'' You shouldn't have come, James,'' Lily spluttered, breathing harshly as yet another fit of coughing assaulted her. '' It's what they want,''
James chuckled hollowly.
'' Yeah? Well, I did. And I'm not sorry either. I'm not going to let you die,'' he whispered fiercely.
Lily's eyes filled with tears.
'' You don't get it, do you James? This is the end. They're going to kill us! '' her voice rose, becoming nearly hysterical.
James shook his head defiantly.
'' No. They can't kill us. A Sage can only be killed by another Sage. The only one who has the power to do that is this Lord Voldemort. And it looks like Bellatrix is in charge here. That means this Dark Lord isn't present here. He probably can't enter the dwelling of another Sage's subconscious…not without some ancient magic. I read that somewhere. That the might of another Sage's powers cannot exist in the soul of another…that it would short-circuit the charge of potency. That would explain why I lost my Sage powers when I entered this dimension. And if Voldemort has to give up his Sage powers to even come near us, he won't be able to use them to kill us. He would have to remove us from this world. And they can't do that because, if they do, you will regain your strength, we'll be back at Hogwarts with Dumbledore and they'll be back to square one. No, they're buying time here. They don't know what to do yet. So we will be kept alive. And maybe we can figure out some way to escape. ''
Lily's mouth fell open in shock.
'' How do you know all this? '' she hissed, her eyes darting nervously at the locked cell door.
'' Books. I read too, Lily. And, since I figured it would help me understand what…we are…better, I rented a lot of tomes on Sages from the Restricted Section. '' he sighed, letting his head fall back against the stone wall.
Lily fell silent, wincing as she vainly tried to move her leg and daggers of pain speared at her very bones. She groaned loudly, gritting her teeth in frustration.
'' And how are we supposed to escape? We're tied up and disarmed. And I can barely move my legs. ''
James glanced at the beaten limbs, his face screwed up, before looking away. His voice broke.
'' They beat you. '' he stated it as fact and though his facial expression remained cold and hard, Lily could hear the terrible anger throbbing in his voice.
'' They beat me,'' Lily repeated sadly.
XXX
Professor Kantolise of Slytherin knocked lightly on the door of Dumbledore's office.
'' Enter as you wish,'' came the principal's soft voice in answer.
The professor pushed open the door and greeted the esteemed wizard before him gravely.
'' I have done what you asked, Sir Albus. There are seven students missing from the school. Two from Gryffindor, one each from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff and three from Slytherin. ''
Dumbledore sighed, closing his shimmering blue eyes briefly, before urging the professor to continue.
'' Obviously, the Gryffindors are Lily Evans and James Potter, which we were already aware of. The Hufflepuff is Richelle Kuchova. The Ravenclaw is Rianna Teris. And the three Slytherins are Bellatrix Black, Antonin Dolohov and Evan Rosier,''
Dumbledore sighed again.
'' Thank you, Claudine. We will speak more on this at the staff meeting later. Please see yourself out,''
The professor nodded and hurried from the head's office, leaving Dumbledore alone.
It was worse than he had thought. James and Lily were up against more than he had ever bargained for, so early in the game. This world was getting more and more dangerous with each passing second. He had to stop it.
XXX
Lady Lasair perused the Elvish Tarot cards spread out before her on the velvet covered table interestedly. Professor Duarf, the Divination teacher, sat with her. Powdered fumes rose slowly from a pewter dish on the table from the strange mixture of herbs that had been ground with the pestle over blue flame. Suspended in a jar of blood that Lady Lasair had drawn from her own veins hung a few glimmering strands of dark, rich red hair and lustrous black hair. Personal items of Lily and James, that Lady Lasair had taken from their hairbrushes in the dorms.
The ritual Lady Lasair and Professor Duarf were undertaking was dangerous, to say the least. Also, it was not strictly in accordance with the Ministry's laws…but, nevertheless, it had to be done. It would give them insight as to what was happening with James and Lily. And the other students that were missing from the school.
'' Their future lies in the hands of the Fates. It is unclear, vague. Pain, loss and despair leads them together….'' Lady Lasair said softly, reading the runes on the cards expertly. '' And, with a helping hand, comes love…''
She smiled sadly.
'' Will we begin the spell? ''
Lady Lasair nodded, closing her eyes and concentrating on the flow of magic in her blood. When this was done, the spell would lift the fog from Lily's eyes. And maybe then…maybe then, she would do as the prophecy claimed…and be set free.
XXX
'' Why did you come? '' she asked quietly, dreading the answer.
James lifted his head and looked at her. When he spoke, his voice broke. And his answer was exactly as Lily had feared.
'' Because I love you,''
XXX
IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okkkkk. I've updated! So keep your share of the bargain and hit that shiny purple review button now! Really, guys, I love you all so much and thanks so much for all your support, you inspire me so much! Thanks! Um, i totally re-did my first 4 chapters. They're completely different so I recommend you go back and read 'em!!!! If you're too lazy, just know that Lily and Remus never kissed! I always felt that was wrong...somehow..anyway, that's all so thanks! : D
