Chapter 2: Snivellus and the Bully
James, Remus and Peter all sat around the small table in their common room, cramming in as much information as they could get from their text books.
Sirius lightly ran his quill along the back of Peter's neck. Peter's sausage fingers reached up to his neck to itch the spot that the feather had toughed; his eyes not leaving his book once.
Sirius sat back, hands behind his head, board. OWLS were such a bore to him, especially the study. He was ok at all of his subjects. He didn't see the point in cramming. If he didn't know something, he wasn't going to give himself a headache learning it now, especially when the exam was in- he clanked at his watch- fifteen minuets.
Sirius picked up the quill again and ran its feathery end along James's neck. James spun around and smiled at Sirius, unlike his friend, he couldn't afford not to give himself a headache last-minute-learning. Then something past Sirius caught his eye, something worth stopping for.
"-As I was saying, It was bubbling every where, and for once, I didn't know what to do, then in two seconds flat, Severus was at my side, smiling at me, and the potion was fine." Lily whispered silently as she made her way down the stairs into the common room, the pretty, blonde headed Amanda by her side.
Remus took note of the mischievous grin on James's face as he stood and blocked the portrait hole for the girls exit.
"Snivellus you're new boyfriend is he Evans?" James crossed his arms and smiled contently at Lily.
"Jealous are we Potter?" She returned with a sarcastic grin.
James let his guard down, only for a second.
"You're going with that git?" James let his arms drop to his sides and his face wrapped with suspicion.
Lily raised an eyebrow and James quickly obtained his composure, the cynical smile returning to his face.
"No, but why would it matter if I was?" Lily elevate her gaze up to James's height, taking a step forward; although instantly regretting it as James was at least two inches taller than her and it gave him the over-powering appearance.
"Then I'd have to hope you like cold dark places… like caves and sewers, because isn't that where Snivellus grew up?"
SMACK.
James's hand flew to his cheek where a bright red mark began to form.
"Don't talk about things you know nothing about James Potter…" Lily's face was neither filled with rage or hurt, if anything it was filled with disbelief, on her behalf, not his.
With that she stumbled out of the portrait hole. James turned his perplexed and bewildered expression to Amanda, who merely shrugged and followed Lily out of the common room.
"James?" Remus started.
"Lets go, we have an OWLS exam to do." James cut Remus off and they all staggered out of the portrait hole and headed towards the great hall.
(c) "Five more minutes!"
James re-read what he had written. He yawned hugely and rumpled up his hair, making it even messier than it had been before. Then, with a glance towards Professor Flitwick, he turned in his seat and grinned at Sirius who sat four seats behind him.
Sirius gave James the thumbs up. He leaned back in his chair so that it was balancing on two legs, a girl behind him eyed him hopefully, but he didn't care to notice.
James turned back around and started sketching a snitch on a piece of spare parchment, and scribbled a few letters around it.
"Quills down, please!" squeaked professor Flitwick. "That means you too Stebbins! Please remain seated whilst I collect you're parchment! Accio!"
James scratched out the letters around the snitch and got up to join Sirius, Remus and Peter as they made their way out of the Great Hall.
"Did you like question ten, Moony?" asked Sirius as they emerged into the Entrance Hall.
"Loved it," said Remus briskly. "Give five signs that identify the werewolf. Excellent question."
"Do you think you managed to get all the signs?" said James in mock concern.
"Think I did," said Remus seriously, as they joined the crowd thronging around the front doors, eager to get out into the sunlit grounds.
"One; he's sitting in my chair. Two; he's wearing my clothes. Three; he's name is Remus Lupin."
Wormtail was the only one who didn't laugh.
"I got the snout shape, the pupils of the eyes and the tufted tail," he said anxiously, "but I couldn't think of what else -"
"How thick are you Wormtail?" said James impatiently. "You run around with a werewolf once a month -"
"Keep your voice down," implored Remus.
The boys continued to walk towards the lake, the glorious sun beating down on them.
"Well I thought it was a piece of cake," Sirius announced. "I'll be surprised if I don't get "Outstanding" on it at least."
