Drabble time.
Geez, it's midnight, and I really should be writing my art assignment but I'm cataclysmic-ally pissed-off at it, and I'm probably gonna go to bed. This was slightly inspired by Nickelback's "If Today Was Your Last Day". Kind of.
Enjoy.
If Today Was Your Last Day
If today was your last day, what would you do?
When eleven year-old James Potter was first asked this question, his honest-to-goodness response was: 'Marry Lily Evans.' It really hadn't taken much debate on his part; James had taken a fascination to that girl's fiery red hair and an attitude to match it from the very beginning. He liked everything from her bright green eyes to the way she tied her shoelaces, and the day she dumped a bowl of mashed parsnip over his head, he swore he was in love.
Sirius told him that he was a loony, and that he (only being his best friend and all) should be a higher priority on his list than some girl. James however, was resolute. He was going to marry Lily before he died.
When twelve year-old James Potter was asked this question, he said that he would to everything in his power to make Remus Lupin feel special. Having found out that one of his closest friends was a werewolf, he knew he had to do something to ease the situation somewhat, and at that point in time, this was more important than marrying a girl. To the public eye, it seemed that he had forgotten about that vow entirely, but James was a smart boy, and could put his priorities in order of importance. At the moment, Remus came first, and Lily, second. Somehow he knew she wouldn't mind. After all, it was only yesterday that he accidentally turned her owl into a hedgehog and sent her into a murderous rage. He figured that he would give her some time to cool off before he started coming up with his wedding speech.
When thirteen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he had changed his goal to "at least snog her first". If he was going to die that very day, he knew he would have to give Lily Evans the kiss of a lifetime before he married her. It was only fair, after all. Unfortunately, when he asked Lily about it, she didn't seem to agree. In fact, she seemed to believe the exact opposite, and told him rather firmly that she wouldn't come near him with a ten foot pole even if her life depended on it.
James brushed that aside as a minor bump in the road, just as he did every time.
When fourteen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he was beginning to wonder if love was all it was cracked up to be. He had just suffered his first proper heartbreak at the hands of a girl named Amanda, and didn't know what to do. He had wanted to try and move on from Lily, he really did, and he almost had. He could have sworn that he had finally managed to find someone who could make him happy, and then it was all thrown back in his face faster than he could blink. He had cried. A lot. Sirius had tried to console him, to no avail, and it wasn't until Peter said, 'At least there's still Evans, right?' that everything was okay again. Even four years later, he still knew he would marry Lily if given only one last day to live.
When fifteen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he had laughed it off. His attitude had taken a remarkable turn from thoughtful and moral-based to 'Please, I'm James Potter. I can't die.' He lived and breathed this resolve for nearly an entire year, before that horrible screw-up by the Black Lake that made him realise that he could be an absolute jerk sometimes.
(Most of the time)
He aged a lot that day. Maturity had struck him around the head like a mallet, and it kind of hurt.
When sixteen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he realised that he may not marry Lily after all. He realised that after last year, there wasn't anything he could actually do to ever get himself in that girl's good graces. He knew that was what he deserved, though. He knew that she would go out into the world and marry someone who treated her right, not someone who'd simply had an extreme fascination with her from a young age and made her life rather frustrating while doing so. He knew that even the best wouldn't be enough for a girl like her; someone who was kind, intelligent, fiery, sensible, and definitely not an idiot like he was. It was then, James decided, that if he were given one last day to live, he would help Lily to be happy. That was all.
When seventeen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he was still in shock from his first kiss with Lily Evans. The last thing he had been expecting in his quest to help Lily was a thorough snogging halfway down the Charms corridor, right after giving a big speech about morals, and resolve, and I'm gonna help you Lily, I really am, 'cause I want to show you that I'm not a complete git all the time.
It seemed that this was what Lily had been waiting for. For him to grow up. And, it finally seemed, he had. So, in answer to that question, yes, James was going to marry Lily. Someday.
When eighteen year-old James Potter was asked that question, he could do nothing but grin widely, because she said yes, and oh Merlin, this was actually happening. This time around, he really could marry Lily Evans, last day be damned. So what if they were young; he had decided that this was what he wanted from the very age of eleven, and nothing could stop him now. And, if today were his last day, he would take those precious seconds to seal his vows, and promise her all the forever that he could. She deserved more than he could ever give her, but he could try.
When nineteen year-old James Potter was asked this question, he realised that he could forgive his enemies. Being in the middle of a war, one couldn't go to bed without wondering if they would wake up in the morning, and the last thing James wanted on his mind was being unable to take back saying something he regretted. It was then, he realised, that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to make peace with Snape. He had Lily now, there was the promise of something special on the way; something that would be theirs, and could never really be taken from them.
(Her name was Lily Potter and she was pregnant, and there was nothing more that James could ask for in life)
When twenty year-old James Potter was asked this question, his answer was that he would tell his family they were loved. There were three lives under that roof now, and there was no way in hell that he was letting He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named do anything to damage that. They were together, and they were happy, and they were safe.
He loved Lily, and he loved Harry, and he wasted no time in telling them that every single night.
(He couldn't say it enough)
But, if today were his last day, he would tell them again, one more time.
When twenty-one year-old James Potter was asked this question, his answer was to give a proper farewell. He understood how important goodbyes were in times like these, and he didn't want to miss his. And though goodbyes meant finality, they also meant tying up loose ends, and James hated leaving things unfinished.
'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off –'
But naturally, that was the way things happened. When his last day came, he never got to say what he wanted, or do what he intended. He never had the chance to press Lily to his heart one last time, to kiss her softly, or to hold his son. It was over far too quickly.
'Avada Kedavra!'
James Potter never made it to twenty two.