#plus size mary macdonald

[marylily-my-beloved]

Ok so I know there’s a lot of talk in the marauders fandom about plus sized Lily.

But what about plus sized Mary?

Because I had always imagined Mary as being plus sized and Lily being.. smaller? (I hc her with an ed)

Like I always thought of Mary having a plump old lady body.

What do you think?

anon just know that whoever you are i love you for this. i would acc love to see both of them plus size!!

I don't rlly imagine lily as much smaller (but i do understand ur hc)

She does, she does, she does.

YESYEYSYEYE9FHEUOFHWUEHFEW.

and she used to care so much about it, but she just doesn't anymore because she knows she looks fine and doesn't let the hate get to her. and like yessss

[mooningoverthestars]

girls girls girls girls girls girls girls girls girls girls girls

[doyouheardeansing]

Lily , Mary and Marlene - the girls in the band

[jameskinniesrise]

lily evans who loves to bake. lily evans who loves cherries. lily evans who has freckles. lily evans who's favourite colour is sage green. lily evans who loves herbology. lily evans who think divination is stupid. lily evans who wears red lipstick. lily evans with red nails. lily evans who is plus size. lily evans who loves daisies. lily evans who presses flowers. lily evans who loves to read. lily evans who loves mary macdonald.

for @marylily-my-beloved

[blackcatsandlockets]

I ranked the Marauders era characters

Regulus Black

Aquarius. Autistic. French. INTJ. Queer. The real Slytherin prince. Definitely, and undoubtedly, the best Black family member and best Marauders era character.

2. Narcissa Black

I used to just see her as Lucius Malfoy's enabling wife and preferred her second-older sister, but I started liking Narcissa more since I recently started getting into nobleflower and realizing how similar she is to me/Regulus. She's also blonde and gives off black swan vibes.

3. James Potter

Mexican. My favorite Marauder from day one. The Marauders' sun and everyday Ladybug. If my future husband isn't like James, then I don't want him.

4. Sirius Black

Gorgeous. Scorpio. Loved James more than anything. The brightest star.

5. Barty Crouch Jr.

His backstory gives off Félix Fathom and I love him for it. Also - his fancasts are all so gorgeous.

6. Pandora Rosier

I ranked Pandora higher than Evan only because it's almost half-canon in the Marauders fandom that the spell that caused her death was to bring back Regulus. Also, she gives off Alice in Wonderland vibes.

7. Evan Rosier

Regulus's friend and the blond Slytherin pretty boy of the Marauders era.

8. Andromeda Black

It's a crime that Andromeda is ranked so low on this list since she's the OG black (no pun intended) sheep in her generation of the Black family. I also think that she spent her Hogwarts years dismantling her family's ideologies and influenced Sirius to be pro-Muggle from a young age.

9. Dorcas Meadowes

INFJ. Mermaid-coded. Lost all of her Slytherin skittle friends (except for Pandora) because three of them became Death Eaters. Lost her girlfriend to the Death Eaters. Faced Voldemort alone because she had nothing to lose. Voldemort himself was terrified of her.

10. Alice Fortescue

Dark brown curls. Gryffindor. Italian. Quidditch player. Had a thing with Narcissa. Shares a name with one of my favorite literary characters.

11. Lily Evans

Anne of Green Gables and Little Women enthusiast. Cabin 6. Cottagecore. Jewish. Jolene-coded. Plus-size. As a Regulus kin, a part of me will always be jealous of Lily but I don't blame James for choosing her over Regulus (after all, who wouldn't?). If it weren't for her the Harry Potter story wouldn't exist.

Btw a friend of mine said I remind her of lilies (the flower) and I was so flattered. Ironically enough said friend was actually a Lily kin herself

12. Ted Tonks

Blond. Hufflepuff. Jewish. Virgo. Perseus-coded. "Let Me Be Your Wings"-coded.

13. Frank Longbottom

German. Gryffindor. He was kind of the Cedric Diggory/Charles Beckendorf of the Marauders era? Anyways if Augusta was always boasting about him then he must've been amazing.

14. Remus Lupin

I can't believe the fan-favorite of the fandom is ranked so low on my list. But he's never appealed to me as a Marauder the same way that James or Sirius do. I do love his backstory with his father and Fenrir Greyback, however. And I definitely prefer the old sweaters and tea Remus over the new mean Casanova one.

15. Marlene McKinnon

Aries. "Cherry Bomb"-coded. Rockstar girlfriend. Victoria De Angelis-coded.

