True Love Never Dies

by cellomushings

We all know Lily hates James with a passion. A flaming, bile-inducing, murderous, shameless passion. How could that all have completely changed within their seventh year? Welcome to cozmicstar's True Love Never Dies.

1. The Actual Story

X-Treme Disclaimer: Okay, not only do I not own Harry Potter or any of J.K. Rowling's amazing work - I DID NOT WRITE THIS STORY! It's a very very very good piece of work by someone from - cozmicstar I believe, is her username, and she wrote all of these awesome stories before quizilla got a new website design (we all know how that is) and for some reason all of her stories were scrambled (check it out, you'll see what I mean). I just happened to have copied and edited some stuff before they were screwed up (because I am an aspiring beta like that) a year or two back (which will explain the horrible use of adverbs and commas to you, so please excuse them) and I wanted to make just one of her magnificent plot-lines once again available to the general internet. Unfortunately, I only have so much of the story available - up until right before the parents bit - but that's a lot of the wonderful story, so be happy I got that far. This is cozmicstar's story of prejudice, friendship, and love - humbly edited by myself, and now scramble-free for your perusal. Please enjoy True Love Never Dies.

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1

"Come on, Evans, you know you want to date me," said the handsome but exasperating James Potter.

"Not in your lifetime. You infuriating prat!" Lily Evans said as she grabbed her bag and stormed out of the Head Boy and Girl train compartment of the Hogwarts Express.

It was the first day of her 7th year and already it seemed like the year was going to be hell. How could an annoying, stuck up, troublemaker be head boy with her, a responsible, sensible, studious girl?

I am not going to end up babysitting him, she thought as she ran looking for another compartment, her long red hair billowing behind her, emerald eyes blazing with anger and shining like the Head Girl badge on her robes. Instantly, she saw Remus Lupin, sitting alone in the back of the train with a book in hand. She opened the door, more forcefully than needed, and sat with him.

He was a tall boy with brown hair that had turned blonde from the summer sun, and blue eyes, often sporting a new scratch on his face near every month. She wasn't sure why, but she didn't feel like she wanted to poke, prod and meddle in his private life. She and Remus had always been good friends, but he was a best friend of James. She never could comprehend how he managed to stand it.

"Hey, Lily. James trouble?" he asked while twirling a lock of his brown, golden highlighted hair between his fingers.

"How'd you guess?" she asked as she set down her bag and grabbed a rubber band, twisting her long red hair up in a ponytail.

"Why else would you be here instead of the head boy and girl compartment?" he said as his eyes scanned the page of his book, Nocturnal Beast.

"You're always so smart Remus," she said enviously. He put a bookmark on his page and placed it in his bag.

"So what did he do this time? Flirt with you to a great extent while also talking about himself in a snobby way and then asked you out?"

"Yes" she said dully looking out the window, watching the mountains go by.

"Why don't you just date him?" Remus asked, resting his elbows on his knees.

Her mouth dropped open in shock as she replied graciously," Are you going mad?"

"Well, I figure it would be less annoying to date him then having him ask you out everyday. Plus, he must care about you an awful lot if he knows you're going to reject him everyday he asks. Most guys would just move on."

"Well, maybe he likes to hear himself talk. Plus, #1: I hate him. #2: I hate him. And #3: I HATE HIM!" she said using dramatic arm movements as though attempting to make her already clear thoughts even more so through interpretive dance.

"Were you talking about me Evans? Or some other boy I should be jealous of?" James asked as his tall lanky figure leaned against the sliding door. A small smile was plastered on his face. The kind of smile that would – should - make normal girls swoon.

"Yes in fact I was. I hate how you mess up your hair and think it's cool. I hate how you think you're better than everyone else, just because you can catch a tiny, inconsequential golden ball. And I hate how you'll never leave me alone," she said standing up in front of him. She really didn't care if she was rude. This was only James - nobody actually important.

"You know how hot you look when you get mad?" he said smiling.

She blushed a deep red and, flustered, pushed him out the door and into the isle of the train. "Get out before I hurt you!" she screeched.

He gave a satisfied smile and left. As time passed, and the train ride continued, Lily began to forget about James Potter. She and Remus would talk about their upcoming 7th year and munch on Bertie Bots Ever Flavor Beans happily without giving him a thought. But with every short silence they came to, James would pop into her mind making forgetting him impossible. The way his hazel eyes looked at her, the way his ruffled hair never laid flat, the way he flirted with her constantly, the way he would get on her nerves by saying stupid things, the way she hated him and his snobby selfish ways. She didn't know why, but it annoyed her a bit to think that even in her mind, he taunted her. She quickly shoved those thoughts away and struck up another conversation with Remus.



James Potter walked down the deserted hallway. No matter positive or negative, she would think about him. He was now used to the rejection he received daily from Lily, but he didn't care. He'd never stop loving her no matter how much she hated him.

"Hey, Prongs! Wait up," yelled a handsome dark haired boy behind him.

"Hey, Padfoot," he said turning around. The dark haired boy caught up with him quickly, giving James a friendly hug.

"So James. Another rejection I suppose," he said.

"Yup. You're right, Sirius. Oh well, tomorrow is another day," James said hopefully. "I don't see why you keep going after her. Every other girl in this school will join your fan club if you had one. You could have any of them."

"I don't want any other girl. I want Lily. She's . . . different. Just the fact that's she's not in love with me just makes me love her more. She's beautiful, smart, and her temper is incredibly attractive. She's spunky and has attitude and isn't afraid to speak her mind. She's . . . wonderful." James said, dazedly.

Alright, lover boy. All I'm saying is, good luck. You'll need it with her," Sirius said patting James' shoulder. He walked into a compartment with a group of giggling girls, making them blush and giggle more, leaving James alone in the train's hallway.

"Someday I'll make Lily say yes. I just need a plan," he thought to himself. With that, he walked back into the head boy and girl compartment to think carefully about what to do to win his fair lady's heart.

In no time at all, Lily saw through the window the darkness of the night sky and the tall towers of Hogwarts. It was as magnificent, as always. The windows looked like illuminated stars that reflected off the clear lake, while the building itself was a castle from a fairy tale dream. Despite Hogwarts' age, it always seemed full of life, but yet historic and full of wisdom at the same time. That was why Lily loved it like a second home.

The train came to a slow stop, and the doors were opened for the students to leave accordingly. Lily descended the steps of the train and went outside in the cool night to find a carriage up to the castle, while Remus went to find James.

"Lily! Lily! Wait up!" she heard a familiar voice call behind her. She turned and saw her good friend, Felicia, running to catch up with her. Felicia's long chestnut hair swayed as she ran and her turquoise eyes twinkled with excitement.

"Felicia, it's so good to see you," Lily said as she hugged her good friend.

"Is it true Potter's Head Boy?" she asked eagerly.

"Well thanks a lot for the warm welcome," Lily said sarcastically.

"Sorry, but is it true?" She didn't sound sorry.

"Unfortunately," Lily said. Felicia always had a thing for James, just like every other girl. Every time she gushed about him, Lily would just roll her eyes, tolerating it as best she could. Lily didn't have many friends, so she appreciated Felicia greatly, and would never want to ruin such a good friendship.

They began to walk toward an empty carriage, and once they reached it, they sat down.

"I cannot believe you don't like him," Felicia said, disgruntled.

"I can't believe you do," Lily said as the carriage began to move. "

Lily, have you looked at him lately?" She asked turning towards her.

"Looks aren't everything."

Well, he plays Quidditch too." Lily groaned and faced the lake, gazing the boats traveling across it. Getting the hint that Lily wasn't going to talk about James, Felicia quickly changed the subject. "So, How was you summer?" Felicia asked.

Finally, something I can talk about, Lily thought. She then began to describe her holiday to the coast of France as the coach neared the castle.

2

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. I have a few things to say before we begin our wonderful feast. First off" Dumbledore energetically began his usual start of term speech. Lily typically listened attentively, but today she was dozing off. Before she knew it, food was appearing on the plates before her, quickly followed by dessert. Her dessert started out fine, she was eating her ice cream contentedly, minding her own business, when rice pudding fell on her head. Lily shrieked as it dripped down her face and onto her lap. She watched as people stared at her, then upward.

She blushed, and then stared at the ceiling herself. 'Date Me, Lily' was written in pudding as if it were written in the night sky. Suddenly, James stood on the table and started bowing, as applause was being giving to him. Professor McGonagall glided over and dragged him away, but he still had time to blow Lily a kiss before leaving.

She huffed, grabbing the nearest napkin and began to get underway the task of wiping the pudding off herself as soft whispers and murmurs started to erupt from all around the Great Hall.

"Who's Lily?"

"Oh that Head Girl over there. She thinks she's so good and all. The snob." "She's not that pretty. James should look at me instead."

"Don't worry, she hates James."

"The idiot!"

"I know. If James did that for me, I'd date him in a heartbeat." Lily felt awkward and embarrassed as what seemed like thousands of eyes of lovely girl after lovely girl gave her an evil death glare.

"Don't pay attention to them, Lily, they don't know what they're talking about," Felicia said comfortingly with a smile. Lily smiled back but still grabbed her stuff and left the hall in a hurry to escape from the wandering eyes.

It took Lily about 45 minutes in the shower to get all the pudding out of her hair.

