Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, do not own any of the Harry Potter
characters. You can be assured of that, but I do in fact own some of these
people- Characters. The Harry Potter characters I do believe are owned by a
Miss J.K. Rowling.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
CHAPTER 17 - PROMISE ME
Lily ran as fast as she could, running away from her problems, the truth, her life. She just wanted to be blissfully unaware of what was happening. As she stumbled to a stop inside of a lovely furnished room that she and James had found a couple of weeks ago, she finally broke down and let every thing that had happened within the past twenty-four hours sink in. She sunk to her knees as the grief washed over her in tidal waves.
Lily felt two strong arms come around her shaking frame and hold on tight, causing Lily to cry harder. She smelled him. James. Her James. Her love. Her everything.
"James." She gasped and wrapped her arms around him, refusing to let go when he picked her up and took her over to one of the pieces of furniture that inhabited the room. There was a queen sized bed against one wall, a couch, six arm chairs, and a table, other than that, the room was pretty much bare, and only James, Lily, and Kayla knew about this place. "I'm here, sweetheart." He whispered in her ear as he held her close. Lily could feel the soothing touch of his hand petting her hair while she cried away her sorrows.
James sat there on that couch petting Lily's head thinking how much he would give if he could make her sorrow go away. He loved her; he was supposed to protect her from these sort of things, wasn't he? He wanted to make sure nothing ever hurt her. 'I want to be all that she needs.' He thought silently as he kept on stroking her hair and whispering calming words in her ear.
I'll be your dream
I'll be your wish
I'll be your fantasy
I'll be you hope
I'll be your love
Be everything that you need
I'll love you more with every breath.
Truly, madly deeply do
I will be strong
I will be faithful
'cause I'm counting on
"James?" Lily asked as her tears started to slow down, leaving her with a pounding headache. James looked down at her and smiled hesitantly, looking as if he suddenly didn't know what to do. Lily smiled at that thought. James had always felt awkward around crying females. He had always told her, "Crying females just make me feel so helpless. Most of the time you don't even know what the hell they're crying about!"
A new beginning
A reason for living
A deeper meaning
"Why couldn't you just been happy with me?" she asked him, searching his eyes.
James looked at her, stunned. 'She thinks that I did that because I wasn't satisfied with her! How stupid can you get James!' he scolded himself. "Lily. You. You are everything. Everything. I was more than happy with you. I felt-" James replied looking her in the eyes so she could see the truth there. "I felt-" he broke off once again, and impatiently ran a hand through his already unruly hair- making in stick up in a way that made it look as if he just got out of bed- in frustration. "With you I felt as if I could do anything, be anything. With you I felt like I really belonged somewhere. I felt secure somehow. Like for once in my whole entire life I was where I belonged. Like I was meant to be in your arms for the rest of my life. I love you Lily. With everything I am. You're everything to me. Without you, there would be no me." James broke eye contact and looked at the wall behind Lily's head, as if he found the plain eggshell white color fascinating. "Lily." He said his voice starting to crack from held in emotions. "I felt like if I could give you the world, and everything else you wished I would have fulfilled my life's purpose. Pleasing you."
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
"Oh, James!" Lily cried out and framed his face with her warm, soft hands, causing him to look down at her.
Lily was astonished to see that he was crying. She vaguely remembered his tears from yesterday, but she saw them clearly today. "Then why? Why'd you do it James? Why couldn't you just back away?" she asked softly, needing to know this answer for some unknown reason.
James sighed. "I honestly don't know. I thought that it wouldn't hurt to allow them to flirt with me, that it wouldn't hurt if I flirted back. I thought that I'd be safe. But I wasn't," he answered in shame.
Lily, without saying anything slid her hands around to interlock around his nape and brought his lips down to hers, keeping eye contact with him until the moment their lips touched. She nibbled and nipped until he opened up, then slid her tongue inside, sighing into the warm haven that was his mouth. For some reason he always tasted like Chocolate Frogs. The sweet chocolate flavor, mixed with caramel. She loved his taste. It was rather addicting.
I'll make a wish and send it to heaven
Then make you want to cry
The tears of joy for all the pleasure in the certainty
Lily felt James' tongue tangle with hers and let out a soft moan. God she loved this boy. She was completely, one hundred percent in love with him.
