Snowflakes – 1/50 for the Christmas Bootcamp Challenge.

Also written for week four of the 52 Weeks of Writing 2013 Competition with the prompts: warning, fed up, dangerous, fed up, cosy, and, 'Snow? In April? What the - '

"I don't understand!" Lily Evans sat in the Gryffindor Common room, mug of hot chocolate in hand and book in the other. Despite looking relaxed and cosy, her friends knew she was worked up and wound tighter than a spring. "How can they cancel classes due to the snow? We only ever go outside because of Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures. I just don't understand. It's like the Headmaster wants us to miss classes simply because he feels like it. There is no logical reason—"

"Lily," one of her friends nudged her and raised her eyebrows, and Lily had time to give the girl a death glare for interrupting her before a voice sounded up behind her.

"I see we're all happy about the snow warning and class cancellations, yeah?" James Potter, the single most annoying twat to ever live, if anyone asked her, had the audacity to put his arm around her shoulder as he sat down. "Ooh, can I have some cocoa?"

Lily snatched her mug away from him and pushed him as far from her as possible. "Go away," she said.

"I think you should listen to Lily," Alice stage-whispered, a small smile on her face. "Her mood is fluctuating between dangerous and murderous so…"

James' eyes simply glinted. "Ladies," he said. To Lily's embarrassment, all of her friends giggled. James' stupid voice had been getting ever lower as the year wore on, and they were blushing like twelve year-olds. "Leave me to deal with our little thundercloud."

They left, and then James turned his head to her, leaning in so that each breath made her skin tingl—crawl. Not tingle. Crawl. With disgust. "So you know it was us, right?"

"James." Lily tried not to sound too fed up, but she was near her boiling point and any more exposure to his antics was simply testing her fragile patience. "Go away, I said."

"Go out with me, Lily?" he asked.

"No," she answered, used to the question. "How many times do I have to tell you that—"

"Please, Lily!"

"No."

James took on a more childish, petulant voice. "But I have something to show you!"

"James. There is snow falling because of you. You know, snow? In April? What the- what came over you to think of that? You cancelled classes, James Potter. What makes you think I want to go anywhere with you? You are on my hate list, to be perfectly honest."

"Wow, powerful emotion, hate," James said, far too nonchalantly for someone that was on a Most Hated List. "Some say there is nothing but a fine line between hate and love."

Lily snorted.

"Fine," James said, withdrawing his arm. "You will never, ever, ever get to see the reason we worked for ages to make snow fall in April. There will always be that curiosity nagging at you, sitting there at the back of your mind. You will be distracted, so distracted all because you didn't take me up on my offer to—"

"Dearest Merlin," Lily breathed. "Stop talking and I will go with you, but then you will leave me alone and let me read. And not bother me again."

"That sounds great," James said. He pointed to the window. "Come on! I promise never to bother you again."

Lily stopped paying attention, eyeing the window with trepidation, watching as James spelled it open and called something out into the wind. He turned back to her, "What are you still doing here? Go get a jacket or your wand, at least, and we're off!"

"Oh… no. You are not taking me out on a broomstick in the middle of a blizzard!" Even at her words, Lily's attention was peaked and she grabbed her wand and cast a warming charm.

James pouted, and Lily caved.

"Fine. Just… make it quick."

James winked, stepped out of the window and onto his broomstick, and held out a hand to Lily. He grinned and she couldn't resist smiling—tentatively—back at him. Then, she took him by the hand, and allowed herself to be pulled into the adventure that James had created for her. For them. Snowflakes fell around them in a calmer fashion than she'd imagined, and Lily allowed herself to relax to the point that she was willingly holding James around the waist.

She smiled, and then...

And then Lily screamed as James took off.