James Potter was having the absolute best night of his life. The. Absolute. Best.
Why, you might ask?
Well simply because it was Valentine's Day and he was strolling the corridors on the third floor with the one and only, Lily Evans.
Okay, it was more like he and Lily, as Head Boy and Girl were patrolling the corridors at night on a date that just so happened be the 14th of February but that doesn't sound nearly as romantic, so James was gonna go with the first version.
"Isn't this just lovely, Lils?", he exclaimed.
"Don't call me 'Lils'", Lily snapped, craning her neck backwards as though she'd suddenly heard something.
"Six bloody years. It took me six years to get you to finally get you to go out with me. Oh, Merlin! this is amazing,"
"For the last time Potter, this isn't a date. Also I'm pretty sure Jillian Bones is snogging Rajesh Patil back there."
"So?"
"So, it's - wait a second - 11:36." She stared at him sternly. After not saying anything for a whole minute, Lily practically shouted into his face, "They should have gone to bed at least an hour ago!",she fumed.
"Oh for Merlins sake Evans, it's Valentines Day,leave them be."
"This is exactly why you shouldn't have been made Head Boy. Now come on let's send them back to their dorms."
"Honestly Lily, you're such a prude."
A smack on the head later, James was dutifully following Lily towards the pair who were currently trying to suck each others faces off. By the time Lily was through with two, James quite nearly felt bad for them.
Lily Evans was having quite a fine day, she'd got top marks in her charms test (again), her morning pumpkin juice was absolutely perfect and she'd just got a wonderful book that she'd planned to read through the night while couples got all gooey with each other. Quite a fine day indeed.
Then she got stuck on duty with Potter. Stupid Potter with his stupid arrogant smirk and stupid teasing and stupid lopsided grin and stupid gorgeous hair- woah. She didn't just call Potters unruly mop gorgeous did she?
She shook her head and walked on, she wasn't going to let anything frazzle her tonight. They'd already busted three couples out of bed and surprisingly enough, Ja-Potter hadn't complained that much or annoyed her to the point a Crutacius Curse seemed more bearable. Hopefully he'd keep his mouth shut for just another hour longer, then she could go back to her nice warm bed.
"Lily?"
She sighed, well there goes that.
"You see, I pride myself on knowing every single corridor, room and passage way in the castle." A beat passed as he continued. "And I've never seen that door before." He nodded towards an ornate door to the right of them.
Lily frowned, it didn't seem very familiar to her either. She strode forwards, James at her heels. "We should have a look at it." she said, placing her hand on the cool circular doorknob. Alright, she'll admit it, in retrospect blindly surging into a random room in a castle of magic probably wasn't the smartest idea but oh well.
"It could very well have a dragon inside for all we know".
Lily smirked "Scared, Potter?"
"You wish"
The door creaked slightly as she opened it. She looked at Potter, nodded, stepped in gingerly and saw-
A mirror.
A simple, slightly dusty full length mirror stood somewhat pathetically in the middle of the otherwise bare room.
"Well that's just disappointing isn't it?" said James, moving forward to inspect it." i was rather hoping to fight a dragon."
"Of course you were." Lily moved forward and stood with James and looked into the mirror.
"It's not even a magic mirror, just regular old one." James said, slightly disappointed as they stared into the ordinary reflection of the two standing together. "I do, however look amazing as always."
Lily's heart skipped a beat as she looked at his reflection. He did look quite amazing.
No. She couldn't think that, it was James for Merlin's sake!. Also when did 'Potter' become 'James' in her mind? Enough of these thoughts, she just wanted to get back to her dorm.
"Come on Potter, let's go back it's quarter past twelve already."
They both walked back quietly to Gryffindor. Just as Lily turned to go up to her dorm, James' hand grazed her forearm.
"Well that was the most uneventful but probably the best Valentine's Day I've ever had." His voice was soft.
She smiled a little,"Goodnight Potter"
A few days later, Lily was walking to the common room, exhausted, her mind filled with images of just stretching out on a chair by the warm, warm fire. Her timetable was absolutely awful on Thursdays! She moved along lost in thought, and didn't notice a group of First year Hufflepuffs running down the corridor. One of them slammed straight into her, sending all her spellbooks and notes flying.
"I'msosorry! I d-didnt mean to- here let me-" the flustered eleven year old hastened to help her.
Lily waved him off, saying it was okay. She was in a rather good mood. The First year raced off and she hurriedly gathered up her things.
As she straightened up something caught her eye- a smooth round metal doorknob. It was the room she'd seen with Ja-Potter. With Potter.
She wasn't quite sure why, but she opened the door and went inside. It seemed exactly the same. But the second she glimpsed into the mirror she did a double take.
The reflection showed herself, standing exactly as she was, like you know a mirror would . The only thing was that standing right next to her, in all his messy haired, bespectacled glory was James Potter.
Lily looked to her empty side and back into the mirror three times before freaking out. What in the world...she wondered. Well at least it wasn't a boring old mirror, right? She had to figure out what in the name of Merlin's beard was going on.
In a daze she swept out of the room and headed straight to the library, all thoughts of cozy,warm fires left behind.
In all his life, James had never kept a secret from Remus or Sirius, his very best mates.
