James Potter walked into the King's Cross station feeling quite confident.
Although, like many others, this would be his first year at Hogwarts, James
felt he was already a few steps ahead of the rest. He already had a few
friends, and he was overwhelmingly excited when he got his letter, so he
began to work on spells. Of course, he did not practice them yet, because
that was against the wizard world's policy, but he knew the gestures and
words to use for each spell he knew.
As he, his mother, and his father walked between Platform Nine and ¾, he
began to get a little nervous, and his hand immediately went to his hair.
Looking at him with a slight frown, his mother sighed and said, "Oh James,
can't you tidy your hair just for once?"
She started fussing over his hair and tried to get it down, but it seemed
each time she got one hair down another fell out of place. After she was
done with her feeble attempts to make him presentable, she began to lecture
him about his behavior, and about keeping up on his schoolwork. As usual,
James tuned her out and instead glanced toward the girls he saw standing
around and whispering excitedly. Feeling self conscious after his mother
had messed with his hair; he began to ruffle it again, getting sighs from
his mother and a small chuckle from his dad.
"Hurry James or you'll miss the train. Now go and find a seat." His father said, grinning down at his son proudly. James was the spitting image of his father, with untidy black hair, and bright hazel eyes. He jumped back from his thoughts of the girls, hurried off toward the train, and waved to his parents before he disappeared into the doorway. He walked through the narrow corridor, searching through the glass of each compartment doorway for his best friend, Sirius Black, or anyone else he might know. Finally, as he neared the end of the corridor, He spotted Sirius in a compartment along with Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. "Oy, its James! We thought you'd missed the train!" said Sirius, smiling at the sight of his friend. "Nah," said James, as if he'd been here since yesterday. The four friends talked and laughed all the way to Hogwarts, and out in the hall they could be heard, with a nervous chuckle from Peter every so often.
When they reached Hogwarts, they followed a man who had introduced himself as Hagrid into the school toward the Great Hall. Hagrid forced open the overly enormous doors to reveal a large room filled with 4 large tables, a stool with a raggedy hat on it, and a long table with many seats, filled with teachers. A tall man with a long, silvery-gray beard stood up and said gleefully, "Students, please take a seat at your house table; as for those of you just joining us, please take a seat up here in the front." Everyone took their seats and the first years moved hesitantly as a group toward the front of the Great Hall. They each sat on a stool, and as James looked down the row, he noticed that there were exactly as many stools as there were first years. After everyone was seated and had quieted down, the man continued. "For those of you who don't know me, I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall..." A shorter woman stepped forward with a large scroll, cleared her throat, and addressed the first years. "When your name is called, step forward, sit on this stool, and place the hat on your head." All the first years nodded in understanding, and she began, with Able, Timothy, and named a few others. Then she got to Black, Sirius, and James gave him an excited look of anticipation as Sirius cautiously stepped forward. He put on the hat, a few seconds passed, and the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR." Sirius eagerly took off the hat and sat down at the Gryffindor table. A little more time passed, and the list came to Lupin, Remus (Gryffindor), Pettigrew, Peter (Gryffindor), and finally, James Potter. James was feeling nervous and excited all at the same time. He sat on the stool and put on the hat. "Ah, James Potter." The hat said. "Well let's see here. I think GRYFFINDOR!" The last word boomed through the Great Hall, as it had for everyone else's name. He hurried to the table and sat by Sirius and the rest of his friends.
As soon as everyone was sorted and seated, the tables magically filled with food, and the Great Hall was soon filled with their soothing aroma and laughter and talking. The boys looked hungrily at all of the food that lay before them, grinned at each other and dug in. After they had had their fill, they followed a couple older students from Gryffindor into the corridors and towards Gryffindor Tower. As they walked, James notices many girls were eyeing him, and he couldn't say he was unhappy about it. When they got there, they found a portrait of a large woman. James had already heard about this, it was the hidden doorway to the tower. One of the older students looked at her and said, "Constantinople," and the Fat Lady swung open. They curiously stepped inside, went up the stairs and found themselves in the common room. There were many large, welcoming comfy chairs sitting around warm, blazing fires. James looked around with astonishment at how large and wonderful Gryffindor Tower was. He felt he might never want to leave. He swung around to get a better look, and almost knocked over a girl who was standing behind him.
