❝you hope ? ❞those words were enough to alleviate any sense of worry that grasped her beating heart only moments ago, replacing the nasty feeling with a lighthearted joy she could only properly describe as the purest form of joy, a sentiment that was practically foreign to the petite blonde as of late. she couldn’t quite recall the last time she truly felt giddy over something, especially something as simple as a boy telling her he was looking forward to the possibility of her flirting, but it was nice to indulge in the selfish feeling for once, even if it was odd enough to have james potter inspire it. ❝ well, i was. or attempting to at least. ❞ lily shrugged away her nerves, glancing over at him with a soft smile spread across her soft lips. it was a small admission, certainly nothing compromising but for the pair that had notoriously skirted around their feelings for the past year in some way or another, this moment was insurmountable.
his question made her stumble over her response, the implications of missing her past going far past the simple idea of missing summer evenings with her family, but rather the comodities that her ignorance provided. before she knew about magic, she was NORMAL. there was no tension between her and her sister, the fear of what she was did not loom over their existence. she didn’t know guilt as a child, couldn’t fathom the idea of someone wanting to hurt her family for any reason and through that sentiment still rang true nowadays, knowing about magic and all its arbitrary rules - whether legitimate or not - made it harder for her to navigate through her day to day survival. in truth, she DID miss the comfort of her past. but if it had not been for that fateful letter shook her very existance, she wouldn’t have met the people that now made up her FAMILY. she wouldn’t know james, and that was enough to make her head shake slightly from side to side. ❝ i miss a lot about it but i also think… this would all still be happening. i just wouldn’t know about it so it doesn’t help to think about the what if. plus, i feel like i’ve gained a lot of things that i wouldn’t have otherwise. i wouldn’t have a stubborn albeit cute boy dragging me to astronomy towers late in the evening. ❞
she’d followed along, soft bubbly laugh resurfacing once more as he finally revealed the activity he’d planned out for them. FLYING was one of the things she’d been most excited to discover as a kid and quickly discovered she was NOT good at it at all. her clumsy nature almost always landed her in the infirmary without fail and after the required flying lessons she’d abandoned the hobby, much to petunia’s delight. she still adored the concept though and if she were to trust anyone with a broom, it would be him.❝ promise you won’t let me fall ?❞
her question , only for a moment , caused the heat to rush to his cheeks , flushing pink with something of embarrassment until she’d admitted that she had indeed been flirting . and while the embarrassment of the assumption had passed , his cheeks refused to cool down once his head was filled with the thought that she had been chatting him up — and if he knew lily evans at all , which , it was possible he didn’t — then he knew that she wasn’t the kind of girl for mindless flirting , for futile chat up lines , it wasn’t something she did to pass the time . and while you might have trouble getting him to admit that aloud , it certainly meant more to james than she would ever know . “ hey , well , ” he nudged her with his elbow , “ it’s working . ”
judging by her reaction , discussing her past wasn’t necessarily her favorite of topics . which , fair enough — it had taken his friendship with remus and sirius for him realize that not everyone had a wonderful home life , and that he’d just been lucky enough to be born into a family that not only loved him , but cherished nearly everything he did . “ and we’re better for it , too , ” james replied , a soft smile on his features . he didn’t even want to begin to imagine his life at hogwarts had lily evans not been there — they may not have spent the majority of it as friends , but she’d still managed to be a huge part of his hogwarts experience . “ we need witches like you , you know ? you’re wickedly smart , ” for someone who didn’t grow up around magic , james often thought she knew even more than he , “ and you’ve got so much heart . and that’s important , especially now . my mum says in times like these , love is especially important . ”
he could hardly suppress the grin at the sight of lily’s expression , giving her hand a soft squeeze in an effort to assure her of her safety . “ c’mon , i’m the best flyer hogwarts’ has seen in years , ” perhaps he hadn’t entirely outgrown his self confidence , “ of course i won’t let you fall . as long as you hold on tight , all right ? ”
