2.26.06

Hey, sorry about the cliffie, now I have a little favor to ask. If this story doesn't get enough reviews I might just kill it. But sometimes people put a story onto their favorites list without reviewing, so if you have done that, just hit the review button and type something non-sensical like 'dsfjkdvgnjkdbsgjbkaf' or you could even just tell me that you've put it on your list…..whichever, anyhow, back to the story!

L8r,

Lee

Fair Trade

Disclaimer: Still own nothing but the plot…..GOD$$

Chapter Two: Trains and Talking

"WHAT THE HELL!" I pushed Potter off me and pulled my tank top down; I grabbed my sweater from the ground as well as my essay and bag and shot out of the common room before he was even off the ground. I heard him calling after me. I ran down the corridor to a tapestry which I pushed aside to reveal a passage down to the forth floor that I had found in 3rd year, where I promptly collapsed to the ground.

I put my hands, hands that had so recently been running through James's black hair, and cried.

I was still there ten minutes later, when Alice and Marlene came up the passage.

+

James's POV:

I was in heaven, I knew I was. 'Cause only in heaven would Lily Evans be kissing me. I unbuttoned her sweater with my left hand; my right was around her waist, keeping her close. With her sweater off, and her lips parted we fell back onto the couch, as I pulled her under me her thin tank top slid up her stomach.

Way up.

I suddenly found my self with my elbows supporting all of my weight and my hands roaming over her pale, bare stomach. Hold up, I thought, she doesn't want this. I know she doesn't want this; it's all just to get back her bloody essay back. She doesn't actually like me.

Doesn't she? Another voice said in the back of my head, she's enjoying it now.

She'll kill me when this is over, if Remus doesn't beat her to it. James's thought of how protective Remus was of Lily, and felt a stab of envy.

Suddenly James's found himself on the floor. What the hell? James's felt rather intoxicated and had to shake his head a few times to clear it. Then he saw Lily race threw the portrait hole, slamming it behind her. I raced after her. "Lily! Wait up, I-" The corridor was empty. I went up to they 6th year dormitory. I fell onto my bed. Then I sat up and punched the bedpost. Why the hell did I do that? If I had just left it alone, just did a little peck, or just gave the essay back without the kiss. Why the bloody hell did I do that?

Because, the little voice replied, you are an idiot, and you can't think straight when you're within a 7 foot radius of her.

Sirius came into the dormitory, Sirius was the Hogwarts Bad Boy, with his cloudy grey eyes and his longish black hair, the girls of this school practically threw themselves at his feet. "So, Prongs, how'd it go?"

I stopped smothering my self with the pillow and glared at him.

"Oh, no." Sirius said, "What did you do this time?"

"I lost control." I sighed as Sirius sat down at the foot of my bed, "She was just- just- so close, I lost control of myself…" Sirius listened through the whole story while I buried my face in my hands.

Then the door banged open and Remus came in. He looked livid.

+

Lily's POV:

The Library. They took me to the Library. This, because it was dinner, was probably a good idea, seeing as I didn't want to pass through the common room. It was nearly empty, save for a few stragglers who still needed to get to dinner. Alice and Marlene led me to the corner of the Library just past the Potions section where there was a few round tables set up. Marlene took out her wand and transfigured two of the chairs in to a pair of couches. Onto which I promptly collapsed. I wasn't crying anymore, I was just tried and dried up. I felt used, and for some reason, betrayed.

"Okay," Alice said quietly, "What happened."

Then Remus came into the little alcove where we had our little couches set up, and saw my tear stained face. "What happened?" He said in a whisper as he came to sit next to me, "Who did this?" he spoke emphatically.

A single tear escaped my eye and I looked up at the candles floating above us. I looked back at my friends who were waiting patiently for a response. "It started yesterday….."

Alice and Marlene were great, sighing and scowling at all the right parts. Remus was rather unresponsive, though he did bristle when I brought up the bargain. When I finished he said quickly, "I got to go, tell me if you need anything Lil." and left.

I spent Sunday in my room, Marlene, Alice and Evangeline- another girl in our dorm, also a very close friend- spent the day with me, going to the kitchens to get provisions, playing Exploding Snap and looking through the most recent Witch Weekly. Remus sent us the Daily Prophet when he was done with it along with a note saying that because of the new jinx on the staircase leading up to our dorms, he could not; unfortunately visit us, but that he would be in the Library if we needed him for anything.

According to Marlene and Evangeline, who were the ones who left the room most often, James was sitting on the couch in the common room and bombarded them with questions about where she was and what she was doing and if she was alright and if she would pleases come down and talk to him. So the trips to the kitchen took twice as long as usual.

The girls in the 6th year dorm stayed up all night talking, and eventually everyone fell asleep on the floor. In the morning, Lily woke with the sun as she usually did and was slightly surprised not to find herself in her bed but on the floor in a circle with her room-mates. When she remembered the events of Saturday she grimaced, then got up to take a shower. By the time she was out of the shower all her roommates were up.

