Author's Note: Don't worry about the chapter title. It's not the end of the story. Just the end of something… The rest of this fanfic is going to be mostly drama. I have no idea why. Just go with it. Oh, some of the flashbacks are ones I thought of just now, and some are from previous chapters.
Title: Role Reversal
Rating: PG
Spoilers: There aren't too many spoilers in chapters 1-12. The whole story has some spoilers, but how else do you write a fanfic? The chapter with major spoilers is "Old Friends".
Summary: James and Lily make a bet. Lily has to pull a bunch of pranks and James can't do any.
Disclaimer: I, of course, do not own Harry Potter or its characters. If you're reading this, you should already know whom it belongs to anyway.
Setting: This story is set in MWPP years. If you don't know what that means, you probably shouldn't be reading this fanfic.
!!! = setting change
= begin flashback
&&& = another flashback
= end flashback
[…] = time
italics= emphasis
italics= thoughts
-The End a.k.a. Flashbacks-
"Sirius would rather die than betray us."
"He's planning to go into hiding himself."
"James, Lily. I'm just worried about you. I mean no disrespect towards Sirius Black," the old wizard said.
"We know, Professor Dumbledore," Lily said.
"Sirius will be our Secret-Keeper," James declared firmly.
"I'm sure the spy is someone close to you. You're positive it isn't him?"
"Yes."
"Well, then it must be someone else. The question is, who?"
!!!
The Fidelius Charm was about to be performed. Sirius was standing, looking very thoughtful.
"Wait!" he said as James raised his wand.
"What? What is it?"
"Look, Voldemort's bound to come after me. What if he gets the secret out of me? You have to switch to someone else. Someone he will never suspect."
"Who then?" Lily asked.
"Hmm… How about… Peter?" Sirius suggested.
Lily pondered. "Well, I'd have to agree that he isn't likely to be suspected."
"So we're going with Peter then?" James asked.
"Yes."
"All right." James wrote a short message on a piece of parchment. "We'll owl him."
!!!
"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off—"
Lily ran. No, no, no. This can't be happening. It can't. It's not real.
[1st year]
Lily was at King's Cross station. The problem was, she couldn't find platform nine and three-quarters. I don't think this is right. There's no fraction of a platform.
She pushed her trolley to the area between platforms nine and ten. Oh, where is it? She glanced at her watch. She only had ten minutes left.
She was about to give up when she noticed a girl about her age with a trunk and a cage with an owl inside it standing next to a woman who must have been her mother. Lily remembered that first years were allowed to bring owls, so she approached them. "Um… excuse me?"
"Yes?"
"Would you happen to know… erm…" Lily couldn't think of a way to phrase her question.
The woman glanced at Lily's things and guessed what the problem was. "You need to know how to get onto the platform?"
"Yes."
"You're a first year too?" the blonde girl next to her asked.
Lily nodded.
"Follow me then."
The girl ran straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten and then disappeared. Lily, not knowing what else to do, did the same.
When she came out the other side, she found the girl waiting to see if she had gotten through okay. "Now we need to get on the train. By the way, my name's Sarah."
"I'm Lily."
The two eleven-year-olds walked to the Hogwarts Express. When they were almost there, Lily tripped and fell into someone.
"Hey, watch where you're going!"
"Sorry," Lily said, brushing off her clothes. She looked up and saw two boys her age. The one she had bumped into had messy black hair and glasses. "Sorry," she repeated.
"Whatever," said the boy.
"Come on, Lily," Sarah said, pulling on Lily's sleeve.
They got on the train and started looking for an empty compartment. They found one and sat down.
A few minutes later, the compartment door opened. A girl with long, dark hair and blue eyes walked in. "Oh! I didn't know anyone was in here. I just couldn't find an empty compartment…"
"You can stay here if you like," Lily offered.
"Thanks." The girl sat down next to Lily, across from Sarah. "I'm Veronica."
"Sarah."
"Lily."
The train started moving, and the girls settled in. All of a sudden, three boys burst into the compartment.
The girls just stared at them. One boy looked at Lily and said, "Oh, it's you. The girl who crashed into me."
"Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"
"Well, how else am I supposed to remember you? I don't know who you are."
"Yeah, well, I don't even want to know who you are."
"James Potter. Now you know, whether you want to or not."
"I'm Lily Evans. I'm just telling you so you won't keep thinking of me as 'the girl who crashed into me'."
"Come on, Sirius. Let's go," he said to the boy behind him. The two walked out of the compartment. James came back. "Remus," he said, pulling the brown-haired boy's sleeve. Remus had been half staring at Veronica and half trying to apologize for his new friend's behavior. He realized what was going on and followed James and Sirius.
