Quarantine Prompt #7 from anonymous on Tumblr: Hi Petals! If you're still taking prompts what do you think about: James and Lily having a first huge fight as a couple and some time later, after things cam down, not being sure what this means and what the other thinks, if they're broken up, on a break or still together cause it's so new to them.
"Just tell me what it is you want from me."
His arms were crossed and he was leaning against the stone wall of the castle, staring at his shoes. His legs stretched towards her, where she was standing back. Lily, frustrated with James, blew her hair from her eyes and crossed her own arms.
You sat there and just let me win."
"Sorry for being a good boyfriend." he snapped back, wand moving in his hand as he shook from his own irritation.
Lily felt the sarcasm all the way down to her feet. She didn't know how to explain to him how humiliated she was. Everyone knew James Potter was the best dueler in the school. Everyone knew Lily should've landed on her ass.
"A good boyfriend," she scoffed bitterly.
James' hazel eyes shot up from his shoes when he heard her sour tone, "what do you want me to say?"
And that's when Lily's cold tone turned frigid and icy, shooting down the hallway with an echo, "I shouldn't have to tell you what to say!"
"Then I don't know why we're still standing here!" she watched as he leaned up and off the wall with a glare down at her.
"I don't either!" she said, eyes flaring, "since you're so thick and can't see what you did wrong!"
"I didn't do anything wrong!" he threw his hands up in the air, "Fucking hell!"
"You let me win!" Lily stepped towards him, shaking her own wand at his chest, "I should've been put on my arse after two seconds of dueling against you!"
A shadow crossed James' features and he spat at her mirthlessly, "I'm done arguing with you about this."
The icy feeling melted swiftly under his dark stare, "fine," she said coolly.
"Fine." he answered back, hazel eyes almost black.
They both walked back to the common room in complete silence. When they entered Gryffindor's tower, they went separate ways instead of falling into the same chair for a quick song like they normally did. Lily wiped her tears away furiously, cursing James Potter and his stupid-handsome-face her whole way up to her dormitory.
Mary saw the look on fury on Lily's face and winced when Lily entered the girls' dorm, "chat with James didn't go well, I take it?"
"He's a stupid, chivalrous git." Lily tore her trainers off and flung them at her trunk angrily, "he had the nerve to-he didn't even apologize! I mean-the absolute nerve of him."Mary, who wasn't really following, just nodded along as Lily vented out her feelings. After Lily had voiced her opinions outlaid, she settled to her inner monologue. All night she replayed the scene from Dueling Club over and over. She remembered every move he made as he begged her for a smile.
"Come on Evans," he'd danced just out of reach as he taunted his girlfriend, "knock me on my arse."
Lily knew something wasn't right when her first spell hit it's mark. She's a shotty aimer-her biggest problem. She should've missed James, who moved like a fucking mountain cat when he was dueling. Instead, she hit him straight on. James should've easily overpowered her, he was quicker with nonverbal.
But James was the one who lost the duel...and Lily was the one everyone was looking at with newfound respect. Before, no one had ever knocked James Potter on his feet so quickly, Lily had done it in record time. She knew James went easy on her and she hated him for it, but when she confronted him...
Words got thrown out the window so quickly, Lily nor James could jump after them. James said some things that got Lily's blood boiling and Lily said some things that earned her James' brooding stare. By the end, they'd both been pissed off enough not to speak at all.
She knew he'd meant well.
She knew that.
She supposed his reaction to her cornering him had been what set him off. James had seemingly wanted to have no one notice he took it easy on her. It was like he wanted to prove Lily was as good a dueler as he was...which was just...absurd. No one but Serverus Snape and Remus Lupin could match James Potter in dueling.
Still, she couldn't face him the next morning. It was a little out of pride, a little out of stubbornness and a little embarrassment. James didn't bother talking to her either. He ate breakfast at the end of the Gryffindor table, alone, not even glancing her way when she glanced his.
As the day went on she wondered if they were through.
Dating only for two months and suddenly they were back to playing cold shoulder. Lily never wanted that, she quite fancied him when he wasn't being a chivalrous git. She also quite liked his mouth. His jaw wasn't hard to look at either, all lines and solid muscle that clenched when he was thinking really hard.
He was currently thinking hard, sitting next to Lily in Advanced Potions. They were partners and they hadn't spoken a single word to each other. It was maddening when he looked over and found him staring at his fingernails. She almost said something but someone interrupted her plans, a tall boy with pale eyes.
"Hear you knocked Potter on his arse in dueling," Mason Mulciber said, flicking a bit of dirt off his robes, "where'd you learn to duel?"
Lily, startled by Mulciber's attempt at conversation, looked over at James. He wasn't looking up but his hands were in fists and she saw his jaw was clenched hard. Lily looked back at Mulciber and raised her chin proudly.
"Dueling club allows everyone to practice-"
"Practice." Mason Mulciber sneered, "Snape can't even win against Potter in dueling."
Lily felt all eyes on them and she took a deep breath, "I just got lucky."
Mulciber snorted, "I'd say, people like you aren't naturals at magic."
James stood up, his chair scraping across the ground and startling everyone within a three foot radius. Mulciber turned his lazy eyes on James, devoid of emotion. Meanwhile, James was spewing anger.
"She might not be the best dueler," James defended Lily, "but she can beat anyones arse in charm theory and has the best potioneering technique this school has ever seen."
And then, it all came crashing back, her adoration for James. Mulciber just sniffed, as if James' outburst were necessary. Lily waited until Mulciber went back to his cauldron before she turned to look James eye-to-eye. James looked nervous and couldn't hold her gaze, like he was guilty.
"Sorry." he muttered.
"For what?" she asked, green eyes calculating.
"I know you can handle yourself and all," his head jerked in Mulciber's direction, "but Mulciber always looks at you like you're his next meal and it-it really bothers me that people underestimate you Lily. That's why I let you win in dueling. I wanted people to take you seriously."
Lily shook her head and reached out, clasping his hand. James looked up at her hopefully, as if he'd been worried they were through forever too. Holding his hand, it reminded Lily why she'd ever grabbed it in the first place. It was because she trusted him and knew he'd never let her fall...even when she wanted too.
"I was embarrassed." Lily said honestly, "I knew you let me win out of some stupid chivalrous reason and I hated that. I wanted to win fairly."
"I was being a chivalrous git," he admitted, lifting her hand to his mouth for a kiss, "but it was only because I was tired of all those stupid people in dueling club like Mulciber saying you were nothing but an average dueler."
He spat the word average and Lily smiled sadly, "I am an average dueler."
"Nothing about you is average, not in the slightest."
Lily felt her heart start and stop again from his impactful words. Lily bit her lip and glanced to make sure their Professor was busy before she leaned on on her tiptoes to press her lips against his. James relaxed against her mouth and even wrapped one arm around her waist before she pulled away.
"I love you," Lily put her heart in James' hands in front of everyone, "even when I'm yelling at you for being a chivalrous git."
James flushed with pride, "remember that, the next time I'm being a chivalrous git."
Lily reached up to ruffle his hair playfully, "thank you for being a good boyfriend."