Disclaimer: You know the drill
A/N: My beta gave me an early Christmas present: Chapter 9! Hurrah! Thanks JTfanaddict and thanks to all my loyal readers who have eagerly awaited an update.
X A Necklace For Lily
"You're kidding!" Sirius yelled in surprise, startling the other customers shopping in Zonko's Joke Shop.
"No, I'm not kidding," confirmed James.
"Who won?" Peter asked with interest, eyeing the merchandise on the shelves.
"Neither of them, to tell you the truth," said James. "Lily hit Narcissa pretty hard in the stomach, I think, but Narcissa had a good grip on Lily's hair… There was a lot of screaming."
"That must have been fun to watch, though; two girls, covered in butterbeer, going at it." Peter grinned, looking uncharacteristically mischievous.
"Wormtail, you dog," Sirius laughed.
"No, that's you, Padfoot," Peter corrected him, his joking expression replaced with one of seriousness.
"Er, right," Sirius said, rolling his eyes at Peter's obliviousness. "Anyway, what do you think of this? It's a spray that makes your ears grow up to—Prongs? Prongs, are you listening?"
"Should I give the necklace to her today or later?" James contemplated aloud, his brow furrowing in concentration.
"Necklace? What necklace?" questioned Sirius, setting the spray can back onto its display shelf.
"Oh, sorry," apologised James, his attention returning to his friends. "I got a necklace for her at that expensive jewellery store down the road," he explained, digging through the pockets of his trousers. After a few moments of searching, he withdrew his hands, revealing a red velvet box in his left. His friends crowded around his outstretched palm and stared, as if anticipating some exciting event to occur.
"Well? Are you going to open it or what?" Sirius finally said, breaking the silence.
James opened the box and gently pulled out a long necklace, set with a black opal, cut cabochon style, with a deep blue background. James turned his hand slightly, allowing the light from the shop to reflect off the opal's surface, and a rainbow of colours glimmered across the faces of the Marauders.
"The opal's 'straight from Australia', the woman in the shop said," James reported proudly, puffing his chest out.
"Wow, Prongs! How much did that set you back?" gasped Peter in awe.
"Well, let's just say that I could buy eight Silver Nebulas and it still wouldn't cost the full price of this baby," said James.
"So, it's finally official between you two, then?" Remus asked.
"Great! Now do Wormtail, Moony, Frank and me get a break from your angst in the dormitory?" Sirius inquired eagerly.
"Well…it's not exactly…'official'," James confessed awkwardly, looking down at his feet. "Yet," he added.
"I'm surprised she even went out with you in the first place. I mean after last year…" said Sirius impertinently.
"Yeah, after she told you that you made her sick. Remember, Pr—"
"Of course I remember! It was one of the worst days of my life," James muttered under his breath.
"Well, it was pretty fun taking off Snivellus' pants. Disgusting, of course, but still quite entertaining," Sirius smirked, closing his eyes as if savouring the memory.
"Believe me, boys, this gift will have to get her to like me. I mean, look at it! All girls love jewellery, right?" James asked them desperately, holding the necklace out in front of his face and raking his eyes over it with scrutiny.
"My mum does," said Peter.
"What if she doesn't want it?" asked Sirius.
James looked as if he was on the verge of insanity. "Doesn't want it? Why wouldn't she want it?"
Sirius shrugged. "I don't know. This is Evans we're talking about. Her feelings have surprised you before."
"Yeah, I mean it's as though—YEOUCH!" yelled Peter, clutching his index finger as the Zonko's box he had been inspecting fell to the floor. "It bit me! That stupid box actually bit me!"
Sirius looked at the small box, which was now idle, lying innocently on the ground. "Honestly, Wormtail. This is Zonko's. I'm not surprised it bit you."
XXX
"So. I'll start with you, Miss Black. What exactly caused your positively boisterous behaviour in the Three Broomsticks?" asked Professor McGonagall.
Lily and Narcissa sat next to each other in stiff, uncomfortable chairs across from McGonagall's desk; Lily placing a drying charm on her socks, Narcissa fruitlessly trying to get her hair back to its usual shiny state.
"Well," started Narcissa in a mature voice, "I accidentally spilled my drink on Miss Evans and she proceeded to attack me. I told her I didn't mean to do it, but she wouldn't listen! She poured her drink on my head and laughed." Pausing momentarily to heave a distressed sigh, Narcissa flashed Lily a vengeful look out of the corner of her eye. "I don't think she was right in the head at the moment so I had to what I could to defend myself. I'm sure you understand, Professor."
Lily stared at Narcissa with her mouth hanging open in astonishment, though, truth be told, she had expected that Narcissa would lie. She made a slight noise of protest, but Professor McGonagall cut her off. "Quiet, Miss Evans. Did anything else happen, Miss Black?"
"I believe that's all there is to tell, Professor. Miss Evans just attacked me without any provocation," Narcissa finished, acting the perfect victim.
