Summary- "You would never think the two of them could ever get together, but I know that you should always expect to unexpected. Especially when it comes to two people as stubborn as James Potter and Lily Evans." After years of arguing, when Lily Evans and James Potter are forced together, everyone predicts that the school will collapse. It may take a little help from a few of their friends to show them just how perfect for each other they really are.
Disclaimer- Hm, let's think about this. If I were J. K. Rowling, would I need to put my story here? No, I didn't think so. So, therefore, by process of elimination, could I possibly J. K. Rowling? If you said no, you'd be right.
Chapter 15- A First and a Not So First
"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, witches and wizards, to the second Quidditch match of the year!" Cheers echoed through the stands, making Sirius grin joyfully. "After an unfortunate incident that kept the Gryffindors from killing the Slytherins right off hand—"
"Black!"
"Sorry, Professor. The Gryffindor team had some troubles, so they're playing Hufflepuff first instead of Slytherin. But now we're here, ready to play, and it looks like Gryffindor's ready to kick some arse!" Three-fourths of the crowd cheered again as McGongall yelled at Sirius again. "Oops, sorry. Slip of the tongue."
Ryan bounced on the balls of her feet, feeling impatient. Just announce the rien players so we can get this rien match started, she thought, looking around at her teammates. Only Aubrey and James looked at impatient as she felt.
"Get to the point, Padfoot," James muttered under his breath darkly. "Let's get this match started."
Almost as if Sirius had heard (Ryan had always halfway suspected they could read each others minds), he announced, "So, without further ado, I present to you the Gryffindor Quidditch team! York, Letman, Recher, Barden, Bradley, Miller, and captain JAMES POTTER!" Yells (mostly positive) rose all over the stands as the team flew out of the trap door and circled around the Pitch a few times before landing in the middle of the field. "And our Hufflepuff team! Higgins, Clarke, Ayre, Welling, Tate, Reynolds, and captain AMOS DIGGORY!" Cheers filled the stadium once again as the team flew around the Pitch.
When the Hufflepuff team touched down, the two captains faced each other. "Captains shake hands," Madame Hooch said. James and Diggory gave each other completely fake smiles and shook hands. "You all know the rules, so follow them. Miller, stay on your broom this time." Ryan grinned and nodded. She had a nasty habit of… leaving her broom behind when she went for the Snitch. She always caught it, but she didn't always have a painless landing. But sometimes the broom just wasn't fast enough, and—"If you jump off your broom to catch the Snitch, I will deduct 150 points instead of adding them, do you understand?"
"Perfectly," Ryan said cheerfully, making the players on both team snicker. She was a Marauder for a reason, dammit.
"Good. Mount your broom." A sharp whistle echoed in the air, and fifteen brooms lifted off from the ground. Ryan rocketed up, leaving everyone else behind. This was why she couldn't stay off a broom for more than a day or two. Pomfrey just didn't understand that. As nervous as she was on the ground, in the air she wasn't concerned at all.
She turned back around, part watching the game, part watching for the Snitch, and part keeping her eye on Digs. Just in case. Diggory had a bit of a habit a trying to make himself look good without actually catching the Snitch, but if he saw it first, she would have a race on her hands. And, since Diggory had a better broom than she did, it was a race she had a chance of losing. But it was alright, because she would be getting a new broom for her birthday.
Fuck, she thought darkly. The stupidest things reminder her of what had happened. Even in the middle of a bloody Quidditch match. It was just… Focus, she told herself forcefully. You can think about it later. Tomorrow. But right now, Miller, there's a Quidditch match to play. And you're going to WIN.
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"Remus! Over here!" It wasn't everyday that the girls reached the stands before the boys. Usually, the girls almost missed the mounting of the brooms. Usually, they had to drag Lily kicking and screaming. Which, naturally, took some time and typically made them late. But not today.
