"Mum! Dad! We have to leave!" A short red-headed girl called down the hallway of her house. "You do know that the train leaves at exactly eleven, right?"
"Hold on Lily, we're coming." Lily Evans' mother, Rose walked down the hallway, her husband, Darren, following close behind her.
"Finally! It's my last year; I really would love to make the train." Lily threw her hands up exasperatedly. "I mean not that I'm not going to miss you guys. I just really want to get on the train." Lily's parents smiled at her. "What?"
"Do you know how proud we are of you, Lily Flower?" Her father looked at her, a smile in his eyes.
"I've got a pretty good idea." She looked down at the shining silver badge in her hands. Head Girl, an honored title at her school. Her school! "Come on, we have to go! I don't want to miss the train!" She walked out the door and sat in the backseat of her car. Her mother and father followed slowly. She groaned and sat back, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Fine Lily. We're walking as fast as our old legs will carry us." Lily rolled her eyes at her parents. They were fairly young for having two kids at the ages of 16 ½ and 20.
"Give me a break. You two aren't even 42 yet." They smiled at her and started the car. Pulling out of their drive-way, Lily took one last look at her home and smiled. That small house hadn't been her home for 7 years now. Her home was somewhere in the middle of nowhere. But it was the most beautiful bit of nowhere in the whole universe. She smiled as she thought about her dorm and her friends.
Holly Daniels was always daring. Everything in her appearance showed it, from her fierce light brown eyes and dark brown hair to her confident and somewhat cocky personality. Then there was Kylie Roberts, who was a bit of a flirt. Probably the most girly of her friends, she had the perfect curvy body, with the blonde hair and shocking, sapphire, eyes. The three were among the brightest and most sought after girls in the school.
Then, of course there were the brightest boys of the school. The Marauders. James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. James Potter, the seeker of the Gryffindor quidditch team, the second top of the class in every class (except of course for charms) and the most cocky, pigheaded, charming boy you could ever meet. His right hand man, Sirius was a beater for the team. He was just as smart and cocky as James, and both had about the same number of girlfriends a week. Then there was Remus Lupin, who was a bit of a player as well, but he was at least nice about it. He was probably the hardest working of the Marauders. And of course Peter, who tried, at least, to be like the other Marauders.
Lily cringed as she thought of James. Oh how she hated everything about him. Every little thing.
James Potter sat in the passenger seat of his mother's car, with a somber expression set on his handsome face. He watched his mother carefully as she walked quickly to the car, her face set in a similar expression. She opened the car door and got in, looking at James, a bit of sadness breaking through her barrier.
"James." She touched his cheek softly. "You're father would be so proud of you." She smiled gently at him. He returned it, but it wasn't a real smile and she could tell.
"I know Mum. I know. He'd be proud of you too." He watched as a tear silently fell down her face. "I'll get the damn bastard mum. I will. You just watch." He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I know you will, James. That's what I'm afraid of." James looked at her confused. But no more was said as they drove down their long driveway.
James rotated the shiny Head Boy badge in his hands over and over again, until the cool metal became comfortably warm. He stared at it for a while and began to smile. Lily Evans would be Head Girl. He'd have to share a dorm with her. She'd have to see that he could be mature. She just had to.
"James, I haven't seen your smile in a long time. What are you thinking about?" Elizabeth Potter asked.
"You'll eventually meet her mum. Eventually." He smiled at her reassuringly.
"Okay." She parked as they got to King's Cross and went to unload his trunk from the back. He followed and lifted it out with ease. They walked silently (again I know. Just deal with it for now. The sadness has a point) to the barrier.
"James, how about I say goodbye to you here. You know, all the questions, the apologies. I just can't take it right now." She smiled apologetically. He nodded understandingly.
"I'm gonna miss you, mum. Write anytime. Don't forget to be safe. Put the apparating charm up, anything. Just please, protect yourself." He smiled at her again and hugged her tightly. She returned it.
"Stay out of trouble this year. Don't forget to bring this girl home to me sometime. I want to see my boy with this girl that can bring such a smile to his face at such times." She let go and pointed toward the platform. "Go, I'm sure Sirius is waiting for you. He needs you just as much as I do, if not more." James gave her a quick kiss and ran through the barrier.
