Nothing On Earth

Chapter One

April 10^th, 1912

11:15 AM

Southampton, England

"Lily, we really must get going!"

Lily Evans cringed at the sound of her sister's high-pitched voice (which was still quite painful to hear even through a solid door) and called back, "I'll be out in a minute, Petunia! I just need to find my gloves!"

There was a large sigh of exasperation from the other side of the door, but Lily ignored it and hurriedly ran to one of the numerous trunks that were stacked in her room. She threw it open and began to search through the many articles of clothing for a pair of gloves to match her outfit. While she was searching, her fiancé - who was waiting with Petunia in the hotel suite's sitting room - began to pester her too.

"Darling, you're going to make us - "

He was cut off by a blast of noise from outside that was so loud, it rattled the windows and made Lily wonder if she was going to have any hearing left by the time they got to the docks. She paused her search for the elusive gloves and walked over to the windows to look in the direction of the source of the noise.

Of course, the source could only be a ship; they were in Southampton, after all. But it wasn't just any ship that had just blared its steam whistles. It was the RMS Titanic - pride of the British shipping industry - that had been blaring its whistles so loudly and obnoxiously all bloody morning long, just so it could remind the whole of Southampton that it was sailing day.

Lily frowned when she caught sight of the colossal ship (which wasn't that hard, considering it towered over all the buildings in Southampton) and muttered, "I know we're running late! I don't need you to be reminding me of it too!"

"Lily - "

"I'm hurrying!" she replied, walking back to her trunk and searching once more. After a minute, she found her gloves and closed the lid. She pulled them on, walked out of her room, and into the sitting room.

"I'm ready."

Petunia Evans-Dursley hardly glanced at her sister as she hurriedly ushered some porters into Lily's room so they could take her luggage down to the motorcars. Her husband, Vernon Dursley, grunted rather disinterestedly upon hearing Lily's voice and paid her no mind otherwise. Lily's fiancé Lucius Malfoy, however, looked up from the newspaper he was reading, and scowled when he caught sight of her.

"At last. I was beginning to think we'd never..." he trailed off as he looked her over. "What on earth are you wearing, Lily?"

Lily looked down at herself. She was wearing a very stylish, two-piece pinstripe suit, which she had thought made her looks stand out a bit more than they usually did.

"It's a suit, Lucius," she said, glancing at him questioningly.

"I can see that, but it's black," Lucius replied, before returning to his paper. "Go change."

"What?" she asked, gaping at him. Was this coming from the same man who had wanted her to hurry this along only minutes ago? "But I like this outfit!"

"Wearing black on sailing day is bad luck, darling."

"I don't have the time to change - "

"If your sister helps, we'll have enough time to get down to the docks."

Petunia, who had just rushed back into the sitting room at the sound of an argument, sighed dramatically and agreed, "Quite right, Lucius. Now come on, Lily. I've already got another outfit picked out for you."

"I look fine!" Lily exclaimed angrily, as Petunia led her back into her room. "You've both gone completely mad! I can't believe you - "

The combined noise of another blast from Titanic's whistles and the hotel room's door snapping shut drowned out Lily's protests.

***

"All right, which one of you blokes has yet to play and lose to me?" James Potter boasted, as he leaned back in his chair and shuffled his stack of cards. The rest of the people gathered at the Southampton pub (less than usual amount, as it was only nearing noon) glanced at him with amusement, but no one stood up. James frowned rather disappointedly, but looked back at the four other men still seated at his table and asked, "Well, do you gentlemen feel up to another round?"

All four of the men were obviously not British and two of them didn't even speak English, but they were good company. James could also beat them at poker, which was what really mattered.

"I'm up to it," the blonde man - an American - across the table said (James couldn't remember what his name was; either he'd already had too much to drink or the American hadn't disclosed it). He looked over to his Italian friend and asked, "What do you say, Fabri?"

The Italian replied in some garbled English that James couldn't decipher, and the American nodded his agreement. James took that as a sign that they were ready to play, and he turned to look at the other two at the table. Both men looked at each, shrugged, and then nodded. The only time they spoke was to talk to each other, and it was in Swedish, so James could never tell if they were insulting him or each other.

