Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own anything you recognise.
Authors note: Hello and welcome to the first chapter of entwined by fate, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it. So, let the L/J fluff commence.
Chapter 1
It was a typically tragic English autumn morning. Rain splattered the pavement despite the flurry of activity on platform 93/4. Lily Evans, already clad in her Hogwarts uniform, jogged towards the scarlet steam engine, dragging her battered trunk behind her. Drops of precipitation embedded themselves in her auburn locks, as the hem of her cloak soaked up the water residues from the ground. The redhead grunted as she pushed her trunk onto the train and hopped on afterwards, glad to finally be sheltered.
Lily Evans, for those who were unaware, is known as a well-respected and popular seventh year, with gracious good looks, deep emerald eyes and long, curly, auburn hair. That hadn't always been the case, there had been a time in her youth when she feared she would never fill out properly, and as such, her unique personality had escalated. For the most part, she was on friendly terms with the majority of the student population (disregarding the Slytherins, of course) despite being, notably, one of the biggest nerds to have ever passed through Hogwarts. All the varying components of her personality – which ranged from sweet to feisty - and years of slaving over severely graffitied library desks had earned her the position of head girl. She could not have been more honoured, and the badge took pride of place above her left breast.
Her letter had arrived a week ago, and through the many congratulatory parties her family had beseeched her to attend, there was one question which continually clouded her thoughts. Who had been granted the position of head boy? Who would be her colleague?
From the long list of seventh year males, she managed to whittle it down to just two; Sean O'Connor, who was previously a Ravenclaw prefect; and Remus Lupin, one of the infamous Marauders.
Yes. The Marauders. Four pathetic teenage boys with stupid ruffled hair and blatantly fake six packs, who took the liberty of investigating the tonsils of the majority of girls at Hogwarts, apart from Peter, whom Lily swore she saw eyeing up Mrs Norris late last year. To be fair, only two of the boys particularly grated on Lily, Sirius Black and James Potter. James Potter was annoying, deceiving, tactless, irresponsible, somehow clever and somewhat good looking but, in Lily's opinion, with an odd chin, hazel eyes and black hair. He was in the fantasies of every Hogwarts girl, except of course hers, and due to that he put on a show of complete infatuation, asking for her favour here, there and everywhere. Her loathing ran deep.
Sirius Black was a less annoying version of Potter but in a complete league of his own. He had single handedly destroyed the Hogwarts celibacy club. He had shoulder length black hair which most of the boys tried to imitate, grey eyes and a foul sense of humour. He seemed to really enjoy tormenting people, and though he was nearly seventeen, refused to act a day older than twelve. He, like Potter, was extraordinarily bright without studying at all, and would probably put more effort into planning his typical Halloween prank than he would for any of his NEWT exams. Lily really had no tolerance for such an egotistical, irritating child.
The third member of their group was the controversial Remus Lupin, who in definition was the polar opposite of Potter and Black. He was a quiet, law abiding (for his part), kind, honest, bright and gentle boy who seemed to solely exist to keep the free radicals Potter and Black in check. Although Remus did not know it, Lily knew he held a very dark secret, which she had figured out two years prior. Every month, when the full moon has risen, Remus transforms into a werewolf. Shocking, right? Her discovery of this caused her to re-assess his entire character, and she found that rather than fear, her heart was filled with pity for the boy whose life would never be normal. Perhaps having Remus as head boy wouldn't be too devastating.
Surprisingly, the fourth member, somehow, is the previously mentioned and exceedingly creepy Peter Pettrigrew, a mousey boy who rarely speaks but often grunts and once asked Lily how to spell his own surname.
These four males were going to be the bane of Lily Evans' existence this year, more so than normal, as she would have to keep them in check and punish them for their unconventional habits. This year Lily Evans was head girl, and the Marauders were about to feel her wrath.
Taking the handle of her trunk, she began to drag it towards her favourite compartment, excitement flowing through her at the thought of seeing her friends again.
