“Potter! Evans! Pay attention or you’ll go to the Hospital Wing without any arms!”
“I wonder what that feels like…” James said, quietly under his breath. Lily hiccupped.
“Now, you must know that a griffin is very powerful! Even with the collar, it might do some very unexpected things. Please have your wands out.”
Butterflies in Lily’s stomach started fluttering about. She had thought she was safe. She had believed that there was a hundred percent chance of her being all right.
She was wrong.
There was a fifty-fifty chance that she would not be all right.
“Now, the spells you must keep in mind are ‘stupefy’ and any other pausing or freezing spells.”
Sirius was pressed up against the bars shouting, “It’s O.K., James! If you die, I won’t let Snape have your stuff!”
“He’s not exactly the most comforting guy, is he?” Lily asked James, after she looked away from Sirius. She pulled out her wand and folded her arms to keep herself from falling apart.
~
“No… Remus is most helpful during these situations, but he’s with Julianne.” James twirled his wand and searched for Remus in the crowd.
“And to think I’m stuck here with you…”
James lost interest in his procure for Remus. “Oh, come on. I’m not that big of a loser, am I?
“You think of yourself too often as a winner.”
“Oh… and it took you six years to say those words of advice?”
“They just popped into my head now.”
“But I’m still a bullying toerag, right?”
“You always will be, James,” Lily sighed, “You always will be.”
“O.K. I’m releasing the griffin now! Be cautious, because this is for a grade!” Professor Kettleburn flicked his scratched wand in the air, and the cage fell apart.
The griffin shrieked and stretched. Then, its eyes rested on James and Lily. It squawked and began prowling in their direction.
“Wands at the ready,” Professor Kettleburn ordered. James pointed his wand at the griffin’s forehead. But, without warning, the griffin leaped in the air and jumped on James, pinning him into the ground with its giant talons.
James’ wand went flying out of his hand and under the griffin’s foot.
Lily screamed, but tried to push the griffin off him. The griffin lifted its hind leg and kicked Lily in her stomach. Lily’s knees buckled and she looked as if she were going to throw up.
James used his free arms to try and push the griffin off him. An electric spark shot out of the griffin’s collar, and the griffin cried in pain. It jumped off James, leaving a soon-to-show bruise on James’ other shoulder. It reared and tried to rip the collar off.
James knelt over Lily and asked, “Are you alright?” She flicked his hand off her shoulder and answered, “I’m fine. I don’t know why you’re the one asking.”
“Oh my god, look out!” cried a hysterical Hufflepuff girl. She and her frightened friends started screaming their heads off and waving their arms in the air.
Both Lily and James looked just in time to disconnect. The rampaging griffin stumbled past them and rammed headfirst into the bars. It screeched and started hurtling towards Lily.
James grabbed hold of the animal’s tail and it dragged him across the straw. Even with the extra weight, the griffin continued charging towards Lily.
Professor Kettleburn leaped into the arena and sprung a spell at the griffin. The griffin leapt to the side and the spell hit James’s hand, paralyzing it.
The griffin reared and it’s claws backed dangerously close to James’s face.
~
Lily pulled out her wand and reins flew out and harnessed itself on the griffin. It screeched and bolted for Lily.
No spells were wandering in her mind in her state of panic, and Professor Kettleburn was too far away to help. She backed away.
Her ears overheard James growling, “Oh no you don’t, you greedy animal. I saw her first!” Then, James jumped onto the griffin’s back and grabbed the reins. He swerved the griffin in to Lily’s right. He grabbed her hand and pulled her up behind him. The charging animal cawed angrily and ran at Professor Kettleburn. He squeaked and jumped back through the wired fence door and into the crowd.
Lily held in tight to James because it was the only thing secure, but he was about to fall off the griffin himself.
The griffin spread his wings and bucked with such force that the riders were thrown to opposite sides of the room.
Lily groaned as she slammed into a wall, practically headfirst.
Pardon my rowdy behavior, came a deep voice. Lily tried to open her eyes, but her head hurt too much.
Who’s there? she replied.
We are not too different, you and I.
Who are you?
Isn’t it obvious? We both wish to be free, but in different ways. You secretly wish for no worries. I wish to be free to fly amongst the ones who I was kidnapped from.
Lily grabbed the wall for support. The griffin’s voice was inside her head!
Ah yes, I am the griffin. But it does, and should, not matter. We both have courage that we demonstrated today, as well as you brave, little male-friend over there. I heard his name was James. Am I correct?
Yes.
Continuing, on your bravery, I sense that there is something deadly and deep troubling you.
Well, I-
I do not I have time to listen to long-winded explanations, Miss Evans. You are a Gryffindor! Courage, bravery! Fight for those you hold dear! Do not beg the snakes for mercy. Lions are too noble for kneel to slithering creatures. Do you hear me?
Yes.
Do you understand me?
Yes.
Will you follow your heart or listen to me?
She paused, trying to conjure an intelligent answer. Does it make a difference? We are not so different, you and I. Aren’t we?
Though she could not see it, she was aware of the griffin’s smile.
Just a note, Lily… You’ve been giving second chances to the wrong people.
~
James was thrown across the room and his side made fierce contact with the wired fence.
