Disclaimer: All the characters that you recognize belong to J. K. Rowling.
Author's Note: Thanks to snazzysnez, alli88, riduculouslyriddikulus, WhiteCamellia, Trocle, laurahonest, zuska1985, Miss Myrtle360, Untamed Loner, Bubblegrl4ever, siriusforeva, Bogloshi, Willimillia, serindraxx, Jutey, shreya, MissMrprk, Katie Pie, and TheCritic18 for reviewing! You're all great!
It was two o'clock in the morning and Lily found herself seated in one of the large windows that overlooked the Quidditch Pitch. She tried going to bed three times that night, each time having no success. Lily was too worried about James to sleep. Every time her head hit the pillow and her eyes started to shut, she imagined him outside, all alone. She pictured him miserably trying to gather his cloak around his freezing body, his hands trembling against the cold night sky.
To escape the picture in her mind, Lily stared out the window. She noticed that the moon was shining brightly, looking like a radiant half-circle. The stars were twinkling as well, and she felt as if each one was mocking her. Each twinkle was saying that the stars knew where he was, but refused to tell her of the location. She hated them. She hated the usually romantic figures, the ones that she and James had admired together so many times.
Her heart sank, knowing that her beloved boyfriend could be anywhere. It scared her to think that he had the invisibility cloak with him; it scared her to think that she and Sirius may have overlooked an invisible James in Hogsmeade. Then again, he had his broom, which led her to believe he traveled far away from the school.
She let out a large groan. James had been gone for two days already, two long and stressful days. All she wanted to do was hold him tightly in her arms, let him know that everything was going to be all right. She wanted him to confide in her, things he wouldn't say to anyone else. She wanted to run her fingers through his messy hair, entangling her hands within it. She wanted his sweet, hazel eyes to stare down at her. She just wanted to know that he was okay.
Lily tried to imagine what it must be like to lose a parent, let alone both parents. Would she have done the same if she were in his shoes? Would she have locked herself away from everyone, not wanting any human contact whatsoever?
No, she concluded. But that was because she wasn't like James in that aspect. When she was upset, Lily needed to be around someone. She needed the moral support of her friends, or James, of anyone who cared. If others weren't around to hear her cries and experience her pain with her, she would confide in something else. Often, during hard times in her life, Lily would write in a dairy or talk to her pet owl, anything to ease the pain. She was the type of person that needed to let out her emotions; she couldn't keep them bottled up inside her.
Yet, James was different, and she knew that. He hated confiding his true feelings about grave situations. He was the type of person who didn't want anyone to see or hear him express his feelings. He was the type of person that was embarrassed to cry by himself, let alone other people. And on the rare occasion that someone did see him cry, it was never mentioned again, ever.
Lily silently wished that he wouldn't run away from his feelings. She wished he would just open up to her; allow her to help him through the difficult time.
She leaned her head against the window frame, sighing as she took out her picture of James. It was crinkled at the edges, a sign that showed Lily's constant need to grab at it. For some reason, it was as if by seeing him in the photograph, she knew he was still alive.
He looked so happy in the picture. She watched as he lifted one hand up to the sky, catching snowflakes. He was still seated on the swing though, and every once in a while would look her way and smile.
Lily sighed, wishing that every day was like the day they shared in the picture. Things were so simple then. She loved him, and he loved her. Nothing bad had occurred yet; Rander was still alive, James's parents were still alive, and James was safe with her.
She allowed herself to smile as she recalled the day. It was very early one morning; the sun was still bright and new to the day. He came into her room, a large grin on his face. He told her to get up and get dressed because he had a magical place to show her. She protested a bit, complaining that it was too early in the morning. He argued though, insisting that it would be worth it.
When Lily and James arrived at the abandoned playground, she knew he wasn't lying. There was nothing physically special about the playground; in fact, it was rather small and old. It offered seclusion though, and a place for Lily and James to openly talk with each other. They could say anything and do anything without anyone noticing. It was perfect.
She let out a small sigh again, dreaming about that winter morning. She felt her eyes becoming heavy and knew that her body was telling her it was time to sleep. She shut her eyes for a moment, just to make sure the images of a cold and hungry James were no longer there.
She could feel her body and mind shutting down, ready to drift away into dreamland when she bolted upright.
How could she have been so stupid? Her eyes were wide again and her entire body was functioning, ignoring the natural urge to sleep.
Lily quickly grabbed her cloak and ran down the girl's dormitory. She glanced around the common room, hoping that Sirius was there. Unfortunately, he wasn't, so she ran up the boy's staircase, two steps at a time.
