Chapter 23: Meeting
Lily’s Parents
Lily looked out the window of their compartment on the scarlet steam engine. It was still quickly passing through the countryside, on its scenic journey back to King’s Cross. James was reading a muggle book, well, I say reading, but I suppose it was more of a meaningless drone of staring at the pages, not necessarily recognizing the words. This was what James did when he got nervous, he would get out a book and re-read the same page for hours, until he finally focused. James Blake Potter hardly ever got nervous, but when he did, his books were always there for a nice meaningless staring session.
Lily was watching him throughout all of this, and gently slid two fingers onto the page he was concentrating on. With that, she snatched it from him.
“LILY!”
“Sorry, James, but you’re making ME nervous. You’ve been staring at the same page for an hour, and honestly, it’s getting boring.”
“Then find something else to do,” James said crossly.
Lily looked hurt, and said, “Fine. You should be happy I’m willing to sit in a compartment with you, doing nothing, for an hour, but no. Maybe this was a mistake.”
She got up to leave for a different compartment, and James caught her wrist. “I’m sorry, honey…really. I just…I just really want them to like me.”
Lily’s features softened, and she said, “They will! Just don’t act like a jerk, from what I heard from my parents this morning, that’s what Petunia’s new boyfriend is!! I wrote them back and told them you are amazing, and that they’ll love you.”
“Oh, so they’re expecting Prince Charming now!” James said, searching for something to whine about.
“CALM DOWN. Honestly. Don’t you think I’m nervous too, about meeting your parents?”
“Why would you be? They always seem to like my girlfriends.”
“So? They can still not like me.”
“What’s not to like? You’re funny, extremely intelligent, cute, and entertaining.”
Lily blushed, “No, I’m not…”
“Oh! And modest! Look at those red cheeks!!!”
Lily slapped him with a laugh, and the seemingly endless nervousness they both had was gone.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
When the train stopped at King’s Cross, James started panicking again. The same familiar thoughts that had been running through his mind for a month came back. They said things like What if they don’t like me? What if they deem me unsuitable for their daughter? Do they care that I’m a wizard? James was definitely freaking out, and while Lily was pretending to be calm and collected, she was actually doing something similar to James. Her mind was reeling with questions as well. What if the Potters don’t like me? What if they’re aristocratic purebloods, they wouldn’t want a Mudblood for their son’s girlfriend!
“James?” Lily asked, visibly worried now.
“Huh?” James was dragged out of his depressing thoughts.
“What if your parents don’t like me?” Lily asked frantically.
“They WILL, what if yours don’t like me?!”
“THEY WILL! Oh, crikey! They’ll like you assuming we get out there and don’t leave them waiting another bloody half hour!!” Lily yelped, glancing at her watch. Where had that half hour gone?
James and Lily quickly walked off Platform 9 ¾. “Where are they?” Lily asked aloud, scanning the different crowds. Lily and James blended in surprisingly well, for Lily had sent Hermia to her house that morning, and James left Lysander at Hogwarts under the Marauders’ careful care (Yeah right, James would be lucky if the poor bird was still alive after Christmas vacation). All they carried was one trolley with both of their trunks on it. Lily was still frantically scanning the crowds, and soon a redhead with wavy hair, her mother, and a tall man with sandy brown hair, obviously her father walked up to James and Lily. The redhead, Charisse Evans, looked almost identical to Lily, except perhaps a bit taller, and without Lily’s stunning green eyes. Charisse had eyes of stone gray, cold and deceiving if you were on her bad side, but warm and welcoming at the moment. Her father seemed in every way like Lily, exuding confidence and fun. His playful green eyes glinted in the sun, and his sandy brown hair was rather disheveled. James had a feeling he would definitely get along with Lily’s father well. They were so alike.
“James, this is my Mum, and this is my Dad,” Lily said unnecessarily. “Mum, Dad, this is my boyfriend, James Potter.”
