Chapter 4: Learn to Fly

Glaring at Sirius as he walked past them Severus turned to Lily slightly affronted.

'I can handle him; he makes everyone else's life a misery Lily. He thinks just because he's rebelling against his "family traditions" he's something special, '

'But don't make him have the satisfaction,' Lily said 'I'm not defending him Sev,' she added seeing the look of outrage on Severus' face. They were going to spend the remainder of their afternoon in the library researching their homework, Lily was struggling in transfiguration but Severus wasn't fairing much better.

'I don't see how we would possibly ever need to transfigure a needle into a quill- just carry a quill.' Lily said frowning as she looked over the difficult and complex diagrams.

'I'll never get this,' Severus grumbled 'it just doesn't make sense! How does Rotter do it so easy,'

'He's the golden one isn't he,' Lily responded 'like everything just works,'

'But what if it didn't?' Severus said a glint in his eye, he pulled out a big leather bound book entitled 'Potions for the Modern Wizard' and said excitedly 'we could, not permanently but at least for a week…'

'Do what to him' Lily said cautiously

'Something I read,' he said excitedly

Lurking between the bookshelves was none other than James Potter and listening expectantly. He tiptoed around the corner making sure he wasn't seen and watched Lily and Severus.

'Severus, I don't like James very much but I don't want to poison him,' Lily said quietly

'Lily not all potions are cures and ailments, poisons or otherwise. No we could just make him super unlucky.'

Lily didn't like the sound of this, it perturbed her that Severus was so intent on taking great pleasure out of someone else's downfall and for some reason it perplexed her more that he was focusing solely on James Potter. She closed her transfiguration text book slowly peering at the potions book he had propped open.

'Some of those look nasty Sev,' Lily was startled by the effects of the potion she was reading, one would make you hop for seven days on your right foot, another would cause you to break out in red bruises and oozing till the effected witch or wizard owned up to the lies they told. But he was reading, engrossed and started flicking over the pages.

'I'm going to go back to the common room, I feel a bit drowsy,' Lily lied starting to put her books in her bag, Severus looked up mildly disappointed.

'Did you have your dinner?'

'Yeah, yeah' Lily said dismissively pulling her robe back on 'I will see you tomorrow Sev, at the Gobstones club, they are looking for members if you want to come?'

'Aha,' he said slightly none pulsed. 'Did I do something wrong?'

Lily shook her head.

'I don't like Potter Sev, but please don't do anything,' Lily pleaded. Severus couldn't go against her, she was looking at him, her eyes caring for him. He shut his potions book and said

'I frightened you didn't I?'

'No, no not at all,' Lily said quickly 'I just don't want my best friend getting in trouble over someone like James Potter,'

The morning of the flying lesson had arrived and Lily promised to meet Severus outside the Great Hall and they would walk down to the Quidditch pitch together. It was a part of Hogwarts grounds they had never explored and to Lily it seemed like another big adventure as the first quidditch game of the season was also going to be held that weekend. Severus spent the time of their walk down to the pitch explaining, or rather trying to explain the rules of quidditch to Lily.

'We will be learning on standard brooms I bet, then maybe next year we could buy our own?' Sirius said to James as they walked around the courtyards edge crossing over on to the bridge that spanned the lake and led down to the quidditch pitch.

'I want a Cleansweep 5,' James said fondly 'da' says if I make the quidditch team next year he will buy me one,'

'I love watching quidditch but I don't think I could play it,' Sirius pondered

'Really? I would love to play for the Arrows one day! Who do you support?' James enquired as they reached the entrance to the quidditch pitch.

'Wimbourne, my grandmother lives in the village. She's their biggest sponsor,'

'You do surprise me Sirius,' James mused 'I thought you would support the Magpies!'

Lily and Severus were at the back of the line of students and Severus was busy explaining the role of a seeker when Madam Hooch appeared in the entrance way to the quidditch pitch. He was trying to demonstrate the purpose of the snitch which Lily found utterly confusing.

'Students, follow me. Quietly!' Hooch ordered. And the students filed into a large stadium with four giant stands around the edge of the pitch. And three goal posts stood either end of the oval shaped field. In the centre of the field there were 20 broomsticks lined up neatly in rows, Hooch instructed that each student should stand next to a broom.

An hour into the lesson James Potter and to his own surprise, Remus Lupin had managed to levitate their broom successfully off the ground. Severus had wobbled it, Lily on the other hand could not make it move a centimetre up.

After the unsuccessful flying lesson James was unbearable, more than usual as he had managed to hover and land in one attempt. It got to the point where even his friend Sirius Black was telling him off for showing off.

'Give it a rest, you can fly. I get it,' Sirius said 'next year just try out for quidditch but till then shut up will ya?' Sirius was ruefully resentful as he had flown but nowhere near as good as James had managed but defined himself as a fair flier.

'If it bothers you that much,' James apologised, despite Lily telling him to shut up Sirius appeared to be the only one he would really listen too. Severus was cross with himself that he had managed only to allow the broom to hover without him on it. Lily didn't seem nearly as bothered as she had before.

'I prefer my own feet to a broom,' she declared on her return to the Gryffindor Common room. Kirsty and Erin were fussing over Remus who was looking dishevelled again, James attempted a vain rescue attempt by feigning a mild interest in the library unsuccessfully.

'Let me mend them,' Kirsty implored 'I know some really good sewing charms,'

Remus did not like the attention nor the accusation and looked helplessly at Lily as Kirsty was basically trying to strip his robe off him. James had tried and failed, Lily was his last hope. His grey eyes pleading with her.

'Remus doesn't want his clothes mending,' Lily pointed out, she managed to drag Kirsty away from him and Erin too gave up.

'Thank you,' he mouthed, Lily mouthed back

'Anytime,'

Kirsty and Erin wandered off up to the common room conversing quietly, Lily had no reason to suspect they were the ones actually planning to payback James for what he did to her in the courtyard...