Chapter 11: Punishments and Picnics
"Lily!" a voice cried from the entrance to the hospital wing.
Turning to the sound of the voice Lily and Severus saw the other Gryffindor Prefect, Remus Lupin, trot to the bed where they were both sitting with a worried look on his face and a bouquet of buttercups in his hands.
"Hey Remus," Lily said with a wince. She had just got to the hospital and was waiting for Madam Pomfery to inspect her wrist, which was still being gingerly held by Severus.
"Lupin," Severus said curtly. "Here as Potter's representative?" he asked, noticing the buttercups tied with a yellow ribbon.
"No, I'm not," he answered, his voice uncharacteristically hard. "I'm here of my own accord to see Lily."
Turning his eyes to her he said, "I heard about what happened between you and James. I'm sorry I wasn't there to stop him, and I'm sorry for what he did to you," he then handed her the flowers.
Smiling, Lily took them with her good hand and placed them on the bedside stand, where a vase filled with water had just appeared.
"Thank you, Remus. I appreciate the guesture," she replied.
Just then Madam Pomfery arrived and shooed the boys away so she could have some privacy with her patiant.
"Since you two are Prefects, kindly keep everybody else from coming inside," the nurse said in an annoyed voice as she pointed to the door.
Looking at the door the trio noticed a large que of male and female admirers, each holding a bouquet of flowers, chocolates and cards. Some were jumping on tiptoe trying to get a look at their injured idol, while others were trying to sneak their way to the front and enter the wing unnoticed.
"Alright, move out of the way!" Remus shouted at the crowd, using his magic to push them out of the entrance. "This is a hospital zone, not a place to get autographs!"
"She's only been minorly wounded! She isn't dying!" Severus shouted, trying to help Lupin move the throng back. "If you want to know who put her in the hospital wing in the first place, then go find James Potter! He's the one who broke her wrist!"
"WHAT!" the crowd exclaimed at once.
"I thought he liked her. Why did he do that?"
"Just because somebody pulled a prank on him doesn't give him the right to take it out on Lily!"
"Who does he think he is?"
"WHERE IS HE?" the crowd shouted in unison.
"There he is!" a boy shouted, pointing down the hall.
James Potter had changed out of his "robes" and into new ones in Gryffindor tower. When he had finished, he realized what he had done and was coming to the hospital wing, bouquet of assorted flowers of every bright color he could find in his hand, and a big box of raspberry-flavored chocoballs in the other.
But when he came into view of the crowd he stopped dead in his tracks. Everyone, including his friend Remus, had their wands held out and were pointing them right at him. From over the heads of the mob he could see Lily's face, and he knew he blew his chances with her once and for all.
Her face was contorted into a mask of such fury that it would make the bravest lion cower, and her eyes... Her eyes held a mixture of heartbreak, hatred, and vengence that was so piercing it could have incinerated him from the inside out.
Looking over his shoulder for a second Severus saw the same look as Potter had, and was proud to see that it echoed the voice that was raging inside of her. That voice seem to have called out to him, and it said, "GET HIM! MAKE HIM PAY FOR THIS!"
Sensing the gazes from both Potter and Severus Lily turned her head to the later, furrowed her eyebrows, narrowed her eyes and nodded at him with the same wicked smile that she wore that summer after she overheard her parents conversation.
Turning back to Potter and the crowd, which had turned their attention to the black haired Prefect, Severus gave a quick nod and said to his nemesis, "Start running," before taking the first aim at him with his wand.
Potter dodged the attack and bolted back down the hall, followed by the mob that started chasing and hexing him. The bouquet left neglected and, surprisingly, untrampled by the rush of feet.
"Amazing what teengage hormones will do," Severus commented to Remus, who stayed positioned beside him, lowering his wand.
"Yes," Lupin whispered, lowering his wand and crossing his arms.
Checking to see that Lily and Madam Pomfery were not looking or listening, he whispered back, "Maybe if you actually did your job, and starting being more authoritive around your friends, your partner would not be in this mess. I assume that's Dumbledore gave you that badge in the first place?"
