The day dawned bright and early. Lily Evans got out of her bed in the Head Girl's dorm excitedly and rumaged through her trunk for some clothes. Lily dressed quickly, put her shoes on, and checked her reflection on the mirror on the wall. Her hair was shiny, red, and slightly wavy, just as it had always been. Her fair, freckle dusted complextion needed no make-up which was a good thing as girls like Lily Evans rarely had time for anything such as make-up. She was glad to finally have her own room. She wouldn't have to listen to the other girls in her year talk about how they were wearing their hair or what they did with Sirius last Friday night in the Room of Requirement. It was quiet and that was how she liked it. Peaceful. She could think and study without interruption. Lily looked over at the clock. 7:30 A.M. She had always been an early riser. She pulled open the door and walked into the Common Room quietly; she didn't feel like having to deal with James and prefered to let him oversleep.
She left the Common Room and headed toward the Great Hall. The corridors were quiet; most people didn't come down to breakfast until eight or so. Lily reached into her pocket and pulled out her Head Girl badge. She strode into the Great Hall while pinning it to the front of her robes. Once she was sure it was secure, she made her way toward the Gryffindor table where an aray of food already lay waiting for the hungry students.
She sat down at a vacant spot at the table and pulled a jug of orange juice toward her and poured some into her goblet. Taking a swig, she saw, out of the corner of her eye, a mass of messy black hair and almost choked. What was he possibly doing up this early?
In the end, she decided to ignore his presence and picked up an abandoned copy of The Daily Prophet. She scanned the headlines then proceeded to opening the newspaper and began reading. One article stood out most plainly to her. The article was small, as though it was trying to be covered up and left unread but she read it anyway. It was signifigant.
MUGGLE HOME ATTACKED! Strange Formation Seen In The Sky!
Yesterday evening a Muggle home near Surrey was attacked. The family had, in fact, been inside at the time. The residents of the home were Mr. and Mrs. Charles Peakes and their two children. The family was found dead in their home by Muggle Police. They were immediatly taken to the medical examiner but seemed to have been unmarked. No poison or any other such deadly weapons. An odd formation of glittering green lights was reportedly seen above the home in the shape of a great colossal skull. Highly qualified Wizards were dispatched half an hour after the attack to investigate the scene. The house was left in ruins. The attacked seems to have left nothing but the great green skull as evidence.
Lily was pondering this news for a moment when someone tapped her shoulder.
"Can I read that when you're done?" James Potter asked, being polite for real this time. Lily was rather shocked at his behaviour.
"Why would you want to read a newspaper?" She asked, still in shock.
"Is it a crime to want to know about current affairs?" He asked, dropping his previously used polite manner.
"No. It's just not something you are usually to be found doing." She said back. He leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear.
"People change, Evans." He pulled away and went back to his breakfast without another word. Lily found this even more odd. He did not usually act this way around her. He was usually rude, exceedingly arrogant, and everything in between. But now...he was different. Maybe her previous thoughts about him were wrong. Maybe he really had figured out what it really took to impress a girl like her. She handed him the paper and he smiled at her. He has a nice smile, she thought. After she had fully registered what she had been thinking she cursed herself.
Sirius, Remus, and Peter came down to breakfast later on and James went back to his loud, exuberant self. Lily shook her head in his direction but he was too busy mocking Snape to notice.
Lessons went by fairly quickly. Every single of their teachers had lectured about the importance of their N.E.W.T.s and about choosing their career path responsibly. James knew what he wanted to be. An Auror. James had wanted, in previous years, to become a famous Quidditch player but, in his fifth year, had decided against it. If he were to catch a Dark Wizard he would be even more famous than a Quidditch player. Besides, he could always be a Quidditch player on the side if he felt like it. Lily, on the otherhand, had no idea what she wanted to be. In her fifth year, she had poured over pamphlets. In the end she took the classes that would qualify her for her top choice. Healer. She was an excellent Potions maker and knew her Charms...not to mention everything else she tried. She excelled at everything it seemed.
That evening, James was to be found in the Head Boy and Girl's Common Room studying and doing the homework they had already recieved despite the fact that it was only the first day. When Lily saw this she nearly fainted. He usually copied Remus. But she supposed he had possibly grown up a little. Maybe even a lot. Or maybe he had always been this way and she had just been looking at him in the wrong kind of light. She decided that they should possibly become at least somewhat friends as they would have to be doing Prefect duties together later on in the year. This year was sure to be a lot different than years past, Lily decided, James had only asked her out once. She found this to be a sure-fire sign that he had changed. By this time last year, he had already asked her out about a dozen times.