A/N: Thanks for waiting patiently! Sorry it took so long to get this out. Writer's block struck here too. It's like and iceberg, or the flu... it's contagious! Just make sure that as you read this, place a protective barrier around yourself so you don't catch Blockage of the Writer's Writing Part of the Brain.
Disclaimer: Mine... My precious... Precious, precious, precious.
Oh wait, Wrong Book! *grins*
Illicit Love
Chapter Eight
Owls
James Potter whirled, twirled, zipped and zoomed as he flew past the fireplaces connected to the Floo Network. He stopped abruptly and fell onto his backside rather hard. He looked at the room before in from the firebox. It was what he expected. There were sofas and armchairs, a wireless in the corner of the room that played soft, soothing music, and a large houseplant in the other corner. There was a tea table with pretty china upon it, and sitting in the chairs and on the sofas was a perfect little family – a mother with fancy, short blonde hair, a father with balding russet hair, two girls – both looking like one parent, sporting red and blonde heads – and a boy, who didn't resemble the family at all, but seemed just as comfortable in the family.
James' arrival didn't go unnoticed for as long as he would have liked for it to, because it seemed that his sudden appearance was extremely unexpected. But didn't they have people popping in and out of their house via Floo Powder everyday? That certainly was the norm at his house – whichever one he was in.
Well, they must not get many visitors, James thought, watching the scene play before him.
The mother was in the process of telling a joke, and the punch line ended up being "Ahhh!" The other four looked at her, confused, until she pointed to the fireplace. She must have been frightened by the fact that a person was standing there in firebox, seemingly oblivious to the roaring flames.
The four turned around also. The father and the boy and the blonde headed girl gasped and the redhead jumped from her chair and ran to the fireplace.
"James!" she cried. "Come in. Don't just stand there."
James took the hand that the redhead offered to him and stepped out of the fire, unharmed, but a little sooty.
"I apologize for my un-cleanliness, Mrs. Evans," James said, brushing the ashes off of himself. "And I apologize for my unannounced arrival. I didn't mean to frighten you."
"Are – are you all right, boy?" Mr. Evans asked.
"Just fine, thank you for asking. And you?"
Mr. Evans knitted his brow. "You're not – you're not burnt?"
James looked at the fireplace then back at Lily's father. "No, no, sir."
"Well, you gave us all a fright, Mr. James Potter," Mrs. Evans said.
"Hey, you remembered me!" James said. "I really am sorry about that. I didn't mean – "
"Nonsense, nonsense!" Mr. Evans cried. "Would you like some tea? Sit down, James, I've much about you."
"Thank you, sir," James replied. Lily led him to one of the sofas where they sat down and Mrs. Evans poured him a cup of tea, which he sipped. "It was right after breakfast before I left. I completely forgot about the time change. I'm James Potter, son of Charles Damian Potter. Lily, do introduce me to these fabulous people."
Mrs. Evans blushed, thinking that this Potter boy was quite the charmer.
Introductions were made and James greeted them all politely. Petunia even blushed when James talked to her, stating that she was just as stunningly beautiful as her sister. So, even she couldn't resist the trademark charm of James Henry Potter. That made Lily smirk. But Nick VonBurryn scowled a bit as he shook James' hand. (So this is her boyfriend? he thought, a bit grudgingly.)
"You said your father is Charles Damian Potter, did you not?" Mr. Evans asked.
"Yes," James replied, taking a bite of his cucumber sandwich.
"I know him." James raised his eyebrows. "Well, not technically, but I work for him. He owns and runs the Tribal Benefit Corporation."
"TBC, right," James said. "I didn't realize that you worked there."
"So your parents are just like us – er – Muggles?"
"Oh, no, sir. They're both magical. Hogwarts and Durmstrang graduates, classes of 1953. Both were Head Boy and Head Girl."
"Er – very impressive," Mr. Evans said.
"Well, I suppose I should explain that Durmstrang and Hogwarts are the two of three of the very best magical academies in Europe. Hogwarts is the very best of them all, but that may be because I'm a bit biased." He pointed to his blue button-down shirt that had the Hogwarts crest on the front pocket.
After a while of chatting, Lily excused herself and James from the sitting room, kissing her family and Nick on their cheeks before leading James up to her room.
"Okay, what are you doing here?" she asked, shutting the door behind her.
James shrugged and started to explain himself when Lily threw her arms around him and silenced him with a kiss. Snogging is so nice, she thought as she pushed him backwards and onto the bed without breaking the kiss.
"I – miss – missed – you – too," James said in between kisses.
"Don't talk. It's been – three – weeks," Lily replied.
James chuckled and wrapped his arms around Lily.
"What about your parents?" James asked breathlessly after a minute.
"Doesn't matter," the redhead replied.
