Lily Chapter 37: Summer, a harry potter fanfic

Lily

Chapter 37

The Hogwarts Express sped towards King's Cross Station in London like a mechanical red serpent. Lily, Eurydice, Juno, and the Marauders shared a compartment (though Remus and Juno avoided each other's eyes).

"I still wish Gilderoy had been coming through the portrait hole when we said that spell," grumbled a very bad-tempered James.

Sirius punched him playfully on the shoulder. "We'll get him next time. Besides, you're just ticked off about Slytherin winning the House Cup again."

"That Severus Snape...I swear, he cheated in that Quidditch match!" James said, his fists clenching.

Lily smiled disarmingly at him. "Next year, right? He probably DID cheat, so it's no discredit to Gryffindors."

This logic made too much sense for James to stay angry. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

With a soft screeching sound, the train halted. Sirius rose and took out his wand. "Here's the last bit of magic I'll be able to do until September..." He whirled around to where Gilderoy Lockhart was standing, talking to Jessica. "Pelogeo Viola!" The egotistical little second year's hair stuck out in a purple triangle around his head, but Gilderoy didn't notice at all, only kept talking. Jessica, however, snorted with laughter and had to excuse herself from the conversation.

When they emerged onto the platform, Sirius's family found them instantly. Lily noticed that Amelia wasn't smiling at all. "What's wrong, Amelia?"

"Nothing," she mumbled.

"You're usually so smiley. There must be something wrong."

"Nope. Nothing."

"Well, smile, then!"

The pudgy little girl let the mischevious gleam back into her eyes so that they looked exactly like Sirius's. "Okay!" She smiled a wide grin, revealing...

"Teeth!" Lily exclaimed. "Your front teeth grew in!"

"Yeah! And I sssstart Hogwartsssss in Ssseptember! Isssn't that great?"

"Yes, but why are you hissing like that?"

"I love sssssssaying the "ssss" sssssound! I sssssound like a sssssnake, don't I?"

"That's not always the best thing in the world...but I can't wait for you to get Sorted next year!"

Amelia glowed. "Me neither. Ssssee you then!" She waved as Mrs. Black led them off the platform.

Next, Remus's parents called over to him. "Bye, Wormtail, bye, Prongs!"

Peter wandered off in search of his parents. "See you, Prongs." His eyes flashed a little. "Bye, Lily."

Now, only Lily and James were left. "Where do you think your dad is?"

"I don't know. He must have been held up at the Ministry or something."

"Hey, you two!" Mr. Potter's voice appeared out of nowhere. "Sorry I'm late, but I had to pick up something..." With an odd tone in his voice, he trailed off.

"What did you pick up?" James asked curiously.

Mr. Potter giggled like a schoolgirl. "It's a surprise."

"Oh, come on!! Tell me!!" James started to beg.

"You'll see when we get outside."

The 'surprise' made both Lily's and James's jaws drop simultaneously. It was a Volkswagen beetle decked out in what could only be described as "hippie chic." It was completely overrun with rainbow swirls, peace signs, daisies, smiley faces, psychadelic words, the works. James just stood gawking for a few minutes, then he found his voice. "Dad...where'd you get that?"

"Oh, I met the nicest Muggle this past May...too bad we had to erase his memory...but this Muggle - Dursley, I think his name was - he told me that this kind of car is all the rage nowadays. We struck up a conversation about his family, and it turns out his son Vernon is dating a certain young lady. I inquired as to the young lady's name, and who is it but your sister, Lily!" Lily began in a coughing fit, and couldn't stop, even when James attempted slapping her on the back a few times.

"Let me get this straight, My sister has a...boyfriend?!?" She shrieked, finally able to talk.

"Yep. The little fellow even bought flowers and chocolates for the little lady!" Mr. Potter smiled, while searching through his pockets for the keys. "Now where did I put them?" He muttered to himself. "Ahh, there they are!!" Mr. Potter fumble with them, until he got the door open.

Lily sat in the back explaining how seatbelts work to James as Mr. Potter started the ignition. Once Lily and James were fastened in, and Mr. Potter stepped on the pedal, a huge jolt wracked the car, flinging Lily forward. It was then that Lily started to have second thoughts about the idea of riding in a car with Mr. Potter driving.

"Mr. Potter?"

The car was once again thrown forward, and Mr. Potter again giggled with glee. "Yeees?"

"Have you ever actually...driven a car before?" Lily asked nervously.

"Well, I made it up here, didn't I? Don't worry, I'll get this thing started, you see if I don't!"

James let his head fall into his hands in despair. "Dad, why can't we use the broomsticks?"

The car roared to life, and Mr. Potter gave a little sitting-down dance of happiness. "Isn't it lovely? It was the best car on the lot, and I got it for half off...of course, it probably helped that he had just had his memory modified..."

