James
By: Irisles
((Iris' note: I want to take the time to thank those people who reviewed. I really appreciate feedback. The first two chapters were fairly vague and non- descriptive, but I'm going to go into more detail with the relationships, and not as much repetition of the surroundings. Note: This chapter is set in James' fourth year (1982). Enjoy! -Iris))
Chapter Three: Cassie
~~**~~**~*~*~*~**~~**~~
First, second, and third year seemed to all mush together for James. Getting to know the school, making new friends, learning secrets, really honing his prankster abilities. Now in his fourth year, James had everything going for him. He had long grown out of his ugly duckling stage, and was now quite handsome. He was also a Quidditch star, which made him very toned indeed. Not to mention he was extremely popular. He and Sirius practically owned the place, and everyone loved them.
Jules was in her seventh and final year at Hogwarts. She was also Head Girl to Parker Martin's Head Boy. They had been together since their fifth year. One of James' favorite pastimes was teasing Jules about her and Parker. Eventually she stopped fighting back, and was now engaged to him.
Onto the subject of James' friends. Sirius had remained his best friend, as well as his partner in crime. He was just as much goofball as he always had been, except now he was an extremely popular goofball, and had to pry the girls off of him. (Sometimes literally.) James' other best friend was Remus Lupin. He had been very aloof the first year or so, going away every month to visit a "sick mother". However, James and Sirius eventually realized Remus was a werewolf. They confronted him about it, and he was much less aloof after that. Remus was also considered quite a catch. And then there was Peter. A plump, weak, somewhat thick kid who tended to follow them around. After a while, they got used to him and he became a member of their little gang. He really wasn't that bad. At least that's what James told himself every day.
His other good friend was Lily. Se really understood him, and they could talk for hours. He had always thought she was very pretty, what with her slim figure, creamy white skin, long, wavy, dark red hair, and her gorgeous emerald eyes. Despite all of that, he had never really been attracted to her- they knew each other too well.
And then there was Cassie. Every time he so much as thought about her, a shiver went down his spine. She was Keeper to his Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and she was very graceful and picturesque. Sandy blonde hair, hazel eyes, freckled face and big smile made her all the more appealing to James. Because of this, he was unbelievably awkward around her. She thought it was very funny.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~ "JAMES! JAMES! GET UP NOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!" He heard Sirius yell in his ear. James opened an eye and looked at his clock. It read four forty-five. He then glared at Sirius with his one opened eye. "Sirius. What. The. Hell. Are. You. Doing. Waking. Me. Up. At. Four forty- five. In. The. Morning. On. A. Saturday." He said slowly, as if Sirius was mentally challenged. And that he didn't doubt. "Quidditch practice!" He said excitedly. "Remember, your lovely sister, our dear captain, called and early practice today." Sirius said. James looked at him blankly. "We have a match tomorrow against Ravenclaw tomorrow, remember?" Sirius asked exasperatedly. "We now have exactly four minutes and sixteen-oops, fifteen seconds before we need to be on the Quidditch Pitch! MOVE YOUR ASS OUT OF BED!" Sirius said. He then grabbed a large tuft of James' hair and yanked. "BLOODY HELL, SIRIUS! THAT- HURTS!" He yelled at his best friend. "Shucher gob, James. You'll wake the entire house. And it was totally necessary. You weren't moving, and we have two minutes left. I don't want to miss any possible time that I can be around Jules." Sirius said as though it was the most logical thing in the world. James rolled his eyes, groaned, and fell out of bed with a loud thump. As he was getting up, he heard soft footfalls coming up the stairs to their dormitory. A delicate rapping on the door followed this. He tripped over Sirius' broomstick on his way to the door. He finally made it, and opened the door somewhat clumsily. He saw Lily standing there in her dressing gown. Her soft red curls were mussed from sleep, but her eyes looked concerned.
"James, are you okay? I heard yelling and loud noises. You woke the entire house, you know," she said. James grinned.
"No, Lils, Sirius and I are having a small argument-" he shot a glare back at Sirius, and turned back to Lily.
"So no, I'm fine. Did we really wake the entire house?" He asked. She smiled.
"Oh yeah. It was actually kind of funny, Arabella woke up saying 'Don't go, Wolfie!' It was very bizarre." She said. James heard Remus cough in the background.
"I gotta go to Quidditch practice, Lils, but I'll talk to you at breakfast, okay?" James said.
"Yeah, I'll see you then." She turned and walked back down the stairs, and James closed the door. Sirius raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, yeah, we're late. Hold on, I'll get on my Quidditch robes on." James said.
