File 13 Note:
Although parts belong
to J.K. Rowling, I own the plot and certain elements. This one
will eventally be finished and dedicated to my friend Kim, even
though I don't know what her ff.net sn is now. Is it still Firebolt7?
Ah well, we never chat anymore, but this one still goes to her.
Summary: L/J fic, the humorous story behind their first date.
Written by Amanda Mancini
The Gryffindor Common room was quiet, as it always was at that early hour of the day. In Lily Evans' mind, this gave her the perfect time to read; after all, what better place then curled up in a chair next to the glowing fire? Peace and quiet was something that she enjoyed. However, she rarely ever had the chance.
James Potter jumped over the back of the couch and put his arm around the red, frizzy haired girl sitting there. "Good morning schnookums."
Lily looked at him and sighed. "Don't call me that, and I'm not even going to ask why you're up so early."
"Early, why, it's only 6:30! The start of a new day, so don't get grumpy now, sweetcheeks." Lily tried to ignore that last bit, as well as the nagging feeling at the back of her head that hollered a new day to 'The Marauders' (or so they liked to call themselves, along with all those other ridiculous names) was something to be feared.
"Fine, I won't," she said as she marked her place in her book ('The Catcher in the Rye'), stood up, straightened her robes, and headed towards her dorm. She didn't make it fast enough, though, and heard loud and clearly the wolf whistle that sounded behind her. Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black had just stepped out of the fifth year boys' dorm.
"I saw that! Lily Evans, and well, I never!" Sirius called, wagging a finger at her, "Of all the people to be caught snogging in a public places..."
"Oh shut up," she retorted, not wanting to have to deal with him at that hour. She scowled at Remus who walked over to James and shook his hand, grinning from ear to ear, who like James was trying not to laugh too hard.
"Aren't you going to ask why we're up so early?" Peter asked.
"Why are you up so early," Lily asked sourly, mimicking the pitch of Peter's voice with unnoticed nastiness.
"We can't tell you. It's a secret," he answered giving a smug nod.
"Be careful Peter," Remus warned, "you might get her suspicious."
"Too late," Lily muttered miserably. "Watch out, James. You've only just been made prefect."
"What makes you think I'm about to do something that might endanger my being prefect?" James asked innocently, at the same time Sirius said: "We'll be extra careful not to get caught." The looked at each other and burst out laughing.
"See you at breakfast, sweety pie!" James called on the way out the portrait. Lily groaned as she sat back down at her place on the couch, but somehow, she just couldn't get comfortable again.
"So why were you really up so early?" Lily's best friend Jennifer Eve Katherine Anne Rosemary Christina Alisha Elizabeth Ashley Melanie Antionette Margaret Darla Melissa Danielle Cara Laura Prewett- better known as Kim ("It's the only name I don't have!") "I could have sworn I heard the voices of... Well speak of the devil. Devils," she corrected herself as James Potter and Co. came into the Great Hall. Most didn't even give them a second glance, but then again, most didn't know any better.
Lily remembered back in their first year, when James Potter hadn't been the popular quidditch chaser, or intelligent top student transfiguration, or anything that he was now (except a pompous jerk with four eyes.) He'd simply been that boy, with the friend who liked to blow things up, with the quiet studious one, and then the small fat squeaky one. Rather, that was how the seventh year Gryffindors had classed them back then (a memory Lily relished.)
If anything, no matter how much she hated to admit it, Lily was jealous. They had all been nobodies at the beginning, but the problem was, she still was. Sure, so the famous pureblooded 'Kim' Prewett was her friend, but she was friends with everyone. Lily had been shoved into the 'shy nerd' corner of everyone's opinions, and she hated it. James was just as nerdy, yet he was some sort of popularity king. Why? Because he could lie to teachers about sneaking out at night because was good at sports ("which aren't even advantageous in real life, anyways," Lily added to herself.) Just thinking about it made her feel bitter, but that was another status Lily did not want thrown at her.
Civil. If there was anything Lily was, it was civil. She put on a smile hearing her mother's echoing words ('Treat others the way you want to be treated.') as the four boys sat down.
"So what have you been up to?" Kim asked them slyly. Lily was thankful: she wanted to know too, but didn't want to sound like a nosy prefect. Not to mention it meant that Lily wouldn't have to answer the question...
