𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞 ( james potter! )

XII. WITH YOU, I'M WHOLE

CHAPTER TWELVE
( WITH YOU, I'M WHOLE )

☽

"HAPPY LAST DAY OF DETENTION!" Estelle shouts with outstretched arms, smiling widely at James' approaching figure as she stands in front of the Fat Lady's Portrait.

     "Thank you, Essie," James says with a chuckle, walking right into her waiting arms. Her hugs are always warm and inviting and remind him of home. And today, after completing his last detention, he could especially use the morale boost. McGonagall had gone relatively easy on him in regards to punishment, but today's detention had been left up to Filch. The miserable old man had James scrubbing floors for four hours.

     "You look like you had a rough day," his best friend says with a frown when she pulls away from him. Her hands drop from his arms as she takes in his appearance. Concern takes over when she realizes there's only a hint of a smile in his eyes. James is drained.

     "You could say that." James' eyes follow her as she takes his hand, inspecting his palm with narrowed eyes.

     "Jamie, your hands are scrubbed raw! Why didn't you tell Professor McGonagall that you were hurting?"

     James shrugs. "Minnie wasn't feeling well, so Filch dealt out the punishments. I'll be fine, just let me grab a scarf and we can head out to Hogsmeade." He tries to move past her to enter Gryffindor Tower, but she puts a hand on his chest.

     "Absolutely not. I need to get something for your hands before we even consider leaving the castle," She insists. "I think I have a salve that will help in my dorm room."

     "If you insist," starts James with a dramatic sigh, "I will be waiting right here for you." At this, Estelle snorts and shakes her head. "What?"

     "I wasn't born yesterday, James. If I leave you here, you're gonna sneak off and head to Hogsmeade anyways, forcing me to go too if I want to hang out with you today. And you know I want to," She narrows her eyes at him. "I've got you all figured out."

     "Yeah, you hit the nail on the head," James wants to be surprised, but he knows her. She's smart and observant like that. And more than anything, she knows him and how he thinks. "Sorry. I just wanna go to Honeydukes really badly. And I promised you we would go to Tomes and Scrolls!"

She waves her hand dismissively, carefully grabbing his hand and leading him down the staircase. "We can do that after we get your hands fixed up."

As much as he wants to go to Hogsmeade, James has to admit that he appreciates how much she cares. The boys care about him, obviously, but it's a little different. They're not quite as pushy anymore because of how stubborn James is, and though he'd never admit it, James has always been the one who made sure the group was healthy, happy, and taking care of themselves at all times.