Author's Note: So this one took a little over a month but hopefully all my lovely readers are still intersted. For any new readers, thanks for your time and enjoy!
Ch.2
Returning to Hogwarts was like returning to an old habit. After one day I was back to my old routines, old hobbies, but I had to change. I thought long and hard about what Lily had said and determined to be every single thing she had described, even if it meant changing everything about my personality.
I made two lists; one for getting her to date me, and one for once we're dating. Every two weeks I would work on fulfilling one of her criteria. Some things were as easy as breathing where as others took more self control.
The Impossibly Long List for Getting Lily Evans to Date James Potter
Act considerate, no hexing people at random (bummer). [September 1st-14th]
Make pranks less hurtful and more entertaining. [September 15th-28th]
Don't ask her out every ten seconds. [September 29h- October 12th]
Don't act obsessed with myself, very humble. [October 13th-26th]
Watch lots of old movies to learn from "Old fashioned gentlemen". [October 27th-November 9th]
Practice piano A LOT and leave my door open so she can hear me. [November 10th-23rd]
Keep playing Quiddich (easy). [November 24th-December 7th]
Be helpful and carry her books for her. [December 8th-21st]
Frantically ask her if she's sick whenever she sneezes. [December 22nd-January 4th]
Never expect her to ask me out. [January 5th-18th]
On January 19th, I'd ask her out… come what may. I haven't dated my second list yet just in case my plans are…delayed.
The Equally Impossibly Long List for Getting Lily Evans to Marry James Potter Once They've Started Dating
Buy her a corsage for every date we go on.
Show small signs of appreciation.
Call her 'lady'.
Give her space and time to spend with her friends.
Make her chicken soup when she's sick.
Agree happily to meet her family; invite her to meet mine.
Tell her how much I love her and how thankful I am for her every day.
Plan for my future; pick a career path. Include Lily in plans.
Be willing to and serious when discussing marriage and kids.
NEVER try for sex before marriage.
I finished my list proudly. Lily had said she wanted a guy who planned for his future and included her in it. I was just that, except my future plans didn't just include her, they were about her. I decided to call each two-week period a step. And I began Step 1 with high hopes, although Sirius was less then pleased.
"You mean when Eugene Marcos walks past us in his newest pair of horned glasses with rhinestones we can't discreetly charm them to grow gradually bigger throughout the day and stay stuck to his face?" he asked me.
I shook my head. "Nope."
"And we can't switch the bullotuber solution in Madame Pomphry's stores with diluted juice from alihosty leaves to drive all the pimply kids temporarily into hysterics?" he insisted.
I shook my head. "Nope."
"Or jinx every Slytherin we see into oblivion?" he was almost in tears now.
I shook my head again. "Nope."
Sirius stared me down. "What about Snivellus?" His tone was dark now, as though daring me to refuse.
I started to shake my head. "Well," I gritted my teeth, "I suppose even if we left him alone he'd never stop harassing us, but we have to stop all the public humiliation. No hexing him just because we're bored anymore."
Sirius pouted.
"And we have to make sure Lily doesn't see us," I added.
Sirius rolled his eyes. "And what's this about making pranks funny and not hurtful?" he gestured at step 2. "The hurtful ones are the funniest. Do you remember that girl we had you pretend to date in third year and then we dumped Stinksap—"?
"That was Lily," I reminded him.
"Oh." Pause. "I see your point," he agreed.
"Any other complaints?" I asked him.
"Well, not a complaint," he handed the lists to me, "but why do you have to watch old movies?"
"Lily said she likes guys who are old fashioned, so I'm going to act like an gentleman from," I hesitated, "Well, from a while ago."
Sirius sighed. "Where did I go wrong with you?" he asked.
"When you didn't send me off to another school the first time I ranted at you about my undying love for Lily Evans," I told him.
"Oh. Shucks."
The difficulties began the next day.
I was minding my own business and just walking down the halls with my usual carefree saunter when a very scared, thin, pinched faced, pale, blonde first year boy in a Slytherin uniform walked past me. My wand was already in the air before I remembered my promise. I hesitated and the boy squeaked, hiding behind a big fifth year Hufflepuff girl.
Thinking it in my best interests not to irritate the burly Hufflepuff-think "strong like bull" Russian women-I instantly lowered my wand and chuckled as though I had never intended to throw a bat bogey hex at him. Peter laughed too, as I had known he would, and everyone just thought that all I had intended to do was startle him a bit, keep him on his toes.
But Lily didn't think that.
