"So, Lily, will I be seeing you at my Halloween party tomorrow night?" Professor Slughorn asked. He was observing as she worked on a Draught of Peace. She was near the end, for the potion was only a couple of shades from its normal turquoise color, and it was giving off white steam that was getting closer to silver every second.
"Of course, sir. I wouldn't miss it," Lily assured him with a smile. "I will be accompanying Lysander to your party."
"Mr. Scamander? A wonderful young man, very intelligent," Slughorn complimented.
Lily smiled to herself. "Yes, I think so too."
"It should be such a splendid night. I have quite the guest list, plus a few extra guests," Slughorn rambled.
Lily simply nodded, knowing that once he started rambling, he'd keep going. She nodded in the right places and gave the appropriate worded responses when necessary as she continued to work on her potion. It was nearly finished now.
"Um, excuse me, Professor?" a deep voice asked over the sound of the door opening.
Professor Slughorn stopped talking and looked toward the door. "Ah, Mr. Scamander! What can I do for you this evening?"
Lily didn't stop stirring, but her eyes widened, and she quickly turned her head to see Lorcan standing in the classroom. That had been him talking? His voice was so much deeper than before. Much deeper than his brother's. And he was even bigger closer up. Lysander was still just a tad taller than him, but Lorcan looked as if he could pick Lily up and throw her. His body had filled out, and he no longer looked scrawny. What had happened to him?
Lorcan noticed Lily's gaze, and he smiled at her, giving her a wave. "Hey, Lil." Then he looked at Slughorn. "Um, I had a question on the essay you gave to us about explaining the properties and effects of Polyjuice Potion," he said.
Professor Slughorn grinned. "Ah, yes. Well, your question would best be directed at Miss Potter, my best student. I'm sure she could tell you if she has a spare moment?"
Lily looked at her professor with surprise. "Um, sure. I guess I could tell him."
Professor Slughorn ushered Lorcan into a chair. "Ask her anything, Mr. Scamander." Then he took a seat opposite them as if observing them.
Lily blushed a little as she sat down. She kind of felt like she was on a trial. She cleared her throat, hoping to get the lump out of it. "So, what's your question?" she asked.
Lorcan too looked a little bewildered, but he blinked rapidly and then pulled out his essay, a quill, and some ink. "Well, I was curious about the look and taste. The book said that it was different from person to person, but how are those things determined?"
Lily pushed her bangs out of her face. "Well, they say that when you add in the bit from the person you are transforming into the potion, it collects that person's essence entirely. So, say there was someone that you would call a sweet person, and their favorite color was purple. Chances are that when part of them was added to Polyjuice Potion, then the potion would turn purple and taste sweet," she explained.
"So, my favorite color is dark blue, and I've been told that I always smell like grass stains. So does that mean that if my hair was added to it, it would be dark blue and would taste like grass?" he asked.
She bit back a laugh, but Lily couldn't hold back the smile. "Hypothetically, yes."
Lorcan was scribbling down words furiously. "So, if someone perhaps had a heart of gold . . ."
"Then it might be gold in color," Lily finished.
"Awesome," Lorcan muttered with a smile. He stopped writing and smiled at me. "That was all really. Unless you know anything else about it?"
Lily grinned. "That's about all you'd need."
"I think your potion is done, Lily," Slughorn mentioned.
Lily turned her head back to her potion, and hurried to stand next to it. It had reached its correct color while it simmered, and the steam coming from the cauldron was a misty silver. She smiled at Slughorn. "And I think that it's perfect, Professor."
"Well no doubt. Wait here a moment," he told her. Then he disappeared into the storage room.
Lorcan came to stand next to her. "Is that a Draught of Peace?" he asked in surprise.
Lily nodded. "Yep. It was what Slughorn chose today."
"We did this last week. Mine was terrible, it looked all orange," Lorcan groaned. Then he looked at Lily in wonder. "I can't believe you can make this!"
Lily smiled. "Slughorn calls me a prodigy with this stuff. I've been doing stuff that sixth years have been doing since this summer," she told him.
Lorcan scratched the back of his hair. "I suck at this. I can't wait to drop it after O.W.L.s," he said with a laugh.
Lily giggled. "Don't tell Professor Slughorn that."
The two stood in silence as Lily looked at her potion. Then Lorcan spoke a little quieter. "You know, my brother is crazy about you."
Lily blushed as she glanced over at Lorcan. "Why do you say that?"
"You're all he talks about, at least to me. He hasn't stopped mention your date since it happened," Lorcan said with a chuckle.
Lily blushed even more. "Surely that's not all he talks about?"
Lorcan shook his head. "Face it, Lil. You make his heart go out of whack."
"Here we are!" Slughorn said as he waltzed back into the room. He held out two bottles, and walked over to the potion. With a wave of his wand, he filled them both. He capped them, and then handed one to Lily. "Here you are, Lily."
Lily smiled. "Thank you, sir."
With a wave of his wand, Slughorn vanished the rest of the potion. "Well, shall we continue this tomorrow evening?" he asked.
Lily nodded as she packed away her things. "Of course, sir. I'll be here right after Quidditch practice," she assured him. "I'll see you later, Professor."
"I'll walk with you," Lorcan told her. "Later, sir."
"Have a good night, you two," Slughorn told them.
The two left the classroom, and once the door had been closed, Lorcan began to talk again. "So, thanks for the help, Lil."
Lily smiled. "It was really no trouble."
Lorcan grinned. "I'm rubbish at school work. I just can't wait to get out of Hogwarts and play Quidditch professionally."
Lily rolled her eyes. Lorcan may have filled out, but his personality hadn't changed a bit. "Well, if you ever need help with Potions, just let me know. I don't mind helping."
Lorcan's eyes lit up. "Really?" He paused for a moment, and Lily sensed that he was thinking about something that he wasn't sure he should do. "Well, I'd hate to impose but do you think you could check this essay for me? I just kind of ran through it."
Lily smiled. "Sure. Let me see it."
Lorcan pulled it from his bag and handed it to her. Lily read it as they walked, noting errors as she read. "It's good, only a few mistakes. Want to know what they are?" she asked.
"What would I get if I didn't fix the mistakes?" he asked.
"Probably an A," she told him.
"Then I'll just leave it," he said with a grin. He took the bag and placed it back into his bag. "So, do you think you could help me with this class? Maybe help me with the assignments?" he asked hesitantly.
