The night of Friday, September 18th, 2020 would see a major rift between Lily's boys and Lily's girls.
It all began with Lily receiving a piece of unusually timed mail.
It was dinnertime at Hogwarts and James, Hugo, Devon, Ainsley, Samantha, Stephanie, and Lily were all sitting in a row at one part of the Gryffindor table.
Fred and Roxanne were both absent from dinner as George had had a mishap with a new product he was testing for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and Fred and Roxanne were currently visiting him in St. Mungo's.
As Lily and company all chowed down on hot dogs and onion rings, a cotangent of six Hogwarts barn owls swooped down over them and dropped a long thin package directly onto Lily's lap.
Lily felt immensely curious about what could be in this package and she abandoned her dinner to open it.
Inside the package was a racing broom. This particular racing broom happened to be the newest broom on the market. It was the ZoomBroom. The ZoomBroom had been introduced over the summer and was fairly rare as its production was still in the early stages.
The ZoomBroom outshone the best of the old Firebolt models by better than three times as it had an acceleration capacity of 0 MPH to 500 MPH in in ten seconds, an incredible 50 MPH per second. The ZoomBroom also was the most lightweight broom ever invented. It was magnificent to look at as well in its glossy bold black color.
Though the ZoomBroom cost over a thousand galleons, the Potters could afford them. However, their rarity had prevented them for procuring even one as Quality Quidditch Supplies only got about one in per week and there was always some wealthy Quidditch fanatic to gobble it up quickly.
Let here it now was in her hands, a ZoomBroom, the best broom ever made.
"I can't believe my good luck!" said Lily ecstatically, "This is the best broom in the world and it's rare and now I have one. This is totally awesome baby!"
"Do you know who sent it?' asked James nervously.
"No," said Lily matter of factly, "No note or letter came with it. It would be nice to know who sent it so I could thank him or her for it, but the bottom line is I now own the best broom in the world and I'm on cloud nine!"
James shot a nervous look at both Hugo and Devon, who both returned the uncomfortable looks. James, Devon, and Hugo all knew what the other two were thinking.
"I can't wait to see you ride your new ZoomBroom Lily," said Stephanie eagerly, "You pretty much glide on air on any broom as it is so..."
"Combine the best flier at Hogwarts with the best broom in the world," grinned Samantha with anticipation, "It's going to awesome to watch Lily ride her ZoomBroom."
"Hey, Lily, when are you planning your first ZoomBroom ride?" asked Ainsley briskly.
"Tomorrow morning after breakfast," said Lily with anticipation in her voice.
James, Devon, and Hugo were becoming more and more uncomfortable.
Why would someone send Lily something that nice and that expensive and do so anonymously?
It was always possible that a family member/friend of Lily's wanted to do something really nice for Lily without taking credit for it. It was also possible that a Gryffindor supporter who wanted Gryffindor to have every advantage possible but didn't want any limelight himself or herself had sent it.
But it seemed and felt more likely to Lily's boys that something sinister was going on here. Brooms could always be cursed or tampered with and there would be plenty of people out there who would have motivation to do so.
There could be someone who wanted to gain fame by killing Harry Potter's daughter. Sending a cursed broom anonymously would be a way to succeed in doing so and the murderer could take credit for the crime later.
Then there was always the possibility that someone mean and nasty who just didn't like Lily, such as Phillip Edgecombe, wanted to see her get hurt and sending her a tampered broom gave them a good chance of seeing that happen.
And, of course, they couldn't dismiss the possibility that a hardcore Slytherin, Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff fan just wanted to put the Gryffindor Seeker out of commission to improve their own house's chances for the 2019-2020 Quidditch Cup.
With so many possibilities, James, Hugo, and Devon gave each other looks that told each other quite plainly, "We are not going to let Lily ride that broom yet."
Lily put the ZoomBroom down and finished her dinner with the rest. Apple pie was served for dessert.
After dessert, Lily picked up her new ZoomBroom and galloped back to the Gryffindor Common Room tailed by Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie.
James, Hugo, and Devon, however, did not leave the Great Hall after dessert. Instead they approached the staff table.
James, Hugo, and Devon saw their Head of House, Professor Longbottom, and James spoke to him.
"Professor Longbottom?" asked James urgently, "Can we have a word? We have a serious concern and it needs immediate attention."
"I'll come speak to you at the Gryffindor table," said Professor Longbottom.
Professor Longbottom followed James, Hugo, and Devon to the Gryffindor table and took a seat opposite them.
"What is your concern and why is it so urgent?" asked Professor Longbottom intently.
"We're worried about Lily," said James uneasily, "She was sent a ZoomBroom anonymously and we don't want her to fly it right away as it is impossible to know who the sender was or what his/her intent was."
