Who: James Potter, Lily Evans. When: Friday 16th, late evening. Where: Starting in sleeping car 14 and moving up the train. What: A confused (and festive) new arrival, and a rather sad story. Rating: Medium. Some language.
Okay.
Okay. Right then.
James managed to move from the spot he'd frozen into. After all, it was a bit of a shock. He'd been in the kitchen, running Harry's dummy under the sink after the baby had managed to chuck it under the sofa, and had turned back to go back into the living room and... now he was on a train. A train that looked worryingly like it was parked at a stop beside a city. It wasn't quite what he'd expected, even after having a madman as his best mate and Death Eaters chasing his family. You did not expect to turn around and be on a train.
James slid his hand to the back pocket of his jeans, carefully, cautiously, as if any moment someone might come bursting through that door. His wand was still there, which was a vague hint maybe this wasn't some kind of plot to drag him away from his family but maybe just... Godric knew. Something else. After all, Death Eaters would have taken his wand, wouldn't they? They couldn't be that stupid. They'd have never made it through childhood otherwise - probably have drowned in a toilet or something.
Ignoring the babbling on his own inner thoughts, James drew his wand, holding it tightly before him as he took a breath and headed out into the corridor. He needed to find Lily. They'd been in the house together. If they - whoever they were - had got him... James refused to let himself finish that thought, swallowing it down along with the wave of panic that kept threatening to sweep up over his head and drown him. Instead he forced himself to start moving down the corridor, looking for a way out, one ear listening out for anything that might be approaching.
Merlin, James thought again. He was on a train... And he was pretty sure he still wearing those damn comedy antlers.