Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and events from J.K. Rowling's wonderful Harry Potter books. I am writing this for my own enjoyment and hopefully for the enjoyment of readers. Anything you recognize belongs to JKR. The rest belongs to me.
Chapter 79: Cupids and Kewpie Dolls
"Alice, hurry up," ordered Lily. "We're going to be late for class."
Alice sighed and followed Lily and Marlene downstairs into the common room.
"What's with you this morning?" asked Marlene as they walked through the portrait hole.
"What do you mean?" asked Alice.
"You're spacey this morning and you keep sighing," said Marlene. "Spit it out! What's wrong?"
Alice shrugged noncommittally and said, "Nothing's wrong."
Marlene rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, fine. Don't tell us."
They continued walking downstairs, having to pause at a landing to wait for the staircase to return. Alice finally spoke, saying, "Do either of you know who Amy Brady is?"
"No clue," replied Marlene.
Lily shrugged her shoulders and asked, "Why?"
Alice, trying to sound casual, said, "Oh…no reason."
They continued down to the Great Hall and sat down for a quick bite. Marlene almost choked on her food in laughter when James sat down next to Lily with a confident grin. Lily gave Marlene a look as if to plead for her to eat faster. Marlene, feeling the need for some morning entertainment, took smaller bites from her toast.
"Morning, Evans," greeted James.
"Potter," replied Lily, while kicking Marlene under the table to hurry up. Marlene let out a small yelp and in retaliation grabbed another piece of toast and started to slowly butter it. Lily glanced hopefully at Alice, but saw her staring thoughtfully toward the entrance of the Great Hall.
"So, Evans," said James. "You realize what day tomorrow is, right?"
"Friday," Lily dryly replied.
"Valentine's Day," corrected James.
"Yes, I know, Potter," said Lily with an exasperated sigh. "You've reminded me of that every day for the past two weeks."
"So go with me to Hogsmeade," said James, leaning a little closer to her ear. With a slight whisper, he said, "C'mon, Evans. Go out with me."
As soon as Lily felt his warm breath cause her hair to tickle the side of her neck, she quickly stood up, knocking over her pumpkin juice and causing it to spill on Marlene's toast. Reaching for her bag, Lily said, "My answer is still the same, Potter." She turned and walked out of the Great Hall, presumably toward the first class of the day.
James watched her leave, then turned and saw Marlene watching him with an amused look. Realizing he usually never got a chance to speak with Marlene alone, James decided to seize the opportunity and asked, "Got any suggestions?"
Marlene chuckled and shook her head, replying, "You're on your own."
"Aw, c'mon," James cajoled. "What could it hurt to help me out a little?"
Marlene gave him a sweet smile and said, "I have to live with her." She grabbed her bag and said, "Let's go, Alice." When she didn't hear Alice reply she turned to her friend and asked, "You coming?"
Alice had not heard Marlene as she had been preoccupied when she saw Frank walk into the Great Hall a few minutes earlier. He had looked up and down the Hufflepuff table until his face lit up in a smile and he walked over to join a petite brunette. Alice had been studying the girl, wondering if that was Amy and what she looked like, seeing as how her back was to her.
"Alice!"
Alice snapped out of her daze and looked up at an impatient Marlene. Marlene turned and looked toward the Hufflepuff table where Alice's attention had been drawn. "What were you staring at?"
"N-Nothing," replied Alice, trying to gather her books.
James glanced over at the Hufflepuffs and said, "Oh, that's probably Amy, Frank's new girlfriend."
Marlene's eyebrows shot up as she exclaimed, "Frank's got a girlfriend? Named Amy?"
"Yeah," said James. "He just asked her out a few days ago."
Marlene gave Alice a scrutinizing look, but before she could say anything Alice stood up and said, "We're going to be late for class," and darted out of the Great Hall.
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Marlene was unable to grill Alice about her suspicions until that evening. All day classes had been packed with lectures and O.W.L. reviews. Alice had managed to evade Marlene in between classes and during lunch, but was unable to avoid seeing her in their dorm room that evening.
As soon as Marlene saw Alice walk into their room, she pounced. "Why were you asking who Amy Brady was this morning, Alice?"
Lily looked up from the book she had been reading, curious about Alice's answer. Marlene had told Lily her suspicions about Alice's elusive nature that day.
"I was just curious, that's all," Alice replied.
"Really?" asked Marlene, not convinced. "You just suddenly wondered who that girl is, the girl who just happens to be Frank Longbottom's new girlfriend?"
