Oh dear! Don't hurt me! I know this wasn't updated as soon as some of you would have liked, but I did try. I had a bit of a writers block, and I had no idea what to write about! Imagine that! But I think I've got it all planned up to the end (and no, for all those who asked, it doesn't end at Chapter 20. =P I would have given notice if it was the end). Just for a bit of forshadowing (I believe you deserve it since I made you wait so long), you're going to be seeing a lot more of Candace/Sirius and Bianca/Remus stuff because, trust me, for a while here, everything is going to be FAR more interesting with them then with Lily and James. You'll see why later. And I do believe that my personal thank-yous deleted themselves for the last chapter (which sucked becase I spent a lot of time on those), so I do apologize about that. Anyways, enough chit-chat! On with the chappie!
Chapter Twenty-One
A Bouquet of Lilies
Lily woke with a start. What a funny dream she had... She had dreamed that she and Petunia had fought...and then James came after her and kissed her...then she kissed him back. Odd.
Blinking slightly, Lily staggered out of bed and began rummaging through her dresser for something to wear. It was Christmas...it was Christmas! Lily suddenly smiled, then stopped when it dawned on her...it hadn't been a dream last night. It had been real! She had kissed James Potter, and she couldn't deny the fact that she had liked it. A lot in fact.
She groaned, realizing how complicating her life was about to get. And her vanity set in. She tossed through her clothes...she had to find something decent to wear. She had to look perfect. She couldn't believe she was actually going through an effort to make herself look good for James, yet that thought didn't stop her from digging deeper and deeper into her wardrobe. Earlier that year he had said she looked hot in a particular mini skirt she had worn to Diagon Alley...
'Must find that...' Lily thought mentally and began digging again. 'Then again...no...everyone in my family will know something's up. Besides, a mini skirt is too sleazy for Christmas.' She dug deeper into the drawer amazed that she hadn't hit the bottom yet.
After about twenty minutes of digging, Lily finally satisfied herself with a simple pair of jeans and a tight white tank top. Why it had taken so long to decide to wear something so simple was beyond Lily. She hurried down the steps, her long red hair swaying gently behind her.
"Morning, Lily flower!" Lily's mother's voice came from the kitchen.
"Morning, mum." Lily said cheerfully. "Where is everyone?" She asked.
"You know men...still sleeping. Petunia refuses to come back though." Joan commented lightly. Lily simply shrugged and entered the kitchen. "Here...give me a hand with this." Lily's mother said, handing her the spatula in which she was cooking rather large pancakes with. Joan hurried away into the dining room, returning with the old candles from the previous night. "Oh, Lily dear...?" Lily's mother said rather awkwardly.
"Yeah?" Lily responded, not quite paying attention as she flipped the pancakes over, her mind elsewhere...as in up the stairs and in the guest bedroom across the hallway from her bedroom. 'Stop it!' Lily commanded herself mentally. 'Not thinking about him! Not at all...'
"I wanted to apologize about that little slip to Petunia about that dear boy James being your boyfriend..."
Lily almost laughed. "It's fine, mum. Honestly. I don't care at all."
"Oh you don't?" Lily's mother asked, looking rather relieved. "I was afraid you would be ferociously angry with me."
How was Lily supposed to say, oh, last night he wasn't my boyfriend, but now he kind of is? Even though he wasn't...they had just kissed...for a long time...that was all.
Footsteps were heard on the stairwell, and moments later James entered the kitchen. "Oh, good morning, James." Lily's mother said with a smile.
"Good morning. Merry Christmas," James said with a smile, handing a single rose to Lily's mother. "to a wonderful host." Lily's mother took the rose and gasped. Lily was in awe as well. He had given her mother a rose! If he was aiming to win over both Lily AND her mother, why he had done quite nicely.
"Oh James, thank you! You shouldn't have."
James approached Lily at the frying pan, where she quickly put the spatula aside. His heart was racing, he had goose bumps from simply seeing her standing there looking so beautiful. And whenever he thought about the previous night, it was almost like his stomach completely dropped. If she told him to walk straight off a cliff, why he probably would have done it.
"Merry Christmas, Lily." He said quietly, presenting her with a bouquet of white lilies. Lily accepted it, smiling so much that it was almost impossible for her to stop.