Lily didn't have time to react to this outrageous statement. Her breath was pretty much stolen from her lungs as Mr. Potter zoomed through the streets of London. At every turn, other cars slammed on the brakes and screamed unsavory words at Mr. Potter, but all they got in return was an overeager peace sign flashed out the driver's window.

"I really, really think we should have taken the brooms!" James shouted over the engine's roar.

"Come on, Jimmy, live a little!"

"Dad, don't call me that, pleeease!" James turned red at being called his dad's old pet name for him.

"Well, you should!"

Mr. Potter came to a street intersection, oblivious to the fact that another car was speeding down the street perpendicular to them. Both of them kept driving straight on.

"Dad, watch out for that car!"

"STOOOOOOP!" Lily screamed.

The little car sputtered to a halt.

The other car swooshed right by, just missing the bumper of the car.

"Oh, no!" Mr. Potter crossed his arms over his chest. "We're out of gas!"

"Is that really what you're worried about, dad?" James asked wearily. "We almost got smashed into a little tin can, and you're worried about being out of gas? What does that even MEAN?"

Lily fiddled nervously with the black charm bracelet she was wearing. "Basically, it means that there's no more fuel for the car to run on. It won't move anymore."

"BROOMS!" James yelled. "WE SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THE BROOMS!"

"We didn't need to! I brought Floo powder!" Mr. Potter opened a glove compartment and revealed a large quantity of the sparkling white powder.

"What's that?" Lily had never seen anything like it before.

"Floo powder, of course. Oh, I forgot, you're Muggle-born, aren't you? Never used Floo powder...all right, let's push the car over to the side of the road."

After much trouble and complaints from James, the car was at an odd angle to the curb, and the little party was searching for a wizard-owned shop with a fireplace. Eventually, they found a tiny little store with a sign hanging over the door that read, "Magic Shop."

"Hello," Mr. Potter greeted the store's owner, a short, sour-looking man with a beard of the same quality. "Our car broke down. May we use your fireplace?"

Lily looked around quickly. The shelves were lined with trick cards, plastic wands with flowers concealed in them, black capes, and showy top hats. "Mr. Potter? I don't think-"

The owner eyeballed Mr. Potter very suspiciously. "What d'you mean 'use my fireplace?'"

"Well, I need to get home, don't I?"

"And how d'you presume to get home using my fireplace, sir?"

"Floo powder, of course!" Mr. Potter said, quite simply.

"Get outta my store! You're outta your tree, if you don't mind me saying so!"

Lily grabbed Mr. Potter and James by the arms and led them out of the store. "That was a Muggle magic shop. They sell little cheap tricks, like two-headed coins, or wands with buttons that make stuff shoot out of the tips."

"Well! I must say, they have quite a lot of nerve calling THAT magic! I'll have a word with the Minister about this!" Mr. Potter was quite indignant.

"How about we just go to Diagon Alley? Or the Leaky Cauldron?" James offered, glad to be back to wizard transportation.

"Good idea. Let's go." Mr. Potter grumbled the whole way there about imposters and false advertising, but seemed quite relieved when they got to the Leaky Cauldron. "Hello, Bill. May we use the fireplace?"

The bartender nodded and jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Sure. It's 'round there."

James grabbed a handful of the Floo powder. "I'll go first." He threw the powder into the fire, which turned bright green. Then he stepped right into the flames and shouted, "Bundt Lane!" Lily noticed that some of the powder had fallen outside the fireplace as James disappeared. She picked it up and put it in her pocket, just in case she got lost or something.

"Your turn, Lily." Mr. Potter held out the small bag of Floo powder. She mimicked James's routine, throwing the powder into the fire and shouting "Bundt Lane," but something must have gone very wrong.

When she came out of the other fireplace, it wasn't that of the Potters' house, but a fireplace with a cold, chiseled design around it and serpent gargoyles staring from every corner. Despite the fire, the room seemed to have a considerable chill permeating through it, and as Lily stepped onto the floor, she shivered. Something wasn't right here...

And then she heard the screams. First, a higher voice, yelling "Crucio!" Then, another voice, one she knew but couldn't place, screaming in pain. The high voice spoke over it. "Where is the dagger?!?"

Lily had heard this exchange before...only, she had been on the other end of it. She rushed forward, driven by her innate inability to stay out of bad situations. There, on the floor and writhing in pain, was...

"James!" She ran forward without looking to see who was performing the terrible curse. "James, I'm coming!"

A thin but strong hand seized her by the shoulder and shoved her away. "You're next, you stupid girl, if he doesn't tell me where the Dagger of Slytherin is!"

"The Dagger of Slytherin?"

That same hand lashed out at her, striking her across the face. "You should know what it is! Or don't you remember? You never...talk about it!" The wand pointed right at her and James's tormentor uttered a spell. "Recordus!"

