Don't Be Ridiculous
By: TheFifthCharmedOne
Disclaimer: I don't own.
Summary: "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were worried about me." His eyes twinkled mirthfully. Lily scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous." she said, avoiding his gaze. Because then, you know, that would mean he couldn't see her bright red face. L/J Oneshot.
The Gryffindor common room was warm and comfortable, the fire burning brightly in its cavern on the wall. A bright moon shone down into the room, creating a picturesque scene of the tower. Dark red comfy chairs and couches decorated the room and the curtains were partially drawn.
One lone figure sat curled on the long couch, a green robe wrapped around her pink, flowered pajamas. A novel was cradled in her arms, and her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, with loose piece framing her heart shaped face.
For their tale was old as time, their love as old as rhyme...they were Beauty and the Beast.
Lily Evans was on the very end of one of her favorite love stories when the portrait hole to the tower opened and James Potter clambered inside.
Considering it was after two o'clock in the morning, Lily was instantly concerned for her fellow Head.
"James!" She threw her book down and ran to his side. He was bruised and bloody - he looked like he'd gotten into a fight of some sort. His left eye was swollen and the skin around it had turned a light shade of purple. His sweater was ripped, bloodied, and caked with dirt. His glasses were on top of his head, which made her wonder how he had gotten himself up seven flights of stairs - he was completely blind without them.
"Evening." He said casually, probably unsure of who he was speaking too. The first thing she did was fix his glasses. He winced slightly when Lily tried to help him stand up straight and her hand pressed against a gash in his chest. "Ah, thank you Lily." he smiled, and Lily's eyes narrowed. "Lovely night, isn't it?" He grinned toothily, and she scowled. The smile disappeared.
"Now is not the time to start a conversation of pleasantries." She said severely. A small bit of her concern escaped, through only James noticed. He tucked it away in the back of his mind for later. "James, you're hurt. Badly, from the looks of it."
"Thanks for the update on that one, I'll be sure to let the Prophet know in the morning." He said with a dry, amused tone.
"Stop it, you prat. This is serious! What in the world were you doing?"
James visibly blanched, eyes dilating with fear. Lily led him to the couch where she had been sitting previously. "No secrets, James. You promised." Damn his promise - he had told her in the beginning of the year that if their friendship was going to work, they would have to be honest with each other.
James sighed heavily. Against his better judgement, and knowing full well that what he was about to say would change Lily's opinion of him forever, he explained why he had returned to the tower in such a state.
"I was with Remus."
It took Lily only a few moments - bless her brilliant, deductive mind - to decipher what he meant by that cryptic message. Her emerald eyes widened.
"Remus did this to you?" she whispered, shock written all over her face. She knew that he was a werewolf, she just didn't know the extent of James's involvement...until now.
"Not the Remus you know," He said quickly, coming to his friend's defense. "When the wolf takes over..." James paused, not sure of how much he should say. Then, he resolved, he had already revealed the biggest secret of all, why stop now? "When the wolf takes over, he's not the Remus you know anymore. He's an animal. A vicious, ravenous, wild, animal."
Lily gasped slightly. It was difficult for her to imagine the kind, gentle, sweet, secretive Remus Lupin ever being put into those categories. "Trust me, Sirius had it worse. He's in the hospital wing, along with Peter. Remus will stay in the Shack for the night, but when he comes back tomorrow, he'll be the same old bloke we love."
"Wait a minute here. You were grappling with a wild animal and came out alive?" Ah - there was the rub. Lily thought he was a human during his runs with Remus. That was where she was wrong. Her eyes had widened in worry. He clasped her hand, a small smile gracing his face. Whether she was aware of it or not, Lily was showing an awful lot of concern for a boy she had claimed to hate for four years. The thought made him nearly giddy.
"Lily, I'm an Animagus. A stag. Sirius is a black dog, and Peter is a rat." James said gently.
