@alrightginger, lovely human she is, gave me this prompt and bullied me into doing it. In theory this was supposed to be in time for @jilyfest, its couple days late, is that okay? 

Bookstore AU James and Lily work together at Flourish and Blotts over the Summer. Muggle AU? 

AO3

“Guess what?”

“Shit, someone threw up didn’t they?”

“If they did would you come down and clean it?”

“…”

“Honestly I’d judge you either way so I’ll just tell you. “

“Thank god”

“There are two kids down here and the little girl is reading Interstellar Cinderella to her littler brother.”

“Oh my god, send me a snap.”

“No, that’d be illegal or something!”

“What?”

“You can’t just take pictures of children without permission.”

“Okay…”

“Just look in the security monitor.”

“…”

“…”

“Oh my god they’re adorable.”

“I know, right?”

“Oh, hey.”

“Yeah?”

“When did you want to take your break?”

“Right, food for the body. Hmmmm…”

“Evans.”

“But these books feed my soul!”

“Lunch. When?”

“What time is it?”

“You have a cellphone and a computer and a wall clock all right in front of you.”

“Ah yes.”

“…”

“…”

“Evans, I can literally SEE you reading instead of checking the time.”

“Huh? What time is it?”

“Evans!”

“Potter?”

“It’s 2:30”

“For fucks sake, shouldn’t I be on break by now?”

“Minnie’s not gonna like hearing you curse in the kids room.”

“Minerva’s not gonna like hearing you call her Minnie behind her back.”

“Shit you’re right! Only in private.”

“Agh, I can HEAR you smirking, you snit, and no cursing!”

“No one’s even he– Hello, sir, Welcome to– yes the memoir’s on the front table there….to your left…..alright, Evans, Benjy will be down for your break in a minute.”

“Thanks, doll–SHIT THERE’S PIRATES!”

“EVANS.”

She’s not ready to spend the rest of her summer waiting on him and he’s not sure if he remembers a time when he wasn’t waiting on her.

For 2018 Summer @jilyfest read on FFNET

The summer air is stifling and she can feel the sun burning through her light flowery top as she sits there in silence staring up at the sky and watching clouds go by. Alone on the grassy hill, Lily cannot wait for summer to end. The factory towers rise into the sky and emit a trail of black smoke that rolls against the bright blue sky. Her fingers tap against her stomach to a song only she hears. Her red hair fans out behind her head like a blanket. At her side a thick potions book sits unused because her mind always trails off to broomsticks, magic, and a pair of hazel eyes.

I was so inspired to write this yesterday and I was hoping to make it in before @jilyfest summer fest was over… in my time zone I still have about 35 minutes…phew! hope you like it! x

Lily Evans wasn’t one to shy away from dares. Whether she was seven years old and jumping off a swing at its highest point, or sixteen when she drove through her neighborhood with her car solely in reverse, or twenty years old, as she was now, and in between sessions at university.

“Betcha won’t,” her friend Mary goaded as she took a bite out of her ice cream cone.

They were walking through the neighborhood Lily grew up in, having just stopped for ice cream cones to combat the blazing summer heat.

“If ever there was a phrase that would ensure I do something, that would be it,” Lily said matter-of-factly.

“That’s the point.”

Lily shrugged, taking the last few bites of her own ice cream cone just as they entered the playground. The playground had been around for as long as Lily could remember, plus a few decades at least. There had been a campaign when she was little to update the swing set and jungle gym from the rusted metal that once was there. That campaign also included installing bucket seat swings that smaller children could enjoy safely – the swings that Lily headed straight for. She and Mary stopped in front of one, surveying it.

“You won’t fit.”

“I will,” Lily said confidently.

Mary laughed, “Let’s see it then.”

“Gladly.”

Lily swiftly climbed on top of the swing before crouching down. She slid one of her legs in first, pleasantly surprised with the room she had to spare. The second leg took a bit longer and required her to bend acrobatically, but then after a few minutes she found herself sitting in the bucket swing. She glared up at Mary smugly.

