Hope you enjoy this chapter. It was going to be fluff but then it suddenly turned out a lot darker. I hate writing in the war, but then I can't just ignore it. Please tell me if it's too much. And remember to write a review! Reviews = motivation to write fast just saying.
JAMES POV
"Hey – James!" Benjy Boot shouted, chasing after James as he made his way towards the Great Hall for breakfast.
"Oh – hey Benjy," James said, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "What's up?"
Benjy Boot was James' keeper on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, but he was also the 6th year prefect so James was constantly seeing the kid. James was eager to see their prank in action so he'd decided to head down to the Great Hall at seven. Remus had also thought it would be a good idea if they didn't all arrive together – they'd been busted that way before.
"About Quidditch practice tonight," Benjy started. "You actually scheduled me on for patrols at the same time."
"I did?" James said, stifling a yawn.
"Yep, do you think you could find someone to cover for me?" Benjy quipped.
James nodded wearily. "Sure."
"Cool. Thanks. I think we have a good chance beating Ravenclaw," Benjy said. "I mean, of course no one blames you for what happened but since we technically had to forfeit –"
That caught James' attention. "What? I thought the game was cancelled. McGonagall promised a re-match."
"Well the Hufflepuff captain got mad," Benjy explained, looking apologetic. "Since McGonagall was going outside the rules. He said it wasn't fair that she was being biased."
"So how many points did they give Hufflepuff?" James said indignantly.
"Only one hundred and fifty," Benjy told him.
James opened his mouth to complain further but suddenly he felt a firm hand grab onto his collar and yank him backwards. He was so surprised he barely fought back, and thankfully so because when the hand eventually let go he was standing in front of McGonagall's office and the professor was glaring angrily down at him. James smiled meekly.
"This prank isn't funny Potter," McGonagall said sternly, her dark eyes crinkled with frustration. "So far I've been transported to the Hufflepuff common room, the kitchens and Merlin forbid the boys bathroom on the sixth floor."
James just managed to stifle a laugh. He couldn't believe Peter had the nerve to put so many objects in McGonagall's office.
"It wasn't me," James said instinctively.
"You know I don't appreciate lying Potter," McGonagall said sternly. "Now I figured you put your transfiguration skills into play here and you obviously roped Lupin into charming such objects." James thought that was a bit unfair – Remus was the one who'd suggested the Portkey charm.
"I haven't even seen Remus since the train ride yesterday," James told her.
McGonagall frowned. "Just know that I know," she warned him, before ushering him out.
Bewildered, and slightly bemused, James headed back towards the Great Hall. It was always a nice feeling when their pranks worked out, but their reputation was starting to precede them. A bunch of first year boys could set a dung bomb off in the girl's bathroom (about the extent of the boys pranks during their first years) and the Marauder's would probably cop the blame.
"Potter!"
James whirled around, a lie ("it wasn't me professor") already formed on the tip of his lips. He was therefore momentarily speechless when he saw Lily chasing after him, her hair tied back in a messy ponytail. He waited for her to catch up before saying hey.
"I've changed my mind," Lily said, ignoring James' greeting. She scanned the corridor nervously.
"About what?" James said, only halfheartedly, since his mind was elsewhere. Had she always worn her hair like that?
"About the prank," Lily said as if it were obvious. "We're going to get in so much trouble for it if the teachers find out."
James struggled to stifle a laugh. "I don't think you should worry about it Bug."
Lily eyed him suspiciously. "Don't you think it's going to be very obvious what's going on when people start disappearing all over the place?"
"Well yeah," James said. "But isn't that the point?"
Lily blinked, pausing for a second. "I guess," she said slowly. "But what if somebody gets hurt? Or in trouble? Peter told me he'd put some in the girl's bathroom. What if a boy ends up in there?"
James couldn't help the grin that spread across his face.
"It's not funny James!" Lily snapped. "If someone lands in detention because of me –"
"It'll be fine Lily," James said, trying to keep his face blank. "McGonagall already knows about it. She won't put people in detention because of it."
"What? She knows about it?" Lily said, looking pissed. "Is she mad at us?"
James rolled his eyes. "I didn't tell her you we're involved," he said. "She doesn't even know for sure, she just assumed. As she always does."
