Changing

Warning:  The beginning of this story is an excerpt from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix so don't say I didn't warn you!

Characters are property of J.K. Rowling.

"The sunlight was dazzling on the smooth surface of the lake, on the back of which the group of laughing girls who had just left the Great Hall were sitting with shoes and socks off, cooling their feet in the water.

            Lupin had pulled out a book and was reading. Sirius stared around at the students milling over the grass, looking rather haughty and bored, but very handsomely so. James was still playing with the Snitch, letting it zoom father and farther away, almost escaping but always grabbed at the last second. Wormtail was watching him with his mouth open. Every time James made a particularly difficult catch, Wormtail gasped and applauded….

            'Put that away, will you?" said Sirius finally, as James made a fine catch and Wormtail let out a cheer. 'Before Wormtail wets himself from excitement.'

            Wormtail turned slightly pink but James grinned.

            'If it bothers you,' he said stuffing the Snitch back in his pocket.

            "I'm bored,' said Sirius. 'Wish it was a full moon.'

            'You might,' said Lupin darkly from behind his book. 'We've still got Transfiguration, if you're bored you can test me…here.' He held out his book.

            Sirius snorted, 'I don't need to know that rubbish, I know it all.'

            'This'll liven you up Padfoot.' Said James quietly. 'Look who it is…'

            Sirius' head turned. He had become very still, like a dog that has scented a rabbit.

            'Excellent,' he said softly. 'Snivellus."

            Snape was on his feet and was stowing the O.W.L. papers in his bag. As her emerged from the shadows of the bushes and set off across the grass, Sirius and James stood up. Lupin and Wormtail remained sitting:  Lupin was still staring down in his book, though his eyes were not moving and a faint frown line had appeared between his eyebrows. Wormtail was looking from Sirius and James to Snape with a look of avid anticipation on his face.

            'All right, Snivellus?' said James loudly.

            Snape had reacted so fast it was as though he had been expecting an attack:  Dropping his bag, he plunged his hand inside his robes, and his wand was halfway into the air when James shouted, 'Expelliarmus!'

            Snape's wand flew twelve feet into the air and fell with a little thud in the grass behind him. Sirius let out a bark of laughter.

            'Impedimenta!' he said, pointing his wand at Snape, who was knocked off his feet, halfway through a dive towards his own fallen wand.

            Students all around had turned to watch. Some of them had gotten to their feet and were edging nearer to watch. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained.

            Snape lay panting on the ground. James and Sirius advanced on him, wands up, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water's edge as he went. Wormtail was on his feet now, watching, edging around Lupin to get a better view.

            'How'd the exam go Snivelly?' said James.

            'I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment,' said Sirius viciously. 'There'll be great grease marks all over it, they won't be able to read a word.'

            Several people watching laughed; Snape was clearly unpopular. Wormtail sniggered shrilly. Snape was trying to get up, but the jinx was still operating oh him; he was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.

            'You—wait,' he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing. 'You—wait…'

            'Wait fro what?' said Sirius coolly. 'What're you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose onus?'

            Snape let out a stream of mixed swear words and hexes, but his wand being ten feet away nothing happened.

            'Wash out your mouth,' said James coldly. 'Scourgify!'

            Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, choking him—

            'Leave him ALONE!'

            James and Sirius looked around. James's free hand jumped to his hair again.

            It was one of those girls from the lake edge. She had thick, dark red hair that fell to her shoulders and startling green almond-shaped eyes.

            'All right Evans?' said James, and the tone of his voice was suddenly pleasant, deeper and more mature.

            'Leave him alone,' Lily repeated. She was looking at James with every sign of dislike. 'What's he done to you?'

            'Well,' said James, appearing t to deliberate the point, 'it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean…'

            Many of the surrounding watchers laughed, Sirius and Wormtail included, but Lupin, still apparently intent on his book, didn't, and neither did Lily.

            'You think you're funny,' she said coldly. 'But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone.'

            'I will if you go out with me, Evans,' said James quickly. 'Go on…Go out with me, and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again.'

            Behind him, the Impediment Jinx was wearing off, Snape was beginning to inch forward toward his fallen wand, spitting out soapsuds as he crawled.

            'I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid,' said Lily.

            'Bad luck Prongs,' said Sirius briskly, turning his back to Snape. 'OY!'

            But too late; Snape had directed his wand straight at James; there was a flash of light and a gash appeared on the side of James' face, spattering his robes with blood. James whirled about; a second flash of light later, Snape was hanging upside down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs and a pair of graying underpants.

            Many people in the small crowd watching cheered. Sirius, James and Wormtail roared with laughter.

Lily, whose furious expression had twitched for an instant as though she was going to smile, said, 'Let him down!'

            'Certainly,' said James and he jerked his wand upward. Snape fell into a crumpled heap on the ground. Disentangling himself from his robes, he got quickly to his feet, wand up, but Sirius said, 'Locomotormortis!' and Snape kneeled over again at once, rigid as a board.

            'LEAVE HIM ALONE!' Lily shouted. She had her own wand out now. James and Sirius eyed it warily.

            'Ah, Evans. Don't make me hex you,' said James earnestly.

            'Take the curse off him, then!'

            James sighed deeply, then turned to Snape and muttered the countercurse.

            'There you go,' he said, as Snape struggled to his feet again, 'you're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus—'

            'I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!'

            Lily blinked, 'Fine,' she said coolly. 'I won't bother in future. And I'd was your pants if I were you, Snivellus.'

            'Apologize to Evans!' James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him.

            'I don't want you to make him apologize,' Lily shouted, rounding on James. 'You're as bad as he is…'

            'What?' yelped James. "I'd NEVER call you a—you-know-what!'

            'Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down the corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can—I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK.'

            She turned on her heel and hurried away.

            'Evans!' James shouted at her, 'Hey, EVANS!'

            But she didn't look back.

            'What is it with her?' said James, trying and failing to look as though this was a throwaway question of no real importance to him.

            'Reading between the line, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate,' said Sirius.

            'Right,' said James, who looked furious now, 'right—' " (JK Rowling, Order page 644-9)

Lily was storming back up the earthen path to the castle. Where? She didn't know. Perhaps the Owlery or maybe even back to the Gryffindor common room which was most likely empty because most of the students decided to take advantage of the nice, warm sunny day.

            "Arg!" and a few other releases of anger left Lily as she threw herself into her favorite armchair. She looked out of the diamond paned window—back to the green lawn where she could see Snape sulking back into the castle and James Potter and his crew were settling back down where they were before the fight started. As much as she despised Snape she could not understand why Potter and Black kept on attacking him, especially when Snape did nothing to provoke them.

Oh wait. There was James' whole "He exists" bullshit.

"The nerve of him!" she growled as she reflected back to James's words "If you'll go out with me Evans…" Why did he do that? Lily had hearing rumors about James Potter, the much-adored Gryffindor Seeker, liked her but she did not return the favor. Everything she said to him minutes ago was true…" But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter…Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down the corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can—I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK…"

Sighing, Lily went up to her dormitory, took her bag and went to the library.