Geez! I hope James got detention because of this, she thought as she sat in front of the fire in the head girl dorm, combing her hair gingerly. This was one of the many perks to being head girl - private bathroom, fireplace in your dorm, no roommates. Lily liked the privacy very much, but she doubted she'd get any with James' dorm right next to hers.

Whoever thought the head boy and head girl's dorms should be connected by a door in the wall, was an idiot, she thought as she tried to straighten out a large tangle in her red tresses.

"I see you got all the pudding out, Evans." Her eyes shot up to meet James' as he stood in her doorway.

"Don't you knock?" she asked, exasperated.

"Your door was open." He replied wryly.

Lily stood up brushing her white bathrobe slightly. "You're awfully brave to come here after what you've done."

"I'm not a Gryffindor for nothing," James said smiling.

"How many hours of detention do you have?"

"None. The many perks to being head boy," he said as he strolled over and sat on her feather soft bed. "You have a very nice bed, Evans."

"Yours is the same, you know," she said dryly.

"Remus sure missed out," he said laying back, resting his head on his hands.

"Huh?"

"Yeah, he was supposed to be head boy, but I asked him if I could have it. So, he told Professor Dumbledore he wanted me to have the opportunity instead," he said rather proudly.

Lily was appalled.

"So Lily, about our date. I'd thought it would be nice if we went on a broom ride. What do you say?" he said.

She stomped over to him and pushed him off the bed, his body landing with a thump on the floor.

"As I've said for the millionth time, I'm not going to date you," she said piercingly and plainly while sweeping the bed with her palms, getting rid of the James' germs.

"You didn't like my little gesture in the Great Hall," he said, pretending to be hurt.

"No! I was completely humiliated. Plus, it was stupid. You could have had your badge taken away," she said.

"What do you care if my badge gets taken?" he asked while standing up in front of her.

"Well," She didn't have an answer and James was grinning with satisfaction. She did the only thing she could do to save herself the embarrassment.

She pushed him out of her room shutting the door behind him.

"Good night Evans," he said happily from the other side of the door. She threw her robe to the side and climbed in between the sheets of her bed, wearing her soft pink pajamas. Sleep consumed her about an hour later. After she stopped tossing and turning from her annoying thoughts of James Potter.

3

"Miss Evans, What's the main ingredient to a love potion?" asked Professor Slughorn, grinning expectantly.

"Huh?" Lily said snapping out of her daydreaming state.

"The question, Miss Evans," he said, his grin faltering.

"Oh. Red Rose Pollen," she said, pulling herself back to the present.

"Very good. 5 points to Gryffindor. And I thought you weren't paying attention," he said, appeased.

He continued on with the lesson as Lily began to doze off again. It was such a beautiful day outside. Lily thought it was a shame to waste it sitting inside a dingy, dark, humid dungeon for the first day of the school year. She sighed as she began to stare into space. Her eyes seemed to drift around the musty room until it fell to the back of James' messy haired head. He seemed to be doodling mindlessly on his parchment.

Somehow she couldn't turn her eyes away and instead of following what her head told her to, she smiled. Something was different. Like something in her heart began to warm her soul up just by looking at him. And what was strange is that she liked the feeling.

Bring

"Class dismissed," said Slughorn.

All the students began to stand and pack up their books to leave while Lily was already halfway out the door. She scurried outside to the grounds where she was bathed in sunny warmth the minute she stepped out of the doors. As always, her favorite willow tree was waiting patiently for her to take advantage of its pleasant shade. She set her bag down next to its trunk and took off her robe, laying it on the ground for her to sit on.

A light breeze brushed through her auburn hair as she breathed in the fresh autumn air. The pages of her book fluttered as it lay in her lap. This was definitely what she was waiting for all afternoon. It was so relaxing that she almost didn't see James coming to sit next to her. Almost.

"Nice day isn't it, Evans?" he said, sitting on the ground next to her

"Uh Huh," she said in a monotone without looking at him.

"What's that you're reading?" he asked, peering over her shoulder.

"Nothing you'd be interested in," she shot back.

"Try me," he said, flashing a charming smile.

"Well, if you must know, I'm reading a romance," she said.

"I like romances," he said flirtatiously.

"Since when?" she said disbelievingly, turning to face him. The idea of James reading a romance book was a very odd picture. Like seeing Dumbledore as a hip-hop star.

"Since the day I met you," he said taking her hand in his and kissing the top of it gently. She blushed a deep read a slipped her hand out of his.

"James-" she began, but he swept her into his arms and his lips covering hers cut off her words. It was the most incredible thing she had ever felt. She was lighter than air, being held among the clouds in James' arms. Lily's heart seemed to be overflowing with warm love he put into the kiss. So much that she seemed to forget about hating him. His lips were pressed against hers so tenderly that her arms of their own will, wrapped around his neck, her lips gently kissing back.

It was when he licked the bottom of her lips that she came to her senses.

"Don't touch me," she said pushing him roughly to the ground.

How dare he throw himself at me? she thought as anger began to fill her head.

"Huh? I thought you liked it," he said as though he'd recently been clubbed over the head.

She huffed and began picking up her stuff while mumbling, "I did like it but it doesn't mean I like you. In fact - I hate you and if you touch me again, I'll hex you into oblivion." She nearly tripped trying to get up, but she tripped with grace, somehow.

"Oh come on, Lily, don't be like that," James said pleadingly, also getting up, trying not to make her mad.

She grabbed her robe off the ground and quickly put it on, ignoring him to the best of her ability. As she stormed off to the castle, James was running to keep up with her, begging her to forgive him and to come back. Soon he caught up to her, blocking her advances to the castle.

"Lily, wait," he pleaded, blocking her way. She looked up at him to see he was slightly out of breath, his handsome face flushed. His shirt was left untucked and was wrinkled a bit, while his gold and red striped tie hung loosely around his neck. He had shoulders that were broad and strong and his large, warm hand held her shoulder.

She quickly shrugged it off and asked, "Why should I wait?"

"Because I believe you have forgotten something very valuable," he said as he held a tiny golden badge with the letters HG engraved on it in his palm.

"Oh my god, my badge!" she squeaked as she tried to snatch it out of his palm. It was one of the most precious things she owned, and she must have carelessly let it fall from her robe.

James' reflexes were too quick, as he took it away, holding it high above his head. He had a gorgeous smile plastered on his face, almost a teasing sort of smile, because he knew she wasn't that tall. He was a whole nine inches higher than Lily.

"Come on, James," she begged, trying to jump to reach it. He was laughing at her struggle when she was nearly crawling on his body to get it.

"If you don't give it to me now I'll smack you," she said threateningly.

"As much of an honor as it would be to get smacked by you, I'll just give it back," he said.

"Well, then?" she said, impatient, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

"But first, I would like something in return," he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Like what?" Lily said, very business-like, even though she already had a hunch about the condition.

"How about another kiss, my love?" he said leaning in closer.

"In your dreams," she snorted, trying to reach for the hand that contained her badge, "now give me my badge,"

He did the smartest thing he could - he ran away. It didn't work as well as he might've hoped, because when Lily is angry, she runs fast. Once she got close enough, she threw herself at him and made them both go toppling to the ground. They wrestled and rolled down the hill, getting grass in their hair, until they froze at the bottom, close to the lake. He was on top of her with her hands next to her head in an intimate position, awkward for Lily, bliss for James.

"I always dreamed of being on top of you like this, Lily, my only love," he whispered to her with a dreamy look in his eyes. He began to lean in closing his eyes; there was no way of escaping his soft, sensuous lips. She closed her eyes, not fighting the gentle kiss he willingly gave. It was so good she thought she would faint as fireworks shot off in her eyes. A new feeling was arriving in her mind, something she had never felt before. A mix of warmth, longing, care, tenderness, peacefulness, passion, completeness, and overall love, for James. She didn't want to let it go of such a nice feeling. James let go of her lips and nuzzled her cheek next to his.

"Lily. You're so enchanting, beautiful, smart, and perfect. I want you. Please be mine, my love. Be my girl," he whispered in her ear.

Love? Oh god, Lily Evans loved James Potter as much, or maybe even more than James loved her, obviously.

Oh my god, she thought to herself. It frightened her. Strong, intense feelings like this always frightened her.

What if she were to get heart broken? She had been treating him horribly for so long. If she admitted her feelings, he would laugh in her face, reject her plainly, losing interest in her. She panicked, struggling under his body. She did the only thing her body would allow. She threw him in the lake with a huge splash.

"Oh my god," she said as she sat up, desperately looking in the dark lake for him. He came up from under the water, coughing water and dripping wet.

"Well I guess that's a 'no'," he said, sloshing about and stepping onto dry land. She didn't know what to say, she just stared at him.

"Oh, no," James said as he searched through his pockets, looking for something.

"What?" she asked.

"Your badge. I had it a second ago. It must have fallen in the lake. Oh my god. Lily, I'm so sorry," he said.

Tears were welling up in her eyes. It was the most precious, most cherished thing for her, and now it was sinking to the bottom of the dark lake along with her pride, dignity, honor, and respect. That badge gave her so much, and now it was gone. So soon could she have loved James, and yet so soon she hated him again. It was his all his fault; she hated him and could have nearly thrown him back into the lake, and wouldn't have cared a bit if the giant squid ate him.

"How could you?" she choked out as hot tears fell down her cheeks into the rough grass.

"Lily, I'm so sorry," he said, stroking her tears away with his hand.

