SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1Summary: Lily and James went to Hogwarts together. Unfortunately their memories are not all enjoyable. Their time was spent pranking each other senseless, while competing for the top grades in the school. Two years after graduation they bump into each other, again, and again, and again... Could it be that they have a combined fate?
Disclaimer: If you stare at the computer too long you might begin to starting thinking that I'm J.K. Rowling. Sometimes that does that to you. *SNAP* There I snapped you out of it! I'm not J.K. Rowling. I own nothing!
Author's Note: Well here is the awaited third chapter of Excuse Me Miss Evans. I'd like to thank everyone for reading this! It means a lot to me!!! I love all of the reviews that I have been getting! Thank you! So please review again and you'll get chapter four out just as soon!!
Midnight Goddess
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Excuse Me Miss Evans
Chapter Three: It'll Happen Soon
By: Midnight Goddess
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"This tastes wonderful," Mrs. Potter said, after she had swallowed a mouthful of the orange chicken Lily had helped to prepare for this dinner.
"Lily helped me make it," James replied. He turned to smile at Lily, who smiled back at James with equal warmth.
'He has to smile at me like that.' Lily thought when she returned his smile brightly. 'Of course, he probably isn't aware that whenever he does that, it makes me weak in my knees.'
"It was nothing. It's just a simple recipe. We made it together," Lily softly said, as she felt the color rising in her cheeks. James, in turn, turned his head down towards his plate to hide the blush that was creeping onto his cheeks as well.
'We. That simple word makes me turn bright red.' James thought. 'God, it's painful how much I want there to be a we...I have since fifth year. Now the possibility seems so close, but just barely so far away.'
"You two did a wonderful job," Mrs. Potter said as she watched Lily and James with interest.
'James rarely blushes at anything.' Mrs. Potter thought. 'It's highly unlike him to blush at anything embarrassing...the only reason to explain this is that he loves Lily. Which seems highly plausible the way he is acting around her...'
"Thank you," Lily answered quietly; James nodded his head in agreement with Lily's statement.
"It is very delicious," James' father spoke. His voice seemed to have become less automated and more real, more alive with personality in the short period of time.
'James' father seems to become more and more real with every word that is spoken.' Lily noted in her head.
"Lily, I must say you have had a positive influence on my son," Mrs. Potter said as she helped herself to more mashed potatoes and pumpkin juice, "last time we came for dinner here, James had to take us out to eat because the food was so bad!"
Lily giggled at the story as she looked over at James, who was trying to hide his reddened face with his hands as she replied, "Thank you Mrs. Potter."
"Lily, call me Shannon," Shannon Potter told Lily.
"Okay, Shannon," Lily said as she smiled and helped herself to some more orange chicken.
"I'm sure that we'll be seeing a lot more of you," Shannon told Lily as she winked over at James.
'Thanks mum.' James cursed in his head. 'First you tell Lily I talk about her all the time, now you say that I want to be with her all the time...okay so that's not what really was said but it was implied, and Lily will understand, she's smart...'
"Like I said before, you two are quite a team," Shannon said, as her husband nodded in agreement and helped himself to more chicken and potatoes.
"Thank you," Lily and James replied in unison as they both tried to avoid each other's eyes.
"You must have been good friends in school," Shannon stated, rather than asking, as she watched their faces for some sort of reaction.
"Well, actually," James began rambling, "See...we...er...well,"
Lily laughed lightly as she answered for James, "We didn't get along very well during Hogwarts,"
Shannon and Mr. Potter looked perplexed at this statement. 'They didn't get along? How could they have not gotten along for so many years and now after only a few years after graduation go together so perfectly?' Shannon wondered.
"Well, those feelings seem to have been forgotten," Mr. Potter contributed to the conversation.
"Yes, they have Mr. Potter," Lily said as she glanced over at James, who was crimson and staring at his plate as he had been for most of the evening.
"Edward," Mr. Potter said quickly as he smiled for the first time that evening. Lily returned the smile, relieved to see that he was capable of smiling.
"How did these feelings change?" Edward asked Lily and James. The curiosity in his voice was evident and his eyes twinkled.
"Well, I don't really know," James said as he looked at Lily for help.
"We happened to bump into each other in a café," Lily said as she laughed at the memory.
'I am so glad that James spilt coffee all over me. If he hadn't, I wouldn't be here with him and his family. I wouldn't be feeling giddy and lightheaded all the time...'
"I spilt coffee over her," James added in before his parents had a chance to respond. To his relief they laughed just as Lily had at the story of how they happened to meet again after their years apart.
