Chapter 3 - Lily's revenge
James and the other 'Marauders' entered the Great Hall feeling very cheerful indeed. James knew there was going to be a lot of trouble this year, and he knew that whatever it was, they were sure to be behind it. This thought made James very happy. He glanced at the others who all seemed to have had the very same thought, but they were reacting to it in very different ways. Sirius' face had split into a grin that was very similar to James', Remus looked resigned but amused at the same time, but Peter looked downright terrified, probably at the thought of all the detentions he'd end up in.
They all sat at the Gryffindor table at the far side of the hall, next to the Gryffindor ghost, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington (or Nearly Headless Nick). The sorting seemed to take no time at all compared to last year. James decided this was probably because he wasn't almost sick with nerves this year, and he was impatient for the food to appear.
He looked on lazily as the new first years were sorted into their houses. He wasn't really paying attention, but a rather dozy looking boy with dark hair and blue eyes caught his eye. He was looking a bit dazed. He turned out to 'Diggle, Dedalus'. It took a while for him to be sorted, the hat seemed to be having difficulties knowing where to put him and it was thinking very hard. Finally it decided on Hufflepuff. Dedalus seemed pleased to have been put anywhere, and he almost skipped over to the Hufflepuff table, grinning widely at the cheers that greeted him.
James diverted his attention away from the sorting and started to listen to Sirius whispering to Remus about a trick he'd played on a muggle waiter in Greece on holiday. It seemed that itching powder didn't just work on wizards. Apparently, this poor man had jumped all over the restaurant, scratching his backside and swearing loudly in Greek. Sirius said he'd never seen a restaurant empty so fast.
At the end of the sorting (Weasley, Bilius), Professor Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat. James hoped he wouldn't take too long, he was feeling very hungry all of a sudden. "I do not wish to keep you from this excellent feast a minute longer than necessary. I have one or two announcements to make to the new students. Firstly, the Forbidden Forest is just as the name suggests, forbidden. Magic should not be used in the corridors between lessons, students who wish to try out for their house Quidditch team should keep an eye on the notice board and pupils should remain in bed at night." James was positive that the merry light in Dumbledore's eye was directed at him and 'The Marauders', "So, without further ado, let us eat." "Hear hear." Called Sirius, he was always hungry, as the food magically appeared on the golden plates in front of them.
James felt very content as he ate and talked. He listened to the story of Nearly Headless Nick's messed up beheading. Someone had done a very clumsy job of killing him; they'd hacked away, but hadn't bothered to finish the job. The axe had obviously been too blunt. The first years watched open mouthed as he swung his head onto his shoulder by his ear, as though on a hinge. A couple of inches of skin and sinew were all that kept his head on his shoulders. He looked very pleased at the shocked expressions on the faces of the first years, and he put his head back on his neck and straightened the overlarge ruff he wore to keep it from wobbling with a rather smug smile. He patted James on the shoulder but James heartily wished he hadn't. The feeling was not unlike suddenly stepping into a cold shower.
At the end of the feast, feeling full and content, James went to find a prefect. He collared Mundungus Fletcher, a fifth year and newly appointed prefect. James had to wonder what Dumbledore was thinking about, Mundungus was definitely (as the muggles say) a few sandwiches short of a picnic, and he smelled funny, but Dumbledore was the genius, and he was more than eccentric himself. Mundungus told him the password (gobbledegook) and he set off towards Gryffindor Tower. He was exhausted, looking forward to his warm soft four-poster bed. They could leave adventures until the next night.
Ahead of them, James saw that a crowd was forming. He pushed forward to get a better look. At the centre of the confusion was Severus Snape, Slytherin, bully and all round slimy git. He was grinning wickedly at Lily Evans. James resisted the urge to jump in; he knew Lily was more than capable of dealing with Snape. Only last year she'd slapped him when he called her a Mudblood. He'd obviously done something of that sort again. James waited with bated breath to see what she'd do to him this time.
