A/N: I would like to apologize in advance. I wrote the majority of this chapter in snipets on my phone, and for some unknown reason, when I write on my phone… everything's abbreviated… and in present tense… Yeah, I dunno… So if it's all a jumbled mess, sorry.

It just goes to show that I would make a really lousy editor.

Chapter 14: Strangers

James stepped out onto the field elated. It had been sometime since he had gone flying, and it didn't really matter to him that this endeavor was required by his now very worked up Quidditch captain, William. James was just happy that he could flex his freedom in a way he hadn't for weeks. Besides, James was rather skilled in the art of ignoring those he wished to, a skill he called upon now seeing as how William was in one of his overbearing moods.

His teammates flanked him on both sides as their fearless leader paced backed and forth before them, spewing harsh criticism on "their lackadaisical drive" and "fumbling maneuvers." James didn't really know what William was going on about, but that probably had something to do with the fact that he had missed the last practice session. All Severus' doing, of course, and James had to dismiss the thoughts of the Slytherin lest he be wholly distracted and absent for this practice session.

"Potter!"

And James jerked to attention. "Yes, Captain?" he said. William eyed him.

"You've got lost ground to make up for, Potter. Don't think you can just get by without any effort," William chastised.

"William, he said he was sorry for missing practice," Amelia, one of their chasers, stepped in. "The only reason I didn't miss it was because I have the misfortune of sitting next to you every class," she added. James had to conceal a smile. Amelia and William had started dating over winter break, but they didn't want anyone to know. Of course everyone had not only seen it coming, but immediately knew about it upon the two's arrival from break. They were in denial about this, and so tried to cover up their relationship by having a go at one another every time they were together… which was all the time. William looked a little crestfallen by Amelia's comments at first, but then he turned his annoyance onto James like it had been his fault Amelia had defended him.

"See to it that you don't let us down, again, Potter," he warned before turning up his nose at Amelia. Amelia shook her head and rolled her eyes, but James could see her lips upturned in a small smile. William then turned his attention onto the team's two beater, Scott and Michael, who, if at all possible, looked more disinterested than James felt at the moment. William was waving his arms dramatically in front of Scott's face who continued to stare before him like there was not a madman dancing before him. Michael snorted in amusement which only caused William to direct his ire at the boy instead.

"He sure gets worked up, doesn't he?" Amelia asked, James was sure, to no one in particular. He watched as her eyes followed William with intense interest and with something glinting from within.

"I don't think you mind that very much, though, do you?" James answered, grinning mischievously. Amelia blushed ever so slightly before she knocked him off balance with her hip.

"Prat," she called him, but she was smiling when she did. James smiled in turn.

Soon their practice session commenced, and James could not fight the ear-splitting grin plastered stupidly on his face. He zigged and zagged across the sky. He dove down daringly, skimmed the ground, and then soared upwards towards the clouds. He was having so much fun flying, in fact, he forgot all about the practice part of it, and was smacked on the side of his face by a quaffle. Curse his inattentiveness.

"Dammit, Potter!" William yelled from across the field, as he sped over to him. James rubbed at his temple where it felt like a big whelp was forming. "You alright?" William asked with surprising concern. James, when his vision refocused, looked upon his captain with a half grin.

"Yeah, I'm alright," he replied. After the worry fell from William's face, he lit into James.

"This is exactly what I was talking about Potter! You can't just hover in the air like you were stung by some damn billywig—"

"A what?"

"If you just think you can get by on some talent alone, well, you are sadly mistaken!"

"I'm still confused what a billywig is…"

"Don't think I can't just replace you if you're not up for this!"

"Can you do that?"

"Because I will not compromise my victo—My team's victory just so you can blunder around in the sky!"

"Is there even anyone else that knows the chaser position?"

"We only have a week left until our match with Hufflepuff! This is wartime, Potter! I need my soldiers at their very best!" William went on. James began swaying dangerously as his vision cut in and out.

