A/N- I thought I'd dedicate chapters to back story of sorts, flashes of moments I think are important in James and Sirius's lives. I hope to come back to all of them through Lily...but anyway, won't spoil much more than that! It was initially supposed to be one chapter but then as I wrote it, it became extremely long. I just decided to split it. Here is part 1!
This is random, but has anyone read Harry Potter Wiki? God the stuff on James and Lily JKR released was extremely depressing. I did my best to follow the book facts/what-JKR-revealed-facts (I hate the movies. Even the James and Lily in this story will look different from the movie cast, since I think all the movie directors failed at casting…But I digress.) And since most of it was so depressing, I'm trying to put it in a more positive light. Anyway, on with the story!
Songs -
1) The Winner is- Little Miss Sunshine Sountrack
2) Be Ok- Ingrid Michaelson "I just want to know something today..."
3) For the First Time- The Script "Just now got the feeling that we're meeting for the first time" (Gods, I love them so much)
Chapter 2: To be fair to James Potter (Part 1)
Now, in reality, Lily Evans' part of this story only truly begins the summer before her sixth year at Hogwarts. But if we were to start this story at precisely that spot, we would be doing a great injustice to one of the other primary characters of this story. So to save James Potter from this injustice, we could technically start this story in his fourth year at Hogwarts. Or, to be completely and one hundred percent fair to James Potter, we can start this story farther back than that, and commence back when James Potter was a young boy.
That would perhaps be best. Hopefully you will agree in the near future.
Even when James Potter was young, his parents were extremely busy.
James' father was a tall and thin man. He had messy grey-black hair coupled with golden- brown eyes that created a striking combination. He had a square jaw, a long nose, murky skin, and stubble under his chin. He was not handsome, but that certainly did not stop him from being a charmer.
Mr. Potter had worked under the Ministry of Magic's Department of Law for a very long time. Since Mr. and Mrs. Potter had to try many years before they could get with a child, Mr. Potter was nearing the age of retirement when James was born. By then, he had saved up quite a fortune for his son, which he added to the already hefty Potter- family inheritance.
One of Mr. Potter's favorite pastimes was reading (which explained the room-turned-into-a-library inside his house). He also loved reading out loud to his son, teaching him Quidditch in their extensive backyard, and harassing those who did not follow the law (he loved his job). He had a bad habit of carrying a worn Quaffle in his hand and tossing it (even inside the home, which is why he cast more Repairocharms than he could count). Above all, Mr. Potter loved spending time with his wife—he was still infatuated with her and head over heels in love.
Mrs. Potter was one of those women who had an infinite capacity for love. She was one of those women who seemed to have been put on this earth to become an excellent mother— she was patient, nearly always jovial, responsible, caring, and empathetic. She frequently called others "darling," and "dear". It broke her heart when she learnt she could only have one child so late in her life. But to be fair, her son James kept her hands quite full.
Her figure was ordinary. She was rather heavy, in a curvy sort of way, and her back had developed a hunch reducing her imposing height to a more average one. But Mrs. Potter was renowned for being extremely pretty all her life because she of her extremely charming face. It was full, vivid, and heart-shaped. Her extremely large, dancing hazel eyes seemed to take up half her face. She had flawless skin. Finally she had a dazzling smile she bestowed upon nearly everyone. Her lovely face was framed by short red hair, which only became flecked with white and grey in the last few years of her life.
While her large eyes were lovely, she did have extremely poor sight. She cast a seeing spell on her eyes every morning—she was quite an expert at it, for Mrs. Potter was a healer. She showered every single one of her patients with so much affection and care that all her patients adored her. She loved her job, almost as much as she loved being a mother, wife, and a cook. Like her husband, she made a hefty sum off her job. She often used this money to buy her son toys, gifts, and books.
James never once in his life doubted that his parents loved him with all their heart. They spoilt him whenever they were around. They showered him with affection, love, wisdom, and care.
But here we come to the one large problem in James Potter's otherwise-happy home life. His parents were barely ever around.