Professor McGonagall turned her bespectacled eyes towards Lily, her lips in a thin line. "Is this true, Miss Evans?"
"Absolutely not, Professor," Lily protested at once.
"So you didn't pour anything on Miss Black?"
"Well, yes, yes I did," Lily blushed. "But only after she poured her drink all over me!" she quickly added at the sight of Professor McGonagall's eyebrows shooting up.
"So it wasn't an accident?"
"No, Professor. Narcissa and her friends came up to Potter and I and provoked us. She not only mocked me, but James as well. Then she poured her drink on me intentionally. Professor McGonagall, I believe my actions were somewhat justified."
"Professor McGonagall, Evans is lying," Narcissa suddenly hissed, abandoning her guise of the wronged party.
"Quiet, Miss Black," snapped Professor McGonagall. "Whether either of you are lying or not, you should be ashamed of yourselves. You are not only students, but prefects, a very highly respected position! You represent Hogwarts and look how you've portrayed the school to the rest of the wizarding world. Brawling in public! What do you expect all of Hogsmeade will think of the rest of our students after seeing your little spat?" Professor McGonagall was now red in the face, her pointed hat nearly falling off her head.
Lily twisted her fingers nervously in her lap while her Head of House continued to scold them, though Narcissa looked rather impassive, looking straight into McGonagall's face. Her expression changed, however, at Professor McGonagall's next words.
"I have a good mind to release the two of you from the prefect position all together!" McGonagall said sternly, slapping her hand upon her desk.
"Wait, Professor—" Narcissa protested immediately.
"You don't mean that!" Lily cut in, fear gripping at her stomach.
"Oh believe me, it is quite possible, girls. The way you two behaved this afternoon was inexcusable," said Professor McGonagall.
"Professor McGonagall, I deeply regret my actions at Hogsmeade and it will never happen again—" said Narcissa.
"It certainly will not!" Professor McGonagall agreed.
"But I believe taking away my position as prefect may be too harsh."
"Too harsh? It undoubtedly is not, Miss Black. I believe you know that being a prefect isn't just a privilege, but a responsibility. You girls just broke not only school rules, but set a horrible example for the lower students! It is your responsibility to show them how to behave!"
Lily was quiet; she felt too sick to speak. At least now you have something to talk to Hagrid about: how you lost your prefect position, she thought miserably.
Professor McGonagall took a deep breath before speaking again, attempting to gain some control over her anger. "You two will serve detention every night for the next three weeks and you may not go to the next Hogsmeade visit," she said stiffly, her lips pressing together once again until they were barely visible.
Lily and Narcissa sat in silence, waiting for her to continue.
"Well? What are you two still doing here? You're dismissed. Go to your respective common rooms immediately," ordered Professor McGonagall, standing up and searching for a folder in a nearby filing cabinet.
The girls glanced at each other before Narcissa spoke, "So…we can just…go?"
"Yes. Am I speaking Mermish?"
"And we're still prefects?" asked Lily hopefully.
McGonagall sighed, "Yes, you two are still prefects. But no more trouble from you two or you'll be removed from your position faster than you can say 'hippogriff'."
"Thank you, Professor," Narcissa breathed, obviously relieved.
"Yes, thank you very much," Lily said quietly.
Professor McGonagall didn't say anything more, so the girls left her room quickly, in case she happened to remember something else she wanted to yell about. As soon as they were a safe distance from her office, Narcissa pulled out her wand, and pointed it at Lily's chest.
"I suggest you watch your back," Narcissa hissed darkly.
"What is your problem? Don't insult me and there will be nothing to worry about!" Lily growled back.
Narcissa and Lily glared daggers at each other, as though killing the other with their eyes.
"There wouldn't be any problems if they stopped letting Mudbloods like you into this school. You don't deserve to be here, you don't deserve to learn magic, you don't even deserve to be a witch. To be honest, you don't deserve anything. I'm saying this for your own good; watch your back and you might be alive next year," Narcissa said in a dangerous whisper, and, with one last fierce look, she turned around and walked down the nearest staircase.
Lily stood in the hallway, alone, cursing herself for not coming up with a comeback, before heading to Hagrid's hut.
The rolling green hills were slippery and had gathered mud from the rain, making it difficult to walk. After about ten minutes of sliding through the thick muck, a large hut came into view on the edge of the Forbidden Forrest. Hagrid opened the door of the hut as Lily approached, wearing an apron and large oven mitts.
"Lily! How'd the meetin' go?" Hagrid called.
"It was horrible," grumbled Lily as she reached the door and entered the hut. It was just like she remembered, a large bed was tucked into the corner of the small hut, a tea kettle was boiling over a pleasant fire, and a messy wooden table sat under the window. She sat at the table while Hagrid checked on the kettle. "I almost lost my prefect position."
