Lol… I just love this chapter. Seriously… I had soo much fun writing it. And, trust me, there's a reason why Brendan's such a jerk… winks
It's like 5 pages long too… Sarah's not in this chapter though. And, well, poor Haley. This chapter also introduces Brendan's family (who are, yes, based on real people). He lives with his mom, Carli, and his sister, Mary.
There's some, uh, interesting stuff that Haley says in this chapter… Which is why this fic is rated PG-13, but that's not the point.
Lemme see… I don't own LK or HP.
And when Haley mentions something about an engagement between James and Sarah, she's talking about that episode with impressment. Y'know, the one where they grab James and try and make him serve in the British Navy (which was one of the causes of the War of 1812…), but Henri stepped in and said, "They are engaged to be married!" and Sarah lied (y'know, she says that she's never lied in her life before she met James, and yet, hello, that's a lie) about it. Anyways…
"Marge! Hey!" Brendan yelled.
Haley shot him a glare.
"Hello, Brendan. Are you always this vocal?" Haley jeered.
Brendan shrugged.
"I don't know. Are you always that easy?" Brendan retorted angrily.
Haley gaped, glaring accusingly at James.
"I'm not easy. I'd be easy if I ever kissed you!" Haley snapped back.
Brendan scowled.
"Look, if I didn't know better, Brendan, I'd say that you wish that she kissed you instead of me," James warned.
Both Haley and Brendan glared at James.
"Okay, relax guys, I didn't ask for a death glare in stereo!" James said, trying to calm them down.
James looked helplessly to Lindy, who shrugged.
"James, I think you got something there," She remarked simply.
Haley gaped and Brendan scowled, making a move to go after her. However, Haley tackled him before he could attack anyone. Lindy moved next to James, sharing a smirk with him.
"Brendan, why are you obsessed with kissing? Is it because it hasn't happened yet and you want to know the unknown or, is it because you're way too young to have sex?" Haley muttered, annoyed and wrestling with Brendan.
James blanched and Lindy blushed. Brendan sputtered.
"You're lucky, Brendan. I could've put it way cruder. That was my blunt way of putting it," Haley grunted.
"Man, you must be nuts, Haley. I'm not obsessed," Brendan replied, pinning her to the grass.
Lindy and James exchanged raised eyebrows.
"Oh, really?" Panted Haley, "Because haven't there been studies that prove that guys think about things like that every five seconds?"
Brendan shrugged, focusing.
"You know, Brendan, I'm starting to think that you actually do want to kiss me," Haley growled, kneeing him in the groin.
She kicked him off of her and was soon up and standing. She dusted herself off, but Brendan was soon up, albeit walking a little bowlegged, and he landed a running tackle from behind.
"Oof!"
Lindy clucked her tongue and James shook his head.
"It's like watching Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, except Harry and Hermione didn't deliberately tackle each other, and there was a lot more hugging and hand-holding…" Lindy remarked loudly.
Haley's eyes widened, from where she had Brendan in a headlock.
"He's no Harry!" She shrieked.
James crossed his arms over his chest.
"Then what is HE?" He questioned.
Haley scowled, trying to put Brendan's face into the dirt, on top of his back.
"A Draco, that's who!" Haley snapped.
Lindy shook her head, frowning.
"But Hermione only punched Draco, and they didn't like each other," Lindy pouted.
James clapped, cracking up at the look on Haley's and Brendan's faces.
"We do NOT like each other!" They shouted in unison.
James and Lindy rolled their eyes.
"Yeah, right, I really believe that. As a matter of fact, I believe that just as much as I believe that the Loyalists have the right idea," James said sarcastically.
Haley scowled, struggling to breathe.
"James, now is not the time for jokes!" Haley snapped breathlessly.
Haley then punched Brendan hard in the face. Brendan groaned, loosening his hands from her throat. Haley slammed her head into his, flailing. Both moaned.
"Look, Haley, why don't you kiss him already?" James said impatiently.
Both shot him intense glares, though still fighting.
"Why don't you kiss Sarah!" Haley sneered.
James flushed red.
"I hate to admit it, but she's right," Brendan agreed.
Haley struggled, turning the tables. She got up slowly, dusting herself off and walking over to James. Brendan had other plans.
"What, Marge, walking off to Loverboy already?" Brendan sneered, tackling her once more.
"Oof! ARGH! BRENDAN!"
James rolled his eyes. Lindy shook her head.
"Uh, she's wrestling with you," Lindy pointed out.
James turned to her.
"That's an excellent point you have there, Lindy," He applauded.