Once she reached the seventh year boy's dormitory, she opened the door and crept inside. She peered into the darkness, trying to make out Sirius's sleeping form. She tiptoed to one of the beds, and with the small light from the moon; she could tell it was Sirius.
"Wake up," she hissed, shaking him as she spoke.
"Go away," he muttered.
"Sirius, its Lily, wake up," she whispered, trying not to wake the other boys.
"Go away," he mumbled again.
She was getting angry now. She took out her wand and whispered a spell, one that shot a dash of caffeine into one's blood system. It was always a sure way of waking someone up, and certainly a useful little spell.
In an instant, Sirius's eyes opened and he shot upward. "Lily, what're you doing here?"
"I need you to get me out of the castle," she informed him.
"What?" he hissed.
"Sirius, I know where James is," she stated.
"What? Did you hear from him? Is he okay? Where is he?" he asked, firing questions at her.
"Slow down," she replied. "I've just got a hunch."
"A hunch?"
"Yes, a hunch, but I know he's there…I can feel it," she honestly said.
"Where?"
"The old playground by his house," she answered.
He sighed, rubbing his temples with his hands. "Okay, listen, meet me down in the common room in a couple minutes."
"What?" she snapped.
"Well, quite frankly, I don't want to wake up Remus and Peter. Plus, I need to put some clothes on, unless you'd really love to see my boxers," he stated.
Lily slightly blushed before responding, "Okay, fine, but make it fast."
Running down the stairs, Lily made it to the common room very quickly. She took a seat in one of the plush chair by the fireplace, watching as the flames barely lit the room. She took her wand out of her pocket and aimed it at the dying fire. An instant later, it burst into high red spikes of flames, brightening the entire room.
Just as promised, Sirius came down the boy's staircase, dressed and ready to talk to her. He sat across from her, in the empty couch. "Okay, explain to me why you think James is there."
"Isn't it obvious?" she asked. "It's the one place he goes when he needs to get away from the world. And it's very secretive; James once told me that it was the type of place that no one who didn't already know it existed could find it… You said it yourself; he wants to get away from everyone. It's the perfect spot for that."
He bit his lower lip as he studied her face. She looked sincere; as if she was certain James would be there. Her emerald eyes were staring at him with hope, revealing all of her deepest emotions.
"Let's go tell Dumbledore," he softly replied.
"What?"
"I said let's go tell Dumbledore," he repeated. "He'll want to know."
"No, he won't be able to find it. I need to go there, and I'm not wasting my time telling Dumbledore so that he can tell me not to go," she snapped.
"Lily, there's nothing else we can do," he fiercely responded.
"What kind of Marauder are you?" she asked, her worried eyes turning stiff and cold.
"What?"
"You heard me," Lily sternly answered. "How can you call yourself a bloody Marauder and not even help me sneak out of the castle? I thought you stood for the epitome of danger and rule-breaking…I guess I was wrong."
"I do stand for that," he yelled, standing up as he spoke.
"No you don't, you just think you do. You know, Sirius, you think you're so cool with your rebel-like attitude, but we all know the truth. You're nothing but a normal average wizard."
"Cut that shit out, you know it's not true," he exclaimed.
"Prove it."
"By sneaking you out of the castle?" he asked.
"Yes."
"Lily, if I get caught one more time, I could get expelled," he said, turning away from her peering eyes as he spoke.
"What?"
"You heard me."
"Sirius, that doesn't make any sense. I know for a fact that you and James snuck out of the dorm last weekend to go down to the kitchens," she replied.
"We had the bloody cloak though," he snapped. "But now, there's no cloak. Filch could catch us, and then I'd be out of here. I'm not you Lily; I don't have a clean slate."
"So you're just going to let your best friend starve out there?" she asked, looking up at him with somber eyes.
Sirius ran his hand through his long, black hair; a motion that reminded Lily of James. "Bloody hell…no I'm not."
Lily smiled before saying, "Sirius, it'll be okay, I promise."
"Just tell me this, how're you planning we get to the playground once we're out of the castle?" he questioned.
"My God, and you call yourself a wizard," she sarcastically said. "Apparate."
"You can't apparate on Hogwarts grounds, and you call yourself Head Girl," he replied, just as witty as her.
"No, you moron. We're going to Hogsmeade to apparate."
"What? Hogsmeade?"
"Yes, and I know you can get me there," she answered.
"Okay, fine. We're going, but if we get caught…"
"We won't get caught," she said, cutting him off before he could finish the sentence.
With that said, the two teens made their way out of the common room and down several flights of stairs. The halls were dark and deserted, the only light coming from Lily's wand. It was actually rather spooky, especially due to the fact that neither of them knew if Filch or Mrs. Norris were lurking around any corners.
