It's called writer's block. Everybody gets it at one point. XP

TO MY REVIEWERS:

XXRoseDawsonXX: shut up, I hate you. Your reviews make me wanna hunt you down and shoot you. And I know where you live! …kidding. Sorry for not updating sooner. Luv ya, Meg! Don't hurt me!

BlueJeanMistress: Thanks. Glad you like the plot line, even if I think it seemed a little too corny. But it's my plotline, isn't it? So I can do what I want, I guess.

Nigel: Thanks. And I'm glad I inspired you. Oh, and James isn't actually a spirit, unless you count the fact that everybody is/has a spirit. Um… he's just the reincarnation of one.

MeyaRose: thanks. D

Gothgir14: Yeah, I always pictured Lily as pure too. Especially in my story, with the way she was raised, she never did anything wrong as a child because she was under strict parenting all the time. And you're welcome.

Thanks for the reviews.

Chapter 9: Questions

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Ezmerelda slowly walked away from her friend and back towards the castle she knew as Hogwarts, and as her home…

Thoughts flooded her mind of what she had just learned from her Aunt. Everything was too confusing to take in all at once, but somehow she had understood it. James… he wasn't a bad person at all. The king of Gryffindor, his life was perfect. But he'd have to give everything up for Lily so that she could defeat the Dark Lord. He'd have to give up his perfect life…. Somehow Ezmerelda pitied him. He'd worked so hard to get to where he was. He was the Gryffindor quidditch captain and Head Boy with good grades, despite his prankster instincts. All the girls loved him, and Ezmerelda had to admit that she felt a little something for him too. But it was nothing more than a crush. She knew she could never be with him, anyway, so there was no reason to swoon over him.

That's when she realized she had stopped walking. She turned around and paced back towards the Three Broomsticks, just to check in and make sure Lily had gotten there all right…

Did Lily understand what James would have to go through for her? Didn't Lily like James? But she couldn't do anything impure, so did that mean she couldn't be with James either?

"He's very attractive, isn't he?" a voice beside her said. Startled, Ezmerelda tore her gaze from the window of the Three Broomsticks to see who was there. Bellatrix Black smiled menacingly at the blue-eyed girl.

"Um… w-who are you talking about?" she asked.

"You know who I'm talking about. And don't deny that you like him. Everybody in this whole bloody school does. So don't you dare deny it," Bellatrix hissed.

"I'm not denying anything! You're talking about James Potter, then? He's very attractive, yes" Ezmerelda said quickly.

"Smart girl," Bellatrix smirked. "I think you should go for him. Especially since he's just broken up with that annoying bitch, Taylor. He definitely needs a rebound, you know? Just go in there… and take what's yours."

"W-what do you mean, 'what's mine?' Potter doesn't belong to me," Ezmerelda said.

"Oh, I see. I suppose he belongs to Evans, then? Okay, I understand. She's your friend anyway," Bellatrix said.

"No! He doesn't belong to her! Um… He doesn't belong to anyone but himself, for that matter…" Ezmerelda said, rather nervously.

"But wouldn't you like it if you could have him, all for yourself. Ezmerelda… Potter." Bellatrix just laughed and walked away, leaving her to think about what had just happened.

No, she could not deny that she liked James Potter. Maybe even loved him. No, what was she talking about? Love? A few days ago she was sure she disliked him very much. No, she wouldn't let a Slytherin convince her that she was in love with someone she did not know. Strong feelings, but not love…

-

Lily had quite an enjoyable time with the Marauders. She had to admit, they were fun people to be around, which must be the reason for their popularity. Even Peter Pettigrew, who at first just seemed like a tag-a-long, was an interesting person. He was just shy.

Lily almost forgot about James being her guardian for a while, but at one point, when he looked at her, into her eyes, she remembered. She wasn't sure what he would have to do for her, but she just knew that it wouldn't be easy for either of them. Why did they have to be put through this? Couldn't they just lead normal lives? She was glad to be friends with James, and that was all that she wanted; nothing more. So why did she feel so close to him? Was it because he was her guardian? When was he supposed to find out about it? What would happen to the two of them? There were so many questions left unanswered, that it was almost killing Lily. James saw that she was deep in thought and confusion. He placed a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him. He smiled.

"Hey. Are you okay?" She nodded and tried to smile back, but her lips refused to move.

"Hey, Evans, cheer up! You have to have a good time when you're in our company!" Sirius said to her.

"Oh! I am having a good time, Sirius, really. All of you have been so kind to me. Thank you," she said, bowing her head somewhat.

"You're very welcome," Sirius said.

"Yes, we like having you around," Peter said with a grin. Lily couldn't help but smile. These boys were so nice when they wanted to be. Well, to a fellow Gryffindor, of course they would be. She just wished Ezmerelda could be here right now…

-

Ezmerelda was having different thoughts as she got back to Hogwarts. She didn't want anything to do with Lily's new friends, especially not James. She liked him too much, it scared her. She didn't want to fall for him, because it would ruin her friendship with Lily. And so, she would stay away from James Potter at all costs. That stupid Slytherin –Bellatrix –was so wrong.

Now that Peter Pettigrew, he was different. He was extremely cute when he smiled, although he hardly smiled since he was so shy. But if you could manage to get him to smile… it was beautiful. He was short and a little chubby, but it was still adorable. His dirty blond hair was almost as curly as Ezmerelda's. They indeed would make a strange pair, both with such curly hair. But Ezmerelda couldn't like him... he was cute, yes, but not hot. Not like James…

Oh, she really had to stop thinking about James. What could get her mind off of him now? Chess… no, Lily's not around to play chess with. Homework. That's it. Homework would keep her occupied. Ezmerelda went up to her dorm and picked up her Charms textbook. She needed to write a three-page essay, anyway.

