Missi-Mooloo – You will be seeing some Lucius/Narcissa and Bella/Rodolphus in the future. I'm not sure when, but there will definitely be some.
Liadan Sevenwaters – Yes, the lines from the HPSS movie were in the Crudus scene. And yes, the date is finally here! And don't worry you're not being pushy! I just didn't have an ounce of time to write let alone think of writing with all the schoolwork I've had to do. But don't worry I am continuing, there will just be longer gaps between chapters. I know that's a pain, but there's nothing I can do.
Heya – Lilt and James didn't get together in Chapter 10 they have one more..er..stumble to get through in this chapter!
WILDBASILISK – Don't worry I am continuing. I just got bogged down with schoolwork. I wanted to work on the chapter so bad, but school has to come first. But the story will go on…
lizzE – I'm sorry you liked the other beginning. I felt it was too much information and not enough actual dialogue going on. It's also very tedious and a waste of typing to write up all their outfits. Once in a while I'll do that but not all the time.
Megan – I know it's been a long time since the last update, but I've been completely bogged down with schoolwork. Writing this story is my getaway and something I really enjoy doing—when I have the time and I'm not neglecting other things. School comes first.
Okay, so I think we can all agree on one thing: It's been far too long since I updated. I didn't lose my motivation, inspiration, mojo, or anything else for that matter (except maybe a sock or two that seems to have been eaten by the washing machine—okay lame attempt at a joke—moving on)! I wanted to work on the chapter and believe me if I could have blown off papers and homework to work on the chapter I would have, but school comes first. Right now, the updates will be a bit slow until breaks and such. I'm on long weekend right now, and then I have a week and a half before finals, a week of finals, and then I'm off for Thanksgiving for a week and a half. At that time I will be writing like a maniac. I really want to continue this story. All's I ask is that you guys continue to read and write wonderful reviews and just be patient and hang in there. Thank you all for your concern and reviews! And a huge thanks to my beta's for all their e-mails and for hanging in there with me! Enjoy this chapter; it's something you've all been waiting for (and I don't just mean the actual chapter itself—the actual content of the chapter). It's a bit lengthy and I hope it makes up for the long wait! Enjoy and remember take a second to review!
The chapter title and parts of the chapter itself are inspired by the song Just The Girl by The Click Five.
Challenge
Chapter 11: Just The Girl
"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the first Quidditch match of the season: Gryffindor vs. Slytherin!" There was a collection of boos and hisses as well as cheers and whistles from the students in the stands.
"Luke McBride your usual commentator will not be joining us today. Luke is unable to speak and Madam Pomfrey refuses to let him leave the Hospital Wing until his tonsils have been reduced to their normal size and," there was a rustling of parchment, "the boils have stopped oozing. Ugh—now that's a disgusting mental image!" The commentator shook his dark, shaggy hair out of his eyes, "Anyways, he leaves me, Sirius Black, to take up his duty for the match." Girls of all years screamed their approval until they were red faced. Some girls were actually crying and one or two had fainted.
Sirius pretended to blush all the while resisting the urge to roll his eyes. It wasn't that he didn't like the attention, he did, but he always felt like they overdid it. He knew he would never feel for any one of them the way he did about a certain feisty brunette.
He looked down at the parchment in his hand and spoke again, his voice magically magnified, "I wonder who's bad side Luke got on?" he mused aloud, "I mean enlarged tonsils and oozing boils?" He let out a low whistle, "Man I hope he stopped using the 'do 'em then screw 'em' method. I told him it wasn't a good idea to start that. It's never a pretty outcome."
"Mr. Black!" McGonagall yelled shrilly, "Would you kindly return your focus to the task at hand?"
"Of course, Minnie. You are so right," said Sirius grinning broadly, "I just—I lost my head there for a moment, thank you for finding it." McGonagall growled and Sirius snickering turned his attention back to the pitch. "Well, it looks like the teams are anxious to get on the pitch and get this game started! So, I give you the Slytherin Quidditch Team," he finished sounding bored.
Cheers from the Slytherin supporters and jeers from the Gryffindor supporters filled the pitch. "Seventh year captain Jason Flint leads his team onto the pitch. Montague, Larkus, Crabbe, Devon, Swank, and Brakston follow their captain." Sirius waited for the uproar of noise to die down again (all the while yawning and glancing at his watch to the entertainment of most of the spectators) before continuing. "And now without further ado the Gryffindor Quidditch Team led once again this year by seventh year captain James Potter!" Sirius was all but drowned out by the Gryffindor supporters' cheers, whistles, and applause. "Anderson, Burton, the Sanderson brothers, Rabb, and Johansson follow their captain out onto the pitch."
Madam Hooch beckoned the two captains toward her. "I want a clean game, is that understood?" James and Flint didn't speak nor show any indication that they had even heard her as they were too busy staring each other down, secretly hoping the other would drop dead any second. "Shake hands." It wasn't so much a handshake as it was seeing who could crush the others' bones the quickest.
She nodded to both teams standing just behind their captain, "Mount your brooms." She gave a short, loud, blast on her whistle, and fourteen scarlet or green clad players rose into the air.