That we're surrounded by the comfort and protection of
The highest powers
The lonely hours
The tears devour you
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
Oh can you see it baby?
You don't have to close your eyes
'Cause its standing right here before you
All that you need will surely come
I'll be your dream I'll be your wish
I'll be your fantasy
I'll be you hope I'll be your love
Be everything that you need
I'll love you more with every breath
Truly, madly deeply do
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
Somewhere along the line, someone had begun to cry again, and the taste melded into their kiss, somehow making it taste all the sweeter. Lily pulled back with a small gasp and leaned her head against James' shoulder while she summoned her wits again.
"Lily," James said with a sigh. " Tell me what was in that letter." He asked her.
Lily sighed. It was now or never. She inhaled a deep breath then slowly let it out again and lifted her head to look him in the eye. And found that she was too cowardly to do so. She wiggled out of his grasp to pace in front of him. "James," she began, still pacing. "My Father has been getting ill for sometime. He'd get sick, then he'd get better. Just like everyone else." She mused out loud, almost forgetting that he was there. "I never really thought much about his illness until this morning. I have just so politely been informed by my mother that my father-" her voice started to waver at this, and tears began to cloud her vision again. "My father is sick James. Very sick. He isn't expected to live another year." Tears began to slowly make their way down her face. She could taste them on her lips as her tongue darted out to moisten her suddenly dry lips. She hadn't known that he had gotten up, but the next thing she knew, she was in his embrace again, being cuddled against his muscled chest, her head almost directly over his heart. She could hear the muffled thumps that it made, and some how that sound comforted more than she knew it could. "I have to go back James." She mumbled into his arm. "My mother has already asked Dumbledore. I'll most likely be taking my classes at home for the rest of the year. I want to spend this time with my father though too. You know how close we are." She said, thinking out loud more than talking to James. "My father is a great person, and if these are the last days he has, then I want to spend every moment I can with him. I love him so much. I swear that this is going to be like letting Cammy go again. God James. How am I going to do this again. I can't. I'm not strong enough to do this." She sobbed, as if reality just gave her one swift kick in the ass once again. Which it did.
James was staring into space. 'The rest of the year without seeing her!' he thought wildly. 'How in all hell am I going to accomplish that?!' he silently screamed in frustration. He began to run his hands slowly, comfortingly, down her back as he took notice of the deepening sobs that took her. He frowned in consideration. 'Who's going to help her get through this?' he wondered as he began to mentally go through her family, looking for someone who would be there to support her when she would be about to collapse. 'Petunia hates her for being magical, her mother would be in no shape what so ever to look out for herself much less Lily. She does have the servants, but I remember her saying something about all of the elder ones that she cared for had retired. Hmmm . . . maybe her grandmother. Wait, no. If I remember right, she blames Lily for Camellia's death, so that's a no.' James' frown became darker. The thought of Lily going home to take all of this on her own irked him to no end. 'Wait!' his mind screamed. 'What about Kayla? I mean, after all, Mr. Evans is like a second father to her. But Lily hadn't said anything about Kayla going.' He put in as an after thought.
"Lily." He whispered into her hair, inhaling the scent of peaches, along with the exotic smell of her perfume that he never could actually place. "Promise me that you won't run yourself dry." He said after he felt that he had her attention. He heard something that sounded like, "I promise" and began to rub her back once again.
James didn't know how long they stood like that, it could have been minutes or it could have been hours, but he suddenly felt Lily's deep, even breaths fan his neck, and realized that she had fallen asleep.
James bent his body slightly and gently lifted her legs and carried her over to the bed, careful not to wake her up in the process. He laid her on the bed, took off her shoes and slid her under the covers. He was about to go and sit on the couch when all of a sudden her hand shot out. James looked at the hand, then at Lily and realized that she had woken up. "Stay." She whispered. It was so low that James, barely even a foot away from her could barely catch the single word. The hand fell limply to the sheets once again, and James looked at it then sighed. This was not going to help the state that his body was in. In fact, he was beginning to believe that a freezing cold shower would help the state that he was in. He shut his eyes, and a picture of her formed in his mind, causing his eyes to fly open. He sighed again and resignedly slipped out of his shoes, shrugged out of his robe, threw it on the ground somewhere and slid into the bed. He looked at her again, and tried to think of anything except for the luscious curves he knew that were hidden beneath the modest Hogwarts uniform. And to his dismay, the only thing that he could think about was the exact thing that he was trying so hard not to think about. He had a feeling that if Lily knew what he was going through at the moment a saucy little smile would show up accompanied with a "That's what you get" comeback, or to his horror. Something that would arouse him even more, causing him even more agony. Which at this moment he was finding very hard to believe that such a state existed.