Lily walked down the train corridor to the back of the train, where she found her usual compartment. She lifted her trunk, with difficulty, to the luggage rack, forgetting about the use of her wand, sat down and began to read.
She heard the door slide open, but ignored it.
"Oh, little miss Lily. You're looking lovely as usual." Lily smiled at the voice, but didn't look up.
"Kylie, you sound a bit happy today." Lily's voice cracked, from trying to keep the excitement down.
"Well their might be a certain reason to that." Lily couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and hugged her friend. The two girls squealed and hugged each other tightly.
"Wow. Lookie here Moony. I bet you could sell this for fifteen galleons." Sirius Black leaned in the open doorway, Remus Lupin at his side. Both had a grin on their faces. The girls let go of each other.
"No Padfoot, I don't think half the people in the world are as perverted as you are." He gave Sirius an evil grin. "But I do believe that you could sell this to Peter for fifteen galleons."
"Remus Lupin, I never knew your mind was so evil." The familiar loathed voice of James Potter came in through the compartment. Sirius and Remus became quiet.
"Oh God Potter. Why must you appear everywhere I am? I cannot escape you. You haunt me in my nightmares and appear everywhere else. Wanted or not." Lily rubbed her temples and sat down. "Why are you guys in our compartment anyways?"
"Everywhere else is full." Came the quick reply from Sirius who walked in and took a seat by the window. "Where's Holly?"
"I don't know." Lily jumped up. "Oh no! I forgot about the prefect meeting! I have to go." She ran out of the compartment, completely missing the fact that James was gone. When she reached the compartment at the head of the train she found it empty, except for a single person. She immediately recognized the messy jet black hair and groaned. "No. You are simply playing a trick on me."
"I knew you'd say something like that." Came the quirky reply from James.
"Oh no. Please tell me?"
"Alright, I'm joking with you Evans." But she knew he wasn't. She walked inside and shut the door behind her.
"I'm going to—"
"Save it Evans. I know. You're going to shoot yourself if you have to live a whole year with me, you're a cocky pinprick. Heard it all before, and to be completely honest with you, Evans, I've changed. I'm more mature." Lily opened her mouth to say something, but the way that his eyes looked told her he had. She shut her mouth and sat down.
"Fine. I'm laying down rules though." James nodded. "Knock before you enter the bathroom. Don't ever go into my room. Please pull your half of our duties."
"Oh Evans, I'm hurt that you would even think that I wouldn't do my share. As for the other rules, I know." They heard a bustling out in the corridor and a knock. "Come in." The compartment quickly filled with the anxious prefects, Remus among them.
"Since we don't have anything planned out, the first meeting will be tomorrow. We will arrange everything from the patrolling, to anything else." She heard James snort. "What?"
"Nothing."
"Anyways. Does anyone want to patrol the train corridors?" No one volunteered. Lily looked at James.
"Does anyone want to check the train every half hour?" A girl raised her hand shyly.
"I'll do it." She blushed at James' smile. Lily recognized her as a fifth year Hufflepuff. They felt the train move.
"Anyone else?" Two more girls put their hands up. James nodded to them. "Okay. You three check the train every half hour. Meeting tomorrow. In the…" He turned to Lily.
"In the heads room, at seven. We'll leave the statue open till everyone arrives. Okay?" Everyone nodded and gradually emptied out of the compartment, leaving Lily, James and Remus alone.
"Well, I'd say that went well." Lily and James looked at Remus with confusion. "Oh! You guys didn't kill each other." Remus smiled. "Well I'm going." With that he left them.
Lily went to leave, but stopped and turned to look at James who had sat down and was watching her, intently. Lily felt herself blushing. He didn't seem to notice.
"Aren't you going?" James looked almost sad.
"Aren't you?"
"I need to think." Lily didn't move. In fact she felt almost compelled to stay. "You can stay, if you'd like." And for some reason, some strange reason, she did.
"Where's Lily and James?" Holly attacked Remus as he walked through the door.
"They stayed in the compartment." Remus looked at the pretty girl who had thrown herself on top of him. "Can you get off?" She smiled.
"Oh I know you like it." He laughed.
"Oh Good Golly Miss Holly, you're making me jealous!" Sirius called through the door. "Get off Moony and on me!"
Holly got off of him, walked into the compartment and promptly smacked Sirius on cheek. "You don't speak to a lady like that."
