Chapter Six

Of Betrayal, Death, Funerals, and Love

A/N: Golly gee it's been a while. I actually got to work on this without being bored to tears! Anyhoodles, here it is: the next installment of The Tutor!

The train ride to London was awkward. Neither of the sole occupants said a word unless to excuse themselves to the restroom, and even then it was just "Excuse me". All three of them had their reasons to stay silent—Lily was practically frothing with silent anger at Lucius Malfoy; Lindsay was worried about Lily; and James was also worried about Lily, but knew the reason why she was silent, while Lindsay did not.

"Excuse me," said Lily, standing and walking to the compartment door. She exited and went off to the restroom.

Lindsay set aside her book, stood, and sat down next to James. "You know something. Tell me now."

"I know nothing," James said, turning a page in his Quidditch book. When Lindsay sighed loudly, he dropped the book on the seat beside him and turned towards her. "What do you want, Bryant?"

"Why are you here? Why is Lily angry?"

"Evans asked me, and I don't know why Evans is angry. Maybe you should ask her yourself when she gets back." He rolled his eyes. "Look, when I told her about Florence, I guess she understood. We have something in common, and not school."

Lindsay looked vaguely disappointed. "Oh. Is that it? There's nothing else involved?"

"Bryant! Nothing is going on between Evans and me!" he shouted, not knowing Lily had just opened the door, and was standing there, munching on a Cockroach Cluster.

Lily sat down and resumed her looking out the window. "I should hope there's nothing going on, because Potter…" She left the sentence at that as her eyes became dull.

Before she could open her mouth to ask Lily what was wrong, James put a hand on her arm and shook his head when she glanced at him. He leaned toward her and whispered, "Just leave her alone when she gets like that. I had to deal with her nearly hexing me this morning when she went like that."

"What made her almost hex you?" she whispered back.

"Malfoy," James said simply. He ignored Lindsay's curious looks and resumed his reading.

Lily's right eye twitched as if she had heard what James said.

"What's Malfoy got to do with anything?" asked Lindsay, leaning closer to James.

"If you want to talk about me, do it to my face, not behind my back," Lily snapped, turning to face them. Tears were in her eyes. "Malfoy killed my parents, okay? He killed them."

Her mouth open, Lindsay began shaking her head. "No. He can't have. He… just couldn't have!" She saw James and Lily's looks and shook her head harder. "I know Malfoy may be an evil git, but he couldn't… kill someone… could he?"

James took over for Lily, who was now crying silently. "We were out this morning—I found Evans watching Snape, Malfoy, and Professor Finch. We heard that Malfoy is part of Voldemort's Death Eater circle." He looked at Lily. "We have to turn them in. All of them."

"If we do that James… Your parents… could end up like mine." Lily sniffed and wiped her eyes on a black handkerchief. "I may not like you, Potter, but your parents are innocent. I don't want to be responsible for anymore deaths."

A small strange smile came upon James's face. "My Mum and Dad can take care of themselves." He got up and went over to Lily, almost tripping as the train went over a particularly hard bump. "If we turn them in, we could weaken them."

"No one would believe us, anyway."

"She's right," Lindsay remarked, stretching her legs out. "They would say 'Oh, she's just grieving and wants to pin the blame on someone.'"

"But I'm not! I mean, I am, but he did…" Lily trailed off.

"We know."

And then James did something very un-James like; he put an arm around Lily and brought her close to him as she cried.

Lindsay sat in shock at the display. James Potter hugging a girl was normal, but the girl was Lily Evans. That was not normal. She watched as Lily clung to him like a baby, burying her face in his shoulder. Lindsay didn't know what to do, so instead of looking like an idiot, she resumed reading for the rest of the train ride.

"Oh, my dear poor niece!" cried Jasmine Evans as she embraced Lily when she got off the train. The tall slim woman had vibrant curly red hair and warm brown eyes, with gold bangles jingling on her wrists as she moved. She pulled back from Lily and wiped her tears. "How are you, dear?"

"Not good, Aunt Jas," she said and sniffled. Lily rushed back into her Aunt Jas' arms, breathing in the sweet scent of her father's sister. Peppermint, Lily thought with a pang of sadness. Peppermints were her mother's favorite candy.

Aunt Jas looked over at Lindsay and James who were standing awkwardly against Platform 9. "Who're you?" she asked, not meaning to be rude, but it came out that way.

"Er…" Lindsay began but Lily interrupted.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry. Aunt Jas, I'd like you to meet Lindsay Bryant and James Potter—they're from Hogwarts and Professor McGonagall allowed them to come." Aunt Jas looked from Lindsay to James, a look of distaste on her face. "I need them," Lily said quickly, "as a source of comfort, Aunt Jas."

