Chapter 11
The Quidditch grounds were ablaze with flashing colors of green and red, shouting, and overly aggressive students.
It was Homecoming game, and of course, Gryffindor versus Slytherin. Nothing like a slightly concerning and extremely violent rivalry to kick off the year, eh?
James, the unlikely Captain of the Quidditch team was giving his team a motivational speech.
"You all—" James started impressively. "Are good. We shall kick arse!"
Everyone cheered.
"What a way with words," Sirius commented, clapping his friend on the shoulder and wiping away tears of admiration. James shrugged modestly.
A booming voice slammed into their ears. "AND NOW, PLEASE WELCOME THE SLYTHERIN TEAM!" Screaming was heard at full volume, from every angle of the field. Ravenclaw tended to support Slytherin, while Hufflepuff was usually with Gryffindor.
"I guess this is it, Padfoot." James said seriously. "Are you ready to destroy Slytherin?"
"Yep." Sirius replied solemnly.
"PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR GRYFFINDOR!"
James turned towards his team. "Remember what we practiced! Remember to be confident! Also, Alicia, you look hot," he added, thumbing towards her. "Wow. Really."
And then he turned back towards the exit to meet an annoyed Lily Evans face to face.
"Oh, hello, Evans." he said pleasantly.
She glared at him, opened her mouth to say something, then abruptly shut it. "You know what? Never mind." she said, and turned on her heel and left.
James raised an eyebrow and nudged Sirius. "What the hell's up with her?" Sirius shrugged in wonderment.
Alicia attempted to squeeze between Sirius and James, but the two happily hooked elbows and strode out the tent, the girl behind them rolling her eyes.
The crowd went berserk at their appearance.
"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT! LET'S GET THIS GAME STARTED!"
And before anyone knew it, brooms were kicked off the ground, and flashes of green and red were seen darting up and around the field.
James, Chaser Extraordinaire, had the Quaffle tucked under his arm. "Alicia!" he said, and tossed it to her, ducking as a Bludger sailed over his head.
Someone bumped into him. He almost thought it was Sirius— until he saw the green and silver robes.
"Oh. Sorry." Regulus said, staring up at James.
"No time to be polite, Black!" shouted one of the Slytherin Beaters, until Sirius whacked the Bludger towards his abdomen.
"Potter!"
James grabbed the Quaffle before it slammed into Regulus. James zipped towards the Slytherin post and tossed it into the hoop.
"GRYFFINDOR SCORES!"
James cheered, and then narrowly dodged an attack by the previous Slytherin Beater, who had swung his bat at James's head.
"FOUL, FOUL!" Sirius yelled, and pounded a Bludger towards Regulus, who was streaking after a gold blur in the sky. It hit Alicia instead.
And so the game went— as most games go. Violent, unnecessarily aggressive, and fast. It was blur of who exactly is winning?
James grit his teeth as the shout was blared through the sky. "SLYTHERIN SCORES!"
James searched the clouds. "Where the hell is Anderson?" he muttered, looking for their Seeker.
Adam Anderson, a small, wiry boy with reflexes faster than a snap of the wrist, was keenly observing the area, Regulus hovering uncertainly near him.
Adam scrutinized the ground and the sky above him. And then, he dashed towards the right, madly flying through an intense battle of the Quaffle, accidentally crashing into a Slytherin Chaser and causing him to drop the ball.
James caught the released Quaffle and streaked towards the Slytherin posts.
Adam stretched out his hand, the tiny gold ball's wings fluttering at his fingertips.
James dodged another Bludger attack, the Quaffle securely between his hands. James was desperate. If there wasn't another ten points before Adam caught the Snitch, the game would end and Gryffindor would lose.
And just as Adam's hands closed around the tiny ball, James threw the ball desperately into the Slytherin goal, and the crowd erupted.
The moment was suspended in time. "GRYFFINDOR WINS!"
Music broke out all around them, red and gold streamers and banners showing up in every area of the field, red and gold glitter dripping from the sky like rain.
"GRYFFINDOR, GRYFFINDOR, GRYFFINDOR!" The students shouted, clapping and cheering. The Slytherins were arguing with Madam Hooch. No, Potter shot in the ball after Anderson caught the Snitch!
But James only had eyes for the beautiful redhead cheering louder than the rest, holding up a banner that read, Go Gryffindor!
"Potter! Potter!" she chanted along. Despite her earlier glare at him before the game, she grinned happily at him, and he grinned incredulously back.
And he really couldn't help himself. Really, he couldn't.
And before he knew it, he had shot towards her, tenderly cupped her cheek, fervently whispered, "Lily," and pressed his lips against hers.
Lily was frozen in place. James Potter was kissing her. James Potter was kissing her.
And then Lily melded herself against him, throwing out every bit of reason in her head, and kissed him back.
James smiled against her lips. He could feel her quick heartbeat against his chest.
And when he pulled away, Lily's eyes were sparkling and her cheeks sported that pink blush he loved so much.
