A/N: Continuing on…

Disc.: Manipulation, that's all.

Ceiling

I walked into the locker room on Monday afternoon, ready for practice. I had spent Sunday just laying with Darla out by the big tree and for once, she was quiet. It concerned me that she might have been frightened by my reaction to her. I had never been one to be so forceful, even when I wanted something I never just took. Typically, I would manipulate the other person until she or he gave me what I wanted, and best of all they believed it was their idea in the first place. I had stroked Darla's hair, just being still and silent with her. She had sent me word through her sister that she was going to the hospital ward for her 'issues'. I worried about her.

My eyes fell on Lily sitting on the bench near her locker. She didn't look up at me and I continued to my locker, changing out of my uniform and into my practice robes. I watched her curiously as Lily pulled on her own practice robes before she started positioning her shin guards into place. I waited for a minute while she struggled to get her wrist guards on, looking rather silly while she tried to use her body to help pin the guard in place. I sighed and walked over to her.

"Need some help?" I offered as I stood there. She looked up at me in surprise, her eyes widened slightly. I took the seat across from her and held out my hands to her. She looked down at them then back at my face. Lily shrugged.

"Sure," Lily said as she extended her wrists to me. Her skin was soft under my fingers as I adjusted the guards.

"You want to make sure they are snug so that you don't get fatigued early on," I told her quietly as I pulled the rigid inserts into a proper place. "You'll learn how to effectively strap them on yourself, but until you do, make sure someone checks the tightness. We can't afford to have one of our beaters getting hurt."

"So sweet of you to be concerned," Lily said to me softly as I pulled the Velcro tight, securing it.

"Of course, I'd be concerned about you, Lils," I said looking at her almost surprised that she could even question it. I took a deep breath, trying to ignore how hard my heart was racing while her hands were in mine. "We're friends. That's why I want to talk to you about Taryn."

"He already told me what happened," Lily said quickly in an almost defensive tone. She pulled her hands out of mine. "I can see where you'd misunderstand but he threw out the number that forward waitress gave him."

"Lily, I don't think you quite understand," I started slowly as I looked at her. "He practically grabbed the waitress in a very inappropriate place."

"Taryn isn't like that," Lily defended. I took a calming breath, refusing to get angry. Taryn didn't deserve Lily defending him like she was.

"I don't think you know him quite as well as you think you do," I challenged quietly. "Guys like him are only out for one thing."

"Funny," Lily said standing. She grabbed her broom and started toward the door. "Taryn said the same thing about you." I exhaled, frustrated as she walked through the double doors. Of course Taryn would say that. Sighing, I grabbed my own broom and headed for the field, ready for Flint to give me his worst.

Flint did not disappoint and by the end of our practice, we were all sweaty and panting, standing in a line. Each of us held our brooms to our right, our dominant hands, aside from Lily who I saw was holding hers in her left hand. Flint spent the better part of the end of the practice screaming at Elena, Damon, and myself. His face turned an almost puce color as he shouted.

"West, if I need to I will coat your hand in glue if you think it'd help you keep the Quaffle in your hands," Flint threatened. I heard an exclamation from somewhere down the line but I knew better than to try and look. Flint would have had me running muggle sprints or something. When we were finally dismissed, we all drug ourselves into the various shower vestibules. I was a little irritated when I stepped free of my shower, shivering. There never seemed to be enough hot water to go around.

At dinner that night, Lily's crossness at me didn't rear itself. She sat between Shale and Damon, across from Darla. I held Darla's hand under the table for part of the night while we ate while. Lily was in a great mood, giggling at Damon's corny jokes and playfully getting onto Shale for stealing a roll from her plate. Kate, Darla, and Lily discussed a third year girls dormitory slumber party.

I went to bed early, my muscle sore. I didn't have patrol, so it worked wonderfully and I slept soundly, like the dead. I woke up feeling refresh that next morning, stretching and climbing from my bed. I looked at myself in the mirror as I dressed, Damon raising his eyebrow at me with a smirk. I rolled my eyes as he began to mimic my dressing moves.

"Maybe if you did a better job, you'd look neater," I suggested as he pretended to straighten his tie at the same time I was straightening mine. I laughed. "Are you going to muggle mime school once you leave here?"

"A mime is a terrible thing to waste," Damon teased laughing. I groaned at his cheesy joke.

"You know, you fail at miming. I don't think you're supposed to talk," I said. I thought about that for a moment. "In that case, you really should strive to be the best silent mime you can be, Dame."

"Very funny, Score," Damon laughed as the two of us walked out into the common room.

"Are you coming to breakfast?" I asked as he leaned against the back of the couch.

"I'm waiting on Elena," Damon said. I raised my eyebrow and nodded once. "Are you going to wait for Darla?"

