Hola chicos. Um. Well. Apologies I feel are in order. This is a shitty chapter, but I had to do SOMETHING to finish this darn story. And this is the beginning of the end. I'm thinking we'll go up to 20ish chapters. And I'll finish it properly this time! Oh the wonders of procrastination - they really encourage fanfiction.
I have three more fics semi written, all about Snape. I'm fascinated by him lately.
The next installment will probably be re. Valentines day, and Sasha's upcoming date with Mr Lovegood.
Thanks for staying with me. xx
Lily lay quietly on her bed, still curled in the foetal position she had awoken from just a few minutes earlier. The curtains had been flung open and Lily could feel the bitterly cold sunlight playing on her eyelids, like fairies dancing across ice. From a point somewhere to her right she could hear Sasha singing to a song that she couldn't place and, if she strained, she could make out strains of Evangeline trilling loudly away in the shower, words bubbling out from under the door. The smell of musk and woody plants wafted about the room, from Sasha's lavish perfume spraying and, Lily sniffed again, she could even smell hot chocolate from one of the dressers. That was it.
"Oh, morning Lil. We were wondering how long it would take you to get up." Sasha shrugged on a dressing gown and stuck her head out of their dormitory door. "Oi! Sirius! She's awake and it's only just gone half past nine. You, sir, owe me five galleons!" There was a muffled "Mghh" from the boys' bedroom and she shut the door and turned to face Lily. "He thought it would be at least ten forty five before you woke up. I, however have more faith in your hot chocolate smelling abilities." She grinned and grabbed the mug from Lily's side table and wafted it under her nose. "I knew I could rely on your nez."
Lily raised an eyebrow. "Well good morning to you too." Evangeline emerged from the bathroom, damp and warm and wrapped in about three huge white fluffy towels. "Good morning Lily flower, how are you?"
Once they were dressed they made their way down to the Great Hall, where the boys were already seated, deep in breakfast. "A-HAH!" Sasha leapt onto Sirius. "You owe me five whole galleons, Padfoot! I told you I told you!" She swung herself over the bench, landing next to Remus, and hollered triumphantly, earning herself at least five disapproving glances from teachers trying to enjoy a sedate breakfast, right next to the marauders' table.
Sirius sighed and rolled his eye emphatically as he dug into his pockets, trying to scrape together enough money to pay Sasha back. Eventually he had to borrow a galleon off Peter, and three sickles from Remus in order to be able to settle her claim. He returned to his breakfast deeply sulky.
"What's wrong baby Siri?" Evangeline tickled him under the chin, making him swat at her hand with his spoon.
"Nothing."
"Tell Evangeliiiine."
"Sasha. I hate her."
He turned away in mock petulance and scooped porridge up towards his mouth, before he was hit squarely on the nose by a spoonful of yoghurt. His eyes narrowed and he looked up. Sasha threw him a wink and went back to her meal.
Sirius said nothing, instead scooping up yet another spoon of porridge.
"What the-" James wiped the oaty mush away from his eyes furiously. "Sirius!"
"I'm sorry, I just aimed wrong..." He grimaced, expecting a barrage to come his way. He wasn't disappointed. Once again Sirius was faced with a nose covered in yoghurt, this time with a right eye obscured by half a fried egg, flung his way by an irate and sticky James.
"Oh come on, is that the best you can do?" He loaded his spoon with Peter's abandoned cornflakes and made a lever on the edge of his bowl, aiming for James. He released the spoon, and barely even watching to see if his missile had found its mark he loaded the spoon once again, and aimed it at Sasha, ducking as soon as he had let go, to avoid any further confrontations with her yoghurt. Sirius crouched under the table in silent fits of laughter as he heard a satisfying 'splat', followed by a yelp of surprise and a cry of "BLACK!"
Sirius snorted, they weren't going to get him that easily. The cry came again. "BLACK!".
He couldn't help it any more. The laughter just exploded out in a bark of mirth. He collapsed, spread-eagled on the floor and cackled merrily, barely stopping to breathe. A pair of legs came to stand beside him and he grabbed them, pulling hard on the ankles, making their owner come crashing down next to him.
Sirius cackled again and shifted up so he could see his victim properly.
"MR BLACK! This is the third time this year you have created chaos and havoc in our dining hall. I will not have it. Especially, when one of your childish games targets a member of teaching staff." Slowly Sirius turned and found himself nose to nose with Professor McGonagall, whose face was covered in a sticky, cold, yellow, cornflake-y mush.
Sirius couldn't help it. Laughter bubbled up from the depths of his belly and he just couldn't contain it, he snorted again and collapsed into fits, eyes watering and chest shuddering for air. He lay back on the stone floor.
