A/N: Hey all you lucky people, I've been working my butt off, trying to
study and get this chapter out before exams for all of ya! 27 chapters of
physics!!! I think my brain is melting . . . which will hopefully explain
any weirdness that goes on in this chapter.
Oh, I just realized that my stars or asterisks or w/e they're called no longer work on fanfic, so there's probably been some confusion between the different parts of my chapter . . . the parts will now be separated by "" if those work. Sorry!
Thanks for all the reviews! They really made my week Needless to say, they worked, since you're getting this chapter now rather than in June!
Flashback:
Lily looked down, realizing she was still wearing robes, Petunia, she noted with slight satisfaction, looked absolutely mortified at the fact that Lily was still clad in school uniform. "Darling, I don't believe you've been properly introduced! Vernon, this is my other daughter, Lily. Lily, this
is Vernon Dursley, your sister's fiancé."
End of Flashback
"Pleased to meet you, Lily," Vernon's double chin wobbled as he bowed. "Petunia has told me much about you."
Lily froze, her eyes searching for emotions on Petunia's face. A slight cough from her mother quickly reminded her of her place, "And I'm very pleased to meet you, er, Vernon." She attempted a sort of curtsy, using her robes in the same fashion as a skirt. Glancing around the room, she noted a bewildered expression gracing Vernon's face – she could only assume it was due to her garb – Petunia's eyes held only fury, and her parents exchanged anxious glances. "Well, I apologize for rushing in like this, I must look a dreadful mess, if I'd known we had company I certainly would have taken time to make myself more presentable, I'll just go change, shall I?" With that she quickly strode out of the dining room, leaving her family to explain her appearance to Vernon.
Once in her room, Lily sank to her knees in horror, Petunia was getting married. The idea of it just wasn't plausible. To a girl who had spent the better half of her life turning tea kettles into tortoises and commanding pineapples to tap dance across tabletops, it shouldn't seem so unbelievable that her older sister was engaged, but Lily was utterly numb from shock. Staring at her violet rug, Lily listened as the conversation regarding the mess she'd left downstairs infiltrated her normally lucid mind.
Her mother had escorted Petunia to the kitchen, Lily could tell by the high- pitched hysterics erupting from her bedroom vent, and her father was showing Vernon out, their booming voices filtered up the stairs through her bedroom door. As the front door slammed in the entrance way (a/n: is that the best English translation for "genkan"?), Lily shook her head clear, coming to her senses. Pulling her long hair into a high ponytail, Lily quickly stripped off her robes, replacing them with a sheer, long-sleeved green shirt and dark jeans. Casting a careless glance into her mirror, Lily bounded downstairs, preparing herself for the damage that lay ahead.
"Mum! She's ruining everything! She always does! What if," Petunia swallowed, apparently blinking back tears, "what if Vernon calls the wedding off?"
"If he calls the wedding off because your sister's a witch, then he isn't worth your time, Petunia." Lily replied sagely, strolling into the kitchen.
Petunia glared, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen, "Not all the world has the same view as you when it comes to freaks, Lily."
"And, thankfully, the whole world doesn't have the same myopic view as you when it comes to wizards." Petunia flinched at the word as though it would cause her bodily harm. "Look, Petunia, if Vernon loves you he's not going to throw away your engagement because of one stray relative. There are flaws in every family, Petunia, I'm sure there's a weirdo in his as well."
Petunia sniffled, a flicker of hope alight in her beady eyes. "You know, dear," their mother leaned forward, gripping Petunia's shoulder, "She's right."
Lily winced, wishing her mother had thought not to say anything. Petunia may have forgiven Lily for the blemish she left on her perfect life, but the one thing Petunia couldn't stand was hearing that her freakish sister was right.
Sure enough, Lily could see Petunia's form tense beneath her mother's grasp, and her beady little eyes shot to Lily. If looks could kill, as the expression goes, Lily was certain she'd have died a thousand times over from the number of glares she'd received from Petunia over the years since she'd been accepted into Hogwarts.
