A/N: We'll here's the next chapter, please read and review. Enjoy!
Chapter Two: A Declaration of War
"I don't see how you can be amused in a situation like this!" Lilly whispered furiously to Sora as the girls rushed into the great hall. Sora just shook her head and laughed.
"It was so obvious that this was going to happen. We yelled at them in front of the whole bloody school! I just thought that they would be a bit more clever and think of a better plan than just giving us red notices" Sora answered as they swept into the hall. The dull thunder of footsteps sounded in the background as the Hogwarts students all made their way to the great hall to see the punishment of Sora and Lilly.
Lilly shook her head and looked at Sora in fear. "But their punishment is bound to be awful!" she wailed. Lilly had seen what James had done to people in the past- and he was twice as mad at her and Sora than he was at any of the other red notice recipients.
"We can take whatever he gives" Sora said, but Lilly could hear a slight crack in her friend's voice- which made her all the more scared. If rough and tough Sora was frightened, things were bad.
Slowly all the students filed into the hall, sneering and glaring at the two girls. Lilly groaned. She knew that this would be completely awful. How did she let Sora get her into these situations? If that girl didn't open her big mouth than both of them could have been okay and happy, eating cornflakes and gossiping. But no- that would be too normal for Lilly and Sora. Instead, they had to be standing in the middle of the great hall, surrounded by angry students, waiting to be punished by the most ruthless boy in school.
"I hate you" Lilly said to Sora, causing her friend to emit a sudden laugh.
"Glad to know I have your support, Lills" Sora replied, grinning broadly. Lilly just shook her head, wondering when the Marauders were going to arrive.
"I really wish that they would get here soon. There's no point in making us wait for long" Sora said to Lilly.
And as though on cue- as soon as Sora finished her sentence four boys stood silhouetted in the entrance way. Lilly's heart jumped a beat and se felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. This was it- her last moments in Hogwarts.
The boys moved slowly towards the center of the hall, their movements fluid and graceful. Watching them walk was like watching art in motion- but Lilly was too scared to even notice the picturesque refinement of the Marauders movements.
The group stopped in front of Sora and Lilly and James stepped out- looking at the two girls with eyebrows raised.
"So you think that it was amusing to mock me?" James asked.
"Pretty much" Sora answered, her voice becoming cool and hard. James glared at her.
"Well my friends found it rather horrible, you know" James said evenly "It's terrible to watch a friend get insulted- wouldn't you say?" James asked and Peter nodded his head rather furiously as though he was trying to prove James's point. Sora just thought it made him look like he was having seizers.
"What goes around comes around" James said softly as he snapped his fingers. Suddenly two rather large looking boys came, holding a struggling Alice Catton. Sora and Lilly glanced at each other in horror.
"She didn't do anything wrong- it was us!" Lilly said. James just sneered at her.
"Yes, but it is poor Miss Catton who will have to pay the price of your mistake" James said, taking out his wand and putting a spell on Alice that kept her bound to her spot.
"Why don't you just punish us instead?" Sora asked, her eyes shining with hatred. James barely glanced at her.
"Why, that wouldn't make quiet the same impression, now would it?" James asked. Lilly felt sick to her stomach. Alice was the new girl- she hadn't made any mistake except for befriending her and Sora.
James walked over to Alice and smiled at her.
"Now what can I do to you Miss Catton, that would humiliate you completely?" James asked her. Alice's eyes widened in fear and tears started to trickle down her cheeks.
"Maybe I should…"
"Stop IT!"
James's sentence was cut by a shaking voice. Everybody's heads turned to find a very shaking, very angry looking Lilly. Sora looked at her friend, stunned. Usually Lilly was the quiet one, the one who kept her thoughts to herself.
"Lilly…" Sora began but was quieted by a sharp glance from her friend. Lilly walked up to James and glared at him.
"You little arrogant jerk" Lilly spat, her voice shaking with fury. "Does it amuse you to torture innocent people? Do you find joy in the pain of other's? What would you know about humiliation or hurt? You're immune to all human emotions, a spoiled little prince who thinks the world is at his disposal" Lilly said. James looked at the redhead before him in amazement.
"Don't be so full of yourself!" Lilly cried and punched James square in the jaw, causing him to stumble back a bit. Shaking Lilly returned to Sora.
"Oh god what did I just do?" she whispered to her friend, who was looking at her like she just lost her mind.
