A/N: Yes, I am writing another Lily and James book. I hope you like it.
Please read my other story, True Bliss. Also, I would really appreciate it
if you all would review after you read this. Thank you!
The Flight of a Feather
Chapter One
James Potter always wrote to Lily Evans over the summer holidays, even if he got nothing in return; This summer was no exception. James wanted his letters to be special, so he sent them in ways girls would marvel. Lily hated this. She knew that it was sweet and thoughtful, and that's what bothered her. Sometimes she found it hard to give James the cold shoulder. She desperatly wanted to be able to be herself around him. She knew he had changed since he matured in the second year, but before them, he was as arrogant as ever. But she couldn't start liking him now. What would people say?
She sighed when she saw an envelope sitting outside her window. She got out of bed and walked towards the window. She loosened the window hatch and opened the window, leaning out and breathing in the morning air.
She gazed around the country side and around the green feilds with dandilions covering a large fraction of the grass. Even though dandilions were weeds, Lily loved them. She liked their size and color, and she often tucked them behind her ear. The bright yellow and dark red looked wonderful together, making Lily's appearence overwhelmingly beautiful.
Lily looked down at the envelope, which was an off-white color and had nothing written on it. Lily opened it and pulled out its contents; A single feather with a ribbon tied to it. Lily's eyes gittered when she saw the light pink ribbon. James had carefully taken it from her hair without her noticing; That is, until, his best friend, Sirius Black, had gave him away. Yet James still managed to keep it, and Lily had forgotten about the ribbon until now.
Lily smiled and walked over to her bed. She bent down and pulled out an old shoebox, which had every letter or item James had ever sent to Lily. Lily carefully placed the feather in the box and pulled out an item that was already in the box; James' shoelace. Lily's smile turned into a grin when she remembered how she stole it.
Lily was still mad at James for stealing her ribbon. She was searching for an empty compartment to change in. She opened one compartment door and saw James in it alone, sleeping. She had the perfect way of getting revenge. She gently removed his shoelace without him noticing, and replaced it with a licorice stick. James hadn't noticed until he smelled it when it started melting in the sun.
Lily chuckled at the memory. She picked up the feather again and removed her ribbon and used it to tie her hair back. She then tied James' shoelace around the feather the way James had tied her ribbon around it and set it on her bedside table.
She smelled the scent of french toast from downstairs. Lily opened the cage door of her owl, Hazel, so that the bird could stretch its wings. Lily quickly put the lid on her box and pushed it into its hiding place before rushing down the stairs to eat her breakfast.
Hazel looked at the feather and nipped at it. She recongnized the feather's scent from James' owl, Hope. Hazel spent time with Hope in the owlry during school. Hazel hooted apprecitivly, before picking up the feather and soaring off in search of her Hogwarts friend.
Lily sat down at the wooden kitchen table. "Good morning!" she said brightly to her sister, Petunia, and her mother. Petunia grunted. "Good morning, Lily. Did you have a nice sleep?" her mother asked while serving her daughters toast. "Oh, yes. I slept excellent. Did dad leave for work already?" Lily asked and poared maple syrup on her breakfast. "Yes I'm afraid so. You'll see him tomorrow, don't worry." Mrs. Evans said and smiled warmly.
Mrs. Evans turned to Petunia, who was reading a book. "Would you like seconds, dear?" Mrs. Evans asked. "No thanks, mum." Petunia answered and walked up to her room, her eyes not leaving the page. Lily quickly ate her food and drank her orange juice. "Mum? I'm going to go take a walk again after I get ready." Lily said and stood up. "Alright. Could you pick me some more flowers? The one's you got me last week are wilting." Lily's mother asked, gesturing towards a glass vase on the counter. Lily smiled, "Sure, mum. Would you like me to stop at the villiage and get you some milk or something?" "Sure, milk would be great. A few eggs and a watermelon couldn't hurt either." Mrs. Evans said and started scrubbing the kitchen table. "Ok." Lily said and dashed up the stairs.
Lily combed her perfectly straight hair absentmindedly, thinking about her last visit to the villiage.
'What? Why are you here?' Lily asked. 'I was about to ask you the same thing. I live about twenty miles from here, in the city. I never knew you lived around here!" James said, hardly believing his luck. "I live ten miles from here, down in the country. I only come here once in awhile. But twenty miles? Don't you have your own market? Or are you just here to get girls?" Lily asked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't be like that, Lily. You know, it wouldn't hurt being nice to me once in awhile. I've changed since-" "Don't start making another one of those speeches you always make in your letters, Potter. I have things to do." Lily said and marched off, daring to believe that James only live thirty miles away.
