Letters From A Stranger || James and Lily ||

Eavesdropping

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Jo.

Merry Christmas to all my wonderful readers.

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Chapter 22

"Oh thank Merlin! I thought I lost it."

Lily turned around. James was standing behind her, staring at the parchment in her hand.

"This is yours?" she asked, walking towards him.

"Yeah."

"Figured as much, Mr. Prongs." she said as she handed the parchment to him.

"You knew it was me?" he asked, grinning.

"Contrary to your belief, those nicknames aren't really a secret. Anyone would know it's you. But really, what's up with these weird names?"

He didn't say anything for a few seconds, then "Our patronuses."

"Yours is a stag, so Prongs." she said, putting the pieces together.

He held his fingers up, indicating the antlers. She nodded.

"Clever. So, Sirius's patronus is a..."

"Dog." he said.

Lily chuckled. "Suits him."

He shook his head, smiling and she watched as his hair swayed, settling back on his head messier than before. And she had to hold herself back from reaching up and moving the messy strands out of his eyes.

So much for not getting a crush on him.

He was messing with her mind and he wasn't even trying. She didn't want to think about what he could do if he actually tried.

He turned to the portrait door to leave but she stopped him.

"What exactly is that?" she asked, pointing at the parchment in his hand.

He hesitated, his eyes flicking from her to the parchment and back.
"It's not just mine to tell..."

"Oh, you don't have to." she said, taking a step back towards the stairs.

"No." he said, "But I don't think they'll mind. It's just you."

"It's just me? What's that?" she asked, tapping her chin, pretending to be thoughtful.

He smiled. "Because you're just Lily. They won't mind. They like you."

And what about you?

Her eyes widened and she panicked, fearing she had said that out loud. She had a habit of thinking something and saying it aloud without knowing. But when she saw he was still smiling, she knew she didn't slip up.

"So what is it?" she asked.

He motioned for her to sit at the nearest chair as he spread the parchment on the table between them. "It's a map of Hogwarts."

"Just a map?" she asked. She expected something extraordinary from the Marauders. A map seemed like something anyone could make.

"A map that shows the location of the everyone in the castle and grounds."

Ah! Now that sounds more like Marauder's thing.

Lily looked down at the parchment. It was still blank. "How do you make it work?"

He tapped the map with his wand. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

"Sounds like something Sirius would come up with." Lily said as she leaned forward to get a better look of the map.