A/N: Hi everyone! This is the first thing I've posted in a while, and for that I apologise profusely! It's been really hectic what with moving to university and all that but now I'm settled in I hope to be able to write a bit more. For anyone reading this who's been reading The Light at the End of the Tunnel – I have NOT abandoned it; chapter 9 is in working progress, but chapter 9 will be the last one for the moment. I haven't ruled out adding bits to it completely but it's unlikely. I'm really busy now so until the Christmas holidays I think the only things I'll publish will be one-shots. Anyway, massive ramble over, this is just a slightly fluffy Lily and Severus fic that I thought would nicely explain James' behaviour in the memory Harry sees in the Pensieve in OOTP. This is my first shot at writing romance so I hope it's not too cringeworthy! The '48 hours later' bit at the end is taken from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I'm assuming everyone knows the story behind it! Everything's JKR's, I own nothing. As always, please do R&R and ENJOY! :D L x

Hello stranger!

It feels like I haven't seen you in ages, I know we've got OWLs and everything but this is getting ridiculous!

Tell you what, the summer nights are so lovely, let's meet after curfew like we always used to and walk down to the lake! We deserve a break before DADA.

Usual place, usual time?

Lily

Severus Snape folded the note up and tucked it inside his robes, smiling. His best friend was right; they had not spoken properly for a while due to the exams, and they did have a day off tomorrow before Defense Against The Dark Arts.

While he finished his breakfast, Severus analysed the letter in his mind. "hello stranger! It feels like I haven't seen you in ages"… Did that mean she missed him? "I know we've got OWLs and everything"… Lily wasn't usually so lighthearted about exams, so maybe he was more important to her? He hid his grin behind his toast, already excited about that evening, barely even thinking about the Transfiguration exam he had to get through first.

On the other side of the hall, Lily Evans was sitting with her friends at the Gryffindor table, glancing over at the Slytherin table as often as she could without people noticing and commenting. She was looking for some sort of reaction… Some hint that Sev had got her letter and, more importantly, had accepted her invitation.

Would he want to meet her? There was a day to go before DADA, but she knew it was one of his favourite subjects, and he took his exams almost as seriously as she did. Or what if he hadn't missed her in the few weeks they hadn't spoken properly, kept busy by revision? If he hadn't, if he had grown used to her absence from his life, surely he wouldn't risk sneaking out after curfew…

"LILY!" someone said loudly, waving a hand in front of her face. Pulled out of her thoughts, Lily turned to look at Mary, who was looking impatient – apparently she'd been trying to get her attention for a couple of minutes.

"What in the name of Merlin is up with you this morning?"

"Nothing," Lily lied, "just nervous about Transfiguration. You know I prefer Charms."

Mary rolled her eyes. "Lily, I know Charms is your favourite, but you shouldn't be nervous about any of your subjects; you're amazing at all of them! It's very irritating," she teased.

Lily sighed. She knew she was being a pain, but she was a bit nervous about Transfiguration, and she was incredibly nervous about Severus' response to her note. She felt herself being chivvied out of her seat and Mary linked arms with her, leading her out of the Great Hall to wait outside for the practical Transfiguration exam.

"Seriously though, Lil," she was saying, "McGonagall loves you. I can't remember the last lesson she didn't give you house points in. And why? Because you're top of the class!"

Lily smiled at her friend's efforts to cheer her up. "Thanks Mary, but I'm not top of the class. James Potter's better and Sirius Black isn't far behind."

"Yeah, but they mess around too much. You'll probably still do better in the exam because you listen in lessons!"

She had a point here, Lily had to admit.

"Okay, okay, I give in. I'm really excited for Transfiguration!"

"Don't be cheeky," her friend winked. "Come on, let's go through some of the incantations for- Lily?"

For Lily had suddenly stopped and was staring towards the door. Sev was walking through, surrounded by his idiotic friends. As she watched him, he looked over to her. For a moment, his expression was unreadable. Then, he smiled at her and gave her a small thumbs up, mouthing, "good luck! See you later."

Lily grinned back at him, her heart light all of a sudden, despite the forthcoming exam. She returned the thumbs up and mouthed "you too!"

Mary saw this, but simply shook her head at her friend and sighed as they settled themselves against a wall. Lily merely laughed and asked her friend which spells she wanted to run through while they waited to be called for the exam.

Well, thought Severus, it hadn't gone too badly. Admittedly his flamingo could have had a few more feathers and he wished he hadn't had a mind blank on the question about Vanishing in the theory paper, but overall he was fairly pleased with Transfiguration. He did not give himself much time to think about it though – now that the exam was over, only dinner and waiting until people had gone to bed stood in the way of his rendez-vous with Lily.

