Hogsmeade

On the first week of December, spirits were high for third years and up. The first Hogsmeade trip of the year was finally there, along with a fresh, thick layer of blindingly white snow.

"C'mon, boys! Rise and shine!" James, already showered and dressed, exclaimed, a large smile on his lips. "Today is Hogsmeade day!"

"Will you shut the bloody hell up, James," Fred mumbled from under his pillow, having smothered his face with it to shield his eyes from the bright sun coming into the room as James was joyfully opening the curtains.

"I'm going to throw him off his broom at the next Quidditch practice, I swear," Thomas Wood sighed, sitting up. There was no way their excited puppy of a roommate was going to let them go back to sleep.

Declan Thomas-Finnigan had not stirred during the entirety of their argument, snoring with his mouth wide open, while August Jordan's bed was empty, and the shower was on.

"C'mon, I heard Uncle Ron and Uncle George came up with some new stuff and are releasing it at the Hogsmeade shop today!"

That definitely got Fred up, who shot straight out of his bed and ran to the bathroom, which got a surprised yelp out of August. James, seeing that Declan was the only one who was still asleep, threw himself on his bed, effectively waking him up with a startled squeal.

"Wake up! It's Hogsmeade day!"

After a rather colorful string of words left Declan's mouth.

"MOVE YOUR FAT ARSE POTTER, I CAN'T BREATHE!" He finally concluded. James, on the other hand, seemed perfectly content laying there.

"Are you getting out of bed if I do?" He asked joyfully.

"FINE, YOU TOSSER, JUST GET UP."

The next five minutes were pure chaos, as James, who had finally released Declan, was chased by the very pissed off boy. Laughing gleefully, the eldest Potter grabbed his coat and map, and ran down the stairs and into the common room where he wasn't followed. Figuring his friends would just join him later, he left the dormitories through the portrait hole and headed to breakfast.

The Great Hall was rather empty. Breakfast had just started about fifteen minutes prior and still had a couple hours to go, and only a few students were up early enough to enjoy the bright morning. His eyes fell on the Slytherin table where, unsurprisingly, Moire was sitting down, enjoying a cup of tea and a slice of treacle tart, with a copy of the Daily Prophet open next to her. As usual, his stomach knotted a bit, as she was still terrifying, before he reminded himself that they were sort of mates now. Her smiles had become less threatening and were instead gentler, making her eyes twinkle a bit in a child-like way. James, deciding against sitting at his own table, made his way towards her and sat opposite to her.

"Good morrow, fair maiden!" He gleefully greeted her.

"Are you always so chipper at the crack of dawn, Potter?" She asked, raising her eyebrow, but a hint of a smile on her pink lips. Not that James noticed her lips were pink or anything.

"Just on Hogsmeade day! I'm more toned down usually. Didn't know you were an early riser, McLeoch."

"Do you really think the Laird would raise me any other way? No matter how much I want to sleep in, I always wake up at six in the morning."

"How is it that we spent two weeks in the same house this summer and I never once noticed?"

"Well, I usually just got up and showered and I went back to the room I shared with Rose and Lily to read a bit and waited for them to be up before breakfast," Moire explained, taking a sip of her tea.

"Shame, I could've maybe not had breakfast alone," James answered, shaking his head.

"Didn't peg you for a bright and early kind of bloke."

"It's a curse really."

"At the same time, thank god we didn't, we would've strangled each other."

"We'll have time to this winter, don't you worry. Although Grandma Molly will probably wake the whole house up for wedding preparations… It's the first wedding in the family since my parents'," James mused, shuddering at what was waiting for them.

"I haven't been to a wedding in a few years, I'm rather excited. The last one I attended was when I was a little girl. That was quite a boring deal. My grandfather was still alive then and he was a man of tradition, so the end result was relatively dull."

"I wouldn't worry about that. Any Weasley-Potter affair is usually never boring."

"Oh, I'm aware. Your family is interesting to say the least," Moire chuckled. "Although mine has made some progress in the department when it comes to holidays."

"Does that have anything to do with the Manor's barn by any chance?" James smirked.

