ONE LAST CHANCE TO SHINE

In which Sirius is neither nonsensical nor giggly, Lily does not have a group of friends all named Mary Sue, James doesn't magically grow up over the summer, Peter speaks, and Voldemort hasn't gone on a brief holiday.

All recognizable characters and events from this chapter onward belong to JK Rowling.

ONE

1.

The morning of September 1st dawned in a sheen of gloomy obscurity, the morning's quiet humidity corrupted by the thousand clouds pillowing the sky. In spite of the grey weather and her sister's particularly loud shriek when she discovered a frog in her bed, Lily Evans' face bore a bright, seemingly indestructible smile as she made her way through King's Cross Train Station. Pushing her trolley through the barrier to Platform Nine and Three Quarters, she stopped to the side of the bustling crowd of students and checked her watch. Noting that she had only ten minutes before the train left, Lily wove through the platform with her trunk behind her, nodding and offering vague smiles to various people she knew as she passed them. Making it to the side of the train, she halted again, searching her pockets for her wand so she could levitate her bulky luggage into the aisle.

"Need some help, Evans?"

Lily turned to see Benjamin Fenwick, a tall Ravenclaw that had been her Charms partner the year before, standing nonchalantly behind her with his hands in his pockets and wearing a cocky grin. "Thanks, Benji, that would be great," she smiled at him, stepping aside so he could lift her baggage onto the train.

"Not a problem," said Benji, catching her eye and grinning as he heaved the trunk onto the train with little difficulty. "I heard you got Head Girl—congratulations."

"Oh—yeah, thank you!" Lily said, her hand drifting unconsciously to the top left corner of her Muggle sweater. "I wasn't sure I was going to get it, so I was really pleased."

"I'd've been shocked if you didn't," Benji said, and then added with a snicker, "Especially with Black and Vance in the running with you."

"Emmeline could have gotten it," Lily interrupted, frowning.

He shrugged, his brown hair flopping over his forehead as his eyes stared at her skeptically. "Right."

Lily narrowed her eyes slightly but was saved from answering when a voice coming from behind her caught her off guard.

"Oy, Lily! You're looking a bit peachy; finally managed to gain some weight this summer?" Lily turned around and smiled at Marlene McKinnon and Alice Elliot, two of Lily's dorm mates in Gryffindor Tower, giving them both brief, one-armed hugs.

"Your hair looks gorgeous, though," Marlene continued without missing a beat. She fingered a strand of Lily's copper tresses. "And look at your skin! Did you go to Spain again?"

Lily bit her lip in a futile attempt to hide her amusement at Marlene's outrageous (and completely routine) antics. "I did, actually, but only for a week," she replied, smiling at Alice, who was unusually quiet. "Did you go anywhere at all?" she asked, directing her question at Benji as well as the girls.

"Africa," Benji replied promptly before anyone else could say anything.

"Really? I thought you said you were going to France," Lily said quizzically, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Er…yeah, actually, I'm lying," he admitted, grinning. "Honestly, though, who would pick historical sights and gigantic bugs over topless women?"

"I was about to say 'me' but then I remembered the other bit of historical sights," Marlene shuddered, her distasteful remark causing Lily to smirk. It was a well-known fact to since third year's Bogart lesson that Marlene was absolutely terrified of both Muggle and magical insects.

"Oy! Fenwick! Get over here!" someone yelled from across the platform.

"Gotta run," Benji said with a lopsided grin, rapping Lily's chin with his knuckle as he jogged past her to join his fellow year-mates. "I'll catch you later though, Lily, I want to talk to you about something."

"Right, see you Benji," Lily said, rolling her eyes as she hoisted herself onto the train and moved aside so Marlene and Alice could follow her. "Listen, girls, I've got to be somewhere, but I'll see you at the Feast," she said to them before turning down the aisle with her trunk dragging behind her, searching for an empty compartment where she could temporarily stow her belongings. Finding one about halfway down the train, Lily dropped her trunk on the ground, swirling her previously evasive wand in the air so it levitated to the top rack. Quickly changing into a set of robes, she pinned on her Head Girl badge and opened the door.

