#march jily microfic challenge.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 27: Rising || Words: 465 Rating: G Happy Birthday James! This micro is related to my main fic, but can be read independently!

“Why is it taking so long?”

James bent over the kitchen counter, eyeing the loaf of bread. Or really, what was supposed to become a loaf of bread. Eventually.

“It hasn’t even been an hour, James,” Lily said from her place on the sofa.

Despite his impatience, James couldn’t help but cast a fond smile her way. Harry was finally starting to sleep through the night with some regularity, and it had done wonders for her. James helped when he could, but there wasn’t much he could do about feedings.

Which was why he was trying to do something nice for his exhausted wife. But for whatever reason, bread dough took forever to rise.

“And you’re sure I can’t hurry it along with magic?” he asked.

“Don’t you dare,” Lily said. “I told you, it’ll impact the flavour.”

James grumbled.

“Come sit down, Love,” she said.

James did as he was told, not that it was any real chore. Lily sat cross-legged on the sofa, nursing Harry, her hair thrown up in a haphazard bun. But as always, she looked beautiful. Gorgeous, really. And for some reason, she wanted to be married to him. Have a family with him.

“I can wait for the dough to rise,” she said. “I’m not starving, neither are you.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to do something nice for you,” he grumbled.

“You are doing something nice,” she countered. “And you’re keeping me company while this one takes his sweet time.”

They both looked down at the little chunk currently bundled against her, no worry in the world except when he was hungry or tired. James knew nursing was uncomfortable for Lily, but it was safer than always having to go out and buy formula. He wished he could do more.

Or maybe he could!

He stood and went to stand behind her, beginning to rub her shoulders.  They seemed to drop and she leaned further back into the sofa. Harry gave a little snort, still oblivious to anything but food.

“You are growing restless, cooped up,” Lily said. “And you’re trying to take it out on the bread.”

James winced. He didn’t want her picking up on that.

“It’s okay,” she added. “I get restless too. I wish we could go out more than we can.”

“I’ve just never had to stay inside like this, away from everyone else.”

“I know. We’ll grow into it.”

James hoped so. It was a strange thing, feeling both the happiest he’d ever been, and restless to be moving. To be doing something. He sometimes felt guilty for all the good things he had going for him. But then he looked at his wife and son, and the guilt would begin to melt.

“Yeah,” he said. “Good things always take their time rising.”

[athenasparrow]

The Reward | A Jily Oneshot

Last month I wrote a @jilymicrofics for each day of March. This month I'm challenging myself in a different way by writing three oneshots that incorporate all 30 prompts between the three of them. This one includes: soar - mercy - reward - flush - shiver - groan - agony - weave - beard - pop.

Read on AO3 | 1,646 words

Summary:

A Jily Microfic in which Lily just wants to cum and James makes her beg for it.

Cut for smut

“I’ve had a really tough day,” Lily announced, walking in to the common room she shared with James and sagging on to the couch in a dramatic slump. 

The Heads Common Room was inviting and warm, immediately enveloping its occupants in a delicious hug. Lily’s body sank into the plush sofa that was positioned before the prime spot, in front of the fireplace. The walls were lined with bookshelves, ranging from ancient tomes of magical theory to the latest muggle romance. In the corner of the room, a large oak desk was piled high with parchment, quills and ink bottles and was usually Lily’s home on a Tuesday night.

Lily had been afraid the room would be overrun by pranks and mischief, but it had become a sanctuary for both of them. A palace of comfort, laughter and love.

James’ concern that had appeared at her words, softened to amusement as he took in her pout.

“And what would you like me to do about it Lily?” he asked, trying to ignore the blood that was flowing south at the sight of her soft lips pursed for him.

“I was hoping for a kiss.” Lily murmured, her tone leading as her lips tried to fight the slight upturn James could see tugging at the corners of her mouth.

“A kiss, hmm?” James said disbelievingly. “Somehow I think you have some other reward in mind for your tough day.”

“Well I didn’t say where I wanted your kiss,” Lily smiled, miraculously overcoming her fatigue to swing her leg over him and settle on his lap. “Oh, so you do like the idea,” she taunted, pushing her hips against the delicious feel of his hardness.

“You already knew that love,” James huffed as he pulled her tighter, conveniently closing the distance between them so he could steal a kiss. James ran his tongue over her lips in a slow drag, eliciting a soft whine from Lily as she snuggled into him.

When James was eleven years old, he didn’t think there could be anything better in the world than soaring through the sky on a broom. The wind rushing against your face and the freedom of an untethered existence always provoked a rush of exhilaration and joy straight through James’ body. But kissing Lily was even better than soaring through the sky. It provided James with a feeling of liberation, like he was unencumbered by the constraints of gravity, unruled by the laws of the physical world, even though his feet remained planted firmly on the ground.

