Chapter Twenty-Four

Lily checked her hair in the mirror one last time. She wasn't really sure why she was so nervous: it was just James, after all, and he'd seen her soaking wet in the cold rain, not to mention lying around the Gryffindor common room at all hours of the day. And it was just a lunch date, not a nice dinner out like he had probably hoped for. She was dressed casually but warmly, given the unusual cold snap that had spread south to London for the holidays, with her hair pulled back in plaits. Tucking her cloak around her, Lily made sure she had her scarf and gloves, then hurried downstairs to say goodbye.

Her parents were still a bit uneasy about her Apparating to Diagon Alley, but seeing as the house wasn't connected to the Floo Network, Lily told them there was really no other option. She was a witch, she was of age, and she had passed her Apparition exam on the first try. Apparently it wasn't the Apparation that was a problem so much as her going out on her own—and on a date, no less; Lily suspected they would have little problem if she were simply going shopping for the afternoon with her girlfriends.

At least it was lunch and not dinner; she had told them she would be home in time for tea just to make them more comfortable. Her mum had once again invited James over, and Lily thought she might just take her mum up on the offer and see if James wanted to come back to the house for dinner…assuming their first real time alone together didn't end up as so many other encounters did: with shouting, slapping, or a hex.

Her dad was at work, but her mum was in the kitchen, baking for the holidays. After a quick kiss goodbye, Lily stepped back to Apparate to one of the designated arrival points in Diagon Alley. She couldn't just appear anywhere, since she had no way of knowing if someone might be in that particular space at that moment. She had heard horrible stories of people Apparating into and on top of other people, a fate far worse than Splinching, and she did not care to experience it on her first date with James Potter; that would doom their fledging relationship for sure.

Closing her eyes, Lily concentrated on her destination, stepped around, and felt the crushing compression take hold and pull her away. She reappeared momentarily in a side street next to the Leaky Cauldron. To her surprise, it was snowing lightly, and she quickly pulled on her gloves and scarf as the soft flakes settled on her hair and wet her face.

The new snow just barely covered Diagon Alley in a thin layer of white fluff. It made the street look immensely cheerful for the holidays, yet everyone was walking quickly with their heads tucked into their cloaks, shivering and grumbling under their breath. Lily was surprised: snow was so unusual for Christmas she would have expected it to bring extra excitement to the holiday shoppers. Then she noticed how much thinner the crowds were from the previous year, and how so many people seemed to be avoiding one another. Their faces looked sad, worried, and suspicious, and Lily was suddenly nervous.

James had said the war had not touched Diagon Alley, but it clearly had.

She put her hand on her wand for security and did what everyone else was doing: she looked down and hurried around the corner to the entrance of the pub. As soon as she entered, she saw James waiting with Sirius. James's face lit up when he noticed her, and he hurried over, Sirius trailing behind with a grin.

Lily wasn't sure whether to hug James, kiss him, or shake his hand, so she simply smiled and nodded her head at Sirius instead. "Bodyguard?" she asked lightly. To her surprise, Sirius burst out laughing, but James actually groaned.

"Not you too!" he exclaimed. Lily had no idea what he was talking about, but before she could say anything, Sirius jumped in.

"I'm not staying, Evans," he said, inclining his head in what he probably thought was a gallant manner. "I'm meeting someone as well."

Lily thought about throwing her arms around him, and not just because she was glad he was leaving. "That's great! But what about—"

"Don't say it," he said, holding up a hand. "You'll jinx it. We're sneaking around."

"In public?" Lily asked skeptically; James snorted beside her.

"Well, we can't meet at her house, and we certainly can't meet at mine," he pointed out. "I just want to talk to her without a swarm of Slytherins hanging about ready to hex me. We'll be fine."

He turned to go, leaving James behind with a concerned look on his face. "Be careful, Padfoot," he murmured. "It's risky, you know."

"I like a good risk, you know," Sirius tossed back over his shoulder. "Especially when it's worth it."

He left without another word. James watched him through the windows before shaking himself and turning back to Lily. He kissed her on the cheek with a wink. "A proper welcome for a proper date now that he's gone. How are you? Were your parents still all right with you coming?"

Lily nodded, her heart bursting in her chest at the warm welcome. "I think my dad was a bit more nervous than my mum, but they're okay with it. I told them I'd be back for supper, and they told me to bring you." She almost laughed at the look on his face and laid a hand on his arm to calm him. "Just think about it, okay?"

He nodded and kept her hand on his arm. "Do you want to get something to eat first or walk around a bit?"