"You, mate, just punched James Potter" Sora replied with admiration. Lilly felt as though she was going to throw up. She just punched James Potter!
Lilly spun around just in time to see James speeding towards her, his eyes flashing and violent. Lilly knew that he was going to hit her back- we certainly wasn't the type to not hit a lady. Lilly also knew that she couldn't defend herself against an enraged James. Helplessly she put her harms in front of her face.
But just before James reached Lilly, Sora deftly spun around and hit James right in the gut, causing him to loose his breath and fall to the floor. Lilly looked at the friend with eyes wide open. Sora returned Lilly's gaze and shrugged.
"What was I supposed to do, watch him beat you up?" Sora asked. Lilly was suddenly filled with love for her best friend and confidence. She strode up to James, who was still on the floor.
"James Potter, you will not make me run away or fear you any longer" Lilly said confidently. "I officially declare war on you!" she said. The silence that followed that statement was almost deafening.
Sirius was finally the one to break the silence. He looked up at Sora and raised his eyebrows.
"What about you- do you declare war as well?" he asked her, sounding rather amused. Sora looked over Lilly and smiled.
"Every war general needs a partner in crime" she said. Lilly returned Sora's smile.
"Fine then- if that is what you want" James said weakly as he stood up. He glared at the two girls and swept out of the hall. The rest of the Marauders left the hall as well and the other students followed in suit- trying not to make eye contact with the two girls. Even Alice (whom was released from her bind) ran out of the hall like a scared dog. Soon only Lilly and Sora were left in the hall.
"There's no point in going to classes today. All the teachers were here and I know they won't expect us to be in class right now" Lilly said. Sora nodded. Both of the girls just looked at each other for a moment and then burst out laughing.
"Well I guess we have started the first ever blown out war in Hogwarts" Sora said, smiling broadly.
"Should we go back to the common room and make war plans?" Lilly asked, looking very amused.
"You go ahead and start those. I have somewhere I need to go first" Sora said, sobering a bit. Lilly just nodded and Sora started to walk out of the hall. "I'll be up in a minute" Sora cried to her friend as she walked out into the hallway.
Sora turned the corner and made her way to the astronomy tower, climbing the endless staircase up to the highest point. Everything that had happened that day weighed down on her. God, in less than two days she and Lilly had become Hogwarts's most hated enemies. It was a bit much for her to swallow.
Sora reached the top of the stairs and walked out onto the balcony. It was a pretty, little place, comprised of two sections separated by a half wall, so that a person could access both sides of the balcony in needed. She went over to the rails and looked out at the school grounds stretch out around her. This was her secret place- the place where she went to vent whenever she needed to.
"I don't know what I just did" Sora said, shaking her head. "I know I was stupid and rash, but I just hate the Marauders so much! I hate their stuck up ways, their arrogance, their stupidity, and their utter superiority. They aren't better than anybody else!" she continued. It felt good to get the things off her chest.
"And I know that Lilly will be regretting this whole war situation in a few hours and that it will be up to me to carry out our threat. And though I am stronger than many others, I also have my limits. I can't take out the Marauders by myself!" she cried out.
Suddenly from the other side of the wall Sora heard a noise. She looked over suddenly to see Sirius standing up on the other side, a book in his hand and a surprised expression on his face.
"I thought I recognized the voice" Sirius said. Sora's hand instinctively went to her wand.
"What are you doing here?" she asked him. Sirius looked at her with amusement.
"I came up here to find some peace. This is my place- has been since the first year" he said. Sora didn't really have any strength left to argue with him.
"Fine then, I'll leave" Sora said, moving towards the staircase.
"No, it's okay- I'll go" Sirius said, closing his book and walking away. Sora had expected this scenario to be a bit more violent- but she wasn't complaining.
"Thanks" Sora said to Sirius's retreating figure. Sirius turned around and looked at her.
"I'm not doing this because I'm kind. I'm doing this because I hate all of this" he said. Sora looked at him with a bewildered expression, but he just turned back around and walked away.
Hated all of this? All of what? The war? Sora couldn't guess and finally just decided that it was just Sirius's way of telling her that he hated her guts. It made sense, yet still the statement still nagged at her. Sora looked out at the grounds once more and sighed. It was battle time.
Slowly she went to the staircase and began to climb back down, planning on heading down to the common room. She and Lilly had a lot of plans to make…