xx.
and suddenly i see you
(Venus by Sleeping at Last)
__________
September 9, 1977
Hermione grinned when she spied the Head Girl sprawled tiredly on the grass near the Black Lake. Lily had begged Hermione to accompany her at said lake that afternoon, wanting to get away from her suddenly overwhelming responsibilities.
"Hello," the brunette greeted, obscuring Lily's face as she peered down at her.
Lily's green eyes popped open. "Hermione," she groaned. "Hi, come. Lie down beside me. I don't think I can get up."
The Ravenclaw snorted and chose to sit cross-legged beside the exhausted Head Girl. "It hasn't even been a week since you were appointed as Head Girl," she pointed out. "You look like a year has already passed."
"Well, it bloody feels like it," she grumbled under her breath. Lily shifted so that her head could rest on Hermione's lap. "I always knew being Head Girl would be hard. I mean, I aimed to become one after all. But now that I'm actually here – well – I love it, of course. But it's too much work."
"What's this?" Hermione asked with a mock gasp. "Lily Evans is starting to complain about too much work?"
Lily lightly swatted her arm, prompting Hermione to laugh. "Headmaster Dumbledore expects so much it's exasperating," she complained. She lightly glared at the still-laughing brunette. "Oh you, go on, laugh. I'm sure you'll be Head Girl next year and you'll see what I'm complaining about."
"You don't know that," Hermione pointed out.
"Please, Hermione," Lily said with a snort. "You got ten 'O's in your OWLs. All 'O's in your OWLs, blimey! Your colour-coded schedules are famous in this school. If anybody's worthy of becoming a Head Girl, I'm placing all of my bets on you."
This thought made Hermione pause, knowing this was a true possibility. It hadn't really bothered her when she wasn't given the position of Prefect in this timeline. It was too much work and she really, truly wanted to focus on her studies instead. But most of the time, the appointed Heads hadn't held a Prefect position in previous years. Besides, she had the grades and the diligence to become one.
A pleasant thrill ran down her spine. Hermione Granger always wanted to become a Head Girl and she had worked her very best to be given that position. Professor McGonagall had hinted at the end of their sixth year that she would undoubtedly be given it the following school-year, but then, of course, the horcrux hunt had happened and those dreams weren't realised. Perhaps, Hermione Pettigrew could finally uphold that dream.
"At least our personal dormitory is lovely," Lily said with a sigh, snuggling closer to Hermione. "I love my roommates but they can be a bit noisy when I want a moment of peace."
Hermione looked down at the redhead in bemusement. "I didn't know Lily Evans coveted me-time," she pointed out with a teasing grin.
"Of course, I covet me-time!" she exclaimed. "I love being surrounded by people most of the time, yes, but there are moments I want to be alone."
The brunette hummed her agreement and brushed away Lily's hair from her face. "How does it feel sharing a dormitory with James Potter, though?" she casually asked, ignoring the niggling voice in the back of her mind. She was genuinely curious, that was all. Besides, Harry had told her that his parents had gotten together during their seventh year when they were both named as Heads. Hermione wanted to know if there had been progress in their relationship.
To her amusement, Lily wrinkled her nose and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "He's still a toerag," Lily complained.
Hermione noted the confused look on Lily's face. "But?" she edged on.
"But... he's different," she continued, a frown now blooming on her pretty face. "He's still pompous with an ego the size of the sun. Merlin, you should have seen him during our initial meeting with the Prefects. Arrogant git was practically brimming with self-confidence and the Prefects were hanging on to his every word."
"James is diligent," Hermione blurted out before she could stop herself.
Lily gave her a weird look, prompting her to look away and hide her blush. "Well... surprisingly, he is," she said. "I had doubts when I first found out he was made Head Boy, but when did Professor Dumbledore ever get it wrong, right? He actually managed to finish up the Patrol schedule for the Prefects all by himself yesterday! Honestly, if he'd shown this side of him in previous years, I'd have thought he was tolerable."
"So..." Hermione slowly said, her blue eyes landing on her clasped hands. "You think he's tolerable now?"
"Oh, loads," Lily immediately said. Hermione grimaced. "He's stopped doing those ridiculous love declarations, too, and has been conversing with me like a normal person. He and his annoying friends stopped pestering Sev too, so that's an added bonus."
The Ravenclaw tucked a stray curl behind her ear. "So, you'll give him a chance this year?" she softly asked, hating how her voice cracked in the middle of her question.