He grinned at her, sparkling in the sun, both of them liberally sprinkled with celebratory red and gold glitter. "Thanks for supporting Gryffindor, Evans," he said, smirking, and then flew down to join his teammates.
"Lily, what the hell?" Marlene was shrieking.
The students were filing out of the grounds and happily back into the school to enjoy Homecoming parties in their respective Common Rooms.
Lily was still dazed. She traced her tongue along her bottom lip. "He kissed me." She was still questioning her own memory.
"I know he kissed you," Marlene huffed, frowning at her friend. "I was there. But why did you kiss him back?"
Lily stared blankly at her friend, blinking. "Because... because I wanted to." she realized. "Why not?" she asked recklessly, then stared meekly at her feet.
Marlene looked at her like she was stupid. "Lily, you told him that you wanted to be just friends." She lowered her voice and looked at her friend seriously. "You know, Snape was there."
Lily stopped. "Severus?"
Marlene bit her lip. "I mean, he comes to all the Quidditch games because of his friend, Black."
Lily looked worriedly at her friend. "That doesn't mean he saw the kiss."
Marlene raised an eyebrow. "Everyone saw the kiss."
Lily swore. "Dammit."
She shook her head. "Anyway, it doesn't matter what Severus thinks anymore. He and I are done. He can't influence me or my life anymore."
Marlene looked at Lily sadly. "He was your friend, Lily."
Lily thought of Severus signing onto Voldemort, and her throat closed up. "Not anymore." she choked out, and continued back to the Common Room in silence.
"THREE CHEERS FOR JAMES POTTER, WHO WON US THE GAME!" Sirius yelled, hoisting up his glass. James laughed.
The celebratory shouts of Gryffindors answered him. Too-bright lights were hung from the ceiling and flashing in different colors; everybody was drunk, dancing, or laughing, but everyone was having fun.
Lily Evans was explaining to a second year exactly why he couldn't drink the punch, when James grabbed her elbow.
He swayed on his feet. Lily raised an eyebrow. "You're drunk," she said bluntly.
"Noooooope," James slurred, sending her a ditzy smile. "Lily, wanna be my girlfriend?"
Lily frowned. "I'd rather talk about this when you're coherent and sober."
"But I wanna talk about it now," James insisted, wobbling. "'Cuz you're pretty and nice and smart and—"
"Thank you." Lily said, unable to keep a small smile off her face. "But wait till you're sober." She turned to disappear into the crowd of people, but James was still holding onto her arm.
"Lily why are you mad at me?" James whined. "You were mad at me before the Quidditch game. But I won! I won the game!"
"James, I know you won the game, " Lily replied patiently.
"Then why were you madddd?" James complained. He sat on the ground in despair.
Sirius appeared from behind him. "Is he drunk?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes." Lily replied affirmatively. She looked at James and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I got a little jealous when you called Alicia hot." she admitted.
"But she is hot," James said in confusion.
"Yeah, well," Lily threw up her hands. "I mean, I don't know. You can call whoever you want hot. Why are we having this conversation? You're drunk and on the floor, in the middle of a party, while your best mate watches us have a relationship talk."
Sirius waved.
"But we kissed," James said. "Right, Sirius?" Sirius nodded.
"I know," Lily said, cheeks heating up. "I don't know, James, it was the heat of the moment. Anyway, you kiss plenty of girls. I'm sorry, I have to go find Marlene." she lied, and attempted to merge back into the party. James's leg was blocking her path. She was about to pick her way over it when he asked:
"Did you kiss me because you like me or because I won the game?" James gazed at her innocently and a little sadly, looking up at her with big eyes.
She chewed worriedly on her lip, mind racing a million miles a minute. Shrugging apologetically, she turned and ran back into the crowd like her life depended on it.
And honestly? It did. Who knew liking James Potter was her biggest fear?
Severus Snape was alone in the Slytherin Common Room. He felt numb inside.
He stared blankly at a wall, as if his fingers were frozen.
"Severus," said a voice. He didn't move.
Narcissa. She was wearing a beautiful navy-colored nightgown. Her hair tumbled down her back and around her shoulders. She looked enchanting; but Severus did not even glance at her.
She sat, rather floated, down next to him. "Are you alright?" she asked quietly, carefully.
"I'm fine." Severus replied flatly. His face was as hard as stone.
Narcissa was quiet for a moment, nervously twisting her fingers in her lap. "You don't seem fine." she said finally. "Tell me what's wrong."
Anger flared up. "Narcissa, leave me alone." he said, a crack of emotion slipping through his voice.
"No, I won't." Narcissa said, adopting that hard, stubborn look worn on both her sisters. "I'm your only friend, Severus. Maybe it'd do you good not to push me away."
Severus's hands shook with anger for a moment; then he stopped, though his shoulders trembled. "You don't understand." he said, shuddering. He clenched his hands into fists. "Fine. I'm not fine. I'll never be fine. But that's fine because her. Her her her. Not fine. Not fine not fine not fine—"
He stood up and left, Narcissa gazing sadly after him.
It was the next day, a crisp autumn afternoon. Everything was red and gold, as was Lily Evans, talking animatedly with her friend Alice and enjoying the weather.
