Disclaimer: I do not own or have any rights to anything mentioned, described and included in any Harry Potter related book/movie or product. This is just my interpretation of how Lily and James got together. All rights reserved to J.K. Rowling.
James's P.O.V.
"Hey! Potter!" A snide, sarcastic voice called down the corridor behind me as I headed to my first lesson of the day.
I groaned, "Not today," I muttered under my breath as I rolled my eyes. I really didn't want to have to see, let alone deal with, Snivellus today. Like Lily had suggested last night, I was trying to leave Snape alone for a few days before I got Padfoot and Moony to confront him and see what information they can worm out of him but I know myself well enough that if I'm provoked by him today, I'll just end up trying to hex the information out of him any way possible and that sure as hell won't go down well with Dumbledore or McGonagall.
Sirius glanced over his shoulders at my muttered remark and a wide, harsh grin spread across his face. "Oh goody," He said happily and his eyes twinkled. "A nice hearty breakfast and a quick game of hex the pants of the Slimeball Slytherin himself, could my morning get any better?" He asked me cheerfully as his hand disappeared inside his robes, presumably to grab his wand.
I sighed. Padfoot is the one student in the school that I have no authority over. He does just exactly what he pleases, irrespective of my position as the Head Boy and uncaring about the effects on other people. "Padfoot, would it be too much to ask you to leave Snivellus alone for a few days and not try and pick a duel with him every time you so much as even catch a glimpse of him?" I asked, resigned to the fact that I knew his answer would probably be a negative one.
"Damn straight it would be too much to ask me to do that," He answered in that irritating and patronising tone of voice he only ever uses when he's deliberately stating the obvious to someone in order to prove some point. "Just because you're the Head Boy now and have to set a good example to all the other little munchkins in this place, doesn't mean that I have to walk around like there's a broom stuck up my backside, following all the rules and pouncing on small children ready to dock points from them for daring to sneeze in the wrong places,"
I wanted to kick him. I don't think Sirius understands how serious this threat that Snivellus has made could turn out to be. Knowing Padfoot, he will have decided last night that Snivellus was bluffing and will have just forgotten about it. "I'd hardly say that trying to hex the pants of someone who has technically in this moment done nothing to deserve it is the same category as taking points of students for being out of bounds at night," I pointed out to him calmly.
"That's just semantics," He just shrugged and once more I got the urge to kick him. "Besides, who are you to yell at kids for being out of their dormitories after curfew? As I recall it was the rare night when we were in our room after curfew," Padfoot chuckled to himself about that. The fact that I had been made head boy seemed to be just one long endless joke to him.
"That's not the point!" I glared at him, searching my mind for a way to lay off Snivellus for a few days.
"I also seem to recall you hexing old Snivvy in the past for merely existing," He pointed out with a grin. "So you'll have to excuse me if I'm only following the example set for me by our very own head boy," He said sarcastically.
"Padfoot, I'll make you a deal," An idea suddenly formed quickly in my mind.
"Okay, I'm listening," He rolled his eyes, probably planning to disagree with anything that I said anyway and just what he wanted to anyway.
"If you don't hex Snivellus now, or do anything at all to provoke him for two days, I'll let you hex him and curse him all you like and as long as there are no teachers or other prefects around, Lily and I will do nothing to try and stop you or punish you on Thursday." I hated myself for having to offer him this but I couldn't think of any other way to stop him. As much as Sirius and I joke about all the detentions we've been in and generally them to be a pretty ineffective punishment but they are still a drag to do and eat into our social time if we have to do them.
"Fine," Sirius said irritably. "Thanks for killing my early morning buzz," He groaned as we reached our classroom. I leaned against the wall and watched as more people arrived for class. Snape was heading over in my direction to.
"Yeah but just think of the buzz you'll get on Thursday," I grinned, trying to boost his mood. I didn't want to have to put up with a grumpy Sirius all day.
"True," He grinned at that thought, distracted by it for a moment before it suddenly dawned on him to ask. "What's so special about Thursday?" He demanded.
I was about to answer when Snape finally reached us and he wasn't alone. Avery and Nott hovered behind him, cruel grins plastered on their sharp faces as they looked on. "Never thought I'd see the day Potter would send a girl to fight his own battles!" He sneered at me and Avery and Nott sniggered at his words. If Snape was trying to use them to intimidate me then he was completely underestimating me. "So much for Gryffindors being the brave ones in this school if they have to get girls to fight their own battles for them,"
His words confused me. What the hell was he talking about? "What the hell are you on about, Snivellus?" I demanded angrily. "As far as I was aware I wasn't fighting any battles with anyone, let alone someone I couldn't beat so why on earth would you be thinking that?" I asked, forcing my voice to be cool and calm.
