[On Hiatus] It Was Meant to Be (A James and Lily Story)

Chapter 7

Lily awoke the next morning with a raging headache. She and James had stayed up for the better half of the night working out the schedules and she had barely gotten two hours of sleep.

She didn't know what to make of James. She had begun to see a side of him that she had never known before. Or maybe she hadn't cared enough to notice. She felt different around him. It was as if all of her worries vanished when she looked up at his hazel eyes.

She shook her head to clear it of her thoughts. She had more pressing matters to deal with... which included getting to breakfast on time for once.

When Lily was finally ready, she grabbed her schoolbag and shoved in her Potions essay and textbook. She sighed as she felt the familiar weight of her bookbag settle on her shoulders.

As Lily entered the Great Hall, she sought out her friends. Mary was sitting across from Alice and Frank, rolling her eyes at something Alice said.

Mary looked up and locked eyes with Lily.

"Ah, look who finally made it to breakfast on time. Her Highness, Lily Evans everyone." Mary made a bowing motion with her hands as Lily sat next to her.

"Ugh, please not today, Mary. I'm not in the mood," Lily groaned. She rubbed her temples to soothe her headache.

"Someone wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?" Alice joked. Lily ignored her.

"Oh. my. god. Why does James Potter look like death?" Mary questioned. Confused, Lily looked at what-- or rather who-- she was staring at.

James walked into the Great Hall slowly, yawning a little. He looked miserable. There were dark shadows under his eyes. Probably from the lack of sleep, thought Lily. His face was paler than usual and his shoulders were hunched as if he was carrying the weight of the world on them. As he approached the other Marauders, he slumped into his seat and propped his head on his hands.

"Lily! Did something happen last night between the two of you? Neither of you looks like you've had any sleep," Mary smirked.

"What? No! Of course not! We were just up rather late working on the Prefect's patrol schedules."

Mary raised her eyebrows suggestively. "Mhmm, okay Lily."

Lily opened her mouth to retaliate, but Alice interjected, "So, Lils, I know this is probably gonna stress you out more, but there's this fourth year who needs help with Charms and I was wondering if you would be able to help her out."

"Don't worry about it! I'd love the help her. What's her name?'

"Dorcas Meadowes. She's super sweet and I'm sure you two will get along fittingly. I'll let her know that she can meet you in the library tonight? Around eight?"

"That works for me, Alice. Thanks."

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"James, you don't have to come tonight if you don't feel like it. I'm sure Moony would understand," Sirius was telling him.

"No, Padfoot, I'm fine. I'll be fine. I've never missed a full moon and I don't plan on missing one now. Where is Moony anyway?"

"He's resting in our room. He wasn't feeling well this morning," Peter replied.

James looked up at him. "Are you sure he's alright? I can stay with him."

Sirius rested a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Prongs. Wormtail and I are taking shifts to look after him. We'll see you tonight, though. Meet us in the usual place."

James nodded and gulped down his orange juice. He rushed to Transfiguration as Sirius went to go find Remus.

James could barely keep his eyes open as his professors continued to lecture. In fact, he actually made the mistake of closing his eyes for two seconds in Transfiguration.

THUMP!

James woke with a start and saw Professor McGonagall looking down at him and his classmates staring at the pair of them.

"Mr. Potter, please enlighten us on how you were planning on taking notes on the back of your eyelids?"

"Sorry, Professor. I won't happen again, I swear."

"Mr. Potter, may I remind you that this is a NEWT level class. I'll be taking five points from Gryffindor for your inability to pay attention. I suggest you get a good night's sleep tonight."

James groaned.

Later that night, he met up with Sirius and Peter. They were carrying Remus between them, who looked awful.

Remus had dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. His entire face was sallow so he looked like he hadn't eaten in months. His hair was disheveled, making him look much older than he actually was.

"Moony! You good?"

Remus groaned in response.

James unfolded his invisibility cloak, an item that had been passed down in his family for generations, and covered Remus with it. When they were younger, all four of them would be able to fit underneath the large cloak. However, as they had grown, the cloak couldn't cover them all. They each took turns hiding under the cloak with Remus.

Sirius grabbed Remus' arm and slung it over his shoulder. James adjusted the cloak so that only the bottom of their feet could be seen.

James and Peter began to walk on either side of Sirius as they found the side exit towards the Hogwarts grounds, the Whomping Willow directly ahead of them.

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"Hi! Are you Lily Evans?" A skinny girl with dark brown hair approached Lily. She had deep blue eyes and a round face.

Lily turned and gave the girl a smile. "Yes, I am. Dorcas, right?"

"Yep. I talked to Alice and she said you could help me with Charms?"

"Of course, let's find somewhere to sit and I'd love to help you with whatever you need."

Lily led Dorcas to a quiet corner of the library. She loved this table because it gave the best view of the grounds and the Dark Forest. She could see the Whomping Willow right in front of her and the moon's reflection on the lake.

"So what can I help you with?"

"In class, we just started talking about..."

Almost an hour later, Lily looked out the window and sighed, sleeplessness catching up to her. Her eyes roamed over the grounds and came to a stop when she saw two figures, highlighted by the moon's glow. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized who it was.

What was James Potter doing on the grounds at this time?