"We decided that we needed to run out here so we could get good seats," Morgan explained cheerfully as Remus and Peter sat in the two seats saved for them. Although all the Marauders were never seen in the presence of all the girls, it had been a long standing tradition for the five non-participants to sit together during the matches. "Since your attachment is suddenly more attachment and Lily—"
"Morgan!"
"And Lily, who is in severe denial and in need of mental help, isn't enemies with anyone on the team anymore, we figured it would be a nice time for us to actually get out here early. Lily, you're being paranoid. Just because we made fun of you in the note doesn't mean we're going to make fun of you now. Relax and enjoy the match."
"They're trying to make me fancy James," Lily said, looking to Remus for help.
Remus chuckled. "They're usually right about things like that, Lily. Or they will be eventually." Lily groaned, exasperated, and put her head in her hands.
A sudden booming voice shook through the stands, making people cheer. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, witches and wizards, to the second Quidditch match of the year! After an unfortunate incident that kept the Gryffindors from killing the Slytherins right off hand—"
"Black!" Remus and Peter laughed while the girls shook their heads, grinning.
"Sorry, Professor. The Gryffindor team had some troubles, so they're playing Hufflepuff first instead of Slytherin. But now we're here, ready to play, and it looks like Gryffindor's ready to kick some arse!" The five of them cheered and laughed, along with most of the stands. "Oops, sorry. Slip of the tongue. Sometimes you just can't control it and — Right.
"So, without further ado, I present to you the Gryffindor Quidditch team! York, Letman, Recher, Barden, Bradley, Miller, and captain JAMES POTTER!" The five of them cheered, Morgan and Peter competing for the loudest. Morgan won, Remus decided internally. "And the Hufflepuff team! Higgins, Clarke, Ayre, Welling, Tate, Reynolds, and captain AMOS DIGGORY!" The yellow and black section of the stand cheered as the rest of the stands just clapped.
Two teams touched down in the middle of the field. The two captains shook hands, Madame Hooch gave a few players individual instructions ("Ten knuts says Wheat jumps off her broom before the end," Peter muttered), and then they were in the air.
"Recher takes it right off hand, dodges a Bludger from Reynolds, passes it off to York. York takes it—ouch, mate, that had to hurt. Ayre in possession, off to Clarke, pass intercepted by Potter. Potter to York, York to Recher, Recher back to Potter, he closes in—SCORE, PRONGS, YOU GREAT PRAT! He shoots, he… SCORES! Deflected off of Tate's hand right into the hoop! Gryffindor up ten-nil. Wheat, get a move on, I'm bored already."
Ryan clearly looked up, looked towards the box, and gave him a not so nice salute before turning back to the game. "And Miller has something against the commentator—bloody hell. YOU WANKER, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE HITTING THAT THING!" Ryan shot off across the Pitch to avoid a Bludger that Mark had hit at a Hufflepuff Chaser. Instead of doing what a Bludger normally does and go after the closest person, the Bludger instead decided to go after Ryan.
Morgan laughed. "Sirius has way too much fun with these things. I think he's found his life's calling."
"James looks a little annoyed as well," Alice commented.
"'Course he's a little upset," Remus said easily. "Your Beater almost hits your Seeker with a bloody Bludger? I think he has a right to be a little angry."
The girls exchanged grins. "And the boyfriend has a right to be a little angry too, I suppose?" Lily asked innocently.
Remus smiled. "Are you asking for my opinion or what Ryan would tell you if she were here?" All of them grinned, knowing exactly what Ryan would say, before turning back to the game.
"Well now that the great prat of a Beater knows which team he's on— Higgins in possession, over to Clarke, up to Higgins, down to Ayre— Prongs, mate, they've got better plays than you do. Dropped at a Bludger from Barden. Taken up by York, passes to Potter, over to Recher. Recher dodges Higgins, Clarke, and a Bludger from Welling to shoot—deflected by Tate, out to Higgins, immediately taken back by Recher— determined bastard, aren't you, Trey? Sorry, Professor, but—HE SCORES! Gryffindor up twenty-zip. Mates, you're all going to owe me 5 galleons in about ten minutes. Oh, no, Professor, I'm not making bets. Remus and Pete don't count."
