How to Live Life

Chapter 26

A/N: Hello everyone! Thanks for returning : ) I got a lot of feedback since my last upload and it really made my day. I'm glad to see people still enjoy this story even though I neglect it a lot : / Anyway, lets jump back into the story!

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING!

Response to Reviews:

Fire and Ice: Thanks so much for reading and reviewing my story! I'm glad to hear you like the story, it means a lot : ) I'm also glad to see you like James/Ella because I was worried some people didn't because they thought their dynamic was too cliché. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter and continue to read my story! Thanks for giving my story a chance : )

Green black red: Thank you so much for reading my story and reviewing! I'm glad to hear you think it's 'amazing,' it's really reassuring. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you. Thanks for supporting me, it really means a lot to me : )

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"Harry! Where are you?" Hermione Weasley yelled as she ran into the Auror Department.

Harry lowered his brow in confusion as he got up from his desk in his office. He opened the door and poked his head out to see Hermione frantically pacing. Harry sighed, "In here, Hermione."

Hermione looked up at him and Harry could tell something was wrong by the look in her eyes. Harry frowned, "What's wrong, Hermione? Is there another attack?"

Hermione shook her head as she walked over to Harry and entered his office, closing the door behind her. Hermione sighed, "I know where Ella and James ran off to."

Harry's eyes widened, "How? Did one of kids rat them out?"

Hermione shook her head, "No, I was worried so I checked to see if the trace picked them up."

Harry sighed, "Are you sure it was them, 'Mione. The trace doesn't tell who it is, it's ju-"

"I know how the trace works, Harry James Potter. I also know it has to be them because everyone else is at Hogwarts and I got multiple accounts coming from the MACUSA last night. Now who do we know that is on the run right now? Oh yeah, that's right, James and Ella," Hermione told her friend sternly.

Harry's jaw dropped, "Why the hell are they in America? Are they that stupid? I wanted to trust and believe in them. I wanted to trust what Al told us back at Hogwarts, but I can't. I can't because James is only 14 years old, he's too young to be out on his own. Al tried to make it look like their situation was like ours back in our seventh year, but it's not Hermione."

Hermione sighed, "Well, to be fair to them, it very well could be close. They all refused to tell us what they were up to, Harry."

Harry scoffed, "Oh come on, Hermione. We both know they're not hunting horcruxes."

Hermione sighed and put a hand on Harry's shoulder, "Even though I agree with that, that doesn't mean what they're doing isn't important."

Harry laughed, "So you think it is okay for my naïve, childish 14 year old son to be running around America? I don't, I think he is… he is-"

Harry couldn't finish his sentence, he broke down in tears. Hermione wrapped Harry in her arms, attempting to comfort her friend. Harry looked up at Hermione, "Hermione… I almost lost him before… I can't almost lose him again, I just can't. I can't get in that dark place again. Do you remember how broken I was with Ginny being in Mongo's and James captured… I can't go back to that place… I can't lose myself again. I can't lose James…"

Hermione frowned, "We're not going to lose him, Harry. Ella and James are going to do whatever it is they need to do safely. We also know where they are now at least."

Harry shook his head, "Hermione, they're not stupid. They knew the trace activated as soon as they stepped foot in there. They don't want us to find them so they probably left there as soon as they could. America is huge, they could be anywhere at this point. Also you said that the last time the trace was activated was last night?"

Hermione nodded, "Yeah, multiple reports within thirty minutes."

Harry sighed, "Yep, just what I thought. They know the trace is on them, they bolted as soon as they could and haven't done magic since."

"They're bound to use some at some point though. Even if they don't they're probably going to be around it," Hermione said.

Harry nodded, "That may be true, but if I know my son he is definitely not going to let that happen. Hermione, is there anyway to get the trace off you when you're still underage?"

"Not to my knowledge, but I never really researched it. I mean, it's the trace, it never seemed all too significant. I can look into it though. They're also in another country, another continent, there may be a loop-hole there… I'll research it, Harry."

