QL, Wanderers, Beater 1, Round 2.

Prompts: "Aww, does somebody need a hug?" and Forest Green.

Word count: 1256

Betas: CUtopia, Aya Diefair

Warning: Near death experience.

A little swim never hurt anybody... right?

James Potter sauntered out of Hogwarts and towards the Black Lake, feeling the heat of the sun rays hitting his face as the light reflected from the surface of the water. It was his first year at this overly-strict school and it was time to have some fun! He had been here a whole nine days following all of the rules and ridiculous structure that it got quite dull real fast.

The eleven-year-old boy would not be contained and he was determined to make a name for himself. Just as he started to undo his neatly done up tie, he froze. He hadn't been the first to take up the opportunity of the sun and jump into the lake – Sirius was already floating around the lake as if he owned it. James almost wanted to sulk – he wasn't used to not getting his own way – but soon found himself grinning and running towards the lake to join Sirius with a leap. He knew he was going to like him. They had the same minds!

"Ahh!" Sirius yelled as he was splashed.

James let out a chuckle before submerging himself underwater and enjoying the refreshing coolness of it move around him. He opened his eyes to enjoy the view as well as the feeling… however, it wasn't as clear as he imagined.

Resurfacing, James shook his head. "This water's filthy!"

"What did you expect?"

"To be able to see… it's all… green." James didn't bother to hide the disgust in his voice. This was not what he'd imagined the infamous Black Lake to be like. Now he was even doubting if there was a giant squid or not hidden in its depths.

Sirius shrugged carelessly. "It gets clearer the further you go down."

"That I have to see!"

The two eleven-year-olds dived into the murky water and descended through the water with a new energy and excitement. James was thrilled when the water cleared up and he finally saw the wonderful sea life he had expected. The underwater forest was his biggest surprise – that must have been why the top layer of the lake was forest green.

They both resurfaced simultaneously for air. "Told you! Only a few meters before it clears!"

"With an amazing forest too!"

Sirius shrugged and began to swim further out. James was hot on his heels.

"How deep do you think it is?"

"Can't be too deep," he theorised as they both stopped swimming and looked into the forest green murky water.

James looked at his new friend, and as an idea formed in their minds, they both slowly started to smile mischievously. "Race you to the bottom!"

With all of the excitement, adrenaline, and competitive thoughts running through their mind, they both dove a second time heading towards the bottom. However, neither of them considered how long it'd take to swim back up to the surface. It was only James slowing down to admire the scenery that caused him to take a moment to realise that he needed to take a breath.

Looking upwards, James felt a hint of panic before looking for his friend. Why was Sirius still going! And into the forest! James forced his panic to dissipate as he followed his friend into the different layers of green which made up the amazing underground adventure.

At this moment in time, James discovered that he was a faster swimmer than his friend and that alone made him speed up and regain all the energy he had lost. He grabbed Sirius by the arm and forced him to stop before pointing upwards. They were both completely submerged in the forest, branches, vines, and seaweed.

Sirius thankfully nodded and started to make his way back towards the surface. Though, it seemed that his friend was able to hold his breath longer than him, James was already struggling to breathe, or even find the strength to kick his legs. Why wouldn't they move? Why were they so heavy? He knew what he had to do, knew he needed to get out of the water. But his body wasn't cooperating and the water appeared to be clouding his vision. Unfortunately, he felt like it had nothing to do with the greenness of the forest. His stomach tightened and the urge to throw up and gag simultaneously wasn't helping. He just needed to breathe. But by now his mouth was hanging open, the once tranquil water was filling his throat and burning his lungs. The last thing James remembered thinking about was his mother. The way she'd always rescue him when he did stupid things like this. Shout at him for an hour before wrapping him in the fluffiest blanket he had ever been wrapped in.

Right now, as he slowly began to lose consciousness, he wished he could hug her again, to hold on to her with all of his might and never let go. James didn't want to be at Hogwarts anymore, he just wanted his mum.

James spluttered out water as he sat up with a start. His lungs felt like they were burning and his eyes were stinging with tears. He refused to cry, though, and as he tried to calm down, he heard somebody else spluttering for air next to him; it was Sirius.

"That was very stupid," a deep voice stated calmly.

Upon raising his head, James was very surprised to see a large and tall Ravenclaw standing above them with his wand out. "I want my mum," he breathed out. He didn't care how whiny he sounded in front of the older student, his mum would make everything better.

"Aww, does somebody need a hug?" Sirius teased. He looked like a drowned rat and was bent over on his hands and knees, but he didn't appear to be emotionally affected by nearly dying. How could he act so casual?

Little did his friend know that a hug was exactly what he needed.

The older boy knelt down. "If you ask to see your mother, it will get around school." James looked up at him. "You did a very stupid thing swimming in the Black Lake… but it was brave. Let the school remember that version of you."

The last thing James wanted to care about was his reputation. However, he would at least try to wait sometime before demanding to see his mum. He internally promised himself he'd wait a day before speaking to the headmaster. Realising that the Ravenclaw was waiting for a response, he simply nodded.

"Let's get you both inside before a professor discovers that you—"

"That they almost drowned?" Professor McGonagall interrupted. "James and Sirius, 5 points from Gryffindor for your complete disrespect for rules and putting yourself in danger. Each. And you'll get detention for your stupidity. Kingsley," The professor paused. "10 points to Ravenclaw for saving the lives of two students."

James couldn't even feel compelled to argue back over being given his first detention. He was simply happy to be alive with the chance of seeing his mother again. The thought of only serving a detention and not expulsion had him thinking… what else would he be able to get away with without being harshly punished?

He looked at his friend who looked even less concerned at being given detention than himself. Surely Sirius would be up for a few more adventures. The only restriction was that he made it home for Christmas to give his mum the biggest hug possible.

Thank you for reading.