Chapter Text
East High Boarding School, Early September 2024
The thing no one mentions about high school is that it goes by in the blink of an eye.
Okay — maybe a few people have said that, but James had never been one to pay them much attention.
Until now when his alarm obnoxiously cuts through the silence of Gryffindor Room 64, eliciting a chorus of groans from the other side of the room. It’s his last first day at East High Boarding School. His last first day of being a Wildcat. His last first day of high school. Ever. The whole year stretches ahead of him, simultaneously incredibly long and barreling towards an end he’s not ready for. There’s something poetic about that, he thinks.
“Can you turn that off?” comes Remus’ muffled voice from across the room.
“Sorry!” he says, fumbling in the dark for his phone. He yanks the charging cable out and quickly silences the alarm before Remus can complain again. One of the first rules of Room 64 of Gryffindor tower is to not bother Remus before he’s had his daily cup of coffee.
His phone buzzes in his hand, a text from the Potter Family group chat flashing on the screen.
Mama <3
(07:03) Good luck today! We hope you have a great first day! And stay out of trouble.
(07:03) We miss you! <3
He smiles and types back a quick reply. He knows his parents get bored in their house when he’s not there — who wouldn’t? — but they can manage. They have a trip to Pakistan booked for next month that, now that his mother retired, they couldn’t stop talking about. Still, he sets a quick reminder to call them later this evening to update them on his first day back.
“Ready for today?” he calls to the darkened room. There’s a faint snore from Remus’ bed. Typical of him to fall back asleep. “First day!”
“No,” comes Sirius’ monotonous reply. The other boy is a mass of duvet and pillows, barely visible in the early morning light that struggles to shine through the thick, dormitory curtains.
James has known Sirius for ages. They met when they were still kids living in the same town in Maine, back before the Potters moved to Michigan and the Black brothers moved to Oregon to live with their uncle Alphard. James remembers the day he and Sirius first met. He was sitting at the side of the walking path near the park where he lived, knees scraped and caked in mud, sending his collection of toy cars rolling down the path one after the other, seeing which would make it to the bottom the fastest. As an only child he was often alone, and was too young to realize that he was also often lonely. It was easy to make friends at school, but during the summer when all his classmates were scattered: on vacation, at summer camp, on the lakes, it was much harder to stay in touch.
That day, James hadn’t known that he was being watched until another kid, a stranger, suddenly appeared at his shoulder, looking down at him with clear green eyes and long black hair.
“If I push that one,” the other kid had told him while pointing to one of James’ truck models, “and you push this one at the same time,” nodding to the bus in James’ hand, “we can see which one goes faster.”
“Okay, yeah. Ready?” James agreed immediately, because even from that young age he couldn’t say no to a bit of friendly competition. “One, two, three!” They pushed the cars and watched them roll away.
“I’m Sirius,” the kid had told him, grinning ear to ear.
“James.” And that was that. The ease and innocence of their childhood friendship never left them. Even after their respective moves, they spent weeknights frantically scribbling detailed letters to each other, waiting by their mailboxes with bated breath every weekend. Neither of them ever looked back, and they were SiriusandJames for the rest of time.
“Well, you better get ready,” says James, swinging his legs over the side of his bed. “I’m not letting you be the reason we’re late to our first class.”
“Who cares? It’s the first day.”
James shoots a sidelong glance to Remus’ bed, where he sits upright, rubbing his eye sleepily, his hair sticking in all directions. “Remus will be upset if we’re late.”
Sirius rolls over and glares at him. “How dare you use Remus against me. You know I hate to make him upset.”
Remus rolls his eyes. “Clearly not enough,” he says. “Or else I’d still be asleep.”
James launches a pillow at Remus and a rolled up pair of socks at Sirius. He turns to the washroom, ignoring their surprised yelps. “When I get out you better be up.” Their glares are sharp on his back.
SiriusandJames had met Remus on their first day of freshman year. Walking into the building, both jittery and on edge in the new environment, they compensated by laughing at each other’s jokes too loudly and making a spectacle of themselves as if to prove to everyone else around them that they weren’t actually nervous to start high school. People either laughed with them or gave them a wide berth, not wanting to interact with the abundance of energy emanating from the two of them. Everyone except for their third roommate, who despite not loving the attention, didn’t shy away from their antics and instead just stared with his arms crossed and a judged eyebrow raised.
