Lily Evans
Gryffindor
Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't? Hurts, doesn't it?
Posts: 45
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Post by Lily Evans on Oct 16, 2012 13:03:49 GMT -5
”Right then. Come on you, before Filch gets out and catches sight of this”
Lily mirrored Remus, offering an arm of support around James in case he should need it. She knew the others had hardly expected her support right now, but she was certainly not about to leave them high and dry. Besides, she had gotten involved. She could be implicated as much as anyone else with the amount of students that surely must have spotted her as they were ushered from the old classroom. Pausing their joint step for a moment, Lily turned and get her wand a few sharp flicks across the room, watching as trays turned back to cats scurrying back to their owners, the fountain dissolved into little more than an old stone sink in the centre of the room and the mess that had inevitably been created seemed to disappear in flashes of smoke. She’d cleaned up after the Marauders’ pranks enough time to know how to cover for them. Satisfied that there was no evidence of what had gone on that evening, Lily returned to helping James from the room and followed Remus and Sirius back to Gryffindor tower.
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It took longer than usual with the slower pace of the two injured parties, and Lily slipped her arm away to speak the password to the Fat Lady, who opened whilst desperately asking the students what had gone on, she’d seen so many run back through her archway. Stepping into the Common Room, the redhead was glad to see the House Elves had already stoked the fire. On seeing the group about to enter, the few remaining students who had been sat whispering nervously hastened their way back up to the dorms. Alice, Lily noted, was not amongst them. Had she not made it back yet? Perhaps she was already up in the girls’ dorms with the more drunken females of their House, trying to calm them. Still, if she did come down, Lily knew she had questions that needed answering. She had obviously known who was in the mask, and hadn’t helped when the party descended into a magical brawl. She was obviously holding something back. She stepped back out of the arch, going again to help James and unthinkingly bringing him straight to the chair he had marked as his own these past few years, with a perfect view outside and right in front of the fireplace. Sirius and Remus would take the couch no doubt.
Tucking her wand into the curls pinned now haphazardly at the back of her head, Lily left the boys looking rather confused (they had, she thought, looked like they were about to start a conversation amongst themselves) as she walked over to the back of the Common Room to a poorly lit old writing desk. Crouching down, she spun the dials on the old Muggle padlock she had put on its lid three years ago, charmed to ensure no magic would blast it off should anyone get curious as to what lay inside. She returned to the fireplace with one arm around a small cauldron and one carrying several bottles and jars precariously as she knelt down, aware of the clearly bemused expressions of the others.
“Professor Slughorn lets me have access to the ingredients cupboard,” she explained before they could question her means of coming across the items. “There are some benefits of being one of his favourite students”
As she spoke she took a small splinter of wood from the fire that had just crackled alight, setting it under the cauldron as she added a few ingredients, her brow furrowing as she concentrated on getting the mix right. As the liquid inside turned to a warm orange colour she blew out the flame, pouring it into two glass vials and handing one each to Sirius and James before pushing her things aside on the rug beneath her.
“Drink up. It’s a Dulling Draught. Should stop you hurting as much till you actually fix yourselves up properly.”
See? Despite what they thought, Lily cared. Well, enough to get them painless enough to talk rationally and not having to run off to the Hospital Wing anyway.
“So....I’ll start, shall I? What in the name of hell happened in there?”
[/b] 700. TAGGED:[/b] the battered and the bruised (egos) MUSE/NOTES:[/b] nurse lily, booya! QUOTE:[/b] Doctor Who; The Big Bang. CREDITS:[/b] TOMOLONIS of Caution 2.0! [/size] |
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Post by Sirius Black on Oct 16, 2012 14:03:51 GMT -5
  The walk back was a long one, or it certainly felt that way to Sirius. When they finally reached the portrait the fat lady had never looked so attractive. He clambered through rather clumsily and bee-lined for the couch. The look he gave the rather ill looking second year who was occupying on arrival was enough that he didn’t have to go to extremities to remove the child. Looking half scared, half as though he was going to throw up, the young lad ran up the steps to the lad’s dorms and Sirius stretched out onto a couch. The squishy seating, the warm fire, everything about the common room felt like home – and there was nothing he needed more right now. Almost nothing. According to Evans he needed this vial of liquid also. He watched puzzled as she seemed to pull a potions kit out like it was completely normal “I have my own dulling potion,” he argued, indicating the whisky keg he had floated alongside them on the walk back. That was another thing he needed – a proper drink. But she was rarely wrong about these things, and she was one of the few girls in the house he would consume a suspicious looking vile of liquid from. He downed the substance, cringing with every gulp, and admittedly felt a lot better, even if he didn’t look it. “Cheers, Evans, works a treat,” he thanked her, genuinely. “Tastes like feet though.” He flicked his wand and a little glass filled itself and floated towards him with enough liquor to wash away the taste. Another few glasses floated hopefully towards the others. Sirius was also extremely eager to uncover the mysteries of the evening. He needed to know who attacked him, what mad bastard thought he needed to make such a spectacle. What was the point? “What do we know?” he asked the group, collectively. He had spent most of the incident focusing on defending himself, he hadn’t paid much attention to anything else. “The snake in the air, the bloke who attacked me.. Any guesses who?” He looked between them, hopelessly. “It just doesn’t make sense – I may be the target for angry blood elitists but they are usually more than happy to let me know how they feel without a mask.” It was true, his charming cousin Bella for instance would be more annoyed if he didn’t know it was her. “Plus they’d never go out of their way to abuse me like that,” he added, thoughtfully, imagining Cissa’s face if she thought anyone could see her there. It was beneath her. “This bloke wasn’t after me, I swear, there is something more going on.” |
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Post by James Potter, Esq. on Oct 16, 2012 23:21:55 GMT -5
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James had never been happier to see the Common Room in his life. He had never really appreciated how amazing their common room was. The overstuffed chairs were particularly comfortable tonight and he sank into one gratefully, marvelling at its kindness. As Lily hurried off to do something very important, James took a moment to appreciate the room. The tapestries did wonders to help keep the warmth in, radiating that splendid fire heat right back at him. The portraits were filled with jovial and familiar faces, though they were presently quite irritated at having been awoken from their sleep. Even the Fat Lady had looked especially lovely tonight, even sporting that horrific shade of pink.
