The Ladders Of Love: James Potter

21

the match

IT WAS GAME DAY AND SO FAR CLARISSE HAD LOVED THE ADRENALINE RUSH THAT IT WAS GIVING HER. Both of the quidditch team players were extremely tense in the morning, Clarisse observing that they barely ate breakfast. In order to be supportive to both her best friend and boyfriend, she spent half of her breakfast shoving porridge down Regulus' throat, and the other half of her breakfast she made James munch on a couple of pieces of toast.

"Prongs, you are gaining back some colour in your face! Thank Merlin, you were a little too pale this morning." Sirius observed with a mocking smile as he sat down at the breakfast table, sending a polite smile towards Clarisse. "You coming to cheer us on, Clari?"

Clarisse smiled at the boy. "Yeah, but I also have to support Slytherin and Regulus so I'll be half and half."

"In that case." Remus murmured as he sat down, pulling out his face paint. He smeared a couple of red lines on the left side of her face, then he replicated the look on her right side with green face paint. "There."

Clarisse grinned. "Thanks Remus!"

Remus smiled at her bashfully as he rubbed the paint off of his fingers with a tissue, not noticing the grey eyes that watched him with a small twinkle.

The mousy brown haired girl watched the exchange with a muffled giggle before turning towards James who suddenly jerked up.

"Will you wear my jersey?" James asked hopefully as he looked up at his girlfriend who's face softened.

"If you insist." She wiggled her eyebrows cheekily, her eyes widening as he pulled it out from under the table. "Were you stashing that all morning till you finally gathered the courage to ask me to wear it?"

"Yeah." He sheepishly handed it over. "I didn't know if you were coming or not. You hate loud noises."

"I'm actually quite excited." The coffee eyed girl said, ignoring the random Gryffindor boy a little down the table that was throwing up due to nervousness from the game. "The adrenaline of the ordeal gives me a rush."

James smiled softly at his girlfriend, watching as she helped paint onto Remus' face. He couldn't believe how lucky he was.

"Ew stop, this is a public area." Sirius shoved his head lightly, noticing his stare at the girl. "Poor Clari is getting objectified by your eyes."

"I wasn't objectifying her!" James defended. "I was just admiring her!"

Clarisse popped red paint onto Remus' nose (making him look like Rudolph the red nosed reindeer) before tilting her head. "Where's Peter?"

"He's asleep, usually runs late to games because 'Saturday is for sleeping in.'" Sirius toned his pitch to be higher as he imitated Peter making Clarisse snort.

"To be fair, he's got a point-"

"YEAH! GO REGULUS!" Clarisse shouted loudly, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice. "GO JAMES!"

"The game hasn't begun yet, Clari." Barty Crouch Jr nudged her amusedly as she shrugged, her eyes wandering to where both of the teams were hovering, ready to start.

"They can still hear me though." Clarisse argued. "GO ON!"

Evan Rosier winced and cupped his ear dramatically from the other side of the girl. "Clari you're going to burst my ear drum."

"I'm trying to be supportive!" Clarisse groaned as she held up the umbrella, tilting it a little, rain pouring down hard over the students. Barty had expanded her umbrella so that it fit all three of them. "Remus commentates, doesn't he?"

Evan nodded in confirmation. "His comments are actually funny, for a Gryffindor of course."

Clarisse smirked amusedly at his begrudging admission, her arm aching slightly from holding the umbrella so she cast a wordless levitating charm, hovering the umbrella over them.

The game didn't take long to start, Madame Hooch, a young new assistant coach, blew the whistle and the game began. Clarisse continuously cheered whenever James or Regulus would do something, whether it be good or bad she had no idea, but she cheered nonetheless.

"And now it seems that James Potter is attempting to show off to his girlfriend!"

Clarisse perked up with wide eyes at the sound of Remus' bemused voice, her head snapping towards where James was flying near the Slytherin stands.

"THIS ONE IS FOR YOU!" James shouted loudly, pointing chaotically at her making the poor girl turn bright red as he chuckled and zoomed off in the rain towards the goal with the quaffle in hand.

On the other side of the pitch, Sirius Black began to hurtle his stick at a couple of bludgers, sending them into the stomachs and shoulders of the chasers that were beginning to catch up with James. With an audible crunch, both of the Slytherin chasers were quickly stopped.

With a swift turn, spin and swing, James Potter threw the quaffle into the left goal, his lips upturning into a proud smirk as it flew in.

"AND JAMES POTTER SCORES!" Remus shouted excitedly. "WITH MORAL SUPPORT FROM THE LOVELY CLARISSE RUSSO!"

Clarisse burned red, her hands tiredly rubbing her face as she blushed at the wink she received from James.

"Now it seems that Regulus Black is attempting to get Clarisse Russo's attention!" Remus announced as he watched the Slytherin boy wave at the girl frantically. "What a popular girl!"

The mousy brown haired girl's eyes widened as she looked over towards her Slytherin best friend, Regulus relaxing at her attention.

"THIS ONES FOR YOU!" He mocked, sending a look towards James who narrowed his eyes lightly, before the Slytherin dipped on his broom following the sparkle of a golden snitch in the light.

"Holy shit, do I cheer?" Clarisse murmured as Barty and Evan started to scream excitedly next to her. "Fuck it. GO ON REG!"

James attempted to throw as many quaffles as possible into the goals but groaned ultimately when he saw the triumphant look on Regulus' face as he flew back up, a snitch fluttering in his grasp.

"And Regulus Black catches the snitch meaning... Slytherin wins." Remus was less than enthusiastic, ignoring McGonagall's calls on being 'fair'.

Regulus laughed brightly as he hovered his broom down to the pitch floor, taking man slaps and ruffles of his hair as congratulations. Clarisse fought through the crowd as she ran to the pitch into his arms for a hug.

"Well done!" She piped up as she pulled away, regretting abandoning her umbrella as she inevitably started to feel her clothes soak through.

Regulus smiled down at her before rolling his eyes in the opposite direction and spinning her around to see James with a solemn look on his face as he hovered downwards. Regulus sighed at his dramatics, although knowing he would probably act the same if he lost, and pushed his best friend in the general direction of her boyfriend. "See you later at the party, Clari."

The girl sent him a grateful look before rushing up to her boyfriend who visibly brightened at her presence. "You played well."

"You have no idea what 'playing well' looks like." James said playfully as he stared her down, towering over her.

The boy's usually messy hair was now curly and wet as he swept it back making Clarisse have to stop for a moment to gain her breath. Her eyes wandered down to his jersey where she saw it sticking to his abs.

"I especially liked the shoutout." Clarisse joked as she quickly looked upwards to his smirking face, her cheeks turning a bright pink.

James didn't say anything but simply stared at her with a small smile. Leaning in abruptly, Clarisse let out a guffaw of surprise as he caught her lips with his, snaking his arm around her waist and his hand on her cheek.

And the couple kissed in the rain, allowing their stress to flow away...