'I can feel it, this is going to be the year. I can just feel it' James said confidently as he walked into the train compartment that held his friends Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. James closed the door loudly and settled himself between an annoyed Remus who was trying to read and Sirius who was watching him with mild interest. James slung an arm around his two friends and smiled, letting out a sigh of content. Remus turned to his book, shrugging James's arm off his shoulder. He was used to his mates antics and knew better than to ask because he was sure James would explain further, even without an audience. Just as he predicted, James seemed unaware of his friends disinterest and continued 'I ran into her in the hallway and she didn't even yell at me' he said with a smug smile. Remus looked up and caught Sirius's amused eye. It was the oldest story in the book. James loved Lily, Lily hated James. All seventh years had given up trying to talk sense into either students, yet continued to watch with bemusement.

Sirius nodded slowly, not bothering to hide his smirk 'Well done mate, you've really accomplished a lot. And to think, it's only the first day'

James glared at his dark haired friend, but wasn't phased 'You may joke now Padfoot, but I also told her I was Head Boy.' This got Remus's attention,

'What?' he turned to James in surprise

James nodded with satisfaction, 'I'm telling you, she no longer hates me.' Both Remus and Sirius had to admit that it was an improvement. All summer both boys had come up will all sorts of hexes Lily could use on James after he told her the news. They had a right time inventing insanely unrealistic situations, and of course pissing James off.

'You're sure she understood you?' Sirius asked carefully.

James shot him a look 'I'm sure' he said forcefully 'Do you blokes want to be happy for me or what?'

Remus set his book down and glanced at James apologetically 'We're sorry mate, we're just surprised. It is good though, it's great'

James smiled at that before jumping up and grabbing his trunk from overhead. He sat beside Peter on the opposite side and began rummaging through the trunk. Remus set down his book and watched alongside Sirius as James emptied his trunks contents onto the floor. Peter frowned while avoiding the odd flying object thrown in his direction. After a couple of minutes, James sat up with a small, gleaming object in his bag, his eyes sparkling excitedly 'Aha' he cried, holding it up. The three boys peered closely to see that James was holding his head badge, a small gold pin that he was supposed to have pinned to his robes at all times.

Sirius snickered 'Someone's off to a good start', causing everyone but James to laugh.

James pinned it to his robe, before standing 'Here we go boys' he said with a nervous grin and left the compartment, leaving all his things scattered on the maroon carpet floor. Remus sighed tiredly before bringing his wand out and putting everything back into its place.

Meanwhile, James entered the meeting room. There were a couple students he recognized, sitting near the back. James gave them all a quick wave as he took his seat at the front of the room. He began fidgeting nervously with his hands. He would be the last to admit it, but just thinking about the fact that he had to work all year with Lily Evans made his heart beat faster. He had just recently come to the conclusion that she was the reason and the ban of his existence.

He was breathing deep breathes when she walked in, her long red hair tied back in a professional bun that, although he was sure she didn't realize, showed off her long neck in a way that made James shift uncomfortably in his seat. She sat down in her chair with a huff and threw her bag onto the ground next to her, all without even glancing over at James. He watched her warily, unsure of whether to crack a joke, ask what was wrong, or just ignore her. Of course, unable to contain himself, he leaned towards her and asked,

'Lily, you alright?'

She looked over at him as if she hadn't known he had been there all along. Her green eyes looked tired, and her face was paler than usual. She frowned slightly at him 'I'm fine Potter, just a bit tired.'

James tried his best to look unaffected by her choice of words, but truth was that he felt a punch in his stomach every time she uttered the word 'Potter' as if the word was an unappetizing taste she wanted out of her mouth. He had worked for 7 years to get her to call him James, he stopped calling her Evans in hopes of leading an example, but she stubbornly kept the name for him, refusing to see him in any other light.

'Okay people, be quiet and lets start the meeting so we can get out of here as fast as we can' she said, her voice confident and comfortably loud, largely different from the voice she had used just then with James. The entire room turned to her, and paid full attention to her and James. She began reading from a list she took out of her bag while James watched her, unable to utter a word. She was reading out rules, guidelines, and schedules, everything that made James cringe. She was organized and neat, while he came to the meeting with nothing planned. How was he appointed Head Boy? After Lily had finished the list, she turned to James 'Anything you want to add?' James shook his head quickly and she turned back to the other students, seemingly not surprised by James's lack of participation. Once everyone had been dismissed, James stood up and walked over so that he was standing in front of Lily. She stopped packing her bag and glanced up at him, a hint of annoyance in her eyes.

