Part Two
They stepped into a large room: at least, it felt large because James couldn't see the ceiling. He guessed it was probably enchanted, like the ceiling in the Great Hall, but he still gazed upward in wonder before glancing around the rest of the room.
He couldn't see much else, however, for directly before them stood a wall that rose to three times his height and stretched sideways into darkness. There was a large opening right before them that appeared to branch off to the right and the left. Puzzled, James glanced at Lily, but she seemed to get it.
"It's a maze," she murmured, and with a start he realized she was right. They had somehow stumbled upon a maze in the heart of Hogwarts. He could imagine the walls before him spreading out into the room, twisting and turning, and felt a prickle of excitement: this was something new, something exciting. Something he and the others had never discovered--something he could do, rather than continuously working on spells he couldn't cast.
"Want to try it?" he asked, speaking softly in fear of disturbing…what, he did not know. But the strange room felt so vast he did not wish to hear his own voice echo back at him and confirm it. To his disappointment, Lily shook her head.
"I do, but it's so late, James. We should go. We can come back tomorrow night, if you want."
"It might not be here tomorrow night," James pointed out, knowing it was true. He had been at Hogwarts for seven years and not once come across a magical room with a wooden maze; he highly doubted it would be there the next day and did not want to miss the chance to explore it.
"Of course it will," Lily said. "Rooms don't just disappear."
"Why not? It's a magical castle. Have you ever heard of the Come-and-Go room?" She shook her head. "It's a room that comes and goes, just like it's name. Maybe this is it."
"Maybe," she replied, sounding skeptical. "But where does it go when it's not here?"
"I have no idea," he said. "But I've been all over this castle and have never seen this room, not here, not anywhere. I think we need to take the opportunity and explore a bit. Who knows, maybe there's a reason we found it tonight."
"I really doubt it," she said, stifling a yawn, and James could see she really was tired. He, on the other hand, felt energized: he might just stay and wander around on his own if she left. He started thinking about what spells he would need to navigate the maze, particularly a magical maze. If it was anything like the stories he had heard growing up, there would be trials to face…
"Let's go," Lily was saying, and she turned back toward the exit. "We can try again tomor--" She stopped abruptly, and James whirled to see what had happened.
The doors had shut behind them, and in fine, glowing script a message had appeared in the wood:
Whomever dares to enter here
Will many lessons learn,
Both spiritual and magical.
Step forth, bold Heads, and raise your wands,
For it is now your turn.
"Oh my." Lily stared at the door with her mouth hanging open. James felt an almost otherworldly shiver across his neck; it was as if the message were meant just for them, and for some reason, that made him more apprehensive about entering the maze.
"I'm sure we can still leave if we want to," he said, noting the look on Lily's face. Yet even as he said it, she turned to him and raised an eyebrow.
"But it appears we're not supposed to," she said. "Maybe you were right, and there is a reason we found this room tonight."
"Oh, I doubt it," he said. "I was just saying that so you'd try it with me."
"Change your mind, then?" she asked, cocking her head with a small yet challenging smile. He narrowed his eyes at her and grinned.
"Not a chance. Let's go."
They stepped up to the entrance of the maze and faced their first decision: whether to turn right or left. Both ways looked exactly the same: a long corridor with a stone floor, wooden walls branching off into darkness and who knew what twists and turns. James took out his wand.
"Right," he said.
"Left," said Lily.
They laughed, and James turned to the left, leading the way. Lily inclined her head in thanks as she lit her wand and they set off into the darkness, following the maze as it wove its way back and forth. Occasionally they would hit a dead end and turn back, trying to work their way through the complicated pathways, only to find they had changed.
"So what do you think this really is?" James asked quietly as they walked. "Who put it here and why hasn't anyone ever heard of it?"
"Maybe it's some sort of test," Lily replied. "That everyone keeps secret once they've taken it."
James snorted. "Or maybe we won't remember any of it when we're done."
"No, the message on the door said we'd learn lessons both spiritual and magical, so I think we'll remember." She was silent for a moment. "Maybe it just doesn't appear that often."
"I wonder why it appeared now?" he asked.
"You were talking about mazes," Lily pointed out. He stopped and gave her a surprised look.
"That's right, I was. So maybe this is the Come and Go Room. It's said to turn into whatever you want it to be."
"I doubt it," Lily said, sounding skeptical. "This seems more purposeful, somehow. Like it's always here, but doesn't appear until the right person shows up at the right time."
"And apparently we're the right people," James replied. "I wonder why."