Here at Hogwarts, Lily had become particularly close to two people, especially since her friendship with Severus Snape was terminated. Alice Prewett was her first acquaintance, and they soon became close friends after being sorted into the same house, Gryffindor. Lily and Alice were very alike, except it was often joked that, unlike Lily, Alice did not need anger management counselling. An unfavourable trait that seemed to crop up only in the presence of Potter. Alice was a little taller than the redhead, with cropped brown hair, deep chocolate eyes and an innocent smile. She wasn't particularly well known around the school, but Lily was drawn to her for her wit, logic and caring nature. Alice was always the last to judge, and the first to forgive. Lily didn't know if a nicer person could possibly exist.
Her other best friend was also in Gryffindor. Chloe Gilmore was slightly higher in the schools popularity hierarchy, she was beautiful, sporty and funny, but unlike Potter she didn't have an ego the size of Russia. She hated class, and preferred to spend her time flipping through fashion magazines, hoping one day she could open her own boutique in Diagon alley. She had beautiful, shining blonde hair that curled in the kind of way every girl wished for. Her cerulean blue eyes were deep and her skin was consistently tanned. These attributes caught the attention of many an eye, and she was very sought after by the Hogwarts male population. To Lily though, she would always be the clumsy, funny, whacky girl she had grown to be rather fond of.
Although they all had different characters, they merged together spectacularly, and had been the best of friends through thick and thin. Hogwarts simply wouldn't have been the same without these two. They had helped her through her issues with her sister, her dying friendship with Severus and the many frustrated tangents she had taken whilst ranting about Potter. In return, she had been there for their problems, always working as a team.
Lily slid the compartment door open, her hand imprinting on the pane, to be greeted by Alice and Chloe who were already seated across from one another, talking animatedly about their summer holidays.
"Lily!" Chloe screeched, jumping up and throwing her arms around the smaller girl. Alice stood and grinned over Chloe's shoulder.
"Hey girls." Lily said enthusiastically, detangling herself from Chloe and attempting to push her trunk onto the railings above their heads. Alice whipped out her wand and Lily's trunk flew into position. Ah, she had forgotten they could practise magic on the train.
"Thanks." Lily expressed with a smile, plopping onto a free seat, attempting to ring out her sopping hair.
"No problem!" Alice replied charmingly, replacing her wand in her back pocket and reclaiming her previous seat. Chloe kicked the compartment door and it slid closed noisily.
"Lily, it's so good to see you! Did you get my last letter? Mum said that if you wanted to come stay with us over th-" Chloe cut short, her eyes bulging as she caught sight of Lily's chest. A grin spread across her face. "Lils, why didn't you tell us?" She squealed, clapping her hands together, reminding Lily of a retarded seal. The corners of Lily's mouth twitched up in a smile.
"What?" Alice asked, perplexed, as Chloe continued to squeal. "What? What didn't Lily tell us? WHAT? TELL ME GOD DAMN IT!" She ranted impatiently, looking from Lily to Chloe as both girls grinned goofily at each other.
Lily turned to Alice. "I got head girl." She said simply. Alice's façade dramatically changed, causing Lily to laugh aloud. Chloe began a fabulous dialogue of how Lily could finally destroy all the Slytherins and began to ask whether or not she could borrow the privileges once in a while, but Alice interrupted gravely.
"Lily, that's great news and congratulations… but… well… I hate to be the one to tell you," She paused, her face anxious, "…but James got head boy." Alice finished tentatively, bracing herself for the worst. Lily felt her stomach drop.
Silence stole over the cabin. "What did you say?" Lily whispered finally, her emerald orbs wide.
Chloe and Alice gave each other a knowing look. "Well…" Alice began, swallowing hard. "You know my mother is quite close with James' mother?" Lily nodded. "Well she told my mum a couple of days ago that James got his letter through, he got head boy and quidditch captain."
