Here's a new chapter, hope you like it! Here is the answer to your question Patronusesandpotions, I hope you like my answer ^^.

Please, don't hesitate to tell me what you think about the story so far.

For the sake of Pixies

Lily sighed heavily. Even she could not focus on the lesson right now. Their History of Magic teacher was lost in a very long and boring description of the relations between Goblins and Wizards during the sixteenth century, and really it was torture. Next to her, Clara was working on her Potions essay. Marlene and Alice behind them were working on their Transfiguration. For once, Lily hated herself for being so efficient at doing her homework, for now she had absolutely nothing to do except trying to keep her eyes open. Suddenly, a little bird of paper landed softly on her table. She frowned, but opened it anyway, trying to figure out where it had come from. The mystery didn't last very long though.

'That's not very serious for a Prefect.'

She looked at James, in the back of the class, and the boy winked at her. She smiled at him, before picking up her quill and starting to write an answer, right below James's tiny handwriting.

'You can't say that passing notes through the classroom is particularly serious either.'

The bird flew back towards James, who grinned as he read it. Next to him, Sirius was clearly sleeping, and right in front of them Remus and Peter were completing the crosswords of their Daily Prophet. No one was listening to the teacher anymore, who himself seemed bored by what he was saying. James made the note fly back to the redheaded girl.

'But I'm never serious Lily, that's the difference between you and me.'

'You can't deny it's pretty boring right now, Potter.'

'Potter?'

'Sorry, James.'

'Much better, Lily.'

Lily took a new piece of parchment, and hurried to write a new note to the boy behind her.

'By the way, what's going on between you and Shelley? You haven't talked about her since Hogsmeade. And apparently you haven't talked to her either, or at least that's what I understood in her lamentations to Salma in the dorm the other day. So, what's going on?'

'Nothing really, I'm simply busy.'

'Really? You think you're going to go away with it that easily?'

'Come on Lily, it's nothing really. I was busy doing other things, and I didn't have time to see her, that's true, but it doesn't mean that I have changed my mind or anything.'

'Good, because it would be very cruel of you.'

'But you know I'm not cruel.'

She looked at him, and he winked at her, making her laugh. She struggled to remain as silent as possible.

'Anyway, you should talk to her, or she'll get bored of you.'

'No one can get bored of me, Lily.'

'I am right now ,Potter.'

'Ouch, that hurts. Are you sure though? Maybe, to the contrary, you're beginning to appreciate my company, and in particular in boring History of Magic classes.'

She bit her tongue hard not to giggle loudly.

'Anything is better than boring History of Magic classes.'

'I object, your Honour! What about walking in dragon's shit? Or being kissed by the Giant Squid? Or spending an entire night cleaning cupboards with Filch? Shall I continue?'

'Alright, I must admit I prefer talking to you.'

'I knew you would come to your senses.'

'I was serious though James, you should talk to Shelley.'

'I will, don't worry about me.'

'I'm always worried about you. Or to be more precise, I'm worried about the next catastrophe you will cast upon us all.'

'Even you found our last joke against the Slytherins funny.'

'I didn't find it funny.'

'You did though. You laughed. I heard you. You can't deny that watching them fighting their quills to the death was incredibly funny. '

'Okay, it may have brought a smile to my lips...'

'See!'

'But only a smile Potter.'

'I heard you giggling Lily... But that's alright, I understand it's not very well perceived for a prefect to laugh at one of our jokes.'

'This one was quite harmless though.'

'Say that to Avery's quill! The monster completely burnt it to ashes! I reckon we should all buy it a proper funeral, as a fellow mischief-maker fallen in battle.'

Again, Lily fought hard not to laugh loudly, and she bit her fist to stop any sound from passing her lips, before answering to James again.

'I'm sure your speech would be brilliant.'

'Of course.'

The bell rang, finally, and all the students hurried out of the the classroom, fleeing before boredom.

