Well, here's the update you wanted!
I can't really respond to any reviewers at the moment. But thanks to all who reviewed! Theres over 70 now! AH! Almost to 100, guys! Also thanks for all your input, it has given me a lot of inspiration! I'll try to work them in if its possible. You're always welcome to send more and more as the story progresses!
I don't know when the next update will come, but I'll brainstorm lots of things in my head, then spew it all quickly onto my flash drive. I'm changing locations frequently as I'm staying with my relatives. I have a HUGE family and I can't just stay in one house while I'm here, so that goes the same for a computer..
Here's the chapter!
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Lily quietly waved goodnight to Celina before she crept out of the dormitory. At the bottom of the stairs, James was leaning casually against the railing as he held a silvery fabric close to his side.
"I see you've dressed appropriately," James said, noticing that she was wearing dark colors for camouflage.
Lily was about to mention having learned this from watching lots of action movies, but decided against it; James probably had no idea what a movie was. She merely shrugged as he guided her to the couch where his friends were sitting, playing Exploding Snap.
For a second, Lily thought they were coming along as well.. But they weren't. James had taken a blank piece of parchment from Sirius.
"You wanna watch our for Deckard; he's patrolling tonight," Remus reminded James as he carefully set a card on their steadily rising pyramid.
"Right," James said, tucking the parchment into his pocket. "Mind your head, Evans," he pulled her close to his side as he waved the cloth open and pulled it over their heads. It was some type of cloak; that invisibility cloak James had mentioned earlier. Lily remembered having seen him with it before, on that one night. So that's what he was trying to hide, she thought.
"We'll be seeing you," James told his friends.
"We won't," Sirius replied, hoping desperately that this card wouldn't explode on him. "Don't stay out too late, kiddies.."
They headed towards the portrait hole, exiting quietly. So far, so good.
"Wait one second," James whispered, pausing after they had passed the Fat Lady. He pulled out his wand and that parchment, and tapped it with his wand. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
Lily's eyes widened as she watched ink flourish all over the parchment. At the top was the writing "Mssrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs present.. The Marauder's Map" and a large map appeared on the rest of the page. There were two dots sitting right outside the place marked the Gryffindor common room, labeled "Lily Evans" and "James Potter". There were no other dots anywhere nearby.
"Y-you.. You MADE this?!" Lily asked, bewildered, remembering that the nicknames at the top were the ones James and his friends used. And here Lily thought they were all stupid prats; except Remus, of course. He was pretty intelligent for someone who hung around James, Sirius and Peter every day, and actually lived.
"Yep," James said proudly. "All right, the coast is clear! Let's go."
The two started down together towards the library, which was three floors down. Not one word was uttered between them for a while.
"Ow!"
"..Sorry," James apologized. He stopped for Lily to recover while he checked the Map again.
Lily took over cloak-holding duty while he examined the Map. It was a tough job. Lily's arms were growing tired; she had to stand on tiptoe to keep the cloak high enough to cover James. She was standing really close to him now; his smell invaded her lungs again. It was that familiar scent still.. Crisp earthy smells; the scent of fresh orange, just chopped mint, pine and the fresh open air of the woods and trees.. It was hard to describe, but it was very soothing. Lily felt as if she could stand this close to him all night, alone in the sixth floor corridor, and she wouldn't mind at all..
She found herself watching the way his dark eyes soared over the Map.. he was focusing completely on searching for teachers; his intense concentration probably came from playing Seeker on the Quidditch team for so many years..
"Deckard's on the fourth floor," James informed Lily, snapping her attention back to their plan. "We should be able to get in and out of the library quick enough."
"Okay," Lily affirmed, putting the cloak back into Jame's hands. They went down the next set of stairs, and down yet another corridor, and the last staircase..
Finally, the library.
The library was eerily empty, yet the faces of books seemed to watching their every step in the darkness. No torches were lit; not a soul stirred.
Lily shivered as they crept into the restricted section.
James pulled off the invisibility cloak, ruffling his hair further in the process. "Alright, let's get crackin'," he whispered, looking around as he lit his wand.
Lily didn't need to be told twice. She skimmed many books faster than she had ever done before, and began pulling out books that looked interesting. James helped her look, too, while keeping an eye on his Map and the doorway.
"Dungeons, Dung beetles, Dew of Helms, Dawn Weed.." Lily read out, searching for Dark Magic as quickly as she could. Her heart was hammering against her ribs; every extra second spent here could lead to their capture.
"Here's one: Essence of Sorcery," James held up a book.
Lily nodded for him to keep it.
In a few minutes, the two had managed to find 5 books of varying thickness, devoted completely to Dark Magic and its properties. Just by looking at some of the moving pictures inside, Lily could tell they belonged in the Restricted Section for good reason.
