"Sunset," sighed Ann Marie wistfully. Her thick hair was a freshly dyed color of amber, and it fell heavily onto her shoulders. The shine from the twilight glimmered in her strands as well as her eyes, also of an amber shade. "Oh sunset," she repeated again with another wistful sigh. "Always beautiful."
Jacques came up behind her, wrapping his arms about her thin waist. He pulled her to him, and her thick hair fell back over his shoulders as she leaned into him, and together the two stared up at the pinkish orange sky.
Below that balcony cars went this way and that, shoppers and pedestrians walked about, and the city lights were just beginning to come alive. Against the sea of pink-orange the Eiffel tower stood tall and brilliant during sunset.
"Tonight will be a glorious night," said Ann Marie. She turned to face Jacques, smiling warmly up at him. Her amber eyes glittered at their best. "Our engagement party will be the event of the day."
Jacque smiled. "At last our love will be official to all."
"I cannot wait, Jacques," Ann Marie said, leaning forward for a kiss he caught with his lips.
The sun against the Paris sky finished setting, and the great swirl of bright orange and pastel pink was chased away by oncoming lavender, soon to become a velvety black with sparkling stars.
XXXX
"These parties are a bore," sighed Lily, with her forehead pressed against the cool glass of the car window. "I don't understand why we have to come. We're teenagers…what would we want with some boring old snooze-worthy people?"
Mrs. Evans nodded her head in disapproval. She hated it when Lily spoke like this about formal events. At least Petunia went along with hardly any complaints, only huffy silence and gruff mumbles. Lily flat out complained.
"Lily honey, it's only for a few hours," said Dad delicately.
Lily sighed again, looking out the window. It was dark out, giving the lights of the city a chance to glimmer and sparkle and shine. So much light always made Lily slightly ditzy, and so she quickly looked away and slumped in her seat of the car.
"I don't want to go," Petunia muttered. "But associating with people of our status isn't so awful, is it?"
"Yes, it is," Lily answered. She sat up again. "Everyone at tonight's dinner party will be a boring snot, I can tell you that."
Petunia's pointy nose stuck up in the air as she sat up straighter looking dignified and haughty. Lily knew that in ten or twenty years her Sister would be just like the boring prats and wenches that threw extravagant dinner parties such as the one that night. She couldn't imagine it any other way for Petunia.
The Evans continued down the highway until their car stopped in a line of other fancy automobiles all waiting to be parked by a valet.
Hotel Chambiges Elysees was tall and enchanting, buzzing with the simplicity of all the fine things in life.
Petunia leaned over and looked out of Lily's window, gawking up at the hotel neither girl had ever been to. It certainly was breathtaking with its fine architecture and sheer aura of greatness.
"Here we are," said Mr. Evans. He looked over his shoulder to the back of the car where Lily and Petunia sat gawking up at the Chambiges Elysees. "Do you still want to go home, girls?"
Neither answered.
XXXX
James Potter walked in the shadow of his two parents Judith and Edward Potter. The sound of his mum's heels was the only noise he could make out from the other sounds in the background. He did recognize conversation and the sound of dozens of cars moving together all at once, but there were other sounds that he couldn't decipher. They all meshed together and blended as one.
"I don't understand how Sirius could've gotten ill," said Judith, nodding her head sadly. "I had the same chowder he did. I feel perfectly fine."
"Mum, it's probably because you've tried chowder loads before," James said. "Sirius had never had chowder in his life…he probably couldn't take it."
"Or," considered Mr. Potter. "Sirius could possibly be mildly allergic to chowder."
"Yeah, see…dad's got a point," James said. "Now let's forget about ole Sirius sitting up in our hotel suite, and let's remember about this party we're to attend."
"No alcohol for you, mister," Mrs. Potter told him sternly. "Don't think I've forgotten."
"But mum – I'm seventeen! And we're on vacation! Don't I get a break?" he asked incredulously.
Mrs. Potter pulled her thin silk shawl tightly around herself, and nodded a simple no. The thin silk shawl was a rich maroon, and went perfectly with the dinner dress she wore. Her heels were more expensive than most would be willing to spend on ten pairs of shoes combined, and were studded with genuine earth gems. Her coiled blonde hair (a color which wasn't her natural) had been brushed to the back of her head in a stylish tress.
"No seventeen-year-old son of mine will be drinking," Mrs. Potter replied. "Sirius should know he's not off the hook. I may not have carried him in my womb, but he's as good as my son, too. I told all of the bartenders, waiters, waitresses, and other Chambiges Elysees staff to strictly not serve him anything with even a teensy taste of liquor."
James folded his arms, pouting. He then remembered he had a Father.
"Dad," he said hopefully, "I'm seventeen – don't I get to?"
