Chapter 16

"Stupefy!" An odd high-pitched shrill was heart, and James could guarantee that it didn't belong to Lily. Still having his eyes closed, James peeked one eye open. His heart was racing uncontrollably, and he felt his stomach turn over. His hands were very sweaty, and he gulped. He didn't really know what he expected to find. To his immense relief, he found that none of his body parts were lying on the floor. In fact, he hadn't been injured at all!

However, what he saw lying on the floor made him gasp in horror and wish that it was him who had been injured…even killed. Lily lay half-conscious on the ground, her left arm twisted into a very odd position that looked painful. There was a small pool of blood where she was lying, and she was biting her cheek as to not squeal in pain. She couldn't let anyone think that she was weak and vulnerable. Especially James Potter.

James felt a burning rage make its way from the pit of his stomach around his body and into his brain. All he could see red. He slowly lifted his gaze from the injured Lily to her attacker. He wasn't surprised to see Missy Redding, Bellatrix Black, Regulus Black, Crabbe and Goyle smirking widely and forming some sort of circle, closing in on him, Sirius and Remus.

James' hazel eyes blazed, and his hand holding his wand lifted slowly. There was one intention on his mind right now, and that was to kill the bunch of unworthy, cowardly Slytherins in front of him. No words could describe the rage he felt…his desire to protect Lily out ruled everything else. Nothing else mattered, only Lily's safely. Only Lily.

Missy stood in the front of their little group, a smug expression planted on her smirking features. She didn't look one bit attractive now. All James saw was deceit, lie and unworthy written all over her.

Snape had tried to mumble something to his fellow Slytherins, but he was apparently unable of proper speech now, still hanging upside down. His face looked a very unhealthy shade of scarlet, and his breathing made him seem like a fish who was gasping for air. James decided to put him out of his worthless misery and muttered the counter-curse. He knew if he didn't, Snape would probably die in his current condition. With a heavy thud, Snape splayed on the floor, now mostly unconscious.

Sirius and Remus had also drawn their wands and stood behind James, their expressions equally as grim and begrudged as his. Their stares bore into the Slytherins, who were either too thick-headed to notice, or were just ignoring it.

Missy laughed shrilly once again, lolling head back. She truly looked like a raving maniac and James grimaced. He looked back at Lily who was breathing quite painfully now, her eyes were squinted shut. She really needed to be taken to the Hospital Wing, but James had to kill these Slytherins first!

"So, Potter, how does it feel watching the one you love like this?" Missy pointed to where Lily lay, breathing in uneven patterns. She glared with narrowed eyes at James, who was returning the expression with equal amounts of venom.

Snape had now stumbled to the front of the group and was now next to Missy. Although the all colour hadn't drained, and he was still breathing rapidly, he was nonetheless holding his wand up in preparation for dueling. And the utmost loathing in his expression could be detected from a million years ago.

"Why, Redding? I never did anything to you!" James bellowed, his own wand quivering slightly as he tried to control his anger.

The Slytherins snickered audibly, but made no indication of answering his question. But then Missy's expression turned stone hard. There was no mercy in her black orbs, only pain and revenge.

"I warned you didn't I, Potter? I told you long ago that you and the Mudblood would pay. That's what you get for rejecting me! I told you I loved you…and you respond by saying you love another girl." At this point, Missy's outstretched wand was unstable, and she had a faraway expression, but then her bitterness returned. "You should know…I don't take no for an answer. And now you'll all pay the price!"

"You never loved me, Redding. You don't know what love is for crying out loud!" James stared with as much intensity as he could muster at her. And it was true…Missy Redding couldn't tell what love was even if it stared her in the face. Her love was purely based on seductiveness and pleasure. There was no elegance or passion in what she defined as love.

"Stupefy!" James was hit squarely in the chest by the hex Snape had directed at him, and he was lying next to Lily now. She seemed to have recovered a little, and was now attempting to get up. Although every ounce of James' body ached from the blow, he supported her and they both got up and drew their wands.

"Awww…how touching. The Mudblood and Potter are sharing a sweet moment" Bellatrix drawled, her wand pointed directly at Sirius, and he was her only target. This was much like Regulus, who wouldn't like to do anything better but kill the only brother he had, who in his eyes, was a blood traitor to their family.

Sirius' face also bore a look of intense regret and malice. This was their family problems, and it was time to put an end to it. A few moments of just glaring and preparation followed, and then…their little battle unfolded.

"Impedimenta!" a voice shouted, and it echoed in the quiet corridor. Soon, ornaments were breaking, cracks were formed in walls, and the ground shook with hexes direction everywhere.

