Be Here Now

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, as much as I wish that I did.

A/N: I had a sort of glitch with chapter six, so this might seem fast, but I uploaded six yesterday, it just didn't show up. :/

Sapphire Leo: Thank you for the criticism. Yes, I've noticed that I didn't exactly go into so much detail, but that was partially intended. I didn't want to put too much at the beginning because I like to have a bit of a mystery surrounding the characters at first, but slowly everything gets cleared up. I'm sorry if any of you are confused, but you can ask me. Yes, I think I'll start to slow down. Well, thanks for reviewing. I don't hate you; I hoped to see something to help me improve this. Marlene isn't as much an OC as Hilary is, but I think their personalities will be revealed more, thanks to your review. :D Yes he is. I'm also sad that he does, but I have an idea for the sequel (which isn't definite that I'll write yet) that might go into action, and I need Peter to be a Death Eater for that. :/ As for how far I'll go… we'll see. Thank you for reviewing and giving me tips for making it better!

Potterhead4eva: Ha-ha, yep! I love cliffhangers. :D

Eclare LJ and Percabeeth: Thank you! Actually, when I received your review, I was almost finished with this chapter. :D

Neogirl31: Finally he realized what a complete prat he was. Sorry for the confusion! :'(

And now… chapter seven!

x.o.x.o.x.

"Lily…"

Lily tosses a glance at James. "I don't want to talk about it, Potter," she says abruptly, standing. "It's late; excuse me. Goodnight."

James stares helplessly after the redhead, wondering where he had gone wrong.

x.o.x.o.x.

"Why is she ignoring me?" James whines at breakfast the next morning. The ceiling of the Great Hall is clouded in grey, promising rain later that day. The air smelled of rain as well.

Sirius glances at his mate incredulously. "Are you that daft?"

"I am not daft!" protests James. "I just want to know why she's ignoring me!"

Remus' amber eyes wander the hall for a moment. "Perhaps that's why," he says quietly, gazing at a scene.

Sirius follows his eyes first and gasps.

James, staring at his best mates as if they were mad, also turns to gaze at where his friends' gazes were pointed.

In the doorway, his twin sister, friend, and girlfriend are involved in a loud fight. Jumping up, James strides over.

"What in bloody hell is going on here?" he roars angrily.

Lily glares at him under her eyelids and finally succeeds in pulling the two other girls apart. "That was uncalled for, Maya! If I weren't Head Girl, I swear on Merlin's name that I would curse you into the next millennium! Fifty points from Hufflepuff for calling Hilary inappropriate, vile names, and another ten for purposely attacking the Head Girl! Twenty points from Gryffindor for responding to the attack."

"Lils-!"

"Hilary, I swear that if I weren't Head Girl, I'd risk getting in detention for attacking her," Lily answers. "Don't argue."

"Now perhaps you can explain why you were attacking my girlfriend, Hils," James butts in.

Hilary glares at him. "Only my friends and parents and cousins call me Hils. Not my betraying twin brother," she spits.

"Hilary-!"

"Don't speak to me! Why don't you go around insulting Muggle-borns and half-bloods and purebloods apparently she thinks are lowerclassmen," Hilary shrieks, and runs out of the Great Hall just before tears begin falling down her face.

James stares after her in amazement.

Lily glares at him and Maya with contempt and disgust. "For awhile there I thought you were okay, Potter. Apparently I was mistaken. This is exactly why I've been rejecting you for nearly seven years now," she says, disgusted. Her parting words are, "Blood is thicker than water." She races off after Hilary.

x.o.x.o.x.

Lily finds Hilary staring into the grey skies, tears slipping down her cheeks. Her face is tilted up, but the tears slip down fast anyway. Lily approaches slowly and cautiously.

"Hilary," she says softly. She knows Hilary enough to tell that this isn't because she took off twenty points.

Hilary glances down, away from the skies, but refuses to meet Lily's eyes. She sighs. "I think it's time for me to tell you," she says in a voice that breaks Lily's heart.

Lily nods silently, sitting down beside Hilary.

"Please don't interrupt me," pleads Hilary.

"Anything," Lily promises earnestly. She means it.

Hilary breathes in deeply. "I was four years old when I first met Naomi Riley. She goes to Beauxbatons. Our parents were amazing friends, but t-they fell out when I turned ten and Isabel was born. Naomi and I became the closest friends you could imagine. We were practically sisters. We did everything together. Talked about dolls, talked about our brothers and parents, the works. But when we turned ten… When we turned ten, she turned into a right bitch. Turned on me, telling my parents stuff I did that fell against their rules, and made up extreme things I never did and would ever do. The year before I came to Hogwarts was truly the worst year of my life to date. I felt so betrayed by her. We were friends for six years. At our primary school, she became friends with the resident Queens of Mean. For the year before I went off to Hogwarts, she tormented me, teased me, and spilled some of my darkest secrets for the whole school to know. It was terrible. During that time the only person I could rely on was James. He was always there when I was down to comfort me, to soothe me, to assure me that everything would be alright. He was always there when I was up to celebrate alongside me, to enjoy life with me. No matter what the weekly rumors were swirling around about me, James never believed them. He always defended me. He always was on my side, fighting for me. He was the only one I could be sure that would always be there for me. Even after…" She pauses, drawing in a deep breath. "Even after her fell in love with you, I felt sure he would always believe me, always protect me, and always be my brother. I was wrong."