Stifling a forced yawn, Lily quickly excused herself from the kitchen, assuming her mother could smooth things over better with Petunia than when Lily was present. Sauntering into her room, Lily dimly heard the telephone ringing down the hall. After spending a term at Hogwarts, muggle devices such as telephones seemed strange to Lily, and the loss of muggle contacts meant the phone was rarely for her – unless Maren was bursting with excitement and didn't have the patience to send an owl – but Maren was at Hogwarts now, so it came as quite a shock to Lily when her father called up the stairs, "Lily-flower, it's for you!" Walking down the hall, Lily lifted the receiver tentatively to her hear, unsure of what she would find on the other end. "Hello?"
"Lils," Sirius' voice rasped desperately, "you have got to save me. Not a minute has passed that James hasn't thought of you, and he's starting to drive me crazy with all his heavy sighs and dreamy expressions. I don't know if I'll make it 'till Monday." He gave a dramatic pause, "anyways, in case I don't make it, I want you to promise me that your first son will be named – ow, James, lemme go, no give me the phone, NO LILY DOESN'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU! – sorry, Lils, there's this chimp trying to take my – HEY!" A string of colorful swearwords followed Sirius' shouts as Lily tried hard not to laugh into the phone.
"Sirius, you still there?" She asked in a strangled voice, trying to ward off any giggling fits.
"James, give me the phone! No, I NEED to talk to her!"
"Sirius, I will not let you terrorize my girlfriend!"
"I'm not terrorizing her, she's going to save me!"
"From who?"
"You!"
Lily could no longer hold it in, her laughter burst like the bursting of a dam as she heard the argument taking place over in Godric's Hallow. "Um, guys?"
"Yes?" the argument was immediately silenced at the sound of Lily's melodic voice.
"James – don't drive Sirius crazy, I couldn't stand it if he was dead, and Sirius – don't be so hard on James. I'll see you both on Monday! Try not to kill each other before then!" And with that, Lily hung up, noticeably more cheered than she had been the whole afternoon.
For Lily Evans Easter came and went with little notice, there were the usual chocolate eggs, early morning mass, and exchanging of small gifts and cards among her close family, but nothing that required noting. The real excitement, it seemed, would arrive the following day, when the meeting of Petunia's "normal" boyfriend, and Lily's "freakish" one.
At approximately 6 a.m. Monday morning, Lily's internal alarm went off, rousing her from her fitful slumber. Unable to fall back into her trance, Lily stumbled to the bathroom, allowing herself a long shower before debating what to wear for the day's occasion. Knowing that in only a few hours she would be meeting James again sent butterflies into her stomach, mixed with the anticipation of facing Vernon once more. She could only hope she hadn't humiliated herself too much the last time. Finally agreeing on a simple sleeveless cerulean tee and khaki shirt, Lily headed down to the kitchen in hopes to attempt to force down some breakfast.
"Padfoot, I don't know, I'm meeting her parents for the first time . . . what am I supposed to wear?" James moaned sulkily, his face buried in his hands.
"What you've got on is fine," Sirius rolled his eyes, not able to believe he was actually having this conversation with James Potter. Cool, calm, collective, suave James Potter was actually falling to pieces over a girl – true, this girl was Lily Evans, but she was a girl nonetheless.
James glanced down anxiously at his blue-collared shirt and khaki pants. "You think so?"
"I know so, now, will you relax? Lily doesn't care what you wear, she'll still love you anyways." If James' mind had not been so preoccupied he may have detected the note of bitter jealousy in Sirius' voice.
"Yeah, you're right."
"Did you ever have any doubt?"
James ruffled his friend's hair affectionately, causing Sirius to yelp at the destruction he was causing. As Sirius fled to the bathroom to apply more gel to his now disheveled hair, James couldn't help but wonder how he was possibly losing his head over a girl.
"Thank you, Mrs. Evans, the tea was delicious."
"Why, thank you, James!" Mrs. Evans beamed at the smiling boy, pleased that her youngest daughter had found such a catch. James beamed back, equally pleased that Lily's parents seemed to approve of him. "Lily, Petunia, why don't you help me bring the plates back into the kitchen, hm? We'll leave the boys out here to talk awhile."
Lily and Petunia quickly jumped to their feet, obliging their mother, only too happy that their boyfriends appeared to be making such a good impression on their mother. Lily reached out to collect James' cup and smiled brilliantly at him, her hair falling in a thick veil around her face as she bent closer to him, whispering, "You're doing great, James, Mum absolutely loves you!" James could only widen his grin at hearing the praise from Lily's lips as he watched his girlfriend skip into the kitchen behind her mother and sister.