Moving to the mirror in his dormitory, he sighed. He had washed his hair only this morning, woken early by exam nerves, but it was already beginning to look greasy. He wished it didn't get like that so quickly. He would have to have another shower after dinner before he met Lily.

"Oi!" he received a sharp elbow to the ribs. It was Mulciber. "Are you coming to dinner or not?"

With one last, annoyed look at his hair, Snape resignedly followed his friend out of the common room.

James Potter was lounging around on a sofa in the Gryffindor common room, waiting for Sirius to finish chatting up some girl and go down to dinner with him. Remus would transform that night and was off his food; Peter, in his usual sycophantic way, had volunteered to miss dinner and keep him company.

James ran a hand through his hair and glanced at his watch. He was starving. Transfiguration had been easy, he thought, with a smug smile, but he had been out flying afterwards and had built up quite an appetite. He glanced over to the corner where Sirius was now entwined around the girl, who was, admittedly, gorgeous. It didn't look like they were planning on eating anything any time soon – at least, not in the conventional sense.

James did not want to go to dinner by himself, so stood up and started making his way across the room towards his friend, intending to drag him away. However, halfway across the room, he stopped and changed direction, his face cracking into a grin and one hand moving to his hair to rumple it. Lily Evans was making her way towards the portrait hole – alone.

"Miss Evans," he smiled, bowing courteously. She looked at him, unsure, and he could tell she was torn between smiling and walking off.

"May I escort you to dinner?" he enquired, offering her an arm.

Lily looked at him, trying to think what to say. She always maintained that she didn't like James; his pranks were often mean and he was so arrogant… And yet, for some reason, she got butterflies at the idea of walking down to dinner arm-in-arm with him. What was that all about?

She was a bit alarmed by this sudden pleasure at James' attention, which she had always received but had never been bothered about before, but she felt it would be churlish to say no and besides, there was no way she would ever go out with him. Maybe it was just a bit of a crush. She had much stronger feelings for Sev…

"Okay," she said, returning his smile.

Severus was in a state of high agitation at the Slytherin table. He had positioned himself so he had a good view of the door, but when Lily walked through it, rather than skipping a hearbeat, he felt his heart drop like a stone. She was walking into dinner with none other than James Potter – and their arms were linked. What did this mean? Why would she ask to meet him and then start acting like a married couple with Potter? Was she trying to make him jealous? If this was the case, Severus thought dully, it was certainly working.

Severus toyed with his lasagne, ignoring his friends' conversation, thinking about Lily. Finally, his friends were full and they left the Great Hall. As they went, he glanced over at the Gryffindor table. Lily was sitting with James, who was laughing at something she was saying, casting her a flirtatious look.

Severus sighed and turned to his friends.

"I'm going for a shower… See you later."

He could feel their eyes on him as he wandered off towards the bathroom. He wasn't usually the most talkative person, but he knew he'd been even quieter than usual tonight. Inwardly, he cursed James Potter. He'd been so excited about meeting Lily tonight and now that arrogant, big-headed moron with stupid hair had ruined it.

Lily peered into the mirror, checking her makeup. Usually she didn't wear any, but she'd decided to put a little bit on as she was seeing Sev. She'd changed out of her school robes into a skirt and tshirt, nothing special, but she thought she'd take her cloak as well in case it got cold. Her insides gave a little squirm with excitement as she checked the time - 10pm. She'd told her friends she was going to bed early, so she lay on her bed and drew the hangings around it. She and Sev usually met 11pm, 2 hours after curfew, just to make absolutely sure that everyone was asleep, so she didn't have long to wait.

By half past 10, all the other girls in her dormitory had gone to bed, but she lit her wand and lay reading a book. She didn't need to leave until about 10 to, and it would be unwise to leave early and risk getting caught. She checked her watch obsessively, feeling like the second hand was ticking slower than it usually did. Finally, after an age, it said 10:50. She slipped out of bed, pulled on her shoes, grabbed her cloak and wand and tiptoed out of the dormitory.

James was on the second floor, moving slowly due to the fact that Peter and Sirius were under the invisibility cloak with him. Moony had been smuggled out to the Shrieking Shack by Madam Pomfrey a couple of hours ago – now it was time for Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs to join him.

Tonight was an important night for the Marauders. They planned to leave the Shrieking Shack for the first time and explore the village of Hogsmeade by night. However, it wouldn't be for too long – easygoing though they were, they knew better than to stay up all night when they had an exam the next day. They would only be staying with Remus until about one or two in the morning this time.

