As the sweltering summer of 1975 came and went, countless youths who had been gallivanting about and celebrating their long holiday were now melancholy and grim upon their upcoming return to school. An exception to this great mass of students was a tall, scrawny 17 year old boy with jet black hair. His name was James Potter. No, the reason he yearned to go to school wasn't that he didn't enjoy his life at home. There was just something about the comforting surroundings of the Hogwarts castle that life at his own home could never bring. And he could always count on his closest group of friends, know as the marauders, to make the school year much more.. Well… interesting . Besides all that, he had a life at school that many others could only dream of having: he was extremely smart, handsome, popular, and had a beautiful girlfriend that he cared for deeply. With all this, you couldn't blame him for counting down the days until he would return.
After many weeks of waiting, the day had finally come in which he would return to school. As he passed through the familiar barrier that transported him to platform 9 ¾, he spotted his fellow marauders waiting patiently for him.
"Hey, James! How have you been?" approached Remus warmly.
"Yo, James! How's it going?" questioned a laid back Sirius.
"Why hello James!" squeaked an admiring Peter.
"Fine, Fine." James Muttered quickly. "Listen, Have any of you see Lily around here? She told me by owl that she meet me before we get on the train and-"
"Oh ,so you cant give your best pals a proper greeting before you swoon over your precious girlfriend? I thought the marauders meant more to you than that!" Fumed Sirius. He couldn't stand her anymore.
"It's not that I'm not glad to see you all, its just, well… I've been hanging out with you guys all summer, and I haven't really seen Lily since the end of Last term, that's all. So don't get all defensive, alright?"
James shot a look over to his best friend that Sirius had not yet seen before. It was as if James was attempting to shoot daggers straight through him simply with his glare. "Sorry James. You know, I was just Joking with you…"
But the truth was that Sirius had not been joking with him. Throughout the past year, the relationship between James and Sirius had become somewhat strained. In the old days, James would do anything for his closest friends. They were inseparable; always sneaking off in the middle of the night to begin another mischievous adventure. By the end of the last term, however, James was spending those evenings sneaking around school with Lily. Why had she become so interested in him all of a sudden anyways? Before 6th year she practically loathed him because of his arrogance, and now she was even closer to him than the marauders. However, Sirius supposed he should drop the subject before James became even more irritated.
"Well, I suppose we should board the train before it departs without us." Suggested Reumus, trying desperately to break the deafening silence. Then, noting the look of apprehension on James' face, he added " We can keep an eye out for Lily once we get on the train."
Once they had boarded the train, it departed from the station and began its trek to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and Wizardry. The foursome headed down the corridor in search of Lily and an empty compartment to sit in. At the very end of the train they had found Lily seated by herself .
"There you are!" shouted James as he approached her. He didn't believe it was possible, but she had grown even more beautiful over the summer holiday. Her glistening red hair had grown over the summer and now fell to a mid back length. But what James loved most about her appearance was her eyes: their almond shape along with their brilliant emerald green color gave her a radiance that made James melt.
"Oh James, I'm so sorry, but I couldn't find you! I just decided to come on the train before it left!" exclaimed a worried Lily.
"Don't worry about it," smirked James. Lily always loved when he did that. "You know me. Always late for everything."
After a minute or so Sirius broke in. "Well are you two gonna sit there and stare at each other for the rest of the trip, or can we go inside and sit down?"
"Oh. Yes. Sorry about that." replied a rather embarrassed James.
Throughout most of the train journey the conversation was light; They talked about everything from what happened over the summer to quidditch, to how lovely the weather had been. Once the number of topics for conversation dwindled, Peter whispered "So… has anyone heard anything about You-Know-who?"
"Wormtail, at least have some common sense and call him by his name. It's Voldemort." vented James.
"Alright then. Has anyone heard anything about… Voldemort?" Peter shuddered and looked at himself in disgust as though he had just said a very dirty swear word.
"Calm down, Wormtail." barked Sirius. "Well, as you all know, my parents are the kind of nasty people who believe what this nutter is doing is noble, so they are in on everything that's going on." He paused, and then continued. "As I was packing last night, I overheard them talking about him. It seems he's gone and gathered some followers. You know, people like my parents who think muggle-borns are scum." He glanced over in Lily's direction, who was the only muggle-born in the compartment. He waited to see if she had a comment about what he had just said, but none came So he persisted. "Anyways, these follwers are calling themselves Death Eaters."
"Yea well I'll bet you a million galleons that little Snivellus will become one of those, the slimy git!" said James through clenched teeth. Lily, who disproved of James' tormenting of Severus Snape, pretended not to hear that comment.
Remus entered the conversation "Well what I'm worried about is, who's trying to stop Voldemort?"
"Dumbledores got that all under control. I got an owl from him over break." James slipped in casually, hoping that no one would notice.
"WHAT? AND YOU DIDN'T TELL US?" screamed the other three marauders.
"Well, I can't tell you what as in it right now… but I will when the time is right." James said, looking truly sorry that he couldn't share this information with the rest of his friends.
This was it for Sirius. In a fit of anger he screamed, "Oh yea, but I'm sure you told Lily, now didn't you?"
"FOR YOUR INFORMATION I DIDN'T! THE FIRST PERSON I WAS PLANNING ON TELLING WAS YOU! EVER SINCE LILY AND I STARTED GOING OUT YOU'VE BEEN ACTING SO COLD TOWARDS ME SIRIUS, AND I DON'T' UNDERSTAND! I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS!"
James looked truly perturbed. Suddenly Sirius regretted all of the comments he had said about James and Lily.
