In Which James is Like a Chocolate Truffle

Author: Ladyhuntress36

Rating: K+

Disclaimer: In no way, shape, or form, do I own Harry Potter. I also don't own the quote I use at the end of the story.

Summary: One Shot. 7th year is a time of changes and Lily Evans is taking the time to enjoy the constants in her ever changing world. To her surprise and annoyance she finds that she cannot put James Potter on that list. One night, when unable to sleep she walks down to the common room and bears witness to a sight that forces her to accept that James has changed and that perhaps her opinions and choices concerning him need to change as well

A/N: We all know that Lily finally agreed to go out with James after she had seen that he had matured. This is my version of how that realization came about. This fic was written for my awesome friend falafel90 who is an intense James/Lily shipper. Hopefully I can do the pairing justice in your eyes Falafel. Please review everyone; I am always interested in what my readers think. Happy Reading!

In Which James is Like a Chocolate Truffle

"I can't believe that it's 7th year already." Lily thought as she lie awake in her bed, listening to the occasional sounds of shifting bodies and rustling covers that marked the presence of her slumbering roommates.

Looking around the dorm room, Lily took in the comforting site of the scarlet drapes that hung from the four poster beds, the trunks lined up neatly in front of the beds, and her roommates, lying sound asleep. These things were constants, always present, always there, and with all the changes that the year was bringing, familiarity was a definite comfort.

"Right here and right now, everything is good. I don't have to worry about the war brewing outside the castle walls, or Petunia and her stupid new boyfriend. I don't have to think about what I am going to do after Hogwarts or that NEWTS are only six months away."

These things weighed heavily on Lily's mind and sometimes she lacked the ability to shut them off, often leading to sleepless nights of worrying. In times like those she took to thinking about the familiar and constant, things that in her ever changing world would always remained the same.

"Charms class will be interesting and the girls and I will hang out in the common room. I'll go and watch the quidditch games and spend time in the library. Remus and I will patrol and talk about all the fascinating things that we have read about. I'll yell at Black for disrupting the peace of the common room, and Potter will be a complete arse!"

Even as the words formed in her mind Lily began to feel uncomfortable. One of those things had proven true for six years but if she was honest with herself, it didn't really hold true any longer. Not for the first time that year were Lily's thoughts drawn to Potter.

"I remember when I found out that he had been chosen for head boy, I was enraged, he wasn't even a prefect and had caused more trouble for the school than almost anyone, but he never gloated. I expected him to lord it over everyone but he was, dare I even think it, humble. He's done his share of the work and then some and I haven't caught him or his gang picking on anyone. He even stopped asking me to go to Hogsmeade with him, and we have been able to have actual conversations without me wanting to murder him. Maybe he is actually growing up."

Lily shook her head to clear it, thoughts like that one had been cropping up more often than she was comfortable with. She couldn't erase the image of him that she had held for six years, the James Potter who was cocky and arrogant and picked on people just because he could. All of the good things that he had been doing lately were either a phase or some insane plan of his to get her to go to Hogsmeade with him and she wasn't buying it.

"James Potter is an immature arse!" She said in a whisper, having to hear the words spoken aloud, no longer content keeping her thoughts in her mind. She pushed aside the further thought that she needed it to be said aloud to further convince herself that it was true.

Lily rolled over onto her side and shut her eyes, blocking out any further thoughts of James Potter and trying to go to sleep. This endeavor lasted about seven seconds before his face appeared behind her eyelids. With a sigh she threw the covers off and got out of bed. Running a hand through her long red hair, she sat on her trunk, slipped her feet into her fuzzy purple slippers (a gift from her mother after hearing her complain that the dorm got a bit cold during winter) and padded quietly out the door.

Thinking only about finding a nice comfy chair by the dwindling embers of the fire she was startled to hear crying as she walked down the stairs to the common room. Pausing at the bottom of the stairway that led into the common room she carefully poked her head in and saw the source of the crying.

A young boy was sobbing piteously on a plushy scarlet couch towards the center of the common room. His longish brown hair was disheveled, his face tearstained and he made such a sorry sight that Lily felt her heart melt immediately. She could tell that he wasn't alone by the way his body laid against the couch but she couldn't see who was with him in her current position. Curious, she stuck her head out a bit more and though she swore that it only happened in movies, her jaw dropped. Sitting there next to the sobbing boy with a look of concern on his face was James Potter.

