CHAPTER TWO: To the Castle

Lily jumped down off the train car into the swarming platform at Hogsmede Station. Soon after her followed Kyrié, Claire, and Phoebe. As each of them hopped down, their shoes clicked gracefully on the paved ground.

"Should we get a carriage?" Lily asked, turning towards her friends. As she spun around the light caught on her Head Girl badge and reflected into her friend's eyes.

"Ouch Lily, thanks for blinding me!" Claire said jokingly as all three winced away from the beam of light.

"Of course we should get a carriage… what else would we do?" Phoebe said, once again making a very obvious point. She made a face as if to say 'duh.' Everyone smiled.

They soon found an empty carriage, and all clambered in. They were the perfect number to fit in the seats comfortably and symmetrically. Despite this fact, they all lurched into each other as the carriage suddenly started off. When they finally regained their composure Kyrié finally asked the question that had been on all of their minds.

"So. Lily, what happened with James in your compartment on the train?"

"Well.. it's a long story. Pretty much he was a jerk," Lily answered simply.

"P'ff! Lily, tell us more than that, at least!" Phoebe protested.

"Fine, fine. So demanding you all are!" Lily then began to recount the entire story of the train ride. When she was finished, all of her friends were at first silent.

"Ugh. What a slagger-bagger whore-bitch," Phoebe finally offered.

"But he said he loved you! Twice!" Kyrié half-squealed, half-giggled. For the most part, Kyrié was a funny yet subdued person. For those did not know her well, these excited outbursts would have seemed strange. Her friends were completely used to them now, for she was prone to have them at any exhilarating moment.

Kyrié didn't like James at all. It could almost be argued that she hated him as much as Lily. She hated people that were mean to people that didn't have friends, or that were already miserable. James was exactly that type of person. Her vegan half was instinctively opposed to all of the cruelty James displayed. She was certainly not happy because it was James that loved Lily, simply that she was somebody's love.

"I dunno why you're so excited. I would rather he not 'love' me," Lily complained.

"Yeah, but it's just that somebody loves you. That's all. I do hate him, ugh. So much. I was excited… but now I feel kinda… revolted," she shuddered involuntarily, "And I'm sure there are plenty more good people out there who like you too," she glanced around at her friends, whose faces were blank. "What? I'm just saying it's cool that someone's in love with Lily! Gosh!"

"Yeah, I guess it is pretty nice. Then again, it is Potter," Claire said. "Well, you win some you lose some…"

"I'd say this is mostly loss here. I don't know if he even meant it though. Don't get your knickers all in a twist," Lily said, very annoyed still with the whole situation.

"Mmm. Yeah," Phoebe murmured her consent, while making a sour face. "Kinda sucks. Then again… it is kinda sweet. You have to admit. James might mature, some day. If he did grow out of his childishness, I think you too would be cute together, now that I think about it…"

"Hey, yeah, I can see that…" Claire said almost enthusiastically.

"All my friends are turning against me!"

"No, we're not. All we're saying, is that although it is Potter we're talking about here, it's sweet he's 'in love' with you," at this Claire used quote marks, and Kyrié giggled. "And you two would make a cute couple, based on looks that is," Claire finished the last part quickly.

"Turning! You're all turning!" Lily shouted dramatically, while tossing her arms high in the air, narrowly avoiding Kyrié's face. "Oh, sorry…" Lily apologized while laughing anyway.

"That's okay. Back to Potter. Okay, I disagree with you two," she gestured at Phoebe and Claire, "that Lily would look good with James. Now don't all yell when I say this… but based on looks alone, I think Lucius is way better," Kyrié said, waiting for everyone to start protesting.

Sure enough cries went up at once. "No way!" "Oh my god!" "Even I think James is better!"

"Gosh, you guys have no sense," Kyrié accused, "Blondes are sooo much better."

"I hate the way James looks, and I still think he's better. I hate blondes," Lily said.

"You all will just never agree with me on this…" Kyrie sighed.

"Yeah," Claire said, nodding.

"You know I almost missed the train today," Kyrié said, changing the subject.

