That Awful Boy
Author: Hello, new Harry Potter author here. I've been reading James/Lily fics and (no offense to anyone) but I noticed that a lot of them.suck. They aren't anything like I imagined. Most of the good ones were written before Order of the Phoenix, and so the characters are just a little bit off. (It's actually incredibly cool how accurate some are though!) Anyway, this in mind, I just had to make my attempt.
But as I was rereading Order of the Phoenix, I discovered that I was very interested in Lily's home life and her relationship with her sister. What was it that made Petunia keep Harry? Dumbledore said something about the blood bond being sealed and all that, but really it was Petunia's choice. They must have had a very interesting home life! And then I got to thinking, what would James make of that? What would Lily's parents make of James? And why does Petunia despise James, besides the obvious reason of hating her sister? Quote Petunia: "that awful boy"
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it is the property of J.K. Rowling, whom I admire greatly! ^^
That Awful Boy
Chapter one: The Perfect Couple
Lily Evans and James Potter were the perfect couple. They were head boy and girl, James was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and Lily was top student. They had begun dating over the summer before their seventh year when Lily's hate letter was answered with a long, romantic note involving several descriptions of her beauty, intelligence and loving personality by James.
"I never knew he felt that way," Lily wrote to her best friend Saraline Stokes, who promptly replied that James had been telling everyone about his undying love for Lily Evans for years, and that Lily was a numbskull for not realizing it before now. Anyway, they were in love, and destined to get married and do great things, but there were some things that James particularly wanted accomplished before asking his wonderful girlfriend to be his wife.
One was to finish school. The second was to meet her family.
Lily made it no secret that her parents were muggles, but she avoided the subject when possible, even when James asked her right out.
"They aren't mean.they just don't understand things." Was all she would say when asked if they hate magic.
That brings us to the discussion that the couple was having, three days before the start of the Christmas Holidays. Both of them were leaving Hogwarts for home, but James was insistent with his invitation that Lily come to meet his family. She finally gave in, agreeing that she would spend Christmas with the Potters.
"I suppose you want to be invited to my house too huh?" she sighed. They were sitting in the common room by the fire, pretending to be studying and trying to set a good example for the younger kids, but failing miserably. Maybe because the holidays were near, or maybe because Gryffindor had won the Quidditch match that morning, but no one seemed to want to settle down. The Head boy and girl ignored this commotion most unconcerned, far more interested in their conversation.
"Well yes, I was hoping for that." James admitted. Actually, it was exactly what he wanted. There was something that must be discussed with Lily's parents.
"And I was hoping you wouldn't." Lily sighed. "And it isn't that they wouldn't like you!" She added hurriedly at the look on James's face, "Its just that I don't think you would like them very much, and it wouldn't be much fun."
"Anyone related to you can't be that bad, can they?" James asked.
Lily just smiled.
*****
Dear Mum and Dad,
I can't wait to see you again and I hope you are well. I wrote to let you to know that I am invited to James Potter family's Christmas and plan to stay there for a few days, on Christmas. Also, I invited James to dinner this Thursday, so that you can have a chance to meet him.
All my love,
Lily
*****
The Hogwarts Express traveled swiftly through the countryside, and Lily gazed at it distractedly as it flashed by her window. She had the feeling she was forgetting something dramatically important.but for the life of her she couldn't remember what it was.
"Evans!" a voice called her out of her daze and she snapped to attention.
"What is it?" she asked. Peter Pettigrew, a disheveled looking guy with mousy hair puffed heavily, catching his breath.
"Sirius- and- James- back car- some first years," he panted. He seemed to have run all the way to the front car to tell his friends off. Lily stood, grimacing. If James and his friends were tormenting first years (quite unacceptable for the head boy!) then she would have to at least make an effort to recover the remains of the poor young souls.
"Thanks Peter, I'll go check on them." Peter nodded and collapsed into an unoccupied chair, waving as she made her way out of the car.
Lily opened the door to the very last compartment warily, in case there was a scene in there she would rather not witness. She had taken her time to get there, telling of some fifth years for making out in the corridors, and saving a first year's lost toad from some menacing looking Slytherin third years.
Peeping into the compartment, she found it to be dark and quiet, customary for a surprise attack by James and his friends.
"I know you are in there James Potter! One of your friends tipped me off!" She drew her wand and stepped boldly into the compartment, waiting for an ambush.
Nothing.
"Lumos!" Lily ordered, and a light lit the darkened space.
Still no sign of James or the marauders. Slightly annoyed, Lily began a spell to make anyone else in there burst into loud singing, but before the words could leave her open mouth, something soft touched her.
She tried to scream, but somehow someone had placed a silencing charm on her and she found herself unable.
Soft laughter was in her ear, and lips touched hers.
