Jily Oneshots (pt2)

The Evans Girl

by novemberthird

It was a Potter tradition since Euphemia Potter (née Gambol) joined the family to host a winter ball every New Year's Eve. While Euphemia's father-in-law, Henry Potter, held no malice towards Non-Purebloods, the event remained very exclusive with only Purebloods and a handful of Half-Blood families in attendance for many decades. It wasn't that Muggleborns were never invited, those who were just didn't accept the invitation out of fear of Pureblood retaliation from those families who thought themselves superior and hadn't been invited. This, however, changed during their son James' final year at Hogwarts.

'Hey, mum, dad?' Their son seemed nervous as he wrangled his hands together as an amused Sirius Black smirked next to him; James himself remained uncharacteristically quiet.

'Yes, James,' his father asked with an amused glint in his blue eyes. Fleamont Potter was never beyond taking the mickey out of his rather exuberant son.

'Err...well, the thing is…' His son's stuttering made Fleamont give his wife a knowing look. When it came to their son there had only been a handful of occasions that had made him stutter and his face flush, and all those occasions had been teasing from the other gentleman at the table. Teasing that was surely about a girl.

'What's her name, honey?' Euphemia had eagerly asked, her eyes delighted at the mere thought of her son's love life, like every mother.

Sirius laughed, turning it into a cough as as James glared at the boy.

'I...err, Lily.' James sighed the name as if it were the most precious and delicate thing to ever grace the world. 'Lily Evans.'

'Evans?' His mother began pouring over the list of Evanses she knew and came up short. She turned to Fleamont, 'Do we know any Evanses, Monty?'

'She's a Muggleborn,' James said before his father could respond. 'I was wondering if I could bring her to the ball on Saturday…' He coughed awkwardly before adding, 'As my date.'

Euphemia's smile was wide, her hazel eyes shining as she began questioning the young man about the girl. James' face was completely red as he admitted to his mother that he's been seeing the Evans girl since October.

'And here I bet Remus that James wouldn't ask and would just turn up with Evans instead.' Sirius told Fleamont as they laughed at Euphemia's methods of torturing her son.

James supposed it was better now than the day of the ball.

When Saturday finally approached, James's nerves, however, doubted his earlier statement.

'What if mum scares her away, Padfoot?' James groaned into his pillow. 'I like Lily.' James' eyes were pleading with Sirius to help him before he decided to just feed himself to the giant squid instead. James mumbled into the pillow incoherently.

'What?' Sirius asked before nudging the boy lightly to move over.

'I said I love her.'

Sirius snorted, 'Well that's obvious, Prongsie.' He smiled at the distressed boy, 'You look at her as if she's all that matters, and she looks at you the same way. She looks at you as if you're the only thing that can make everything okay again.'

James smiled at that, a smile that expressed just how much that meant to him.

'Now let's get you ready, I have to go pick up your date in an hour while you, as the Potter heir, greet all the guest.' He grinned at the pout that appeared on James' face, 'What a pity.'

'Mum, do I really have to do this?' James' complained as his mother positioned him at the door to the manor. 'All these people do is comment on how I should marry one of their daughters or granddaughters or pinch my cheeks.'