James drew in another breath, took off his glasses and laid them on the table next to the bed and drew Lily to him, causing her to snuggle into his warmth. James despite his uncomfortable state smiled at how child like she seemed with half of her face buried in his side, and her body half turned into his.
Without even realizing it, James fell asleep, grasping Lily to him tighter as he drifted off into the much needed slumber making up for those hours he missed last night.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kayla, Sirius, Aria, and Remus all flew down staircase after staircase looking for one particular painting that seemed to have disappeared.
"Ah-ha!" Kayla cried in triumph. "I found it."
The others hurried and gathered around her as she located the brick that would give you entry to the room beyond. As the door opened, the four friends rushed through the door, only to stop dead in their tracks at what met them. Clothes. On the floor. Robes. Shoes.
Sirius, being the daring, perverted boy that he is happened to "peak" towards the bed and glared at not finding what he hoped would be there. "They're dressed." He stated sulkily. The other three looked at him and shook their heads in astonishment. He never seemed to stop amazing them.
"Oi! Wake up sleepy heads!" Remus and Sirius called at the same time. Which resulted in two pathetically thrown pillows from the direction of the bed. They didn't even make it off of the bed. Sirius scoffed. "Come on, you can do better than that Jamsieee." He taunted.
James lifted his heavy head off of the pillow and glared at Sirius and flopped his head right back down on the pillow. Then shot straight up, causing Lily's head to drop from its position on his chest and waking her up.
"What the hell did you do that for? My head hurts enough thank you every much." She said grumpily as she glared at him. She noticed that his eyes were trained on something towards the door and looked towards it herself, and froze.
"Ah. Hi." Lily said weakly and tried to manage a smile, but not succeeding.
"We've been worried sick about you and you've been in here with . . . LOVERBOY having a SNOGGING session!" Kayla raved.
Lily slipped out of the blankets and put her feet on the ground. Then pulled them straight back up with a yelp. "One of these day's you are going to have to realize that these floors are freaking COLD Lily." She muttered to herself as she lowered her feet to the stone floor again with a wince. 'COLD, COLD, COLD, COLD.' Her mind chanted as she walked over to Kayla and pulled her aside.
"Kay. I-I'm sorry, but this isn't what it looks like. I came here to be away from everybody, and James just happened to find me." Lily said in a small voice.
"Lily," Remus said with a compassionate tone. "What was this morning about." The rest, bar James, nodded at him, asking her to answer his question.
Lily glanced at James, who had silently gotten out of the bed and put on his glasses, for encouragement. She got it with a small nod and smile. She then glanced back at her friends and sighed. 'I'm never going to get rid of this headache.' She silently complained.
"That note was from my mother. And well, it was holding some news that I most definitely did not want to hear. My father over the past couple of years has been getting sick, not often, but often enough for him to go to the doctors I guess. I never really paid attention to it, 'cuz I thought that it was one of those things that come with age." Lily said with a shrug. Then, for this next part she looked directly at Kayla, tears already prickling at the back of her eyes. "I guess he has some kind of fatal illness, I wasn't told what but . . . Oh, God, Kayla," she said as she gasped for a breath. "He isn't expected to live another year."
"OH MY GOD!" came from three throats.
Kayla on the other hand sank down into the couch and buried her head in her hands, and her shoulders began to quake as she cried. Lily crouched before her and gathered her into a hug and began to cry along with her.
For the longest time Lily and Kayla had shared a father it seemed like Kayla wasn't particularly close to hers. And seeing as the two girls had known each other their entire lives, it seemed only natural for Nicolas Evans to take the place of surrogate father. He had always bugged Kayla about her clothing, boys, everything that he bugged Lily on. And now, the only father that she ever cared to acknowledge as a father was dying. To realize that such a powerful man could be fallen by something like this, it was . . . shattering. Nicolas Evans always seemed larger than life. And now, it seemed almost as if he was getting a limit put on it. Like he wasn't so large now.