James finally realized he was staring and jumped, extending his hand. “How do you do, Mrs. Evans? And you, Mr. Evans?” he asked, shaking their hands. “It’s wonderful to meet you.”
Charisse and Hayden stole a playful glance at each other, and laughed a bit at James’ nervousness. “It’s alright, honey,” said Charisse silkily, “it’s great to meet you too. You don’t have to call me Mrs. Evans, it’s just too formal. Char will do,” she said with a smile. She was trying to put James at ease, and it seemed to be working.
“Yes, James, formality just isn’t normal in our house,” Hayden said with a hearty laugh. James smiled, he really liked Lily’s father, her father was just so jovial and understanding.
“You can call me Hayden, or any bizarre nickname you can think of from Hayden,” her father said with a grin.
James laughed too, and said, “Alright, Mr. Ev- I mean, Hayden.” It just didn’t seem right, his family had raised him in a land of formality, and this seemed unusually nice and easy. Adults were supposed to be difficult and not understanding, but Lily’s parents were…different.
Lily laughed. “Okay, now that the worst is over, let’s load our trunks in their car.”
“Alright,” James conceded.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
On the way over to Lily’s house, Hayden and Charisse tried to make conversation with Lily and James.
“How was the formal dance you were telling me about, dear?” Hayden asked.
“Oh, the Yule Ball?” Lily excitedly began. “It was wonderful, daddy, they had great music and food, and I danced the whole night. Now my feet hurt terribly, but it was still great fun!”
Charisse laughed from the front seat. “That happened to me in high school after your father took me to our first formal dance!”
Lily laughed, and James noticed for the first time exactly how much she was like her mother. They laughed the same way, with their eyes twinkling, and with giggling every so often. James thought it was pretty entertaining.
“So, James, do you dance too, dear?” Charisse asked.
“Well, I’ve had lessons since I was…five, I believe.”
Lily stared at him in shock, why hadn’t he told her that before? Lily thought she was dancing pretty well yesterday, but she probably looked like an idiot next to an expert like James.
James continued, “It was because of my mother. She’s something of an aristocrat, and there were always huge parties and galas at our house. She always wanted me to grow up into the aristocracy, but I never had any desire. All I’ve thought of aristocrats since I was little is that if they need to be able to dance well and speak with proper terms and such just to be friends, then they aren’t very good friends, now, are they?” James finished his speech, and Lily looked at him in amazement.
Hayden’s eyes glinted in the rearview mirror, and he said, “Wise choice, dear boy, very wise choice.”
Meanwhile, Lily’s heart sank. She knew James’ family was somewhat wealthy, but ARISTOCRATS? She would look like a total idiot when the Potters met her. All she had wanted was for them to like her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Once they arrived at the Evans’ residence, James and Lily hopped out to grab their trunks. Lily opened the door to her house, and saw that none of the Christmas decorations were up.
“Mum?”
“Hmm, dear?”
“Why aren’t the Christmas decorations up?”
“Oh. Well, your father and I decided that it really wasn’t Christmas until you got here, we know how much you love doing the decorations.”
Lily smiled and gave her mother a hug. “Thanks, mum.”
Charisse laughed, and said, “Don’t mention it, hon. But I guess I’ll just have to come back and be surprised, because I’m afraid your father and I are committed to something tonight. It shouldn’t take too long, a couple hours at most.”
Lily’s face fell. They were already leaving? “Well, okay, I suppose. When do you have to leave?”
“Two-thirty,” was her father’s prompt response.
The clocks at the Evans house
started to chime, it was
“James, you can put your trunk in the guest room, I’ll take you,” said Lily quickly, turning to smile at James. She quickly banished her thoughts of her parents from her mind; she didn’t want him to know how much their constant absence actually got to her.
“Alright, princess,” he said quietly. He knew there was something wrong that she wasn’t telling him, but he knew it wasn’t wise to press her right now.
On the way to the guest room, Lily stopped at deposited her own things in her room. Lily’s room was painted a lavender color, with interesting pictures and posters all over the walls. James stood in awe for a while, and then heard Lily’s voices amidst his own thoughts.
