Stock up for School! ((Summer '76)) -James/Lily-

[Lily Evans]

Lily stood in the door of her closet with two outfits in hand. One was her school robes, very professional, representing the pride she had in her house, Gryffindor, of course. The other was a pair of light wash jeans, and a tank top, comfy, and rather lazy looking. She chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to discover what she was going to wear. Should she wear her robes? They looked more eloquent, like she knew she was a witch and she was proud of it. And then there were her very comfy Muggle clothes. Cute, sensible, comfortable? Grrrr… This is too much work for her. She pulled her pajamas over her head and tossed them into the laundry room adjacent from hers. She daintily stepped into her jean, which rose up to her hips and settled nicely there. They pulled the tank-top over her head. It was a nice ensemble altogether.

She was about to exit her room, when something sparkled in the sun and caught her eye. It was her Head’s Girl badge. Without a second thought, she snatched in up off the window sill, along with the letter attached to it. She hadn’t actually read the letter… Just the part saying that she had been dubbed Head Girl. As she quickly scanned the letter, her heart almost stopped. At the bottom, there was a post script. It read: You will be pleased to be informed that your Counterpart Head Boy has already been chosen. You will be serving alongside James Potter. I hope that this will suit you perfectly. Sincerely Professor Dumbledore. She wanted to scream. How did this happen? You had to be a prefect to become Head Boy? Right? Her breathing raced. She had no problem with it, but… She didn’t know if she could handle it. Ever since summer had begun, she had thought of nothing but James… She was beginning to think that what she was dealing with was a bit more than a crush.

As she ruffled through the pages of her HOGWARTS: A HISTORY book, she found the answer to her problems. The two different positions that were eligible to become a Head were Prefect, and Quidditch Captain. Quidditch Captain. Darn James Potter to the deepest pit in Hades. Why did he have to be so bloody brilliant on a broom? She sighed, tossing her book back into her trunk. She loved that book, that was, until it proved her wrong. She hated to be wrong. She pinned her badge to her top and flitted out of the room. Her mother was in the kitchen, cooking dinner. It smelt good. Too bad she was eating in Diagon Alley today. “Mum! I’m going to get my supplies for school ‘kay?” Her mother gave her a curt nod, not wanting to be distracted from whatever meal she was cooking today.

She grabbed her wand off of the counter, skipping outside. The discovery that she had made today had given her a new hope for this school year. Maybe she had a chance after all. She stepped out into the warm London air, preparing to Apparate directly into Diagon Alley, it would be the easiest way, and now that she was an of-age witch, she could Apparate whenever she wanted too. With a slight turn, and a compression-like trip through a tube, she landed nimbly in Diagon Alley. Witches and Wizards of all ages were going out and about, some buying wands and robes for the first time, others buying the needed books and such for their term. It gave Lily an excited feeling in the pit of her stomach… She couldn’t wait to get started.[/size]

[Redvamp]

The streets in Diagon Alley had become more crowded as the Hogwarts school year grew closer. More families, both muggle and pure-bloods, were seen rummaging in the different stores, side by side for the most part, and sitting out in the sun at the outdoor cafes. It really was a nice sight to behold, though not nearly as nice as when only the usual customers walked the streets. They at least knew where they were going and what they were looking for. James couldn’t even count on his hands how many times he had been asked where Madam Malkin’s robe store was located, or which store would be best to visit first.

Running slender, yet masculine, fingers through his disorderly ebony locks, James stared at the different families passing him by. He was positioned in his usual chair outside of one of the many cafes. The brightly colored orange umbrella over head cast his form in half shadow, giving him that rather mysterious look.

He couldn’t help but offered up his characteristic, flirty smile to the few girls that giggled and pointed at him as they walked by. Oh yes, this year was going to be a good year for him. He was popular with most that attended Hogwarts, well, except for the Slytherin but that was to be expected. Oh and of course Miss Evans. She was far too good for him. In a way he had given up on trying to impress her. She had made it clear that she wasn’t interested in him, which had broken his heart, but he, like most boys his age, was able to move on.

Now don’t get him wrong, he still carried a flame for the redhead, but it had diminished ever so slightly over the summer. His best friend, and now housemate, Sirius had informed him that he didn’t need her and he shouldn’t get too serious with any female. But James did not wish to be like him; he did not wish to been known for snogging the most girls at Hogwarts in one year. That was Sirius’ goal, and knowing Sirius he would probably accomplish it sooner rather than later. After all, this was their last year on the campus.

James couldn’t help but sigh at that thought. This was his last year within those walls that he had grown to love; last year with all the other students, and he would be out by himself in the wizarding world. Maybe he would make it as a professional Quidditch player like he had dreamed when he first went to the school. As time went by, though, he wasn’t sure if that was still his dream anymore. He was growing up, or at least attempting to, and as much as he loved Quidditch he knew that such a job would only last so long. If he made it as a pro that would be wonderful; if he didn’t, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.

Finishing off his butterbeer, James stood up and began to head toward...well, he really didn’t know where he was heading. He just needed to get up and clear his head. Today he had chosen not to wear his Hogwarts robes, finding them rather stuffy even when he was at school. He wore a simple white button up shirt, the first button left undone, with the sleeves rolled up and a scarlet and gold tie with the Gryffindor emblem at the bottom. The tie was not pulled tight but rather hung slightly loose about his neck. His shirt was not tucked into his black trousers, but instead hung out giving him a rather laid back look while still looking somewhat respectable.

He had to look respectable now. His hazel optics went to the floor at the thought of the shiny new Head Boy badges that sat on his desk back home. In a way he was proud of that badge, and in another way he wasn't. He didn’t deserve it; Remus deserved it. And yet, Dumbledore had decided to give it to him. Why? Maybe he saw something in James no one else saw, not even himself.

He couldn’t help but smirk at how he found out that he had been selected. His mother, who was putting some of his clothes away while he and Sirius ate breakfast down in the kitchen, had shrieked from upstairs. He jumped up from his chair so quickly that he knocked over his chair and had spilled his porridge all over the table. He would clean it up later. The only time he had ever heard his mother shriek like that before was when their cat, Jade, had decided to bring a ‘gift’ for the family into the home. His mother was so upset by the dead, and headless, raven that she had left on the floor that she nearly fainted.

He sprinted up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and skidded into his room. He saw his mother holding something in her hand. ‘Damn cat,’ was all he could think as he approached his mother from behind.

"Mom..." His vocals were soft and filled with great concern. He stretched out a hand and was about to place it on her shoulder when she turned out and threw her arms about him and hugged him tightly. This action caused James to furrow his brows in confusion.
"My son is Head Boy!" She said in a near scream that hurt his ears. Head Boy? What? How could he? As his mother let him go, she showed him the badge she held in her hand. James stared at it in even more confusion. How? Remus was the prefect the year before and so he should be the Head Boy. This was all because James was the Quidditch Captain. At least he had remembered that from his readings.

"Your father will be so very proud! We are both so very proud of you!" She said as she pinned it to his t-shirt before stepping back to admire it.

It wasn’t until much later that night, after much taunting from Sirius and proud comments from his father, that James was able to read the note that had come along with the pin. He was not in the least bit shocked to see that the Head Girl was Lily Evans. Too bad he had given up on her because this would be require them to be around each other for long periods of time and give them a good subject to talk about.

