The three girls crunched into the fall leaves hesitantly, as if afraid to break the spell of the school. Every time Lily saw the castle, a warm and familiar shiver went up her spine.
Rather like the feeling I get around James…ugh what is Potter doing in my head?
The redhead shook herself and boarded a horseless carriage with Alice and Charlie. Both chattered amicably for the remainder of the ride, but Lily just nodded, trying to clear her head. They came to an abrupt halt, leaving Lily wondering for the hundredth time who drove the coaches.
Shaking herself from such deep thoughts, she realized she was the only one remaining in the carriage. Lily sighed and stepped down only to have two strong arms entwined around her slim waist.
“Careful Evans, wouldn’t want you to get hurt on your way to the feast!”
With that, James lifted Lily as if carrying a doll and reverently began carrying her to the school.
“POTTER! PUT ME DOWN! NOW!!!” She struggled futilely against him, using his shoulders to try and push him away.
“Ladies? Allow me?” Sirius, always James’s right-hand man, slung both arms around Alice and Charlie.
Remus looked fairly amused, but shook his head in mock disapproval. Poor Peter just looked longingly at the girls and Sirius’s good luck. Surprisingly, Alice politely removed the cocky arm attacked to Mr. Black and joined Frank Longbottom, who had been watching the entire scene and now looked visibly relieved.
Sirius made as if to imitate James in carrying Charlie, but her steely glare fazed even the infamous Sirius Black.
“Touch me and die buddy boy.”
“Aw c’mon Vollaro, you know you want to go out with me.” Sirius gave her his best puppy dog look.
She scornfully raised an eyebrow but Remus noticed her lip twitching rebelliously. “When pigs fly, Black.” With that, she sauntered after the shrieking Lily.
Remus noticed Sirius thoughtfully fingering his wand and warned him, “Noooo…Sirius. I wouldn’t take her word on that.”
Getting back to Lily and James, her screaming had reached the highest level as of yet. James doubted the hysteria could climax any further and rebelliously threw her over his shoulder. They paraded past gaping first years and amused older students with a proud Sirius and Charlie bringing up the rear. Most girls were looking at Lily with a mixture of jealousy and mirth.
The fifth year prefect attempted to grab her wand and curse James into the stratosphere, but he craftily shifted his grip and dangled the wand out of her reach. She then struggled to cling to her last strands of dignity by pounding her hands on his back and yelling several unintelligible things. Upon reaching the castle steps, a huge cheer resounded as if they had finished running the gauntlet.
“Mr. Potter. Perhaps you should allow Ms. Evans to return to the ground?’ A wise Professor Dumbledore was watching them over his spectacles, but James could have sworn he saw his eyes twinkling.
“O-of course, sir.” He sheepishly set Lily down, and she stormed angrily away, looking back only once for her friends.
As she slammed the entranceway door, a loud wet raspberry was blown in her ear.
"Aww...does Lily wee Evans love Jamesie boy Potter?"
Peeves, a poltergeist and the resident source of annoyance at Hogwarts, zoomed above Lily's head. He cackled maniacally to himself and then disappeared with a loud *pop*!
"Lily! WAIT UP!" Charlie and Alice stopped short of a furious Lily, who was alternately cursing using Muggle terms and fumbling for her wand to literally curse Peeves with her best bat bogey hex.
"That swollen, insufferable, pompous GIT!" I'll..." but before Charlie, who was already recoiling with apprehension, could discover what Lily would do, Lily closed and opened her mouth rapidly several times.
Alice giggled at the image of a goldfish the redhead provided but managed to ask "Lily dear? What's wrong?"
Lily turned several shades of red, her emerald eyes grew dark and she finally sighed. "Potter still has my wand."
The Great Hall was crowded with students and teachers for the opening feast. Dumbledore was just finishing his opening speech, and Sirius was staring hungrily at his empty plate.
“…I believe a full list can be found outside of Mr. Filch’s office.”
Sirius began tapping his fingers urgently on the table with a gaunt expression on his jokester's face.
“Furthermore, I would expect all students to treat others fairly and with respect. This includes leaving possessions with their original owners, including dragon eggs…”
“I can SMELL the food!” Several students in the immediate area turned at this but, realizing it was Sirius’s drama, they returned to listening to the headmaster.
“…not venturing into other house’s common rooms or vandalizing the aforementioned room…”
“Damn house elves, I bet they're stalling and the feast isn’t even ready yet!” Sirius muttered to the other Marauders.
“…and leaving other’s hair their natural color…this is especially important should the spell be irreversible”
James smiled at the various mentions of Marauder pranks.
"There IS no feast! We’re going to STARVE!”
“So, in closing, I have only four words to say.”
“NO. FOOD. IN. HOUSE!”
"MR. BLACK! Would you KINDLY restrain yourself?" Professor McGonagall glared pointedly in the direction of the growing hysteria.
“Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!”
With that, an immense feast appeared on all four tables. The first years gasped in wonder, but Sirius was too hungry to appreciate anything. Peter stared as the boy in front of him proceeded to shovel anything within reach into his mouth.
“O? owh deeh digns og bidh wviy?”
“Sorry, didn’t catch that mate.” James was looking warily at his best friend, or rather, the remains of the table.
Sirius swallowed and tried again, “So? How did things go with Lily?”
James sighed, and Sirius nodded wisely “Ah. So she slapped you again, did she? Saw that but...Jamesie boy let me give you some free advice."
Remus rolled his eyes and sighed, but Peter leaned so far forward, he was nearly in Sirius's lap at the prospect of girl advice from Sirius himself.
"Girls are like this pudding here." At this, Sirius gestured to the steak and kidney pudding he had just emptied. "Once you finish with one, there are millions of eager house elves with hundreds of more puddings, all whacking each other over to be the first one served. Take that particular dessert..." Sirius made eyes at a particularly well-rounded blonde. "Delicious and just begging to be tasted. There are dozens of girls as pretty as Evans. Find one and replace her when the week is up."
After this deep breath and bigger belch, Sirius tucked in again and now resembled a ravenous chipmunk. After counting to ten, James still had to resist whacking his friend on the back, which would likely result in the regurgation of half the Great Hall.
Instead, he busied himself with staring at Lily. She was laughing with her friends and looked absolutely beautiful in the candlelight. God, he liked her a lot. Why did he have to make such a prat of himself whenever he was around her?
Contemplating this thought, he trudged off to his dormitory, still twirling Lily's ten and a quarter inch, willow wand. A gaggle of giggling girls followed closely behind him but James’s thoughts were only on one person.
I have to prove to her how much I care! But how? I’ll ask Remus, he’s always been the smart one anyway.
Content with solving at least part of the problem, he fell asleep quickly, already dreaming of Lily. Curiously enough, she was also thinking of him.