Sorry this part seemed to take so long. Fanfiction.net was down for a bit, but here it is. Please send me any suggestions you might have! Thanks! And thanks to all of my reviewers!
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Lily sat at the counter in the Three Broomsticks, finishing off her second butterbeer. She hadn't seen Alice or Chase at Hogsmeade yet, and she was dying to talk to them. If they would just listen to her, she knew she could make them understand this entire fiasco. However, she also knew that if Malkia had her way, Alice and Chase would resent her forever. She just figured that Chase had learned the hard way not to buy into Malkia's tricks, but apparently, Lily had overestimated her.
She heard students whispering all around her, and she had no doubt in her mind that they were talking about her. Or was she just paranoid? Surely news couldn't travel this fast. Or could it? Where James was concerned, she was certain it could. Sighing, Lily gulped down the last sip of her drink, and hoped off of the stool she had been perched on. She headed outside into the bright daylight.
The air around Lily was fairly chilly, but it was nothing compared to the cold glares she was receiving from the students. Lily didn't know it was possible to feel this alone. Normally she loved Hogsmeade and she especially loved the autumn weather. Now, she couldn't stand either and wished she could just disappear. Lily thought that when she entered the wizarding world, she was entering a world where people would accept her for who she was. Yet she was wrong. Wizards and witches could be just as catty and cruel as Muggles. People were people, after all, magical or not.
Lily had decided to make her way back to the Hogwarts' castle, when she spotted her first ray of hope. There, standing outside of Hondeydukes' Candy Shop, was Jewlie Makerson! Jewlie Makerson, the same Jewlie who talked to Lily in Charms and despised James Potter. She of all people wouldn't abandon Lily! She would understand, Lily was sure of it!
Lily raced over to Honeydukes, feeling optimistic for the first time that day. "Jewlie!" she called. "Jewlie!" Jewlie turned to Lily, with an expression Lily found extremely difficult to read. Whatever she was thinking, Lily was positive that she was not happy to see her.
"Lily…" Jewlie began, her eyes casted downward. "Um…what…what are you doing here?"
"In Hogsmeade?" Lily asked, confused.
"No, here as in right here," Jewlie began.
"I don't understand," Lily started, her eyebrows furrowed. What point was Jewlie trying to make and why did she look so guilty?
Suddenly Lily heard an outburst of laughter, and when she turned to see what was going on, she was immediately relieved to find that the students weren't laughing at her. She heard familiar voices and frowned. James and Sirius were up to their usual games.
"Snivelly!" Sirius called out loudly.
"Leave me alone," Snape muttered, clutching a large shopping bag.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?" James asked, snatching Snape's bag. He opened it up and pretended to look shocked. "A book on the Dark Arts? Tsk, tsk, Snivellus. You should be very ashamed of yourself," James mocked, shaking his head.
Sirius laughed heartily. "Snivellus, do you really think that you have what it takes to become a Dark Wizard?" This remark earned laughter from many passersby.
"Honestly, Snivelly, just go back to cooking your little recipes in your cauldron," James remarked.
"Shut up!" Snape ordered.
"Touchy are we?" James asked.
"You know Snivelly, cooking is nothing to be ashamed of," Sirius said seriously. He then cracked a smile. "If you're a woman that is!"
"But the Dark Arts, this is serious stuff," James said, nodding.
"I agree," Sirius concurred. "But isn't the expression "tall, dark, and handsome"? No offense Snivellus, but greasy hair and filth doesn't exactly qualify you as handsome."
More people gathered around the scene, laughing and pointing at Snape.
Snape shot James and Sirius deadly looks before snatching his bag and running off in the direction of Hogwarts.
"You'll pay for this!" Snape called.
"Can't wait!" James yelled back.
"Bye, bye Snivellus!" Sirius called.
Lily shook her head and turned back to Jewlie. "Aren't they terrible?" she commented.
"Well…I…" Jewlie stuttered.
"Jewlie, what is it?" Lily asked.
"You see, well…" Jewlie began, but stopped short.
"What's the matter?" Lily demanded.
"Haven't you heard, Lil?" an approaching voice asked. Lily spun around and was shocked to see it was James.
"I doubt she has," Sirius began. "She's not exactly in the social circle any longer."
"How soon I forgot," James began, looking at Lily coldly. Lily couldn't remember him ever looking at her that way.
