Chapter Ten: One Lump or Two
On the Night
Bus
(before meeting Mrs. Elizabeth Potter):
"Lily, I love you" James said softly his lips brushing against her cheek sending jolts of fiery passion over her skin. His hair was messier then usual, and there was a patch of dried blood on the edge of his cheek. His lip seemed slightly split.
"James, what's wrong?" She tried to ask, but nothing came. Her words were stuck in the back of her throat like a cork had been placed to plug her words and keep them from escaping. "JAMES!" she tried to yell again but nothing came.
She watched as he leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead, before standing slowly to leave. "I love you" he whispered and left the room, fading from view. Lily tried to run and find him, but couldn't move, she looked around her and saw ruble nothing but the ashen remains of a house burnt to the ground. She saw the gleaming sign on what would have been the door and pushed through hearing yelling and crying, and not knowing what to do. Walking into the house, she saw him. Lying on the floor, cold and dead, he had his wand in his hand, and fear was written through his frozen face, something horrible had happened here. But what was it, who would do such a thing?
Later that Day"So Lily," Elizabeth Potter Said as she poured herself a cup of tea, Lily's cup already resting on the table in front of her.
"I've heard some talk of Hogwarts in the past holidays with Sirius and Remus and the old gang…and they always mentioned well, the name Evans…" Elizabeth trailed off as she was eyeing Lily over the top of her cup of tea.
Silence. No sound was made for a moment, only interrupted by the slightest intake of breath. "So are you not the elusive Evans they had been talking about for ages? Hmm?" Elizabeth's eyes sparkled the way they had earlier with the same amount of magic.
Lily had been taking a sip of her tea. Looking up to see James standing in the doorway, leaning on the doorframe and staring at her with intrigue. She couldn't help but blush. She knew that the answer undoubtedly would be yes, for one thing, she was the only person in the school Named Evans.
"Well, I, I believe so…seeing that Evans is not a common name in Hogwarts…" Lily looked Mr. Potter Evenly in the eyes and smiled, "actually I'm the only Evans in Hogwarts History." Lily smiled and looked into her tea.
"Why isn't that sweet," Elizabeth commented with a smile. "Oh come here darling," she said to James "don't be shy, I promise you I won't embarrass you too much." Elizabeth raised her arms out to signal to James to walk over and sit next to the both of them. Lily looked over at James through the corner of her eye watching as he walked over to the vacant chain In between Lily and his mother. He could have really picked either side of the table, seeing that both Lily and Elizabeth were sitting exactly opposite of each other at the small round table.
"James, would you like some tea?" Mrs. Potter asked slowly picking up a cup and saucer that matched the others in a perfect rose detailed floral set. She began pouring him tea before he could even answer.
"Thank you Mum" James said sweetly before she had even finished pouring the tea. Lily tried to act as calm and casual as possible, but however hard she tried. She couldn't shake the images from the dream. The urgency in James's voice as he said hat he loved her. Most of all, she couldn't really believe that he would love her. He'd probably meet someone else when he went off to become an Aurora. It's not like he'd stay with me.
"So Lily, may I call you Lily?" Mrs. Potter asked to make sure her behavior was not acted out too soon and that Lily felt comfortable. And she did.
"Oh its fine Mrs. Potter" Lily said with a smile and blushed a little. She felt almost, awkward being in such a formally relaxed environment.
"Oh please, call me Elizabeth, or Liz…either one is fine!" She smiled, and got up to put more tea on the stove. Moments later there was a loud popping sound of someone apparating and a man with messy black hair and hazel eyes that were similar to James's beautiful eyes. Lily could only assume that this was his father, he had a strong looking build like he had been a quidditch player in his day, or maybe it was because of where he worked. Lily had no idea that it had taken this long to talk about absolutely nothing, I guess time flies when you're relaxed, and comfortable…and also when you are scouring over every detail in a small room.
"Lizzie," The man said with a smile, "I'm home, hello James old chap!" he said with a beaming smile, his eyes twinkling with a beautiful light that James had shown Lily months before. "And who is this?" He asked inclining to Lily.
"Well" Lily said with a sly smile, "apparently I'm the illusive Evans" Lily smiled letting herself relax even more.
"Ah yes, I can see it now…I remember James said he just loved your eyes, he told me it was what actually got him interested in you at first, and then your laugh added onto it, and how you acted when you were mad. He must of enjoyed bugging you, because he said that every time you fought, he wanted to hold you in his arms afterwards..." Lily leaned forward, listening to every word. As Mr. Potter finished his sentence there was an audible cough from James. He had been taking a bite of his tea when he swallowed some, and inhaled a bit of it.
Lily looked over at him, thinking that what his father had told her was the sweetest thing she had ever heard. He loved her, he honestly loved her. Or so it seemed now, but with the dream pulsing into her mind every few moments, she had nothing to do but fear what had caused such an outcome, and if it was really a truth?
James looked over blinkingly at his father. Lily watched his expression change, and she wouldn't tell him but she could read him like a book, a very-er-sexy book. Lily smiled to herself, a piece of her hair falling into her face, shielding herself from James.
