The Marauders: Year Seven Part One

Wicked Things

"Go on. Open it," James said, voice barely above a whisper.

He and Lily were crowded about her desk, staring down at the green and silver box. Lily's hand shook as he reached for the latch, her fingers touched the silver and she hesitated, and quickly pulled back. "What if it's something really terrible?" she asked, "What if it's a dementor or a boggart or --"

"We know how to defeat boggarts," James pointed out, "And dementors, too. And why would Voldemort consider either of those things as valuable?"

"What would he consider valuable?" Lily challenged, drawing her hand back.

"Whatever it is, it's been in there at least three days, yeah? Without food or water or anything. It can't be anything alive, can it?"

Lily shivered, "I don't know, James. You didn't hear it when it was hissing like a snake. It's... it's awful." She stared at it with her eyebrows cinched in concern. "I think whatever it is could be living."

James thought for a moment, studying the box.

"Could be some dark insect or something?" Lily suggested. "Doxies or --"

"Again. Doxies aren't valuable."

"Perhaps they're venomous doxies. Like more venomous than usual. Perhaps they're... killer doxies."

"Alright," James said, "Enough sci-fi for you." He chuckled and when she looked upset he bent to look in her eyes, "Hey. It's going to be alright, okay? We're going to open it and whatever it is that's in there, we're both going to be here to fight it, okay? And -- just think how much it'll really piss that old wanker off we destroyed his things."

Lily laughed at the vulgar phrase. "James."

He smirked and tilted his head to look at her, "I know I for one am not afraid, I'm facing whatever it is with the brightest witch I know."

Lily's eyes met his.

James smiled. His lip hung up on his tooth.

"Oh alright," Lily said, her heart fluttering. "Alright. Let's do it then." She turned back to the box, reached out for the latch and paused. "Ready?"

James drew his wand, aimed for the box, and prepared himself. "On with it," he advised.

Lily drew a deep breath, her fist clutched around her wand, too, and flipped opened the latch.

The box sprang open and they both jumped backward, expecting terrible things to emerge from the box but nothing happened. They stood, panting, a couple steps away from i desk, both wands aimed steadily at the open box. They could just see that it was lined with black velvet. James glanced at Lily, and she looked back at him, and he nodded toward it, and she nodded, and they both stepped closer until they were looking down into the pentagon shaped box and found, laying in the bottom on a cushion like base, the chain wrapped into the pillow it sat upon, a locket.

Lily reached for it but James caught her hand, "Don't touch it," he said, pulling it back and releasing his grip immediately. For once, she wouldn't have minded if he'd kept his hand there. Even with the anxiety of the moment, she'd felt her heart nearly stop when his skin had made contact with hers. "It could be cursed," he whispered. "I heard about this necklace once that instantly kills anyone who touches it. And there's loads like that, replicas and copycats and the like. This could be one of those. You Know Who would consider something like that valuable, I reckon."

"What do we do?" Lily asked, looking up at him.

James took hold of a sheath of paper that the box sat upon and pulled it even closer, staring directly down onto it.