"Thank Merlin that's over!" cried Sirius, stretching his arms towards the sky.

"It was terrible," agreed Clara.

They all headed towards the Great Hall, starving after such a horrible lesson. But as they were entering the Hall, Lily held James back.

"I was serious actually James. Shelley doesn't look very good. You must talk to her."

"I know Lily, I understood. Don't worry, I will talk to her."

The redheaded girl gave him a satisfied smile before joining their friends at the Gryffindor table, whilst James lingered on for a few seconds. He couldn't decide what he should do. He knew what he had to do, but he couldn't tell himself that he had to turn the page on Lily. How strange, he was on better terms with her than he had ever been in his life, and it was precisely the moment when she had a boyfriend, and he was deciding to live his life without any more hope of her being finally with him. Perhaps it was a sign, a sign that they were definitely not meant to be together, and that they could only be friends. Perhaps, but for now a discussion with Shelley and a final decision were too much for him. He would talk to Shelley, but not today. This week-end, yes, this week-end was good enough...

"So..." Clara said, smiling mischievously. "This is what you've been spending your Sunday afternoon doing. Cleaning abandoned cupboards."

"Well, you can still give me a hand if you'd like," answered Sirius, wiping the sweat off his forehead.

"Thank you... but no thank you. I'm very well right here, watching you working hard."

"If you came only to tease me, you should just leave me here alone to my misery," replied Sirius, his lips curving into a smile.

Clara laughed.

"Actually, I did come to help you. I need help on my Transfiguration essay, and you're probably the best in Transfiguration, so..."

"If Filch finds you helping me..."

"He won't find me, I gave him a tip. Apparently some well-known poltergeist may be blowing up the toilets of the fourth floor."

Sirius couldn't help but laugh.

"What about my wand?"

"You'll get it back when Filch comes around after he has checked the toilets, and sees that you've won you're duel against dust and dirt."

"You would be an extremely good mischief maker Clara Clearwater, did you know that?"

She smiled, blushing slightly.

"I hope it is a compliment..."

"It is."

"Well, let's get done with the cleaning first."

She swung her wand and spoke the spell, and in the blink of an eye the cupboard was clean. Sirius stopped sweeping, and winked at her.

"Would you mind giving me a hand with the other two closets I have to clean?"

"Sure."

She cleaned up the next cupboard quickly and they advanced to the last one. Sirius opened the door, laughing and joking, when both of them froze. They could hear footsteps coming their way...

"Hide, quick!" Sirius pressed her.

He threw her into the closet, closing the door behind him. He sat down next to the door, faking exhaustion. Their Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Mr. Solvay, appeared at the corner of the corridor.

"Mr. Black, what are you doing?" the professor asked.

"I'm in detention, Professor. But I'm taking five minutes of rest, before cleaning my last cupboard."

Sirius nodded in the direction of the door.

"I see," said the teacher, passing a hand on his bald head. "Well, good luck with the sweeping then, Mr. Black."

"Thank you, Professor."

The teacher walked past him, and soon disappeared at the corner. Sirius waited a few seconds, before opening the door to Clara again.

"That was close," smiled Sirius.

But Clara hurried out of the closet, clearly afraid.

"What's wrong?" he asked her, worried.

She placed herself behind Sirius, hiding from the cupboard behind the boy.

"There's something in there," she told him.

Though she was scared, her voice was steady.

"Really?"

"I'm serious, there's something in there."

Sirius took a step into the cupboard.

"Be careful," she admonished him.

He turned back towards her.

"There's nothing in th..."

Three flashes of blue bumped into his back, making him lose his balance, and the Gryffindor boy fell upon Clara. The Pixies flew away, laughing evilly. Clara and Sirius exchanged a glance, before bursting into laughter.

"Pixies, of course!" she said.

