Title: Light

Author: Amelia Bedelia
Chapter Nineteen: Carisbrooke Castle

AUTHORS NOTE: Over half a year later… :coughs:

Sorry for the wait. But it's finally here for all those still interested!

Chapter Nineteen: Carisbrooke Castle

Several weeks had passed and the wet slosh, formerly snow, had been cleared away, opening up the grounds for outdoor activities. The giant squid in Hogwarts' lake had even floated up to the surface to play in the warm, April sunshine.

But things inside the castle had changed very little. Sirius and Bella celebrated their three month-anniversary three days after Remus and Breanna had celebrated their own anniversary. James and Lily merely turned their heads at the obvious continued to protest they were, "just friends."

Charles brushed off the incident between James and himself, knowing it would merely lead to more trouble. And, he had reasoned, he deserved it. Lily had either forgotten about the fight or chose to not bring it up in future conversations, although many suspect the latter. It had etched a spot in her mind somehow, and she didn't forget that moment three months ago.

Classes grew intense as their end of year finals drew nearer. Of course, they weren't as overworked as those taking OWL's or NEWT's, but they were still finals all the same. Their free-time in the past was now reserved for extra homework or other school activities, which left small amounts to be together. There was, obviously, time to work on homework together.

And both James and Lily found plenty of time to work on homework together.

School began to slip down to the number two priority in Lily's life. Occasionally, she would forget assignments and have to turn them in late. It barely hurt her grade, naturally, but the fact that Lily would repeat these careless mistakes over and over again was a shock in itself.

James told her he was getting concerned about her forgetfulness numerous amounts of times, but those conversations always ended up on different topics, such as Quidditch, their friends, or James' latest vision.

In general, James' sleep had increased a great lot, as opposed to when he had started receiving visions. He still continued to have visions – rather similar to nightmares – each night, however not all visions seemed to be about Voldemort. A few nights earlier, James witnessed a house robbery at a Muggle's home. The odd part was that he knew neither the Muggle nor the robber.

These were the types of visions James would prefer to have. For starters, there was no murder or act that would have a horrid outcome on the whole world. The second reason was the fact that calmer visions didn't affect his health as bad as a nightmare-like vision – a vision in which a loved one dies, terror reigns over a group of people, or Voldemort is involved – would affect him.

For example, when James saw the vision with the robber, he merely rolled over and went back to sleep, making a mental note to briefly mention it to Lily, mainly for amusement purposes.

But tonight was certainly not a vision such that he had seen before. There was nothing relaxing about it.

"Lily!" James hissed up the girls stairs. "Lily, get up!"

He stomped around at the bottom of the stairs and then sat, grunting as he fell with a thud. It was no use trying to be quiet, yet loud enough to get someone's attention. A ridiculous thought that he could even do that, really.

"James, what do you want? It's three in the morning!"

James sat up incredulously. "You heard me?" He laughed forcefully, a little louder than he had intended.

"Hush! You're going to wake everyone up!" Lily slapped him on the arm and walked over to the fireplace.

"Ouch… That hurt you know."

Lily ignored his complaint. She added two more logs and shot a small spark from the end of her wand into the fire. "Much better…"

"How'd you hear me? I was hardly whispering!"

Lily nodded and sat on the couch. She covered herself with a thin blanket and clutched a throw pillow to her chest. "Well, I was already awake."

James looked down at her, mildly concerned. "Couldn't sleep?" He tried to sit beside her, but she shooed him away to the opposite side of the room.

"I was up until past midnight working on homework. Before I went to bed, I ate some of my Sirius' home cooking. He's taking a class from the house elves now, you know…" she added, matter-of-factly with the smallest of smiles.

James laughed good natured. He had heard all about his new decision to take up cooking, and had even tried some of his food he gave them. The taste of it depended entirely upon the fact of whether or not the elves had helped him.

"I think I had let his food sit for too long and something disagreed with my stomach." James noticed her pale complexion in the flickering light. "I have been lying on the floor next to the toilet for the past hour. I barely had the strength to get down the steps."

James immediately jumped into nursing mode. He found a bowl of dinner, several nights old. Moving quickly, James poured the remains outside the cracked window and returned the bowl to Lily.

"When did you last throw up?" he asked, finding several more blankets in a small closet. He carefully placed each on top of Lily and tucked the sides in on the couch.

She smiled at his acts of kindness. "Fifteen, possibly twenty minutes ago. I feel better now, really, just weak. Only a little bout of food poisoning, James. That's it."

He shook his head firmly, reminding Lily strongly of Madame Pomfrey. "You never know what it might come to – just precautions."

