Hey guys!
Disclaimer: This stuff is not mine. I promise.
Alright, so, the first bit of this chapter should seem familiar to all of you, and if it's not then I recommend going back to chapter 1.
Thank you for all of the reviews! I need some ideas on where to go next with this (I have a faint outline, but it's very broad), so I would appreciate [very much] it if you guys helped me out in reviews.
I'm so sorry that I haven't been writing recently! School is crazy, even with winter break, but I'm trying! Alright, on with the story!
The Hogwarts Express shook awake in a rumble, steam puffing out in a thick stream as a high pitched whistle pierced the air. Students rushed to get aboard in a confused crowd, first years stumbling over the step up onto the train and almost getting run over by the bigger second years, who were so relieved not to have tripped again that they forgot to move out of the way for the others and ended up tripping anyway.
Lily Evans, having already been on the train many times, waited somewhat impatiently until the crowd had thinned out before taking her turn to board. A flash from a shaft of sunlight that filtered through a window brought her attention to familiar blonde hair as she walked down the worn-out isle, diverting her focus enough that she didn't notice a certain someone who happened to brush by her at that moment.
"Sara!" Lily shouted, eagerly embracing her friend as they struggled through the clogged isle to their usual train compartment. "I missed you so much! How was your summer?"
Sara grinned as they slid through the glass doors, apparently preparing herself to launch into a detailed story. She didn't get to it, however, because Lucy chose that particular moment to make her entrance, flopping tiredly onto the cracked leather seats and muttering something about whiny second-years and falling down.
"Hey Luce! You okay?" Sara asked her friend, nudging her gently with a manicured hand.
Lucy slid her fingers through her hair, tilting her head up to the ceiling before answering. "Let's just say I'll have bruised knees in the morning," She said tiredly before turning to stare at Lily. "Uh, Lily.. Aren't you supposed to be at the Heads meeting?"
The redhead, after a moment of being frozen, burst into a string of profanities before stumbling in a rush out of their compartment.
…...
"I'm here!" Lily shot through the oak doors of where the Heads meeting was taking place, her face turned down to her feet in embarrassment. "I am so, so sorry I'm late.. I just forgot and then I went and-"A hand touched her chin gently, pulling her gaze up to sparkling, laughing hazel eyes.
"It's okay, Lily," James Potter said, his tone touched with amusement.
Suddenly the fact that she was late was irrelevant, the wooden room around her was nonexistent; Lily stood in awe, taking in James's messy black hair, strong jaw line, his tanned skin. She had forgotten how perfect he was, how gentle, how funny, how sweet, how- "Wait. You're Head Boy?" She blurted out, reality shaking her out of her stupor.
James looked offended. "Well, I am here, aren't I? Unless Dumbledore made a mistake when he sent out the badges, although it did say 'dear Mr. Potter' in the letter. Are you questioning my achievements, Miss Evans?" He replied, his mouth quirking up into a familiar crooked grin.
"Well, no, it's just that.. You're … you're.. you know.. James. James Potter."
"If you're making some assumption about my name, I can assure you, love, that whatever it is, it's not true," James told her, his voice completely serious but his expression one of laughter.
Lily eyed the badge randomly pinned onto his robes suspiciously before looking back up at him.
"Does it pass your test?"
She sighed a reluctant defeat. "I guess we should plan our duties out, right? And make copies for the prefects," she suggested, wanting to move on with the meeting and keep as much pride as she could with James in front of her.
James nodded, before bending to search through a pile of papers and pulling out a list of watches. "We just have to fill these out and give them to Professor McGonagall at the feast," He told her, grabbing a quill from a nearby shelf and dropping it on the schedule. Lily reached out to take the striped feather, accidentally putting her hand on his when he did the same thing. She blushed, quickly pulling away and moving her fingers to fiddle with a strand of her fiery red hair.
She watched as James took the quill with his eyes toward the white parchment, seeming to be taking very much care to write out a prefects name with perfect handwriting (although it came out crooked and messy anyway), and not making a single remark about their recent contact like she'd been expecting. His face was a mask, unbreakable to her.
"James…" She began, trailing off as his surprised gaze met hers.
"Yeah?" He asked.
"I.. I don't know." Lily said, startling herself. In truth, she had said his name just to say it, to try it out on her tongue, feel it's taste and the roundness of it upon her lips.
James raised a dark eyebrow, before bending down to continue writing. "Alright then."
She swore later that she had seen the side of his mouth struggling not to smile.