It had taken a while for Remus to fully warm up to them. It wasn’t until a few weeks into freshman year, during the attempted execution of a legendary SiriusandJames prank on Principal Dumbledore. As Sirius and James crept through the hallways at night, they bumped into Remus, who had snuck out past curfew after returning to an empty dorm. Rather than chewing them out or leaving them be, Remus joined in on their plan, showing them the quietest routes to get to Dumbledore’s office. The prank didn’t work. They couldn’t get the door open with their amateur lock-picking skills (something they had forgotten to consider in their limited planning), but since that day Remus became the third member of their group. A point of balance and a voice of reason. Never again did an oversight of lock-picking happen once Remus became involved, and when the three of them were together, they were unstoppable.
Between Remus’ logic, Sirius’ charm, and James’ audacity, they made a name for themselves at East High over the years they studied there. A bond like theirs was unbreakable.
It takes another twenty minutes for Remus and Sirius to get out of bed and dressed, but eventually the three of them find themselves in the cafeteria for breakfast, soft morning sunlight shining through the floor to ceiling windows and onto the tables.
“It’s good to be back!” James exclaims cheerfully, allowing the familiar sounds of the students chattering amongst themselves to wash over him. He can faintly hear the clanging of pots and pans in the kitchen. Both Sirius and Remus look at each other and then back at him blankly. “Come on! It’s our last first day, doesn’t that excite you?”
“I know this might be a strange concept to you, James,” Remus says finally. “But some of us find it really difficult to find anything exciting before 10:00am.”
“12 noon for me,” Sirius adds.
James slumps in his seat and starts eating his Lucky Charms cereal dejectedly. “Fine,” he sighs dramatically. “Force me into solitude for my excitement. Happiness jail. Purgatory for those of us who feel joy.”
“Shut up and eat your cereal. We can join you in happiness jail at lunch, okay?” Sirius says, motioning to his plate.
James gapes at them. How can they not feel the weight of today, the feeling that this is all ending soon? His stomach churns at the thought. No, he will not stand for a silent breakfast! Not today! He raises his coffee mug above his head, and motions wildly for the other two to follow suit. Sirius and Remus exchange a look, but both concede and raise their mugs. “A toast!” James exclaims, lowering his voice dramatically. “To us, and one final year at East High!”
“Finally, the last year of me having to see you idiots every day,” Remus says, an unwilling smile tugging at his lips.
“Ah, you love us,” Sirius tells him, nudging his shoulder with his own.
“Who told you that? I think they lied.”
“You did, literally last night. Don’t make me read your messages out loud,” Sirius threatens, pulling out his phone.
“Stop bickering and be sentimental with me!” James pouts and waves his mug in the air, coffee dribbling over the lip of his mug and onto the table. “It’s our last year and I want it to be memorable.”
“Sorry, sorry,” Remus consoles. “But really James, when have we not had a memorable year?”
“You know what?” Sirius suddenly says, eyes bright as he looks at James. “You’re right. Let’s make this year extra good. Filled with an abundance of tomfoolery and the finest pranks known to man! The boys are back!”
“‘Tomfoolery’?” Remus mutters, but joins in as they clink their mugs together and take an exaggerated, synchronized sip.
“I got this, you stay here,” James hears Remus tell him quietly.
“Um, what about me?” he gestures to his own tray, causing his spoon to tumble over the side of his bowl and clatter onto the cafeteria floor.
Remus shoots him a look but adds a third tray to the growing stack in his arms. James wiggles his eyebrows teasingly, which Remus ignores and instead drops their dirty dishes off at the back of the cafeteria. Sirius remains oblivious.
Rejuvenated after breakfast and coffee, the three of them swagger around the hallways. James breathes in the air of their kingdom deeply. Nothing beats the energy of a fresh year at East High, when everything is still a possibility.
“I bet that McGonagall will adopt another cat,” Remus says, as they pass her office. Every year the three of them place bets on what exciting event they think will occur during the school year. If they win, they get unlimited bragging rights. Sirius still hasn’t stopped flaunting his genius after he correctly guessed that Ms. Sprout and Ms. Hooch were secretly in a relationship last year.
“I bet that we’ll beat the West High Knights at the championships,” Sirius says. James whoops and high fives him in agreement.
