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Pre-Tourney Nerves


“You’re going to do spiffing, Potter!” called a pretty second-year Ravenclaw girl, grinning and waving at James as he walked from Charms to Transfiguration. He felt his face flush.

“Who was that?” asked Sirius, spinning on his heels to walk backwards and watch her go.

“Dunno,” James mumbled.

Sirius was grinning, “Well she was good looking.”

“That was Brianne Hough,” said Lily, “She’s in Severus’s Herbology class. He said she’s really brilliant.”

Remus looked ‘round at Lily, “Are you talking to Severus again then?” he asked.

Lily shrugged, “Only in passing. He’s busy.”

“Busy with what? Being a git?” asked Sirius, turning forward as Brianne Hough was out of sight now anyway. Just in time, too, he’d been about to tumble over a disappearing step on the staircase. “Whoops!” he caught the bannister and swung himself over the step neatly. “Way to go, warning me about it, guys.”

“I was rather interested in what would happen if you stepped in it,” said James, smirking.

“Why you --” Sirius leaped onto James’s back as though to wrestle him to the floor, knocking James off balance. He slammed sideways, nearly knocking Lily over, but caught himself and ended up with Sirius simply piggy-backing him the rest of the way down to the Transfiguration classroom as they frolicked ahead of the others.

Peter looked rather glad that Sirius didn’t jump on him that way.

“I didn’t know you and Snape were still talking after that fight in the corridor outside the common room,” Remus continued the conversation, looking at Lily with concern. “When did that start up again?”

“Dunno,” Lily answered, shrugging. “Just did, I s’pose. He caught me up one morning on the way to Potions, just after you and I split up, actually, and we talked a bit. He offered to trade tables with me if I didn’t want to sit with you after our break up.”

“Did he?” Remus said, sort of impressed, “Well that was nice of him.”

“We were potions partners in first year,” Lily said. “I don’t know if he and Evan Rosier get along much, either, it doesn’t seem like they do. Evan’s always so harsh toward him. But then again all the Slytherins seem rather harsh with one another. Have you noticed?”

“I think it’s part of their Slytherin-ness,” Remus answered.

Professor McGonagall was waiting at the doorway for them, herding Peter in as Remus and Lily approached. “Hurry along, hurry along,” she urged them and they stepped into the class to find that they were joined by the Principal of Ilvermorny and several of the students as well. James and Sirius were already seated and poking at one another with their wands, which were making small hissing sounds as they battled with them. The other three hastened to take a seat (Peter saw what James and Sirius were doing, and was sure to sit on the side opposite them so to avoid being a target for their game).

Being the end of term, and the exams coming up shortly, it was mostly a class of revision, which the Ilvermorny students found quite interesting - especially the part where McGonagall demonstrated her ability to turn into a cat and talked about animagi. Randy Temple, the Principal, clapped boisterously as she cracked back to being human. “Brilliant,” he called. “Positively brilliant, Minerva.”

James looked at Sirius and grinned. “Maybe one of us will be a cat,” he whispered.

“Maybe,” Sirius answered, though he rather hoped it wasn’t him if they were.




Later that night, James found Remus in the common room and saddled himself on the bench at the table. Lily, who was sitting across from Remus, looked up as James settled himself in. “What’re you doing?” she asked.

“Looking to have a talk with my mate here,” James said.

Lily looked back down at the book before her as Remus looked up at James with a questioning stare.

James’s voice was low, trying to keep his words private, “Do you know any potions or spells or whatever to settle a stomach ache?” he asked quietly.

Remus looked concerned, “Are you sick?”

“I just got back from practice,” James explained, “For quidditch. And - well, the game’s coming up. I’m just… I dunno. I’m nervous and my stomach’s doing all sorts of queer things. Churning and boiling and what not. Do you know anything?”

Remus studied James a moment. “You’re nervous? You? The almighty James Potter?”

“I am only human,” James said regrettably.

Lily raised an eyebrow, but she didn’t say anything.

Remus sighed, “You ought to go talk to Madam Pomfrey about it, mate, I’m sure she’s got loads of potions for that sort of thing. But really, you haven’t anything to worry about. I’ve seen you practicing on the pitch and you’re very good. I’m sure you’ll be alright.”

James sighed, “I s’pose.” He looked over and half-caught Lily’s eyes as she glanced up in interest to what he was saying and then said, “I mean, I know I’m good, I’m not worried about how I’ll do during the game, it’s everyone else. Especially that Slytherin git. I’m nervous about the game in general. I know my performance and skills are excellent.”

Lily rolled her eyes and turned back to her textbook.

Remus snorted. “Still, Pomfrey’s the better answer than I am. Sorry.”

“Yeah, thanks,” James said, sounding disappointed. He got up and walked off.

Lily looked up, “For a second there, I thought he might have a soul after all.”

“James?” Remus asked, shaking his head, “He’s got an ego is what he’s got. I think the ego probably grew too big and ate every shred of humility in him.” He turned back to his Potions textbook, “Too proud to ask Pomfrey for a potion, like Pomfrey gives a damn if he’s nervous about Quidditch or not.”

Lily laughed.

Remus pointed to the book, “Hey, listen, did you take notes the day we did the hiccoughing potion in Slughorn’s class? I was out - full moon - and I don’t think I fully understand it from the book.”