"I see. And you both are… like Lily?"

"No," James said, puffing his chest out. "I'm a full blood… er… British man, ma'am," he said hastily as a pack of curious Muggles passed by. He sent a variety of winks and eyebrow wiggling her way, hoping she'd get the idea.

She didn't.

"Is he a madman?" she whispered to Lily, who laughed.

"No, he's different than me." She leaned close to her aunt's ear. "He's a Pure-Blood wizard. That means his parents are a witch and wizard."

"Goes back many, many generations, might I add," he said haughtily. "My great-great-great-great-great grandfather was… er, right, we're here for Lily as a support system," he said, recoiling from the glare Lindsay had given him.

"Aunt Jas, let's go. We have to be at the house in twenty minutes," Lily said, pushing her aunt forward. "Come on," she hissed to her two companions. "Listen, Aunt Jas doesn't like witches or wizards, so try not to mention our world too much around her—she knows wizards killed… my mum and dad."

James looked over at Lindsay. "Right," he said and followed Lily's Aunt.

"Ivy, Petunia, your sister is here!" Aunt Jas bellowed loudly as they stepped into the Evans's household. Lily hesitated at the door but James pushed her in, cocking an eyebrow at her. His mouth dropped as a blonde headed, blue-eyed, tall girl rushed into the room.

"Lily!" she screeched. "Petunia, get your fat arse down here! It's Lily!"

"Ivy," Lily breathed, rushing in to her older sister's arms. Ivy and Lily contrasted very much; Ivy was tall, blonde, blue-eyed while Lily was short, a fiery redhead, and had brilliant green eyes. Another tall girl sauntered into the room, her blue eyes blank.

"Lily," Petunia said coldly, sending a chill up even James' spine. Petunia stepped close to Lily who had backed away from Ivy. "Lily." Petunia pronounced her sister's name with such anger, such hurt, that her voice trembled. Her face was contorted with fury, her eyes narrowed in hatred, her lips forced into a scowl of revulsion.

"Hello, Petunia," Lily said softly, stepping further back into Lindsay and James. Aunt Jas had left the room to see her brother Brutus Evans.

Even Petunia's ears seemed to scowl at Lily.

"How dare you show up in this house?" Petunia asked her, her hands trembling in fists. "How dare you show up at their funeral when you are the one who caused all this mourning and crying? How dare you?" Petunia rushed forward and slapped Lily curtly on the face, her eyes leaking tears.

She kept slapping Lily until James went towards her and grabbed her wrist.

"You hit her one more time and I will hurt you," James said, his voice low and harsh. Petunia struggled against him, her face pale.

"Let go of me!" she shrieked. Petunia pulled out of his grasp and Ivy stepped forward and grabbed her shoulders.

"Petunia, what the hell is wrong with you! Lily did NOT kill our parents, so just stop all this!" Ivy said at the top of her lungs. "You bloody trollop! You've been so jealous of Lily for the past six years that you wanted to get her in trouble, but never could! So when something comes up that has to deal with her people, you go and blame her!" Ivy had started crying but was still shouting. "Lily has no blame in our parents' death and she can come to this house whenever she pleases! You have no control of her whatsoever!"

"No, Ivy, stop," Lily said, her head cocked in the direction of Petunia. "I promised my friends I wouldn't let Petunia get to me. And she's not." With that said, Lily grabbed Lindsay and James and hauled them out of the hall and upstairs into her room.

"Your sister doesn't like us much, does she?" James asked. Lily rolled her eyes. Nodding, James strolled over to Lily's window and sat in the chair next to it. He began to slowly rock, staring out the window. Lindsay joined Lily on her bed and sat cross-legged. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why does your sister not like witches and wizards?"

Lily hesitated, her mouth open slightly as if to speak, but no sound came forth. "I'm… not sure…" she said slowly, choosing her words carefully. "Petunia and I never did get along when we were children, and when I got my letter… My sister is… well, she hates anyone who does anything out of the ordinary. I guess my learning that I was a witch and then going off to Hogwarts was a bit too much for her. Especially when that brute Vernon Dursley started hanging round, always asking questions about what school I went to." She shrugged. "I told him, and then he hated me, so now she hates me even more."

James and Lindsay stayed quiet.

"I'm sorry Evans—Lily. I never knew about your sister." James looked highly uncomfortable.

"Well I did and Petunia's just a self absorbed little wench who knows nothing," Lindsay promptly said. She shook her head. "Listen, Lily, you need to start getting ready. The funeral is going to… well, it's in two hours."

