Chapter XXIII + The eventful Hogsmeade trip
"Remus, let's go to Hogsmeade this weekend!" Alison squealed. "Please please please?"
"I'm going with the guys- you can come though!" Remus said.
"Is Lily or Maria going to be there?" Alison asked.
"I don't know about Maria, but I know that Lily has a date."
"A date, heh?" Alison smirked. "With who?"
"Todd Bowler." Remus answered. "Lily told Sirius who told James who told Peter who told me."
"Right." Alison said, rolling her eyes. "But she doesn't even like him."
"Well, I don't know. You haven't been hanging out with her for… almost 2 months, Allie, you don't know maybe something changed."
"Oh my god," Alison said. "If something happened, Lily should've told me. After all, I am her best friend!"
"It's a bit hard since you two are FIGHTING." Remus pointed out.
"Oh, right. Damn." Alison muttered. "But You will go to Hogsmeade with me, right?"
"Yes, of course sweetie." Remus answered, smiling.
"Good."
***
"Do you wanna go to Three Broomsticks?" Todd asked Lily later that week, while they were walking on the streets of Hogsmeade.
"Uh… sure." Lily replied, shrugging.
So they walked awkwardly to Three Broomsticks, with Todd trying his best to hold Lily's hand or wrap his arms around her waist WITHOUT getting snapped or smacked.
Lily walked into Three Broomsticks first, the door tinkling behind her. She almost let the door close in Todd's face, but luckily Todd held it open for himself.
Lily scanned the bar, it was jam packed with Hogwarts students. She spotted the Marauder's instantly, and almost made a move to join Sirius, James, Peter and… Maria.
"Let's sit over here." Todd said, pulling her to sit down in a table that was only 2 tables away from the Marauder's table. Lily knew they were watching her, she could feel their eyes boring through the back of her head.
"So, what do you want to order?" Todd asked as a waitress approached them. "My treat."
"Butterbeer." Lily answered.
"2 butterbeers." Todd said to the waitress. The waitress nodded and left them.
"Uh, Todd? It's alright, I brought my own money." Lily said.
"My," Todd said. "Most girls usually make me buy them drinks."
'Uh huh… right…' Lily thought sarcastically. But before she blurted the same words she had been thinking, she said, in a rather superior voice, "I'm not most girls."
"I can see that." Todd said, grinning widely.
'Oh Boy…' Lily thought wearily. 'Okay. I know he's a nice person, he's not that boring, but something's not right with this boy.' Lily said, studying Todd's face. 'Maybe it's the hair. The hair makes him look like James-er, Potter. Just the color. Though Potter's hair is black, his is just dark brown. And Potter's is unruly, his is slick. Um, his eyes are blue, while Potter's are brown. A really nice shade of brown. Kind of like milk chocolate brown. Damn, so delicious-'
"Lily," Todd mused. "Why are you staring at me?"
"Am I?" Lily asked without a trace of embarrassment. "Sorry."
Todd had taken in too much of that, he thought Lily was actually interested in him, but she was just playing hard to get.
'I knew she would fall for me.' Todd thought. 'I'm going to win that bet, I'm going to-'
"2 butterbeers!" Madame Rosmerta said, approaching them. "Why hello Lily! Who's this young lad with you today?"
"Uh, Rosie, this is Todd." Lily said.
"Hello Todd!" Madame Rosmerta said. Todd simply nodded at her. "Funny, why aren't you sitting with the boys today? James getting on your nerves again?" She asked, grinning.
"Er- Yeah, you could say so." Lily shrugged, not wanting to bring up the feud between her, Alison and Maria.
"Nah, don't take it too seriously. James is a joker, of course. But I do agree with Remus and Sirius."
"On what?"
"That James secretly likes you." Madame Rosmerta said, smiling. Lily felt herself blush deeply. "Well, I've got to serve other customers, see you Lily!" Rosie said, winking.
'Oh why why why am I blushing…' Lily thought. 'Why is my face getting redder and redder and oh I'm probably as red as a boiled tomato now.'
