QLFC Finals Round 1: Player 3 – A section written in epistolary form AND an epigraph, and James/Lily as a pairing because it's Player 2's (our Captain, Clairebear1982) OTP.

Word count: 2637 (according to MS Word)

Extra prompts:

· 2. (word) hazelnut

· 11. (setting) a Muggle café

· 12. (colour) mulberry

"Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it."

― L. M. Montgomery, The Story Girl

~oOo~

"But Rose, this place looks so old…" came the voice of Lily Potter from outside the entrance of a small but homey-looking café near the centre of London.

"Maybe so, but trust me, they have the best hazelnut chocolate chip cookies in the entire city!" exclaimed Rose, dragging her cousin inside the building, then pointing at a round, wooden table near the back with empty seats around it. "That's where I always sit. Come on!"

Soon enough, the two of them were comfortably seated, Lily with her arms crossed and a calculating expression etched on her face, and Rose looking around in admiration and with a hint of nostalgia.

"So, any particular reason why you brought me here?" Lily inquired.

"Actually, yeah," Rose replied, her index finger pointing upwards as though she'd just remembered something vital. Grabbing her bag that had been resting on her lap, she rummaged through the contents and after a couple of moments, pulled out a battered, mulberry-coloured notebook and raised it in triumph. "I found this in Uncle Harry's attic when we had that family get-together about a month ago, and I think you might be interested."

"What is it?" Lily asked, her eyebrows shooting upwards.

"A diary," came Rose's answer. "You may be thinking, 'okay, but what do I have to do with some random person's diary and why, of all places, are we in this dusty, old café,' but just take a look at it." She handed the book to Lily, who opened the cover carefully, as if afraid of touching it.

August 28th, 1971, the notes began.

Dear diary,

Hello…? Do I say hello? I'm not sure how I'm supposed to write a diary, but my mum said that it's the best place to keep my memories and secrets... so, I guess I'll have to give it a go.

You know what? I'm feeling excited right now. You won't believe this, but I'm a witch! Not one of those evil, ugly witches in fairytales, though, because I'm not ugly, or evil, even if Tuney says so. But I can do magic! Real magic! Can you believe it? Did you know there's a school called Hogwarts—such a silly name—where all wizards and witches go? I'm going there too. Me! It's making me nervous. Really nervous.

I actually did some magic things already! I went shopping with one of the professors at Hogwarts. She's called Professor McGonagall, I think. We went to this place called Diagon Alley and bought magical textbooks, magical robes, and even a cauldron and a wand! It was as if I'd travelled into another dimension, or something. Like a dream, but it was actually real!

What else should I write about?

Oh, right! I should talk about my day as well! Mum said that's what diary-writers do. I think I can do that. Today, my dad bought me this notebook that I'm writing in right now. It's a good luck charm for Hogwarts. I wonder if wizards actually have good luck charms. Do they?

Anyway, I want to show this diary to my friends, because the cover is mulberry and that's my new favourite colour. Oh, and after buying it, we went to a café, and I got hot chocolate, and it tasted awesome! I asked Tuney if she wanted to come with us to that place another time, but she didn't want to. I think she's still angry because of the whole Hogwarts thing. I hope we make up soon, because I don't want her to miss out on it.

I guess that's all for today, I think.

Lily E.

As soon as she was finished with the entry, Lily Luna lifted her face to meet Rose's smug expression. Despite being a Gryffindor, she'd never looked so Slytherin before.

"Do you mean to tell me that you found the diary of my long-deceased grandmother a month ago and decided to tell me about it just now?" Lily asked, folding her arms once again.

"Is that really what you're most concerned about?' Rose retorted. "It's not just any journal, as you can see. From what I've gathered, it contains years and years of entries, and some kind of enlargement charm was used to generate an infinite number of new pages, despite how slim it is on the outside. There was also a Muggle repellent charm placed on it, though I'm not yet sure why."

Lily placed her hand on the soft, mulberry-coloured cover once again. "I understand that, but…" she said, but her words got caught up as she averted her gaze for a moment. "Anyway, that still doesn't explain why we're here."