Lily expelled a loud snort. "Merlin, no," she exclaimed, like it was the most ridiculous thing in the whole world. "He's still James Potter, and he's still a toerag in my eyes, despite how he's marvellously toned down his arrogance. Besides..." Lily trailed off as a small blush appeared on her cheeks. "I've actually been seeing someone."
"What?!" Hermione exclaimed, her blue eyes growing wide. "When? I mean, who are you dating? Merlin, was I really so swamped with OWLs last year that I never really found the proper time to hang out with you guys?"
The Head Girl was giggling. "You didn't really miss a lot," she said, shyly tucking a red strand behind her ear. "It just happened... suddenly, like unbelievably out of nowhere."
"Who are you dating?" Hermione repeated, more insistent. "Is he someone I know? Someone in your year?"
"Blimey, you have a lot of questions today," Lily said, nervously smiling as she refused to meet Hermione's eyes. Then, with a mighty groan, she hid herself behind Hermione. "Toerag's coming our way."
Hermione stiffened and slowly turned her head. True to Lily's words, James and his friends were striding towards them. Sirius was already excitedly waving his hand in greeting, while Remus made a face at his ridiculous antics.
"All right, Whiskers?" James asked and proceeded to run a hand through his hair. Hermione's eyes were trained intently on his wild hair.
"Yeah," she replied, praying to the cosmos above that her cheeks would stay blush-free. To her dismay, her bloody crush on the new Head Boy was still thriving.
A sudden object soared through the air which caught her attention and Hermione, acting on instinct, grabbed it with her hands before it could hit her face. With curious eyes, she looked at the object in her hand and was surprised to see her favourite candy.
"Um, thanks," she said, blinking at a grinning Head Boy.
"Don't mention it," he flippantly said, his grin growing wide. Hermione had to stop herself from smacking her forehead, because bloody Merlin, he looked ridiculously handsome - it was mighty unfair.
"You're not studying," Peter suddenly pointed out.
Hermione mentally sighed in relief and playfully glared at her brother. "I'm taking a break," she announced.
Sirius gasped loudly. "Is... is hell freezing over?" he exclaimed. "Are fucking pigs starting to fly?!"
"Well, technically there is a race of pigs in Greece that—"
"Moony, shut up," James pointed out with a loud laugh.
Remus clamped his lips shut and grinned at Hermione. "Good to see you're not obsessing over your studies this year, Hermione," he said.
Peter expelled a snort. "Remus, please, only a week has passed," her brother pointed out. "Don't jinx it."
Hermione lightly scowled and swatted his shin, prompting him to laugh.
"Anyway, we just stopped by to say hi," Sirius said, swinging his arm over James' shoulders. "We're about to pull off a wonderful prank on Madame Pince, you see, but Prongsie caught sight of his lady love and dragged us all just to bloody say hi."
He threw a wink at Lily, who made a face. James, on the other hand, turned a brilliant shade of red and hit Sirius' ribs with his elbow.
"And now, we're leaving," James insisted, steering Sirius away with a light glare.
"Bye!" Sirius happily cried, madly waving his hand once more, and grabbed onto both Remus and Peter's arms to pull them away.
James hesitated for a while and glanced at the witches once more. "Evans," he politely said with a small smile. Lily merely tipped her head in reply. When James' hazel eyes swept to her, Hermione swore his mouth stretched wider, his hazel eyes twinkled brighter, and his cheeks dusted with pink once again. "Bye, Hermione."
She matched his smile, unable to stop her heart from skipping a beat, and bid him goodbye.
Hermione grinned at the candy in her hand and removed the wrapper. When she popped the toffee inside her mouth, she glanced at Lily and frowned. "What?" she asked, now knitting her eyebrows in confusion.
Lily's jaw was open and her green eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "You've got to be kidding me!" she breathlessly exclaimed.
"What?" Hermione asked once more, this time more insistent.
The Head Girl suddenly burst into loud, disbelieving laughter and merely engulfed Hermione in a bear hug.
__________
September 10, 1977
Lily's eyes had been scrutinising James ever since he had walked inside their dormitory. As usual, he greeted her with a cool, "Hey, Evans" and that ridiculous lopsided smile of his that made a lot of women sigh dreamily. Lily still stiffened every time James Potter was within her line of vision, getting ready to bolt away once he started to spout declarations of love with obnoxious displays to woo her heart. None of this had happened since the start of the school-year, of course, and although Lily was relieved, she was also admittedly curious with his sudden change in attitude.