"Uh, Captain?" Scott cut in, "I don't think he's listening to you…"

"Potter! Don't ignore me! I—"

"I don't think he can hear you…" Scott added.

Why was James feeling so tired all of a sudden? He closed his eyes because that's what tired people did. He just wished his bed was more comfortable… Maybe if he switched positions?

"Potter? POTTER!"

And James, as he fell asleep, thought he felt the rushing of wind upon his face and whipping at his hair and clothes.

When he awoke, James felt like he had been trampled by an erumpent. His head was throbbing and his right eye was swollen almost shut. He found his glasses and saw from his one good eye that he was in the hospital wing.

"Ooh, Mr. Potter!" came Madam Pomfrey to his blinded right. James turned his head and watched as she poured some goopey green slush into a cup. This she handed to James who eyed it suspiciously. "I was wondering when you'd turn up again," she said, lips drawn thin.

"Might as well keep a bed here for me, right?" James smiled as he accepted the cup. Inside, the contents sloshed and burped. Why was everything that was supposed to be healthy so disgusting looking? He gulped it down, trying his best to not let the sludge linger too long on his taste buds. After he swallowed, he realized that the concoction was actually quite pleasant and tasted like apples.

"Tsk… all that fuss," Madam Pomfrey chided. "And for what, love?" but she smiled before instructing James that he was to stay in bed for at least three hours at which Madam Pomfrey would then deiced if he was well enough to leave. He was about to ask her what caused him to land in the hospital wing when he remembered what had happened the last night he awoke in the medical ward…

He glanced about the room, searching for Severus, and he tried to conceal his disappointment when instead of the Slytherin, he saw his mate Remus alongside the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"Merlin, your face is a bloated mess," Remus laughed as he sat on the edge of James' bed. If he was not being supported by the pillows just then, he'd throw one at the boy.

"Thanks, Remus. Glad to see you, too," James said as he tried to roll his eyes. He gave up on that when it caused his right eye to pang with pain.

"Can you though? See me, that is…?" Remus asked, waving a hand before James' face. James smacked it away with an affected laugh.

"Potter…" came William as he inched towards James' bed. "Look… what happened… the Quaffle… and you…" James wished the captain would stop blubbering; his headache was intensifying with each word the captain stumbled over.

"Look, he's sorry he hit you with the quaffle. Truly…" Amelia explained softly at the foot of his bed. And now look who needed Amelia's interference? William smiled gratefully at his secret girlfriend.

"Yeah, Potter… I'm real sorry," he mumbled, and James had to forgive the lad. Being the honorable Gryffindor that he was, he didn't want to shame the man in front of his maiden.

"It's alright. Maybe I suffered a great concussion and will be exempt from the O.W.L.S, yeah?" he grinned.

"First off, it's sick that you wish for that, and secondly, those exams are months away. You want to be laid up in this bed for that amount of time?" Remus argued. He always did know when to take James seriously, didn't he?

"On account of my head injury… you're not making much sense to me," James replied flatly. Remus shook his head.

"Then you must always be suffering from one of those…" he muttered. James contemplated kicking the boy off his bed, but Remus, knowing his mate well, eyed James suspiciously, a cursory glance thrown down at James' legs as if daring the boy to attempt it. James decided then that he was much too weakened from his battle injury anyway. Remus could have his small victories, he supposed.

Soon the team left and only Remus remained.

"Listen, mate," he said suddenly (they had been sitting in silence for the last couple of minutes). "I received this today," he announced, and he pulled form his trousers a small envelope. Even from his distance and with only one good eye, James recognized the elegant, slanted scrawl that was Sirius' handwriting. "He doesn't really say much," Remus added, and he handed the letter to James. This James took, ignoring the sensation that felt akin to bitterness.

He really couldn't be mad that Sirius had not written to him.

Remus sensed James' thoughts because he really did know his mate well. "He knows I would show you this letter," Remus said. "He's just too prideful to admit that he, too, can be a prat. So think of this as… some indirect communication. Besides, there's some joke in there I don't quite get, so I know he was thinking of you, too," Remus explained, obviously trying to console James.

