Ch 4

Eavesdropping

While Lily was in a sleepy limbo, her serious and laid-back personalities were conversing about the day ahead:

I wonder what's supposed to happen today. Isn't it the 16th? Aren't we supposed to be going to Diagon Alley today? (serious Lily)

Yeah. Brian says it has tons of shops on it. I can't wait to get my wand. Brian said Mr. Ollivander sells the best wands in London. He also said something about how the wand chooses the owner. I wonder what wand will choose me. I hope it's a good one. (laid-back Lilly)

I wonder if they're gonna be a lotta cute guys there. Will I like them? Will they like me? (serious)

What time is it? We better get up. We do wish to look our best. (laid-back)

But the bed is so warm…

But what about the boys and Diagon Alley?

They can wait…well, no, I don't think-

The sooner we get up, the sooner we can get away from Petunia

That's the ticket

Lily slowly and half-heartedly opened her eyes. It was 8:50 (I really am starting to get up later than usual) She stretched and somnambulistly prepared for her morning shower. (Brian said it's probably best to go to Gringotts first. Mom and dad had insisted that I must have a little something in there.) Lily thought of all the things that could be in her vault. Jewels? A fortune? A black Ferrari? She was so caught up in her thoughts, she didn't even notice Petunia walking towards her.

"Get out of my way, freak! I'm shocked you even dare to show your face around normal people like me," Petunia shouted and pushed past her on her way to the bathroom. She slammed the door shut.

"Good morning to you too," Lily snapped back. She continued to her room and locked the door. Wandering towards her closet, she tried to picture the perfect outfit. She reached into her crowded closet and pulled out a tight-fitting, white elbow-length shirt with a single rose on the upper right hand side and a pair of black jean hip-huggers. She tried to think of a song she remembered hearing on Averi's Dell laptop. She was pretty sure it was by an American singe and was called Diary.

After successfully ironing her outfit without burning anything, Lily tried many styles with her hair until she came up with the perfect one: a twist with two black chopsticks, each accented with a white rose on the end. She smiled at herself in the mirror, pleased with her perfect look. She had a little extra time on her hands so she debated with herself what to do.

What do I want to do for three hours? Red? No, I always read. Call Averi? Nah, she's probably busy. Um… (Her gaze panned around the room until it reached the window and she was instantly lost in the beauty of The Park.) I could go outside. It's a beautiful day and I can invite Averi and Brian to come, too.

Lily hastily called and extended the invitation to her two best friend, who gladly accepted, and agreed to meet outside the park ASAP with some snacks and a blanket.

Three minutes later, Lily could see her two friends walking towards her with Averi carrying a blanket and Brian half-carrying, half-dragging three folded beach chairs. Lily, on the other hand, was holding a slightly heavy basket filled with drinks, snacks, and a soccer ball. They stopped about four feet away from each other. Averi was wearing a red tank top and a pair of blue jean low-rider Capri's. Her long hair was done up in a twist-pony with most of her black hair hanging over the band that kept it together. Brian was merely wearing a short-sleeved shirt and a pair of baggy jeans.

"Ready to go?" he asked, shifting his weight. As far as Lily and Averi were concerned, he was the only other person who knew how to get to the island without getting wet.

"Yeah, I guess," Lily replied, shrugging. The three rather hurriedly made their way to the island. Since it was quite early, the park was near empty. Every once in a while, they would pass someone who had also come out to admire the beautiful park in the early morning sun.

Averi glanced at each person they passed, though they didn't seem to notice her. It was because of this that when Averi glanced at two boys, seemingly around her age, she was a little shocked to find them already staring at her and her companions. The trio was at least 10 feet away from them, yet she noticed the boys' looks weren't exactly normal in that area. One had short, slightly messy, brown hair, round glasses over his dreamy hazel eyes, and nicely tanned skin. The other was slightly pale and had contrasting layered, jet black hair that came down to his shoulders and fell into his fathomless dark gray eyes. Out of the two of them, he looked the cutest. Averi felt there was more to these boys than meets the eye, but all the same, she turned her gaze back to the island ahead.

James Potter and Sirius Black watched until the two girls and guy reached the lake.

"You know," Sirius said, "There's somethin about those two girls with Brian that just walked by. I believe we should go over and introduce ourselves." He stood and brushed the dirt from his pants.

"Yeah," James agreed, still thinking about them. "But let's learn a bit about them first. Got the hearing helpers?

"Yep. By the way, mate, you really gotta get a better name for these." He pulled out a bundle of translucent strips and eased two out.

"I know, but it's all I can think of these days. We could call them extendable ears." James sighed and took one.

"Sure we could. And you know, maybe Snape is hittin on me…" Sirius playfully, yet convincingly joked. As reward for his comment, James threw him a glare, but he simply shrugged it off.

"C'mon. They've already gotten on the island." He got up and stealthily crept towards the lake. Sirius, on the other hand, was walking as if he were merely stroll through the park.

"Get down, you git! They'll see you!" James hissed.

"And? What, is it illegal to walk around the lake now?"

"No, but still--"

"Still what? Stand up and act casual. I bet they won't even take a second look." James thought about the situation and finally gave in. Sirius was quite persuasive, what with his common sense and reasonable logic.