"Don't touch me," she hissed, slapping his hand away.

"Lily, I'll make it up to you I promise," he begged desperately.

"And to think you almost made me fall for you. You knew that badge was everything to me. Everything I ever wanted. It was a dream of mine to be head girl, now it's gone. I hate you. I wish you were dead so you wouldn't be able to torture me anymore. I'll hate you till the day I die!" she bawled at him as she ran back to the school. Hot stinging tears spilled freely from her eyes as she sobbed and cried all the way up the numerous flights of stairs until she reached her dorm to cry some more.



What have I done? James thought, watching her figure stumble up to the castle, listening to her cries that stung, whipping his heart over and over again as he sank to his knees.

"She hates me. She meant it too. She hates me. Not the usual she hates me. Now she really hates me," he whispered in dejection. He could scarcely grasp it; he was barely able to breathe. It felt like his heart was shattered into a million pieces and would never mend. His true love hated him - hated him so much she said she wanted him dead. He wanted to cry so badly, but he couldn't - not here, not now. He stood up and grabbed a rock from the ground and chucked it hard at the lake to try to release the excruciating agony in his chest. It didn't go away.

It wouldn't. Not ever.

"God, what am I going to do? I've got to find a way to get her back, to make up what I did. To make everything all right. I can't live without her," he began under his breath, finished crying into the open sky. "I can't live without her," he whispered. The pain was too much for him to handle as he slowly walked to the castle, up to his dorm to cry in his bed.

He felt so alone, without a heart and soul which Lily so violently torn apart because of his pure, reckless idiocy. He was now an empty shell of nothing but guilt, frustration, remorse, and grief, but yet, a still ever lingering love was somewhere within him - trying, fighting to find it's way out.

His love would never give up, no matter how many obstacles it seemed to hit, no matter how many aching bruises it had, it would go on loving urgently with all the strength he had left in his body, and it would never stop as long as he had a breath to live on.

"I will find a way to make things right. I will!" he said, determined, beating his fist against his pillow. And he meant what he said. With all the feeling that was left of him.

4

One week had passed, and people began to notice how oddly Lily and James were acting. No fighting, no flirting, no nothing in fact. Of course, Lily didn't give a crap about what everyone else thought. She was going to continue to ignore him, and enjoy it too.

"Lily, don't you think you are being a bit mean about this? It's only a badge," Felicia asked her one night in the Great Hall during dinner.

"No, I don't think I'm being mean at all. He lost my badge, and I'm never forgiving him," Lily replied, ferociously spreading butter on her roll.

"Never is a long time, and just look at him over there. He's so depressed. Remus says he'll barely eat and isn't sleeping. Yesterday, he fell off his broom at Quidditch practice," Felicia said, obviously very concerned about her dear old James-y-poo. Lily watched as James continued to stare blankly into his pumpkin juice sadly, like his pet owl had just tragically drowned in it, or something.

"Well, what am I supposed to do about it?" Lily said, taking a bite out of her roll.

Felicia gave her a look. "I don't know, but it's just wrong to see James in such a state," Felicia said, glancing worriedly in his direction.

"Can we talk about something different? Like, how am I going to get my badge back?" Lily said, getting a bit frustrated.

"The only way you're getting the badge back is if you dove in the lake and dug it out yourself," Felicia said, perturbed.

"That's brilliant!"

"What?" Felicia exclaimed, flabbergasted.

"I could go down, find it myself, and you could come with me," Lily said, animated.

"I wasn't serious, you know . . . and it's gosh darn freezing outside," Felicia said, throwing a glance out the frosted over window.

"Oh we can handle it, I'm serious, and I say we're going to go and get it, tonight," Lily said.

"I am not going!" Felicia protested with a kind of scared look on her face.

"Why not?"

"Because I can't swim, and it's scary in the lake," Felicia said.

"Oh Fine! I'll do it myself," Lily said taking another gulp of pumpkin juice before leaving the hall in a hurry with Felicia following behind her.



"What do I have to say to convince you not to do this?" Felicia argued following her into the fire lit common room.

"That you have my head girl badge, and James has been kidnapped and eaten alive by a pack of wolves," Lily said, flipping through the pages of her many textbooks.

Felicia was silent as Lily let out a strident, "AH HA," in triumph. "I found the spell that will help me stay underwater," Lily said, pointing at the page.

"The bubble head charm? Lily, this could be dangerous," Felicia said looking at the book.

"Nonsense. I'm not asking you to go and it won't take all that long," Lily said closing the book and putting it in her bag getting ready to go out.

"Lily you are so stubborn. I'm telling you, this doesn't feel right," Felicia asserted.

"It's okay. I'll be gone 30 minutes max, and the charm lasts for 45. Don't worry so much. Ok, I've got to go before any more time is wasted. See you later," Lily said, hugging her friend, exiting the common room out of the portrait hole, and setting off to the lake.

The wind was bitterly icy, and the moonless night sky dark as Lily sat by the lake to take off her shoes and socks. She wondered if a little gold badge would be worth this.

"Well, can't back out now," she said as she stepped into the water. She gasped at how cold it actually was. It was like having your feet pierced with a thousand tiny icicles, making them go numb. Biting her lip, she grabbed her wand from the pocket of her robe and cast the bubblehead charm on herself. She then threw her wand on the shore, and took a deep breath, bracing herself for the cold as she dove in headfirst into the dark depths of the freezing lake. Her blood was so cold it burned in her body, as it seemed like a million tiny frosted needles were puncturing her skin.

Mustn't think of the cold, mustn't think of the cold, she thought to herself over and over again as she began to swim further and deeper out into the lake, looking for any glint of gleaming gold. It seemed like an impossible job. She could barely see two feet in front of her it was so dark from the moonless night.

God if only James was here. He could spot out anything gold from a mile away, she thought to herself as she swam. She immediately regretted mentioning his name. Every, and any time she thought of him once, he would never leave her mind. His eye-catching, stunning face, always hidden in her dreams at night, and his deep, sultry voice calling to her when she tried to ignore him the most.

"Can't think of him. Can't. Not now," she said under her breath as she began to attempt to concentrate more on kicking her legs and using her arms to propel her. Further she went, and yet, she was not getting any closer to finding the badge. It couldn't have possibly gone as far as she had gone.

As she began to turn around to swim back to shore, a slimy sticky hand grabbed her ankle, pulling her into the depths of the lake. She turned and saw it was a sickly green grindylow.

Oh no. Why was I thick enough to leave my wand on shore? she thought as she struggled and kicked her legs to break free. The monster's grip tightened on her, painfully wrenching her deeper. She kicked so hard she smacked the lone grindylow in the face making him let go and swim away. She could still feel it's slime on her as she swam as fast as she could away, not paying attention to where she was going, stunned by panic.

Unexpectedly she was faced with a wall full of thick tangled weeds, and because of her careless swimming, she reeled right into it, getting tangled hopelessly in its olive green depths. The jade ropes wrapped around her legs and restricted her movement. She struggled to get free, using her hands to try to rip the plants off, and kicking her legs to free herself. One of her legs slipped away from the bonds as she tried to force the other one free. Suddenly she felt part of her head get cold.

Oh no. The charm, she thought as she took her last deep breath and watched as her sight became from clear to blurry, to jet-black from the water. Instantaneously, she was reminded of James' unkempt hair. She shook that thought away. The water clouding her vision chilled her face down to the skull, but she worked and pulled at her leg until it became extricated from the seaweed.

She swam upward as fast as her arms and legs would take her, ignoring the quick pounding of her heart and the dizzying headache forming in her brain. She was so close to the surface she could almost see the sky, but her lungs began to hurt as her chest contracted. She reached her hand up and felt the surface break; her hand was finally touching the cool air she needed so much. But her lack of oxygen made her vision even hazier, her mind became lost, and her body began aching in pain as the whole world suddenly went black.



James Potter was depressed. There was no other way of describing it. His heart had been ripped out and stomped on and burned by the one he loved most, and there was nothing left of him now except plain old organs and fluids. He walked slowly down the hill to stand by the lake. It was dark and still as the water clearly reflected the crescent moon like a mirror.

"Why do I have to be so stupid?" he asked himself as he looked out into the night. He would constantly think of Lily, even when he wanted to forget about her so the throbbing pain in his chest where is heart used to be would end. But it never did, and he would be reminded of that love for her everyday as long as he saw her beautiful face in his dreams. For the rest of his life. And probably more than that.

The chill wind blew through his raven hair and whistled through the trees as he bent down taking a few special flat rocks in his hand. He began throwing them into the lake out of sheer boredom, letting them skip on the water and falling into its depths with a clunk. He soon ran out of rocks and began walking some more around the edge of the lake.

He had to clear his mind, relax. As he shuffled some pebbles around in the dirt and looked at the ground when he walked he came across a pair of black shoes, gray knee socks, and a wand. He curiously bent down to examine them more closely. The shoes were a small size with little heel, and to be honest, downright ugly.

"These must be Lily's," James said gently placing the shoe back down on the rocks. He didn't understand why in the world she would be out so late, especially with her shoes off and with no wand. It wasn't safe to be without a wand at this time of night. He started to get apprehensive. Suddenly he saw a frail white hand stretch out from under the surface of the dark lake water. He gasped, and instantly he figured it out.