Harry sighed, "Thanks, Hermione. It's just… I'm so worried about him, he's only 14!"

"To be fair, he'll be 15 in a month…" Hermione said with a smile.

Harry laughed, "That makes it so much better!" he said sarcastically.

Hermione joined in laughing, "It's good to see you laugh. Now come on, we just have to believe in them. We need to keep hope."

Harry nodded, "Thanks, Hermione."

Hermione smiled, "Now come on, let's take a trip to Hogwarts. I think James and Ella have taken it too far. Louis and Fred need to spill it now. I don't care if I have to use Veritaserum on them; we are going to get the truth today."

Harry nodded, "Wait, Hermione? How do you think they got to America? They can't floo there and they don't know how to apparate. They couldn't have gotten a portkey either, they don't have access …wait…"

Hermione lowered her brows in confusion, "Wait what?"

"I have portkeys in my home office for emergencies. I have them to all the families houses, Hogwarts, all the ministries around the world…" Harry said.

Hermione's eyes widened when she caught on, "And you think James snagged the one to the MACUSA. It makes sense actually if they did. Why else would they land in the MACUSA? They didn't want to be found and they obviously were thinking about the trace. If that portkey was their only way then they were willing to risk it. I don't know why else they would land there and not in an empty place."

Harry nodded, "That's what I was thinking! I never told any of the kids about all my portkeys, but I know one of them has to know. I mean, the amount of times they snuck in my office one of them had to have seen them at one point."

Hermione shook her head at her friend, "You really should lock your office better, Harry. You have some dangerous stuff in there."

Harry rolled his eyes, "Trust me, I've tried. It's just as they got older they got smarter. They know me too well too, they always guess right."

Hermione shook her head, "Wait, Harry, how did they get in your house without you noticing?"

"I didn't think about that… I don't know. I'm going to go home first and make sure the portkey is actually missing first. I'll investigate how they got in too. You and Ron can just meet me at Hogwarts. Don't start anything until I get there though, I promise I won't be long," Harry said.

Hermione nodded, "Okay, see you in bit."

Harry waved her off then stepped up to the fireplace in his office. He grabbed a pile of floo powder then dropped it, "Potter Manor."

When Harry arrived home he saw his wife, Ginny, jump up in surprise. She was sitting on the couch and she threw the parchment that was in her hands everywhere. Ginny sighed, "Merlin, Harry, you scared the shit out of me! Now my article for the prophet is ruined. Anyway, what are you doing home? You just left thirty minutes ago."

Harry walked up to his wife and wrapped her in his arms, kissing the top of her head, "Sorry, Gin, didn't mean to scare you. Also sorry about your article."

Ginny shrugged, "Its fine, it was rubbish anyway. It is about the Cannons match and I think I was being too lenient with them. Ron always gets on my case about me being too harsh on them so I was trying to be a bit nicer. I just can't though, you saw the game, they're shit!"

Harry chucked, "I know they are, love. They've been shit ever since I can remember."

Ginny laughed, but she quickly frowned after, "You didn't answer my question? Why are you home so early?"

Harry sighed, "It's a long story."

Ginny crossed her arms, "I've got time."

"Well I don't, I got to meet Ron and Hermione at Hogwarts," Harry told his wife.

Ginny glared at her husband, "Something tells me you're not just going there to help clean up last nights mess. Tell me what's going on, Harry."

Harry sighed, "I promise I'll tell you later, but I-"

"You tell me right now, Harry James Potter. Something tells me you got time and you just don't want to tell me," Ginny spat at Harry.

Harry closed his eyes, "Gin, I don't want to-"

"Cut the shit, Harry. Tell me," Ginny interrupted.

