A One Time Thing
Chapter 5 : I Won't Back Down
Disclaimer: don't own a thing
I apologize for the extremely long time it took me to pick up writing again.
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Lily awoke with a smile on her face and the morning sunlight streaming through the window. She slipped out of bed and fitted her feet comfortably into her slippers. Her hand brushed along the edge of her night table before she located her glasses and slid them on. Inching the window open, she deeply inhaled the crisp air. The gold horizon reflected in her eyes and suddenly she wished she could capture moments like these on paper.
"Oi, oi...it's cold," someone moaned.
"I'm sorry, Millia," Lily whispered and shut the window.
"S'kaaay..." came the slurred response from the lump under the bed.
Quietly, Lily gathered pieces of clothing from her drawer. She opened the door silently from practice and padded her way into the girls' bathroom. A groggy Kana shuffled out of the doorless entrance. Even at such an early hour, the girl was, without a doubt, very attractive. Lily slowed her steps and tried to walk to one side of the short hall. But seeing as it wasn't very wide, they bumped shoulders.
A scowl crossed Kana's features. A perfectly manicured finger lifted to flick Lily's glasses so it bounced off her nose and onto the floor. Lily stayed very still and didn't reach down to pick it up until Kana had left.
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"So, how's it going, Sirius?" Remus asked in between brushing his teeth.
"It's alright."
"I meant with Lily." Sirius stopped shaving. He secretly grinned to himself because every time he thought of her something strange and warm tingled through his system.
"Oh. Well, I'm going to Hogsmeade with her today. She's a great person. You know, Remus, about this whole bet thing. I – "
"Not backing out, are you? That would be a tough one to live down, mate." Chris was leaning on the doorframe. Sirius looked hard at him for a minute. When DK walked in and caught on, he fidgeted. Then, with a playful smirk, Sirius said,
"Of course not." Chris laughed.
"Good, because I just dropped a few more galleons in the jar. No, you don't have to put in more of your own. I think it's worth it. Doesn't it make you want to do something now, mate? It's been pretty quiet with you lately..." Sirius raised an eyebrow. A few more galleons?
Remus put his hand to Sirius's wrist and caught his eye. His face was somber and he shook his head. Sirius drew in a deep breath and yanked his hand out of his best friend's grip. He met Chris's gaze dead-on and whispered confidently,
"...I'll think about stirring things up..."
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"We're going to get caught."
"No, we won't."
"Yes, we will!" Sirius whirled around so that Lily walked neatly into his arms.
"Don't you trust me even a little?" Lily scrunched up her nose and pushed away from him. She trusted him all right. She trusted enough to know that he would most likely get her in trouble, even if it were avoidable, just for the fun of it.
"No, thanks, Sirius. I have to be somewhere." Lily began walking away and it took the other a minute to realize that things weren't going as he had planned it.
"H-hey, wait. Come on. We're already here. Can't you come in for a second?" Sirius called out. Lily looked back, confused.
"What?" She shook her head, not understanding how they could be at the kitchen already.
"To the kitchen."
"But, we're here. After you, milady." Lily looked puzzled. After me, where? She didn't have a clue what Sirius was talking about. There wasn't even door. He walked right up to the hanging portrait then, with a trained hand, he tickled the underside of the pear. A creaky squeak sounded and a door was opened.
"I don't believe it," whispered Lily, a small smile creeping up her face.
"So...are you coming in or not, Miss Evans?" Sirius was halfway in the door and held out a hand to her. She looked past him into the kitchen. A house elf waved to her, jumping up and down behind Sirius, and tried to get her attention. Sirius's eyes twinkled when they met hers. She laughed and followed in after him.
A house elf tailed her as she explored her way around the enormous kitchen. Steam shot out from one of the pots and Sirius pushed her head down just in time. He dragged her away from the hotter part of the kitchen and led her to what looked like a mini bakery. The little elf, Toby seemed to realize something Lily didn't and he walked away sadly to tend to other matters.
"Oh, what's the matter with Toby?" Lily asked, watching him slunk away.
"Nothing. He's just upset he can't cook us anything. He'll get over it. Don't worry." Sirius took out some trays and ingredients and set them on the table.
"So...what are we doing?" Sirius turned to her, an amused expression on his face.
"Baking cookies, of course!" Lily's eyes widened.
"You...you can bake?"
"Sure can! Hurry up, sweater off!"
Lily was concentrating hard on mixing the batter. Her sleeves were rolled up and her clothes were powdered white with flour. It made her arms look paler than usual. Her cheeks were flushed a light pink and her lips parted enough for the tip of her tongue to slide through.
"Hey..." Sirius uttered unconsciously. Lily turned to him and stopped her efforts.
"What is it? Am I doing it wrong?" Lily asked, confused.
