"YOU'RE AN ARTIST, HALLE."
Thomas stated, no hint of doubt in it.
Halle Grey laughed sweetly, "I'm just smoking out the eyeshadow, really."
"She's too modest, really." Rose Granger-Weasley interjected, smiling knowingly.
"Look up for me, Lucy," Halle said kindly, to which Lucy promptly complied, "You've got such gorgeous eyes, I love them."
"Thanks. Got them from my Mum." Lucy chuckled, "I used to wish they were brown. 'Cause Thomas's are. And he always had them compared to chocolate. I thought it was wicked."
"If mine were blue, I would be the whole package," Thomas said.
"We want what we can't have." Rose sighed, to which Halle sent her a look, an eyebrow raised in inquiry. That had sounded just a little too personal, but the redhead paid no attention to it.
"Guess who! Guess who I am!" James exclaimed excitedly the moment he'd reached the end of the stairs, catching the common room's attention. "Take a good look."
"James Potter?" Thomas ventured.
"Tom– Tommy, look, I don't know if you've noticed this, but I've always been James Potter-"
"I mean your grandfather, blockhead!"
Lucy made an almost inhuman effort to turn her eyes in James's direction, without moving her head, and without being too obvious about wanting to see, and when she finally caught her glimpse, her hand automatically went to clap her mouth. "Fuck." But how could a stupid pair of round glasses make such a difference on someone's face?! "I– I remembered homework. Sorry." She apologised to Halle, seeing as her reaction had caused her a bit of a fright.
"No! I'm my Dad! I'm the Chosen One, obviously. I defeat Voldemort by day and embarrass my kids at night!" James proclaimed, "But, I am the Chosen One." He winked charmingly at a group of fifth years sitting by the fireplace, who giggled quietly.
"Oh, you absolute tosspot. Harry has green eyes, and what about your scar?" Rose asked, smiling cockily, "You're just knock-off James Potter."
"Well, Rose, I'm sorry my mother conceived me with brown eyes instead of—"
"I can draw the scar in, for you, if you'd like. I'm nearly done." Halle offered, finding his costume idea quite amusing herself, "I thought you said you didn't want blush, eh, Lucy? Doesn't match the demon look?" She playfully poked one of her burning red cheeks, as the other three fell into conversation.
"It's not bloody blushing," Lucy said, "I'm probably just falling ill, is all."
***
"Here's what you do. Listen clear. You go up there. You tell her, Melody, you're hot, I'm hot, it's clearly, clearly meant to be. So, frisk it up in the broom closet with me?" James instructed loudly, over the music blaring throughout the Ravenclaw common room.
"That works?" Thomas questioned, in utter wonder.
"Like a charm, I tell you," James said, nodding dramatically before taking another swig from one of the bottles he'd sneaked out of Slughorn's. Anise, he reckoned. Nice enough. "Now. Here's a question for you!" He exclaimed, flinging his arm over Thomas's shoulder, casting a sour look to where Edward Ackerman danced (if you could call jumping around erratically) with Lucy. "Who would you rather have your sister date? Me or Edward?"
"Neither." Thomas immediately snorted.
James blinked, many times in surprise. He'd had the audacity to not even hesitate? "What d'you mean neither? 'S not the correct answer."
"Neither, obviously." Thomas laughed again, "But if I could get Lucy to listen to me, the world would've already met peace." He rolled his eyes.
"No, you have to pick. Imagine someone's threatening your life. You die if you don't pick, Thomas. You die."
"I would choose death."
Again, he didn't even hesitate.
"No, you have to! You absolutely have to! Death isn't in your choices!" James insisted, earning himself a few weird looks and giggles from those around him.
"I don't wanna," Thomas complained, drinking from his cup as though the liquid was whatever, "I guess– I guess you? Just cause Aurora?"
"I knew it! A verbal contract is binding in the Wizarding World!" James practically yelled, grinning to himself at the attention, before allowing Thomas to enjoy it instead. It wasn't everyday he got to be the exact knock-off of Spider-Man, after all, but he got to be James Potter every day.