"Oops!" he said clumsily, and turned around to see if she was ok.
She looked up at him, and he saw that she was tantalizingly beautiful. She had blazing red hair that fell just past her shoulders. She had large, beautiful emerald green eyes that glittered and reflected the fire. James shook his head and came back to reality, realizing that he had been staring for a while yet. She looked at him, blinked, and smiled; it was obvious to James that she had been staring at him as well. He began to ruffle his hair and then quickly turned away. He looked back over his shoulder, and she had already gone back to her group of friends.
"...and then he says to me" Sirius trailed off. "...Hey James! Earth to James, come in James!" said Sirius impatiently.
"Huh? Oh what?" said James, as he turned and jumped back to reality.
"Oh, never mind." Snapped Sirius, and yawned greatly. "I'm going upstairs."
There was a murmur of agreement from the four boys, and they hurried up the stairs to bed. James noticed that once again, there seemed to be just enough beds for each of the boys. James lay in bed and thought about that girl. He just couldn't seem to get her out of his head. He didn't even ask her name! Well, he would in the morning then. He yawned a great big yawn and fell asleep.
The next morning, James awoke from a peaceful dream. He groaned as he regretfully realized that it was only a dream. He had met that girl and asked her name. Then they became friends, and they somehow ended up on a date together on his broomstick. They were flying through the air; her soft, pale hands lay clasped around his waist, holding on for dear life. Then, he decided to go back, thus ending their date. They reached to large front doors of Hogwarts, and he helped her to gently step off of the broom. He too, got off, and held the broom in one arm, and they walked into the castle toward Gryffindor Tower together. He ruffled his hair a bit with his free hand, and then cautiously placed it around her shoulders, as if not wanting to impose it upon her. They walked up to the front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, and James turned to tell her the password. But before he could get a word out, he turned hesitantly toward the girl and she reached up and pulled him toward her in a somewhat passionate kiss. Sparks went off behind James' eyes and he felt as if he might just float away. Unfortunately, he woke up, thus ending the dream. He got up and groggily pulled his clothes on, noticed that his friends were already gone, and shuffled tiredly toward the Great Hall for breakfast.
When he arrived at the Great Hall, he took his seat next to Sirius. They all talked and laughed, and James turned sideways and saw her-but he still didn't know her name. He turned back to his friends.
"Uh...guys? I'll be right back." He said, still tired.
"Ooh is James gonna go check out his new girlfriend?" Sirius teased.
"How can she be my girlfriend? The only word we've had is my 'Oops'. Plus, I don't even know her name." James replied matter-of-factly.
Then he walked toward her without another word. He saw once again that she was beautiful, and found himself just wanting to talk to her. However, he found that he did not know what he wanted to say. Still, he continued to walk toward her.
"Er..." he said dumbfounded, when he reached her.
"Yes, James?" she said coolly. "How did you...? I mean..." he said, feeling more stupid than he ever had in his life.
"Know your name?" she finished for him. "I have my ways." Her voice had a bit of a mysterious tone in it.
"Oh well I just... well I was wondering...what's your name?" he finally found the words.
"It's Lily." She said frankly.
"Oh..." he said stupidly. Not wanting to more damage than he already had, he said a quick 'Good-bye' and walked defeated back to his friends, who 'accidentally' overheard the whole thing.
"Ooh, nice one James. So smooth." said Sirius mockingly.
"Yes, you just had so much to say, it was overwhelming," said Remus, with a hearty laugh.
"Ha, ha. Very funny, you guys are just so witty." said James, feeling slightly down in the dumps.
"Well, I suppose we better get on to class," said Sirius, "Potions first."
Over the next few weeks, Lily and James became good friends, and James found himself trying to 'accidentally' bump into her in the hallways. They would get together in the Gryffindor common room and study or work on their schoolwork and they would chat and talk about recent events.
