Prelude
I always saw myself with a curvacious girl with long blonde hair. Whenever they'd ask me, I'd see a tall blue-eyed girl in my mind's eye. That was my picture of the ideal girl. She was the girl of my dreams. But who was she? It took me several years to figure that out, and boy did it turn my world around.
~*~
Fifth Year
"POTTER!" 15-year-old Lily Evans shrieked as cold water rushed over her head and down her slender shoulders.
"Oh! I'm sorry, I thought your hair was on fire!" James said in mock innocence. His friends, Sirius Black and Petter Pettigrew burst out laughing.
Lily looked up at the raven-haired boy, eyes starting to tear up. She got quickly to her feet and grabbed her shoulder bag, which was starting to get damp from the dripping water.
"Good one James!" Sirius said, patting his friend on the back.
"Oh yes, bloody brilliant," Said another Gryffindor boy, Remus Lupin. "Bloody original too, that one." The boy shook his head in disgust as he hurried after Lily who had ran from the Great Hall in embarrassment.
James, Sirius, and Peter continued to joke about the `look on Evan's face' and how `she was actually going to cry'. Not one of them saw the looks of disgust and, oddly enough, pity that were coming from their Housemates.
Breakfast sped by after that, as did the morning classes. At lunch the three boys took their usual seats at the table, talking away like nothing had ever happened. James was laughing at something Sirius had said when he jumped to his feet, gasping.
The Gryffindor table burst into laughter when they saw Remus Lupin standing behind James, an empty pitcher in his hands. James spun around to face the other boy. Despite being almost six inches shorter, Remus showed no fear of James.
"I do hope you're quite pleased with yourself, Potter," Remus growled. "Lily hasn't came out of the girls dorms since breakfast this morning."
James smirked, "That's her own deal isn't it. I'm not the one who chose to skip classes."
"You arrogant, concieted, low life, bastard," Remus fumed. "You humiliated her."
"Watch who you call a bastard," James scowled. "It was a joke, Lupin. If little miss Evans can take a simple joke, then perhaps she belongs in Ravenclaw with the rest of the uptight witches."
"It wasn't a simple joke, Potter," Remus growled. "You three make it your goal to humilate people. It's right time that you change that before it comes back and bites you in the arse."
"Is that a threat, Lupin?" James asked, arching a soggy eyebrow.
Remus stepped forward, "I don't make threats. Threats are pointless. Threats are empty. No James, I make promises. And I don't break my promises."
"You hear that guys?" James said over his shoulder to Sirius and Peter. "The scrawny runt thinks he can kick my arse." Next thing he knew he was flat on his back next to the table where he'd just been seated, with a bloody nose.
"I won't waste my magic on a jerk like you," Remus said. "I prefere the old fashioned Muggle way." He turned on his heel and exited the Great Hall, a round of applause fallowing him.
James climbed to his feet and retook his seat, pinching his bloody nose. He glanced up at his friends who wore similar amused expressions. "Don't give me that look," he growled.
"Who would have known that a `little runt' could beat our dear James without breaking a sweat," Peter laughed.
"Shut it, Pettigrew," James said.
"So what do you think about what he said about Evans?" Sirius asked.
James shrugged but avoided his friend's eyes when he replied, "It was a joke, she needs to learn to take jokes."
In reality, James had felt like a real heel to hear that she'd locked herself up in her dorm. He sighed glanced up at the doors of the great hall. "I should probably appologise, huh?"
His two friends nodded.
And he did, it took him a while to talk to her, but he finally got her to listen about two weeks later.
7th year
"You're such a prat, James," Lily laughed as she leaned back against his chest.
"Hey, I've gotten better, haven't I?" The raven-haired boy grinned.
"Well that doesn't exactly take much now does it?" Lily chuckled. "You were just plain cruel to me!"
"I appologised, didn't I?"
"Well…yeah. But that whole `I thought your hair was on fire' thing was really mean." Lily said in a mock pout.
James cupped her chin and turned her head to make her look at him, "Lily, love, that was two years ago. I know that was wrong, and you don't know how sorry I really am."
Lily smiled and brought her lips to his. She pulled back and rested her head back against him again. "Three months left of Hogwarts. Can you believe it?" She asked softly.
"I know," James sighed. "It seems so close, yet at the same time so far away."
She was about to respond when Sirius inturrupted them, "Oy! Prongs, have you seen Moony?"