"No, she's laid up in the hospital wing with womanly issues or something, again," I said making a slight face. Damon wrinkled his nose and waved me off. I wasn't surprised to find myself sitting at the table with so few people. It seemed like everyone was having a slow start this Tuesday. Glancing around, I grabbed the plate of bacon and dumped it on my plate, knowing that at any minute Damon would be down here complaining that there was no bacon. I laughed quickly then stopped, realizing that if anyone crossed by me laughing alone, I risked being classified as a nutter.

A few people quickly joined me, gathering up the better breakfast choices while the sleepier, slower Slytherins missed out. I wondered what was taking Damon and Elena so long when I saw Lily heading my way looking rather exhausted. I glanced up as Lily huffily took the seat next to me, throwing her bag on the floor at her feet.

"Why so down?" I asked as she glanced around crossly. Lily looked at me suddenly then to the large pile of bacon in front of me. I grinned.

"No bacon makes for a bad day," Lily said pouting. She glanced at my pile again, barely restraining from licking her lips.

"Would you like a piece or two?" I said lowering my voice and picking up a piece, slowly putting it in my mouth.

"Very much so," Lily said in an almost defeated voice.

"What will you give me?" I taunted. Lily's smile faltered as her eyes met mine. There was a hint of uncertainty in them raging war with her desire for the bacon.

"What do you want?" Lily asked me hesitantly. Knowing that she was probably thinking I'd ask for something bad, I smiled. Truth be told, I had no clue. I was just teasing her and making it up as I went along.

"Nothing bad, but I'll have to think about what it will be later," I promised as I picked up a few crisp pieces. "So, do we have a deal?"

"I don't know," Lily said hesitantly again, her eyes following the pieces as I waved them in front of her face. I smirked and shrugged.

"Sucks for you because this bacon is so crispy and tasty," I taunted as I went to put them in my mouth, slowly and carefully bringing them closer. Lily groaned.

"Ok, ok," Lily said snatching the bacon from my hand. "You're so mean."

"I'm a business man," I explained laughing.

"So, where's your shadow?" Lily asked after a minute.

"Darla's in the hospital wing with womanly issues," I said rolling my eyes without meaning too. I am sure that Darla's womanly issues were bad, but I never heard of another girl in the whole school being unable to do anything for three days of the month. I didn't mean to come off as indifferent, after all I didn't have those parts, but it seemed awfully extreme and trying to talk to Darla about it sent her into a mood according to her sister, Elena, so I never brought it up.

"This bacon is so good," Lily said. I grinned as I boldly scooted closer to her, now that the students around us had made themselves scarce. I went to say something, to crack some random joke, when Professor McGonagall burst into the Great Hall. Everyone, including Lily and myself, turned to look.

"Classes have been canceled for today," she announced loudly. Cheers went up around the Great Hall, my voice as loud as anyone other. They rarely canceled classes and I didn't care why it was canceled. That was not the sentiment, however, with all of the students and goody two-shoes Rose Weasley jumped up.

"Why?" Rose demanded before she realized who she was sassing off to. I was surprised that Rose actually had a voice that could project as loudly as hers did. I wondered if Lily's could, too, if she felt strongly enough to speak out. Professor McGonagall gave Rose a look and she sat back down quickly.

"Someone took it upon themselves to glue everything to the ceiling of all the classes," Professor McGonagall said. I laughed aloud, standing and following the throngs of students that were abandoning breakfast to see this sight. In every countless classroom, someone had repositioned every last piece of furniture to the ceiling with some sort of magical adhesive. It was brilliant. Lily was standing in the doorway of one of the charms classrooms, a fist full of bacon in her hand. I pushed forward, bending my mouth down near her ear so that no one could overhear me.

"Your brother's a genius," I whispered in Lily's ear, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

"Hmm," Lily murmured noncommittally, not looking at me. She took a bite of bacon.

"Is that my bacon?" I accused grinning at her. She turned around to face me, a smile on her face almost as angelic and innocent as a virginal first year. She hid the bacon behind her back, not letting me see.

"What bacon?" Lily laughed as she took off back to the common room. I laughed and contemplated following her but Damon and Elena caught up with me, laughing at the sight.

"I swear, that Albus Potter is a bloody genius," Damon said as he admired the handiwork. "Such attention to detail. Such skill. He should have been a Slytherin."

"As if Slytherin could handle two Potters," Elena laughed. "That Lily's a prankster enough on her own, or so the rumors go."

"Lily?" I asked curiously.

"Yeah," Elena said lowering her voice. "Rumor has it that she was out all night long. Probably came to help the other Potter."

"Gryffindors and Slytherins working together?" I asked in mock indignation. "What is the world coming too?"