16. Mary Macdonald

Cabin 10. "Dancing Queen"-coded. Girl's girl. Pink.

17. Bellatrix Black

I don't have as many HCs for Bellatrix as I do with her sisters or cousins. I feel like she was masculinized as a result of being the eldest daughter but also underestimated for being a woman. Very Jupiter-coded.

18. Any other Marauders era character that I might've left out

19. Peter Pettigrew

[adventuresofalgy]

People I'd Like to Know: Tumblr Tag Game

Algy was tagged by his friend @edinburgh-by-the-sea in Scotland's beautiful capital city, whom he thanks very kindly for choosing him. Algy wasn't sure whether his friend really wanted to know about his own fluffy bird tastes or those of his assistant, so he has answered for both 😀

Algy's current obsession: finding his way home in time for Christmas 🎄 His assistant's current obsession: maintaining health and finding time and energy to produce exciting new work for Algy's assistants' new collaborative tumblr blog @novelties-and-notions in addition to assisting Algy with his adventures every single day…

Algy is looking forward to: Christmas, Hogmanay (a tumblr party?), and his 13th tumblr birthday on 13th March 2025 (definitely a tumblr party!) Double 13! 🎄🎉🎁 His assistant is looking forward to: all kinds of new adventures in creativity

Last book Algy read: The Oxford Book of English Verse. As many of Algy's followers will know, Algy loves good poetry and has his own Algy-sized collection of volumes of verse. Last books Algy's assistant read (re-read): The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann, in translation, and Joy in the Morning by P G Wodehouse.

Algy's assistant is sometimes asked for reading recommendations. She spent much time on her own when young, and therefore started reading, and learned to love books, at a precociously early age… there was nothing else to do! Significant influences which persist to this day include, roughly IN THE ORDER ORIGINALLY READ from early childhood: Beatrix Potter and the Winnie the Pooh stories; many classic collections of fairytales (esp. collected by Andrew Lang and the Brothers Grimm) and the works of Hans Christian Anderson; The Wind in the Willows; fairytale/fantasy works by George MacDonald; Peter Pan; the Dr. Dolittle stories by Hugh Lofting; Lewis Carroll; The Cuckoo Clock by Mrs Molesworth; The Secret Garden and The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett; works by Rudyard Kipling; C S Lewis; J R R Tolkien (first read at the age of 9 but only occasionally since); P G Wodehouse (20th century master of the use of English and of humour – a lifelong indulgence in reading); Charles Dickens (his descriptive powers have rarely if ever been equalled); Arthurian Romances; and all works by Jane Austen, Henry James, Thomas Mann, Kurt Vonnegut, Joseph Heller and – beyond fiction – Ludwig Wittgenstein. And of course Shakespeare, who inevitably has some influence on anyone who has ever studied English, plus many, many other more forgettable writers in various genres.

Although many of the titles above were written as fiction for children, she has continued to re-read those works over the years, as may be evident in Algy's adventures 😀

And for those who have asked for reading recommendations, especially those folk of an older generation who have not yet had the opportunity to read very much – and also for aspiring writers – she would say that if you have not yet read much literature, but wish to, then don't waste precious time on lesser authors but read the very best stuff first 😊

(And anyone who wishes to "be a writer", in no matter what kind of genre or style, is advised to first of all master the use of language – and the best way to do that is by reading past masters extensively. Like any other highly skilled activity, if you want to mess around with it and make it jump through hoops, you have to thoroughly master the basic skill set first.)

Last song Algy listened to: When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbin' along 😀

Last movie Algy watched: Mary Poppins (the original 1964 movie) Algy is fascinated by the incredible animation with live action sequence, and by the remarkable Dick van Dyke, who has just celebrated his 99th birthday! Last movies Algy's assistant watched: W C Fields' International House and the Marx Brothers The Cocoanuts… Why a duck? 🤣

Last TV show: Algy and his assistant NEVER watch televsion, though they do watch movies. They have better things to do with their time than watch TV 😀 Algy's assistant's family didn't have a television until she was about 10 years old, and much of her adult life has been spent without television too.

Sweet/spicy/savory: Not really. 🌰🍏🍉🥦🍓🧀🥕🍚🍅🥛🥒🍞

Favourite colour: Green and yellow and orange 💚🧡💛😀

Last thing we googled: Google Translate – for help with communication with tumblr friends who don't speak English ☺️ And Google Maps to find out where is where, as Algy has followers all over the world. His grasp of geography is fluffy, and his assistant's is not much better!

