November 26, 1977 – Hufflepuff vs. Ravenclaw
"What do you mean you're supporting Ravenclaw?"
"Exactly that. I'm supporting Ravenclaw!" Lily Evans was sitting beside James Potter in the Great Hall nibbling at her sausage and, apparently, getting berated for her choice of Quidditch loyalty. "Bertram Aubrey is my Charms partner, and one of our prefects, I might add, and he's a decent bloke." James' eyes looked as though they were about to pop out of his head at this statement, but she continued. "And the 5th year, Cecilia Vane, is their new seeker this year and she is terribly sweet – I tutored her in Potions last year. So I'm supporting Ravenclaw." Lily finished defiantly, daring her boyfriend to argue with a playful raise of an eyebrow.
James rose eagerly to the challenge with a loud scoff. "Well, I don't know this Vane character, but Bertram Aubreyis a ponce. And I've seen the way he looks at you in Charms!"
"What are you talking about, Potter?" Her voice was slightly raised now, drawing the attention of several others at the Gryffindor table. The sight of their Heads arguing now seemed to be cause for a great deal of alarm among Gryffindors.
"Oh, he's practically salivating over you – always so damn eager. And you conveniently forgot to mention the part where you used to go out with him!"
"It was two weeks in fourth year!"
"He's clearly still pining."
"You're crazy!" Lily's expression had shifted from annoyed to incredulous.
"About you, perhaps," James quipped. She gave him a light-hearted slap on the shoulder but her cheeked were pink and she reached for his hand under the table. Realizing the fires had been diffused, the rest of Gryffindor table seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief and returned to their breakfasts and conversations. Leaning in close so that his breath tickled Lily's ear, James whispered, "still rooting for Ravenclaw?"
"Absolutely," Lily answered with a smile. "Why are you rooting for Hufflepuff anyhow?"
It was then that Sirius, Remus and Peter, arrived at the breakfast table and took their seats at the on either side of the couple. Hearing Lily's question, Sirius snorted loudly. "She doesn't know, Prongs?" James shook his head and the other Marauders laughed loudly. "Lily, have you ever paid much attention to Davey Gudgeon playing Quidditch?"
Lily shook her head, baffled. Gudgeon was the Hufflepuff seeker and though she had watched several Hufflepuff matches in the years that he'd been on the team, she'd never noticed anything particularly unusual about his playing. "No, I can't say that I have."
"We call him the flying fish," James explained between snickers. "He always leans so far forward that he's practically lying on his belly, but then he does these strange kicks with his legs to steer his broomstick – it's almost like he's swimming."
"And that's why you four root for Hufflepuff?"
"Trust me, Lily, you can't help but root for Gudgeon when you see him," James insisted.
"We'll see about that, I suppose." Lily had finished her breakfast and noticed that James had as well. "Shall we head down to the pitch?" She suggested to him.
James nodded and turned to his friends. "We'll save you seats?" Before the Marauders had a chance to respond, the couple practically ran out of the Great Hall, their hands entwined. The fact that the two were headed to the pitch a full half hour before the match wasn't lost on the other three Marauders, who fully intended to tease their friend about this fact later on.
In the three weeks since Lily and James had begun dating, it came as no surprise to anyone that they spent quite a bit of time bickering – though their arguments rarely carried the same bite as they once had. What did come as a surprise to just about everyone was their particular brand of conflict resolution, which seemed to entail snogging in every corridor and passageway Hogwarts had to offer. While their friends found the experience of constantly walking in on the couple in compromising positions mildly revolting, a particular sect of the Hogwarts population seemed to consider the frequent snogfests nothing short of a blessing. Even Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws had begun to subscribe to what was now known as The Red and Gold Prophecy – so coined by sixth year amateur seer Sienna Vablasky who insisted that the Inner Eye had affirmed to her that Gryffindor was sure to win the Cup so long as Lily and James could stay together through the end of the year. Slytherin had won the last six Quidditch Cups, and even they reluctantly admitted that a Gryffindor victory would be preferable.