"EXPELLIARAMUS" James and Lily were also groggily jinxing Grabbe and Goyle, who although weren't very bright, were quite difficult to actually hit. James had narrowly missed a jolt of red light from Crabbe's wand, and Lily had been hit again in the arm by a hex by Goyle.

Missy was trying to make her way over to finish James off herself, but Remus stood in the way, and was making it very difficult for her to move anywhere. Remus' knowledge of complex spells had come in very useful many times…and this was clearly one of them. Although Missy didn't seemed like an expert in the Dark Arts, her knowledge of hexes could match James', and that was saying something. She wore a very ugly expression, and there was a fury blazing in her eyes that told everyone she would go to any lengths to accomplish what she wanted.

At this point, Remus was clutching his stomach and gasping for breath. Sirius' still bore a very grim expression as he was nursing a deep gash on his arm. Facing his cousin and brother was not his original intention, but he was a man, and wasn't going to refuse a duel of any kind.

James felt as if he was going to faint, but knew he had to stay strong for his friends' sake, as well as Lily's. Lily was also injured badly, but being who she was, continued sending hexes Crabbe and Goyle's way, but missing a mile. Her vision had become unclear, and all she could hear were her ragged breaths, inhaling and exhaling.

Snape mysteriously, after hitting James with the unexpected hex, had remained smirking on the sidelines, not making any moves. Snape's intention was not clear at all, and James was more worried about his presence than anyone else's. Snape had seemed to be recovering quite well, and his face had returned to a normal colour. However, the evil glint in his eye was unmistakable.

According to Snape's personality, he would be gaining this opportunity to revenge James, Sirius and Remus. Yet, he was lurking in the shadows, taking the whole battle in! James clutched the wall in support, as his legs were about to give way soon. He ducked as a jolt of yellow ray was shot at him…missing in very narrowly.

Lily had shot an electric blue beam of light from her wand, and in the rush of avoiding it, Crabbe and Goyle had collided in mid-air and knocked each other out cold. Lily laughed inwardly at their uttermost stupidity. Lily felt very light-headed, but she was angry. She didn't really know why exactly she was angry. But right now not much seemed to matter.

She had accidentally wandered into the usually deserted corridor, when the staircase she'd been on switched staircases. How she regretted ever leaving the Common Room now. She didn't normally believe in fate, but maybe some things were just meant to be…She had been planning to go to the library, and was separated with Brittany, who had a midnight stroll planned with a Hufflepuff whose name Lily had forgotten.

As she maneuvered her way around the unfamiliar surroundings, she heard a number of suspicious noises around a corner and as Head Girl, decided it was her responsibility to investigate it. She had been shocked, but not entirely surprised to realize it was James and his 2 best friends. It seemed a mysterious burst of energy had made its way into her body. When she saw Severus Snape dangling upside-down very helpless, she wanted to teach James Potter a lesson that he would remember forever.

Out of pure instinct, she raised a wand and prepared herself for a duel. Of course, she'd hexed James Potter many other times before, but it seemed different this time. She hated seeing him hexing other innocent students…but she wasn't sure if she should save Snape. She still remembered in her fifth year, she'd tried to, and it ended up quite nasty with Snape calling her a Mudblood.

But his attitude has changed mysteriously, and she supposed he must've found his conscience. Raising her wand had seemed so difficult, and seeing James' unwilling expressioni made it all the more harder. His wand had still lain by his side, but she was about to hex him into the next century anyway.

But before she got the chance, the bunch of Slytherins had arrived, and before she knew it, she was lying on the floor, her left arm most probably broken, and bleeding at an alarming rate. She knew what was coming next, a battle was inevitable. She had wondered for a long time when this time would come. Although she hated fighting, she saw no way she could settle this verbally between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. It was like there had been a contract and Slytherin and Gryffindor were like fire and ice…none would give in, and both were equal in power and ability.

And so they had fought. Even with her painful wounds, she fought…alongside James, Sirius and Remus. It surprised her to how fast James' reflexes really were, and his hexing abilities really amazed her. Of course, she knew he'd do it to random people everyday, but the fact that he would actually show his true strengths in desperate times made Lily think twice about what type of person was.

Already twice, she had found herself in this situation where James and her were battling for their lives. Again and again, she was feeling these odd feelings and she stared at his concentrated face and built figure. She couldn't help but compare him to the Amos Diggory whom she had thought was perfect. How mistaken she was. Compared to Amos, James Potter really did come out to be saintly. And Lily couldn't help but smile at that.