Lily smiled at the groan that escaped James as she moved her hips again, weaving her fingers through his hair and tugging at the strands as she hit his scalp.

His hands crept up her legs, pushing aside her robes so he could feel the soft skin of her thighs. His fingers rubbed a gentle pattern on her skin as he crept higher and higher until he dusted the edge of her knickers.

Lily sighed into his mouth, feeling him throb under her as he circled his fingers back for another pass.

“James, I want–

“Shhhh,” he hushed, breaking the kiss. “You’ll get your reward eventually, Lily.”

Her eyes popped open to glare at him as he withdrew his hand and began kissing down her body.

“You’re beautiful,” he murmured. Ignoring her glare and undoing the buttons on her top so he could bury his face in her décolletage. His lips felt hot against her breasts, licking and nipping their way around the edge of her lace bra before sweeping across her nipple through the lace.

“James please,” Lily whined as he dragged his tongue across again.

“You sound…Merlin,” James groaned, reaching for where he was straining against his trousers. “Fuck, Lily.”

“Take it out,” Lily whispered. “I want to see what I’m doing to you.”

James stared up at her, his gaze dark, as he make quick work of his belt and zipper, hissing as he pulled his erection out, which bobbed up at the sight of her. The slightest drop of precum was gathered at the tip and Lily couldn’t help herself as she drew up to her knees, moving in front of him so she could run her tongue over the head of his cock.

“Gahh,” James hissed at her touch. 

She licked around, enjoying the taste of him before taking him softly between her lips and sucking, her hand moving further down his shaft to encircle him.

“Stop, stop,” James muttered regretfully, pulling at his hair as he looked down at her. “Stop Lily, you first.”

“It doesn’t always have to be me first,” Lily said taking another gentle lick of him, enjoying the way he shuddered under her touch. “You can go first once in awhile.”

James shook his head. “No, I’m better at this before I cum,” he reminded her, gently pushing her away as he claimed her lips once more.

“Let me make you cum Lily,” he whispered against her.

Well how could she argue when he said it like that…

Lily lifted her hips towards him as he traced his hot tongue down her body, stopping to pay his respects to her nipples before continuing down her naval to where she was wet and aching for him.

“Do you want me to make you cum Lily?” he asked huskily, staring up at her from between her legs.

“Fuck please,” Lily whined, thrusting her hips up slightly in an effort to get them closer to his evasive tongue.

“Please what?” James teased, restraining her hips as he sucked at the flesh of her inner thigh hard enough she’d probably have a hickey there tomorrow.

Lily looked down at him. The flush on his cheeks and stream of precum hanging from his tip told her he was enjoying the agony he was subjecting her to as he waited for her to beg for it. 

His cheek was soft against her, his beard absent in the summer as he moved turned his cheek and blew a harsh breath against her. 

Lily whimpered, arching into him as a shiver shot through her body, her legs closing to trap his head as she gave in. 

“Please James, fuck, please lick me.” she begged, squirming under his hold, desperate for his tongue against her.

Fuck, have mercy was the first and only thought that crossed Lily’s mind as James pressed his lips against her clit, his tongue moving swiftly against her as his hands slipped inside her, curling at the joints to reach the spot she – oh.

“James,” Lily cried out desperately as she drew closer to her peak. “Fuck, baby please.”

She was going to cum. Lily felt the telltale tingling start in her core, felt her muscles tense in anticipation and then–

Fuck the bastard.

“Nooo,” Lily cried as his mouth drew back. “James I want to cum, I want to cum,” she babbled repeatedly, trying to rut against his hand that held her down in a desperate attempt to chase her release.

“Merlin you’re…merlin fuck” James muttered as he watched her, moving up so his lips could dust hers, one hand still preventing her from tipping over the edge.

“You want to cum baby?” he growled, his hands tight around her thigh.

“I want, I want,” Lily assured him, letting out a low whine that had him pressing harder against her for his own bit of release. 

“How badly do you want to cum?” James asked, his voice low and gravelly with arousal. “Are you right there on the edge for me baby?”

“Yes I’m so close,” Lily cried. “Please James, just one touch.”

“Look at you,” James murmured reverently. “You’re so close for me, aren’t you baby?”

“One touch,” Lily repeated desperately against his lips. 

“Okay, one touch.” James agreed huskily and Lily cried out in relief as his body was suddenly everywhere she wanted - his fingers on her clit, his lips around her nipple and she felt the scorching heat of his erection part her folds as he slammed into her.

She felt her ears wince and realised she’d screamed. 

