The Accidental Challenge by Wittyheroine

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing.

Summary: An argument in the library between Severus Snape and James Potter leads to James Potters obsession with one Lily Evans. JPLE.

Chapter One

Prove them wrong

It had happened quite unexpectedly as most good things do. James Potter had been studying in the library with Remus Lupin and getting very, very bored. He had been leaning back in his chair looking around at anything but his text book when he spotted Lily Evans and Severus Snape sitting together at the table behind him. She had laughed at something the greasy, Slytherin git had said and he noticed the way Lily's eyes lit up as she talked to him. Something about the scene had made his stomach squirm.

What was a pretty, smart, Gryffindor Girl doing with someone like Snape who was up to his eyeballs in the dark arts? It just wasn't right. Lily deserved better. So James decided to show her what better looked like.

He got up from his seat and strode confidently over to where the two were sitting. "Hello," James said as he put his hands on their table and leaned up against it, staring blatantly at Lily. "How are you this fine afternoon Evans?"

She looked up at him queerly. "Very well, Potter, and yourself?"

"Great. Just great…although I would be better if you answered a question for me."

"To find a book in the library Potter, you go by the first two letters in the author's last name. It's not that difficult."

James smiled. "Cute Evans, but that wasn't the question I wanted answered. What I want to know is why you waste your time with someone like Snivellus here when you could easily hang out with the Marauders. We'd welcome you with open arms. I know it was you who made Professor McGonagall's door sing every time someone opened it."

He looked at Snape out of the corner of his eye after and he could tell by the annoyed expression on the slimy, young man's face that he was resisting insulting him too probably only because he was in the presence of Lily.

"Potter, there's a lot more to Sev then meets the eye. He's better than you in a lot of ways and most importantly, he gets me," said Lily, "that's all I need to know to be his friend."

James couldn't help but stare at her. "He's power hungry, dark arts obsessed, and he'll betray you in the end."

"Shut your mouth Potter," said Snape, "you don't know a thing about me and you don't know a thing about her. You're nothing more than an idiotic, prick that will never grow up and you'll never be good enough for her so don't get any ideas."

Lily smiled at him affectionately in a way that made James want to throttle Snape more than he ever had before.

"I'm good enough for any girl I want Snivellus," James said, "and I'm certainly better than you."

Snape laughed. "Doubtful. You probably couldn't get her even if you tried repeatedly for the next three years. She's too smart for you."

Lily cleared her throat then. "You know I am sitting right here and I really don't appreciate being talked about as if I'm not present. Neither one of you is really wining points at the moment either with this silly little argument of yours."

"I'm better," said James, "come on Evans. Why don't you go out with me? I'll prove that I'm better."

"Don't listen to him. He's nothing more than an idiot," Snape sneered.

At that point Lily was glaring at them both and she let out a frustrated sigh. "You're both being idiots," she said as she grabbed her things, "now if you two don't mind I'm going somewhere to study for my O.W.L's where people aren't acting like little boys."

She got up and left then and Snape followed, calling, "Lily wait up! I'm sorry. I didn't mean it and I-"

But James didn't listen to whatever else Snape had said. All he could think about was Snapes words that he would never be good enough. Granted, Snape was a prick so it shouldn't have bugged him….however, it did and all he could think about was how much he wanted to prove stupid Snivellus wrong.

He could and would be good enough for Lily Evans.

James returned to his table and Remus looked up from the book that he had been reading for the first time. "What was that all about?" Remus said. "You're not going to start hexing Lily now are you? I know that you don't like Lily because she's friends with Snape are you? You've known that for years and just because you had a little confrontation with her doesn't mean you've got a right to hurt her."

He laughed at his friend. "Eaves dropping Moony? Nice…but no. For your information, I'm not going to start hexing Evans just because of that little spat we had. I am going to do something else though."

Remus looked apprehensive. "What's that?"

"I'm going to date her."

"You're going to what?"

"I'm going to date Lily Evans," said James determinedly.

"James, if you want to date, date someone else. You can't date Lily though."

"Just why not exactly? If you tell me it's because I'm not good enough I won't hesitate to punch you."

Remus sighed. "You can't date Lily because she's the only good thing that Snape has. If you take that away from him who knows what he'll do?"

James laughed. "Snape is bad news and always has been bad news. It won't matter if he has Lily or if he doesn't. I'm going to get Lily Evans Moony, even if it's the last thing that I do. I'll prove her and Snivellus wrong."

"You do realize that they didn't challenge you right? You don't have to prove anything to them. Just ignore what they said. I'm sure you could get a girl like Lily if you really wanted to but there's no need to interfere with the two of them. They look like they're about to start dating and-"

"I don't care," said James, "the fact that they didn't officially challenge me is going to make it all the more fun. I want to do this for myself. Evans won't know what hit her. I'll prove them wrong. I swear I will."

Remus put his head in his hands and groaned. "Alright, alright…you do what you want. Just don't say I didn't warn you."

A/N: I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to do with this but I felt like writing it anyway.