Lily returned with, of all things, a potions kit. James eyed it with a bemused look, which quickly made way for suspicion. James wasn't too handy at potions, his having a rather terrible tendency to explode, and did not particularly trust the discipline. If it had been anyone else but Lily whipping up a potion, he would have refused on the principle of the matter.
But it was Lily brewing it, and James allowed himself to wonder at that. She must have hit her head at some point this evening, because they had yet to have a proper shouting match. She hadn't abandoned him during the fight for her Head Girl duties, had even seemed concerned. It was remarkable, how mortal peril could charm a girl like Lily Evans.
She gave him a vial of a rather unappealingly orange fluid, which he peered at cautiously. Padfoot's remark that it tasted like feet was unhelpful. James eventually manned up and drank the potion. He thought it tasted more like orangutang armpit, but declined to share this thought with the others. Despite the aftertaste, it offered a strong measure of relief. He could no longer feel his back stinging. Or his fingers. Or toes. But those were rather useless appendages, he reasoned, and dropped the thought promptly. He did, however, accept an eager glass of whiskey.
"It doesn't really make much sense," James admitted, leaning back in his chair. Merlin's tits, it felt good to sit in his chair. He kicked his feet up and a small ottoman scooted into place cheerfully. He pulled his glasses off, pinching the bridge of his nose as he thought, trying to fit the pieces together. "It's not like our favorite blood maniacs to just crash a party like that. They usually try to send Professors to shut it down, and they're not really the types to learn from their mistakes so quickly."
James looked at his companions somberly, not liking the way this conversation was going one bit.
"I hate to agree with you mate, but, well... this looks like a distraction to me." That thought did not sit well with James. If that was the distraction, he didn't want to know about the main event.
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mood:somber
tag: nice lily is strange, whiskey, paddyfoot, moony, drama
credit:jacksome111@caution 2.0!
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Post by Winter on Oct 19, 2012 22:13:34 GMT -5
I helped Sirius hobble through the portrait hole and gratefully for both of us he was finally situated on the couch his keg in-tow sitting next to him. Lily had steered James to what the entire room knew was his chair. Lily was already in the process of cooking up something to help them, literally. She was sitting by the fire brewing what . . . well I think if my memory serves me right that would be a dulling drought but potions has never been my best subject. His thoughts were confirmed by Lily when she told the other two what they were drinking. Any other circumstances they would have looked to him for confirmation, but James would do just about anything Lily told him to and well Sirius wasn’t in any kind of state to argue with something that might help. It wasn’t like Lily would give them anything harmful anyway that was something other people would do.
The talk quickly turned to what had happened at the party. It seemed like none of us knew much about what had happened. I think it was very likely only the people responsible knew what happened. At least we had a few ideas though. We all seemed to agree that the fight had been a distraction, and that the man in the mask was behind it all. I don’t think any of us wanted to think about what the main event was, but I at least felt a little responsible after all it had happened at our party. I felt pretty sure some of the heavy thinking would be headed in my direction since I was neither intoxicated or injured which was more than could be said for my two mates. So as to keep my mental facilities sharp I waved away the glass Sirius was offering. Not only did I want to have my full mental power, but also my magic gets sloppy when drunk and I had at least two healings to do.
“Come on mate lets see what can be done about the way you look now that you feel a bit better.” I turned Sirius to look at me seeing what damage had been done. I was fairly good at healing so this shouldn’t be nay trouble. It would have been stupid for me not to learn any healing when I basically injure myself pretty badly once a month. Compared to some of the cuts and scrapes I’d given myself this was nothing. He should still probably see Madame Pomfrey come morning but I could fix most of this easily enough. I carefully ran my wand along the cuts they knitted back together and glowed a faint blue. The marks were still there but they were closed. He looked a little better.
I listened closely as I worked my healing on Sirius. It seemed my turn to talk now. I was still thinking more about that other wolf though. I couldn’t just come out and say hey I smelled another werewolf at the party not with all these people around, but I couldn’t help but feel she was some how connected. I knew it was a she; girl werewolves smell different. “Well I agree that the fight was a distraction he wouldn’t have bailed so quickly if the real goal had been to beat up Sirius.” I paused unsure how to proceed with Lily right there. “I may be wrong mates, but I don’t think he was acting alone either there were a few people there in those grotesque masks and I think one of them . . .” How should I put this? “I think one of them shares my furry problem.” The old stand by that will get the point across to my mates at least. It seemed pretty blunt to say in front of other people, but there wasn’t really a way around it. My mates always said I was too cautious about the secret anyway. I didn’t agree.
