A Day to Day Basis

An: Hey , I fixed this chapster up a bit , tell me what ya think , da?

For a second , or fraction of one , when the golden wings rushed at her with such speed , she did realize it would crash , make it's mark , and finally end it's purpose in life .The Snitch scratched her brain and cracked her skull , she felt as though Vesuvius could not compare to the eruption of pain in her head. Her eyes were open wide and she tried to blink blinding tears out of the way to sight , but her attempts failed miserably and ended only in a fit of twitching .

Once she sat up , she felt , to her misfortune , three hundred years older. The first she saw ( for lack of a better word) were long wiggle-some pinkish creatures , in her mind , she thought of them as domesticated, living, jam- then she thought about how much her mum loved jam , and how much she fancied eating it like a pig. Obviously there was some type of fog in her head, for she smiled as well.

When her vision focused a bit , she saw a mound of black and spectacles hurrying toward her, she inwardly groaned. Mainly because if she'd voiced her disgust and disappointment at having Potter running at her with considerable speeds the pain of her skull cracking would erupt tenfold. So she settled for imagining an immense blob of phlegm splatter upon his untidy head.

Before she knew it , a bob of smooth black hair , tousled , but not-so-messy as to set her into her automatic slap of response, was leaning over her.

"Aright Evans?" asked Sirius.

"Dandy" Lily groaned .

Finally catching up , James muttered "Erm…mm…sorry…" .

Positively fuming, Lily thought to look on the bright side , Vesuvius was not located upon her brow but in another country!

" No Potter, you're not , but , That is to be expected from the likes of you" the silence was filled with the steam that came out of her ears " Look what you've done now! My head will be permanently deformed after this! People would think you are some type of Merlin! Not an under-age git-of-a-wizard starved of attention"

Lily's voice was calm , having six years of previous experience with Potter , she learned to let the fury out in small doses . She tried to ignore that her head was about to crack open and spill all it's contents, and that lifeless snitch that lay by her palm. Getting up , she swiveled a little , but felt decidedly better , since on the floor , the much taller height of her peers had gotten her a bit intimidated.

" 'Got a point there , Prongs , 'wouldn't want you starved , after all , you do look a little melancholic lately" Sirius smiled, giving Lily a look saying, Maybe you should feed him.

"Shut Up. Aright Evans , I'm not sorry. The truth is I rather be over there"- he pointed to a group of snickering Gryffindor girls –" at least there , my talent will be appreciated"

"This is your talent?" Lily asked skeptically , pointing to the snitch.

"No…." he shook his head for good measure, but got distracted by a rather shiny object laying on Lily's bosom. Noticing , she quickly crossed her arms before her chest and glared a if-looks-could-kill-you'd-be-my-owl's-mush-dinner glare.

" See here Prongs," Sirius said clapping James on the back " the way I see it , the last person who 'appreciated your talent' has committed suicide" he gestured to the now gray-golden snitch "and almost murdered your lov- I mean Evans here" he added.

"Whose side are you on , Padfoot!" asked James in a mock-hurt voice .

"I'm not sure , but I'm going to hang around until I make sure your mate didn't cut open Evans pretty little head" Sirius retorted.

"SHE KILLED MY SNITCH!" James screeched , pointing an accusing finger at Lily , whom had both palms on her skull , as if trying to piece it back together.

Sirius shook his head , as an annoyed parent would , after watching their child do something incredibly idiotic.

"DID NOT! IT ALMOST BLEW MY HEAD OPEN! WHICH IS YOUR FAULT ANYWAY!" Lily retorted , and if they had not had the attention of their resting peers , they had it now.

"AT LEAST IT WAS FUNNY! EVERYONE WAS LAUGHING!" They were both now yelling at the highest capacity of their lungs , their arm pushed back as if trying to get impulse , their faces scrunched into child's .

Sirius was laughing hysterically now , and had conjured a rather large Pack-mule to carry cockroach clusters to the other audience-members.

" WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS MAKING ME TICK?" Lily asked , mad as ever , having just passed the usual , BIG-HEADED-PRICK argument and the WHO-CARES-IF-I-AM-A-PRCK-IF-YOU-ARE-A-BLOODY-COW comeback .

"Ooooo , I make you tick ? What else do I make you do , Evans ?Having dreams about me? Or are you reconsidering my earlier proposal?" seeing her confused glare he added

"You don't remember? Oh , well , I'll just ask again , will you go out with me?" he said sensuously .

Lily flushed , then Sirius yelled triumphantly " One-hundred sixteenth time!" he insisted on keeping James's numerous attempt at Lily's affections tallied, "This week!" he added.

"Those aren't called dreams , Potter , maybe you are familiar with the term , 'nightmare'...no, perhaps subconscious psychosis ? As in insanity?" she asked.

James laughed ," You must be crazed with love for me" he said humorously.

" And you must be smoking Filtch's pipes again" Lily added , being a prefect , she did have it on good authority that Filtch , was indeed an avid pipe- smoker. As was the usual routine , Sirius's booming laughter rung all throughout the lake.