The three girls turned to look at the boys curiously. "Sirius said we'd score seventy points before they scored," Peter said.
"What did you two say?" Morgan asked, slightly curious.
"I said we'd be up by thirty before they scored," Remus said. "Pete said they'd score first, but we would win by at least three hundred points."
"What if none of you win?" Lily asked.
"Closest to it wins," Peter said easily.
"—And Bradley practically knocks Reynolds off his broom, and Yorker SCORES! That a girl, Aubrey! Best looking girl on the team, and now that she's legal I can finally say it—"
"BLACK!"
"Sorry, Professor. People get tired of hearing about passes and dodges after a while, you have to add that in there as a bit of entertainment. Anyway, looking good, Bradley. Keep up the amazing work and see me after the match." The hand motion Aubrey sent him made Ryan give her a high five as she was flying by. "The bloody Gryffindor girls are teaming up against me! …Prongs, what are you teaching them?
"Higs in possession—ignore the nickname, mate, just makes it easier to say in a hurry—dodges Potter, Yorker, knocked loose by Recher, but caught by Clarke. Clarke shoots… Blocked by Letman. Bet she'd flip me off too, if I said something. Recovered by Higgins, who's just as much of a persistent bas—Right, sorry Professor. Language. Anyway, Higs shoots, and… damn it." The Hufflepuffs burst into cheers. Sirius disappointment at losing the bet was obvious.
"Yeah, alright. Don't get used to it. So I just lost five galleons, and Letman has the Quaffle. Thrown out to Potter, passed to Yorker, passed to Recher. Recher does a flip to avoid Clarke, ducks under Reynolds—DIGGORY AND MILLER HAVE SEEN THE SNITCH!"
Remus and Peter both jumped to their feet. Lily let out a slight laugh and turned to point it out to Morgan and Alice, but both of them had their eyes fixed on Ryan and Diggory. Lily grinned and turned to watch too.
Both Diggory and Ryan had their eyes locked on some point near the Gryffindor hoops. Stephanie seemed to either not mind or not notice that fact that two Seekers were racing in her direction. Diggory was edging ahead of Ryan, but Ryan had the look of determination on her face that clearly said there was no way in hell she was going to let Diggory reach it before she could. "Catch it, Rye!" Morgan yelled.
Sirius' yells were along the same line. "Bloody hell, Wheat, CATCH THAT DAMN THING!" Right before Diggory's hand closed around the Snitch, a Bludger flew a few inches from his wrist, making him yank his hand back reflexively. Those few seconds were all it took for the Snitch to fly straight up. Ryan made a grab at it, but the Bludger decided then would be a good time to turn around and come back at them. And, unfortunately, Ryan wasn't nearly as afraid of the Bludger as Diggory was.
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"SHIT!" A resounding yell echoed through the Pitch as Madame Hooch blew her whistle, signifying a time-out in the match. The entire Gryffindor team flew over to Ryan in a couple of seconds.
"Are you okay?"
"How bad does it hurt?"
"Is it broken?"
"Why didn't you pull back!"
"I'm sorry, Ryan! I didn't think it would come back to hit you, but at least Diggory didn't catch it…."
"Damn it, Remus is going to kick my ass."
"Guys," Ryan said, grinning. They kept going, making her grin wider. "Guys.. EVERYONE, SHUT UP FOR A SECOND!" The entire team shut their mouths in a matter of seconds.
Noticing her grin, James started to smile slightly. "You didn't."
"Oh, but I did," she said smugly. The team looked at her hand in amazement.
"She's going to give me hell for not telling her immediately," James said darkly before nodding to Ryan. "Go on and hold it up. They won't know if you don't show it off."
Ryan grinned, transferred the Snitch from her right hand to her left, and held it up triumphantly.
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"Amazing catch, Ryan!"
"That was so awesome, Rye!"
"Ryan, that catch was the best catch I've ever seen!"