"I knew we shouldn't have done it," Lily snapped. "You're Head Boy and Remus is a prefect –"
"If you didn't think it was a good idea then why'd you even get involved?" James snapped back. She was glaring at him as if he was the one who'd dragged her into it.
Lily's eyes went wide as if she hadn't even considered her reasons till now. His anger vanished a bit at the confused expression that coloured her face. She wiped imaginary dirt off of her hands before answering.
"I don't know. It was fun." She glanced up at him. "I was having fun."
James was momentarily stunned by her answer. Lily had always gotten along with Remus, sure, but James had just thought their friendship was tied together by their battling to be number one in class. Then they'd both become prefects and the competition had only heightened between them. He'd never imagined Lily being able to get along and have "fun" with Sirius and Peter too. It made him unexplainably happy.
She was smiling a little so James thought he'd push his luck. Their relationship needed defining – desperately. He just didn't know how to bring it into a conversation. "You seemed sad before," he said hesitantly. "When we first saw you."
"I suppose," Lily said.
"Was it about Marlene?"
Lily nodded. They'd reached the Great Hall, but before James could make his way inside she grabbed his wrist. He spun around instantly, his eyes going to her fingers.
"James?"
"Yeah?"
"Is it okay if I continue hanging out with you and the others?" She said the words as if she was scared of his answer, which only made James want to pull her into a hug.
"Of course," he said, taking a step closer to her. She glanced down at their feet, only inches apart. "But don't you think you should talk to her?"
"Yes."
"But you're not going to?"
"Not right now, no."
"But soon?"
"Maybe."
"How soon? Like a few days soon or a few months soon?"
"How ever long it takes."
"That's such a girl answer."
"Shut up."
He took another step closer – close enough that he could feel her breath on his face. She smiled, but there was a look of hesitation in her eyes.
"About this," she murmured.
"About what?" James replied, a little dazzled.
"This," she said, gesturing to the tiny space between them. "What is this space?"
"Nothing. It's just empty space," James said.
"Don't be daft," Lily snapped, but the smile was still there.
If it was up to him he'd be calling her his girlfriend, but he didn't want Lily to think he was rushing into things, and he definitely didn't want to scare her away again.
"What about we make it our space?" James offered. "So only I'm allowed to get this close to you." He took another step closer so nearly everything was touching – their feet, knees, stomachs, chest and almost foreheads.
"Okay," she whispered, pressing her forehead against his.
"What?" James said, something light and fluffy spreading through his entire nervous system.
"I said okay," she said. "Don't be daft."
"One more time?"
"Okay James."
"What about no space?"
"Huh?"
And then he was kissing her, his hands going to her face, his body closing the rest of the space between them. And she was kissing him back. Just as passionately. Just as frantically. He slipped one of his hands down to her waist and pulled her even closer. She murmured against his lips and James' heart nearly skipped a beat. It was better than their first kiss – warmer and softer and faster.
"So you love birds finally sorted your crap out?" A voice said from behind James.
Lily sprung away from James as if she'd been electrocuted. Frank – and two of his Hufflepuff friends – started laughing.
"Busted," the boy on Frank's right – Alfred – said. "Also – cough up Oliver."
"Two galleons was it?" Frank said to his friend. "Rough."
"You had a bet on when James and I would kiss?" Lily said, looking both confused and angry. "I don't even think I've talked to you before." She must've realized she sounded rude because she hastily added, "asides from in class and stuff."
"Lily, Lily, Lily," Oliver said, shaking his head. "The whole of Hufflepuff has been beating on you two for almost a year now. Same with a few of the kids in Ravenclaw."
James snorted. "Don't people have better things to do with their time?"
"I'm going to make almost eleven galleons on this bet," Oliver said. "What's not a better waste of time?"
"Great," Lily groaned.
"Well the bet still depends," Frank said, winking at James.
"On?" James said, still grinning. He thought the whole thing was just a funny joke, but Lily was still looking a little pissed off.
"If you two are an item or not?" Frank said.
"Oh," James said. They still hadn't specifically defined that yet but he hoped it had been implied between them – and then sealed with that kiss. Surely.
"We are," Lily said.
"We are?" James said, grinning.
"Yes you idiot," Lily said, cupping her hand as if she was about to whack him over the head.