"Actually, Jimmy," James glared at the use of that name, but Sirius pushed on.
"I was going to inquire on the nature of your relationship with Lily. Platonic or romantic, I ask myself." Sirius said while he made it look like he was pondering. James upped the strength of his glare as he clumsily fastened his cloak.
"Platonic, Sirius, how can you even ask that? She's one of my best friends. And if you continue to act like an ass, she will be my best friend. I told you. I fancy Cassie." James said as they left the school together. Sirius snorted.
"Cassie? Cassie McCawley? What the fuck for? Cassie thinks the coolest thing in the world is Cassie. She's way too into herself. She's no good, Jimmy." Sirius said. James glared so much his face was hardly recognizable. And here he thought he was done glaring for the day.
James and Sirius finally made it to the Quidditch pitch. The team was still grounded, and they appeared to be learning the plays for tomorrow's match against Ravenclaw. Apparently hearing they walk over, Jules looked up. "So good of you to take time to show up to practice, boys," she said sarcastically to James and Sirius. "So sorry your Captainness, your thick- headed brother refused to get out of bed. Even in the best families, you get bad eggs, I say," Sirius said importantly. Jules snorted. "I never asked for an explanation, I was merely criticizing you," she retorted. Sirius blushed. James pointed and laughed. "Okay, everybody," Jules started. "Keeper up first, take a lap, Cassie," Cassie nodded and mounted her broom, kicking off hard from the ground. "Beaters next. Parker, Sirius, take your laps," she said next. They kicked off. "Chasers next. Arabella, Kylie, James, up in the air," She finished. "And now me, the Seeker," She said to no one in particular. They had a very difficult practice, and by the time seven- thirty rolled around, they were all more than ready to go and hit the showers before breakfast and classes. ~*~*~*~*~*~
"Ugh, Divination's next," James moaned as he took a bite of toast. "Cheer up, James, It's only an hour. We have double Transfiguration this afternoon, though, that will be an awful experience," Lily replied. "Not really. I like Transfiguration," he said. Lily wrinkled her nose. James heard footsteps behind him. Lily looked back, rolled her eyes, and turned back to her fruit salad. James looked behind himself, puzzled. It was Cassie. "James," she said, "I was wondering if I could talk to you," she finished. "Yeah, sure, sit down," James answered, and patted the empty space to his left. She shook her head. "I was actually thinking outside would be preferable, if you don't mind," she said. James raised his eyebrows. "Sure, hold on, I'll meet you out there in a sec," he said. She smiled and exited the Great Hall. James turned back to Lily. " I see you in Divination, Lils, save me a seat, okay?" James asked. "Yeah, sure. I'll see you there," she answered. She plastered on a fake smile as James also left the Hall.
He found Cassie waiting outside the big oak doors. He walked over and stood in front of her. He opened his mouth to say hello, but before he had the chance, she grabbed the back of his neck, pulled him towards her, and kissed him rather deeply. After a minute or so or genuine snogging, she let him go. He was somewhat breathless, and she smiled warmly at him. "I suppose I was stupid to think saying hello would serve as a sufficient greeting," he said. Cassie giggled. "Sorry about that, I had just wanted to do it for quite some time. You're quite the hunk you know," she said. James grinned. "Really? And here I thought having a crush on you would come to no avail," she laughed and took the opportunity to kiss him again. "So I take it we're friends now?" He asked when they had broken their kiss. She giggled again. "I was thinking more along the lines of being your girlfriend," she said earnestly. James narrowed his eyes and folded his arms. "Okay, okay. How much did Sirius pay you to ask me out and snog me?" James asked. Cassie raised her eyebrows. "Trust me, James, I did this totally on my own accord," she answered. "Okay then," he said. "But I need to get to Divination, but I'll see you at lunch, okay?" As if it was her answer, she kissed him yet again. "Okay then. Bye now," he grinned, picked up his books, and set off towards the North Tower. *~*~*~*~*~*~*
James and Sirius were in their dormitory playing Exploding Snap that evening. Remus was in the common room with Arabella, Lily, Mundungus (who Sirius enjoyed calling dung-head), Peter, Cassie, Kath, Lena, and Victoria. "Hey Sirius, guess what?" James asked. "Chicken-butt?" Sirius answered hopefully. "Not so much, Sirius," Sirius pretended to look crestfallen. "I was going to say that I'm going out with Cassie now, actually," Sirius chocked on air in shock. "What?!? More importantly, WHY?!?!?!" Sirius yelled. James started. "I thought you'd be happy for me, Sirius! I actually have a girlfriend for once. HOW STUPID OF ME TO THINK MY BEST FRIEND WOULD ACTUALLY BE HAPPY FOR ME!" James cried. Sirius appeared to be torn between anger and shock. "OH, EXCUSE ME FOR NOT BEING HAPPY FOR YOU WHEN YOU BECOME THE BOYFRIEND OF A SELF-ABDORBED HOE!" Sirius screamed. James gaped, then got his wits together and punched Sirius in the face with all the strength he could muster. Sirius opened his mouth wide in shock, and then lunged at James, tackling him.