Naturally James' parents never left him truly alone. He had two house elves that were always around to watch over him. But one cannot really call house-elves wonderful company when they are busy cleaning a large house, doing the laundry, and other such household chores. So naturally, six year old James Potter was often left by himself for hours at a time.
And he was bored.
During one of his bored walks around the house, he stumbled upon his father's extensive library.
He picked up a book. Opened it. Skimmed the cover. Glanced around and was met by silence. Sighing, James began to read.
And he read. And read.
And read some more.
For what else was there to do?
His mind would wander after a page. He would get up. He would scout for some food. He'd play hide-and-seek with the house elves. He would get on his kid broom and ride around the yard He would explore the house- peek around his parents' room and go through his mother's interesting clothes. He would walk over to his neighbors' home and charm his neighbors with his looks, talk, and smiles. Mrs. Chang worked at home and was nearly always around to give him some wisdom, advice, scones, and cucumber sandwiches (she always had some lying around the kitchen). And then, inevitably, James would wander back into his father's library once more.
He started with the small books. Books listing spells A-B. The uses of the spells, how they had been invented, and the best way to cast them. He read about their latin/greek roots, he mouthed the words to himself, imagined their wand movements, waiting for the day he could properly execute all of them. Sometimes, by accident, he would get the spells to work. And end up soaking the floor with water, shrinking his shoe, or accidentally blowing up his father's desk. He would always get Hobbs and Merry to clean up for him without telling his parents about his accidental bouts of magic. With his father in law he learnt early on that there was no REAL way to detect if a child was performing magic in a magical household, and he took full advantage of this knowledge.
By the age of eight, he had moved on past the A-Z spell books. He read books on the history of magic, books on law, books on magical creatures (centaurs and werewolves among others), books on jinxes, and other such enchantments. He inherited his surprisingly good memory from his mother, and remembered a fair bit of what he read.
His parents were nothing short of impressed by how much James had managed to learn about the magical world and proudly showed off his prowess to all their friends. Everyone cooed over the young and brilliant James Potter.
James entered Hogwarts at the age of eleven with a hefty knowledge of all things magic, already set to be one of the brightest wizards of his year.
He also knew how adorable and smart he was. So yes, he did enter his first year of Hogwarts with the small little character flaw of arrogance.
Now poor Sirius Black's story does not have quite the nice beginning James Potter's does. There was never a day that Sirius didn't doubt whether or not his parents loved him. His father was tolerably good to him when he was sober. But he would come home many times, riled, and take out his anger at the world on his eldest son. He many nights dragged his son out of bed in order to do so. Sometimes he went for Regulus. Sirius couldn't bear the thought of his four year old brother being beaten and often took the heat for him. This only seemed to anger his father further.
His mother seemed to turn a blind eye on the situation. Once, when he was eight, Sirius was receiving a particularly bad beating from his father. In pure self-defense, he grabbed the bottle of firewhiskey cradled in his father's hand and slammed it against the back of his head. Mr. Black fell to the floor with a thud, unconscious. Sirius was sure he had escaped the rest of his beating for the night. That was until his mother turned her wand on him. She was too proud of her place in the Black family to let anyone jeopardize her relationship with her husband. And her eldest seemed to be trying to do just that. And she hated him for it.
She began to turn her wand on him whenever he misbehaved. Whenever he picked up muggle habits. Whenever he annoyed her (which was often). Perhaps she didn't realize it, but she was quickly turning Sirius Black against everything that his family ever stood for.
Sirius sought refuge from his mother's wand, his father, and their house-elf in the attic of the house. He escaped to the landing of Number 12 Grimmauld Place, where piles and piles of his parents' old school books were stored.
By the time Sirius Black prepared to enter his first year of Hogwarts, he had ploughed through nearly four years of Hogwarts material in books. He had also developed an extreme hatred for his mother, his father, Firewhiskey, and for most of the Black family. His aunts and uncles (save for a select few, who would eventually be listed as traitors on the Black family tree anyway) all adored his mother for her pride in all things pure-blood and all things Black.
Sirius Black by the age of eleven was independent, haughty, a loner, and extremely bright. He was also extremely handsome, a fact that he was not quite aware of, since no one fawned over him as they did over James Potter.