She had at first thought he had grown tired of pursuing her, especially now that he was both the Head Boy and Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. On top of that, it was their NEWTs year and he was set on becoming an Auror after graduation. James couldn't afford to lose sight of his priorities, and apparently wooing his supposed love of his life wasn't part of them.
It never really occurred to her that he had stopped liking her because he had realised he liked another. After that strange encounter at the Black Lake yesterday, everything had slotted into place and had started to make sense. The weird smiles, the buying of butterbeer, the giving of toffees, the ridiculous coincidence of his company every time her best friend was present... All of this boiled down to a conclusion that James Potter apparently liked Hermione Pettigrew now.
It was laughable, now that Lily properly thought about it. Hermione was comically oblivious with the change in tide, still insisting for Lily to give James a chance, because he had better qualities than what he usually showed to her. But James never showed a different side when he tried to pursue Lily. He was always the arrogant toerag, walking around the school like the whole world revolved around him. She couldn't digest the fact that he had another side, a sweeter, kinder side.
"All set, Evans?" James asked, breaking through her chaotic thoughts.
Lily stared at him for a moment, waiting for him to become flustered, but James merely quirked an eyebrow. "Yeah, let's go," she finally said with a sigh.
They walked out of the portrait hole together and started their nightly patrol. Lily was usually content with the silence, but today, she wanted to test her theory.
Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched as James fished out his Golden Snitch and started to absentmindedly toss it in the air whilst whistling a soft tune under his breath. She quirked an eyebrow, recognising 'The Long and Winding Road', and was unable to stop herself when she blurted out, "You know that song?"
James paused his whistling and briefly glanced at Lily. His cheeks turned pink as a sheepish smile grew on his face. "Err, well, it was the first song Hermione played for me when she was teaching me how to play the guitar," he confessed. "It's kind of stuck in my mind ever since."
Lily stopped walking and gaped at his back. "I'm sorry, do you mean Hermione taught you how to play the guitar?" she exclaimed in disbelief.
The Head Boy also stopped walking and craned his neck over his shoulder. "Ah – well – I thought Hermione would have told you," he said, followed by a soft laugh. "Back when we were in fifth year, I asked for her help to woo you, seeing that she's your best friend. She let it slip that you were hopelessly in love with the band, The Beatles, and once joked that if someone sang 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' while strumming a guitar, you'd snog him senselessly."
Her green eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "I always wondered how you knew that song!" she cried. "That rat."
James held up his hands and laughed once more. "Hey, hey, don't get mad at Hermione now," he appeased. "I was mighty persistent back then and she genuinely wanted to help." A soft look appeared on his face as he stupidly grinned at the floor. "She's always been really kind, you know."
There it was again, that sappy look on James' face. Her initial feelings of betrayal about Hermione helping this annoying wizard melted, replaced with persistent curiosity once more. "But then, you stopped," she simply stated.
"Sorry?"
"The wooing," Lily expounded. "The boisterous declarations of love. The ridiculous displays of affection. That all stopped."
James fully turned around to face Lily now, an uncertain look on his face. "Well, I figured out you didn't like it at all," he said, his hand climbing up to the back of his neck where he started to awkwardly rub it. "Actually, Hermione had to explicitly tell me that I had to back the fuck off because it was making you uncomfortable. Sorry about that, Evans, really. I am, as you've fondly called me a thousand times before, a toerag. I was terribly forward and tried to outdo myself every time I wooed you."
If it were more possible, Lily's eyes widened at his words. Where was this James Potter before? Lily had never seen this side of him! Perhaps, Hermione had been right when she had said that James had other sides to him.
'Hermione,' Lily thought, the corners of her mouth twitching.
Time to test her theory.
"Go out with me, Potter," she casually drawled, her green eyes not leaving his form. "As in just the two of us. Without your annoying friends and without my best friends. The first Hogsmeade Day will be two weeks from now. Maybe, you want to grab some butterbeers and get to know each other more?"
She had to stop herself from laughing when James' hazel eyes grew as round as the Golden Snitch in his hand. His cheeks turned splotchy red and secretly, Lily thought it was stupidly unfair how such an incorrigible boy could look as handsome as he did. She did find him nice to look at, even before when he was still trying to pursue her, but his annoying personality had overshadowed whatever physical attractiveness the Potter heir exuded.