"What? No...sorry, no. Keep going, you're doing it right." Sirius scratched the back of his head and continued to watch her. His eyes darkened and then he blinked. He walked up behind her and placed careful arms around her waist. Lily jumped.
"Keep mixing. It's okay. Relax," Sirius soothed. He put his chin on her shoulder and leaned in to inhale her scent. So far so good, he thought to himself. Something bumped his foot, but he chose to ignore it.
They stayed like that for a while. Sirius tried to decide what to do next. He really didn't know. Was he really going to hurt her in the end? When he first started this game, he didn't care. Not for this Lily. In fact, he still didn't really seem to care much. But that extra bit where it counted was huge compared to how he had treated his previous entertainers. His natural instincts were calling...and it was only expected of him to give in. He sighed into her. James would kill him.
"S-Sirius..." Lily dropped her wooden spoon. A stubby-nosed elf skidded near their table, but stopped short from picking up the spoon when Sirius gave a harden stare. She shuddered and bowed lowly, walking backwards the way she came.
"Lily, please. Don't move," Sirius whispered. His thumb made small, pressured circles on her wrist and his other arm pulled her closer. Lily could feel his lips at her ear and trembled. She clenched her teeth as her body sank deeper into his. He turned her around and held on tight. Shallow breaths quickening, Lily felt like she was about to cry. Sirius leaned in, mouth slightly parted. She shut her eyes tight and a glass jar crashed to the ground.
"Sorry, but I think I'll head back early," Lily told him, pushing away from him. Sirius reached out and grabbed air. She was already at the secret entrance. He let his hand drop to his side. "Thanks for today, Sirius...bye."
"But, Lily...I...never mind, okay...bye." The portrait slammed shut. Sirius stared at it for a while with an indescribable expression on his face. Slowly, he ran a hand across his face and his facial appearance became neutral once again. Turning towards a row of cabinets, he made a disgruntle noise.
"Was that good enough for you, James?" There was silence. Then a barrel shifted over and out crawled James.
"Good to know you're still having fun."
"James..." Sirius started. He reached out and tugged his best friend's sleeve. "Don't tell me you're jealous."
"I'm not."
"Then why were you hiding there?" Sirius probed. James snatched his arm away.
"I was just making sure you didn't do anything to her," James replied stubbornly. Then his stone-face fell. "Sirius, please, just stop. Any other girl would be okay, just not her."
"James, you know I need the money. My parents refuse to support me anymore."
"I told you, you could come live with me!"
"No! I've bothered you enough. I can take care of myself so I don't need you all to keep babying me! Just leave me alone!" Sirius bit out angrily. James looked like he'd just be hit.
"Well, that's just grand! You're going to be making bets all your life then! That's just great. Keep on your toes, mate, I'm going to make sure you lose," James retorted. Sirius's face flushed a furious red and he glowered.
"I'll win, James. I always win."
"Not against me, you won't."
"W-wha – fine."
Both boys made eye contact and stalked out of the kitchen. Sirius headed towards the owlery and messily scribbled down a message for Lily asking if she was still available to go to Hogsmeade. James went straight to the Common Room and plopped down on the couch beside Remus.
"Did you talk to him?" Remus asked gently. James nodded. "How'd it go?"
"The idiot didn't listen. Remember what I said, Remus? How I'd go against him in the bet if he didn't stop? I didn't mean it," he groaned as he heard a slam. His hand rushed over his eyes, beneath his glasses. "But I guess I can't go back on my word now."
Remus eyed his best friend and then at the portrait where Sirius just stormed through and up to their dorms. He engrossed himself in his book again. Silently, he concluded that out of everyone involved, he was the most sensible. Yes, he was.
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Grinning Grint (Here's your update, Kimberly!), Tania (Thank you so much!), EsScaper (Thank you! Sirius' will get it in due time.), Tasha (Your review made me smile), Fading Dusk (I'm sorry I took so long. And now you've left…I will be sending a private email.), aznpianist (I could quite possibly post some original work at soon. Thanks!), shuichi (aww, thanks!), K (I love long reviews! Thx!), mintchoc (This one's dedicated to you, girl. I'm sorry I've been lacking in the gifts-department.), Chelime (Thanks you! Rambling's perfectly fine!), KLLRS (No food this time, but I've already drafted up a scene of that in the next chapter!), Tig3rEyes (Oi, oi…I'm so behind. Sorry and thank you!), Lunacy Fringe05 (YOU are gold! Thank you for reviewing!), myspeedingpulse (I'm glad you like this! Thank you!), roxorchix (Hey, sorry I haven't been keeping up with my fics or yours. But I'll get to them soon…hopefully. Thank you!), Mithandir the White (aww, thanks for the sweet review), Christy Corr (You're the best! Thank you so much.) You guys are awesome. I'll be personally thanking your reviews through email from now on since come up with new rules or something. Thanks to everyone who read this. See you later!
February 15, 2006