“James? James!!! Earth to James!” Lily said with a laugh.
James snapped out of his trance, and looked up with a smile. “Ready?” Lily asked.
“Huh? Uh, sure, yeah.”
James’ strong arms *nurtured from long hours of Quidditch practice, no doubt* continued carrying his trunk to the guest room, which was down the hall. It was decorated in a sky blue color, and was really a very pretty room at that. He set down his trunk on the floor, and turned back around to Lily. “It’s a great room,” he said with a smile.
“Yes,” she replied, “it’s one of my favorites.”
“Lily?”
“Yes, James?”
“Can I borrow Hermia to send a letter to my folks? They’re coming for dinner tomorrow, to pick me up and to meet you of course. They invited you to stay at our house for a couple days as well, but you’ll need to get permission. But first, I need to send that letter, so they’ll know I got here alright. Do you think you could quickly ask your parents about my parents’ offer? Then I could put it in the letter.”
James said all of this rather quickly, and Lily stood there stunned for a moment, processing it all in her head. Her parents did trust James and they would certainly trust James’ parents, so Lily figured she had a good chance of getting a ‘yes’. Lily directed James back to her room, showed him where she kept her parchment as well as where Hermia was, and left to talk to her parents.
James’ letter went like this-
Dear Mum, Dad-
The Yule Ball was
great fun, Lily and I had a wonderful time.
I told her about your offer to let her spend some of the holiday with us,
and she’s asking her parents. The Evans
are really nice, Hayden and Charisse are really sweet. They’re pretty funny
too, I’m sure you’ll love meeting them.
I really hope they like me…and Lily’s desperate for you two to like her,
she’s rather nervous. I’m sure you will though, there’s no reason not to like
Lily.
At this, Lily happily burst through the door, nodding her head. James continued writing-
Lily says it’s a ‘yes’ and she’ll probably pack tomorrow, because we’re
doing Christmas decorations today! Talk to you soon! Love James
“Awww! How cute!!” Lily cooed as she saw him write ‘love’. Lily snatched the letter up to read completely, and her jaw dropped when she got to the portion regarding how desperate she was for his parents to like her. “YOU PUT THAT IN THERE!” she yelled. James thought, Wow, it’s amazing how loud she can yell for such a petite person! Lily yelled a bit more, before he snatched the letter from her grasp and quickly tied it to Hermia and Hermia quickly flew out the window. Lily sighed. “Well, great. At least they’ll know I’m nervous!” she glumly said. James gave her a hug, and said with a smile, “Now where are those Christmas decorations?!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
James
and Lily were exhausted; they had been working since
They sat on the couch, talking animatedly. James remembered something, and asked, “Where IS that sister of yours…Petunia, was it?”
“Yeah, you know, I have no idea where she is!”
“I’m right HERE, dear sister,” said a sarcastic voice coming through the front door. James didn’t like this voice at all. It lacked the warmth of Hayden and Lily, the elegance and caring of Charisse. It was just…empty and cold.
“Oh, hello Petunia. Pet, this is James Potter, my boyfriend. He’ll be staying with us until tomorrow.” James was about to say hello when Petunia interrupted him.
“As in, in the same house?!”
“No, in the street Petunia. For chrissakes, of course in the same house!”
“How much did you bribe Mum and Dad for that deal?!”
“Actually, DEAR sister, it was their idea.”
Petunia’s jaw dropped, and she
yelled, “SO!! The FREAK and her BOYFRIEND get to stay here over WINTER
Lily smiled coolly and she replied, “You’ve obviously had him over before, because Daddy mentioned him in his last letter.”
Petunia stared with a mixture of anger and fear. If she was mean to her sister, her father would make her life hell for the next couple months. But if she was nice to Lily, she might find out exactly what Dad thought of her boyfriend, not to mention get some stuff out of it. Parents are always willing to buy more things for their “angelic child”, after all.