Lily braided her hair so she had two long braids hanging down on either side. She had two strands of hair framing her face. She carefully inserted gold hoop earrings in the holes in her ears. She put on a red tank top and denim shorts. But no matter how hot it was outside, she always wore her sneakers. Her feet had stopped growing when she was eleven years old. She had very small feet which people made fun of daily. Lily knew they were just kidding, but she hated it when people comented her height. 'Five feet and two inches isn't that short, is it?' she thought to herself.
Lily looked over at her bedside table and her eyes widened when her feather was gone. 'What if James saw it and got the wrong idea?' She relaxed, 'What are the chances that James could get hold of it?'
Hazel tapped at James' window continuisly. She knew James was awake, he was just too lazy to open the window. She heard Hope screech loudly and her eyes glittered satisfactorily when she saw James emerge from his blankets and stumble over towards the window.
James wasn't surprised to see Hazel outside his window. The owl often came to visit Hope, but never brought anything from Lily; until now. He saw the feather he sent to Lily clutched in Hazel's mouth. "What the-?" James saw that the pink ribbon was removed and replaced with a shoelace, his shoelace! He took the feather from the owl's mouth and examined it. It was definatley the same feather he sent Lily, and it was definatly his shoelace. 'What does this mean?' James thought, sitting down on his bed. He finally made up his mind to write to Lily.
Dear Lily,
Today I woke up with Hazel, your owl, tapping at my window. I wasn't too surprised because she visits Hope often. I was pretty shocked when I saw what Hazel was holding, though. It's strange. I sent you your ribbon that I stole, and you sent me my shoelace that you stole. I was wondering what it meant, and I hope you had good intentions when you sent it. Anyway, I hope you have been having a nice summer. It would mean a lot to me if you replied this time. I'll see you at school!
Yours only,
James 'is cool' Potter
James sealed the letter and handed it to Hazel. "You know who it's for." he told her. Hazel hooted softly and took flight out the window. James knew he shouldn't get his hopes up, but he couldn't help but wonder if Lily was starting to realize that he waasn't as bad as she thought he was.
Lily was about to walk through her bedroom door when she felt something fluffy crash into the back of her head. "Hazel! You have got to stop doing that!" Lily said and rubbed her head. Hazel dropped James' letter on Lily's head and flew into her cage. Lily's eyes widened as she unfolded the letter and read the first few sentences. When she finished the letter, she looked up and glared at her owl. "You did this." Hazel hooted innocently, "No treats for you tonight." Lily muttered and locked Hazel in her cage. Lily walked over to her bed and sat down, thinking. 'A reply wouldn't hurt. He's so sweet. I don't care what people say, as long as I'm with James. Oh, how could I forget. He'd leave me faster then you could say 'arrogant'. Damnit, James! Why do you have to be so complicated! I guess I'll reply. But only to see if he can be serious about a relationship.' Lily thought and sat down in front of her desk. "I don't want to sound desperate. Maybe I should just tell him that I meant nothing. Or just tell him the truth..." Lily mumbled to herself as she pulled out some parchment and a quill. It seemed like hours to Lily, when she finally came up with a response:
Dear James,
Don't get your hopes up, I meant nothing by sending you the shoelace and feather. I just simply didn't want your filth in my room anymore. Look, if you want me to go out with you, you have to prove to me that you can handle a long turn relationship and that this isn't some sort of sick joke. If you prove that to me, I promise to fall madly in love with you (Sarcasim). James, give it up. You can't handle relationships. I doubt you can even list ten girls in this school that you haven't snogged. Please, just stop making my simple life complicated.
Yours never,
Lily 'is cooler' Evans
Lily read through the letter and knew it sounded harsh. But that was the way she wanted James to think of her. Lily opened Hazel's cage again and handed the owl the letter she wrote. Lily was about to leave her room so she could go to the market, but decided she would wait for James' reply.