"Oh and sending Evans after me this morning, demanding to know what the hell I was playing at wasn't your idea?" He sneered at me. "If you don't think you're man enough to play with the big boys then just come out and say it! I'm sure no one will think any less of you for it," He said silkily as though I was so lowly thought of by everyone in this school that their opinion of me couldn't get much lower. Stupid deluded fool. He knew he was getting to me, though, by playing the whole coward card and he knew I couldn't do anything back to him, not when the Arithmancy teacher could turn up at any minute.
"Excuse me?" I asked calmly again, trying to ignore the urge to just punch him in his smug, greasy little face right this minute. "I have no idea what you're talking about," Sometimes pretending ignorance is the best way to get someone to explain what on earth their rambling on about.
"I'm sure you don't," Snape sneered at me, lips curled in disgust. "Like I'm sure there are a lot of things that go on in this school that you claim to have no idea about," He insinuated nastily. To anyone looking in they would have just thought that Snape was talking about all the pranks and things that I've pulled in the past but Sirius and I know just exactly what he's referring to there. I can hear Sirius growling next to me and it's taking all my self not to hex him right now.
"Whatever, Snivellus," I shrugged unconcernedly. "We long ago figured you were all talk and now you just have to go and prove it again. Trust me, I don't need reminding,"
"But you do need a girl to come and tell me to back off whatever it is you think I'm planning," His eyes seemed to darken maliciously, even in the bright corridor. "Evans pulled me aside to have a little 'chat' with me this morning." He acted as though he was disgusted that Lily had spoken to him today but I saw through his little façade. Anyone with any sense, or at least spent five years bitterly watching their friendship from a distance, knows that Snape has always worshipped the ground that she walks on and will probably always do. I almost feel sorry for the guy for messing that friendship up, I reckon he's the one person who, if they had stayed friends, would have had the best chance with her.
"Bet it was the highlight of your miserable year, Snivellus," I grinned sarcastically at him. "Someone as intelligent, beautiful and generous as Lily deigning to waste her time on you, I bet nothing as good as that will ever happen to you again this year," I felt bad rubbing his nose in the fact that I could pretty much talk to Lily whenever I liked now while he couldn't.
"Not really," Avery broke in at that point. "She's only a filthy, little Mudblood! No one special at all! She should be grateful there are silly fools like Dumbledore are stupid enough to let scum like that into this school,"
I saw red at that point; my hand was diving into my pocket as I was thinking of all the curses that I knew that would put those smug, self righteous Slytherin bastards in the hospital wing for months to come. I swear I would have done it too and to hell with the consequences of it.
But I never got the chance to because from behind me a soft voice broke into the conversation.
"Five points from Slytherin, Avery," I spun and saw Lily behind me, looking as calm and serene as ever. I don't know how she puts up with it. I mean, she must get a hell of a lot of grief from all the Slytherins on an every day basis because of her family background but she never lets it get her down; she's extremely proud of the fact that her parents are both Muggles and won't let anyone make her feel unworthy because of that. "And as for Dumbledore being a fool, one might question the fact that he lets so many pureblood children in when their families over many generations have managed to almost completely breed intelligence out of their bloodlines."
Avery's face went red at this. He wasn't the brightest student in the school and neither were a lot of his friends whereas it seemed to some people that Lily was just effortlessly brilliant at every subject she'd ever tried. They didn't see all the hard work that she put in behind the scenes but everyone knows that she is the best witch in the school, one of the reasons that she was chosen above all the other seventh year girls to be the head girl.
Before anyone else could say anything, the teacher arrived at the classroom and ushered us all inside. I headed with Sirius to the back where we normally sat, shocked when Lily came and sat in the seat next to me where Moony normally sat. He'd been called to a career's advice meeting with McGonagall just after breakfast and I didn't expect to see him again until break.
Professor Vector started the lesson off in her normal way, quickly settling into her normal lecturing mode and students all around me started taking notes. I didn't bother with this, choosing to focus on exactly what Vector was saying rather than trying to multitask and try and listen and take notes at the same time. Arithmancy has to be one of my weakest subjects and I rely heavily on Padfoot (who is a complete and utter genius at it) to take the notes for me and explain anything that my mind struggles to cope with. I never wanted to do this subject when we were made to chose subjects in third year. I would have much rather have taken Muggle Studies or Divination with my other choice of Care of Magical Creatures but my mother insisted that I take Arithmancy.