"Well, like I said, my grandfather was a very old-fashioned man. So, when my father, his sisters, and their cousins were younger, they would get bored at family gatherings since my grandfather would keep it very prim and proper. So, all of the teenagers would just go hang out in the barn and sing, dance, and drink until the big New Year's Eve party, and even when that was over, they'd go to the barn again and properly celebrate until morning. Little by little, they just started to bring in their younger cousins, and from there the tradition was born. Now that Grandfather has passed though, the main party has become a lot more like what we do at the barn, but we are still keeping the tradition alive."

"What am I supposed to expect at the barn?" The Gryffindor asked, his eyes twinkling.

"Nothing too wild," Moire answered sporting the same expression as him. "Just lots of Scottish Firewhiskey from the Laird's personal cellar, Butterbeer for the young'uns, drunken singing, some dancing, and just general fucking around."

"I'm all for it," he reassured.

"Good morning…?" James heard from behind him.

He turned around to see that Erin had spoken to him, seeming a little taken aback at seeing him at their table. Her eyebrow was arched in a way that resembled Headmistress McGonagall and almost disappeared under her black bang. She was followed by Emma, whose blue eyes were blinking at a rapid pace, as if she was not comprehending the scene that was unfolding before her.

"Ladies, good of you to finally come down. Kenzie and Leah still asleep?" Moire asked, bringing James' attention to her.

The eldest Potter swore he could see the faintest tinge of red on her cheeks, but she seemed unfazed and unimpressed, her teacup slowly making its way to her mouth. She grimaced after taking a sip and threw a quick warming charm at it before drinking some more, seeming a lot more satisfied the second time around. Had they been talking for so long that her tea had gotten cold?

"Your conversation must have been quite stimulating because Potter's friends have been waving at him since we got to the Great Hall. I suspect they were attempting to get your attention for quite a while now," Erin said again.

From the times he had interacted with Erin, James had gotten to understand that she was a very careful talker. Though she always spoke in a measured tone, her words seemed to be sensibly weighed and there was more often than not another meaning there. His suspicions were confirmed when she threw a pointed gaze at Moire, whose cheeks slightly reddened, as she kept a neutral face and pretended to inspect her impeccably maintained nails.

As he looked past Moire's shoulder towards the Gryffindor table, he noticed his mates were gesturing quite obnoxiously in his direction. When Fred, who had been sporting an annoyed expression on his face, noticed that James' eyes had finally fallen on them, his efforts doubled.

"Well… I guess I'll leave you ladies. Enjoy your day."

A concert of jumbled you toos answered him, Moire's a bit more mumbled than the two others, and James was on his way over to the Gryffindor table. He bit down a curse when he realized Albus and Scorpius were also at the table, as well as Lily, Rose, and Roxanne.

"Here we go!" His brother gleefully announced.

"What in Merlin's knickers was that about?" August asked, making a tired Declan cringe in his coffee.

"I don't know what you're on about," James answered, grabbing a plate and filling it with eggs and toast.

"You, chatting up Moire McLeoch at the Slytherin table. We didn't say anything when the rumors started spreading because we know you're terrified of her, but something is up."

When the rumor mill had started running after he had helped her get to the Hospital Wing, the lads were sensible enough to not say much. They had asked if it was true, and he had said no, closing the debate. James had also seen how annoyed Moire had been getting and had decided to not aggravate her further, instead being a friend. And he had to admit, when he did not go out of his way to tease her to compensate for the fact that, yes, she scared the crap out of him, she became a lot nicer to him, and it brought him back to the two weeks she spent at the Burrow, where it seemed, very briefly, like they were becoming friendlier to each other.

"First of all, I am not scared of Moire, and second, nothing is up. We were just having a nice conversation," he said, shoving toast in his mouth.

"You're full of shite, James Sirius Potter," Thomas argued back, cocking an eyebrow.

"Even if I was, it wouldn't be any of your business," James snapped, starting to get slightly fed up. his little outburst echoed a bit in the near empty hall, causing heads to turn towards him. His gaze crossed Moire's and she frowned, concerned. If she was going to mouth something to him, she decided against it and instead hesitantly turned back to her conversation.