"Lily, if you haven't guessed, this is my father Harold J. Potter." James smiled, and he looked over at her. She felt his fingers grace her cheekbone delicately, as he moved her hair behind her ear. James turned and faced his dad who was standing next to Elizabeth, his hand resting on her shoulder, Lily felt James place his hand upon her own hand, which lay resting upon the edge of the table. "Dad, I want you to meet Lily Evans-" he smiled in a slightly sly way "-my girlfriend." He said the worlds smoothly as though they were a rich dark chocolate, or some kind of delicate and sweet candy.
"Now that is a nice-and sweet change isn't it Harry dear?" Elizabeth asked smiling up at her husband.
"Of course it is Lizzy," said Harry with a smile, he had James's same messy black hair. "Our son is no longer figuring out ways to get Lily to date him, he has found a way that worked." Well…sex? Lily thought but dared not to say, how they ended up becoming an item. James's dad smiled at Lily in a warm way that Lily could read only as 'welcome to the family.'
Lily smiled laughingly; she looked over at James and then back over at his parents. "The this is-I thought that James could be a nice guy for most of the years-then he just became a complete fool!" Lily smiled, "you know the first day I met him-on the train-I completely fell in love with his eyes, and he was really helpful, I was having a hard time getting my trunk onto the luggage rack." Lily could still remember the way their eyes caught. "He helped me put it up," Lily smiled, she looked up at him, and saw how bewildered and shocked he was at her admitting her long kept secret.
"That is so cute—Harry and I met at Hogwarts." Elizabeth said and squeezed his hand. "I was head girl and in seventh year—and I met him before a quidditch match. We knew of eachother before, but we didn't know eachother, do you know what I mean?" She asked and Lily nodded, looking over at James. "I got lost, and went into the wrong-well-area, I walked into the men's or really boy's changing room instead of the girl's, I was going to tell my friend was going to tell my friend Megan good luck in the game," Elizabeth flushed slightly, "well in short- I walked in on him, and he was in nothing but a towel- I gasped and shouted out, 'Sorry ah Bloody Hell, how did I end up in here! Bloody feck!"
Harry smiled, "It was very adorable, she kept trying to leave- and ended up opening the closet door- it happened with two doors until she gave up and asked for help, by this time I was full dressed, and I exited with her helping her to where her friend would have been."
Lily laughed slightly, "that sounds similar to when I was heading to the Pitch and walked down the wrong hall, everyone was dressed I just walked straight into an invisible James," Lily smiled remembering the day. "The this is – I don't even know why I changed my mind about James – I know I thought he was nice, but that was outside of the group –" Lily looked at James, he just watched her express her inner feelings to him and his parents. "When you added the friends, he began to try to get me to like him, and was a tad annoying about it – and you know, well arrogant." Lily laughed nervously.
She took a breath before continuing, "He did really save my life this year, though, and I'm very grateful for that!" Lily felt herself freeze at the thought of it. "Something, or someone invisible and – cold shoved me. I remember hands and breath like ice hitting my neck, it made me shiver uncontrollably…James and Sirius had been walking with my friend Laura – and Sirius's then girlfriend, and myself. We were on the level above the entrance hall staircase." Lily looked up at James and saw how he looked as if ready to hug her and hold her, the memory was coming back. Lily gulped, "well, I was shoved down the staircase, and James cast a spell to slow my fall, because I wasn't right on the stairs as of yet – but he brought me to the hospital wing after I fell. When I awoke in the wing, I saw all of the 'marauders' in the wing. James helped me back to the common room – and we've been friends ever since…until a week or two later and we became a couple."
Elizabeth looked over at Harry with a concerned expression playing across her face. "Do you mind if I steal James for a moment?" Harry asked urgently, and they quickly walked into the hallway.
Elizabeth turned to Lily and smiled consolingly, "They won't be too long, Harry just doesn't want there to be devastation in our home, its nothing against you. He-he's an auror, and is probably interrogating James about people who might want to hurt you." Elizabeth said in way that sounded almost sarcastic but still not at the same time. She leaned in, and put her hand on Lily's arm, "Don't worry, he likes you – if he dind't he would have been extremely and openly rude to you – I mean he's a nice guy, but he might have left at the beginning, unless it was urgent things – you know, life and death." She said and gave Lily's arm a squeeze.
James walked back into the room; he smiled at Lily and his mother in a relaxed and contemplative way. "Dad's heading off to the ministry – its, he got a bit unnerved when he heard about the accident. He thought it might have to deal with the rise of activity with the dark wizard named 'Lord Voldemort'. He's doing his own crusade mum – he wants to kill all of the muggles and muggle-born witches and wizards." James said as calmly as he could, but Lily could detect sounds of fear in his voice.
"Don't worry James – If I die at the hands of an 'Evil' Wizard I'll die fighting." Lily said with a strong and determined tone to her voice. She saw how nervous and almost scared James looked as she talked about dieing, and even being killed by dark wizards and she added reassuringly. "I'll become an Auror, and fight off his plants, and we will succeed. And if not us, it will be our kids."
"Our Kids" James said a smooth dreamy tone coming into his voice. He hadn't yet sat down, instead he moved over to Lily and kissed her softly in a simple and passionate way on the lips, before he whispered against her cheek "I love you."