Lily hadn't gone down to breakfast that morning nor was she seen at lunch. James was starting to get very worried about her.
"Kristiina," he said approaching the Slytherin table at dinner. Kristiina jumped, used to eating on her own. She smiled weakly when she saw it was James.
"Have you seen Lily?" Kristiina's eyes widened.
"No! Is she alright?" Kristiina asked immediately. James sighed.
"I don't know. I haven't seen her since about three this morning."
"Did you check everywhere? The Hospital Wing, the Library, the Gryffindor common room…" Kristiina was babbling. She was nervous. Lily had acted like a surrogate mother while she was at Hogwarts making the time Kristiina spent in the Slytherin common room seem insignificant.
"No, we haven't looked in either the Hospital Wing or the Library. We've looked everywhere else, its just this isn't like Lily. Usually she's really open with things." Kristiina nodded mutely before grabbing a roll from the basket in front of her and standing up.
"I'll go look in the Library and then the Hospital Wing. It gives me something to do other than homework anyway," she said motioning for James to go back with his friends.
"We'll come with you. We're just as worried about her."
"No. It'll be easier if I go alone. Maybe she doesn't want to see any body right now and if a lot of people smother her at once it might be overwhelming." James nodded. She had a point.
"Okay. If you find her," he lowered his voice, "the Gryffindor password is guardian angel." Kristiina nodded once showing her comprehension before rushing out of the Great Hall.
Kristiina found Lily in the Hospital Wing, working quietly beside Tanice's still body.
"Lily?" she asked softly. Lily looked up.
"Hi, Kristiina. What can I help you with?"
"We're worried," she replied simply.
"Worried?"
"About you."
"Why?"
"Are you kidding? You haven't been down for any meals today, at all and we haven't seen you. The last person that did was James at three in the morning. Three in the morning Lily! You're scaring us because you're not telling us things." Lily looked startled at the outburst coming from the small girl. The book on her lap dropped to the floor and Kristiina picked it up looking at the cover.
"Fairy tales? You've been sitting in her all day reading fairy tales?" Kristiina asked disbelievingly.
"Not quite. There's a story in there that'll help wake up Tanice," Lily replied quietly, almost nervously. She had seen Kristiina's eyes flash with something other than worry and sadness. Something else was there, deeper, and it wasn't an emotion.
"And you didn't deem yourself to tell us this, especially Alaura, because…?"
"Look, Kristiina, I really appreciate you're worrying but I can't deal with people right now. I want to try and figure out what day they're talking about when they mention the o dia da luz and…"
"The day of the light would be the birthday of a Guardian Angel," Kristiina said without really thinking.
"What?"
"The day of the light is the birthday of the resident Guardian Angel," Kristiina repeated.
"But then…"
"Tanice. Didn't you say that the little angel girl in your dreams was Tanice but she went by Tanith?"
"How did you…?"
"That's not important. What is important is waking that little girl up," Kristiina said forcefully, pointing at Tanice.
"I don't know when Tanice's birthday is," Lily said stupidly still trying to get over Kristiina's revelation. The girl was bright.
"Ask Alaura. The family that the Angel lives with are usually the only ones that know." Lily nodded mutely.
"Oh, and Lily? Try not to lose weight over this. You need to eat just as much as you need to sleep. Don't think you can skip your meals instead of your rest," Kristiina said as Lily looked into the depths of the dark blue eyes.
"Thanks Kristiina," Lily said before leaving the room.
"She's working on it Tanith, she's working on it."
As Lily stepped into the Gryffindor common room later on that night, she noticed Alaura and Liandra sitting by the fire with James between them and Sirius and Remus on the floor in front. She quickly and quietly passed them up into her dormitories. She had to face them and she knew it, she just wasn't sure if she could handle it quite yet.
"Lily?" She spun quickly. Liandra was standing there.
"What happened?"
"I figured things out," Lily responded just as quietly as Liandra. Lily knew Liandra was trying to cushion her and for that she was thankful. Telling this to Liandra first would probably make it easier for Lily to tell Alaura, Sirius, Remus and James. James! She had virtually ignored him for the entire day! She fell down onto her bed heavily.
"The Angel's Seal?"
"Kristiina's help," Lily replied.
"Bright girl."
"She is."
"What did you come up with?"
"The day of the light. Kristiina translated it for me because it's mentioned in a prophecy but the language was Portuguese. I didn't have my wand because I'd left it in here when I went last night to find out who was calling my name…"
"Some one was calling for you?"