Suddenly, images raced with vivid feeling across her mind. Peter...Stabbing Chantel's already-lifeless body in the common room...and now, the detail on the dagger's handle was clear. Stone snakes with unblinking reptilian eyes laughing at her, their lifeless fangs shooting poison with every breath.

Lily clenched her fists and felt burning hate rise in her chest. "If it wasn't for you, Chantel and Chrissy would still be alive! My parents, Chantel's uncle, so many people are dead because of you! Doesn't that make you feel horrible?"

Voldemort whipped off his hood, revealing burning red eyes. "Feel? I don't feel anymore. Feeling makes you weak. If you hadn't been so feeling, Chrissy and Chantel would be right as rain right now. If you had joined me..." He laughed with wicked delight. "But it's far too late for that! Far, far too late! I am the most powerful wizard in the world, and I cannot be defeated! You should have joined me when I gave you the chance!"

Little to Voldemort's knowledge, the effects of the Cruciatus curse had stopped during the time he spoke. With beads of sweat running down his face, James was standing up, his wand held limply. "Are you done yet? Get the picture! Lily won't join you, not in a million years!"

Voldemort raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He crossed to James and held his wand at the boy's throat. "You won't join me, Lily? Not even if I kill this one, too? It doesn't matter to me...one more life..."

Lily's breath caught in her chest. "You wouldn't! You can't!"

"Oh, I can. It all depends on whether you WANT me to."

"But you won't!" Lily suddenly realized something. "You could have had him killed anytime during these past years...anytime!" What she wanted to say was that Peter had been alone with James enough, but the curse wouldn't allow her to explain it.

"You can be smart for one so stupid." With a look of disgust on his face, he released the struggling James. "Tell me now, where is the Dagger of Slytherin?" He raised his wand to perform another curse, this time on Lily.

"Wait! I'll tell you!" James grabbed Voldemort's wrist, a brave but incredibly stupid gesture.

"Touch me again, Potter, and you'll be dead before you say 'help.'" He glared at James. "But tell me where the dagger is."

"James, don't!"

"Lily, it's all right! The dagger is...is..."

"WHERE?" In that instant it took for Voldemort to screech "where," James had transformed into a stag and was rushing at the Dark Lord, antlers down. If Voldemort had been expecting it, there was no way the attack would have worked, but James had the element of surprise on his side.

Lily got to her feet and watched Prongs charge Voldemort down. With a cry, the evil wizard was sent flying across the room, and Prongs turned and ran, transforming as he went. "Come on, let's go!" He yelled, grabbing Lily by the wrist. They raced in the opposite direction, but Lily stopped at the fireplace.

"Wait! I have some powder..." She scooped it out of her pocket, threw it into the fire, and pulled James in with her. "BUNDT LANE!" She screamed, and before they knew it, they were transported to James's house.

Chests heaving, they staggered out of the fireplace and collapsed to the floor. Mr. Potter's panicked voice came from deep within the house. "Lily? James?" Before blacking out from sheer exhaustion, Lily heard rapid footfalls descending the stairs and felt James take her hand gently.

Lily awoke on the Potters's couch with an ice pack on her head. She looked around the room slowly, and saw that James was asleep on the other couch. For a moment, she was confused as to what had happened. Then, she remembered. The Floo powder...the fireplace with snakes on it...the memory...and Prongs, holding Voldemort off long enough that they could escape. She closed her eyes again and just lay there, immensely relieved that it was over. When she re-opened them, James had also come to, and the confused look on his face metamorphosized into anger. The first words out of his mouth were,

"THAT STUPID CAR!!!" James threw the ice pack across the room. "You know, Lily, sometimes I honestly wish that you knew how to swim."

"Okay, that means that you wish you didn't know me." she said after throwing her ice pack at him.

"Then I would like to thank whatever kept you from learning how to swim."

"That's better." She smiled, then regained her sober concept of what had just happened. "Do you realize that you just saved both of our lives?"

He shrugged bashfully. "If you hadn't picked up that Floo powder, it never would've worked. Besides, how long do you think I was going to be able to hold off...well, you know who."

"Yeah, I know."

"I don't want to say his name anymore, you know what I mean?"

"Sends shivers down your spine?"

"Mm-hmm. I heard that a lot of people have just taken to calling him 'you-know-who.'"

"Well, I might join them!"

Mr. Potter walked in. "Oh, you're awake! What happened?"

Lily took a deep breath, then told him everything. Every detail she could remember, up until the time that James transformed into the stag. "...and I thought James was going to tell him what he wanted to know, but he took a kind of flying leap at him, then we just ran back to the fireplace and I used the leftover Floo powder to get back here."

"James did that? Whoa, seems you don't know your own strength!" Mr. Potter looked incredulously at his son, who exchanged a secretive glance with Lily. "Well, I can understand why you two fainted as soon as you got back here! I had no idea..." His voice trailed off.