"James," she mouthed, "sometimes I don't know if I want to hug you or kill you."
It was unmistakably James's gentle kiss, and unmistakably his warm body she held, in a more passionate moment of kissing, she reached up and yanked the hood off of the invisibility cloak and jumped back.
"Lily!" Sirius yelled.
She slapped him.
He cursed loudly, turned red, and yelled, "James Potter I swear I'm going to kill you!"
James howled with laughter, and the lights came on in the compartment.
"You- you- hahahahah-you thought it was Natasha! And you Lily!" James stood up, indignant with the idea, at last. "You kissed my best friend!"
"I thought it was you!" Lily yelled. She thought about slapping him, but Sirius beat her to it. He head butted James right into the seats on the other side.
"Ow! Sirius, old buddy what was that for!"
"For being a bloody nuisance, that's what! You told me that I'd be making out with Natasha Wood!"
"You're a dope, because Natasha stayed at school for the holiday!" Lily said.
James nodded, then looked at Lily and mocked disappointment.
"I can't believe you, kissing Sirius like he was me, I'm.torn between my best friend and my one true love!" He pretended to faint, but Sirius caught him before he hit the floor.
"Surely you'll choose me, since I can pull pranks and kiss, while Lily here can only kiss."
James stood up and winked. "But kissing isn't all that Lily can do! Some things are better than pranks Padfoot!"
Lily fumed. "That was horrid of you James! I didn't think it was funny one bit!"
She sank into a seat and glared at him. He just grinned and shrugged, sitting beside her.
"I thought it was brilliant. You know something? I wish we could always be like this." He said dreamily. He had a look in his eyes like deep thought.
"What, fight all the time?"
"No, be together, just us," he said.
"Hey! What about me!" Sirius asked.
"You can come sit between us," James offered. Lily rolled her eyes. "Besides, that was what I meant anyway, me and you and Lily. My favorite people."
"I'm honored." Sirius said. Lily was silent.
"Oh Lily, I'm sorry. I thought it was a very clever joke, forgive me?"
"If you were really sorry I might!"
"I am sorry!"
Lily glared, but when she met his hazel eyes, a piece of her melted and her severe look faltered. James took that opportunity to kiss her, and she distinctly felt a passion that wasn't there in Sirius, a non polite, down to business 'I love you' kind of passion.
"I forgive you." She said, and James smiled.
"I'm so charming!"
Sirius rolled his eyes, waved at them and left, saying he had more important things to do than watch them get naked.
Lily hauled her trunk off the train and went to greet her parents, hugging James one last time.
"See you Thursday," she called, waving, and leaving him. She scanned the crowd for her mom or dad, who were always there to greet her. There they were! Standing a ways away, looking for her.
"Mum, Dad, Petunia," Lily said happily. She hugged her parents and smiled at her older sister.
"Lily! Have you shrunk?" Mr. Evans exclaimed. Indeed, compared to Petunia, Lily was a tiny thing. But then, compared to Petunia's figure, Lily was still a little girl.
"No, I managed to stay away from shrinking potions this term." Lily answered. Petunia actually gave her sister a brief smile, but she was busy scanning the crowd in the station, probably hoping to catch the eye of a nice looking guy.
The Evans family ushered their youngest daughter to the car for the ride home, Lily bracing herself for the blow.
"So," Her father said, and Lily inwardly groaned. He had that tone.. "Who's this boy we're going to meet Thursday?"
"Just a guy, my friend James." Lily said calmly. Petunia smirked excitedly.
"Does little Lily have a boyfriend?" She asked.
"Well.err.I guess you could call him that." Lily said hesitantly.
"Oh Lily! This is great!" Mrs. Evans said. "We were beginning to get a bit worried that you would never..I mean, Petunia's been bringing boys home for supper for years now." She seemed so pleased that Lily bit her tongue and swallowed the rude comments about Petunia being home for more than three months out of a year for the past seven years, and about Petunia's choice of clothes compared to Lily's conservative robes.
Petunia, seeming to know exactly what her sister was thinking, she stuck out her prominent bust for all to see.
Lily was pretty, in a completely different way. She had dark red hair and green eyes. "Bewitching" according to her mother, and her figure was rounded and petite. Petunia was tall, thin, and blonde, pale green eyes and perfect figure.
"Is James from your school? I mean, is he a witch?" Her mother asked, interrupting her thoughts.
"James is a wizard mother, and yes, I know him from school. He's a talented athlete and very good student." Lily's mother was clearly impressed by this, but Petunia wasn't.
"I bet he's a toad." She muttered under her breath, scowling. Probably she was just jealous. Probably.
***** Author: Well there's the first chapter. Please tell me what you think, good, bad or otherwise. Just be polite about it ok? Please? ^.^ Thanks!
