One more chapter after this…

Chapter 21

Incorrect Accusation

Someone was touching her hand… her head was sinking in fluffy pillows… thick blankets were covering her… a sad and worried sniff from somewhere else… something cold on her right leg…

Lily unwillingly opened her eyes. She was in the hospital wing in a bed. Amos Diggory was stroking her hand nervously. James was sitting on the floor, resting his head on the bottom of Lily's bed, fast asleep. Sirius and Belle were sitting in a large chair. Belle was leaning on Sirius' shoulder, crying softly. Remus was pacing quickly back and forth… and Snape was standing in the shadows, obviously debating why he was there in the first place…

"Thank God! She's awake!" Amos shouted happily. There was a huge scramble to get to Lily's bedside; Sirius stood up so fast, Belle actually fell down.

Now that the room knew she was awake, she pulled her hand away from Amos' and kicked James in the head.

"Ow! Pain… misfortune…" He moaned playfully, sitting back on his heels, rubbing his forehead. "Lily! You're awake!"

"Yeah, no thanks to you." Lily replied coldly. "You took my necklace, why won't you just admit it? It's all your fault I went into that forest and came out with a splitting headache… and my leg…"

"I… er, think I'll just go…" James muttered. "I'm glad you're awake Lily…" And he left, grabbing his bag, and shoving past Siverus to get through the door.

"Well!" Belle exclaimed awkwardly. Lily was fuming. "Er, classes! Two minutes, everyone!" And Belle tried to shepherd everyone out of the room.

"One moment…" Amos said. "I'm very pleased to see you are well again. We've all been so worried." And he kissed her on the head, and left.

Siverus left without a word or gesture.

Remus smiled at her, and it warmed her insides. But Sirius stayed.

"Hadn't you better get to classes too?" Lily suggested.

"Not until we've talked." Sirius replied. He seemed very serious, which was a surprise.

"Where was Madison? What's today? Wednesday?" Lily asked.

"Madison… er, didn't want to come. She claimed she didn't want to see you so helpless. Today is not Wednesday… you've been knocked out cold for two weeks. Today is Friday."

"Oh… wow. Time flies when you're sleeping!" Lily said, trying to get Sirius to laugh, or at least say something funny back.

"Yeah. But not for the people waiting for you to wake up." Sirius muttered. "You know, Lily, James has been here every single day for the past two weeks. Before school? He's here. After and between classes? Yeah, he's still here. He's been kicked out of the hospital wing so many times you wouldn't believe it. Two nights ago, he came straggling back into the common room after midnight. He's been waiting for you Lily."

"James? In here waiting for me?" Lily repeated, astonished.

"That's right." Sirius said. "And that's not even the half of it."

"What's the other half?" Lily asked, dreading the answer.

"Well, first of all, Peter took your locket. Thought it would be funny, and would make James respect him a little more. Couldn't have been more wrong. You should have seen it: I've never heard James yell like that before." Sirius replied. "And if that's not enough, he went in after you."

"No he didn't." Lily said. "He wouldn't do something that brainless…"

"That's what Peter thought. 'No James… don't! Let her stay in there for a while! She'll come out!' Good thing he didn't listen." Sirius said solemnly.

"You gave us all a huge scare." Sirius said. "When James came out of the forest carrying you… you were limp and your leg was bleeding horribly… we thought you'd died."

"I almost did." Lily whispered. "And James saved me?"

"Yeah! I don't know what he did, but when he came out, his arm was bleeding. He wouldn't let Madam Pomfry touch him until she'd taken care of you. Scared us all. Especially Belle." Sirius explained. "And you just accused him of stealing your stupid locket."

"I didn't know." Lily sighed. "My locket didn't seem so stupid until just this moment."

"Well, Remus thought it meant some horribly great deal to you." Sirius said. "He went out and bought you a new one… it's there on the table."

"Oh my God…" Lily whispered as she picked up the silver locket. Engraved on it was a lily. "Oh God…"

"Yeah, 'oh God.'" Sirius said. "Remus had a pretty good yell too. He actually swore! Jesus, he was hollering at Peter about being an in-genuine person. Apparently, Peter wanted to know why you were upset that night my marshmallow died, so Remus told him. Thought he could trust him." At first, Lily thought this was a joke… but Sirius wasn't laughing.

"I feel like such an idiot!" Lily exclaimed.

"No, don't." Sirius said sympathetically. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't know."

"I just feel so bad…" Lily sighed. "He just saved my life, and I accused him of ruining it."

