Standing Strong

Summary: Can Dumbledore reunite the Gryffindores and Slytherines? Can Lily and James put aside their differences? Can the Marauders overcome all obstacles? But most of all can they stand strong?

Disclaim: All characters, places ect belong to J.K.Rowling unless of course you dont recognise them.

Reviewers:

A/N: Ok the last chapter i know was a bore and long but as i said before i think it is neccassary. Hopefully this chapter wont be quite as long and a bit more interesting. If it isnt interesting then i promise this will be the last long boring neccassary chapter but tat is only if it turns out that way, it might not hopefully.

Danz: Yes I do remember you, how could I forget my lovely loyal reviewer. I know my spelling is awful I type either really quickly or really slowly and it can go wrong, but I do have an excuses, my spell check doesnt work. I hate it becuaese I cant get it to work again now either! Anyway hope you like this chapter. And I should be able to update my other one, sorry about the delay but there was loads of problems and then I just had to start writing this before I could carry on with that one.

Chapter Three: What dreams are made of.

James and Lily walked qietly side by side to the library. Once there they both sat down and faced one another.

"Ok, so what were your ideas?" Asked James as interested as he could be.

"Well...like i said before maybe we could write about the polyjuice potion and maybe find a substitue potion that works like the polyjuice potion and then maybe try several spell techniques that would also work the same way. Then maybe use some other spells to convert objects and maybe some shape shifting spells and potions." Lily ended and looked expectingly at James.

"Yeah...yeah that sounds good, we could use the room of requirement to get the potion ingredients and books we'll need, some which we would only normally be in the restricted section-" James stopped and looked at Lily who had feel forward onto the table.

She was shaking compulsively. She had turned ghost white and a look of pure horror and pain upon her face.

Lily could see all the chaos and mayhem surrounding her. She could see the look of pure pain as they watched the ones they love die. She could feel their terror and torment as the hooded man turned and pointed the wand at them. The sky was pure deep black with misty blue clouds hiding the moon. Illuminating these clouds was a large green skull which produced a snake from the mouth, one after another, again and again. Lily cried and screamed for the hooded man to stop. Lily saw a whimpering man with dirty blonde hair murdered. A baby with brown whispy hair and bright blue eyes was killed mercilessly. Two younge women died together in an attempt to save themselves and the the baby. A younge boy cried and cried as he was killed, Lily saw the light leave his brown eyes.

As much as she pulled and tried to run to help to shout for help. She couldnt move nor could anyone hear her, nobody pain attention to her. Her screams could not be heard above the many others.

James and Madam Prince were both surrounding Lily as she screamed and cried with pain, still shaking and still white, unnaturally white. She screamed for help, she screamed 'no' and she screamed for them to stop. Who ever them are James thought.

Lily was taken to the hospital wing where she eventually stoped the crying and shaking and screaming. She looked...dead James thought. All lifes colour had left her skin, damp with tears already spilled and the look of horror that James had seen more often than he cared to. He couldnt look at her anymore. He would wait for Dumbledore and to find out what was wrong then he'd leave.

Dumbledore had been sent for by Matren Potts. When he arrived he walked swiftly and clamly to the side of Lily's bed.

"Mr Potter what happened?" James didnt sense he was in trouble but he did feel that maybe he was in things a bit deep.

"We were discusing our project when her head just fell to the table..-" James continued with his explanation of what had happened and what he had heard Lily scream. Dumbledore looked sternly up at the ceiling and then calmly back down to Lily and then to James.

"Mr Potter, I would like you to take on Miss Evans resposibilties for the time being she should be out of hospital in two days time. I would also like you to collect her homework and tell her friends of the situation. I want to see you in my office tomorrow morning at ten sharp. Good evening."

With that Dumbledore left. James took one look at Lily and turned away again. He couldnt work out why but looking at Lily the way she was now hurt him. He felt a large sense of resposibility, and he wasnt sure he liked it. He didnt like it because he couldnt understand it.

"Matren, whats wrong with Lily?"