A low growl stopped him in his tracks, and Lily bumped into him from behind before she could answer. "What was that?" she whispered. They heard it again, and James felt gooseflesh break out on his arms.
"It's a werewolf," he said, his voice grim.
"What?" she asked. "How do you know that? And what would a werewolf be doing in the castle?"
"I have no idea, especially since it's not the full moon," James said, moving forward carefully. "But I'd recognize the sound of one anywhere."
"Why, are you a werewolf?" she asked, her wand out before her. "Is that where you disappear each month?" She turned and stared at him as she said it. "Good Godric, are you?"
He shook his head and continued slowly as another howl ripped the air. "No, of course not. Don't worry."
"I'm not worried," she said, but he could tell she was trying to sound brave.
"You should be. They're dangerous."
"Maybe it's not real," she suggested. Another low snarl and the sound of padding feet stopped her. "No, that sounds real. Maybe we should go another way." But when she turned around, the corridor behind them had shifted, and the only way forward was they way they were going.
"Stay behind me," James murmured, but she stood beside him as they turned the next corner and found the werewolf prowling back and forth across the corridor, blocking their way forward.
"Holy Helga," said Lily. "It's a real werewolf."
James blew out his breath. "Or a very good imitation of one."
"What do we do?" Lily whispered. "I'd say run but there's nowhere to run."
Before he could answer, the beast turned, snarled, and charged toward them.
They both fired Stunners: one missed and the other barely stopped it. Lily cast an Impedimenta Curse, but the werewolf leapt into the air, and the spell flew past its ear as it landed with its paws on James's chest, teeth flashing before his face.
He reacted on pure, gut-level instinct: he changed into a stag as the slavering jaws tried to bite, narrowing missing his very human neck. The beast shifted clumsily on top of him, and he easily threw it off, standing on four legs and lowering his head to charge. The beast ran at him first, and he was vaguely aware of Lily casting another spell to try and stop it, but they crashed together anyway, teeth gnashing, hooves and paws flailing, until he finally managed to throw it off once more. It had drawn blood on his leg, however, and he stood unsteadily as he faced it again.
A Full-Body Bind curse from Lily stopped the beast in its tracks and sent it tumbling awkwardly to its side, legs frozen awkwardly in the air. He turned toward Lily, limping forward...but she backed away, shaking her head.
"Stay away," she said, eyes wide. "Or I'll curse you too."
Changing back, James found himself on his knees, his leg burning, but his chest heaving with unexpected laughter. Why he was laughing, he had no idea, but the incredulous look on Lily's face had a good deal to do with it. He had never imagined telling anyone his secret, yet alone revealing it to Lily Evans in such a spectacular way. It was obvious she was shocked, as she waved her wand around and tried to speak, and her reaction filled him with more laughter.
"What the hell, Potter?" she finally managed. He stood somewhat gingerly and glanced down at the long scratch on his leg. He knew from experience it wasn't bad, nor would it infect him; yet it stung like mad, so he cast a quick pain-relief spell on it before facing her.
"That would be Prongs," he said. He didn't grin, even though he wanted to; he knew this was actually a very important moment for her.
"Prongs?" she repeated. "Are you serious?"
"No, just James," he replied, unable to resist a small smile. "I'm--"
"An Animagus." She shook her head and swore again. "No one knows, do they? Except your friends."
"Not even my dad," he said, growing earnest. "Look, I'm sorry you had to find out that way, but it was just instinct. I hardly thought about it, I just…changed, to stop it."
"You fought a werewolf," she breathed, her voice still higher than usual. "How did you know it wouldn't kill you?"
"They're not as big of a threat to animals as they are to humans." He shrugged, because he knew it was true, having experienced it every month for three years.
"How did you know?" she pushed, and he grimaced, because he obviously couldn't tell her; it wasn't his secret to tell.
"Read it in class," he mumbled. "Lily, are you all right? Did it hurt you?"
She was looking at him so differently he wasn't sure what to think. "I'm fine. Just…a bit shocked, that's all. And that binding spell won't last forever."
"Right." James turned toward the fallen werewolf and raised his wand. He Stunned it in the forehead, then bound its hand and feet with white ropes. He knew it wasn't Remus, yet couldn't help but feel a tiny spot of guilt for doing such a thing to the creature. "We can't have it following us," he said to Lily, turning back to her.
"Of course," she said, then abruptly set off back down the path they had been following. James sighed; once again things had changed between them, and he wasn't sure if it was for the better. He was beginning to regret exploring the maze after all.