"Yer kiddin'! Well, it looked like a heck of a fight, tha's for sure," said Hagrid. "No bruises or scratches?"
"No, just shame," Lily scoffed.
"Don' say that. Just between you an' me, tha' girl probably earned it," Hagrid admitted in a low voice, giving Lily a wink.
Lily smiled and thanked Hagrid as he poured her tea into a large mug before sitting down across from her.
"Did ya' read the Daily Prophet this mornin'?" asked Hagrid gravely.
"No, I skipped breakfast actually, why?" said Lily, growing worried from the serious look on Hagrid's face.
Hagrid got up, retrieved the newspaper from his bed, and handed it to Lily. She gasped, and dropped the paper onto the table. "Oh no. That's awful," she whispered, her hands covering her mouth.
Marcus Augustine Found Dead After Death Eaters Attack Hounslow
The body of influential politician and Muggle-born activist, Marcus Augustine, was found last night by Ministry officials in the Hounslow suburb he had been hiding in since June, after receiving numerous death threats on himself and his family.
"He was up late, reading in the living room like he normally does. I went to bed early that night," said his wife, Isabel Augustine. "And then, when I went to get a glass of water, I found him lying face up on the carpet, covered in blood!"
Those who investigated the scene of the crime believe the perpetrator attacked Augustine with several damaging hexes, ultimately murdering him with the killing curse. Mary Augustine, Marcus Augustine's mother, does not know how the Death Eaters found the home.
"It had the best protection that I know of! I don't know how they could have possibly gotten in!"
The glowing Dark Mark above the (ctd. page 3, column 1)
Lily couldn't bear to read anymore of the article and pushed the paper away from her.
"There's another one in there. 'Bout the ministry's plans for the next couple o' months…bunch of nutters if yeh ask me," said Hagrid, offering Lily a rock cake, which she politely declined.
"I don't want to read it. This is getting worse," said Lily sadly, picking up her mug with trembling hands.
"It's war, Lily. It's war," said Hagrid, taking a large gulp of tea, some of the warm liquid dribbling into his beard. "Things are—"
"—Only going to get worse. I know," said Lily. "I just wish all of Voldemort's—"
"Don't say that ruddy name!" growled Hagrid, but Lily rolled her eyes.
"I just wish all of You-Know-Who's Death Eaters were rounded up already. Of course, You-Know-Who himself would be even better." Lily smiled slightly, in spite of herself.
"I reckon something big 'as got ter go down fer that to happen," said Hagrid.
"Well that's just what it's going to have to take. What if it's still going on when I'm out of school, where someone like me is at an even higher risk? What if my friends are attacked? What if my family members are victims of all this?" Lily choked out quickly, feeling tears rise to her eyes.
"Whoa there, Lily. Don't worry about this now," Hagrid comforted her, looking slightly dismayed at her outburst of concern. "Tomorrow is Halloween, so you should be lookin' forward to the feast," he reminded her, attempting to cheer Lily up.
"You're right, Hagrid," Lily admitted, sniffling. "Mulling about current events doesn't do anything but depress me. Enough about me, how are you?"
Hagrid sighed and looked out of the window. "I really want ter get a pet of some sort. I've been lonely, ever since Ara—"
"Ara? Ara who?" asked Lily curiously.
"Oh nothin'," said Hagrid quickly and turning his gaze to the clock in the corner. "Maybe yeh should get goin' now. I'm sure yer friends are worried 'bout yeh."
"You're probably right," Lily admitted, grinning at Hagrid's attempt at changing the subject. "It was nice to come here again. Thank you," Lily said gratefully.
"Oy! Take a rock cake to go!" called Hagrid, just as Lily was about to walk through the door.
"Oh, thank you," Lily choked out, taking the stone-like treat with reservation. "That would be lovely," Lily lied with a small grimace.
XXX
Next, cut the toad liver into cubes and put it all into the cauldron. The potion should now be a dull orange.
Severus shook his head. Wrong, wrong, wrong! Mincing the liver would be much more effective! He quickly scrawled his correction onto the stained pages and continued reading the instructions.
If this is so, then perhaps putting the liver in the cauldron with the whale hearts would…no, that won't work.
He dipped his quill into his inkwell and scribbled onto the wrinkled pages of his Advanced Potions book, his small, cramped handwriting making the actual text more and more difficult to read. When he was finally finished correcting what was, in his opinion, the most inaccurate piece of literature he had ever read, he leaned back and set down his quill.
Hogsmeade with Regulus had been better than he expected, though it hadn't been what he'd call thrilling. He and Regulus met up with a few Slytherins, but they didn't do much except discuss the Dark Arts, which wasn't something new. Now as he sat against the rough bark of a tree, feeling the wet grass beneath him, he thought he heard something akin to the snapping of a twig behind him. Shrugging off his suspicions, he went back to checking his Potions book, not noticing the three boys sneaking up behind him.