"Ha ha ha HA , oi …oof , mate , … stop it…haha…you're killing me , I have to piss….hehehe HAHA" he was now rolling on the ground , clutching his lower belly , apparently in pain.

" Maybe you should go to Poppy , she'll take care ya ,you should know I'm really sorry my no-longer-golden mate ruined you face like that" then seeing the loathing look , he added " But , I'm sure she'll fix it up just fine"

"I can take care of myself-git" Lily responded angrily, her hand flying to the spot where the snitch had made it's mark, feeling for deformities.

"How witty!" James battered his eyelashes. The on looking group of gals broke into a fit of giggles , "Go on Evans, although I would love to admire your lovely face all day –and night" he made suggestive gestures "I'm a busy man … I've got ….. ahh….Quidditch practice"

Lily glared holes through his robes ,and handed him his now almost-black-golden-snitch , James brushed his fingers on her hand and looked deep into her eyes , she said " Fix your hair Potter , every time I see you (which is too often for my liking), you look more like a beggar"

Sirius erupted with laughter once more , heading to the castle entrance with a wave( and speed , considering he was urinating on himself). James , smiling a the seemingly never-ending sense of humor that Sirius possessed , said –" I'll catch you later Evans , maybe in a more comfortable situation…then you can confess your devotion for me … see how thoughtful I am?"

Lily groaned and did a dismissive hand gesture , walking briskly into the castle. Thinking that she should give the head nurse the pleasure of a visit , since her vision was turning greenish ,and she had to patrol anyway.

…

The day before the end of the term was as hot and humid as any breath of dragon. The temperature was this to such a point that the professors lounging in the Herbology classroom , found the mandrake boiling and shouting curses of protest , with such vigor , a couple of them fainted. Later when asked what in the name of Merlin had caused them to faint , the professors had answered lazily " The little furious voices" , for some reason the room always got awkwardly quiet afterward….Needless to say the day was hot .

Because of the horrid weather, the students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry , were permitted to leave their robes behind. Most thought to bring their muggle clothing , and were still cooking themselves . The students were advised to bring an 'emergency stock' of muggle clothing , in case worst came to worst. So that if they would have to leave the safety of the school , the students could 'blend' without much difficulty. The only flaw in this crackles plan , unfortunately , was that most wizards had no idea what muggles dressed as , much less how to 'blend'.

The lake was a favorite rest spot for Gryffindors , a place they could have some peace from the other houses. Since the Hufflepuffs were terrified of the famed 'lake monster' , rumored to be a giant squid ( the kitchens had field days every time they served seafood , being bombarded with inquiries of where the food had originated) , Ravenclaws preferred to use resting periods for catch up studying and Slytherins preferred never to see the sun.

Around the lake , one could find just about every color , texture , and style of clothing ever constructed, although eccentrically mashed together. There were men with dresses , claiming to have bought their clothing from muggle stores therefore they had to be worn by muggles , gals with boxers and the same excuse, and some must have been frying with their blinding fluorescent suits( no doubt suggestion from their parents , whom thought suits were the safest way to go). Walking the perimeter , one could also admire the attempts to wrestle out of the muggle clothing , or the cutting of sleeves of shirts and the legs of trousers ,begging for a simple breeze. The elements apparently addled with the young wizards brains since, you could also see the attempts at freezing charms on the lake , or themselves , some charms to cloud the sky , or better yet , the sun.

…

" Mate , I swear , If I die in this heat , I want you to know , that none of you pricks can have my money!" Sirius said in an exasperated voice.

"I don't want you money!" Peter exclaimed in a tone that suggested quite the opposite.

"You mean the one you were disowned from? " seeing Sirius face fall , Remus quickly said "You could never have enough galleons to sedate our lust for chocolate , either way"

He seemed to be the only one not in the least bothered with the heat , but , nothing could really affect Moony except a full moon , the rest , he didn't deem with much ado.

Seeing that James wasn't laughing (as the rest of then were) , Sirius asked ,

"You okay , Prong? You seem a bit ….thoughtful" Sirius spoke the last word in disgust .

"Nah! Just dreaming of tomorrow" he said wistfully .

"Literally?"

"Yeah! I can't wait to go home ! The food , the love! The Quidditch , my own room , without you gits to complain about my nightly gasses-" James stopped reminiscing suddenly and went into a haze.

Not AGAIN! Thought Remus , while Peter giggled like a crazed first-year with newly discovered romantic experience and Sirius rolled his eyes at James .

They called it Evansyndrom , said that it had plagued James since third year , it caused him vivid dreams , constant drooling , the inexplicable urge to carve her name on something (even if it was on his own leg) , and the incapacity to pay any speck of attention to anything else while Evans was less than a kilometer away, thus going into his haze.

None of the three unaffected Marauders had any doubt that Evans was …attractive, (although they wouldn't be caught dead saying those word in front of their fellow possessive companion) but they struggled to perceive what so spectacular about her.

