05.
Spreading Darkness continued...
Lily stood in front of her mirror, staring at her reflection looking back at her. James and Sirius had left their dormitory about thirty minutes ago, and Ivy, who was standing right next to Lily in the bathroom, was almost ready. They were both dressed up, taking advantage of their lack of school robes.
"Are you ready, Lily?" Ivy asked, running her brush through her hair one last time before heading towards the door. Lily took one more look at her mirror, giving her reflection another glance, deciding it was good enough. She gave her friend a smile and headed out into the dormitory after her, grabbing some shoes and slipping them on. The two girls then headed downstairs, laughing with each other as they caught sight of the boys lounging in front of the fireplace, dozing off as they waited for them. Peter was stuck on the floor, sleeping on his side; Remus was curled up in the far-left armchair; Sirius was in the far-right armchair, his legs sprawled out in front of him; and James was in the middle armchair, his legs and head over the sides of the chair. The girls laughed again and came up behind them. Ivy grabbed Sirius' legs and pulled him out of the chair while Lily pushed James off of his own chair, knocking the boys onto Peter and ignoring Remus, who woke up at the sound of the falling with a knowing smile on his face as he looked down at his friends, all on the floor.
"We didn't take that long, Potter," Lily said, looking down at James from her position high above the boys, her fists planted on her hips and a cocky smile across her face.
James pushed himself up into a sitting position, rubbing his eyes and attempting to wake up.
Sirius was rubbing his head, grimacing as he looked at Ivy, who was also smiling next to her friend.
"Who said you took too long? I never said that. Did you hear me say that, Padfoot?" James asked, trying to turn the situation in his favor.
Sirius shrugged. "You're on your own, mate - I should probably head to the hospital wing and see if I have a concussion," Sirius said, glaring at Ivy, who merely giggled behind her hand.
"Fine, help me up, will you, Evans?" James held out his hand with an innocent expression on his face.
Lily scoffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Do you really think I'm going to fall for that?"
"Fall for what?" The innocent expression remained on his face.
"When I help you up, you're going to pull me down to the ground with you. I'm not stupid, Potter."
"I swear I won't, Evans. Now will you please help me up?" James said, looking frustrated.
Lily narrowed her eyes, looking at his face carefully before grabbing onto his outstretched hand.
Pulling James up, using a lot of strength, Lily was relieved and slightly surprised that James didn't try to pull her down, instead allowing himself to be pulled up and helping her a little, smiling in thanks. When he was up on his legs, his hand lingered in Lily's before he pulled it away and looked towards his other friends who remained on the ground.
"Will you help me up, Ive?" Sirius asked with a cocky smile on his face.
Ivy groaned and grabbed a pillow from the chair that Sirius had been sitting in, aiming it at his head. Sirius jumped up and ran away from Ivy, who followed his with a huge supply of pillows and other objects to throw at him.
Lily and James laughed at their friends, with Remus chuckling in his seat and Peter watching in disbelief on from the floor. The fire crackled behind them, and the entire room was flooded with the warmth from the flames and the joy of friendship that was surrounding them.
Leaning downward, James whispered in Lily's ear, "Wanna leave before they notice?"
Lily smiled and nodded, turning and sneaking towards the door. Remus saw them but merely smiled, a seemingly knowing grin, and remained where he was while their other friends were too busy to notice them sneaking out.
Once they were out of the common room, they slowed down, walking in comfortable silence.
Their steps were in sync, which meant that James slowed down and kept his paces small. Lily smiled but didn't comment, instead looking ahead at the hall. Then she caught sight of someone at the other end.
"Damn."
James looked down at Lily, a smirk on his face. "Have I driven you to curse? I'm dreadfully sorry for corrupting you, little Ms. Evans."
Lily rolled her eyes. "No, I was cursing because of the guy at the end of the hall."
James looked where she was indicating, his eyes narrowing into a glare when he recognized the greasy hair and lanky form. "What's Snivellus doing near the Gryffindor common room?"
"I don't know, but I'd rather not see him."
James nodded, glancing around the hall for a place to hide. Spotting a tapestry, he grabbed Lily and pushed her towards it, pulling it aside to reveal a small hallway that barely fit them both.
"What are you doing?" Lily hissed under her breath, glancing back towards where Severus was walking towards them, unaware of them at the moment.
"Trust me, it's a shortcut. We can get to the party without having to see that jerk."
Lily sighed but headed into it, squeezing to make room for James, who didn't seem to mind the close quarters at all.
"How long is this tunnel?" Lily asked, frustration evident in her voice as she felt James' hand brush her back.
"It'll take about twenty minutes to get to Slughorn's room."
"I thought you said this was a shortcut - that's just as long as it would take to get there if we had gone the normal way!"
"Would you rather walk that way and run into Snivellus?"
Lily pursed her lips but remained silent, practically feeling the cockiness rushing off of James.
