Chapter 2

He was stopped in mid-sentence by a small cough behind him. He watched as small smirks formed on his pals' faces. He turned slowly to see a beautiful redhead staring down at him with the same green eyes he had seen filled with lust less than an hour ago. But instead of lust, he only saw studious discipline and what he could only guess was a thirst for knowledge. But maybe he read them wrong considering her thinly framed glasses were catching a bit of glare from the floating candles.

"Um, hi Lily."

"Hello James. I just was wondering when you would like to meet for tutoring again."

"I, uh, I…"

Sirius quickly chimed in with a response. "Oh Lily, I really think you guys should meet immediately. He is going to just burst if you don't "meet" soon."

The connotation was obvious to all four of the boys and was received with soft chuckles and a scornful look from James. But Lily was oblivious to the emphasis or the response it got from the Marauders.

"Oh really? Well, I'm glad to hear that my abilities are helping in the whole process. It seems my experience in this area is making this go much smoother than both of us had expected. So we should keep going at it then?"

"What?" James couldn't believe what she had just said. Either he was much too sick minded or she was much too naïve. He continued to look at her strangely as he heard his friends almost falling to the floor from laughter.

"When do you want me to tutor you in Charms again?"

"I think that, uh, this evening would be best for, er for me."

"Sounds good. Shall we meet in the library around eight?"

"I think that, uh, that uh."

Remus spoke for James, saying, "He thinks that would be wonderful. He shall see you there."

Lily looked at them oddly before smiling politely at the four of them and returning to her friends and her own breakfast. As she sat down she said something serious to her friends, causing them to turn and laugh at the Marauders. Sirius responded by winking at one of them before returning to his tea. When his cup was finished, he smirked knowingly at James. James caught the look out of the corner of his eye.

"What?"

"You're pathetic."

"Am I? Pray tell, why?"

"You, my friend, are pathetic because of what just happened. You see, you told us that you had been subtly hinting to Lily what you had in mind for the two of you but by what the three of us just saw, that clearly is a lie. You are complete mush around her. She has you wrapped around her finger and she isn't even trying. And the sad thing is that you would think that this pathetic, stuttering thing would make her even more aware of the fact that you like her than the sexual innuendos that you are famous for, but instead she now sees you as a squirmy, pathetic sixth year. I think pathetic is the perfect word for what you are right now, mate. Completely pathetic."

James dug his fork roughly into his eggs, a scowl sprawled across his face. He unfortunately knew that Sirius was right. He wasn't his usual self around her; he was a jumble of nerves and feelings. If only he could act as he normally did around the opposite sex. He was known to most of the female population at Hogwarts as a charmer, a debonair sixth year that used his God given gifts to the fullest, meaning his looks. He was no longer a scrawny first year timidly awaiting the Sorting ceremony. No, Quidditch had been sure to change that. He was in the best shape of his life. His toned abs, muscular arms, and tanned skin only complimented his raven colored hair and sky blue eyes.

And he hadn't been exaggerating when he had told Sirius earlier that he and James had conquered more than half of the female population at Hogwarts. It was a game that had developed in his third year and just like Quidditch, he had dominated. And no matter how much of a cliché it was, he couldn't help but keep a close record on his bedpost. Life was good. He excelled in everything he did. School was a breeze and there was nothing but clear skies ahead. That is how he began his sixth year anyways. Unfortunately, the skies had clouded up a bit, and not simply because Lily had entered his life. He remembered the day that had changed when he had walked into the Charms classroom to find something or shall we say someone to end his perfect existence.

James walked to his seat besides Sirius. As he strolled nonchalantly to his chair he heard the familiar sound of whispers and giggles. He remembered the time he had first heard those in his third year, wondering what they could possibly mean. But now he knew that it was only him they were whispering about. He grinned and ruffled his hair as he slid into the seat. He patted Sirius on the back before leaning back so as to hear exactly what praises they were giving him today.

"Oh, I know, I never have seen someone so handsome. I saw him this morning in the dining hall and I almost fainted from his beauty. To think that someone like that is actually at Hogwarts."

James smirked and mouthed the words "Why, thank you." to no one in particular. If he actually spoke to them, they would realize he was listening and halt all adoration of his heavenly body. Why would he want that? He leaned back further in his chair while pretending to whistle and take down a few notes.

"And I can't believe his smile. It practically blinded me this morning."

James frowned. He didn't remember smiling at her this morning. But after all, he handed so many smiles out it was hard to keep them all straight.

"And his voice! I felt my knees give out when he was talking to Dumbledore in the hallway. It's so soothing and sexy at the same time. I would give anything to hear that voice next to me at night."

He almost laughed at the crudeness of this comment but held it in when he realized that he had not talked to Dumbledore this morning. Was it not him they were speaking of? He decided that this would be a perfect moment to break into the conversation.

"Ladies, ladies, I do love the compliments but you should really consider the fact that there are children around. I mean, let's keep the vulgar comments to a minimum, shall we?"

They all stared at him oddly while he simply displayed his most seductive smile. One of them opened her mouth but closed it just as quickly. Another, he believed to be named Rose, took her role and spoke the first words.