Finally, the hectiness seemed to have died down, and only a few hexes were being sent out. Most of the people had either been knocked unconscious, injured badly, or were groaning in agony on the floor or against the wall. Lily herself knew she had lost a lot of blood, and she was in dangerous ground. She finally collapsed onto the floor, and bit her lower lip from pain.

Lily was surprised that with all the noise and havoc that had been caused, none of the teachers had arrived, or any other students had noticed. They all needed to be sent straight to the Hospital Wing. James was clutching a wall next to her, his breaths coming in harshly. Remus and Sirius were still standing, but groaning uncomfortably and still staring at their enemies.

Most of the Slytherins had been knocked out unconscious, but Missy Redding and Snape were still standing, smug expression noticeable on their faces. Snape, on the other hand, had a look of glee on his face, and most of his usual sourness had disappeared. In fact, he looked better than he had been for a long time. He took large strides, his wand outstretched and approached Lily.

However, even in the condition that he was in, James had to lay a heavy hand on Snape's shoulder and while wheezing loudly, he still managed to utter crude words and swears at Snape. Snape however, looked bemused, and with little effort, shook James off him onto the ground.

Snape was now directly above her, and a wild grin was planted on his features which made Lily shiver in fright. She didn't know what his intentions were, but they certainly seemed to be against her. His greasy hair appeared oilier in the moonlight, and his black eyes shone with malice.

"Mudblood" he spat, his voice soft and dangerous. He peered down at her, inwardly gleeful at the fact she couldn't do much to protect herself.

Lily gasped, and coughed then coughed in pain. What did this mean? She had thought Snape finally changed into a better person. Finding no response in his sudden change in attitude, her mouth was left gaping at his twisted face.

It seemed that Bellatrix Black and Regulus Black had groggily gotten up again, and they ran off, but Sirius wouldn't give them the opportunity to escape him, and gave chase. Missy, seeing the odds were against them, sent a few jolts of light Remus' way, which missed him and also sped off, a furious Remus chasing her.

There was only Snape, James and her now. Crabbe and Goyle had their mouths hanging open, and it didn't seem likely they would come to any time soon.

"B-but I don't u-understand. You s-saved me…I-I trusted you" Lily said, with great difficulty. Behind Snape, James was looking furious as he directed his glare at Snape's towering figure. His hand clutching his wand was clenched so hard that his knuckles had turned a ghostly white.

Snape laughed mercilessly, a great loud cackle rang around the corridor, which was in a devastated state now. His eyes were fixed solely on her, showing every ounce of hatred for her. She had been proved wrong yet again. As much as she hated to admit, James Potter was right yet again. Severus Snape had been plotting something evil when he saved her…on purpose. He wanted to gain her trust, and his plan had worked flawlessly. Lily felt like such a stupid victim. She lowered her eyes on the ground, where a pool of her blood was. It glinted in the light of the moon. She couldn't meet James' inquiring hazel orbs.

"You would actually think I would befriend you, Mudblood? You misjudge me…you assume correctly, I saved you from Diggory on purpose, knowing I would gain your foolish trust. And indeed, I was proved right. Why, you ask? It is very simple. My target hasn't been you" Seeing Lily's horrified and confused expression, Snape laughed again at the foolish girl in front of him.

He now squat down so he was level with her, flicking his greasy hair behind his back. Snape checked behind him, and snorted seeing James Potter in such a helpless state. It was all working…he was going to get sweet, sweet revenge. It should've been this way along time ago.

"Oh yes Evans…all along, my target has been him…James Potter" Snape shifted and pointed accusingly at James, who in such a state, didn't fail to return Snape's loathing look directed at him.

"Oh yes…it's always been James Potter hasn't it? The great Potter! And has anyone paid any attention to my feelings or thoughts? Nobody has treated me like a person…and it's all because of him! I was chosen as a victim for no reason…I was bullied, mistreated and looked down upon. And now, I want him to pay for all the things he's done to me"

Lily didn't see what this had to do with her. She never knew Snape could be capable of such evil deeds. The once shy, unnoticed greasy haired boy was going to turn into a merciless murderer! Even James didn't deserve to be murdered by him…but there was only one thing she didn't understand. Why was Snape wasting his time telling her all of this?

Seeing her very much confused expression, Snape laughed coldly again.

"Oh no Evans…I'm not going kill our dear James here. I'm going to do something much worse. You see, death will be the easy way out for our great Potter. I want him to suffer, be tortured just as I was for the past 6 years. I've wasted much brain power thinking how to hurt Potter worst. And now, I've finally found the answer."

