A/N: I thought this was necessary. Just a reminder, these chapters don't necessarily have to be in order of events. Also, I do plan to end this, just not any time soon!
~Maya
First War Series
Weddings and News
The door crashed open to reveal a very flustered Lily Potter, hopping on one foot as she tried to squeeze her other into a glossy pink shoe.
"I'm sorry! Merlin, I'm sorry! I got held up at—" But Lily stopped short, for the beautiful woman in front of her temporarily rid her of the ability to speak.
All the light in the room seemed to be coming from Alice Fortescue, who was absolutely glowing. At the moment, however, her bridal smile had been replaced by a dirty look directed at Lily.
"Bitch," she grumbled teasingly. "Can't even show up to the wedding on time. Some bridesmaid you are."
"Technically, it's not the wedding yet," Lily pointed out with a smile. "And maybe if you'd made me the Maid of Honor I'd take my responsibilities more seriously."
"Showing up late on the big day without even having that many responsibilities? Pfft, like I'd even think of asking more of you," scoffed Alice, returning to the mirror.
Lily laughed. "You look beautiful, Alice."
The giddy smile returned to Alice's face. "I know, right?" she giggled. "You're a vision, too."
"Not nearly as much as you."
"Can you two bloody stop!" cried Mary McDonald, the Maid of Honor, in frustration. "I need Alice to not move if I'm going to finish this makeup spell without turning her into a clown."
"All right, all right, Mary. I'll shut up," said Lily, grinning. "Alice, d'you need me to fit your dress better?"
"My dress doesn't fit right?" Alice screeched, jumping ten feet in the air.
"GODDAMMIT, ALICE!"
Alice's sudden movement had resulted in several red streaks of makeup across her face. Everyone in the room burst into laughter as Mary, cursing, began makeup removal spells on Alice's face.
"No, it looks good," said Lily. It really did. The white dress fell to her ankles and seemed to float elegantly on her body, baring her Cinderella slippers. It did perfect justice to Alice's short, lean figure, and allowed her to show off her best features with class. Lily remembered her own wedding day a few months prior; she'd worn a flouncy white sundress that seemed to hang casually on her body from the straps, with the sand from the beach squeezing itself between her bare toes. It most certainly had not been as classic as Alice's wedding, but Lily could not remember a moment when she had felt more beautiful.
"You look perfect, Lily," said Mary, eyeing her up and down.
"Thanks," she breathed. "You look great, too. I definitely picked the right bridesmaid wardrobe."
Mary's dress was a gentle, pale blue, longer than Lily's and more fitted. She was wearing white shoes and had matched with it a thin chain with a single pearl dangling from it for her neck.
"Thank you," Mary smiled. "The guests are all here. Alice is ushering in the last few. It's almost time."
Lily's heart swelled and her stomach fluttered. Within moments, she would walk out into the warm afternoon, face the horizon, and promise to reach for it with the man next to her.
"I just wish Mum and Dad could've lived to see this," she murmured sadly to herself. With a pang, she thought of her sister, who at this moment might be watering her precious begonias in some square house in Surrey, waiting until the evening when her husband would come home. As far as Petunia was concerned, Lily was no more than that distant relative in a mental ward no one liked to speak of.
"Where's your Maid—sorry, Man—of Honor?" said Mary, glancing around the empty room.
"Groom needed him," Lily replied, amused. "No surprises there."
"Have you seen Frank? Or Gideon?" Lily asked Mary.
"Not the groom. Best man? Saw him an hour ago," Mary replied tersely, now touching up Alice's curls with her wand.
"Is he doing all right?" she said in a low voice, while one of the other bridesmaids distracted Alice.
At this, Mary looked up quickly. There had recently been news that the Prewetts' father had been captured and killed because of his sons' involvement with the Order of the Phoenix. News like this made Lily feel relieved that her parents had died peacefully, and that her sister was out of even her own reach, let alone the Death Eaters'. "I think so," Mary murmured. "Got some new nephews to distract him, though, hasn't he?"
Smiling slightly, Lily nodded. "This is what? Molly's third time?"
"Fourth," she corrected, smiling back. "Or fourth and fifth, depending on how you look at it."
"Twins," said Lily, shaking her head in awe. "I can't believe it."
"Have you seen them?" Alice put in. "They're just lovely."
"I'm sure they are," said Lily. "I've seen the others. Three amazing looking boys, all redheads, all smiling. That Bill's turning into quite the looker, isn't he?"
"Oh yes," Mary agreed, smiling broadly. "He's going to be married to some beautiful, glamorous woman one day."