James deftly dodged out of her reach, turning to cock his head and wink at Frank. "Yes we are," he said, still grinning manically. He probably looked stupid but he couldn't care less. Lily was his girlfriend. Girlfriend, girlfriend, girlfriend!
"Good luck with him," Frank said, rolling his eyes. "You coming or leaving breakfast."
"Coming," Lily said. She pressed her palms against James' back and started pushing him towards the Great Hall's main doors.
"Hey," James protested.
"Oh shut up," Lily said. James thought he heard a smile in her voice.
"At least we now knows who wears the pants in your relationship," Frank called after them.
James flipped him off, which only caused Alfred and Oliver to laugh harder. He craned his neck and saw Lily smirking, her eyes scanning the Gryffindor table for a seat.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" James said.
"Partially," Lily replied instantly.
She ushered James towards an empty space, and slid herself beside him, her hands grabbing the bowel of scrambled eggs before she'd even sat herself down fully. Sniggering, James grabbed a slice of toast.
"I'm hungry," Lily said. "I only had pudding last night. And minimal minutes of sleep." Her tone sounded a little competitive to James.
"Oh yeah?" James said. He grabbed the plate of sausages and dumped six onto his plate. "So am I."
Lily gave him the stink eye before piling four pieces of toast onto her plate. She started buttering the toast. James smirked, grabbing the bowel of baked beans and smothering his sausages in a mountain of the gooey beans.
"That's gross," Lily said. She'd piled her toast with scrambled eggs and steamed spinach.
"That's gross," James said, crinkling his nose in disgust.
"It would taste better than yours," Lily said. "Beans and sausages? Disgusting."
"Fine," James said, smirking. "Swap yours with mine."
"What?"
"We'll see whose is more disgusting. Swap them please," James told her.
"But –"
"Huh uh! Mine is grosser," James declared. "Knew it."
"That's not even what we're arguing about!" Lily said, sounding incredulous.
"It's not?" James said, now confused.
"No," Lily said, rolling her eyes. She cut a corner off her toast and eggs and piled it into her mouth. "Not even close."
"Great," James groaned. "I'm already losing my memory."
"You can't be losing your memory," Lily pointed out. "You're only seventeen."
"Goooood morning," Sirius called, dropping into the empty space opposite them. He glanced at their dishes and snorted. "Yuck. Either you've lost your taste buds or the House Elves skills have seriously been damaged."
"Whose is grosser?" Lily asked innocently.
Sirius blinked. "Easy. Lily's."
"What?" James whined. "You're meant to say mine."
"Why?" Sirius said. "You two are being weird. Moony tell James he's being weird."
Remus – who was talking to Lucy Abbott – glanced his way and scowled. Sirius scowled back and turned to James with a grumpy look on his face. James couldn't figure out the look on his friends face, but he recognized the girl Remus was talking to and grinned.
"You remember Lucy Abbott?" James said, prodding his friend. "Right?"
"No," Sirius scowled.
"Isn't she the girl Remus has a crush on?" Lily said.
James nodded. Lucy was a seventh year Hufflepuff who Remus had invited to their small gathering in the Heads Common room last during the first few weeks of Seventh Year. Nothing had really happened because of the minor blow up that had occurred, but James was happy to still see his friend chatting with her. Hopefully it would also perk up his friend from the slump he'd been in since Marlene.
Sirius scowled even harder at Lily's words.
It irritated James a little that Sirius seemed pissed off at the idea of Remus having a crush, but knowing Sirius he probably wasn't even listening to their conversation.
"What's got you so grumpy," James said, stabbing a sausage and dipping it into the baked beans.
"Nothing," Sirius said, glancing up. "Has anyone suffered from our prank yet?"
"McGonagall," James said, sniggering. "Three times."
"What?" Lily said. "You didn't say that!"
He words were drowned out by Sirius' roar of laughter. "Did she get the boys bathroom one?" He demanded, snorted.
"You sent her to the boys bathroom!" Lily said, looking even more flabbergasted than before. At least she wasn't mad.
"Yep," James said triumphantly. "Although she's on our tails already about it."
"There's no proof it was us," Sirius scoffed, waving James off.
"Don't you care a little bit that she knows it was you lot?" Lily said.
James and Sirius shared a glance. "Not with these kinds of pranks," James finally said, rubbing his temple.
"What kind of pranks?"
"The harmless kind," Sirius said. He instantly shoveled a forkful of food into his mouth.
