- I would like to note that this story takes part in the beginning of their 7th year-
It was a normal Saturday really. At least, it started like a normal Saturday. James woke up early, having had scheduled Quidditch practise for that morning with the rest of the team. It was a foggy day, and the atmosphere was a bit gloomier than usual, however, James Potter wouldn't let a simple thing such as the weather mess up his plans. His team was waiting for him in the changing rooms and greeted him with grins as he twisted around them to get to his locker. It only took him a few minutes to shed his quidditch gear and grab his broom before they trumped outside.
The practise was as smooth as usual. Being quidditch captain, James caught the snitch while watching over his team to see how well they were playing after a whole summer apart. He had made good decisions when choosing his team though. They were as co-ordinate as ever and practise was going smooth, until the rain started pouring. It started so suddenly that half the team got startled and James, usually so confident on a broom, actually slipped off from his very relaxed position in the air. He would have plummeted to the ground had the two beaters not reacted quickly and grabbed each of his arms to keep him in the air.
He could feel his blood thunder in his head in time with his furiously beating heart as the shock of what almost happened dawned on him. He was barely aware of what was happening until his feet touched the ground again, only thanks to his team. They had basically carried him to the ground and now stood around him in a protective circle. James let his light weight rest on his beaters for a while until he got back his bearings and calmed down his breathing. He didn't know why he was panicking so much, it wasn't the first time that he had fallen from the air.
"You okay Cap?" The keeper, Sam, asked him.
"Yeah, fine." James responded.
"You sure?" Sam inquired, concern colouring his deep voice.
"Yeah Sam, just got shocked for a second. Haven't fallen out of the air for a while." James said with a small grin as the team hurried to the castle.
He could hear the rain pattering against the windows as he walked through the corridors to the common room. His mind was elsewhere, but he trudged the corridors without thinking, the path carved in his brain. Everything was going fine until he passed an apparently empty corridor. At least he thought it was empty. Barely five steps afterwards he collided heavily with someone who almost fell back on his ass before regaining his balance. To James' annoyance, he discovered it was Severus Snape. The greasy haired kid practically snarled at the brunette.
"Watch where you're going Potter!"
"You didn't seem to be watching where you're going, so why would I?" James asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You arrogant fool! You watch your tongue!" Snape said.
"You watch your step." Potter retorted, not up for a fight.
"Shut up!"
"Don't order me around Snivellus," James said as he shouldered past Snape.
From the corner of his eye he saw a smirk tug at Snape's lips. A dangerous smirk that made the hairs on James' neck rise. He had just shook his head and continued on when something wrapped around his neck at the same time that a well-aimed kick buckled his knees and left him lying on his back, completely winded, on the cold ground. His mouth opened on its own accord to suck in the air that had left his body, but he barely got in a gasp before something rough and round was jammed against his lips. James dimly registered that he had been propped up slightly but other than that, he was at a complete loss of what was happening around him. His ears rung from his earlier contact with the ground, and James closed his eyes tightly to return to the present.
He was propped up against something. His head hurt. Something was jammed against his mouth and foul-tasting liquid was trickling down his throat. WAIT. WHAT? He snapped his eyes opened and sucked in a breath involuntarily, causing him to choke and cough up everything. The boy in front of him swore before a hand clamped on James' nose while the bottle returned to his lips. With no choice but to drink or suffocate, James found himself swallowing at least three mouthfuls before the vile bottle was taken away from him. A cough wracked him just as a burning sensation took over his lungs. He heard a somewhat evil chuckle from somewhere above him, and the brunette found enough energy to look up. Anger surely showed on his features as he saw Snivellus smirking wickedly as he held up a small white bottle, no doubt from Pomfrey's stash of medication. But that seemed to be a particular medicine...
James felt himself pale the second that the name registered in his muddy brain.
"Muffliato," The spell caused panic to seize him as Snape walked away, bottle still clutched in his hand and an expression of triumph on his features.
Sirius Black always wakes up happy on Saturdays. Why? Well, it was Saturday of course! No lessons, no detentions.. Scratch that, it was a miracle that he hadn't gotten detention so far in the year. He only wasted a few seconds to stare at the ceiling before heading to the bathroom to get a shower and head downstairs.
