Stag and Flower

Chapter 8: Took You Long Enough

The first few days passed way too slowly for Lily. She spent the long hours in her room, playing solitaire with her muggle playing cards (she hated using those exploding wizard cards) or reading. She begged for night to come, bringing darkness and sleep. She hardly left her room and she never ate. She missed her friends terribly but she was a little glad they were gone; it gave her the chance to spend some time alone. She felt dead, though death would probably feel better.

About three days after the ball, she heard a knock on her door and the Marauders burst in.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked her brow furrowed.

"We're having an intervention," Peter replied.

"On who?"

"You, silly," Sirius smiled. "Hey! Silly and Lily rhyme. Billy."

"Me?" Lily asked, ignoring Sirius.

"Of course," Remus said. "You have spent three days straight in this room. You haven't eaten a thing. We're worried about you."

"Willy-nilly."

"Sirius! Shut up," James finally said.

"Sorry."

"Why would you be worried about me? It's not like we're friends," Lily said. For some reason that she could not explain, she was sad about this. "The only reason we ever talk is because Meredith and Katherine are going out with you and Sirius."

"We don't see it like that. We never really liked you much before this year. You seemed so uptight. But now that we've spent time with each other, we've decided that you're not so bad. So there, we are friends," Sirius said.

Lily smiled for the first time in days.

"So let's go. Out of bed now. We're going to Hogsmeade for lunch," James said.

"I don't want to," Lily said looking down at her bedspread.

"Stop lying. We know you feel fine. Get up," Sirius said.

"I said no!" Lily yelled. They were obviously taken aback by this.

"Something's wrong isn't it?" James asked.

"Lily, what is it?" Remus asked.

Lily's eyes quickly filled with tears and she tried to wipe them away before the others saw but it was too late.

"Oh, no. Lily what's wrong? You can tell us, we're your friends remember?" Sirius said walking over to her.

"I…can't…"

"You can," Peter pressed.

"Well I don't want to then," Lily said firmly looking into each of their faces one at a time. Sirius went back and joined the group.

"We'll just leave you alone then."

"Don't leave! Please…" Lily didn't know why she wanted them to stay but she felt happier when she was with them. So they stayed.

:-:-:-:-:-:

The Marauders came to visit Lily every day. They talked, played cards, or just sat in silence. They would be there with breakfast when she woke up in the morning, have lunch and dinner brought up to her room, then stay until she fell asleep. They talked about everything. In the span of about four days, Lily found out all there was to know about the Marauders. She had known that Remus was a werewolf since third year but she didn't know about the other three being animagi (they got a good scolding but Lily did tell them that she was proud of them for pulling off such a hard spell and being so kind and caring to help a friend). She cleverly kept the conversations away from the topic of parents so she never did find out that Sirius had run away or that James' parents had been murdered. Speaking of James, Lily got a lot closer to him. She really liked his new quiet personality though she had to admit she did miss the fun spontaneous guy he used to be.

:-:-:-:-:-:

Christmas morning was cold but, as Lily saw through the glass doors leading to the balcony, beautiful. The snow had stopped falling and the sky was perfectly clear. The sun shown brightly and she was happy. There were two gifts sitting on her nightstand. She grabbed the first one and tore the wrapping paper (it was covered in dancing Christmas trees in leotards and tutus) off the package and opened the long thin box. It was a beautiful, peacock feather quill. She opened the card and read:

Dear Lily,

I thought you might need this. You must have lost all of yours seeing as how I've not received one letter from you. Please write! Happy Christmas.

Yours always,

Meredith Penelope Hart

P.S.: I hope you and the Marauders are behaving yourselves.

Lily couldn't help but laugh at her friend. She laid the quill back in its case and set it on the pillow beside her. She took the next gift and ripped the paper off (reindeer driving Santa-pulled sleighs). It was also in a thin black case. Lily prayed that Katherine hadn't sent her a quill also. When she opened the case, she saw a silver locket in the shape of a heart on a silver chain. She took it out of the case and opened it. On one side was a picture of Katherine and on the other was a picture of Meredith. She closed it and put it around her neck. She opened the card and read:

Dear Lily,

I hope you are having a good time. I was really worried about you when we left. I also hope you like your gift. I got Meredith and myself one but with different pictures of course. Now wherever we are, we'll all be together. I'll see you in a week.

