New chapter! Hope everyone had a great Easter btw. This chapter is pretty lengthy, and I don't actually know if much happens- but it has buckets of Freddie and Tara so I hope you like it! Bg. 97 xx
"Good morning!" Fred greeted warmly as James pulled open his front door.
James simply nodded and continued eating his cereal.
"I have to say," Freddie started as he pushed into the corridor, "I'm pretty impressed that you're up before 10."
"I have plans," he shrugged.
Fred's eyes lit up with a mischievous grin. "Plans you say? Do these plans happen to be with the person that all your plans have been with for the last fortnight?"
James' eyes avoided his best friend's. "Maybe…"
His response was met with a wide smile.
"Shut up. Besides, what are you doing here anyway? Don't you have work? Or a wife and child to be spending time with?"
Fred ignored James' question and just got on with wandering into the kitchen and pouring himself a drink. He then proceed to take a large gulp and perch himself on the dining table. "Nope. No work today- I've left my minions in charge of the shop today. And Maya and Julia have gone for 'girl time' at her Mum's. So I thought- my best is friend is off work for a month, as is my other best friend, I should probably contact them and do something."
Jay bit his lip. "That sounds great and all, but Mum has given Elizabeth the day off, so I can't really ditch her."
"Bring her with us- Tara and I are hardly scary."
James stopped what he was doing to glare at Fred. "Okay, I'm not scary at least. Come on, Jamie- if you're going to replace us, I at least want to meet your new and improved friend."
"Don't be like that Freddie- I'm not replacing you. I'm allowed to have other friends aren't I?"
"Not ones that are hotter than us."
He laughed. "Well what did you want to do?"
"I don't know- something fun. Go to the beach? A walk in the forest? We could wander into town? Oh, I know!"
"What?"
"Let's go to a theme park!"
"You know we're adults right?" James asked sceptically.
"We're super cool, awesome, fun adults and you know it." he replied immediately; an eyebrow raised and a finger pointed.
James crossed his arms across his front. "Well I can't argue with that."
Freddie smiled. "Please Jamie. I need to do something to rekindle my youth. I'm the Dad of a seven month old and frankly it's starting to scare me."
James thought about it for a moment. "I'll talk to Elizabeth and see what she says."
Fred practically jumped him. "Yes! Thank you! You, my friend, are a hero."
He rolled his eyes but proceeded to head up the stairs to find his phone. When he had, he scrolled through his contacts to find Elizabeth's name. His thumb hovered over it as the cogs turned in his mind, but before he had time to really process it- he'd already pressed the button.
"Hello?" Lizzie's voice came down the line.
"Hey, how are things?"
"Yeah, they're good, thanks. Are we still on for today?"
"Actually, that's why I phoned."
"Oh." It was all she said, but James could hear her disappointment.
"No, no, no, no, I'm not cancelling," he hurriedly tried to backtrack. "It's just that my best mate has shown up and said that he wants to go a theme park today. I told him that I had plans with you, but he is insisting that I should just invite you too."
Silence hung through the phoneline as she took a few seconds to think. "I'm up for a theme park."
James smiled, even though he knew Lizzie couldn't see.
"She said yes yet?" Fred's voice called from the bottom of the stairs.
"Just a sec," he murmured to Lizzie as he headed into the corridor to yell at Freddie. "Yeah, she's up for it."
"Sweet. Has she got a car?" Freddie smiled sweetly, as James rolled his eyes once more.
"I'm back. Um Liz, you don't reckon you could bring your car, could you?"
"Yeah, I can drive. It just means that it will take me half an hour or so to get to yours?"
"That is absolutely fine. I'll see you in a bit."
He hung up and went down to meet Fred. "Is she driving here?"
"Yes, she's driving. Now, are you contact Tara or what?"
"Yes!" Freddie exclaimed. "Your partiality for muggle girls does come in useful."
James scoffed, even if his face was going red. "I am not partial to muggle girls; and besides, how did you even know that Elizabeth was muggleborn?"
"Mum told me. Our parents are quite the gossips."
"I'd noticed," he muttered under his breath. "Now come on, we have about half an hour to be ready to go, so get TJ here and I'll go to Diagon and get some muggle money sorted for us."
"Roger that, Captain," Freddie saluted as James pulled his wand out his shorts and apparated away.
"Gooooood morning!" Fred practically sang as Tara rolled in through the fireplace.
"But is it good, Freddie?" Tara disgruntledly asked, pushing her large designer sunglasses up her nose.
"Why, of course it is- we're going to fucking Thorpe Park."
"Yes, but you're not hungover like you have had a hundred hexes shot at your head at once!"
Fred burst out laughing. "It's a Wednesday morning!"
"I'm off work and I'm recently single, Fred, give me a break." she whined.
"Give me a breeeeeaaak," Freddie mimicked Tara's Scottish accent and James joined in as he apparated into the room.
