pure ; james potter [marauders era]

t w e n t y - o n e ;

[ January 14th, 1977 ]

Octavia threw herself onto her bed just like she did at the end of each day. She had just gotten back from walking Regulus out and James and Sirius had both left for quidditch practise. A groan left her pink lips before she heard a small noise through the room. It was a small thumping sound, as if someone had dropped something.

She sat up straight, looking around. No one was with her in the dormitory, to her surprise. Her eyes then darted to the floor, where a black box wrapped in red ribbon lay.

Octavia arched her eyebrow at the sight of this. She picked up the box warily, as if it could detonate at any second. A small tag dangled from the side of it, with nothing except her name on it in cursive handwriting. She flipped the tag around, hoping for the name of the sender but Octavia couldn't see anything. Her thoughts went straight to James and her cheeks flushed slightly.

Did he do this? It was an adorable gesture, and her fingers tingled as she delicately unfolded the ribbon. It dropped to the floor and her fingers ran across the box gently.

He was too good for her.

She opened the box and inside were a dozen bite-sized chocolates. A smile tugged at her lips and Octavia pushed a stray bit of hair behind her ear. Without a second thought, she picked one up and ate it.

The chocolate melted in her mouth and a small, fuzzy feeling grew in her stomach. She picked up and second one and then a third. They were addictive.

And then, out of no where, a wave of emotion hit her. She couldn't get him out of her head. His messy brown hair and his pearly white teeth. The way he would laugh or say her name. He was the most handsome guy she had ever seen and giggle slipped past her lips at the thought of their first kiss.

He was so smart and open-minded. She loved him. It was suppressed deep, deep down. But she knew she loved him. Octavia rose to her feet just as the other four walked in. She threw a long coat on before heading towards the dormitory door.

"Where are you off to? It's almost lights out." Marlene asked.

"I'm going to exclaim my undeniable and unconditional love for him!" Octavia shouted happily, earning squeals of joy from the girls.

"Finally! It's about time you and James made it official."

"James?" Octavia whispered in a horrified voice. "No, you half-wits! Ashton."

"What?"

"Huh?" The girls in the room chorused.

"Ashton? You said you didn't like him." Lily huffed, rolling her eyes at the girl.

"Of course I do. He's literally perfect." Octavia said as she put her shoes on quickly and fixed her hair. "Do I look okay?"

The girls continued to stare at their best friend. What happened? Was this some joke that Octavia found funny? Before they could answer her back, she stormed out of the dormitory and into the common room.

Scared for Octavia's wellbeing, they all curiously followed after her. They weren't too sure what they were expecting, but when they saw Tavia knock on the seventh year boys door, their blood ran cold.

An older boy answered the door, looking down skeptically at Octavia. "May I please speak to Ashton?"

The boy at the door nodded and called for Ashton, still standing by the door. Lily couldn't properly process the situation, but before she could think, she ran over and grabbed Octavia by the arm. The two girls, plus the other four following behind, left the Gryffindor common room and walked through the Hogwarts hallways.

"What's your problem?" Octavia screamed, suddenly getting very panicky.

"What's our problem?" Mary asked. "Why are you suddenly acting so obsessed with Ashton?"

"I've always loved him." She struggled against Lily, "Get off me!"

Lily ignored the girls protests and turned to face the other girls, mouthing "Slughorn?" The girls nodded and in an instant, they were knocking on Slughorn's door.

"Hello?" He asked, surprised at the sight of five girls restraining one. "What's the matter?"

They all walked into his office, everyone except Lily and Professor Slughorn sitting down. "I think she's gone mad." Lily started, sighing. "One minute she was tired and ready to call it a day, the next she's declaring her undying love for a boy who she doesn't have feelings for."

"Why do you love this boy so much?" Slughorn asked.

"She doesn't-"

"Shh! Let her answer."

"Well, I'm not too sure." Octavia started, "He's perfect. A very attractive young man with an amazing smile. I've always loved him. I think?"

Slughorn nodded before heading over to a desk with different ingredients. He mixed a few and brewed it a little bit, but before long he had a nice, golden drink. He placed it in Octavia's hands, saying "If I'm correct, this should do the trick."

Octavia looked at him skeptically, but took a sip nevertheless. In almost an instant her face went blank, and then to a revolted look. "I feel like I'm going to be sick!"

"What happened to her?" Marlene asked.

"A love potion." Slughorn said, "A bloody strong one at that."

They all sat in silence, before Octavia excused herself to go be sick in the girls lavatory. The girls followed suit, all thanking their Professor. Before Alice left, she stopped in front of him. "The person Octavia was in love with, would they have been the one to make the potion?'

"Generally, yes. It's hard to make a love potion that makes an individual fall for someone other than the brewer. Why?"

"No reason. Thanks again." Alice rushed out, fuming and ready to slap Ashton.

Alice ran to the quidditch pitch by herself, and waited out in the freezing cold until James and Sirius had finished their practice for tomorrow. They came up to her with worried expressions on their faces - she never watched them play.

"Ashton smuggled Octavia a love potion. She was obsessed with him.. I-I don't know what she would have done with him if we hadn't of dragged her ass off the way to Slughorn."

Something inside James ticked, and Sirius could feel it too. Without changing clothes or catching a breath, they walked all the way back to the Gryffindor common room.

Lets just say, Ashton will never be landing even an eye on Octavia ever again.

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published [1/4/2017]