How It All Began

How it All Began: Chapter Six

Transfiguration

A/N: Thank you reviewers! This chapter is just slightly longer, but as I said before, they are already written. It's just a little fun chapter, and I promise that it won't be long until more substantial chapters start coming. Next chapter is much longer!

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The next day, everyone was in Transfiguration, and the seventh years were learning the conjuring spell, which was a tricky piece of magic. Right now, they were just conjuring up small inanimate things, like nails. James, who was good at Transfiguration, quickly mastered that, and was lazily conjuring up some cupcakes to eat. Sirius was eyeing them, but James was having none of it, preferring to torture his friend.

Across the room, however, Lily was having more trouble. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't do it. The best she got was a slight shimmer in the air.

“I give up,” Lily announced, slumping down in her chair. Kala and Alice both looked apologetically at her.

“Sorry Lils,” said Alice, “We could help you work on it tonight.” Lily shook her head, determined to do it herself.

“Thanks, but I can do it.” The other two looked at each other and shrugged.

Suddenly, there was a loud noise over where Sirius and James were sitting. Sirius, finally giving in to his cupcake urges, had leapt onto James, attempting to wrestle them from his grasp. The chair had broken underneath them with a loud BANG! McGonagall stood up, livid.

“Detention both of you,” she said shrilly, “I will NOT have that kind of behavior in my classroom.” Sirius and James both looked down at the floor, slightly embarrassed, and mumbled their apologies.

Looking back at her friends, Lily shrugged. Then, with a smirk, she showed her friends two cupcakes she had under her robes.

“How did you…?” Alice asked, shocked. Lily just smiled.

“Summoning charm,” she said simply. “Plus, those cupcakes looked too good to be wasted on Potter and Black, don't you agree?” Kala giggled.

“We'll be hearing their moans of dismay right about…NOW!” Right on cue, there was a loud howl from the other side of the classroom

“MY CUPCAKES!” shouted James. Once again, McGonagall stood up.

“Potter, quiet down this instant, or I shall send you to Dumbledore.” James jumped at that, apparently surprised to see the Professor there, so absorbed was he in the fate of his cupcakes.

Lily, Kala and Alice all laughed.

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Back in the common room, around midnight, Lily was not feeling quite so happy. She had been practicing the conjuring spell for hours now, but all she had now as a result was a massive headache. Kala and Alice had both gone to bed, having finished their homework hours ago. Lily put her head in her hands in despair. She was NEVER going to learn this. Suddenly, a shadow crossed over her and she looked up. It was James, and she frowned, though she did admit he looked serious.

“Hey there, Evans. I-uh, well, I just came over because - well, you looked like you could, uh, use some, er, help,” he finished lamely. Lily frowned, feeling her anger start to well up. She repressed it; she needed the help, badly, but this was James Potter, her sworn enemy since around third year or so. On the other hand, he had managed the spell in about two seconds flat in Transfiguration. She herself had eaten a cupcake that he had conjured. She sighed, resigned to spending an hour with James Potter.

“Yeah, you can help me.” James raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“What?” Lily said, suddenly enjoying torturing him, “you didn't think I would agree?”

“Well…no,” said James, scratching his head. Lily realized then she hadn't seen him ruffle his hair in that annoying way of his all year. She decided then and there to give him a chance, at least for tonight.

“Well, sit down,” she said. He did, but not too closely. Lily noticed, and smiled. Maybe he was getting better.

“Well, to start with,” he said briskly, all nervousness gone, “you're holding the wand wrong. You hold it like this, see?” James clasped his warm hand around Lily's and placed her fingers in the correct positions. A strangely warm shiver went down the back of Lily's neck at his touch, but she shook it off.

For the next half hour, James worked with Lily on her conjuring spells. By the end, she could almost conjure a cupcake of her own. She could see it, but when she tried to touch it, it would ripple and disappear. She turned to James, thoroughly pleased at his performance.

“Well, thanks James,” she said softly.

“It was no problem. You need help any other time, I'll give it.”

“I better get to bed. Need to get enough sleep to decorate on Saturday.” James smiled and they both stood up. There was an awkward silence, but a shrill hooting broke it.

“My owl!” said Lily. She bounded across the common room and opened the window. James sighed and made his was up to his dormitories. Once up there, a sleepy looking Sirius greeted him.

“`ello,” he said drowsily. “Watcha doin' up so - so -” his sentence was interrupted by a large yawn, “late?” he finished. James shook his head at his sleepy friend.

“It's only twelve thirty Sirius. Did you spend last night snogging or something to make you so tired.” Sirius just looked confused. Obviously, his brain wasn't up to processing a question. James got into bed and went straight to sleep.

A/N: Hmm…slightly pointless, but it does convey some of what James and Lily are feeling at this point - a useful commodity for later chapters! Did anyone notice that their silence at the end was interrupted by the owl that Prongs had sent Lily? Well, you probably did, but anyway…That means that it was sort of James' fault that nothing…er…happened…

Chapter Seven preview:

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“Six muggles and four aurors killed last night by the Dark Lord.”

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“So,” said James, “What about those attacks today, eh?”

Remus shrugged. “If only they had some idea of who was behind these attacks,” he said. Sirius grimaced at that. “I do,” he said.

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“Don't you ignore me, Evans,” he spat, “or it'll be the last thing you do.” Lily turned around to face him, wiping blood from her head.

***

“How was your date?” Kala asked cheekily. Lily pretended to slap her friend.

“It was NOT a date,” she said loudly.

Alice smiled. “Suit yourself.”

~Wwindmilller

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