I've had this oneshot waiting for quite a bit, and in fact, a couple of you guys might've already read it if you're active on the Kik chat. I know for a fact Koko, Mads, and Teds have read it, not sure about anyone else. 

This is the entry for the Wonderful Wizarding World Oneshots Contest run by 

I give you: A Balance of Chaos and Peace

(Set in November of 1976, 6th year.)

"Prongs?" Peter asked gently, tapping him on the shoulder. James rolled over, twisted in his maroon blankets. He promptly covered his head with a pillow in a similar shade of red. "Are you okay?" James's ensuing groan was muffled by the pillow. "Don't feel good, Wormy."

Peter turned to Sirius, who was reclining on a propped up cushion. "Pads? Do you know what's bothering him? And where's Remus?" Sirius stretched luxuriously. "His back was acting up again so he went to see Pomfrey. You know how it gets near the full moon. And what's the date?"

Peter wasn't sure how this was relevant to the conversation but he answered anyway. "October 14th." Sirius's shoulder muscles rippled as he fully extended his arms, resulting in a satisfying crack of his back. "That explains it." He told Peter in between yawns. "How?" He enquired. "It's a Hogsmeade day. Evans probably has a date or something, and that's why Grumpy Gus here refuses to get out of bed." Upon hearing her name, James let out another heart-wrenching moan.

"Prongs buddy, I feel you, I do. But you sound like a dying whale and people are trying to sleep." Sirius remarked bluntly. James turned over and looked at him. "By people do you mean you?" His voice was hollow and filled with a melancholy that only took him over when it came to Lily.

Without waiting for an answer he rolled back over. Sirius shook his head wildly, his obnoxiously glossy hair creating a halo around his head. With no warning, he sprung lithely from his bed and leapt across the room to James. He yanked on his blankets, toppling James off his bed. "YOU GIT!" James roared, lying sprawled on the floor. Peter snickered quietly at the amusing sight. Sirius shrugged as James kicked at him. "Someone needed to do it. You're coming to Hogsmeade with us anyways, so get dressed."

James picked himself up from the floor unhappily and shambled over to his dresser. He quickly buttoned a simple collared shirt and tugged on a pair of trousers with his left hand, pulling a tie out of his drawer with his right. He knotted his tie sloppily and grabbed a grey muggle coat that Remus had gifted him a while back. He faced the mirror for a few seconds and tried to comb his fingers through his tangled hair. Admitting defeat, he sighed and pulled his hand away from the unkempt mess that was his hair.

"Let's go then, lads!" Sirius exclaimed. James sighed, trudging out the door reluctantly. Peter followed eagerly, a small bounce to his step. They stopped by the hospital wing quickly to grab Remus, James and Peter hovering awkwardly around the door as Sirius kissed Remus's forehead tenderly. "How're you, Moony?" He asked softly. "Been better," Remus answered wryly as a sarcastic smile spread across his dimpled cheeks, flexing his fingers tentatively and wincing in pain. "I'll buy you chocolate at Honeydukes if it'll help." Sirius offered, brushing Remus's curly brown hair behind his ear fondly. "Chocolate makes everything better, let's be honest here," Remus responded, taking Sirius's hand in his own. James shifted uncomfortably, feeling like he shouldn't be privy to this intimate exchange.

A few murmured sentiments later they were out the door and walking into the brisk fall air.

He caught a flash of ginger through the crowd and looked closer. He could see Lily talking to Brannock Wiley through the crowd, and developed a sinking feeling in his stomach. He turned away hurriedly and shoved his hands in his coat pockets. Somehow the four of them got separated, and he was left with Peter. "Room for two more!" Filch called in his gravelly voice. James stepped forward, pulling Peter along with him by the arm. He tried to back away as soon as he saw who the carriage contained, but it was too late. They were already getting pushed towards the carriage by Filch's bony hand. Lily Evans was chatting cheerfully with Brannock, tucking back a lock of her violently red hair that had fallen out of her neat ponytail. There was an uncomfortable pause in conversation as soon as James and Peter stumbled into their seats.

