The buzz of excitement and anticipation that had preceded the Hogsmeade outing had settled into a tone of calm content by the next morning. It was the last day before many of the students were to head home for the holiday break, and a Christmas feast was planned for that night. Though the air was still brisk, the sun had made a welcome appearance and many were taking advantage of this to spend the afternoon out on the grounds. Unburdened by homework or studies, the students of Hogwarts were enjoying a lazy Sunday.
Lily and Mary were returning from socializing outside the castle. They raced each other up the steps to the warmth of the Entrance Hall where they paused to catch their breath, panting and laughing at the same time.
–Severus!†Lily spotted her dark-haired friend across the hall, heading down to the dungeons. He was accompanied by Avery and Mulciber as usual, along with a few other Slytherin seventh years. Severus turned to greet her, with a glance at the group of boys that paused to wait for him.
–Sev, I got you some of those new quills you needed.†Lily rifled through her bag, pulling out some quills and handing them to Severus. –Early Christmas present,†she said with a grin.
–Maybe I should get a Mudblood to do my shopping for me, too,†Avery said to the boys next to him, speaking in a low, carrying voice that was meant for all to hear. Mary let out an audible gasp, but Lily did no more than throw the dreadful Slytherin a dark look.
–Mary and I going to go visit in the kitchens, want to come?†Lily offered. Her invitation was pointed; she did not approve of Severus’ company, and she was offering him a way out.
Severus paused. Truthfully, he did want to accompany them. But the judgemental Slytherins standing behind him made it difficult for Severus to accept Lily’s offer. He knew that if he started choosing to spend time with a Gryffindor Muggle-born over them, he would be instantly demoted from his position of power in the group to a potential victim.
–I can’t, sorry, I’m busy,†Severus mumbled, avoiding Lily’s gaze. He could vividly picture her pursed lips and disapproving glance toward the other Slytherins.
–All right. I’ll see you at the feast, maybe.†The initial friendliness of Lily’s tone had hardened into brief civility. She turned and walked towards Mary, leaving Severus with his friends. Severus watched as she walked away before reluctantly turning to leave with the rest of the Slytherins.
Lily and Mary walked down to the kitchens in silence. Lily was lost in her own thoughts, thinking about the way Severus had been acting lately. Their friendship which had started out so effortless, so comfortable, had started to feel strained. Severus was the person who knew Lily the best; they had been close friends since their first year at Hogwarts. For so long, Severus was the only person who Lily could really talk to, and she always confided in him. The distance that had begun to grow between them ever since Severus had gotten involved with Avery made Lily uneasy; she hoped it was just a phase, a bump in the road.
–Just forget about him, Lily.†Mary’s quiet voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. Lily looked up at her in surprise. –Can’t you just forget about Severus?†Mary repeated, her tone almost pleading.
Lily did not reply. She knew she could not easily erase Severus, who she had grown up with, from her life.
–I’m serious, Lily,†Mary said darkly. –I know you and Severus have been friends forever, and I know I shouldn’t be telling you who to be friends with. But I just... I just don’t think he deserves you as his friend.†Her voice was hesitant as she finished, and she watched Lily for her reaction.
For a few moments, Lily did not react. Mary was not one to force her opinions on others, and she hardly ever made a comment about Lily’s choice of companionship. Mary was quiet, she usually kept her thoughts to herself unless prompted to do otherwise. Lily knew that Mary was not fond of Severus, no matter how pleasant she seemed in his company. However, Lily felt she owed it to Severus to give him a chance to redeem himself. It was not really fair to shun someone after one or two mistakes, was it? On the other hand, she did not like the person who Severus became when he was with his Slytherin friends.
Lily groaned. –Why can’t people just choose one personality, and stick with it? Why do they have to keep switching all the time? It’s exhausting.â€
Mary smiled sadly. –Some people are just easily influenced.â€
–Well, that’s stupid.â€
At six o’clock in the evening, the activity about the Hogwarts castle had dwindled greatly. The majority of the girls had whisked themselves away to their respective dormitories to prepare themselves for the Christmas feast. Dumbledore had suggested that the event was made a formal one, and all of the students were wearing their dress robes. Many of the male students, seeing no need to allot more than ten minutes to get ready for dinner, were lounging about in the Common Rooms, the four Marauders included.
