Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. :)

Conversation of a Quill
written by ameo

"You know what I think, Lily?" James whispered. "I think you want to borrow my quill because you're having note-taking withdrawals."

Lily laughed silently, as not to attract the attention of the professor. "How do you know I'm having withdrawals?" she asked, keeping her mouth absolutely still, not turning to look at him, but keeping her eyes towards the front of the classroom.

James leaned forward in his chair. "Well, for one, your left hand is twitching."

Her eyes immediately looked at her left hand, which wasn't making a single movement. He grinned.

"Aha, you are having withdrawals!" he exclaimed. "I knew it!"

She looked at him, narrowing her eyes and shaking her head. "I'm not having withdrawals, James." she whispered. "You know as well as I do that this class is the most boring class ever."

James leaned back in his chair so the front legs were high in the air and chuckled, earning a glare from the professor. He immediately sat back up and sent the professor a cheeky grin, who glared at him again before continuing with her lecture.

"Tell me again why I'm talking to you?" Lily said, focusing her attention back on the lecturing professor.

"Because, like you said earlier, you know this subject is absolutely worthless." James said, once again leaning back in his chair so the front legs were in the air again.

"Don't do that!" she said, glancing at him. "You'll get in trouble again."

"Lily, Lily, Lily," he clucked his tongue. "That is why I sit in the back of the classroom and you sit in the very front."

"I would be sitting in my usual front seat if I wasn't late." she retorted. "But I'm stuck with you."

"Who said you were stuck with me?" he asked, crossing his arms. "There was an empty seat next to my best mate right over there--" he pointed a seat ahead of him, where Sirius Black, currently sleeping soundly on the table, snorted and drooled onto the forming pool of saliva on the tabletop. "--you could have sat there."

Lily snorted. "Like I said, I'm stuck with you."

James chuckled again, earning yet another glare from the professor. He sat straight up again and sent the professor another cheeky grin.

Lily rolled her eyes. "You are impossible, James Potter." she muttered.

"Yet here you are, still talking to me," he commented. "The impossible James Potter."

The corners of her mouth twitched like she was going to smile.

"Aha!" he said. "I knew it! I knew you had a sense of humor somewhere in you!" he waved his hands in the air. "Call The Prophet! They'll absolutely love this gossip--"

"There will be none of that." Lily interrupted. "And stop talking to me, I'm trying to pay attention."

"You said the subject was worthless." he said.

"I did not."

"Another symptom of the note-taking withdrawals, I see." he commented. "Denial."

She turned to look at him. "I didn't say the subject was worthless, I said it was boring." she said, turning back to face the professor. "There's a big difference."

"You implied it."

She remained silent. She leaned back in her chair so she was slouching slightly.

"Admit it, Lily," he whispered. "You know this subject is entirely worthless. Just say it."

She took her cloak off and rolled up her sleeves and loosened her tie a little. James watching her with that stupid smirk that said I know exactly what you're thinking all over it. "Will it make you happy?"

He grinned. "Yes, it will make me very happy."

She sighed, closed her eyes and opened them. "Yes, but if I do admit it, then you'll go back to your original theory that I'm having note-taking withdrawals."

"You just admitted it!" he exclaimed, sitting up straighter, running a hand through his already messy hair.

"I did not!"

"Yes you did," he said. "Just now! You did!"

"James Potter, you are going delirious." she stated after a second's pause.

He ran a hand through his hair again. "Maybe I am, but you want to know what I think?"

"If I said no, would it make a difference?" she asked.

"Nope." he shook his head and grinned. "I think you are the one who is delirious." he nodded his head. "Yes, it looks like another symptom of the note-taking withdrawals."

Lily sighed, shook her head and rolled her eyes. "You are impossible."

"You're running out of things to say, Lily."

"You are hopeless."

"That's a synonym for 'impossible.'" he stated. "What about something new? Like 'bullying toerag?'"

She groaned silently. "I had such a nerve, calling you those things."

"Yes, yes you did." James agreed. "But you were right."

She giggled softly. "I suppose I was right, but I was still a little brat."

"Yes, yes you are." he agreed.

"Are? As in presently?"

"Were, I meant you were a brat."

"Sure you did."

There was silence, and James fished out a quill and a piece of parchment from his bag. He scribbled something down before ripping it off and crumbling it into a small ball.

"Come on, Professor," he muttered. "Look away…"

As if the professor had heard him, she turned away. James threw the crumbled up ball at the back of his best mate's head, who jumped up in shock.

James chuckled silently. "Apparently he was taking a nap." he commented to himself sarcastically.

His best mate turned in his chair and glared at James, who looked pointedly at the crumbled up ball that was on the floor.

"Pick it up!" James whispered fiercely.

His best mate glared again and picked it up. He flattened it out and read the message. He looked up at James again and raised his eyebrows. James nodded enthusiastically. His best mate glanced at Lily, who was busy watching their antics, and then back at James. He smiled and nodded before turning back in his chair to snooze.

"Good." James said to himself, leaning back in his chair.

"What did the note say, James?" Lily asked a moment later.

He looked at her. "Another symptom." he observed, ignoring her question. "You're getting curious."

"When are you going to stop with that absurd theory?"

"When you admit you want to borrow my quill and take notes."

She looked at him straight in the eyes, narrowing her own. He simply stared right back, raising one eyebrow and smiling knowingly. She held back a laugh and turned towards the front of the classroom again.

"Admit it, Lily." he said.

Lily sighed. "Can I borrow your quill?"

James clapped his hand on her shoulder. "That's the spirit, Lily!" he gave her his quill. "Here you go!"