"Sirius, James, what the hell are you doing?!" Lily yelled from the doorway, having come up to see what all the noise was about. She yelled down to the others in the common room for them to help her pry the two boys apart. It took Lily, Remus, Peter, Arabella, and Victoria a good few minutes to pull them apart, Cassie standing in the doorway watching, highly amused. When they finally did get them apart, James had a black eye with scratch marks on his face and bite marks on his hands and arms- with Sirius sporting a bloody nose, chipped tooth, and broken ankle.
Lily, panting, said, "I'll take James to the infirmary now, you all take Sirius in a few minutes." She grabbed his hand, and dragged him out of the dormitory, down the stairs, through the common room, and out the portrait hole. Then she stopped pulling and turned to look at him. "James, why were you and Sirius fighting? You're best friends for goodness sake!" She said indignantly. James looked down, averting her piercing emerald stare. She put a finger under his chin and pulled it up, forcing him to look her in the face. "He called me the boyfriend of a self-absorbed hoe," he said, the sighed. "And who, may I ask, is your girlfriend?" She asked. "Cassie," he answered. Lily dropped her hand from his chin abruptly.
"Let's get you to the infirmary to clean you up a bit. You have a Quidditch match tomorrow, you know. It'll be no good if you show up all sore and broken." She said with a slight edge to her generally melodic voice. They started walking.
'He's going to lose his best friend over that piece of spoiled shit.' She thought to herself.
((Iris' note: You like it? I hope so. Keep the reviews coming; I'll post the next chapter very soon, I promise. -Iris))
By: Irisles
((Iris' note: I want to take the time to thank those people who reviewed. I really appreciate feedback. The first two chapters were fairly vague and non- descriptive, but I'm going to go into more detail with the relationships, and not as much repetition of the surroundings. Note: This chapter is set in James' fourth year (1982). Enjoy! -Iris))
Chapter Three: Cassie
~~**~~**~*~*~*~**~~**~~
First, second, and third year seemed to all mush together for James. Getting to know the school, making new friends, learning secrets, really honing his prankster abilities. Now in his fourth year, James had everything going for him. He had long grown out of his ugly duckling stage, and was now quite handsome. He was also a Quidditch star, which made him very toned indeed. Not to mention he was extremely popular. He and Sirius practically owned the place, and everyone loved them.
Jules was in her seventh and final year at Hogwarts. She was also Head Girl to Parker Martin's Head Boy. They had been together since their fifth year. One of James' favorite pastimes was teasing Jules about her and Parker. Eventually she stopped fighting back, and was now engaged to him.
Onto the subject of James' friends. Sirius had remained his best friend, as well as his partner in crime. He was just as much goofball as he always had been, except now he was an extremely popular goofball, and had to pry the girls off of him. (Sometimes literally.) James' other best friend was Remus Lupin. He had been very aloof the first year or so, going away every month to visit a "sick mother". However, James and Sirius eventually realized Remus was a werewolf. They confronted him about it, and he was much less aloof after that. Remus was also considered quite a catch. And then there was Peter. A plump, weak, somewhat thick kid who tended to follow them around. After a while, they got used to him and he became a member of their little gang. He really wasn't that bad. At least that's what James told himself every day.
His other good friend was Lily. Se really understood him, and they could talk for hours. He had always thought she was very pretty, what with her slim figure, creamy white skin, long, wavy, dark red hair, and her gorgeous emerald eyes. Despite all of that, he had never really been attracted to her- they knew each other too well.