Relationship status: Algy is of course in a fluffy relationship with his rather incompetent assistant, who is permanently united with her lifelong partner and spouse.

Tagging: Algy understands that he is supposed to tag friends to prompt them to play too, but he suspects that the folk he would most like to know about might feel too shy or unduly pressured to do this. So he invites ALL his friends to play this game, and leaves it up to them. He would love to know more about you 😍

[soupinaboot]

You know what, fuck your Henry Potter headcannons here's some of the girls headcannons that doesn't involve any of the boys + fancast

All

Played DnD together

They all knew the passwords to get into each other's dorms

Had a book club

Favorite hangout spot was by the lake

Would pull a lot of pranks, but no one ever knew it was them

After Hogwarts they all got matching tattoos

Lived close by so that they could walk to each other's houses

Many girls trips

They were called the Crusaders

Sleepovers.

Lily Evans

Working class Midlands accent

Short but slouchs so she looks shorter than she actually is

Loves romance books

Favorite author is Jane Austen

Also loves to read muggle comics

Her favorite superhero is Spider-Man

Has ADHD and OCD but didn't get diagnosed till later in life

Freckles, everywhere

Bisexual and totally had a crush on Mary when she was younger

Plus Size

Sarcastic and snarky as fuck

Amazing writer but horrible handwriting

She tried really hard to be the wingman for Marlene and Dorcas

<3 ABBA <3

Was everyone's gay awakening

Wanted to grow her own food and garden more but hated dirt

Greek Mythology nerd

Had a lot of plants but never knew how to care for them

Doesn't like to watch Quidditch but read a lot about it

Cottagecore

Favorite color is Green

Hates the cold and loves summer

Hibiscus tea lover

Fighter

Mary MacDonald

Has a lot of siblings, is the oldest

Owns a lot of cameras and loves taking photos of her friends

Bisexual and had a crush on Lily

Best class was charms

Loves doing makeup

Plans all the sleepovers

Makes jewelry

Coffee > Tea

Pink was her favorite color

Loudest and most contagious laugh

Friends with almost everyone

Plays the trumpet, I have no reason she just has the vibes of a trumpet player

Paints her nails a different color every week

Dog person

Owns a record player that is covered in stickers

Hippie fashion sense

Grew up in a poorer area

Sewed a lot of her own clothes and makes things for her friends

Best friends with her mom

Christmas is her favorite holiday

Loves to listen to Lily rant about books even when she has no idea what she's saying

<3 Fleetwood Mac <3

Favorite flower is an Iris

Sorcerer

Marlene McKinnon

Lily made her realize she was a Lesbian

Thick scottish accent

Was Minerva's favorite student

Beater for Gryffindor Quidditch team

Really good at art

Does her own piercings

Ambivert but it depends on who she's with

Tallest in the group

Doesn't like anyone touching her hair other than Dorcas

Is the only one Mary let's do her makeup

Favorite color is red

LOVES leather

Ur mom jokes

Nazareth lover

Also Stevie Nicks fan

She cut her hair the same as Stevie Nick

Loves watching horror movies with Lily

Never wears her uniform the right way

Puts hot sauce on EVERYTHING

Bass player

I'm sorry but she is a lightweight

Pins and buttons on all her clothes

Really wanted a dog growing up but they couldn't afford one

Barbarian

Dorcas Meadowes

Has a lot of crystals

Best friends with Pandora and they talk a lot about astrology

Fell in love with Marlene at first sight

Slytherin, I'm not sure if it's cannon but she just is

Quidditch chaser

Favorite weather is cloudy and rainy

Punk hippie

Taught Lily how to care for her plants

Has a nose piercing

LESBIAN!!!

Horrible flirt

Might of had a crush on Pandora at some point

New about the tunnels and used them regularly

Favorite subject was potions but sucked at them

Very mixed friend group with a lot of Ravenclaws, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Gryffindor friends

Played Quidditch with her parents when she was younger

Makes tea with Lily while they gossip

Draws with Marlene

Second tallest in the group and hates that Marlene uses it against her(secretly loves it)

Loves coconut flavored things but hates coconut

Dolly Parton fan

Owns a lot of rainbow things

Loves psychological horror books

Druid

Pandora Lovegood

Very important to me that Xenophilius took her last name

Obviously hippie

Made friendship bracelets for all her friends

Vegan

Had a lot of pets. A lot

A few consisted of three cats, four frogs, two snakes, and a bird(yes she had more)