"Look, boys!" said James. Severus snapped his head around and got to his feet, pulling out his wand and standing squarely in front of James, Sirius, and Peter. James stood with his wand drawn, pointed at Severus' chest, while Sirius twirled his wand lazily in his hand with a toothy smile.
"How quaint, Snivellus catching up on some light reading," sneered James, his hair tussled as usual.
"What do you want, Potter?" hissed Severus, his eyes narrowed and teeth bared.
"Oh, nothing much," replied James, with a mischievous grin. At a flick of his wand, Severus stumbled backwards forcefully and hit his head on the trunk of the tree. Groaning and rubbing the back of his head, he saw that a small amount of blood appeared on his fingers as he drew his hands away. A savage look of rage appeared on his face as the three boys laughed at his injury.
Severus flicked his wrist quickly and James was pushed back, falling hard enough on the ground to knock the wind out of him. Sirius opened his mouth to hex Severus in retaliation, but Severus was too quick for him; with a flick of his wand he incanted the Conjunctivitis Curse and Sirius was temporarily blinded, yelling in pain.
"Fuck, do something! I can't see!" roared Sirius, his arms extended trying to feel around as he staggered around the grass.
Peter looked confused over what to do: help James, help Sirius, run away, or hex Snape. He furrowed his brow and tried the latter: "Aguamenti!" Peter yelped.
A powerful jet of water hit Severus' face, causing him to fall on his back. The water was freezing cold and the chilly weather didn't help the chills coursing throughout his body.
"Good one, Wormtail!" approved James, who was now on his feet and panting with a cruel smile etched upon his face. With a wicked grin, he pointed his wand and aimed a disarming curse at him.
"You should be thanking Peter, Snivellus. He tried to get the grease out of your hair."
Peter snickered, adding fuel to James' fire. "Pity, it didn't work, your greasy hair must have repelled the water!"
"Mates! A little help over here would be nice!" yelled Sirius, who was still blind and groping around the grass for his wand. James took the hex off Sirius who strode over quickly to Severus, fuming. He looked at Severus' form on the grass with a fierce look before kicking him hard in the side. Severus cursed aloud, but it only came out as an odd groan. The boys laughed and each gave Severus a swift kick before growing bored.
"This is getting dull. Let's get back to the common room," James said with a dramatic yawn. Peter and Sirius exchanged confused looks, but followed James up the lawns, towards the castle. "Oh, and before I forget—Stupefy!" said James, looking over his shoulder. They snickered and began walking around to the other side of the castle, as the spell hit Severus, knocking him to the ground.
XXX
Lily walked around the grounds, hopelessly trying to clear her head of current events and school duties. The clouds looked as though they were ready to let loose another batch of rain soon, but she didn't mind if it rained on her; it had happened already, and it didn't really bother her that much. In the distance, she saw a figure lying on the ground and her curiosity got the best of her. She walked briskly over to the figure and for some reason, a smirk formed upon her face as she saw Severus Snape sleeping on the grass.
She knelt down beside him and shook his shoulder. "Wake up, sleepy head," Lily said mockingly.
He didn't move. She jabbed him hard in the chest but he still didn't move a muscle. She hesitantly placed her hand on his forehead and with her thumb, pulled his eyelid up, revealing a blank eye staring straight forwards. Her brain suddenly clicked. "Enervate!" Lily incanted, pointing her wand at his chest.
Severus' eyes snapped open and he looked up at her with a slightly confused expression. His pale cheeks turned a soft pink as he noticed her hand on his forehead and promptly stood up, breathing shakily. He opened his mouth and looked as though he were going to yell at her, but slowly closed it.
She smiled. "We tend to bump into each other a lot this year, huh?"
"Unfortunately, yes," mumbled Severus.
"I thought you were sleeping," said Lily.
"No, stunned," Severus said with a glower and grabbed his wand from the base of the tree.
"By who?" asked Lily.
"Is it really necessary for me to answer that question?" snapped Severus.
Lily rolled her eyes and stood up. "Potter?"
"And Black and Pettigrew, yes."
"Why can't you lot just stop pestering each other, once and for all?"
Severus snorted. "You really think that it's easy, don't you?"
"Yes," Lily answered simply.
"Potter and I have hated each other since the moment our eyes met. Nothing is going to change that, Evans. So don't even try," Severus sighed, rolling his eyes at her naïveté.
"I wish they weren't so horrible to you, especially Potter. It must be hard," Lily said, looking down at the ground.
"Why do you pity me? I can handle this myself. Can you please just leave me alone?" Severus said through gritted teeth, his hands balling into fists.
"So when you're stunned on the wet ground, I shouldn't help you?" Lily retorted.
"No! And I swear that if you try to help me again, I'll—" Severus started.
"You'll do what?" Lily said coldly, walking towards him as he picked up his book from the ground. "Hex me when I'm not looking like the other losers in your house?"
