James

"Hello? Anyone there?"

James jerked away from the hand that was waving erratically in front of his face. "Knock it off, Pads."

"Oh, good, you are still with us," Sirius sniped, leaning back into his seat.

"Bloody hell," James sighed, wiping at his brow tiredly. "Will it ever end?"

"Likely not," Remus murmured as he idly turned a page in his Defense book. "But I suppose we should be used to it by now."

"Oi ," Sirius spat, though his tone revealed he wasn't truly offended. "Might I point out that this was the sixth time Prongs has zoned out on us in the last fifteen minutes since we boarded this bloody train?"

James pinched the bridge of his nose. "And?"

"You're supposed to be conversing with us ," Sirius continued. "Not daydreaming about your new workload as elite Head Boy."

James pointed. "Remus was reading his book; Peter's already nodded off -" the boy in question released a timely snore - "And you were organizing your polishing kit while talking about the plans you had for your enchanted motorcycle."

"Yes," Sirius retorted. "Which you mentioned you'd help with, yeah?"

"We're on the train, Padfoot. How am I supposed to help now?"

Sirius sneered, crossing his arms. "I expected you to put forth effort into the conversation, at least."

"He's allowed to be a bit nervous, isn't he, Padfoot?" Remus pointed out, in the calm, empathetic way he'd always done to cut in between their usual, trivial bickering.

But James didn't like the way Remus cut straight to the core of his unease; he was nervous. He'd been nervous ever since his Hogwarts letter had arrived and the heavy, metal badge had tumbled out onto the table in front of Sirius and his parents during breakfast.

The level of nerves had increased as his mother crowed, jumping from her seat with much more quickness than her age should allow, pulling James into a hug and pressing at least a dozen kisses to his temple all while James was still processing the fact; Dumbledore had made him Head Boy.

"Good job, son." his dad had rasped, clasping a hand over his shoulder. "Knew you'd make us proud at some point." He had winked.

"Head Boy?" Sirius had squawked, spitting food across the tabletop. "They made you Head Boy?"

A constant mantra of Good Job, Son - Made You Head Boy? - Proud at Some Point had been revolving around his mind for the last four weeks.

"Just didn't expect him to ignore us." Sirius grunted as he propped his feet up onto the empty space before him.

James was about to shove them off when a passing glimpse of red caught his eye, momentarily halting the despairing sequence of thoughts.

It was a shade of red that he'd become familiar with; but had missed over the last year.

"See? Gone - again," Sirius declared, sweeping his hands grandly.

"Did you -"

"What? Did I really believe that you'd become Head Boy? Merlin, no - we've talked about this," Sirius huffed. "But I suppose if it comes with some perks…"

"Padfoot," Remus said disapprovingly.

Sirius shrugged. "What? You're telling me having you as a Prefect hasn't allowed us some leniency? Knowing the patrol schedule has proved to be exceedingly useful…"

James rolled his eyes, leaning back in his seat. "We could've gotten the schedule regardless. I suspect that Dumbledore thought Moony wasn't doing a good enough job keeping us in line."

"McGonagall," Peter said sleepily from his stooped position. "I think it was McGonagall bribing Dumbledore to do it. Making Moony Prefect and James Head Boy."

James refrained from tossing something at him. "Thanks, Pete. I appreciate the vote of confidence," he said grimly, though he immediately agreed that this notion could be the cause of Dumbledore's offer. Their headmaster was often a betting man.

"S'no problem," Peter mumbled, readjusting himself against the wall of the compartment.

"That wasn't why," Remus was quick to assure him, giving him a sympathetic grin. "You've matured this last year. I think the professors noticed."

Sirius exhaled noisily, re-crossing his ankles.

This time, James did knock his feet off the bench. "Mind your space, you sod."

"Just trying to get comfortable for the ride," he said blithely.

"Don't get too comfortable, we ought to change into our uniforms."

Sirius scoffed. "Not for a couple hours."

James rolled his eyes.

"Oh, right ," Sirius complained. "The Prefect Meeting. You'll both be leaving us for that, won't you?"

"You could come along if you wanted," Remus offered, his tone just on this side of sly.

"No thanks," Sirius replied snidely. "I'd rather get some sleep before I have to face the masses."

James rolled his eyes. "Merlin , you'd think it was nearing your time of the month. Moony, you haven't got any of that chocolate to spare, have you?"

Remus had already used his wand to wordlessly retrieve a bar of Honeyduke's Finest . It smacked Sirius in the forehead, the boy too late to react at the fast action.

