"Oi, Potter."
James looked up from his DADA book to peer at Lily, the sight of her bringing a delighted glint to his eyes, though the pleasure was tainted by confusion.
"Are we reverting back to surnames, Evans?"
While two years earlier, Lily Evans would never have even considered calling James by his first name, the two had managed to form an uneasy alliance by the middle of sixth year, and an easy friendship by the beginning of seventh. She hadn't called James "Potter" in months, and it was a nostalgic yet discomfiting name to hear her utter.
She had just entered the Head dorms after doing rounds, since she had taken Remus's shift to allow him to recover from his PMS. Post-Moon Syndrome is a very serious condition, and James and Lily took turns filling in to allow him the most recovery time. James had been studying in the common area, though most of his time had been spent waiting eagerly for her to get back. Not for any reason, just because he was sort of-just a little bit, really-utterly infatuated with her. Apparently, just as he had begun to focus, she had returned. Lily now stood before him, hands on her hips, with a steely glint in her eyes. James looked into them, and acknowledged (for the billionth time) that they were more of a mossy green than an emerald green. It was a soft color, and his mates had never cared much about the difference but James could name a thousand reasons why he would rather love a girl with moss colored eyes than emerald-
"James Potter, I am here on important business."
"Whose important business?"
"My own."
"Ah, so the most important business, indeed." His lips quirked up at one corner, and Lily's own lips curved up in response. She startled, and brought the serious look back.
"It most certainly is, for you." James finally sat back in his chair, and put on his most attentive face. "James Potter, I do believe that I may fancy you."
James no longer had to pretend to be taken in by her words, and his mouth opened slightly. He could not think of a single thing to say that could sum up every feeling and thought that he had running through his head, so he let his mouth hang open in the hopes that perhaps something witty and romantic would come out. Several seconds passed, and he and Lily both became conscious of the fact that nothing would come out of his mouth any time soon, and she shuffled slightly.
"James, I fancy you, and I should rather like to know if it is a hopeless endeavor. If you don't feel the same, I would understand, but please just tell me before I make a bigger fool of myself."
"I knew that you would come 'round, Evans." James and Lily's heads shot towards the window to see Sirius with a wolfish grin on his handsome face. He prowled forward, clapping a hand down on James' shoulder. "Prongs is free next Hogsmeade weekend, at 1 o'clock, in the 3 Broomsticks. Nerves will cause him to be a few minutes late, I will bother you until Mother Moony drags me away, and James will be too anxious to kiss you at the end of the date until you plant one on him yourself. It's a date."
Sirius left their supposedly locked dorm as quickly as he had arrived, leaving a flustered Lily and James to look at each other in a confused, though not unhappy, daze.
Three weeks later, everything Sirius had predicted came to pass, and Lily still agreed to go out with him again.
J&L
"Hey James? I may fancy you, just a little bit."
James was once again sitting on the couch in the common room, though he wasn't even pretending to study this time. He sat near the fire, his arm around the back of the couch so he could hold on to Lily, who leaned into his side. James had worried at the start of their relationship that he may touch her more than what is strictly necessary for a couple. Luckily for him, she longed for contact just as much as he did. Their admittedly young relationship was one of linked pinkies, brushing elbows, crooked smiles, and snuggling up on the couch during winter storms. James had never enjoyed a winter so much as this one, and her murmured words brought a warm smile to his face.
Lily had been careful with her words for as long as he had known her. She was equally capable of giving delightfully original and unfailingly sincere compliments and spitting a scathing insult that would never leave the head of the recipient. After so many arguments with James throughout their time at Hogwarts, she hesitated to say anything that could have a lasting effect. That was wise when she was angry, but less admirable when it came to her lack of verbal intimacy. Her confession of affection nearly three months ago was much more impressive taking that into account, and James decided to go out on a limb of his own this time around.
He pressed a soft kiss into her flaming hair, and he heard a quiet sigh in response. "I love you, too."
She stiffened up for a moment, and melted even deeper into his arms. He hummed contentedly, knowing that she would return the sentiment verbatim soon enough.
