Hello! I hope you like this chapter (:
Thanks to Elphaba01 and Phoenixheavenlife.
Hope you're all having amazing hols!
Disclaimer: Just checking- Nope!
I don't own the Harry Potter universe
Chapter 3
As Alice and I walked down the corridors, I stewed in my own juices. I've always found that makes feelings and opinions more concentrated. I thought over everything I knew about Potter, a technique I often use when trying to figure out something complicated.
His name is James Potter, I don't know his middle name… if he even has one.
He is a wizard.
He is a Pureblood from a very rich family who have a manor and house elves.
He is an only child.
He has three great friends at Hogwarts, Sirius Black (Who he calls Padfoot), Remus Lupin (Known as Moony) and Peter Pettigrew (Wormtail).
His best friend is Black.
He lothes Severus Snape.
He has told everyone he fancied me ever since first year, and started asking me out in third year.
I've never said yes to him, although he has been VERY persistent and often asks me two or three times in one day.
I have no feelings for him.
We climbed down the marble staircase, through the entrance hall and into a passage that led to the caretaker's office in the lower dungeons. There were long shadows on the walls from the eerie light of the enchanted fire that danced and flickered in the torch brackets against the cold limestone. The walk through the underground passageways was not a long one, but the corridors interwove, and it was so cold. Thank goodness Professor Slughorn took his classes in an upper dungeon room.
Pringle's office door was slightly ajar and whispered voices came from within.
"Yeah! That would be great! It would serve him right, stupid greasy haired git."
"Where shall we do it? The Great Hall would cause maximum mortification. But we would be more likely to get caught."
"So? All you have to do is flirt with McGonagall..."
I opened the door. Black and Potter stood next to each other, looking at me guiltily. I rolled my eyes, and sat down on a box in the corner, Alice next to me. Potter kept glancing at me, I pretended not to notice. After two, rather awkward minutes, Pringle came in and announced that our detention would be repainting one of the disused classrooms- without magic.
Snape still hasn't turned up.
We trudged up to a classroom in the second floor corridor that I had never been in before. There was mould in the corners and damp on the walls. It was obvious that nobody had even come in here for quite some time. Five heavily graffitied desks sat in the middle of the room, and around the edges there were pots of: Summerfield's bright white wizarding paint! With brushes.
"When you're done, fetch me and I'll tell you if your work is satisfactory."
Alice cast charms over us to keep off the paint, and we started work. It would've been very dull if we hadn't been earwigging on Potter and Black's conversation. They were being so loud we couldn't help but listen. Listening is not something you can turn off and on at will, or else tune into the person who you happen to want to listen to at the time.
"Anyway, Rosmerta goes 'Aww Sirius, you shouldn't have!' and I'd swear she was about to kiss me. It must have looked like that to Kristina as well, because she does this enormous fake cough, pushes Rosmerta out of the way and SHE kisses me instead. I didn't care much though. She kisses well."
If it had been anyone else talking, I would have been highly disapproving of his treatment of all the girls he went out with- a number that more than likely topped twenty. But anyone stupid enough to go out with him was just asking for that rubbish really. They knew his reputation.
After awhile, the boys' voices grew quieter. They whispered to each other, evoking my curiosity. I moved to a different area that needed a more thorough coat of paint in order to overhear them better.
"What will Lily think though. I don't want her to be angry at me again, you know I hate that Padfoot."
"Maybe she'll laugh at it, it will be hilarious."
"I wonder if she will remember it."
"I guess she won't actually remember, but she definitely said it and there's no denying that."
"I dunno Padfoot..."
"Seriously! What's the matter Prongs? You've never worried this much before!"
"I just want her to see the real me this year."
"Agh! Why does everything rotate around Lily Evans? I know you like her and everything…"
"That's just it Padfoot! And she hates me! God, she would probably rather go out with Snape."
"Believe me Prongs, no one would rather go out with Snivellus than you."
My brain went into overdrive. Here they were, two old ladies having a chin-wag, ABOUT ME! They had no right to talk about me behind my back!
I guess there was not much point in getting worked up about that- I knew it already, but what what we're they planning.
He really likes me? No wait, he likes the idea of me because I always refuse him.
If Black has something to do with it then it must be a prank of some kind.
What had I said that they could hold against me?
What...
"Hey, Evans!"
Urgh! I hated it when people interrupted my musings.
"What?"
I snapped.
"You look... Pretty tonight."
He eyed my clothes and hair.
"Not exactly what I would choose you to be wearing, but pretty all the same."
I blushed, both at what he was implying (And we can be sure that he was implying something of the more inappropriate kind), and at the compliment. They kind of burned each other out and left me with a weird, neutral feeling that I had never experienced in the presence of James Potter before.
I decided to return the compliment, because, for Potter, this new neutral feeling was an enormous improvement to what was usually the case. Also because I wanted to surprise him. Unpleasant people often get annoyed if you are pleasant to them, proving something. I just wanted to see what his feelings were on the matter I suppose. I looked at him. Potter was wearing a tight fitting t-shirt with the logo of THE WIMBOURNE WASPS emblazoned at the top. I was surprised, I supported that team too, even though I wasn't a massive fan of Quiddich.