There was a tap on my arm and I looked down to see Lily passing me a note. I stared at it in shock for a moment and then looked up at her. She glanced up from her notes at that moment and caught my shocked glance and winked at me. My breathe caught in my throat at the sparkle in her eyes and that tiny, almost invisible little smile. She could give the Mona Lisa a run for its money with that smile, I thought to myself as I opened the note.
Sorry about the trouble in the corridor before class. I never thought Severus would see it as you sending me to ask him to back off.
This surprised me too. I wasn't expecting her to apologise for how Snape had acted in the corridor. He probably would have tried to have made a scene over something anyway and Lily just gave him the excuse he needed to do that.Don't worry about it.
Snivellus would have just have picked a fight over something else anyway. That's just the way things are. It's no big deal, honest.
I slid the note back to her and watched her face out of the corner of my eye as she read it. She seemed visibly relieved that I wasn't angry with her or anything. As if anyone could get angry with Lily Evans. I mean she's not perfect but she never deliberately sets out to hurt anyone or do anything wrong that was seriously against the rules. I watch her bite her bottom lip as her quill danced along the parchment as she neatly wrote her reply.
Thanks but I shouldn't have stuck my nose in. It's not like it did much good anyway.
She slid the peace of parchment back in front of me just as the teacher called on Lily for an answer. "Miss Evans, what is the other term used to described Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's method of divination through numbers?" She asked irritably, as though she suspected that Lily hadn't been much paying attention to what had been said. I could see that Vector was hoping to catch her out with a difficult question.
Lily blushed at being caught out at being inattentive but quickly answered the question.
"Agrippa's method is sometimes known as Pythagorean although there is no link between him and the famous Muggle Pythagoras." She answered quickly and concisely as though this was a simple question that any student should know after their first ever lesson in this subject.
"Correct, Miss Evans," Vector frowned as though disappointed that Lily had answered. "Five point to Gryffindor." She said in an annoyed tone before going back to her lecture.
How on earth do you remember all these things? I wouldn't have had a clue what the answer was!!
Lily raised her eyebrow at this as though in disbelief and shook her head slightly at this as though astonished that I didn't know the answer.
Pythagoras' Theorem is a rule used by muggle school children to work out the length of sides in a right angled triangle. Basically the square of the longest side should equal the total of the other two sides squared. I remembered my sister moaning about it in one of her letters and I just always associate it with that.
I didn't really understand of her description of the triangle theory thing. It confused me just thinking about it. Muggle school children mustn't be as thick as some people make them out to be if they have to learn things like this in their schools. I almost felt sorry for them but then realized that they probably didn't have to do this subject which seemed to me to be even harder.
That makes absolutely no sense to me what-so-ever. Did you learn anything from Snivellus.
I watched her again out of the corner of my eyes as she rolled her eyes again at my reply and had to disguise a snigger of laughter as a cough to avoid drawing Vector's attention to us. As she hurriedly wrote her reply back to me, I turned and glanced at Sirius who must have been watching us for a few moments before I looked his way. He wiggled his eyebrows encouragingly at me, flicked some of his black hair out of his face before going back to his note taking.
Normally he doesn't bother taking notes in this class, we leave that kind of thing to Remus and then just duplicate his notes after class but with him not being here, Padfoot was forced to take on that job because we know from past experience that if they leave the note taking to me, all we'll end up is a page full of random phrases that make no sense to anyone.
Nothing really. He seemed shocked to almost silence that I was talking to him and then when he did start talking again he start mumbling incoherently that he was really sorry but it was the only way he could teach you a lesson and that he really wished that it hadn't come to this.
I took that to mean that Snivellus was sorry that Lily had been dragged into this rather than him being sorry for hating me and needing to teach me a lesson. Snivellus and I have always hated each other, even long before we started Hogwarts and some things just never change.
That doesn't help me at all!! All that shows is that he definitely planning something against me.
Lily's eyes widened a little as she read through my note, sensing the frustration behind my words.
I'm sorry I couldn't find out more. At least now you know he's definitely targeting you and not someone else. You're more than a match for anything that he tries to throw at you.
She meant her words to be soothing and reassuring but I couldn't honestly believe that Snape was going to target me directly in whatever little scheme he had cooked up. He's failed so many times in the past when he's tried to directly lash out at me to know that it just won't work. Snape might be a disgusting slimeball, but he isn't idiot enough to keep trying a way that won't work. I know that this time he'll change the rules and use someone else to try and hurt me. I didn't want to worry Lily with my theory though; she has more than enough to deal with without me adding this to her load. Whatever it is, I deal with on my own with help from my friends if I need it.