"I know." Lily shooed James out and Lindsay helped her apply her make-up.

The funeral came, with Lily keeping a blank expression on her face, not feeling much emotion. She didn't understand. She wanted to cry, but couldn't; it was if she had cried as much as she could on the train ride to London.

Lily let a startled cry out as they lowered her parents in the ground. James—who had been standing next to her—took her hand and entwined their fingers, squeezing her hand in support. Lily sighed and leaned into him, searching for comfort that she had decided could only come from James Potter.

Lindsay observed all of this. She noticed how James kissed Lily's cheek and brought her close to him. She noticed how Lily let him kiss her and wrapped an arm around him, staring at her parents' caskets. However, she couldn't decide if this was just comfort. Something in the way James looked at Lily with such tenderness and understanding made Lindsay surprised. Could James be showing something towards Lily other than the usual loathing and was Lily returning that something?

"It's okay," James whispered in Lily's ear. "It'll be all right."

Lily nodded, believing in him and closed her eyes. She rather liked being close to him.

Everyone had left and Lily, James, Lindsay, Aunt Jas, and Uncle Brutus were still there. Lily and James were still holding each other and everyone else had decided to give them time alone, waiting in the car.

"Evans?" James asked softly, his chin resting on Lily's head. Lily made a sound in her throat. "Did your mum and dad love you a lot? I mean, did they show it often?"

Lily shrugged and turned so that her head was on his shoulder. "What does it matter anymore? They're not here to care, so why should I?" She sighed and closed her eyes warily. "When I was younger, they'd give me gifts and hug me and tell me how much they loved me. And they tried to when I got older, but I didn't want them to 'embarrass me in front of my friends.' I was so stupid. If only I'd have known…"

"Lily? James?" Lindsay called, running over to them, her blonde hair flying out behind her. "If you two would like to stay here, your Aunt Jas said she could go on and take me to your house. The house isn't far from here—it's just a few blocks."

"Thanks," Lily said. She detangled herself from James and went over to Lindsay and hugged her fiercely. "Thank you so much, Lindsay. I appreciate this so much. I'll get you a big Christmas present to make up for this, okay?"

Lindsay laughed and went to James and kissed his cheek. "You two are sweet," she whispered into his ear. Lindsay smiled at Lily and James. "Thanks for the present," she called and ran back to Aunt Jas who waved at Lily while Uncle Brutus worked on a cigarette. Ivy seemed to be arguing with Petunia and Vernon.

"Does your uncle always smoke so much?" James asked idly as they drove away. In fact, Uncle Brutus had been smoking when they were in the car, during the funeral, and even after the funeral.

"He's a bit of an addict," Lily admitted, sitting on the ground. James joined Lily and took her hand in his, entwining their fingers. Lily said nothing and neither did James, for they both knew that this was just comfort—or so they told themselves. But both knew that deep down their hand-holding was something more than just comfort; the beginnings of love.

Together, they sat quiet for an hour before Lily had announced she was starving. Lily led James back to her house and opened the door and shouted that they were home. Silence greeted them.

"Hello?" called Lily. She scanned the living room. "Aunt Jas? Uncle Brutus? Lindsay? Ivy? Is anyone home?" No one came to meet them. "Must've gone out for dinner."

"They said they'd be here," James reminded her.

Petunia came through the kitchen and into the living room, her face pale. "Lily… you're to… go upstairs… You're needed…"

"Where is everyone?" Lily asked, going to her sister. Petunia did not respond. "Where is everyone?"

"Your room…" Petunia had begun to cry. "I can't take this anymore! I just can't!" she wailed, breaking down on the sofa. James sat next to Petunia who slapped at him, but did not yell.

Lily raced up to her room and gasped in horror. Tall men with dark robes with their faces covered were holding her Aunt Jas, Uncle Brutus, and Ivy near the window, their wands pointed at their hearts. A lone figure sat next to Lindsay on the bed. Lindsay was squeezing her eyes shut in fear while the figure was lazily dragging his wand up Lindsay's torso.

"Ah, Miss Evans," the figure said delighted in a feminine voice. "I see your sister sent you the message. Wonderful person she is, really. All shouting and flailing about. Well, before I used Crucio on her, that is."

Laughter rose among the hooded Death Eaters.

"Who are you?" Lily whispered terrified.

"Come on, Lily, don't you recognize your old pal?" the figure said in mock anger.

"You're a girl!" Lily said, her voice rising slightly.

The Death Eater chuckled. "Right fast she is, eh? Lily, I shared a dorm with you! Honestly, if I'd have known I left such a small impression on you…" Lily's face was blank. "Come on, you don't recognize this? 'Oh please, dress the Marauders up for me!'"