"I happen to be friends with some of those 'losers'," Severus snapped angrily, not truly feeling his words.
"Well, you're a loser along with them, then. Does that sound satisfactory?" said Lily brazenly.
"I'm not a loser," said Snape through gritted teeth.
"Fine, I suppose 'loser' is a tad too good for you. You're nothing but an arse!" said Lily, a fierce look on her freckled face. She then pushed past him, hitting his shoulder, and strode up the grassy turf towards the castle.
XXX
You don't regret a word. You wanted her away from you and you told her the truth. It isn't my problem she was over sensitive, was it? No, of course not. His musings distracted him from his Potions book and after almost an hour of trying to read, he decided to go to the common room. He walked down the stairs towards the dungeons and reached the door of the portrait hole.
"The password?" the wizard in the painting asked tiredly.
"Servo hostilis propinquus," Severus recited glumly.
"Quite true, quite true," said the wizard, and he let Severus in.
Severus walked into the common room and spotted Narcissa studying by the fire.
"Narcissa," Severus said, pulling up a chair next to her.
"Severus," Narcissa said smoothly, closing her book.
"How was Hogsmeade?" Severus inquired.
"You haven't heard?" Narcissa shot back nastily.
"No," Severus said evenly.
Narcissa crossed her legs and recounted the day's events; the altercation in Hogsmeade and the meeting with McGonagall. Severus found the whole story quite entertaining and listened to Narcissa with a look of amusement. She folded her arms across her chest. "Ugly, idiotic Mudblood, that girl is. It was rather fun pouring butterbeer on her, though," Narcissa finished, smiling evilly and looking at the fireplace.
Severus looked at the fire as well, curtain of hair over his face as usual, and he sensed Narcissa looking at him.
"Where have you been?" Narcissa asked curiously, the smirk evident in her tone.
"Outside, why?"
"By yourself?"
"Yes. Why would that be such a surprise for you?" Severus said calmly.
"I suppose it's not," Narcissa said, flipping her hair over her shoulder.
"So, have you heard from Lucius lately?" asked Severus, hoping to change the subject to something he considered more appealing. He rarely heard from him nowadays and he was actually quite interested.
Narcissa immediately brightened up. "I received word from him just a few days ago. He mentioned you."
"Why couldn't he just send me a letter himself?" Severus asked, frustrated.
"Well, I don't know!" said Narcissa with exasperation. "Why don't you send a letter to him?"
"Because I'm not the one who promised to write," replied Severus.
"I'm sure he just forgot or something," Narcissa insisted.
"That's a load of bollocks and you know it!" Severus snapped.
"Well, Severus, I didn't know you were so passionate about this," Narcissa smirked.
"I'm not," Severus said quickly, colour rising to his cheeks.
"I'm sure he'll write to you soon. Maybe he wants to wait until something interesting happens?" Narcissa offered.
"Maybe. Anyway, what did he say about me?" Severus asked.
Narcissa looked around before whispering in his ear. "He mentioned you to a certain…Dark Lord."
Severus whipped his head around to look straight into her eyes. "What?"
Narcissa eyes gleamed with excitement. "Lucius mentioned you to the Dark Lord. He even says that the Dark Lord sounds fairly interested."
Severus' eyes grew wide. "Are you serious?"
"Now why would Lucius lie about something like that?" Narcissa said with a raised brow.
"Why would he do that?" questioned Severus, anger rising in his voice.
Narcissa furrowed her brows. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you sound upset about this."
"I am."
"And why the hell are you?" whispered Narcissa in disbelief. "This is a great thing, Severus. The Dark Lord is interested in your skills. I'm sure Lucius told him about your remarkable talent in the Dark Arts. Not to mention your potion expertise and overall knowledge in many branches of magic."
Severus groaned and turned his head to Narcissa. "I've told him time and time again that I'm not sure if I want to become a follower of the Dark Lord or not."
Narcissa looked positively scandalised. "Not sure or not interested at all? Severus, you must be joking. This is an amazing opportunity. You do believe in the Dark Lord's cause, right?"
Severus looked back at the fire and didn't reply.
"Right?" hissed Narcissa sternly.
"Some parts, yes," said Severus quietly.
"I don't understand. What in the world is holding you back?" asked Narcissa. He remained silent, Narcissa grabbed his arm but he pulled it out of her grasp.
"This will remain between you and I," Narcissa whispered definitely.
Severus watched the flames rise up in the fireplace before answering in a barely audible voice, "I don't know."
Narcissa sighed loudly and moved away from his ear. "Perhaps you just need more time to think this all over, then you'll know."
"Yes…perhaps," Severus mumbled.
Narcissa stood up and placed her hand on his back consolingly. "Maybe you'll come to your senses after you eat something."
Severus grudgingly pulled himself out of the extremely comfortable armchair and headed out of the portrait hole with Narcissa.
