Lily Evans and the Marauder's Secrets

Epilogue: September First

Five Months Later

"You look lovely, dear."

"Thanks, Mum." I meet her eyes in the mirror over my shoulder, and she smiles through tears. "I love you."

"What about me?" Marlene calls from where she lounges on the bed, her pale green dress riding halfway up her legs. "Do you love me, too?"

"Don't get so greedy, Mar," Emmeline chastises her, rearranging my long curls one last time so they lay just right over the creamy lace. "Today's not about you."

"Yeah," Alice chimes in, poking her head out from the attached bathroom where she's finishing up her own hair. "She's saving all her love for James, not you."

Everyone in the room laughs, even Mrs. Potter, sitting quietly in the chair by the bed, and I feel my face flood with heat, but I smile. "Well, you're not wrong."

"Everyone in here decent?" Sirius barely gives any time for us to respond before he throws the door open, my dad hovering apologetically behind him, and I put my hands on my hips.

"Black, I know this is your house, but you should at least knock first before -"

But he cuts me off, grinning as he takes me in. "Goodness, Evans. You actually look quite nice. Maybe Prongs has been right all along after all."

I roll my eyes, but my smile can't be controlled. "Thanks." I give him a once-over: he's remembered to tuck his shirt into his khaki trousers, and the buttons on his vest are all done up properly. "You shine up alright yourself."

He smirks. "I know." He looks past me at the rest of the room. "It's about time. James is going to wear a path in the garden if you're not all out there in the next five minutes. Except you, of course, Evans. You have to wait for your grand entrance or whatever."

"Right you are," Mrs. Potter says, getting to her feet. "Let's go." She squeezes my hand as she goes past, and Marlene, Emmeline, Alice, and Mum file out with her, all of them pausing to hug me as they go, and Alice hands me my bouquet.

"See you in a minute, Lil," Mum whispers, and then it's just Dad and me. I join him at the top of the stairs, watching everyone else exit out the back door into the garden.

"Sirius is right – you do look very nice, Lils," he says. He wraps me in a careful hug. "You ready?" he asks.

"Yes," I say. "You?"

"I've had all summer to get ready," he says with a wry smile, and it's true; after school ended back in June, it had only taken a week apart for James to talk to Dad, and ever since, if I hadn't been at his parents' house, he'd been at mine. When we weren't out on assignment with the Order, that is. Because even after the attacks all school year on the Muggle population, and his defeat in Hogsmeade, Voldemort's efforts hadn't slowed. If anything, the discovery of Death Eaters at the Ministry kicked the war into a frenzy, and Dumbledore kept the Order very, very busy responding to a variety of crises the last few months, though none quite as extreme as what we'd dealt with back in March. Still, it has been a busy, heart-pounding kind of summer, and I probably haven't seen my parents as much as they would have liked. But I have kept my promise to Mum: technically, I've lived at home all summer with them.

"And you're really okay with this?" I whisper as I take Dad's arm. We start down the stairs too. Outside, the music has started, and my heart picks up. Just a few moments more...

He smiles. "Yes. You two are a perfect fit. And after everything that happened this last year, I certainly have no doubts he'll take care of you." He nudges me. "And you him."

"I know," I say, squeezing his arm. "Thanks, Dad."

We both fall quiet, listening. Then...

"That's us," Dad says, and together we step out the door.

It's the first of September, and August's heat lingers to make the early evening quite warm. The Potters' garden overflows with greenery and late summer wildflowers, and the sunshine turns everything gold. The crowd lining the aisle is very small, just the way we wanted it. With all that's going on right now, it didn't feel appropriate to throw a huge party, but everyone important to us is here. Mum, Dad, Alice, Em, Marlene, Sirius, Remus, Peter... I'd even invited Petunia, though I hadn't been surprised when she'd declined. Honestly, I'd been relieved, but I thought maybe it was the thought that counted. And she'd sent a gift. Small steps. We'd get there, someday.

But, right now, all that really matters is who's waiting for me at the end of the aisle. The rest of the crowd blurs away, and all I see is James, his eyes shining and all his hair under control for probably the first time in his life.

"Hey," he says, once my dad has passed me off to him.

"Hi," I say.

"You look great," he says, grinning. "Special occasion?"

"Something like that," I say. I reach up and tousle his hair so that it sticks up in the back. As it should. "There you go," I tell him. "Now you look great, too."

"Thanks, Evans," he says.

And now I grin, too. "Not Evans for much longer."

I have to look away for how bright his smile grows.

I'm sure it's a lovely ceremony. Alice takes my flowers, the officiant says a bunch of words. Sirius hands us both the rings, and we take turns sliding them on each other's fingers. He says, "I will," and then I do. When the officiant finally declares us 'bonded for life,' there's a shower of silver stars and we kiss, James trying to make it last longer than it should in front of an audience. Sirius and Peter wolf-whistle, and I blush and smile without restraint. The ceremony flows seamlessly into the reception, and drinks, and pictures, and dancing. Everything is a golden, sparkling blur, and I'm so happy.

After James has danced with his mother, and I with my father, and we've done the first dance to an audience (we've come a long way since our awkward shuffling at Petunia's wedding), and after everyone has flocked us for congratulations, and our guests are enjoying themselves on the dance floor, we finally get a moment alone.

The sun has set, the sky going deep deep blue, the first stars winking to existence overhead. The music's soft and slow, and I rest my head on his shoulder with a contented sigh while we sway a bit of a ways from the rest of the crowd.

He chuckles. "Good day?"

"The best," I say, and his arms tighten around my waist.

"Do you remember," he says, "where we were, one year ago today?"

I smile up at him. "Of course I do," I say. "It's September first. We were where we were every September first: on the train back to school."

"Yes," he says. "And you were Head Girl, and I..."

"You were Head Boy," I say. I poke him in the chest, where his badge would have been. "I was so mad."

"I know," he says, and he grins. "I was so excited. And... nervous."

"Nervous?" I say, one eyebrow raised skeptically. "I didn't think James Potter did nervous."

"You made me nervous. There you were, all perfect and beautiful and so determined to hate me, and all I wanted that day was to make one good impression. All I wanted was to end the year with you not thinking I was the worst person in the world." His grin grows. "In my wildest fantasies I thought maybe we could even end up friends."

I look around at the party, at our friends and family here celebrating with us. "I think you got a bit more than you bargained for."

"I'm glad."

"Me too."

When he leans down to kiss me, it's long and slow and promises all the time in the world. Even though we both know that might not be true. But right now, in this moment, with all the magic and family and so, so much love, anything feels possible.

"Love you, Lily," he whispers.

"Love you, too, James," I say back.

Until the very end.