Lowering his head the sandy-haired Prefect nodded. Then he replied, "There's another reason I came here."
"Oh?" Severus asked as Lupin lifted his head.
"I came here to tell Lily that James has been banned from all club activities that she is in for the remainder of his school career," he replied.
"Really?" the darker headed teen replied. He, along with Lily, Potter and the other Marauders, have been in the Potions, Charms and Dueling clubs since second year. He was sure Potter only participated in the Potions and Charms clubs just to be near Lily. So did Severus, of course, but at least he was in her league when it came to the subjects, whereas Potter was anything but.
"Also," Lupin continued sadly, "he has been suspended from the Quidditch team until next year, and he has detention every weekend until next September. Professor McGonagall was infuritated by his display in the Great Hall for, not only coming into the Hall before changing his 'attire', but for also causing injury to a Prefect and losing one hundred points for our House. She said that if he is not careful, he'll be suspended from Hogwarts and won't be able to take his OWLs until next year."
"She was infuriated? What about Lily?" Severus exclaimed, turning his full attention to the other guard. "She's in here because of his callousness and his self-righteous attitude! And where were you at that time? Huh? Playing Exploding Snap with Pettigrew in your common room or something?"
"No I was not!" Lupin shouted back, temper flaring. "I was at the top of the Astronomy Tower, deducting points and giving detentions to a couple up there that were getting carried away, and was coming down to lunch when I heard Moaning Myrtle's cries from three floors below. I took a short cut and saw James, completely drenched and half-naked in a puddle of water. I went to see what he was doing there, but before I could he ran to the Great Hall and I lost him in the crowd.
"By the time I fought my way through he was coming out of the Hall in nothing but his boxers and trainers, and then you passed by with Lily's wrist in your hands heading straight here. I pulled somebody out from the crowd, and they told me what happened," he concluded, finishing his account of what happened and breathing heavily.
Silence feel between the two, with only the occational gasp from Lily as the nurse was healing her wrist.
Just when it was getting too quiet for either of them, they heard footsteps coming their way.
Turning toward the sound they saw Bellatrix come toward them, a basket of food dangling from her right arm and a bottle of Instant Refilling Butterbeer in the other.
Standing at attention Remus said, "Sorry Bellatrix, but Lily can't have any visitors right now."
"I know. I just thought that, with all she had went through today, and no chance to have any lunch, she and Severus would like to join Rudolphus, Regulus and myself on a picnic by the lake," she replied with a sincere smile. Too sincere for Remus's taste.
"I thought you had already eaten," he said, skeptically.
"Who could have eaten anything at a time like that?" she said, as though explaining the obvious to a tempermental child. "After that little scene, everybody started leaving the Hall to tell everybody else about what had happened. Some even sent owls to Hogsmeade to get presents for Lily while others conjured flowers, or wrote a quick get well card."
"And you're not jealous of that?" Remus asked, still skeptical. The rivalry between how much attention everyone gave to one girl or the other has always been a cause of many hospital visits by both candidates.
Still smiling Bellatrix answered, "Of course not, silly boy. As I'm sure Lily has already told you, we've decided to put our differences behind us and be friends for the remainder of our school careers. What better way to do so than to have a consolation picnic by the lake?"
"I completely agree with you, Bellatrix," a voice from behind said before Remus could say much more.
Lily had just come out of the hospital with her wrist feeling better and fully functional.
Shaking her head Bellatrix reprimanded, "Like I told you on the train, Lily, call me 'Bella'. Now come on, we have to meet the others by the lake."
"Alright then, Bella," Lily replied with a smile. Turning to Severus she asked, "Are you going to come too, Sev?"
"Of course," he said with a smile he reserved only for her. "Besides, someone's got to be there if any fans try to mob you both. The top two girls in school, out by the lake on a sunny day, and with one just out of the hospital. Yes, I can see it will be necessary for more than Rudolphus and Regulus to be out there with you."
