Today's-my-Enemy[Open]

[themarauder]

when it rains, it pours && opens doors--

Quidditch practice had gone uncharacteristically horrible that day. The winds were strong, blowing the Gryffindor brooms about. A few of the players were a little sick. James Potter, being captain, had eventually called the practice early. They would try to make up the lost time on another day, but there was clearly nothing they could get done today since everyone was in such horrible moods at only halfway through. Ending practice early was something he never did, and on the few occasions it happened, he was never a very happy person after wards.

James was rather annoyed with the sudden weather change as he walked back to school, his broom slung over his shoulder. His quidditch robes were whipping around him in the wind. The temperature was still nice and he was not quite ready to go back inside yet. Rather, he moved to wards his favorite place in the grounds, besides the Quidditch Pitch, the black lake. He chose a spot under one of the many trees. It was sheltered enough that the wind would not beat the living daylights out of him, but he still got to enjoy being outside.

There were already a few people gathered not to far away. Many of the younger students looked up and greeted him warmly when they saw him. For once James wasn't his usual friendly person and wasn't very chatty. He turned to gaze out over the lake. It was normally very calm and smooth, but like him, it was the opposite today. Quidditch was not the only thing that had gone wrong today. He had also split pumpkin juice all over his favorite shoes at breakfast, then received a low grade on his potions essay, which he had considered to be quite decent.

When James was in these sorts of moods, he would rather just avoid alot of people. Mostly because he didn't really want to take it out on anyone who didn't deserve it. Almost everywhere in the castle would be crowed at the moment, and he didn't think he would be able to get privacy. The grounds, however, was spacey and he was happy he had decided to stay out for that very same reason. Suddenly his brooding thoughts of todays events was broken, he had heard a familiar voice calling his name.

--to flood the floors we thought would always keep us safe and dry

[Devona Edgecombe]

“James! James!” cried an overly familiar voice, practically cantering over the grounds helped greatly by the billowing wind blowing in the right direction for once. Even if that ruffled up Devona’s hair, it still spurred her on by that much more, so that the satchel that was swinging wildly to and fro from her side barely deterred her from reaching her target, who was currently adamant to be dead to her increasingly irritated cries. Vonna was not one for patience, and she was not about to start now – had she been in his position, she would have heard him surely?

The boy looked as taciturn as she’d ever seen him, why was he sulking? Personally Vonna loved the harsher months which brought wind and rain as opposed to the sweltering July heat that would approach soon enough, so she couldn’t see his problem. Then again summer was synonymous for lazy days and no homework, and by the looks of what she’d witnessed on the pitch, practice hadn’t gone well that day. Visibility was poor and the wind was now whistling too hard for it to actually be beneficial in the air, throwing many brooms of course and leaving players feeling disappointment mingled with fatigue.

How was she to know it wasn’t just the dampening grey of the whether that dulled boy wonder’s mood? It wasn’t as if she stalked him at breakfast or crept into his classes instead of her more important ones just to see how his day was going. If anything, the sulking figure underneath the tree just made Vonna amused if not slightly annoyed – it was just the weather, grow up. True, she hadn’t seen the whole of the practice, but the last ten minutes that she’d caught as she took her blueberry muffin out for a walk with her had been enough to indicate how the rest of the duration had gone. Being a Quidditch fan as well as a skilled player, she could perhaps understand his frustration, but that was no reason to run away from her. Or worse, ignore her.

“James!” she cried once more, nearing the perimeter of the large maple that was adamant to cling onto the last of its forlorn amber leaves. “I’ve been calling for ages, could you not hear me?” she gasped, bending double to catch her breath. Vonna had almost forgotten how heavy her bag was; her trip to the library before hand had not been utterly useless. Her hands were placed squarely on her thighs for support, her neck craning in an attempt to make eye contact with her skittish and suspiciously deaf quarry.

[themarauder]

James turned to the voice and realized it was Devona, and she looked a little annoyed. When she spoke again he realized why. He honestly had not heard anyone call his name. He watched as she tried to catch her breath. "Sorry, It's a little windy, and I was a bit distracted." He spoke, wanting her to know that he had not ignored her, as she probably thought. If he would have been in a better mood, then he would have started making fun of her. Instead he only offered a small smile.

It was true that he had assumed he didn't want to be around people, but now that one of his friends was around, he welcomed it. Already he was feeling a little better and more like James Potter. He was surprised to see her out here. Who wanted to be out here in the wind, besides him. Which he had a valad reason, sulking. So maybe it was not the most mature way to behave, but it had made him feel just a little bit better.

James took out his want and began twirling it around between his fingers, a weird habit he had developed. "So what are you doing out here anyways? Besides stalking me." He asked jokingly, though it was only halfheartedly. Which he really didn't think she had, but it seemed she had went through just a little bit or trouble to catch up with him. He looked back to her, waiting for her response, still messing with his wand.

[Devona Edgecombe]

Well, this was certainly strange. For one thing, it would have been the perfect opportunity for James to resort to some teasing, at which she’d get herself prepped up to reply virulently back. Not enough exactly to burn his internal organs, but acrid enough to cause at least a minor sting. And here he was… apologizing? That in itself was odd, as expressed by the small frown furrowed between her brows. “Yeah…” She agreed, her concurring sounded vague and distracted by the evidently smiling boy whom she only met back with a quizzical look.