Lily shrugged. "Sure. What days do you have the class?"
"Tuesdays and Thursdays after lunch. Think you could help me after dinner?" Lorcan asked.
"Meet in the library?" Lily suggested.
He smiled. "Perfect. I'll see you then. Later, Lil!"
Lily waved as he began to jog down the hall. "Bye, Lorcan." As he left, Lily smiled and shook her head. That boy was so energetic, making him a handful. But she wouldn't mind helping him with Potions. She turned the corner, making her way to the common room. "Salazar." The wall slid aside, and Lily walked inside. It was kind of late, so only a few kids were still lazing about in the common room.
"Hey, Princess!"
Lily turned her head to see Scorpius laying across the couch. He was smirking as he waved her over. Lily strode over to him, and knocked his feet off the couch, taking a seat. Without a thought, he placed his feet on her lap. Lily let it go. "What's up?" she asked.
"I've got a date for Slughorn's party," he told her.
Lily looked at him in surprise, trying to ignore the bit of sadness she felt. "Really? This, coming from the guy who said he found most girls boring?"
Scorpius chuckled. "Well I found one that's not so bad."
"She asked you out, didn't she?" Lily assumed.
"Your point?" he laughed. Lily rolled her eyes. "Beth Crowley asked me a few hours ago, and she's not bad, so I said yeah. Then I got threatened by Amanda Baddock to not hurt her best friend."
"How is Amanda?" Lily asked. She hadn't talk to Amanda in awhile.
"Fine. She's been busy with her new classes and with Perfect duties," he told her. "Anyways, you going with Lysander?"
Lily nodded. "Yep."
"So, Lily's got a boyfriend. Hm . . . how do I feel about that?" he murmured teasingly.
She rolled her eyes. "I do not have a boyfriend."
Scorpius raised a brow. "I thought you said you were going with him to the party?"
"I am."
"But he's not your boyfriend?"
"Nope."
"So he didn't ask you to be his girlfriend?"
"Not yet."
"You want me to beat him up?"
Lily dropped her head back to rest on the couch. "No, I do not," she sighed.
"Well what kind of guy goes on a date with a great girl, and doesn't ask her to be his girlfriend?" Scorpius said in surprise.
"A lot of guys!" Lily defended. "Some people go on a few dates before making it official."
"Well if this guy knows what's good for him, he'll make it official by the end of the party," Scorpius assured.
She rolled her eyes again. "Whatever you say. I'm going to bed."
Scorpius smirked. "Kay. Night, Lily."
"Good night, Scorpius." Lily pushed his feet off of her lap, and made her way up into her dorm.
***************************************
"Why won't you go to the party?" Lily asked Lola curiously. The two were on their way to Transfiguration. Jace had stuck around to eat a little more for lunch, promising to catch up with them.
"Because I'm not going to tag along with you and Lysander just to feel like a third wheel," Lola told her.
"There will be other people," Lily pointed out.
"None that I really hang out with," Lola retorted.
"Many different Slytherins. Mitch, Lars, Lana, Scorpius, Amanda, Dante, Adrian," Lily listed.
"Most of which have dates of their own," Lola said with a sigh.
"Then bring a date with you," Lily replied.
Lola's cheeks turned a little pink. "I'd rather stay back with the other girls."
"What's wrong with finding a date?" Lily asked.
"I'm really interested in any of the boys I know."
"How about Xavier? He's really cool," Lily suggested.
"Mitch's brother? I'd rather avoid the comments he would pitch when he found out," Lola muttered.
"Christian's really nice," Lily pitched.
"And is a Quidditch fanatic," Lola argued.
"Hunter's kind of cute."
"With a fiercely protective sister."
"Monty is . . ."
"An unattractive child."
"Well Jace is-,"
"Don't even finish that thought," Lola interrupted quickly.
Lily quietly groaned. "Well what kind of guy are you interested in?"
"None. Guys are way too much trouble. Plus, Bobby would just write to our older siblings, and then my brother Marty would just send a Howler to whoever my date was, and Ginger would just write about how I shouldn't throw myself at any boy. It's not worth the trouble," Lola explained with a sigh. "Besides, not every girl can get a sweet boy like Lysander."
Lily sighed. "I still wish that you would go. I'd like for Lysander to at least meet my friends. And I know he'd love to."
"Plenty of time for that, and it doesn't have to be at the party," Lola assured.
"It could be fun," Lily urged.
"So could a bath in fire, but I'm still not going to try either one," Lola retorted.
"Maybe if you bathed in fire, your looks would improve," Jace said as he ran up to them. Lola glared at him. "What are we talking about, girls?"
Lola ignored his question and shook her head. "Never finish that earlier thought, Lily. I have a galleon that says it's wrong anyways."
Lily sighed. "You may be right about that."
**************************
Lily closed her eyes as she lazily moved around the pitch on her broom. The other guys on the team were practicing shooting, so she was allowed a sort of break. Actually, Scorpius had released the Snitch for her to practice, but she'd already caught it a dozen times, so now she was just relaxing. The others hadn't seemed to mind. Dante was doing better now that he was refraining from kicking the Quaffle away from the goals. His left leg was still a little shaky, but he said that it was getting better every day, and that walking didn't hurt anymore.
There were a few people watching the practice, including Lana, Jace, Christian, Beth Crowley, Nikki Montana, and it looked like Lola had been dragged out to the pitch as well.
"Ok, guys, I want to practice on Chaser formations!" Scorpius called out. Then he looked at Lily. "Hey, Princess, how's practice going?"
Lily grinned. "Just perfect," she assured.
She heard him laugh. "Glad to hear it. Feel free to take a break," he joked.
Lily laughed too. She looked back at the stands, thinking that maybe she'd stop and talk to the others when she felt her heart beat faster at the sight she saw. Lysander was now sitting in the stands, just a bit away from the others. Without a thought, she flew toward where Lysander was sitting. At her approach, he smiled.
"Hey, Lily," he greeted.
"Hey, Ly," Lily greeted happily. She hopped off of her broom and onto the stands, where she dropped into the seat next to him. "What are you doing here?"
"I had some free time before dinner, and I have this thing for watching pretty girls fly during Slytherin practice," he told her, making her blush.
"Don't tell Tanner that, he might think you're stalking him," Lily joked.
Lysander laughed. "So, I heard that you talked to my brother the other day," he commented.
Lily nodded. "Yeah. I told him that I would help him with his Potion work," she told him.