"Evans," he deliberately said. "I mean – Lily." He paused and thickly swallowed, his hazel eyes now unable to meet her piercing ones. He nervously ruffled his hair and frowned. "I still think you are pretty. Bloody fucking pretty, if I were to be honest. And you're brilliant too! I always knew you'd become Head Girl what with that huge brain of yours."
She heard the word 'but' loud and clear even though he never voiced it aloud. Lily languidly strolled closer, shrinking the distance between them.
James didn't even flinch.
"But?" she breathed out.
His eyes finally snapped back to her, a resolute firmness in them that almost knocked her off her feet. James Potter was never serious. James Potter never looked this serious. It was disconcerting. The bully toerag she'd grown up with in the past seemed like a distant memory now. James looked every bit a proper adult in this world and Lily wondered when he had started to grow up.
"But I really, truly, honestly think you're a little too late," he ground out, his jaw slightly tensed whilst his gaze was unwavering.
Lily stared, watching as James slowly grew nervous under her intense gaze.
'So,' she thought. 'Theory is fact.'
To James' confusion, a huge grin broke out on Lily's face. "All right," she flippantly said. "Besides, I'm sure my boyfriend would go ballistic if he found out I had asked James Potter out on a Hogsmeade date."
The Head Boy looked like a fish out of water, his mouth opening and closing ridiculously with no words tumbling out.
"Well," Lily said, casually brushing her red hair over one shoulder, "Severus and I will be busy on Hogsmeade Day so Hermione might need some company."
Lily didn't bother hiding her smile when James furiously blushed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah?" he nervously asked, slowly turning around once more so that his back was facing her.
"Godric, Potter, you're hopeless," Lily said with a derisive snort.
"What?"
The redhead sighed and ignored his question, instead striding forward and continuing her patrol. James had blessedly kept silent throughout, but his hazel eyes still darted curiously at her back.
Secretly, Lily smiled. If she were being honest with herself, she had almost cracked last year and agreed to go out on one date with him. He had become so annoying that she had thought this may have stopped him from pestering her. But she was glad she had never given in, because if she had seen this side of James, she may have started to have doubts - which would have distracted her from the feelings she'd been having for another certain bloke.
Besides, Lily had this inkling Hermione liked James, too, and she didn't want to rob her best friend of possible happiness, even if it meant she had to tolerate the annoying toerag for the rest of her life.
__________
September 23, 1977
Hermione blinked and stopped her trek towards her usual library table.
Sitting on her table, with his back facing her, was Regulus Black. Said Slytherin was religiously writing something down on parchment, most likely finishing an essay.
She glanced around the library, noting there were a lot of empty tables. She wondered if Regulus had gone there unconsciously, seeing that he had been sitting there often last year. Hermione thought it was silly to claim a table as her own, but she'd been sitting there since she was eleven years old. Other frequent library-goers had already made a silent agreement that this table was reserved for Hermione Pettigrew and had thankfully steered clear from it.
Her stomach churned with the thought that the Slytherin might already be Branded, her dinner threatening to spill out. She told herself she could choose another table to sit on today, not wanting to share a table with a possible Death Eater. Besides, Regulus had made it a point to avoid her. September was almost ending, but Regulus did not even give her a mere glance. He was constantly flanked by Barty Crouch Jr. and another Slytherin she knew by the name of Evan Rosier. Regulus looked reminiscent of Draco Malfoy, accompanied by his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, reverently following him everywhere he went.
But despite her protesting, logical mind, Hermione's feet brought her towards Regulus and stopped once she was standing behind him.
Regulus suddenly stiffened, sensing her presence, before he slowly craned his neck around to look at her.
"You're on my table," she blurted out.
Brief surprise flitted in Regulus' grey eyes, before any emotions were shielded behind his indifferent mask. "There are plenty of seats in the library, Pettigrew," he coolly drawled, his tone almost making Hermione shiver at how icy he sounded.
"I've always sat on this table," Hermione persisted. "And you're sitting at it."
Regulus glowered.
"Unless you're going to willingly share this seat with me," she hotly continued, "I suggest you move to another table, Regulus."
She knew she was becoming petty, but she'd been understandably hurt by his cold indifference on the train.
Regulus bared his teeth then hastily crammed his things into his bag. Hermione sighed, having hoped that he wouldn't be like this, but of course, she remembered how he had easily brushed her off on the train.
