Disclaimer: -Sighs- How many times do I have to tell you? I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER. –Sighs again-
A/N: Check out my other story, 'Meet the Parents!' and the sequel 'Meet the Parents 2'!
Chapter 13—Trapped
As Remus walked down the hallway, he started to put the pieces together in his mind.
Miss Cinderella has red hair.
Lily has red hair.
Every time we mentioned Miss Cinderella Lily would leave.
Lily acted jumpy around James.
The Monterey twins definitely know something about Miss Cinderella.
Lily left the auditions when James started to mention what color hair Miss Cinderella had.
Coincidence?
Or is Lily hiding something from James?
--
Breakfast ended for everybody and Lily left the Great Hall as soon as she could.
"What's her problem?" Tessa asked as she saw her friend run away.
Erica cleared her throat and pointed towards James who was whistling cheerfully next to Sirius and Remus.
"Oh," Tessa checked her watch. "We have free period next. I'm going to the common room."
"I'll come with you," Erica said, "Don't forget, I have free period too."
The two twins walked towards the Gryffindor common room not knowing that somebody was following them.
As they passed a corridor, Tessa snorted.
"Jeez, James really isn't giving up isn't he?"
The hallway was flocked with posters from top to bottom.
Erica took a careful look. "Nope."
"I swear, Lily should just tell James that she is Miss Cinderella!"
"TESSA! SHHH!" Erica looked over her shoulder. "We don't want anybody hearing!"
"Stop being a worry wart Erica. Nobody is following us."
However, what Tessa didn't know was that somebody was following them.
Bingo.
--
Lily couldn't help but avert her eyes towards James Potter in Potions class as Professor Slughorn (Potions teacher) went on and on about some creature.
He looked so handsome the way he tried (but to not avail) to pay attention to Slughorn. She sighed dreamily and ached to tell him who she really was.
"Miss Evans? Do you have the answer to this?" Professor Slughorn's question took Lily out of her daydream.
Suddenly, she felt everybody's eyes on her and she felt very conscious.
"Um," she said, averting her eyes downward, "The tail of a rat?"
"Excellent. Ten points for Gryffindor."
Lily was surprised that she got it right and looked over towards James. He saw her staring and smiled at her.
Lily dropped her gaze as her face turned bright red. She could feel James staring at her for the next five minutes.
If only you knew who I really were!
--
Tessa and Erica were quite bored in the common room.
They played through two games of chess and Gobstones and Erica tried to quiz Tessa in Teen Witch but Tessa flat out refused. She despised that magazine.
Therefore, Tessa turned the conversation to her favorite: Miss Cinderella.
"I really wish Lily would just tell James that she was Miss Cinderella!" Tessa moaned. "He would believe her if she brought the dress and put it on! Don't forget the mask! If she put that on, James would know automatically! Also, there's the conversation they had! Lily would know and he would know and she wouldn't be laughed at."
"I know Tess," Erica said sympathetically, "But Lily just won't."
"Why don't we then?"
"I'm not taking away my best friend's trust!" Erica exclaimed. "When Lily wants to tell James that she's Cinderella, she can. Otherwise, my lips are sealed. Especially yours, you big mouth."
Tessa scowled and crossed her arms. "What? I don't have a big mouth."
"Yes you do. Remember the auditions? You almost blew Lily's secret!"
"Oh shut up," Tessa took her bottle of black nail polish out of her bag and started to paint her nails with the dark liquid.
Erica watched her with disdain. "Can't you paint your nails some other color?"
"Like what?"
"I don't know. Maybe pink or blue?"
"Black and red are the best colors. Speaking of which, did you take my red nail polish?"
Something rustled behind a bush and Erica whirled around.
Her sister gave Erica a quizzical look. "What are you looking at?"
"I swore I heard something."
"Erica, you hear things that don't exist! Shut up and tell me if you took my red nail polish!"
"No, I didn't."
The person behind the bush smiled confidently as they wrote on a pad of paper:
Lily has the green strapless dress that M.C. was wearing. Tessa and Erica just talking about it.
The person looked at the ground and paused the magical tape recorder.
Here was all the evidence. It proved that Lily Christine Evans was the girl that James had been searching for the past two months.
Swinging a cloak around their self, the person snuck out of the common room without the twins knowing.
--
Bring.
The bell rang signaling the end of class.
Lily heaved her bag over her shoulder and left the room to go to Gryffindor tower. It was her free period now, which relieved Lily.
Lily climbed the staircase and walked to the tower.
"Password?" The Fat Lady asked.
"Fairy lights." Lily said and the portrait hole was revealed.
Climbing in, Lily walked to her dorm and saw her two friends painting each other's nails.
"Hey," she said, collapsing on the bed.
"Hey," Erica said painting her nails preppy pink, "There's a note for you."
"There is? From who?"
Tessa shrugged as she screwed the cap of the red polish off. "We don't know. It won't let anybody but the receiver open the message. By the way, have you seen my red nail polish? I have to use yours now."
Erica checked her watch. "Oh shoot! Tessa! We will be late for Ancient Runes!"
