INSTEAD, james potter [1]

Chapter Twenty-Two

It was strange to be an official sixth year. As Lyra boarded the Hogwarts Express, she now knew this was the second to last September 1st she would spend at King's Cross Station, excited for another year of learning and spending time with her friends. 

She was really excited for some things, though. She was about to choose her N.E.W.T.-level subjects, which would make her closer to her own future. She was getting really excited about Defense Against the Dark Arts now that she knew she was a natural Occlumens. 

Seeing Remus again was also a plus, and she was hoping they had been put on patrol together that year, too. If not, she would go to the Head Boy and Head Girl and demand it, because she had now learned that being a prefect wasn't worth it with Remus Lupin by her side. 

Her Slytherin friends had also been deeply missed. Emma Vanity, who she had lost touch with, had just graduated, so she wouldn't get to reunite with her. She would still be able to spend a lot of time with people like Lucinda Talkalot and Rabastan Lestrange, to live her life to the fullest.

The most important part was Sirius, though. She hadn't seen him or heard from him since he had walked out on their family. She had written a dozen letters, but she had no idea where to send them and he never sent any to her. She wondered if he was mad, or if he was too scared to send a letter and get her in trouble. 

Still, she sat in the prefect's carriage, ready for their first meeting of the year. She found herself sitting next to Rabastan, who was now the new male sixth-year prefect for Slytherin. Emma Vanity's complaints about Evan Rosier had thankfully lost him his position, so Lyra knew she wouldn't have to deal with him. 

She exchanged secret smiles with Remus, who looked just as happy to see her. She was worried, though, that his scars looked more prominent than they had in a while, and he looked quite pale for a boy that had just returned from a holiday sunbathing in the French Riviera. 

Once Rabastan turned to her again, she quickly looked up to him with a bright smile. Remus frowned at the loss of her attention, and quickly started a conversation with Lily Evans, who Lyra hadn't seen since Snape insulted her.

On the other side of her, Regulus sat silently, not sure what to do with himself. He was the new prefect for fifth-year Slytherins, and Lyra couldn't be prouder. She reached out and grabbed his hand, smiling in support. He hesitantly smiled back. 

The new Head Boy, Buckley Cooper from Slytherin, and the Head Girl, Alison Denbright from Ravenclaw, suddenly stood up and demanded the attention of their prefects. Buckley stood straight and looked down on them. "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. Welcome back to returning prefects, and welcome to those of you who are new."

Alison had a stern look on her face. "Many of you know who we are as we have worked together before. But introductions are still in order. My name is Alison Denbright and I am the Head Girl for the next year."

"And I am Buckley Cooper, the Head Boy." The two seemed more uptight than last year's selection. Winkus Oddpick and Mathilda Grindlehawk were nothing if not fun and cheerful, but Dumbledore must have decided on a different approach this year. 

Alison looked away awkwardly, as if she was embarrassed. "Unfortunately, we were not given the task of putting up patrol schedules before this morning. We will therefore for the most part use the same ones as last year."

As she started handing out the schedules, Buckley turned to Lyra. "Lyra, would you and Lupin take the first patrol of the train again this year? If you wouldn't mind."

Lyra could see Rabastan tense up at the idea of her patrolling with Remus again this year. The blonde looked over at Remus and raised an eyebrow, getting a smile as answer. "Sure, Buckley. We can do that."