Lily's birthday had been going rather well, in her opinion.
Her parents had sent her a large basket full of treats and books, the popular Muggle ones that they thought she would enjoy reading (and they were correct); Dorcas had given her a new blouse that was enchanted to make the wearer's hair and skin look flawless; Marlene had succeeded- for once- in making a cake that was actually edible; Sev hadn't spoken to her, which in some ways made her sad, but also meant he hadn't had a chance to make her angry; Petunia had been so thoughtful as to send her a note that read simply Happy Birthday; and James Potter hadn't had a chance to annoy her yet. Plus she was seventeen, so she could finally do magic out of school (although she had already done so a few times in previous years, albeit illegally), and she was officially an Adult.
So it was, all in all, A Good Day.
She was just entering the History of Magic classroom, ready to listen to another dull lecture about history that really should have been fascinating. Dorcas and Marlene were running late- setting up some birthday surprise in the dormitory that they'd been vaguely hinting at all day- and so she was alone temporarily, setting up her bag and books on her desk as she waited for Binns to float through the wall as usual.
"Evans?"
"Yes?" Lily spun around from her desk to see a confident looking James Potter, twirling his wand in one hand as he leaned carelessly on a nearby desk with his other.
"Happy birthday," he said, grinning. For a moment Lily almost couldn't help smiling back. This wasn't the first time that he had wished her a happy birthday over the last six years, but compared to all the other circumstances this time was markedly friendlier. After all, neither of them were about to be cursed by the other, and that was a first since… well, since they were both first years. It was strange to talk to him like this, but also a little nice, a small jolt of surprise hitting her every time she realized that James Potter might actually be a civilized human being. "How does it feel to be the big 1-7? Legally magical?"
Lily shrugged. "About the same as it felt to be the big 1-6, really." The only difference being that I'm talking to you. "But… I don't think I've ever had a birthday that made me feel dramatically older, honestly."
James' grin widened. "Then you're not doing birthdays right."
That familiar twinge of annoyance with Potter came back, and Lily raised her eyebrows disbelievingly. "Excuse me?"
"If it's not dramatic, it's not right." Potter said calmly, a maddening look of smugness scribbled all over his face.
"And you'd know all about that, I suppose," she replied, trying to keep "Scathing" out of her voice and failing. Oh yes, James Potter knew all about dramatic. Every prank, every Quidditch game, every meal, every comment- as dramatic as possible. Pathetic.
Honestly, Lily had thought that Potter was improving, gaining maturity. Her best friends Dorcas and Marlene assured her that James was someone worth talking to, but- as he was proving right then- there were still times when Lily most definitely didn't see it.
In response, James smirked back at her. "Yes, I would. For your information, Evans, I'm practically the KING of birthdays. I make birthday wishes- especially for girls- everywhere come true-"
"-Sure you do," muttered Lily. She wished Binns would hurry up and enter the classroom and get started teaching just so she wouldn't have to talk to James Potter any more. He was spoiling her good mood.
"-And in fact, I'm about to help you out with yours this very instant. Here." He grabbed her hand suddenly and thrust a small piece of crumpled parchment into it. She didn't have time to reply, because at that moment James shot her one last grin, and slid into his proper desk, next to his three mad friends, Peter, Sirius, and Remus.
She met his eyes from across the room quizzically, and he mouthed back, "Read it."
As Professor Binns glided into the room and began the lecture, thus prompting the rest of the class to fall into varying states of unconsciousness, Lily slowly unfolded the bit of parchment James had given her, still gripped in her fist.
On it, scrawled in James' tiny slanted writing was written:
Good for One Free Kiss from James Potter
Then, at the bottom:
(Reusable)
Lily groaned to herself, rolling her eyes and shoving the piece of parchment into an obscure pocket in her robe. When she tried to sneak a glance at James, she saw that he was gazing intently at the droning ghost as though Binns might ACTUALLY be able to captivate his attention. She could also see that he was struggling to keep a smile off of his face, and Lily promptly ignored him, taking notes more intensely than she ever had before (and that was really saying something.)
When class was over, after she had packed up her bags and started heading for the door, James called to her from his seat next to his friends. Remus and Peter were bent over one of their desks, scribbling something furiously and holding a quiet conversation, and Sirius was, as usual, surrounded by girls, flirting with them carelessly. For once James didn't take part in the social interactions, and rather kept his eyes trained on Lily as he called, "Hey Evans! Enjoy the present! I have a feeling you'll be getting a lot of use out of it this year!"
"Doubtful," Lily replied scathingly over her shoulder as she exited the room, not even waiting for Dorcas or Marlene to catch up with her.
But once she was in the hall, out of the way of the exiting students, she pulled the crumpled square of parchment out of her pocket and read it once more.
Good for One Free Kiss
And even though she would never admit it to anyone, the prospect of it was rather fascinating.
Kissing James Potter.
Hmm.
She folded the piece of parchment up once more, smiling inexplicably to herself.