Ah, the fateful day when those two boys met on the Hogwarts Express.
One was charming, already clever enough to know how to make others adore him with words, jokes, Quidditch skills, and the solid moral principles his mother and father had drilled into him. The other was a loner, eager to latch onto a friend who accepted him as soon as the Sorting Hat roared "Gryffindor" over his head. Eager to be accepted by someone, since no one had ever truly accepted him before.
A week into the school year, every single teacher had written off James Potter and Sirius Black as two of the brightest boys of their year. Loud, yes. Boisterous, yes. Belligerent, maybe. Arrogant? Undoubtedly. Annoying? A little. But also extremely bright. Another fact that the teachers noted almost instantly- James Potter was born to be a leader.
James Potter and Sirius Black quickly befriended the only two other boys who had been sorted into Gryffindor their year- Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.
Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew had shared a compartment on Hogwarts Express and had instantly clung to each other in a mutual need for friendship. Peter accepted Remus so easily when no one had ever accepted Remus before, that Remus quickly grew to adore Peter. Pete was rather adorable with his cute round eyes, squeaky voice, and small stature. Peter in turn clung to Remus for he had an air about him which suggested that he knew exactly what he was doing in any given situation. When Remus Lupin was sorted into Gryffindor, Peter quickly hoped for the same fate. He could be considered brave, right? Apparently, the Sorting Hat agreed.
Both Remus and Peter were extremely gratified by the friendship of the two boys who shared their dormitory. It began with James, who was convinced that all Gryffindors should stick together (at least the boys, for James had no interest in girls back then). He forced Remus and Peter into conversations about Quidditch, family, food- things eleven year old wizards talk about. He included them in all his adventures (even if they would have opted out of participating in some of them) and quickly learnt to love them.
As nearly everyone learnt to love him.
All the teachers had immediately learnt to expect nothing but the best from him. (Except perhaps Professor Slughorn, who had had an ugly row with James' grandfather years ago- this did not stop him from making James a regular Slug Club member, however. After all, he was a Potter.).
Upperclassman learnt to love him, when the first dozen dungbombs he and Sirius set off in the Dungeons cancelled their Double Potions period.
Older girls cooed and laughed over James' cheeky remarks.
When he made the Quidditch team his second year as a chaser (most chasers were at least third years) and proved to be a ruddy good Quidditch player, he developed quite a fan following.
And as James learnt to make his way through Hogwarts at night without getting caught within the first three months of school (with the help of his father's invisibility cloak, and often with advice from Sirius Black and Remus Lupin), his pranks became better and better. There was the time he and his three best friends succeeded in painting the entire Slytherin wing of the school red and gold. The time they trapped Mrs. Norris in a particularly large trophy. The time they stumbled upon a strange statue, and coaxed the portrait of The Pretty Maidens to give them the password that led them down a passage straight to Hogsmeade. The Acid Pops and Cockroach Clusters they passed out the next day to unsuspecting first and second years caused quite the uproar.
The "Marauders" pranks made people laugh. And laughter was so wonderful and so rare during those dark years that barely anyone had the heart to tell James and Sirius to stop their pranks even when they occasionally went too far.
James Potter, along with his gang of friends, quickly rose to be one of the most popular boys at Hogwarts.
Never mind that all the Slytherins hated him. James hated them back. He had absolutely no tolerance for anything related to the Dark Arts, something quite a few Slytherins were affiliated with.
Never mind that some first years grew terrified that they would be used as target practice for the new spells James discovered and wanted to show his friend Sirius Black (a spell amusing from a bystanders perspective, perhaps, but not necessarily from the receiving end).
Never mind that the red-haired girl James had met on the train hated how he teased a particular greasy-haired Slytherin. James and Sirius, after their rocky start with old Snivellus, enjoyed tormenting him in particular. They accidentally caused his potions cauldron to blow up in his face when they tripped and dropped extra ingredients into his cauldron. They accidentally hit him with the stunning spell in Defense Against the Dark Arts. They accidentally tripped him on his way out from class.
Never mind that the pretty red-haired girl became increasingly annoyed with James and Sirius as their pranks on Snape became crueler and crueler.