" Oi! " Sirius shouted, outraged for a brief moment, but James caught the twitch at the corner of his best mate's mouth; Sirius was trying hard not to laugh, trying to maintain the enraged look on his face. "Uncalled for, Moony. Bloody uncalled for."

Remus shrugged, unable to hold back his own chuckle. "If the wizard's hat fits, Padfoot."

Sirius harrumphed, cracking open the bar of chocolate and tearing back the wrapping to bite into it. "Ta, mate," he said with a full mouth.

Remus chuckled. "Of course. I expect a replacement batch after the next Hogsmeade trip, though."

Sirius snorted. "I'll do you better and sneak out to get you one tonight. How many you want?"

"Padfoot," James berated with no true chastisement, if only to goad his friend's annoyance more.

It worked. "Ugh, right," Sirius moaned as he collapsed back against his seat. "Now we have to be good and follow all the rules."

"Exactly," James replied with a smirk as he stood. "One toe out of line and you're in detention, mate."

Sirius pressed the back of his hand to his forehead. "Oh, no. What shall I do? A detention?"

James pointed with an accusatory finger. "Two toes and I'll make sure you're in it with Filch. Get your arse up and help me with the trunks."

"What about magic?" Sirius complained, taking his time to stand.

"I like to stay humble," James retorted wryly, grabbing one end of it and waiting for Sirius to grab the other.

Soon, two of the four inhabitants of the compartment were changed into their uniforms; Sirius lounged still in his muggle jeans and leather jacket he'd found in London two weeks ago on an impromptu trip into Muggle London with James. Peter continued to snooze, curled up against the window.

"What time's the meeting?" James asked, proud that his voice came out even.

"Why, want to practice your speech one more time?" Sirius said slyly.

"Shut it," James warned without any bite. He adjusted his tie to keep his hands busy.

Sirius huffed a laugh. "I could probably step in and give it for you, Prongs. You rehearsed it enough in your room I could probably recite it word for word. 'While I might not have the best track record -"

"Alright," Remus cut in with another disproving look. "We've got ten minutes before it's supposed to start. We can get there early; help curb some of the gossip."

James exhaled slowly, running his hand through his hair out of nervous habit.

"Your badge is crooked," Sirius pointed out with a raised eyebrow. "Might want to fix it."

Self-consciously, James removed his hand from his hair to check; it felt right enough. He glared at Sirius. "You might want to shove -"

"They didn't say that! Take it back!"

The four boys in the compartment looked at each other curiously.

"Did so! I heard it meself!"

James turned towards the compartment door, taking a step forward as the other voice responded, "Are you calling me a liar, then?"

"Of course I am! If your little half-blood girlfriend - "

James tore open the door, sticking his head into the corridor. "Oi! What are you two doing?"

The two boys whirled to face him, paling with shock.

"Oh, uh-" the boy nearest to him started, eyes dropping to the badge pinned on his chest. "Wait, you're -"

Remus stepped out from behind where James was standing. "Were you two fighting out here?"

The other boy, a Ravenclaw, shook his head adamantly. "No, sir, I mean - Jonas was just saying that -"

"I told you ," the other boy stepped in with an angry glare. His robes were trimmed with green and silver, Slytherin. "Those other boys saw -"

"They didn't!"

"Did, too!"

The two could've only been 3rd Years; James guessed from the height of them, their baby-faces just on this side of puberty.

He stepped into the corridor fully, crossing his arms as he stared at the two boys with an unimpressed expression. "It's not even the first day, mates. What could you be fighting about?"

The Ravenclaw turned to glare at the boy. "They said Melanie had failed her 2nd Year exams because she's a half-blood and that's why she's not on the train."

Though James had heard one of them say the term half-blood just a moment before, in this context, it shook him; the accusation of it, let alone coming from a group of 3rd Years .

"Dragon's shite," James began.

"Prongs," Remus chastised him quietly from over his shoulder.

James turned to the Slytherin, pointing a finger. "You need to be careful spreading rumors about people you don't know. Let alone blood status, yeah?"

The boy nodded his head quickly, lips pursed.

James turned to the other boy. "You shouldn't listen to the shite other's say when it's not true. If you know your friend Melanie, then you know the truth."

"But she's not here," the boy said quietly, nervously.

"Have you checked the whole train?" James asked patiently. "There's loads of compartments."

The boy shook his head, his expression showing the smallest glimmer of hope.

"I'll help," James offered. "After the Prefect Meeting we're nearly late to. Is that alright?"

The boy nodded, smiling sheepishly. To the both of them, James asked, "What are your names?"