"So... is that a new haircut, Brannock?" Peter asked, trying to break the silence. Brannock grinned widely. "It is! My friend used his wand to do a little trimming, and then style it. You know Joseph Shure, right? You know, the one that-" James began to tune Brannock out as he rambled on, picking at his fingernails uninterestedly. He looked up briefly, only to see Lily's bottle-green eyes staring back at him. They held eye contact for a second- then two more until he glanced away. His nerves taking hold of him, he raked his hand through his unruly mop of hair, causing Lily to roll her eyes.

There he goes again. Lily thought bitterly. Reverting to old habits. Running his hand through his hair, trying to show off presumably. She made sure not to look his way again. Why had she been looking at him in the first place? She didn't know. Maybe it was the small birthmark on the back of his neck. Maybe it was the hint of stubble on his chin, or how sloppy his tie was. Merlin, she hated how messy he was. Messy hair. Messy clothes. Messy notes. Everything about him was simply messy.

She traced a finger over the smooth face of the hand mirror in her pocket. She snuck a glance at Brannock. He was moving his hands animatedly as he talked, a goofy grin stretched across his face, his brown eyes lighting up. He seemed like a decent bloke, but she didn't want to be on this date anyways. Marlene had set her up with Brannock because apparently, Lily had been too crabby recently. She was over her friendship with Snape, but it still stung to see him out and about with his death eater friends.

After what seemed like an eternity, the carriage rolled to a halt in the village of Hogsmeade. "Finally," Lily muttered under her breath. Brannock looked towards her. "Hm? Did you say something?" She put on a plastic smile. "No, must've been the wind." Contented with her answer, he turned back to trying to stuff his wand into his pocket. Not too bright is he? She noted absently. It isn't even windy out.

James narrowed his eyes at her. Uh oh. That wasn't good. When James Potter was looking at you that way, you could tell he was up to no good. "The wind?" He asked loudly. "Didn't know it was so chilly out today, I should've brought a scarf." Lily glared at him. "Yes, you really should've." She spat through gritted teeth. She pulled a folded Gryffindor scarf out of her pocket. "Want a scarf, Potter?" She asked, her voice laced with venom. He smirked at her, unfazed by her dangerous tone. "I would love one. I guess I'll just take yours then?" She threw the scarf at him aggressively. He caught it easily, his quidditch instincts serving him well. He flashed a cocky grin at her. "Thanks. I'll treasure it close to my heart, darling Evans."

He leapt gracefully out of his seat. "C'mon Peter. Let's try to find Moony and Pads." He sauntered away dramatically, Peter scrambling in his wake. Brannock looked at her with that same goofy grin as before. "Are you ready to go? I'm thinking that we should start with a drink at the Leaky Cauldron. What do you think?" She forced a smile on her face. "Sure, sounds good."

"James, what was that?!" Peter gasped as he struggled to keep up with James's long strides. "Nothing." He answered brusquely. "What do you mean? You were totally flirting with her! I mean, you could cut the tension with a kni-" James whipped around, putting a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Pete, could we please not talk about this? Let's just find Sirius and Remus, and try to enjoy ourselves." He asked. "Please?" His hazel eyes were desperate. "Er, sure. I guess."

"Wonderful." He turned away and continued walking at his brisk pace.

Lily knotted her fingers around her warm mug, breathing in the familiar sweet aroma of butterbeer. She nodded occasionally at whatever Brannock was saying, intermittently interjecting a quiet 'yeah' to make it sound more plausible. She closed her eyes as she brought the frothy liquid to her mouth, savouring the sugary taste with every sip. As soon as it was drained, she tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, I need to take a trip to the loo." She slipped a hand into the pocket of her cardigan as she walked, pulling out the small hand mirror. She opened a stall and perched herself on top of the toilet cover.

She wiped a bit of dust off the gilded frame and then tapped the centre several times. "Marlene McKinnon." She whispered. The glass rippled like water, showing a distorted version of herself until Marlene picked up. "What do you want? Em, Dorcas, and I are Honeydukes. We need to stock up on emergency chocolate."

