InsaneJournal

Who: James & Lily Potter
What: Date Night
Where: Lily’s Office
When: One night in early June. (Backdated slightly.)
Rating: Low. PG-13 ish?
Status: Log. Complete.


James leaned against the doorway of Lily’s office and rapped his knuckles against the door. “And I thought I was working long hours.” He’d come home after an eleven-hour day at the office to find Lily still gone and had immediately headed up to Hogwarts to find her. He wasn’t surprised she was working on stuff--especially not since Fabian had given her the samples at the last Order meeting--but he had hoped her days weren’t running as long as his.

She was putting every ounce of effort she had in to finding out what killed Gideon, and so many others. This was the first poison sample she had gotten that wasn’t degraded, the first really that had been available to her at all. It had barely been a few days since she’d gotten the sample, but it was stumping her. There were a few things in it that she could identify, but there was something big, some ingredient she had never seen before - not in a potion, not really anywhere that she knew of. She was racking her brains for it, but she just couldn’t put her finger on it. It was driving her absolutely nuts.

And she was so focused, that when James’ knock sounded on her door, she jumped a little. Turning quickly with her wand clutched in her hand but not drawn, because even though Hogwarts was supposed to be the safest place, you never really knew, she let out a little gasp before relaxing immediately. “James.” She replied, setting her things down and striding over to him, a kiss placed quickly to his lips. “I’m sorry. I lost track of time. Hello, love.”

James kissed her back enthusiastically, though with perhaps a little less energy than he would have liked to devote to the activity. "I didn't expect to beat you home, not with the hours I've been putting in." Of course, that was likely why she had stayed so late. With the kids still in school, there was little point to one of them being home without the other. "What are you working on? The stuff Fabian gave you still?"

It was true - knowing James wouldn’t be at home, and having her family here meant that she could stay and eat dinner with her children (even if they hated that) or chat with Sirius and Remus until she knew James would be home. It also kept her from being too alone too often. “Yes, the poison that killed Gideon. It’s the strangest potion I’ve ever seen. Experimental stuff, I’m sure, nothing that’s ever been on a market, published nothing. I have no idea what’s in it, aside from a few basics.” She sighed and started to put some things away with a flick of her wand, before she leaned back against the desk with her arms folded across her chest. “I might have to get help on this one.”

James followed her to her desk and wrapped his arms around her. She was clearly frustrated and he hated that he couldn't help. He could do potions, sure, but they weren't his passion or his strength. "I thought you were the best with potions. Who are you going to get to help you?"

Lily easily rested her head against James' chest, letting out an uneasy sigh. "You flatter me." She teased him, a little smile creeping on her lips. "I'm only one of the best, not the best. And you're not going to like who I want to ask, so maybe just forget I said anything?" She suggested hopefully, giving him a big, oh so innocent smile. "Can we pretend we're just in school again and our biggest worry was feeling bad because we hurt someone's feelings?"

“Mmm. Tempting.” Though, nice as the idea was, even their student days hadn't been so worry-free. But as long as they were going to pretend....

James kissed Lily's neck, letting himself get lost in her soft skin and intoxicating scent for just a moment. "You want to pretend we snuck into an empty classroom for an amorous liaison? I could have my way with you, and then you could have your way with me. And no one would ever have to know." It would be a delightful distraction for a while. "Maybe I could inspire your genius, and you won't have to consult anyone."

Lily couldn’t help but let out a little laugh, it was almost young - a giggle. James could inspire that little teenage heart of hers at all times, no matter what was going on. She kissed his cheek and then applied multiple kisses to his face until she landed on his lips and held him there for a few moments. “Maybe you can inspire my genius. I doubt it, but we can give it the good ol’ college try. A few times, maybe several.” She lifted her wand and flicked the door closed and locked, before backing herself up to her other desk, the one without a thousand vials of different potions and ingredients littered all over it.

“Oh, James, I can’t believe you talked me in to this!” She said in her most convincing, innocent, young-sounding voice. Like back when they were at Hogwarts together. “We could get in trouble!”

James chuckled as he approached Lily at her other desk. "No we won't," he said, trying to sound breathless and young. "No one has used this classroom in years. We can do whatever we want."

He leaned in and kissed her, tentatively at first, the way he had back when he couldn't believe she'd finally agreed to date him, and then with increasing fervor as though teenage horniness had taken control. He leaned her back over her desk as he slid his tongue into her mouth and his hand into her robes.

It was easy to forget herself around James. Back then especially, but even now. She would have let him talk her in to nearly anything once she had decided to finally say yes and go on a date with him. Snog in an empty classroom during school hours? Sure. Sneak out at night for a moonlit date past curfew? Sure. It was like she forgot all the rule following and Good-Girl things that made her who she was. So it was easy to just lean back and kiss him, let him slide his hand into her robes as she sat propped up on her desk. There wasn’t even a moment of hesitation, she had been so worked up over this potion and everything else going on that she sort of let her mind focus on James and James only. She kissed him back and leaned into his body, relaxed.

And that was the best feeling of al.

“James Potter, you always know how to get to me don’t you?”

"That's why you married me, isn't it?" James kissed his way down her neck, then pushed her robes open so he could kiss the rounded top of each of her breasts. "I know exactly." Another kiss. "How." Another, this one heading back up to her neck. "To get." He kissed the underside of her jaw. "To you." He finished with a kiss on her lips, this one with all the control he'd mastered as an adult, as his hands touched Lily in ways he knew would make her respond.

They were getting close to territory they really shouldn't cross here in her classroom, but as he felt Lily relax and his own tension drained away, James decided he didn't care. They were doing this--whatever it turned into--because they needed it. He wasn't going to let worry ruin the whole thing.

Instead, he focused on kissing his wife, and when he pulled back, he was grinning wider than he had in quite some time. "You're fantastic, you know that?"

They were in her classroom, sure, but it was the little office she had off to the side of it and the doors were locked. It was late. No one was going to be around them, or come looking for her. But if she could read James’ mind, she would agree. They probably shouldn’t cross that line here. Probably.

“Oh shush, you’re fantastic.” She countered, giving him a wide grin in return and kissing him again before she pulled back, just to nuzzle her face into the crook of his neck. “I love you. I’m exhausted and frustrated and you always make me feel so much better, James.”

James knew how she felt, of course, but it warmed his heart to hear the words. “Same here.” He was exhausted and frustrated for different reasons right now, more to do with his job than their extracurricular activities, but he could definitely relate. At the moment, he just wanted to curl up with his wife and pretend that demanding jobs and crazy bigots didn't exist.

"Let's go home," he said, kissing the top of her head. "We can curl up in bed and not worry about anything for a few hours."

Nothing in the world sounded better than curling up in bed with James and forgetting about all their worries for a few hours. Finding solace in James’ company and his love was what got her through the first War without going crazy, without losing her sense of self. Now that War was rearing it’s ugly head again, she was grateful all over to have James at her side.

“Alright, love. Let’s go. I didn’t even realize it was so late.” She didn’t bother packing up the things on her desk. In fact, she merely flicked a wand to put up a shield around the items so that they wouldn’t be disturbed while she was gone, and headed out her office, her arm looped around James’ waist.