His gaze shifted from the ground up to the window of the Quidditch shop. He didn’t need a new broom even if his father said he could pick a new one out. His mother had told him told him that he was to get new robes because of this accomplishment. She had said that he needed something nice and new to wear, something that would go with the new badge.

He shuffled past the Quidditch shop and toward Flourish & Blotts knowing that he would need to get his books for this coming year. He had been half tempted to drag Sirius along with him, but he had been no where to be found so he came on his own. At least this way he could get some thinking done, along with actual shopping. If he had come with Hogwart’s playboy he wouldn’t have gotten anything done, well, other than flirting with girls.

He was about to enter the shop when he bumped into someone that had just apparated in his path. He managed to keep his balance; his glasses had slipped down his nose so he pushed them back up so that he could see who he had bumped into. He could barely see without his glasses, well unless you call seeing blobs of color seeing. He had noticed the blob of red and knew immediately who he had bumped into.

"I am sorry, Miss Evans, I didn't see you there." He was trying his best to be polite; after all, he was going to have to work along side her for the whole next year.

[Lily Evans]

A slight breeze ruffled Lily’s ever-so-red hair. She shivered as the wind stole through the thin material of her blouse. Why hadn’t she though to wear a jacket? It was bound to be breezy. She sighed and wrapped her arms around her middle in an attempt to keep warm. Wasn’t it supposed to be warm in August? She sighed, unable to keep negative thought about this year out of her mind. What if she failed her NEWTs? What if James decided that she was a big of a berk as she was years before? This was her final year to make her mark on the school as well as the people that reside inside the walls of the school.

As she stood people watching, someone bumped into her, a very tall someone. She took a step back to see who exactly had run into her. As she did so, she found herself face to face with James Potter. The single person she had hoped to avoid on her shopping excursion. His hazel bore directly into her, making her face flush a color similar to her hair. "I am sorry, Miss Evans, I didn't see you there." He said in a polite deep tone. The way he pronounced her name, like every syllable was just as important as the last, sent a shiver down her spine, causing her to be colder than she was before he had arrived.

He was dressed casual, but at the same time, he looked very professional. His ensemble made him look very business-like. She noticed, as the wind blew against his white polo, how toned he was. He was thin, but not scrawny, muscular, but not burly. Almost like a stag, delicate and graceful, but at the same time, strong and protecting. She shook her head; there was no way she was going to get through this conversation if all she could do was think about his ab muscles.

“It-It’s quite alright.” She stuttered, fiddling with the hem on her tank top. She directed her gaze to the ground, unable to meet his eyes. This boy was able to screw up every single thought process going on in her head with a single sentence. She needed an intervention. Now. “It’s my fault really… I should have been watching were I apparated. So… er… congratulations on becoming Head Boy.” She twirled a lock of her hair around her finger, leaving her tank top to hang loose where it was. When had she picked up nervous habits?

Shut your trap Lily! She was making a complete fool out of herself. She was no good at small talk. She chewed nervously on her bottom lip, trying to make something intelligent come out of her mouth. “Did you know that both Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall were the Heads when they went to school?” She couldn’t bash her head into the nearby brick wall so instead, she internally slapped herself. Why on heaven or on earth would he care who was a Head or not? Could she have made anything stupider or more irrelevant come out of her mouth? Impossible.

How should she greet him, a handshake? A hug? She had no clue. She definitely wanted to start this year with a clean slate. But, she was unsure of how to do that. For some reason, her brain wasn’t in ‘friend’ mode. It was in ‘let’s be a stupid idiot and see if he falls for you that way’ mode. There was no way that she would be able to go one hundred and eighty days with him and not know how to act around him.

She was usually so good at controlling her feelings. But when she was around him, everything she knew seemed to leak out of her mind, all knowledge, intelligence, any sort of manners. “How was your summer Po-James?” She corrected herself mid-sentence. If this was going to be a better year, she had to start by being as polite as she could be. She decided that now was a good a time as any, so she shifted her head slightly, so she could look into his hazel eyes. They were a beautiful color, one she had never actually appreciated before this day.

“So…. Um… are you getting anything while you’re here? Or are you just visiting?” Actually, I’m asking you if you want to grab some dinner with me. She thought to herself. There was no way she would ever have the confidence to ask him to dinner… or on any sort of date for that matter. She continued to chew on her bottom lip as she waited for his answer.
[/font]

[Redvamp]

The day was rather chilly for an August day, but James found it rather enjoyable. His body was aching from the torture he was putting it through to get ready for the Quidditch season. Those muscles of his were not made by some sort of magic, but he worked really hard for each and every one of them; and at that current moment each and every one of them hated him for pushing them so hard. He was rather out of shape from spending time with Sirius and thinking up different pranks to pull on his best mate in order to stay ahead of him. If James had lived alone with his parents that summer, like all others, he would have been in shape and ready for the season already. But he was more than happy to have Sirius with him, and he could honestly say it was the best summer he had had in a while...well, at least until he ran into Lily Evans in Diagon Alley.

All summer he had been trying to avoid her like the plague. He didn’t want to think about her, or talk about her, and he especially didn’t want to see her. Seeing her standing in front of him with the sunlight dancing on her crimson locks, it was hard to forget that he had given up hope on getting with her. He was trying so hard to keep to his promise to himself that he would just forget about wanting to be with her like that, and maybe just see if he could start up a friendship with her. He didn’t like fighting with her, but he hated her being mad at him even more. Oh she was a very stubborn girl and could have quite the temper when someone upset her.

His brow lifted ever so slightly when he heard her stutter out the first words she spoke in his presence. This was so unlike her; she was always confident in herself. His hazel gaze shifted to the hem of her tank top as she fiddled with it. That was a new habit he hadn’t noticed before. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, reminding himself that he didn’t care about her habits anymore. Opening his eyes he let them rest on her pretty visage, studying her every movement. He did want to know why she was so, what was the word he was looking for, agitated.

Maybe he had startled her so badly when he had bumped into her that he knocked her off her usual confidence streak. That must have been it. Silly James, don’t read too much into anything. He was about to tell her there was no need to apologize and that it was indeed his fault for not paying attention to his surroundings, but she cut off his train of thought on that subject by hearing her mention Head Boy. He sighed inwardly, knowing and believing that he did not deserve the position.

“I think you for your congratulations, though I find myself undeserving of the position.” He looked up to the sky, knowing that in a few days another full moon would be coming out, and dear Moony would be transforming into a werewolf. That is why I got the position instead of him. James had finally settled on that assumption seeing no other reason why he would have been chosen over Remus. “Remus really should have been given the position. And I should say congratulations yourself, Miss Evans, on becoming Head Girl. It suits you well.” He wasn’t sure if he meant it as a compliment or as an insult to her overly good character; however she took it would be how he meant it he figured.

Again he was caught off guard by another nervous habit she seemed to have picked up. He didn’t tell himself to stop paying attention to these little details anymore. He wasn’t memorizing them as he once might have, but instead was interested in knowing why she was acting that way. He watched her crimson locks being twisted about her slender fingers. At one time he would have felt his knees weaken at the sight, wishing that it was he who was twirling the hair about his own finger, but now he tried to harden his heart to such thoughts. He was tired of being rejected; he needed to move on for his own sake, for his hearts sake.

