A/N: Oh, I am SO happy you guys didn't come after me with torches and pitch forks… woo hoo… Thank you all who have been reviewing. You make it so much more desirable to write these chapters. Your review is my payment. I thought that I might just torture you all and not release this quite yet, but then I realized that I am not that mean. So, here you all go. This is an all read… I don't think there is any swearing in it, either… Oh wait. There is ONE swear word, no sex, yes nudity, yes suggestive behavior/talk… Read and Review.
Disc.: I own nothing (aside from the plot and errors).
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Chapter 27
A month had passed without change. Yes, it had been a month since James had eaten those blasted chocolates and still, Lily hadn't been able to find a single thing that could help her with it. Lily practically lived in the library when she wasn't in class or doing patrol. She wasn't even taking meals in the great hall anymore, Remus or Sirius sneaking food in to her under Madame Pince's nose. She was looking tired, sleeping in the library when the old bat wouldn't kick her out.
The hardest thing for Lily was seeing James with those girls. He was really making his rounds. First with the Slytherins, then the Ravenclaws, and then the Hufflepuffs, James was getting to know a lot about the female anatomy. James wouldn't attempt anything with the Gryffindors, not because he had morals but because everyone in Gryffindor respected Lily Evans. Well, maybe not respected but they liked her well enough not to want to get cursed by the increasingly moody Head Girl.
She was constantly reminding herself that James was not himself. He wouldn't do some of the things he was doing now. He had gone from a respectable guy to fulfilling many of the girls' dreams. Lily turned her head anytime she came across James, as he was always literally attached to someone at the mouth or hip. It ate her up inside. Remus and Sirius were a source of comfort to her during this trying time.
"Hey," Lily said sleepily as Remus sat down next to her in the library. He glanced over his shoulder before pulling a sandwich out of his pocket.
"Any luck?" Remus asked hopefully. Lily shook her head as she unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite. It was a little smashed but it tasted fine.
"I only wish I knew where to look," Lily sighed as she gestured at the large collection of books from the restricted section.
"Snape couldn't point you in the right direction?" Remus asked as Lily rubbed her shoulder. She was uncomfortable. Though she was used to the hard wooden chairs of the library and classroom, she had been practically living in them during all of her free time. It was rough on her muscles.
"No," Lily said shaking her head.
"Let me," Remus offered as he put his hands on her shoulders.
"It's not like James isn't out there doing worse," Lily said as she closed her eyes.
"Damn you're tense," Remus said.
"Hey, that's my line," Sirius joked as he joined the two. Remus hesitated.
"Uh, don't stop," Lily groaned. Sirius laughed though his laughter wasn't nearly as jovial as it had been in the past. This thing with James was wearing poorly on all of them.
"Yeah, that's your line. Followed up with- it feels so good," Sirius joked half-heartedly.
"Well, it does," Lily commented as her cheeks turned a little pink.
"You take over, I've got a cramp," Remus said pulling away and rubbing his hand.
"Yeah, I'm getting tag-teamed by my boyfriend's best mates," Lily said as Sirius began to massage her shoulders. "Oh, my God Sirius. Not so rough, okay?"
"Sorry," Sirius said sheepishly as he eased up. "Um, you smell nice."
"I haven't showered in like two days," Lily groaned. "I'm disgusting."
"We could always take this little back rub on the road to the prefect's bathroom," Sirius offered. "I could help you reach that spot in the middle of your back you always struggle with."
"Gee, Black," Lily said. "Tempting offer, really."
"Really?" Sirius asked almost hopefully.
"No," Lily said. She brushed his hands off her and stood. "Can you do me a favor and just sit here, reading so that I don't lose my place while I go fetch up a shower?"
"Sure," Remus said. Sirius sighed and took over Lily's seat.
"Now, Sirius," Lily started as she pressed into his shoulders. "Don't just sit there and keep my chair warm. Try to do some reading. We all want James back the way he used to be."
"Got it," Sirius said as he pulled a huge book towards him. "Just hurry back, will you?"