"Will you get the kind with fruits and nuts in it?" Lily asked, deciding that chocolate took a higher priority than getting out of this date. "Lils, you know that everyone except you finds that stuff nasty, but fine." Marlene sighed. Lily shrugged. "It's good and I don't care what you say."

"So, what were you going to ask me about?" Marlene reminded her. "Oh, this terrible date," Lily recalled. "What? Adam is such a nice bloke!" Marlene exclaimed. "He's positively mind-numbing!" Lily shot back. "Lily, I'll promise you'll have fun, this date is going to be fantastic!" She imitated, her voice moving up several octaves. "I do NOT sound like that," Marlene interjected. "And yeah, I thought you would like him! He's goofy, kind, and you have to admit he's not too horrible to look at. "

Lily shrugged again. "He's just not for me. I want someone who has my same type of humour- sarcastic, and clever. Brannock is just, well, how do I put this lightly? He's just not-" She paused, looking for the right words. "He's not very bright." She finished. Marlene rapped her fingers against whatever surface was near her. "Okay, I can come in a few minutes and rescue you. You need to hold on until then, okay?"

"Alright." The mirror shimmered again until Lily was just staring at a reflection of herself. A few more strands of hair had gotten loose, and she tucked them behind her ear carefully. She pushed open the stall door and was headed for the table where Brannock currently sat when a voice stopped her. "OI! Evans!" Came the shout from behind her. She turned to see the grinning face of Sirius Black. "What do you want, Black?" She asked, her arms folded crossly over her chest. "You were in the loo for a long time there, weren'tcha?" He asked. "It's none of your business anyways. Remus, control your dog." Sirius let out a bark of laughter. "She doesn't even know, does she? I like you, Evans. You're a funny one." Remus patted him on the shoulder. "C'mon Sirius, let's leave her alone."

"Unfortunately for you Black, I'm not looking for a boyfriend currently." Sirius erupted into laughter again. "Oh, Evans." He started to mimic her voice. "Unfortunately for you Evans, I'm not looking for a boyfriend currently. I already have one! I have the extreme hottie that is Remus Lupin." Remus's cheeks pinkened. "Extreme hottie? Really?" He questioned. Sirius pecked him on the cheek. "Of course. There's no better way to put it!"

"As much as I'm enjoying this conversation, I need to go." She informed them dryly. "LATER EVANS! YOU'RE OUR BEST FRIEND NOW! I'M SORRY WORMY, YOU'VE BEEN REPLACED!" Sirius hollered. "Why am I being replaced? Why not James?" Peter asked sourly. Sirius spread his arms boisterously. "Because then, silly Wormy, James and Evans wouldn't be able to date."

Peter thought this over for a moment. "Okay, I guess I'm okay with that if we get James and Lily together." Sirius clapped a hand on his back. "We love to see it, Wormy. We love to see it."

Lily traced a finger on the roughly hewn table, not meeting Brannock's eyes. "So... have you ever read the Princess Bride?" He looked up from his drink. "Hm? What's that?" She could stall no longer. "You haven't read the Princess Bride?" She asked incredulously. He merely shrugged. "No. What about it?" She willed for Marlene to please hurry up, listing Beatles songs alphabetically to calm herself down. Luckily, Marlene burst into the Three Broomsticks a few minutes later, her dark hair flying behind her.

"Lily!" She gasped, running up to the table. "Quick! Dorks had an allergic reaction to that disgusting chocolate with nuts and fruit in it that you made us buy!" Lily turned to Brannock. "Er, right. Best be off! Have a lovely day." She exited the Three Broomsticks, cold air seeping into the lantern-lit room as she threw the door open.

"Allergic reaction to the amazing tasting chocolate? Really?!" She scorned Marlene. Marlene grinned back, unbothered. "It's disgusting, Lils, and yes. It was brilliant. Where do you want to go now?"

