A/U Note: Hey guys :) I've finally started on a Harry Potter story! Yay, three cheers for me! Haha!
Anyways, guys, be warned. There is Lily bashing in this story, as well as Severus, Dumbldore and probably Molly, Ron and Ginny too. Not too sure on Ginny though..
Now, don't get me wrong! I absolutely love Lily, she is one of my favourite characters. But, I had huge inspiration for this story and I just had to jot it down :P I wrote this ages ago, when I was still attending school and my mind wasn't out of wack :\ But alas! I'll be starting uni as of next week, so the next chapter wont be too horrible as it would've been if I had written it any earlier :P
Expect very slow updates as I'm very prone to writers block and I struggled to even get the ending of this chapter down, if I do remember correctly..
So, with the end of my authors rant, I give you, 'His Only Gift'!
Disclaimer: I have no claim over the book series, Harry Potter, unfortunately.. All belongs to J.K Rowling, except the plot :)
His Only Gift
November 1979
It was a mistake. One big mistake, one so big, that it changed everything.
It all started during an unusually warm night in late November. There was a party in full swing, celebrating a birthday of a friend. James Potter was sitting with his closest friends, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. They had already had quite too many drinks and were chatting loudly. Well, Sirius was anyways.
During the course of the evening James had spotted a young woman his age from across the room. A young woman he had previously had a huge crush on during their whole entire time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You could even say James had once loved this girl.
Those were the times, sitting in classes and scheming new pranks to play on unsuspecting victims. Chasing girls and getting into trouble. Playing Quidditch and suffering in detention.
'Good times, good times..' James smiled softly to himself. He glanced over into the corner of the room again where the beautiful red head was standing chatting along with a friend, oblivious to the wondering glances. This young woman was Lily Evans, achieving the highest scores in all her classes and fellow head student of Hogwarts 1977. She was also the only woman to have captured pretty boy James Potter's heart.
Lily though, had never taken up on any of James advances and quite loudly proclaimed every time that she would never in a million years go out with someone so arrogant, so self-righteous as James Potter. You could never have imagined how much that had hurt James. To hear the one you love insult you in front of everyone after you had plucked up the courage to ask this girl out…well, you could say it never stopped James from trying. He was too stubborn to back down and eventually it had turned into a game of sorts. A game in which James still had hope that maybe, just maybe Lily will one day accept.
But as the years had gone on, James had slowly lost all hope and had stopped all together by their seventh year of Hogwarts. Though, when it came around to their graduation day, James had tried once again. Just one last time, to see if Lily will finally give him a chance, James had taken Lily aside, away from family and friends to the edge of the Black Lake.
Flashback – 1978, Graduation day
It was a beautiful day, with a scattering of clouds throughout the great blue yonder. James had taken Lily to the lakes shore, under his favourite tree.
She was standing there impatiently, her arms crossed and tapping her right foot. To James, she was the embodiment of beauty. He had always thought so, ever since that day on the train, taking them to a new adventure.
He had never really believed in love before then, until that day when a young and quirky little girl had walked into his compartment. The very first thing he had noticed about her was not her striking dark red hair, or her pale skin, but her beautiful emerald green eyes. Never before had he seen something so green and it had reflected in those eyes, those lovely, big round eyes that shone with excitement and curiosity. He hadn't been able to look away and he never did.
But now, as they stood under this great big tree, nearly eight years on, he couldn't help but see the annoyance that covered those very same eyes. That twisted her beautiful lips into a near sneer. It hurt to know she thought of him that way, that the very sight of him caused her great dislike. Here was the girl that held his delicate heart, and she was slowly ripping it into pieces. But he was going to try one last time, to see if she'll accept his heart and give him hers.
So he did, he tried. As James waited for a response he watched her eyes flash with anger and then like a ferocious tornado, she brutally tore his heart into tiny little pieces and stomped them in to the muddy ground, for him to later pick up and try to put them together.
James watched her stalk away with fire in her steps as his vision grew blurry. This time he knew he had his glasses on. As James looked down to the ground where he imagined his shattered heart to be, he collapsed to his knees. A great sob racked throughout James' body as his left hand reached up to wrench at his chest where his broken heart now lay while his right hand came up to cover his screwed up face, trying to hide his tears from the open world.
The one girl James had ever loved and ever will love will never be his.
James was found later that day when his parents had come looking for him. His father later described to him that he had never seen a man that broken before and had never wanted to see him in that state ever again. He told James that no girl who treated his son's heart like that was worth his pain. James' mother agreed and had treated him to his favourite dinner that night to try and alleviate some of his pain. It didn't help, but he appreciated her efforts.