"Oh my god - Lily! No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no. . . " He whispered as he flew into the lake, swimming as fast as he possibly could to get to her, to his only love, completely ignoring the bone chilling cold. Once he was far enough in the water, he dove under, searching for any traces of her slim body. His hands were reaching for her in the shadowy blindness, and in relief they finally found her waist as she sunk slowly downward.

He used all his strength to kick and pull them both up to the surface, breaking through the smooth plane of the black water, coughing and gasping for breath as he dragged Lily's head up too. Her face was pale white and some of her soaking wet auburn hair lay in tangled waves on her head, some strewn about her face as well. Her body was limp and heavy with water as James' grip tightened around her.

"Oh, God, please don't let me be too late," he thought as he kicked and swam back to shore, throwing both their bodies on the bank. With his glasses hanging at an odd angle from his ears, he immediately climbed over her and began to give her CPR. With every breath he put into her lungs he prayed for her to wake up, but as he watched, as she still remained pale as snow.

After about the seventh try, she began to cough and spit up lake water.

"Oh my god, Lily! You're all right; you're all right. I was so worried," James said bringing her weak body into his arms, bringing her to sit on his lap. "I was so scared," he breathed in exultant relief.

"James?" she asked in a disturbingly, feebly hoarse whisper, gazing strenuously into his eyes.

"Yes, Lily, it's me," he said nearly weeping with relief, sweet, sweet relief, gently wiping the hair out of her face. "What were you thinking, Lily? Going into the lake at night with no wand and alone. You could have died," he somberly said to her.

"James, I was looking for my badge," she breathed out, sounding strangled.

"Looking for your badge? I can't believe you! You're smarter than this, Lily," James said sternly.

She looked up at him with her radiant green eyes and said fiercely, almost losing the weakness existing in her voice up until that point, "If it wasn't for you losing my badge in the first place I would have never had to look for it."

"You nearly drown, I save your life, and you still argue with me. Lily, you are the most stubborn woman I know, and I don't appreciate your lack of gratitude for saving you," James said.

"James, you are not my father, so don't use that tone with me," Lily said, the weakness returning to her hoarse throat.

"I can use whatever tone I want!" James said.

"I hate you," she said as tears began to stream down her face, "I hate you," she mouthed, not having the energy to even whisper. Instantly James' face softened as he held her close stroking her hair soothingly as she sobbed into his chest. The harsh wind ripped through them, chilling them until they were numb as they embraced.

James kissed her cold cheek, tasting the salt of her tears and said, "Shhhh. Don't cry. I know you hate me. Don't cry, love." He gently wrapped one arm around her shoulder and used the other arm to lock underneath the bend in her knee as he stood up, carrying her lightly. She continued to cry softly as her arms wrapped around his neck, James quickly jogging back up to the castle and up to the hospital wing with the sound asleep, hoarsely breathing, limp Lily, safe in his arms.

5

With a loud kicking of the door, James burst into the hospital wing.

"Oh my goodness! What happened, Potter?" said the white haired nurse, Madame Antroph, rushing over, followed by her younger assistant, Madame Pomfrey.

"Lily nearly drowned out in the lake," James said, out of breath.

"Well put her down here," said Madame Antroph, gesturing to an empty bed. As James did so, she went off to get some Pepperup Potion as Madame Pomfrey stumbled about with the pillows and blankets.

"Hurry up Poppy! They need warm blankets. They're freezing," Madame Antroph scolded while lifting Lily's head and feeding her the potion. Lily drank it up quickly as Madame Pomfrey finally handed James and Lily each a blanket, but first knocking over a potted plant.

"Poppy! When are you ever going to do things right?" Madame Antroph yelled while Madame Pomfrey said a quick sorry before putting everything in order.

James sat in a chair by Lily's bedside while a large fire was being conjured up to keep them warm. Silent tears still came out of Lily's emerald eyes as she slowly fell asleep. James on the other hand just sat and watched her sleep with a blanket draped over his shoulders. He took her hand in his and stroked it soothingly.

"I'm sorry I lost your badge. I didn't mean to. I guess I am partly responsible for your near-death experience. I'm so sorry, Lily. I just want – want to let you know that I love you with all my heart, and that I don't care that you hate me, because I still love you, and I probably always will. I guess – I guess I can't help it. You're perfect, Lily, and I vow to take care of you and protect you and love you, forever, if you let me. Maybe, someday, you will," he said in a hopeful whisper, kissing her hand lightly.

"Um. James?" Madame Pomfrey said, standing next to his chair.

"Yes?"

"I think we have everything fine here. You may go back to your dorm now," she said politely.

"Oh it's fine. I'll stay here with Lily," he said scooting up closer to the bed.

"As you wish. Good night," she said, nodding and walking off to the back room. James took off his glasses and laid his head on the bed next to her blanket-covered legs as he laced his fingers with Lily's. Soon he fell asleep into a peaceful and dreamless slumber.



Lily's legs and arms were weak and sore as she lay in the hospital bed. The iciness and gloom she felt the night before were now replaced by the light and warmth of a new day. She opened her tired eyes to find her hand had been laced with James', and he was hunched over in his chair, his head now rested on the bed. His glasses were cradled in his unoccupied hand while he slept soundly next to her.

Wow, he stayed here with me the whole night, she thought as she smiled, watching him. His hair was a mess, he had circles under his eyes, his clothes were wrinkled and dirty, and yet, he was insufferably handsome. She felt a sort of attraction to him, like nothing she had ever felt for another person before.

Could this be what love feels like? she thought to herself. Suddenly, James began to stir and wake from his sleep.

"Oh, hey, you're awake," he said as he let go of her hand and put his glasses back on. Lily nodded feeling a bit lost, as her hand was now empty. James came up and sat down on the bed facing her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as he touched her face lightly.

She felt a pleasant tingle shoot down her spine as she said, "I'm fine, just tired."

"Well I'm glad you're ok. I was really worried about you," he said. James then looked down and began to fiddle around with his badge randomly. She didn't know what he was doing until he took it off from his robes and gave it to her.

"What's this for?" she asked, confused as she held the gold, sparkling piece of metal in her palm.

"Well, I feel bad about losing your badge, and you nearly drowning in the lake to get it, so I'm giving you mine," James said.

"Oh, that's really, really sweet of you but it says Head Boy on it," Lily said, smiling shyly.

"I can fix that," James said whipping out his wand and pointing it at the badge. Suddenly it melted into a warm puddle of gold in her hand but then as quickly as it melted it reformed into a solid shape.

"HB heart HG?" Lily asked questioningly, raising one eyebrow as she read off her new badge.

"Yeah, that way everyone will know you're mine," he said smirking at her.

"You'll never change Potter," she said grinning as she reached across the bed and pinned it on her robes that were hanging on the end.

"Wait, you're actually going to wear it?" he asked, surprised.

"It's better than nothing," she said.

He smiled and kissed her forehead whispering, "I've got to be responsible now and go to class. But don't worry your beautiful little head, cause I'll ask Remus to go get your shoes and wand from the lake. So rest and I'll be back at lunch, ok?" She nodded and blushed slightly as he got up and began to walk out of the room.

Once he had a hand on the door, Lily called, "James?"

"Yes," he said, turning to her.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"For what?" he frowned, confused.

"For saying I hate you, and being mean to you. I don't hate you. You might get on my nerves sometimes, and I may dislike you, but I don't hate you," Lily said looking directly into James' hazel eyes.

James nodded and turned away again only for Lily to say, "And one more thing."

"Yes?"

Lily took a deep, nervous breath and said, "Thank you. For saving me, for the badge, for everything."

"You're very welcome. I'll remember this moment for the rest of my life. The day Lily Evans actually thanked me and apologized to me," he said, smiling a bit smugly.

Lily rolled her eyes as James opened the door and left the hospital wing.

The day went by slowly as Lily rested until she was bored stiff from staring at the ceiling. James did come by at lunch, but only to bring her back to harsh reality as he told her all the homework she had to do. Besides that, Lily actually enjoyed his company. James was being gentle and kind to her, which was freaking weird. She would wonder often where his annoying, snobby self had gone. Sometimes, she had even asked him if she could feel his forehead for a temperature. He had just laughed when she asked. Shortly after, he left to do his Head Boy duties.

Madame Antroph told her she could go back to her dorm for the night. Lily thanked her and left quickly to the comforts of her own dorm. It was late at night, after all, and Lily wanted a good night's rest so she could catch up on her work tomorrow. Lily reached the Gryffindor common room to find it nearly empty except for the few people that were cramming for tests. She then went up to her dorm and shut the door to strip her worn clothes off and to slip on her sleeveless, delicately embroidered, white silk nightgown that fell to about her knees. She jumped happily to her bed to fall asleep immediately as her head hit the pillow.

It was dark and cold as Lily stood in the knee high water. She was shivering in the frigid breeze, and she couldn't see a thing. She willed her feet to move out and to run away but they wouldn't budge. Suddenly, she felt a sticky, greasy hand grabbing her ankle making her fall into the water. It dragged her deeper and deeper underneath the surface of pitch darkness as she screamed, screamed silent screams that nobody would hear. The familiar feeling of choking and dizziness washed over her as she grasped for something to stop her from plunging to the depths of the terrifying lake. But she felt nothing to save her as she was now trapped in a barricade of weeds. Like a caged tiger, she fought for freedom, trying to rip through the tough green stems, but they wouldn't move.