I could have walked on air or even water though when I read the part about me being more than a match for Snape. I couldn't believe that Lily had that kind of confidence in me. I mean sure, everyone knows I've always come off the winner in past confrontations but for some reason, this just seems different. Maybe because, in the past I was always one of, if not the only, instigator of the fights and Snape ended up being the victim whereas this time I'm sort of being forced into this confrontation by Snivellus, who, in a weird role reversal, has sort of become the aggressor in all this. Not that I intend to let him make me, or anyone else for that matter, the victim in this confrontation.
I suppose so.
I slowly wrote these three words on the parchment, unsure of how to reply to that without sounding cocky or arrogant, all traits that I know Lily hates in me. I was about to pass her the note back when I suddenly scrawled out a question onto the end of the message and then passed it back before I could chicken out of sending it.
Do you really think I'm a match for anything Snivellus throws at me?
Lily looked up in surprise at that and I could see her mouth twitch as she had to repress some sarcastic remark before she picked her quill up and slowly wrote her answer.
Looking back at past results in these little spats you have with Severus, the odds seemed to be in your favour to win. I'll be honest, as good as Snape's knowledge of duelling spells is, I wouldn't bet against you in a fight!
This time is was my turn to almost come out with a sarcastic comment. It's not good knowledge of duelling spells that Snivellus has, it's more a horrifically good knowledge of dark hexes and curses. Still, it was nice to know that she believed in me like that.
Thanks. Hey, I was wondering, if you're not busy on the day of the next Hogsmede trip whether you'd like to go for a butterbeer with Sirius, Remus, Peter and I at The Three Broomsticks or something?
I was extremely nervous as I waited for her answer, not sure what to expect. All the times in the past that I've asked her out she's always said no and I wasn't expecting that to change this time. But I can live in hope I guess. Maybe the fact that I haven't asked her out on a date in over four months will count in my favour.
Sure. I'll be looking forward to it.
I swear I'm going to get this note framed and hang it on my wall to commemorate the moment when Lily Evans finally agreed to willingly spend time with me outside Head student meetings and things like that. Things have to be looking good for my chances with her after this, even though technically it's not a date or anything. After all, Moony, Wormtail and Padfoot will be there too but it is a start and it's more than I've ever achieved on my own in the past.
Thank you!
She smiled gently back at me and then turned her full focus back onto the lesson, diligently taking notes down on the rest of the lecture, scribbling down sums in the margins as she worked out the answers to some of the questions Vector asked us. I had no idea what was covered in the rest of that lecture. I was so happy, so elated that my mind couldn't focus on anything as trivial as something like Arithmancy. My thoughts wandered as I got lost in my own thoughts, blissfully unaware of time passing me by.
When the bell rang, marking the end of class, I jumped to my feet in surprise, shocked out of my thoughts. I carelessly shoved my books and parchment back into my bag, closed my ink bottle and placed it and the quill in a separate pocket before waiting for Lily to pack her own things up so I could walk her from class.
I was too nervous to say anything as we headed out into the corridor. If asked at that point, I probably wouldn't have been able to tell anyone my own name. Sirius started chatting to one of the girls from Ravenclaw as we all headed down the corridor towards Transfiguration.
We'd gotten about a third of the way down the corridor, when I heard Lily gasp in surprise and then suddenly trip, falling to the floor flat on her face, her bag falling off her shoulder and her bottles of ink smashing over her books and notes as they spilled out onto the corridor. I knelt down to help her up and gather her things together when I heard cold laughter and sniggers behind me.
I turned a looked up into Snivellus's cold eyes and he met my gaze unflinchingly.
"Oh look, the Mudblood's finally found her place in life," Avery said snidely, still laughing at Lily as she gracefully picked herself up and started to try and sort her notes own before they got blown away by the wind created from so many students walking past. "On the floor with all the vermin and blood traitors. Isn't that sweet!" He taunted me, sniggering at his own joke as thought it was the most amusing thing in the world.
"Piss off, Avery!" Sirius glared at him.
Snape finally broke eye contact with me, looking down apologetically at Lily, giving me the sinking feeling that her 'trip' wasn't a result of a sudden bout of clumsiness by her but by a simple first year spell fired at her from behind. Lily didn't notice this though and he merely stepped round her, making no move to help her in anyway. Avery and Nott followed him. I swear I saw Nott make to spit at her as he walk passed but something in my eyes must have warned him that that wasn't a good idea if he wanted to carry on living.
"Are you okay?" I asked concernedly as Lily finally straightened up and swung her bag back onto her back.
"I'm fine James," She smiled gently. "I just get a little bit clumsy and trip over my own feet sometimes. Don't worry about it,"
If only I could believe that that was the case though. If only it was a simple case of clumsiness.