"Spencer," said the Ravenclaw.

"Rowle," said the Slytherin.

"Return to your compartments. If I catch you fighting again…"

The two boys nodded their heads quickly, spinning on their heels and heading into separate compartments.

"Perhaps not as I would've handled it," Remus said wryly, "but successful enough."

James chuckled, rubbing at his forehead. "Is this what I'll have to deal with as Head Boy?"

Remus raised a shoulder. "Pretty much."

"Brilliant."

"Come on," Remus said, reaching up to pat him on the shoulder. "Let's get to the meeting. We might be late."

"Wouldn't want that," James agreed grimly. "Lead the way, Moony."

With each step, the mantra grew louder in his head - Good Job, Son - Made You Head Boy? - Proud at Some Point.

"So still no clue who made Head Girl?" he said in order to fill the silence.

Remus's shoulder rose from in front of him. "Emmeline was a great Prefect last year, but she hates speaking in front of people. I thought maybe Jorkins from Hufflepuff or maybe the other Prefect in Ravenclaw, but…"

"But what?"

Remus shared a wry grin over his shoulder. "Well, with you as Head Boy, it sorts of shakes it all loose. Who knows who Dumbledore may have picked?"

James huffed a despairing laugh. "Right."

He'd already thought through the other 7th Year witches who could've been assigned; Jorkins would be the top contender. She was near the top of the class, kind to all students, but Merlin , was she full of herself. She was often the first to point out she was one of the nicest witches, gloat about having some of the highest marks in the year.

He wasn't sure if he'd make it through the stress if she ended up being his co-Head.

James tried not to consider any of the Slytherin 7th Year girls; but he knew one or two could've been chosen. Lucinda Talkalot was a possible option - and that scared James. The Potter family had known the Talkalots for ages; but it'd been years since he'd talked to Lucinda directly (beyond any paired school projects or homework assignments).

Vance, he could see. Even if she had just been Prefect only the year before - and even if she hated being in front of others - Dumbledore could have considered her seriously. He'd likely cite her fear of public-speaking as the main reason for his decision.

Throughout his considerations, there was still a palpable sensation of disappointment in the pit of James's stomach. It, too, had grown beside the quaffle of nerves in his middle when the Head Boy badge had first made its appearance.

When he'd read the words Head Boy in his Hogwarts letter, there was only one name that flashed in his mind as Head Girl.

"Ready?" Remus asked over his shoulder, halting at the train carriage's entrance.

"As much as I can be," James replied steadily.

Remus opened the door, the loud sound of its slide on the tracks almost overruling the sound of the blood rushing in his ears.

But that was a familiar feeling; this was something that James relished in. The rush of adrenaline before a game or before a Marauder's patented prank. This was a feeling he could sink into and embrace.

Like his eyes would in a game, he scanned the space in front of him as he stepped in behind Remus.

He felt the curious gazes of the other students as they turned towards him, catching sight of the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors lounging together, then the Slytherins - Snape, Rosier, Mulciber and the others - loitering in the back. Ravenclaw Prefects scattered about, waiting impatiently.

His eyes skimmed the faces until they landed on one particular familiar - but changed - face.

Lily Evans.

"Potter?" she asked - tone tinged with shades of incredulity and confusion. Her eyes were on the badge pinned to his chest.

A flood of emotions crashed over him; shock, excitement - relief when he caught sight of the HG badge pinned to the front of her white jumper.

The grin - the one he knew used to infuriate her - came across his face involuntarily. "Alright, Evans?"


Lily

She watched him. It was all she could do.

Lily watched as he called the attention of the other students easily and watched as he held their attention effortlessly. She watched as he talked them through what they expected of the year ahead - he must've prepared what he wanted to talk about, or at least had chatted with Remus prior - and watched as he owned up to the fact that he hadn't been a Prefect, hadn't had the most clean history with detentions himself, but that he was going to be honest and open as much as he could.

This was not the wizard she'd seen at the end of 5th Year; full of himself and conceited.

Lily couldn't quite understand how she was feeling - confused, definitely - but there was a small glimmer of… gratitude, she was surprised to find. A miniscule sliver of admiration, she was loath to admit to herself.

James shifted between his feet, the only tell of any nerves. "As for the more strategic tasks and duties of this role, I may have to defer to our Head Girl," he admitted as he turned, the corner of his mouth curved as he gestured to her. "Evans?"

She took a bracing breath that she hoped wasn't obvious.

