A/N: All I have to say is, thank you to DracoismyBFF, just because you made me laugh out loud and it inspired me to write this whole chapter today for you guys. So thank you. You're awesome. That's all.

Happy reading!

Ch. 12 – Prince Charming and the Half-Blood Prince

James felt like his body had just been thrown back and forth by a bunch of battling giants and then chucked out to sea, leaving him to struggle to keep air in his lungs for an unknown amount of time. However, he did want to know what really happened and where he was, so he forced his eyes to open. It was bright and he made a soft exclamation, putting his hand up to provide protection.

"Mr. Potter! You should not be awake yet!" That was Madam Pomfrey, most definitely. She came into his line of sight and he forced an easy grin onto his face.

"I'm fine, Madam Pomfrey, really." He assured her, but even to him his voice sounded croaked and weak.

"Yes, I'm sure Mr. Potter, now I'm going to put you back to sleep now."

"But what happ –"

But he was already gone.

XXX

The next time James awoke, he felt a little better, but not much. He groaned and opened his eyes again, pleased to see the lighting was darker. It looked like it was dusk outside. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, hoping Madam Pomfrey wouldn't put him back to sleep.

"Look, he's awake!"

"James!"

"Prongs!"

And then he was attacked by his three noble comrades, shaking him – which did not feel very nice, mind you – and yelling in his face – which was also not very pleasant.

James laughed at their enthusiasm. "What the bloody hell's wrong with you guys? What happened?"

And then he got both Peter and Sirius' versions of the story in fast, loud, animated voices while Remus stepped back and smirked, probably realizing that James needed his space now, the good chap.

"And then you started seizing –"

"And I yelled, 'PETER, GO GET HELP!' – right hero I was –"

"And then I got McGonagall, but we were a little late, and she was in here when you were asleep –"

"And then Remus and I dragged you in here and Professor Rollan . . ."

James tuned out his friends good-naturedly, getting the gist. Bloody Lestrange. He'd get that bastard back.

"How long have I been out?" James asked hoarsely, cutting them off.

Sirius frowned. "Oh, I dunno . . . about a day and a half. We stayed the night."

James was surprised and was about to thank them when the doors burst open, and Madam Pomfrey was pushed aside by Dorcas, Mary, Alice – and Lily. James grinned at them, giving them a wink, as they were held off by Madam Pomfrey – "He needs to rest girls." "They get to stay in here!" "Well, they're his friends –" "We're his friends too!" "Oh, alright." – and then they ran over to him. Dorcas actually jumped onto his bed, wrapping her arms around his head. However, much to his glee – not that he'd show it, of course – Lily took his hand in hers. Mary and Alice took their place at the foot of his cot as he tried to struggle out of Dorcas' vice-like grip.

Madam Pomfrey almost had a heart-attack. "Miss Meadowes! Please remove yourself from Mr. Potter's neck this instant!"

She grudgingly got off and went to her knees beside his bed instead, giving the mediwitch a false smile. Madam Pomfrey allowed them to have some alone time, and then the girls begged for the story. The other three eagerly told their parts again as James looked on, mostly at Lily, who hadn't let go of his hand. He watched her awe and horror with a serious expression, studying her. She looked tired, and supposed they four of them stayed the night as well, which overwhelmed him with gratitude. He had better friends than he gave them credit for. His girlish, overwhelming fuzzy feeling was furthered when Lily suddenly looked over and smiled, squeezing his hand. He didn't know why, but he smiled back nevertheless, trying not to look too taken with her. Merlin knows he's made a fool enough of himself. What did this hand-holding business mean anyway? Was he forgiven now or what? Well, he was going to treat it like he was. He'd take any chance he got.

"Well, James? How do you feel?" Mary asked expectantly, and he guessed that wasn't the first time she asked.

He looked up at her and sighed. "I feel fantastic." He lied. He felt like rubbish, and he could see they knew it, too.

Remus rolled his eyes. "Yes, as convincing as that was –"

"Alright, kids, that's quite enough," Madam Pomfrey fretted, walking briskly out of her office. "Mr. Potter needs to rest some more, and you lot should get back to classes."

Sirius gave James an exasperated look which he chuckled at and his friends obediently filed out of the Hospital Wing, though Lily stayed behind inconspicuously, holding up a finger to an impatient Madam Pomfrey. James raised an eyebrow at her as she rushed over to his side and sat beside him.

"James, I'm so sorry I've been so rotten lately," she said in a rushed, quiet voice, taking his hand again. "I don't know what came over me, thinking I had the right to put that on you like that. It was wrong, and I'm sorry. I don't have much time with Madam Pomfrey breathing down my neck, but I just needed to get it off my chest, because – because if something had happened to you, I don't know how I would've ever lived with myself, and I guess it was a lesson that the great things or great people you have right in front of you could slip away at any moment, and you won't ever get to say what you really. . . ." She blushed and glanced away. "I'm rambling, I'm sorry. I just –"

He grinned, laughter bubbling in his chest. "It's alright," he assured her, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. "I like it when you ramble."

She scoffed and took her hands out of his, tucking her hair behind her ears. "Well, thanks, charming, but it's not one of my best qualities. Now rest already, would you? I don't know if Hogwarts could survive without the head prankster."

James snorted and was about to reply when Madam Pomfrey called Lily's name testily. She sighed and nodded to the mediwitch before looking back to James.

"I've got to go. But get better soon, you git, for Merlin's sake," She muttered distractedly, picking up her bag, and he chuckled again, putting his hands behind his head in an arrogant manner. She glanced at him, then did a double take, rolling her eyes. "Typical."

But he could hear the laughter in her voice.

XXX

Severus Snape had heard of the incident in the hallway the day before and could not say he wasn't pleased with it. Hopefully Potter's ego had been knocked down a notch, but he knew better. Potter would always be the pathetically egotistical, self-important prick he had always been. And what made it worse was that Lily had waited outside the Hospital Wing for him – overnight, too. How pathetic. He still had his spell over her, and it killed him to watch.

He sighed and continued to write in his Potions book, revising the idiots who'd written it. If they'd only experimented a little more, they'd see all the things they missed and all the things they could've improved.

He shook his head and leaned over to scribble the proper way to prepare the Draught of Living Death. Crush with flat side of silver dagger, releases juice better than cutting.

"Severus."

Snape looked up to find Lestrange leaning over him, and he quickly closed his book, raising a bored eyebrow at him.

"Lestrange."

"You've made your decision then?" he inquired, ignoring Snape's cold reply.

Like I had a decision in the first place, he thought dryly, standing to meet eye to eye with his superior when it came to the Dark Lords inner circle – which he seemed to tumbling deeper and deeper into every day, without being able to stop. It was like a never ending black hole, that just got darker and darker as he went through, but there was no going back. Did he even want to? Being on the Dark Lord's side was surely the winning side, and what was the harm in that, choosing the side that allowed him to be powerful, allowed him to be everything he'd ever wanted to be?

But killing people? Innocent people?, that persistent voice in the back of his head murmured, and he shook his head sharply. No. This is what he wanted. To be the best wizard he could possibly be, and being with the Dark Lord granted him that.

If only he could convince himself he was doing the right thing. Something Lily Evans would be proud of.

"Yes, Lestrange. I will help with the plan." He said quietly, sitting back down with his Potions book, the only thing he found comfort in nowadays.

Lestrange smirked down at the frail boy, nodding slowly. "Good." He said in his resonating, low voice.

And then he left the pathetic boy to his pathetic book, hopelessly grasping at his pathetic life. Even if the boy did not want to be on the Dark Lord's side now, he didn't have a choice – unless he chose death.