A/N: I have my Internet back! Let's hope that it lasts.

Anyway, here is James and Charlotte's coffee. I don't know what you all are expecting but this isn't the chapter where everything is worked out and they ride away together into the sunset (not that they will do sunset ridding anyway). Enjoy.

Charlotte drug him-quiet literally-to a small café in muggle London.

"I still don't understand why we're here," James pointed out as they ordered their drinks and found a place to sit.

"Because," Charlotte explained. "You need something to get your mind off of Amber not being here."

"Coffee does that?" James asked stupidly.

"No. But at least it's better than standing in a store and staring into space."

James was going to point out that it was also better than playing with a dust bunny colony under his couch, but then he remembered that she didn't know about that and took a sip of his scorching hot coffee to keep his mouth shut. No use making himself look like a bigger loser than he already did.

"So where are Isaac and Sophie?" James asked.

"They're spending the day at my mums," Charlotte said, taking a sip of her own coffee. "I had some errands to run and they didn't want to come."

That was when James noticed the shopping bags that where sitting beside her chair, he probably would have noticed them while she was dragging him along if he hadn't been occupied on why she was dragging him.

There was a moment of silence in which James sunk back into his hopeless boredom and then Charlotte, unexpectedly, asked, "Do you want a cookie?"

James looked at her like she was crazy for a moment, "Where did that come from?" he asked. He didn't see what a cookie had to do with anything they had discussed.

Charlotte shrugged, "When I'm depressed I like to eat sweets," she elaborated. "It's not the best method but when you have a soft, warm, cookie in your hand then things don't look so bad. You never know, it might cheer you up a bit."

James would have scoffed at her philosophy and told her that a cookie wasn't going to make him miss Amber any less, but damn it he wanted that cookie.

When he didn't say anything Charlotte went and ordered two giant chocolate chip cookies for the both of them.

"So," Charlotte began, "what shall we talk about?"

James shrugged and took a bite of his cookie-it was just as good as he imagined. "Well, there is the obvious."

"Which would be?" Charlotte asked.

"Your ex-husband, Amber's mum, and all the things that happened since we stepped off of the Hogwarts Express twelve years ago," James reminded her. And then, just because he couldn't help himself, he added, "Obviously."

Charlotte looked as though this was the last thing she wanted to discuss. She started to break off bits of her cookie and shove them into her mouth while staring fixedly at the table.

"So," James gathered from her expression, "we're just going to skid around those subjects?" As much as he wanted to know about her ex-husband and why they were no longer married James was glad that they were not going there. If they did then he would have to talk about Amber's mum too. He had done that once with Amber and he didn't want to do it again so soon.

"Yes," Charlotte sighed in relief, "and I congratulate you on your subtlety, James."

"I'm subtle," He defended himself.

"About as subtle as an elephant on a creaky floor," she muttered into her coffee cup.

James took another bite of his cookie and decided to ignore that comment.

"So since we've decided to avoid the sticky subjects why don't you tell me about Amber," Charlotte suggested.

"Well," James began. "She loves to be outside and Quidditch. She likes getting attention, but she isn't as attention seeking as I was at her age. It might not seem like it but she is very mature for her age. She can't fix her own hair and she could eat a horse and barley gain a pound. She loves her family and adores the Austins. She can be very patient when she wants to but she's a very curious child, always has been. She likes to do things on her own without anyone's help and she's always up for an adventure."

As he was talking James realized just how much he missed Amber.

"So you were wrong before," James continued. "Amber is not a bit like me."

"She's more like you than you think," Charlotte assured him. "I could tell when I met her that you have a great kid, James. She's very polite and has a lot of energy."

James snorted. "Tell me about it. She was up at dawn on the day she left for Hogwarts. She said that she was too excited to sleep, and she was still bouncing around by the time we actually got to Kings Cross."

Charlotte laughed, "I can imagine. Isaac is like that sometimes but I can barley get Sophie out of the house."

"She didn't seem like a lazy kid to me?" James inquired.

"She's not lazy," Charlotte corrected him, "She's just a home body. She likes to read," she said as though that explained everything.

"Ah, so she's like her mum?" James teased.

"Yes," Charlotte laughed. "So what house did Amber get sorted into?"

"Gryffindor, of course. She is a Potter after all," James reminded her.

"Your sister is a Potter and she was sorted into Slytherin," Charlotte pointed out.

"Lily is a special case," James stated. "I use to think that mum and dad had brought back the wrong baby."

Charlotte laughed at this, "Seriously?" She asked.

"Oh yeah, if she didn't look so much like mum then I'd be positive that they had switched babies with some Slytherin-y couple."

After they had finished their cookies and coffee Charlotte had to get back to her kids so they walked out of the coffee shop together.

"Thanks for the coffee Charlotte," James said, "I needed that." James turned to walk away but was called back by Charlotte.

"James?"

"Yes Charlotte?" He turned to look at her again.

"I was wondering if you would like to have dinner with me sometime?" she asked quickly.

James looked around to make sure that there was no one else around that she could be talking to. After assuring himself that she was talking to him James turned back to her. "Are you asking me out on a date?" he asked, not wanting to believe his ears.

Charlotte looked shocked, like she couldn't believe that her mouth had actually formed those words. Then she seemed to come to a conclusion and stood to her full height, a look of determination on her face. "Yes," she said.

"Seriously?" he asked and he could see the tiniest slump of her shoulders. "You are asking me out? You do remember who I am don't you?"

"Do you want to go or not?" she asked.

"Hell yeah," James said before he actually thought about it. "How many chances am I going to have to go on a date with you?"

"Is next Friday good for you?" she asked, ignoring his previous question.

James rolled his eyes, she knew that he had nothing else to do, wasn't that why they had gotten coffee in the first place? "That's fine Charlotte."

James was slightly surprised when Charlotte actually smiled up at him. "I'll pick you up around seven," she said before turning and starting to walk away.

"Wait!" James called her back. "Don't you mean I," he pointed at his chest, "Will pick you," he pointed at her, "up at seven?"

"No," was all she said. "I'll see you Friday."

A/N: Please review.