose that's right."
"Hopefully we won't have another dream tonight," said James, sighing.
Lily grinned. "Actually, I like having those dreams. It gives us more insight on our future together."
"Yeah, you're right. Hey, I never knew perfect Evans could actually be sentimental!"
Lily slapped him playfully. "What about our truce?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot about it! I guess I'm so used to hating you that I forgot about that speaking-term truce we made. Oh well."
"Huh! So says you. I guess we'll have to call off the truce."
"What? No way! We worked very hard on promising to be on speaking-terms."
Lily snorted. "You got that right. Though sometimes I still long to through a tirade at you."
"Meanie!"
"Please Po—James, you sound like a four-year-old!"
"Maybe because I am a four-year-old!"
"Then why are you going to Hogwarts and scoring better than even me in Transfiguration?"
"Oh…it's because I'm so smart that Dumbledore accepted me at the age of four."
Lily grinned and shook her head. They went inside, still thinking about their separate thoughts.
As James entered the room that he was sharing with the rest of the Marauders, Sirius bombarded him with questions about what happened between him and Lily outside. James shook his head, clearly wondering if his best friend had lost his mind.
"I'm telling you, Siri, nothing happened between us!" he said crossly. "I just went to thank Lily for having me over the summer, knowing how much we—er—don't get along at school."
Sirius snorted at the understatement.
Remus smiled gently at his friend. "I'm glad that you and Lily came up with a truce, James. I was getting a bit impatient myself about how much you guys fight. The next step will be friendship and then perhaps…love."
"Oh, Remie, not you too," sighed James.
"What? I was only commenting. I don't matchmake people like Sirius does here—and have it end up a disaster."
"Hey!" Sirius pouted.
"Guys, keep it down, Peter's asleep," hissed James.
"Oh…whoops, sorry, Jamie-boy."
As they turned off the lights, James lay in his bed, thinking. What was to become of him after Hogwarts? He was entering his fourth year at Hogwarts already. He knew that he was going to become an Auror; all Potters did. What about that threat that Voldemort had given him about the consequences of not joining the Dark Side? Would he have to give up everything, including the ones he loved, to protect himself, as the strongest Heir out of the four? He fell asleep quickly, the thoughts still swimming in his mind.
"Love is more powerful than any other type of emotion – it could even prevent death, if you love that person enough."
-
Meanwhile, in the girls' room, they were all pushing Lily to tell them what happened between her and James.
"Really, Belle, for the last time, nothing happened!" exclaimed Lily, crawling into bed, for she was exhausted.
"All right, Lils, but still…"
"I can't believe you came up with a truce with James!" added Jennifer. "How did you guys do it? You despise each other!"
"Well, Jen, we're on speaking terms now," replied Lily, smiling.
"Well, this is a different love story!" cried Arabella, sitting up in her bed. "Lily Evans Potter and James Potter have hated each other for many of their years at Hogwarts, but became hesitant friends by their fifth year. Bounded by her beauty and his charms, they both fell in love and married straight out of Hogwarts. Tragically, however, the Dark Side began to gain power and a Dark wizard murdered Lily and James Potter. On the happier note, their son, Harry James Potter, lived and became famous and was a hero. The end!" She grinned down at her friend's hanging mouth. "Oh, it's so romantic! Just like Romeo and Juliet!"
"Bella! What a horrible thing to say—dying isn't romantic!" snapped Violet.
"Oh, Vi, don't be so touchy, I was only joking." Arabella looked worried. "I haven't offended you, have I, Lils?"
Lily shook her head. "Nah, I'm just thinking. Well, we'd better turn off the lights, tomorrow we go to Diagon Alley to get our school supplies, and we have to start packing, too. It's only a couple of days until September 1st!"
Everyone groaned, except for Lily. She loved Hogwarts, even more than her home. But as a grumbling Arabella turned off the lights, she had a sudden thought. What would become of her after Hogwarts? She knew she'd probably marry James, for some reason she didn't know yet, but what would she do? Lily pondered on it for a couple of seconds, running over various magical jobs she could get. Staying at home was definitely not an option for Lily. She wanted equal rights for witches as well as for wizards, and staying at home would be abusing that equal right. If James was to become an Auror—then she'd have to stay home in order to take care of Harry. Lily sighed, thinking gloomily of the thoughts, but brightened again. She could raise Harry…teach him to read…teach him all his firsts! Then staying home didn't seem so bad any longer! But then she remembered Voldemort's threat to James. Too tired to think any longer, Lily fell asleep, still dreaming of the future and what lay ahead for the future Potter.
- - - - -
Disclaimer: I do not own any of Harry Potter—only some of the strange character names I came up with such as Jennifer Dean, Violet Walker, Professors Wickham and Hurst, various Quidditch player names such as George Brach (see First Year – Part One), Narcissa Malfoy's maiden name, etc.
A/N: Oh, I know you all love me! You know why? Because I updated two – or three – days later! Oh, I know you all love me now *grin*
In reply to: Mooky's review
Well, Mooky, I really haven't thought of why Lily and James still remember their dreams when they wake up or why they have the same dreams. *thinks* Oh, all right then. Lily and James can both remember their dreams because, as you may have read in the third chapter that they both had a special bond that even death could not destroy. So that's why they have more powers. And that's also the reason why they have the same dreams often (not always, though): because their bond is more special than most people's bonds, since it's stronger than even love. Oh, and you told me to have some sort of adventure or something to spice up the story. Well, I did add a bit of that with the Voldemort and Slytherin scene, though I can be oddly non-creative. Yeah…I know that it's sad to have someone die that's close to Lily or James, but I must add it in, maybe in fifth or sixth year, I'm not sure. Lily's parents will die, but it won't be mentioned in the story, but the slaughter of James' whole entire family has to be mentioned, because of what Voldemort had said about killing the ones he loved. Because nearly all of their families were killed, besides the Dursleys (Grr…), because then Harry would have lived with another relative. So…yeah. But I won't make it depressing, don't worry! I hate depressing stories, too!
Oh, and a special note to all: Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed! They mean so much to me, they really do! Thanks again! *smile*