A/N: I apologize that it's taken me so long to get this chapter up, however not only do I have a lot going on this year (play, projects, AP classes...life in general actually), but this chapter was also re-written about, oh, five times. So hopefully it's at it's best now. :)
There were a few questions that seemed general in a lot of the reviews I recieved and so I'm going to answer them all in one swoop: Yes this is going to deal with Remus and his...past let's call it. However, that by no means implies that Lily and James are going to be going on in blissful happiness in the backround, quite the opposite. They're not perfect and there are still somethings that are going to have to be resolved. They are going to continue to be a integral part of this story. Nor will the the relationship between Sirius, Remus, and James be dropped - that is just as important as it was before.
I think I also might have created some confusion because of my summary. It is not years later as the summary might have implied, but only three monthes after the last scene - aka the battle with Riddle (hence the title). I know there was some worry about that, and how that would've resulted in a huge and infuriating time gap. I'm not that cruel. The 'years' that were referred to in the summary was the years that had passed between when the 'love was lost' and the present time.
I hope that clears everything up for you guys. Anymore questions please don't hesitate to ask - I will try to be better about replying to reviews, it has simply been a lack-of-time issue for me. But now, enough of my rambling -- on with the chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters related to it. I do own Cook, any other person you do not recognize and the dialogue, action, and storyline.
Chapter 1: Three Months and All's Well
Deep hazel eyes gazed out across the deck of the once-pirate ship, taking in the smoothed wood and repairs that had finally been completed by the men who now mingled around the red-haired woman, to which the hazel eyes found their destination. A small smile crossed James Potter's face as he watched her lips pull back in a smile of her own, directed at the mousy-haired man who sat on a barrel, leaned against the mast, watching her as a nanny would a child; though James knew if the analogy was ever used in Lily's presence, he could expect to need the nanny for his own safety.
An elbow into his arm caused James to jerk from his gaze, as a dull pain ran down from his shoulder. Reaching up to touch the wounded limb, he glanced, irritated, at the smirking man beside him.
"What?"
Sirius Black's grin widened in response. "Just thought I'd get your attention away from the lovely Miss Lily."
James frowned, a faint red blush beginning to stain his cheeks. "What makes you think I was looking at Lily?" He questioned as calmly as he could muster.
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Well you weren't looking at Cook."
James' lip twitched, and he glanced back over at the red-head.
"Not that I'm complaining." Sirius pointed out. "The way I figure it we should be showering her with our gratitude."
James smiled slowly. "Really?"
Sirius shrugged a shoulder, leaning on the wheel he was supposed to be steering. "Well, think of where we would be if she'd never come on the ship. We'd still have a dark shadow haunting our every moment, we'd still be our nasty, dark pirate selves"- James snorted and Sirius gave him a side-long look - "And of course you would be lacking the potato shaped imprint on the back of your thick skull - though I must say I think, overall, it's an improvement."
James wrinkled his nose at his best friend and first mate. "Thanks." He muttered sarcastically. He looked back across the ship, this time sending his eyes toward each member of the crew who occupied the upper deck. "Three months." He murmured.
"And all's well." Sirius reminded him. "Not looking over your shoulder…"
"Nothing to look for." James smiled at the fact.
"Nightmares?
"I haven't slept as soundly since I was a babe…and maybe not even then, you know how Remus punches in his sleep."
Sirius chuckled. "Yeah…I remember having to fit into one of those single-sized beds with the two of you at the orphanage. If memory serves, you kick quite frequently."
James smirked at him, his eyes glittering mischievously. "And you snore obnoxiously."
Sirius shrugged a shoulder. "We all have faults, mate. Luckily I only show mine when everyone else is asleep."
His friend rolled his eyes. "When everyone else is trying to sleep."
Sirius laughed, and his hand, out of habit, went to his abdomen, rubbing his side where the jagged scar was still a dull red, hiding under his shirt and a thin layer of bandage. Though the throb had faded to a soreness in the past few days, moving in the wrong direction still caused him a sharp intake of breath and mild pain - and of course a reminder of what had transpired three months earlier.
James caught his friend's action and fought the urge to rub his own shoulder again. Underneath the shirt and coarse bandage was his own scar, one of many, but the one that had taken the longest to heal. It was still an evident line along the skin of his shoulder. While he'd stood his ground against any more use of a sling, his shoulder still protested moving as freely as it once had.