"All right then," James said, shuffling the cards once more before setting them down. He took a cigarette out of his coat pocket, put it in his mouth, and lit it up. "Bets on the table, and then I'll deal."

"Prongs, you're starting another game? Don't you think we should get going?" an incredulous voice asked from behind him.

James leaned his head back over the chair to see Remus Lupin sitting on a barstool nearby, watching him with a look of exasperation on his face.

"'Course I'm starting another game, Moony. I've been having a great day so far; why should I stop now?" he asked, before taking a long drag on his cigarette and blowing the smoke out.

Remus was about to reply when Titanic blared its whistles once again. The glasses on the shelves behind the bar all wobbled and clanked together, and Remus sent an annoyed glare out the pub window where the ship could clearly be seen a few blocks away.

"That's why we have to get going," Remus replied, jabbing an irritated thumb out the window. "Otherwise we're going to miss it."

James glanced at his friend and then at the clock above the bar. It was eleven fifteen.

"According to that, we've still got forty-five minutes before Titanic leaves," James exclaimed happily, before turning back to his poker companions. They had been busily collecting their bets while he had been talking, and all of them had a small pile of coins or trinkets in front of them. All of them, that is, except for one of the Swedes. James took a long drag on his cigarette before saying, "Oy, Olaf. Where's your bet?"

The Swede muttered grumpily under his breath, and James could tell from his tone that he had already lost all of his money from their previous matches. He grinned and then continued to pester the other man, "Got anything to bet or are you just going to sit here and watch me take all your partner's money too?"

"Oh, leave him alone," the American piped up. He took a swig of his drink and then continued, "If he doesn't have anything to bet, then we'll just play without hi - "

All of them jumped in surprise when Olaf banged two pieces of paper on the table. As he drew his hand away, James leaned in to see what he had found to bet with. On the table were two tickets for Titanic.

"Now there's a nice bet," James commented, as the American whistled in surprise. The other Swede made a choked noise and glared at his companion. "Too bad I've already got me one of those. Guess they'll go to waste once I win."

"If you win," the American corrected, eyeing the tickets appraisingly. "I'm starting to feel pretty lucky right about now."

James rolled his eyes as he dragged up some of his own coins and placed them on the table. He was dealing the cards when Titanic's whistle blew again, louder than ever.

"Jesus Christ, how many times are they going to blow those damn things? We already know the bloody ship's leaving today!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands over his ears in annoyance. "They're going to burst my eardrums soon!"

"We won't have to listen to it much longer, will we lads?" the pub keeper commented, and a few of the locals at the bar nodded in agreement. "She's leaving port at noon, after all."

"That's still long enough time for me to lose my hearing," Remus muttered, glancing at the clock.

The pub keeper followed his eyes, frowned, and then exclaimed, "I thought I told Harcher to rewind the clock this morning!"

James paused mid-deal to look at the pub keeper questioningly. "What do you mean, rewind the clock?"

"What do you think I mean, lad? It's running behind again, at least by twenty minutes or so."

James's cigarette dropped out of his mouth. He and Remus exchanged glances and Remus dug through his pockets to find his pocket watch. He took one look at it and then leapt to his feet.

"She's leaving in fifteen minutes, James!"

"Shit!" James exclaimed loudly, dropping his cards and quickly scooping his poker winnings into his carpetbag.

The Swedes began to make noises of protest at his abrupt movement, but the American calmed them down by saying, "Boys, boys! We're still playing; it's just that our Brit friend is taking a leave of absence. Betters our chances of actually winning, doesn't it?"

"Looks like your lucky feelings came in handy," James replied with a grin. He jammed his hat over his unruly black hair and picked his carpetbag off the floor. "Hope to see you on board the Titanic, Mr...?"

"Dawson. Jack Dawson."

"Well, good luck to you, Mr. Dawson," James continued, nodding at him.

"Let's go, James!" Remus exclaimed, grabbing his friend by the shoulder and leading him out of the pub.

Before they were out the door, James turned around and called out to the whole pub, "It's been swell, gentlemen, but I really must get going! Remember, if you ever come to America and need your arses beat at poker you know who to look for!"

"Hurry up, you prat!"