James wiped his glasses clean with a gloved hand. He had somehow found himself all alone in Hogsmeade, Remus and Sirius probably off doing couple-y things and merlin knows where Pete was. Probably in Honeydukes sampling the sweets he thought bitterly. But when he entered the familiar candy shop, Peter was nowhere to be seen. He could see Dorcas, Alice, and Frank but no Peter. If I'm here I might as well get something. He thought ruefully. He made a beeline to the many shelves of chocolate. His eyes roved over all the different options, mentally selecting them in his head. He would get some dark chocolate for Remus, milk chocolate for Peter, and the kind with nuts and fruit for himself. 

He smiled politely at the cashier and sat down his small pile of chocolate. As he waited to be rung up, he allowed his eyes to wander around the room. He could sort of hear a few conversations over the quiet din of the room. Dorcas and Alice were arguing over which type of fudge was better while Frank bit the tails off of several ice mice he had just purchased, and several third years were squabbling over what type of magical lollipop was better- the Sparkler Sucker, which shot sparks out with every lick, or the Carnival Lolly, which alternated between different circus animals every 2 minutes. 

James personally preferred the Sparkler Sucker, as it was great for pranks. It was also quite unnerving to have the Carnival Lolly shapeshift in your mouth. "Here you go. That'll be 2 galleons." He tossed over the golden coins easily, stuffing the sweets in his pocket.

He trekked to the small hill next to the Shrieking Shack, where a short, sturdy oak tree stood proudly. He couldn't remember when, but at some point they had all carved their initials into the bark, claiming it as their spot. He sat down and rested his back against the tree, closing his eyes, his head tilted a peculiar angle. He sat peacefully for almost ten minutes until he heard footsteps trudging past him. His eyes flew open to find Lily Evans and Marlene McKinnon standing over him. "How'd you guys find our secret spot?" He asked. Lily rolled her eyes. She seemed to do that a lot around him. "It's on a freaking hill you dumbnut, it's not a secret at all." James drew himself up haughtily. "Well, it's still ours."

"Does it have your name on it?" She returned. He smirked back at her with his crooked smile. "Actually, yes, it does." He pointed his finger to the roughly carved letters in the bit of bark over his head. S. Black, J. Potter, R. Lupin, P. Pettigrew.

"Well still. That doesn't make it automatically yours." Lily huffed. His eyes were daring her to do it. So she did. "Scooch over, you git." He grinned and waved his hand over the space next to him with a flourish. "Gladly." Lily sat down next to him, jabbing him sharply as she did so. "Your posture is horrible." She snapped testily. It was true. He was slouched against the trunk, his spectacles balancing precariously on the end of his long nose. "Why do you care, Evans?" She glanced briefly at him. "I don't." His grin only grew larger. "Sure."

Marlene's eyes bounced between the two like she was watching a tennis match. "Why don't we just have a contest then?" She proposed. "You guys should see who can stay at the tree longest. Winner has the official claim to the spot at the tree."

"This is stupid, and a waste of time." Lily pointed out, her tone acid-like. "Afraid you're going to lose, Evans?" James taunted. "In your dreams, Potter!" SCARED POTTAH! Sorry I couldn't resist. Back to the Oneshot. "Then it's official. We're holding this contest." James told her. She jutted out her chin stubbornly. "Fine." He extended an arm. "Shake on it?" He asked. She took his hand and shook it gingerly. Get it? Gingerly? Like Ginger? Ok, I'll show myself out now, I'm not funny.

"Well I'm not going to freeze my arse off, I'll watch you guys from an actual secret spot, filled with blankets and plenty of sweets," Marlene said, already beginning to walk off. "There's another spot? Git." Lily muttered, raising her voice to a shout on the last word. Not even looking back at her, Marlene held up the middle finger. James guffawed loudly at the mere sight of it. "Your sense of humour is questionable if that made you laugh."

"Says Little Miss Prefect."

"Wow, such a devasting comeback," Lily replied acerbically.

"I bet it just broke your heart, didn't it Evans?

"Sure."

