five – drawn

"No, no, Lily! Seriously, don't, or –" he breaks off, cursing.

"Ow!"

"I told you," he says matter-of-factly. She's only playing against Potter because she has nothing else to do and she decides there and then that she doesn't like the smug grin on his face one bit.

(She might.)

"It stabbed me!"

"It's a chess piece with a sword the size of a cocktail stick, Evans. I doubt you're mortally wounded."

He smiles even more at her grumbles of stupid game and red face and "Who's idea was it anyway? I can't play this. I can't even play normal chess, Potter. Stop taking advantage."

James glances at her. She's sitting across the table from him, legs crossed under her on the armchair, leaning forward to search the board for her next move. Her hair dangles forward and he imagines it would tickle if he put his arm by it, and she has a little crease in her forehead while she calculates what to do next.

His mother's told him that he's a Potter and he has a reputation to uphold, and they're only eleven and he doubts she meant it in the way he's thinking but he knows what taking advantage means and he blushes slightly.

A bishop yells instructions at Lily and James points to him. "You should do that. That's a good move."

She looks up suspiciously. "Why are you helping me?"

(He doesn't like seeing her frown.)

James shrugs.

Lily looks at him for a little longer and finally decides to take his advice, muttering to the knight to move to the square James had pointed out.

As he makes his move she regards him and asks again, "Why did you help me?"

(He wants to see her smile.)

"You're right. It's not fair if you don't know how to play," he improvises, and she seems to swallow the tale.

"Well, thank you," she says, always gracious, and she might be about to smile at him when Sirius comes barging into the common room with tinsel round his neck. Peter stumbles in after him with glitter in his hair and a bunch of cracker snaps in his hand.

"James," Sirius says, practically bouncing over to his friend. "You will never guess what Pete and I just did."

Peter giggles and Lily raises an eyebrow, telling the rook to move two spaces diagonally left.

"What?"

"Well, the spell-work was a bit ropey, but we charmed these giant crackers to explode with tinsel in the Slytherin common room!"

James makes his play and says, "Really?"

In his excitement, Sirius doesn't quite hear the sarcastic undertones of James' voice. "Yes!" He stops, as if noticing Lily and the chess game for the first time. "What are you doing?"

"…playing chess."

"James, are you off your rocker? It's Christmas! Have some fun!"

Lily leans in closer to the board, scanning the squares for the winning move.

"I was having fun," the boy protests, and he checks the board too.

"Playing chess?"

Defensively: "Yes."

Lily stretches out her arm, about to make her play, as Peter points out that chess is boring and grabs James' arm, hauling him up. Sirius grabs his other arm and manages to knock the board at the same time, sending indignant chess pieces flying. The girl glares at him.

"I was about to win!" she says frustratedly.

"Sorry," Sirius mutters, and tugs his friends on their way.

"Not with that board, Evans," James calls over his shoulder, and Lily stands.

"What?"

"It would have been a draw," he explains, the smug grin back in place. "You'll have to do better next time!"

They disappear through the portrait hole and Lily decides there and then that there will never be a next time.

(They're sitting outside in the June sunshine in the last days of sixth-year when she finally beats him at wizard's chess. It's one of her favourite memories.)