Author's Note: Thank you for reading and reviewing! I'm sorry for the late update. To make it up to you, I'll be posting two consecutive chapters. Enjoy!

Chapter Nine

Wanting To Stay and Watching You Go

"Bloody Hell, Narcissa, is this how you break up with your boyfriends?" he asked. Even now he was making jokes. He touched her shoulder and gently made her face him. "Now I understand why you wanted to keep this a secret. I suppose I should've known this was simply too good to be true."

She could not look up at him, but she could still see the weak, uneasy smile on his face.

"So, is this it then…?" he said. Both his hands were on her shoulders now.

"I don't want…" she murmured almost inaudibly against the loud downpour.

"What…?"

She looked up tentatively with only her eyes. "I don't want you to go but…" She looked away from him once more.

"You should have thought about that before all this," he said sternly, but not unkindly. He lifted her gaze to him. "Please look at me when I'm talking to you." It was like he was reprimanding a very small child, watching his words carefully. He brushed the wetness off her cheeks with his fingers, knowing they were tears from the warmth of them.

"You should be with Lily," she said. "I know how you feel about her. And I know how she feels about you. I cannot be true to you, James, because I am promised to someone else."

"And if you weren't…?"

She blinked. "We both know the answer to that. But I cannot go back on this promise. James, we have only been together for a month. We should stop before we fall too far…"

"A month…?!" His tone resounded pure disbelief. "Narcissa, for two years I have been struggling against a pit of quicksand. When I fight back, I get pulled deeper in. The only way I'm getting out of this is if I don't resist it. And you just said so yourself, you don't want me to go…"

She had put her hands behind her back. "What do you propose we do…?"

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, her cheeks, and slowly found his way to her lips. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her a little closer. "I don't know," he murmured against her. "We'll find a way. There has to be a way."

"You should be with Lily," she repeated. "I don't want to have to watch you lose her, someone who will be completely yours, for a person who cannot be with you… I know you love her, and she will be able to love you wholeheartedly. So please…"

The rain stopped.

"Narcissa, stay with me," he said. "I should be angry, but I'm not. I can't explain right now what this means to me. We could come up with a compromise."

He paused.

Then sighed, "I will be with Lily." He stroked her hair lovingly, smoothing out the tangles that the rain and wind had caused. "But there is one thing you need to do for me."

"Anything."

He grinned, as if there was absolutely nothing wrong. "Stay, and let me get over this slowly."

She leaned against him. He was warm, despite being soaked through. "Thank you," she breathed. This was as much a relief to her as it was to him. She would not have to lose him, not yet, perhaps not until she herself was ready. "I love you, James…"

"And I love you, Narcissa." He kissed her again, more passionately. He knew he must cherish each kiss, and each embrace. Every second he has with her was precious; only time will tell when they will finally have to part.

Severus, who had watched Narcissa and James, walked away from the Quidditch Field as soon as they left with a pleased look on his face. This was his key to opening Lily's heart. When she finds out that James was not only in a relationship with Narcissa, but was also planning to cheat on her, she would be utterly disgusted. The Great James Potter will be no better than a heap of dragon dung.

At first, he had been concerned that they were going to see him when they were running towards his hiding place for shade. He had rushed back up the stairs but they did not go further than the bottom landing. He had leaned against the corner wall, hidden in the shadow, in order to eavesdrop on their conversation. What he heard was a delightful surprise.

He headed straight for the Great Hall for supper was just about to be served. It was Halloween, and the Hall was lavishly decorated with the colors for the occasion. Pumpkins were scattered not only across the table but were hovering overhead as well, with flickering candlelight highlighting the carved out faces. Candelabra were also placed on top of the tables, providing much of the light, creating a subtle almost eerie atmosphere. Streamers in black and orange lined the colonnades, and the ghosts added to the overall look by soaring through tables and walls as they pleased.

Severus hated it. He was not a fan of celebrations and parties. To him, they were pretentious and served little purpose more than to create a false aura of happiness. But he was too preoccupied to pay attention. He hurried to the Gryffindor table rather than to his own and sought Lily out. It was not difficult. Her fiery red hair stood out against the rest, and she often sat at the same place anyway, so he found her merely seconds after he had begun looking.

But his heart suddenly sank when he saw who she was with.

To her left was Harriet, her best friend, wolfing down as much of the sweets laid out on the table as she could. Her appetite was unbelievable for a girl. But it was the person to Lily's right that bothered Severus. Just as he could never mistake her beautiful red hair for anyone else's, he could tell with a glance that black-haired boy, guffawing in an unattractive manner, was James Potter.

He strode over anyway, though his confidence had faded. "Lily, can I talk to you, please…?" he said, upon reaching them.

"Well, well, if it isn't good ole Snivellus Snape," Sirius mumbled.

"How daft can you get…?" James said. "Your table's over there, slime ball."

Lily smacked his cheek playfully. "Stop that." She turned to Severus and asked what it was he wanted to talk about.

"I was hoping we could talk alone."

"Oh, alright," she answered, getting up off her seat. Her displeasure and hesitation was apparent on her face. Severus led her off to the side, beside one of the thick stone columns, and looked at her solemnly.

"It's about James. You shouldn't be with him," he began. Lily frowned and wanted to interrupt, but Severus stopped her. "I saw him at the Quidditch Field today, with Narcissa. I heard them talking. James is just going to cheat on you, Lily."

"Sev, I think you are going too far," Lily said. "I know James, and he would never do that. Besides, why would Narcissa go out with James?" At this, she leaned a little closer to Severus. "I'm not supposed to let this sneak out, but Sirius told Harriet that Narcissa is engaged, to Lucius Malfoy, no less. I don't think Narcissa's stupid enough to get on Malfoy's bad side."

She walked away, not waiting for a retort from Severus. It was an upsetting turn of events for him. "Please," he called out, "Lily, think about it." How was he going to convince her…?