"No!" Kayla cried out and began to shake harder as she dropped her hands from her face and wrapped them around Lily, clinging to her as if her life depended on it.
In the background you could see Sirius sinking into an armchair, disbelief, shock, and sorrow written across his face, and a tear fall down his cheek and land on his robe. Then another. And another, and another. You could also see James sinking back onto the bed and bury his face in his hands, and Remus gape in shock. Aria stood there crying silently, then grabbed Remus for comfort. All four of them had became close with Nicolas Evans. Close enough to feel the impact of this news. Yet, James and Sirius knew that they had something to do before they could let him go. They, his daughters loves, needed to ask him something really big. Needed to make him apart of this. Needed to make sure that he would be apart of this. Even if it wasn't going to happen in the near future. They needed to do this. It wouldn't feel right if they didn't other wise.
Silently, as if hearing each other's thoughts, they lifted their heads and looked at each other. James nodded his head in silent agreement to whatever it was that they were thinking, and Sirius switched his gaze to watch the woman he loves cry for the first time in his memory, and it was breaking his heart to see her do so.
"Kayla," Lily said loud enough for everyone else to hear her too. She could tell that they were listening, she felt their gazes pierce her back. "I'm going back to spend what time he does have left with him. I wanted you to come back with me for a couple of weeks. Would you?" she asked. Lily felt Kayla's grip tighten on her back and the quick nod of her head as she started to cry harder.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Later that night every thing was done, the girls had seen Dumbledore, owled the Cameron's, and Lily's mother. James and Sirius had secretly owled their parents along with Mrs. Evans, and at the moment, you could find Lily down in the common room with her head in James' lap and him combing his fingers through the thick, soft locks of hair.
"James?" Lily asked sleepily.
"Hmm?"
"I want you to make me a promise. Can you do that?"
"Anything." He replied without a seconds thought.
"I want you to promise me that when I come back for 7th year that you'll be waiting. I know that's selfish, but I don't think that I could survive all of this not knowing that you'll waiting for me somewhere along the line. Can you promise me that? I don't care if you date, kiss, or sleep with other girls, just promise me that you'll be there when I return. Please." She begged as a tear fell from her cheek onto his pants.
"Lily. You needn't have asked that. I would have been waiting for you even if you hadn't asked." James gave a small smile at the sound of Lily's sniffling. He'd seen her cry more today than he had in the sixteen years that they have known each other. "And there is going to be no one else. No sex, no kissing, no dating. I promise you that too." He said, and was rewarded by a small chuckle. "Why is it," he sighed. "that you always doubt yourself, Baby? Why is it you keep on thinking that my love is only going to last so long?" He could feel her sigh and knew that she was thinking about the answer.
"Because for so long," she finally started, "I never believed that I would fall in love. Because of what I am. Because of what I represent. And then I saw you on the train ride this year and something clicked. I think that that switch has been getting nudged for a very long time. Which now explains my jealousy for all of those idiotic bimbos that you dated. But anyways," she hurried along, sensing his reply. "I became vulnerable to things that were never there before. I had to care what someone else thought of the way I acted. I know that our parents have a love, a deep love for one another, but I have rarely ever seen two people love each other like that. What our parents have James, is something few find. And I don't know . . . I just feel as if I shouldn't be one of those few who actually find their other half, you know what I mean. I have never done anything in my life to deserve you. Yet, some how, I have you." Lily finished with a sigh.
"I love you Lily Evans, and I promise you that I'll be here waiting with open arms for you when you return." James said softly as Lily fell asleep in his lap.
James smiled a smile that would have melted Lily into one giant puddle if she had seen it and whispered quietly, "And I'll be waiting with a ring and the hope that you'll say you'll be mine."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Oh my God that is the longest chapter that I have ever written! So, whatcha think?? Tell me, tell me!! Pleeeeease. I'm begging of you. Please review.
Well, I hope you're happy with the way that things are progressing in the story, but there's more to come.
A/N 2: The tattoos are part of the plot . . . they fit in somewhere in the future, you'll see later. And incase this wasn't as clear as I thought that it was, Lily knew that James was a mage because of that Animagus charm that he and the guys did in I think that it was chapter 9, or something around there. But that Charm that Lily and her friends did was something that only a mage could do . . . I don't think that I put that in there, sorry. But yea, that's how Lily knew that James was a mage.
A/N 3: The son that was featured here is "Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden.