"The Quaffle is immediately taken by Alyssa Anderson of Gryffindor—she really knows how to fly, the only thing you'll be seeing of her are the red and gold streaks in her hair—she passes to Captain James Potter who loops a nasty Slytherin and—whoa nice backward pass to newcomer Jonathon Burton, I didn't even see him come up behind—he's streaking up the field and readies to make another clean pass to Anderson—OH that should have been a foul—Slytherin captain Flint knocked her out of the way and now has possession of the Quaffle—he dodges a Bludger sent his way by Brian Sanderson—he's entered the scoring area—and Matt Rabb executes a spectacular save—take that you slimy git—Gryffindor back in possession—what did I tell you the only thing you will ever see of Anderson is the red and gold in her hair—nearly unseated by a Bludger there—beautiful pass to Potter and he shoots off to the other end of the pitch—the Slytherin Beaters are closing in on him—and he's dropped the Quaffle to Anderson—she takes off up the field again—passes back to Potter who throws it back to Burton—he loops one, no two Slytherin Chasers before passing back to Anderson—she dodges Slytherin Keeper Swank—shoots—and she SCORES!"
Gryffindor supporters roared their approval for the first goal of the match. "And Gryffindor leads 10-0."
"Slytherin now in possession. Larkus is tearing up the field heading straight for Gryffindors goal—he dodges both Bludgers—he's entered the scoring area—but, wait he's not stopping—what the bloody hell does he think he's doing?" Everyone visibly winced as Joey Larkus ran headlong into one of the goalposts. "That's going to leave a mark. I'll bet he's got little twittering birds flying around his head right about now—Flint doesn't look too happy with him though. Probably realizing that putting someone on the team who can't break was idiotic," Sirius shrugged, "But it's Flint. What can you do?"
"Still no sign of the Snitch. Christina Johansson and Derek Brakston are looking a bit bored up there," Sirius commented. "Gryffindor is back in possession—Potter with the Quaffle—easy dodge around Crabbe—who doesn't even seem to know James passed him—he's entered the scoring area—Swank looks ready for him—Potter dodges to the left then fakes to the right and SCORES! 20-0 Gryffindor!"
"Slytherin now in possession! Larkus looks like he wants to make a comeback after his disastrous run in with the Gryffindor goalposts—he's gaining a lot of speed—he's entered the scoring area—correction he's passed the scoring area—he's headed for the stands—this kids gotta learn how to break—Anderson now has possession of the ball and is taking it back to the Slytherin end—NO, Thomas Montague snatched the Quaffle from under her arm—OHO that was excellent Jonathon Burton just pulled the same move on Montague and has taken the ball back—he loops Swank and SCORES! Jonathon Burton makes his first goal on the Gryffindor team bringing the score 30-0!"
Over the next half an hour, the Gryffindor Chasers rarely allowed the Quaffle passed the midway point of the field. In that same period of time, James and Alyssa each scored two goals and Jonathon scored one other. The score was now 70-0 and the Slytherins were angry. Another ten minutes passed before Slytherin scored their first goal.
"Oh, damn! Montague finally fakes the Gryffindor Keeper for their first goal of the match!" McGonagall growled threateningly at him. "What's wrong with damn?" he asked incredulously as Montague made a celebratory lap around the pitch.
"Gryffindor in possession now—Potter is tearing up the field—he dodges a Bludger, a Beaters bat, and a Beater—it's like an obstacle course up there—beautiful show of a Sloth Grip Roll right there—he SCORES! Man, if only he had as much skill on his own two feet. He and the lovely Miss Evans would have been dating long ago!"
"SIRIUS!" a beat red Lily and James, and a frazzled looking McGonagall yelled at him.
Jason Flint's elation at Slytherins first goal died and he was angrier looking than ever. He ripped Crabbe's Beater club right out of his hand and pelted the nearest Bludger at James. James, who was still glaring at Sirius, didn't see the Bludger until it was inches in front of his face and there was no time for him to get out of the way. He felt his nose break and a rush of warm sticky blood as it spattered his already scarlet Quidditch robes.
"FOUL!" Sirius yelled as Madam Hooch shot over to Flint and began yelling at him. "Slipped!" Sirius exclaimed outraged, "Slipped, he says! I'll show him a thing or two about where I'd like to slip that Beater club!" Professor McGonagall didn't even bother to berate Sirius, she was just as angry herself.
Blood still spewing from his nose James made the penalty shot making the score 90-10. Play became more brutal still. Slytherin managed to score three more goals over the next half hour as foul after foul was called. Any time Slytherin made a foul it was only a matter of minutes before Gryffindor committed a foul in retaliation and on and on it went. By the end of that half hour everyone playing was injured in some way. There were several bloody noses, several bumps, a lot of bruises, and at least one other broken bone.
"FOUL DAMNIT!" Sirius yelled as Devon sent a Bludger straight at Matt who received it full in the stomach, pushing him back through one of the goal hoops, and allowing Slytherin to score.
"No goal!" Madam Hooch shouted given Devon a very dirty look. "Penalty shot to Gryffindor."
Alyssa flew forward to take the penalty shot and made another easy goal. "Don't even think about it!" Madam Hooch warned Devon who was ready to swing his bat at Alyssa when she passed him.
"Man, we better see the Snitch soon or both teams are going to wind up in the Hospital Wing in body casts," said Sirius.
The minutes passed and no goals had been made. Fouls were becoming less and less because Madam Hooch had threatened to call off the match if another dirty foul was made. "Oh, both Seekers have left their posts high in the sky and they're dashing toward the middle of the pitch! This is going to be close, come on Christina!" Sirius said and then became quiet as everyone in the stadium watched the race between the two Seekers.
Another minute or two passed, both Seekers had their arms outstretched for the Snitch, when both careened off course. No one moved except the Seekers rolling in opposite directions barely hanging onto their broom handles. Everyone in the stands was on their feet desperately trying to see which team had won. Finally, little Christina Johansson raised a tiny fist into the air. There struggling in her grasp was the tiny gold ball.
