Chapter 13
In The Garden
A slamming door startled Lily from her slumber. She looked around, disoriented, before she remember where she was. And who she was with.
Merlin, what time was it? Had Anne noticed she'd never returned to her bed last night? And where the hell were her clothes?
Lily pushed herself into a sitting position, the blankets slipping off her bare chest. The movement disturbed James, who cracked open one eye. A grin spread over his face as he took in his view. Lily, blushing, automatically reached to pull the blankets back up, but James stopped her.
"You're beautiful," he whispered in her ear, sending tingles down her spine. "Please don't hide your body from me."
Lily opened her mouth to reply when the bed curtains suddenly flew open as a voice shouted, "Prongs, wake up, you're going to be late for Potions."
Screeching in surprise, Lily clawed at the sheets. James protectively pulled her against him, leaving only her bare back exposed to Sirius, who stood petrified in dumbfounded, wide-eyed, open-mouthed shock alongside the bed.
"Get lost, Black," James bellowed, truly angry. He threw a hand towards Sirius, who stumbled backward as if hit by an invisible force. With another wave of James' arm, the curtains raced shut, plunging the bed back into darkness.
Lily tried not to hyperventilate. "The entire school will know in an hour. Professor McGonagall will take my Head Girl badge away," she cried.
"Love, I promise she will not," James replied, pecking her on the lips. He swung his legs over the edge of the mattress and pulled on his boxers. He then slipped around the bed curtains and she heard him yell again. "Sirius Black, don't you dare leave this room."
"You just told me to get lost," Sirius retorted.
"This doesn't leave this room, Sirius, do you understand? Not a word to anyone, not even Remus or Peter."
"But Prongsie," Sirius whined.
Lily flinched as she heard something, or someone, hit the wall with a loud thump. She began feeling around for her missing nightdress, curious to know what was going on beyond the curtain.
"Will you cut it out with the wandless magic?" groaned Sirius.
"Swear to me, Sirius. Swear you won't breathe a word, not one wise crack, nothing."
"Shall I swear on my dear mother's grave?" Sirius inquired jovially. "Although she's sadly not in it yet."
"You'll swear on my mother's grave," James growled, his voice dangerous.
Lily finally located her clothes near the foot of the bed. She hurriedly dressed, listening with rapt attention to the altercation continuing beyond the hangings.
"Don't you think you're overreacting just a little?" reasoned Sirius. "It's not like anyone will care."
"Lily cares," shot James. "Now swear, or I'll never speak to you again."
A stunned silence followed James' threat. Finally, Sirius spoke in a meek, but serious, voice. "I swear, on your good mother's grave, I will take what I saw and what I know to my grave."
"Thank you," James replied, his voice more relaxed.
The door opened and closed, and Lily felt safe to emerge from behind the bed curtains. James pulled her close to him. "I'm so sorry," he muttered into her hair. "My actions last night were completely inappropriate..." The rest of his breath left his lungs in a big gush as Lily punched him.
"Don't you dare apologize, James Potter. I wouldn't take back last night for the world."
James gaped. "You wouldn't? Even knowing Sirius would find out?"
Lily nodded as she embraced him again.
"So does meant we can do it again?" he asked hopefully.
Lily laughed. "I most certainly hope so. But next time, I'll make sure I put a sticking charm on the curtains. Now, you'd better get dressed. We have five minutes to make it to Potions."
James glanced at the clock and back at Lily's disheveled figure. "I'll make it, but what about you?"
"Just worry about yourself. Slughorn will buy any excuse I feed him."
"Here," James opened the trunk at the foot of his bed and pulled out a shimmering cloak. "Just in case there is anyone in the common room."
"I love you," Lily gushed, rising onto her toes to kiss him. "See you in class." She pulled the cloak over her head and rushed out the door. Several older students with free periods lounged in the common room, making Lily exceptionally grateful for the invisibility cloak. She charged into her dormitory to change into fresh clothes and tame her hair. She took her time, ensuring she looked no different than any other morning, while she mulled over possible excuses.
Twenty minutes later, Lily strolled calmly into Potions class. "I'm so sorry for being late, Professor. One of the first year girls became ill so I helped her to the infirmary. You may check with Madam Pomfrey, if you'd like."
Professor Slughorn just waved her off. "No need, no need, Lily, my dear. The other students have a head start on their Fire Protection Potions, but I dare say that just gives them a sporting chance once you get brewing. Remember, though, you will be testing them personally."