The Ravenclaw common room was lit by purple and orange party lights, bookshelves safely covered up with a material that mimicked spiders' webs, fog clouding the place, as well. But, he hardly had ten seconds to let it sink in, before someone was dragging him to themselves. "Why are you here, and not over there, huh, Harry Potter?" Mia Wood raised her eyebrows expectantly towards the improvised dance floor. "And why, in Rowena's name are you carrying a bloody bottle around?"
"Because it's mine," James said, as though it were obvious, "And because, my girl is hanging out with Rasputin over there, so— what's the point? There isn't any. I'm never gonna dance again, anyway-"
Mia groaned in the most visible way she could, "Why are you so dramatic? It's not— oh, damn. That is one attractive man..." She sidetracked, adjusting the wings on her angel costume before clearing her throat when she noticed James's face, "What? He is, I'm not gonna deny myself of life's simple pleasures."
"Yeah, he's freakishly tall and has light eyes, such a treat for the eyes," James said sarcastically. Was it just him or did that sound like something Fred would say? "Mia, angel, won't you listen here?" His eyes suddenly lit up with dangerous mischief, with his free hand taking one of Mia's to spin her around.
"No," Mia said, at once, eyes widening. The alcohol was in her head, and she knew it, but it didn't make her stupid, "No, James, if you wanna play with fire, you aren't burning me, too, I swear."
"'M not playin' with fire, Wood!" Argued James, chuckling as he realised how funny it sounded, "No— no, I'm not! When I mentioned you earlier today, I was about sixty percent sure she was jealous."
"Sixty percent! Thank you for such intricate calculation!" She almost flinched when she saw him pout ridiculously. Boys. "No, it's a terrible idea. And even if it wasn't a terrible idea, she's my cousin. It'd be like, incest if you and I— oh no. Oh, Merlin no." Mia shivered, shaking her head. "I'd date you in other circumstances, really, I would, but not this—" Why Mia said that, she didn't know. It wasn't a groundbreaking secret, but it wasn't like she was dying to tell James particularly, either.
"Really, now?" James wiggled his eyebrows, "You flatter me, you make my cheeks go–"
"Mia, what are you doing with this commoner? Mackenzie stepped on my cape and you weren't there," Romeo Blanc complained, pushing past the crowd to get to his friend. Aurora's twin brother wore something that was hardly appropriate for a party filled with reckless teenagers. Sure, it was a witch outfit, but the lacy bone white and black dress seemed like it was worth the bookshelves in the common room put together, and the silky cape definitely matched. "No means to offend you, Potter, by the way." He added, with a calculated pat on his back.
"I can't do everything, Romeo. And I told you the cape was a stupid idea." Mia smiled ironically, "I'm slapping sense into this prick." She gestured to James.
"Ah, well good luck with that." Romeo snickered, "Have you heard the screaming? Some lad just full on admitted he'd been cheating on his girlfriend. Multiple times! To her face! Cheeky little shit, the audacity—"
"The audacity," James echoed, slowly coming out of his thoughtful trance, "Okay! I got it! Do you think you could talk to Lucy? See if she's interested?" The glint in his eyes was back as he pitched the idea to Mia, pushing his (fake) glasses up his nose.
"I'll end your suffering right now." Romeo declared. The only thing that stopped him from marching his way up to Lucy was Mia's grip on his arm.
"Come on, Mia, my guardian angel, please? I'll make a toast to you at the wedding, and all!" James grinned, putting his hands together in plea— as well as he could, because he still had to hold onto his bottle.
Romeo nudged her arm with his own, "Come on, Mia. Look at how pathetic he looks."
"Oh, alright!" Mia agreed, with a strong roll of eyes, "You really are pathetic, James, you know?"
"Pathetic? Or romantic genius?" He suggested instead.
"Definitely pathetic."
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AUTHOR'S WORDS ˊˎ-
It's the way I now have one book for the three Harry Potter eras for me. Perhaps I am losing myself in these fictional universes but, I don't really mind it.
I also wanted to say thank you for over 3K views on this book! For reading, voting, commenting, adding it to lists, it means so much to me, thank you! I hope you enjoyed this little update, and that you have a lovely day!