They pass the school auditorium, the doors open to reveal rows and rows of plush red seats. “I bet that Lily will realise that she’s head over heels in love with me,” James says. His heart beats a little bit faster thinking about her. The theatre department puts on a show every year and Lily nearly always gets the lead, which makes sense. Anyone in their right mind could tell that she is a star. Last year it had been some musical about pie. He didn’t care about the plot, but she looked stunning on stage.
“Yeah, I’m not sure I’ll be betting on that one.” Remus shakes his head pityingly and James breaks out of his Lily daydream. “You guys broke up almost two years ago.”
“Years mean nothing when it comes to love,” James tells him.
So here’s the thing: he’ll never get over Lily. He’s sure of it. He’s loved her since they met in their freshman year and, until two years ago, Lily had loved him back. Despite the breakup, he knows that a love like theirs doesn’t just disappear. He and Lily are on good terms now and are really good friends, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to be more again. They’re meant to be together. He’s certain.
“He’s never going to get over it,” Sirius says, eyeing him. “His headstone is going to say, ‘loved only one girl and never moved on’.” He playfully shoves James’ shoulder. “He’s down so bad, he’s got a rental space in hell.”
“Down so bad he’s making lunch plans with the devil,” Remus adds.
“Down so bad, he made gravity increase three times.”
“Ha,” James deadpans. “You guys can laugh, but I will get Lily back. This year is the year of love for James Potter, I can feel it.”
“Yeah, okay.” Remus laughs. “I’ll believe it when I see it. I personally bet this year will be another year of yearning for one, James Potter.”
“King of the yearn, is what you should be called,” Sirius says.
James sighs. “Sincerely, fuck you both.”
_________
Nostalgia’s a bitch.
James can’t believe earlier today he was hoping that this year would last forever. As the school day drags on, each teacher going on and on about how this year is the most important year of their lives, he remembers why he’s looking forward to graduating. How is he expected to stay focused for so many hours when outside, the sun is shining, practically begging him to spend the day beneath its rays?
The end-of-day bell is a welcome noise. James leaps up from his desk and throws his notebooks and pencils into his backpack haphazardly. He and Sirius shoot Remus a quick wave before the two of them make their way down the halls and toward the rugby fields out back.
“Ready for the last first day of practice?”
“I’m ready to kick some West High Knight butt!” Sirius answers with a grin.
Rugby has always been James’ thing. He started playing when he was really young, him and his dad throwing the ball back and forth in the backyard. At the time it had been bigger than his head. Club Rugby XV Championship matches were the best times of the year for James when he was growing up, he and his dad spending evenings on the couch in front of the TV, shouting at the players when there was a foul or a particularly nasty tackle.
One of the reasons he’d decided on going across the country for school was because East High’s rugby program was one of the best in the United States. He’d tried out during his first week of freshman year, and miraculously made it. He’d spent most of that year on the bench, taking the time to watch his teammates play, learning how they worked together, coming together to form one breathing creature. He trained really hard that year, and by the next he was playing on the field consistently. Since then, he’s never looked back. When he’s on the field in his uniform, it’s like the rest of his life fades away and he can just focus. Just be. All that matters are the rules of the game. Finding holes in the other team’s defenses. Tackling. Trying. It’s simple, but that’s what makes it so intoxicating. The best way to leave all of the day’s stresses behind is to run from them, literally.
In the changeroom he quickly slips into his rugby uniform. He’d grown over the summer so the jersey pulls at his shoulders and chest. He makes a mental note to order a new one that weekend. On the field, the sun is still bright in the sky. The team captain, Chad Danforth, waves at him from centre field, where he’s surrounded by rugby balls and agility cones.
“Hey, Potter! Dude, how’ve you been?” Chad asks him, clapping him on the back in a friendly manner.
“Yeah, yeah, pretty good. How was your summer?”
“Oh yeah, solid. Worked with my dad and made some money.”
“Nice, yeah.”
“Ready for the season?”
“Of course! Ready to kick West High’s asses.”
“That’s what I like to hear!” Chad claps his shoulder again, his gaze slipping to someone behind James. “Ah, I need to talk to Gudgeon really quick — Hey! Gudg!”
The rest of the team trickled in quickly, laughing and jostling each other. Most of them James hadn’t seen since last year, and it was nice to greet some friendly faces. Over the summer, Austen had grown facial hair and Lindenburg had gotten a tattoo. This was his place and these were his people.
