A Legacy of Love
Chapter 2: It Could Be Us Next
After checking every compartment of the Hogwarts Express, Lily and James took the last Thestral-drawn carriage to Hogwarts. The journey from Hogsmeade station had been thankfully uneventful. It was when they reached the Entrance Hall that disaster – in the form of the king of chaos, Peeves – struck.
Students were screaming and shouting as they fought their way into the Great Hall. Many of them, the two Heads noticed, were covered in a suspicious black substance. They did not have to look far to see what was going on. High above them, Peeves, cackling madly, peashooter in hand, was aiming ink pellets at the hungry, travel-worn students. Lily, not wasting her breath to tell Peeves to stop, as, from years of experience, told her not to negotiate, but always to go straight to the point where Peeves was concerned, pulled out her wand and shouted, "Waddiwasi!" just as another ink pellet was fired.
Instead of hitting the second-year Ravenclaw he had been aiming, the ink pellet reversed direction in mid-air and shot straight up to Peeves's left nostril. He zoomed away, cursing. They could hear him clanking the suits of armour as he went. Minerva McGonagall hurried into the Entrance Hall just in time to see Lily hex Peeves.
"Very good, Miss Evans. Ten points to Gryffindor," Professor McGonagall said. "Now please usher these students into the Great Hall. The Sorting Ceremony will begin soon." Lily and James set about their task of shooing the last remaining students, most of them who were heavily covered in ink, into the Great Hall, but not before they had performed the Scourgify spell on the unfortunate students.
The Great Hall was packed and noisy as most of the school was congregated there, swapping tales of their summers and comparing new haircuts. Lily noticed, however, that a lot of students also appeared to be missing, especially on the Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables. Since the rise of Voldemort, many parents feared for their children's safety. More and more of them had withdrawn their children from Hogwarts as the time goes by. Putting this discovery temporarily out of her mind, she and James set out to search for the Marauders, who were very soon spotted somewhere in the middle of Gryffindor table, where they had saved seats for both the Heads. They hurried towards them and joined the Marauders just as the double doors open to reveal Professor McGonagall with a short line of scary first-years behind her. Had conditions deteriorated that badly?
The Sorting Ceremony was quickly over and done with. For the first time in seven years, Lily didn't hear a word of the whole Ceremony as Sirius, Remus, Peter and James were all whispering about their summers. It was so colourful that Lily couldn't help but eavesdrop a little. "…My Uncle Alphard died and left me his gold. You know he was also blasted off the family tree?" Sirius was telling Remus. James probably knew everything as Lily heard that Sirius ran away from home last summer and was staying with the Potters ever since. "That's probably why he left me his gold. I got a place of my own but I still drop over every week to visit James and have a nice full Sunday lunch with Mr and Mrs Potter. Mmm… Having a mum who can cook sure is great!" he finished with a flourish, smacking his lips.
"Have you all gotten your Apparition licence?" Peter asked eagerly. "I have. Spent the whole summer running errands for my mum!" he continued proudly. He didn't have many achievements to be proud of. He always felt outshone by the other three Marauders.
"Shh… McGonagall is looking this way," Remus whispered urgently. In a flash, all four Marauders were wearing identical angelic grins and pretended to be concentrating on the Sorting. Lily wasn't fooled, however, and neither was McGonagall. She gave the group of boys her special look that scorches before continuing with the Sorting.
Dumbledore stood up as the Sorting Ceremony ended. He smiled and said, "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! I'm afraid I might have deprived you of a precious few minutes while you await to fill your stomachs with the sumptuous feast waiting for you. Therefore, I shall say no more for the present. Tuck in!"
As one, the Marauders burst into song, "Deck the halls with joys and holly, la la la la la…"
"Misters Potter, Black, Lupin and Pettigrew! Much as I believe that your vocal skills are in dire need of testing, I would suggest that you wait till the end of the Feast before demonstrating them. We want you to do them justice, therefore I advice you to save your energy just then for later," Dumbledore called out loudly, positively amused. A few students snickered appreciatively. McGonagall, however, was less impressed. Her lips were pursed in a very thin, very fine line, as it usually does when she was annoyed.
"Right you are, Professor! Just want to express our relief that dinner is finally here," Sirius answered loudly, amidst a torrent of laughter, and Dumbledore chuckled. The dishes appeared magically on the plates and everybody began helping themselves.
"So, James…What was that with you and Lily?" Remus asked quietly, out of Sirius's earshot. He was grinning like mad. James looked up at him, puzzled. "What do you mean? When do you mean? There's nothing going on…"
"The both of you were on the floor… Like you've just been through a wrestling match," Remus replied, grinning knowingly.
Comprehension dawned on James as he recalled their earlier embarrassment. Strange how they'd forgotten about it so soon.
"Oh, that! Well, the train lurched and we fell on the floor. That's all," James said, trying not to blush.
Remus raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought for a moment that you were touching her cheek!"
