Ch. 1: Prologue to the Final Year
Grace Sellers, a half-blood and really couldn't care less, lay in a half-daze. She could hardly believe what had happened that day. It had started innocently enough, waking at a decent hour, late enough to be well rested but early enough to not be rushed to catch the Hogwarts Express. She had met her best friend, Lily, and had reserved a compartment for them both and laughed when Kathleen got super hyped up on sugar and caffeine and had started dancing up and down the corridors.
Then, at the feast, she had been engaged in pleasant conversation with Lily and Remus about Greek mythology, something Lily had recently gotten her into. Grace had made some offhand comment about how it was unrealistic for the Greeks to picture all their women as outstandingly beautiful and witty. It was then that IT happened. Remus Lupin had told her that she was one of the most beautiful and brilliant women he knew. She sighed just thinking about it. Of course, Sirius and James had screamed (quite girl-like she thought) soon after, slightly ruining the fact. But still…Grace rolled over to face the opposite way and drifted off peacefully, a smile still on her face.
o.O
Kathleen Jamison, a Muggleborn and proud, thank you very much, and American-born to boot, was dead asleep. The previous night, she had not fallen asleep til one in the morning, due to a grueling dance competition her team had nearly won. And so, after smashing her alarm clock for ringing five times too many and after her mother had tore open her window curtains, screaming that she only had twenty minutes to catch the train, she had showered, dressed, packed, and jumped behind the wheel of her car before remembering she was seventeen and could Apparate. Therefore, at ten-fifty six, Kathleen was running toward the smoking train, trunk bouncing behind, she had boarded breathless, glaring at her laughing friends, Grace Sellers and Lily Evans.
Luckily for her mental sanity, the snack trolley came by shortly after and Kathleen O.D'd on butterbeer, chocolate frogs, and pumpkin pasties, making her incredibly hyper and dance down the corridor to the music in her head.
The feast paled in comparison. All that happened was that she managed to pour a goblet of ice down Sirius' and James' back, who sadly ruined the moment Remus and Grace were having two seats down by screaming profanities at the tops of their lungs.
o.O
Lily Evans, Muggleborn and wished people would stop harping on it, was sitting up, wide-awake. She knew she should get to sleep soon; after all, tomorrow she would be expected to wake up her friends and start her first day as Head Girl. With Potter.
Lily shuddered at the pure thought. Why was Potter a Head Boy? He didn't posses any Head-like qualities. He hadn't been a Prefect, like Remus. He wasn't responsible, like Remus. He was always acting up in class and getting detentions, unlike Remus. Okay, it was obvious; Remus would have been a better candidate in her mind. But there was no changing the past: James Potter was Head Boy.
Perhaps Dumbledore is hoping I can knock some sense into him. After all, she thought, I've knocked him out enough. Lily snickered. After Kathleen had started dancing down the corridors, she had somehow landed in James' compartment and James had been kind enough to return her (Yeah right. James. Kind, Lily thought bitterly). This lead to a quick conversation about their summer (James had gone on holiday to France. Lily had stayed home) and Head duties, where Lily had threatened James not to abuse his powers, 'or else'. She wasn't quite sure what 'or else' meant, but the idea of cutting off his 'nads sounded appealing.
Apparently, Kathleen felt the need to enforce this threat by pouring ice down his back at the feast. She always could count on Kathleen for support. Even if it did slightly ruin the lovely comment Remus had just made to Grace.
o.O
Sirius Black, after cheerfully wishing everything in the room goodnight (which included his broom, Remus' cat, and Peter's boxers), he had jumped into his four-poster and whipped the curtains closed in one motion. He had done this nearly every night since first year and the curtains hadn't broken once, he was pleased to admit. He promptly fell asleep and began dreaming of Kathleen, his fellow Beater on the Quidditch team who had currently begun to haunt his nightly wanderings.