"Shit!" Lily yelped, crashing into someone just as they walked by. Even as her arms flapped uselessly by her sides she wondered how on earth the person she'd crashed into had managed to throw them both to the ground – she hadn't by any means leapt out of the compartment.

"I know I always said you would fall for me, Evans, but you didn't have to do it so literally," a wry voice commented from the right of her elbow. She twisted around to see a pair of hazel eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses staring down at her with a mixture of amusement and annoyance.

"Bloody—ugh," said Lily incoherently, shifting around so she was out of the way of curious students that were passing by. "James," she said, her chipper mood diminishing as she surveyed her messy-haired companion through bleary, half-opened eyes. She forced a smile that turned into a grimace as his knee dug into her throbbing back. "Sorry to say but I'm actually not too pleased to see you."

James Potter snorted as he stood up and offered her a hand. "Well, at least in this way," he said, his hand unconsciously rubbing his backside before it shifted to his hair. "So," he added. "How've you been?"

"Really well, thank you. And you?" she said automatically, smiling at someone she knew as they passed her.

"Swell, now that I've seen your lovely face," he returned smoothly.

"You'll never change, Potter," Lily sighed. Not being able to resist, she added, "But what happened to that picture Sirius said you had of me last year?"

"Not the same. Besides, it has creases on it since it's been under my pillow for so long," he informed her seriously.

Lily raised an eyebrow, trying to decide whether or not he was actually joking. "Well, I suppose you'll have to steal another one," she said, finally accepting the proffered hand and standing up beside him.

"Did you just give me permission?" he mocked, releasing her hand and beginning to make his way towards the front of the train.

"No. You don't need any more encouragement," Lily said distractedly, following him in the direction of the Prefect's compartment, where she had been headed before she inadvertently threw them both to the ground. "Caradoc," she greeted, nodding to a passing Ravenclaw she'd tutored in Potions the last two years.

"Good, because I didn't want to take points off my own House before the term even started," James said casually.

"Wait, what?" said Lily, thrown off for a second.

He stopped and turned around, grinning cockily. "I'm Head Boy."

Lily gaped at him, momentarily stunned. "Wh—oh," she said intelligently after a moment of awkward silence. "Well then, congratulations."

He bypassed her well-wishes with a dismissive shrug and asked, "You're Head Girl?" He gestured to the badge on her robes, causing her to look down and then back up with a slightly forced smile.

"Yes; I was actually heading to the meeting…didn't realize you were going as well."

"I figured you would be. Couldn't have been anyone else, really," he said, smirking at her. "Top of the class, complete teacher's pet, probably the most popular girl in the school—"

"How come you got picked then?" Lily quipped before she could stop herself.

"Last time I checked I was definitely a bloke. You can check to make sure if you want though," James said easily, ignoring the inadvertent barb.

"I'll pass for now," Lily said tersely, holding back a more rounded retort. She resumed walking, her preoccupied mind leaving no room to acknowledge the students she brushed past.

For six years, James and his friends had literally wreaked havoc in virtually every corner of the Hogwarts grounds, destroying any sense of propriety the school previously owned. By third year, it was rumored that the caretaker, Filch, had created a completely separate file cabinet for the four boys because of their ridiculous detention records and constant rule-breaking. Before long they were the self-proclaimed leaders of the school, second only to their upperclassmen.

In spite of their reputations, all four of the boys preformed quite well in their classes without seeming to work at it at all, something that had irked Lily to no end since their first year. This, as well as her philosophy of actually following the rules, led to an almost instant enmity between the boys and herself, particularly in her relationship with James Potter. Since first year and a juvenile incident involving a packet of Drooble's and her hairbrush, any contact between the two was noticeably strained, often resulting in raised voices and –sometimes – well-placed hexes. In fourth year, Potter discovered a new way to irritate her by asking her out on dates publicly at least once a week. Needless to say, she'd refused every time, but he persisted well into sixth year before stopping, and even then he continued to flirt at every passing moment. It was at this point that Lily and James began to gain some semblance of a civil relationship; and, although Lily frequently found her temper tested when around the messy-haired Chaser, they were able to reduce their conflicts and sometimes even hold several interesting conversations. He was still the most arrogant person she'd ever met, but at least they had stopped biting each others' throats out.