Thank You,
Mistress del Mare
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
CHAPTER 17 - PROMISE ME
Lily ran as fast as she could, running away from her problems, the truth, her life. She just wanted to be blissfully unaware of what was happening. As she stumbled to a stop inside of a lovely furnished room that she and James had found a couple of weeks ago, she finally broke down and let every thing that had happened within the past twenty-four hours sink in. She sunk to her knees as the grief washed over her in tidal waves.
Lily felt two strong arms come around her shaking frame and hold on tight, causing Lily to cry harder. She smelled him. James. Her James. Her love. Her everything.
"James." She gasped and wrapped her arms around him, refusing to let go when he picked her up and took her over to one of the pieces of furniture that inhabited the room. There was a queen sized bed against one wall, a couch, six arm chairs, and a table, other than that, the room was pretty much bare, and only James, Lily, and Kayla knew about this place. "I'm here, sweetheart." He whispered in her ear as he held her close. Lily could feel the soothing touch of his hand petting her hair while she cried away her sorrows.
James sat there on that couch petting Lily's head thinking how much he would give if he could make her sorrow go away. He loved her; he was supposed to protect her from these sort of things, wasn't he? He wanted to make sure nothing ever hurt her. 'I want to be all that she needs.' He thought silently as he kept on stroking her hair and whispering calming words in her ear.
I'll be your dream
I'll be your wish
I'll be your fantasy
I'll be you hope
I'll be your love
Be everything that you need
I'll love you more with every breath.
Truly, madly deeply do
I will be strong
I will be faithful
'cause I'm counting on
"James?" Lily asked as her tears started to slow down, leaving her with a pounding headache. James looked down at her and smiled hesitantly, looking as if he suddenly didn't know what to do. Lily smiled at that thought. James had always felt awkward around crying females. He had always told her, "Crying females just make me feel so helpless. Most of the time you don't even know what the hell they're crying about!"
A new beginning
A reason for living
A deeper meaning
"Why couldn't you just been happy with me?" she asked him, searching his eyes.
James looked at her, stunned. 'She thinks that I did that because I wasn't satisfied with her! How stupid can you get James!' he scolded himself. "Lily. You. You are everything. Everything. I was more than happy with you. I felt-" James replied looking her in the eyes so she could see the truth there. "I felt-" he broke off once again, and impatiently ran a hand through his already unruly hair- making in stick up in a way that made it look as if he just got out of bed- in frustration. "With you I felt as if I could do anything, be anything. With you I felt like I really belonged somewhere. I felt secure somehow. Like for once in my whole entire life I was where I belonged. Like I was meant to be in your arms for the rest of my life. I love you Lily. With everything I am. You're everything to me. Without you, there would be no me." James broke eye contact and looked at the wall behind Lily's head, as if he found the plain eggshell white color fascinating. "Lily." He said his voice starting to crack from held in emotions. "I felt like if I could give you the world, and everything else you wished I would have fulfilled my life's purpose. Pleasing you."
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
"Oh, James!" Lily cried out and framed his face with her warm, soft hands, causing him to look down at her.
Lily was astonished to see that he was crying. She vaguely remembered his tears from yesterday, but she saw them clearly today. "Then why? Why'd you do it James? Why couldn't you just back away?" she asked softly, needing to know this answer for some unknown reason.
James sighed. "I honestly don't know. I thought that it wouldn't hurt to allow them to flirt with me, that it wouldn't hurt if I flirted back. I thought that I'd be safe. But I wasn't," he answered in shame.
Lily, without saying anything slid her hands around to interlock around his nape and brought his lips down to hers, keeping eye contact with him until the moment their lips touched. She nibbled and nipped until he opened up, then slid her tongue inside, sighing into the warm haven that was his mouth. For some reason he always tasted like Chocolate Frogs. The sweet chocolate flavor, mixed with caramel. She loved his taste. It was rather addicting.
I'll make a wish and send it to heaven
Then make you want to cry
The tears of joy for all the pleasure in the certainty
Lily felt James' tongue tangle with hers and let out a soft moan. God she loved this boy. She was completely, one hundred percent in love with him.
That we're surrounded by the comfort and protection of
The highest powers
The lonely hours
The tears devour you
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
Oh can you see it baby?