"Oh, Moony… you caring bastard," he said lovingly. Remus rolled his eyes, hopped off the bed, and began to rummage through the treats the Gryffindor team (and some of his house mates) had left for the injured James. When Remus spied a package of treacle tarts to devour, James began reading the letter. Remus was right; there really wasn't much written, but James read beyond the succinct letter to derive the deeper meaning.

Moony,

I'm in some kind of History class at the moment, though for the life of me I don't know what this man is droning on about, but do me the kindness of allowing me to write this letter to you so as to appear as if I'm doing work.

Because the trick is always appearing as if you're studious when really you're wondering how this school gets on without any members of the better sex.

I'm not joking; it's miserable here. And all the blokes are so ugly and boring. I don't think they appreciate my humor…

Send my regards to Myrtle, my undying love; oh, how I weep for her.

Padfoot

James snorted, grinned, and then read the letter again. Sirius didn't miss his mates; he missed the maidens! And he laughed when read the bit about Myrtle again. He had once dared Sirius to ask Moaning Myrtle, a girl ghost that haunted one of the girls loo, on a date, and because dares were serious business amongst the Marauders (or at least between two of the Marauders), Sirius had complied implicitly. It took four months afterwards for Sirius to explain to the girl that things could never work out between them… It had been such a riot…

But he supposed now that that had actually been a rather… tasteless prank.

Poor Myrtle…

"You alright there?" Remus asked him, watching him quizzically. James shook off the fleeting pangs of guilt and smiled at his friend.

"I think this letter speaks volumes," James said, returning the letter to its recipient.

"Yes, I think even I understand why Sirius is so… "miserable"," he grinned, pocketing the letter again. They both then laughed at Sirius' expense though truly both boys missed their mate terribly. James was just happy that nothing… dark seemed to be taking place. After all, that was the sole reason for Sirius' departure, was it not? He was glad then that the Blacks were denied this opportunity because it seemed that, apart from being womanless, it was just a regular school.

"Am I an arse for not writing him a letter?" James suddenly asked after the laughter had died down. Remus, who was slightly clutching at his side, glanced at James.

"'Course not… You've been out of sorts lately. I think if we pressed the matter, we find that… Sirius probably struggled with his own letter here…" Remus supplied helpfully, and because James didn't want to feel anymore guilt just then, accepted his mate's words gratefully.

Eventually, Remus was shooed out from the hospital by a very insistent Pomfrey. The lad left, lifting from James' gift supply one last helping of treacle tart, before disappearing around the hospital wing entrance. Even Pomfrey went back to her office, and James was left alone.

For awhile, everything was quiet. It was as if Remus and James' teammates had ushered out all noise along with their departure, and all an idle James in a quiet room could do then was think about Severus and how he really wanted to the boy to make an appearance. If only to criticize James or jab at him in that way that James had come to understand was simply Severus' humor.

So he sat in silence, his thoughts riddled with Severus, when bit by bit the sound came back. First the rustling of his sheets, then the shuffling of Pomfrey in the back, then the chirping of birds beyond the glass windows, and then something else. It was high... And sort of lilting...

"Honestly, James! I know you weren't hit on the head that hard!"

James looked over and beside his bed was Lily Evans. And James couldn't help it; he reacted. Like most things that drove him, it was all reflex.

He smiled.

"Hullo, Evans," he said kindly. Though things were different of late, the one thing that remained constant was Lily's uncanny ability to brighten up any room.

"My, so formal," she giggled as she plopped down on James' bed. She leaned back, the hands supporting her on the other side of James' legs, so James stilled while his smile waned.

"Yes, um... Well..." he faltered, and Lily looked over at him curiously. She squinted her eyes at him.

"Then again... Maybe you were..." she mused.

"Were what?" James asked quietly as he watched Lily's long, red hair drape over his sheet-covered legs.

And she watched him all the more curiously.

"Were hit on the head..." she supplied. "You're acting sort of strange." James remembered himself then and forced a chuckle. These kinds of interactions used to be easier, didn't they?

