I love all of you so much! I asked for reviews and they shot from 88 to 100 practically overnight! For that, I'm going to try to reward you, and I think I might have a sort of idea. I was thinking that I'd write a new chapter to a new Lily/Scorpius fanfic every time I get fifty more reviews. Please review this chapter, and tell me what you would think of that. I actually came up with the idea for this fanfic after I watched the last Harry Potter movie (so upsetting that they're over now), and let me know if you'd like that idea. Thanks for the perspectives that you all gave in your reviews because it really aided me in writing this chapter.
Also, I'm terribly sorry that I didn't answer to any of your reviews, seeing as there were so many, I really didn't have time to get to them all, but I definitely read them and appreciated every single one of them. 3
Another thing (I'm sorry if I'm ranting a lot), this story is now over a year old! I'm so proud that I've managed to continue it, and I can personally tell that my writing has gotten better since last year. I wanted to update on the one-year anniversary, but I was at camp at the time and didn't really have the chance. :P So thank you all for your support through the last year!
Chapter 23: Changes and Possible Mistakes
Harry absent-mindedly traced his lightning bolt scar as he stared at his sleeping wife, curled on the sofa with almost a dazed expression in his emerald eyes. His eyes were bloodshot and dry from no sleep. As soon as Lily had left, Ginny had turned upon Harry with her motherly instincts wrathfully attacking him for losing her precious daughter. She had screamed at him to go find her Lily and apologize and drag her home by her hair if he was forced. He had yelled right back at her, sending the boys scampering up to their rooms. He and Ginny had never, ever fought so valiantly against each other in their entire lives, and Harry couldn't even remember a time when he had been more furious.
It was now the wee hours of the morning, and Ginny had fallen asleep while they waited up for Lily to return. As they waited, the anger and passion slowly began to recede from his veins, and he now saw that all of them had been acting foolishly. He didn't regret his decision of forbidding her to see Scorpius, and he was going to stand by that rule when she came home. But perhaps he had been harsh when screaming at her, and although Draco was just as much at fault, he should never have allowed himself to lose his temper like that. Harry sighed, exhaustion making him feel weak and forcing his eyelids to close without his consent. He slowly stood up, and half-stumbled over to Ginny, trying to get his bearings. He then picked Ginny up gently in his arms and carried her upstairs to their room, laying her on her bed as though she was a princess, reminding him of when he carried Lily to her room as a child.
Ginny rolled over and blearily opened her eyes. "Lily?" she murmured groggily.
"Shh, love," Harry whispered softly, kissing her forehead after moving her stray strands of ginger hair from her face. "Lily will come home soon, I know it."
"Mkay," she muttered before falling down into the depths of her dreams.
Harry went to his side of the bed and climbed in, quickly letting sleep overtake him. Lily would come home, and f she didn't, he would find her and bring her home himself.
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Mr. Shacklebolt was still at the Ministry at three in the morning due to a mix up with the Minister of France. There was a gigantic stack of papers from the French Minister concerning Domestic trade and other things that simply the mention of set his head to aching. His hand was cramped from signing dozens of papers, and he was going hoarse from reciting to the enchanted quill just what policies he was offering the French Minister in return. His eyesight had become blurry from struggling to stay awake so long, and he sighed, wishing he couldn't simply wait until morning to finish this, but the other minister was expecting an answer by tomorrow. His head fell into his hands as he rested for a moment, unable to continue the work just yet. "Jeanette," he called to his secretary, the only other one still here, who was just outside his office.
"Yes, sir?" asked the woman who walked in with a bittersweet voice. Her raven hair fell far past her shoulders, and her charcoal-colored eyes had a steely look in them that ensnared anyone who looked. Her skin was extremely pale, and contrasted with her cherry-red lips that stretched into a light smile.
Kingsley looked at her in confusion. "You aren't Jeanette. What happened to my secretary?" Deep in the recesses of him mind, something warned him that all was not right here, but his stupor made it hard to concentrate.