Lily watched in fascination as James reached out and put an arm around the young boy who turned quickly and buried his face into James's shoulder. Though he looked shocked, James recovered quickly and adjusted his seat to make both himself and the boy more comfortable and put his free hand to work rubbing comforting circles on the boys back.

"What's wrong Jayden?" James questioned in a soft voice.

As soon as she heard the name come out of James's mouth she placed the face of the young boy. His name was Jayden Sylar and he was one of the new first years, a muggleborn if memory served. Though she probably should have left and given the boys their privacy or even stepped forward and help James comfort the distraught first year she could bring herself to do neither and instead stood silent in the stairway and watched.

"I don't like it here, I, I want to go home." Jayden said his voice muffled against the fabric of James's pajamas.

"I thought you were enjoying Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall said you were doing well in her class when I met with her last week" James told him, doing his best to keep his voice low and soothing.

"Classes aren't so bad, and I do like Transfiguration. I was the first person to manage to transform my match into a needle. Professor McGonagall smiled at me" Jayden said, his sobbing having died down to small sniffling.

"Well done! Getting McGonagall to smile at you is a rare feat. What about your other classes, are they going well?" James asked.

"Yes. I like Charms and Potions. Professor Flitwick is really nice and really patient and Professor Slughorn knows so much. I also like looking at the stars for Astronomy. I have a telescope at home but the ones here are much better. History of Magic is, err"

"A good place to take a nap" James finished for him with a grin and a wink.

Jayden nodded and gave a teary smile while wiping his nose with the sleeve of his pajamas.

"Well if your classes are well then maybe you're having a problem with your roommates. Do you guys all get along?"

"Yeah we all get along pretty well, we're mates." Jayden told him.

"Well then you are going to have to help me out with this one. If your classes are going okay and your dorm situations is alright then why did I find you down here all alone and so upset?" James inquired.

Jayden opened his mouth to answer but hesitated and shut it, burying his head deeper into James's shoulder.

"Jayden if something is wrong you have to tell me, I can't help you if you don't let me know what's wrong." James said.

Jayden shook his head rapidly against James's shoulder

"Jayden I'm the Head Boy of this school, it is my job to help the students in any way I can." James said as he pulled Jayden's head from his shoulder and set the boy upright against the couch. He moved his hands, setting them upon Jayden's shoulders and waited until Jayden met his eyes before he continued.

"I am Head Boy but more importantly I am your housemate, a Gryffindor, and Gryffindors look after their own. It's like Professor McGonagall told you when you first arrived here, your house is like your family. You're a member of Gryffindor house, a member of our family here at Hogwarts and something is wrong Jayden and I want to help. Please tell me what's wrong, let me help you."

Lily's was stunned as she stood listening to James speak with Jayden. She had never heard him speak in such a serious voice before, and if she was honest she would never had believed him capable of the ability if she hadn't witnessed it firsthand. Keeping to her position hidden in the stairway she listened for Jayden's response.

"They hate me. They, they said I don't belong here." Jayden whispered after a few moments of silence.

"Who Jayden, who told you that?"

"Some Slytherins. They were older, they cornered me after Charms. They told me that I shouldn't be here, that people like me have no right to practice magic. They called me something, I don't really know what it means but it hurt. They called me a mudblood." Jayden said, voice shaking as he tore his eyes away from James's gaze to stare at his hands.

James's hazel eyes fairly glowed in anger and he took a moment to collect himself before he spoke again to Jayden.

"I want you to listen to me Jayden, listen very carefully. Those Slytherin's were dead wrong. You were born with magic and it is a part of you. You got your wand at Ollivanders and the Hogwarts Express took you here where you were sorted into Gryffindor. You have just as much right to study and practice magic as anyone else here." James said fiercely.

"That name they called me, mudblood, what does it mean?" Jayden asked.

James sighed, "That's not a word used in polite conversation Jayden."

"That doesn't tell me what it means"

James smiled slightly, "No I guess it doesn't. Mudblood is a really awful and cruel name for someone whose parents are not magical."

