Piece By Piece

Chapter One: One Summer's Eve

James Potter yearned every year for the end of the Quidditch season. Not because he disliked the sport; in fact quite the contrary was true. He loved the sport. He especially loved playing it; the wind in his hair, the thrill of flying meters above the ground, and the rush that came when he was able to pass the quaffle between his teammates or through one of the goalposts. No, he yearned for the end of the season because it meant that he could leave the pitch and the Cannons for a few months and come home to his own house and one of the two things he loved more than Quidditch; Lily.

That afternoon, after hours of commuting, James arrived at his doorstep. He smiled as he unlocked and pushed in the door. He took off his shoes and half-kicked, half-threw them to the side. The house was quiet; Lily was still at work. James sighed as he lugged his bags up to his bedroom, dropped them on the floor, and dropped himself onto the bed. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, running his hands along the soft blanket. He'd missed having such a large bed. Resisting the urge to fall into a nap, James pushed himself off and made his way into a shower; the nicest one he'd taken in months. When he was done he pulled on a pair of sweatpants, a tee shirt, and a light sweater and crawled under the covers. His stomach protested; it wanted food, but James was too tired to oblige. He was asleep in seconds.

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Lily Potter arrived home at 7:30 that night. Her day had been uneventful, which was normal; few Death Eaters or affiliates had died in 1981, making the year-bubble of the afterlife in which she and James "lived" rather inactive when it came to violent wizard crime.

James, Lily thought, smiling. Right now he should be partying with his team; celebrating their 9th World Cup win since the 1981 League had started playing. She missed him, sometimes so much that it made her chest physically hurt; but she knew that he'd be home in a week at most.

Lily opened the door to her house and stepped inside. As she set down her keys and hung her coat on a hook, something caught her eye. There was a pair of sneakers on the floor beside her. They were too big to be hers. When she turned and locked the door, she noticed a second pair of keys resting on the small table beside it. That's when she realized...

Lily dropped everything she was holding and took the stairs two at a time. She stopped abruptly in the doorway of her bedroom and couldn't help but grin broadly as she took in the scene in front of her. James, James, was curled up under the blanket on their bed; one arm out and clutching the covers. His face was relaxed; he looked like he was getting the best sleep he'd had in months. Lily wanted nothing more in that moment than to curl up next to him. She let out something between a relieved sigh and a quiet laugh. He must've heard her; his eyes opened and he stretched his long arms and legs. When he put his hands back under his head, he looked up and paused when his eyes met Lily's.

"I don't need my glasses to know who's standing in that doorway," he joked, still half asleep.

Lily laughed and crawled onto the bed; James sat up and they pulled each other into a tight embrace. Lily felt herself relax in James' arms as she rested her head on his chest. He smelled like broom polish and lavender shampoo.

"I missed you so much," James mumbled, burying his face in her hair.

"I missed you too," Lily replied. Then she paused. "And not that I'm ungrateful," she began, "but aren't you still supposed to be out celebrating with the team?"

James grinned and softly put his hand on the exposed side of Lily's face. She moved her head so her eyes could meet his. "I wanted to be home," he said.

"But this is a World Cup win," Lily countered. "that's big!"

"It's number nine. The celebration is always the same. I just missed you too much."

Lily let out a small laugh and put her head back down. "I love you."

"I love you too."

The two stayed together for a few minutes until James' stomach broke the silence. He gave an apologetic smile. "Is it dinnertime?"

"Why not," Lily said, getting up. "I'm starving."

They walked downstairs and made a small dinner for themselves. While they were eating they took turns describing the past few months of their lives; James more enthusiastically than Lily. It didn't mean Lily disliked her job; being an auror meant the world to her. It just wasn't as eventful as professional Quidditch. Besides, she thought James was adorable when he talked about something he loved.

When they finished eating, James offered to do the dishes while Lily took a shower. Afterwards the two changed into pyjamas and crawled into bed together. They both fell asleep within minutes, tangled in each other and under the sheets. It was the best night that either of them had in months.

Little did they know what would be waiting when they woke up...

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A/N:

Hey! So this is the first chapter; obviously more exposition than action but hey, that's how books work. I wanted to get this out ASAP so you guys could have a little taste of what's to come. If you guys have any comments or questions, feel free to message me or drop them in the comments! I hope you liked this chapter, and I'll see you guys soon!

Best,

the_fandom_bookworm

Small edit: fixed some words from when Lily gets home