"Yeah," Alice weakly replied.
Marlene snorted and said, "Bull. You were staring a hole in the back of her head this morning. I had to call you three or four times before you finally snapped out of it. That sounds like more than curiosity to me."
Lily stood up and approached the two. "Alice, do you have feelings for Frank?" she gently asked.
"Feelings?" echoed Alice, her eyes wide. The word caused her heart to thump a little harder as she tried to grasp the concept. How could she have feelings for Frank? She had never seen him as anything more than a friend. Sure, they had gotten closer that year, but that didn't mean she was falling for the guy. She shook her head in denial and said, "No. He's just my friend."
"Alice," said Lily, taking a tentative step toward her friend. "It's okay to have feelings for him." She looked to Marlene for support, and Marlene nodded her head in agreement.
Alice took a shaky breath and sat down on the edge of her bed, her head bowed. "No, it's not," she replied. "All those years he followed me around, hoping for me to like him; that time when he asked me out last year and I turned him down…and I could tell he was hurt when I dated Sirius, even if he was always nice to me. How can I suddenly have feelings for this guy? How did things shift so suddenly?"
"It wasn't sudden," explained Lily, sitting next to Alice. "You've been spending time with him for several months, now, and I could see that this was coming for some time." She paused and looked thoughtful before adding, "Things change…people change. You're not the same person you were a year or two ago. Neither is he. None of us are."
"No, I suppose not," conceded Alice. She realized that Frank wasn't the same boy she met during their first year. He wasn't short or slightly pudgy anymore . He had gotten to be somewhat tall and while his face still had a boyish quality to it, he had matured and was looking less like an awkward boy and more like an attractive young man with each passing day. And while he still occasionally revealed the clumsy nature he had shown as a first year, he seemed to be growing into his feet and tripping over them a lot less lately.
Marlene sat down on Alice's other side and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. She asked, "Are you going to tell him?"
Alice looked at Marlene in surprise. "Tell him?" she echoed. "Tell him what, exactly? I'm not even sure what it is I'm feeling. Maybe I don't like him that way. Maybe I just miss the attention he used to give me."
"That's not true and you know it," chided Lily.
Alice let out a big sigh. For several moments afterward, there was a deafening silence in the room as Alice absorbed everything that had been said that evening. She finally looked back at Marlene and asked, "Do you think I should tell him?"
"Yes," said Marlene. "You need to let him know."
Lily eyed the two girls warily and said, "I don't know if that's such a good idea right now."
"Why not?" protested Marlene.
Lily gave Alice an apologetic look and said, "Well…because Frank is seeing someone else right now. Things could get pretty messy if you come forward right away. Maybe you should wait to see if the relationship goes anywhere. That will give you time to absorb all these new feelings you have for him."
Marlene shook her head and said, "I don't think it would be right for her to wait. Do it now, before he has the chance to develop any real feelings for Amy."
Lily opened her mouth to argue, but Alice stopped her. "Look, I really appreciate all the advice, but I think I need to sleep on this for a day or two."
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The next morning, there was a flutter of excitement as students flocked into the Great Hall for breakfast, eager for the morning post to arrive. It was Valentine's Day, and several hoped to see their owls swooping in with love letters and cards, or perhaps a package of goodies.
Alice wanted to hibernate through the day in her bed, but Lily and Marlene dragged her out and forced her to get dressed and follow them to breakfast. As she walked in, she passed by Frank, who gave her a friendly smile.
"Hi, Alice," he greeted.
For two simple words, they did an amazing job of sending flutters into Alice's stomach as she suddenly wondered how to speak to Frank after her recent revelation. Marlene subtly nudged her and Alice replied, "Morning, Frank," with a bashful smile before following her friends further down the table.
Sure enough, the morning post arrived and the room was filled will more than the usual amount of owls, most of them carrying cards and packages. Alice watched with envy as Marlene opened a card she had received from her latest boyfriend, Jeremy, along with an assortment of candy.
Alice's curiosity finally got the better of her and she looked at the Hufflepuff table, where she saw the same brunette girl giving Frank a hug in thanks for the card and flowers he had given her. Alice saw Amy's profile and noticed with disgust that she was disgustingly cute, with a perky upturned nose and a dimple at the corner of her smile. Part of Alice sighed, silently hoping that the other side of her face was horribly disfigured, or at least covered in large pimples.
"Lily, I'd just open it if I were you," came the voice of Marlene.