"So you did used to care about the pranks that weren't harmless?" Lily pressed. "I mean, you felt guilty or something?"
Sirius shoveled another forkful of food into his mouth, glancing at James. James ran his fingers through his head, sensing an argument or one of Lily's trademark death glares.
"You have to remember we were young Lily," James said, trying to lessen the impact. He didn't regret much to do with his past, but there were some pranks – the pranks that generally went to far – that he shuddered to think about. A lot of their previous pranks managed to unfold with a huge spoonful of luck. "We did start feeling guilty about some of our pranks. Eventually."
Sirius nodded with a mouth full of egg.
"When?" Lily pressed.
"Uh," James mumbled. "Fifth year?"
"You don't sound so sure," Lily said.
"It shouldn't matter anymore," James said. It was hard to sound sure in himself when the parts of his past he was trying to stand up for was full of regret and stupidity. But they were still parts of his past, parts of him that he'd overcome. "It's stuff we used to do. I'm not saying that that stuff wasn't dumb and idiotic – it was – but we've stopped."
"I'm sorry," Lily said, her eyes on his. "I didn't mean to press. And I'm not angry about that stuff anymore. I guess I'm just –"
She stopped, her eyes downcast. James grabbed her hand – ignoring Sirius snort of laughter – and tilted her chin up.
"You're just what?"
"Nervous about the prank – I don't know," Lily admitted. "You know I've never been in detention."
"What!" James exclaimed. "Seriously?"
"Seriously," Lily said.
"That's going on your bucket list."
"What?"
"You heard me."
"No, I meant what as in no way."
"That's not what what means," James said. "C'mon. Its just detention. You could just skip a class or something."
"No I refuse," Lily said. "Besides, I can't get in detention."
"Sure you can," James said.
"No I can't. I'm in a beat with Remus."
James blinked. "He's got a beat on you never getting a detention? Since when?"
"Just before Christmas break," Lily admitted. "You reckons that since we're now a thing, or whatever, I'm bound to end up in detention. You know, because you're you."
James frowned. He glanced up at Remus who was still chatting with Lucy and yelled, "Oi Remus!"
Remus glanced his way and scowled.
"Oh so now we're allowed to interrupt Remus," Sirius said, also scowling.
James scowled back. What an interesting morning this was.
LILY POV
Lily marched to first period Transfiguration, fully aware that she hadn't completely finished McGonagall's assigned homework. She might just happen to end up in detention, ironically enough. She was walking by herself, which wasn't too unusual, but knowing that she was alone because she had no one else to walk with made her even more miserable. James was busy sorting some mishap with their prank, and Lily, unsure if she should involve herself, had opted on going to class instead.
The huge corridors felt suddenly much bigger. She made it to class earlier than she would've liked too. She took her seat and pulled out her essay. Her and Remus were meant to have done it together, but they simply hadn't. Annoying, but it is what it is. McGonagall strolled into her classroom, surprised to have a student seated already.
"Good Morning Miss Evans," McGonagall said.
"Good morning Professor," Lily returned. If some of her misery seeped into her words, McGonagall chose to ignore it.
"Due to some minor inconvenience I'm putting a temporary hold on the holiday homework," her Professor informed her. "Although, I'm positive you have already completed it."
"I," Lily started, then, upon finding no reason correct McGonagall, stopped and abruptly changed subject. "Why?"
McGonagall's face molded into one of disgust. "The Ministry has decided to intervene with our teachings." She must have noticed her expression, and the tone of her voice, since she quickly corrected herself. "I'm telling you this Miss Evans out of respect to your position."
Lily wasn't daft, she read between the lines quickly: the school wasn't supposed to know about the Ministry interference. For a second she wondered what Marlene would make of this all, but then remembered that they weren't talking. Alice arrived not long afterwards, throwing a quick glance at the empty seat beside Lily – which was usually occupied by Marlene – before slumping into her assigned seat. Unlike the other Professors, McGonagall's seating arrangement was compulsory, and quite unfortunately, Marlene was made to sit next to Lily. Marlene smiled nervously at Lily. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that Marlene was making an obvious effort to make peace, since it was her that had started it all, but Marlene was known to hold a grudge so her feeble attempt at a peace offering instantly made Lily suspicious. Then, of course, Lily wondered if she was over analyzing again. Merlin's beard, her mind was stressful.