He found his two friends, Remus and Peter, on the couch, idly chatting as they did a potion essay. Sirius groaned. He had forgotten about that essay! With a small sound of resignation he trudged back upstairs to get his parchment, quills and books before heading back to the common room and teaming up with his mates to get work done faster. It was only about an hour later that he remembered about James. He knew that his best friend had had quidditch practise that morning, but Sirius had seen members of the team mulling around in the common room for quite a while now, and despite himself, worry was gnawing at him from the inside.
"Hey Sam!" He called as he saw the gangly teenager making his way to one of the tables.
"Hey Sirius," Sam greeted with a small eye-brow raise.
"Have you seen James?" Sirius asked with a small frown.
"Not since practise, he left through another corridor, said something about being alone." Sam said with a small, yet tense, shrug.
"Did something happen in practise today?" Remus then asked, apparently noticing the tense shrug as well.
"He fell off his broom, the rain started suddenly and it startled everybody," Sam said in a way of explanation.
"Thanks Sam," Sirius said as he packed up his stuff and headed up to the dormitory after giving a pointed look to the other Marauders.
The map was underneath Sirius' pillow, safe and sound from peeping people. The black haired teenager quickly got it out and tapped it with his wand. After muttering the chosen words, he started searching for the tiny dot labelled James Potter. It took only a few minutes as there were only so many corridors that lead to their common room from the entrance hall. His dot was stationary in an abandoned corridor, which confused Sirius as he headed out and towards his best friend. The other marauders didn't say anything when they saw his small frown, but wisely stayed in the common room.
It didn't take him long to arrive at the otherwise empty corridor, but shock morphed his features as he saw the emptiness of it. He knew that James didn't have his invisibility cloak on as it was still in their common room, so where was his friend? He was heading to the where the dot was when Nick, the ghost, called out to him.
"Sirius!"
"Nick I really don't have time right now!" Sirius bellowed without thinking.
"You don't? Cause I just saw James half dead against a wall." Nick said bluntly as he flew after the teenager.
"WHAT?!" Sirius was sure that even Dumbledore had heard him.
"He was leaning against the wall, either unconscious or asleep.." Nick offered.
Now even more concerned, Sirius headed down the corridor until he came directly next to James' dot. He looked around himself, worry and frustration making it even harder to focus. He was about to turn to ask Nick, but the ghost was already standing to the side and pointing to a barely visible hideout that was built expertly in the wall. It was invisible if you weren't looking for it. To explain more, it was like a few bricks had been taken out of the wall to make a small space enough to fit one person. An amazing hideout if you were running from teachers or students. However, that wasn't what was going through Sirius' mind.
He had just saw his best friend, and tears of anger and concern almost sprang to his eyes. James was set in an uncomfortable position in the small, cramped space and his limbs were set in odd angles. Not odd enough to be broken, but odd enough to look highly uncomfortable. His eyes were squeezed close and a flush had settled on his face from what Sirius could see. What pained the dark-haired lad the most though, were the high pitched, abnormal sounds that sounded every time James breathed.
"Get him out from there, take him to Madam Pomfrey," Nick suggested.
"I know, I'm going to," Sirius replied in a biting tone as he leaned in to grab his best friend from underneath the arm pits and haul him up.
Due to James' extreme lightweight, Sirius didn't have any trouble with hefting the teenager up in his arms in a bridal carry before hurrying to the hospital wing. James' head was nestled against Sirius' neck as the latter ran as fast as he could; not giving any notice to any students that looked at them with visible shock evident on their features. What always seemed to be a 5 minute walk now felt like a 5 hour walk as Sirius hurtled through the corridors, finally stopping at the large doors of the infirmary. A well placed kick caused the doors to slam open from their ajar state and everyone in the infirmary to startle. Thankfully there were only a few sleeping students (It was still 10 o'clock after all) beside Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall. They both paled at the sight of the breathless Sirius carrying James in his arm as if he were a baby. Sirius ignored the both of them and gently laid his best friend in one of the beds, propping the pillows so that James was laying comfortably. Well, as comfortable as he could at least. In the short span of time that it took for Sirius to get James to the infirmary the latter looked to have gotten worse.
