The Stag and The Harpy | James Potter

Butterflies

Marlene and Lily sat together on Phoebe's bed, matching smirks on their face. They watched as Phoebe applied her makeup, muttering silently to herself.

"Who's all of this for, Pheebs?" Lily asks mischievously.

"Yeah," Marlene snorts. "Hoping to bewitch someone today with your spooky powers?"

Phoebe rolls her eyes and sighs, "No, girls. I just want to look nice for my last first day."

The lie feels weird on her lips. The truth was, Phoebe has spent a very anxious 30 minutes in the shower this morning, worrying about if she should wear a skirt or trousers. She herself rarely felt pretty, but today she wanted to. She continues to tell herself that she's doing it for just herself...but something warm stirs in her chest when she thinks of James Potter staring at her lips the night before.

"Pheebs, we've already missed breakfast. At this rate we're going to be late to class," Lily playfully chides.

"Alright, alright! Let's go."

She quickly grabs her black robes and throws them over her uniform, running with the Marlene and Lily to the dungeons. They quickly walked in to potions, still a few minutes early. Phoebe took her seat next to Remus, whispering, "Thank, Merlin. Lily would've killed me if we were late."

Remus smiles down at his friend silently. Phoebe begins to grow uncomfortable under his stare, so she tries to busy herself with getting out her book and parchment. But when she sits back up Remus is still staring at her.

"What?!" She finally demands. He chuckles and says cheekily, "You just look very nice."

She narrows her eyes suspiciously. Remus never ever acted the way towards her that other blokes did. Probably because a werewolf being attracted to a Veela would end in catastrophe. He was teasing her.

"I'm not allowed to look nice for my last first day of class?"

"You are. I just don't think that's why you're dolled up." He smirks, crossing his arms.

"Remus?"

"Yes, Phoebe?"

"Shut the fuck up," She says sweetly. Remus chokes out a laugh shaking his head. Sirius and James must've caught the end of their conversation because Sirius leans forward and whispers from the table behind, "What are you guys talking about??"

"Nothing," Remus replies, earning an eye roll from Sirius. James is too wrapped up in staring at the back of Phoebe's head to notice his friends. He'd gotten no sleep after their near kiss. He deeply regretted not being able to...and he wonders if she felt the same. Sirius notices him staring and whispers to him, "Quit checking out my sister."

"She's not your sister," James retorts, finally tearing his eyes from her soft looking hair. He wants to reach out and twirl a strand around his finger.

Slughorn begins class, droning on about something stupid. Sirius and James continue their hushed conversation while his eyes flicker back to Phoebe every so often,

"If you like her, ask her out," Sirius whispers. James scoffs and shakes his head, "I don't like, Griffin! I-I um..."

Sirius smirks and raises a brow waiting for him to continue. He finally interrupts James' desperate attempts to recover.

"What did amortentia smell like for you, James?"

"I forget. That was months ago."

Sirius grins and shakes his head, not buying it. James, knowing he'll never be able to convince Sirius otherwise decides to answer. Truthfully.

"Lavender," He says lowly. He hesitates before adding, "And...a sea breeze. I think bloody cigarettes as well."

Sirius' grin deepens. He lets out a rather loud snort of laughter, drawing the attention of the students and Slughorn. The bulky man with bulging eyes asks irritably, "If you two believe that what you're discussing is more important than what I have to say, then you certainly wouldn't mind sharing with the class."

Sirius smirks and glances at James before saying cheekily, "Professor we were just discussing Amortentia from last term and wondering if the level of potions will be the same."

Slughorn looks surprised. "I see, Mr. Black. The answer is yes, the potions will be as difficult and increase in difficulty as the class continues. Would you and Mr. Potter care to share what you smelled from Amortentia?"

James pales slightly, sending a harsh glare to his smug friend sitting next to him.

"I smelled orchids and vanilla," Sirius says confidently, earning a bashful smile from Marlene McKinnon. James rubs the back of his neck, flushing slightly when he notices that Phoebe has turned to watch. She looks curious as she looks at James. He's too scared, too desperate to save face so he lies.

"Lilies and gingerbread, Sir," He says firmly. He winces when Lily leans over from her bench next to his and says jeeringly, "You're a bloody liar, James Potter.

"Sod off, Evans," He grumbles, noticing that Phoebe is no longer looking at them. Instead her shoulders are slumped and she's staring at her book.

The anticipatory butterflies Phoebe felt moments ago have now turned to an emotional lump in her throat. Lilies. 'He still likes Lily' she thinks to herself, hiding her eyes from Remus. He looks like he wants to say something, but the Veela has closed herself off to him and the others completely. Phoebe takes a deep breath, reminding herself of her mother's words. Composure. She needed to appear strong, unaffected. She sits up straighter, tossing her hair back from her shoulder to not hide her now stoic face.

Her mother preached indifference, emotional restraint. Phoebe held onto what she'd been learning since she was young, that the moment she lost control it would be impossible to get back. So she tunes out James and Sirius whispering. She forgets that Remus is next to her. She only focuses on her notes and Slughorns words, determined to not lose at whatever game she and James Potter were playing.