Gone too far
OOC: Completed with the wonderful venemousprince . Italics are Snape. Plain text is James.
Saturday afternoon had elapsed into the evening. The people who leisurely spent their time in Hogsmeade were settling into the restaurants, going through their bags or sitting and talking amongst themselves...save for one sallow, lanky child. Severus Snape let his shopping bags hang near his knees as he walked clearly conveying he hated shopping. He kept the new textbook under his arm guarding it with his life due to the unfortunate fate of the last one courtesy of a bored group of certain delinquents. He lifted his head slightly when he found himself alone and sighed in relief. For now it seemed he was safe and could make it back to the Slytherin Common Room...he hadn't heard any commotion from the Gryffindors yet.
In an unusual move from his norm, James Potter had wandered from his group of close friends to explore on his own. Sometimes there was just something thrilling about wandering alone. The possibility of new discoveries were always looming. While walking briskly along a pebble path he noticed a familiar back of the head. It was dark, almost slick with grease, and was most certainly unhygienic. Ducking back behind a crate, James grinned to himself and reached into his pocket, holding a tiny snitch in between thumb and forefinger. "Go get him!" he whispered to the charmed object, to which the snitch flitted away to find Severus Snape, buzzing annoyingly, yet harmlessly, around his head.
It was all going to well- the gate to Hogsmeade was in sight. He started to smile but before it could fully find his lips a flash of gold stopped him dead in his tracks. "Hm?" he looked around and found no sign of anyone, just shops teeming with people. Before he could take another step the snitch reappeared, hovering in front of him for a moment before flitting around his head like an swarm of flies. "Bugger off!" he swatted at the thing before drawing his wand, "Immobilus!" he spat out and fired at the snitch, dropping the book in the process.
Grinning wickedly as the book fell, James reached into his coat pocket, pulled out his wand, pointed it forward and whispered, "Accio snitch and book!" He knew that the trajectory of the objects' path would give away his position, so he confidently stood up from his hiding place with both hands outstretched, grabbing onto the items with each. "Hrm, looks like I have a new book. What's it about, Snivellus? I can't be bothered to look at it."
Rustling in the bushes caused his head to turn. He caught sight of James and his first instinct was to simply walk away with his book. He looked at the book in Potter's hand, then towards the floor where it had fallen...he gritted his teeth momentarily before collecting himself. "It's a required text for Defense Against the Dark Arts. If you hand it over now I might feel inclined to teach you to read and maybe one day you might have a book of your own."
James quickly pocketed the snitch before boredly flipping through the pages of the book. "I know how to read, thank you. Unlike you, I have better things to do with my time than spend it in the library." He lazily walked a step closer to Severus, tossing the book toward him, purposefully letting it fall short and into a puddle. "You can have your book back."
As the other approached he raised a thin brow feeling something was out of place. He hadn't even made an effort to catch the book, it fell into the puddle like a lead weight. The pages were drenched but he made no move to pick it up, just scowled. "Damn it, Potter! Don't you have better things to do with your time?" He kept his wand at the ready, fists clenched around it so his pale knuckles gained a hint of color.
"You know what, Snivelly? You're right. I'm through here. You're so pathetically boring that even having fun at your expense is less exciting than watching grass grow. I'll go find my friends now, I'd advise you to find yours, but we both know how wrong I'd be." He then turned away, putting his back to the other and calmly striding in the direction of the Three Broomsticks.
Perhaps it was the irritation of spending the rest of the night cleaning his book via stain-removing charms or face buying yet another new one...that and a combination of his own self-consciousness when it came to James Potter, but the comment struck Severus in just the wrong place. "After all that you just walk away," he raised his wand, "you're a disgrace, Potter, and you've had this coming for a long time." He raised his wand towards James' retreating back, glad for the opportunity. It wasn't as if he was attacking a man from behind so much as some lame animal in dire need of discipline to demonstrate its place. "Expelliarmus!"
The second the wand flew out of his hand, James' eyes flew open wide in shock. He'd never expected Severus to retaliate, and instantly knew that this was what people meant when they said his pride would get the best of him. He scrambled forward to retrieve his wand, and in his haste the James Potter who always had all the answers, who never let anyone see him fail, tripped. As his foot caught on a crack in the pathway, James felt himself tumbling downward as if in slow motion, which instantly snapped back into full speed as he hit the ground, skinning the flesh off his palms and tearing his jeans at the knees.
As the other went for his wand he kept his at the ready, "Sectumsemp-!" before he could finish the incantation, James was tripping over his own feet and hit the ground full force. He winced, stepping closer and kicking the wand away from the other, looking down on him. "I suppose there's no use in that. You do a good job of beating yourself up," he thinned his lips, lifting a cold brow. By now people were darting out of shops and leaning out of buildings to see what happened and why the popular James Potter was on the ground. "Go on, Potter, before you get too embarrassed. I give you that luxury."