Todd, on the other hand, had taken an instant dislike for Madame Rosmerta after what she had just said to Lily. How could that women say that, couldn't she see that he was Lily's DATE, not POTTER?
He was watching Lily, who seemed to be a bit spaced out. She had her lips pressed together in a shy pucker. She looked rather flushed- Oh NO! Does Lily Evans LIKE James Potter?
"Lily," Todd said. "Do you want to go? I want to show you something."
"Um, I didn't finish my drink yet." Lily answered rather distractedly.
"Come on Lily." He urged.
"Oh alright." Lily sighed, picking up her purse. Todd smiled and pulled her arm out of Three Broomsticks, leaving a pair of eyes watching them leave in curiosity.
***
"Boy, this week was boring." Maria said, sipping her butterbeer. "Boring, boring, boring…"
"You know WHY it was boring?" Sirius asked.
"No, don't start on that whole fight crap." Maria snorted.
"Damn, I was just going to say…"
"Hey look, it's Lily and Bowler." Peter said, pointing towards the door.
Immediately James looked up, finding his favorite red head being led by Todd Bowler.
"She's with HIM?" Maria asked. "WHEN did this HAPPEN?"
"See, you're a bit slow," Sirius sighed. "He asked her out again. She claims they're not serious."
"Of course, since you are." Peter squeaked. "Ha, ha…" He laughed.
Silence… everyone else in the table was watching Lily, especially James who had been quiet most of the day.
"Heh… heh…" Peter slowed down. Fine, DON'T laugh at my joke.
"She's looking here!" Maria whispered loudly. Immediately the 3 heads that have been watching her quickly looked away.
"Why did she agree to go," Maria wondered. "I thought she didn't like him."
"Dunno. She did say that he begged her to go or something." Sirius shrugged.
"Begged? Ah, that girl's just bullshitting. Maybe she really likes him or-"
"No, Maria, sweetie, we all know that Lily's love is reserved for James." Sirius pointed out, hoping to get a smack on the head from his best friend.
But James didn't. Maria just gave Sirius a look, Peter just snorted, and James was… he was deep in thought.
"They're sitting near us." Maria muttered. "We could eavesdrop."
"Maria, shame on you." Sirius said. "That's not a good thing to do. What we should do is, eavesdrop."
Maria rolled her eyes while Sirius was laughing to himself.
"Er, right, Padfoot." James said, looking uneasily at him.
"I can't hear them talking." Maria whispered.
"Use that charm… oh, that spell… man, how do you do that spell…" Sirius said, smacking his head. "Think… think…damn, we need Lily's brain for these kind of stuff…"
"They're ordering… okay, now they're just talking… ugh, I don't like Bowler's smile…" Maria muttered.
"Rosie's with them… she's saying something… Lily's blushing. Bowler doesn't look so happy, hmm… Okay, Rosie left…" Sirius said, as if he was commentating a quidditch match.
"It's no fun, we can't hear them." Maria whined. "They're just talking now."
"Yeah. Whatever, I can ask Lily about it later." Sirius said, leaning in his seat. "She'll tell me."
"No fair!!" Maria whined.
"I'll tell you after, don't worry sweetie." Sirius grinned.
"Don't forget to tell me, Padfoot." Peter squeaked.
"Oh yeah, alright." Sirius shrugged.
"Hey hey! I think they're leaving." James said in a shushed voice. "Uh, yeah, they are."
Sirius tilted his face to watch them. "I wonder where they're going."
James stood up. "I don't like the look on his face." And left the table, heading for the door.
"PRONGS! WHERE ARE YOU GOING??" Sirius screamed.
James just waved his hand, running out the door.
***
"Let's go." Todd said, taking Lily's hand and leading her towards a small alley.
"Where are we going?" Lily asked.
"Surprise." Todd said mysteriously.
"I don't deserve any surprises." Lily replied bluntly.
"Oh," Todd said. 'Girls usually like the idea of surprises.' Todd thought. "Of course you do."
"No, I don't." Lily shrugged.
"Yes, you do." Todd said exasperatingly. "Come on…" He said, pulling her towards a wall.
