The Little Red Book - Chapter 5
Author's Note: I can't remember what year I said this was in. I'm changing it to year 7.
And, I know, I know. Been a while. Forgive me?
What happened last:
Lily, Regina and Avril examined their mirror images, making sure that the clothing they had on was absolutely perfect.
"How does this dress make my legs look?" Lily asked her friends, turning around to give a full view.
Lily's breath caught in her throat as she saw James and his friends enter the shop.
"It's perfect." came the male reply.
Lily opened her mouth. No sound came out. She closed it. Wait, why was she letting Potter control her? She would say something!
Lily opened her mouth again and forced herself to speak. "Didn't ask you, Potter." She snapped, turning on her heel and stalking off into the changing room.
Lily tried to control her breathing as she sat in the changing room. The bench was cold and hard. Inhale, exhale. Simple. She smoothed her hair, recollecting her wits. Potter would not get the best of her. She took a deep breath and smiled at her reflection in the mirror. Lily frowned. She looked like she was drunk, when she smiled like that. Why couldn't she be naturally friendly, like Regina? Why was it so hard for her to smile? She toned it down and practiced a few more times. This would have to do.
Lily sighed, and unzipped herself from the back. She slipped into her clothes and opened the door. Vowing not to let herself get intimidated by James Potter, she draped her dress over one arm, shot her practiced friendly smile at the Marauders, and headed to the counter to pay.
James' jaw fell open… had Lily just… did Lily just smile at… him! He knew she had smiled at the Marauders, but still! He was a Marauder, too! His heart leaped and he felt like doing back flips. There was a small pressure on James' arm and so he turned to see what it was.
It was Sirius, with a wicked grin. "Calm down, mate. Just because she smiled at you doesn't mean you're allowed to seduce her now."
James grinned back and pulled his arm away. "Hey Black, I'm not planning to seduce her." His voice dropped to a low whisper. "At least not yet." The boys whooped and high-fived. Remus rolled his eyes, following Regina's movements as she twirled around in her dress.
Sirius noticed. He pulled Remus to the corner of the shop. "What were you looking at?"
Remus immediately coloured. "Nothing."
"Remus…"
Remus swallowed. "Regina. Sirius, I think… I think I like her."
Sirius felt a clenching in his gut. He knew he was being unfair, but he had claimed Regina first! True, he had never told anyone how he felt about her, but still…
He forced himself to smirk and pat his friend on the back. "What about Avril? Thought you liked her?"
Remus shook his head. "Oh, no. The only reason we spend so much time together is that she gives me advice on what to do about Regina. Avril is just one of my best friends."
Sirius felt his spirits sinking. It sounded as if his friend really did like Regina. He tried to smile. "Wittle Remmy Wemmy is growing up now, is he?"
…………………………………...
Lily sat on her bed that night, scribbling away in her diary.
Dear Diary,
James Potter is SUCH a prat! My friends think I like him. They haven't said that, but I can see it in their eyes. I don't know what to do. I don't like him. After all, this is the same boy who dyed my hair green in second year, and put itching powder in my shoes in fourth year. We've hated each other forever, so you can imagine what a surprise it was when he announced that he liked me last year.
I'm not one to forgive and forget easily. All of those pranks he played on me when he was younger just seem to get in the way of being civil towards him. But I think I'm starting to warm up to him.
Except, there's a problem.
I don't want to warm up to him. I'm supposed to hate him. The Potter/Evans rivalry cannot go on if James Potter has a crush on Lily Evans, and if Lily Evans has a crush on James Potter!
Note: I'm not saying I like him. Cause I don't.
–Lily.
She put her quill back in it's inkwell, and closed her diary. She left it on her dresser knowing that her friends would never invade her privacy. It wasn't necessary to put any safety spells on the book. With that comforting thought in her head, Lily waved her wand to turn off her light, pulled up her covers and was sound asleep.
…………………………………...
James Potter sat on his floor, seriously contemplating the problem he was in. Sirius was sprawled on his bed shirtless, and Remus was in a chair with a book in his hands. Peter was sound asleep so James figured it was safe to talk to his friends.
"I just can't understand her. Girls are so mysterious! One second they hint they like you, and the next they're acting like you're their worst enemy. I just don't know what to do." James said, closing his eyes.
Remus spoke up in a quiet voice. "Maybe you can try to tell her how you feel?"
James groaned. "Been there, done that. Last time I told her I saw the stars in her eyes and I wanted to spend the rest of eternity with her, she slapped me and told me that my tricks might work on the other girls, but I wasn't going to get anything from her."
Sirius winced. "Ouch, man. Well what we need to do now is figure out how she feels about you before taking any action."
"And the award goes to Sirius Black for once again, stating the obvious!" James said sarcastically.
"No really, man. Think of how we can get her to tell us how she feels." Sirius explained, used to cutting remarks from his friends.
Remus slowly spoke. "I could always try talking to Avril. Maybe she'll say?"
James shook his head. "No, I doubt it. From the way Avril and Regina were surprised this afternoon when Lily smiled at us, I'm guessing they don't know how she feels. Couldn't you tell they were shocked and trying not to show it?"
"Naw. I don't notice strange things like that." Sirius teased, throwing a pillow at James.
"Well what do you notice, then?" Remus asked, rolling his eyes.
"Well…" Sirius smirked and raised his eyebrows.
James groaned and threw the pillow back at Sirius, who caught it before it landed.
Sirius raised his hands in defence. "Hey, you asked!"
Remus suddenly interrupted. "Maybe she'll write her feelings in a diary or journal or something?"
James thought about this. "How do we know if she keeps a diary or journal?"
"I KNOW!" Sirius immediately yelled, excitement in his voice.
Two pairs of eyes turned sceptically towards him.
"THE DIVINATION DIARY ASSIGNMENT! You just have to get your hands on that red diary of hers!"
Remus broke out in a grin. "You know what, James? For the first time in his life, I think Sirius Black is… right."
"Why does that sound so impossible to me?" James asked, before he burst out laughing.
He wiped fake tears from the corners of his eyes as Sirius glared and stuck his tongue out at the two of them.
"Now," said Remus, getting down to business. "How will James get his hands on Lily's diary?"
In a very fanficion-ish mood lately. 85 reviews for a Chapter 6?