Critical Mass
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Part Two: Theory
I. James Potter
There once was a boy who was named James Potter.
He took a particular interest in Lily.
In fact, he fancied her.
But Lily didn't like him at all.
Why?
It may have been because he was rather bothersome to her, with his non-stop invitations on dates.
It may have been because he was rather arrogant, to her, without a good reason.
Or, maybe, possibly, it was because he tried to bring change.
II. Difference
James Potter was unlike anyone she'd ever met.
He was so carefree, for one thing.
And he was rich.
He was very good at Quidditch.
And Lily even thought he was rather good-looking.
He was smart, and also funny.
But he was incredibly arrogant.
He was different.
However, all this would have been inconsequential, if not for one more fact.
He tried to bring change to her.
And this made all the difference.
III. It Begins
To be honest, he intimidated her.
Someone so popular and, frankly, well-rounded, trying to take down her walls.
He cared enough to try and see her for who she really was.
Of course, neither of them realized this at the beginning.
To James, she was a beautiful, wonderful girl whom he fancied.
To Lily, he was just an annoying and intimidating guy whom she loathed.
Neither one realized how important he actually was to her (though James had a pretty good idea).
It didn't matter to them.
Not yet.
But he was trying.
And, really, that was all that mattered.
IV. Fight or Flight
He scared her.
She was afraid to let him in.
She couldn't suffer another loss.
That was why she had those walls.
But he was still trying to get in.
And that scared her.
But there was no place left to run.
So she fought.
She fought hard, and she fought valiantly.
And, for a long time, she held him off.
But he kept trying.
And he came up with a plan.
V. Analysis
He assessed the situation.
He realized that Lily had walls to keep him from getting in.
He realized that he would have to take down Lily's walls.
He talked to Remus Lupin, who was a very smart boy.
Remus Lupin showed him a way to take down walls.
Repetitive assault.
In theory, if one is to constantly apply a certain pressure to the walls for a long enough time, then a hole should be created or, possibly, the walls will just come down.
VI. Action
So James tried this.
It didn't work out so well.
He was very blatant about his pressure, asking Lily out every hour on the hour, every day.
In fact, he was so blatant that Lily was quick to notice and realize what was going on.
And Lily built up her walls stronger, in order to resist this attack.
As a result, the rate at which Lily fortified herself grew to become much greater than the rate at which James took down her walls.
Also, Lily was able to adapt and evolve and make herself immune to James' attacks.
So, really, James was just making things worse.
There was a bright side, though.
Well, not so much a bright side as a light at the end of the tunnel, or a silver lining on a cloud.
There was another way to take down walls.
And James Potter was about to figure it out.