After an excruciating summer, Lily Evans was glad to be headed back to school for her sixth year. As she waited for the Hogwarts Express to depart Kings Cross Station, the striking sixteen year-old Gryffindor was perched comfortably in one of the train's many compartments waiting for her friends and roommates, Marlene McKinnon and Alana Hooper, to find her. In the meantime, she carefully studied her copy of Advanced Potion-Making for Professor Slughorn's N.E.W.T.-level potions class, determined to get ahead of the curve. Thinking back to cutting ties with Severus over the summer, she realized potions had probably not been the best place to start. Slughorn's class was bound to be quite a different experience than years past. Despite Severus's exceptional ability in the subject, she would have to find a new partner. For the first time, Lily would also be without Marlene and Alana, whose careers of choice kept them far away from cauldrons. She could only hope the same was true for Potter and Black. The last thing she needed was to endure more of their juvenile bullying without any of her usual buffers.
Lily's thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of vivacious blonde and a short-haired brunette. Finally, she thought, quickly stashing her textbook to avoid Marlene and Alana's good-natured teasing.
"Lily!" the blonde exclaimed excitedly, pulling her friend into a hug. "It's so good to see you again!"
"You too Marlene," Lily quickly replied. "I've missed you even more than usual this summer. You too, Alana," she added, turning quickly to hug her other friend.
"I'm so sorry you weren't able to join us this summer," Alana replied. "France really was wonderful. It's a shame your parents wouldn't let you go."
"Difficult to write though unfortunately," Marlene added reluctantly. "We had so much to share…it's just…well, you know Gidget and Hammie. I'm not sure they'd have survived the trips."
"Don't worry about it," Lily said, swatting away their concerns with a flip of the hand. "I think they honestly would've let me go, but my sister Petunia threw such a fit about it that I'm not sure they would've been able to endure her if they had given permission."
"Still being a brat then?" asked Alana. "I thought that was supposed to be the youngest…"
Lily slapped her arm playfully. "Shut it! And yes, she was completely insufferable this year. Possibly moving out soon though, thankfully."
There was a brief lull in the conversation as the two new arrivals in the compartment stowed their trunks and other belongings. The silence left time for Lily's mind to linger on her older sister. For the longest time, Lily had thought the bitterness that had grown between them would fade. Still, years later their relationship seemed worse than ever. Fortunately, the whistle announcing their departure interrupted her depressing train of thought and she soon jumped back into conversation with Marlene and Alana. Despite her inner turmoil, Lily made a conscious effort to plaster a smile upon her face.
Later during the trip, in a compartment near the front of the train, James sat watching while Sirius heckled Remus and Peter during a game of Exploding Snap. James knew his relative silence would not go unnoticed for long, but his thoughts kept returning to his red-headed classmate. What his father had said yesterday was all well and good, but as a master prankster and newly-minted Quidditch Captain, James knew he needed an actual plan. He had the end result – change for the better – but there was so much left unknown. What to change. How much. And most importantly, how to get Lily Evans to actually notice, rather than dismiss him at first sight with a withering glare.
"Oi, Prongs!" Sirius yelled in his ear. "You promised me you'd lay out your plan to claim the Quidditch Cup! We're nearly halfway there and I've barely got a word out of you."
"Right. Sorry," James said quickly.
"Well, have you got it all set in that head of yours yet or are you open to suggestion?"
Over the summer, James's plans for the team had become rather firm, assuming tryouts went well, but he found himself more in a listening mood at the moment. Making a conscious effort to brighten his demeanor, James smiled. "Padfoot, would I deny you the opportunity to wag your tongue about tactics?"
"No! Excellent. Well, I've been thinking a lot about our attacking formations. Part of how we got done in last year was we didn't leave many lines for me to send Bludgers through the middle of the pitch, so–"
James's focus on his best friend's thoughts on their favorite sport was suddenly interrupted by the sight of dark red hair in his periphery. Coming down the corridor toward their compartment was Lily Evans. At the moment, her face was lit up with laughter. She appeared to be sharing a joke with one of the Hufflepuff prefects on the way to the mid-trip prefects' meeting. Tearing his attention away from her face, and the bright smile now firmly fixed there, James took her in. She had cut her hair over the summer so that it now fell only a short way past her shoulders. She was already in uniform, sans tie and robes. Her blouse was buttoned perfectly according to code, but James could easily make out the lines of her upper body in her perfectly-fitted sweater. In the back of his mind, James knew he had only precious little time left before she drew close enough to notice him staring. Quickly, he followed the end of her regulation sweater to her skirt, which flared out nicely from her hips until it stopped exactly at the middle of her knee. She moved gracefully toward them, with the cat-like effortlessness that the comeliest of witches always do.
Suddenly, James's reverie was interrupted by Remus Lupin squeezing between him and Sirius. "Got the meeting now boys. See you in a bit," the young man said, opening the compartment door to leave.