The last people to arrive were the four Marauders, looking out of breath and very obviously up to no good. An already very suspicious McGonagall frowned at them.
"I'm sure you four are aware that lateness is not tolerated in this classroom?" McGonagall said sternly.
"Are we in trouble then?" Sirius asked. He looked dead serious.
"Have a guess?" McGonagall said, ushering them into her class and towards then separated seats.
"No?" Sirius offered.
"Have another guess?" McGonagall continued.
Her glare was ferocious, and Lily was shocked that Sirius was very clearly pushing his luck. She briefly wondered if maybe he thought by behaving out of hand, she might somehow think that he wasn't behind the prank. Before Sirius could respond, one of the Ravenclaw boys yelped, pushing back from his desk and staring at the empty seat beside him.
"She, she just vanished!" He said, startled.
Lily stifled a laugh at his astounded expression. She caught Marlene glancing at her curiously, and managed to pull her face into a more appropriate expression.
"I saw it too!" Alice piped up.
McGonagall's glare only grew stormier. "Mr. Black and Mr. Potter, would you step outside for a moment?"
"Why?" Sirius said, doe-eyed.
"Because you irritate me," she said. Most of the class turned to look at her, surprised by her remark.
She watched as James and Sirius made their way outside, feeling weirdly guilty. She'd been a part of the prank, but if she offered herself up now McGonagall would have no doubt who was behind the prank. Right now she was only operating under suspicions, and the boys past track records.
"Now they've done it," a Hufflepuff girl whispered to her friends.
"She might dock points," her friend replied as McGonagall stalked from the class. "Hufflepuff might end up over taking Gryffindor then!"
Lily groaned. Of course she knew where Gryffindor stood on the leader board – third – because she herself adjusted the rubies every week. Usually they relied on Quidditch matches to ensure they got the cup, but since their only match had been cancelled there was nothing to even out the Marauder's trouble making. As soon as the door closed behind McGonagall, the classroom erupted into laughter and hushed snickering. As Head Girl it was Lily's job to quiet them, but she just wasn't in the mood. On her right Marlene had her head on their desk, her eyes closed. Alice was chatting to Mary McDonald, her desk partner, while Remus was fiddling with his fingers, nervously glancing up to the door every few seconds.
It took twenty minutes for the boys, and a red faced McGonagall, to return. James and Sirius quietly took their seats, still grinning slightly as if they'd managed to avoid getting detentions. At least they didn't look smug, Lily sighed.
"Please, put away your textbooks," McGonagall said. Even though that usually meant they had a practical lesson, their Professor didn't ask them to pull out their wands. Lily grimaced, bracing herself for whatever the Ministry had told the teachers to teach. "Before we start, Dumbledore has informed me that the vanishing students have all appeared in his office, much to their amusement." She scowled at that, glaring at a mock-innocent James. "They will return soon. As for your textbooks you won't be needing them for today's lesson. Same with your homework, we'll return to the next lesson."
A few people smirked with glee, James included. Lily didn't smirk, but a tiny part of her was glad as well. That was until she noticed the look of pure, untouchable terror on her Professors face. Instinctively, she glanced at Marlene, their animosity briefly forgotten. What could've made their Professor so frightened?
"As most of you know the magical world has been in constant turmoil due to forces previously unknown to us," McGonagall started. Her voice didn't once teeter, or stumble, but her tone was unusually gentle. "As a well-protected school you have become mostly unaware of the extent of this turmoil."
That was when Lily remembered something James had whispered to Remus at the very beginning of the school year. She knew that James' father was a very successful auror, or rather had been a very successful one, before he retired. But hadn't James mentioned that he'd been sent back out into the field?
"The Ministry has found it fit to warn all of you of the man behind these attacks," McGonagall said. Her eyes were on James' as if he already knew something they didn't. But what could he possibly know of? Everyone knew it was Lord Voldemort who orchestrated each attack, despite all of the Ministry's attempts to divert this piece of information. "Lord Voldemort has indeed declared war on the wizarding world. He has raised a Muggle-hating army, and we – at the school – believe he is intent on ridding the world of Muggle-born blood."
