Let It Snow

Chapter Four: When We Finally Kiss Goodnight

Quote-I have discovered that all human evil comes from this; man's being unable to sit still in a room.  Blasise Pascal (1623-1662)

a/n – this is AU so none of the order of phoenix counts here. r/r

"What about the pyramids?"

Sirius stared at her for a moment. He opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it. He shook his head. "Those are in Egypt Adelle, we're in Italy." he reminded her quietly.

Adelle frowned for a minute. "Oh, yeah," she said. "I forgot."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "We could go see a museum or something."

Adelle stood by the window, arms crossed over her chest and scowled at the rain. "I don't see why it has to rain, anyway."

Sirius shrugged. "Guess the weather knew we were coming."

Adelle whirled and glared at him. "Oh shut up." She said irritably.

"Calm down, will you? There are plenty of things to do in Italy besides complaining about the weather."

Adelle looked at him skeptically. "Like what?"

"We could go see some museums, check out the ruins, we could even go see a movie." Sirius said, trying his best to be patient. He shook his head. He had no idea how James dealt with her. Sure she was beautiful but she was a real pain in the ass some times. If everything wasn't exactly as she wanted all the time, she threw a fit.

"Oh alright." She said and huffed to the door, grabbing her purse rather violently.

Sirius checked his annoyance and jogged out after her. If she didn't start behaving herself, she was going to get a huge taste of her own medicine.

                                                *****

Lily stretched leisurely and slowly forced each eye open in turn. The hotel room was flooded with light and she grinned. She glanced across the room to see James's bed vacant and with a puzzled expression, got out of bed. Where had he gone? She shook her head and reached for her crutches.

Just then, the door opened and there was James, a cup holder with two Styrofoam cups in one hand and a white paper bag in the other.

"Hey." She said sleepily and yawned. "Where'd you go?" she asked, smiling at him affectionately.

He set the bag on the bathroom counter and took the cups out of the holder.

"Breakfast." He handed her one of the cups and then the bag.

Lily grinned, delighted at the surprise. "Oh, what?" she opened the bag eagerly to find two doughnuts and two muffins. She looked up at him with the grateful smile. "Thank you, James. This is really sweet."

He blushed but seemed pleased by her praise. She handed him the bag with the remaining muffin and doughnuts.

"So what time are you heading out?" she asked and took a bite out of her muffin.

James went for his doughnut first. "Out?" he asked, confused.

"Yeah, to the slopes."

He stared at her for a moment. "But we're not skiing today." He said.

Lily furrowed her brows. "Why not?" she asked incredulously.

James gave a small laugh. "Because you hurt your knee, remember?" he shook his head and turned back to his doughnut.

Lily didn't move her green eyes from his face. "So, that doesn't mean you can't ski." She said.

James shrugged. "Yeah, I know, but I don't really feel like skiing today, anyway. I'm tired." James knew the second the words were out of his mouth, he was in trouble. What are you doing? Okay, keep calm, it's not that big of a deal. You're just her friend and you skied every day this week anyway. There's no harm in staying home one day. It doesn't mean anything. What if she thinks I'm trying to put the moves on her? What if I am trying to put the moves on her? Oh god, what if Sirius finds out? Even if he does, what's there to find out, nothing happened…yet. Jesus Christ James! What the hell is the matter with you? She's your best friend's girl, she's your best friend's girl, she looks pretty hot, ahhh! Ahh! SHE'S YOUR BEST FRIEND'S GIRL Okay, okay, just cool it…

Lily couldn't help noticing that his eyes had suddenly become very interested in the carpet and his cheeks had suddenly turned rather red. She hid a smile behind her hand but said nothing. What does this mean? What is he trying to pull? Is he trying to do something. You're reading way too much into this, lil. It's not a big deal he just feels sorry for you. Actually he's not even staying for you. He's tired, yeah, that's it, he's tired. Okay, he's staying so what? Do I even want him to stay?...Omg I do! How much longer is this vacation. Not long enough. LILY!!! Think of Sirius. You owe him your loyalty at the very least. He has always been there for you…why are you even thinking about this? Nothing has happened. Okay, its going to be fine, nothing is going on. Just keep cool.

James preferred it that way. He knew he what he was doing, he knew that she knew what he was doing, but for the first time all week, he didn't care…and she didn't seem to be protesting.

                                                                        *****

"You want to go where?" Sirius asked, his eyebrows so high they nearly blended in with his hair.

Adelle threw a rather scornful look at him before turning back to her compact. She smoothed her lipgloss with the tip of her finger and shut the compact with a rather dramatic snap. "The disotech."

He continued to stare at her incredulously. "Riiiiight." He said finally.

"Oh come on, Sirius. I never knew you to turn down a good time." She said and began walking towards the nearest sculpture. Outside the rain fell softly on the granite and the museum was poorly lit.

"And what on earth has that to do with a disotech?" Sirius asked, reluctantly following her to the next piece of artwork.

"Look, you wanted to get of the room, we're out. You wanted me to give ideas, I'm giving. You're just too hard to please." Adelle said, whirling around, her brown curls never leaving their perfect position.

Sirius knew in a vague sort of way that he was being manipulated, but he wasn't quite sure how to respond to it. "Yea….well I didn't mean a discotech! Adelle that's totally lame."

"It won't be, I promise!" Adelle pleaded sweetly, changing tactics as she saw him begin to cave. "Besides you liked the club we went to last night." She added pouting  with her big beautiful brown eyes until he finally shrugged.