Harry sighed in defeat, "Hermione was worried about James and Ella so she checked the trace files. There were multiple reports from the MACUSA last night. It has to be James and Ella because they're the only ones with the trace not in Hogwarts. We think they know about the trace and are now trying to avoid it. So we are going to go to Hogwarts and make Louis and Fred tell us the damn truth. We also think they used the portkey from my office to get to America. That's why I'm home, to check."

Ginny stared at Harry with wide eyes, "Those little bastards. When James Sirius Potter gets home I'm going to whoop his arse"

Harry nodded, "Me too. Now I must get going-"

"Oh I'm coming with you!" Ginny demanded.

"What? Gin, it's fine. We got it under con-"

"Trust me, you're not going to get the truth out of Louis and Fred. You're too nice and gullible. Hermione may be smart, but she's not scary enough to get it out of them. And Ron," Ginny laughed, "He may be able to get mad and raise his voice, but he's not scary. It's funny to watch him get angry. Louis and Freddie would have a field day out of Ron doing that. Now me on the other hand, I'm scary and mean as hell when I want to be. One look in my eyes and you'll scream for mercy. Your best shot at getting the truth out of them is me. Unless you were planning on doing something illegal like use a truth potion on them."

Harry smiled at wife, "You're right."

"I know I am. Now go upstairs and check for the bloody portkey so I can go murder Louis and Fred," Ginny told her husband.

Harry laughed, "I love you."

Ginny smirked, "Love you too, now go."

Harry ran up the stairs smiling. He truly loved Ginny with all his heart; he loved how fierce she was. Harry approached his office doors and the smile flew off his face when he remembered how pissed he was with James. He unlocked the door and walked over to the shelf full of portkeys. He then saw that the MACUSA one was still there. He was about to let it be and think of another way James got to America, but then he recognized the door knob in the MACUSA portkey slot. He recognized that door knob from his daughter Lily's door. He recognized it because of the small flower carved into the side; a carving Lily used accidental magic to make. It wasn't as noticeable as it usually was because it looked like someone had attempted to cover it up. He would have never made that a portkey. To make sure, Harry took it out and held it and it didn't transport him anywhere.

Harry glared at the doorknob and started to march over to his daughters room. He bursted in, waking his daughter up. Lily rubbed her eyes and looked up at her father, "Daddy? What's wrong? Shouldn't you be at work by now?"

Harry glared at his daughter, "Lily Luna Potter, did you take out the MACUSA portkey and give it to your brother? Then leave your old doorknob in its place so I wouldn't notice?"

Internally Lily was freaking out, she had no idea how her father figured all that out so quickly. Although on the inside she was freaking out, the outside was a different story. Lily buried her brows in fake confusion, "Daddy, what are you talking about? Why would James go to America? Why would I help him. I'm confused… what's going on?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Lily. Did your brother ask you to get him that Portkey?" Harry asked his daughter.

Lily shook her head, "What? Why would James need to go to America? Wait, is he in America? Is he okay?"

"Did James sneak in here last night and take it himself then?" Harry asked his daughter.

Lily now had fake tears running down her face, "If he did I didn't see him. Daddy, what's going on? Is Jamie okay? Please tell me he is daddy; I don't want to lose him again."

Harry bought into Lily's act and he ran over to his daughter to comfort her. He hugged her and rubbed her back, regretting ever blaming James' actions on his daughter. Harry frowned, "I'm sorry I blamed you Lily-love."

Lily snuffled, "It's okay, Daddy" Lily pointed to the doorknob in her fathers hands, "That is my old doorknob. I get that it looks suspicious."

Harry shook his head, "Its not okay, Lils. Look what I did to you! I shouldn't have blamed James' stupidity on you. You're my sweet little girl, you're not like James. You would never do something like that."

Lily shook her head, "Its okay, Daddy. I'm not crying because you blamed it on me. I'm crying because I'm worried about James."

Harry hugged his daughter harder, "Your brother will be fine, Lils. Now go back to sleep; I'm sorry I interrupted you. I got to get to Hogwarts as soon as possible to meet your Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron."