"Yeah, we figured you'd be late," Phoebe said smiling, "You're never on time to class, so why should you be to the train?"

Everybody laughed as they continued to discuss their "punctuality disability" as they liked to call it. Everybody except for Lily could hardly ever get to class on time. They tried to recall how many times they had been to detention for it, while Lily half-heartedly scolded them. This continued until the carriage finally came to a lurching stop. All the girls laughed again as they fell onto one another unceremoniously for the second time that night.

James climbed into his carriage, and Peter promptly sat next to him. Remus and Sirius followed next sitting across from them. James looked at his three friends and considered telling them that he had said he loved Lily. While he had been alone after Lily left him, James had thought about what he had meant when he uttered the three meaningful words: I love you.

He had finally come to the conclusion that perhaps he did love her after all. Maybe without realizing it, his self-titled "infatuation" had in fact turned into something deeper. But how could he love a person, despite all his talk, who he really barely knew? And what was the point of loving a person who made it a point of hating him? He was going to make her love him. Some people claimed that love couldn't be forced, but he was going to try his hardest to change the way she thought of him.

James had made his decision. "Guys…" he tentatively began.

"What's up Prongs?" Sirius inquired.

"I, um, told Lily something on the train today,"

"That she was an amazing snogger?" Sirius hopefully asked. "I assume that would of course be after you had snogged her, am I right?"

"No. Wrong," James sighed deeply, and then continued, sounding hurried, "I told her, that I loved her."

"Ha! I bet knowing her that that worked really well. Sure she was just chuffed," Sirius said laughing.

Remus a very different point of view concerning the matter. "You shouldn't say that if you don't mean it James. You told us just before you got on the train that you didn't love her. Which one is it James?"

"I think I really, maybe, do," James said carefully, "I thought about why I would have said it if I hadn't meant it, and finally decided I really might have meant it" He paused and thought carefully about his choice of words, "I don't know exactly how or why this happened, but I need a plan. I want to change her opinion of me."

"Okay. First off, those glasses simply must go. And that hair! Oh honey, this is going to take a while. Oh dear. I almost completely forgot about that personality transplant," Sirius said jokingly doing his best impression of a gay stylist, while he inspected James's hair with an over-exaggerated look of disapproval.

"Go shove it Sirius," James said grumpily, swatting Sirius's hand away. Sirius just grinned at his best friend, but was silenced when they went over a bump and he hit his head on the ceiling of the carriage.

"Ouch,"

"James, you can't just make somebody love you. That's pretty unlikely, don't you think?" Remus asked James without waiting for an answer. "It wouldn't be real if it was forced."

"I am not forcing it. I am guiding it,"

"I, I think that Remus is, um, correct on this one, sorry" Peter said meekly, having not yet spoken during the whole ride.

"Thanks for everybody's support. Okay, you may not think any of this will work, but could you please just try to come up with a few ideas? What could I do? Help me, please, guys," James pleaded, which he hardly ever did.

"Fine. It won't work though," Remus said, restating his opinion.

"Yeah, more like it will go down in flames and smoke. And then it will smash pitifully against the ground. And then the pilot, being you, will have his entrails spilled all over the burnt and desiccated wasteland that is your heart," Sirius said rather dramatically. Everybody laughed but James.

"Shut it Padfoot! I'm really really ridiculously good-looking. That alone should be able to seduce her."

"Right, because that worked so well in the past," Remus said as the carriage at last halted.

:AUTHOR'S NOTES:

One: Chapters to come include the first experience with shared bathroom, and living quarters. Read and see what fascinating events occur! Two: Review and tell me your favorite characters, so I can know who to use more often. But mostly, just review. I beg you, even though it's annoying, I know.

:REFERENCES:

One: "…really really ridiculously good-looking,"

– Derek Zoolander, from Zoolander. Best movie of all time.

Two: "Slagger-bagger whore-bitch," this cunning saying was borrowed from my friend: 'real-life Phoebe', said by: 'story Phoebe.' Don't sue me Phoebe, please. I know I borrowed this saying without permission, but it isn't copy-written is it? Just joking.