Adventures in your own backyard [James]

It had been years since James had gone to Hogsmeade for the first time but he could still remember the excitement like it was yesterday. He had heard about the village from his parents and he had always wanted to check it out but he’d had to wait until his third year and it had been the same for Lily. James knew that there were plenty of siblings out there who didn’t get along too well but he and Lily had always been close. She was actually one of his best friends despite the age gap and even though he had been surprised at first when she had mentioned wanting to go into Hogsmeade with him for her first visit, he hadn’t hesitated in agreeing. Albus had pulled away when he started at Hogwarts but Lily hadn’t done that and James really was glad about that. At the end of the year he would be graduating and unless he decided to stay on at the university then he would be leaving his brother and sister behind at Hogwarts. He didn’t doubt that Albus loved Lily but the truth was that James wasn’t so sure that their brother would look out for her the way that James did and that worried him a little. It was easier for him since they were in the same house and James’ friends had grown so used to having her around that they didn’t think anything of it these days. Some of them were happy to keep their distance from their own younger siblings but James knew that he would much rather keep her close for as long as possible. Before he knew it she would be older and wouldn’t want him around too much and he honestly didn’t even want to think about what would happen when she started dating so James knew that he needed to make the most of Lily wanting him around while it lasted.

James had had a few things to do that morning before they headed into Hogsmeade but he was still on time for meeting Lily as he headed outside but it looked like she’d ended up getting there early. “Of course it does. Let me guess, you got here half an hour early?” he chuckled, knowing that she really was excited for this trip. He knew that this trip was different to the first one he had taken into Hogsmeade, not they all had the threat of the Enlightened to worry about but they had an Auror escorting them and James was pretty good at duelling as well so he knew he just had to believe that they would be fine. One thing was for sure, he knew that he wasn’t going to let anything happen to Lily. She had already ended up getting hurt when they were younger and he had felt awful enough about that even though there hadn’t been anything that he could do about it. This time he knew that he would do whatever he had to in order to keep her safe but he knew that he also wanted to make sure that she had a good time. Thanking the Auror that had escorted them once they had reached their destination, James turned to look at his sister. “I know how much you love sweets so how about we check out Honeydukes first and then we’ll head to Zonko’s?” he suggested. “After that I’ll treat you to a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks,” he added, knowing that he wasn’t going to have to worry about rushing off since he’d kept his whole day clear for Lily. “Did you bring your money with you?” he asked, knowing that he had more than enough to cover anything she might want if she hadn’t.

LILY LUNA POTTER

If James was honest, he had always felt a little guilty about visiting Hogsmeade without Lily ever since the start of her first year. He had seen the way his sister had always wanted to go and he had always made sure to bring her something back whenever he could. He had known that her time would come and he had honestly thought that she might want to experience going there for the first time with a group of friends but that wasn’t what she had decided to do. Instead Lily had asked to go with him and James had been happy to say yes. There was an age gap between the two of them but the truth was that they had been close ever since Lily was born. She was one of his best friends and he was glad that he got to share this with her. It was still strange to think that at the end of the school year he would be graduating and even though he was seriously thinking about staying on at the university to hone his skills, he knew that it wouldn’t quite be the same as the way things were now. At least now he had the chance to be there for Lily when she needed him and he always tried to do the same for Albus as well. James’ relationship with his brother wasn’t as straightforward but at the end of the day he knew that he would be there for both his siblings when it mattered. Right now it was Lily’s turn and James was actually glad that he could be there to keep an eye on her. He wasn’t worried about what Lily would get up to while she was there but he was worried about the Enlightened. He knew that Hogsmeade would be full of Guardians and Ministry workers, it always was these days by the sounds of it, but James knew that he wouldn’t forgive himself if anything happened to Lily. He had almost lost her once when she was younger and she had ended up getting herself into trouble and he knew that he didn’t want to go through that again.