Snape took in a deep, ragged and excited breath before giving her another wild, eccentric look on his greasy face.

"And the answer is you Evans. If you die, it will be most unfortunate for Potter. If you die…he will suffer most. Although you don't know it, you've been very helpful in my quest for revenge. I thank you dearly."

Lily spluttered. This made no sense whatsoever! Snape must be insane…he thought that killing her would hurt James worst? Maybe Sirius, Remus or Peter…but her? She was just someone that he found interesting and liked to argue with. It made no sense at all…finding no response for this, Lily gazed over at James, who was staring determinedly at an invisible spot in the opposite direction. Lily could make out that his neck had turned a shade of unnatural red. What did it all mean?

Snape now turned his head towards James and laughed coldly. "And now, Potter. It is time for you to suffer the punishment you should've got a long time ago. I'll even let you choose how she dies. Will it be the Avada Kedavra, Crucioor another slow killing hex?" The look in his eyes was inhumane. James quickly snapped his head around, just as Snape turned to face Lily. James pursed his lips together. Let Snape think he'd won…he clearly didn't know what the real James Potter was capable of, especially when it concerned Lily Evans.

"You'll be watching how she dies, Potter…imagine how that will make you feel. So helpless, unable to do anything as you watch her murdered by me. Really tragic." His voice held fake sympathy.

Lily had originally thought that he wouldn't be capable of murder, but now she had other thoughts. Was Severus Snape really prepared to kill someone and get a life long sentence to Azkaban just to get back at James Potter?

Well, she thought, she was soon going to find out as Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly to her heart.

"Avad---"

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A/N: Bahahahaaa…more evilness and Slytherins! Anyway, hope this little fight didn't disappoint any of you. Of course, you'll have to all use your imagination as to the details. Anyways, Dumbledore's proposal will come in soon, and he will set his first task! Hope you all liked this chapter!

Well, I think I might have overdone Snape's evil character a little, but nonetheless, I hope you enjoyed the suspense! As for whether Snape really is capable of murder at such a young age, I don't know…but I just assumed. For anyone who doesn't like Snape this evil, I apologize…but kind of had to happen so Lily could realize James' true feelings for her! Well well, don't we all want to see what happens next?

Thanks a million (literally) to:

White Camellia: Thank you once again for your wonderful review! You're absolutely right…I totally love James! It's almost painstaking writing about him and Lily. Lol! Thanks for all your support. Tell mi wat you thought of the chap! Luv to hear from you.

Youkaigirl64: Ahhhh…one of my best reviewers: Thanx with all my heart! Hope the chapter didn't disappoint you, even though it wasn't as you had hoped! Thx for all your words of encouragement and support! Hope you enjoyed the chappie! Luv ya heapz!

Chaosblazen You're review made mi laugh with absolute glee! I'm glad you really like the story. Thanx for all the support, and really, I do love you all! Hope the chap was to your liking. Love to hear what you think!

Chikichiki Lol! Thx a bunch for reviewing! Indeed, our Jamesie and Siriusie…that sounds a bit wrong, but anyway…were indeed as bad as you can get! Hope this chap was to your liking. Thanx for all your support and encouragement! Tell mi what you thought!

MysticMadness Yay! Finally, I get one of these long reviews with repetitive: words…btw, did you mean UPDATE instead of REVIEW…I wasn't sure. Anyhoo, thanx a million for reviewing! Tell mi what you thought of my chappie!

Machiavelli Jr: Thanx for telling mi I have a twisty mind! Your review made mi think quite a bit…and I realize that you're totally right. There have been no single pranks played on anyone! I mean, sure, they've matured, but it just wouldn't be the Marauders if there were no pranks! I'll take that into account when writing future chappies. Also, I never said Peter was a DE (winx)…makes you think doesn't it. Thank you so much for your review…and I will take your wise comments very seriously! By the way, my name's not Hujold…can I ask why you thought so? Yeah, I'm just this 14 year old living in Sydney, Australia! Okay, enough said…review!

LxlriotgirlxLol! Awww…sorry they didn't actually get to duel, but I hope you liked how the chapter unfolded. I thought that it would just be too hard to write a duel between them…and I would be heartbroken too, lol! Thx for reviewing! Tell mi what you thought of the chap!

Thanx to everybody…and remember, REVIEW…to keep mi encouraged so I can write more (nods). Yup, happy reading every1.

Much luvs,

Purebliss90