"Suppose I'm a bit knackered, yeah?" he smiled, shifting back in his pillow and staring up at the ceiling.

"That's a possibility," she laughed. There was a time when he would have grinned like an idiot after hearing her laughter, but now? He wondered at how drastic things have changed when he suddenly felt the mattress shift. He looked down and then went rigid. Lily was reaching over across him, her arm outstretched... Her fingers flexing out...

And James couldn't move... Couldn't breathe.

"You don't mind, do you?" she asked as she grabbed a box of chocolate frogs. All he could smell was her shampoo. Thankfully, Lily did not wait for a response before opening it and popping one wriggling chocolate frog in her mouth, sparing James the difficulty of having to... react. "You know, you shouldn't be rewarded for being knocked off your broom," Lily jokingly jabbed, and James tried to think of something to say, but his mind was all muddled at the moment.

For Lily's back was pressed firmly into his thigh.

He swallowed hard. The room was sweltering just then, and he wished he could throw off the sheets. But that would require moving, so he watched as she plucked for herself another one of his chocolates. In her mouth it went, and he imagined it melt immediately on her tongue.

He wondered then how a certain other would react if given such a delectable treat.

"James? Are you alright?" came Lily concernedly. James blinked at her. "You had a really stupid expression on your face," she said, biting into another chocolate, and James did genuinely smile then.

"I thought I always had one of those," he grinned, and Lily giggled, covering her mouth to hide the bits of chocolate still in her mouth. She nodded her head enthusiastically like it was, indeed, true. He chuckled then, too, and was about to make another joke (at his expense), when he thought he saw something dark scurry by from the corner of his eye. There was nothing lingering in the doorway when he looked, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he knew exactly what—or who—had just been there.

If Lily wasn't here right now, would Severus be instead?

"I've noticed something else different about you," Lily offered quietly, and then it was James' turn to observe Lily quizzically. Lily, seeing James' apparent confusion, became slightly flustered. "It's just... Well... You've been acting differently here lately," she hushed out, fumbling with the box still in her hands.

"How so?" he asked, though, truthfully, he knew. He just wanted to see if she did as well. She cautioned a glance at him.

"You've been... Oh, I don't know how exactly to say it," she confessed, and James watched as she twirled the half empty box around and around within her hands.

"Just say it as best as you know how," James offered, his eyes still upon the box.

"Alright," she conceded, and yet she continued to sit there with uncertainty, no doubt struggling with what to say, or at least, with how to say it. "I've noticed a certain lack of... animosity between you and..." But she stopped, and James' eyes widened ever so slightly. My, the girl was clever.

No wonder Severus was so... enraptured by her.

He was not so muddled then to note the jealously simmer beneath his seemingly calm veneer. True, he felt things for Lily, too, or at least had, but to remember how Severus had as well—

... Did he still?

And that she was paying such close attention to the Slytherin as well bothered James. Could he be so selfish as to wish to be the only one that noticed the boy... The only one that saw him?

She never did say his name. She didn't have to. Lily was astute enough to know that James could decipher who the dropped name belonged to. And what could he say to her, really?

"I can admit that my... spitefulness can be a bit much," he said at last. Lily smiled though it seemed kind of pitiable.

"Good, because I was beginning to think it was really all Sirius' doing..." And James was stunned. Surely Lily knew that most of the pranks and… "animosity" towards Severus was not all from Sirius' influence? In fact, hadn't she realized that it was all James' doing?

"I won't deny that his leaving wasn't some sort of catalyst for this... new way of approaching things, but really..." he smiled grimly, "… I was just sorta... forced to confront my recent actions..." he trailed. Lily nodded her head as though the vagueness of James' answer made perfect sense. And perhaps in a way, to Lily, it did. She sat there thoughtfully as if ruminating over their conversation while popping another chocolate into her mouth. Just how many of those did he have left now?

"I think I like you like this," she said finally. James pulled his thoughts away from Severus once more, not sure he heard her correctly.