James heard the familiar tapping on the window. "Not again..." James muttered as he threw off his covers and walked of to his window. He opened it up and Hazel flew in, dropping a letter by James' feet. James looked at the letter and picked it up with shaky hands. Lily had never written to him before. He opened the letter and read it carefully. "She wants me to prove it to her? Interesting..." James mumbled as he read the letter for the second time. He eagerly wrote to Lily for the second time that day:
Dear Lily,
Thank you for your reply! I don't think I could have been more shocked to recieve it. So you want me to prove to you how much I love you? You want me to prove that I can handle a relationaship? I thought I did that in my letters. But if that isn't enough, then I am willing to do what it takes to win your heart. By the way, you wanted me to list ten girls I haven't snogged:
1. Lily Evans (Your the best!)
2. Kim Ashcroft
3. Tanya McGlory
4. Jamie Florins
5. Fran Dewack (Can you say nerd?)
6. Teresa Barington
7. Danielle Chestey
8. Grace Conelly
9. Nancy Thoraul
10. Rachel Givens
Love From,
James 'alright, you're way cooler' Potter
Lily read the letter with a disbelieving expression on her face. She furiously scribbled her reply:
Dear James,
I didn't mean for you to actually list ten girls, you dolt! I was simply stating that you are a player in a unique form. You are seriously desperate, why don't you just give up? You only 'love' me because I'm 'hard- to-get'. No matter how many times you say it, I am NOT more special then anyone at Hogwarts! In fact, I am less special. You seem like the perfect guy, James! But you just seem too good to be true. You are a fake, James, and THAT is why I don't like you. Please stop doing this to me. Don't bother replying, I'm going to the market and I'm not reading any more of your stupid letters.
From,
Lily Evans
Lily threw the letter at Hazel and ran out the door to the villiage. James is just too good. Although she wouldn't admit it to him, she thought that she didn't deserve a guy like James. She just wanted him out of her life. Lily walked outside and ran across an open feild. She slowed down and picked up a dandilion. She twirled it in her fingers before carefully placing it behind her ear. She walked the rest of the way humming her favorite tune. Beautiful days like this day always cheered Lily up, no matter how depressed she got.
James looked Lily's letter. 'So you're going to the villiage, eh?' James grinned and threw on some jeans and a T-shirt before running out the door, grabbing his broomstick on the way out. James was going to pay Lily a little visit at the market.
A/N: Yep, this is the first chapter. Hopefully it's kind of long. Look forward to the second chapter. Lucky for you, I don't abandon my books (- cough cough to those authors that do-)
The Flight of a Feather
Chapter One
James Potter always wrote to Lily Evans over the summer holidays, even if he got nothing in return; This summer was no exception. James wanted his letters to be special, so he sent them in ways girls would marvel. Lily hated this. She knew that it was sweet and thoughtful, and that's what bothered her. Sometimes she found it hard to give James the cold shoulder. She desperatly wanted to be able to be herself around him. She knew he had changed since he matured in the second year, but before them, he was as arrogant as ever. But she couldn't start liking him now. What would people say?
She sighed when she saw an envelope sitting outside her window. She got out of bed and walked towards the window. She loosened the window hatch and opened the window, leaning out and breathing in the morning air.
She gazed around the country side and around the green feilds with dandilions covering a large fraction of the grass. Even though dandilions were weeds, Lily loved them. She liked their size and color, and she often tucked them behind her ear. The bright yellow and dark red looked wonderful together, making Lily's appearence overwhelmingly beautiful.
Lily looked down at the envelope, which was an off-white color and had nothing written on it. Lily opened it and pulled out its contents; A single feather with a ribbon tied to it. Lily's eyes gittered when she saw the light pink ribbon. James had carefully taken it from her hair without her noticing; That is, until, his best friend, Sirius Black, had gave him away. Yet James still managed to keep it, and Lily had forgotten about the ribbon until now.
Lily smiled and walked over to her bed. She bent down and pulled out an old shoebox, which had every letter or item James had ever sent to Lily. Lily carefully placed the feather in the box and pulled out an item that was already in the box; James' shoelace. Lily's smile turned into a grin when she remembered how she stole it.
Lily was still mad at James for stealing her ribbon. She was searching for an empty compartment to change in. She opened one compartment door and saw James in it alone, sleeping. She had the perfect way of getting revenge. She gently removed his shoelace without him noticing, and replaced it with a licorice stick. James hadn't noticed until he smelled it when it started melting in the sun.
Lily chuckled at the memory. She picked up the feather again and removed her ribbon and used it to tie her hair back. She then tied James' shoelace around the feather the way James had tied her ribbon around it and set it on her bedside table.