James tried to glare at his a-little-too-perceptive friend, but failed miserably. "Really, Remus. Nothing happened. I just got a little carried away, is all. Then you spoiled my most romantic moment. Party pooper." He put his hand dramatically on his head in an oh-so-suffering pose. "And you'd better not tell anyone about that, especially not Sirius, or I'll personally rip you limb from limb," he threatened menacingly, then rather spoiled the effect by laughing.
"Oy! James! Pass the potatoes!" Sirius said loudly, his mouth full of food. He, thankfully, in James's opinion, did not hear the interesting interaction between his two best friends or he wouldn't be eating with such a speed right now.
"Take it yourself! It's right in front of you!" James replied, not even lifting up his head as he, too, continued eating.
"Those are mashed potatoes! I want boiled potatoes! Now hand it over!" Sirius demanded, accidentally spraying the table with chicken.
"Eww, Sirius. Keep your food to yourself, will ya?" Little Peter Pettigrew whined.
"Sod it, Wormtail. I'm trying to eat here," Sirius said, not missing a beat, as he accepted the plate of boiled potatoes James handed over and dug into it immediately.
Lily smiled and shook her head as she continued eating, all the while being the listener rather than a participant. There was a lot about the Marauders that she didn't know.
After the last trace of rice pudding faded away from the dishes, Dumbledore stood up again. The Great Hall immediately fell silent.
"A very good evening to all. It is good to see that many students are able to return to school this year. Now…"
"Who is he kidding? Look at the amount of students remaining in the Hall!" Lily whispered in James's ear. He nodded grimly.
"…and anyone interested to play Quidditch for their Houses should submit their names to their Heads of Houses."
"Yeah, I'm looking forward to see just how badly Gryffindor will beat the crap out of Slytherin this year." James muttered under his breath, now slightly happier. He loved Quidditch.
Lily looked at him with a half-exasperated, half-amused look. "Is Quidditch all you think about? Quidditch should be all in good fun, not enmity! Honestly."
All four young men stared at her before saying, "Lily, this is something you can't appreciate unless you are or have friends in the House Quidditch Team and actually feel it when they get bashed up. Not that we get that much. James is a superb flyer." Lily shrugged good-naturedly and motioned the rest to switch their attention back to their Headmaster.
"Finally, Lord Voldemort has been very active these past few years. He has been gaining in strength, gathering followers and becoming more and more ruthless. I cannot tell you how hard the members of staff had worked over the summer to ensure the safety of the castle, and I beg you not to disregard the necessary precautions we have set for your safety. Should any of your family or friends act strangely, please alert a member of the staff immediately."
His blue eyes seemed to X-ray every single student in the hall. Everyone was uncommonly still after the speech, even the Marauders, which was saying something. Then, the tension suddenly broke as Dumbledore smiled.
"But I know that the most important thing after that is still to receive your magical education, and I trust that you'll want full concentration for the year ahead. So off you go now. Bed time!"
"See you later," Remus said, as he, with the other five Gryffindor Prefects, led the first years to Gryffindor Tower. Sirius and Peter disappeared down one of their many secret short-cut corridors to the Tower, while Lily and James made sure no one was left behind in the Great Hall.
Dumbledore appeared behind them as all the students exited the Hall. "A word, Mr Potter and Miss Evans? In my office. Come along."
Mystified as to what the Headmaster wanted to speak to them about, wanted so urgently that he cannot wait till the following day when they were fresh and awake, they followed him down the familiar passageways and some unfamiliar ones until they reached a stone gargoyle.
"Chocolate Frogs," Dumbledore spoke clearly. Lily and James wondered briefly what the Headmaster meant, before realising that it was the password into his office, as the gargoyle sprang alive and leap to its side, revealing a spiral staircase.
Once they reached the office, they were surprised to see Professor McGonagall already there. "Please take a seat," Dumbledore said pleasantly, waving his wand. Three chairs landed with a thud, two in front of the Headmaster's desk and one beside it. All around them, portraits of previous Headmasters and Headmistresses were snoozing gently in their frames.
"First of all, congratulations on being chosen as Head Boy and Girl. Professor McGonagall and I are extremely pleased with your appointment, as you both had proved to be true leaders and capable of coping well under pressure. We need people like the two of you in dangerous times as this," Dumbledore paused, the twinkle in his eyes momentarily gone. After a second or two, he recovered and continued, "Lord Voldemort has really gone off the edge these days. We are losing our best witches and wizards as the days go by. The Ministry is doing all they can to defeat him, but he has been very elusive so far."
"We have been strengthening the castle's protection year after year. However, it is not entirely impossible for a wizard like Voldemort to break through the enchantments. Moreover, I have reason to believe that some of the students in this school also agree with his philosophy and are ready to fight for him." James and Lily exchanged significant dark looks. They both knew who the Headmaster meant, though there is yet no proof to support their word. "As unlikely as I think it would be, however, it is possible that he already has agents who will actively join his inner circle once they graduated from Hogwarts. I ask you, therefore, to keep an eye on those whom we suspect are Death Eaters. Keep this to yourself, however, and tell no one, not even the Prefects."
