Lily Evans runs out of the Great Hall, not even bothering to take her wand. Tears stream down her face; she is clearly in pain, though not physical.
The Great Hall is in uproar.
The Slytherins guffaw, like uncouth trolls on rampage. The Hufflepuffs, the usually meek, silent Hufflepuffs are firing hexes and the Ravenclaws are cursing every Gryffindor in sight and the all the Gryffindors are retaliating.
Well, all except for one.
A tall, black haired young man rushes off behind Lily Evans. He is fuming, muttering under his breath. How dare the bloody git? He thinks, how dare he? The arse doesn't even deserve her. She is far too good for anyone, she's near perfect. No, she IS perfect. And now that Diggory fellow better watch out, he threatens, he will pay for hurting Lily Evans. How, the young man doesn't know, but he is sure that Sirius will take care of it. He stops suddenly; he has lost sight of the distressed redhead. He swears violently before he sees her through a window on the second floor. He breathes a sigh of relief at finding her. He rushes down the stairs towards the Black Lake, towards Lily Evans…
Why did he have to do it so publically? The girl wonders staring out into the lake. Why couldn't he have told her discreetly? Everyone would know now that she had been dumped by Amos Diggory just because she wasn't ready for her first kiss. The git, he was just using her just for some fun! She berates herself for not realising that earlier; she could have spared herself the humiliation, the pain, the embarrassment. Why didn't he accept her choices? She just wasn't ready; she'd told him that she wanted to take it slow when they'd begun dating. He'd agreed. Now she learnt that he'd been cheating on her with some dumb blonde from Hogsmeade. And the worst thing was that she thought that they'd cared for each other; that they'd have a future. A fresh bout of tears overcomes her, she feels breakable, fragile. She pulls her knees to her chin and wraps her arms around herself, as if to conserve whatever is left of her wounded heart… she wishes now that she'd listened to James Potter…
James Potter feels his heart break when he sees her so hurt, so vulnerable, so empty. He always knew that Diggory was a jerk. He'd tried to tell her even, but she just yelled at him saying he was jealous that he wasn't as nice and desirable as Diggory. He tried to warn her, he really did… he even told her that Diggory was cheating on her, but she'd laughed it off, full of trust for Diggory and nothing but contempt for him. He wishes she would open her eyes to what's in front of her…
Lily Evans does not notice James Potter arrive. She is being sucked into the whirlpools of sorrow in her heart. But suddenly she is aware of an arm around her shoulder; a soft gentle voice murmuring in her ear. She gradually realises that it is him and her tears flow unrestricted. She curls her body into a ball, trying to protect herself as she unravels slowly. James Potter folds her into his embrace and her tears soak his shirt…
He couldn't care less about his shirt. All he cares about right now is the girl in his arms. To him Lily Evans is the most valuable thing in the world. A precious, rare flower that is too beautiful for its own good. She deserves much more than Diggory, she deserves the best. She deserves someone that will wait for her, respect her, adore her and be there for her. James Potter knows he will wait for her. He respects her, he adores her, he is always there for her but she doesn't notice it… he will wait, he knows that…
The tears flow, but the pain is almost gone. Yet she feels incomplete, wasted. James potters arms around her seem to be the only thing that is keeping her anchored to reality, she knows she would have shattered without his presence. She wishes that she had never said yes to Diggory, she wishes that… she doesn't know what she wishes for anymore. She clings to James Potter; she knows he'll be there for her… always…
It's all he can do to tear himself away from thoughts of revenge, he concentrates on Lily Evans, he knows she's far too gentle to want to harm Diggory; he'll respect her wishes if it means he can see her smile again, her green eyes senses that she's stopped crying and he decides that it's time to talk to her, to bring her back to the world from her abyss of sorrow. He whispers softly, Lily, its okay. He didn't deserve you…
She looks up at James Potter and tries to smile at him, but all she can manage is a pained grimace. She can see the worry cloud his hazel eyes. She murmurs James I made a huge mistake. I thought… I thought that he was the honourable one, the one that wanted to be with me for me. Not just because I was conveniently available at the time. I didn't see, I didn't realise… that you…
He knows Lily Evans so well; he can sense what she's trying to say. He tries to explain it to her…Lily, I admit when I first saw you it was your outward beauty that attracted me, well, look at yourself! You can't blame me! He is heartened when he sees the shadow of a smile flit across her face. But then, over the years I saw you grow into a confident, witty, intelligent and beautiful young woman and I couldn't but fall in love with you… and your rejections? Well, those just pushed me to want to better myself, make myself fit to even want you… but no one's good enough for you Lily, no one deserves you… and then, when you began dating Diggory, I knew I'd lost my chance and that you thought he was perfect. But then I realised that if you were happy being with him I should be happy for you… but then he broke your heart Lily and mine broke along with yours… seeing you there, torn, shocked, worn out; it hurt me Lily and then I decide I'd wait for you, forever, even if it takes that long. You're worth that much and more. Lily, I'll be there for you forever, I swear, just believe that. I will never hurt you the way Diggory did… lily please believe me… I'll wait for you
She is crying again, but this time the desperation, the pain is gone… there is a calmness, a subtle joy that only James Potter can see. She covers his large had with her small one and whispers thank you for being there for me, James always. You've been there I've just never seen it. And I promise that you won't have to wait long, I just need some time to recover, thank you James…
The young man just tightens his hold around Lily Evans, he knows that he'll never let go, he'll be Lily's forever, now that she'll have him. He lays his chin on her head, tears streaming down his own face… but he is happy, he feels Lily Evans smile against his chest…
Lily Evans and James Potter are at peace…
Author's Note: So, What did you think? This is a bit different then my usual writing, I think. So please tell me if I've done it okay! Review please!