Chapter 2
Lily, Kirsten, and Aimee Sherton, their other best friend, were sitting under the beech tree by the lake, talking. It was Saturday, and the three friends were just relaxing.
"So Lily, what did happen a few days ago, you know, when you and James fought? What was it about this time?" Aimee asked.
Lily scowled as she remembered what had happened. "Well, to keep things simple, Potter was being the world's most arrogant prick, and well, we fought. Again. Need I say more?"
Aimee shared a secret smile with Kirsten. It was a well known fact that, although Lily Evans and James Potter were enemies, their friends wanted them to be together. They were just waiting for the perfect timing.
Suddenly, Hailey Smith, a fellow seventh year Gryffindor, ran up to them. When she reached them, she stopped and started gasping for breath. It looked as if she had run a long way.
"Hailey? You okay?" Lily asked.
Hailey continued gasping for breath. When she was done, she replied, "Yeah, I'm okay. But you aren't. Not after a few minutes. Something tells me that you're going to blow up again like what you did last night".
The three girls were puzzled. Kirsten asked, speaking for the group, "Just what are you talking about Hailey?"
"Five words. Pictures in the Great Hall," Hailey quickly explained. Knowing that this was probably not good news, the girls got to their feet and followed Hailey to the Great Hall. Once there, they took one look at the place and they, especially Lily, paled.
"Oh god no….." Lily thought despairingly as she saw the scene before her. What she was seeing were enlarged pages of chosen entries from her diary, the writings on them very embarrassing and very useful for future blackmail.
Shock mingling with anger, she made her way towards the center of the large group, with James in the center of it all.
"Potter," Lily said through gritted teeth, her eyes sitting fire.
James turned to face her calmly. "Like it, Evans?" he asked, smirking.
"Oh yeah, really funny Potter. Absolutely hilarious" Lily said sarcastically. Then she said, in a voice that she used when she was angered, "Tell me Potter. What kind of a sick twisted mind do you have anyway? Do you take some sadistic pleasure in seeing other people get embarrassed or mortified because of you?"
"Oh, not other people. Just you" James said. Wow, she looks cute when she's mad…..Wait, did I just think that? I must have lost it for a minute there.
Lily was breathing very deeply, trying to control herself from hexing him, the same feeing she had last night. Still using the very dangerous voice she used only on James, she snapped, her eyes narrowed and her emerald eyes flashing with silent anger, "I swear, on all I hold dear, I will get you for this. You will pay for humiliating me like this"
"Ohh, I'm so scared" James said, sarcasm evident in his tone. "Please Evans. What could you possibly do to me?"
"You'd be surprised at how much pain and embarrassment I could cause you with one simple flick of my wand" Lily said in the same voice. The onlookers had backed off to a safe distance. The last time Lily was like this, James had ended up sporting a hideous pink and violet ensemble with a pin that yelled "I am the World's Most Arrogant Jerk!" that stubbornly refused to come off for two weeks.
Definitely not a pretty sight.
"Whatever, Evans" James said, not at all affected by her threat.
Lily took out her wand. She was really a reasonable person, but being reasonable did not apply when dealing with James Potter. She was about to say the first hex, jinx, or curse that came to mind, but at that moment, Professor McGonagall restrained her.
"Miss, Evans, Mr. Potter, see me in my office NOW" the professor said dangerously, looking furious. She started to walk out of the Great Hall, and of course Lily and James followed, although they did so grudgingly. Once they reached her office, she motioned for the two to sit down, and they did so.
"Why is it," the professor began, her tone not changing, "Why is it that the both of you have such a constant need to hurt and humiliate each other? The both of you are the Head students in this school, for goodness' sake, and you can't even get along with each other".
"Professor, I think that what you're saying is an understatement. I can't even bear being in the same room with her, how can you expect me to get along with her?" James interrupted.
"Please, Mr. Potter. Really, I would have thought that your antipathy towards each other would fade over the years, but sadly, it's getting stronger every year. You should be setting a good example for the students and………" And with that McGonagall started again on her you're-supposed-to-be-Heads-and-should-be-setting-a-good-example-for-the-younger-students speech.
As it went on, Lily simply sat properly and said nothing, trying her best to hide the fact that she was bored of listening to the speech; God knows how many times she had heard it before earlier in the year. James on the other hand, was being less subtle. He kept on rolling his eyes and muttering, "As Head's you shouldn't be fighting and blah blah blah".
Finally the speech was over. The professor eyed them sternly and said, "Now listen to me. As result of your behavior since last night and this morning, you will be both serving detention for a week, starting tonight, 8 pm, in my classroom, understood?"
"But professor, why do I have to get detention? Potter's the one who's acting like a complete moron, not me!" Lily protested, irritated. She hated getting detention. And she also hated James, as most of the reasons why she had been given detentions over the years were primarily caused by him.