"Well I'm glad someone got through to him. I've been trying for ages," Lysander laughed.
Lily giggled as well. "Yeah, but I'm not really doing much. Just revising his work with him."
"That's a big step from where he used to be."
Lily laughed again. "So, is he going to Slughorn's party?"
Lysander nodded. "Yeah. Anything to get away from doing homework for a night."
"He got a date?"
Lysander shook his head. "Nope. He said that dating would get in the way of Quidditch practices. I don't see how that makes sense, but I leave it alone."
Lily smiled. "That sounds like him."
"I, on the other hand, am quite excited to be taking a date to the party," Lysander said with a smile and a blush.
Lily glanced down, feeling her face heat up a little. But when she looked back at him, she smiled. "So am I."
"I was wondering though, would you like me to wait for you outside your common room?" Lysander asked.
"Actually, I thought I'd just meet you in the Entrance Hall. We can walk up to Professor Slughorn's room together," Lily suggested.
Lysander shrugged. "Whatever you want. Shall we meet there at about eight then?"
She smiled. "Eight sounds perfect."
"Are any of your friends going?" he asked as he glanced over at the group watching the practice.
"The older ones are, but Lola and Jace aren't. Jace isn't a Slug Club member, and Lola doesn't want to go," Lily told him.
"So when will I get to meet the famous pair?" he asked with a chuckle.
"Soon," she assured. "When Lola isn't looking so bored."
"Can't wait," he said quietly.
"Hey, Princess! Catch the Snitch! We're almost done here!" Scorpius called out.
Lily sighed and picked up her broom. Lysander hurried to stand up as well. "Would you like me to wait for you?"
Lily smiled at the offer. "Nah, you go ahead to dinner. If I don't see you later, then I'll just see you tomorrow night at eight," she said. Her heart stuttered at the thought.
He smiled. "Ok. Then I'll see you there."
She'd hoped that he'd kiss her again, but he didn't. Instead he smiled once more before turning and trudging through the stands. Lily did her best to not look disappointed as she mounted her broom and flew across the pitch to grab the Snitch, which she'd seen dancing in the corner of her eye since she'd landed.
Since she hadn't done much at practice, she did most of the packing up, and brought the ball chest back to Madam Hooch's office while the boys began to shower. She trailed into the locker room, and changed out of her practice clothes. She hadn't been anywhere near sweating, so a shower wasn't needed. She slipped on her skirt and buttoned up her white shirt. Putting on the uniform after practice always sucked when your arms were sore. Thankfully it wasn't one of those days for her. She placed her robe into her bag, not up to wearing it. Then she slipped on her shoes and shut her locker. It was when she began to close up her bag that boys began to come trailing out.
"So, Adrian, who are you taking to Slughorn's party?" Will asked.
"Melina Stretton," Adrian replied. "One of the hotter girls of my year."
"And the easiest," Tanner joked. The other guys laughed.
But Adrian laughed with them. "And I find no reason to judge how a girl acts. I would rather embrace it."
"She'll be glad to hear that," Will laughed.
"And it'll bound to make Scarlet jealous," Lars pointed out. "No doubt she'll regret dumping you."
Adrian snapped a towel at Lars. "She didn't dump me! It was a mutual ending."
"Keep trying to convince yourself that, mate," Scorpius said with a grin.
"Well, I know that I've got the hottest date for the party," Dante bragged. "And I now know that she's crazy about me."
The guys all began to cheer and razz him. Lars grinned at his friend. "Who is it? A troll?"
The other guys laughed, but Dante just smirked. "No. It's your sister."
The rest of the team, including Lily began to laugh as Lars stared at Dante in muted shock.
"You're going out with Lana?" Tanner exclaimed.
Dante shrugged. "Hey, she's hot! Plus, she's cool and not annoying. And she did take care of my leg while I was put on a one night bed rest, so I'm hope she won't mind taking care of something else while I'm on my bed."
Lily did her best to hide her disgust while the other guys cheered. But his comment seemed to knock Lars out his stupor. Lars threw off the towel around his shoulders. "Dude, I will kill you!" And then promptly began to chase Dante around the locker room and into the showers.
"I was kidding!" they heard Dante yell.
Scorpius rolled his eyes as he slipped his tie around his neck. "What an idiot," he chuckled.
"They're your friends," Lily teased.
"And yours," he retorted. He scowled down at his tie. "Hey, Princess, can you tie this for me? I suck at it, and I forgot my wand in my bag."
"Where's your bag?" Lily asked.
"Dorm room," Scorpius told her.
Lily shook her head and smiled. "You are hopeless." But she got up and took a hold of his tie.
He smirked at her. "Why thank you, sweetheart," he said with sarcasm.
"No problem," Lily muttered as she finished the knot for his tie. She glanced up at him, finally noticing how close she was to him. She thankfully didn't blush, but she felt her blood pumping. "There you go," she said when she was finished. She moved back to her bag and put it over her shoulder, not looking at him.
"Thank you, Princess," he told her. "Need help with any of that?"
Lily looked at her bag and broom. She finally looked back at him and shook her head. "No, I've got it."
"So is Love Boy waiting outside for you?" Tanner asked her with a teasing grin.
Lily rolled her eyes, but she grinned at him too. "No, I told him to go on ahead. I'll see him tomorrow anyhow."
"Where are you two meeting up?" Will asked curiously.
"The Entrance Hall. I figured it would be easier," Lily replied.
"Are you going to introduce us?" Scorpius asked with a smirk.
"You know him," Lily retorted.
"Not officially," he said back.
"Doesn't matter. You know him," Lily insisted.
"But I think he should know," Tanner told her seriously.
Lily raised a brow. "Know about what?"
"About how you spend your lonely nights with Scor," Tanner joked.
The others began to laugh. Lily threw a towel at Tanner. "Eww, Tanner!" Inside, her body was a little warm, but she ignored it. "You are such a jerk! Now you're definitely not meeting him!"
"But what if I promise to behave? Can I meet him then?" Scorpius asked with a smirk.
Lily rolled her eyes. "If you're a good boy." Then she reached up and patted his head. "But I doubt that's possible."
"Your lack of credit to me is appealing," Scorpius joked.
She just shook her head. "Anyways, I'm hungry. I'm going to drop my stuff off in the common room, and then I'll see you at dinner."
"All right. Later, Lu," Adrian said with a small wave as he pulled up his slacks.
