The Marauders: Year One | #Wattys2016

A Visit from Professor McGonagall

A Visit from Professor McGonagall

"New year, same classes," muttered James, staring at his timetable in the Great Hall.

"We'll have new topics next year," Sirius said around a mouthful of toast, "As well as these. Enjoy this while it lasts!"

"More classes?" Peter squeaked, looking up, wide-eyed, "I can barely keep up with just these!" He put down his own timetable, which he'd been looking at over a large bowl of sugary muggle cereal. "Are you serious?"

With a grin, Sirius answered, "Serious is my middle name. Actually, it's my first, isn't it?"

James smirked at his mate's quip as he lowered the timetable, shoving it into his robes pocket and picking up his toast. "You've always got a smart comeback, don't you?" He said, with a roll of his eyes. Then he spotted Lily out of the corner of them, as she was coming in the room, her hair done nicely and his eyes widened, "Blimey."

Remus looked over his shoulder at her.

"Looks as though she's maybe used some of your dad's Sleekeazy Potion, doesn't she?" Sirius snickered.

Remus turned back to look at James and Sirius, "What?"

James turned red and sat down, "Don't ask. My dad's a nutter."

"The hair smoothing sensation that's taking over all the wizarding world!" Sirius teased, elbowing James. "If only it wasn't for the magical beasts alliance keeping him from shaving all the world's dragons."

"Nawh, mate," James muttered, "It's only the Asian dragons he wants to shave."

"Oh right, right," Sirius snickered, "I remember him saying that now."

Peter's face twitched, "Sleekeazy - I feel like I've heard of it before."

"It hasn't been Ministry Approved just yet," James explained, "It's still in testing stages but they sell it at a couple shops in Diagon Alley." He rolled his eyes and, seemingly on instinct, ran a hand through his hair to mess it up.

Sirius laughed. "But soon a bottle of the magic hair potion will be in the bathroom cupboards of every self-respecting witch and wizard with mops like these." He grabbed onto a bit of James's hair and tugged to display the sort of mess that the potion would tame. "If you apply it correctly and regularly, of course," he added, just as Charlus had done in King's Cross after inspecting his son's ever unruly hair.

James swatted Sirius off, "Oi, don't make me hex you, Black!"

"Like to see you try, Potter," snickered Sirius, wrapping his arm 'round James's neck and pulling him in closer so as to mess his hair up even worse with his knuckles as James grunted and pushed at Sirius's arm.

"Gerrofferme," whined James.

Lily passed by them, glancing over disapprovingly at their rough-housing, and sat down at the end of the table with Alice, Frank, Bilius, Derek, and a few of the first years. James watched her out of the corner of his eye as she pulled a jar of raspberry jam closer and smeared it on her buttered toast with an excited look upon her face, ignoring the boys.

Finally, noticing Lily's glances, Sirius let James go and turned back to his stack of toast and eggs with that smirk still shadowed on his face. Free at last, James looked back down at his own toast, avoiding Lily's green eyes.

"Do you reckon classes will be much harder this year than they were last year?" Peter asked, jumping back to the conversation they'd been having before Lily came into the Great Hall. "Because I hardly remember some of the things we were learning in Charms last term... Flitwick will give us a review, won't he?"