Silence bloomed throughout the classroom. Their prank, which now riddled Lily with guilt, was forgotten. Everyone inside the entire school was made well aware of a group of students who bullied those with Muggle-born heritage, but that's all it was, bullying. Lord Voldemort was killing people just like her, and all because of something she had no control over. She felt Marlene's hand grip hers under the table. Lily gripped back, her heart thumping. A part of her knew that she was being irrational – she already knew all of this information, she was already aware of the bloodshed outside the castles walls – but the why her Professor was framing it made it sound worse. As if this was only the beginning.
JAMES POV
James knew about the impending war. He knew there were attacks happening that the Ministry covered up and that his Dad refused to mention. He knew that Voldemort intended to kill every single Muggle-born and put the Muggle's into their "rightful" place. He knew more than most. And it still made him feel sick to the stomach.
He walked out of McGonagall's class feeling dejected and heavy-headed. He wanted to see if Lily was okay, but he wanted to sort out his thoughts first instead of rushing into a conversation hot-headed and pissed off.
"I think you're right," Remus said.
He'd come up behind James so silently that he'd nearly spun around and punched his friend in the mouth. Remus' eyes went large, slowly flickering down to James' bent fists.
"Is this about Lily?" Remus said. He ushered James into an empty classroom, just as conscious of James' temper as James was. He'd been around when it'd gone completely rogue.
"Yes." James rubbed his face. "And no. I mean, yes, of course, she's suddenly turned into his target. But it's not just about her. It's about everyone."
"She's safe inside this castle James," Remus reminded him.
James nodded sagely. His temper had diluted slightly, but James could feel it inside of him, dangerous and struggling to surface.
"The war isn't ending Remus," James said quietly. "It hasn't even properly begun. It'll be us fighting it. Those Slytherins, we'll be fighting them for real. Not just stupid pranks."
"I understand that," Remus said. He was frowning, trying to make sense of his friend.
"No you don't," James growled. "I don't even understand it. Not fully. My Father hides so much from me. But he's out in the field fighting right now. He's been retired for five years Remus."
Remus nodded tentatively already aware of this. "Are you saying that –?"
"That he'll probably die fighting in this war? That we might die in this war? Yes."
Both boys looked at each other, weighted with their own fears. It was suddenly too much. McGonagall had told them not to panic; that they were safe inside the castles walls but he wasn't stupid, and neither was Remus. Dumbledore wouldn't willingly inform the entire school of such bad news. What about those whose parents were now targets? What about those whose parents were out there fighting for their safety? What about those whose parents were fighting alongside Voldemort? He'd been forced to tell them everything, and someone was inside the castle's wall, reporting right back to the Ministry.
"We have to find Sirius," James said, suddenly.
Remus nodded, already pulling the Marauder's map from his pocket. James' checked the Astronomy tower first this time, but he wasn't there. Nor was he in the common room, the boys bathrooms or inside the Great Hall. James couldn't find him on the grounds either.
"Look," Remus said, pointing at a corridor on the first floor. "Where do you think he's headed?"
"The Slytherin common room," James said. "Where's Peter?"
"Muggle studies," Remus said. "Are we going after him?"
James frowned, conflicted, but he knew his answer regardless.
LILY POV
The Gryffindor common room was unusually crowded for second period Monday. The sevenths years had Muggle Studies and Astronomy so she was hoping that James would make his way here after rushing out of Transfiguration. She was clearly wrong. And Sirius and Remus weren't here either. She wanted to scream in frustration.
"Are you okay Lily?" Alice said, moving towards her. Her expression was unusually pale.
"I'm fine," Lily snapped. "What's new? We already knew all that crap. Why bother getting all worked up over it."
If Lily's temper surprised Alice she didn't show it. Instead she ushered Lily up to her dorm, away from the prying eyes. "You have to talk to Marly," Alice insisted. "This grudge is already stupid."
"She has to apologize to me!" Lily said, flabbergasted. Had Alice believed her when she said she hadn't cared about all anything McGonagall had said?
"She's knows that," Alice said. "And she wants to."
"No," Lily whispered. She was positive Marlene was waiting for them in her dorm. "She absolutely destroyed Remus."
"You want to get over this just as much as she does," Alice said. "I know you do. And she didn't destroy Remus. You think he's that naïve to what everyone thinks? You think he's that weak. He's forgiven her already Lily."