Slughorn sauntered off to gauge his pupils' progress as Lily quickly set up her cauldron, potions book and ingredients. Anne shot her a look that spoke volumes. Clearly, Lily's absence from bed that the morning had been noted. However, much to Lily's surprise, Anne gave her a huge grin, a thumbs up, and then motioned locking her lips and throwing away the key. No swearing on graves required in exchange for Anne's silence.
The day before the seventh year ball, Lily entered the common room expecting to find James, Sirius, and Peter snoozing on the sofas after a night in animagus form. Instead, she found three rather awake, yet disgruntled, men.
"Rough night?" she teased.
"Anything but," replied Sirius tersely. "Moony didn't want to do anything except sleep. Said he didn't want us up all night so we were exhausted for the bloody ball."
"And that's a problem why?"
"Because sleeping isn't adventurous," he shouted.
"Sleeping can be plenty adventurous, Black," Anne shouted back as she stepped off the final dormitory step. "You just have to sleep with the right person."
"Padfoot is just upset because all his planning was for nothing," James explained softly. They stopped talking about the full moon as Anne came within normal earshot of their group.
She seemed to do a sort of head count before asking, "where's Remus?"
"In the hospital wing. He got pretty sick last night. We think Snivellus may have put something in his dinner," James said quickly, as Lily, Sirius, and Peter all nodded in agreement with the rehearsed lie.
"Oh," Anne replied, looking slightly crestfallen. "He is sick a lot, have you ever noticed?"
Sirius coughed slightly before replying convincingly, "well, he accidentally got into some potion when he was a kid, which weakened his immune system. He doesn't like talking about it though."
Anne seemed temporarily satisfied by that answer, and they all clambered out through the portrait hole and toward breakfast. Lily and James hung back a bit from the rest of the group, holding hands as they strolled through the shafts of sunshine breaking through the dusty windows. Something had changed after their night spent together. Maybe it was just knowing she was loved so deeply by another person, but Lily swore she could feel the slightest magical energy whenever she touched James. No matter how many times he whispered "I love you," the thrill she felt whenever he said it still hadn't faded. She hoped it never would.
The night of the ball arrived with utter chaos at Hogwarts. Due to the decoration of the Great Hall for the dance, a dinner of sandwiches and pumpkin juice was served in each very crowded common room for all the younger students. Above the frantic Gryffindor common room, five seventh years girls tried to deal with the fact that their bathroom had only one mirror. The possibly volatile situation was defused when Anne suggested getting ready in shifts. While Liza used the mirror to apply her makeup, Anne and Christine did Lily and Julian's hair. Once Liza was finished, it would be Julian's turn for the mirror, and so on. And James had questioned why they needed three hours to get ready for a dance. Showed what he knew.
Lily blew a rogue strand of red hair away from her face, as Anne yanked none too gently on the rest.
"Stop moving your head," Anne commanded, curling a strand of fiery hair with her wand.
Christine announced Julian's hair done, and Lily's eyes followed Julian across the room, admiring the tight, sleek up-do of chestnut locks, studded with sequins to match those in her dress robes. A Witch Weekly had been constantly open in their dormitory in the week leading up to the ball. Each girl agonized over a hair style and the required wand movements to accomplish it. Lily had finally selected a messy bun style that allowed some of her hair to cascade down past her shoulders in soft curls.
With a final flick of her wand, Anne announced that Lily's hair was finally finished. Crossing the room to peer into the now vacant mirror, Lily couldn't deny she looked very good, but the word "hooker" kept popping up in the back of her mind. She closed her eyes and touched the tip of her wand to both eyelids. When she opened them, sparkly, green eyelids and mascara covered eyelashes stared back. She touched the wand to her lips next, puckering to smooth the fresh pink lipstick. She adjusted the long silver necklace accenting the plunging neckline of the robe and made sure the matching, dangling earrings were secure. Her thumb brushed against the silver ring she had slipped onto her right ring finger, an heirloom passed down to her on her sixteenth birthday by her mother. The single, shimmering pearl nestled in its setting, rimmed on the right side by three tiny diamonds. Lily was well aware it was probably the most expensive thing she owned.
She left the mirror and sat on her bed, waiting for the other girls to finish. It was half past seven already, and Lily's stomach ached for dinner, which wasn't scheduled to be served until eight. Fifteen minutes later, all the girls were fully primped and ready to go. As Anne opened the dormitory door, an obnoxious voice floated up from the common room.