Sirius was still above her. He slowly stopped laughing. He was feeling very strange, and he couldn't understand why: his heart was beating so fast in his chest, he was out of breath... Clara was still laughing under him, their faces a few inches apart. He could feel her warmth flowing in his own body. He was calm, and peaceful, and over-excited at the same time, he felt numb, and yet all his senses seemed to be sharper than usual. He could feel her breath caressing his cheek, her wonderful laugh singing in his ears, he could guess the shape of her body against him. She was gorgeous. He had no idea why he was thinking about it now, and yet it was quite the only thought his mind could form. She was so gorgeous with her pink cheeks, her brown hair, her red lips... He felt himself diving towards her lips, coming closer, and closer. He wanted to kiss her, Merlin he had never felt such an urge for anything in his life. He didn't want to kiss her, he needed to kiss her. He needed to taste her lips, and feel her skin against his... He stopped, frozen, as she opened her deep green eyes, and it seemed he had lost his entire soul in them suddenly. She was still grinning, apparently not aware of how strange the situation was, nor of any of Sirius's intentions. He could read in her eyes she was looking at a friend, and for some reason it hurt him hard in the chest. She didn't want him to kiss her, and he knew it. He was her friend, and it would be like betraying her trust. So he shook himself, and stood up.

"Well, let's finish this before Filch comes back," he told her, his voice a bit hoarse.

He helped her to stand, and his stomach made a very strange flip-flop as he touched her hand. She cleaned up the last closet, and turned her attention towards him again. She smiled at him, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Done!" she said merrily. "Now we've just got to wait for Filch to come back. I'll be in the Library, will you join me when you've got your wand back?"

"Sure."

She grinned and disappeared around the corner, waving happily at him. He waved too, laughing. And yet, when she was gone, and even the sound of her footsteps on the stone floor had vanished, Sirius rested his back against the wall and let himself fall gently upon the ground. He sat there for a while, his head in his hands. He had never felt this way before, and he was terrified. But despite his fear, the signs were obvious, and no doubt was left in him. He liked her, Sirius had a crush on Clara. He wasn't seeing her as a friend anymore. He sighed heavily, his eyes wide with fear. He liked Clara. Oh my Merlin...

"I am only saying that if you want a relationship to work, you actually have to see each other, Prongs."

"I know, Moony."

"If you don't like her, then just don't be with her. But you can't kiss her and then act as if she didn't exist."

James sighed heavily, staring at the ceiling over his bed.

"I know you're right."

"Do you like her?" asked Remus from his own bed.

He had abandoned the book he was reading a long time ago, and he was sitting on his bed, his parchments, quills and books in a mess all around him. He had to work, but anyway with James in this state, he couldn't focus on anything.

"Yes, I like her," answered James. "She's funny, and gorgeous, and she's not stupid or anything. She likes Quidditch..."

"So, what's wrong?"

James looked at him in the eyes.

"I don't feel anything."

"You need to give yourself a bit of time. Feelings don't come instantly."

"Sometimes they do though."

Remus sighed.

"Prongs, maybe it's not really the love you're supposed to..."

"It is love Remus. I know, I've known since the second I saw her. I love her, and it's useless to act as if I didn't feel anything. I've tried, for more than a month now, and it doesn't work! I can't forget her! I just can't, I never could, and I don't think I ever will."

He sighed painfully, passing a hand upon his tired face.

"I don't know if it's fair for Shelley, if I act as if I wanted to be with her, when I don't feel anything."

"But Lily is with someone else now Prongs. And you can't act as if nothing had changed."

"I know that also, thank you, " James answered sharply.

"Prongs, don't get angry against me, I'm just trying to help."

"I know, I'm sorry Moony."

"It's alright."

James remained silent for a while, before rising, a determined glint burning in his hazel eyes.

"You're right, I don't have a choice anyway. She doesn't love me, and she never will, and I can't waste my life on her."

"That's right Prongs!" agreed Remus encouragingly.

"So I'm going to find Shelley, and take a walk with her."

