Choices- James Potter [ON HOLD]

Brave

Cassiopeia walked through the corridors with conversing with Remus Lupin. She had come to find he was a kind and started to understand why her brother was friends with him. He seems harmless and innocent, but Cassie quickly realised the boy was sneaky and cunning making her wonder if the sorting hat had considered him for Slytherin. 

She was currently trying to teach the boy how to flirt. "No, smirk a bit more-not like that it's creepy- that's it now try!" 

"Looking fit Cass" the boy smirked flirtatiously a sudden wave of confidence coming over him. "How was that?" he smiled dropping the façade.

"Much better" she grinned clasping her hands together with a laugh. 

"What are you two lovely humans speaking about?" asked James 

"I'm teaching Lupin how to flirt." smiled the girl making James snort in disbelief 

"Yeah right, as if you could teach him, you can't flirt to save your life."

"And you think you can" said the girl with an amused raise of her brow

"yeah actually I can." he said proudly puffing out his chest

"This is coming from the same James Potter who was pining after and flirting with the sam red head for four years yet made zero progress?" she said smirking.

"I-shut up." he grumbled "You still can't flirt." 

"Oh really?" she said smirking taking a step closer to the boy placing a hand on his chest looking up at him through her lashes seductively "Are you sure about that?"

"Positive." he choked out coughing slightly to cover the squeak of his voice. 

"Oh really? That is a shame..because I was really hoping you could..help me with something" she whispered moving closer to the boys ear minimising the space between them.

"I-uh" coughed the boy with a red face "What do you need help with?"

"Why don't you find out?" she purred up at the boy their noses brushing ever so slightly his eyes began to flutter shut as he began leaning in for a kiss. The girl pulled away smirking triumphantly leaving the red faced boy dazed. Remus watched the whole encounter and was trying hard not to burst out into laughter at the boys facial expressions throughout, to say he found it amusing would be an understatement. "Still don't think I can flirt Potter?" she smirked a look of torment and mischief shone bright in her grey eyes that screamed danger but James Potter couldn't help but gaze into them.

Regaining himself he said adamantly "Nope."

"Oh really?" she smirked once more her eyes momentarily drifting down to his trousers "That wand in your pocket seems to think otherwise." 

----

Cassiopeia Black sat on the edge of the astronomy tower a bottle of firewhiskey in her hand taking large gulps every so often as she thought about her life at home and what her future has in store for her. 

She thought about her parents and how they have her whole life planned for her, she thought about her friends and how she had no escape, she thought about her brothers and how she had to keep them safe, but above all she thought about James Potter. 

He was a peculiar boy Cassiopeia had come to find, to people who don't speak to him he comes across as your typical popular arsehole. But upon closer inspection you find he's a genuine and sweet boy. He cares for his friends and above all his family, Cassiopeia would not be surprised if he gave his life for his friends or family, something that most were not brave enough to do. James Potter was the kind of boy who would save someones life even if he thought that they didn't deserve it. He had a strange sort of hero complex and Cassiopeia hated it in most people but she couldn't help but admire it in James. She admired his passion, his ambition, his loyalty, and his resilience. James Potter was brave. And he was everything that Cassiopeia wishes she could be. 

She envied him greatly, he had an arguably perfect life in comparison to hers something which Sirius inherited when he left Grimmauld Place that summer. He had perfect parents, who loved him and were proud of him no matter what, he could decide his own future and choose who he wants to love, who he wants to marry, and where he wants to work and what side he wanted to fight for in the upcoming war that was quickly brewing. James Potter had choices and Cassiopeia Black did not. 

Cassiopeia sacrificed her chances of having a choice during the sorting ceremony in their first year to protect her brother. Had she been sorted into anything but Slytherin the likelihood is that her parents would have put even more pressure on her little brother Regulus and he would be inevitably forced to marry a noble pureblood woman in order to strengthen and continue the Black family name. And Cassiopeia wanted both of her brothers to be as safe as possible, and if that meant she had to sacrifice her choices for a happy life, then so be it.

The raven haired girls thoughts were interrupted by someone clearing their throat the girl turned her head to see James Potter standing in the entrance to the tower. She gave him a tight lipped smile nodding her head slightly at him "Hello James."

"It's past curfew you know, you shouldn't be up here."

"Neither should you." noted the girl "I'm a prefect, you're not" she said gesturing to her badge 

"You've got me there" chuckled the boy "What are you doing up here anyway?" 

"Thinking."

"About what?"

"I don't want to go home." sighed the girl "whiskey?" she said offering the boy the bottle he took it taking a swig. 

"So don't." shrugged the boy 

"It's not that simple..I have to, I have to protect Regulus, if I leave..they'll just put more pressure on him, I can't do that James. As much as I don't want to have to marry a man I don't love and I don't want to be some housewife who's only purpose is to have children and lay down a specific life for them, I don't have a choice...I gave up my choices to make sure my brothers still got theirs."

"Why don't you both leave? You and Regulus?"

"We can't all be brave James" laughed the girl "You're so lucky you know? You have this perfect life, with perfect parents and perfect friends who would do anything for you, you have no idea how lucky you are and sometimes I think you take it for granted." she paused "When you insult people like Snape, I don't think you realise they don't really hate muggleborns despite what they say. They're just scared, scared of their families, themselves, this self proclaimed lord. We're not all in the house of the brave and sometimes I think you forget that. And sometimes, as cowardly as it is..some of us do what is easy whether it be to save ourselves or our families. We do what is easy even if it is not right, because sometimes we all have to be a little selfish."

"My life is not perfect. There's no such thing as perfect. Perfect is whatever you want it to be"

"In comparison to mine it is. And for me, my perfect life would be a life in which I was brave. A Gryffindor, with parents like yours." 

"Well.." started James taking another swig from the bottle sharing it with Cassiopeia, "I happen to think that, you're pretty brave..even if you're not a Gryffindor." smiled the boy.

"How? I'm not like you or Sirius.."

"No, but you sacrificed everything for your family...your brothers, and I think thats pretty damn brave."  the Potter boy paused "You may think I'm brave, but not even I would give up the life that I have and swap it with yours just so that someone else could be happy. I help people and stand up for my friends, you make hard sacrifices. We're all brave in different ways Cass. And I think I can easily say you're probably one of the bravest people I've met."

"Thanks Potter" smiled the girl resting a head on the boys shoulder. And the two sat there staring out into the starry night slightly tipsy but comfortable in each others presence.