Chapter 6.
A few weeks later, and everybody's settled down to school. The reality of it all - the hard work expected of 7th years, not to mention the responsibility, and setting a good example - comes as a bit of a shock to many students. Those who had been hoping to enjoy their final year are faced with the unappealing prospect of almost-constant studying. The atmosphere amongst the 7th years of Hogwarts is one of shock and panic.
The Common Room is almost empty. Lily and James are trying to sort out Prefect Duty lists, and it's taking much longer than they expected.
Lou is sitting in an armchair nearby, reading. She closes her book, yawns and stands up. "I'm off to bed, guys. See you tomorrow."
They look up from their lists to murmur their goodbyes, and Lou walks up the stairs to the girls' dormitory.
At the top of the stairs, she drops her book. Sighing, she bends down to pick it up, and catches a glimpse of the Common Room between the rails of the banister.
James is looking at Lily nervously. Lou smiles fondly, and is just about to stand up and go to bed when James speaks.
"Lily, will you go to Slughorn's Hallowe'en party with me?"
"Sure."
Silence. Lily continues writing. James looks bewildered. Their secret onlooker stifles a laugh.
"Sure? As in, 'sure, yes'?"
"Yes, James. You see," Lily starts to explain.
Lou stands upright and runs into the dormitory, grinning.
By the next day, everyone knows that James Potter and Lily Evans are going to have their first date at Slughorn's party. The whole school seems to have an opinion on this, and Lily and James are walking around the school, permanently blushing.
Lou sits in her favourite armchair in the Common Room, attempting to write an essay. James and Lily sit on the other side of the fireplace, deep in awkward but happy conversation. She looks behind her and sees that Sirius is on the other side of the room, with a small group of girls, amongst them Kelly and Jess.
He looks up at that moment and catches her eye. He looks harassed, and his eyes are pleading with her for help. Lou considers, for a moment, ignoring his look and letting him suffer. But then she remembers that he's not James and, despite their increasing friendliness, she doesn't really know how he'd react to her sacrificing him for humour.
"Hey, Sirius," she calls across the room. "Are you free for a minute? I need your Potions expertise."
Sirius extricates himself from the throng, mutters "Sorry, ladies, a friend in need and all that," and walks over to Lou. He smiles at James and Lily and sits down on a chair beside Lou.
"Thank you," he says fervently. "Although it was a rubbish lie, everyone knows how good you are at Potions."
"You didn't think I was going to waste my good lies on them, did you?"
Sirius chuckles. "They keep hinting that they want me to ask them to Slughorn's party," he says, in an injured voice.
Lou arranges her features into mock sympathy. "Oh, what a terrible thing it is, to be adored."
Sirius laughs, but is adamant. "It is! It's frightening. I don't think they'll give me any peace until I find someone else to go with."
"Find someone, then,"
Sirius looks over at James and Lily. They're still talking, and they're not paying attention to the conversation going on opposite them.
"How about it?"
Lou finishes writing her sentence, then looks up at him, distracted. "How about what?"
"Will you go to Slughorn's party with me?"
"I'm already going."
Sirius is confused. "I know. But we could go…together. Couldn't we?"
"The only reason anybody asks anybody to go to these things with them is if a) one of them isn't invited, b) they're a couple, or c) they're a sort-of-almost-couple like Lily and James."
"You forgot d) one of them's being harassed by scary girls."
Lou laughs. "No offence, Sirius, but if I said yes then they'd harass me as much as you."
"You're turning me down for a quiet life?"
"Don't knock the quiet life until you've tried it."
Sirius grins, and Lou grins too, knowing that Sirius would never in a million years willingly live a quiet life. Lou returns to her essay, pulling a face.
"I'd better go to the library. I need more information." She stands up, smiles, and leaves the room.
Sirius watches her go, and then turns to look at Lily and James. They are both staring at him. He wonders how long they've been listening. He suspects the worst, and his suspicions are confirmed when James gets up and wanders in the general direction of a chess tournament at the other side of the room.