Lily nodded, "Okay, Daddy. Be safe at work, I love you."

Harry smiled as he left his daughters room, "I love you too, Lils."

As soon as Harry shut the door and left, Lily laughed. Lily couldn't believe how easy it was to trick her father. She was an angel in his eyes and could never do anything wrong. Lily truly was a bit worried about James though; Al never mentioned to her what exactly James was doing. She never really thought about it until now when she saw the worry in her fathers eyes. She pushed it to the side though, deciding to believe her brother wasn't a complete and utter idiot and wouldn't walk right into a trap. Lily then thought about how her father didn't mention Louis and Freddie. She concluded he must've not found out about them yet. Her poor father was in for a storm. Lily felt bad for her dad, but she was still hung up on how easily she got away with the portkey thing. Lily may have looked the most innocent of the Potter children, but she was the most mischievous and dangerous of them all.

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"Al! Albus! Answer me right now you idiot! Pick of your damn mirror you prat!"

Albus groaned into his pillow, "Shut up its Saturday."

"Answer your damn mirror, Al!"

Albus was about to yell back, but he realized who he was talking to. "Wait, Lils, is that you?"

Lily scoffed, "Of course it is! Now pick up the mirror, I have to tell you something!"

Albus shot up out of bed and grabbed his mirror, "What's up, Lils."

"We got caught, Al. Dad knows about the portkey being missing from his office! He knows James and Ella are in America! He is on his way to Hogwarts right now!" Lily told him frantically.

"Fuck. Shit. Shit. Wait, Lily, does he know you're the one who nicked the portkeys out of his office?" Albus asked.

"He thought I did because I left my old doorknob in its place. I'm such an idiot for doing that, but I didn't have any others and I didn't think he'd recognize it so easily. Anyway, when he confronted me about it and I just acted innocent, put on the tears, and looked at him with my puppy-dog eyes. He bought it of course. I didn't rat James out though, I acted as if I didn't know anything. I also don't think he found out about the Godric's Hallow one, only the MACUSA," Lily told Albus.

Albus nodded, "How did he find out anyway?"

Lily shrugged, "I don't know, Al. He is Head Auror for a reason though, so I'm not surprised."

Al nodded, "Has he found out about Louis and Fred yet?"

"Not to my knowledge, but that's why I wanted to mirror you. He is on his way to Hogwarts right now to join Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron. If they don't know already they're going to find out soon. When they do, they're going to be grilling all of our family at Hogwarts for answers. I just wanted to give you a heads up," Lily explained.

"Thanks, Lils. Now I have to make a fake letter explaining that they went to join James and Ella. At the same time not giving anything away," Albus told Lily with a sigh.

Lily laughed, "Have fun with that! Anyway, I want to get back to sleep because Dad rudely waked me up. Bye, Al."

Albus smiled, "Bye Lils."

Albus put his mirror on his nightstand and immediately started to write up a fake letter.

Dear Al,

Since you have been by our side through the whole mess last night we thought we owed it to you to tell you this: we left Hogwarts to join James and Ella. We can't tell you much more, but we just wanted to tell you at least that. Let the family know we're okay and we will back as soon as we can.

Fred and Louis

"That's good enough," Albus muttered to himself as he finished the letter.

Albus sat it on his nightstand when he finished. He then grabbed his mirror again because he thought he owed it to James to let him know they've been caught. "James, James, James, James!"

"Al? What's wrong?" James asked, sensing the panic in his brothers voice.

"Lily just mirrored me and told me Dad knows you're in America. He also knows you used the portkey from his office to get there. Lily and I don't know how he knows, but he does. I just wanted to give you a heads up," Albus told his brother.

"Shit, I knew someone in our family would check the trace! I'm almost one-hundred percent sure that's how he knows where we are. At least we're not at the MACUSA anymore and they can't track us down. Wait- Did Lily get caught? Fuck, I hope I didn't get her in trouble," James said.