His face was deeply flushed and his breaths were short and painful sounding. He could see a few hives across James' neck, but his inspection didn't last long as Madam Pomfrey ushered him out shortly after undressing the young Potter with a swish of her wand and handing the clothes to Sirius so he could throw them in the wash.
When Sirius was outside the hospital wing he found himself staring at the door that was, once again, standing ajar. He was about to turn around and go when he bumped into Sam.
"Sirius! How's James? What happened?" The concern was easy to distinguish.
"I don't know Sam, I just don't know.." Sirius muttered as he headed to the common room to throw the clothes in their hamper and tell everything to Remus and Peter.
Sam walked with him, but Sirius didn't mind as they made small talk on random topics. He was kind enough to skip away while Sirius talked to the other two marauders.
"Hey Padfoot. Where's James?" Peter asked.
"Sirius? What happened?" Lupin inquired as he saw his friend's worried and scared expression.
"Found James unconscious in a corridor, he's not good Remus.." The use of his name instead of his nickname instantly put the werewolf on alert.
"What happened? Do you know?" Lupin asked.
"I don't know.. He had hives on his neck, had trouble breathing and was as flushed as a tomato last I saw," Padfoot said as he collapsed on the couch.
"Madam Pomfrey kicked you out?" Peter asked with curiosity.
"For now.." Sirius responded as he pulled the Marauders Map out of his back pocket from where he had stashed it.
An hour had passed before McGonagall came in the common room. By then, Sirius had grown restless and was pacing the common room after coming back from the hospital wing; where of course, he was not allowed to go in. The portrait hadn't even closed before she was surrounded by three very worried students. She smiled fondly at the 3 of them before continuing in and sitting next to them on the couch. Well, they sat on the couch, she sat on the armchair.
"Mister Potter will make a full recovery," She started on a good point, smiling once again as Remus and Peter released sighs of relief.
"I sense a but coming," Sirius said instead.
"But," McGonagall continued, "This attack was very serious. Whoever done this knows his stuff. Mr. Potter was exposed to a great amount of medicine that he is allergic to. His condition is quite serious at the moment, and therefore Madam Pomfrey is not allowing any visitors. She will allow them on Monday, as there is a possibility that he will remain unconscious for the remainder of this day and tomorrow." She held up a hand as the 3 of them made to talk over her. "As I said, his condition is very serious and Madam Pomfrey needs space to do her job and ease the worst of the symptoms. She can't heal him fully, this has to be done naturally. In other words, he has to sweat it out. But other symptoms will show in the next few hours, so Madam Pomfrey wishes to alleviate them to the best of her abilities before he is allowed visitors," The Professor concluded.
"Is he infectious?" Peter asked.
"No Mr. Pettigrew. Allergies are not infectious," The Professor explained gently.
"So we can't see him until Monday?" Sirius asked.
"That means Monday AFTER lessons Mr. Black." McGonagall said sternly.
Sirius groaned in reply as he leaned back, letting his head fall back to rest on the couch. The professor couldn't help the small grin before getting up and leaving the now quiet common room and the kids to their thoughts.
Sunday passed at the speed of a snail for the Marauders, but they didn't go in the hospital wing. Mainly because Madam Pomfrey had enchanted the doors against them. When Monday rolled by, Sirius, Remus and Peter were all anxious for the lessons to end. Their minds were elsewhere as they passed from lesson to lesson as if they were zombies. Tough luck for them, a certain red-headed girl had noticed their strange behaviours just at the very last lesson.
Lily stared at the 3 marauders as if she was seeing them for the first time. They looked dishevelled. They were quiet for a whole lesson and no mischief or snarky comments had passed either pair of their lips. Another question also burned her mind. Where was James? Sure, the mischief-maker missed lessons every now and then, but never had it been seen that only James missed the lessons. If James skipped, Sirius skipped. Sometimes, even the four of them would skip lessons for a whole day. So, Lily had to ask herself, where was James?
"Last I heard he was in the hospital wing," Roberta, her best friend, said.
"What?" The shock must have been present in her tone as well as her face.