“That’s it Lil,” James growled as he moved on top of her, keeping the pressure on her clit as he sank deep inside her, prolonging her orgasm with the long slides of his member inside of her.

Lily felt like asking for mercy for the second time that night because the tingles in her body felt raw, she thought she might be overwhelmed with pleasure as his pelvis rubbed against her, his erection deep inside her.

“Too much,” Lily gasped, her mind foggy as she gasped for breath. Every single nerve felt like it had exposed to the feeling of James pressed against her, inside her.

“Cum again for me baby,” James commanded hot in her ear, rocking his hips against her until she saw stars. 

“I can’t” Lily murmured, overwhelmed.

“Yes you can Lil,” he whispered. “One more for me. Just one more baby.”

When she came again for him, because James somehow coaxed more out of her than she’d ever been able to pull out of herself, he leapt over the edge with her, groaning out her name in a low throaty voice that sunk through Lily’s haze as she fluttered around him.

And then he kissed her gently, easing off of her as she trembled in the afterglow.

“Was that reward enough for you?” he asked, smiling at her hazy smile that was just sweet enough to not be mischievous.

Lily exhaled shakily as she snuggled into him. “That was amazing, I’ve never cum from–

“I know,” James murmured, his eyes shining at her. “You were amazing. I’m never going to forget the look on your face.”

She wouldn’t be forgetting that for awhile either, Lily thought as she sunk into the abyss of sleep, sated and content in his arms. 

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 14: Handlebars || Words: 236 Rating: G

“Okay put your hands there just like that,” Lily said. “Don’t grip the handlebars too tightly, you don’t want to be too rigid.”

“What’s ‘rigid’, mummy?” Harry was looking up at her with green eyes that mirrored her own, and a grin missing two front teeth.

“Stiff,” she answered. “Kind of like you’re frozen.”

“Oh,” Harry looked serious for a moment. “I don’t wanna be frozen.”

“No,” Lily agreed. She glanced up at James waiting at the end of the lane, dutifully holding a camera. “It’s just like when you had the training wheels, you want to hold yourself just like that.”

Harry looked forward then screwed up his face in determination before pushing his red framed glasses up his nose exactly the way he’d seen James do a million times. He then tapped his helmet, as though checking to make sure it was still in place.

“Okay, mummy.”

“Ready?”

He nodded and Lily gripped the back of his bike seat, just like her dad had when she was first learning to ride a two-wheeler. Harry put his feet on the pedals and began, Lily half-walking, half-jogging behind, holding on.

They did not get far before she let go, and Harry, grinning, wind whipping his hair back, didn’t even notice that she had.

“Harry, you’re practically flying!” Lily laughed.

All the while, the camera at the end of the lane kept flashing, capturing the perfect moment.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 24: Thesis || Words: 256 Rating: T

“I’ve got a theory,” Sirius said plopping himself down into the chair across James.

“You’ve always got theories, Padfoot, that’s nothing new.”

James pushed his glasses back up his nose, shaking his head at Peter’s Charms essay.

“Aren’t you dying to know what it is?”

“Not particularly.”

“I think Evans fancies you.”

James stilled the scratching of his quill for only a moment.

“And,” Sirius continued, looking smug. “I think you know that.”

“What an astute observation,” James said dryly. “Care to share your thesis?”

“Sure. Point one, she keeps looking over at you. You aren’t doing anything annoying, so why is she acting obsessed?”

James made no comment, but there was a buzzing in his ears now.

“Point two, you seem determined to not look her way, like you’re trying not to be suspicious.”

Still, James said nothing.

“Point three, you smell like her.”

“I do not—”

“And point four, you’ve got a hickey on your neck.”

Shit.

James flushed red, and Sirius put his feet on the table, laughing, causing several studying students to glare.

“You can’t tell anyone,” James said in a rushed whisper, glad that Remus and Peter were in the back stacks. “We don’t want anyone knowing until we know what this is.”

“Seems like you two can’t keep your hands off each other to me.”

“Well,” James rubbed the back of his neck, sneaking a glance at Lily, who was with her friends at another table, her head bent low over some work. “Yeah. Maybe you have a point.”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 8: Dream || Words: 426 Rating: G

As a girl, Lily had dreamed of a large wedding, married in the same cathedral her parents were wed. As a girl, she imagined her sister beside her, her maid of honour, smiling, radiant and happy to see her younger sister this way. She imagined her parents, her father walking her down the aisle. Her mother crying tears of joy.

Lily imagined herself in a gown as grand as Maria von Trapp, exchanging vows with some dashing tall someone. But that was all it was: a dream.