"It's always possible that an enemy of the Potter family wants to kill Lily and by doing it anonymously avoid getting in legal trouble for it," said Hugo in a worried voice.
"Or that someone wishes to gain fame by killing Harry Potter's daughter," added Devon with concern in his voice, "Going about it in an anonymous and discrete way would ensure a greater chance of success and the person could take the credit and get the fame later."
"And we can't discount the possibility that a Ravenclaw, Slytherin, or Hufflepuff fan hopes to hurt Gryffindor's Seeker in the hope of damaging Gryffindor's chances in the Quidditch Cup this year," added James.
"So, you think the ZoomBroom is cursed?" asked Professor Longbottom.
"We have to take that possibility seriously," said James firmly, "There are other possibilities. However, we have to assume the worst. I do NOT want Lily riding that broom unless it is checked out first."
"Nor do we," chorused Hugo and Devon.
"Very well then, I will take the ZoomBroom and see to it that it gets checked out. If it is jinx/curse free, then Miss Potter may have it back," promised Professor Longbottom.
James, Hugo, and Devon all let out immense sighs of relief and all four of them headed back to the Gryffindor Common Room.
Upon entering, they found Lily sitting on a sofa with her new ZoomBroom spread across her lap just taking it in with a huge grin.
Samantha, Stephanie, and Ainsley were all admiring the ZoomBroom as well, looking at it with wide smiles.
"So, this is it?" Professor Longbottom asked Lily, "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, and Mr. Dursley have informed me that you were sent a ZoomBroom anonymously."
"Indeed," said Lily simply.
"Miss Potter," said Professor Longbottom calmly, picking up the ZoomBroom, "I am going to have to take this. It must be inspected for curses and jinxes before it may be ridden. If it proves curse/jinx free, then you may have it back."
Professor Longbottom quickly left Gryffindor Tower to avoid any potential argument with Lily. But it wasn't Lily who was mad.
'YOU ASSHOLES!" Samantha screamed at James, Hugo, and Devon, "LILY HAD THE GREATEST AND RAREST BROOM IN THE WORLD AND NOW BECAUSE YOU FUCKING JERKS INTERFERRED IT'S GONE! I'VE NEVER SEEN PEOPLE BE WORSE FRIENDS IN MY LIFE!"
"YOU THREE BASTARDS!" Stephanie shouted at James, Devon, and Hugo, "NOT ONLY HAVE YOU BETRAYED LILY BUT THE ENTIRE GRYFFINDOR TEAM! DEVON, WESLEY SHOULD KICK YOU OFF THE TEAM WHEN HE FINDS OUT WHAT YOU DID! I WILL SUGGEST THIS TO HIM! HE FOR ONE, DOES CARE ABOUT GRYFFINODR!"
'HOW DARE YOU three BE A TURNCOAT TO YOUR OWN BIG SISTER, COUSIN, AND SECOND COUSIN," Ainsley yelled at James, Hugo, and Devon.
After Samantha, Stephanie, and Ainsley had stopped yelling, James, Hugo, and Devon attempted to explain where they were coming from.
"You have to be suspicious of any rare and expensive gift that is sent anonymously," said James defensively, "If Lily had ridden that broom and it had proven to be jinxed or cursed and Lily had gotten killed or seriously hurt, I could have never have lived with myself for not getting involved, knowing my suspicions."
"You have to remember that the Potters have a lot of enemies who would like nothing more than to finish one of them off," explained Hugo, "Sending a cursed broom anonymously would be a perfect avenue to achieve such a thing,"
"Consider too that murdering Harry Potter's daughter would be a great way for a fame seeker to get what he or she wants. They could have set it up in this way hoping that it works now with the idea of taking the credit later," said Devon clearly.
"Consider also that the opposing houses supporters would have a reason to not want Lily to be able to play in the Quidditch matches this season," suggested James, "A Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin fanatic could have facilitated sending Lily a jinxed broom in the hopes of knocking Gryffindor's Seeker out of the Quidditch season."
"With all those possibilities, it would have been horribly irresponsible for those of us who are suspicious not to have acted," said Hugo fiercely.
"Exactly," agreed James and Devon.
"DON'T TRY TO DEFEND YOUR BACKSTABBING WAYS!" roared Samantha, "ALL THREE OF YOU HAVE SLAPPED LILY IN THE FACE BY YOUR MEDDLING!"
"YOU THREE HAVE ALL SLAPPED GRYFFINODR IN THE FACE AS WELL!" bellowed Stephanie, "WE COULD HAVE HAD A ZOOMBROOM ON OUR TEAM AND THANKS TO YOU THREE INTERFERING BASATRDS WE'VE LOST THAT OPPORTUNITY!"