“Sure.” Lily rifled through her stack of notes until she found it and withdrew the page, passing it over to him. She pointed with the tip of her quill. “See, the book said to turn the cauldron three times clockwise and once counter-clockwise and it’ll turn pink, but if you actually just do it all counter-clockwise and add a little dash extra of dandelion root, it actually is a more powerful solution to stopping the hiccoughs.”

Remus looked over the notes and compared them to the book. “How’d you figure that out?”

“I don’t know, it just sort of… came to me, I s’pose,” Lily answered with a shrug. “I read in a book last year that some potions with a powdered root base do better being stirred counter rather than clockwise and the dandelion root just seemed lacking in the original recipe, you know? It’s one of the most important ingredients for the purpose of the potion, yet we barely put any of it in. It’s not toxic, so it’s not as though overdose is possible. Why not add extra and make it stronger and voila. It did.” She smiled. “I don’t know, it just sort of makes sense.”

Remus laughed, “It does now that you’ve explained it. I reckon you’re some sort of potions genius, Evans.”

“I’m not,” she laughed, too, blushing, “My mum and I used to bake all the time, it’s just that sometimes things sort of inspire you, I suppose, and you get these ideas like wouldn’t that cupcake be better if it had more vanilla in it or perhaps confectioners sugar would be smoother than granulated. That sort of thing.”

Remus shook his head, “Potions is an art which I shall never master.”

“Severus helped a lot too, last year,” she admitted. “He’s rather brilliant at it, too. His mum was really good at potions, he said. She gave him her old textbooks. She used to tell him secrets about how she mixed things. I suppose that was one of the only things they really shared when he was growing up.” She doodled on the edge of her parchment with the tip of her quill until the ink ran dry on the nub. She looked up. “Sorry, that’s twice today Sev has come up, isn’t it?”

“It’s alright,” Remus said, “I don’t mind.”

Lily glanced over at the other three boys by the fireplace, where Sirius and James were in the middle of wrestling. “Why do they hate him so much anyway?” she asked, nodding at them.

Remus sighed, “Hell if I know. But he hates them right back just as much. It’s sort of a mutural thing.”

Lily nodded. “It’s bloody ridiculous is what it is.”

“It is what it is,” Remus said with a shrug.




James snuck off to Madam Pomfrey’s the next day before breakfast under the guise of forgetting a textbook in the dormitory. She clucked and hemmed over him for a couple of minutes and finally mixed him a solution of thick, chalky pink stuff to coat his stomach. “Take this three times a day to settle it down, dear,” she said, corking the bottle and patting his head as she led him to the door, “It’ll help with the upset belly.”

“Thanks Madam Pomfrey,” James said, waving as he pocketed the bottle and headed back to the Great Hall to meet up with the other lads. He ducked through one of the secret passages to get him closer to the grand stairway down to the entrance hall, not wanting to run into anyone. The closer the tourney came, the more people were wanting to show their support. James couldn’t go anywhere in the castle without Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws shouting encouraging words to him. It was nice of them, of course, but it only made James more nervous, as he felt the entire school was looking at him and waiting to see what would happen, expecting more from him than he was certain he could give. It made him jittery and sick and all he could think of was how they were all going to react if he messed it up and lost Hogwarts the match in such an important game.

Back at the table in the Great Hall, he couldn’t bring himself to eat. He pushed his food about a bit, but didn’t put much of it into his mouth at all, listening half heartedly to the others as they discussed the revision they needed to do for History of Magic. “It’s impossible to follow along with Binns,” said Sirius, “The way he drones on and on and on…” he rolled his eyes. “Why can’t they have somebody interesting teach his class? Like Moody! He was interesting!”

“Moody’s an Auror,” said Frank Longbottom, “He’s busy doing Auror stuff, like catching bad guys and what have you.”

“Well he hasn’t caught Voldemort yet, has he?” said Sirius, “Maybe he’d be better off teaching us history instead.”

Frank laughed, “Maybe, but I wouldn’t say that to the bloke’s face. Seems the type he’d blast you for it.”

“Right into next Tuesday,” agreed Bilius.

“I wouldn’t mind being in next Tuesday,” James spoke up suddenly. Their heads swiveled to look at him. “That would mean the tourney’s over and we’ll know who’s won!”

“I know, I’m with ya on that one, mate,” said Derek, nodding. “Wish I’d paid better attention in Divination back in third year now, I’d be reading every tea leaf from here to China if I could find out the results of this bloody tourney!”

“Perhaps you could check on our exam grades, too, while you’re at it, Bell? Since we’ve got them this week, before the tourney, ey?” Bilius said with a nervous laugh.

Sirius said, “Well obviously Hogwarts is going to win! You lot have been practicing nonstop, basically. You’ve got to be ruddy perfect at the game by now.” He turned to Bilius, “And you - you’ve been revising constantly, so I’m sure you’ll pass, too.”

“Never underestimate how completely one can forget everything they know, right down to their name, when faced with a blank exam parchment!” Bilius said sagely.

Derek nodded, “And as for the tourney, thing is, Ilvermorny’s been practicing too. So as perfect as we are, so are they. It’s going to be a good match anyway.”

Remus looked over at James and smiled encouragingly. “A good match lost is better than a poor match won, yeah?”

“Yeah,” agreed Derek. “Absolutely.”

But James had a feeling he’d be sipping on the potion Madam Pomfrey gave him more often than not until Sunday night, when he was finally tucked up in his bed in either post-win bliss, or post-loss agony.