Lily slumped against the wall, almost a week later. She was almost positive that her left hand was broken, her entire body ached, and blood covered most of her skin. Her hair was ratty, dirty, and knotted. She closed her eyes. With no windows and definitely no calendar, she had no idea how long she'd been there.
The worst of her torture was the mental kind. The Dementors, who would periodically enter the cell and force her to relive her most awful memories, were consistently making her replay horrible moments of her past, especially James being hit with the curse in Hogsmeade. Dear Orion Black was constantly entering, polyjuicing other prisoners to look like her friends and boyfriend while he did terrible things to them.
She was starving, and she was positive she had lost quite a bit of weight. She thought of her friends, and the urge to continue filled her veins, albeit dully. She wanted to give up, so badly. Even her friends weren't quite enough to live for. She pictured James in her mind, smiling that grin that was meant just for her. Suddenly, a brilliant smile spread across her cracked, dry lips. She would fight, and she would win.
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"I'm coming with you, damn it!" James shouted, slamming his fists onto the Headmaster's desk. The Aurors around him, including his father, all flinched backward, surprised that a teenage boy was yelling at the greatest wizard that ever lived.
"Mr. Potter, I'm afraid you cannot."
"I HAVE TO!"
"JAMES!" his father shouted. "SIT DOWN!"
"NO! I love her, and I'm coming with you. Please, just let me come. I can stay covered or something, but I need to be the one to take her home."
His sentence had begun furiously but ended softly, desperately.
Dumbledore looked at him, and slowly nodded. "But, you will remain covered."
James grinned, settling into a chair and listening to the briefing for the mission. He was getting his Snapdragon back.
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Dear Daughter,
Your father and I have decided to take you away from Hogwarts. You are obviously not doing well in your courses. It seems to me that you are far too distracted, and for this reason we will be sending you to your great aunt's house in New York. We will be picking you up tomorrow evening. Do not try to fight us, because we will win. Be a dear and just do as you're told for once.
Sincerely,
Mother
Delilah read the letter, her eyes filling with tears. She was leaving Hogwarts and leaving the country. She would never know if Lily was okay. She wouldn't be there when Lily got back. And she would never get to patch things up with Sirius.
"Delilah?" Loraina asked softly, stepping into the room. "What are you reading?"
Delilah hugged her blonde friend tightly, as Loraina stumbled back in surprise. "I'm going to miss you."
"What are you talking about?" Loraina said, pulling away.
Delilah handed her the letter and Loraina gasped. "NO!"
"I don't want to go," Delilah cried, tears falling down her face. "But I have to."
"Both of my best friends," Loraina whispered. "Both of my best friends will be gone."
"I'll miss you so, so much," Delilah mumbled, hugging her again. They held onto each other tightly, before linking arms and walking down into the common room, where they sat on their favorite couch. "I can't believe I'm leaving."
"Where are you going?" Remus asked curiously as he came up from behind the couch.
"New York," Loraina and Delilah said dully, in unison. He blinked and then gaped at them.
"You can't be serious?"
"I am," Delilah said, her voice a mere whisper.
Remus hugged his sister figure tightly and grabbed Loraina's hand. "It'll be okay. You'll be back in a couple of months, as soon as you turn seventeen."
"Yeah," she whispered. "Just...ninety days or so."
"Ninety days until what?" Sirius said as he bounded up. He took a look at the somber faces and backed up slightly. "Woah. Who died?"
Loraina glared at him. Delilah huffed, got up, and walked away. Sirius looked around in confusion, shrugged, and walked up to the dorms. This left Loraina and Remus alone in awkward silence. He had been avoiding her ever since he saw her and James, innocent as it had been.
"So..." Loraina said, elongating the word and allowing it to trail off.
"So."
"Look, Remus, it wasn't like that, not at all..."
"Yeah. I know," he said, scratching the back of his neck.
"Then why have you been avoiding me?"
"Because I was being an idiot, thinking that you and James were going behind my back, and then when I realized I was wrong, I was too embarassed to talk to you."
Loraina giggled and hugged him, closing the gap between them. "You're too cute."