"Like I said, you didn't know." Sirius replied. He stood up and headed to the door. "But don't tell me… tell James." He raised his eyebrows- a very Sirius Farewell- and left Lily alone.

Chapter 22

The Microscopic Apology

  The next day, Lily was still confined to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfry refused to let her leave until she was absolutely certain Lily's leg was free of cat-poison. Lily wanted nothing more than to escape to talk to James, but the idea seemed impossible.

Madison came to visit Lily later that afternoon. She filled the room with such a sense of fake worry, it almost made Lily choke.

"I've been so worried about you, Lily!" Madison moaned. "I thought for the longest time you were dead. I just couldn't bring myself to visit you!"

"That's what Sirius told me." Lily replied. When she was honest with herself, she felt bad that Madison wasn't a little more concerned about her health and safety… but maybe she was just being paranoid and Madison really did care.

When Lily's leg was as good as new, Madam Pomfry had no choice but to let Lily leave the stuffy hospital wing.

So Lily gathered up the get-well cards and candies that her friends had left for her, and she departed for the Gryffindor common room.

When she got there, she found it astonishing that more than half the Gryffindors were all compacted into the common room with books open on their laps, and quills in their hands. Then Lily remembered that exams were coming up soon, and everyone was busy studying.

Lily maneuvered around a table of fourth years, and dodged a table of rowdy seventh years before she could even reach her dormitory steps.

After she dropped off her things, she braved the common room again, hoping to find James to apologize. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be found.

The next day, Lily had to return to classes. She, Belle, and Madison trudged down the dungeon steps to Potions. To their disgust, none other than Lucius and Siverus met them.

"Siverus tells me you're doing well, Lily." Lucius replied coolly. "I'm glad to hear it… so very glad."

"Come off it, Malfoy." Belle snapped. "You don't really care. If you did, you would have come to visit her."

"I assure you, Miss Arabella, had I had the chance, I most certainly would have." Lucius contradicted.

"Real friends find time." Belle replied hotly. "Now if you'll excuse us, we have to get to class."

"Arabella! I suggest you learn to control that temper of yours." Lucius smiled.

"Burn in Hell, Malfoy." Belle replied, as she shoved past him. "And call me Arabella again, and I swear, I will kill you."

Lily sat next to Belle at one of the workbenches, and watched as the students filed into the classroom. A group of Slytherins… Gryffindor… Gryffindor… and:

"Belle, there they are…" Lily whispered.

"Who? The Marauders?" Belle asked. "Ew! Look, there are mice!" Belle squealed, pointing to a cage of white-as-snow mice on their worktable.

"Yes the Marauders, stupid." Lily snapped, waving aside the mice that were squeaking frantically in their cage. "I have to talk to James."

"Ooooh! Sirius told you, then, didn't he?" Belle replied in understanding.

"Yes." Lily sighed. "And I'm so humiliated."

"What? That he saved you?"

"No! That I accused him of… stealing my necklace."

"That's really not that big of a deal, Lil." Belle said. "See? He really doesn't seem to care much, does he?"

"I guess not…"

"But you would feel better after apologizing, wouldn't you?" Belle asked. "So go sit with him…"

"No… no, that's okay." Lily replied quickly. "That's all I need: The Slytherins thinking I fancy James…"

"Well, do you?"

"No! Don't be thick!" Lily replied. "That's just disgusting. Besides, you were the one who thought they were cute…"

"That was before I got to know them." Belle defended. "And they still kind of are…"

"You're attention, please!" Professor Walter exclaimed. "Today we will be working on the shrinking potion. Can someone explain to us what it means to 'shrink'?"

Immediately, Madison's hand shot into the air, closely followed by Lucius'.

"To shrink," Madison said intelligently, "is to get smaller, or to reduce in size. The word can also be used in a cowardly sense, such as: My dog shrank at the sight of me." Madison finished, matter-of-factly. Lily noticed she glanced at Sirius, who was yawning.

"Precisely. Although, the only definition necessary today will be 'to reduce in size'." The professor replied. "As you will notice, there are cages of mice on your desks. Today, I want each one of you to successfully shrink a mouse to a smaller size. Yes, Miss. Burrows?"

"Do we have to actually touch the mice?" Tammy Burrows asked nervously as some people chuckled.

"No, Burrows, you don't have to touch them." Professor Walter said in a frustrated tone. "All you need to do is concoct your potion as seen on page 277 in your textbook, and pour it over the cage, all right?" Walter said. "You may begin. Don't be afraid to ask me if you have any questions- you may need to know the answer in a few weeks…"

Lily cracked open her textbook, and began to unpack her potion ingredients. She gently placed her pewter cauldron on the desk.

