Chapter Twenty-Four: Freedom on the Pitch
Lily held her breath as Professor Slughorn examined the potion. She forced a smile as he grinned and nodded. The potion was a success, it was perfect. He summoned a tray of flasks that landed neatly on the table top next to the cauldron of potion. Together, the bottled and labeled the potion for future uses. Professor Slughorn handed her one of the glass flasks. He had written her name on the label.
"I have reason to believe that you may have taken some Amnesia potion, my dear, and should you want to remember, you have the means," Professor Slughorn told her. Lily smiled at him genuinely and tried to hand it back to him.
"Professor, if I truly have been placed under a spell of the potion, it surely is for a good reason," Lily said. Professor Slughorn nodded, but insisted.
"Just take it as an insurance policy, should you ever crave the knowledge you may have purged," he told her. Lily slipped it into her bag and headed out the door. She debated where she would go to work on her homework, thinking first of the library. She knew it would be too obvious of a place, and headed straight to the Quidditch pitch. Most of the students would be else where, studying for exams. No one would bother her on the pitch, and she would have the whole place to spread out and do her studying.
Lily was thrilled beyond belief to find it completely deserted. She went to the middle of the stadium, the middle of the field and conjured herself a blanket that she spread out on the ground. She glanced around before she hauled her robes off over her head, soccer shorts, and a tank top on under them. She kicked off her favorite trainers and socks, conjured a soccer ball out of thin air. She tore down the field, the breeze blowing through her hair. She ran and laughed, arms spread if she expected to fly. She was so happy at that moment, the warm sunshine beaming on her skin, the breeze dancing in her hair.
Sighing, she fell back against the cool, soft grass. She tucked her arms behind her head, her wand in her hand. Huge clouds floated by, and Lily's smile broadened as she picked pictures up in the ever changing clouds. She was the happiest she had been in a long time, and though she knew she would have to start studying soon, she was content laying in the grass in her summery clothes and watching the clouds. She closed her eyes for a moment. She tried to picture when she was last this happy.
Unexpectedly, James' face floated into the front of her mind. She kept her eyes closed as she remembered all of the sweet moments that they had shared. Her fondest memory of them together was that first night they had been together, so raw and pure. She felt a smile cross her face as her cheeks flushed. That way he looked at her, unlike any of the others she has been with, was with the greatest respect and awe. Even Severus hadn't gazed upon her body in such a way. Sure, there were always those looks of greed and lust, but James had looked at her with so much more.
Lily opened her eyes slowly and pulled herself to a sitting position. She stretched and climbed to her feet. She headed back to where she had dumped all of her stuff and summoned it to gather itself. She was so focused on her pile of stuff and she hadn't noticed that James had entered the pitch, his broom in his hand. He had stopped when he saw her take off down the field, uncertain. He had watched her from afar as she had run against the wind, spun in the sun, and soaked up the cloudy sky.
He bit back the anger and jealousy that seemed to rise up in his stomach at the look on her face, and the gentle smile that had crossed it, causing her to blush. She had once looked that way when she looked at him, and now, she was looking that way. He was certain that she had now moved on, now that she was smiling like that for someone else. He thought about continuing on into the pitch, but he couldn't stand the thought of talking to her when she was thinking of someone in such a way that made her blush.
Lily looked up suddenly, but only saw the tail end of robes disappear around the corner and out of sight. Shrugging, she pulled on her robes and headed toward the school. She hadn't gotten any studying done and she had patrol that night. Her heart felt like it had skipped a beat. She had patrol with James! Realization flooded over her. She was still very much in love with James Potter.
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