easel
James set his easel up near the Black Lake - their Muggle Studies homework was to paint a picture like Muggle children did in their "art class". Granted, he had no idea how to paint if his life depended on it, but it was worth a shot. And there was also the fact that Lily Evans was next to him (ignoring him, sure, but still next to him).
He took his "paints" out and peered outside at the lake. The clouds had just cleared, and the sky was glowing with hues of red and orange. Out of the corner of his eye, James noticed Lily getting frustrated. "Alright, Evans?" he asked out of habit.
For some reason, she didn't shout at him. "I have no idea what to draw," she said.
"Try the lake. That's what I'm doing."
"I know, I know, but..." she bit her lip. "I'm horrible at drawing. When I used to go to Muggle school, everybody else did great in art class. I was the least creative out of all of them-" She stopped mid-sentence. James had put his hand over her eyes.
"Don't think about anybody else," he said softly. "It's just you and the lake. And the sunset. Imagine it."
Lily made to protest, but James shushed her. "Imagine," was all he said.
They spent the next two minutes in silence. James slowly removed his hand from her eyes. Lily blinked. "Feeling better?" he smirked slightly.
She smiled. "A lot. Thanks."
"No problem. Show me your painting when you're done, yeah?"
"Sure."
Smiling, Lily turned to her own easel and began to draw - not a landscape - but James Potter.
a/n: Really wasn't in the mood for writing today, so I forced myself to write this tiny thing.