"I've seen you way worse than this, so you most definitely can't give me any grief, Potter," she said it with a stern expression, but as soon as she'd finished, she flung her arms around James. "Aww, look at us- the old team back together."
Freddie ran towards them and jumped on to the hug. "We're so cute."
Their moment was cut short when a knock at the door caught their attention. Fred, being on the outside of the hug, pulled away.
"I'll get it."
Lizzie stood outside awkwardly in the sun as she waited on the steps of 12 Grimmauld place. She knew that no muggle could see her currently and the thought truthfully weirded her out a little. She was also more than a little bit nervous to be spending the day with James and his friend. Everyone knew that Jay was the rambunctious sort, and though she'd really enjoyed getting to know him over the past few weeks, she had no idea what was in store today.
When the door eventually opened, it wasn't James' cheeky smirk that greeted her, but rather a very similar expression on a completely different face. The boy had warm brown skin, dark hair which she suspected would be curly if it were any longer, and wore a wide smile. He was rather lanky, and held himself awkwardly, yet he was undeniably handsome.
"You must be Elizabeth- the new friend," he held out his hand for her to shake, and she instantly met the gesture with her own hand.
"Lizzie actually, but yes that's me. You must be the old friend."
"That would be me. The name is Freddie Weasley, and sadly I'm married. Just thought I should break the news to you now, before your heart was broken when James told you later on."
She laughed exuberantly, and found herself thinking that she'd get along with this man just fine.
"Fred, you're not embarrassing her with your awful sense of humour are you?"
The boy at the door made a face of disgust as he turned around to face his cousin.
"You're an actual ass."
"My ass is great, but let's not dwell on it. Hey, Elizabeth."
"Hey!" Lizzie greeted as James pulled her in for a hug. Although a month ago she spent most of her time wishing he didn't exist, she was now feeling pretty glad that she's let him into her life. She found that he had the uncanny ability to make her smile even she'd had the most abysmal day. Also, he always smelt really, really good. Obviously, that will never be said out loud because that is not something you say about your purely platonic male friend, Lizzie!
"So it's just 'Lizzie' to us common folk then?" Fred winked from behind James and headed back to the sitting room.
"I'm sorry about him. My uncle passed on all his worst traits."
She smiled in response. "They seem like pretty good traits to me."
James leant forward, a concerned look on his face as he held his hand against her forehead. "Damn it- he's got to you already."
She pushed away his hand and made her way down the corridor. "So are you boys ready to go?"
"Us boys are, TJ however, isn't."
A baffled look fell on Lizzie's face. "Who's TJ?"
"The third segment of the trio."
"Oh, okay." Lizzie hadn't been expecting a third person, and as James led her into the room, she definitely wasn't expecting to see who she saw.
"Lizzie, hey! We've met before briefly, through work stuff, but if you don't remember, I'm Tara."
"I remember." Frankly, there was no way that Lizzie could forget. Tara Wood. The girl was absolutely gorgeous. Although she was only 5'5", she had legs which seems to look much longer, and she had long, straight brown hair that fell down to a slender waist. The girl looked like a supermodel, yet somehow was one of the best Beaters in the country. When one thought of a beater, they tended to think of big, stocky men, yet Tara managed to play better than most of them. In fact, it probably helped that she looked like she couldn't do much damage. People never used to see it coming when she used her wicked arm to aim a bludger straight at them. Of course, now everyone knew exactly what she was capable of.
"I'll be ready to go in a minute. I just need to help myself to a hangover draft and a large glass of water." She stated.
"Well, you know where the kitchen is." James shrugged.
"That I do," Tara replied, her hands patting James' cheeks as she squeezed past him out the doorway.
"Is there anyone else joining us that I should know about?" Lizzie asked, hoping that she didn't sound as awkward or intimidated as she felt.
"Nah that's it," James responded, oblivious to her slight discomfort.
Why are you even uncomfortable, Lizzie? He's obviously allowed to have other friends, especially since you've only been friends with him since the start of the month.
Yeah but I wasn't expecting Tara freaking Wood. She's so great at everything; it'll just make me seem inferior in every single way.
Wait- am I arguing with myself? Wow, that's pathetic.
"Lizzie, are you okay?" Fred chuckled. "You zoned out there for a moment."
She came back to her senses and offered a weak smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, it's just quite warm."
"I know right! The only bad thing about this weather is that it means that it's going to be packed out when we get there. 2 hour queues for each rollercoaster probably."
"That's why we're gonna buy fast passes, Freddie." Tara said as if it were obvious.
Lizzie had to admit that she was pleasantly surprised by their muggle knowledge. "Have you guys been to Thorpe Park before then?"
"Of course," they all answered simultaneously.
Tara elaborated further. "When we were kids, it was a lot easier to hang out in muggle places. I mean, we all have famous parents and we preferred to avoid the press. No offence to you, as a journalist, of course."
"None taken. Well, I guess it's good you know your way around. Just means we can get through everything quicker."