"Of course, if you walked faster we'd get there sooner."
"Sorry that some of us don't have mile-long le- hey!" Lily growled as James pushed her forward by slapping her butt. "If you do that again I'm going to curse you."
James laughed but he kept his hands to himself for the moment.
The next few minutes went by in silence, the only sound their footsteps beneath them. Lily rubbed her hands up and down her arms, regretting wearing short sleeves. Goosebumps had risen up all over her arms, and she could feel her legs breaking out, too. She didn't even notice that she was slowing down until James ran into her, grabbing above her elbows to steady her.
"Whoa, you're frozen, Evans. Guess I should have mentioned how cold it is in here..."
"S-shut-t-t-t u-p-p, P-pot-t-t-er-r," Lily stammered as her teeth chattered, the cold enveloping her entire body. She wished she had sounded stronger but the cold was getting to her too much.
James wrapped his arms around her, taking advantage of her current state to pretend to help her.
"Get-t-t off o-f-f m-e-e, P-po-t-ter," Lily attempted to growl but still failed. James laughed and continued to run his much-larger hands up and down her frozen arms. Lily tried to twist out from under his grip but he had strong muscles thanks to Quidditch, plus he was much bigger than she was. She gave up after a few moments and walked forward, James following her perfectly so that his arms remained in the same position.
They continued walking in silence, Lily's breath fluffing out in front of her. She was still cold, but the warmth emanating from James' body was already warming her up and she even felt a blush starting to come to her cheek. She was suddenly aware of how close James was to her and how it would look if someone saw her, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to attempt getting out of his hold again.
Soon they were reaching the end of the tunnel, small spots of light streaming in through the edges of the hidden entrance. Lily pushed through the matching tapestry, blinking in the light, unable to really see her surroundings.
"Someone looks cozy."
Lily's head shot to the side quickly, her eyes adjusting to the lighting and taking in the sight of Sirius and Remus, who had come from the hall that Lily and James would have taken under normal circumstances. Sirius was smirking and Remus was even chuckling to himself. Lily tried to get out of James' hold again but he was still holding on too tightly.
"Evans here was cold and I was merely warming her up," James said, humor evident in his voice.
"Based on the bright red color on her cheeks, I'd say she's quite warm now." Sirius laughed.
Lily groaned, still struggling against James' arms. "Shut up, Black."
"Why'd you go through the tunnel? I thought you liked to avoid it because it was so cold and long," Remus asked him seriously.
Lily glared up at James. "I thought you said it was the same distance."
"OK, it might have been a little longer, but would you really like to talk to Snivellus?"
Lily became silent again. Noticing her lack of struggle, James gave her a squeeze and let go of her. Lily shot away, crossing her arms over her chest.
"So, what are you guys doing here?"
"Heading to the party. We were following Ivy but she ran ahead and I guess she already showed up at the party. But now we get to chaperone you lovely children!" Sirius said, slinging his arms around James and Lily and patting them both on the head condescendingly. They began walking towards Slughorn's room with Remus walking behind them.
Soon they arrived at the door, which was open wide. The four stepped into the room, looking at it with slight awe.
The room was supposedly just as big as all the other professors' offices, but it appeared to be twice as big. The walls were a rich shade of crimson and silver trimmed all the edges of the room. Lavish gold curtains hung from the windows and a huge deep blue Oriental rug was spread across the center of the room. Lights hung from all the edges of the ceilings, giving the room a warm glow. Overstuffed chairs were pushed to the sides to allow tired partygoers to take a break among the millions of colorful throw pillows. A huge table taking up an entire side of the room was covered with delicious meals straight from the kitchen and another layer of surface above it was stacked high with desserts to fill all the remaining space in stomachs. The room was also filled with two or three dozen people crammed into as many places as possible. There were students who were qualified for the Slug Club and a few professors who had also been invited, and there were a few adults who were probably well-connected guests of Slughorn. Though the room was incredibly crowded with all the people and objects, Lily felt like she was in the happiest place in the world, even if only for the night.
Lily walked further into the room, Remus on one side and James on her other side. Lily caught sight of Ivy on the other side of the room, talking with a Ravenclaw, but she instead looked for the host of the party. Soon enough she saw him about five feet away, talking to a man in his early twenties who was listening to a story with a yawn not far away. Lily laughed to herself about the poor man's fate.
Lily left the Marauders' sides and headed over to the table of food, grabbing some food and heading to one of the chairs, wanting to just curl up and sleep but knowing that it would look less anti-social if she was at least eating something.
James plopped down next to her, a smile on his face. "So, some party, huh?"
Lily nodded, biting down on a tasty brownie and watching all the people dancing and talking.
Everyone was happy and carefree, and Lily felt herself swept up in the emotion of it all. She felt a smile tugging at her lips and she leaned back in her seat with a sense of ease.
"So, Evans, how would you like to dance?"
