The Tutor

The Tutor

Chapter One

"Hello, Gryffindors. What a pleasant day it is to see such ugly Mudbloods, and one Pureblood," smirked Severus Snape. His long, greasy hair was glinting in the light, making their eyes hurt. But when they looked to Malfoy, it was no difference. His hair was so blonde it also hurt their eyes to look at it.

"Sod off, Malfoy," Lindsay said. AJ's eyes widened and Lily knew why.

Suddenly Lily and Lindsay found themselves pinned underneath Malfoy and Snape while people cheered above her. Using all the breath in her lungs, Lily screamed high and shrill, causing Malfoy's ears to ring.

Above her, she heard the people stop cheering.

"Er, Remus, did we see anyone - ow!"

"That's for pinning them underneath that slime! And that - is for pinning them underneath that slime!"

"Hey, there's no need for psychical abuse!"

"I'll show you what physical means -"

"Alyssa!"

"AJ, get these two off of us and then hit them!" Lily shrieked.

Malfoy was pulled off her and she found herself face to face with James Potter. She blushed bright red as she looked down at her jumper and saw it covered in something.

"Sorry about that," James said quietly, "carrot."

"J-James," Lily said acknowledging him.

"This is for cursing us, Potter. Have fun," Malfoy sneered and pushed him towards Lily as Snape did the same to Peter. James fell on Lily, causing them to fall backwards. Peter fell on Lindsay and they also toppled over.

"Er, James, can you please get off me?" Lily asked weakly, her breaths short from being pinned down by the strong Quidditch player.

"Oh, um, yeah, hold on," said James, struggling to get up. He put his hands beside Lily's head and pushed up, but only to be pulled back down again. He frowned and looked down at Lily who was beet red. She pointed to something holding them together. There was a string of silver attaching them to each other.

James scowled. "Damnit. They used our own creation against us! Wormtail, you're stuck with Bryant?"

Peter Pettigrew nodded as Lindsay smacked him. "I hate you Marauders! And watch your potty mouth, young man!"

"Bloody hell. I'm stuck with Carrot-Head Evans until we can make the antidote," James sulked.

"Antidote?" asked AJ from the corner of the compartment. She helped Lindsay and Peter up and then helped James and Lily. "What do you mean, antidote, Potter?"

Remus Lupin sighed from his seat beside the hysterical Sirius Black. "Yes, AJ, antidote. It's a curse the makes...well, er..."

"Lupin," AJ hissed, "what does it do?"

"Fine," Remus gave in. "If there are any romantic feelings between the two partners, they act out with acts of their affection. It was made to be used on Snape and Malfoy. On Slytherins it acts a bit different. Even if they don't have feelings, they act out."

"So you're telling me Pettigrew and Lindsay are gonna be married by the time you get the antidote?"

"No, if there are no underlying feelings, no acts. Just be glad they aren't Slytherins, and that you didn't get stuck to James, because he's got tuna breath."

James snorted as he sat beside Lily.

"Wait," Peter said squeakily, "what about the full -"

"Cheese!" cut in Sirius loudly.

The people in the compartment looked at him.

"Cheese because it...smells like cheese in here," said Sirius sheepishly, his lips twitching into a lop-sided grin.

"No it doesn't," Lindsay said. "It smells like...oh, my, what is that smell?"

Sirius was grinning while the others covered their noses. He snorted and Remus punched him on the shoulder, causing him to fall on the floor.

"Moony, old buddy, it was just some bodily functions! Everyone's got 'em!"

"Not like you," he stated, his voice muffled by his robes.

"What can I say?" sniggered Sirius.

The others glared at him and he sighed. He raised his wand, and muttered a few words in which a burst of air opened the wind and out went the smell.

He put his wand down and grinned. "Better?"

~*~

The compartment was quiet while the two bonded couples - who weren't couples - sat by one another, reading or playing Exploding Snap with each other.

James placed a card on the stack and it exploded. Ash fell all over, in Lily and Lindsay's books, Sirius' open mouth while he was screeching "Snow! It's snowing, AJ!" and the others heads.

"Please, James," Lily begged, "don't."

"Carrot-Head, it's harmless fun."

"Please, James?"

"Carrot, no. It's a game, if I was bored, I might actually have to talk to you."

Lily immediately withdrew. "Oh," she said.

