A/N: Well, greetings to the world of fanfiction! I won't keep you waiting, here goes.
The four troublemakers sat together in a circle with scattered parchment, playing cards and potato crisps lying between them in the third year dormitory. They had taken to staying indoors this Sunday afternoon, a fact attributed to the unbearable hot weather outside. April was coming on strong with its sweltering heat. The lake, with all its mighty coolness, wasn't effective to say the least.
A round of cards had just ended when Sirius Black suggested the following with a grin.
"Say, Pete, have you ever tried F.L.E.M.S.?" he said, earning laughs from his fellows James Potter and Remus Lupin.
"Tried what? Fleems?" said a confused Peter Pettigrew.
"Ah, it's sad you weren't there," James uttered when he finally caught his breath.
"Yes, F.L.E.M.S." Sirius carried on "It's a really silly game but, unfortunately, very popular too. I'll show you how it works..." he grabbed a stray piece of parchment and a quill nearby.
"You better not talk about this game again, it's proven really stupid many times already," said a thirteen-year-old Remus who rested against the bed, with a chocolate bar in hand.
"Stuff it, Remy." Sirius joked.
"What do you think I'm doing?" replied his mate sarcastically.
"Anyway," emphasized Sirius over James' laughs, and with a pointed look to Remus, "It's simple, really" he said as he wrote down Peter's name on the parchment, "Tell me the name of a girl you fancy," he casually asked.
PETER
Peter frowned as a blush crept to his cheeks, "W-what? I don't like anyone. I'm too youn-"
"Rubbish!" Sirius brushed it aside with a hand gesture, "Someone must've caught your eye," his eye-brows rose.
"Well, Lara is pretty..." fidgeted Peter with his stare fixed on his shirt's green fabric as his fingers fiddled with it.
"Ah, she's cute. Is that her full name?" said the young Gryffindor as he scribbled down her name.
PETER
LARA
"Y-yeah, I think" said Peter as he intently observed the game unfolding before him.
"You see, in the word F.L.E.M.S. the 'F' means friendship, the 'L' means lovers, the 'E' means enemies and the 'M' means marriage. The 'S' is very ridiculous because it doesn't apply to guys..."
"Obviously," said James half-way through a water drink.
"...because it means sisters." He finished as he scratched the aforementioned initials on to the piece of paper.
F.L.E.M.S.
"Okay," uttered Peter with prolonged syllables, "but how does it work, still?"
"First, you cross out the similar letters from the two names..."
PETE
LAA
"There! We have 7 letters left. Now, on the word F.L.E.M.S. we count. That is: one, F; two, L; three, E; four, M; five, S; six is F again; and seven is L. So, we scratch out the letter L," he laughed along with James who added, "which is tough luck for you, Pete."
F.E.M.S.
Comprehension dawning on his face, Peter watched as Sirius counted again, starting from the letter E. The letter S was drawn out. He repeated the process, striking out the F.
E.M.
Sirius whistled, "Tight knot."
"Let's see where it goes, shall we?" James said with a smirk as he watched, his head propped up by his arm.
Remus stayed silent all the while with a very skeptical look on his face, as he munched his Honeydukes' chocolate bar.
Sirius crossed out the E.
Sirius and James laughed, and the latter added, "Will you look at that, commitment? Someone's future doesn't seem so bright!"
Remus tried to stifle his chuckles, but caved in and joined his friends.
Peter flushed a bright red, "It's not funny, guys! Quit it! Le-let's try it with James, yeah?"
"Me? Nah," James shook his head while rubbing the tears of laughter from his eyes.
"Oi, pair up Captain Obvious with someone? How unfortunate for her. But with whom?" said Sirius ignoring his adjacent. He straightened up and twirled the quill between his fingers as he mused.
"How about that mad ginger in our year?" suggested Peter with a shrug.
"Lily?" choked Remus, who had resorted to eating his desert after the amusement had died out. He coughed up the chocolate bits as James hit his back repeatedly.
"All good there, Rem? You know, it's surprising that with all those chocolates that you eat, Peter is the one with the weight problem." he snorted.
"Hey! I see no problem with that!" retorted the offended Peter.
"That's actually true…but focus, Lily Evans! She's mad and controlling. As much torture for her as for you in it, perfect!" said Sirius with a smirk as he unfurled the parchment, "Lilianne is her full name, no?"
"So I've heard."
"She's a nice girl, Sirius," reprimanded an annoyed Remus after the recovery from his coughing bout.
"Lilianne it is," replied the said third-year before scribbling down the name in his untidy handwriting.
JAMES
LILIANNE
"No, no. Keep me out of this," James clambered to his feet, but Sirius caught on to him by the edge of his ropes.
"If Peter had to sit through it, you will too. You're not above the rules, Potter."
"Shut it, McGonagall," and with a tug from Sirius, James flopped down with a scowl.
JMS
LILINN
"Well, 9 letters. Let's see. First goes the M, fortunate for you mate. And then the S, saves the awkwardness. E, I wasn't expecting this. Here goes the F…well, look who's going to get into Evans' pants soon?" he smirked. Peter's expression turned from shock to amusement as he turned to James.
"Yes, because that's what I'd do with a girl that mad," snorted James.
"You're arses, both of you." Remus got to his feet, but he didn't miss the gasping that surrounded him, "What?"
"You swore, Remy!" Sirius exclaimed as he jumped on his mate, hugging him.
"Bloody hell, didn't expect it until next year!" James joined in and Peter quit his gawking as he flanked his arms around the group. They all tumbled down to the floor again, however, at the force with a painful thud. Laughter erupted around the crushed Remus who tried to let loose from his mates, but all the while, not managing to wipe the smile off his face entirely.
"Well, this is awkward," he muttered at the bottom of the human pyramid.
The four troublemakers sat on top of each other, with goofy grins plastered on, in their third year dormitory, on that hot April Sunday. Only much later did they dispose of the parchment to start another round of playing cards. The hands were dealt back to their owners, and the game had commenced for what seemed like the entire evening.
James was very passionate by nature. He gave his all into everything he did: it was no surprise that at such young age he was a candidate for the title 'Gryffindor Quidditch Captain'. Thus, during dinner, although James wouldn't necessarily admit it, he was very aware of a certain green-eyed ginger. He noticed precisely why Remus' chagrin showed in response to Sirius' immature joke (not that he agreed that it was entirely immature). His defense of their fellow Gryffindor was very understandable by the meal's end. Lily Evans had not only helped out a first year, who apparently had a nervous break-down over dinner because of the imminent exams they feared, she had helped a first year that he used to hex for the fun of it. James felt very little. He felt like he and Evans stood on two different levels. It infuriated him as much as it intrigued him.
It was from that day onward that James Potter kept out a wary eye for Lily Evans: during their common classes; during their breaks be it breakfast, lunch or dinner. It was much of an obsession, really, but what he saw, all the little things, threw him aback. It amazed him.
James Potter wouldn't know, until much later in fifth year, but that was the day he'd started falling in love with that 'mad and controlling' bird.
Because to him, Lilianne Evans, with all her lacking qualities, was perfect.
A/N: In all honesty, this was a very popular game during my childhood years, and the idea just popped into my head somehow for a one-shot. Let me know if you actually did try the game out, :P
Thanks to everyone and anyone who bothered to read this far down. I hope it was fruitful and that you've enjoyed!
Since this is my first attempt at publishing, critical reviews are highly recommended! Or just normal reviews. Or none at all. I ain't yo motha.
Well...that's my cue!
With love,
Eliza