Turning back to Sirius and Vernon, James thought he could just barely detect Vernon muttering quietly to himself.
"He seems sane enough," Vernon murmured beneath his breath, remembering Petunia's warning of the "strange boys" that may be visiting Lily. "So, James, Do you volunteer at the sanitarium often?"
James glanced over at Sirius who merely shrugged, "No, why do you ask?"
"Oh, I just assumed that's where you met Lily."
"How do you mean?"
Vernon looked slightly taken aback, "You mean you don't know? God, Petunia told me ages ago! Typical behavior I suppose, don't pop the news 'till your hitched and saddled with a few kids and it's too late, though you'd probably notice by then . . . unless, of course! Her medication!"
"Excuse me," James broke in, a bit bewildered by the older man's rambling, "but what are you going on about?"
Vernon blinked as if just remembering the other two were there. "Right, sorry, I only just met Lily days ago when she came parading around in robes, thinking she was some kind of wizardress," he chuckled, "I realized right away it must be because of the condition Petunia had informed me of, of course, when I heard about her condition I offered to refer her to my father – he's quite a well-known doctor, you know – but Petunia would have none of it," he shook his head, emphasizing the insanity of the situation. "I guess she just wanted to keep it within the family."
James coughed, clearing his throat, "I'm sorry, Vernon, but I don't quite follow you."
"Oh, don't you, James? Vernon, here, is implying that our Lils is a kook, a mental case, insane," Sirius shook in silent laughter at the idea.
"Lily? Insane? Are you mad?" James gaped at Vernon, contemplating the inner workings of his fragile muggle mind.
"No, I'm not mad, and yes she is insane! Where do you think she spends the year?"
"At school, with me!"
"I daresay not, her own sister informed me that your girlfriend currently resides in London's finest sanitarium."
"No, Lily spends the year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry with me and Sirius!" James' voice was shaking with rage.
"School of witchcraft and wizadry?" Vernon chortled again at the thought, "My good fellow, you must be joking!"
"I'm not joking! Lily's a witch and I'm a wizard!"
"My word, you're acting mad as well!" Vernon began to rise from his chair.
"Where do you think you're going?" James bellowed.
"To inform Mr. Evans that you need to be restrained."
"Oh no you don't! Locomotor mortis!" a flash o flight filled the air and Vernon fell to the couch, his legs locked tightly together. (a/n: I'm not positive that this is the function of locomotor mortis . . . but I'm too lazy to go look it up, please let me know if I'm wrong!)
"Petunia! Mr. Evans! Help!" Vernon rasped, his eyes wide with terror.
"Oh, bad move, Prongs, should've used the full body-binding curse on him," Sirius, who had been watching the whole scene in amusement, advised.
"Shut it, Siir," James glared furiously at Vernon as Petunia and Lily ran into the room. Quickly muttering the countercurse, James turned towards Lily, "Hello Lils, Petunia," he nodded at each in turn.
Lily cocked her head to the side, looking at James questioningly.
"Vernon?" Petunia's high-pitched tone was coated in anxiety. "Whatever is the matter?"
"He, she, but, not possible," an ashen-faced Vernon spluttered, looking as though he was the one in need of therapy.
"Lils, I think it's best we leave the happy couple alone for awhile," Sirius spoke, warding off any unwanted questions. "How 'bout you collect your things and we'll head to Godric's Hallow?"
Still clanking nervously at Petunia who was cooing over Vernon, Lily quickly agreed, knowing it was best to question the two marauders later. Scurrying out of the room, quickly followed by James and Sirius, Lily muttered quietly so that only the two boys could hear, "You two have a lot of explaining to do."
And that's all for now! I'm sorry there wasn't more of a "meet the parent's" scene, but I wanted the chapter to revolve mainly around the anxiety and James meeting Vernon. I wish my muse had cooperated a bit more, but I'm currently fight a bit of writer's block, and I really didn't have much time to work on this chapter . . . there will NOT be another update 'till June 9th or 10th, I'm really sorry, but my exams start Friday and if I don't study . . . yeah, anyways, please review! Your reviews really make my day and they're the only things that are going to get me through these hectic two weeks!