"Any time now would be good ladies."
"Patience is a virtue, Black," Anne returned before beginning to walk carefully down the spiral staircase, her heels clicking on each step. Lily had worried Anne would regret attending the dance without a date, but she was happy to see Anne walking into the common room with her head held high.
As Lily emerged into the common room behind Anne, she was quite happy to see the dumbstruck expression on James' face. Julian giggled behind Lily. "I told you he would die when he saw you." She raised her camera and snapped a picture of James' gape before moving to find her own date.
James seemed incapable of speech as Lily approached him. He looked very handsome in his black dress robe with white tuxedo-like undershirt. It even looked like he had attempted to tame his unruly black hair, but with little success.
He finally managed to close his mouth as Lily gave him a gentle kiss. "You…look…ravishing," he finally managed to say with short, breathy words. His eyes swept across her entire body several times, halting briefly somewhere south of her chin, before moving back to her face.
"You can thank Anne for this," Lily replied, indicating her garb. "She picked it out."
"I always liked her," James replied distantly, still distracted by Lily's dress robe.
"We're ready to go whenever you feel you can safely put one foot in front of the other," Anne called to James from near the portrait hole.
Julian forced everyone to huddle together, then bullied a fourth year into taking a picture of them. As the portrait of the Fat Lady closed behind them, the obese woman called helpfully, "I don't expect to see any of you until very late, do you hear me? But don't do anything I wouldn't do."
A fair number of students milled around the entrance to the Great Hall, waiting for their dates from other houses. Peter met his date, a rather pudgy, but friendly looking fifth year from Ravenclaw. They had been set up by Sirius' date, a very attractive Gryffindor fifth year, who had no doubt fallen for one of Sirius' signature pick up lines. Christine immediately squealed in delight and ran to hug her boyfriend, who had graduated the year before and made a special trip back to take her to the ball. She, as his longtime girlfriend, was the only one of Lily's friends who had been to any past balls. Julian had, in her own words, "caught herself a Quidditch player". Lily immediately formed an opinion that the seventh year Hufflepuff Beater had more muscles than brains, but he was rather nice to look at. Liza completed the couplings with her date, a Ravenclaw sixth year prefect. This left Anne as the only one without a partner, but she still seemed completely content.
The Great Hall had been transformed. The floor, usually covered by four long house tables, was dotted with round, eight person tables. Golden utensils sparkled atop maroon table cloths. Each table displayed a magically un-meltable ice sculpture as a centerpiece, which doubled as a fountain. The platform where the teachers usually sat also housed several round tables, at which many of the professors were already seated. Erected against one wall sat a stage that would eventually hold the live band. Climbing vines sprouting petite flowers every few centimeters covered the walls. The vines even traversed the high ceiling, creating flowering arches, giving the illusion of being under a garden trellis. Magical streamers swam lazily through the air, carefully avoiding the levitating candles charmed into chandeliers over each round table.
James and Lily sat at one of the tables in the middle of the Great Hall, along with Sirius, Peter, their dates, and Anne. One chair remained conspicuously unoccupied, and Lily secretly hoped some handsome seventh year would take it for Anne's sake. Christine, Julian, and Liza, along with their dates, grabbed the next table. Lily looked down at her empty plate longingly. She was no longer just hungry, she was starving. The boys began a heated, but still friendly, discussion of professional Quidditch with the men at Julian's table. The final, straggling students were taking their seats when Lily heard two familiar voices ringing in the now empty entrance hall.
"I can walk ten meters, it won't kill me."
"Part of our agreement, I remind you, is that you do exactly what I tell you regarding your health. Hence, you will not be walking, dancing, or doing anything more strenuous than eating tonight. You will sit in your chair the whole night. If you wish to visit the gardens, you will be wheeled out there. Do you understand me?"
A weak "yes ma'am" followed.
Anne's head snapped up at the sound of the voices. A few seconds later, Madam Pomfrey appeared, pushing a very harassed looking Remus Lupin in an old fashioned wheelchair. Anne looked at Lily briefly, as if for confirmation that she wasn't hallucinating, before turning back to stare at Remus.
"Did you know?" Lily whispered to James, who watched the unfolding scene with a mischievous grin.
"I knew he was going to try and talk her into it. I didn't think he'd succeed."
Remus directed Madam Pomfrey to their table, with a broad grin on his tired face. Lily noticed half-healed cuts on the side of his face and arms. He raised a hand to wave at them, and Lily didn't miss the grimace of pain that crossed his face. Having his entire skeletal structure rearranged twice in one night must be hell on his muscles.