Lily laughed, but felt her movement being constricted by the layers of blankets piled on her. She gave up on the though of arguing with him any longer. "James, you called me down in the first place – was there something that you needed?"

"Right – that…" He looked almost as if he hoped Lily had forgotten about their reason for meeting.

"What is it?" Lily asked, alerted by his negative reaction. "Was it another 'dream'?"

"Well – no, not exactly." He laughed nervously, avoiding eye contact.

"James, what happened?" she demanded, daring him to change the subject.

"Lily, I really don't know anymore. It's too fishy for me. I'm being set up, I just know it." James' voice cracked nervously.

"Wait," Lily said calmly, pushing herself into a sitting position with great problems. "Just relax. Everything is fine," she said.

"Trust me," James said, running a shaking hand through his hair, "nothing good could ever come from this."

Lily put a smile on her face, hoping to calm James down. "You're overreacting entirely too much. You've had - "

"He talked to me, Lily."

Lily blinked several times before the sentence took the full impact on her. "He? He who?" She dreaded the answer with every fiber of her body.

"You know exactly who I'm talking about."

Lily brought her hands together, taking deep breaths. "How?" she asked, disbelieving. "How could he talk to you?"

James stood, staring Lily down. "He looked directly in my eyes, Lily. This wasn't an ordinary dream. He spoke. To me."

Lily looked to be on the verge of tears. "But he can't. How could he even know – it's impossible!"

James paced in front of the fireplace. Behind the couch against the wall, the large shadow of his body moved back and forth, creating a darker room. "I could feel it coming," he said, replaying his memory. "I could see… Breanna's parents, both of them." James' voice was coming in short gasps now. "They were bound and gagged… Like Muggle shows… Couldn't move. Then – it just happened. Like it was a camera – he stood in front of them and he said…" James swallowed, stopping his movements. "He said I had one week."

Lily had unconsciously leaned closer the entire time James was speaking, and realized, with a gasp at the end of his story, where she was. Tentatively, she felt for the bucket in case she couldn't hold her stomach down any longer. Not because Sirius' cooking was coming back up; for a reason entirely separate from that.

Lily hovered over the bowl for several minutes, but was able to keep her stomach down. Bravely, she set the bowl down and leaned back, taking in a deep breath.

"One week," she said. "Until he kills them?"

James sat on the small table in front of Lily. Slowly, he reached out for her hand and held it in his, squeezing it slightly. "Maybe," he muttered. "Maybe it's an exchange – them for me." Groaning slightly, James shrugged. "He wants something."

Lily's logic began to kick in. "How are we supposed to know where? Or what, or how, or anything? Didn't he say anything else useful?" Lily grew furious, shaking with anger. "Bloody bastard…"

James felt relieved at her use of language. The amusement of her swearing lightened the situation.

"The where," James said, "is Carisbrooke Castle."

Lily looked dumbfounded. "Has someone been staying awake during History of Magic again?"

James smiled. "Thankfully, no."

"How?" she asked plainly.

James shrugged.

"Did he say it? A sign, perhaps?"

"Nope – I just saw it and I knew." He frowned, trying to understand it himself. "It's like all the other dreams that people have. When you're dreaming, everything clicks, but once you think about it when you're awake, you have no idea where you think everything up."

"So, we're going off a hunch."

"Exactly."

The pair stared at each other.

"You have to tell them."

James crossed his arms over his chest protectively.

"Yeah, I know."

! Later !

Lily opened to the back of a large book, tracing her index finger down the length of the column. She made a soft, breathy noise, and flipped backwards several pages.

"Did you find it?"

Lily nodded, stopping her search. She dropped her finger onto the name of the castle, looking up at James. "Is this the one?"

He nodded. "That's it, alright."

Lily leaned closer to the text. "'Carisbrooke Castle, located in the United Kingdom, is home to the resident ghost, King Charles I. Believed to be haunted, many Muggles worldwide fear to travel to this castle for vacation.'" Lily flipped the page and gasped. "Is that what it looks like?" She put a hand to her mouth. "It's amazing – look at the size of that castle! I'd say it's about twice as big as Hogwarts!"

James pointed to a spot on the lawn before the castle. "And that's where they were tied up."

Lily immediately stopped showing her amazement over the picture, slightly ashamed. "Well then," she muttered. "We have to do something."

James bit his lip. "What if it's another trap?"

Lily reached up to her hair and tugged on a loose strand, thinking.

"What if he just wants me to show up and Breanna's parents are really dead and just wants me to believe that they're not. Or maybe her parents are alive, but he won't 'trade' them for me. What if I don't want to do any sort of trade?"

Lily immediately rose from her chair and stood directly before James. "No what ifs, James. It only makes it worse."

