Chapter 10: New Discoveries
Sunday, Lily, Marlene, Remus, Sirius and James decided to get the most out of the September weather and sit outside by their favourite beech tree. Lily was sitting in between Marlene and Remus against the tree, while James and Sirius lay down by their feet. Peter was off doing Merlin knows what, while Nicole and Melissa were off finishing homework that they didn't finish yesterday.
"Hey Marly. Don't you think that we're getting kind of distant with Nicole and Melissa?" asked Lily as they were sitting there relaxing.
Marlene shrugged. "I guess. But, it was bound to happen anyways. I mean, with us being best friends, and them being best friends, it couldn't be helped," replied Marlene.
"I guess. But do you want to have a slumber party like the old days?" asked Lily grinning.
"Sure!" said Marlene enthusiastically.
Sirius lifted his head. "What do you girls actually do at these slumber parties?" he asked curiously.
Marlene and Lily looked at each other. Lily winked swiftly and looked around casually. "Oh, you know. Have pillow fights in our underwear, talk about how sexy the three of you are, you know, all the good stuff," Lily replied, shrugging lightly. Her voice was perfectly serious and her face showed no signs of joking behaviour.
This time James and Remus turned to look at the girls.
"Actually?" asked a curious James.
"Well, of course! You boys know how attractive we find you," replied Marlene, her face showing the same signs as Lily's.
James looked closely at Lily. Her face was serious, and there was no smile tugging at the corner of her lips. He observed her eyes and found what he was looking for. They glinted with humour and you could tell that Lily was joking.
"I don't believe you," said James.
"Are you denying the fact that I find you attractive James?" asked an amused Lily.
James faltered. "W-w-what?" he asked.
"Are you denying the fact that I find you attractive?" she repeated, a smile slowly tugging at her mouth.
"N-no! What I meant was, that was not what you really do at your slumber parties," he finally managed to get out.
"How do you know if that is actually what we do?" she asked curiously.
"I can tell by your eyes. Your face shows that you are serious, but your eyes give you away. They always do that. You can see what you're actually feeling if you look closely," he said quietly.
James and Lily were just staring at each other. Marlene, Sirius and Remus looked at each other, completely confused at the outcome of their little side project. James and Lily were moving on quite fine just by themselves. Really, what use were the three of them?
Marlene motioned for the two boys to move away from Lily and James. They all stood up and walked a bit away from the two Head students. Lily and James didn't seem to notice their three friends walk away.
"What in Merlin's name is going on?" asked a baffled Sirius.
"No idea. Marly?" asked Remus.
Marlene shrugged. "Maybe we should just give up on this idea and let them work it out on their own? I mean, look at the two of them. They didn't even notice that we got up. I think, if we leave them on their own, they will end up together in the end," she finished confidently.
Sirius and Remus nodded enthusiastically. "Okay, now that that's settled, let's go interrupt their little staring contest," said Sirius amusedly.
…………………………
"I can tell by your eyes. Your face shows that you are serious, but your eyes give you away. They always do that. You can see what you're actually feeling if you look closely," he said quietly.
Lily didn't say anything. What? Can he actually read my eyes that easily?
Lily looked into James eyes. She wanted to see if she could read his eyes as easily as he did hers. She's done it before, but last time it was in her dream.
She looked into his hazel orbs and discovered herself getting lost in them like the last time. Her mind went blank and she felt her heart thump a little louder. Lily felt warm and fuzzy. She completely relaxed and just let allowed herself to stare into them.
Time seemed to stand still looking into his remarkable eyes. Lily forgot the real reason she looked into his eyes in the first place. She thought she saw Marlene, Remus and Sirius get up and walk away, but frankly, she didn't care.
Lily didn't look away, but she wanted to look at the rest of James' face. She kept her eye contact, but looked at his face as well. His jaw was very distinguished she could see small amount of stubble along his chin. He had a thin face and no longer looked like a boy. Yeeupp. James Potter was no longer a boy; he had finally grown up.
She saw from the corner of her eyes her friends walking towards them but she still didn't look away. Then, all of a sudden, something moved from the side and their concentration was broken.
…………………………
"I can tell by your eyes. Your face shows that you are serious, but your eyes give you away. They always do that. You can see what you're actually feeling if you look closely," he said quietly.