"Aside from that, Heads' meetings will be arranged on the last weekday of every month. You are to write up a report on strange happenings in the school each month and suggested dates of Hogsmeade weekends for the following month before the meeting. Either Professor McGonagall or myself will see you at those meetings in the Heads' common room and we will relay messages to the Prefects through you. Tell the Prefects that Prefects' meetings will be held on the first weekday of every month. You will then give them the Hogsmeade weekend notices to the seventh year Prefects and the new passwords to their dormitories, should we deem it necessary to change them."
"Please, sir, where is the Heads' common room?" Lily inquired.
"Ah, yes, Miss Evans. The Heads' common room is located near the Prefects' common room and bathroom. Three doors down the Prefects' bathroom as you come from the direction of Gryffindor tower. Password's 'Pericolo'. The Heads' bathroom is another door down the Heads' common room. Password's 'Lavender'. Mr Potter, you know where it is." Dumbledore said slyly, smiling at James as he surveyed him through his half-moon glasses. James could've sworn that Dumbledore knew about the Marauders' frequent night time wanderings by the way the Headmaster was looking at him. "Oh, and incidentally, the password for the Prefects' common room and bathroom are 'Unissez' and 'Llewelyn' respectively. Is there any more questions?"
The two Heads shook their heads together (no pun intended). Dumbledore nodded. "Very well. You may go now. Good night."
As one, they rose to leave, each saying, "Night, Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall," before exiting the Headmaster's office.
Lily and James walked back to Gryffindor Tower, pondering what Dumbledore just told them. Their Headmaster had always worked tirelessly against Voldemort, and age and time was rapidly catching up with him, though he was still the wisest wizard of the era.
"Dumbledore's really worried. Everyone can see it. Voldemort is really getting too out of hand. I'm really worried for our world. Everyday there is news of more deaths and disappearances." James ran his hand through is hair distractedly as he remarked.
"Yes, and I really fear for my family. If mum and dad were killed by Voldemort, I won't be able to face anyone again. I'd be the cause of their death," Lily said quietly. James stopped.
"Lily, why would you be the cause of their death?" he asked incredulously. Why should she blame herself if her parents died?
"Because I'm a Muggle-born," She answered simply.
James stared at her for a moment or two, as they continued their brisk walk to Gryffindor Tower. Being Muggle-born certainly is tough, especially if you have a heart of gold, like Lily, he thought, smiling. He finally answered, "No, Lily. Voldemort kills without mercy, he's wiped out families and families of pure-bloods too, all because they didn't support his cause. It has nothing to do with you or the fact that you're Muggle-born if he targets your parents," James told her firmly, then paused. Should he tell her? But why not? He could trust her. He just knew it, without knowing how. She's the only person, excepting the Marauders, who gave him a sense of belonging, comfort, security and completion in school. Maybe that's why he always felt attracted to Lily…
He took a deep breath and sighed. Lily, sensing his depression, asked, concerned, "James, what is it?" James was confused for a moment as he was deep in thought and didn't even realise that he just sighed aloud. "What is what?" Lily answered patiently, "Why did you sigh? You look depressed. Anything I can help you with?" His brain clicked as he recalled their conversation. "No, Lily. It's nothing. It's just that, to be honest, I'm also afraid for my family. They're both so-called blood traitors." He scowled darkly. Lily knew some pure-blood wizards who didn't support the purification of wizarding blood were labelled as blood traitors, but she felt that the very same people who denounce most of their magical fellows and who only believed in the so-called purification of blood were the real blood traitors. She observed James quietly as he continued, "Although they're both retired and old for wizarding age, though not as old as Dumbledore, they are still prominent members of the magical society, and they have been opposing Voldemort ever since he first started fighting for power. I don't know, Lily…" James was suddenly very unsure of himself. "It could be us next."
Lily glanced sideways at him and nodded. He's scared for his family too. Wow, so this is the James Potter that's been underneath all this time. Not that stupid prat I've always thought him to be. He's so loyal to his friends, that much has been obvious for the past six years. He's also brave enough to attempt any challenge, including me, she added as an afterthought and was unusually amused by it. Well, OK, sometimes his bravery borders on foolishness and recklessness too, like all those duels with Snape, she chuckled to herself. Now I also know that he's loving to his family and responsible to his duty. No wonder Dumbledore chose him as Head Boy. Few are as calibre as he is and can lead as he can. And in times like this…
Immersed in their thoughts, they soon reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. James gave the password ("Godric"), and they entered the quiet common room, most of the students having gone to bed, as was the custom for the night of September the first. They stood there for a long time in front of the two staircases that led up to the boys' and girls' dormitory respectively. Then, with a quiet "Good night", both climbed up the stairs until they reached their dormitories, where they changed quickly into their pyjamas, sank gratefully into their beds, and (in James's case, ignoring the loud snores coming from Peter) fell asleep immediately.
– To Be Continued –