Oh, I just realized that my stars or asterisks or w/e they're called no longer work on fanfic, so there's probably been some confusion between the different parts of my chapter . . . the parts will now be separated by "" if those work. Sorry!
Thanks for all the reviews! They really made my week Needless to say, they worked, since you're getting this chapter now rather than in June!
Flashback:
Lily looked down, realizing she was still wearing robes, Petunia, she noted with slight satisfaction, looked absolutely mortified at the fact that Lily was still clad in school uniform. "Darling, I don't believe you've been properly introduced! Vernon, this is my other daughter, Lily. Lily, this
is Vernon Dursley, your sister's fiancé."
End of Flashback
"Pleased to meet you, Lily," Vernon's double chin wobbled as he bowed. "Petunia has told me much about you."
Lily froze, her eyes searching for emotions on Petunia's face. A slight cough from her mother quickly reminded her of her place, "And I'm very pleased to meet you, er, Vernon." She attempted a sort of curtsy, using her robes in the same fashion as a skirt. Glancing around the room, she noted a bewildered expression gracing Vernon's face – she could only assume it was due to her garb – Petunia's eyes held only fury, and her parents exchanged anxious glances. "Well, I apologize for rushing in like this, I must look a dreadful mess, if I'd known we had company I certainly would have taken time to make myself more presentable, I'll just go change, shall I?" With that she quickly strode out of the dining room, leaving her family to explain her appearance to Vernon.
Once in her room, Lily sank to her knees in horror, Petunia was getting married. The idea of it just wasn't plausible. To a girl who had spent the better half of her life turning tea kettles into tortoises and commanding pineapples to tap dance across tabletops, it shouldn't seem so unbelievable that her older sister was engaged, but Lily was utterly numb from shock. Staring at her violet rug, Lily listened as the conversation regarding the mess she'd left downstairs infiltrated her normally lucid mind.
Her mother had escorted Petunia to the kitchen, Lily could tell by the high- pitched hysterics erupting from her bedroom vent, and her father was showing Vernon out, their booming voices filtered up the stairs through her bedroom door. As the front door slammed in the entrance way (a/n: is that the best English translation for "genkan"?), Lily shook her head clear, coming to her senses. Pulling her long hair into a high ponytail, Lily quickly stripped off her robes, replacing them with a sheer, long-sleeved green shirt and dark jeans. Casting a careless glance into her mirror, Lily bounded downstairs, preparing herself for the damage that lay ahead.
"Mum! She's ruining everything! She always does! What if," Petunia swallowed, apparently blinking back tears, "what if Vernon calls the wedding off?"
"If he calls the wedding off because your sister's a witch, then he isn't worth your time, Petunia." Lily replied sagely, strolling into the kitchen.
Petunia glared, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen, "Not all the world has the same view as you when it comes to freaks, Lily."
"And, thankfully, the whole world doesn't have the same myopic view as you when it comes to wizards." Petunia flinched at the word as though it would cause her bodily harm. "Look, Petunia, if Vernon loves you he's not going to throw away your engagement because of one stray relative. There are flaws in every family, Petunia, I'm sure there's a weirdo in his as well."
Petunia sniffled, a flicker of hope alight in her beady eyes. "You know, dear," their mother leaned forward, gripping Petunia's shoulder, "She's right."
Lily winced, wishing her mother had thought not to say anything. Petunia may have forgiven Lily for the blemish she left on her perfect life, but the one thing Petunia couldn't stand was hearing that her freakish sister was right.
Sure enough, Lily could see Petunia's form tense beneath her mother's grasp, and her beady little eyes shot to Lily. If looks could kill, as the expression goes, Lily was certain she'd have died a thousand times over from the number of glares she'd received from Petunia over the years since she'd been accepted into Hogwarts.
Stifling a forced yawn, Lily quickly excused herself from the kitchen, assuming her mother could smooth things over better with Petunia than when Lily was present. Sauntering into her room, Lily dimly heard the telephone ringing down the hall. After spending a term at Hogwarts, muggle devices such as telephones seemed strange to Lily, and the loss of muggle contacts meant the phone was rarely for her – unless Maren was bursting with excitement and didn't have the patience to send an owl – but Maren was at Hogwarts now, so it came as quite a shock to Lily when her father called up the stairs, "Lily-flower, it's for you!" Walking down the hall, Lily lifted the receiver tentatively to her hear, unsure of what she would find on the other end. "Hello?"