"She's suffering with a sever shock truma, paronia, and a slight heart attack-"

"A heart attack" James was stunned. He hadnt realised she suffered with heart problems. "Wouldnt she have been on some sort of medication if she has heart attacks?"

"Oh no Potter you misunderstood. Miss Evans doesnt have a heart problem, she had the heart attack because the immense shock she went through. Whatever she saw it wasnt very nice."

"What and how could she have saw anything, she was just in the library?"

"It a crossing of magic. It rarely happens and when it does it is normally because the large amount of magic being used is in some way connected to the person who is crossed over. In this case Lily was crossed over to someplace and saw numerous things, but one thing to find out would be what magic was being used the connection of the magic and Lily is very imprtant she could be connected in a good or bad way."

Matren Potts carried on stiring some concotion she was preparing for Lily. James turned and left finding it immensly hard not to look back.

James found Cas, Ella, Felicity and Anna sitting in the common room playing exploing snap.

"Lily's in the hospital wing, she had some sort of attack when we were in the library. Shes in a shock and paronia state. She should be out in two days." James said in a very monotone voice, still in shock after what he had been told and seeing her face, a look that had beome so familiar to him. The old man, the younger man, the woman, and the little girl.

"Yeah sure she did, what have you done now you great twit?" Felicity instantly shouted.

"N-nothing" James stuttered still shocked.

This time it was Felicities turn to look shocked. She had expected James to throw something back at her but he didnt.

"Just leave it Flic. Its ok. Are you alright James?" Asked Anna. James didnt move or say anythig.

"Ella go and fetch Remus, Sirius and Peter. Tell them whats happened and to get James to sleep." Cas said quietly, hoping that somehow her rationality would come to some conclusion as to what had happened in such a short amount of time. Ella stood and walked wordlessly to the stairs of the boys dormitories and walked up slowly and a few soundless minutes later came down with Remus and Sirius whom both helped James upstairs.

He could make out very little from the cubbard he had been locked in his Grandad had said it was important to stay safe. He couldnt understand why? He had a mother, father and sister all in the house that needed to be kept safe he could help them, he needed to help them. But as much as he tried nothing no spell nor his own bodily strength would break the bonds holding him in.

A startled scream of a woman turned his blood cold and drained any feeling from his body. The words Avada Kedavra rang shrilly through his house. He tried harder and harder to do what he could but to his dismay nothing could. The urge to scream and cry were overwhelming. Knowing what he knew had already happened to his mother. He would not hear anymore screams, he would not listen. But time slowed down and one by one he heard scream after scream. Some he didnt recognise and that could only be a good thing. But three of them he could. His father had been killed, his grandfather had been killed and his sister...his little sister. Her screams were loudest and most painful of them all. He heard her call his mothers name, his fathers name and his name. To feel like you can do nothing at all is the worst he has ever felt. He could still hear the echos of her screams.

James woke in a sweat from a dream he had, had so many times before now. A dream based on reality. A picture of his life that constantly reminded him of his failure and his need for revenge...one day. Seeing as it was Morning, early admittidly but morning all the same. James woke up and read in his and Lily's common room. Lily. No he thought he needed to be kept busy, he do homework if need be.

(A/N: Sorry i had to add this. I have got the next chapter for 'A weeks worth of gifts' but i forgot my disc with it on...so i wasnt able to add it today but i promise it will be up soon.)

James never, ever in all his living life thought he would admit that he missed Lily. He looked at the overwhelming amount of work he would have to do himself for the next couple of days...at the least. But he would get on with it and he wouldnt complain. He was glad to find that he had done nearly half the work when Remus, Sirius and Peter came to take him to breakfast.

"Morning Jamsie, How are you on this pleasant morning?" Sirius's voice could be heard ringing throughout the hallways.

"Fine" James was short tempered this mornign now and he knew it.

"Well I have something to cheer you up. A prank. Its perfect-"

"Sirius I wont be able to im too busy at the moment. Lets go to breakfast" James began to walk ahead and Peter scurries after him.

