A/N: I'm BAAAAAAAAAAAACK! And here's a new chapter. Thanks so much for your patience. And I hope you all enjoyed the new HP book. Oh, and I still don't own any of the characters here. :D
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A few days later, Sirius came downstairs to hear the sounds of Lily and Marlene gossiping. "So he just up and left in the middle of the night? I say you have every right to be upset at…" Lily's voice died as she saw Sirius cross the room, making it obvious that they had been talking about him.
"Good morning, Black," Marlene said, her tone unreadable. "Didn't think you'd be up this early."
"It's almost noon," Sirius said in return, raising his eyebrows. "I wouldn't want to miss seeing the sunlight on your pretty face." He flashed a grin at Marlene, who had blushed a rather dark shade of pink that Sirius found to be quite flattering.
"Oh, by the way, we're going out shopping," Lily added, casually, hoping that Sirius would just let them leave without being stalked afternoon. "You can tell James that if no one follows us this time around, I'll kiss him when I get back."
Sirius rolled his eyes. "I'm not telling him that. When will you be back?"
"Sometime tonight… I also have to stop in to see my Mum," Marlene interjected, meeting his eyes, unsmiling.
"We'll see you later," Lily said, rising from her seat on the couch, and disappearing with a loud CRACK. Marlene followed suit before Sirius could pose any further questions.
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"You did what?" James demanded, somewhat angrily. "You just let them go, didn't ask where they were going, when they'd be back? Nothing?!"
"I asked, but they were really vague about it. I figured they were out buying lingerie or something, and it was none of my business!" Sirius was annoyed – James had no right to question him like this. It wasn't his fault the girls had put on a unified front. Besides, Marlene was mad at him, and he couldn't figure out why.
"Girls don't go together to buy lingerie," James argued, his arms crossed over his chest. "They go alone, or they go with their boyfriend and his galleons."
"And I suppose you have a lot of experience with this?"
James raised his eyebrows.
"Gwen?" Sirius asked, trying to sound normal. Of all James' girlfriends, he despised Gwendolen Summers. She had waltzed into James' life right after Hogwarts, and she had never really left. James had broken up with her a few times, but they always got back together when he got lonely enough. It was always whenever he started thinking about Lily again. Talk about vicious cycles. But Sirius had never really forgiven Gwen for what he saw as taking advantage of James.
James didn't answer, but his response was obvious by the shade of red that had stained his cheeks.
"Is she still coming over tomorrow, and what on Earth is Lily going to say?"
"Yes, and Lily's not going to say anything, because whatever I ever had with Evans is completely finished."
"Evans stole your favorite pair of boxers," Sirius said, grinning. "I saw her, and she paid me not to tell you."
James laughed. "Liar. Oh, that reminds me. Dumbledore's coming tonight for dinner. You have to cook."
Sirius sighed, walking off and muttering something about short notice. James laughed, strolling into the study.
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Dinner had come and gone, and Dumbledore had arrived. The girls, however, had not. "Has there been another attack?" James asked finally, not ceasing his pacing across the kitchen.
"It's possible," Albus Dumbledore replied softly, calmly, watching James leave the room, running for the stairs. He exchanged a meaningful look with Sirius. "We can't let him leave – then we've got three of them out there, potentially all in different locations."
"He's not leaving," Sirius said firmly, pulling his wand out of his pocket. "He'll understand better tomorrow." Black was unsurprised to see James come bounding down the stairs, his invisibility cloak in one hand. "James."
"I'm going." It had to be about the tenth time they had had this argument, over someone's absence, if not Lily's.
"No, you're staying here, because as soon as you leave, they will come waltzing in that door," Sirius said, his eyes rolling skywards for a moment. "And besides, Lily said she'd kiss you if you didn't go stalking them this afternoon."
"She can't kiss me if she's dead," James said, turning away from his friend, sulking.
"I –" Sirius was interrupted by rapid knocking on the door. James was there in an instant, turning the handle and pulling inwards. It was Lily and Marlene, both looking worse for wear.
"What happened?" James asked, slipping an arm around Lily's shoulders, not caring for the consequences. She fell into him, letting him support her weight as he pulled her inside, locking the door and pulling her further into his arms. Marlene was in better condition, walking into the kitchen as if she had a mission. Sirius quickly followed suit, assaulting the girl with questions.
The redhead couldn't respond, as she was overwhelmed by the sobs that shook her thin frame, her head pressed into James' shoulder. She made no effort to protest when he picked her up, and, holding her like a child, he took her up the stairs to his bedroom, laying her down on his bed, his arms still around her as he propped her up on the pillows. She still sobbed, even as James smoothed her hair, soaked by the rain. "What happened?"
"Dementors," the redhead finally replied, wrapping her arms around James' neck, making him stay.
"Accio chocolate," he said, as a slab flew into the room, having come from the kitchen cupboard. He broke off a piece, handing it to the redhead, with the order to eat. She did so, slowly, and the tears ceased falling down her pale face. "What did you see?" he asked softly, knowing she wouldn't tell him. Lily only shook her head, finishing off the small chunk of chocolate he had handed her. "You're all wet."
