𝗽𝗶𝘅𝗶𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄, james potter

05. TIGHTY-WHITIES

CHAPTER FIVE
✧
-: seventh year :-

─ IN WHICH THEY 
ENCOUNTER SNIVELLUS

. . .

THE FOUR BOYS trudged out from the classroom as they were dismissed for lunch, Loughty's droning voice still echoing behind them.

"Can't believe we have him again." Remus had an understandably blank face as he wandered out behind them. "We have him all year and we have him twice in one day."

"S'pose that's what we get for doing Defence for N.E.W.T.s." Peter grumbled. "Thanks a lot, you two."

"Didn't ask you to follow us, did we?" James shrugged, pushing the nose of his glasses up. "Also not our fault that not a single teacher can last more than a year and that Dumbledore keeps hiring absolute drips."

"Alright, call him a drip again, why don't you? It's all I heard all lesson, 'drip' this and 'drip' that, pick a new fucking insult, Prongs" Sirius rolled his eyes. "Why does his voice sound like that? Sounds like his balls never dropped."

"Trust you to be thinking about his balls."

"Shut up, Moony." Sirius's annoyance melted away into a grin. "Oh look, Prongs, it's your new star Quidditch player." He nodded forward, where Matilda had just filed out of the classroom, behind Marlene, Lily and Alice. "Lost your fifth witch?"

"Shut up, Sirius." Marlene rolled her eyes. "Mary doesn't take Defence, surely you of all people would know how much she hates it."

Matilda's eyes narrowed as they slowed to a stop, her arm curled around a stack of books with various bits of parchment sticking out of the yellowed pages. "Who's your new 'star Quidditch player'?" She asked. "As far as I can tell there's no mirrors around here."

James stared at her for a moment. "No... no, no mirrors." He shook his head, pulled a hand through his hair. Sirius laughed somewhere behind him. Lily's eyebrows rose. "Er - Moody, couldn't borrow you for a minute, could I?"

"Oh, Jesus, Potter, not this again." Matilda let out a sigh. "For fuck's sake."

"Gotta go find Mary... We'll meet you in the library." Marlene said pointedly, reaching for Lily's arm to pull her away, dragging an unwitting Alice behind them and whispering to one another, Lily looking over her shoulder one last time before they turned the corner.

Sirius clapped James on the shoulder, decisively not saying anything as he, Peter and Remus left him behind outside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, wordlessly wishing him good luck through exaggerated mouthing of the words and flailing arm movements as soon as they decided they were far enough out of Matilda's vision. They stopped somewhere before the end of the hallway, waiting for him.

"Listen, Moody," James grinned, digging his hands into his pockets, "after this morning, I've had some time to think and I just don't think I've made my apology clear enough."

"Why are you refusing to accept the fact that I don't give a shit that you thought I was some French bitch?" Matilda asked, catching the eye of a girl behind him as she made a face and a muttered comment to her friend. "Piss off Elizabeth, I was at that Hufflepuff party too, don't act like you're God's gift on the earth, all pure and innocent." She said, and James turned around to find some Ravenclaw girl scurrying away, slowly turning pink. "Mother Mary, what is it with everyone in this bloody school?"

"That was Elizabeth Crassus, wasn't it?" James's eye lit up. "Come on, what did she do?"

"None of your business, Potter." Matilda returned her attention to him as she let out yet another sigh. "Go on, what are you planning to do now? Piss me off into oblivion and just pray it all ends up okay?"