“Did you know that both Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall were the Heads when they went to school?” His brows furrowed, wondering where that comment had come from. She really wasn’t good at small talk now was she? “I didn’t know that.” He said with a soft smirk. “I would never have guessed that Dumbledore would have looked to me as someone who fit the Head Boy persona, especially since he was once a Head Boy.” This comment was made more to himself than to Lily; thinking out loud sometimes helped him to figure things out.

She once again surprised him by actually using his first name. Well, that was a strange, yet pleasant change. He had no intention of calling her Lily though; it was far safer to call her Miss Evans, or just Evans. “My summer has been pretty good. Sirius moved in with me and my family. I have been putting off keeping in shape for the Quidditch season and I am paying for it at the current moment.” He flashed her one of his rather charming, yet cocky, grins. “How about you, Evans? How has your summer been treating you? I do hope you haven’t wasted it away by studying ahead of time for your N.E.W.T.S.” The thought of him studying for that test did not even cross his mind. He would do it when the test got closer; knowing Sirius and him they would be begging Remus to help them study, cramming at the last second. That isn’t what the most responsible student would do, but who in their right mind would call James Potter responsible.

“If I was just visiting I would not be doing it during this time of year.” He looked about to the crowds of students and their families that passed them by. He noted a few glances from females in his direction, a few of them throwing glares at Lily. Oh how silly females were, and how easily jealous they became when another female got in their way. At least he knew he still had it. He ran his fingers through his hair as he turned back to look at Lily. “Just getting some of the books and potion supplies I need for school. How about yourself? Are you here to enjoy the lovely atmosphere, or are you picking up the different items you need for the coming year?” He wasn’t sure what else to say to her. He had never talked to her for more than a few moments, all the conversations generally brief and far from personal. This was all new to him, but at least he wasn’t tongue tied. Why would I be? I don’t like her anymore...I am wiping my slate clean this year and starting over on everything, including Lily Evans.

[Lily Evans]

He didn’t even seem to care. It broke Lily’s heart to stand here and watch as he checked out the other girls that strolled by them. How stupid was she? Did she really expect him to still love her after the six years of hell she put him through? Why did she have to fall for a guy that, after years of chasing her, had given up? She wanted to run, far away. Hide out until the end of the school year; talk some sense into that stupid brain of hers. He was over her, and proved the theory, ‘you never know what you have, until you loose it.’ But James was never hers to begin with.

She couldn’t decide what to do. Her head was telling to run, leave him, this place, and forget about all the actions and words that had been said here, today. But her heart told her to stay. She had been longing for this connection with him since the end of the sixth year, but now that she had it, she wasn’t sure it was all that she had hoped it to be. She was standing in Diagon Alley, with James Potter, as he made fun of her inability to small talk. Why had she even thought that he was mature.

She heard him speak again, this time, looking at her. She refused to meet his gaze. It would do her no good now. He congratulated her on her Head Girl Position, and mentioned something about Remus deserving the position more than he. “Nah. Professor Dumbledore is a smart man; he knows what he is doing.” She told him, gazing intently at the ground once again. The way he congratulated her, it sounded as though he was taunting her, making fun of her character. “Excuse me, Mister Potter, but, at least I was a prefect before, all you know how to do is ride on that bloody broom of yours.” She instantly regretted the words. She hadn’t meant to be rude; it was just natural when she was around him.

There is was. Evans. Her surname. She cringed at the use of it. Rejection was as hard as everyone made it to be. Saying that should have put everything in place. Back to where it should have been in the first place. But it didn’t. She blinked rapidly, looking up towards the puffy clouds. It was the only way that she had been taught not to cry. Why did this single boy have so much affect on her? She’d probably just end up a nun, living in a convent. The only problem with that was, her family wasn’t catholic. “Just so you know Potter, I have been studying ahead of time. And I intend to pass my NEWTS. I will not be begging Remus to help me so I don’t fail.” She spat at him.

She hated being mean to him, but when he was going to be a prat, when she was trying to be polite, then she was going to be a prat right back. He spoke again before she could say any more. “How about yourself? Are you here to enjoy the lovely atmosphere, or are you picking up the different items you need for the coming year?” She shuffled around in her pockets. Where is the paper? “Damn” She muttered under her breath, probably louder than she should have. “I left my paper at home!” she whined

So what is coming of her ‘once wonderful, not so wonderful anymore’ day? She runs into the boy she had been dreaming of for months, and he’s a giant jerk. She was missing one of her mother’s famous home-made meals. She left her supply list at home. Her day was slowly depleting to a good for nothing waste of time. [/font]

[Redvamp]

James really didn’t mean to be a prat to Lily. He still liked her, still wanted to be friends with her, but he felt that she didn’t want a thing to do with him. He was still that same cocky jerk she had hated all those years before. He had tried to change for her at the end of last year, but not even that seemed to work. She would always think of him as being immature, so why should he try to impress her by making life no fun. If only Lily had known that she had had him all along, that he was hers and hers alone, even still. He would still get jealous if he saw a male checking her out or flirting with her, and he was trying so desperately to get those feelings to go away. He watched a few guys checking her out from behind and he wished that he could go over there and hurt them so badly that they would never think of looking at another redhead because they feared that it was the same one that James hexed them over.

He was happy that she didn’t leave. He would have felt horrible for chasing her away, especially when she was trying to make an effort. He couldn’t tell if she actually was enjoying talking to him, or just felt the need to do it because he had started up a conversation with her. She looked like she wanted to go and he was half tempted to tell her to just leave; there was no point in her being around him if all she was thinking about was a way to escape his clutches. And him making fun of her inability to make small talk was meant as a joke, though it seemed pretty clear to him by the fire in her beautiful optics that she did not find it in the least bit amusing.

He shrugged his shoulders. “I guess Dumbledore knows what he is doing; I just wish I had some idea as to why he picked me.” He was unsure what else to say, but even if he wished to tack something onto the end of that statement he couldn’t. She had beat him to the punch, and goodness her sharp tongue hit him hard. Well there went any reason to be in the least bit nice to her. She was the one who started it this time seeing that she had taken his statement in one of the two ways it could have been taken, and of course with his luck she would have taken it in the negative manner. He smirked at her as if her words had rolled right off of him instead of stabbing him in the heart and gut. “Well at least I am very good at the one thing I know how to do.” It really wasn’t much of a comeback, but with his heart aching and breaking all over again at her harsh words, it was all he could think up.

He watched her noticeably cringe at his use of her surname. He didn’t know why he had used it, but it just rolled off his tongue as it always did in the past. He didn’t mean anything mean by it, at least he didn’t think he had. Upon seeing her stare up at the sky and noting the way she blinked her knew he had upset her. Damn him! He should really learn to think before he spoke. He lifted a hand and was about to put it on her shoulder and ask her if she was alright and apologize for being so rude when she began to speak and used his own surname. He let his hand drop back to his side and stared at her, meeting her gaze. “Sounds like a fun summer. Just so you know I also intend to pass my NEWTS, and if Remus minded helping Sirius and myself...well he would say so.” He wasn’t sure if Remus minded or not but he never seemed upset by it before. James figured it was just kind of a study session for him to remind himself of all the little things that he could have forgotten if he hadn’t of helped them out.