"Take your time," Remus countered as he made a face at Sirius. Lily nodded and headed out of the library. She walked slowly to the prefects' bathroom, thankful it was empty as she entered. Closing the door behind her, she stripped off her clothes and filled the giant tub with the hottest water she could physically stand. She eased in, the hot soapy water rushing over her body. She closed her eyes and rested her head against the edge of the tub. She fell asleep.
"Hey, Lily?"
Lily could feel someone's hand on her shoulder and she indistinctively told them to leave her alone.
"You're going to drown in the tub if you fall back to sleep," Remus said as he shook her shoulder again. Lily looked at him in confusion before remembering she was in the tub. Instinctively, she covered herself with her hands.
"What are you doing in here?" Lily demanded as she looked to see that most of the bubbles were still there, so she hadn't been gone very long.
"We got kicked out of the library by Madame Pince," Remus said apologetically. He shot a look at Sirius who was standing as far away as possible from Lily in the tub.
"Yeah, sorry about that Lily," Sirius said sheepishly. "Remus and I got to talking about things with James and it got out of hand."
"What things?" Lily asked as she scooped more bubbles her way to maintain adequate coverage.
"Can we not really talk about it with you naked in the tub?" Sirius begged. Lily shot him a nasty look.
"I was here first," Lily said. Sighing she nodded. She moved to get out, but stopped. "You're going to have to turn around, you know."
"Gotcha," Remus said quickly as he scrambled back toward Sirius. They waited as Lily quickly jumped from the tub and towel dried, jerking her clothes on over her head in record time.
"So, what's up?" Lily asked as she sat down on the bench to put her shoes back on her feet.
"What are you going to do if James never goes back to the way he used to be?" Sirius asked carefully.
"What do you mean?" Lily asked.
"Will you eventually move on?" Sirius asked. Lily narrowed her eyes at him.
"Why?" Lily asked.
"Tell her," Remus said. Sirius looked at her helplessly.
"Tell me what?" Lily demanded. Sirius hesitated.
"Earlier this month, during the full moon, James did his whole switch-a-roo," Sirius said. "When he's not human, he is James."
"What?" Lily asked confused.
"He's not affected by the potion and incantation when he is a stag," Remus explained.
"What!" Lily exclaimed.
"He's really sorry he's hurting you," Sirius said quickly. "But he said that if you can't find the cure by the next full moon, he wants you to move on."
"WHAT!" Lily yelled.
"Moving on is going to be hard, but he doesn't want to you to constantly hurt," Remus said quietly.
"No, wait, let me see if I've got this right," Lily said touching her forehead slightly. "He is normal again when he is an animal?"
"Yeah," the boys said.
"And you are just NOW telling me?" Lily asked shaking her head.
"It doesn't change anything," Remus said. She shook her head.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Lily asked. "I've only two more weeks until the full moon!"
"You were already working yourself to death," Sirius said shaking his head. "Imagine how much more you would have tried to do knowing your time was limited. We don't like it anymore than you do, but it is what it is."
"Wait," Lily said as the three of them headed out of the bathroom. "How did this get you kicked out of the library?"
"We got into an… argument," Remus said hesitantly.
"An argument? About what? Telling me?" Lily asked as they headed toward the portrait of the fat lady.
"Not exactly," Sirius said sheepishly. She looked at him curiously. He looked genuinely embarrassed.
"Then about what?" Lily asked as she grabbed both boys' arms to stop them from walking.
"You," Remus said.
"Me?"
"Yeah," Sirius said nodding. "Neither of us wants to see you with another guy, in case the potion does manage to wear off. We were arguing as to who was going to be the one to step up and take James' place until he comes to his senses in his human form."
"A placeholder?" Lily asked.
"Yeah," Remus said. Lily frowned.
"Am I that undesirable that you two would have to fight over who would have to be with me?" Lily asked. The boys turned crimson from embarrassment.
"Quite the opposite," Sirius said. Lily felt heat rising to her own cheeks.
"Really?" Lily asked as failed to suppress a grin. She burst into tears and wrapped her arms around both boys' necks at the same time. "Oh my god, you two are so sweet!"
