Chapter One - New Girls and New Gigs
Albus had been practically naked and covered in flour when he first met her.
In his defense, he'd been trying to fix up on impromptu ten minute breakfast for two. He'd overslept, and woken ten minutes before seven – ten minutes before his kid sister showed up for their routine breakfast. Lily couldn't cook – not even instant pancakes (she'd almost burnt down her apartment) or microwave ramen noodles (E apparently stands for explode, not express). So, as a wonderful big brother, the third time Lily almost killed herself cooking, he offered to make her breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Unfortunately, Lily liked to eat a lot for and wake up very early to walk her dog. So, Al found himself waking up at six each morning to get dressed, and make a ginormous meal. He'd done well following the routine the first week of summer, but today, he'd fallen asleep a bit too late, thus his current state.
His doorbell rang, and Albus swore under his breath.
He hurried toward the door, knowing that an irritated Lily was much, much worse than a hungry Lily – if that was possible. He cracking eggs, flipped pancakes, and pouring orange juice at the same time. He opened the door, frying bacon behind his back. He expected to see an annoyed Lily, her flaming red hair brushed perfectly straight, her designer clothes (that probably cost her seventy percent of her annual paycheck) without a crease, and her green eyes flashing with aggravation.
Instead, he saw her, a pretty girl with dark brown eyes and hair to match and sharp, well-formed features. She wore a long-sleeved t-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and a fashionable scarf, her hair tied back in a ponytail, but even this casual look suited her. Her cheeks flushed as she caught sight of him. "Um," she began tentatively. "I wanted some sugar, but I'm guessing this isn't a good time…"
Al cocked an eyebrow. It most definitely wasn't a good time, considering how he could almost see Lily heading down the hall to his apartment. But how would this girl, whom he'd never seen before, know that? As if she sensed his confusion, the girl gestured toward his state of dress. Albus looked down, and promptly blushed.
In his daze to get breakfast ready for Lils, he'd forgotten to put on pants.
And a t-shirt.
And had gotten flour all over his hair.
Albus felt like kicking himself a million times. He was cursing himself silently when he heard a giggle, like a chime. He'd forgotten the girl was there, but hearing her laugh, Albus wondered how he'd ever devoted less than one-hundred-ten percent of his attention to that girl.
"I'm guessing it isn't a good time, then?" she confirmed, a small smile on her face. Her blush had faded now, and Albus wanted nothing more than to make it reappear, gracing her pale skin with its iridescent glow. He grinned impishly and shook his head, gaining some confidence. Man up Potter.
"No, I just do this for fun." The girl laughed again, and Albus stopped kicking himself, instead reverting to patting himself on the back. If it was bad jokes that made this girl laugh, then he'd have her laughing for ten months. That's not a bad idea, he thought.
"You look like you've been rolling in flour all morning. It's not exactly a flattering look," she pointed out matter-of-factly. Albus looked offended and gestured to his body in a suggestive manner.
"I can make even flour look good," he joked. This time, the girl rolled her eyes, covering her laugh with her sleeve. A ringing voice (that sounded peculiarly like a familiar redhead's) at the back of his head reminded him of the reason that she'd come in the first place. "I should probably get that sugar now."
"Probably," she agreed. Albus flashed her one last winning smile (or so he hoped – perhaps he looked constipated; talking to her certainly made him feel so) and retreated back to his apartment. He rummaged his cabinets quickly, shuffling through the messy stacks of supplies he'd never use and the junk food he'd stored at the front (for easy access). Albus grabbed the sugar as if his life depended on it and rushed to the front door. He wrestled on the nearest pair of pants and a ratty t-shirt, figuring that the girl wouldn't exactly like to talk a naked guy. Albus prayed that Lily's heel had broken, or that she'd forgotten a clip, or even that her tie was done all wrong (though Lily would never leave her apartment without looking like the picture of perfection). When he reached the front door at last, though, Albus heard the familiar, haughty voice of his kid sister.