Lily was silent for at least two minutes. "Er Lily?" Chloe asked, "I know silence is golden and all, but could you say something? Kinda making me nervous over here." Lily looked up at her friend, her face pale.
"Are you okay?" Alice questioned, worried about Lily's reaction. Usually she would be listening to a half an hour rant about 'Potter', but this silent version was totally new and to be honest, extremely unexpected.
"I…I…" Lily stammered, looking down at her hands. "Oh. I didn't even think Potter had a chance. I thought it would be Remus or Sean." She groaned, covering her face with her hands. "He's going to make my life a living hell isn't he? And I have to share a private common area with him." She gave them a watery look through the broken gaps between her fingers. "How am I going to cope?"
"Lily, don't overthink this. I know he's been an arse in the past, but maybe this responsibility will make him grow up a little…" Alice answered, patting her arm sympathetically.
"And look at it on the bright side," Chloe continued, "He didn't ask you out for the last three weeks of term last year, maybe he'll stop forever and you can just pretend he isn't there!"
"Not to mention we'll be in your common room all the time, and he's not going to want to hang out with a bunch of girls." Alice finished.
Lily sighed. "I suppose you're right. I just… I was so excited and yet again, Potter has found a way to ruin anything good going on in my life." She couldn't help but dread everything that she had been so eager to partake in, now she knew Potter was going to be there too, adding his stupid comments, undermining all her words, earning more detentions than he gave. Potter had always had this freaky obsession with her, and no matter what her friends said, him working and more importantly living alone with her wasn't about the prescription he needed.
She checked her watch, half past ten. "I better be going to this head meeting before Potter's ego doubles and he tells all the prefects that they have to bow at his feet." She said with a sigh, standing and bidding her friends goodbye.
"Bye Lils, good luck!" They called after her. Luck, well, she definitely needed some of that.
It was a perpetually beautiful autumn morning. Dew blanketed the mossy grass as rays of light filtered through the trees, causing the leaves to glow amber. The black lake remained oddly still and here and there finches whistled to one another causing a rather serene atmosphere.
Sunlight streamed through the mucky window, reflecting shades of burgundy from the cascading curls of the library's sole occupant at such an early hour. Lily Evans was bent over a book, her milky fingers tracing the words as she whispered to herself. Somewhere outside, a lark began to sing.
Unbeknown to the redhead, James Potter studied her from his position behind the nearest bookshelf. It was common knowledge that James spent the majority of his spare time stalking, or as he liked to call it, observing, one Lily Evans. For the most part, this was true. He couldn't help himself, she was a magnet his eyes couldn't evade, a force his feet carried him toward. She was the sun, and he was the moon, so involved, so close, and yet so far.
He sighed deeply, running his fingers through his raven hair, making sure it was particularly ruffled, before sauntering over to the girl who held his affections. The marauders would never let him hear the end of it if they found out he had woken himself extra early on a Saturday simply to watch Lily study.
"Morning, Evans." He quipped, slipping languidly into the seat next to her, flashing her his signature lobsided grin.
She raised those beautifully entrancing emerald orbs to his face, and he took a moment to greedily take in the sight of them. For once they weren't narrowed in disgust or anger.
"Oh, Potter, you scared me." She replied casually, flipping a page.
"I'm sorry." He responded, in all seriousness, "It was not my intention. I simply couldn't help talking to a beautiful woman such as-" But before he could finish his sentence Lily had dived across the table, her arms flinging around his neck.
"LILY? WH-" But he could speak no more as her lips mashed against his fiercely. She pulled away all too soon. He clung to her torso.
"Lily... I..." He stammered. She shushed him, pushing the hair from his forehead soothingly.
"James Potter, I have something I need to tell you." She said, and he watched her, perplexed. Her hands moved to her shirt, slowly unbuttoning it. He could see the top of her white lacy bra, her ivory skin on show. "And something to show you..." She elaborated seductively. Only one more button and he'd be seeing all.
WHACK.