"Is everything alright here?" A deep voice asked from behind them.

Teddy had walked over from the professors' table, which was also quite bare aside from him, Professor Longbottom, Headmistress McGonagall, Professor Khan, and Professor Flitwick.

"Yeah, just some people being dickheads," James answered, trying to hide is annoyance.

"Not fair, we didn't even say anything!" Roxanne exclaimed.

Teddy sighed heavily.

"James, we talked about this, I might be your brother but I'm also your Professor, so you probably shouldn't use the term dickheads when speaking with me."

"Teddy, I watched you shit your pants asking Vic to marry you, you're lucky I even call you Professor in class."

"Dickhead," Teddy mumbled.

"He's just pissy because we interrupted his conversation with his girlfriend," Rose said, not looking up from her copy of the Daily Prophet.

Teddy raised an eyebrow as James facepalmed.

"So, the rumors were true? Aunt Ginny is going to be so happy. She did always like Moire."

"Okay, for the last time, no, the rumors were not true. She was hurt because Al and Scorpius were being idiots at Quidditch practice, and all I did was help her get to the Hospital Wing."

"Where did you find her, by the way? We looked for her and couldn't find her anywhere," Albus asked, frowning.

"Oh, good morning, Alice!" James loudly said, seeing the young girl approach, turning his brother into a bumbling mess. "Al, look, it's Alice!"

Needless to say, Neville, who had heard the exchange, promised himself to be more watchful of his daughter and Albus.

oOo

All bundled up in their robes and their red and gold scarves, James and his mates made their ways through Hogsmeade, James still acting like an overexcited puppy. Rose, Al, Roxy, Hugo, and Scorpius had left them as soon as they had reached the town, as they wanted to hit Honeydukes before it got crowded. James knew better: go to the prank stores first, then go to Vic's for some food during rush hour, followed by a period of free time where everyone went to do as they wanted, go to the Three Broomsticks when it started dying down a little for a couple butterbeers, then a trip to Scrivenshaft's quill shop, and finally, as his mates went back to Hogwarts, he made a trip to Honeydukes when the store had emptied out and the shelves were being restocked with fresh candies and chocolates in case any new customer walked in. Generally, his mates who were always skeptical of his method, went during the free time. But James had never been failed by his tricks and he always ended up just roaming around the village or staying a little while longer at his cousin's little café.

Per their usual route, they started with Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. And as always, Ron and George always made sure to be at the Hogsmeade location the day Hogwarts students were scheduled to visit the village.

"Well, if it isn't our favorite customers!" George laughed.

"Took you kids long enough!" Ron jokingly chastised. "We wouldn't have been able to hold some of our best products for you if you had been any longer!"

"We would've been here sooner, but someone was busy flirti-HEY!" Fred's sentence had been interrupted by a kick in the shin from James. Slightly too late.

"Oh, Ginny is going to love this!" George exclaimed, delighted.

"For fuck's sake!" James groaned. "There was no flirting. Can't a bloke have a simple conversation with a mate who happens to be a girl?"

"Is it a pretty girl?" Ron nudged him, a smirk on his face.

"Moire McLeoch is conventionally attractive, that is true."

"Conventionally he says," Fred repeated, amused.

"Did you just say Moire McLeoch? Ginny is REALLY going to love this,"

This carried on the entirety of their visit to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, which ended with James practically running out of the store with his purchases, Ron yelling after him that love potions were available but strongly frowned upon. He headed to Vic's before all the others, his cheeks crimson red, mumbling about idiots.

Vic's Café was what had become of Madam Puddifoot's tea shop. When Vic had finished Hogwarts, the shop had been closing down, and she had decided to rent out the space. A major renovation later, the crowded, overly pink shop had become a more aired out space, painted in bright pastels, decorated with climbing plants and flowers, lined with booths and tables, and a few seats were available at the bar. It had become a popular space for couples to go on dates but there was always a table available for them on Hogsmeade day.

