Initial

It's the first day of Seventh year and she can't shake the fact that Potter is Head Boy. Not only did he conduct the Prefects meeting flawlessly, but he had become flawless himself. Since when had his eyes become molten, his face become coarse with stubble?

As she walks into Transfiguration, making her way past the Marauders' desks, grooves in the wood catch her attention. Intricately carved into the wood is a snitch with the initials J.P + L.E.

The bustle of voices announcing the arrival of the rest of the class knocks her out of her reverie and she quickly makes her way to her seat. As always, the Marauders are the last to arrive and she watches as James Potter seats himself at the desk with the carving.

McGonagall calls on her twice throughout the lesson, and as she scrambles to utter the answer, Potter has already wordlessly charmed it onto the page in front of her. She never saw him move from the relaxed position in his chair; front chair legs off the ground, the back of his seat resting on Marlene McKinnon's desk behind him.

When McGonagall dismisses class ten minutes early and as many points lost to Gryffindor later, due to a stunt involving a ferret and a smug Sirius Black, she surprises herself by approaching the messy haired Head Boy.

"Thanks for the help, Potter."

She sees his usually cocky demeanor falter, so briefly that if she hadn't seen it, she would have thought she imagined it.

He clears his throat before replying with,

"Anytime, Evans."

She's surprised at his less than boorish reply, expecting some sort of vulgar proposal for a date to Hogsmeade, and it makes her pause an extra moment. She looks at him a moment longer, as he shoves his blank parchment and an ink stained quill into his bag.

"Right, well, see you around then."

He nods, a polite acknowledgement to her awkward statement and she turns to leave. Before she exits the door his deep baritone calls,

"Oi, Lily, Quidditch practice is on Monday's, Wednesday's and every other Friday. Prefect's meeting on Tuesday then, yeah?"

A quick smile graces her features at his consideration, and even though she had planned an evening with Mary McDonald in the library, she agrees to his proposal.

"See you at seven on Tuesday, Potter."