The Marauders - Order of the Phoenix - Part Two

Mrs. P

"AND WE'RE HERE FOR THE DECIDING GAME OF THE HOGWARTS QUIDDITCH SEASOOOONNNNN!" Dexter shouted, squirming with excitement in the commentator's seat in the stands of the quidditch pitch. The stands were filling up, students from all four houses crowding the stands, and the teams were warming up, swooping over the pitch and back in laps, doing loops through the hoops, and stretching as they donned their protective equipment on the grass below. 

Lily settled down on a bench on the Gryffindor side. She had her old house scarf wrapped about her neck and had painted a small crimson and gold heart on her cheek bone to match it. Beside her, James was standing up and waving wildly to Oliver Kent, who was sweeping the length of the pitch, clutching onto his broomstick, a look of excited determination on his face. "Look at him go,  Evans," James said, pointing.

Lily smiled, "He's quite the star already - just imagine how much more so when you've helped him along even further."

"Blimey the rate he's at, I'll just be observing anyway," James said proudly, "I could probably learn a thing or two from him over the summer." He smiled, but his smile faded off suddenly as his eyes caught something in the next box.

Lily turned and followed his gaze to find Albus Dumbledore was stepping down into the faculty box seating, followed by Minerva McGonagall. Lily looked back up at James. "Alright, honey?"

James felt like his heart was going faster than it ought to do, and he sat down rather quickly, the strength draining from his knees. McGonagall looked over and saw him, waved, and he waved stiffly back, then turned away quickly, looking out at the pitch before Dumbledore could do the same. James stared, eyes wide. "Do you reckon he's begun already?"

"Begun?"

"With Regulus?" 

"Oh."

James had told her about what he'd seen - she was the only one he had, the only one he trusted with it. Lily had been able to tell something more had happened anyway, there was no use trying at hiding it from her. They'd agreed that there was nothing to be done, no interference they could properly run on this side of it, or else Mopsus would've told James what to do and how to accomplish it, would've instructed him how to fix it. But he hadn't and so James was powerless. That didn't stop him wanting to hex the old man.

He knew that he'd never look at Dumbledore again without thinking of Regulus Black.

Lily put her hand on James's back.

"HEY JAMES!" Wally's voice cut through the tension as he threw himself into the seat next to him.

Lily saw James swallow back his emotions and turn to Wally with a smile on his face.

"Hey buddy," James said, and she couldn't help but think exactly how much like Charlus Potter he looked and sounded at that moment.

Wally grinned. "HEY! Hi Lily!"

"Hi Wally," she said, waving. 

They settled in to watch the game, and James forgot about Dumbledore after a time, engrossed in the exciting action on the pitch. Both teams were in excellent form and James found himself jumping up more than once to watch the chasers approach the net, shouting praises for Gryffindor or booing when Ravenclaw scored against the lions. Wally watched James with fascination and Lily couldn't help but laugh when James shouted something about a foul on the pitch, Wally stood up and mimicked him to a T.

Halfway through the match, Lily reached into her bag and held up a bag of cranberry nut biscuits she'd made and James enthusiastically shared with Wally. "Thanks Mrs. P!" Wally called enthusiastically and James thought her heart would melt at being called Mrs. P for the first time ever.