"Is this seat taken?" he asked Anne softly, rolling to a stop alongside the eighth chair at their table.
She shook her head, and he stood to get into the dining chair. He looked away from Anne as he did so, hiding another grimace. Madam Pomfrey watched the process like a hawk. Once she was sure Remus would not suddenly fall out of the chair, she made the wheelchair vanish with a swish of her wand. She joined the professors at the front tables, with the simple warning, "if I see you out of that chair you'll be back in your hospital bed faster than a summoning charm."
Remus leaned over and whispered something to Anne, making her blush and smile at the same time. Before Sirius or James could make any inappropriate comments, Headmaster Dumbledore stood. His very presence commanded almost instant silence.
From her first day at Hogwarts, Lily recognized Dumbledore as a man who had the gift to know exactly what to say in any situation. She had heard him make rousing speeches, but he was also a man of few words when the time called for it. She and her rumbling stomach were very happy when he decided this was one of the occasions for few words.
"Welcome, everyone, but especially our seventh year students, to the seventh year ball. Please enjoy your evening." He waved his hands and small menus appeared on everyone's plate, signalling the start of the feast.
The clinking of silverware on plates complimented buzzing chatter as students ate. Lily contently listened as Sirius and Peter's dates talked excitedly about the band that would be playing: Salem's Revenge. Their conversation, however, halted when Peter accidentally spilled a goblet full of pumpkin juice down his front, causing Sirius to laugh and simultaneously choke on his food. James chuckled as he gave Sirius several hard pats on the back, which didn't seem to help the situation. Peter, completely red faced, had to try the scourgify charm three times before it worked properly. His date looked a little embarrassed. She was clearly there for the food, the band, and the chance to say she had attended.
After Peter cleaned himself up and Sirius regained a normal capacity to breathe, the conversation came around to what they were all going to do after Hogwarts. Lily knew more than half the people at the table were planning on joining up with Dumbledore's secret order to fight Voldemort, but with a small start, she realized she didn't know what anyone wanted to do as a legitimate job, not even James.
"I'll take whatever job the ministry offers me," Anne quipped quite seriously. She wanted to get into government, but also knew she would have to start at the bottom and work her way up if she wanted any sort of power.
James shrugged at the question. He didn't have to worry about money. "I was thinking professional Quidditch maybe, or perhaps an Auror, though I don't know if I'm good enough in Potions."
"I want to work at Zonko's," Sirius replied, obviously joking, but offering no further information.
Remus remained oddly silent as he pushed mashed potatoes around his plate. Lily figured he was so tired he may not be paying attention to their conversation.
"I'd like to work in the experimental charms department at the Ministry," she said to no one's surprise. Most of the school knew she was excellent at Charms.
"I don't know yet," Peter said quietly, looking embarrassed again, this time because he hadn't picked a career. Lily, having grown so accustomed to Peter always tailing after James, Sirius, and Remus, wondered how he would get on when he was on his own.
"You're really good at Care of Magical Creatures," Lily suggested gently, knowing he was in the N.E.W.T level class. "I bet you could work for the Ministry with that."
Peter didn't seem thrilled with that idea, and the table fell into awkward silence as dessert appeared in front of them. For Lily, talking about what they were doing after Hogwarts had a depressing effect. She didn't feel like she was ready for the real world, after having lived in the relatively sheltered seclusion of Hogwarts for the past seven years. Despite being of age for over a year, she didn't feel like an adult. Graduation would come, though, forcing her to leave a place she considered a second home. Then she would be off to develop charms by day and fight dark wizards by night. It sounded like some Muggle superhero, she thought wryly, as the image of her standing atop a building, cape billowing in the wind and body covered in colorful spandex sprang to mind. Super Lily, felling Dark Wizards with a single spell! Except people got injured fighting Voldemort, some even died. For the first time, she began to regret agreeing to join Dumbledore's order. She had never felt more like a little girl than she did now.
"Lily…" James' voice brought her out of her internal self inspection. Somewhere along the way she had finished her cobbler, and the tables had been magically cleared. All the students rose to their feet, and it was only then that Lily noticed Dumbledore stood as well. Anne held Remus's arm bracingly as he slowly got to his feet. With a wave of Dumbledore's wand, the tables disappeared and the chairs flew against the walls. Seemingly of their own accord, the floating candles rearranged to light a large square area in front of the stage, reminding Lily of a Muggle disco.