"Absolutely not," Mrs. Potter interrupted. "Now c'mon. The dinner party is about to begin. Aunt Marie is about to announce her engagement to Jacques Pomeroy."
"Don't you mean 'Ann' Marie? That's what she calls herself, right, ever since she's fallen for this Jacques bloke," said James as the three walked down the vast and shiny lobby floor. The floor was so wide it seemed impossible to reach its end, and so shiny your reflection was too visible in it.
"Oh yes, sorry, 'Ann' Marie," chuckled Mrs. Potter. She smiled apologetically at her husband. "Sorry, dear, I know you love your sister."
"It's all right," he said. "I miss Marie, the one without the Ann."
James continued in his parents' shadow, his hands plunged deep into his pants pocket. He felt like a penguin in this Muggle tuxedo, but his Mum and Dad had insisted that he wear it – there were going to be plenty of Muggles present that night. Mum had said he looked handsome, but when Sirius had spotted him in the getup he had exploded into fits of laughter, asking, "Should we three Marauders call you Penguin rather than Prongs, mate? Would you prefer if we did?"
James Potter heard the loud chime of the huge clock centered on the highest lobby wall. It was exactly eight, and James thought of how wicked it'd be when he'd finally be able to slink away from his parents when they were least expecting it, and meet Sirius back in this lobby.
Then the two best mates could leave this hotel full of rich old people, and find a place with a thrill.
XXXX
Fifteen minutes into the dinner party, and Lily had escaped to the powder room to sulk and waste away some time. In the dinner hall the rich and the wealthy spoke of everything but things teenagers fancied. They spoke of money, expensive vacation and costly things they had bought, and lastly money. The jokes were dry and unfunny, at least in Lily's opinion.
She stood beneath the brightness of the ceiling lights, in front of the fancy stone sink, and looked at herself in the mirror.
Mum had made her wear her fanciest dinner dress – a black and strapless dinner dress which was tight around the bust and waist, but grew more loose and loose by the skirts end. At the very hem of the skirt of the dinner dress soft lace outlined the width of the skirt. It was a lovely dress, one that fit Lily's frame and figure perfectly, and she wore it with a simple gold diamond necklace and simple but pricey black flats on her feet. Her fiery hair had been braided by Ada into two long plaits, one on each side.
Truthfully, Lily felt like one of those porcelain dolls in this fancy dress and color painted on her eyes, cheeks and lips. She hated it.
"Bonjour l'étranger. Je pense que je vous reconnais," came words into her left ear.
Lily looked over her bare shoulder and realized it was Livvie.
"Livvie," she said with relief. "I thought I'd die here."
Livvie smiled at her best friend, rolling her eyes. "Oh come now, Lily. It isn't that bad, is it?"
"Yes, it's ten times worse. Petunia is acting like she's fifty. Mum and Dad are both too nice to tell the others they're a bore. That leaves me – poor little me – here, all alone and bored out of her mind," Lily whined.
"You speak of being well off as if it's a curse," Livvie said, smirking.
"It is…sometimes." Lily sighed and leaned against the sink. "I wish I were just a simple kid with simple clothes – one that didn't have to come to dinner parties that are as un-simple as anything could be."
Livvie frowned as she gazed at her miserable best friend.
"We could always leave," said Livvie mischievously. Her oval eyes that were naturally colored an ocean blue sparkled with roguish quality.
"Leave?" Lily repeated.
"Yes, leave. Simply…leave. Who would stop us as long as our parents do not know?" Livvie said cleverly, her words coated in her slight French accent. "We can simply walk out of here and come back in a short while."
Lily thought about it. "And where will we go? Wander the streets of Paris like two dim-witted tourists?"
"You forget that we are not two dim-witted tourists, Lily," Livvie pointed out. She put her arm around her friend and smiled as she went on. "There are other places to go…fun places that I know of."
"And the places aren't…dangerous, right?" Lily asked slowly. "I mean they're not going to get us into trouble?"
"Trouble? Yes. Dangerous? No. Trouble because we will be by our parents most likely. Not dangerous at all, because if it were I'd keep away," Livvie explained. She withdrew her arm from around Lily and walked to the lilac painted door. "Coming, Lily? Are we going?"
Lily paused and thought about it. She didn't want to get into trouble with her parents, but she was tired of obeying her Mum and Dad about every little thing. She was tired of the boring summer days in the libraries and the boring summer nights at tedious dinner parties. She was just tired.
And this was why Lily nodded, and together she and Livvie left the dinner party.
XXXX
Sirius Black reached the last stair of the grand staircase in the Chambiges Elysees hotel. He walked into the lobby, specifically the large lounge section where armchairs, sofas, and other lounging furniture was arranged. He dropped down into one of the comfy lounge chairs, and picked up one of the nearby Muggle tabloid magazines.
