Previously:
"Hey James," greeted Peter, all three of them giving him a weird look, not expecting him to be so cheerful at that time.
"Where's Lily?" Remus asked, noticing the redhead's absence.
"Where else? The library." James's laughs subsided. The three others joined him on the couch and started in on their heavy load of homework as well.
The next morning, any previous anger Lily had contained was gone. She had told her friends the night before when she had returned to the library that studying had always calmed her down. That statement could have gone without saying since everyone in the entire school, even the Slytherins, knew that. Nonetheless, James in particular had been relieved. He hated to see her so stressed. And this was the most he'd seen her be in quite some time.
"Alright, Lily?" asked Remus the next day. She finished her huge yawn and gave him a tired smile, grasping James' hand in her own. The five friends were walking down the Great Hall for breakfast early that morning.
"I'm fine, Remus, just a little tired, I suppose," Lily shrugged, "Cassandra's been keeping the whole dorm up with her late night rants. The stress is getting to her, I think."
"She's lived her whole life being spoiled rotten. She's not used to living outside of the spotlight," reckoned Sirius, his voice seeming to be a lot lighter and carefree than usual.
Peter raised and eyebrow at him, "Well, you sure seem to be relishing in that fact."
Sirius grinned, "You kidding? That girl had this and more coming to her since first year. About bloody time she was put in her place." He flung his arms around Lily and Peter, the two nearest to him while they walked down the corridor.
"Language, Padfoot," Remus scolded lightly. Sirius merely rolled his eyes and looked over at Lily, grinning sheepishly when he saw the reprimanding look in her eye.
"So, what's on the agenda today, lads?" asked James.
"Classes," Lily replied simply, nudging him in the ribs gently, "lad."
"We've got…" Remus took a quick glance at his time schedule, "Care of Magical Creatures first with…Hufflepuffs."
"Heard there's a new teacher this year. Kettleburn, I believe his name was." Peter chimed in.
Before anyone else could reply, the five found themselves seated at their table, pulling various varieties of breakfast items onto their plates.
"You lot have got to start chewing your food," Lily said as she observed their eating habits, taking small, bit sized portions into her mouth, "One of these days, you'll choke on a piece of bacon, and I don't know CPR."
"I have no idea what CPR is," James said through a mouthful of food, "but I do know-," He broke off all conversation as the Headmaster walked into the hall, accompanied with, in James' and the other four's opinion, a very unwelcome guest.
"What's he doing here?!" Sirius exclaimed loudly after a few minutes of silence on the Marauders' part. A few of the curious students around them turned to look at James' reaction. He was gripping his goblet of pumpkin juice so tight that some were afraid it would break. The glare of pure rage he threw at Fudge would have curdled milk. He was muttering obscenities under his breath that would have made his mother gasp in indignation.
Almost every pair of eyes was upon their Headmaster and new Minister of Magic. Some, the ones most supportive of James' father, looked scandalized seeing Fudge there. Though, quite a few looked more than interested and intrigued to see the Minister there. The question Sirius had exclaimed swirled around in almost every student's mind.
Answering everyone's question, Dumbledore stood before the Great Hall, tapping his goblet to quiet the hall down. Though, that action was superfluous since no one was talking. His booming voice captured the attention of any diverted student, "Good morning everyone. Hungry, are you?" A few murmurs of affirmation answered his question, "Well, in that case, I must apologize, for breakfast will be delayed today." He was met with groans and simply chuckled, turning to Fudge who was standing to his right, "Though you may finish whatever is on your plate. I have with me today a guest. Students and faculty, Mr. Cornelius Fudge, who requested some time with you this morning." Everyone clapped politely except for a select few.
Lily noticed Cassandra sitting a few seats away, gripping the table tightly with her now white hands. Kelly and Stacy were whispering useless words of comfort to her, but she seemed not to have heard. She was simply staring wide-eyed at the Headmaster, a look of hurt across her face. Lily could practically read her mind, 'Why did Dumbledore allow this horrible man enter Hogwarts?' Suddenly, Cassandra's expression turned stony and hard as her eyes traveled to Fudge. She glared hatefully at the man. Lily's eyes widened a little when she saw Cassandra make to stand up, mouth opening purposefully as she inhaled a deep breath, most likely to use to scream out in objection. Though, before she could even go noticed to many in the hall, Kelly and Stacy, and even Frank Longbottom pulled her back into her seat.
