Chapter Forty Six
“I can’t believe we’re back here already,” Cassie groaned, nearly dunking her head in her cereal as she rested it on the table. “It feels like we never left.”
“Yeah,” Lily agreed blearily as she stuck her fork into the butter and started spreading it on her toast while her friends watched her wordlessly.
“How long do you think it will take for her to notice?” Mary whispered right as Lily stopped and looked at it in confusion. “Oh kill me now please,” she mumbled as she looked for a knife.
Lily stumbled through her lessons, still not entirely awake after an enormous cup of coffee; she only became a properly functioning person when she found herself spreadeagled across one of the sofas that evening, half reading and half listening to the conversation taking place around her.
“I’m so glad we got to break your motorcycle in,” James was saying to Sirius as they ate, throwing the wrappers into the blazing fire every so often.
“What a way to do it too,” he grinned roguishly.
“Merlin I wish I could have seen the look on their faces once they came round! It would have been hilarious.”
“Outrunning Death Eaters…” Sirius sighed happily, “Slightly scary but so satisfying.”
“What did you say Sirius?” Alice asked. “I thought I heard something about Death Eaters.”
Sirius and James glanced at each other before shrugging. “Yeah, you did,” Sirius laughed, leaning forward excitedly as everyone started to listen to their story. “Well basically we were testing my new motorcycle out, seeing how it flew and…”
“Mostly we were just having fun with it,” James interrupted with a grin, slapping Sirius on the shoulder.
“It was rather exciting,” he admitted, childlike in his excitement and completely unaware of the trouble he was heading into. “Anyway we were flying and somehow we ended up with three Death Eaters on our tail… Course we didn’t want to be made into mincemeat by You-Know-Who’s cronies-”
“We have got things to do with our lives after all,” James interrupted again, “and there’s no way I’m going to have done the work I have and not finish up with my N.E.W.T.s. What a waste of time that would be!” Sirius rolled his eyes and continued, “So we were driving pretty quickly, and who did we pick up but some Muggle policemen. Anyway they cornered us this alley and were trying to arrest us when the Death Eaters appeared. God the Muggles’ faces were priceless,” he laughed, whistling appreciatively.
“So we levitated the car and they slammed into it, then we jumped on Sirius’ bike and flew off,” James finished triumphantly as Peter fell over with laughter and Remus allowed a small smile to cross his face. Frank nodded once and chuckled while the girls, unimpressed, eyed them.
“Bit dangerous, don’t you think?” Mary asked as the two boys shrugged.
“Nah, course not!” Sirius said. “Well maybe a little,” James amended, “but you know…”
“No, we don’t know James,” Lily finally said. His head snapped towards hers instantly and his face fell; he paled and swallowed nervously, knitting his hands together in his lap as someone whispered, “Good luck Prongs.”
“You… think?” he replied.
“You could have died James!” she cried as the people around them began to shuffle away, muttering halfhearted inventions about forgotten work. Lily massaged her temple as she tried to calm herself down - the last thing she wanted was to make a scene in the middle of the common room, where everyone could hear them - and counted to ten. Only Cassie stayed where she was, grabbing Sirius by the wrist as he tried to wander away in case Lily’s ire was directed at him too, and she sent him the dirtiest look she could manage. “Where do you think you’re going?” she hissed.
“Er… to my dorm? To do that…thing… that I have,” he mumbled.
“Nice try Sirius; you’re not going anywhere. You haven’t escaped without anything like that,” she jerked her head towards their best friends, “happening to you too.”
“What were you thinking?” shrieked Lily, her control gone as everyone else in the common room sidled away. “You could have been killed!” Only a couple of younger girls stayed behind, hoping to gather some gossip on the school’s favourite couple, and wondering whether this spelled the end for the pair.
“Everyone’s living on the brink of death Lily!” James retorted.
“It doesn’t mean that you have to seek it out! You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters are out there! You can’t just run off and go thrill seeking like you used to!” A small gasp tumbled into the silent common room from one of the girls and she quailed under Lily’s enraged glare.
“But Sirius-” he started.
“I don’t care James!” she interrupted, her attention focused on her boyfriend again. “A flying motorbike! Really?”
“Well Sirius-”
Lily advanced slowly, her face murderous and her finger raised as she jabbed it at him. “James!” she exclaimed, exasperated. “Just because Sirius is as stupid as you, doesn’t mean I’m going to let you off!” she shouted. Some first year boys fell into the common room and their eyes widened immediately before their feet pattered past as they ran away.
