Disclaimer: You think I own it, but you have no idea. This is the disclaimer of Kelsey.
Sea of Green
Prologue
James had always loved the color green.
As a young boy growing up wild in a lonely estate in northern Great Britain, he had constantly been banished exasperatedly by his mother, his older sisters, the maids and house elves and other hired help, onto the edge of their property. He was thus out of the way of the busy commotion sweeping its way through the house in preparation of a ball or gala or other prestigious event within the well-off wizarding elite that was to be hosted that weekend at the Potter mansion. His solemn gray eyes reflecting the stormy sky, he trudged out with his hands thrust deep into the pockets of his dirty robes and a roguish grin, made all the more impish by a large gap between his front teeth, spread across his otherwise angelic face. A pumpkin pasty clenched in one tight fist and a good dose of adventuresome recklessness bottled in the other, he sighed, finally crawling onto the rocky cliff overlooking the violently frothing ocean.
Many say the Scottish wind can drive a man crazy, especially when it comes up off the English moors howling like a deranged banshee of a pitch-black night. But James had always loved the hauntingly lonely tune as he stood in the midst of their forests, his long lashes brushing like cobwebs against his rosy, childish cheeks once he closed his eyes, allowing the gusts to sweep themselves beneath his robes and rattle through the leaves around him, a hushed whisper captivating the greatest secrets of time. He would lie back on the slightly damp forest floor, his raven hair blending seamlessly in with the richest earth, consenting the trees and their leaves to blend into a dizzying green blur, with his eyes half-closed and his sticky hands half-open, fingers clutching hopelessly at the wind dancing like devious nymphs around their tips.
James led a charmed life, only son of one of the richest pure-blood families in Britain, prodigious child of James Sr. and Blithe Potter. There was already talk of his being engaged to Narcissa Cirilian, a stunningly attractive girl who was around both his age and net worth. But James thought her cold and overly prim and was much more partial to watching the ocean battering itself against the high rocks their home rested upon in a beautiful and heart-wrenching sacrifice of nature to the inevitable. He pulled one warm knee up to his chest, the other little leg dangling off the cliff to rock gently in the salty sea air that stretched through bouts of cold spray to reach it. His family thought it was punishment to send him outside like this for hours at a time, but James felt it just the opposite. He grew restless and careless within the house and was prone to knock things over or mess up a particularly elaborate display. Outdoors he was no longer an outsider or an intrusion: the silent, bright woods, and the overpowering ocean both welcomed him in their simple ways. There was nothing he loved more than remaining absolutely quiet beneath the trees, surrounded by green, fluttering leaves and listening to the light, lilting calls of birds to one another.
Yet, when James came of age and it was time for him to receive more of an education than the different ways the wind could howl of a dark, tempestuous day and the very many shades of green the leaves could turn of a dark, tempestuous Scottish year, he felt himself separating into two people. He met Sirius Black soon after he received his Hogwarts letter and he encountered Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew while shopping in Diagon Alley. He was a bright, happy student, popular with teachers and students alike as a talented Quidditch player and a nice person. Though Sirius and the rest of his friends pushed him to a generally outgoing and mischievous personality, James never forgot the lonely boy he once was, out of place anywhere but in a sea of green.
And he had always loved the color green.
~*~
A/N: Finally getting a move on with this story is absolutely exciting. Thanks to my beta Alexis (read "Sotto Voce" under her pen-name Inkbleed…it is so blissfully perfect) and poor Nikki, who got dragged along for the ride and will thus be bestowed the title of co-beta (read "My Apology" under NarcoticNikki…again, completely flawless writing). As for the sequel of 'Something Like Love,' I'll have the first chapter out in a couple of days – once I think of a title. Thanks for reading and reviewing!