"So, then you just decided to be friends?" Shannon asked, laughing even more at the idea of that even happening.
"Well, we didn't fight anymore," Lily replied. 'How did we become so close? We didn't decide to be friends. We were glad to see each other. All of a sudden, I was happy that I saw James Potter after all this time apart. Why did that happen?'
"I wasn't aware that feelings changed that quickly," Shannon Potter announced with a gleam in her eye. James and Lily flushed with embarrassment of the accusation that she was suggesting.
"I wasn't either," Edward Potter added as he looked at Lily and James, who were showing their embarrassment very clearly.
'Mum and Dad are saying that I've had feelings for her since Hogwarts!' James thought frantically in his head. 'They can't prove that! They can't prove that I have feelings for her now!'
'Are James' parents saying that we've had feelings with each other since school? I never had feelings for James and he never had feelings for me. That's a crazy thought.'
"I think we just matured and were able to put aside our differences," Lily said. James raised his head and nodded in agreement with Lily's statement.
"We didn't have any reason to fight over anything anymore," James added along to Lily's statement.
"Oh, that explains it then," Shannon said with a hint of sarcasm hidden deep within her voice.
Edward noticed it and looked over at her, "I don't buy it," he said simply and he turned back to his food.
Lily and James sat without another word as they thought about what James' father had just said.
'Does Dad know that I liked Lily at Hogwarts? Did Sirius tell him?' James wondered as he studied his dad. He glanced over at Lily and smiled briefly before turning away to hide the rose coloring that was appearing on his cheeks.
For the rest of the meal, not another conversation began at the table. Shannon and Edward made many attempts to get Lily and James talking again, but neither seemed willing to lift their head and meet each other's eyes. Only the occasional nodding of the head or a polite yes was spoken between the two.
"Like I said," Edward Potter whispered as he leaned over towards Shannon. They both had been watching Lily and James glance at each other and glance away just as quickly as they could, "It will happen soon."
~*~
"Bella, I'm home!" Lily called out as she opened the door and let the cool air into the house for a few moments. The moonlight shone down on the empty hallway.
"Bella?!" Lily called out once again. A shiver went down her spine as she bolted to the back of their apartment, praying to god that Arabella was there.
'Arabella better be back there! Where is she? Why isn't she coming? If anything happens to her, I don't know what I would do!'
Lily finally reached Arabella's door. She grasped the handle and threw the door open.
A scream filled the air.
"Lily! Can't you wait a few bloody minutes?!" Arabella shrieked as she clutched her clothes to her body.
'Maybe I shouldn't be so rash when Arabella doesn't answer the door. I can't believe I just walked in on Arabella changing because she didn't come the second I called her!' Lily thought.
Lily giggled, "Sorry Bella, you didn't respond when I called and I was afraid that something had happened to you. I mean with everything that happened last week..."
"It's okay," Arabella said as she finished dressing by pulling a sweatshirt over her head, "My mom used to be paranoid like that all the time. Especially if the door was left open one of her cats would go out. I swear that woman was obsessive over her cats, they probably made her feel a little more magical being a squib and everything..."
"I can't remember if I closed the door," Lily admitted after hearing that story.
"Lily! You know that Buddha bolts!" Arabella yelled at Lily as they raced out of Arabella's room into the hallway and rested their eyes on the open door.
'Not only did I just walk in on Arabella changing I've lost her cat. Way to go Lily Evans!'
"I'll go find her," Lily sighed as she ran out the door onto the darkened street. The street lamps lit the street with an eerie white glow that caused shivers to go down Lily's spine. She caught sight of a tail disappear around the corner and she tore off in that direction.
'This reminds me of that night that the Death Eaters were out. It's dark and insanely quiet and eerie like it was that night.'
Once Lily reached the corner, she turned and at the very end of the street and there was a small park. She began walking towards the park, but stopped suddenly. She had spotted Buddha and he was next to a man who was sitting on a bench.
'Should I go over there? Buddha is there but so is a man? I have my wand but who knows who he is. He could be a Death Eater for all I know!'
Lily decided that she couldn't be afraid of silly things like that, and she gripped her wand tighter and delicately placed one foot in front of the other until she reached the bench.
"Excuse me sir, but that is my friend's cat. He tends to bolt outside if you leave the door open..." Lily said as she reached for Buddha.
"Lily?" a male voice asked as he looked up. The startling hazel eyes met Lily's green ones and her face broke into a smile.