His gaze shifted from her own when she began to search through her pockets for something. Hopefully it wasn’t her wand because he really didn’t wish to be hexed, though he might had deserved it for being such a prat. He raised a brow hearing her curse and wondered what was wrong. He was tempted to make a comment about it; instead he thought first and held it in. “No need to worry...” He pulled his own list from his back pocket and unfolded it, held it out to her. “I have mine right here.” He knew he still had to get his stuff so it wasn’t like he could give it to her. She could copy it down or better yet…

“Would you like to push your way through the crowds with me?” He paused, unsure if she would understand what he was asking. “I mean, would you like to share my list and we can get our supplies together.” He offered her up a soft smile, hoping that she would take him up on the offer so he didn’t look like a complete idiot holding out the paper to her. He hated looking like an idiot. “You can lead the way if you like.” It sounded a lot like a really sad attempt at a bribe and he kicked himself mentally for adding it.

[Lily Evans]

Once or twice, Lily noticed him looking behind her furiously. What had she done to make him so aggravated? She turned slightly to see what exactly he was looking past her for, and saw a few boys walking past, but other than that, nothing. ‘He must not be able to wait until he can get away from me. I don’t blame him to be honest. I’d hate me too if I had chased me for over six years to be rejected every time.’ She did truly hate herself for never seeing the ‘real’ James. She only saw the mask that he put on when he was around his dunderheaded friends. And now, she had lost everything or what it seemed like to her.

She used to make lists of what she looked for in a man, and she would tack them up in her room somewhere, as if to remind herself. This summer, after returning home from her sixth year, she reviewed these lists, and almost cried. James had fit into every single category, on every list that she had made since her third year. How blind had she been to not have seen that. But at the same time, after six years of being made fun of by the same guys, at least once a day, you tend to form some sort of negative opinion of him.

Lily nodded; he was bloody brilliant on a broom that she had to agree with. He had skills that no one else could ever dream of. “You might be the best Head Boy this school has even seen. Who know? Who knows anything anymore…. What with this war and all. I really have clue with what’s going on anymore….” She paused for a moment, “Who really has any sort of clue?” She grinned up at him, finding that their encounter had become surprisingly friendlier. The corners of her mouth immediately turned down as she saw his smirk. Maybe she had just imagined the friendliness in his voice.

She was glad that he didn’t leave her. She was a giant jerk, and had been for several years now. But this year might just be different, with both parties making a conscious effort to be friendlier. She was loving the fact that he was actually still here, talking to her. She probably was boring him to death; she wasn’t a very interesting person. Lily stole another glance up at him, he looked… angry? She wasn’t sure. Like maybe he wanted her to leave. His expression seemed as though he couldn’t wait to get away from her. ‘I deserve it’ she thought solemnly to herself. For the past 6 years she had done nothing but torture and ridicule the boy.

She frowned, she hadn’t meant for her comment on her studies to upset him. “I didn’t mean it like that James… It was just… you said… and I thought….” She took a deep breath before continuing, calming herself. “Never Mind.” She finished with another smile, friendliness leaking into her every word. Though, inside she was screaming. She couldn’t take much more of his indecisiveness. Lily seemed to be able to screw everything up in the blink of an eye. One moment, two people could be talking innocently, being very personable. And the next thing you know, Lily has screwed everything up for everyone. She should be quarantined.

“It must be nice; to have a group of best friends that you can rely on for anything.” She murmured, more to herself than anything. She had friends, sure. But she was positive that they would bail on her if she sincerely needed someone’s help. Lily had never actually experience having a ‘best’ friend. She had a few ‘friends’ if you could call them that. But for the most part, her address book is full of acquaintances. On another note, she was positive that he had noticed her cringe. She had to learn how to better control herself and her emotions.

She looked over again to see that his hand was suspended in mid air. Her heart stopped. He was going to put his hand on her shoulder. She wasn’t sure whether she wanted it or not. She needed her secret to stay a secret until she was positive that she could get what she wanted, in this case, James, without any sort of embarrassing struggle. She wasn’t sure if she loved him. She was definitely on the way to loving him, but these sort of things took time. The only thing she was certain of was that she was dealing with something more severe than a crush.

Lily breathed a sigh of relief. For once, James had done the responsible thing and brought his list with him. Thank God. Now, she just needed to find a spare piece of parchment and a quill of some sort so that she could copy it down. There was no way that he would agree to shopping with her…Wait! Would he? Is that what he just asked her? Oddly, it sounded as though his words were a badly worded innuendo. It make Lily laugh, a light feminine laugh. “Sure!” She agreed, probably too eager, too quickly. But hey, he didn’t need to know the reason why she concurred. Honestly, she could probably recall the entire list simply by walking through each shoppe.

She grinned, snatching the piece of paper out of his hand. “Alright then Mister Potter.” She said playfully, and rather immaturely, “I’ll accompany you.” She told him, taking a few steps backwards into the crowd. She waved the parchment in the air, continuing to back away slowly. As she did, she heard him, basically plead, with a lame attempt at bribery. She laughed again. “You’ll have to do better than that.” She called back to him, still waving his list in the air. She had no clue where her sudden immaturity had come from, but after a summer filled with, well nothing, she needed to have a bit of fun. She continued to back away, until her ankle came in contact with something cold… She hit her head on the hard gravel on the ground “Damn” She muttered for the second time today. “Who leaves an empty owl cage in the middle of the road?”

[Redvamp]

Never had James thought what the perfect girl for him would be. He was afraid of having too high standards for said female and with such he would never be able to find her. His mother once told him when he asked how she knew that his father was the one she wished to spend the rest of her life with that he would know when the right woman came around for him. There would be no questions in the matter, and she would remain on his mind day or night. He found that thought kind of troubling seeing that he didn’t want to become obsessed with some girl, but then again when he asked his mother about it he was only eight. That was when girls still had, as the muggles put it, cooties.

It stung hard when Lily had offended him each and every year. It was once thing for Sirius to make fun of him because it was Sirius and that was what they did to each other. Plus, he knew that Sirius was joking when it came to his insults, but Lily believed every word that came out of her pretty lips. His gaze shifted to her lips as he thought on the subject. He longed to feel her lips pressed against his own, but such would never happen…well only in his dreams.

He was happy to see that she agreed with him about being good on a broom. His smile faded, though, when she began to talk about the war. There was no certainty in the world anymore, more and more wizards and witches were beginning to turn toward the Dark Lord; they showed their mark with little fear of the rest of the wizarding community. He knew what he wanted to do with his life now, but he wasn’t sure if his grades and talent would allow him to become an auror. If not, he figured that he could just become a hit wizard for hire; either way it would give him the ability to hunt down those who hurt his friends and family.

“You are right, nothing is certain anymore.” He sighed, staring up at the sky. “I miss when times easier… Where all we had to worry about was passing our tests and making something of ourselves at Hogwarts.” He had never said this to anyone, and he wasn’t exactly sure why he was sharing these feelings with Lily Evans. “Now once we leave Hogwarts we leave the safety that the school has always provided us. We will go out into the real world and have to fight in this war in some manner. I cannot say I don’t want to fight, but the thought of killing someone…it is a rather sobering one.”

He looked back down at her catching her sweet grin which brought him out of the funk he had fallen into. He returned the smile, but worry still shown clear as day in his hazel optics. He would not be able to protect her if she were to go into a different career than himself, or if she moved far away, back with her family. As for Moony and Padfoot, he knew that they would never be far from each other. He would be able to watch over them and they would do the same in return. That was how their friendship worked, how it always had worked and how it, hopefully, would work in the future. He didn’t know what he would do if he ever lost one of them. It would devastate him, just like it would utterly tear him up on the inside if he learned of Lily Evans death. A shiver ran visibly through his body as he imagined seeing her name in the obituaries.

