The Truth Of The Heart
Summary: Lily Evans has always, ALWAYS hated James Potter. So when they become Head Boy and Girl, nothing could be worse. But could working with him change Lily's opinion? Has she been ignoring the truth in her heart all along?
Disclaimer: I don't own any of this….except a few minor characters, so please don't sue me, JKR, 'cause I have nothing you want….unless you're into human flesh (you're not, are you?)
A/N: Thank you guys all SO MUCH for your reviews – it's nice to know I haven't been forgotten! I would do review thank-yous, but if this fic gets taken down again for anything, it won't be going up again, so I won't risk it.
Happy Easter all!
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Chapter 10: Dangerous Ideas
Despite Emma's words, Lily found that she was not able to talk to her for almost three days, due to the sufficient number of distractions that seemed to crop up. The first was that of the meeting with Dumbledore. Lily had hoped to be congratulated by the Headmaster on the success of the Halloween contest, but she had not expected to have any such formal meeting, and neither did she expect what was to follow.
Having asked directions to the Headmaster's office of Sirius (who answered with so much confidence that he must have been there a few times at least), she spoke the password and the gargoyle sprang aside to reveal a moving staircase. Amazed at the resemblance that this bore to Muggle escalators, Lily stepped on and allowed herself to be carried up. She knocked at the door cautiously, and walked in.
Dumbledore was seated at his desk, in the centre of a circular room. A fire burned cheerfully in the fireplace, and curious instruments were dotted all over shelves. Out of the corner of her eye, Lily caught a flash of gold; on closer inspection it proved to be a golden phoenix, dozing peacefully on a wooden perch.
"Do sit down, Miss Evans," Dumbledore said pleasantly. She took a seat in a comfortable armchair, and it was only then that she noticed James next to her, grinning at her. Professor Dumbledore was ferreting around in a tin. "Sherbet lemon?" he asked, proffering it. James looked at the bright yellow sweet rather dubiously, but Lily took one with an exclamation of delight.
"I haven't had one of these since I was little!"
"Ah, one of the innumerable delights of childhood that is forgotten as we grow." Dumbledore smiled. "Now, the first thing I must do is offer you my congratulations for last night's festivities. From what I understand, it was a roaring success, and I look forward very much to seeing what else you two will be able to accomplish together."
"I would also like to introduce you to the reward you have earned. Your ability to handle the responsibility maturely, and deal with organisation co-operatively," here Lily shot a guilty glance at James, remembering the way she had acted in the Hall that morning, "has shown that you deserve to be given this. Please follow me."
He stood up and led them out of the office, down several corridors, until he stopped in front of a seemingly blank wall.
"For your information, Gryffindor Tower is that way," he gestured down the corridor, "and you should recognise the route here soon enough. Now . . ."
It was when he turned to face the wall that Lily realised that it was not, in fact, as empty as she had originally thought. Just above their heads hung a pair of masks, and Lily recognised the traditional Shakespearian expressions of comedy and tragedy.
"This can often be the difficult part," Dumbledore told them. He reached up and grasped the nose of the tragedy mask. To Lily's shock, the mask did not appear to be made out of metal after all, but a rubbery material which squashed down, like a human nose. For a moment, the mask's cheeks puffed out and the eyes scrunched up, as if trying to hold its breath, and then, with a loud gasp, it expelled what Lily could only assume was air.
"Alright," it said mournfully. "You've got my attention. Password?"
"Waddiwasi," Dumbledore said. The bricks beneath the mask began to wriggle about, some stretching and some shrinking, until they had formed the outline of a stone door. Dumbledore pushed lightly, and the door swung open. The three of them stepped in.
Lily's immediate impression was of warmth and cosiness. Like Dumbledore's office, this too had a warm fire blazing in the stone fireplace, with a soft rug in front. There were two desks in opposite corners, and two sofas facing each other around the fire. As well as this, there were several large cushions lying on the floor and, and a bookcase at the back. Lamps stood everywhere, giving a soft light to the room, and hangings, depicting what looked like legends, were dotted around the walls.
"Nice, is it not?" Dumbledore said cheerfully. "This is the Heads' Common Room."
"Cool," James said. He had walked over the fire and was apparently trying to test the give of the sofa by flinging himself onto it.
"You may use this for your meetings, as of now, and also if you feel that you need some peace." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "I know that some of the inmates of the Common Room can be rather noisy.' He took out two small silver keys. 'These are for your own rooms." For the first time, Lily noticed the two doors at the back of the room. On one door, in curly silver letters, was written Lily Evans, and on the other, James Potter.
"Are we suppose to sleep here?" James asked, shocked.