Albus shook his head, "Nah, you know Lils, she always gets out of it. She told me Dad came storming in her room accusing her though. She just put on the tears, acted dumb, and gave him her puppy-dog eyes."

James laughed, "Lils is so evil…"

Albus laughed too, "She really is, anyway I got to go. Dad, Aunt Hermione, and Uncle Ron are on their way to Hogwarts right now. They're bound to notice Louis and Fred's absence and come running at me with questions. Bye James, stay safe!"

"Bye."

Albus then put his mirror back on his nightstand and took his fake letter. He sat it beside him on his bed; ready to fake a reaction as soon as his dad came bursting through his door.

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"Let's go," Harry said as he and Ginny arrived in McGonagall's office

Hermione and Ron nodded and they all started to make their way to Gryffindor Tower. Harry sighed, "I checked to make sure and James did take my bloody Portkey to America."

Hermione nodded, "How did he get in your house unnoticed though?"

Harry shrugged, "I don't know, at first I thought Lily got it for him. It was her old doorknob left in the place of the actual portkey. When I confronted her though she knew nothing about it and started to cry over James. I bet you Louis and Fred know though."

Hermione and Ron nodded as they arrived at the Fat Lady. She smiled at the former Gryffindor's and let them right in without the password. They all then rushed into the common room and started to make their way up to the boys dormitories. When they got to the Golden Marauders room they slammed the door open. Harry was ready to start yelling at them, but was surprised to see the dorm empty.

"What the fuck?" Ron exclaimed.

"Ronald, language!" Hermione told him.

Ron sighed, "Sorry 'Mione, but where are they?"

"Well, it's Saturday morning and they're the Golden Marauders. They're probably off pranking somebody," Ginny suggested.

"Possibly, but I don't think so. They're not early birds, they sleep super late on weekends," Ron told his sister.

Ginny scoffed, "It's 9:30, Ron. I wouldn't call that early."

Ron rolled his eyes, "Like I said they sleep in super late. Back when I was helping George with WWW for a bit Freddie wouldn't get up until one over the summer."

Hermione shrugged, "I don't know, Harry, what do you think? You've been quiet."

Harry narrowed his eyes, "Last night when we got called in to deal with Vlasta it was because Louis and Fred found them. They were owling George according to what they told McGonagall. Maybe they are planning on pranking someone…"

"Or they lied to McGonagall to save their arses because they were actually owling their friends on the run," Ron suggested.

"Well then why wouldn't they be in bed still? You said that Freddie sleeps until one. If there isn't a prank being planned why would they be out of bed then?" Hermione asked her husband.

Ron shrugged while Harry sighed. "Let's just question Al instead, maybe he knows something. He was stuck with them last night," Harry suggested.

Hermione, Ginny, and Ron nodded as they left the empty dormitory. Harry then yanked open his youngest sons dormitory door right down the hall, "Al we need— Wait, Al, what's wrong?"

Albus started his act as soon as he heard the door open. He held the fake letter in his hands and had his other hand covering his mouth. Al looked over to see that his Dad woke up all his dorm-mates, "Dad, can I talk to you all outside?"

Harry nodded as his son rushed out of bed, letter still in hand. Albus closed the door behind him and handed his father the fake letter, "I woke up and found it in my nightstand."

Harry took the letter from his son and read it over a couple times, Ginny reading over his shoulder. "Shit!" Harry cursed.

"What is it, Harry?" Ron asked his friend.

Harry shoved the letter in his friends hands as Ron and Hermione started to read it. Harry paced in the dormitory hallways, waiting for his friends to finish reading. Hermione sighed, "Great… this is just what we needed."

"How did they even get out of here? Al, what do you know. Cut the innocent shit, I know you know something," Ginny told her son sternly.

Albus' eyes widened, "I swear this is all I know! Why's it a big deal anyway?"

Harry laughed, "Al, I know you know something. I know you know why James and Ella left Hogwarts on brooms because you already told us you knew. I wanted to believe your little speech last night and have some faith in James, but your brother has taken it too far. Tell us why they left."