"Heard what?" she muttered, somehow managing to keep her head held high. She wasn't about to fall to pieces in front of James Potter.
"About me and Jewlie," James grinned.
Lily was appalled. Shocked. Betrayed. Jewlie and James? Jewlie? Her Jewlie? Why it was unfathomable! Jewlie hated James with a passion! She turned to Jewlie for confirmation. "Jewls?" she managed. "Tell me it's not true!"
Jewlie looked up at her, ashamed. "I'm sorry Lily," she said quietly, leaving Lily and appearing next to James's side.
"But…but you hate him," Lily remarked, still in shock.
Jewlie shook her head. "I never knew him, Lil."
"But why…when…how could you do this to me?" Lily asked, deeply hurt.
"I'm so sorry," Jewlie said, blinking back tears. "I never meant to hurt you but…but…"
"Are you three ready then?" Chase asked, coming up to the group, shopping bags in her hand, and Alice and Malkia on either side of her.
"I think so," Sirius said, wrapping his arm around Chase's waist.
"Alice…" Lily began.
"Come on, Ally," Chase said, pulling Alice along.
"Al, please, just listen…" Lily started again.
"Let's go," Malkia persisted, pushing Alice along. Lily saw Alice look over her shoulder as she walked away. She could have sworn Alice shot her a sympathetic look. Lily then realized that Alice wasn't angry with her. She had been drug into this entire mess against her will. She would have to figure out a reason to be alone with Alice and explain everything to her.
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Lily waited in the Gryffindor Common room sitting on the plush carpet in front of a blazing fire. A draft had wandered into the room, shooting chills up Lily's spine. She covered herself in a warm quilt, wondering if Alice would come.
After their encounter in Hogsmeade, Lily dashed back to Hogwarts immediately. She wrote Alice a short note, begging her to come down to the Gryffindor Common Room at exactly one in the morning. She stuffed the note under Alice's pillow, knowing she would find it there. (Throughout the night, Alice would constantly, flip her pillow over, claiming she couldn't lie on it if it became too warm.)
Lily glanced at the clock and was relieved to see it was only twelve fifty. At least she hadn't been stood up…yet. She gazed into the flames of the fire, wondering how different her life had become in just one day. It just proved how fickle people could be. One day, you're the brightest, friendliest girl in school, and the next day, you're the outcast. Lily still couldn't believe or even accept this change as reality, and refused to continue living this way. Things had to get better. She'd make sure of that. She never hated Malkia more than she did that night, staring into the fire, wishing it was Malkia burning inside of there rather then the enchanted logs.
Lily felt a tear trickle down her cheek. How could one person be full of so much hate? She wouldn't wish this feeling of loneliness upon even her sister Petunia, and yet Malkia had caused all of this pain without even so much as blinking. It was terrible to think about, how some people were just naturally evil. No…Lily didn't believe that. She believed that something had happened to Malkia to turn her this way. But what? Perhaps her parents were this horrible, and this lifestyle was all Malkia knew. Or maybe she had been hurt by someone really close to her and…
"Lil?" a meek voice called.
Lily's head shot around. "Ally!" she breathed, cheerfully. "Oh, thank goodness you're here. I wasn't sure you'd come."
Alice nodded. "I figured the least I could do was here your side of the story."
"Alice, please, you must believe me," Lily began. "When I yelled at Chase I was only angry at those tow fourth years! I was still fuming when James gave me my book and I said some rather horrible things, which I didn't completely mean. I cooled off in my room and I was going to apologize, to Chase at least, and possibly James, but then Malkia came in and told me she planted all these ideas in your head and…"
Alice shook her head. "I knew she was the cause of all of this somehow. I tried telling Chase, but she wouldn't listen."
"I thought that she of all people would listen to me, since she knows what terrible pain Malkia causes," Lily said sadly.
"She's just upset," Alice remarked, "really upset."
"I know," Lily replied bitterly. "I just wish she'd give me a chance to apologize and explain myself."
Alice smiled sympathetically.
"I'm just glad you decided to listen to me," Lily said, smiling.
"Hey," Alice began. "Best friends right? Forever."
Lily grinned. "Always."
"I'm so sorry I didn't come to you sooner," Alice began. "It's just Chase was around me twenty four seven, and I couldn't break away and…"
"Don't worry about it," Lily insisted. "Everything will be fine now. Chase will come around eventually."