Laughing Bella, Severus and Lily headed down the hall and onto the school grounds, leaving a very worried and very stunned Lupin at the doors to the infirmary.
"I really hope you know what you're doing Lily. I don't want us to have to be enemies after this," he thought worriedly about his friend.
Besides the other Marauders, Lily was the only one who knew his secret.
When they had reached the entrance Rudolpus and Regulus were there waiting for them.
As were Lily and Bella's fans. They had somehow got wind of their plans and started gathering around the group, trying to get at them from behind some velvet ropes that someone had conjured. Some were screaming at the girls to get their attention, others were jumping up and down, waving pieces of parchment and quills for the girls to sign, and somebody kept taking pictures, filling the air with purple smoke.
The ropes were strecthed out to where the group were going for their picnic and encircled the spot like a private center. A few fans were trying to get past in order to take an item from the spot, like it was the last thing they would ever see in their lives.
"Don't you ever find this aggrevating, Bella?" Lily whispered as they made their way to the roped area, but waving and smiling all the same.
"Sometimes," Bella said, signing a piece of parchment from an eager fanboy. "But it dies away in a few minutes."
"Alright, back off you lot!" Rudolphus said, strengthening the barriers of velvet with a flick of his wand. "If you don't, we'll start actually charging you for autographs and pictures of the girls!"
"You heard him, sod off!" Severus shouted, flashing his badge to emphasize his point.
"Everyone!" Lily shouted, raising her hands over her head. "Please, return to the castle, catch up on your studies, or hang out with your fellow classmates!"
But when nobody listened and actually tried to get closer Bella shouted, "Go Now! Or we will deduct fifty points each from your Houses!"
With that the mob quickly dispersed, clutching their autographs and disappearing in a final cloud of smoke.
Sighing heavily Lily sat down on the already spread picnic cloth, which was of the Slytherin colors with the snake in the middle, and watched as Regulus emptied out the contents over the snake.
There were reuben sandwiches, treacle tarts, various fruits, and mashed potatoes. There was silver flatware, forks, spoons, knives, and emerald crusted goblets, which filled themselves with the special butterbeer Bella had brought.
Severus sat beside Lily on the left, next to her once-injured wrist, as though she would get hurt again he left her side. Bella was on her right, taking the sandwiches from Rudolphus, who was beside her, and Regulus completed the small circle around the food between Rudolphus and Severus, his eyes flicking between the fiery looking newcomer and at Severus. He often saw the looks Severus kept giving her and was sure he felt something more than just friendship going on between them.
"I really didn't think he would take it that hard," Lily said once her plate was filled.
"Who? Potter?" Regulus said with a grin. "Don't worry about him Lily. From what I saw coming out here, Potter's popularity has reached an all-time low."
"Really?" she asked, listening intently, a spark in her eyes.
"Really," he answered, after swallowing a bite of his potatoes. "Once that mob found out what he did to you in the Hall, they chased him from the hospital wing all the way to the Astronmy Tower and threw hex after hex at him. They kept shouting some things at him, and not just hexes. They shouted things like 'disgrace', 'coward', 'hypocrite', and several profanities I dare not mention."
Grinning, Rudolphus continued, "Yes. I saw it all as well. By the time McGonagall came to got him out of the Astronomy Tower he looked worse than when he dumped a barrel load of dragon dung over Professor Sprout last week. Covered in hex marks, tentacles, horns, and various other things I can't describe while we're eating."
Laughing with the others for what was like the umpteenth time that day, Lily started to fill more a ease around her former foes.
This did not go unnoticed by Bella, nor by a figure that was staring at the blot of red in the middle of the black circle underneath an Invisibility Cloak with tears of sadness and hatred in his eyes.
It was only by remembering McGonagall's warning that James Potter did not take out his wand and hex the crooked nosed Prefect when he saw him place his hand over hers. It was only through what self-restraint he had left that he did not steal the pretty lioness away from the snakes around her when that certain one had moved closer to her, and she close to him, holding his hand back.