She was really having the most perfect day of her life.

Those were the only words that could describe what happened to her.

Her dreams had finally come true!

Oh Love! She could confess to the world…and James Potter? Jacob Duncan? She wondered if that weren't a past nightmare…

This was beauty in its essence, and Spain! Oh Spain! This was her world! Finally, it was her time to live!

Lily brushed back her hair and sprayed on some strange looking perfume. She hummed to herself, and walked outside, observing her daily routine of greeting every person that looked at her.

"¡Como está, señora!" she said to the old lady that always came out to have a cup of coffee in the morning.

"And 'ow arr you, Leely," she replied quite amiably. Lily smiled and asked, "May I join you?" making sure to emphasize her English so that she would understand. The lady nodded and the young waiter brought her a cup of coffee.

"Hola, Tómas," she greeted, smiling.

"I see that you are in quite a good mood this morning," Tom said in a perfect London accent. He was her personal tour guide: James's mother had taken the liberty of assigning her one, and a young eligible one, to pry her hands off her son. Lily, atleast, thought so.

"Are you too busy to take me out on this fine day?" Señora Vasquez winked at Tómas, and he blushed.

"What did you have in mind, Lily," Tómas asked, his eye on the couple walking hand in hand into the café. They were also regulars, and almost all the time they would order a large cup of tea to share and a biscotti each.

"Just a few torture chambers," she said.

"Sure." Tómas went off to tend to the new customers as Sra. Vasquez spoke in her heavy accent.

"Tómas es muy lindo, I see," she winked, "but I creo que you may already have a beloved." Lily looked up, startled.

"What makes you say that, Señora?" But Señora Vasquez did not reply except for a smile that made her eyes crinkle even further.

"I remember in my day," she continued, occasionally sipping her coffee, "I used to have muchos novios en un taim." Sip. "And when I met my 'osband, I must have been with cuatro o cinco sol-jers, tammies too, from 'deh Guerra del Mundo." Lily laughed, but she noticed that it was hardly the time. Mrs. Vasquez's eyes had glazed over in reminiscence.

"I remember, I was upset that I had wasted much time over just…nothing. When I met him, all that time, I thought to myself, fue mucho tiempo wasted," she choked on her words, and Lily waited patiently, having heard this story once before. "You must not wait. Find you 'deh passion, and stay with it. Do not wile away your time, looking. For if you wait too long, it may fly away like a bird, and life will never be 'deh same." Lily allowed a small laugh to escape from her lips. She had finally found that passion Sra. Vasquez was talking about. And how glad she was!

"Señora Vasquez, ¡Bienvenidos!" a voice said loudly from behind her. Lily sighed, willing herself to get up from the table. James Potter made his way over to their table and took Lily's hand. "I see you know my Lily?" he said. The lady nodded, smiling. Lily almost laughed at the effect he had on people. Even old ladies had crushes on him. How revolting! She pried his fingers off of her hand and began walking off.

"Ciao, Señora. Que tenga un buen dia," she said, as James jogged to catch up to her, waving to Sra. Vasquez in the process."

"You never told me you knew that old hag!" James said when they were out of earshot.

"I can't believe you did that to me James! She is not an old hag, first off, and secondly, I am not your Lily! I never was, and I never will be." James was unfazed as he laughed and replied.

"Señora Maria Vasquez is a witch—which covers the hag part. She's an old family friend, Lily, I've known her since I was two! She says the same stories over and over and over and over and over and over and over and…"

"Okay! I get the point," Lily interrupted, turning around, stopping him from walking any further down the narrow alleyway. She was suddenly aware of their close proximity, and regretted doing so instantly. She leaned closer, without willing to do so and felt James's eyes close on her cheek. Lily gasped out a feeble "no," but James' lip brushed against her neck and sent shivers down her spine. He suddenly jumped away, as if her touch electrified him, and they walked the rest of the way home making sure there was atleast 2 meters in between them at all times.