"Remus is in the Library, studying for N.E.W.T.s," Lily answered.
"Again?" Sirius groaned. He shook his head slightly and headed toward the portrait hole, "I'm going to go save our friend from the danger that is studying."
Lily and James laughed. James relaxed into the back of the couch and slipped his arms around the girl sitting against him. "Lily?"
"Hmm?" She said, her eyes had fallen closed and she didn't bother to open them when he spoke, a trait she had that he found endearing.
"Can I ask you something?" He said.
"Anything," She murmered. He fell silent a moment and shifted under her, she frowned, "What is it James?"
"Open your eyes, Lily. Please?" James said softly into her ear.
She did as she was asked and gasped at the diamond solitare that sat in a ring box infront of her face, "James?"
"We've got three months left at school, but I don't want that to be the end." He said, voice tembling, but remaining soft. "Will…Will you marry me, Lily Evans?"
Her eyes widened. It was a few moments before she could do anything besides stare at the ring. She looked back at the man she'd been dating for almost a year, judging his sincerity. "Oh, Merlin." She whispered. "Yes. Yes, of course I want to marry you, James."
He looked more than releived as a grin broke across his face. He pulled the ring from its box and slipped it onto her left hand. He looked up at her, "I love you, Lily. You make me the happiest man alive."
She turned around to face him and placed her hands on either side of his face. "I love you too, James," she said just before she brought her lips to his again.
James slipped his arms around her and held her close as he slipped his tounge out and ran it across her lower lip. Parting her lips she slipped her own tounge out to meet his.
They jumped at the sound of some one clearing their throat. Both looked up and flushed when they saw Sirius and Remus standing, arms crossed, with highly amused expressions.
Present Day - One year later
"Come on, James! Peter's here to watch Harry and we were supposed to meet Sirius and Remus five minutes ago!" Lily called.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" James said, hurrying forward. "Where are we going again?"
Lily rolled her eyes, "The same muggle club we always go to."
James smiled, "Good. Let's go." They exited the small flat and apparated into an alley near the club where they generally met their two friends.
"It took you long enough," Sirius said as he saw the couple approach.
"Sorry, James here was taking his sweet time," the redhead chuckled.
"Well, we'd better get in there," Remus said.
The four friends entered the club James pardoned himself and headed in the direction of the loo while Lily and the two men found a booth toward the right of the Kareokee stage. They'd gotten into a conversation about how things had been going for them since graduation when they were interupted by a familiar voice.
"Lily Potter, this song is for you love," James said into the microphone. Lily's eyes widened but other than that she showed no expressions. The music started up and James looked into his wifes eyes as he began to sing.
"She's More - Andy Griggs
I like blue eyes hers are green
Not like the woman of my dreams
And her hair's not quite as long as I had planned
Five foot three isn't tall
She's not the girl I pictured at all
In those paint by number fantasies I've had
So it took me by complete surprise
When my heart got lost in those deep green eyes
She's not at all what I was looking for
She's more
No it wasn't at first site
But the moment I looked twice
I saw the woman I was born to love
Her laughter fills my soul
And when I hold her I don't wanna let go
When it comes to her I can't get enough
So it took me by complete surprise
When my heart got lost in those deep green eyes
She's not at all what I was looking for
She's more
More than I dreamed of
More than any man deserves
I couldn't ask for more
Than a love like hers
So it took me by complete surprise
When my heart got lost in those deep green eyes
She's not at all what I was looking for
She's more"
The two shared a smile as Sirius shouted, "GO PRONGS!"
James handed the microphone to the DJ and headed toward the booth. He slid in next to his wife, wraping an arm around her shoulders, across from his two best friends, sharing what would turn out to be one of their last smiles.
"What would I do with out you three?" he asked.
"Be a lonely, arrogant, concieted, low life man," Remus smirked, quoting his phrase from years back. All four of them laughed.
When the Potters' returned home that night, they thanked Peter-who seemed hurried to leave and wouldn't look them in the eye-then went into the small room in which their small son, Harry slept. He'd be a year old in only a month.
James kissed his wife and smiled, "I spoke the truth, this is more than I ever imagined having in my life. I don't deserve you or Harry, but I love you both more than life its self."
He proved it just a little over four months later. That Halloween came to soon, ending two lives, suspending one, echoing clear through another.
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