"So James, enjoying the view?" Sirius needled.
"What?" James asked quickly, hoping the object of his attention had not been noted.
"Well, I could tell about mid-way through my brilliant explanation of why we'd do well to ditch the Hawk Formation for the Flying-V that you weren't paying any attention," the boy responded, moving to take Remus's seat beside James. "Who was it then? O'Donnell? Blake?" Sirius stared down the length of the train car.
Looking back outside the window, James was relieved to find that a group of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor girls had congregated to talk. He noted the two voluptuous blondes Sirius had mentioned, Shannon O'Donnell and Whitney Blake, amongst others.
"You're always after the blondes, Padfoot," James chuckled, trying to deflect the question.
"Clever, Prongs," Sirius prodded, "but this isn't about me. Which of them has caught your fancy?"
James realized his mistake in dismissing the names offered and hurriedly looked for a viable candidate. Just as the silence was about to become awkward, he was spared by the emergence of Katie Wallenby, a fellow Gryffindor with chestnut brown hair and a lithe figure. He quickly pointed, playing off the delay with a smirk.
"Wallenby," Sirius said appreciatively. "And our year too. That's a mark for you alright, Prongs. You going to really give chase?"
"Well, I am a Chaser after all, aren't I?" James retorted. "I think I've got time for chasing skirts as well as Quaffles this year."
"Too true," Sirius replied. "It's a good thing you're not after O'Donnell. We may have had to duel."
James laughed, hoping Sirius hadn't noticed that Lily Evans had been anywhere in the vicinity. If it all worked out, he was prepared for to take the ribbing. If not…well, knowing his friends they'd never let him hear the end of it.
"Well, O'Donnell's all yours mate. I've got other things on my agenda." James said loftily.
"Do you now, James?" Remus inquired, re-entering the compartment.
"Wallenby…" Sirius answered, gesturing toward the brown-haired beauty with his head.
"Well, well, James. Aiming high indeed," the sandy-haired young man commented, taking Sirius's old seat next to Peter Pettigrew. "I suppose that makes it time for our annual resolutions, doesn't it?"
At this, Peter perked up. "I've got my resolution ready this year!" he almost shouted. James immediately thought back to last year's train ride, when Peter had tried to dodge their annual tradition and been teased mercilessly for his lack of preparation.
"Eager Peter," joked Sirius. "Out with it then."
"I'm going to pull a prank all by myself this year," the shy, squat boy boasted.
"Oh ho!" Sirius howled. "Tell me when. I want a ticket for this show!"
"You don't think I can?" Peter accused.
"Come on Wormtail, don't take it so hard. It's just you've never done it is all. It takes a certain flair that only comes with trial, error, and loads of detention," James remarked.
"I'm sure it will come off," Remus said diplomatically. "As for me, I'll be aiming to be a bit more sociable. Perhaps actually get a date or two for Hogsmeade."
"Aww, how practical of you Moony," Sirius teased. "Mine's simple. Quidditch Cup or bust. What about you, James? Aside from Wallenby of course…"
Now, James found himself unprepared. Sirius's goals tended to be far loftier and drawn out. This year he had hoped that would give him some time to think of a cover, as he had no intention of announcing his real goal to his friends.
"I've got several, actually," James responded. "Though Sirius has stolen one," he muttered, feigning annoyance.
"Come on then," Sirius prodded once more. "Don't tell me you've gone and pulled a Peter on us…"
"Hey!" Peter yelped defensively.
"Pssh!" James scoffed. "Let's just say, I'm aiming to make a big impression this year. Be the best I can be, in every respect."
"Too vague, Prongs," Sirius scolded disapprovingly.
"Too vague? Well then. By the end of the year, I'll have knocked Evans off her perch at the top of our year," James responded sternly. The three others in the compartment laughed heartily.
"Quidditch, pranks, girls, our moonlit weekends…I don't think you have nearly the time needed to pull of that feat, James. That's ignoring of course that she'd actually have to falter." Remus said as he shook his head in disbelief.
"Well, you've always been bold, Prongs," Sirius chuckled. "But I think you've signed up for certain disappointment there. The only tougher task would be getting her to accept one of your requests for a date!"
Sirius, Remus, and Peter all laughed hysterically. As the train rolled to a stop, they were too busy appreciating Sirius's latest joke to notice the frown that suddenly darkened James Potter's expression.
A/N: You'll note I've invented some characters here. Unfortunately canon is pretty scant on who was at Hogwarts with James and Lily, let alone who was in their year. I think Marlene McKinnon is probably the closest bet (aside from the Marauders and Snape), but going forward I am just going to invent anyone else who is supposed to be in their year or at Hogwarts at the same time. Some of these invented folks will serve a purpose for the story, some will just be extras with a name.