Alone, Alone, Alone... Maybe ((James))

[lily]

There was nothing like being amongst beautiful foliage.

Truly, there wasn’t. Lily liked to spend her time in the Greenhouse when all her friends were too busy studying to be with her. Most of them had begun cramming and doing homework that was due the very next day. Lily got things like that done early; however, most of her friends had a nasty procrastination streak. That meant that she usually had to spend time by herself. Thankfully it wasn’t often; but, it was bearable when she was forced to be. The Greenhouse was peaceful and quiet, and it always smelled so lovely. Although she reduced the scent that came off of her to vanilla, and every so often strawberries, she loved the smells of certain flowers, like roses, lilies and sunflowers.

Lily could be typically found in this place reading. However, this time, she was walking around amongst the flowers and the plants. It was an amazing contrast, when you thought about it. Outside, it was autumn. The trees were dropping their leaves, and the landscape was tinted with reds, oranges and browns. In the Greenhouse, however, it was timeless. Everything was still green and vibrant. The seasons never touched this place. No matter how much time passed, Lily realized to herself, the liveliness that lived in this place would always remain. To her, that was truly an amazing thing.

Every so often, as she passed down the walkway, she would reach out and gently brush her fingers against the flower petals and the leaves. It felt so soft and delicate against her fingers, and every so often she’d smile at the tingling sensation that they gave her. As ridiculous as it sounded, she loved that feeling. In some ways, the petals felt like fingers that caressed her skin, in an almost loving way… Hah - getting sentimental over the feel of flowers. She’d sunk to a new low.

Lily stopped at a particular rose that was grouped in a rosebush that jutted out from the line of pots. The blooms were beautiful, and perfectly shaped. They were the very image of the roses that you saw in beautiful paintings. Usually, when you saw a rose, it never looked as symmetrical or as gorgeous as this. To view one as gorgeous as these were was a real treat. Lily bowed her face into the flower’s petals and breathed in the scent. She smiled as the pleasant odor filled and pleasured her olfactory. If she didn’t love vanilla so much, she would have changed her mind in that moment.

[red]“Thank you for that,”[/red] she whispered in gratitude toward the rose, allowing her finger to trace down the collection of petals.

[jamespotter]

Ah, yes. There was nothing like being amongst beautiful foliage. The sweet and earthly aromas, the peaceful serenity, the calming feeling it bestowed upon you when alone and able to appreciate it all at face value. There was simply nothing like it.

Wait. Wait just a second! Who was he kidding? Foliage? Beautiful? Plants?! The only way James Potter would ever say something of the sort was if a girl had taken over his body in some sort of weird, supernatural body-swap mishap, if he'd suffered a severe brain injury and was now certifiably loony and some sort of foliage-loving-slash-appreciating treehugger, or if he were trying to impress someone. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out which of those pertained to his current situation.

NO, OF COURSE HE WAS NOT A BLOODY GIRL. And that bludger hadn't hit him that hard. Sheesh.

You see, it was all in the name of Lily Evans. Lily Marie Evans, the girl who had captured his heart and apparently held it in a rather tight vice grip since the moment he'd first laid eyes on her. You think she'd take some mercy on him and show him some attention. You know, the kind that didn't embarrass him or leave him with the impression that he would never, ever, ever-freaking-ever hold a chance with her. Too bad it never seemed to slow his advances, hence his appearance in the greenhouse. Good student though he was, James was much more favorable to places that were, well, fun. Greenhouses failed to make the cut. He wouldn't be found roaming about unless for valid reason, and his main squeeze (whatever, it didn't matter that she didn't know it yet) was undoubtedly a valid reason.

He continued his meandering stroll through the masses of "beautiful foliage", plucking at random leaves here and there (one of the blasted things actually bit his finger, the nerve of it!) until he was within earshot of his favorite lady, feigning a look of complete nonchalance and confidence, despite the inner pout at his throbbing fingertip. "Oh, you're quite welcome, love," he commented back, opting to make her comment directed toward him even if he had been nowhere near the vicinity yet. He reached forward, now lingering at her side -- goodness, her hair smelled lovely -- and snapped one of the roses she'd just been talking to, not weird in the least, off of it's stem, bowing slightly with a hand behind his back and presenting it to her.