Lily looked up at Sirius, who had walked up to the two of them.
"Why would you want to dance with me? Isn't there already a new flavor-of-the-week for the player Black?" Lily asked with a smirk.
"Touché, Ms. Evans. I was merely asking to annoy my friend over there," Sirius said, indicating James next to him, who was looking annoyed.
Lily laughed and threw her balled-up napkin at Sirius.
"Well, you didn't answer me, Evans. Yes or no?"
Lily scrunched up her face as she thought. Then she turned to James with an innocent smile on her face. "Would you like to dance with me, Potter?"
James' face began to glow. "I'd love to."
He reached for her hand, guiding her to the center of the room, sticking his tongue out at Sirius as they passed.
Lily stood up on her tiptoes, reaching to his ear. "That was mature, Potter."
"Who cares about maturity? You chose me over Padfoot - I could jump up and down!"
"How about you just dance instead and we can get this night over with," Lily shot back.
James smiled widely and he immediately started dancing, his energy spreading to Lily quickly.
After dancing in silence for a while, James opened his mouth, not even sounding winded from all the movement. "Did I tell you about the room I found the other day?"
Lily shook her head.
"Well, I was looking for a place to hide from Filch - don't ask why, you don't want to know - and I happened to pass this door I'd never seen before. So I quickly went in it and it turned out to be this huge room full of random objects. It looked like it was at least a mile long. No idea how I didn't see it before. But there were some really strange things in there - a huge chest, random books, a crown, an ancient couch... It seems like anything you can think of was in there."
"Where is this room?"
"Well, that's the thing - I can't remember. I thought I did, but when I headed back it wasn't there. I'm wondering if there's some magic on it."
Lily thought about it. "Maybe there's something in the library. We could check it out, if you want."
James smiled eagerly. "I could think of nothing better than spending some alone time with you, Ms. Evans."
Lily rolled her eyes but there was a small smile on her face. "We could check it out tomorrow after classes. Unless you have Quidditch practice..."
James shook his head. "We have practice Tuesday through Thursday plus an early morning practice on Saturday, but nothing on Monday. I'd be delighted if you would join me in the library."
Lily nodded. "Sounds good with me."
"Um, excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, your attention please!"
Lily and James looked towards Professor Slughorn, who had stopped the music from his position
near the back of the room, holding a champagne bottle in his meaty hands. "I'd like to interrupt your socializing for a small toast!"
He held the bottle up in the light, popping off the stopper with his wand. He brushed some dust off of it, a chuckle coming from his throat. "Looks like the house elves aren't doing their job very well. At least that means it's antique!"
The crowd laughed politely, and all the underage students clamored for the glasses of alcohol that were quickly filling up all by themselves. James got out his own wand and nonverbally got two glasses to come flying towards them.
"That's pretty good for a nonverbal spell. Didn't realize you were so good at them," Lily said with surprise and a little bit of praise in her voice. James smiled somewhat humblely.
They both sipped at the champagne, the bubbles making Lily slightly tipsy. She hadn't had much alcohol in her life and wasn't the greatest at holding it. She continued drinking it anyway, loving how it made her look more sophisticated. Plus, she figured it wasn't as bad as drinking beer or other teenage party alcohol standards. And, though she hated to admit it, she thought it might make her look less like the normal, rules-following Lily and more like the adventurous girl she wish she was.
After finishing off the drink, the two began dancing again, Lily more loose this time. But then a slow song came on, and Lily found James' hands on her waist.
"Wouldn't you rather sit down instead of dancing to this slow song?" Lily asked, feeling awkward. But James merely smiled, taking her arms and placing them around his own neck, which was a tiny bit of a stretch for Lily with her short stature. Lily saw Remus and Sirius smiling and making faces at their friend from the side of the room, but James ignored them, tightening his hold on Lily. The two moved in small circles, Lily feeling her eyes begin to edge downward as the slow song and movements began to dull her into sleep, mixing with the alcohol running through her system. She felt like the song went on forever, but for some reason she didn't really mind. Instead she found herself wishing it would never end.
But it soon did and James walked over to the side of the room with his friends, slowly pulling along Lily behind him.
"You’re such a charmer mate - you put her to sleep," Sirius pointed out with a smirk.
Remus, concern and laughter fighting each other on his face. "Maybe you should take her back to the common room." A smirk won out and he let James remember that the common room would probably be empty at this time, the perfect time for James to have some alone time with Lily.
James nodded, thanking his friends silently before turning to Lily. "What do you say, Evans? Wanna head back to the room? You look pretty tired..."
Lily looked for Ivy. Watching her gaze, James looked over all the heads and spotted Ivy talking to the Muggle Studies professor. "She'll be fine - Remus and Sirius can go back with her."
Lily nodded and headed to the door, grabbing another glass on her way out. James smirked and followed, waving to his friends as he left.