Suddenly, she saw through the plants, James floating out in the black distance. She tried to scream for him but it was like he couldn't see or hear her. But yet he was smiling. She didn't know why until she saw a beautiful blonde haired girl running up to him and hugging him as he spun her around in a circle. They then kissed passionately, nearly making Lily's heart stop in anguish

"No! No! No!" she cried, screaming as she awoke from her cruel nightmare. She was covered in a cold sweat as she sat up from her bed, panting. She clutched her blanket around her in slight fear as her room was dark from the night and she could her the rustle of the trees from her window. Normally she was a fearless, strong girl, but in this case of nightmares, she did the only thing she could think of to calm her frazzled nerves. She got out of her bed as quickly as she could and ran to James' room next door.

She quietly slipped in through the side door of their connected rooms and shut it silently. It was dark, but she could still make out James in his bed, sleeping calmly. He was lying shirtless on his back and the blankets were wrinkled around his waist. She walked carefully and quietly up to him as he slept. Her feet made the hard wood floor squeak slightly and her nightgown made soft swishing noises as she walked, but James slept on.

He looked a lot more peaceful than when he slept at the hospital, even more handsome she thought. She saw the defined muscles of his chest and stomach that was growing into a hard six-pack, as she got closer to him. They were lined in shadow, as was his smooth masculine face.

She climbed onto his bed next to him as she sat on her knees shaking his shoulder slightly whispering, "James, wake up."

He groaned and mumbled what sounded like a "go away" before he turned on his stomach, shoving a pillow over top of his head.

"James, please wake up. It's me, Lily," she said, continuing to shake him. At the word "Lily" he turned around and opened his eyes. He rubbed them again and squinted as if he imagined he was dreaming.

Then he reached over and grabbed his glasses from the nightstand and said, "Lily? What are you doing here?"

Feeling a little ashamed, she looked down at her hands and said, "I'm scared. I had a nightmare, and I don't feel safe letting my guard down tonight. Can I stay here with you?"

"Of course," he said, looking mildly surprised, but nonetheless pulling up the blanket letting her get underneath as well. She could faintly see that he was only wearing his boxers as she climbed under and lay on her side next to him. James pulled the blanket over her and wrapped his arm around her waist pulling her slightly closer.

She turned to him as he set his glasses down and said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said as he snuggled up and closed his eyes. Lily relaxed considerably and did the same thing but James's hand seemed to be very awake even though the rest of James seemed to be tired and asleep. His large rougher hand seemed to be entranced by the feeling of her silk nightgown as he rubbed small circles into her stomach, wrinkling the fabric around in his palm. Lily swallowed hard in nervousness and pleasure as she felt his hand move over her.

Lily turned around and said irritably, "James, stop! Don't touch me there again or I'll hurt you!"

He smiled with his eyes closed and said, "Ok, my hand will stay right here and it won't move, I promise. Sometimes it has a mind of it's own, but you have to admit, it has very good taste." She was too tired not to smile at this comment as she turned around again to go to sleep while James' hand moved down to her waist. Once her head hit the pillow, she then felt James pull her even closer so that her back was pressed right up against his chest.

"Goodnight Evans," he said cheerfully as he kissed her cheek.

"Goodnight Potter," she said, feeling his warm deep breathing against the back of her neck.

Some things never change, but yet, maybe some things do, she thought as she closed her eyes and drifted to a peaceful, comforted slumber next to the one she thought she hated most.



The first thing Lily saw that morning when she opened her eyes was James. He was barefoot, sitting in a chair next to the bed buttoning up his shirt. His posture was casual and his hair was the usual mop of black as his gold-rimmed glasses shined in the sun from the window. She couldn't help but notice that his pants were completely wrinkled as well.

"Hey there, lovely," he said, finishing the last 2 buttons of the shirt. She just stretched her arms above her head and yawned.

"I assume you had a pretty good night's sleep then," James said as he sat down on the bed beside her. She nodded her head 'yes' as she curled up in the sheets once more. Her body didn't seem to want to get up and leave the warm softness of James' bed.

"So, do you know what today is?" James asked.

"Your little Marauder Club thing," she guessed as she decided to at least sit up.

"No, but good guess," he said.

"I give up," she sighed as she tried to comb her long red hair with her fingers.

"Well, today is the first Hogsmeade weekend of the year," he began happily.

"Oh is it? That's . . . nice," she said casually continuing to comb through her hair. He stopped her hands from detangling her hair, spun her back towards him delicately, and began gently, tenderly combing through her ginger locks himself. Clearly, James was more excited than she was.

James scooted closer, pulling her body towards him, and said, "Are you going to go?" Normally, Lily wouldn't go to Hogsmeade unless she really needed to buy something.

She'd rather spend her time doing some homework that she didn't want to put off or she liked to sit in front of the fire and read a book than spend a weekend in crowded Hogsmeade. And sitting here between his legs while he combed through her hair with his fingers was beginning to make her nervous.

She politely replied, "I haven't decided yet."

"Oh, well, in that case, do you think you would maybe like to go with me?" James said, finishing her hair, looking into her eyes as she turned around to face him, taking her hand in his. Her eyes were downcast, her hand small, pale, and soft inside his large, rough, and slightly tanner fingers.

"Like a date?" she asked quietly.

"Yes" he whispered. She looked up into his eyes. They were beautiful and hopeful as they watched her. He was sitting close; close enough so that she could feel the warmth radiating from him. Thoughts of what to do and how to say no were buzzing through her head. She was confused. Did she want to say no or yes? In the past couple of days her thoughts of James had changed from 'he's annoying prat' to 'he's a fairly decent man'. But had he really changed? She did what instinct told her to do.

"Ok, I'll go with you," she said softly.

"What?" James said, surprised out of his mind.

"I said I'd go with you," she said again, calmly.

He smiled beatifically and said, "Okay, well, I'll let you get dressed and I'll meet you in the common room at about 10:00." She nodded and got out of the bed and began to walk to her room. She felt James' eyes staring at her back, but she ignored it until she got to the door. Lily turned and smiled radiantly at James before she went on the other side back into her room. As she closed the door, she giggled when she heard James screaming and jumping in the room beside hers.

"YES! I DID IT! I FINALLY GOT HER! WOO HOO! YES!" he hollered loud enough for her to hear in her room.

"Yes, Mr. Potter, you finally did it," Lily Evans whispered to herself as she began to get dressed.

6

Lily and James walked together down the busy street of Hogsmeade village that afternoon. It was a nice, sunny day with slight breezes every now and then that blew the wind chimes of stores with a tinkling ring. All the shops were packed with eager, money spending students, while Lily, who didn't care for shopping, was just walking along, browsing and serenely enjoying the nice weather. Enjoying the weather, and the person next to her.

"So, where would you like to go first?" James asked, reaching his arm around her waist in the most casual of manners.

"I don't know. You decide," Lily said, shrugging his arm away.

"Okay, how about the Three Broomsticks for something to drink?" James said, trying to reach down and hold her hand. She agreed, but took her hand away quickly to put it in her jacket pocket. Despite the fact that she was starting to like James, she didn't want him touching her much in public as if they were going steady or something. It was just the first date, after all, plus, she liked to think that she was in control of the situation, and James was not going to make her into an adoring lover like some of the girls at school.

Getting the hint for once, James made no more advances as they walked along the cobblestone lane to the pub. He did, however, open the door for her as they stepped inside. The place was filled with people laughing and enjoying themselves as the lively atmosphere began to attract them like a magnet. They quickly found a booth and sat down as the waitress came by with two butterbeers for them. James came here so often the whole staff knew him, and what he likes to drink.

"You look beautiful," James said, sipping his drink.

Lily blushed and said, "Thank you."

"Tell me something, Lily, Why did you say yes to coming here with me?" he asked curiously.

She shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know. Going to Hogsmeade today sounded like a good idea, and after all, I got an invitation."

"So there's no chance in the world that you might be starting to like me?" He had that alluring grin of his plastered on his face as he took another sip of his drink.

"Well, don't get your hopes up," she said stubbornly her eyes flickering with a trace of guilt. James seemed amused, but he continued to drink his butterbeer with an "I-know-I'm-just-so-irresistible" look on his face. Lily just rolled her eyes as she put the bottle to her lips.

"Hey, Prongs, Did you blackmail Lily, or something?" a familiar voice teased from behind Lily.

"Believe it or not, Padfoot, she came of her own free will," James, said proudly to his friend. Lily turned around to see Remus, Sirius, and Peter standing behind her chair.

"Lily, are you feeling alright? Did you get too much lake water in your system?" Remus asked, feigning concern as he put a hand to her forehead.

"No, Remus, I'm fine," she said, touchily jerking her head away from his hand.

"I didn't think you would ever manage it, but you did," Sirius said, coming over to shake James' hand.

"Who's the man?" James said, welcoming the praise.

"You are!" Remus, Sirius, and Peter chanted.

Oh, god James has them hypnotized! They're practically his zombies, Lily rolled her eyes again.

"Oh. My. God. Lily?" Felicia's voice wafted from behind her.

Oh, great, she thought as she turned around to see Felicia's open-mouthed, shocked expression.

"Hey, Felicia," Lily said, avoiding her stare shiftily.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," Lily said quickly.

"Okay, then why are you here with Potter and his cronies?" Felicia asked skeptically, eyeing the four boys.

"Hey! We're not cronies," said Sirius defensively.