“Cough up.”

Mary looked aghast in return. “Unbelievable. Unbelievable!”

Lily laughed, “Twenty quid will teach you to doubt me!” Her laughter faltered as she struggled to remove her leg.

“All right there, Lil?”

I got this idea from here, it was a post made on gryffindormischief blog.

((AU Lily’s touring fancy British country houses and somehow ends up at James’ (a la pride and prejudice) and there’s so much fluff and awkward babies))

Lily Evans had just gotten off the Hogwarts Express, officially finishing her 6th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It had been an interesting year, dealing with NEWT course and whatnot. Even now that all her finals were finished, Lily couldn’t quite shake off the nervous feeling inside her. What if she failed all her exams?! What if she failed all her course and wouldn’t be allowed back at Hogwarts next year!!? What if-!

“Ouff! I’m so sorry! I didn’t see yo- Potter?!”

“Nice to see you too Evans”

“Just watch where you’re going next time!” Lily exclaimed, trying to walk around the tall boy.

“Oh, so you plan on running into me a second time? Don’t worry Lily love, I’ll be there to catch you again!” Potter replied cockily, sending a wink her way before running towards his friends. 

Lily rolled her eyes but didn’t bother shouting at him, instead, she simply continued her walk down the platform in hope of finding her parents. She waved goodbye to other students and friends she saw along the way before she heard the sounds of her mother’s voice calling her.

“Lily! overhear darling!” 

The ginger girl happily ran up into the woman’s arms, sinking into her mothers embrace she so dearly missed. 

“What? Nothing for your dear father?” Her dad teased lightly, snatching Lily in his arms and into a great bear hug.

A/N: AH! Finally got an idea for a @jilyfest fic!  Last minute, on brand hehe.  Prompt concept came from this post :) on @dailyau!  If anyone wanted a follow up….?

Also available on FF and Ao3!

It surprisingly hard to find part time summer work for the few months between when classes end in the spring and resume in the fall.  Partially because of the specific time frame, but mainly because Lily’s apparently not cut out to be a ‘beverage artist’ or a ‘sandwich master.’  

Eventually, she does find an odd bit of success with an organization that connects ‘actors’ with families and event planners looking to hire characters to mingle at their parties. Which, at first, she thought sounded like a euphemism for some sort of sketchy prostitution ring, but a few quick Google searches and a check in with some corporation review websites have her fairly certain it’s on the up and up.  

And it is, they’re pretty nice and it’s a flexible enough schedule that she’s thinking this will be a great semi-permanent gig to make a few hundred whenever she’s home for breaks.

Plus, she’s got almost full-time access to a car, which means she can take a lot of jobs in the wealthier neighborhoods that are more out of bounds for other employees.  So she gets tipped pretty well on top of whatever she gets paid as a flat rate.  

At first, she books a bunch of princess parties where she has to tunnel back into her memory for summers spent at her great grandmother’s cottage in Scotland for an accent reference. But people get more creative as time goes and she has to cobble together a costume that resembles the Red Queen, or Sansa Stark.

The only one she turns down is a bunch of sketchy twenty something blokes who swear they have only the most chaste reasons to hire a woman to dress as Jessica Rabbit.  And given that she doesn’t make that much for an afternoon of mingling and posing and they most definitely will not have the funds to give her a tip that will make the ogling – and likely worse – worth it, it’s an easy no.

She’s just climbing out of the Mystery Machine, sweat dripping down her spine beneath her polyester purple mini dress she picked up at a thrift shop, when her mobile buzzes in her pocket.  

Technically, the job is over, but she’s still not supposed to break character when she’s still at the party, so Lily darts her eyes around and slips away while the kids are all high on cake, candies, and pop.  

It’s got to be nearing the last ring when she finally swipes her finger and clears her throat, “Hey Marlene.”

“I know you’re just coming off a hellish morning.”