Everyone else adored James Potter.
And all the adoration was quickly getting to James' head. To be fair, how could it not?
But even so, to his credit, James remained fundamentally a nice guy. He cared so much about his friend when his mother got ill every month that he simply had to find a way to cure Remus and his family of their strange illness. He and Sirius did not rest for months, obsessively trying to figure out what was bothering their friend and how they could cure it. It was rather difficult when Remus kept dodging questions about the illness that afflicted his mother and made turned him so pale at times. And rather odd. And rather shifty.
After months, James and Sirius began to put two and two together. He and Sirius tracked a lunar chart. They shoved Remus into a closet with a boggart. And things began to become clearer and clearer.
One night, James confronted his friend. He was twelve.
"Remus, let's talk," he said as soon as his friend entered the dormitory.
"Huh? Hey James, what's up?"
"How was your mum, Remus?" Sirius asked casually, eyeing Remus warily.
"Uh, I mean, she'll live," he said bravely. He rubbed at the bags under his eyes and there was a limp in his step as he dropped his trunk next to his bed.
"Huh. I hope she's alright. Did you take her out last night? Sometimes fresh night air can help people," James said. Sirius nodded in agreement.
"Um, no, I didn't. That's a good idea—"
"Last night was a real pretty night. Clear. Beautiful stars…gorgeous full moon…" Sirius cut in airily, following Remus with his eyes. Remus had been about to pull off his black robes but as soon as the words "full moon" left his friend's mouth, he froze.
And that was all the reaction James and Sirius needed.
"Oh dear God," Sirius whispered, his eyes widening.
"…What?" Remus managed to choke.
"You're a werewolf, aren't you, Remus?" Peter asked quietly, looking up at his friend with fear and concern. Before Remus had time to do or say anything, he felt a body slam into him. His first instinct told him that his friends had attacked him in fear, attacked him in hate. His heart nearly shattered into a thousand pieces before he realized…James Potter was holding on to him for dear life, his stringy arms wrapped around Remus' wiry frame, his head resting on Remus' shoulder.
"I read about how much it hurts when a human has to transform into a wolf…Oi, Lupin, it's not too terrible is it? I'm so sorry, Remus, I'm just so sorry." He let go and peered into Remus' face with teary eyes. Remus stood stock still and speechless.
"Way to keep something this big from us, Lupin," Sirius grunted sourly. His eyes were guarded, but he too walked forward and wrapped his arms briefly around Remus. "I'm sorry too," he whispered before letting go. Peter was last to step forward, but he threw himself at Remus.
"Of course it doesn't change anything- you are still one of the nicest guys I've ever met- I would have flunked out last year without your help," he squeaked, and meant every word that he said.
"It doesn't change anything, Remus, if that's what you are worried about. You're still our roommate and still our friend. We've got your back," James said. Sirius and Peter nodded.
Remus Lupin stumbled backwards until he thudded against his bed. He fell onto it with a thud. It was only then that his three friends noticed the tears streaming down his face.
"Tha-tha-thank you guys so much," he sobbed in his squeaky twelve-year-old voice. "I don't imagine I can ever repay you for what you guys have just given me," he choked, as his three friends gathered around him. Sirius patted his back, Peter handed him tissues, and James ruffled his hair.
"You have nothing to thank us for. I just wish there was something we could do to help…"
"You already have helped," Remus blubbered. James waved a hand at him.
"No, something to help with the pain…"
As James entered his third year, he became extremely engrossed in finding a way to help his best friend out with his "furry problem". See? Nice guy. In fact, he and Sirius had been devising fewer and fewer pranks, engrossed as they were in trying to find a way to help their friend. They were devoting most of their time to researching in the library (unlike Peter, who used their research time to try to catch up on his schoolwork). It was on one such run to the library that Iris Brown called James Potter over to her table.
"Hey Iris, what's up?" James asked, grinning at her.
"I was just wondering… are you going to Hogsmeade this weekend?" James nodded.
"Of course, how about you?"
"Well actually, James, I was just wondering- are you going with anyone particular?"
"Do you mean, like Sirius, Remus, and Peter? We always go together," he said matter-of-factly.
