Chapter 9
October 23, 1976

"Where's Peter?!?" I asked.

"I don't know," Lily shrugged, looking over at James and Sirius.

"We don't know, why're you looking at us like that?!" remarked Sirius.

"Hey!" James cried out, but then calmed down and ran a hand coolly through his messy hair. "Did you just kick me under the table, Lily?"

"No! Be serious! Where's Peter?!" Lily glared.

"Well then if you didn't…."

"Don't look at me, Prongs!" Sirius growled. James got a curious look on his face and looked under the table.

"Peter! Get out from under there! We've been looking for you!" shouted James. A whimpering Peter Pettigrew crawled out from under the table. I helplessly rolled my eyes.

"Well now that all of that is in order, would you all care to tell me what's going on?!" snapped Lily.

"Tiger Lily, take it easy! Do you mind talking t us, Remus?!" Sirius asked.

"Yeah, what was that?" asked James. Peter, too, looked at me anxiously, awaiting my answer.

Truth be it, I didn't know much more that than they knew. I hadn't understood what had just happened or why. "I don't know either," I honestly answered.

Sirius cussed and sank into his chair, not happy with my answer.

"Do you suppose they were more ghosts? We couldn't see them, so…." Lily trailed off.

"More ghosts?" Peter moaned.

"Be quiet, Wormtail!" hissed James.

"More ghosts…." I trailed off. If there were more ghosts –

I remembered instantly where I had heard those cackles before. They had filled the Shrieking Shack on that last full moon, and had also scared Cecil off in the dormitory, too.

"Lily, I told you Cecil had led me out of the castle," I said. She nodded. "Well that wasn't the complete truth, I wasn't thinking straight. She was scared off by those same laughs and I followed her."

"You mean they were the same?"

"Yes! They've frightened her off, twice now, always when she's going to tell us something. Do you think they're trying to hide something?"

"What would they have to hide?" Peter asked.

"Oh stop being such a dolt, Peter!" James exclaimed.

"Peter, what Remus is trying to say is that-" Lily began, but I interrupted her out of excitement.

"Is that the ghosts are the spirits of the Slytherins who murdered her!"

"Oh!"

"She said that you were in danger next, they must have been werewolf hunters or something…but how could they hurt you, they're ghosts now?" Lily questioned.

"I don't know, can ghosts control a person?"

Lily shook her head. "Not unless said person willingly allows them to."

"Damn it!" growled Sirius, returning from his silence. "How'd they know we'd be here?! Do they know everything?!"

"If you'd calm down and think about it, Sirius, it wouldn't be that hard!" snapped Lily.

"They're following Cecil to make sure she doesn't say anything they wouldn't want said, I explained.

"They're all dead, what difference would it make?" Sirius continued on, stubborn as ever.

"Or maybe," James looked to me with an idea, "it was because of that poem. 'These walls have ears that do not rest?'"

"So now we're assuming it was they're hideout?" asked Sirius.

"It makes sense. It would've given them a quick getaway afterwards, like Remus said," defended James.

"No," I shook my head. "It said 'speak not your secrets here!' It doesn't matter where we speak them, as long as not there."

"Wait," Lily interrupted. "What poem are you lot talking about?"

"We found it on a wall of the Slytherins' hideout…. 'Speak not your secrets here, lest you spend your living days in fear-'

"I want to see," she interrupted me.

"Lily, it's dangerous!" remarked James. She blinked in surprise.

"Plus it's probably not the smartest idea for any of us to go. They're probably antagonized enough," I added.

"I can't very well be of any help if I don't understand what's happening," she continued.

"You've been enough help, Lily. Thank you," Sirius retorted, earning a death glare from Lily. If looks could kill….

We agreed to take her there finally, for our own sakes. It's common knowledge that you never want to make Miss Lily Evans angry.

And James has the scars already to prove it.

We kept safely in the shadows, both inside the castle and on the grounds, until we were in the Forbidden Forest. And to our great surprise, Lily never faltered once and followed us despite the school's strict rules.

We came into the clearing and showed her the tree with the hole in it. She looked down into the black abyss of the hole.

"Well, who's going first?" Sirius said brightfully, finally cheered up. "After you, my lady." Lily glared and jumped in first. Peter squeaked.

"Come on, you next, Petey," teased Sirius.

"I really don't like this," mumbled Peter.

"Look out below, Lily! Heavy load!" James shouted. Peter fell down through the hole as well. James, Sirius, and I followed soon afterward.

"Is everyone okay?" James asked.

"Lumos," I said. The end tip of my wand shone up brightly, illuminating the little room.

"I think it's here," Lily pointed toward the wall with writing. I shone my wand at said wall.

Speak not your secrets
While you are here,
Lest you spend your living
Hours in fear.

Remember this:
It's for the best.
These walls have ears
That do not rest.

Remember these:
These warnings true,
For if you don't,
I pity you….

"Fascinating," she walked forward and touched the wall, tracing the red writing with her finger.

"Hey! Look at this wall!" Sirius exclaimed. I turned around and saw it. The dirt wall was glowing lime green.

