Hi, it's James. James Potter.

reminiscing - year 1

The next day it took Harry and Ginny everything to get everyone awake for breakfast, even though it was eleven o'clock already.

When everyone of the other parents arrived, only about half of the children was downstairs, and they had to wait about twenty minutes until at last James stumbled downstairs, yawning.

The huge breakfast Harry and Ginny had put up with the help of Victoire, who somehow had been up pretty early and wasn't as sleepy as everyone else, made everyone fit, and soon there was loud chattering in the eating room.

After breakfast everyone went to play something, and James and Fred decided to try out skiing.

Both had Muggle friends that were going skiing over Christmas, so they decided to see if it was worth the hype.

Together they went outside after they had wrapped themselves up in several layers because it was so cold.

The sun that was shining did only just make it warmer, but not significantly.

They went into the shed, looking for things they could use for their ski experiment.

"Leo said they stand on boards that are strapped to your feet."

"Yeah, I've seen a picture once, they have these long, thin boards, like really thin. And really long."

They looked around the shed and scammed it for possible skis.

"What if we just take the spare fence pickets, they should be just long and wide enough, don't you think?", James then suggested.

"Yeah, if it isn't even too short.", Fred stated.

"We won't find something better. And to fasten them on we can just use duct tape.", James said.

"Yeah, I suppose... So we need to go to a steep hill so it works. I think we put them on when we're upon a hill, I don't think you can walk that good with them."

Together they shouldered two fence pickets each and James pocketed the duct tape.

He led the way to a hill that was not so far from the house, just at the edge of the forest surrounding Godric's Hollow.

When they finally stood upon the hill after walking twenty minutes and then climbing it another ten minutes, they laid down their utensils.

"Okay, let's strap them on.", James said motivated, taking one of his boards and putting his foot upon it.

Fred helped him wrapping foot and fence picket together, and after they explained it to be secure the other foot followed, and finally the same procedure with Fred.

"And this really works?", James said doubtingly, standing wobbly on his 'ski' and looking down the hill.

"Muggles do it all the time, so I guess.", Fred told him unsure.

"Okay. Alright. I'm going.", James said.

He trudged towards the edge of the gradient, closed his eyes and set off.

For ten seconds, it actually worked, James blew the wind into his face as he slowly slided down the hill, and he started feeling confident.

Fred followed his example when he saw that James seemed to be doing alright, but then: Wham!

One of James' boards had gotten stuck in the snow because it didn't have a rounded tip like normal skis, what both didn't know.

He rolled over in the snow several times, coming to a halt face forward in the snow, having lost one board.

James lifted his head just to see Fred a few meters below him, sitting up with a puzzled look.

James spat out the snow in his mouth: "I though that'd be easier."