The first practice back is never their most efficient, lots of catching up, goofing off, and finding their footing again. James’ body buzzes with electricity. They take turns kicking the ball, seeing who can get it the furthest down the field. Some sophomore kid named Stebbins wins, and they all lift him onto their shoulders and carry him around the field like he’s a king and they’re all his servants. James laughs so hard he gets a stitch in his side.
“It’s good to be back, huh?” Sirius says as they take fifteen. He pours water from his bottle over his head, shaking out his hair like a dog.
“Hey, Potter!” calls a familiar voice before he can answer. A voice that makes his insides squirm and his cheeks grow warm. “Black!”
Lily Evans stands at the edge of the field, her cardinal red hair hanging low below her shoulders. She grins and waves at them, the silver bands along her wrists clinking together like wind chimes. Mary MacDonald and Marlene McKinnon stand on either side of her, the two of them sporting matching smiles.
James swats Sirius’ arm away before he can successfully elbow him in the side.
“Hey, guys!” he waves and Lily looks up at him. How had he survived all summer without seeing her? The occasional text and phone call don’t cut it compared to seeing her in the flesh. Her green eyes glisten as she looks at him and James thinks how easy it would be to get lost in them.
“Marls. Mary,” Sirius says, fistbumping the both of them.
Mary grins at them. “Have a good summer, you two?”
“Yeah it was good.”
“But we’re glad to be back,” James adds.
“Have you started planning some new pranks?” Marlene asks eagerly. “I heard the janitors were finding basketballs in random corners of the school all summer long.”
“Don’t fret, McKinnon,” Sirius lazily waves his hand through the air. “Our genius minds are at work! We’re not leaving without a bang.”
During lunch, the three of them had halfheartedly thrown prank ideas at one another around mouthfuls of East High’s notoriously runny egg-salad sandwiches. Sirius had suggested rigging the water fountains to spew chocolate milk instead of water, though they weren’t sure how they would do that. Remus had suggested sneaking into the teacher’s offices and rearranging all their furniture. It was a work in progress.
“No fireworks, please,” Lily says, exasperated, but James can see the smile behind her eyes. “And nothing that will impact my exam schedule.”
“As always, your wish is my command, Evans,” James tells her, placing one hand over his heart.
She swats him. “I’m being serious, James.”
“But I’m Sirius!” Sirius interjects. Lily ignores him.
“As am I!” James answers her, ignoring Sirius’ interjection of: ‘But I’m Sirius!’. “I solemnly swear that your studies will be uninterrupted by any prank activity.”
She glares at him for a moment longer and he flashes her his most charming smile.
“Fine,” she eventually relents. “But if my bio mark is anything lower than a 95%, I’m blaming you."
“Now, while I would expect nothing less from East High’s top student,” says Sirius. “Is a 95% really the worst you’ll accept? I’d be happy with a 70%.”
“Some people have ambitions, Black,” Lily replies coolly, causing Mary to snort loudly.
Sirius splutters while James roars with laughter.
“No way, Sirius, is that your brother?” Marlene suddenly interrupts, her eyes caught on something over James’ shoulder.
They all turn in unison. Regulus Black stands at the back doors of the school, surrounded by his group of friends. James blinks. Despite the rugby field separating the two of them, James can tell that Regulus looks different. Older, more handsome. He’d grown into himself over the summer, taller and leaner. He looks nice.
Mary lets out a low whistle.
“Don’t,” Sirius whines. “Why do you sound like you think he’s cooler than me?”
“Maybe because he is?”
Sirius groans, shoving Marlene to the side.
Chad blows his whistle, signaling the end of the team’s fifteen minute break.
“We better go,” James grins, pulling Sirius away from a laughing Marlene. “We’ll see you guys tonight, yeah?” He can’t help the way his eyes latch onto Lily. Moth to a flame. “Party in Gryffindor?”
Mary laughs. “The only party I’ll be having tonight is with my pillow.”
“Yeah, sorry, Potter.” Lily winces. “I’m not showing up to Binns’ class hungover. But maybe Friday.”
“You promise?” James asks as Chad blows his whistle again.
Lily rolls her eyes though there’s a smile on her lips. “I solemnly swear.”
“I’m holding you to that, Evans.”
Chad blows the whistle. Loudly.
“Just go,” she laughs and the sound reminds him of summer.
James grins, running back to centre field with Sirius at his side and a spring in his step.
Senior year is off to a great start.