James squeezed his eyes closed and brought a hand up to his temple, rubbing his forehead roughly. "Lily, I honestly can't handle this anymore. I'm sick and tired of having to be the hero. I can't take it anymore. I quit!" James threw a book to the ground angrily and brought his hands to his head, pulling out his hair.

Lily heard a soft clicking behind her, and realized it was the wooden chair, rocking back and forth on the legs as if it were in an earthquake. It slowly rose several inches off the ground, but Lily threw herself on top of it, sending it back to the floor with a thud.

James swallowed.

"Out." Her voice lowered to a deadly whisper. "Now."

James nodded and followed her obediently outside the library, head dropped like a boy deprived of candy.

Once the doors swung closed, Lily turned and began to yell at James. "You want to explain why you let your emotions get to you?" she shrieked.

"That hasn't happened since first year," he explained, ashamed.

"But that's different," Lily said. "That was when no one was able to control their magic. To get that upset after six years of training your magic is incredible. You shouldn't still be using wandless magic, James." She sighed, weakening at the sight of his hurt face. "You know how much energy that takes without a wand."

James nodded. "I couldn't perform spells right the rest of the night," he said, remembering his first year.

"And," Lily added, "I really don't think that we can afford any outbursts like that. Especially this week…"

James looked up at her sharply, almost surprised that she would say anything related to that, but soon realized how right she was.

Smiling, Lily grabbed James' hand and pulled him down the hallway at a slow walk. "Everything will be just fine," she said quietly. "We'll all get through this. But you know what's coming next."

James nodded, squeezing her hand softly. "You get the girls. I'll get the guys."

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()() Gryffindor Common Room ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

"And the reason why you had to interrupt my masterpiece was…?"

James threw a look at Sirius, brushing his doughy hands off on his robe, leaving two smeared handprints on his chest. Slowly, James shook his head and looked straight ahead, ignoring Sirius' question. "I would hardly call making cookie's a masterpiece – if that's what you called a cookie…"

"True," Sirius said, not ashamed, "there was only one cookie instead of three dozen, as the recipe called for, but I think it tasted just fine."

Remus rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "Sirius, if you were planning on making one cookie consisting of approximately three dozen cookie the recipe said, you should use the same amount of ingredients."

"Well I caught my mistake after the flour and eggs, cause I changed the other stuff."

"That's my point, Sirius, you need the same throughout the entire recipe, not just parts of it!"

"I thought it tasted fine…"

"Peter, you think anything tastes good."

James said the password quietly under his breath and the Fat Lady obediently opened her portrait for the four boys to enter. He walked slowly up the stairs to his dormitory, dreading each step he took.

"What's takin' so long, Prongs?" Sirius asked, very loudly. "Think we could move it along? It's not like we're walking to our deaths." Sirius deepened his voice. "'Dead men walking.'"

"Knock it off, Sirius."

Sirius frowned, upset. James had almost never acted this way with any of his friends, snapping at the smallest joke. It was an odd behavior he hadn't expected from his best friend.

"Finally," a voice from within their dormitory room groaned. It was Bella. "Lily told us that James wanted to speak to us."

The boys looked up at James, extremely perplexed. The girls were also here? This was big.

James closed the door behind the Marauders the second Remus' foot entered the room and began to spout off a combination of spells that locked and sound-proofed the door.

Whoa. Sirius slumped onto his bed, jaw dropped. This is huge.

"Nothing," James said fiercely, "and I mean nothing, leaves this room."

Peter nodded, walking backwards slowly. Unable to notice the pile of books behind him, Peter tumbled over backwards, landing on his backside. He didn't move.

No one moved.

"James, sit," Lily commanded, pointing to a chair. "You can't overwork yourself," she said, subtly reminding him of his accident earlier.

James nodded, staring obsessively at the floor, avoiding direct eye contact.

"The Potter family," he softly began, "is known for the generations that pass on talents to the heir. Each is different." No one spoke. "Last December, I figured out what my… gift is." He spat out the word with great difficulty. "Basically," he said, making the story short and simple, "I'm a seer."

He let the statement soak in. Even Lily seemed surprised. She already knew exactly what he was and everything that had happened to him over the past few months, but him saying it straight out as he just did seemed to have a different impact on her.

"So," Sirius muttered, his forehead creasing, "you can see stuff?"

James patiently nodded. This was the part that he was least looking forward to. Soon they were going to start to ask how it all worked, when he saw everything, what he saw.

"Only whenever something bad happens. And at night," he added, trying to answer with as many details as possible, so as to end this conversation quickly.