The image of Lily undressing dissolved instantly as his head throbbed with pain. "What in Merlin's name?" He grumbled, rolling over, releasing the pillow he had been squeezing.
"Prongs, get up, your mum's on moan patrol because apparently we're already ten minutes late for the train." A voice called. He sat up, rubbing his eyes groggily, the world around him blurry. He reached for his glasses from his nightstand. The figure of Sirius Black came into focus. He was positioned on the end of James' bed, pulling on a pair of odd socks. One of his black school shoes lay forgotten on James' pillow.
"Padfoot, must you be so brutal?" James asked, lobbing the shoe back to him and ripping back his sheets. "Honestly, some friends wake each other with breakfast in bed, perhaps a melodious lullaby, but with you it's a shoe to the head."
"Each to his own." Sirius retorted, pushing his arms through the sleeves of his school shirt, a cheeky smile dawning his facade. "But a shoe to the head gives a more instantaneous response."
James groaned at him. He had been so close to seeing Lily topless, didn't Sirius understand that? He'd have to have some serious one on one time with his right hand later.
"Mumsie said to meet her downstairs in five minutes. She's already packed our trunks for us, isn't that awesome? Wish my mother…" Sirius trailed off, his face as set as stone. James couldn't help but feel bad for his best friend. Sirius put on a good front, but James knew he was hurt by the situation with his parents. "Anyway, see you in five." Sirius concluded awkwardly, as he whisked from James' room.
James sighed and swung his legs out of the bed, his eyes wandering to the uniform hung religiously on the hook next to his door, all neatly ironed. The head boy and quidditch captain badges glinted at him merrily. He still couldn't believe he'd got head boy. Dumbledore must have been on some serious illegal substances when he decided that. Perhaps this is what he needed, a certain level of responsibility before he left school so he could reach that maturity status he so obviously lacked, according to Lily.
Ah, Lily. Not Evans, not Lillian, Lily. His Lily, or she would be soon enough. He just knew she had gotten head girl. He knew it. Every bone in his body told him so. Who else was more fitting for the position? Who else worked their socks off, became the best of the best, helped everyone and anyone to the best degree possible? Who else was absolutely bloody perfect?
He blinked and shook his head. Now was not the time for a twenty minute Lily fantasy, he could have that later tonight, in his new Hogwarts bed, knowing she was only fifty paces away from him.
"Padfoot, Prongs!" A voice called as both Sirius and himself meandered their way through the hustle and bustle of platform 93/4, trying to find the other marauders. James craned his neck, even though he recognised the owners voice.
A sandy haired boy made his way towards them, a smaller stout boy in toe. "Remus." James greeted warmly, patting him on the shoulder. James gave him a once over. He seemed healthy, no new scars on his face, and he looked like he had eaten well during the summer. "You look well." He commented.
Remus grinned and sidestepped so that the smaller boy became visible. "Peter," James grinned, "we were just looking for you two. Come, let's get a compartment." He suggested, and the four boys braved the rain to jump onto the train. They were lucky, and the first compartment they checked was empty. They piled in miserably, already soaked to the skin, and fell lazily onto the padded seats.
"So Prongs, let's see the badge!" Peter exclaimed excitedly, "Ooo." He followed as James drew back his cloak to reveal the two badges, side by side.
"This is going to be a busy year for you Prongs, quidditch, head boy duties, and not to mention this is your last year to win over Evans." Sirius teased, taking a chocolate frog out of his pocket. He ripped it open and threw the wizarding card to Peter, who was forming a collection.
"Ah, Dumbledore, I've already got fourteen of him!" Peter said sullenly.
"I'm not going to try and win over Lily." James lied, the other three just stared at him, and when he started to feel uncomfortable he continued. "Well, as you said Padfoot, it's my last year here, I want to enjoy it as much as possible with the people who haven't repetitively kicked me when I'm down. Lily doesn't like me. She won't give me the chance to show her who I really am. She's never going to like me. It's her loss, really." And although he knew it was true, he couldn't help but still hope that this year everything would change. That this year she'd get to know him and realise he wasn't half bad.
