"So, Remus mate," said Sirius casually on the afternoon of Remus and
Alexa's date, "where are you planning to take Alexa on your date tonight?"
Remus cast a glance at Sirius out of the corner of his book, but other than that didn't look up. "I was planning on taking her to the Three Broomsticks and then maybe window shopping perhaps. Why?" he added suspiciously. He knew that Sirius wasn't asking just to try and make conversation.
Sirius ignored the question and let out a bark of laughter. "I would think that you would be taking her to a more romantic sort of place, myself. The Three Broomsticks is hardly the place to woo a girl."
"Ah, my friend, you're forgetting that I'm not planning to woo Alexa," Remus countered. "This is a strictly friendly date, just a friendly little get together, if you will. I've told you five times, today alone, that I'm not looking for anything outside of friendship with Alexa Peters."
"Huh?"
"He means that he doesn't fancy Alexa like you do, Padfoot," James translated. "It's a bit obvious that he doesn't, mate, otherwise he wouldn't be taking her to the Three Broomsticks."
"Well, if you don't fancy her, why did you even agree to one date with her in the first place?" Sirius demanded.
Remus finally set his Charms book down and glanced up at Sirius, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Because I knew it would drive you up the wall," he said smugly.
--Later that evening...--
"So Remus, do you have any siblings then?" Alexa asked conversationally, taking a sip of butterbeer. She looked around the room. Her exotic purple eyes caught on a tall plant a foot or two away from their table. She hadn't remembered seeing that plant before when she was in here.
"Actually, no, I haven't any siblings," Remus answered, also taking a drink of his butterbeer. "Do you?"
"Yeah." She nodded distractedly and tore her gaze away from the plant. "I've got two brothers, one of them is a year older than me, the other one is younger by a year, both in Ravenclaw, and a little sister who's three years younger than I am, who's in Hufflepuff."
An awkward silence fell over their table in which both sixteen year olds drank their butterbeer and looked around, struggling to find something to talk about. Alexa's attention kept getting drawn back to the tall plant near their table, but she didn't know why. There wasn't anything remarkable about the plant in the least. Even so she kept glancing at it as if expecting it to get up and walk away or something, but it was always in the same place when she looked back at it.
"Listen, Alexa let's just put this out in the open here," Remus said, drawing Alexa's attention back to him and away from the plant. "I like you, a lot, but only as a friend and nothing more. I agreed to come on this date because you said that we would be going as friends."
"I like you too, Remus---"there was a sharp intake of breath from the plant---"as a really good friend. And I only asked you on this date because it was a dare. To be truthful with you, I dared Lily to go on a date with James, or she had to ask Snape out, and in return, she dared me to go out with you or Sirius."
"Why didn't you ask Sirius?"
"Because I knew that if I asked you, I could say that we would go as friends and nothing else and you would agree with me," Alexa answered simply. "If I'd would've asked Sirius out and then said the same thing, he probably would have laughed at me and tried to snog me every chance he got."
Remus laughed. "Well, I for one am glad that we got that cleared up. Let's say we just call it an evening and head back to Hogwarts?"
"Hang on—Sirius, you can come out now," Alexa called loudly over her shoulder to the plant behind her. "You've got to be the loudest breather I've ever heard, Black, honestly!" She laughed.
Sirius came out from behind the plant and stood at the end of the table, smiling at them sheepishly. "So, you two aren't a couple then?"
Alexa and Remus laughed again. "No, Sirius, we are not a couple," answered Remus through his laughter.
Alexa added, "Most definitely not a couple." She sighed contentedly and smiled at Sirius and Remus in turn. "Now let's get back to Hogwarts, boys, as it's late and I need my beauty sleep."
"But you're already so beautiful," Sirius said in a sugary-sweet voice, offering his arm to Alexa as she stepped out of the booth.
She rolled her purple eyes, but accepted Sirius's outstretched arm. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Sirius Black, especially with me."
"Right you are, love, right you are."
