Hey, everyone! Sorry I've been so slow with updating. I was in New York City for a while, and my mind was having difficulty getting in the state of mind necessary for writing. You know, it's strange. New York is like the epitome of creative arts, and I couldn't write while I was there or for a week after I came home. Hmm... but anyways, I'll try to get the Quaffle rolling again.

By the way, this chapter is more Quidditch then James and Lily. Quidditch matches are tough to depict, I hope I did alright!

As always, please review, I love to hear your thoughts at all times, good or bad! Thanks again to all who have reviewed so far, I love you all! And I'll say it again, even if you're reading this and the story is already finished, I still want to hear your comments!

Chapter 9

James walked onto the field to the thunderous roar of the crowd's cheering, chanting, and jeering. The icy November air blew straight through James's Quidditch robes, making him shiver. He gripped his Nimbus tightly in one hand, and approached the Slytherin captain in the middle of the pitch. The lanky Slytherin keeper, Casper Bletchley, had pointy facial features and devilish charcoal eyes that matched his fiery attitude towards Quidditch.

"Captains, shake hands!" Madam Hooch ordered them. They shook hands, Beltchley making a fair attempt at crushing James's hand. James didn't wince, but simply dug a finger into a pressure point between the blonde's knuckles. Bletchley flinched violently and withdrew his hand as though he'd been burnt. James smirked lazily.
"And this year's lineup for the Gryffindor team!" Announced the familiar voice of Dedalus Diggle, "McKinnon, Black, Vance, Potter, Prewett, Fenwick, aaannddd... Tonks!" James looked up at the commentator's podium. The pale, excitable, fourth year usually commentated for the Quidditch matches. Though he was prone to insulting the Slytherins, he was fairer than most of the other students, which is why he got the job.
"And the Slytherin team's lineup is... Bletchley, Malfoy, Rosier, Vaisey, Wilkes, Higgs... aaanndd Black!" James could hardly hear the Slytherin's cheers over the booing of the rest of the school.
"Mount your brooms!" Madam Hooch ordered, getting onto her own after releasing the balls. "We've got this one." James called back to his team determinedly. Now it was just the team, his broom, and the Quaffle. Nothing else mattered but getting that ball through the hoops.
"Three!" Madam Hooch called loudly, "Two! One!"

The Quaffle was centerfield, floating above their heads. James pushed off as hard as he could, shooting after it. He grabbed it a mere second before Abraxas Malfoy could, whose fingernails actually scabbed the back of James's hand in his desperate attempt to gain possession. James tucked it under his arm and sped off toward the Slytherin end of the pitch.
"And Potter in possession, oh, looks like he just passed it to Vance, no, now Black has it. Back to Black, try saying that ten times fast, folks… Back to Black, back to Black, back to Black… sorry, anyways, Vance, pass back to Potter, they're nearing the Slytherin hoops… and was that another pass? Wait, who has the Quaffle?" Suddenly the sound of wild mirth rose from the Gryffindors.
"10-0 to Gryffindor!" McGonogall shouted angrily at Dedalus. "You're the one supposed to be telling us!"
"Oh, okay, who...?"
"Potter scores!" McGonogall shouted loudly into his microphone. The crowd laughed.
"And James Potter scores!" Dedalus exclaimed, trying to recover. "10-0 to Gryffindor!" James whooped as he raced back toward the Gryffindor hoops. He watched the Quaffle soar over his head as Rosier retrieved the ball and threw it to Vaisey. James put on a spurt of speed and bumped Vaisey, causing him go drop the Quaffle. Emmeline caught it skillfully, and passed it back to Sirius. Suddenly, a large object that felt strangely like a boulder slammed into James's side. Rosier. He spun off course, clutching his broom for dear life.
"And is that a penalty for Gryffindor?" Dedalus asked, looking at Madam Hooch. "I guess not!" he shrugged as the whistle failed to sound. The Gryffindors angrily howled in response.

"Vance seems to have lost the Quaffle to Vaisey, yes, Vaisey has the Quaffle, who doesn't seem to have a problem with pushing girls around, mind you, he passes it to Malfoy, Malfoy passes it to Rosier. Looks like Potter is trying to regain possession of the Quaffle, he's closing in…" James was neck and neck with Rosier; he couldn't let him get a clear shot at Marlene.