"Now isn't that lovely!" Lily's mother said, looking at the beautiful white lilies. Lily had no idea where James had managed to get the flowers...she had been with him practically every minute he was at her house. "Why don't I get these into a vase with some water..." Lily's mother said, gently taking the flowers away from Lily. Lily took her mothers momentary absence to her advantage. She nodded toward James to leave the kitchen, and quietly made her way out.
"Want to...go for a walk?" Lily asked awkwardly.
"Sure." James responded quickly, a chill running up his spine, goose bumps appearing on his arms once again. He pulled his coat on quickly, and followed Lily out the door.
"I think my mother's going to join your fan club now." Lily said with a small smile as they trekked through the snow in front of Lily's house, making their way toward the hill they had climbed up the previous day.
"Oh...well..." James laughed simply in response. Almost as if on cue, they both stopped behind the house. James leaned down and kissed Lily gently, her soft red hair brushing against his cheek. He pulled away, his mind racing. He could hardly believe he had gotten the nerve to kiss her again, but it was almost as if...as if it just came naturally.
Lily smiled, her heart beginning to race. Her smile was contagious, and James soon found himself grinning like an idiot as well.
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"Sirius, where are we going?" Candace laughed as Sirius pulled her along an underground tunnel of some sort.
"Just wait." Sirius grinned. He couldn't believe he had finally gotten the nerve to ask Candace out, and he simply wanted to kiss Lily for making him do it. "We're not too far now. Only about five more minutes."
Candace couldn't help but just laugh. "This has to be against the rules." She insisted.
"Of course it is!" Sirius grinned. "When have I ever done anything that was in the rule books?"
"Never?" Candace suggested with a grin.
"Damn right." Sirius responded. The underground tunnel began to slope upwards, and Sirius knew they were coming close to their destination. He slowed himself and Candace to a walk, and finally the famed trap door that the Marauders had used countless times throughout their Hogwarts career, came into view. Sirius creaked it open an inch, glanced around, and finally pushed it all the way open, hoisting himself up through the small square hole. He turned back and offered his hand to Candace, who took it gladly, and pulled her out of the tunnel with ease.
"Where are we?" Candace whispered, as a feeling inside her made her a bit anxious as to Sirius's secrecy before he had crawled out of the trap door.
Sirius simply put his fingers to his lips, and took Candace's right hand and began to lead her up a set of stairs leading them into the dark store of Honeydukes.
"Sirius?" Candace gasped, looking around. "Honeydukes?"
"Shh...the owners live upstairs. They close down at ten o'clock." It was indeed ten thirty, but Sirius knew a way to bust themselves out of the store.
Candace obeyed, and followed Sirius to a window which he creaked open slightly with a switch on the bottom, then pushed the rest open himself. He pulled himself through the window, then reached back to pull Candace through. Once she was out, he pushed the window shut, leaving it open simply a crack so they could return, yet people simply passing by wouldn't notice that it was open.
Sirius grinned mischievously, and took Candace by the hand, his other hand falling into the pocket of his pants.
"So, you've smuggled me to Hogsmeade." Candace grinned, flattery setting in. How many girls at Hogwarts could say that their boyfriend brought them to Hogsmeade on Christmas when the school wasn't even going? Not too many. If Lily ever went out with James, she could be added to the list, but sadly Candace didn't ever see that happen. 'Poor James.' Candace thought. 'She's probably at home leading him on to no extent, then she'll tell him how much she hates him again. Poor kid can never win.'
"Where do you want to go?" Sirius asked.
Popping back to the present, Candace looked up at Sirius. "I don't really care. Just as long as I'm with you." She smiled.
"What's something you've always wanted to do?" Sirius asked, looking down at Candace. God she was beautiful. And to think he had been so blind to just think that his little benefits were enough.
Candace thought for a while. She smiled slightly, looking up to the sky. "I've always wanted to go stargazing with the guy of my dreams." Candace couldn't believe what kind of cliches she was resorting to, but when she was with Sirius, she couldn't think about her senses, or logic, or anything at all that one would believe would make a person intelligent. It was almost as if she simply melted at the site of him as of late.
"Stargazing?" Sirius grinned. "Then come on." He quickened his pace, one spot in particular in mind.
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Lily and James sat in silence at the top of the snow covered hill, side by side, James arm around Lily's shoulder, her head resting upon his. Neither of them had a clue as to how everything was happening...it was so spontaneous.
"How...how did this all happen?" James finally got the nerve to ask, breaking the silence.
