For the big sis/lil sis comp. As the big sister, I used the prompts pairing: James/Lily, color: green and the word: friends.
Allie, this is Sam.
.
Lily's hands shake as she opens the letter with crimson writing. She tries to prepare herself for what the letter might say because she knows what these letters are – death letters. But nothing can prepare her for the emotions that overtake her as she scans it.
Clutching the letter tightly in her hand, she can feel her friend's eyes on her as she flees from the hall without a word. She only stops when she reaches the Gryffindor Common Room. Before she can climb the steps of the dormitories, a pair of arms are wrapping around her waist. She twists in the arms, struggling to get loose, but her struggles only cause the arms to hold her more tightly.
"Shh," a deep, soothing voice murmurs in her ear. She looks up at her capturer, and sees James. She goes limp in his arms, sobs wracking her body as James rubs circles on her back. He doesn't say anything to her; he just holds her until her tears subside.
Nothing is said between the two for a while. But eventually, Lily whispers, "My parents. He killed them." Her body shakes with anger, and tears threaten to fall again. "They are –," she breaks off before correcting herself, "were Muggles. They couldn't defend themselves. But hedidn't care about that."
She feels James shake his head. "No, he doesn't," he agrees softly. She glances up at him, her green eyes shimmering with unshed tears. He wants to tell her that he's sorry about her parents. He wants to tell her that it'll be okay, but he knows that neither are things that she wants to hear right now.
"This isn't right," she murmurs. His sound of agreement goes unnoticed by her. "He needs to be stopped. He can't continue to go on like this, killing whoever he wants because they don't agree with his ideals." There's a long pause before she speaks again. "I want to fight him. I want to help end this."
"It's dangerous," he whispers. No matter how dangerous it is, James finds that he really can't tell her that she shouldn't. Because he knows her as well as he knows himself, and she's going to fight regardless of what people tell her.
A fierce look crosses her face. "More dangerous than just sitting around and waiting for him to come attack me? Because, if you don't remember, I'm a Muggleborn. I'm already in danger of that."
James has no argument for that. "You could get killed," he says after a pause. And by the tone in his voice, Lily knows that it isn't an argument to try and stop her; it's a statement to help her realize what's at stake.
"I could get killed if I do nothing. At least this way, I know that I'm doing what's right," she replies softly. "I just don't want him to kill any more innocent people."
Tightening his hold on her, he whispers, "I know, Lil. I know."
A/n – so many thanks to Joanna for beta-ing this for me!