The day of the end of term feast, Lily took a seat at the Gryffinor Table, in her usual spot next to Alice Warren, Maggie Jacobs, and Libby Eaton, fellow fifth years and very close friends. Lily was very aware of Snape's eyes on her the moment she sat down, but took care to avoid his gaze.
Alice, apparently just as aware as Lily, said quietly, "You did the right thing, Lily. Don't let him guilt you. It's better this way."
Lily smiled widely at her friend, but was distracted by a sudden racket. Someone had released a batch of Dr. Filibuster's into the Great Hall. They were typical fireworks at first, until one took the shape of Albus Dumbledore and pirouetted ludicrously across the Hall. Lily's eyes sought the Headmaster, and she laughed aloud to see that although some of the other teachers were looking cross, Dumbledore was clapping wildly, stopping only to wipe tears of laughter from his crooked nose. With the tiniest of motions, Albus Dumbledore inclined his head, a nod so slight you would have missed it if you were not watching him intently, and barely perceptibly raised his glass toward James Potter, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius Black. Could they have—?
But Lily quickly learned it must have been them; the finale included a blue and bronze eagle swooping over the tables, a black and yellow badger dashing over their heads, an emerald and silver serpent, which flopped listlessly a few times before vanishing (of course Potter and his mates were responsible for this!), and lastly, a magnificent golden lion, which roared loudly before vanishing with a deafening bang.
She looked in the guilty parties' direction, and she was not the only one. Some people were giving the four boys high fives, and Libby, who was on the Quidditch team and therefore very friendly with James, began cheering them. Lily watched them, Sirius flinging a spoonful of mashed potato into Peter's hair and laughing as though it was the funniest thing that had ever happened, Remus wrestling a second year girl's drink from her because he had seen James slip something into it, while James mocked, "Oh Reeeemusss! My heeeroo! My Ickle Prefect's saved me fwom the evil James Pottow!" as the girl went beetroot. Halfway into mocking Remus and the girl he had rescued from whatever was in her goblet, James caught Lily looking at him.
He winked and said, "Alright, Evans?" very loudly.
Boys, Lily thought to herself.
James slid along the bench, ramming into Sirius ("Oi! What gives?") so that he'd scoot over, and patted the tiny place he had made. "Plenty of room, my dear Evans," he said, waggling his eyebrows.
Lily smiled scornfully and said, "I'm fine here, thank you very much."
"Ah, I understand," said James, nodding somberly. "You just don't want to sit near Balderdash here," he said, gesturing to the small third-year boy sitting on his other side.
"It's—it's Alderbroo—" the boy began, but James cut him off.
"Well, it's no problem, right Balderdash? You'll sod off so Evans can have a cuddle with the love of her life, won't you?"
"Potter, you are horrible! Leave him be!" Some of the people near them at the Gryffindor Table turned to see what she was shouting about.
"Well, as long as you're getting up, Balderdash, you might as well go on over to Evans and bring her here for me"
"Bring me there? I'd rather sit in a garden of Devil's Snare."
"Come to think of it, Evans," Sirius laughed, "I reckon if you go anywhere near James it might be a lot like sitting in a garden of Devil's Snare. Although I don't think he'd grab as indiscriminately, if you know what I mean."
Everyone near Sirius laughed apart from Remus, who looked at Lily apologetically, and James, who looked mildly annoyed by his friend's comment.
"When are you going to give up, Potter?" Lily said with a sigh.
"When you go out with me," he answered simply, grinning widely.
"Tell you what," said Lily, "I will go out with you on Saint Glinglin's Day."
"Yeah? Really?" said James, his eyes gleaming with hope as he sat forward in his seat. "When's that then?"
Lily, Libby, Alice, and Maggie giggled. James looked confused, until Remus said, "Er…I reckon she means 'when hell freezes over,' mate."
James turned to Lily, his eyes narrowed as if to say is this true? and when she continued to laugh he said, "You cheeky witch!"
"Give it up, mate," said Libby, ruffling James's already untidy hair.
James sunk petulantly into his seat and crossed his arms, but Lily could tell there was a smile fighting to spread across his face.
"You'd go out with me, wouldn't you Libby?"
"Of course I would," she indulged, and wrapped her arms around James. He reciprocated and they spent a moment pretending to snog, as everyone around them chuckled and Peter said, "Oi, get a room!"
With an air of mock sophistication, Libby explained, "What James and I have is special. We've gone outside upstairs, remember James?"
Lily, in an irrational moment, gaped at Libby—she had never told her this!
James, who had been sipping on his pumpkin juice, was now coughing loudly, his face very red. "In my defense," he began, still spluttering, "I was only trying to high-five her on the pitch. My hands just got away from me. The excitement of the moment, you understand…"
"So romantic," said Libby dreamily, and the two began laughing again.
Lily thought Potter had a rather nice smile and charming laugh, even if he was a complete arse. She could not help wondering why she could not have this kind of easy friendship with James. Why did he always have to be such an obnoxious prat with her?
As dinner came to a close and they were all working on their pudding, Professor McGonagall approached them. "Mr. Potter, a word please."
James looked up at his Head of House, and pulled a face that clearly said I ACTUALLY haven't done anything this time!
"Follow me to my office if you will." She turned and began walking away.
Before rising, James looked at Sirius, Remus, and Peter inquiringly.
"The fireworks…?" Peter began nervously, to which James replied in a harsh whisper, "Yeah well, if it is, you lot are getting dragged down with me! I'm not having detention on my own!"
"Mr. Potter!" McGonagall shouted from the Entrance Hall, and James jumped up.
"Care to take a stroll with me, Evans?"
"In your dreams, Potter," said Lily lazily.
James scoffed. "Oh my little innocent flower. We do way more than stroll in my dreams—oi!" James dodged as Lily, appalled, flung a hex at him. The Gryffindor Table erupted in laughter as she flung another and another at him, and a laughing James had to dodge the whole way out of the Great Hall.
It did not take long for news to spread about why one of the most popular students at Hogwarts was called away from the end of term feast to join Professor McGonagall. When he arrived in her office, it was to find Albus Dumbledore, Rubeus Hagrid, and his mother waiting for him; Fleamont Potter, James's elderly father, had died in his sleep the previous night.