"Like what, exactly?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno... Since you haven't pranked anyone in awhile... well... I just think you're putting your cleverness to better use. I mean, look at all the top marks you've been getting!" And James considered this point

"I suppose that's true..."

She smiled so sweetly then. "This is a better James."

And James stilled because when he thought about what Lily had said—when her words broke through—he realized that it was Severus who did this to him. This version that Lily likes best is a version created and born from his closeness to Severus.

…rule abiding, quiet Severus...

At this realization, he laughed—really laughed. At first it was just a chuckle, a release for that confounding realization because such a thought was laughable, wasn't it? But then his slight chuckle increased in volume and vigor until his body shook with it. He laughed so fully, so uncontrollably, that tears began welling within his eyes.

And Lily watched him like the blow to his head had made him funny—barmy.

Oh, the irony of it all.

He found he couldn't explain himself just then, not to Lily, for how could she understand? Through his fit, he waved at her dismissively, miming to her that she needn't bother with figuring out this bout of peculiarity, that it was best to let him work through this internal joke alone. But James knew she would read it as an apology for being obnoxiously indecipherable just then. She shook her head bemusedly.

"There are times when I think that I'll never fully understand you, James Potter," she said, and James just couldn't help himself.

He laughed some more.

After James had been released from Pomfrey's care, it was after supper time. It was also with the strict orders that he "curb his enthusiasm" for the rest of the evening and promptly go to bed—But really! All James felt like he had done that day was sleep, and now that he was out of bed, into his own was not something he was keen on. Besides, did Pomfrey think he was going to go gallivant off somewhere at this time of night?

Instead, the lone Gryffindor ended up in what was becoming his most frequented spot... Because it was Severus' spot. After he had cleared the third floor landing and had reached the end of the third floor corridor, he paused outside a very familiar door.

Pomfrey had told him that it was no longer necessary to wear the bandages around his head, but James rather liked the effect of it. He tousled his hair that was sticking up around the bandages and fixed his glasses. They weren't askew or anything; James was just... restless.

When he entered the room, the ever-present Severus did not look up from his work. James supposed that was alright. After all, he liked to imagine that this was just a sort of Severus-particular greeting... being ignored, that is. So James didn't bother with his own greeting; he merely picked one of the many desks Severus had not employed for his current potion purposes and simply waited. Soon enough, Severus would finish, so James could wait.

However, as the minutes ticked on and still Severus had shown no sign that he even knew James was there, James found he couldn't contain his agitation. James opened his mouth to speak, but it was as if Severus had heard the Gryffindor's intake of breath before his oncoming speech, for he cut James off.

"You look ridiculous," he said, though he still did not look at James. James sometimes had the feeling that Severus could read his mind. How else did he know that James wanted him to remark upon his… current attire?

But that was just James being overly sensitive.

"These are war wounds, my friend," James replied, leaning back on the desk. At this, Severus did look over at him, and James tried his damnedest to not react so much.

The way Severus looked at him sometimes...

"I'm sure it was a riveting battle scene," the Slytherin said dryly, and James smiled.

The way Severus spoke to him sometimes...

"You should let me teach you how to fly," James offered, and Severus turned away and back to his work. It looked like a bunch of note taking to James; how riveting for the Slytherin.

"Not only do you presume that I don't know how to ride a broom, but that someone who was just knocked off theirs is in the position to instruct others," Severus replied.

"Fine then," James conceded. He only did so because Severus' quip meant that while the boy had not visited James at the hospital, he had at least known what had happened. And yes, that made James very happy. "You should go flying with me someday then." And because James had been watching Severus all this time, he noticed how the boy suddenly tensed. It stung him to think that Severus could still respond in such a manner. "It's just a suggestion," he added, miffed. Severus arched one brow.

"I've upset you?" he voiced, but James sensed that the Slytherin was having a go at him.