Eventually the final exams approached, and everyone was jittery with nervousness. James and Sirius, however, were good students so they were not worried. Lily, however, was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. She, being muggle-born, was worried that she was not as good at spells as the other students. James was often found attempting to cheer her up and convince her that she would do fine.
"But you're brilliant with charms!" he tried.
"My potions could be better." She pointed out.
"But you're really good at turning things into water goblets! That's sure to be on the Transfiguration final!"
He finally gave up. His feeble attempts were not getting him anywhere. Lily would just have to wait and see that she would do great, probably better than any of the 'pure-bloods' and such around school.
Finally it was the last day, and everyone was getting their bags ready for the train that would take them home the next day.
"All students please take your bags to the front of the Great Hall, and they will be loaded onto the train from their. Then report to the Great Hall for the End-of-Year feast. Thank you," said a magically projected voice that boomed throughout the large school.
James, Sirius, Lupin, and Peter all hustled down to the Great Hall. They dropped of their trunks and animals, and went into the Great Hall to wait for the feast to begin. James had a jumble of mixed feelings. He was sad to be leaving, because he loved Hogwarts, but he was happy to be going to see his family again. He hadn't seen them since last September, owing to the fact that he vowed to always stay at Christmas with Sirius, who couldn't bear to go home to his family. Dumbledore gave a short speech, and clapped his hands. Food appeared on plates all over the once empty tables. James was still amazed by this, although he had seen it before and should have grown accustomed to it. They began to eat to their hearts content.
Feeling cozy, warm, and full, James lie in bed and fell asleep quickly. The next morning they all went downstairs to be escorted to their train. James and Sirius found themselves an empty compartment and sat down. James had wanted to talk to Lily, to say goodbye, but he hadn't seen her at all, and he didn't want to search the entire train for her. So he shrugged to himself and figured he would just see her later. The train arrived at the station and students eagerly ran to the exits, anxious to see their families again. When they all found their parents, James said a quick goodbye to Sirius, because he would be seeing him again in a few weeks. Sirius was going to come and stay with the Potters for part of the summer; James couldn't stand to let Sirius with his family for 3 long months. Then James looked over and saw Lily, standing by the barrier to get onto Platform 9 ¾. She was standing with her parents, who James knew were muggles, and a smug looking girl who he knew immediately as her sister, Petunia. Petunia was rotten to Lily, and was ashamed that a 'freak' like Lily had been born into their family.
He walked over to her and Lily introduced him to her parents. Her mother gave Lily a wink and Lily began to blush uncontrollably and scowled at her mom. James said a quick goodbye and eagerly went off with his parents, anxious to be home again.
~End of first year~
"Hurry James or you'll miss the train. Now go and find a seat." His father said, grinning down at his son proudly. James was the spitting image of his father, with untidy black hair, and bright hazel eyes. He jumped back from his thoughts of the girls, hurried off toward the train, and waved to his parents before he disappeared into the doorway. He walked through the narrow corridor, searching through the glass of each compartment doorway for his best friend, Sirius Black, or anyone else he might know. Finally, as he neared the end of the corridor, He spotted Sirius in a compartment along with Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. "Oy, its James! We thought you'd missed the train!" said Sirius, smiling at the sight of his friend. "Nah," said James, as if he'd been here since yesterday. The four friends talked and laughed all the way to Hogwarts, and out in the hall they could be heard, with a nervous chuckle from Peter every so often.
