Chapter 2- Prats and Broken Glass

"Nothing is ever done beautifully which is done in rivalship: or nobly, which is done in pride"
-John Ruskin


"So James, I have to warn you: it's been circulating that you and the beautiful Lily Evans met for some sort of a romantic rendezvous last night." said the devilishly handsome Sirius Black, causing James to spit out his pumpkin juice in laughter and the sandy-haired boy next to him to choke on a piece of egg. Their usual companion, Peter, was away visiting his sick mother.

"And why, pray-tell, is that circulating?" asked James amused at the boy to his left.

"Annabelle Varaclese."

"Why would anyone believe her?" asked James rolling his hazel eyes and taking another swig of his pumpkin juice.

"Well, James, I suppose it's obvious that neither of you slept much. Did you see that Evans fell asleep in History of Magic--?" started the handsome sandy-haired boy named Remus.

"Well, that's not saying much at all now is it?" asked Sirius, giving his ever-charming, rugged grin.

"Varaclese is an idiot anyways. But, of course, Evans will blame this on me." said James a bit annoyed.

"Yeah, any minute now she is probably going to attack you or some--" started Sirius with a joking smile which faded quickly as he was cut off by someone bellowing loudly.

"POTTER! HOW DARE YOU!" roared a female voice behind James and Sirius.

James rolled his eyes and turned around slowly with a grimace to faced the short, irate red-head. He stayed seated and did not rise up to face Lily Evans. Every occupant of the Great Hall turned and stood on their respective house tables to see what would no doubt be one of the greatest fights of the year.

"My word, Evans! There is no need to shout, I am right here, darling." said the black-haired boy with an uncharacteristically patronizing look at the young woman before him.

His attitude succeeded in enraging her further against him.

"Don't give me that crap, Potter, I am in no mood for your childish games! I know all about the pathetic lies you have been spreading!" said the girl glaring at him with a look that could sink a ship.

"I assure you, Oh Beautiful One," snorts of laughter filled the Great Hall as Lily Evans' face turned crimson with embarrassment and anger, "that I did not spread any lies about you and I."

"Really Potter? And I am to believe you--you, callow, self-absorbed prat?" asked Evans venomously, stepping closer to the boy in front of her, who finally had taken to his feet and stared her directly in the eyes. "You are so immature! I can't believe you are Head Boy! I can't believe that--"

"I assure you Evans that I had no such part in the spreading of a rumor about us and a rendezvous ." interrupted the young man bitterly, "I wouldn't do that, because I have, first of all, moved on from my infantile infatuation with you, and, because you have made it lucidly clear what your feelings are for me. I have no such wish as to toy with your high and mighty dignity. And I hope that you can stop destroying mine by being so presumptuous and conceited to believe that I would spread something like that rumor. I have never in our seven year history made something untrue up about you, and I certainly wouldn't start now.

"If you ask Annabelle Varaclese I am sure you will be able to work out the rumor for yourself. Apparently the fact we both look tired is damning enough for everyone to speculate we are running off to some remote tower, which, I assure everyone has not happened."

James Potter then turned on his heel and left the dead silent Great Hall with a somber face and walked out to the grounds. Within the Great Hall was a mixture of awe and confusion.

"James Potter? Who would've thought?" muttered the Hall as Lily Evans walked slowly from it, her head held decidedly high even after so devastating a loss.


James Potter's heart was pounding heavily in his chest as he walked around the large lake. He lied straight to the face of Lily Evans and the entire population of Hogwarts when he said he had moved on from Lily Evans. He hadn't by any measure. He loved her in every way, and she loathed him just as much. James hated how she made him feel like he was nothing, that his love was nothing.

Sighing, James reached his favorite tree: the willow near the lake. He laid down in the grassy moss beneath it, hidden from sight.

Laying on his back with his head in his hands, James closed his eyes, he could smell the earthy wet of the ground he was laying on and nearly taste the tang of the moss. His eyes snapped open as Sirius walked into his tree shelter, interrupting his solitary thoughts.

Sirius laid down next to James and was silent for several minutes.

"I've never seen you so worked up, James, well other than...well... you know when. You're downright frightening when you are serious. Thank Merlin it is a rarity. I find your little rivalry with the beautiful Miss Evans rather endearing." said Sirius, rolling over and looking at his friend, "But you did lie, Prongs old buddy, you still aren't over her.

"She is so damn infuriating. I try to be a good guy but--"

"James, you are a good guy. One of the very best in my opinion." Sirius made a fake disgusted look and then spoke again, "This is getting a bit too sentimental, if we keep going on like this we may end up hugging."

James laughed and looked from his friend to the crooked branches of the tree and the patches of light streaming through them. He tried heartily to get the painful image of the pretty red-head out of his mind, but failed miserably.