"Lils," Sirius' voice rasped desperately, "you have got to save me. Not a minute has passed that James hasn't thought of you, and he's starting to drive me crazy with all his heavy sighs and dreamy expressions. I don't know if I'll make it 'till Monday." He gave a dramatic pause, "anyways, in case I don't make it, I want you to promise me that your first son will be named – ow, James, lemme go, no give me the phone, NO LILY DOESN'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU! – sorry, Lils, there's this chimp trying to take my – HEY!" A string of colorful swearwords followed Sirius' shouts as Lily tried hard not to laugh into the phone.
"Sirius, you still there?" She asked in a strangled voice, trying to ward off any giggling fits.
"James, give me the phone! No, I NEED to talk to her!"
"Sirius, I will not let you terrorize my girlfriend!"
"I'm not terrorizing her, she's going to save me!"
"From who?"
"You!"
Lily could no longer hold it in, her laughter burst like the bursting of a dam as she heard the argument taking place over in Godric's Hallow. "Um, guys?"
"Yes?" the argument was immediately silenced at the sound of Lily's melodic voice.
"James – don't drive Sirius crazy, I couldn't stand it if he was dead, and Sirius – don't be so hard on James. I'll see you both on Monday! Try not to kill each other before then!" And with that, Lily hung up, noticeably more cheered than she had been the whole afternoon.
For Lily Evans Easter came and went with little notice, there were the usual chocolate eggs, early morning mass, and exchanging of small gifts and cards among her close family, but nothing that required noting. The real excitement, it seemed, would arrive the following day, when the meeting of Petunia's "normal" boyfriend, and Lily's "freakish" one.
At approximately 6 a.m. Monday morning, Lily's internal alarm went off, rousing her from her fitful slumber. Unable to fall back into her trance, Lily stumbled to the bathroom, allowing herself a long shower before debating what to wear for the day's occasion. Knowing that in only a few hours she would be meeting James again sent butterflies into her stomach, mixed with the anticipation of facing Vernon once more. She could only hope she hadn't humiliated herself too much the last time. Finally agreeing on a simple sleeveless cerulean tee and khaki shirt, Lily headed down to the kitchen in hopes to attempt to force down some breakfast.
"Padfoot, I don't know, I'm meeting her parents for the first time . . . what am I supposed to wear?" James moaned sulkily, his face buried in his hands.
"What you've got on is fine," Sirius rolled his eyes, not able to believe he was actually having this conversation with James Potter. Cool, calm, collective, suave James Potter was actually falling to pieces over a girl – true, this girl was Lily Evans, but she was a girl nonetheless.
James glanced down anxiously at his blue-collared shirt and khaki pants. "You think so?"
"I know so, now, will you relax? Lily doesn't care what you wear, she'll still love you anyways." If James' mind had not been so preoccupied he may have detected the note of bitter jealousy in Sirius' voice.
"Yeah, you're right."
"Did you ever have any doubt?"
James ruffled his friend's hair affectionately, causing Sirius to yelp at the destruction he was causing. As Sirius fled to the bathroom to apply more gel to his now disheveled hair, James couldn't help but wonder how he was possibly losing his head over a girl.
"Thank you, Mrs. Evans, the tea was delicious."
"Why, thank you, James!" Mrs. Evans beamed at the smiling boy, pleased that her youngest daughter had found such a catch. James beamed back, equally pleased that Lily's parents seemed to approve of him. "Lily, Petunia, why don't you help me bring the plates back into the kitchen, hm? We'll leave the boys out here to talk awhile."
Lily and Petunia quickly jumped to their feet, obliging their mother, only too happy that their boyfriends appeared to be making such a good impression on their mother. Lily reached out to collect James' cup and smiled brilliantly at him, her hair falling in a thick veil around her face as she bent closer to him, whispering, "You're doing great, James, Mum absolutely loves you!" James could only widen his grin at hearing the praise from Lily's lips as he watched his girlfriend skip into the kitchen behind her mother and sister.
