James Potter (reformedprat) wrote in welcomethreads, @ 2015-01-23 09:15:00 |
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James had been having a brilliant day up until now. It was Harry’s birthday, his very first birthday, and of course there’d been a party. Harry was too young to properly remember it, so it was for him, Lily and their mates more than anything, but that was fine by him. They’d been having a fantastic time and Lily had just gone for the pudding when James suddenly found himself standing in the middle of this quaint little town, holding their little birthday boy in his arms. “What the-” Before he could get very far in his explorations or figure out what had just happened, he was being greeted by a fairy - an honest to Merlin fairy with wings and everything - who explained that he was in Maine, in a town called Storybrooke. The fairy gave him some kind of device she said would let him communicate with others and the key to a flat. James slipped the device - a PDA, she had called it - into his pocket without really glancing at it yet and made his way to the apartment building. Number 402 in Tower One, he’d been told. He rode the elevator up to the fourth floor, found the door marked 402 and used the key to let himself in. “Shhh,” he murmured to his fussing son as he carried him inside. “We’ll get you sorted. We’ll find a way home to your mum, I promise.” In the meantime, he’d need to find a cot for the boy. It had been a long day, with the party and all, and Harry was due for his nap. *** Lily had to admit that vacuuming the spare bedroom was just one more way she’d come up with to keep herself busy and not thinking about all of the people she missed - especially to keep herself from thinking about James and how much she wished he was there with her. Or that she was back home with him. Storybrooke was supposed to have been their shot at extra time together since they didn’t get that long back home before their deaths. She sighed as she shut off the vacuum, getting it ready to put up and then paused when she heard the unmistakable sounds of a fussing child in the living room. Maybe the extra cleaning she’d been doing to keep herself busy on her day off would turn out to be good for another reason. She hadn’t been expecting to be assigned a new roommate, let alone one with a child, but if she had been it might not be a terrible thing. At the very least she could try and help with the little one and it might make the pangs that still hit her now and again over Harry being gone easier to bear. She started heading for the living room, ready to greet whoever it was, and then the words died in her throat as she stopped and stared. This couldn’t be happening could it? “James?” *** “Lily!” James’ eyes lit up with recognition and he saw none other than his wife come into the living room. “It got you, too?” He never dreamed that Lily had been here for months, longer without him. James didn’t know he’d been here before, as well. He had no memories of this place before now. As far as he knew, it had been mere minutes since he’d last seen her, but that didn’t make him any less happy to see her now. He was thrilled. James had no intention of staying here. He and Lily would find their way back home, to their friends and to the war, where they were needed, but in the meantime, this place would be infinitely more bearable with his family being whole. *** The look on his face did more to convince her that it was him than what he said and she grinned as she made her way over to him. “You’ve got Harry with you,” she said quietly, reaching out a little hesitantly to touch his head. He was older than when she’d last seen him but the feeling was still there, that instantaneous love for her son. She looked back up at James when she heard his question, hesitating for a second before speaking. “You don’t remember do you?” She’d been sent home and then been brought back and remembered everything about Storybrooke but she knew that wasn’t necessarily the case with everyone the portal sent back. And this would be the second time it had done this - taken James only to bring him back from a different point in time with no memories of being here. Which would mean that she’d have to tell him again what she knew about their future back home. *** "Remember what, Lils?" A confused frown replaced the easy grin on his face as he studied his wife. He hadn't noticed at first, but now that he was paying a little closer attention, he realized that she looked a bit younger. Not ridiculously young, just a year or two, but she wasn't quite exactly as he remembered from moments ago. James could accept that he'd been brought here through a magic portal. He could accept that there was some sort of magical border that kept people from leaving town. The idea that he was supposed to remember something he couldn't, though? While it was entirely possible, he didn't like the idea of something or someone messing with his mind, his memories. "I remember you going into the kitchen during Harry's party and then I was here," he explained, suddenly wary. "What you you remember?" *** Lily bit back a sigh and cursed under her breath as she turned her attention back to Harry, gathering her thoughts and trying to figure out the easiest way to answer his question. “You’ve been here before. Twice that I can remember. I’ve been here over a year James,” she said quietly, focusing on their son in James’ arms. She looked back up at him. “The first time Harry was just a baby and then the two of you were sent back and when you came back again - you were from before we had him. From the day before our wedding actually I think.” It sounded impossible and if she hadn’t lived through it, she’d never have believed it. “The first time - I was brought from Petunia’s wedding and then I got sent home for a while somehow and brought back from the night you proposed.” *** James didn’t know what exactly he expected, but it definitely wasn’t what came out of Lily’s mouth. “I was here twice. And I don’t remember it,” he