You Only Live Once

CHAPTER 37

"I can't believe you finished school. It feels like it went by in a blink of an eye" James said. He was leaning against a soot-stained pillar at King's Cross, looking every bit the proud older brother.

Mira adjusted the strap of her trunk, offering him a dry smile. "Yeah, maybe because I've been here only two years, Jamie."

"Shhhh, let me savor the moment" James insisted, throwing an arm around her shoulder and steering her toward the exit.

"Sure" Mira replied softly.

The last month at Hogwarts had been a frantic, exhausting blur. Between the standard pressure of N.E.W.T.s and the crushing weight of their secret mission, Mira felt as though she had aged a decade in four weeks. While other students were worrying about their future careers at the Ministry, Mira had been huddled in the shadows of the library or the cold corners of the dungeons with Regulus and Evan. They had successfully secured Tom Riddle's diary and Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem, but the victory felt heavy. There were four more Horcruxes to find, and since they were hidden in places that required high-level magic or ancient blood protections, Mira had no choice but to step back. She hated being the one left behind, but she knew her limits.

Worse than the tactical frustration was the quiet, simmering tension between her and Regulus. Ever since that night on the couch, things had been... strange. He behaved exactly as he always had—polite, sharp, and intensely focused. She couldn't tell if he was a master at hiding his feelings or if the moment had truly meant nothing to him. Both possibilities hurt in different ways. And now, looming over her like a dark cloud, was the upcoming wedding of Theo and Christina. It was a social obligation she dreaded more than any hex.

"–and I gave it great thought so, if you agree as well, I believe I should do it" James finished. He stopped walking and looked at Mira expectantly, his eyes bright behind his glasses.

They were walking down a busy London street the Muggle way. James had insisted on it, claiming they needed to "blend in" for the first part of their journey, though he looked entirely out of place in his slightly-too-long coat and the way he stared at every passing bus with wide-eyed wonder.

"You didn't hear a word I said, did you?" James asked. He tilted his head, a look of mock disappointment crossing his face.

Mira blinked, realizing she had been staring at a red telephone box. "You need my opinion on something" she stated. She reached out and snagged the sleeve of his coat, pulling him back just as he nearly stepped in front of a black taxi. "Watch out. Cars don't care if you're a wizard, James."

"I want to ask Lily to marry me" he blurted out.

"Sure, yeah" Mira said with a casual shrug.

She took his hand in hers, weaving through the crowd to cross the street. In her mind, James proposing to Lily was as natural as the sun rising. She had known about their love story long before she had ever met them. It was a fixed point in history, a major chapter in the book she had once read. But when she felt James's hand trembling slightly in hers, she stopped. She looked at him and realized that for him, this wasn't a plot point. This was his life. He didn't know the ending. He was just a young man terrified of rejection and deeply in love.

"I'm sorry I'm not more excited, Jamie" she said gently. "It's just... I already knew it would happen."

James stopped dead on the sidewalk, a giant, crooked smile forming on his face. "Wait! It's supposed to happen? So it's the right call?"

Mira pursed her lips. She wasn't supposed to give away the future, but looking at his anxious face, she couldn't help herself.

"Come on" James whined, taking her by the arms and shaking her slightly. "Break the rules. Just this once. Give a man some peace of mind."