Heyyyyyy guysssssss. So I know I said I had so many chapters written and that would mean we could stay on a regular update schedule BUT I kind of wasn't counting on my laptop's hard drive conking out on me, which it did. So I had to wait awhile to do anything about it because I was waiting for a friend of mine who works in tech to find time to come over and switch out the hard drive and transfer all the data to the new one. That all went successfully, so I didn't lose anything I'd written. And then immediately following that I started a new job, so that's been an adjustment too. And sometimes I'm just flat forgetful, but try not to hold it against me. Here is your months-overdue next chapter and hopefully from here on out the updates will be regular again (although with Camp NaNoWriMo coming up in July I make no concrete promises)
Lily navigated her way through all the people on the Platform, desperately searching for a sign of Marlene, Sirius, or Alice. None of them had heard her news yet and she was bursting with it, to the point where she was almost panicking. Dumbledore must have been losing his mind when he made this decision.
Finally she found Alice with her boyfriend Frank, although she decided that they were best left undisturbed – neither of them was really in the mood for talking. Their lips were occupied in other ways.
She let out a frustrated noise as she finally gave up and began moving towards the train.
"All right Evans?" a voice came from behind her, sending butterflies spiraling up from her stomach. Lily turned and came face to face with James Potter. She tried her best not to blush – she was over him after all.
"Just looking for my friends," she said, pretending to scan the platform behind him to avoid his eyes. What was up with her? She never acted like this around him.
"Haven't seen any of them," he said warily, half expecting one of them to sneak up behind him and pull some kind of prank. That thought vanished from his mind once he noticed Evans's strange behavior. She hadn't hit on him in almost five months, including the summer, and she wasn't even looking at him right now.
"Anyway," she said distractedly, "I'm gonna hop on the train to try to find them. See you later…" the last word trailed off as something pinned to his chest caught her eye. He had already changed into his robes – she presumed that his parents had Apparated him here rather than running through the wall – and pinned on the left side of his robes was a bright badge, shining more than his slightly smaller Quidditch Captain's badge.
Head Boy.
James Potter was Head Boy.
"Bye James," she squeaked, before running off and hurling herself into the first empty compartment on board the train that she could find.
Of course he was Head Boy. He had the highest grades, never misbehaved, was the perfect role model for all the younger students. Everyone had expected it, she had just begun to hope that he wouldn't get it.
The door to her compartment slid open and Lily looked up. She had never been so happy to see Marlene, Sirius, Alice, and Frank before.
"Oh thank Merlin you guys are here," she said, trying not to burst into hysterical tears. Marlene sank onto the seat next to her and began rubbing her back.
"What happened? Was it Potter?" she asked gently. Lily shook her head, and then nodded, and then shook her head again, leaving her friends utterly confused.
"Look, do I need to beat someone up or not?" Sirius asked impatiently, and Lily shook her head while making a sound that could almost pass for a laugh.
"He's Head Boy," she finally managed. Her friends looked at each other and shrugged, not really surprised and not really understanding the problem. Lily let out a frustrated noise, and something seemed to dawn on Marlene.
"The Heads have their own tower don't they? With private rooms and a common room?" Lily looked up at Marlene, a new sense of dread filling her.
"They do?"
Marlene nodded sympathetically. "And you're worried that whoever Head Girl is will get so much time with him that he will fall for her and then you will really have no chance."
Lily let her head fall into her hands. She wasn't worried about that; if anything she was worried that he was going to hate the new Head Girl.
"Lils, it will be okay," Alice said soothingly.
"I thought you were going to try to get over him," Sirius interjected sharply.
"I am over him," she muttered into her hands. "That's not exactly the problem."
"Well then what is?" Marlene asked exasperatedly. "You've been very vague and confusing since we walked into the compartment. Just spit it out already!"
Without a word, and without meeting her friends eyes, Lily dug in her pocket and pulled out a very wrinkly and slightly heavy envelope and tossed it onto the seat across from her.
All of her friends eyed it warily, and after a few tense moments it was Alice who finally reached over and picked it up.
"Lils, this is pretty heavy," she said, understanding creeping into her voice. "Does this mean…I mean, are you? I don't understand…how…you…oh sweet Merlin." Alice let the envelope fall back onto the seat and dropped her head into her hands.
Marlene and Sirius looked at each other, nonplussed. "Uh, we still don't know what's going on," Marlene finally said, pointing between herself and Sirius.
Lily made a gesture with her hand, indicating that Alice should explain.