"What is this? They go in and come right back out of the house? Merlin!" complained the wizard in the portrait behind them.
Severus and Narcissa mounted the stairs and entered the front hall. The smell from the Great Hall was intoxicating. Maybe I am hungry. They sat at the table across from each other when Regulus appeared and sat next to Severus.
"Hear about what happened in Hogsmeade?" asked Regulus with an amused look on his face.
"Yes," said Severus, placing some sautéed carrots on his plate.
"Avery told me. Pretty funny, huh?" smirked Regulus.
"No, not really," snapped Narcissa.
"Hey, do you mind helping me with my History of Magic essay, Severus?" asked Regulus, pouring some pumpkin juice into his goblet.
"Fine," agreed Severus grudgingly, though he was distracted by the appearance of the four Marauders. He watched as Remus Lupin entered the great hall with his friends, looking very dishevelled, as though he had just got out of bed. His dirty-blond hair was messy, his eyes had bags under them, and he seemed to walk with a slight limp, though nobody appeared to pay it much attention. His suspicion about the group was greater than ever; he needed to know how to catch the Marauders in whatever they were up to.
XXX
Lily was surprised that she had behaved the way she did towards Severus. And things were starting to go along pretty well between us, she thought.
She curled up on one of the couches in the common room in front of the fire, eating her chocolates. She tended to eat when she was upset and was surprised she was not chronically overweight by now. She wore her comfortable Muggle jeans, a stripped black and white sweater. A perfect pigging-out outfit, she thought. Her friends were at dinner but she didn't feel like eating anything…except for chocolate.
"Evans?"
Lily turned around to see James standing behind the couch. She looked around him to see Sirius, Peter, and Remus talking amongst themselves near the door, occasionally looking over in her direction.
"Potter?" said Lily nonchalantly. He took that as his cue to walk around the couch and sit next to her.
"You look upset," James said, looking at the mountain of chocolate-pecan cauldron cluster wrappers. He then glanced at her outfit. "And Muggle-like."
Lily rolled her eyes. "Well I've certainly felt better…and have looked more Muggle-like."
James then had a broad smile on his face. "I got you something that I thought might cheer you up. You know, after what happened in the Three Broomsticks," he said. Lily furrowed her brows. "A gift," he said.
"A gift?" Lily asked.
"Yes. I think you'll like it," James pulled out the red velvet box from his pocket and held it out to her.
"Well?" said Lily impatiently.
He opened the box and she gasped loudly. James pulled out a necklace and held it up for her. Her mouth hung open as she watched the necklace shimmer, emphasized by the firelight.
"Oh Potter… It's beautiful. You—" gasped Lily.
"It's an opal, straight from Australia," James said.
"I know, I love opals," Lily said.
"Here, let me put it on for you," James offered, leaning closer.
"I can do it myself," snapped Lily. She stood up, moved her hair out of the way, and clasped the necklace around her neck gingerly.
She touched her necklace as though the slightest touch would break it. He looked at her with a smile. "Beautiful," James said.
Lily blushed, but she didn't feel right. She didn't like James romantically and her intention wasn't to be a tease. She may not have liked James, but he didn't deserve to get mixed messages.
"I can't accept this," Lily said softly.
"Why not?" James asked. His eyes were so wide that she thought they would fall out of his eye sockets.
"Because…because I'm not …" Lily started, looking around her nervously.
"Because why?" James said.
"Because, you should give this to a girl who has…deep, romantic feelings for you and…I'm not that girl," Lily said quietly.
James looked hurt but tried not to show it, though he was failing miserably. "Oh."
"I'm sorry," Lily reached behind her neck to undo the necklace clasp. "I'm sure this cost you a lot of money, but—"
"No, keep it," James said.
Lily shook her head. "No, I won't allow it."
"Lily, I want you to have it," James said firmly. She fingered her necklace and looked at the fireplace uncomfortably.
"I want you to have it," James repeated.
"Are you serious?" Lily looked up at him.
"Yes. It accentuates your already amazing beauty," James said with a small smile.
Lily flushed again and tried to look into his eyes, but he looked at the ground instead, avoiding her gaze.
"I should…go…er…yes. I'll see you around," James stammered, turning around.
"James, I know there is a girl out there that is perfect for you, but I thought I'd made it clear that I don't…like you that way. I'm sorry if I've confused you recently. I honestly didn't mean to," Lily apologised, picking at her fingernails.
"No, I—I understand," said James, running his hand through his hair, his back still facing her.
"So can we just go back to…whatever we were before?" Lily asked hopefully.
James nodded quickly and walked through the door of the boy's dormitory. Peter and Sirius then ran up after him—Peter calling, "Prongs, wait up!"—only to be met with the slamming of a door.