"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs." Lily said slowly, putting the pieces together. "Moony because Remus is a werewolf, Wormtail because a rat's tail looks like a worm, Padfoot because of dogs having padded feet, and...Prongs because stags have antlers."
"Exactly." James responded. Lily nodded in understanding. She was silent for a few minutes, and James noticed she hadn't moved her hand from his chest.
"Next question." She said, her hand still there. Hey, James wasn't protesting.
"Go for it." He said.
"Are you all legal Animagi?"
James chuckled. He supposed that he shouldn't be surprised that this was where her mind had gone.
"No. Do you hardly believe the Ministry would look kindly on three Animagi running around with a werewolf once a month?"
"Fair point." Lily said after little consideration. Now she turned her attention back to his wounds. "Still, James. It's really dangerous. Does Dumbledore know?"
"Yes. He knows about Remus, and after an incident last year, he found out about us."
"Incident?" Lily asked curiously.
"It's private." James said hastily. He didn't want remember that event, much less relay it. Surprisingly, Lily let it go. She turned attention back to his wound.
"Accio wand." She murmured, and her wand floated from the table by the fire to her waiting hand. James was astounded. Wandless magic was a difficult art, and considering how easy she made it seem, he felt like a failure. He still relied on his wand for everything. Then again, Lily had always been better than him - though he would never admit it out loud.
Panic struck him when he realized that Lily had summoned her wand and was now pointing it at him. Years of this same occurrence had made him fearful of her hexes.
"Lily? What are you doing?" He asked.
"Healing you." She responded with an eyeroll, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Though I haven't practiced on a real person before..." She said absently, her gaze thoughtful. James paled again.
"Erm, no. How about we just do it the Muggle way. If you insist on helping me, that is." He smiled warmly, and she fought back a smile of her own.
After retrieving a washcloth, a bowl of warm water, and some bandages, Lily sat with James in the common room, cleaning and covering his wounds.
"Take off your shirt." Lily said, her voice serious. She expected him to make a smart remark, but, with only little difficulty, he slid out of his sweater and revealed abs that were inhumanly gorgeous. Not that she was looking or anything.
"You know," He said conversationally a little later as he watched her work. Her eyes flicked to him briefly, giving him permission to go further. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were worried about me." His eyes twinkled mirthfully.
Lily scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous." she said, avoiding his gaze. Because then, you know, that would mean he couldn't see her bright red face. She noticed that the washcloth had gotten cold, so she turned to put it back in the warm water, but James's hand stopped her. And then his hand took hold of her cheek, which he then directed upward, along with the rest of her head.
"Don't you know I'm the master of being ridiculous?" he said, his voice deep and alluring. Lily licked her lips in a nervous way, and his eyes watched the movement like a hungry predator. He pulled her face forward, though she realized with a start that he didn't have to do much work. She was leaning forward of her own volition.
"No!" she said, pulling herself back harshly and proceeding to flail wildly and fall on her arse.
"No?" James asked, confused, his eyes opening wide, as they had closed when he leaned toward her.
"No." Lily confirmed. It seemed that was the only word she could say.
"And why not?" James wanted to know, taking in her display and stifling a laugh.
"Because." She said, as though that one word was reason enough. She was staring at him with wild and slightly frightened eyes. Her hands had caught her fall, and her pink robe and become loose and untied itself, revealing her green pajamas.
"Because...?" he prompted, a teasing smile on his face, but an unnerving seriousness in his eyes.
"Just because, okay?" she said, grunting in frustration. "Don't forget, I'm helping you here." She gestured to his injuries.
"Which I didn't ask for, but nicely accepted." James reminded her, and her eyes narrowed.
"You took advantage of my kindness though!" Lily argued, crossing her arms over her chest.
"How?" He asked, and Lily stared at him as though he had grown two extra heads.
"By trying to kiss me, you bloody prat!" She cried, face flushing.
"Ah, so we're back to that again? Could you explain why that was a bad idea? Seems I missed it." James leaned back against the sofa, arms behind his head casually. This was all a game to him, as usual.