By now it was second nature for James to tease Lily about how early she had ended up getting there when he arrived. He knew that he wasn’t late but his sister was almost bouncing up and down and he could tell that she had been there for a while already. “That’s pretty good for you, I was sure it would have been longer,” he chuckled, nudging her arm playfully with his own as they started walking into Hogsmeade with the Auror. James made sure that Lily was between himself and the Auror at all times without even thinking about it, wanting to make sure that they would be able to close ranks and protect her if they needed to. She could use magic herself now but she didn’t know as much magic as James and the Auror did and he knew that he didn’t want her getting hurt. Fortunately the walk into the village was uneventful and James thanked the Auror as he made his way to pick up a group of students who were ready to head back to Hogwarts. It wasn’t exactly the most exciting job in the world but it was important and James knew that. “I thought you might say that,” he grinned, glad that Lily seemed pleased with what he had suggested. He knew her well enough by now to know the places that she would want to go to and it sounded like he’d managed to get it right. As she said that she left her money at home before saying she would pay him back if he bought what she wanted to day, James rolled his eyes playfully at the look that she gave him. Lily had learned a long time ago that she could bat her eyelashes at him and he would give in to whatever she wanted but truth be told he wasn’t very good at saying no to her anyway even when she didn’t try that. “I can’t remember the last time you tried that look on me,” he chuckled, shaking his head in amusement as he looked over at her. “Luckily for you I thought you might forget your money so I brought enough for both of us,” he said, wrapping his arm around her and giving her a one armed hug. “You know I’ve got you,” he added with a grin as he let her go and started leading the way in the direction of Honeydukes. “Do you know what you want to get?” he asked, not sure whether she had anything specific in mind or whether she was just going to see what she could find while they were in the village.

LILY LUNA POTTER

James knew there were a lot of people who had younger siblings and didn’t want them hanging around all the time, in fact some of his friends were like that, but it had never been that way for him. He loved spending time with Lily and he never turned her away even when he was with his friends. Albus was a different matter entirely, he normally seemed happier doing his own thing but James and Lily were close and he knew that he wanted it to stay that way for as long as possible. He didn’t doubt that as she got older she wouldn’t want him around as much especially when she started making more friends of her own and figured out who she wanted to be but until then he knew that he wanted to make sure that he was there for her as much as possible. James still wasn’t sure what he was going to do when he graduated at the end of the year, he could stay on for another few years and train to become an Auror that way or he could go straight into a career at the Ministry. Honestly there was a part of him that had thought about joining the Ministry straight away but he had heard good things about the training that was offered at Hogwarts and he couldn’t deny that he liked the idea of being around for his sister for a while longer so he knew that he might decide to stick around. Being able to see Iris more was definitely a perk as well. He knew that he shouldn’t like being around the Slytherin but he just couldn’t help it. She was a year younger than he was and he had no idea what she was going to decide to do at the end of her seventh year but he knew that a year could make all the difference in the world so it was definitely tempting to say the least. “Of course you would have been,” James chuckled as Lily said she’d made herself wait otherwise she would have been there an hour early. “It’s good to see that you’re learning to hold back a little, anyway,” he added with a grin. He had known that Lily would be there early so he had tried not to keep her waiting too long but he really was glad that she hadn’t waited for as long as she could have done. He knew she was excited, it was her first trip to Hogsmeade and she’d had him telling her about the village ever since his first visit. It was something that she could have wanted to share with her friends but she had decided to share it with him instead and James wanted to make sure that she had a good day. As Lily said he knew her too well, James felt a smile form on his face. “I hope that never changes,” he admitted. He loved how close the two of them were and it had been easy for him to think of what they should do that Lily would enjoy without having to ask her. He had only given her a few suggestions but there was plenty more they could do as well considering they were there early and had plenty of time.

It hadn’t taken them long to get to Hogsmeade and thankfully the trip there had been uneventful. With what had happened with the Enlightened at the start of the year everyone was still on edge and James often had his hands full these days trying to calm students down but he didn’t want anything to ruin his sister’s day. He knew that things were going to change at the end of the year, even if he did stay on he would have a different dorm although he would still be able to hang out in Gryffindor Tower if he wanted to so that was something at least. James knew he had some big decisions that he needed to make but he didn’t want to worry about that right now, instead he just wanted to enjoy being able to spend some time with his sister. “Of course it did,” James chuckled as Lily said that the last time she’d batted her eyelashes at him it had worked. He didn’t like saying no to her if he could help it anyway so the fact that she’d even tried it now when she hadn’t used that tactic against him for so long just went to show how much she really wanted to be able to buy a few things that day. It hadn’t surprised him at all to learn that she had forgotten her money but he’d made sure to bring plenty with him so Lily could get anything that she wanted. He knew that he would probably tell Lily not to pay him back when her money arrived anyway so it would all be fine. “Any time,” he said, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze as they headed into the village. “That sounds like a good idea. Their liquorice wands are really good too,” he admitted, knowing that he’d always had a soft spot for those himself. As Lily asked if there was anything that he needed to get while they were there, James nodded. “I need to get a new broom servicing kit and with everything going on, I thought I might finally get a sneakoscope from Dervish and Banges,” he said as he led them in the direction of Honeydukes before holding the door open so Lily could enter first once they reached the shop. “What do you think?” he asked once they were both inside, his gaze fixed on her as she took in their surroundings for the first time.

LILY LUNA POTTER