I looked at Padfoot and Prongs my eyes stern to make sure they got the message that this was something I was POSITIVE of. I then went back to working on Sirius’s injuries trying to avoid Lily’s glance and not look too suspicious. I am positive I failed at that but still worth a try.
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Lily Evans
Gryffindor
Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't? Hurts, doesn't it?
Posts: 45
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Post by Lily Evans on Oct 20, 2012 4:04:51 GMT -5
Lily watched carefully as the two drank the potion she gave them, making sure it was finished. She knew it wasn’t going to taste pleasant, but the fact was no medicine did. That was true even in the Muggle world. Anything that tasted bad was probably going to help. She could remember a few times when she’d come down with the flu or tonsillitis as a little girl, and her mother having to bribe her with cake just to get the child to swallow whatever foul concoction had been whipped up to ‘make her feel better’. Lily had tried to argue that she only ever felt like she was going to throw up after taking them, but it had never gotten her anywhere, so she simply learned to accept it. At least this time she wasn’t the one who had come out of things for the worse. She nodded in recognition when Sirius thanked her, not knowing what else to say. Though she and Remus had become fairly good friends after they were both named Prefects a couple of years ago, Lily had never really spoken to Sirius in a social context other than telling him what a prat he was being. She knew it was as odd for him and James as it was for her that she was still sat with them right now, and wanted to make it as less awkward as possible.
As the second eager glass of alcohol hovered over towards her, Lily couldn’t help but roll her eyes. In normal circumstances she would have admonished the pair of them, but the fact was now simply wasn’t the time. As stupid as she thought it was to still be drinking, it paled in comparison to what had gone on this evening. She put her palm over the top of the glass, pushing it to the floor and aside. She’d never been much of a drinker anyway, and wanted a clear head to think with.
“No guesses who,” she answered, looking slightly uncomfortable at her next words, “but judging by how quick she was to wander off with him, I’d wager Alice has a fair idea.”
Lily wondered what her friend had been thinking. The guy had called Sirius a traitor, and had made it quite clear what his leanings were in terms of blood status. Alice had never seemed like that to Lily. The two of them had been friends for a while now, and had been even before Alice returned to Hogwarts a new woman. Could it really be possible that she believed Lily was inferior simply because of her parents? Then again, she reasoned with herself harshly, it would hardly be the first time someone close to her had betrayed her in that manner. Severus had done exactly the same thing, and he had been her best friend for over six years. She pushed thoughts of him aside, however, to focus on the conversation going on in front of her. Dwelling on false friendships could wait. The conversation had taken a serious turn, and she couldn’t afford distraction.
She stayed quiet in thought while Remus spoke, silently in agreement. There was no way the fight had been the only aim of the party. If it had been, the guy certainly wouldn’t have run off at the first moment he could find. A small frown creased her brow, however, when Remus mentioned another person sharing his ‘problem’. They were intelligent, studious, curious and reasonable people. Lily had been watching the Marauders for years, trying to figure out their comings and goings to stop their pranks before they even got chance to get started. Admittedly they seemed to know every single escape route in the castle, but did he – did they all – honestly think she hadn’t noticed the few nights of the month every month the four of them disappeared without a trace from the Common Room? It was practically an insult. But then, she supposed, she’d never said anything. She hadn’t seen fit to – if Remus hadn’t trusted her with that information, who was she to press it? But now, with masked students running about and people getting seriously hurt was not the time for secrets between friends.
“Another werewolf?” she questioned, keeping her tone purely and purposefully matter-of-fact. The three of them would surely know better than to question her assumption now and risk yet another argument (albeit probably a less physical one)/ She thought back, and something flashed quickly into her mind, as she looked straight at James.
“The person who threw that curse at you. She – at least I think it was a she – was wearing a mask when I went after her. But it wasn’t like the other guy’s. It was the face of a wolf. If she was working with him...I don’t like how this is sounding. Starting a fight is one thing, but the hexes, the snake, the light...” Then there it was. That little golden moment of thought that makes you wonder how on earth you hadn’t thought of it before. “They were causing a panic. They wanted everyone out of that room...or someone in particular. Half the students of Hogwarts were in there tonight.”
