Chapter 10: Disinfecting
After the Sorting Ceremony and the Start of Term Feast, it was time for the Prefects to show the new first years where they would be staying for the next seven years.
"First years, this way please," Lily and Remus called as everybody else headed to their dorms.
"Alright," Lily began as they stood at the head of the table. "Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. My name is Lily Evans and this is Remus Lupin. We are your House Prefects. It's our job to make sure all of the students find their classes, dormatories, and other rooms, and to make sure they all follow the rules. Or, at least, to make sure they do not cause you any bodily damage because of a few silly pranks," she added, smirking at the Marauder beside her.
A few of the new students laughed while Remus looked annoyed at his partner, but with a smile on his face as well.
"So, if you have any questions please feel free to contact us, or another Prefect at anytime," Remus concluded. Then they both showed the first years the direct path to the Gryffindor Tower.
"Please try to pay close attention, and mind the staircases. They like to change from time to time," Lily instructed, showing them all the staircases that kept changing direction. "Also," she added jumping over a particular step," this one likes to Vanish when it is stepped on. So please be careful and help each other up and down to the one after it."
"Yes Ms. Evans," they chorused, taking her advise and helping each other up.
When the last one had crossed over, they finally made their way to the entrance to Gryffindor Tower, which was covered by a portrait of a fat lady in a fluffy pink dress.
"Password?" the lady asked.
"Listen carefully now," Remus said to the students. Then to the Fat Lady he said, "Lion's Den."
At once the portrait opened to reveal the common room. Everything was decked in the Gryffindor colors- red and gold- and a crackling fire was burning in the fireplace.
"Now then," Lily said, standing next to her partner in front of the first years, who were starring around the room in awe. "This is the Gryffindor Common Room. This is where everybody gathers to relax, hang out with friends, or try to study."
More laughter followed and Remus had to clear his throat before continuing, "The dorm rooms are up the stairs. Girls' on the right, boys' on the left, and you will find your belongings already upstairs."
"Any questions before you all head to bed?" Lily asked politely.
A small boy with spiky blonde hair held up his hand and asked, "Yes. Are you dating anybody right now?"
The whole common room erupted into laughter from the first years and Prefects, and Lily blushed before saying, "No, and I'm afraid you're a bit too young for that right now. Now, off to bed! You all have a big day ahead!"
Giggling the students went to their respective dormatories. The girls were still laughing about the boy had asked, and another boy hit him on the shoulder asking his friend, "What were you thinking?"
"I don't know, it just came out!" he said, face completely red.
Walking to the couch by the fire the two Prefects were still laughing when Lupin said, "Looks like Prongs has some competition already and classes hasn't even started yet."
"I know. Poor thing, I hope he didn't take it too hard," Lily said, misty-eyed from all the laughing.
Suddently a flash of color came in front of Lily and scooped her up into a tight embrace, holding her as though for dear life.
"POTTER!" Lily screamed, trying to get out of the uncalled for hug. "What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?"
"Don't worry, Queen Lily, I'll make it better. I know you're just suffering from a traumatic experience, but you'll be okay. Your Golden Knight is here for you," Potter said, still holding on to his grip.
Not being able to stand it any longer, Lily summoned her magic and made a brilliant aura come out of her body. The light had illuminated her entire appearance so much that she looked like she had swallowed the moon, the burning fire, and two shining emerald stars all at the same time.
Soon James, who was starting to go blind by the sudden radiance of her power, released his hold on her and backed into a couch so fast it tumbled over, and he landed on his back.
"Now," Lily said, the light fading back into nothingness as she approached him, "I will repeat. What the bloody hell do you think you were doing, Potter? What was that all about?"
Getting up from his position Potter answered, in a serious tone, "I was trying to disinfect you, Evans."
"Disinfect me?" Lily asked angrily.
"Yes. Trying to cure whatever disease those damned Slytherins had tried to infect you with," he responded. "I saw what happened a few weeks ago. You came out of the Leaky Cauldron with Snivellus and Slutatrix. You were about to walk to Gringott's but she looped one of her arms in yours and lead you into Knockturn Alley."
"What!" Remus said, looking appalled.
"Why didn't you break off and leave, Evans?" Sirius, who was behind James, asked. "You know that place is crawling with a bunch of dark wizarding bigots. It's suicide for a Muggleborn to even come near the corner of that place!"