Suddenly, Lily felt Sirius grab her arm and pull her into a nook in the hallway. He grabbed her wand out of her hand, muttering the spell to extinguish the bright light. Lily could feel her heart beating fast; she could hear every beat it made. "What is it?" she whispered, her voice quieter than her beating heart.
"Filch," he whispered, gripping her arm tighter and tighter as each second passed.
Lily tried her best to listen, yet couldn't hear a thing. She wondered if Sirius was just paranoid about being caught, but her thoughts were disproved when she saw Filch slowly walking towards them. She knew she had to do something; it was only fair to Sirius. She promised him he wouldn't get in any trouble, and was willing to do anything to keep her promise.
She raked her brain, trying to think of any spell that might work. She needed to distract Filch, she needed to draw his attention from the fifth floor corridor. All of a sudden, she knew the answer. Focusing all of her thoughts and energy, she imagined Filch looking around, very confused. She imagined him asking aloud what on earth was he doing in the fifth floor when he was needed on the eighth floor. She imagined him angrily leaving their line of sight. Concentrating, she mentally repeated the words "confundo."
After a few seconds, she smiled as she saw him looking around like a lost child at the zoo. The caretaker turned around and drifted off towards a set of stairs, the ones that she and Sirius had just previously climbed down.
"He's gone," Sirius whispered, shocked.
"I know," she answered, a smile still present on her face as she took her wand back and mentally turned the light back on.
"Did you do that?"
"Yes."
"You used magic, without saying any words, with the Confundo Spell," he stated.
"What, like's it hard?" she asked, a witty tone at her lips.
"I'm impressed," he told her. "My mother can't even do that."
Knowing how much Sirius despised his mother, Lily quickly changed the subject by asking, "Where exactly are we going?"
"Third floor corridor," he answered. "Come on."
She followed him, nearly having to run to keep up with his long strides. That was the one thing she hated about spending time with any of the Marauders; they were all so tall it was hard for her to keep up with them.
Still, Lily followed Sirius as he expertly rounded a corner and made his way down another flight of stairs. He continued walking, every now and then, a portrait would make some comment about what a hurry the two teens were in, but other than that, the halls were deadly silent. They continued the long journey throughout the castle, coming to another set of stairs. They ran down them, two at a time, just in case the trick staircase decided it wanted to move, which, according to Sirius, happened a lot more than one would think.
Finally, he came to an abrupt stop in front of a statue of a humpbacked, one-eyed witch. "We're here."
"Here?" she asked, disbelief in her voice.
"Yup," he answered, taking his own wand out of his robes and tapping the hump of the witch as he said, "Dissendium."
Instantly, a passage was revealed and Sirius hopped inside, urging Lily to follow him. She looked around once more before following him. Once inside, she heard the passage shut up, trapping them inside.
"This is how you all get in and out of Hogsmeade when there aren't trips?" she asked. It was a small tunnel, one that she could barely stand up straight in. Ahead of her, Sirius was hunched over, occasionally banging his head one the roof.
"Sometimes," he answered.
"There are more ways?"
"There are seven different secret passages," he replied.
"Seven?" she asked, shocked at the number.
"Filch only knows about two, maybe three of them," Sirius said. "Only two of them lead to Hogsmeade, the others just lead to different parts of the castle, and outside."
"What's the other one?"
"The Whomping Willow."
"Are you serious?"
"It leads to the Shrieking Shack," he answered.
"That's how Remus and you all get there during his transformations? I always thought it was somewhere in the Forbidden Forrest," she commented.
Sirius didn't say anything, but continued the walk through the grungy passageway. "I've got to warn you, you're not going to like where we end up."
"Why?" she asked, sounding very alarmed.
"You know Honeydukes?" he asked.
"Yes."
"It's in the basement."
"Sirius, do you mean to tell me that we are breaking into that store?" she hissed.
"Well, technically, we're breaking out of it," he teased.
"Oh my God, I'm committing a crime," she stated, more to herself that to Sirius.
"In case you didn't notice, but you've already broken like a million rules tonight anyways, it's not going to make that much of a difference," he informed her.
"I haven't broken that many…"
"Yes you have," he said, allowing himself to laugh. "You went into the boy's dormitory, you snuck out of Gryffindor and roamed the halls, you used magic on the caretaker, and you left school grounds."
"Well, I'm sure you have done much worse," she said, trying to defend herself.
"Of course I have, but I'm not Head Girl, now am I?"
"Shut up and keep walking," she snapped.