"I heard it from Jessie and Kelly, he got really sick all of a sudden. They said eye witnesses saw Sirius carry him to the hospital wing, but that was on Saturday." Roberta explained before scooting away once again so that Professor McGonagall wouldn't notice.
Lily frowned in her notes. James was in the hospital wing? For the first time in forever, she hated not listening to the gossip of her other dormitory members. Those two always had the last information. Maybe she would have heard something about it... A groan left her lips as her mind whirled, trying to match up theories. It couldn't be a cold, Madam Pomfrey could fix those in a second, injuries were ruled out as well, cause if it was on Saturday, Madam Pomfrey would sure have allowed the teenager to return to the lessons.. The thoughts whirled in Lily's mind as the lesson she already knew by heart thanks to books continued on. When the bell signalled the end of the lesson, the red-head quickly gathered her things before going out.
However, she didn't go back to the hall as usual. Roberta stopped next to her, a raised eye-brow silently asking what they were doing. Lily didn't respond, but immediately grinned as she saw the three marauders emerge from the classroom before practically breaking into a sprint. It was hard to keep track of them while trying not to bump into people, but somehow, both Lily and Roberta managed it. They found themselves, as Lily predicted, in front the doors of the hospital wing, which stood wide open as Madam Pomfrey bustled about.
She watched as the nurse spared a glance at the door and saw the Marauders. Being hidden in an alcove, Lily was sure that she and Roberta had not been seen, however, that didn't mean they couldn't hear what was being said inside the infirmary.
"..Mr. Potter is still weak boys, so let him rest." Madam Pomfrey was saying.
"Can't you heal fevers?" Presumably Remus asked.
"I can, but this is an allergic reaction, so he needs to sweat the substance out of his system. This is nothing to how he was yesterday. I managed to reduce the swelling of his throat, get rid of the hives and stabilised most of his vital signs. Also, I am giving him a potion to help him breath. If his breathing gets wheezy, noisy, or he seems to be having difficulty just give him a tea-spoon of this potion or call me," The nurse explained.
Lily didn't have the heart to stay hidden anymore. She pulled Roberta with her and the both of them entered the spacious infirmary. Four pair of eyes immediately snapped to them, and Lily felt her face flush as she waved weakly, before her eyes caught sight of James, who was laying in bed with covers reaching till his waist, leaving his chest out for the world to see. And Lily had to admit, it was a rather defined chest, probably from quidditch practise and hours at the gym in Summer.. She shook her head, snapping back to the present.
"Lily, I'm going to go start on my homework, okay? Professor Gregory gave us a lot today," Roberta mumbled before high tailing it out of there.
Lily only nodded as she observed James' current state. His hair was messy as usual, the dark strands sticking out on the white pillow. His face was flushed, cheeks adorned with colour as rough breaths escaped from his parted lips. His hands, which rested on top of the covers, twitched every now and then, fingers grasping the air. Most prominent, sweat soaked his skin, making it glisten in the bright lights of the hospital wing. Sirius was currently wiping down his best friend's face, smiling slightly as he heard the small sigh of relief at the coolness on the fevered skin.
"What happened?" Lily asked with a small voice as she moved to the other side of James. She sat down next to his head, so that her bent knee made contact with his shoulder. Sirius silently handed her the towel, which was enchanted to stay moist and cool, for her to wipe it down his face and chest, which rose unevenly with every breath.
"I found him in a corridor. He was unconscious, someone force-fed him a medicine. He's allergic to it." Sirius replied, his eyes never wavering from James' face.
"Force-fed? Who would do that?" The question was asked by Lily, even though she had a brief idea who hated James so much that he would try to murder him.
"Oh I don't know," Sirius replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice, "Maybe Severus would?"
".."
Lily didn't have an answer. Truth be told, she and Snape had been drifting apart. He had chosen the dark arts over her, and reliable sources had told her he had allied himself with a group called "Death Eaters". It wouldn't surprise her if he tried to kill James, but it did piss her off.
Sirius was the first one to notice the abrupt change in Lily. Remus followed shortly after, and both Marauders sucked in a quick breath as they saw Lily flush with anger until the red reached the tip of her hair roots. The hand hanging by her side was clenched in a fist, nails digging into the skin until they left angry red marks. A storm was raging behind her green eyes, but still, she was as gentle as possible while running the cool towel over James' skin.
