A/N: So, I read the reviews from Chapter 4 today. Very nice to see you all again. As you can see, I am about six chapters ahead of the reviews and feeling mighty impatient. If I wasn't determined to take it out on all of you, I would just upload all that I have and let you have a field day with it. But… I won't… not today, at least… maybe tomorrow… lol… So, we are wrapping things up here shortly. Thank you again to those of you who have read and review.
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Unfaithful Uncovered
The Christmas Holiday ended, and Lily returned to school without the Marauders or Summer. She hadn't seen Striker since her return either, and deflected questions about what she knew. Without either James or Remus to patrol, Lily was doubling up on her own shifts. She didn't think it was fair to ask any of the other houses to cover for absences in Gryffindor, though they all readily offered.
Lily sat in the Prefect meeting room alone one Friday night, going over the schedule. She had been there when Sirius, Peter, and Summer had been released, escorting them back to the school. Sirius and Peter had been relieved, Summer looked horrified or saddened. Lily wasn't sure what Summer had been feeling, and she couldn't careless. She could only ever think of James and Remus. She wasn't sure when Remus would be released and James still was out. She sat behind the desk, her head in her hand. She had spent each weekend since school went back into session sitting up at the hospital with James.
"Lily?" Striker said as he came in the meeting room. Lily looked up at him, her expression blank. She was no longer mesmerized by those intense blue eyes. They had lost all their appeal for Lily, as did the relationship. She knew she needed to end it with him; she just didn't have the time to hatch it out with him.
"Yes, Striker?" Lily asked him without emotion.
"I wanted to apologize for not being more understanding that morning," Striker said remorsefully. "I should have gone with you."
"Yes, you should have," Lily said crossly. "Look, I would love to chat this up, but I have to balance the schedule so that I can have everything handled."
"You are going up to the hospital this weekend, aren't you?" Striker asked. Lily looked up at him.
"I am," Lily said defensively. "Why, do you have a problem with it?"
"No, I mean, I guess not," Striker said quietly as he sat in one of the student desks. He looked at her helplessly, but Lily refused to meet his gaze. She hadn't made eye contact with him since she left the hotel room that morning. She couldn't make herself.
"Good," Lily said as she turned back to her papers.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Striker asked. Lily looked up at him.
"No, I don't," Lily said shaking her head. "Actually, I have been meaning to talk to you. I have just been so busy and I kept putting it off, but it isn't kind for me to keep you hanging. I have had a lot of time to just sit and think, Striker. I have come to the decision that you and I should take some time apart."
"What?" Striker asked slowly. "I don't understand."
"I think that you and I should break up," Lily said quietly.
"What? What do you mean?" Striker asked angrily. "Is this because I wasn't at the hospital with you? I said that I was sorry, Lily. Don't do this. Don't do this to me, please!"
"Striker, I haven't been truthful," Lily said quietly. She looked at him with her green eyes sparkling with fresh tears. "I haven't been faithful."
"What?" Striker asked shaking his head. "No, that's no true. I know you. That's can't be true. It isn't true. Why do you lie?"
"Yes, it is," Lily said hanging her head. "I slept with James. The day of the wedding, the day we left."
"The same day you were with me?" Striker asked as he stood. His jaw was clenched in anger.
"Yes," Lily said as she looked at him. His fists were clenched as if he might hit something, or someone. For a moment, she wondered if he was a violent man. She had never seen him get more than annoyed, but she knew that every man had a breaking point. She knew she was at Strikers and she wondered if deep down he was a violent man.
"Summer is right, you are a whore," Striker said as he stormed out of the meeting room. Lily let her gaze fall on the papers before her and watched through blurry eyes as the paper swelled at each tear drop. She gathered her papers and headed up to her common room. She knew she really needed to work on the schedule, but she couldn't focus.
"Lily, wait," Sirius called to her as he limped up the hall way. Lily really didn't want to talk to anyone, seeing that she had just ended her relationship with Striker. She contemplated running off down the hall, knowing Sirius couldn't catch up with him. She sighed and waited for him. She owed Sirius that much. He was being so much nicer to her, though Lily wondered if it was because he was lonely and a bit lost without James.
"Sirius," Lily said as he hobbled up to her.
"Hey, did you hear? James is awake!" Sirius cheered as he hugged her tightly. Lily hugged him back, unable to believe that James had finally awaken.
"That's really great," Lily said as she pulled free of him. "When do you think that he will be back at school?"
"He is already back," Sirius said as he took her hand and pulled her down the hall way toward the hospital wing.
"No, wait, Sirius, I look like hell," Lily exclaimed as she pulled away from him.
"He won't care about that, Lily," Sirius said as he took her hand again. "Please, Lily, he needs you right now."
"I can't right now," Lily said as she struggled. "Shouldn't Summer be with him?"
"He asked for you," Sirius pleaded. "Please Lily."
Lily sighed. She couldn't deny James, not like this. He wouldn't have denied her had she asked for him. She followed reluctantly as Sirius drug her to the hospital room. She knew that she probably did look like hell, after a day's worth of classes and a crying spell while she broke up with Striker. Sirius stopped and turned to Lily.
"He is feeling really down, so try to cheer him up," Sirius said as he pushed open the hospital door.
"Madame Pomphrey, Professor McGonagall, really, I am fine," James said without his usual fire. He sounded exhausted, and not that good exhausted like after a hard Quidditch game.
"Look who I brought, James!" Sirius said in a falsely bright voice. Sirius gently pushed Lily forward into view. Lily hesitantly stepped to the end of the bed that the two mother hens were clucking on about, trying to convince James that he needed to stay put.
