The Marauders: Year Seven Part One

Ten Points from Slytherin

James sank into the seat beside Sirius as LIly was finishing up whispering to a Ravenclaw prefect about the information McGonagall ad given them in the little room prior to beginning the sorting. He sighed in relief and reached for a potato with his fork. "So what'd I miss?" he asked, "Have you lot done anything worthy of a detention yet?" 

"Oh loads," Sirius answered, "But I think here's something more interesting you're going to want to react to before your girlfriend comes over."

"My girlfriend? You mean Lily Evans?"

Ali turned around in her seat as though she'd been set on fire. "WHAT?"

James actually looked surprised. "You didn't hear the news?"

Ali looked appalled, "NO?" She looked around for Lily. "Don't you dare say another word, Potter." She was wildly searching the room until her eyes landed on Lily and she glared at her from across the Hall. "I'm going to kill her if she didn't write me an owl to tell me about this, if it's what you sound like it must be..." she murmured.

James looked a little hurt, staring at Ali's turned back, he glanced back at Remus, Sirius, and Peter. "Why wouldn't she have told Ali, of all people?" he asked.

Sirius shrugged, "Dunno, but mate, if I was you, I'd take a look over that way real quick and let the look of shock wipe off your face before she comes over here." Sirius nodded across the hall, toward the Slytherin tables.

James looked over, "What? What's so interesting abou-- fuck." He stopped mid-sentence, his jaw gaping open and his fists balling around his fork, even as he jerked his hand back, knocking over a goblet full of pumpkin juice. Remus leaped up with his napkin and wand to perform a cleaning spell as Peter let out a squeal - a splash of the juice had landed squarely in his lap. James seemed barely to notice the commotion he'd caused, he looked at Sirius, "What is HE doing here?"

"Dunno," Sirius replied.

"What is who doing here?" Lily asked, coming over to the table, having finished her talk to the prefect.

Sirius glanced at James, who was fuming, and then quickly answered Lily before James could with a jerk of the head toward Slytherin table.

Lily gasped. "I - what? What IS he doing here?"

James said, through gritted teeth, "He's supposed to have gone off to Durmstrang, isn't he?"

Sirius muttered, "Yeah, to go ruin the lives of everyone off that way."

Lily snapped, "He helped save James's life in Havmork," she reminded Sirius, "He probably can't go back to Durmstrang."

"Yeah, but Lilith, darling, don't forget the part about how if it was't for bleedin' Snape, James wouldn't have been in Havmork to begin with."

Lily couldn't really counter that fact, but she said, "I'm going to go find out what he's doing here." She hadn't even sat down, but she was darting off away from the spot next to James, headed to the Slytherin table, ignoring the pleading look on Ali's face.

James glowered and sat back down heavily. "Should I go with her?" he asked.

Sirius raised an eyebrow, looking James over. "Uhhh, I reckon not. You might hex him on the spot and then what?"

"Then he'd good and deserve it, I'm sure," James hissed.

Remus spoke up, having finished drying Peter's pants, "No, wrong answer. You're the Headboy," he said firmly, "Not to mention what Lily would have to say! James, you're supposed to be setting an example for the younger students to follow and walking over to the Slytherin table and setting fire to that grease trap of hair he's got is not a very good example."