I spent the next days at Neil's bedside, only leaving at night, and for meals. Will and Jake stayed with me, trying to cheer me up. Their attempts didn't work, however; Neil hadn't recovered.
Scorpius had been punished severely, getting detention, and being threatened to be expelled. Though I knew he deserved it, I felt a twinge of regret; this was all my fault. If he had only told me sooner about his feelings, this would all have been so different.
Neil's parents were going to arrive that day. How they were going to enter the castle, being muggles, was beyond me. I was anticipating meeting his mother, since she was my favorite author, but my worries about Neil overpowered my excitement.
"Lily?"
I looked up, seeing Jake and Will standing there. I blinked. "Yes?" My voice cracked slightly from disuse.
"We should go down," Will said quietly. "You've been here all morning... aren't you hungry?"
I shook my head, my gaze resting on Neil's unconscious body again. "I suppose we should go down." My voice was distant, and I got up, stretching.
Madam Pomfrey came bustling over. "Good, I was just about to tell you to leave." She narrowed her eyes. "You shouldn't be spending so much time here, Ms Potter."
I shrugged. "Is he... recovering?" My usual question.
She didn't reply, just nodded. I sighed, and turned away. "I'll be back," I whispered, stroking Neil's cheek for a moment. He didn't move; I hadn't expected him to.
The three of us walked down the corridors in silence. I didn't mind very much, but I felt guilty for being so distant to Will and Jake. "How do you think his parents are getting in? They're muggles, aren't they?"
Will raised an eyebrow. "Muggles? Only his father is! Jane is a witch!"
My eyes widened. "What? How is that possible...?" I felt stupid for not have knowing this before.
Jake rolled his eyes. "Just because she lives like a muggle doesn't make her one." He laughed. "I don't think his father is coming- can't get by the protection."
I blinked, still in shock from the news. "A witch... I never suspected anything."
Will and Jake suddenly stopped walking, and I looked up.
"What do you want?" Will snarled, his wand out instantly.
Scorpius narrowed his eyes. "Lily, I have to talk to you." His voice was urgent, and he didn't even look at the others.
"She doesn't want to talk to you," Jake snapped. "Haven't you done enough damage? You almost killed Neil!"
I hesitated. "What is it, Scorpius?" I asked cooly, meeting his gaze.
"I want to talk to you," he repeated, a flicker of annoyance crossing his face. "Alone."
Would that hurt anyone? I didn't think so. "Fine," I said through gritted teeth. "I'll meet you in the Great Hall."
Jake and Will looked outraged, but they nodded, stalking off.
Scorpius was silent, staring at me for a long while.
"What is it?" I asked again, meeting his gaze.
He hesitated. "I'm sorry," he blurted out. "I shouldn't have.. you know..."
I was silent. "Why did you do it, Scorpius?" My voice was barely a whisper.
"I don't know," he sighed. "It was a sudden impulse... I was jealous..."
A flicker of annoyance flashed through me. "Scorpius, your apology won't fix what you did." I was surprised at my own bravery. "But... if he does get better, you should try to apologize to him instead."
His eyes narrowed. "Never." He angrily clenched his hands into fists. "He stole what was mine."
"I was never yours," I protested.
He angrily turned away. "So this is it? This is the end of our friendship together. I see that you'd choose him over me."
"Don't be thick," I retorted. "You might have killed him! Am I supposed to just pretend nothing ever happened?"
He whipped around. "I didn't mean to hurt him," he snarled, making me flinch. "You know what? I don't care anymore. You can just forget about me; keep hanging out with him." Without another word, he stalked off, leaving me alone.
Silently I watched him go. "I will," I called after him. I didn't think he heard me.
A/N:
I want to wrap this fic up, so that I can start new ones in the summer. School's almost out, yay! New chapter soon, and sorry for this short chapter.
~Cloudsong