"The Slytherin chasers are nearing the Gryffindor hoops, Rosier still in possession, looks like he's going to shoo—OH! James Potter intercepts!" James had zoomed in front of Rosier just as he shot at Marlene, and caught the Quaffle before it was even in the Keeper's zone. "Potter in possession again…" Dedalus said cheerfully. The chasers from Slytherin and Gryffindor battled for a while over possession. Emmeline nearly scored, but Wilkes shot a well-aimed bludger at her, causing her to drop the Quaffle. Abraxas Malfoy had a near miss on the Gryffindor hoops, but thanks to Marlene's impressive keeping skills, prevented Slytherin from catching up.
"Ooh! Close call there," Diggle called out, after nearly ten minutes of no one scoring. "Gregory Higgs aims a bludger at Tonks, who avoids it narrowly..."And it appears that Fenwick is retaliating.. yes, Fenwick has hit his target, Higgs takes a bludger to stomach." James could barely hear Diggle's commentary over the whistle of the wind in his ears as he zipped across the pitch.
"Potter in possession again, do you think Bletchley will let another one in?" James leaned forward on his broom, the Quaffle in one hand. He raced straight towards Bletchley, who was guarding the middle hoop, watching James like a hawk. James felt like laughing as he watched the determination on the Keeper's face turn to horror as James threw the Quaffle to Sirius at the very last second before turning upwards ninety degrees literally inches in front of the Keeper. Sirius chucked the Quaffle through the hoop as Bletchely let out a very girlish scream and flinched violently.
"What strategy!" Diggle's voice resonated around the pitch. "Incredible shot by Sirius Black and James Potter! 20-0 Gryffindor!" The Slytherins were seething from getting behind so quickly. James knew it was only a matter of time before they started cheating.
"Now Axabras Malfoy has possession, he's off toward the Gryffindor end... nice block, there Vance! And yes, Malfoy has lost possession to Black! The Gryffindor chasers are doing bloody well today!" The Slytherins hissed in protest.
"Black in possession drops it to Potter, passes up to Vance." Dedalus was having a hard time keeping up with the blurred switches in possession, which is exactly what they were hoping for. "Black, Potter, Vance, Potter, Black, Vance, Black!" Diggle exclaimed in one breath. "They're approaching the hoops aaannd... VANCE SCORES!"
Bletchley had dived for the Quaffle, but missed by centimeters. A majority of the crowd cheered loudly.
"30-0 Gryffindor!" Diggle declared. "This some of the fastest chaser work I've ever seen! And Gryffindor is ahead by thirty points twelve minutes into the game!" James was right, the Slytherins were seething, and started resorting to dirty tactics.
"Now Potter's in possession again... THAT WAS CHEATING, YOU BLASTED IDIOT!"
"Mr. Diggle!" McGonogall shouted. "This is supposed to be an unbiased commentary!"
"All right, all right, keep your hair on." Diggle waved her down. "But honestly, did you see that?" Wilkes had indeed chucked his beater's bat at James as hard as he could, to prevent him from scoring. Lucky for the Gryffindors, James had swerved so that it had only nicked his elbow, but that certainly didn't prevent him from being angry. The whistle blew.
"And that's a penalty to Gryffindor," Diggle said. "Maybe if Wilkes could read he would know that throwing your bat at a chaser is completely illegal."
"Diggle." McGonogall warned him.
"Sorry, Professor. Anyway, Vance is making the shot for Gryffidor, let's see if she makes it... she's nearing the right hoop, aaannnndddd... SCORE! That was a close one, I though Bletchley was going to actually catch the Quaffle! Wouldn't that be the day?" James privately thought that Diggle wasn't doing a very good job at an impartial commentary as he slapped Emmeline a high five.
"DIGGLE, STOP ABUSING THE SLYTHERINS AND GET ON WITH THE MATCH!" McGonogall shrieked. Diggle ignored her.
"Anyways, 40-0 Gryffindor. Great shot, Vance."
As the Gryffindors pulled further and further ahead, they Slytherin's tactics became increasingly more violent. By the time Gryffindor was seventy points ahead, Sirius had been clothes-lined, Marlene had been hit by a bludger (an unprovoked, illegal attack on the Keeper), and Vaisey actually had the nerve to steal Fabian's beater's bat right out of his hands.
"And Slythein is now eighty points behind!" Dedalus announced twenty minutes into the game. "They could still win, though, if Regulus Black can catch the snitch before Nymphadora can!"
Tonks whizzed by the commentator. "Don't call me that!" she bellowed.
"Sorry!" Dedalus laughed. "I meant Tonks, folks, Tonks." James ducked under Wilkes's bludger and zoomed toward Vaisey, who had the Quaffle in one hand insecurely. He put on a spurt of speed and knocked it out of Vaisey's grasp. Sirius caught the flyaway Quaffle expertly and raced toward the Slytherin's left hoop. James dropped below his mate and Emmeline stayed level with Sirius. They tossed it back and forth a few times, just to confuse Bletchley.
"Vance, Black, Vance, Black," Dedalus chanted quickly. "Vance, Black, Vance, Black, Van- no, Potter- SCORE!" The Gryffindors cheered wildly. "POTTER SCORES! 90-0 Gryffindor!" As James spun away from the Slytherin hoops, the crowd gasped as a whole.
"What's this?" Diggle exclaimed. Tonks had dived straight at Evan Rosier. He screamed and careened out of her way as she flew towards him like a bullet. She plummeted faster and faster towards the ground, her hand stretching forward. Was this a Wronskei Feint, or the real thing? "Tonks is diving! I think she's really seen the snitch! Black is on her tail, but I don't know if he'll be fast enough..."
Tonks grabbed at the air for a moment, then punched her fist in the air, victoriously clutching the snitch.
"TONKS HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS, 240 to 0!" The crowd went wild. James and the rest of the team shot towards Tonks and engulfed her in a midair hug, cheering and grinning triumphantly. They had won their first match! And by two hundred and forty points! The team flew to the ground, clapping backs and congratulating each-other.
"One of the fastest matches I've seen in a while!" Dedalus commented mildly. "And what a wash-out, too! If Gryffindor wins the next match by the same margin, their name will most definitely be on that cup this year!"
"To the locker room, team!" James grinned. They marched into the locker rooms, waving regally to the crowd as they left.
"Great job today, everyone, really great job." James congratulated them heartily once they had settled down a bit.
"Oh yeah, I did so much." Marlene said sarcastically. "What did I save? Two goals? Not even?" The team laughed. "Well it's not your fault the Slytherin's chasers are terrible." Benji said encouragingly.

