Chapter 9- In Your Arms
Lily awoke from her short nights sleep to a fresh and early day. It was about eight and she felt the sun peering through her window and onto her face. It was such a beautiful day outside. And also, it was a Saturday, meaning that there were no classes until Monday. She still had a lot of homework, as the new 7th Years had been assigned many essays over the summer. She had most of them done.
She walked out of her room, in her pajamas and robe and took a long, hot bath in the large Jacuzzi bath tub in her bathroom. She changed quickly and headed out into the Heads Common Room to see if James was there.
Hmm, he must still be sleeping. Well, I'm hungry so I'm gonna go find Katy and Halle at breakfast. Surely, they're awake by now, she thought.
She headed down to the Great Hall to see James sitting alone, reading the Daily Prophet. It looked as though Voldemort had attacked more Muggles in the London region. Lily gave an involuntary shudder as she saw the headline.
She sat down across from James and began buttering a piece of toast.
"Good morning," she said.
"Morning," James replied simply.
"So, do you want to meet in the library later to discuss some of the ideas you came up with during the summer. I'm sure the Yule Ball wasn't the only one of them. Hogwarts could use a little fun once in a while," Lily said.
"That'd be great. I had a lot of ideas that we could use. By any chance have you seen Sirius around?" James asked, looking around the Gryffindor table for a sign of his friends.
"No, usually he'd be sitting next to you, stuffing his face," she said, looking at the empty spot next to James.
"I know. Usually we do stuff on Saturdays, like Quidditch. We were gonna plan our first practice today but unless I find him, that probably won't happen. I bet Remus went to look for him and Peter is probably passed out still in his bed. Where are your little friends?" he asked.
"No idea. I hope that we don't break away from each other just because we sleep in separate dorms. That would be silly. But, since you're my newest friend, would you like to be my buddy for today?" she asked.
"Why of course Miss Evans. It would be an honor and a duty," he said, standing and saluting her. Several people laughed as they saw James salute her.
The two of them headed out of the Great Hall and headed towards the library. Madam Pince smiled at Lily but stared at James for a while.
"You don't come in here much do you?" Lily whispered to James as they took a seat at a table near the back.
"Not really," James said, looking around at the scenery. It was apparent it was his first time inside the library.
"How did you manage seven years at Hogwarts without going to the library?" Lily asked, taking out a piece of parchment and a quill.
"How come you're so organized?" he asked her, looking at the writing utensils.
"I have to be," she said.
"Oh, well, I suppose we better get started," James said.
"What do you think we should have besides a Yule Ball?" she asked.
"Well, I think we should have a Hogsmeade weekend the weekend before a ball, giving people a chance to go shopping for last minute items," James said.
Lily began writing what he was saying down and it intimidated James to a point. He glanced nervously at the parchment.
"And, um, well, a Masquerade Ball would be cool. You know, where everyone dresses up in masks and no one really knows who the masked person is. It's neat, but usually the whole surprise is ruined because we all know each other so well," James said.
Once again, Lily's hand glided across the page, taking note of every detail. She looked up.
"What about Valentine's Day? My Muggle friend wrote to me last year to tell me that they had a Sweethearts Dance on Valentine's Day. It would be a good chance for couples at Hogwarts to have a good time," Lily said.
"I agree. That would be a cool idea," James said.
"Also, about Prefects. We have to organize them into nights. We have to patrol every night but they get to twice a week. We have to evenly separate them into nights. How should be do that?" Lily asked.
James thought for a moment, then spoke.
"Well, we could put a piece of parchment in the Prefects Lounge where they could sign up for the night that's best for them. Then, we could check it and verify it with their Head of House," James said. Lily looked in awe of James. She had just taken in why exactly he was made Head Boy. He was full of ideas and he was smart.
"That's a great idea James!" Lily said. "Very impressive."
'Thanks," he said.He remembered their previous conversation and hoped to have another.
"So, you said you only live with your dad and sister? No mum, no pets, no grandparents?" James asked, making a stab at conversation. He looked at Lily and knew at once he had said the wrong thing.
She looked away and James saw that her eyes were holding tears. She started to pack her things when James reached for her hand.
"It's ok, I want to hear," he said. She stopped and sat in her chair, silent for a while.
"Voldemort killed my mum," Lily said, fighting back the tears.
"Oh Lils, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked, it was none of my business," he said, apologizing.
"No, it's fine. You have a right to be curious," she said.
"It's just that I don't like to talk about it because I blame myself. If I had been with her maybe I could have stopped him. But I wasn't. She was walking our dog one night and he found her and knowing she was a Muggle, he killed her. Just like that. Without a single thought or regret," Lily said, not bothering to hold back the tears. James comforted her by holding his hand out for her to hold. She took it and looked at it and smiled.
"Lily, my parents are Aurors and they know better than anyone that if he wants to kill you, he will. Nothing you could have done would have stopped him. I am just glad it wasn't you who died as well, I don't think I could have handled that," James said. He stood up and she gave him a hug. They stood like that for a while.
"James?" she whispered.
"Yes Lily?" he asked, looking down at her.
"Thanks," she said. He wiped a tear from her eye. He wished they could be in each others arms forever. She felt the same way. Wishing she could be in his arms.
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