a/n: Yeah, I really like Lily Luna and Teddy is flawless, okay. Do they remind anyone else of Rory/Amy on Doctor Who?

Disclaimers: Oh how I wish I owned Harry Potter, or the incredible song the quote comes from. Unfortunately I only get to claim the mistakes.

–

'let's set the world on fire'

"She's just the way she is, but no one's told her that's okay;

She would change everything, everything, just ask her."

–

1.

She grows up watching his hands- painting, sketching, sculpting- and she can't help but decide they're her favorite set of hands in the world. She loves the tan shade and the roughness of his finger tips- a by product of his never ending creativity.

Sometimes she hates him because he's incredibly beautiful in everything he does and she can't compete with her pale, pale skin and messy hair and terrible fashion sense.

So instead she just watches; he never fails to center her, because Lily Luna is always in over her head but with Teddy it feels like things just might be okay.

–

2.

She watches his hands slide the gold engagement ring on her cousin's finger and if she could have died right then and there, she wouldn't have minded. Victoire has always looked like one of the models always in Witch Weekly, beautiful and incredible. Lily wishes it was easier to hate her.

She cries herself to sleep knowing she'll never love any boy more than the one currently asleep on the sofa downstairs. She dreams of his bright eyes and blue hair and stupid, happy grins and warm hugs and for some reason it feels more like a nightmare.

In the morning, she locks her crystal blue eyes with the liquid gold color she's come to associate with him, but he just sends a bright smile at her. He doesn't seem to see what her eyes are screaming at him:

You are my everything, can't I just have the chance to be yours?

–

3.

It was stupid of her to ever think she could have him, because she's been in love with him since she was old enough to realize what love was and he's eleven years older than her. But Teddy is pure and innocent and everything Lily will never be. Lily who trusts no one, who is the most stubborn person on the planet, who makes all the wrong decisions.

Because even in the sea of mistakes and regrets, Teddy's never been one and that's how she knows he's her soulmate.

He laughs with her in her parent's kitchen, her fingers brushing his as they do dishes together; she tries to remember how to breathe and tries to hate him for what he's doing to her.

It's no use- hating Teddy is like trying to hate music or art or beauty; thoroughly impossible.

–

4.

She should probably be used to the feeling of mattress under her back and the wet lips tracing their way down her body, she's done this enough times to know what to expect. Still, she has to close her eyes and pretend that the boy pinning her down is taller and broader with a kind heart and always warm hands.

He knows when she stumbles into his flat later that night, the smell of alcohol all over her and mascara mixing with the tears on her cheeks. She looks like a mess, but really Lily's always been a train wreck and he doesn't mind that she ruins his favorite shirt.

"I just don't understand what's wrong with me." The words are barely audible, but it takes everything in her to say it. He looks down at her with a broken heart and heavy conscience.

"Oh, Lils, there's absolutely nothing wrong with you." He hums into her beautiful hair, hating that he's the bad guy.

–

5.

If she could change everything, she would. She's a Slytherin, so she's not brave or made with a heart of gold, in fact she's generally a coward who hides behind her cruel words and biting sarcasm. She's learned a long time ago that if you don't appear weak, it's much harder for people to manipulate you.

She packs up her room one night when her parents are out and leaves a note with a single line meant for only one person. She knows running away is the easy way out but everyone who knows her would say that she's easy. In any case, being alone can't hurt as much as this does.

Her parents don't fully understand the letter, but Teddy's hair turns dark as he reads the words in the untidy scribble.

I'm going to love you forever whether I watch you from afar or up close.

–

6.

Life gets easier with time, routine helps her stay sane and she tries her best to stay busy. But that doesn't stop everything from being a constant reminder. She sees his face in her morning porridge and hears his laughter in the wind and she feels madness creeping up on her and can't even bring herself to care.

When she spots a familiar head of blue hair in the street, she is frozen, her heart is thudding in her ears and she feels terribly exposed in her short dress. He spots her before she can hide, but it's a lie to say she wasn't hoping for that.

His hands cup her face and his eyes are earnest and scared and Lily can't understand what he's trying to say until his lips are on hers like fire and she forgets everything- Victoire, the tears she's shed, her own fears- and just exists with him.

–

7.

"I love you, Lily Luna Potter, and I couldn't waste another second letting you think that I didn't." He breathes heavily, still holding onto her, trying to get as close as possible.

He can tell that she's trying to decide if he's lying or not so he looks at her with wide eyes, "There is nothing wrong with you, Lily. You're it for me, even though I'm old and silly and look completely ordinary standing next to you."

She throws back her mane of flaming hair in laughter because they've both been so stupid; she's wasted too much time forcing herself into a tragedy that she hasn't noticed he's been staring at her ever since the night she cried in his flat.

"I love you, too, even if you are old and kind of thick, but you're anything but ordinary." She whispers against his lips, pulling her fingers through his ruffled hair.

The smile she gets in return for her pronouncement makes everything she's gone through that much more worth it.