"Dad, it's not my place to tell, but I will tell you they only left to hide. Ella has something Vlasta wants so she had to get out of here. She also knew if she left Vlasta would too and it would lead to less people getting hurt, " Albus told his father.

Ginny glared at her son, "You know more, Al. Now tell me, if they're hiding why did they have to go all the way to America to do that?"

Albus gasped in fake shock, "America! Why the bloody hell are they there! They promised me they'd not be stupid anymore. James promised me! Mum, Dad, we can't lose him again…"

Albus started to let some fake tears fall and his father came rushing over to give his son a hug. Harry rubbed his sons back, "I'm sorry, Al. I guess you don't know anything. I just really thought… I don't know… I'm sorry, Al."

"Dad, I wasn't lying when I said they only left to hide, they were supposed to be back by now. I guess they had a change of plans…"

"Don't you dare be playing us, Albus Severus Potter. If I find out you are lying to us I will murder you," Ginny glared at her son.

Albus didn't expect his mother to be there as well, he knew she was harder to push over. He wished Lily knew she was coming too so he had more time to prepare, "I'm not lying, Mum! Why would I lie about that? I was the one to try to stop them from going into Hogsmeade last night! I try to save them, I never support their dangerous missions!"

Ginny kept glaring at Albus, but she pulled him into a hug anyway, "Okay, Albus. Now go back to bed, we have some stuff to figure out."

Albus nodded and made his way back into his dormitory. As soon as Albus was gone Ginny turned to her family shaking her head, "I don't know if the little bugger is lying or not."

Harry wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders, "It looked like he was genuinely scared for James in my opinion."

Ginny shook her head, "Harry, this is why I wanted to come. You see the best in people too easily, you want to believe they have good intentions."

Hermione shrugged, "I don't know, Ginny. He seemed pretty genuine to me."

Ron nodded in agreement with his wife as Ginny sighed, "You're probably right, but there was just this evil glint in his eyes… I don't know, I'm probably reading too much into it. Let's just keep moving and question some of the other kids here."

Harry nodded as they started to make their way out of the boys dormitory; on their way to question more of the family.

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James Potter sat alone at the kitchen table in Ella's house. He already made himself some coffee and now just sat there, lost in thought. He didn't get much sleep the night before because he couldn't get over Ella's breakdown. After Ella fell asleep in his arms he carried her upstairs and tried to find

her room. As soon as he sat her down and tucked her in he bolted to find a guest room. He didn't want to talk to Louis or Fred, he just wanted to be alone. He tried to sleep, but it was no use. He was already awake when Al mirrored him at 4:00 AM. He wasn't surprised his dad found out, he was just surprised he found out so quickly. After he put his mirror down he went downstairs because he knew he had no chance of going back to sleep. He made himself a cup of coffee so he could stay awake during the day and sat himself down at the Smith's kitchen table.

He's been sitting there for three hours now, lost in thought. He didn't realize how much Ella was hurting and that killed him. He wished he realized earlier, wished he talked to her about it. He felt he should've known, he just totally forgot how long her parents have been gone. Christmas felt like yesterday to James, not nine months ago. Ella always made it seem like she was okay and happy all the time, but it was just a façade. James felt horrible knowing she had been living with that pain all this time, that she viewed herself that way, that she-

"Oi, James! You alright mate?" Fred asked as he and Louis entered the kitchen, interrupting James' thoughts.

James looked up at his friends and nodded his head, "I'm fine."

Louis and Fred looked at each other and frowned, "James, you look like shit. Did you sleep at all last night?" Louis asked.

James sighed, "I got two hours of sleep max."

Fred and Louis moved to join James at the kitchen table. Fred put a hand on his friends shoulder, "You're obviously not fine, James. Why did you sleep so little last night?"

