Disclaimer: The characters, setting, background story, etc. all belong to JK Rowling.

Chapter 4

Nimbostratus Part 1

Nimbostratus clouds form a gray cloudy layer often associated with continuous but light rain or snow.

The only thing that had kept him from going insane in the last week, James thought sourly as he pulled his robes on over his head, was the reply from Lily he had received shortly after that fateful conversation with his father.

It was only a few lines, scribbled hastily on the back of the same piece of parchment James had sent her.

I'm fine. And I wouldn't apparate to Cokeworth if I were you, it's an all muggle town, and the police wouldn't take your sudden appearance well.

Lily.

It wasn't much, but it had told James what he needed to know, that she was alive and unhurt.

James sighed and turned to the mirror, pulling down his eyelid and carefully poking in those infernal muggle contraptions-contact lenses, they called them. The week before his father had told him his glasses had to go. Apparently they made him look "studious" rather than athletic. Another step in Charlus's grand plan to get the media to love James, evidently.

James swore as he accidentally jabbed his finger into his eye, dropping the contact lense on the floor.

"Accio contact lense," he grumbled.

All this could have been avoided, as his father constantly reminded him, if he had only been able to perform a simple Clarity spell on himself routinely.

James snorted. He had never been particularly good at Charms. James preferred Transfiguration, but unless he planned on Transfiguring his eyes into a pair of binoculars, that skill would be absolutely useless to him in this situation. The only person he knew that was actually good at sodding Charms was-

"All right there, Prongs?" boomed Sirius, banging open the door and bouncing into the room.

James jumped, poking his finger into his eye again.

"OUCH. Bloody hell, you twat, can't you make any less of an entrance?"

"What can I say? I just have that effect on people," said Sirius, winking at himself in the mirror.

James rolled his watering eyes.

"Is Jamesiekins all ready for his big date today?" cooed Sirius, pinching James's cheek.

James punched him. "Geroff me you mangy mutt."

Sirius laughed. "Hey, its not my fault that today, while I'm picking up hot birds at Diagon Alley, you'll be stuck with Skeets."

"Yeah, well that wasn't my choice, was it?" James muttered, finally succeeding in getting his contact lense in.

"Hey, who knows? Maybe you'll finally get over Evans." Sirius said, leaning back on James's desk.

"Yeah. Maybe." said James, pulling on his worn leather chaser's gloves.

"Anyway, Mum wanted you down for breakfast." Sirius continued.

"Yeah I'm heading down now."

"Cool. See you in Diagon Alley." Sirius said, pushing himself off of James's desk and heading for the door.

"Leaving already?" James said in surprise. "I thought we were leaving together."

"Got to go to Gringotts. See about that inheritance ol' Uncle Alphard left me," Sirius said.

"Oh." said James, trying to shake the odd feeling that Sirius was hiding something from him. "I'll...see you later then."

"Later, mate." There was a pop as Sirius apparated off.

James descended the stairs alone and seated himself at the cozy round table in the kitchen.

"Good morning, sunshine!" said his mother happily.

James selfishly savored the fact that both his father and Sirius were not at home and he had his mother all to himself.

"Morning, mum."

"Ready for your big date today?"

Maybe it was the fact that Sirius and Dorea had used the exact same phrase five minutes apart. Maybe it was just the fact that this whole thing was so ridiculous. James didn't know what it was, but something inside him snapped. James slammed his hands on the table and pushed back, suddenly standing up. "No. No, I'm not." he snapped. "I didn't want this, Mum, or didn't you remember?"

"Calm down, sweetie," Dorea said quietly, her brown eyes filling with tears.

James instantly regretted his harsh words, remembering his mother standing up to his father, arguing for her son.

"Mum…"

Dorea waved him off. "Sit down, James. Eat something."

James sat and took a bite of egg to satisfy her.

"James...I know this isn't what you wanted, but-"

"But what, mum?"