"It was him, I know it. I wonder how much it will hurt if I decide to react a bit violently when he comes begging for me to join the Death Eaters and for our friendship..." Lily seethed with anger, anger which was obviously taking control of her as she practically shook.
"Easy there tiger.." A rough sounding yet weak voice rasped from somewhere beneath her.
"JAMES!" Lily, Sirius, Remus and Peter yelled in unison.
"Uh.. Hi?" James said confusedly before his eyes widened. Sirius saw the green tinge seconds before Remus propped him up properly so that the sick boy could throw up in a trashcan.
"You're okay, just let it out." Lily found herself murmuring random and comforting phrases as she methodically wiped down James' brow and neck.
All the commotion brought the nurse to the room, where she immediately saw the trouble.
"Back off, give him some space!" She ordered once James was done dry heaving.
He had collapsed back in the pillows, and from the foot of his bed, where the Marauders and Lily had been ushered too, they could see his heaving chest as he tried to get back under control. Madam Pomfrey whipped out her wand and set on muttering a few dozen charms over him, which apparently helped the teenager to breathe better along with a few other stuff that his friends didn't have an idea about.
"What hurts Mr. Potter?" Madam Pomfrey requested.
"Stomach. Chest a bit. Why is everything spinning?" James asked, his voice a bit higher than usual.
"That's expected, let's get you sitting up shall we?" The nurse asked kindly.
Sirius and Remus immediately moved forward then, and while Sirius held his best friend up, Remus fluffed and stacked up the pillows behind his back. The towel found itself around James' neck, causing a shiver to run across him before he shook his head and opened his eyes fully, taking in the room and who was next to him. His face flushed slightly more at the sight of Lily, which made Sirius smirk as an eye brow rose on its own accord. However, James' sudden confused glance wiped away any humour from everybody's demeanour.
"Prongs? What's wrong buddy?" Sirius asked, concern lighting his voice once again.
"How did I get here?" James asked.
"What do you remember last?" Sirius countered.
"Uh.." James' gaze flickered to Lily.
"I know it was Snape." The girl said with a biting tone.
"Oh.. Well, he wrestled me to the ground.. Then forced this bottle to my lips, I couldn't breathe so I had to drink.. I remember him casting the Muffliato spell on me.. But nothing more." James struggled to remember and frustration was evident on his features.
"Don't strain yourself," Peter spoke up for the first time, and his eyes were wide and fearful.
"I found you afterwards. You were almost dead, took you to the hospital wing. You're very light for a teenager.." Sirius offered.
"Thanks.." James expressed his gratitude quietly as a wince crossed his features.
"James?" Lily's questioning tone said a million things.
"It's nothing," James said with a shrug. Lily's glare had him scampering back a little before answering. "My chest and stomach hurt.."
"I should get Lily every time I want you to tell me something," Sirius said with a grin.
"Shove it Padfoot," James grumbled with a small glare.
"Stop it you two. James, go to sleep," Remus said.
"I just woke up," James reasoned.
"You look like you're about to fall asleep again," Peter said with a small voice.
"Wormtail I'm not going to die, stop being so scared," James said with a muffled yawn at the end.
"Go to sleep James, you need it," Lily all but commanded as she once again stood next to his head and arranged the pillows so that he could settle down comfortably.
"Will you sleep with me?" James asked with a cocky grin.
"NO." Lily's answer was punctuated with a pillow headshot.
"Okay." James pouted as he turned on his side, unconsciously bringing up the covers to his chin.
Without thinking, Lily took the towel from around his neck and started wiping his face again, running it slowly over his cheekbones and jaw. James didn't show any signs of feeling her, and after a few minutes Lupin noted that the brunette was deeply asleep. His statement was proven when James flipped on his front and buried half of his face in the pillow. Lily couldn't help the giggle as she observed Potter's facial features; how his dark lashes stood out against tan, flushed skin and other random musings. James' breathing hitched then, and an expression of pain crossed the sleeping features before he turned on his side again. Lily's face flushed with anger.
"We're getting revenge. You with us?" Sirius asked with a grin.
