frank is a pretty decent bloke. terribly normal and insufferably moral, from what james has seen, but there's always time for opinions to change. now that james has grown, perhaps there's more of him to see. " mate, i've got brilliant news for you. " he gestures to the waitress that he's been flirting with throughout the afternoon, nonverbally asking for another pint. " i'm so bored i think that watching the wind blow would be entertaining. go on then, give me your best dad joke. "

"You don't need another drink!" A blatant lie. Prongs could always use another drink. He only put together that the soft thud he heard along with his friend's laugh was a shoe connecting with the back of James' head far too late, and there wasn't a sliver of worry in his slurred mind as he gasped for air that was very quickly being ripped away from his lungs as they ran. "Believe me, you wouldn't want to run towards them!" The slightly wet cobblestones did not help their escape however, especially when they turned a corner and collided with another group. Sirius stopped in time, but the inevitable force that was James running with full speed behind him made things worse. "Pardon us, ladies!" He said as he slid his way across the witches, brushing his hair back with one hand while he held onto James' jacket with the other, as he already knew his friend would get distracted. Alas, Sirius got just as distracted by a beautiful pair of bre-- eyes, and his usual smirk was on display already, even as he was trying to catch his breath. "Lovely evening, isn't it?" His smile fell as soon as a drunken hex shot by his head and landed on the ground. Right. They were being pursued. And not in the fun way. "I'll be back for you." He winked at the girl in front of him, then yanked on Prongs' shirt to keep running.

james has always been the more athletic one out of the two of them, but he drags behind as his feet get caught on each other and he stumbles over invisible obstacles on the cement. the ladies they pass catch his eye, shooting one a poor excuse for a wink and a half smile before stumbling once again, arms outstretching for balance. why's he always getting roped into padfoot's mistakes? bloody hell. " what did you do to them, pads?! " he shouts in between heavy gasps for air and ridiculous bursts of laughter. he turns his head over his shoulder just as his friend slides to a stop, james promptly colliding into his back and nearly knocking a tooth out. he hardly has time to mend to the ache before a bird touches his arm and it all goes away, but that's only mere seconds before he's nearly decapitated by whatever spell is tossed their way. a childlike scream bubbles from his throat, nearly falling once more when sirius tugs on the front of his shirt. he shakes from his grasp defiantly, turning around to face the approaching ladies with his hands held innocently in the air. " now, now. i'm sure my mate is terribly sorry for whatever he's done, but we can certainly sort this out without anyone ruining my pretty face. " perhaps he would've been more convincing if he wasn't swaying as he stood, his eyes glazed.

THERE IS PERHAPS no one that would regulus would rather run into while going about his day less than one james potter, unless his brother happened to be in tow alongside him, and yet regulus’s luck seemed determined to work against him as of late, and so of course the arrogant ex-gryffindor happens to be already seated in the leaky cauldron by the time regulus arrives, half expecting sirius to come stumbling over at any second. “ potter. i can’t think of anything i’d enjoy less, actually. ”

james' smile spreads across his face without any barriers, hovering a hand over where his heart lays behind his ribcage. " regulus, you certainly know how to flatter a man. " a wink is paired along with the statement as he leans back in his chair, pulling out the one beside him. pleasant as ever, it seems. it had always been easy to get under the younger black's skin with little effort, quidditch matches fun for james due to purposely riling the boy up. ( then again, james has always had a knack for getting anyone and everyone frustrated beyond compare. ) " truly, my heart is bound to beat from my chest. sirius has opted out of this outing, if that makes any difference. "

"I need you to listen. No, actually listen to me! Focus!" With the whole world spinning around them it was about the most difficult thing to accomplish, but there he was, cupping James' cheeks to make him look into his eyes. "I've made a mistake. I may or may not have infiltrated a hen do, except--" He spoke quickly, then glanced over his friend's shoulder as if he was checking for a looming dark presence. He hissed at the sight of the dark silhouettes approaching them, then looked back at James. "--I made the bride very angry, Prongs! They've taken their heels off! Run!" The shrieks and various insults came before the flying stilettos, and with a burst of laughter Sirius grabbed his friend's hand and dragged him away, starting to run down the crowded streets.

james finds himself giggling, ( he would never admit as such ) stumbling away from sirius in an attempt to rejoin the group of birds he acquainted himself with throughout the evening when they found themselves otherwise separated with their own affairs. he still smiles stupidly when he grabs his face and forces him into submission, eyebrows wiggling. " aye, darling, at least buy me a drink before trying to lay one on me, hm? " while james laughs as though he's the funniest person in the world, sirius looks less than amused. " you've done wh ― " it's not until he's hit in the back of the head with a shoe that padfoot grabs his hand and drags him away, the sense of urgency finally dawning upon him with the amusing throbbing on the back of his head. his feet move quicker than he thinks possible considering his current state, the laughs bubbling out of him with each pounding step. " these feet are not made to be running from women! always towards, padfoot, towards! "