Taking one cautious look at James to make sure he was behaving himself- he was being carefully monitored by Remus and Peter, while Sirius simply shared James' expression and stared venomously at the new Minister- Lily decided to focus her attention to the now speaking man in front of the Great Hall, "…pleasure to be here today. I know you all have some questions about the recent attack on the Hogwarts Express the other day." He said, his tone reeking with absolute confidence. He allowed a very wide smile upon his face. Lily was disgusted to note that he could actually show all his teeth…somewhere in the crowd, fourth year Gilderoy Lockhart was most likely dying with admiration.
"Well, I should start by telling you why he attacked," the Minister went on.
"I don't think I can trust any man who knows the inner-working minds of someone as insane as Voldemort," muttered Sirius to his friends sarcastically.
Lily tuned out the rest of the Minister's speech. She knew all the details. She was there, after all. The Minister's "important" speech turned out to be longer than she had expected. At one point, she had checked her wrist watch and saw with an inward groan that it was already 9:12; they were missing Care of Magical Creatures.
"…years of slacking off and I along with many others will not stand for it any longer." Lily's ears perked up as she turned back to Fudge, "The old Ministry has kept things undercover from the rest of the public, but not the new Ministry. The new Ministry will make sure everyone knows what they have the Merlin-assured right to know. When you speak about this new Ministry, you may as well call it the 'Honest'-ry. The wizarding world is turning over a new leaf, I can tell you. And it's a new leaf of truthfulness." He paused, probably waiting for the dramatic air to thicken before saying with his wide smile, "Thank you for your attention, Hogwarts." He nodded his head and took a seat next to Dumbledore, who shook Fudge's hand. Lily couldn't believe the immediate standing ovation occurring when Fudge finished his incredibly long and boring and completely bogus speech. Many, well most, looked absolutely delighted at what the Minister had said. A lot of the previous supporters of James' father seemed to have changed their minds.
Lily turned to look at her friends. To her surprise, James seemed utterly calm, albeit very angry. He simply took a sip of his pumpkin juice while not backing out of his rage filled glare he was directing at Fudge.
"That was about the biggest load of crap I've ever heard in my entire life." Sirius said while taking a large bite of his eggs he hadn't finished.
"Yes," Remus murmured thoughtfully while looking up at the Minister, "I don't trust him." He finally declared after a moment of judgment.
"There's nothing to trust," muttered James, "All of that was a load of rubbish. The Ministry won't allow any news to reach the public's ears- at least, none that will cause chaos and havoc. That would just be pure stupidity, anyone knows that." He turned to Lily, "You didn't hear him tell the school anything about that weird bubble thing, did you?" he asked knowingly.
Lily blinked and realized he hadn't. James was right. Fudge hadn't even expressed the Ministry's either bewilderment or fascination to it.
Dumbledore stood up and tapped his water glass again. It took a little while longer to gain everyone's attention seeing how practically everyone in the hall was talking about the previous speech. "Thank you for your dedicated listening," he said, "As most of you already know, we have talked ourselves right through the first class of the day. Today's first class will start at 10:30, allowing those of you who have yet to eat some time. Your teachers will give you instructions throughout the day on when you should meet your next class." He sat down and the student's started to chatter again.
"You think Dumbledore believes Fudge?" asked Peter, eyeing their headmaster.
James scoffed, "Are you serious?" He rolled his eyes while continuing, "Let's give Dumbledore a bit more credit than that, shall we?"
"Why do you suppose the Headmaster allowed Fudge to come speak?" asked Lily thoughtfully.
Sirius shrugged, "'Cause he's Dumbledore."
Remus gulped down the last remaining sips of his pumpkin juice and said to the rest, "Come on; let's go to class."
Lily got up with the rest of them, slinging her book bag over her shoulders. "I'll meet up with you guys, alright? I've got some unfinished business to attend to." Without waiting for a comment, Lily turned and walked up to the teacher's table. The four Marauders shrugged and walked out of the Great Hall, James looking over his shoulders to catch a glimpse of Lily only to be met with the scary sight of his Potions professor following behind them.
Back in the Great Hall, Lily walked up to the Headmaster, giving a polite, albeit strained smile to the Minister to his right. "Professor?" she softly interrupted.
Dumbledore turned to her and gave her a friendly smile, "Ah, Miss Evans. How are you today?"
Lily nodded, "Fine, thanks. I was wondering if I could have a word in private- if it's not too much trouble, that is," she added, looking between the two older men with uncertainty; they had looked like they were in a serious conversation when she had approached them.
"Ah, no trouble at all," Dumbledore assured her.
"But Alb-," Fudge objected.
Dumbledore went on, apparently having not heard him, "Why don't you go up to my office. I trust you know where it is. The password is 'snicker doodle'. I'll meet you there in a moment." He guided the protesting Fudge out of the Great Hall.
