Disclaimer: HP is JK Rowling's

Year Three

In which rumors spread like fiendfyre

A balled-up scrap of parchment nails her squarely in the back of her drooping head. Lily, suddenly awake, whirls around, ponytail whipping around behind her.

Potter. He's sitting in the back of Binns's classroom, smirking like he's oh-so-proud of himself, the same smug grin she always wished she could punch off of his face after every victorious Quidditch match. He waves jauntily, to the amusement of his little band of friends.

Lily grits her teeth, rolls her eyes, and turns back to face the front.

"He likes you," Marlene sing-songs beneath her breath, half-smile playing on her lips.

"Then tell him to act like it, instead of beaning me with these stupid little paper balls," Lily hisses back, gesturing to the small mountain parchment scraps littering the ground around her desk.

"He is acting like it," Marlene's smirk is almost, almost as smug as Potter's, "Godric, Lily, he's a thirteen year old bloke, he's not about to flirt with your by buying you singing daffodils and chocolate frogs and taking you out to candlelit dinners."

"Thank Godric," Lily mutters darkly, "If he did bring me a bouquet, I'd shove it up his-"

"Yes, yes," Marlene says hastily, trying to disperse the cloud's gathering on her best friend's brow, "But he is flirting with you."

"How the Helga Hufflepuff does this constitute flirting?" Lily demands loudly, waking up half the class (the other half being far too deeply asleep) and earning herself an affronted Really, Miss Elric?from Binns.

The only thing her burning ears hear is the excited "D'you reckon it's finally working?" from the back of the room.

At that, something snaps inside of her and she stands and turns to face him. "IT IS BLOODY WELL NOT WORKING, POTTER,"she roars, "LEAVE ME ALONE ALREADY!"

The entire class is most decidedly awake now. Even Binns is staring at the pair of them, eyes completely lucid for once.

James, naturally, is thriving off being the center of attention."Now Evans," he chides, smiling that infuriating smile of his,"No need to lose your temper."

Marlene's hand on her elbow is the only thing stopping Lily from flying across the classroom and tearing that git to shreds.

"Really, we could have easily avoided this whole scene," he continues calmly, "If you'd just read even one of those notes I've been chucking at you all period."

Notes? Those annoying little parchment balls were notes?

"Note passing is strictly prohibited, Peterson, Ensley," Binns drifts over to where Lily is sitting, "I hope it's something you're willing to share with the entire class."

Lily feels the blood drain from her face, and she wishes very much that she knew how to cast a Disillusionment charm so she could blend in with the walls and disappear from sight. Potter, on the other hand, looks as bright and carefree as ever.

"'Course I don't mind, Professor Binns," he says cheerfully, "Evans, will you do the honors?"

She glares silently at him, and changes her wish. Instead of a Disillusionment charm, she wishes she knew a hex to shut Potter's big mouth up for good.

"Miss Everett." Binns has never sounded so intimidating to Lily before, "I'm going to have to ask you to read that note aloud."

Her heart drops somewhere to the approximate region of her kidneys as she bends over and picks up one of the many, many scraps of parchment. She smooths it out, and casts Binns one last pleading look.

His ghostly eyes hold no pity.

She swallows hard, shoots Potter a look filled with as much hatred as she can muster, and reads,

"Dear Evans,

Your eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad.

Your kiss is something I need.

You're simply divine, I wish you were mine,

So come with me to Hogsmeade!

Xoxo,

JP"

There are snickers from around the classroom, and Lily is aware that her face is the approximate color of her hair, and all she sees right now is red.

"Like hell I will, Potter," she hisses, humiliated to the verge of tears "I'd rather kiss a Dementor than you, and don't you ever forget it."

And with that, she leaves her books and her bag and sprints out of the room before anyone can tell that she's crying. James loses his cool, finally, along with his words as he tries to stutter something out, but she's already gone, running down the corridors to the safety and privacy of the Gryffindor girls' dorms. Later, Marlene and Mary and Elisabeth will be there to comfort her and tell her to buck up, it's a stupid boy, not the end of the world. Even later, Sirius and Remus and Peter will tell James almost the same thing. She's just a stupid, stupid girl who can't appreciate the wonder that is their best mate. It's not the end of the world.

Neither will believe their respective group of friends. After all it feels like the end of the world, for an entire week of giggles and pointed fingers in the hallways. They are the talk of the school, and not particularly in a good way.

Lily curses his name.

James goes back to the drawing board.

A/N Is Lily overreacting? Maybe. But don't tell me you never blew anything out of proportion when you were thirteen. I know I did, just about every week, haha.