The Marauders: Year One | #Wattys2016

An Invitation to Brunch

An Invitation to Brunch

That night at dinner, Lily kept glowering over at James from across the table. She was so peeved with him that she even chose to forego sitting near to Remus while eating, which meant Remus had to keep leaning forward to look 'round Frank Longbottom and Andy Woodhouse just to see her and hold a conversation. James stayed strangely quiet, pushing his chips about in their sauce.

There was a great shadow that cast over the table suddenly from behind James and he turned on the bench to look up at the form of Horace Slughorn, who seemed - if it was possible - even wider than he had the year before. James blinked up at him, "Professor," he said, "Hi."

"Hello, Mr. Potter!" Slughorn said joivally. He smiled about the table, spotting Lily and Remus and nodded to them each as well in greeting before turning back to James. "I've come over to ask you to a little get together I'll be having on Saturday next. Just a little thing, a little brunch." He looked over at Lily and Remus, "And of course you're both invited as well."

Remus looked as though he'd rather do anything else. Lily replied, "Thank you, Professor," in a tentative sort of voice.

"I'd love to come Professor," James said, "But it seems I've landed myself a detention with Professor McGonagall that day so I won't be able to make it. My apologies." He'd never been so happy to say the words in all his life. Detention suddenly seemed like a treat rather than a punishment.

Professor Slughorn, however, saw it otherwise. "Oh no! A detention already?" he asked, frowning deeply, "And how did you manage that so quickly?"

"I threw Evans into the lake," James grinned, glancing back at Lily, who scowled, "Didn't I, Love?"

Slughorn laughed and patted James's shoulder. "Always a troublemaker!"

"Yes, sir," Lily agreed sourly, "Always."

James's grin only widened.

Professor Slughorn chuckled and patted James again, his hand weighed heavily on James's shoulder. "Well, Mr. Potter, we'll just see what Minerva says about possibly letting you out of that little detention of yours so you can attend my brunch... I'm sure she'll understand if I have a little talk with her... What say you? If she agrees?"

James could not fathom a universe in which Professor McGonagall would let him off - especially after how she'd gone on for half the morning about Not Throwing Girls Into Lakes. He shrugged, "Sure, have at it," he said.

"Splendid!" Slughorn grinned, "And I'll see both of you as well," he added, nodding to Lily and Remus before walking away.

"Bloody hell," Sirius said, "What am I? A chopped flobberworm?"

James looked 'round at Sirius, "What?"

"He didn't ask me to go," Sirius said, "Didn't offer to get me out of the detention, did he?"

Peter muttered, "He didn't even look at me, so -- I s'pose I'm flobberworm droppings."

"I'd rather be flobberworm droppings than go to a bloody Slug Club meeting," said Remus shaking his head. "He's got it in his thick skull that my dad is some great Ministry worker just because he was one the board that commissioned the Werewolf Act of 1967. I mean, sure, there were some great names on the board of that, but he hasn't stayed in contact with them..." Remus sighed.

Lily leaned forward, "Cheer up! At least he's got a reason for having you go! He makes me sit through it and listen to how wonderful everyone else's connections are simply because I got a high grade in his class one time! I don't fit in at all."