Love,

Katherine Louise de Prix

Lily smiled. She got out of bed and went to throw the wrapping paper in the bin. She put her new quill next to her inkbottle on her desk. She went back to her bed and crawled between the sheets then began reading her book. She had only read about a page when someone knocked on the door.

"Lily dearest!" Lily recognized Sirius' voice immediately. "Are you decent?" he called dramatically.

"If I said no, would you leave me alone?" she called back, smiling. The door opened and all four Marauders came into her room. Peter, Remus, and Sirius all piled up on her bed and James pulled her desk chair over.

"No, if you had said no, that would only give me more reason to come in," Sirius replied, smiling stupidly.

"I'll be sure to tell Katherine that," Lily said, giving him an identical smile.

"You wouldn't!"

"I would but I know that you were just playing around, right?"

"Er…yeah…I didn't mean a word of it," he said not very convincingly.

"Did you get anything good for Christmas?" Peter asked.

"Meredith sent me a new quill and Katherine gave me a locket," Lily said smiling.

"What did your parents send you?" James asked eying Lily cautiously. He had noticed the way Lily avoided the subject of family and he had a growing suspicion about why.

"Oh, they sent me a book," Lily lied easily.

"That book?" James asked pointing to the book on the nightstand.

"Yes," Lily said without looking to where he was pointing.

"Guys, could you give us a minute?" James asked turning to his friends. They looked at him curiously before leaving the room.

"Lily, I know you don't want to tell us what happened but whatever it is you can't hide it forever. If you keep it in, you'll explode with pent-up emotion."

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Lily said, avoiding James' eye.

"Yes I do. Ask Sirius. This summer, after my parents died, I stayed in my room and avoided even thinking about them. When Sirius came to talk to me one day about a month later, I blew up at him. I felt better but it was the wrong way to do it. You know what I mean?"

"Your parents died?" Lily asked finally looking at him.

"Yes, you didn't know?" he asked, brow furrowed.

"No, I didn't. I'm so sorry James."

"I'm over it. I still miss them but it's a lot easier. While we're on the subject of parents, does your recent…depression have anything to do with your parents?" James asked.

Lily didn't think she could keep to herself anymore. She didn't think she could lie to James. But she didn't want to say it out loud either. Tears began rolling down her cheeks and she said, "They…were…killed."

"Oh, God. Lily. I'm so sorry," James said wrapping his arms around Lily. She clutched the front of his shirt and leaned her head into his chest. James held her while she cried. Even after the tears were gone, Lily stayed like that, in James' protective arms. Finally she slowly leaned back, her face only centimeters away from his. She could smell his hair. She could see the faint scar on his jaw line. She could feel his breath on her nose. She stared into his gorgeous hazel eyes; subconsciously hoping he would make the space between their lips disappear. Then a sneeze from outside the door jerked her back into reality.

This was James Potter, for Merlin's sake! She hated him!

No she hated who he used to be, she corrected herself. In the past months, he seemed to have grown up. She had seen a whole new side of him. A side of him that she really liked. A side of him that she could potentially lo-

I'm not going to go there right now, she thought to herself. She would just think about it later when her head was a little clearer.

Lily let go of him, reluctantly, and he pulled his arms from around her.

"Thank you, James," Lily said, wiping her eyes.

"For what?"

"For being here for me."

"Like I said, I've been through this before. What kind of friend would I be if I wasn't here to help you?"

Lily smiled. "Um…I know this is a lot to ask for but…do you think you could tell the others? And maybe write a letter to Meredith and Katherine? I just don't feel like talking about it anymore," she said, looking James directly in the eyes.

"Sure," he replied, flashing those pearly whites.

"Thanks." James stood up and walked to the door. As he opened it, Sirius fell to the floor. He had obviously been listening in on their conversation. James picked him up by the scruff of his neck, hit him upside the head, and pushed him into the common room.

:-:-:-:-:-:

"Shhh. You don't want to wake her up, do you?" The moment Katherine and Meredith got James' letters, they packed and came straight to Hogwarts. They were now trying to sneak into her room. Trying being the operative word.

"Who's there?" a languid voice asked from the bed.

"Sorry Lily. It's me and Meredith," Katherine replied. She and Meredith dropped their bags and pulled their coats off to reveal pajamas (Meredith had monkeys and Katherine had cows). They slid into Lily's bed, one on either side of her. They linked their arms through hers and the three friends fell asleep.

