What makes you think you can do this?

So - and the reader honestly shouldn't rely on Hadley's word on this - apparently she had magic now. At least, she had sent a glass flying, scaring herself half to death, and had tried to pin it on the man she had been at lunch with. Granted, she didn't read the Daily Prophet, considering she was a Muggle, and thus had no idea that it was happening to other people. When the Ministry offered her housing, though, Hadley wasn't about to turn it down. At least she could probably feel safe there, she reminded herself. As it were, the only person she felt safe around lately was James, and that was because he was one of the only people who had taken a moment to explain to her what was happening.

According to some people from the Ministry, Hadley was meant to be learning how to do magic. Thus far, she had not been very successful at all, and it was actually quite frustrating. She came home - if she could really call it that - from the day's training and had a shower just for the sake of feeling less icky about having done so poorly. She hadn't fully planned on it, and she didn't truly understand if she was allowed to do so, but Hadley went downstairs after dressing and drying her hair so that she could send off a note to James and ask if he had any spare time.

It wasn't that she wasn't allowed to send messages, mind. There were a little group of owls designated for that purpose at the bottom of the hotel. But Hadley wasn't completely certain about what was going on with James. There wasn't a promise that she could keep him if something went wrong with her magic. Well, what little she had, anyways. At the same time, though, she wasn't actually sure that she had him, either. She hadn't asked about labeling things, because it seemed childish and somehow unnecessary. Especially in light of everything else that had been happening lately. So she hesitated a moment to watch the owl fly away before turning over her shoulder and heading back upstairs to her room.

James had finished feeding the Dragons at both the ministry as well as at home. He had taken his shower to wash away the grime and sweat. He wore a black t-shirt that was a snug around his upper arms. He put on a pair of well-loved jeans and his brown boots that were scuffed a little on the toes. His head hadn't been working properly since Hadley started practicing magic. He knew that she needed to practice but he was concerned she would get disheartened if she didn't succeed. He didn't care if she wasn't good at magic, he just wanted her happy and safe. It hit him the second he walked into the kitchen causing him to smile.

James grabbed his keys and was about to head out when an owl came flying in the window. It came to land on his shoulder holding out a note for him. Taking it hoping beyond anything it wasn't work and opened it. Looking at the note he smiled widely and quickly slipped it into his pocket for safe keeping. Giving the owl a treat for delivering the note to him, he quickly walked out of his house locking it up before apparating to Diagon Alley.

He stood outside the hotel they fixed up to house the muggles who were able to use magic. He didn't think it was safe enough for Hadley but he didn't want to press the issue with her. He walked into the hotel and was greeted by the clerk who knew who James was. He walked up the stairs to get to Hadley's room hoping that he wouldn't die of nervousness. Getting to her door he lifted his hand hesitating before knocking upon the door. James wiped his palms against his jeans in hopes that he could calm his nerves.

It wasn't long at all before a knock sounded at her door, causing Hadley to pause in her reading. She had been looking through a book about general house-cleaning spells, thinking that, if nothing else, she could probably do those. They sounded easy enough, she supposed. Then again, her previous attempts at magic had been poor at best. But that didn't matter so much, really, because the knock came just as she was getting frustrated with trying to pronounce things properly. It didn't help, she decided, that she had an American accent, for the most part. She had accidentally caught on to some of the slang, and had started incorporating little bits of the local accent in when she spoke, but it was just driving her mad to have to say it perfectly.

Hadley closed the book with a determined thud, then hopped off the bed to open the door for James. Just seeing him standing there made her smile brightly, and she seriously considered just kissing him on the spot for having shown up so suddenly, just because she asked him to. Granted, she didn't know what his plans for the day were. But she liked to think it might have been just because of that. So, for a moment, she just stood there, her eyes searching his as if to say, 'yes, I would really like to, but I shouldn't.'

Instead, she backed up so he could come in and shut the door behind him. At least the other people wandering the halls wouldn't see her acting a bit foolish. They got to see that every morning during their training sessions, anyways. She didn't really want to deal with more of that if she could help it.

The hotel room had a funny little entry hallway, which branched off into the bathroom and closet, and at the end there was the wider, living and sleeping type area. As it were, she found herself stuck against one of the walls of the hallway, fully aware that she could probably just walk down the hall and sit herself at the little table if she wanted to. But it was almost strange to realize that she would technically be leading him towards her bedroom. The realization struck her too late and Hadley regretted - if only slightly - the fact that she had not asked him to meet her somewhere in the shops along Diagon Alley. After all, she could have just walked outside and found one.

