50
The dining hall had been dressed up for the occasion. The tables were pushed over to the side, leaving a vast area of open floor for the stages that had been erected. Banners representing the four houses of Hogwarts hung from the ceiling, fluttering back and forth as though a wind were blowing through the room.
The students had been divided into lines according to their house, their year, and finally alphabetical order. James was closest to Peter, who was still a ways away from him. Sirius was off near the upper front of the room, and Remus was at the very back of his line. James found himself hoping that they would not be forced to stand there for long.
Dumbledore stepped up to the stage and smiled at the gathered students. There were a few honored guests for the ceremony, one of which was Dolores Umbridge. Whereas before her gaze had always been fixed upon him, he now noticed with some amusement that she was glaring daggers at Lily Evans. Lily would periodically look over at her and smile sweetly, which seemed to cause the Ministry employee no small amount of discomfit.
A far more likeable guest was Madam Bones, who was standing a little behind Dumbledore on the stage. The rest of the faculty were assembled and wearing their dress robes, with Professor Fletcher being notably absent after taking his leave from the school.
'Good evening, and thank you all for coming,' Dumbledore said. 'The Hogwarts Combat Championship certainly lived up to its name, with students of all ages and backgrounds battling for the ultimate prize. Impressive teamwork was shown,' he gave a polite nod to the Slytherins who looked back at him gloomily, 'and many of you displayed incredible grace under pressure. It is therefore somewhat bittersweet that only one person can win this event when so many of you displayed such extraordinary prowess.
'But perhaps it was a testament to you yourselves that the eventual champion was not crowned as the result of a bitter, hard-fought duel, but as the result of an understanding amongst friends and allies to choose the person they felt would best represent them as champion,' Dumbledore said, his eyes floating over James as he said so. 'So it is with distinct pride and pleasure that I invite Mr. Frank Longbottom up to the stage.'
Gryffindor house erupted into applause, while Huffelpuff and Ravenclaw houses applauded politely with a few notable exceptions such as Edgar Bones whistling through their fingers in approval. As seemed to be their custom, the Slytherins stood stock still, refusing to acknowledge a victor that belonged to another house. James caught Severus Snape smirking at him, and he knew what thoughts were going through his head—he was happy that James had not won. James simply smirked back, comfortable in his own knowledge that he, just like the others, had chosen their own way of exiting the game.
Frank bounded up to the stage where he shook the proffered hand of Dumbledore as well as Madam Bones. Umbridge shook his hand rather stiffly as well.
'Well, Mr. Longbottom,' Dumbledore said. 'You now face the choice of your prize. On the one hand, you have the option of ten thousand galleons,' he said, and he waved his arm to allow a pile of galleons to appear on the side of the stage. An audible gasp erupted from the student body, and James couldn't help but be impressed—seeing the money there, neatly stacked on top of itself, truly hammered home just how much it was. 'On the other hand…there is a mystery,' Dumbledore said.
Frank appeared to deliberate the point for a moment. 'I'll take the mystery,' he said. Polite applause rose up from some circles, cheers from those who understood the choice Frank had made, but there was also a loud chorus of amazement from several corners of the hall, from students who simply could not believe Frank was turning his nose up at such a vast quantity of money.
'Very well,' Dumbledore said with a smile, and with another wave the money disappeared. He clasped Frank's hand and lifted it for the hall to see. 'Your Hogwarts Combat Champion, Mr. Frank Longbottom!' he declared.
An hour or so later, Gryffindor's common room had been decorated with a rather expertly crafted poster depicting Frank Longbottom's visage. It was a far more aesthetically pleasing rendition of the one Sirius, Remus and Peter had crafted for James' trial at the start of the year. The reasoning for that was readily apparent as Alice took a bow for creating it. 'I owe it to James, really,' he said. 'The mural you stuck on Lily's bunk is what gave me the idea.'
James laughed as Lily rolled her eyes. 'Any luck getting that off, Evans?' he asked coyly.