Sirius was laying on his side by the fireplace, pointing his wand surreptitiously at an unaware Peter. Peter was sitting at a desk, muttering himself as he did his homework, occasionally asking Remus to help him. For some reason Peter did not understand, his quill kept flying out of his hand.
–So, Prongs, did you and Evans kiss and make up?†Sirius said calmly, striking up a conversation with James to cover his amusement at Peter’s growing frustration.
James sighed. –Operation get-Lily-to-fall-desperately-in-love-with-me is not going as well as I’d hoped, actually.â€
–What’s the next plan of attack?†Sirius inquired.
James just shrugged dejectedly as he watched as Peter struggled with his quill.
–Maybe it’s time to abort,†Sirius suggested, grinning. –We can find you a less stubborn target.â€
–The Ministry Decree was in 1631, not 1613,†Remus murmured to Peter, keeping a straight face all the while.
–What the bloody hell!†Peter shrieked, throwing his quill on the floor forcefully. His bewilderment only grew as his three friends responded with an outbreak of roaring laughter.
–Come on, let’s go pretty ourselves,†Sirius said as Peter sat down sheepishly.
–Right behind you, Padfoot.†James and Sirius led the way to the boys’ dormitories, Remus and Peter following behind them.
The four boys changed into their dress robes, all wearing different colors as had been previously decided. James was sporting a smart black ensemble, Sirius in dark purple, Remus wearing navy blue, and Peter in olive green. With a final ruffle of the hair and fixing of the collar, they deemed themselves ready and returned down to the Common Room.
–Do you think everyone else is down now? It’s almost six thirty,†James wondered, checking his watch.
–The girls are probably still fixing their hair,†Sirius commented with a roll of his eyes.
James grinned. –Yeah. Well, let’s head-â€
James looked up, and promptly forgot to finish his sentence.
Although James never failed to appreciate how attractive Lily was, he could still feel his jaw drop slightly. She was wearing lavender dress robes which accentuated the creamy color of her skin and set off a beautiful contrast to her dark red hair. Her hair was pulled back from her face in a braid that began at the top of her head and extended past her shoulders. With her hair pulled back, her bright, emerald green eyes were displayed clearly, and James was ready to swear that they were the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen.
–Looking good, girls,†Sirius greeted the two girls, flashing them a handsome grin. –Hey look, Remus, you and Mary match!†Sirius gestured towards the light blue dress robes Mary was wearing as she blushed a light pink. Remus gave her a warm smile, and offered her his arm.
–Shall we?†Remus suggested, and the group made their way towards the portrait hole.
–New target, remember?†Sirius muttered to James, who was still rendered speechless. James said nothing but followed them out of the portrait hole.
When they reached the Great Hall, a festive sight met their eyes. The Hall was elaborately decorated, featuring ornate Chistmas trees, silver tinsel, and a clear, starry sky for the ceiling. Peeves could be seen hanging mistletoe, humming tunelessly to himself. The four house tables had disappeared, and were replaced instead by many smaller, circular tables seating eight or ten people dispersed throughout the Hall. Each table had trays of food in the center, which magically switched to display various dishes every few minutes.
–They really outdid themselves, didn’t they?†Mary remarked, impressed, as she took a seat next to Remus at one of the tables. Lily sat on her other side, and Sirius quickly took the seat next to her before James could. James raised an eyebrow, but Sirius just gave him a pointed look and a head tilt toward a table of seventh year girls seated near them. James just rolled his eyes and sat across from them next to Peter.
–Welcome, students and professors!†Dumbledore’s voice boomed through the Great Hall, which was nearly full. He beamed at them from the teachers’ table, which had also been substituted by a large circular one. –We are celebrating the culmination of a great term and the commencement of an even better one. Let us enjoy our time together before we part ways for the holiday season. And now, tuck in!â€
Not needing a second invitation, the students gladly piled food on their plates.