"No shit, Sherlock," Lily replied, irked by the concern in James' voice. Still, she didn't stop him when his hands deftly undid the buttons on her shirt, pulling the wet material away from her cold skin. His hands felt like fire to her, as they pushed her shirt off, and pulled one of his t-shirts over her head to replace it, as James blushed at the sight of her light blue bra. "So, how long has it been since you've seen a woman naked?" Lily asked, using the color in his cheeks as an indicator.
"Long enough," James replied, planting a kiss on her forehead. In reality, it had been about three months, the last time he had seen Gwen. But Lily didn't need to know about her. To prevent the girl from inquiring further, he shoved another chunk of chocolate into her rapidly warming hand. "And when was the last time you slept with someone?" He returned, flawlessly imitating her voice.
"Mmmm…" Lily thought for a moment. "Nope, I don't make that mistake anymore."
"Which one?" James replied, his voice sounding rather sleepy. "The sleeping, or the telling jealous ex-boyfriends about it?"
"The telling jealous ex-boyfriends about it," the redhead said softly into his ear, burying her hands in his dark, thick hair, pressing her lips to his stubbled Adam's apple, tracing lazy circles with her tongue. James moaned at the sensations, letting her tug his head backwards, his own hands flying to her waist, pulling her onto his lap. She scraped her teeth across his skin, pausing occasionally to suck and bite, almost drawing blood before his sharp cries caused her to cease her violent ministrations. She let her hands fall to the back of his neck, as he pressed her down onto the bed, their eyes meeting.
"You still feel it, then?" James asked, his weight resting on his arms, his body positioned over hers, their pelvises pressed together. He slid a hand across her stomach, leaning down to press gentle kisses to her forehead, feeling her hands grip his, forcing him to roll onto his side, and then his back, as his tongue found her earlobe.
"Feel what?" she asked, as a moan fell from her lips. "I don't feel anything anymore." And she burst into tears again, as he pulled her closer, smoothed her hair as she rested her head on his chest.
Lily's sobs slowed, and died. "I need you," he said, after thinking for several minutes, his hand playing with her hair. It wasn't a statement that needed to be replied to – he knew she still needed him, and that she would never admit to it. Even now, after she had broken him beyond repair, he still came crawling back for that one necessary thing.
She didn't budge, and he knew she had fallen asleep to the sound of his heartbeat. "Nox," the youth whispered, and the lights all went out, submerging the pair in darkness.
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Sirius came in early the next morning, shaking James awake and eyeing Lily with distaste. How dare she do this to James again – she had no right. How dare she make him love her, make him feel things. How dare she set him up for the same pain, over and over again. Finally, James opened his eyes, reaching blindly for his glasses. Sirius handed them over, allowing his friend a minute to shove them onto his face.
"Go 'way, Padfoot," Potter said, trying to roll over until Sirius' hand stopped him.
"Dumbledore's here to see you. It's important," Sirius argued, practically dragging his friend out of bed. "You might want to put some pants on."
James nodded, reaching for the jeans he had discarded on the floor sometime in the middle of the night, when he got too hot. Lily was still asleep when he left, and he tucked the covers up around her neck, before running a hand through his hair and walking downstairs.
Dumbledore was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. Sirius handed another one to James as he sat down, obviously not fully awake. A few minutes later, Sirius left, his own coffee in one hand.
"James," Dumbledore began, his blue eyes less bright than usual. "I've got some… some news for you."
James' eyes snapped open, suddenly awake. No. He had known it would happen – he had known they were targets, and that they always would be. But he hadn't thought it would happen now. He loved them too much. No. He pinched himself, in the hopes that he would wake up, that it was all just an awful dream.
"Your parents were dispatched to a house in London early this morning," Dumbledore began, as James bit his lip. "They met several Death Eaters there, and it was... They were overwhelmed. They fought bravely."
James nodded, staring down into the black liquid in his mug. "Thank you, Professor." Despite his attempts to remain stoic, James' voice cracked on the final syllable, as he left the room, walking out onto the back porch, into the gardens, finally sitting down on a bench by the largest oak tree.
No. This was impossible. How could this happen now, when he needed them most? He wanted them back. How were they beaten by a bunch of death eaters? Up to now, Death Eaters had never stood a chance against his parents. When had everything changed? They weren't old by any means, not in his mind.
James had his head buried in his hands when Sirius took a seat next to him on the bench. He didn't respond to the hand on his shoulder, though he returned the hug Black initiated moments later. It wasn't a casual hug, but rather a brotherly embrace, each clinging to the other as if it was all that held them to this world.
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Inside, the doorbell rang. Lily answered it, and found herself facing a tall blonde woman, her blue eyes peering down the hall as if that would make someone appear. "Hello," Gwendolen Summers began, not waiting to be invited in. "I'm here to see James."
Lily nodded, eyeing the other woman with distaste. She was taller, thinner, prettier. She could wear pink without worrying about it clashing with her hair. Her nose came to an elegant point, her eyes were the type that you noticed, her legs were a good deal longer than Lily's. "And who should I tell him is here for him?"
"His girlfriend."
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