[/b] 868 TAGGED:[/b] oh dear... MUSE/NOTES:[/b] cause lily is clever, dontchya know? QUOTE:[/b] Doctor Who; The Big Bang. CREDITS:[/b] TOMOLONIS of Caution 2.0! [/size] |
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Post by Sirius Black on Oct 20, 2012 9:19:10 GMT -5
 Sirius felt as though he had his own personal medical staff at hand as Remus healed up some of his more drastic wounds. If he had any intention of subjecting himself to Pomfrey before, there was no chance of him heading down to the hospital wing now. He may have still felt rough but it was more discomfort and painful confusion then actual physical pain. “Cheers Moony,” he thanked, observing some of his bruises thoughtfully. It wouldn’t have been the first bruise he had gotten from his ‘traitorous’ ways, but the idea that this was not about him or his life choices was somehow even worse. The situation would have been so much easier had it just been another elitist thug. Remus’ furry observation genuinely shocked him. Their monthly excursions were one thing. Sirius knew it was a painful experience for his friend, but if he had to go through it at least they could do so whilst having a bit of a laugh. In truth, Sirius genuinely enjoyed the trips. Saying that however, coming face to face with a transformed werewolf was utterly terrifying. If their friend had ever come into contact with any human, muggle or wizard, he could have easily decapitated them in seconds. Sirius himself had nearly been responsible for such an incident. At the time, in his infinite stupidity, he had thought the idea a brilliant way to scare the living shit out of Snape, thinking he’d turn and run and learn a valuable lesson about snooping. Few times in his life had he been so dramatically wrong. If it wasn’t for James, he would have been responsible for turning one of his best friends into a murderer. Sirius found that hard to come to terms with, and would never have forgiven himself had it happened. He even struggled to make eye contact with Remus as he told them his realisation. Sirius didn’t quite know what gave Lupin the strength to still treat him as a friend. But the idea of there being another werewolf, presumably less concerned about the safety of their peers, utterly surpassed his feelings of guilt in favour of a strong sense of dread. It just got worse. The fact that Evans was aware of this did not completely surprise him. He gave her a quizzical look as he wondered just how much she did know about them. But it wasn’t the time to question her detective skills. “Do you think Dumbledore knows?” the headmaster had gone to great lengths to help Remus contain his condition, would he have told them if he did? A few students stumbled into the common room, saw the group by the fire and quickly headed to the common room. The whole house had been witness to the fight, or at least they had heard of it by now. The gossip and awkward avoidance would last for weeks. But now that they talked it out, petty whispering seemed the least of their problems. Sirius wanted badly to bury his head in the sand with each revelation that came from his friends. His head was starting to hurt as he tried to comprehend the severity of their situation. They all seemed to agree that this had been a distraction, but that revelation only lead to more confusion. A distraction from what? Why did they want to empty the room? Who or what were they after? It seemed an awful lot of effort simply to crash a toga party. “If that was all about emptying the room and distracting us,” he started, “What’s coming next?” He wasn’t even sure he wanted to know, but it was becoming clear something bad was about to happen and it gave him an uneasy feeling not knowing what or how to stop it. |
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Post by James Potter, Esq. on Oct 20, 2012 13:50:45 GMT -5
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How had things gotten so out of hand? It felt surreal, like this was just some awful nightmare his subconscious had dreamt up. This couldn't possibly be real. But the lingering sting in his back wouldn't let him believe he was dreaming, kept him grounded in reality. He frowned deeply, ruffling his hair for lack of anything better to do with himself. He felt so... impotent, here. Just sitting in his favorite chair, doing nothing to unravel the mystery.
Lily mentioned Alice, and she looked as uncomfortable as he felt. He had never spoken much to Alice, but she was a Gryffindor. Gryffindor's didn't run off with dark wizards and abandon their mates. Gryffindor still meant something in these dark days... didn't it?
"There's probably a good explanation for that," he offered to Lily with surprising consideration, his voice trying for optimism. He hated the look on her face, the muted betrayal, that indescribable look of... well, it was indescribable for a reason. He just wanted to make it disappear, give her some glimmer of hope and make her smile. Her smiles were magic, real magic, not hexes and curses, but the sort of thing that could make him believe that everything was going to be alright. He needed that now. They all did. "We'll sort it out, it'll be a hilarious misunderstanding, you'll see."
James was rather put-out that Lily was in the know. They'd done everything possible to safeguard Remus' secret. If Lily knew, he wondered, who else had figured it out? James had to shelve that thought for the time being, though he was already trying to find ways to improve their secrecy. Remus had entrusted The Marauders with his furry problem, and James had no intent of letting him down.
Even now, with all the darkness, James felt a thrill surge through him when Lily looked at him. Her gaze was piercing, serious, and grim, but that didn't matter. He felt pinned by her gaze, unable to look away or form a thought for several moments. Her power over him was absolute and, at the moment, a bit frustrating. It took James longer than it should have for him to respond as her words finally sank into his brain.
"Someone in particular," he repeated as a thought struck him suddenly. He replayed the moments before the fight in his mind, glasses slipping down his narrow nose as he gazed into his whiskey. If this was a plot, and it certainly looked like it, who were they after? He looked to Sirius grimly, "When you left me and Lils, who'd you go off with?" He looked at Sirius, encouraging the Black to follow his line of thinking. After a beat, he spoke quietly, "It wasn't you they were after. Maybe you just got in the way."
James wasn't sure where this sudden burst of insight had come from, but he felt very strongly that he was on the right track.
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mood: somber, curious, all muddled up
tag: lilylilylilylily, moony, padfoot, where the hell is wormtail?
credit:jacksome111@caution 2.0!
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Lily Evans
Gryffindor
Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't? Hurts, doesn't it?
