One week had passed and Lily had ignored her friends and James, choosing instead to talk and sit with Sirius and Remus and some fourth year friends she had. She was walking down the hallway towards the dungeons for Potions when she ran into the back of someone. She looked up; an apology on her tongue.
"Watch where you're going Mudblood. Now I'm going to be late for class. I have to go and disinfect myself. The mudblood touched me." Severus Snape's stood in front of her, his sneer firmly in place. It took all of Lily's energy and strength not to punch him in the nose. Instead she sighed wearily and ran a hand through her hair.
"Ten points from Slytherin Severus."
"Whatever Mudblood."
Lily walked past him and stood staring into the distance outside the Potions classroom. Five minutes later the teacher opened the door and ushered them inside. She sat at an empty desk and put her bag on the chair next to her to deter her friends and Potter. This stopped anyone from sitting next to her but her friends crowded around the tables in front of and behind her. James and Sirius sat at the desk next to her and Remus and Peter at the desk in front of them. Lily stared straight ahead only smiling at Remus when he turned around.
"Okay class today we will be making a love potion. The ingredients and the method are on the board. Go to work and once they are made bottle some, stopper it, label it and hand it in to me. We will test it next class." Professor Angelus walked around the classroom answering questions and making notes in his mark book. Lily avoided everyone's questions and quietly and competently made the potion, bottled it, stoppered it, labelled it and handed it in. Then she cleaned up and laid her head on her bag.
"Lily?" James asked gently touching her arm. This only resulted in her turning her head in the opposite direction. James sighed, dropped his head and went to finish his Potion. The bell rang and James tried to talk to Lily again but she walked fast out of the class and was lost in the swarm of kids.
Later that evening James was sitting in the library attempting to do his Transfiguration homework, but his mind kept slipping back to the way Lily had turned away from him in Potions. He sighed and threw down his quill making Sirius look up at him, one eyebrow raised.
"What's up Prongs?"
"Lily."
"Oh right. So hows that going?"
"Don't ask stupid questions Padfoot. It isn't going anywhere. I thought she wanted me to that night I kissed her. Now she isn't talking to her friends or me. I don't know what to do."
"I can talk to her."
"Rub it in why don't you."
"I didn't mean it like that. I meant I can talk to her and find out the dirt. Find out why she's doing this and maybe change her mind."
"That would have to be the smartest thing you have ever come up with Padfoot; in regards to women of course."
"What about that plan in fourth year to charm Emily Frank with the singing roses."
"Except you forgot to remove the bees."
"Right."
James laughed and picked his quill up again. Lily stood hidden in the shelves, holding her books tightly against her chest.
'Well if Sirius thinks he's going to get me to spill he has another thing coming.' Lily thought to herself determinedly. She checked out the books and made her way back to her dorm room to read. As it was really cold in the room she made her way downstairs with a blanket and a book. She sat in front of the fire quietly reading. She had gotten so involved it took a second to register the fact that people were coming up the stairs chattering. She closed her book and shut her eyes, pretending to be asleep. She could tell the instant that James and Sirius saw her. It went quiet. But what she least expected to hear was what James whispered.
"She looks so beautiful. Especially in the firelight. Hell she looks pretty in any light."
"Make me puke why don't you Prongs."
"Shut up Padfoot. Come on lets go before she wakes up." Lily heard footsteps racing up the stairs and when she heard James' door slam she slowly opened her eyes and stared into the firelight. One thought was going through her head.
'Potter thinks I look beautiful in any light.'
She sighed and rested her elbow on the arm of her chair, propping her head in her palm. Fifteen minutes later Sirius came walking down the stairs. Lily hurriedly pretended to be sleeping again.
"The plans sure to work." He whispered to James.
"Maybe. Talk more tomorrow. Night."
"Night." With her eyes closed she heard Sirius walk down the stairs and into the common room. Lily was hardly breathing not knowing where James was. She soon found out. She felt something brush across her forehead. Then she felt strong arms wrap around her. She allowed herself to be carried upstairs to her bed and when there be tucked in. She pretended to sleep and opened her eyes when she heard James walk out of her room. She lay awake thinking.
"James can we talk?" James heard a quiet voice behind him the next morning at breakfast. He already knew who it was and was already smiling when he turned to face Lily Evans.
"Sure Lily."
"Um… privately." She said looking at the ground; embarrassed to avoid the smirks she was sure were plastered on Sirius', Remus' and Peter' faces. When James stood up she walked out of the great hall and down the corridor until she found an empty classroom. She gestured him inside then shut the door and put a silencing charm on the room. James was perched on a desk looking at her charmingly.
"Stop it James." Lily whispered dragging a hand through her hair, something she only did when she was majorly stressed and something she found she was doing more often since becoming Head Girl with James Potter as Head Boy.
"Stop what Lil?" Lily looked up and saw a puzzled expression on James' face.
"Stop liking me. Stop staring at me all the time. I already explained what's happening."
"Ah yes, you're hiatus on dating. And what if I told you I can't stop liking you or staring at you?"
"Then I'd curse you."