Grew up in a small cottage with a single mother

Marlene gave her a few piercings

Trans mtf

Ravenclaw

Was really good friends with Lily

She and Lily planed out play dates for Harry and Luna while Pandora was pregnant and before Lily died

Was the one that had the idea for a book club

Flower crown enthusiast

Always wore skirts no matter the occasion

Helped the house elves clean

Painted her nails with Mary

Drove a Volkswagen Beetle that Marlene painted on

Youngest in her group

Hyperfixation on dragons

Asked the sorting hat to put her in Ravenclaw because her favorite color was blue(not to say she wasn't smart enough to be in it)

Hung out a lot with Sybill Trelawney

Lily introduced her to muggle comics and Pandora's favorite hero was Startfire

Bard

[comfortablynumb]

Hot Take: Yes, Lily Evans was plus-sized, but no, she didn’t hate James simply because she was “insecure” about her weight because lord knows the story of a “fat girl” who’s entire arch is her learning to not hate herself because she’s fat is tired, overused, and, frankly, kind of offensive. Before Lily started being head-cannoned as plus-sized, the fandom portrayed her as a confident, badass, independent woman who refused to be treated like a disposable object by the men around her. So why should the new, curvy Lily be any different?

[moonystoast1971]

LONG ASS RANT POST ABOUT LILY EVANS (i promise i kept it as enjoyable as possible)

im mad about something (i know shocking wow)

ima preface this but saying im a jegulus/marylily shipper but i can still notice when some of u jily shippers r acting goofy and treating lily evans like a side character in her own romance like yall litterally treating her like a background character whos names forgotten half way thru tell me why when she was hc as this skinny perfect body girl/beauty standard she was beautiful and she knew it, she was confident and she used it, she knew james loved her endlessly and he waited on HER to love HIM but now shes plus sized so shes still beautiful but only in the eyes of james and snape, she doesnt beleive james loves her because shes plus sized which immediately makes her insecure? she spends the whole fic sad and not beleiving james actually loves her so she denies him purely on the basis of that but he spend the whole thing trying to teach her he does love her 🥺🥺🥺 bc thats what all non perfectly skinny women need/want is some man to come tell them their worth bc ofc it couldnt have been noticed bfr him 🥺🥺🥺

honestly grow tf up if u write this its just annoying at this point. also i hate how they all have her as some mindless girl and her only trait is "i have red hair and am the object of james' affection OH AND I CAN DO MATHS AND OCCASIOANLLY SAY SMART THINGS!!! 🤩🤩🤩" like honestly stfu why isnt she allowed as much depth as he is i aint even fw jily but if u gonna do it at least AT FUCKING LEAST do it justice yk?

can we just like talk about Lily for a second like can we appreciate how much depth as a character she has? like drop ur fav lily hc personally i love the hc that lily was raised on a farm I FUCKING LOVE IT AND I CANNOT EXPRESS WHY like it just fits so nicely and i love it BECAUSE LIKE IMAGINE YOUNG LILY AND YOUNG PETUNIA (when they still got on - sadly severus probably would've been there too {yeah so what i dont like him fight me}) PLAYING AROUND THE FARM TOGETHER also meaning lily was an early bird cause she was used to getting up early like taking care of the animals with her parents and shit (specifically her dad bc in my head her and him are very close and she feels like hes the only one in her family who really understands her fully - not to say her mother doesnt shes just closer with her dad so gets more chance to see that) SO THAT BEING SAID when james and sirius are confused about mainstrem muggle things lily is equally as lost as them on certain things but just keeps quiet bc aint no way she lookin as dumb as them 💀

[redadidassneakers]

Whatever you do, don’t imagine Lily and James sneaking out with a record player, dancing and singing to Ever Fallen in Love with Sirius looking from a distance and smiling because his best friend finally got the girl of his dreams.

[theresamalina]

Random Marauder Headcanons

James broke his glasses every once a week

Sirius drew on his hands

James sleep talks

Peter was constantly baking cookies

Mary had a huge perfume collection

Mary loved biscuits

Lily is plus sized

James is pansexual

[julescade]

what are your guys plus size harry potter character head cannons!!

mine are mary macdonald, lily evans, and euphemia potter !!