"FUCK ALL THREE OF YOU BUT ESPICALLY FUCK DEVON. YOUR BETRAYAL IS THE WORST BECAUSE YOU ARE ACTUALLY ON THE GRYFFINDOR TEAM!" yelled Ainsley, "STEPHANIE IS RIGHT! DEVON SHOUD BE OFF THE TEAM!"
Samantha mouthed "CC" under her breath to Stephanie and Ainsley and they got the hint.
Samantha pointed her wand at James, Stephanie pointed her wand at Devon, and Ainsley pointed her wand at Hugo.
"Crucio!" cried Samantha, Stephanie, and Ainsley at the same time.
James, Hugo, and Devon all screamed involuntarily, then dropped to the floor as they withered in pain.
After the curse wore off, James, Hugo, and Devon stood up only to have had Samantha, Stephanie, and Ainsley throw heavy dictionaries at them and hit them in the back.
Finally, Samantha screamed, 'THIS IS WHAT WE TRUE GRYFFINDORS THINK OF THE FUCKING TRAITORS!" and Samantha, Stephanie, and Ainsley each took turns spitting in James's, Devon's, and Hugo's faces so that each was spat on three times. Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie then stormed out of the common room and headed for their own rooms.
James turned to Lily, who was still sitting on the couch, and pleaded for her to understand.
"Lily," said James in a low and uneasy voice, "Look, we."
But he couldn't seem to think of what to say.
Lily drew herself up off the couch and now stood facing the three people she was closest to.
Seeing the nervous looks on James's, Hugo's, and Devon's faces and knowing perfectly well how Ainsley, Stephanie, and Samantha had just treated them, Lily walked up to James, Hugo, and Devon one at a time and gave them each massive hugs.
James, Hugo, and Devon felt instantly relived. Lily was not angry with them.
"James, Hugo, and Devon," said Lily in a kind and gentle voice, "Thank you. Thank you for caring enough about me to take your concerns to Professor Longbottom. I was so excited to receive a ZoomBroom that I got caught up in it and it didn't even register with me that maybe I should be more cautious with an anonymous gift, especially a rare and expensive one. Thank you for looking after me and stopping me from doing something really stupid. The ZoomBroom may be cursed or it may be okay. Either way, getting it checked out before anyone rides it is the only sensible way to go."
James, Hugo, and Devon all gave Lily small smiles.
"James, Hugo, Devon," continued Lily, "You three proved by looking out for me by going to Professor Longbottom how much you care about me and how you love me and I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate that."
"We couldn't have lived with ourselves if we hadn't taken action and you had gotten hurt or worse," said James firmly.
"Don't worry about the girls, "said Lily, "once they have calmed down from their initial reaction, I hope they will understand."
No such luck would occur.
Next morning when James, Hugo, and Devon tried to greet Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie in the common room, the girls gave the boys very dirty looks and walked away without a word. When the girls saw that Lily seemed to be supporting the boys, they gave her dirty looks as well. And that wasn't the end of it.
At breakfast, Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie chose seats as far away from James, Hugo, Devon, and Lily as possible.
But the depths of how angry the girls were with the boys and how deep the rift ran wouldn't be fully seen until the morning mail came.
three owls swooped down and dropped red envelopes on the laps of James, Hugo, and Devon.
James, Hugo, and Devon knew at once that these were Howlers and that it would be worse if they didn't open them straight away and so they did.
James's Howler featured Stephanie's earsplitting voice.
JAMES SIRIUS POTTER YOU INTEFERING ASSHOLE! YOU ARE THE WORST BROTHER ANY GIRL COULD HOPE FOR! POOR LILY MUST BE CURSED TO BE STUCK WITH YOU AS A SIBLING! AND YOU 'VE SCREWED GRYFFINDOR OVER AS WELL! I DO NOT EVER WANT TO TALK TO YOU OR HANG OUT WITH YOU AGAIN! YOU FUCKING TURNCOAT! NEITHER DO SAMANTHA AND AINSLEY! YOU HAVE FOREFITED OUR FREINDSHIP FOREVER!
Hugo's Howler was bellowed by Samantha.
HUGO GRANGER WEASLEY! YOU ARE A TERRIBLE FRIEND AND A TERRIBLE COUSIN! LILY HAS TRUSTED YOU ALL OF BOTH OF YOUR LIVES AND YOU BREECHED THAT TRUST WITH YOUR INEXCUSBLE MEDDLING! LILY SHOULD RENOUNCE YOU AND DECLARE YOU ARE NO COUSIN OF HERS! AND THE WAY YOU BETRAYED GRYYFINDOR BY STICKING YOUR NOSE WHERE IT DOESN'T BELONG IS JUST AS BAD! I DON'T EVER WANT TO SPEAK WITH YOU AGAIN NOR DEAL WITH YOU IN ANY SHAPE WAY OR FORM! NEITHER DO STEPHANIE AND AINSLEY! YOU HAVE FOREFITED OUR FREINDSHIP FOREVER!