Rachel watched her best friend walk beside her with amusement. She'd never seen Lily act the way she had that morning. It was hard to imagine Lily fussing over meeting a boy and it was even harder to imagine Lily fussing over meeting James Potter. But Rachel also knew that in the weeks since their return to Hogwarts things had changed. The hate Lily once had for James had dissolved into a friendship and then something more, which led Lily to finally accept James' date proposal.
Lily stopped dead in her tracks and Rachel stopped too. "I can't do this, Rach," said Lily quietly.
Rachel faced her friend, "Lils, we've been through this. Today is just a date! It's not like you're marrying the guy! It's a time to walk around and shop a little in Hogsmeade and get to know each other better. What have you got to lose?" Lily still looked a bit hesitant. Rachel sighed, "Just go and have a good time and if he's not the perfect gentleman I'll…kick his arse from here to Timbuktu," this made Lily smile, "Alright?"
Lily sighed and then smiled, "Okay." Rachel grinned wrapping an arm around her best friends shoulders as they started down the hall again. "Are you sure I look okay?"
Rachel resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "James won't know what do with himself," she told Lily honestly.
-
Sirius watched as James paced before him muttering to himself. "Prongs," he said leaning back against the wall. James obviously didn't hear him because he continued to pace. "Prongs!" said Sirius loudly.
James looked up startled. "What?"
"You're wearing holes in your shoes. Relax, mate." James' shoulders sagged and he slumped against the wall beside Sirius. "What's up?"
James rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous habit he'd never been able to shake. "What if she doesn't come?"
"She'll come," said Sirius simply.
"But what if she doesn't? Everyone who is going to Hogsmeade is already here except her."
Sirius shrugged, "So?" James gave him a sidelong look. "Maybe she overslept." James looked at him doubtfully. "Okay, look, women are always fashionably late. She probably just wants to look perfect for you." James let out a frustrated sigh and thumped his head on the stone behind him.
A minute passed and the continuous thump of James' head hitting the stone was grating so hard on Sirius' nerves that he had to resist the urge to reach over and knock James' head so hard into the wall that it knocked him out. Sirius had never seen James this nervous and knew that there was a lot riding on this date. He saw a flash of auburn hair and looked up to see Lily and Rachel at the top of the stairs. It looked like Rachel was giving Lily a pep talk, as Lily looked as nervous as James felt. He tapped James on the shoulder to get his attention.
James stopped thumping his head on the wall and looked at Sirius. Sirius pointed to Lily and Rachel who were now descending the stairs having spotted them. "Merlin," James whispered feeling his heart skip a beat. He turned to face Sirius. "How do I look? Is my hair okay?"
"You look fine and your hair—well, your hair has always been a lost cause," Sirius admitted. James seemed to accept this and turned at the exact second the girls walked up to them.
As Lily stood before him, James lost all ability to speak not to mention the ability to even remember how. He could only stare as she looked back at him almost shyly. Sirius cleared his throat, and when that didn't seem to work he poked James hard on the small of his back.
This seemed to knock James from his trance as he cleared his throat and finally spoke, "Hi." Sirius and Rachel rolled their eyes at each other.
"Hi."
"You—you look great."
Lily blushed. "Thanks. So do you."
He smiled, "So, um, shall we make sure everyone is checked off to go before starting off?" She nodded and they left to speak to Filch leaving Rachel and Sirius to stare after them.
"Did you have any trouble getting her down here?" Sirius asked the brunette standing on his left.
Rachel rolled her eyes, "We stopped at least a dozen times. I have never seen her fuss this much over a date."
Sirius laughed, "I've never seen James this nervous before either," he said as they got in line behind a group of overly excited third years. "His hands were actually sweating."
Rachel wrinkled her nose, "Ew," and then laughed.
-
"So, it looks like it's the three of us today," Sirius said as Lily and James continued on up the street together. Andy and Alyssa had disappeared into Honeyduke's a few minutes before, and Remus and Izzy were making their way to Scrivenshaft's together in search of new quills.
"Actually," Peter squeaked, "I'm off to…" he tapered off, "I'm just gonna go. Bye!" And he scurried away.
Rachel stared after him with raised eyebrows, "Does he always act like that?"
Sirius nodded, "A lot of the time." Rachel laughed. "So, I guess it's just you and me then, aye?"
"Actually," Rachel said walking backwards as she turned to face him, "Now it's just you." Sirius' jaw dropped as he watched her continue to walk away from him. She bit her lower lip and laughed, "Are you just going to stand there?"
He closed his mouth with a snap as he realized she was joking and shook his head. He jogged to catch up with her and poked her in the ribs when he did. "You should have seen the look on your face," she said laughing.
He poked her in the ribs again, "That was mean." She laughed harder and he bumped his shoulder against hers. She looked up in surprise and bumped him back. He bumped her a second time and when she went to bump him again, he turned so that she missed.
This time it was her mouth that fell open in surprise making him laugh at the look of pure shock on her face. She narrowed her eyes and he stopped laughing and immediately ducked into the nearest shop. She laughed at his antics and hurried in after him.
The next few minutes passed in an awkward silence for James and Lily as they walked together up the street. James was petrified that he would say something stupid and their whole afternoon would be ruined because of it, but the silence was killing him. Finally, he broke it, "So, the weather, er, it's been bad." 'Now, that was intelligent,' James thought.
