Some of you may recognize this from a chapter of Of Flowers And Men. I was writing that chapter and just decided to keep going with it :)
"Do it Lily. I dare you."
Huffing, Lily shot a death glare at Marlene, who was grinning like a maniac, before turning her attention to the four boys sprawled at the base of the tree, not two hundred yards from them. Rolling her eyes and wishing she could turn down a dare, she began walking towards them. Surprisingly, they seemed to be studying. She supposed they passed their OWLs somehow.
"Potter!" she called when she was close. All four boys turned to look at her, and Potter scrambled to his feet and began jogging towards her.
"Yeah Lily?" he asked when he came to a stop in front of her.
Biting her lip, she decided to just go for it before she lost her nerve. Lily stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.
Potter froze, then relaxed and wound his arms around her waist, kissing her back. Lily was surprised to find that she actually enjoyed snogging Potter and might even have to thank Marlene for this later.
After a few moments, they pulled apart, James staring at her in wonder.
"Lily-" he began, but she shook her head and he stopped speaking, confused.
"Look," she started, but was distracted by James tucking a piece of hair behind her ear and the realization that his arms were still wrapped securely around her waist.
"Look," she repeated, "Marlene dared me to, okay?"
His face fell and Lily saw real hurt and broken hope in his eyes. "So you only kissed me because you are completely unable to turn down a dare?"
"I'm sorry James," she said softly, extracting herself from his arms and walking back to Marlene.
She actually felt guilty.
At dinner, Lily couldn't help but notice that James was more subdued than usual, pushing his food around his plate. She looked away from him and caught Sirius's gaze. He shook his head, almost as if he was disappointed in her, and resumed his conversation with Remus.
Sighing, Lily pushed her plate away and left the Great Hall, her appetite gone.
She wandered out of the Entrance Hall and onto the grounds, taking in the sight of Hogwarts and the lake at dusk. It was really quite beautiful, and Lily sighed and sank down onto the ground, then lay on her back and stared at the sky. Slowly it changed from orange and yellow and purple to a deep blue and finally to almost black.
She sighed again and closed her eyes. If Marlene had dared her three years ago, or even last year, to kiss James Potter, Lily would have refused. But over the course of this past year, things had been changing between them.
Lily heard footsteps, but didn't bother to sit up or look around.
"How did you know I can't turn down a dare to save my life?" She asked without opening her eyes.
James plopped onto the ground next to her. "There's not much I don't know about you Lily." He replied, his head tilted to the sky. She opened one eye and studied his silhouette, finding that for once, she didn't want him to leave her alone.
"But," he continued, "I wish you had turned down this one."
Surprised, Lily sat up and looked at him. He continued looking at the sky, seeming to focus on each star as it appeared.
"Why?"
"Because sometimes I think you underestimate the effect you have on me," he said simply, still refusing to look at her.
Lily could feel her jaw dropping. Smiling, James looked at her for a moment, then turned his gaze back to the sky.
"James, I – I don't-"
He sighed patiently and smiled again.
"I know you don't really believe me Lily, but I actually do like you. Quite a bit really. It's actually fairly embarrassing." As if to agree with his words, his cheeks tinged pink and he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "And I keep telling myself and everyone else that I've given up on you actually liking me or anything happening between us, but when you go and do something like you did earlier, it doesn't help me get over you any faster."
Lily looked down at her hands in her lap, not quite sure what to say to that. Surprisingly, she believed him, but she had no idea what she felt or even thought about him anymore. They were friends, sort of, and they got along, but she didn't hate him or even dislike him anymore.
And the idea of a relationship with James no longer also completely repulsed her.
James watched her think out of the corner of his eye. Part of him couldn't help but hope that maybe there was a chance, no matter how small. He would take anything.
"Lily?" he said softly after a silence of a few minutes. Her head snapped up and she stared at him dazedly. He brushed a piece of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. "What are you thinking?"
"I…I don't know."
James sighed and dropped his hand. He went to stand, and Lily frantically stood too.
She wasn't sure really what she wanted to say to him, she just knew that she couldn't let him leave before she said something…something.
"Let me know when you know what you think," he said resignedly. James took two steps forward and Lily reacted instinctively, grabbing his arm and spinning him around to face her.
She didn't have anything to say, so she just did what the little voice in her head – which sounded suspiciously like Marlene – was telling her to.
Lily placed one hand on the back of his neck and pulled him down to her, pressing her lips against his.
When they broke apart, James looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to say it was another dare or some kind of rejection that would break his heart for the millionth time. She bit her lip.
"I still don't know James. I don't hate you anymore, but I don't know how to go from the relationship we used to have to the one we could have."
James smiled and pulled her into a hug, tucking her head under his chin. "You're over-thinking it, love. Just take it one day at a time, it's as simple as that."
Lily pulled back and looked at him, trying to ignore the butterflies she felt both from his gaze and the casual way he called her 'love'.
"Okay then," she said slowly. "Hogsmeade this weekend?"
James smiled, and she couldn't help but smile as well.
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