Even a Rose
Summary: James bets Sirius that he can get any girl to fall in love with him in under 2 weeks. But when James is given Lily as a target he finds out the hard way what falling in love really means.
Disclaimer: Obviously, I'm no JK Rowling. I'm merely borrowing her characters for my own amusement.
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It started out, as things often do with juvenile boys, with a bet. It ended, as most stories do, with heartbreak. To the school there was only one, heartbreak I mean. It was the one that was most visible, most predictable, and most logical. The school witnessed the heartbreak of the girl who was hurt, probably the only person in this twisted story who never deserved to get hurt. What the school didn't see was the self-inflicted hurt, the heartbreak of the boy who had hurt her. No one imagined for a second that as Lily Evans shuffled to classes, averted her eyes, and tried desperately not to cry, preferring to save her tears for her pillow during the sleepless nights that would follow, my heart was breaking inside. That I hadn't slept for more than fifty-seven minutes straight since I'd hurt her. That Lily consumed my daily thoughts and caused me to cry openly when I was taking those long, solitary flights around the Quidditch pitch.
But even if the notion had occurred to someone, it would not have lasted long. And I couldn't blame them. James Potter, King of Heartbreakers, was heartbroken himself? Uh-uh, nope, sorry, that just wasn't how things worked at Hogwarts. I was a player, a joker, a Marauder, and by law of the school I did not get hurt.
I suppose that's how this all began, with the preconceived images we all hold for each other. It was supposed to be a challenge; a few rules were meant to be broken but for the most part the rigid system applied. That's where my plan fell through, where I messed up. For though we'd believed we'd covered all the possible outcomes, we'd never once entertained the possibility that I would fall in love with Lily Evans.
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"What about Christina Miller?" Sirius Black nodded towards a busty blonde who was trying to charm her way out of a failing Potions' grade. She bent over Professor Slughorn's desk, her body weight resting on her elbows as she revealed a highly unneeded amount of cleavage to the Potions professor. She continuously tossed her honey blonde hair over her shoulder and fluttered her mascara coated eyelashes, but looks appeared to have no clout with the hierarchical obsessed professor.
James Potter wrinkled his nose, "She's too easy, even for you, Padfoot."
"Yeah, bet she's a great snog though."
"Is that all you ever think about?"
Sirius contemplated this for a minute before evading the answer. "Well, you know what they say about a man's brain every seven seconds . . ."
James rolled his eyes, "And I thought it was your goal to never become a statistic."
Smiling softly at their interminable bickering, Remus Lupin hefted his bag over his shoulder and carefully waited for his window of opportunity, "Library?"
"Sure," Sirius casually waved his hand, never taking his eyes of James as the three boys exited the drafty dungeon. "The way I see it, it's impossible for me to ever become a statistic."
"Yeah? How so?"
"There is no one in this world, magical or muggle, who is quite as handsome, charming, attractive, intelligent, or irresistible as I am." Sirius responded smugly as the three Marauders entered the library.
"Nor is there anyone quite as shallow, egotistical-"
"I don't know, James, you might be able to give Sirius a run for his money there," Remus interjected, dropping his bag on one of the library's unoccupied tables.
"Or as easy," aside from a swift glare, James chose to ignore Remus' comment, "as you are."
"And just what, is that supposed to mean?" Sirius looked around the room in confusion, before dropping into the seat next to Remus. "Where are we?"
"The library," Remus smirked, pulling out his unfinished Transfiguration essay. "It was your idea," he assured him.
"What I'm saying is," James carried on as though such interruptions were a common occurrence. "That life must get awfully dull, having girls constantly throw themselves at you."
"And you would be speaking from experience?"
"Of course."
Sirius snorted. "I know this may be hard for you to grasp, mate, but not all of Hogwarts' is in love with you." Sirius patted his friend's shoulder sympathetically.
"Please," James scoffed, "The girls here love me."
"Can either of your egos get any larger?" Remus muttered, yet Sirius brightened at the opportunity.
"Are you willing to bet on that?"
"Bet on what?" James eyed him warily. Lately Sirius had developed a gambling addiction, betting on everything from Quidditch matches to who would get a better score on their Potions essay.
Sirius ignored him, mentally measuring the stakes. "I'm willing to bet you ten galleons that you can't get a girl to fall in love with you in a week."
"Two weeks," Remus cut in, "a week isn't long enough to establish anything more than lust."
"Fine," Sirius rolled his eyes, "Two weeks. What do you say, mate?"
James contemplated this for a moment, "Who's the girl?"
Sirius' brow furrowed in thought and he cast his eyes around the library for an idea. They landed on a pretty redhead in the corner, sharing notes with a curvy blonde. "How about Lily Evans?"
James felt the familiar clench of his stomach at the suggestion. Lily Evans. To say that she would be a challenge was an understatement of major proportions. Their relationship had gotten off to a rocky start, to say the least, when James had inadvertently changed her skin an interesting shade of purple in first year (she'd had to attend dinner in the Great Hall before James had looked up the reversal spell). In third year their initial animosity blossomed into a fierce competition as they realized they were tied as the top student of the class. In fifth year, as James began to take a greater interest in girls, he'd begun to realize how attractive Lily's competitive streak was. He made her his goal for the year, relentlessly pursuing her with acts that made other girls swoon yet seemingly had no effect on the fiery redhead other than to provoke a series of insults and the occasional slap or hex. By sixth year James had outgrown his Lily infatuation and had set his sights on more attainable girls – namely everyone but Lily. In under six months James had managed to bury all thoughts of Lily and immerse himself in his new role as a heartbreaker. Still, Lily's name managed to awaken several feelings James would have preferred to have remain forgotten.
"Hello, Earth to James?"
James' head snapped up and he found himself staring at two expectant faces. "Do we have a deal?"
James looked across the library, watching Lily laugh as she leaned across the table to whisper something to Alice. Turning back to Sirius he cursed the amusement flickering in his friends' eyes. "You're on."
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A/N: So, that's the Prologue. Understandably, the other chapters will be much longer. I already have 6 written, so updates shouldn't be "few and far between" like usual, but I can't make any promises. I know it may sound like an empty promise, but I can honestly say that the other chapters are much better than this bit. But if you've enjoyed it at all, please leave a review! Constructive criticism, as always, is much appreciated.
Oh, and anyone interested in being a beta please drop me a line. I've never actually had some read, edit, or assist in my stories in anyway . . . and I know I could really use that. So, if you're interested, let me know!
Until next time –
-DOJ