On this particular morning, Lily and James found themselves underneath the bleachers, James' tie loosened around his neck and Lily's red hair looking nearly as disheveled as her boyfriend's. Breaking their kiss and planting a light peck on his girlfriend's forehead, James whispered, "we should probably get up there. We wouldn't want to miss Hufflepuff trouncing Ravenclaw, would we?"
Lily's lips formed a mischievous pout, and she took hold of the end of James' tie, pulling him closer gently. "No, I suppose we wouldn't want to miss Ravenclaw's big win. Just a few more minutes, then." Grinning, she stifled James' protests with more kisses.
The two were broken from their reverie by the sound of hustle and bustle from the crowds above them in the stands. "Oops," Lily squeaked. "We may have overshot by a bit. Think we can make an inconspicuous entrance?"
"Us?" James scoffed. "Not a chance."
"Alright, Potter. Let's get this over with, then." Squeezing his hand, she pulled him around the corner out of the cover of the bleachers, where they found themselves immediately surrounded by Hogwarts students. Every eye in the crowd seemed to suddenly shift focus to their Head Boy and Girl. "I swear, it's like an alarm sounds every time we enter a room," Lily muttered.
"I'm not convinced that some of them haven't put Tracking Spells on us." James rolled his eyes at the whispering crowd as they made their way toward the seats some of their friends were now occupying.
By the start of the game, it was common knowledge that their Head Girl was rooting for Ravenclaw, while the Head Boy favored Hufflepuff, and there was no clear consensus on how the Prophecy might impact the results of the game, though a number of bets were already going around. When Ravenclaw scored the first fourteen goals, it seemed clear that the fates were on the side of their Head Girl.
"Well, I'm not one to say I told you so, but..." Lily began, teasingly.
James snorted. "You? Never," he scoffed, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek, though his eyes hadn't left the action on the Quidditch pitch.
"You know, I never really pay this much attention to Quidditch games, but I have to admit, this is fun." Lily nuzzled into James' shoulder as she, too, turned back to the game.
"Finally, the girl sees reason!"
"Mmm, well, it doesn't help that the Gryffindor team used to have this tremendous arse as their Quidditch Captain."
"You know, I don't seem to remember him. I do recall they have a devilishly handsome and exceptionally talented chaser..."
"True, Marlene's not at all bad on the eyes, though I don't know if handsome is the word I'd use." Lily's nose scrunched up when she grinned and James couldn't help but notice, for perhaps the billionth time in his life, how adorable that smile was.
"Ha ha," he deadpanned, wrapping an arm over his girlfriend's shoulder. "Back to the game, then. Have you been paying attention to our dearest Davey Gudgeon?"
"It is quite uncanny," Lily admitted.
"It really looks like he's swimming!" The two stared up at the seeker in admiration when, suddenly, they noticed that he was now 'swimming' at a clear target – one that was only fifty feet ahead of him. Cecilia Vane, the Ravenclaw seeker, had only just caught sight of the snitch that Davey was speeding toward, and he had a good hundred foot lead on her. The crowd watched in awe as, seconds later, the Flying Fish had seized the snitch.
"But that means -" Lily realized with a gasp.
"Hufflepuff wins by ten points!" Echoed the voice of Jacob Jordan, commentator for the match.
James was on his feet, and, letting out a small squeak, Lily found herself being spun about by a whooping James. Planting her back on her feet, James grinned. "Well, Evans, I'm not one to say I told you so..."
"Oh, shut up, Potter," Lily snapped, but her face mirrored his grin. Leaning in closer to his face, she lowered her voice. "What do you say we try to sneak out of here?"
As the two made a not-so-stealthy exit through the crowds, whispers were exchanged about how the outcome of the game provided definitive proof of the Prophecy – after all, what could better help assure a Gryffindor victory in the Cup than a close, low-scoring game between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw? Even those who had been previously skeptical began to begrudgingly admit that there might be something to the notion. It was clear to all in favor of a Gryffindor win that they must do whatever it took to ensure that Lily Evans and James Potter did not break up before the end of the Quidditch season.