The reality was something much different. Her father would not walk her down the aisle, he’d been dead more than a year. Her mother would not watch them both, crying, heart full, she too having passed. Petunia would not stand at her side. Petunia wasn’t even going to attend. Lily had just gotten the note mere hours ago.

She’d spent a good hour crying, Marlene rubbing her back. Someone, probably Dorcas, had sent word to James summoning him to the house.

Once alone with Lily in the room they normally shared, he was able to get to the source of her grief. It was a terrible thing, knowing you were marrying the love of your life in a matter of hours, but having none of your own family there to bear witness.

It was a beautiful thing, to know that the person you were marrying cared about your grief, and held you through it. But then dedicated themselves to raising your spirits.

Lily had never, not in her wildest dreams, imagined that she could be loved in this way. So wholly and completely. Never had she felt so cherished and safe than in his arms. But it was near midnight.

“You should go,” she whispered in the dark, her head on his chest. “It’s bad luck to see me before the wedding.”

“I will go,” he breathed, “one minute to midnight.”

“It’s 11:58.”

“Then I still have time.”

They sat in the silence silently counting the seconds, bodies pressed together like they were due for a long separation. In fact they were starting the rest of their lives together in just a few hours.

Finally, he got up and kissed her tenderly.

“I love you, Evans.”

“That’s the last time you get to call me that.”

There was a mischievous glint in his eye.

“You should get sleep while you can. I don’t plan on letting you sleep your first night as a Potter.”

And with a tiny pop, he was gone. A moment later, the clock struck midnight.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March challenge Prompt 18: Halcyon || Words: 335 Rating: T

It was the strangest thing, looking the sky and the people around him, and thinking there could never be a more perfect day. War was here, properly here. Only two weeks ago, he and the people he loved most in the world were safe behind the walls of the school. Now they were in the fight for real.

James was content. Warm even. Warm in ways the summer sun could not touch.

“Cheers!” Sirius shouted, raising a bottle of firewhiskey, laughter on his face. “To the two of you finally shacking up somewhere you can’t bother us!”

“Here, here!” Marlene raised her own bottle.

Lily set a tray of cheese and crackers on the table, a faint blush on her cheeks. James didn’t blame her, his parents were at this little house warming of their too. But well, his parents had to know he and Lily were having sex right? I mean, they did just move in together.

Still, it was one thing to know. Likely quite another to be met with the truth head on.

“You’ll ignore any locked door we have, Padfoot,” Lily shot back.

Sirius shrugged and nodded, then slung one arm around Remus, the other around Peter

“Still, we don’t have to worry about you two invading our space with your debauchery any more.”

“You’re one to talk,” James snorted.

He grabbed Lily by the waist as she passed, pulling her close. She didn’t protest, opting instead to lean against him. He kissed the top of her head, only offering one small smile in acknowledgement at whatever Sirius retorted back.

It was all in good fun, even if James wished his parents weren’t watching the exchange in silence. There was bound to be a hushed lecture later about how he ought to make an honest women of Lily.

And he would. He absolutely already had plans set in motion. But she wasn’t quite ready for that step yet, had told him as much. And this right here was more than enough.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 9: Latter-Days || Words: 257 Rating: T A Jily survives AU, taking place on 1 September, 1996

On the street corner, some priest was harping on about the end of days. Lily thought the man had a point. The hurricane in the West Country, the dense, unnaturally chill fog. Disappearances, murders, fear. She’d seen this before of course, she’d fought it the first time, and she was doing so again.

It was always the end of days. How fucking boring.

“He’s really laying it on thick,” James commented, leaning against the building on the corner.

“He’s not crazy though,” Lily muttered. Green eyes flickered over every person passing them by, committing faces to memory. “To them, it must feel like some demonic end of the world.”

How else would Muggles explain all the Dementor attacks? All those people losing their souls, becoming empty shells. No cure.

“How d’you think Harry looked when we saw him off?” James asked.

He kept fidgeting with his coat sleeves, a nervous habit. He never did well with waiting. Well neither did Lily. She just hid it better.

“Like he couldn’t wait to be on the train and going back to school,” Lily answered.

Across the street, someone under a black hood was nearing the crowed around the priest, head low. Both she and James straightened, hands going to the wands in their pockets. A light misting of rain began to fall, sending a chill through Lily’s bones.

“D’you want to take on the Dementors or the Death Eater?” she asked as the temperature around them began to plunge.

“That looks like Avery, Love,” James smirked. “He’s all yours.”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 20: Fearlessly || Words: 504 Rating: T

“He went down easy!”

Lily barely glanced up from her book as James descended the stairs.

“I don’t even think he cares about that massive scrape on his arm.”

James launched himself over the back of the sofa, landing on the cushions with a flop.