Soon enough, they reached the end of the tunnel. Sirius peeked his head out to make sure that no one was lumbering around the basement of Honeydukes at such a late hour, and to their luck, no one was in sight. It was surprising that no one was in sight; after all, most people were sound asleep in their beds. Still, both Lily and Sirius knew it was better safe than sorry in a situation like this.
Sirius then climbed out of the tunnel, turning around to face Lily once he was done. He grabbed her hand, pulling her up and out of the small opening. It was pitch black with the exception on Sirius's lit wand, which revealed about twenty cardboard boxes full of supplies for the shop.
"What now?" he asked.
"Apparate to James's house," she whispered.
"No, that won't work," he replied.
"Why not?" she asked, horror written across her dimly lit face.
"The Potter house was destroyed in a Death Eater attack, there will be magical charms protecting anyone from apparating directly there," he answered.
"I don't understand."
"The Ministry doesn't want tons of people going to the house, ogling at it and trying to see what happened. Whenever there's an attack, they always put up these spells, making it impossible for an wizard that isn't an auror or the Minister of Magic himself to apparate there," Sirius informed her.
"Why the fuck didn't you say this before?" she sharply questioned.
"I don't know, you didn't ask," he replied. His tone made it seem as if he was fed up with Lily, but the look on his face showed otherwise. His piercing brown eyes were filled with worry, a look that was uncommon for anyone in the Black family. His face was somber, his cheeks long and drawn out.
"Is there anywhere close that we can apparate to?" she asked, knowing he knew the surroundings much better than she did.
"I don't know, the Potter's didn't like living close to anyone, just in case," he whispered. He paused for a moment, looking intently into Lily's emerald eyes, before saying, "Wait a minute. There's this old abandoned barn about half a mile down the road from James's house…that's the closest I can think of."
"Sirius, you're a genius," she said, launching forward and giving him a large embrace. She felt Sirius stiffen in her arms for a brief second before he lightly placed his arms around her waist, hugging her tightly to his chest.
"Come on," he said, "Let's go get James."
Lily smiled as she broke away from him, glad he was there to help her through it all. She loved James, but knew without his best friend, she wouldn't have survived this week. She was glad that Sirius was there to experience what she went through with her; glad he could answer questions, provide emotional support, and hopefully lead her to James.
"Ready?" he asked.
"Ready," she answered. With a "pop" they were both gone, leaving the basement of Honeydukes and reappearing in the middle of the abandoned barn.
Once Lily arrived, she noticed that Sirius was already standing there, his wand lit. He waved it around in front of him, perhaps to make sure James wasn't lurking around the deserted barn. Lily looked around and felt a slight chill run up her spine. It was an eerie place, one that she didn't feel comfortable staying in. There were stacks of hay piled along the floor, bound together by a thick rope. In the distance, she saw pitchforks and shovels leaning against a wall, looking as if they hadn't been used in twenty years. She glanced up and saw beam of wood traveling above her head, but couldn't see beyond them due to the darkness of the barn.
She felt something brush against her ankle and let out a small scream as she jumped and held her wand in front of her. She looked down at the ground, where Sirius was pointing his wand only to see a rat running by.
Lily sighed deeply, feeling slightly embarrassed by her outbreak.
"You okay?" Sirius asked.
"Fine," she answered, her voice barely audible. "Let's just get out here; this place is giving me the creeps."
Agreeing with her, Sirius pointed his wand in front of him, searching for an exit. He quickly found the door, but a large wooden beam blocked it. He took Lily's wand from her, keeping his own wand lit, and muttered an incantation. Instantly, the wooden beam exploded, sending splints of wood in all directions.
Sirius passed Lily her wand back, motioning for her to follow him out of the isolated barn. Once out of the barn. Lily felt as if a weight was lifted from her shoulders. The constricted and spooky place of there barn no longer filled her mind. Instead, she focused on finding James.
They walked in silence for the most part, both knowing that the other preferred not to speak. Instead, they both concentrated on James, and how badly they wanted to find him.
After ten or so minutes of walking, Sirius came to a halt. He looked off into the distance, his wand pointed at a field.
"What?" she asked.
"This was James's house," he sadly commented, tightly blinking away tears that formed in his eyes.
Lily followed his gaze, her heart melting when she saw the abandoned location. It was hard to believe that a large estate once stood there. Now, all that was left was rubble. She felt her heart constrict, thinking that just four months earlier, she sat in luxurious sofas, dined at hardwood tables, and slept in guest beds, which were all debris now.
"Oh my God," she softly whispered, not allowing herself to take her eyes off the sight.
"I know," he whispered. He shut his eyes once more before ripping his attention away from the rubble. "Come on; lead the way to the playground."