Sirius began to choke on the leg of his chocolate frog, and Remus thumped him on the back.
"So you mean to tell me that you're going to be living with the girl, and yet you're not going to try it on?" Sirius asked, awestruck.
"Exactly Pads," James said, a feeling of melancholy settling over him, he had a plan. "I'm just going to get on with my life. Obviously being affectionate to her doesn't work, trying to impress her doesn't work, trying to annoy her doesn't work. I'm done with trying to figure her out. If she ever wants me then she can come to me." He finished dramatically.
"You know, I think that's actually a really good idea." Remus said pointedly, looking at James as though he'd never seen him before. James shrugged.
"You don't know what you've got till it's gone." Peter quoted wisely. James knew he was right, Lily just had to realise what she'd lost.
"She'll come round." Sirius dismissed, "Anyway, what are we going to do to the Slytherins at the feast? Any ideas? Because I was thinking of something including wax strips and a chinchilla."
The three looked at Sirius in disbelief. "Pray tell, what kind of prank could you possibly come up with that includes wax strips and a freaking chinchilla?" Remus dared to ask.
Sirius raised his eyebrows. "I think that's for me to know, and you to find out."
"You worry me at times." James said to Sirius, shaking his head jestingly. "How about we change all the food to taste like other things. Like, say for example Snively takes a big bite of, oh I don't know, gruel? Does he even eat that? And instead he gets a big taste of slime,"
"Or dung!" Peter interjected.
"I think that's lame." Sirius said haughtily.
"You're just jealous that you didn't come up with it." James responded loftily.
"Am not!" Sirius retorted, his eyes twinkling with mischief. After a twenty minute long debate in which Remus lost count of the number of 'Am not's' and 'Are too's' said, and Peter began to get whiplash from looking between James and Sirius and back again, Remus checked his watch. It was almost half past the hour.
"James." He interrupted them, "I think we should get off to the head meeting."
James agreed, a nervous lump forming in his throat at the thought of seeing Lily. He turned to Sirius, "This isn't over." He threatened, before leaving the compartment with Remus.
"ARE NOT!" Sirius bellowed before the door could slide to a close.
Lily flexed her fingers nervously as she stood outside the compartment at the head of the train. The blinds were drawn from the inside, eluding to a certain amount of privacy in which the head meeting could commence. She unclenched her fists, air cooling the warm sweat. It was only Potter, she had handled him a million times before, and she would show her authority now.
With a deep breath, she slid the door aside and stepped over the threshold. James and Remus were already present. Remus had a book in his hand, and appeared to be practising a charm movement with his wand. James was peering out of the mucky window, one of his feet resting on the seat across from him. His face turned towards her as she stood in the doorway. Instantly, he sat up, making himself more presentable.
"Lily." He said welcomingly. Not Evans, eh? She analysed his voice for any trace of sarcasm, but all she could detect was warmth. The sort of warmth you felt from a sip of butterbeer on a cold day. The effect made her shiver.
"P – James." She nodded curtly, returning the first name. "Remus." She added, taking the furthest seat from James and picking up the notes left there to instruct the two heads on what needed to be covered during the meeting. She flicked through them for lack of anything else to do, even though she was fully aware of the protocol for this meeting. She certainly didn't want to exchange pleasantries with Potter. She snuck a glance, he had gone back to looking out the window.
He seemed different. The warmth in his voice, even his posture had changed. He didn't reek of arrogance anymore. She frowned, a changed Potter was not what she had been expecting at all.
"Yes." Remus exclaimed violently, and both James and Lily looked toward him. "I did it, my wrist movement was all wrong, but I think I've got it down now." He smiled at Lily. "Perhaps you'll be able to instruct me this year, Lily, if I should find charms terribly hard again."
The corners of her mouth curved into a smile. "Of course, it has always been my pleasure."