"Good grief, no. We prefer that you sleep in the Tower, where there are others nearby. No, these are your personal rooms. Should you wish to store anything here, or use it for a specific purpose, you may do so." There was a hint of a smile on his face. "That does not include wild parties, in case you were wondering. However, you may bring friends here, as long as you inform Professor McGonagall or myself of who it is and when, beforehand. We will then judge if it is appropriate. Be warned, we shall know what is going on." He smiled at them. "I shall leave you now, to explore. Goodnight." He let himself out, and Lily heard his feet tapping down the corridor. Lily and James remained, at opposite ends of the room, looking silently around. Feeling suddenly tired, Lily sank onto a large cushion.
Oh God, she thought. This Head Rooms stuff is going to be harder than I thought.
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Another, more pleasant distraction over the next few days, was Sapphire. Emma and Lily did their level best to integrate her into their friendship and shield her from Callie's vicious remarks, and this meant a lot of time spent having long girly chats and getting to lessons early to find seats together. Within those hours that they enjoyed together, Lily began to wonder how any of the comments Callie had made could be true. Admittedly, Sapphire was a half-blood - her mother was a witch, her father a Muggle - and her family was not terribly well off. However, she was funny, and very mischievous, and with her sparkling eyes and glossy hair, Lily failed to see how any boy could ignore her for long. It seemed a little like she was a missing piece to their friendship; a piece that completed the puzzle.
Sapphire's one problem lay with none other than . . . Sirius. Although he had been fairly polite to her the day after the contest, in view of the night before, it soon became clear that he had no intention of giving her an easy ride. What with all the time that Emma spent with Remus, and the occasions that Lily had to discuss Head business with James, a fair proportion of time was consumed where they were at least in the vicinity of the Marauders; and Sirius took full advantage. Within three days, he had tripped Sapphire up eighteen times (Emma had kept count), and twelve of those times, her books had also gone flying. He also managed to knock two bottles of her ink over, sprinkle paper into her hair and accidentally-on-purpose knock a jug of pumpkin juice all over her dinner.
Coupled with all this were the insults, and the teasing that he seemed to have an almost inexhaustible supply of.
"Heathleigh! You intending to go meet Heathcliff later, by any chance?"
"Saffy? Doesn't that sound like Daffy? Are you sure your name isn't Daffodil, or something just as hippy as your real name?"
"So, do you have to mine for sapphires, or do you just find them that dirty naturally?"
Pathetic as these were, Lily and Emma had no explanation for why he had suddenly begun to pick on her after six years of knowing who she was. Despite the fact that Lily's idea of giving him a good kick up the backside was tempting, Sapphire decided to settle for Emma's suggestion of just ignoring him, and taking it in stride. With her easygoing temperament, it did not take too long for this to become a regular pattern, although she still felt hurt when he purposely dug at her.
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One morning that week, the three girls came down to breakfast to find the Hall buzzing with excitement.
"What's going on?" Emma asked, as they slid into their seats. Remus, who was sitting a few spaces away with the rest of the Marauders, answered.
"They're announcing the finalists from the contest after breakfast."
"Oh, cool!" Lily said excitedly.
"How does it work?" Sapphire asked with interest.
"Basically, there'll be a boy and a girl from each year from each house, and they'll be up against the others in their year for the prize. We didn't think it would be fair to pit first-years against seventh-years."
"Correction," James called down the table from where he was sitting. "You didn't think it would be fair. I was perfectly fine with the idea."
Lily gave him an exasperated but amused look, and threw her hands up in defeat. "Okay, fine, I didn't think it was fair. Happy?"
"Of course." James gave her a cheeky grin. "Misrepresentation of facts is a serious crime, and I, for one, am glad I could put this instance right."
"Ooh, Jamesie knows a big word!" Sirius mocked, through a mouthful of bacon. James hit him on the back, and he promptly choked.
Soon enough, as plates began to clear, Daniel Jordan, who seemed to be an unofficial announce as well as commentator, came up to the front and performed an amplifying spell on himself.
"Gooooooooood Mornin', Hogwarts!" his voice boomed, several times louder than usual.
Several students, including Sirius, yelled 'Morning!' back at him.
"I have here the results of the Halloween fancy dress contest. If you're a finalist, just sit tight, and instructions will come your way in a few days. But anyway, since dear old Professor Minniekins is now giving me a dirty look, " McGonagall was indeed glaring at him, "I should get on. So . . . in the first year, Gryffindor finalists will be Rose Johnson and Thomas Brown!" Two shocked squeaks came from the end of the table. "In Slytherin, we have Dylan Grimp and Jakarta Herpes! Ravenclaw: Amy Marione and Tim Tucker . . ." He carried on, despite the gasps that emerged as he named he finalists. Eventually, he reached the sixth years, and Lily began to pay a little more attention. " . . . and Gryffindor, Gemma Nicholson and Jack Stevens! And finally, in seventh year, we have: Ravenclaw: Rosaline Wood and Edward Monhagen! Slytherin: Bellatrix Black and Lucius Malfoy! Hufflepuff: Dominic Ashton and Hilary Darthrite! Gryffindor: Sirius Black and Sapphire Heathleigh! Congratulations to all of you!"
Lily turned to Sapphire, whose face wore a completely shocked expression. "Well done, Saffy!"