Lily blinked a few times, looking down at the forest beneath them. "I'm not sure." She responded simply. "I...I don't think I regret it, though." She commented, tensing up slightly as she said so.
"I don't either." James answered, pulling Lily a bit closer to him. "What made you change your mind?" He asked Lily quietly.
"About what?"
"About me."
Lily sighed, thinking slightly. "I don't really know about that either. It's like one minute there's this, no offense or anything, but this arrogant jerk just annoying me to death, and then...I don't know. You slowly evolved into being who you are now." Lily tried to explain.
"I never changed at all." James answered truthfully.
"You changed how you acted around me."
James sighed. "I know." He answered truthfully. How was he supposed to say that all the while he was trying to impress her? That he would do anything to get any form of attention what-so-ever from her. He couldn't say all that. Maybe later, but not at that precise moment. He had just gotten her to seemingly care about him, and telling her everything there was to know could possibly scare her away forever. James felt like he was balancing on tip toes to keep Lily's affection that it was almost making him want to turn and run away. What if Sirius was right? What if the only reason James had been so driven to like Lily was because he believed she would never return his feelings, and such a thing almost dared him to continue pursuing her?
No. That could never be. James still loved Lily, he was just afraid that he would come so close only to briefly grasp what he had been wanting so badly for so long.
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"Isn't this the perfect spot?" Sirius asked, laying flat on his back in the cold snow, though oblivious to its touch or temperature, his dark eyes aimed skywards.
"How did you know about this?" Candace asked with a smile permanently planted upon her face. The two of them laid in the middle of a small forest clearing at the very edge of Hogsmeade, a frosted over stream to their left, and the best view of the stars that one could find from Hogsmeade.
"Oh, you know, when you know how to get here without having to wait until Hogsmeade weekends, you tend to come a lot. James and I stumbled upon this little spot here at the beginning of the fifth year."
"So," Candace began out of curiosity. "How many other girls have you brought here?"
"What?" Sirius stuttered, rather shocked by Candace's question.
"You know what I said." Candace said with a slight smile. It wasn't like she even cared too much about it, she simply asked out of curiosity.
"Oh, come on, Candace...I mean..." Sirius blathered. "Why d'you have to ask something like that?" Sirius finally settled for.
"OK, now I'm actually interested." Candace said, sitting up to look Sirius in the face. "If it's not that bad, why can't you tell me?"
"Candace, you gotta know that we've known about this spot for two and a half years now, and two years of it I wasn't with you..."
"Just tell me," Candace said, a small smile spreading across her face. "I mean, you can't help it if every girl in the school finds you irresistible." Candace giggled.
Sirius sighed. "I don't know. I can't remember."
"How could you not remember?" The smile upon Candace's face disappeared. "Is this just going to be another, I can't remember things? Take me here once, see all you can get out of me, then dump me?" Candace asked, jumping rather quickly to conclusions that Sirius didn't even want to be touched upon.
"Candace, stop. I've never gone out with a girl for more then a month, much less liked one as long as I've liked you. Lily's told me so many times that you've got me wrapped around your finger that I've lost count. I love you Candace, and from where I'm sitting right now, you're the only girl I've brought here that ever mattered." Sirius said, pressing himself against Candace, who squirmed slightly, and moved away.
"How many girls have you said that to?" Candace asked in an accusing tone.
Sirius sighed in exasperation. "What can I do, Candace? I can't help what I've said before. I can't help what I've done. All I can do is help what I'm going to do now, and in the future, and in the future I can only see myself with you."
Candace bit her tongue, once again wondering how many times he'd said such a thing as he just did.
"I love you, Candace. And I'll tell you the truth. I've never said that to another girl. And I say it to you. I'll say it over and over and never get sick of saying it to you. I love you. And I mean it." Sirius said sincerely.
Candace smiled weakly, looking into Sirius's eyes. "I love you too." She whispered, leaning in to press her lips to his, her arms wrapping around his neck.
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James tangled his hands in Lily's hair, the snow mixing in amongst the fiery glow of her hair. He couldn't believe it. He was laying on top of Lily snogging her! The pig in him wanted more, while the decent, respectable James Potter was marveling at his luck. Lily Evans! He was kissing Lily Evans! Every time he kissed her the same thought ran through his mind, and he would never get sick of thinking about it.
'I'm one helluva lucky guy...' James though wildly as he kissed Lily.