"Yeah. It turned out to be Tanith calling through Tanice. Tanith had placed that fairy tale book I had lent to Tanice in Tanice's arms so I would find it. There's another fantastic person, Tanith… or Tanice." Liandra nodded in agreement.
"So this day of the light…?"
"Is the resident Guardian Angel's birthday. The angel is Tanice because the angel in my dreams is Tanith and the two are one and the same. That list of stuff I wrote down are ingredients for the ritual and the Portuguese is the incantation to open the Seal," Lily explained.
"Oh. Should I be giving Lindsey a call, or owl?" Liandra asked. If you wanted anything Wiccan, Lindsey was the person you should be talking to.
"I don't know yet. It depends what is in Diagon Alley and if we can use any first year Potion ingredients," Lily answered.
"Use Tanice's. She's the one that they are needed for, right?"
"Good idea, just not now," Lily mumbled turning over on her bed.
"Oh no you don't! You, my dear, have not eaten in over twenty-four hours. I am not letting you go to sleep on an empty stomach! Get up! I'm going to get James' invisibility cloak," Liandra reprimanded pulling Lily out of her bed. Liandra was right…again. The mention of James shot another pang through her heart. How could she have ignored him for the whole day?
"And, you owe us all an apology."
Lily and Liandra snuck downstairs under the flowing material of James' invisibility cloak ten minutes later. James, Remus, Alaura, and Sirius were still sitting in the same places they had been when Lily had originally entered the large room. Lily shot a pained glance at them all, knowing she had acted very wrong today.
"Food first, apologies later," Liandra said under her breath. Lily nodded making her way carefully across the common room with Liandra under James' invisibility cloak.
The night air was cool on Lily's skin. She hadn't changed out of her pyjamas since she had woken up early that morning and so was still wearing the dark blue flannel pants and light tank top with her favourite blue sweatshirt thrown over top. She had rolled up the sleeves of her sweatshirt as she was working on deciphering the legend of the Angel's Seal and therefore the still cold February air raised goose bumps on the exposed flesh. Shivers ran up and down her spine from the cold as she and Liandra turned down the passageway towards the kitchens. Lily froze. Memories flooded her already overloaded mind. Memories of nightmares of death flashed slowly through her head as if she was watching a particularly unhurried movie run without being able to stop it.
"Lily!" Liandra was shaking her hard as Lily whimpered and backed away from the passage they were heading down.
"I can't do it. I can't go down there," she said fearfully, her eyes wide. Liandra looked from the empty corridor to Lily and back again.
Her dream, Liandra realized. She's remembering her dream.
"We're not going any further than the kitchens Lils. You'll be fine," Liandra said leading Lily down the passage stopping at the picture of fruit. She lifted a finger out of the invisibility cloak and tickled the green pear in the picture lightly. The picture swung open and Liandra pushed Lily inside.
"What can I get the lovely mistress?" Lily smiled down at the small house elf in front of her.
"A peanut butter and jelly sandwich please." At Liandra's stern look Lily sighed. "If I eat too much at once after not eating for twenty four hours I get sick." Lily smiled as the elf brought back her sandwich before eating it quickly. Patting the elf on the head, the two girls departed back to the common room.
James was still awake as Lily and Liandra entered and pulled off the invisibility cloak.
"Thank you James," Liandra said handing the cloak back to him and heading up the stairs. James sighed.
"Where is she?" he asked himself. Lily grinned, knowing that he was talking about her. Sobering quickly at the memory of why he was so worried about her. How could she have been stupid enough not to even mention where she would be and what she was doing?
"I'm right here," Lily whispered no meeting his eyes. She heard James turn quickly and she heard him stand up and come towards her. Without asking her any questions, he pulled her into his embrace whispering how worried he had been.
"I'm sorry," she whispered in return. Worrying James had been the last thing on her mind when she found Tanice lying with her fairy tale book in her arms. Pushing her away slightly he looked her up and down taking in the dark circles under her eyes and dulled spark.
"You should get some sleep," he said drawing her back to him, "but I don't want to let you go." Lily smiled burying her face in his chest. She loved him all lovey-dovey. It made her feel special and wanted.
"I'll come up and sleep with you. I need a cuddle," Lily responded hugging him back. He picked her up, one hand under her knees the other supporting her back, and climbed the boys' staircase. Setting Lily on her feet for a moment, James pulled down the covers and picking her up again, deposited her on the bed. He climbed in behind her, wrapping his arm securely around her waist after pulling the covers around them. Lily's slow breathing told James that she was already asleep.
"I love you, Lily," he whispered falling asleep himself.