Author: Hello, new Harry Potter author here. I've been reading James/Lily fics and (no offense to anyone) but I noticed that a lot of them.suck. They aren't anything like I imagined. Most of the good ones were written before Order of the Phoenix, and so the characters are just a little bit off. (It's actually incredibly cool how accurate some are though!) Anyway, this in mind, I just had to make my attempt.
But as I was rereading Order of the Phoenix, I discovered that I was very interested in Lily's home life and her relationship with her sister. What was it that made Petunia keep Harry? Dumbledore said something about the blood bond being sealed and all that, but really it was Petunia's choice. They must have had a very interesting home life! And then I got to thinking, what would James make of that? What would Lily's parents make of James? And why does Petunia despise James, besides the obvious reason of hating her sister? Quote Petunia: "that awful boy"
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter; it is the property of J.K. Rowling, whom I admire greatly! ^^
That Awful Boy
Chapter one: The Perfect Couple
Lily Evans and James Potter were the perfect couple. They were head boy and girl, James was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and Lily was top student. They had begun dating over the summer before their seventh year when Lily's hate letter was answered with a long, romantic note involving several descriptions of her beauty, intelligence and loving personality by James.
"I never knew he felt that way," Lily wrote to her best friend Saraline Stokes, who promptly replied that James had been telling everyone about his undying love for Lily Evans for years, and that Lily was a numbskull for not realizing it before now. Anyway, they were in love, and destined to get married and do great things, but there were some things that James particularly wanted accomplished before asking his wonderful girlfriend to be his wife.
One was to finish school. The second was to meet her family.
Lily made it no secret that her parents were muggles, but she avoided the subject when possible, even when James asked her right out.
"They aren't mean.they just don't understand things." Was all she would say when asked if they hate magic.
That brings us to the discussion that the couple was having, three days before the start of the Christmas Holidays. Both of them were leaving Hogwarts for home, but James was insistent with his invitation that Lily come to meet his family. She finally gave in, agreeing that she would spend Christmas with the Potters.
"I suppose you want to be invited to my house too huh?" she sighed. They were sitting in the common room by the fire, pretending to be studying and trying to set a good example for the younger kids, but failing miserably. Maybe because the holidays were near, or maybe because Gryffindor had won the Quidditch match that morning, but no one seemed to want to settle down. The Head boy and girl ignored this commotion most unconcerned, far more interested in their conversation.
"Well yes, I was hoping for that." James admitted. Actually, it was exactly what he wanted. There was something that must be discussed with Lily's parents.
"And I was hoping you wouldn't." Lily sighed. "And it isn't that they wouldn't like you!" She added hurriedly at the look on James's face, "Its just that I don't think you would like them very much, and it wouldn't be much fun."
"Anyone related to you can't be that bad, can they?" James asked.
Lily just smiled.
*****
Dear Mum and Dad,
I can't wait to see you again and I hope you are well. I wrote to let you to know that I am invited to James Potter family's Christmas and plan to stay there for a few days, on Christmas. Also, I invited James to dinner this Thursday, so that you can have a chance to meet him.
All my love,
Lily
*****
The Hogwarts Express traveled swiftly through the countryside, and Lily gazed at it distractedly as it flashed by her window. She had the feeling she was forgetting something dramatically important.but for the life of her she couldn't remember what it was.
"Evans!" a voice called her out of her daze and she snapped to attention.
"What is it?" she asked. Peter Pettigrew, a disheveled looking guy with mousy hair puffed heavily, catching his breath.
"Sirius- and- James- back car- some first years," he panted. He seemed to have run all the way to the front car to tell his friends off. Lily stood, grimacing. If James and his friends were tormenting first years (quite unacceptable for the head boy!) then she would have to at least make an effort to recover the remains of the poor young souls.
"Thanks Peter, I'll go check on them." Peter nodded and collapsed into an unoccupied chair, waving as she made her way out of the car.
Lily opened the door to the very last compartment warily, in case there was a scene in there she would rather not witness. She had taken her time to get there, telling of some fifth years for making out in the corridors, and saving a first year's lost toad from some menacing looking Slytherin third years.
Peeping into the compartment, she found it to be dark and quiet, customary for a surprise attack by James and his friends.
"I know you are in there James Potter! One of your friends tipped me off!" She drew her wand and stepped boldly into the compartment, waiting for an ambush.
Nothing.
"Lumos!" Lily ordered, and a light lit the darkened space.
Still no sign of James or the marauders. Slightly annoyed, Lily began a spell to make anyone else in there burst into loud singing, but before the words could leave her open mouth, something soft touched her.
She tried to scream, but somehow someone had placed a silencing charm on her and she found herself unable.
Soft laughter was in her ear, and lips touched hers.