[midnightsatafternoons]

a few things the marauders fandom seems to have agreed on:

• remus could be as oblivious as james at times

• one of the reasons why lily rejected james for six years was cause she thought he was joking

• james potter is desi

• lily is plus sized

• marlene and dorcas are very gay and very in love

• james' middle name is fleamont and sirius' middle name is orion

• sirius fell in love with remus first

• james and sirius were each other's first kiss

• regulus has very dry sense of humor (that's why he and remus get along so well)

• james is the mother hen of the group

• remus is not the 'soft sweater-wearing guy', he is the 'sarcastic dick who wears sweaters'

• mary macdonald is the hottest and most confident mf on the planet (yes, hotter than sirius)

• no one is straight

[thesoftrainbows]

Were the Marauders really that popular?

NOTE: I can go more into spoil-free details on my headcanons for them, you just have to ask :)

TW:// contains brief mentions of abuse, mental health issues, mild swearing, smoking, brief mentions of homophobia, racism, ableism, transphobia. I think that’s about it. 

I’m writing this long-ass Wolfstar fan fiction and based on my personal headcanons, here’s the answer:

Yes and No. 

In my fanfic, and the way that I always see them in my head, we have an Indian (Gujarat) James Potter who’s stupidly in love with a plus-sized, snarky Lily Evans. 

We have a half-Japanese, genderqueer and gay Sirius Black who’s well known for being a blood-traitor ever since their second year, not to mention that they’ve been leaving people awe-struck every single time she feels like a girl and dresses in a feminine way. They’re also deaf in one ear. He suffers from panic attacks and childhood PTSD. NOTE: His family dynamic slightly changes to fit the story. They’re still from an abusive home, but there’s a lot more to it than just that. Sirius’ relationship with his parents - particularly her mother - will be brought up and explained.

We have a heavily-accented Welsh Remus Lupin, who’s scrawny and awkwardly tall that lowkey scares the shit out of everyone. He knits, but his scars and unpredictable aggressiveness that comes near full moons is enough to keep people away. He’s unlabebed but madly in love with Sirius. He’s also depressed, anxious, has low self-esteem, and daddy issues. Also, I made sure to bring up his relationship with his mother because I just love Hope Lupin and I just think she’d be an awesome mom. 

We also have Peter Pettigrew, who’s known for his fierce protectiveness for his younger sister, Jess (she’s a Slytherin, btw). He also probably has black lungs with the amount of cigarettes he smokes daily - he’s the reason why so many people even got cigarettes. He comes from a home where his parents are constantly at each other’s throats, so he’s never been able to see what love is supposed to look like when it’s healthy, but he’s working on that with a special Fem!OC. He’s depressed, has low self-esteem, and is constantly looking for someone to love him and prove himself to. 

As mentioned before, Lily Evans is a snarky, plus-sized queen. She’s also really fucking hilarious and has so many awesome prank ideas once she befriends the Marauders. She also befriends Regulus, and their dynamic is the absolute cutest. She likes the academic side of school, but it’s not the center of her world, leave that to James. She likes sneaking around with her friends at night just for the heck of it, she’s never been caught.

Marlene McKinnon is a trans woman who’s basically a lesbian version of Sirius Black. She was actually the fifth roommate of the Marauders’ until her third year. She’s always baking but Merlin save you if you piss her off or any of her friends. She’s one of the best Beaters and duelist Hogwarts has seen. She and Sirius are the definition of platonic soulmates. 

Dorcas Meadowes is a chaotic bisexual and also a raging feminist and activist that a lot of people don’t like because she’s “hard to talk to”. She’s loud, and bold, and constantly holding meetings with staffs so that they can improve the school to make it a safer environment for POCs students (and staff, too), LGBTQ+ folks, women, and literally every other minority. 

Mary MacDonald is a Korean ballerina who’s been on a violent streak ever since that group of Slytherins cornered her and...did some...things to her (it’ll be explained in the story, don’t worry). 

SO. Yes they were popular, but not in the way this fandom usually portrays them. They’re very well-known because they’re such an odd group filled with every possible outcast you could think of. Some of them (James, Lily, Peter, and Mary) are liked, but the rest are either feared or hated. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of people who genuinely like all of them and think them fun to be around, but Sirius, Remus, Marlene, and Dorcas are walking Change-That-They’re-Not-Ready-For and for a school that has so many homophobics, racists, ableists, and transphobics, it’s a struggle. 