End of Flashback
It was now almost a year and a half since that day and James' pain had subsided down to a very distant dull throb. But as he was sitting next to his best friends of over eight years, he watched the very same young woman who had broken his heart from across the room. She was still very beautiful, with the same dark red hair reaching down to her middle back and her mesmerizing green eyes that danced playfully in the rooms light. Oh, how she grew to be so beautiful.
Lily had stopped chatting; finally feeling the longing glances on her back. When she turned around her eyes met a very familiar pair of hazel, behind very familiar square glasses. James Potter was here, and as she looked to the side of him, it seems his buddies were too.
'Oh great, there goes my night.' Lily had never been a big fan of the self proclaimed Marauders, not like all the other girls at Hogwarts, following them around the school like lost puppies, writing their initials on their parchments. 'What a waste of parchment.' No, Lily was not like that. She was better than those drooling, sheep-like fan-girls. She was a sophisticated, well-mannered, intelligent young woman who didn't conform to the norm. Why would she? Those Marauders were just a bunch of arrogant little pranksters that liked to bully on the innocent. 'Cha! They think they are so high and mighty!'
Lily always thought James Potter was the worst out of the lot. To think she would ever go out with him! The nerve! So she was very relieved when after their sixth year at Hogwarts, Potter had stopped asking her out. But that was not the end of it, much to her dismay. No, because on graduation day, the happiest day of her life, James Potter just couldn't help himself and asked her out again. He had ruined her perfect day and she was not just going to let it go. So she may have put him down a peg or two. Try and tell him that she would never, ever accept to his advances. Ever!
After that ruined day, Lily never saw or heard of James Potter ever again and she was hoping it could stay that way. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end sometime and fate had decided it will be tonight.
When Lily's eye's connected with his, James felt his heart flip in his stomach. 'Damn, I thought that had stopped!' James gave Lily a slight smile, but all he got in return was a screwed up nose, a slight sneer and Lily's head turn in disgust. He sighed. Of course, how could he think she might've changed? Lily is too stubborn and could hold a grudge forever, 'Just like that Snape.' Maybe they are meant for each other. Suddenly James got a sick image in his head of them two together.
'Ew... ' James shuddered at the thought. He never wanted to have that picture in his head again, ever.
So, as the night went on, James had slowly gotten drunk until his words were slurred.
'…and then, and then he bolted straight up into the air and ran right into the wall!' Sirius was laughing so hard there were tears pouring down his flushed face, clutching his sides while he fell off his seat. Remus was deeply laughing at Sirius as he laughed at his own tale. But James had only chuckled slightly while he sat slouched on the couch, remembering the time when Sirius and he had played that prank on Peter one frosty morning.
But as James looked up from his glass, he saw Lily sashaying across the floor towards where he and his drunken friends were lounging. She had a devious smile on her face and an obvious flush from the alcohol she had been drinking. It was clear Lily was drunk as well, just as he and his friends were.
Lily stopped right in front of James, with a hand on her hip she leant down and as she positioned her lips just close to his ear, Lily huskily spoke, 'Hey Potter, you still fancy me?'
To say James was shocked would be an understatement. He was beyond shocked, he was absolutely gobsmacked! Lily Evans had never, in anyway spoke to he, James Potter in such a manner.
James didn't know what to say. What do you say to a woman who broke your heart into tiny pieces? The same woman who has nothing but absolute loathing written across her face when she even see's the sight of you? The very same woman you haven't seen in over a year?
'Lily! What an unexpected surprise!'
Lily's chuckle was like velvet as she leant back up.
'What do you take me for? I have seen you looking at me from across the room all night Potter. You are so obvious!' Lily chuckled again as James flushed an even brighter red.
'So you caught me, huh?' A sheepish James reached up and scratched the back of his head. 'Well, isn't this awkward.'
'Evans! Couldn't resist my amazing charm?'
'You wish Black!' Lily threw Sirius an unamused look. Sirius was second on her most hated list. She called him and Sirius the 'Devious Twins of the Century'. Of course, Sirius and James weren't actually twins, but only mere distant cousins that acted like the closest of brothers. Distant cousins meaning James' mother, Dorea Potter née Black was Sirius' great aunt.
'Evans! You wound me!' Sirius acted hurt, while he couldn't keep a smirk splitting across his face. After their bickering died down, Sirius went back to telling past tales to Remus and anyone who would listen as Lily turned back to James.
'So, how 'bout it Potter? Still fancy me?'
Thanks for reading guys! And remember, it will be slow updating, but I'll try my best to get them out as soon as I can :) Have a nice day! ..Or evening, which ever you prefer ;)