"James," she mouthed, "sometimes I don't know if I want to hug you or kill you."
It was unmistakably James's gentle kiss, and unmistakably his warm body she held, in a more passionate moment of kissing, she reached up and yanked the hood off of the invisibility cloak and jumped back.
"Lily!" Sirius yelled.
She slapped him.
He cursed loudly, turned red, and yelled, "James Potter I swear I'm going to kill you!"
James howled with laughter, and the lights came on in the compartment.
"You- you- hahahahah-you thought it was Natasha! And you Lily!" James stood up, indignant with the idea, at last. "You kissed my best friend!"
"I thought it was you!" Lily yelled. She thought about slapping him, but Sirius beat her to it. He head butted James right into the seats on the other side.
"Ow! Sirius, old buddy what was that for!"
"For being a bloody nuisance, that's what! You told me that I'd be making out with Natasha Wood!"
"You're a dope, because Natasha stayed at school for the holiday!" Lily said.
James nodded, then looked at Lily and mocked disappointment.
"I can't believe you, kissing Sirius like he was me, I'm.torn between my best friend and my one true love!" He pretended to faint, but Sirius caught him before he hit the floor.
"Surely you'll choose me, since I can pull pranks and kiss, while Lily here can only kiss."
James stood up and winked. "But kissing isn't all that Lily can do! Some things are better than pranks Padfoot!"
Lily fumed. "That was horrid of you James! I didn't think it was funny one bit!"
She sank into a seat and glared at him. He just grinned and shrugged, sitting beside her.
"I thought it was brilliant. You know something? I wish we could always be like this." He said dreamily. He had a look in his eyes like deep thought.
"What, fight all the time?"
"No, be together, just us," he said.
"Hey! What about me!" Sirius asked.
"You can come sit between us," James offered. Lily rolled her eyes. "Besides, that was what I meant anyway, me and you and Lily. My favorite people."
"I'm honored." Sirius said. Lily was silent.
"Oh Lily, I'm sorry. I thought it was a very clever joke, forgive me?"
"If you were really sorry I might!"
"I am sorry!"
Lily glared, but when she met his hazel eyes, a piece of her melted and her severe look faltered. James took that opportunity to kiss her, and she distinctly felt a passion that wasn't there in Sirius, a non polite, down to business 'I love you' kind of passion.
"I forgive you." She said, and James smiled.
"I'm so charming!"
Sirius rolled his eyes, waved at them and left, saying he had more important things to do than watch them get naked.
Lily hauled her trunk off the train and went to greet her parents, hugging James one last time.
"See you Thursday," she called, waving, and leaving him. She scanned the crowd for her mom or dad, who were always there to greet her. There they were! Standing a ways away, looking for her.
"Mum, Dad, Petunia," Lily said happily. She hugged her parents and smiled at her older sister.
"Lily! Have you shrunk?" Mr. Evans exclaimed. Indeed, compared to Petunia, Lily was a tiny thing. But then, compared to Petunia's figure, Lily was still a little girl.
"No, I managed to stay away from shrinking potions this term." Lily answered. Petunia actually gave her sister a brief smile, but she was busy scanning the crowd in the station, probably hoping to catch the eye of a nice looking guy.
The Evans family ushered their youngest daughter to the car for the ride home, Lily bracing herself for the blow.
"So," Her father said, and Lily inwardly groaned. He had that tone.. "Who's this boy we're going to meet Thursday?"
"Just a guy, my friend James." Lily said calmly. Petunia smirked excitedly.
"Does little Lily have a boyfriend?" She asked.
"Well.err.I guess you could call him that." Lily said hesitantly.
"Oh Lily! This is great!" Mrs. Evans said. "We were beginning to get a bit worried that you would never..I mean, Petunia's been bringing boys home for supper for years now." She seemed so pleased that Lily bit her tongue and swallowed the rude comments about Petunia being home for more than three months out of a year for the past seven years, and about Petunia's choice of clothes compared to Lily's conservative robes.
Petunia, seeming to know exactly what her sister was thinking, she stuck out her prominent bust for all to see.
Lily was pretty, in a completely different way. She had dark red hair and green eyes. "Bewitching" according to her mother, and her figure was rounded and petite. Petunia was tall, thin, and blonde, pale green eyes and perfect figure.
"Is James from your school? I mean, is he a witch?" Her mother asked, interrupting her thoughts.
"James is a wizard mother, and yes, I know him from school. He's a talented athlete and very good student." Lily's mother was clearly impressed by this, but Petunia wasn't.
"I bet he's a toad." She muttered under her breath, scowling. Probably she was just jealous. Probably.
***** Author: Well there's the first chapter. Please tell me what you think, good, bad or otherwise. Just be polite about it ok? Please? ^.^ Thanks!