So the fact that he was going off alone to find out more about the room that had just randomly popped up out of nowhere, without even mentioning its existence to either of them made him very uncomfortable indeed.
But he was James bloody Potter so he did it anyway.
He quickly made his way to the same corridor he'd patrolled that night with Lily...sweet, beautiful Lily. Focus James! he mind screamed back at him.
He found himself in front of the pretty door once again. He pushed it open and strolled in. This time, however as there was no Lily to distract him, he carefully inspected each wall,crevice and nook of the room only to find nothing. He sighed as he turned to leave but for some reason he stopped, turned around and stood right in front of the dingy mirror, he'd ignored in his search.
He gasped the second he saw his reflection. It showed him standing there perfectly normal and right beside him was...Lily?
What the-
The Mirror of Erised.
Well logically, Lily thought it did make sense as she snapped the book shut. You look into the mirror and it shows you what you don't have- your deepest desire. Made perfect sense in theory right?
But holy Merlin, was James Potter her "deepest desire"? James Potter the arrogant marauder? James Potter the pest who'd annoyed her for years?
But maybe she was being too hard on him. Oh my, she really had to sort her emotions out. She'd been sitting in the same spot in the library for hours, surrounded by piles of books and now she had finally gotten an answer. She leaned back in her seat and thought over her relationship with him.
Absolutely hating him in the first year, hating him some more through the second year, firmly rejecting his Hogsmeade invitations in third year, kind of wanting to, but still rejecting them in fourth year, catching herself staring at him sometimes and actually finding his jokes amusing in the fifth year, forcing herself to not be near him so she wouldn't get distracted in her studies in sixth year and now...
She took a deep breathe and put her head in her hands. Did she- Did she like him? Somewhere inside her she did know that for the past few months she had turned him down simply because she didn't know what others would say and because... well simple because she was stubborn. if that even made any sense. The harsh words, and nonchalant, condescending demeanor all for what?
Lily was a girl with brains. She thought and thought and thought and explored her deepest feelings until she finally came to a conclusion. She liked him. She really did. She liked so so much about him, his glasses, the flecks in his eyes, the curve of his smile, the way his nose crinkled when he laughed, the way he spoke with his hands and oh just everything. Oh Merlin she was really in deep wasn't she.
All this while, living in denial and a stupid 'Mirror of Erised' made her realize she likes Ja-Potter. No she thought, it wasn't 'Potter' it was 'James'.
James. James. JamesJamesJames, she repeated in her head and then laughed like a crazy person. She was acting like such a lovesick teenager.
But in her defense...she kind of was.
Lily strode through the corridors with purpose, that very night. She'd told James to meet her at the top of the Astronomy tower at twelve midnight. She was very well aware that they would be breaking rules but for once, she didn't really care.
Her confident stride faltered a little as doubt started creeping through her mind. Was she rushing it? Had she accepted her feelings far too fast? In all the stories, it took people weeks and weeks to figure out what they wanted and then two had a long long talk about it...maybe she was rushing things. But there was no turning back now, she had reached the stairs at the bottom of the tower.
To say that James was freaking out was an understatement. First, Lily Evans smiled at him, then he saw her in some ghost mirror thing, and now she'd called him to the bloody Astronomy Tower for Merlin knows what.
His mind was racing as he pushed open the door to the tiny room at the very top, but all thoughts left him when his eyes fell on Lily standing by the large window, looking a picture as the moonlight fell on her beautiful face.
She turned and let out a breath. "James"
"You just said my name. Like my actual first name."
"I need to say something, alright?" she said. She was trying her best to be calm but it wasn't working. Then James put his hand, calloused from Quidditch, on hers and encouraged her with his eyes and it all just just came tumbling out. Everything she'd thought of, everything she hadn't, she poured her soul out and when she was done she looked straight into his hazel eyes. "James I...I've been a right prick to you, and i don't know if this all just happening too early or too late and-and this is so complicated and we'll have to talk and sort things right and oh Merlin I just- I want to be with you James, if you'll have me." A beat passed. "James? Oh do close your mouth you'll catch flies."
James could do nothing but stare. He'd, for the better part of his life, waited and waited for the moment Lily would finally say 'Yes' when he asked her out. And here she was...asking him out.
"James it's getting a little creepy now"
He closed his mouth and swallowed hard. "Lils, did you seriously think i could ever say no to that"
Her face broke out into the biggest smile ever"I cannot believe this is actually happening"
"Well, I can" James said smiling softly and he slowly pulled her close, his hands on her waist.
Lily blushed nearly as red as her hair. She was quite nearly as flustered as that First year Hufflepuff.
"But of course we'll have to talk more, I mean we can't just get straight into a relationship just so fast,you know?" the usually collected and calm Lily was babbling at this point but fell silent when James' hand stroked her cheek. Oh Merlin, the effect he had on her.
James' fingers cupped her face gently"Waited so long for this Lils" His breath was hot against her cheek.
Wait, were they going to snog now? That's what always happens right? Declarations of love were always followed by heavy make-out sessions Lily thought. But she wasn't ready, her heart thumping, she look at him and something passed between them.
The next thing she knew his lips were pressed to her forehead. She sighed and leaned into his warm chest.
She felt his lips move as he spoke after, "Hogsmeade next weekend?". She laughed and nodded, pulling him closer.
Talking was overrated anyway.