"Where have you been!" shouted Elena from the dining room, but soon her angry face appeared in front of them. Elena had been getting fat in the days since her husband's death. She was very much more affable with Lily, but unfortunately, Lily had become less trusting of her former-almost-mother-in-law.

"I went out for a walk, Elena, and James came to get me for Breakfast. So sorry I'm late," Lily said meekly and looked down at her feet. Elena looked at James, "Is this true, Jimmy?" she asked.

"Yes, mother." There was a mischievous smile on his face, but his mother disregarded it, long ago assuming that it was too permanent to attempt any change. He too sat down, cramming all the food he could get his hands on into his mouth. Lily, on the other hand, waited for Mrs. Potter to sit down, and then quaintly began nibbling on her toast. Elena thought that this girl had grown on her quite well, considering she was common street filth, but she had a severe inferiority complex that would be hard to break, not to mention that hideous temper…

"Mum," James said, sounding a bit slurred through a mouthful of food, "I was thinking of going out today to visit that old muggle castle, down in the Reyes Católicos?"

"Yes, James, you may go as long as Lily accompanies you," Elena replied, with a kind smile. Lily put down her fork softly and wiped her mouth with her napkin.

"Why, Elena? I'm sure James could find another escort in very little time that would better suit your interests," she protested politely.

"I'd rather he went with you, Lily darling, instead of some unknown girl, who might well be some muggle," Elena insisted sounding horrified at the very thought.

"But Elena," she began, but she was cut off.

"Lily, I will have no complaints on this topic. It is closed, as of now. Either James goes with you, or does not go at all." Elena looked at Lily, but Lily glared at James, who had a smug look on his face, as if he was trying not to giggle.

"Yes, madam," she replied through gritted teeth and excused herself.

As Lily was getting ready, she heard about the millionth whine from the other end of the villa they stayed in.

"Mum! There is no floo powder! How are we supposed to get anywhere?!" Lily tried to block out the argument that was obviously about to take place, but in vain.

"James Joseph Edward! I am, frankly, tired of your incessant complaints! Try to live the simple life for once; have you ever stopped to think of the unfortunate people in the world who manage to get along without the pinch of floo powder in the life? God has given you legs, Jimmy, now use them."

"But mum!" he whined in response.

"No!" Elena screamed, "I will not have you ruining my vacation! May Merlin help you. Sometimes I wonder if you have a single ounce of compassion in your body. Just like your father."

"Then why the hell did you marry him, Mother?" James retorted.

"Shut up! Get out of my house this instant!" said Elena, and Lily heard a distant slam. She winced at the sound and slipped on her bangles, checking her reflection one last time before she exited. She saw the back of James's head on the velvet couch.

"I'm sorry," she said solemnly. He looked at her.

"What are you sorry for?"

"Your mother. But she is right, in one way, James," Lily lifted his cheek with her cold fingers. He refused to meet her eyes. "Try to imagine life from her perspective. She is having just as bad of a time as you are. If you have lost a father, she has lost her husband."

"That's no excuse." He pulled away from her touch. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't interfere in our relationship, Lily, you don't understand. Now let's go. If we're to walk, we have to beat the muggles and get there pretty early if we want to get in."

"Fair enough," Lily replied and they set off.

*

The beautiful view of the cathedral and James' presence next to her gave Lily a sense of harmony she had never before experienced. They walked up the hill (which was quite steep) and because of Lily's constant stops (she was tired) it took about an hour before they reached the first gate to the Alhambra. James was about to give up, but Lily insisted on seeing the palace.

There were other couples and even some students walking up the hill with them. They made friends with a few, and a lot of folks assumed that Lily and James were romantically involved and even offered to take pictures. James was happy to oblige, but Lily only became more and more disgruntled. In less than half an hour, they reached Alhambra. It was about nine in the morning. Lily was just beginning to enjoy the climate of the hilltop when James spoke, startling her.

"My mother and my father were never in love when they were married." Their eyes met as he explained. Lily sat on the railing around the entrance and James put his arm around her waist, her knees hanging by his chest. "Maybe before they were married, but the novelty wore off. They were always trying to make a good impression for me, but I never believed it."