J&L
They were 19, and fighting in a war. James had never feared for the safety of a loved one so constantly in his life, and with elderly parents and a werewolf best friend, that meant something. With each training meeting, James was plagued with visions of Lily being jumped by Death Eaters when he and the boys weren't around to defend her. With each battle against Voldemort, he could hardly breathe for fear of her fate. James Potter was desperately in love with Lily Evans, and he feared that perhaps theirs would not be a happy end in such times. All the same, the only end he could bear to imagine was one by her side.
They were at Frank and Alice's annual Christmas party, and the Order had never been in such high spirits. The Longbottoms had been married for a month now, and the invigoration of their vow had not yet worn off. Sirius was lip syncing to some Christmas song that had played dozens of times already, and Remus was teaching Peter to waltz in spite of the lack of appropriate music. He couldn't see Marlene or Dorcas, but he assumed that they were off with the Pruitt twins. James rather disliked the thought of that, and hoped that they wouldn't spoil his evening with their antics. Perhaps it was dangerous to have the entire war effort in one room, but that also meant that some of the most dangerous people in Britain were in one room. James and a few others were put on watch duty, but he was having a bit of trouble focusing on danger when there was something of far more important on his mind.
He was standing with Lily, and he heard her let out a groan of amused irritation over the din of the party. He looked down at her, and she shot him an indulgent grin as she pointed up above them. He glanced up and smirked at the sight of a mistletoe.
"Alice, this is stupid!" Lily shouted over to their gleeful friend, who had most definitely had far more Firewhiskey than strictly necessary. Alice laughed, and her eyes were bright as she gave an exaggerated shrug from across the room. James winked at her and wrapped his arm around Lily's waist to pull her close. He grinned down at her, gave her one last smile, and pressed a searing kiss against her lips. It wasn't terribly long, and it was just one kiss. But he used the contact to communicate his every fear, hope, and anticipation. He could hear Alice whoop in the distance, and he smiled against Lily's lips. When he pulled his lips away, he pressed his forehead against hers and just looked at her. He had been dating her for two years now, and had never once tired or the way her dark green eyes lit up when she was happy, or the way her hair was nearly as unmanageable as his own. He loved the way she only wore sweaters two sizes too big, and how she loved odd earrings. He looked at her, and was delighted to see that she looked at him with just as much love as he felt.
"You know, James, I suspect that I might fancy you." Her eyes were soft, and she looked at him expectantly. Whether she hoped for another kiss, or for him to say it back, he would never know, since he pulled away.
"That's good, I guess." She looked confused and somewhat alarmed as he took a few steps back. He heard the room quiet down, and he lowered himself onto one knee. "If you didn't, this next bit would be awkward."
Her eyes were wide as he pulled out a small box, and there were some gasps around the room from those who hadn't know what he was planning. Frank and Alice had been thrilled when he asked to use their party for the proposal, and the boys had been drafted to keep the party under control and stay on watch for anything dangerous so that he wouldn't have to. The ring was a family heirloom that he had seen Lily admire when she met his parents. It wasn't an engagement ring, but that didn't matter so long as she loved it. James would have given her anything she asked for, which is why she never asked for anything. He had always needed to interrogate her to find out what she wanted for presents and rewards, so the moment she gasped at the sight of the ruby-encrusted gold ring, he had known that it would be hers.
"I don't know how long our lives will be, Lily," he confessed. "But I want to give the rest of mine to you, if you think you could stand me for all of it."
She sank down onto her own knees, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She didn't say anything for a while, and he felt a hint of doubt seep in.
"You know, Evans, if you don't feel the same, I would understand, but please just tell me before I make a bigger fool of myself."
She let out one watery bark of laughter before nodding against his neck.
"I suppose I can tolerate you for a while longer." She reached for the ring, but he pulled it away so he could put it on her himself. They both smiled at the sight of the old ring on her unblemished skin, and Sirius broke the silence with a slow round of applause. Remus rolled his eyes, but joined in with a broad grin. The rest of the room erupted, but James only really cared about the happiness of one person in the room.