He was glad when the sound of children yelling and parents screaming brought him back to reality. The worry gone from his eyes, he glanced down at her and shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. I am used to comments like that from teachers and Remus alike.” He flashed a smirk. It was nice to hear the friendlier tone in her vocals. Maybe he hadn’t offended her as badly as he thought he had. Maybe she was trying to get off to a new start with him also; wipe the slate clean and all. He hated how words could be taken out of context of how they were meant; it was worse in letters for the mere fact that a person cannot see the other persons body language to try to determine what they meant.

“It is nice.” His vocals seemed far off as the images of Sirius and Remus laying dead upon the ground came into his mind. He shook his head, wishing the image away. It faded with the movement, and along with that his hair had become all the messier, if that was possible.

James being responsible, was that really possible? Truth be told his mother had made sure that he had his list so that he didn’t just buy a bunch of stuff he thought he would need that she would have to return later. He couldn’t help but smile broadly hearing her agree to go shopping with him. At least this would make the day a little more bearable with someone to talk to and shove through the crowds with.

He couldn’t help but chuckle as she snatched the paper from his hand. He shook his head as he watched her walk backwards. Where had this side of Lily come from? He had never seen it, or not that he could recall. He took a few steps after her, seemingly in shock by her actions. “Better than that? Hmm…it seems like you are doing what I asked, though.” He flashed her a smirk, coming out of his shock. He noticed the owl cage then and how she was about to trip over it. “Lily, watch your-“ But it was too late, she had landed, rather hard, onto the gravel covered ground.

He was by her side within a few seconds, a look of worry clinging to his visage. “Are you alright, Lily?” He lifted her up by the shoulders and pulled her partially into his lap so he could get a better look at her to see if there were any injuries he would have to heal. He didn’t see anything too serious, but he wanted to make sure she wasn’t complaining about too bad of a headache. If she did then he would take her to St. Mungo's Hospital to get her fully checked out and make sure she didn’t have a concussion. He ran his fingers through her hair, lightly grazing his fingers over her scalp to check for any cuts. He found none and was happy to see his fingers were clear of any blood when he moved them out of her hair.

Once he knew she was alright he couldn’t help but shake his head and smile down at her still in his lap. “You really should not walk backwards when you have the graceful nature of a klutz.” Clearly he was playing with her. “And Miss Evans…really curses should not be coming out of your mouth, it is unbecoming for a lady, especially one that has just become Head Girl.” It took him a while to realize just who was sitting in his lap. His heart began to speed up slightly, but he played it off as worry for her safety. “Do you need help up?” Of course she would have to move out of his lap before he could get up to help her up.
[/size]

[Lily Evans]

James mentioned something about his friends. He loved them. It was endearing to hear him talk about them the way he did. It was also very attractive. He was so devoted to his friends; it just makes one wonder how devoted he would be to a loved one or spouse. Spouse. There were millions of girls that would die to be married to James. Lily just happened to be one of the more recent of those girls.

He also said something about the war. Lily found it very hard to concentrate on what he was saying. He was being so upfront and honest with her. It made her smile. He trusted her. The thought gave her butterflies in her stomach. It also made her think. Has he shared his feelings with any other girl? Does he trust other girls like he trusts her? It was official. Lily Evans was jealous. She had never been jealous of another girl in her life before, especially a girl that she didn’t even know if she existed or not. Just the thought of James with another girl made her want to hex said girl to the first year.

And then she fell.

After her head came in contact with the cold hard dirt, all Lily could think about was the throbbing pain in her skull. Stupid Lily, trying to be playful. She should have stuck to her normal attitude. This honestly wasn’t helping her… at all. She heard him call out to her right before she fell. It made her smile to know that he cared. A large shadow blocked out the sun. She was cold, colder than she had been a moment ago. Whomever the shadow belonged to was causing her to shiver. It was cold enough already… she didn’t need another reason to be chilled.

Something, or someone, strong grabbed her by the shoulders and moved her. She was warmer now. Whoever the nice strong person was, they had a very warm body temperature. She snuggled closer to the person absorbing all the heat she could. It was only when the man spoke, that she realized just exactly whose lap she was sitting in. Her heart rate accelerated, she wanted to simply pass it off as one of her bodies recovery methods, but she knew that she would be lying to herself if she did.

“Yeah… Yeah… I’m fine… I think.” She said. She was going to run her hand through her hair, but instead, she bumped into James’ hand, on its way to do the same thing. She lowered her hand into her lap, and fought back a sigh as his fingers grazed her scalp. It felt so good to have his fingers in her hair, so natural. “My… my head kind of hurts. But I guess that’s what happens when you smack it on the ground.” At least the view is nice. She thought to herself, smiling up at James. As his fingers left her hair, she unknowingly, and involuntarily hissed.

Again, her pulse quickened. He had called her ‘Lily,’ not Evans. He had called her by her first name. Never in her life had she smiled so largely at the use of her first name. She honestly didn’t believe that this moment could be any more perfect. She was sitting in James Potter’s lap, he had called her by her first name, and he cared. She closed her eyes for a moment, king in the moment. She imagined that they were sitting in an armchair in a small living room. The light coming only from a small fireplace. How she would love to be able to stay like this for the remainder of her life. She could have died right now and still have been happy.

“Hey now, Mister Potter.” She growled with a grin, after he smiled down at her. This was a perfect moment. “I’m sorry that I don’t have eyes in the back of my head. I couldn’t have seen the cage in the middle of the road, now could I have?” The playful tone in his voice made her smile.

“I do believe that I am allowed to use whatever sort of language that I want. No matter if I am the Head Girl or not.” She said as she attempted to stand up. As she did, a severe pain shot from her ankle to her knee, making her leg collapse underneath her. “Ah, oh…ow…” she whimpered as her rear hit the ground. The pain had receded from her knee, but her ankle was still throbbing. She double-cuffed her jeans above her knee. Her ankle was swollen to a large degree, and she had a gash across the back of her calf. ’Damn’ she thought, careful not to curse aloud. “That’s going to leave a huge scar.”

[Redvamp]

There was so much worry in James’ mind for the fallen redhead. He should have been watching where she was walking more closely. He felt that it was his fault that she had fallen; after all, the only reason she fell was because she was playing around with him. He knew deep down that he should not be blaming himself for her falling, but he just couldn’t help it. This was the woman that he had loved since…well…he didn’t even know when he had fallen in love with her. It had just happened. He wished he could take her pain away and make it his own.

As he held her close he felt at peace. He could not remember the last time that his mind had settled and all he could think about were his senses. The feeling of her soft bare skin against his own, the smell of her hair, the warmth of her breath on his neck, it was all so intoxicating. He was drowning in her at that moment, losing himself and the way he had tried to build up against his emotions. He was crumbling down on the inside and it hurt, but in a way it was a good hurt.

He could have swore that he felt her heartbeat pick up in speed the same moment his did, but he figured he was just imaging things. He was just trying to make himself believe that she cared for him. She didn’t, he knew it, and at that moment he began to come out of the warmth he had fallen into. He couldn’t let himself go back to obsessing about the beautiful female in his arms. He would care about her, yes, but he could not allow himself to love her again. It just hurt far too much. He was tired of hurting.

