(Second chapter! Just wanted to get this up before the end of the week. There are probably quite a lot of mistakes and parts that could have been written better, I will likely come back and change them at some point over the next couple of days uwu;)

Once the hat was on, itching and scratching wherever it touched his skin, James became rigid, not really all that sure what to expect.

'Ah, yes, such a brave young lad we have here, eh?'

He flinched at that, having not been expecting the whispery voice in his ear. He vaguely wondered if the hat had spoken to anyone else, after all, he couldn't remember anybody appearing to have gotten a fright.

'But arrogant. I think any one of these houses could bring out the better traits in you. Slytherin would sharpen your mind, while Hufflepuff would considerably lessen that ego you appear to have acquired..

"Go on, put me in Gryffindor." James whispered, crossing his fingers. He couldn't imagine the shame of trudging off to the Hufflepuff table after having been so certain he would be put in the same house as his dad. Or Slytherin, for that matter. Ravenclaw seemed okay, but the majority of its students seemed way to boring for his tastes.

'Gryffindor, are you certain? But you could fare so well in another house… Well alright then. '

"GRYFFINDOR." The hat screamed, not in his ear this time but to the rest of the hall.

Grinning, James pushed himself up off the stool and took a short bow, sending a wink in this 'Lilys' direction. What could he say? She was pretty, though apparently not as appreciative of his gesture as he had thought she would have been.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and strutted on over to the table, flopping down onto the bench next to his friends.

"Thought we'd all make it, I see what you mean about your cousin though."

"Yeah, yeah. There'll be a howler with my name on it tomorrow I'll bet." Rolling his eyes, Sirius peered over at the front of the hall impatiently. "When's this feast thing anyway? I'm starving."

"They've only got a few more to go." Remus supplied helpfully from the position opposite. "After that we're up in our dorms for the rest of the night. Do you think we get to pick?"

"Maybe!"

The word was more squeaked than spoken, causing the attention of all three to fall upon a short, rat faced boy who had been sorted only a few students before James. There was a silence, before Remus cleared his throat and smiled kindly.

"Peter Pettigrew, right?"

"Yes! And you're James Potter, and Sirius Black and… and…"

"Remus Lupin."

"Yes!"

"Right, so if we do get to pick, I have dibs on the best bed!" James said, folding his arms and leaning back smugly.

"Not if I get there first." Sirius looked ready to get up and run to the dormitories then and there, despite having no idea where they were located. Unfortunately he never got the chance, as the wizard James could only assume to be Albus Dumbledore stepped forward.

"Now then, everyone. I would like to first take the opportunity to welcome our new students." Smiling kindly at each table in turn, he paused before continuing. "And to invite you all to join with me in singing our school song. Choose your favourite tune, and off we go!" Raising his arms dramatically like a true conductor, they started off, a complete shambles of varying melodies and pitches.

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,

Teach us something please,

Whether we be old and bald,

Or young with scabby knees,

Our heads could do with filling,

With some interesting stuff,

For now they're bare and full of air,

Dead flies and bits of fluff,

So teach us things worth knowing,

Bring back what we've forgot,

Just do your best, we'll do the rest,

And learn until out brains all rot.

There were a few who finished later than others, but when the singing finally stopped the hall once again erupted into applause.

"Now then, let the feast begin!"

With a flourish of his wand, Dumbledore turned and took his seat once more, leaving all the students to tuck into the array of food that had appeared on the tables. Nobody wasted any time in doing so, long journeys were a sure fire way to make one extremely hungry after all. There were all kinds of delicacies from sausages, steak and lamb chops to chips, ketchup and peppermint humbugs, and only when everything was gone, did the plates themselves vanish. In that moment, they were dismissed from the hall and told to make their way to their respective dormitories immediately. It wasn't all that late, but the long day had ensured that every student was near falling asleep where they stood.

It was only about twenty minutes later when James was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling and struggling to keep his eyes open. The dorm was nice, he had to say. With its four poster beds and warmth supplied from the fire still burning below in the common room.

In contrast, Remus was pre occupied with organizing his things for classes the next day and preparing to announce their time table to the rest of the dorm. "Right, first thing we have is potions with…"

"Yeah, yeah, that's great." Sirius yawned, cutting him off and causing Peter to laugh nervously and agree so quickly he was tripping over his words to get them out fast enough.

"Yeah, I mean, who wants to know that?"

"Don't be a git Pettigrew." James scolded jokingly; in spite of the teasing way in which it was said, the other boy still looked prepared to burst into tears.

"Fine, I'll see you twenty minutes late for your first class then Black." Remus grinned, finishing preparing his things then collapsing down onto his own bed.

"At least I'm not setting myself up to be teacher's pet, are you planning to be Snivelllys future best friend?" Sirius scoffed.

"Yeah, we could sit and discuss his love for 'Defence Against The Dark Arts' just like we did for the entire journey here." He drawled in response, rolling his eyes.

"Oh? So he's into that sort of thing then." James mused.

"Yeah, he wouldn't shut up about it. I mean, it's an interesting subject, sure, but that was borderline obsession."

"You said you were sitting with him and that Evans girl… what's she like?" He asked, trying to remain casual about it and ignoring Sirius' comment of 'Why do you care about Snivellus' friends?'

"Lily? She seems nice enough, really smart... comes from a muggle family. That's all I can really remember" Remus said, shrugging then frowning a little. "Actually that's a good point, why do you care?"

"Just wondering, that's all." James said quickly, choosing then to excuse himself by changing into his pyjamas.

"Of course." Remus smirked.

"Potter and Evans sitting in a tree—" Sirius began to sing, causing James to grab the nearest pillow and get up just to batter him with it.

"Shut up Black."

"Don't worry James." He laughed, shielding himself with his arms. "We won't tell your little girlfriend you're stalking her."

"I'm not stalking her, I just wanted to know what she was like!"

"The first step to overcoming a problem is admitting you have one." Remus chimed in.

"You guys are impossible, I'm going to bed." James huffed, whacking them both across the face a few more times for good measure then retreating back to the comfort of his mattress and duvet covers.

"Night night lover boy." Sirius teased, looking over to see Peter practically contorting with silent laughter.

"Hey Pettigrew, you okay?"

The only response received was a nod, as the other boy wiped away the tears of mirth that had formed in the corners of his eyes. The other three stared at him incredulously for a moment.

"Right, well, I guess we'd better get some rest too then. Wouldn't want to keep James up after all, he needs his beauty sleep if he's going to impress his lady friend." Remus said, breaking the somewhat awkward silence and heading off to the bathroom, armed with a toothbrush.

"Guess so." Sirius grinned, resting his head on the pillow and switching off his bedside lamp.

"Sleep well, Mr Lily Evans."

"Shut up Black."