"I really don't care."
"Well I do! C'mon!"
"But I haven't finished my nails yet!"
"It can wait! Come on!"
Sighing and grumbling about annoying goody-goody sisters Tessa hopped off the bed, grabbed her bag and left the room leaving Lily by herself.
Lily was curious at what the letter was all about so she picked it up from off her pillow.
Lily Evans it said.
She frowned as she opened the letter.
Dear Lily,
I know all about your secret. You are Miss Cinderella. Don't lie and say you're not because I know you are. I have evidence proving that you are.
You have two choices. Either tell James yourself by Saturday or let me tell him.
If you want to know what kind of incriminating evidence I have against you meet me by the statue of Wendelin the Weird after dinner.
The note was unsigned.
Lily's hands were shaking as her eyes went wide.
Somebody knew her secret.
And they were going to tell.
Oh shit, shit, shit, this really sucked.
She re-read the note again and read the part about the 'evidence.'
What evidence did this person have against her? She never mentioned it in front of anybody!
Who could this person be? She hoped to god it wasn't Kellie Crosby or her two friends. God that would be horrible!
But who could it be? It couldn't be any of the Marauders. God no.
Well, whoever this person was, they had some sort of evidence and it was clear that they were going to use it against Lily.
--
She didn't think classes would ever end but they finally did.
It was dinnertime.
Lily ran down the stairs towards the Great Hall with her two friends hurrying in her wake.
"Whoa there lassie!" Tessa cried weaving her way through people, "What's your rush?"
"She's probably just hungry." Erica replied. "I know I am."
"Yeah, but Lily never acts like this. She's very—jumpy."
"Oh stop your blabbering and let's catch up."
The minute the Monterey twins caught up with Lily, she was already eating food as fast as she could.
"Easy there tiger," Tessa said watching Lily eat as if she hadn't had a decent meal in a couple years, "What is your problem?"
Lily knew she should at least tell her friends but the gossip queen of the Gryffindors (and shockingly it wasn't Marissa Everhard) Winona Steffey sat right next to her.
Lily knew the minute Winona heard anything about Miss Cinderella, she'd blab it.
Bad enough somebody knew. She didn't need the entire school.
"Nothing," Lily lied as she shoveled food into her mouth, "There's nothing wrong."
"Are you sure?" Erica asked in concern, "Because you're eating faster than usual and that's not good for you."
"I'm fine!"
"If you say so."
Not even three minutes later Lily jumped up and said, "I'll see you guys after dinner."
She bolted from the table and left the Great Hall.
"What was that all about?" Erica asked.
"I have no idea sis."
--
As Lily ran out, the person smiled.
She's right on time. Perfect.
Standing up, the person took the shortcut to the statue of Wendelin the Weird.
--
Lily dove through passageways and raced through corridors until she saw (distantly) the statue of the weird man named Wendelin.
As she encountered the statue, she heard a voice, "Lily Evans. Glad you came."
She spun around and gaped.
"Oh my god!"
--
Remus Lupin stood right in front of her, a smirk plastered onto his face.
"Remus!" She gasped. "What the—NO! It can't be you!"
He nodded. "Afraid so Lily."
Lily felt a ringing sensation in her ears. There was no way this could be happening.
James Potter's best friend found her secret!
She felt like she was going to faint from the shock.
"What's your proof?" Lily whispered. "What's your proof that you know that I'm Miss Cinderella?"
Remus gave Lily a smile and took out the tape recorder.
Pressing 'Play' Lily heard the entire conversation that Tessa and Erica had.
Her eyes went wide as she dug her nails into the hard stone and sunk to the ground.
I'm gonna kill them, she thought to herself, I'll murder them one by one.
Remus couldn't help but pity the girl as he watched her. She obviously was in a lot of shock.
"How did you find this all out?" Lily asked. "How did you get this information?"
Remus couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.
"I spied on them." Remus rubbed the back of his neck.
Lily looked up at him.
"Remus!"
He shrugged. "Hey, I'm a Marauder. That's part of our Code."
Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Were you serious about me saying that I have to tell James by Saturday?" Lily asked fearfully.
"Well," Remus rumpled his hair uncertainly, "I only said to intimidate you. You don't have to tell James by Saturday but you honestly need to tell him before the school year ends. It's only fair."
Lily sighed.
"If you don't," Remus added, "Then I'll do it for you."
Lily's eyes widened in shock.
"You wouldn't." She whispered. "That's not fair."
Remus shrugged and gave her a faint smile. "Life isn't fair."
"I don't know if I can," Lily said, "I don't know if I can tell James."
"Why?" Remus asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Lily asked.
"What's obvious?" Remus was obviously confused.
"Look at me!" Lily exploded. "James won't believe it if I tell him that I'm Miss Cinderella!"
"And why not?" Remus was definitely annoyed now.
"Because," Lily said, "I'm the shy smart girl that nobody notices. I'm the Human Christmas Tree. James is one of the most popular boys at this school! Imagine his reaction when he realized that his Cinderella is Shy Lily Evans!"