It felt so good to hold her close, to wrap his arms protectively about her slender form. He wondered if this was what heaven felt like. The fact that she snuggled closer caused his heart to ache with a joy that it could not have. She was just cold. He had seen her shivering before, and if he had had a jacket he would have offered it to her. “That is good to hear.” He said, vocals seeming distant for a moment.

He couldn’t help but smile at her next comment. “Yes you would usually expect it to hurt when you do something like that.” When his fingers left her locks he could have swore that he had heard her hiss. He played it off as him having pulled her hair or bumped against a part of her scalp that was more tender than the rest. His gaze met hers in an attempt to try to figure out just what he had done that had caused such a sound to escape her pretty lips, lips that he had to fight himself so hard not to stare at; he wanted so desperately to press his to hers in that moment but he kept himself from doing such because he would be taking advantage of her in her weakened state.

The broad smile lit up the whole of her visage and he half wondered what he had said to make such happen. He wanted to know because his whole body grew warmer upon seeing that smile; too bad he couldn’t remember what he had said because he was in such a worried state. And then the spell was broken as she replied to his joking comment.

He chuckled. “You should be sorry. I thought all witches had eyes in the back of their head…I know my mother does.” His chuckle turned into a laugh at the end of the statement. His mother had always caught him whenever he tried to pull something over on her or her husband. She might be an aging witch but her mind seemed as young and quick as his own.

One of his brows raised as she told him that she could use whatever language she wished to use. That was true, but he would never expect to hear Lily Evans curse. It was just odd hearing such nasty words in her angelic vocals. “Yes, well, such words don’t suit you.” He believed that she was above cursing, but maybe he had just put her up on a pedestal for so long that he couldn’t imagine her lowering herself to his level.

As she stood he readied himself to stand. It was upon seeing her fall to the ground once again that he cursed under his breath. Damn him for still being sitting which made him unable to catch her. He watched as she rolled up her jeans and shook his head. She had probably sprained her ankle. And the gash… He removed his tie from about his neck and wrapped it about the gash to keep it from bleeding more than it had already.

He stood up and scooped her up into his arms. “This doesn’t seem serious enough to take you to the hospital over.” He began to walk to a clear part of the street. “But I do have to say it is bad enough that it needs to be treated and you will have to stay off your feet.” Without even asking her if she wished for him to take her home, he spun on the spot with her in his arms and vanished into thin air.

The tightness in his chest from the feeling of apparating would never go away. Every bit of air seemed sucked out of his lungs and only returned when they stood outside of a rather simple looking home, but most wizards homes in the area seemed simple on the outside to keep others from getting curious. He moved up to the door and struggled to pull out his wand. He tapped it on the handle as best he could. The door opened and he stepped into a rather cozy looking front room. A fire was burning in the fireplace and the room smelled of something good. Clearly his mother was making dinner.

“Mom.” He called out as he moved to the couch and place Lily down on the plush cushions. “Can you come here?” He took up one of the pillows from the corner of the couch and placed it under the head; he took the other cushion and elevated her leg with it.

The clanking of dishes and other cooking noises continued even after his mother left the room. She did not look her age, so to say, but she was definitely older than most of the other mothers of Hogwarts students. Upon seeing the girl on the couch she looked from James back to Lily.

“She fell in Diagon Alley and tore up her leg pretty badly. I figured you could get her something that would help with the pain at least.” James said with a soft smile aimed at his mother. She shook her head and chuckled.

“Of course, darling.” She took a few steps toward Lily and looked her leg over. “It doesn’t seem too serious…” She paused seeing she did not know this girls name. She figured that this was the infamous Lily Evans but she knew better than to make such a comment least it embarrass her only child.

“Mom, this is Lily Evans.” James said finishing off his mothers sentence.

“Well it is a pleasure to meet you, Lily, I will go and see what I have upstairs.” And with such said she left the room and headed up stairs to look through the bathroom and storage closet. She was used to James hurting, especially with Sirius now living with them, himself so she was sure she would have something at least to help with the pain.

“I am sorry for bringing you here…I really should have asked you if you wished to return home instead.” He moved towards her and took a seat on the floor, feeling it wouldn’t be proper to share the couch with her. He also did not wish to cause her leg more pain from the shifting of the couch under it. "I just couldn't think straight seeing the blood and you in pain."
[/font][/size]

[Lily Evans]

Lily must have a thing for falling, because it seemed like that was the only thing that she could do without screwing up. She lay there on the ground for a few moments, waiting until the blurriness stopped. Whilst she lay there, she heard James swear under his breath, something that had not been meant for her ears. “Y’know James, hypocrisy isn’t a very attractive feature in a man.” She told him, her eyes closed. As she sat up, she saw James undoing his tie and making his way to her. He tied the tie tightly around her leg. Once or twice, she felt his fingers brush up against her leg. She was enjoying this way more than she should be. They couldn’t be together, it just wouldn’t work out. Not after all these years of torture and torment, something was bound to go wrong.

But that’s what love is? Isn’t it? Finding someone that makes you truly happy, and staying with them, through thick and thin. In the good times and the bad. Through all the arguments and the fights. Lily sighed, no. That wasn’t what real love was. It was about finding someone who completed you, that you fit with. Did James fit with Lily? Were the pair of them meant to be together for the rest of eternity? I guess only time will tell she thought solemnly to herself.

She gasped as he lifted her easily off the ground. She hadn’t expected him to do that. She figured he’d help her up, and continue on with the shopping that they had planned. But she wouldn’t have been able to continue, she was positive that her ankle was sprained, not to mention the profusely bleeding wound on her leg. She had no sort of clue of what he was going to do. All she knew, was that she had never felt safer in her life.
He carried her over to a relatively empty spot, which was surprising, because the streets were packed. Without another word, he Apparated on the spot. The sensation that ones get’s while apparition isn’t one you’ll ever get used to. Lily had never been transported by Side-Along Apparition, so it was a new experience. There wasn’t much difference to the feeling, just that she didn’t have to do anything, just sit there.

They arrived in a quaint little neighborhood; the houses were a nice size. It was very homey. He carefully walked to a small little house. He fished around for his wand for a moment. Lily couldn’t help but feel bad; here she was, just allowing herself to be carried, while James was struggling to open the door. She would have turned the handle, but she knew better. James was a pure-blood, meaning his house probably has all sorts of spells and charms around it.

Within a few moment, the door was opened, and he carried her, bridal style, into the house. After calling for his mother, he lay her down gently on the couch, propping her leg up and resting her head on a pillow as well. She breathed steadily, trying to calm her racing heart. She shouldn’t even be here. If James hadn’t have been such a gentleman, she would probably still be lying on the hot, slimy ground in Diagon Alley. The house was grand. It was surprising that magic could cover so much, keep so much secretive.

She couldn’t help but think back to her little imaginary fantasy she had had earlier. This could have been so romantic, had he felt the same way she did, and that there wasn’t the clinking and clanging of pots and pans. The house smelt delicious. His mother must be cooking.

Not longer after their arrival, James’ mother entered the small living room. After being examined and introduced. She scurried off, probably to get something. “Thanks James.” She said with a smile, as soon as his mother was out of hearing range. He sat down on the floor next to the couch, and again, she couldn’t help but feel bad. Without her permission, her fingers ran through his thick, dark locks. “You can sit up here y’know. It’s your house.” It sounded like a lame attempt at bribery to get him to be near her again.