"About as much as I upset you with my offer," James replied evenly. After that, Severus didn't say anything more—his work became the priority again—and James didn't bother him. He tried to think of all the reasons Severus had for not accepting his offer, the obvious one being that the boy simply didn't want to be seen cavorting about with a Gryffindor, and could James blame him for that?

He found that he could.

"Could I say hullo to you?"

Severus looked over at him confessedly, almost dropping the quill in his hand, and James stirred a bit, for he hadn't meant to ask that aloud.

"What are you talking about?"

"If I saw you... As we passed each other by in the halls... Could I call out to you?" Since he had voiced his thoughts, he was curious as to how Severus would answer him.

"What purpose would that serve?"

James straightened, taken aback. That wasn't what he had wanted to hear. "I... To acknowledge you, I suppose," he explained.

"You think my self worth is some how lessened then if you didn't say hullo?" Severus questioned coolly.

"No... Of course not!"

"Then again... What's the purpose?"

"So I should ignore you? Dismiss you?"

"It's not a dismissal..."

"To me it is, besides... if I did, it's not like people would think it really means something."

"Oh no, you're right about that. They'll think you're having a go at me—flexing that Gryffindor superiority. So again, I ask you, why would you say anything to me?"

James reeled, throwing his hands up exasperatedly. "I can't believe I'm having an argument with you about a stupid little greeting. Fine then... You should say hullo to me." Severus looked startled, but he regained his composure quick enough. He always did.

"No... I don't think I will..."

James did he best to suppress his irritation, but the Slytherin's persistent need to be difficult made it near impossible for James to do so.

"Why not? What's the issue? If you say hullo to me... It's not like people will think I'm trying to… "flex my superiority" over you! In fact, they may wonder just what it is you have on me... Power's in your hands then, so… why not greet me?"

Severus' hand stilled completely, and then he flattened them both upon his desk, hovering over his notes as if inspecting them thoroughly.

"... Because you asked me to..."

And James felt something plummet inside his chest.

"Merlin, you're impossible," he hushed out, rubbing at his temples tiredly. "You never humor me, you know," James added, and yes, he could admit that this was less of an accusation and more in line with whining. "And I'm tired of being in this room! With you, it's either this place or the library! I'm going mad! How can you stand being cooped up in this castle all day long, everyday?" Severus regarded him coolly as James continued to rant. When it appeared as if James was winding down, Severus began to write again, which irked James all the more, believing the boy was not taking him seriously. He was about to remark upon that, too, or really complain about it, when Severus spoke up.

"I'm going to the forbidden forest tonight," he said simply. James blinked confusedly.

"What?"

"I'm running low on supplies, and rather than expend a lot of money on ingredients, I'll take them for free."

"... Again, what?"

"Most of what I need is in the forest."

"Severus... I don't understand..." He slipped his forefinger and thumb underneath his glasses and rubbed at his eyes. Will the boy ever make sense to him?

"... You can come with me."

And James bolted upright, and he almost knocked off his glasses from the shock. Severus looked momentarily stunned himself, as if he had not meant to say such a thing out loud. They both seemed to suffer from a lack of self-control this night. After he straightened his glasses, James could not tear his eyes away from Severus, and the Slytherin did not look away from him either. James could feel his face growing warmer the longer they looked at each other, and he didn't know if it was from embarrassment... or something else.

The way Severus looked at him sometimes...:

James could feel himself leaning off the desk all the more—could feel himself lifting off of it—one foot pressed into the floor as if intent on moving forward, but Severus broke eye contact.

"Of course you don't have to. It doesn't matter to me either way, I only offered because—"

"No! I'll go! I'll go!" he proclaimed, leaping off the desk, trying to stop the Slytherin from rescinding the offer. "It sounds fun..." He grinned sheepishly as he walked over to Severus, and he noticed how the boy balked, a kind of nervous twitching reminiscent of their earlier, more... combative days, though he supposed there was still plenty of contention between them.

"We'll just be collecting ingredients," Severus said quietly. "In fact, maybe you shouldn't come. You'll probably just slow me down, or—" but James came to stand right beside him, and he pressed his shoulder into Severus'. He thoughtfully looked down at the table. "Is this your list?" he asked.

