Immature 2

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"Lily! Lily!"

The sound of someone bolting down a set of stairs can be heard from across the closed door. James turns to glare at Sirius. "You didn't have to shout. You knock."

"So? You never care about being polite."

"Mum gets mad at me, Sirius. I think she watches me even when I'm not in the house." James turns around in a full circle, taking in his surroundings with terrified suspicion. He leans toward Sirius and puts his mouth in front of his friend's left ear. "I think she's here," he whispers.

"You're an idiot," Sirius declares with confidence. "Of course she's not here. She was making tea when we left the house. She has magic, James. She probably charmed a fly and sent it to follow you. Remember that fly that kept bugging you when we were in the garden?"

James' eyes widen. "Oh, Merlin. Sirius, you're right. I kept trying to hit it but it wouldn't leave me alone. It was sent by mum."

Sirius looks smug and is about to say something, but is interrupted by someone yelling inside.

"What are you doing? Get away from me!"

"I left them right here, Pet! Where did you put them?"

"Lily, I'm trying to paint flowers on my toe nails! Will you please go outside and play with your weird little friends?"

"Oh! Here they are!"

The door opens and Sirius and James are face-to-face with a beaming Lily. "Hi." She closes the door behind her, but not before the two boys catch sight of a thin, blonde girl bent on the sofa, clutching her foot.

"Who's that?" Sirius asks as they start walking to the big, white house right across from Lily's.

"My sister, Petunia. She's eleven now, so my mum let her buy nail polish yesterday. When I'm eleven, I'm going to buy nail polish, too. I'm still deciding on the color though."

James and Sirius glance quickly at each other. Choosing not to respond or ask questions is probably the best way to go. It wouldn't do for them to look suspicious or even weirder than they do now. Nail polish is probably a customary gift for Muggle children who are about to leave for Hogwarts—well, the Muggle version of it. Nail polish is probably equivalent to a wand, or an owl. They might never know.

"I made something for you," Lily says. "Are Remus and Peter around? Because I made some for them, too."

"Yeah, they're waiting for us inside." James opens the door to his house and they step in. Mr. and Mrs. Potter are perched comfortably in the sitting room, drinking tea and listening to Celestina Warbeck's newest music disc.

Mr. Potter waves to them while Mrs. Potter smiles warmly and says, "Hello, boys. Good afternoon, Lily dear. Remus and Peter are out in the garden."

Once they step outside again, Remus and Peter look up from the chess board and grin.

"I've made friendship bracelets for all of you," Lily says excitedly as she pulls out four strips of complexly knotted threads from the pocket of her green overalls. "Petunia said that boys don't wear these, but don't worry, I didn't use pink thread or anything. I made them match the color of your eyes. Mum said it was a sweet idea. I made a green one for myself, see?" She hands one each to the boys, and teaches them how to tie the bracelets around their wrists. All four boys learn fairly quickly.

"Wow," Remus whispers, staring at the blue bracelet around his wrist. "This is incredible."

Peter nods in agreement, staring at the bracelet in awe. "Does it change color? My mum has a ring that changes color when she gets angry or when she's happy."

Remus pinches Peter as the other boys glare at him. He always forgets that they've let a Muggle inside The Circle. She definitely wouldn't know about those kinds of jewelry.

"I'd never be able to make anything like this," says Sirius, taking attention away from Peter. "Too many loops, you know, but really, really cool."

James smiles fondly at his own golden-brown accessory. "It must have taken years of training. Dad says that he had to study for three years to become a real auro—I… I mean… heal—no, no… erm..." James realizes too late that he does not know anything about Muggle jobs.

"Doctor," Remus says quickly. "Took him three years… a—and… another seven. Took him ten years. My mum said that sometimes being a doctor takes even longer than ten years. I wouldn't want to be a doctor."

James smiles gratefully at Remus. "Yeah… I bet you had to study for, I dunno, five years to make these."

"Actually," Lily says, "just under an hour."

Peter's mouth gapes wide open. "Woooo – oooo – ooow."

Sirius stares at his friend and thinks that he looks strangely like James' old pet goldfish in his last few minutes of life. He and James had taken the fish out of his bowl to try and teach him how to walk. Old Goldie started gasping and opening his mouth rapidly. Sirius remembers that it was so scary that they just left and ran to James' room. Goldie's funeral was held the next day.

James covers Peter's mouth with his hand. "Don't do that, Pete. It reminds me of… well… a dead friend."

Remus looks up. "You mean Goldie? But you and Sirius killed him on purpose."

"No, we didn't!" Sirius shrieks. "Mr. and Mrs. P. should've told us that fish have to stay in water all the time."

Remus shrugs, and goes back to his chess match with Peter. Peter notices this and occupies his attention with it, too.

"I'm going to go ask your mum for some cake and ice cream," Sirius tells James. "It's so hot out here. We should go swim in the lake later. It's what people do in the summer." He runs inside.

James and Lily are left. They climb up the beech tree in James' backyard and sit on its lowest branch. "Thank you for the gift," James whispers. "My mum usually says 'I love you' to my dad when he gives her something, so I guess I should say that I love you."

Lily grins happily at him. "Thank you, James. I love you, too."

"Hey, Lily?"

"James?"

"I guess it's a little early for me to be doing this—I think you have to be at least twelve or something, but anyway—Well, we've been friends for two months now, and we get along great, so… Lily, I would like for you to marry me."

Lily looks at James curiously, then smiles, showing an immaculately clean set of teeth. She laughs with delight, her two braids wiggling behind her. James thinks that she is about to turn down his offer. He wonders why she would do something like that. People get married all the time. He mentally chastises himself. He should have waited until they were twelve.

"James," Lily says softly, "of course I'll marry you."

James beams and gives her a quick hug. "Let's shake on it," he says.

"Okay."

James and Lily shake hands and laugh. They give each other's hand a squeeze and don't let go until Sirius comes walking back out with a tray full of ice cream.

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A/N: Yay, a very fast update from me. I am incredibly proud of myself.

Thank you, thank you for the wonderful reviews. They are very flattering and make me giggle. Thank you.

So… I'm guessing that about four or five chapters will do. Next chapter should have chocolate, because chocolate is divine, and also, if I can manage it, a cameo by Regulus. Only if I can weave it in.

Episode 4 of Sirius' talk show is giving me a hard time. I'm not certain when it will be finished.

Anyway, review, darlings! Constructive criticism is welcome if you have it.