Speak of the devil, he thought sourly, before coughing, interrupting Lily and the girl's conversation. Recognition passed in the girl's eyes, and a feeling of dread brewed in Al's stomach. The girl knowing Lily plus him giving Lily an insufficient breakfast equaled no chance with that girl. Ever.
"Here's the, um, sugar," he said very smoothly, running a hand nervously through his hair. He held out the sugar in one hand, and the girl gave him a brief smile before accepting. She thanked him awkwardly, and bade farewell to Lily, who'd fixated her eagle-eye gaze on Al.
"Bye Sophie! I'm sorry you had to suffer with my brother," Lily said, waving as the girl pirouetted and headed down the hall. Lily accentuated Sophie's name, saying it so loudly, Al doubted there wasn't a person in the hall who didn't know of their new neighbor now. He glared at Lily, but when Sophie turned around once more, his glare vanished, replaced by a million-dollar smile. Sophie rolled her eyes once more and waved in his direction. He returned the wave, painfully aware of Lily's gaze on him.
As soon as Sophie had disappeared down the hall, Lily began grilling him. "What did you do to my friend? Did you corrupt her already? Did you annoy her? Did you scare her? You're usually half-naked at this time – I'm certain that scared her. Oh my god, do you like her?!"
The last question surprised Al; he almost tripped over a chair. Lily remained unfazed, staring at him with a somewhat worried expression. He wasn't sure what surprised him more – that she could arrive to that conclusion so quickly, or that Lily had other expressions then her signature annoyed look.
"What – how could you possibly – I don't even – God Lily – what?" stuttered Albus pushing the chair away from him, as he patted his hair down reflexively. Lily's expression froze for a second, a cold look setting on her face as she stared at his hair, but it passed as quickly as it came. Instead, she wore a knowing smile, though it could not conceal her worry.
"It's okay, Al! I'm actually glad that you like Sophie; you haven't had a girlfriend in so long, (and heaven knows you haven't been laid in forever) –," Albus, who had pulled a seat over for Lily, almost knocked over his glass of (organic, because Lily had almost had a coronary the last time he'd served anything else) orange juice in his frenzy; Lily continued talking as if nothing had happening, simply taking a napkin to mop up the juice he had spilled, sending him a disapproving look. "I was beginning to entertain the idea of you being gay."
"I'm not gay!" Albus spluttered. Lily glanced him over, and she shrugged her shoulders.
"It could be possible," she said simply, spreading butter in neat rows down her slice of(whole-wheat, because Lily Potter doesn't eat just anything) bread. Al shot her a withering look, acting as if he was very humored. He'd have liked to dispute the topic for hours, but he remembered that she thought he liked Sophie.
"Whatever. That's beside the point. I don't like Sophie! She's nice and pretty, but I just met her!" Lily rolled her eyes.
"But you still like her, which usually would be very irrational of you, but considering the object of your interests, I'd think you were a fool to not like Sophie," pointed Lily very matter-of-factly. Albus struggled with not strangling her (a struggle he faced often, surprisingly). Lily contemplated something, chewing her bread. She swallowed, using her napkin to wipe some maple syrup off her chin. "Or gay."
"I'm not gay!" Albus exclaimed insistently. Lily nodded doubtfully, rolling her eyes. He crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair and scowling.
"All right, Al. No need to be so defensive. You're not gay and you don't like Sophie. I believe you." Something in her tone made Albus doubt she truly believed him. Lily laughed and rolled her eyes. "I'm serious! I believe you!"
"How do you know Sophie anyways?" asked Albus, hoping to steer the conversation away from his gayness and his opinion of said girl. Lily cut her pancakes into small, rectangular pieces. "Have you been stalking her?"
Lily grinned, shaking her head. "No, I'm not you." Before Albus could argue, she continued talking. "Sophie lives right next to me; the first person she asked for sugar was me. I didn't have any, because I burn down the house trying to sprinkle the right amount, so I directed her to you. Would you like me to stalk her for you, because I could totally do th-'' Albus slapped a hand over his little sister's mouth, his eyes wide at her insinuations.