And then there was Cassie. Every time he so much as thought about her, a shiver went down his spine. She was Keeper to his Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and she was very graceful and picturesque. Sandy blonde hair, hazel eyes, freckled face and big smile made her all the more appealing to James. Because of this, he was unbelievably awkward around her. She thought it was very funny.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~ "JAMES! JAMES! GET UP NOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!" He heard Sirius yell in his ear. James opened an eye and looked at his clock. It read four forty-five. He then glared at Sirius with his one opened eye. "Sirius. What. The. Hell. Are. You. Doing. Waking. Me. Up. At. Four forty- five. In. The. Morning. On. A. Saturday." He said slowly, as if Sirius was mentally challenged. And that he didn't doubt. "Quidditch practice!" He said excitedly. "Remember, your lovely sister, our dear captain, called and early practice today." Sirius said. James looked at him blankly. "We have a match tomorrow against Ravenclaw tomorrow, remember?" Sirius asked exasperatedly. "We now have exactly four minutes and sixteen-oops, fifteen seconds before we need to be on the Quidditch Pitch! MOVE YOUR ASS OUT OF BED!" Sirius said. He then grabbed a large tuft of James' hair and yanked. "BLOODY HELL, SIRIUS! THAT- HURTS!" He yelled at his best friend. "Shucher gob, James. You'll wake the entire house. And it was totally necessary. You weren't moving, and we have two minutes left. I don't want to miss any possible time that I can be around Jules." Sirius said as though it was the most logical thing in the world. James rolled his eyes, groaned, and fell out of bed with a loud thump. As he was getting up, he heard soft footfalls coming up the stairs to their dormitory. A delicate rapping on the door followed this. He tripped over Sirius' broomstick on his way to the door. He finally made it, and opened the door somewhat clumsily. He saw Lily standing there in her dressing gown. Her soft red curls were mussed from sleep, but her eyes looked concerned.
"James, are you okay? I heard yelling and loud noises. You woke the entire house, you know," she said. James grinned.
"No, Lils, Sirius and I are having a small argument-" he shot a glare back at Sirius, and turned back to Lily.
"So no, I'm fine. Did we really wake the entire house?" He asked. She smiled.
"Oh yeah. It was actually kind of funny, Arabella woke up saying 'Don't go, Wolfie!' It was very bizarre." She said. James heard Remus cough in the background.
"I gotta go to Quidditch practice, Lils, but I'll talk to you at breakfast, okay?" James said.
"Yeah, I'll see you then." She turned and walked back down the stairs, and James closed the door. Sirius raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, yeah, we're late. Hold on, I'll get on my Quidditch robes on." James said.
"Actually, Jimmy," James glared at the use of that name, but Sirius pushed on.
"I was going to inquire on the nature of your relationship with Lily. Platonic or romantic, I ask myself." Sirius said while he made it look like he was pondering. James upped the strength of his glare as he clumsily fastened his cloak.
"Platonic, Sirius, how can you even ask that? She's one of my best friends. And if you continue to act like an ass, she will be my best friend. I told you. I fancy Cassie." James said as they left the school together. Sirius snorted.
"Cassie? Cassie McCawley? What the fuck for? Cassie thinks the coolest thing in the world is Cassie. She's way too into herself. She's no good, Jimmy." Sirius said. James glared so much his face was hardly recognizable. And here he thought he was done glaring for the day.
James and Sirius finally made it to the Quidditch pitch. The team was still grounded, and they appeared to be learning the plays for tomorrow's match against Ravenclaw. Apparently hearing they walk over, Jules looked up. "So good of you to take time to show up to practice, boys," she said sarcastically to James and Sirius. "So sorry your Captainness, your thick- headed brother refused to get out of bed. Even in the best families, you get bad eggs, I say," Sirius said importantly. Jules snorted. "I never asked for an explanation, I was merely criticizing you," she retorted. Sirius blushed. James pointed and laughed. "Okay, everybody," Jules started. "Keeper up first, take a lap, Cassie," Cassie nodded and mounted her broom, kicking off hard from the ground. "Beaters next. Parker, Sirius, take your laps," she said next. They kicked off. "Chasers next. Arabella, Kylie, James, up in the air," She finished. "And now me, the Seeker," She said to no one in particular. They had a very difficult practice, and by the time seven- thirty rolled around, they were all more than ready to go and hit the showers before breakfast and classes. ~*~*~*~*~*~
"Ugh, Divination's next," James moaned as he took a bite of toast. "Cheer up, James, It's only an hour. We have double Transfiguration this afternoon, though, that will be an awful experience," Lily replied. "Not really. I like Transfiguration," he said. Lily wrinkled her nose. James heard footsteps behind him. Lily looked back, rolled her eyes, and turned back to her fruit salad. James looked behind himself, puzzled. It was Cassie. "James," she said, "I was wondering if I could talk to you," she finished. "Yeah, sure, sit down," James answered, and patted the empty space to his left. She shook her head. "I was actually thinking outside would be preferable, if you don't mind," she said. James raised his eyebrows. "Sure, hold on, I'll meet you out there in a sec," he said. She smiled and exited the Great Hall. James turned back to Lily. " I see you in Divination, Lils, save me a seat, okay?" James asked. "Yeah, sure. I'll see you there," she answered. She plastered on a fake smile as James also left the Hall.