"Good idea!"

James took the Marauder's map from his bedside table, and looked for the blond Gryffindor girl. He didn't have to go far to see her, she was in the girls' dormitory.

"See you later Moony."

"See you Prongs, good luck!"

As he was opening the door, he bumped into Sirius.

"Watch out Pads!"

"Sorry."

Sirius looked worried, tortured even. James knew this look quite well, Sirius had a similar expression every time he had to go back to Grimmauld Place.

"What's wrong?" James asked him.

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"Padfoot, are you okay?" asked Remus, noticing his friend's expression too.

"Of course I'm alright."

"You don't seem alright..."

"I am Moony, thanks. I'm just knackered. This detention killed me."

When he looked back at James, he did look exhausted. And yet the boy knew it was not the expression Sirius had upon his face a moment ago.

"I'm off anyway," continued Sirius. "Clara needs a hand with her Transfiguration essay, I'm just picking up my book."

"You know that if you need to talk about anything..."

"Thanks Prongs, but I need some rest, not a bloody shrink."

He strode to his bed, took his Transfiguration book and stormed out of the room. On his way to the Library, he stopped in a deserted corridor, and sat down against the wall. He needed to calm down, and to think. He needed to decide what he was going to do. Would he try to ask her out? Certainly not, he had seen the way she was looking at him, and it wasn't desire, it was friendship, and nothing more. By asking her out, he would simply manage to spoil everything. He would lose her trust, lose her friendship, lose her... And anyway it was probably nothing, just a passing phase of his. He had a crush on her, big deal. He could overcome it. He wasn't like James, who couldn't live without Lily. It was a simple crush, and his feelings were going to wane, and soon it would be over and things would be back to normal. A part of him wanted to talk about it to someone. James? Remus? No, no need to get them involved in his stupidity. It was nothing, and he could handle it by himself. He simply had to act as if nothing had changed, and eventually, he would stop acting like an idiot. He got up, and strode towards the Library again. Clara was his friend, she trusted him, and he would not let his crazy hormones ruin everything. He would not let her down.

James sent a fourth year on a mission to ask Shelley to come down to the Common Room. The boy didn't have to wait long for her to be by his side next to the fireplace.

"You wanted to talk to me about something?" she asked him.

Expectation was burning in her eyes.

"Yes, I thought we could take a walk."

She grinned.

"Sure!"

They walked together out in the Grounds talking about classes and unimportant things, and they sat down in the grass, near the borders of the Forest.

"So, are we going to talk about what happened last week?" Shelley asked bluntly.

James laughed.

"I'm sorry I didn't come to you earlier," he said.

"Why did you wait for so long? Do you regret what happened?"

"Of course I don't. I was busy, that's all."

"Busy doing what?"

"Many things."

She waited a few seconds, but he wouldn't add anything, so she went on.

"So, are we together?"

"Do you want us to be?"

"I do."

"Good, so I guess we are."

She grinned, and he smiled at her. But inside his chest, his heart was cold as ice.

"There's just one thing I'd like to be clear on, before we make it official," she said, coming closer to him.

"And what is that?"

"You're not going to keep asking Lily out, are you?"

He looked intensely into her gaze.

"No, I won't. Haven't you noticed yet? She has a boyfriend now."

She propped up an eyebrow.

"And, is it going to change something? I mean, you've already done a lot of crazy things to make her go out with you, I don't see why a boyfriend would stop you."

He narrowed his eyes.

"I'm not this kind of guy. I'm not going to destroy their relationship."

"Why?"

"Because it's bad!"

She shrugged.

"I didn't think it would stop you."

James felt the familiar pain in his chest come back, and he reckoned it was time to drive the conversation away from Lily.

"Maybe the chase is not that funny anymore, now that there is a third player," he answered.

He cleared his throat.

"So, what would you like to do?" he asked merrily.

She got even closer to him.

"I have something in mind."