BONUS:

Regulus is a half-Japanese, Hemophiliac Slytherin baby. (For those who don’t know, Hemophilia is a blood clot disorder that causes spontaneous bleeding and also excessive bleeding when injured - a lot of European royals have historically had this as a result of inbreeding). He would meet his brother and friends in secret just so that they could preserve their relationship. Regulus actually loved the Marauders & Co. and vice versa. There’s more but I don’t wanna spoil too much. I just love him. 

[prongsiess]

Every few months I get this kick to reboot my fancast/face claims of the marauders and co. and this week as brought forth that desire again.

So, here’s my newly updates fancast:

Paul Ahrens as Remus Lupin

Gabriel Stewart as James Potter

Eren M Guvercin as Sirius Black

Michelangelo Fortuzzi as Petter Pettigrew

Faith Collins as Lily Evans (this one is probably prone to change soon, cuz plus size lily supremacy but I just couldn’t find someone that fit my view of her)

Whitney Peak as Mary Macdonald

Filah Lah Lah as Dorcas Meadowes

Haley Tju as Marlene McKinnon

Ana Arrants as Pandora Lovegood

Louis Seriot as Regulus Black

And I’m only allowed 10 images per post so I’ll post the rest separately >:)

[gredandforgesmischief]

after all - plus size lily x james!

title: after all

pair: james potter x plus size! lily evans

summary: lily never thought that a person like james could be sincere when asking someone like her out.

content: uhh idk what to put here but lily has anxiety/body image issues

word count: 2500

a/n: hiii everyone this is my first piece of writing on this account :)) i posted this headcanon on my tiktok a while back and people really wanted me to write about it, so i did! feedback is always welcome.

other characters/ships mentioned: dorlene, wolfstar, mary macdonald, marlene mckinnon, remus lupin, sirius black, minerva mcgonagal

_

“Oi, Evans, wait!”

Lily groaned as the bespectacled boy jogged towards her. Not this again she thought to herself. Despite her less than happy expression, James smiled kindly towards her. She nodded to him hoping that he would carry on and say whatever he had approached her for.

“Would you want to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?” Lily noticed that he was fumbling with his sleeve as he asked, and could tell that he was nervous. His anxiousness made her feel a bit bad about what she was to say next.

“James I-” She started, her lips pursing into a frown, but James already knew what she was going to say.

James smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck with his hand. “It’s no worries,” Lily avoided eye contact with him, as he began to walk away. “Just let me know if you change your mind.” James said as he continued down the corridor.

-

“Lily, I honestly don’t know what you’re on about. James asks you out every chance he gets,” Marlene said, glaring at the redhead as she plopped down onto her bed, “you just never accept his offers.”

Lily looked to Mary for help, but had little luck as Mary silently agreed with Marlene. The three had just come back from dinner and were painting each other’s nails.

“Why are we even talking about this, Mary was asking you about Dorcas. What does that have to do with James and I?” Lily pulled her hand away from Mary, smudging the nail that Mary was painting.

“So you agree that there is something going on between you and James?” Mary questioned, ignoring the fact that Lily had ruined the work that she had been doing for the last twenty minutes. Marlene laughed, noticing the flush on Lily’s face.

“We all saw you two today before potions, don’t be coy!” Marlene egged on. Lily got up from her position on the floor, rolling her eyes while doing so.

“I don’t know how many times that I have to tell you that James isn’t into me. Neither of you will ever get it. A guy like him wouldn’t want to date someone like me.” Mary glanced at Marlene, the air in the room starting to become a bit tense. Lily cleared her throat, hoping that neither of the girls across from her would press further.

Mary and Marlene were not unfamiliar to Lily’s harsh demeanor. At this point, they knew Lily like the back of their hands. They knew what she meant when she said “someone like me”. It was far too often the two consoled Lily when she cried to them about a cruel comment that someone had made to her about her weight.

Although Lily had been dealing with these comments all throughout her sixteen years of life, her insecurities only grew as she became a teenager. It was quite difficult for her to not compare herself to her thinner classmates, regardless of how much it hurt to think about.

“You are beautiful Lils,” Lily looked at Mary as she spoke, awaiting the rest of her sentence, but was met without any other words.

Marlene and Mary’s affection towards her was something that Lily had to get used to at first. Lily had never been comfortable with people complimenting her physical appearance because of the conditions that usually accompanied the compliment.

Nearly every compliment that Lily could remember was backhanded, until she had met her two best friends. Whether it was her aunt congratulating her on losing some amount of weight or the uncomfortable, “You’re pretty for a big girl.” Regardless of how hard she tried, the comments about her body never seemed to cease.