Remus beamed at her. "Thank you, forgive my lack of courtesies, how was your summer?" She noticed James look over to her.
"Oh you know…" She said wearily. Truth be told she had had a cruddy summer. Petunia had been simply horrendous to live with, her parents didn't understand anything about the magical world, no matter how many times she told them, and Severus kept turning up in the most unexpected places. "The usual." She rounded off, congratulating herself on evading the subject. "How was yours?"
Remus shrugged. "Alright I suppose, did some camping and read up on the core subjects for this year to get ahead. Slightly boring if I'm being honest. I far prefer being at Hogwarts." Lily could certainly concur to that.
"And how about yours, James?" She asked, feeling rude if she excluded him from the conversation. He caught her gaze in genuine surprise. Lily was asking him about his holiday? Since when did she say anything to him that wasn't an insult?
"It was quite good actually." He replied, and Lily noticed that rich quality of his voice once more. She could listen to that forever, if it belonged to someone who wasn't Potter, that is. "Sirius moved into my house last summer, and so we spent the days playing quidditch and going hiking. My Dad even taught us how to fish." His eyes lit up. "I was pretty rubbish at it, though Sirius was remarkably good."
She smiled quaintly at him, although jealousy rumbled at the bottom of her stomach. How much would she pay to have Alice and Chloe live with her over summer, in a massive mansion with Merlin knows how many swimming pools. She kept her face straight. "Good, it's nice to hear you've had a pleasant summer." She said sweetly. The way she saw it, she'd have to spend a lot of time with the guy this year, she may as well try to be civil.
Just then the door slid open and a gang of prefects squeezed into the compartment. When Lily was sure they were all present, she started the meeting. It didn't go as expected at all. Instead of being a total arse, James kept interjecting with very useful snippets of information. He let Lily do the speaking, and only interrupted when she had forgotten to mention something. He didn't show off, he didn't make crude jokes, he didn't do anything to aggravate her. And of course that only resulted in aggravating her anyway. Why the hell did he have to go and change? They had this lovely dynamic of their love-hate relationship down.
She watched him wearily as the prefects filed out, muttering to themselves about James' transformation, no doubt. He had his back to her, neatening out the pile of papers and placing them back in the plastic wallet. He had achieved the impossible, Lily was genuinely curious about him, about the change, about everything.
"So what really happened this summer?" She asked, now they were alone, her tone even.
He spun around and looked at her, perplexed. "I already told you wha-"
She cut him off, her temper rising. "Oh come off it Potter, you're acting completely different, and I want to know why."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "Nothing happened. I just decided it was time I start giving back to this school, I decided it was time I grow up, and in your precise words, gain an ounce of maturity. I want to be the best I can, Lily." He stressed her first name, and she felt guilty for using his surname once more. "Whether you can accept it or not, I've put my stupidity behind me. I'm not Potter anymore, I'm just James."
He made to leave the room, but paused, his hand gripping the door knob. "I know you're disappointed that I'm head boy, but I hope we can try and work well together, no matter how much you despise me." He said meekly, not daring to meet her eyes. She couldn't help but detect the venerability in his voice.
Her mouth fell agape. She was completely dumbfounded. By the time she'd thought of a reply, he had slid the door closed behind him. She collapsed onto the cushioned bench, her heart beating fiercely. He thought she despised him? She didn't particularly like him, she wasn't his biggest fan, but she didn't despise the boy. She stared at her own hazy reflection in the window, trying to work out how she felt about this new Potter. She'd always told him how to act, to grow up, but she never thought he'd actually do it, and now that he had, how was she supposed to act around him?
Potter had always been a constant in her life; he had always been the same, and he had always been there. No matter what shifted through the years, no matter what she lost or gained, he was always her perpetual equilibrium. Now she'd lost that and a part of her wanted to grieve for it. One thing was for sure, she had to talk to Chloe and Alice about this. They'd know what to do.