"I'm very glad you find this funny, Mr Black, because you will be taking detention with Mr Filch every night for the next fortnight, and I can assure you, you'll need a sense of humour." Her clipped Scottish voice matched the glare that came from beneath Sirius' failed missile. She pushed herself up and glared even more from above. "Starting this evening. Meet Mr Filch in the trophy room at 8 o'clock sharp."
She turned on her heel and walked out of the hall, leaving a dumbfounded Sirius in her place and drips of cereal in her wake. He slowly rose and turned, and Sasha grimaced.
"I'm really sorry, I just...ducked. I guess you are a cereal offender."
The table groaned collectively and they turned back to their meal. ----The fat, forlorn raindrops tumbled haphazardly from the clouds past Lily's nose, with just a thin pane of glass between her skin and the chilly air outside. She felt a pair of hands wrap around her eyes. "Guess who?"
"Hello stranger." She turned around and pushed her smiling mouth against James's. He reciprocated eagerly, deepening the kiss as soon as it had started. His hands slid up over her hips, over her waist, and over her breasts, coming to rest tangled in her hair, running over her cheeks and cupping her face. Someone whistled behind them and the moment was lost as James spun around furiously, his cheeks reddening, just as Lily's were - flushing from her chin to her hair. James narrowed his eyes towards the direction of the noise, and he flipped his middle finger towards a group of chairs before grabbing Lily's hand and storming off, out of the common room to find somewhere more private. However it seemed the whole castle was allied against them, first being burst in on by an arrogant trio of third year Slytherin girls who glared at them with icy eyes until the pair left. Having found a more suitable corridor that was unfrequented by the student population, Mrs Norris stalked in, hissing and scowling with her furry face until they had to find a third location. They burst into a Muggle Studies classroom locked in an embrace that Lily could not call elegant. She found herself pressed against the wall locked onto James, her hands tugging up at his shirt, starting to pull it over his head. One of his hands was pressed against the wall, so he didn't collapse into her, the other fumbling with the clasp of her bra. All Lily could hear was her breathing, and the equally heavy pants of James. There was a small cough from behind James and her eyes slammed open. Behind him was a classroom full of silent stunned students, with an equally stunned professor standing stock still at the front of the room. She pushed him away, detaching with an ungainly sucking sort of sound.
There was a long pause, which was only broken by a Hufflepuff giggle.
James swore quietly through his teeth. Shit. "Ah - Merlin. Sorry Professor. Um. We'll go." He turned, her hands clasped firmly by his sides.
Lily didn't say a word, except to force out a quick "Sorry!" before the door slammed shut in their face. They finally decided to return, cringing, downtrodden and glum to the Common Room, their liaison wholly thwarted. They slumped, arms slung around each other talking quietly.
"Ah shit." James buried his head in his hands.
"What?"
"We have a meeting with the teachers this afternoon."
"Bugger. Shit. Crap. This is embarrassing."
"Somewhat."
"Do you think she'll say anything?"
"Hope not."
"Ah fuck. Can we pretend to forget?"
"Lily!" James was scandalised. "Since when have you forgotten anything to do with school?"
"This would be the first time."
"Loser." He poked her cheek gently.
"You're the loser, actually." She leant into his shoulder.
"Lucky we're together then. We can be losers together."
"Losers who can't even find one place in this whole castle!"
"That's true."
"It's time now Lily." James pointed at the clock. Lily pulled a face.
"I really, really, really don't want to go!" She pulled a face worthy of a disgruntled toddler.
"You have to. It will just be more embarrassing next time we see her! Best get it over and done with, Lily flower."
"I hate you." She rose and pulled a jumper of Evangeline's on.
"I love you too." James rose too, zipped up his hoodie and they set off.
They headed towards the Transfiguration corridor, which was a floor down and past the Muggle Studies classrooms. As they walked past they found themselves face to face with Professor Cunningham, the teacher who was lucky enough to encounter their tryst earlier.
James inclined his head.
"James, Lily! How lucky to bump into you!" She smiled widely and scraped a hand back through her haphazard hair that was falling in wisps about her lined face.
"Professor Cunningham. I can't apologise enough for earlier – " blurted Lily.
"Oh Merlin I wouldn't hold that against you!" She winked, and reached out to give James a pat on the shoulder, bracelets clanking noisily on her thin arms. "I just advise you're more careful in the future, my Hufflepuffs got quite the shock!"
Lily flushed. "We didn't mean to – "
"Gosh, I know that Lily. The very same thing happened to me when I was about your age." She winked. "Now shall we head to the meeting?"
"Do any of the teac –" James walked alongside her, Lily on the other side.
"No dear, they don't know, though I daresay Albus does. He's curiously omnipresent in this school."
The lovely Professor Cunningham was devoted to the lovlier Anna - though they are nothing much alike. I suppose I should ask you to review, I do love getting them. I'm just scared of what you might think.
While you're at it - if you haven't already check out Three Parts Dead? Es muuuy bien.
Also hola Caramel, chica, I miss you. xx