Lily snorts,  “Hi Lily, how are you?  Sweaty and ready to rinse the mothballs and preteen angst off your poor sad body?”

Marlene does laugh at that, while shuffling papers around on her perpetually cluttered desk if Lily’s ears are correct, before she sighs, “I wouldn’t bother you if it wasn’t important.”

Swiping at her damp fringe, Lily pulls the pinching green headband from her hair and lets out a breath. “Do you have whatever costume I’ll need?”

Which is how Lily ends up perched on a papier-mâché rock next to an utterly tempting pool wearing mermaid fins and a scratchy seashell bra.  It’s not too bad, as far as her experience with this job goes.  The sun’s not at full force, clouds skating across the blue sky while her ‘fins’ make ripples in the chlorine rich water below.

She’s really not mercenary enough to just do it for the money after she’s been fairly solidly booked for the last week or so.  If it was just about padding her bank account,  Lily would be at home, soaking in her tub and cracking open her latest acquisition from the teen-fiction section at her local bookshop.  

But Marlene knows exactly how to push Lily’s buttons, and ‘special event for children’s hospital’ was most definitely the way to go.  

She’s made it through the meet and greet and about five billion photo-ops without breaking character and/or crying, so it’s going fairly well so far.  And will continue to do so if she can find an adult to rustle up some sunblock before she looks more like a certain crustacean sidekick than a singing mermaid.  

When she’s nearly given up hope, a lanky man with wild hair and what she’ll admit are adorably crooked glasses wanders by with a glass of lemonade in hand.  Quickly, before he can escape, she grabs at his trouser leg and tugs meaningfully, whisper yelling so hopefully no one under the age of fifteen hears.  “Oi! Specs.”

He grins, stupidly handsome, and squats just at her shoulder.  “Yes, Ariel?”

Lily quirks a brow and he leans closer, “If I don’t get some lemonade and sunblock soon, you’re going to have dried out baked salmon on your hands.”

Burying his answering laugh in the wrinkled shoulder of his button up, Specs nods and pushes his glasses back up his nose, giving her a beautiful view of the utterly tempting sinews of his freckled forearms before he disappears into the crowd, all long legs and cheeky smiles.

By the time he returns, she’s taken a few more photos and managed to crank out a bunch of light and fairly canon-compliant conversations – three of which are with endearingly tipsy adults who’ve finally mustered up enough courage to come say hello.  He kneels by her side and hands over the sunblock. “I’m James, by the way.  I’m sorry I didn’t get over here sooner, Mum’s going to kill me.”

“Mum?”

He flushes a little, “Euphemia Potter, she’s the er- benefactress I guess you’d say.”

Lily nods, but doesn’t get her response out before a little girl with pigtails and more cupcake on her face than in her mouth shouts from across the pool, “Eric’s here!  Prince Eric came.”

I’ve been on a regency romance kick lately and my hand slipped.

For the ton – the very top of British society – it was just another Wednesday dinner and ball at the Almack’s. Furthermore, since it was almost June and the London season was nearing its end, the famed Assembly Rooms weren’t quite as busy as they probably had been earlier in the year.

Miss Lily Evans did not care about any of those things, because for her, the evening was full of excitement.

She had struck a friendship with Lady McKinnon back in April and thanks to the Countess’ efforts and the kind judgement of the Patronesses of Almack’s, Lily had been allowed to attend tonight as the Countess’ guest.

Lily had been looking forward to tonight so much she’d even written to Severus about it. They had been fast friends as children, but growing up the distinction between their classes had become apparent and in recent years their paths had mostly separated.

The last time they had met, they had actually got into quite a row. Lily had made up her mind then to limit their acquaintance, but in her enthusiasm about going to Almack’s she’d reached out to him.

He’d promised her a dance.

Lily smoothed down her gown, then picked up her fan. It was difficult to simply stand still when it felt like her every nerve was vibrating.

Fanning herself, Lily let her gaze sweep across the ballroom. She’d carefully schooled her face to show polite interest. Excited as she was, she’d be mortified if she did something as garish as gawk.