Posts: 45
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Post by Lily Evans on Oct 20, 2012 15:58:58 GMT -5
Lily caught the stray students’ eyes as they wandered into the Common Room, glancing at each one of them with the look of a mother who has just caught her children sneaking out of bed to raid the biscuit jar. It was an expression she had unknowingly perfected over two years of catching the Marauders around the castle out of hours or in areas that were restricted to students. The likelihood was that they weren’t planning on sitting in the Common Room anyway, but the expression on her face coupled with how James and Sirius looked probably hurried them along quite quickly. She knew she ought to be concentrating on the matter at hand, but a part of her brain couldn’t help wondering what whispers were going to be flying around the school in the morning. She was more than used to people spreading gossip about her, both from Muggle school and Hogwarts. There had been talk of her being a suck-up to professors out of sight of others to keep her grades up, that she cheated from the exam papers of Pureblood students (no doubts about who started those), and of course that she and Severus had been more than friends on several occasions. Lily had long since learned to ignore such rubbish and simply carry on as she always had. Eventually people would find a new juicy tale, and she would be left alone until the gossip mill ran dry,
And yet. Here she was; Lily Evans. Head Girl, ex-Prefect, rule follower, studious pupil, tutor. She had built a reputation for tearing the three boys here (plus Peter, wherever he had scurried off to in the chaos) apart every toe they put out of line. Her arguments with James were becoming Hogwarts legend, and she had shared a few public cross words with Sirius in her time to. What must people coming through think now, to see her sat here talking with them in hushed voices as if they were close friends. Not to mention the way James kept looking at her, as if all words in the English language had been wiped from his mind. There would be talk, she was sure of it. Had it just been she and James Lily could have claimed they were discussing things as Heads of the school, but with the others involved, and people having doubtlessly seen Lily’s panic when James was injured and her helping him from the room...The strangest part about it was that she didn’t feel furious about it. What was happening to her? His trying to reassure her about Alice wasn’t exactly easing her mind either. God help her, she actually found his words comforting. Anyone else she would have scolded them immediately, telling them to open their eyes and stop being to wilfully ignorant to the facts. But the fact was Lily didn’t want to believe that, and James seemed so...so worried for her that she couldn’t reject it.
“I hope so,” she replied softly, taking her eyes from is to stop herself getting to upset. She knew if this train of conversation carried on and old buried emotions were brought up she would well up, so left it at that.
At Sirius’ question she unconsciously mirrored James, ruffling her hand through her hair causing the remaining pins to flick out. Having it all pinned up was starting to give her a headache, and it was bad enough having to deal with all this without that too. She hadn’t even considered this. Dumbledore was one of the greatest headmasters Hogwarts had ever seen in its hallways. She guessed that he knew about Remus, and had done since he started school. The Ministry itself knew less about the background of Hogwarts students than its lead professor. She chewed the inside of her cheek lightly, turning it over in her head, letting her brain do what it did best.
“I would have thought if he knew he would have mentioned something to Remus by now. Share the burden, if you’ll excuse me calling it that,” she said softly to Remus, an apologetic smile flitting across her lips. It couldn’t be an easy thing for him to be discussing with someone he wasn’t even aware knew about him. “But for someone to not only lie to Dumbledore, but keep that sort of thing a secret? Dumbledore is one of the best wizards around, not to mention every professor in school is his eyes and ears when he isn’t about. If he doesn’t know, she has help, and it’s not some dumb blood supremacist with anger issues.”
Then, out of nowhere, James had his own eureka moment. Instinctively she cast him a surprised look, more because she had thought of this than anything else. She knew James was smart as he wasn’t failing every class despite goofing off in almost all of them, but she had never really spent the time with him to know how switched on he actually was – all of them were. As the thought it out, it made perfect sense. If they were after someone in particular and Sirius had gotten in the way of what should have been a much quieter plan, he had supplied the perfect distraction for the witches and wizards in the room who perhaps would have been the most alert to something strange going on.
“And when you got in the way, they knew they would have James and Remus to deal with as well, so they made with the big fireworks to cover their escape and escorting someone out of the room to ‘somewhere safer’.” This was getting worse, and it was beginning to scare her. Looking between the three boys, she swallowed before saying what none of them wanted to hear, The reports in the Prophet had been getting more frequent week by week now, and it had always been a matter of time, no matter how much people wanted to deny it. “Hogwarts isn’t safe.”
[/b] 998 TAGGED:[/b] marauders & co MUSE/NOTES:[/b] cogs turning, brain in gear, bad bad times QUOTE:[/b] Doctor Who; The Big Bang. CREDITS:[/b] TOMOLONIS of Caution 2.0! [/size] |
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Post by Sirius Black on Oct 21, 2012 4:23:28 GMT -5
 Sirius’ eyes darted between Lily and his friends as they all put their thoughts into the mix. It was true, if anyone had managed to successfully hide their lycanthropy from Albus Dumbledore they must have had truly powerful help. If anyone wanted to hide it from him, they had to have malicious reasoning. Someone, it seemed, had purposefully planted a dangerous werewolf into the school with the sole intention of placing students in danger. Lily was right, Hogwarts wasn’t safe. It was James’ moment of clarity however that really worried him. They were right, it had been a distraction and he had been the immediate target. Not because of his own choices, but possibly because of his position at the time. It had to make sense that he had got in the way of whatever they were after, but Sirius didn’t like to think what that was. “Evelina,” Sirius said, rather quietly. He cleared his throat before repeating the girl’s name. “You might remember, the girl I asked out at breakfast the other morning.” He had only really asked her out in a bid to shut up her chirping friends. Having missed the date, he didn’t really know her, but couldn’t quite see why she would be a target. “I’m not sure why