Her eyes strayed to his covered left forearm and she felt the bile rise up in her throat once more. She tried her hardest to see any sign of a Dark Mark marring his white skin, but Regulus' robe was in the way. Without thinking, before he could move away, Hermione shot forward and clutched his left forearm. Tight.
The Slytherin instantly froze and stopped breathing altogether, his eyes growing wide as he stared at Hermione.
"If you need any help," she lowly whispered for only him to hear, "please, please, please don't hesitate to come ask for mine, Regulus."
Regulus had grown pale at her words, his indifferent mask starting to crack. Vulnerability peeked through and Hermione's heart soared, wondering if he'd relent and tell her his deepest, darkest secret.
"I—" The words wouldn't stumble from his lips and his grey eyes looked terrified.
"Hermione!"
The spell was instantly broken as Regulus pulled his arm away, a look of utter disdain on his face again.
Hermione bit back a groan and looked over her shoulder, unable to stop herself from glaring upon seeing the Marauders standing a few paces away from her and the Slytherin. It was Sirius who had called for her, but his eyes were trained intently on his brother.
The brunette glanced quickly at Regulus, noting that the Slytherin was unable to meet anyone's eyes. His jaw was set and his face still pale, but thinly-veiled annoyance now covered whatever shred of vulnerability he had shown to Hermione.
"Everything all right, Hermione?"
Her eyes met James' and she was surprised at how his eyes were mostly dark brown with thunderous emotions. She was instantly reminded of the time when James had caught her studying with Regulus last year, and how he'd lashed out with a fury she didn't know the reasoning behind.
"I'm fine," she ground out.
James didn't seem to believe her as his wand hand twitched. Undoubtedly he wanted to brandish his wand and lash out at Regulus again.
"I'm fine," she repeated once more, this time with vehemence. Her stare was unwavering, unwilling to back down, until James gave the tiniest of nods and averted his glaring eyes towards his feet instead.
Regulus then tightly gripped his satchel and brushed past Hermione. The brunette toppled a bit at the force he used, but Peter was instantly beside her and kept her upright.
Hermione tensely watched as Regulus walked out of the library and ignored the Marauders.
"Did something happen?" Peter worriedly asked, gripping her arm to get her attention.
She shook her head and tiredly sighed. "Why are you all here?" she asked, desperately wanting to dispel whatever thick tension had settled in the library.
"We were wondering if you'd make us another one of your colour-coded schedules," Remus said, a look of understanding on his face. Hermione still fervently thanked the stars above at how sensitive Remus was towards people's feelings, always remaining attuned to what they truly wanted in that moment.
A corner of Hermione's lips twitched upward in amusement. "Back to using me now, are you?" she lightly teased.
Sirius expelled a humongous sigh and schooled whatever despondency he'd shown when he'd stared at Regulus. "Using you?" he asked with a snort, a hand climbing to his heart. "When did we ever?"
Hermione laughed softly at his melodrama, relieved that the tension had gone. "Lucky for you, I did make them over the summer," she said, sauntering towards her table and pulling out a chair. Peter instantly took the seat beside her, silent worry still on his face. Thankfully, he didn't ask any more questions.
Sirius and Remus clambered towards the table while Hermione pulled out the schedules from her bag.
"What are you glaring at, Prongsie mate?" Sirius called out with a snort. "Come now, sit down."
Hermione cautiously glanced at James, who was still glowering at the floor before pulling out the chair across from her. He lifted his eyes to meet hers, but Hermione immediately looked away.
"So, yes, here are your schedules," she said, distributing them to the Marauders. "You may think it's stricter than your OWLs schedules, but we're talking about NEWTs here. To qualify as Aurors, the ministry expects at least five Exceeds Expectations, and want none to go below Acceptable."
Peter considerably paled at her reminder, prompting Hermione to reach out for his hand and to give it a slight squeeze. "I've added extra attention on reviewing Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfiguration and Charms, since they'd be the subjects they're going to focus on."
She turned to Peter and pointed at a yellow highlighted section. "I've also focused on your Herbology, Peter, because you're hopeless in that subject," she claimed. "If you get at least an A, then we're all good."
She glanced at Remus. "I focused on Potions for you more, because you're pants at that, Remus." Her eyes swivelled towards Sirius and she kindly smiled. "I know you hate Care of Magical Creatures, so I placed extra days for that subject."