He felt hands pull at him and making sure he was all right.
“James! Say something!”
“You ‘kay, Potter?”
“Oh my god, it’s looking at him!”
A soothe, low voice weaved into his head. He made fragile attempts to push the strange intruder back, but it came repelling back with even more force.
Dizzy and confused, James cautiously let the voice in.
Hello, Mr. Potter.
Who the hell is this?
Please excuse me, for I believe I chucked you and Miss Lily off my back too suddenly.
Oh my god! Get out of my head!
Do not feel alarmed! I am on the other side of the room, if that make you feel any better.
If you rest one hair on Lily, I’ll pull your stupid lion tail so hard, your ancestors will feel it!
The voice chuckled delightfully.
No offense taken, youngling. All my hatchlings were like you. Strong, brave, and willing to prove themselves to anyone. Often they were too daring and courageous.
Are you trying to insinuate me something here?
Perhaps you too are trying too hard to get what you want.
Er… and what do I want? I’m happy the way I am.
The mental figure of him crossed his arms crossly. The griffin smiled.
Isn’t it obvious? Show your true colors and you will get you target.
I show all my colors, whatever that means. Lily called me a peacock once in my 4th year. And what target?
Yes. You’re goal. And a wonderful goal it is. Perhaps that has been the one, true mature characteristics that has shone through you all these years. Perhaps it is proof that there is a man in you.
What do you mean my “goal”? I want to be an Auror so… HEY! I AM A MAN!
James, listen to me: This is you last year!
… Yes… I know that… But my last year for what?
The griffin sighed. That trail of thought will get you nowhere. You’re not being straightforward with me. Be completely straightforward with her.
James was about to demand that the griffin stay out of his personal thoughts when Professor Kettleburn entered the area. With one swift brandish of his wand, the griffin disappeared and a screech was heard in another room.
Sirius was the first one to bend over James. Before long, half the class surrounded James, boys and girls.
“That was awesome, man!” a hufflepuff boy said.
“Oh my god, James,” another hufflepuff girl squealed, “that was so brave!” The girls started tugging on his shirt, unnecessarily.
“You have to go to the hospital wing!”
“Oh! I’ll take him there!”
“No! I will!”
“Ha! You wish!”
James shook the hands off him. Sirius made a wall between the girls and James. “Ladies, ladies, break it up!” He was using his oh-dear-I-seem-to-be-capturing-more-hearts-by-the-second voice on the girls. “Poor Jamesies is currently not up for grabs. He needs some recovery time.”
The girls sighed and groaned. “But, I haven’t yet got a date for the next Honeydukes visit.” The girls perked up their heads, curiously.
“Turns out Miss Vera Elizabeth Claythorne and I weren’t meant to be,” Sirius sighed. He bowed his head in sarcastic sorrow. There was a dramatic silence of shock for the girls.
Then they all started jabbering to Sirius all at once. James rolled his eyes. They were so gullible.
He had never heard of a girl named Vera Elizabeth Claythorne in Hogwarts before, but he was quite sure Sirius got that name from a murder novel* Remus kept on talking about.
“I will announce my decision at the beginning of dinner tonight. You have an entire day to get my attention!”
~
Julianne and Alice held Lily’s arms while Lily tried to support herself.
“Bloody hell, that was horrible!” Lily gasped when she had managed her footing.
“I know! It was totally out of order for Professor Kettleburn to bring that creature in on the first weeks of school!” Amy crossed her arms and shook her head, agreeing with her own statement.
“But those talons were wicked cool!” Frank Longbottom exclaimed. “Did you see the way they lashed out? Wow, Lils, I’m surprised your not sent to the hospital in a teacup.”
“Don’t call me Lils.”
“You need to be sent to the Hospital Wing, man,” Julianne laughed. She punched Frank arm playfully.
“I will if you keep on punching me like that!”
“But it’s fun! Especially when you squeal! Ha, that’s funny.” Julianne jabbed her finger into Frank’s back. Frank gave a fake groan and fell to the ground, writhing in obviously pretend pain.
“Come on, help me, Alice!”
Alice blushed and shook her head imploringly. “Oh, no. I’d rather not. He might get hurt.” Her head was a light pink and was turning pinker as she was blushing and trying to suppress it all at once.
Julianne sighed. “Fine… Then you’d better not loose next week’s match against Ravenclaw. We need to eat Diggory’s head to a pulp.”
Amy stopped twirling her hair, as if realizing something. “Oh, did you hear? He’s dating Teresa McGarland now.”
“Glad to get him off my back,” Lily replied.
The corner of Amy’s mouth twitched.
“Oh, you like him, do you?” Maya asked, raised eyebrows.
“Who, Amos? No.”
“Diggory sucks,” Frank said in a dangerously low voice, as if he was an evil lord. The group cracked up.
The bell rang and Professor Kettleburn shouted as the class departed, “Fifty points to Gryffindor!”
A/N: Begging your pardon. I wish to be excused. My computer is very old and the Internet hasn’t been functioning properly.
*If you can tell what mystery novel I’m describing, I’ll mention your name in the preview of the next chapter.
EDIT: AHA! I found the problem with the italicizes! It look me two weeks to find out where the missing / was... but I got it!!!