"No, I meant—well, I was just wondering if maybe you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend," she said breathlessly, blushing prettily. James blinked.
"Huh?" he managed to spew, looking like he was just hit in the head.
"I mean, you don't have to if you already have plans," she said, already beginning to look dejected. James shook his head.
"Oh, uh, no, I mean, I'd love to go to Hogsmeade with you!" he said. After all, what thirteen year old boy doesn't jump at the chance to go on a date with a pretty girl? Iris beamed.
"Really? Great!" she said. James grinned at her.
"Yeah, awesome. Well, I'll see you this Saturday then!" he said, saluting her before hurrying back to his table. He resisted the temptation to skip.
"Sirius, I just landed a date with Iris Brown!" James exclaimed, his heart racing. Sirius looked up at him, surprised.
"Is that why she called you over? Well, nice Prongs. That's cool." He paused, and pondered for a second. "Except she seems really dim," he said bluntly.
"Oh well, I'll confirm that at Hogsmeade this weekend, then," he said.
"What? HOGSMEADE? Did you forget we had plans? What is this James? We were supposed to impress Rosemerta's pretty daughter together, and loot the joke shop for all it is worth!" He said loudly, while the librarian screeched at him to shut up before she threw him out. James laughed silently, but had the decency to look ashamed.
"Sorry mate. If it makes you feel better, you can come with us if you like, and keep us company," he offered, in a mock earnest voice. Sirius glared at him and muttered something James didn't quite catch under his breath.
"So, did you find anything good, by the way?" James asked, switching topics.
"Nothing for Remus- but check out this new spell I just discovered," he said with a grin, pointing his wand at a small second year who was browsing the library shelves.
"Densaugeo." The second year did not quite seem to notice that his teeth were becoming larger and larger until his front teeth had grown past his chin. Upon noticing his beaver teeth, the twelve year old shrieked in horror and ran out of the library. He nearly tripped at the new added-weight to his body as he sprinted out the door. Sirius and James burst into a silent fit of laughter. James high-fived Sirius delightedly, ignoring the momentary twinge of pity he felt for the boy.
"Did you two just do that?" an irate looking Lily Evans walked over to their corner of the room, her distinct bottle-green eyes flashing. She had been browsing the shelves beside the younger boy. "Attack that first year?"
"Well, actually, I think he was a second year," Sirius mused with mock-seriousness. Lily glared at him.
"Are you seriously kidding with me?"
"Don't get your panties in a twist, it was just a laugh- Madam Pomfrey will fix him up in no time," James said exasperatedly with an eye-roll. She turned her angry glare on him.
"God, you two are just mean bullies," she hissed angrily. James and Sirius looked at each other in mock horror.
"Oh no Sirius, it seems as if Miss. Goody-Two-Shoes doesn't quite approve of us," he said in a pompous, overly concerned manner. "What ever shall we do?"
"It's time to turn over a new leaf, James," Sirius said in a deep, earnest, voice. "I can't live without her approval. Life would be just horrid without it, don't you think?
"God, life without Lily Evans. No one to yell at us, rat us out— incidentally, that was you who told that prefect that we er-accidentally hit Snape with that jinx, wasn't it?— no one to preach goody-two-shoes doctrine to us…that would be so horrible, wouldn't it, Sirius?" James was unable to keep the laughter out of his voice. Sirius guffawed.
"Shut up!" Lily said through gritted teeth, throwing them one more nasty look before turning on her heel and stalking away. James and Sirius exchanged glances before bursting into another fit of laughter.
Wiping tears of mirth away from his eyes, Sirius sighed.
"Anyway, what were we talking about before?"
"Hmm...I think we were talking about you keeping me company on my date. It'll make you feel less abandoned," James mocked Sirius, laughing again. Then suddenly, he froze.
"Hey Sirius- what if we kept Remus company when he transformed?" James asked. Sirius stared at him.
"Well, gee, that's a great idea James! Except I think you are forgetting one thing. If we tried, he'd attack us and then eat us." James frowned.
"There has to be a way we can keep him company…what if we're not human when we're in the same room as him?" James asked.