'Very funny,' Lily said as she made herself comfortable in a chair by the fire.
'That would be a no,' Alice whispered as she looked at her watch. 'The Twins should be back any moment with the entertainment.'
Remus frowned. 'I still don't know how smart it was to send them to Hogsmeade…if we get caught, we'll be in awful trouble.'
'True, but they reasoned that if the Death Eaters knew about the secret passages into the school, they would have made use of them already,' Alice said.
'First Evans breaks rules, now you, Dearborn?' James asked.
Alice shrugged. 'You only live once,' she declared.
'Do you think Hogsmeade visits will be allowed again next year?' Peter asked.
Sirius shook his head. 'I doubt it,' he said darkly. 'Even when the Ministry could protect it, they still had to cancel them. Now…' he trailed off.
'Wonder when Frank's getting back?' James asked a little loudly in a somewhat transparent attempt to change the subject. After the ceremony, Frank had been whisked away by Dumbledore, presumably to be told about 'the surprise'.
Alice rubbed her hands together. 'I can't wait to hear what he says,' she said excitedly. 'It's all so mysterious, isn't it?'
'My mother works for the Department of Mysteries,' Peter said with a small laugh. 'Mysteries get overrated pretty quickly.'
James glanced at Sirius. 'So, with a party about to enter full swing, where's Marlene?' he asked.
Sirius nodded to the girls' dormitory. 'Getting ready,' he said. Then he added in a conspiratorial whisper. 'I've heard of Navies that require less time to prepare than she does.'
'What's a Navy…?' James asked quizzically, but at that point, the door to the common room opened. Gideon and Fabian Prewett entered wobbily, each hampered by the absurdly large boxes they were carrying that clattered with the sound of butterbeer bottles as well as firewhisky.
'Are you wizards or not?' Alice asked with a laugh as she waved her wand, the boxes floating into the air and neatly spilling their contents onto a table that Lily had conjured earlier. There was a great cheer from those assembled.
Gideon chuckled as he wiped his brow. 'You don't think we keep these trim physiques just be waving wands, do you Dearborn?' he asked.
'Yes, doing things the muggle way keeps us from getting soggy in the middle. You ought to try it, you look like you could stand to lose a few—' Fabian began, but he ducked quickly when Alice whipped a pillow at his head.
'You watch it, Prewett,' she said but she was smirking.
The door to the girls' dormitory opened and Marlene McKinnon emerged. James had to admit, the time she had devoted to her appearances seemed to have paid sparkling dividends—literally. She seemed to radiate, and James got the rather distinct impression she had bewitched her outfit to glow.
'Oh wow,' Lily said in quiet amazement.
James glanced at Sirius, whose mouth had fallen open. James reached over and closed it for him. 'Before something flies in,' he said with a laugh.
Sirius stumbled across the room in a semi-hypnotized stupor and began talking to Marlene. James shook his head in quiet amazement as he took a seat by the fireplace. It was of little surprise when Mary McDonald appeared at his side. 'Hi James,' she said happily. 'Fancy a drink?'
'Ah, Mary—you know my rule,' James began.
'Yes, you never drink before a Quidditch game,' Mary said coyly. 'And as there's no Quidditch game tomorrow, there's no rule for you to break. Right?'
James sighed and looked over at Lily, who was watching the exchange with some amusement. He mouthed the words 'help me' to her.
Lily glanced at Mary. 'I think Peter would love to join you for a drink, Mary,' she said kindly. Mary turned to see Peter sitting in the corner, idly humming to himself and watching the festivities start to roll. Mary walked off and James breathed a sigh of relief.
'Thanks, I owe you one,' he said.
'I'll keep that in mind,' Lily replied with a chuckle. 'So you never drink, do you?'
James laughed. 'Someone has to be responsible for the Marauders,' he said as he glimpsed Sirius across the room, drinking a rather alarming quantity of Firewhisky along with Marlene. Remus was in deep conversation with Emmeline, which James found somewhat surprising. Alice was still bantering with the Twins by the poster of Frank.