Remus frowned. "You're making James sound like somebody who would laugh at you."
"He would." Lily whispered. "Everybody would."
"Now you're being stereotypical," Remus said, "Not all popular people would laugh at you. Look at me! I wouldn't. I would believe you."
Lily snorted. "Yeah right. Then why didn't James believe the other five thousand girls that said that they were Miss Cinderella?"
"He needs honest to god proof," Remus replied. "Why do you think he used the mask?"
"Glad to know my mask is in good hands," Lily muttered.
Remus' eyes widened. "Haha! I know how to prove it! You need to slip on that mask! Once you put it on, James will realize that it's you!"
"Forget it Remus," Lily said firmly, "There's no way that I'm telling."
"You can," Remus stepped closer towards Lily, "And you will."
--
Lily trudged back to the Gryffindor Common room with a heavy heart.
I was so close, she thought, so close. This secret could have gone with me to the grave!
Remus was a sneaky one; she had to give him props for that. She had no idea he could do that.
She would have to keep her eye on him for now on.
"Password?"
She looked up, startled.
Wow, that was sooner than I expected, she thought.
"Fairy Lights," she replied dully as the portrait swung open.
"Hey Lils! There you are! We wondered where you headed off too!"
She had to smile as she saw her two best friends.
"Lily, what's wrong?" Erica asked in concern as she looked at the redhead. "You look pale. Are you sick?"
"It's the way she was eating all that food at an unusually fast speed," Tessa said defiantly, "She was eating faster than Sirius Black."
"Guys," Lily whispered, "Somebody found out."
"What?" Erica asked, cocking her head, "What did you just say?"
"Somebody found out my secret."
"WHAT?" Tessa yelled in shock.
--
Remus walked back to the Gryffindor Common room in high spirits.
He found the real Cinderella.
Wait until he told James.
--
Back in the Gryffindor common room, James and Sirius were busy playing chess.
"Knight to E-4," James muttered.
Sirius grinned. "Stupid move mate. Check!" He moved his pawn near the white king.
James also grinned. "No, it's your stupid move Sirius. Check," he moved his bishop up two, "Mate." He moved it once to the left and grabbed Sirius' king.
Sirius' jaw dropped. "Damn it!" He howled. "Why do I always fall for that move?"
James grinned as he gave Sirius his pieces back. "Because you're daft—want to play again?"
"No way," Sirius muttered, "That's the sixth time that I lost to you."
"Seventh time is the charm." James tried.
"No way—hey Moony!"
James turned to his left to see their werewolf friend walk towards them, a skip in his step.
"Why are you so cheery?" Sirius asked, "You find yourself a new girlfriend?"
Remus ignored Sirius and turned towards James.
"I found Miss Cinderella."
James jumped up so fast that his knee collided with the chess table and upset it. The board and its pieces scattered everywhere.
"What?" James asked in shock.
"I found Miss Cinderella," Remus said, a smile tugging at his lips.
"Where is she?" James asked looking around the common room, thinking that Remus brought her with him.
"I'm not telling." Remus said.
"What?"
"I'm with Prongs on this one," Sirius asked, his mouth agape, "Why won't you tell him where this Cinderella girl is?"
"Because," Remus said, "I promised her that I wouldn't tell. She will have to do it herself."
"Aww c'mon Moony!" Sirius burst out. "Why are you torturing James like this?"
"I'm not! She's the Cinderella. She will have to tell on her own."
"Can you at least give me a hint about who she is?" James asked eagerly.
Remus nodded. "She's in our year."
"That's it?" James asked in shock. "That could fit any number of girls! Why don't you tell me what house she is in?"
"Because," Remus said with a small smile, "Then it would be way too obvious."
"When will she tell me?" James asked.
"I told her before the end of the school year." Remus said.
"That long?" James gaped.
Remus shrugged. "She could tell sooner. Now, if you'll excuse me—I have rounds tonight."
"Remus!" James tried again. "Why won't she tell me now?"
"Because," Remus said, "She's afraid you'll laugh at her."
--
Ginny grinned and pounded the book with her fist. "Ha! See? I told you!"
Harry grumbled.
"Hand over the money cretin," Ginny held out her hand.
As Harry deposited the money into her hand he said, "That's not fair. You could have probably read ahead and found out!"
Ginny snorted. "Honestly, how stupid are you? Of course I didn't do that! I have been reading this book while you listened to me. There's no way in hell I could have read this chapter."
"Maybe you have X-ray vision," Harry suggested, "Then you would have been reading that part while reading aloud."
"Oh yeah I'm sure. Just stop being a sore loser."
--
Okay people. Lily's secret is found. –Gasp!-
Hmm, I don't think I mentioned this earlier but when I finish this story I won't be writing another one for a while. I have been writing stories constantly since December of '05 and I think I deserve a break. Don't you?
Therefore, this may be one of my last stories for a little while. Sorry.
But don't worry, there are still some more chapters before I finally finish 'Miss Cinderella.'
Until next time!
--Greekchic.