"My, my…" Severus drawled as he glided past the hugging threesome. "I guess Potter isn't the only one having threesomes."
"Snape!" The three growled. None moved to grab their wands as Severus' wand was already drawn.
"Imagine the shock on Potter's face when he sees his girl with his best friends," Severus smirked. "The scandal of it all…"
Lily opened her mouth to swear at him but Professor McGonagall came by and shooed the seventh year trio back to the common room. Lily bade them good night, hugging them once more for being so damn sweet, before she headed up to her own dormitory.
Lily stared at the darkness of her room for a long time. Thoughts swirled in her mind, haunting her with sleeplessness. She had two weeks to fix James or she would have to do as he wished and move on. She sighed and rolled to her side, jerking off her pants and shirt that were getting twisted in her covers.
In that brief moment between being awake and being asleep, Severus' face slid into her thoughts. She had been thinking about what Remus and Sirius had been saying about needing to move on though moving on would hurt. She had been contemplating which of the two she would allow be a placeholder for James and for how long. It was then Severus' slipped into her conscious thought. What had he said to her? Potter would be shocked to see her with his best friends. With, as in together. Wait. That couldn't be right. James had seen the three of them together quite often, more so of as of lately and nothing had changed between James and his condition.
"Oh my GOD!" Lily squealed into the darkness. Alice moaned indistinguishably and rolled to her side.
Could it be so simple? Lily jumped out of bed and pulled her robe on. She had to go see Severus immediately and force him to tell her. She pulled her tank top down, thinking she really needed to put shorts on before she went and saw him, at least. She grabbed a pair of Libby's shorts, much shorter than Lily would normally wear. Slipping them on, Lily headed out of the Gryffindor common area. She ran barefoot along the corridors, her feet thankful for the cool stone silence beneath her feet.
"Austree Completie," Lily murmured as she crossed into the Slytherin doorway. She took the stairs to the boys' dormitories quickly, entering Severus' chambers soundlessly. She hesitated.
Severus was laying on his back, his eyes closed. The curtains that normally would have been closed against the night were open, the half moon light shining through across Severus' bare chest. She frowned, having never seen him quite so… vulnerable… before. He had a scar across his chest, one that Lily was certain that she had never seen before. She stepped closer to take a better look. Her wand brushed his arm as she leaned forward.
In one swift moment, Severus seized her wrists and flung her onto his bed, his hands crushing her wrist. He was straddling her, holding her arms above her head. Severus looked down at her darkly, his breath coming in frightened gasps.
"Severus! It's me!" Lily cried out. Severus frowned as he realized who was underneath him.
"What the hell are you doing in my room?" Severus asked. "Don't you know it's not polite to sneak up on a person while he's sleeping?"
"Can you get off of me?" Lily asked. Severus looked down as if realizing for the first time that he had her pinned to his bed.
"I kinda like this," Severus said smirking.
"Get off me," Lily demanded. Reluctantly, Severus released Lily's wrists but didn't move to get off her quite yet.
"Why are you here?"
"Get off me the rest of the way, Severus," Lily said as she struggled to get out from under him. He pulled himself off her, but remained at her side as she sat up.
"Why are you here, Lily?" Severus asked again.
"I need to know. Is there a way to shock James back to his senses?" Lily demanded.
"Why should I tell you?" Severus asked. Lily glanced at her wand briefly. "Don't think you can threaten me, Lils. I know you too well."
"Please, tell me," Lily said. Severus curled his lip in a smile.
"What will you give me to tell you, Lily?" Severus said as his fingers briefly untied her robe. She slapped his hand away.
"What do you think you are doing?" Lily demanded again. "I don't owe you anything. In fact, you owe me."
"Fine," Severus said pouting. "I don't know why you like him. He's such an arrogant jerk."
"Like you aren't? You've been walking around all year like I should bow down to your feet and hope you look my way," Lily retorted. She grabbed his arm and pointed at his forearm. "This doesn't impress me. This disgusts me, and once it disgusted you too."
"Just shut up, okay?" Severus snapped at her. Lily bit her lip, her eyes narrowed with hurt and anger. "Yes, there is a way, but you're not going to like it."
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