"Yes, yes," said Alice in mock impatience, "but can we focus on the beautiful, glamorous woman of today?"
Laughing, the women turned back to the bride.
"Frank's going to piss his pants when he sees you," teased Catalina Fortescue, one of Alice's cousins.
"Shut up," said Alice, smacking her arm.
"Frank's going to love you, Alice," Lily reassured her, rolling her eyes at Catalina. Clearly, Catalina Fortescue had never been married, or she would know that a girl sitting in Alice's place would most certainly quail at any thought of the man at the altar freaking out.
When Lily had been waiting in the kitchen of the beach house, looking out the window at the congregation that had gathered, she'd nearly fallen apart.
"What if he loses it? What if he gets cold feet?" Lily demanded, pacing around the room.
By her side was her absolute best friend, her Man of Honor, Remus Lupin, who was patiently allowing her to inflict her bridal tension on him.
"He won't, Lily," said Remus. "Trust me."
"How can you know that?"
"I'm his best friend," he reminded her. "And he's mine. I know that he's never loved another woman as much as he loves you."
Sighing, she plopped herself down onto a wooden chair and let her head fall onto the kitchen table. "Remus, we're in the middle of a war," she said in a small voice. "I know it's only beginning, but I can't help but think about it."
For a moment, the two were silent, and then Remus pulled his chair closer to Lily's and wrapped his arms tightly around her.
"Lily," he began in a low voice, "you're about to go out there and marry a man who's going to love you for the rest of his life and beyond that. And you're going to do the same with him. I can't promise you that you'll grow old together and have lots of babies and we'll always come 'round once a year for a big family gathering, but I can promise that you'll have a happy ending with James."
Lily looked up at him, a mixture of fear and hope in her face. "You mean that?"
"I do," he said, squeezing her shoulders.
The door creaked open, and Mary poked her head in. "It's time," she whispered.
There was a knock at the door, and in came Fabian Prewett, brother of the best man.
"Bloody hell," he chortled, taking in the sight. "I just felt the estrogen level in this building shoot up."
"Are you here for a reason, Fabian?" said Alice, irritated.
"Sorry," he muttered, still smiling. "Just to tell you it's time to go out there."
Instantly, Alice paled and began hyperventilating.
"Whoa!" cried Fabian, throwing his hands up. "Do I need to call for a Healer? I'm not sure how Frank would feel about his bride having a nervous breakdown upon hearing that it's time to go and promise to spend the rest of her life with him."
"Shut up, Fabian!" Lily snapped.
Mary was rubbing Alice's back soothingly, murmuring soft encouragements.
"Okay, okay, I was joking!" said Fabian. "Look, Alice, really. The only thing you need to worry about is Frank missing when he tries to kiss you. Seriously, the man is wild about you. He's not even nervous right now. Pull it together, because you're going to be happy for the rest of your life after today, no matter what happens."
His words seemed to sedate her, and she stood up shakily, but with a smile nevertheless.
"I guess you're right," she said apologetically, taking his arm.
Fabian merely grinned, and gestured for the bridesmaids to lead the way out the door. Lily stepped onto the runway carpet and was instantly overwhelmed by the swell of a string quartet and the smell of peonies floating in the air. As she gazed around at the guests, she spotted her husband up in the front, looking back and grinning at her, his hair mussed up as usual and glasses lopsided. Beside him sat his elegantly handsome best friend. Sirius Black, rather than looking back at the bride's entrance like everyone else was, stared up at the front at a beaming Frank Longbottom. And when Lily turned her eyes on him, she slipped back to her own walk down the aisle.
She had refused to be given away. Lily had always believed firmly that she was her own person, no one's to give away. Her vision blocked slightly by the sheer veil that fell just below her eyes, she made her way down the aisle of sand between the rows of guests. There was no music, only the sound of the ocean waves gently lapping at the shore and seagulls cawing above. The salty ocean smell drifted around her as the wind caressed the straight red locks that framed her face.
A murmur of awe rippled through the small gathering of loved ones, and it filled her heart with happiness. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the pointed hat of Albus Dumbledore and the grisly face that could only be Mad-Eye Moody's. On the other side there were Benjy Fenwick, Marlene McKinnon, and even Molly and Arthur Weasley had come. But she only had eyes for the man before her, standing, grinning broadly, at the altar.
At this moment, there could not have been a happier man in the world. Shining with happiness in his brand new tuxedo, Frank beamed at Lily as she passed him to take her place at the altar, and she smiled back warmly. Looking down at the guests once more, Lily caught her husband's eye again.
Grinning, James mouthed, "You look beautiful."
She smiled at him and nodded her thanks.