At the end of sixth year, despite their progress, Lily and James got into a hot disagreement in Astronomy that led to the restoration of their feud for the remainder of that term. Lily couldn't recall why exactly they had been arguing but remembered that more than a few nasty insults were exchanged by both parties involved. She suspected that it was this event that fed to his casual query as to how she had been in their opening conversation.

Before she found out about her position as Head Girl, Lily hadn't thought twice about Potter. Upon receiving the badge, however, she made a promise to herself to attempt to reduce their arguments to a bare minimum in order seem somewhat responsible. Now that Potter was Head Boy, though, they would have to be increasingly aware of their teetering relationship. She was relieved that James bypassed her most recent comment, but that didn't mean he would do it next time. If they weren't able to get along, there was a strong possibility that they would each be removed of their badges by Dumbledore, something that she refused to let happen. And even though James held equal responsibility with her as far as making sure that never happened, Lily wouldn't – couldn't – allow herself to be the culpable one.

She couldn't help but wonder why he was appointed Head Boy, though. Although his incessant pranking diminished towards the end of last year, it had by no means stopped, and there were numerous occasions in which Lily had seen James and his friends come into Gryffindor Tower well after curfew. Moreover, Potter had never been Prefect. If anyone was to be Head Boy, Lily would have expected it to be Remus Lupin, who, although one of James' best friends, was easily the most responsible and rule-friendly of the four. She supposed that the only thing that stopped Dumbledore from giving the position to him was Remus' family's periodic illnesses, which would have caused him to be absent far too often to be able to perform his duties properly. That still didn't explain why James was chosen, though; several of the Prefects from other Houses would have done equally as well.

Nearing the Prefects' compartment, Lily pulled herself from her reverie and called James aside just as he was about to open the door. "Listen, James, we have to sort some things out before we do this," she said firmly.

He raised an eyebrow. "Do what?"

Lily fought the urge to sigh and remembered dismally that they hadn't even started classes yet. "Look," she began, hooking a strand of hair behind her ear. "We're not going to get anything done this year if we don't get along, and I won't risk losing my badge over some petty argument, whether it's you fault or mine. We obviously didn't leave off on a good note last year, but I'll make an effort if you will."

He waited for her to finish before he replied. "All right," he said simply.

Lily eyed him suspiciously; surely that wasn't all that he had to say? "I mean it, Potter. I don't want to have to let some silly rivalry between the two of us ruin this for me. I've wanted this position ever since I learned it existed."

"I said all right, Evans; I meant all right," he said coolly.

"Okay then," Lily said, still somewhat doubtful. She bit her lip before opening the door and then added lightly, "I suppose the Prefects at the very least will be happy to know about this."

He shook his head, a small, sardonic smile forming in the corners of his mouth. "I can't say I disagree with them."

2.

"…Any more questions?" Lily finished, looking around at the obviously bored Prefects.

"Can we go now?" someone drawled from the back, leaning back in his chair so his weight rested on two legs.

"You're done when the Head Girl says you're done, Nott," James retorted at once.

"I think we've gone through everything, don't you, James?" Lily said, quickly intervening before a fight broke out.

"Yeah, I s'pose," James said, not taking his eyes off of the Slytherin. "Right then, you lot. Scat."

The room emptied in less than ten seconds, leaving a slightly awkward silence between the two Heads.

"That went all right, didn't it?" Lily attempted, facing James with a determinedly cheerful expression. He scowled.

"Sure, if you call constantly being interrupted by Slytherins 'all right,'" he said moodily, scraping back his chair as he stood up. "I'm leaving."

Lily watched him stride towards the door of the magically enlarged compartment, her anger growing. Although James possessed a natural charisma that demanded attention, he was still seen by many of the students (including, to an extent, her) to be unsuitable for the job, an element dependent specifically on his reputation and lack of previous experience as a Prefect. That, coupled with the fact that the Slytherins already held Lily in low esteem due to her heritage, led to the chaos of today's particular meeting. Nott's comment had been a mere pigment of a much larger picture, one she was only too glad to release at the meeting's end. Anyway, allowing James to leave without some form of rebuke would produce beneficial results for no one. During the meeting he had, more often than not, responded inappropriately to several of the Prefects' scathing remarks.

