James had a problem. A big one. Every year, Fleamont and Euphemia Potter hosted a Christmas Party with all of their friends, old acquaintances, and extended family. In reality, it was more of a ball than a party, and James was expected to bring along a date ever since he'd first begun Hogwarts. At first, he'd just brought Sirius or one of the other Marauders, until his parents began inviting his friends outright. He'd never had a problem finding a girl willing to go with him, that is until now. The problem wasn't exactly that no one was willing to go with him, because plenty of girls were more than willing to get an invite to the most exclusive party of the year, especially with NEWTs and graduation so close. No, the real problem was the conversation he'd just had with his mother.
"James, darling, you still haven't told me who you're bringing to the Christmas Ball." Euphemia had said, during one of their weekly Floo calls.
"Ehmmm…" James had replied, running a hand through his already messy hair to hide his discomfort at having forgetten about the upcoming ball. Between Head duties, being Quidditch captain, and the increased workload this year, it had completely slipped his mind.
"Oh please tell me that this is the year that you're finally bringing that Lily girl that you've told us so much about!" Euphemia had asked, excited at the prospect of finally meeting the girl who had featured in her son's stories of Hogwarts almost as heavily as the Marauders.
"Well, I haven't asked her yet, Mum…" James replied, trying to weasel out of admitting that the party had completely slipped his mind. He knew how much both of his parents cared about putting it on, and how much they loved meeting the people who he spent most of his year with.
"Well, what are you waiting for, James Fleamont Potter? She might make other holiday plans if you don't ask her soon. You can't leave things like this to the last minute!"
But Euphemia didn't need an answer from her speech deprived son. "We'll see you and Lily at the Christmas party then, darling! Have a great end of term and keep Sirius out of trouble- your father sends his love. " She said, before signing off the Floo call.
So that's how James Potter had wound up in his current predicament. He'd somehow managed to promise his mother that in little more than a week, he'd show up at home with Lily Evans on his arm. Like it was that easy. With a groan, James fell back on his bed. There was no way that Lily would ever step foot in his house with him, not even with their newfound friendship. He was freaking, royally screwed.
In another part of the castle, Lily was reading over the latest news from home. Her mother had written a long letter describing the Dursleys, their soon to be in laws, and it was less than complementary, something rare for Lily's gracious mother. They must have been truly awful to be described so. The wedding planning was clearly becoming stressful for her mother too, judging by hurried look of the letter. The stress of planning the wedding, however, still did not excuse Petunia's accompanying missive. It had been a long time since the sisters were close, that was true, but the letter still wounded Lily.
Lily, it read, since you never bothered to RSVP to the official invitation I sent along a while back, I need you to let me know if you're going to be attending the wedding, and if I should even include a plus one in the seating chart. It's very inconsiderate of you to leave me waiting so long for a reply, especially as I'm in the midst of planning a wedding.
It was the kind of note you wrote to a distant, forgetful relative, not the sister who for so many make believe games had been your maid of honour. It was a slap in the face for Lily, who had known that it was unlikely that Petunia would have her as a maid of honour, but to be treated as nothing more than an inconvenient guest hurt. A lot more than she would have liked to admit. But it also made her angry, at the sister who still blamed her for being different, who after so many years could not forgive her that one slight. So, picking up a quill, she wrote back a short note on a scrap of parchment from the bottom of her book bag and tied it to her owl to return home.
Will attend wedding with boyfriend as plus one. Please ensure seat at table with parents.
Your sister, Lily.
As soon as the owl flew away, Lily blanched as she realized what she'd written. Crap. How was she supposed to come up with a boyfriend in the last week of term?