Lily's POV
The rest of the day, I kept thinking about James. I really didn't know that much about him, besides that fact he was a Marauder and in seventh year.
Actually, I didn't know that much about Sirius, once I thought about it.
God, my unbelievable trust is going to get me in trouble one of these days.
"Miss Evans?"
Tess nudged me, and I looked up. I'd just finished Care of Magical Creatures. So - cold and bored - Tess, Helen and I were dragging ourselves through the corridors towards the Common Room. And now McGonagall was stood in front of me.
"Er, yes Professor?" I asked, raising my eyebrows slightly.
"Miss Evans, I have heard that you've had a small misunderstanding with Mr. Snape-" she started, but I groaned and interrupted her.
"No, professor, its nothing-"
"And I'm sure that's true. I just wanted to make sure. After all, you have made wonderful improvement in the past few weeks."
I smiled and nodded. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. But I do hope you keep this up. If you are to pass with a 90 or above-"
"90?" Helen murmured.
"-then. . . well, I shouldn't really be telling you this but. . ." she dropped her voice. "Then you have a very good chance of becoming Head Girl."
Yay! That was what I wanted to hear.
"Really?" I cried.
"Of course. A 90 will be hard, but I have no doubt that if you keep up your tutoring, you will be able to do it. I understand that Snape may not be the easiest of people to work with sometimes, but. . ."
"Just keep at it?" Tess suggested, cocking her head to one side.
"Yes. Now, I must go. But keep that in mind, Miss Evans."
And then she walked away, leaving us in the corridor.
Sirius POV
Oh God.
Having just missed Muggle Studies and gone into Hogsmeade to get James some stuff, I was trapped.
By McGonagall and Lily, of all people.
I was under the cloak, so she couldn't see me. But she could still hear me.
I'd been walking quickly behind them, but had to stop when they stopped, as they totally blocked up the corridor.
So, keeping as close to Tess as I could without her noticing, I prayed McGonagall would think any heavy breathing or anything belonged to her.
And that meant I heard everything McGonagall said. So Lily was really up for Head Girl?
I knew she was really into her work at the moment, but. . . I don't know. I thought it was because she was falling behind in classes or something. The same goes for her getting a tutor.
Snape. Tut.
I looked towards Lily curiously when McGonagall said about the 'small misunderstanding', but Lily just groaned, and didn't elaborate.
Lily's POV
That night, happy that there was a chance I would become Head Girl, I took a break from learning and just relaxed.
Picking up a book from my dorm, I walked down to the Common Room and curled up in an arm chair in front of the fire.
All of my friends had heard about this party in the Ravenclaw Common Room and had decided to join them. They were quite surprised when I declined, but I persuaded Tess and Helen to go with everyone else anyway.
But because the Gryffindor Common Room was a lot quieter, since so many people had gone to crash the party, I was able to get lost in the pages of Pearl Harbor easily.
Tucking my hair behind my ears and making myself comfortable, I tried to forget that I had to talk to Severus again tomorrow to arrange another tutoring lesson. Because I'd probably have to apologise. Even though I'd done nothing wrong.
I sighed and started to read.
And fifteen minutes later I was interrupted when someone sat down in a chair next to me.
Expecting Tess or someone, back from the Ravenclaws Common Room, I barely glanced up.
"Hey," I said distractedly.
"Hi. What are you reading?"
I looked up to see Sirius, his legs swung over arm of the chair and smiling halfly.
I shrugged and held up the book for him to see.
Squinting his eyes slightly, he looked at the cover. "A war book?"
"Yeah," I replied. "But I've got to admit, I tend to skip to the parts where I can read about Danny, Rafe, and Evelyn's tangled love lives."
Sirius looked at me blankly, and raised his eyebrows. "Oh," he said, after saying nothing for a few seconds.
Well, obviously he'd have no clue what I was talking about.
I smiled. "So, where are your friends?" I asked.
"Around," Sirius answered with a shrug. "James is in the dorm. . . Remus is. . . er. . . and Peter in detention."
"Where's Remus?"
"Oh, um, detention as well. How come you're on your own?"
"Because I wanted to be."
"Fair enough. Anyway, Lils, there's something I wanted to talk to you about."
I looked at him suspiciously and nodded. "Okay. . . what?"
"Well, you know, since you're going to Head Girl and everything-"
"What? H-how did you know that?" I spluttered, staring at him.
McGonagall didn't want people to know, didn't she? I wasn't really supposed to know.
"Oh. Just something I heard," Sirius said casually.
"Off who?"
"A teacher."
"What teacher?" I asked, confused.
"Look, never mind. The point is I wanted to talk to you about something," he said, running a hand through his hair.
"But-"
"So, about James," Sirius interrupted swiftly.
"What about James?" I asked, looking at him quickly. Surely something else hadn't happened to him?
Sirius hesitated for a moment, looking at me. Then he said, "Well, you know. . ."
"No, I don't know. What? Go ahead, inform me. I thought he was in his dorm?"
"Oh, he is. But I was wondering if you'd talk to him. . ." he replied, looking thoughtful.
"I do talk to him."
"No, I mean as in really talk to him. Long meaningful conversations and all that. Find out how he feels."
"Why?"