The two headed back towards the common room, this time going the normal way instead of the tunnel, James figuring Lily was too tired to be stuck in a cold tunnel for a while. Luckily there wasn't a greasy Slytherin walking around - they didn't run into anyone at all, which lifted James' mood even higher.
Lily got slower and slower as her eyes became heavier and heavier. When they turned a corner,
James noticed that Lily was about ten feet behind him and he backpedaled to her, putting his arm around her shoulders and helping her along. "Wow, Evans, you sure are tired. Is it passed your bedtime?"
"Ha ha," Lily said without any emotion, the tiredness evident in her voice. James chuckled at her reaction and continued walking, making sure his pacing was slower and smaller than normal.
They soon came to the common room, stepping over to the staircases. James let go of Lily and she immediately began to fall sideways, too tired to stand up straight.
"Whoa there," James said, grabbing her arms and holding her upright again. He laughed at the expression on Lily's face, suddenly swinging her up into his arms like a damsel in distress.
"Hey!" Lily exclaimed, unprepared for the ground to disappear underneath her feet. She looked down and felt slightly dizzy, even though she wasn't that high up. "What are you doing?"
"If I let you go upstairs by yourself you'll end up falling back down the stairs."
"But how am I going to get up to my room? Are you finally going to show me how you sneak up there?"
James thought for a moment before answering. "Nope, I'd rather keep that a secret a while longer. Nah, I'll bring you up to my room instead!"
"What? I can't go up to the boys' dormitory! My friends will kill me in the morning!"
"Not my problem," James said with a chuckle as he began walking up the stairs, easily holding Lily in his arms. He headed up the same distance as Lily's own dormitory, in another section of the Gryffindor tower. He nudged the door open easily and headed to the middle bed, the same bed Lily slept in back in her own room, about twenty feet away, separated by a thick wall. Lily caught sight of a bunch of paper plastered behind most of the beds and she laughed. "Sirius wasn't lying when he said that you kept everything I've written on!"
James looked bashful but didn't blush - lucky non-blush genes, Lily thought to herself. He headed to his bed, lowering Lily down on it gently. "Shut up, Evans. Just get to sleep."
Lily patted the spot next to her, smiling up at James, not completely aware of what she was doing - maybe that second glass wasn't the best idea. "Come on, Potter, keep me company. Give me a little tour of your lovely room."
James' eyebrow arched above his eye. "Are you sure?"
"Of course! I'd love to see where the famous Potter lives when he isn't by my side."
James looked at the glass, which was still clutched in her hand. "I think that's enough champagne for you. Maybe you should refrain from drinking alcohol for a while. Maybe the rest of your life?"
Lily laughed. "That's actually funny! Normally I think everything you say is laced with cockiness and just a pick up line to finally get to me, but you're actually funny!"
"Um, okay, Evans."
Lily continued to laugh. "Hilarious!"
"I think it's time for someone to go to sleep..."
"Will you tell me a bedtime story first?"
"What?!"
"My mom used to read a bedtime story every night to my sister and me - but then Petunia started hating me and I went to Hogwarts and I never really see them anymore. I miss those bedtime stories. I wonder if Petunia does..." Lily trailed off, thinking about old memories of her sister, back when their relationship was still normal.
James felt sad, wondering what Lily's life was like when she was trapped in a Muggle world knowing she was different and being hated by her sister. "Fine, I'll tell you a story, but don't get mad if it's really stupid."
"I won't!" Lily looked excited, clapping her hands together.
She is really drunk, James thought to himself. Hope she doesn't remember this in the morning and hate me... Oh well, too late now. He plopped down next to Lily, smiling widely as he tried to think of a story to tell Lily. Then he thought of a perfect story to tell her while she might not remember.
"Well, there was once a handsome prince who lived in a magical world where everyone loved him. He had plenty of servants to order around and he got to pull pranks on the village idiot all the time, always laughing at his greasy hair and his obsession with Dark Arts and potions. But the prince was still lonely, starting to get bored of spending all his time with his friends, who were incredibly immature in comparison with his own immaculate personality.
So, when he found out that there was a beautiful princess who was coming to town, he immediately became friends with her, knowing that she was the perfect ying to his yang. They became good friends, although the girl could be very stubborn at times. Soon they fell in love and married, moving to the castle where they ruled wisely. They soon had a perfect little family, and they all lived happily ever after."
Lily blinked. "That was weak, Potter. Couldn't think of anything more original?"
"I figured that was the best story in this situation."
"So, let me guess, the prince is you and the princess is me?"
"Even when drunk you're so smart, Evans."
"Thanks, Potter, I needed that."
James looked down at Lily with a question on his face, but instead he saw that she was leaning against his shoulder, her eyes closed and her breathing easy as she fell asleep quickly. James smiled and decided to save it for another day. He knew that she would already be mad at him when she woke up - he could deal with her own problems later on.