"Hello, Prefects," she greeted, pleased when her voice came out even. "For those of you returning, welcome back. For those of you joining as new Prefects -"

Lily caught sight of Brigid as she sat beside the other 5th Year male Prefect, Davis. The girl smiled brilliantly, excited, which spurred Lily's confidence.

"- we're excited to have you join. I'll assume most of you are already familiar with much of the tasks assigned, but on our part, we'll be sure to have the Patrol Schedule completed and distributed as soon as possible. If you have any conflicting items that are affected; Quidditch Practice, Club meetings, or others, reach out to us immediately. Otherwise, if much hadn't changed in the year prior, we'll meet monthly to ensure all your detention forms or point slips are turned in. 5th Years, you'll be in charge of gathering your 1st Years tonight after dinner and making sure they make it back to your Common Rooms."

She paused for any questions, but the room remained dutifully silent. "Come see us at any time -" she glanced at Potter, where he nodded with an easy smile - "And we'll be available for any concerns. Any questions for now?"

Lily's eyes swept across the group of unsettled Slytherins in the back the quickest, to see if anyone moved to ask a question or open their mouths to speak. The room remained quiet.

"Look out for each other," Lily added. "Offer help when you find someone who might need it."

The room teetered slightly, shifting as they looked towards each other in careful acknowledgement.

" - gives her the right to order us around?"

Lily's eyes snagged towards the back of the room, where Rosier had been leaning to speak into Snape's ear - purposely not lowering his voice. The Prefects around him quieted into silence.

Lily opened her mouth to call him out but -

"She's your Head Girl," Potter snapped. "If you feel like you aren't up to the job of being Prefect this year, then you're more than welcome to turn in your badge, Rosier."

The Slytherin crossed his arms, neck flushing as he sat back and mumbled.

"What's that?" Potter prompted with a raised brow.

"Nothing," Rosier spat with a huff.

Potter stared for a moment longer, forcing Rosier to lower his gaze towards the ground. "If there aren't any questions," he said to the room at large, his tone switching to one more relaxed, confident, "it seems like you can return to your compartments. See you all at the Welcome Feast."

The students all stood at varying different times; their hushed conversations filled with fragmented words Lily caught here and there.

Evans is Head Girl? I thought she left.

I thought she died in the attack .

I hope Potter hexes Rosier. Merlin, he deserves it.

Lily stepped back to lean against the wall to allow the Prefects to leave; Potter did similarly, standing almost a head taller than nearly everyone as the students filtered past them.

"I'll meet you back at the compartment," Emmeline said with an encouraging grin as she passed by, brushing her elbow against Lily's.

She'd known. Lily knew by the glint of the witch's eye. She'd known that Potter had been Head Boy somehow and had failed to mention the fact.

If Emmeline had known, then the other girls did, too. Lily was not going to let this drop.

"So how'd I do?"

Lily shifted in surprise, finding the room empty save for herself and Potter.

She turned to find him staring down at her with a surprisingly earnest expression, as if he was truly curious for her opinion.

Lily blinked up at him, resisting from creasing her brow. He was asking her?

"Fine," she answered mindlessly, having not expected the question from him .

The easy grin that had been playing at his lips dimmed as he took in her response. "Yeah, I suppose I could've been better prepared. I asked Remus what usually happened -"

"It was fine," she cut in, intending for it to sound assuring, but winced as Potter's grin disappeared completely at her abrupt tone.

He shifted between his feet, making their height difference glaringly obvious. "Look, I'm betting you're as surprised as I am that Dumbledore made me Head Boy -"

Lily barely refrained from snorting - but she got the sense he'd caught onto her poorly veiled response, her stomach filling with regret as his brow rose in what appeared to be offense .

"I'm going to try my best," Potter continued, reaching his hand up to push his fingers through the curls atop his head. "But I'll probably need to help. I'm a bit new to this, yeah?"

Lily took a moment to consider his sincere manner, the slight furrow to his browline. "I'll admit it is a bit … unexpected," she said carefully, "that you've been chosen as Head Boy. It's rather hard to reconcile your past history with the responsibilities of the role, you know?

Potter chuckled, mirroring her posture as he crossed his own arms, his body language still carefully closed. "Yeah, I know. But you - you I'm surprised to see. I didn't realize you'd…"

"...Consider returning?" Lily's eyes were inadvertently drawn to his chest, where the fabric of his school shirt was taut across muscles there.

Christ, had the year at home truly been that bereft of male interaction?

The glint of light against the Head Boy badge broke her from her thoughts, her eyes drawn back to his face as he shifted again. "Me either, truthfully. But… you know. It's Hogwarts."