Lily blinked. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Alice never got in between her and Marlene's fights.
"I need you two to be friends again," Alice whispered. Her eyes had gone wide and watery.
It was her friends' tears that finally cracked Lily's hard skin. This grudge, this hostility she had built up against Marlene was only going to be counter-productive from here onwards. They were on the same side, about time they started acting it.
"Okay," Lily said. "But I don't want her to apologize. I know she truly meant what she said. But I won't be mad with her anymore, I promise."
"Oh Lily," Alice said, shaking her head. "Maybe in the moment she meant it but –"
"I did mean it," Marlene said, the seventh year dormitory door slamming open. Alice nearly jumped in shock. Lily was too passive to register it. "But I don't believe Remus is like that. I never did."
That was all Lily wanted to hear. "Okay."
Marlene smiled softly.
JAMES POV
James and Remus were out of breath by the time they reached Slytherin house. They found Sirius there, pacing back and forth, muttering angrily at the portrait. James knew he was trying to force his way in.
"Padfoot," James said, stepping forward.
Sirius ignored him, but he flinched, acknowledging his presence. It was enough to tell James he could go on.
"It won't work," James said. "He's already made up his mind."
"Well the little shit is wrong," Sirius muttered angrily.
James held back from saying 'I know,' since he'd already said it a hundred times over. "No he isn't," James said.
Sirius stopped his pacing instantly. He heard Remus groan.
"You want me to give up, don't you?" Sirius hissed.
"No," James said. "Don't be daft."
Sirius scoffed. "I know what you're thinking. You think that Regulus believes that our side is the wrong side to be on, so for him to be on his side is right for him. Well that's wrong too then."
Before James could replied, the Slytherin portrait swung open and a seventh year – Amber Morgan – stepped outside, her expression neutral even when she spotted the three Gryffindor's. Sirius recklessly pulled out his wand and pointed it at her.
"What's the password," he growled.
"Sirius," Remus hissed through clenched teeth.
"Guess you finally heard the bad news," Amber mocked. "Decided you'd come here and try and get ride of some evil Slytherins."
"I just wanted to speak to my brother," Sirius snapped.
The portrait door swung open a second time and this time Mulciber and Snape stepped outside. They were now evenly numbered, which made James' heart pace. Snape had already used an unforgivable. Who knew what they'd use this time.
"You've got a nerve coming back here Potter," Snape said icily.
James found that despite his pacing heart, his subdued anger was still there. "Guess I came back to finish some unfinished business."
Sirius glanced his way, disbelief in his eyes. "It was you," he hissed. He aimed his wand at Snape. "You should be in Azkaban you piece of filth."
"But I'm not," Snape said savagely. "And I doubt I will be. Thanks to Potter. You, on the other hand, are you here to kill me?"
A second wand trained itself to Snape's chest. "Don't you dare threaten them," Remus growled. His tone was feral, his mouth trained into a grimace. "And don't you think I won't hex the lot of you."
"Ouch," Amber yelped gleefully. "I'm quivering."
James lifted his wand, joining his friends. It was the first time in two years that they would purposefully start the duel. Snape hadn't even drawn his wand yet.
"You wouldn't," Mulciber hissed. "You'll be expelled."
"You know," James said, grinning. "I don't think we will be. Unlike you lot, Dumbledore's on our side. Where's you pathetic master? Isn't he big and strong enough to get inside the castle? Pity."
"How dare you speak about the Dark Lord like that," Amber screamed. She pulled her wand from her cloak and trained it on James' chest.
"We shouldn't," Remus said, his hand shaking, but he hadn't lowered his wand yet.
"Oh we should," Sirius said. He glanced at his friend, his eyes cold. "We're not backing down now. Not ever."
"They're not worth it," Remus mumbled.
"Of course they're not," James said. "None of them are."
"What a touching moment," Amber scowled. "Pity Dumbledore isn't here to straighten you three up."
"Walk away Amber," Snape said, signing.
"Not today Snape," James said, and with that he fired the first hex.
All it took was three spells, each cast by one of the Gryffindor's, to cause each Slytherin to drop to the floor. James bound their wrists, and dumped them behind a tapestry. Remus watched, shaking. Sirius patted him on the back.
"We don't have a choice anymore," he said.
"We always have a choice," Remus said.
"Not this time," Sirius told him.