Her eyes finally landed on James, whose hazel eyes had now simmered down into a curios stare. He had his chin placed on top of his upturned palm, his head cocked to the side. "You... well – um, I added more study time for Arithmancy because it's your weakest subject."
"So, you really do know our weaknesses like a loon, blimey," Sirius snorted.
Hermione's gaze landed on Sirius and she gave him a glare. "'Thank you, Hermione. You're a life saver'," she snapped. "Some gratitude would have sufficed."
"Thank you, Hermione. You're a life saver," James echoed. She looked at him in surprise, her cheeks turning red at the handsome smile he flashed at her.
Hermione cleared her throat and looked down at her things. "Right, okay, time to study," she declared. She threw a glare at Sirius, who was in the middle of expelling a loud groan. He caught her eyes and promptly snapped his lips shut.
They breezed through the remaining hours in silence. Hermione easily lost herself in a flurry of her parchments and textbooks, furiously scribbling down words to complete her essay. And by the time she tore her gaze away from her paper, the Marauders were ready to go, identical amused smiles on their faces.
"Hi," Peter teased, "we thought you wouldn't snap out of it for a moment there."
Her cheeks reddened. "Sorry," she said, "I tend to do this a lot."
Remus chuckled. "We know, Hermione. We've studied with you before," he added.
"It's almost curfew," James pointed out. "And as much as I love the perks of being a Head Boy, I'm afraid I cannot extend such privileges to my friends, no matter how swotty they are." Hermione's cheeks reddened in annoyance when he shot her a smile.
"Aww, you've stopped being fun ever since you became Head Boy, Jamesy," Sirius petulantly said.
Remus rolled his eyes. "At least somebody decided to grow up this year," he pointed out. "Unlike other people."
Sirius reached forward and hit the werewolf on the back of his head, prompting Remus to scowl at him in return.
"I'll escort Hermione back to Ravenclaw Tower," Peter said, helping Hermione fix her things. "You guys go ahead."
James suddenly strode forward, an uncertain look on his face. "Let me do that instead," he said, his eyes never straying away from Peter's.
Hermione's eyes widened while Peter frowned. "Why?" he asked, confused.
"Ah – well – I have a favour to ask," he told him quickly, a nervous smile stretched widely on his face.
Remus quirked an eyebrow. "Favour?" he slowly asked. "What favour?"
"Never mind that," James immediately dismissed. Hermione noted the frown on Remus' face as she glanced back at James, wondering what this favour he was so eager to ask of her. "Go on, blokes, before I start deducting points from you for being outside your dormitories after curfew."
"You wouldn't dare!" Sirius gasped.
"Try me, Pads," he said with a pointed glare.
"Iron fist," Sirius hissed in return.
Hermione snorted, much to James' surprise. When he questioningly looked at her, she'd deftly shrugged. "I mean, you have become stricter since becoming Head Boy," she pointed out.
"That is a good thing, right?" he deliberately asked.
"Oh, yes, of course," she said, nodding her head vigorously. "I was afraid you'd become lenient with your friends once you had assumed the highest position in the student body. So far, you've proved me wrong."
James was practically preening at her words and Hermione couldn't stop her eyes from rolling. "Right, of course, I've stroked your bloody ego once more," she claimed with a disbelieving laugh.
"The only thing he's proved so far is that he's a wanker lately, Hermione, honest," Peter cajoled. James punched him on the shoulder, earning him another dark glare from his best friend.
"Go back to your dormitories, wankers," the Head Boy growled.
Peter expelled a long-suffering sigh and pulled Hermione into a goodbye hug, before trailing behind Remus and Sirius as they walked out of the library.
"Come on then," James said, grabbing her bag and slinging it over his shoulder, "before I'm forced to deduct points from you for being outside after curfew."
"I'm with the Head Boy himself," Hermione pointed out matter-of-factly. "I'm sure there are exceptions to that rule."
James' eyes widened as he stared down at her. "Did those words really come out of your mouth?" he asked with a mock gasp. "What about being stricter, even with your friends? What about ruling with an iron fist?" He lifted his clenched hand and shook it with gusto.
"Prat," Hermione laughed, shoving him away as she sauntered towards the library doors. Her cheeks flushed red when she heard his laugh, before he quickly walked forwards until he was standing beside her.