Lily plopped down on the couch and fiddled with her necklace, a feeling of guilt spreading through her body; from the soles of her feet, to her stomach, to the back of her throat. She felt horrible. You told him the truth. He should have listened to you after all these years, she kept telling herself. She stared at the opal, the flashing colours winking at her. Lily felt additional weight on the couch and looked to see a very tired looking Remus sit down next to her.
"So….how are you?" asked Remus casually.
"Oh, fantastic," Lily said sarcastically. "This is turning out to be a horrible day."
"I know the feeling," said Remus solemnly.
"Why weren't you in Hogsmeade today?" asked Lily.
"I didn't feel very well. I decided it would be best to just stay here," Remus said immediately. Lily was sceptical but not particularly in the mood to play Twenty Questions with Remus.
They sat quietly for a while until Lily said, "He's just not my type, you know?"
Remus was silent.
"I mean, I told him the truth, which is good, right?" Lily continued, trying desperately to feel better about the situation.
"I think…that if you gave him a chance—" Remus started.
"Not you, too! Why can no one accept that I don't like him? That date today, that was nothing! It was just me getting a drink with Potter. I didn't like him then, and I don't like him now! If he wasn't so arrogant—"
"Guys can change, Lily. He's not nearly as—okay so he is still pretty full of himself, but he doesn't do it on purpose," said Remus.
"Oh, don't give me that! Just wait until Quidditch starts. His head will be inflated to an all-time high," said Lily.
"Lily, what has he ever done to you? And I don't mean others, I mean you personally," asked Remus.
Lily opened her mouth to speak but slowly closed it when she discovered she was lacking anything to say. "S-stuff," she stuttered, looking down at her lap.
"Lily, I don't believe in forcing you to have feelings for him. And believe me, he's asked me many times to try to convince you to—" said Remus.
"So now he's bringing his friends into this? How desperate can you be?" snorted Lily.
Remus frowned slightly and started to twiddle his thumbs, looking away from Lily's face. That familiar feeling of guilt crept through her again. Insulting the boy who just gave you an amazing necklace? How low can you get, Lily? She berated herself.
"He knows that we're…a little close. And he sometimes asks me to ask you if you're interested. I don't do it, of course, because it's not my place to do so. But he's really a great guy underneath the self-righteousness," insisted Remus slowly.
"But why must he be such a bully? I mean, just look at the way he treats Snape!" whispered Lily.
"Oh Lily, come on!" said Remus in an uncharacteristic tone of disbelief. "Stop acting as though Snape is the victim. They are equally nasty to one another. If James starts it one time, Snape starts it the next."
"So you're justifying James' immature behaviour?" asked Lily evenly.
"No, what I'm saying is that before you pass judgment on someone, get to know the real them. Isn't that what you're doing with Snape this year?" said Remus calmly.
"It's different!" insisted Lily. And it seems to be over, she said to herself inwardly.
"No, not really," said Remus.
"Remus, I don't want to argue with you again," said Lily calmly. "But I can safely say that there will never be romance between James and I. I'm sorry. I know he's one of your best mates, but…"
"Okay, Lily. As always, I will respect your decision, despite my thinking you are passing up a great thing," said Remus.
"Remus, there are hundreds of fish in the sea…unless James hexes them all," joked Lily. Remus chuckled. "Okay, I should go to detention now. I have to clean Flitwick's cupboard. Who knows what he has cluttered in there?"
XXX
James Potter was angry. No, angry would be an understatement. Furious would much better describe how James felt. He entered his dorm and slammed the door forcefully behind him, not caring that Frank was in the room, most likely reading behind his shut curtains. James heard him sigh audibly and mutter a silencing spell around his bed, knowing that there would be a lot of noise for a while.
James kicked books thrown around the floor and stupidly kicked his trunk.
"Fucking bleedin' Merlin's balls!" yelled James, hopping on one foot and nursing his stubbed toe.
Peter and Sirius then entered the room, closing the door behind them.
"James, it's alright," said Peter.
"SHUT THE HELL UP! IT'S NOT ALRIGHT!" James roared.
"Mate, she's not worth all this!" Sirius insisted.
"You're wrong! She is! You have no idea how this feels!" James yelled. His face was red, veins throbbing along his neck.
"James, we're trying to help you—" Peter started.
"Rejection after rejection," interrupted James. "Since our third year! Finally when things are looking up, I'm rejected again!"
"This is exactly our point, you idiot!" Sirius retorted. "Read my lips: She. Is. Not. Worth. It. Move on, James! She brings you nothing but disappointment!"
James' face returned to its normal colour and his breathing regulated. Sirius was panting while Peter sat on his bed.
"Fuck," James breathed and collapsed on his four-poster bed. Though the pillows were fluffed and the sheets were toasty, he felt uncomfortable and cold. "Why?"
"Why what?" said Peter.
"Why am I such an idiot?" James scoffed coldly. "Thinking she'd fall for me…because of jewellery! I must be the biggest prat this side of the Atlantic."
Sirius chuckled and sat in a large chair by the door. "Prat is an understatement."