James Potter wasn't one to go quietly, but for now he was happy to give that illusion. Looking up at Severus wide wide eyes, he nodded meekly, then straightened himself to stand on his feet, walking away from Severus in the direction of his wand. After stooping to pick up the hand with a still bleeding hand, James took another step as if to leave the scene, but quickly turned on his heel. He had already left himself exposed once, he was not about to do it again. "Aguamenti!" was the command James gave the wand, and out of it shot a powerful blast of water that matched the force of his voice, moving directly for Severus as typhoon like speed.
Severus looked down into the eyes and felt a hurried heart and a weakened spirit. He tilted his head slightly, as it seemed he was seeing his life from the other end. He watched him go, reflexes letting him down too early and took the hit of water full force. He flew back a few feet and landed on his bum looking like a mangy, wet cat, sputtering. He got to his feet as soon as he could and aimed his wand again for James's upper chest, "Sectumsempra!" he yelled without any hesitation of drawing blood. He didn't want a fight- he wanted it to be over.
Not being a spell James had heard before, he had not idea how to block it and while his wand remained drawn from his previous spell, it looked rather pathetic as no counter attack was issued from it. His mind raced in blind panic, his expression looking very much like the deer he changed into every full moon. In less than a second it felt as though an invisible knife ripped through his chest, tearing him from shoulder to navel. James instantly bowed into himself, unspeakable pain rolling through his body as blood spilled onto his clothes and the ground below him. Even in this state he was not about to surrender or let an attacker get the best of him. Weakly pointing his wand at Severus with one hand and clutching his stomach with another he muttered, "Relashio," through gritted teeth, sending one more spell towards Severus, attempting to knock him backward, but the spell only seemed to have the reverse effect on James and he quickly crumpled to the ground after saying the incantation.
The subtlest look of satisfaction showed in the corners of his lips as the other could only watch the spell and take it. "There. I think we've learned something today." There was more blood than he expected, but unfortunately he knew Potter would survive his wound. The spell backfired and the mighty James Potter was crumpled on the ground. An anonymous female voice cried out in terror at the sight and made a run for him, people slowly shuffling out. Severus knew it was time to leave and picked up the filthy book, holding it between two fingers at his side as he walked towards the gate.
The loss of blood was making James feel lightheaded and he reached feebly with one hand for whichever person was helping him up after a small crowd had gathered around him. His arm flailed in the air for a few moments like an infant needing security before it too fell, landing with a smack atop the blood streaming from his torso. With half lidded eyes he struggled to look up to see who was carrying him, but in his weakened state his eyelids couldn't stay open a second longer an fell shut. In the blackness he heard the words "hospital wing" before passing out and slipping away from conscious thought.
Saturday afternoon had elapsed into the evening. The people who leisurely spent their time in Hogsmeade were settling into the restaurants, going through their bags or sitting and talking amongst themselves...save for one sallow, lanky child. Severus Snape let his shopping bags hang near his knees as he walked clearly conveying he hated shopping. He kept the new textbook under his arm guarding it with his life due to the unfortunate fate of the last one courtesy of a bored group of certain delinquents. He lifted his head slightly when he found himself alone and sighed in relief. For now it seemed he was safe and could make it back to the Slytherin Common Room...he hadn't heard any commotion from the Gryffindors yet.
In an unusual move from his norm, James Potter had wandered from his group of close friends to explore on his own. Sometimes there was just something thrilling about wandering alone. The possibility of new discoveries were always looming. While walking briskly along a pebble path he noticed a familiar back of the head. It was dark, almost slick with grease, and was most certainly unhygienic. Ducking back behind a crate, James grinned to himself and reached into his pocket, holding a tiny snitch in between thumb and forefinger. "Go get him!" he whispered to the charmed object, to which the snitch flitted away to find Severus Snape, buzzing annoyingly, yet harmlessly, around his head.
It was all going to well- the gate to Hogsmeade was in sight. He started to smile but before it could fully find his lips a flash of gold stopped him dead in his tracks. "Hm?" he looked around and found no sign of anyone, just shops teeming with people. Before he could take another step the snitch reappeared, hovering in front of him for a moment before flitting around his head like an swarm of flies. "Bugger off!" he swatted at the thing before drawing his wand, "Immobilus!" he spat out and fired at the snitch, dropping the book in the process.
Grinning wickedly as the book fell, James reached into his coat pocket, pulled out his wand, pointed it forward and whispered, "Accio snitch and book!" He knew that the trajectory of the objects' path would give away his position, so he confidently stood up from his hiding place with both hands outstretched, grabbing onto the items with each. "Hrm, looks like I have a new book. What's it about, Snivellus? I can't be bothered to look at it."
Rustling in the bushes caused his head to turn. He caught sight of James and his first instinct was to simply walk away with his book. He looked at the book in Potter's hand, then towards the floor where it had fallen...he gritted his teeth momentarily before collecting himself. "It's a required text for Defense Against the Dark Arts. If you hand it over now I might feel inclined to teach you to read and maybe one day you might have a book of your own."
