Unforeseen Consequences ☞︎ A James Potter Fan Fic

{33} Six Months Having Gone By

Holly slept soundly in her bed. She had had trouble sleeping for multiple reasons. For one, the last quidditch game of the season was today. Hufflepuff vs Gryffindor. There would be hurt feelings for people she cared about no matter who won. Secondly, it was also the last day of their sixth year. She was anxious about summer and N.E.W.T.S and about where her and her friends are headed after graduation. And thirdly—

Suddenly her curtains whipped open, light flooding in. Holly groaned as she had only been asleep for an hour or so. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to see what was going on. Her arms blocked the lights until she got used to them.

"Happy birthday!" Maryanne and Brie shouted, her other roommates hanging in the background looking just as tired as she did. Holly groaned louder as she sat up. She manages a weak smile to show how internally grateful she was for them.

"Thanks guys," she cracks out.

Up in the Gryffindor tower, a boy was also being woken up by his friends.

"James! Get up," Remus ordered, sounding busy. It was only moments later when James' curtain were basically ripped off. James jumped back and dug his face into the pillow.

"You have got to stop doing that, mate!" James complained, his voice muffled by the pillow. But as a sudden thought shocked him, his head snapped up and he basically sprinted out of bed and towards the door. Peter watched silently from his bed and Sirius even stopped doing his hair. James was not a morning person...

"Now where are you going?" Remus shouted out after him.

"The kitchens! Planning something for Holly's birthday," he explained, not bothering to look back as he spoke. He was too busy leaving. Remus lifted a brow and when James did bother to look back one more time, his eyes instantly fell on Remus. James scowled. "Oh bugger off," he grumbled, slamming the door behind him. Remus sighed with a shake of his head before turning around and continuing to get ready for the big day.

As Holly finished getting dressed, Maryanne and Brie were busy finishing their own morning schedules.

"This is an exciting day, isn't it?" Brie asked with a crackle of excitement in her voice. Holly turned to look at her friend from over her shoulder, a wide grin on her face.

"Oh is it?" Holly teased. She turned back to face her dresser, her eyes immediately falling onto something that made her grin falter. James' necklace. The small golden snitch that she so very much adored. Her heart ached not wearing it. It didn't feel right not to wear it. But the sight of Lily's initials in something she thought her and James held special between one another flashed through her mind. What exactly would she be saying if she put it back on? But what would she be saying if she didn't?

"Of course it is," Maryanne spoke, Holly only partially paying attention. "For one, it's your birthday. Two, we barely have anymore classes, and three, today is the last quidditch game of the year, plus the second to last day of school." Holly shook her head, berating herself for over thinking this. It was simply a necklace. A Christmas present. It didn't hold any secret meaning she wasn't aware of, right? She shook her head and with a small sigh and a smile, she took the necklace and clasped it back around her neck.

Suddenly realizing her friends had been talking, she whirled around and hoped the last she remembered them saying was still relevant to what they were discussing now. She smiled brightly seeing her friends look at her.

"You're right. Today is going to be pretty exciting," she spoke. And by the excited chatter that followed, she was relieved to realize that her strayed attention wasn't going to go noticed.

Holly, Brie, and Maryanne all walk into the busy Great Hall. Holly's eyes immediately falling onto the Hufflepuff table. She thought she should be used to seeing the Marauders there before them, but she doubted she would ever get used to it.