Love Tactics: Chapter 8

Aug 17, 2007 11:42

Title: Love Tactics
Chapter Eight
Genre: Fun/Romance/Drama
Pairings: Lily/Bellatrix; maybe others if I feel like it
Rating: Teen
WARNING: CANON DIES WHEN I TOUCH IT.

Summary: James Potter and his friends run an underground association. They sell test answers, reputation, passwords and just about anything for the right price.
Lily Evans has tried to steer clear of the ‘marauders’ for as long as she can remember, but falling in love with the most unattainable person in school, she finds herself in need of their assistance.
In the business world, no punches are pulled and nothing’s ever sugar-coated. With a vast conflict of interest, James sets out to get Lily the girl of her dreams. It will take all of his cunning, every ploy he can muster, and not to mention calling in a few favors from past customers.



Love Tactics
Chapter Eight
- Missing in Action -

Disclaimer: Harry Potter does not belong to me. If it did, I'd have my own action-figure line with interchangable uniforms.

Author's Notes: Well, we're getting near the end folks. I'm hoping to wrap everything up in the next couple of chapters. Thanks so much for everything even though I had yet to give you physical romance. I Heart You. Even the lurker-y ones.

“It isn’t my fault!” James said for the hundredth time.

“YOU said he was the only one who could do it! YOU said we could trust him!” Sirius argued for the hundredth and first time. He was livid. He was practically purple.

James knew he was absolutely right; James had been the one to convince the rest that using Malfoy to get to Bellatrix was foolproof; all they had to do in return was give him the Hufflepuff Password for this week. It seemed perfect! But that dirty, rotten, back-stabbing, double-crossing-

They still hadn’t been able to track him down. He was a bastard, but a very-good-at-hiding type of bastard. James could not remember ever feeling this angry, unless of course you counted the time Sirius charmed his ‘golden’ snitch pink… because that snitch was a first edition SeekerPlus that Eunice Murray had touched! And it had been a pretty big deal, causing much strain and drama, especially when Sirius had forgotten the reverse charm to turn it back.

James swore very loudly and kicked his bedpost. It shot a sharp pain up through his socked toe, but he welcomed it as a distraction from his rage.

What were they going to do? Out of all the people in the entire wizarding world, it had to be Malfoy. The Fates had it in for James… it was obvious, how else could you explain the immense misfortune? The incredible lack of foresight. The cruelty of losing his true love to a Slytherin girl and then the project that had replaced the hole in his heart was lost thanks to that evil smirking asshole!

James glowered. “If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s Remus’s!” And he pointed an accusing finger at the sometimes wolf.

Remus looked up from his book, surprised at being suddenly dragged into the quite pointless argument. “My fault? How is this my fault?”

“You didn’t put ‘no stealing of the notebook’ in the responsibility clause he signed!”

Remus rolled his eyes, sometimes fighting James’s logic wasn’t worth the time. “How could anyone have known he was going to steal from us? But if that’s the way you feel, maybe you should have drawn them up yourself.”

“Maybe I should have,” James replied. “Your Cs look like Gs anyway!” James ran his hands through his hair distractedly. “He’s a Slytherin! That’s what they do! They’re evil! We should have known better!”

Sirius glared, “You’re the one who said we could-”

“I know! You’ve only been saying so for the last three hours! But… but why would you listen to me? How could you do this to us Padfoot? You should have never listened to me! Why didn’t you talk some sense into me?”

Remus put his book down. When James got like this, arguing with nonsense, it was usually a sign to change the subject and separate the opposing parties.

“You--!” Sirius was saying but Remus pushed him down into a chair.

“Are we going to keep fighting about this? There are a million reasons why we are all to blame. Or we can go out there and find it.”

Sirius moaned. “We’ve been looking for hours! We’ve looked everywhere! He’s probably all the way in Romania now. With all our precious secrets…”

Obviously the day’s drama, was catching up with them. A good night’s sleep and fresh eyes in the morning was looking mightily tempting.

Remus was all for suggesting they turn in and start new the next day, but Peter suddenly remembered. “Hey, what about Lily and Bellatrix?”

Crap. They’d forgotten all about them.

~*~

Lily inhaled quickly with a small squeak as something creaked around them. “What was that?” She whispered. “A ghoul?”

Bellatrix frowned. “I doubt it. Don’t you think something would have jumped out at us before now?”

Lily shrugged. “I was too pissed off to care about noticing things… like THAT!” She cried as something scurried across the floor. Lily’s heart doubled in tempo. She clung onto Bellatrix’s arm, her nails pressing into the other girl’s flesh.

Bellatrix rolled her eyes. “A mouse.”

Lily took a calming breath and released Bellatrix’s arm. “Right… well…I’m just suddenly aware of our surroundings.”

“So you aren’t pissed off anymore.”