Devon's Howler had Ainsley's venting.
DEVON DUDLEY DURSLEY! I CAN'T BELIEVE THE WAY YOU TREATED POOR LILY LAST NIGHT! IT'S BAD ENOUGH THAT YOU TURNED ON YOUR second COUSIN AND SUPPOSEDLY BFF! BUT TO PULL WHAT YOU DID AFTER EVERYTHING LILY HAS DONE FOR YOU SINCE THE DAY YOU MET HER IS NOTHING SHORT OF DISGRCAEFUL! I DON'T EVER WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOU EVER AGIAN AND NOR DO SAMANTHA AND STEPHANIE! YOU HAVE FOREFITED OUR FREINDSHIP FOREVER! HERE'S WHAT WE THINK OF YOU!
At that nanosecond, three more owls swooped down and dropped bags of undiluted Bubtubber Pus into the hands of James, Hugo, and Devon.
As intended by the way Ainsley had charmed the bags, the bags split upon contact with the boys hands and James, Hugo, and Devon all let out yelps of pain as their hands were drenched in undiluted Bubtubber Pus.
Lily took James, Hugo, and Devon up to the hospital wing for treatment.
Madam Pomfrey was able to handle the Pus situation quickly, but the boys were emotional wrecks. The loss of the girls friendship had hit them hard and the girls couldn't have been clearer in their Howlers that the boys friendships with them were over permanently.
After they left the hospital, Lily saw that James, Hugo, and Devon were all in tears and she invited them into her room.
Lily closed the door to her room and locked the door. She then put up Privacy Charms so that they wouldn't be disturbed.
"James, Hugo, and Devon, how are you feeling?' asked Lily patiently.
"H-hurt," sobbed James, "To lose three friendships only because I w-was l-looking after my sister s-stings like being stabbed by one hundred knives at once."
"Also, it w-was so sudden. We w-went from the girls b-being our friends to l-losing their friendship j-just like that," cried Hugo, "It's n-not like our friendships w-were strained or falling apart. We boys l-lost the g-girls friendship j-just like that."
"I c-can't believe that Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie w-would e-end our friendships," a tear stricken Devon explained, "Being angry is one thing, but t-to permanently e-end our friendships over one t-thing,"
"James, Devon, Hugo, please sit down in a row on my bed," requested Lily.
James, Hugo, and Devon did sit down in a row on Lily's bed and then Lily laid herself across their laps so that they could take turns stroking her hair.
This was a great release and a great source of comfort for the boys and after five minutes of this their tears had evaporated, and they felt better.
Lily pulled herself up and James, Hugo, and Devon stood up as well.
"James, Hugo, and Devon," said Lily encouragingly, "Don't give up hope. I know how angry Ainsley, Samantha and Stephanie are with you right now. But they will cool down. They will be your friends again in the future."
James, Hugo, and Devon trusted Lily but also thought she was predicting a miracle. There was no denying the genuine anger that Samantha, Ainsley, and Stephanie had towards James, Hugo, and Devon.
For their part James, Hugo, Devon, and Lily all believed that caring about Gryffindor was a major factor in the girls anger. They also knew that Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie thought about how pissed off they would be if another person's interference cost them a prized possession and that they therefore empathized with Lily over her losing the ZoomBroom.
But the boys felt certain that they acted for the best. Knowing their suspicions about all the different possibilities of why Lily would have received an anonymous ZoomBroom, they knew that they had to act. Lily's life and health were MUCH more important than Quidditch, Gryffindor, or even friendship. IF losing friendships was the price of protecting Lily, it was a price they had to pay.
On Sunday, Ainsley, Samantha, and Stephanie again choose seats as far away from James, Hugo, and Devon as possible at meals. The worst of their anger may have subsided, but James, Devon, and Hugo didn't see much hope for regaining their friendship.
When Fred and Roxanne returned to Hogwarts on Sunday night and heard what had happened in the Gryffindor Common Room from Lily, the boy-girl split only furthered.
"James, Hugo, Devon," said Fred proudly as Lily explained what had happened, "You were quite right to take action. The ZoomBroom may be cursed and it may not. But better safe than sorry. Great job looking after Lily, boys. Had I been here on Friday I'd have joined too."
Roxanne, however felt rather differently. She was disgusted that the opportunity to have ZoomBroom on the Gryffindor Quidditch team had been snatched away by what she saw as three boys who had too much worrywart in them. She gave James, Hugo, Devon, and Fred (who clearly had agreed with their action) dirty looks and went up to her room.
Lily, however, faced James, Hugo, Devon, and Fred, and said softly, "Thanks, boys. Thanks for caring about me, thanks for looking after me, and thanks for being proactive in looking after me. And don't worry, the girls will come around. I know they will."