It wasn't that much of a surprise when James found out he'd made the team at the end of the week. Violet was surprised when she'd been called to the front desk at St. Mungo's because she had a visitor on Friday afternoon that turned out to be him. Even though she had a good idea why he was there, the brilliant smile on his face when he saw her was a dead giveaway. She walked quickly towards him as her own smile grew and he spread his arms wide in pride.

"Say hello to Puddlemere's new starting Chaser!"

He barely had time to get the words out before she'd leapt into his open arms, throwing hers around his neck in a tight hug. He swung her around and let out a laugh before setting her back on her feet.

"I start training with the team soon but we break for a few weeks in the summer. The rest of the reserves want to take me out for drinks tonight."

Violet gave him a knowing look and batted his arm. "See? We told you they'd be understanding."

He rolled his eyes but couldn't keep the grin off his face. "I'm off to tell Fred and Ly, but I wanted to run something by you first."

He grew nervous all of the sudden and glanced around the room to see they were being watched by various visitors and hospital workers. In an effort to not be overheard, he moved closer to her and lowered his voice.

"So, there's this gala thing for the league. It's all fancy and I have to go now that I'm a starter."

He paused and she just looked at him expectantly, but it seemed like he needed a little prodding to continue.

"Sounds fun."

"It doesn't, really," he said, looking like the whole idea sounded unpleasant. "I don't really know anyone on the team yet, and they'll be there with all their girlfriends and families." He let out a heavy breath, running his hands through his hair. He opened his mouth to continue, but someone beat him to it.

"Healer Finnigan!"

Violet turned to see a familiar face making his way towards them, immediately dreading the awkward situation she was about to be forced into as her former patient's older brother made his way over.

"Hey, Jimmy," she said, trying to hide the anxiousness in her voice as she could practically feel James watching them both. "How's Will?"

"Brilliant, actually. I'm just here to pick up some potions and paperwork. Lucky I bumped into you." He gave her a charming smile and she felt herself blush. She cringed as she heard James clear his throat. She looked over her shoulder to see him giving her a questioning look as he glanced between her and Jimmy.

"Right," she said, collecting herself. "Jimmy this is James. James, Jimmy. He was one of my patient's family members."

James wore a look of comprehension as he moved slightly forward and stuck out his hand to shake the other young man's, who looked at James in recognition.

"James Potter? Wow, pleasure to meet you."

James gave a nod, obviously not keen on saying much else. Violet turned back to Jimmy, who seemed uncomfortable, as he took a step closer and talked to Violet in an undertone.

"Listen, have you thought about what I asked?"

She could feel James tense up behind her. She didn't want to do this in front of him. It wasn't something she was sure she really wanted to do at all. But running from it wasn't going to help anything. She wasn't even sure why she said what she said next.

"Yes. When?"

He gave her a relieved smile. "Next Friday okay?"

She nodded.

"Great," he said, right as James gave a rather loud cough. Violet cringed as Jimmy glanced at James before focusing back on her.

"I'll be in touch then, okay?"

She nodded and he said farewell to both of them before walking off towards his intended destination. Violet inhaled deeply before turning to face James, letting it out to brace herself for whatever he would have to say. He was wrankled enough by thoughts of her and Lysander a few weeks ago. Even if she thought he didn't have feelings for her, she knew he was protective.

"Sorry about that," she said to a rather stoic James. "What were you saying?"

James shook himself, clearly thrown by what he'd just witnessed and trying to get back to before they were interrupted.

"It's nothing, really," he said with a dismissive wave. Violet wasn't buying it.

"James," she said, moving forward to rest a hand on his arm. "What?"

His eyes scanned her face, looking like he wasn't sure if he wanted to say what he had been planning on telling her before Jimmy had shown up.

"Would you go with me?" he finally said in a rush

Violet's eyes widened in surprise as she took a slight step back. "What?"