"Oh," Lily said, feeling stupid. "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"It's okay." He continued, "When he died, my mother finally let go of her "façade," she blamed it on herself. I'm tired of telling her to get over it, but I constantly feel like she's so wrapped up in her grief that she might never be my mother again. I've not only lost my dad, but my mum, as well." James turned his pleading eyes to her, "I always thought I had a perfect family, but now, with Voldemort and everything…" he trailed off, unsure of how to continue. Lily jumped off the railing, eager to let go of the subject, and took hold of the hand that was previously around her waist. They entered the palace.

Their first impression was awe. James tightened his grasp on her hand, and Lily could not stop looking at the inscriptions and the ceiling. Both teens were overcome with emotion and they walked through the place as if in a trance. Here was where James realized that he could never leave this girl that was next to him. This castle was a symbol of life: the good and the bad, the equilibrium that every man or woman had to witness before death, the next adventure. James felt that when he entered with Lily, it was an unsaid pact. They would never again walk through these passages without each other. Unfortunately, Lily did not share his sentiment.

On their way back down the hill, they saw the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella. He told Lily about the historical significance of Granada in the days of the Spanish Conquest. Lily listened intently, not even commenting on its dullness as most girls would have. For the rest of the day, they roamed around, looking at the romantic beauty of the country, feeling more exalted every second. By the time they got back to the villa, they were tired, but in such high spirits that they did not get any sleep.

"James," Lily said, "how do you know all this?"

"Well, being the Minister's son does have its perks, doesn't it?" James winked and Lily rolled her eyes.

"I had a great time, by the way," Lily said, hoping to sound nonchalant, but not too much.

"Really?" James replied, and locked the door with his wand, disappearing behind a door to check on his mother. Lily took off her shoes and went to rekindle the flames in the fireplace with her tongs.

"What are you doing?" she soon heard James's voice question curiously from behind her.

"What do you mean?" she said, and grimaced as a spark hit her finger. She emerged from the fireplace, soot all over her face, and James couldn't help but laugh. "Shut up, James," Lily said indignantly.

"Sor-ry!" he mimicked in a high pitch. Lily pinned him to the floor playfully and grabbed ahold of both of his hands.

"Say it again!" she demanded, making sure she had a good grip on his hands before she sat on his stomach.

"Sorry!" he yelled once more through his guffaws.

"I couldn't hear you!" Lily said, and James stopped laughing. Lily quickly disentangled herself and pretended to put away the tongs. She chastised herself silently as James moved to the armchair.

"Why are you so afraid of me?" she heard James say.

"I don't understand." As Lily walked by him to seat herself on the large couch, James pulled her down into his lap. He made a soft motion with his thumb to wipe of the soot from her forehead. Their faces inched close, and Lily shut her eyes tightly, but James's lips never met hers.

"I'm not that bad?" She hated to hear that tone in his voice, and willingly, she engaged him in a kiss. When they broke away, James gave a crooked smile, and Lily, not even appalled that she had done such a thing, quickly pulled him into another one.

"Lily," James said a few days later as they walked down the familiar street hand in hand.

"Yes?"

"Will you draw me another picture?"

"Well, it doesn't just come like that, I actually have to be angry or something." They reached the café, and sat down at a table. Tómas was nowhere to be seen, but another young fellow came up.

"Where is Tom," Lily asked in her accented Spanish.

"It's quite a tragedy," the waiter said in the same, "Sra. Vasquez, our long-time customer had a stroke last night. She is in critical condition."

It hit her like a ton of bricks. Her words echoed through her brain 'do not wait…'

"James!" Lily said, "We have to go visit her." James nodded and thanked the waiter. They walked off in the direction of the old woman's home, preparing for the worst.

Señora Vasquez had passed away in her sleep.

"Lily, it's time to go!" Tom yelled from outside. He was loading the bags on to the taxi. Lily began counting down: three days till her birthday and only a few hours till she got back home. She lugged her carry bag and trudged toward the taxi. Three days to the true beginning of her life.