"That's…weird…." Said James.

"Why wasn't it lit before?" Peter asked.

"I don't know," Sirius reached out for the wall and touched it. His hands sunk into it, though, and when he tried to hull them out, they only sunk in deeper.

"Sirius! Pull yourself out of there now!" Lily rolled her eyes.

"Well if I could I would but I can't!" Sirius shouted.

"You're stuck?" James asked.

"Yes!"

"Okay, just take it easy. Remus, grab his other arm," James grabbed his right and I his left. We pulled and tugged, but he wouldn't come out.

"Wait! Lets do it at the same time. One, two,-" I began.

"No wait!" Sirius shouted. "I think I feel something."

"What?!" James exclaimed.

"OW! Get me out! Get me out!"

"Now you make up your mind! Ready?! One, two, three!" James counted down and we pulled.

"Again!" We tugged on his arms again.

"OW!"

"Peter! Lily! Help!" I called them over as well. They each grabbed one of Sirius's arms as quickly as they could.

"One, two, three!" James counted. We all pulled.

"He's coming out! Again!" Lily shouted.

"Now!" He came out a bit further.

"Again!"

We all fell to the ground from the force.

"Are you okay, Sirius?" James asked.

"Wait! What's on your arms?!" Peter questioned. I looked at them and saw they were covered with blood and small, yellow bugs.

"Oh my god…." I mumbled in shock. Sirius moaned.

"Honestly, Sirius, how stupid can you be?" Lily chastised, conjuring a pair of dragon hide gloves from thin air.

"What are they?" James asked.

"Skin-eating maggots," she answered, picking the bugs off his arms and tossing them to the ground where they disintegrated.

"Haven't they been extinct for three-hundred years?" I asked.

"Apparently not…." Moaned Sirius.

"What did you feel in the wall?" I asked, walking towards it.

"I don't know…a paper or something…."

"Remus, get away from there! We don't need you like this, too!" Lily called, but I ignored her and sank my arms into the wall.

"Remus!"

"Wait! I think I have it!" I pulled my arm out with an old sheet of parchment in my hand.

"How come you don't have these things?" Sirius asked. He seemed zoned and out of it, though. Loss of blood had made him dizzy and I suspected he would lose consciousness soon. We had to get him to the Infirmary quickly.

"What's that?" asked Peter, seeing the paper I held.

"I'm not sure."

"You should put it back, Remus," warned Lily.

"No way! He was lucky those skin-termites didn't eat his arm. I doubt he'll be as lucky a second time," argued James.

"Fine, whatever," Lily rolled her eyes.

"Hey! Can we pay attention to Sirius here?! Thank you!" remarked Sirius. Lily scowled at him.

The room was filled with that crazed laughter once more. Lily stopped tending to Sirius to look madly about. Peter dropped to the ground whimpering. Sirius moaned and held his stomach as if he would throw up. James and I whipped out our wands, ready to defend.

Three clear forms appeared slowly before us. Three older, dark-haired boys in old Hogwarts uniforms.

"What happened to you?" the first boy asked with a smug grin on his face.

"Get outta here," Sirius growled at the ghost.

"Us?! You're the ones trespassin'."

"Leave us alone. We'll leave if that's what you want," I remarked.

"Oh that won't be necessary. We haven't had company for son long," he smirked. His two friends remained quiet where they were. "Company's always good…even the foolish kind," he added, laughing at Sirius's plight. Sirius balled his hands into fists and attempted to stand up, but fell right back down again. The ghosts laughed harder.

James scowled and sent a curse flying over their heads. They stopped their laughter. "Enough! You three get outta here now or I'll blast you to hell!" James shouted, creating an echo all around us. The ghosts stared at him in surprise and then smirked again, locking eyes with Lily.

"The force of the blue flame that hit her knocked her off her feet, but she never caught fire. James stopped what he was ding and rushed over to her side. She was still as a corpse.

The two ghosts cheered their leader on as he sent a few more fireballs toward us, but aware of what was happening, I repelled them. He stopped when one nearly went through him.

"I strongly suggest you keep your nose out of places it doesn't belong, Remus," he taunted me before the three left us alone again.

A/N- We decided. We're going to see We Will Rock You. I am SOOOO excited, cos I am a HUGE Queen fan.

Plus my dad's friend is moving and I got her entire record collection. That means about thirty albums and one hundred singles. I'm slowly becoming a Beatles fan, too, somebody stop me….

I spent yesterday at my nana's house yesterday, too. We made Harry Potter robes. We're taking my cousin to the drive-in for her birthday and we're all gonna dress in Hogwarts uniforms and stuff.

Plus is getting a makeover I've noticed. A different way to log in, plus we can only have documents for a month before they're deleted. Damn it, I've got stuff YEARS old in documents. I'm gonna have to save that all to the compy now. I'm glad I noticed that before they got deleted. I would've lost over 20,000 words in writing, YIKES!

So this gives an idea, I'm way to stressed with stuff and the moment PLUS I still haven't finished writing this story. I'm starting chapter twelve and there are fourteen chapters in all. So next update in two weeks, so I can write, okay?