Chapter 4 - Sticks and Stones
Therefore, after the sorting hat and the feast, the jolly four spent their first happy weeks at Hogwarts. Sirius, James and Remus were top in most classes. Peter wasn't so smart as they were, but they helped him out a lot, and he was getting better.
James preformed well at the broom lessons too, their teacher was gobsmacked at his skill at catching things, and said that in a few years he could be in the Quidditch team. Almost everyone in Hogwarts was jealous of the friendship the group shared.
However, there were some classes though where they weren't so good, History of Magic was one of them, there teacher Mr Binns was a ghost, and drilled on and on about this and that and it made James want to fall asleep.
One of those very boring lessons, Sirius Black noticed how bored James was getting, sitting just behind him, seeing the stiff way James sat, and decided to spruce things up a little bit.
James then heard someone mutter a spell and then a charm was floating on Mr Binns almost transparent back. Saying "POINT AND WHISPER!"
Mr Binns kept on working, his head faced to the blackboard and the whole class was in a fit of silent laughter. Sirius and James high fived quietly.
"What you think JP. Better…" said Sirius and James giggled at what Sirius had started calling him, "JP".
"Much better…" said James and that was when Binns finally noticed. He looked around and the first person who caught his fiery gaze was James.
"POTTER!" he said. "I've had enough of this…I'm giving you two weeks of detention duty and 20 points of Griffindor for this utter childish behavior. Never do this again is that clear?" He said angrily, James nodded.
"Yes Professor…" he sadly. "Crystal clear…" he said and sighed, James had just earned them twenty points in his flying lesson which had been hard to get. Now it was gone, but he would take the blame for Sirius, he wouldn't own him up. Besides, he's the one Sirius did it for.
Sirius on the other hand, felt guiltier than the day he'd turned Peter's pet owl into a part rat, part snake in Transfiguration without permission and not knowing how to reverse it.
He went to take the blame which was rightfully his but then the class ended and James pushed him out of the class before he could.
"James!" argued Sirius, "Let go…I'm going back in,"
"Sirius, let me take it…if it was the other way round would you let yourself take the blame if I did it…"
"Well yes." Said Sirius agreeing "But still--"
"But still I was the one who was bored…don't worry…Binn's detentions he usually forgets. But I'll go anyway, they don't last too long," said James sighing.
Remus came between them and looked at the time, "Last lesson before lunch, what have we got next…"
Sirius frowned. "Defence against the Dark Arts with the Slytherins." He sighed.
***
The Slytherins were slimy and horrible, the greasy haired kid was in there too, Severus Snape and Blacks snooty cousin Bella, who teamed together most of the time to annoy James and Sirius.
James hated Snape for more reasons than one. One of them was that Snape was in Slytherin, and that he also sucked up to the teachers, a real teachers pet. Another reason he truly loathed Snape was because he had this feeling he fancied Lily Evans because he sat right behind her in of her classes and looked like he was drooling all over his table as he looked at her. Lastly and the worst reason of all, he was mates with Lucius Malfoy.
Malfoy was a boy in the third year, and he was pretty nasty to everyone. Even his own mate, at first Snape was bullied by him, which James rather enjoyed. When then Snape seemed to hang around with his gang, insult people when Malfoy was in the room and not be so nice to teachers in Malfoy's presence, a real two-faced swine. The perfect spy.
Sirius walked in and tried to sit as far away from Snape and Bella as he possibly could, when James walked in and saw that there were two spare seats near Lily.
James did fancy Lily, which Sirius saw was too obvious, but he would always go embarrassed and run off before he could talk to her face to face. Sirius had tried and failed to the couple together countless times, but James may be good with pranks, spells and Quidditch, he was useless talking to her.
James gestured at the seat and Sirius nodded, there was no where else anyway and Snape and Bella were nearer to the front for once.
Remus though unlucky ended up sitting next to Bella, and as the class continued, Bella kept on insulting him and telling him he was too poor to come to school. Sirius was going red with anger, it was in his blue eyes, James saw it, and so did Lily. However, before Sirius could say anything the teacher began to talk.
"Right class, settle, today we are looking at Squibs…"
Sirius then noticed that Remus had gone whiter than Lucius's hair, when he realized the obvious. Was Lupin's dad, or was his mum a squib? He was not the only one who noticed. "Hey Lupin…are your family squibs then!" said Snape evilly.
The whole class turned to Lupin who looked down at his feet in shame. The teacher shouted for silence as every Slytherin jeered, whilst the Griffindor students felt sorry for Lupin. Bella laughed.
"And I was silly to think your parents are muggles--what's the difference anyway--"
Sirius was about to say something in defence for his friend who was getting paler by the second, but someone else got there first.
"What's wrong with having a muggle family!" Lily said confused.
Sirius put his head in his hands. `What have you done!' he thought sadly as Bella's evil smile got even more evil.
***
The class ended shortly after the teacher had silenced all with threats of detention, Lupin and Lily looked at each other as they walked out.
"I know how she feels." Said Lupin sadly, looking at her with a new respect.
James sighed, he was not a muggle born child, but he had had friends up in Scotland who was. They weren't all that bad, I mean, He loved the muggle invention TV. His parents liked the muggles too. Telephones are pretty handy sometimes and electricity and plugs were lifesavers if you're an underage wizard.
So why did so many people think they were so wrong? Lily Evans was beautiful, and she was smart too, she beat Sirius in their Charms lesson in a pop quiz, which was funny to watch as Sirius went green.
When he remembered Snapes face in that classroom, he hadn't known, he'd thought she was pure blood like most others. In this one case he was wrong.
That brought a smile to James's face. Atleast he didn't like Lily the same way anymore.
***
James was heading to his Professor Binns detention at lunch, when he saw Lily Evans crying in a corner, her emerald green eyes were filling with salt water which down his face. Holding her body like a curled up cat. James went over concerned.
"Are you ok?" he said as he helped her up. She gave him a grin.
"Yeah…I'm fine…" she sighed, tears rolling down her face.
"You sure…" he said worried.
She stood there a moment and then she shook her head sadly, "No…Snape and Bella called me a Mudblood," she said shaking.
James Potter's rose like a raging storm in his body.
"I'll get them," he said angrily. Lily shook her head.
"It's ok, I can take it, it's just words…what can they do…" she said. "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me…"
James was confused. "What's that?"
"A poem they used to say at my primary school…" she said sighing. "Besides it's right…words can't hurt you…"
James shook his head. "They can hurt, trust me…" he said smirking, "that poem is a load of bull."
"Thanks…" she said laughing and he laughed too. Then James and Lily stared at each other for a moment, and then James remembered the time.
"Oh, I, I'm late for my detention…" he said
"Oh I saw that in class." She said. "Very funny…did you do that?"
"Ironically no, it was my friend SB…" he said
"SB?" she said confused.
"Sirius…" he said
"Oh, right, yeah, you're a good friend taking the heat."
"Thanks, gotta go…" he said and then even though he didn't want to he ran to his detention, a smile on his face.
"Anything Binns dishes out now won't bring this smile off me face!" he said to himself and walked inside.
***
I know that this one is well going off the track of OotP plot, with Lily hating James, but still, I think it's sweet. Don't worry, it won't be this way forever…HAHAHAHA!
PS-- I haven't included any teachers names yet, or Dumbledore, he will be in it do not worry! Also you probably want to find out about Werewolf Lupin and the animagi thing and the Marauders map…it will be revealed soon just stay reading and reviewing and I may just continue!