Lily shifts uncomfortably as Hilary stated that James loved her, but shook it off quickly as Hilary continued her story.

"I was wrong. So, so wrong. Deadly wrong. Even after James became a stupid player, putting you down like that, I still believed he was my brother and would act the same way as he had in primary school forever. How wrong I was. Once he began dating Maya, he changed. He changed into a completely different person. Today, for the first time in seventeen long years, he took Maya's side. He took his girlfriend's side over mine, his twin sister's!" Hilary drops her head into her hands, sobbing.

Lily feels sympathetic toward Hilary. She leans forward and embraces Hilary tightly. "Sh, it is okay, Hils. You still have Marlene, Alice, and I. We are also your sisters, and I swear that I will forever be by your side."

Hilary lifts her tearstained face and smiles a watery smile, leaning into Lily's embrace. "Thank you," she whispers.

From the heavens, the goddess of Love smiles down at the pair. She didn't just work on romantic love. "See that? That is a true friendship," she says fondly to the other gods and goddesses. "They will be together through thick and thin."

x.o.x.o.x.

The girls return back to the Gryffindor Common Room, bumping James into a red chintz armchair on the way.

"What the hell was that for?" James yells angrily.

Two pairs of identical hazel eyes meet each other, blazing fire.

"Does the name Naomi Riley mean anything to you?" Hilary asks coldly before disappearing up the girls' dormitory stairs.

Lily glares at James with contempt. "Wonderful job, Potter, wonderful job," she spits before following Hilary.

x.o.x.o.x.

Later, Hilary tells Marlene and Alice the same story.

Marlene looks at Hilary sadly. "That is so terrible, Hils. My life has been so secure and protected; I feel so bad."

Hilary opens her mouth to reply, but before she can, an owl taps the window.

Alice walks over, her round face curious. "Breakfast was ages ago, why is your owl here now, Marl?"

Marlene shrugs, walking past Alice to grab the owl. "Thanks," she grins at the owl, and it hoots, flying away.

"Open it!" encourages Hilary, thoughts of contradicting Marlene's earlier statement gone.

Dearest Marlene,

It is with great regret that I inform you of your half-sisters and half-brothers. Your sister, Stacey, was as shocked as I expect you to be. No, I am not the mother. Your father was their father, actually. He has two daughters with another woman and three sons with the same woman. He had an affair on me, Marl. We have decided to separate for a certain period of time for a little while, but divorce is not positive yet. I am feeling very hurt; therefore I cannot forgive him just yet. Please try to understand, Marl, please. There is no need for you to write back; I know what your reaction is bound to be. Stay safe, my darling daughter, and believe in what you believe.

Love always,

Mum

Marlene stares at the letter.

Alice looks over her shoulder. "Oh, Marl," she sighs.

"That must have been an omen," an incredulous Lily cries.

Marlene shakes her head. "I knew," she whispers. "I knew."

And she goes on to relive the discovery to her friends.

Flashback

A younger Marlene walks into her seemingly silent home after Hogwarts. She walks softly and cautiously toward her father's office door. As close as Marlene and Mr. McKinnon were, no one was allowed in his office.

"Dad? I'm home!" Marlene calls.

There are scuffles for quite a while, and then finally Mr. McKinnon emerges from his office, looking quite scary.

"How many times must I tell you not to come near my office, Marlene?" he yells.

Marlene stares at him in shock. "Dad!"

Mr. McKinnon calms down quite quickly. "I'm sorry, Marl dear, but I was busy."

Marlene narrows her eyes suspiciously. "With that?"

Mr. McKinnon scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Well, you see…"

Without waiting for further explanation, Marlene pushes past her father, eliciting a stream of protests. Inside the office is a haphazardly dressed young woman. At her age, Marlene knew.

"FATHER! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO MUM?" she screams angrily.

Mr. McKinnon comes in, flustered. "Marlene, dear, please don't mention this to your mother!"

Marlene glares at her father. "Such a Hufflepuff thing to do, Father, becoming a coward. Now Gryffindors like Mum and I own up to things we do… or commit. I will not tell her now, but if this… this woman doesn't get out by the time Mum comes home and stays out, I will tell her. Everything."

End of Flashback

"Oh, Marl, your life was not perfect. No one's is," Hilary comforts.

"That slag! How dare she!" exclaims Lily.

Marlene smiles, eyes bright with tears. "Thank you. You are the best friends I could ever have."

The four girls engage in a tight group hug.

"To our sisterhood," Lily says softly.

"To our sisterhood."

x.o.x.o.x.

A/N: Okay, not so much of a cliffhanger this time, but it was cheesy, kind of. Just to tell you, this fanfic will contain more drama than fluff. I'm planning a sequel that's kind of AU, even though it's early, but we'll see. Reviews are appreciated. Until chapter eight…

~TrueLoveis4ever