Kathleen had been doing the can-can in a tuxedo/bathing suit with tails and top hat while licking whipped cream off his stomach before a snork from Peter woke him sharply. Grumbling, he turned over and tried to fall back asleep. He noticed James was sitting up on his left and Remus was tossing fitfully on his right. Ignoring them, he thought about Kathleen again.
He was Sirius Black, slightly mad, mischievous, adorable Marauder who rarely dated. But Kathleen was starting to make him question his reputation as being unattainable. Early that day, he had spotted her dancing down the corridors, obviously very hyped up on sugar. She had returned a few seconds later to his compartment and collapsed between him and James and starting talking about Quidditch before passing out on his lap. Later, at the feast, he had made some rude comment about her dancing better when high on caffeine and she had poured ice down his back. It's shameless the way we flirt, he thought before drifting off.
o.O
Remus Lupin was turning over and over, trying desperately to get the embarrassing moment of the year out of his mind. The day had started pleasantly: he had met Lily on the train, who expressed her wish that he had made Head Boy, before joining James, Sirius, and Peter in their customary compartment. He had enjoyed a good book, a bar of chocolate, and the entertainment of a sugar-drunk dancing Kathleen. Then at the feast, he got into an intelligent conversation, a rarity with his mates, with Lily and Grace about Greek mythology. Grace had made some disparaging comment about herself not being pretty and smart. At least that's how he'd taken it. His mouth got ahead of his brain and he had blurted that she was one of the most beautiful and brilliant girls he had met. By the time his brain was caught up, saying she had only said it was unrealistic that a girl could be pretty and smart, Grace was blushing politely. Thankfully, Kathleen had just poured ice down James' and Sirius' backs and they started cursing; Grace and Lily looked away, letting Remus redden in peace.
Of course, he hadn't lied, which made the entire situation more embarrassing. He had liked Grace since fourth year, but had never been able to really do anything about it. He was too afraid of anyone finding out his 'furry little problem', as his mates liked to call it, to be serious about a non-platonic relationship.
o.O
James Potter was sitting up, wide-awake. He was looking at a piece of parchment he had been doodling absently on. He hadn't been able to sleep for two hours now, so he decided to try to come up with some new plays for the Gryffindor team. After all, it was his final year and he had to go out with a bang. He knew he had the two best Beaters in the school, if they weren't fighting (or flirting, depending on what you called it). He had had a new tactic for Kathleen and Sirius, but looking at the parchment, it was now a refection of his tormented teenage mind: a snitch with the initials LP practically carved into them.
Lily Potter. Dear God, James could almost hear Kathleen cluck. Kathleen was probably his best platonic girl friend, the one he went to with all his Lily problems, Sirius problems…okay, all his problems he couldn't really approach his mates with without annoying them. In turn, Kathleen knew all the guys' secrets, including Remus being a werewolf and the boys' being Animagi. She had known about his obsessive infatuation for Lily since third year when it began and since then, she had been a double agent for James, trying to get them together. But so far, nothing had worked.
James crumpled the parchment and tossed it under his bed. He got between his covers and tried again to fall asleep. He began to recollect that morning. He had traveled to King's Cross with Sirius, as tradition, and claimed their compartment early. He had then had a great time planning pranks with Sirius during the trip, until Kathleen came waltzing in, literally, and sat with them and the three of them talked about Quidditch, pranks, and other items. She soon passed out, both from lack of sleep and sugar low, and James had volunteered to take her back. Of course, this was only a ploy to talk to Lily.
The Heads' conversation started nicely with a talk about their summers, until Lily threatened him not to abuse his powers. Not that he planned to. One of the first things Kathleen had told him in his compartment was to stay on Lily's good side and be mature. Well, the very first thing was the reminder that this was his final year at Hogwarts and he had better shape up or he'd lose his chance with Lily. The second was that she was sick of doing all the work and he'd better stay on Lily's good side and be mature. James had every intention of doing just that. He really did love Lily.
o.O
Meanwhile, Peter Pettigrew snorked again. Sirius sleepily threw a pillow at him, stifling him. Pettigrew slept on, unperturbed by the pillow or his friends' troubled minds.