"Yeah," Alice grinned, hugging Lily. "Let's never fight again, okay?"
"Okay," Lily agreed, laughing.
"What's so funny?" Alice asked once she pulled away.
"I don't know," Lily admitted. "It's just that I haven't laughed in two days, and now, I'm just so happy…I felt like laughing for a change."
Alice grinned. "Come on," she said, pulling Lily up. "We should get some rest."
"Okay," Lily agreed, following Alice up to the dormitory.
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Lily awoke early the next morning, before all of the girls in her dormitory. Taking advantage of the extra time, she tiptoed out of the room and hurried into the bathroom, where she was able to take a long, hot shower. After an hour, Lily forced herself out, heading back into her dormitory to change.
As she rounded the corner to her room, she nearly collided head-on with none other than Malkia. Malkia grinned haughtily as she looked up at Lily.
"Have fun yesterday?" Malkia asked viciously, gliding past her.
Lily scrunched up her nose, but bit her tongue, knowing it was wiser not to say anything back to Malkia.
She entered the dormitory and wasn't the least bit surprised to see Alice and Chase talking. As soon as Chase heard her, she stopped talking, turning her gaze away from Lily.
"Chase…" Lily began, knowing this wasn't going to be easy. She wondered if Alice had purposely rushed Malkia out of the room so that Lily could have the opportunity to talk to Chase.
"Alice, let's go," Chase said, getting up off of her bed.
"Please, just listen to what I have to say," Lily begged.
"No, I…"
"Chase, just listen," Alice insisted.
"Oh, great, now you're turning against me too Ally?" Chase asked angrily. "That's just great! And here I thought I had one friend I could count on."
"No, I'm not turning against you," Alice said. "We're best friends. The three of us. I'm helping us."
Chase rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I'm out of here!"
"Chase," Lily tried again, racing out of the room after her. She descended the stairs quickly in pursuit of her. "You know how evil Malkia can be! You saw what she did to you your first and second years at Hogwarts! You of all people know first hand how vicious and cruel she can be! Why the complete one eighty?"
"Because I was mad at you!" Chase shouted, ignoring the other Gryffindors in the common room. "Because I wanted a reason to hate you!"
"Why?" Lily asked, confused and hurt.
"Because, Lil," Chase began. "Because…because of everything you said and…"
"Chase, I didn't mean a word of what I said, and I know you know that," Lily remarked. "I was going to apologize to you, but I fell asleep before you came back to the dormitory and…"
"I didn't want you to apologize!" Chase shouted. "That's the thing Lil! If you would have apologized, I would have forgiven you and then everything would have been fine!"
"What am I missing?" Lily asked, baffled. Chase was acting insane. Had everyone gone crazy lately?
"If everything was fine then I wouldn't have anyone to blame!" she yelled. "I needed someone to blame!" Tears were now streaming down Chase's cheeks rapidly. Lily had never seen her act this emotional before. Chase was the strong one of the group, the tough one, their foundation. What had happened to make her this upset?
"Chase, I don't…" Lily began.
Chase fell to a heap on the floor. "It's not your fault," she remarked, tears springing from her eyes. "But I wanted it to be. I needed someone to blame. I needed someone to get angry at!"
"But, I still…" Lily started.
At the precise moment Chase lost whatever composure she had left, bawling on the floor like a baby. Lily turned and saw Sirius rushing down the stairs leading from the boys' dormitories, and he rushed over to Chase, pushing people out of his way as he ran.
"Sirius, what's…what's wrong with her?" Lily asked, confused.
Sirius sighed. "I shouldn't tell you."
"But she's acting so…"
"Here," Sirius said, handing her a piece of parchment that had been in Chase's pocket. "She's known since Friday, but she only told me last night. She'll want you to know, and I think it will be easier for her if you find out this way."
"Does Alice…" Lily began.
"No one else knows," Sirius said, cradling Chase in his arms. She gripped her arms around his neck tightly, as if holding on for dear life. Lily watched as Sirius carried her carefully out of the Gryffindor Tower, and she wondered where he could be taking her.
"Lil…" Alice began. "Did you…did you read the parchment?"
"Yeah, what's going on?" James asked, concerned.
"Is she all right?" Remus asked.
It seemed to Lily that in times of crisis, such as these, people bonded together, even those who seemed to have drifted apart.