* * *
Lily tried to calm her racing heart. James Potter was an Animagus. A stag. Prongs. The thrill of finally knowing what his nickname meant was second only to the shock of seeing him change before her eyes. She had watched Professor McGonagall transform into her Animagus form in class, but the sight of James going down under the gigantic paws of a werewolf only to morph into a large stag was nothing compared to that. It was jaw-dropping.
He walked silently behind her, and she could almost feel how upset he was, his disappointment in her stunned reaction. Coming to another split in the maze, she finally stopped and turned toward him. Hazel eyes met hers, begging for understanding and forgiveness.
"Lily--" he started, but she stopped him.
"No, it's all right," she said. "Really. I'm just…shaken, that's all. It's not something I expected--you being a large forest animal and all. I mean, it's a hell of a secret, James."
"Yes," he replied, and she saw the glimmer of a grin on his face. "It is. But I'm glad you know. Maybe you'll stop bothering me about Prongs now." She rolled her eyes, and he grew more serious. "And I hope you won't say anything. I'm not registered, and I don't want to get in trouble for it."
"How long have you been one?" she asked, now growing curious. And to her surprise, he blushed in the light of their wands.
"Since fifth year." He shrugged. "It's no big deal, it's just me…and very secret."
"It is a big deal!" she exclaimed. "It's powerful magic. The Animagus spell is incredibly difficult--you heard McGonagall lecturing about it last year."
"She's right," he murmured. "It was hard, that's for sure."
"It's really amazing," she continued. "You should show her. You'd get an Outstanding in your Transfiguration N.E.W.T.s for sure. You probably wouldn't have to sit the written exam at all."
"I'm not telling her," said James, his voice firm. "And neither are you. It's just something I can do. Can we please get back to the maze? I have a feeling that wasn't the first test we'll face."
"Test?" she asked, and now he grinned.
"Of course. Haven't you figured it out?" When she shook her head, slightly annoyed, he coughed and tried not to rub it in. "All good stories with a maze have tests in them--trials. And the note on the door said we're supposed to learn something from this."
"So what did we just learn?" she asked dryly.
"You know I'm an Animagus," he said. "You know what my nickname means now."
"Prongs, because you're a stag…" She trailed off as she realized something. Her Patronus was a doe. Was that what he had been referring to, back in the prefects' lounge when she had first told him, and he had brushed it off as a coincidence?
"What's wrong?" he asked, looking concerned as he glanced around.
She smiled at him and almost reached up to brush some dirt from his face. "Nothing. Just a coincidence, I'm sure."
"A coincidence," he repeated, gazing into her eyes. "Right. Must be." He knew what she was referring to, but what did it mean, if anything?
"Come on, let's go this way," he murmured, taking her hand and leading her toward the right hand path. She glanced down at their intertwined fingers and smiled; it actually felt nice to hold hands with James.
They turned a corner and found themselves twisting and turning through the maze once more. James was silent. Lily wanted to talk, but she wasn't sure what say. They were still holding hands; maybe that was enough.
"So about that coincidence," James finally said, clearing his throat awkwardly.
"Yes?" she asked, wondering what he might ask.
"Well, what's the trick?" She didn't understand. "To producing a corporeal Patronus? Sirius tried his damnedest to help me earlier, but it was no use."
Lily shook her head. "I don't know. It's a difficult charm, that's for sure. I'm surprised Armitage is teaching it. Half the class still doesn't have it, so you're not alone."
He gave her a very self-deprecating look. "I don't want to be in that company. I want to be in the other half. With you." He paused and gave her a grin. "You know what I mean. What's the trick? What does it take that I'm not getting?"
She thought about what she had written earlier in her essay, and how she had conjured her own Patronus in class. "Do you have any happy memories that you focus on?" she asked, and he nodded.
"Of course I do. I have all sorts of great memories from growing up, from Hogwarts…but nothing seems to work." He sighed and shook his head. "It's like they're not enough, or I haven't found the right one."
"Perhaps," she replied. "I won't tell you that you haven't found the right one, but maybe it's more about really feeling it, believing in it. Or maybe you don't need a specific memory, but just something in general that makes you happy in a…well, an all- encompassing way. A feeling of happiness so big it fills you every time."
"I don’t understand," he said, and he looked completely confused. Lily took out her wand.
"Here, let me show you." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. For all her fears, she was always able to focus on the deep thread of happiness that wound its way through her soul: she was a witch. She had magic. She had spent years feeling different, while odd things happened around her, and then she had discovered a whole new world, full of people like her casting spells, flying on broomsticks, popping in and out of fireplaces. It was who she truly was, and that thought brought forth her Patronus. It was probably why her greatest fear involved losing that in some way.