"James!" Lily exclaimed as she grabbed Buddha and hugged his small body to hers. His black fur blended in with the darkness and his yellow eyes gleamed.
"You shouldn't be out this late. It's dangerous. You saw what happened last time," James hurriedly said as he stepped closer to Lily defensively.
"I had to get Buddha," Lily whimpered under James' stern glare. 'He reminds me of Professor McGonagal with that stare of his. It is really unlike James to be this protective or serious. I wonder what inspired the change.'
"I'm going to walk you home," James announced. He blinked at his boldness, but stayed next to Lily as they began to walk out of the park.
'I'd actually enjoy that...he doesn't know. I enjoy his company. I enjoy talking to him when no one else is around. I would feel much safer with an auror walking me home in the middle of the night.'
"I don't mind. I would be much more comfortable with you here," Lily admitted, the darkness hiding her blush.
"I haven't seen you in three days," Lily laughed out as she looked up at James with a smile playing on her lips.
"So you've been counting?" James asked jokingly as he beamed back at Lily.
'Why did I tell him that? Now he thinks that I've missed him...which I have, but I know that he hasn't missed me. What should I say?'
"Not exactly. Don't get your hopes up too high," Lily began, she continued quickly off of James' puzzled look in her direction, "It's just a long time to not bump into you somewhere."
James laughed as he realized that he often bumped into Lily Evans less than three days apart, "So, did you miss me?"
Lily smiled and looked down at her feet as she responded, "In your dreams!"
"You know you missed me!" James teased as he punched her arm lightly. Lily smiled at him but just shook her head.
'It's amazing how natural this is, to walk with Lily Evans, to talk to her, it's the easiest thing in the world and it makes me feel different than walking or talking with anyone else.'
"Maybe I missed you a little bit," Lily teased right back at James as she added, "but I think that it's more plausible that I didn't."
"Where is your apartment?" James asked Lily very suddenly.
Her eyes grew wide. They were almost near the end of the block. She turned around and walked back to the apartment that they had just passed.
"Do I captivate you so much that you can't remember where you live?" James joked with Lily.
'He doesn't even know how true that statement is...'
"The apartments all look the same," Lily said instead as she knocked on the door for Arabella to open the door.
"Do you not have a key?" James asked with confusion.
"I forgot it," Lily replied. She turned her head to tell James something but she completely forgot it when she turned to face him. She was leaning forward and she knew that somehow this time they wouldn't be interrupted.
'Sirius isn't here to ruin it. There is no doorbell, no timer, no nurse.' Lily thought as her eyes fluttered closed and the door shot open. Lily and James shot apart.
"Buddha!" Arabella shrieked as she took that cat out of Lily's arms and rubbed his fur. She tenderly put him down on the floor and she let him race off into a dark shadow in the apartment.
"Hello Arabella," James said as he began to turn to leave.
"Potter," Arabella began, "What are you doing here?"
"I was down at the park and Buddha ran to me and Lily was running after Buddha..." James trailed off as if the rest of the story could explain itself. Arabella finally stepped aside for Lily and James to enter into the apartment and bustled off doing something else.
"So," Lily said, a little embarrassed by what had almost happened before Arabella had opened the door.
'I am going to need to add Arabella on my long list of distractions that I need to get rid of!' Lily thought in her mind. Then she blushed as soon as she realized just what she was thinking.
"Lily says she missed me," James laughed out as soon as Arabella re-entered the room.
Arabella smiled at Lily and replied, "She probably did."
"I never said that!" Lily shrieked, breaking Arabella and James' conversation.
"It was implied," James said as he glanced at the clock, "I need to go though it's late and Sirius is going to send out a search party if I don't get back soon."
"Goodnight," Arabella said simply as she left the kitchen once again.
"Thank you for finding Buddha for me," Lily whispered as she startled herself even and hugged James.
'This feels so right.' Lily thought to herself. 'Why do his arms have to fit so perfectly around me and make me melt right here.'
James smiled as he breathed in the top of her hair. 'I cannot believe how amazing it is to hold her. She fits perfectly in me. This is perfection.'
"Goodnight," Lily whispered as she pulled back. She reached up and kissed James' check. He turned away and she closed the door with a sigh.
James brought his hand up to his cheek. 'She kissed me. Sure it was a thank-you-for-helping-me-find-my-friend's-cat kiss but that leaves hope for an I'm-head-over-heels-in-love-with-you kiss, doesn't it? He sighed, as he turned away from her apartment and apparated to his with a pop.