You don't have to close your eyes
'Cause its standing right here before you
All that you need will surely come
I'll be your dream I'll be your wish
I'll be your fantasy
I'll be you hope I'll be your love
Be everything that you need
I'll love you more with every breath
Truly, madly deeply do
I want to stand with you on a mountain
I want to bathe with you in the sea
I want to lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me
Somewhere along the line, someone had begun to cry again, and the taste melded into their kiss, somehow making it taste all the sweeter. Lily pulled back with a small gasp and leaned her head against James' shoulder while she summoned her wits again.
"Lily," James said with a sigh. " Tell me what was in that letter." He asked her.
Lily sighed. It was now or never. She inhaled a deep breath then slowly let it out again and lifted her head to look him in the eye. And found that she was too cowardly to do so. She wiggled out of his grasp to pace in front of him. "James," she began, still pacing. "My Father has been getting ill for sometime. He'd get sick, then he'd get better. Just like everyone else." She mused out loud, almost forgetting that he was there. "I never really thought much about his illness until this morning. I have just so politely been informed by my mother that my father-" her voice started to waver at this, and tears began to cloud her vision again. "My father is sick James. Very sick. He isn't expected to live another year." Tears began to slowly make their way down her face. She could taste them on her lips as her tongue darted out to moisten her suddenly dry lips. She hadn't known that he had gotten up, but the next thing she knew, she was in his embrace again, being cuddled against his muscled chest, her head almost directly over his heart. She could hear the muffled thumps that it made, and some how that sound comforted more than she knew it could. "I have to go back James." She mumbled into his arm. "My mother has already asked Dumbledore. I'll most likely be taking my classes at home for the rest of the year. I want to spend this time with my father though too. You know how close we are." She said, thinking out loud more than talking to James. "My father is a great person, and if these are the last days he has, then I want to spend every moment I can with him. I love him so much. I swear that this is going to be like letting Cammy go again. God James. How am I going to do this again. I can't. I'm not strong enough to do this." She sobbed, as if reality just gave her one swift kick in the ass once again. Which it did.
James was staring into space. 'The rest of the year without seeing her!' he thought wildly. 'How in all hell am I going to accomplish that?!' he silently screamed in frustration. He began to run his hands slowly, comfortingly, down her back as he took notice of the deepening sobs that took her. He frowned in consideration. 'Who's going to help her get through this?' he wondered as he began to mentally go through her family, looking for someone who would be there to support her when she would be about to collapse. 'Petunia hates her for being magical, her mother would be in no shape what so ever to look out for herself much less Lily. She does have the servants, but I remember her saying something about all of the elder ones that she cared for had retired. Hmmm . . . maybe her grandmother. Wait, no. If I remember right, she blames Lily for Camellia's death, so that's a no.' James' frown became darker. The thought of Lily going home to take all of this on her own irked him to no end. 'Wait!' his mind screamed. 'What about Kayla? I mean, after all, Mr. Evans is like a second father to her. But Lily hadn't said anything about Kayla going.' He put in as an after thought.
"Lily." He whispered into her hair, inhaling the scent of peaches, along with the exotic smell of her perfume that he never could actually place. "Promise me that you won't run yourself dry." He said after he felt that he had her attention. He heard something that sounded like, "I promise" and began to rub her back once again.
James didn't know how long they stood like that, it could have been minutes or it could have been hours, but he suddenly felt Lily's deep, even breaths fan his neck, and realized that she had fallen asleep.
James bent his body slightly and gently lifted her legs and carried her over to the bed, careful not to wake her up in the process. He laid her on the bed, took off her shoes and slid her under the covers. He was about to go and sit on the couch when all of a sudden her hand shot out. James looked at the hand, then at Lily and realized that she had woken up. "Stay." She whispered. It was so low that James, barely even a foot away from her could barely catch the single word. The hand fell limply to the sheets once again, and James looked at it then sighed. This was not going to help the state that his body was in. In fact, he was beginning to believe that a freezing cold shower would help the state that he was in. He shut his eyes, and a picture of her formed in his mind, causing his eyes to fly open. He sighed again and resignedly slipped out of his shoes, shrugged out of his robe, threw it on the ground somewhere and slid into the bed. He looked at her again, and tried to think of anything except for the luscious curves he knew that were hidden beneath the modest Hogwarts uniform. And to his dismay, the only thing that he could think about was the exact thing that he was trying so hard not to think about. He had a feeling that if Lily knew what he was going through at the moment a saucy little smile would show up accompanied with a "That's what you get" comeback, or to his horror. Something that would arouse him even more, causing him even more agony. Which at this moment he was finding very hard to believe that such a state existed.