As a silver doe burst forth and hovered in the air before her, she wondered why James Potter could not conjure the same strength of feeling, particularly when he had so easily defeated the boggart, as well as mastered the Animagus spell as a fifth-year. She had a sneaking suspicion of what his Patronus might materialize as, but he needed to channel something into it first. Why couldn't he tap into a happy memory that was strong enough?
"What's your memory?" he asked softly, gazing at the doe in wonder, and she told him, just as he had shared his boggart with her. He nodded slowly.
"I don't have anything like that," he said. "I've always known I was a wizard."
"But there must be something that inspires a similar feeling," Lily said, waving her Patronus away. "It doesn't have to be a special day, a specific event. It's just something--anything--that fills you with happiness."
He still looked skeptical, so she stepped closer and this time laid a hand to his cheek, brushing her thumb along his rough chin and ignoring the urge to run it along his lips. "You're a really powerful wizard, James. If you can turn yourself into a stag, you can do this." She stepped back with what she hoped was an encouraging smile; inside, her heart was racing from their brief contact. "Do you want to try?"
He looked slightly gobsmacked at her words and didn't respond right away. "No, but thanks for the vote of confidence." He touched his face where her hand had been. "Let's keep going. If we run into any Dementors, I'll do my best."
"Dementors?" she frowned as they continued. "You don't really think we'll see any of those in here, do you?"
"Probably not," he said. A dead end forced them to turn around. "But there could be something else that needs that spell."
She tried to think of what else might require a Patronus Charm, when they turned another corner, and a shiver ran down her spine. She raised her wand higher, for it seemed darker somehow, and the blackness felt thicker, colder. "James, something's wrong."
"Get closer," he murmured, his own wand raised. "And have that charm ready."
She started to move toward him, but an inky blackness rose up behind them and surrounded her, instantly suffocating her as her wand clattered to the ground. She collapsed, unable to breathe as she felt the edges of consciousness slip away…
* * *
James whirled around to find Lily…gone. Or rather, she was completely enveloped by a murky black shadow, like a cloak that had swallowed her whole. His first impulse was to fire a Stunner, but much like the werewolf, it had little effect. Neither did the other three spells he tried, and he didn't want to hurt Lily with anything else.
It was a Lethifold, and there was only one spell that would stop it: the one spell he couldn't cast.
Yet Lily had said he was strong, that he could do it. She had reached up and touched his face and smiled at him, and in that moment he had been filled with something indescribable. Happiness, maybe? It had certainly made his heart jump in his chest, and not with fear, but with that intense feeling of attraction and longing that he had been trying to ignore for so long.
Hope filled him, hope for a future where maybe, just maybe, he would find love, where he wouldn't be alone…where he might even be with Lily Evans. It wasn't happiness, exactly, but it was faith in her words and trust in the touch of her hand. Raising his wand, he stepped forward and cried out the spell with conviction.
"Expecto Patronum!" It felt different: he knew it came from deep within him, filling him just as Lily had said it should. There was no doubt anymore, just confidence filling him with a sense of satisfaction he had not felt in a long time, a profound happiness that was so very different than simply remembering good times with family and friends. He could do it: he wasn't a failure.
A silver stag slowly flowed from the tip of his wand. The Lethifold reared up; waving his wand forward, the stag moved toward it, and the Dark creature made an unearthly screeching sound as it backed away. The stag butted its head at the shadow, and it let go of Lily, who lay gasping on the floor. With one more charge, the Patronus forced the Lethifold back, and it slithered away, screaming in pain.
James stared after it, unable to believe what had just happened. Lethifolds were amoung the Darkest and most dangerous magical creatures out there, and it had just attacked them in the middle of Hogwarts. If he was supposed to master the Patronus Charm in the maze, it was an awfully dangerous way to learn such a lesson.
Hurrying over to Lily, he helped her sit up. She was cold and gasping for breath, and he wrapped his arms around her just as he had in the prefects' lounge. Yes, he had just saved her from a Lethifold, but he couldn't have done it without her. She was the reason he had been able to do it: her touch, her belief in him. In that moment, it had filled him with such strong happiness that he could have beat back ten of the creatures. He wanted to sit there forever with her.
Lily was slowly getting her breath back as she pulled away and stared into his face, wide-eyed. "You did it," she said. "You cast the charm."
Brushing a loose strand of hair from her face, he gave her a crooked grin; really, he wanted to kiss her, he was suddenly so inexplicably happy, just to be there with her, knowing that she was safe, and that she believed in him. "Only thanks to you," he replied, and she shook her head.
