Reflection

Remus should have felt sad, graduating in less than a month. He should have been sad that he would be leaving a place that he'd considered his second home for seven years. But he wasn't. As Remus leaned against a tree, looking over the lake, he thought about his future. Obviously, he was going to have to get a muggle job; the new laws the Ministry had passed made it nearly impossible for him to get a job. He also thought about where he'd live. That one.... he didn't know. His parents would let him stay for as long as he wanted, he knew, but Remus wanted to be independent of them. Problem was, he couldn't afford his own place.
He sighed, and continued gazing over the lake and the different groups of people there.

It was unnaturally cool for April. Lily shivered slightly, crossing her arms, trying to contract the heat from her chest to her arms. Really, the Hogwarts uniforms weren't environmentally friendly. Short skirts? Really? Perhaps the boys enjoyed it, and maybe the slutty girls, but definitely not Lily Evans. From the months of October to April, she was freezing her ass off. And yet, she rarely wore her slacks. At least, lately she wore her skirt more and more. A slight flush warmed her cheeks. Well, there were plenty of reasons for that.

She noticed Remus standing alone under a tree and decided he could use some company. She sympathized greatly with him on the fact that the wizarding world was growing more and more racist, an issue she was quite passionate about.

That's when Sirius Black fell out of the tree. It wasn't a particularly tall tree, but enough that he made a decently loud "Oof!" noise when he landed in the werewolf's lap. He looked up. "Why, hullo there, Moony!"

Remus had been mid-wave at Lily when Sirius landed in his lap.
"Sirius! What in the name of Godric's Hollow... what? What are you doing here? I mean, in a tree?" he stuttered.
He adjusted his sweater vest, looking around to see if anyone had seen Sirius fall from the sky.
Apparently, Lily had.
He scowled.

Lily giggled as she walked over to the boys, trying her best to keep her skirt from flying up in the bitter wind.

"It seems the Siriuses are falling early this year," she quipped good natured-ly, raising her eyebrows down at Sirius. She gave Remus a smile, setting her book bag to lean against the tree. In the distance, elated shouts and screams could be heard by a group of Hufflepuff first years playing tag.

He pulled a face at Lily, the kind that was usually expected from a five-year-old, not a seventeen-year-old.

"S'not my fault the bloody branch broke!"

Remus frowned. "Hi, Lily. Sirius, what were you doing up there in the first place?" On one hand, he wanted to know why his boyfriend had been imitating a monkey. On the other, he was scared to find out. It probably involved Itching Water Balloons.

"I'm not sure I want to know why Black hangs out in trees. Tch," Lily sat on the ground, tucking her legs underneath her. The grass was cold, but it was better than the bitter wind thrashing her bare legs. "Honestly. Shouldn't you be studying for your NEWTs?" She asked the disowned heir with a look of disdain.

"Oh, you know! The usual. Scaring birds, chasing squirrels..." Taking creepy photos of you while you're not looking... Thank Merlin that camera stated in the--. A small black box hit him in the head. Well, then.
"Studying? Lily, do I LOOK like I'd be studying on such a nice day like today?" he gestured around at the awful bitter cold.

Lily smirked, picking up the camera, flipping through the taken photos.

"I dunno, Black. Perhaps you're studying... the male anatomy," her smirk grew more pronounced and she laughed. "I never took you as a stalker. But I guess it makes sense, now," she teased.

His eyes widened. "EVANS! GIVE THAT BACK. NOW." He jumped to his feet, lunging toward Lily and the camera.

Lily giggled, rolling out of the way, clothes rumpling in the process. "I dunno, Black. Perhaps the subject should know of such an invasion of privacy," she mused, flipping through the pictures, trying to find something juicy of James.

Remus blanched. "Lily... give me the camera." Pointedly ignoring whatever pathetic look Sirius was giving him, Remus too the camera, flipping through the many photos of himself. "Merlin, Sirius! How long have you been stalking me for! And... the library? Kudos. You stuck your face in there just to get a shot of me reading. And... oh, great. You brought this blasted thing to the Infirmary. And... SIRIUS BLACK! THERE IS A REASON PEOPLE LOCK THE DOORS TO BATHROOMS!" Remus snarled. "I knew I should have covered that window... Come on... Who puts a window in a bathroom...?" he mumbled to himself. His cheeks, by this time, were bright red, contrasting his scars.

