Chapter 14: Third Person POV

You could say that the little stunt they pulled caused them to come closer. You could also say it caused them to rip apart.

You see, from then on, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, and even Remus Lupin had a newfound, strengthened respect for Lily Evans. Her sheer brilliancy had been truly honorable.

James Potter however, had been so obsessed with his own "prank" that he had neglected his girlfriend and friends for a while. It didn't matter tonight though, he was about to be the talk of the school yet again.

He was setting up his arch-nemesis, Severus Snape, for a little embarrassment. It had taken a lot of time, not to mention a lot of his intelligence to create a Veritaserum potion. And Snivelly was going to drink it.

He was standing behind a wall, hearing the shuffling noises of what could only be Snape's footsteps. James Potter halted him with a Stupefy and forced the drink down his throat before Snape could even draw his wand.

Snape was looking at James with a mix of horror, hate, and humiliation. It made his unattractive face contort.

"What do you want?" Snape spat.

His spit fuelled James' fury. He pushed him up against the unknown corridor and gagged him, "I ask the questions around here, Snivellus." They were nose to nose with rage. Although Snape looked like he had swallowed a dung beetle, he kept his thin mouth shut.

James yanked back his greasy hair, making sure he could see all of his face. He wanted to look him in the eye this time when he made his life miserable.

"Now Snivelly, tell me your deepest secret. I want to hear it loud and proud," James said as he reveled in the power over this greasy young boy. The boy that had been the target of so many pranks and jokes.

To see James like this was eerie, almost like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He had gone from caring-boyfriend-and-loyal-friend to sick-twisted-minded-bully. His hazel eyes were glittering with malice and hate no one knew existed.

Severus seemed to resist for a moment, almost as if he were resisting the Imperious Curse. But this was no Imperious Curse, this was Veritaserum, the most powerful truth potion in the entire Wizarding World.

"I love Lily Evans," he said, his mouth twisting as if denying every word. He had been trying to get over her, especially after her betrayal, but he simply couldn't bring himself to forget the brilliant green-eyed witch.

Surprise, anger, and envy blinded the bully. James faltered for a moment, his hand drew back in shock, and his face fell. It was enough time for Sirius Black and Remus Lupin to intervene. Severus couldn't understand why they had waited so long, but at least they chose to act, rather than stand aside and let it all happen.

Sirius grabbed his wand arm, forcing him off the wall, and Severus Snape. James resisted almost instantly, flailing and aiming punches at the slimy boy. He wasn't finished yet. Fortunately, Remus pulled Severus out of the way of James' flying fists, taking a good one to the eye in the process. He figured it was karma, after standing and watching the humiliation for so long, he deserved some sort of payback. He always knew that being a bystander was the same thing as being the bully.

Sirius barked in an authorative voice, struggling to keep the stocky boy contained, "Oi! James! Cut this out!" James didn't "cut it out". He sprung out of Sirius' grip and swung randomly. HIs fury covered every action he made, blinding him. He was James Potter, and he wasn't going down without a fight.

Remus dropped Severus and went to protect Sirius, taking the blow for him. The strong boy's fist connected with his cheekbone, causing a red mark to immediately appear. With the amount of force attached to the punch, he would definitely have a bruise. However, Remus did not retaliate, he spoke instead.

"James. I don't want to hurt you. If you stop now, I won't. If you don't stop, I will," James was still panting heavily when he leaped for Remus' throat. Remus reacted faster than Sirius could have imagined. His huge, paw like hand caught James mid-leap and threw him back about fifteen feet. He landed on his back. Sirius was frozen now, scared of the strength and power his tall friend had hidden so well.

Remus stalked stealthily, like a wolf on a hunt, as he approached his prey. His amber eyes were glistening with sadness and ferocity as his wolfish instincts took over. It was one of the reasons he didn't like to get into fights. He would never be the one hurt, his opponent however...

He growled as he kneeled besides James. The bespectacled boy was raising his arms in protection, literally fearing for his life. The anger and revenge in him had been replaced by the flight and fight instinct.

It was that movement that caught Remus off guard. He saw one of his best friends so vulnerable, so scared, because of him. Because of what he was. He jumped up and fell back, running back to Sirius, praying he wouldn't judge him.

Severus and Sirius were looking at Remus with a kind of admiration and fear. James blearily lifted his head to look at the trio of boys standing. His head was throbbing from the impact made on the stone floor. His thoughts were turning and his senses were dulled.

Remus spoke first, desperately trying to disperse the tension he caused. "Are you alright?" he asked, directing his attention to Snape. His obsidian eyes betrayed nothing.

Severus nodded, "Yes," he looked at James, who was moaning on the ground, "Thank you." He said, nodding to the two taller men, though looking directly at Remus.

Sirius nodded, "Even you didn't deserve that." He looked with disgust to his best friend, who was still groaning with the pain that throbbed through his entire body.

Severus snorted and sneered, "What a compliment. I'll have to remember that one."

Remus chuckled at the boy's spite, "He didn't mean it that-"

"I know. I was trying to save some face," Severus continued, trying to keep the sneer on his face. He was legitimately thankful towards the two boys, he just didn't want his feelings getting around.

"Ah. I see," Sirius said. He ran a hand through his dark hair before sticking out a hand. Snape looked warily at it for a moment, before shaking it. They were eying each other up the entire time, but at least a bit of their rivalry had been defeated.

"Sorry, Snape. For everything," Sirius dropped his hand from Snape's and walked away toward is friend, leaving the werewolf with the Slytherin. It was an awkward silence for a moment.

"I owe you something Lupin. I won't forget," Snape said as he stuck out a hand. Normally, it was Gryffindors that displayed bravery and gallantry, not Slytherins.

Remus took it, but said softly, "You don't owe me anything. This is payment for all the pranks I've ever pulled. I'm sorry." Remus dropped it and walked away, before the young Slytherin could stop him, leaving him awestruck at the corridor. Now there was a true Gryffindor.

He took long strides to reach his best friends at the end of the hallway, ashamed for how far he had thrown James. His head was bowed when he reached them. Sirius was holding James by the scruff of his neck. There was a bulge on the side of his head about the size of a Snitch. Remus didn't feel incredibly sorry for that injury, considering his eye was now swollen shut and his cheek was probably a delicious color purple.

Sirius was obviously fuming, a muscle in his jaw jumping. "Let's get him to our dorm, where we can talk freely." James tried to make amends, but his mumbling was drowned out by Remus' deep voice.

"I couldn't agree more."