Alice turned her attention toward Lily, who was warily eyeing a pink envelope that was sitting in front of her. It was shaking and making jumping movements on the table, causing the silverware to rattle.
"Is that a howler?" asked Alice.
"No," said Marlene. "Howlers come in red envelopes." She chuckled and added, "Though I suspect if Lily doesn't open it soon it will open itself and be more entertaining for us than if she opened it on her own."
Lily braced herself and hesitantly broke the seal on the envelope, slowly lifting the flap, hoping beyond hope that no teddy bears would be charmed inside the card. She drew out the card and saw several hearts on the front along with the words, 'From your one and only' scrawled across in a shiny red script. She opened it and was more shocked than surprised to see something fly out of it and start circling around her. She barely had a chance to see that it looked like a small Cupid before she was hit in the shoulder with something small and sharp.
"Ow!" she exclaimed, reaching over and finding a tiny arrow attached to her.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Evans!" came the happy voice of James Potter as he sat next to her. The Cupid continued to swarm about before firing another arrow, this time hitting James. He smiled and said, "Guess that means we're meant for each other, eh, Evans?"
Lily hardly had the tiny arrow pulled out of her shoulder before another one hit her in the side of the neck. "Ouch!" She stood up and tried to swat the Cupid away, but not before another arrow hit her in her upper arm. "Argh! Bloody hell!" she cursed as she tried to shoo away the offensive Valentine while ducking more arrows.
The commotion drew the attention of several students, and Professor McGonagall finally subdued the creature with a sleeping charm. She instructed Lily to stop by the hospital wing to make sure all the arrows were properly removed and then turned to face James. "Mr. Potter, I suggest you find more suitable methods of celebrating this holiday, rather than sending your intended to the hospital wing." She gave him a stern look before walking back to the staff table, although Marlene could have sworn she saw an amused glint in her eyes before she turned to walk away.
James pulled out the few arrows that had struck him and made his way back to his mates.
Remus tried to suppress a smile as he said, "Didn't go too well, eh Prongs?"
"I guess not," James replied.
"I told you to stick with flowers and candy," said Remus. "They're generally harmless."
James smiled and said, "Oh, I followed your advice. The Cupid was only stage one of my Valentine's Day plan."
"Oh Merlin," said Remus, massaging his temples. "You have a plan?"
Sirius looked up from his stack of Valentine's Day cards and said, "He has a whole pile of stuff stashed in our room that he plans to have delivered to her throughout the day."
"How'd you know about that?" asked James.
Sirius shrugged and opted to refocus on his cards.
Peter smiled encouragingly and said, "Don't worry, Prongs. I'm sure she'll like the other stuff you got her."
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Lily managed to make it to their first class, though she was a little late due to Madame Pomfrey's attentions. The nurse had wanted to keep Lily for the day to make sure the arrow wounds did not become infected. Lily had tried not to roll her eyes, since each of the arrows had been miniscule and had barely left more than a pin prick sized hole. She finally opted to sneak out when another student came in with stomach cramps from eating too much chocolate.
Lily had barely sat down in History of Magic when an owl swept into the room and dropped a card and a package onto her desk. Marlene nudged her and forced her to open it while Professor Binns droned on about another goblin rebellion. She opened the card and was once again not surprised to see that it was from James, who winked at her when she glanced at him.
Marlene, seeing that Lily was in no hurry to see if anything would jump out of her latest gift, opted to open it for her. Seeing that the box contained chocolates, Marlene looked pleadingly at Lily, who shrugged and told her to help herself. Marlene lifted the lid and gasped when she saw that it was half empty. She took the open box and held it in a way so James could see. She mouthed, "What's this about?" to James, who looked bewildered that a large portion of the chocolates were missing.
James shrugged his shoulders before a thought suddenly occurred to him. Turning suspiciously to the seat next to him, he scrutinized Sirius, who had seen what was going on and had sunk a little lower in his seat.
"Padfoot!" hissed James. "You ate Evans' gift, didn't you?"
Sirius had the guilty look of a boy who had been caught stealing from the cookie jar, and turned to his best mate ready to plead his case. "I was hungry and it was just sitting there, taunting me. How was I supposed to know it was Evans' gift?"
"The box said, 'Happy Valentine's Day!' Did you think I bought them for myself?" James asked sarcastically.
Sirius snorted and joked, "Well, you are rather in love with yourself, aren't you?"
James responded by smacking Sirius on the back of the head. This drew the attention of Professor Binns, who glanced at the two boys for all of three seconds before returning to his lecture.