"Can you see Sirius whenever he steals the House Elves' food when they won't let him use it to cook?" Bella asked, completely honest.

James couldn't help but laugh. "Not that innocent of crimes. Usually," he said, bracing himself for the reaction, "I see Voldemort whenever he's plotting something or…" James looked up at his friends, and immediately back down to the floor. "You know."

"No," Breanna said, beginning to understand. "We don't know. James, what did you see?"

"Your parents," James said, his voice cracking, "are alive – but I can't guarantee the information. I already messed up once, I'm not assuming anything again."

Breanna nodded, hiding her happiness.

"I saw them killed by Voldemort, but I believe that it was a decoy used to confuse the Ministry of Magic. I'm assuming the Polyjuice Potion that was used remained after they were killed. But the next week," he continued, "Bella found a note on Sonetra's desk that showed Breanna's parents were alive. And that contradicted with my original vision."

Lily nodded, urging him to continue.

"I had a vision, though, that showed Voldemort with Sonetra, speaking to her parents who were very much so alive. Sonetra's luck, however, seemed to have run out, and she was killed that night."

James took a deep breath.

"Over the past few months, I was able to control the visions a lot better and got used to a lack of sleep, but last night… Well, it doesn't count."

Bella swallowed and pulled her legs close to her chest. She rested her chin on her knee, fear in her eyes.

"I saw a castle. Carisbrooke Castle. And Breanna's parents were in front of the castle, bound and gagged." James shrugged at the marvel of his vision the night before. "It was like a camera panning a shot. It turned Voldemort came into view and said, 'You have one week.' That's it."

Silently, Lily put a hand up to her eyes, wiping away her tears.

"Until…?"

James shrugged, looking over at Remus helplessly. "I think he wants a trade – me for Breanna's parents."

Sirius slapped his thighs, standing up and checking his watch. "So there's… what, six days left?"

James nodded.

"Well," Sirius sighed, allowing a smile, "plenty of time for us all to brush up on old spells, don't you think?"

James felt his insides lift, immensely powered by the thought of his closest friends all ready to back him up in the tightest situations.

"Wait," Peter muttered, "I thought the Dark Lord just wanted James – why do we all have to go?"

"Wuss," Sirius called, restraining from throwing out a fist at the boy's face. "You're just scared."

"No, I'm not," Peter said defiantly. He immediately returned to his normal composure, looking down. "What happens if we all show up and it ruins our chances of getting Breanna's parents back?"

Sirius sent Peter a glare, slapping James brotherly on the shoulder. "We're gonna go, right, James?"

James blinked several times, his eyes unmoving from a spot on the floor.

"No."

Lily looked around the room at the many astonished faces. She stopped on James, trying to decipher his look. "What do you mean, James?"

"You guys can't come. This is about me. I have to do it myself." He felt his eyes begin to water, and quickly swiped his fist across his face. "Pete's right. It might mess it all up."

The back of Peter's neck deepened to a dark shade of red.

"I'm going solo. I've had to depend on you all up until this point, but it's now time for me to do this on my own."

"James, you don't have to do it on your own." Bella tried to get through to James, reaching for his hand. "That's what friends are for, to support you. And you are one incredibly lucky guy, because you have six, wonderful friends."

James nodded and released Bella's hand, scratching behind his ear. "But did Voldemort tell you all that you had one week? He told me. Just me. If it means risking myself for Breanna's parents, so be it. Life would go on." He gestured to the group of them. "You all have each other."

"Dammit, James," Lily whispered, penetrating James' eyes with her own. "Don't speak like that. You know that nothing will happen to you. It can't," she said.

He nodded, deciding not to fight them anymore. "Either way, I've got to find Voldemort and figure out where this Carisbrooke Castle is."

"You're crazy," Sirius muttered, looking at his best friend. "Why don't you want any help, James?"

"I don't want him to hurt any of you anymore," James said strongly. "I'm tired of him ruining everyone's life and I know he won't stop until I make him. Not you. Not us. Me."

Struggling to accept this fact, Sirius nodded. "I got it," he whispered. "I would've done the same thing, Prongs."

James grinned. He pointed his wand toward his bedroom door and lifted all of the spells he had placed on there. "Thanks, guys," he said, opening the door for his friends. "I'm glad everyone's taking it so well…" James glanced at Lily and winked.

One by one, each person left the room, giving James a sympathetic or watery-eyed look, including a hug from Breanna.

"You're amazing, James," Lily said. She was the last one to leave the room, and took the moment to hug him close to her. "We'll have to work on some spells you forgot about after dinner."

"Ah," James muttered, swallowing hard. He felt his heart begin to pound and his blood throbbing in his ears. Now or never, Potter.