Lily stood in front of her mirror, staring at her reflection looking back at her. James and Sirius had left their dormitory about thirty minutes ago, and Ivy, who was standing right next to Lily in the bathroom, was almost ready. They were both dressed up, taking advantage of their lack of school robes.
"Are you ready, Lily?" Ivy asked, running her brush through her hair one last time before heading towards the door. Lily took one more look at her mirror, giving her reflection another glance, deciding it was good enough. She gave her friend a smile and headed out into the dormitory after her, grabbing some shoes and slipping them on. The two girls then headed downstairs, laughing with each other as they caught sight of the boys lounging in front of the fireplace, dozing off as they waited for them. Peter was stuck on the floor, sleeping on his side; Remus was curled up in the far-left armchair; Sirius was in the far-right armchair, his legs sprawled out in front of him; and James was in the middle armchair, his legs and head over the sides of the chair. The girls laughed again and came up behind them. Ivy grabbed Sirius' legs and pulled him out of the chair while Lily pushed James off of his own chair, knocking the boys onto Peter and ignoring Remus, who woke up at the sound of the falling with a knowing smile on his face as he looked down at his friends, all on the floor.
"We didn't take that long, Potter," Lily said, looking down at James from her position high above the boys, her fists planted on her hips and a cocky smile across her face.
James pushed himself up into a sitting position, rubbing his eyes and attempting to wake up.
Sirius was rubbing his head, grimacing as he looked at Ivy, who was also smiling next to her friend.
"Who said you took too long? I never said that. Did you hear me say that, Padfoot?" James asked, trying to turn the situation in his favor.
Sirius shrugged. "You're on your own, mate - I should probably head to the hospital wing and see if I have a concussion," Sirius said, glaring at Ivy, who merely giggled behind her hand.
"Fine, help me up, will you, Evans?" James held out his hand with an innocent expression on his face.
Lily scoffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Do you really think I'm going to fall for that?"
"Fall for what?" The innocent expression remained on his face.
"When I help you up, you're going to pull me down to the ground with you. I'm not stupid, Potter."
"I swear I won't, Evans. Now will you please help me up?" James said, looking frustrated.
Lily narrowed her eyes, looking at his face carefully before grabbing onto his outstretched hand.
Pulling James up, using a lot of strength, Lily was relieved and slightly surprised that James didn't try to pull her down, instead allowing himself to be pulled up and helping her a little, smiling in thanks. When he was up on his legs, his hand lingered in Lily's before he pulled it away and looked towards his other friends who remained on the ground.
"Will you help me up, Ive?" Sirius asked with a cocky smile on his face.
Ivy groaned and grabbed a pillow from the chair that Sirius had been sitting in, aiming it at his head. Sirius jumped up and ran away from Ivy, who followed his with a huge supply of pillows and other objects to throw at him.
Lily and James laughed at their friends, with Remus chuckling in his seat and Peter watching in disbelief on from the floor. The fire crackled behind them, and the entire room was flooded with the warmth from the flames and the joy of friendship that was surrounding them.
Leaning downward, James whispered in Lily's ear, "Wanna leave before they notice?"
Lily smiled and nodded, turning and sneaking towards the door. Remus saw them but merely smiled, a seemingly knowing grin, and remained where he was while their other friends were too busy to notice them sneaking out.
Once they were out of the common room, they slowed down, walking in comfortable silence.
Their steps were in sync, which meant that James slowed down and kept his paces small. Lily smiled but didn't comment, instead looking ahead at the hall. Then she caught sight of someone at the other end.
"Damn."
James looked down at Lily, a smirk on his face. "Have I driven you to curse? I'm dreadfully sorry for corrupting you, little Ms. Evans."
Lily rolled her eyes. "No, I was cursing because of the guy at the end of the hall."
James looked where she was indicating, his eyes narrowing into a glare when he recognized the greasy hair and lanky form. "What's Snivellus doing near the Gryffindor common room?"
"I don't know, but I'd rather not see him."
James nodded, glancing around the hall for a place to hide. Spotting a tapestry, he grabbed Lily and pushed her towards it, pulling it aside to reveal a small hallway that barely fit them both.
"What are you doing?" Lily hissed under her breath, glancing back towards where Severus was walking towards them, unaware of them at the moment.
"Trust me, it's a shortcut. We can get to the party without having to see that jerk."
Lily sighed but headed into it, squeezing to make room for James, who didn't seem to mind the close quarters at all.
"How long is this tunnel?" Lily asked, frustration evident in her voice as she felt James' hand brush her back.
"It'll take about twenty minutes to get to Slughorn's room."
"I thought you said this was a shortcut - that's just as long as it would take to get there if we had gone the normal way!"
"Would you rather walk that way and run into Snivellus?"
Lily pursed her lips but remained silent, practically feeling the cockiness rushing off of James.