Lily nodded in agreement, "Yes, it has. I hate the rain."
"Yeah, it's bad for Quidditch. With the visibility being so poor and all," he told her. Again Lily nodded and again they fell into an awkward silence.
This time Lily broke it, "When do you think we should hold the next prefect meeting?" 'The next Prefect meeting? You're on a date with the most wanted boy in Hogwarts and you bring up your Heads duties? Great date talk, really great.'
"Soon, especially since we want to discuss with Dumbledore ideas for the winter holidays. Have you any ideas so far?"
Lily shrugged, "I haven't really given it much thought what with all the homework we've been getting and Challenge, especially that last task."
"I know," James said looking over at her, "Last task was—I still can't really describe it, except—"
"Terrifying?" Lily offered looking up at him.
James cracked a small smile, "In one word, yes. I think it was the scariest and most dangerous thing I've ever been through."
"Me too. But you'll have to get used it if you want to become an Auror," Lily said sidestepping a puddle.
James looked at her in surprise, "How did you know about that?"
Lily smiled, "I hear things."
James laughed, "I want to be one of them, a part of the team that brings Voldemort and his followers down. "
"That's a brave goal," Lily told him. "Scary," she admitted inhaling deeply, "But brave."
James gazed at her silently thanking her for the praise. "It's only one area I'm looking into though," he said softly. "I mean who knows by June I may want to be a professional Quidditch player."
Lily laughed, "You could do that too, I'm sure."
"What do you want to do?"
"I'm still up in the air about it," James looked at her, shocked. "I know. Surprising, right? But I do know that I want to do something in research. Where I can discover new things and study old myths, put the pieces of unsolved puzzles together, prove previous information wrong, and find new clues to solve the mysteries of life. I guess I want to make a difference."
"You will," James told her.
Lily smiled and huddled further into her jacket as a cool breeze lifted her hair. "But whatever I do, I want to have time to have a family. Not right away obviously, but sometime down the line. And I most definitely do not want to just be a stay-at-home mum, I think I'd go crazy." James laughed. "It's just hard to believe," she breathed.
"What is?"
"This will be one of the last times we go into Hogsmeade as students."
James exhaled slowly, "Yeah, it is. This whole year will be full of lasts, won't it?" 'And many firsts, I hope,' James thought to himself. Lily nodded. "It'll be weird to leave this place and not return next September. You get so used to it. Hogwarts is like a second home for me."
"For me too," said Lily. "It seems like only yesterday we were one of them," she said laughing as a group of excited third years rushed from store to store trying to see everything at once.
James grinned, "And the entire walk down here that first time you were yelling at me and calling me a bullying toe rag."
Lily blushed, "That's because you were," she protested still blushing, "You'd just set a Filibuster's Firework under Snape's chair at breakfast."
A look of dawning crossed James' face and he chuckled at the memory, "I'd forgotten about that." Lily giggled. "I was kind of a prat though wasn't I?"
"99.9 of the time," Lily told him with a teasing grin.
"And what was I the other .1?" James asked chuckling, liking their playful banter.
"Asleep?" Lily offered making James laugh loudly.
"Merlin knows why Dumbledore made me Head Boy after all the stuff I've pulled."
Lily looked over at him, "Because he knew you would rise to do the job and do it well. People look up to you James, not necessarily for the right reasons at times, but they look up to you all the same. You're a leader, people listen to leaders when they are listened to and respected in return. And you have great ideas, James, more than I thought you would. You definitely surprised me."
"Have I grown on you, Lily?" James asked with a sexy smile that made her stomach flip flop.
"I wouldn't be here if you hadn't," she replied smartly, a teasing glint in her eye.
James laughed, "True."
Another chilly breeze, harder than the last, whipped through the streets of Hogsmeade. James saw Lily shiver out of the corner of his eye and wished that he could wrap his arm around her and pull her close, but he wasn't sure what she'd think of the gesture, so he settled for the next best thing. He touched his hand to her lower back, "Do you want to head inside and get a butterbeer in the Three Broomsticks?"
Lily smiled, "See? You do have great ideas."
James laughed as they turned in the direction of the pub. James couldn't help but smile as Lily moved closer to him as another chilly breeze whipped around them. Putting caution to the wind James slipped his arm around her waist and felt a surge of excitement when she moved even closer still to him.
-
"Ew! That's disgusting," Rachel squealed pushing the canister of fuzzy chocolate Sirius was holding away from her. "Chocolate is supposed to be smooth and creamy not hairy and fuzzy."
Sirius laughed and put it back on the shelf. "What are those?" he asked pointing to a basket filled with tiny red balls set out on the counter for sampling.
"Fire-Hot Bites," Rachel said reading off a small sign next to the basket. Sirius selected one and popped it into his mouth. He instantly began to smoke out of every hole in his head. "Watch smoke burst forth from your friends' ears, nose, and mouth. CAUTION: Flames have been known to occur. Minor side effects include smoke inhalation and minor burns on the inside of the mouth and nose." No sooner had she finished reading the small sign Sirius spat the candy into a wastebasket and begin to fan his mouth off.
Rachel tried very hard not to laugh as Sirius pointed his wand at his mouth and poured water down his throat from the tip. "Think that's funny do you?" he asked a minute later when his mouth had cooled off.
Rachel nodded giggling. "Just a little."
Sirius shook his head smiling as Rachel regained composure and began to peruse the shelves some more. Alyssa and Andy passed by them sharing a large bar of Honeydukes' best chocolate and exchanging sugary kisses. Sirius watched them pass before turning to look at Rachel. "Does that ever bother you? Seeing them together like that?" he asked.