~*~
"This is a nice restaurant, Bella," Lily said as she glanced around the small Italian restaurant. There were very few tables and the walls were decorated with paintings that waved and tried to attract the attention of everyone eating unsuccessfully.
"I need to go use the restroom," Bella whispered as she stood up from her chair and began to walk towards the back of restaurant.
She walked towards the back and was walking past the door that read Wizards and was reaching for the door that read Witches, when the door opened and she collided with it, causing her to slip on the wet floor and fall backwards.
"Bella?" a voice asked as a man with long black hair bent down to help her up.
'This is perfect. Wherever Sirius is, James won't be far behind. This way I can finally get Lily out of her he loves me? He loves me not? Mode and be normal for once.'
"Sirius, are you here with James?" Arabella asked quickly.
'Lily must be with her. It's so obvious that they like each other and I know Arabella has noticed it...' Sirius thought.
Sirius laughed as he leaned up against the wall and smoothly asked, "Does someone have a crush on Jamsie?"
Arabella rolled her eyes, and she smirked, "Not me, Lily."
'She does know that Lily and James like each other. Who doesn't, any random person who walked past them when they are talking to each other, or on top of each other because they've fallen would see it!'
Sirius laughed and replied, "James is here too."
"Should we send them back here?" Arabella questioned as if she were afraid that it was too evil of a plan to use on their friends.
"To get their snogging party over with already?" Sirius asked.
"Yes," Arabella sighed.
"Good plan."
Lily smiled as she watched Arabella make her way back to the table. Arabella sat down and immediately said, "Lily, you need to see the bathroom!"
"Why?" Lily asked suspiciously.
"They have this amazing portrait of a lake and I want to know if it is the one at Hogwarts," Arabella quickly said.
'What was that? I want to know if it is the lake at Hogwarts? Shouldn't I be able to tell?'
"Can't you tell?" Lily asked.
"I need a second opinion," Arabella assured Lily. Lily gave Arabella another questioning glance as she got up from the table and moved towards the bathroom. Arabella sighed with relief as she saw James making his way towards the back also. She caught Sirius' eye and he winked at her as they both turned to watch James and Lily make their way back to meet each other.
"James!" Lily exclaimed as she came up behind a tall man with messy black hair.
'I have to see him after last night...'
James turned around and looked at Lily with his hazel eyes glittering in the dim lighting of the restaurant.
'Maybe I will appear somewhat normal this time!' James hoped
"They planned this didn't they?" James suddenly asked. He mentally slapped himself afterwards. 'Way to impress the girl, you finally get her alone without much of a chance of interruption then you act as if you don't even want to be there!'
"Most likely," Lily sighed out. 'I shouldn't' get my hopes up. James doesn't like me like that. He's just a friend...'
Lily and James just both stood there without saying anything in the cramped hallway that led to the bathrooms. She probably thinks that I don't like her now; that I want to get rid of her, which I don't I want the exact opposite. She can't possibly know what that simple kiss on the cheek did to me.'
Lily and James stood there watching each other; what no one had realized was that it was the same narrow hallway that connected with the kitchen. So Lily and James stood in the hallway staring at each other very close to the kitchen doors, which were very concealed in the wall.
It seemed as if Lily and James were prone to trouble. As they stood there, the trouble sat brewing and waiting to happen.
Then it did.
A waiter opened up the kitchen doors to bring out Lily and Arabella's food. The door swung outwards and hit Lily. She lost her balance and fell backwards onto James. He tried to catch her but was unable because he lost his footing also. They ended up on the floor together.
'As hard as I try to avoid these moments I find myself in them more and more often.' Lily thought to herself as she began to get up from the floor.
James was rubbing his head from the fall and thinking. 'I try to be the knight in shining armor and catch her but I fall too. There has to be a law against this that makes falling this many times in front of one single girl illegal.'
James winced as he saw what was going to happen. Lily was beginning to stand up just as the waiter was about to come out with the tray.
'She's going to hit the waiter with the tray!' James screamed in his mind.
"Lily!" James called out but it was too late. Lily collided with the waiter's tray spilling the food all over Lily and James and the floor. The floor as well as Lily and James were now covered in pasta and a marinara sauce.
Lily covered her head with her hands. 'It was embarrassing enough falling on top of James again. Now I spilled food over us.'
James smiled at the sight of him and Lily on the floor covered in food, with a waiter looking flabbergasted at the sight. The waiter took a step forward, as if to help Lily off of the floor, but he slipped over a piece of pasta and went flying back through the door.