James kept looking at her. Dear Merlin! Did I actually say that? She going to think I am such a creeper! He thought to himself. Surprisingly, Lily did not look away or move at all. She just stared back. James tried reading her eyes again to try and figure out what she was feeling. Her eyes showed curiosity at first, but then it slowly started to fade. James didn't bother resist the chance at being able to gaze freely at Lily.
As he continued to look at Lily, he felt his heart beat harder and his blood pump quicker. She was still as breath-taking as always.
James was propped up on his right elbow and was extremely uncomfortable, but he was afraid to move in case she might decide to look away. He stayed there, just looking into her outstanding eyes. He noticed movement out of the corner of his eye but ignored it.
Then, Lily started looking at the rest of his face. He felt her eyes trace his jaw and slowly come back up to his eyes. They stayed like this for a while longer until they were interrupted.
…………………………
"DID YOU MISS US?" yelled Sirius, jumping in between them. James and Lily, both coming out of their trances, jumped as well.
Sirius started laughing. Marlene and Remus rejoined Lily on the ground.
"You should have seen your faces when I yelled! HAHAHA! That was priceless," he said, sitting on the ground beside James.
Lily was looking at the ground, avoiding everyone's eye. James was on both his elbows now, looking up. Both were embarrassed at themselves for staring that long and not looking away. Sirius looked into Lily's eyes.
"Hey Lily. Look at me. I wanna see if I can do that thing that James does," he said, staring at her.
She rolled her eyes but let him try anyways.
"Hmm. I see…er, I don't see anything but green," he said scratching his head.
"Alright then," said Lily standing up. "Marly and I need to do some preparing for our slumber party. See you boys later," she said, dragging Marlene into the castle.
Sirius sat down in Lily's place beside Remus. "So, how do you do it, mate?" asked Sirius curiously.
"Do what?" asked James, still looking at the sky.
"Read Lily's eyes like that; you can tell exactly what she's thinking," replied Sirius.
James shrugged. "Don't know," he answered.
"You're not in love with Lily, Padfoot. That's why you can't do it," said Remus quietly.
"You mean you have to be in love with someone in order to do that?" asked Sirius.
"Well, none of us could do it, and we don't love Lily like James does," he replied, shrugging.
"I guess," said Sirius, not thoroughly convinced.
"Whatever, just drop it," said James.
…………………………
"Girls! We're having a slumber party!" squealed Marlene to Nicole and Melissa.
"REALLY? We haven't had one of those in such a long time!" said Nicole.
"I know! Okay, so Lily and I will get the food, you guys get the magazines and meet us in the dorm at 9:00!" The four girls rushed off to their destinations in preparation for their girl's night.
At 9:00, all four girls rushed back into their dorm. Lily and Marlene had gathered all the food; marshmallows, chips, ice cream, Honeyduke's chocolate and any other unhealthy foods they could find. Nicole and Melissa had gathered all recent and old magazines containing their favourite quizzes and games.
"All ready for tonight?" asked an excited Nicole.
Marlene and Lily nodded enthusiastically and pushed Marlene and Lily's beds together. They all found a seat on the newly made bed and pulled food into their laps.
"So, what's up with you girls?" asked Marlene.
"Mel's got a new crush!" squealed Nicole like a little school girl.
"Oh really?! Who is he?" asked Lily, eating a bad of chips.
Melissa blushed. "He's a seventh year Ravenclaw. His name is Shawn Forteo. Well...he's cute and funny and smart….he's..he's…perfect," she said dreamily.
"Awwww Melissa that's so cute! So, what's he look like? Good looking?" Lily asked raising her eyebrows suggestively.
"Of course! Since when have you known Melissa Jefferson to fall for anyone who isn't decent looking?" said Nicole.
"Oh, come on. I'm not that shallow," said Melissa.
The three other girls looked at her with raised eyebrows. Melissa rolled her eyes.
"Fine, maybe just a little," she said.
The four girls laughed. "So, what's he look like?" asked Marlene, repeating Lily's question.
"He's on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team; I think he plays beater, not sure though. He has blond hair, blue eyes, nice smile, he's tall and has a hot bod," replied Melissa, staring off into the distance. By her description, Melissa and Shawn were exact opposites. Melissa had dark brown hair and matching brown eyes. She was also very petite. She was very pretty, but no where near Lily.
