Holy Jesus, guys, you took my requested 10 reviews and absolutely positively blew it out of the water! I was freaking out! You guys are absolutely amazing, so, in return, I'm presenting you with one of my longest, and personal favorite chapters yet. I really hope you all enjoy this as much as I did writing it. :) THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Maybe we can do just as awesome this time? - Jen
And That's When A Bludger Came Through My Window
Chapter 9
I was positively frantic by six pm the next day. I guess something about the two weeks waiting for this date, and the possibility of it never happening, made me twice as nervous. And I was never nervous. I was a picture of calm and collectivity at all times. Why now? Why with James Potter?
"Stop laughing!" I demanded, as I watched Isabelle hide her giggles behind her hand.
"I'm sorry!" She snickered. "You're just so adorable, Lily."
I fidgeted with the hem of my shirt. "I don't think I can do this, Belle." I sighed, ignoring her previous comment.
Isabelle raised an eyebrow at me. "You were sure about it last time around."
"I know, but I've had a few weeks to think about it now, and I... He's James Potter, for Merlin's sake!" I protested, remembering the past six years.
"Yes. And he adores you." Isabelle patted my shoulder. "Everything will be fine. Trust me, Lils."
"I'm going on a date with James Potter." I said matter-of-factly. Saying it aloud hit me like a sack of bricks. I was going on a date with James Potter. James Potter, the man I detested for six long, prank-filled years. What was wrong with me? Had I gone mental? I hated this man - nay! - this boy! Why was I suddenly extremely and disgustingly nervous to go on a date with him? This had to be some long, elaborate prank. I heard Isabelle laugh again, and I narrowed my eyes at her.
"Is this funny to you?" I growled. She erupted into a hysterical fit of giggles.
"It's hysterical, Lily!" She cried through spurts of laughter. "Every single one of our friends have been waiting for this day for six years, and I doubt any of them expected you to be nervous, or, for that matter, in your right mind. There was a betting pool going around in fifth year whether or not he'd imperius you into this date."
I flopped down on the couch. "I haven't been imperius have I?" I whimpered. I'd know, right? I'd know if I had an imperius curse on me, wouldn't I?
Isabelle rolled her eyes, but before she could speak, the doorbell rang.
I didn't move. Why weren't my legs working? Where was my brain? Did my hair look alright? Was my skirt too short? My eyes were wide and my fingers felt numb. My heart was racing, and my breath was quickening. What was wrong with me? Is this what it felt like to be on drugs? In my muggle classes, they taught us about drugs. Had I been drugged? Oh god.
Isabelle answered the door for me, wrenching it open with a wide-spread smile on her face. I couldn't look. What if it wasn't him? What if it was Sirius, coming to jump out and shout 'April Fools!' James doesn't really want to go on a date with you, it was all a game!
It wasn't even April.
Oh god, I couldn't do this. My entire body felt like Jello.
"Where's Lily? She's coming, isn't she? Oh merlin - She's forgotten, hasn't she?" I heard James voice come from the doorway. Isabelle giggled wildly again.
"He's been like this all day." A second voice, Sirius' voice, mentioned.
"So has Lily." Isabelle replied. She turned to look at me, and beckoned her head for me to walk over there. I took a deep breath. I could do this.
I could do this, Right?
I stood up, my legs feeling shaky and unstable. I could do this. I had to do this. What in Merlin's name was wrong with me?
I walked to the doorway, and there stood James Potter. His messy black hair situated as neatly as possible atop his head. His eyes seemed to light up at the sight of me, and his crooked, cocky smile adorned his face. I couldn't help but smile back, and although I detested the thought, my heart seemed to skip a few beats.
"Nice of you to show up, this time." I smiled. Nice to know my sarcasm still worked.
"Er..." Was All James said, His eyes didn't leave mine.
"Our little kids are all grown up." Sirius said in a sad voice. He feigned crying onto Isabelle's shoulders.
"They grow up so fast!" Isabelle added, acting just as Sirius had.
"Soon enough they'll be married with little James' and little Lily's running around!" Continued Sirius.
"And we'll be god-parents - oh dear!" Isabelle finished. The two pretended to cry some more.
"Cut it out, Padfoot." James growled to his friend.
"Anyway, you two be off. Have her home by Midnight, James. No excuses, or were sending Sirius after you." Isabelle spoke, crossing her arms.
"Yes, Mother." I rolled my eyes.
"Don't worry, I'll keep Isabelle company in the mean time." Sirius smiled wickedly.
"Sirius, be nice." I warned. Instead of replying, he simply looked his arm around Isabelle, and the two pushed us outside, closing the door behind us. I could have sworn I heard Isabelle curse herself for not taking pictures of us before we left. Thank goodness she hadn't.
"So..." I said awkwardly. James ran a hand through his hair.
He stared at me for a moment, and then suddenly grabbed my hand, and pulled me off the porch.