She smelled the scent of french toast from downstairs. Lily opened the cage door of her owl, Hazel, so that the bird could stretch its wings. Lily quickly put the lid on her box and pushed it into its hiding place before rushing down the stairs to eat her breakfast.
Hazel looked at the feather and nipped at it. She recongnized the feather's scent from James' owl, Hope. Hazel spent time with Hope in the owlry during school. Hazel hooted apprecitivly, before picking up the feather and soaring off in search of her Hogwarts friend.
Lily sat down at the wooden kitchen table. "Good morning!" she said brightly to her sister, Petunia, and her mother. Petunia grunted. "Good morning, Lily. Did you have a nice sleep?" her mother asked while serving her daughters toast. "Oh, yes. I slept excellent. Did dad leave for work already?" Lily asked and poared maple syrup on her breakfast. "Yes I'm afraid so. You'll see him tomorrow, don't worry." Mrs. Evans said and smiled warmly.
Mrs. Evans turned to Petunia, who was reading a book. "Would you like seconds, dear?" Mrs. Evans asked. "No thanks, mum." Petunia answered and walked up to her room, her eyes not leaving the page. Lily quickly ate her food and drank her orange juice. "Mum? I'm going to go take a walk again after I get ready." Lily said and stood up. "Alright. Could you pick me some more flowers? The one's you got me last week are wilting." Lily's mother asked, gesturing towards a glass vase on the counter. Lily smiled, "Sure, mum. Would you like me to stop at the villiage and get you some milk or something?" "Sure, milk would be great. A few eggs and a watermelon couldn't hurt either." Mrs. Evans said and started scrubbing the kitchen table. "Ok." Lily said and dashed up the stairs.
Lily combed her perfectly straight hair absentmindedly, thinking about her last visit to the villiage.
'What? Why are you here?' Lily asked. 'I was about to ask you the same thing. I live about twenty miles from here, in the city. I never knew you lived around here!" James said, hardly believing his luck. "I live ten miles from here, down in the country. I only come here once in awhile. But twenty miles? Don't you have your own market? Or are you just here to get girls?" Lily asked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't be like that, Lily. You know, it wouldn't hurt being nice to me once in awhile. I've changed since-" "Don't start making another one of those speeches you always make in your letters, Potter. I have things to do." Lily said and marched off, daring to believe that James only live thirty miles away.
Lily braided her hair so she had two long braids hanging down on either side. She had two strands of hair framing her face. She carefully inserted gold hoop earrings in the holes in her ears. She put on a red tank top and denim shorts. But no matter how hot it was outside, she always wore her sneakers. Her feet had stopped growing when she was eleven years old. She had very small feet which people made fun of daily. Lily knew they were just kidding, but she hated it when people comented her height. 'Five feet and two inches isn't that short, is it?' she thought to herself.
Lily looked over at her bedside table and her eyes widened when her feather was gone. 'What if James saw it and got the wrong idea?' She relaxed, 'What are the chances that James could get hold of it?'
Hazel tapped at James' window continuisly. She knew James was awake, he was just too lazy to open the window. She heard Hope screech loudly and her eyes glittered satisfactorily when she saw James emerge from his blankets and stumble over towards the window.
James wasn't surprised to see Hazel outside his window. The owl often came to visit Hope, but never brought anything from Lily; until now. He saw the feather he sent to Lily clutched in Hazel's mouth. "What the-?" James saw that the pink ribbon was removed and replaced with a shoelace, his shoelace! He took the feather from the owl's mouth and examined it. It was definatley the same feather he sent Lily, and it was definatly his shoelace. 'What does this mean?' James thought, sitting down on his bed. He finally made up his mind to write to Lily.
Dear Lily,
Today I woke up with Hazel, your owl, tapping at my window. I wasn't too surprised because she visits Hope often. I was pretty shocked when I saw what Hazel was holding, though. It's strange. I sent you your ribbon that I stole, and you sent me my shoelace that you stole. I was wondering what it meant, and I hope you had good intentions when you sent it. Anyway, I hope you have been having a nice summer. It would mean a lot to me if you replied this time. I'll see you at school!
Yours only,
James 'is cool' Potter
James sealed the letter and handed it to Hazel. "You know who it's for." he told her. Hazel hooted softly and took flight out the window. James knew he shouldn't get his hopes up, but he couldn't help but wonder if Lily was starting to realize that he waasn't as bad as she thought he was.