"Right," she said, refocusing her attention on the purpose for their journey. "It's out this way, maybe a five minute walk."
She led the way, walking directly across from the ruined house, leaving it far behind them. The wind rustled Lily's dark red hair, blowing it behind her shoulders. It made the weather seem even colder, brisk against her face.
Finally, after the long walk, Lily saw a gathering of several tall trees. She felt herself smile, knowing the playground was nearby. "It's in the middle of those trees," she whispered to Sirius.
"You mean that forest looking thing?" he asked, his voice equally quiet as Lily's. Neither of them were quite sure why they felt the need to whisper, but they didn't stop since they left Gryffindor.
"Yes, you have to go in a bit, through a cluster of trees. But once you get to the center of it, there's a playground, and James will be there," she said, her heart speeding up as she spoke.
"In the middle of the trees," he stated, thinking that it was no wonder no one knew to check for James here.
"Yes, now come on," she hissed, carefully stepping into the dark, forest. Once inside, the only light was from her and Sirius's wands, not even the moon and starlight could enter through the blanket of leaves above their heads.
"Are you sure about this?" Sirius whispered, glancing down at the ground, checking for odd creatures that might be roaming around.
"I'm positive," she answered as she stepped on a fallen stick, breaking it in half with a large cracking noise.
"I don't like it in here," he commented.
"What? You're not afraid, are you?" she asked.
"Of course not," he snapped as he anxiously looked around his surroundings. "Are you?"
"No," she quickly replied, her wand out in front of her as if she was to attack someone.
They carried on their journey through the wooded area, both walking slowly, as if they tried not to disturb anything that might be looming in the forest. Finally, Lily excitedly whispered, "Look, up ahead, you can see the moonlight. The playground's right up there."
"Good," he mumbled, not sure if his nerves could handle much more of the dark forest. They both began to pick up speed, their hearts beating fast as they realized that James was only meters away from them now.
Lily reached the opening first, emerging from the trees. She abruptly stopped though, causing Sirius to nearly run right into her. All of the blood in her face dropped, and she felt a pain run threw her heart.
She scanned the swing set first, but there was not a sign of James Potter. She slowly walked closer to the slide, but still, no one. He wasn't there.
Her eyes swelled up as the realization sunk in. She was wrong. James Potter wasn't at the playground. All of her instincts about places that only she would know about were wrong.
Sirius put his hand on her shoulder, trying to provide some comfort to the woman that stood in front of him. He didn't know what to do. Lily was so sure that James would be there, and he wasn't. He wasn't anywhere in sight. He truly was lost.
"Come on, let's just go," she whispered, her voice barely audible. She didn't want to stand there any longer, she didn't want to face the fact that her boyfriend was missing, with no hope of his return.
Sirius, however, ignored her request. He took his hand off her shoulder and walked toward the swings. He looked curiously at them, down at the ground below them and the rusted nails that held them into place.
"Sirius, come on, let's just go," she said, loud enough for him to hear her.
"Shh," he hissed, reaching his hand out in front of him.
"Sirius," she repeated.
Just then, Sirius lunged forward, attacking what appeared to be thin air. Gravity told him that he should land, stomach on the swing, arms and legs draped toward the ground. However, not a single inch of his body felt the seat of the swing. Instead, he was suspended in thin air.
Lily watched in amazement as Sirius flung his arms around until he grasped what he was looking for. In an instant, James Potter stood there; his broom in one hand and a firewhiskey in the other.
"James," Lily exclaimed, running toward the two men. She reached the swing in no time and pushed Sirius out of the way, throwing her arms around James's neck. "Oh my God, I've missed you."
Sirius stood there, panting slightly and holding the invisibility cloak in his hand. "James, what the fuck are you doing?" he asked once Lily released her embrace and stepped back.
"Oh, Sirius, Lily, you're both here," James said, slurring his words. He took another swing of his drink, emptying the rest of its contents into his mouth.
"James, are you drunk?" Lily asked.
"Me, no," he replied, standing up from his seat on the swing.
"James, look at me honey," she said. "Are you okay?"
"Me?" he asked, looking at her with very confused eyes. "Am I okay, I think the question, is, is, is, are you okay?" He then attempted to stand up, hoisting himself off the seat. However, this was not the brightest of ideas because he then came crashing down to the dirt floor.
"James!" Lily exclaimed as both she and Sirius rushed over to his side.
"You okay, mate?" Sirius asked, bending down to look his best friend in the eye.
"Peachy," James answered, although it took him an incredibly long amount of time to say the entire word. "Just, peach-" he began, but was unable to finish his sentence, passing out before them.