"Me too," said James. He put his hand in his pocket and took out a struggling Golden Snitch.
"Where'd you get that?"
"Nicked it," said James casually. He started playing with the snitch, allowing it to fly as much as a foot away before seizing it again; his reflexes were excellent. Peter watched him in awe.
They stopped in the shade of the beech tree by the lake and sat; making themselves comfortable.
Remus pulled out a book and began to read. Sirius stared around at the students milling over the grass, looking rather haughty and bored. James was still playing with the snitch, letting it zoom further and further away, almost escaping but always grabbed at the last moment. Peter watched with his mouth open. Every time James made a particularly hard catch Peter would gasp and then applaud.
After five minutes of this Sirius looked fractiously over at James.
"Put that thing away, will you?" Sirius said finally, as James made a fine catch and Peter let out a cheer, "Before Wormtail wets himself with excitement."
Peter turned slightly pink, but James grinned.
"If it bothers you," he said, stuffing the snitch back in his pocket.
The boys sat in silence for a while. The sounds of the girls splashing about surrounded them and James looked over at them, messing up his hair as he did.
"I'm bored," said Sirius. "Wish it was a full moon."
"You might," said Remus darkly from behind his book. "We've still got Transfiguration, if you're bored you could test me. Here …" and he held out his book.
But Sirius snorted. "I don't need to look at that rubbish, I know it all."
Remus shrugged and hid himself behind his book again.
"This'll liven you up, Padfoot," said James quietly, "look who it is …"
Sirius's head turned. He became very still, like a dog that has scented a rabbit.
"Excellent," he said softly, "Snivellus."
Severus Snape was beginning to stand and put his book away, his greasy hair hung in his face and his hooked nose hid behind it. He had been sitting under the tree; a few meters away from where Sirius, James, Remus and Peter sat. He slung his bag over his shoulder and James and Sirius stood up.
Remus and Peter remained sitting: Remus was still staring down at his book, though his eyes were not moving and a faint frown line appeared between his eyebrows; Peter was looking from James to Sirius to the momentarily clueless Snape with a look of avid anticipation on his face.
"All right, Snivellus?" said James loudly.
Snape reacted so fast it was though he had been expecting an attack: dropping his bag, he plunged his hand inside his robes and his wand was halfway into the air when James shouted, "Expelliarmus!"
Snape's wand flew twelve feet into the air and fell with a little thud, in the grass behind him. Sirius let out a bark of laughter.
"Impedimenta!" he said, pointing his wand at Snape, who was knocked off his feet halfway through a dive towards his own fallen wand.
Students all around had turned to watch. Some of them got to their feet and were edging nearer. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained.
Snape lay panting on the ground. James and Sirius advanced, wands raised, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water's edge as he went.
Peter was on his feet now, watching hungrily, edging around Remus to get a clearer view.
"How'd the exam go Snivelly?" James said.
"I watched him, his nose was touching the parchment!" shouted Peter desperately from behind.
"There'll be great grease marks all over it now; they won't be able to read a word." Sirius laughed callously.
Several people watching laughed; Snape was clearly unpopular and quite unsociable. Peter sniggered shrilly.
Snape was tried to get up, but the jinx was still operating on him; he was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.
"You - wait," he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing, "you - wait!"
"Wait for what?" said Sirius coolly, "What're you going to do, Snivelly, wipe you're nose on us?"
Snape let out a scream of mixed swear words and hexes, but with his wand ten feet away nothing happened.
"Wash out your mouth," said James coldly. "Scourgify!"
Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, choking him -
"Leave him ALONE!"
James and Sirius looked round. James's free hand immediately jumped to his hair.
One of the girls from the lakes edge was making her way over to James, her thick, dark red hair swinging around her shoulders - it was Lily.
"All right, Evans?" said James, and the tone of his voice was suddenly pleasant, deeper, more mature.
"Leave him alone," Lily repeated. She was looking at James with every sign of dislike. "What's he done to you?"