Lily and Melissa's taste in boys was extremely different. Lily didn't like the boys were who the typical kind of hot; perfect blond hair, sky-blue eyes. She preferred the boys who had a darker shade of hair colour and something other than blue for an eye colour. She didn't want the picture perfect boyfriend that was featured in the magazines for their 'dreamy and drool-worthy' looks. What she looked for in a boy was exactly James Potter.
"I think you'd make a great couple, Mel," replied Lily truthfully.
"Thanks!" said an excited Melissa.
"So, Nic. Moving on. Still the old crush for you?" asked Marlene.
Nicole blushed a little and nodded. She had liked Preston Summers since fifth year. He was average height with light brown hair. His eyes were a brownish-green and he was in Ravenclaw with Shawn. Nicole had black, shoulder-length hair and brown eyes. Nicole and Melissa could almost look like sisters, but Nicole was slightly taller and a bit curvier.
"I don't understand why you just can't go and talk to him," said Lily. "He seems to like you back, you both are just too shy to admit you're feelings," she finished while moving onto marshmallows.
"Hey, what about you, Mrs. Potter? I don't see you walking up to James and admitting you're in love with him," said Nicole, pointing at her.
Lily blushed. "But my situation's different," she said.
"Oh? We've both liked our crushes for a long time, you, probably even longer than I have, and both of them seem to like us back. What's so different?" asked Nicole.
"Well, for one, your crush hasn't been asking you out for the past three years and abruptly stopped this year. Second, you haven't been pretending to hate your crush for the last six years. Third, your crush seems to be just as shy as you are and is not likely to make the first move. And I am not IN LOVE with James," said Lily, satisfied with her answer.
Nicole pouted. "Fine. But I'm going to wait until at least a month passes until I ask him out," she said.
"That's all we're asking," replied Marlene, smiling.
"Next, Marlene. Anyone you interested in?" asked Melissa.
"Umm. Kind of. It's complicated though. And unexpected."
"Care to explain?" asked Lily.
"Not really…"
"AW. Come on Marly," said Nicole.
"Fine," she said rolling her eyes. "I kind of like…"
"Yes?" asked the three girls.
"Um. 'Mus 'Pin," she mumbled.
"WHAT?" they asked.
"Re… Lu…" she whispered to the floor.
"Come again?" asked Melissa.
"Remus Lupin," answered Lily.
There was a silence. Nicole, Melissa and Lily were all looking at Marlene, and Marlene was looking at the floor. Then suddenly Lily hugged Marlene.
"Congratulations, Marly! Remus is a great guy," she said, releasing her.
"I know, I know. But don't get your knickers in a twist, it's really just a small crush, I'll probably get over it in a while. It's nothing like Lily loving James," she said, shrugging.
Lily furrowed her eyebrows. "I am not in love with James. I'm too young. Besides, what is love anyways? Who gets to decide what love is?" asked Lily, looking around at the three girls.
"Well, tell us how you feel about James," said Marlene, smirking knowingly.
"Um. Okay. Well, he makes me smile," she said hesitantly. She continued, "I think he's extremely smart and excellent at Quidditch. He's also very good looking, but not over doing it," she slowly gained more confidence. "And his hair. It looks so soft. I love how he's so loyal to his friends. He would do anything for them. I love how he knows how to have fun but when to draw the line. He makes me feel special. I like being in his company. I love the way he looks at me like I'm the only one in the room. His eyes are the most wonderful eyes I have ever seen. And just being with him makes me so…" she trailed off looking at her friends. The three girls were all looking at her and smiling gently.
"Oh my. I'm in love with James."
The girls' smiles grew wider.
Lily was shocked. "I'm in love with James?"
Marlene, Nicole and Melissa nodded, still smiling.
"I'm in love with James."
The three girls all started squealing like ten year olds and brought Lily into a huge hug. They were all laughing and smiling except for Lily.
"Lily, what's wrong?" asked Melissa.
"I can't be in love with James. No. He doesn't love me back. Hell, I don't even know if he likes me anymore! No, this is not good," she said, shaking her head and closing her eyes.
"Lily, what the bloody hell are you on about? You're doing exactly what you did before the patrols, and that turned out fine, right? Plus, we already told you, James is HEAD OVER HEELS in love with YOU," said Marlene.