"My Mom and Dad, those guys picked on me because of my parents, but they have never even met them. What do my parents have to do with anything?" Jayden said.

"Your parents have everything to do with it Jayden and not because of the people they are but because of what they are. They are muggles, they don't have any magic. To most people you will meet, particularly in Gryffindor, that's no problem, but some see it differently. Some wizards, like the Slytherins you ran into, believe that magic should be kept and taught only to the old families, to what they call Purebloods, wizards and witches with magic families."

"That's why they said I have no right to practice magic, because my parents are not magical." Jayden said.

"Yes, they picked on you because you are what they call muggleborn, you have non-magic parents."

"That's not fair!" Jayden said angrily "That's not fair."

"No Jayden, it's not fair. I wish it was different and that I could reassure you that it would get better but the truth is that it's something you are always going to have to deal with." James told him gently.

"Then what do I do?" Jayden asked James as he looked at the older wizard.

"You do just what you have been doing. You go to classes, you see new things, you learn. You find friends that care about who you are not where you come from. You stay here and live in this new world you have entered. You spite the fanatics that say you don't belong here because they are wrong. You are a wizard Jayden and you have the right to study magic." James replied.

Jayden nodded but stayed silent, his face creased in worry.

"You keep saying they are wrong but what if they aren' if they are right?"

The question was uttered so softly that James almost missed it.

"What if I really don't belong here, what if they are right." Jayden said again, giving voice to the fear that had haunted him since his encounter with the Slytherins.

"Who are you?" James asked him suddenly.

Jayden looked up in confusion.

"Who are you?" James repeated, sitting up straighter on the couch.

"Jayden." The young first year answered softly.

" Jayden what?" James questioned.

" Jayden Syler."

"What house do you belong to Jayden Syler?" James asked him.

"Gryffindor"

"What is it that you study here?" James asked, keeping up his rapid fire questions.

"Magic?" Jayden answered, wondering what was going on.

"Studying magic makes you a…?" James trailed off.

"Wizard?" Jayden answered, his face scrunched up in confusion.

"You are Jayden Sylar of Gryffindor House, a wizard studying magic at Hogwarts. " James said, putting the answers together.

"Yes." Jayden agreed.

"Then say it." James bade him.

"What?" Jayden asked.

"Say it Jayden, tell me who you are." James told him again.

Jayden looked at the older Gryffindor and at his nod repeated James's words.

"I am Jayden Sylar of Gryffindor House, a wizard studying magic at Hogwarts."

James nodded and said, "Good, now say it again, louder."

"I am Jayden Sylar of Gryffindor House, a wizard studying magic at Hogwarts." Jayden repeated, slightly louder than before, an odd pressure building within him, the same feeling he had felt all day when thinking about what the Slytherins had told him.

"Again, louder!"

"I am Jayden Sylar of Gryffindor House, a wizard studying magic at Hogwarts" Jayden said, raising his voice, the pressure moved up towards his throat and he felt it growing stronger.

James stood up, towering over the first year and said again, "Good, say it again, louder"

Jayden stood up as well and feeling suffocated by the pressure got rid of it the only way he saw how, he yelled.

"I am Jayden Sylar of Gryffindor House, a wizard studying magic at Hogwarts!"

James let Jayden's cry hang in the air between them, taking in the sight of Jayden who shook slightly beside him.

"Good. Remember that statement Jayden because those Slytherins you ran into, they stole it from you. They took the knowledge of who you are and your belief in who you are. I don't care what anyone says, you are a wizard Jayden this is where you belong." James told him.

Jayden smiled up at the older wizard, the first real smile that had graced his features since he had ran into the Slytherins that afternoon.

"Thanks James. I'll remember." Jayden told him.

James smiled and ruffled Jayden's hair before saying, "No problem, like I said, Gryffindor's look after their own."

Jayden yawned suddenly and said "I'm tired; I should probably get to bed."

"Yeah, wait a minute though." James told him and he moved away from the couch heading towards a chair on the far side of the common room. He reached under the chair and pulled out a small bag and once it was securely in his hand he walked back to Jayden. Reaching into the bag he took out a brightly wrapped sphere and tossed it to him.

"Secret stash?" Jayden asked teasingly catching the sphere.