anyone would be after harming her though. A whole room full of ‘traitors’ such as ourselves and they target a perfectly unassuming pureblood?” he shrugged, that didn’t seem right to him, but then nothing they did fit his own logic. “I don’t really know the girl to be honest, we didn’t end up going out - I got a bit caught up with Rosmerta, missed the date.” At the moment the words left his mouth, Sirius had his own epiphany. He had had every intention of going off to meet Eva that day, he wasn’t a total idiot and she was attractive enough. But as the cogs turned in his brain he remembered the circumstance in which he had stood her up. Rosmerta’s kegs had simultaneously burst, she had cursed the crowd blindly and they both assumed it had been a practical joke. Sirius thought she half suspected him. He had helped clean up whilst she served the busy bar, it was the least he could do in return for booze for the party. But now, with all they had talked about, it seemed damn suspicious that every time he tried to speak to her or meet her he was met with a theatrical distraction. “Someone didn’t want me to make that date,” he realised aloud, feeling quite sick at the thought of why. “I got held back, when I got there she had gone and-” Sirius stopped as another wave of realisation hit him. Eva had said something just before the first punch landed him in the face. She had a great time, she had met someone – Sirius cursed himself but in the daze of the fight he had completely forgotten her words. They may have been ambiguous, innocent even at the time, but now it simply made his stomach churn. “At the party, she told me she went off with someone when I didn’t show up,” he told them slowly, the severity of his words etched across his face. “At the time I thought it was strange, but with everything that happened.. She told me she went to Madam Puddifoots... with Amycus Carrows.” Sirius looked to each of them hopefully, for some kind of explanation, some clarity or burst of logic. But he knew there was nothing that could make this better. They were in the shit. He didn’t really know Amycus, he had only seen him and his twin occasionally at society events when he was younger, but he had heard things, rumours. He didn’t know enough to call him a blood elitist, but he felt pretty certain he wasn’t the Puddifoots type. There weren’t many men who were. “There is something seriously wrong with that. What do we do?” he asked them, they had to do something. “What can we do?” |
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Post by James Potter, Esq. on Oct 22, 2012 22:28:38 GMT -5
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Lily's words made James' temper flare. It was the way she phrased things, breathing life into his insight, showing him depths to those words he didn't want to know. He wanted to pretend Hogwarts was untouchable, a pristine beacon during these dark times. Sirius' words only made it worse. His words filled James with dread and an extra dose of righteous anger. This was Hogwarts, refuge for the downtrodden, home to all. Hogwarts was supposed to be free from this fucking war. Things like this weren't supposed to happen here. And certainly not under James Potters' watch, as Marauder, as Head Boy. His jaw clenched as he seethed over the thought, guilt pooling in his stomach. He should have known, should have caught on when that idiot in the mask whisked their companion away, should have done something...
James was so caught up in his temper, he very nearly missed out on what Sirius had to say about Evelina Gamp and Puddifoots. But the mention of Amycus Carrow brought James back to reality with a rather confusing jerk.
"Carrow?" He repeated skeptically, furrowing his brows. He knew of the Carrows no more than anyone else-- his mum had spoken poorly of them ("Bunch of blood manics, them") and he'd never tried to interact with the twins. But after seven years in the same castle, he had seen them enough to know that something was terribly off with them. They didn't seem to blink as much as other people. It was incredibly creepy.
"The big, creepy Slytherin bloke with the creepy sister, right?" He asked, looking between his mates. It felt natural to include Lily in that description, even though he desperately wanted her to look twice at him as an attractive bloke and not a piece of pond scum. She fit beautifully into their dynamic, patching up their heroic war wounds and helping them unravel the mystery. It was as if she had always been a part of them. It was peculiar.
"I don't exactly see Carrow as a Puddifoot's kind of guy," James remarked, agreeing with Sirius and not even trying to play Devil's Advocate for a good banter. It was rather unusual. He paused, considering his options. If Lily hadn't been here, he would have instantly suggested the Marauders Map, began plotting how to comb every inch of the castle for hide or hair of Miss Gamp before something awful happened. But Lily... well, he didn't exactly want her knowing about the map. Or worse, confiscating it. How else would he happen upon her accidentally and try, yet again, to win her heart with his charming charm? Hmm. Perhaps Lily didn't fit into their dynamic as beautifully as he had thought. He'd have to ponder this.
He looked meaningfully to Moony and Padfoot, as if trying to will them to read his mind. TheMapTheCloakTheMapTheCloakTheMap.
"We use the tools at our disposal," he spoke rather obliquely, focusing rather more on Moony. Moony was the bright one, after all. Themapthecloakthemapthecloak... "And try to find her."
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mood:determined
tag: THEMAPTHECLOAKTHEMAPTHECLOAK
credit:jacksome111@caution 2.0!
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Lily Evans
Gryffindor
Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't? Hurts, doesn't it?
Posts: 45
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Post by Lily Evans on Oct 23, 2012 13:39:39 GMT -5
Though words didn’t betray him, Lily could sense the flash of anger in James as she spoke. Perhaps it was because she often got the very same feeling when he said something she seriously disliked the sound of. That sudden rush of emotion that would in most people, James included, only be given away by the briefest darting of emotion through the eyes and expression of someone. Lily seemed to be the only person who had real difficulty in pushing that feeling down. In all fairness to herself, she knew the only time she got truly angry was when someone was being tormented with no good reason. It just happened that half the time, she was the one James was (in her own mind, at least) preying on relentlessly when she had done nothing to deserve it. Their argument in the Common Room only days before now served as solid proof of that. She could understand though. Hogwarts was the one place that was meant to be safe – even Severus had believed that long ago when they were both just children. If someone had broken that sacred belief, they would have hell to pay. She would make sure of it.