What seemed to the boys as seconds later, they were listening intently to the conversation on the island:

"…are miles and miles under London so you have to take these particularly fast carts to get to your vault. After the bank, go to Madam Malkin's where you'll get your robes. She's the best. Then, obviously, you'll need your books. There's a bookstore named Flourish and Blotts near Malkin's. The next item of importance would, no doubt, be your wand. Definitely Olivander's. He's a little on the creepy side, but he's tight." Brian was explaining to the girls the fundamentals of Diagon Alley. When he finished, he grabbed a couple of donuts and began eating them.

"Brian," Lily began with a mischievous glint in her eyes, "what other shops are on Diagon Alley? Are there any joke shops, perchance?" At the mere mention of 'Diagon Alley', James's interest perked up. Only witches and wizards like himself would know about it. That must mean she's a--

He nodded, swallowed, and replied, "Well, there's a Zonko's Joke Shop somewhere in the middle, but I'd advise that you tone down your serious pranks a bit. The caretaker doesn't necessarily take kindly to them."

"Yeah, Lil. You wouldn't want a blemish on your spotless record, would you?" Averi said, voice full of innuendo as she raised her eyebrows at Lily. Lily had always been somewhat of a good girl. Although she was used to this title, it always annoyed her when someone mentioned it.

"Shut the heck up!" In response to Lily's aggravated reply, Averi threw a donut at her face, hitting with a squish. Lily stared at her friend, shocked and slightly incensed. The next second, she was throwing everything in reach at Averi. Although her aim was perfect, Lily's throwing attempts were in vain. Averi dodged the flying foods as gracefully as if she were dancing. After the ticked-off redhead had thrown everything around her, Averi followed her last move with a low bow.

Wow. She's good. How the heck did she do that? Dang, she can dodge! I would've gotten hit at least twice. Sirius isn't even that good! Incredible. But still, she's not exactly as hot as the redhead, though. She's remarkable, thought James. Sirius was thinking somewhere on the same lines: Dang, she's hot! How the heck am I supposed to get with this girl? I bet she'd dodge me as well as she did that food. Still, there's always hope! The redhead can throw, although she's not as hot as the other.

"A round of applause for Mrs. Moore, if you please!" Brian mockingly called.

"Thank you, thank you. You're all far too kind." She replied, blowing kisses and holding a bouquet of invisible roses. Lily rolled her eyes and gazed across the water before asking the time.

"Uh, around 10:48. We'll leave at 11:30. That way there'll be sometime for 'refreshin' and stuff."

"Fine by me. Hey, anyone up for a game of football (British soccer)? " Lily asked, looking through the now half-empty basket. They both acquiesced to her request and jumped to their feet. All three of the friends were very athletic and were eager to participate in almost any sport.

Sirius and James, who had been hiding in the forest behind the trio, quickly scrambled to their feet. In lack of an inconspicuous hiding place, they leapt into the lower boughs of the tree they were behind. Since they were experienced tree climbers, they did this nearly silently. Immediately after they had secured themselves in the branches, Averi, Lily, and Brian walked beneath them, talking now of Quidditch. In a matter of minutes (or hours to James and Sirius), Lily, Averi, and Brian could be seen across the lake, playing soccer. Brian, seeming more like an amateur, didn't play so hard, while Lily and Averi were extremely competitive. They ended the game at roughly a quarter past 11 with the score of 13-13-11, Averi and Lily being the victors. What puzzled the watching boys was how they were playing for near 25 minutes, yet neither of them had broken into a sweat.

"Hey y'all, it's about time to go. Wanna leave now?" Lily asked after they had taken a rest.

"Sure. Wait, I think I left my cell back on the island. Be right back," said Brian, looking in his pockets. He stood and sprinted back to the island. He had just picked up his phone when he heard a loud crack (CRACK!). He turned towards the sound and saw a surprised face looking at him through the tree trunks.

"James?" James nervously smiled up at Brian and croaked out a single word: "Hi."

Brian looked the scene over once more and analyzed the situation at hand. He looked at James. His only connection with him was James' older brother, John. He, Brian, was best friends with John and had been over to their house quite a few times during the summer. It was through these visits that he had met James and Sirius and their ways. Brian knew enough about James to know that wherever James was, Sirius wasn't too far behind. His only fear, though, was that the younger wizards were trying to get a date with Averi and Lily.

"Where's Sirius?" he inquired. He was answered when Sirius easily slipped from his perch in the tree and dusted the front of his gray and blue shirt off.

"Here," he simply stated. Brian sighed and fixed the eavesdroppers in a stern gaze.

"All I gotta say is this--" he began but was cut off when Averi shouted "Brian! Get your sorry butt over here!" from across the lake.

"Ooo, Feisty that one! I like!" Sirius said, grinning.

"All I gotta say, (Brian raised his voice and spoke in a slightly menacing tone) is leave those two alone. The last thing I wanna see is my little sister and her best friend get hurt, a'ight?" James consented, sounding slightly disappointed.

Brian ran to catch up with the girls and left James and Sirius to stare across the lake at them. Sirius, for some reason, had a smile on his face.

"What're you smiling about? Didn't you hear him? We can't ask them out," said James, now getting angry.

"I don't know what you heard, but I only heard him say we couldn't ask them out. He didn't say they couldn't ask us out. And with our charm and looks, that shouldn't take more than a few days." James thought it over.

"All I gotta say," James' smile broadened with every word, "is in a few days, Mr. Potter and Mr. Black will have themselves new girlfriends!"