She's here with me," James said arrogantly, grinning unreservedly.

"Uh huh, yeah, right," Felicia said, unconvinced.

"It's true, Felicia. But you know what? I don't see the harm in us splitting up for a while, James. You can go with your friends while I go with Felicia, and we can meet in front of Honeydukes in about 2 hours," Lily said.

"Ok Lily, if that's what you want," James said calmly, very nearly obscuring his slight disappointment.

"Great! I'll see you later," she said as she grabbed her jacket and leaned over the table to give James a kiss on the cheek.

"Oh, great, what did I just do?" she thought, gasping. She hastily pulled away and scuttled out of the noisy, hectic pub and into the packed streets of Hogsmeade with Felicia at her tail.



"Did she just kiss you on the cheek?" Remus asked James as he watched Felicia hurry after Lily.

"Yeah" James said, stunned and bemused as he touched his cheek where she kissed him. It felt curiously warm and it tingled faintly.

"Dude, do you think Sirius could push that hot blonde chick in the lake, and then I should save her? You'll think maybe she'll like me then?" Peter said, Sirius smacking him in the back of the head promptly afterwards. James just smiled distantly, tranquilly, fantasizing as his friends began to give him praise on his miraculous abilities towards wooing women.



"Lily, wait up! Stop running!" Felicia yelled from behind her. She paused in front of the bookshop as she waited for Felicia to catch up.

"What was that all about back there?" Felicia asked, slightly panting.

"I don't know. Let's forget about it, and maybe James will too," Lily said.

"Doubt that," Felicia accredited as they both walked into the store, "He looked pretty pleased with himself back there . . . "

Books lined every wall from floor to ceiling on what seemed like every subject known to man and some known only to centaurs. The store also sold parchment, quills, and ink that were placed on the far table. Felicia went straight to the romance section as Lily began to browse.

"Read that, read that. Read that," Lily said to herself as she scanned the books. Something in particular caught her eye. On a small table was a bunch of white feather quills with a floating sign over them reading, 5 quills for 12 sickles.

12 sickles? That's not bad, Lily thought to herself. Instantly, she grabbed five while thinking of how annoying James is in class because he always forgets to bring one. He would always bother her by asking for one of her spares. Then, when she got them back they were either broken or chewed on.

"If James was smart he would come here and get them on his own, but he's not, so I guess I'll have to do it for him," she said as she walked up to the cashier to pay.

"12 sickles and 9 knuts please," the cashier said while Lily threw her coins on the counter.

"Thanks," Lily said as she took her plastic shopping bag and went to find Felicia, but then, a thought struck her.

Oh my god, I'm buying stuff for James now! And not just chocolate or something, practical stuff. What am I? His mom? Or worse! HIS WIFE! Does this mean I'm committed to him now?! What's he going to think when I give them to him? Oh God! I can't give them to him, she thought as she started to panic slightly.

"I'll just keep them," she said, reassuring herself.

"Keep what? What did you buy?" Felicia said, coming down one of the big ladders leaning up against the book self.

"Nothing, I just bought some quills," Lily said motioning towards the bag.

"Since when to you need quills? You have a zillion," Felicia said.

"Well, you never know when you're going to need more," Lily said matter-of-factly. Felicia just shrugged as she headed for the door. Lily followed her out but then ducked down behind her friend when she saw James coming out of Zonko's, which was just across the street.

"Lily, what are you doing? You're acting weird," Felicia said.

"Shush, hide me," Lily said, but it was too late. James waved enthusiastically to her and came jogging over.

"Hey, Lily," he said, grinning stupidly.

"Hi, James," she said, stepping slyly out from behind Felicia, as she expertly put her hands behind her back so he wouldn't see the bag. Felicia began to leave and Lily had the urge to call her back, but didn't. She was now alone with James in the middle of the street.

"Stop staring at my chest!" she blurted out.

"What? I'm not staring at your chest. I'm looking to see what's behind your back," James said trying to reach over and see it.

Lily took a shaky step back and said, "It's nothing, nothing, just something I bought at the bookstore."

"Well can I see?" James said, trying to look again.

"NO! I mean, you don't want to see, it's very stupid," she said quickly, turning sharply so he wouldn't get a glimpse of the bag.

James gave a mischievous smile and then it changed to one of a scared sort of nature as he pointed and shouted, "LILY, WATCH OUT!" Lily shrieked and ducked as James grabbed the bag out of her hand and held it up high above her head. He then began to laugh as Lily got up and pushed him in the chest.

"You idiot, you scared me half to death," she growled irately.

"You know, you look especially cute when you're mad," he said.

"Urgh!" she groaned as she jumped to try to reach the bag.

"I love being tall," he said as he jingled the bag to hear what it sounded like.

"James, don't! It's, a, uh, uh, a secret" she said hastily.

"Doesn't sound like a secret."

"What would a secret sound like?" she said putting her hands on her hips.

"Tampons. But this doesn't sound like tampons," he said jingling the bag some more.

"Ok fine! They're quills," she said finally.

"Quills, huh? Funny, you don't need quills. You never need quills, but I need quills," he said. She could almost see the light bulb go off above his head. He started to grin foolishly at her.

"You got them for me, didn't you?"

No!" she said defensively, and far too fast to it be a convincing lie.

"Yes, you did. I can tell because you're starting to get all nervous. Do you know what this means?" James said.

Oh, god, don't say it, she thought as hard as she could as he proclaimed the thing she didn't want him to say most.

"You love me!" he declared.

"No!"

"Yes, yes, you do. Why else would you give me a kiss on the cheek in public? And why else would you by me a gift that was practical?" he said.

"The quills were on sale, for God's sake," she said, as she was now running out of defensive things to say.

"Face it honey, you love me!" he said gleefully.

He then began to dance around in the street joyfully singing, "you love me, you love me, you love me."

He was acting like a complete moron.

"James, stop, people are starting to stare," she said as she watched students coming out of the store to laugh and whisper at them.

"I don't care because you love me," he said in his little sing-songy voice. She folded her arms and walked up to him to try to get him to stop but instead he took her into his arms and twirled her around in the air.

"You have just made me the happiest man in the world," he announced as he put her down gently and kissed her on the cheek.

"James, it was just quills," she said, blushing as his arms were still around her waist.

"No matter how much you deny it, I know you care at least a little for me, and I just want to say, I love you. You're the only girl for me and you'll always be my girl," James said, as he got closer to her face. His lips came down on hers gently as she tilted her head up to meet him. His lips were soft and kind as they kissed her sweetly. Her legs became like jello, as she felt weak in his arms from the warm passion he put into the kiss. He held her against his body as they continued to kiss. Lily had never felt such a good feeling before in her life. She didn't want to let him go. Not ever.

7

That evening at dinner, Lily was forced to sit alone. James had to go off with his friends and Felicia was sitting with a cute Ravenclaw boy in the next table. She really didn't mind being alone. It was something she was used to.

Currently, she was reading a book called Quidditch Through the Ages while pinching off bits of her roll and popping them into her mouth. James had recommended it, and it was quite interesting. The book was about the history of the game and all that.

She'd never admit that to James, though. When he lent her the book, she went into a whole lecture about how Quidditch was a stupid sport that could only result in people getting hurt. She could never tell him that she thought it was somewhat interesting. James wasn't quite the stupid brute she thought he was. He did do a lot of reading, mostly about Quidditch and monsters, but reading nonetheless. She felt a warm attraction to him. James was the only person she felt this way about. Was it possible this attraction to him was love?

Suddenly, Peter Pettigrew ran into the Great Hall saying, "Lily, Lily, LILY!" She turned her head up to see that he was panic-stricken as he reached her side.

"What's wrong?" she asked, concerned.

"It's James. He's hurt out in the forbidden forest, and he needs you," Peter said quietly.

"Oh, god," Lily said, thinking the worst as she immediately grabbed her stuff and hurriedly followed Peter out of the hall.



It was a warm night as the full moon began to illuminate the dark blue sky and the leaf- scattered ground below.

She walked behind Peter as they slowly went deeper and deeper into the black trees of the forest. Soon, they were so deep that you couldn't see the sky anymore and it was difficult to see 4 feet in front of you even when they used their wands to light the way.

"Peter, how much further until we get to him?" she asked. No one answered. The only sound was the wind whistling through the trees and the sound of her own shaky breath.

"Peter? Peter!?" she shrieked. Still no one answered.

Great! I'm lost and alone out in the forest, she thought angrily as she looked around for any sign of the short, stumpy blonde boy. She saw nothing but trees and blackness. She decided the best thing to do now was to find her way out and to go get a teacher for James.

Why the heck didn't I think of that before? she thought as she tried to find the best direction back.

"Point me," she said to her wand as it began to turn in her hand. Once it stopped, she suddenly heard the snapping of small twigs and the rustling of branches as the sounds of loud growling came from behind her. Her eyes became wide and her heart started to pound in her chest as fear overwhelmed her.

She slowly turned around inch by inch and what she saw was not something of fairy tales. A dark, shadowy werewolf was standing about 20 feet away from her. Its yellow eyes screamed "Hunger!" as it growled, showing its razor sharp teeth that could rip her to shreds. Its big claws dug into the dirt, and its dark hair was thick and mangy. She was too scared to scream, too scared to breathe.

All she could do was run.

