The sound of footsteps softly echoed throughout the long hallways of the castle, and a girl could be seen wondering her way around them. Sage, the unofficial Queen of England, was completely out of it. Her mind was thousands of miles away from her head, leaving her body to do whatever it pleased. The echoing stopped when Sage reached a door. She knocked gently, and the sound of shuffling could be heard from inside. The door opened slowly, standing in its wake was James Potter. His hair was a complete mess, his clothes were slightly wrinkled, and his eyes were half opened. "Herb?" James used the stupid nick-name he gave her back in their first year. "I can't sleep... Can I lay down with you?" Sage felt like a child after giving such request, but James smiled at her and nodded.
"I know you're under so much stress right now," James started as he closed the bedroom door, "But it's okay to talk to me... I know you're struggling," Sage sat down on the navy blue covers and wrapped her arms around her body. James walked over to the bed and laid back down. Sage was still in her sitting position and was staring at the wall. "Herb, come on, lay down," The boy whispered to her. Sage moved next to James and covered them up with the blanket. James wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, and gently stroked her undone hair. "James," She whispered. "Yes?" He asked. "Promise... Promise me something," She said. "Anything," He told. "If you ever get into a dangerous situation... Promise you will run away from it. It doesn't matter how hard it will hurt your pride or ego... Just make sure you stay alive... For me,"
James stared at her in shock. The words that left her lips were ones that made him think. He knew that she was in pain and grieving, but he never knew she would ask him something like that. "I promise," He whispered back to her. Sage knew what she doing. She knew it meant more to ask someone to live rather than die. "Thank you," The words left her lips, but if the room weren't as silent as it was, James would've never heard it. "Anything for you," He responded. To James, Sage was like his little sister. The two would bicker and make sarcastic comments, but they were also extremely protective of each other. They had a friendship different from the rest of the group in that regard. Sage was family to James, and it was the same the other way around.
"Since I had to promise you something, you have to promise me something," James grinned at the girl. "Alrighty then, what do you want?" She grinned back slightly. "Promise that you'll never forget me. I know it sounds silly, but you're gonna be Queen of England soon. You're going to have the weight of nations on you, and I don't want to be lost in your endless storage of memory where every other forgettable face is," He asked of her. It was one of his greatest fears. Being forgotten means that his life was as memorable as every other was, and James Potter was not okay with that. "How can I forget my best friend? Honestly, James, you mean too much to be forgotten, and that's coming from me," Sage looked and him like he was crazy.
The duo talked for not much longer when both started to fall asleep. But before either was complete out, James said, barely above a whisper.
"Long May You Reign,"