The French Redhead☆Jily AU

《ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ #16》

9th August 1976

A breezy, sunny day was something James Potter really enjoyed. He liked the rain too, but sunny days meant ice cream, milkshakes, and hours and hours of Quidditch.

So, he stood in the Quidditch Pitch at the Potter Manor and was polishing his broom as he got ready for a friendly match.

There were Scarlett, Emmeline, Dorcas, Sirius, Katherine, Isadora and Alice. Eight people in all. So one chaser, one beater, one keeper and one seeker per team.

James was the seeker, obviously, Emmeline was the chaser, Sirius the beater and Scarlett was the keeper.

For the other team, Dorcas was the chaser, Isadora was the keeper, Alice was the seeker and Katherine the beater.

"Happy losing," Sirius beamed at the other team.

James and Dorcas, as the captains, shook hands and mounted their brooms.

"START!" Dorea Potter blew whistle.

"And, Ladies and Gentlemen, the game as begun. And look at my son, he's already finding the snitch, there's no hurry, Jamie! The world's not gonna end!" Euphemia rolled her eyes.

James sighed as he ducked a bludger by Katherine, who cursed, and flew high above the ground, searching for the snitch.

Alice was trailing behind him, soft girl she was, because she didn't try to overtake him.

Sirius, obviously, was not buying it. He was chucking bludgers towards the other team, grinning maniacally.

"NOT MY GIRLFRIEND, BLACK!" Emmeline screamed at him when he threw a bludger towards Dorcas.

"EVERYTHING'S FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR!" Sirius yelled back, beaming.

"BASTARD!" She insulted back.

Dorea coughed pointedly, bringing them back to the game.

It was when Emmeline made another goal, bringing them in led by 60-20 that James saw a glitter of gold near Scarlett's head.

Unfortunately, Alice saw this too.

"Happy losing," she smiled before diving.

She made a wild grab for the golden snitch, but, at that moment, Sirius shouted, "LONGBOTTOM?!" She whirled around, gaping.

"JAMES HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" Euphemia shouted.

Alice turned again, to see James smirking down at her as he held the golden ball between his long, thin fingers.

"You CHEATERS!" Isadora accused.

"We didn't cheat!" Sirius defended. "Alice shouldn't have turned, Frankie-poo doesn't know our address!"

Katherine prodded his chest with her finger as she glared at him.

"I hate you," she said unkindly. Sirius waved his hand casually and shrugged.

"Don't care," he replied casually, smirking quite smugly.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

10th August 1976

Marlene McKinnon and Lily Evans were walking through the city, just enjoying a calm day together. Marlene's blonde hair was pulled into a low ponytail and she wore faded blue jeans and a white shirt.

Lily's hair was in a messy bun and she was wearing a knee-length black skirt and a sleeveless mint-green top with thin straps.

They were smiling and talking about one thing or the other as they slurped their ice-creams.

At one point, they came across a large poster displayed on a display board which read, in French:

PEARLS PROM PARTY OF 1976

For the young couples, welcome to the PEARLS PROM PARTY hosted by Miss Estelle McChaffrey, a famous fashion designer. The party shall be hosted on the 20th of August at eight in the evening.

Dress code: your outfit must contain your favorite flower.
For more details, contact the following number:

Below it was a telephone number.

Marlene looked at Lily and vice versa.

"Are you thinking what I am thinking?" Marlene asked her.

"Depends on what you are thinking," Lily replied.

"Well," Marlene grinned, "I think we should go."

"Probably we shouldn't," Lily told her. "We don't have dates. I mean, Remary together, Fralice, Doreline and maybe you can go with Sirius. But I? Never. And Kate. And maybe James and Isadora will go together."

She wasn't stupid, alright? She was a goddamn Bellefuille, she was kind and pateint and brave and blah, blah, blah, but she was also smart. She had seen the way Isadora looked at James.

And hating the girl wasn't easy, she was sweet as hell. Ignoring the fact that hell can never be sweet.

"Black? Never," Marlene scoffed, flipping her ponytail to one side and staring at her best friend.

"Mhm, we shall see," Lily answered, winking at her knowingly.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

11th August 1976

Remus Lupin and Mary MacDonald were having their usual evening time near the Eiffel Tower. They sat on the grass, Mary's head in Remus's lap as they laughed and joked and teased.

Mary sighed happily when Remus ran his hands through her hair, massaging her scalp gently.

"Rem?" She said after a while. He hummed, a sign that he was listening. "Do you think Lily likes James?"

He looked down at her with an amused smile. He said, "I don't know why are we discussing match-making during our time, but yes, I think she likes him."

"And he likes her too. They are just so oblivious." Mary threw a blade of grass towards the water, where it floated calmly.

"Like us?" Remus chuckled, smiling slightly.

"Like us," Mary confirmed.

They looked at each other, amber into dusty green, and started laughing. When the fits if laughter had subsided, they still had smiles on their faces. Remus twirled his finger around one of Mary's light brown strands and looked at her, very serious.

"I'm so happy that we happened," he told her, smiling. Mary blushed under his amber gaze.

"Same," she breathed and sat up to kiss him. Pulling back, she rested her forehead against his and smiled. She ran her hands through his sandy blonde locks and planted a soft kiss to his cheek.

"What would you say if I told you that I love you?" He said suddenly, and quitely.

It took her a moment to understand what he meant. Her eyes widened and stared at him, mouth open.

"Y-you, w-what?" She stuttered.

"I do, and I understand if you don't share the feeling. I just wanted to tell you." He squeezed her hand comfortingly.

"I-I love you too, Rem," Mary whispered, smiling. And they kissed again. Breaking apart, they just sat happily, enjoying the sunset.

Silence for a while. They watched the waters around the tower turn red and orange as the sun dipped slowly in the west. The blanket of night wrapped itself around Paris and the moon and stars twinkled in the dark blue sky.

A/N: This chapter took me TWO hours, can you BELIEVE it? I usually complete them in 45 minutes, but this was just a pain in the arse. Anyway, I have a bad migrain so I'll excuse myself. Take care and stay safe!

Love,
~Aurora♡