SHE HATES herself, even momentarily for letting him get the best of all, but she can't even bother to keep up the façade. ❛ shut up. ❜ she has no words, she can't even string a sentence, but she's comfortable, happy, even if it's only fleeting. ❛ it's not going to happen again. ❜ she tells him, he'd never done it before, he always evoked the eye rolls and perhaps teasing from other girls, as friends often did, but never a blush. lily wasn't a blusher. usually. but even she couldn't deny some things. and james, in this moment, was something else. ❛ so, i don't think i asked, why are you here alone? ❜ a desperate attempt to change the subject, maybe.

" it was only a matter of time before my undeniable charm got to you, " he teases, shrugging his shoulders as though making evans stumble and falter is the most casual thing in the world. ( internally, his heart races and his palms sweat. he wipes them against his trousers secretly beneath the table. ) " why am i here alone? " repeating the question gives him time to muster up an answer that's not as pathetic as the truth. time fails him though, unable to wrap his fingers around a palpable excuse. he sighs, " sirius is busy. unfortunately, he's my main company these days. remus is busy as well, so i've been left to fend for myself for the day. "

SHE BRISTLED slightly, shoulders tightening and back straightening. she was fully aware that she should be reaching out, and yet, she feared her parents but also, more importantly, her cousins rejection. ❛ oddly enough, i doubt he'd bother with me. ❜ she mutters. it's her name on his lips that has her pondering in silence, as if she was thinking over his words, when in reality, her name, the name she dislikes so much, revolves. ❛ that's perhaps a dark thought. ❜ she muses, after a silent moment, or two. and it's possibly not a thought that was far off, should her parents and their cause continue. ❛ because what if that thought is wrong? you would of wasted your time doing nothing. ❜

the mood lightens again with a grin, his shoulders rolling back to straighten his limp posture. " that's where you're very wrong. " his fingers shakes in her direction, his head joining the motion. the worst thing that any wizard could do is ponder upon the revival of the dark lord, especially when the fate of either side seems so dark and imminent. james hates being sad, so he avoids the emotion like a muggle plague. " you never waste your time doing nothing. it's quite impossible to have ever considered relaxation a time waster. "

FINGERS TAP with no rhyme or reason against the wood of the chair beneath her thigh, she knows he means well, just passing comments more than anything else. they stood on two sides of a line. and narcissa didn't think she was on the right ( winning ) side. ❛ he's okay though? ❜ she knows sirius would be fine, but there's still a sense of worry, he's her younger cousin and she loved him dearly, no matter the comments of his mother, she never agreed with it. but she also has never really reached out. ❛ prestigious. from the stories i've heard from sirius and passing notes from regulus, i'd say it's not a terrible decision. what's stopping you? ❜

his jaw tightens at the mention of sirius, at someone from the black family checking on his wellbeing. ( sirius has never spoken ill of narcissa, but it feels wrong to speak on his behalf. james is protective of his friend, of his brother, perfectly willing to die for him. ) " i'm sure he'd like to hear from you. i don't think it's appropriate of me to speak on his behalf. " he says it with kindness and without animosity, managing to relax the tension in his face. " to be quite frank, narcissa... " he trails off, allowing himself a moment to sip more of the butterbeer. " i'm unsure i'll live to see my next birthday with everything going on. why waste it with pointless training? "

PALE SKIN reddens with every word and she can feel it, she doesn't want him to see, doesn't want him to catch such a natural reaction and yet, it's as if the warmth in her chest flares in her cheeks. ❛ you're a menace, james potter. ❜ she tells him, without malice as arms fold over her chest and she struggles to contain a smile. he was becoming far too charming with his age, unlike school, where she couldn't stand to be around him, ( provocation made him intolerable, in her opinion. ) but this, now, she didn't mind so much. fingers tap against her arm as she finds herself at a sort of loss for words, he'd always spoken like this, the little blighter, but somehow, perhaps because it was just them, it felt different.

perhaps if it were anyone else, james wouldn't be focusing on them closely enough to notice the slightest shift of color in their cheeks. he tends to notice everything with lily though, eyes keen to only her. quite pathetic of him, anyone would tell him so, but he's always marched to a beat of his own drum. ( he's always made a fool of himself in school, especially where sirius was concerned. he couldn't blame her for thinking him to be a git or something of the sorts, but he could at least try to change it. ) " did i make lily evans blush? " he does his best to suppress the prideful smile, fingers tapping on the glass. " allow me to call the press. "