Rachel shook her head, "No. I joke and tease them all the time, but I'm really happy for them. They love and make each other happy and that's all that matters," she chuckled lightly, "I just don't know whose arse I'd kick if they ever broke up.."
Sirius laughed and Rachel smiled as she turned to examine a jar of Cockroach Clusters. Sirius leaned his shoulder against the shelf and crossed his arms over his chest, "Does it ever make you want what they have for yourself?"
Rachel stared at the wall for a long moment, "Every single day," she admitted looking at him.. She put the jar back on the shelf and said lightly, "I just seem to have bad luck with guys."
"You just haven't given the right one a chance," Sirius told her. Rachel looked at him and Sirius wished that in that moment the floor would open up and swallow him whole. He'd only meant to think that not actually say it aloud, but it was too late to take it back. He tried to think of something, anything to say that would break the semi awkward moment when something caught his eye, "Body chocolate," he read off the label.
"What?"
Sirius reached up and took a bottle off the shelf holding it out so that they could both read the label. Cast a simple melting charm on the bottle and get ready for a sticky, sweet, good time with your sweetie this Valentine's Day or any boring day that needs some livening up.
"Cool," said Sirius with a sly grin.
Rachel rolled her eyes taking the bottle from him and putting it back on the shelf, "No."
"What?" he asked innocently as she led him away to another display.
"Here we go," James announced carrying two frothing mugs of butterbeer over to the small booth Lily had managed to secure at the back of the pub. "Rosemerta's going crazy with orders," he said sliding into the seat across from her.
"I can see that," Lily said smiling and shaking her head at the third year boys pushing their way to the front of the counter to give their orders to the pretty woman in sparkly heels.
James smirked and took a sip of his butterbeer. He set the mug back down on the table and Lily giggled when he looked up at her. "What?" he asked suspiciously.
"You've got some foam on your nose," she giggled again handing him a napkin. He took the napkin from her and wiped his nose.
"Better?" he asked.
Lily nodded, "Much. How's it feel?"
"No longer foam covered," he replied grinning at her.
"I meant since the Quidditch match," she said playfully slapping his arm.
He grinned, "Much better. Madam Pomfrey fixed me right up."
"Good," Lily said taking another sip of her butterbeer.
-
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Rachel asked when she finally made her way over to Sirius in the far corner of the overly crowded joke shop. "You've been in here for nearly a half-hour."
Sirius grinned sheepishly, "Sorry, I got distracted."
Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, "I'll say."
"I thought you were going to be longer in Gladrag's so I decided to look around," he said turning his attention back to the shelves.
"Well, you came, you looked, you oohed, you aahed, now can we go now?" she asked sarcastically..
Sirius grinned, knowing she was joking and tapped her nose with a finger, "Patience is a virtue."
"Patience tends to fly out the window for me when I nearly freeze my ass off outside waiting for you, thinking you were paying for something, not walking around aimlessly," she retorted.
"I am not walking around aimlessly," said Sirius defensively, "I am browsing." Rachel shot him a dirty look, making Sirius laugh, "Okay, okay. Let me just pay for this," he said indicating the armful of jokes he was juggling, "And then I'll buy you a butterbeer. How's that sound?"
Rachel smiled, "Sounds like you just bought your way back into my good graces," she teased.
-
"Do you remember the time back in fifth year when you pushed me in the lake?" he asked.
Lily frowned sheepishly, "I didn't really mean to."
"Yeah, you did," said James lightly.
"Okay, I did," she admitted laughingly.
"I don't even remember what I did," James said chortling.
"I don't either, but I remember that it really made me mad," she laughed, "You're face was priceless though."
James snorted into his butterbeer; "You did it right before the first afternoon lesson too. McGonagall was so pissed when I walked into Transfiguration completely soaked."
Lily giggled, "And when she asked what happened you said that you'd gone for a quick dip after lunch to see how the water was and hadn't had time to change."
"She gave me a week's detention because of that," James said grinning at the memory.
"But it was my fault you were soaked and you took the fall," Lily said quietly.
James nodded and looked down at the table, "There was no point in the both of us getting in trouble."
"I guess you had your moments."
James looked up with a puzzled look on his face, "My moments?"
Lily nodded, leaning forward so she could rest her arms on the table, "Gentlemanly moments. Like today, you've been a real gentleman."
James smiled, "Thank you, but truth be told I'm a little intimidated of you," he added teasingly.
"Intimidated of me?" she asked taken aback.
James nodded and said pointedly, "Ever since you tried shoving your tongue down my throat."
Lily stiffened and turned red, "I thought we agreed to never speak of that again," she said avoiding his gaze.
James pretended to think for a moment, "No. No, I don't remember having that conversation."
"We didn't," Lily said evenly, "But it's a silent known rule that when something embarrassing occurs both parties silently agree to never speak of it again."
"I must have missed that silent memo," James said smirking playfully.
-
Sirius and Rachel entered the bustling pub and immediately got in line for drinks. "Do you see any empty tables?" Sirius asked Rachel.
"And you're asking me why? I'm a foot shorter than you!" Rachel replied making Sirius laugh..
"James and Lily are over there," Sirius said pointing to the couple in the corner booth.
Rachel turned around to look and noticed that her friend was sitting rather stiffly and was looking a bit irritated. "Something doesn't look—"
"Let's go say hi," Sirius said already making his way over to them.
