First Impressions

The first time Lily Evans had met James Potter, he had been smirking at the rest of the school while he waited for his name to be called out by Professor McGonagall. Lily had decided that he was an evil git, judging by the way he had walked up to the Sorting Hat. It had been a smooth, haughty pace for one so young. The smirk on his face had grown wider when the Sorting Hat announced, "Gryffindor!" Lily watched him stride over to the Gryffindor table, where he sat next to a boy named Sirius Black, who was ignoring glares from the Slytherin table.

Boys were immature, Lily decided, and made a mental note to befriend Alice Jones, who was looking at the table shyly.

He didn't help her impression of him when he and Black sauntered into their first Transfiguration class late, claiming that they had gotten lost. Lily suspected that they had slept in, since Potter's hair was messier than usual and Black had dark circles under his eyes. What had they done, stayed up all night? Boys were immature.

-

Somewhere in the middle of her second year, Lily realised just how attractive the Head Boy was. He was a tall, handsome Ravenclaw, and had been nicknamed Prince Charming by the female population of Hogwarts. There was an anxious jump in her stomach when she passed him in the corridor, and she blushed furiously when her friends spoke of him. It was odd to discover the new feelings, not to mention horribly awkward.

-

By the time she was a third year, Lily had accepted hormones. She enjoyed going to the Quidditch games now, after two years of whining about how it was a stupid sport and that it was a waste of time. After all, strong boys in Quidditch uniforms were certainly sights to see. She understood it, and tried not to be obvious of her attractions.

James Potter, on the other hand, did not. He was not subtle. He and his friends openly ogled girls in the common room and shouted out crude phrases in the corridor. It was unbelievably immature.

-

Fourth year, Lily had her first boyfriend. Edward Boot, a Ravenclaw. He had shyly asked her to be his girlfriend behind the Herbology greenhouses after class. When she nodded and said yes, his cheeks tinged pink.

Two weeks later, she had her first kiss over a bottle of butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. It had been wet, slightly sticky with the butterscotch candy he had eaten earlier, and dreadfully uncomfortable. It had been obvious that neither of them had kissed someone before, and they both flushed with embarrassment when Lily pulled away.

The kisses got better in the weeks following.

-

Fifth year had been when Potter started asking Lily to go out with him. He began with the constant questions soon after Lily had broken up with Edward (the relationship had grown sour when she noticed that he spent a lot of time with his "tutor", most of which involved snogging behind bookcases). Alice had informed Lily that Potter thought she was in a weak emotional state, and therefore easy.

So fucking immature.

He even had the nerve to ask her to Hogsmeade directly after he had cursed Severus Snape in the corridor. (How could Lupin just stand there, fingering his prefect's badge? Couldn't he do something?) Lily supposed that the disgusted look on her face had drove Potter away in fright. She had helped Severus up off the floor, dusted off his robes, and smiled when he thanked her. There had been a brief friendship between the two of them, until he called her a Mudblood after O.W.Ls.

Bastard.

-

All the girls seemed to fall in love with Potter in sixth year, as he had grown a few inches over the summer. All he had to do was flash a wide grin and rub his stubble, and girls stumbled in their tracks. Lily scoffed at this. He wasn't that handsome.

"I can't believe you won't date him," Alice had said, shaking her head.

"He's an arse," Lily had retorted, snorting indignantly.

-

Something happened in May. Lily wasn't sure quite what it was, but something had happened.

Lupin was in the hospital wing (he's always in the hospital wing, Lily mused), Snape looked livid, and Potter and Pettigrew were ignoring Black. They didn't explain why, even when Lupin was out of the hospital wing and joined the disregard of Black.

The endless requests for dates to Hogsmeade had stopped, too.

-

Being Head Girl was an honour.

Having to see Potter more often every day was hell.

Whatever had happened with his friends last year was obviously over, as the pranks, jokes, and relentless inquiries of a possible relationship began again. Lily grew so annoyed that she finally gave in, told him where and when to meet her, and immediately regretted it once he left the room.

The date hadn't been too bad. They had an actual conversation as they strolled through Hogsmeade, which was covered in snow. Potter was a genuine person, Lily decided. He had opinions on politics (he, too, despised the "Voldemort" character that was quickly rising in power), which she appreciated. They spoke of music, school, and the upcoming N.E.W.Ts.

When she mentioned that her feet were cold from walking through the snow, he had given her a wicked grin before lifting her up and carrying her to the Three Broomsticks. (She had, of course, kicked and protested the whole way.) He bought the butterbeers, even though she had tried to pay for them.

He had kissed her lightly on the lips at the bottom of the stairs to the girls' dormitory.

Oh, he was better than Edward.

-

Dating James was certainly an experience. Getting glares from the majority of the female population wasn't fun, but she had gained new friends. Both Peter and Remus were kind people. Sirius was an annoyance at times, but Lily had gotten used to it.

They moved in together once they left Hogwarts.

-

After joining her in the shower and taking advantage of the fact that they were both undressed and no one else was at their flat, James had proposed.

She had accepted.

-

The wedding had been perfect. Sirius had limited his best man's speech to only six embarrassing stories. Petunia and her walrus of a husband had kept their mouths shut when Peter and Remus set off fireworks from their wands. The food was excellent.

Discovering a month later that she was pregnant only added to the excitement.

-

On July 31^st, Lily gave birth to Harry James Potter in the bedroom of the cottage she and James shared at Godric's Hollow. He was a beautiful, healthy baby, and Lily was immensely happy.

But soon thereafter, Dumbledore had informed she and James of the prophecy, and their lives had been reversed. They couldn't do work for the Order in hiding. They couldn't go out in public. They had to stay at home, only protected by the fact that Sirius Black could keep his mouth shut.

-

When Voldemort arrived, James had gone and tried to fight him off.

Her husband was gone in a flash of green light.

She joined him one minute later.