"Well, if that's the way you feel about it..." He pressed his lips to hers again.
Lily giggled and kept kissing him back until a knock came at the door. She stood up abruptly and opened the door.
"Hey in there," Mrs. Evans said, peeking in at James, who was sitting on the bed, looking believably innocent. "Um, an owl just flew through the window and dropped these off. I believe they are from Hogwarts. Anyway, they're for you two." She handed the letters to her daughter. "Have fun."
"Thanks, Mum."
Lily shut her door again and leaned against it, placing her free hand over her heart.
"My, oh, my," she said. "That was close." She looked at James and grinned evilly. "Let's do it again!"
"Slow down, Speed Demon," James said. "I'm thinking I want to open my letter first."
"Oh fine," she spat, fake resentment in her voice. She then pretended to be in tears, her voice high, and said, "You care more about your stupid letter than you do about me!"
"I do if it has a Head Boy badge inside it."
"Hmph," Lily grunted, throwing the letter at her boyfriend. "I suppose you got it, didn't you? You'll go on with the high life and I'll be stuck being a prefect."
"Right," James said, tearing open the envelope. "You got – what? – a minimum of thirteen O.W.L.S. There's no way you're not going to be Heads Girl." He looked at Lily. "Well, aren't you going to open yours?"
"I'm nervous."
"Don't be!" James said.
Lily slowly opened her envelope and pulled out the yellow parchment.
Dear Miss Evans,
We are pleased to inform you that you shall begin your seventh and final year of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry on September the first. This is a very important year for you, as you shall be graduating come next June. You will then be going off into the world as a fully trained witch. As this is so, we will be having several weekend courses to help guide you further into what you would like to do as a profession.
We hope that you are as eager to start the new term as much as we are.
Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Lily looked at the pieces of parchment within her hand. There was also a list of items she would need for the upcoming year and another list stating the workshops that were to be going.
"That's strange," James said. "My Head Boy Badge isn't in here."
Lily looked up at James.
"You're very cocky," she said. "You're so sure that you've got it in the bag."
"I have to be," James replied with a shrug. "What about you? Did you get your badge?"
"No, there's nothing in there. I didn't get it. That's okay, I wasn't expecting that I would anyway."
"Now that's really strange."
Lily shrugged at sat down on the bed next to James. "Yeah." She sighed. "But I feel that I've wasted all my studies. I mean, I didn't study like that to become Head Girl, but because I wanted to be the best there was out there, you know? When so many people said that I wouldn't be able to make it with my bloodlines, I strived hard to prove them wrong. If I had known I was wasting all those hours reading and doing homework, I would have been doing something worthwhile instead. Do you know what I mean?" James wrapped his arms around Lily's waist.
"Don't feel that way," he said. "Everyone knows you're the smartest witch at Hogwarts."
There was a long moment of silence before Lily voiced a question.
"Is it true?"
"That you're the smartest witch? Absolutely. I –"
"No, I mean, what you said during dinner at your house."
James looked confused for a moment before turning a tinge of pink, but he didn't look embarrassed at all.
"When I said that I was falling in love with you?" Lily nodded and blushed also. "Oh, dearest Lily, you should know that telling lies is so completely beneath me." He grinned at her and she smiled back. "Every little thing I do, you're on my mind. I can't get you out of my head, Lily. The way you smile, the way you smell. It just doesn't stop."
Lily looked at James for a moment, then replied, "It frightened me at first. I was so scared that night – of your parents, of your sister, of you – but then I thought about it. Not just thought, but reveled in it. James, I haven't known you very long, but I think that there's something wrong with you."
"What?" he asked, confused.
"I've fallen in love with you too, that's what's wrong."
"Wrong?"
"Not wrong, per se, but I'm afraid, James. Very afraid."
"Me too." He looked at the floor, then back up at Lily. "If this is wrong, why does it feel so right? My father says he knows what's good for me. But how can he know? He wants to live my life for me when he doesn't know anything about me at all. If he knew anything about me, he'd understand that blood doesn't make a person, but the person makes the person. Oh, jeez, I'm not making any sense anymore, am I?"
"No, no, you're making perfect sense. I see what you're talking about. My parents think they know what's good for me too. As charming as you are to them, I know they're downstairs talking about how to get me away from you and into the arms of Nicholas VonBurryn."
"Isn't that lovely?" James said sarcastically. "He seems rather dull."
"He is," Lily said. "We were best friends right up until I got my letter to Hogwarts. Then we stopped talking to each other. Until now, that is. He knows everything, now. He thinks it's some big conspiracy. Everything's a conspiracy to him, though; not just magic." She rolled her eyes. "So. Now that we've got our situation figured out, what do we do about our parents? Do your parents even know you're here?"
"No. Jessica is covering for me, otherwise, they think I'm in France with Remus."
