Chapter two of the Longbottom wedding, and we see more interaction between James and Lily! Though the final chapter will be the culmination of events.
Disclaimer: still don't own HP.
The ceremony passed quickly, the words said between Frank and Alice were beautiful, rings exchanged, papers signed and soon they leaving through the doors of the church, the newly married couple and their guests were making their way to the town hall through the sunny streets of Ilkley. It was on the short walk that Lily, Dorcas and Marlene made their way to the four marauders and began to walk with them to the town hall.
"You know ladies, some would call you bad friends for turning up late to a wedding." Sirius said raising an eyebrow as the girls giggled in response.
James was watching Lily, her cheeks flushed in the summer sunshine, hair shining and flowing from side to side with each of her steps.
"Blame Lily." Dorcas muttered bumping her shoulder into Lily's.
"She drove us." Marlene explained with a roll of her eyes.
Lily flushed a deeper shade of red and tucked her hair behind her ear, obviously embarrassed.
"You drive?" James asked in shock. "Like a muggle car?"
"Yeah…" Lily said looking confused. "What else would I be driving?"
James fell short, stumped.
"A motorbike." Sirius threw out in aid of James' lack of an answer.
Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes a car!" She acquiesced.
"Where is it?" Peter asked looking somewhat excited at the prospect of a ride.
"A bloody million miles away!" Dorcas interjected before Lily could speak, with a loud laugh that made Marlene laugh as well.
"Shut up!" Lily yelled as they continued down the street. James grinned at Lily's embarrassed smile, she caught his eyes and quickly looked away, looking straight forward. "Honestly, it's not that far away!" She moaned.
"It's literally the other side of the village because someone didn't want to park in between these two cars…" Marlene told the group causing them to laugh.
"It was a parallel park! And I hate doing those! Anyway, I didn't see either of you offering." Lily huffed crossing her arms causing James to garner a view of her slight cleavage, pale, milky skin, pushing delightfully against the fabric of her dress.
"You'll have to drive us somewhere, sometime Lily." Remus told her with a smile and Lily grinned in response walking up to him and wrapping her arm through his elbow and continuing ahead of the rest of the group.
James felt the frown appear between his eyebrows, as it always did when Lily chose Remus over him. It was not as if they were close, James and Lily, it had only been at the end of their sixth year that they found themselves able to talk to one another, they spent one evening, after Gryffindor's quidditch victory, just talking and drinking, James felt that they had really broken through the barrier that she had placed between them for so long. But it had been two months since that night and James wasn't sure whether she had suddenly begun to regret their newfound friendship.
"James?" Marlene asked from beside him, a soft smile on her painted red lips.
"Huh?"
"I just said that you should try and actually talk to her." She said giving him a pointed look, they were just walking through the gates to the town hall, the doors were wide open and inside the room was decorated magnificently, candles everywhere, flowers everywhere, white linen, round tables, waiters and waitresses dotted around with trays of drinks in hand.
"Yeah?" He asked sceptically.
"Yes. She didn't shut up about you on the drive here."
"She knew I was coming?" He asked shocked.
"Yep, honestly I think you really changed her mind about you last year." Marlene told him before smiling and walking over to where Dorcas and Lily stood checking the seating chart.
"I need a fag." Sirius said to James as he walked back outside, fishing in his pocket as he went.
James followed with Remus and Peter behind, Sirius was already lighting his cigarette as the others joined him outside, James caught the flying packet of cigarettes as Sirius threw them to him. Taking one out and lighting it quickly with his wand as they watched the rest of the guests make their way inside. Remus and Peter were only social smokers, a bad habit that they picked up when they were drinking, but for James and Sirius it had become a full time bad habit, much to James' parents dismay.
"So, the first one bites the dust." Remus noted watching as Alice and Frank Longbottom arrived to be hounded by the hundreds of guests as they entered the town hall.
"To the Longbottoms!" Peter announced taking a glass from one of the waiters who had come outside with a tray of drinks and was offering the four marauders a glass each, though giving them disdainful looks as he walked away wafting away the smoke that was billowing around them.
"To the Longbottom's!" The boys cried, laughing even though it was immature and an old joke.
"You know I would have thought you'd all matured enough to get over that last name." Came a soft voice from the doorway to the townhall.
James' head flew to the speaker, registering on some unearthly level that it was Lily before he even spotted her.
"I don't think it will ever get old Evans." James pointed out, inhaling from his cigarette and watching her carefully. She was leaning against the doorframe, her dress clung to her hips, highlighting the curvaceous waist that had always been hidden by over large jumpers and frumpy school skirts. She looked wonderful, a ray of sunshine in the July sunshine.
"Still keeping up that bad habit then?" She asked eyeing James, an eyebrow raised.
James could feel the gaze of his friends on him, knew they were thinking the exact same thing as him; he wasn't the only one smoking and yet she was speaking solely to him.
"It's a hard one to drop." He told her, his eyes not leaving hers.
"Would that make me a bad habit? Seeing as how you haven't been able to drop me?" She asked oh so innocently, a smug smirk playing on her lips.
James felt his eyes widen in shock at her blunt question, could feel the cigarette between his fingers burning closer and closer to his skin, it was getting hotter. He was getting hotter. But his throat was full, of what he didn't know but there was something there stopping him speaking as she continued her steady gaze.
There was an awkward cough from his left and Sirius quickly dropped the cigarette butt to the floor, squashing it underneath his shiny black shoes before patting James quickly on the shoulder and walking back into the town hall, past Lily Evans who didn't move didn't move her eyes from James. Remus and Peter followed suit, disappearing through the door leaving James stood awkwardly with his cigarette burning down quickly, facing Lily whose smile was growing slowly.
"What did you ask?" James said stupidly. He'd heard exactly what she'd said but needed to make sure he'd understood what she was getting at.
Lily was grinning fully now, teeth bright and white between plump lips that were painted a deep pink. "Am I a bad habit James? Am I your bad habit?" She asked, stepping down from the step and coming to stand right before him, taller than he was used to having her, what with her being in heels, her face was much closer to his own than he was used to.
"Um…Lily-I…I wouldn't call you a bad habit." He told her in what he had hoped was a cool way but knew he failed as the cigarette burnt down to his fingers and he let it go quickly shaking his hand in pain.
Lily laughed loudly and James watched as she brought one foot forward, placing the toe of her heeled shoe between his legs, squashing the dropped cigarette butt with ease. James felt himself swallow hard at the sight of her pale calf, heel clad foot and red painted toes. He was whisked from that moment to another as her hands grasped the knot and middle of his tie causing his gaze to jump back to her face.
She was closer, one foot still delicately placed between his legs, her face mere inches away as she straightened his tie, the knuckles of one hand touching his chest, he wondered whether she could feel his hammering heart beneath her touch.
"What would you call me than James?" She asked, her hands still holding his tie.
James almost groaned at the soft way she said his name, a sound that could have come from an angels lips.
"Lily." He whispered and then shook his head. "You're…you…"
Lily giggled at his lack of words and James felt the unnatural flush fill his dark cheeks.
"When you come up with an answer let me know." She told him before letting her hands slide down the lapels of his blazer and tugging them slightly, giving her the appearance of fixing his clothes. Then she was gone climbing the step back into the town hall, grabbing a fizzing glass from a waiter and leaving James dumbstruck outside in the summer sunshine, feeling oddly hot under the collar.