She paused, glaring at him. No words came to her mind, let alone an explanation why they couldn't kiss.
"I'm leaving." Lily finally stood up, still not relinquishing an explanation, refusing to admit that she didn't have one.
She was already on the stairs but all James had to do was step on the first stair, and Lily came sliding back to him, courtesy of the girl's dormitory's famous slide.
"Oh no you don't."
"You're infuriating." she said, quite annoyed. He leaned down, his face so close she could see into his eyes.
"All part of the charm, love."
"Don't call me love." she growled, standing and shoving him out of the way. If he wasn't going to let her leave, at least she could finish mending his wounds. "Sit down." she pointed to the stool that she had magicked up before their argument started.
"Not until you answer me." James told her stubbornly.
"I don't have to tell you anything."
"Yes you do."
"Why's that?"
"Because I've wanted to kiss you for the better part of four years, and when I finally get a chance, you push me away without any reason at all!"
"There is a reason!" Lily insisted.
"Oh yeah? What is it?"
Lily stared at him, her emerald eyes flashing. Before she knew what was happening, he was in front of her. "I'm waiting."
Lily, a true Gryffindor, would never back down from a challenge. And that's exactly what he was doing. Challenging her to take part in his stupid game. He didn't need to say anything - actions spoke louder than words, after all. Ducking her head down, she didn't move away, but she shielded herself so that he couldn't see the truth of the tears in her eyes.
"Because it's all just a game to you." she found herself saying. James's ears perked up. "Everything. From the day we met, it's always been a game. You've never actually wanted me, you only wanted to prove to the world that the unattainable one finally fell for you. If anything were to ever happen between us, then you would just rip it out from under me and laugh with your damn friends about how stupid Lily Evans is. How stupid she was to, despite all her bravado, fall in love with a complete idiot like you. So there's your reason, Potter. That's why I won't kiss you. Because I'm not a catalyst. I'm not a martyr. I'm just a girl who's tried desperately for four years to hate you, only to find that it's impossible." She took a breath. "There. I've said my piece. I'm going to bed now."
She turned, and everything slowed down. James reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back to him and slamming their lips together. His other hand went behind her head to pull her closer and keep her from pushing him away. He poured his feelings into the kiss, his anger at her dismissal of his feelings, the purity of said feelings, and everything he had ever wanted or needed from her - he made her feel it without saying a word.
When they finally pulled apart, the world sped up again. Lily stared at him owlishly, her green eyes wide and her face as flushed as Sirius's when he was wasted. Feeling vaguely drunk himself, he guided them back to the sofa and sat down, pulling her onto his lap. She squirmed, but he held her close.
"So you love me, huh?" he asked quietly, his voice vibrating. Lily froze - when had she said that? "I caught it in your little tirade. I think you said something about being stupid to fall in love with a complete idiot like me." Lily swallowed. "Maybe I am an idiot. And a prat. And a git. And a lot of other insults I'm sure you could list in alphabetical order-" he chuckled mirthlessly. "But despite that, you still love me." He seemed to be testing out the words as he said them.
"Don't be ridiculous!"
"We've been through this." He pecked her cheek, her neck, her shoulder. "I'm a master of being ridiculous."
"I don't love you, arrogant prat!" she denied, but it fell on deaf ears.
"You said it."
"I-I, well...stop kissing me!"
"Why? I like kissing you."
"B-Because! It's distracting and-" James smirked, leaning against her cheek.
"I distract you?" he asked, and Lily's mouth gaped like a fish out of water. How did she keep revealing her most embarrassing secrets like this? How did this keep happening?
"Of course not, you stupid prat!" she said. He just ran his fingers over the soft skin of her hands, which he noticed were shaking and sweaty, and smiled to himself.
"It's not a game, Lily." Lily stopped, her stomach flipping. He met her eyes. "It never was. It was love at first sight, and I've been falling deeper everyday. I figure I'm in way too deep now."