"I didn't do anything," she said. "I just prattled on about it. You must have found what you needed."
Glancing upward, he shrugged in embarrassment. "You helped me find it. I couldn't have done it without you. Literally."
She unexpectedly threw her arms around his neck. "No, thank you," she whispered near his ear. "It was awful, feeling it smothering me and not being able to do anything." She pulled back and shuddered. "Why did we come in here again?"
"To learn," he said with a slightly bitter laugh. "Obviously the hard way."
"First a werewolf, then a Lethifold." He helped her to stand, albeit somewhat shakily. "I wonder what will be next?"
James had a pretty good idea of what might be next, but he didn't want to say anything and make her more worried. Instead, he took her hand once more. "Are you all right? Can you walk? The sooner we get going, the sooner we can get out of here."
"Yes, I'm ready." She nodded and squeezed his hand. "Thanks again, James. Let's finish this."
And so they set off, hand in hand once more. James still felt that same strange contentment and forced himself to acknowledge what it was: it wasn't just what Lily had said, or that she had touched his face. No, it was Lily herself, and everything about her that he had been denying all year. She was the one who inspired such deep feelings in him. She had for years, but he had given up, denied it, and distanced himself from it until he had lost any sense of contentment whatsoever. He had accepted her as his failure.
Glancing down at their hands, he knew he would always have these moments in the maze to draw on when he needed to cast the charm, even if he didn't have her.
But there was hope for that too, he decided with a smile.
* * *
Lily knew what the next trial would be, what they--or she--was supposed to learn. She had a feeling that James knew it as well, only he was too kind to say anything. Yet if that was what appeared around the next corner, she needed to be ready. She needed to face it. James had cast a Patronus; she needed to banish her boggart.
"James?" she finally asked. "You know what's next, don't you?"
"Could be anything," he said casually. But she could tell now, somehow, from the tone of his voice that he didn't really believe it.
"It'll be a boggart," she said, and he glanced sideways at her with a sigh.
"Yeah, maybe."
"Which means I need to learn how to banish it. Now."
James was quiet as they stopped at another split in the maze. Neither one of them moved. He finally pointed right with a questioning look; she shrugged in reply, and they continued through the labyrinth toward whatever was waiting for them.
"James," she repeated. "How do I turn my deepest fear into something else? Something I can smile and laugh at?"
"Bollocks, Lily, I don't know," he said, sounding frustrated. "I've been thinking about it over and over, and all I can think of is to try what I do and throw a story at it."
"What do you mean?" she asked, confused and curious.
"Well, I grew up with those ridiculous stories of princes and princesses, so when I face a boggart, that's what makes me laugh. Are there any stories that make you laugh?"
She shook her head. "No, I loved fairy tales growing up. Especially certain ones--Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Rapunzel were always my favorites."
"But all of them?" he persisted. "Were there any that made you roll your eyes?"
"Well, yes," she said, nodding. "I didn't really like fairy stories. They always struck me as too fanciful."
He gave her a dry look. "Only fairies are more real than a princess locked in a tower."
"I know!" She laughed at his reaction. "Believe me, the first time I saw a fairy at Hogwarts--right as I walked into the Great Hall, actually--I just about jumped out of my skin. And then I laughed, because they're really quite beautiful, if rather silly and vain…" She trailed off as she thought about what she had just said.
James squeezed her hand. "I think you just solved your boggart problem, Evans."
She nodded slowly: it made sense, and she knew she had to at least try it. If it didn't work, James was there, and his foppish prince could always step forward should she fail.
Yet, she didn't think she would. She grinned just thinking about it--the ridiculous image of a Muggle fairy, so very different than the real creatures she'd experienced at Hogwarts. If she could somehow think clearly enough to force the boggart into that shape, she'd burst into laughter and banish it for sure.
A strange sound interrupted her thoughts, a raspy hissing and crackling. The floor started to shake beneath them; the air grew warmer. Instinctively, they both slowed down.
"Maybe it's not a boggart," James murmured, stepping cautiously forward with his wand raised.
"But that's my lesson," Lily whispered. "It has to be."
"Does that sound like your boggart?" he whispered back as a soft rumble reached their ears. She stared at him, her heart thumping, and shook her head.
"No." The sound was louder, more of a deep growl now, and Lily felt gooseflesh break out on her arms as they came to a corner. A bright light was flickering from around the turn. "It sounds more like a…" She couldn't say it; they turned the corner, and he did.
"A dragon."
* * *