"Yes?" Lily asked, looking up to James.

Slowly, James closed the door again. "Lily, I need to tell you something."

()()()()()() Breanna ()()()()()()

"I feel horrible."

Bella gave her friend a hug, smiling at her. "Breanna, it's perfectly fine. James wouldn't blame you in the slightest."

"I feel so heartless, though," Breanna explained. She continued walking down the darkening corridors, hoping to make it to the library long before dinner. "I'm glad that he's a seer. I'm glad that he saw my parents. I'm glad he decided to track down Voldemort!"

"It's alright, Breanna. True," she admitted, "it may seem heartless, but I can assure you that it's perfectly natural."

"Then why am I not worried about James?" Breanna seemed to be pleading with Bella to find a good answer.

After a few moments of silence, Bella found the words to say. "Number one; you're too excited about your parents. And number two; we all know, already, that James will be just fine." She swallowed and looked over at her friend, beginning to doubt herself. "Right?"

Breanna crossed her arms, feeling a chill of air throughout the hallway. "Exactly," she said, reassuring herself.

"Breanna, you should be glad that he found your parents. We now have some good proof that your parents are, in fact, still alive."

"Yeah," she agreed. "But I still feel bad. I just wish we could help James."

"We can. Support him in every way possible. Make sure he gets plenty of rest. Make him eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

Breanna gave her friend a look of disbelief. "And is this you're way of saying he doesn't sleep or eat enough?"

Bella laughed. "Well, we all know that those boys can eat, but whenever they're put under stress, that all leaves."

"We could find some information about this Carisbrooke Castle that James has to get to." Breanna shrugged, throwing her hair over her shoulder. "We'd have to research all of the passage ways and secret tunnels." Breanna snapped her fingers, an idea coming to her. "We could make one of those map thingy's for him."

Bella laughed, glad to have her back in a good mood. "I heard from Sirius that it took them several months to find everything and record it all."

"But do you really think there can be a castle bigger than Hogwarts?"

"Good point," she muttered.

Breanna reached the library doors and stopped before entering, turning to Bella. "Muggles have already found and studied the castle, so there should be plenty of information already recorded. I'm just guessing Voldemort's borrowing the castle for a few weeks, and set up a few Muggle repelling charms for several miles around the castle."

Bella smiled at Breanna, handing over some of her books. "There couldn't be a better way to help James out."

Breanna grinned.

"That will be your job," Bella said, making Breanna's research sound official like a mission. "Find every single nook and cranny there is to find in that castle. Tell James all that you can; where everything is located. If time permits, we'll try to make a map for him." Bella leaned in, serious. "Let there be no surprises."

Breanna nodded, unnerved by Bella's look. "Got it."

Bella nodded. "Good. I'm going to hunt Sirius down," she said. "You start reading up on that castle."

Breanna mimicked a soldier, saluting Bella with a smile. "Yes, ma'am."

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()() Gryffindor Common Room ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

Peter was the first to leave their dormitory, bounding down the steps without a word. After spending a few hours at the Great Hall during dinner, he returned to the common room, hoping to have everyone cleared out by then. He turned and walked into a dark corner in the common room and sat in a chair, silently.

He heard several pairs of feet walking down the boys' staircase. After he was sure of his privacy, he held his left hand out before himself. Slowly, almost dreading, he pulled back his robe over his forearm and cringed at the sight.

A skull about two inches long was etched into his skin, glowing and black, with a snake protruding out of it's mouth. If you were to let silence fill the room for long enough, Peter would've sworn that you could hear the soft hissing constantly echoing in your head.

He carefully placed one finger on the jaw of the skeleton and his middle finger on the snake's head. It glowed a deep scarlet, looking like fresh blood seeping out of his skin. Peter watched it closely and noticed how the skull seemed to be moving on his arm, but soon realized it was his own arm, twitching under the pressure.

He lowered his arm, letting the sleeve fall over the top of his hand and conceal the tattoo. Peter closed his eyes in deep concentration.

Master, he thought, hoping for a direct connection. He heard a dull buzz in his ear. Peter had become used to this sound and was finally able to resist the temptation of pulling his hand away to cover his ears. It is Peter Pettigrew. I'm here.

Did he get the message?

Yes, Master. He will come.

When?

I don't know, Peter thought. He felt his powers draining from him second by second. He needed to make this conversation quick. I believe that I have talked him into traveling alone, Master.

There were a few moments of silence, and Peter felt the satisfaction of a mental smile from the Dark Lord. You amaze me, Pettigrew. I never thought you would have had the logic to persuade Potter.