Memories flooded her. They were bound… Sunny was shooing Kayla and Alice out of the room…

But one hadn't been present when Remus was a werewolf… Who was the one who had threatened Snape? It was the one who wanted to polish a desk… Only one person was that daft… Kayla had threatened Snape! That could only mean…

"Oh my God… Alice?"

"And we have a winner." The Death Eater pulled her hood down, and Lily's presumption was correct; Alice Barnes was holding Lindsay hostage. "What do you think, Lil? Should I Crucio her or kill her right now?" Alice tauntingly poked Lindsay's chest. Lily flinched.

"Please, don't do this," she begged, tears springing to her eyes.

Alice ignored her. "Yes, I think this little bitch needs to be hurt." Her eyes lit up as she raised her wand. "Crucio."

Lindsay's mouth opened wide—so wide that her lips began to split—and screamed, thrashing about on the bed, her eyes rolling into the back of her head. Lily made to rush forward, but Alice cocked her head and tutted.

"I can do worse." And she did. Lindsay's body arched off the bed, foam beginning to come from her mouth as Alice continuously repeated the spell.

"STOP IT!" Lily screamed, dropping to her knees.

"Is Lily scared?" Alice snickered. "Poor little Lindsay getting hurt is she? Maybe I should stop and help ease the pain?" She cocked her head. "What do you say, Lily?"

Lily began sobbing, rocking back and forth, tears splashing down her funeral dress.

"Yes…" Alice sang. "We should stop. Say bye-bye to Lily, Lindsay."

"LILY!" Lindsay cried out, her voice hoarse.

"I didn't mean for you to actually do that, idiot. Avada Kedavra." Bright green light flooded the room, a rushing sound of wind made them go deaf, and Lindsay ceased twitching. "Let's get out of here. Morsmordore." With several loud cracks, the Death Eaters left.

Aunt Jas and Ivy ran immediately to Lily once their captors had left. Uncle Brutus looked rather nervous as he lit up another cigarette. James flew up the stairs, panting heavily.

"I flooed the Ministry. Minister Aspen is on his… way… Lindsay?" James' mouth flopped open and he stumbled over to Lily's bed. He brought a hand to Lindsay's damp hair and smoothed it back, his face scrunched up. "Who did this?" his voice trembled as looked back at Lily. "Who did this?"

"Alice Barnes," she whispered.

"Oh God," James moaned, burying his face in his hands. "Oh no…"

Lily sunk to the floor in a dead faint, her hair fanning around her head. James rushed to her, his glasses askew.

Ministry workers Apparated into Lily's room, making Aunt Jas shriek with fear. Minister Morton Aspen stepped forward to Aunt Jas and James. Ivy was kneeling next to a puddle of vomit and Uncle Brutus was next to a pile of cigarette butts.

"Is that the Evans girl?" Minister Aspen said, authority booming in his voice. He was a tall, bulky older man with short blonde hair and brown eyes.

James stuttered, "Yes. Wake her up, please." He was cradling Lily's head.

Aspen turned to a few workers that were not around Lindsay and snapped his fingers. The workers suddenly tensed as if on alert. "Healer Weasley, Healer Lovegood, wake Evans up so we can question her. Healer Bode clean up that girl's mess and someone please get up those cigarette butts! Bloody Muggles…"

"James!" Healer Weasley cried. Healer Weasley was a rather short woman with curly red hair and warm brown eyes. "James Potter! I just heard from your father and mother—they're still on their honeymoon, but they're good. I reckon you'll be getting an owl from them, giving you chocolates from Colombia! Oh, how are you?"

"Molly?" James asked, surprise evident in his voice and face. "Molly Prewett?"

"No," Molly smiled happily and held up her left hand and James noticed a rather small diamond and gold band. "I'm married; I'm a Weasley now!" She and Healer Lovegood conjured a camp bed for Lily and put her on it. Molly tutted. "She's not seriously hurt. A simple Ennervate spell should be enough."

"I'll do it," Healer Lovegood said happily, brandishing her wand. She had lovely long blonde hair and bright blue eyes. "Ennervate!" Lily's eyes snapped open and then she moaned. "Hello Miss Evans, wonderful to meet you, I'm Lucy Lovegood! You have just been revived by the Ministry of Magic. Minister Aspen is awaiting you! Well, off you go!" Lucy Lovegood had a bright smile on her face.

Lily nodded slowly, not listening.

"James, can we go back to Hogwarts now?"

Staring at her intently, James slowly nodded and held out a hand. Lily took it. "Come on. Let's go home."