"Yeah…okay…but muggle music is really awful." He gave in.

Adelle grinned. "Yeah…but the men aren't" She winked at him, and before he could say another word,  she headed towards the exit.

                                                                        *****

"Ohhh! Let's go in here!" Lily cried and limped into the nearest store. James, carrying about thirteen bags slumped in after her.

"Hey you move pretty fast for a cripple." James gasped and unloaded the bags onto an armchair in the entrance. When Lily didn't respond, he tuned back from the bags and walked fully into the store, getting a good look for the first time. "Whoa." He said.

The store was filled with, as far as James could tell, room after room after of handmade dolls. James had never played with dolls, and beyond as way to placate young girls he didn't really have a whole lot of use for them, but even he could admit that these dolls were beautiful.

"Aren't they incredible?" Lily asked as she softly touched a doll about sixteen inches in height with blue eyes that were so real they gave James goose bumps.

"Yeah." He said, but his attention was soon diverted by a scream from a little girl who was begging her mother for a doll.

"Mum! I gotta have it, I just gotta. Everyone else has one…please?" Six year-old James Potter begged his mother as they passed the, latest broom, the  StarStruck500.

"James Potter, do you have any idea how much those things cost? Besides, they're much too dangerous for children." His mother said, grasping firmly onto his hands and pulling him from the display.

"But Dad has one!" James said resisting his mother's pull for one last glimpse at the glittering broomstick. "And so does Benjamin Prewett and he's only one year older than me."

"You're father is a grown man and as for Benjamin Prewett, his parents have always been very unorthodox." Eleanor Potter shook her head darkly.

"But mum-"

"That's enough James! Now come in here with me, we have to get your father some more dragon root." His mother said and dragged him into the store.

James watched the  broom out of the corner of his eye until finally, the door closed behind him.

James shook his head. Let it go James….let it go. It was a long time ago. You're past all this.

"Are you okay?" Lily asked, her head tilted to the side in concern. "You've been staring at that woman for ages. You look like you're going to cry."

James blushed and laughed nervously. "Yeah I'm fine…strange thought." He mananged a smile.

"Are you sure?" Lily asked, looking very unconvinced.

James nodded and swallowed. "Yeah…fine." It'd been ages since he had thought about his parents at all and even longer since he'd been so affected by them.

"Well, if you're okay, want to catch some lunch?" Lily asked after a moment.

James nodded, gratefulf for the change in subject.

They went to a nearby café and settled down happily inside, where a roaring fire and small tables gave a the place a rather cozy feel.

"I wonder how Sirius and Adelle are." Lily said as she settled into her chair.

James shrugged. "Fine I'm sure." He said. "Though they won't be if Sirius' parents find out." He grinned at the thought.

"Yeah, they're pieces of work aren't they?" Lily said rolling her eyes. "They nearly had a heart attack when they met me, and his brother isn't too keen on me either."

"Don't worry about it." James said firmly, "They're just ridiculous."

"My parents are pretty ridiculous too." Lily said after a moment.

"As bad as Sirius'?" James asked and motioned to the waitress for another cup of coffee.

"They're not evil, James, just strict. I had to pledge my life to come here. They weren't going to let me at first, until I told them I was going with students from Hogwarts. They're obsessed with magic." She said and took a large gulp of her Hot Cider.

"They're muggles, right?" he asked, trying, and failing to see Lily Evans as a muggle. Even in room filled with muggle, there was something rather brilliant about her, as though she might burst at any moment.

Lily nodded. "What about your parents, strict?"

James shifted in his chair uncomfortably. "Actually they're, uh, they're dead."  A rather loud silence followed.

Lily had never felt more ridiculoud in her entire life. How could she not have known that? Hogwarts wasn't a big school and she was dating his best friend. "I'm…er…I'm sorry."

He shrugged. "It's okay." He said, and for the first time in three years, he meant it.  "It happened a while ago."

Lily looked him in the eye and no longer saw arrogance, she saw something else, something completely different.

In that moment, a moment that was perhaps inpossible and certainly inexpicable, Lily understood James. Even for only  a fraction of a second. She remembered when James and Sirius had become rather wild in their third year. She saw why he chose to date girls like Adelle, which required very little if any intimacy. She saw why he distanced himself from everybody else. It all came together and it was in that moment, where she saw not only his pain, but his triumphs and and his potential that Lily loved him. She loved him differently that she had ever loved anybody else. She felt for him in a way she could never, had never, felt for anybody else. And she was terrified.

                                                            *****

"Hey this is kind of fun!" Sirius yelled through the crowded discotech and the flashing lights.

"What?" Adelle yelled back.

"THIS IS KIND OF FUN!" he yelled into her ear.

Adelle paused for a minute before nodding enthusiastically. The song changed and the dove in the crowd, dancing their hearts out.

                                                            *****

"Let me help you with that." James said that night back in the room as Lily struggled to lift some of the wood into the fire place. He moved behind her, and wrapped his arms around to help lift the wood.

Lily felt her breath catch. "Thanks." She whispered and dropped the wood into the fire. She turned around quickly to find his arms still around her.

They stood there for what could have been a lifetime, a moment or a year. And then time seemed to speed up and yet slow down all at once. James was painfully aware of how close she was. Of how her breath landed softly on his neck. Lily looked up quickly, and suddenly, neither was exactly sure how, their lips met and nothing had ever felt so right.