Grey Eyes (A Harry Potter Fanfiction)

6. No Competition Whatsoever

The first step into the dormitory is like a breath of long-awaited fresh air.

"Man, am I glad to be outta there," I sigh in relief. I felt like I was drowning in that cesspool of gossipers.

Lily laughs as she rummages through her trunk to get out her nightgown, her voice echoing in the space. "Yeah, tell me about it. I honestly thought they were going to murder you back there."

After a few moments of silence, she finally emerges and throws her pajamas onto her bed.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to ask before. You all right then?" Lily calls out across the room to me as she starts taking off her socks.

"Huh?" my muffled voice floats out of my own trunk.

"From the duel, I mean."

I pull my head out from my humongous trunk with my T-shirt and sweats night clothes in my hands. "Oh. Yeah, I'm fine. Just a minor concussion is all."

Lily climbs into her bed and pulls the crimson curtains across the length of it. "Sorry I couldn't be there," she says apologetically. "Excellent time to have Muggle Studies, really."

"Don't even worry 'bout it!" I insist. "I had Remus with me." Yeah, that guy would be more than enough company even on a deserted island. He's like an mass of peculiar...ness. Is that even a word.

"Hmm..." Lily muses to herself. "Speaking of which, I didn't see him in the Common Room before. Did he go to bed early or something? I could've sworn I saw you come in with him."

"Uhhh," I reply intelligently. So, he really wasn't there? Just thinking back to what happened outside the portrait hole made me feel kind of awkward. Was I just imagining it or was he really joking? "Yeah, I guess he was just tired," I decide to finish lamely, my face still heating despite myself.

"The dueling was pretty funny though," Lily calls out from behind her curtains. "The most dangerous spell James used on me was Wingardium Leviosa. I mean, honestly, levitating a cushion and hurling it at me at three miles per hour is really gonna hurt."

I snort at the mental image of James carefully bumping a cushion into Lily and then asking if she's okay.

"Wow, sounds like you really like him, huh?" I comment with a grin on my face. I bet she's turning beet red under her sheets.

"What, no! Why?" exclaims Lily, a little bit too quickly to be considered legitimate denial. Judging by her reaction, she's probably glowing red in the dark.

I shrug, chuckling to myself. "Well, judging by the way you blushed when he sat next to you for breakfast this morning, I'd say you really, really, really like him. Am I right or am I right?"

"I don't... really, really, really, re...ally..." Lily mumbles sleepily.

I sigh in reply, rather tired myself. "You have it easy, Lil. You like James and he likes you. Simple as that.  Me and Sirius?  I don't even want to think about how we're going to get through the rest of this year, much less the rest of our lives together.  What am I going to do?"

Silence.

"Lily?" I call out, sitting up in bed. "Oi, fat load of help you are!"

But before I can say anymore, I hear a light snoring from behind her curtains. Snoring? Man, this girl sleeps through anything. The sound makes me smile as I fall back on my pillows with my arms behind my head.

Honestly, though... how the hell am I going to handle the rest of this year?

 _____