To my amazement, we started on our normal route towards the quidditch pitch.
"James, the town is the other direction." I argued. He still had my hand in hold.
"We're not going to the town." He laughed. "Don't worry. I promised you the best date ever, and that's what you're going to get."
We continued walking - hand in hand - down to where the sea reached the land, and then we started to walk towards his house. We stopped halfway there.
"Have you ever been fishing, Lily?" He asked. Taken-back, I shook my head. "Never? But isn't it a muggle sport?"
I shrugged. "My parents aren't very into outdoor sports."
"Have you ever been on a boat?" He asked next.
"Er... my parents and I went on a cruise once." I offered. He shook his head.
"Oh, Lily Evans, I have so much to teach you." He grabbed hold of my hand again, and walked me down the beach a little further until we reached a pier.
The pier was old and shaky, and there were planks missing every few steps. I walked carefully, but James seemed to know the route perfectly, and hopped over the gaps without a thought. I was slowly falling behind him, and he had to wait for me to catch up.
At the end of the pier sat an old wooden boat. The boards looked as if they were rotting, and I secretly worried that it would fall apart as soon as we stepped in. Inside the boat sat two oars, and two fishing poles. James stepped in, and then reached out for my hand. I hesitated, and he laughed.
"It's fine, Lily. I promise."
"I'm going to sink it!" I complained. He laughed again.
"You're not going to sink it." He assured me. When I didn't grab his hand, he leaned over and grabbed it - pulling me closer to the edge of the pier, to the point that I could have sworn I was falling in, and then he grabbed my waist and lifted me into the boat.
We were close. Closer than I'd ever been to James Potter. But I didn't have time to dwell on it, as at that same moment, I realized the boat was rocking in tune with the waves and I immediately sat down as not to fall over. He ran a hand through his hair, and followed in suit.
James picked up the oars, and pushed us away from the dock. He started to row us out into the sea. I tried not to look worried, but I was. I wasn't the best swimmer, and this boat felt like it was falling apart. James exchanged reassuring glances with me every few minutes, and then finally, I spotted our destination.
A small island began to appear in the distance. It grew the closer we got. I knew James was watching me as I watched the island get closer - but I didn't care. It looked so... perfect. Perfectly round, with a perfect beach surrounding it, perfect trees all around it.
"Is that where we're going?" I asked. He nodded excitedly at me, and true to his word, within the next 15 minutes, he was pulling the boat onto the beach, and lifting me into the sand.
"Are we fishing off the beach?" I asked as he pulled the rods from the boat. I didn't know much about fishing, but I'd always recalled it being done on a boat.
"Well, sort of. We have to actually get in the water." He motioned towards the sea. I widened my eyes reproachfully at him.
"Isn't there sharks in there?"
"Is Lily Evans afraid of sea creatures?" He asked with a teasing nudge.
"Really really large sea creatures with giant teeth!" I scoffed.
"Don't worry, Lily. I wont let you get hurt." He smiled. I couldn't help it, but I knew he was telling the truth. How was something bad supposed to happen when everything felt so... right?
Minutes later, I was struggling again. This time, with the idea of having to pick up one of those slimy, wiggeling worms that were crawling all over each other inside the jar James and brought with.
"I can't, James. I can't! Will you do it for me?" I begged, ready to puke. He was laughing nearly hysterically at me.
"Come on, Lily. They wont bite you!" He laughed.
"Maybe so, but - James, I can't! Ew. I can't!"
"I never pegged you as being so girly, Evans." He laughed.
I glared at him. I wasn't girly - but there were some things I could not handle. Wiggling, slimy beings were one of them. However, I looked like I had no choice. I took the jar from James, and peered into it, swallowing my gag reflex in the process. This was James' idea of a perfect date? The thought of this being a prank popped into my head again.
"This is disgusting." I said quietly. James had a mocking smile spread across his face. I put my hand in, heard a squelching noise, and plucked a fat juicy one from the top. As quickly as possible, I stuck the hook through the middle of the worm. It didn't cease to squirm.
I shoved the jar back into James' hand. "I hate you." I whimpered, wiping my hand on his jacket as to get all of the worm-germs off.
Within the next hour, James had taught me how to cast, reel, and in general, how to fish. We stood in the surf, our bottoms getting wet from the waves.
"Where'd you learn to fish, James?" I asked after a while.
"My Dad taught me. His dad taught him, and so on and so forth." He sighed. "My family has this weird tradition with fishing. All the guys do it. My mum fishes a little, but she's not as into it as my Dad is and my Granddad was."
"So you've been doing this for years?"
"I think I was two when I caught my first fish." He laughed. "It was just a little one. I thought I was so awesome. I thought I was the best. My dad kept it, and mounted it for me. It's in the house still, sitting above the mantel in the drawing room."
