Tides of Fate | ᴍᴀʀᴀᴜᴅᴇʀs ᴇʀᴀ

01 | Risky Proposals

"Oh come on, you bores! It's a Saturday morning, you can't possibly be working!"

"Unlike some people, Remus and I actually care about finishing our assignments," Carina rolled her eyes at Sirius.

To be fair, they weren't actually doing schoolwork; they were discussing the theory of time travel and the idea of a multiverse. It was quite fascinating, and Remus was one of the few people with whom she could have random intellectual conversations. She'd come to breakfast early as always, and the Great Hall was only ever sparsely occupied this early on the weekends. Luckily Remus had been there to keep her company.

"Why are you up this early anyway, Sirius?" Remus asked, genuinely baffled. "You're never out of bed before 10 o'clock on the weekends!"

"I know," he grumbled as if a dark cloud had settled itself over his head. "Prongs was practically leaping around the dorms this morning, talking about how he wanted to get a glimpse of Lily at the lake."

Carina couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her lips. "Oh, you poor baby," she teased. "Did someone not get his beauty sleep?"

"Oye," Sirius defensively brandished a banana at her. "I'll have you know it takes a routine to look as good as I do."

"Oh really, and that's why you're all out gallivanting around the castle most nights?" Carina raised an eyebrow knowingly.

"Erm... about that," Remus said sheepishly.

"Oh, please, Remus. I know you're out there right alongside them."

"You've known, and you haven't told anyone?" Sirius asked, taking a seat across from her, newfound respect shining in his eyes.

"I've known you boys for 7 years, you're not nearly as discreet as you like to think."

"But you're a prefect," Remus pointed out.

"So were you," she countered. "Besides, James is head boy, and that hardly stops him from participating in your shenanigans."

"Hey, their shenanigans," Remus argued. "I only show up to make sure no one dies."

"See, that's precisely why I don't tell anyone. You're hardly harming someone, they're just pranks," she shrugged.

"Merlin," Sirius whispered, looking at her in awe. "To think, all these years, we could've had a prefect safeguard our getaways."

"I wouldn't go that far," Carina chuckled.

Their light laughs faded as they heard stomping footsteps headed towards the Great Hall, which reverberated in the uncommonly quiet room this morning.

"For Merlin's sake, Potter! Leave me alone," Lily fumed, marching straight down the Gryffindor table.

"Evans, I'm telling you, us meeting out there was simply coincidence! Call it fate if you will!" James called out cockily after her.

Lily slowed as she came upon Carina, giving her a regretful smile when she noticed she was sitting with Remus and Sirius. Lily kept walking further down the table until she dropped herself into a seat next to Alice. Carina didn't blame her. James would come to sit with them since Remus and Sirius were already there, and Lily did not have the patience for one more second of the Potter show right now.

"She hates me," James groaned quietly, dropping into the empty seat beside Sirius once Lily was out of earshot.

No one bothered to try and tell him otherwise, knowing false hope would not help him now. After all, it had been seven bloody years of his pining after the vibrant redhead. And even their year of collaborating as Heads had not warmed her up to the outgoing Marauder.