“Honestly Lil we didn’t think-“
“That’s the problem James! You don’t think! You think that running around and searching out trouble is being noble but it isn’t! You’re not helping anyone by causing trouble, all you’re doing is proving that you’re still as immature as you were when we started as first years. If you want to help then you have to wait, you have to finish your N.E.W.T.s and train; you have to have a plan because otherwise they will kill you. They’re not going to be fair, they’re not going to let you off just because you’re young, because in their eyes you’re dangerous and you’re a liability and, what’s more, no one who does fight You-Know-Who is going to want you on their side if you act like some headstrong child! You’ll only make one more person that they have to worry about when you run off and get yourself blown up!” James ducked his head, suitably chastised, and ruffled his hair sadly as he tried to think of something to say. “You’re right Lily,” he sighed.
“I know I’m right,” she snapped. “Look just promise me that you’ll stop this… I’d hate to lose you, you know?” His ears pricked up and he looked at her warily. “Really?”
“Of course you idiot,” she said as he smiled. “You have no idea how amazing it is to hear you say that,” he said.
“Well then you’d better stop hunting down Death Eaters with Sirius.”
“I never-!” James received a stony glare from Lily and he trailed off. “I’ll be more careful next time, I promise.”
“There won’t be a next time!” she screeched.
“Of course there won’t,” he backtracked quickly. “I just meant… Forget it, it was just a figure of speech.” Lily harrumphed and crossed her arms, eyeing him sternly. “Good,” she finally said.
The few girls who had remained hidden in the corner, their eyes as wide as saucers as they had listened to the arguing couple and their terrifying conversation about Death Eaters and fighting, watched entranced as the two seventh years gazed at each other before nodding and subsiding into silence; the difference between James Potter and Lily Evans and them was so large that they could barely believe they would end up like the Heads in front of them and they had gazed on in a kind of awe.
“Lily,” he muttered; she turned round to face him and frowned. “What?” she asked.
“Have you heard about The Order of the Phoenix?” She froze, hands hanging useless by her sides and felt her heart begin to pound; sweat pooled in her clammy hands and she suppressed a shiver as she deflated, looking lost at the floor. Lily jerked her head once in a shaky nod and blinked silently. “Well…” Every word James had thought he was about to utter became trapped on his tongue, fleeing his mind as he watched Lily worriedly. “I just thought…”
“Please don’t James,” she whispered. “I mean you can… It’s so dangerous.”
“Just living is dangerous these days Lil,” he sighed. “You know that. You know we can’t just stand by and let them do this.” He moved closer to her and took her freezing hands in his. “You know who they’re going after, you know it could be you one day.”
“But James,” she mumbled.
“They’d love to have you Lilybud,” he murmured, his hazel eyes fixed on hers. “You’re amazing.”
“Have you…?” She faltered and swallowed, steeling herself. “You’ve spoken to them, haven’t you?”
“Not yet but we will when we leave.”
“You… and Sirius… and Peter…” She was certain that Sirius would sign up as soon as he could and Peter always followed their example. “And Remus?” James nodded and smiled sadly. “Be brave Lily.” He leant down and kissed her and she clutched him tightly, already feeling all the pain of losing him and when they pulled apart she had made her decision. As long as they had until the end of school then it was fine, she could handle it. She’d always known that the Gryffindors would enter the wizarding world with their wands drawn and ready for a fight and over the years she had become and more certain that she was going to join them. “If we’re going down then we’re going down fighting,” she said resolutely. “After all, someone is going to need to keep you out of trouble.”
James laughed and squeezed her tightly. “You always worry about me and never about yourself,” he chuckled. “I think I can take care of myself.”
She scoffed and shook her head. “I seriously doubt it. Besides I know I’ll be fine.”
“That’s fine, I can worry about you for the both of us. I’m only going to let you fight because then I know I can keep an eye on you.”
She sighed and stuck an elbow into his ribs. “So overprotective,” she muttered, “and such an arrogant toerag.” He grinned and winked at her. “Of course I am. What else would I be?”
“No clue but you certainly are confident in your own abilities.” He pecked her once again and laughed. “I love you Lily Evans.”
“And James Potter I… suppose you’re tolerable,” she replied with a giggle as he pouted at her.