A/N: This was meant to be adorable, and then it just kind of went on for too long. Apologies for that.


Cauldron Cakes – A cauldron is where a leprechaun keeps their treasure. If you find that treasure, it's supposed to be a good, happy thing. So for this one, you have to write a happy story.

She was better than him at Potions. Everybody knew it. Yet still, day after day, class after class, disastrous mistake after disastrous mistake, he persisted in trying to prove her wrong. It made no difference that they were dating now. It didn't matter that behind closed doors – Hell, even in front of open doors, like that one time Marlene had walked in on them in Lily's bed and just huffed out an annoyed sound and stomped out of the dormitory again – they were perfectly friendly now. Probably pushing the boundaries of friendly, actually, really.

The thing was that none of that mattered. What mattered is that, in the classroom, they were still competitors. And it still gave Lily that pleasant little feeling of joy when she beat James. And his skills in Potions just made it too easy to do so.

"Everyone, flames off please! Step back from your potions, it's time for me to test them."

There was a last-minute flurry of movement as everyone tried desperately to add those last few ingredients. Only Lily and one other boy (a boy whose existence she made of appoint of ignoring) obediently stepped back, presenting their mixtures to Slughorn with confidence etched on their faces.

"Severus, this is marvellous. Look everyone how just a pinch of rainbow trout scales makes every last drop of potion disappear. Splendid, Severus. Very well done."

The Potions Master stopped and started at the five cauldrons between Lily and Snape, tutting at varying degrees as each Disappearing Draught either disappeared too much, sucking the cauldron away with it, or disappear too little, leaving a splash of bright yellow liquid at the bottom of the cauldron. When he reached Lily, Slughorn was already beaming. He sprinkled the trout scales into her cauldron and bounced on his toes in excitement as her cauldron emptied neatly.

"Another perfect potion, Miss Evans! Well done. And now for Mr Potter's..."

Lily turned around to watch Slughorn tend to James's potion, biting the inside of her lip as he dropped the scales into the cauldron and the class held its collective breath, looking for the outcome. The collective breath was let out in a gasp. For, in the bottom of James's cauldron, spelled out by the bright yellow liquid that should've been disappeared away, was a loopily-scrawled message.

Lily Evans cordially invites you to attend Slughorn's Winter Ball as her date. Say yes?

James looked up at Lily, mouth slightly agape.

"Yes?" he said, the word a question.

Lily grinned.

Slughorn, still bent over the cauldron, straightened to glance between them, looking bemused.

"Carved a message into your cauldron-bottom, I see. I think the clever Miss Evans knew you'd be a bit too generous when adding frogs' toes. Don't let her go, boy!"

The last bit was accompanied by a pat on the shoulder, before Slughorn moved on to the next student.

"What if I'd gotten the potion right?" James asked, "Would I not have been invited?"

"Of course not!" Lily answered. "Potions is the one thing I know I can beat you at. You think I'd ask you to be my date if you finally bettered me in this too? I'd probably kicked you up the arse and not talk to you for a week!"

James choked out a laugh, still looking somewhat shocked at the turn of events.

"Well, I guess I should be grateful for small mercies then," he muttered.

Lily just smiled.