James put his head in his hands, "Al mirrored me at four AM. Told me that my Dad knows we're here in America. Al doesn't know how he knows, but I know it had to be the trace. He also told me that he knows about us using his portkey. Luckily Lils was able to get her way out of it and she didn't get in trouble. He also is apparently on his way to Hogwarts with Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron. They're bound to notice your absence today. Al told me he's ready to cover for you guys though; he wrote up a fake letter and everything."

Louis and Fred nodded, "Tell Al thanks for us when you can, but James, something tells me that's not what's bothering you. We already knew they were probably going to check the trace at some point. Is this about Ella?" Louis asked.

James sighed, "Yeah, I just feel so bad about it, you know? She's been hiding this guilt for months now, she's felt horrible for months and I had to idea!"

Fred sighed, "I know, James. I wished she confided in us too so we could talk some sense into her sooner. Her hiding it isn't your fault though, James. There is no way we could have possibly known unless she told us. She didn't want to be helped, James. You can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped."

James shook his head, "I should've picked up on it though! I mean we knew her parents were missing for months, did we really think she was not torn up about it? We should've known, I should've known, I sho-"

"Shut the hell up, James!" Louis interrupted, "There is no way you could have known, okay? You can't blame her breakdown on yourself. If she saw what her breakdown did to you, she would be an even bigger mess. Stop blaming it on yourself or you're going to hurt Ella more. Now man up and stop sulking. Get the fuck over yourself and look at the bigger picture. We can't have you skipping out on sleep, James. Don't forgot why we're here. It's not to have a nice stay at Ella's house; it's to bring Vlasta down. Don't let the world down because you're too busy being a baby back bitch."

"Damn, Louis, that was a little harsh," Fred muttered as he looked at James hurt face.

Louis scoffed, "Well it was the truth! Someone needed to give this shithead a wake up call."

Fred rolled his eyes, "I'm not saying it's not true, it was just a bit too much. I mean, look at James right now! James, you alright mate?"

James nodded his head, "I'm fine, it's just…Thanks for that, I really did need to be told that. Now get up, let's start planning until Ella's up."

Louis and Fred smirked, "Now that's the James we need," Louis said.

James smiled as he chugged down the rest of coffee. James looked at his friends, "Now where should we start?"

Fred smirked and wiggled his eyebrows, "Before we do that I'd like to bring up the fact that Ella said a certain eight letters to you last night."

James rolled his eyes at his friend, "Oh shut up, we're friends, alright? Ella has made it very clear that we'll never be anything more. She only meant it as how you love a friend."

Louis gave his friend a cheeky grin, "I don't know mate… The way she said it, the way she clung to you, the way she looked at you… It made me think she may have not meant it as a just friends 'I love you.'"

James laughed, "Yeah right, you've seen the way she's rejected me all these years. There is no way she meant it that way. She has made it painfully clear nothing romantic with ever happen between us. You know I would love for it to be more, you know how much I love her."

Louis shrugged, "I don't know mate, I saw something there."

James frowned, "Well maybe I have had my heart broken too many time to want to believe that! She has dragged and slapped my heart too many times since first year. It hurts, you know? To love someone so much and them to just despise you. She finally doesn't hate my guts and I can have a decent conversation with her. I don't want to ruin that, I can't ruin that. If friendship is all we'll ever be I'm fine with that if she's at least in my life. I have pushed all my feelings for her away and locked them up. I don't want her to break my heart again, I can't take another hit from her. My heart will shatter if she takes another hit. Please, stop bringing this up. It's already painful enough locking my feelings away, I don't need you two trying to bring them back out."

Fred and Louis nodded, "I'm sorry mate… I didn't realize, um… anyways… how about we start to plan?" Fred suggested.

James and Louis nodded and the Golden Marauders started to discuss their next step in America. Meanwhile, Ella stood outside the door, frozen; she heard their whole conversation.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! I appreciate every single one of you : ) I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'll try to update soon : )

~~~Lanie~~~