The strange woman walked towards him, her high heels making a clicking sound on the hardwood. She stopped when she was almost leaning over his desk, her raven hair spilling like a waterfall over her shoulders. "I am Jeanette; you simply must be tired tonight Mr. Shacklebolt."
A dazed look came into his dark eyes. "Yes," he agreed vacantly. "I simply must be tired."
"Here," she said in a voice that was almost too kind to be real. She came around his desk and helped him out of his chair. "You shouldn't have stayed so long. Why don't you go home to your wife, and I'll let the French minister know that you'll be a bit delayed."
He nodded his head, too dazed to respond to anything else. Jeanette lead him to the fireplace where she threw some Floo powder, shouted the address, and helped him step into the green flames. When he disappeared, her bright lips stretched int a smile, showing her perfect, square teeth.
Jeanette walked over to the desk and sat down in the minister's recently-vacated chair. She picked up a quill and chewed on the end for a moment as she thought before she smiled and began writing something on a blank sheet of parchment, almost giggling as she did so. "Sorry to cut your reign short a bit, Kingsley," the imposter muttered to no one but herself.
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"Lily, you're welcome to spend as much time here as you need, but won't your parents be worried sick over you?" Teddy asked the redhead with concern.
"If my dad had been worried about me, he never would have let me leave," Lily retaliated with a dull fire, her face still stained by old tears. Victoire had already gone to bed after hearing Lily's story, but Teddy stayed up with her, showing her to her room and moving her trunk in there. The clock in the hallway chimed three in the morning and it must have been an hour ago that she showed up at Teddy's doorstep.
Teddy sighed and shook his head. "I'm going to send an owl to your father before I go back to bed. I'm sure your family's worried, Lils."
"Whatever you say, Ted," she mumbled sleepily. Teddy yawned, which resulted in her yawning as well.
"Alright, kiddo, just get some rest and we'll sort through everything in the morning, okay?"
"Okay," she agreed sleepily, and collapsed into the guest bed which was in Sirius Black's old room. Her skirts from the ball gown she was still clad in swished as she curled up under the covers and pulled the blankets up to her chin.
Teddy leaned over and kissed her hair like an older brother, and he left, shutting the door behind him, engulfing Lily in pure darkness.
She was dimly asleep, but murmuring invaded her mind and kept her on the brink of consciousness. Irritated after all she'd been through tonight, her emerald eyes flashed open to see a figure dart through the darkness. "Who are you?" she asked boldly and loudly, too tired to be cautious.
A boy's childish giggle echoed in her ear but would not respond. It wouldn't surprise her if Grimmauld Place was haunted, but she doubted that this little boy would be Sirius, or even belonging in his room. Whoever the little ghost was, he became silent, and she found it easy to slip into a deep rest….
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"It's been quite a while, hasn't it, Lily?" the venomous voice like honey resounded in her ears.
Lily's subconscious was immediately alert. Her eyes scrutinized Mortellea, who towed above her like a force of nature. "It has," she responded in the most grown-up tome she could manage. She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to give Mortellea a fearless glare. In truth, she was terrified, her heart pounding as though she were running a marathon. She tried to breathe calmly, not giving this vile woman anything to use against her. Although she was mortified with fear, her mind still functioned enough to let the images of the dead muggle family slowly float to the surface, and the memories gave her enough fury to fuel the power she needed.
That creepy smile once again stretched across Mortellea's lips, a smile that made even the strongest whimper in their nightmares. Lily bit her lip to keep it from trembling in fear. "Are you afraid, child?" Although she addressed Lily as a 'child,' she spoke to her, as though Lily was an equal to her.
"Only a fool wouldn't be afraid of the woman who brings death in the cruelest manner possible," the fourteen-year-old answered truthfully.
Her smile widened. "Then you are very wise." She paused, her fingers tracing her wand slowly. "So, Lily, do you know where we are?"
Lily spun in a circle, but a gray-white mist clouded wherever they were. "I haven't the faintest idea."
