Author's Note: I think this chapter pretty much clears up the concept of the whole stuffed animal Transfiguration project, but let me know if you're confused. So here we have the big fight scene. (Actually there's a bigger one coming up, but that's a surprise.) Hopefully you saw this coming.
I love all my wonderful reviewers! courtneybeene, Hyper Princess, heraclas, Alex, Caitlin M (I am very honored), and Amberdulen (I know, I know. It's very unlike me, too, I love fluff. You should read my other L/J's, I think I was suffering from withdrawal in the romance department. :) Anyway, I will surely be making up for lost time when I do get around to the romantic fluff.)

Disclaimer: What's with all this ownership obsession, anyway? I'm moving to a kibbutz or something, you can't sue me there!



James was waiting at a corner table when Lily rushed into the Library. She sat down, said hello, and began to pull her Transfiguration text and some parchment from her bag.

"What kind of a name is Matilda, anyway?" he said by way of greeting.

Lily's cheeks went a bit red again. "Oh, well, since he's Australian and all, I just thought, it's like that song, you know..."

The bewildered scowl on her partner's face clearly showed that indeed, he did not know.

"Never mind, it's a Muggle thing, I guess. You don't mind, do you?"

"No." Rather tersely.

Lily peered curiously into his eyes. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing!" James practically shouted. "Let's just get this over with, all right?"

Lily raised her eyebrows but wisely dropped the subject. "Right. So the assignment is to transfigure the stuffed animal into a living, breathing one. It has to be fully animated and posess a distinct personality, and it has to be tame and friendly. Smart thinking, that, I can just picture Sirius turning his into a man-eating grizzly." James was silent. "Anyway, I was thinking we put some Helpful Spells on it, so it'll do favors and fetch things for us and so on."

"Figures," James replied acidly. "You would want another brainwashed slave to follow you around with puppy dog eyes."

Lily stared, green eyes hurt and bewildered, until she realized what James had been looking at; the three Ravenclaw boys two tables over who were gazing, entranced, at Lily with lovesick expressions in their glazed-over eyes.

"Oh, honestly, James, that is a bit rich coming from the guy who has his own official Fan Club in Hufflepuff." She snorted, and began to imitate Angelica Gibbonson, "Five sickles for membership, and you too will receive monthly issues of the We Love James Potter newsletter for updates on Hogwarts' hunkiest Quidditch player."

James glared murderously at her. "That's right, Lily, didn't I see Henry VIII drop the December edition at your plate this morning?"

That was it. Lily snapped. She couldn't understand why he was acting like this, and she was usually very mild-mannered and forgiving, but every now and then the infamous redhead temper would kick in. The last time it had happened, Severus Snape had woken up two days later in the Hospital Wing, without the faintest idea what had happened to him and why his entire face was covered in boils.

Now, she sent him a Death Glare of her own and answered hotly, "No, that was just the newest James Potter Is An Egotistical Prick Magazine! Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go write an article for next week's!" Haughtily collecting her books, she stood and stomped out of the Library.

James watched her go, slumping back in his chair with a sigh. Now that she was gone, he was no longer seeing red. I suppose I deserved that, he admitted to himself wearily. I'd better go apologize.

On his way out, he noticed the Ravenclaw boys staring at him with a mixture of shock and anger. "Oh, sod off," he told them, disgustedly, as he passed.



Sirius and Peter were playing chess when they heard a loud slam and an indignant cry from the Fat Lady outside. Both looked up just in time to see Lily Evans storm right through the chess board they had set up on the floor.

"Hey!" both boys called indignantly, but the fuming redhead didn't even look back as she stomped up the stairs to her dormitory.

The boys stared ruefully at their game, and were in the midst of reconstructing it as best they could ("Sirius! I killed that knight!" "Well, your castle was at least five spaces back") when James entered, wearing a thoughtful expression and not paying the slightest attention to his surroundings, and tripped over the board and went sprawling.

Sirius threw his arms in the air. "I give up! Next time, Peter, we're putting up wards around our games to protect them from psycho housemates. Don't know how anyone is supposed to finish one little game around here, you'd think -"

"Oh, shut it, Sirius," Peter cut him off amiably. He was less annoyed by the interruption because he'd been losing. He turned to his other friend, who was dusting himself off with a scowl. "All right there, James?"

"Sorry, guys," James apologized. "Have you seen Lily?"

"She came in a minute ago, all sunshine and roses-" But James had already headed up the girls' staircase. "Would it kill anyone to let me finish a sentence?" Sirius complained, frustrated.

Meanwhile, James' apology wasn't going quite like he'd planned.

"Oh, so you're sorry now, are you? And I suppose you think that makes it all better?"

"Well, I-"

"I don't want to hear it, James Potter. I don't know where you think you get off, talking to me like that, but I'm not going to just fall at your feet because you've finally noticed what an asshole you are." Lily's anger grew with each word. "And you're not allowed in the girls' dorms, not that rules mean anything to you, anyway. You'd better watch your back next year, because I'll be a prefect and I will not hesitate to give you points."

By the end of this speech, James was every bit as furious as Lily. He couldn't believe he'd tried to apologize to this...this...he was too angry to come up with a good enough insult. "Look, Lily," he pronounced her name like a curse, "I'm leaving. But you'd better fix this moment in your memory, because I can assure you it'll be the last time any guy tries to get into the girls' dorm for you."

For a minute, words failed her. Finally, she shouted, "GET OUT, POTTER, UNLESS YOU ARE REALLY WILLING TO GIVE UP A FEW LIMBS!"

Peter and Sirius, along with the rest of Gryffindor Tower, heard her shout. Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Lover's quarrel, it would appear?"

Luckily for Sirius, James arrived a second too late to hear his best friend's remark. His face bright red with anger, he grabbed his friends' arms and dragged them up to their dorm.

Sirius turned around to grin jauntily at the Common Room in time to see Lily barking at a group of terrified second years. "If someone doesn't tell me where Kasey and Eve are now, I'm going to blind you all with a Conjunctivitus Curse!" He chuckled, wondering what James had done to transform easygoing, fun-loving Lily into a Fury from Hades.