Lily glared back, obviously angry, but calm at the same time. James thought she looked very dangerous, especially the fact that her brilliant, emerald green eyes were flashing venomously. He made a mental note to watch out for that in the future. He didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of her anger. She held his gaze, and James thought he saw Snape almost falter under her angry eyes. Everyone waited for her to do something, but to everyone's surprise, she turned and walked away, head held high. James watched her intently, and because everyone else's attention was focused on Snape, they didn't see what he saw. He saw her mutter something under her breath and point her wand over her shoulder. Snape was laughing smugly, obviously satisfied that he'd achieved what he wanted. But the laughing didn't stop, he was doubled over with hysterical laughter, then he fell over, still cackling. James supposed she'd used the tickling charm. It had an excellent effect; Snape's laugh was very funny. More like a cackle, and seemed to be hurting him to chortle like that. It wasn't like it was a sound he was accustomed to making.
The crowd around him had also fell about laughing, whether it was because Snape's laugh was so funny, or because laughter is contagious, no one knew. They were still laughing as Dumbledore approached, eyes twinkling to see what all the fuss was about. His moustache twitched as he listened to Snape telling him how Lily Evans had put the tickling charm on him (after Dumbledore had reversed it of course). Dumbledore seemed to realise without being told that Snape deserved what he got, so he gave no punishments and sent Snape back to the Slytherin common room. His face had lost its grin now, instead he looked angry. He seemed to be fuming in fact. The Gryffindors were ushered to their common room, still laughing at the thought of Snape doing something as out of character as laughing. The rest of the school seemed highly amused too, even some of the Slytherins were fighting to conceal amused smiles.
James and his friends climbed the seemingly hundreds of steps to their dormitory. They were even more exhausted because of the laughing; it can really tire a person out, hysterical laughter. Lily had been nowhere to be seen in the common room, 'she must have gone to bed early' James thought. It was a shame though; everyone really wanted to congratulate her on making a fool of the most hated person in the year. As he closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was Lily's face as she muttered the charm under her breath. Her eyes had twinkled mischievously, although her face had retained a look of haughty indifference. 'It was brilliant." James thought to himself as he drifted off into a deep sleep.
James and the other 'Marauders' entered the Great Hall feeling very cheerful indeed. James knew there was going to be a lot of trouble this year, and he knew that whatever it was, they were sure to be behind it. This thought made James very happy. He glanced at the others who all seemed to have had the very same thought, but they were reacting to it in very different ways. Sirius' face had split into a grin that was very similar to James', Remus looked resigned but amused at the same time, but Peter looked downright terrified, probably at the thought of all the detentions he'd end up in.
They all sat at the Gryffindor table at the far side of the hall, next to the Gryffindor ghost, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington (or Nearly Headless Nick). The sorting seemed to take no time at all compared to last year. James decided this was probably because he wasn't almost sick with nerves this year, and he was impatient for the food to appear.
He looked on lazily as the new first years were sorted into their houses. He wasn't really paying attention, but a rather dozy looking boy with dark hair and blue eyes caught his eye. He was looking a bit dazed. He turned out to 'Diggle, Dedalus'. It took a while for him to be sorted, the hat seemed to be having difficulties knowing where to put him and it was thinking very hard. Finally it decided on Hufflepuff. Dedalus seemed pleased to have been put anywhere, and he almost skipped over to the Hufflepuff table, grinning widely at the cheers that greeted him.
James diverted his attention away from the sorting and started to listen to Sirius whispering to Remus about a trick he'd played on a muggle waiter in Greece on holiday. It seemed that itching powder didn't just work on wizards. Apparently, this poor man had jumped all over the restaurant, scratching his backside and swearing loudly in Greek. Sirius said he'd never seen a restaurant empty so fast.
At the end of the sorting (Weasley, Bilius), Professor Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat. James hoped he wouldn't take too long, he was feeling very hungry all of a sudden. "I do not wish to keep you from this excellent feast a minute longer than necessary. I have one or two announcements to make to the new students. Firstly, the Forbidden Forest is just as the name suggests, forbidden. Magic should not be used in the corridors between lessons, students who wish to try out for their house Quidditch team should keep an eye on the notice board and pupils should remain in bed at night." James was positive that the merry light in Dumbledore's eye was directed at him and 'The Marauders', "So, without further ado, let us eat." "Hear hear." Called Sirius, he was always hungry, as the food magically appeared on the golden plates in front of them.