James waved them all goodbye and then hurried down the street after Remus.

"I wouldn't worry about being late!" the pub keeper called after them with a laugh. "I'm sure once they know you lot are coming, they'll wait for you!"

***

The dock surrounding the Titanic was swarming with people, most of who weren't even passengers. Many of them had just come to marvel at the great ship and witness the start of her maiden voyage. The rest had come to see off friends or relatives and were waving heartily at the passengers gathered on the Boat Deck.

Cargo was still being loaded, and many hands rushed about on the docks and on the ship trying to get everything in place. Among the cargo was a fabulous, burgundy Renault, and it was being lowered into one of the holds by a crane.

In all of this hustle and bustle, Lily's company finally arrived in a gleaming white Renault, and following was another car that held their servants and luggage. The Renault stopped close to one of the cargo loading areas, and the driver got out and opened the car door for Lily.

The driver helped her down, and she took a good look at her surroundings. She was now dressed in a more 'acceptable' outfit: a long sleeved, high collared, cream-colored tea dress. There was an obnoxiously decorated hat perched on her head, (one which she had refused to wear until Petunia had forced it on her head) and she was obviously in a bad mood after that episode.

It had taken longer than expected to get her changed. She had argued with Petunia over the dress, (for she had felt it made her look too old) and then they had to quickly redo her hair because the style she had been wearing previously wouldn't look good with her hat. By the time everything and everyone had been loaded up, tempers were running high and quite a few porters had been yelled at.

Lucius stepped out of the Renault after her, and he looked in a slightly better mood once he saw Titanic. He was wearing simple - but expensive - brown suit and a bowler hat was covering the top of his head. His unusually long blond hair was tied back, and he was carrying his cane.

She turned, looked at him uninterestedly and then at the giant ship that was looming over them. It had to be the biggest thing she had ever seen; she would've had to crane her neck to take in all of it.

"So this is the Titanic?" she asked, an annoyed tone to her voice. She looked over her shoulder at Lucius. "I thought she'd be a bit more...extravagant from the way you were talking about her."

"The Titanic is extravagant, Lily!" Lucius exclaimed, with the pride of a host providing a special experience. "She has squash courts, a swimming pool, and even Turkish baths."

"It doesn't look any bigger than the Mauritania," Lily replied, indifferent to this new information, although she privately thought that was impressive.

"Titanic is far bigger than the Mauritania," Vernon grunted from behind them as he got out of the Renault. "And much more luxurious."

He turned to help Petunia out of the car. She stepped onto the pavement and looked around haughtily.

"Is this also the ship that they say is unsinkable?" she asked, staring at the monster of steel in front of her.

"Indeed, Petunia. God himself cannot sink this ship," Lucius continued.

A harassed looking White Star Line porter hurried over to them.

"Sir, you'll have to check your baggage through the main terminal around that way - " the porter began, pointing over at the loading area.

"I put my faith in you, good sir," Lucius interrupted, handing the man a tip. He nodded toward one of the hands that had gotten out of the other car. "See my man."

Lily watched as Lucius's valet, Severus Snape, directed the porter on where everything needed to go. She honestly didn't know where Lucius had found that man. Snape - although younger than most of Lucius's previous valets - looked like an undertaker and was almost always in a bad temper.

Softer whistles began blowing around the docks, and Lucius quickly checked his pocket watch.

"Ah, we'd better hurry," he said, motioning that they should begin walking toward the first class gangway entrance. Petunia, Vernon, and Lucius walked ahead, but Lily strayed a bit behind them, making sure her maid had her more valuable possessions in hand.

"My coat?"

"Yes, miss," the maid called back, sounding a bit exasperated with all the packages she had to carry. Lily nodded her approval and then hurried to catch up with her companions.

As they moved along the docks, they passed through several of the inspection areas where the third class passengers were being checked for lice. Some watched the foursome pass with much interest while others didn't care at all.

Lily finally caught up to the others when they were out of the third class area and apparently - from what she heard - her fiancé had been jostled too many times by the passing steerage passengers.

" - missed his annual bath, evidently," Lucius commented snidely to Vernon, who nodded.

