101 Ways to Ask Lily Evans Out

#15

"I'm feeling a bit sick," Lily said, putting down her magazine. "It's almost Halloween and I always used to carve pumpkins with my parents and Petunia. Mum would bake pumpkin seeds, Dad would clean them out, and Petunia and I would always pick out our designs." It had only been a few months since both her parents had died and she wasn't feeling herself.

"Lily, don't be sad," Marlene said, putting a comforting arm around her. "What can I do?"

"I dunno, I just wanna be alone right now. If that's okay." 

Hestia looked at Marlene was a frown, but the two left the common room leaving Lily.

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An hour later both girls returned, but not alone. Remus came in with Hestia bearing carving tools, Alice came with a bowl of pumpkin seeds, and Sirius and Marlene came back followed by eight hollowed pumpkins.

"Pumpkin delivery for Lily Evans!" Sirius said, setting them down on the newspaper he had laid. A fresh wave of tears came in her eyes and Sirius panicked. "Shit - Lily! I didn't mean to make you cry. I only tried to help."

Lily smiled, wiping away the tears. "No Sirius, these are happy tears." She hugged him, crying a bit into his shoulder. "You guys really are so sweet."

"It was James's idea," Marlene said. "He said the best way to get over homesickness, is to bring home to you. Brilliant, actually."

"Potter?"

"The one and only," James said smirking. He sauntered into the room carrying a few cardboard cutouts. "I dunno how muggles do it but I carved out some pictures off these things. Maybe they'll work."

"Thank you James, really." She hugged him too, and he wrapped his arms around her internally screaming.

"Let's get down to carving!"

"I'm gonna do a dog!" Nobody needed to look to see who that was.

The seven of them, minus peter, started carving away at their large pumpkins. They'd given up on the knives which caused too much danger with Sirius, and used their wands to carve instead. That way they would easily fix the pumpkin if need be. 

It took quite awhile for everyone to carve. Pumpkin guts flew, slime went everywhere, and Sirius shouted every time he messed up. Which was quite often. James sat across from Lily and turned his pumpkin around. GO OUT? was carved and he had a smug look on his face. Lily smirked back and turned her pumpkin around. NO. Lily chuckled and fixed her pumpkin to a new slate, James do the same. Though James kept looking back at Lily, as his muse.

In the end, they had all come up with masterpieces.

Remus had skinned the orange layer off and left some white to create an outline of the Forbidden Forest on a cloudy night with a full moon. Marlene carved out a scary face, Alice carved FRANK into a heart, Sirius carved a dog and a deer - "It's a bloody stag!" James would correct everyone, that chased each other around in circles. Hestia carved out her initials, and Lily had carved a beautiful lily flower that blossomed. Her favorite, not to be too cliche.

"I'm wiped," James said yawning.

"Same here," Sirius added, "Carving really takes a lot out of a man."

"We'll put the pumpkins somewhere," Hestia said. "It's getting late anyways, we should head to bed." 

"Hey James, you never showed us yours," Marlene said. 

"It doesn't really matter..."

Remus followed James and Sirius up to bed after clearing away all the newspapers and pumpkin guts. Marlene and Hestia put the pumpkins along the fireplace but they stopped upon seeing James's. "Wow," Marlene breathed. "It's beautiful."

Marlene turned it around so the other three could see it. It was Lily, carving out her pumpkin on the floor with the firelight flickering, illuminating her carved features. Lily smiled, putting a candle in it. "It really is..."