AN-Thank you to CelticHeiressFiona and Bohemian.Moon for reading and reviewing. Your support is much appreciated!
Train Ride and Tragedies
"Lily dear, are you sure you have everything?"
"Yes, Mum, all handled." Lily hugged her mother for the fifth time since they'd arrived at Kings Cross train station.
"I only wish you could have stayed a little longer, your going to miss your sisters birthday!" Mrs. Evans busied herself with checking her daughter's luggage. Again.
"I told you, it can't be helped. I'm Head Girl now, and there's a lot to be done. Besides, I hardly think Petunia will miss me."
Lily was not at all close to her sister. They had, in fact, been just short of bitter enemies ever since Lily had started school.
"Oh dear." Mrs. Evans looked put out. "Well it's not as though she hates you, not really. I think if the two of you just spent a bit more time together..."
"Lily!" James Potter's voice broke into their conversation as he waved to Lily from across the station. He hurried over, dragging his trunk and looking his usual, confident self.
"Hello, Potter." Lily said, feigning lack of enthusiasm as he approached. "Mum this is James Potter. He's been made Head Boy."
"Ah, Mrs Evans! Lovely to meet you. I'm looking forward to working with Lily this year. Oh, that reminds me. These are for you..."
He presented Lily with a bouquet of pale pink roses, which Lily had a strong suspicion he'd conjured up himself.
"Oh how lovely!" Mrs. Evans beamed. "I've never met any of Lily's boyfriends!"
"Mum, he's not my boyfriend, he's just-"
"And a gentleman as well!" Mrs. Evans announced gleefully, noting how James took Lily's bag and owl cage for her.
"No, he's really not-"
"Well, I'll let you two get on your way! I hope you'll come to visit over Christmas, dear, and James, you would most certainly be welcome as well!"
"No, Mum, he's not-"
"Thank you, Mrs. Evans." He attempted a clumsy sort of bow under the weight of the bags around his shoulders. "Take care. Pleasure to meet you."
"Yes, dear-"
"Good bye, mother!" Lily seized James' arm with her flower free hand and began to drag him toward the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10.
"You planned that." Lily stated before walking through the barrier.
James passed through behind her and gave her a cheeky smile. "Yep."
Lily shook her head as she scanned the train. There wasn't much to it. After all, it would only be transporting a few people, so it was no where near as long as usual. Lily headed for the front compartment, still shaking her head.
"What? I do something to bug you? I know I'm a worthless toe rag, but this would be a record, even for me."
"You just..." she began to heave her trunk off of the cart.
"What?"
"Well, you just can't go from being an idiot to being decent..." She panted as she attempted to push the trunk onto the train.
"You want help with that?" He gestured toward the trunk.
"No, I got it." She gave the trunk another ineffectual push. "Ok, yes. Fine."
Grinning, he stepped forward and picked up the trunk as though it were effortless.
Once they and their luggage were securely within the compartment, and Icarus had been released from his cage to fly as he pleased, Lily found herself beginning to relax. This might not be so bad. She had thought it all over, and she had a plan.
Lily reached into her bag and pulled out a book she had picked up the last time she'd been in Diagon Alley. Settling into the seat next to the window and farthest from Potter, she began to read. If she could simply keep her mind on the book and off the boy, she could make it through this train ride without incident.
The train began to move. Lily tucked her legs beneath her on the seat. She tried to force her brain to focus. She could smell him. That odd Potter smell that was a mix of cologne and broomstick polish. But she wasn't going to think about that. After all, James' habit of wearing too much cologne was just one more thing that annoyed her.
There was silence in the compartment except for Icarus' excited hooting and the occasional rustling of Lily turning pages as she pretended to read.
"Twelve more died." James broke into the silence.
"Hmm?"She hadn't really heard him, she was too busy trying not to smell him. She didn't look up from her book.
"Muggles. Twelve more were killed in the last three days alone. The muggle papers are claiming it's some kind of flue epidemic...Well, last time they claimed it was gang violence."
"Oh." Lily looked up and saw that he was holding an issue of The Daily Prophet, the wizard newspaper. "I haven't really been keeping up with the news."
"It hasn't been cheerful. Dad reckons this Voldemort bloke's using fear to gain power. Doesn't like muggles, obviously. Thing is, a lot of wizards agree with him."
"That's completely ridiculous. Most muggles don't even know that we exist. I'll never understand this whole 'pureblood' thing. Seems like an excuse to bully people."
"Well yes, more or less. It's about superiority. Really, it's just ridiculous."
"Oh really?" She looked at him suspiciously.
"Yes."
"You? You, James Potter, terror of Hogwarts, ring leader of a group of the biggest bullies in the school-"
"Hey, I may have caused some trouble in the past, but I've never actually hurt anyone."