Lily rolled her eyes and took the quill from his hand. She began digging through her bag for a piece of parchment, but none were to be found. She huffed and sat up straight again, looking straight ahead. She glanced at James, who was watching her and grinning amusedly.

She snatched the ripped parchment lying in front of him before he could do anything.

"Hey!" James said.

"You weren't going to use it," Lily replied. "And besides, Sirius is trying to sleep." She looked pointedly at the sleeping boy in front of them.

"Well said, Lily, well said." he chuckled.

Lily began to doodle pictures on the ripped parchment. Her back was bent and her red hair kept getting into her eyes.

"So…" James began. "Why were you late, anyway?"

Lily swept her hair out of her face, but continued doodling. "What do you mean?"

"Ah, answering a question with a question," James spoke. "Very sly, very sly."

Lily drew a figure on the parchment, to which James had to suppress a laugh. "What is that?" he said forcefully.

She glared at him playfully. "It's a unicorn!"

"Oh," he said. "It looks like two circles with four lines and a triangle sticking out of it."

She examined her drawing and snorted. "It does look pretty ridiculous, doesn't it." she stated. "No one ever said that drawing was my forte."

"You want to know what I think?" he whispered.

"Not really."

"I think," James continued on. "That we should vandalize this desk."

"What!" Lily said loudly. The professor glared at her, to which Lily smiled innocently back before the professor continued with the lecture. "You want to deface school property?"

"Yeah, why not?" James nodded. "It's our Seventh Year, what can they do?"

"Well, for one thing--" Lily began, but James had already taken another quill out and began scratching a doodle into the desk. "James!" she whispered fiercely, then, upon seeing his design, she smiled. "What on Earth is that supposed to be?"

"It's that old bat Sinistra," James said. "The Divination--"

"I know who the old bat is!" Lily interrupted. "That looks…" she stopped and cocked her head to the side. "Well, come to think of it, that does have an uncanny resemblance to Sinistra…" she thought aloud.

James smirked. "My artwork is amazing. I am a genius."

Lily rolled her eyes and giggled slightly. "Wait, you need to add…there. Now she's perfect."

James looked at her new addition. "I am amazed. It's like an exact replica!"

Lily smiled smugly. "Of course it is, if it wasn't for me adding the magnifying glasses to her eyes it would look nothing like her!"

James nodded his head. "You're right; but you still haven't answered my question."

"And which one would that be?"

"Why were you late to class?"

Lily cocked her head to the side. "I was having…a crisis."

"Ooh, now I'm interested." James said, leaning forward in his chair. "Lily Evans having a crisis, wow."

"Believe it or not, sir, I am a normal person!" Lily replied, crossing her arms.

"I know," he shrugged. "So what was your normal crisis? I want to know."

"Well," she hesitated. "I've been having problems."

"Like…?" he urged.

She smiled slightly. "Like, boy problems."

James's head snapped up. "Oh, I thought you had a zit or something."

Lily smacked him on the arm. "I do not get zits!"

"That's exactly why I thought it was your crisis." he replied, rubbing his arm. "And why'd you have to hit me?"

"You deserved it."

"I did not." he stated. "But anyway, why did this crisis keep you from getting to class on time?"

"Because Alice was giving me advice." Lily responded. "She was late for class too."

"How would I know that?" he said. "Alice isn't in this class. Lucky prick." he added.

Lily smacked him again. "You deserved it that time." she said.

"Well she is rather lucky." he replied. "As this subject is pretty much worthless."

"It is." Lily clarified, despite how she denied that same fact earlier in class.

"Anyway," James continued. "As we keep getting off the topic--"

"I must be somewhere else, what was the topic again?"

"Your crisis. Anyway--"

"Oh, we're still talking about that?"

"Could you please stop interrupting me? Thank you; as we keep getting off the topic at hand, your boy problems," James smirked. "I'd like to ask you this: who is this boy that's caught your eye?"

"I didn't say he caught my eye, James." Lily said. "I said I was having boy problems--nothing about catching a fancy of him."

"So, who do you fancy again?"

"I thought we already clarified that I didn't fancy him."

"You just admitted that you fancied this boy that's been giving you problems." James stated smugly. "Now who is he? What's he like?" James tipped his chair back so the front legs were in the air again.

When she didn't answer, he pressed on. "Lily," he sang softly. "I know you want to tell me."

"I don't want to tell you anything, prat."

"What if I said that I wouldn't tell anyone of this conversation?"

"Give me a break, James."

"I won't! I swear!"

"Not even Sirius?"

James paused. "That's not fair!"

"It is too fair," Lily retorted. "If--"

"Not even Sirius." he finished.

Lily shook her head. "Well, I guess," she paused. "He's a bit of a jerk."

James sat back up again. "You fancy Sirius?"

"No!" Lily said in horror, a smile on her face. "No, Sirius is definitely not on my list."

"Ooh, so this jerk is on your list, is he?" James thought aloud. "I wonder what he did to get on there…tell me more about this boy."

"He stole my toothbrush from the bin once." she recalled. "Back in…I think it was fourth year…"

The bell rang, signaling the end of class. All students immediately gathered their things up and shot out the door.

Lily shoved the piece of parchment she had been doodling on into her bag. She picked up the quill and held it out for James to take.

"Here's your quill back." she said, holding it out for him.

James swung his bag over his shoulder. He shrugged. "Nah, keep it. You can give it back to me on Saturday."

Lily swung her bag over her own shoulder. "Saturday? Who said I was going to see you Saturday?"

"I did." he said.

"I'm going to see you on Saturday…" she trailed off. "And…"

"And you just said you were going to see me on Saturday," he finished, flashing her a cheeky grin. "One o'clock at The Three Broomsticks, you can return my quill to me then."