"Hi James! Where did the others go?" Vic greeted him cheerfully. She was at the register and had been busy talking to Teddy, who had sat down at the bar.

"They're right behind," he mumbled back, walking towards one of the more spacious booths with a Reserved sign on it.

"Are you alright?" She asked, amused. Something told him Teddy had already told her something about that morning's incident.

"Never better," the eldest Potter sarcastically snapped as his mates, out of breath, walked in with a chorus of hellos for their professor and Victoire.

"Did Moire say if she was coming to the wedding?" Vic asked with a smirk, causing Teddy to choke on his coffee and proceed to cough and laugh at the same time.

"Oh, for fuck's sake!"

oOo

After an hour at Victoire's, James headed out. He had half a mind to stay, but the entire lunch had consisted of his cousin, her fiancé, and his mates making fun of him, so he was quite looking forward to the next hour of being alone. To James, walking around Hogsmeade always brought him back to his third year where, his eyes sparkling and a smile splitting his face in two. Of course, by the end of the day, he had been able to get in no less than three fights with Moire. Third year had been quite an interesting one in that aspect, with James always feeling the need to provoke her from the second Albus had introduced the two of them. To be quite honest, no one remembered exactly what their first fight was about, let alone James. All everyone knew was that the screaming match that ensued had ended with Moire about two seconds away from lunging at him and choking him with her bare hands, but had been held back by Fred and McKenzie, and while James kept a smirk on, he had been just about ready to shit his pants. James ran a hand through his hair, frustratingly wondering how he had managed to circle his thoughts back to Moire. It was like he could hear her voice.

"Potter?"

Oh, wait. She was actually calling his name.

"McLeoch. What brings you here?" He smiled, trying to keep his cool.

He noticed his steps had brought him near a small clothing shop in a quiet corner of the village. Hers too, apparently.

"The girls headed over to Honeydukes, so I went window shopping instead."

"You didn't want any sweets?"

"Oh, I do. But it'll be crowded now. It's much better to go…"

"At the end of the day," they both said at the same time. Her eyes twinkled a bit as she smiled at him.

"That way they restock on fresh items," James added.

There was a small silence as Moire looked at the clothing shop window. He followed her gaze only to see a long emerald green dress staring right back at him. The top part of it seemed to be made of lace, from the translucent sleeves with their floral motif, to the bodice, lined with an opaque material of the same color, and plunged into a taunting yet still elegant V. The waist was more cinched before the long skirt cascaded out in a heavier material. Then, a rather vivid image of Moire in the dress, her thick auburn hair cascading down her back, the gold speckles in her brown eyes shining…

"You should get it," he heard himself say. She frowned at the dress, not bothering to turn around and look at him. "For the New Year's Eve party?"

"I already have plenty of dresses. Besides, I have to wear my clan tartan for that."

"It doesn't change the fact that you would look beautiful in it."

James almost just bashed his head into the window right there and then. Moire's head turned towards him so hard his neck hurt just seeing it, and her eyes opened wide, staring at him flabbergasted.

"I mean… what I was going to say is… it's…," he stuttered miserably, his brain finally taking over his traitor of a mouth that had been moving without his accord, unable to justify whatever the fuck he had just said.

Moire's shocked expression was replaced by a sly grin, and his only indication that she might feel as embarrassed as him was her ears turning a violent shade of red.

"And how could you tell I'd look good in this, exactly?" She asked defiantly.

Her attempt at bringing things back to normal allowed his mouth to once again act without permission.

"Well, I'm a Potter. Considering our record with redheads, we know what they look good in."

Stupid traitor of a mouth. Still, Moire's smirk stayed on her lips, and he was more convinced that she was out to get him.

"Oh, there you are!" He heard from behind him.

"You guys done buying sweets?" Moire asked who James recognized to be McKenzie, still maintaining eye contact with him.

"Yeah, we're wait- oh. Hi, Potter."

"Hey," he simply answered, a knot in his throat forming from the intense look he was under. Moire finally turned to look at the dress one last time, before heading towards Kenzie.