"Exactly," the older girl smiled.
"Well, let's stop dawdling and get going!" Freddie encouraged; guiding them all out the front door.
All of them, being the mature adults that they were, bundled out the door, and piled into Lizzie's car as soon as she unlocked the doors.
"Well then." Lizzie exclaimed enthusiastically as she started the engine. "Let's go on an adventure."
"So Lizzie, how has work been lately? I can't imagine there being much to do at this time of year." Tara asked as they waited in the queue for their first ride of the day.
"It's going alright. Mostly catching up on admin stuff, I guess." she shrugged.
"So, how come I don't remember seeing you around at school?" Fred butted in, leaning his elbows on Tara and Lizzie's shoulders.
Lizzie instinctively tucked a hair behind her ear. "I wasn't really a people person. I spent most of my time either in the library or the Ravenclaw common room."
"Yeah but-"
"Okay, let's all stop interrogating Elizabeth now." James stepped in, starting to feel uncomfortable with the way that his friends were grilling her.
"Aww," Tara pouted, coming up behind James to wrap her arms around him. "Is little Jamie getting jealous that he's not getting all the attention?"
"No, of course not."
"Then let us get to know your friend." She squeezed harder before letting go completely.
James tried to shoot a look of apology to Lizzie, but she didn't see. He should've known that this was a bad idea. From what he'd learned about Elizabeth, he knew that she had never been the best with new people, so throwing Fred and Tara at her at the same time probably wasn't the wisest move. By the time he'd finished admonishing himself for being an idiot, they had managed to get to the front of the queue.
"Hey James," a questioning voice beside him caught his attention as they clambered on to the seats of 'Nemesis Inferno'.
"Yeah?"
"Would you mind holding my hand? I get a bit nervous on these things."
He nodded as he tried to supress a goofy grin. "Yeah, of course Elizabeth."
She smiled at him; a sweet genuine smile, before pulling down the bar to hold her in and grabbing his hand.
And then they were off! James loved rollercoasters and usually would love to focus on every single sensation that came over him. The wind rushing through his slightly too long hair, his legs knocking together as they went round any bend, the ridiculous screams of his friend; yet all of that was secondary today was because all his bloody mind could register was Elizabeth. The way she crinkled her nose as she squeezed her eyes shut behind her glasses, and how her laugh was melodic even between squeals, and how ridiculously soft her hand felt clutching on to his for dear life. He was thinking way too much.
He needed to try and focus on the adrenaline.
"That was great!" was the general consensus as they stumbled off, slightly dizzy.
"Where to next?"
"Let's do Stealth." James suggested. The overly tall, overly fast, extremely exhilarating ride was exactly what he needed to get a certain someone out his system.
"Let's do it."
"I want doughnuts." Tara stated assertively.
"Go get them then?"
"I will! Come on Fred." She grabbed him and pulled him away from James and Lizzie and towards the doughnut stand.
Lizzie laughed and James' face lit up just watching her. She turned back to look at him, and blushed when she realised that his eyes were already on her.
"Can I ask you something?" her face went serious.
"Ask away."
"You and Tara. Why did you break up?"
James shot up straight and his eyes widened at the question. Then he could no longer hold back laughter. "Me and Tara?"
The blush on Lizzie's face threatened to deepen. "Yeah, you two had a thing, didn't you? I kinda just assumed what with the flirting and the closeness and all."
"Believe me, Tara and I have never been a couple and never will be. Merlin- we'd end up killing each other."
"Really?"
"Definitely. We're way too similar. I love her to bits, and she's a beautiful girl, but there's nothing romantic between us."
At these words, Lizzie's whole self relaxed. She didn't even notice but James did.
"Why? Were you jealous or something?"
"What? That's ridiculous. What reason would I have to be jealous?"
"Beats me. We're just friends after all, aren't we Elizabeth."
The rest of the day went on the same, though Lizzie had clearly now softened more towards Tara. James was relieved that Lizzie got on with his friends. He had to admit, he wasn't completely sure that she would. Not that they weren't all lovely people, it was just that Lizzie was quite different from the other girls James had introduced them to. She was more reserved, more humble, and though she had a fighting side- she was more gentle.
At the end of the day, they said their goodbyes and Lizzie drove away home. Before Fred left however, he'd pulled James to one side and looked him directly in the eyes.
"If you don't end up married to that girl, I'll never forgive you."
Reflecting on it, James came to the conclusion that he probably wouldn't forgive himself either.
And there you have it. Hope you liked this. I know the ending was a bit rushed but I just wanted to get something to you guys today. If you don't know about Thorpe Park, google it because it's great. Also, completely unrelated, but a follower of mine on tumblr messaged me to check out this suicide awareness project. I did, and I think the work that they're doing is incredible and you guys should really check it out. They're called the Four Little Letters Project and they can be found on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. So yeah, share that with your friends, because it's a really great thing that these guys are doing. Bg.97 xx