"Remus is in France?"
"No. But I told Jess to owl me if my parents get suspicious. I hardly think they'll ask, though. Mum might. My dad could care less, I'm sure." Lily knitted her eyebrows, feeling very sorry for James.
"So. It's been three weeks, how's Sirius, Remus, and Peter?"
"Sirius is doing fairly well, actually. I talked to him over Firebox Networking yesterday. Remus is, er, sick again – he can't keep his nasty flu away."
"That's terrible!" James nodded.
"Peter's still in Scotland. He's going from there straight to Hogwarts, so we won't see him on the train." He paused. "Do you know what I still find so strange?"
"What's that?"
"I was so sure you would get the Head Girl position."
"And why are we bringing this up again?" Lily asked, feeling a little putout. "We already decided that I didn't get it."
"That's the thing. I – "
Before James could continue, there came a loud screech, a sound of breaking china, and a scream from the floor below. James and Lily jumped up and raced out of the room and down the stairs.
In the sitting room, they found several owls pouring in through the windows and dropping letters everywhere, which had caused the china to break, making Mrs. Evans scream. There were also several letters that were dropping down the chimney and spilling through the mail slot.
"What the in the bloody hell is going on?" Mr. Evans shouted.
Nick seemed upset by the occurrence, one owl making it's appearance once that day was enough, and he glanced at Lily and James, hostility in his eyes, and left the house, not before being bombarded by more owls with more letters.
A few more minutes passed before the madness ceased. The floor was covered in letters. Lily picked one up and looked at the addressee.
"Uh...it's for you, James," she said, handing him the letter. She continued picking them up. "James – James, James, James – oooh, me!" and she and James placed them in piles until there were no more and James' pile was a Mount Everest compared to Lily's pile. "Er, I suppose we should open them."
"Good idea."
Lily looked through hers to see if there was one from anyone she knew. There was another from Hogwarts. Her heart started thumping faster. It was a bit heavy... She did some very wishful thinking while tearing open the envelope, and when she reached her hand in, she pulled out a thick piece of parchment. Folded within the parchment, was a shiny, gold badge that said "Head Girl" and underneath was her name.
"Well, would you look at that," James said, reading over her shoulder. "Lily's got a Head Girl badge sitting in her hand."
"She what?" Mrs. Evans cried. "A Head Girl badge? Lily, you're Head Girl?"
"No surprises there," James said, sifting through his pile.
"Yeah, it's no surprise that you're queen of your freak school," Petunia said. She had been hiding behind the houseplant, as not to be attacked by the owls, and she had poked her head above it.
"Petunia Lucille Evans!" Mrs. Evans said. "You will go to your room right this instant. I will not tolerate you putting your sister down."
Petunia stuck her nose in the air and marched around the plant and up the stairs to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
"Aha!" James cried. "I knew it would be in here." He held a letter in his hands that sported the Hogwarts crest. He opened the letter and gave a little whoop when the golden badge stating "Head Boy – James Potter" fell out.
"Well, would you look at that?"
"Look at the both of you! Head Girl and Head Boy, standing right here in my sitting room. I've got to get a picture of this!"
Before Lily knew it, her mother had gone to the sideboard, pulled out a large camera from the cabin area, and snapped several pictures of her daughter and James Potter. After a few minutes, James and Lily started opening their other letters. Several of them were congratulations-on-being-Head-Boy/Girl notes. They made Lily smile. It wasn't that she wasn't well-liked at school, but she had never been 'targeted' for idolatry before.
From the kitchen, a ding sounded, notifying Mrs. Evans that her meal was finished.
"James, dear, you don't have anywhere you have to be, do you?" she asked.
"No, I don't, Mrs. Evans," James replied.
"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Mrs. Evans asked hopefully.
James looked at Lily a bit nervously. He didn't want a repeat of a drunken scene in a different home. But Lily nodded reassuringly.
"Yes," James replied. "That would be wonderful."
"Wonderful!" Mrs. Evans cried. "Well, go wash up and we'll have a wonderful meal, all of us will. Hurry up now!"
Lily took James by the hand and dragged him up the stairs again, chatting happily and talking about those who had sent them letters.
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A/N: Well, this is where this chapter ends, obviously. I'm sorry it's taken so long to get out. I've been busy with school and I've had quite a writer's block. Personally, I think that this chapter sucked, but I've learned since junior high never to apologize for your work. So. This is the best that I could do with the time and the writer's block I had, and you better like it, dammit, because it took me a week to work on it.
Hehehe. Sorry!
You don't really have to like this chapter. Just as long as you know that I'm at a down moment in my writing and it's been better and it'll pick up by the next chapter. School's really screwed me up!!!
