Forgotten Girl

Boyfriends and Bat Bogeys

"Why do you hate Dumbledore, Mum? Uncle Harry worships him."

"I don't hate him. It's just... Let's put it this way; You've seen how Slughorn likes people with influence. Dumbledore's the same, but he liked the outcasts. Your father, the werewolf. Hagrid, the expelled half-giant. Uncle Harry, the muggle-raised outsider. Uncle Draco, the unwilling, disillusioned Death Eater." She was quiet for a moment, staring out the window, "Dumbledore wasn't a good man, love. He pretended to be, sometimes I think he tried to be. 

"But the reality is he used children to fight a grown-up's war. And for that, I will never forgive him."

~

"Lilli, you're going to be late if you don't stop reading!" Elspeth said, poking her head into the dorm, "Or have you changed your mind about the party?"

She shook her head, heaving herself up as she rubbed her lower back, "I'm coming."

Elspeth winced sympathetically, "Cramps?" Lilli nodded, "I've got some spelled chocolate from my mum if you want."

"Do you mind? I ran out last month and forgot to ask for more," Lilli followed Elspeth, who reached into her bedside drawer and tossed her a sweet, "Thank you!"

"Go on, now. Pretty Boy is waiting," Elspeth teased, pushing her friend out the door, "And I want details when you come back!" Lilli laughed, waving goodbye. 

August met her down the hall from the common room, and the look on his face made her blush. She was wearing an altered version of her Yule Ball dress (Draco quite liked using her as a model), her hair tamed and pulled over one shoulder. Her heels, silver to match the embroidery on her dress, put her nowhere near August's height, instead only bringing her to his shoulder.

"You look gorgeous, Lils," he took her hand, spinning her as she giggled. Tucking her arm through his, she tugged him down the hall.

"You're not that bad yourself, Mister Greene," she teased, studying his midnight blue dress robes, "How'd you manage to match my dress when I wouldn't tell you?"

"Malfoy, actually. Came up saying that there was no way his friend is going to a party with someone who doesn't know navy from midnight," August laughed. Lilli hit her forehead with her palm, groaning.

"Of course he did. I'm sorry about him." August just laughed again, kissing her forehead. They arrived outside Slughorn's door, hearing the music drifting out from beneath it.

"Ready?" She smiled up at him.

"Always."

~

"Lilli!" Hermione hurried over to where she and August were talking. The redhead raised her eyebrows at her dishevelled appearance, taking in her smeared lipstick and mussed hair.

"You alright, Mione?" She glanced over her shoulder.

"Came with McLaggen tonight. Big mistake, he's worse than an octopus," Hermione said. Lilli laughed, retrieving her wand for a hidden pocket.

"Let me fix your makeup real quick." Hermione stood still, letting Lilli work her magic. The Gryffindor glanced at the Ravenclaw beside her friend curiously. "Oh, Hermione, this is my boyfriend, August. August, my friend, Hermione."

"Nice to meet you," August smiled, green eyes twinkling, "You might want to hide though. McLaggen's coming this way."

With an "Eep!" Hermione hurried away again as her date approached the pair.

"Did I see Hermione over here?" He was ruffling his hair cockily. Lilli was wondering what had possessed her friend to agree to go with him.

"Just saw her on the way to the ladies' room," Lilli lied, a sweet smile on her face, "You'll have to wait for her to get back."

"Would you like to keep me company?" McLaggen winked, leaning a little closer. August stiffened, slipping an arm over her shoulders and pulling her closer.

"Excuse me, but she's my girlfriend," Lilli tucked her arm around his waist, smiling up at him as a blush spread across her face.

"Come on, let's go dance," she tugged him away from McLaggen. He grinned at her, seeing her red cheeks.

"What, do you like me saying 'my girlfriend'?" Lilli turned redder but nodded. He offered her his hand, "Well, then, my darling, beautiful girlfriend, may I have this dance?"

"You're incorrigible," she said, laughing as he spun her. Smiling cheekily, he kissed her.

"You love it." 

She sighed dramatically, "Unfortunately, I do."

~

Lilli followed Draco quietly through the halls, careful not to allow her 'caecus' spell to drop. This is for his own good, she told herself, watching him pace before a blank wall, His own good. Ten months of following him around, and she still had to remind herself of that.

She let Draco slip through the door before she caught it, slipping inside. He hurried through the stacks, too preoccupied with his task to notice the door hadn't shut. Then he stopped.

 It was an hour before she heard anything again. Then the creaking of a cabinet door. More footsteps.

"Finally, boy," someone snarled. Fear gripped Lilli's chest, "We've been waiting."

"I had to wait for the others to fall asleep, Carrow." Draco was tense, "What is Greyback doing here? Lilli eased out of the door, her heart hammering. Greyback. Of course. She had to warn Professor Dumbledore or Professor Snape. But she wouldn't have time to run all the way to the DADA suite.

"Well, might as well try," she murmured, hurrying away from the door into a dark corner,  "Expecto Patronum."

A dog erupted from her wand, turning to look at her. She kneeled, glancing behind her again, "Professor Snape, there are Death Eaters in the castle. Seventh floor." The dog ran off, dashing through walls as Lilli hid in an alcove. On second thought, McGonagall should know too.

She sent another dog off just as she heard footsteps. Looking up sharply, she saw three forms emerge from the darkness.

"I swear, I heard Lilli's voice," Ginny whispered. Lilli breathed a sigh of relief, letting her spell drop. The three startled but kept quiet.

"What are you doing here?" Ron spat, eyes blazing at the Slytherin. Lilli pressed her finger to her lips, motioning them into the alcove.

"I've been keeping an eye on Draco for Dumbledore," she whispered, peeking back into the corridor, "He's brought Death Eaters into the school. I've sent warnings to McGonagall and Snape."

"That was you? We saw the light—" Neville began. Lilli hushed him, listening carefully. The door was creaking open. Backing further into the alcove, she realised there was a secret passage. Am I really going to do this?

"Caecus," she whispered, watching as her body disappeared, "Stay quiet, alright?"

I suppose so. Lilli checked to be sure the others had listened to her, then peered around the corner. The Death Eaters still stood there. She murmured, "Volatilis Lutum."

The man she hit yelled as bats began to spill from his nose, a disgusting green colour. Draco threw something in her direction, and darkness spread across the hallway. She let her spell drop, leading Ron, Ginny, and Neville into the passageway. It opened on the floor below, where she could see people beginning to run up the stairs. Lilli recognised them, Remus and Tonks at their head. Stepping out and the others fanning out behind her, she caught her uncle's attention.

"Death Eaters in the castle. Up a floor. They're after Dumbledore."