"Not human? Are you suggesting we become werewolves for him? I love Lupin and all, but not that much," Sirius whispered. James sat in silence for a few minutes.
"What if we didn't become werewolves…but, I dunno…something else he isn't a threat to…maybe some other animal? Werewolves are only dangerous to humans, aren't they?" Sirius opened his mouth to shoot the idea down, but then he closed it again. And stared.
"Huh," he said, finally. They stared at each other before both simultaneously jumping up and tearing through the library for books on Animagus transformations.
Full-length black wizards' robes were extremely useful at hiding human figures. Students wore them every day of the week at Hogwarts except on Saturdays and Sundays. And since Hogwarts remained relatively chilly except for perhaps in May, most people opted for baggy sweatshirts, sweaters, and jumpers along with loose jeans for their weekends. People only ever seemed to dress up for Hogsmeade weekends.
James met Iris Brown in the Entrance Hall for his first ever date with a girl. Iris had curled her caramel-colored hair for the occasion, and let it loosely fall down her back. She was dressed in a pink form-fitting scoop neck sweater on a pair of tight jeans.
James' first thought when he saw Iris standing there, was that Iris was…well, small. She looked down right puny in that pink form-fitting sweater.
Perhaps it was the shock of seeing her without her robes, but James was suddenly afraid to put his arm around her. That had been his initial plan- say hello, head out to Hogsmeade, and casually put an arm around her waist (the way his father did with his mother on evening strolls). But suddenly James was sure he would break Iris' fragile bones if he so much as wrapped a finger around her tiny midsection. Suddenly unnerved, James turned on his heel and ran to find Sirius. Never mind that Iris had just seen him and was waving him over frantically.
He bumped into Sirius, Remus, and Peter in the jam packed Entrance Hall. They all look surprised to see him.
"Hey James, aren't you supposed to be on a da—" Remus began.
"I can't do this. God, Iris is tiny! Did you guys know she was that small? She is thirteen, right? Not seven? I'll probably break her if I put an arm around her waist," he gulped as he said the last word, "so I obviously can't do that. Do I hold her hand then? My hands get really sweaty when I hold someone else's for too long. I can put an arm around her shoulder, but I'll probably break her that way too. Guys, help me," he choked. Remus and Sirius glanced at each other before they burst out laughing. Peter shot him a look that said he, at least, sympathized with him.
"Guys!" James protested, now seriously looking on the verge of a meltdown.
"You know, if this were anyone else but you, I would find what you just said really cute," a voice behind them said. Fourteen-year-old Lily Evans was clearly not heading out on a date. She was bundled under five layers of clothing and looked rather like a walking marshmallow. Her dark red hair hung loose around her shoulders and almost blended in with parts of her Gryffindor scarf.
"Evans! You can help me! What do I do?" James asked desperately. Well, desperate times called for desperate measures. She appeared to give his dilemma some thought before an idea struck her. Lily smiled genuinely at him (that was the first time he saw her smile at him), pushing a dimple into her right cheek and crinkling her eyes at their corners. James was quite suddenly aware of his quickening heartbeat.
"Hold her hand, but wear some gloves," she said with a slight giggle. James blinked.
"Genius! Thanks a bunch, Evans," he said, grinning at her (Lily's heart sped up a little- that was the first time he grinned at her). "Oi Remus, can I have your gloves?" Remus shook his head, wiping tears out of his eyes, before passing the gloves off his hands to James. Thanking him, James turned to sprint back to Iris, but remembered something.
"Uh, Lillian, could you not tell anyone what you just heard? You know, reputation and all," he said awkwardly, running a hand through his hair.
"Of course," Lily said wryly. Her smile was quickly fading. She was already wondering why she had willingly talked to James Potter.
"Thanks," he smiled at her again before sprinting off. Lily shrugged and walked off, coldly shouldering past Sirius. She finally spotted her crowd of girlfriends. It was minutes before James' smile stopped flashing in front of her eyes.
A/N: PHEW that took a toll on me, awkward transitions and all. Thoughts? Comments? Things I should change? Reviews are love! And thank you to all who favorited and what not- you guys made my day =)