Chapter 3
The next few days went quickly for Lily and her friends. They got back on track with schoolwork, and adjusted to being back at Hogwarts. They were happy to be back; you could tell.
Lily was on top of things as usual and had all her work up to date and done. Julia started going to Quidditch practices, handling both that and her schoolwork. Emily was, as always, ahead of the pack, working on homework that wouldn’t be due for days. They only had one other little feud with Nadia, over how annoying Sirius was. And the marauders were actually being reasonably civilized.
The three of them could be caught in the common room curled up in their favorite armchairs either working on homework or just chatting away into the night. As everyone said, it was great to be back.
But Lily was worried. It had been almost week, and her inner buddy hadn’t written her back. Had she gotten a Slytherin for her buddy? Were they just going to ignore her?
She got her answer on the third Monday since her return. Lily, Julia, and Emily had been sitting at their usual table in the Gryffindor common room, with their homework spread out among them.
“When did McGonagall say this transfiguration essay was due?” asked Julia as she paused in her writing.
“I think she said next class, but I’m not sure,” Lily answered absentmindedly. She was trying to concentrate on her Potions homework, but the marauders were causing such a ruckus she was having trouble.
She leaned over to check on Julia, but before she could Julia stood up and yelled, “Black, won’t you please shut up! Some of us are actually trying to do our work!”
“Well I am so sorry, Ms. Demartini, but some of us are actually trying to have some fun!” At this many of the people in the room laughed. He was standing with a pile of books on his head and trying to walk around with his eyes closed while juggling still more books in his hands.
“Well maybe if you worried about something other than people having fun you would actually be able to take your extremely inflated head out of your ass.” At this remark Sirius made a big show of bumping into Remus and spilling books all over the floor. Even more people laughed this time.
“Oh, so my head is the inflated one,” he said, looking at her, not bothering to pick up the books. “I’m so sorry, Mademoiselle Big Head that we interrupted your study time. These three here will just have to work at being more serious, seeing as how I already have that down.”
Julia groaned. “Oh, come off it,” she exclaimed, striding over to them. “You’ve used that serious Sirius joke way to many times for it to be funny.”
“How would you know? You’re never with me, although I know you want to be.” He put his arm around her and smiled mischievously.
She pushed his arm away, but grinned and said, “Ha, in your dreams, Black. I’d rather date your mate Peter there.” Peter blushed, while Sirius tried to look hurt.
Lily, who was watching this scene unfold from the other side of the room, figured she had had enough. Picking her way across the room she found herself next to James Potter, whom she made a great deal of trying not to look at.
“How about this,” she proposed, “The next time Sirius makes a serious joke, Julia gets to hex him. And Sirius,” she said, turning to him, “the next time Julia rejects you, you get to kiss her. Got it? Good.” Sirius once again grinned mischievously, while Julia looked at Lily, aghast.
Lily knew Julia had something for Sirius, or why else would she put up with him and his jokes all the time? Lily wasn’t the best matchmaker, but she knew how to get plans in action. She looked Julia square in her blue eyes and smiled.
Julia simply said, “Sirius Black, if you come within a foot of me I swear I will hex you into the next century. Ok? I’m serious.”
“No you’re not! I am!” he said.
Julia smiled at Lily. “I knew he’d say that.” She turned towards him, wand raised, and said, “You asked for it. Rictusempra!”
Sirius started laughing uncontrollably as the tickling charm took him over. Lily took this chance to steal a glimpse at Potter, and quickly glanced away. She had been startled to see that he was also looking at her. As she glanced away, he too returned his eyes to his notebook. So she instead focused her eyes on Remus and said, “I’m going to do my homework. Please try to keep them under control.”
Remus just laughed. “Keep Sirius under control?”
With that, Julia and Lily left the Marauders and returned to their own table, to find Emily asleep over her Transfiguration book.
“How can she sleep with us yelling? Sirius is so loud and such an ass. I can’t see how anyone can put up with him,” Julia exclaimed, waving her hands frantically.
“I don’t know. Let’s not wake her, she’s tired. About Sirius, you know you have fun torturing him, and I know you love it when he sweet talks you,” Lily said.
“Ha, are you crazy? Like I said, I’d rather date Peter.” At the look on Lily’s face she laughed again, “Ok, maybe not him. But definitely Potter over Black.”
“You are completely whacko. Anyway, enough about those stupid boys, let’s finish our homework.”
Lily returned her eyes to her Transfiguration essay but her attention was quickly sidetracked. Her inner buddy journal had just started to glow ever so slightly. Picking it up she thought, Finally! What took them so long to reply?
Opening it up she saw her previous letter, so she quickly flipped to the next page. Settling into her armchair, she excitedly read:
Dear Wisher,
I forgot to write the original letter; I guess that tells a lot about me right there. A slacker, right? School is full of labels like that, but I guess they fit. I do go to parties and all. But you’re really not missing anything. There’s loneliness like no other when you’re surrounded by people, not connecting with any of them. I sometimes wish I had someone to talk to. I guess now there’s you, but that’s weird enough in itself, writing to someone, not knowing who it is. Maybe I hate you in real life, it’s eerie. My inner thoughts: Outside I am a jokester always ready to make you laugh, on the inside I’m a super serious guy. My wish, to fix that reputation.
Just call me,
Jep
Lily sat up. This guy sounded interesting. He was serious but funny. Looking up, Lily noticed that Julia had too gone back to her homework. She looked back at her journal. Maybe this assignment was a good idea after all. This guy seemed into it, and if they both told each other how they felt about their lives, and school, they would both receive a passing grade. She sighed and said, “Well, I am going to bed. I can finish McGonagall's essay later. You going to come?”
“Yep. I am so tired. Let’s wake up Emily so she can actually sleep in her own bed and not on the table.”
The three girls trudged up the girls’ dormitory steps, too tired from the night’s festivities to care that as they disappeared from view, the Marauders once again started entertaining, with Sirius Black leading the circus.
Love Letters by hp_princess
Chapter Notes: A letter from the mysterious new "inner buddy" and some interaction with the Marauders.