"For you, mon amour." See! Perhaps James Potter was capable of appreciated foliage after all.

[lily]

So much for pleasant time alone.

Lily’s head turned toward the oh-so-familiar voice, looking both shocked and annoyed. Did he really follow her out here? This boy never knew when to give up. She didn’t know how to feel about that. She felt her stomach bubble slightly with butterflies, but she pretended that she couldn’t feel it, despite the fact she totally did and she didn’t know if she was making it obvious or not. He approached her and presented the rose that she had just been admiring and she couldn’t help but blush. But then she remembered how she was supposed to feel and glared at him

[red]“Je ne suis pas ton amour, stupide,”[/red] she replied, grinning slightly at how clever that sounded, even though it didn’t at all. However, she did take the rose, staring at it lovingly for a moment. She turned back to the bush and grabbed a string from her pocket, which she honestly didn’t know she had, which she then used to tie the rose back to the stem. Sure, the rose would still die, but at least she tried. That’s all that mattered, to her, at least. She turned her head back toward Potter and looked him over with a raised eyebrow.

Okay, so, maybe she didn’t like him much, or she did, or whatever… But he was interesting, and she had to admit that some of the things he did were entertaining. Lily wouldn’t tell him that, though, because then that would be encouraging him. He’d stalk her more if he knew that she just slightly enjoyed some of the stuff he did. She rolled her eyes at him and tilted her head slightly, her hair falling over her left shoulder as she did so. [red]“Did you come all the way down here to torment me more, Toerag?”[/red] she asked, a slight mischievous glint in her eyes. She didn’t know how to hide those emotions. Her eyes generally had a mind of their own.

Regardless, how did he find her anyway? If he wasn’t him then she would have been more scared. By all means, she should have been scared anyway. He seemed obsessed and wouldn’t relent with his advances… and yet for some reason she never really made the point to stop him, either. [red]“Have you been stalking me?”[/red] she asked, trying to sound indignant.

[jamespotter]

For a moment, he swore that she looked almost pleasantly surprised to see him bowing before her like the hopelessly lovesick fool that he was, but then again James was often stirring up wild antics in his head. What he wanted to see and what he actually did see were often two entirely different things. There were several occurrences that weren't fabrications of his over-imaginative mind, but said occasions were rare when Lily Evans was the subject in question. Did she manage to see anything noteworthy and redeemable in him, aside from his devilishly good looks? Perhaps his confidence? His undying loyalty to those he called friends? His strong determination in going after what he wants (ahem, her)? Judging by the glare she was shooting at him, he figured not. Ah, well, time to throw in the towel.

Hah! Yeahhhh, right. It wasn't in the Potter blood to give up. Lily Evans would fall madly in love with him, mark his words.

Hazel-brown eyes stared blankly back at vibrant emerald ones, a dazed look of confusion setting in at her flourish of nonsensical words. Of course she would know French when he had been using the little he was familiar with as means to impress her. Note to self: when attempting to interest Lily Evans, don't. It won't work. Well, unless you're, like, Merlin himself. Who knows, maybe even that wouldn't work. The girl was a bloody enigma. A smart, wonderful, pretty enigma... Oh, he'd lost it. He had officially dove off the deep end.

"...Oui?" A goofy smile stretched across his boyish features and his shoulders rolled in a careless shrug, clearly unaffected by the fact that he understood nothing of what she'd said, except for stupid. He was pretty sure that insult had wheedled its way into her remark. No matter, he could take the abuse. Any attention was good attention in his book. At least she'd acknowledged that he existed. High-five, self! He was on the right track! Baby steps, Potter, baby steps.

