Who: Lily Evans and James Potter Where: Their apartment What: Lily's arrival When: Backdated to Friday, September 13th Rating: Lowish. Lily changes and there's mentions of foul language Status: Incomplete/In progress
The dress had seemed like the perfect choice to wear to Petunia’s wedding after her sister had refused to let her be a bridesmaid but now that she found herself in the middle of some town in Maine she was starting to have second thoughts about the wisdom of her choice. She’d been lucky enough to arrive near a clothing store so she’d slipped inside to buy herself something...different to wear. The clothes weren’t exactly what she was used to but she was finally able to find something she liked and decided to go to the flat she’d been assigned according to the tablet she’d been given along with a little bit of money. She’d noticed that it looked there was another name listed along with hers but she didn’t pay any attention to it, she’d have plenty of time after she was dressed to meet the girl they’d assigned her to share a room with.
The buildings weren’t at all hard to find, and neither was her flat thankfully. The first bedroom seemed to be empty of personal things so she put her bags down in it and hoping that it would make it easier to hear her roommate when they came in she left the door half open as she started to get undressed, fumbling a bit with the hook at the top of her dress and cursing at herself for buying a dress that she couldn’t get in or out of easily without some help. She’d gotten it because it was pretty and she thought her boyfriend might like the way it looked on her. And judging by his behavior before she’d been pulled away from him during the reception, James had liked it. She finally got the hook undone and started on the zipper, an exasperated groan escaping her as it got stuck in the material. “I can’t believe this bloody thing!” she said loudly to the empty room as she seriously contemplated just tearing the dress so she could get changed.
It wasn’t every day that James found himself pulled away to some strange place through a magic portal. It had certainly been more pleasant than apparition or a portkey, but it wasn’t nearly as fun as flying, if you asked him. Any moment, he’d realise he didn’t have his broomstick and that wouldn’t be a pleasant thought, but for now he was just taking in his surroundings and worrying over the fact that his wife and son didn’t seem to be here, based on what he could gather from the device they’d given him upon his arrival.
When Lily came through the door, he was too stunned to say anything at first. By the time he came to his senses, she was struggling out of the dress she was wearing. The sight of Lily undressing was hardly one he wasn’t accustomed to and he decided to stand and watch a bit, a smirk playing about his lips, which only grew when she began to curse at her zipper.
“Language, Lils. You’re lucky Harry isn’t in here, he’s a bit young to be learning bad language before he’s even said his first words.” If he’d stopped to really look at her (beyond appreciating the view), James might have noticed that she looked younger than she had when he had last seen her. He definitely would have remembered the first time she had worn that dress. Right now, though, he was caught up in the moment and enjoying, as always, a chance to tease her.
That voice. Lily stopped in her struggle with the dress and turned to look at him. “James,” she said, forgetting for a minute about the dress as she started to move towards him but then she stopped, staring at him as she tried to figure out what was different about him. He wasn’t wearing his suit anymore which was obvious at first glance but there was more to it than just that. He looked older somehow.
And that was when what he’d actually said to her sank in and her stare turned to one of confusion. “Who’s Harry?” she asked, half of her already certain of what the answer would be even as she asked the question. Harry had to be a baby from what James was saying and looking at him she could guess that he must be James’ son. Which brought up the question of - who was the mum? A big part of her hoped that it was her but she wasn’t going to ask him because there was a part of her that was scared the answer would be no. Things happened over time after all.
"Don't tell me you've forgotten giving birth already, love. It's only been a month." James should have noticed she looked younger. He should have realised why she didn't seem to remember their son. The idea of this place was fantastic enough without throwing time travel into it, though. It never occurred to him that she could be from an earlier time, one before they had gotten married and had a child together.
"Did you need some help getting out of that dress?" He asked her, his usual smirk still on his face. "You know I love the way it looks on you, but I daresay it looks even nicer on the floor next to our bed." James might have outgrown some of his less attractive qualities, but he was still a cheeky bastard.
“A month?” Lily asked, her disbelief obvious in her voice. “James, I’d remember if I’d had a baby. And I’m pretty certain we wouldn’t have been invited to Petunia’s wedding if we had a son,” she told him before she could stop herself. It finally clicked together in her head that they might have been from different times and she looked at him for a minute, trying to figure out how to phrase her question. “What year is it for you?” she asked him trying to keep her voice calm even though she felt anything but.
His comment about her dress looking nicer on the floor didn’t surprise her at all but it still caused a quick blush to color her cheeks. “And exactly what makes you think I’m going to let you see anything next to my bed?” she asked him a little bit of a challenge in her voice, as she turned around to let him unzip the dress if he was honestly willing to help and hoped that her amusement at his cockiness wasn’t obvious. She knew she should have been offended by it, or at the very least pretend to be, but she wasn’t and he probably knew her too well to fall for the act. Especially since they apparently had a child together.
“Petunia’s wed-” James broke off as he finally caught on to what was happening. “You’re 17. You’re from that day and you’re still bloody 17! Fuck.” Frustrated, he dragged a hand through his already messy hair.
“1980. Lils, I’m 20. We’re married. We have a son together. And- none of that’s happened for you, yet, has it?” He moved to help her with her zipper, his fingers brushing over her skin in the process. Normally, he’d press a kiss (or several) to that spot on the back of her neck while he was at it, but he couldn’t bring himself to it just now. She was still Lily and he still wanted her just as much as he always had, but he wasn’t honestly sure how she would react to a display of affection right now. Most people wouldn’t believe it, but James Potter was quite capable of being a gentleman when the situation called for it.
“Bloody hell,” he muttered. This wasn’t good. Their son was sleeping in the other bedroom and she didn’t even know who he was!