The next day all five of the Gryffindors packed their things and got on the Hogwarts Express, ready to go home for the summer holidays. They were all chatting happily about what their summer plans were, except for Lily, who wasn't ready to leave Hogwarts and go back home where she would become nonexistent again.
At Hogwarts she was somebody: She got good grades, studied hard, yelled at James frequently, and had fun with her friends. At home she was just plain Lily: She did all her homework because she had nothing else to do, hardly ever went outside because there was nothing/no one waiting for her out there, rarely came out of her room at all, and counted down the days when summer would end and she could go back to Hogwarts.
James seemed to notice Lily sitting in all her gloom and depression because he scooted over to the seat next to her and said, "Hey Lils. Since your sister and dad never make plans with you, why don't you make plans to spend some of the summer days with us? It'd be fun, all of us friends together, laughing at people."
Lily chocked back her laughter and looked James squarely in the eyes. "And why would you guys want to spend the summer with boring old Lily Evans, who, and I quote, 'has no idea of what a friend is'?"
James recognized the words that he'd told Lily a while ago when he'd been particularly cross with her. He almost winced, but he didn't. Instead he covered up quickly by saying, "Because friends spend the summer together, because that's what friends are for. We are friends, aren't we?"
Lily hesitated. James Potter was offering to be her friend? It didn't seem likely, since it was usually all for nothing with him; he was either asking her on a date or pulling tricks on her, never in the middle.
"I s'pose we are friends, James," she answered finally. "If you'd be friends with a boring redhead who tends to fly off the handle and slap you a lot." She smiled at James. It was a warm, friendly smile.
James smiled back. "If I can handle the infamous Lily Evans temper for six years I'm sure being your friend will be a piece of chocolate cake."
The End
A/N: Well, there you have it: The very last chapter of Love and Hate. --- Sobs--- But don't worry, there's a sequel! It's called Friendship Has Its Limits, and it will be coming soon to a computer near you, lol. I was going to add some other stuff about Sirius and Alexa, but I decided to save some stuff for Friendship Has Its Limits. So just to give you something to think about, how long do you think James and Lily's friendship will last? Review! Please?
Remus cast a glance at Sirius out of the corner of his book, but other than that didn't look up. "I was planning on taking her to the Three Broomsticks and then maybe window shopping perhaps. Why?" he added suspiciously. He knew that Sirius wasn't asking just to try and make conversation.
Sirius ignored the question and let out a bark of laughter. "I would think that you would be taking her to a more romantic sort of place, myself. The Three Broomsticks is hardly the place to woo a girl."
"Ah, my friend, you're forgetting that I'm not planning to woo Alexa," Remus countered. "This is a strictly friendly date, just a friendly little get together, if you will. I've told you five times, today alone, that I'm not looking for anything outside of friendship with Alexa Peters."
"Huh?"
"He means that he doesn't fancy Alexa like you do, Padfoot," James translated. "It's a bit obvious that he doesn't, mate, otherwise he wouldn't be taking her to the Three Broomsticks."
"Well, if you don't fancy her, why did you even agree to one date with her in the first place?" Sirius demanded.
Remus finally set his Charms book down and glanced up at Sirius, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Because I knew it would drive you up the wall," he said smugly.
--Later that evening...--
"So Remus, do you have any siblings then?" Alexa asked conversationally, taking a sip of butterbeer. She looked around the room. Her exotic purple eyes caught on a tall plant a foot or two away from their table. She hadn't remembered seeing that plant before when she was in here.
"Actually, no, I haven't any siblings," Remus answered, also taking a drink of his butterbeer. "Do you?"
"Yeah." She nodded distractedly and tore her gaze away from the plant. "I've got two brothers, one of them is a year older than me, the other one is younger by a year, both in Ravenclaw, and a little sister who's three years younger than I am, who's in Hufflepuff."
An awkward silence fell over their table in which both sixteen year olds drank their butterbeer and looked around, struggling to find something to talk about. Alexa's attention kept getting drawn back to the tall plant near their table, but she didn't know why. There wasn't anything remarkable about the plant in the least. Even so she kept glancing at it as if expecting it to get up and walk away or something, but it was always in the same place when she looked back at it.