The corridors were almost vacant, save from students who had also lost track of time. Hermione took a quick peek at her wristwatch and noted it was ten minutes before curfew. At this pace, it'd take her about eighteen minutes to reach Ravenclaw Tower. Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched as James coolly walked beside her, as if he didn't care about being caught outside of their dormitories past curfew. Her eyes slid towards his glinting Head Boy badge and she suppressed a snort, knowing he'd get away with it easily, with his sweet talking and charming smile.
"This favour you spoke of," Hermione said, deciding it was finally time to break the silence. "What is it?"
James hummed under his breath and briefly looked down at Hermione. He merely smiled, prompting Hermione to sigh.
"Look, James, as much as I like walking beside you," she said, praying to Merlin she sounded a tad sarcastic and not ridiculously nervous, "not everybody can walk around with a 'Heads' badge pinned on their robes. If you must know, I only have" – she briefly checked her watch – "nine more minutes before curfew and I don't really plan on crossing paths with Filch, the first month back at school."
"Well, then, it's good I have this, isn't it?" James then pulled out the familiar Marauder's Map from his pocket and gave it to Hermione.
"It's done?" she asked, eyeing the parchment with wide, reverent eyes.
"More or else," James said with a shrug. "We tried to finish it during the summer, since it's our last year at Hogwarts. We should at least put it to good use before giving it to future pranksters."
Hermione snorted and pulled out her wand. She was about to utter the password, but then paused and questioningly glanced at James. "May I?" she asked.
"By all means," he said, gesturing at the map.
The Ravenclaw took a deep breath and tapped her wand tip onto the parchment. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," she whispered.
Ink bled into the parchment, forming the familiar greeting of the Marauders. She rolled her eyes at the ridiculous greeting, knowing full well this was Sirius' spiel.
She was about to open it, but James placed a hand on top of the parchment, halting her from doing so. She glanced at him in surprise, noting the wide, excited smile on his face. "Wait, don't open it yet. Look at the words in front first. It doesn't stop there," he said.
Hermione's eyes widened at this new information. She remembered there had been no further additions to the Marauders' greetings back then, so what had changed?
Highly curious, Hermione's eyes landed on the greeting again. The usual greeting flashed for a few seconds, before new words appeared.
"Special thanks to Miss Whiskers, Muse and Mentor of the Messrs.," she murmured, eyes growing wider after each word she uttered. "The truest Marauder of us all."
Hermione laughed in disbelief, her blue eyes glinting brightly in the dim corridor. "That's not even a compliment," she cried, pointing at the last sentence.
James matched her laugh and absentmindedly ruffled his hair. "For us, it is," he insisted. He nervously tugged the ends of his sticking hair and chuckled once more. "It was my idea, actually."
She stupidly grinned at the map and brushed her fingertips against her christened nickname. "Merlin, I still hate this name," she murmured. "And – well – I didn't know I was going to be mentioned! I didn't even contribute to making this, after all."
"You provided that wicked password, Hermione," James pointed out. "That's a huge contribution already." He uncertainly peered down at her and tentatively smiled. "You like it?"
"Of course I like it!" she exclaimed, another laugh bubbling from her lips. She shook the parchment in the air and added, "This thing is bloody brilliant, if you must know. Granted, it will be used for nefarious reasons, but the process of making it used very advanced magic."
James puffed out his chest, obviously proud at her glowing praise.
She laughed and chanced a glance on her watch. "Blimey, we just wasted seven minutes!" she exclaimed. Hermione immediately opened the map and glanced around, noting that Filch and Mrs. Norris were already walking out of their office. "At this rate, I'll be caught outside after curfew."
James leant down, his face almost touching hers, and pointed at a passageway Hermione had never gone through before. "Good thing we discovered these secret passages in Hogwarts then, yeah?" he whispered, his warm breath washing over her cheeks. Hermione jerked back in surprise, flustered at his close proximity, and only mutely nodded her head when James steered her towards a tapestry of fluttering pixies.
Darkness instantly drenched the two students. James pulled out his own wand and murmured a soft Lumos, illuminating the corridor. Hermione followed suit and murmured the spell, bringing her wand tip lower, to glance at the map once more. So far, no professors or caretakers were near them.
"I don't even know why we're hiding when I'm Head Boy," James whispered in the dark, pressing himself closer to Hermione. "I can always make up an excuse."
"It'll be too exhausting to argue with Filch," Hermione replied, a nervous laugh escaping from her lips at the feel of James' arm brushing against her bare forearm. She belatedly regretted removing her robe prior to leaving the library. She was glad the corridor was almost dark, so her blushing cheeks could be concealed.