"Potter, stop," she said, walking around the other side of the table to meet him at the compartment door. He turned to look at her.

"What, Evans; already missing me?" he said, his familiar smirk contrasted by the flinty expression in his eyes.

Lily ignored him. "Stay here for a minute, will you?" she said, trying to keep her temper at bay and remain polite. He shrugged noncommittally but did as he was told. Lily sighed.

"Look," she began. "I know it must be hard for you. I know, okay? But that doesn't give you an excuse to blow up every time a Slytherin makes a snide comment. You just can't do it like that, James. You're Head Boy now; you're supposed to set an example."

"How do you expect me to set your idea of an example when they're running around and calling you a Mudblood!" She flinched slightly, but whether that was because of his choice of language or his tone she didn't know.

"Don't," began Lily icily, pushing her doubts to the back of her mind, "accuse me, Potter."

They both glared at one and other for another long moment before Lily drew herself up, shooting him a nasty look, and added, "Besides, they didn't say it just now. Don't bring up an issue that isn't even on the table, Potter."

"What, so it's better that they call you it behind your back?" James snapped, his harsh voice grating in her ears. "Evans, have you even looked at the papers recently? Do you even realize what's out there? Voldemort is attacking Muggles left and right, Evans, and those arseholes—" He said the word with such vehemence that Temper's eyebrows shot up— "are probably right on the front line. And don't give me that shit. I knowyou heard Black calling you a—a Mudblood—but did you do anything? No, Evans, you just sat there like a good little girl and took it. This tin badge seems to mean more to you than your supposed Gryffindor pride."

Lily went white with anger. "I don't know," she began, her voice raw, "what the hell you think you know about my life, Potter. I know about Voldemort. And yes, I heard Black. But you know what? If you think you can just decide to randomly lose your temper and blow up at people because of a damn word then you need to get yourself straightened out, Potter. If you keep reacting like that – blowing a fuse; throwing a temper tantrum – you're going to get nowhere. I'm not going to bother dealing with stupid words while real problems are going on in the world, and I wouldn't expect you to either."

Lily thought the train might have shuddered with the force of the slam that shook the compartment when she left it.

3.

"So, Lily," Marlene began, buttering a biscuit with her right hand while simultaneously dumping salt and pepper on her mashed potatoes. "How is working with James going so far?"

Lily shrugged. "It's not bad, actually," she said, swirling her food around on her plate until it was a catastrophic mess of carrots, gravy, and potatoes. "He did really well for not having been a Prefect."

"Yeah, but how're you doing?" Marlene asked pointedly. "It's not exactly a secret that during fifth year you could barely go a day without blowing up at him."

"Yes, but it got better last year, didn't it? I mean, there was still that thing at the end, but for the most part we were fairly civil to each other. And I had already decided to be extra patient around him before I found out he was Head Boy."

"That's our Head Girl," Marlene said, grinning. "I'll bet you decided that the second after you got your badge." Lily smiled but didn't answer.

"Have you been reading the papers lately?" Alice questioned, breaking the uncharacteristic silence she'd been submerged in since Lily sat down at the Gryffindor table. Lily looked down, and Marlene sobered immediately and leaned forward.

"Yes. Did you hear about the Bones family?" Marlene said grimly. "My Mum's good friends with Edgar's mum – she was awfully upset when she heard the news."

"Wasn't Edgar Head Boy three years ago?" Lily said.

Marlene nodded. "Yeah, and his parents are really against the Dark Arts. Apparently You-Know-Who got through the security with no problem at all – Edgar and Amelia made it because they were late coming for dinner, but Mr. and Mrs. Bones didn't get out in time."

"Frank was attacked a few months ago," Alice said quietly. "You-Know-Who wasn't there, but his followers were. You know…the Death Eaters."

