A/N: Hey, I'm back! I've finally finished Strange Magic, and it's time to deliver on what I promised before.

Disclaimer: I will only be saying this once throughout the entire story—the wizarding world and most of the characters belong to J.K.

Chapter 1

"I can't believe this is our last night at Hogwarts," Lily Evans mused.

Her boyfriend, James Potter, nodded mutely as he stared out the window.

They were up at the Astronomy Tower, James's favorite spot, gazing up at the stars for what might be the last time.

James rested his chin in his girlfriend's soft red locks as a crisp, cool breeze blew through his unruly black hair. "Funny, after tonight, there'll be no more pranking—"

"Since when has being or not being in school stopped you?" Lily turned her head to face James, incredulous.

"Well, it's just not going to be the same without dear Snivellus around…he's such a great victim."

"I'm sure you'll find a way to cope with such a terrible loss." Lily rolled her emerald-green eyes. "And for the millionth time, James, lay off him already."

"OK, OK, love."

"Actually mean it for once." Lily turned back around and leaned against James.

xxxxx

It was the Hogwarts seventh-years' last breakfast at the school. As Lily spread marmalade on a piece of toast for James, Sirius Black, James's best friend, came bounding towards them.

"Moony, Prongs—I have got the most amazing news," he announced.

"What's that?" Lily asked suspiciously.

"I'm being evicted from my flat!"

"Forgive me for not quite understanding, Black, but exactly HOW is that supposed to be good news?"

James appeared to know, as did their mutual best friend Remus Lupin, who sat on Lily's other side, since they both looked highly excited.

"Yes! You hear that, Moony?" James said happily to Remus.

"Is everything all set?" Remus asked excitedly.

"Yeah. This is great, Padfoot!"

Lily was looking from one boy to the other like a spectator in a tennis match, trying to decipher what they were saying.

"Anyway, I'm off to join Nicole for a bit of toast—see you!" Sirius flounced away to the Ravenclaw table before Lily could ask what was going on.

"Sorry, love," James quickly said when he saw his girlfriend's annoyed expression. "It's just that, well, Moony and Padfoot and me are buying a house together!"

"Oh! That is great!" Lily exclaimed. "Hey…why didn't I know about this?" She shot a scorching glare at Remus.

"Um…I didn't want to say anything until it was all settled." Remus replied nervously.

James had suddenly gone very red.

"Why not?" Lily persisted.

James poked at his bacon, his face getting redder and redder. "Because…er…I'm…kindof…reallyhoping…um…well…erm…ah…"

"Just spit it out, Prongs," Remus mumbled around a large mouthful of egg and grilled tomato (and spraying some onto Lily's robes). "Let it out of your system."

"Keep your food to yourself, Remus," Lily said evenly as she Vanished the bits on her sleeve. "Yes, James?" she prodded gently.

James was now stabbing at his bacon with reckless abandon as he stared at his plate.

"Um…really…willyoumoveinwithme?"

xxxxx

"Eh?" Lily looked baffled.

"In slow motion, he said 'um…really…will you move in with me'," Remus explained helpfully.

Lily was stunned.

"You don't have to; you don't have to if you don't want," James spoke hurriedly. "I can provide for you—you don't have to pay for anything at all! I won't try anything, promise!"

Lily was still staring at James as though she had never seen him before.

"Yes, of course I will!" she burst out happily. "It'll be great!"

James looked immensely relieved. "You think?"

"Absolutely! Oh, James!"

Remus quickly dropped his fork and shielded his eyes. "No PDA, people—no PDA please."

"But I want to pay my own way, James," Lily told him, her tone serious.

"You don't have to, honest," James said. "It's no problem, Lily."

"It's only fair to you." Her voice was firm.

"Lily…"

"No, James." She looked very determined.

"OK, OK," James mumbled around the toast Lily jammed into his mouth.

Lily returned to her cornflakes, satisfied. "Is anyone else in?"

"I believe Sirius mentioned he was going to ask Nicole," Remus quipped.

"Oh, good."

They all turned to look at the Ravenclaw table with great interest.

xxxxx

"Good morning, Sirius!" Nicole Greenleaf jumped up and kissed her boyfriend on the cheek as he sat down beside her. (A girl two places down glared resentfully at her)

Flicking his wrist, he produced a stargazer, her favorite flower, from thin air. "For you," he said, kissing her back."Morning, love."

He appeared particularly nervous today, she noted as she watched him fiddling with her spoon, even more so than the day he showed up in Ravenclaw Tower with a bouquet of flowers and asked her to be his girlfriend.

"Um…Nicole…if I asked…would you deny me?" He widened his eyes.

She narrowed her eyes. "Only if I must."

Sirius had started shredding a piece of toast. "It's just that…OK, deep breath, Sirius…OK, Moony, Prongs, and I are getting a house together…anyway, I think Lily's in too…if you would like to…would you like to move in with us?"

"Well…OK. Why not? Sounds like fun."

He looked up in great relief. "Really?" His eyes shone.

"Yeah. I'll have to owl my dad, but I don't think he'll mind so much." Nicole felt a smile form on her face as Sirius beamed, realizing that she was the one who brought such a smile to his face.

Well, she knew, but it still amazed her day after day.

He swept her up into a hug. "Yes! You won't regret it, Nicole." A grin still on his face, he happily tore a bit of toast off and fed it to her.

Nicole, flushing, was distinctly aware of the whispers and glares heaped upon her by those who had overheard the conversation, but she found that she didn't care.

XXXXX

A/N: What do you think? looks nervous

Anyway, just a heads-up: You might find that this story takes a bit of a longer time to update, because I'm now in my freshman year of college, and incredibly busy.

I thank the Lord for the inspiration to write this sequel for you guys!