"Look, buddy, I'm sorry… I didn't think it would get to you…"
"Yea, whatever, Just don't' talk to me right now, okay? Let's go Lily."
He burst out of the door, pulling at Lily's hand as he went. With a look of disbelief on her face, Lily followed her boyfriend out.
"Well then…" began Remus as the door slammed behind Lily. "That went well."
Sirius, who had never fought with his best friend in the many years of knowing him, looked on the verge of tears.
After many weeks of waiting, the day had finally come in which he would return to school. As he passed through the familiar barrier that transported him to platform 9 ¾, he spotted his fellow marauders waiting patiently for him.
"Hey, James! How have you been?" approached Remus warmly.
"Yo, James! How's it going?" questioned a laid back Sirius.
"Why hello James!" squeaked an admiring Peter.
"Fine, Fine." James Muttered quickly. "Listen, Have any of you see Lily around here? She told me by owl that she meet me before we get on the train and-"
"Oh ,so you cant give your best pals a proper greeting before you swoon over your precious girlfriend? I thought the marauders meant more to you than that!" Fumed Sirius. He couldn't stand her anymore.
"It's not that I'm not glad to see you all, its just, well… I've been hanging out with you guys all summer, and I haven't really seen Lily since the end of Last term, that's all. So don't get all defensive, alright?"
James shot a look over to his best friend that Sirius had not yet seen before. It was as if James was attempting to shoot daggers straight through him simply with his glare. "Sorry James. You know, I was just Joking with you…"
But the truth was that Sirius had not been joking with him. Throughout the past year, the relationship between James and Sirius had become somewhat strained. In the old days, James would do anything for his closest friends. They were inseparable; always sneaking off in the middle of the night to begin another mischievous adventure. By the end of the last term, however, James was spending those evenings sneaking around school with Lily. Why had she become so interested in him all of a sudden anyways? Before 6th year she practically loathed him because of his arrogance, and now she was even closer to him than the marauders. However, Sirius supposed he should drop the subject before James became even more irritated.
"Well, I suppose we should board the train before it departs without us." Suggested Reumus, trying desperately to break the deafening silence. Then, noting the look of apprehension on James' face, he added " We can keep an eye out for Lily once we get on the train."
Once they had boarded the train, it departed from the station and began its trek to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and Wizardry. The foursome headed down the corridor in search of Lily and an empty compartment to sit in. At the very end of the train they had found Lily seated by herself .
"There you are!" shouted James as he approached her. He didn't believe it was possible, but she had grown even more beautiful over the summer holiday. Her glistening red hair had grown over the summer and now fell to a mid back length. But what James loved most about her appearance was her eyes: their almond shape along with their brilliant emerald green color gave her a radiance that made James melt.
"Oh James, I'm so sorry, but I couldn't find you! I just decided to come on the train before it left!" exclaimed a worried Lily.
"Don't worry about it," smirked James. Lily always loved when he did that. "You know me. Always late for everything."
After a minute or so Sirius broke in. "Well are you two gonna sit there and stare at each other for the rest of the trip, or can we go inside and sit down?"
"Oh. Yes. Sorry about that." replied a rather embarrassed James.
Throughout most of the train journey the conversation was light; They talked about everything from what happened over the summer to quidditch, to how lovely the weather had been. Once the number of topics for conversation dwindled, Peter whispered "So… has anyone heard anything about You-Know-who?"
"Wormtail, at least have some common sense and call him by his name. It's Voldemort." vented James.
"Alright then. Has anyone heard anything about… Voldemort?" Peter shuddered and looked at himself in disgust as though he had just said a very dirty swear word.
"Calm down, Wormtail." barked Sirius. "Well, as you all know, my parents are the kind of nasty people who believe what this nutter is doing is noble, so they are in on everything that's going on." He paused, and then continued. "As I was packing last night, I overheard them talking about him. It seems he's gone and gathered some followers. You know, people like my parents who think muggle-borns are scum." He glanced over in Lily's direction, who was the only muggle-born in the compartment. He waited to see if she had a comment about what he had just said, but none came So he persisted. "Anyways, these follwers are calling themselves Death Eaters."
"Yea well I'll bet you a million galleons that little Snivellus will become one of those, the slimy git!" said James through clenched teeth. Lily, who disproved of James' tormenting of Severus Snape, pretended not to hear that comment.
Remus entered the conversation "Well what I'm worried about is, who's trying to stop Voldemort?"
"Dumbledores got that all under control. I got an owl from him over break." James slipped in casually, hoping that no one would notice.
"WHAT? AND YOU DIDN'T TELL US?" screamed the other three marauders.
"Well, I can't tell you what as in it right now… but I will when the time is right." James said, looking truly sorry that he couldn't share this information with the rest of his friends.
This was it for Sirius. In a fit of anger he screamed, "Oh yea, but I'm sure you told Lily, now didn't you?"
"FOR YOUR INFORMATION I DIDN'T! THE FIRST PERSON I WAS PLANNING ON TELLING WAS YOU! EVER SINCE LILY AND I STARTED GOING OUT YOU'VE BEEN ACTING SO COLD TOWARDS ME SIRIUS, AND I DON'T' UNDERSTAND! I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS!"
James looked truly perturbed. Suddenly Sirius regretted all of the comments he had said about James and Lily.
"Look, buddy, I'm sorry… I didn't think it would get to you…"
"Yea, whatever, Just don't' talk to me right now, okay? Let's go Lily."
He burst out of the door, pulling at Lily's hand as he went. With a look of disbelief on her face, Lily followed her boyfriend out.
"Well then…" began Remus as the door slammed behind Lily. "That went well."
Sirius, who had never fought with his best friend in the many years of knowing him, looked on the verge of tears.