James felt very content as he ate and talked. He listened to the story of Nearly Headless Nick's messed up beheading. Someone had done a very clumsy job of killing him; they'd hacked away, but hadn't bothered to finish the job. The axe had obviously been too blunt. The first years watched open mouthed as he swung his head onto his shoulder by his ear, as though on a hinge. A couple of inches of skin and sinew were all that kept his head on his shoulders. He looked very pleased at the shocked expressions on the faces of the first years, and he put his head back on his neck and straightened the overlarge ruff he wore to keep it from wobbling with a rather smug smile. He patted James on the shoulder but James heartily wished he hadn't. The feeling was not unlike suddenly stepping into a cold shower.
At the end of the feast, feeling full and content, James went to find a prefect. He collared Mundungus Fletcher, a fifth year and newly appointed prefect. James had to wonder what Dumbledore was thinking about, Mundungus was definitely (as the muggles say) a few sandwiches short of a picnic, and he smelled funny, but Dumbledore was the genius, and he was more than eccentric himself. Mundungus told him the password (gobbledegook) and he set off towards Gryffindor Tower. He was exhausted, looking forward to his warm soft four-poster bed. They could leave adventures until the next night.
Ahead of them, James saw that a crowd was forming. He pushed forward to get a better look. At the centre of the confusion was Severus Snape, Slytherin, bully and all round slimy git. He was grinning wickedly at Lily Evans. James resisted the urge to jump in; he knew Lily was more than capable of dealing with Snape. Only last year she'd slapped him when he called her a Mudblood. He'd obviously done something of that sort again. James waited with bated breath to see what she'd do to him this time.
Lily glared back, obviously angry, but calm at the same time. James thought she looked very dangerous, especially the fact that her brilliant, emerald green eyes were flashing venomously. He made a mental note to watch out for that in the future. He didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of her anger. She held his gaze, and James thought he saw Snape almost falter under her angry eyes. Everyone waited for her to do something, but to everyone's surprise, she turned and walked away, head held high. James watched her intently, and because everyone else's attention was focused on Snape, they didn't see what he saw. He saw her mutter something under her breath and point her wand over her shoulder. Snape was laughing smugly, obviously satisfied that he'd achieved what he wanted. But the laughing didn't stop, he was doubled over with hysterical laughter, then he fell over, still cackling. James supposed she'd used the tickling charm. It had an excellent effect; Snape's laugh was very funny. More like a cackle, and seemed to be hurting him to chortle like that. It wasn't like it was a sound he was accustomed to making.
The crowd around him had also fell about laughing, whether it was because Snape's laugh was so funny, or because laughter is contagious, no one knew. They were still laughing as Dumbledore approached, eyes twinkling to see what all the fuss was about. His moustache twitched as he listened to Snape telling him how Lily Evans had put the tickling charm on him (after Dumbledore had reversed it of course). Dumbledore seemed to realise without being told that Snape deserved what he got, so he gave no punishments and sent Snape back to the Slytherin common room. His face had lost its grin now, instead he looked angry. He seemed to be fuming in fact. The Gryffindors were ushered to their common room, still laughing at the thought of Snape doing something as out of character as laughing. The rest of the school seemed highly amused too, even some of the Slytherins were fighting to conceal amused smiles.
James and his friends climbed the seemingly hundreds of steps to their dormitory. They were even more exhausted because of the laughing; it can really tire a person out, hysterical laughter. Lily had been nowhere to be seen in the common room, 'she must have gone to bed early' James thought. It was a shame though; everyone really wanted to congratulate her on making a fool of the most hated person in the year. As he closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was Lily's face as she muttered the charm under her breath. Her eyes had twinkled mischievously, although her face had retained a look of haughty indifference. 'It was brilliant." James thought to himself as he drifted off into a deep sleep.