Anyway, there's really nothing else that I want to talk about. Just that someone mentioned that about this story's plot. Yes, I realize that this is going nowhere. I have a plot, and it's an original idea, but it's not getting anywhere just yet. I'm just going for a joy ride and you just happen to be tagging along with me. Eventually, it will end, yes, the conflict will be solved, but there's a lot more that I want to write because I'm having fun. And no, there won't just be the lovey-huggy-kissy thing going on here in the rest of the chapters, I've got a few things up my sleeve...
Anyway, on to the thank-yous!
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Ma'hi – I want to speak French too! I'm so jealous! Thank you for the wonderful things you said. I tried to make Sirius' family inventive along with James', so I hope it's working!
Calypzo
James'girl289
Pickle Princess
Uknowwhoslittleprincess – You've read my other stories? *blushes*
Caroline
Majestyic – I didn't come up with the saying "Going to hell in a handbasket" or at least I don't think I did. I've heard it before, so don't give me the credit! And here's your bear hug!! *squeezes Majestyic*
Gooey Gooey Coca Beans
The Lady Lillian
Pixie Princess Ice
Pumpkin Juice – Hey, was it you who wanted to read Even Angels Fall but couldn't because of the rating? If so, sorry, dear, but it is rated that because it needs to be. There is 'bad' language and sexual suggestions. I'm really sorry!
KaTiE
Kritatwen
Lexie
Lady Jai
Lilz
Jess the Great
Marzoog – So, you want to be a stalker too? I've got one already! She's fun! I'm glad you liked my story that much!
Quinn
Anonymous – So, you haven't exactly left me yet, eh? Well, I understand. You get what you need to do done, and if you have time, visit me! I know how you feel, though. Stupid school...
JamesNLily4Ever141
Meghan
Starblaze
Rhi and Tiff
A13TAT
Pilikika – You like to dance too? Yay! I love it! And you've read Falling into Grace? It's not at its peak yet. I'm trying to keep up with it, but I've had a horrid writer's block!
Tiffany
Clavel
UnforgivenChild – I like mushiness sometimes, and you'll see it a bit in here, but not too much, I hope!
Kelton – I'm glad you like the characters. And I'm glad that you too pointed out about the plot and all that. I do try my best with grammar. I usually write this when I have nothing else to do, so I do it quickly because I don't have as much spare time as I would like to have. But I don't have a beta-reader for this story. I know there are mistakes, but I figure that nobody's perfect, so I'm going to try to be what I can in the time that I have. Okay...did that make sense?
SweetenedSugar
FrOlIcKiNgLaDy – Thanks for wishing me luck! I've been trying to work on my original novel lately. I'm jacked about it, but it's really difficult to write! And I do wish you the best of luck in your writing! Keep your chin up and you'll hit your stride. It might take one time, it might take fifty, but you'll get there if you have the goal!
Elenora – I'm glad your friend, Honey666, led you to this story. I'm happy that I could share it with you! Yes, I know that that sounds cheesy, but it's true. I don't write for the reviews and praise, but because I like to take people away from reality for ten or fifteen minutes or however long. And a great place to get story ideas is Fictionalley.org. It's the greatest place! It's a Harry Potter site and there is lots of interaction with other HP nuts out in the world! And there are always plot bunnies hopping about. I suggest you go there!
Britz – Hey chica! It's been a long time since I heard from you, I was starting to get worried! Anyway, I'm glad everything's okay. Nasty school, I know.... Well, to let you know, I can't imagine Lily wearing a yellow bikini. She couldn't even imagine herself wearing it either, obviously, that's why she didn't think she'd ever wear it. But I do see her wearing a green bikini – the same color of her eyes, of course! And you dance too? Wow! I love dancing soooo much! Last year on was on my studio's competition team. We went to nationals in Las Vegas. But we didn't do too well there. First place at state, creamed at nationals. That's always nice. But this year I'm not doing it. I really, really wish I was though. It was SO much fun! Anyway, you take ballet and modern/lyrical? How fun! I take Jazz, ballet, and modern. And I really want to learn how to belly dance – I think it would be so cool! Dancer's Rock On! It's not a sport, it's an Art with Attitude. (Yes, I made that up, don't laugh at me!)
Martini Addict – Where are you? Has school started for you too? I was just wondering, since I didn't hear from you. Oh, well, if you've abandoned me, it's been fun!
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Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
* * *
All reviewers shall receive a Channeling Locket with their names carved into it and Collector's Edition of the Marauders' Map. These will help you while you make mischief in the time being between chapters or just for the hell of it! Have fun!
Don't know what a Channeling Locket is? Read Even Angels Fall!
Er...Or I could just tell you... It is a locket that – no, wait for it – channels people you want to talk to! A bit like walkie-talkies, but with a video screen and more silent.
Enjoy!
Happy reading!
~Lavender