"I don't think that's such a good idea," Rachel told him. Her words fell on deaf ears and she hurried after Sirius intent on pulling him away before he reached them. She failed.
By the time they were within hearing distance of the table Lily was glaring at James. Sirius seemed to notice the rather put out look on Lily's face and the seemingly oblivious look on James', so he decided to lighten the moment. "Oh, why don't you just kiss and make-up already?"
James and Lily looked up startled to find Sirius standing there. Rachel smacked her hand to her forehead. Before any one of them could say another word Rachel had pulled Sirius away from the table and out of the pub. "Are you crazy?" she asked him once they were outside.
"No," Sirius replied slowly, "What'd I do?"
Rachel groaned, "Couldn't you see that it was obviously a bad time to pop in and say what you did? Lily didn't look too happy."
"That's why I tried to lighten the moment. Besides James didn't seem to think anything was wrong," said Sirius defensively.
Rachel groaned again, "Men! If he didn't before, he will now."
-
"You told him didn't you?" Lily said looking accusingly at James.
James noticed her irritated tone and gaped for a moment, "I didn't—that was purely a coincidence." Lily continued to glare at him. "Why would I tell him?" James asked.
"I don't know to embarrass me," she snapped.
James frowned, "I don't have to do that." Lily looked at him. "You're doing a pretty good job of that yourself."
Lily cast him an angry glare as she stood up and threw her jacket on. James closed his eyes, realizing that he was in it now. "Lil?" he called after her standing up. She acted like she hadn't heard him and walked right out of the pub. "Shit," he said digging in his pocket for money to pay and reaching for his jacket at the same time.
"Way to go, Mr. Gentleman," he said tossing some coins on the table and hurrying out of the pub.
"I love Hogsmeade weekends," a girl with curly blonde hair giggled into a sandy haired boys shoulder.
"Me too. Everyone leaves and we are left alone with the peace and quiet," the sandy haired boy replied peppering her neck with kisses.
He placed a final lingering kiss on her lips before gazing at her affectionately. Her lips were red from their frenzied snog and her hair was mussed from his fingers. She placed another light kiss on his lips before laying her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her against him tightly.
"How long are we going to do this?" she asked in a quiet voice, breaking the silence suddenly.
The sandy haired boy looked up at the deep red canopy above his head confusedly. "You want to put a time frame on cuddling?"
"No," the curly haired girl replied lightly hitting his side, "You know what I mean," she continued looking up at him again, "Sneaking around like this."
"I don't know," he admitted softly, "I don't know why we haven't just told them already."
"We liked the thrill sneaking around gave us," the blonde joked.
The boy laughed, "Maybe," he grasped her hand and brought it to his lips placing a kiss in her palm. "I want to share with the world that I'm falling for you."
The girl smiled shyly, "I'm falling for you too." He smiled and kissed her soundly.
"Lily!" James called out, jogging down the street after her. She ignored him and continued walking. "Lily, wait, come on!" James tried again, picking up his pace to catch up with her. He gently grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him.
"I was wrong about you," Lily said before he could say a word.
James opened his mouth to say something and then closed it when what she'd said had registered with him. "No, Lily, I just—what I said—I didn't mean for that to happen." Lily didn't reply. "I'm sorry—we had to talk about it at some point."
Lily looked up at him incredulously, "You didn't mean for that to happen! Well, what did you expect to happen when you brought it up like you did? Merlin, James, you can be such an idiot."
James frowned, but bit back a retort. He was already in hot water; there was no need to go making it worse. "You're right, I brought it up in the completely wrong way. I'm sorry."
"Sorry is getting a little old with you. Every time you say or do something stupid without thinking you have to apologize."
"Well, what, do you want me to not apologize?" James fired back.
Lily rolled her eyes and spoke coldly, "No, I want you to grow up and start thinking before you open your big mouth and insert your big foot!" She took a deep breath, "I was wrong—I should never have agreed to this."
Before James could say another word, she turned on her heel and ran off down the street. James blinked, "Wait, Lily!" he shouted running after her. He was having a hard time keeping up with her despite his height advantage, and was having difficulty keeping her in sight due to the students milling the street heading out of Hogsmeade.
He sped up when he finally caught a glimpse of auburn hair and dodged a group of third year students trying to push their way into Honeyduke's. He neared her and opened his mouth to call her name again, but was silenced as his leg connected with something hard. The next thing he knew, he was falling forward. He threw his arms out at the last second to break his fall and fell to the cobblestone with a thud.
James lay there for a moment, completely dumbfounded that he had tripped over a—he looked to his left and saw a planter outside a greenhouse full of brightly colored and bizarre looking plants. His glasses had cracked and he was positive that he'd ripped his jeans and skinned his now stinging knee when he'd fallen.
He grunted and struggled to get to his feet, when he felt an arm hook under his and help him up. He turned to thank the person that had finally come to his aide, but the revelation at seeing who had helped him nearly knocked him back down to the ground.
"That was a pretty nasty fall," Lily said still holding onto James' arm. "Are you okay?"
"You came back," James said dazedly, unable to tear his eyes away from her.
"I heard a crash and when I saw you on the ground—well, was I supposed to just leave you there? However much you deserved it, I'm not heartless."
James continued to gaze at her, completely amazed that she had come back and helped him. "And apparently you hit the ground harder than I thought," she said, "Um, here," she pulled out her wand and pointed it at his glasses, "Reparo!" She tucked her wand back into her jacket, "Come on, lets get you to Madam Pomfrey."
James blinked coming out of his daze, "Do you really think I need to see her?"
