Remembering

Christmas Break: Part One

"Bye!" I called to Alice and Emma as they hurried out of the station. They turned and waved back. Alice blew a kiss. I turned to Dorcas.

"I'll miss you," I said, hugging her tight. She hugged me back.

"I'll miss you too, Lils. Write?"

"Every day," I promised.

I would be writing a lot; I had already promised Alice the same. I also had to make up with Mary. And tell Marlene that she was out of order with Sirius.

I sighed and pushed my hand through my hair. "Alrighty. Well, I'll see you, Dorky."

"Don't call me that."

"Don't call me Lils, then," I retorted. I laughed. "Merry Christmas."

"You too." She smiled at me and walked to her folks, embracing them.

I looked to Marlene. "I'll miss you."

"Same here." She hugged me. Normally she isn't a lovey-dovey type of person, so I was surprised.

I took a deep breath. It was now or never. "Hey, I wanted to say, what's up with you and Sirius?"

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently.

I rolled my eyes. "You know what I mean. You can barely keep your hands off him, you're really clingy, and you act totally not like you when you're around him."

She glanced around. "Is it really that noticeable?" she asked quietly.

I smirked. "Marlene, it annoys the hell out of everyone."

She gave me a sad smile. "He's -- he's such a player, Lily. I'm afraid he'll ditch me for another girl."

I shrugged. "This may sound kind of mean, but, with the way you've been acting, he probably will."

She sighed. "I know. I need to stop acting like that. Will you tell him I'll stop?"

I nodded. "Sure. Just, if you're acting like that, then you shouldn't be surprised if he dumps you."

"Okay," she said happily. "Love you, Lils."

"Love you too, Mars."

"Merry Christmas!" She skipped off for her brothers.

I looked around for the Marauders. Suddenly I felt strong arms wrap around my waist from behind.

"I'll miss you," James breathed in my ear. I felt goosebumps rise on my neck.

"I'll miss you too," I said, twisting around to face him and putting my arms around his neck.

"It's a shame there isn't any mistletoe," I murmured, my face inches from his.

He smirked. "Well, we'll just have to do without, won't we?"

He closed the gap between us. I responded with enthusiasm. I had just knotted my hands in his hair when I heard a shout.

"Oi! Lovebirds!"

I turned around to see Sirius running towards us. "Have you seen Marlene?"

"No," James said irritably. He was obviously annoyed that we were interrupted.

I glared at Sirius. "You're not going to break up with her, are you?"

His face reddened. "What?" He gave a nervous laugh. "Pshh. No, of course not, why would you say that?"

I gave him a stern look. "You're not breaking up with her, because I talked to her. She said she'll try to be less clingy."

Sirius sighed. "That's a relief."