When they reached Hogwarts, they followed a man who had introduced himself as Hagrid into the school toward the Great Hall. Hagrid forced open the overly enormous doors to reveal a large room filled with 4 large tables, a stool with a raggedy hat on it, and a long table with many seats, filled with teachers. A tall man with a long, silvery-gray beard stood up and said gleefully, "Students, please take a seat at your house table; as for those of you just joining us, please take a seat up here in the front." Everyone took their seats and the first years moved hesitantly as a group toward the front of the Great Hall. They each sat on a stool, and as James looked down the row, he noticed that there were exactly as many stools as there were first years. After everyone was seated and had quieted down, the man continued. "For those of you who don't know me, I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall..." A shorter woman stepped forward with a large scroll, cleared her throat, and addressed the first years. "When your name is called, step forward, sit on this stool, and place the hat on your head." All the first years nodded in understanding, and she began, with Able, Timothy, and named a few others. Then she got to Black, Sirius, and James gave him an excited look of anticipation as Sirius cautiously stepped forward. He put on the hat, a few seconds passed, and the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR." Sirius eagerly took off the hat and sat down at the Gryffindor table. A little more time passed, and the list came to Lupin, Remus (Gryffindor), Pettigrew, Peter (Gryffindor), and finally, James Potter. James was feeling nervous and excited all at the same time. He sat on the stool and put on the hat. "Ah, James Potter." The hat said. "Well let's see here. I think GRYFFINDOR!" The last word boomed through the Great Hall, as it had for everyone else's name. He hurried to the table and sat by Sirius and the rest of his friends.
As soon as everyone was sorted and seated, the tables magically filled with food, and the Great Hall was soon filled with their soothing aroma and laughter and talking. The boys looked hungrily at all of the food that lay before them, grinned at each other and dug in. After they had had their fill, they followed a couple older students from Gryffindor into the corridors and towards Gryffindor Tower. As they walked, James notices many girls were eyeing him, and he couldn't say he was unhappy about it. When they got there, they found a portrait of a large woman. James had already heard about this, it was the hidden doorway to the tower. One of the older students looked at her and said, "Constantinople," and the Fat Lady swung open. They curiously stepped inside, went up the stairs and found themselves in the common room. There were many large, welcoming comfy chairs sitting around warm, blazing fires. James looked around with astonishment at how large and wonderful Gryffindor Tower was. He felt he might never want to leave. He swung around to get a better look, and almost knocked over a girl who was standing behind him.
"Oops!" he said clumsily, and turned around to see if she was ok.
She looked up at him, and he saw that she was tantalizingly beautiful. She had blazing red hair that fell just past her shoulders. She had large, beautiful emerald green eyes that glittered and reflected the fire. James shook his head and came back to reality, realizing that he had been staring for a while yet. She looked at him, blinked, and smiled; it was obvious to James that she had been staring at him as well. He began to ruffle his hair and then quickly turned away. He looked back over his shoulder, and she had already gone back to her group of friends.
"...and then he says to me" Sirius trailed off. "...Hey James! Earth to James, come in James!" said Sirius impatiently.
"Huh? Oh what?" said James, as he turned and jumped back to reality.
"Oh, never mind." Snapped Sirius, and yawned greatly. "I'm going upstairs."
There was a murmur of agreement from the four boys, and they hurried up the stairs to bed. James noticed that once again, there seemed to be just enough beds for each of the boys. James lay in bed and thought about that girl. He just couldn't seem to get her out of his head. He didn't even ask her name! Well, he would in the morning then. He yawned a great big yawn and fell asleep.
The next morning, James awoke from a peaceful dream. He groaned as he regretfully realized that it was only a dream. He had met that girl and asked her name. Then they became friends, and they somehow ended up on a date together on his broomstick. They were flying through the air; her soft, pale hands lay clasped around his waist, holding on for dear life. Then, he decided to go back, thus ending their date. They reached to large front doors of Hogwarts, and he helped her to gently step off of the broom. He too, got off, and held the broom in one arm, and they walked into the castle toward Gryffindor Tower together. He ruffled his hair a bit with his free hand, and then cautiously placed it around her shoulders, as if not wanting to impose it upon her. They walked up to the front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, and James turned to tell her the password. But before he could get a word out, he turned hesitantly toward the girl and she reached up and pulled him toward her in a somewhat passionate kiss. Sparks went off behind James' eyes and he felt as if he might just float away. Unfortunately, he woke up, thus ending the dream. He got up and groggily pulled his clothes on, noticed that his friends were already gone, and shuffled tiredly toward the Great Hall for breakfast.
When he arrived at the Great Hall, he took his seat next to Sirius. They all talked and laughed, and James turned sideways and saw her-but he still didn't know her name. He turned back to his friends.
"Uh...guys? I'll be right back." He said, still tired.