"Why are we here again?" Lily asked. She knew it wasn't a very intelligent question.
Todd seemed to get rather annoyed, as his grip of Lily's hand tighten. "I have a surprise for you, remember?
"Right." Lily answered. She was looking around the alley, it was muddy and very dirty. Suddenly she felt herself being pinned to the wall.
"What are you doing?" Lily asked alarmingly.
"Ssh, Lily, ssh…" Todd said, grinning… evilly. He was bringing his face closer to Lily's, his blue eyes looking at her in menace. Lily let out a small gasp, and Todd kissed her lips-hard. He wasn't at all soft, especially since his lips were dry and chapped. And one hand of his was gripping her hand, the other one holding her shoulders. Lily tried her best to push him away, but Todd was way stronger than her. Lily felt his tongue trying to part her lips-and felt disgusted. She was having some trouble breathing. She tried with all her might to struggle away from his arms, but it made him hold her even tighter. Then, Lily kicked.
She kicked him right in the shins, making him tumble backwards. Her eyes were flashing with fury, hurt, … but Todd's eyes. Todd's eyes had some evil glint in it.
"Feisty…" Todd growled, holding her shoulders. "I like that."
Lily screamed right before he pressed his lips against hers.
"WHAT THE **** ARE YOU DOING????" Somebody yelled, running towards them. Todd, being the dumb*** he is, pulled away and looked at the speaker. It was James Potter, fist clenched, eyes flashing murderously.
Todd didn't say anything, he was about to open his mouth when James punched his jaw.
Lily shrieked in surprise, backed away slightly as Todd crouched, holding his jaw. He then looked up at James, who was in position.
"Potter," Todd growled. "WHAT are you doing here?"
"To beat the **** out of you." James replied coolly, punching Bowler's nose. James had punched him really hard, because Todd was crouching again, holding his bloody nose.
"Lily," James said, turning to her. "Come on…" He grabbed the shocked Lily and dragged her to away from the alley.
"Potter." Lily said, catching her breath. James had ran from the place, while pulling Lily's hand, so Lily had to run too. "What did you think you were doing?"
"Lily, are you alright?" James asked, ignoring her question. He was caressing her cheek, looking very concerned.
"Potter, OF COURSE I'M ALRIGHT!!" Lily yelled, yanking James's hand off her cheek. "Oh, goody, Potter to the rescue. He just saved me. He's my hero." Lily said sarcastically. "I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF!"
"But Lily-"
"YOU THINK I'LL FALL FOR YOU IF YOU 'SAVE' ME? THAT'S PATHETIC!" Lily screamed. She shot him a glare, and ran off in huff.
"Girls." James muttered, watching her run away.
***
"Er, I wonder where Jamsie went." Sirius said.
"Probably went to follow Lily." Maria said. "He likes her."
"How do you know?" Sirius asked.
"Er…" Maria said, glancing at her shoes. It was a bit dirty, she would have to clean it later. "He… told me?"
"He told you but not ME??" Sirius whined. "Am I his best friend, even?"
"Um, yeah, you are?" Maria said. Oh no, she shouldn't have said about James liking Lily.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
"Sirius, calm down. He was embarrassed … he didn't want you all to make fun of him, tease him…"
"We wont do that!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Oh, really?" Maria said dryly.
"Well, maybe, once… twice…" Sirius said, shrugging. "His whole life."
"Yeah well… now you know." Maria said.
"I knew all along he liked her but…" Sirius said, starting to grumble.
"Yeah yeah, let's get out of here." Maria said, standing up. "Come on Peter, Sirius. Chop chop."
"Okay, let's go." Sirius said, dropping a few coins on the table. "Bye Rosie!"
"Bye guys!" Madame Rosmerta called.
Maria and Peter shyly nodded at Madame Rosmerta, and followed Sirius out the place.
As they walked outside, they headed towards the shopping area. They were passing some stores, glancing in a few stores they think Lily or James might have been in.
"Why, if it isn't the Gryffindor crowd." Someone said greasily, making them stop in their tracks.
"I smell something greasy." Sirius said, sniffing. "Must be Snape."