"As a friend," he was quick to clarify when he noticed her reaction. "To the gala. I'd ask a date but it's sort of last minute and I don't have anyone to ask and I know I'll have fun if you're there."

To him, it probably looked like she'd relaxed once he'd explained himself. In reality, she was just trying very hard to mask her disappointment after her short glimmer of hope. She pulled herself together and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Of course I'll go with you. When is it?"

"Next weekend. And it's on Saturday, so it won't interfere with what I'm assuming is a date?"

She nodded as she felt a blush rising to her cheeks. James looked like he was torn between saying more and wanting nothing more than to escape.

"Brilliant. Thanks so much, Vi. I've actually gotta run. I need to tell everyone else."

Violet looked at him in surprise yet again.

"Does anyone else know?"

He chuckled, regaining his usual confidence and starting to back away from her. "Of course not."

He gave her a wave and turned to leave. Violet sighed as she watched him walk away, letting her weight rest on the front desk. What a whirlwind of a few minutes. And she wasn't feeling perfectly at peace with any of it.

He wandered the familiar halls of the Department of Magical Law, the grey carpeting a familiar comfort as he made his way towards the Auror Department. He gave nods and waves in recognition of the people that greeted him as he passed by. The route was almost automatic now, he'd taken it so many times. He wasn't sure what he was trying to accomplish by coming here. He didn't talk with his dad about these type of things. Of course, he could always talk to Teddy, but he was all wrapped up in his happy relationship and seemed overly optimistic about everything at the moment.

He reached the mahogany door that led to his father's office, noticing it was slightly open and voices were coming from inside. After listening for a moment, he was able to note that it didn't seem like a serious conversation, and rapped his knuckles against the cold wood, hearing a "Yes," in response. He grabbed the handle and took a step into the room, swinging the door further open. His father was casually leaning against the front of his desk, his Uncle Ron lounging in one of the chairs across from it.

A surprised look crossed Harry's face when he saw his son.

"James," he said, checking his watch to see it was slightly after one o'clock in the afternoon, but looking pleased all the same. "Aren't you supposed to be at training?"

A smirk broke out on James's face. "Nope. The starting team has a few weeks off."

Harry's eyes almost popped out of his head as Ron's jaw dropped. Harry gave a cheer as he moved forward to give his son a hug. James couldn't help but grin at his father's enthusiasm as his uncle came over to clap him on the back.

"That's bloody brilliant," Ron said. "I didn't even know you were up for a spot. What happened?"

"Adamson retired," he explained as Harry ushered James in and closed the door behind him. "We had tryout training sessions this week. I just found out this morning."

Ron moved to sit back in his chair, still grinning with excitement.

"Bloody Hell, that's fantastic," Harry said as he perched himself on his desk, James taking the other seat next to his uncle. "Have you told your mum?"

James shook his head. "I was going to run to the house after I came here. And actually, telling you was actually only part of the reason I stopped by."

Harry looked intrigued as he shared a glance with Ron, as if silently asking if he knew what his son wanted to talk about. It was one of those things one did with a best friend that you'd known the majority of your life. It wasn't a stretch, actually, to think Ron might know. He was James' godfather, after all.

"What's up?" Harry asked when James wasn't immediately forthcoming. The younger Potter ran his hands through his hair, a nervous habit that had been passed down through the Potter line and made Harry's mouth twitch in a small smile.

"I need to talk about something," James began slowly. "But I've sat on it for so long…"

"You're not sure how to?" Harry asked in understanding. James nodded, looking between the two best friends. As he saw Ron's confused look, a thought occurred to him and he suddenly became extremely thankful that his uncle was there.

"You and Aunt Hermione were friends, right?"

Ron gave a confused chuckle. "Well, I like to think we still are, but you mean in school? Yeah, best friends. Why?"

James glanced back at his dad who looked like he was trying to figure out where this was going before it got there.

"How did you know she wanted more?"

He felt himself blush as he asked the question, Ron's eyebrows rising in amusement as he scratched his chin in thought.