"Yeah, see ya," Will said as he stretched.
"I'll bug you about this later," Scorpius teased.
Lily smiled. "I'll hold you to that. Later, guys."
She left the locker room, and trailed out of the pitch and up to the castle. Despite the cold breeze, it was nice outside. Even if it was the end of October. She could see smoke coming from Hagrid's hut, probably from a fire. Hagrid was probably relaxing after teaching classes all day. She walked inside the castle and immediately made her way to the dungeons to drop off her things. Then she quickly made her way to the Great Hall. She really was hungry, and she had to meet Lorcan in the library after dinner, so she wanted to eat a decent meal before going.
She found the other third years all sitting together, and noticed that there was a seat between Jace and Lola. She wondered if they'd left it there for her, or just so they wouldn't have to sit next to each other.
"Hey, Lil! Nice job at practice," Jace complimented.
"Despite that fact that I did nothing?" Lily said with a laugh.
"Even better," he joked.
Lily looked at Lola. "I was surprised that you were there," she commented.
"Lana asked me to go, so I went. She didn't want to go and watch the practice by herself, and she didn't think that Beth and Nikki would show up," Lola explained.
"Does Nikki know that Scorpius is taking Beth to Slughorn's party?" Lily asked curiously.
"Probably not," Megan replied. "Otherwise she would have made some kind of dramatic scene."
"Sounds like something she'd do," Shannon agreed.
"Is that a good or a bad thing?" Christian joked.
"So, since most of Slytherin House is going to Slughorn's party," Monty mentioned, "what are we going to do with ourselves?"
"Well, I'm going," Lily told him.
"Well you and Lola are the only ones of us that can," he pointed out.
"And I'm not going," Lola said.
"You should," Lily said casually.
"But I'm not," Lola said just as pleasantly.
"Either way," Izzy interrupted, "Monty's right. What are we going to do?"
Jace shrugged. "Whatever we want to."
"The sole ingredient for trouble," Lily muttered.
************************
"Ok, so how long does it take to brew Polyjuice Potion?" Lily asked. She and Lorcan were sitting in the library, and with no assignment due, they had chosen that she would quiz him over things that were supposed to be on his O.W.L.s.
Lorcan let out a long breath, his eyes looking up, as if he was hoping he'd see the answer in his head that way. "Um . . . like two months?" His eyes were hopeful.
Lily gave him a sheepish look. "No, but close. It takes one month."
Lorcan snapped his fingers. "I knew it had something to do with the word 'month'"
Lily laughed. "All right. Now, name three examples of something about the person that you can put into the Polyjuice Potion," she told him. She kept her eyes on the book, waiting for an answer, but one never came. She looked up at him and saw that his attention was else where. "Lorcan?" she called gently. He didn't respond, so she shoved his shoulder. "Hey!"
Lorcan jumped, startled. He looked quickly at Lily. "Sorry, what?"
Lily looked at him, confused. "What were you looking at?"
"Nothing!" Lorcan said quickly.
Not believing him, Lily looked over to where his eyes had strayed. She was surprised when she saw Rose, sitting at a table with her nose in a book. She looked back at Lorcan. "Rose? I thought Lysander said that you weren't interested in dating?"
"I'm not!" Lorcan argued. "I was just spacing out."
Lily rolled her eyes. "I know I don't like her, but it's ok if you do."
"I don't like Rose!" he disagreed.
"Really? So you find her repulsive?" Lily countered.
"No! I mean, she's pretty. Gorgeous, in fact. And she's a cool girl," Lorcan corrected.
"So you find her attractive, and fun to be around?" Lily questioned.
Lorcan nodded.
"That means you like her," Lily teased.
Now he rolled his eyes. "I do not."
"Really? So you've never imagined Rose more than just a friend?" she inquired.
"Exactly." But his blush and guilty look gave him away.
"You're lying," Lily accused. "I've known you long enough to tell when you're lying."
Lorcan glared. Not at her, but at the table. "I don't like her," he muttered.
"Why can't you like her? I mean, how would dating interfere with Quidditch?" Lily asked.
"Because then I'd have to make more time for her. And that would mean having a shorter practice!" Lorcan explained.
"Rose is a player too, so she knows the importance of practice," Lily told him. "I doubt she'd make you shorten your practice, especially since everyone knows how you are about Quidditch. And you could spend Hogsmeade visits together, sit with her in class, study together," Lily suggested. "Quidditch would not be affected."
"Until I have to take her out in a match," Lorcan argued.
Lily sighed as she looked back at the book. "Have Lysander do it."
"Lysander's too much of a gentleman. He'd never hit a girl player," Lorcan muttered.
"Then have one of the Chasers accidently knock her off her broom," Lily suggested.
Lorcan groaned and dropped his head into his hands. Then he lifted his head. "Hair, nails, and blood. Those are three things you can put into the potion to make it work," he muttered.
"Correct."
*******************
"Why? So I can be a total bitch, and everyone can hate me? So I can be like you?"
"I don't want my sister growing up around a bunch of filthy snakes!"
"It hasn't even been a day, and you've already changed."
"You've heard the stories. You've heard what they did to our parents, what side they were on."
"You've got to be out of your mind! Being in that House has completely changed you, Lily!"
"Fine! I've lost my sister! She got put in the worst House possible! I'd rather her be a Squib! And now, I don't think I have a sister at all anymore!"
"Listen you little bitch! I don't give a fuck about you, so if I have to hurt you to understand, then I will."
"If you were smarter then you'd realize that you're a disappointment to our entire family."
Lily awoke with a start, her eyes snapping open, and her throat tightening. She took in quick gasps of air, and felt chilled. She lifted a hand and placed it on her forehead to find a very thin sheen of cold sweat. Calming herself, Lily closed her eyes. "Damn," she muttered.
"Are you awake over there?"
Lily opened her eyes and turned her head to see Lola buttoning the last few buttons on her shirt. "Yeah, I'm up."
Lola grinned. "Good, then I won't have to throw water on you."
Lily laughed slightly, but then turned her head to look at the canopy of her bed. She let out a sigh.
"Are you all right?" Lola asked.
Lily nodded stiffly. "Yeah. Just a bad dream."
"They say bad dreams are the beginning to bad days," she heard Megan says.
Lily raised her head from her pillow to look at Megan. "Well good morning to you too, sunshine. I'm glad that you're spreading around happiness today." Megan only smirked at her. Lily just sighed again and got up from the bed.