Lily couldn't believe herself! She was snogging James Potter! And liking it! And she had let him get on top of her, and continue to kiss her! Oh, the things that could have evolved from that. And Lily didn't think she was quite ready enough the way it was.
Though something made her mind freeze. And it wasn't the snow. It was a voice. "Lily? James? Lunch is read....Oh my goodness!" Lily's mother's voice came. Lily frantically pushed James off and rolled over, scrambling to her feet, her face so dark of a red that it surpassed her hair's usual flame.
"Mother!" Lily gasped. Lily's mother looked wordlessly from Lily to James. James simply stood looking nervously from Lily to her mother. How embarrassing! For her to just walk up on them like that! And they had thought they were guaranteed privacy up on that hill!
"Lunch is ready, you two." Lily's mother finally said quickly, turning to make her way down the hill, slipping and sliding in certain places. Once the door to the house was shut, Lily looked to James, her face still a bit red. And all they could do was just laugh.
After a few moments, they started down the hill toward the house once again to eat lunch.
Later that night, James had disappeared to take a shower, and Lily was left cleaning dishes with her mother. There was an awkward silence until Lily's mother finally spoke. "I don't know why you lied to me like that last night." She said quietly.
"What?" Lily asked, eyes raised as she placed a plate to dry on the dish rack.
"When I said James was your boyfriend last night, you corrected me and said he wasn't. But from what I saw today, well...I would say quite the opposite!" She said, rubbing a red cloth mindlessly against a serving dish.
"I didn't lie to you when I said that." Lily said truthfully. How could she explain it? "Technically he still isn't even my boyfriend. There was absolutely nothing until last night when he followed me outside after Petunia chewed me up and spit me out."
"Goodness! In my day we would wait until we were dating to...to kiss like that!" Her mother exclaimed. Lily snorted.
"Mum...that was in, what? The 1920's?" She laughed.
"Oh, enough about that, Lily. I'll finish up here. You go to bed."
Lily smiled appreciatively, and dropped her rag on the counter, heading toward the stairs. She climbed up each one softly, finally making it to the next landing precisely as James walked out of the bathroom, his unruly black hair still standing on end even though it was sopping wet. His glasses were slightly fogged from the heat of the bathroom, and he wore a simple t-shirt and a pair of jeans.
"Oh, hey." James said softly, grinning as he caught sight of Lily.
"I think I'm gonna head off to bed." Lily said softly.
"All right." James said with a smile. "Night then."
Lily smiled in response, disappearing into her room, shutting the door gently behind her. A smile upon her face, Lily sighed and collapsed onto her bed feeling lighter then air.
Mong- Remus isn't a dick. He's just confused. But he'll be doing some thinking about the certain topic in the next chapter. But what can you say? He's just an immature kid! Thanks so much for the review!
laughingurl- I hope you're still checking now that I've finally updated! Thanks so much for the review, and thanks for reading!
Shamrock13- Hope you liked this last chapter! A bit more fluffiness for everyone here. Thanks so much for the review! I appreciate it!
LightLord- Oh I love spontaneousness. It makes the world go round. Well, that and duct tape. =P Thanks for the review, and thanks for reading!
The Sweet New Zealander- Aww...thanks so much. I really appreciate you taking the time to drop by a review, and thanks for reading! Hope you liked this chapter!
Goddess of Gorgeousness- faints That was such a nice review! feels all fuzzy inside Thanks so so so so so much! I hope you liked this chapter!
LightLordRocks- Hey, thanks! I'm really glad you like my story, even though I'm a bit slow at updating. Thanks so much for dropping the review! I hope you liked this chapter!
Fanatic22- Aww...they do make a good couple don't they? You can't help but love them! Thanks so much for the review! Glad you liked the last chapter, and I hope you liked this one!
Optical Illusions- Thanks so much for dropping the review! I really REALLY appreciate it! I really hope you liked this chapter!
courtney- I'm sorry I didn't update sooner! Don't hate me! Hope you liked this chapter though, if you're even still reading!
Yankee Torp- So glad you liked that last chapter! I really hope you liked this one too! And thanks so much for dropping the review. It made all the difference.