[Redvamp]

Hypocrisy? Huh? James stared at her clearly confused for a moment before it hit him. “Yes well…” He cleared his throat, unsure what to say. Everything he wished to say would probably get him hit. He was trying so hard not to use some silly line on her that he would have used on any girl he was flirting with. After all, he was NOT flirting with Lily Evans.

James had no clue exactly what love was, but he was sure that he had felt it for Lily for years now. Love was like a flower, something tender that needed to be treated well and nourished often or else it would fade. His flower, his love, was slowly dying from neglect. He had stopped caring for it at the end of last year. There was no point in keeping something alive just to keep it alive.

Side-along apparation was something he was used to doing, both as the one apparating and the one being apparated. Both his parents found it the easiest way to travel with him when he was young, and now that they were older he did it often for them so that they didn’t have to use up so much strength. He felt slightly odd, though, bringing Lily to his home. He knew that his mother would have no problem with her being a muggle-born. Rather, it was just an odd feeling bringing the girl he had loved for so long into his home merely as a friend. This was especially true as he carried her over the doorstep as the muggle’s did when they got married and entered their home together for the first time. Maybe this was a foreshadowing for something to come…

He was so happy when his mother had said nothing to the female that might show that she knew far more about her than she let on. She was his sounding board when his friends were not around, or when his friends were tired of hearing about Lily this or Lily that. His mother found it amusing more often than not, and often found herself telling him that he was growing up into a man right before her eyes. At such comments, he would roll his eyes and change the subject.

As his mother left the room he had settled onto the floor waiting for her to return. He looked up at her when she said thanks. “Don’t worry about it, it is nothing, really.” He offered her up a soft smile, though such vanished when his gaze traveled down her form to her leg. He still blamed himself for this; logically he knew it was not his fault, but he couldn’t help it. Feeling something running through his hair he jumped slightly. His cat wasn’t large enough to be able to do such, and his owl had been sent out to thank Dumbledore for the good news. It was her hand…

His heart skipped a beat the moment he realized that she was running her fingers through his messy hair. “I know I could sit up there, I just didn’t want to cause your leg to hurt more.” He offered up a broad grin. “Plus, the floor isn’t as uncomfortable as it looks.” He did stand up and sit on the edge of the couch in an attempt to make her happy. She was bad at bribery just like he was, but he decided not to comment on such.

Before long his mother came down stairs with a few different bottles of liquids and fresh cloth bandages. She knelt down next to the couch and inspected her ankle and then the tie tied about her leg. She shook her head and looked to her son who gave her a smile in return. “What am I going to do with you, James?” She said, clearly playing around with her only child. She untied the tie and handed it to him. “Please do something with this.” Before his mother had finished the sentence, James had gotten off the couch and headed toward the kitchen. “And check on the food while you are in there.” She called after him.

Being alone with the female that his son had such strong feelings for was rather interesting. It was so hard not to blurt everything out, but she knew that was not a good idea. Not only would James be furious, but Lily might take it that James had put his mother up to it and somehow planned for her to trip and fall. The latter was rather farfetched, but with James, his mother knew, anything and everything was possible. Jade, the family cat, slinked into the room and glanced from Mrs. Potter to Lily. She turned up her nose as the guest before sauntering her way over to the rug in front of the fire and laid down to take a nap. Her tap moved up and down, hitting the rug, as she closed her eyes. Every once in a while, upon hearing a noise she would open her emerald optics and stare at the other female in the room with the same colored eyes.

“She is a strange cat.” Mrs. Potter said as she opened up one of the bottles and put some of the salve on her clean hands. “This might sting.” She warned before she began to rub the cream onto the females wound. “James brought her home when she was a kitten, clearly the runt of the litter and in need of a lot of care. That boy would take in any animal if we let him. Our house looked much like a zoo when he was young.” She began to wrap her wound up to keep it clean. “That cream will stop the bleeding. As for the swelling of your ankle, that will have to take time to go down. I am going to put medication on it that will help speed up the process, but I do not have anything in the house that can fix it quicker, nor do I have the ingredients to make such a potion.” She sighed as she opened up another bottle and began to rub it gently on her ankle.

“So, Lily, how has your summer been?” She wasn’t sure what would be appropriate to talk about with the female. "I do hope a little calmer more relaxing than it has been around here."

[Lily Evans]

Her feelings for him had blossomed and bloomed over the summer, and it appeared, to her, that his had withered and died. She couldn’t blame him though, after six years of rejection, he started to get the hint. Except… he couldn’t have waited another six months could he? He figured that she wasn’t ever going to fall for him. Ever. Boy was he wrong. Just being in the same room as him made her heart skip a beat. It was unbearable. He offered her a small smile, and told her that it was nothing to worry about… It was kind of like a ‘what are friends for’ sort of deal. She noticed that his smile vanished as his gaze settled on her leg. “It’s not your fault James; you didn’t put the broken, empty owl cage in the middle of the road, did you?” She asked, smirking.

James perched himself at the edge of the couch, quite a distance away from Lily. That wasn’t what she had meant. She wanted him to hold her again. She wanted to feel his arms around her, protecting her. She wanted to know that he cared. Every, and any for that matter, emotion that he had shown towards Lily when she had fell was gone. They were back to friendship mode. Lily wasn’t sure whether to be happy about this or not. She didn’t want to risk the new friendship that they had, but at the same time, it caused her physical pain to be near him, not knowing whether or not he still had feelings for her.

His mother reentered untying the tie from around her leg. When she looked at it, she had to laugh, it was a rather lame attempt to stop the bleeding. The thin fabric was simply drenched in her blood. It nauseated her. His mother said something to him, Lily really wasn’t listening, because she was trying to keep her weak stomach from dispersing her breakfast over Mrs. Potter and her nice couch.

It was rather awkward sitting, alone and injured, in a room with the ‘boy that she had fallen madly in love with’s’ mother. She was unsure of what to say as she watched James’ retreating back. She was about to say something, when a cat sauntered into the room, it’s emerald orbs were, oddly, a similar color to Lily’s. She grinned at the comment about James’ loving, caring heart for animals. “You’ve got a fine son Mrs. Potter.” Lily commented, on both his physique and his personality.

At the mention of stinging, Lily closed her eyes, She knew wizarding potions, and knew that they could affect both the inside, and the outside of a person, and she chose not to see what exactly this one would do. As it was applied to her broken skin, Lily felt a slight prick of pain, and inhaled sharply, she was not a fan of hurting. Mrs. Potter continued to talk about how James had been a stickler for hurt or injured animals in his youth. The thought of a young James Potter, walking in the house all muddy, carrying a homeless creature was endearing. It brought Lily back to her, ‘if he can care for an animal, just think of how he could care for a loved one’ thought.

Then older witch then moved on to her ankle, gently rubbing in another sort of cream. “Mrs. Potter, when do you think I’ll be able to walk on it again? Today was the only free day I had before school started and I needed to get my supplies.” Shoot! James’ supply list! She must’ve dropped it when she fell, and with the wind the way it was earlier, there was no way that it was still there.