"That Potter boy is so rude," Lily said when they had left.
&&&
[3rd year]
Lily, Veronica, and Sarah were sitting in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, ready to begin their third year at Hogwarts. Remus and Sirius came in.
"What are you guys doing here?"
"Shh… James and Peter are going to do something, and we want to know if we can hear it from all the way back here."
"But—"
"Wait, wait…" Sirius whispered. He and Remus listened intently for a minute, and then heard a muffled explosion. "Yes!" They high-fived each other.
"What did they do?" Sarah asked curiously.
Remus replied, "They blew up something in Malfoy's compartment."
"Oh."
At that moment, James and Peter appeared, sliding open the compartment door. "Hey," James greeted his friends. "Did you hear it?"
"Yup."
"Cool." He looked at the girls. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
Lily replied, "It's our compartment. We were here first. The question is, what are you doing here?"
"Nothing."
"Could you please just leave?"
"What if we don't?"
"Then I'll be forced to kill you."
"That's not a good enough reason."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah, really."
"Then how about I tell everyone about—?" She got up and whispered in James's ear, "Mr. Stuffy."
"You wouldn't," James replied worriedly. He didn't want anyone to find out about his beloved teddy bear that he still slept with. Peter, Remus, and Sirius knew about it, of course, but he knew embarrassing things about them as well. Lily had seen James talking to Mr. Stuffy one morning when he couldn't sleep and had gone down to the common room to spend the night. Unfortunately for James, Lily had woken up early that morning and witnessed his discussion about school with the teddy bear.
"I would."
"No, you wouldn't."
"Yes, I would."
"You don't have the guts."
"You think so, huh?" She turned to address everyone else in the compartment. "Guess what? Potter—" James clamped his hand over Lily's mouth. "Okay, okay, I believe you. You got guts, Evans." He released her.
"Thank you."
The four boys left. Veronica and Sarah were, needless to say, confused. Lily didn't tell them what was going on because she had promised James six months ago that she wouldn't tell anyone.
&&&
[6th year]
James turned to Lily and put on his most charming smile.
"No way, Potter."
"Oh, come on, Ev... Lily."
"I said no."
"But I'm really tired."
"No!" The others watched, amused, as Lily continued to refuse James's pleas.
"Please?"
"No, no, no!" How many times do I have to say it before you get it through that thick skull of yours?"
"Come on... at least for a few minutes... my feet are killing me."
Lily shook her head vigorously.
"Lily! Please?" He put on a sad puppy face.
"No, no, and how about... no?"
"Please? I'm begging you here," James said, getting down on his knees. That was hard for him to do, considering that there were seven big, heavy trunks all over the compartment.
"Potter! I said no!" Lily yelled angrily.
"But..."
"No," she said, with a tone of finality in her voice.
James sighed. "Fine," he replied. He stood up and turned around to face Sarah, Sirius, and Peter. Lily, thinking he had given up, relaxed and looked out the window. Suddenly, two strong arms were around her waist, and she was lifted into the air. Then, she was seated again, but she was now on someone's lap.
"Potter! Just what do you think you're doing?" she shrieked.
"Sitting," James replied calmly.
Lily threw up her hands in exasperation. She elbowed her new "seat" in the stomach before crossing her arms and frowning. He responded by grinning, putting his arms around her waist, and pulling her closer to him so she wouldn't fall off his lap. Sarah giggled at the sight of her flustered friend.
She heard a scream of pain, then nothing. Oh, God. James. He was one of the last people I thought I'd fall for. Now he's dead. Voldemort killed him. Tears blurred her vision as she ran. I won't let him kill Harry. I won't. Not my son. James's son. He will not die.
[2nd year]
Lily had decided to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. She didn't want to deal with Petunia, who was being particularly nasty to her nowadays. Her parents were going on a trip anyway. Sarah was staying too. Veronica wanted to spend more time with her mother, who had been ill lately.
Unfortunately for Lily, a certain Mr. Potter was staying for the holidays as well. His parents had also decided to go on a trip. James didn't mind too much, as it gave him more time to explore the castle and find more secret tunnels and things. Sirius was also staying, but Remus and Peter had gone home for Christmas.
Lily and Sarah were sitting in front of the fireplace the night of Christmas Eve. Their conversation was unexpectedly interrupted by James and Sirius.
"Hi!" they said, jumping in front of the girls.
"Potter! Black! What do you think you're doing?" Lily shouted, outraged.
