Chapter 3- A Trick of Time

"I already told you!" I said annoyed

"Tell me again." He responded his temper slightly rising, but trying to remain patient with me.

"Just Caroline coming into our dorm and crying because YOU dumped her."

"Anything else? Anything that might have triggered this?" he asked as we began turned onto Crouch Cove.

"No..." I said slightly wondering weather I should tell him about the prayer I said last night.

"Look Lily, I know you don't like me, but trust me as of right now I'm the only one who can get you back to normal." He told me as if he could sense that I was holding something back

I glared at him...

"It's true... and don't look at me like that!" he said sounding annoyed "When Gwen died Clarissa blamed you for it, and she's held that against you ever since..."

'of course' I thought 'Clarissa and her grudges.'

"...even though it wasn't your fault." He finished

"Well, what about Caroline?"

"Caroline moved to Australia to study the knezzels." He said

We walked for awhile in silence. I could not believe that I was actually walking somewhere ALONE with James Potter. As we walked over Helga's Bridge, Potter muttered to himself "Now it all makes sense."

"What makes sense?" I asked

"I'll tell you later." He said quietly

"No tell me NOW." I snapped

"I can't."

"Wonderful." I said sarcastically "Just as I always thought, you are a useless git."

He stopped walking and turned to me "Don't snap at me! I'm only trying to help you. As much as you don't want to believe it Mrs. Potter I love you and you ARE my wife. This will even be a bigger shocker. The 23 year old version of yourself is madly in love with me. So if you don't trust me, trust yourself the older and wiser version."

"We'll as soon as I get BACK to where I came from I'm making sure this nightmare never comes true. You and I will never be married. Ever."

"So you think." He said harshly

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked as we started walking again

"It means, that you are only 16 years old and have not yet reached your NEWTS yet. You haven't learned about "Tricks of Time" yet. That's stuff that you learn about in teorialogy. A class that only certain students take in their 7th year. Oh by the way, incase you're curious both of us end up taking that class." The slight matureness that he'd had this morning was gone. He was acting more and more like the way I know him.

"Are you willing to enlighten me?" I asked through gritted teeth

"Enlighten you about what?"

"Tricks of Time, you idiot!"

"Not if you ask me like that!" he said devilishly

"James darling" I said in an ever-so-sweetly sickening voice "Would you please be so kind to tell me what a trick of time is?" I batted my eyelashes to add sarcasm to it.

"Well no ones quite sure what it is." He began "It's basically a time illusion that happens for a particular reason; to make an event happen or to keep an event from happening."

"So I'm here for a reason?" I said thinking about Gwen in the back of my mind

"However, you can't be certain what that reason is."

"But I think I know." I said

"You can't assume anything. You just have to let it play out. You're here for a reason and no matter what you think, you are here for that reason, and that reason alone."

"Ya sure." I said rolling my eyes

"And when it's time to send you home...you'll be sent back. It could take a few hours, a few days, who knows maybe even a month."

"A MONTH?" I said completely and utterly disgusted at the thought of being stuck with Potter that long.

"Yes darling, a month. I'm not thrilled about it either but it's true."

I glared at him.

Later that night I was sitting in the foyer muttering to myself, while petting Aphrodite my owl. She looked older, her eyes held even more wisdom than they had before and it looked as if her age seemed to be catching up on her. She wasn't quite as lively as she usually was, her feathers were no longer pure white but slightly tinted grey.

James came into the foyer carrying the prophet, sat down in a big arm chair and began to read. I hadn't spoken to him since we'd arrived home.

"You know..." he said after a few minutes "Talking to yourself isn't healthy."

I stopped muttering.

"I've been thinking." He told me "You need to start acting more like Lily Potter, you could be here for awhile."

"What do you mean?"

"Well darling, I called in sick for you at work today, but if you're here for awhile, you're eventually going to have to go in."

"Where do I work?"

"Department of experimental charms in the ministry, and you're a charmer for the order."

"The order?"

"We'll get into that later, Lily you need to start acting like your 23 year old self. If you don't, people will catch on and the more people who know, the harder it will be for your purpose here to be complete..."

"And it'll take me longer to get back."

"Exactly."

"So tell me about myself."

"We'll like I said you're 23, you work in the ministry but also part time for the order. You still have your temper..."

I looked at him strangely

"Yes Lily, you did and STILL do have a temper. Although you don't channel it at me anymore. The most common target is Clarissa."

"Clarissa?"

"Yes, you and Clarissa have been at war the past 2 years. You see when Gwen died, she didn't let you tell your half of the story and completely blamed Gwen's death on you, even though it wasn't your fault."

"Well, Clarissa's not speaking to me, Gwen's... well she's not here. Caroline's in Australia, DO I HAVE ANY FRIENDS?"

"Yes, you have me..."

I glared at him again, if Potter was my only friend I might as well kill myself and put my 23 year old-self out of her misery. Then he finished "...don't look at me like that! You also have Josie and Olivia. They're our neighbors next door, be careful around them. They know you almost as well as I do, and they'll be able to spot this in a heart beat. Then there's Ana and Susan, from the office. Plus lots more."

"What else?" I asked eager to hear about my future self

"Umm you're an excellent cook, you're actually friends with Sirius, you have knack for getting yourself into trouble..."

"What do you mean I'm friends with Sirius?" I asked disgusted! I hated Sirius, he was worse than James.

"Well you are MARRIED to me. Things change Lily. You wouldn't believe how much you changed during 6th year."

"We'll Potter..." I began but he cut me off

"Lily, I'm just going to ask one thing of you. Stop calling me that."

"Fine, JAMES." I said annoyed "I'm going to bed, I'm tired."

"No you're not. You have to go to work tomorrow."

"All the MORE REASON to GO TO BED." I argued, he was a nutcase

"No darling, all the more reason to stay up and study."

"Study what?" Sure I was supposed to have a potions test tomorrow but I had no clue how I was supposed to get back for that.

"You have to memorize all the names and personalities of your co workers." He said as he yawned

"You are not serious, how am I supposed to do that?"

"Simple, I'll help you." He said as he went over to the desk drawer and pulled out a photograph. There was me, smiling and waving surrounded by people.

"Ok, that's Ana you share an office with her..."

James told me about each person, each person's family, and my relationship with each person. We stayed up till almost 3 and then finally he just stopped.

"Lils, I'm tired. I think we've done as much as we can."

"Me too."

"I'm getting something to drink, then I'm going to bed. Why don't you head up, I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight." I said as I forced myself up the stairs

"Goodnight my flower." I heard him mutter.

I went into the bedroom pulled down the bed, changed into an old t-shirt and crawled in.

I was almost asleep when I heard my door creak open. James came in pulled back the covers and started to come into the bed. I screamed.

"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled

"Going to sleep." He groaned and he put his head on the pillow.

"I don't think so mister!" I said as I pushed him out of the bed

"OW! Lily!"

I threw his pillow at him. "You're on the couch tonight! ARE YOU CRAZY?"

He groaned again, muttered a few select 4 letter words and made his way out of the room. I heard him go down the stairs and drifted into a deep and dreamful sleep.

END OF CHAPTER 3

-Authors note- so what did you guys think of that? I hope you like it!!! You guys are amazing thanks for all the fabulous reviews keep them coming!!

Mucho luv!

Jeannie!