“Just… anxious to get out of here.” So I can bloody kiss you without something stopping me.

“I’m not exactly liking this place either… but there’s nothing we can do.”

“What, are you saying you think they’re going to leave us in here?”

“It’s been hours now. What the hell do they thinking they’re doing? Kidnapping, imprisonment… we could get them expelled.” Bellatrix mused and bit lightly on her thumb as she did so.

“Oh! Please… don’t do that…” Lily said quickly, strangely fixated on Bellatrix’s mouth. “I’m sure… they don’t mean us any harm…”

Bellatrix was quiet for a moment before saying, “I knew it.”

Lily was confused. “Knew what?”

“Something is going on with you and Potter.” Bellatrix looked oddly cynical, angry even. “Of course, it’s so obvious.”

Lily was surprised at how vehemently she disrupted this line of thinking, “No! Absolutely not! There is nothing going on between James and I.”

Bellatrix raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Is that what all those private whispered conversations were, at the side of the hall? I must have seen you with him a least a dozen times. You seemed so captivated.”

Lily unconsciously licked her lips, “You were watching me?”

The slight flush that adorned Bellatrix’s face did not go unnoticed. “NO. It was just… unavoidable. To see you… I mean, everyone did… that is… everyone thought… but… well it doesn’t matter, does it? If you say it isn’t true, then it must not be true.”

Lily smiled at the floor, “There’s only one person who captivates me.”

The half-moon glowed in through the window, making Bellatrix’s hair look streaked with silver. She turned slightly and very quietly asked, “Who?”

A deep smile spread over Lily’s face as she leaned in very close. Their shared body-heat only intensified as Lily inhaled very slightly to reply.

Before words left her mouth, however, the door was suddenly swung open. “Evans. Are you okay?” It was James.

Lily was torn between tearing her hair out in frustration and being relieved at finally getting set free.

“I’m fine, James.” She said and slowly, reluctantly, got to her feet. Bellatrix followed.

James grinned. “Good… I’ll just… well we have a situation… and I’ll be going now…” He said and exited the shack as quickly as he’d arrived.

Bellatrix and Lily stepped outside into the cool night air. The stars were shining quite brilliantly and the sense of affinity Lily suddenly felt was overwhelming. She turned to Bellatrix without quite knowing what she was going to say, maybe some sort of emotional confession, maybe just the simple truth. But she said nothing as Bellatrix trapped her with a gaze and a sudden movement forward.

Lily’s heart fluttered about as stomach butterflies danced to unheard music. She was suddenly very aware of her irregular breathing and then she was hardly breathing at all as their lips touched. It was soft at first, Bellatrix’s lips were full and lightly chapped; they were cool and began to heat as they pressed against Lily’s. Bellatrix parted her lips slightly and slid her tongue across the other girl’s. The redhead’s breath hitched as she did the same and opened her mouth just a little wider.

As Lily attempted to move closer to deepen their kiss, she shifted and banged their heads together. Mortified, she tried to move away in a hurry but Bellatrix brought her hands up to hold her there. With her experience apparent, she covered Lily’s lips again with her own. Lily lost the brainwaves to think about who else Bellatrix may have kissed in her time… it hardly mattered, she was kissing Lily now.

Lily could hardly concentrate on anything, even breathing, as she let Bellatrix take control. The older girl kissed her softly yet hard as they backed into a shack wall. Bellatrix’s hands slid down her sides and over her hips to hold her in place. Lily’s head knocked against the wall as Bellatrix moved her mouth to her neck, for a moment, Lily saw stars. Bellatrix felt Lily’s head hit the wall and mumbled into her skin, “You alright?” Lily’s response was a tug to a strand of hair and a nip at an earlobe. Bellatrix made a low groan that was more like a growl and she moved her hands to Lily’s stomach under her school vest.

Bellatrix’s hands were cold and the sudden contact almost tickled. Lily giggled slightly into Bellatrix’s hair and Bellatrix’s hands heated with the friction against skin. Lily felt sparks running a course up and down her spine. She moved her own hands to feel Bellatrix, the curves of her waist and her tight stomach. She was in awe at how perfect someone could be. But anyone is perfect if you’re in love with them.

A heat kept rising in Lily’s entire being as Bellatrix seemed to be touching her everywhere at once. Lily was hardly aware of her mouth moving as she said very quietly as if there were an eavesdropper, “I love you.”

Immediately Bellatrix pulled away and Lily was suddenly very cold. Oh, had she messed up again? Things were going so perfect! Oh why Lily why couldn’t you have just shut the hell up for once?

But instead of the hasty retreat she expected, Bellatrix regarded her with something akin to awe. In a very small voice, she said, “…Okay.”