James swallowed and shoved his hands in his pockets, glancing nervously at his sneakers 'Listen, I know I didn't say much at this meeting-'

'I'm not surprised' she interrupted.

James whipped his head up at her tone, it wasn't mean or rude, it was….amused? He saw a smile play at the corner of her lips before he tore his eyes away from them 'I wasn't prepared' he admitted with a shrug. Lily smiled before standing up, slinging her bag over her shoulder. James always loved how small she was when she stood near him, only reaching his shoulders. He took a step back so he wasn't towering over her.

'I have no idea what Dumbledore was thinking when he made you Head Boy, but I know that you aren't the most…organized person out there', she let out a laugh, 'so I'm not going to scream at you, I'm tired of doing that. But I just hope you try a bit harder this year, because I don't really want to do all the work by myself.' She gave him a tired smile and he felt his breath catch in his throat.

He nodded enthusiastically 'I'm going to step it up this year Lily. Swear on Merlin' he made an erratic gesture with his hands that made Lily burst out laughing.

'I have to go, I guess I'll see you around Potter' she gave him a quick wave and exited the compartment, leaving James standing in the same spot, a wide smile on his face, and a hopeful heart that this year really was going to be it.

James met his friends at the baggage with a grin. Peter glanced up from where he was trying to find his nametag on his suitcase and noticed James walking towards them with an extra bounce in his step. He turned back to the other two and nodded in James's direction. They glanced surreptitiously over their shoulders, and both grinned as they took in his state. Once James reached his friends, he let out a long breath and smiled widely 'No yelling'

Sirius straightened 'No yelling?'

James shook his head, his smile growing 'No yelling.'

Sirius threw his hands up 'Holy fuck would you look at that' he cried, earning a few looks from fellow students.

James laughed, alongside Peter, and reached forward to grab his bag, also handing Peter his. 'I'm serious, she even smiled a couple of times' he said, in a voice that was so unlike James that no 'serious' jokes were made.

Remus grabbed his trunk and patted James on the back as they began walking towards the castle 'I'm glad mate, Merlin knows how long you've wanted this' he said sincerely. All three marauders liked Lily. Sirius thought she was a bit prissy, but she was fiery and a good time when she wanted to be. Remus thought she could be a little harsh on James sometimes, but he knew that they would get along perfectly if she accepted who he was now and Peter thought she was lovely, and very helpful with homework. They had spent years listening to James talk about her, and have moody spells and temper tantrums because of her, so they were all relieved that those times seemed to now be in the past.

They made their way into the castle and to their dormitories to drop off their trunks. James, not entirely sure exactly what his head duties included, decided to find Lily once he reached the Great Hall. She must have already told him during the meeting, but he had the tendency to zone out when the subjects being discussed weren't of his interest. Once they got into their rooms James fell onto his bed with a sigh, he wouldn't go as far as to call Hogwarts home, but it was pretty damn close and he had missed it over the summer. Looking over at Sirius, he could see just how relieved he was to be there, considering how hard that summer was between him and his family. 'Alright lads, time to eat?' James asked them, they all turned to look at him with curious faces. James stared back, not able to figure out why they all had such odd expressions on their faces.

'You didn't plan anything?' Peter asked in an awestruck way. It took James a moment to realize what he meant before he gave him a hard look,

'Come on Pete, I'm Head Boy, I can't just go planning pranks and getting detentions this year.' Dumbledore took the risk to make him Head Boy, so he was going to do all he could to be Hogwarts best fucking Head Boy.

Sirius's mouth dropped open 'P..Prongs, you're..kidding. Right?'

James rolled his eyes at his friend who had turned a shade paler with this news 'I can't screw this up guys' He looked at Sirius 'You saw my mom when I got the badge, I can't lose it.' Sirius watched James with dark eyes and nodded slightly, although grudgingly. James understood how Sirius was feeling, they all knew James was changing, and although Remus was glad, Sirius was having trouble adjusting to his new change of behavior. There was a moment of silence before Sirius ran towards James and jumped on him, tackling him to the ground. James yelled out as he was pummeled to the ground, before erupting in laughter and started wrestling Sirius as Peter and Remus joined the fun.