With a look of shock, James straightened and pointed a finger at himself, eyebrows raised inquisitively at her accusation. "Me? Stalk you?" his finger turned to point at her now, the incredulity not lost in his tone. "Jeez, Evans. Seems like someone's a little fond of themselves." He winked at her now, sure that he was going to receive another death glare (he couldn't really consider them that given how he found her adorable at all times, even when angry), but damn the consequences anyway! His charm was his go-to method of conversation, an uneasy habit to break.

"Say I was, though," his tone was speculative, tone light and teasing, now leaning against a table sporting a bunch of unimportant green, leafy things. "How mad would you be? Scale of one to ten."

[lily]

Sometimes Lily wished he wouldn’t try so hard to be cute, simply because he was so damn good at it. At times it was hard for Lily to justify her anger toward him. The only thing she could really think of is that it was somewhat partially his fault that she and Severus weren’t talking anymore. However, even that reason didn’t hold water anymore. Severus and Lily were talking again. Now she had no reason to be angry with him, other than to keep him at arms length. She conceded that if she gave into his charm now, he wouldn’t ever let up. Somehow, Lily thought she would regret that. Maybe not… but you couldn’t take your chances, not with Potter. He was unpredictable in his own predictable way. That didn’t make sense.

Lily rolled her eyes at him, since that was the only defense she had. It wasn’t that good, either. Lily generally didn’t know how to be mean. That wasn’t in her nature. It wasn’t that often that she came up with a clever insult. Most of the time, when she tried to retort in a snippy sort of way, it would come out awkward. She didn’t necessarily know if that was a good or bad thing. Sometimes she wondered if being mean was something one could practice. Did she even want to learn how to do that? He was asking her a question. Her mind answered, zero, but she wouldn’t allow that to escape her lips.

[red]“What does it matter?”[/red] she asked, leaning back against a pot. [red]“You're here anyway.”[/red] She looked him over. He looked so cocky with his confident grin and kind-of-adorable-even-if-she-didn’t-want-to-admit-it glasses. His hair was a mess and his clothes were worn a bit sloppily. How could he be so proud of himself?

And yet, he was.

[red]“I already agreed to go out with you,”[/red] she said. [red]“Shouldn’t you be somewhere else bragging to people how you tricked me into it?”[/red]

It was a stupid question. He probably had already bragged miles and miles to his little group of friends about how he finally got Lily to say yes. Ugh, Sirius would hate her more now. She didn’t even want to think about the coming Saturday. She didn’t even know why she agreed to it. Lily wasn’t being forced - it just kind of slipped out, like a bit of her subconscious just kind of flew through her mouth without asking. But, now, she made a promise and, damn it, Lily kept her promises, even if she hated them.

[jamespotter]

James smiled to himself, momentarily lost in reminiscent thought of the cherished memory. Yes, he had asked Lily Evans out in his typical prat-like fashion, expecting a huff, a cute reddening of her cheeks and a very adamant 'no'. He most certainly wasn't expecting what he'd received, which was the one thing he'd been hoping for, for as long as he could remember. Lily Evans, undeniable woman of his dreams, had accepted a date from him. He had been stunned, but forced himself to quickly recover, unwilling to let the moment slip away before she had the chance to rethink her decision. Judging from the look on her face afterward, she almost had. James made the promise to himself that he would make it the most memorable date he could muster up, aiming to charm the pants off of Lily.

Not literally, sheesh. He wasn't a dog. That was a different marauder!

You see, ever since first year, he'd been wholesomely captivated by the girl before him. At first he had no idea how to deal with his affection, opting to poke fun at her as well as her friends, doing irreparable damage to their relationship, but things had since then changed. Now he was fully aware of what he wanted and would stop at nothing to obtain it. He had learned that, no, women didn't have cooties and yes, they hated being made fun of. His previous approaches had been so utterly wrong! Unfortunately, not all things could change. James was still boastfully arrogant and immensely confident, traits that could worsen his chances, but it was part of who he was. Clearly it didn't phase her that much.