Glancing back toward Lily, James didn't have to see her face clearly to know of the scar that now ran across her cheek, the only visible reminder of her near death at Riddle's hands. The thought caused James' stomach to twist uncomfortably, and the smile faded from his lips.
"You'd think it'd be boring." Sirius muttered after a few moments, more to himself than to James.
James blinked and turned his eyes from Lily to look back at Sirius. "What would be?"
"Not being a pirate anymore…not stealing or marauding…"
James cocked an eyebrow at Sirius. "If I didn't know better I'd think you missed it."
Sirius shrugged. "Maybe…a little…it was exciting you have to admit."
The other man ran a hand through his messy dark hair. "Yeah…" James allowed. "But that excitement…it wasn't worth - "
"Death at the hands of an English hangman or Riddle's sword? No, I suppose not…" But Sirius didn't sound entirely convinced by his own words.
"We did sign a contract." James reminded him, causing Sirius to snort.
"James, you're the same man you were before you signed the Duke's contract."
It was a valid point. "Minus marauding ships."
Sirius watched James from the corner of his eye. "Don't you miss it?" Sirius inquired finally.
James' gaze caught sight of Lily again, and he paused.
Sirius snorted again. "Well, of course not, you got your red-headed beauty." But he was careful to keep his voice down. Giving James a reason to want to pummel him wasn't high on Sirius' list of things to do…in fact it didn't even make the top thirty.
"But James, honestly, don't you miss the days when we could just stop any ship we wanted and take whatever food or gold we needed…instead of trying to find it in the stuffy ports…" Sirius pressed on, in spite of James' lack of answer.
"The money or the food, Sirius?" A new voice questioned and James turned slightly to see that the "nanny" had left its charge to join them on the landing. Remus Lupin was smiling as if in private joke, and he tilted his head slightly to get a better look at the two dark-haired men.
"Either and both." Sirius answered, grinning as Remus walked to his other side and leaned on the rail.
James was watching him. "You left Lily."
"No you did, to come up here and talk to Sirius." Remus replied, his eyes watching the waves that parted for the bow of the ship. "Lily doesn't need watching…not even on a pirate ship."
"Ex-pirate ship." Sirius reminded him gaily.
"I know she doesn't need protection." James was defensive, his ears tinged pink. "I taught her how to defend herself…I know she doesn't need protection."
"And yet you insist on watching her every move."
James ducked his head slightly, staring at his crossed arms. "And what's wrong with that?"
Sirius hooted with laughter, which he abruptly turned into a cough when James sent him a look that could set fire to water. Remus was never one to be bullied though, and merely shook his head.
"It's remarkable." He commented. "You've only admitted that pirates can fall in love, and been in said state, for barely three months."
James looked over at Remus. "What's so remarkable about that?"
Remus shrugged a shoulder. "It's remarkable that you've thrown yourself into that blissful state of unwavering affection toward a certain red-head so readily after denying it for so long."
"Denying is love for Lily or about pirates falling in love?" Sirius questioned.
"Both."
James gave each of them a wilting look, then turned his back on them and left the landing, making his way across the deck. Remus chuckled when he saw James' intended destination and Sirius smirked openly.
James wove in between the men, coming to the mast where Lily was surrounded by three men, each watching her like a child to a mother. In Lily's fingers was a rope, which she was twisting around itself to create what James assumed to be a knot. He paused at the edge of the group, watching silently.
"Over and under, Miss Lily, not under and over." One of the men instructed, when Lily's fingers fumbled.
Lily redid the knot, holding it up. A small smile played on her pink lips when she noticed James standing before her. "Is that acceptable, Captain?" She asked, her green eyes bright.
The men moved back slightly as James stepped forward, picking up the rope and playing with it in his long fingers. "I suppose, but you might request a few more lessons." He responded, his eyes dancing as he tossed the rope to one of the men.
As the other men dispersed, Lily stood up. "It was perfect, wasn't it?" She raised a challenging eyebrow at him, crossing her arms in front of her.
James tilted his head, smirking slightly. "Is that what you're looking for, Miss Evans? Perfection? If so this would not be the most appropriate place to be looking for it." On an ex-pirate ship, he added silently and doubtfully.