Lily raised her eyebrows, "He lives," she bent over to inspect his knee, "No, I can clean it and heal it when we get back to the castle." James said nothing, just nodded. "Come on," Lily sighed, wrapping her arm around his waist to steady him.
After the fiasco in the Three Broomsticks Rachel suggested that they head back to the castle and warm up there awhile before dinner.
"It's getting colder," Sirius commented as gray storm clouds swirled overhead.
Rachel nodded, "It looks like it'll downpour any minute," she said as she felt a raindrop on her forehead.
One raindrop turned into several and the two picked up their pace hoping not to get caught out in the rain. Within minutes however, the clouds opened up and the rain fell heavily, soaking them in minutes. The wind picked up and lightning forked across the sky. "Come on," Sirius yelled over the crackle of thunder, reaching for her hand.
Hand in hand, they raced up the sloping lawns as best they could, the wet grass slippery under their shoes. They hurried up the stone steps and entered the well-lit and warm entrance hall.
"Well," Sirius said shaking his wet hair out of his eyes, "That was fun."
"We look like drowned rats," Rachel said laughing as water dripped from their clothes and onto the stone floor.
Sirius laughed too, "Here," he said pulling out his wand. He cast drying and warming charms over the both of them. "That's better, aye?"
Rachel nodded, "Much. I could still go for a butterbeer though," she said with a smile.
Sirius smiled and reached for her hand again, "Come on," he said tugging her in the direction she'd seen many Hufflepuffs over the years head in to get to their common room.
"Where are we going?" she asked as he led her down a flight of stone steps.
"I promised you a butterbeer didn't I?" he asked continuing down a brightly lit stone corridor decorated with cheerful paintings that were mostly of food.
Still oblivious, Rachel was startled when Sirius suddenly stopped in front of a portrait of a giant fruit bowl. She watched bemusedly as Sirius stretched out his forefinger and tickled a huge green pear. Rachel found the squirming, chuckling pear quite amusing until it turned into a large green doorknob.
"This place never ceases to amaze me," she said as Sirius seized the knob and pulled the door open. "Wow," she breathed stepping inside the enormous, high-ceilinged room. A roaring fire was lit in the huge fireplace at one end of the room and the rest of the walls were covered in heaps of brass pots and pans. Four long tables positioned, Rachel guessed, beneath the house tables in the Great Hall, took up most of the floor space. And running around the room were about a hundred house-elves.
Coming out of her daze Rachel noticed that Sirius was talking animatedly with five house elves standing before him. She only managed to catch the tail end of the conversation as the house elves bustled about getting together whatever Sirius had requested.
"Is there anything else Mr. Sirius needs for himself and his pretty lady friend?" one of the house elves asked in a high-pitched voice.
Sirius saw Rachel flush out of the corner of his eye as he turned to the elf and smiled, "No, thank you Tizzy. We're all set." The house elf nodded and curtsied before turning and skipping away.
"First name basis, huh?" Rachel said as Sirius indicated a table where they could sit, "That sounds pretty serious."
Sirius grinned, "Jealous?"
Rachel pretended to bristle and clasped her hands beneath her chin, "Maybe," she replied slyly and then added, "In your dreams."
Sirius exhaled impressively, "You're good."
Rachel grinned, "So, what did you ask them to get anyway?"
Sirius started to answer but stopped as two house elves hurried over to the end of the table they were seated at. One was carrying a tray on which were a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, a dish of jam, two knives, and two plates. The second house elf set two bottles of butterbeer down on the table.
"Can we get you anything else, Mr. Sirius?" the second elf that had carried the butterbeers asked.
"Not at the moment, thank you," Sirius said and the two elves scurried away leaving them to their snack.
"I haven't had one of these in a long time," Rachel said picking up the jar of peanut butter and unscrewing the cover.
Sirius smiled as Rachel dunked her finger into the creamy peanut butter. "Me neither. Peanut butter and jam is the best snack since ice cream."
Rachel raised an eyebrow at him, "Peanut butter and jelly." He looked at her curiously. She licked the last of the peanut butter from her finger, "You said peanut butter and jam. It's peanut butter and jelly."
"Is there really a difference?" Sirius asked smearing peanut butter on a slice of bread.
"Yes," replied Rachel, taking the knife when he was done, "It sounds better."
Sirius laughed loudly. "I didn't even know that peanut butter and jelly," he said pointedly making her grin, "Went together until I spent a week at James' before second year started. His mum made them for us one day and James looked at me like I was crazy because I said I'd never had one before."
He took a bite of his sandwich, chewed, and swallowed. "My mum was never the mothering type, still isn't. She didn't do little things like make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for her sons. She was too busy counting the family jewels, looking at everyone's bloodlines, and throwing extravagant parties where the only thing to eat was caviar and escargot. The highlight of her days was turning people away at the door because they weren't of the right bloodline," he finished bitterly.
Rachel watched him silently as he talked and saw the pain that had filled his gray eyes as he talked about his mother. She noticed by the stiffness in his shoulders that he didn't want to have her pity, or hear her say that she was sorry. Instead she put down her sandwich and looked at him, "Give me your plate."
Sirius looked startled at her request, considering she had one of her own sitting on the table in front of her. "With your sandwich on it," she continued.
Now he was really confused, "Why?" he asked, "You have your own."
"Because I like yours better," she said seriously and then laughed at the look on his face, "Just give me it."
He put his sandwich on his plate and picked it up. "You won't eat it right?" he asked and Rachel could see him beginning to relax again.