"Oh my God," Lily mumbled, frantically looking down at James. "What are we going to do?"
"We need to get him to the Hospital Wing," Sirius answered. "He needs to lie down, and probably get a hangover potion."
"Yeah, good point," she replied. "Just one question: how're we going to get back to Hogwarts?"
"Fuck," Sirius angrily said. There was no way to get to Hogwarts without apparating to Honeydukes and traveling through the secret passage back to the castle. They certainly couldn't apparate with James in his current condition. Nor were either of them trained enough to perform the apparation spell that could transport others at the same time, and neither was willing to risk James showing up without and limbs. Flying was out of the question, knowing that to fly an intoxicated James across miles of land and water was very dangerous. Also, none of them had any money, so the Knight Bus wouldn't come in handy either.
"Hey, whose owl is that?" Lily suddenly asked, pointing to the slide, where a snowy white owl was perched.
"That's the James's parent's owl," he replied.
"We could write to Dumbledore, tell him where we are and that we found James," Lily said. "I've still got the paper and quill from Hogsmeade."
"No way," Sirius answered. "I'm not getting expelled from school."
"Be realistic, you wouldn't get expelled, this is very heroic," she snapped.
"No, it's no good. There's no way in hell are we bringing Dumbledore into this," he stubbornly replied.
"Then what, pray tell, do you suppose we do?" she asked. She still sat next to James, propping his head into her lap.
"We'll stay at the old barn for the night. Then, when James is awake, we can all apparate to Honeydukes and sneak back into the castle. No one will ever know we were gone, and we'll just say that James flew back on his own," he suggested.
"I'm not sure about that," she gravely answered.
"There's nothing else to do," he replied. "We're staying in the barn."
Lily sighed, but agreed to Sirius's plan. Thinking about it, it seemed to be the only logical thing to do. They certainly couldn't stay in the cold playground nor could they get back to the castle that night.
Sirius pointed his wand at James's sleeping form and muttered a spell, making him as light as a feather. Sirius then bent down and picked him up, cradling the sleeping James in his arms. "Lead the way," he said to Lily.
With that said, the three teens made their way out of the forest and onto the road that led to the abandoned barn. Lily looked up and noticed that the Potter's owl was following them, and asked, "Do you think she's going to come with us?"
"I wouldn't doubt it. She's got no where else to be…James is the only Potter left," he sadly answered.
They continued on their journey, Lily now walking side by side with Sirius. She looked down at James often, as if to make sure he was still there. He looked peaceful, and his light breaths reassured Lily that everything was going to be okay.
Finally, they reached the old barn and walked into it. Sirius set James down on the ground, only to be pampered by Lily before his head hit the ground. Still, even with James lying next to her, Lily felt as if something wasn't quite right. There was something about the barn that made her feel queasy.
Sirius then took a seat on the dirt ground, on James's other side. Lily looked at him and asked, "Does this feel weird to you?"
"What do you mean?" he asked, his voice matching hers, at a barely audible tone.
"I don't know, but just not right," she answered. She paused for a moment before asking, "Did you hear that?"
"Relax, it was just the owl, she flew in," he whispered.
Lily took a deep breath, embarrassed that she didn't recognize the sound of wings. She felt stupid; there was nothing to be afraid of. It was an abandoned barn. The only noises she would hear would from small animals, like mice, trying to find shelter. She could certainly handle that.
No she couldn't. The barn was too much for her. She was hearing sounds, sounds that were definitely not made by mice or owls. "Sirius, I don't feel okay. Something's wrong, very wrong."
"Just go to bed, it's just your imagination," he whispered.
"I'd listen to the Mudblood," came a voice from above them. The voice was rough sounding, a man's voice. Neither of them recognized it, but both of their heart's sped up. They heard a large bang, the sound of the barn door slamming shut.
"Who's there?" Sirius asked, jumping to his feet, his wand out in front of him.
"You don't remember me, Sirius?" the voice asked.
"Who's there?" he repeated, standing his ground. Lily, too, stood up. She gripped her wand tightly in her hands, holding it out in front of her. She tried to see through the darkness, not daring to light her wand.
"I'm truly hurt," the voice said again. "And shocked too. When we were kids, we used to play together all the time."
"Who's there," he asserted again.
With a flash of light, the entire barn lit up. Two men wearing black cloaks appeared before them, standing just ten feet from them. Lily didn't recognize either of them, but judging from Sirius's face, he was well acquainted with both young men.
"Avery, Mulciber," he said, not taking his eyes off them.
"Good job," Avery said, a smile at his face.