James drew in another breath, took off his glasses and laid them on the table next to the bed and drew Lily to him, causing her to snuggle into his warmth. James despite his uncomfortable state smiled at how child like she seemed with half of her face buried in his side, and her body half turned into his.
Without even realizing it, James fell asleep, grasping Lily to him tighter as he drifted off into the much needed slumber making up for those hours he missed last night.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kayla, Sirius, Aria, and Remus all flew down staircase after staircase looking for one particular painting that seemed to have disappeared.
"Ah-ha!" Kayla cried in triumph. "I found it."
The others hurried and gathered around her as she located the brick that would give you entry to the room beyond. As the door opened, the four friends rushed through the door, only to stop dead in their tracks at what met them. Clothes. On the floor. Robes. Shoes.
Sirius, being the daring, perverted boy that he is happened to "peak" towards the bed and glared at not finding what he hoped would be there. "They're dressed." He stated sulkily. The other three looked at him and shook their heads in astonishment. He never seemed to stop amazing them.
"Oi! Wake up sleepy heads!" Remus and Sirius called at the same time. Which resulted in two pathetically thrown pillows from the direction of the bed. They didn't even make it off of the bed. Sirius scoffed. "Come on, you can do better than that Jamsieee." He taunted.
James lifted his heavy head off of the pillow and glared at Sirius and flopped his head right back down on the pillow. Then shot straight up, causing Lily's head to drop from its position on his chest and waking her up.
"What the hell did you do that for? My head hurts enough thank you every much." She said grumpily as she glared at him. She noticed that his eyes were trained on something towards the door and looked towards it herself, and froze.
"Ah. Hi." Lily said weakly and tried to manage a smile, but not succeeding.
"We've been worried sick about you and you've been in here with . . . LOVERBOY having a SNOGGING session!" Kayla raved.
Lily slipped out of the blankets and put her feet on the ground. Then pulled them straight back up with a yelp. "One of these day's you are going to have to realize that these floors are freaking COLD Lily." She muttered to herself as she lowered her feet to the stone floor again with a wince. 'COLD, COLD, COLD, COLD.' Her mind chanted as she walked over to Kayla and pulled her aside.
"Kay. I-I'm sorry, but this isn't what it looks like. I came here to be away from everybody, and James just happened to find me." Lily said in a small voice.
"Lily," Remus said with a compassionate tone. "What was this morning about." The rest, bar James, nodded at him, asking her to answer his question.
Lily glanced at James, who had silently gotten out of the bed and put on his glasses, for encouragement. She got it with a small nod and smile. She then glanced back at her friends and sighed. 'I'm never going to get rid of this headache.' She silently complained.
"That note was from my mother. And well, it was holding some news that I most definitely did not want to hear. My father over the past couple of years has been getting sick, not often, but often enough for him to go to the doctors I guess. I never really paid attention to it, 'cuz I thought that it was one of those things that come with age." Lily said with a shrug. Then, for this next part she looked directly at Kayla, tears already prickling at the back of her eyes. "I guess he has some kind of fatal illness, I wasn't told what but . . . Oh, God, Kayla," she said as she gasped for a breath. "He isn't expected to live another year."
"OH MY GOD!" came from three throats.
Kayla on the other hand sank down into the couch and buried her head in her hands, and her shoulders began to quake as she cried. Lily crouched before her and gathered her into a hug and began to cry along with her.
For the longest time Lily and Kayla had shared a father it seemed like Kayla wasn't particularly close to hers. And seeing as the two girls had known each other their entire lives, it seemed only natural for Nicolas Evans to take the place of surrogate father. He had always bugged Kayla about her clothing, boys, everything that he bugged Lily on. And now, the only father that she ever cared to acknowledge as a father was dying. To realize that such a powerful man could be fallen by something like this, it was . . . shattering. Nicolas Evans always seemed larger than life. And now, it seemed almost as if he was getting a limit put on it. Like he wasn't so large now.
"No!" Kayla cried out and began to shake harder as she dropped her hands from her face and wrapped them around Lily, clinging to her as if her life depended on it.