"Sometimes it helps to talk about the dream," Lola told her.
But Lily shook her head. "Nah, don't worry. I actually don't remember anything about it." A lie. How could she forget the voices of her family, or the hatred in those voices? She just didn't want to talk about it.
"If you're sure," Lola said with hesitance.
"I am," Lily told her with a smile.
"So, moving on to a better subject, it's Halloween, which means that it's the day for Lily's second date," Megan reminded them.
"Which means that it's the day she and Lysander make it official," Shannon said with a giggle.
Lily rolled her eyes as she began to get dressed for the day. "Am I going to be bombarded when I get back to night?"
"Of course," Izzy assured her.
"What are you going to wear?" Shannon asked.
"Nothing special," Lily told her. "And I'm keeping it that way," she said before she could speak up and suggest an idea. "It's a simple party, which is supposed to be casual. I'd like to stick with that."
Shannon pouted. "Fine. But can I play with your hair before you leave?"
Lily sighed. "Fine, fine." Shannon squealed with excitement.
"I can't believe that Lana is going out with my brother. I mean, I love my brother, but he's a dork and an idiot," Megan said with distaste.
"All sisters think that," Lola told her.
"I don't," Shannon argued. "I think my brother is a great guy, and that he's way too good for Melina Stretton."
"What's wrong with Melina?" Izzy asked.
"Besides that fact that she's a whore?" Shannon asked with a raised brow.
"Yeah, besides that," Lily joked.
Shannon sighed. "Nothing. There's nothing more to her personality than that."
********************
Lily sighed in boredom as she sat in Charms class. They were working on Hover Charm revisions, and Lily had already finished with her revisions. Lola was overworking on hers, and Jace was struggling through his, leaving her no one to talk to. And when you added in the Gryffindors in the room, it just made her bored and irritated. She pointed her wand at her quill.
"Wingardium Leviosa," Lily muttered. The quill lifted off of the table and floated above her. She placed a different paper in front of her, and then made the quill dip itself in ink, and then began to move it above the paper, making shapes and doing her best to write words.
"Bored?" Jace whispered.
"Completely," Lily muttered back. "Thank Merlin that this is the last class of the day."
"Eager for tonight?" Jace teased.
Lily smiled and rolled her eyes. "Yes, but it's not that. It's just not a good day today."
"It'll get better as the night goes on," Jace assured.
Lily nodded. "Yeah, you're right." But Megan's words from this morning kept popping into her head.
"They say bad dreams are the beginning to bad days."
Surely that was just a superstition. She'd had nightmares as a kid, and that never ended in a bad day. Then again, she had her father to chase those dreams away. Who did she have now? No one.
When class ended, Lily took her time getting her things together. Lola and Jace waited, a looking at her with careful curiosity. Catching their faces, Lily raised a brow. "What?" she asked.
"Are you ok?" Lola asked. "You seem kind of . . . off."
Lily sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm fine," she told them as she stepped around the table to leave the room.
"Are you sure?" Jace asked as they caught up.
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just been a boring day is all," Lily assured.
"Positive?" Lola checked.
Lily gave a small laugh. "I'm fine, really. Just waiting for dinner to end so that I can meet Lysander," she told them. But they both still looked unsure.
"If you say so," Jace said. After those words, they walked down to the Great Hall in silence. They took a spot near the middle of the table and sat down. Jace quickly began to pile food onto his plate, Lola filled her plate but not as eagerly, and Lily only barely added thing to her plate. Her stomach was feeling, as Lola had said, off. She just didn't feel really hungry.
"Hide me!" Lily turned to see Scorpius moving to take a seat next to her, and ducking his head.
"From what?" Jace asked.
"Beth," Scorpius muttered.
"What did you do?" Lola asked immediately.
"It's not me, it's her!" Scorpius argued.
"What did she do?" Lily asked.
"She won't let me breathe!" Scorpius exclaimed. "I had to practically pry her lips off of me!"
The other three instantly began to laugh. "What?" Lily asked.
"How is that a bad thing?" Jace questioned.
Scorpius scratched the back of his neck. "I didn't say it was bad. I'd just like to be able to take a breath."
"Then why did you agree to go out with her?" Lola asked.
"I didn't know she planned on sucking my face down her throat," Scorpius replied as he began to make a plate of his own. He looked down at Lily's plate, which was practically empty. And she hadn't even taken a bite yet. "Aren't you hungry?"
Lily shrugged. "Not really. I figure that I will be by the time of the party, though."
"She's been weird all day," Lola told him.
Lightly, Lily kicked her leg under the table. But Lola didn't even flinch. Scorpius looked at Lily with interest. "Are you all right?"
"Just fine," Lily said with a sigh of her own.
"If you say so," Scorpius told her, leaving it at that. Lily was quite thankful.
Some of the others joined them soon, laughing when Scorpius told them about Beth practically attacking him. They all continued to talk, but Lily spoke rarely. Her mind kept playing back to the nightmare she'd had. Usually she forgot her dreams, but this one was still in her mind. The others didn't really seem to notice her unusual silence, except for Lola, who kept throwing her odd looks. But there was finally a topic that caught Lily's attention.
"So, has anyone else felt like hexing Potter today?" Scorpius asked. "He's been even more annoying than usual."
"I've been urged to do it a couple of times actually," Lana agreed.
"You'd think his freaking birthday was a national holiday," Lars grumbled.
Lily scoffed. "More like a worldwide disaster," she muttered, making all the others laughed. She had completely forgotten about today being James's birthday. Maybe that explains her dream. Perhaps it was just an omen to remind her of the tragedy that was known as her brother's birthday.
"What's worse is that we're going to have to deal with him tonight," Dante said with a groan, his arm thrown around Lana's shoulders. "Of course he has to go to Slughorn's party to flash around the reason for this dreadful day's bad weather."
"What a prick," Lana said with a sigh.
Lily tried not to show her internal nerves. James would be there tonight? On his birthday? What happened to those big parties that Gryffindor supposedly threw him? Maybe Megan was right. Maybe her dream had been the sign of a bad day.
Lily pushed her seat away from the table. "I'm full. I'll see you guys in the common room," she told them.
"Are you feeling ok?" Lola asked as Lily stood up.
"Yeah, you haven't said much at all, Lu," Dante added.