"I don't know," Lily said slowly, walking over to the couch. She fell down, the other three following her lead. They all leaned in and read carefully.
Chase,
I just received word from St. Mungo's. Apparently your mother had been having a rough time the past few weeks. They notified me yesterday to tell me she had passed away. Her things will be sent home on Monday.
Jillietta
"Oh my God," Lily breathed.
"Poor Chase!" Alice exclaimed.
"Well now her behavior makes sense," Remus said.
"That's terrible," James remarked.
"I feel horrible now," Lily muttered. "I was so mean to her…I wasn't even mad at her!" Lily sighed. "I'm a terrible friend."
"You are not," Alice insisted.
"Ha," James muttered sarcastically.
"Oh, will you shut up!" Alice shouted. "Lily feels terrible enough as it is without you trying to make her feel worse!"
"It's fine, I deserve it," Lily said bitterly.
"No, you don't!" Alice remarked. "Lil, I'm going to go see if I can find Chase…"
"I'll go with you," Remus offered.
"Thanks," Alice said. "I'll be right back."
"Okay," Lily remarked, still staring blankly at the parchment in her hand. She couldn't believe how insensitive she could be! Poor Chase! Lily couldn't imagine her mother dying! Oh, this must be horrible for her! No wonder she was so angry with Lily. She was unleashing all of her penned up anger and sorrow and…"
"Lil," James said softly. "I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I just…"
"No," Lily said, scooting closer to him. "I'm so sorry for everything I said to you. I didn't mean what I said. I was just so angry and…"
"It's fine," James assured her. He paused. "So?"
"So what?" Lily asked.
"You gonna go out with me?"
Lily scowled. "Some things never change," she muttered.
"Is that a yes?" James asked.
"No," Lily remarked.
"So that's a no?" James questioned, following her.
"Yes."
"Aha! So it is a yes!" James remarked.
Lily laughed. "What about Jewlie?" she asked.
"Can I let you in on a secret?" he asked hopefully, mussing with his hair.
"Fine," Lily said impatiently.
"I don't care for Jewlie at all," he whispered.
"Of course you don't," Lily said, without much surprise. "Just like you wouldn't care for me if I went out with you."
"No, Lil, I would…I mean I do…"
Lily looked at James skeptically as he battled with his own words. "Give it up James," she remarked.
James looked at her sadly as she walked away, wondering why she simply didn't understand.
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"Chase!" Lily called through the corridor that day. "Chase, wait up!"
Chase spun around, her dark hair whipping around her like a whip. "Yes?"
"Hey, look, I'm sorry about…" Lily started, daring to apologize all over again.
Chase smiled warmly. "It's okay," she insisted. "Really."
"Are you sure?" Lily asked. Chase nodded. "Okay, well if you ever want to talk about it, I mean, you know I'm here right?"
"Of course," she said. "Thanks."
"Anytime," Lily replied.
"But," Chase began dramatically. "Right now I'm much more interested in what we're going to where to the Halloween Ball."
Lily grinned. "I haven't given it much thought, actually."
"Of course you haven't," Chase rolled her eyes. "That's why I'm here."
"Right," Lily remarked. "So what are you wearing?"
"I don't know," Chase said. "Alice told me that she was going as Mermaid."
"Hmmm…" Lily thought. She had caught a glance of a mermaid once in the lake. They were really much more beautiful than humans gave them credit for. "That could be interesting."
"Yes, maybe, if she has the right type of costume."
Lily's eyes fell. "I don't have a costume."
Chase grinned knowingly. "You're the best student in Charms."
"So?"
"So?" Chase asked incredulously. "You're saying you can't work a little magic on our gowns?"
"Oh," Lily began, thinking about it. With a few basic decorating charms, she should be able to turn a plain dress into something extraordinary. "Yes, I suppose I could."
"I hope so," Chase began, "because I'll be counting on you to help me with my costume."
"I promise," Lily said. "Now, there's just one last problem. For me anyway."
"What's that?" Chase asked.
"Finding a date," Lily replied shortly, wondering if she really would have the courage to ask the one guy everyone would have least expected her to.
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TBC. Guys I'm going on vacation for two weeks. I'm hoping that there will be a computer there, but if not, I'll write as soon as I get back. Okay? Another question…do you guys want me to take on other characters point of view? Such as Chase? James? Sirius? Let me know through reviews!