"No, this is different! I didn't love James before patrols! It's not the same!" replied Lily.
"Correction: you didn't KNOW you loved James before patrols, but you always did," said Nicole.
"What do you mean? I think I would know if I loved someone or not," snapped Lily.
"Not necessarily. You wouldn't have figured it out until much later if we hadn't asked you how you felt about him," said Marlene.
"Still! It's too young to be in love with someone! I'm only seventeen! I'm not even out of school yet. How is it possible that you meet the person you love when you're seventeen?" asked a hysterical Lily.
"It happens all the time! My parents met at Hogwarts and now they are married with kids!" replied Nicole.
"Same here," said Marlene. "And same with good friends of my parents, you remember Arthur Weasley and Molly Prewitt? Head Boy and Girl when we were in our first year? I heard they have maybe three kids now!" she finished.
"What are you implying?" asked Lily. "Are you saying that James and I are going to end up marrying and having five kids?!"
"It's a possibility, but that's not what we're implying. What we're trying to say is that it's not impossible to meet the person you're going to spend the rest of your life with when you're only seventeen. You don't have to be done school to fall in love, Lily," said Melissa.
Lily stared around at her friends. She calmed down a bit. Really what was so bad about being in love with James? Well, if he doesn't love you back—no. Lily, don't think like that. She hadn't realized that she stood up in her mad attempt to talk her friends out of the idea of her being in love. She sat down and breathed deeply. She suddenly didn't feel like having a slumber party anymore. She just wanted to get out of this room.
"Hey girls. I'm sorry to do this, but I just need time to think and I don't think I can continue with this slumber party. We'll finish it another day, okay? You guys can continue, but I just can't go on with it anymore," said Lily, walking towards the door.
"But Lily, where are you going? It's 10:30, past curfew," said Marlene.
"Don't worry, I won't get caught. Plus, I'm Head Girl," she said, shrugging.
She grabbed her Head Girl badge and pinned it messily on her shirt. She was in such a haste to get out of the room that she didn't notice that she was still in her pyjamas. She left the room without another word to her friends.
She exited the Common Room without knowing where she was going. It was dark in the castle with the torches casting shadows on the walls. She shivered involuntarily. She knew she was just asking to be caught by teachers or ambushed by a bunch of Slytherins. Great. First I realize that I'm in love with someone who doesn't love me back, and then I get a detention or put into the Hospital Wing.
Lily kept walking absently down the corridors. She wasn't paying any attention to where she was going and found herself in an unfamiliar corridor. She heard the shuffling of feet behind her and turned around. There was no one there. Her heart started beating a little faster. She felt around for her wand. DAMNIT. It's in my robes! So, even if Slytherins did attack her, she wouldn't even be able to defend herself. Leaving her dorm was a very stupid, stupid idea.
There it was again. The shuffling. This time it was added with a muffled whisper. Lily cautiously made her way towards the noise.
"Is anyone there?" she said quietly.
The whispering and shuffling stopped. She stopped moving as well. Suddenly, she heard another noise from the opposite end of the corridor. She turned around for the second time in the span of one minute. Her heart was pounding. She barely finished her turn when she felt a warm hand put over her mouth from behind and pull her backwards.
…………………………
Lily crashed into something. She saw something cover her and she smelled a familiar scent. Lily swore her heartbeat was echoing around her in the deserted corridor. She was about to scream when she heard a voice in her ear.
"Shhh. Lily, don't scream."
Lily shivered. It was James. The hand left her mouth and her skin tingled. She turned around cautiously and met the eyes of Peter Pettigrew. Wait. That can't be right. Where's James? She kept turning and saw Remus Lupin. Nope, keep going. She saw Sirius Black. Is the whole Gryffindor tower hiding here or something? Sheez. Finally, her eyes met the sight of James Potter. He was looking at her cautiously like she might suddenly burst out in song and blow their cover.
She knew they were under the invisibility cloak and she was surprised that four grown teenage boys and one teenage girl could fit under one small invisibility cloak. Hmm. It's probably an enlargement charm or something. But, back to the matter at hand.
"What are you doing?" she whispered. Her heart was still echoing in her ears and it wasn't calming down anytime soon.