"Lily, didn't you pay attention?" Rose replied, her tone hushed but still full of excitement. "This is the very café your granny talks about in the first entry! It's nothing short of a miracle that this place still exists, let alone that I was able to find it!"

"Huh," was all Lily could come back with.

"In case you're interested," Rose continued, changing the topic swiftly, "it also tells how Granny Lily and Gramps James got together."

Lily poked at the notebook in front of her. If she was to be honest with herself, she was in a state of shock, mixed with a subtle urge to go and sob in a corner where she couldn't be seen. She'd asked her dad multiple times to tell her about her grandparents, but he could never tell her stories, since they'd died when he had been little. Lily had always thought it to be unfair, since she had plenty of memories of Grandma Molly and Grandpa Arthur, but none about Lily and James.

"You can have it," Rose told her all of a sudden. "After all, it's your grandma. And I've brought another book, just in case," she added, pulling a light novel out of her case. Lily stared at her for a moment, then at the diary, then her hands. As if switched onto autopilot, she opened the notebook somewhere in the middle. "If you want to read the 'Lily & James' parts, you should start somewhere around fifth year," the older girl noted. Lily nodded, and turned a few pages in accordance.

April 1st, 1975

Dear diary,

Can you believe how obnoxious Potter and his gang have been all day? Just… ugh. It's not like their usual attire is any more tolerable, but today, it reached a whole new level of irritating. I'd love to go into detail, but I'm already exhausted and would rather not think about it anymore, but let's just say that thanks to their tasteless pranks, about half of the Slytherin house, including Sev, will probably have nightmares for the rest of the school year—and possibly have their hair turn bubblegum pink at random occasions, along with snail-vomiting, possibly. It gives me a headache just thinking about it. At least those gits got detention for it, if nothing else. Sometimes I just want to round them up and… ugh. Whatever.

With that being said, I'm ready to forget this day once and for all, so let's talk about something else. I still haven't managed to find out who Mary likes, and she won't tell me, no matter how hard I press her. I'm starting to think it's somebody truly embarrassing, but I have no idea who it could be. It's not like she would ever interact with the… darker side of Slytherin, but I suppose it could be one of the Ravenclaws she sometimes talks with. I'll have to come up with something to find out.

Oh, and I had a Arithmancy test today. I hope it went well, because it will affect my final grade for the year.

So many things to have a headache about, right?

Lily E.

"Isn't it surprising?" Rose noted, seeing the furrowed eyebrows and the confused expression that was etched onto Lily's face.

"I guess," came the reply. "But above everything, it feels weird to suddenly know so much about Grandma Lily."

"It must be hard for you." Rose nodded. "But hey, look at the bright side of things. You may actually get together with Scorpius if things progress the way they do, based on this diary."

"What? No!" Lily exclaimed, which only served as a reason to make Rose giggle. "Fine, whatever. Just let me read, okay?" She then turned a few pages in the notebook, landing on a completely different entry.

February 12th, 1977

Dear diary,

Can you guess what happened? You surely can, because it has happened before. James Potter asked me out. For the third time this month. Except this time, it was for the Valentine's Hogsmeade trip. Should I even be surprised anymore? Aside from the fact that I've said no a number of times already, what is he even trying to achieve with this debauchery? I've told him to lay off with it, but no.

Mary said there was a possibility that he really means it and is trying to show me how much he's changed, but even if he has changed, he's not showing it right. I may not hate him, because I really don't, and I've said so before, but that doesn't make him any less of an annoying toerag. It's not like I like him back, either, and he should be glad that I can tolerate him for more than five minutes. I could give him ideas on how to actually be more mature, but it's not worth much if he can't figure it out by himself, is it?

What's more worrying, though, is that I don't have anyone to go to Hogsmeade with. Mary will go with her Ravenclaw boyfriend—that I set her up with—so that's out of the question, but I'm not that close with the other girls in our dorm. I guess I could tag along with some Hufflepuffs I know, or something, but I wonder if I should just stay behind. I need to study for my upcoming Transfigurations exam anyway.

Have I ever told you how exhausting Advanced Transfigurations is? It's as if McGonagall thinks that we do not have any other classes, but I guess I did chose to continue with the subject, so I really should stop complaining. Still… ugh.

