DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I'm not claiming ownership. I'm not making money off this. It's simply for my enjoyment, as well as the enjoyment of those who choose to read it. Proceeding.

Red.

No, not red. Auburn.

The auburn locks dangled before him, resting in soft curls on the shoulders of the girl to whom they were attached. He wanted nothing more than to run his fingers through her smooth locks, but she would never think of him that way. They had only just become friends.

A wand smacked onto the desk in front of him, waking him up from his daze.

"Mr. Potter?" the old witch asked. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun, pulling her face back as well. Her dark eyes were severe at first glance, peering atop a pair of square spectacles, but they harbored a certain lenience for this boy. After all, he was her best student. He sat up a bit straighter, running a hand through his untidy black mane.

"Yes, Professor?" he tilted his head to the side and adjusted his glasses.

"Can you answer the question?"

James's eyes widened. Thinking quickly, he stepped on the foot of the student next to him, a handsome boy with chin-length chocolate brown hair and eyes of the same color. Acting almost as a reflex, the boy began to scribble on the parchment in front of him. James read along as his quill glided across the page, and then lifted his head up.

"Changing human appearance is one of the most dangerous forms of Transfiguration. It should not be attempted by inexperienced wizards, as a simple slip of the tongue can cause permanent damage, or even death in some cases. Most wizards begin with eye color, because it is the simplest spell within this category."

Professor McGonagall hesitated, narrowing her eyes a bit. "Well said, Mr. Potter. Five points to Gryffindor. Now who can tell me what we call wizards or witches who have the ability to change their physical appearance without using a spell?"

James, turning his attention back to the girl in front of him, noticed that her hand had shot up.

"Lily Evans?"

"A Metamorphmagus," she replied confidently.

"Very good, Miss Evans. And can you estimate how many Metamorphmagi there have been in total?"

"No more than fifty," she answered. "Metamorphmagi are very rare. There are only a few born per century. It seems that this trait is not genetic."

"Correct again. Five points to Gryffindor."

Lily looked at her parchment. James looked at Lily. She was now scribbling something on the sheet. He watched her fill up her paper with notes, pale hand gliding across the page. Occasionally, she would put the quill in her mouth while she looked at the Professor intently. James was jealous of the quill.

Lily rolled up her parchment and put it in her bag, along with her ink and quill. Sirius nudged him.

"Huh?" James was confused. "Oh, right," he looked around and noticed that everyone was leaving.

"Man, you've got it bad," Sirius laughed. "Do you even remember what the lesson was about?"

"Sure I do. It was about changing physical appearance. With the proper practice, you could have auburn hair, or emerald eyes, or pale, soft skin, or…"

"Down boy," Sirius interrupted.

"James?" said the sweetest voice he had ever heard.

"Lily! Hi!" James spoke a bit to quickly.

"Remember, there's a Prefects' meeting tonight. For the Halloween decorations? Meet in the Great Hall at eight o'clock, alright?"

"Yeah… Yeah I'll see you there." James muttered from his dreamlike state.

"Oh, and James?" she spoke again.

"Yes?"

"You've got some drool on your face. Did you know?" she pointed toward his chin, giggling along with her friends. Sirius snorted. The girls exited the classroom, whispering and laughing, leaving James with steadily reddening cheeks. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Well played, Prongs," Remus tried to be encouraging, but failed to hide the amusement in his voice.

"Shut up."

The three friends exited the Transfiguration classroom, going to their respective dormitories to put away their things before dinner. Sirius and Remus walked toward Gryffindor tower, while James headed to a portrait of a strangely vicious brown bunny. The creature hissed and snarled at him as he advanced toward the picture, still making an enormous racket as he mumbled the password and entered through the portrait hole.

He was standing inside a common room slightly smaller than that of Gryffindor tower. It was beautifully decorated, with a roaring fireplace and two red chairs sitting on either side. A cherry-colored coffee table sat in the middle of the room, surrounded by a couch and two poufs of the same shade. Prisms of color danced on the walls, shining from the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. On the left wall, a short staircase led up to a brown wooden door that read JAMES in bold capital letters of Gryffindor colors. The right wall looked just the same, except the door read Lily in cursive, emerald letters.

These dorms, the Heads' Dorms, were given to one male and one female student who earned the position of Head Boy or Head Girl, respectively. James had been nothing short of surprised when his Hogwarts letter the summer preceding seventh year had not only included a list of school books, but a note from the headmaster informing him of his newest achievement. Lily, however, was the number one pick for the position. She was perfect.

James walked up the stairs to his bedroom and put his bag on top of his trunk, stopping to glance out the window. He had come to the conclusion months earlier that the best view of the Hogwarts grounds came from this very window. The perfect depiction of Hagrid's hut, the lake, the forbidden forest, and the Whomping Willow looked like it could have been a muggle postcard for the school. Feeling his stomach churn with hunger, he spun around and left his room, shutting the door behind him.

He had only just gotten to the portrait hole when he heard the other door open. Turning his head to the left, he watched Lily as she descended from the staircase like an angel from Heaven. He smiled, not believing his luck in finally befriending her this year.

Their relationship had been one for the books, complete with public shouting matches and dueling in corridors. James had finally given up on hating her in forth year when he discovered that she was better than him at almost everything. He couldn't beat her. Stubborn as Lily was, she had finally given up on loathing him when he had been chosen as head boy. She was much too sensible to continue to hate someone she would be spending a vast majority of her time with, so the two called a truce.

Though their friendship had only been going for less than two months, they had become quite close. Lily completely released her inhibitions around James, telling him everything about her life and what was happening in her mind. James would quietly listen, nodding at all the appropriate times and holding her hand when she needed comfort. He would open up to her about the simple things, like his father's illness and how he feared he would not do well on the Charms exam, but there were things he chose not to reveal to her. For instance, he and two of his friends were unregistered Animagi, while the third just happened to be a dangerously wild werewolf. He adored classical music, liver and onions, and the muggle TV show Bewitched. Until he was fifteen, he could not sleep unless he had his stuffed monkey, Booties, by his side. He would have also preferred to keep it quiet that he had named that monkey himself.

Oh yes, there were many things that James Potter did not want to reveal to Lily. It just so happened that the way she made him feel was at the top of that list.

(A/N: I am quite aware that this chapter is short. It's just sort of an introduction to the story. I am also aware that they have a Prefects' meeting, and I'll get to that. It should be good fun. School is starting soon, so updates may not come as quickly as I had hoped. Please R&R, as the more reviews I get, the worse I will feel about not updating.)