At the mention of Carrow, Lily looked distinctly confused. It was not an expression she usually wore, nor a feeling she usually experienced. Had it not been for the seriousness of the conversation, she had no doubt the boys in front of her would have had no hesitation in making a joke out of it. She hadn’t had many encounters with him or his sister, but she did feel inclined to agree with the ‘creepy’ nametag. There always seemed to be something off about the two of them, something not there behind the eyes, as if when speaking their minds were mulling over something entirely different. Something most people probably didn’t want to know about.
“No, me neither,” she found herself astonishingly agreeing with James not for the first time that evening. “I’ve only ever really dealt with him once, when I found Mulciber hanging some Hufflepuff Muggle borns onto the chandeliers in the Divination classroom. He seemed quite ready for a fight, but Carrow just stood there silent watching in the corner.”
The idea of him scurrying off with a pretty girl in tow didn’t fill Lily with confidence for her safety. She had no idea how skilled at magic Amycus Carrow was, but clearly they had a problem on their hands. There had been a fair amount of planning in this, and it seemed unlikely that it was just for a random victim. There was obviously something about Evelina had made her into a specific target. Had it been a Muggle born or half-blood student Lily would have been happy to assume that it was simply because of that fact. There was plenty of it going on outside Hogwarts now, more and more as the days and weeks carried on since the summer holidays. But for a pureblood student to target another of ‘their kind’?
As James mentioned finding a way to actively do something about the situation, Lily cast a disapproving glance his way, making sure to catch Sirius and Remus in it briefly too.
“You’re going nowhere in the state you’re in, Potter,” she said, slipping into Head Girl mode as his surname slipped easily from her lips now. “None of you are, unless is being escorted to the hospital wing. I’m not saying Remus hasn’t done a fair job, but you’ve both got serious hex and curse injuries. I mean, honestly Potter, you would barely be able to sit back without being in searing pain without that potion, which isn’t even a permanent measure. Do you honestly think you can go gallivanting around the castle like that?”
“Besides,” she added, this time softer, glancing around the room, “what are we supposed to do about telling Dumbledore? We can’t just carry on like he doesn’t need to know what’s going on in his own school. Surely if we can trust anyone, it’s him?”
[/b] 677 TAGGED:[/b] gung-ho marauders MUSE/NOTES:[/b] cause lily’s all sensible and stuffs QUOTE:[/b] Doctor Who; The Big Bang. CREDITS:[/b] TOMOLONIS of Caution 2.0! [/size]
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Post by Sirius Black on Oct 23, 2012 14:23:47 GMT -5
 “That’s him,” Sirius nodded, as James reiterated his feelings. They both, in fact, reaffirmed his doubts of the legitimacy of Carrow’s date and Sirius was almost disappointed. He kind of wished they would snub his idea, tell him he was talking nonsense and Amycus was in fact a regular to the twee coffee shop, frequenting with pretty Hufflepuff dates. But he knew how extremely suspicious that sounded, and their agreement simply confirmed the severity of their situation. James confirmed they needed to move, needed to prowl the school and find the girl. Sirius was very much inclined to agree. “Tools,” he agreed simply, tapping his inner pocket habitually to feel the presence of their beautiful work of art. The map may not show each and every student, but with a few tweaks it could certainly scan for suspects. Part of him felt profoundly guilty for what could potentially be occurring. He had stood her up, abandoned her in a fight and now Evans was suggesting they make no effort to physically find the girl. “I’m sorry, seriously? Evans,” Sirius started, taking a deep breath and sitting forward in his seat looking rather frustrated. “If you’re suggesting staying here is an acceptable alternative, I must beg you to reconsider.” He gave her his most sensible look, figuring if the head girl had never listened to him before maybe she would respond to that. The mention of Dumbledore simply steered them further away from action. “We could show up half intoxicated at the head master’s office and convince Dumbledore that, at our illegal start of term toga party, we were attacked by a masked mad man - who we have since come to the conclusion might be harming a Hufflepuff, possibly somewhere in the school, based on the evidence that he took her to Puddifoots and he looks a bit funny. Great idea.” Sirius took a deep breath, realising how utterly peculiar it was. Maybe they had leapt too far in their speculation. He knew in his heart something was off, but convincing any professor to take them seriously was a different story. Even if Dumbledore would have believed them, as he was surely their best bet, convincing anyone to see them at this time would be difficult. His guilt and the adrenaline which still coursed through him gave him his intense need to act, but Lily was right – the pair of them were in no state to threaten anyone. Still, he dreaded to think the consequences of doing nothing. Would she even let them leave? “Personally, I vote in the favour of admittedly reckless bravery.“ |
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Post by James Potter, Esq. on Oct 23, 2012 18:50:19 GMT -5
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It was amazing how quickly Lily could flip from co-conspirator to Head Girl. Honestly, he was impressed she hadn't gotten whiplash from that switch. He looked at her, rather pained that she was telling him to stay put. Hadn't they all just agreed that a girl was in danger? They had, hadn't they? He looked to Remus and Sirius, looking for support. Sirius at least backed him up, patting where the map must obviously rest. He could always count on him to be prepared, at least.
Sirius was doing a much better job of trying to convince Lily than James ever could. He considered taking notes, but the amused thought was chased out of his brain by the grim realisation that... well, Sirius was also right about how silly their idea sounded. Who in their right mind was going to believe their drunken explanation? Dumbledore wasn't in his right mind, but even he would doubt them. James deflated somewhat.
"Lily, if we're wrong, we waste a night wandering around like a pair of idiots and as that was the original plan for the evening, we are adequately prepared to do so," He stated, but the grin on his face was not particularly convincing. "But what if we're right?"