“Mary is right, Lily, you are stunning. You don’t have to go on a date with James, but give him some credit. He’s not a total arse.” Marlene said, trying to deescalate the situation.

Lily nodded, but even their kind words couldn’t soothe her anxiety. She looked toward the clock on her side table and noticed the time.

“I have to go. Head Girl duties call.” Lily quickly grabbed the robe on her bed, bringing it along in case she got cold while making her rounds. Marlene and Mary flashed sympathetic smiles at the redhead as she left the dorm, knowing she would have to go face James.

-

Surprisingly, James was waiting for her when Lily reached the bottom of the steps. Lily held back a laugh, noticing him struggling to attach his “Head Boy” pin onto his uniform. You would think someone as smart as James could figure out a simple pin.

“Let me help you,” Lily said, breaking James out of his deep concentration. He looked at her with appreciation before handing the gold pin her way.

Lily tugged the front of his robes slightly before attaching the pin onto it. She hummed in satisfaction before pulling away from him. As she pulled away she noticed James was staring at her quite intensely.

Lily flushed as they made eye contact. She couldn’t deny that James was attractive, but she didn’t let herself dwell on it.

“We should probably get going, I don’t want to be out all night.” Lily stated firmly starting to head out into the corridor, James following close behind her.

As the two walked around the castle, Lily distanced herself from James. She honestly did not want to deal with any awkward conversation. At this point, she had brushed James off far too many times to count, and it made her unbelievably anxious to have to do it again.

Just as they had turned the corner towards the middle courtyard, the pair heard a loud boom near the transfiguration classroom.

“Oh great, just what I need right now,” Lily thought to herself as she and James headed into the classroom. Just as they walked into the room, the door shut behind them quite forcefully. There had seemed to be no one in the room besides the two of them. The brunet grabbed the handle of the door quickly, realizing that it was stuck.

“You don’t happen to have your wand… do you?” The boy looked towards Lily with a concerned look on his face.

Lily patted the pocket of her robe before realizing that this was in fact not her robes, but rather Marlene’s. She huffed out a breath of air. “You would think I would notice the size difference” Lily silently cursed at herself before looking towards a confused James.

“This isn’t my robe, I must have grabbed Marlene’s before I left. Why don’t you have your wand? Kind of irresponsible, no?” Lily scolded, hoping that he was messing with her about not having his wand. After her conversation with Marlene and Mary, Lily was not feeling her best, and it became very apparent to James as she bit her nails anxiously.

“Hey, you also forgot your wand, but you don’t see me complaining.” James was joking, but when he looked at Lily once more, he noticed that her eyes were watering. “I’m just kidding, Lily, are you alright?”

Lily frowned at the brunet’s apology, she couldn’t stand him acting like he cared so deeply for her. The two were barely even acquaintances, and she didn’t feel like explaining all of her anxiety quirks to someone she hardly knew.

“Please don’t do that. Don’t act like you care.” Lily said forcefully, meeting eyes with the brown-eyed boy. The two had now moved away from the door and were sitting on the floor near the wall opposite to the door.

Once more, James looked at the redhead in confusion. He racked his brain to think about every interaction he had with Lily that day, before it dawned on him.

“Is this about me asking you out? I never meant to make you uncomfortable- you see I thought Hogsmeade could even be a group thing. Remus and Sirius would also come- wait I guess they’re a couple, but it doesn’t have to be a double date… you could bring Mary-” James went on, his cheeks a soft pink, before Lily cut him off.

“Listen, James, I don’t know if you get some sort of kick out of asking me out, but whatever angle you’re playing at I’d rather not be a part of it,” Lily was visibly distraught now, her jaw was clenched and a single tear was rolling down her cheek. For what felt like the hundredth time, James looked to her in genuine confusion.

James had nothing to say, and as he stared at her mouth ajar, she started up again.

“You could have at least picked a better joke. Asking out the fat girl is so overdone. I didn’t think that you of all people would be so awful,”

Lily was really crying now. “Marlene told me that you were sweeter than before, and I really gave you the benefit of the doubt...but here we are and you’re still laughing at me!” Lily didn’t mean to blow up at James, but at this point they had been stuck in the classroom for what had felt like hours.

Lily wrapped her arms around herself, her head hanging down. She knew that James was staring at her, but she couldn’t find it in herself to care. Maybe now he’ll leave me alone.