"Is he okay?" said Lily, a surge of sympathy accompanying her shock as she realized the source of Alice's strange behavior. Perhaps one of the shyest people Lily knew, Frank had begun dating the charismatic, bubbly Alice almost a year ago now. His high achievements in both OWLs and NEWTs along with the rising threat of You-Know-Who installed him as an Auror immediately after graduation. Alice, of course, was distraught when she learned of his close proximity to the war but had since acknowledged that it was for a good cause. Lily knew that she would have been terrified upon learning that her boyfriend was in St. Mungo's.

"Yeah, he's all right now," Alice said bitterly, a dark, brooding frown set against her normally cheerful demeanor. She looked up and offered Lily and Marlene a half-smile that didn't reach her eyes. "It makes me wish that I was just done with school so I could be there for him when he came home. I never know if he's going to come back."

Lily exchanged a glance with Marlene, not knowing how to reply. She wished she could say that Frank would get out all right, but judging by the gruesome articles the Daily Prophet kept printing, there was a strong possibility of that not happening, as horrible as it was to think about it.

"Alice," Marlene said suddenly, breaking the short silence by leaning forward and catching Alice's hand in a quick movement. "What's this on your finger?"

Alice blushed prettily and pulled back her hand, her face flushing all the way up to her hairline. "Nothing – I mean, Frank –"

"You sly cow, you're engaged to him, aren't you!" Marlene hooted delightedly, wrenching Alice's hand back and goggling at the large white diamond donning the blushing girl's fourth finger. "Merlin Alice, it's gorgeous! Isn't this a Longbottom heirloom? I could've sworn I saw Frank's barmy mum wear it with her vulture hat to the train station once!"

A small crease appeared in the corners of Lily's eyes as she watched the scene in front of her. Alice looked embarrassed but undeniably pleased as Marlene fawned over her ring. "Congratulations, Alice," said Lily politely. "It's a beautiful ring."

"Thanks," said Alice, smiling gratefully at Lily. Her grin faltered when she caught the redhead's subdued expression. "What's wrong?"

"It's just…isn't it a bit early?" Lily ventured tentatively, not wanting to hurt Alice's feelings. She glimpsed the hurt look on Alice's face and hurried to continue, inwardly chiding herself for speaking her mind on this particular subject. "It's just that you're not even seventeen yet and you've got a whole year left of school before you're done. And then there's the war and all…won't it be a bit dangerous?"

"That's what I said," Alice said, looking upwards in the direction of the enchanted ceiling that reflected the bleak settings outside. She bit her lip and smiled. "But what have we got to lose? It's not like I'm marrying him right away. The wedding won't be for a while yet—this is more of a promise ring than anything."

"Oh sod off, Lily, and stop being such a spoil-sport," Marlene said, cutting cheerfully into the brief lull in conversation that followed, apparently unaware of the awkwardness between the two girls. "They love each other! Do you even remember when the bloody clod finally got up the nerve to ask her to Hogsmeade? Right hilarious, that was."

Marlene's banter succeeded in breaking the tension. Lily laughed, pushing her trepidation aside as she glanced down at Alice and offered a slight smile meant for reconciliation."I dunno who was more red, him or her," she put in cheekily.

Alice looked relieved. She swiped playfully at Lily's head and missed, laughing in spite of herself. "It was sweet!" she insisted.

"Your face looks like a turnip now," Marlene noted, catapulting the girls into giggles all over again.

4.

An hour later saw Lily standing in front of the gargoyle leading to Dumbledore's office, a resolute frown dominating her features as her hands shifted to her hips and she glared at the statue's stony countenance. "Amortenia. Wolfsbane. Grindelwald. Phoenix. Muggle. Nitwit. Strawberry. Venemous Tantacula. Godric. Rowena. Helga. Salazar. Poltergeist," she tried, growing steadily more frustrated as she rattled random words off in hopes of somehow striking on the password. When Dumbledore had told the her to come to his office that evening after supper, she expected him to be waiting for her and James, not to spend the first fifteen minutes she was there babbling incoherent strings of words to an ancient, unmoving figurine. As it was, the good mood that encompassed her person earlier that morning was well on its way to the dungeons. "I've got an invite from Dumbledore; let me in!" Lily whined plaintively, temporarily giving up on mumbling the useless secession of words. The statue still didn't move, but a telltale smirk adorned its features. Lily scowled and resumed her monotone chanting, her patience rapidly (and very dangerously) thinning.