"We're just wishing you girls a Merry Christmas," Sirius said innocently.
"Okay, what are you really doing here?" Sarah asked, putting her hands on her hips.
"We're going to make sure you girls have plenty of holiday spirit," James replied. He and Sirius pointed their wands at Lily and Sarah.
The girls looked down and screamed. They were red and green all over. Lily, whose hair and eyes were normally red and green, respectively, now had green hair and red. Sarah's hair was striped red and green. The girls' clothes were colored in patches of the two colors.
Lily chased James around the room, aiming at him with her wand, but missing every time she tried to do something to him. Frustrated, she put her wand in her pocket and just tried to attack James without magic.
&&&
[4th year]
"Potter!" The angry yell was heard throughout Gryffindor Tower.
James was sitting in the common room with Sirius, Remus, and Peter. "Looks like Miss Evans found her Christmas present," he said.
A fourteen-year-old red-haired girl came down the steps in a fury. She stomped right over to where James was. "What… is… this?" Lily asked through clenched teeth. She was holding something. She wasn't quite sure what it was, but it was annoying. It was a green and pink furball that kept squeaking and humming. It also sprayed orange and blue ink.
"It's your present."
"Why did you give me a present? And… ugh, get this thing away from me!" She dropped it on James's lap. "I am covered in orange and blue ink! And my dormitory is too!"
"I thought it would be funny."
"Well, it isn't."
"It is to me."
"It is, huh?" Lily said. She got an idea. She pulled out her wand. "Let's see how you like being orange and blue." She waved the wand, and James suddenly had orange and blue striped skin. He looked like an oddly colored tiger.
He stared at his hands, then ran to a mirror. "You're dead, Evans!" he shouted when he saw his reflection. He started chasing Lily around the common room while his friends watched, wishing they had snacks so they could enjoy the show even more.
&&&
[5th year]
Lily had gone home for Christmas. She wanted to spend some time with her parents, even though her sister hated her.
On Christmas morning, three owls flew into her room. They allowed Lily to remove the packages they were carrying, then flew away.
Two of the packages were from Sarah and Veronica, but she didn't know whom the third package was from. It didn't have a label on it. She decided to open that one first.
She ripped off the wrapping. "Aah!" she screamed as something jumped out of the box. An icy chipmunk jumped onto her bed and there was soon a patch of ice in the middle of Lily's bed. Several others were running around the room, freezing her things. Lily reached for her wand and froze them in place (even though they were already frozen, since they were icy). She picked up the chipmunks and put them back into the box. She noticed a note at the bottom of the box.
How'd you like your Christmas present, Evans?
"Potter…" Lily said angrily. She sealed up the box again and called for her owl. She tied the box to its leg and sent it to James's house.
Why? He wants to kill Harry, but why? This all seems so familiar.
[6th year]
"And then he came… and—"
"And what?"
"I don't know. I can't remember." Lily gasped. "Wait, I remember now. I… I died."
"You died?"
Lily nodded.
"What happened to the baby?"
"He was still alive when I was killed. I have a feeling he stayed alive." She stopped talking and looked down.
James could tell that she was really upset about this. "Hey, come here," he said. He pulled her to him and whispered, "It's okay, Lily. It's just a dream."
"I think it's more than that. I think it really is going to happen."
"Well, you said you were older. So maybe when the time comes, you'll be ready for it."
"Thanks," Lily said, managing a small grin.
&&&
[6th year]
"I remembered who the familiar person was."
"Well, who was it then?"
"James, it was… it was you."
"Me?" James said, his brow furrowed.
"Yes."
"So I died," he said slowly.
Lily nodded. "I remember the whole dream now. We… we were… married. Voldemort—that's who the evil person was—was after us. We were in hiding, but somehow he found out where we were."
"Voldemort."
"Yes. Voldemort. The Dark Lord. You-Know-Who. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."
"He sure has a lot of names for someone who must not be named."
"James."
"Okay, okay. I'm sorry," James said, "Go on."
"Harry, the baby… he was ours. He looked just like you, but with my eyes. Voldemort killed you right after you told me to take Harry and run. I got in his way as he tried to kill Harry. There was a bright flash and then I was dead. Merlin, do you realize how scary that is? To see yourself die?"
My dream. I haven't thought about it for years. It's coming true. Just like I said it would.
[6th year]
The Gryffindor sixth years seated themselves. A "poof" sound was heard coming from the Slytherin table. Everyone turned to look at Malfoy, who was standing up.