James quickly pocketed the snitch before boredly flipping through the pages of the book. "I know how to read, thank you. Unlike you, I have better things to do with my time than spend it in the library." He lazily walked a step closer to Severus, tossing the book toward him, purposefully letting it fall short and into a puddle. "You can have your book back."
As the other approached he raised a thin brow feeling something was out of place. He hadn't even made an effort to catch the book, it fell into the puddle like a lead weight. The pages were drenched but he made no move to pick it up, just scowled. "Damn it, Potter! Don't you have better things to do with your time?" He kept his wand at the ready, fists clenched around it so his pale knuckles gained a hint of color.
"You know what, Snivelly? You're right. I'm through here. You're so pathetically boring that even having fun at your expense is less exciting than watching grass grow. I'll go find my friends now, I'd advise you to find yours, but we both know how wrong I'd be." He then turned away, putting his back to the other and calmly striding in the direction of the Three Broomsticks.
Perhaps it was the irritation of spending the rest of the night cleaning his book via stain-removing charms or face buying yet another new one...that and a combination of his own self-consciousness when it came to James Potter, but the comment struck Severus in just the wrong place. "After all that you just walk away," he raised his wand, "you're a disgrace, Potter, and you've had this coming for a long time." He raised his wand towards James' retreating back, glad for the opportunity. It wasn't as if he was attacking a man from behind so much as some lame animal in dire need of discipline to demonstrate its place. "Expelliarmus!"
The second the wand flew out of his hand, James' eyes flew open wide in shock. He'd never expected Severus to retaliate, and instantly knew that this was what people meant when they said his pride would get the best of him. He scrambled forward to retrieve his wand, and in his haste the James Potter who always had all the answers, who never let anyone see him fail, tripped. As his foot caught on a crack in the pathway, James felt himself tumbling downward as if in slow motion, which instantly snapped back into full speed as he hit the ground, skinning the flesh off his palms and tearing his jeans at the knees.
As the other went for his wand he kept his at the ready, "Sectumsemp-!" before he could finish the incantation, James was tripping over his own feet and hit the ground full force. He winced, stepping closer and kicking the wand away from the other, looking down on him. "I suppose there's no use in that. You do a good job of beating yourself up," he thinned his lips, lifting a cold brow. By now people were darting out of shops and leaning out of buildings to see what happened and why the popular James Potter was on the ground. "Go on, Potter, before you get too embarrassed. I give you that luxury."
James Potter wasn't one to go quietly, but for now he was happy to give that illusion. Looking up at Severus wide wide eyes, he nodded meekly, then straightened himself to stand on his feet, walking away from Severus in the direction of his wand. After stooping to pick up the hand with a still bleeding hand, James took another step as if to leave the scene, but quickly turned on his heel. He had already left himself exposed once, he was not about to do it again. "Aguamenti!" was the command James gave the wand, and out of it shot a powerful blast of water that matched the force of his voice, moving directly for Severus as typhoon like speed.
Severus looked down into the eyes and felt a hurried heart and a weakened spirit. He tilted his head slightly, as it seemed he was seeing his life from the other end. He watched him go, reflexes letting him down too early and took the hit of water full force. He flew back a few feet and landed on his bum looking like a mangy, wet cat, sputtering. He got to his feet as soon as he could and aimed his wand again for James's upper chest, "Sectumsempra!" he yelled without any hesitation of drawing blood. He didn't want a fight- he wanted it to be over.
Not being a spell James had heard before, he had not idea how to block it and while his wand remained drawn from his previous spell, it looked rather pathetic as no counter attack was issued from it. His mind raced in blind panic, his expression looking very much like the deer he changed into every full moon. In less than a second it felt as though an invisible knife ripped through his chest, tearing him from shoulder to navel. James instantly bowed into himself, unspeakable pain rolling through his body as blood spilled onto his clothes and the ground below him. Even in this state he was not about to surrender or let an attacker get the best of him. Weakly pointing his wand at Severus with one hand and clutching his stomach with another he muttered, "Relashio," through gritted teeth, sending one more spell towards Severus, attempting to knock him backward, but the spell only seemed to have the reverse effect on James and he quickly crumpled to the ground after saying the incantation.
The subtlest look of satisfaction showed in the corners of his lips as the other could only watch the spell and take it. "There. I think we've learned something today." There was more blood than he expected, but unfortunately he knew Potter would survive his wound. The spell backfired and the mighty James Potter was crumpled on the ground. An anonymous female voice cried out in terror at the sight and made a run for him, people slowly shuffling out. Severus knew it was time to leave and picked up the filthy book, holding it between two fingers at his side as he walked towards the gate.
The loss of blood was making James feel lightheaded and he reached feebly with one hand for whichever person was helping him up after a small crowd had gathered around him. His arm flailed in the air for a few moments like an infant needing security before it too fell, landing with a smack atop the blood streaming from his torso. With half lidded eyes he struggled to look up to see who was carrying him, but in his weakened state his eyelids couldn't stay open a second longer an fell shut. In the blackness he heard the words "hospital wing" before passing out and slipping away from conscious thought.