James sighed contentedly as he sat down, having just finished his NEWTs. He was sure he'd done pretty well on them. He was smart and talented, though he didn't try, according to his teachers. Peter was a nervous wreck, as usual after any kind of test. They were by the lake, to relax after tests, and Peter was going over the questions in a frantic, squeaky voice.

"What is the definition of a corporeal patronus? Oh, I don't know if I put the right answer. I put a patronus that has the basic shape, but I don't think that's right…oh, I failed, I just know it. I know I failed. I won't be able to get a job…I'll have to live on the streets…I'll starve…" he was whining.

"Do us a favor, Wormtail, and shut up," Sirius said lazily, looking at the lake. James chuckled at his friends.

"How do you think you did?" Peter asked, glaring as Sirius, who was totally unaffected by it.

"I think I did quite well," Remus said calmly. The others all rolled their eyes. He did excellently, and they all knew it. He never failed Ministry exams, school exams, test, quizzes-ANYTHING-ever.

"I think I did alright," James said. "I might have pulled off two outstandings, but I'm not overly worried." He shrugged.

"Of course you not, mate," Sirius said, tossing a rock into the lake. "You're filthy rich. You don't need a good job."

"You only need to get a job if you want to," Remus said. James shrugged, knowing what they said was true. Him working hard was about as likely to happen as Peter discovering the Drowning Sea Serpent, which was totally impossible. Sea Serpent's could breathe under water, so one would never drown. And Peter had trouble finding a matching pair of socks in the morning, so there was no way he would discover something amazing.

"Yeah," Peter muttered sullenly, "lucky you."

"Yep, lucky me," James replied, watching Lily come towards him. The other boys noticed this and shook their heads. Of all the girls in Hogwarts, James had chosen Lily Evans, the girl who had hated him until this year. The marauders had never seen a happier James than when he was dating Lily. Sirius constantly picked on James over his relationship with Lily, just like he did now.

"Oh look, James, here comes your flower. You think she's come to break up with you, as you are a toerag and all? You know, a great bloated head with messed up hair who puts too much stock in his Quidditch talent. I hope not, I don't want to deal with a heartbroken James the end of the year. It will ruin all the fun," Sirius said in a sing-song voice. He did it just to be annoying.

"Compassionate, Sirius, really caring. I get my heartbroken and all you'll care about is it ruining our plans?" James asked, not taking his eyes off Lily and fingering something in his pocket anxiously.

"'Course," was all Sirius said.

"Some friend you are," James replied distractedly as he stood up to go talk to Lily. "See you later." He sprinted over to Lily, Sirius whistling at him.

"Well, Lily, done with your NEWTs?" he asked, and then mentally kicked himself. Of course she was done, what a stupid question. She would think he was an idiot.

"Of course and you?" she replied smoothly, trying to make him feel better as she smiled at him. That smile sent butterflies into his stomach.

"I'm done. I think I did well, you?" he asked her, talking her hand and walking around the lake, opposite Sirius, Peter, and Remus.

"I'm sure I passed them all," Lily said. James smiled.

"I know you did excellently on them all," he said, and squeezed her hand. She smiled up at him.

"Thank you. Did you hear about Matilda Morgan?" she asked suddenly, her voice concerned.

"No, what happened?" James questioned as they sat down at the edge of the water. He had caught onto her mood, knowing she wanted to talk. He was more that willing.

"Well, it appears she had a blooming daisy allergy, and that it caused her air way to block up. She started choking in the middle of her practical exam and they had to rush her to the hospital wing. Nobody's seen her since, and that was two hours ago!" Lily mumbled, clearly concerned about her friend.

"I hope she's okay. You're really close, right?" he asked, knowing the answer was yes, but just wanting to let Lily vent her feelings.

"She's been my best friend for the past seven years!" Lily yelled, rounding on James. Her fiery temper came out in a flash, as she was strained both from exams and her friend's condition. "James Potter, you knew that full well! Why are you asking stupid questions? Just shut up, James! Stop acting like an idiot!" she said. James patted her back.

"Hey, Lily, I was just asking," James said. Lily nodded and started to cry. "I'm sorry James, I'm just tense. We have a feast to plan, we just took NEWT's, Matilda's hurt, we are getting closer to graduation, we're going off into the world and not knowing if we'll see our friends again! Voldemort's out there, too! Oh, James, I'm just so worried and nervous!" she said, leaning against him. James just crooned to her comfortingly, rubbing her back.

"Hey, Lily, I can't promise everything will be alright, but I can promise that I'm here for you. I'm here, ready to listen and comfort whenever you need it. Don't worry; we still have two days left of Hogwarts. Shhhh…there, there now…Shhhh," he murmured, kissing the top of her head. She just cried for a few more minutes, letting James soothe her. When she was done crying, she just leaned against him and rested there, sighing contentedly. Her arms were wrapped around his neck and her hands in his messy hair. She used to complain about his messy hair, but now she loved it. She thought it was wonderful to run her hands through. She never had to worry about messing up, because it was always in disarray.

"Thank you, James," she whispered quietly. "I'm so lucky to have a boyfriend like you. You're wonderful, you know that?" she said, kissing him lightly.

"Yeah, Lily, I do," he said, before going back in for another kiss. She laughed as he pulled away.

"Your incorrigible, James," she said, looking up at him. He laughed.

"Then why are you going out with me?" he asked lightly.