"Yes..."

"Alright... Well... I'm helping you then!" He bumped the boy's shoulder, smiling at him warmly, feeling a kind of intoxicating elation bubbling up inside him.

And Severus stated at him for a bit, the expression enigmatic and indecipherable to James, but he looked away before James could even try to understand what it had meant.

"That remains to be seen," he said, but James could see the boys lips turned upward ever so slightly.

And James couldn't help himself; he smiled all the more.

He treaded behind Severus, letting the boy guide him as though he had never walked this path before, a quiet kind of reverence welling up inside of him as his hushed footsteps mirrored those of the Slytherin's. And this felt more extraordinarily dangerous than any of his previous adventures with his mates, and he didn't know why. Perhaps it was because he was so excited. Perhaps it was because he hadn't done something like this in awhile. But maybe... just maybe, it was because Severus, quiet, rule abiding Severus, was the one leading him. And oh yes, how it excited him.

They crept passed the looming threshold of the castle and slipped seamlessly into the night. The expanse of grass was immense, and the rustling caused by their hurried feet lit an excitement within James that made him grin from ear to ear. Owls were hooting nearby, and the trees swayed ominously before them. Above them, the moon was alight like a white flame, and the many eyes staring out from the fringes of the forest reflected that light.

And all of that seemed a forewarning—like his and Severus' secret adventure would be exposed. But James found he didn't care. They could be reveal, the two of them, and James would not hide from it. In fact, when he thought about getting caught with this boy, this boy who both surprised him and... thrilled him, he couldn't help but feel prideful. But as they cleared the outer band of the forest, it seemed their secret was safe for a little while longer.

Severus ushered James further and further into the dense woodland, until that ever present white orb blinked in and out, in and out, and then was lost altogether. So dark was the forest that James did not know how Severus was able to guide them along. Had the boy done this before? Did he have some kind of innate ability to perceive through the darkness? At this, James chuckled to himself, but he realized then that Severus was several steps ahead of him. He sped up to the boy and followed closely.

"Don't step on my cloak, Potter..." he whispered back to him. James smiled and clutched at his chest. Not for sentimental reasons but because tucked away underneath his jumper... was his own, special cloak. He hoped they didn't need it, but one can never be too careful when in the Forbidden Forest.

Of course, the things that roamed within the dense woodlands had other senses to help them find the two trespassers. The creatures lurking around the boys didn't need sight. James shuddered, having thoroughly frightened himself, and watched the woods around him warily. He saw, or hoped that he was imagining, many glowing, strangely alarming eyes above him, but perhaps they were just stars, yes?

He didn't know why he was reacting so skittishly. How many times had he and his mates ventured into these woods? Never mind that they were usually in animagi form while Remus ran amok as his wolfish counterpart. The point was that James was at least somewhat familiar with the woods.

And yet with each step he took, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck and the front of his arms rise and rise until his skin was rippling with tiny bumps.

And then he stopped.

Ahead in a small clearing was something standing... Waiting? He realized then that Severus saw it, too, for the boy was a couple of feet behind him, stock still and watching the figure in turn. James eased back, carefully placing each foot down and behind him until he was beside the boy. He reached under his jumper and revealed his cloak.

"I think we should get under this..." he whispered to Severus, while not lifting his eyes from the figure in the distance. The forest was so quiet then that even though James had spoken very, very quietly, his voice seemed to carry forth, getting louder and louder as if wanting to reach the stranger before them.

"I don't think that'll help, James," Severus said, and James couldn't even wonder at the fact that Severus possibly knew what the cloak was or at how he had used his first name. No, that's not what he wondered at.

Severus looked at James hard. "He's seen us already."

And James couldn't help it; he was frightened all the more.

A/N: Well… this story kind of took a different turn for me! So this might have been a "nothing-really-happened" kind of chapter. I apologize for that. Buuuuut more is on the way!...? Maybe...? No, it is.