"Do you really need to ask?" It was Lily's turn to raise her eyebrow.
"Okay then, what we going to do?" Remus asked.
"Do we really need to?" Peter asked.
"He hurt Prongs, of course we need too!" Sirius exploded at Peter's scared nature.
"Don't yell at me!" Peter squeaked.
"Sorry Wormtail, I'm just on edge." Sirius ran a hand over his face.
"I have an idea." Lily said with a devious grin.
Monday evening found the three marauders and Lily strolling the grounds until they settled in the shade under a big tree next to the lake. As it was not very late, students were still passing by. Lily got up and prowled about alone when she caught sight of the greasy haired kid that had just came out of the castle. As she had predicted before, he came straight towards her with the biggest grin that he could muster.
"Lily! How are you?" He asked.
"Severus." Her cold tone surprised him.
"What's wrong?" He asked confusedly.
"Oh don't act like you don't know! You chose the Death Eaters over our friendship. You're a bully, you please yourself seeing other people suffer! You can't stand the sight of the marauders! You can't even stand still when I'm talking to James! I knew you hated him, but I didn't think you'd steep so low as to almost kill him! It was a miracle Sirius found him when he did, because if not, he would have died! Not that you would care of course, you want him out of the way! You hate the fact that he's better than you at everything! You hate the fact that you are shunned in his presence! No, don't even try to defend yourself! Cause you know what Severus? I should have never even became friends with you. Your intentions were clear since the first year, I was just too stupid to see them. And when the Death Eaters break your little heart, if you even have one, don't come crawling back to me. In fact, don't you ever come crawling back to me ever again, because now I can see you were using me all the time as a second choice for whenever your little friends betrayed you."
Her cold and loud voice had collected quite a crowd, and Lily inwardly smirked, but her rage showed on her face. Snape looked completely baffled. He just kept staring at her, stunned into silence at her unexpected show.
"Lil-" He started, but she didn't give him a chance to utter another syllable.
"TARANTALLEGRA!" The spell echoed in the grounds, and students watched in amusement as Snape's legs jerked and shot in different directions on their own accord.
"LEVICORPUS!" Sirius' bellow came soon after, and Snape was soon lifted ankle-first in the air.
His scream of terror caused even more laughter from the crowd, which was getting larger as the time passed and sound increased.
"LANGLOCK!" Snape didn't yell for long.
Severus' pants had fallen towards his head, revealing gangly, extremely pale legs and also causing an uproar of laughter. Remus added his own magic and while Sirius moved Snape to the tree, Lupin managed to tie Snape's leg around the huge, thick branch using Severus' own belt. Once released from the levicorpus spell, Snape hung, still upside down, to the tree, his pale face twisted in horror as his wand fell to the ground, way out of his reach, and the blood slowly travelled to his head.
"Furnunculus!" Peter murmured, causing ugly boils to break out on Snape's face.
The crowd cheered even more, but some girls retreated back in disgust.
"No Peter, you'll scare away the ladies!" Sirius aimed his wand at Snape, who flailed wildly.
"Melofors!" Snape's head became a pumpkin.
"Nice one Padfoot," Peter said with a grin.
"Impedimenta," Remus' spell caused Snape to freeze and Sirius to look at his friend with a raised eyebrow.
"That's the best you could do?" He asked outrageously.
"I did that for Lily," Remus said.
Moments later, Lily did the stinging hex, which caused Snape's face to swell repeatedly until his eyes were nothing but narrow slits. However, she didn't seem to be satisfied.
"Ducklifors! Mucus ad Nauseam!" The two complex spells were said once after the other.
At first, Snape transformed into a large, yellow duck, which fell out of the belt and to the grass below. Its face was still swelled, making it look like the most hideous, greasiest, duck alive. The second spell caused mucus to start dripping from its bill, and Snape's ducky face looked mortified as he tried to wipe his bill on the ground.
Everybody was laughing around until Professor Dumbledore appeared. He cleared his throat, and everybody froze in their actions. Lily's face was mortified and beet red, but the marauders didn't seem to mind.
"Well, I trust you had your fun here boys and girls," He said calmly.
"It was much fun," Sirius said with a large grin.
