"I can't believe we're finally heading back to Hogwarts!" Lily Evans squealed. A couple of her friends jumped up and down and clapped their hands. The others just smiled. None of them could deny how excited they were for their seventh and final year of Hogwarts, but the idea of becoming adults and acquiring real careers frightened them a bit.
The Hogwarts Express started to run slowly along the tracks, picking up speed cautiously. Lily and her friends chatted animatedly the whole ride. Occasionally, Severus Snape would casually stroll by their compartment, sneaking a peek at Lily when he thought she wasn't looking. However, she was fully aware of his eyes on her, she just pretended not to notice. They weren't exactly on speaking terms, and she knew how he felt about that. She wasn't exactly sure why; surely he had many friends, so why was he so hung up on her? Maybe he likes you, came a voice from inside her head, but she shook it off.
When the train finally stopped, Lily and her friends were the first to get off. As the giant group of kids filed off the train, Lily ended up getting separated from her friends. She frantically looked around, but they were nowhere to be seen. Soon, most of the students had found a seat on one of the carriages. She found an empty carriage and gratefully climbed in. She didn't really mind who sat next to her, as long as it wasn't…
"James, find another carriage. I don't want you here." James Potter shrugged his shoulders and climbed in anyway, completely disregarding her. Sirius, Remus, and Peter followed him inside, talking among themselves. None of them seemed to notice Lily at all. The four boys spent the trip joking and laughing and playfully punching each other, while Lily shyly stared into her lap. Occasionally, she would look up and find James staring at her, at which point they would both look away, uncomfortable. During one of these moments, James opened his mouth as if about to speak, then closed it just as quickly and continued chatting with his friends.
When they finally reached Hogwarts, Lily immediately hopped down onto the ground, relieved to finally be free of James. Luckily, she found her group of friends quickly and rushed towards them. "Lily!" one red-headed girl named Marla exclaimed, which made everyone else in the group turn around. "We've been looking for you."
While Lily made her way into the castle, she caught a glimpse of Severus. He seemed to be glaring at someone with a very angry look in his eye. She followed his gaze and found none other than James Potter and his friends, staring at Severus as if he were gum on the bottom of a shoe. She felt a pang of sympathy for Severus, then brushed it off quickly. Why should she feel sympathy for him after all those times he "accidentally" called her a mudblood? He was just as bad as James, and deserved what he got. True, James and his crew did tend to get carried away occasionally, or most of the time, or all the time…
"Lily, come on!" cried Beatrice, another one of Lily's friends, breaking Lily from her thoughts. She realized that she was standing still outside the castle. She shook her head to clear it and followed her pale, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed friend into the Great Hall. At the front, first year students stood nervously, waiting to be sorted. Some of them looked as if they were on the verge of tears. Lily was suddenly reminded of being sorted six years ago. She remembered how frightened she was, and how badly she didn't want to be in Slytherin. Her wish had come true, for she was a proud student of Gryffindor House. The only problem about this was the student she liked least was also in this house, James Potter.
After the Sorting and the feast, everyone retired to their dorm rooms. Lily fell asleep almost instantly, but not before picturing James' face clearly in her mind. I hate him so much, that arrogant jerk. I hate him, I hate him, I hate…