"Belle, I'm all out of Wolfsbane… we'll need to use yours, okay?" Lily replied, examining her empty bottle with distaste.

"Uh, yeah… sure…" Belle said, going through her bag for the ingredient. "Except, I'm all out as well! I guess it'll have to do without." Belle sighed, dumping in three beetle eyes. "Maybe if we add an extra boomslang skin, it'll make up for it… what do you think?"

"I don't know… we can't afford to fail this. The professor hinted this might come up on the exams…" Lily said. "Hopefully we can go to Hogsmeade before then."

"Yeah. But until then, I'm using boomslang skin."

"If it blows up in our faces, it's not my fault." Lily said.

"You got yourself a deal." Belle chuckled, tipping an extra two cups of boomslang snakeskin. "I just hope I don't kill the mice…"

"Now, we need 2 more teaspoons of beetle's eyes." Lily read from the book. "Here we go…" She said as she tapped the spoon on the edge of the cauldron.

"… 3 cups chopped aconite… and 6.4 cups dragon claw…" Belle said softly, pouring the root and powder into their mixture.

"… Heat at 730 degrees for five minutes…" Lily said. "And we'll be finished."

"Great." Belle said, as she magically lit the burner beneath their cauldron. "Wait a minute… I've just remembered! Wolfsbane and aconite is the exact same thing!"

"Also known as Monkshood." Lily muttered angrily. "How could we have forgotten?!"

"Too late now…" Belle moaned. "Oh well."

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion and a huge, puffy cloud of purple smoke that engrossed the left corner of the room. Students moved in a flock away from the stench of rotting fish.

"Ugh! That's disgusting!" Lily said queasily, pinching her nose.

"Mr. McBratney!" Professor Walter exclaimed. "What did you do?!"

"I… nothing, sir!" Marcus McBratney shouted as his cauldron began to sputter bright purple liquid all over the room like a sprinkler. "I just put in the powdered dragon claw like the book said and…"

"And how much did you add? Did you put in the exact amount specified? 6.4? That's what I thought, Mr. McBratney. I suggest you pay closer attention to the instructions next time, hm?" Walter said, as the purple cloud grew ever larger.

Without warning, a huge wave of the purple potion splashed on Lucius. He immediately began to shrink… smaller and smaller…

"Help me!" He squeaked. The class burst into laughter.

"Malfoy!" James hollered in sarcastic fear. "What's happening to you?" He asked poking the two inch-high Lucius.

"Mr. Potter, step away, please!" Walter shouted over the commotion. Then, another Slytherin was hit with the potion and he too began to shrink.

"Oh God!" Walter exclaimed. "Everyone outside!"

There was a huge rush towards the door. People pushed and shoved to get away- no one wanted to be reduced to the size of a bug.

"James!" Lily shouted at his retreating back. She finally had the chance to talk to him- it was now or never.

"I got him! Look!" James said, showing Lily his cupped hands. The tiny Lucius was standing there pointing rudely at James. "I want to flush him down the toilet, what do you think?"

Lily laughed. "Brilliant!" Lucius glared up at her. "Listen, James… about what I said in the hospital wing…"

"Lily, you didn't know what happened. You were zonked out anyway." James shrugged.

"Well, I felt horrible. You risked your life to save me… and I think that was very, er… good of you." Lily said. "You could have just left me to die in there. But-"

"Look, I told you to forget it." James said. "What are friends for?"

"Well, thank you." Lily said. "Common, let's go toss this guy in the lake." She suggested pointing at Lucius.

"Sounds good." James replied. "But I was thinking we could flush him down the toilet…"

Chapter 23

Hogwarts Exams

Before Lily could catch her breath, June was upon her. The weather became hot, and muggy, and all anyone wanted to do was get outside with a huge glass of pumpkin juice. The grounds had never looked quiet so inviting, but no one was able to leave the school. With exams less than a week away, studying was crucial- especially if Lily was planning to be Head Girl.

Every night before bed, Lily could be seen hovering over books, reading up on the Troll Battles of 1602 or how to make a pineapple tap dance across a desk.

Even though Sirius would beg him not to, James could also be found taking trips to the library every night. He apparently wouldn't let anything get in the way of becoming Head Boy. Lily couldn't help but admire his ambition.

Too soon, all study time was up. Lily trudged down to breakfast on Monday morning with butterflies in her stomach, and circles under her eyes. She could barely eat. These tests were incredibly important. They practically decided what her future would hold. Being Head Girl meant everything to Lily, and without top scores, it would only be a dream. This was her one shot… her only chance to make a person see that she wasn't some stupid muggle who goes running blindly into dangerous forests. She was an intelligent witch, and she was determined to prove it.