Lily thought back to her relatively boring summer, she had done nothing, except talk to her owl. What a looser. “Nothing really exciting for me… Which is better than an over the top summer I suppose. Not much has gone on at my house since my dad died and my sister got married, to be honest with you. My mom’s always working, so I never have anyone to talk to.” She smiled, her eyes still closed, basking in the serenity of the moment. “What about your summer? I know Sirius moved in, so it can’t have possible been as boring as mine.”

[Redvamp]

As James made his way into the kitchen to dispose of the blood soaked tie he couldn’t help but wonder if it was just his imagination or was Lily trying to get closer to him? He shook his head and threw the tie into the trashcan and made his way to the sink to wash his hands before he checked on the food. She was probably just trying to get close to someone because she was in pain, most people did that. She merely was trying to be his friend and nothing more; this was another reason for him to stop his own deeper feelings from her from developing back.

He moved to the stove and watched as the spell his mother had cast was still stirring the pot of soup, and the knives were chopping up other vegetables that would probably be added to the soup later. He continued to watch, as if mesmerized, by the actions taking place in front of him. He had always loved watching the utensils do their work without the use of human hands. He remembered how his mother would sit at the table and read to him as a child as the food would make itself. He could not comprehend how a muggle family could get as much as they did done in a day without the use of magic. He would be utterly lost without his wand, as he was sure all who were born into the wizarding community would be.

Mrs. Potter found that it was rather nice to be able to talk to another female for once. Don’t get her wrong, she loved to have conversations with her husband, son and inherited son, Sirius. It was just something different to speak with another female, she couldn’t explain it. She couldn’t help but smile brightly hearing that she had a fine son. Oh yes, he was indeed fine. “Thank you.” She looked to Lily for a moment and flashed her a smirk, one that seemed very similar to one her son would have flashed in the same instance. “Just don’t tell him that too often; we do not want his ego getting any bigger.” She was joking, clearly, but she did know that her son had a big enough ego for two or three boys. She felt that that was possibly her and her husbands fault, but she would have felt wrong if she didn’t pamper her only child and make sure he had everything to grow up to be a success in life.

The potion stopped the bleeding and seemed to put an invisible bandage on the wound that would keep any infection out of the cut. The cut was still clear to see, though, so Mrs. Potter figured because the girl had a rather weak stomach from what she could figure by her reaction to the blood earlier she decided it was best to wrap the wound up in the cloth bandage. The swelling on the ankle went down and she was sure that it would be gone, for the most part, by morning.

Looking up from her work, she wiped her hands on the apron that was tied about her waist. How long? “Well if you were James you would probably be up and walking on it already. But seeing I would prefer you not injuring yourself further by falling down a set of stairs or the like…” She seemed to grimace at the memory of James doing just that. “I would say to stay off of it for a few hours. By morning it should feel close to new, though I would not put too much strain on it for another day or so.” She looked up at the clock and then back to the female. “Well I need to head into town as it is, I can go and pick up your supplies along with anything James hasn’t already gotten.”

She figured that the girl would argue with her, feeling that it was too much work for an elderly woman to do, but she liked to be able to help her son and his friends. That was one of the many reasons why she let the young Black live with them. He was a strange one, but within an instant she fell in love with him as if he were one of her own. She listened to Lily as she told her about her summer and nodded. “Our summer…it has been rather interesting to say the least. I do love having Sirius living here. It makes James all the more happy to have another to play with. He always wanted a brother when he was younger, but seeing his father and I are so much older it was rather impossible for us to-“

She was cut off when James came back into the room. “Mom.” He seemed to whine. He didn’t want Lily to know every personal detail about his life! He especially did not want her to know about the more embarrassing aspects of it. “Oh fine, James.” She said with fake anger. She walked over to him and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I am going out to Diagon Alley to pick up Lily’s and your supplies. Watch the food and make sure it doesn’t burn.” She looked back at Lily. “And do make sure that she doesn’t move too much.” And with that said she grabbed up her coat and purse and was off to the market.

James couldn’t help but turn a rather bright shade of red as his mother had kissed him with Lily Evans in the room. The color quickly faded as he moved to her side, taking a seat on the couch, this time a bit closer to her. “Can I get you anything? Do you need to call your parents?” He wasn’t exactly sure when she had told her parents she would be home so he didn’t want her parents to be worrying about her, especially since they could not exactly head off to Diagon Alley to look for her.
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[Lily Evans]

Lily groaned slightly as pressure was applied to her wound, she figured that Mrs. Potter was wrapping her leg with a something a bit more suitable than a Gryffindor tie. She decided that now was a good a time as any to reopen her eyes, seeing that her cut had been closed and covered. She smiled at Mrs. Potter, “Thank you, very much. I would have had to have gone home, and then my parents would have taken me to a Muggle hospital, there would be much more blood, stitches and what not as well.” She smiled at the witch. “Don’t worry, I’ve seen how big James’ head can be inflated, I’ll keep that between us, how does that sound?” Lily said, reacting to the love and affection that was very present in the woman’s voice. James had lovely parents, or at least, a lovely mother.

The morning? That was impossible, how was she supposed to get home? She couldn’t stand on her leg on her own, what was she going to do. Her parents would probably start to worry, though she did tell them that she would be back after supper some time. Maybe by then the swelling on her ankle would go down enough for her to stand. She didn’t want to make James have to Apparate again, it was such an unpleasant feeling. “Oh, you don’t have to do that. Here,” She said, shuffling around in her pockets for her money, she pulled out a bag filled with Galleons, “at least let me pay for my supplies.” She told her, handing her the sack of wizarding money. There was no way that she could allow James’ mother to pay for her school supplies, that would be mean. She could afford them. “Please.”

She loved hearing about James and his friends, or at least Remus and Sirius, Peter sort of scared her. He was this out of place odd-ball. She didn’t trust him, not one bit. “I bet with Sirius here, you all are the center of multiple prankings… I can’t get him to stop for just a moment at Hogwarts .I do understand though, all my life I have wanted a little sibling, seeing as the one I have now is older and nothing much passed a bore. My parents just couldn’t afford to have another child. And then my dad got cancer, everything sort of went downhill from there, to say the least. I won’t bore you with my sob story.”

James reentered the room seconds later, whining for his mother to stop telling her about his life. Lily didn’t mind at all, it was all very intriguing. But, he didn’t seem to like it, not one bit. Lily grinned as his mother gave him a peck on the cheek, giving him stern instructions on what to do with dinner, and Lily. She wasn’t to move, and if need be, make it very minimal. Lily nodded, obliging, there was no way that she would want to move anyways, her ankle was killing her. James sat down next to her on the couch, a bit closer this time. Lily passed it off as a mere coincidence…

‘No, I don’t need anything… I don’t think.” Then after a brief pause, she asked, “Do you have a telephone? I really should cal l my parents; tell them that I might be a bit later than I thought. They don’t need to know all the details. I can just tell them that I met up with someone, and I’ve been hanging out, Sound good?” She asked, sitting up so that he had more room on the couch, after all it was his house. She knew that her parents would be unable to go find her, seeing as though they weren’t wizards or magical in any way. She was on her own.

“So…” She started with a playful nudge to his ribs “What’s for dinner? Seeing as your mother told me not to move, that includes apparating. So basically, your mother invited me to dinner.” She liked being able to be friendly with him, but what she wouldn’t give to be able to lean up against his side, feel his arm around her waist. Feel loved. If she had only seen the man behind the mask earlier, she could have had all of this, him.