"Shh," said James putting a finger to her lips. "Look," replied James, taking the finger away from her mouth and pointing somewhere behind her.
Lily turned back into the direction she came from and saw two shadows forming on the wall. They were starting to grow and grow until actual figures came into sight. She could see them coming closer and closer. She heard shuffling from her right. So that's what the shuffling was. It was Peter. The two figures stopped moving.
"Who's there?" asked a cold voice. That cold voice belonged to Malfoy. She felt grateful to the Marauders for pulling her under the cloak when they did. They might have given her a pre-mature heart attack, but that was always better than anything Malfoy would have done to her when she was wand-less and in her pyjamas.
"It's nothing. Probably just a rat or something. Breathe, Lucius," said an amused voice. Lily shuddered again. It was Bellatrix Black. She felt another surge of gratitude for the Marauders. It would definitely not have been pretty if she was left alone with Bellatrix and Lucius.
She felt Sirius tense behind her and James grab his arm to stop him from charging out from under the cloak. Bellatrix and Sirius were definitely not the best cousins.
"Really, Lucius. You're just like dear old 'Cissa. The Dark Lord's mission has made you two unbearably paranoid," said Bellatrix.
The occupants of the invisibility cloak instantly perked up. The Dark Lord's mission?
"Bellatrix! We never speak of the mission unless we are in the Slytherin Common Room! You dare endanger our chances?" whispered a furious Lucius.
"I would never dare endanger anything related to the Dark Lord. But, look around, dear Lucius. Do you see anyone?" she whispered back, anger in her voice.
"Just because we don't see anyone dear Bellatrix, does not mean nobody is around!" retorted Malfoy.
"Fine, Lucius. Have it your way. Let's just continue looking for what the Dark Lord wants," Bellatrix said angrily. The two Slytherins continued walking on their way.
Lily moved to follow them but a hand on her arm stopped her. She looked up and saw James motion for her to move in the opposite direction. The five of them moved in the direction James was moving towards. They stopped in front of a wall across a tapestry. James then checked the Marauders' Map and got out from under the cloak. Then, James started pacing in front of the wall. What the bloodly hell does he think he's doing? Lily thought.
Lily watched in amazement as a door appeared out of nowhere on the door. James motioned for them to come it. Lily stepped out from under the cloak and in through the door. Her mouth hung open.
The room was a nice comfortable sitting room with a small table sitting in the middle. There was a roaring fire and blankets on the couches. The table also held five Butterbeers and a plate of cookies.
"Nice, Prongs," said Sirius, smirking at the table.
James smirked right back and sat down.
"Have a seat," he said, motioning Lily to sit on an armchair.
Lily sat down, her eyes still wide and looking around the room. "What is this place and how come I've never seen it before?" she asked.
"Welcome to the Room of Requirement," said Remus.
"Hey, no fair Moony. I wanted to announce it," said Sirius.
"Bad luck, Padfoot."
"The Room of Requirement turns into any room when you most need it. All you need to do is pace in front of the wall three times, thinking about what you really need. If you need a washroom, it will turn into a washroom. If you need extra quills really badly, it will supply you with all the quills you will need for one lifetime. People usually stumble across it when they need it most and will probably never find it again," said James.
"Hey, no fair Prongs. I wanted to explain it," pouted Sirius again.
"Bad luck, Padfoot. Here, have a cookie," said James, taking one from the table and throwing him one.
"So, why exactly are we here?" asked Lily.
"Well, I figured you'd want to talk about what had just happened out there and we needed a place where we wouldn't be overheard," replied James, shrugging.
Again, Lily was amazed at how James knew her so well when she barely knew him at all.
"Oh, before I forget, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND THANK YOU AGAIN," she said. She got up and hugged all of them hastily, but she lingered a bit while hugging James.
"Why exactly are you thanking us?" asked Peter.
"For pulling me under the cloak, of course. Bellatrix and Malfoy certainly wouldn't have been very friendly and I don't exactly have my wand with me…" she said, embarrassed.
"What?! What do you mean you don't have your wand with you?" asked James, horror-stricken at the idea of Lily wand-less at night.
Lily blushed. "Well, because I didn't really want to stay in my dorm tonight and I kind of left in a hurry," she replied.