"Let's go," Lily said quickly. She wanted to get out of the library as soon as possible.
"Wait! We need to put the rest back, or it'll look suspicious.."
Merlin! Of COURSE. How could she have forgotten?
Fumbling, Lily managed to help James put the stray books back in their places.. or as close as they could remember.
"That's the last of them," Lily said, gathering her books and muttering "Nox" to put her wand light out.
Again, the cloak fell over their heads, and the two vanished underneath it.
As they were heading towards the main part of the library, a hissing sound pierced the air.
"What was that?" Lily gasped.
"I don't-- Mrs. Norris!!" James said sharply, as angry meows followed them.
Lily gulped. If Mrs. Norris knew they were there, then that meant--
Mrs. Norris's body flew a few feet, shrieking. James had turned around and kicked her when Lily's thoughts were rushing through her mind.
"Potter!" Lily said, horrified.
"Quiet. We have to get out of here NOW," he said, his voice barely audible as he pushed Lily along with him.
She focused all her attention on keeping up with him now. James was fast. Lily's speed was no match for his, so she had better not slow herself down by talking.
As soon as they had reached the door, it burst open, and an angry Filch stormed in, calling for Mrs. Norris.
Lily had wheezed right as he entered, but luckily her sound blended in with Filch's voice perfectly. He hadn't noticed at all. James had also managed to pull Lily out of his way as he rushed past.
They skulked out the doorway before it slammed shut. Lily blew a sigh of relief as they stood outside, still intact.. for now.
James had decided to keep going instead of stopping to check the map again. They needed to get back to the tower fast, before any other teachers were alerted.
Holding the cloak shut tight, they broke out at a run back down the corridor and up the stairs. At the top of that staircase, Lily had dropped a book. It fell to the ground with a loud thud, echoing in all directions.
Lily quickly picked it back up, wincing.
James shook his head and gave her a look as if to say, "Keep going!"
Panting for air, Lily followed him closely, keeping a tighter grip on her books. They were starting up the stairs now, just one more set, and--
A figure came down that same staircase, hurrying noisily and heaving for air worse than Lily was.
Lily nearly screamed. It was Deckard, and his face looked more hideous now than it had that afternoon!
Deckard stopped just as he was near them. He had heard Lily's breathing, but looked as if he were unsure and was just hearing things. He looked down the stairs, peering right through their bodies.
James clamped a hand around Lily's mouth as he used his other arm to pull her close to his body along the railing. They waited, holding their breaths for despairingly long moments, as he glanced around many times. Lily's knuckles were white against their tight grip on her books.. She couldn't breathe, even if she wanted to. James had blocked her nose as well as her mouth in his firm grasp.
Why was that buffoon taking so long? Lily's lungs were burning for air.. if only he would leave..
After a few more seconds, Professor Deckard continued down the stairs as fast as he had begun. They didn't dare breathe until he was on the other end of the corridor, out of sight.
When they did breathe, Lily felt much more appreciative of air than ever before.
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Finally, the Common Room! Free at last! Free at last!
And it was empty, too. Perfect.
Lily sank down into the first couch she could find, heaving for air desperately but with a smile on her face. That had been fun. Scary beyond all reason, but fun nonetheless. And James did this regularly? Wow.
James wiped his brow on the back of his hand, sitting down next to Lily and tossing his cloak on the other side of him. He was out of breath too, and wore the same expression.
"I.. should be able.. to.. finish my essay now.. with no problem!" Lily told him, breathing between every few words she spoke in a weak voice.
James laughed, wiping his Map clean with a tap of his wand and "Mischief Managed!"
Lily tried to catch her breath a little before opening one of her books. She flipped through the pages, doing a quick scan of it before moving on to the next one.
"I thought you were tired," James shook his head as he watched her hover over the book.
Lily looked up at him for a moment. "I am.. I just.." she sighed, and closed the book. "Thanks for helping me out, James," she smiled, meeting his eyes. He looked pleased. "I can help you out with your essay, too, if you want.. in return for the favor?"
"No, it's alright," he said politely, smiling back. He watched her for a moment with great interest as she reopened her book and began shifting through the pages again.
A second later, Lily's book fell through her stiff hands, landing on the floor.
Leaning over slowly, James had kissed her on the cheek before he had risen from his seat.
"I already got my favor," he told her as he walked past, a thoughtful grin to be found on his face. "Goodnight, Lily."
A bright red Lily sat alone in the common room for a while after that, her mouth gaping and her mind no longer focused on her essay.
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Ah, a short and sweet chapter. Suteki da ne? (10 points if you can translate that! XDDDD )
Please review! kisses
Have a nice day!
Much love,
3 Bob-chan