"Well, I think it's time to send Mr. Snape to the infirmary don't you think?" Dumbledore asked kindly.
"Of course professor." Lily said, however, she made no move to counter her jinxes and stop the effects.
Dumbledore changed Severus back into a person and summoned a stretcher, which he used to haul Snape to the infirmary. Lily and the marauders stayed still for a few seconds before laughter erupted in their throats, causing them to bend double as to keep standing.
"Did you see his face?"
"And the way he flailed!
"He was petrified!"
The comments ranged from one another, before Sirius suddenly straightened up.
"I'm going to see James, come on, he would want to hear this if he's awake," He said.
When they arrived at the infirmary, one cubicle, probably Snape's, was closed with curtains, but Madam Pomfrey was not behind it. She was at the far end bed, where James was sitting up and drinking some sort of medicine that left him with a very bad taste, judging from his pinched facial expression. He was complaining about something, probably because the nurse was sternly telling him that he had to take it easy for at least a week.
"But I got quidditch practise!" His excuse was heard clearly.
"I don't care Mr. Potter! You've got to rest and take it easy or you'll end up here again!" Her tone was final and bore no room for arguments.
"Okay.." His pout made a blush creep up Lily's neck, but she kept it down.
Sirius' laugh echoed in the spacious room as he caught sight of his friend's defeated expression. James' head snapped towards their direction at the sound of Padfoot's laugh, and a grin illuminated his features.
"PADFOOT!" The unnaturally high call made Madam Pomfrey threaten Potter with the Muffliato spell.
The effect was immediate. James blanched and pressed his lips together, unconsciously pressing himself to the back of the bed.
"Snape used that on him so James wouldn't be able to yell for help." Remus explained gently to the surprised nurse.
"I'm sorry Mr. Potter, it must have worn off when you woke up here," Pomfrey explained gently.
"It's okay Madam," James said with a small smile.
Lily saw the interaction with a gaping mouth. Who knew the marauders were so friendly with the school nurse? Once James relaxed she moved forward and unconsciously passed it over sweat soaked skin, soothing the now not so hot skin.
"How are you feeling Prongs?" Remus asked.
"I'm better, nothing hurts except my chest, but even that's minor," James said with a shrug.
"Did you see Snape?" Sirius asked in a stage whisper.
"Yeah! He was fla-aa!" He cut himself off with a small gasp.
James' back arched on its own accord as the red-headed girl passed the moist towel over his spine. Light pink dusted over both their cheeks, and Lily gently wiped the small of his back before draping the towel around his neck.
"Prongs?" Peter seemed to be on the verge of a laughing fit.
"I'm fine Wormtail," James said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"Sure you are Prongs," Sirius commented with a grin.
"It was Lily's fault not mine!"
"How was that my fault?!" The girl defended herself.
"You brushed my sensitive spot!"
"Oh cause I know you so much that I know where all your sensitive spots are!" Lily semi-yelled.
"Calm down Lils, there are other patients here," Remus said with a small smile of his own.
"Speaking of, what were you saying about Snivellus?" Sirius tactfully changed the topic.
"Oh yeah, he was flailing around and dropping yellow feathers! And his face was so disfigured with mucus dripping. And he seemed to have an orange shade to his skin.." James said with a large grin.
"That was Lily's and Sirius' work," Remus said.
"What did you do?" James asked, eyes bright with mischief and looking like a little kid whose Christmas had come early.
"Well.."
Together the three marauders and Lily told him everything that had happened, and by the end of the story they were all laughing their asses off and tears rolled down their cheeks. They were all having a good time, even Lily. She was leaning against James' chest, much to her surprise, and his laughs caused her to giggle as they rumbled under her ear. Time seemed to fly by until Roberta and Sam came in the infirmary, bags bulging with parchment, books and quills. Lily suddenly sat up, narrowly avoiding hitting James' chin with her head.
"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Sirius asked.
"Well, you four have classes tomorrow, and knowing you would never part from Potter, we brought your homework here," Roberta said as she dropped the bag to the floor.
"I don't want to do homework," Sirius dropped his head to the edge of the bed, his shaggy hair making him resemble a dog.