"And it's not your fault we have three outstanding chasers!" Fabian added kindly.
"And Tonks," James addressed his seeker. The team broke out in cries of exaltation. "Amazing catch, really amazing!" She grinned sheepishly. "Thanks, guys. Regulus isn't much of a seeker. It wasn't that hard."
"All right, shower up everyone." James told his team. "If we can play the whole season like this, we've got the cup in the bag." They all nodded in agreement and trouped off to the showers, chatting enigmatically about how much they hated the Slytherins. After they showered, they had the rest of the Saturday free to do what they wished, so most of the team headed back up to Gryffidor tower. All except James, who wanted nothing more than to go up to the Head dorms and be with Lily, which surely meant studying. He ambled up the many staircases in peace, thinking he should send an owl to his parents and tell them about the match. His mum would be proud, but his father would be mad with excitement. If only his dad could come for the matches… he would really love it…. James was just down the hall from the Head's common room when he saw a part of the wall shift in his peripheral vision. He froze, and slipped a hand into robe pocket slyly. He had been expecting this for days.
"Mulciber." He said smoothly, gripping his wand tightly. Silence, then…
"Confund-"
"Protego!" There was a whooshing sound, then a thump as a large opaque object slammed into the wall.
"Finite Incantatum!" James waved his wand vaguely in the direction of the noise. The disillusionment charm lifted as Mulciber appeared, slumped against the wall, his dark hair in disarray.
"Trying to confound me, Mulciber?" James asked, raising his eyebrows.
"You blasted git!" Mulciber growled angrily. "Conjunctivi—"
"Tarantallegra Rictusempra!" James pointed his wand at Mulciber idly. Mulciber's body gave an odd jolt upwards and starting dancing the tango with an invisible partner. He then started laughing uncontrollably, most likely because James had also hit him with a tickling spell.
Lily suddenly appeared from around the corner, book in hand, and looked at Mulciber, thoroughly nonplussed. She opened her mouth, then closed it and shook her head. Mulciber was bent over, heaving with laughter, but his legs were carrying him in odd directions incongruent with his upper body. James smiled at her brightly.
"Hullo, Lily."
"Hey, James. Having fun?"
"Oh yes."
"Sectumsem-" Mulciber choked, aiming his wand at Lily.
"Expelliarmus!" Lily disarmed Mulciber quicky, no longer smiling. In fact, the expression on her face was rather frightening. Mulciber's wand flew out of his hand and clattered to the floor a good ways down the hall. "Finite Incantatum." Lily said, nostrils flared. He stopped dancing and laughing, but was harmless without his wand.
"A hundred points from Slytherin for attacking both the head boy and girl, Mulciber." Lily scowled at him angrily. He glared at her. She returned his glare, looking livid.
"You think I give a damn about house points, Evans?" He heaved, still bent over and rubbing his stomach. "You think house points matter in the long run?" She just looked at him coldly. "You know what does matter, Evans?" he sneered. "Blood status. And you're a filthy mudblood, so we'll see who's winning points in the en-"
"Avis Oppugno!" Lily shrieked.
"Incarcerous!" James shouted at the same time. In a blur, ropes and birds flew out the two's wands, and attacked Mulciber. James's ropes wrapped themselves tightly around Mulciber's body, while the small, innocent looking birds pecked at every bit of skin they could find. Mulciber bellowed in pain and fell face-first to the floor. The birds continued to peck at the back of his neck and head viscously as be struggled against his bonds. James looked at Lily mildly.
"Good one."
"Thanks, you too." she grinned, and headed back to their dorms. James turned on his heel and left Mulciber writhing on the ground.
"Someone will find him soon enough." He shrugged. Shouts of, "YOU RUDDY ARSEHOLES! MUD-BLOOD! B—"