Lily glanced outside: the snow was still coming down and the sky was now dark grey. She suspected it wasn't going to let up anytime soon, so there seemed little point in waiting. "Let's go out now, before it gets too wet and cold. I need to go to Flourish and Blotts, and then we can come back for something to warm us up."

"Brilliant!" he said, taking her hand and leading her out. "I need to get something at Twilfitt and Tatting's for my dad as well, not to mention a gift Sirius might actually look at and not toss back in the box this year."

Lily laughed as they walked into the snow-covered street. They talked easily as they made their way toward the bookshop, and Lily was glad that their first date together was so comfortable. Yet they both felt the odd tension in the air around them and their conversation soon stalled. James glanced around, as if studying his surroundings carefully for any signs of a threat.

"This is horrible," he murmured. "It was nothing like this last year—it wasn't even this bad in August."

"It's so sad," Lily replied. "You can almost feel how scared everyone is."

"I guess they have reason," James said. "My dad did say things have been getting worse, but I just never thought it would come to Diagon Alley." He turned to her and gave her a very earnest look. "I feel bad even bringing you here. Do you want to leave? I'll come to your parents if you'd rather—"

She leaned up to kiss him on the lips, quick and wet and perfect. "No, it's all right. Let's just get what we need and head back to the Leaky Cauldron. Didn't you say something about living our lives the other day?"

He sighed. "I did. I just didn't realize how hard that might be. The tension is almost unbearable."

"Then let's shop, that usually helps." She forced a laugh and pulled him into Flourish and Blotts.

They did their shopping quickly, walking with heads down between shops to both ward off the cold snow and keep to themselves like all the other denizens of the alley. When someone called James's name from behind, they both jumped, but it was only one of his father's friends, inquiring after Harrington Potter's health. The friendly exchange lifted their spirits a bit, but they still finished their shopping without much browsing, getting only what they needed before hurrying back to the Leaky Cauldron.

They were just ducking through an empty alleyway when there was a loud crack and a large shape Apparated in front of them—a person. He stumbled into James, cursing profusely, and with a gasp Lily realized it was Sirius. He was bleeding heavily from a cut on his head and limping as he struggled toward them. Lily suspected he had probably Splinched himself, as he seemed to be trying to escape from something…or someone.

"It's a trap!" he gasped as he staggered in front of them. James caught him, eyes wide as he glanced wildly around the alley. Sirius grabbed James's robes. "They're after you, you've got to get away—"

He didn't finish, but collapsed unconscious in front of them, Stunned silent by one of the six masked wizards who abruptly surrounded them.

"Lily, get behind me!" James shouted, his instincts taking over as he pulled out his wand and barely ducked a vicious jet of red light. He cast a Shield Charm as another curse flew their way and sent it rebounding into the nearest wall, blasting bits of stone and dust all over them. "Cover Sirius—or get him out of here if you can!"

It was immediately apparent a quick escape was not possible, however. Lily crouched next to Sirius, her wand out as she glanced around the alley and at the Death Eaters now advancing forward. She cast a Disarming Spell at the nearest masked figure, but he blocked it easily and laughed. James felt his blood go cold, because he recognized that laugh. Apparently Lily did as well, for she gasped as she stopped the counter spell.

"James, that's—" she began, then blocked another curse.

"I know," James murmured, almost refusing to believe it. "It's him." He didn't say more, but concentrated on the Death Eaters moving toward him. They took turns casting curses, as if trying to wear him down while keeping their own strength intact. James blocked each spell thrown his way and finally managed to take down one Death Eater with a well-placed Stinging Hex that caught the man square between the eyes. He dropped to the street, yelling in pain as his face contorted, but the others pressed forward without a single look back.

Behind him, Lily was still in front of Sirius, blocking spells from the left and sending several back. James was reminded of another attack, when he and Lily had fought side by side, protecting their friends, but he shook his head of the memory, forcing himself to concentrate. This was not Hogsmeade, and no one was going to die.

One of the Death Eaters suddenly screamed and ripped off his robes, clawing at his arms with desperate strokes. James saw dozens of boils erupting across the man's skin, large and red and painful. Lily nodded in satisfaction, but without warning she cried out and fell backwards, clutching at her hand.

"Lily!" James shouted. He fired several quick and powerful curses at the remaining Death Eaters, easily taking down the man with the boils with a Full Body-Bind Curse. Though he'd never done it outside of class, he cast a lasting Shield Charm over their small area, desperately hoping that it would hold just long enough for him to help Lily. He bent down and reached out to steady her as several spell crashed into the invisible barrier. "Are you okay?"