Lily just shook her head. "I'm fine. I'm just going to check on my potion before I get ready," she told them. Perhaps that would take her mind off of the dread she was feeling. She grabbed her bag and walked away from the table. She took a glance at the Ravenclaw table, trying to find Lysander, but he was lost in the sea of faces. So she left the Great Hall and made her way down the dungeons. But when she did check on her potion, she found that her potion didn't really need attending to. Nothing that would take more than a couple of minutes, five at the most. So she decided to grab her outfit, and walked into the bathroom. She took a shower, a longer one than usual. It relaxed her body, although her mind was still reeling. Once she had finished, she dried her hair with her wand, not in the mood for her damp hair making her skin cool. She dressed, choosing a skirt and a green top. She left her hair, remembering her promise to Shannon. But since she didn't hear the other girls come into the dorm room, she looked at herself in the mirror.
The others had been right. She did look a little off. Not really bored or upset . . . just . . . she didn't even know how to describe it to herself. It was her eyes that seemed really different. Her eyes showed how tense she was inside.
There was a knock at the bathroom door. "Lily? Can I do your hair now?"
Lily opened the door to see Shannon practically bouncing on her toes. "Yeah, I'm ready."
Shannon grabbed her wrist and pulled her to her bed. "Ok, sit here." Lily saw a few things on the bed already, so she made sure not to sit on anything. Shannon moved to sit behind her, and Lily soon felt fingers on her hair. "Your hair is really soft," Shannon commented.
Lily raised a brow, even though Shannon couldn't see it. "Um . . . thanks."
"You need to get used to taking compliments," Shannon told her. "After all, you're bound to get tons of them tonight. I'm sure Lysander will give you hundreds, and the others will throw them at you too."
"So, a bunch of people are going to come and tell me my hair is soft?" Lily joked.
She couldn't see, but she was sure that Shannon rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."
"Yeah, yeah," Lily muttered. The other girls came in soon, all talking about their plans for the night. Lily stayed quiet and listened, not wanting to focus on the night ahead of her. She still felt odd about it. When Shannon finished with her hair, Lily didn't immediately leave. It was close to eight, but not to where she'd have to run. So she took her time putting on her shoes, and said a few goodbyes to the girls before she finally did leave the room. The common room was practically empty, only a few kids sitting around. Lily was sure that everyone else was already making their way to the party. Lily left the common room and walked through the dungeons, suddenly unsure if she should really go to the party. But she couldn't just ditch Lysander. When she ascended the stairs into the Entrance Hall, Lily saw that there were a few others milling about, but she also caught sight of Lysander for the first time that day. He was sitting on the stairs, wearing a blue button up shirt, and light grey pants. His normally messy blonde hair was smoothed down straight, reaching almost past his eyes. Lily quickly made her way over to him, her thoughts cleared of how bad this night could be.
Lysander saw her coming, and quickly stood up. He smiled brightly, his cheeks a little pink. "Hey, Lily. You look great," he complimented, his cheeks becoming even pinker.
Lily blushed a little as well. "So do you. I didn't know your hair was that long." She reached out and brushed a bit away from his eyes.
Lysander's own hand reached up to touch his hair. "Neither did I. But when Nadia found out that I was taking a date at practice yesterday, she demanded that I fix my hair," he said with a laugh.
Lily smiled. "It looks nice."
"Thank," he said. Then he sighed. "Well, shall we go?"
Lily nodded. "Yeah. Let's."
The two began to walk up the stairs in silence. Lily wished he'd say something. Now in the silence, her thoughts about the dream and James's birthday were coming back. But Lysander didn't say a thing. He seemed to enjoy their silence.
"Hey, Ly, Lil! Wait up!"
Lily almost sighed in relief. The two stopped to wait as Lorcan jogged to catch up to them. Lorcan was never one for silence. "Hey, Lorcan," Lily greeted.
Lorcan smiled. "Hey, Lil. How's it going?"
"It's been a good day," Lily lied.
"Glad to hear that. And, your tutoring has really helped me," Lorcan told her. "I actually got an E on my last assignment. So thanks!"
Lily laughed. "It's no problem."
"But Lorcan's never gotten an E in Potions before," Lysander joked.
But Lorcan didn't seem to care. "I know, it's a first. I never thought that studying for the class ahead of time would help me."
The three continued to talk as they made their way to Slughorn's quarters. They saw a few other students that were also making their way to the party. The door to his room was open, and Lily could see a bunch of people in there. Surely the room had to have been expanded to fit everyone.
Lorcan grinned when they walked in there. "Well, I'll see you two later. I see some delicious looking food to the left."
Lily rolled her eyes while Lysander chuckled. But Lorcan trotted off to the table. "Hey, Princess!" Lily turned her head to see who had yelled. She could see Scorpius, Beth, Lana, Dante, and Lars sitting at a table. Scorpius was waving her over.
Lily turned to look at Lysander. "Would you like to meet a couple of my friends?"
Lysander smiled. "I'd love to."
Lily grabbed his hand and led him over to the table. There were three chairs left at the table, so Lily had the feeling that they had expected her to introduce them from the beginning. She stopped at the table. "Lysander, this is Scorpius, Beth, Lana, Dante, and Lars. Guys, this is Lysander," Lily introduced as she took a seat next to Scorpius.
Lysander smiled at them all. "It's nice to meet you guys," he said as he took the seat on Lily's other side.
"Right back at ya, dude," Dante told him.
"Where's Mitch?" Lily asked curiously.
"Wooing your cousin over there," Lana said. Lily glanced at where she pointed and saw Mitch talking with Dominique again. "I don't know who to feel bad for in that situation," she muttered.
"That's what I said," Scorpius said with a laugh.
Lily looked at the seat next to Lars. "Who's that seat for?"
"Lars's date. She had to use the bathroom," Lana muttered.
Lars rolled his eyes. "She has a name," he told her.
"Who is it?" Lily asked.
"Victoria Martin," Lars told her.
"From Ravenclaw?" Lysander asked curiously.
"That's the one," Lars said with a grin.
"Sorry if she's a friend of yours, Lysander, but the girl's a twit!" Lana said to her brother.
Lysander only chuckled. Lars rolled his eyes. "Chill, sis. Just ignore her."
"Ah! My favorite student has finally arrived!" Slughorn exclaimed as he strode over to their table. "How are you, Lily?" he asked.
Lily turned in her chair and smiled at him. "Just fine, Professor. And yourself?"
"Just smashing," he said joyfully. "There's someone here I want to introduce you to. Come along."