James' thoughts tonight were purely about Hogsmeade; he did not notice, as they passed through the Entrance Hall, a figure emerging from the dungeons.

Severus swiftly crossed the Entrance Hall and slipped into the broom cupboard they always met at, leaving the door slightly ajar so he could see the foot of the stairs. He was nervous now, rather than excited – he had decided to casually mention to Lily that he'd seen her and James at dinner, and was, quite frankly, terrified of the answer he might receive.

He checked his watch. 22:55 – he was a bit early. Lily had much further to go than him… He leant against the wall, ears pricked for any noises, heart thumping with nerves and anticipation. Suddenly, he heard them. Light footsteps. He peeped round the door… There she was, coming down the stairs. She was dressed simply, but she looked so beautiful. She'd put a bit of make up on; it emphasised her lovely eyes, which had now met his. She smiled, and his heart melted.

"Hey," she whispered, trying to fathom his expression. He looked pleased to see her, but there was something else there… Was it nerves? Why was he nervous?

"Hi," he replied, somewhat shyly.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine."

She didn't believe him, but here wasn't the place to talk about it. She grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the large front doors, saying, "Let's go!"

They quietly darted out of the doors into the balmy summer night. There was hardly any wind; the Hogwarts grounds were peaceful and bathed in moonlight – perfect, Lily thought to herself, grinning a little. She had big plans for tonight.

She was still holding his hand. Why was she still holding his hand? Did this mean something? Severus' heart beat a little faster as they wandered down to the lake, still holding hands. They only stopped to sit down.

Lily stretched herself out on the grass. Her tshirt rode up a little, exposing a flat midriff. Severus flushed a little, but she didn't notice. Her eyes were closed and she seemed very relaxed. He gazed at her, transfixed. He didn't know when he'd seen anything prettier.

It had been this way since the first time he saw her, playing with her sister in a park in a Muggle town. He'd only been a child, but he'd noticed the way her eyes lit up when she laughed, the way her hair rippled when she moved. When they'd become friends, he'd noticed that she had a way, when speaking to someone, to make them feel as if they were the only person in the world. She was kind and generous and sympathetic when he told her about his home life, the way his parents argued and didn't care about him.

As he stared down at her now, he marvelled at how she'd grown in the 5 years they'd been at Hogwarts. He'd noticed it, of course, but somehow she looked more feminine than usual in her summery skirt and skimpy tshirt, so different from the bulky robes they wore every day. She was curvy in all the right places, but not too much. Her skin was practically flawless, her eyes and hair still as stunning to him as they had been the first time he saw her. She was perfect.

She opened her eyes. Severus appeared to be staring at her and she felt a bit self-conscious, but in a good way. She decided to establish conversation, worried that this could become awkward if he came out of his reverie and realised she was watching him watching her.

"How did you find Transfiguration?"

As she had expected, he jumped and blushed a little at her question.

"It was okay… Could have gone a bit better. I liked the question on Animagi, we've been over it so many times in class!"

"Yeah," she agreed, "I think I pretty much just wrote out one of the essays we've already done! I thought it was all right as well, Mary found it quite tricky though."

"A lot of people did."

He didn't look quite himself, and didn't seem keen to pursue the conversation. Lily cast around for another topic.

"The lake's so calm tonight!"

He didn't answer. Lily was beginning to get a bit annoyed now; why had he agreed to meet her if he wasn't going to say anything?

"Sev, are you okay?"

He took a deep breath. Lily felt a bit nervous. What was he about to say?

"Please Sev, spit it out…"

He looked at her. He must have seen the concern on her face, for he sighed and said, "I saw you with Potter at dinner."

"Oh." She couldn't really think what to say; she didn't know what he was asking.

"Is there something going on between you two?"

"Oh Sev!" She said, and almost laughed with relief. Her earlier feelings about James had completely vanished; she had thought of nothing but Severus ever since. "Of course not! I was going to dinner on my own and so was he, so he said we could go together. I couldn't say no, it would have been so rude. He's not so bad really you know… I couldn't imagine going out with him though, he's way too full of himself!"

His face broke into a huge smile at this. She had said James Potter was full of himself. And she was here, by the lake, in the middle of the night, with him.

"Sorry," he said, "it's just I wondered why you would send me a note asking me to meet you tonight and then start wandering around arm in arm with James Potter!"

"But Sev… We always meet at night…"

Damn. He hadn't meant to say that. Now she knew he'd thought, he'd hoped, that she'd meant something by this.

