Carry On Train-ing
"Excuse me please! I need to get through, excuse me-"
A small round faced boy rambled as he struggled to squeeze through the thronging mass of students headed onto the Hogwarts Express from the heavily crowded platform. As an older student, and new Head Boy, James Potter thought he should intervene as he saw this struggling wretch and decided to take pity on him. He pushed his way through the crowd towards the younger boy and tapped him on the back. A smile lit up on the not so young boys face.
"Prongs! Where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you and...Lily Evans"
He gave James a conspiratorial wink. James cringed internally at the constant and usually stupid insinuations made by none other than fellow seventh year and co-Marauder Peter Pettigrew.
"Sorry Wormtail – thought you were a first year in need of assistance" He straightened his robes to emphasise his status.
The grin faded from Peter's face, morphing into one of anxiety. "Really? But I thought that the Madame Magi's Grow-a-lot serum would make me look more, y'know...rugged with me growing a beard and all"
James tried very hard not to laugh as he gravely examined the sparse downy hair upon Peter's chin.
"Don't worry, Pete, soon you'll have an absolute forest growing on your face" At the look of hope on Peter's face James burst into laughter, clapping him on the shoulder and choking out,"Well at least you didn't spend 20 galleons on the big bottle...did you" Peter looked positively ill at this point and James thought it best not to panic him more.
When the laughter subsided, James asked "Why were you in such a rush anyway?"
Peter visibly brightened. "Because, I have a note from Professor McGonagall for you and Lily, that says Professor Dumbledore wants to see you in the Heads compartment when the Hogwarts express leaves"
"Thanks for telling me, and don't worry about Lily, I'll tell her" Peter relaxed in front of his eyes. James knew that whenever Peter so much as appeared in the vicinity of an attractive female, he became doe – eyed and star struck. Not a pretty sight James grimaced.
"Well, I'll see you la-" was all Peter managed to get out before he was swept away with the crowd and onto the Hogwarts Express.
James looked around, taking a deep breath and sighing. He marvelled at the brilliance of the light glinting from the train, the smoke drifting upwards in coils, the excited babble of students new and old returning to Hogwarts. Returning home.
It was a bittersweet moment for him, the final year at school before going into the big wide world. Alone. There were no parents to catch him if he fell, he was financially secure, that much was true, but the advice and wisdom his mother and father could have given him had they still been alive was invaluable and irreplaceable.
Shaking himself of his negative thoughts, James hauled his trunk onto the nearest compartment and tried to drag it along the narrow corridors whilst the other students were still trying to get on board.
'For Merlin's sake, get out of the way' he thought agitatedly and wished for a second that he was not Head Boy and then could have barged past them all.
A voice broke across the mass of tiny students. "Oi, move it midgets!"
Sirius. James grinned. He may not be able to clear the slow blockage of second years but Sirius could, and most likely would too. When the second year girls turned to see who this intruding voice belonged to the majority of them blushed or swooned and stumbled into the nearest compartments giggling and twittering excitedly about the "hunky" Sirius Black. The boys on the other hand narrowed their eyes and ignored Sirius completely.
With a nonchalant sigh, Sirius flicked his wand lazily at the remaining students and they were dragged into one compartment as if there were a giant magnet inside sucking them all towards it. "Done."
"Thanks Padfoot, much appreciated" James grinned.
"Ah, just doing my duty Prongs, y'know, clearing up after other students as a good seventh year should." He quipped before turning on his heel, winking at the second year girls who now had their faces mashed up against the compartment window in an attempt to get as close to him as they could, and gesturing rudely to the irate boys now trapped in the next compartment along.
As Sirius strode away he pointed his wand over his shoulder and James' trunk shrunk and levitated after him, floating easily along the corridor. Sometimes even James wondered how Sirius could be so "too cool for school" all the time.
***
The one person Lily Evans did not expect to see swagger into the Heads compartment was Sirius Black. If it had been anyone else, she would have doubted herself as to who had become Head Boy, but the confidence Sirius exuded never changed and he would try to blag anything, including, it seemed, the post of Head Boy.
"Don't tell me-" She began.
"Look, I'm only here to drop off the luggage and escort my nearest and dearest to the Heads compartment, Lily darling, don't panic, even I'm not stupid enough to even want to be Head Boy!" He barked with laughter at his own insult to James who at that moment entered the compartment and stowed his trunk.
Sirius threw himself into a seat and yanked James into a sitting position next to him."So Lils, how's life treating you?" he asked, throwing his right arm casually around her and pulling her as close as humanly possible whilst doing the same to James so that their faces were mere inches apart and wedged against Sirius' chest.
"Erm...not bad thanks Sirius, but I would appreciate it if you let go – I think you're crushing my oesophagus" Her voice was quite muffled.
"Oh I am sorry, I just haven't seen you in a while and I know I missed you very much...what about you Jamesie?" He added slyly.
Having still not released either of them, James awkwardly averted his gaze and muttered something that sounded like "Yes, and Padfoot I'm going to bloody kill you"
Suddenly Sirius sprang up and away from the two of them causing them to bash heads and fall onto each other. Gleefully, he leapt outside the compartment door and closed it almost completely which just his head poking through the opening. "Have fun you two lovebirds!" he called before leaving and slamming the door shut behind him.
Oh, how James loved Sirius' attempts at matchmaking.
"So..." Lily began, a beautiful blush spreading across her face, "Dumbledore is going to announce something at the feast today and he wanted me to run it past you before we arrive just so you're in the loop -" She faltered slightly as she noticed James had a rather glassy look in his eyes and appeared to be nodding at random intervals, "so basically, this award is really popular at muggle schools and Dumbledore thought it would be a good thing to introduce for all sixth and seventh year students..."
James, having not seen Lily since summer term feared that he had developed Peter's "star struck syndrome" and would need to build up a resistance to her all over again. He barely registered what she was saying; all he saw were her lips and hands moving. He would have to find out what she had been explaining with the rest of the school at the feast.
A/N: What do you think so far? Please R & R!