Lily was about to walk through her bedroom door when she felt something fluffy crash into the back of her head. "Hazel! You have got to stop doing that!" Lily said and rubbed her head. Hazel dropped James' letter on Lily's head and flew into her cage. Lily's eyes widened as she unfolded the letter and read the first few sentences. When she finished the letter, she looked up and glared at her owl. "You did this." Hazel hooted innocently, "No treats for you tonight." Lily muttered and locked Hazel in her cage. Lily walked over to her bed and sat down, thinking. 'A reply wouldn't hurt. He's so sweet. I don't care what people say, as long as I'm with James. Oh, how could I forget. He'd leave me faster then you could say 'arrogant'. Damnit, James! Why do you have to be so complicated! I guess I'll reply. But only to see if he can be serious about a relationship.' Lily thought and sat down in front of her desk. "I don't want to sound desperate. Maybe I should just tell him that I meant nothing. Or just tell him the truth..." Lily mumbled to herself as she pulled out some parchment and a quill. It seemed like hours to Lily, when she finally came up with a response:
Dear James,
Don't get your hopes up, I meant nothing by sending you the shoelace and feather. I just simply didn't want your filth in my room anymore. Look, if you want me to go out with you, you have to prove to me that you can handle a long turn relationship and that this isn't some sort of sick joke. If you prove that to me, I promise to fall madly in love with you (Sarcasim). James, give it up. You can't handle relationships. I doubt you can even list ten girls in this school that you haven't snogged. Please, just stop making my simple life complicated.
Yours never,
Lily 'is cooler' Evans
Lily read through the letter and knew it sounded harsh. But that was the way she wanted James to think of her. Lily opened Hazel's cage again and handed the owl the letter she wrote. Lily was about to leave her room so she could go to the market, but decided she would wait for James' reply.
James heard the familiar tapping on the window. "Not again..." James muttered as he threw off his covers and walked of to his window. He opened it up and Hazel flew in, dropping a letter by James' feet. James looked at the letter and picked it up with shaky hands. Lily had never written to him before. He opened the letter and read it carefully. "She wants me to prove it to her? Interesting..." James mumbled as he read the letter for the second time. He eagerly wrote to Lily for the second time that day:
Dear Lily,
Thank you for your reply! I don't think I could have been more shocked to recieve it. So you want me to prove to you how much I love you? You want me to prove that I can handle a relationaship? I thought I did that in my letters. But if that isn't enough, then I am willing to do what it takes to win your heart. By the way, you wanted me to list ten girls I haven't snogged:
1. Lily Evans (Your the best!)
2. Kim Ashcroft
3. Tanya McGlory
4. Jamie Florins
5. Fran Dewack (Can you say nerd?)
6. Teresa Barington
7. Danielle Chestey
8. Grace Conelly
9. Nancy Thoraul
10. Rachel Givens
Love From,
James 'alright, you're way cooler' Potter
Lily read the letter with a disbelieving expression on her face. She furiously scribbled her reply:
Dear James,
I didn't mean for you to actually list ten girls, you dolt! I was simply stating that you are a player in a unique form. You are seriously desperate, why don't you just give up? You only 'love' me because I'm 'hard- to-get'. No matter how many times you say it, I am NOT more special then anyone at Hogwarts! In fact, I am less special. You seem like the perfect guy, James! But you just seem too good to be true. You are a fake, James, and THAT is why I don't like you. Please stop doing this to me. Don't bother replying, I'm going to the market and I'm not reading any more of your stupid letters.
From,
Lily Evans
Lily threw the letter at Hazel and ran out the door to the villiage. James is just too good. Although she wouldn't admit it to him, she thought that she didn't deserve a guy like James. She just wanted him out of her life. Lily walked outside and ran across an open feild. She slowed down and picked up a dandilion. She twirled it in her fingers before carefully placing it behind her ear. She walked the rest of the way humming her favorite tune. Beautiful days like this day always cheered Lily up, no matter how depressed she got.
James looked Lily's letter. 'So you're going to the villiage, eh?' James grinned and threw on some jeans and a T-shirt before running out the door, grabbing his broomstick on the way out. James was going to pay Lily a little visit at the market.
A/N: Yep, this is the first chapter. Hopefully it's kind of long. Look forward to the second chapter. Lucky for you, I don't abandon my books (- cough cough to those authors that do-)