"Are you absolutely insane, you little wank- OW!" He retracted his hand with disgust written across his face. He stared at the pink flesh, and Lily's infuriated look. "Did you just lick my hand? You just licked my hand. My sister!" he exclaimed with an incredulous tone and an expression to match. Lily's dark brown eyes flashed with a murderous glint he'd come to fear.
"You put your hand over my mouth; what did you expect me to do – bake you a treacle tart?" she retorted in the tone she'd inherited from her mother. Albus continued to gape her, while furiously wiping his hand on the tablecloth. He glanced at the skin again, and crossed the room to the sink.
"I don't know, not lick me! That's disgusting!" he snapped, squirting practically five quarts of soap onto his hand. Lily rolled her eyes as she wiped her mouth with the napkin, and continued to eat as if nothing had happened.
"Oh don't be such a baby. It's self-defense. And most guys would think it was sexy," She continued between bites of her pancakes. Albus gaped at his younger sister trying to decide what surprised him most: that she had the audacity to say such a thing or that she knew what the word "sexy" was. (He often forgot that Lily wasn't nine, but nineteen.)
"You're my sister. It's not sexy when my sister does it," he pointed out matter-of-factly. Lily dismissed the fact with ease.
"Whatever; that's beside the point. I wasn't going to stalk her even if you groveled at my feet – which would be wonderful, but I doubt you'll do that now. However, I can tell you that Sophie has a brother – Andrew, he's the same age as you – and he's having a 'welcome my little sister to the building' party. Sophie's invited me, and she said I can have a plus one. You'll be my plus one… You can repay me with more pancakes. You should bring the other guys… except for Fred.. You don't want to embarrass yourself, do you?" questioned Lily.
Albus opened his mouth to respond, but a familiar (though he couldn't say for sure if it was pleasing) voice interrupted him.
"What about me?" announced Fred Weasley II, barging through the door of Al's apartment. Silently, Al cursed himself for showing Fred where the spare key to the apartment was. He wouldn't ever get drunk again; the consequences were to dire. Fred was clothed in only his plaid boxers and unusual bunny slippers. Someone had scribbled across his chest, "I'm sexy and I know it." Al had been about to defend his friend, but Fred was making it very hard to do so.
As if to prove her point, Lily gestured toward Fred with a "can-you-believe-this" expression. Al tried to respond with a confident smile, but glancing again with Fred, who'd seated himself on the couch, his socked feet on the arm of the couch.
And this was Fred making an effort.
"Fine," he said, turning to Lily with a defeated expression on his face. "I won't bring Fred. When and where?" Lily grinned, shoving the last of the pancakes in her mouth before telling Albus of all the details. Albus nodded along, glancing once again at Fred, now watching the television.
Damn, he swore, thinking of how Fred would react once he discovered that he'd been excluded. Again. I'd just grown my eyebrows back.
A/N: I know. It's weird. I know. I really wasn't thinking when this came to me, but one thing led to the next, and suddenly, BAM! I have an entire novel planned out. Great things are in store. To clarify:
Lily is nineteen. So is Sophie. Any other questions, you can leave in the comment box below. It'd also be wonderful if you gave me some feedback. Me + feedback = faster chapters.
Albus is twenty-one. So is Andrew and Fred.
Other characters will be introduced. These characters will have the most important roles.. There are like, two other main characters that I'll need to introduce next chapter.
This takes place in the modern world! There is magic, though! (But poor Al just isn't good with household spells. Nor is Lily.)
This is an Albus/OC.
Sorry for having to put up with such a crappy, incredibly short first chapter. [my muse was being a jerk after being tired out so much for the planning process] I hope you giggled at the lame Lily/Albus sibling fluff. That will be a reccuring theme in this story, so if you don't like family stories, please scoot. Now. :)
See you in about a week!
orotund