"I," Sirius began slowly and menacingly, "hate. house. elves." Remus nudged him hard, and he shut up, staring sourly at the plate of food he was quickly devouring. Something sparked in Kim's eyes.
"No, really," she insisted. "What were you guys doing."
"Nothing," they all answered simutanously, looking at the cieling and whistling innocently (or in Peter's case, trying to whiste.) Now, this was standard behavior from these boys and you could never get anything out of them. You had to be a genius... or at least, a maiden in distress.
Kim's eyes began to water, and her lower lip began to quiver. "It's me, isn't it," she said in a quiet voice that everyone thought she was incapable of. "You can talk all about your pranks to Lily, and she doesn't even care, but you won't tell me, and I'd be the least likely to tattle? Consider yourselves lucky that I'm too kind to -"
"Don't cry, Kim," Peter reasoned gently, "We were only trying to get a potion we made in Snape's breakfast, but the house elves wouldn't let us." Lily felt her jaw drop open in surprise, and Kim, of course, instantly replaced her sorrowful expression with a grin so wicked she must have been spending time studying Sirius.
Kim, Lily realised, must have been the first to truly sucker The Marauders. And what an honor indeed.
Telling Kim about their little plan hadn't been that bad. James and his friends hadn't told her what the potion was, excactly, and Lily was pretty sure she didn't want to know. Kim, did, obviously, but The Marauders had actually trained Peter so that he didn't dare let anything out. Instead he just muttered some nonsense phrase in order to confuse the enemy ("Pishaw you Fundlefoot!")
"Peter, where's Kim?"
"Ummmadonno."
"She's with James and the lot planning, isn't she?" Lily crossed her arms, genuinly annoyed.
"Lemmesmallohfust!" Peter mumbled, shrugging at her.
"Fine! Fine!" Lily retorted, throwing her hands into the air as she stormed out of the common room mumbling about boys, and demented nicknames, and often repeating the word 'stupid'.
But then again, perhaps she would have learned a bit more if she'd been patient enough to let poor Peter swallow the pasty he'd stuffed into his mouth. However, that wasn't the matter at hand. The less then perfect score on her Charms test and left her in a disagreeable mood, and she needed to be with people. Scoffing at a crew of idiots was a great stress reliever.
She found them after in the Great Hall at Dinner, after having checked almost every other possible place. To her dismay, Peter sat there nodding contently as they spoke. She sat down next to Kim, smiling politely to them all. Sirius let out an forced groan of dissapointment, but no one payed any attention to him.
"Oh, Lily!" Kim turned to her with a shrill whisper, waving her hands in excitement. They told me what they were going to do! They're going to -" Lily waited anxiously for her friends explanation but never recieved it. Instead, all she got was a loud shreik and a very sore ear. It seemed James had given a violent cough and knocked Kim's pumpkin juice onto her lap with his elbow. Kim, in return, had stormed out of the hall cursing, dragging Lily along in the process to the nearest lav. Oh their way out, however, James had caught Lily's eye and given and unmistakeable wink.
He had purposely spilled a drink on her best friend. She had not found that funny, and had faithfully glowered at him. On the other hand, Kim had found it absolutely hilarious.
"Oh, that's it!" She challenged herself with an evil grin, wiping her robes with a wad of loo paper. "Now we're playing MY way."
"Calm down, Kim," Lily laughed, leaning against one of the sinks.
"Calm down? Calm down?! Lily! I smell like pumpkin!"
"I've noticed!" Lily giggled, "But really! What were you saying before? Before the.. er... the juice thing?"
"Oh that!" Kim joined in on the giggling. "Oh Lily, we'd have never guessed on our own! It's on the Slytherins! They're going to put a potion in the food while it's in the kitchens so that they blow up or something."
Or something? Lily thought. Wouldn't you remeber what a bunch of lunatic boys are planning for the enemy? She didn't bother wondering about her friends charm (because it was one of her 'mysteries'.)She grinned and asked "Well, when are they planning to do it?"
Kim frowned in dissapointment. "I don't know. Soon.
I think they were planning it to be their great Halloween prank.
After what they did last year...." Wasn't that the
truth. Last year they had found a spell to transfigure all of
the hats into the school into pink fluffy nightcaps (and Dumbledore
had been the only one to not change his back!) Of course they
wanted to live up to the expectations.