"Well, she was the one who made that first step, actually. Wouldn't let me live it down for a while, to be honest," he grumbled. "But, eventually, I just sucked it up and talked to her. The rest just sort of worked itself out."

"James, why do you ask?" Harry inquired, studying his son carefully.

James reclined back in his seat with a heavy sigh.

"This is bloody embarrassing. But I don't know what the hell I should do. It would be a hell of a lot easier if she just gave me some solid sign."

"You know what would make it a hell of a lot easier to help you?" Harry said with a dose of sarcasm. "If you told us what exactly this is all about."

James gave a groan of defeat, burying his face in his hands before mumbling incoherently.

"What was that?" Ron asked. James lifted his head to glance between the two men.

"I said it's about Violet?"

Harry let out a snort of laughter, his eyes crinkling in humor. "You don't sound so sure about that. But I can't say I'm surprised."

"Why?" James asked sitting up straighter. Ron scoffed, stretching his arms and leaning back with his hands behind his head.

"Because it's bloody obvious, that's why."

"That's-"

"Completely accurate?" his father cut him off. He gave James a knowing look before moving to sit behind his desk. "So, what? You need some advice on how to ask her out? Want to know how I asked out your mum?"

"I'm not so sure this was a good idea anymore."

Ron laughed and stood, reaching over to clap him on the shoulder.

"I really wish I could stick around for this, but I've got to get back. Hopefully those two friends of yours didn't burn down the shop in my absence."

Ron said goodbye and exited Harry's office, leaving the father and son by themselves. James looked at his dad imploringly.

"He won't say anything to anyone, right?"

Harry shook his head. "No, you're fine. He might tell your Aunt Hermione, though."

James shrugged, figuring that would be the case. He remained silent, not really sure anymore why he'd come to talk to his dad. It wasn't that they didn't get along, but he had more in common with his mum.

"Look, I figured it would better to talk to you about this than Mum, but I'm just not even sure what to say."

Harry sat forward and folded his hands, resting his arms on his desk, and looking prepared to listen.

"She's coming with me to the gala on Saturday. You know the one they have for the league the start of every summer?"

Harry nodded. He'd been to his fair share when Ginny was playing Quidditch professionally.

"That's good, right?"

"She's also got a date on Friday."

Harry's eyebrows rose in befuddlement. "Seriously? That doesn't sound like Violet."

"Actually, I kind of made it seem like I wanted to go as friends."

Harry gave him a disappointed look. "I thought you just said-"

"I know," James said with a resigned sigh. "But I was kind of put in a spot and I panicked."

Harry reclined back in his chair. "So now you have to figure out how to let her know you want it to mean more while also trying to work out if she might want the same?"

Ideally, yes. That's exactly what he wanted. But James's mind started reeling in terms of his actual reality. What had he been thinking? She'd just said yes to a date with someone else and here he was, trying to accomplish something that all the signs pointed towards not happening. He was a fool to think their situation was anything like his aunt and uncle's had been. He'd tried to make a move on her doorstep, something that was supposed to be romantic as hell, and she'd given him the cold shoulder. He'd asked her to go to the gala, and she'd looked panicked until he'd assured her it was just as friends. Sure, their dinner together earlier in the week was nice, but it probably wasn't as special as he'd made it out in his mind to be.

He stood abruptly and his dad almost jumped in surprise.

"You know what? Nevermind. It's not going to happen."

He gave his dad a nod in thanks and started to head out of the room, ignoring Harry calling after him. Without thinking much about it, he made his way towards the training room, hoping his godbrother would be there. Maybe that's who he should have gone to in the first place. He pushed open the double doors and saw young Aurors in training dueling on the mats. He knew Teddy typically oversaw a lot of the training, so he quickly scanned the room in search of him. It wasn't long before he spotted him, correcting a trainee on their form. Dodging the other sparring Aurors, he made his way towards him.