Lily sighed and stood up. "I'll be back in a moment."
Scorpius grinned. "No worries. We'll keep Lysander company."
"Just keep Tanner away from him," Lily joked, thinking of what he'd said at practice. Then she turned to follow Slughorn through the crowd. He led her to two older men that were talking. They were probably her father's age, or at least close.
"Boys, this is the girl I was talking about," Slughorn told them when they came close to them. "This is Lily Potter. Lily, this is Michael Corner and Terry Boot. They are former students of mine. Both excellent at potions. You might know one of their kids," he introduced.
Lily smiled. "It's nice to meet you."
"Lily Potter? Harry's daughter?" Michael asked.
Lily tried not to look annoyed. "Yes, that's me."
"Ah! I thought you looked familiar. We went to school with your parents. You look an awful lot like your mother," Terry told her.
Lily gave a forced smile. "Thank you."
"So, Horace here tells us that you're excellent at potions," Michael commented.
Lily shrugged. "I guess."
"She's been doing work that you two did in your sixth year," Slughorn bragged. "Best Potion student I've ever had."
Both men looked impressed. "Really?" Terry said. "That's quite shocking. You don't hear of that often. I don't think any of my colleagues could have even tried that at your age."
"Yes, Terry is a potioneer," Slughorn told her.
"Really?" Lily said with interest. "That must be fascinating work."
Now Terry shrugged. "It's not bad. Supports the family, that's what matters. I think Michael's got the better job."
Michael grinned. "I work as an Auror with your father. I'd thought I'd recognized you from somewhere when Slughorn was bringing you over."
Lily tried to think of when she'd seen this man, but she'd been to her father's office so many times that she couldn't really distinguish one Auror from the other. "I'm sorry, but I can't remember seeing you. I've seen so many faces when I visit him," she apologized.
The two men laughed. "That's all right," Michael told her. "It takes time to remember all of us. I had a hell of time trying to put names and faces together."
Lily smiled, and glanced back at where the others were sitting. "Well, it was lovely meeting you guys, but I think I might want to get back to my friends," she told them. She would have said date, but after learning that Michael was an Auror, she didn't want it getting back to her father.
"Of course. You go and have fun," the two men urged.
Lily smiled at Slughorn. "I'll see you around, Professor."
"Yes. Have a great night, Lily," he told her with a proud smiled.
Lily nodded and made her way back to the table. The others were all laughing, and it seemed that Lars's date had returned. She sat down between Scorpius and Lysander. "What have I missed?" she asked.
"Nothing much," Scorpius told her. "Just Dante bugging Lars."
"What did Slughorn want?" Dante asked.
"To introduce me to two of his former students that were very good at Potions," Lily told them.
"As good as you?" Lysander asked.
"No," Lily said with a laugh. "But one of them works for my father now."
"Oh, how fun!" Dante joked.
"Did you tell him you had a date?" Scorpius asked with a grin.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Don't be an ass," she told him. "And no. I had the bad feeling that it would get back to my father."
"You think your dad wouldn't like you dating me?" Lysander asked with a small grin.
"No, I don't think my dad would like me dating anyone," she corrected. "I'm just trying to avoid an interrogation at Christmas."
"That's good, because I think my family is going to the Burrow for Christmas this year," Lysander told her.
"Really?" Lily asked.
He shrugged. "Well, that's what my parents have been suggesting. I think your mum and my mum have been talking about it for a while now."
"Well, at least Christmas won't suck as bad," Lily said with a laugh.
"At least you don't have to get all dressed up and go to the Malfoys' for a fancy Christmas dinner," Lars grumbled.
"Yeah, that dinner sucks," Scorpius agreed with a sigh.
"What's so bad about it?" Lily asked.
"Formal wear, adults being boring, and lack of fun," Lana listed.
"What are we talking about?" Mitch asked as he dragged a chair over to their table, making a spot between Dante and Lars.
"Christmas at Malfoy Manor," Dante told him.
"Oh, it sucks," Mitch said immediately.
Lily looked at Mitch, noting his goofy grin, messy hair, and wrinkled shirt. "Good evening so far, Mitch?"
Mitch grinned even more. "Your cousin is wild!"
Lily gagged. "I don't need to know that. That's the last thing I want to hear about Dominique."
"Yeah, if you're going to shag her, please don't tell us," Beth said with grossed out face.
Mitch shrugged. "I'll just brag when you girls aren't here."
"Thank you!" the girls exclaimed.
Mitch dropped his elbows onto the table and leaned toward Lily. "So, Lil, can you invite me over on Christmas Eve?"
Lily raised a brow. "Why? So you can have sex with my cousin?"
Mitch laughed. "Well I wasn't thinking that far ahead, but sounds good to me. Will ya?"
Lily scoffed. "Have Dominique invite you. And don't expect privacy. That word's not real in the Weasley family."
He laughed again. "I don't mind an audience."
"Mitch!" Beth scolded, reaching over to smack his arm.
"You're an idiot, man," Dante said with a chuckle.
"Oh, shit," Lars said with a sigh.
"What?" Scorpius asked.
"I see trouble coming in," Lars told them. They all looked toward the door to see James coming in with his arm around some girl, with Albus and a few of the other cousins following him in.
"Talk about oncoming disaster," Dante muttered as he glared at the group. "I ought to kill Potter."
"I already got dibs," Lily told him.
Lysander stood up. "I'll be back in a moment. I haven't told James happy birthday yet." Lily watched as he walked away and toward her family.
"I can't believe he's friends with that jackass," Lars muttered in disgust.
Lily sighed. "He knows James's an ass. He's just better at ignoring it," she said.
"He's got amazing abilities then," Dante replied.
"Think they know he's with you?" Lana asked.
Lily shrugged. "Hell if I know. They haven't said anything to me, but then again, we don't talk much."
"I doubt they know," Scorpius told them. "I don't think James would be smiling and laughing with Lysander if he knew about the two of you."
Lily glanced over at her family, who all seemed happy to have Lysander among them. "You've got a point."
******************
As the night went on, Lily found herself able to relax more. It seemed that her family was avoiding her, which worked well for her. She was able to move around, talk with other, and able to be around Lysander without hearing a word from her family. She found Lorcan by the food again, but he was talking to Rose, so she stayed away from their conversation.
"So, I was thinking that on the next Hogsmeade trip, we could hang out with your other friends," Lysander suggested. He and Lily were standing near a corner of the room, talking to each other away from others.