“I told you he wouldn’t,” Lily placed a bookmark in her book and closed it, setting it aside. “You worry too much.”

“Can you blame me?” James asked seriously. There was real worry lining his face. “I mean, given everything?”

“No,” Lily sighed. “I suppose not.”

She curled herself into James then, her head on his chest, one arm wrapped almost lazily around him. How did you move forward from fear when the most evil wizard in the world had once invaded your home and tried to kill your son? It had been a stroke of good fortune that they had their wands on them, able to send a plea to Dumbledore for aid. But three years on, Voldemort gone—not dead just…gone, and Peter still in the wind, they still felt as though an invisible sword were dangling above their heads.

Harry though was thriving. There was hardly a carefree and energetic boy anywhere. For that, Lily was grateful.

“You can’t rush him any time he falls, James,” she said after a beat. “Let him decide if he’s okay. It doesn’t help to scare him.”

“I know,” James put an arm around her shoulder, then with his other hand tugged at his hair. “I just dunno how to be one of those easy-going parents. What if he really gets hurt?”

“Then we’ll patch him up,” Lily said decisively.

She remembers how stifled she felt growing up, always pushing boundaries. Her parents—mum especially—always trying to reign her in. Lily vowed to never be that way. Kids needed some freedom. Freedom to push themselves, freedom to decide if they were hurt. Freedom to be fearless.

“We’re not bad parents of we don’t rush him every time every time he falls off the swing set.”

“Yeah,” James sighed. “But I feel like I am sometimes.”

“You’re not. He was fine today, James.”

“He was,” and she can hear the amused smile in his voice now. “Got right back up and wanted to go again!”

They’re quiet for a minute, feeling the other breathe, listening to the sound of the clock ticking on the mantel.

“You’ll tell me if I’m being a shit dad, won’t you?”

“Of course,” Lily turned her face up to look at him. “You have to promise to do the same to me too though.”

“I don’t think it’s possible for you to be a shit dad, Lil.”

She swatted his chest.

“Don’t be an idiot, you know what I meant.”

“Yeah,” he kissed her. “I did. But I don’t think you could ever be bad at this.”

“We all make mistakes. You and I just have to keep each other in line.”

“I think I can do that. It’s you and me, isn’t it?”

“Always.”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 19: Shout-out || Words: 517 Rating: T

“To the most beeeautiful woman in the world!”

“Oh my God,” Lily buried her face in her hands, face flushing.

“Just how drunk is he?” Marlene asked.

“I dunno, I didn’t see everything he drank!”

“To the most beautiful woman in the world!” James slurred, strutting about the stage in a poor imitation of Freddie Mercury. He pointed. Right at Lily. “This one’s for you, baby!”

Sirius plopped down in an empty chair, fresh beer in hand. Lily swatted his shoulder as the music began to play.

“How much did you give him to drink?”

Sirius shrugged.

“Sirius!”

“What? He needed to relax!”

“I got chills, they’re multiplying!”

“And now he’s singing Grease in the middle of a Muggle pub!”

“You’re the one who made him watch that ridiculous film,” Sirius took a drink, smirking. “This is your fault.”

“Isn’t this song a duet?” Marlene raised a brow. “Why is he singing alone?”

“I offered to help him out,” Sirius said mildly. “He said to sod off.”

Lily groaned. Neither she nor James drank much, but they were given a week off of Order duties. Dumbledore frequently imposed these breaks on the members to try and avoid burnout. The only thing it did for Lily and James was make them restless. It had been Sirius’s idea to take them to his favourite pub in London.

At least James was having fun, switching between a horrible falsetto to imitate Olivia Newton-John’s vocals, and…whatever the hell he was doing imitating John Travolta. He was going to be horribly hungover and mortified in the morning though.

Sirius raised his glass, whooping as James really got into the music, gyrating and head banging. Annoyingly, a couple Muggle girls up front were giving him doe-eyes too. Marlene gave Lily a side-long glance and snorted when she realised what Lily was looking at.

“Easy there, tiger,” she said. “He’s only got eyes for you!”

True enough, James was barely taking his eyes off her. But that didn’t mean she wanted other girls trying to accost him when he was done acting a right fool. Lily sat up straighter, sweeping her hair over her shoulder, catching James’s eye. She raised a finger and beckoned.

He seemed to have been waiting for her to do just that, for he leapt off the stage, mic still in hand, and danced his way to her table.

“You’re the one that I want! You are the one I want! Ooh, ooh ooh, honey! The one that I want!”

He finished horribly out of tune, but received cheers and hoots regardless. It helped that most of the pub was sloshed too. James buried his face in Lily’s chest and wrapped his arms around her.