"What is wrong with that boy?" Sirius asked to nobody in particular. But Remus was there and he knew Sirius would want an answer. It would be better for him to answer Sirius than for Sirius to bug James all morning.

"He watched someone he had begun to respect falter. He saw her in a state he could never have imagined. I mean think about it Lily very rarely ever shows signs of weakness especially to James and yet there she was unable to help herself and unable to recieve much help."

Remus and Sirius continued ont their way to the great hall behind James and Peter.

Breakfast started the same as usual. James felt guilty at his sharpness towards Sirius after all it wasnt Sirius's fault and he had had a hard time of things in the past.

"Sirius?"

"Yes James" Sirius answered cheerfully like nothing had happened.

"Whats the prank, I want in. I wont be around at ten though. I have to go see Dumbledore."

"Ah I knew you wouldnt be able to resist. We wanted to pull a prank on the teachers. Put all the female teachers robes on the male teachers and all the male teachers robes onto the female teachers. Then make them all pereform a little Shakespear. But as for the robes they wont be changed back until after twenty four hours."

"Hmmm, that'll work. You give out the orders mate and we can do it at dinner today" James said checking his watch, to make sure he wasnt late.

"Right well, Remus here will hit the books with the assistance of Peter. I will be ranting about how much I am going to love the look on McGonagalls face...infact im going to take a photo. You James will assiast tonight in the pranking."

James had to admire Sirius's confidence and enthusiasm. He was on his way to Dumbledore now and couldnt for the life of him think why? Yes Lily was ill. Yes he would do her share of the work. Yes he had problems of his own. Yes his friends had problmes. And no he didnt want anyones help.

As he walked up the twirling stairs a daunting feeling began to envelope him. It dissaperated as soon as he entered the large circular room with Dumbledore at his desk stroking Falkes. His Phoenix. It was hard to feel any need to worry when you were in his presence. His sparkling eyes and comfortable domiener created an air of calm.

"Please sit Mr Potter; i know it is quite distracting with the jumble of stuff in my office, you will have to excuse some of the mess."

James sat in one the plush seats and stared Dumbledore straight in the eyes. It was the only way.

"You do not know why i have called you today James."

"No Sir"

"Yes well no worries. Now down to business. Do you have any idea what happened to Miss Evans in the lilbrary?"
"Matren Potts said it was a crossing of magic. Whatever magic was used is strongly related in some way to Lily. It could be a good or bad reason but either way she was connected to the magic. And the magic used must have been powerful." James ended it there he wasnt sure if Matren Potts had said anything else but that was all could remember.

"Yes that is correct. Now we wont be able to find out what magic Lily was connected to or how she was connected until she is awake. Now I feel Mr Potter that you would be the most suitable choice to find out. I feel a teacher would be too impersonal and might worry her more than need be. One of her more closer friends i fear she might keep certain facts a secret and not be precise. With you I think she will be detailed as possible and despite what you may think of each other personally you both have respect for each other. You are to go straight to the hospital wing when you leave here. Wait for her to wake up and find out as much as you can. You may have as much of the day as you please to talk to her. It is better to get it over with as soon as possible."

James sat for a few moments taking in his task for today. He had wanted more than anything to avoid Lily and the look on her face and the pain in her eyes until she was back to normal; happy, hard working Lily. He walked as slowly as he could to the hospital wing thinking about what he would say, how to start, how to phrase certain things he would need to ask, if he was going to ask anything, if he needed to? So many things running around his brain and making it all out to more complicated than it possibly could be.

When he entered the Hospital wing, he wanted to run. Lily was lying flat in her bed still. The rooms atmosphere was one of a stilled silence, that he didnt want to break. Matren Potts saw him through the window in her office and waved him in. She obviously knew of Dumbledores plans. He just hoped it wouldnt be too hard, for him or Lily.

A/N: Ok well thats this chapter done. I think its a lil bit shorter than the other chapters. You will find out more about several things in the next chapter. Hope you liked it please review as well pleeeeaaaassssee. Ok Im gonna shut up!