I stared at the logo for a few seconds before looking Potter in the eyes. He wore a smirk on his face that disappeared when I looked up.
"You look um, nice as well."
I blushed again and turned away. Alice was looking amazed, Black smug. I dipped my brush into the thick white paint, and began to apply a second coat to the wall.
••••••••••••
I dreamed that I was in the Quiddich stadium, sitting with the other Gryffindors. None of the players had come onto the pitch yet. After awhile, the commentator Devin Marks shouted
"Put your hands together for... THE WIMBOURNE WASPS!"
The team flew out, a blur of blue and yellow. One of the chasers was wearing a different uniform though. I strained to see who it was: Potter! Wearing his Gryffindor team uniform and looking, wow. The team did a lap around the pitch, and when he passed me, Potter shouted
"Like what you see, Evans?"
When I woke up, I couldn't remember the dream at all.
The next afternoon, I had double charms. I handed in my essay to Professor Flitwick. Black hadn't done his- again, but surprisingly, Potter handed in his. It infuriated me that however many essays Black and Potter skipped, however many classes they missed, they still got top marks in every test. I decided to give in and laugh along with the rest at Black's pathetic excuses. Potter gave me a funny look.
The only person not laughing was Remus. He looked pale, and for the first time I noticed a streak of grey in his usually light brown hair. He had bags under his eyes. We started a short course on 'More advanced useful spells for everyday'. This lesson, we each had a chest. In each chest was a 'situation' in which a charm would be useful. We had to find/use the appropriate charm to counter the effect of the 'situation'.
Flitwick muddled up the chests so we had no idea what spell we would be getting when we picked a chest. I chose a small chest made out of a honey coloured wood, and without hesitation, used the unlocking charm, alohamora. Inside the chest was a piece of mouldy bread. I knew exactly what charm to use to make the mould go away, but just as I was about to say the incantation a noise came from the opposite side of the room.
SPLURGE
I turned around. James Potter stood there covered head to toe in the vomit that was coming from his mahogany chest. Although I laughed, I did feel kind of sorry for him.
"Mr Potter, would you like to go and clean yourself up?"
Squeaked tiny professor Flitwick.
"Thanks Professor."
Black was rolling on the floor laughing, Remus gave a weak smile, and Pettigrew looked as though he didn't know wether to laugh or look concerned.
At the end of the lesson, I was putting my spell book back in my bag when an ink bottle broke. The entire contend of my bag was navy before I had even started cleaning it up.
I scourgified My books, essays and parchment, but as I turned to leave, I saw a black bag in the corner with splatters of vomit on it. I realised this must be Potter's bag so I scourgified that too and decided to take it to him. Now, I'm not someone who enjoys snooping in others possessions, but there was a piece of parchment folded in the edge of his bag that was grubby- well fingered. My curiosity took the better of me, and I unfolded the page.
Grand Plan:
She thinks I interfere with her life, so I don't talk to anyone (apart from my mates) about her.
I don't hex/curse Snivellus- urgh
I act cool and charming around her (try not to compliment myself... Hmmm, is Remus right about that one?)
I don't ask her out.
AFTER PRANK CELEBRATION/PARTY
No. He had gone to far this time. A plan of action, about me? I had to confront him about this one. I walked quickly back to the common room, but he wasn't there. So I went to dinner and looked for him in the great hall, but he wasn't there. I waited in the common room until
11:00, but he still didn't come, so I decided to go up to the Sixth Year boy's dormitory- a risky thing I know, but I was still really angry.
The spiral staircase up to the boys' dormitories was almost exactly the same as the girls', except for the colour of the walls which was cream, rather than the soft lilac I was accustomed to.
I passed doors with signs on them to indicate which year occupied each dorm, and the Sixth years dorm was only three floors up. The sign on the door read:
SIXTH YEARS
Gryffindor House
Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry
(Beware! This room is home to the marauders, enter at your own risk)
I rolled my eyes and pushed the creaky door open.
Their dorm was surprisingly tidy, although I guessed that must've been the work of the house elves.
I walked over to the bed I thought must be Potters- it had a photo by the bed of a pretty middle aged witch and a wizard that looked just like James (except he had blue eyes instead of Hazel) in a frame with the Potter family crest on it.
Lying on top of the scarlet and gold coverlet, was a 'bit of old parchment', with stark black lines inked all over the page. They spiralled out, criss crossed and jumped out around the heavily decorated words:
Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs purveyors of aids to magical mischief makers are proud to present,
The Marauders Map
Thanks for reading! I'm going on holiday soon with no internet so that means no updates for awhile folks!
I know the simplifying mind thing is from the Hunger Games, those books are great! I couldn't help calling the map 'a bit of old parchment', for old time's sake. Mind you, from someone who accidentally calls her local pub 'The Three Broomsticks' on a regular basis, it really isn't very bad…
Review please!
Happy Holidays (-:N