"One of my best friends, Remus, is a bit of a chocoholic. If I kept these in my dorm room I wouldn't have them anymore." James explained.

"It is chocolate then, what kind?" Jayden asked.

"It's a chocolate truffle, and it's not only chocolate, it's also a reminder."

"A reminder?"

"There are many different places that make chocolate truffles. Honeydukes stocks several different kinds and Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour in Diagon Alley makes their own chocolate truffles for one of their specialty Sundays. In the end though, they are all made up of a chocolate shell that gives into a creamy chocolate center. Some people make a big deal about from where the chocolate truffle came from but in the end; they are all really the same." James explained.

Jayden laughed and unwrapped the truffle, popping it into his mouth.

"A reminder that where I come from doesn't matter, I am a wizard just like everyone else. Got it!" Jayden told James with a smile.

James smiled back and watched as the first year went back up the stairs, heading for his dorm. He waited until Jayden was out of sight before flopping himself down on the couch, leaning his head against the cushion. He shut his eyes and breathed a deep sigh.

Lily watched him from her place in the stairway as her mind replayed the intense seen she had just witnessed. She was floored by the care and concern that Potter had shown Jayden, especially when she discovered just what had upset him so.

"Poor Jayden," She thought "To have to discover such an ugly aspect of the wizarding world so young."

She had almost given away her hiding place when she heard what had happened to him, her anger flowed hot and ran deep. It took all of her self control not to run out to the first year whose experience she had lived all too often, but she didn't. She didn't because to her surprise, Potter had it covered.

He did everything right, he had comforted Jayden, laid waste to his fears and insecurities. He had been honest, compassionate, and noble. The thought that maybe James Potter really had grown up entered her mind again and this time she didn't push it away. How could she when she just had an eye witness view of the evidence.

Lily let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding and turned to go back up to her dorm. She hadn't counted on her muscles protesting after having held the same position for so long and when she went to move she tripped, knocking against the stone wall with a loud thud.

James's eyes shot open and he jumped to his feet, eyes darting around looking for the source of the noise. Her face flushed as red as her hair, Lily got up and entered the common room, trying not to look as guilty as she felt.

"Evans?" James asked questioningly.

"Hi Potter." Lily replied simply, keeping her eyes away from his face.

James's eyes were darting back and forth between Lily and the entrance to the common room. His eyes took in her blushing face and downcast eyes, the guilty expression on her face she couldn't completely hide and his eyes lit up as he made the connection.

"How long were you there for?" He asked her simply.

"Potter I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on you I swear. I couldn't sleep and was coming down to sit by the fire for a little while and then I heard crying so I stopped and poked my head in and saw Jayden sobbing. I know I should have left once I saw that you there and were handling it but I was curious about what was wrong and I was worried about him so I just sort of stayed and watched and I know that it was wrong and I'm sorry." Lily rambled nervously, knowing that she had been essentially been caught spying.

"Evans calm down before you work yourself into a state. Maybe you should sit down or something." James said.

Lily nodded, moved towards the couch and sat down, James taking a seat next to her.

"You heard everything then?" James asked.

"Yeah." Lily admitted.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence until Lily finally blurted out the thought she had been thinking ever since Jayden had left.

"You really helped him."

James looked up, startled, and said, "You really think so. I was nervous the whole time, especially when he said what had happened to him. How do you explain centuries of prejudice to an eleven year old kid? How do you tell him that he will be looked down upon by people for the rest of his life just because of his blood status?"

"You tell him the way you did, gently and honestly." Lily said.

"Thanks Evans." James told her.

They lapsed again into uncomfortable silence until it was broken, this time by James.

"Want a chocolate truffle Evans?" James asked her with a smile, holding out another brightly colored sphere.

The offer was so strange given the situation that she laughed and said, "Sure, why not."

She took the offered candy and was about to unwrapped it but she hesitated and asked, "Can I eat this now or do you have a moral for me beforehand."

"Hey it was a good metaphor!" James defended.

"It was okay." Lily said.

"It was fabulous!" James insisted, sticking his nose in the air.

"Sure it was," Lily said as she rolled her eyes but secretly she was relived. This was a Potter she was more familiar with, one who joked around and acted superior. She tried to summon up the old contempt she had for him but found that she couldn't do it. Every time she tried she was stopped by an image of him of the couch with Jayden, comforting him, giving him advice.