"How could you scare that poor little boy?" she asked me in an angry whisper during History of Magic, next period. I never understood why people bothered to whisper in that class. The wizened old Professor Binns never noticed anything. We could have blasted jazz music and started swing dancing on the desks and he probably wouldn't have noticed [I made a mental note to get Lily to do that with me once we were dating]. "He just got here and already he's being terrorized by none other then the Head Boy him self!" she finished. It only occurred to me later that Lily was probably whispering so that no one would notice that she was talking to me.
"I didn't do anything to him," I protested.
"You scared him out of his wits," Lily shook her head. "You're unbelievable, Potter."
"But Lily," I tried to get her to talk to me but her back was completely turned and she was determinedly not looking at me.
I spent the last of the class repeated the mantra in my head. Do not jinx undeserving people, do not jinx undeserving people, do not jinx undeserving people…It didn't work as well as I thought. Unfortunately I believed that everyone in Slytherin was completely deserving of a good hex every now and then to keep them in place. My love for, or more accurately at the time, my obsession with Lily Evans won over however and I refrained from hexing anyone—even Snivellus—for the rest of the two week period.
Regardless of my new unhexing persona, Lily wouldn't talk to me for the duration of those two weeks because she was too angry with me for startling the first year.
On the 14th however, the last day of my No-Hexing step, she did speak to me again. All through lunch I wouldn't leave her alone.
"Lily." I sat down next to her. "Oh Lily dear, darling." I wrapped an arm around her shoulders which she shrugged off. "My Pearl, oh sweet Lilykins." I saw her jaw clench but still she wouldn't talk to me. "Remus, pass the pumpkin juice please." I paused my pleading. "Lillian, my love," I cajoled sweetly, "Please at least look at me." She turned in her seat to glower at me. "That's better. I want to show you something dear Lily. Something you'll just love. Come with me out into the Entrance Hall, love and I'll show you. You'll love it. Lily, Liii-llllyyy."
"Fine," she stood up and stormed out of the Great Hall. I followed gleefully.
"Right here," I crossed the empty hall and opened a broom cupboard.
"I'm not going to snog you Potter," she protested.
"That's not what I'm after at the moment," I said, ushering the first year Slytherin I'd scared out of the broom cupboard. "But if that's where your thoughts are headed," I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively.
But she wasn't listening. "Why did you have that poor boy locked up in a broom cupboard?" Her eyes flashed and her hands clenched into fists.
"Because otherwise he would have run away," I stated the obvious. The boy was shaking slightly as he rubbed his eyes to get used to the light.
"You poor dear," Lily rushed over and pulled him away from me.
"No, no, wait," I grabbed the boy's shoulder. "I locked him up so that you could see me do this." I knelt down on one knee so that my head was level with the boy's. "What's your name?"
"Ch-ch-chris," he stammered. "Chris Smithesson."
"Nice to meet you Chris Smithesson," I held out my hand to him. "I'm James Potter and I'm the Head Boy here at Hogwarts." He nodded. "I'm terribly sorry I scared you in the halls earlier today," I paused, considering. "And then for locking you up in a broom cupboard. It was truly awful of me. I don't know what came over me but I apologize most sincerely to you. Can you ever forgive me?" He grinned and nodded furiously. "I think we were just about made to be friends. I even think you'd look like me a little bit if you got rid of that awful part in your hair." Chris hurriedly swept a hand through his hair in a gesture rather like mine and mussed it up. "Perfect. Well then, why don't you run into the Great Hall and have yourself some dinner," I told him. "Make sure you try the Treacle Tart, it's delicious." I smiled at his retreating back. Then I turned to face Lily. She was crying.
"Lily? Lily, what's wrong?" I rushed towards her but then stopped, knowing she wouldn't take well to being hugged by me. "What did I do?" I asked, standing an awkward one foot away, not sure what exactly to do with myself.
She shook her head. "Not me?" She nodded. "Chris?" my tone was dark and angry. She shook her head again. "Then who?"
"It's just how you, how you," she laughed and cried at the same time and then shook her head. "I mean, you locked the kid up in a broom cupboard just so that I could watch you apologize to him. It's so mean but you didn't mean it to be mean. You're just so stupid. So adorably stupid!"
I was trying to decide if I was more complimented or insulted when she threw her arms around my neck and hugged me. She let go however and ran away after a split second. I stared after her confusedly and rubbed the back of my neck. Shaking my head with a smile, I walked back to the Great Hall to eat.
I think Step One was somewhat of a success.
A/N: Likes? Dislikes? Comments on the weather? Feel free to review!