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James was preparing for the mission the next day when Delilah came into his room, dragging her trunk behind her. She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a black sweatshirt, her hair pulled up into a messy ponytail, no makeup on her features, and a sad expression on her face. He dropped his backpack and cocked his head to the side.
"I'm leaving," she said quietly.
"What?"
"My parents are sending me to New York."
"But..why?" he spluttered.
"They think that I'm not learning enough here or something. I'll be back in February, I think."
"But what about Lily? You can't just leave before she's found."
"Write me, okay? When you find her. Because I know that you will. And good luck on your mission, James. But I have to go. Maybe it'll be good for me."
"You're abandoning all of us when we need you the most!" James suddenly shouted at her. She had been halfway out the door when she turned glared at him.
"I am not abandoning you! I have no choice!"
"You always have a choice!" he yelled. She gritted her teeth while he continued to yell. "Some friend you are, leaving the country when your best friend is being tortured somewhere!"
"SHUT UP!" she screamed. "You have no idea how much pressure they can put on you! You have no clue how much I want to be here, Potter, and you have no idea how fucking upset I am! You have no fucking clue what it's like to be me! You don't know me, you don't live my life, so before you do, don't fucking judge me!"
With that, she grabbed her trunk and stormed out of the room.
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Loraina and Delilah walked down to the train, just the two of them. The two girls had their arms linked, keeping hold with everything in them. Remus and Delilah had said their goodbyes in the castle, and she wasn't saying goodbye to James or Sirius. Hell, Sirius didn't even know she was leaving.
"Don't make any new best friends in New York," Loraina joked. Even joking couldn't put a smile on their faces.
"Wouldn't dream of it," Delilah said dully. When they reached the huge train, where Delilah would be the only occupant, she closed her eyes, breathing in for a moment. "I'll miss this place."
"And this place will miss you. I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you, too, Raina."
The train let out a whistle, and the girls embraced. They pulled apart and smiled sadly at each other, letting the tears in their eyes flow down their faces.
"I guess this is goodbye then?" Delilah asked, biting her lip.
"Nah," Loraina said, a true grin breaking out on her face, "it's just see you later."
"See you later, then, Loraina."
"See you, Delilah."
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James threw his backpack over his shoulder and clapped Sirius and Remus on the backs.
"I should be back tomorrow."
"Bring her back, James."
"I will," James said to Remus, a determination in his eyes.
"God, I've said too many goodbyes today," Remus said sadly, slumping against the couch.
"Who else have you said goodbye to?" Sirius inquired, looked puzzled.
"Delilah, of course," James scoffed. "Is she already gone?" Remus nodded. "I feel terrible. We got in a huge shouting match before she left."
"Wait. Delilah left?!" Sirius yelped.
"Yeah, mate," Remus said slowly. "I thought you knew. Her parents shipped her off to New York City."
"And she's already gone?"
"Yeah, she's gone."
Sirius swallowed, running a hand down his face with a groan. The clock chimed and James looked around wildly.
"It's time for me to go, guys."
"See you later, Prongs," Remus grinned. "And when you come back, I fully expect a redhead on your arm."
"You bet."
James exited the Heads' common room with his shoulders squared and a deliberance in his step. He was going to get his girl back, whatever it took.
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Delilah rested her head tiredly against the cool glass of the train. She was sitting in the compartment she had sat in with her friends on the way to school in September. December was just beginning, and she slumped against the seat as she watched the chilly landscape travel past.
She wondered if she should have told Sirius she was leaving. Delilah wasn't sure if she would have wanted to say goodbye; it would have made their breakup that much more final. She grabbed her guitar out of her trunk and strummed away in the privacy of the compartment. She looked up, as she had in September, expecting to find Sirius staring at her intensely. She didn't, obviously, and found herself sighing in disappointment before resuming her strumming.
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Lily groaned, lying on the cold stone floor of her cell. Her beatings had gotten much worse, the curses harsher, and the dementors more frequent. She slowly began to close her eyes, letting the sweet blackness engulf her.
She awoke to a loud commotion. The Death Eaters were rushing about, seemingly in surprise and defense. Lily attempted to lift her head, but found that she could not summon the energy to do so. She let sleep overtake her once more, the ache of her body the only thing on her mind.