"Hi," she offered after a moment, her voice somewhat timid. "I'm sorry, I should have asked what your plans were for today. I just... it's not going well, on my end, I'm afraid."

James waited hoping that he got the right door which he was sure he did. When the door opened to reveal Hadley on the other side he smiled. He saw her hesitate with something and knew something had to have happened. He walked into the hallway of her room and waited for her to close the door. He reached out and touched her face softly needing to assure himself that she was safe. He wanted to kiss her but he wondered if she was okay with him being in her room. He was about to speak when she said hi to him, he wanted right then and there to pull her into his arms.

"Hey," James said looking at her trying to find someway to comfort her. "Don't be sorry Hadley, I didn't have any plans except to come see you. I was about to leave the house and come here when I got your note." He paused for a moment before cupping her face with his hands. "I'm sorry that it's going bad for you sweetheart, you don't have to keep doing it if you don't want to. I'm not going to force you to do something if you don't want to." He ran one of his thumbs across her cheekbone softly. "You are perfect to me and I wouldn't change you for all the money in the world..." He paused and then took a deep breath before continuing. "You are the best thing that has ever happened to me."

Hadley's cheeks burned and she dropped her gaze as he reached for her. She wanted to correct him, but he continued and her lips parted in surprise. "James," she replied quietly, her expression betraying her shock. "How can you know that already? You haven't known me very long, and I- I don't fit in with your world. I just don't," she repeated out of frustration. Shaking her head, she moved away and into the main section of the hotel room.

"Besides," she added, throwing herself onto the bed as a wave of annoyance hit her, "this could be taken away from me any moment. The Ministry said they're trying to fix what's wrong, and that would mean that I would have to leave. That I wouldn't get to remember you, but you might be allowed to remember me, and I can't imagine which one is worse. How can you lose a memory without feeling like something his missing? How can you make up for that lost time in your head without going mad? It doesn't add up!"

Hadley sat up again, reaching a hand out so that, once he took it, she could give a little tug and convince him to sit beside her. If she hadn't been so riled up about everything, she might have sat herself in his lap and curled up there for hugs. But she just couldn't bring herself to do it after being so strange about everything.

"You're not supposed to be this patient, you know. I'm acting mental but you seem rather fine with it. Someday you'll actually get angry with me and I'll probably not catch on after all this. Fair warning for you."

James listened to her as she talked and he took a deep breath. "Hadley before I met you, I was slowly getting sick. I was working eighteen hours a day and sometimes I would go days without sleeping. My family intervened many times making drink water with vitamins in it and healthy food. The day I bumped into was the first time in a long time that I've looked at something else." He knew that what he was saying sounded crazy but he needed her to know. "The day I bumped into you is when I realized that there was more to life than work. I went down hill about three years after my sister was attacked by a vampire. She's my twin and we're close so when she was attacked I felt like it was my fault I wasn't there. I've been trying my hardest to make up for it, it wasn't until I met you that I finally talked to her about it." He looked down knowing he probably sounded mental but he didn't care. Looking at her he gave a small smile, "You saved me from destroying myself. You gave me the strength I needed to be able to help myself. Seeing you made me realize that I needed to change what I was doing and live. I don't care that you don't fit in the world of magic, I want to fit in your world." He watched her walk away and followed her wanting her to see him for all that he was.

James shook his head running a hand through his hair as she spoke. He walked over to her and placed his hands down on either side of her head. "The ministry is trying to fix it yes but you wouldn't have to leave. It would kill me if I knew who you were but you had no memories of me. I won't allow them to take your memories Hadley. I don't know anything about the spell that takes your memories but I won't let them near you. Almost nothing in my world adds up but I know that I don't want to spend the rest of my life without you in it. I would go mad if I lost you because of them and I'm not about to let them take that away from you." He paused and looked her in the eyes, "I'm yours Hadley only yours. I want you to be mine, if your willing to be with me." He pushed off from the bed to stand a little bit away from her.

He took her offered hand and sat down next to her. He picked her up and placed her on his lap, her legs on either side of his. He pulled her into a hug and buried his face in her neck. He inhaled the scent of her from her neck letting it relax him slowly. The muscles he didn't know were tense eased slowly.

"I had to learn to be patient a lot because of my work. Your not acting mental, your acting as you should be about all of this. It's normal for you to be reacting this way. I'll take your warning but I'm not going anywhere Hadley." He said softly his hands rubbing her back softly.