"Thanks," Ryan said cheerfully, waiting until they walked away to laugh. "They're only saying that because I broke my wrist in the process. If I hadn't broken anything, it would've been a completely routine save."
Remus chuckled, wrapping an arm around her waist. "I thought it was pretty impressive."
"You're you. You don't count in this situation."
Remus laughed. "Well, thanks, love. That's a very comforting thought."
"As adorable as you two lovebirds are, you're sickening the rest of us," a calm, slightly slurred, voice said as the owner plopped down on the couch on Ryan's other side. Sirius glanced over at the pair and pretended to gag.
"Oh, go find a girl to snog or something," Ryan said easily.
"As good as that sounds, I think I've snogged every girl in here. 'Cept the little ones. Fifth year and above, I'd bet. 'Cept for the ones I'm not allowed to snog."
"Repeat performance, Padfoot," Remus said, laughing slightly. "Pick a good one and go for it again."
"Can't. There are very limited ones with talent that won't be clingy. Ug." Sirius shuddered. "Clingy birds. My worst nightmare. Anyway, all the best 'uns gots blokes they can snog—"
"You're drunk, Sirius," Ryan said, grinning. "Just go with someone already, would you? It won't matter how good they are now."
"Does," he slurred. "Gotta watch out for the clingy ones. Aha!" He brightened suddenly and pushed himself up. "You two enjoy yourselves. I found myself a snog."
Ryan and Remus both laughed. "He amazes me sometimes," Ryan said, shaking her head. "Makes me really wish I had grown up with all of you. Then maybe I would've been able to train him a little better."
Remus chuckled. "You can't change Sirius. He would be like that with or without your influence."
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So what's the plan again? –Morgan Watson
The plan is to get Lily and James together. –Sirius Black
Well, no shit, Black. I meant how are we planning to do it, not what is that we're planning to do. –M
Oh. Right. –S
'Oh, right' my arse. –M
Didn't we go over this already? More than once? More than twice even? –S
Humor me. Pretend you're explaining your plan to me for the first time. But, for Merlin's sake, Black, don't be so obvious about it. –M
What d'you mean? –S
I mean I want details, not just the general plan. –M
The details… Okay. We wait until Prongs and Lily go off by themselves for their little meetings. We attack, force them to go together, they go, they leave happy, everyone is happy because the Heads finally sucked it up and admitted to liking each other. –S
Well, that's nice, Black. But HOW are we going to do it? –M
No clue. –S
What do you mean you have no clue? You said you had it all planned out! –M
I do have it all planned out. I just wrote it out. –S
I thought you had details planned too, not just the general plan! I thought maybe you were going to say something like we're going to use enchanted mistletoe to trap them and then leave them until they do what they have to to break the spell! –M
Okay, Watson. We use enchanted mistletoe to trap them and then we leave them until they do what they have to to do to break the spell. –S
You are one of the most annoying people I have ever had the misfortune to meet. –M
Trust me, the feelings are returned. –S
Alright, we're all interested—What are you two doing passing notes to each other? –Ryan Miller
Hello, Wheat. –S
Hi, Padfoot. What are you two talking about? I feel very left out of the note-passing, and Remus sits on the other side of the room so that I can't pass notes with him. –R
The fact that your friend's an idiot. –M
Okay, but that's not a good reason to start note-passing. –R
Oh, we're trying to figure out a way to force Prongs and Lily together. –S
Oh. Well if that's all. Good luck with that. –R
You're not getting involved then? –M
Not at all. I think you two can handle this one. But if you need my help, let me know. I've been kind of bored lately. –R
We'll get back to you on that. –M
I'm sure you will. But there's one little thing you seem to have forgotten. –R
What's that, Wheat? –S
You have a birthday party to plan between now and then. –R
-Morgan Watson, Sirius Black, and Ryan Miller
Seventh Year Muggle Studies, November 17th, 1977
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It's here, finally. School sucks ass. Reviews are much appreciated.