"What? What is it?" He looked down and screamed. He had long, curly hair and a dress. The dress had cow spots and a picture of Snape's teddy bear on it. He had a "Kick Me" sign on his back. He had bunny ears. His skin was orange and his hair was pink. His clothes were covered with bits of food. Flaming squirrels were running around his feet. A rain cloud was above him. He was standing in a pool of slime.
Everyone started laughing. Even the teachers were chuckling. Professor Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling more than usual.
Sarah turned to Lily and said, "I thought you already did your prank for today."
"I did," she replied, puzzled.
"Well, who did it then?"
"I did."
They turned to look at James. "You?" Lily asked.
"Yeah."
"You just lost the bet."
"I know."
"Why'd you do it? Today was the last day."
James said, "Malfoy called you a you-know-what. I had to do something."
"Oh. Thank you," she said quietly.
"I figured if I was going to lose, I might as well do it right."
&&&
[7th year]
"Hey, Lily, can I talk to you for a sec?" James asked. "Alone," he added, looking pointedly at his friends. They grumbled, but went up the stairs to their respective dorm rooms.
"What's up?" Lily asked.
"I wanted to tell you something."
"Tell me what?"
"Well, we've been together for like a year and a half now, right?"
"Yeah…"
"And, well, I wanted to say… Well, what I mean is…"
"James! Get on with it already!" Lily shouted in exasperation.
"Okay! I love you, all right?"
Lily took a quick step back in surprise. "You… love me?"
"Well, yeah. Of course I do. How could I not?"
Lily grinned. "I love you too."
"Can we come down now?" Sirius called from the stairs.
James and Lily laughed as their friends enveloped them in a hug.
&&&
[18 years old]
James and Lily were eating dinner in a fancy restaurant. They were halfway through the meal when James began clearing his throat repeatedly and sweating profusely.
Lily noticed this and asked him, "James, is something wrong?"
"No," James said quickly.
"Well, then why are you acting so nervous?"
"I… I have something to ask you."
"Well, what is it?" Lily replied, grinning slightly at the look on her boyfriend's face.
"Um… er… Well…"
"James."
"Oh! Yeah. Uh…" James got down on one knee in front of Lily and removed a small box from his pocket.
Lily's eyes went wide.
"Lily Evans, will you marry me?"
All eyes were on the couple now. Even their waiter was watching them expectantly. Veronica, Remus, Sarah, and Sirius, sitting in a nearby booth, stared at their friends. They had already known that James was going to "pop the question" tonight. They were all grinning.
"Oh… James…" Lily said. "Yes."
"Really?"
"Didn't you hear me? Yes!"
Everyone in the restaurant cheered and applauded.
&&&
[19 years old]
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony."
"Therefore if any man can give any just cause, why they may not lawfully be joined together, let him speak now, or forever hold his peace."
"I have a reason!" Sirius exclaimed.
"What?"
"Naw, I'm just kidding. Go ahead."
Everyone turned his or her attention back to the minister. He asked James, "Do you, James Potter, take this woman to be your wedded wife? Will you love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live?"
"I do."
"And do you, Lily Evans, take this man to be your wedded husband? Will you love him, comfort him, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live?"
"I do."
James was so good to me. Now he's dead and I will be too.
!!!
"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"
"Stand aside, you silly girl… stand aside, now…."
"Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead—"
[20 years old]
"Sirius, we… we want you to be Harry's godfather," James said. He and Lily were in the nursery of their new home. Sirius had come over for a visit.
Sirius's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Yes," Lily said.
"Wow."
The proud parents smiled. "I can't believe we're parents," Lily said. "And this is our baby."
They both looked down at their newborn son. "He definitely has your eyes," James said to his wife.
"And he looks like you, only smaller. Because you're a big baby."
"Hey! I resent that!"
"So what?"
"Um… Nothing."
"That's what I thought."
Sarah and Veronica came into the room then. "Oh, is that the baby?" Sarah cried.
"Yeah."
"Let me see." She got closer to get a better look at Harry James Potter. "Wow. Talk about family resemblance…"
Lily grinned.
"He really is a beautiful baby," Veronica said.
"Thanks. By the way, we've just told Sirius that he's Harry's godfather."
I'm going to die. Harry. What will happen to him? He's going to live. He has to. That's what I predicted. But who will take care of him? Sirius. He's Harry's godfather. He is going to marry Sarah, and they'll raise Harry.
"Not Harry! Please… have mercy… have mercy…."
The shrill voice of the Dark Lord was laughing. Lily was screaming.
And suddenly, Lily Evans Potter was no more.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Author's Note: Aah! They're dead! The next chapter will be about how Lily's and James's deaths affect their friends.