They sat in silence for 10 more minutes. He pretended to be disinterested, examining a leaf that had fallen at his feet carefully. Finally, he couldn't take it. "Why're you even here?" He asked.

"I could ask the same thing."

"Dunno. The lads kinda left me alone by accident. Felt lonely I s'pose." He murmured, focusing intensely on his untied shoelace. She adjusted the way she sat, her arm brushing lightly against his own. "Did the date not go well?" He asked casually, even though his heart was pounding. "No. We just weren't clicking, you know? And he didn't even know what the Princess Bride was!"

"Inconceivable!" James exclaimed. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, surprised. "You've read it?"

"Have I read it! Of course I've read it! It's the bloody Princess Bride!" He scoffed. She shifted her sitting position again. "I guess I just thought you wouldn't know about it because you're... you know, more of a jock guy. Not to mention, you're a pureblood. Didn't expect you to have read muggle literature."

He put a hand to his chest dramatically. "I have layers, you know. And I know a lot about muggle literature! I know about that whale, Toby or something!" She laughed. "You mean Moby Dick?"

"I'm so offended Evans, questioning my knowledge like that. No chocolate for you." She shrugged it off. "I don't care for regular chocolate anyways. I prefer the kind with nuts and fruit in it." His eyes widened. "Really? All my mates think it's nasty." She shook her head. "I will NOT take the fruit-n-nuts chocolate slander."

"No, Evans, that's not what I'm saying." He laughed, drawing the chocolate he had bought for himself earlier out of his pocket. Honeydukes' Finest- Fruits-n-Nuts Chocolate the label read. "It's good, right?!" James grinned enthusiastically back. "Yeah! The lads are always criticizing it, but Fruits-n-Nuts is elite." She nodded approvingly. "Same here. Well, not the lads. But you get it."

He produced a small pocket knife out of his coat, slicing open the thin, sparkly foil that was wrapped around the chocolate. "You realize you could've just torn it open, yeah? Would've been much easier." He winked at her, snapping the bar in half. "Wouldn't have looked as cool. And where are the compliments on the flawless pocket knife technique? I've been practising for weeks, Evans." Before she could answer he tossed part of the chocolate towards her.

"I thought I wasn't allowed to have the chocolate?" Lily questioned. "You're a Fruits-n-Nuts lover. Of course you get chocolate, are you insane?"

"Maybe," Lily admitted. "I ditched a date because he hadn't read the Princess Bride. He was well fit too." James shrugged. "Sometimes it's the smallest incompatibilities that cause the biggest rifts. You're a catch Evans, you just have to find someone who knows that." She swallowed. The sun was hitting him in a way that seemed to be perfect- it wasn't even a sunny day, but maybe, just maybe, the clouds had parted just for him. She believed it too. His eyes were closed as he leaned against the trunk of the tree, his olive complexion almost glowing. His posture was relaxed, and almost every inch of him screamed carefreeness. The crease in his brow told a different story. One of all-nighters and solitary hours on the quidditch pitch practising in the rain. His untidy hair was chaos and peace all at once. He was James Potter. His entire essence was a careful balance of chaos and peace.

Lily shivered, all of a sudden freezing. His eyes opened, a warm hazel flecked with gold. "Is it the wind, Evans?" He murmured. She stared at him. "I-" She tried, but the words wouldn't form. He pulled the same scarf she had tossed at him in the carriages off of himself, wrapping it around her instead. "You need a scarf, it's cold out." He told her, a smirk pulling at the corners of his lips. She felt rather punch drunk as he drew away, unable to supply a witty comeback. "No sardonic response? I'm surprised. Guess you could say I made you speechless."

"I hate you," Lily muttered, her cheek aflame with embarrassment. "Ah, there's the real Evans. You had me worried, love."

"Stop calling me that!"

"Calling you what, love?"

"Ugh! You're the worst!"