She shook her book and head, sending ash on the floor and James' shoulder. Lily then buried her nose into the book, trying to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes. Lily should've known that nothing would change. The Marauders - who had been a tad nicer that year - wouldn't have changed. "Carrot-Head" was still James' favorite saying, even though it made Lily go to tears. He didn't care. That's what he did; picked on Lily. Sirius would join, and Peter, but Remus was too nice. He tried to get them to stop, but James was non-stop.

He had started in her First Year, when he was in his Second. After she'd been sorted into Gryffindor and sat beside Lindsay, he had formed that nickname. He had sent bits of carrot flying at her and yelled "Bombs away, Carrot-Head!" and sent the table into hysterics except the newly sorted Alyssa Miller and Lindsay.

Their friendship had formed then, and when AJ had threw her pumpkin juice on him, getting Lily's revenge. Whenever the Marauders or any Slytherin picked on Lily, AJ and Lindsay would stand up for their friend; AJ cussing them out and Lindsay smacking them. They'd get detention, but that wouldn't matter.

She remembered the first time James had made her cry. It was in their Third Year, and it was Halloween. She'd dressed up as a vampire for the party Dumbledore had threw, as had Lindsay and AJ. The Marauders had dressed as girls from a bet they'd lost to some Hufflepuffs. The boys had seen some random Ravenclaw come up to her and kiss her, she tried to fight him, but they didn't see that. They'd seen when he let her go and walk off, smirking with his buddies. They'd also seen her smudged blood red lipstick and mussed hair and her smeared eyeliner from her tears, though the boys hadn't seen her tears. They had gone up to her, telling her they'd seen it all and then James and Sirius - the brave Fourth Years - calling her a slut, with Peter echoing it. Remus had tried to go after her when she ran off, but it was no use.

"Lily?" asked Lindsay who was seated in front of her. "Are you alright? You're tearing up."

She looked up, wiping her eyes, jerking sideways when James whispered something to Remus.

"I'm fine," she blubbered.

"You sure?"

She nodded. "Yes, Lindsay, I'm fine."

"Okay. But if you ever need anything, Lily, let me know."

Lily sniffled. "I'd tell you, but I can't say anything with that lard hanging on to my shoulder." She pointed to James.

"Don't worry - once they make the antidote, everything will be fine."

"Yeah, I know."

Lily went back to thinking. She thought about her first boyfriend; Remus Lupin. They'd gone out for a solid month before they realized they were too much like brother and sister to date. He still helped her when she needed it. He was her rock, and she was his confidante. But he never told her why he'd always gone to his mother's once a month. They depended on each other when the Marauders weren´t there or they´d gotten in fights.

"Oh!" she said suddenly. "I need to change!"

James broke off his conversation with Remus and started shaking his head furiously.

"I don't think so, Carrot-Head."

Lily pouted. "Please? I need to change into my robes and I don't think Professor McGonagall would appreciate it if I walk into the Great Hall wearing this. She'd take my Prefect badge away!"

James grimaced. "You're a Prefect? How great."

"What?"

"I'm the Head Boy."

"No, no, no, how could they? You're a -"

Sirius covered AJ's mouth with his hand. "She was gonna throw up."

AJ bit his hand hard. He pulled back his hand quickly and stared at it.

"You bit me, you rabid woman!"

"Well keep your grubby paws off of me!"

Lindsay cut in, "Lily has a point. We - meaning Lily and I - do have to change."

Sirius suddenly grinned. "How about my new charm?"

"Fine," sighed Lily, knowing she had just signed her life over to the young man who thought ketchup was suntan lotion.

He grinned, took his wand out and muttered a string of words.

Lily felt a tingle and heard some rustling.

"Padfoot!"

She opened her eyes and saw Lindsay. Lily burst into a fit of giggles seeing her friend wearing Peter's small robes. Lindsay did not look very happy. She felt tugging on her clothes and turned towards James, ready to tell him off, but stopped short when she saw him wearing her clothes.

"Sirius," she moaned, looking down at James' robes and Head Boy badge.

"What did you do?" Lindsay shrieked, smacking Peter, but glaring at Sirius.

He shrugged. "It's got some bugs in it. I need to fix it before I can use it again."

"Couldn't you have told us before, Padfoot?" Peter squeaked,squeezing his eyes shut when Lindsay hit him.