"You weren't supposed to see those!" he said helplessly. Now was a pretty good time to be dead in a dark place somewhere. And a good time to learn a memory modifying charm. And to burn a camera.

Remus frowned. "Sirius, I don't get it. I already gave you... photos. For your birthday. You have an entire album. Why must you go behind my back and.. take... these..." Remus blushed. The quality of these pictures was embarrassing high. He'd have to make sure these didn't get around the school. Merlin knows he didn't need people laughing at him.

"Well, a lot of these date much farther back than my birthday, don't they? It's not like I can predict the future." He rolled his eyes, trying to regain his usual composure.

"Then delete them!" Remus shifted uncomfortably. "Listen, Pads, we can take more pictures if you want, but can you delete these? I... it's an invasion of privacy..."

An automatic pout crossed his face. "B-but, I-- Can we discuss this later? There's a lady present." He turned to look at Lily. "And I use that word in the loosest way possible."

"I'm glad you think so highly of me," Lily deadpanned, rolling her eyes. "Though, Black does have a point. I don't need to hear about his Special-Alone-Time. Though, I'm curious if there are pictures of others, not just Remus," she mused to herself. The pictures, though an invasion of privacy, were quite good. She had a vague thought that Sirius could become a Muggle Photographer, if he wished. Though he'd probably end up being a Muggle Pornographer.

Remus scowled. "If Sirius has been stalking anyone else for fap fodder, you're not getting any for a month, Sirius," he growled. As reserved as he usually was, he was quite possessive when it came to Sirius.

"What?! Of course I haven't! How could you even THINK such a thing?! I'm shocked, Moony. Shocked and hurt.". He put a hand dramatically to his forehead.

Exiting through the double doors, James walked slowly across the grassy lawn, his cloak billowing behind him in the brisk wind. He shuddered, wincing as a blast of cold air hit his uncovered face. James blinked, slowly scanning the area in front of him for his mates. Damn nearsightedness, he sighed inwardly.

After a few minutes of searching, he spotted a dot of brilliant red beneath a tree near the lake. Red hair could mean only one thing, Lily. Where Lily was, Remus was. And where Remus was, Sirius was. James hurried over to his friends, waving desperately.

Lily snickered as a a flailing mass of lanky teenage boy came into view, the familiar sight of messy raven hair, bespectacled eyes, and crooked grin sped up her heart rate a tiny fraction (not even a fraction!) as her sometimes-boyfriend (mainly because of their temper-induced fights and their passion-induced make ups) ran over. She snickered at the spectacle James made of himself, though her heart clenched fondly. It really wasn't her fault that he made her grin like a soppy goof - it was her damn hormones. Really, she wasn't a lovesick teenager. That would just be despicable. James was just too much like an energetic puppy. One that made her heart race and her cheeks head up and her insides feel all gooey and mushy and - oh Bullocks! Her pale skin flushed slightly, though she tried not to let it show.

James grinned crookedly as he saw the slightly flushed face of his lovely girlfriend.
How did I get so lucky?

Too busy staring at Lily to notice the large tree root in front of him, James tripped and landed flat on his face, his rucksack flying over his head. He swore loudly, forgetting his manners, then blushed darkly as he realized what he had done.

Lily let out a giggle as James fell to the ground, though she felt slightly bad about laughing at him. Oh, screw that, it was hilarious. Really, James was quite clumsy when he was trying to be suave, a fact she found endearing, if not an endless source of amusement. In all honesty, the blush on his face in embarrassment made the whole scene even cuter, and another giggle escaped. Oh, much too much giggling today. Any more and she'd have to hang herself for acting like such a typical teenage girl. Really, she thought she was above such frivolities. Apparently, love had made a fool out of her.