"James," Lily said quietly as she looked up at him.
"Perhaps we should let the Heads get reacquainted," Sirius suggested as he guided the two women to the other side of the hospital wing.
"You came every weekend," James said quietly. He didn't make eye contact with her, instead he toyed with a string on his blanket. She sat down on the edge of his bed and took his hand.
"I did. I am so sorry about your parents," Lily said. James looked at her, then looked away.
"I don't want to talk about it," James said. "I just want to get out of this bed and go back to my dorm room."
"Ok," Lily said nodding. She gathered his clothing and looked over at the women who were about to come over and protest. Lily shook her head at them and helped James to a sitting position.
"I can do it," James growled at her as she tried to help him get his broken arm through his shirt sleeve.
"I know," Lily said quietly. "I just wanted to do this with you."
Lily waited, her eyes averted as James slowly dressed in his school clothes. Sirius and Lily walked back to the Gryffindor common room.
"When do you think Remus will be back?" Sirius asked Lily. Lily shrugged as a hand grabbed them from behind.
"Hey guys," Remus said quietly. "I have been looking for you guys everywhere."
"We were just bailing James out of the hospital wing," Sirius teased lightly. Lily shrunk back to watch the three boys walk down the hall together. They weren't nearly as fast as they had been, and they didn't have that air of mischief about them. It was really sad how the murder of James' parents had affected them so much.
"Are you coming?" Remus asked as he looked at Lily.
"Yeah, I am sorry," Lily said as she jogged to catch up with them.
More than physically, emotionally the Marauders had changed. They were no longer as carefree as they had been. Before, any disappearances or attacks had been things that happened to other people. It was not something that would cause them to think twice about their own mortality or even to pause at such news. They had experience, now, first hand of the evil in the world and it greatly affected their lives.
"Where is Summer? I would have thought that she would have been by to see you, James," Lily asked as she entered the Heads common area. James had moved in one night after his return, unknown to Lily until the next morning. She didn't draw attention to it, figuring if he wanted to talk to her about it he would have.
"I don't know," James said quietly as he barely glanced up from his text book.
"What are you studying?" Lily asked curiously as she sat down across from him. He held up his Life Studies book. "Is any of it becoming useful?"
"I guess," James said shrugging.
"Do you want me to cover for you tonight? You, Remus, Sirius, and Peter can sneak out to Hogsmeade," Lily offered.
"No," James said flatly. Lily sighed. James had been acting this way with everyone, even Sirius. Sirius had taken up to sleeping on the couch in the Heads' common room at night, rushing to James' assistance at the first peep of a nightmare. James. It was becoming a nightly occurrence, which was cutting into Sirius' sleep. Sirius was becoming a bear about things, too.
"Ok, well do want to join me on patrol then?" Lily asked. James sighed and closed his book. Lily looked at him. He had been wearing the same uniform for a week, at least, though by the looks of the uniform, it may have been for closer to two weeks.
"I guess," James said as he stood.
"Do you want to skip patrol and talk?" Lily offered. James shook his head.
"No," James said as he walked toward the portrait opening. Lily followed after him, concerned. She didn't like the new, melancholy James. No one did. James was one of the first people to stir up trouble. Even Remus longed for trouble-making James.
"I hope that one day you will talk to me again," Lily whispered into his ear as she pulled up next to him. James' lip trembled, but he said nothing. Lily didn't push him. She knew what it was like to be pushed.
Lily and James walked along the corridors in silence. It was another one of those nights that nothing was stirring in the house. Lily could see the pain that was etching on to James' face. She had felt that same hopelessness when her parents had died. She thought back. What had snapped her out of it? She couldn't pin point it, except her sister. Petunia had helped Lily snap out of the lost feeling that seemed to consume her that summer. Lily knew what she had to do to help James, but she had to time it right, otherwise it was just going to be awkward and weird. She needed to find Sirius quickly and run her plan by him, to make sure he understood everything. She went to turn to go find Sirius when Lily saw Summer standing a few meters away.
"James," Summer said quietly as she came down the hall. She looked uncomfortable standing there.
"What do you want?" James practically growled. Summer stepped back. She looked like she had been crying.
"I wanted to apologize," Summer said quietly.
"I don't want to talk to you," James said loudly. Lily looked at him curiously.
"James," Lily said touching his sleeve. He jerked away from Lily.
"No, Lily," James snapped at her. "She was related to the Death Eater that murdered my parents. They were looking for you, Lily. I can only imagine what she told them to make them attack."
"James, I am so sorry," Summer cried. "I never wanted you to get hurt."
"You wanted to take Lily out of my life," James growled at her, his fists clenched. "How could you think I wouldn't be hurt? You as good as murdered my parents with your own hand. I hate you. They may have decided you were innocent, but in my eyes you are guilty. You murdered my parents."
"I'm sorry," Summer said as she ran off. Lily looked at him in surprise.
"Do you want to explain or talk about it?" Lily asked him as she touched his shoulder tenderly. He jerked away from her.
"No, I don't want to talk about it, Lily," James snapped. "How hard is that for you to understand? You'd think you of all people would understand that."
Lily stood their gaping at him as James stormed off toward their common room. He had never talked to her that way before, never. Even at times when he had been annoyed with her, he had always been nice to her. She would have been angry, had she not suffered from the same outbursts to the ones she loved those early months after her parents had died. Lily sighed and headed toward the portrait hole, hoping she would be able to find Sirius rather quickly.
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