He smiled as her lips approached his, and squeezed her against him as they kissed under the trees.

"Have you heard the news?"

Liam sat opposite Lily. The redhead merely shook her head, not even taking her eyes off her book. She had to finish this Transfiguration essay...

"Apparently," Liam whispered, bending over the table, "Potter has a girlfriend."

Lily looked up at him.

"I know, he's going out with Shelley, since Hogsmeade."

The Ravenclaw propped up an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Sure, I saw the two of them kissing last week."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I reckon it is their business, and their business only. I didn't tell anyone, because they had told no one themselves."

"Who told no one what?" asked Clara, sitting next to her friend.

Sirius sat next to Liam.

"James is going out with Shelley, it's official," the ginger girl answered.

"Great!" Clara exclaimed.

But Sirius let out a heavy sigh.

"What's wrong? Aren't you happy for him?" Clara asked him.

"No more operation HGP... It was too easy really, what am I gonna do now when I'm bored?" complained the Gryffindor boy.

The two girls laughed, though Liam didn't understand a thing. None of the Gryffindors took the time to explain to him what HGP meant though.

"I hope it will work," Clara said.

"Me too, they both deserve the best," agreed Lily.

"And it means he will stop bothering you with his crazy obsession of asking you out," said Liam, snickering.

Sirius glowered at him, but said nothing.

"So, now that we are done with the gossip," said Clara, turning her attention towards Sirius. "Please, I need your help."

Sirius smiled mischievously.

"And, what do you offer me in exchange of my services?"

"My gratitude?" proposed the girl, fighting hard not to laugh.

The boy rocked his chair back and forth, faking hesitation.

"Well, I don't know. I'm sure you could do better than that."

"I'll leave you my crossword tomorrow."

Sirius let out a laugh, driving angry stares towards their table.

"Now you're talking! Alright, what do you need me for?"

"I can't do that spell."

She showed him the incantation in her Transfiguration book.

"I'm gonna walk a bit outside, would you join me?" Liam asked Lily.

The ginger girl hesitated, but Clara reassured her.

"I'll explain everything to you, you should go Lils."

"Thanks Clara, you're the best."

"I know!" her friend answered with a wink.

The couple walked away, and the two Gryffindors remained alone at their table, working hard for an hour, until Clara had finally completed her essay.

"Thank you so much," she told Sirius, smiling happily. "I couldn't have done it without you."

The boy stayed mesmerized by her smile for a few seconds. It was so sincere, and radiant... he shook himself, remembering who was in front of him. It was just a crush, and a crush would not get in the way of their friendship.

"You're welcome."

"Do we have a training session tomorrow?" she asked him, closing her book.

"Yep! It's going to be pretty intense till the match against Hufflepuff," he answered, rocking his chair again.

She sighed heavily, narrowing her eyes.

"This is extremely annoying Sirius."

"What is?"

"You, rocking your chair like that."

He let his chair fall back on the ground.

"Sorry."

She propped up an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. He had never stopped this terrible habit before, not even for James.

"Do you reckon we'll be ready?" she asked.

"Of course, we don't really have a choice anyway," he smiled.

She started to bite her bottom lip. He had never noticed how cute it was...

"Do you think that I'll be ready?" she asked slowly.

"You will be," he answered reassuringly.

"I hope so. I saw one of their Beaters the other day, he's a bloody monster. He's twice as big as me at least."

"I thought you were the one who was saying that strength is not the most important thing for a Beater."

"Yeah, well it was before realizing who I'm up against."

Sirius merely chuckled.

"You'll be fine. And I'm here, remember, you're not the only Beater on the team. I'll cover you, don't worry."

She smiled, before rising from her chair.

"I'm starving, want to go get something to eat?"

"Sure."

As she was walking in front of him, it was hard for Sirius not to let his eyes wander over her body. As he forced himself to look at her hair, and only at her hair, he realized how hard it was going to be to forget this crush.