Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
—————————————————————
James frowned as he woke to a disappointing silence the next morning.
He furrowed his brow as he sat up in bed and blinked.
Once the soft noise of muffled conversation reached his ears, he looked over and scowled at the clock on his nightstand.
Realizing he had slept in, he sighed as he dressed for the day and combed his hair.
Before he left his room, he carefully slipped his wand into his pocket.
Although his conviction remained that he would be unable to overpower Mae in a duel, should his plan backfire and she choose him or Mark as her next target, he would do all he could to defend himself and his brother.
—————————————————————
James looked almost exactly like his father had at his age as he walked downstairs and entered Riddle Manor's dining room.
"Good morning, sweetheart." Harriet beamed at her eldest son from her seat next to her husband.
"...James." Tom junior nodded, "How thoughtful of you to join us. I considered sending Lawrence up to make sure you were still alive."
"Good morning, brother!" Mark chirped.
James nodded at his family as he slowly walked over to take his seat at his father's table.
He batted aside Tom's sarcastic quip as he found himself held under the strict scrutiny of his sister's green gaze.
"Good morning, Mae." James said dryly as he sat down in his chair.
"Good morning, James." She replied.
In her face, he saw neither anger nor sadness, but a curious look of intense study as her emerald eyes scanned relentlessly over his features.
Harriet, Tom, and Mark all resumed their meal while Mae and James carried on with their covert standoff.
"...Sleep well?" James asked.
"...Quite." Mae said after a moment while an evil smirk curled her lips.
There was an unsettling sensation of doomed dread that washed over James as sickly as an intense whip of sudden, bitter nausea.
"...Pardon." He said as he cleared his throat and abruptly rose from his seat.
"James……?" Harriet called.
Tom junior narrowed his eyes at his son while Mark frowned, "Brother, where are you going? You just got here!"
"Sorry, need to visit the loo." James called over his shoulder as he hurried out of the dining room.
His mouth fell open in anticipative horror as he gasped for breath while he stormed into the hallway and up the stairs.
As he trudged down the winding corridor and dared to peer inside Mae's room, his breath came in shallow gulps.
It was as if his fit of destruction had never happened.
Every single one of his sister's dolls had been repaired and replaced back into its original position on whatever shelf it had previously called home.
James glanced over and swallowed dryly as he saw Polly staring at him blankly from her comfortable spot on Mae's bed, left to oversee the room.
He could tell by his father's dismissive sarcasm and by the grim ominousness lingering in the air that something foul had mended the damaged dolls, not Reparo.
—————————————————————-
Once James recovered from his shock, he and Mark made up as they spent the rest of the morning playing and scheming.
Mae remained in her room, suspiciously quiet and out of the way, content to be with her dolls.
Merope and Tom senior sat reading in Riddle Manor's parlor as a light, fluffy snow poured down from the gray, winter sky.
If it hadn't been for Mae's sinister presence, the warm, crackling fire would have succeeded in surrounding the large mansion with a sense of comforting coziness.
Harriet seemed to pick up on that feeling, regardless of her daughter.
While their children were occupied, she and Tom ventured off for a moment of privacy behind the heavy door of their bedroom.
Tom didn't even bother to shut the curtains that hung on either side of their room's generous window as he pulled Harriet in close, wrapped her in his arms, and planted a passionate kiss on her lips.
She giggled as she laid one hand on his chest and used the other to grab his tie
Tom shivered at his mate's touch while his hands slipped down to hold her hips close to his own.
"...Haven't you had enough of me yet?" Harriet chuckled, "You should be worn out after last night."
"I could never have enough of you, sweetling." Tom whispered in a husky hiss as he nipped at Harriet's lips.
She resumed their kiss without hesitation as Tom swept her off her feet and into his arms.
His steps were heavy and determined as he walked across the floor to gently place his lover on the bed and crawl over her.
Harriet shivered from the chill that drifted through the air before she could stop herself but Tom was quick to respond.
As their lips met, she became ensnared in the sweet seduction in which he made certain to engulf her.
From the way he gasped for breath against her lips to the rich darkness of his mysterious, dominant scent, Harriet laid back in eager submission while her alpha settled himself between her knees.
Harriet relished the quiet winter mornings Tom had spent with her instead of at the Ministry.
A part of her couldn't wait until her next heat finally arrived.
—————————————————————
Later that afternoon, James excused himself from the parlor where he and Mark had ended up for a chat with their grandparents.
He made sure no one followed him as he quickly bundled up in his coat and scarf.
Quietly, James left Riddle Manor to make his way through the thick snow, across the grounds, and back once more to the Trendells' humble home.
James could feel his fingers numbing from the cold as he raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Lily's mother opened the door a few seconds afterwards and smiled down at her family's unexpected visitor, "James! Back already? What a pleasant surprise! Do come in, dear! Lily's in her room, I'll bring you both some tea."
"Thank you, Mrs. Trendell." James mumbled from the many folds of his scarf while he walked into the house.
The familiarity between him, Lily, and Mark extended to their families.
Lily's mother allowing James to walk through the house unescorted and find her daughter in her bedroom alone spoke to the fact that their friendship was based on trust.
The door to Lily's room stood wide open as she sat on her bed and scowled down at the book she had spent the day reading.
James couldn't help the wide smile that spread across his face as his eyes fell upon her.
He slowly raised a hand and knocked gently on her open door to gain her attention.
As she looked up from her book, she mirrored his happy expression as she cried, "James!"
"Hello, Lily." He nodded.
"Where's Mark?" She asked.
"He's at home, with our grandparents." He replied.
"...Where's your sister?" Lily pressed with a nervous frown.
"She's at home, not with our grandparents." James answered, "Don't worry, I made certain I wasn't followed….I just…..I wanted to come by and apologize for yesterday."
"Apologize about what?" Lily chuckled, "You saved me!"
"No, I didn't." James frowned, "Your mother did, I-"
"-My mother was in the right place at the right time." Lily smiled softly, "But you were the one with your wand drawn, James. You could have been expelled for it, if you had-"
"-That doesn't matter." James snapped. His dark eyes glowed with a fierce determination as he stared into Lily's fair face, "All that matters is that you would stay safe."
"Oh, James!" Lily cried.
His eyes widened as she stood from the bed, walked over, and threw her arms around him in an affectionate hug.
Although she could not see his face, he mirrored her same smile as he closed his eyes and held her tightly against him.
James's worried heart took comfort in the smell of his darling's sweetly-scented hair, although he was still far too young to understand exactly why.
—————————————————————
Refreshed by Lily's smile and renewed by her fond embrace, James strode through Riddle Manor's front door a few hours later and marched directly up to Mae's room.
He didn't bother to knock as he swung her door wide open and stared at her with a frown of disgust.
"Hello, brother." Mae smirked.
Her heart sunk at the disdainful scowl James cast her while she mused, "...How odd. You never come to see me, especially not alone."
James clenched his jaw.
"...And we were ever so close when you were little." Mae chuckled with a mischievous smirk.
"Stay away from Lily." James barked.
Mae blinked as if he had just slapped her across the face.
"...I beg your pardon?" She asked.
"Stay away from Lily and from me." James commanded, "Next time, I won't hold back."
A sinister chuckle of twisted amusement left Mae's red lips as she grinned, "Is that supposed to frighten me?"
James cast her one last scathing scowl before he turned and stomped away.
Once he had gone, Mae's bravado left.
Her smirk faded into a rageful sneer before her eyes welled with hot tears.
For the rest of the evening, she clutched Polly close as she wept bitterly in her lonely room.
James had already become accustomed to love's wonders, but Mae had only been introduced to its sharp sting.