Both of the Gryffindors were quiet for a long minute before James decided to break the silence.

“Lily, I don’t know what I’ve said to make you think that I’m joking, but I promise you I’m not. I get it if you don’t want to go out with me, but I just need you to know that I would never ask you out as a joke. Why would you think that?”

Lily finally pulled her head up and looked at James. His brow was furrowed and the expression on his face was unreadable. She took a breath, calming herself down.

“What do you mean, James? I mean look at me.”

There it was. That feeling. It was unavoidable at this point. All of the insecurity that Lily had shoved down was threatening to spill out. It was infrequent that Lily really confronted her self-image, but her conversation with James forced everything to surface.

James could almost see the gears in Lily’s head turning, it was very obvious that she was thinking hard about something. He sighed, not wanting to press her further.

“Lily, I don’t know what happened to make you think that I was joking, but I would truly be honored to take you out.” James said cautiously. He couldn’t tell if this would upset her further. Lily was looking at him in speculation, but at some point she had stopped crying.

She was looking at him, not speaking, almost as if to tell him to keep going. For months she had thought James was playing some cruel prank on her, but they were alone now. There wasn’t some audience to laugh at her if she told James how she felt. And even if he was joking, the pair were by themselves, and Lily could deny accepting James' invitation for a date to anyone that James would tell.

As she looked at him, she noticed that James genuinely seemed horrified at her accusation against him. If she wasn’t completely sure that James was being sincere, she would not have said another word, but for whatever reason, Lily trusted James.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you,” Lily was sorry, “I don’t know what it is. There’s just something about someone like you wanting to go out with someone like me that seems… off.”

James frowned. He wasn’t oblivious to what Lily was talking about, but he really couldn’t understand why Lily was insecure. There weren't enough words to describe the beauty that Lily emitted.

“Lily, you’re the smartest person I know-”

“That’s what everyone says, James.” Lily laughed softly, watching James squirm at her words. She knew that he was nervous, but it was funny to see him care so much.

“Oh, so you do want me to be mean to you?” James’ tone was serious, but there was a lighthearted look in his eyes.

Lily rolled her eyes, “Haha, very funny. I don’t even think you could be mean to me. I think the last time I saw someone this nervous was when Marlene tried out for quidditch during second year.” The two laughed, James nudging Lily with his arm playfully.

As their laughter died down, James remarked, “Enough with the jokes, though. You’re actually the most beautiful person I’ve ever met,” Even after he was met with a glare from Lily, he continued. “You’ve been crying and you still look lovely, Lily.”

Lily sighed. First Mary and Marlene, now him? Lily felt embarrassed, but James was still staring at her, and adoringly at that. The soft rouge tint that marked his cheeks was still prominent.

“Well, you’re cute when you’re nervous,” Lily retorted, smiling as James flushed a deeper shade of red, “But I’m sure you get that often.”

James hummed, “Blimey, I don’t think anyone has seen me as nervous as I am right now, honest.” Lily apologized once more for assuming the worst in him.

The two small talked for a long while after that, simply basking in each other’s presence. James learned about Lily’s family, and Lily learned about what it was like at the Potter’s residence. Something about their dynamic felt natural.

Their conversation was halted as someone opened the door. There, standing in pajamas, was a distraught looking Mary and an annoyed Professor Mcgonagall.

Mary started, “There you are! You were gone for nearly two hours. After a while, I thought I should go check on you.”

“That’s enough, Ms. Macdonald,” Professor Mcgonagall said, “What were you two even doing in here?”

Before Lily could start to explain, James cut her off. “We were making our rounds down the corridor, when there was a loud noise coming from the classroom. When we walked in here, the door was jammed and neither of us had our wands.”

Mcgonagall looked skeptical at their story, but decided not to press the issue any further. With a gesture of her hand, the three Gryffindors started walking towards the common room.

Mary immediately went up to bed, exhausted from worrying about her best friend. Meanwhile, James and Lily had to have a quick word with Mcgonagall.

The Professor commented briskly, “Next time, please make sure you have your wand on you. You two are Head Boy and Girl after all.” Noting the nod of approval from the two teenagers, Mcgonagall went off to bed.

The pair walked into the common room, both exhausted. In spite of their tiredness, the two were radiant.

“Goodnight, Lily. I hope you sleep well.” Lily smiled, mumbling a quiet, “Goodnight James,” as she made her way up the dormitory steps.

As Lily settled into bed, she thought to herself, Maybe James would get that date after all.