𝕝𝕖𝕘𝕒𝕔𝕪 ⟡ ᴊᴀᴍᴇs ᴘᴏᴛᴛᴇʀ¹

four: growing feelings

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

THE FIRST THREE weeks of school flew by in a blur. It was OWLS year and Lyra was definitely feeling the pressure. She had been making sure to keep up in all of her classes, and study extra hard to ensure that when the time came she'd pass her exams.

She knew that if either her or Regulus didn't obtain grades that their parents deemed worthy, they'd both be in for a wicked treat over the summer. She's honestly felt like she's barely had any time to have a social life, but it seems as if James Potter was dead set on squeezing himself in at any moment possible.

She had no clue why he was trying so hard to be her friend, but she honestly didn't mind. It was actually refreshing to be surrounded by someone she liked that wasn't Regulus or Mason. Being around James more also meant she got to spend more time with Sirius, which she loved. Regulus didn't exactly approve of the situation, constantly warning her that things would end up badly, and Mason was on the same boat but in more of a protective way, which Lyra didn't understand.

She supposed it had always been that way, though. Both boys were highly protective of her and would go to great lengths if they were to ever see her get hurt. With the exception of her parents, of course. She thought Mason would at least be a little more understanding, but he was just the same as Regulus. Most of the time if she was alone with a boy, even if it was strictly platonic, one of them would swoop in with an excuse saying that she had to leave.

She was also grateful the head boy and head girl decided to switch around the prefect assignments this year. They wanted to intermix both the houses and grade levels and with good luck, Lyra got paired up with Remus. Every night they patrolled the corridors, spending most of their time talking about how stressed they were for their exams, and laughing about their professors. The two had become rather close in such a short amount of time. He also offered her a piece of chocolate at the beginning and end of every shift, something Lyra took a great liking to.

She promised she'd buy him loads of chocolate to pay him back when the first Hogsmeade trip rolled around, although he keeps insisting that it's okay. Still though, she was looking forward to seeing his face when she handed him all of the various sweets. She was sure it would be something to remember.

"Lumos" Unfortunately, today was one of the nights Lyra and Remus got stuck patrolling the second shift, which ended in the early morning. Both of them were extremely tired, longing for a good nights sleep. They were roaming the third and fourth floors, which made it even more boring. Nothing ever happened up there.

"How's Slughorn treating you? Still tons of homework?" Remus asked, moving his wand side to side while looking around. Lyra pursed her lips, brushing her hair out of her face. "It's getting better. Plus, I think he likes me. Pureblood Slytherin and all" she laughed, rolling up her sleeves.

"Mmm" he hummed, nodding his head. "He is like that, isn't he?" he questioned. Slughorn's favorites were always quite obvious. Although, Remus has noticed he's taken a liking towards Lily Evans. "Yeah, but I think he's fairly nice to everyone. One of our better professors I'd say" The pair turned the corner, only to be greeted by more darkness. They had never actually caught anyone sneaking out during any of their patrols before. "I agree" Remus murmured, sighing as they made their way up the stairs.

The young werewolf had been meaning to bring up a certain topic the entire time, but didn't exactly know how to go about it. He didn't want to seem like he was butting into her personal life, it was just an observation he had made over the last couple of weeks. "So..." he trailed off, kicking at his own feet.

Lyra turned to look at him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "So?" she repeated, rubbing her hands together to create some type of warmth. "You and James?" Remus tossed out, trying to be as nonchalant as possible. Lyra raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Me and James?"