"Because. . . well, girls do that, don't they? I know I'm his best friend and everything, but boys don't really share as much, do they? Go on Lil, please? For James. . . I don't want him bottling this all up. He. . . he's not talking to me at all about his dad," Sirius rambled, looking at me pleadingly. "And. . . erm, say he has some kind of breakdown? Eh? Go on, please?"
"Fine," I sighed. "I was going to talk to him anyway, but fine. . ."
"Great!" Sirius exclaimed, jumping up. "Okay. See you around Lils!"
Huh. So that was short and sweet.
"Yeah. 'Bye," I replied flatly, curling back up with my book.
"Make sure you talk to him alone. And as soon as possible. Okay?"
"Will do," I sighed.
"Right," Sirius said, before he made his way out of the Common Room.
"Hey," someone else said at that exact second. "You know where Sirius is?"
I looked up to James, and then towards the Portrait Hole, which had just banged shut.
That so had to be planned.
James appearing just as Sirius leaves? Yeah, staged.
"Um. . . no," I lied.
"Oh," James said, looking around the Common Room. Then he shrugged. "Okay."
As he started to walk off, I grabbed his arm and dragged him into the seat Sirius had just been lounging in.
"No, come on! You said we'd talk," I said, turning over so my chin was resting on the arm of the chair I was sat in.
"Now?"
"No time like the present."
"Um. . . alright," his brow furrowed slightly, and he shifted in his chair. "Go ahead."
I sighed and rolled my eyes. "This isn't 20 questions, you know. I want us to talk."
Well, it took awhile, I've got to admit. But finally James loosened up to me.
"-so Remus grew up in Notting Hill. We didn't know him until we came to Hogwarts-"
"You mean you and Sirius?"
"Yeah. Sirius is a real city boy - grew up in the dark side of London."
I frowned slightly. Dark? What was that supposed to mean? "Where abouts?"
"Well, I guess I mean he got in with the wrong crowds. . . he's not bad. He just. . . I don't know. It's a long story. It's his family," James shrugged as if that could explain everything, and looked thoughtful.
So that's maybe why Sirius got 'bored' of me? That's just the type of society that he grew up in?
Deciding to forget it, I looked towards James. "And you?"
"Oh, I live on the outskirts. But I spent a lot of time with Sirius once I met him. I was always the little rich boy, you know? My dad is-" he hesitated, catching his breath, "-was a big hot shot Auror. And my mum owns a nursery day care place."
I raised my eyebrows and smiled. "Really? That must be sweet. But hard work, with little-"
"No, she doesn't work there. She just owns it," James corrected, a small smile on his face.
"Oh. Well, that must be good. My mum's a lawyer. It's good money and everything, but since my parents are divorced, it means I'm left with my sister a lot. And I hate Petunia!" I said, suddenly scowling.
James rolled his eyes. "You do not hate her."
"Oh, I do. Believe me."
"Why?" James demanded.
"Because," I replied, hotly. "She's horrible! She picks on me and. . . she. . . calls me stuff. . ."
I trailed off, confused.
Petunia is evil. Honestly, she is. Satan's child. Yet somehow, I wasn't making her out to sound so bad.
"Oh no. You poor dear," he teased, placing a hand over his heart in mock sympathy.
"Shut up," I laughed, hitting him around the head.
"I'm just saying, don't knock your family, kiddo. . ." he sighed, grabbing my forearms and being suddenly serious.
"James. . . I'm sorry. . ." I murmured, hugging him once again.
This time he hugged me back. So I was finally getting somewhere.
But when I pulled back. . . and oh God, this is going to sound like such a cliché. . . my eyes locked with his.
Yep, go ahead. Roll your eyes. And yes, it sounds corny, I realise. But. . . it wasn't.
I've never noticed his eyes before. Sure, I knew he was gorgeous. He was James Potter, that was obvious. That's the reason for all his little fan clubs.
But his eyes. . . they were a deep, dark blue. With a few brown flecks in them.
I felt my sympathy towards him drain away slowly. And be replaced with something else.
I'm sure what, but. . .
I was suddenly brought back to earth when James broke the gaze, and looked away, embarrassed.
Oh damn. Damn it!
I've freaked him out. I stared too long.
And I didn't like him! Tess liked him, he was out of bounds.
Besides. . . my heart sunk a little. . . I'd made him really uncomfortable.
"So. . . um. . . you like Tess?" I spluttered, saying the first thing that came into my head.
James' POV
Why? Why did she do that? Why?
Bloody eyes of hers. They're so. . . green.
She was killing me. Honestly.
Because she was only being nice. . . all sympathetic and stuff.
I turned my head away, breaking eye contact with her, and forced a smile.
What else could I do?
Admit I was madly in love with her, and if she carried on looking at me like that then it gave me the teeniest, tiniest bit of hope she like me too?
Yeah, right.
Lily blinked a few times when I turned away from her. Her face was screwed up as if she was having a huge mental struggle, and then she shook her head and blurted out,
"So. . . um. . . you like Tess?"
I raised my eyebrows slightly, totally thrown.
"Excuse me?"
When had I ever mentioned liking Tess?
Wait, her friend Tess? When had I ever talked to Tess?