Lily raised a brow. "Really? Because they're a handful."
Lysander shrugged. "It sounds fun to me. I mean, if I can put up with Lorcan, I think I can put up with anybody."
Lily laughed. "Well, you've got a point. Just be ready for a fight."
"You think they'd pick a fight with me?" he asked.
"No, but they'll pick one with each other," she joked.
"Hey, hey!" Scorpius said as he hurried over to the two of them. "Can I borrow Lily for a moment?"
Lily looked at him with a raised brow. "How about you asked her?"
Lysander laughed. "I was about to get a drink anyway. You want one, Lily?"
Lily smiled. "Sure."
"I'm taking her back to the table," Scorpius told him. He grabbed her wrist and began to pull her along.
"What is it?" Lily demanded.
"Just sit," Scorpius told her. Lily did as he said, and looked at him, expecting. He simply sighed. "I just wanted a moment where Beth wasn't clinging to me, so I told her I had to talk to you about something important, and I'm sure she's watching us now," he muttered.
Lily held back from laughing, but not from grinning. "Regretting agreeing to a date?"
"Hardly," he said sarcastically.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't two little snakes!"
Both Scorpius and Lily tensed. They both turned their heads to glare at James. His arm was still around that girl from earlier, and Albus was still trailing behind him. Rose was there as well, but she looked as if she longed to be with someone else.
"What the hell do you want?" Scorpius hissed.
James gave a look of mock disappointment. "What? Not going to wish me a happy birthday?"
"I would but that would contradict my personal wish," Lily snapped.
James only laughed patronizingly. "Well how unfortunate for me, because I don't think I can live with myself anymore," he mocked.
"What's going on here?"
Lily tensed even more when she turned her head to see that Lysander had come to join them, two cups in his hand. He handed one to Lily. James looked at the exchange in confusion. "What are you doing, Ly?"
Lysander sat down. "Getting a drink for my date. Why?"
James's face turned to one of surprise and mild horror. "This is your date? You're taking out a snake? You'd do better with Squib, dude!"
Lily froze, but Scorpius shot up from his chair, making it fall with a crash. "Take it back!" he hissed.
"What's the problem here?" Slughorn demanded. The scene had grabbed quite a bit of attention. Lily couldn't get herself to move.
"Nothing, Professor," Lysander assured.
"Nothing my foot!" Scorpius growled. He turned on Lysander. "Why aren't you defending her?"
"Wait, wait!" Slughorn intervened before Lysander could even open his mouth. "Let's either stop now or settle this somewhere else."
Lily finally moved, and stood up from her chair. "I think I'll go somewhere else," she mumbled. "I'll see you tomorrow, Professor." She didn't give anyone a chance to say anything before she'd stormed out of the room, walking quickly down the hall.
"Lily!" Lily didn't stop walking at the sound of Lysander's call. But she could still hear his footsteps. "Lily, wait!"
"Just go back to the party, Lysander," she told him between her teeth.
He must have caught up with her, because she felt a hand grab her arm and turn her around. Lysander was looking at her with a confused face. "What's wrong, Lily?"
"Just go!" she told him. "Just go back to the party and be around someone that won't make you a social pariah," she snapped.
"Lily, I don't care-,"
"Just stay away from me!" Lily shrieked. She tore her arm out of his grasp and jogged away from him. She didn't hear his footsteps this time, but she didn't stop jogging until she was two hallways away. From there she walked briskly through the corridors, trying to find a place to be alone. With a quick thought, she ran up to the Astronomy Tower, remembering that there were no Astronomy classes tonight. When she was there, she shivered. The air was warm, but the breeze that whipped by her was cold. She moved to the edge and sat down, throwing her feet over the ledge. Then she wrapped her arms around her, and looked out at the grounds below her.
She was right all along. She should have trusted her feelings and avoided the party. She should have avoided Lysander. How could she think that James wouldn't do something like that? Of course James would begin to hate Lysander too. He hated anyone associated with her. She couldn't be the reason Lysander lost some of his friends. She couldn't do that to him.
"Princess?"
Lily closed her eyes, letting out an annoyed sigh. "What are you doing here, Scorpius?" she snapped softly.
"Acting as your white knight," he replied from behind her.
"You're not wearing white," she mumbled.
"Then I'm coming as your black knight. Either way," he said as he moved to sit next to her, "I'm coming to make sure that you're ok."
Lily turned her head away from him. "I'm fine," she muttered.
"Then why'd you run out? Why not stay and defend yourself?"
"I didn't want to ostracize Lysander. I should have known that being with me would mean losing his friends," Lily sighed.
"He's a dick and a pushover for not defending you," Scorpius told her. "He should have told James to fuck off.
"He's too nice," Lily whispered.
"Then he doesn't care enough," Scorpius growled. "He's a crappy boyfriend."
"He was never my boyfriend. And it doesn't matter. I've told him to stay away from me," Lily replied.
"I didn't mean to stop being friends with him," Scorpius amended.
"Being around me just makes practically everyone hate you," Lily retorted. "I can't ruin his social life just because I have a crush on him."
She heard him sigh. "I hate other people."
"It doesn't matter," she repeated. "Besides, it's not like we would have lasted forever. Our relationship would have ended eventually."
"That's true. Mine only lasted to tonight," Scorpius replied.
"And he always made it about me," Lily replied. "I mean, that's sweet, but then it's a little annoying. I mean, he never even suggested introducing me to his friends."
"It does have to be equal."
"And to top it off, he took me to Madam Puttifoot's for a first date. That alone is a ridiculous idea if you're taking me out," Lily said with disgust.
"That's a dumb place to take any awesome girl," Scorpius agreed. "That place is dreadful."
"Awful," Lily said with a small laugh.
"It looks like cupid threw up in there," Scorpius joked.
Lily sighed as she finally turned her head to look at him. He was looking up at the sky, the moonlight making his eyes look more like silver. His hair hadn't fixed to look nicer. In fact, his hair was a mess with the wind. It was blown around his head, ruffled across his forehead. And he was so tall, at least a head taller than she was. Not even up to blushing, Lily only sighed again. She moved to lean her head against his shoulder, but he moved his arm around her comfortingly, letting head rest on his side.
"He's not worth the sadness, Princess," Scorpius whispered. "Not if he's not willing to fight for ya. Whether it's against James, or you."