"It was better than the corny one my father told me." James said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh and what was that?" Lily asked, wondering why she was continuing the conversation when she was so confused about James and his actions. Although when she thought about it, the confusion was probably the reason she kept talking.

"I was about six when I had my first chocolate truffle, only I didn't know at the time that it was a chocolate truffle, I thought it was a plain ball of chocolate so I took it off the counter without asking permission."

"There's a shock." Lily interjected.

James shot a glare at her before continuing.

"I took the truffle and bit into it to discover that it was a mint truffle, the chocolate cream on the inside was mint flavored and I can't stand the taste of mint. I spit it out and was coughing when my father came in and discovered what had happened. He told me that experiences like that are why you shouldn't judge on looks alone because some things aren't always what they first appear to be. Pretty cheesy huh."

"Yeah, pretty cheesy."

They lapsed again into silence and after awhile the silence began to unnerve Lily who said, "You know it is getting pretty late I should probably go to bed."

"Of course." James said.

They both got up and started towards their respective dorms. As Lily walked the story James had told her kept ringing through her head. Lily thought of the Potter she had known for six years. The arrogant one who picked on anything that moved because he could. She thought of the Potter she had seen tonight, caring, compassionate; doing everything he could to help a young Gryffindor in need.

With those thoughts came the ones she had successfully ignored for the past six years. Thoughts that when she was so furious with him she refused t entertain. That he was loyal to his friends. That he had always stood up for his house and stood by his housemates. That he was best friends with Remus, who wouldn't have stayed friends with him, if he was the monster she had always thought he was.

These were followed up by her most recent thoughts. He had grown up, matured. As much as she tried to deny it he wasn't the same man he had been for the six previous years and it wasn't fair to hate this new version of Potter based on the actions of the old one.

She couldn't stand the old Potter but this new one, the one who was noble and kind, well what she had seen of him intrigued her and she wanted to know more.

"Potter." She called out from the foot of the stairs leading up to the girl's dorms.

He stopped and turned before answering, "Yeah Evans."

"Did you put the notice up for the Hogsmeade trip with weekend?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's on the board, I put it up this afternoon. " He replied.

"Oh good." She said.

He nodded and said, "Well, night then."

He turned back and made for the stairs that led to the boy's dorms.

Lily watched him go a few steps before she gathered her Gryffindor courage and called again, softly but steadily, "James."

James stopped and turned around; eyes wide and just looked at her, too shocked to speak.

"The Hogsmeade trip is this weekend and I was wondering, well if you didn't have other plans maybe we could meet up and grab a butterbeer or something." Lily said after taking a deep breath, a tentative smile on her face.

His answering smile was breathtaking and for the first time she understood what people meant when they said that James Potter's true smile was swoon worthy.

"I'd like that" James told her.

"I'll see you tomorrow then, we have to report to Professor McGonagall and plan the prefects meeting. Good night James." Lily said as she turned to walk up the stairs.

"Good night Lily." James said, his voice following her up the stairs.

Lily walked into her dorm room and set the still uneaten chocolate truffle on her bedside table. Putting her slippers back by the foot of her bed she slipped under the covers. She couldn't help but think about how crazy a night she had had. For her own personal experiment she thought about James Potter, just to see what thoughts crept up.

She was prepared for the thoughts that dealt with what she had witnessed that night between him and Jayden. She was prepared for the thoughts about how he had matured and grown up. She was even prepared for the lack of malevolent thoughts she normally had about him. What Lily wasn't prepared for were the emotions that came with the thoughts. She wasn't prepared to think about the fact that when he had smiled at her after she asked him to Hogsmeade her breath had caught in her throat. She wasn't prepared to find herself thinking about seeing him the next day and she certainly wasn't prepared to find herself thinking ahead to the Hogsmeede trip or the flutter in her stomach that was part nervousness and part excitement that accompanied that thought.

She smiled as she looked over at the chocolate truffle that sat on her bedside table and once more the words from the story James had told her filled her mind.

"Experiences like that are why you shouldn't judge on looks alone because some things aren't always what they first appear to be."