'Leadership suits you,' Lily said after a moment.
James laughed. 'Are you buttering me up for something, Evans?' he asked.
'Maybe,' Lily replied.
'Well, why not cut to the chase then?' James asked.
Lily contemplated that for a moment and nodded. 'Alright then,' she said. 'I think I've been unfair to you, Potter. I'd like to amend the terms of our relationship.'
James blinked, and then raised an eyebrow. 'Shall I contact someone from the Magical Law office to do up a contract? You're making this sound very formal,' he said.
'It's not fair for me to not be friends with you just because I'm friends with someone who doesn't like you,' she went on.
'You mean Snape?' James asked.
'Yes, I mean Severus,' she said politely. 'He's a big boy—and so are you. So I think the two of you can both tolerate and respect the fact that I can choose my own friends.'
James leaned back in his chair. 'Have you had this conversation with him?' she asked.
Lily snorted. 'Not yet,' she replied and James laughed. 'You're my guinea pig, I thought I'd see how this went with you before trying it on him.'
'I'm flattered, Evans,' James replied. 'So what new terms do you propose? Are you finally going to admit that you want to go out with me?'
Lily rolled her eyes, but her cheeks went slightly pink. 'Don't make me re-think this Potter, I haven't fully committed to the decision yet.'
'But why deny yourself the lifetime of happiness going out with me could provide?' James asked semi-seriously.
Lily looked at him steadily. 'Potter, I'm warming up to you. Right now, I'm prepared to be friends with you. Can you live with that?'
James smiled. He was both inordinately happy to hear her propose that, and equally disappointed that that was all she was proposing. 'I can,' he declared.
'On one condition,' she amended.
James laughed. 'Oh, of course there has to be one. Can I guess what it is?'
Lily smiled. 'You don't need to. Lay off Sev.'
James regarded her carefully. 'Lay off…in what way?'
'In every way,' Lily said. 'Potter, you would be doing me a huge favour. Sev is my oldest friend and you—I—you're not bad,' she finished lamely, causing James to laugh. 'But you both have a habit of making my life extremely difficult by always fighting with each other.'
James pursed his lips. 'You realize it's not as easy as that,' he said.
'Now who's making things complicated?' Lily taunted. 'You're always saying how things need to be simpler.'
James nodded. 'Very true, but that's when it's something you can control. I am perfectly capable of leaving Snape alone, but the real question here is whether or not he will be willing to extend the same courtesy. If I'm attacked, Evans, I don't think I'm wrong to say I'm within my rights to defend myself.'
'If you are attacked, yes,' Lily said. 'What I want you to do is not go looking to cause trouble.'
James pursed his lips. 'And if I do that, you'll go out with me?' he asked.
'Be friends with you, Potter,' Lily amended fiercely.
James sighed. 'Can't blame me for trying,' he said. 'Alright, you have a deal. I will not look to start anything with Snape, but I will most certainly defend myself if he comes after me. In return, we'll be friends and eventually—with hope—more. Do we have an accord?'
Lily rolled her eyes. 'All except for the last part,' she said as she extended her hand.
James smirked as he took it. 'Keep telling yourself that, Evans,' he said. 'Friends.'
'Friends,' she replied.
They looked at each other for a moment as their hands remained clasped—his hazel eyes gazing into her green ones. For a single moment, it seemed as though the rest of the room melted away and there was just the two of them, holding hands and gazing straight through each other.
Then it passed, and she dropped his hand. 'So, what do friends do?' James asked.
Lily chuckled. 'I don't know. Grab a Butterbeer?'
'Hold that thought,' came the voice of Frank Longbottom as he sat down on the outcropping of the fireplace, Alice at his side. He gestured for the Twins to come over, and they were quickly followed by Marlene, Sirius, Mary, Peter, Remus and Emmeline. 'I hope your calendar is clear this time next week,' he said.
'Why?' Sirius asked excitedly.
Frank smiled. 'We have a meeting,' he declared. 'And you lot are all invited.'