Even if that was the Duke of Wellington just there to her left.

The first dance began and Lily stayed in her spot, watching the elegant elite move through the steps of the Scottish reel. The second dance went by, then the third, without any sign of Severus.

Modern AU, First Meeting. 

In which Lily has a summer job and James is out on a summer holiday with his mates.

Originally I also wanted to include their date, but it took ages to write this much so I would have never got this one shot done on time. :/

Inspiration drawn both from that road trip we once did to Swanage and Poole and from that retro cafe I visited with a friend in Camden in London.

It was a perfect summer’s day, the kind on which everyone flocked to the beach. Lily would have loved to join that crowd – there hadn’t been any beaches in Cokeworth and no summer trips to the coast either for the Evans family.

Out from the window, Lily could actually see the ocean glimmering in the sunlight. Even after a week, the sight made her heart soar with giddy excitement.

At 20 years old, Lily Evans was finally spending her summer on the Dorset coast.

The only downside?

She wasn’t on a holiday.

Wrenching her gaze from the window, Lily turned to the approaching customer and summoned a serviceable smile.

“Good day, how can I help you?”

Of course, working all summer wasn’t all bad.

For one – and the most obvious thing – the money would be very welcome. The tuition wasn’t exactly cheap.

Another point in favour of Lily’s summer job was its scenic location right on the quay. Lily wouldn’t get tired at looking at the sea any time soon.

And then there was the job itself. It was in an ice cream parlour that was decorated in a retro 50’s style. It was a lovely shop and Lily felt fully at home.

It also helped that she was friends with one of the managers: Mary MacDonald, Lily’s friend from uni had helped her get the job and had invited Lily to stay with her family in Dorset for the holiday.

All things considered, Lily was sure she would have a great summer in store, even if she wouldn’t be able to go out to the beach on days like this.

Soon enough, she was proven right.

I don’t trust myself to finish things on time, so I’m posting a snippet of something I’m working on for all of you! —

leiaofthevalley reblogged your post “con weekend”

h a p p y  p r i d e !

so. i have an almost 10 month old baby and i don’t think i’ve written a single thing since he entered my world. yet, here i am having written something in one night that popped into my head for @jilyfest. i truly hope it’s not a total a garbage sack of garbage. but it probably is. maybe if you pretend it’s not i’ll be inspired to write something that is actually good. x

Moving from the only home you’ve ever known is challenging for anyone, even seventeen year old Lily Evans who found herself packing up her childhood bedroom the summer before her final year of school. But one needs gainful employment, so Mr. Evans moved his family three hours away from Cokeworth to a small village called Godric’s Hollow. It was surprisingly easy to settle in Godric’s Hollow, which had a quaint main street within walking distance for most of the village’s inhabitants. It didn’t take long for Lily herself to find employment at the local market there.

The market was family owned, and busy as one of the only local grocers. Lily rang up customers, stocked and straightened shelves, and performed various other tasks as needed five days a week. It was pleasant work serving kind patrons, and it only took her a couple of weeks to begin to recognize many of the regulars who frequented the store. But even the most pleasant jobs can be grating, and the third Sunday of Lily’s employment was one of those days. It was the perfect storm of having her monthly visitor and having to work late (skipping dinner) because the other cashier on duty went home ill. Walking home with aching feet, she decided to stop at the small ice cream parlor she passed every day but had never tried.

It was a stand-alone building on the outskirts of the main street, the kind of building that had a walk-up window for ordering, without indoor seating. Instead there were half a dozen tables in front of the shop. As she walked up, the last occupied table emptied though the sun was still painting the sky with bright orange and yellow rays of light.

When she approached the stand, a tall boy, who looked about her age, opened the top of the window. “’Lo,” he greeted, then upon realizing he was talking above her, crouched down to open the lower half of the window. His square framed glasses fell down the bridge of his nose slightly as he looked at her. “What’ll it be then?”