"Puddifoot's. Whomping Willow. Exploding Snap. Firewhiskey. Flobberworm. Treacle tart. Occlumency—oh for Merlin's sake, can you please just OPEN." Lily kicked the space next to the gargoyle and slid down the wall, glaring ferociously at the floor in front of her. "If I had known it was going to take this long I would have brought a Sugar Quill or something—"

At these words, the gargoyle suddenly sprang to life from under her back, causing Lily to fly forward and crash unwittingly into the opposite wall. "No bleeding way. Sugar quill?" said Lily disbelievingly, untangling herself painfully from the ground and dusting off her dirty robes. She stomped up the staircase irritably, mumbling obscenities under her breath about eccentric headmasters and mute statues. When she got to the top, she raised her hand to knock only to have James Potter open it right before she banged the wood, causing her to accidentally bash her fist into his glasses.

"Bloody hell, Evans, watch where you're banging!" James yelped, clutching his empty wire-frames while the glass panes bounced all the way down the stairs. Lily scowled, her patience far too tested to deal with him that night.

"Sod off, Potter; you'll be all right," she said crossly, swishing her wand once so that the panes reversed their movement and popped back into the frame of his glasses. "There," she said, barely acknowledging him as she swept into Dumbledore's office and greeted the Headmaster with a short apology. She seated herself in one of the two chairs across from the Headmaster, allowing her eyes to drift around the never-before-seen office to take in the numerous magical devices and swirling instruments. She pretended not to notice the disgruntled expression on James' face as he took the seat beside her, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"That's quite all right, Miss Evans; Mr. Potter and myself were engaged in a most intriguing conversation before you arrived. Lemon drop?" said Dumbledore, his blue eyes smiling at Lily through half-moon glasses.

"Er, no thank you, Headmaster," she refused politely, surreptitiously casting a glance at James' irritated face. She wondered briefly what he and the Headmaster had been speaking about but knew better than to ask. She cleared her throat awkwardly. "You, er, didn't happen to give me the password in your note, did you? Only I was out there trying to think of the password for more than a quarter of an hour."

"I do apologize, Miss Evans; it must have slipped my mind," Dumbledore said; his expression, despite the sincere-sounding words, expressing amusement. No doubt he had heard some of her more zesty statements outside the office. Lily flushed a dark red at the thought but pushed it away, remembering that Dumbledore would have called the two Head students to his office for a reason.

"Er, Professor, did you want to speak with us about something?" she said.

"That would indeed be a feasible reason for my calling you here, would it not Miss Evans?" said Dumbledore, smiling benignly and folding his hands in front of him. Lily blushed, but he appeared not to take notice. "Nevertheless, you are correct. Before the term begins tomorrow I must relay to you the rules and duties that come along with the privileges of your stations as Head Boy and Girl. You will be expected to conduct Prefect's meetings, in which you will discuss various problems that have been called to attention. You are also required to help monitor the hallways in between classes for troublemakers and assist all younger students – or older, for that matter – should they need it." Lily nodded; she'd expected something along these lines. Preparing to rise, she stopped when she realized that Dumbledore had more to say. He leaned forward, his long white beard brushing the underside of his desk, and fixed both Lily and James with an uncharacteristically serious expression.

"Both of you scored exceedingly high on your OWLs; highest in your class along with Mr. Black and Miss Elliot." Lily felt a jolt of surprise when he mentioned Alice – while it was well known that Sirius was brilliant but usually chose to apply himself to things other than schoolwork, she had never really paid enough attention to Alice to take note of her academic ability. She pushed the new information aside and refocused her attention on the wizened Headmaster before her. "That, however, was not the reason you were chosen for these positions. As I'm sure you both know, the times grow dark with the threat of Lord Voldemort. It is more important than ever that we locate our bonds of loyalty and make sure they do not fray. You each are natural leaders amongst your fellow students – you are looked up upon by your skills and your charisma. It is now, more than ever, that we need leaders to keep us together and unify us against the efforts of the Voldemort before it is too late. I am counting on you to set an example against the dark forces that are working outside our walls. In that regard, should you hear of anything suspicious you must report it to me or Professor McGonagall immediately."

