The Marauders Year Five Part 2 #Wattys2017

Two Birds, One Stone

Two Birds, One Stone

James thundered down the stairs from the boys dormitories so fast that he tripped on his own two feet and staggered across the common room upon landing, making several heads turn to look at him. He flushed as a couple of the guys in the room gave him a thumbs-up. Ali was sitting by the fire, leaning forward, talking to Meg and Annalee, and she stared at James with wide, excited eyes, biting her lips when she saw him.

"Heyyyyy... Alice..." James said, approaching her, "I um, I'm looking for Evans, you seen her?"

"You mean your girlfriend?" sing-songed Ali, her eyes twinkling.

"Shhh, shh, don't say that," James pleaded.

Ali smirked knowingly just the same.

James flushed, "Look, I dunno what exactly you heard, but whatever it is --"

"I heard you two slept together on the library floor," Annalee said, leaning forward to look up at James's eyes. "Is it true?"

James's face burned even hotter than before. "We slept - as in literal, actual sleeping - together. It wasn't... like that," he added, "And she's not my girlfriend."

Meg said, "You were certainly making out with her like she was last night."

James said, firmly, "Look, Meg, we snogged, alright, Evans and I snogged but --"

"So it really is true then! At least part of it! I never thought it would happen!" Ali looked perplexed. "Oh Frank and I were hoping it was - he went to go talk to you, did you talk to him? James, we can double-date. Next Hogsmeade's weekend. You and Lily and Frank and I - butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks!" She smiled brightly.

James didn't know how to reply. ("Sure maybe if she's talked to Odair by then, why not?" didn't seem quite right.) James said, "Have you seen Lily?"

"Sure, she went downstairs to dinner, just a few minutes before Annalee came up to tell us about the news!" Ali answered. She smiled fondly, "James, she was so happy when I spoke to her this morning. Now I know why. She's so in love with you! This is fabulous!"

James said, "Yeah, thanks," and hurriedly turned away, flinging himself at the portrait hole and leaping through into the corridor, dashing down the hall as the Fat Lady yapped after him not to be running in the hallway. But James didn't slow down. He bolted along, his trainers skidding over the carpet, leaping down the steps, hanging onto the bannisters, leaping the gap when he nearly missed the moving flight of stairs and tripping over a trick step. He was frantically asking anyone he passed if they'd seen Lily Evans.

People were giving him thumbs-up and slapping him on the back, telling him way to go, Potter and various motivational phrases...

Each one made the pit in his stomach grow all the deeper.

He came running down the stairs to the entrance hall, trainers squeaking on the stone... and there in the hall below was Lily Evans, and his heart leaped into his mouth when he saw her... and he ran all the faster, and it wasn't until he had rounded the corner and skid to a halt that he realized she was talking to Severus Snape.

Snape's gaze rose from Lily, looking over her shoulder at James and he reached out, pulling her into his chest protectively, his eyes narrowing... and Lily, seeing the expression on Severus Snape's face change, turned about to look at James, her eyes red-rimmed and wet, her face flushed and tear stained.

She looked positively gutted.

"Lily," James said, ignoring the sneer to Snape's face "I need to talk to you, it's important, it's --"