"You made poor Eleanor Migdeot cry fourth year! I couldn't get her to come out of the bathroom for ages-"
"She deserved it."
"Why, because she called you a mindless twit? That didn't mean you had to hex her, Potter."
He shrugged. "It was a long time ago."
"Right. As though you've changed at all."
James was becoming angry. He stood up, facing her, standing very close. He kept his voice low as he spoke, but his resentment was still obvious.
"There is a difference between playing childish games, and committing genocidal murder. I might have been stupid in the past, but I am not evil. And I am not incapable of change, despite what you might believe." He finished with a deep breath.
Lily starred, shocked. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said...I wasn't thinking."
"Right. No problem." He sat down again, still looking moody.
"So all of this...The letter, and the flowers, and you acting all decent," she said slowly. "That's you trying to prove that you've...changed?"
He raised his eyebrows.
"I just meant...Thank you, I guess. Yes, thank you for being nice." She picked up her book again, feeling awkward. "It's nice...you being kind without expecting anything in return."
"I had hoped for your respect."
"Oh. Yes."
When the train at last came to a stop, they disembarked in silence. A horseless carriage was waiting to take them up to the castle. James opened the carriage door and waited for Lily to climb in. She gave him an odd look as she passed him, as though she'd never seen anything quite like him.
Even in the dim light of the carriage, he could see her green eyes sparkling. She was still regarding him with great suspicion, as though he were up to something.
The carriage stopped and they climbed out.
"It seems strange, doesn't it?" Lily looked up at the image of Hogwarts in the setting sun. "To be here alone, no other students...I wonder where the teachers are."
"Some of them will still be away on holiday, I expect."
They made their way toward the oak front doors. Upon stepping into the Entrance Hall, they were greeted by Professor Dumbledore, who was looking his usual, cheerful self.
"Ah, there you are! Our Head Boy and Head Girl, welcome!"
"Hello Professor." Lily said respectfully.
"Greetings." James said, feeling awkward all of the sudden.
"Come along then, you must be hungry." Dumbledore ushered them toward the Great Hall. "I understand this is somewhat unconventional, we do not usually ask students to end their holidays early for any reason. But I feel it's necessary, in the face of all that has been happening in our world, that our Head Boy and Girl stand united."
The Great Hall darker then usual, lit only by a few candles and the stars up above.
"To that affect, I thought you might like to start by getting to know each other a bit better."
The usual four house tables were absent, and had been replaced by one small, square table.
"I've asked the kitchen to prepare a meal for two. I trust you will enjoy yourself. Perhaps after your meal, if you are not too full and sleepy, you might want to look over our security measures."
He handed James several rolls of parchment. "Have a lovely night."
He turned to leave.
"Your not staying, Professor?" Lily asked.
"Lovely as it would be my dear, I'm afraid I have other business to attend to this evening. Good night." And he left.
"Well, I am hungry." James commented.
"A candle lit dinner for two?" Lily approached the table. "What is Dumbledore thinking."
"That...we'd be hungry?" James threw himself down into a chair. "What, you can't even eat with me?"
"No, I'll eat." She sat.
The meal was exquisite. Typical of Hogwarts, the plates kept refilling themselves until both parties could not eat another bite. They did not speak, but focused on their food. The atmosphere was tense.
"I'm...exhausted."Lily said as she set down her fork at last.
"Me too. Call it a night?"
"But, Dumbledore wanted us to work on the security." Lily said, although her eyes were drooping.
"First thing in the morning, we'll work on it."
"Ok." She yawned, and rose from the table.
"Not much of a late night person, are you?"
"I've been sleeping funny. Lots of dreams. I can't remember any of them, but when I wake up, I can't fall back to sleep. Oh, I'm babbling."
"It's alright. Your tired."
She hadn't realized until that moment that he'd taken her arm, and begun to lead her toward the dormitories. She yawned again.
"I don't know what's gotten into you Potter. It's like you're a different person."
"I don't know what's gotten into me, either."
They had arrived before the portrait of the Fat Lady.
"Oh, we don't know the pass word!"Lily said.
"We're Head Boy and Girl. We set the password."
"Oh, right. How about 'raspberry chocolate ice cream'."
"Very well, dear." Said the Fat Lady as her portrait swung forward.
"Well, good night then." Lily threw herself down into one of the squishy chairs by the fire.
"Don't you want to...go up to bed?"
"No. Too sleepy. Sleep here..."
"But wouldn't you be more comfortable..."
James let his words die as the sounds of Lily's slow, steady breathing signaled to him that she'd fallen asleep. He watched her for a moment. Her face, so carefully guarded when she was awake, was softened and beautiful. She looked serene. He wanted to touch her. Instead, he forced himself to turn and head for his dormitory.