It was after dinner following that first awful day of classes when Jozua finally finished the letter he'd been trying to write since he sparked out at Lily during Charms. It was then just a matter of picking an owl from the owlery and sending it off to her.
Lily,
That was weird, right? Sorry. After Professor Wright sent me out of the room, he gave me a pass to the library. I did a little research. It's pretty rare, but sometimes anxiety can cause accidental magic to come back during puberty. And since I was still pretty anxious, I skipped the rest of the day's classes and owled the teachers to tell them I wasn't feeling good. Hopefully by tomorrow, I'll be up to facing everyone again without sparking out again all over.
So I figured maybe we ought to sort this out by owl so that'll be one less anxiety that might cause problems. It's a ball year. Do you want to go together? As a date or just friends? I'm okay with either way, or if you want to ask someone else, I guess I'm okay with that, too. Just let me know so I don't have to ask in person and risk more sparking.
There was something odd going on with Jozua and Lily couldn’t stop wondering about it after Charms. She’d never seen something like that before in a grown wizard or witch, but perhaps it was the result of nerves. But why would he be nervous? Maybe he’d been thinking about the Charms exam portion on their CATS, or Professor Wright made him nervous. Even though it was strange, Lily still got a little kick out of the situation: a Sparks sparking in the middle of class instead of blowing something up in Potions. It would’ve been a rather good joke, if he’d planned any of it.
The worrying bit was where Professor Wright had sent him since Jozua hadn’t returned after that episode. The entire day he’d missed classes and she didn’t know what had become of him. Wright must have disciplined him somehow – he hadn’t looked very happy about the situation – but how severely did accidental magic in class deserve? During dinner, she tried looking for him, but instead had been surrounded by other house-mates who quickly distracted her.
After dinner, Lily went back to the common room to do some homework and hoped to bump into her best friend. As she sat there, an owl came with a letter for her. She recognised Jozua’s handwriting and quickly opened it. Was he ill? Quarantined? Suspended?
None of those, luckily. Lily read through the note carefully, then read it again. He was putting the decision on her as to the direction of their relationship. She put the letter down and took a moment to think about it. If she told him she wanted to go as a date, he could assume she felt the same way and wanted to become something more romantic. If she told him she wanted to go as friends, she was gently rejecting him again and wanting everything to stay the same. The third option was to simply say, “I’m easy” which returned the decision back to him and made her look indecisive. Lily was never indecisive. So why was this such a difficult choice to make?
Jozua,
I was wondering where you’d gone. I thought he gave you trouble about your accidental magic, but I’m glad he only sent you to the library.
As for the ball, yes let’s go together. I’m fine with either, as long as I don’t have to wear a ball gown. Why don’t we go as dates and see how that goes? Best friends going on one date. And if it’s too awkward, we can forget about it. Doesn’t have to be set in stone, does it?
Adventure forever, Lily
At least there would be some kind of out if the awkwardness became unbearable. The thought of going on a date with Jozua made her stomach knot – that was new. But she wasn’t certain if it was because she was nervous, uncomfortable with her decision or the potato salad she’d eaten wasn’t sitting well with her.
As Jozua read over Lily's response, back in his room in Teppenpaw, he wasn't quite sure what to think. A date-date with Lily. That was both really exciting and really terrifying. He was kind of glad to have the room to himself while he worked his way through her answer. She didn't sound too eager, but neither did she sound hesitant about it. He really wasn't sure if this was something she wanted for herself, or if she was just humoring him. Of course, it was Lily, so if she didn't want to do something, she wouldn't do it. Like wearing a ballgown to a ball.
Lily,
I can't even imagine you in a dress. Wear whatever you like.
He read over her letter again, and he continued, trying to match her casual tone. He didn't want to make her regret her decision or make things awkward like she feared. He had to keep it light-hearted and natural. Lily was going to the ball with him. Cool. They were cool. Best friends, first and foremost and always.
And nothing is set in stone except engraved stone inscriptions. Which this isn't. So, awesome. Let's see how it goes. It'll be fun. Should I wear a top hat?