A little bit of Hadley hurt to know that she had not been aware of his problems, but she could accept the fact that it had happened before she was actually even aware of him, and that she couldn't have done anything to help or to stop it. Especially without magic. So she just listened, watching as he tried to get the words out and drawing in a breath as he approached. "I don't think the Ministry wants us here. Not really," she murmured, afraid to address the things he had told her about himself. She only hoped it didn't seem like she was ignoring the information she had been given.

The way he cared for her surprised Hadley into silence. She had never made such an impact on anyone - barring her adoptive parents, perhaps. She had been considering how to tell them what was happening, but so far she had been unable to find a proper way. So that, she figured, could wait until she knew whether or not the Ministry was going to let her stick around. As for James, she owed him an answer, and that one couldn't wait.

"I want to," she decided after a moment, watching as he backed up a bit. She was a bit nervous, given how serious he seemed to be about her already. But she was willing and in fact excited to try it out and see where things went. "Just... yes, James," she added as he sat next to her and moved her as though she didn't weigh a thing.

Hadley's cheek was pressed against his temple, her right hand in his hair. "I'm sorry you had it so rough before," she whispered finally, deciding to go ahead and address what he had said. "I don't fully understand how I was the one who helped, and I don't really expect you to be able to explain it. But I'm glad for it either way."

Turning her chin slightly, she let her forehead rest against that temple instead, and dropped a kiss at his cheek. "What am I going to tell my folks?" she asked, deciding that if he was going to be part of her life, he deserved to know about what was making her feel so anxious. They would not be amused, particularly considering that she had been away for a while now. "This won't make any sense to them."

James felt like an enormous weight was taken off his shoulders when he told her everything about him. He didn't expect her to have an answer since things between them weren't there yet. "It doesn't matter to me if the ministry doesn't want you. I want you, I'll do everything in my power to help you. Even if I have to bribe a few dragons to get their help." He said with a small smile as he stood there watching her.

James heard her agree and his heart felt like it stopped. He held her impossibly closer to him but made sure he wasn't squeezing her. Not knowing what to say in response to her answer he decided that he didn't need words. Lifting his head then cupping her jaw he kissed her with all of his heart. Breaking the kiss after several minutes he pressed his forehead to hers. He moved his head back to the side of her neck he pressed a small kiss there.

"There are no words to fully explain how you helped me. I can tell you though that you lit up the darkness that was in my life. I can't even tell you how much I just wanted to kiss you that day." James said as he ran his thumb across her lower back softly.

Feeling her lips on his cheek made him smile in contentment. Hearing her bring up her parents he thought about it trying to figure something out. He lifted his head and looked at her then said, "It won't sense to anyone who isn't naturally born with magical abilities. Sometimes it takes many ways to convince them that it is real. It depends on how you present it to your parents. If you want I can go with you so you can explain it better in person. It won't sound as crazy if it's explained in person and if it's shown to them as well. The ministry wouldn't be able to say anything about it because your experiencing magical abilities. It also will give you the opportunity if you want to see if your parents are getting the same thing. If any of that makes sense," he said softly.

A quiet laugh escaped at his joke, lighting up her face as the corners of her lips drew upwards. It wasn't lost on Hadley that she was essentially wrapped around him, although it did surprise her to note that she felt comfortable with it. Usually it would have made her nervous, but she couldn't find any real reason to complain. Particularly when he drew her in for a kiss. It was lengthier than she anticipated, and she nearly laughed again out of surprise.

Her smile expanded to a grin when he admitted to having been interested right away. It was flattering, although Hadley hadn't expected it in the slightest. "Well," she teased in his ear, "you definitely succeeded on that front. The employees of that diner didn't seem too impressed, though."

Hadley lifted a hand to tuck her hair behind her ear as he replied, leaning back enough to look at him. "It does," she replied, nodding once. "And I'm sure you're right, but... do you really want to meet my parents? I mean, if so, there are some things you'll need to know about us before doing so, because they'll be a little protective. But we'll also need a way to either convince them to come here, or we'll have to go there."

James smiled hearing Hadley laugh then grinned more when she teased him. "Well I'm glad that I succeeded on that front. Yeah I believe I got the stink eye on that but I don't care. I haven't gone back in there after that day, I'm pretty sure that the waitress' would poison me if I tried." He laughed softly as he put on hand behind him to support himself as his other brushed through her hair.

Listening to her speak he nodded. "Yes I would like to meet your parents Hadley but only if your comfortable with it. That's fine with me, if you want to share it. I won't force you to take me to your parents if you don't want to. We can go there, it will make things easier for them and it's been a while since I've left London."