Lily covered her eyes once again. 'Now falling, and spilling food wasn't nearly as embarrassing as causing our waiter to fall.'
James tried hard not to laugh at the sight, but as the door swung back into the kitchen again, he had to wince. Another waiter was coming out with more food on a tray. The door swung backwards to hit him in his nose and caused the hot soup to splatter all over him as he landed on the floor.
'Wherever Lily and I are, disaster is sure to follow, it is a well known fact...'
The sound of crashing trays and bodies led many people to look to the back where the narrow hallway was. Then, as a wave upon the sand, a roar of laughter began. The sight was hilarious. There were two waiters a man and a woman on the floor covered in pasta and soup.
It wasn't the end. Another waiter came out with a tray with a birthday cake with a candle on the top, which happened to be lit. He slipped on the pasta and fell. The cake fell onto James' back and his robes were lit on fire.
Lily screamed, as did many of the people who were watching the drama unfold. James' robes quickly caught on fire and another waiter raced out of the kitchen with a bucket of water. He dumped it on James who was now soaking wet with a burnt hole in his robes.
'This is by far the worst thing that James and I have gotten ourselves into. Never before have we caused three other people to fall, covered us as well as the other people in food, or lit James on fire. This is bad...' Lily thought as she covered her head in her hands.
Lily helped James up and they made their way out of the restaurant silently and quickly because everyone was too busy laughing over the scene with their dinner companions to pay attention to what James and Lily were doing.
Sirius and Arabella met them outside laughing so hard that they were clutching their sides.
"That was...so...funny!" Arabella managed to choke out.
"I didn't think it was funny!" Lily shouted out who was still covered with food.
'How can they think it was funny that we just made complete idiots out of ourselves? How can they think it's funny that James was lit on fire?
"Trust me, it was funny!" Sirius laughed out. James just glared at everyone. Before long they were all laughing.
"I need to shower," Lily finally said as she picked at her robes, which were covered in sauces and soup.
"Lily, you look so beautiful with your face covered in..." Arabella began but she couldn't finish. Lily glared at Arabella and Sirius; smiled at James and then disapparated form the restaurant.
~*~
Lily closed the compartment door and sighed as she took the seat next to the window. She hadn't been on a train since she came home from school, but yet here she was going on a train to visit her parents.
She would have just apparated, had there been a safe place in the world that was inhabited by muggles, but there wasn't an apparating point in the city, so, Lily decided on taking the train. Despite Petunia, Lily was very excited to be going home to visit her parents.
The door to the compartment opened to reveal a very flustered young man whose hair stuck up at odd angels. He was hidden behind his luggage but Lily smiled with recognition.
'Sometimes I need to wonder if he is stalking me. I see him everywhere. I know it's just coincidence but it seems odd that it only started recently...' Lily wondered as she smiled at the man who just entered the compartment holding many bags of luggage unsteadily.
"Excuse me miss..." the young man began as he tried desperately to maintain grip on his luggage. However, he failed and all the luggage came falling down covering him.
'I don't even remember him being this clumsy. I wonder if he was always this clumsy and I just never noticed. I can't say I noticed many things about him. Of course I noticed the things that I didn't want to notice. Like his stupid habits that annoyed me, maybe if I had looked beyond those...'
Lily giggled as she got up to help the man to his feet, "Hello James."
'I knew there had to be a reason that I began dropping things.' James whined to himself. 'Wherever Lily is, I make myself into a joke, it's been that way as far back as I can remember.'
James blinked as he said, "Lily, why are you here?"
Lily rolled her eyes, "I can't be on the train can I?"
'Here I go again. Now she thinks that I don't want to be with her. I want to be with her more than anything in the world. I don't at the same time because I'm not myself around her... I'm clumsy and shy.'
"That's not what I meant..." James began; he was becoming more flustered with each second.
'He becomes flustered around me so often. I wonder if he doesn't enjoy to being around me; if he doesn't enjoy my company. He changes his personality, one minute he's the confident, and funny the James I remember. Then again, he's clumsy and shy; a different side of him that I wasn't aware of.'
"I'm going to visit my parents in South Surrey, unfortunately they haven't set up an apparating post there, due to the lack of wizards that inhabit the area," Lily explained as she sunk back down into her seat.
'We're going to the same place! That leaves more room for me to bump into each other and make a fool of myself. I do that way too often...maybe I should just stay locked up while I'm here.' James rubbed his head with the misery that was setting in at that thought.
"I know, I'm going to visit my sister in south Surrey," James told Lily as he too sunk into his seat and began to watch the trees flying by outside the window.
