Last Chance
Chapter Nine: The Letter
"Maddie, it's getting worse." Lily said as she shut the door behind her. Madeline had agreed to meet her in the Gryffindor girls' dormitory for a chat.
"What do you mean? Your feelings, or your relationship?" Maddie threw herself onto her bed and patted the space next to her, inviting Lily to join her
Lily sighed. "Both," she sat down on the bed and crossed her legs, "I really do love him, but I don't know how to say it without making myself look like a complete jerk. And he won't even look me in the eye anymore!"
It had been two weeks since James had kissed Lily in the common room, and he had ultimately been avoiding any contact whatsoever. He had even switched his patrol schedule with Remus so that he wouldn't have to be alone with Lily.
"Maybe – if he'll listen to us that is – Dani, Lydia and I can get him to talk to you again."
"And how on earth are you going to do that? I don't blame him if he never wants to speak to me again." Lily hung her head.
"Isn't that one of the problems here?"
"What?"
Madeline rolled her eyes and sat up to look Lily straight in the eye, "You said that James said that you don't see your own worth, so you'll never be able to see his. You have got to gain some confidence."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Don't get defensive; you know it's true." Madeline scolded, "You're absolutely brilliant, gorgeous, fair, responsible, and reliable. What more could a guy ask for? Seriously, if I had all of that, Sirius would probably be wrapped around my pinky." She laughed, "Come on Lils, can't you see that?"
Lily looked down again, "I guess. But what if I mess everything up? What if-"
Madeline held her hands up, "Stop. You're everything James wants, and he's everything you want. So stop doubting yourself, and let us try to talk to him. Okay?"
"Fine, but if he refuses to talk to me, don't push it. I don't want to upset him anymore."
"Deal." Madeline jumped up from her bad and walked to the door. "I'm off to find the girls so we can get to work on this scheme." She winked and then raced out the door. "See you at lunch!" she called back over her shoulder.
Lily sighed. Whatever happened to breakfast? She didn't exactly approve of her friends skipping meals to help her. She grabbed her bag and made her may down to the Great Hall.
At the Gryffindor table, Lily seated herself next to Remus and sighed.
"What's wrong, Lily? James still not talking to you?"
Lily nodded.
"Don't worry. If I know James, and I do, he won't be able to stay away from you for much longer." he chuckled.
"But what if he can?"
"Not likely. He-" but just what James was, Lily never found out. At that moment, James and Sirius meandered into the hall and sat down at the other end of the table, followed closely by Madeline, Daniela, and Lydia. They were arguing and Lily could see that her friends were losing.
Great. Now he'll think I'm some desperate fool, she thought miserably.
There was a great racket as the owls flew into the windows, screeching, dropping mail, and landing on tables. The air had already been cleared of the birds when another shrill screech echoed through the hall. A gray owl soared through the window, gaining the attention of everyone in the great hall. The owl carried two letters bearing the insignia of the Ministry of Magic. It flew first to the headmaster's chair and dropped the first of the two letters onto Professor Dumbledore's morning toast. It waited patiently while Dumbledore scanned the letter, scribbled a short reply on the back of the parchment, and retied the letter to the owl's leg. Then, the ministry owl flew the length of the Gryffindor table – all eyes were still on the bird – and dropped the second letter onto James Potter's empty plate.
From the look on James's face it was an entirely unexpected letter. He whispered something to Sirius, who shrugged. All eyes were now on James and the letter he held in his hands. He tore open the envelope and began to read the letter, a small frown pulling down the corners of his mouth. All of a sudden, James dropped the letter, howling in agony as if the parchment had burned his hands. He pushed himself away from the table and stumbled blindly toward the doors that led to the entrance hall.
Sirius jumped up from his seat, as did Lily. "James!" he shouted.
He snatched the letter from the table and Lily was behind him in a flash. "What is it?" she whispered.
Sirius turned around to face her and Lily was startled to see that there were tears pouring down his face. "Read." He croaked and then slumped back onto the bench.
Lily lowered her gaze to the yellowish parchment. It read:
Dear Mr. Potter,
At precisely three forty-two this morning, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named entered your residence at Godric's Hollow. A neighbour, Mr. Leonard Toadstool, saw what he believed at the time to be a death eater entering the house and contacted the Ministry.
The Ministry dispatched a team of aurors, who reached Godric's Hollow at three forty-six. A duel was already underway between your father and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named himself.
It is my unfortunate duty to inform you that during this duel, both your mother and father were hit by the killing curse. We, at the Ministry of Magic, are terribly sorry for your loss and hope that it is some consolation that your father, Henry Potter, has been awarded the Order of Merlin, first class.
A ceremony will be held in your parents' honour on the tenth of November at the Ministry of Magic.
Take care,
Timothy Rimmond
Ministry of Magic
"Oh my god." Lily said, "James's parents."
Sirius nodded sadly. "They were the only family he had."
Lily re-read the letter before folding it up and putting it into her bag. "I have to find him." she said.
Sirius looked up, "He'll probably be out in the forest somewhere. That, or the Shrieking Shack."