"Because, Ms. Evans, as much as I can see that Mr. Potter here is mostly at fault, not only did you help disrupt the silence of the common room last night, but you nearly cursed him. I believe that counts for something".
"Crap!" Lily said, her voice just a little softer than her normal speaking voice. She was usually very careful when saying profanity, even mild ones, lest the teachers hear, but right now, she was too angry at the situation James Potter a.k.a. The Spawn of Satan had gotten her into to watch her language.
Unfortunately, both James and Professor McGonagall heard her. "And for using profanity, even if it is mild" the professor added. She then dismissed them.
Once they were safely out of the professor's office, the two stopped walking and Lily snapped at James, "This is all your fault!"
"Why is it that whenever something goes wrong in your life, you blame me?"
"Um, I don't know, maybe because almost everything that goes wrong in my life is caused by you?" Lily said angrily.
"Honestly Evans, you really have to take your anger management issues under control. See you at detention, although I'm not looking forward to it," James said dismissively as he turned and left a very angry Lily Evans behind him.
..------..
"Bye guys. See you later" Lily said, sighing as she got up and left. It was almost eight, and she was grudgingly going to serve detention. Out of the corner of her eye she saw James doing the same. Lily and James walked to the Transfiguration classroom in silence.
When they reached there, they, upon seeing the door open, went in. "Good evening," Professor McGonagall said once the two were seated. "Now, for your detention this evening, you will be doing lines of I WILL TRY TO GET ALONG WITH MY FELLOW HEAD STUDENT on four pieces of parchment each. Now, as much as I hate and regret to do it, I have a meeting to attend with the staff so I have to leave the both of you alone for a while. I trust that the both of you will at least try to control yourselves from injuring each other. I will be back to see if you are really doing your work."
The two students nodded and once the teacher conjured the necessary items, she left. At once, Lily began to do the task while James just leaned lazily in his seat, doing nothing.
When Lily noticed his actions, or lack of thereof, she put down her quill and said, "Aren't you going to do what she told us to do?"
"No. Why would I do that when I could just use my wand to write everything with one spell?" James replied.
Lily rolled her eyes and said, "Prat. Don't you realize that since McGonagall provided the items, it would be charmed to insure that everything was written by hand?"
"Oh please. She wouldn't do that; she trusts us, remember?" The way he drawled out the word trust was evidently laced with sarcasm and something else Lily couldn't place.
Lily let out a sigh and said, "Whatever. Just do me a favor and shut up. I really don't want to remember that you're here with me. It's too much to bear."
"How can you forget that I'm here in the same room with you if I'm sitting two seats away from you?" James asked, looking genuinely baffled.
"Nevermind. Just zip that mouth of yours before we start fighting again. I don't want to lose my voice by the end of the week because of you," Lily said, her tone sounding final. James just shrugged.
Lily rolled her eyes at him and continued working, savoring the silence. It went on for ten minutes before Lily finished. She turned to find James gaping at her.
"What?" she snapped.
"How can you stand to ignore me like that?" James asked her. "No one can ignore James Potter's presence. What is wrong with you?"
"There's nothing wrong with me, thank you very much. And besides, there's a first time for everything, isn't there?" Lily snapped. Then, as an afterthought, she added, "Didn't I tell you to shut up?"
"You did? I didn't seem to notice," James said.
Lily breathed an angry sigh before shaking her head and saying, "Fine. In case you weren't listening, I said SHUT UP!"
James shrugged again, looking as though he didn't really care. Suddenly, hearing footsteps, he took out his wand and quickly said a spell to make writing appear on the paper. Not really reading what was written, he smugly smirked at Lily. He didn't notice that Lily had waved her wand just after James had cast his spell.
"Ah, its good too see the both of you don't seem to be sustaining any form of bodily injury," Professor McGonagall said, an almost wry smile curving her thin lips. "Now, I trust that you're finished with your work for this evening?" When the two nodded, she said, "Good. Now, hand them to me".
Lily and James handed the parchments to her. McGonagall looked approvingly at Lily, looking glad that the Head Girl had finished her work. But when she looked at James's papers, she glared at him.
"Mr. Potter, what is the meaning of this?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?" James asked, puzzled.
"This, Mr. Potter" the professor said and she handed the papers to him. He was horrified to find that, instead of the words 'I WILL TRY TO GET ALONG WITH MY FELLOW HEAD STUDENT', the words that were written were, 'PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL IS AN OLD BAT'.
"I am not amused, Mr. Potter" she told him disapprovingly.
"But professor, I didn't----"
"No more explanations. For your impudence, you will get another day extra of detention," the professor said, the stern note of finality in her voice definite.
Knowing how useless it would be to complain, he merely muttered, "Yes professor". He then turned and was very irritated and very vexed to find the triumphantly smug look of satisfaction on Lily's face.