"I'll get going. But who knows, Potter. Maybe we'll see each other around again today."

oOo

James frowned as he dove into his butterbeer. The soft liquid descended down to his stomach, the familiar heat settling in his belly, joining the knot in his stomach. He knew from the second Moire had walked away, not sparing him a last glance, that he would look for a thick mane of auburn hair and gold speckled deep brown eyes for the rest of the day. They passed by the new little apothecary on their way to the quill shop and he had looked at the quaint building in a way that Declan had described as longing, almost sure Moire was inside. He could almost convince himself he had seen a flash of deep red, but it had most likely been his imagination. Their whole visit to the quill shop, he had been on edge, absentmindedly grabbing way more inkwells than he needed, nervously glancing at the door, every time the bell above it chimed with a new customer.

"You're looking at that door like Merlin himself is going to walk in," Thomas commented, an eyebrow raised.

"I'm not," James defensively said, and that was the end of any further comments.

It did not stop the concerned glances between the other four. James could see them from the corner of his eye, but as long as they didn't speak of his strange behavior, he would pretend he didn't notice anything. They exited the shop, and the boys hesitated.

"I'm going to pick up some candy at Honeydukes. You guys can head over, if you want."

They looked at each other, before Fred shrugged and waved him goodbye. The three others followed his lead, and as soon as their backs were turned, James practically sprinted to Honeydukes. He caught himself running and slowed his pace. Forcing himself to walk at a normal speed to the candy shop, he finally reached the door, and opened it, his heart pounding. Looking around frantically, he realized the familiar red locks were nowhere to be seen. He felt his shoulders slump slightly as he walked into the store.

For the next half hour or so, he browsed the aisles as slowly as he could. Other customers came and went, and just like the quill shop, his head whipped towards the door every time he heard the door open. He was finally starting to come to the realization that she had probably gone back to the castle and that her words had not been an invitation to see him later, when he heard a voice with a carefully contained Scottish accent speak up from behind him.

"If I didn't know you better, I'd think you were waiting for me Potter."

It took every ounce of will in James' body not to turn around too fast. Instead, he composed himself, and slowly came around to face her, a trademark smirk on his face.

"Can't a man shop for his candy without being accused of such a thing?"

She was holding a few bags and from where he stood, he could see that the majority of them contained dried herbs and ingredients, one had a few quills coming out of it, and the last one, much bigger than the others, held a big white box.

"I got the dress," she said, her expression unreadable. "A few adjustments had to be made to it though. That's why I took so long."

"I'm glad you did," he answered, a soft smile starting to play on his lips.

She didn't hear him. She was too busy grabbing all the chocolate she could carry.

oOo

Tucked into bed later that night, James couldn't sleep. The other four boys around him were sleeping soundly. Per usual, Declan was drooling on his pillow, Thomas was starfished on his bed, August's curtains were drawn, and Fred was snoring lightly. James grabbed the piece of old parchment on his bedside table and drew his curtains around him, making a mental note to return the map to Albus at some point before he broke into his dormitory and stole the Invisibility cloak from him.

"I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good," he whispered, wand pointed on the paper before murmuring a quick Lumos spell.

Ink started appearing, running on the page and forming names until the whole castle was on display in front of him. He raised an eyebrow when he spotted Victoire's name next to Teddy's in his quarters before shaking his head at the two. His eyes were then drawn to the dungeons where he looked for a specific dot. There, in her room, Moire McLeoch's dot lay motionless. His fingers rose to the map and he touched the name above it before quickly catching himself. Whatever was going through his head needed to stop. She was probably asleep, so he probably should do the same.

Then, just as he was about to say the counter incantation, he saw her dot move. He followed it with his eyes until she reached the window and stopped there. The sky was clear and the stars and moon, almost full but not quite, shone brightly and he pictured her sitting on the windowsill, her pale face and hair basking in their light. He smiled and looked at the dot until his eyes closed by themselves.


Hi all! I apologize for the wait, I just got back to school and the workload has been kicking my butt.

Please stay safe during these times and I hope this chapter brings a smile on your face, wherever you are.

Leave a review to let me know what you thought, and I will see you at the next chapter