"Well, Ev--Lily," he corrected himself before calling her by her last name, a habit he'd gotten into in his earlier days of torment. It was all in the name of love, he swore of it! He cast his gaze down to the floor, staring intently at his shoes as he toed some dirt, seemingly more interested in it than what he had to say. "If you despised me that much, I would leave you alone." His voice was quiet, soaked in honesty as he scuffed the toe of his shoe against the ground before bringing his eyes back to level with hers.

"Thankfully," he continued, pushing himself off of the table and moving closer to her, glasses sliding down his nose the slightest bit. "I don't think you do." Most people would have called him on his bluff, but very few people would understand the seriousness behind it. James Potter leave Lily Evans alone? Hah, what a joke! But... it wasn't. Above all else, he wanted her happiness and despite how much it would kill him to see it, if that meant it was with someone else, he would bow down gracefully. So far, she hadn't shown any signs of caring. Well, except for maybe Severus. That was James' one exception. He refused to let that disaster happen.

A laugh elicited from his lips, the smile unwilling to break. "Tricked you into it, did I? Gasp, does that mean I outwitted the most brilliant witch in school?" It was a compliment of sorts, though he was almost sure she would find some way to take it as mockery. Lily seemed to have a problem with seeing any good in James, though he supposed he didn't make it easy. His deliverance of most of his statements was poor at best, leaving too much room for interpretation. One day he'd get it right! It was all in the name of time. "You'll have fun, I promise. I would be disappointed in myself otherwise," he admitted honestly, placing a hand over his heart and straightening his posture, his shoulders squaring.

"So," he started, moving over to stand beside her, leaning against the pot adjacent to hers. "What brings you out here, anyway? Tranquility or some mumbo-jumbo?"

[lily]

Now she was feeling guilty.

All of her preconceived notions of Potter were beginning to change -- he wasn’t the bratty first year that used to pull her hair in Charms, and throw scrunched up pieces of parchment at her head during Potions. He had grown up, a lot; and, although he was sometimes obnoxious, he really wasn’t that bad of a guy. He was a bit over the top some of the time, sure; but, when it boiled down to things, he was decent and… well, really charming. He had a way with words and carried himself in such a way that made it hard for her to hate him sometimes. James Potter was just confident… he was immature at times, sure; but, Lily began to realize that most boys were like that.

Well, except for Severus… but even then he had his own different sort of immaturity.

James had certainly developed some too. He was plunky and dorky looking when he was younger; but at seventeen? Well… He’d filled out some. His messy hair was more of an endearing quality than an annoying one, and she had to admit that the fact he was tall and a bit muscular was a bit of a delight for the eyes. Oh, but Lily wouldn’t let him know this. She couldn’t really let him know *anything* until she was absolutely sure that she wasn’t making a fool of herself. Lily didn’t understand why she cared so much about what he thought of her, but she did… and she didn’t want to look stupid.

And yet… When she watched the way James looked at her, the way he smiled and the way his eyes just brightened up when she seemed to just hint at him that she may have been interested; it made her wonder if there was anything she could do at all to make her look bad in his eyes. When she began to entertain that thought, Lily felt her chest grow heavy and butterflies fill her stomach once more. James had always been so persistent, and never seemed to mind every single rejection she hurled at him. Lily never realized that could mean more than just stubbornness and a need to claim her.

To be admired, perhaps even venerated, entirely… It was… kind of romantic.

Lily looked at him briefly as he moved closer to him and forced herself not to flinch away by habit. James had changed and she needed to give him a chance. She always gave people second chances, if they deserved them. Certainly James Potter deserved a second chance also? Be pleasant, Lily. He just wants to talk. Lily pulled some of her hair behind her ear and forced a smile at him.

[red]“I like to spend time here when I have nothing better to do,”[/red] she answered honestly, realizing how dorky and pathetic that sounded as soon as it was out in the air. Usually she wasn’t this self conscious, but there was something about Potter that made her feel like she wanted to be her best. That was new. Lily let out a nervous laugh. [red]“N-Not like that happens a lot,”[/red] she explained. [red]“I mean, I’m very busy… most of the time.”[/red]