"The Shrieking Shack?"
"It's a long story." Sirius said.
Lily put it out of her mind momentarily and asked, "Are you coming, Sirius?"
He shook his head, "No, I think he needs you right now. Not me."
Lily nodded, and made her way out of the great hall and onto the school grounds
James couldn't believe it. His parents were gone. His entire world was falling apart.
He raced toward the Forbidden Forest, the wind drying his tears and making his eyes burn. As he reached the edge of the trees, James transformed into a stag and continued his flight on four legs.
Within minutes, he reached a clearing deep within the dark forest. James flopped to the ground and lowered his head to his forelegs. He sighed and shut his eyes, hoping that when he woke up, it would all have been a dream.
Lily knocked on the door to Dumbledore's office.
"Come in Miss Evans." Dumbledore said.
She opened the door and found the headmaster sitting at his desk. "Professor, I-"
Dumbledore held up his hand, "In answer to the questions that I know you are going to ask: yes, I know about the tragedy that has befallen young Mr. Potter, and yes, you may look for him."
"Thank you, sir." Lily said. "Should I send him to you when I find him?"
"If he wishes to speak with me, he knows where to find me. However, I believe that I am not the person he needs most right now." He raised his silver eyebrows and looked pointedly at Lily.
Lily nodded. "Do you have any idea where he might be? Sirius said that James would most likely have gone into the forest or the Shrieking Shack."
Dumbledore leaned forward and intertwined his fingers, "My first guess would be the forest, only because he and his friends have an affinity for the freedom that it offers them."
Lily sighed. She wasn't exactly thrilled to be going into the Dark Forest despite the fact that it was still early in the day. She had heard too many stories of werewolves and other uninviting creatures that inhabited the forest.
"Do not worry, Lily. The creatures of the forest have already been warned that any attack on a Hogwarts student will result in the worst possible punishment. I have no doubt that you will find him, and when you do, please remind him that tonight is a full moon."
Twenty minutes later, Lily was standing next to the gamekeeper's cottage, facing the trees. She shivered slightly as a cool breeze snatched at her hair. James had better be in there, she thought, If I get eaten by some wild animal I swear I'll come back to haunt him.
Lily squared her shoulders, took a deep breath and walked quickly into the shade of the looming trees. She stopped again under the canopy of the ancient trunks and pulled her wand out of her school bag. "Lumos." she whispered and was comforted when the warm glow from the tip of her wand illuminated the path at her feet. She walked on, listening carefully for anything out of the ordinary.
She wasn't entirely sure how long she had been wandering when she passed a familiar-looking tree, deep within the Forbidden Forest.
Great, Lily thought, I think I've been going in circles. She examined the trunk of the tree. About six feet from the ground, the wood was marked by long, thin grooves, as if antlers had been scraped across the surface of the bark. What could have done that? I've never heard of any deer in the Dark Forest…
Lily was startled from her thoughts by a rustling of leaves somewhere behind her. She turned on her heel and held her wand aloft, allowing its pale light to spread and engulf the bushes on the opposite side of the path. She held her breath and waited, hoping that whatever was on the other side of those bushes was James and not a werewolf.
A shrill scream pierced the air, ripping James from his dreamless sleep. He shook his head, confused by its heaviness, before remembering the letter and his flight into the forest.
The scream sounded again.
Lily? he thought. A third scream reached his ears and he leapt to his feet and raced off through the trees, searching for the origin of the commotion.
It took him only moments to find Lily. She had her back pressed against a tree with her wand held out in front of her face, and she was surrounded by centaurs wielding crossbows. Every arrow was trained on Lily
The chief of the centaurs stepped forward and addressed Lily, "What brings you into our forest, human?"
"I-I'm only looking for my friend." she stuttered back.
"So there are more of you hiding amongst our trees." he muttered. The chief was the largest of the centaurs, dappled gray with a charcoal mane. He held up hand, "Fire on my command." he said to the others.
A bay centaur stepped forward, "But Flax, it is against our laws to harm a foal, and we were told not to harm any of the students."
"Fool," Flax said, "she is no foal. This human has already come of age. And I do not take orders from men."
"Yes, I'm sorry, sir." The other centaur said, bowing his head and returning to his place among the ranks.
Flax cleared his throat, "On the count of three, then. One, two-"
James tore through the bushes, shoving centaurs aside with his antlers. He skidded to a halt in front of Lily and begged with his eyes for her to allow him to carry her safely out of the forest.
Lily stretched out a hand and touched the stag's antlers. Well, now I know what happened to the tree, she thought, but why do I feel like I know him?
James stamped his hoof impatiently, it would only be a matter of seconds before the centaurs regrouped and killed them both.
Lily clambered awkwardly onto the stag's back and wrapped her arms around his neck. The animal reared and charged forward, pushing through another wall of centaurs.
They raced toward the edge of the forest, slowing only when they could no longer hear the centaurs' angry shouts behind them.
[A/N]: Super-fantastic reviews would be greatly appreciated. :]