"Well," said James, appearing to deliberate his point, "it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean …"
Many of the surrounding students laughed, Sirius and Peter included, but Remus, still apparently intent on his book, did not, and nor did Lily.
"You think you're funny," she said coldly. "But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone."
"I will if you go out with me, Evans," said James quickly. "Go on … go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again."
Behind him the Impediment Jinx was wearing off. Snape was beginning to inch towards his fallen wand, spitting out soapsuds as he crawled.
"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid," said Lily.
"Bad luck, Prongs," said Sirius briskly, and turned back to Snape. "OI!"
But too late; Snape had directed his wand straight at James; there was a flash of light and a gash appeared on the side of James's face, spattering his robes with blood. James whirled about: a second flash of light later, Snape was hanging upside-down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs and a pair of graying underpants.
Many people in the small crowd cheered; Sirius, James and Peter roared with laughter.
Lily, whose furious expression twitched for a second as though she was going to smile, said, "Let him down!"
"Certainly," said James and he jerked his wand upwards; Snape fell into a crumpled heap on the ground. Disentangling himself from his robes he got quickly to his feet, wand up, but Sirius said, "Petrificus Totalus!" and Snape keeled over again, rigid as a board.
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily shouted. She had her own wand out now. James and Sirius eyed it warily.
"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," said James earnestly
"Take the curse off him, then!"
James sighed deeply, then turned to Snape and muttered the counter-curse.
"There you go," he said, as Snape struggled to his feet. "You're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus -"
"I don't need help from filthy little mudbloods like her!"
Lily blinked.
"Fine," she said coolly. "I won't bother in future. And I'd wash your pants if I were you, Snivellus."
"Apologize to Evans!" James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him.
"I don't want you to make him apologize," Lily shouted, rounding on James. "You're as bad as he is."
"What?" yelped James. "I'd NEVER call you a - you-know-what!"
"Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone you can just because you can - I'm surprised your broomstick can get off of the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK."
She turned on her heel and hurried away.
"Evans!" James shouted after her. "Hey, EVANS!"
But she didn't look back.
"What is it with her?" said James, trying and failing to look as though this was just a throw away question of no real importance to him.
"Reading between the lines, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate," said Sirius.
"Right," said James, who looked furious now, "right -"
There was another flash of light, and Snape was once again hanging upside-down in the air.
"Who wants to see me take off Snivelly's pants?" James shouted to his audience and a cheer erupted from the crowd. (c)
There was another flash of light and James was hanging upside down, his robes dangling around his head. He, however, was more fortunate to be wearing silk boxers.
"Who wants to see me take off Mr. Potter's underpants?" everyone's gaze shot out to the direction of the castle where Dumbledore stood, his wand raised, a jovial smile on his face.
This time everyone in the crowd cheered, however, neither Snape's or James's privates were revealed, Dumbledore merely placed them gently - right way up - on the ground.
"Now, now boys. You both know I can not have fighting in my school …" Dumbledore had a stern expression on his face, though his eyes twinkled as though he was remembering himself as a teenage boy.
"I would like you both to go and see you're head of houses please."
James groaned and Snape made his way over to his wand and bag.
"Not professor McGonagall, please sir, she'll decapitate me!" James pleaded.
Dumbledore chuckled, "I promise you Mr. Potter, there will be no decapitating, the decapitation of students was banned quite some time ago." Dumbledore gave a wink and James couldn't help but let loose a little smile.
"Have a good day boys." He turned and headed back into the castle.
The only one's remained were Sirius, Peter and Remus; who amazingly still remained behind his book.
"Well, I better go and see Professor McGrouch." James picked up his book bag and the others stood.
"We'll take you there," volunteered Sirius.
James looked around at his friends faces. Sirius was looking rather proud of himself and Peter's face still glowed from all of the excitement. Remus, however, avoided James's eye. He looked as though he had wanted to say something to James about the whole ordeal, but just couldn't bring himself around to doing it.
"We'll come on then," and even though James was almost certain that with every step, he was getting closer and closer to the biggest punishment of his life; having his friends with him made him feel a little better.
Now if only he could get the look of disgust on Lily's face, out of his head.