Geez way to review guys. But sorry it took forever for this chapter...review and I'll be quicker!
Thanks to the few people who did…aka 5 or 6 people. Love you all.
Chapter 13—Four Amazing Words
Lily waited impatiently, holding a heavy cardboard box, as Katie tried to unlock the door to their new place. The door finally opened and the girls stepped through.
"Katie, you sure this isn't a house?" Lily asked.
"Look who's talking. Your house is a castle. Besides, we are on the third floor to begin with."
"Well your house is a castle too." The girls laughed and looked around. It was a huge, 2-level apartment.
"How did you find a 2-level place?" Lily asked.
"I just looked around at places for sale. C'mon let me show you around." Lily followed Katie through the entry way.
"This is the living room." There were shiny, finished and smooth wood floors and in the back, large, bright windows letting in the sunlight. "Come see the rooms!" Katie was excited. They walked up the curved staircase and down the wood floor hallway. All 4 bedrooms had soft, white carpeting were large, especially for an apartment. There was a big double window in each room too, letting in sunlight. A beautiful bathroom was attached to each too. (a/n—I know I said 2 in chap. 12, but I changed my mind)
"Ah, I love it!" Lily smiled and hugged Katie, who laughed.
"C'mon, let's get those boxes!"
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Ermmmm, over there, is that okay, Lils?" Katie pointed to a spot for the movers to put the sofa.
"Yeah, that's fine; we can always slide it on the floor if we need to change it." Lily's head poked out from the kitchen door to see, while she was putting dishes from boxes to the cabinets.
"Thanks. Can you move that wooden bookcase over there?" Katie said to the movers, and then turned towards the direction of the kitchen. "Which bedroom did you want?"
"I don't care, I think they're all the same."
"Okay, I'll take the first and you can take which ever of the other three." Katie began taking out books from other box and placing them on the bookcase. "What should we do with the extra bedrooms?" Katie asked. She got no answer. "Lils?"
"I've got an idea, Kate."
"Like what?" Katie sat back on her ankles, knees bent.
"Well, what about James and Sirius, Remus too?"
"What about them?"
"Do you think, well, maybe they could have those rooms?"
"I didn't think about that." Katie confessed.
"Don't feel like you have to agree. It's just a thought."
"No, I think it's a great idea. If they want to, I mean."
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"What are you doing?"
"Unpacking books."
"Do you want to set up our rooms? The movers already put our beds, bureaus, desks and extra shelves set up in there."
"Okay. I think they brought up a couple boxes and put them in the hallway." Lily stepped out of the kitchen, grabbed a box and marched up the stairs, followed by Katie.
"Lily?" Katie called from her bedroom.
"Yeah?"
"I don't even know where to start."
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
James shoved the last of his clothes into a box. He was nervous about moving in with Lily and Katie. He hoped it would turn out for the best. His dad and Sirius were carrying boxes down the stairs and James followed suit.
"Got everything you need, boys?" Mr. Potter asked.
"Yeah, thanks Dad."
"Thanks, Harry." Sirius said. He didn't remember the last time he called him Mr. Potter. The walked about side and saw two rented Ministry cars outside, one expanded for all their things, and another for them to ride in.
"Let's go." Sirius grinned and hopped in the car.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Lily placed a picture frame with a photo of her and Katie when they were twelve on her desk just as she heard the front door open.
"It's us!" She heard James's voice. Katie went down to greet them and help them bring some of their boxes to their room. Lily looked up and saw James wink at her as he passed her open door. She heard him put down the box he was carrying and come across the hall to her room. She smiled and he placed his arms around her waist, pulling her towards him and kissing her sweetly.
"How are you?" He asked.
"Good. Tired. We've been unpacking all day and we're not close to done yet." Lily said, resting her head on his shoulder and her arms around his back.
"Look at the bright side, Sirius and I haven't even started yet."
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"We're going to be late! Sirius, get your arse down here, NOW!" James yelled. He, Lily, Remus and Katie were waiting for Sirius. Katie was tapping a beat on the wall and Lily was nervously pacing around the couch. They were all meeting Peter and heading to interviews for Auror training. Sirius came running down the stairs, buttoning his shirt. He kicked a cardboard box out of the way when he reached the bottom.
"Let's go!" He said, tearing open the front door and down the flights of stairs leaving the apartment.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Lily wiped her sweaty hands on her jeans and looked over at Katie. She was twirling her blonde hair around her finger. James and Sirius were sitting with their elbows on their knees and their heads resting on their hands. Peter was twitching and Remus was sitting calmly. Finally, the large wooden door opened and an elderly wizard stepped through and cleared his throat.
"Numbers 3, 7, 9, 12, 13, 16, 19, 22, and 27…We'll see you Monday to begin your training. Congratulations. The others may sign up for another interview in six months. Good day."
Lily and Katie jumped up and hugged each other. The Marauders laughed with relief, along with a few others.
"We made it." James grabbed Lily close and hugged her romantically.
"Yeah, we did." She looked up and grinned.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Lils! Where all the plates?" James shouted from the kitchen to Lily who was unpacking her last box.
"Look for them! They're somewhere down there!" She didn't know. Katie unpacked the kitchen and Lily did the living room. Katie was working a shift at a wizard restaurant nearby to earn money. Lily was becoming frustrated because she couldn't find a job. They weren't making any money in Auror training. Sirius and Remus had gone out for a food run, and normally Lily welcomed alone time with James, but she wasn't in a great mood.
