"Evans," James said pleasantly.
"Potter," Lily acknowledged his presence in the common room curtly.
"Argenteo," a first was saying, pointing his wand at a matchstick. Nothing happened.
"Excuse me," James said politely, and hurried over to the perplexed first-year. "Hullo, there. Having some trouble?"
Lily looked up sharply. James Potter was deigning to help someone? Who put the Imperius Curse on him?
The first year nodded. "It just won't turn into a needle, and I don't know why."
"Show me what you're doing to it," James said, frowning.
"Argenteo," the boy repeated, swishing at flicking his wand for all it was worth.
James smiled. "I see your problem," he announced. "It's the wand movement."
The younger boy was surprised. "That matters?" he asked.
"Sweet Merlin, yes," James replied, scandalised. "For this spell, it's more a circular jab…"
Well, he could have told me that, when we were in first-year, Lily thought. And why is Potter the Great helping a mere mortal, anyway?
HPHPHPHP
The Defence teacher for that year was awful. Professor Murmillia was built like an Ancient Roman gladiator and acted like one, too. In the first lesson he had them, he plunged straight into teaching the sixth-years every grisly detail they never wanted to know about Lethifolds.
Just after Halloween, he started the class on Patronuses. Lily, who had picked the memory of seeing Peri catch the Snitch, thereby securing Gryffindor's Quidditch Cup victory last year, had produced a wavery outline of a stag on her seventh attempt. Evidently, I watched Bambi too many time over the holidays. And why do the Marauders look so surprised?
Peter and a Hufflepuff girl, Amelia Bones, were having trouble. Neither was producing much more than faint silvery puffs. So Murmillia, who had already established himself as rather a bully, picked on them how to show the class how not to produce a corporeal Patronus.
Murmillia had produced a shining silver bulldog to demonstrate, but then again he had had several years practice. James thought his taunts were below the belt. Peter and Amelia had possibly never even heard of the Patronus Charm. Sirius was of like mind, and they told Murmillia so.
Lily, Peri, Amy and Iris, in the opposite corner of the room, exchanged surprised looks.
Sirius wanted to protest against the unfairness of the detention he and James received. James was forcing himself not to look at Lily. He was trying, really he was. But getting detentions for his efforts weren't exactly encouraging. Then he remembered that he was given a lot of detentions and that this was another one to add to the Marauders' total tally.
HPHPHPHP
James, Remus, Sirius, Lily and Peri were the only ones left in the common room at ten o'clock that night. For the first time in her life, Lily was glad. "Remus?" she called. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" She indicated the far corner.
Remus stood up and moved to where she indicated, as did Lily. "Yes?" he said, expecting her to ask when the next prefect meeting was, from the business-like expression on Lily's face.
"Do you, or do you not, fancy Peri?" Lily demanded.
Oh, crap. "Oh. Er, well, uh … why do you care?"
"I reckon you'd be good together," Lily smiled.
Remus' face lit up. "Really? I mean –"
"Just ask to her to Hogsmeade," Lily pleaded.
"Am I in with a chance?" he asked, looking her squarely in the eyes.
"Most definitely," Lily assured him.
"Well, if that's all…" Remus said calmly, wanting to jump and shout.
Lily blushed. "Er – could you tell Potter and Black that Peri and I think it was really nice of them to stick up for Bones and Pettigrew in Defence today," she said in rush.
Remus nodded. "I will." Lily's face visibly relaxed, and she thanked him before making her way back to Peri. As Remus made his way back to his fellow Marauders (Peter was out getting food from the kitchen), he thought that maybe – just maybe – James, too, was in with a chance.
A.N: I am much happier with this chapter than the ones that went before it. What did you think? As always, this is a pre-DH chapter so Lily's Patronus is, for the purposes of this story, a stag, not a doe. Reviews are always appreciated.