"Wouldn't your mother just love to see you now, it'd probably kill her to see you protecting a Mudblood and a Potter," Mulciber spat out.
"It's too bad she's not here then," Sirius responded.
"Oh, he's a funny one," Avery sneered.
"What are you doing here?" Sirius firmly asked.
"Oh, you haven't put the connections together?" Avery asked, peering at his former childhood friend.
"You're both Death Eaters, I've guessed that," Sirius replied.
"Might as well tell him, I'd love to see the look on his face," Mulciber snarled.
"We had a mission, not too far from here a few days ago," Avery said, a smile forming on his thin lips.
Sirius and Lily both felt themselves turn white. They were face to face with the murderers of Mr. and Mrs. Potter.
"It's funny, how stupid some people can be, they trust anyone," Mulciber added.
"Don't you dare say that," Sirius snapped.
"Oh but it's so true," Avery said, his smile widening. "They should really learn that in times like these, no one is to be trusted. They should have known that polyjuice potion can hide anyone's appearance…I guess they learned their lesson though."
"What?" Sirius hissed.
"Oh yes. It was so easy too. Linda Potter's oldest friends from Hogwarts made the perfect disguise; she let us into the house, no questions asked. She had no idea that Zachary Gibbons was in the hospital or that his wife, Susan visited him every day. She had no idea that it was so easy for our inside man to snatch a few hairs from his patient and his patient's visitor. Linda Potter had no idea that she was really letting us into her house…at least not until it was too late," Avery sneered.
"Shut up," Sirius finally bellowed, not being able to handle learning any more about the deaths of his two closest adults.
"Oh, how sweet, Sirius Black has a soft side for the Potter's," Avery teased.
"You won't get away with it, either of you," Sirius snarled.
"We won't?" Mulciber asked, focusing his attention on Sirius.
"No."
"I think we already have," Mulciber said. "And there won't be anyone here to blab about it."
Lily bit her lip, knowing that the two Death Eaters intended to kill them both. She had to think fast. Her hand went to her cloak
In a flash, she heard Sirius and Avery both yelling curses. They both went flying backward, Sirius knocking into a haystack, and Avery falling hard on the dirt ground. She searched her brain, trying to think of something. She felt something at her feet and carefully looked down to see the owl nipping at her shoes.
"And now for the Mudblood," Mulciber sneered. "Expelliarmus!"
Lily felt her wand fly out of her hand and she went falling to her feet. Thinking fast, she knew it was the perfect time for her plan. She took out the quill and paper, scribbling a fast note.
Mulciber and Avery then started walking toward Sirius, believing that without a wand, Lily would be helpless. She watched as the two Death Eaters sent curses flying at Sirius. Luckily, he was fast and easily dodged most of them. A few times he was hit, but the curses only knocked him off his feet.
Lily bit her lower lip and looked around the barn, hoping for some inspiration. Her eyes widen as she saw the shovel leaning against a nearby wall. She quickly and quietly darted for it, grasping it tightly in her hands. She then launched towards Avery. She held the shovel high above her hands before crashing down on top of the man. He instantly fell to ground, screaming in pain.
Lily was about to do the same to Mulciber, but he took his attention off Sirius and onto her. "Wingardium Leviosa!" he shouted, pointing his wand in the air. Unfortunately for Lily, she was still attached the shovel and was sent twenty feet in the air along with the object. She felt herself wander over toward a beam and looked up to see the shovel balancing on the supports.
Her heart was racing as she looked down. She saw Mulciber advance towards Sirius, firing hexes at him. Sirius didn't back down though, confidently dodging curses and firing them back at Mulciber.
After several darts, Mulciber finally sent a curse to Sirius. He went flying backward, hitting the barn wall behind him. Lily gasped as she saw him sink down to the ground, praying that he would be okay. She desperately wanted to run over to him, wipe the blood from his forehead. She couldn't though, knowing that if she loosened her grip, she would fall twenty feet down toward the ground.
Mulciber walked over to Avery and pointed his wand at the unconscious man. Lily assumed it was a reviving spell because a second later, Avery was back on his feet again, rubbing his hand over the back of his head.
Lily saw a flash of black on the ground and saw that Sirius leapt to his feet and was hexing Mulciber. Mulciber went flying backwards this time, crashing into a large pile of hay. He got up at once though, wand pointed at Sirius.
Lily felt her hands begin to slide, becoming sweaty. Her heart was beating fast as she tried to keep a hold of the shovel's handle. Her weight was too much for her though and she could feel her fingers slowly peeling away from the wooden handle.