She took his plate and set it beside hers. He watched curiously as she picked up a knife and cut from one corner of the sandwich to the other. It was a little lopsided because he'd already taken a few bites, but it still had the shape she'd hoped for. She put the knife down and slid the plate back across the table to him.
For a long minute Sirius stared at it and Rachel got a little nervous. "My mum always used to cut all of our sandwiches like that. I don't know if Mrs. Potter ever did, but…"
"She did," Sirius said quietly. "She told me that she would make me peanut butter and jelly every day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to make up for all the times I missed out on them."
Rachel smiled, "Well, you can add another one to your list."
Lily and James walked silently on the road taking them out of Hogsmeade and toward Hogwarts. The sky was beginning to darken and the wind was picking up, two sure signs that a storm was brewing, but Lily and James continued to walk slowly.. The weather seemed to match both of their moods.
"Lily, look, I'm really—" James started.
"Please don't," Lily whispered looking at her shoes.
"Why?" James asked beseechingly.
Lily was quiet a moment before answering, "Because I don't want to hear what you've got to say. I don't want to hear your apology."
James stopped and turned to face her, blocking her from walking any further. "When I'm wrong, I say I'm wrong. I know I was wrong bringing the kiss up the way I did. I have no doubt that there was a better way to bring it up, I just couldn't think of one and I still can't." Lily didn't reply. "I just—I don't know how to act around you sometimes."
Lily continued to seem more interested in her shoes. The wind had picked up considerably now and was whipping about the couple as they stood on the sloping lawns. "I screw up a lot, Lil" James said as a raindrop splashed onto his cheek. "I don't always know the right thing to say or do. I don't want you just for sex—I want you, all of you for so many reasons that we'd stand here for a hundred years if I were to name them all."
Lightning forked across the sky and big raindrops fell, dotting their clothes. "Lil, the one thing that I know, that I'm sure will never change is the way that I feel about you. And I think that you—"
"Oh no," Lily said finally looking up at him, "Don't you dare try to tell me how I feel or what I'm thinking—because you don't know! You could never know," she yelled, taking a step away from him.
The rain was falling faster now, and thunder was rumbling in the distance, as once again lightning lit up the sky. "You're right!" James fired back. "I don't know everything that is going on inside that head of yours! Every time I think that I have you even a little bit figured out you go and confuse me all over again! I never know if I'm walking on thin ice with your or not, because one second we're fine and the next I'm in it!"
"So, what, now you're calling me a tease is that it?" Lily shouted.
"No, but it sure as hell feels as if you're playing with me—with my heart! You're heart isn't the only one on the line here Lily! God, how do you think I felt every time you turned me down?"
"I don't know! I was always hearing about your latest notch in your bedpost the following morning! So, I'd say it didn't hurt you that bad for you to go bedding some floozy!" She retorted coldly.
"I was trying to get over you!" James exploded as the clouds overhead broke and the rain fell heavily. "Every time you turned me down it was like you took a small piece of my heart and stomped on it! I tried to get over you, but I can't, and I won't!"
"Why?" Lily said angrily.
"Because my heart told me to hang on," James said lowering his voice. "I know you're scared and so am I. I'm scared of screwing this up and losing you completely, as a friend—and as something more." Thunder rumbled loudly overhead causing goosepimples to rise up on Lily's arms. "You want to know what else I know?" he asked her.
"No," Lily said croakily.
"I know that you wanna kiss me right now just as badly as I want to kiss you," said James huskily.
To his surprise Lily moved closer to him and he cupped her face in his hands and did what he'd been thinking about since Halloween: he kissed her.
James nearly groaned at the contact of her soft, sweet lips pressed against his again. He knew in that single moment, he would never want to be anywhere else than where he was right then. He wanted time to stand still so that he could stay locked in her embrace forever.
Lily felt her knees give out and felt James wrap an arm securely around her waist, holding her close. Fireworks exploded behind her closed eyelids as she stood wrapped in his embrace, feeling safe, wanted, and loved.
James finally pulled away and lifted both hands to her face again. "Do you want this?" he asked her, running his thumbs over her cheeks.
Lily's emerald eyes gazed into his hazel ones and she stared into their depths. The swirling emotions she found there: apprehension, love, warmth, pain, want; she knew was what he was finding in her own. "Yes, she whispered breathlessly, "More than anything."
She threw her arms around his neck and pulled his head down so that their lips met again. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. The kiss was slow, meaningful, and full of promise. Finally, Lily pulled her lips away from his, but stayed in his embrace. He looked down into hers as the rain continued to slid down his cheek. She looked back at him almost shyly and tucked her hair behind her ear.
"James," she said quietly.
"Yes?"
"Show me fireworks." James knew exactly what she meant and didn't need to be told twice as he lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. The new couple stood in the pouring rain, their clothing soaked, their lips fused together, without a care in the world.
Okay, there it is! I hope it was worth the very long wait! I can promise that the wait for Chapter 12 will not be half as long. I've already started work on it and as I said before I have a week and a half before finals, which I have a week of, and then I have 10 days of rest. Those 10 days I will spend as glued to the computer as can be! Remember it only takes a second to make this author's day and it's by pressing that little button and dropping me a line stating what you thought! It truly does make my day and keep me motivated! Thanks for your understanding and I'll see you all next time!
P.S. The scene where James falls wasn't originally my idea. I read it in a non-HP story but I don't remember what one or where it was. But as soon as I had read it this whole scene popped into my head and I had to use it. Besides it's normal for every day people to trip over every day things, right?