There was nothing of interest inside. He tossed it aside, and rose to his feet once he spotted James. Yawning and stretching he left the lounge section of the lobby, and headed over to the center where James stood waiting.
"There you are, Penguin," Sirius said. "I've been waiting for eight thirty. There's nothing on the Muggle tellie, I tell you. There was a show about two talking French bananas, but in a nutshell…that's pretty much it."
"It was hard getting away from Mum and Dad," James said. "Mum kept keeping a right or left eye on me. She thinks I'm going to drink en entire fire whiskey bottle in a split second apparently. Dad wouldn't stop mingling with some twenty-something French blonde. I should've stayed around, though…Dad said he'd sneak me some liquor when Mum wasn't looking."
"Fascinating ole chap, but we're about to embark on a brilliant night on our own," Sirius remarked. "We're now on our way, mate, to one of the chic clubs in Paris. Magicked our Muggle ID's and everything. Here you go, Mister Fredrick Pierpont. Did I mention from this moment on I'm Mister Alain Barnard? Well, I have now."
James looked down at his ID, frowning.
"This doesn't look like me, mate. I don't have blonde highlights!"
Sirius looked down at the photo, and he too frowned. His gray eyes rose from James' ID and to James' unruly black hairs.
"Hmmm. That can be fixed."
"Padfoot," James said testily. "I am not getting blonde highlights to get into a club."
"A famous club, James. Not just any club – a famous one. You can't pass that up," Sirius said. "How many opportunities will you get to go to a French club and meet plenty of young and attractive French women?"
"Not many…"
"Exactly!" Sirius said.
James rolled his eyes and snatched Sirius' ID away. He held it up to the light and burst out into laughter.
"You do not have electric blue eyes, Sirius! And you do not have one of those manly clefts on your chin! And you do not – I repeat, do not have shoulders that broad and muscular," James said.
Sirius shrugged, yanking the ID away again. "I'll look like that in a couple of years. I just have to grow a bit and work out a tad."
"Uh huh, sure, mate." James shook his head, the laughter still alive on his features. "All right then, I guess we should go."
"Finally! Club Batofar here we come!"
XXXX
Livvie tugged on Lily's arm for what had to be the fifth time. Lily kept stopping at random points, frowning, and wondering aloud if they should possibly turn back around.
The two friends had already left Chambiges Elysees, and were already two blocks away, but they'd never return in time if Lily kept holding them back.
"Lily," Livvie said through gritted teeth. "Lily, there will come a time when you will disobey your mother and father, and I believe that time has come."
"It's not that I don't want to go," Lily said. "It's that I don't want to die. And if my parents have anything to do with it, come sunrise tomorrow I will."
Livvie opened her mouth to reply, but what words would come from her mouth were drowned by the voice of Petunia, Lily's year older sister. The scrawny girl was hurrying down the Paris sidewalk in their direction, waving her long skeleton arms in the air.
"Wait! Wait! WAAA-IT!" she screeched.
Both girls looked over and watched scrawny Petunia come to an ungraceful stop before them. She was wheezing and on the brink of perspiration, but she was also determined not to be left behind.
"What are you doing here?" Lily snarled. "I thought you were ruddy in love with those boring dinner parties at places like the Chambiges Elysees! Don't think you're coming with us, Petunia."
"But why not? I'm older than the two of you, I have a right to come," Petunia said.
"A right to come?" repeated Lily skeptically.
"Yes, a right. I have to come, because I must make sure immature juveniles such as yourselves don't get into any trouble," Petunia explained, pursing her lips. The indigo dinner dress she sported hardly flattered her bony figure. Then again, hardly anything did.
Livvie didn't want to stand here and argue about it all night. She rolled her eyes at the two sisters, and decided to get a move on.
"You can come along, Petunia," Livvie said. "Only because I want to go, and you would scurry back and tell about us if we turned you away, wouldn't you?"
"I absolutely would!" Petunia shrieked, folding her arms.
"Then let us go," Livvie said. She turned her back to them, and began once again walking down the sidewalk. "Club Batofar is only a little ahead."
Petunia had hurried after Livvie, but for a moment Lily stood behind both of them, frowning for a second time.
"But how will we get in?" she called to Livvie's back. Slowly she started to walk.
"Oh, we'll get in," said Livvie, smirking. She didn't slow as Lily tried to catch up. "We'll get in. Come."
Lily started a light run in the wake of Livvie and Petunia. Soon they'd reach Club Batofar, where, though Lily at the time didn't know it, the best summer of her life would officially begin.
XXXX
Review please.