Lily smiled at him and James' doubt vanished with the glow in her eyes and the flush on her cheeks. It wasn't rare that she gave him that smile, and the look on her face wasn't rare either, at least not in the past three months. Still, it made his heart leap in his chest every time. James tilted his head toward the railing and the two walked side by side toward the edge of the ship.
"What were you talking to Sirius about?" Lily questioned. Her voice held none of the demands that a pestering wife might have, nor the nagging or bristling edge another man might've felt threatened by. Instead, it was a generally curious question.
However, "Nosy." was still James' automatic response and Lily gave him a mock-offended look, though the curl of her lips gave her away.
"Nothing important." James replied, leaning on the railing and looking out on the ocean.
Lily didn't look as if she fully believed him, but James had to admit that for all his accusing her of being nosy, she was able to accept, albeit grudgingly, his response. Leaning with her back against the rail she tilted her chin so that the wind ran across her face and through her hair. She inhaled deeply as if breathing in the scents, then closed her eyes.
James watched her, taking in how the wind brushed back the locks of hair behind her ears, and how her now tan skin ran smooth across her cheeks, down her neck, and under her clothes. Her fine pink lips curled ever so slightly into a peaceful smile.
He debated internally for a moment whether to kiss her. On one hand it would've been well worth it, on the other he'd not be able to watch her if he did. The decision rolled around in James head, battling like two war vessels until Lily opened her eyes, breaking the opportune moment.
"The men were showing me how to tie the knots you use in the riggings." She said slowly, her eyes following the said riggings up until they met the empty crows nest.
"Oh really? Thinking of changing your position on the ship?" James asked, his voice teasing.
Lily shuddered, mostly for effect, and turned her face toward him, smiling. "Not likely. I prefer the galley, thank you very much. I think Remus has the right idea about the riggings, anyway."
James chuckled to himself. Remus wouldn't have climbed up into the riggings if there had been rabid bear loose on the ship and it was the only safe place on the entire ship.
Lily turned around and leaned with her elbows on the rail, her shoulder brushing James'. "Why is Remus so adamant about not climbing the riggings?" She asked finally.
James shrugged the shoulder that wasn't against Lily's, enjoying the feeling too much to disrupt it. "I don't know, I never asked. I suppose he's scared of heights, though I don't know why. He's just always been firm on never going up in the riggings, even before we stole the ship."
Lily looked over at him. "Before?"
James let out a breath. "We were on other ships before this one, Lily. It's where we learned everything we needed to know to sail our own vessel. The captain of our first ship put Remus in charge of the riggings. Remus never stepped foot up there our entire voyage."
Lily gaped at him. "Wouldn't they call that insubordination? They didn't make him…walk the plank?"
James looked at her. "We could technically call what you did for the first couple months or so insubordination, and I didn't make you walk the plank, did I?"
Lily rolled her eyes, a smile on her lips. "James, you don't have a plank."
He let out a long sigh. "I know." Lily laughed and leaned against him. The pair of hands that had rested on the rail had at some point become intertwined, and now the two of them stared out in silence at the dipping waves in the ocean.
"What did you do on the first ship?" Lily asked after a while.
James smiled with the secret. "Cook's Assistant."
Lily straightened and stared at him. "You…where…"
James grinned. "There was a method behind my meanness, I assure you."
Lily put her hands on her hips. "Which was?" She demanded.
James straightened to face her. "I've come to realize that the galley is the best place to be on a ship…you're taken under the wing of the cook immediately and they become a mentor, a protector…a father even." Lily's eyes softened slightly at the thought of Cook, who indeed had become like her second father on the Marauder.
James was watching her steadily, and as the thunder cloud left Lily's face he reached over and ran a tentative finger down the scar on her cheek. For most women it might've marred their features, for Lily it only made her seem wilder and more beautiful.
Lily's skin tingled where James' hand traced, and she felt her heart speed up in her chest. It was not a secret of how much he loved her; even if he didn't normally say it aloud, she could see it glowing from his eyes and that, more than any word from his lips, made the pleasantness creep all over her body.
A guilty look crossed James' eyes and he opened his mouth as if to speak but Lily shook her head abruptly. "Don't you dare." She told him.
Stunned he stared at her. "Lily…"
"Don't you dare say it's your fault. I could have hid on my father's ship and stayed safe and unscarred, but I didn't. I chose to come and fight instead."
James let his thumb rest at the corner of Lily's mouth, his fingers still on her cheek. "But if I hadn't kidnapped you - "
Lily laughed at him and James frowned. "Kidnapped me? I thought that I tied myself to the contract, James Potter."