"You'd make a good dog." Snape said, sneering. Sirius on the other hand, looked quite proud.
"What do you want Snape?" Maria asked wearily.
"I wanted to have a small chit chat with you." Snape said, smiling maliciously.
"Yeah well, I don't." Maria shrugged, turning away.
"Wait a second, missy." Snape said, holding her shoulder.
"Let go of her." Sirius ordered.
"What if I don't?" Snape asked, as he draped his arm around Maria's shoulders.
"GET… YOUR… HANDS… OFF… ME!" Maria spluttered.
"I can see you're quite the ladies' man, you can make her stutter." Sirius said sarcastically. "Now get your slimy hands off of her."
"I repeat, what if I don't?" Snape asked.
"Then I'll make you." Sirius said, shoving Snape.
Snape tumbled backwards, narrowing his eyes at Sirius. The two were glaring dangerously at each other, growling, and fists clenched-
"Is there a problem boys?" Madame Malkin, asked, hurrying towards them.
"No." Snape said, straightening his body. "No problem at all." He then left the fuming Sirius, the irritated Maria, and the scared Peter standing motionless in their place.
"Alright." Madame Malkin answered, looking at Snape rather weirdly. "You three should get back to Hogwarts, it's getting a bit late."
"I suppose we should." Maria said, dragging Sirius and Peter back to the castle.
***
A/N: Finally!! Ff.net starting to work again. Good, now stay like that!! (
Wee! I had a LONG week. Stupid school. Yes, I still have it. Exams are a week away. I'm dying… dying…dying… I've still got 5 projects to do for next week. I didn't even start studying yet!! AGH!! WHAT to do… what to do… I hate this, I hate this, I hate this. I envy you lot who's already waking up at noon everyday. :'(
Well, some stuff happened in this chapter. Ngeh… ^^ Hope you all liked it. Review please… or I wouldn't know what you think about it. The story's coming to an end, I suppose a few more chapters will do… we'll see…
HuGS&kiSsEs * sCHEm…
Thanks to my reviewers!! Hehe… I love you people!! :)
"Remus, let's go to Hogsmeade this weekend!" Alison squealed. "Please please please?"
"I'm going with the guys- you can come though!" Remus said.
"Is Lily or Maria going to be there?" Alison asked.
"I don't know about Maria, but I know that Lily has a date."
"A date, heh?" Alison smirked. "With who?"
"Todd Bowler." Remus answered. "Lily told Sirius who told James who told Peter who told me."
"Right." Alison said, rolling her eyes. "But she doesn't even like him."
"Well, I don't know. You haven't been hanging out with her for… almost 2 months, Allie, you don't know maybe something changed."
"Oh my god," Alison said. "If something happened, Lily should've told me. After all, I am her best friend!"
"It's a bit hard since you two are FIGHTING." Remus pointed out.
"Oh, right. Damn." Alison muttered. "But You will go to Hogsmeade with me, right?"
"Yes, of course sweetie." Remus answered, smiling.
"Good."
***
"Do you wanna go to Three Broomsticks?" Todd asked Lily later that week, while they were walking on the streets of Hogsmeade.
"Uh… sure." Lily replied, shrugging.
So they walked awkwardly to Three Broomsticks, with Todd trying his best to hold Lily's hand or wrap his arms around her waist WITHOUT getting snapped or smacked.
Lily walked into Three Broomsticks first, the door tinkling behind her. She almost let the door close in Todd's face, but luckily Todd held it open for himself.
Lily scanned the bar, it was jam packed with Hogwarts students. She spotted the Marauder's instantly, and almost made a move to join Sirius, James, Peter and… Maria.
"Let's sit over here." Todd said, pulling her to sit down in a table that was only 2 tables away from the Marauder's table. Lily knew they were watching her, she could feel their eyes boring through the back of her head.
"So, what do you want to order?" Todd asked as a waitress approached them. "My treat."
"Butterbeer." Lily answered.
"2 butterbeers." Todd said to the waitress. The waitress nodded and left them.
"Uh, Todd? It's alright, I brought my own money." Lily said.