Petunia started smiling. God, James thought, her smile is much more frightening than her sneer. But I still should make a good impression, this…I mean, SHE is my girlfriend’s only sister, after all.
James walked up to her with his hand extended, and shook Petunia’s hand. Petunia made sure to wipe her hand off on her jeans afterwards, can’t have any of that wizard filth poisoning her perfect world.
“How do you do, Petunia? I’m James.”
“Obviously. Oh, I mean…it’s um….nice? To meet you.”
Lily stepped in and said, “Would anyone like some hot chocolate? It is Christmas, after all.”
Petunia, reapplying her sneer,
answered, “Actually, genius, Christmas was YESTERDAY. And don’t take TOO long
with my chocolate. I’ll be back down in a minute; I’m going to call
With that, she swept out of the room. James turned to Lily with concern. Lily’s eyes looked curiously glazed over and red and James wrapped a consoling arm around her, leading her to the kitchen.
“WHY DOESN’T SHE LIKE ME?!” Lily violently demanded through hushed sobs, frantically heating up some milk.
“She’s not worth it,” James said, wrapping his arms comfortably around Lily’s frame. He rested his chin on her head, and said, “If she doesn’t love you for who you are, she’s not worth it, honey.”
Lily sighed, and shook James off. She really didn’t want anyone touching her right now. Petunia was horrible to her, and she was utterly sick of it. James stood back in the shadows, hurt apparent in his features. He was not used to her being angry with him, or he with her, and yet they had both been cross twice so far this vacation.
The pot on the stove started smoking. “Damn it…I can never cook if I’m angry,” Lily muttered under her breath. She was about to run to the pot, when James quickly snatched it up and ran cold water onto it, after taking about five minutes to figure out how to turn on the sink. Lily quickly turned off the fuming stove, and looked at James. “Guess we have to start over,” she said with a sigh.
“Or we could do it magically,” said James, with a glint in his eye.
“No! I mean, NO! We’re breaking the Decree!”
“My father has some friends, don’t worry, we won’t get into trouble. Just make sure I’m the one that casts the spell, alright?”
Lily was so exhausted that she was willing to go along with one of James’ haphazard ideas. Lily knew that if Petunia saw them, however, she would make a huge scene about ‘magical chocolate’ and probably never speak to her boyfriend again. “Go get your wand,” Lily instructed quietly, “and make SURE Pet doesn’t see you.”
“Which one is her room?”
“The one right in between yours and mine.”
“Alright…I’ll be back in a sec,” James said with a grin, sneaking up the stairs.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
When Lily’s parents got home, more than just a few hours had
elapsed. It was
“Pet, it’s getting late, you better go to bed, hon,” Hayden said.
“Mum, Dad?” Petunia said using the quivering lip and puppy-dog eyes she gave whenever she wanted something.
“Yes, dear?” asked Charisse with the usual silkiness.
“Why does James get to be here, and even SPEND
a NIGHT, when
“Honey, you never asked if
“Oh…well, can he?”
“It’s kinda late for tonight, don’t ya think?” said Hayden with a playful smile.
“Yeah, Dad, you’re right…and Jim or John or whatever his bloody name was is taking up space in our guest room.”
“Petunia!” they scolded together. “It’s James, first off, and you should be nicer to your sister’s boyfriends! She won’t be around forever!”
“Thank God,” she muttered under her
breath. “Anyway, Mums, Dads, can
Hayden and Charisse looked at each
other with worry.
“Yes, dear, of course. Make sure he is nice and polite to our other guest. He doesn’t know about erm…their…school, does he?”
“No, of course not, Mum. I told him Lily’s spent the last four years in St. Therese’s School for Future Nuns.”
“We’re not Catholic.”
“Well,
“And you told him that Lily had a boyfriend, correct?”
“Of course I did.”
“And you know nuns are celibate, right?”
Petunia smiled, “Well, I
know that, but
“Ah. We understand. You call
“‘Night Mum.”
“Good night, Pumpkin.” And with that, they were gone, and Petunia was back to tying up the phone lines.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*