Great Hall, 6 January 1977
Even after two months of Officially Dating, Lily and James don't eat many meals together. After all, he has his friends and she has hers, and there's such a thing as too much togetherness. But some days he joins her friends, and some days he joins hers, and some days they eat by themselves -- or at least as by themselves as they can at a table with the rest of their House.
On the morning of 6 January -- the day after the full moon -- Lily comes down to the Common Room with her roommates and finds James waiting by the portrait hole, no sign of the other Marauders. "All right?" he greets them, and then, more directly to Lily and with a very Jamesish smile, "Breakfast?"
Lily nods. "Yeah." Breakfast with James sounds good. "I'll see you later," she tells her friends, and she and James wait until they've gone on ahead.
James looks absolutely knackered. And that makes perfect sense -- unlike her, he probably hasn't slipped off to Milliways for a post-full-moon nap. But she can't quite believe she's never noticed it before, that James looks exhausted every month at the full moon, just when Remus is "ill." Is he not making as much effort to bother to conceal it from her, since she knows where he's been all night and what he's been doing? Or was she just not paying as much attention as she perhaps should have been?
Lily reaches out to take his hand, and they start for the Great Hall. "How did last night go?" she asks.
She won't -- can't -- ask more specifically than that.
But she will ask that much.
On the morning of 6 January -- the day after the full moon -- Lily comes down to the Common Room with her roommates and finds James waiting by the portrait hole, no sign of the other Marauders. "All right?" he greets them, and then, more directly to Lily and with a very Jamesish smile, "Breakfast?"
Lily nods. "Yeah." Breakfast with James sounds good. "I'll see you later," she tells her friends, and she and James wait until they've gone on ahead.
James looks absolutely knackered. And that makes perfect sense -- unlike her, he probably hasn't slipped off to Milliways for a post-full-moon nap. But she can't quite believe she's never noticed it before, that James looks exhausted every month at the full moon, just when Remus is "ill." Is he not making as much effort to bother to conceal it from her, since she knows where he's been all night and what he's been doing? Or was she just not paying as much attention as she perhaps should have been?
Lily reaches out to take his hand, and they start for the Great Hall. "How did last night go?" she asks.
She won't -- can't -- ask more specifically than that.
But she will ask that much.