"I didn't know you had a sister," Lily said.
'There is so much that I don't know about him, so much more to learn, it's amazing how you can know someone for so many years and not know anything about them.' Lily thought, amazed.
"She graduated three years before we arrived at Hogwarts," James told Lily with a small smile as he turned once again towards the window.
"She just had a baby," James said with a large grin on his face after a few moments of silence.
'James must care for his sister a lot. He obviously cares so much about her child. It's evident with the glow that appears on his face when he mentioned the baby. The baby is lucky to have an uncle that loves it as much as James does.'
Lily turned to face James and said, "So, you're an uncle now."
James laughed as he said, "Yes, I'm Uncle James. I already was an uncle, she has a three year old boy."
'James would be a wonderful father...Where did that come from?!' Lily thought frantically.
Lily's smile faltered as she said, "I have a sister, but she's a muggle like the rest of my family. She hates the fact that I'm a witch, and I'm dreading having to see her."
'It hurts her that her sister feels that way. The pain. It must be horrible knowing that someone so close to you thinks of you so badly.'
"That must be horrible," James whispered as he searched Lily's eyes for any indication of pain or frustration at the fact of having a sister who hated her.
"It is," Lily answered truthfully as she bent her head down to try and mask the pain. James reached out an in an instant she was in his arms once again.
'Here we are again. Now I'm not going to be able to think straight for another day...but I just couldn't watch her when she hurt that much. I needed to do something.'
When James pulled back, Lily appeared to feel better. She smiled sweetly at him as she spoke, "Thank you."
'He has the ability to make me feel better with a simple hug. With a smile, I'm giddy for another week...'
James just nodded his head and sat down in his seat across from Lily. 'I wonder if anything happens to her when I hug her. I wonder if she feels the same way that I do...'
"Did you miss me?" James asked jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. Of course the mention of that evening caused Lily to turn scarlet. 'Why does he have to bring that up? He must think I'm an idiot for acting the way I did. I mean I kissed him...okay it was only on the cheek...but...'
"I saw you last night," Lily replied simply with a smirk. James rolled his eyes as he tried to contain his laughter that was building up inside him from the memories of that evening.
'Bring up one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. It wasn't just in front of Lily it was in front of Sirius and Arabella...I am never going to forget about it.' James sighed.
"That had to be the most embarrassing moment of my life," James laughed out as he brought his hand up to mess up his hair, but he scratched his head when he realized that Lily was watching him.
'I really need to get rid of that old habit. It's embarrassing to still have it.'
"But Jamsie," Lily began, "You looked so cute,"
'Did I just say he was cute? What is wrong with me? Why do I always think these things? Why can't I just stop!?'
"When I was covered in pasta, soup, fire, or water on the floor?" James joked back. A hint of pink was now appearing on his face.
"All of them," Lily giggled out, remembering James' face when he caught on fire.
"Especially when you caught on fire!" Lily exclaimed with a wink.
Then without warning, the lights on the train began to flicker and everything went black.
'What just happened?' Lily screamed in her mind. 'What happened to the lights? There can't be Dementors on the train, it's a muggle train. Could there be a power outage?'
"Lily, what happened?" James asked as he got up from his seat to try and find Lily. Unfortunately, he was moving towards the door to the compartment thinking it was towards the window.
'I can't see anything. What happens if I trip over her and fall again? I've fallen on her or because of her too many times to count in the past few weeks.' James thought as he rolled his eyes at the memories.
"I think the power must have gone out somehow," Lily replied as she tried to see where James was standing. A large bang on the other side of the compartment answered that for her.
'There he goes again...being clumsy. Although I can't really blame him this time, it is very dark and I'm sure that he can't see where he is going.'
"James, what did you just do?" Lily asked, the concern filtered in and out of her voice as she tried not to laugh at the idea of what James could have done.
"I just slammed into the wall," James replied quietly. The dark masked his embarrassment and he preferred it that way.
'Thank god that it is dark in here and she couldn't see me slam into the door, or me blush at the mention of my name.'
"I'm behind you," Lily told James as she walked up to tap him on the shoulder. James turned around at that exact moment. He almost pushed Lily backwards, but she reached out and held onto his shoulders to keep her balance. That was when they noticed that they were in very close proximity and in a darkened compartment.
'Even in the dark I can make out every single feature of her face. Somehow I haven't managed to make a big fool of myself this time.'
Lily smiled as she whispered, "We didn't fall this time."
James laughed as he slowly leaned his head forward.