Peter took this as a compliment. Most people would think that he was being spoken down to, but he had found this statement highly encouraging. Thank you, Master.

You will come when he does.

Peter swallowed, hoping that his fear did not show to the Dark Lord. Yes, Master.

Contact Rookwood before Potter departs. He will travel with you.

Yes, Master.

------------Sirius------------

"Does James really think we're gonna let him just waltz to this castle without us?" Sirius asked, highly puzzled.

"Of course, mate." Remus helped to pack away Sirius' cooking materials, relieved to see that he was retiring from his hobby. Sighing slightly, Remus stopped with a spatula in his hand. "Sirius, what would you have done?"

Sirius held up an egg beater, waving it around in the air passionately. "I would've told you lot to come with me!"

Remus laughed heartily. "Liar!"

"I am not," Sirius protested stubbornly.

Remus swatted Sirius on the arm with his spatula, leaving a large red mark in the form of the utensil shape. He pointed the spatula at Sirius accusingly, narrowing his eyes. "Tell the truth, Padfoot."

"I would've," he said, softer than before.

"Pretend," Remus said, packing away the spatula, "you can see Voldemort every night in your dreams. One of your friend's parents' are stuck within Voldemort's grasp, and the only way to get them out is to confront Voldemort yourself. Bringing friends, however, might risk your friend's parents' lives, or your friends' lives. Do you want to bring them, still?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Yes…?"

"You wouldn't do that, Sirius. You and James are both the types of people who would sacrifice yourself before anyone else."

Sirius sorted through the items on the kitchen counter, roughly pushing a carton of eggs off onto the floor. He cringed slightly at the crack, and looked guiltily at Remus who merely rolled his eyes. "Pretend," Sirius said, playing Remus' game, "I went to this castle alone without anyone. But then, without me knowing, my friends followed me and helped me without me figuring it out. I'd be able to pass a lie test if I was asked, wouldn't I?"

Remus laughed and shook his head. "That'd be nice wouldn't it?"

Sirius looked quickly up to Remus. "What do you mean 'wouldn't it'? It's completely possible. I bet James leaves on a broom. All we have to do is wait for a bit until he's far enough along for us to follow. Or," Sirius said, eyes glowing, "better yet, some of us could show up before and after so we could keep an eye on him. You know, just watch out for him. Just in case."

Remus nodded, holding up a pair of tongs. "It'd be better if we were able to know when he was in trouble and then come to his rescue."

"But nothing beats the classic of just going with him in the first place."

Remus zipped up Sirius' bag and handed it to him. He waved his wand quickly and cleaned up the eggs. "He won't let you. And you know that if you somehow manage to go anyway, he'll kill you."

"Eh," Sirius said, unaffected by this statement. "The threats come and go. It's part of the job."

"What is?"

The boys turned around, surprised to hear another voice other than their own in the kitchen.

"Bella, darling, how are you?"

"Sirius, I don't buy it for a second."

Remus laughed and grabbed the bag from Sirius. "I'll take this back, shall I?"

"Actually," Sirius said, smiling innocently, "might I be able to join you?"

"And get rid of me?" Bella asked, pouting to Sirius. "I think not."

"Later," Remus said quickly, exiting through the door.

Sirius grinned down at Bella and kissed her. "This place sure brings back memories, doesn't it?"

She laughed, nodding. "However, at that point in time, we didn't seem to have as many worries, did we?"

"Speaking of worries…"

Bella smiled. "I heard you two talking about James." She took Sirius' hand, smiling sadly at him. "Remus is right, you know."

"Yeah…"

Bella's eyes widened. "Oh, so you do know, you were just being difficult."

Sirius made a face at her as if it had been completely obvious. "Of course."

She laughed.

"Seriously, though," Sirius said quietly, "I can't just stand by and watch as everything happens. You know that I can't just watch; I have to be in the action."

She nodded, crossing her arms. "I distinctly remember you chasing Death Eaters in the form of a dog."

Sirius' eyes grew large. He began to breathe faster, his heart pumping rapidly. "Bella – Bella, that's it!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her gently, his face glowing radiantly.

She blinked, barely affected by his reaction. "What is?"

He let go of her roughly and ran a hand through his hair, pulling at the roots. "We're unregistered – they won't know – genius!"

Bella slugged him in the arm, the same spot that happened to have the spatula mark.

"Ouch… That hurt," he muttered, rubbing his arm swiftly.

She rolled her eyes. "I can see the hurt all over your face." She raised an eyebrow at Sirius, looking for an answer. "So… What were you going on and on about?"

"Animagi," Sirius said, staring her down. "We could easily pass as animals! As easy as that," he whispered, snapping his fingers simply.