"Calm down," AJ said loudly. "You can change -"

"I think not!" Lily shrieked. "I don't want him looking at me when I'm changing, AJ!"

"Come on, Carrot-Head, you've got nothing," James smirked.

"I've got brains, unlike some people."

"What good are brains if you don't have looks or Quidditch ability?"

"Quidditch is for stupid people who have no sense of direction."

"You're saying I'm stupid?"

"Yep."

"Grow up, Evans."

"You first, Potter."

"The youngest always goes first."

"No, I thought ladies went first. Well? Go on!"

"Will you two shut up?"

"No!"

"Shut up, James."

"You first."

AJ stomped over to them and clamped her hands over their mouths. She sighed when the bickering stopped.

"Please, you're stuck together; get along for just a few days at the most. It would give us heaven on earth."

Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. Just as long as he doesn't poke me, bit me, or hit me."

"You're acting like kids! Lindsay and Peter aren't - Lindsay! The guy's gotta have bones!"

~*~

"Please remained seated until the Hogwarts Express comes to a full stop and then line up and walk out, single file. We don't need anymore catastrophes like last year, Mr. Black," the conductor's voice boomed through the train as they neared Hogwarts. He had reminded the students of last year's "beginning school prank" courtesy of the Marauders.

They stood - Lily and James having trouble - and walked out the compartment door when the train finally stopped.

"Ah, Hogwarts air," Sirius sighed.

"Don´t breathe too much, Padfoot. Too much air will ruin your brain," Remus told him sarcastically. The chilly September wind blew his sandy brown hair into his face. He winced. He was already getting weak.

Lindsay, seeing him wince, dragged Peter over to him. "Remus, are you all right? You look ill."

"I´m fine, Lindsay. My legs fell asleep on the train so they hurt a bit."

AJ frowned but said nothing.

"Lindsay, look at what McGonagall´s wearing! It´s so last year! Those little frills don´t bring out her eyes." Lily and Lindsay were walking beside each other into the school as they got out of the carriages. James and Peter wanted to screw their heads off and cast them in the lake with the Squid.

"Oh, it´s so true. James? Do you know who the Head Girl is?" Lindsay asked him, her gossip side taking over.

"Julie Bakersfield."

"No, how could they? Julie is a tramp!" Lily said quietly, shocked.

"She´s not a tramp, Lily. Such vulgar language! I heard she got pregnant last year and lost the baby." Lindsay shuddered. "Having sex before marriage is a mortal sin!"

The girls sat down, with AJ between them, the boys grudgingly listening to their conversation.

AJ snickered. "You think everything is a mortal sin. A girl´s gotta have her fun in life, Lindsay."

"Oh, Alyssa, calm down. I don´t think everything is a mortal sin. Just the bad stuff."

The table quieted as Professor McGonagall walked up to them. She smiled a tight, thin lipped smile and said, "Mister Potter, please do follow me. Professor Dumbledore would like a word with you and your counterpart Miss Bakersfield."

"Oh, but Professor, he and Lily can´t go up there!" Peter said loudly, standing, bringing Lindsay with him. Sirius snorted when Lindsay and Peter stumbled.

"Mister Pettigrew, why not?" she asked, her patience for the small boy running thin.

"They´re stuck!"

"Yes, of course they are. Let´s go Potter."

James giggled - yes, the hero of this story actually giggles - and covered his mouth. "Professor, it´s actually a very funny story. You see, we ran into a couple of rather insane Muggles and-"

"They pranked Snape and Malfoy, but it backfired, causing me and him and Lindsay and Pettigrew to be `bonded.´ They have to make this antidote to `cure´ us, as Remus put it," Lily stated, breaking off James´ conversation.

McGonagall sighed. "Potter, Black, Lupin, Pettigrew, do you concur with Miss Evans´ statement?"

The boys glared at Lily who looked down. "Yes."

"Potter, Evans, Pettigrew, and Bryant, you will need to see Dumbledore."

"Detention, Prongs. And I get nothing!" Sirius shouted after James as they four made their way to the Head Table where Dumbledore sat with the other Professors. Lily could hear the pout in his voice.

"Hello, children. What can I do for you?" Albus Dumbledore asked them cheerfully, his blue eyes sparkling and his long beard glistening silver in the candle light.

Lindsay began, "Well, you see, something happened, Professor..."

End of Chapter One