"Sev… Look at me."

He looked into those eyes, those gorgeous eyes, and his heart melted when he saw the gentleness with which she was looking at him.

"Did you want it to mean something?"

It was almost a whisper, but he heard it. He wanted to laugh it off, to say no, of course not, but he couldn't lie to her.

"Yes." He said simply, not breaking his eye contact with her, trying not to blush.

She looked slightly shocked at his blunt reply, but she didn't look disgusted, or upset… In fact… She looked almost pleased. He wasn't sure though. He decided to extrapolate.

"Yes. Lily, I've loved you since we were children… I know it's stupid, I know children aren't supposed to fall in love, but I can't think of any other way to describe the feeling I get whenever you're near me, talking to me, or even just when I'm thinking of you."

Wow. He loved her. He loved her! Lily wanted to jump up and down, but she rather thought that now wasn't the time. Instead, she shuffled slightly closer to him. He was sitting with his back up against a tree; she was kneeling next to him. He sat up straight, and cautiously reached out, gently stroking her cheek. Her skin tingled where he'd touched her.

She leaned forward slightly… This was the moment, the moment she'd been waiting for; perhaps not for as long as him, but certainly for the last few months.

They were getting closer. She tilted her head slightly to the left; he tilted his to the right at the same time. She giggled nervously. Neither of them had ever kissed anyone before.

Severus watched her giggle, and couldn't restrain himself any longer. He closed the distance between them – her head was still tilted slightly to the left, so he moved to fit in with her.

Their lips met, for a couple of seconds. She pulled back and looked into his eyes, then her face split into the widest smile he'd ever seen. His expression mirrored hers as she put her arms around his neck; he wrapped his around her waist, and they kissed again.

It was everything he'd ever imagined, and more. Her lips were so soft, her hair tickled his face pleasantly. He deepened the kiss, pulling her onto his lap, keeping one hand on her back and moving the other to her hair, which was just as silky as it looked. At that moment, as he explored this new world of kisses and touches with the girl he loved, his best friend, Severus Snape felt truly, completely happy for the first time in his difficult life.

Two hours later, Lily lay in her bed in Gryffindor tower reliving the night in her head. She smiled as she recalled the feel of Severus' lips on hers, the way they had lay on the grass by the lake talking and cuddling and stargazing, the happiness in his eyes when he kissed her goodnight at the foot of the stairs in the entrance hall. She felt a leap of excitement as she imagined seeing him in the Great Hall at breakfast the next day – her boyfriend. Or, at least, she presumed he was now her boyfriend. They hadn't actually discussed it. It had all seemed so natural; they had slipped into this relationship rather than arranged it. Trying not to let this worry her, Lily turned over and allowed her eyes to close, her mind full of nothing but Severus.

Meanwhile, James Potter was also lying in bed in a different dormitory of Gryffindor tower. He, however, was not smiling. In fact, he was fuming, and (although he would never admit it) actually quite upset. Like Lily, as he lay there, he relived the events of that night.

It had been brilliant at first. He and his friends had made real progress for the Marauders map and the trip to Hogsmeade had been a complete success – Remus had not attacked anyone, none of them had been seen and they'd explored lots of places they'd never had time to visit on the weekend trips. It was when James, Sirius and Peter had been walking back to the castle that things had turned pear-shaped.

It had only been a couple of seconds, but those couple of seconds had been enough to wipe the smile off James' face. As he shuffled along under the Invisibility Cloak with Sirius and Peter, he had looked over towards his favourite tree by the lake – but there had been someone sitting under it. He could tell it was two people and was at first seized by an urge to point them out to Sirius and Peter and catcall, because they seemed to be kissing fiercely. But the words died in his throat as they broke apart for a moment and he could make out a girl with long, red hair and a boy with dark, greasy hair. He recognised both of them at once – the person he loved the most, and the person he hated the most in the world. Together.

James turned over in bed and punched his pillow. Lily must be out of her mind. What girl would choose Snivellus, with his greasy hair and his Dark Arts obsession, over James Potter, the intelligent, funny, handsome Gryffindor Quidditch hero?

He was not sure whether he could get Lily to change her mind, but James did know one thing for certain: he would get his revenge on Snape at the first possible opportunity. He could not have hated anyone more at that moment, he thought vehemently, and Snape would pay the price.

48 hours later

'I can't pretend any more. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine.'

'No – listen, I didn't mean -'

'- to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?'

He struggled on the verge of speech, but with a contemptuous look she turned and climbed back through the portrait hole…