Potter smiled, the corner of his mouth turning up to reveal a dimple in his cheek.

Lily cleared her throat. "McGonagall usually has the Head Boy and Girl meet with her in the unused classroom by her office - you know it?"

Potter nodded.

"She likes to meet with them after the Welcome Feast while the other Prefects assist in guiding the 1st Years to their dorms. I heard she usually gives the same type of speech - notes included - regarding her own expectations of Head Boy and Girl."

Potter nodded again.

"Frank Longbottom - he was Head Boy our 5th Year, remember?"

He chuckled to himself. "He let me off a few times when he caught us out after curfew."

Lily rolled her eyes out of amusement. "He would."

"It's not my fault he had a soft spot for us."

"Alice had a soft spot for you, if I recall," Lily mused aloud. "You're lucky he was in love with her."

"You recall?" he asked wryly. She opened her mouth, hoping to suddenly backtrack on the words, but he shrugged a shoulder, the gesture casually indifferent. "Alice appreciated our side-business of smuggling in chocolate from Honeydukes between Hogsmeade Weekends. If we benefited from the service in other ways, who was to complain?"

Lily crossed her own arms. "The students who did get detention."

"And if they were witless enough to get caught?"

She rolled her eyes again. "We can go over McGonagall's notes if you still need to. Classes don't start until Monday. We can meet Sunday afternoon, if you need."

There was a brief moment when a wave of surprise fell across his features before his expression shuttered, resuming his easy-going grin. "Sounds brilliant."

Lily wondered briefly if he'd inferred something from the offer, if he'd thought she'd meant for something more than what she was extending - and the thought scared her. A new wave of emotion washed over her; one she couldn't quite name, but left her restless and uneasy.

"Great," she replied, turning towards the door and pulling it open so that she could leave to try and decipher her own emotions. She paused, having a thought. "Oh, Potter?"

"Yes?"

"About Rosier -"

Potter scoffed, raising his hand to scratch at the back of his neck. "What a bloody tosser, saying something like that in front of everyone. Honestly. You're welcome. Though, it was nothing to say something."

Lily's brows rose. "Excuse me?"

His own brow furrowed. "Well, for saying something on your behalf, I mean. He was being a disgusting prick -"

Resentful indignation replaced the feelings of uncertainty she'd been experiencing not a moment ago. "You shouldn't have said anything, Potter. I didn't need your help."

He suddenly seemed to realize he must've said something wrong, raising his hands in submission. "Hang on, Evans. He was being a right arse to my Head Girl. Was I just supposed to let him off easy?"

My Head Girl. She wondered if he knew he'd said it.

"Yes," she hissed, letting the door close shut as she stepped back into the room. "They want a response and for you to rise to the bait. You're giving them exactly what they want."

"Well, good, then," Potter retorted. "Someone should call them out on that shite!"

"Jesus Christ," she huffed. "Of course that's what you'd say, Potter. Any excuse to cause a scene, right?"

Potter's expression shifted as he glared at her in return. " No . If I'm going to see someone treating someone else like rubbish, of course I'll speak up."

Lily released a harsh, derisive laugh. "That's rich coming from you, Potter. Besides, not all of us have the luxury, Potter, you know? When you rile them up, you're not the one to be punished later. Ever think about that? About anyone but yourself?"

"And what do you propose then, Evans? Take the high road? Avoid and ignore the issue?"

Lily wanted to scream at him; he clearly didn't understand the potency of his actions - what it meant to upset the careful environment that Muggleborns constantly had to maintain in order to survive. She opened her mouth to tell him just that - but the train suddenly pitched forward, the wheels audibly grinding against the iron tracks beneath them.

Lily gasped in panic, staggering forward a step.

Swiftly, Potter reached forward to grab her by the elbow to steady her.

"It's alright," he assured, his other hand grasping her shoulder.

"What?" she asked shakily.

The weight of his grip grounded her, and she quickly realized that the train was still moving forward.

"The train just shifted onto a new track," Potter said quietly. He pointed towards the window behind her. "We're heading North now. You can see the sun in the South."

Urged by his reassuring tone, Lily looked over her shoulder, confirming his words. There was the sun; a few meters above the horizon. When she turned her head to look back at him, she suddenly realized how close they stood.

Painfully humiliated by the show of unwarranted fear, Lily ripped herself out of his grasp, stepping backwards to gain distance. She should've said something, but her throat had involuntarily closed.

She turned sharply on her heel and fled from the room, letting the door slam closed behind her.