Teddy gave a look of surprise when he saw James, continuing to instruct the young female auror as James continued towards him. He stood awkwardly to the side before Teddy was able to step away and join him.

"You look thoroughly put out," Teddy commented as he moved towards his godbrother. James let out a deep breath and relaxed his stance, but his eyes hadn't moved from the trainee Teddy had been instructing. A plan began to from in his mind, and it was one he had a feeling he might regret. Then again, he'd always been one to act before fully thinking things through. He nodded towards the girl, her blonde hair up in a high ponytail as she threw him a grin over her shoulder while continuing with her exercise.

"Who's that?" James asked. Teddy glanced towards the girl before looking at James in question.

"That's Polly. She's a first year trainee. Why?"

James shrugged, a smirk forming on his face. "Is she single?"

Teddy remained silent and James finally looked at him after growing impatient to find his godbrother was giving him a hard a searching look.

"I believe so. She was going on about a breakup the other day. James, what are you doing?"

James knew that Teddy had picked up on the subtleties that ran through his relationship with Violet. It had never fully been addressed between the two of them, but neither of them were idiots. It wasn't hard for James to know what Teddy was thinking.

"Don't worry, Ted," he said with an attempt at a nonchalant grin. "I've got everything under control. And it just so happens I need a date for this weekend."

"Really?" Teddy asked. "Sure there isn't anyone else you'd rather take?"

James shrugged. "Maybe, but you should have seen her face when I asked her. No way in hell is that ever happening."

"You already asked her?" Teddy asked in mild surprise. "And she wasn't pleased by it?"

James nodded, figuring it might not hurt to open up to Teddy. There was a reason he'd felt inclined to come see him in the first place.

"I covered by telling her I didn't have time to find a real date. So we're just going as friends. Suppose she wouldn't be too pissed about it if I found a way to let her off the hook."

Teddy shook his head vehemently and James looked at him in surprise.

"I don't know if you're reading this situation correctly."

"Ted, come on. It might have been easy for you, but we aren't you and Victoire."

"I know that, but…" Teddy glanced around, realized they were attracting attention, and grabbed James by the arm to drag him of to the side of the training room. "Have you even tried?"

"Of course I've tried, Ted," James said, growing frustrated and throwing off the grip Teddy had on his arm. "And it's not happening. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date to secure for this weekend."

He marched away in what he knew was a somewhat childish attitude, but he didn't care anymore. He was embarrassed and tired of waiting and acting like an idiot and he wasn't going to do it anymore. He made his way towards Polly, resolute in his decision and hoping it wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass.

"I'm sorry, what?"

A dreadful silence fell around the table as they all glanced between Violet and James. They were all having dinner at Lorcan and Lysander's flat on Thursday evening. It was something of a celebratory meal. Roxanne and Lorcan had decided that they would be moving in together, and Lysander had insisted that they have at least one meal at the flat that he shared with his brother before he was kicked out. He really wasn't that put out by the idea. He'd actually been incredibly supportive of his brother and Roxanne over the past month. It was endearing to Violet to see Lysander actually take her advice to heart. He'd really been there for Lorcan and had even offered to let them have their flat when his brother told him they wanted to move in together. The current plan was for Lysander to stay with James and Fred, seeing as he spent so much time there anyway. James had commented to Violet earlier in the evening that he was honestly thinking about getting his own place, now that he could afford it. The beginning of the evening had been so lovely, she found it hard to believe the words that were now coming out of his mouth.

"I said you're off the hook," James clarified, seeming very preoccupied with his food. "I managed to find an actual date for Saturday night."

Violet felt her eyes begin to water as she stared at the top of his head while he refused to look up at her. The sound of creaking chairs as everyone shifted awkwardly sounded a thousand times louder than it would under normal circumstances. When it all became too awkward, Lorcan cleared his throat, causing James to look up at him. Lorcan gave a jerk of his head towards Violet, who was still staring at James. He sighed before meeting her gaze.