"Unless you want detention and less time with our sick captain, I suggest you do it," Sam said with a small shrug and a mischievous grin.
"Come on, just copy Lily's," Roberta said with a shrug.
"No way!" Lily said immediately.
"Please Lily?" Sirius' pout was irresistible, but Lily held her ground.
"I'll correct your work, but I won't let you copy mine. How will you learn then?" Lily said.
"Okay fine," Remus said, glaring at Sirius to warn him to shut his mouth.
They settled down quietly. James was able to provide a few pointers on transfiguration as well as several other subjects, and they finished their homework in little time. Of course, Lily had to go over every ones, which was easy really, considering half their work was copied from the books. After everything was packed, the now 7 friends sat on chairs and James' bed and chatted as if they had known each other all their lives.
At about 7 in the night, Professor McGonagall appeared in the Hospital wing. She was hovering a few trays of food, and the wonderful smell made everyone's mouth water.
"How are you Mr. Potter?" The professor asked.
"I'm fine Professor. Should be out of here in-"
"Four days Mr. Potter," Madam Pomfrey interjected, her stern look challenging anyone to argue.
"I expect you get your work done, I'm sure Miss. Evans and Mr. Black will help you," McGonagall said. "Also, I'm going to let slide what happened this afternoon, but only because Mr. Snape will recover completely."
"Thank You Professor," Lily said before taking another bite of food. She hadn't realized how hungry she had been before food was presented to her.
"Continue on, and don't stay up too late," Professor McGonagall said before leaving the infirmary.
At about nine in the evening, Madam Pomfrey shooed the visitors away, much to the dismay of the patient, especially when he saw the potions that he had to take before sleeping. Lily had enjoyed herself more than she would have thought, and before leaving, she bowed down and kissed James' cheek, making the boy blush three different shades of red. The marauders laughed and teased their best friend before all of them were shepherded out by an irritated nurse.
They haven't heard a thing from Snape, and then realized that it was because the professors thought it would be better if he recovered in his dormitory. Lily had to agree with that reasoning if she were to be honest.
Now, as she lay in her bed staring up at the red-painted ceiling, Lily couldn't help but go over the day. Warmth filled her very core as she recalled her closeness with James, and how she didn't think before pecking him on the cheek. His blush had made the thing even more comedic. Her feelings were a mess, and Lily fell asleep thinking about brunettes and the marauders and mischief makers.
James was seen again on Friday morning at breakfast. The whole school was having breakfast when he strolled in the entrance hall and found his place next to Sirius. Snape glared murderously from the Slytherin table, but no one paid him any heed as they laughed and joked with their now healthy friend. Their first lesson was transfiguration, and the marauders, Lily, Roberta and Sam headed off together. However, James pulled Lily in an empty classroom before every single student filed out.
"Hey Lily, thank for taking care of me back there," He said shyly.
"It was no problem, that's what friends do right?" She said with a shrug.
He looked hurt then, and a bit disappointed.
"Lily can I ask you something?" He asked seriously.
"You already did, but you can ask another one," She said cheekily.
"Will you go out with me?" He asked bluntly but the unconscious manoeuvre of rubbing the back of his neck easily showed how nervous he was feeling.
"Yes, yes I will," She responded after a few seconds of quiet.
"Really?" His grin illuminated his whole face.
"Yes really," Lily replied. "Now let's go or we'll be late!"
Nobody questioned why James and Lily were suddenly sitting next to each other in class, but the marauders and their two other friends shared knowing glances and grinned before continuing on with the lesson, unaware of Professor McGonagall's happy grin as she saw her two favourites student finally showing their feelings for each other.
Because come on, even teachers have to have OTP's.
Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter, it belongs to JK Rowling. I don't own the image, if the owner sees it, please notify me ;3
Anyway. I hope you guys liked this! I haven't read the books lately, so excuse OoC. I just got this random idea and decided to type it out.
I would like to thank my best friend for Beta-reading this, and people from Fandom Rehab for their help =)
Leave reviews guys! Please do tell me what you think :)
Also, School is starting Tomorrow, so I won't be able to post regularly ;-; I got a tough year ahead of me!
I hope you guys liked this =)
-Chrisii