"My," Todd said. "Most girls usually make me buy them drinks."
'Uh huh… right…' Lily thought sarcastically. But before she blurted the same words she had been thinking, she said, in a rather superior voice, "I'm not most girls."
"I can see that." Todd said, grinning widely.
'Oh Boy…' Lily thought wearily. 'Okay. I know he's a nice person, he's not that boring, but something's not right with this boy.' Lily said, studying Todd's face. 'Maybe it's the hair. The hair makes him look like James-er, Potter. Just the color. Though Potter's hair is black, his is just dark brown. And Potter's is unruly, his is slick. Um, his eyes are blue, while Potter's are brown. A really nice shade of brown. Kind of like milk chocolate brown. Damn, so delicious-'
"Lily," Todd mused. "Why are you staring at me?"
"Am I?" Lily asked without a trace of embarrassment. "Sorry."
Todd had taken in too much of that, he thought Lily was actually interested in him, but she was just playing hard to get.
'I knew she would fall for me.' Todd thought. 'I'm going to win that bet, I'm going to-'
"2 butterbeers!" Madame Rosmerta said, approaching them. "Why hello Lily! Who's this young lad with you today?"
"Uh, Rosie, this is Todd." Lily said.
"Hello Todd!" Madame Rosmerta said. Todd simply nodded at her. "Funny, why aren't you sitting with the boys today? James getting on your nerves again?" She asked, grinning.
"Er- Yeah, you could say so." Lily shrugged, not wanting to bring up the feud between her, Alison and Maria.
"Nah, don't take it too seriously. James is a joker, of course. But I do agree with Remus and Sirius."
"On what?"
"That James secretly likes you." Madame Rosmerta said, smiling. Lily felt herself blush deeply. "Well, I've got to serve other customers, see you Lily!" Rosie said, winking.
'Oh why why why am I blushing…' Lily thought. 'Why is my face getting redder and redder and oh I'm probably as red as a boiled tomato now.'
Todd, on the other hand, had taken an instant dislike for Madame Rosmerta after what she had just said to Lily. How could that women say that, couldn't she see that he was Lily's DATE, not POTTER?
He was watching Lily, who seemed to be a bit spaced out. She had her lips pressed together in a shy pucker. She looked rather flushed- Oh NO! Does Lily Evans LIKE James Potter?
"Lily," Todd said. "Do you want to go? I want to show you something."
"Um, I didn't finish my drink yet." Lily answered rather distractedly.
"Come on Lily." He urged.
"Oh alright." Lily sighed, picking up her purse. Todd smiled and pulled her arm out of Three Broomsticks, leaving a pair of eyes watching them leave in curiosity.
***
"Boy, this week was boring." Maria said, sipping her butterbeer. "Boring, boring, boring…"
"You know WHY it was boring?" Sirius asked.
"No, don't start on that whole fight crap." Maria snorted.
"Damn, I was just going to say…"
"Hey look, it's Lily and Bowler." Peter said, pointing towards the door.
Immediately James looked up, finding his favorite red head being led by Todd Bowler.
"She's with HIM?" Maria asked. "WHEN did this HAPPEN?"
"See, you're a bit slow," Sirius sighed. "He asked her out again. She claims they're not serious."
"Of course, since you are." Peter squeaked. "Ha, ha…" He laughed.
Silence… everyone else in the table was watching Lily, especially James who had been quiet most of the day.
"Heh… heh…" Peter slowed down. Fine, DON'T laugh at my joke.
"She's looking here!" Maria whispered loudly. Immediately the 3 heads that have been watching her quickly looked away.
"Why did she agree to go," Maria wondered. "I thought she didn't like him."
"Dunno. She did say that he begged her to go or something." Sirius shrugged.
"Begged? Ah, that girl's just bullshitting. Maybe she really likes him or-"
"No, Maria, sweetie, we all know that Lily's love is reserved for James." Sirius pointed out, hoping to get a smack on the head from his best friend.
But James didn't. Maria just gave Sirius a look, Peter just snorted, and James was… he was deep in thought.