"So... the favour," she reiterated, training her eyes on the map. "Do you need help with wooing Lily once again?"
Silence met her question at first, and curious, Hermione lifted her blue eyes to glance at James. She almost backpedalled in surprise when she discovered he was already looking at her, his face too close for her heart to handle.
"Ah – well," James said, breaking their gaze and looking straight ahead. "Actually, I was wondering if you'd help me on the first Hogsmeade weekend."
"Okay, go on," she urged.
"Sirius is going on a date with Marley. Remus has to assist Professor Flitwick with a project that day. Even Peter, that wanker, is busy that day. He's going on a date with Mary MacDonald, you see," James said.
That was news to her. "What?" she gasped in surprise. "Really?"
"Your brother finally grew some balls this year, eh?" he asked with a derisive snort. "He still cannot believe she said yes, though, and he's been over the moon ever since."
Hermione took a mental note to interrogate Peter about this, then shoved the thought away and focused her attention on James again. "So... what favour do you need?" she repeated.
His arm shifted, once again unwittingly brushing against Hermione, as he ran a hand through his hair. "I was hoping you'd help me on the Hogsmeade weekend by keeping me company?" he asked, hope thick in his voice. "I've been meaning to tell you something and – ah – err, I think that day's the perfect day to tell you. So, what do you think, Hermione?"
Her eyebrows slowly stitched together in the middle, trying to rack her brain for whatever James was trying to tell her. She was instantly reminded of the day where she and Lily were hanging out near the Black Lake.
"I'm actually seeing someone," Lily had said that day.
Could it be James? But Lily was adamant that she'd never give the toerag a chance. Or perhaps Lily was embarrassed to admit she had started dating him, after years and years of complaining about his general attitude. It could explain the odd way they'd been interacting with each other; perhaps, they'd insisted on making it as casual as possible, so that no one would get suspicious.
It didn't make sense why James would want to tell her about that during Hogsmeade weekend, but it was honestly the only explanation she could think of.
Well, there was another explanation, but that was too farfetched to even be considered! Of course, there were strange looks from the Head Boy she'd never seen him wear before every time he'd seen her or there were weird, awkward silences that bothered Hermione immensely. But then she'd brush off those odd instances, not wanting to delve on them deeper because surely, surely she was wrong.
Realising she still hadn't given him an answer, Hermione swallowed down an uncomfortable lump and gave him a shaky smile. She wasn't sure if he'd notice how weird her smile was, but hoped not, since it was too dark in the secret passage. "All right," she finally said.
James looked marvellously relieved. "Yeah?" he asked, that handsome, lopsided smile on his face once more. Hermione groaned at how mighty unfair it was that she could still see how good-looking he was, despite walking in a poorly-lit corridor.
"Yeah," she echoed. "Lily and Sev bailed on me too, so I don't really have anyone to hang out with on that day."
"All right," he said, still with that stupid grin on his face. "I'll meet you in front of Ravenclaw Tower at 10. Sound good?"
Hermione didn't trust herself to speak so she merely nodded her head - unbelievably relieved when they finally reached the end of the corridor.
It took her a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the sudden onslaught of bright lights, before noticing they were already near the entrance of her Common Room. Her eyes widened as she glanced at James, noting the amused smile on his face.
"Well, here's your stop," James said, gesturing at the unimposing door with the eagle-shaped doorknocker. "Goodnight, Hermione."
"Goodnight," she echoed in return. She then offered the map back to James, which he deftly took.
"10am here, yeah?" he asked again.
Hermione lightly smiled. "Yeah."
James flashed another wide, lopsided smile that always made her heart stutter. Without breaking eye contact, he pressed his wand tip on the map and murmured a soft, "Mischief Managed."
Something in his eyes flickered, but he had already turned on his heel. Hermione found herself staring at his back until he reached the end of the corridor. A part of her wondered if he'd glance over his shoulder to give her another smile. A part of her wished he'd glance over his shoulder to give her another smile.
She held her breath when he reached the end, and then expelled a surprised, pleased laugh from her lips when James didn't disappoint. His eyes widened a bit, discovering that she still hadn't gone inside her Common Room. He stopped walking altogether and turned his body to face her completely, gave her a silly little wave that made her laugh.
He then disappeared behind the corner and Hermione could properly breathe again.