Lily sat in shock as the eccentric Headmaster she'd never paid much attention to stopped talking, a whirlwind of questions swirling in her mind. He picked her to be a role model in the shadow of a war against You-Know-Who? Lily knew she was book-smart, but she wondered if Dumbledore made the right choice in making her an icon for the student body. Lily had never truly gone out of her way to be a leader, and, while she knew that younger students often came to her in the form of asking questions for homework, she doubted that their respect went much beyond that. She now realized why James Potter had been Dumbledore's choice for Head Boy – almost everyone, excluding the Slytherins, looked up to him in spite (or perhaps because of) his pranks and rather rebellious reputation.

"Do you really think that Voldemort will try anything within these walls?" James asked, shocking Lily by saying You-Know-Who's name for the second time that day. Although, she reflected, the only reason she herself called him You-Know-Who was because all her friends and the newspapers did. James was probably one of the few in the school that dared to call him by his name, and Lily couldn't help but feel slightly envious of that.

"There are some students who will find his beliefs appealing," Dumbledore said evenly, the brightness in his blue eyes ebbing slightly and making him look suddenly much older. "Many of these will have been strongly persuaded by their families." James' jaw tightened and he nodded, looking as though he knew exactly what Dumbledore was speaking of. Lily felt as though she had missed something and wished, not for the first time, that she didn't grow up in a Muggle household.

"Have you any more questions?" Dumbledore asked, directing his words more towards Lily than James. "No, Professor," said Lily softly, standing up and shaking the Headmaster's curiously firm hand. James repeated her sentiments and they left, walking out the door and down the steps into the eerily silent corridor. They didn't speak until they made it back to Gryffindor Tower, where Lily mumbled a quite good-night and James dropped onto the couch, too tired or too thoughtful to go back up the stairs where the rest of his friends were waiting.

5.

"Hello, Remus," Lily sighed as she slid into the desk next to a sandy-haired boy in the front of the Arithmancy classroom the next morning, rubbing her head and dropping her books next to her. "How are you?"

"I'm all right," Remus replied, peering dubiously into the Head Girl's exhausted face. "Are you all right, though? You look dead on your feet."

"Classes start at eight," Lily said mournfully. "I miss the summer already."

Remus opened his textbook to the first chapter. "How did your meeting with Dumbledore go last night? James came back looking like you guys had discussed the end of the world or something."

Lily hesitated. Although she and Remus rarely spoke outside of class, she had always considered him a good acquaintance and a friendly ear. He had the air of someone that one could talk to without risking judgment, but at the same time Lily didn't want to say something that would somehow betray Dumbledore's trust. Besides, if James hadn't told his best friend what they'd spoken about than it was hardly up to her to say something. "Oh, nothing," Lily said airily, waving her hand around. "Just duties and responsibilities and such. James was probably just overwhelmed by all of it."

"He's a bit anxious about this Head Boy thing," Remus confided to her. Lily looked at him with surprise – judging by James' air on the train yesterday, he'd been supremely confident and not worried in the least bit. "So try not to be too hard on him at first – he's really trying. Actually, I think he was more than a bit shocked when he got that letter in the mail. I think he's worried about letting people down."

Wondering why Remus was telling her all of this, Lily said, "Well, I'm sure he'll do fine. He's one of those natural leaders, you know? People just flock around him and do whatever he tells them to do. It'll be the same with the Prefects. Once they get over the fact that he was a troublemaker before the Head Boy, of course."

Remus appraised her, looking interested at her last comment, but chose not to elaborate. "Maybe. But he's not really like that – ordering people around, I mean. He's not a bad bloke."

"Yeah, maybe," said Lily, deciding to let it go so as to forego an argument. Luckily for her the professor chose that moment to welcome the class back from the summer and begin passing out the syllabus. Lily tilted her head on her hand and absentmindedly began doodling on the sides of her textbook, wishing that she was still in her bed, dreaming up some nonsense about unicorns, daffodils, and Petunia dressed as a garden gnome. Somehow even that seemed preferable to thinking of the beginnings of what looked to be a very eventful year.