"They're sitting near us." Maria muttered. "We could eavesdrop."
"Maria, shame on you." Sirius said. "That's not a good thing to do. What we should do is, eavesdrop."
Maria rolled her eyes while Sirius was laughing to himself.
"Er, right, Padfoot." James said, looking uneasily at him.
"I can't hear them talking." Maria whispered.
"Use that charm… oh, that spell… man, how do you do that spell…" Sirius said, smacking his head. "Think… think…damn, we need Lily's brain for these kind of stuff…"
"They're ordering… okay, now they're just talking… ugh, I don't like Bowler's smile…" Maria muttered.
"Rosie's with them… she's saying something… Lily's blushing. Bowler doesn't look so happy, hmm… Okay, Rosie left…" Sirius said, as if he was commentating a quidditch match.
"It's no fun, we can't hear them." Maria whined. "They're just talking now."
"Yeah. Whatever, I can ask Lily about it later." Sirius said, leaning in his seat. "She'll tell me."
"No fair!!" Maria whined.
"I'll tell you after, don't worry sweetie." Sirius grinned.
"Don't forget to tell me, Padfoot." Peter squeaked.
"Oh yeah, alright." Sirius shrugged.
"Hey hey! I think they're leaving." James said in a shushed voice. "Uh, yeah, they are."
Sirius tilted his face to watch them. "I wonder where they're going."
James stood up. "I don't like the look on his face." And left the table, heading for the door.
"PRONGS! WHERE ARE YOU GOING??" Sirius screamed.
James just waved his hand, running out the door.
***
"Let's go." Todd said, taking Lily's hand and leading her towards a small alley.
"Where are we going?" Lily asked.
"Surprise." Todd said mysteriously.
"I don't deserve any surprises." Lily replied bluntly.
"Oh," Todd said. 'Girls usually like the idea of surprises.' Todd thought. "Of course you do."
"No, I don't." Lily shrugged.
"Yes, you do." Todd said exasperatingly. "Come on…" He said, pulling her towards a wall.
"Why are we here again?" Lily asked. She knew it wasn't a very intelligent question.
Todd seemed to get rather annoyed, as his grip of Lily's hand tighten. "I have a surprise for you, remember?
"Right." Lily answered. She was looking around the alley, it was muddy and very dirty. Suddenly she felt herself being pinned to the wall.
"What are you doing?" Lily asked alarmingly.
"Ssh, Lily, ssh…" Todd said, grinning… evilly. He was bringing his face closer to Lily's, his blue eyes looking at her in menace. Lily let out a small gasp, and Todd kissed her lips-hard. He wasn't at all soft, especially since his lips were dry and chapped. And one hand of his was gripping her hand, the other one holding her shoulders. Lily tried her best to push him away, but Todd was way stronger than her. Lily felt his tongue trying to part her lips-and felt disgusted. She was having some trouble breathing. She tried with all her might to struggle away from his arms, but it made him hold her even tighter. Then, Lily kicked.
She kicked him right in the shins, making him tumble backwards. Her eyes were flashing with fury, hurt, … but Todd's eyes. Todd's eyes had some evil glint in it.
"Feisty…" Todd growled, holding her shoulders. "I like that."
Lily screamed right before he pressed his lips against hers.
"WHAT THE **** ARE YOU DOING????" Somebody yelled, running towards them. Todd, being the dumb*** he is, pulled away and looked at the speaker. It was James Potter, fist clenched, eyes flashing murderously.
Todd didn't say anything, he was about to open his mouth when James punched his jaw.
Lily shrieked in surprise, backed away slightly as Todd crouched, holding his jaw. He then looked up at James, who was in position.
"Potter," Todd growled. "WHAT are you doing here?"
"To beat the **** out of you." James replied coolly, punching Bowler's nose. James had punched him really hard, because Todd was crouching again, holding his bloody nose.
"Lily," James said, turning to her. "Come on…" He grabbed the shocked Lily and dragged her to away from the alley.
"Potter." Lily said, catching her breath. James had ran from the place, while pulling Lily's hand, so Lily had to run too. "What did you think you were doing?"