"Alright, I'm sorry. Just Evans from now on then?" She nodded. "Sounds right, Potter." Even with his scarf wrapped around her, Lily was still freezing. It had become considerably chillier while they'd been debating, and it showed. The sun that had cast a god-like shine on James had returned to hit's hiding place behind the clouds, and Lily thought it might even snow.

They lapsed into silence for a half-hour or so until James got bored again. "Lily," He shivered. "I think it's going to snow." She rubbed her hands together, her teeth chattering as she answered. "You think?" Microscopic flakes were already strewn in the air and falling around their shoulders. "I'm nearly chilled through!" He complained. She rolled her eyes in response. "We all are. Save it, Vizzini."

"Vizzini?! I'm not Vizzini. You're clearly the Vizzini!" He rebutted. "If you say so, Vizzini." She returned with a shrug. "Hmph. Fine Humperdinck." She jabbed him sharply in the stomach. "Are you joking? I can't stand you!"

Lily turned away, refusing to look at him. "Lily!" She still didn't look his way. "Humperdinck!" Her nose flared, but she still wouldn't turn. "Fine. But it's cold and we should conserve our body heat." He spread his arms open. "Just come here, Evans." Finally, she met his eyes. "I'd rather freeze my arse off than huddle up against you." He held a hand to his heart, assuming a stricken look on his face. "Do you want me to die, Evans? I could get hypothermia! I could get frostbite and lose my amazing left arm! Imagine, me losing my ARM!" He flicked a bit of snow at her to emphasize his point.

"Good." She snorted, throwing snow back at him, narrowly missing his head as he ducked. "But Evans, who's bicep would you ogle then?"

"Please. I've never done that. I hope you lose an arm, Potter." He flapped his arms in the air again. "If you're going to be so mean about it at least come here." It was rather cold Lily thought. Begrudgingly, she leaned forward and let herself fold into his arms.

"I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this because I don't want to get frostbite on my nose. Who's nose would you ogle then, Potter?" He closed his eyes, resting his chin on top of her head. "Shut up." He muttered.

"Oh my god," Marlene murmured as she focused the binoculars on the small hill. "They're... cuddling?" She set down the binoculars in shock. "But... what? How is this happening? How has she not bit off his head yet? How has he not pissed her off enough to get murdered? What is life?" 

Lily's fingers clung to the very edges of James's coat, breathing in steadily. He smelled distinctly of woodsmoke and broom polish, all comforting smells to Lily. She remembered running around the backyard with Petunia, skipping with joy as tongues of flame shot out of the campfire, and into the air. She drew closer and closer to the fire, eventually sticking her arm into the small fire pit. She picked up a lump of smouldering coal, setting it on the edge of the stone pit. "Lily, stop! You're going to get burned!" Petunia shrieked. "Don't be silly Tuney!" Lily giggled as she extended her arm into the flames once more, withdrawing a handful of ash-covered stubs of wood. Her dad pulled both of them away from the fire, examining Lily's hands closely. Completely unmarked besides a few smudges of coal dust. Marvelling over the fact she didn't have third degree burns, he hugged her to his chest tightly.

Lily hugged James tighter, wishing she was back in her backyard as an untroubled 6-year-old. "Never thought I would be cuddling with Vizzini." She whispered to him. "Never thought I would hug Humperdinck, but here we are." He returned. "Shut up Potter."

"Gla-" He yawned loudly in the middle of his sentence. Lily's eyes snapped open. "James... what time is it?" He checked his watch. "What time were we supposed to be back?"

"5:30 for the 6 and 7th years." She told him. "Er... we're going to miss it by ten minutes if we leave now."

"I'm not going first. The tree is mine." She replied automatically. "Well, I'm not leaving either. We stay until they find us and accept the inevitable detention?" She sighed. She'd never had a detention before, after all. "Fine." So there they sat in the snow, both of them resting against each other. "I'm tired. Mind if I take a nap?" James asked. "Go for it. I think I'll take one too." Lily responded sleepily.

They would awake enfolded in each other's arms, a thin layer of snow on their clothes, Minerva McGonnagal glaring disapprovingly down at them with an intimidating glint to her eyes.