Then, Sirius nudged him, looked up at Lily and mouthed, "Better than the bride."
Unable to help herself, Lily rolled her eyes. Those boys would never change. As the bridesmaids settled into their places the music started a different tune, and everyone turned back to watch the entrance excitedly. Finally, the door swung open and there emerged the most beautiful thing Lily had ever seen.
On the arm of the tall, handsome Fabian Prewett, Alice Fortescue was magnificent, and her beauty fell like gentle raindrops on the people around her. The entire room seemed to hold its breath as she walked gracefully down the aisle. She had a shy smile on her face, and her eyes were fixed on Frank. She was shaking very slightly, but Fabian's strong build steadied her, and it was almost unnoticeable. Lily noticed him murmuring words of encouragement through his broad smile, and chortled under her breath.
Shyly but breathtakingly, Alice took her place in front of the teary groom, who whispered so softly that Lily almost didn't catch it, "I love you. You're perfect."
Lily stood before the man she was about to marry, drinking in his appearance. James was clad in a black tuxedo, complete with bow-tie and boutonniere. His hair looked as though he had taken extra time to muss it up, but she knew that hours must have gone into the frantic and frustrating attempt of getting it to lie flat, thus resulting in an extra-messy look. He was smiling widely, eyes sparkling, and immediately every fear that he would get cold feet was banished from Lily's mind. He looked perfect.
When she stood before him, he presented her with the most dazzling smile she'd ever seen him wear, one that made her go weak at the knees.
The ceremony and the vows had most certainly been beautiful, but Lily had only just stumbled through it, waiting for the part where she could take James to be hers forever.
James pulled out of the kiss, cocked an eyebrow mischievously, and whispered in her ear, "I want to ravage you right here on the beach."
Letting out a not-so-surprised laugh, she rolled her eyes and whispered back, "Only if you let me take off the tux."
He threw his head back and laughed, letting her out of his embrace. "Merlin, woman, I love you."
"I love you, too."
As she watched Alice dance with Frank in the middle of the ballroom floor, Lily found herself stepping closer to the man she was dancing with. James smiled down warmly at her and let his hands wrap more tightly around her waist.
"They are so perfect for each other, aren't they?" she said.
"Couldn't agree more," said James.
"I'm really glad they did this," she said quietly. The war had been preventing normal lifestyles all through the Wizarding world and especially in the Order of the Phoenix. Alice and Frank getting married would give them all some much-needed hope.
"Well, they are in the Order," James murmured.
She cocked an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Only the bravest of the brave can be in the Order without cracking," he explained. "Getting married during this time is much braver than going out to fight Death Eaters or spying for Dumbledore. Alice and Frank are…the bravest of the brave."
Lily nodded. Then, teasingly, she leaned in and whispered, "We got married during this time."
James scoffed and kissed her playfully. "We're already the bravest of the brave. Everyone knows that," he replied proudly.
Laughing, Lily gazed up at the man she married, her soul mate, her James, with intense love and fondness. There were moments when she simply couldn't believe how it had all worked out; a few years ago, she and James could barely be in a room together without starting some kind of fight. Now, they couldn't even imagine life without each other.
"So was she mad at you for being late?" said James teasingly.
Lily shook her head. "She was too happy to be."
"Did you tell her the news?" he asked in hushed tones.
"No," she admitted. "Today's her day. And besides, I wanted to tell the boys first."
With a broad grin, James nodded in agreement. "I can't wait to tell them."
Two weeks later, a happily married Alice Longbottom was holding her wand nervously to her abdomen with her husband by her side. He was squeezing her hand tightly and had his eyes shut; his face was expressionless.
"So if it glows red, it means…"
"I'm pregnant," Alice finished.
"Right," he breathed.
"No, Frank," she said, her voice quaking. "I'm pregnant."
Frank's eyes flew open and snapped to his wife's wand, which was emitting a faint, red glow.
"Merlin," he whispered.
"Merlin?" she teased. "You want to name our kid 'Merlin?' I don't think that's going to work. Especially not if it's a girl."
Laughing in sheer disbelief, he hugged her around the waist.
"A baby," he sighed happily.
"A baby," she repeated, looking up at Frank and then down at her belly. With a small smile, she realized she was looking at the life they'd made for themselves. And she couldn't be happier with it.
A/N: I really hope you enjoyed that! I had originally intended it to be about Alice, but as I was writing it, it started to become Lily's story. I thought the moment in the end captured a part of Alice's and Frank's relationship nicely. If I get any inspiration, I will write one about Alice and/or Frank. Please, please leave your thoughts!
~Maya