"Feet, don't fail me now…" She whispered as the first bell sounded through the corridors. Slowly, but surely, she managed to reach the dungeons for her potions exam.

Just as Lily had suspected, the students had to make a quality-shrinking potion and successfully reduce a toad to the size of a thumbnail.

Lily was very pleased with the outcome of her toad. With hardly any trouble, her toad had slowly slipped from its original size and became as small as was specified.

Next was a relieving lunch, and then it was off to Charms class for a test on cleaning with wands.

Lily easily dusted an entire shelf without difficulty. In fact, for extra points, she washed all the desks in the classroom with a flick of her wrist. She assumed she passed that test with flying colors.

When that was done, it was straight to the dormitories to study for Astronomy. So at midnight, the Gryffindor sixth years stumbled up to the north tower for class.

Lily correctly identified the 20 constellations the professor indicated. James seemed to have some real troubles with this test, and Lily couldn't help but feel bad for him.

The next morning, it was straight to Muggle Music. Lily had to play one piece they had learned that year without a flaw to pass. Lily did this magnificently, and was in high spirits when lunch rolled around.

But then it was off to Defense Against the Dark Arts: Lily's least favorite class- other than potions of course.

"God, I'm going to fail this." Madison moaned as she tossed her bag on the desk. "I totally don't get this class."

"All right class. Straight to it." Professor Gilbert said. "Now, before we begin, I'm sorry to report, I will be unable to return to Hogwarts next year. I have been summoned by the Ministry of Magic to serve on the jury for a while, and I must oblige them. So: Unforgivable Curses. Brace yourselves…" He said, his eyes gleaming as he passed the written tests out. "Well, what are you waiting for? Begin!"

"Oh great…" Lily commented to herself softly. "Explain the Avada Kedavra curse. What does it mean, and how can you defend yourself from it?"

The Avada Kedavra curse is also known as the killing curse. It can be identified by the bright green light that is seen when it's spoken. There is no way to defend your self from this curse, so it is best to avoid situations where it could be used.

"What occurs during the Cutacious Curse and what is the incantation?"

To perform the Cutacious Curse, one must speak the word Crucio. If this curse is said, then the one it is aimed at will experience excruciating pain. Again, it is best to avoid situations where this curse could be used.

Suddenly, an unfamiliar song from Sirius broke the concentrated silence.

 "I like big butts and I can not lie. You other brothers can't deny, when a girl walks in….er, Crucio…. With an itty bitty waist and a round thing in your face you get…. Unavoidable pain…. Sprung." Heads turned to look at him, but he continued as though this didn't bother him at all. "Oh baby, I wanna get with ya… and take your pictcha'… my home-boys try to warn me, with that butt you got me… all controlling…. Me so horny… boom wit dat smooth skin you say you wanna get in my bends? Well, use me, use me, cuz you ain't that average groupie!"

"Sirius Black." Gilbert replied sternly. He walked over to Sirius's desk and watched him without interest.

"Cuz my anaconda, don't want none unless you got buns, hun! Yes sir?" Sirius finished. At this point the entire class was staring at his would-be innocent face.

"Two detentions for that… display." The professor said. "Please, continue your test in silence."

Sirius then pushed something off his desk with his elbow, and there was a clatter on the floor. Professor Gilbert looked down at the floor to see what Sirius dropped, and the whole class craned their necks to see what he was looking at. Sirius looked at the professor meaningfully.

"Mr. Black?"

Sirius gave a big fake cough and motioned to what was on the floor. "Pick it up—cough! It looks like someone got a visit from the Knut-fairy!" But when the professor didn't catch is drift, Sirius elaborated in a very audible whisper. "A Knut says I don't have a detention…"

"Mr. Black! If you think that you can bribe your way out of your detentions, you've got another thing coming! That will be three more detentions!"

"Yes, sir." Sirius said. Then he looked around the room at his classmates. "What? It's a good song…"

But everyone saw that Professor Gilbert scooped up Sirius's Knut and slipped it in his pocket.

As Lily shook her head and began to look back at her test, her eyes fell on James. But he wasn't chuckling like the rest of the students. In fact, he was still bent over his test, trying to focus as best he could. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and glanced up at Lily.

She quickly turned back to her paper, and tried to regain whatever concentration was left in her brain to finish this exam. But the only thing pulsing through her mind was Head girl… if you pass you'll be Head Girl… fail, and you're finished…