"Can't I help it if your cousin has a firm grip?" Lily said. "Besides, as I'm sure Remus informed you, she was hoping to put our animosity behind us before we left Hogwarts."
"And you believed her?" Potter asked, shocked.
"That's exactly what Remus said, and I told him exactly what I'm telling you: Not by a long shot. I knew she would be up to something, so I decided to stick around and see," Lily answered. "Like my father always said 'Let your opponet make the first move, so you will know how to strike back', and if I remember correctly, that served me well the entire time I've been here. So don't ever think that I can't take of myself, Mr. Second-Best-Duelist."
That last part made Potter cringe. Everytime he came close to beating Lily in the Dueling Tournament, he wound up getting into second place. He hated losing to anybody, even his beautiful and talented crush.
With that, Lily went up the stairs to her dorm. But before she entered she turned back and called, "Oh, and James!"
Turning his body towards her, she placed her wand at his jugular and threatened, "If you ever try to disinfect me, in anyway, shape or form, ever again, you'll be lucky to be out of St. Mungo's by your NEWTs."
Leaving a teardrop-shaped red mark where she had her wand, Lily turned back up the stairs and went into her room. There she changed into her pajamas, climbed into bed and went to sleep.
"He is the most arrogant, delusional, self-proclaiming Bludger of a man I ever had the displeasure to know!" Lily screeched to her friend under the beech tree.
Lily and Severus were sitting in their usual spot by the Black Lake on the first Tuesday of classes. They had just come out of Transfiguration class where James Potter and Sirius Black had managed to make the tables start bucking like hippogriffs, and had sent them in a stampede down the corridors, scarring most of the students into hysterics.
She and Severus had spent the remainder of the period trying to round them all up and charm them back into still desks. They had only just finished when the bell rang. Fortunatly, they had break at this time and the two pranksters had class, so they were free of them for a while.
"I don't know what's worse," Lily sighed, laying flat on her back and looking up at the leaves, "him turning half the classroom into a corrale, or trying to disinfect me."
"Disinfect you?" Severus asked, leaning against the tree and watching Lily. There was nothing that he loved more than hearing the woman he loved berate the man he hated.
"Yes," Lily said, then explained the events that happened last night in the common room.
After the story Severus looked angry, but he quickly said, "I wish I could have been there when you blinded him, or when you threatened him to keep his distance."
"Thanks," she replied, exassperated. "I just wish there was a way I could disinfect him, and his ego, permantly."
"Maybe there is," he said, thinking and coming up with an idea. "But first, you have to promise you won't let anybody, not even your friends, know what is going on."
"Okay then," she said, skeptically and coming closer to him.
"Next," he added quickly, knowing what was coming as he leaned closer to her, "You have to trust me. It's going to take some planning, and we're going to need the help of the others."
"By others," Lily asked, looking him in the eyes, "you mean Bellatrix, Rudolphus and Regulus?"
"Exactly," Severus nodded, then smiled when he saw a vindictive gleam and smile light up her face and eyes.
"Potter's in for it now!" they both thought together.
Two weeks of preparing and practicing had finally come to an end. When the fifth years were outside, enjoying a warm, September Saturday before lunch, Lily and her friends, Mary, Amelia and Sheila were out by the lake, exactly as she had planned. Bellatrix and Rudolphus were by the second floor corridor, next to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, in position with their wands and heavy books. Severus was over by the lake, pretending to read a book, while Lily passed by, only to give her a clear liquid in a tiny phial when she passed. Then Regulus was in his final position, next to the Gryffindor changing rooms, after he had whipped his wand over a set of Potter's casual robes, drenching them in the same clear liquid Severus gave to Lily by the lake.
Right on schedule Regulus came past the beech tree, followed by Potter in his casual robes at a few paces, and gave Severus a quick nod. Severus returned it and gave a loud stage cough, and when Lily turned her head she met his eyes. Then she announced loudly to her friends, and Potter, who saw her get up from her position by the lake, "Sorry girls, but I'm afraid I have to go use the bathroom."
"Not Myrtle's Lily!" Mary exclaimed. "Can't you wait until the first floor bathroom is fixed."