"Well, if you weren't always doing everything last minute we wouldn't have to be running around the docks with these...people," Petunia sniffed, glaring at a rather unsuspecting second-class passenger.

"All part of my charm, Petunia. And besides, it was your sister's beauty rituals who kept us late at the hotel."

"You're the one who wanted me to change," Lily replied angrily, coming up on Lucius's free side. It was amazing how fast that man could forget things that were his fault.

"Like I said, I couldn't just let you wear black on sailing day," Lucius responded, linking his arm in hers as they came upon the first class entrance area.

"I felt like black," she declared, as they began walking regally up the gangway.

"Here I've bought the best tickets for the most majestic ship in the world, and you're acting as though you're going to your execution!" he exclaimed, ducking his head as they entered Titanic. He nodded his greeting to the officer positioned by the door and looked appreciatively around the elegantly decorated area they had stepped into. Lily observed it without showing too much interest. "Do try to enjoy yourself, Lily."

Lily flashed Lucius a small smile, though deep down, she knew she wasn't going to enjoy this voyage at all. The heavy, imprisoning weight of Lucius's arm on hers only confirmed her thoughts.

***

"Prongs, you run too bloody fast for my liking!" Remus called as he chased after James down the length of the dock. They dodged in-between passengers and the well wishers - running into quite a few of them - and nearly got themselves run over by a truck full of luggage.

"You're the one who told me to hurry up!" James yelled back, quickly looking over his shoulder at his friend. "And that's what I'm doing!"

"We hardly need to hurry any more! We're at the dock!"

"But I want to find a good spot so I can wave goodbye properly!"

Remus sighed, but upped his pace a bit more so that he was only a few feet behind James. Sometimes, he could be the most difficult person on earth...

"You've gone too far, Prongs!" Remus exclaimed, coming to sudden stop in front of the third class gangway. James, who was nearer to the second-class entrance, stopped and turned around at his friend's shout. Remus was halfway up the gangway when James finally caught up to him again.

"You really need to get your glasses checked up. You never see anything any more!" he continued as they walked up the remaining way.

"My vision is fine, thank you very much," James replied, frowning.

"That's what you said before you ran straight into that bobby last month."

"That was an accident...I wasn't doing anything illegal that time, so it wasn't too bad - "

"Tickets please," the officer at the entrance ordered, interrupting their conversation. Remus dug the both tickets out of his coat pocket and handed them to officer. The officer looked at them and then checked them with passenger list. "Mr. Potter and Mr. Lupin?"

"Yes, sir."

"Have you both been through the inspection queue?"

"'Course," James lied, knowing perfectly well that they hadn't even considered getting into the queue.

"Besides, we don't have any lice," Remus added, grinning as he scratched his head.

The officer eyed them, annoyed, but moved out of the way so they could board. They calmly walked away from the entrance area, and once they were out of sight of any officer, they raced through the corridors, trying to find a stairwell leading to the open deck. Once they had found one, they climbed up it two stairs at a time. In no time at all, they found themselves on the poop deck with many of the other steerage passengers.

"Remind me never to encourage you to hurry again," Remus huffed, trying to get his breath back. James grinned at him and hurriedly tried to find an open spot on the Boat Deck railing. He succeeded after shoving a few people aside and Remus joined him once he was breathing properly again.

"Goodbye! I'll miss you!" James called, waving his arm wildly at the people on the quay below.

"You don't know anyone down there, James!"

"So? None of them down there - " he gestured at the enthusiastic crowd. " - know me and they're still saying their farewells. Besides, I'm saying good bye to jolly old England too."

"Your logic never ceases to amaze me."

"I know, now stop being a stick in the mud, and wave goodbye!"

Remus obliged and waved goodbye, although he did it without being as loud and irritable as James was. He was about to tell his friend off again - before someone else did - when Titanic's loudest and longest blast rang throughout the port. When that faded, (and when James stopped complaining that his eardrums were bleeding) Remus heard a new noise - a mechanical one - and felt a vibration go through the stern.

"We're moving! At last!" someone nearby shouted.

James let out a loud whoop of excitement that was quickly drowned out by the thunderous roar that rose up from the crowd on the quay.

Titanic was leaving port and sailing into history.