“What have you got?”

James reinforces his resolution to have the best summer of his life when his girlfriend is stuck babysitting someone other than him.

For Jily Summer Fest ( @jilyfest​ )

FFN or AO3

With each fleeting year and each year a wasted summer, James’s determination to have an amazing summer grew stronger, and this year, he was going to have it. If he spoke it into existence, then surely it would come true.

The pool was a great way to kick it off, a start for something great, and the clouds had even given way to the poor occupants of this planet, deciding that they’d treat the people of the London area by not gracing them with their presence. The sky was as blue as it could possibly be, almost as if James had covered his eyes with a paint color sample of that exact shade from the hardware store.

His usual, thick-lensed glasses were traded for sunglasses.

Shirt, off. Swimming trunks, on. A desire for a fun summer, flickering between on and off.

The water felt cool against his legs, toes, and just whatever part of him that it could reach as he lied on the pool float, a sharp contrast to the searing heat that the sun imposed upon the foolish occupants of this planet. The sun glared down at him, shining down on his bronze-colored skin as he dared it to bring on the challenge, skin cancer be damned because he’d more than enough stressed the importance of sunscreen.

But then… something was amiss.

He could have deluded himself as much as he wanted, but this facade of a typical summer just didn’t feel right.

Maybe he should have taken it as a sign, an indication that no matter how bright the sun was or how perfect the weather appeared to be, what with the lack of any clouds in the sky, he would much rather the bloody stupid sun burn his eyes off than lounge about in the pool without a certain someone. He could have been served the best slice of watermelon from the finest produce the world could have procured for him and been provided with the most perfect lemonade, the sweet and sour balancing each other other just amazingly, and it still wouldn’t matter, because a certain redhead wasn’t there to enjoy them with him.

And what was life without someone to enjoy it with?

He had a girlfriend now, one that he loved very dearly, who he very much wanted to leave an impressionable summer in her memory forever.

He’d written a bucket list for everything that he’d wanted to do with her, and though some parts were highly unrealistic— climb a tall mountain only to plunge into the surrounding body of water, for one— or extremely inappropriate, he was open to compromise, so long as he got to make the most of it all with her. The problem was, well, Lily wasn’t here with him now. She’d found another man, and it didn’t quite matter if the culprit was only five years old, because James was younger than her, so what did that really say about her?

No, this won’t do.

Not at all.

He had to do something.

For @blitheringmcgonagall who often has to play my ego for me. I love you so much, and I hope you enjoy this. 

And for @jilyfest. 

Summary: Handsome, clever, and rich, James Potter goes most of the year without much to vex him. And then summer comes, bringing with it Lily Evans. Jily Summer Fest. Emma AU

Find it on FFN and AO3

Lily Evans lived her whole life in the span of the few months that summer provided. The rest of the year hung over top of her like the sun waiting to set on the longest day. It was silent and motionless; a simple passing of the chill that autumn brings, leading into the stillness of winter, ending with blooming spring.

Absent were the booming thunderstorms, sunsets that tinted the sky pink over top of the ocean’s waves, fireflies that scattered through the darkness, and bonfires.

Missing were the days that made her weightless and daring.

Leaving her longing, listless, filling every breath with sighs until summer came to ignite her again.

James Potter lived his whole life as though it were summer.

Waking everyday to the sound of ocean waves, rays of bright sun shining through his too thin curtains, and the sort of suffocating breathless days that the ocean air often brought.

He walked on the sand barefoot in October. He watched the waves grow wild and fierce in December as he trimmed his Christmas tree. And in Spring he waited.

He waited for the blossoming of flowers, the bees to return. He waited for the heat on his skin, and for the breeze to lift his fringe - glistening with sweat - from his forehead.

He waited for summer.

For the feeling of actual, true summer in its right time.

And he waited for what the start of summer always brought him.

Lily Evans and the symphony of other seasons following behind her.

“There’s nothing like a cold milkshake on a hot summer day.”

____________________________