Gryffindor Black brothers

Chapter 40

Hey everyone! Surprise—it's a double update day! 🎉 This is the second chapter I'm posting today, and I couldn't wait to share it with you. I hope you enjoyed seeing James and Lily in this chapter as they struggle through their study sessions together. It's always fun to write their evolving dynamic—especially all the witty banter and underlying tension. Who would've thought that N.E.W.T.s could bring them a little closer?

James is really feeling the pressure here, not just from school but from his complicated feelings for Lily, and it's clear Lily is starting to see a different side of him too. I can't wait to see what you all think of their interactions!

As always, thank you so much for reading, and feel free to let me know your thoughts on where this is headed! And if you missed the first chapter of today's double update, go check it out—you won't want to miss it!

Until next time,

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Friday, however, put James in an unexpected situation. He'd already had Potions that day—during which James produced a passable, if not amazing Memory Potion—and Herbology, where he'd nearly been strangled by a Venomous Tentacula plant which had grabbed him from behind. Lunch had been a relief, and as he walked into the Great Hall, rubbing his neck and wincing slightly, he almost ran into Professor McGonagall, who was standing in the entrance, looking stern.

"Whatever it is, I didn't do it," James said, a slight half-smile playing across his face as her look stopped him in his tracks. McGonagall's expression twitched slightly, and James knew that she'd had to prevent herself from smiling at his antics.

"It's always you," she said. "But that's not why I wish to speak with you today, Mr. Potter. Miss Evans, a word?" James looked over in surprise to see Lily, a look of confusion on her face, stopping just as she was about to enter the Great Hall and walking over to stand next to him in front of McGonagall instead.

"Now," McGonagall said, regarding them over her spectacles. "You both are extremely bright students, but the pressures of N.E.W.T.s seem to be catching up with both of you." James and Lily exchanged a glance, both looking slightly defensive and a bit hostile. McGonagall let out an inpatient noise.

"There's no need to look like that," she said, and James swore she appeared close to rolling her eyes. "Mr. Potter, you excel at Transfiguration, but Professor Slughorn tells me that you have been falling behind in his lessons. Miss Evans, you are a top student in Potions, yet you haven't been quite able to keep up in my classes lately. You see the obvious solution, I hope?"

Lily gave Professor McGonagall a horrified look. "Professor, please—"

"The two of you will assist each other with Potions and Transfiguration coursework," Professor McGonagall interrupted impatiently. "And I expect that this will produce better results from both of you. Otherwise, I will assume that you would rather do supplemental coursework."

"I don't need her help."

"I don't need his help."

James and Lily spoke at the same time and then turned to glare at each other. A wave of bitterness and shame washed over James, his face growing hot. Not only had Professor Slughorn told Professor McGonagall—his favorite professor—that he was behind, but McGonagall had decided to saddle him with a tutor, and that tutor was Lily Evans, one of the people he least wanted to know that he was struggling. The only silver lining, he told himself, was that she was clearly just as embarrassed as he was. Her cheeks had flushed a dark red color, and he tried not to dwell on how bright and striking it made her green eyes look by comparison. He'd tried to put that infatuation to rest as best he could when it'd become clear that she detested him just as much this term as she had the last, and he wasn't trying to backslide now.