Chapter 3 – In Which the Marauders Spring a Trap, and Lily Becomes Ensnared
Contentedly ensconced in her favourite fire-side armchair, Lily rolled her eyes as she watched James Potter enthral his pandering crowd. His antics wouldn’t be amiss in a Muggle amateur dramatics society, from the rate he was carrying on. He’d be a director’s gem; with a bit of scrubbing up he could be making inspirational speeches to the masses in no time.
She sighed as she watched her peers, as predicted, fall under his spell. They were hanging off his every word as he described tales of bravery and cunning and heroicism worthy of a warrior leaving for war, rather than a schoolboy with a blindfold. She snorted angrily, imagining all that bravado deflate immediately if he were ever faced with the dangers of actual battle.
Forcing her mind to more humorous matters, Lily smiled as she imagined the conclusion of this bet. It would be James Potter’s worst nightmare to admit his failings to the peers that admired him so. Maybe then, when they realised their wonder-boy wasn’t everything he cracked himself up to be, they’d see through his propaganda to the arrogant bully underneath.
She dearly hoped so. She couldn’t take much more of his attitude – and he’d be absolutely insufferable if he won this. She steadfastly refused to think about the other consequence.
Well, there wasn’t long to go now; the bet would begin in half an hour, as the clock struck nine o’clock, and would end precisely twenty-four hours later. Thinking back over the evening before, Lily still wasn’t sure how things had spun so wildly beyond her control. How, in Merlin’s name, she had managed to end up in direct competition against a boy she’d strived to be the antithesis of since their arrival at Hogwarts? It was ludicrous!
Shaking her head at her own behaviour, Lily chanced a look upwards just in time to see Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew all making their way towards her. She immediately narrowed her eyes suspiciously at them; this was bound to mean trouble.
“Lily!” Remus greeted her in a voice full of false cheer, as he seating himself on the arm of her chair. The others strategically positioned themselves around her so that she had no immediate avenue of escape. “How are you this morning? Nervous? Excited? Scared, even?”
“Feeling like I’m under interview for the Daily Prophet,” she retorted, causing Remus to grin and drop the act. “Shouldn’t you three be getting ready to wave Potter off - giving dramatic speeches and playing up the crowd?”
Peter shrugged, and looked over his shoulder. “He seems to be managing to do that just fine by himself.”
Lily leaned back in her chair and surveyed them suspiciously. “What do you three want with me, then?”
“Want?” asked Sirius, looking shocked. “Now what could possibly make you think we wanted something from you?”
Lily raised a droll eyebrow. “Apart from the fact that you’re James Potter’s three best friends, and are all wearing identical, and not remotely convincing, expressions of innocence?”
Sirius shrugged. “Yeah, apart from that.”
“I’m stabbing my wand in the dark, then, and surmising that you do.”
He winked at her. “Knew you were top of the class for a reason, Evans.”
Lily rolled her eyes. “Spit it out, Sirius. What do you want?”
“It’s not so much that we want something,” he began airily, “we just thought we’d come over and give you some friendly advice – point a couple of things out, you know.”
“Gryffindor to Gryffindor,” Remus added.
“Such as?”
“Well, you know, Lily,” said Sirius, suddenly very solemn, “James is going to be roaming the whole of Hogwarts by himself…”
“Defenceless,” uttered Remus, shaking his head sadly.
“Vulnerable,” chimed in Peter.
When all three boys looked at each other with similar expressions of gloom, Lily began to sense two things. Firstly, that this was a very finely tuned routine… and secondly, that something very, very bad was about to happen.
“Who knows what dangers he might stumble across, what accidents might happen…” Sirius continued, trailing off warningly at the end.
Remus nodded. “It would only be right to have someone there with him to make sure he doesn’t actually get hurt...”
“It’s all very well taking a chunk out of his pride,” Peter added sagely, “ but how would you feel if something took a chunk out of him, Lily? It would be your fault, after all…”
Lily looked affronted. “It would not be my fault! He’s the one stupid enough to make such a boast in the first place. I mean, really, who brags about the fact they can navigate Hogwarts blindfolded?”
“Ah, yes,” smiled Sirius, putting an arm conspiratorially around her shoulders. She shrugged it off irritably. “Well, we all know what James is like – tongue as big as his wand, if you know what I mean,” he leered.
Lily looked outraged, but Remus interrupted before she could utter a rebuke. “The fact of the matter is that James never falls short of a boast if he’s tested on it, Lily. He’ll make sure he goes to all the darkest, all the scariest, all the most dangerous places Hogwarts offers, completely blind, just to say he’s done it.” His features became stern. “As a fellow Prefect, can you really allow a student to do that unsupervised?”
Lily’s face shifted from cornered to horrified to furious in very quick succession. “You’re all his friends!” she hissed at them.
“And of course we’d look after him if we could,” Sirius quickly assured her, “but as it happens I’ve got detention with McGonagall,” he finished, shaking his head sadly.
“And I’m tutoring some of the first years,” added Remus, in a saintly tone that Lily didn’t believe for an instant. “Otherwise, of course, I’d be there and we’d never even suggest it to you-”
“Oh, very convenient,” she scoffed, turning to Peter and narrowing her eyes. “And what about you?”
He smiled innocently up at her. “Make-up lesson in Arithmancy – apparently I’m failing so badly they want to give me extra lessons,” he laughed. “So sorry I can’t help out, Lily.”
“I bet you are!” she sighed, heavily. “Well, just go and ask one of his many admirers – I’m sure they’d all jump at the chance. In fact, they’d probably swamp the Hospital Wing as they fought each other for the privilege.”
Peter smirked at her. “But you issued the challenge…”
Lily looked nonplussed, prompting Sirius to pat her hand condescendingly. “Wizard Law states that anyone issuing such a challenge is thereafter honour bound to see through all aspects of said trial, including any maintenance or supervision that must be undertaken.”
She glared, and poked him hard in the chest. “That’s a load of codswallop, Sirius Black! You’ve invented that for the sole purpose of putting me on babysitting duty!”
“Prove me wrong,” he challenged.
Lily glared at all three of them. “I am not traipsing around this castle for a whole day with James Potter!”
Peter sighed, and looked tragically at his two friends. “Ah, well, I suppose we’ll just have to pray he’ll survive then.”
Sirius sniffed, and wiped his eyes. “Such a good friend! So loyal, constantly had my back, always there when I needed him... to think that he’ll be blind, lost and confused, and that there’ll be no-one who cares enough to look out for him in his hour of need!”
“He’ll be okay, Padfoot,” Remus said, gripping his friend’s shoulder tightly. “We have to stay strong, now.”
Lily rolled her eyes.
“And if he’s not, well, there’s always Madam Pomfrey...”
“Yeah,” echoed Peter, nervously. “She’s a trained Mediwitch; I’m sure she’ll be able to… to… to put him back together again when something goes wrong...”
Sirius nodded. “Come on, guys; we’d better say our goodbyes, just in case the worst happens.”
Lily dropped her head into her hands. This could not possibly get any worse.
“Fine!” she growled out in frustration. “I’ll do it.”
She was not in the least amused to see all three exchange identical grins of triumph.