"Of course, if you walked faster we'd get there sooner."
"Sorry that some of us don't have mile-long le- hey!" Lily growled as James pushed her forward by slapping her butt. "If you do that again I'm going to curse you."
James laughed but he kept his hands to himself for the moment.
The next few minutes went by in silence, the only sound their footsteps beneath them. Lily rubbed her hands up and down her arms, regretting wearing short sleeves. Goosebumps had risen up all over her arms, and she could feel her legs breaking out, too. She didn't even notice that she was slowing down until James ran into her, grabbing above her elbows to steady her.
"Whoa, you're frozen, Evans. Guess I should have mentioned how cold it is in here..."
"S-shut-t-t-t u-p-p, P-pot-t-t-er-r," Lily stammered as her teeth chattered, the cold enveloping her entire body. She wished she had sounded stronger but the cold was getting to her too much.
James wrapped his arms around her, taking advantage of her current state to pretend to help her.
"Get-t-t off o-f-f m-e-e, P-po-t-ter," Lily attempted to growl but still failed. James laughed and continued to run his much-larger hands up and down her frozen arms. Lily tried to twist out from under his grip but he had strong muscles thanks to Quidditch, plus he was much bigger than she was. She gave up after a few moments and walked forward, James following her perfectly so that his arms remained in the same position.
They continued walking in silence, Lily's breath fluffing out in front of her. She was still cold, but the warmth emanating from James' body was already warming her up and she even felt a blush starting to come to her cheek. She was suddenly aware of how close James was to her and how it would look if someone saw her, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to attempt getting out of his hold again.
Soon they were reaching the end of the tunnel, small spots of light streaming in through the edges of the hidden entrance. Lily pushed through the matching tapestry, blinking in the light, unable to really see her surroundings.
"Someone looks cozy."
Lily's head shot to the side quickly, her eyes adjusting to the lighting and taking in the sight of Sirius and Remus, who had come from the hall that Lily and James would have taken under normal circumstances. Sirius was smirking and Remus was even chuckling to himself. Lily tried to get out of James' hold again but he was still holding on too tightly.
"Evans here was cold and I was merely warming her up," James said, humor evident in his voice.
"Based on the bright red color on her cheeks, I'd say she's quite warm now." Sirius laughed.
Lily groaned, still struggling against James' arms. "Shut up, Black."
"Why'd you go through the tunnel? I thought you liked to avoid it because it was so cold and long," Remus asked him seriously.
Lily glared up at James. "I thought you said it was the same distance."
"OK, it might have been a little longer, but would you really like to talk to Snivellus?"
Lily became silent again. Noticing her lack of struggle, James gave her a squeeze and let go of her. Lily shot away, crossing her arms over her chest.
"So, what are you guys doing here?"
"Heading to the party. We were following Ivy but she ran ahead and I guess she already showed up at the party. But now we get to chaperone you lovely children!" Sirius said, slinging his arms around James and Lily and patting them both on the head condescendingly. They began walking towards Slughorn's room with Remus walking behind them.
Soon they arrived at the door, which was open wide. The four stepped into the room, looking at it with slight awe.
The room was supposedly just as big as all the other professors' offices, but it appeared to be twice as big. The walls were a rich shade of crimson and silver trimmed all the edges of the room. Lavish gold curtains hung from the windows and a huge deep blue Oriental rug was spread across the center of the room. Lights hung from all the edges of the ceilings, giving the room a warm glow. Overstuffed chairs were pushed to the sides to allow tired partygoers to take a break among the millions of colorful throw pillows. A huge table taking up an entire side of the room was covered with delicious meals straight from the kitchen and another layer of surface above it was stacked high with desserts to fill all the remaining space in stomachs. The room was also filled with two or three dozen people crammed into as many places as possible. There were students who were qualified for the Slug Club and a few professors who had also been invited, and there were a few adults who were probably well-connected guests of Slughorn. Though the room was incredibly crowded with all the people and objects, Lily felt like she was in the happiest place in the world, even if only for the night.
Lily walked further into the room, Remus on one side and James on her other side. Lily caught sight of Ivy on the other side of the room, talking with a Ravenclaw, but she instead looked for the host of the party. Soon enough she saw him about five feet away, talking to a man in his early twenties who was listening to a story with a yawn not far away. Lily laughed to herself about the poor man's fate.
Lily left the Marauders' sides and headed over to the table of food, grabbing some food and heading to one of the chairs, wanting to just curl up and sleep but knowing that it would look less anti-social if she was at least eating something.
James plopped down next to her, a smile on his face. "So, some party, huh?"
Lily nodded, biting down on a tasty brownie and watching all the people dancing and talking.
Everyone was happy and carefree, and Lily felt herself swept up in the emotion of it all. She felt a smile tugging at her lips and she leaned back in her seat with a sense of ease.
"So, Evans, how would you like to dance?"