A troop of men in brightly colored, sequined robes took their place on the stage, as more magical candles converged as spotlights. Lily followed James toward the stage, along with most of the other students, as the first chords of a song rang out. She looked over her shoulder, glimpsing Anne and Remus sitting against the far wall.
Despite the fact that the band was very good, and she loved dancing with James, after a full hour of ear splitting guitars and drums, Lily was ready for a break. She and James weaved their way out of the throng of dancing students and made for the gardens. Passing the spot she had last seen Anne and Remus, Lily was surprised to find them missing.
The gardens had been elaborately decorated for the ball. A shimmering magical dome covered the Hogwarts grounds, blurring the stars and barely waning moon, but also providing a pleasant climate for students to stroll and sit in. Life sized ice sculptures dotted the lawns and hedge gardens. The same flowering vines used inside the Great Hall covered most of the hedges as well. Wooden benches were strategically placed throughout the gardens, and several couples were putting them to good use. Lily resisted the urge to morph into Head Girl mode and reprimand them, especially since she had the sneaking suspicion she would end up no better than they by the end of the night. She ended up being right.
Lily wasn't sure what time it was when she and James finally made it back to the common room. Both had spent their time in the garden deliriously happy in the arms of the other, using the privacy of the high hedges to their advantage. They shared a long kiss goodnight, neither wanting to admit that the night had to end. Sirius, with his usual perfect timing, finally forced them to separate as he climbed through the portrait hole, cat-calling as he ascended the dormitory steps.
Opening her dormitory door, Lily found that no one was in bed yet. Anne sat in bed, already out of her dress robe and with her hair combed out, watching as Liza and Christine scrubbed the makeup off their faces and undid their hair. Julian, apparently, was still enjoying the night with her Quidditch player.
After Lily had changed, removed all her jewelry and makeup, and brushed out her hair, she sat down next to Anne, who gave her a very wide grin.
"Remus said he was afraid he would get sick and not be able to come. That's why he said he couldn't go with me," Anne spouted happily. "He said he didn't want to leave me dateless at the last minute, but that he really did want to go with me."
Lily smiled at her best friend, happy that she was happy. "So you don't care that you didn't dance?"
Anne shook her head. "We watched for a while, before he called Madam Pomfrey over to conjure his wheelchair so we could go out in the garden. It took us forever to convince her she didn't need to chaperone us, though."
"Should you have had a chaperone?" Lily teased.
"We were on our best behavior, thank you. I'm sorry I can't say the same for you, Ms. Evans."
Lily attempted to look innocent.
"Remus and I saw you and James as we were walking- well I was walking, pushing him- either way, Miss Head Girl, you seemed quite busy, so we didn't disturb you."
Lily's face matched her hair as she focused on a crease in Anne's bed sheets.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you," Anne said a few seconds later, tugging on Lily's hand so Lily looked up at her. "You and James really are great together. You've both changed so much this year, you had to. I see the way you look at each other and it's obvious that you're both completely and utterly in love. So, if you want to snog each other senseless in the garden, go for it."
"You're the best," Lily laughed, falling sideways onto Anne's pillow. She lowered her voice. "But I want to hear about you and Remus."
Anne grinned back at her friend. "There's not much to tell, Lily. We talked the whole night, and I wheeled him back to the hospital wing when he started getting really tired. That's it."
"No kiss goodnight?" asked Lily, disappointed.
"He's ill, Lily!"
"So?"
Anne sighed lightly. "He did ask me if I wanted to go to the next Hogsmeade weekend with him."
"You can kiss him then."
Anne wrenched the pillow out from under Lily's head and hit her with it. "Just because you're snog happy doesn't mean the rest of us have to be."
Another pillow sailed over and landed on Lily. "Go to sleep, you two," Liza commanded from her bed on the other side of the room. She turned to pull her curtains shut as Lily banished the pillow back at her, nailing her in the back of the head.
A magical pillow fight ensued within seconds. Christine got dragged in as a few conveniently off target pillows hit her. Julian finally made her appearance into the giggling dormitory, ducking as a pillow narrowly missed her already greatly messed hair.
The pillows ceased flying as the other four girls turned their attention to Julian. She sashayed into the bathroom, ignoring the questioning looks the other girls gave her. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Liza burst out "Julian, why is your dress robe unzipped?" as the other three girls roared with laughter.