Lily held her right hand to her chest; it was already dripping blood onto the white snow. It looked similar to but less severe than the injury Sirius had taken in Hogsmeade, and the parallel almost made him shudder. Lily nodded grimly, but she was obviously in pain. James tried to recall one of the spells she had used on him in the prefects' bathroom, on the night of the full moon after he had cut his leg. The adrenaline coursing through his body brought it to mind quickly, because he remembered it almost instantly and cast a simple pain-relieving spell over her hand. She started to relax, but then immediately tensed as she looked over his shoulder and gasped.

"James!" she cried as a vicious stream of purple light sped toward them; he whirled and reinforced the Shield Charm, the shock of the incoming spell nearly wrenching his arm from his shoulder. He quickly conjured a simple bandage for her hand, and she nodded wordlessly as he stood to face the Death Eaters once more.

"We've got to wake him," he said, casting a Banishing Charm that was just barely blocked by the nearest Death Eater. "We can't hold them off, we need to get out of here, get to—"

"You're not going anywhere, Potter," sneered a voice that was suddenly far too close. The shield fell as James whirled to his left and instinctively fired an Impedimenta Curse. It was far more powerful than he intended, and Dante Avery flew backwards, crashing hard against the nearest wall. He hit his head with a resounding crack and sank to the snowy ground, silent.

One of the other Death Eaters moved to check on Avery; with a snarl, he then turned and began firing curse after curse at them. James instinctively knew it must be Avery's brother, recently released from Azkaban, for only a brother would check on a fallen comrade. James held on as best as he could, but he could feel his strength failing under the brutal onslaught of Pietro Avery. If one of the others began firing on him as well, he'd be done for.

And then he stumbled, the fatigue setting in, and a Cutting Curse caught his shoulder. He almost dropped his wand as his right hand flew to his shoulder and came back covered in blood. It was the same spell that had slashed his face in Hogsmeade, but before he could recover, Pietro Avery had taken another step forward and cried, "Crucio!"

James heard the laughter of the remaining Death Eaters as if from a dark distance. He fell to the ground, dropping his wand and writhing in pain as ribbons of unbearable torture coursed through him, setting his shoulder on fire. It felt like an eternity that he lay there, convulsing in agony. He vaguely heard Lily shout "No!" and through half-closed eyes saw her leap up and jump in front of him, her wand held gamely in her left hand. She caught Avery by surprise, a powerful Leg-Locker Curse sending him toppling to the ground, and the Cruciatus Curse was released.

James groaned and rolled over, gasping for breath and grasping for his wand. Knowing they were probably not expecting him to fire, he gathered as much strength as he could and cast a desperate spell from the ground, taking out another Death Eater with a Knockback Jinx that sent him flying feet over face into a nearby set of rubbish bins.

Unfortunately the man James had hit with the Stinging Hex finally rose and joined the last remaining Death Eater still standing. They glanced at Avery, who was brushing snow from his robes as he stood, and all three advanced on them once more with grim determination. James crawled toward Sirius and murmured, "Rennervate" over his still unconscious friend.

"Wake up, damn you," he muttered, trying to clear his head and shake the feeling back into his left arm. He sat up, but instinctively flinched as Lily stopped a curse from taking him in the back. "We've got to get out of here, and you're dead weight."

Sirius groaned, his eyes flying open. "I'm not dead, Prongs."

"Not yet. Get up." James stood and stepped in front of Lily, who gave him a grateful yet anxious look. She tucked an arm under Sirius's shoulder and helped him stand; his head lolled on his chest, but with a quick glance behind him, James saw Sirius give him a weak wink and knew his friend was playing it up.

Taking a deep breath, James nodded and began edging them backward, holding his wand on the Death Eaters still advancing toward them. They laughed at their seemingly spineless retreat. Without warning, Sirius raised his wand and caught one of the remaining Death Eaters by surprise with a sharp slice across the leg; the man staggered and fell to his knees. Sirius's victorious grin was cut short, however, when Pietro Avery sneered and cast a brutal curse at them that James simply couldn't block fast enough.

A jet of black light slammed into Lily, and she crumpled instantly. Sirius barely had the strength to hold her up and stumbled behind James, swearing furiously as he lowered Lily to the ground as carefully as he could. James took one look behind him and felt a sudden rage burst forth inside him, like no other he had felt before. And with the rage came an equally unexpected surge of energy.