Lily stared back in equal astonishment. ‘Okay’ was better than nothing, right? Lily was flushed, hot and cold at once, and very much wanting Bellatrix to move back toward her. Instead, however, Bellatrix nodded toward the castle. “We should get back.”

Disappointed, but understanding, Lily agreed. “Yes, we probably should.”

They didn’t talk as they entered the castle grounds and marched up to the school. As they came into the entrance hall, Lily raked her mind for something to say… some kind of parting words that would make sense of all that had just happened. But Gryffindor’s cleverest fifth-year girl was at a loss.

She needn’t had worried though, as Bellatrix took her arm to pull her close. She pressed a very chaste kiss to Lily’s mouth and let her go. “I’ll see you.”

Every fiber of Lily’s being was vibrating. “Yeah…” She said and watched as Bellatrix disappeared down into the dungeons. As soon as she was out of sight, Lily raced up the various flights of stairs to the Gryffindor common room.

She was very pleased to see the Marauders still awake and discussing something quietly in the overstuffed chairs. She practically threw herself at James. She kissed the top of his head and hugged him so tightly he couldn’t breathe. She reached over the couch to kiss Remus too.

“It went well then?” Sirius asked.

“Better than well. AMAZINGLY well. You guys … I am going to write you such a good referral that people will be lined up for DAYS just to talk to you!” Everything was rosy. Lily was practically floating. She could have burst into song at any moment.

Sirius’ somber look knocked her down a notch.

“What is it?” She asked, becoming worried.

“Your referral might not be necessary… Malfoy snatched our notebook.”

Lily’s heart stopped. WHAT.

What if someone saw her name in there? Would she get expelled for hiring them and thus adding to their profit? Would they associate her with them and then have to share the same punishment?

‘Worried’ would be an understatement. “How could you LOSE the notebook? Why would you let him take it?”

James was instantly on the offensive. “If you hadn’t stormed out of the Three Broomsticks like a two-year-old, we wouldn’t have left it there!”

“Don’t you dare blame me for your shortcomings! If you had had the foresight to watch out for your-!”

“It isn’t my shortcomings that-!”

Remus pulled Lily away as Sirius shoved James back onto the couch. “Lily, don’t bother arguing with him,” Remus said. “He’s blamed everyone but my mother for what happened. He’s just frustrated.”

“Actually,” Sirius chimed in. “He did blame your mother.”

Remus looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, “Ah yes, he did didn’t he?”

James pouted in his seat. Lily almost felt sorry for him. Of course he would be taking this the hardest of all.

She sighed. “Look, we just have to track it down and take it back, right?”

“We haven’t been able to catch him. He doesn’t seem to be anywhere, we checked the map every fifteen minutes. I’m telling you… it’s like he’s disappeared.” Sirius said.

“That’s it!” James suddenly shouted. “He’s invisible with a charm or something! He must be!”

Sirius rolled his eyes. “Unlikely. He couldn’t go ten minutes without seeing his precious reflection.”

Lily was very confused. Map? Disappeared? How? But she kept quiet. She was well off not knowing… especially if it turned out that they were all in trouble… the less she knows the better.

“Maybe it’s a cloaking charm?” Remus suggested.

Sirius groaned and buried his head in his arms. He was fed up with all of this. “The Map never lies, you guys! It’s not a cloaking charm!”

The high of Bellatrix’s kiss was wearing off. Lily was suddenly very tired. “Can we panic tomorrow? I really want to sleep.” And dream.

Remus sighed. “That’s a very good idea.” He stood up as Lily headed to the girl’s dorms. “Are you guys coming?”

James shook his head. “You think I can sleep knowing Malfoy has our years of hard work in his manicured, back-stabbing hands?”

Remus shrugged. “Good night then.” Peter followed him upstairs.

Sirius and James were alone in the common room. “Come on, Prongs, pulling an all nighter isn’t going to help the investigation.”

James shrugged. “I don’t care. It’s over, Padfoot. Don’t you get it? We’re finished.”

“We are not finished,” Sirius said and moved over to sit near his best friend. “He doesn’t know the password; he has no way of knowing. If we can track him down in time, everything will be fine.”

James didn’t look convinced.

Sirius punched him in the arm. “Come on. Just get some sleep and we’ll worry about all this in the morning.”

James shook his head again. “It’s all right. You go ahead. I’m going to watch the Map for a bit.”

Sirius knew it was a lost case. “Fine. But you’re a total prick when you haven’t slept.”

James glared but didn’t look away from the map. “And you’re a prick all the time.”

Sirius got up and headed to the stairs. “Right, ‘Night.”

“G’night.”

Author Boredom:

MISSING: If you see this notebook, please return to James Potter.
Pssst. The Password is: "Good Deeds Rarely Sell."

(*)It's charmed to look like Transfiguration Homework on the inside.
(*)Why are they using a Muggle Notebook? James thought it was cool.
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