"My son, Head Boy, you know," Mrs. Potter boasted to Mrs. Pettigrew. "Who would have guessed my Jimmy would be Head Boy?" She had a large smile on her face, her dark eyes bright. Mr. Potter nodded apologetically to the Pettigrews and Lupins as they stood together, waiting for their children to hopefully say good-bye for the year.

Mrs. Pettigrew turned to Mrs. Lupin. "Yes, who would have guessed the great James Potter would be Head Boy?" she whispered sarcastically. "Honestly, you would think the child is a saint." She took advantage of her oldest friend's turned back to lean in and say, "If you ask me, it should have been Remus that got this honor."

Mrs. Lupin smiled shyly at Mrs. Pettigrew. "Oh, it's quite all right. Remus is just fine. I do agree, of course, but maybe James will surprise us."

"Now I know where your son gets it, John," Mrs. Pettigrew laughed indulgently.

Mrs. Potter waved her handbag over her friends' heads as four boys headed their way, no longer carrying their trunks. "Over here, boys!"

The shortest, a round boy with short blonde hair and watery blue eyes, stopped in front of Mrs. Pettigrew to give her a hug and kiss before his friends had even caught up. Peter hugged the other parents in turn and graciously accepted a small box of Mrs. Potter's hazelnut cookies, his favorite. Remus Lupin hugged his mother and father, too, and said good-byes to the Pettigrews and Potters.

The other two boys, however, stood back from the group, one with a messy mop of black hair and a Head Boy badge gleaming on his chest and one with dark stylishly messy hair and his shirt unbuttoned, until Mrs. Potter glared at them so severely they didn't dare keep her waiting any longer. They both stepped forward, but only James gave his mother a fleeting hug.

They had reputations to uphold, after all.

"Sirius, dear, button your shirt, you're not homeless." Mrs. Potter started forward, but Mr. Potter put his arm around her shoulders and held her back.

"It's fine, Dorea, they're grown men now."

The train whistle sounded, and Mrs. Potter tapped James and Sirius with her bag. "Hurry! You're going to be late!" With a final wave, the four boys parted from the group of parents, Sirius deliberately pulling his shirt apart and flaunting his chest for the gaggle of girls waiting to board the train. He grinned at them, and James got behind him and gave him a strong push.

"Sirius!" one of the girls giggled, putting her hand on his chest as he passed. Her friends laughed and sighed.

Once on the train, Remus pushed himself between James and Sirius. "Do you think you might be able to button your shirt for the day? It was bad enough having girl after girl coming into our compartment last year because you and James insisted on strip poker."

"It was fun, Moony," Sirius said, sliding their door open. A couple of first years had sat down already, and he waved towards the door. "Oi, midgets. See the bags? Means the seats are taken. Out."

James stood on the other side of the door. To the first years, these two seventh years looked pretty intimidating. Unfortunately, Remus chose that moment to take James by the arm and say, "By the way, Prongs, we're supposed to meet the other prefects to be assigned rounds."

The thought made James blanch. "What? I'm not a prefect!"

"No, you're Head Boy. You have to assign the rounds with the Head Girl."

Sirius and Peter laughed aloud. "Have fun, Prongs!" Peter called as Sirius forcefully pushed the first years out of the compartment. "We'll save seats for you!"

"Moony, this is wrong, this is ridiculous, I can't do that! Do you know what that means?"

"Yes, James, I do."

"See? You're even calling me James! I'm Prongs!"

"You're legal name is James, so that works too." Remus turned, and, seeing James open his mouth again, he continued, "It means responsibility. You have to act your age."

James stopped in front of the prefects' carriage. "I do act my age."

"No, Prongs, you don't."

James didn't reply, and he heard Remus let out a rare audible sigh some moments later. As Remus moved to open the door, James said, "I'm sorry."

Remus should have taken a picture and had James sign it, such a rare event this was. "What?"

"I thought you were gonna get Head Boy, and then it came in my letter, and Sirius and I were just…really shocked. Didn't know what to do for a while. Then Mum saw it and, y'know, new broom and stuff. We wrote to you and Wormy once it sunk in and stuff."

"James, I'm not mad." He smiled, no doubt amused by James' apology. "I'm happy for you, I really am. Still a bit surprised, though, I won't lie." And he led the way into the prefects' carriage.

Where James stopped in the doorway, his mouth open like a fish out of water.

Lily Evans. Her beautiful, full red hair brushed back in a smooth ponytail, her green eyes bright with laughter as she talked with the blonde Ravenclaw Dorcas Meadowes whom Peter had had a crush on through all of fifth year. Her black skirt was just the right length, and she already had her Gryffindor tie over her white blouse. Disappointed as he was for being unable to see through the white, it quickly washed away when he spotted the matching badge on her chest.

And he thought responsibility was going to be a pain in the ass.

Sirius roared with laughter when James and Remus told the other two who the Head Girl was after dinner.

"Red? Head Girl is Red? Oh, this is brilliant! I think we need to celebrate!"

"Padfoot, I'm starting Quidditch tryouts this weekend. Need another beater."

"Fucking Dent. Why'd he have to leave?"

"He graduated," Peter said, pulling The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7 out of his trunk and moving it to his bag. "You're the best beater in the school, don't know why Prongs is worried about getting another one."

James threw a pillow at Peter's head. With a healthy amount of sarcasm, he replied, "You're right, Wormy, why would I want another beater? Why would I want seven players when I have six wonderful ones already?" He rolled his eyes. "Use your head. I'm going to let the other teams keep their dignity by losing to a full team than a team of six."

Remus snorted into Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration. When the room got uncomfortably quiet, he looked up to find his three friends staring at him incredulously. "You're serious?"

Without missing a beat, Sirius puffed out his chest. "Of course I am, who else would I be?"

They laughed again, the silence broken. James was still confused by Remus' reaction (because his team of six was far superior than any team of seven the other houses could cough up), but pushed it aside in favor of sleep. He needed rest, after all. New responsibilities and such, should be fun. Maybe he could get away with skipping class this year, claim he had duties to perform…