"When did this happen?" she asked, trying very hard to sound unfazed.

"I met her on Monday. Which was when I asked her."

Violet felt like she had to physically restrain her eyes from popping out of her skull.

"Right after you asked me? Three days ago? You literally chose right now to tell me this when you had three days to do it?"

"Vi-"

"Shut up," she practically growled at him. James felt his draw drop in surprise as she roughly stood up, tossing her napkin down on the table.

"I've made far too many excuses for you, James Potter. I guess all I'll ever be to you is something to settle for when you can't have what you think you really want, is that it? Well I won't do it anymore! The fact that you're willing to blow me off for someone you just met? You're a bigger arsehole than I thought you were."

"Violet," James said in a soothing voice as he also stood. "What the bloody hell are you going on about?"

"Don't fucking patronize me, James." She gave him a disappointed frown, no longer as angry as she had been moments ago. All her energy had been sapped from her. She'd been doing this for far too long and she was tired of it. "Don't give me some shitty excuse either. You're completely blind to all of this and to how you treat me. I get that now. So would you please just leave me alone?"

She turned to walk out of the kitchen and towards the fireplace. James just watched her with a dumb look on his face before Fred shoved him from his place next to him. He managed to catch her just before she threw the floo powder into the fireplace.

"Violet, wait."

She took a deep breath to try and calm herself, closing her eyes before turning to face him again, against her better judgment.

"I thought I was making this easier on you," he explained, his hands shoved in his pockets as he searched her face for answers. He really had no idea. She just smiled at him in pity.

"James, you're a bloody fool and you've made this harder than you'll probably ever realise."

And with that, she threw the floo powder into the grate and was gone in a flash of green flames. As soon as she'd stumbled into her flat, she let the tears fall freely from her eyes as she collapsed on the couch, hoping he wouldn't come after her. She was only given a few minutes of peace before she heard the flames ignite. She rolled over to face the room and let out a relieved sigh through her tears when she saw Roxanne kicking off her shoes. Her face fell when she took in Violet's tear stained cheeks and quickly made her way over to sit beside her on the couch.

"Violet, I'm so sorry."

Violet gave an unpleasant snort as she tried to wipe away the tears that were still falling.

"You don't need to apologize for that fucking prick. He doesn't deserve it."

"I know," Roxanne said, reaching out to rub her back in an attempt to soothe her. "I'm still sorry it all happened."

Violet blushed in embarrassment, remembering that she'd actually made a scene in front of all of her friends.

"The boys looked like they were about to chew him out, if that makes you feel any better."

Violet sighed as she sat up, making room for Roxanne to scoot back and sit next to her. She laid her head on her friends shoulder, Roxanne's arm coming around her to rub her arm.

"Even if they manage to talk sense into him, I'm not really up to talking to him."

She felt Roxanne nod in understanding. "Do you know when you will be?"

Violet scoffed. "When he gets his head on straight and actually faces up to everything. So pretty much never."

Roxanne gave a melancholy chuckle, resting her head on Violet's and giving her an affectionate squeeze.

"You'll be alright."

"I know," Violet said. "I don't need him to be alright."

"True," Roxanne agreed. "But I meant both of you."

Violet moved back to look at Roxanne, who seemed optimistic.

"I'm starting to have serious doubts about that."

"Whatever," Roxanne said, a hopeful lilt in her voice. "Maybe this was the push he needed."

Violet gave a derisive snort. "Well he better push back really fucking hard if he thinks I plan on giving him the time of day anytime soon."

A/N: Oh, the drama! We're getting down to what will most likely be the final few chapters of this story. Some of the upcoming scenes are seen in my other story Show a Little Faith and won't be included in this story. So if you're reading this one independent of that, I suggest you go read it to prepare for the upcoming chapters! Chapters 5 and 6 would be the important ones, but I'd love it if you read the whole thing obviously :) I love hearing your thoughts and feelings about everything!

Happy Reading!