PERHAPS A slight offence is taken, only briefly, before she tells herself that he didn't mean it like that. she didn't want to spend her days shopping, or whatever it was she was to do for the rest of her life, but choices weren't offered to her, she was to do as she was told. ❛ there's only so much shopping. ❜ she admits softly. ❛ figured you'd be doing something with the ministry, or with my cousin, curse breaking and all that. ❜

he senses a shift in tone, lips tugging downwards in response to the concern that prickles up his spine. offence is the last thing he intends, james rarely doing anything to be malicious. still, words often get away from him and meanings get blurred, which is bound to be his downfall. he chooses to not address it, focusing instead on the second half of the statement. " your cousin has been busy with merlin knows what. bloody abandoned me -- anyways, i'd like to be an auror someday, i'm just not sure that's in the cards for me right now. " why learn a new trade when tomorrow isn't guaranteed?

❛ A GIRL like me? ❜ she questions, a small, unconcealed yet slightly questioning smile offered, ❛ and just what kind of girl have you pegged me to be? ❜ he had already labelled as one worth spoiling, but now she was curious. and it's not as if she cared, but she was always at whim to curiosity. she ponders for a moment before leaning back in the chair , deciding finally to get comfortable. ❛ thank you. ❜ she wasn't sure if it were a compliment but she took it as one anyway. ❛ easier than relying on others, if i'm honest. ❜

james follows her cue to lean back, crossing his legs at the ankles beneath the table. " for starters, you're bloody brilliant. " he treads the waters carefully, not wanting the defenses to be brought upon him for wrongly implying something. " smartest in our graduating class, i'd reckon. gorgeous, too. " his gaze studies her expression, attempting to gauge how close she is to throwing her drink in his face. " also, independent. which is a compliment, due to the amount of people that are reliant on a person. sort of like sirius and i. " the last line is delivered with a cheeky grin, his teeth pressing down into his lower lip.

SHE KNEW it a joke, she knew it was. but she bites her own tongue against commenting, unforgivable curses were often a form of punishment ( not one the black children could often escape, sirius would know. ) but she offers a tight lipped smile, as if she found it amusing. ❛ not a lot, i confess. shopping, more than anything. ❜ it wasn't a lie, the girl was raised as nothing more than to be a pretty wife and so, any ambitious, even now, were squashed and hidden away. she was to be seen as nothing but SPOILED.

his wardrobe outside of his school robes is frequently described as posh, always sporting the newest clothes and the best brands. his mother, his father by association, refused to let her little boy go out with anything less than the best. all that to say, james enjoys a good shopping spree, even if he'd be perfectly happy with recycled fabrics. " aye, if that's what you want to do. " he trails off, offering a lazed shrug of his shoulders. " always good to follow your dreams and such. " even if they don't align with typical wizard morals, he supposes.

JAMES POTTER confounds her, confuses her. there's a heat in her chest that his words fire, and part of her enjoys the warmth and in private she would smile ( wouldn't she? ) but letting him in on that secret, she wasn't about to do that. ❛ why would you wanna waste your money on spoiling me, potter? ❜ she questions, leaning forward onto her hands, brow piqued in curiosity. ❛ i can pay for my own things, thank you. ❜ and if she couldn't afford it, she'd go without.

SHE WASN'T FISHING FOR INFORMATION, it felt nice, just simply talking to someone, most of the people she conversed with were that of her parents, their friends, or people with views that her parents had and not ones that she had formed on her own. there was a pleasantness of just being a girl, something she hadn't felt for years. ❛ must be nice. ❜ she muses rhetorically. her safe space was her home and the only people that occupied it was herself and a large tabby cat she'd begun feeding when she'd moved in. though he wasn't a good conversationalist. ❛ i take it you're not working either? ❜

which part is nice? is what he wants to reply, but he bites down on his tongue and suffocates the verbal confusion. james has always been considered spoiled, pampered by his parents who desperately wanted a child and were granted one by some sort of miracle. ( how unfortunate that he be the result. ) perhaps he's unable to see past the bubble blown around him for protection in order to see which part of his boredom is nice. " no, not working. not currently, anyways. may have to change sometime soon before i cast an unforgivable curse on myself to put me out of my misery. " he pathetically chuckles at his own joke, shaking his head. " kidding . . . sort of. what've you been doing to occupy your time, then? "