The sulking figure she’d spotted settling onto the greyish grass a while before was now not looking as down as he had done, and perhaps it was just a façade; Vonna knew she often did the same if only to not impose her emotions upon others. And he was boy, which meant he was naturally worse at expressing them – all the run-ins with Lily Evans had pretty much confirmed. “You okay? I managed to catch the end of practice” she enlightened him grimly, her lyrics and tone combining to form a general feeling of empathy. As sympathetic as she could get, being Devona Edgecombe, but she happened to understand the difficulty in flying in gales; she was no stranger to the conditions.

It was the answer to his question, but perhaps indirectly so. She quipped in with a light, “And I do not stalk you – stalking would be you following Lily around like a lost puppy.” Well, he may have been apparently down, but she wasn’t, and Vonna didn’t feel the need to adhere to his mood swings. He’d changed over the summer, and even though she’d been with him, she only realised after boarding the train and James had rather solemnly announced that he had Head Boy duties to undertake, and did so without a hint of pomposity. If she didn’t know better, Lily was beginning to actually… get on with him. The apocalypse was approaching, she thought as she took a perch beside him, her satchel being promptly dropped to the side of her, and her rear taking a seat comfortably next to him.

“So…” Vonna gently bumped her hips against James’ in friendly hostility, “What’s with the long face?” She brushed the hair out of her long face, peering at him curiously, her arms folded on her raised knees, protective from the harsh blows of the biting air in her little curled ball.

[themarauder]

James winced at the mention of practice. Did she really have to bring that up, it was just plain embarrassing. Though the bad Quidditch practice was only half of it. James was captain this year and that threw in alot of pressure. If they sucked it would be his fault. It was also his last year of Quidditch and as much as he had attempted to block that from his mind, he had finally come to terms with it. He wanted this year to be great. Honestly so far they had been pretty decent. After the sucky practice, he feared the worst.

James didn't really feel like admitting all of this. He was not big on admitting weaknesses at all. Plus, she would probably just make fun of him. "It was completely horrible. Sorry you had to witness it, I bet it was painful." He attempted to put some humor in it, but it just wasn't that funny at all. "Today is just one of those days." He spoke, implying of the other stupid things that had happened. Actually speaking about it would make his mood worse and that was not something he was aiming for.

He raised his eyebrows. Why did people always accuse him of stalking Lily Evans. He never did anything of the sort. "Oh what a low blow Devona. I'll get you back for that." He promised. "For the record, I do not stalk Lily." He added. Stalking made him sound crazy. "I have better things to do." Now he was being defensive. James was looking up at her now. Somehow she always managed to do this. Especially when Lily was the subject. It didn't help that he seemed to be extra touchy today. Which now she was on his mind, he had to fight the urge to ask about her. Believe it or not, he actually felt bad asking friends about her.

[Devona Edgecombe]

She could practically see the pain on his face at the very mention of practice; it was probably more intense after he’d been granted captainship. She could assume that other things had happened for James was usually the one to pat his players on the back and congratulate them for the hard work despite the crap session, but no congrats seemed in order today; he’d just sullenly stalked off the pitch, ignoring doting viewers and tired playmates. No doubt, if his team’s ego was deflated, then so was his – he was fiercely passionate and empathetic, often irked by Vonna’s fish-like coldness to most situations. Her empathy was actually reserved for friends – like James – who actually meant something to her. To sympathise with someone because they dropped 0.1 on their grade average was just a silly waste of emotion. Then again, Vonna wasn’t your ordinary stereotypical pretty girl.

He was a man. He could not open up, and Vonna accepted that. Even to his fellow marauders (as they’d fashionably been calling themselves for the last few years or so), he preferred to show the… more lively and buoyant side. And didn’t Vonna know it was all a show? Of course she did, it was different to talk on the moonlight roof in the middle of August with no pressure to rush or condense, but at school, they were not so lucky, and twice as closed. It was if she could remember those surprisingly meaningful silences and short sentences with utmost clarity as if it had been only last night that James was confessing his wish to change… somehow. She wasn’t sure if he talked with Sirius in the same decorum, but he had with her, and that counted for something to the cynical Ravenclaw.

“Oh no, that’s quite alright. When you completely ignored me on the stands, I figured something was up,” she allowed lightly, her statement merely one to synchronise with how he was feeling. “I never knew Sirius could fly in that direction though…” the pensive, almost humorous addition followed. It had been comical certainly, but adding much to the chagrin of James; she didn’t press on. With a supportive hand, she rubbed his back soothingly in a sportsmanlike manner, her cool voice ringing out like some calming tannoy with, “Don’t worry, we all have those days.” And indeed they all did – perhaps not the exact same days – but the emotion came pretty close.

Okay, it probably wasn’t a good idea to joke about Lily right now to lighten the situation, given that James was overly sensitive about her. It was probably best not to focus on the red head, often affectionately nicknamed ‘Lily-bug’ much to her annoyance. “You keep saying that, but you never do get me back. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were bluffing Potter,” she teased lightly, the mirth evident not only in her voice, but also in the small dimples appearing on her cheeks as her lips accustomed themselves to a smirk. It was easier just to relent and give in than to battle it out with a frustrated Gryffindor (male, at that). “Yes, I know you don’t. And you’re being defensive again,” she proceeded to enlighten him. It could be argued that it was almost condescending, but James was in no state to think or feel briny – although that was perhaps too strong a word to describe even Vonna. She met his hazel gaze easily, preferring to let the sparkle of merriment invade her eyes than ruin their precious moment of teasing almost spiritual silence.

“It’s not a crime.” Vonna dared to bite back a grin, egging him on to just give in. Because…. Eventually he would. She knew him far too well.