She turned and scuttled as fast as she could, weaving in and out of the trees. She could hear the wolf howling and growling as it ran behind her, tearing up the earth as it went. She continued to run, never looking back. Suddenly her foot hit a thick tree branch and she tumbled to the floor. She went sheet white with fear as she screamed and braced herself for the pain of dying.

But it never came.

Instead she heard the sound of fast moving hooves. She turned to see that a beautiful brown stag was fighting off the werewolf. It was kicking with its front hooves as it balanced on its back legs. The grace of the stag took her breath away. The wolf growled and swatted with its claws, hitting the stag in the leg. He made a yelp in pain, and Lily saw red blood glistening down the leg. It then came down, using its long antlers to stab at the wolf. The wolf backed up to get out of range but then met the hard kick of the stag's hoof in its face. In whined in pain as it then ran away back into the forest. Lily could finally breathe a sigh of relief as she still lay on the ground.

The tall stag walked slowly in her direction. Lily could see its shining hazel eyes in the moonlight, as the animal seemed to glow with magic. It was the last thing she saw before her vision became hazy and black as her body collapsed.

8

When she woke up, she was locked tight in James' arms as they both lay in his bed, draped in his blankets. She was still clothed in her skirt and button up blouse but he was shirtless in only his boxers. She didn't know how she got there, but she remembered everything that happened with the werewolf and the stag. She squirmed in his arms and turned around to see that his glasses were still on.

"James, wake up, please," she said as she began to shake him. He slowly opened his eyes to meet hers.

"Lily, are you ok?" he asked immediately, his eyes grazing her face worriedly, trying to reassure himself she was unharmed and whole.

"Yeah I'm fine, what happened? How did I get here?" she asked.

He stroked her face warmly and said, "Well, I heard you scream out in the forbidden forest. So I ran to find you, and I saw you on the ground and you had fainted, so I brought you up here to stay with me. What were you doing out there anyway, especially all by yourself?"

Tears filled her eyes. Seeing this, James wrapped his arms around her as she whispered, "I was so scared. I thought you were hurt. Peter told me you were hurt so I had to find you. I had to. I wasn't thinking straight, and I got lost. Then there was this werewolf, and a stag, oh, the stag was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, but it was just so scary." She cried quietly in his arms as he hugged her close.

"Shhhh, It's ok. I'm here with you now. Don't worry," he said softly, comfortingly as he stroked her back.

As she calmed a bit, she asked wiping away her tears, "Are you hurt? Really?"

"Oh it's not serious, just a little cut. What I'm really worried about is you," he said kissing her gently on the cheek.

"I'm fine, Let me see the cut," she said.

"No!" he said clinging onto the blanket protectively.

"Why can't I?" she pouted.

"Because I don't want you to," he said.

"I'm just trying to help you fix it," she said.

"Promise me you won't freak," he said.

"You said it was a little cut."

"I lied. But promise me," he said again.

"Okay, I promise," she said as she drew the blanket away from his body. She gasped as she saw a big gash on his thigh that was now dark red with dried up blood.

"Oh my god," she said, feeling a little faint.

"You said you wouldn't freak," he said gripping the sides of her arms to steady her.

"I'm not freaking. I just didn't know it was this serious. Does it hurt?"

"A little."

"Let me get murlap essence," she said as she quickly got out of the bed to go to her room where all her potion ingredients were stored. When she came back she had the essence, a towel, a bowl, and a long bandage in hand. She sat next to James in the bed as she poured some of the essence in the bowl and dipped the towel in. She gently dabbed his wound. He took a few deep breaths as if he was in pain and then he relaxed. After a while, the towel turned a pink color from the blood and the cut looked well.

"How did you get this? Tell the truth," she asked.

"I can't tell," he said.

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Because I can't," he said stubbornly.

"Please," she said looking at him in her innocent pretty little girl look.

"Oh Merlin, not that look. All right, I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to tell a soul," he said.

"I promise."

He took a deep breath and said, "Remember the stag that saved you from the werewolf?"

"Yes, of course, he was the most magnificent animal I've ever seen." She sighed, "I wish I could see him again." She turned to James, who had a peculiar smile on his face, "Oh, he was breathtaking, James, I wish you could've been there. Oh wait, never mind. There was that whole werewolf aspect of it . . ."

"I'm the stag." James whispered in her ear.

"What? How?" she said, shaken and disbelieving.

"I'm an animagus. Every full moon Sirius, Peter, Remus, and me go out to transform. You know, the werewolf. That was Remus. He's a werewolf," he said. Her mouth dropped in alarm and amazement at those words. It all made sense now.

"Oh god, this is a lot of information to take on," she said as she grabbed the bandage and began to wrap it securely around his thigh.

"I know, but you wanted to know," he said.

"I know," she breathed.

"You're the first person I've told about this. And to think I swore never to tell anyone," he shook his head in shame. She clipped the end of the bandage in place and climbed into bed with him.

"Thanks, Lily," he said as he pulled the blanket over the both of them.

"No, James. Thank you. You saved me for the second time. I don't know how I can repay you," she said as James arms wrapped around her.

"Just you being here, with me, is enough. I love you," he said kissing the top of her head.

"I, I. . . " she began nervously.

"You don't have to say you love me if you don't, it's ok," he said, holding her close.

"It's not that I don't love you, it's just that. I'm not sure," she said, her voice wavering.

"I think I understand. You've hated me for so long and you've sworn you never will even think of liking me then you sort of start to care for me and now you're confused. Is that right?" he said. It was staggering how he could just know what she was thinking like that. Almost eerie, in a way.

She nodded her head as he said, "It's ok. Take as much time as you need. I've waited six years, I can certainly wait a little longer."

"Thanks. You think that one day, when you transform I can put flowers and bows on your antlers? I think you'll look pretty then," she said teasingly.

"No! I may be a stag but I still have to keep my dignity, woman," he said gently poking her in the arm.

"I was kidding! But it would be really funny," she said giggling and laughing at him.

"Silly girl," he said as he kissed her on the cheek and closed his eyes to go to sleep.

9

Two weeks had passed, and it was an abnormally normal two weeks that James and Lily shared. James, of course, was being himself. The whole flirting with her and trying to win her over had never changed. He would constantly be waking her up in the morning, even if she wasn't in his bed, following her around the castle, and giving her little origami shaped flowers he'd made out of parchment in class that were charmed to bloom every few minutes. The thing that had changed was Lily's overall impression of him. Instead of shooing him away, she found his unusual way of charming her very attractive and endearing.

She would sometimes blush and smile when he did things for her, of course when she got back to her dorm, she'd always regret acting like a lovesick ninny in front of him, and hit herself with a pillow. Right now, she was sitting in Ancient Runes class with Remus. This was the only class she didn't have with James.

The professor had to leave early to help the Herbology professor because of something about a plant gone berserk in the greenhouses. The students were left to study and to "quietly talk amongst themselves" until the bell rang.

"Do you think I'd look better with a mustache, Lily?" Remus asked as he began to touch his upper lip self-consciously.

"Why?" she asked incredulously.

"I don't know. I might get one though. Might distract people's attention away from my scars," he said. It was true, Remus did have plenty of scars from being a werewolf, but she wasn't sure if a mustache would solve his problem.

"If you want a mustache, you can have one," she said calmly.

"Ok then. Hey, Lily? What's up with James, he's been limping for about two weeks and he refuses to tell me what's wrong with him," Remus asked.

Oh boy, she thought as she tried to think of a good way of telling him what happened and that she now knew about his secret. She took a deep breath and began, "Remus, I have to tell you something. I know about why you, James, Peter, and Sirius go out every full moon."

"You do?" he asked dumbfounded.

"Yes, see the thing is -" she continued, but she was interrupted by the opening of the window next to her. The wind blew through her hair and the horrible sound of off key singing filled the room.

"Yooooooou are so beautiful, to meeeeeeeeee-e," sang none other than James Potter sitting on his broomstick outside the window. It must have been the most horrible singing she'd ever heard.

"Yoooooooou arrrreee so beauuuuutiful, to meeeeeee-e," he continued with elaborate arm motions resembling tasteless interpretive dance as her classmates giggled. She blushed a deep magenta. This was probably one of the most embarrassing moments in her life. James was acting like a fool. Lily put her head down on the desk to hide her bright red face as she prayed for the bell to ring quickly.

As soon as she that thought crossed her mind, the bell rang and she bolted out the door without any delay whatsoever.



Later that evening, Lily sat on the common room couch as she read her little romance novel. She hadn't seen James since the whole incident in Ancient Runes that afternoon, and she was pretty glad about that. James had completely humiliated her, and she was freaking mad at him. If she didn't have to see him, then she could control her anger and not get into trouble.

Honestly, does he like embarrassing me? Or is he running out of ideas to get me to pay attention to him, she thought to herself as she turned the page angrily.

"Don't rip your book Lily. That'd be bad," said Remus as he sat down next to her.

"Hey Remus," she said closing the book.

"Hi, I just thought we could finish our conversation. You know, the one that was interrupted by that interesting little show today," he said laughing slightly.

"That 'show' was totally embarrassing," she said.

"Yes, but it was funny you have to admit," he said, smiling.

"I give up. James has poisoned your mind, and there's no hope in saving you," she said.

"Well, at least tell my poisoned mind what you were going to tell me in Ancient Runes today," he said scooting close to her so she could whisper.

"Ok, well the last full moon I was out in the forest and a werewolf came and attacked me." At those words his eyes went wide with shock and horror.