"Good question, James," Lily teased him, faking a ponderous look. He chuckled, and she heard it deep in his chest. She sighed as she leaned her head back against his strong torso, hearing the air entering and exiting his lungs in a comforting manner. She closed her eyes and listened to his heartbeat. Thu-dump…Thu-dump….Thu-dump…until it lulled her to sleep.

James just sat there; a sleeping Lily curled up leaning against him, content with his lot in life. He was rich, talented, popular, and he had a wonderful girlfriend, who had to be the most beautiful women in the world. He pressed his lips lightly to the top of her head, just breathing in the scent of her. He loved her so much. He loved her laugh, he smile, her voice, her hair, her eyes…oh, her eyes were the most gorgeous eyes he had ever seen. They were what had drawn him to her in the first place. A guy could easily loose himself in those emerald depths, could gladly drown in that sea of green. He had done it on more than one occasion, and gotten slapped a fair few time for it as well. He didn't care, he loved her. She was a wonderful person whose eyes told of her love of life. The eyes, people said, were a window to the soul. If Lily's eyes were a window to her soul, James thought that her spirit had to be the most gorgeous and joyous thing ever to be on earth. They just sparkled when she laughed and shimmered with her joy of life. He loved it, and would always love it. Just like her would always love her. He smiled as he thought of when he first met her, on the train. Even then she had thought he was conceited, and he had to admit it. He was conceited. He had walked in all haughty only to be brought down by her, who told it like it was. Well, he had never forgotten her. He even thought that that was when he had fallen in love with her. She was unafraid to speak her mind, and that was a very good quality in a woman, according to him. She was brave, no one doubted that. Not many people willing stood up to James, and Lily did it at least twice a day. She was also in Gryffindor house, a true show of courage. She was smart…you don't become a prefect and Head without being clever. She was…well, amazing. James couldn't think of anyone better that his Lily, and he didn't care how much Sirius ribbed him over it. She moved in her sleep, and James looked down. She was gorgeous, with that calm look on her face and peace just radiating from her. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, sighing in pleasure. Today was a wonderful day.

People started to head back into school, so James decided it was time to wake Lily up. He didn't want to, he just wanted to watch her sleep, but he did anyway.

"Lily," he said, and she didn't budge. He moved a bit, hoping bit dislodge her. It didn't do anything. "Lily," he called again, and she muttered, but didn't wake up. He moved his hand and stroked her face gently, putting his mouth down by her ear. "Lily, it's time to get up," he practically yelled. That worked. She sat up and glared at him, rubbing her ear.

"I take it back. You're not wonderful," she said, getting up. James just laughed and took her hand.

"So, Lily, what do you want to do after school?" he asked, bringing back their earlier conversation. He was worried, because of what he was planning to do, and just wanted to calm down.

"I don't know," Lily said. "I'm going to look into some ministry career opportunities before I decide. I want to be a healer, but I don't know if I'm cut out for it. I like charms a whole lot, and Flitwick says I'm really good at them, so I might look into that."

"Lily, you're wonderful at Charms. The best in the class," James replied, chuckling nervously. She gave him an odd look.

"So, what do you plan on doing after school?" she asked. He felt a bit light-headed suddenly, and sucked in the air, wondering if now was the time. He decided it was not, so just answered normally.

"Oh, I don't know either. I want to work at the Ministry, like you said. You know, do something useful there, unlike most of the politicians who work there," James said and Lily laughed. They shared the same views as Hagrid on the Ministry: It wasn't worth you time. "I don't know, I just want to do something where I can work against him, you know?" he said. She nodded, understanding. There was no need to say who 'him' was. They both knew it was Voldemort, and they both wanted to work against him. They had lost friends and family to him and his supporters, just like everyone else, and wanted to be a part of his downfall in whatever way possible.

As they neared the front doors, the only ones left outside, James decided now was the time to act. He turned to Lily as quick as lightning, bringing her to a stop.

"Lily," he said, running his hands through his hair. He sighed. "No…I'm going to do this right," he muttered to himself and dropped to one knee. Lily gasped, she just couldn't help herself.

"Lily Evans, I love you. I love you all my heart and have for a while now. We're nearing the end of our school careers and are about to enter into the real world, a world with war and pain and hurt. A world with love. I want to enter into that world knowing I have you by my side. I want to go there with the comfort of knowing that I have someone I love there with me. I want to enter that world, Lily, with you as my wife. Lily Evans, I know I'm undeserving, but I love you. Will you marry me?" he asked, breathing heavily. Lily was crying, he didn't know if that was a good sign or not, but he just wanted to hear her answer.

Lily couldn't' talk. She was just too happy to talk. She loved James too, and wanted to be his wife. She nodded her head, smiling and gasping for breath around her tears. The next thing she knew, she was pulled against a hard chest and wrapped in strong arms, being kissed by a very happy James. He looked down at her and smiled in a relieved way.

"It's a scary world out there," Lily said quietly, thinking of the war and everything they were going out to face.

"Yeah, but at least we will fight it together. At leas we'll make a difference side by side," he said before he kissed her again. If only he knew how true his words were.

They did affect the war, facing Voldemort three times, bravely and gallantly fighting him with their all. They fought for his downfall, and died at his hand without seeing it. But they would still affect the war, through their son, Harry. He would grow up and defeat the reborn Voldemort, head high and back straight like his parents. They would affect the hero of the world with there love. Love, after all, is the greatest power, and nothing can overcome it.