Lily did just that and in a matter of a few minutes, she found herself face to face with Dumbledore's book shelf, inspecting his assortment of novels and textbooks. One particular book caught her eye. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Lily frowned. It was a muggle book. One of her favorites, actually.
Hesitantly, she pulled it from the shelf. It looked so old, she was afraid she would ruin it. She opened the book so carefully as though the pages would disintegrate by the mere touch of her fingertips. She flipped through the pages, taking in a few of her favorite lines and quotes. On the very last page of the book, Lily found herself staring at some unreadable script written in a glossy blue ink, which caught the natural sunlight flowing into the room and threw the glare into the depths of her eyes. She strained to make out what the seemingly illegible writing said. A few seconds later, her eyes widened, reflecting the few words she had deciphered: …good friend Albus…Charles Dickens. This was an autographed copy of Great Expectations!
Lily was quick to make for the book case she had obtained this book from to return it to its dusty home.
"You needn't be discouraged to look at the book, Miss Evans," a familiar voice said suddenly behind her.
Lily gasped in surprise, turning to face Dumbledore. A sheepish look clouded over her features as she apologized, "I'm sorry, Professor. I saw this book and-,"
Dumbledore held up a hand to stop her babbling, "There's nothing to apologize for, Lily," he said, his eyes twinkling as he took a seat at his desk. "Are you a fan of Charles Dickens?"
Lily smiled, "Somewhat," she replied, thinking of the big collection of his books sitting on her bookshelf back at James' home. "You must be quite a fan too, sir." she added, holding up the book which was opened to the last page, the words in ink shining.
Dumbledore smiled and said, "Yes, I'm quite a fan of his works."
"I can tell. It's even a signed copy. If you don't mind me asking, where did you get it?" Lily asked a twinkle in her eye to match her Headmaster.
Dumbledore looked surprised at the question, "Why, from Charles Dickens, Miss Evans," he said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"You got this from Charles Dickens!?" exclaimed Lily, "You mean, you've met him?"
Dumbledore chuckled, "Of course, my dear. He was a very dear friend of mine." Before Lily could say anything, he continued, peering over his half-mooned glasses at her, "Now, I don't think the subject of classical literature is what brought you here today."
Lily placed the book carefully back in its shelf, looking one last time at it before she walked over to a seat in front of Dumbledore, "No, what I wanted to talk about was-,"
"That surprising bit of magic you possessed a few days ago?" Dumbledore finished for her, nodding.
"Yes, that," Lily went on, "Professor, I've done a bit of research for the past couple of days. I've never heard of such a thing- what I did, I mean…and I'm not completely sure I did it. I mean, who's to say someone else didn't put that shield around me. I'm almost positive that I'm not that powerful. A blockage for a killing curse, I don't think-,"
"My dear," chimed in Dumbledore, ceasing her almost-rant, "Sometimes, a witch or wizard makes something happen unintentionally when they are in danger. I'm sure that's happened to you before whenever you were sad or angry or fearful. Basically whenever your emotions were so intense that they had to escape in some way or form.
"One can never be positive about what he or she is capable of in a time of desperate distress. Some of the greatest occurrences have come to pass because of situations such as the one you and Mr. Potter both were in the other day."
"So, you're saying that that shield could have simply been manifested by my fear?" Lily asked unsurely. "A shield that powerful?"
"If what I've heard is correct, you and James were not the only ones fearful about your well-being. More than half of the students on that train witnessed the exchange between you and Voldemort," said Dumbledore.
Lily's eyes widened, "The students! All of us conjured up a shield around me?!"
Dumbledore smiled, "By pure coincidence, I imagine." He went on, "Now, I do believe you are missing Care of Magical Creatures with Professor Kettleburn."
Lily jumped up, grabbing her school bag, "Oh right! Thank you, Professor. You've really pulled a load out of my mind." She rushed over to the door and pulled it open and hurried out, calling back over her shoulder, "Have a nice day, Professor Dumbledore!"
Dumbledore chuckled and replied, "Same to you, Miss Evans, same to you."
Gradually, his smile dropped to a thoughtful frown, pondering the previous conversation carefully. Albus Dumbledore never really was one to believe in coincidence.
The next morning at breakfast, Lily's lightened mood was dampened when she received an official Ministry letter accompanied by a plain one from one of the Ministry's owls.
She opened the Ministry's letter first:
To Whom It May Concern:
This message of requested verification is to be filled out and sent back to the Department of Post Forwards and Deliverances for confirmation upon receiving a forwarded deliverance from a muggle community. Please sign the line below.
Sincerely,
Murphy Bucklin
Head of the Department of Post Forwards and Deliverances
Lily handed the letter over to James who was holding his hand out expectantly. She reached for the second one and tore it open.