"Here you go Lily wear this!" Alice yelled from the depths of her wardrobe, which she had charmed to work as a walk in closet, as a thin green v-neck sweater fly out of her closet.

"You're going to let us do your wardrobe today, Lily." Evangeline said coming out other respective closet and stuffing a bunch of clothes into her trunk, and tossing a pair of jeans at Lily. "We're going to make James cry, you'll be so hot!"

"The point is to ignore him, Evan, not encourage him!"

"Yes," said Alice coming out of her closet in a pink sundress, charming all of her wardrobe into her trunk. "But who said you couldn't have fun too?"

It was at that point that Marlene pounced on me from behind with the entire Gladrags Make-up collection. By the time her stylists where done, Lily was wearing low-riding flare jeans, Alice's sweater that, in Lily's opinion anyway, was a bit to small, showing off all her curves, and cut off a bit above her belly button. Evangeline contributed some small gold earrings as well as a locket and some bangles. Marlene dug up a thick gold belt, that made Lily's jeans look a little lower than they really were, with out looking slutty. In the make up department they put on a little lip gloss and a tiny bit of gold tinted eye shadow, as well as some gold eye liner.

Alice gave Lily some strappy, green high heel shoes that were high enough to be impressive, but not high enough that you would kill your self if you ran three feet.

"Something's missing…" Alice said looking at Lily in the mirror. Lily went over to her trunk, and opened her jewelry box. She pulled out a gold belly-button ring, and smirked at her gaping friends.

"I've had my rebellious days too you know!" I was slightly insulted by their stares, they made it seem like I never did anything spontaneous. I slid the ring into its hole and looked into the mirror again.

"Perfect."

We started dragging our trunks down the stairs when Evangeline gasped. "What?" we all groaned thinking she had forgotten something.

"I've got an idea I'll be right back!" She yelled over her shoulder as she jumped down the stairs. A few minutes later they all heard a strange clacking noise and were on their backs sliding down where stairs once had been. Lily screamed along with Alice as they flew into the common room.

Lily stood up and looked back at where the stairs had once been tugging down her sweater. "What the bloody hell was that!"

"Sorry Lily I forgot you didn't know, apparently whenever a boy tries to get up to the girls dormitories they level out and become a slide. I thought it would be an easier way to get our luggage down here."

"It was," Marlene huffed, "but you could have given us a warning instead of scarring the shit out of us!"

"But that would ruin the fun of it!" Sirius Black- who Lily guessed had been the one to change the stairs as he was still lying on his back- yelled loudly.

I reached down to grab my trunk only to find another hand already there. As she looked up she met eyes with James Potter. "I've got it, thanks." Lily said looking at her hand, which was hovering over his, waiting for him to it.

"Lily…" James whispered, his other hand reaching out to touch hers, which she moved away quickly. "Lily we need to talk." He looked so serious, standing there in front of her.

" Well," She replied, looking up into his eyes, only to realize how close he was standing, she took a step back, "I don't really want to talk to you right now. Okay, so if you'll please let go…"

"No, Lily-"

"Lily! Come on you bloody wanker or we'll miss the train!" Alice called as she passed through the Fat Lady's Portrait. Lily grabbed her trunk from James and dragged it after her friends.

The way to King's Cross seemed to take forever. Alice had wanted to sit with her boyfriend who in turn wanted to sit with the Marauders, thus meaning Lily had to sit with James. She felt his eyes roaming over her body appreciatively and sighed. She was looking out the window at the English country side as they raced past. At some point Alice and Frank went off to snog in an empty compartment, and then Peter and Sirius went off to find the lunch trolley. After a while Marlene went off to find Evangeline and her Raven claw friends not finding the rest of us suitable company.

The rest of us…There was no the rest of us, Remus on account of him not talking to the Marauders wasn't here. So it was just me and…

James

He waited a bit, I guess to see if I was going to stop reading. Fat Chance. I was really not in the mood to talk, but once he slid over to the seat next to me, grabbed my book mark out of my lap and put my book behind him I guess I didn't really have much of a chance.

I mean, the only way I could have gotten my book back would have been to reach past him. But that would mean getting close to him again, and I don't think I could handle that, so I satisfied my self with looking out the window.

"Lily come on…Lily," he rested his hand on my shoulder, I suppressed a gasp at the tingle I felt when he touched me. "We have to talk, okay, I'm sorry. I really am so, so, so, sorry. I didn't mean to go so far, okay; my hormones got the better of me." Still I ignored him, or at least I tried, it was a bit harder when he got out of his seat and kneeled in front of me so I could see his face in the corner of my eye. "Lily I'm really, truly sorry." He looked so sincere, "I didn't mean to-"

"Stick your hand up my shirt?" I put as much venom into that single phrase as I possibly could, he flinched. "Well you did, Potter, to late, it's done. Now please leave me alone." I looked out the window. Even in this completely silent compartment I nearly didn't hear him.