Turning back to Sirius and Vernon, James thought he could just barely detect Vernon muttering quietly to himself.
"He seems sane enough," Vernon murmured beneath his breath, remembering Petunia's warning of the "strange boys" that may be visiting Lily. "So, James, Do you volunteer at the sanitarium often?"
James glanced over at Sirius who merely shrugged, "No, why do you ask?"
"Oh, I just assumed that's where you met Lily."
"How do you mean?"
Vernon looked slightly taken aback, "You mean you don't know? God, Petunia told me ages ago! Typical behavior I suppose, don't pop the news 'till your hitched and saddled with a few kids and it's too late, though you'd probably notice by then . . . unless, of course! Her medication!"
"Excuse me," James broke in, a bit bewildered by the older man's rambling, "but what are you going on about?"
Vernon blinked as if just remembering the other two were there. "Right, sorry, I only just met Lily days ago when she came parading around in robes, thinking she was some kind of wizardress," he chuckled, "I realized right away it must be because of the condition Petunia had informed me of, of course, when I heard about her condition I offered to refer her to my father – he's quite a well-known doctor, you know – but Petunia would have none of it," he shook his head, emphasizing the insanity of the situation. "I guess she just wanted to keep it within the family."
James coughed, clearing his throat, "I'm sorry, Vernon, but I don't quite follow you."
"Oh, don't you, James? Vernon, here, is implying that our Lils is a kook, a mental case, insane," Sirius shook in silent laughter at the idea.
"Lily? Insane? Are you mad?" James gaped at Vernon, contemplating the inner workings of his fragile muggle mind.
"No, I'm not mad, and yes she is insane! Where do you think she spends the year?"
"At school, with me!"
"I daresay not, her own sister informed me that your girlfriend currently resides in London's finest sanitarium."
"No, Lily spends the year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry with me and Sirius!" James' voice was shaking with rage.
"School of witchcraft and wizadry?" Vernon chortled again at the thought, "My good fellow, you must be joking!"
"I'm not joking! Lily's a witch and I'm a wizard!"
"My word, you're acting mad as well!" Vernon began to rise from his chair.
"Where do you think you're going?" James bellowed.
"To inform Mr. Evans that you need to be restrained."
"Oh no you don't! Locomotor mortis!" a flash o flight filled the air and Vernon fell to the couch, his legs locked tightly together. (a/n: I'm not positive that this is the function of locomotor mortis . . . but I'm too lazy to go look it up, please let me know if I'm wrong!)
"Petunia! Mr. Evans! Help!" Vernon rasped, his eyes wide with terror.
"Oh, bad move, Prongs, should've used the full body-binding curse on him," Sirius, who had been watching the whole scene in amusement, advised.
"Shut it, Siir," James glared furiously at Vernon as Petunia and Lily ran into the room. Quickly muttering the countercurse, James turned towards Lily, "Hello Lils, Petunia," he nodded at each in turn.
Lily cocked her head to the side, looking at James questioningly.
"Vernon?" Petunia's high-pitched tone was coated in anxiety. "Whatever is the matter?"
"He, she, but, not possible," an ashen-faced Vernon spluttered, looking as though he was the one in need of therapy.
"Lils, I think it's best we leave the happy couple alone for awhile," Sirius spoke, warding off any unwanted questions. "How 'bout you collect your things and we'll head to Godric's Hallow?"
Still clanking nervously at Petunia who was cooing over Vernon, Lily quickly agreed, knowing it was best to question the two marauders later. Scurrying out of the room, quickly followed by James and Sirius, Lily muttered quietly so that only the two boys could hear, "You two have a lot of explaining to do."
And that's all for now! I'm sorry there wasn't more of a "meet the parent's" scene, but I wanted the chapter to revolve mainly around the anxiety and James meeting Vernon. I wish my muse had cooperated a bit more, but I'm currently fight a bit of writer's block, and I really didn't have much time to work on this chapter . . . there will NOT be another update 'till June 9th or 10th, I'm really sorry, but my exams start Friday and if I don't study . . . yeah, anyways, please review! Your reviews really make my day and they're the only things that are going to get me through these hectic two weeks!