Lily looked up at Sirius, who had walked up to the two of them.
"Why would you want to dance with me? Isn't there already a new flavor-of-the-week for the player Black?" Lily asked with a smirk.
"Touché, Ms. Evans. I was merely asking to annoy my friend over there," Sirius said, indicating James next to him, who was looking annoyed.
Lily laughed and threw her balled-up napkin at Sirius.
"Well, you didn't answer me, Evans. Yes or no?"
Lily scrunched up her face as she thought. Then she turned to James with an innocent smile on her face. "Would you like to dance with me, Potter?"
James' face began to glow. "I'd love to."
He reached for her hand, guiding her to the center of the room, sticking his tongue out at Sirius as they passed.
Lily stood up on her tiptoes, reaching to his ear. "That was mature, Potter."
"Who cares about maturity? You chose me over Padfoot - I could jump up and down!"
"How about you just dance instead and we can get this night over with," Lily shot back.
James smiled widely and he immediately started dancing, his energy spreading to Lily quickly.
After dancing in silence for a while, James opened his mouth, not even sounding winded from all the movement. "Did I tell you about the room I found the other day?"
Lily shook her head.
"Well, I was looking for a place to hide from Filch - don't ask why, you don't want to know - and I happened to pass this door I'd never seen before. So I quickly went in it and it turned out to be this huge room full of random objects. It looked like it was at least a mile long. No idea how I didn't see it before. But there were some really strange things in there - a huge chest, random books, a crown, an ancient couch... It seems like anything you can think of was in there."
"Where is this room?"
"Well, that's the thing - I can't remember. I thought I did, but when I headed back it wasn't there. I'm wondering if there's some magic on it."
Lily thought about it. "Maybe there's something in the library. We could check it out, if you want."
James smiled eagerly. "I could think of nothing better than spending some alone time with you, Ms. Evans."
Lily rolled her eyes but there was a small smile on her face. "We could check it out tomorrow after classes. Unless you have Quidditch practice..."
James shook his head. "We have practice Tuesday through Thursday plus an early morning practice on Saturday, but nothing on Monday. I'd be delighted if you would join me in the library."
Lily nodded. "Sounds good with me."
"Um, excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, your attention please!"
Lily and James looked towards Professor Slughorn, who had stopped the music from his position
near the back of the room, holding a champagne bottle in his meaty hands. "I'd like to interrupt your socializing for a small toast!"
He held the bottle up in the light, popping off the stopper with his wand. He brushed some dust off of it, a chuckle coming from his throat. "Looks like the house elves aren't doing their job very well. At least that means it's antique!"
The crowd laughed politely, and all the underage students clamored for the glasses of alcohol that were quickly filling up all by themselves. James got out his own wand and nonverbally got two glasses to come flying towards them.
"That's pretty good for a nonverbal spell. Didn't realize you were so good at them," Lily said with surprise and a little bit of praise in her voice. James smiled somewhat humblely.
They both sipped at the champagne, the bubbles making Lily slightly tipsy. She hadn't had much alcohol in her life and wasn't the greatest at holding it. She continued drinking it anyway, loving how it made her look more sophisticated. Plus, she figured it wasn't as bad as drinking beer or other teenage party alcohol standards. And, though she hated to admit it, she thought it might make her look less like the normal, rules-following Lily and more like the adventurous girl she wish she was.
After finishing off the drink, the two began dancing again, Lily more loose this time. But then a slow song came on, and Lily found James' hands on her waist.
"Wouldn't you rather sit down instead of dancing to this slow song?" Lily asked, feeling awkward. But James merely smiled, taking her arms and placing them around his own neck, which was a tiny bit of a stretch for Lily with her short stature. Lily saw Remus and Sirius smiling and making faces at their friend from the side of the room, but James ignored them, tightening his hold on Lily. The two moved in small circles, Lily feeling her eyes begin to edge downward as the slow song and movements began to dull her into sleep, mixing with the alcohol running through her system. She felt like the song went on forever, but for some reason she didn't really mind. Instead she found herself wishing it would never end.
But it soon did and James walked over to the side of the room with his friends, slowly pulling along Lily behind him.
"You’re such a charmer mate - you put her to sleep," Sirius pointed out with a smirk.
Remus, concern and laughter fighting each other on his face. "Maybe you should take her back to the common room." A smirk won out and he let James remember that the common room would probably be empty at this time, the perfect time for James to have some alone time with Lily.
James nodded, thanking his friends silently before turning to Lily. "What do you say, Evans? Wanna head back to the room? You look pretty tired..."
Lily looked for Ivy. Watching her gaze, James looked over all the heads and spotted Ivy talking to the Muggle Studies professor. "She'll be fine - Remus and Sirius can go back with her."
Lily nodded and headed to the door, grabbing another glass on her way out. James smirked and followed, waving to his friends as he left.
