'Like' is not how I'd describe it, frankly!

[spinnersending]

Hate was a very potent magical ingrediant that led to bad wizards becoming very bad wizards.  The amount of hate in the room was enough to peel wallpaper, if Hogwarts would have had any, and a passing ghost found his spectral clothing about to leak off when he happened to be just a bit too close to the wave if disgust for his unliving comfort.

Serving a detention was not a usual way for Severus Snape to spend his evening.  He was a quiet boy, moreso than most, but sometimes he just could not bottle up his rage well enough to prevent an explosion.  That afternoon had been one such time.  Tired of having spitballs of a decidedly unmagical and far too muggle origin blown into his hair from three rows back, a fed up Severus stood, turned, and literally blew up James Potter's cauldron.

While the majority of the spitballs had been graced upon him by the menace of a turncoat Black rather than Potter, the Slughorn caught the slower of the two in order to give Severus a little bit of 'extra' punishment.  At least, that was how Severus was viewing this whole affair as he shot emotional daggers at his enemy.

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Serving detention wasn't how James liked spending his evenings, but it wasn't at all unusual for him. Sirius wound up getting detention more often (because James was better at sweet-talking the professors), but sometimes they served it together. Not this time, though.

James ground his teeth together, trying to ignore the greasy git sitting a little ways away in the Potions classroom. He kept repeating Remus's words from just before he'd gone to detention: ignore him, don't start anything, don't let your temper get the better of you.

Stupid Sirius, James fumed. He'd been the one who'd started shooting spitballs. Remus hadn't contributed, but he certainly hadn't tried very hard to stop him, either. Peter hadn't tried to stop him either, just giggled nervously behind his hand. James, of course, had laughed, especially when Snape had repeatedly swiped at his hair and kept twitching his head, much like a horse trying to rid itself of flies. Sirius had nudged him and silently encouraged him to join the fun. He'd only gotten a couple shots spit out before Snape, in a very uncharacteristically aggressive move, had blown up his cauldron.

What had Sirius done? He'd immediately backed up and put on a completely innocent, shocked face. James had still been standing there in stunned surprise when Slughorn had swooped down, tutting disappointedly and sentenced them both to detention.

"I don't even know why I'm here," James finally muttered, slouched in his seat with his arms crossed sullenly over his chest. "You're the one who blew up my cauldron. I was just the victim."