Hi! I thought I would update a day early, due to the fact that I have been overwhelmed with reviews this week - almost 25 for 1 chapter! As for the driving test - I failed! Stalled coming out of a junction, but thanks to all those who wished me luck!
"You know that when I hate you, it is because I love you to a point of passion that unhinges my soul." - Julie de Lespinasse
Apart from the late start, the meeting went without a hitch, James and Lily working well together, creating a relaxed but serious atmosphere. When we got back to the compartment, it was to find that the rest of my friends and the Marauders were sharing the compartment. My trunk was no longer in the hall way, someone kind having stowed it away on the baggage racks.
Entering the compartment, we all squeezed to fit in: ten people in a compartment for eight was a tight fit. I was squeezed in between the window and Lily, opposite Black, whom I saw had found the opportunity to put a shirt on. He winked at me as I sat down, before inclining his head towards where Lily and James were having a perfectly amiable conversation. I smiled back.
All too soon we were leaving the Great Hall, my last Welcoming Feast over. Lily and James were led off by Professor McGonagall to speak to Professor Dumbledore about duties and such, and Sirius led us ahead of the first years up to the Common Room.
Our dormitory looked much the same as ever, our trunk brought in and stowed at the end of each of our beds. For five minutes we were occupied with putting away our clothes, digging out our books, and getting our make-up out of our trunks.
Suddenly the door was flung open, and a breathless Lily burst in, motioning for us to come down the stairs. Worried that there was some problem, we all rushed downstairs, only to almost crash into the Marauders, who were being led by a frantic James across the common room.
We all ran after Lily and James, down two floors to the fifth floor and into the northern part of the castle. Eventually, they stopped in front of a portrait of a lady dressed in green and a knight dressed in red.
"Password?" he asked in a deep voice.
"Animagi." Stated Lily clearly, and the portrait hole swung back to reveal a high ceiling, beautifully decorated. I had no time to look however, as Lily was ushering us in, an excited look on her face.
Once in the room, I took a look around to see what the crisis was, and instead of a duelling pair of students, or loads of blood, I encountered a well-furnished, comfortable room, with a fire burning in the great hearth to my right. Round the fire were arrayed some very comfy looking sofas, and a coffee table.
To my left was a pair of desks facing each other, and two large wooden tables with chairs. In the far left corner was a little kitchen, complete with a small fridge, a cooker and a sink, as well as two cupboards. A kettle sat on the side. In the far right corner, partially hidden behind a pair of opulent velvet curtains was a splendid view of the Lake and the hills beyond.
It was a wonderful room, tastefully decorated in reds and gold, the Gryffindor colours, and very cosy. It was almost a miniature version of the Common room, although smaller, as if meant to fit less people.
Lily began to feverishly explain why we were there.
"Do you like it? This is the Heads Common Room – it's only for us, although Professor McGonagall said that we could have you guys in here, and there will be a secondary password that every student will know so they can come to us with problems and stuff. Although the password to get in when we aren't here is "Animagi" as you just heard. And we can work and relax here – treat it like the common room, and there's the kitchen to make food and stuff and tea, and desks to work at and the sofas to relax in."
"It's perfect." Breathed Sirius next to me. "We should call it the Marauders' lair."
"Or not." Interjected Katie. "Since we'll be using it too, I think we should call it the Gryffindors' lair."
"But not all Gryffindors will be using it. Just us." Put in Remus.
"How about the Seventh Years Gryffindors' Lair?" asked Megs.
"But that's lame." Whined Peter. "The Marauders' Lair sounds so much better."
I turned to Lily. "I think everyone likes it. The problem might be getting everyone to leave it."
Before long we were sitting once more in Transfiguration class, with McGonagall separating us into pairs for our new project. She was pulling names out of a hat, announcing them and then directing everyone to find a pair of seats for themselves and their new partner. The unsorted pupils were standing at the back of the classroom, nervously eyeing each other up, in hopes that they would be put with a good partner; there was no doubt that McGonagall was a stern taskmaster.
"Miss Rowe and... Mr Black. Please take your seats."
Katie looked over and smiled at Black, motioning her head towards a nearby table with a question in her raised eyebrows to which he acquiesced by pulling himself up from the table he was leaning against and making his way towards her.
As McGonagall made her way through the names of the class, Lily began to shoot nervous glances at Potter, who had not yet been assigned a partner either.
"Relax, Lily. It's not like she's picking out your future husband." I whispered.
"Mr Potter and... Miss Evans."
Professor McGonagall gave Lily a pitying look.
"Miss Logan and... Mr Lupin."
I smiled at Lupin and began to walk over to him. Seizing the moment, I whispered to James as I passed:
"Just be yourself. Be gentlemanly and kind. It'll be fine."
He gulped and I had to smother a smile with my hand. He hadn't really got used to being around Lily yet. Who knew that under the conceited facade James Potter was nervous just talking with a girl. Adorable. Reaching Remus I widened my smile and gestured towards a nearby desk.
"So Remus, King of Transfiguration, do you have any ideas for this oh-so humble mortal to explore for her new class project."
"I think you'll find that Remus is only the Prince of Transfiguration. The King himself, is sitting right in front of you."
I turned to face the source of the voice, squashing the squirming of my stomach and met Black's eyes.
"The King, eh? I don't see your crown, Black."
"I don't need to announce it to the world with a crown. They know it already. Plus all that gold was heavy and gave me a headache."
"You just prefer to announce it to the world with your voice. Plus the fact your headache probably stemmed from the fact that your head had to carry itself round all day, which is heavier than any solid gold crown."
"Because of all the brains inside it."
"No, because of all the swelling and inflation caused by your ego."
"Caused by everyone telling me how amazing I am at Transfiguration. See, I am the tragic hero who has to carry the burden of everyone's hopes and expectations on my shoulders. Or head."
I laughed and shook my head at him.
"Keep telling yourself that."
He grinned wolfishly. My stomach turned over.
"I think congratulations are in order." He declared.
I looked at him, puzzled.
"About you-know-what."
I continued to stare at him, incomprehensively.
"The whole James and Lily thing." He whispered. "It's going well – look at them, laughing and talking like old friends. Lily wouldn't even give him the time of day before, and apart from her outburst about him being Head Boy, they've been getting along like a house on fire."
"It's not really my doing, though. All James needed was a push in the right direction, which would help Lily to see him in a different light."
He stared at me. "Of course it's your doing – the idea of the apology, backing off a little, building up her trust – it was a fantastic notion. You really should take credit for it."
I shrugged. "Well... maybe I helped a bit. But if there wasn't anything there before then it wouldn't have worked. I just saw that there was a slight chance that any conversation they had would be doomed to end in a massive fight, and worked from there. It's hardly rocket science."
"I don't know many people who would have spotted it, myself included. And then even less people who would have known what to do, and even less people who would have decided to do something about it."
I shrugged again, embarrassed.
Our conversation was interrupted then by Remus, who turned from his conversation with Katie, to start working on our project. Throughout that lesson, I kept catching Sirius sneaking looks at me, his expression thoughtful. For some reason, this excited rather than unnerved me.
"You know that when I hate you, it is because I love you to a point of passion that unhinges my soul." - Julie de Lespinasse