"This is your window of opportunity, son. Your father and I both want the best for you. We want your talent to be recognized. And if this is the way to do it, then that's what we'll do." Dorea reached across the table and took her son's hand.

James observed with a small tinge of surprise in the pit of his stomach the wrinkles in his mother's hand. James knew his parents had had him late in life but he hadn't noticed how quickly they were aging.

"This is ridiculous though!" James hissed, despite himself. "I'm not that kind of person, Mum!"

"This is about that Evans girl, isn't it?" Dorea said wisely.

"Even if it weren't for her, this is so underhanded!" James muttered.

"James, look at me."

James met his mother's eyes.

"James..sometimes…" Dorea hesitated for a moment, then continued. "Sometimes it isn't your first love, but your second one that counts."

"Who was your first love then?"

Dorea looked taken aback.

"That's what you're trying to say, isn't it? Dad wasn't the one you wanted to be with." the words rushed from James's mouth. He had to know.

"James…" Dorea sighed. "James, pureblood marriages are marriages of power and prestige. Love is secondary. I need you to understand that. Yours, especially in light of your career, is likely to be the same."

"But do you love him?" The words came out so childish, so needy. James didn't understand why it mattered to him. He was seventeen after all, an adult, about to be a world-famous Quidditch player. Sirius didn't know, didn't care if his parents loved each other, of all things. Why should it matter? Why did it matter to James?

Dorea hesitated. "Of course. Finish your breakfast, James, you're running late."

It was a lie. They both knew he wasn't late.

"I'm not hungry." James said quietly, pushing away his unfinished breakfast. He stood and strode out of the room, thoughts of the cobblestone streets and shopfronts of Diagon Alley filling his head as he turned on his heel.

It was a clear day, with sparse, high clouds yet medium sun. Perfect conditions for flying. James scowled as he gazed into the dark, crowded enclosed spaces of Flourish and Blotts. He'd much rather be up in the air.

"Come on, son." said Charlus putting an arm around James's shoulders and guiding him into the bookstore.

"Now remember," Charlus added in an undertone. "Puddlemere. Behave."

The store was filled with middle aged witches, all eager to meet the famous Margarita. Once, James spotted a group of girls from Hogwarts and, in spite of himself, searched in vain for a flash of red hair.

To James's horror, Charlus guided James all the way to the front of the line for autographs to a blonde woman with a mess of curls set elaborately around her head, like a flaxen mane.

"Margarita m'dear!" called Charlus jovially to the woman, who looked around at him.

"Charlus! What a lovely surprise!" she cried, although it was evident from her tone that she was not surprised at all.

James suppressed the urge to glower at her. What deal had Charlus made with this woman?

"And this must be your daughter Rita!" Charlus exclaimed, turning his attention to an equally blonde girl with an extremely angular jaw. She was wearing, as always, bejeweled glasses that only enhanced her outstanding resemblance to a beetle, in James's opinion.

"Rita, I believe you've met my son James?" Charlus continued.

"Yes," Rita replied, eyeing James skeptically, "We're classmates at school. How's your summer been, James?"

"Fine, thank you, Skee- I mean, Rita." This made James sick. All this pretending and making nice. He and the Skeeter girl were most certainly not on first-name basis at school. Far from it, actually.

Charlus threw his son a significant glance.

James's glance landed on the store window of Quality Quidditch Supplies across the street. A prominently displayed Puddlemere United Jersey was hung in the window.

He turned the charm on easily, it was second nature to him. A knack for Quidditch wasn't the only thing he had inherited from his father, regardless of what he'd like to believe.

He let a casual smirk fall onto his lips.

"How was your summer, Rita? Actually, why don't you tell me all about it at Fortescue's?" The words came out smooth and suave. They always did. Unless of course, he was talking to Lily Ev-

No. He would not allow his thoughts to wander there.

Rita raised her eyebrows slightly. "Only if you're paying," she quipped lightly. "You don't mind, do you, Mother?"