Someone leapt down from the tree they were passing under. Lily screamed.
James straightened his cloak, grinning. "Boo," he said, smirking at her. "Wotcher, Evans."
Lily found herself eyeing his mouth. Alarms went off in her head. Stupid Lily, she scolded, and attempted to will away the pink blush painted across her face.
"Aren't you hungover?" she asked, choosing to frown at him. Alice smirked, crossing her arms. Oh, this was going to be good.
"Nothing a good Pepper-Up potion can't fix," he responded breezily. "Anyway, my Lily-flower, who wears cherry-flavored chapstick—" He winked at her, and Lily's entire face turned red. "—would you like to go on another, ahem, friendly date this weekend?"
Lily swallowed. He was still smirking.
"I suppose." she replied stiffly.
Another body dropped down from the tree. Lily screamed again.
"Everyone knows it's not a friendly relationship anymore," Sirius remarked.
Lily huffed, crossing her arms. "I'll have you know it's quite friendly."
"Yeah," Sirius said sarcastically, nodding at his best mate. "You share everything, even saliva."
Alice snorted, and Lily glared at her traitor of a friend.
Sirius noticed Alice and smiled charmingly. "Oh, hello, Alice. You do look nice today."
Frank appeared behind his girlfriend, raising an eyebrow. "Sorry, what, Sirius?"
Sirius didn't lose his grin. "I said, 'Oh, hello, Alice. You do look mice today.'"
Lily shook her head. "I will never understand you."
"He means she looks like a rat," James translated. Sirius nodded. Frank frowned.
Peter came strolling down the path, not surprisingly, eating something.
"Talk of the devil and he shall appear," Sirius commented, mildly surprised.
"What?" Lily said, now completely confused.
Marlene also appeared alongside Remus; animatedly chatting with him. Her cheeks were flushed from the cold, but she was smiling widely. Remus had recovered extremely well from his ordeal, and, being the undeniably wonderful and selfless boy that he was, refrained from murdering Severus.
It wasn't so easy restraining Sirius, though.
"What's going on?" Marlene said, leaving Remus's side and hooking her elbow through Lily's. "A family meeting?"
"Evans and James are going on a date this weekend," Sirius informed her. He brightened suddenly. "Hey, we should all group date!"
Everyone made a face.
"Come on, it'll be fun!" Sirius said happily. "Look, it's paired off perfectly: James and Evans, Moony and McKinnon, Frank and Alice, and me and Peter!"
Peter blanched.
Sirius elbowed him. "You know you want me."
"I guess." Alice said, looking to Frank. "What do you think?"
Frank looked pensive for a moment, then up to the others. "And— we can talk about...?" He looked meaningfully at James. James fidgeted uncomfortably.
"What?" Marlene demanded. "Talk about what?"
"That's for the weekend, McKinnon dear," Sirius said, breaking the silence and slinging an arm around Marlene's shoulders. "Peter, darling, accompany me to class."
Peter rolled his eyes. "See you," he said apologetically to the others, and jogged after Sirius.
One by one, everyone left, and then it was just James and Lily.
James rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you in?"
Lily shivered in the chill autumn air. "I suppose. I'm not busy this weekend, although there is a Charms test on Monday." She frowned worriedly, and chewed nervously on her bottom lip.
James allowed himself a tiny, tiny smile. There were sides of Lily that he loved so much that he could barely breathe. There were glimpses of her in different shades, but they were all Lily. He liked everything about her. She was perfect. Utterly perfect.
Lily noticed him smiling and frowned self-consciously. She tucked her hair behind her ear. "What?" she demanded, cheeks coloring. "There is a Charms test."
"Lily Evans," he said, smiling wider. He leaned against a tree, fitting right in with the red and gold leaves and warm brown bark. "We'll go on Saturday, and we can study together in the library."
She looked at him skeptically. "You. Study."
He laughed. "Anything for you, love."
The air itself seemed to change. The autumn leaves fell gently to the ground, but the chill was replaced by a strange warmth in Lily's chest.
Suddenly they were too close together. Her breath was a wispy cloud curling up against his cheek.
"It is a friendly date, right?" she whispered, and looked up at him imploringly.
His vision was clouded over by her, her, and her. "Um, whatever you want."
"What do you want?" she asked. Her eyes. She had the most beautiful eyes. He had never worshipped them enough. Green, and fringed with dark lashes. Beautiful. She was beautiful.
Both of them knew his answer, but James leaned his forehead against hers. It was cool, and comforting.
He sighed. "I want whatever makes you happy, Lily." he said quietly. "Okay?"
He smelled like pine and a warm hearth. She breathed in. She rested her cheek against his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her head.
"Okay."
A/N: THEY KISSED! *dances wildly* Is it too early? Oh God, I hope it's not too early. That would suck. Dammit, it probably is too early.
Also, you can probably tell I am horrible at writing about Quidditch. That Quidditch segment up there makes me want to throw up, it's so ugly. I'M SORRY!
Also, drunk James is the cutest.
Review?