"Listen, Alexa let's just put this out in the open here," Remus said, drawing Alexa's attention back to him and away from the plant. "I like you, a lot, but only as a friend and nothing more. I agreed to come on this date because you said that we would be going as friends."
"I like you too, Remus---"there was a sharp intake of breath from the plant---"as a really good friend. And I only asked you on this date because it was a dare. To be truthful with you, I dared Lily to go on a date with James, or she had to ask Snape out, and in return, she dared me to go out with you or Sirius."
"Why didn't you ask Sirius?"
"Because I knew that if I asked you, I could say that we would go as friends and nothing else and you would agree with me," Alexa answered simply. "If I'd would've asked Sirius out and then said the same thing, he probably would have laughed at me and tried to snog me every chance he got."
Remus laughed. "Well, I for one am glad that we got that cleared up. Let's say we just call it an evening and head back to Hogwarts?"
"Hang on—Sirius, you can come out now," Alexa called loudly over her shoulder to the plant behind her. "You've got to be the loudest breather I've ever heard, Black, honestly!" She laughed.
Sirius came out from behind the plant and stood at the end of the table, smiling at them sheepishly. "So, you two aren't a couple then?"
Alexa and Remus laughed again. "No, Sirius, we are not a couple," answered Remus through his laughter.
Alexa added, "Most definitely not a couple." She sighed contentedly and smiled at Sirius and Remus in turn. "Now let's get back to Hogwarts, boys, as it's late and I need my beauty sleep."
"But you're already so beautiful," Sirius said in a sugary-sweet voice, offering his arm to Alexa as she stepped out of the booth.
She rolled her purple eyes, but accepted Sirius's outstretched arm. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Sirius Black, especially with me."
"Right you are, love, right you are."
The next day all five of the Gryffindors packed their things and got on the Hogwarts Express, ready to go home for the summer holidays. They were all chatting happily about what their summer plans were, except for Lily, who wasn't ready to leave Hogwarts and go back home where she would become nonexistent again.
At Hogwarts she was somebody: She got good grades, studied hard, yelled at James frequently, and had fun with her friends. At home she was just plain Lily: She did all her homework because she had nothing else to do, hardly ever went outside because there was nothing/no one waiting for her out there, rarely came out of her room at all, and counted down the days when summer would end and she could go back to Hogwarts.
James seemed to notice Lily sitting in all her gloom and depression because he scooted over to the seat next to her and said, "Hey Lils. Since your sister and dad never make plans with you, why don't you make plans to spend some of the summer days with us? It'd be fun, all of us friends together, laughing at people."
Lily chocked back her laughter and looked James squarely in the eyes. "And why would you guys want to spend the summer with boring old Lily Evans, who, and I quote, 'has no idea of what a friend is'?"
James recognized the words that he'd told Lily a while ago when he'd been particularly cross with her. He almost winced, but he didn't. Instead he covered up quickly by saying, "Because friends spend the summer together, because that's what friends are for. We are friends, aren't we?"
Lily hesitated. James Potter was offering to be her friend? It didn't seem likely, since it was usually all for nothing with him; he was either asking her on a date or pulling tricks on her, never in the middle.
"I s'pose we are friends, James," she answered finally. "If you'd be friends with a boring redhead who tends to fly off the handle and slap you a lot." She smiled at James. It was a warm, friendly smile.
James smiled back. "If I can handle the infamous Lily Evans temper for six years I'm sure being your friend will be a piece of chocolate cake."
The End
A/N: Well, there you have it: The very last chapter of Love and Hate. --- Sobs--- But don't worry, there's a sequel! It's called Friendship Has Its Limits, and it will be coming soon to a computer near you, lol. I was going to add some other stuff about Sirius and Alexa, but I decided to save some stuff for Friendship Has Its Limits. So just to give you something to think about, how long do you think James and Lily's friendship will last? Review! Please?