A/N: Thank you for clicking on this story! Please enjoy!
This story is written for Round 10 on the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition forum. The challenge was to write a fic about an important romantic relationship of Lily Evans using the prompts Dog Days Are Over by Florence and the Machine, harmony and infectious, between 1000 and 3000 words.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and the song Dog Days Are Over by Florence and The Machine.
No
"No."
"Aww c'mon Evans, I'm not that bad, really. C'mon, it's fun!" James Potter said, trying to persuade a redheaded girl into coming to the Quidditch pitch with him.
"No Potter, I am not interested in flying with you. It's dark and dangerous and it's forbidden for first years to fly outside the flying lessons," Lily said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "You can't do that! Where would you get a broomstick anyway?"
"Don't be so boring Lils, it'll be fun, I promise." James shot her his most charming grin.
But it had been the wrong thing to say.
"Boring? Well then I'll definitely not coming with you," she huffed. "And don't call me Lils!"
With that the girl turned on her heels, leaving a disappointed James Potter behind.
"Oh c'mon Evans!"
"No! Leave him alone, you!" Lily pushed herself through the crowd to see a smirking James Potter holding back a furious Severus Snape with some sort of spell.
"Give me back my wand!" the Slytherin boy yelled.
James now noticed Lily standing in the crowd, and he showed her how he was holding two wands.
"Give him his wand back," she snarled at him.
"Will you go out with me?" he asked her cockily, playing with the wand in his hand.
"Not in a million years!" Lily said with a disgusted look on her face.
James Potter didn't seem to care about yet another rejection. He just shrugged and with a careless gesture he threw Severus's wand away.
"Go get the stick, Snivellus," the black-haired boy said with a laugh, causing a few people in the crowd to laugh too.
Severus swore at him, before running after his wand, undoubtedly to come back and curse James.
"Merlin, you're terrible Potter!" Lily yelled at him, before hurrying after her friend.
"No, I don't like him! Will you shut up about it Marlene?" Lily said exasperatedly.
"Oh c'mon Lily, how can you not like him? He's handsome, funny, good at Quidditch..." the blonde said dreamily.
"And arrogant and a bully," Lily cut in. "I don't like him Marlene, so please, will you shut up about it? Please?"
"But he keeps asking you out! You two would be so cute together!" Marlene continued, ignoring her friend's pleas.
"No matter how many times he'll ask me out, I'll keep saying no. He's terrible! And really Marlene, if you like him so much, why don't you ask him out?" the redhead inquired.
"Duh, because he doesn't look at another girl than you! I mean, he's obviously smitten!" she said. "So Lily, say yes for a change!"
"No. And now shut up about it," Lily said, getting a bit angry.
"But-"
"Marlene!"
"Okay okay, fine. But don't think you'll get away with it this easy next time." Her friend laughed.
"Oh Merlin," the red-haired girl said with a sigh.
"No, that can't be..." Lily said, staring at the big package delivered to her by the morning owl post.
It was Valentine's Day, and though there were more girls getting package, her package was definitely the biggest.
"He can't..." she muttered, as she was unwrapping the paper, "He wouldn't have seriously done that..."
It was a huge bouquet of red, white and pink roses, and though it was maybe cliché, Lily couldn't deny that it was very sweet.
The girl had never had any trouble with rejecting James Potter, as he was just an arrogant bully in her eyes, but this... This wasn't going to change her feelings, only now she would feel sorry when she had to tell him that she couldn't accept it.
"And Lily, what did you think about it? Did you like it?" James asked her later, eagerly.
"James..." she started and the boy immediately noticed the difference between this and the usual snappy Potter. "It's very sweet, but I can't accept it."
His face fell, and quite possibly for the first time Lily felt sorry for having to say this to him. "I'm sorry, but... sorry."
"I get it," he muttered dejectedly. "You can keep the flowers, it's not like I can use them anyway."
Not knowing what to say, Lily just watched him leave, feeling sad and strangely disappointed.
No, no, don't laugh, don't laugh, she thought to herself. But even that couldn't stop the grin from appearing on her face.
She was sitting in the library, trying to study, but James and Sirius were just sitting two tables away from her, and it was hard not to hear their loud conversation.
And it was quite a hilarious conversation, and their laughter was infectious.
Unconsciously she found herself looking at the two boys, only to catch James's eyes in that moment. He winked at her and Lily immediately looked away, burying her blushing face in her book.
"No, James, we can't do that," she said, laughing as he tried to pull her through the portrait hole.
They were in harmony, him pulling her forward and she hanging back, and for a moment it occurred to her how symbolic it might be, but she discarded the thought as soon as it appeared.
"James," Lily hissed when he didn't let go. "It's against the rules! It's way past curfew and the kitchen is forbidden for students anyway."
"Lighten up Lils, it's fun. C'mon, just this once?" He looked at her pleadingly, his warm brown eyes shining amused.
"Sorry," she said as she pulled herself free. "Sorry, I can't. I'll see you tomorrow James."
And with that abrupt ending to their conversation, James was left alone, staring dejectedly at Lily's retreating figure.
No. The word was laying on the tip of her tongue. They were too young. There was a war going on. They were just graduating. There were so many reasons to say no.
But as Lily stared at the boy, no, the young man in front of her, down on one knee, asking her to marry him, she found she couldn't say no.
There were so many reasons to say no. So many good reasons. He wouldn't even leave her if she said no, in fact, she was pretty sure he would understand and wouldn't be angry about it.
So really, she needed to say no, didn't she? There was only one reason to say yes. Just one reason. Against the billion of other reasons to say no.
Yet Lily didn't want to say no. No, for once, she wouldn't say no.
As Lily pulled his face close to hers, she whispered the word he had been longing to hear, the word she wanted to say more than anything, the word that would bind them together forever and that would seal their fate.
"Yes."
Leave all your love and your longing behind you
Can't carry it with you if you want to survive
A/N: Thank you very much for reading! I hope you liked it! Please leave me a review!
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