Red Emerald- I love cliche little fluffy scenes too. Lol. Thanks so much for dropping the review! I really appreciate it!
starlett13- You think I've improved? jumps Yay! Some people think it's an insult when someone says they've improved, but it makes me happy. By the end of the day the point is to be the best writer you can be in my opinion! I'm not sure how long it took me to add this chapter, but I hope it wasn't a month! I'm so sorry that I've been so slow! I'll formulate a plot when I'm lazing around in Mexico so I should have a fantabulous (I hope) chapter ready soon after I get back in a week!
Oosha66- Aww! That's another fuzzy inside review. Thank you so very much! Such fine compliments. I hope you liked this chapter! Thanks so much for reading! I really appreciate it!
dragon-diva- Glad you liked it! I just hope it didn't take me TOO long to update! Thanks so much for reviewing, and thanks for reading as well!
Luthein- Mmm...ice cream! What kind? Glad you read it straight through! I love doing that with stories...then you don't have to wait for updates. =P Thanks for reading and reviewing, and I hope you liked this last chapter!
DIFFEN-DOOFER- Glad you liked that chapter! I really appreciate that you took the time to review, and thanks for reading! Hope you liked this last chapter!
JoyaSagrada- takes advantage of opportunity while Joya is too busy screaming to steal Sirius Muahaha! Thanks so much for the review! I'm really glad you liked it!
LegallyRed- I'm SO SO SO SO SO sorry I haven't sent you the next chapter for Etre Amoureaux. If you want (only if you want, don't feel like I'm making you), since I'm going out of town for a week, you could write the next chapter, and once I get home, I'll jump straight to the next two chapters. I swear, and promise! And if I don't I allow you to flay me within and inch of life! But since I don't wish to be flayed, I promise I will! Don't hate me!
brother- Glad you liked it! Thanks so much for dropping the review! I really appreciate it!
Lil'MissGranger- Lets form a I hate Petunia club, shall we? Along with the I hate Umbridge club! I shall call it, the IHPAU Club! I hope I didn't wait too long to update. shrinks into corner Thanks so much for the review though. I really appreciate it!
Agloechen- Aww...fuzzy feeling Thank you so much for the review! It made me so happy! I hope you liked this last chapter!
jasmine2003- Ooh! I'm glad you found my story! I hope you like it so far, and I hope you liked this chapter! Thanks so much for reviewing!
Queen of Day Dreams- Yeah, Vernon would have probably reacted differently, but if I had tried to change it, it probably would have taken me another month to update. Thanks so much for dropping the review! I really appreciate it!
Autumn Amethyst- Oh yay! I'm glad you found my story! And gushes Thanks so much for putting my story on your favorites list! And thanks so much for dropping the review! I really, really, REALLY appreciate it!
MPPSexxySiriusJamesRemus- Hehe...I love being hyper. I tend to get TOO hyper TOO much though. I think I scare people. Lol. Thanks so much for dropping the review! I appreciate it!
imogenehm- Hey, thanks for dropping the review! I really appreciate it! Hope you liked this chapter!
SeCrEt LiLy- Hehe...you can join the IHPAU (I hate Petunia and Umbridge) club too! Lol. Thanks so much for dropping the review!
black-cat-on-the-wall- Ooh yay! I'm so glad that you liked that last chapter! And thanks so much for dropping the review!
natalie- I'm glad it was worth the wait! I just hope this one was too! Thanks so much for the review!
Frozen In Motion- Hehe...I love singing. lol. Thanks so much for dropping the review! I really appreciate it!
Gryffindor620- Thanks so much for reiviewing, and not just this time but all the times before! I really appreciate having dedicated reviewers! Thanks so much, and I hope you liked this chapter!
Muzzy-Olorea-Isilme-Nause- Red carpet! Fanfare! Yay! Lol...thanks for the review! I really REALLY appreciated it! I hope you liked this chapter too! Oh... and how did you exam go?
wotchertonks- I think I have another member for my IHPAU (I hate Petunia and Umbrige) club! My how it's growing fast! Thanks so much for the review! I really apprecaite it and I hope you liked this last chapter!
Youkai- Hehe...horny little James. Lol. Thanks for the review! And I must ask, now that it's summer, are you going to start up For Your Love and your MWPP ficcies again? I really would like to see them take flight again!
Jessie xxx- I hope I updated soon enough, though something tells me that I didn't. Thanks so much for dropping the review, though! And I hope you liked this chapter!
deep breath Phew! I'm done! Next chapter will come...when it comes. But I'll go for two weeks this time. Must slowly and progressively update faster...