Lindy beamed.
"Thanks."
Brendan jerked his head over towards the two of them, sitting on Haley's stomach.
"What's up with the two of them? I mean, who called for the lovefest? Or, for that matter the two of you? I thought he said he liked Sarah!" Brendan muttered, almost violently.
Haley groaned, trying to wriggle free from underneath him.
"I don't know, Brendan. Now get off!" Haley shouted.
Brendan smirked smugly, planting himself more firmly. James saw this and smirked.
"You know, you're the one straddling her like a horse," James remarked airily.
Lindy gasped, covering her eyes and looking away and Brendan's mouth gaped open.
"Oh, yeah, James? Not like I have a choice. Now, I recall a time where you and Sarah were ENGAGED, am I right?" Haley retorted, still struggling.
James blushed and Lindy opened her eyes, staring at him. Even Brendan found time between his fighting to give him a curious look.
However, Brendan soon returned back to his goal, the space between him and Haley getting smaller and smaller by the minute. This time, James and Lindy knew better than to talk, merely looking on in awe, transfixed at what they were about to witness. Brendan's eyes closed as the inches melted away between them, and Haley licked her lips nervously. Lindy was biting her nails.
"Brendan!" A soft voice cried.
James winced. Lindy bit her nails harder. Haley seemed to realize something, and Brendan was either ignoring it or hadn't heard the voice at all. However, just as Brendan's lips were about to touch her own, Haley smiled, rolling out from under him. His lips grazed the side of her face and she rose to her feet in an instant, dusting herself off while he kissed dirt. Brendan too rose to his feet, walking towards Haley, who immediately punched him hard, Brendan falling backwards a little from the impact. He wiped his bleeding lips with the back of his hand, rubbing his jaw with the same hand.
"What is going on here!" A shrill voice insisted.
Haley gulped, stepping back from Brendan and running a hand through her messy hair. James put his hands in his pockets, whistling. Lindy bit her lip. All gazed towards the source of the noise, none other than Brendan's mother, and his little sister, Mary, who, though being two years younger, looked somewhat amused.
Brendan's mother glared at each of them in turn, hands on her hips.
"I asked a question. Someone better answer it," She snapped.
Lindy and James both shot Haley looks. Haley, however, merely backed up slowly, until she was in between them.
"Well?" Brendan's mom screeched.
There was a collective wince. Everyone glared at Brendan. He bit his lip, scratching the back of his neck.
"Right. Uh, well, lots of things are going on here. Like me and my friends, uh, hanging out…" He said, nervously.
He seemed to struggle in particular over the word friends. Annoyed with all the spotlight on him, he gazed at the others.
"Feel free to jump in anytime, guys!" He hissed.
Brendan's mother scowled. Haley looked down nervously, and Brendan glared at her.
"So why was that girl punching you?" Carli, Brendan's mom, demanded accusingly.
Brendan shrugged, dusting himself off, glaring daggers at Haley.
"I don't know, Mom. She's strange. She's probably jealous of me," He muttered.
Haley shot him a glare, rolling her eyes, fists clenched.
"Oh, come on, Brendan! Why would I be jealous of YOU? You tackled me! That's why I hit you!" Haley retorted.
Carli looked between the two, glaring at Haley.
"Look, assuming that my son did tackle you, I can understand why you punched him. I don't like you, and I never will. He knows better than to hit a girl," Carli said tensely, glaring at the both of them.
Brendan rolled his eyes and Haley merely glanced down. Carli hmphed and waltzed back inside, Mary remained, watching. Haley looked up at Lindy and James, sighing deeply.
"We ought to be going," She panted tiredly.
The luster was gone from her eyes, her cheeks were paler than usual, her hair even more tousled, lips chapped, neck red, wincing a little.
James sighed too, picking a leaf from her hair. Haley smiled at him tiredly, leaning on his shoulder a little too heavily.
"Come on, guys. Let's go," She hissed.
James sighed, wrapping an arm around one of her shoulders, holding her up. Lindy frowned.
"We didn't say bye to Brendan," Lindy protested.
Haley shot her a painful glare, a glare that reminded James incredibly of Sarah.
"Why should we?" Haley hissed.
Lindy gave her a look and Haley twisted around as best she could, waving shortly at Brendan and Mary.
"Bye. Thanks for the… sheer and utter terror," Haley uttered quickly, before tearing out of there as fast as her aching body could.
Lindy and James waved apologetically at them.
Loren ;
Haley's a sneaky one, ain't she? Lol… And she can beat guys up. Anyways, review if you liked it!
