If anyone would have wished the weeks to be slower, to have been able to enjoy the blissful months of serenity that had settled over the castle, time seemed not to notice. Weeks flew by in a rush of Quidditch games, studying, and pop quizzes. The 7th years were forcefully reminded of 5th year, of which had been mostly a blur of O.W.L. practices.
Before any of them knew it, Easter break had come. A surprisingly large group of students had decided to go home and relax before the full onset of final exams. These past few years, more and more people were anxious to spend the maximum time with their families.
Lily and James were among them. On the last day, Lily had done a great deal of brooding. She knew it was stupid, that it was only a week away from him, but it made no difference. Her every waking moment (and dreaming, for that matter) had been with James for the last several months. Sure, sometimes her gang had paired up and gone out with the Marauders, but she had always had an opportunity to be with him. When they studied, Lily found how effortlessly the answers came to him, though they often got nothing done; they were too close, often giggling at cute things he said, to get any studying finished.
James found himself equally addicted to Lily’s presence. In all his years of once-fruitless pursuit, he had not actually spent time with Lily. Now, however, he got his wish. Together, they did just about anything. He never tired of her – and she was growing to be more at ease with Sirius and Peter, making his time ever more enjoyable. (Lupin and she had always gotten along well.)
At three o’clock on the Friday afternoon of break, James and Lily had to say goodbye. He was meeting his parents and Apparating from Hogsmeade, and then having Sirius come to the house later. She was taking the Hogwarts Express then rendezvousing with her parents at home. They stood together, hugging at the platform as the train whistled its final blast.
“I don’t want to leave,” Lily mumbled into his jacket, clutching him tightly.
“Buck up.” She laughed, and he tucked back her flaming hair as steam issued from the engine. “Never hesitate to come over. I’ll be there if anything happens,” said James.
“Bye James,” she whispered, letting go. She stepped back, looking at him.
“See you soon.”
She couldn’t help herself – she came back, gave him one last hug, and ran back onto the train. He waved, again trying to be reasonable, to tell himself how ridiculous they both were to act like this. Lily sat by the window in the train, trying not to look so miserable. The train began to pull out and James, for a second, thought of becoming a stag and racing alongside the steam engine, but he soon realized the insanity of it and continued to wave. One last blast came as the train left in a loud roar.
James stared, as the engine became a speck, then vanished around a mountain. The feeling inside him swelled, and he was worried. The feeling of foreboding had been haunting him since the previous night, and it was not easily shaken. Suddenly the feeling shot through him, stronger, almost painful. He wondered angrily if something was indeed wrong; he turned on the platform, almost expecting to see smoke rising from a shop. When no obvious calamity was visible, James told himself he was being a prat, and that he ought to find his parents before they worried.
“James, darling!” Helena was never one for keeping quiet, and she always liked to say what she thought. Her being loud in public was nothing unusual. They were standing outside Gladrags Wizardwear in Hogsmeade, while other harried wizards were bustling past into the shop for new robes and cloaks.
“Hi, Mum,” replied James. His elderly mother was a gentle woman, but he had long lost any great desire to spill his deepest thoughts before her.
“How are you sweetheart?” she cooed.
“Wonderful,” he lied. Then, as the nagging feeling tugged at him once more, he asked, “Has anything been going on today at the Ministry?”
“No,” answered Jack Potter, his tone slightly concerned. “Something the matter, James?”
“I… I guess not.” You’re just being jittery. She’ll be fine.
“So,” Helena interrupted, not taking notice of the tension, “how are you? Hungry? Tired? How is she?”
“Can we move out of here?” he asked, after being shoved a fourth time, by a witch carrying a large sharp box.
“Oh, of course, dear,” Helena said. They walked down the street, chatting a bit, until finally Jack interrupted his wife’s yammering about the state of James’ robes.
He asked discretely, “Did you give her the, er…”
“Yeah,” said James, remembering that he had not owled home to tell his parents the news. “She took it.” Jack smiled proudly at his son, patting him smartly on the back, as Helena squealed.
“That’s wonderful news! You could have invited her to stay!” she said excitedly. James was used the chatter.
“Lily went to spend time with her parents. I offered, though,” he added, reassuring his mother.
About two hours later, James had endured a very long stroll of Hogsmeade, a tedious conversation with his parents, and had managed not to forget any of his clothes at Hogwarts as he apparated home. At the house, James positively stuffed his mouth with as much of Helena’s familiar cooking as he could find. James and Sirius helped themselves to sixths. Sirius arrived at sunset, recounting his goodbye with Hannah, which had included very little talking. All were worn out early that evening, and James decided to retire to his room at eight o’clock.
Lily fiddled with the ring on her finger absent-mindedly. Outside, the bleary gray sky showed a calm before a coming storm, an eerie stillness that Lily felt only too well. Why, she wasn’t sure, but the feeling wouldn’t go away.
The train rattled along its tracks, lulling her into a nightmare.
She was walking around the stands at the Quidditch pitch. Gryffindor was apparently playing Slytherin, or so it seemed from the flashing colors of scarlet and green. As she caught sight of James zooming to and fro, a bludger flew out of nowhere and hit him powerfully in the head. Lily gasped, petrified, as he began to fall; he glided gradually to the ground as time slowed.
She ran to his lifeless body on the field, dropping to her knees and finding his motionless face cold and blank; a growing pool of cold liquid was matting his jet-black hair. Her heart erupted and she screamed for help, hysterical. People were leaving the pitch and walking past as though the saw neither Lily nor James’ body. She staggered to get to her feet, running between the marching figures, until she found Sirius; Lily shrieked and pulled at his clothes, begging for him to do something, anything, to help. Lily might as well have been a gust of wind. Desperate, she sprinted back to James’ body. He wore now the same outfit Lily had last seen him wearing at the platform. In his hands, James held the note he had given her from first year. Sobbing, Lily pried it from his limp fingers and lay her head on his chest.
“No,” she whispered, closing her eyes, stroking his hair. Her chest felt tight, and she wanted to –
She woke suddenly, his name on her lips. Breathing deeply, Lily tried to forget what she had seen. It didn’t happen quickly. When she did finally control herself, she lay back down, thankful to be alone in the compartment.
It wasn’t real, she told herself. Go back to sleep. It wasn’t real.
This time her dreams were dull, leaving alone her already shaken mind.
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As a foreword for the next chapter, do know that it is ever so slightly AU. Not, I hope, from a character standpoint, but plot wise. This won't affect you unless you are a major purist. If you do not notice, then YAY! If you do, please forgive my liberty with this element of the story; however, I didn’t think it contradicts anything in the Potter universe, and so I have done so with the hope that my lovely readers won’t mind. But, funnily enough, you’ll have to wait for the next chapter to understand any of this. Hehe.