With a great effort she got to her feet. It was as though the emptiness left from the old Potter had been replaced with lead. Blinking back the emotion, she finally managed to make it out of the compartment. Students were buzzing around everywhere, talking merrily to eachother about their impending return to Hogwarts. She spotted the first two prefects doing their rounds of the corridor, and she waved to them, the smile not reaching her eyes.
Making her way down the long passage, she prayed the Marauders cabin wasn't before her own. She didn't need the opportunity to do or say something stupid in front of Potter and his gang of goonies. For the first time in all her years at Hogwarts, the heavens decided to side with her. She was in luck. No sight of the Marauders. She practically fell into her compartment in her desire to make haste and not run into them.
Alice and Chloe looked over at her with raised eyebrows as she plopped into the nearest free seat. Alice had a book open on her lap, and cornered the page in anticipation of what Lily would have to say about the prefects meeting. Chloe had been throwing a tennis ball in the air and catching it skilfully, but this too was ceased as Chloe cleared her throat.
"So?" She asked tentatively, unsure of Lily's mood, "How did it go?"
Lily blinked at her, not sure where to start. "Well, it was okay, better than I thought it was going to be, didn't go too much over time, lots of lovely prefects this year, apart from that one Slytherin girl with the bent nose, apart from that I had a-"
"Lily," Alice said with authority, "You're rambling, stop it, how did it go with James?" she asked, stressing his first name as though this would mean more to Lily, which it did.
Lily picked her words carefully. "He was, I don't know, he wasn't Potter anymore."
Chloe quirked one eyebrow as Alice shot her a worried glance. "So who was he? Sirius in disguise?" She asked exasperatedly.
Lily winced, "No, no it was Potter. But he's different, he's changed, he acted so grown up and mature – likable, even."
"Are you sure it wasn't one of his plots to try and get you to like him?" Alice asked. It was an honest question, James had done everything over the years to try and win Lily over. Most attempts ended in a short stay in the hospital wing, but he still tried.
Lily shook her head lightly, "No, I don't think so. He seemed so genuine, I can always tell when he's lying to me. He does this thing with the corner of his mouth. This time though, he didn't do it." She looked between them both, and they looked genuinely interested. "Before he left, he told me that he knew I was upset with him being head boy, but that he hoped we would be able to work closely together even if I despise him."
"Awww." Alice sighed. "That's really nice."
"I know." Lily replied, her eyes leaking venerability and confusion.
"It sounds legit," Chloe said, "I must say, I never thought it would actually happen. I never thought he'd grow up." The other girls nodded their agreement.
"This puts me in such a difficult situation though," Lily continued, "How do I act toward him? I can't keep up what we had before if he's different, I'll have to be nice to him. And what then?"
"What are you so scared of? Falling for him?" Alice asked her.
"Exactly." Lily said timidly, "What if he's so nice and different and acceptable, that I end up falling for him."
"I don't see a problem with that." Chloe replied, "If he's matured and you end up liking him, what's wrong with that?"
"Don't you see?" Lily asked, "It's because he doesn't actually like me. I'm the only girl he can't get, and that makes him want me. He doesn't want me because he likes me, he wants me to prove a point: that he can get me."
Alice tutted loudly. "I think that's nonsense."
"Yeah," Chloe added, "I think he cares about you much more then you give him credit for." Alice nodded along with her words.
"But how am I supposed to know the difference? How am I supposed to know it's not all just a game, just for the chase. Hypothetically speaking of course." Lily asked.
"Well," Alice started, "hypothetically speaking, if you did fall for him, you'd just have to give him a chance and see. If it was just a game to him and he leaves you, you'll have to cross that bridge when you come to it, and we will always be there to help you get over him. However, if it isn't just a game to him, you might just find the person you were meant to be with." She finished wisely, scooting across the seat to pat Lily's arm.
"It's all about risks and benefits." Chloe added.
"Exactly, would you stop yourself from being with someone who could love you more than anyone else, because you're afraid of getting hurt?" Alice enquired, "Because the Lily Evans I know is fearless, and a broken heart would only make her stronger."