He couldn't bear the thought of having stayed put and someone getting hurt. He nodded with Sirius, pushing himself out of his chair. It took more effort than he cared to admit, and even through Lily's potion, he could feel his back sting as though burned. She was right, but as neither of them were prone to admitting fault, he said nothing about it.
"We're going." ❂ ❂ ❂ ❂ ❂
mood: just try and stop me
tag: Save the day!
credit:jacksome111@caution 2.0!
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Lily Evans
Gryffindor
Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't? Hurts, doesn't it?
Posts: 45
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Post by Lily Evans on Oct 24, 2012 12:45:36 GMT -5
Lily had never seen Sirius so serious. In fact, she couldn’t really recall a time when she had seen Sirius at all serious. If anything, it brought the weight of their situation more home to the redhead than anything else. These three boys, along with their companion, were usually the height of entertainment in the school. So little seemed to fluster them that she sometimes wondered if they were all on some kind of happy drug she was blissfully unaware of. To see them all so resigned, so downtrodden that an evening that was meant to be theirs to lay claim to could possibly be turning into one of the darkest moments in the school’s history, only served to make matters worse. If the Marauders had lost hope of there being any joy in this evening, what if any hope was there for her?
His running through of the scenario they had put together wasn’t easing her nerves either. With a sigh she dropped her face into her hands, taking a brief moment to think things through. It was like her brain was being frazzled just by being around them. She knew she ought to charm the door shut and forbid them from going anywhere but to Madame Pomfrey’s office. She knew she ought to be going straight to Dumbledore’s office and banging on the door until someone opened up and granted her entry. As Head Girl it was her responsibility to uphold the rules of Hogwarts and make sure things were done the correct way. But then...the small part at the back of her mind started to argue, the instinctive part that seemed to rush in and take over whenever James was around. It usually led to wands being drawn, but bizarrely it was making sense now. Lily had been at that party as a guest, not as Head Girl to crash it. She’d been equally as involved in breaking the same rules she coveted when she had hexed a fellow student, and could not even honestly claim it had been in self-defence.
“You’re right,” she admitted, muffled by her hands as she pulled them away, a slightly defeated look in her eyes. “And the three of you know how much is physically pains me to admit that.”
So, where did that leave her? She could follow her own rules, stay behind and seek out a professor herself. But what if that impeded the efforts already going on to figure out what was going on tonight? Lily didn’t think she could live with herself if her own behaviour led directly to someone getting seriously hurt. She had spent her entire school career standing up for people who were innocent targets (though usually from ridiculous pranks rather than being at the receiving end of someone’s wand). She could hardly let that all blow into the fire because she had a grudge against the very people who were volunteering themselves to help despite already having been injured. God damn it, a part of her actually admired it, even envied it. She hated that.
“Fine,” she conceded, rising to her feet herself. “But when you say ‘we’re going’, that’s me included.” They may not be happy about it, but it was all the allowance they were going to get. “Besides,” she added, a strange smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth, “James obviously needs someone to watch his back.”
A joke? At a time like this? And a distinctly Marauder-esque joke at that. As soon as this evening was done Lily was going straight out on hallway patrol and handing out detentions, just to cleanse that from her system.
[/b] 608 TAGGED:[/b] the rescue team MUSE/NOTES:[/b] boys are a bad influence on a young lady QUOTE:[/b] Doctor Who; The Big Bang. CREDITS:[/b] TOMOLONIS of Caution 2.0! [/size] |
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Post by Sirius Black on Oct 24, 2012 13:37:58 GMT -5
  Sirius didn't need much more in the way of encouragement. As James stood, so did he, and with equal difficulty. Remus was terrific in sealing up open wounds and broken bones, but some of his complaints were deep seated bruising and general stiffness. They made a right pair, beaten and injured, but what choice did they have with genuine fears for innocent people that evening. So when Lily changed her mind, in an utter u-turn, he was frankly quite relieved. They could use re-enforcements. It struck him as highly amusing (as inappropriate as it was at that moment) that Evans, a girl well known for a rather stubborn attitude, at least when it came to them, or rather James, had bended her opinion after Sirius’ own words. As down and beaten as he felt, Sirius couldn’t help but allow a familiar grin to cross his face. “Sorry Evans, the hexing knocked my hearing a bit... I’m what?” he asked, innocently. The words you’re right just sounded so beautiful coming from her. He shot James an amused look. All this time, maybe he just needed to sit down with Lily and explain the perks of Mr Potter. “Wise choice, anyway, let’s be off.” As friendly and helpful as Miss Evans had been that evening, he didn't fancy sharing said tools with her. He valued her opinions, trusted her morals but he wasn't so convinced with the rest. Yes, she had seemed to warm to them, but she also still dealt the odd nagging blow of her usual disapproving, authoritative Head Girl behaviour which would surely return at the sign of these rule breaking tools. Sirius had their map, he had Padfoot if necessary (who incidentally was a damn sight more subtle than Prongs) and James had his cloak... How on earth could they use any of them without sharing their most prized secrets. But then, now probably wasn’t the time to worry about that. “I think it’s most likely that if anything has happened, they’ll be on the same floor. We could cover more ground if we split up,” Sirius suggested, as they headed for the portrait. “Prongs and Evans, myself and Moony? Simply to spread the burden of injury, of course.” Again, Sirius was the picture of innocence. |
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