"Would you really?" James asked smoothly getting off the desk and approaching Lily. Before she could stop him he was holding her arms and raising her face so they could look each other in the eyes.
"Are you telling me that you didn't feel anything the other night Lily?"
"James…"
"No. Just tell me that you didn't feel anything when I kissed you. And if you didn't like it why did you kiss me back?"
"I don't have an answer for that James." Lily wriggled out of his hold. "I know what you do when you go out with girls, you use them for one or two days and then you dump them. I don't want to get hurt James."
"And you know for a fact that I would hurt you?" Lily made the mistake of looking up at James' face and felt pain when she saw the hurt on James' face and in his eyes.
"I don't want to find out." She whispered.
"So what do we do know. You know I like you. You know I want to go out with you. So what would be so bad if we went out on one date?"
"What would be so bad? How about I could get hurt when you dump me for another girl. How about this affecting our friendship, you and I both saw the after effects of a kiss. And it could damage the way we work together as Head Boy and Head Girl." Lily wished to be anywhere else in the world after saying that and seeing all the emotions fly across James' face.
"You really think all that about me?" he asked staring deep into her eyes.
"Maybe."
James made for the door; Lily spun around and felt sick to the stomach.
"We can still be friends cant we?" she asked, feeling stupid afterwards. She didn't expect an answer and didn't get one. She stared around blankly and climbed onto a seat and covering her face with her hands sobbed out her pain.
James stormed back into the Great hall, his face clouded with pain and anger. When he sat down next to Sirius, Sirius remained silent, knowing that even the slightest badly-worded comment could set off a James temper tantrum, the likes of which Hogwarts has never seen. Henriette came up behind Remus and looked down at James' face. Taking a chance she asked him about Lily.
"I don't know where she is now nor do I care."
"Well where was the last place you saw her?" Henriette was pressing knowing that if James' looked like this Lily would look ten times worse.
"Third classroom down the hall off the Entrance Hall."
"Thanks." Henriette rushed out of the Great Hall, followed by Anna, Carrie and Samantha.
"What happened James?" Remus asked hoping that the storm had passed.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Okay then, maybe some other time." Remus replied closely examining James and though James was very good at hiding his emotions, Remus could tell that whatever he and Lily had talked about, the outcome had not made James feel very good.
Later that day James was walking through the common room and saw Lily holding a pillow and a blanket and walking up the stairs of the girls' dormitory. He sighed and knowing that they had to work things out, so that they could work together as Head Boy and Head Girl. He walked up the girls' staircase and knocked on the door marked "7th Year". It was quickly opened by Henriette. She stared at James for a second, then stepped back and invited him inside. He walked in and saw Lily sitting on a bed with the rest of her friends.
"Lily? Can we talk?" She looked up at him, surprise and shock registering in her eyes. She nodded mutely and slid off the bed. She followed him out into the hallway and stood straight and looked him straight in the eyes.
"About today…" he started then not knowing where to go from there self-consciously mussed up his hair.
"I'm sorry that I said all those things James. I didn't mean to hurt you. Really I didn't." Lily said quietly avoiding his eyes.
"And about what you said. I think we can be friends. I still like you and nothing you say or do is going to change that, but I will try to stop staring."
"Thanks James."
"You're welcome Lily. So can I ask what's going on in there or is it like a secret girlie ritual?"
"Something like that." Hearing a noise at the door behind her she held a finger to her lips and walking quickly forward grasped the doorknob and pushed the door open. Four muffled thuds and squeals of pain could be heard from inside the room. Lily pushed the door open wider and saw her four friends on the floor. She cracked up laughing and waving goodbye to James walked into her old room and shut the door behind her. James laughed once and then went downstairs to seek out his friends for a long prank-planning session.
"I want to hold a Yule ball. Like last years." Lily declared to James one evening when they were working on tasks and rosters for the prefects.
"You're kidding me right. Those things are painful."
"No they're not don't be silly."
"I'm not being silly. You do remember I was the one who spent three days after that damned thing in the hospital wing with concussion."
"You wouldn't have had a concussion if you hadn't invited two different girls to the ball." Lily replied in a saccharine voice.
"That is not a reasonable excuse to throw a crystal punch tumbler at someone's head."
"You ducked the tumbler you didn't duck the fist."
"Right. I forgot that last part when the lights went out."
"Whatever. You won't get a concussion this year if you don't try to be a player."
"Okay okay we can have a ball. All the guys are gonna hate me."
"Come on, you cant tell me that guys dislike dancing slow songs with a girl."
"That parts fine. I think its more the getting dressed up and having to actually ask the girl to go with you."
"Well… what about we have a dress-up Yule ball. With a theme of some sort."
"What do you mean?"
"Like say we have a ball and the theme is Famous couples, or Favourite sports stars."
"That actually sounds like a good idea."
"Thanks."
"So let's get down to planning this thing."
"Okay. We'll need streamers, balloons, food, pumpkin juice, prizes."
"And we need to get Professor Dumbledore's permission." James put in, proud of himself for thinking of the most important part of the ball's success.
Okay so that was another chapter I'm sorry it took so long to post it but I sort of forgot about it what with work and school stuff. Anyways I hope you like it.