Bella laughed loudly. "You seem to be forgetting a few minor details."

Sirius cocked his head to the side, looking exactly like the dog Bella had seen him transform into. "And that is…?"

"You and Peter are the only Animagi left. The rest of us are plain old humans."

Sirius made a face at her. "You poor people." He leaned in close, smirking mischievously at her. "You have no idea what you're missing."

"You know," she said, as quiet as Sirius, "I'm really content keeping my body the way it is."

Sirius raised his eyes suggestively. "I wouldn't blame you for that."

Bella laughed loudly, pushing Sirius softly. She turned from the room and ran, Sirius close on her tail.

()()()()()() Breanna ()()()()()()

Breanna climbed several flights of stairs leading to the Gryffindor common room, exhausted from hours at the library. She managed to lose her way several times because the stairs changed directions without her realizing it.

"Alberic Grunnion," she said to the woman in pink.

"Certainly, m'dear," she responded, the portrait swinging wide open.

She stumbled through the opening and made it to the circular table. Worn out, Breanna dropped her bag with a thud. She noticed Peter sitting in the corner with his eyes closed.

Slowly, Breanna walked over, waving a hand in front of his face, knowing perfectly well that he couldn't see it.

"Pete?"

His eyes immediately sprung open. He pulled his hand away from under his sleeve and ran it nervously through his hair. "Hello, Breanna," he said with a forced smile.

"Are you alright?" she asked, genuinely concerned with his health.

"Just fine, thanks." Peter stood up and moved around her. "I was going to do some homework, but I must've just fallen asleep."

Breanna looked back towards the table he had been sitting at. There was noting there. No books. No quills. No wand.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You sure?"

"Course I'm sure," he said. Quickly, Peter made his way to the other side of the room, pushing open the portrait. "Have a pleasant night."

!Lily!

"James, what's wrong?" Lily asked, concerned for him. "Did you have another vision? What happened?"

James walked around the room.

"Sit," Lily commanded, pointing to the same wooden chair that she had told him to sit in earlier.

"I can't, Lily. I can't keep still."

She rolled her eyes and pulled out the chair for him. "You're being silly. Just sit down, James."

James shook his head several times, and then turned to Lily. Grabbing her by the shoulders, he pushed her down into the chair herself.

She almost began to laugh. "I'm not the one who needs to sit."

"Lily – stop it."

Lily frowned, confused.

"Just stop."

"James," she whispered, "what am I doing?"

He pulled at his hair, circling the chair. "You're driving me crazy, Lily."

She just sat there for several minutes as James walked around in a daze. "Well… If you tell me in specific what I'm doing, I could change it."

James shook his head, his hair flopping back and forth across his forehead. "Everything," he said softly.

Lily didn't move. She didn't say anything. There was nothing that anyone could say to that statement. She just waited.

After another walk around her chair, he dropped to the ground before her, head bowed. "Your walk," he whispered, "your talk, your thoughts, your feelings, your personality. Everything."

Lily crossed her arms, offended. She felt tears tempting to float out of her eyes.

"Everything you've done," he said, hoping to look intently into her eyes, but she avoided all contact. "You're always helping me. And I have nothing to give back to you."

Lily felt him reach out to her and take her hand. Swallowing, she looked back to him, finding striking brown eyes looking directly into her own.

"I can't count the number of times you would stay up late into the night listening to my vision, help me with last minute essays, supporting me with every decision I make."

Lily felt her chin tremble, tears falling freely, now.

James readjusted, kneeling before Lily. He took her hand and kissed it sweetly.

"Lily," he whispered, "I love you."

Lily nodded and roughly swiped away her tears. She sniffed, trying to calm herself, but it was impossible.

James felt a burden from the past months being lifted off of his shoulders, and he found room to breathe openly, again. He stood up, feeling much braver than he had before, and pulled Lily to her feet. "I love you, Lily," he whispered again, taking her face in his hands.

Lily brought her hands up to her face, shielding her tear-streaked cheeks from view.

James just stood with her for several moments. Once more, he spoke to her sweetly. "I love you."

"Don't do this to yourself," Lily whispered inaudibly behind her hands.

Puzzled, James pulled down her delicate hands covering her face. His face came into view, pale.

Lily dropped both of his hands and stepped around him, heading straight for the door. As she approached the wooden door, she grabbed for the handle and opened it in a surreal sort of reality. She looked over her shoulder one last time.

James had not turned around. His chin was resting on his chest. His shoulders dropped several inches. Lily watched as his legs shook under the weight and he collapsed quietly onto the grounding, kneeling in front of the empty chair.

She left.