"Ahem," Alice began nervously, "it appears that our Lilykins here is…well she seems to be…"
"SPIT IT OUT ALICE!" Marlene and Sirius yelled simultaneously.
With one last nervous glance at Lily, Alice muttered, "She's Head Girl."
Lily could almost hear her friends' jaws drop.
"No," Sirius said in a hushed tone, "there's no way!"
"Look in the envelope," Lily managed to squeak out. "That's what I thought at first too, but it says my name and everything!"
Sirius yanked the envelope from Alice's hands and turned it upside down. A bright red badge, embossed with a Gryffindor lion, fell into his open palm. Scrolling across the top was a banner reading Head Girl, and a small one reading Lily Evans ran across the bottom.
Simultaneously, Sirius and Marlene turned to stare at Lily, their faces incredulous.
"How?" they said at the same time.
"Okay, you guys have got to stop doing that, it's getting creepy!" Lily said crossly. "And I don't know how it happened, Dumbledore must be going senile. I mean, me for Head Girl? Me paired with James Potter?"
Nobody was quite sure what to say.
"I hate to mention this Lily," Frank began hesitantly, "but you have to go meet him in the Heads' Carriage and then lead the Prefects meeting with him afterwards, and you probably should head that way soon." He checked his watch and Lily groaned.
"How am I supposed to do that?" she cried. "I was never a prefect, I've never led anyone in anything other than some kind of group prank! Dumbledore has lost his marbles." She grabbed her badge and stood up, making her way out of the compartment, still mumbling under his breath about craziness and marbles.
Three carriages up was a door with the words Heads' Carriage embossed across the top in loopy writing. Taking a deep breath she seized to door knob and pushed the door open, poking her head inside.
James wasn't there yet so she carefully seated herself on one of the benches. Two pieces of paper rested on the table in the middle and she leaned over to peer at one.
Current Prefects…followed by a list of names of the years' prefects and their houses.
The door opened and James stepped in, stopping in the doorway when he saw her.
"What are you doing in here? How did you even manage to get in here?" he asked warily. She stood and met his gaze nervously.
"I'm Head Girl," she replied, her voice nearly a whisper. James let out a short laugh and shook his head.
"You just can't take a hint can you?" he said harshly. "It doesn't matter what you do, or what you try. I. Don't. Like. You. And I'm not going to. So can you tell me who the real Head Girl is and what you did with her?"
Lily stood there silently, chewing her lip.
He could swear her eyes were watering. But that couldn't be possible, because that would mean that Lily Evans actually had feelings or any kind of heart.
Slowly, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her Head Girl badge, handing it to him. He took it from her and stared at it.
It was like someone had found out his worst nightmare and brought it to life, he couldn't help but think. Having to work with Lily Evans every day. Having to live with Lily Evans every day, with nobody else around to act as a buffer between them.
What had Dumbledore been thinking?
Lily yanked her badge out of his hand and shoved it back into her pocket. "I know that this obviously wasn't your first choice. And I wasn't expecting it, I certainly didn't ask for it." She paused, glaring at him while he stood mute. "Whatever – Dumbledore has lost his mind, and when we get to the castle I'll tell him that myself when I give him back the badge. That way you can live and work with someone you can stand to be around."
She shoved past him and was halfway out the door when he surprised her by grabbing her arm to stop her.
"I'm sorry," he said, sighing, "That was uncalled for on my part. I'm just very surprised."
"You and me both," Lily yanked her arm from his grasp and stepped as far away from him as the compartment would allow, still angry and slightly hurt.
"Look," James said, leading her back over to the seats, "I know we don't really get along, but now we have to. Dumbledore had to have had his reasons for picking you for Head Girl."
"Yeah, like he'd had a little too much Firewhiskey."
James sighed again and ran his hand through his hair. "Or he actually thinks you could do a good job. Or that maybe it will get you to behave a little bit. Honestly, the students are more likely to listen to you than to me – half the school worships you and your friends, and they respect you."
Lily could feel her jaw dropping. James Potter – saying nice things about her? And to her face? She felt like she might faint.
"Well…thank you," she finally stammered, "that means a lot coming from you."
He stared at her confusedly for a moment. Blushing, she looked away, gazing at the countryside racing by.
"Don't mention it," was all James replied, and they passed the rest of the time before the prefects' meeting in silence.
So there ya go! I didn't wanna try to shove in the prefects' meeting because there wasn't anything super important to be included in it. I will see if I can't get the next chapter up within a couple days to make up for the long lack of a chapter. Thank you guys for your patience and understanding (at least I'm hoping that's how you feel and not that you hate me or want to give up on the story)
Much love!