"Hey. Weren't you supposed to have a slumber party tonight where you run around in your knickers with your mates?" asked a suspicious Sirius, talking with cookie crumbs falling out of his mouth.
"Eww. Sirius, that is really disgusting. Why so many girls fancy you is a mystery to me," said Lily, disgusted. She looked away and continued, "About the slumber party. I wasn't really in the mood anymore."
"Why, what happened?" asked James.
"Oh. Er. Nothing. Just didn't want to have one anymore," she replied nervously. "But we came here to talk about Bellatrix and Malfoy," she changed the subject hastily.
Sirius suddenly got up at the mention of his cousin and grabbed a Butterbeer. He chugged it and put the bottle back on the table angrily. He started muttering under his breathe and glaring at the wall.
Lily looked questionably at James. He mouthed 'Bellatrix' to her. Lily understood and looked away from him.
Lily coughed. "Er, Sirius? Will you be okay talking about this?" she asked cautiously.
He looked at her. "Sure, I would just love to talk about my lovely family and all the wonderful works they are doing to make this school a truly better place."
Lily didn't know what to say. She didn't know that Sirius was so affected by his cousin. She guessed she would never know as she was not related to Dark Arts-obsessed freaks.
"Oh, er. Sorry, Sirius. I didn't mean to upset you," she finished timidly.
Sirius looked at her with a mean look on his face, but it slowly softened. "You didn't upset me Lily. You're not related to me," he said. He grabbed another Butterbeer and finished it again.
"Continue on talking. Really, I don't mind," said Sirius, grabbing another cookie and sitting down.
"D-don't you think we should get back to the Common Room? I mean, it's getting late," squeaked Peter nervously.
Lily didn't know how he came to be a Marauder. The giant squid would make a better Marauder than Peter. I mean, really, get a backbone.
"Relax Peter. We're not going to get caught or anything," said Remus.
"So, what do you reckon Bellatrix and Malfoy are looking for?" asked James.
"No, what is Voldemort looking for at Hogwarts?" corrected Lily.
Lily, James and Remus thought in silence. Peter was fidgeting nervously and Sirius was still muttering under his breath.
"What if Voldemort is looking for a way inside the school? Maybe he's planning to attack," said James.
"Not likely, Prongs. He wouldn't dare as long as Dumbledore's Headmaster. You know that he's the only wizard Voldemort is afraid of," said Remus.
The three of them continued on thinking as the other two continued on fidgeting and muttering.
"Maybe he wants to recruit," said Lily.
"That is a possibility, but why would Bellatrix and Malfoy be looking around at night for followers? Wouldn't they be looking in their own house for people to recruit?" said Remus.
"Hey Remus. Since you keep shooting down our ideas, why don't you think of something?" asked James, annoyed that they couldn't think of anything.
Remus thought for a while. Then he said, "Maybe Voldemort is looking for an object of some sort. Maybe he's searching for something that is within the school. Something that would be useful for him and that would help him accomplish something."
"Like what though?" asked Lily. "That could be anything."
Remus shrugged. "I'm only thinking of an idea, not the whole plan," said Remus.
"Hey guys, let's think about this another day. I still got Potions homework to do," said James.
Lily nodded. "But don't you think that it's scary that Voldemort has followers inside Hogwarts? Can't they do serious damage?" asked Lily, slowly getting up from her seat.
"Yeah, of course it's scary, but again, I don't think they will attack or anything as long as Dumbledore's here," replied Remus.
"I guess. Hogwarts just doesn't seem all that safe anymore knowing that there are mini-Death Eaters running around," said Lily, shivering slightly.
"As long as Dumbledore's here, you will always be safe. And you can always come to any of us if there's trouble," said James meaningfully.
"Thanks, James," said Lily, smiling up at him.
"No problem," he said, smiling back.
"Hey, I've got a question. What were you four doing before you grabbed me?" Lily asked.
James shrugged. "Going to the Kitchens for a snack,"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Of course."
"Come on, let's get back. It's 11:30," said Remus, already at the door.
The five teenagers got under the enlarged invisibility cloak once again and checked the Marauders' Map before heading back towards Gryffindor tower.
A/N: WOOO Chapter 10 :)
I don't really like this chapter but tell me what YOU think please. REVIEW. REVIEW. REVIEW. Thanks. XD