"Look closely," Mortellea admonished, laying a hand on Lily's shoulder to guide her to see. The girl tried not to shudder at the touch that felt like cool ice through the sleeve of her shirt. Slowly, the white mist began to take form and darkened, until it was a large room enclosed in darkness; the only light was tiny beams of moonlight that streaked through someone's curtains. Lily squinted, and could make out a still form lying on the bed.
Lily was terrified, unsure of whether this figure was dead, on its dying breath, or still sleeping. Curiosity reigned dominantly, perhaps it had something to do with her Gryffindor courage, but she boldly stepped forward to discover why she had been brought here, asking Merlin silently that she wouldn't have to witness this murder.
"Oh, Merlin," Lily gasped, tears welling in her eyes. "Th-that's Alicia!"
Her friend breathed peacefully, certainly unaware that the cruelest witch of the wizarding world and her close friend stood side by side, towering over her bed and her sleeping form. Her dark hair was splayed across the pillow, and as she slept, she smiled, as though having a good dream. "Albus," she whispered in her sleep.
Lily was horrified beyond belief, involuntarily stepping away from the bed, knowing that the room would soon be a host for the dead. "No," she breathed, her hot breath floating out of her lungs with a whoosh.
Mortellea just smiled wider and pulled out her wand with her right hand and a knife with her left. Lily swiftly moved between them, determined that this woman would not touch her friend. She felt her clothes for her wand, realizing that she was defenseless, but she remembered suddenly that she had laid her wand down on the bedside table. Mortellea had a cruel advantage. Lily couldn't think of a proper defense, so she lunged at Mortellea, deciding that offense was the best distraction, stupidly forgetting about the knife.
Mortellea was unprepared for such a move, and she was caught off guard at first, giving Lily the opportunity to wrap her fingers around the woman's slim neck. The wand clattered to the floor; Mortellea struggled against Lily, her fingernails raking across Lily's face. The burning sensation made Lily falter, but she squeezed her fingers against Mortellea's neck with all of her strength. Mortellea struggled to breathe and Lily cried out quietly in sudden pain, her fingers releasing their grip. Her leg gave out, and she gasped with pain, seeing the slash mark across her right thigh from the silver-bladed knife. She fell to her knees, and Mortellea took the time to retrieve her wand and stride across the room to the still-sleeping girl. She almost gently touched the wand to Alicia's forehead, and tendrils of silver splayed over her head like a spider web, until it almost completely encased her head. Alicia's sleeping bliss immediately morphed into nightmares and pain.
Lily struggled to her feet, ignoring the pain and the blood. Mortellea paid no heed to her as she kept murmuring her spells, weaving Alicia's worst nightmare. Lily scoured the dark room with her eyes, and noticed a letter-opener lying on Alicia's desk. She gripped the bejeweled hilt of the dull object as a terrible screech echoed in the room emanating from Alicia. Lily swallowed nervously, feeling nauseous before she dived towards Mortellea again; she drove the letter-opener into Mortellea's side, using her surprising power to sink it into the pliable flesh.
Mortellea's scream was the second to pierce the deadly silence of night. From outside Alicia's door, Lily could see lights flickering on and her urgent voices. Alicia's eyes flashed open, but it was obvious that this was a nightmare she would never wake from. She started crying and screaming loudly; each scream was another wound to Lily. Mortellea stumbled to the side, clutching her wound as bright blood spilled to the floor.
"You're just as human as the rest of us," Lily hissed with a raspy voice, cutting through the air.
The doorknob jiggled as someone tried to open the door, and someone banged loudly on it, calling frantically to Alicia. Alicia writhed on her bed, struggling to breathe. She was obviously trying to get rid of the thick web of magic around her face, but she only succeeded in clawing herself so violently that she began to bleed. Tears overflowed from Lily's eyes as she scrambled to Alicia. "Please, Alicia," she pleaded with the unhearing friend, "please, wake up." Alicia only shuddered violently, as though having a seizure, screaming incomprehensively.