Accustomed to the uptight Evans , the lakeside residents gaped at her.. she never appeared to be affected by the compulsive need her female companions were enraptured by –to be attractive. While she spoke to her friends , her face morphed into attentiveness , concern , then laughter, reigning for miles. Lily wore a simple airy dress which had on it what she thought of as a hideous flowery print , yet she seemed comfortable, though the words 'Lily' and 'dress' would never be written or spoken in the same sentence. The overall effect was quite enamoring.

"Prongs , Hey Prongs! Prongs! PRONGS!" James didn't snap out , as was usual , before he embarrassed himself , or lost his cool , but unfortunately it did not click today.

"She's certainly grown" he whispered.

Not realizing what he was doing , or moving towards ( which was definitely of more importance) James found himself inside a hoard of very confused , giggling and skimpily dressed girls , one of them being Lily Evans , though she however was neither giggling or confused.

"Evans! What a marvelous surprise!" he made a courtly bow , knocking his head on some no-name girl , whom giggled profusely and ran to tell tall tales of her luck to her equally easily impressed friend.

" Potter" she tried her best to ignore his presence "what do you want?" she spat , not being able to fain complete indifference.

"Just…admiring , I guess" he said innocently.

There was a minute's silence then the hoard practically blasted with laughter.

"He's just so CUTE!" some gal yelled in between breaths . "She's so idiotic !" was a fierce (and loud ) reply " Let's get close so we can get splattered by his sweat!" a surprisingly popular cry, and the hoard fell silent once more. Lily made a grunt that sounded curiously like a bull with a red cape in front of it's nose.

" You will never change , Potter" she said simply.

" No darling , and you love it" he cheekily grinned.

"What are you doing here anyway?" she asked trying to change the subject , which had rose considerable color to her cheeks , despite the heat.

"Just what I said , admiring"

" Admiring what , exactly?"

" The flowers" he said, pointing at a well-groomed rose bush close by , but letting his eyes roam over the lively flower print.

Not noticing , Lily said stiffly "Didn't figure you a romantic"

"Ahh, but you see , I figure myself a lot of things , you might see them , if you looked " he said , emphasizing the words with his eyes , most of the hoard sighed simultaneously.

" I figure myself rather blind" she said , not catching on to the romanticism , or not wanting to.

"Well , I guess that doesn't matter , I'm really just a hopeless romantic" she laughed , despite her wishes and rock-hard resolution , along with the few dozen girls.

"See… I can be amusing"

"Oh , yes , amusing , annoying , insufferable , in a word ..git" she answered with a snort of laughter.

" Stop it!" he protested humorously" you're making me blush" Lily laughed again , along with the ever copying hoard.

"Well…I'll see you tomorrow , on the train, Evans ?" she nodded , he beamed

"Bye, then!"

"G'bye Potter" Lily said , adding her own smile .

He turned around and started walking towards the impatient Marauders , but stopped , apparently remembering something.

"Oh , and , Bye Girls"

The hoard broke into fitful giggles , each one saying something louder as James got further away.

"He's so Handsome!" one screeched

" I'm so jealous of you !" one commented to Lily

"Why does he like you so much? I mean , you aren't that pretty" maybe she did not realize how truly insulting she was, which was highly improbable , due to the fact that it had been a seventh-year who had stated her comment so boldly.

"And he's a great guy too ," said one as if she had it on authority " James Potter is the funniest and kindest boy ever! You don't need much more than brains to love him"

"Of course you don't need much more than brains to love him, JUST LOOK AT HIS ARSE!" one retorted , and a silence seemed to drape over all in the lake.

James's smug look morphed into one of complete shock and he started to grope his lower back . It seemed that he hadn't been aware of that particular attribute, and Lily could almost see his head swelling and engulfing the school with such an immense size.

Then the Hoard exploded and the laughter was contagious, soon the whole of the lake was giggling and snickering about the idiotic comment on James's bum. Lily seemed to be embarrassed she could be found in such company , and tried to walk as quickly as wizardly possible into the castle . His Arse? Why did his bum have to come into consideration? Are we animals? .

James almost made it to the Marauders , but seeing Lily walking into the school alone made him rethink his decision and mouthed 'I'll see you later' to Sirius . The Marauders however , were much too busy to care , since the hoard had remembered that Sirius Black was so much more handsome than James Potter. By the time James reached the door to the castle , Sirius was giving Remus instructions to go to the right of the hoard , Sirius would go to the left , and Peter could get the strays.

Lily rounded a corner , still rushing , though having long ago left behind the Gryffindor resting spot. I'm Not pretty? Stop It Lily! she scolded herself, You are not a superficial person , much less that shallow! Besides, you're gorgeous! She chuckled and thought a bit about how stupid she would look if anyone saw her laughing to herself.

Suddenly , as she passed what she thought was an empty classroom , she was grabbed and pulled into it. She found herself in, not an empty classroom , but broom closet , facing a pair of glasses , and too-messy jet black hair.

"What now Potter?" she spat , not too content with the fact that she was in a broom closet with….him.

" I just wanted to say …something to you" he looked a bit …nervous. Potter? Nervous!

"What?"

"Just that….you look good , Evans"

She turned and walked out of the closet , slamming the wooden door , but not before James could get a glimpse of her blushing face.