Here's Chapter 2...
Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter.
Shadow in the Sunset
Chapter 2
James stood there for a while before he came to his senses and bent to pick up his glasses. He wiped the circular lenses quickly on his robes before shoving them back onto his face. Then he began walking. He didn't know where he was going or why he was even moving but he suddenly found himself at the front doors of Hogwarts. It was a cold November day and he didn't want anyone to see the mark Lily had made on his cheek, so he wrapped his Gryffindor scarf tightly around his face and made his way to the Quidditch pitch. He stumbled to the broom cupboard and pulled out an outdated old Silver Arrow. With the wind whipping violently at his already-windswept hair, he rose into the air. Then he just sat there, not moving at all, just thinking. What was he supposed to do?
He could confront her, tell her that she didn't have the right to slap him. In the scene that flashed continuously through his mind, he hadn't even done anything. What was the most that he had done? He had confessed his love for the beautiful redhead with the fiery temper. He had leaned in slightly to kiss her. It was nothing that deserved a stinging slap.
But if he was completely honest with himself, he had completely earned it. She had six years of dislike and annoyance and persistent date offers going into that slap, fueling it. And he had felt everything.
He had been wondering why in hell he cared so much about what was bothering her when it finally hit him. He loved her. And she completely hated him.
What was he going to do?
She watched James rise up into the air above the trees. From her tree, which she loved because it came out on the other side of the lake, she could see everything. The castle loomed above everything, casting long, dark shadows. The sun set behind it, outlining the stone walls in brilliant hues of pink and orange. It was beautiful. Picture perfect, as her parents used to say. Students of all ages sat on the grass with their friends, chatting happily and laughing freely. And then there was James, hovering above everything, a shadow in the sunset.
For six years, she had put up with him. His jokes, his pranks, his very voice annoyed her to no end. He definitely deserved to be slapped. But he hadn't even protested after she had hit him.
She couldn't deny that he was handsome. He most definitely was. Every girl in the school wanted to date James Potter. Except her. She hated him. The way she saw him: handsome with an arrogant, self-centered personality. The personality ruined it all.
Suddenly, however, she found herself interested in him. She was jealous of the girls that dated him. She was upset when she stumbled upon them kissing in the common room. She smiled when he smiled, laughed when he laughed. And she wanted to know what had changed.
So she began ignoring him. This newfound interest in him pissed her off. But instead of trying to get to know him better, she didn't talk to him at all. She did feel a bit bad about how she had been acting. She was irritable and snapped at everyone; she couldn't help it.
If she really thought about it, there was only one answer to her feelings. One answer that scared her because she never, ever dreamed that it could happen.
She was in love with James Potter.
So, what did you think?