He stepped forward with a primal yell: a powerful Stunning Spell took down Pietro Avery, violent enough to throw him halfway back down the alley. The lone remaining attacker raised his wand, but James easily disarmed him. When the Death Eater charged him with bare hands, James stopped him short with a sharp Freezing Spell, then sent him crashing to the slushy pavement with a Hurling Hex. He started toward Avery, vaguely intending to cast his own Cruciatus Curse, but Sirius caught his wrist.

"No, mate," he said, his voice firm. "You've done enough. It's over."

James ripped his arm away and whirled on his friend. "I'm not just letting them go!" he hissed, gesturing wildly at the bodies behind him. "Look at what they did to us—to you, to Lily…" He faltered as he glanced at Lily's pale skin, her shallow breathing, then turned back to the Death Eaters littering the alley, almost desperate for more. He wanted—no, needed—to take out his anger, his fear on them all…

"No," said Sirius, sounding eerily like James had sounded once in the prefects' lounge, when he'd stopped Lily from hexing his friend. "Tie them up. Someone will be here—the Ministry is probably on their way."

"I can't believe they aren't already here," James muttered in response. But he did as Sirius suggested and sent several streams of white ropes toward the Death Eaters. Two of them managed to Apparate away before he could bind them; to be safe, James Stunned the remaining Death Eaters once more for good measure. He turned back to Sirius, beginning to feel the let down now that the fight was over. "What the hell is wrong with them, letting a group of students fend for themselves in the middle of Diagon Alley—"

He broke off as three men came running into alley wearing the official robes of Ministry Aurors. They appeared as if they had already been involved in an altercation, for their robes were ripped and dirty, their faces red and scratched. They stopped short when they saw four Death Eaters bound and unconscious in the snow of the alley.

"Damn, James," murmured Frank Longbottom, quickly stepping forward. "We really need you on our team when you're out of Hogwarts."

James just stared at him, not really comprehending what the young Auror was saying, and then it hit him: for the second time in six months, he had been attacked by Death Eaters, and he had survived. Only this time, hehad been the target. He had fought them off once more, but with another defeat, he knew without a doubt that it was only a matter of time before it happened again. They would eventually but certainly come after him, and it was increasingly clear that nowhere was safe—not Hogwarts, not Diagon Alley. The world was suddenly much, much darker.

He staggered as his remaining strength left him, and Sirius put an arm around his good shoulder to steady him, though he was barely standing himself. "It's okay, James. It's over. You did it again. Let's just get to St. Mungo's."

James simply nodded, too stunned to answer. Frank Longbottom was kneeling next to Lily, frowning. "SoporusSpell—Sleeping Curse. Nasty bit of Dark Magic, but I've given her some fluxweed to stabilize her. She'll be all right as long as you get her to St. Mungo's as soon as possible. Here, take this." He pulled a pocketwatch from his robes and murmured a spell over it. It glowed soft blue before returning to normal, and with a start James realized the Auror had just made them a Portkey. Frank stood and nodded grimly as he handed the pocketwatch to Sirius. "Neither of you are in any shape to Apparate. Get her to St. Mungo's. I'll let your father know what's happened."

"Don't bother with mine," Sirius murmured, grinning a bit deliriously, like he had in the corridor when Dante Avery had cornered him. "He'll just be disappointed I missed another opportunity to get myself killed."

Frank hid a bleak smile as shook his head again and stepped back. The other two Aurors had gathered the prisoners and were levitating them out of the alley. "Go—I set the Portkey for one minute. It'll take you directly to the spell damage ward." He clapped James on the shoulder. "I'll come by to pick up my watch and get your statement later. You weren't the only ones hit today: it's been a busy afternoon."

For some reason that roused James from his stunned stupor, and he remembered that Sirius had been attacked first. "What do you mean?" he stared to ask, wondering what had happened elsewhere. But the Portkey was about to activate, and he needed to get Lily to a Healer. He knelt and picked her up, her face pale and still under the snowy sky. After grabbing hold of the pocketwatch with Sirius, they were whisked away to the safety of a busy St. Mungo's—his first date with Lily having come to the worst possible end.

End Notes:

Thank you, Mystery Science Theater 300...I mean, mugglegirmarauder! I appreciate you making sure the battle went accordingly. :)

Thank you to all my readers and reviewers! I really appreciate all your support. It keeps me going and makes me love what I do even more. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if I ruined their date—you did see it coming, didn't you? The next chapter is the longest yet, for some reason. But the story is winding down— enjoy the rest!