'This is perfect!' Lily screamed in her head. 'We don't have any of our interruptions here. No friends, timers, or parents...'
Then the door flew open once again and Lily and James toppled onto the floor. A man stuck his head into the compartment with a flashlight.
'Of course someone interrupted us. Someone always does.' James complained within his mind.
"The power went down, here's a flashlight," the man said before he left the compartment. Lily and James were still tangled on the floor. 'There is always an interruption. Always!!' Lily thought in her mind.
"What is a flashlight?" James asked suddenly as he picked up the flashlight off of the floor.
"It's a muggle light," Lily answered while she hid her eyes from the bright light that James had just flashed in her eyes.
"Turn it off!" Lily shouted, still trying to shade her eyes from the beam of light that was shining in her eyes. James complied and turned the flashlight off. They were once again in the darkened compartment alone.
They were standing up now and once again they were leaning forward. 'It has to happen this time. There can't be any other distractions on this train. Even if there are I'm going to forget about them...'
Lily took a step forward towards James and closed her eyes with anticipation. Then her foot landed on the flashlight. It rolled backwards and she fell backwards bringing James with her.
"How many times do you think we've fallen?" Lily asked with a slight laugh. James didn't answer he was leaning closer to Lily. 'Like I said no distractions...I'm going to forget about the distractions...'
Then the lights flickered back on blinding Lily with their sudden brightness. They quickly broke apart.
'I was trying to forget about the distractions! Why do we always get interrupted or distracted by something?' James screamed in his mind.
The train pulled to a stop as Lily whispered, "I guess we are here."
James nodded his head as they grabbed their luggage and left the compartment.
~*~
"Lily!" Mrs. Evans yelled as she bustled over towards her daughter, her husband in tow. Mrs. Evans was a short, slim woman. Her hair was a light, sandy blonde color and her eyes were a light blue. She smiled warmly at Lily with happiness that twinkled in her eyes. Lily's father was tall; and his hair had grayed giving him a friendly feeling. His eyes matched Lily's perfectly. It was clear that she had inherited his eyes.
'It's amazing how Lily looks like the perfect combination of her parents. She has her father's eyes and her mother's smile. By looking at her, you can tell that she is their child.'
"Mum!" Lily shouted as she dropped her suitcase and hugged her mother. Her father had reached Lily by now and engulfed her in a hug. Lily's mother had time now to look over at James. She gave him a small smile.
'I wonder who that man is.' Mrs. Evans wondered as she glanced James over. 'I wonder how Lily knows him. If she were dating someone, I would have assumed she would have told us. I assumed she would have told us that she was bringing someone home with her.'
"Lily dear, who is your friend?" Mrs. Evans asked, as she looked James over once again. James subconsciously tried to flatten his hair under the gaze of both of Lily's parents. He straightened his glasses and looked down at his feet.
'Why did mum have to say it like that? She said friend so sarcastically. As if she can tell that he is my friend, but that I don't want him to be my friend...how can she do that? Or am I just imagining this whole thing?' Lily thought.
Lily blushed at the mention of James, but she quickly hid it and said, "This is James, he went to Hogwarts with me."
'I never even thought about meeting Lily's parents.' James thought. 'I never even took into consideration what they would think of me. Now I want to know. I need to know. I'm frightened that they won't approve of me. Even though I'm not dating their daughter, they can still form an opinion...'
"So you are a wizard then!" Mr. Evans exclaimed with excitement. Lily smiled. Her parents loved witches and wizards. They were entranced by magic.
'My parents would love James. Despite the fact that he's a wizard and they seem to love anyone with magical abilities. He has a personality that they would love. It's funny how I can just sense that he would fit into our family perfectly.'
"Yes, sir," James replied politely as he set his luggage down to prevent himself from dropping them again.
'I just hope that dad and mum don't interrogate him too much. Although, it's better than then asking about us...nothing has happened...why am I so embarrassed?'
"Have you come with Lily?" Mrs. Evans asked curiously as she looked from Lily to James expectantly.
'Now they think that I've come with their daughter. Do they think that we are dating? I hope not...fathers can be very protective of their daughters. I don't want him to think that I like Lily in that way...I don't want him to be watching my every move...'
If Lily and James were not already scarlet, they were now. James regained his composure quicker than Lily and said, "No, Mrs. Evans, I'm visiting my sister. She lives in South Surrey also."
'Thank god that James isn't affected by little things like that as much as I am. Of course it could be the fact that he doesn't have any feelings for me. Little things like the mentioning of even the possibility that we are dating doesn't make his heart race like mine does...does it?'