Lily shrugged, she knew they were right, "I've never been in love before, I can't imagine how I would feel if I lost that." She looked between them, "I have the best friends." She grinned, before changing her tune. "Anyway, the thought of me ever dating Potter is ridiculous, let alone me falling in love with him."
Chloe sighed, when would she ever actually see what was right in front of her face? James and Lily would fit together so well, like an enzyme and its substrate, if only she stopped denying him. Everybody in Hogwarts knew it, even the teachers. Maybe that was why Dumbledore made James head boy, so he could finally get Lily to fall in love with him.
"Game of exploding snap anyone?" Lily asked suddenly, extinguishing Chloe's thoughts. The girls whiled away the remainder of the train journey competing against each other with the dishevelled and burnt snap cards. As usual, Chloe won, and all of them came away with singed sleeves, ties or fingers, and in Alice's case, half a missing left eyebrow.
James slid the compartment door close, and stood against it for a few moments, half hoping that Lily would come after him. She didn't, of course. He felt good though, his new persona had really made an impact on Lily. She had called him by his first name more times in the last half an hour than she had ever done before. At one point she even smiled at him. He closed his eyes and remembered her pearly teeth and rosy lips slanted upwards in a smile. How he'd love to kiss that mouth, to stroke her milky face with his fingers, to make her his. He regained his senses just in time to scold a third year who went whizzing past him on a magical scooter.
"Clark, get off that thing and give it to me." He said with authority. The younger boy groaned, but hopped off the scooter and handed it to him reluctantly. "I would take points off, but as we haven't even got to Hogwarts yet, I'll just confiscate this till the Christmas holidays."
"Till Christmas?" The boy yelped, "But-"
"No buts," James quipped, "Be lucky you're not getting a detention, now go back to your compartment and don't let me hear a peep out of you again." The boy ran off, and James half hoped Lily had heard how brilliantly he had handled that.
With a bit less swagger than usual, he started off down the corridor, pushing the scooter with him. It was a long walk to his compartment, and he regretted getting on at the end of the train. Still, it gave him more time to indent Lily's perfect smile in his memory. Thank Merlin for his photographic memory.
Sliding open his compartment door, he wheeled the scooter in dramatically. Remus had obviously already enlightened Sirius and Peter on his attitude at the meeting, and Lily's response to the new and improved James Potter, as they all sat with goofy smiles adorning their faces. Sirius' smile faltered as he spotted the scooter.
"What on earth is that, Prongs?" He asked.
"Magical scooter." James said, matter of factly, as he watched Sirius' face light up like a firework.
"Are you kidding?" The shaggy haired boy bellowed, "That's marvellous, where did you get it?"
James sat down, his muscled arm still propping up the scooter. "Confiscated it from Thomas Clark in third year." This earned him a small smile from Remus.
"Let's have a go!" Peter exclaimed.
"I call first dibs!" Sirius retorted.
"I'm pretty sure Prongs didn't confiscate it so you two could use it." Remus interrupted.
"No I didn't." James agreed, taking out his wand and silently reducing the scooter so it would fit in his pocket.
"Sorry Grandad." Sirius said dejectedly.
"Since when did you become a bore?" Peter asked James.
James shrugged. "Since I got responsibility." He pushed his glasses further up his nose.
"Since he finally got up the redhead's ass more like." Sirius mumbled under his breath, earning a chuckle from Peter. James scowled.
"Anyone care for a game of chess?" Remus asked, and after a general consent from the others, he stood to collect his tattered chess board from his trunk. Whilst his back was turned, a grinning James passed a miniature scooter to a grinning Sirius, who winked and shoved it into his breast pocket.
As an afternote, I have quite a lot of the next chapter already written and edited, I'd really appreciate if you could take the time to review so I can gauge how frequently I should update (if you guys want me to update at all). Thanks, and I have some awesome L/J fluff planned. :)
Thanks for reading!
Jess :)