I should stop saying 'ugh' so often. It makes me sound like Granny, who can't stop complaining about her neighbour's dog.

Lily E.

She flipped through another couple of pages, wondering what it had been that changed her grandma's heart.

October 10th, 1977

Dear diary,

Today was rather stressful. I had two exams right after each other—Transfigurations and Potions, which are two subjects I need Os in—and on top of that, I had to deal with one of the fifth year prefects. Supposedly, they were seen harassing a second year Ravenclaw, so it was my duty to find out if it was true, and act accordingly, if it was. And let me tell you, there's barely anything worse than having to run around the school because of these administrative incidents while worrying about your exams.

Thankfully, James was there to help me, and I was quite surprised to find it so. I didn't think he was worthy to be appointed Head Boy, but maybe he really had matured over the summer. I wonder what had happened that made it so. In any case, I'm glad he's stepped up. I was afraid that I'd have to shoulder all of the responsibility myself, and learning that it wasn't so is all I could have hoped for.

Actually, I'm thinking about giving him a chance with this whole 'dating' thing. I mean, it's not like anything disastrous would happen, and besides, I won't live forever. Maybe I could even grow to actually like him. Who knows?

Mary says I should give it a try, too. That is, if I want to. I'll definitely think about it.

Lily E.

Not bothering with the details, Lily flipped the pages until she found the entry about their first date.

November 5th, 1977

Dear diary,

I've had my first date with James today, and it was surprisingly good. Nothing flashy, but I enjoyed myself all the more for it. We talked about various things—he said he wanted to get to know me better, so I complied—and he actually asked me if I was all right after that disaster with the prefects last month. I'm starting to think he really was worried about my mental health, but this was kind of him. I told him I was over it already, so he didn't need to fret.

Oh, did you know that he used to have a pet cat at home? Unfortunately, she died two years ago, but James said that maybe it was for the best; after all, Sirius had an inherent dislike for cats that James could never understand, but had to accept along the way. I told him about the family cat we used to have as well. I still miss Fluffy from time to time.

Have you seen James' eyes, though? They're a hazelnut colour, and although mulberry is my favourite—it somehow stuck with me—it's beautiful. Like… beautiful. No, I'm not just saying that. It really is pretty. Although, when I told this to Mary, she rolled her eyes and smiled at me like she knew something I didn't.

I don't need her to tell me, though, because I know it already. At least, I think. Maybe.

Either way, he said we should do something like this again, and I agreed. I really hope I didn't make a mistake.

Lily E.

Turning another batch of pages, Lily glanced at Rose again, who was deeply immersed in her own book while sipping her coffee. Deciding against telling her about what she'd just read, Lily instead continued reading with an even later entry.

June 20th, 1978

Dear diary,

Guess what? I'm engaged now! It almost feels childish to be writing this diary when I've just written down tons of ideas for colour schemes and venues for my own wedding, but not writing it down would also feel weird. After all, this diary has been with me for seven years.

So, how have I gotten engaged? Well, I wouldn't say it was the most romantic thing ever; after all, we're still in school, but still. It was in the middle of a picnic date near the Black Lake and all, and it was just the two of us, so that made it more intimate, I think, but either way, I wouldn't trade it for anything else. Ah, I'm rambling so much. Still, isn't it a wonder?

I really can't think about anything else, other than how magnificent our wedding will be. I wanted to write about other things, too, but this is occupying 99% of my thoughts right now. I'm so happy.

And, you know, after all that we've been through, after all that I've been through, it was still worth it, wasn't it?

Lily E.

"Have you finished?" Rose asked, glancing up from her novel again while setting her cup on the little oak table.

"Kind of." Lily nodded. "Though, I've only read the engagement part, not the last entry. It's… interesting. Never thought I'd ever get my hands on something like this, though."

"I know, right?" The pitch of Rose's voice rose somewhat, but she calmed herself soon after. "Anyway, I suggest you read the rest as well. It's actually pretty exciting. Oh, and don't forget to show it to Uncle Harry; I'm sure he'll be delighted."

"I will. I definitely will," Lily said, her fingers caressing the mulberry cover once again.