"Sorry, I wasn't aware that I was speaking to one."
"Oh shut up will you Sirius. You're giving me a headache." Kylie spoke quietly as she looked out the window.
Peter, who sat opposite her, smiled at Sirius. "I have an idea Padfoot."
"Well Wormtail, I'm afraid, that I just can't bring myself to do anything right now, seeing as my heart has just been torn in two." He looked at Kylie and gave her a big cheesy smile. She smiled politely into the window at his reflection. "Well I see that someone is extremely happy today."
"Shove it Sirius."
"James?" Lily shocked herself with the name that came out. "What's wrong?"
He looked at her with his unreadable eyes. "I'm afraid everything's wrong, Evans." He gave her a fake smile.
"Oh." He smiled at her again, but she couldn't tell if it was real or not. She didn't like him this way. Not that she liked him anyways. All his cocky ways were gone. No sign of the James that had made her life a living hell since the day that he'd met her.
"Why do you hate me so much?" The question shocked her. Surely he couldn't be that depressed over that.
She shrugged. "I could ask you the same question, now couldn't I?"
"You could, but it'd make no sense, because Lily, yes Lily, I don't hate you. In fact the feeling I feel for you is so close to hate, yet so far away. I, Lily, only hate one person and that would be Voldemort. But you, I've never hated you Lily."
Lily lost it. "Oh really, you've never hated me? Then why, on the day that you met me, did you set my hair on fire? And on the first day of school, why did you turn my skin green? Potter, ever since you've met me, you have tried so very hard to embarrass me."
James gave her his lopsided grin. His real smile.
"I think you're incredibly cute when you blush and when you're angry."
Lily walked over to him to slap him. But as she reached him, she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"What? Am I too fragile?" James smile faded, and his face became unreadable. "Can't bring yourself to slap me Lilikins?"
Lily brought her hand across his face. But it wasn't hard at all. "What is wrong with you Potter?"
"The question of the day Lily." Lily sat next to him.
"Oh really, and what's the answer?" she looked at his eyes.
"Did you know you have the potential to destroy me?" His eyes seemed to refuse to meet hers.
"No, I didn't know that James."
"I think that we should call a truce, Lily." Lily leaned back. He was avoiding the question.
"Okay. Truce Potter."
"I also think we should call each other by our first names." He smiled at her.
"Fine, James." She stood up and stuck her hand out to him.
"Truce, my Lilikins." She rolled her eyes as he took her hand.
"We should head back to the compartment. Holly might think you've done something to me." She walked out, with James behind her.
They walked down the corridor silently, until they reached their compartment.
"Lily Evans!" Holly slid open the door and hugged Lily tightly. "My mum made us late getting here!"
"I figured." Lily said into Holly's shoulder as she hugged her back.
James slipped by them and sat in the seat closest to the door. Sirius, Remus and Peter exchanged looks.
"Don't." James whispered, barely audible. All three boys looked away.
"Okay, Kylie. You're being boring. Get your arse up and be the center of attention." Kylie smiled at Holly.
"Well, Holly, I would but you seem to have the center already taken."
"I'd gladly move out of the way."
"Liar."
"Ladies, ladies. Please shut your mouths. We all know that Sirius is the center of attention in this cabin."
"Oh lord. How long do we have left on this damned train?" Holly looked at her watch. "Damn 7 hours left."
"Oh but what a wonderful seven hours they will be." Sirius looked at Kylie, who had continued to be quiet. "Oh Miss Kylie, I know what you're thinking about."
"Hmm. No Sirius, it's not you." Kylie looked at Sirius and smiled.
"Um, Kylie. Do not lie. It is a sin." She laughed.
"Oh really? And you should know all about sins now shouldn't you Sirius? I mean isn't it a sin to be vain?" she laughed at his mock offended look.
"Vain? Me? I think that you should get your silly pretty head checked missy. I am in no way vain. I just know that I am incredibly good looking." He grinned cheekily at her. She smiled back.
"Oh please Sirius. You are not as handsome as thee, Mr. James Potter." James grinned at Holly, who laughed.
Lily sat and watched this whole procession calmly. She watched James, being very careful not to get caught. He definitely seemed different. He wasn't as cocky as he had been the previous six years. He was mature.