Bohemian Rhapsody

moment twenty-six: like old times (December 9, 1978).

James sat at the café, stirring sugar into his coffee, absently noticing the punks who walked down the Soho street, the Mohawks and ripped clothing, the piercings and leather. Not his scene, really. He sighed, and wondered if he'd always been so mainstream.

He heard a quick "Sorry!", and suddenly a redheaded cannonball was sitting in the chair opposite him, her handbag on the table. Lily fumbled for her purse, picking her way through bills and assorted junk: her compact, various charms, some more bills. "I just got off from lunch. You know how it is."

James nodded, and sipped his coffee, grimacing slightly. It was now too sweet. "I do indeed." Setting it aside, he looked at her, noticing for the first time the small changes in her face that had been right in front of him for so many years. Her emerald green eyes still sparkled, and smiled back at him, but there were bags under the eyes, and she looked tired.

Lily summoned a waiter over to their streetside table, and ordered a cappuccino and piece of cheesecake, not pulling away when James gave her hand a friendly squeeze. "You look tired," he commented.

"Well, I should, the hours I've been putting in!" she commented, laughing. "Work is a nightmare, but it pays the bills. Some of them, anyway. How've you been?"

"Oh, doing alright, I guess. How are you managing study and work?"

Lily grimaced. "Badly. I might have to go part-time next semester."

They sat there in silence for a while, before Lily shook her head. "Did you ever think it would be like this?"

"What would?", James asked, curious.

"The real world." Lily replied dryly. "Back at Hogwarts, all we heard was about the War, and now we're in it, getting the laundry done seems more important than the latest attack."

James thinned his lips. He didn't like to think about the War, or rather, who might be involved with it, but Lily continued on regardless, unknowing.

"Did you hear who was killed on the weekend?"

The young man shook his head. "No."

Lily sighed. "Professor Linitus. He was on long service leave."

He whistled softly under his breath; he'd never liked the Deputy Headmaster, although there was a grudging respect. "Merlin. Who's taking over as Deputy?" he asked, moving his copy of the Daily Prophet off their small wrought-iron table as the waiter brought Lily's order to the table. Digging into the cheesecake with her fork, she mumbled through a mouthful, trying not to spill. "McGonagall."

James nodded. It seemed a sound choice. "So, what happened with that bloke of yours?"

Lily took a gulp of her coffee, clearly in a rush to finish before she had to return to work. "Never called me back. All men are bastards. Well. There might be one exception." She looked up at him, a twinkle in her eyes. James knew better than to trust that look. "What about you? Any girls on the horizon? Or guys?"

He squirmed, suddenly on the spot, and adjusted his glasses. "No," he replied.

"Why are you nervous?"

"Who says I'm nervous?"

Lily looked at him. "You adjusted your glasses. You always do that when you're nervous. It was one of the first things I noticed about you."

James blinked, taking in the idea that Lily had noticed things about him. It made sense. They had flirted outrageously during the early stage of Fifth Year, and James had been certain something would have happened, had not...other people gotten in the way. "Dare I ask what else you filed under 'James Potter' in that copious brain of yours," he asked, teasing.

Lily giggled on cheesecake, and hid her mouth behind her hand, finally managing to swallow. "Oh James," she said fondly, gesturing with her fork, "I doubt you could cope."

She stood suddenly, fishing some loose change out of her purse and dumping it on the table. "I have to run," she apologised, tossing her long red hair out of her face. "Work and all."

James reached over to place his hand over hers. "Don't worry, I'll pay for it."

Startled by both the offer and the contact, she looked at him quizzically. "You sure?"

He nodded, and pressed the change back into her hand, curling the fingers around the coins. "Meet you at the same time next week?"

Lily nodded once in return and then bit her lip. "Look" she said, finally, brushing her hand through her fringe - something James had always noticed she did when she was nervous - "Do you want to go for a drink sometime?"

James pushed his glasses back up his nose. "Yeah, that'd be great," he managed to get out. Lily bent down, kissed him on the cheek and turned to leave.

Then she was gone, lost amongst the crowd, and James was left with his tall black coffee, and a rapidly beating heart.