"Not that I particularly want to know... but where were you last night anyways? I fortunately noticed the absence of your melodious snores." said Sirius looking at James questioningly. James sighed and replied:

"I was in the kitchen."

"Why?"

"I couldn't sleep and I was hungry."

"All night?"

"Yes, all night."

"Another dream?"

"Yeah, but this was different."

"How?"

"I don't know. It seemed so real. Like it was really happening at that moment. It felt weird, like...I don't know."

"I see."

"I wonder why Evans didn't sleep."

"Apparently, so does the entire school."


Lily Evans had never been so embarrassed and insulted in her life. Not only was she called conceited by the most arrogant prat in all of Hogwarts, but her archenemy had succeeded in making her feel small and petty. After the ordeal in the Great Hall, she had immediately gone to her dorm room, where she locked the door and sat looking out the window.

"He is so infuriating." thought Lily as she stared out into the clear blue sky. But then the annoyance and frustration was suddenly drowned out by a rare and genuine curiosity.

Where had James Potter been last night?

She pondered this question for several minutes, but couldn't think of a good explanation. She felt sick knowing that in only a few hours she would have to meet with the imbecile to discuss school functions and pretend as though nothing has ever been an issue between them.


James Potter reached the Head's Meeting Room before Lily Evans, which was a first for him. The Head Student Room had a long, beautiful crimson couch, which James fell happily onto. Sighing slightly, James reached in his pocket and withdrew his worn copy of his favorite poems.

Only Sirius and Remus knew about his love of poetry, because during the summer, when the Marauders had been living at the Potter's home, they had walked in on him reading it and he was soon tackled by Remus and Sirius fought to see what book James could possibly be reading. Peter wasn't there that day. He was out seeing his mother, whom he said was sick. Sirius and Remus joked about his book all the time. James knew nearly every poem in it by heart, but he still loved to see the pages of his book, it made the words seem more real to him. His father had given it to him when he was ten for his birthday, James was in his phase that anything other than quidditch was idiotic and so he packed the book away until he was fourteen when he discovered it thrown carelessly into his chest of drawers. He had picked it up for a laugh, but then been intrigued by every page. It was his secret, and he thought it was an awfully embarrassing one, in his opinion.

The door banged open and Lily Evans walked in looking as though she were in a decided calm. James jumped up quickly and then, in a panic stuck his little book into the red sofa.

Lily didn't seem to notice.

Lily sat down to his right on the sofa and looked at him expectantly. Slowly, James sat back down. Though they were on the same sofa they were on about five feet apart, as the sofa was very long. It was silent for several long seconds before James spoke.

"So, about that--err--Halloween Party..."

"Oh! Um! Well, I have it all planned out I just need your approval and suggestions on some things." said Evans hurriedly, briskly pulling several pieces of parchment out of her pocket and laying them out in front of James, who moved closer to Lily to look at them.

"Now this is my plan for the room. What do you think?" asked Lily looking at James sharply. James leant down to take a better look at the parchment, and nodded silently at it.
This hurried and tense air continued for thirty minutes longer until Lily stood up and gathered her things. James stood up as well and went to extinguish the fireplace. He was about to turn around and appoligize for his words that morning, when --

"What is this?" Lily asked, pulling out his poem book. James strode towards her angrily and attempted to snatch his book back, but failed as she moved away to quickly for him.

"Give me my goddamn book, Evans!" shouted James angrily as he caught her by the arm and swung her around as she attempted to open the book. His other arm wrapped around her waist in an attempt to hold the struggling red-head.

"Let go of me!" she shouted, attempting to pull her arm away and maintain her grip on the book. Her face was flushed with anger as James let go of her and grabbed the book.

"What makes you think that you have any right to touch my things?" roared James, his hair nearly standing on end.

Behind him, the door opened slowly and in stepped Remus Lupin and Sirius Black, who looked around at the two struggling Gryffindors in panic.

"Why did you hide--" started Lily. She was cut off abruptly by Remus who had moved between the two, a position that had, in the past, been proved very dangerous when it came to the fights of Lily Evans and James Potter.

"Let's all just calm down." he said.

Sirius stepped next to James and glanced at the book. Then began to roar with laughter. James looked at him indignantly.

"This is far from humorous, Black." said James, but he smiled a little bit. Lily glared at James as he began to laugh silently and then burst out into such booming laughter she was sure the whole school could hear.

"I hate you, James Potter!" yelled the girl, her face reddening to the color of her hair.

Her outburst of rage only made the two boys laugh harder. Lily angrily turned and began to move towards the door when she felt a hand on her shoulder turn her around, suddenly she heard a crash. As the four of the looked at her feet, her heart sunk. Her time-turner! How could it possibly come of it's chain? The glass panels on it were shattered and the minuscule sand purred out on the stone floor. A black light clouded all of their minds and they felt as though they were all spinning, then they felt nothing at all.