"What was that spell he tried to use on you?" James asked curiously, closing their painting to muffle Mulciber's swearing.

"Sectumsempra." She said, scowling.

"I've never heard of it."

"It's dark magic." She said shortly. "I wouldn't suggest ever trying it out."

"Well, Mulciber tried to use it on you... we're supposed to report all serious misconduct to Dumbledore or McGonogall. If it's really a bad spell…" He drifted off, concerned. It was a good thing Lily was such a talented witch. If she'd been any slower…

"No!" she said, for some reason looking very pale all of the sudden. "I'm fine. No harm done." She said quickly.

"All right then." James said, puzzled by Lily's strange behavior.
"Congratulations on the match, by the way." Lily said, returning to her seat by the fire. "You guys were spectacular. I can't believe we won by two hundred and forty points!"
"Oh, thanks." James beamed at her. "I almost can't believe it either!"
"Tonks did really well, didn't she?" Lily said, looking impressed. "Especially for her first match..."
"She was fantastic." he agreed, taking a seat by her. "Studying?" he asked mildly.
"What else is there to do on a November Saturday?" she asked rhetorically.
"Mind if I join you?"
"What, no celebration party?" she gave a small smile and pushed her hair back from her face like she always did.
"I don't know." James shrugged. "Probably. I wasn't in the mood."
"But you're in the mood for studying?" she asked him doubtfully, raising an eyebrow at him. In the mood for you, thought James.
"Sure." He grabbed his incomplete Transfiguration essay and Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration. He could feel Lily's eyes on him as he flipped open the book and began writing. They studied and wrote in silence for a while, the grandfather clock ticking by the time at a leisurely pace, and the peaceful sound of the scratching of a quill on fresh parchment. James had nearly finished his essay when Lily asked suddenly,
"Is Transfiguration your favorite subject?" James looked up, a little surprised. Lately she had been asking him a lot of questions about himself, which was strange. It was almost as though she was genuinely interested in him. But then there were those odd moments were she suddenly became sharp and mysterious. She was impossible to figure out.
"Er. Yeah, it is." he said honestly.
"Why?"
James thought hard for a moment, and tousled his freshly washed hair.
"When I got my wand from Ollivander's, I was told my wand would be powerful in the art of Transfiguration." James said, thinking. "So I kind of came to Hogwarts thinking I'd be good at it, and I don't know, I guess I was kind of good at it. You know, a person usually likes doing what their good at..." She nodded thoughtfully.
"That makes sense."
"And you're wand is especially good for charm work." he told her matter-of-factly. "That's one of the reasons why charms is your favorite subject." She frowned at him.
"Yes, it is."
"And it's ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, and made of... willow?" He guessed. She just shook her head. He grinned at her expression. "So it is willow! I knew it! I thought it might be maple, but willow suits you better. It's sort of a beautiful, elegant wood, isn't it?"
"Why do you... watch me so much?" she asked, her lips twisted into a sheepish sort of smile.
"I find you fascinating." he said, shaking himself slightly as he started getting lost in her gaze.
"Why, though? Why me?" her brow furrowed. "There are hundreds of other fascinating girls at Hogwarts!"
"I don't know." James said honestly. "I just- I - I love everything about you, Lily, but I couldn't tell you why." A beautiful, rosy glow tinted her cheeks at this remark. It was true. He loved every bit of her. Her blushes, her snappy remarks, her furrowing brow and disproving expressions. Her long, shiny, dark red hair, intense green, almond-shaped eyes and bright smile, her freckles, her purple-striped pajama pants... All of her made his heart throb in his chest. He loved her. It was as simple as that.