"Is your sister a witch?" Mr. Evans asked, a smile appearing on her face.
"Yes," James answered. He looked over at Lily, puzzled by all their questions. Lily shrugged her shoulders and James shot her a glare.
'Of course I'd expect Lily to help me out of this situation. Her parents are interrogating me, and she isn't doing anything! Of course she probably finds it amusing to watch me squirm with every question. This is way too complicated. Lily's my friend. Why are they trying to find out everything about me?!'
"James, would you care to join us for dinner tomorrow evening?" Mrs. Evans asked abruptly. Lily blinked and tried to hide the lingering blush on her cheeks.
'Did my mom just ask James to come to our house tomorrow? She did not just do that. I can't control myself around him! This will be horrible! I don't want my parents to tell James all the embarrassing stories of my childhood before anything happens! They are going to ruin the possibility of anything happening. By the end of the evening he is going to be laughing at me!'
"I would love to," James replied, trying to keep his eyes away from Lily's.
'Why did I just say that? I make a fool of myself wherever Lily is concerned. If they mention her name or refer to us as a couple indirectly, I'll drop something, or spill something, or fall. They are going to think I am a complete idiot!'
"Lily, we need to get going. Petunia has brought her fiancee to meet you tonight," Mrs. Evans announced as they pulled Lily along with them. They hadn't realized that James had set his luggage down by where Lily was standing, so when her mother grabbed Lily out to turn around, Lily tripped over the luggage and fell onto James, who was standing on the other side of the luggage. They both quickly untangled themselves from each other and the luggage and stood up.
'I'm already making a fool of myself in front of her parents! I can't even wait until tomorrow evening it has to be now."
Mr. and Mrs. Evans laughed lightly at the sight of Lily and James on the floor of the train station. James helped Lily up and they dropped each other's hands very quickly. Lily's mother gave her father an unreadable look and they turned around on their way.
"Goodbye, James it was nice to meet you," Mrs. Evans said as she smiled warmly at James and began to walk away.
Lily's father shook James' hand and said, "We'll see you tomorrow, James,"
Lily smiled warmly at James and with a wave, they were walking out of the station. Lily chatting happily to her parents, the wind ruffling her hair.
~*~
Author's Note: I want to thank my AMAZING betas. Brenda, Natalie, Manda, and Victoria. They are awesome!!!!
I also want to thank all of my reviewers!! And I also want to ask you to please review again! Reviews keep me typing faster!!
Super fox: I am so glad that you like my plot-line! I'm rather fond of it too. This has to be my favorite fic that I am working on right now. I'm glad that you think it's been funny and I hope this chapter is just as amusing! You can write like me! Just try!!
I o u a name: I am so glad that you thought that my chapter was funnier! Hopefully this one keeps the trend going up! There are more interruptions as you saw!
Elegystar: :) Thank you! I hope this one is just as fantastic!
Sajal: I'm defiantly going to keep going! I hope you enjoy this chapter too!
Midnight-shadow: I'm glad that it was funny again! I hope that you think this one is funny too and keep the trend going!! I'm glad that the title causes you to laugh I say I resent that a lot too...that's where it came from!
Hermione101888: Thank you! The next chapter will be to you as soon as I can write it!!
AcidAngelTears: Hopefully this keeps you intrigued! Hopefully this update was soon enough!!!
LENAK: I am so glad that you enjoy my fic! I hope that you continue to enjoy it and review!! I need to know if it continues to meet with your liking!
Dancincheerchic: I hope that you continue to love it! I hope that this chapter was posted soon enough!
Oobergoober: I'm glad that the last chapter made you happy and I hope this one does too! Sorry that it took a long time. I'm working on many fics right now and I have to try and keep up with all of them! I'm going as fast as I can with my busy life! I feel bad for that guy who can't remain standing! And for you! James just can't keep standing because of Lily...lol...maybe it's the same for your friend ;-)
LadyLily316: I am so thrilled that you love my story! I don't know what you thought that Mr. and Mrs. Potter were talking about but you don't get to find out in this chapter...sorry! Err actually you have to wait until around chapter 14...if it isn't evident already!! That's the next appearance of James' parents!
Smile 28: I am so glad that you like my story! I've always wondered why they picked the name Harry and there you go! It was a tribute to his little bro!!! Hopefully the characters stay perfect! Hope u enjoyed!
Kanariya: I'm so glad you like my story! I hope that this chapter makes you just as happy as the first 2 did! THANK YOU