Chapter Twelve: Settled In

Lily began to get herself settled in her new 'house'. James was, surprisingly, being quite a gentleman. 'This is a side of him I haven't seen before,' thought Lily, then pushed the thoughts aside. 'You're batty, Lily.'

'You mean Lexy.'

'Shut Up Lily!'

'But you're Lexy!'

"Why are you talking to yourself?" Lily asked herself aloud, quietly, as there was a knock on the door.

"Hey James!" said Lily, pretending to blush.

"Lexy, I wanted to know something."

"What is that?"

"Do you know Lily Evans?"

Lily had to try not to erupt with laughter at this. What was she supposed to say, "No I don't know who I really am?"

"Yes, I know her. She's in my class for Arithmancy," said Lily/Lexy, knowing that he didn't take Arithmancy and therefore couldn't assume that she didn't have that class with the Ravenclaws.

"Could you, you know, talk to her for me?"

"What ever about?"

"Well, I kinda—well, I don't know how to put this, but I—I like her."

Lily was shocked at her own acting abilities. If she even had a little less ability, she would have began to fling herself at him in confusion—she had lately begun to have slight feelings for him, but nowhere near enough for her to tell him it was her.

"That's nice to know, I'll tell her for you," said Lily/Lexy, a grin coming across her face.

"Well, I think she knows," said James. "But she finds me to be a right old pillock. What should I do?"

"I don't know James. Right now she seems to have a thing for a couple of your best friends—"

"You mean Remus and Sirius?"

"Well, Sirius yes, but Remus no…the other one is a Slytherin, Severus Snape."

That name echoed inside his head all night. "Severus Snape. HOW COULD SHE LIKE HIM? Wait, how would this girl know unless she was one of Lily's best friends?

He ran over to her room again, forgetting to knock, then flung open the door. Lily/Lexy looked flustered, then she hid her homework from view.

"I do go to Hogwarts, I know what kind of homework we have," he said, smiling. "And I kind of need some help."

"What with?" she asked, smiling even with her red face.

"Charms. Is that one of your good classes?"

"Hel—I mean yes, it is."

"Will you help me then?"

"Well I was currently working on my Arithmancy, but I guess I could take a break—"

"THANK YOU!" he burst out, then he too blushed.

Lily/Lexy blushed and then grabbed his homework.

"Okay. Well you see this is what you do—" said Lily/Lexy, then showed him. She barely noticed his hand creeping around her waist. When she finally did notice, he took it off, flushed, and then ran out of the room.

"James, wait!" said Lily/Lexy. 'I got myself into this mess, I have to keep acting as if I'm another crazy fangirl of his. Go me,'

James walked back. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to get so close so quick," he said, then realized she wasn't backing away. She was walking even closer.

Just as he was about to kiss her an explosion went off in her room. She turned around happily, thinking 'Anything so I don't have to touch his bloody lips', and then noticed nothing had happened—and turned back to see no James, but a stag had taken his place.

"James?" she asked, as he transformed back.

"Surprised?" he asked, grinning. Lily then transformed herself into her Animagus form—the cat with tiger stripes.

"You look like a tiger," said James.

"Yeah, my friend calls me Tigerli—" Lily/Lexy began to say, then walked back into her room, realizing what she had almost revealed.

"What does your friend call you?" James asked, wondering what she couldn't even say.

"Nothing," said Lily/Lexy, shutting the door.

A couple weeks passed uneventfully until the doorbell to James' house rang one day to reveal someone standing there, drenched from the rain.

"Sirius?"

Chapter Thirteen: Revealations

"Hey Prongs," said Sirius. "A little help here?"

"What happened?"

"The bloody bastards kicked me out!" said Sirius loudly. "THEY KICKED ME OUT!"

"Why?"

"Because I had 'dishonored the name of Black'. What bullshit," said Sirius.

"Woah there Padfoot calm down. I think we have a little beauty with us here that may be nice for you to meet," said James, taking Sirius' stuff up to the other guest room, then walked to 'Lexy's' door.

"Lexy? You there?"

Lily/Lexy opened the door. When she saw Sirius, his face fell.

"How'd you get Lily to come here?"

"What do you mean? This is Lexy Marteny, she's a Ravenclaw from Hogwarts, I've been talking to her," said James, looking from Lexy (Lily) and back to Sirius.

"Sure she is," said Sirius. "Can I see your arm Lexy?"

"Yes, sure, why not?" said Lily, but remembered too late what she had just showed Sirius—proof it was her. He had been there that fateful day at broom practice when she had managed to fall off the broom and get only a scratch—but the scar would forever be on her arm.

Sirius grabbed her arm, found the scar, and showed James.

"See? It's our Lily here, not some Lexy chic," said Sirius, grinning.

"I don't believe you," said James to Sirius, before Lily's bubble burst. She couldn't break up James and Sirius' friendship because of her wish for laughter and a nice summer.

"James, wait," called Lily, going back to her normal Lily voice.

"Okay, how did you do that. You sounded like Evans there for a minute."

"Oh so now I'm Evans?"

"No, Lily is Evans, you are Lexy!"

"No I'm not," said Lily, showing Sirius her Animagus form.

"That's Lily's animagus there. Vanessa and I were talking, she said Lily's new nickname was 'Tigerlily," said Sirius, matter-of-factly.

James looked back and forth from Sirius to Lily.

"I still can't believe it!"

Lily grabbed her hair and put it back, then grabbed a towel and wiped off her makeup. Then she pulled out her hair 'extensions' she had gotten for her birthday from her friends (they could be put in and taken out multiple times) and James saw the resemblance.

"Now you even LOOK like Lily. But there's no way this girl could be Lily Evans, I mean, she almost let me kiss her!"

"Woah! Lily, you almost did that?"

"I had to play along and make him think I was really Lexy."

"Does Lexy Marteny even exist?" asked James, and Lily nodded.

"Yeah, she does. She really is a Ravenclaw, I didn't make any of that up. Sorry James!" she added, shutting her door and leaving both James and Sirius to their very confused thoughts.

James suddenly remembered something he had told Lily—something that could get him into quite the lot of trouble—

"LILY!" he called down the hall, running towards her door. Lily answered it.

"What? You want to kill me now?"

"No, I just remembered what I showed you—please please PLEASE don't tell anyone about my being an Animagus!"

"I will."

"Will what?"

"What do you mean?"

"What will you do?"

"I will do what you said to do."

"Which part?"

"The second part. Ignore the first few words."

"Wait—you're going to tell?"

"NO, Potter. The words I am telling you to ignore are the three 'please's you had in there that have no meaning whatsoever to me. I will keep your secret—along with the one you had about me," said Lily, smiling her normal smile, and James came to realize something.

'She really is beautiful—she just doesn't try hard enough. I think I just fell for Lily Evans even more by her tricking me. Merlin, what is wrong with me? She tricks me and I fall more deeply for her? WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?' thought James, but he walked into his respective bedroom and fell asleep straight away.