"Lily, are you alright?" James asked, ignoring her question. He was caressing her cheek, looking very concerned.
"Potter, OF COURSE I'M ALRIGHT!!" Lily yelled, yanking James's hand off her cheek. "Oh, goody, Potter to the rescue. He just saved me. He's my hero." Lily said sarcastically. "I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF!"
"But Lily-"
"YOU THINK I'LL FALL FOR YOU IF YOU 'SAVE' ME? THAT'S PATHETIC!" Lily screamed. She shot him a glare, and ran off in huff.
"Girls." James muttered, watching her run away.
***
"Er, I wonder where Jamsie went." Sirius said.
"Probably went to follow Lily." Maria said. "He likes her."
"How do you know?" Sirius asked.
"Er…" Maria said, glancing at her shoes. It was a bit dirty, she would have to clean it later. "He… told me?"
"He told you but not ME??" Sirius whined. "Am I his best friend, even?"
"Um, yeah, you are?" Maria said. Oh no, she shouldn't have said about James liking Lily.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
"Sirius, calm down. He was embarrassed … he didn't want you all to make fun of him, tease him…"
"We wont do that!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Oh, really?" Maria said dryly.
"Well, maybe, once… twice…" Sirius said, shrugging. "His whole life."
"Yeah well… now you know." Maria said.
"I knew all along he liked her but…" Sirius said, starting to grumble.
"Yeah yeah, let's get out of here." Maria said, standing up. "Come on Peter, Sirius. Chop chop."
"Okay, let's go." Sirius said, dropping a few coins on the table. "Bye Rosie!"
"Bye guys!" Madame Rosmerta called.
Maria and Peter shyly nodded at Madame Rosmerta, and followed Sirius out the place.
As they walked outside, they headed towards the shopping area. They were passing some stores, glancing in a few stores they think Lily or James might have been in.
"Why, if it isn't the Gryffindor crowd." Someone said greasily, making them stop in their tracks.
"I smell something greasy." Sirius said, sniffing. "Must be Snape."
"You'd make a good dog." Snape said, sneering. Sirius on the other hand, looked quite proud.
"What do you want Snape?" Maria asked wearily.
"I wanted to have a small chit chat with you." Snape said, smiling maliciously.
"Yeah well, I don't." Maria shrugged, turning away.
"Wait a second, missy." Snape said, holding her shoulder.
"Let go of her." Sirius ordered.
"What if I don't?" Snape asked, as he draped his arm around Maria's shoulders.
"GET… YOUR… HANDS… OFF… ME!" Maria spluttered.
"I can see you're quite the ladies' man, you can make her stutter." Sirius said sarcastically. "Now get your slimy hands off of her."
"I repeat, what if I don't?" Snape asked.
"Then I'll make you." Sirius said, shoving Snape.
Snape tumbled backwards, narrowing his eyes at Sirius. The two were glaring dangerously at each other, growling, and fists clenched-
"Is there a problem boys?" Madame Malkin, asked, hurrying towards them.
"No." Snape said, straightening his body. "No problem at all." He then left the fuming Sirius, the irritated Maria, and the scared Peter standing motionless in their place.
"Alright." Madame Malkin answered, looking at Snape rather weirdly. "You three should get back to Hogwarts, it's getting a bit late."
"I suppose we should." Maria said, dragging Sirius and Peter back to the castle.
***
A/N: Finally!! Ff.net starting to work again. Good, now stay like that!! (
Wee! I had a LONG week. Stupid school. Yes, I still have it. Exams are a week away. I'm dying… dying…dying… I've still got 5 projects to do for next week. I didn't even start studying yet!! AGH!! WHAT to do… what to do… I hate this, I hate this, I hate this. I envy you lot who's already waking up at noon everyday. :'(
Well, some stuff happened in this chapter. Ngeh… ^^ Hope you all liked it. Review please… or I wouldn't know what you think about it. The story's coming to an end, I suppose a few more chapters will do… we'll see…
HuGS&kiSsEs * sCHEm…
Thanks to my reviewers!! Hehe… I love you people!! :)