He found Cassie waiting outside the big oak doors. He walked over and stood in front of her. He opened his mouth to say hello, but before he had the chance, she grabbed the back of his neck, pulled him towards her, and kissed him rather deeply. After a minute or so or genuine snogging, she let him go. He was somewhat breathless, and she smiled warmly at him. "I suppose I was stupid to think saying hello would serve as a sufficient greeting," he said. Cassie giggled. "Sorry about that, I had just wanted to do it for quite some time. You're quite the hunk you know," she said. James grinned. "Really? And here I thought having a crush on you would come to no avail," she laughed and took the opportunity to kiss him again. "So I take it we're friends now?" He asked when they had broken their kiss. She giggled again. "I was thinking more along the lines of being your girlfriend," she said earnestly. James narrowed his eyes and folded his arms. "Okay, okay. How much did Sirius pay you to ask me out and snog me?" James asked. Cassie raised her eyebrows. "Trust me, James, I did this totally on my own accord," she answered. "Okay then," he said. "But I need to get to Divination, but I'll see you at lunch, okay?" As if it was her answer, she kissed him yet again. "Okay then. Bye now," he grinned, picked up his books, and set off towards the North Tower. *~*~*~*~*~*~*
James and Sirius were in their dormitory playing Exploding Snap that evening. Remus was in the common room with Arabella, Lily, Mundungus (who Sirius enjoyed calling dung-head), Peter, Cassie, Kath, Lena, and Victoria. "Hey Sirius, guess what?" James asked. "Chicken-butt?" Sirius answered hopefully. "Not so much, Sirius," Sirius pretended to look crestfallen. "I was going to say that I'm going out with Cassie now, actually," Sirius chocked on air in shock. "What?!? More importantly, WHY?!?!?!" Sirius yelled. James started. "I thought you'd be happy for me, Sirius! I actually have a girlfriend for once. HOW STUPID OF ME TO THINK MY BEST FRIEND WOULD ACTUALLY BE HAPPY FOR ME!" James cried. Sirius appeared to be torn between anger and shock. "OH, EXCUSE ME FOR NOT BEING HAPPY FOR YOU WHEN YOU BECOME THE BOYFRIEND OF A SELF-ABDORBED HOE!" Sirius screamed. James gaped, then got his wits together and punched Sirius in the face with all the strength he could muster. Sirius opened his mouth wide in shock, and then lunged at James, tackling him.
"Sirius, James, what the hell are you doing?!" Lily yelled from the doorway, having come up to see what all the noise was about. She yelled down to the others in the common room for them to help her pry the two boys apart. It took Lily, Remus, Peter, Arabella, and Victoria a good few minutes to pull them apart, Cassie standing in the doorway watching, highly amused. When they finally did get them apart, James had a black eye with scratch marks on his face and bite marks on his hands and arms- with Sirius sporting a bloody nose, chipped tooth, and broken ankle.
Lily, panting, said, "I'll take James to the infirmary now, you all take Sirius in a few minutes." She grabbed his hand, and dragged him out of the dormitory, down the stairs, through the common room, and out the portrait hole. Then she stopped pulling and turned to look at him. "James, why were you and Sirius fighting? You're best friends for goodness sake!" She said indignantly. James looked down, averting her piercing emerald stare. She put a finger under his chin and pulled it up, forcing him to look her in the face. "He called me the boyfriend of a self-absorbed hoe," he said, the sighed. "And who, may I ask, is your girlfriend?" She asked. "Cassie," he answered. Lily dropped her hand from his chin abruptly.
"Let's get you to the infirmary to clean you up a bit. You have a Quidditch match tomorrow, you know. It'll be no good if you show up all sore and broken." She said with a slight edge to her generally melodic voice. They started walking.
'He's going to lose his best friend over that piece of spoiled shit.' She thought to herself.
((Iris' note: You like it? I hope so. Keep the reviews coming; I'll post the next chapter very soon, I promise. -Iris))