The two headed back towards the common room, this time going the normal way instead of the tunnel, James figuring Lily was too tired to be stuck in a cold tunnel for a while. Luckily there wasn't a greasy Slytherin walking around - they didn't run into anyone at all, which lifted James' mood even higher.
Lily got slower and slower as her eyes became heavier and heavier. When they turned a corner,
James noticed that Lily was about ten feet behind him and he backpedaled to her, putting his arm around her shoulders and helping her along. "Wow, Evans, you sure are tired. Is it passed your bedtime?"
"Ha ha," Lily said without any emotion, the tiredness evident in her voice. James chuckled at her reaction and continued walking, making sure his pacing was slower and smaller than normal.
They soon came to the common room, stepping over to the staircases. James let go of Lily and she immediately began to fall sideways, too tired to stand up straight.
"Whoa there," James said, grabbing her arms and holding her upright again. He laughed at the expression on Lily's face, suddenly swinging her up into his arms like a damsel in distress.
"Hey!" Lily exclaimed, unprepared for the ground to disappear underneath her feet. She looked down and felt slightly dizzy, even though she wasn't that high up. "What are you doing?"
"If I let you go upstairs by yourself you'll end up falling back down the stairs."
"But how am I going to get up to my room? Are you finally going to show me how you sneak up there?"
James thought for a moment before answering. "Nope, I'd rather keep that a secret a while longer. Nah, I'll bring you up to my room instead!"
"What? I can't go up to the boys' dormitory! My friends will kill me in the morning!"
"Not my problem," James said with a chuckle as he began walking up the stairs, easily holding Lily in his arms. He headed up the same distance as Lily's own dormitory, in another section of the Gryffindor tower. He nudged the door open easily and headed to the middle bed, the same bed Lily slept in back in her own room, about twenty feet away, separated by a thick wall. Lily caught sight of a bunch of paper plastered behind most of the beds and she laughed. "Sirius wasn't lying when he said that you kept everything I've written on!"
James looked bashful but didn't blush - lucky non-blush genes, Lily thought to herself. He headed to his bed, lowering Lily down on it gently. "Shut up, Evans. Just get to sleep."
Lily patted the spot next to her, smiling up at James, not completely aware of what she was doing - maybe that second glass wasn't the best idea. "Come on, Potter, keep me company. Give me a little tour of your lovely room."
James' eyebrow arched above his eye. "Are you sure?"
"Of course! I'd love to see where the famous Potter lives when he isn't by my side."
James looked at the glass, which was still clutched in her hand. "I think that's enough champagne for you. Maybe you should refrain from drinking alcohol for a while. Maybe the rest of your life?"
Lily laughed. "That's actually funny! Normally I think everything you say is laced with cockiness and just a pick up line to finally get to me, but you're actually funny!"
"Um, okay, Evans."
Lily continued to laugh. "Hilarious!"
"I think it's time for someone to go to sleep..."
"Will you tell me a bedtime story first?"
"What?!"
"My mom used to read a bedtime story every night to my sister and me - but then Petunia started hating me and I went to Hogwarts and I never really see them anymore. I miss those bedtime stories. I wonder if Petunia does..." Lily trailed off, thinking about old memories of her sister, back when their relationship was still normal.
James felt sad, wondering what Lily's life was like when she was trapped in a Muggle world knowing she was different and being hated by her sister. "Fine, I'll tell you a story, but don't get mad if it's really stupid."
"I won't!" Lily looked excited, clapping her hands together.
She is really drunk, James thought to himself. Hope she doesn't remember this in the morning and hate me... Oh well, too late now. He plopped down next to Lily, smiling widely as he tried to think of a story to tell Lily. Then he thought of a perfect story to tell her while she might not remember.
"Well, there was once a handsome prince who lived in a magical world where everyone loved him. He had plenty of servants to order around and he got to pull pranks on the village idiot all the time, always laughing at his greasy hair and his obsession with Dark Arts and potions. But the prince was still lonely, starting to get bored of spending all his time with his friends, who were incredibly immature in comparison with his own immaculate personality.
So, when he found out that there was a beautiful princess who was coming to town, he immediately became friends with her, knowing that she was the perfect ying to his yang. They became good friends, although the girl could be very stubborn at times. Soon they fell in love and married, moving to the castle where they ruled wisely. They soon had a perfect little family, and they all lived happily ever after."
Lily blinked. "That was weak, Potter. Couldn't think of anything more original?"
"I figured that was the best story in this situation."
"So, let me guess, the prince is you and the princess is me?"
"Even when drunk you're so smart, Evans."
"Thanks, Potter, I needed that."
James looked down at Lily with a question on his face, but instead he saw that she was leaning against his shoulder, her eyes closed and her breathing easy as she fell asleep quickly. James smiled and decided to save it for another day. He knew that she would already be mad at him when she woke up - he could deal with her own problems later on.