“Did you like my song?”

“Yes, you drunken fool.”

He lifted his head to look at her. If you looked up the word ‘lovesick’ the look he was giving her now had to be right next to the definition. It was endearing.

“I’m your drunken fool.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Lily stood, handing the mic back to the bartender. “Let’s go home and get you to bed.”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 15: Impossible || Words: 225 Rating: G This particular micro is connected to my main fic but can be read independently!

There were no words to describe the tempest of emotions swirling inside of him. Lily, tears still staining her flushed cheeks was finally, blessedly asleep. She hadn’t properly had a rest in more than a day, she deserved to lie back now.

But it meant that James was alone with his son for the first time.

He doubted how he held the tiny baby. Was he doing it right? What if he wasn’t and he hurt this perfect being? He wanted to wake Lily, make sure he was right, but he resisted.

They would decide properly on a name once Lily woke, having steered away from the topic for most of the pregnancy, opting to avoid learning the sex even. But there was something about this baby that reminded James of his grandda, and Lily had already said she liked the name Harry.

His son was sleeping too, having entered the world in a furious burst of energy, he was clearly now spent. He had a perfect little nose, tiny lips and fingers. For the brief moment his eyes had been open, James saw that he’d inherited his mother’s blazing green. Perfect. Remarkable.

It was impossible to look at him and be haunted by the potential prophecy he might inherit. Here, holding him, his wife resting and well, the world was wholly and completely right.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 12: Lonely || Words: 516 Rating: G This micro is connected to my main fic, but can be read independently!

She always came to the lake when she was upset. Didn’t matter the weather, if Lily needed a breather, this was the first place she thought of. And she was upset a lot these days.

It seemed that no matter what she did, Lily was in a row with someone. Usually, it was Severus. She, hurt and confused by the company he frequently kept. He, furious if she so much as exchanged a friendly word with Potter.

But she fought with others too. Marlene, Mary, and Ayisha were always on her case about Severus. They found new ways to criticise her for her friendship with her, but they never really tried to understand why she was friends with him either. And maybe she didn’t try as hard to help them along.

Petunia too, always seemed to find something to fight about in the few letters she sent Lily.

Today, she was fighting with all three. But at least the sun was shining. Lily figured she might as well soak up the sun as much as she could before she had to hunker down for O.W.L. revision.

Still, she couldn’t help but feel the weight of loneliness as she dipped her feet into the fridged water. Lily felt like she was stretching herself in every direction, everyone expecting something from her, and her unable to meet any one of them. No matter what she did, it was wrong.

She was tired of it.

“Aren’t you cold?”

She started and turned around from where she sat, then frowned. It was rare to see Potter out alone.

“Oh,” she said turning forward again. “Hey. And no, I’m not.”

“Goose bumps on your neck say otherwise.”

Annoyed, Lily rolled her eyes. What was Potter even doing paying attention to her neck? And so what if she was cold? It was May, the water was not as freezing as it had been.

“What do you want?” she asked.

“Always right to the point, aren’t you, Evans?”

She said nothing, stubbornly watching the water. Finally he plopped down beside her and gave her a lopsided grin.

“We need one more person to play Chaser in a pickup game of Quidditch,” he said, probably realising that she wasn’t going to encourage the conversation along. He was (partly) the reason why she was fighting with Sev. “You game?”

“Dunno,” she muttered.

“Because it’s so fun sitting out her alone? Come on, Evans, I know you don’t like sitting on your own for too long.”

“Maybe it is fun out here,” she sounded like a petulant child.

“Maybe,” he rumpled his hair. “But you’re not the type to wallow for very long. You’ll get bored.”

“How d’you know I’m wallowing?”

“I’m an expert. You should see the kind of moping Remus gets up to. You make a good showing of it, Evans. But you’re not a professional like he is.”

In spite of herself, Lily grinned.

“You’re an idiot,” she said.

“Yeah. So what d’you say? You in or are you out?”

She considered for half a moment, then gave a true smile.

“I’m in.”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March challenge Prompt 7: Figs || Word count: 515 Rating: T This micro is connected to my main fic, but can be read on it's own!

“Mate, you look pathetic.”

Did he? James didn’t care. Sirius just didn’t understand these things. These things being Lily Evans, sitting in the sunlight, laughing and talking with her friends, auburn hair burning like wildfire as the sun wove its way through it. She had some fruit in hand, but James was too far away to identify it, and it was cupped in her hand besides; juices running down her fingers.

She plopped a finger in her mouth and seemed to suck clean whatever was on those long, slender fingers.

James felt his trousers become uncomfortably tight.

Sirius looked down as James covertly moved his satchel to his lap and threw back his head to laugh.