Changing the subject awkwardly, Lily cut in. "What happened to the car?"

James plugged his ears obstinately. "I'm not listening! Lalalalalala!"

As James "lala'd," Mr. Potter explained that he had left it by the side of the street where it broke down. "I didn't think it was really worth retreiving. You know, so many people got angry at me when I was in it, I think it was bad luck." He walked over and un-plugged James's ears. "I'm done. What DO you have against the car?"

"Let me count the reasons I don't like it! One, it has bubble writing on it. Two, it has...cheerful flowers on it! Three, some guy whose son is dating Lily's sister - no offense, Lily, I just know she's a jerk - sold it to you. Four, he sold it to you AFTER HAVING HIS MEMORY MODIFIED, so he was probably only half-concious! Five - "

"I think we get the point," Lily stopped him in mid-reason.

The next day, Lily and James received a frantic owl from Sirius.

"Dear Lily and James,

S.O.S! I need help! Amelia just got a new nail polish kit, and as I write this, she's
looking for me (I'm in a closet). If she had her way...here she comes! I'd better hide
the owl and send it later!

Desperately,
Sirius."

James looked up from the letter with a sardonic grin on his face. "What kind of help do you think he's looking for?"

"Well, we could send him an invitation to come here for a week..."

"Or a month..."

"Or the whole summer, depending on Amelia's determination level."

James sat down and dipped a quill in ink. "Hey, since we're inviting Sirius, how about Remus and Peter?"

Inexpressible chills wracked Lily's body. "Why not?" Being in the same house with Peter for any longer than necessary was not top of her list of "things I want to do."

"Great!" James started to write the letters. When he was finished, he gave them all to his owl, who accepted the load grudgingly.

That Saturday, the three boys arrived. Sirius looked thoroughly relieved; the first thing he did when he got into the house was ask Mr. Potter to perform a Cleaning Charm on his fingernails, which were fluorescent orange with messy blue stripes. Remus was also glad to be there, but Peter was a little jumpy and seemed upset. Inwardly, Lily figured out what had probably happened. Voldemort had probably tortured Peter in order to get the dagger...or perhaps for not telling Voldemort that James was an Animagus. Serves him right, she thought with grim satisfaction.

"Well! What should we do first?" Sirius asked, rubbing his hands together with glee.

"There's always the extra brooms in the shed."

Lily groaned. "You know I can't fly for beans!"

"We're not paying you in beans!" Sirius shouted jovially. "As a matter of fact, we're not paying you at all! Onward!" He marched to James's backyard, with James, Remus, Peter, and Lily following.

James opened the shed and emerged with five brooms. He tried to hand one to Lily, but she pushed his hand aside. "I'm staying on the ground this time, thank you."

"Come on, live a little!"

Lily glared at him. "Last time I heard someone say that, the car ran out of gas and we wound up using Floo powder."

He shrugged and threw the broom back into the shed. "All right. See you later!" They all took off and flew into the air.

Remus flew alongside James. "What was so bad about using Floo powder?"

"Um...nothing. Some people just don't like Floo powder." James was lying through his teeth, but luckily, Remus didn't know that.

His next assailant was Sirius. "SO, James! How goes the romancing?"

"Would you just shut up about that?"

"Well, you two are just so perfect for each other!" Sirius had put on his 'auntie' voice.

"I said shut up about it!"

He dropped the act. "I mean it. You like her, don't you?"

James didn't say anything.

"Don't you?"

"Wait a second. Why am I just sitting here, taking this? I can outfly you!"

Sirius grinned and grabbed the back of James's broom. "All right. A race from here to the upstairs window of your house. If I win, you spill the beans. If you win, I leave it alone and 'shut up about it.' Deal?"

"Deal. Let go of my broom, and we can start the race." Sirius let go, and they were both off at top speed, neck and neck. "Give it up!" James called back to Sirius.

"No way! And spoil my perfect record of annoyance? Never!" He forced the broom forward, caught up with James. They were nearing the window. Both of them reached out to touch the window and....

Got to the window at the exact same time.

Sirius sat silent for a few seconds, then clapped James on the back. "Tell you what, old chap! I'll meet you in the middle. Tell me whether or not you like Lily...even a teeensy-tiny little bit, and I'll go quietly. Not another word, not another sideways glance, not another wink about it until you're married!"

"You're really unstoppable, aren't you?"

"Haven't you figured that out by now? All right. Do you like Lily?"

"You know, this is stupid. I don't have to answer you!"

"Just think...I'll never mention it again, not until you're married - and did I ever say until you're married TO LILY? I don't think so. So, answer me. one little teeny word, yes or no."

James rolled his eyes and turned the broom around. "All right. Yes." And he flew away at top speed.

A/N: I still need some ideas!!!! If you have any, please e-mail me at: arianaveelagrace@hotmail.com