Lily's shriek joined Alicia's as pain seared across her back. She felt as Mortellea dragged her knife across her skin, sending it into burning pain, much sharper that her leg. She arched her back, trying to escape the pain, only to have Mortellea grip her hair and pull her to her feet painfully. "I'll teach you to mess with me," she hissed.
Her hand released Lily's hair but instead grasped her wrist, almost crushing it with the force. Lily tried to struggle away, but the quick loss of blood was making her weak too quickly. The rune-resembling scars glimmered weakly in the dim light, seeming almost luminescent. The moonlight reflected off of Mortellea's knife just for a moment as she slowly touched the sharp edge to Lily's scar. Mortellea traced the scar with the tip of her knife, a sadistic smile flashing her teeth brightly. The pain was worse than any she had ever experienced, and the pitch of her scream raised so high that Alicia's window cracked. Mortellea's shrill laugh was drowned by Alicia's screams.
Lily's eyes flashed open, and she screamed, gasping for breath.
"Dear sweet Merlin!" Teddy and Victoire rushed into her room. She arched off of the bed, trying to relieve her back of the pain as her blood began to soak the white sheets.
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So the knife was cursed.
That would be a pointer that Lily would have to remember next time.
Her wounds wouldn't heal with magic, so she'd been wrapped up in white gauze that had to be changed regularly. It was uncomfortable to sit still, and she was too weak to stand. Healers came multiple times during the day and gave her potions that made her drowsy and slow but eased the pain and discomfort a bit. Teddy and Victoire were always with her, talking to her. Even Teddy couldn't pry the story out of her of how she gained cursed wounds. They left her be, simply bringing her books to read or something to do, such as Exploding Snap.
From Lily's window, she could see as massive amounts of Daily Prophet and other newspaper reporters swarmed the entrance, trying to get in, only to be denied by security. Teddy noticed her watching the commotion and commented, "They all want to get in to see you and the Baddock girl."
"Alicia?" Lily questioned, not really surprised that she would be brought to St. Mungo's as well.
"Yeah," he informed, unaware that she probably knew some of this information. "She was attacked last night, when you… well, whatever happened to you. The Auror Department thinks that it was rogue Death Eaters. They're starting to cause quite a lot of havoc. Anyway, she was tortured, and the Healers are unsure if she'll ever be quite healthy again."
Lily swallowed, the images of the night before flashing through her mind. That sort of damage would be nearly impossible to recover from. "She's lucky she's alive," Lily whispered.
Teddy frowned. "I'm not so sure that's true, Lils."
Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of Teddy, although she had done it plenty of times before. She sniffled and wiped her nose with a tissue. He directed his attention to the window, pretending not to notice her sorrow. A Healer came in, interrupting the quiet. "Miss Potter, your family is here to see you."
Her eyes widened and despite the recent dose of painkillers, she was alert. "What? No! Don't let them in!"
The Healer seemed very startled. "You don't want to see them?"
"Absolutely not," she said adamantly.
Teddy hesitantly muttered, "Lily, they're your family."
She was almost tempted to say, 'no, they're not," the words were on the tip of her tongue. But she shook her head and replied, "I don't want to see the Potters, or the Weasleys."
"Lily…" Teddy chided without words.
She felt guilty, but remained firm."I don't want to see them."The Healer fidgeted nervously and left to tell her huge family the news.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN'T SEE MY DAUGHTER?"
"That would be your mum," Teddy muttered under his breath.
"I know who it is, Teddy," Lily snapped irritably. "If you don't like it, then you don't have to be on my side. But if you're going to side with them," she jabbed her thumb towards the door, "then you can get out."
"Don't get mad at me, too," he admonished her, like the older brother he was. "Unless you're careful, you'll end up with no one willing to help you."
"I'm sorry," she said in a softer voice.
He moved towards her and kissed her forehead. "It's alright, kiddo."
"Sir, I don't think you should…" They listened as the Healer weakly trailed off, and Harry stormed into the room, his eyes alight with anger and worry.
"What the heck happened?" he shouted, mainly at Lily.