“Shut up, Padfoot,” he snapped.

“Prongs, you are pitiful.”

“She’s fucking fit. You wouldn’t understand.”

“She’s friends with Snivelly,” Sirius snorted.

That was true. But James thought she and Snape were on the rocks of late. He’d seem them in more than one heated—though whispered—argument, and they rarely looked resolved. Maybe, finally, Lily would realise her best friend was a complete bellend.

“D’you think the rumours are true? That she and Dearborn broke up?”

“If it is,” Sirius leaned back against a stone pillar looking haughty and bored. “She doesn’t look too cut up about it.”

Good. That was good. Dearborn was a prat. James couldn’t think of any real reason why, but he was. Aside from holding hands with Lily in the corridors, and snogging her between classes for months, he hadn’t done anything else despicable. But James knew there had to be something wrong with the bloke.

After all, if the rumours were true, he’d dumped Lily Evans.

James watched as she and her friends stood, beginning to make their way back inside, probably off to the Divination classroom. And well, James couldn’t help himself.

“All right, Evans?”

Sirius groaned as James ran a hand through his hair. Lily, however, paused as she and her group passed him. She eyed James with something just shy of critical, as though trying to spot a hint of mischief. Finding none, she took another bit of the fruit in her hand, a fig. James’s eyes slid to her perfect mouth and wondered what it would feel like to kiss it.

“Did you need something, Potter?” she asked once done chewing.

“Yeah,” and he said the first stupid thing his brain came up with. “Skipped lunch. Fancy sharing that fig?”

The fig she’d just bitten out of. Idiot.

She, however, only considered for a moment. After all, James had said plenty of stupid shit around her before. This was hardly the worst of them. Then she shrugged and tossed the fig his way. James reached up on instinct and caught it, but nearly dropped it as she stuck another finger in her mouth to suck the juice from her fingers.

Merlin, she was going to kill him!

“Good luck against Ravenclaw next week, Potter,” she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

And then she was gone, leaving behind a faint trace of santal and jasmine in her wake.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written as part of the @jilymicrofics March Challenge Day 2: Chaperone || word count: 450 Rating: M This one is connected to my main fic.

James would never ever call the woman he’s certain would be his mother-in-law a fool. But he did think that going to bed early, and entrusting Sirius to chaperone her daughter and her boyfriend was an act of a fool. Daisy Evans did not truly understand just how mad for each other he and Lily were. Her lapse in observation was his gain though, his own parents having long since retired.

It was snowing, of course he and Lily were going to cuddle up together on the sofa under the blanket. And of course, Sirius was more than happy to lay out on the floor puzzling out the book of ‘diabolical magic squares’ Lily had gotten him for Christmas. On the telly the Potters rarely used, a film titled Monty Python and the Holy Grail was playing.

“Lily, this is the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen!” James protested, watching as a woman was revealed to weigh the same as a duck, and thus, she was a witch, clearly.

“That’s the point!” she giggled

This film was, according to her, a “cinematic masterpiece”. James had his doubts, but Lily never did look more beautiful than when she was laughing. Of course his hands began to wander. The blanket thrown over them both was the perfect cover.

James grinned against Lily’s temple when she didn’t fight him off and instead bit her lip to keep quiet once his hands found their way under her dress. Her back pressed against his chest and one hand found his knee, fingers curling around the fabric of his trousers.

The smallest of gasps escaped her when his fingers found their way to her knickers, pushing them aside for better access. They both looked to Sirius then, still ignoring them, and breathed a sigh of relief. James continued, quietly reprimanding her for her small outburst.

He massaged her, slow and methodical, stopping when her breathing became too laboured, or he thought she was going to moan, but a reprieve was all it was. In return, she’d twist just enough to kiss his neck and whisper as quietly as she could, begging him to keep going.

A few minutes of dedicated attention and James could feel Lily getting close, could feel her stifling every sigh and moan, and how hard it was for her to keep at it. Just a little bit—

“Merlin’s pants, you two!” Sirius interrupted. “If you wanted to wank each other off, you could’ve asked me to leave!”

Lily laughed, but there was some frustration behind it, the moment slipping away from them as they realised they’d been caught.

“Right,” James breathed. “You mind fucking off now?”

“Bloody rabbits, the pair of you! Disgusting!”

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March challenge Prompt 16: Meatball || Words: 439 Rating: T

“Ugh, what did you do to this?”

He looks up from his plate to see Sirius looking at the meatball on his fork with disgust. James immediately feels self-conscious. He can cook, he’s fully capable of it, but it is Lily who is truly the inspired chef in the house.

Lily though is recovering from childbirth. James has never seen her look as tired as she’s been this last week. Of course he wanted to take any burden off her shoulders.