Just yesterday, somebody (Rudolphus) set the first floor bathrooms in such a fine state that the toilets, u-bends, and sinks started to buck up out of the walls. He had used Sirius's wand to do it, and Sirius was sent to detention for the whole weekend when a charm was used to determine if it was his spell. Not surprising, considering it was the same charm he used on McGonagall's desk two weeks ago.
"Myrtle isn't that bad, Mary," Lily said, moving in the direction of the castle and ignoring Potter on the way.
Potter, who was standing there with his arms wide open, lowered them and followed her at a casual pace. He hated being ignored by Lily more than he hated losing to her.
"He takes the bait," Lily thought as she made her way quickly to the second floor bathrooms.
She quickly rounded the corner and used her wand to make it look like she just opened the door. Potter, after looking around to make sure no one would see him, went in. Before the door closed a heavy tome was thrown at the ghost girl, hovering by and that is when the "disinfecting" began.
Moaning Myrtle saw the boy, who she thought had thrown the book at her, started crying and flooded the entire bathroom. The toilets and sinks started overflowing with water, and James Potter was drenched so badly he ran out the door. He did not notcie the pool of clear liquid that was mingled with the overflow and feel in with a splash.
"Bloody hell, Myrtle!" he shouted at the still crying girl. "Will you please stop it! You're getting the floors all wet!"
"He really needs to learn how to actually comfort a girl before trying to date one," Bellatrix whispered as she, Lily and Rudolphus snuck away from the scene, laughing.
"Maybe he will," Lily said before they were at the entrance to the Great Hall, "once he is the one that will need some comfort."
With that she went off to join the other Gryffindors for lunch. What she did not see was the exchanged smirks the fifth year Slytherins give each other at the far table. Their plan was working faster than they thought.
"You know," Bellatrix said while the food appeared on the plates, "maybe we should make it a point to have her join us for a meal not too far in the future."
"Agreed," Severus nodded, nibbling on an apple. "We should also try to keep her away from the other Gryffindors as much as possible. Especially Po-"
He stopped and looked at the opened oaked doors along with the rest of the hall. There he was, in a plain view, James Potter holding his arms away from his robes and having a look of outright rage and embarrassment plastered on his face. Which was practically all he was wearing at the moment, save for a pair of boxers with Snitches threaded on them and his trainers.
"EVANS!" he cried, advancing his way toward the smiling red head and past a wave of laughter from all of the student body. Even the professors found it hard to try to keep a straight face.
"P-Potter," Lily stammered, trying to hold in her laughter, "you k-know that isn't regulation school wear, right? I-I know it's the weekend, but you still n-need to b-be pr-properly dressed!"
With that she bursted out laughing like everybody else, and Potter's face got even redder. He grabbed Lily by the wrist and forcefully yanked her out of her seat.
The laughter died out and half of the boys in the Hall let up from their seats. Severus amoung them, holding his wand firmly in hand and advancing to the Gryffindor table to intervene. The boys that were closer to the scene were shouting profanities at Potter for treating a woman so roughly.
"You did this Evans!" Potter declared, squeezing her wrist tighter. "You knew I would follow you to that damned bathroom, and you pulled this stunt!"
"I don't know what you are talking about!" she hissed back through clentched teeth, trying to hold in her tears and keeping her voice level. "Besides, you should know better than to follow a girl into a bathroom in the first place. Whoever did pull this prank on you deserves a round of applause, but I suppose if it was not a prank by the oh-so-great James Potter, it's a crime. Isn't it, you egotistical hypocrite?" she spat out.
At those words Potter snarled and gave her wrist a final squeeze, at which Lily screamed, before dropping it and rushing to the door.
Clutching her wrist in pain Lily tried to move it, but it hurt so badly she screamed again.
"Let me through! Let me through! I'm a fellow Prefect!" Severus said as he fought through the crowd that had gathered around the victim.
"Let me see that, Lily," he said kindly, then he took it gingerly in his hand and started inspecting it. "We'll have to go to Madam Pomfery to get it fixed. I'm afraid it might be broken."
Nodding becasue she was afraid her voice would betray her, Lily let Severus lead her out of the Great Hall. Then he said outloud, "Fifty points from Gryffindor for following a girl into a bathroom, and another fifty for the harming of a student and Prefect."
With that the two went to the hospital wing of the school.