repeated. That wasn’t the strangest thing he’d ever heard of, but it was a little bit unsettling, especially considering that was apparently from a couple of years before him. “We’ve been married for over two years, Lily. Today was Harry’s first birthday - or it was until I showed up here, at least. Bloody hell, this is maddening.” Still, he was glad she was here. At any age, Lily was the love of his life. At least if they had to be from different times, she wasn’t 16 or anything. That might have been a little awkward. “I don’t suppose you still have Harry’s cot?” he asked her. This would all be a lot easier to sort out if they could get their son down for his nap. Not to mention he could hug and kiss her properly if he wasn’t holding onto a one year-old. *** “It happens sometimes. People don’t remember being here,” Lily said, trying to make what she’d told him a little easier to accept. She looked down at her hand and then back up at his face. “A year ago. You and I got married here a year ago. Not the day we’d planned back home but…” she told him with a smile. “It’s still his first birthday James. That’s how I’m going to look at it at least. Just like it will be my 19th birthday at the end of the month.” She was going to forget the fact that last year she’d disappeared right before she would have turned 18 and then come back a few days later having spent almost a year back home. Anyone else asking her about Harry’s cot and she’d have felt awkward about the answer because with how long he’d been gone - she should have gotten rid of it but she hadn’t. She’d taken it with her when she’d moved in with Teddy and then when she’d moved here, putting it in a corner of the spare bedroom where it would be out of the way. Just in case somehow he showed up and needed it still. “It’s in the spare bedroom. I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it, just in case I ended up needing it again because he came back. Here - hand him to me and I’ll go put him down,” she said, holding her arms out to take Harry and hold him. She hadn’t realized how much she’d really missed him until right now. “I’ll be right back,” she promised as she took Harry into the other room, staying in there a few minutes and watching as he drifted off to sleep. “I love you Harry,” she whispered, leaning over to kiss his cheek before heading back to James, closing the door partway behind her. She’d have to replace the baby monitors but that could wait until tomorrow. “I know it’s a bit much to take in,” she told him, eyes meeting his and smiling. This was the best birthday present she could have gotten. Having her husband and son both here again. *** Patience wasn’t really his forte, but James tried to wait patiently while his wife took Harry into the other room and put him down for his nap. The instant she was back, though, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. “It’s a lot,” he admitted as he brought a hand up to touch her cheek, “but at least you’re here. I don’t know what I’d have done if you hadn’t been.” He was being soppy, but he didn’t care. Up until he’d walked into this flat, he’d thought he was stuck here without her. It hadn’t been that long since he’d last help her, but that didn’t matter. “It’s really unfair that blasted thing grabbed us before you brought the pudding out, though,” he added, affecting a mock pout. Missing out on dessert was tragic, after all. She should feel quite sorry for him. *** Lily wrapped her arms around his neck, just enjoying the way it felt to have him hold her again. She’d missed this, just getting to have this with him. “You’d have taken care of Harry,” she told him simply, sure of it. She’d seen him with their son before after all - he was a great father. And a great husband. “That’s exactly what you would have done. But...we don’t have to worry about that,” she told him with a slight shrug. That pout had her laughing and stretching up on tiptoe to give him a kiss. “Poor James,” she said, teasing him gently. “Do you want me to go out and buy you one to make up for it?” *** “I would have missed you horribly,” he corrected her, pulling her a little bit closer. James often work a smirk, he cracked a lot of jokes, but right now he was completely serious. He might have made it through being here without Lily, but he was glad he didn’t have to. Gripping her a little tighter when she pulled out of the kiss, he shook his head. “Don’t you dare,” he chided her before helping himself to another kiss. “The only thing I’m hungry for right now is you.” *** Over the years they’d been together Lily had James over a lot of things but the idea of teasing him right then never occurred to her because she could tell how serious he was being. “I did miss you James. Terribly,” she told him. “I made friends that are great but…they weren’t you.” She was going to have to tell him about meeting Remus’ son Teddy and probably about their friends who had been here and then gone but she figured that could wait until later. “Good answer,” she told him, giving him another kiss. “I’d have been disappointed if you’d said yes.” *** James had a number of questions for Lily about this place, but they could all wait. Harry was asleep now, but he wouldn’t stay that way and he wanted to take advantage of a little alone time with his wife while he could. “I think you should give me a tour of our flat,” he murmured suggestively, barely lifting his lips from hers, “starting with our bedroom.” *** Lily couldn’t help the slight shiver that ran through her at that murmur. Even if she hadn’t been hoping to take advantage of their time alone - that suggestive tone would have had her stepping back so she could take his hand and lead him to their bedroom. Everything else could wait until later. Maybe even until after Harry was asleep for the night because she really just wanted to spend some time enjoying her family. And maybe there was a part of her that was looking for any reason to delay having to tell him that back home they’d only have a few more months with their son. |