"I don't believe you have any right to ask me anything!" Lily shrilly yelled.
"You're my daughter! I have every right!"
"So you can still boss me around even though I don't live under 'your roof' anymore?"
He flinched. "That's one night!"
"I believe that my decision was a little more permanent!"
"You're going to sacrifice all of us for a boy that probably doesn't even love you back?" he asked in incredulous disbelief.
"I know he does!" she shrieked. "I know it!"
"That Alicia girl? Draco Malfoy probably aided in her destruction!"
"You have no proof!" Lily purely screamed, unable to contain herself. "You have no idea what sort of things happened in that room last night!"
"And you do?" he thundered.
"Yeah!" she yelled defiantly. "And none of that is true!"
"How do you know?"
"I was there!" she screamed furiously.
The fight suddenly left Harry. "Maybe you're already one of them. Lily Luna Potter, you are under arrest for attacking Alicia Baddock."
"What?" she whispered almost incredulously.
"You just admitted to being present when Alicia was attacked."
Teddy stood up, running a hand through his aqua-colored hair. "This-that's ridiculous!"
"Do you see any other choice?" Harry asked him somberly.
"What are you going to do?" she asked with subdued wrath. "Give me the choice between being locked up in Azkaban or locked up in your house?"
"I'm done here," Harry said. The expression on his face was hard to decipher, but Lily could make out remorse covered beneath a mask. He strolled out of the room.
She threw the covers off of her and stumbled out of her bed. She heard Teddy protesting, but she ignored him, limping to the open door. "Get the hell out of here!" she shrieked down the hall at his retreating figure. "I hate you! I don't want to see you or anyone else in my room! Get out!" Lily screamed so loudly that every eye was attracted to her. Even Harry turned around, and she fuzzily realized that tears were streaking down his face.
She felt woozy and nauseous, and sluggishly thought to herself that getting out of that bed was one of the stupidest things she had ever done. Her knees gave out, and she quickly collided with the floor before her world went dark.
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"I've never seen anyone do something so stupid," a woman's voice murmured.
"I don't think it was the girl. I mean, how could Harry Potter arrest his own daughter?" A second voice replied quietly, "I'd be upset if I were her, too."
"It's obvious that they share their temper. I feel bad for all the press they'll get. Imagine fighting with your own family and then having the press questioning your every move."
"It's a shame, that's for sure."
The voices faded as Lily slowly awoke, groggily trying to remember if the voices were a dream or not.
"Hey, kiddo," Victoire's gentle voice echoed slightly in Lily's head. She opened her eyes to see cherubic Victoire leaning over her in concern. "How do you feel?"
Lily groaned, assessing all of her damage. "What happened?"
"You were fighting with your dad," Victoire explained calmly, gently pushing pieces of auburn hair out of Lily's eyes. "You got out of your bed and got really overworked and lost consciousness. You hit your head when you fell, and the Healers had to give you some more potions."
Lily sighed. "Where's Teddy?"
Victoire shifted uncomfortably. "He went to talk with your father; he's very upset about what happened."
"Oh," Lily murmured.
"Hey, Lils," she asked in a soothing voice. "The Healers need to know who's allowed in and who's not. Do you want me to tell them that only Teddy and I should be allowed in?"
"And Scorpius," Lily mumbled, already starting to drift back to sleep. "I want to see Scorpius when he comes."
"Of course, Sweetie," Victoire said, and then she kissed Lily's forehead. "Sleep now."
Scorpius never came.
Bum Bum BUUUUMMM! So let me know about your opinions on the story, please in a review! I was trying to make Harry a bit more like he was in the series, but I'm not really sure if I managed to do it, so tell me if you think I'm pulling it off. I think every parent has a rather big temper, especially when being defensive about their kids growing up. And if the arrest seems out of hand, he HAD to do it. It may seem like a rotten trick, but he had no choice but to arrest her because she WAS involved in Alicia's destruction. I hope that sorta cleared things up a bit :) You guys are the most awesome people in the world for reading my story!
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