Lily gets up and sits in Lou's recently-vacated seat.
"If you hurt her," she mutters, "I will break every bone in your body."
"What?"
"Lou. Don't hurt her."
"I don't plan to."
"Sirius, every girl who takes you seriously ends up getting hurt. I don't want Lou to be one of them."
"I doubt she takes me seriously. She turned me down."
"Are you really surprised? You asked her out as a favour, to get other girls off your back. No self-respecting woman would agree to that."
"I thought she turned me down because she wanted a quiet life."
"You really don't know her at all, do you? The day Louisa Reece willingly chooses a quiet life will be the day I announce my undying love for Professor McGonagall."
"And you're not -?"
"- no, Sirius."
"Why are you doing this?"
"She's my best friend."
"But can't she look after herself?"
Lily looks thoughtful. "Once, perhaps. But her mum was murdered and her dad wants nothing to do with her and she has no-one in her life apart from her friends. So we have to look after her. If you let her down, it'll be awful."
"So what do you suggest?"
"Keep away. Be friendly, but just that. Don't lead her on, Sirius, because it won't be you who has to put her back together."
Lily gets up and walks over to James, leaving Sirius thinking hard.
That evening, Sirius has just got into bed when James wanders into his cubicle. James gets into the opposite end of Sirius' bed, wrapping the covers around himself.
Sirius sits up, and looks questioningly at him. James gets straight to the point.
"How do you feel about Lou?"
"What?"
"I heard you, earlier. Asking her out. All calm like it didn't matter."
"It didn't."
"Don't be stupid. Sirius Black never asks girls out. Sirius Black waits for them to throw themselves at him."
"I was asking her for a favour. To get the girls off my back."
"Since when did you ever want to get girls off your back?"
"Since the only ones who like me are vacuous and frightening."
James laughs. "'Vacuous and frightening' are probably the only two attributes that all your former girlfriends share."
"Well maybe I don't want that anymore."
"What do you want?"
"I don't know."
"I'm worried about you, Sirius."
It's Sirius' turn to laugh. "What? Why?"
"If you like her, if you really like her, she will hurt you."
Sirius is confused. "What do you mean?"
"Look at her track record. Not as extensive as yours, by any means, but every boyfriend she's ever had, she's dumped him. Remember last year, when she chucked that Ravenclaw guy, Simpson, because he grew a beard?"
"It was an awful beard."
"Then what about Podmore? Sturgis Podmore, that legend amongst men, and she dumped him! No-one's safe!"
Sturgis Podmore is two years older than them, and James and Sirius view him as an idol. Clever, popular, suave, and probably the biggest ladies' man to ever grace Hogwarts. Both boys think they should be more successful than him - Sirius has the advantage of good hair, and James the advantage of Quidditch prowess - yet both have failed, although popular opinion admits that Sirius has come close.
"Maybe she dumped him because of his stupid hair?"
James shakes his head. "She told me what she said. She told him that she was dumping him because it had got boring. Sturgis Podmore - boring! So what chance do you think you have? I heard that Podmore always ends all of his relationships in the fifth week, because he can't bear to reach the sixth in case he gets dumped again. She's ruined him."
"He always was a bit of an idiot."
Silence. James looks at Sirius, dumbstruck.
"Okay, okay, I didn't mean it! You know I didn't!"
James breathes a sigh of relief.
"Honestly, Sirius, it's not worth it. Lou, I mean. I love her to bits but if you get involved with her, she will break you."
"What if I don't care? What if I'm willing to risk it?"
"Don't ask me to pick up the pieces."
"What makes you think I'd be heartbroken anyway? What makes you think I care? Why can't I just like her because she's pretty, like all the other girls I've ever liked?"
"I've seen the way you look at her."
"And?"
"It's like looking in a mirror. It's how I look at Lily."
"Like a desperate imbecile?"
James grins. "Something like that."
James gets out of the bed and returns to his own cubicle, and Sirius lies back, thinking.
It's a long time before he manages to get to sleep.