J&L
James Potter had grown up in a very wealthy home, with older parents who hadn't expected to be able to have children, so he had understandably grown up having the best of everything. He knew beautiful things when he saw them, though he had always done his best not to judge quality based on appearance. He had chosen Sirius as his Best Friend, and Sirius was very handsome. His attractiveness did distract others from the fact that he was capable of terrible things, but James had managed to see through it. Remus and Peter, his other best friends, were somewhat the worse for wear if appearance was the only factor that makes a great friend. But since both were funny, loyal, and trustworthy, he had loved them more than nearly anything else the world had to offer. Lily Evans, though, he would admit to having judged on sight. She was everything he had ever thought was beautiful, and that had not changed since day one. Since then, he had found, much to his own delight, that the way she acted and thought was even better than her physical appearance. He loved even the worst parts of her, but he had never loved her more than in this moment.
He swayed with her on the dance floor at their wedding, and he had never seen more worth loving in her than today. She was at her most beautiful, her kindest, her funniest, her happiest. Knowing that he was the cause of it made his heart feel as though it could not possibly contain the magnitude of pure feeling that she inspired in him. He twirled her around the room, and felt as though he could fly higher holding Lily than he could riding his broomstick.
"Mr. Potter?"
He grinned. "Yes, Mrs. Potter?"
"I fancy you."
He pressed his lips against hers, and she wrapped her arms tighter around his neck to pull herself closer to his face. They had been together long enough now to know the dance of kissing one another, but knew each other well enough to know how to change the dance for the better every time. James Potter kissed Lily Potter, and learned all over again that he would never tire of her.
"You know, Prongs, this is usually supposed to start after the reception, not during. Isn't that right, Remus? I mean, I've never been married, but I'm pretty sure that they don't have sex until-" Remus elbowed Sirius in the ribs, but Peter laughed out loud. The three lounged at the head table, and Remus sent an apologetic smile their way. James tried to frown at his dearest friends, but he could hardly keep a broad grin off his face. He hadn't been able to all day. He could probably smile for the rest of his life, as long as he felt even a fraction of what he did today.
J&L
It had been a quiet evening, but James didn't mind. He hated that he wasn't allowed to fight, but it was on quiet nights like these that he could almost pretend that there was nothing to fight about. It was Halloween, and he had never felt like suck a normal family before.
For the first several months of marriage, he and Lily had juggled shifts of fighting and spying, never having a moment of quiet to take in what they were losing. As soon as Lily discovered that she was pregnant, everything fell silent. Too silent. He didn't want to stop fighting if it was because of a prophesy. He didn't want to stop fighting if his wife and child were at stake, or the lives of the Longbottoms. They hadn't been in touch for a while, but he was overwhelmed with a hope and a horror that the prophesy-the death sentence-had been for another family. He had never told Lily that. He couldn't tell her that he almost hoped that their dear friends would die instead, but he needed his family alive. They were the only reason for him to be alive.
Harry had been dressed as a pumpkin, which Lily said was some kind of Muggle tradition, but he didn't really care too much. Harry looked wonderful and felt miserable. Bathilda had dropped by briefly, and James had longed to go somewhere, just for a moment. Usually he could keep the urge to do something crazy under control nowadays, but he could hardly rein himself in. He would have considered trying to leave in the evening, if not for the note Lily flew his way as they played with Harry in the afternoon.
They had been taking turns flying a paper airplane back and forth above Harry, watching him run about to try and catch it. Once, when Lily was returning the plane, it unraveled in his hands. There, magicked into place by the best charms student in their year, was written:
James Potter, I fancy you.
It had hit him suddenly how lucky he was. He was also rather unlucky, all things considered, but still. He had been so afraid when he married Lily that they wouldn't have the chance to have a real life together because of the war. Now, when he had a home, a family, and a chance to enjoy all of them, he resented it all. If he truly loved Lily, he had to be willing to go to do anything to keep her safe. He was rather shaken after that, and he wrote Lily an entire letter of reasons he loved her on the plane. He hadn't seen her look so happy in weeks.
He had played with Harry all evening, blowing bubbles and shooting out bursts of colored smoke before sending the baby to bed. Just as Lily picked Harry up, James saw something move outside of the living room window, and knew just how far he would go to keep his family safe.