"Excuse me James, but we are actually speaking about someone else."

"Really? Well, I can't think of anyone -besides myself of course- that fits what you are saying. May I ask who you are madly gushing about then?"

"You mean, you don't know?"

"Why would I ask if I did?"

"You haven't met the new Charms professor?"

"New Charms professor?"

"That's what we said. His name is Professor Snape, Professor Kieran Snape. And he is the dreamiest man in this entire school."

"Excuse me, but I thought I was the dreamiest man at Hogwarts."

"Um, no, correction, you are the dreamiest "boy" at Hogwarts. He is the dreamiest man. A very large difference I'm afraid."

At the thought of such affection going to someone other than himself, something stirred with him like jealousy and his arrogant sense of competition. He also immediately disliked this Kieran Snape. Not only was he apparently dreamier than him, but by his last name he must have some relation to the Slytherin slime that crawled the halls. Could he possibly be a family member of the boy known to most as Severus and known to James as asshole? If so this new professor was automatically on his shit list. Like father, like son in his book.

He turned away from the bubbling girls, with his smile turning to a frown. He was brewing in his own frustration when he heard the classroom door slam behind him. He turned his head slightly to see a tall man storming to the front of the classroom. As he reached the front of the room, he turned sharply, creating a flurry of cloaks making all the girls gasp. There he stood, the man they had been talking about and the girls had not exaggerated. He was tall, over six feet, with dark brown hair lying loosely in waves that reached his ears and fell lazily across his forehead. He had dark skin clear of any blemishes, formed from a mix of genetics and time in the sun. His lips were full and red and his nose and chin strong. But the most surprising and intriguing characteristic were his eyes. They were the color of gold and could be seen from across the room. They literally lit up the room. James broke his stare and realized to his own chagrin that his mouth had fallen open slightly. He was a male and even he couldn't get his eyes off of him. He suddenly slapped his forehead. What the hell was he thinking? 'You better not be becoming a fag James!' he said to himself.

As he introduced himself to the entire class, he voice floated across the room. The girls in the room were absolutely entranced. One girl actually fell out of her seat and Snape smirked as he continued to describe the syllabus for the year. After he set some rules for the coming year and handed everyone a list of topics, he made everyone stand and introduce themselves. Sirius and James almost vomited from the cheesiness of it all. The girls were trying desperately to gain his attention but his eyes rested on them only long enough for them to utter their names.

As his gaze shifted to Sirius, he spoke.

"So you must be one of the "Marauders" I have heard so much about. James, right?"

"Um, no I'm Sirius."

"Ah, well then you shall be spared. I have heard many things about the four of you. I only hope that your childish antics are kept outside of this classroom."

Sirius and James frowned at the comment. James wondered what exactly Sirius was being spared of and how he knew that Sirius was a Marauder. He was hating this man more every moment.

"And you are?"

James suddenly snapped back to reality and looked up at the realization that it was he Snape was talking to.

"Oh, I'm James, James Potter."

He looked at Snape at his cool smirk shifted to a look of hatred. It was only there for a second before it was once again replaced by the boyish smile.

"I must say James, that your reputation proceeds you."

"Thanks?"

"I would not take that as a compliment."

He kept his eyes on James for a moment with a threatening stare before shifting them to a chubby girl standing beside him.

Since that first moment that they had met there had been an unspoken hatred between the two. James later discovered that Kieran was Severus' brother and hated him for good reason. It appeared that Severus had told Kieran of every single humiliation that James had afflicted upon him. If it was humanly possible, James believed that Kieran had more of a hatred for him than Severus did. He couldn't really understand how such a dislike had developed; he had never been that awful to Snape. Well okay, maybe he had been particularly mean but this was the kind of thing boys needed. It built character in James' opinion.

But apparently Kieran didn't share that opinion. Because he now took every opportunity given to him to hurt James whether it be by taking points from the Gryffindor house or giving him extra school work that took up most of his evenings. The same evenings that had been spent chasing tail and developing elaborate pranks. Since their introduction, his time in Charms had been absolute hell.

He replayed the moment in his head as he sat gnawing on a piece of bacon.

"So when are you going to finally put the first move on fair Lily?"

"Well, I'll try this evening."

"The sooner the better mate. For I'm sure that if you become, shall we say more "intimate" with her, I bet she'll become a better tutor."

"She's already an excellent tutor."

"Yeah, well, I'm sure you are really enjoying her… brains. Even if she is, it appears as if you are stilling barely scraping by in Charms, mate."

"That's better than what I used to be doing. Scraping by is better than failing. Anyways, I don't think any amount of tutoring will save me from Snape's hatred for me."

Remus spoke up, with his usual bit of wisdom. "James, it's all about karma. I knew picking on Severus would come back to bite you in the ass."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

They soon left for their first classes and James discovered that the day's events were going to tick by as if every second were a year. Classes seemed to move at the speed of a snail, and he could hear his teachers' droning voices lull through his mind as he fell asleep in each and every class. But after what seemed like centuries of waiting, it seemed his rendezvous with Lily was coming upon him. He nervously paced the common room in front of the massive fireplace that stood ablaze with flames. His friends watched him humorlessly, their eyes following him as he moved.