"Potter, I..."
"Call me James. You did earlier."
"Because I was concerned! Potter was hardly a way to greet someone who was hurt! Even I'm not that cruel!"
"Please, Lily." His name just rolled off his tongue simply, and Lily swallowed thickly.
"James." she finally said, looking away and blushing. "Could you, um, maybe let go of me now?"
"So you can run upstairs and avoid me for days until I corner you in a corridor and make you admit your feelings for me, all while I worry and annoy my mates about how much I've fucked up my chance with you? I don't think so." He tightened his hold on her and she blushed even redder, annoyed at how easily he'd figured her out.
"Fine. But could you at least let me finish fixing your wounds? I don't like how red they look." she glanced at his chest nervously.
"If it'll make you happy," he said, reluctantly letting her go so she could help him.
They sat in silence for a while before James said, "You know, you never answered my question."
"What question was that?" Lily hummed, pressing a bandage against the left side of his chest.
"You love me, huh?" he said, and Lily dropped the bandage. "Come on Lily, just admit it."
She took in a breath, prepared to spit out some more denial, but their eyes locked, hazel and emerald, and she knew she couldn't fight her feelings anymore.
"Okay." she finally said, her fists clenching and unclenching. Their eyes remained locked as she finally spoke the words James had longed to hear for four years. "I love you, James Potter."
"And I love you, Lily Evans." he smiled and brushed some hair away from her face. "Now are you going to let me kiss you, or are you going to fight me again?"
Laughing, Lily leaned up and kissed him, which he fully and happily reciprocated. When they pulled apart, he said, "Go to Hogsmeade with me?"
"I'd be happy too." she replied, and James didn't miss the completely blissful smile on her face.
"Favorite candy?"
"Chocolate frogs. Yours?"
"Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans."
"Hmm." Lily tapped her chin, deep in thought. The new couple was sitting outside on the Hogwarts grounds, learning more about each other through a game that Lily called 'Twenty Questions'. "Oh, I've got one! Favorite book?"
"Qudditch Through the Ages." Lily rolled her eyes. "What?" James asked, sounding offended.
"I meant novel. You know, like Dickens, Austen?"
"Oh, you mean Muggle books." Lily nodded. She knew he read books, despite what his reputation would have you believe. "Hm. Probably Great Expectations."
"That's better. Pride and Prejudice." Lily said, satisfied. They sat in a comfortable silence, and Lily leaned back, staring at the sky.
"You know, we're a bit like Darcy and Elizabeth." The redhead glanced over at her new boyfriend.
"You've read Pride and Prejudice?"
"Read it, just not a big fan of it." The Marauder shrugged, and joined his girlfriend in her lounging. "Anyway, I'm, or I was, a lot like Darcy. Arrogant, self-entitled, a bit of a prat..."
Lily threw him a sideways look. "Okay, a lot of a prat." She smiled, and he ran a hand through his hair habitually. "And you're like Elizabeth - intelligent, beautiful, and really stubborn."
"Darcy was charming too, don't forget that." James grinned and rolled over on his stomach.
"Perish the thought." James said, and Lily lied flat on her back, her red hair forming a widespread halo on the grass. "Lily?"
"Hm?"
"Can you promise me something?"
"Depends on what it is."
"Promise that no matter what happens, we'll always be together."
"Don't be ridiculous, James." she started, and he glanced at her worriedly for a second before he saw the smile on her face. "Of course we'll always be together. No matter what."
And they kept that promise, until the very end, and beyond.
A/N: Oh dear LAWD. This gem's been sitting on my computer for months. And it was such a struggle to end, but I finally did it! This was a lot of fun to write, and it helps with my Jily-writing withdrawl. Because other than Diamond in the Rough, I haven't written solid Jily in FOREVER. CRISIS.
So, here's your nine pages of Jily fluffy goodness. Hope you enjoyed!
Please review!
-Charmy