The light in James' eyes slowly crept back and he smiled slowly. "But I put you in the situation." Lily opened her mouth, but then closed it a moment later, watching him.
"I suppose it's both of our faults." Lily said, in a half-resigned voice.
"Mhm." James said, leaning down slightly, her upturned face proving too much of a temptation.
"Ehm."
James froze and tilted his head, looking over and seeing Cook standing there, a look of complacent enjoyment on his face. "Cook." James almost growled the word.
But Cook ignored James, speaking instead to the woman next to him. "Unless we want a crew of smelly and hungry men tearing apart the galley, Miss Lily, I'm suggesting we get back down there and make something to keep 'em at bay."
Lily smiled and nodded. "All right." She gave a smiled to James and left his grasp to walk past Cook and head toward the door leading below deck.
James stayed where he was, staring at Cook. "You did that on purpose." He accused. Cook smiled slightly and James bristled. "And you're enjoying it!" Cook laughed, then turned and followed Lily, still chuckling like an old man with a secret joke.
A grumble passed through James' lips and he leaned heavily back against the rail, crossing his arms and being the perfect picture of fuming. Maybe Remus was right. At least about the remarkablity of his head first jump into the ocean of love…though the most recent experience was leading him to believe it might've been closer to the size of a puddle.
--
Remus and Sirius watched their friend's interaction with the fire-tempered woman who had captured his heart, amusement glittering from their eyes and bursting from their chests in rumbles of laughter, specifically when Cook interrupted what the two friends perceived as the climactic moment of the event.
The second-mate ran his hand over the wood of the railing, parts of it newer than others from the patching and repair work that had gone into making the Marauder worthy enough of being out on the sea.
"They're lucky." The voice from his right was Sirius, leaning on the wheel, watching the solitary James with now uninterested eyes.
"No they're not…if they were lucky they would've fallen in love with each other at first sight and saved us all the ruckus." The words would've sounded harsh from anyone but Remus, who delivered them with a fondness.
"That just proves that we have no luck." Sirius pointed out, smiling. Remus grinned despite his better judgment. Sirius watched the two for another moment. "I never thought that James would actually fall in love…"
"Why's that?" Remus asked. Though he admitted it was remarkable that James had admitted to the feelings, the actual possibility of James falling in love had been there…very small and often covered by all the other pressing issues of the moment, but the potential had been there nonetheless.
Sirius gave him a wry look. "Well for one, that stupid star theory of his. And for another, I mean look at Lily." He nodded his head toward her. "She's beautiful, smart, definitely keeps him in line, and she's a born and bred lady."
Remus glanced over at him. "Lady?" He asked confused.
"Yeah…she's a lady. Not like any of those other girls we spent time around…innkeepers and wenches and such." He added bitterly. Remus felt a lump rise in his throat.
"I mean those people are only in it for one thing: to use you until they're done, then cut-and-run. They don't really love you or care about you, they may pretend to or think they do, but they don't." Sirius ranted, his eyes blazing with a hidden vendetta. Remus cast his eyes downward, his hands shifting on the rail.
"They whine and push and make you feel guilty…but all they are are sirens. Horridly beautiful women with no heart at all…none of them any better than a wasted wench." Sirius growled bitterly. Remus flinched visibly and his hands tightened. Sirius glanced over at him confused. Slowly realization dawned on his face, causing it to turn ashen.
"Oh…Remus I didn't mean…" He fumbled, his face weak and apologetic.
Remus shook his head abruptly, cutting Sirius' words off short. "Forget it, Sirius." His voice was stony.
"But…I didn't mean…her. She wasn't like them…she-"
Remus looked at him sharply. "Forget it, Sirius." There was finality to his words and he turned abruptly, leaving the landing. Sirius watched helplessly as Remus walked across the deck, disappearing down the stairs leading to the cabins below.
Letting out a long breath Sirius leaned on the wheel, his face guilty and regretful. "Three months, Sirius." He murmured to himself. "And you've already blown everything to pot."
A/N: Please review - your reviews are such inspiration, and while that may sound corny, it's true. It also pushes me to work on the chapter when I see the revies in my inbox. The next chapter is about half done, but will need to be completed and tweeked a bit. Be patient with me ;). And again...REVIEW! Thanks