“It can’t be that bad,” James said, resisting the urge to nervously flatten his hair. “I was taste testing throughout the whole process!”

“It tastes like dog food, Prongs.”

“Maybe that’s just a you problem, Padfoot,” James muttered darkly.

Still, he eyed the dish of meatballs and rice with apprehension. Maybe he really had mucked it all up?

“Go ahead a try it,” there was a wicked gleam in Sirius’s eye. “You don’t want to give that to your wife. It’ll eventually wind up feeding Harry too! Don’t want to start off parenting on the wrong foot, eh?”

James was not nearly as exhausted as Lily, but he was still more tired than he’d ever remembered being. And he was not in good spirits. Still, he took a tentative bite of one of the meatballs.

And it was…

Well it was all right, actually.

James had had better, made better. But it was perfectly edible. It tasted decent. He shot Sirius a filthy look. Sirius in response, burst out laughing.

“You should see your face! I’ve never seen you look so worried about something!”

“Fuck you, Padfoot.”

James started dishing up a plate for Lily, making sure her portion size was bigger than what he or Sirius was going to get. Nursing was taking a lot out of her.

“You’re supposed to be here helping.”

“And I am. But you also need to be regularly brought down a peg, mate.”

“That can be put on hold,” James got a class from the cabinet and poured cool water into it. “It’s hard enough trying to figure out what a baby needs.”

“They just need love and care right now,” Sirius said sagely. “You two already have that figured out.”

“Cheers.”

Exhausted, drained, James made his way upstairs with dinner. Lily was sat on their bed in the process of swaddling Harry.

“Hey,” she muttered, not looking up. “Smells great.”

“Thanks.”

Once Harry was properly restrained, Lily handed him over to James. Below, James could hear Sirius going about cleaning up the kitchen.

Lily ate her dinner in silence. She made no sign that the meal was below her standards.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompt 23: Unconditional || Words: 129 Rating: G

She hated when they fought. It was becoming so easy to fall into it, cooped up as they were. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting for a potentially world-saving baby to make their appearance. Both of them felt the weight of it all. And neither of them were meant to be cooped up this way.

They were meant to be out there fighting. Is it any wonder that they turned their missiles at each other now?

But the ice thawed between them as it always did. A cuppa tea for her. Her rubbing his shoulders as he tinkered with the radio. It was useless, trying to stay mad. The two of them were in orbit around each other. Always had been, always would be.

And simply put: they loved each other. Unconditionally.

[itstherisingdaylight]

Written for @jilymicrofics March Challenge Prompts 21 & 22: Detour & Betrayal || Words: 406 Rating: T

He was glad they decided to walk a ways, decompressing after a night of excitement. James wasn’t one for big cities, and he failed to see what was so great about Manchester most days, but their detour through the side streets had led him and Lily to a walk along the River Irwell. And when the early spring sun beginning to set it was hard to deny that there was beauty here.

“It was a good show, yeah?” Lily’s voice broke the silence.

She loved going to concerts, and with the Order, it was hard to find the time. James, while not as much as a music enthusiast as she, was always more than happy to come along.

“Yeah,” he agreed. Though he couldn’t remember the band’s name. It wasn’t one Lily often listened to. “Who were they again?”

She laughs, clear and sweet, and pours some Bertie Botts into her palm.

“Journey,” she answered.

With a finger, she starts sorting the flavours. She was really good at determining which ones were safe, and which ought to be avoided. It was almost uncanny. She selected a yellow one and plopped it into her mouth.

“Marmalade,” she said with a hum. “Not the best but could’ve been worse.”

“You don’t like marmalade?”

“I don’t not like it. It’s just mediocre. I was hoping for a nice lemon.”

“Right well, work your magic and find something nice for me,” James held out a hand. “I wouldn’t say no to a nice marmalade myself.”

Lily rolled her eyes at him playfully, but studied the collection of jelly beans in her hand. After a minute, she seemed to make her selection.

“Open wide,” she said.

Before he really could, she stood on her toes and sneaked a kiss. Just as James was about to pull her in for more, she managed to get a bean into his mouth. He chewed, then screwed his face up in disgust.

Something metallic assaulted his taste buds. He shuddered.

“What the bloody hell was that?”

“Tire iron!” Lily looked positively gleeful.

“That’s a flavour?”

“Every flavour, James.”

He wanted to spit the damn thing out, but pride forced him the chew and swallow instead. After taking a moment to recover, James swept Lily up, throwing her over his shoulder. She dropped the jelly beans in surprise, but she laughed too.

“All right, traitor,” he said. “Let’s get you home so I can exact revenge.”