"I . . . don't believe it," Sapphire murmured, as Emma hugged her. "This is not happening."
"Yes it is!" Lily shook her. Slowly, a smile tugged at Saphhire's lips.
"I can't believe I got in!"
"Well, you did, and we're proud of ya!" Lily said. She saw Emma's pained expression and grimaced. "I'm never trying an American accent again."
Sapphire looked up the table, where Sirius too was being patted on the back. Beyond him, Callie and Serena were looking more than slightly annoyed, but then her attention was caught by what Sirius was saying.
"Well, yeah, I was hoping that one of us four would win through, but really," he added, raising his eyebrows, "don't you think that there were better costumes around than some Earth woman in an eyesore dress?"
Knowing perfectly well that he had meant her to hear, Sapphire bit her lip and looked down, allowing her hair to swing forward. Moodily, she stabbed at a sausage, imagining it to be Sirius' head.
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It was finally that day, that Emma had a chance to talk to Lily about what she had wanted to say. After dinner, she dragged Sapphire and Lily to the dormitory, ignoring their protests about homework, and pushed them both unceremoniously down in the empty room.
"Okay Em, what's this about?"
Emma twisted her hands. "Do you remember that potion we studied in second year? The really complicated one, that transformed you into other people?"
Lily wrinkled her nose, trying to remember. "The . . . Polyjuice Potion?" she asked at last.
"Yeah." Emma nodded. "Well, - look, don't freak out or anything, but . . . I've made it."
It took a few moments for this to sink in. Even then, Sapphire still looked slightly confused, while Lily's mouth had dropped open. "You what?"
"I made - well, I'm making the potion. It's nearly finished. Look, please stay calm," Emma begged.
"Excuse me?" Lily hissed. "You're making an illegal potion god-knows-where using god-knows-what that you must have stolen from Professor Singrey, since you can't get those ingredients anywhere else, and you tell me to stay calm?"
'I had my reasons,' Emma said defensively. 'Look, Lil, please stay quiet, I don't want anyone hearing.'
Lily opened her mouth to say something, but Sapphire cut her off. She was frowning.
'Emma, you do realise that if you're caught, you'll be risking suspension."
"I said, I had my reasons." Emma looked nettled.
"Ok then," Sapphire said quietly. "What were these reasons? And where did you get the recipe?"
"And why didn't you tell us before?" demanded Lily.
"I got the recipe out of a book in the Restricted Section - Moste Potente Potions, I think it was called; Madam Pince was a bit iffy about me taking it out, even though I showed her proof that I did Defence Against the Dark Arts. I didn't tell you before because . . . it didn't seem like the right time." Emma paused. "As for my reasons . . . When I first started the potion, about three and a half weeks ago, I wanted to find out if Remus liked me. Now, I think . . . I think I just want to know if I can trust him."
Lily still couldn't believe her ears. "Newsflash, Em! If you want to know that, you go ask him! You don't do deceitful stuff like this!"
"Lily, you know what I mean." Emma's tone was pleading, but she was right; Lily did know. Emma had had a wonderful relationship with her father, whom she had adored, until he had walked out of her life, taking one of her younger sisters, when she was ten. She had never forgiven him for leaving the family in ruins, and had problems when it came to trusting the opposite sex, even after seven years. It was reminiscent of a Muggle soap opera, but true.
"The point is, Lily, I need your help. And I don't mean by pouring the potion down the drain."
"How?" Lily snorted. "You want me to transform into someone else and do a little interrogation?"
"Uh . . . yes?"
There was a short silence as Lily mentally replayed Emma's answer in her head, checking that she was not hearing things.
"WHAT?"
"Please Lily," Emma begged imploringly. "I would have done it, but I can't now - I'd give myself away. I need you to."
"Absolutely not."
'Lily, I'm serious. This is the one time I really need your help. Otherwise I'll spend the rest of my life being paranoid about it."
"Even if I could, who'd you expect me to change into? Sirius?" Lily's tone bordered on scathing.
"No," said Emma thoughtfully. 'He's Remus' best friend. He would notice straight away that something was wrong. I was thinking someone more like . . . Keegan Adams."
"What have you been doing, planning this?"
"Yep."
"I still say no."
"Please, Lils?"
Lily rounded on Sapphire. "What do you think?"
"I don't know that this is the most sensible decision . . . but I don't know the full story, so I can't really say." Sapphire eyed them both doubtfully.
Emma looked back at Lily, her eyes wide and pleading. Against her better judgement, Lily gave in.
"I still don't agree with this, but for your sake, I'll do it."
"Oh, thank you Lily! I swear, I'll take the blame, if anything happens."
"You'd better," Lily said grumpily, but it was lost on Emma, who was beaming happily up at the ceiling.
"It'll be ready soon, I'll tell you when."
Lily curled up on the bed, feeling a sudden tension rise.
The outcome of this would not be good.
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A/N: Reviews, anyone?