–Not to downplay your mum’s cooking, James, but I’ll definitely miss eating like this over the holidays,†Sirius said between mouthfuls.
James grinned. –My mum is not exactly known for her cooking,†he agreed.
Lily felt something collide with her shin under the table. –Ow!†she exclaimed involuntarily.The occupants of the table all looked at her expectantly. –Oh, uh, I bit my tongue. Whoops.â€
After everyone returned to their dinners, Lily looked at Mary accusingly. –That hurt,†she whispered.
–By the door,†Mary’s responded under her breath. Lily looked up, and saw Severus standing next to the door, trying to get her attention without being obvious. When their eyes met, he jerked his head outside towards the Entrance Hall and then disappeared through the door.
Lily gave an exasperated sigh. –If you’ll excuse me, I need to use the restroom,†she said, getting up to leave the table. Lily walked out the Great Hall to where Severus was waiting on the outskirts of the Entrance Hall.
–What is it?†Lily asked when she reached him.
–I, er, I just wanted to talk to you,†Severus responded anxiously. He was wearing a set of dark green robes that looked as though they had been worn many times before.
Lily said nothing but raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to continue.
–You seemed mad this morning,†Severus went on hesitantly, –and I just wanted to apologize.â€
Lily pursed her lips. –You know, Sev, part of being sorry is resolving to never do it again.â€
Severus dropped his gaze. –I didn’t mean...â€
–Severus, I’m your friend. You’re supposed to stand up for me, like I always do for you. Whenever you’re with your Slytherin... –friends,†you act like you’re ashamed of me.â€
Severus bit his lip but did not respond.
–Is that it?†Lily asked after a moment, her voice lowering. –Are you ashamed of me because I’m a Mudblood?â€
Severus looked up quickly. –Don’t say that, Lily, you’re not-â€
–Why shouldn’t I?†Lily asked coolly. –You did. Remember?â€
–I know, and I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it-â€
–Every time your friends call me a Mudblood and you just sit there and let them, you’re agreeing with them.â€
–I’ll ask them to stop, Lily, I will!†Severus’ look was pleading. –Please don’t be mad.â€
Lily paused. –Severus...â€
–I’m sorry, Lily, I really am.â€
Lily sighed. –All right, I forgive you.â€
Severus looked elated. –Thank you, Lily.â€
Lily smiled, though it did not reach her eyes. –Go back to the feast, Sev, I’ll see you next term.†The two embraced briefly before Severus turned and headed out to the Great Hall.
Lily remained behind, sitting on the bottom step of one of the staircases, a small groan eliciting from her lips. She did want to forgive Severus, but she felt little relief now that she had. All she wanted was for everything to go back to the way it used to be. However, she did not know if it could.
–Lily?â€
Lily looked up in surprise to see James standing near the door. She gave no response, but let her head slip back into her hands. She heard James’ footsteps as he crossed the Hall to sit beside her.
–Rough time in the potty?†James’ voice was so sincere that Lily could not help but laugh out loud.
–Oh, shut up,†she said, but she was smiling despite herself.
–See, I am funny,†James said triumphantly.
–You have your moments... very occasionally.â€
–What a compliment.â€
Lily grinned. –Well, coming from me...â€
James chuckled. –Coming from you, that’s like saying ‘I love you’.â€
Lily’s laughter melted away into a brief silence. Neither spoke; after a moment, Lily rose.
–Well, we should probably head back.†Her eyes met James’, and their gaze held for just a moment before she turned and started walking towards the door to the Great Hall.
–Lily?â€
She turned to see that James was standing, but he had not followed her towards the door. He hesitated before speaking.
–You look beautiful,†he murmured quietly. Then he walked past her and through the door before Lily could react.
The Untold Story by StarkidSkyler
Chapter Notes: Sorry guys! It's been a while. I hope you forgive me for being M.I.A. and enjoy this chapter!