Margarita looked positively ecstatic. "Not at all, Rita, not at all."

Charlus' expression oozed smugness. James looked away.

"Shall we get going then, Rita?"

They walked down Diagon Alley toward Fortescue's. James spotted several of his Quidditch teammates doing a double take at seeing who he was with. He determinedly avoided their eyes, fixing his stare on the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies instead.

"So…" James began. "I noticed you're contributing to the Daily Prophet now...congratulations."

"Oh you saw it, did you?" Rita grinned. "What did you think?"

James suppressed a scowl. "The delivery was excellent, but I think you've got a couple of your facts wrong."

"Is that so?" Rita said, her sinister smile widening as they turned into the courtyard outside of Fortescue's.

"Table for two, please." James said to Florean Fortescue dully, who led them to a sunny table on facing the street.

"What, precisely, was inaccurate about my article, James?" Rita asked faux sweetly, sitting down at the table.

James took the seat across from her and stared her directly in the eyes. "I am Big League material, actually." he said confidently.

"Are you really?" Rita said, producing a quill and a sheet of parchment out of nowhere. "Prove it."

James opened his mouth to retaliate, but before he could, he heard it. The sound that was simultaneously the voice he had been longing to hear for months and the last sound he wanted to hear at the moment.

"Hello. My name is Lily and I'll be your waitress today. What can I get you two-"

James desperately wanted to hide his face. Or fly away. Whichever would save him the embarrassment of being seen on an ice cream date with Rita of all people in front of Lily Evans.

Too late. Lily stopped short, recognizing him as well.

Her green eyes glanced swiftly at Rita and back to him. She raised a thin, red eyebrow.

"Ev-Evans!" James spluttered, all traces of smoothness going out the window. "You work here?"

It was just his luck that Lily would work here the one time he really didn't want to see her, he thought as he took in her black Fortescue's apron, complete with a little tag that read "Lily".

"Yes I 'work' here, Potter," she said, the irritation that so often filled her voice when she was talking to him returning, "Alice's dad owns this place, remember? I'm staying with Alice this summer so I'm helping out around the shop."

"Oh." James replied stupidly, caught between the continuing urge to fly far far away in embarrassment and the desire to say something, anything to make her stay longer.

James hated it, but he had missed her. And from the looks of things, it wasn't mutual.

"Anyways," Lily said, cutting through his reverie. "What can I get you...two…"

Lily glanced back at Rita, who smiled widely.

"I was thinking the 'Couples' Special'," Rita said "sweetly". "How does that sound to you, James?"

"Er…" James said, hoping to convey to Lily how much he didn't want to be here, that he and Rita were most certainly not together.

"One Couples Special," Lily said to herself as she scribbled on her little notepad. Her freckles rippled as she scrunched up her nose. "Anything else?"

"I'll take the mint-chocolate chip thing," James said, tearing his attention away from the way the wind played with her hair and back to the menu in his hands.

"The lady already ordered for you, Potter," she said.

"Erm...she did?" James said, but his thoughts were elsewhere. Was it just him, or had there been a trace of resentment in her voice when she said that?

Before James could be sure, she had turned and walked away.

Moments later, she returned, levitating an enormous dish of ice cream smothered in chocolate covered cherries in front of her.

She set it on the table. "There you are. One Couples' Special. Enjoy."

"Where's mine?" James asked, wincing as he realized he sounded like a petulant child.

In response, Lily produced not one, but two spoons.

...Couple's Special.

Lily smirked at the shocked expression on his face.

Then she turned and walked away, leaving him to share an ice cream with Rita Skeeter.

Leaving him to realize how much he'd still rather be here with her, instead.

Author's Note: So sorry for the long wait! (Again.) It is my great pleasure to present to you another chapter! This is just the first part, but hopefully part two won't be too long in coming.

Please review! Let me know what you think, good, bad, or ugly. :)

More Rita to come in part two!

Yours,

VictoryNike

2/21/2014