"Prongsy, I really don't understand the hype. This chick seems no different than any other. I mean she is beautiful if you like the studious type but that is no new deal for you. I've never seen you act this way before, at least not with the ladies. The only time I've witnessed this is before Quidditch your first year."

"I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that she is older or so naïve or maybe a combination of the two. I don't understand it either." He rattled on for a few minutes about the amazing qualities of Lily before Remus interrupted him.

"Well, there's no time to debate this now. You are in fact two minutes late so you better get going tiger!"

James suddenly had a look of bewilderment as he dashed towards the portrait door. How had that happened? He felt as if the Marauders has perhaps purposely distracted him. He couldn't be late. What would Lily think? He dashed out the door without even a second glance at his friends or the schoolbooks he left behind. The other Marauders let out snickers at his hysteria. They looked at his schoolbooks and then at one another, hoping for James that it would lead to a little more closeness between the tutor and her student.

As James came to halt in front of the library entrance, he timidly peeked through the entrance to see a beautiful redhead seated at a table near the back of the library. Only a fixture overhead cast light upon her and it looked as if a spotlight had centered on her, knowing she was the most stunning object miles around. He continued to gaze at her as he smoothed his uniform out, ran his hand through his jet-black hair, and managed to catch his breath. He slowly walked in and gathered his courage to say something to Lily without stuttering.

"Hi Lily. I'm here and ready to be tutored."

She looked up and smiled before standing suddenly.

"That's wonderful James. I thought perhaps that you weren't coming because you are never late but I'm glad to see you did. James are you alright? You look a bit flushed."

James' eyes couldn't help but wander over her as she spoke. The hair that she usually kept high on her head in a tight bun was now let loose around her shoulders and was cascading down her back. The usual glasses that covered her brilliant eyes were off, hooked onto the pocket of her oxford shirt, and James could see the same eyes that he had dreamt about all week. And her uniform was… much less studious. He noticed almost immediately that her tie was not only loosened but completely gone. And her tightly button shirt had been unbuttoned three times. He doubted that she realized how much that last button revealed. He doubted that she even realized it was unbuttoned at all but he was not about to inform her of it. This was the most skin Lily had ever shown James in reality and he thanked the Lord for late night tutoring sessions.

"James? Did you hear me?"

"Oh, yes, sorry Lily. I ran here because I realized I was tardy."

"Oh well no harm done. Shall we get started?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Did you bring your homework?"

James nodded his head vigorously before realizing that he held nothing in his hands.

"Bollocks!" he cursed quietly.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing it just seems that I forgot my books."

"Oh that is no problem. I have one. We'll share."

She smiled and he gulped. She sat back down and patted the chair next to her, motioning for him to take a seat. He cautiously sat down, repeating his mantra over and over in his head. 'I'm here to study. I'm here to study. I'm here to study.' He had used the mantra many other times with many other girls but it always failed. And never before had he wanted it to fail more. She smiled sweetly to him as she pushed the textbook to a spot located conveniently between the two of them. She scooted her chair closer to his and put her hand on the back of his chair to support herself. Then she began speaking in that voice that made James close his eyes and remember the Lily in his dreams. It was quieter than her usual voice, huskier, more intimate. He knew she meant it in a strictly tutoring fashion but that didn't stop him from fantasizing about that voice being whispered into his ear at night.

As she continued to talk, she motioned with her hands, explaining the proper wrist movement. But James wasn't really paying attention; all he could think about was how her breasts bounced when she moved her hands enough. She looked back down at the book and James followed suit so as to give an impression of listening. As she pointed to the picture in the book, he caught a magnificent view of her ample cleavage. He wanted to get down and praise the Lord for her not seeing that third button was undone. He was in heaven. But the secret peeks at her bust and her silky voice in his ear were not helping him concentrate. On the contrary, all he could think of now was the giant erection he had under the table. He couldn't get over how easily this always seemed to happen when he was close to Lily. He suddenly realized how close Lily was to him. He abruptly felt her own thigh against his and it took all of his might to not lay a rough hand on her soft skin.

Lily however failed to notice his growing anxiety and frustration. He had begun to sweat and fidget in his seat. She continued to talk when he suddenly placed a hand softly on her own hand. She stopped talking abruptly and froze.

"Lily, I, I just want to tell you that I think you are… amazing."

For once, Lily had nothing to reply. She opened her mouth but all that came out were gasps of air. She couldn't think of anything to say in response. The only thing that came out was…

"I think you're amazing too James."

"Thank you Lily, but that's not exactly what I meant."

His hand was suddenly no longer on hers but pushed onto the wooden table. She stood suddenly and gathered her books as quickly as possible. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? Had he said something wrong? What was going on?

"James, I think that uh, we, uh have done enough for today. Good work. I guess that I'll, I'll talk with you later."

Before James could sputter out another word she was gone, running out of the library towards the Gryffindor tower. A voice in his head suddenly said to him, 'Go after her! Stop her!'

And so he did.