XXX
The next day was rather uneventful, which Lily was thankful for. She felt much better than the day before; maybe it was the fact that it was Halloween and the Great Hall was decked out with glowing pumpkins, spiders and their webs, bats, and oodles of candy (which even Lily couldn't pass up, even after eating half her Honeydukes candy the night before).
That afternoon, while in the dorm with her friends, Lily found time to reread a letter from her mother which she received that morning.
Dear Lily,
Your father and I hope school is going well for you so far! We have interesting news about 'Tunia. She has found a boyfriend named Vernon Dursley. He works part-time at a drilling factory and must make a fair amount of money, since he's taken 'Pet out to some fancy Italian restaurant in London. He's even stopped by a couple times to pick her up. Your father doesn't particularly like the man, but I told him to give him a chance. However, that was before I started to dislike him myself. But as long as Petunia is happy, I suppose that is all that matters. She's a woman now and we can't prevent her from dating a man she fancies (despite what your father thinks).
Enough about us, though. Are your classes getting better? What is in the news over there? Are things getting worse? Do you have any new friends?
Behave and make us proud,
Mum
Lily's friends were lying around on their beds, bored and wondering what to do until dinner.
"We could watch the Marauders act stupid," suggested Marlene.
"Since when do you like the Marauders so much, Marlene?" asked Alice teasingly.
"Do you like one of them?" asked Emmeline suspiciously.
"I don't like Remus, if that's what you're afraid of," Marlene drawled.
"How did…I mean…wait...what?" Emmeline stuttered.
"Oh please Emmeline, your crush on Remus is nearly as obvious as James' crush on Lily," said Marlene.
"Am I really that obvious?" asked Emmeline.
"Yes," said the girls.
"We could always try on Lily's Muggle clothes. Is that alright, Lily?" asked Alice.
"Have a ball. I'm going to the common room. Just make sure you put my clothes back afterwards," said Lily, and she descended the stairs to the common room. She smiled inwardly at how much her friends loved dressing in Muggle garb and, especially when they were younger, begged her to let them try on some of her stuff, despite the fact that they were different sizes.
Lily walked towards the window and pulled the drapes aside, watching the slowly setting sun. Birds were flying in the distance and the clear sky showed gradients of bright pink, light orange, and dark blue. The close proximity to the window made her feel warm and she closed her eyes lightly, just enjoying the feeling. The bliss was interrupted, however, by a soft, "Hey."
Lily jumped and her eyes shot open to see the one person she really didn't want to see, James.
"Potter, you almost gave me a heart attack!" Lily said harshly, her hand clutched over the left side of her chest.
"Sorry," James said with a dopey smile. "Why are you over here behind the drapes?"
"I dunno, maybe because I want to?" Lily shrugged.
"Oh…" James said. "Er—still wearing the necklace, eh?"
Lily looked down. "Yes, well, it's very beautiful."
"Yeah…" James said. He began to pull a loose thread from the drapes and look out the window with her. "Whatcha looking at?"
"The sky," Lily said dreamily. "Watching it change colours."
"Cool," James said lightly.
There was silence between the two momentarily. "You look…nice today," James said.
Lily looked down at herself. "Jeans and a purple T-shirt, James," she chortled.
"You still look nice," James said.
Lily smiled slightly, hoping that he wasn't trying to flirt with her. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked out the window again. Along the horizon the sky was a deeper shade of orange and pink and everywhere else was a deep indigo. She glanced at James, whose glasses reflected from the sun outside and his hair stuck up in the back; a slight frown on his face, which made him look serious, mature; a side of him she had never seen before. She realised she was staring and quickly turned away.
"We—I should probably get the girls to the Great Hall for the feast," Lily said, and walked back to her dorm.
Lily and her friends walked down to the Great Hall and Lily wasn't disappointed: Thousands of bats flew overhead and about a hundred jack-o'-lanterns hovered above the tables. Halloween was always exciting for her, especially in the wizarding world. After the hall was full, the food appeared on the table and the room was abuzz. Lily began to drink her warm pumpkin juice and looked around the hall, her eyes falling upon the Slytherin table. Without thinking, she searched for Severus and she spotted him chuckling lightly, something that she very rarely saw him do. He looked up, his eyes fell in her direction, and he immediately stopped laughing. She just looked him in the eye coolly over her cup, surreptitiously wanting to look mysterious. He looked at her blankly for some time before Nott hit him on the shoulder and began to converse with him.
Why did I just do that? she thought. Confused by her own behaviour, Lily didn't look at Severus or the Slytherin table for the rest of the feast.
A/N 2: I'm not the type to say "If I don't get 10 reviews then I won't update". I'm not greedy and I'm not an idiot (last time I checked). For me reviews help motivate me and when there is constructive criticism, it helps me find out what I should work on. In short, review if you want. Next update will be out ASAP.