AUTHORS NOTE: Weeell, not exactly an ending that any of you would really praise me on or anything. Don't you find it kind-of funny that my big "comeback" is a sad chapter? Wonderful. Only now I can assure you that I have several ideas for the future chapters and, as sorry as it sounds, this story is, in fact, coming to a close. A few chapters including the final showdown and it will probably be done.

REVIEW SECTION:

Elise: Thanks a lot! And thank you for reviewing!

Jackie: Thanks, I'm really glad! Thanks for reviewing!

Cynthia: Thank you! I hope the wait wasn't too long! I'm also glad you liked the whole Helen idea:) Thanks for reviewing!

Amelia Blibson: Nice name – sounds vaguely familiar… Haha! Thank you for reviewing!

HPwanaBe Wow, a full year? Awesome! Thanks a lot for reviewing!

Aly Thanks! And thank you for reviewing!

Damned For Eternity: Thank you! And I'm glad that you liked the Sirius/Dumbledore bit:D Thanks!

StarryFaerie Yeah, my chapters are a bit long, and I've known that for quite a while, but this one is a few pages shorter than the recent ones. (Well… I don't really know if I can say recent…) Thanks for reviewing!

CrystalBallerina Yes, Sirius and Bella are rather a popular couple, aren't they:D Thank you for reviewing!

Elladora D. Jobberknoll: Aw, thanks for the nice comments! And thanks for reviewing!

Xsilver-musicx And have you still been checking for updates? Cause I wouldn't be able to stay that long… haha! Thanks for reviewing!

o): Wow, um… sorry I didn't update on time… haha! But thank you for reviewing!

Randomperson Breathe! BREATHE! Don't laugh that hard! You're not supposed to die! Haha! Thank you for reviewing!

Ages: I'm SORRY it was so long! Jeesh, imagine getting reviews like this at two months, and then think about what I've been getting at nine months… haha! Thanks for reviewing!

Sarah B.: Aw, thanks! Haha! And thank you for reviewing!

Ohepelss Oramtnci: Sorry it wasn't sooner! But thanks for reviewing!

Truffletruffle01: Yes, it did take awhile for them to get the picture, but they still aren't together… Haha! Thanks for reviewing!

Jennifer Cole: I'm sorry! Don't hurt me for taking so long… haha! Thank you for reviewing!

Trinakim haha – sorry about the ending! Thanks for reviewing!

PinkPanther I know, bad ending! Haha! I'll work on those… And sorry for the long wait – I think you're the thousandth person I've said that to… haha! Thank you for reviewing!

Gluetastesbad Thanks:D And thanks for reviewing!

De-Lovely: It is no longer "four months since I've updated," it's about nine months, now. How sad is that:shakes head: I'm HORRIBLE at keeping a normal schedule when I write! Sheesh… Ah well – thank you for reviewing!

LJfanatic605: Wow – so much caps lock! Haha! Sorry it took so long – thanks for reviewing!

Razy Reviewer: I'm so glad you liked a whole bunch of stuff all tied in together! I try to balance it all out as hard as I can! Thank you for reviewing!

Laughinggurl Whoa, I thought you just said you write it twice in two days, and I'm going "wow – you have that much patience to be quiet that long? Amazing…" haha! Thanks for reviewing!

Elily Thanks:D I'm glad you think so! Haha! And thank you for reviewing!

Laura: Thank you:) Thanks for reviewing!

Red Pixie77: Yes, there will probably be a lot more Lily/James romance from now on. I think that's the main romance stuff that I'll be focusing on, but anything else that's there is probably added spur of the moment. Thank you for reviewing!

Alex C. Potter: I think I'm going to have them get together end of 6th year, that way it wraps up the year, and I don't think it really interferes with the books too bad. The books say that James got better and Lily and James finally went out 7th year, but if I say summer, that could possibly work out… :D Thanks for reviewing!

Chrissy8887779999: Thanks:) And thank you for reviewing!

Lastjumpfalls I'm now finished with school for the summer, and I have plenty of ideas for stories, so I'm hoping I get a TON of stuff done this summer! Thanks for reviewing!

Padfootedmoony Thanks! And thank you for reviewing!

Wudnulike2know: I'm glad you like the title – I had some problems with it, but I guess it works:D Thanks for reviewing!

NEXT CHAPTER: The gang uses whatever methods they can to help James out. You'll definitely get more information about Carisbrooke.

As a little note for anyone wondering, Carisbrooke Castle is, in fact, a real castle. However, I don't think Voldemort ever really took over the place and kept everyone else away… That part was pretty much made up.

Thank you everyone for reading! Hope you enjoyed it!

Yours truly,
Amelia Bedelia