I surprised myself by how much I liked listening to James talk. Especially about his family. He very obviously cared about his family above anything else. I couldn't even fathom how he was handling his mother being in St. Mungos, but he still seemed strong and unbreakable.
Finally, my line started to tug.
"OH!" I gasped, tightening my grip on my rod.
"You've got one!" Shouted James. He reeled in his line quickly and tossed it onto shore to come help me. "Reel it in!"
I grabbed the reel, and started to pull. It was tight and heavy.
"It's hardly moving - James!" I shouted as it pulled the line out a bit further.
"Pull! C'mon, Lils, I know you've got more muscle than you let on." He said.
I pulled harder on the reel, and it started to move in a bit, and a bit more. It would pull out an inch or so every now and then - but I was getting it!
Finally, the top of it popped out of the water, and then more and then -
"You caught a boot." James laughed, as we sat back on the beach. I held the wet, torn, sea-weed covered old boot.
"It put up a good fight, I'll have you know."
"Oh, I'm sure it did. It's a real trooper." He nudged me again. I laughed.
"Don't tease me, I'm very proud of it!" I argued.
"Oh? Well, maybe we should release it back to the wild. You wouldn't want it to die, would you?"
"No way, I'm having this baby for dinner." I teased.
"Hmm. Boot Soup? Or are you going to eat it raw, like sushi?"
"I was thinking more like Boot Sticks. Get it? Like Fish Sticks?" I smiled, proud of my pun. He rolled his eyes.
"You're ridiculous, you know that, right?" He asked. I shrugged.
"So is this it? Is this the end of our date?"
He looked appalled. "Lily Evans, I promised you the best date ever, this is no where near finished. Now It's getting dark, Lay down and close your eyes."
I did quite the opposite, and stared at him, eyes wide. "James Potter, are you going to violate me?"
"Merlin, Lily. Trust me, Okay? Have I let you down so far?"
I shook my head. "I suppose not." I laid down onto the sandy beach, eyes closed. After a few minutes, I was getting impatient.
"I know looking at the stars is very romantic, James, but if that's what you had planned, I really thought you were less cliche than that."
"Lily, honestly, could you shut up for a few minutes?" He commanded. If my eyes were open, I would have rolled them at him.
It was very quiet, all we could hear was the waves crashing around us, and crickets in the forest behind us. It felt nice. It felt comfortable. I was perfectly relaxed when James asked me to open my eyes again.
There were lights - hundreds of them. Little yellow lights all around us. Blinking on and off, floating around above us, and next to us and -
"Fireflies." I whispered. It was like a movie. Everything was so extremely perfect. The sky was dark blue with wisps of purple and pink from the setting sun, and the moon was high above us, and the fireflies ... like tiny faeries floating around our heads. It was like a fairy tale. It took me a few moments to grasp what was happening.
I looked over to James, who was looking at me like there was nothing better in the world.
"You win." I said finally.
He raised an eyebrow at me.
"You win. This is the best date I've ever been on."
His eyes lit up, and a smile played across his lips.
"This wasn't about winning, Lily. It was about seeing you happy. About seeing you smile. Which, for six years, seemed absolutely impossible when you were in my presence." He ran a hand through his hair. I sat up to face him.
"Forget about that." I said quietly. Why had I been so stupid for six years? I hadn't had this much fun on a date, ever. And for Six years I passed up this opportunity. "I'm the luckiest girl in the world right now."
I felt like there were explosives in my stomach. Setting off and making my heart skip beats as I stared into James' hazel eyes. His usual confident and crooked smile played across his face, and his hair stood up at odd ends. He bit his lip briefly, and then leaned in towards me.
My mind raced. Oh god, was I about to kiss James Potter? Was I about to do the unthinkable? How had I not imagined this before - what with all my worrying about the date. Everyone kisses on the first date - how had I not thought about this? My heart was beating fast, his face was getting closer, I closed my eyes and -
"JAMES! LILY!" Came a shout from behind me. My eyes stayed shut, but I knew James pulled away. I could kill whoever was interrupting this moment. It was Sirius, I recognized his voice. Footsteps ran up behind me, but I still didn't open my eyes. Everything was going so perfectly, maybe if I didn't open my eyes, It would go away.
"Sirius?" James asked stupidly.
"James, I'm sorry. Prongs, Your Mum..." He panted, out of breath.
"What about my Mum?" James was standing up, I finally opened my eyes, I had no choice.
"She's... She's..." I looked at Sirius, a look of utmost horror was played across his face.
"Padfoot..." James started. I looked to him, he was filled with worry.
"I'm sorry, James." Sirius said quietly. "She's still alive. But barely. They can't fix her. They don't know what's wrong. James, you have to come quick."
I stood up now, standing next to James.
"I'm sorry." He said. He kissed my cheek.
"I'll come with you." I promised. A faint smile flickered across his cheeks. He grabbed my hand, and the three of us apparated to St. Mungos.
Jen Riddle
August 22nd 2010
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