In the background you could see Sirius sinking into an armchair, disbelief, shock, and sorrow written across his face, and a tear fall down his cheek and land on his robe. Then another. And another, and another. You could also see James sinking back onto the bed and bury his face in his hands, and Remus gape in shock. Aria stood there crying silently, then grabbed Remus for comfort. All four of them had became close with Nicolas Evans. Close enough to feel the impact of this news. Yet, James and Sirius knew that they had something to do before they could let him go. They, his daughters loves, needed to ask him something really big. Needed to make him apart of this. Needed to make sure that he would be apart of this. Even if it wasn't going to happen in the near future. They needed to do this. It wouldn't feel right if they didn't other wise.
Silently, as if hearing each other's thoughts, they lifted their heads and looked at each other. James nodded his head in silent agreement to whatever it was that they were thinking, and Sirius switched his gaze to watch the woman he loves cry for the first time in his memory, and it was breaking his heart to see her do so.
"Kayla," Lily said loud enough for everyone else to hear her too. She could tell that they were listening, she felt their gazes pierce her back. "I'm going back to spend what time he does have left with him. I wanted you to come back with me for a couple of weeks. Would you?" she asked. Lily felt Kayla's grip tighten on her back and the quick nod of her head as she started to cry harder.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Later that night every thing was done, the girls had seen Dumbledore, owled the Cameron's, and Lily's mother. James and Sirius had secretly owled their parents along with Mrs. Evans, and at the moment, you could find Lily down in the common room with her head in James' lap and him combing his fingers through the thick, soft locks of hair.
"James?" Lily asked sleepily.
"Hmm?"
"I want you to make me a promise. Can you do that?"
"Anything." He replied without a seconds thought.
"I want you to promise me that when I come back for 7th year that you'll be waiting. I know that's selfish, but I don't think that I could survive all of this not knowing that you'll waiting for me somewhere along the line. Can you promise me that? I don't care if you date, kiss, or sleep with other girls, just promise me that you'll be there when I return. Please." She begged as a tear fell from her cheek onto his pants.
"Lily. You needn't have asked that. I would have been waiting for you even if you hadn't asked." James gave a small smile at the sound of Lily's sniffling. He'd seen her cry more today than he had in the sixteen years that they have known each other. "And there is going to be no one else. No sex, no kissing, no dating. I promise you that too." He said, and was rewarded by a small chuckle. "Why is it," he sighed. "that you always doubt yourself, Baby? Why is it you keep on thinking that my love is only going to last so long?" He could feel her sigh and knew that she was thinking about the answer.
"Because for so long," she finally started, "I never believed that I would fall in love. Because of what I am. Because of what I represent. And then I saw you on the train ride this year and something clicked. I think that that switch has been getting nudged for a very long time. Which now explains my jealousy for all of those idiotic bimbos that you dated. But anyways," she hurried along, sensing his reply. "I became vulnerable to things that were never there before. I had to care what someone else thought of the way I acted. I know that our parents have a love, a deep love for one another, but I have rarely ever seen two people love each other like that. What our parents have James, is something few find. And I don't know . . . I just feel as if I shouldn't be one of those few who actually find their other half, you know what I mean. I have never done anything in my life to deserve you. Yet, some how, I have you." Lily finished with a sigh.
"I love you Lily Evans, and I promise you that I'll be here waiting with open arms for you when you return." James said softly as Lily fell asleep in his lap.
James smiled a smile that would have melted Lily into one giant puddle if she had seen it and whispered quietly, "And I'll be waiting with a ring and the hope that you'll say you'll be mine."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Oh my God that is the longest chapter that I have ever written! So, whatcha think?? Tell me, tell me!! Pleeeeease. I'm begging of you. Please review.
Well, I hope you're happy with the way that things are progressing in the story, but there's more to come.
A/N 2: The tattoos are part of the plot . . . they fit in somewhere in the future, you'll see later. And incase this wasn't as clear as I thought that it was, Lily knew that James was a mage because of that Animagus charm that he and the guys did in I think that it was chapter 9, or something around there. But that Charm that Lily and her friends did was something that only a mage could do . . . I don't think that I put that in there, sorry. But yea, that's how Lily knew that James was a mage.
A/N 3: The son that was featured here is "Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden.
Thank You,
Mistress del Mare