-

"Lucius, I did my part. Now you do yours. Separate the chosen one and her guardian. For good," Bellatrix said. They were speaking in a private area, where no one could overhear them.

"No problem," said Lucius. He walked away to go spy on Lily and James.

-

That afternoon, Lily and the Marauders were walking back to Hogwarts. Lily hadn't a care in the world as she walked together with her new friends. Life was… good, for once. Sure, life had thrown this whole prophecy in her face, which was unfair, but with the prophecy came James Potter. What more could she ask for?

Life couldn't get any better. Which was, sadly, to say that life could get worse for her. And it would. But what would result in this prophecy… If Lily actually ended up defeating the Dark Lord… then what? Could Lily and James get their lives back to normal after that? What would become of them?

"Lily." She turned her head towards the voice that called her name. It was James.

"Yes?" she asked softly.

James had grown so accustomed to hearingher delicate voice, that it was like music to his ears. He smiled at this.

"Nothing. Just making sure you're not spacing out on me again," he said.

"Spacing out…? I'm not spacing out! Am I? Oh my gosh…" Lily said nervously. James chuckled lightly.

"Hey, it's okay. You can space out if you want to. Just… as long as you pay me attention, alright?" he said. Lily nodded.

"Of course," she said with a smile. James glanced over at his friends, who were laughing about something, and then looked back at Lily.

"You wanna ditch these guys?" he asked. Lily grinned.

"Sure," she said. He grabbed her hand and pulled her with him back towards Hogsmeade. They started at a slow jog, unnoticed by the others. Then they sprinted all the way back to Hogsmeade.

When they reached their destination, James fell over, accidentally dragging Lily down with him. Lily landed on top of him. Her face in his chest, she could hear his heavy breathing. Being in an awkward situation, she got up immediately. After they caught their breaths, Lily spoke up.

"Don't you think it was a little mean, leaving them like that?" she asked.

"Hey, you agreed to it," James said.

"I did, didn't I? Well, what are we going to do, Mr. Potter?" Lily asked.

"Hm… here, come with me," he said, holding out his hand to her. She took his hand and let him lead her throughout Hogsmeade, into a section she was unfamiliar with. They walked past all the stores into an area with a lot of trees.

"Where did this forest come from?" Lily asked.

"I… I don't know. I think I took a wrong turn somewhere. Let's just see where this leads," James said. He kept walking ahead, faster and faster. They'd stopped holding hands a while back and Lily already lost track of him. Finally, when she thought she saw the back of his head, she ran after him.

"James!" she called out.

She came closer and sighed in relief when she caught up. The figure of James turned around slowly. But it wasn't James. It was his body, yes, but the… thing… had no face, just flesh where a nose, eyesm and a mouth should have been. Lily screamed bloody murder and ran in the other direction, not knowing or caring which direction she was going in.

Everything suddenly became blurry as Lily slowed down to take a breath. Glancing behind her, she realized that she wasn't being followed. She was safe… for now.

What the hell was that thing? And where is James? I need him…

Lily looked around her and noticed that she'd found her way back to Hogsmeade. She was separated from her gaurdian, but she couldn't go back in there. She went back to Hogsmeade and inside a small bar to sit down and meditate.

Lily rested her head in her arms and realized that tears were streaming from her eyes. She wiped them away and looked up. The bartender was staring at her. Seeing her looking at him, he smiled.

"You okay, hun?" he asked.

"Yeah… I'm fine," she said.

"Okay. Can I get you anything?" he asked.

"Um… how about a butterbeer?" she asked.

"Sure." The bartender whipped up a butterbeer and handed it to her. She reached into her pocket to pay him, but someone grabbed her hand.

"It's on me." Lily looked up to see Lucius Malfoy grinning back at her. He payed for her drink and then sat down next to her.

"Thanks," Lily said.

"No problem."

They sat in silence for a while, Lily wondering why Lucius was being nice to her, and Lucius wearing a smirk and practically reading her mind.

"Evans… May I call you Lily?" he asked. Lily nodded. "So Lily… I've seen you around school a lot. You're awfully quiet. I sometimes get the feeling that you don't want to be noticed by anyone," he said.

"That's not true!" Lily defended herself.

"I wasn't accusing you of anything. I was just pointing out that you always wear black and you only talk to one person…"

"Why are you talking to me?" Lily asked.

"Ah, I knew you'd ask that eventually. Well you see, I like you. Now, don't take this the wrong way. I like you as a friend, and nothing more. You seem like a very interesting girl. So what do you say you hang out with my friends and I from now on?" he asked.

"I don't know…" said Lily tentatively.

"What, is there something wrong with me?" he asked.

"Not at all! It's just… you're a Slytherin. I'm not supposed to trust you," Lily said.

"Oh, please. There's nobody more trustworthy than me," he stated.

"Well… I'm not sure about this. I'll consider it, though," she said.

"Oh, how nice of you. Thank you very much. I'll… see you around," Lucius got up and handed her a rose that seemed to come from out of nowhere. It was blood red in colour and it attracted Lily very much.

She sighed and stood up, walking out of the bar and deciding to go back to Hogwarts. Maybe James would be there… maybe he was okay.

-

Yeah, I know. I left you all hanging. That totally sucks for you. But don't you worry yourselves! Review! And then I'll feel special. Teehee.

Next Chapter: Answers!