"Hey." James appeared in the doorway, holding a plate of sweets. "Want some?" Lily walked over and grabbed a small piece of chocolate. James placed the plate on a white end table next to Lily's couch and sat down.
"C'mere, Lils." He patted the couch. She sat down and sighed, resting her head on his shoulder and he placed his arm around her shoulder.
"Are you okay? You seem so tense." He squeezed her shoulder.
"I'm just…frustrated. Auror training is so hard, I'm not making any money, and it's just so hard right now." She confessed.
"I know, babe." He kissed her cheek lightly.
"What time is it?" She asked.
"Around 2."
"How long will Sirius and Remus be gone?"
"Probably a few more hours. You know Sirius and food." Lily smiled and settled into James. He placed a kiss on her lips and deepened it. He heard her moan lightly. She lay down on the couch and wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling his hands rubbing her stomach. James kissed her with loving passion as she began unbuttoning his shirt…
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o (I know I keep doing it a lot but I've got major writer's block)
The phone rang and Sirius was the only one downstairs.
"Lily! How do I answer?" He yelled. She laughed.
"Just pick it up and say hello!" She paused before applying her eye liner to listen to what he would say.
"Um, Hi?" He asked and was silent for a while. "Sure, hold on. LILYYYYY!" He screamed.
"What?"
"It's for you!" She met him at the bottom of the stairs.
"You didn't need to scream so loud." She told him before answering.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
James was putting clothes away as he listened to Lily's conversation. He heard silence followed by a gasp. Walking over to the doorway, he kept listening. Lily's voice was shaking.
"A-Are you sure?" He heard her and peeked out his door to see Lily at the top of the stairs with a tear sliding down her cheek. "No! It's not true! Please, tell me this is a joke! I didn't get to say good-bye!" James walked over to Lily and put his arm around her shoulder and she hung up.
"What is it, baby?"
"M-My parents are dead."
"What?" James cried out.
"The muggles found them in a terrible car accident." Lily sobbed. James grabbed her and pulled her in a tight hug. They stayed like that for a long time, until Lily pulled away.
"I've got to go to the house. To sort though everything, you know? I wonder if we'll have to sell it. I love the house."
"Maybe they left it to you, you know, in their will. Do you want me to go with you?"
"Sure. We better walk. We don't want to be seen apparating around muggles. It's not too far, we make it."
They were mostly silent throughout the walk. James kept it arm around Lily the whole time and she rested her head on his shoulder. They arrived at the house and Lily paused before entering. She opened the door to reveal the usual, sunlight foyer. It seemed so different now.
"Let's just go upstairs." Lily led James up the staircase, her hand gliding softly along the railing. She walked down the long hall until she reached the double doors that led to her parent's room. Once she opened them, she was overcome by a wave of sadness. She cried out and fell to the floor, landing on her knees. James ran over to her and put his arms around her strongly, letting her cry and cry.
A few hours after her crying episode, Lily sat on her parent's bed, surrounded by boxes. James was searching through drawers looking for their will. It was nowhere to be found.
"Did you look in that desk?" James asked, pointing to a desk by one of the large windows.
"No." Lily walked across the soft carpeting to the desk and began to search. After about 10 minutes, she spoke. "I found it." She said softly. James walked over and stood behind her. "What's it say?"
"They said they want me to decide what to do with the house. I don't have to keep it; I can sell it if I want. They also want Petunia and I to take what we want from the house and donate what we don't want. They left us both half their fortune. I think that's pretty much it."
"I guess so."
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Oh! Cute! You're getting that!" Katie pointed to an adorable Ralph Lauren blazer.
"Katie, I need something for my date with James. It's a fancy place."
"Puh-lease, Lil, like you don't have extra money for something that would look amazing on you." Katie pointed out. Lily rolled her eyes but smiled as Katie grabbed the blazer and shoved it Lily's arms.
"This is good for your date!" Katie saw a short black skirt and grabbed Lily's size. "Just get a cute blouse to go with it! There! That one!" She pointed to a white one with little embroidered green flowers at the bottom of the left side.
"I do love it." Lily admitted, holding up the skirt and blouse.
"Then get it!" Katie grinned. She loved shopping.
The girls paid for their purchases, Katie carrying 4 bags of clothes.
They got back to the apartment and Lily changed into her clothes for her date. She curled her hair into large, loose ringlets and applied the perfect amount of make up. She heard a knock on her bedroom door and opened it, to see James standing there, carrying a dozen red roses.
"Wow, thanks, James." She kissed his cheek and inhaled deeply. "You smell really good." She giggled. James was wearing black dress slacks and a red button down shirt, with the trademark top-two unbuttoned buttons.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"This food is amazing." Lily said and James grinned at her.
"Glad you like it."
"This was so sweet of you to take me here." James smiled at her and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a small black box.
"Lily Evans, I know we're young, but I love you with all my heart. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?" He looked directly into her eyes as he revealed a beautiful diamond ring. Lily gasped and smiled.
"Yes. I will." She replied. James grabbed her hand and tenderly slipped the ring on, and kissed it. Then he leaned over the table and kissed her on the lips.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Hey! I really, really hoped you liked that! I'm so sorry it took like, 2 months! I will try to be better about updating. Reviews mean so much to me so please review! Hope you enjoyed it!
-HPF670