Lily sat up with a gasp as her eyes popped open. "NO!"
James was sitting next to her, on the edge of a bed- his bed. She was in his dormitory, in his bed.
"What am I doing here? We have to save them!" She frantically tried to get up, but James held her with a steady hand.
"Lily, they're fine. Alli is in her own bed, and Sirius and Peter are with Remus. I can explain."
"No, you don't understand!" She was still caught up in the events of her dream. "They love each other, and they're dying!"
James just stared at her before whispering softly. "Lily, I think you were dreaming." She looked so bloody pale. "What do you remember from tonight?"
Lily's breathing was fast and hard, as if she really had been running through the woods. Her body ached as if she had been hit with spells. She couldn't have been dreaming, could she have? Oh, God, she'd only been dreaming! The realization made her give a grateful laugh as she sat up and threw her arms around James. Then she began to cry.
"Lily," James said, uncertainly returning her hug as tears flooded into his shirt. "You're trembling."
"I dreamt of them, James. Bryant and Lyla. I was Lyla."
James pushed her an arm's length away from him so he could study her face. "You what?"
"The night they died. I died. As Lyla. And the cloaked figures.." She told him her entire dream as he sat patiently and listened. "What do you think?"
"I think it must have been very painful for you to relive Lyla and Bryant's death."
Lily took his hands in hers. "You always know exactly what to say." Then she jolted at how similar her action was to the way Bryant had grabbed Lyla's hands, just before they died.
James sighed heavily. "I'm afraid words can't explain how sorry I am for what really happened tonight. Lily, think about what happened before you passed out."
Lily frowned. "I was trying not to remember that."
"Ah. So you do remember. I guess I should have told you before.." he trailed off apologetically.
"The werewolf." Lily said quietly, staring at the duvet.
"Yes."
"It was Remus, wasn't it?" Now she looked up into his eyes, and he couldn't lie to her.
"Yes, that was Remus." His eyes were sad.
"I thought so.. I've thought it for a long time, as it's hard not to notice how he disappears once a month. I just didn't want to believe it, for his sake. It must cause him so much pain."
James stared at her. 'She was almost killed tonight, and all she can think about is how Remus feels. Christ, I love her.' He cleared his dry throat. "So, you're not afraid of him? You still want to.. Be his friend?"
Lily almost laughed. "Of course I still want to be his friend! He's still Remus, and he's always been the same, I just know for sure now." She leaned back against James, his hands around her waist.
"That's his greatest fear, you know," James murmured. "That everyone will find out and hate him." He felt like running his fingers through that glorious hair, so he did.
"James.. You.. And Sirius.." She couldn't think of how to word her question.
"Became an animagus." he said simply. "We couldn't let him go through that by himself, love. I'm a stag, Sirius a dog, and Peter a rat. Sirius and I are big enough to keep him in check. Do you hate me for not telling you?"
"I think I love you even more."
He blinked at her and she laughed.
"You're such a good friend is all I mean. And you're brilliant. It's a hard thing to do, and must have taken you a while."
James nodded and leaned over to kiss her. "You passed out on the way back to the castle, so I brought you here. Alli's fine, I explained everything to her on the way to the Common Room, after I changed back; I wanted you here so I could talk to you when you woke up and make sure you were ok."
Lily suddenly jumped. "I'm in your bed! In the boys' dorms!"
James laughed. "So you just noticed?" She looked mortified. He found it amazingly adorable and somehow arousing.
"If anyone knew I was here..."
He stopped her with a kiss. "The guys will be out all night. Full moon." He kissed her deeper, and she practically melted in his arms. "Why don't you stay with me?" She abruptly pulled away. "Don't worry," he continued, "I won't try anything like that.. But you can't deprive me of your kisses."
She relaxed and playfully leaned over to bite his bottom lip. "Well, if I must, I must," she whispered and took him under with a kiss.
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Lily brought flowers to the Hospital Wing the next day, where Remus was laying in a bed and leafing through his Transfiguration text. He glanced up as she entered and sat up fast.
"Lily, listen, Sirius told me what happened, and I can explain every-" Lily put up a hand to silence him. She looked unharmed enough, in her school robes with her hair pulled back neatly. Remus glanced at the clock and figured she had stopped in after History of Magic. He hated missing classes, but some months he was left so weak after the full moon that he had to take a day off. Of course his teachers knew why, so they never questioned his absence. However, other students did, so he tried to miss as few classes as possible.
"Hello, Remus, how are you feeling?" When he only stared at her in amazement, she gave him a serene smile and continued. "James explained everything to me, and I decided to come and talk to you."
He sighed. "I guess you don't want anything to do with me now, huh?" He was staring at the window, trying his best to avoid her gaze.
Lily placed the flowers - yellow roses for friendship- in a jar next to his bed. Then she leaned over and kissed his forehead lightly. "Don't be stupid, ok?" She laughed lightly at his expression. "I don't care, Remus. You're still sweet Remus, aren't you? And I was your friend before I found out, so I'm still your friend now. I just know where you go every month. Last night was almost a disaster, but James and Sirius made sure nothing happened. I've thanked them both extensively this morning. Not Peter, though," She said with laughter in her eyes. "He ran last night at first sight of danger. Poor guy, he's so different from his friends. But, Remus..." She got serious and bit her lip. "It must hurt so much," she whispered.
His blue eyes were suddenly moist. "Yeah, but I was bit when I was really young, so I'm used to it. Truth is, the nights I spend with James and Sirius and Peter are actually kind of fun." Lily nodded, and the bell rang, meaning she had two minutes left to get upstairs for Divination.
"I have to go. I just wanted to stop in and see how you were. Alli sends her love and says to tell you that she doesn't care either. We're your friends, Remus. No matter what you are." And with a bright smile, Lily left.
Remus sighed and rolled over. He had never dreamed he would have such great friends.
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A/N: Ok, I wasn't expecting to update this soon, especially a double update, but here it is! I guess 13 was just an unlucky number. Both of these chapies are short, 14 because it's just the dream and 15 because it didn't need to be long. So, it's not a cliffhanger, but I thought the character interactions were cute. Poor Remus.. Well, he's got great friends. Anyway, Happy Hols once again and happy reading! Oh, I need my reviewers to do me a favor.. Should I end this soon, or keep it going? And, should I have Lily and James live, instead of die? If you read this, please review and let me know what you think. I was going to stop this soon (really soon) and write a different fic without all the destiny crap.. So, give me your opinion :D
-Ria-