"Read it out loud," said Peter, his eyes twinkling with curiosity.
"Alright," said Lily, clearing her throat, "'Dear Miss Lily Evans, we at…Sherman's Social Services Committee?" Lily looked up at her friends, her bewilderment matching the four others, "…we at Sherman's Social Services have just come across your case. After the unfortunately event of your parents' passing, you've been residing at Mr. Harold Potter's home at 32A of Winchester Street in London."
Lily looked up, confused, at James, "32A Winchester Street? That's not your address."
James said almost impatiently, wanting to know the letter's purpose, "Of course it isn't. But Sherman's Social Services is obviously a muggle business, isn't it? And 832 Hufflepuff Lane, our real address, isn't in muggle records, is it?"
Lily nodded understandingly and continued on, "…of Winchester Street in London for the past couple of years. It has just been brought to our knowledge a more in-depth look at your parents' will. Due to a mistake on our part, we must have overlooked a particular part of significance. It has been stated in the said will that if anything should ever fatally happen to either of your parents, your legal guidance to you and your sister would be placed with Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Weithfeld-,"
She broke off, her face draining quickly of color. When her eyes met James' it was obvious he too knew what was going on.
"What?" asked Peter, "What's going on? Who are Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Withheld-,"
"Weithfeld," Lily cut in, her voice shaky. She looked over to Remus and Sirius who were quite confused, "My aunt and uncle…apparently they have legal custody over me."
"They can't take you away!" exclaimed Sirius.
"They'll let you stay at my house, right?" asked James, looking quite pale as well.
Lily shook her head in negativity immediately hearing the question, "No, I don't think so…they despise anything magic. They all but disowned me when they found out I was a witch. No, they'd never let me live at someone's house they knew possessed magical abilities."
"Surely if they hate you enough to disown you, they'd want you out of their house," exclaimed Remus.
Lily's eyes traveled through the rest of the letter. She shoulders drooped, "It says they get monthly child support paid to them while I'm in their custody." She looked back up at Remus, "No, I'm sure they want me in they're house."
James dropped his face into his hands, sighing loudly. Lily mirrored this action, feeling absolute dread in her stomach. At that moment, she felt something light fall on her head and looked up, finding another letter in front of her. "Ugh," she said quietly, shaking her head, "Someone else read it for me. I don't think I can handle it."
Remus obediently grabbed the letter, tearing open the envelope and smoothing it out onto the surface before him. "Dear Lily, Your uncle and I hope you've received the letter from Sherman's well. Due to this surprising news, we reluctantly request that you spend Christmas here with us. Betty and Jack, Sue and Albert, your cousins, and your grandparents have also requested that you leave all your magical "supplies" at your school. Bring only the necessities.
All your stuff from Mr. and Mrs. Potter's home has been moved into a room at our estate. I will write you once more to give you more details about your winter holidays. Since I'd like to hear nothing about your school life, I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your plights to yourself and stay out of trouble at that "school" of yours.
Sincerely yours,
Aunt Catherine.
Remus looked up from the letter with uncertainty. There was an awkward silence before Sirius said, trying to be a comic relief, "She sounds pleasant."
"She's not," Lily said shortly, grabbing the letter out of Remus' hand. "Some Christmas this will be," she said as she quickly grabbed James' hand and dragged him out of the hall, needing someone to vent to in private.
Only a few seconds after they both disappeared out of the hall, the majority of the students in the dining area heard James' booming voice shout out, "Peeves, put down the water balloons!" right before a couple of loud SPLASH! sounds were heard.
A/N- Hi everyone! Hope you all liked that chapter. I didn't read through it; I only used the spell check, so there may be some grammatical errors in here. And…(drum roll, please)…
I think the time has finally come for me to ask for some assistance. Is anyone interested in being my beta-reader???
I'd like to thank the following people:
Mistress del mare - thank you for all those reviews! I really appreciated them; it's always a real treat to get reviews, and you gave me quite a few . And, thanks for telling me the correct spelling of Slytherins, lol.
limbo-gal- thanks, I know, I'm sorry it wasn't as good as the rest…I only hope this one redeems my reputations ;).
Katie- thank you so much! I love long reviews! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
J.E.A.R.K.Potter- you are one of my most faithful reviewers! You rock!!!!! Thank you SO much!
TiffanyWriterMainiac- Thanks for the review! I loved your story The Marauder's Era!
sour-peach- Thank you so much!!!!!!!! I'm so happy you liked it!
Batgirl- Thanks for the review
Here's the previews:
"You think she believes that?"
"You've all been doing what I've asked?"
"Ever feel like you're being watched?"
"Another delightful letter from Auntie Catherine."
"She really is a lovely woman, isn't she?"