"Ooh is James gonna go check out his new girlfriend?" Sirius teased.
"How can she be my girlfriend? The only word we've had is my 'Oops'. Plus, I don't even know her name." James replied matter-of-factly.
Then he walked toward her without another word. He saw once again that she was beautiful, and found himself just wanting to talk to her. However, he found that he did not know what he wanted to say. Still, he continued to walk toward her.
"Er..." he said dumbfounded, when he reached her.
"Yes, James?" she said coolly. "How did you...? I mean..." he said, feeling more stupid than he ever had in his life.
"Know your name?" she finished for him. "I have my ways." Her voice had a bit of a mysterious tone in it.
"Oh well I just... well I was wondering...what's your name?" he finally found the words.
"It's Lily." She said frankly.
"Oh..." he said stupidly. Not wanting to more damage than he already had, he said a quick 'Good-bye' and walked defeated back to his friends, who 'accidentally' overheard the whole thing.
"Ooh, nice one James. So smooth." said Sirius mockingly.
"Yes, you just had so much to say, it was overwhelming," said Remus, with a hearty laugh.
"Ha, ha. Very funny, you guys are just so witty." said James, feeling slightly down in the dumps.
"Well, I suppose we better get on to class," said Sirius, "Potions first."
Over the next few weeks, Lily and James became good friends, and James found himself trying to 'accidentally' bump into her in the hallways. They would get together in the Gryffindor common room and study or work on their schoolwork and they would chat and talk about recent events.
Eventually the final exams approached, and everyone was jittery with nervousness. James and Sirius, however, were good students so they were not worried. Lily, however, was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. She, being muggle-born, was worried that she was not as good at spells as the other students. James was often found attempting to cheer her up and convince her that she would do fine.
"But you're brilliant with charms!" he tried.
"My potions could be better." She pointed out.
"But you're really good at turning things into water goblets! That's sure to be on the Transfiguration final!"
He finally gave up. His feeble attempts were not getting him anywhere. Lily would just have to wait and see that she would do great, probably better than any of the 'pure-bloods' and such around school.
Finally it was the last day, and everyone was getting their bags ready for the train that would take them home the next day.
"All students please take your bags to the front of the Great Hall, and they will be loaded onto the train from their. Then report to the Great Hall for the End-of-Year feast. Thank you," said a magically projected voice that boomed throughout the large school.
James, Sirius, Lupin, and Peter all hustled down to the Great Hall. They dropped of their trunks and animals, and went into the Great Hall to wait for the feast to begin. James had a jumble of mixed feelings. He was sad to be leaving, because he loved Hogwarts, but he was happy to be going to see his family again. He hadn't seen them since last September, owing to the fact that he vowed to always stay at Christmas with Sirius, who couldn't bear to go home to his family. Dumbledore gave a short speech, and clapped his hands. Food appeared on plates all over the once empty tables. James was still amazed by this, although he had seen it before and should have grown accustomed to it. They began to eat to their hearts content.
Feeling cozy, warm, and full, James lie in bed and fell asleep quickly. The next morning they all went downstairs to be escorted to their train. James and Sirius found themselves an empty compartment and sat down. James had wanted to talk to Lily, to say goodbye, but he hadn't seen her at all, and he didn't want to search the entire train for her. So he shrugged to himself and figured he would just see her later. The train arrived at the station and students eagerly ran to the exits, anxious to see their families again. When they all found their parents, James said a quick goodbye to Sirius, because he would be seeing him again in a few weeks. Sirius was going to come and stay with the Potters for part of the summer; James couldn't stand to let Sirius with his family for 3 long months. Then James looked over and saw Lily, standing by the barrier to get onto Platform 9 ¾. She was standing with her parents, who James knew were muggles, and a smug looking girl who he knew immediately as her sister, Petunia. Petunia was rotten to Lily, and was ashamed that a 'freak' like Lily had been born into their family.
He walked over to her and Lily introduced him to her parents. Her mother gave Lily a wink and Lily began to blush uncontrollably and scowled at her mom. James said a quick goodbye and eagerly went off with his parents, anxious to be home again.
~End of first year~