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Throughout the rest of the day, Lily received some form of a Valentine in each class and during every meal. Most were cards, some of which vocalized poetry in a loud manner for all to hear. Lily was at least grateful that none of the poems were limericks.
At dinner she received an enormous bouquet of flowers. It took two owls to make the delivery. James was certain this would at least make Lily smile, however he soon realized that the flower shop had messed up his order by sending a spring bouquet that included snap dragons. Unfortunately in the wizarding world, magical snap dragons really snap and would occasionally let out a small puff of fire.
After another trip to the hospital wing, Lily opted that the safest place to be was in her dorm room with the windows locked, effectively blocking out any other well-intentioned Valentine's gifts. She saw Alice leaving to go for a walk as she walked into the room. Marlene had left for her Hogsmeade date before dinner.
Alice had been brooding in her room after dinner about what she should do about Frank. She wondered if he was enjoying his date and subconsciously hoped that Amy would show some irritating habit like chewing with her mouth open or picking her nose. Alice finally felt boxed in by her room and decided to go for a walk.
That entire day during classes Alice couldn't help but glance at Frank frequently, even if she tried to focus on her studies. She seemed so much more aware of his presence and felt herself growing warm whenever he came anywhere near her. Merlin, even thinking about him now made her blush. She cursed her fair skin and hoped he hadn't noticed.
That led her to think about how to approach him. She wondered again if she should be honest with him about her change in feelings, or if that would completely mess up their friendship. She didn't even know if he liked her as more than a friend. He had shown no indication that year of wanting to date her, at least not in the open way he had in previous years.
She felt as if she had Marlene whispering in one ear to go for it and admit her feelings, and Lily whispering in her other ear, cautioning her about telling him while he was seeing someone else. As she approached the staircase that would lead her downstairs to the main level, she felt Marlene's argument winning. Alice was a Gryffindor, after all, and had to come forward and tell Frank the truth. She had to take a chance and see if he felt the same way.
As she walked down the stairs, her new resolve crumbled at the sight of what was before her in the entryway. Frank was kissing Amy goodnight, apparently just returning from their Hogsmeade date. They pulled back slightly and Amy smiled up into Frank's eyes as he softly smiled back. Alice felt her heart pound and her stomach drop as they started to kiss again, and she felt herself turning and running upstairs and all the way back to Gryffindor tower. She raced into her dorm room and suddenly stopped in the center of the room, feeling completely lost.
"Alice!" called Lily, quickly walking to her. "What's the matter? Why are you crying?"
Alice reached up to touch her cheek and was surprised to find tears tracking their way downward. She looked at Lily and saw the concern in her friend's green eyes, finally causing a sob to escape. Lily hugged her and guided her to her bed, sitting her down and comforting her as she grieved a relationship that had never begun.
"Y-You were right," sobbed Alice.
"About what?" asked Lily.
Alice tried to catch her breath between hiccups before replying, "Frank. I w-was ready to t-tell him, but-" she sniffed, "-I…I saw him k-kissing her."
Lily grabbed her wand and summoned a handkerchief, handing it to Alice.
Alice continued, "It wasn't only that. H-He looked happy." She looked up at Lily with watery eyes and said, "How could I tell him now? He's happy with her, and he'd probably hate me for trying to ruin it."
Lily gave her a sympathetic smile and said, "I don't think it's possible for Frank to hate you."
"Well, he's moved on and I have to accept it, even if it's with some disgustingly adorable Kewpie doll," snorted Alice. The thought of Amy brought back the memory of seeing Frank kissing her, and Alice dissolved into tears again.
Lily hugged her a little tighter and said, "I'm sorry, Alice."
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A/N: Okay, so it's about 2:30 a.m. and I'll probably hate myself in a few hours when I have to get up for work, but I felt a little burst of insomnia and decided to finish this chapter and post it. I enjoyed writing it, since I love making James' plans for Lily go haywire. I'm also enjoying writing the Alice/Frank development, since this has been in my head for a while.
Thanks to my latest reviewers: God'sgirl, Anu, delpheena, britishbabe, blackquill, Adria, Calypso, Mani12191, DreamAngel, astronomylover, alto2srock, RainDateChick, Jo Bob, Anonymous (x3), Remus'sweetie, sweetie513, Golden Phoenix, Senior Poopie Pants, maraudersdaughter, Watermelon!, James' Lily (x2), and waddi-wasi.
Please review! I'm so close to 1000 I'm practically salivating! (lol)