:-:-:-:-:-:

"Um guys Lily has someone in her bed." The Marauders came in at their usual time to see three lumps under Lily's sheets.

"Two someones, it looks like," pointed out James.

"Shut up! I'm trying to sleep over here!" one of the lumps shouted.

"Meredith," Remus said.

"What part of shut up don't you understand?" another lump complained.

"And Katherine!" said Sirius enthusiastically.

"And Lily," replied the third lump. She popped her head out from under the covers and yawned at the four boys.

"Why are they in here?" Meredith asked, also coming up.

"Who cares? I really wish you all would shut up or take this elsewhere!" Katherine shouted again.

"What? You don't want to see your boyfriend after we've been apart for two weeks?" Sirius pouted.

"Not at eight in the morning I don't."

"I feel so unloved."

"Shut up and come give me a hug," Katherine gave in. Sirius walked over and gave Katherine a long kiss on the lips. "That works too."

"I need coffee. Strong, black coffee. Please. Now," Meredith said looking like she was suffering from separation anxiety. Remus conjured a cup and walked it over to her. She gave him a quick kiss then chugged all of her coffee in half a second. "I feel better."

"Good."

"What are we doing today?" Lily asked.

"I thought you would want to stay in bed," said Peter.

"I've been in bed for two weeks straight. I'm tired of bed. I want to get out. Can we go have breakfast in Hogsmeade?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," James smiled at her.

"I can't. I have remedial potions," Peter said, clearly upset. "But you all go without me."

"Okay. See you, Wormtail," Lily said, as he walked out of the room.

"Wormtail?" Meredith eyed her friend.

"We've been keeping Lily company for most of the holiday. We've come to be close friends," explained Remus.

"Ah."

After the girls got dressed, the six friends headed downstairs and outside. Remus and Meredith walked a little ways in front of Sirius and Katherine and James and Lily pulled up the rear. Lily couldn't stand the awkward silence between James and herself but she didn't know what to say to him. She had never felt this way while in his presence. Hell, she had never felt this way in any boy's presence. Finally the six friends arrived at the small restaurant across the street from The Three Broomsticks called Nemo.

After an amazing meal, Remus and Meredith left for a walk. Sirius and Katherine left a few minutes after them so Lily was left alone with James. She had a faint feeling that this had been planned.

"This was nice," James said leaning back in his seat.

"Yeah," Lily replied, twirling her fork in the air. Her hand slipped and the fork fell to the floor with a ting. "Whoops."

Lily bent down and reached for the fork at the same time as James. Their hands met for few seconds before Lily pulled hers back and sat up in her seat. James followed her and set the fork on the table.

"How cliché was that?" James said, voicing the exact thing that Lily had been thinking.

"I know. Right?"

"So do you wanna head back up to the school?" James asked standing up.

"What about the others?" Lily asked.

"I'm sure they'll find their way back," he replied, offering his hand to her. Lily hesitated then took it.

The two walked out into the cold air. They were so close that James hand hit hers a few times. He had a feeling in the pit of his stomach. He was going to throw himself off the ledge and hope that Lily would catch him. Here goes nothing.

"Lily?" James said, stopping in the road.

"Hmm?" Lily turned around to look at him.

"What would you say if I did this?" He took her hand in his own.

Nothing.

"What about this?" He slowly pulled her closer to him. Their bodies were inches apart.

Nothing.

"What about-" But James was cut off by Lily's lips on his. The kiss started off slow and sweet. James placed one of his hands on the small of her back and the other on the back of her head. Lily's arms slid around his neck and she twisted her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck. There was no telling how long they stood there. When they finally broke apart, both of them breathing heavily, Lily leaned her forehead against his.

"Whoa," was all James could say.

"Yeah," Lily replied smiling.

"Get a room!" a voice all too familiar shouted.

They both turned to see their four friends watching them and smiling. James slid his arm around Lily's waist and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Took you long enough," Meredith said.

"Shut up, the lot of you," Lily replied.

"Lily andIare going back to the Head common room. Don't follow us," James said as he turned back toward the castle.

"They're perfect for each other," said Remus as they watched the new couple walk up the road.

"They really are."

The End

A/N: So there it is. I hope you enjoyed it. I loved writing it. I'll post an epilogue soon so I guess this isn't really the end. Anyway, leave reviews.

PS: Nemo means no name in Latin. When I first wrote this chapter, I couldn't think of a name for the restaurant so I think that Nemo fits. Also sorry it took so long.