"Sirius," she yelled as she began to fall. She wasn't sure exactly what happened next but she didn't hit the ground with a smack. Instead, she gracefully landed on her feet. She looked up and saw Sirius's wand pointed at Avery now, not on her.
She wondered if he already enchanted her not to land harshly on the ground, but from the look on his face, she knew he was having difficulty dodging Avery and Mulciber's curses.
"Lily," she heard from a very familiar voice. She looked over towards James and saw his wand pointing at her. She smiled as she ran toward him, hugging him tightly to her chest. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"I'm fine," she answered, "but Sirius."
"I know," James said. It was as if he had never gotten drunk at all, he was suddenly strong and powerful again. He aimed his wand at Avery and muttered a hex, throwing the wizard off balance and crashing down to the ground.
He got back up at once and turned to face Lily and James. His wand pointed at James he yelled, "Incarcerate!" Still tipsy from the alcohol, James wasn't able to dodge the curse. His arms and legs were immediately bound to his sides.
"James," Lily said at once, her hands immediately going toward the ropes. She tried to undo the powerful knots, but wasn't having any luck.
"Know what would be fun?" Avery asked.
"What's that?" Mulciber questioned.
"Seeing Black perform some magic that would make his mother proud of him," Avery answered.
Mulciber grinned, knowing exactly what his partner in crime meant. He was advancing on Sirius, wand in position to fight. Sirius, regaining control of the situation sent curses flying at Mulciber, who dodged them quickly.
Lily, on the other hand, gave up on untying James and was having her own battle against Avery. He would advance on her, knowing that she was wandless. He sent hexes her way, playing tricks with her mind. He didn't do anything too serious, knowing that he would have his laughs as soon as Mulciber succeeded in their plan.
"Imperio!"
Both Lily and Avery froze at the sound of the Unforgivable Curse, eager to see who cast the spell. It didn't take them long to guess, however, as they saw Mulciber grinning like a maniac.
Sirius got off the ground and started walking toward Lily, a forced smile on his face. She felt her heart speed up. She knew that he would never intentionally hurt her, but under the Imperius curse, he had no control. Mulciber was in control of Sirius's every move now.
"Sirius, please," Lily begged. "Fight it."
She was breathing deeply, not taking her eyes off the wizard in front of her. She wasn't sure what to do. She had no wand. How was she supposed to defend herself without a wand?
"Sirius," James yelled. "Don't do it, fight it."
She blinked for just a moment before concentrating once again on different spells that she could mentally perform. She pictured fire in her mind, Mulciber's robes being on fire. She heard a scream and knew that it worked, but unfortunately, it did not break the spell that the Death Eater held over Sirius.
"Incarcerate!" Sirius yelled, pointing his wand directly at Lily. Instantly, she felt ropes tighten around her body, clamping her arms and legs close to her sides.
"Sirius, please," she yelled, praying that he would be able to undo the curse.
"Just make him say it for crying out loud," Avery said, slightly annoyed that he couldn't see Lily Evans in severe pain.
"I'm trying, but he's fighting back," Mulciber snarled.
"Fine, I'll do it my bloody self," Avery snapped before pointing his wand at Lily and saying, "Crucio!"
Lily immediately felt as if her body was shattering into small parts. The pain was unbelievable. It felt as if tons of sharp needles were attacking her from all sides, wanting nothing more than to kill her.
The pain then eased up, but she still felt as if she wouldn't be able to move for weeks. She heard Avery yell the curse again, but didn't feel any pain this time. She glanced over at James and saw him wriggling around on the floor, a terrified look upon his face.
Lily focused all of her remaining energy of obtaining her wand, but the pain she was still feeling was too strong. She couldn't concentrate on mental magic at that moment, as much she wanted to, she couldn't.
She heard Avery yell "Crucio" once more. It hit her again, this time stronger than before. She could hear a cackle coming from Mulciber, but couldn't do anything about it. She let out a scream, not being able to bear the pain any longer.
"Stop!" she heard Sirius yell. He launched at Avery, breaking his connection with Lily. Immediately, Lily felt the pain ease up. She opened her eyes and saw Sirius punch Avery, not dealing with wands anymore. Mulciber went to Avery's side though, hexing Sirius again, forcing him to fly and hit the wall again. She heard a loud bang, and knew Sirius hit it with enough force to crack a rib.
All of a sudden, she saw a burst of fresh, new light emerge into the air before everything went dark.
Author's Note 2: Hey all! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, it's over 100,000 words now! Yay! Sorry I kind of left you at a cliffy, but I hope you forgive me! Also, in case you didn't notice, this chapter has set the official record for the longest chapter I have ever written! Please review, it makes the writing come ten times faster!