She continued, "So I ran and ran, but then a stag came and saved me, but in return he got a leg injury. I think I fainted and the next thing I knew I was in James' room. He had a huge gash on his leg and I helped him take care of it and he told me the whole thing. About how he was the stag and you were the werewolf, all that."

"Oh, god, Lily I'm so sorry," he said as he wrapped his arms around her in a friendly hug.

"It's ok, Remus. It's not your fault. You didn't know," she said consolingly.

"I want to make it up to you, still. I know! I'll make you dinner. I'm a great cook, and I'll invite James too. It could be a date for you guys, except I'll arrange everything," he said excitedly.

"Wait No! Don't do that," she said abruptly.

But it was too late, because Remus just kissed her on the cheek and said, "This will be wonderful a perfect way to apologize to you guys." With that he just hurried off up the stairs and up to his room.

Lily sighed in defeat. "Great, another date with James," she said unhappily.

"Oh, you want another date with me? Did my serenade enchant you?" James said coming up behind her with a bemused smile plastered across his face.

"No, your 'serenade' was totally embarrassing," she said as she punched him in the shoulder.

"Hey! That hurt," he said faking a cry.

"Oh suck it up. Your singing voice hurt my ears," she said as he then came over and sat close next to her.

"So, when do you want to have that second date then," he said seductively in her ear.

"I don't want to have it but Remus insists on planning it to apologize to us about what happened the last full moon," she said matter-of-factly.

"Wow! That's nice of him. Remus has always been a wonderful friend," James said.

"Yes, He's a great guy," Lily said.

"You're not falling him are you? If he even tries to flirt with you I'll smack him into next year. I'll hurt him I'll -," James seethed, fuming with jealousy.

"No, no! James I'm not falling for him don't worry. He's only a friend," Lily said putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Good. I'd hate to see you with another man. It would quite honestly kill me," James sighed in relief, stroking her cheek. She smiled for a quick moment and then got a hold of herself and turned her head away from his hand.

"So, I guess that means you're not going to sleep next to me tonight," James said.

"No," she said.

"Why not?" he asked, looking slightly forlorn.

"Because I don't want to," she said stubbornly.

"I know you like it. Don't have to be so stubborn," he said, scooting closer to her.

"I'm not stubborn. I just don't want to," she said.

"So, is there any hope that you might love me?" he asked as he began to move closer and closer to her.

"No. No, I don't think so," she said. Something in her stomach squirmed unnervingly. This was normally a sign of her being guilty of lying. She blushed a deep red.

"What happened to 2 weeks ago when you said that you might?" he asked unbelievingly.

"I was just attacked by a werewolf. I was probably delirious," she answered defiantly. His lips suddenly came down on hers, softly kissing her. His hands went into her red locks as his lips caressed hers in a heavenly manner. She went weak as all James' kisses made her. He laid her down on the couch and prided her lips open with his. Their tongues danced in perfect rhythm as his hands tangled in her hair.

He gently let go and whispered in her ear, "Can you still tell me you don't love me?"

"I, I, I have to go," she said, stuttering tensely as she rolled out from underneath him and scurried off to her room. James just let her go, but watched her leave, heartache filling his eyes.

"Soon enough she'll go for me. Just needs time," he whispered to himself as he lay back on the couch to relish the brilliant kiss he just shared with his true and only love.

10

"Lily! Come on! James is already waiting for you, what's taking so long?" Remus said from outside her dorm while rapping on her door. Tonight was the night, Lily and James' second date, which Remus so "kindly" planned for them. Truthfully, Lily absolutely didn't want to go and she'd rather hit herself over the head with a beater bat until her brain fell out her ear.

"Oh, Remus! I'm so sorry! I'm not feeling well!" she feigned a cough, "I think I'm coming down with something! Tell James I'm so sorry," Lily said faking a hoarse voice while she lay in her bed with the blanket tucked under her chin.

"Are you that desperate that you have to lie and fake sick? Besides, you know that if I told James you were sick, he'd come down here and force-feed you chicken noodle soup. So there is really no way of escaping him. You might as well come with me now," Remus said.

"Urgh! Why do you always have to be right?" Lily said, aggravated, ripping the blanket off her and standing up. She was already fully clothed in her little black dress with her high heels and waist length red hair tied up in a fancy chignon that she learned from her muggle magazines.

"I'm always right because I'm a genius, Lily," Remus said happily as Lily stomped over and opened her bedroom door.

"Of course. How could I forget such a obvious fact?" she shot back sarcastically with a slight bit of anger.

"You look beautiful, Lily, as always," he kissed her softly on the cheek, whispering in her ear, "But could you at least try to look like you're happy about this. I know it would make James completely ecstatic," Remus said, taking her hand and leading her down the steps from her dorm to the Gryffindor common room.

"I'll try, Remus, "she sighed, defeated, "Where are we going anyway? Where is James?" she asked.

"We're going to the kitchens. Sirius and I have set up a nice dinner in there where James is waiting for us," he said as they both walked out of the portrait hole.

I guess I'll make the best of it, she thought to herself as Remus escorted her out to the kitchens.



The halls were deserted because everyone was already at the great hall, having their own dinner, while Lily and Remus walked to the kitchens. Soon, they got to the framed oil fruit painting on the wall where Remus rubbed the pear and the picture swung open. Lily carefully climbed in first, finding that James stood on the other side. He was handsomely dressed in black slacks and a dark blue shirt holding a red rose in his hand. She saw him nervously run a hand through his messy hair as he stood facing the opposite way.

"Hello, James," she said softly. He turned around and when he saw her he smiled brightly, warmly, taking her hand and kissing it lightly.

"I was terrified you wouldn't come," he said softly.

"I couldn't leave you waiting here like this," she said, taking the rose he offered her.

"Care to sit?" he said pulling out a chair for her next to the candle lit table draped with a white table cloth.

"Thank you," she said sitting down as he pushed it in slightly for her. He took the seat opposite of her as Remus scurried to the back room of the kitchen.

"You look beautiful," James said, looking into her eyes while his elbow rested on the table for his chin to lie on his hand.

"Thanks. You too," she said.

"Thanks," he said, smiling awkwardly. She blushed in slight embarrassment and began to twirl a loose lock of her hair with her finger in nervousness. Just then Sirius came out from the back kitchen, or at least Lily thought it was Sirius.

He was dressed in a white shirt and black pants with a white towel hanging over his arm, like a waiter. His normally long black shaggy hair was slicked back with looked like shiny goo as a fake black mustache set off his whole look.

"Bon soir, I vill be your waitur for ze evening. Vould you care vor something to drink?" Sirius said in a thick French accent. Lily stifled a giggle as James gave a very peculiar look to his best friend.

"Sirius? What are you doing?" James asked.

"I'm surry, I do not know a Sirius. I am Jean Claude. But zis Sirius person sounds devilishly handsome, Non?" he grinned impishly as he levitated some glass cups out from the kitchen while pouring some water into them.

James admitted defeat as he shrugged his shoulders and whispered to Lily, "Really, I have never seen that guy in my entire life." Lily giggled softly and smiled, but then jumped in her seat, surprised by the loud cracking noise "Jean Claude" made with the napkin before setting it down on her lap. He then did the same with James' napkin too before placing it in his lap.

This is kind of crazy, and yet kind of funny and nice, Lily thought to herself as she watched James' expression after watching his best friend change from "this is weird" to "this is really weird".

"Enjoy, your dinnair," Sirius said as 2 plates of appetizers flew out and landed softly in front of them to begin their dinners.



"Mmmmmmmm! Remus really outdid himself," Lily said as she put the last bite of strawberry shortcake in her mouth.

"I can't eat anymore. I'm stuffed," James said, putting his fork down and wiping at his mouth with the napkin.

"Me too," she said, leaning back in her chair, relaxing.

"Lily, did I mention you look really beautiful tonight?" James asked, his eyes clouding slightly.

"Yes, at least five times, but thank you," she said.

"You know, I wrote you a poem today," he said shyly.

"Really? I didn't know you could write poetry."

"Oh, yeah, I did it during charms class," he said as he got out from his chair and kneeled before her. He took her hands in his and began reciting,

"You turn to me and make me smile

You punch my shoulder and make me laugh

I will hold your hand and all the while

I'm scared your heart remains torn in half

It is dark and right now we are alone

You cling to me tight and my fears go away

You whisper and I can tell by your tone

That you do, in fact love me

My fears are at bay

My heart remains with you all the days of my life

If you give me yours, too, I shall be complete

'Cause when I'm with you

What I know is true

I love you with all my soul and with every single heartbeat."

"Oh, my! James, that must have been the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me," she said, overwhelmed.

"I'm glad you liked it, but I have to tell you something, well, tell and ask you something," he said nervously still holding her hands in his.

"Ok," she said.

"Lily, I have to know. Do you love me or not? Not knowing is ripping my heart in half. Lily I want you to be my girl. To be my girlfriend. Will you please? If you say yes then it'll mean that you love me, and that you, truthfully, do want to be with me. But if you say no, I'll leave you alone for good and we can just be friends. But you'll always occupy a space in my heart no matter what. Will you be my girlfriend?" James asked, probing deep into her eyes with his.

Lily was practically speechless. She looked into the hazel pools of his eyes and saw beauty, love, hope; and she had to admit that she did have feelings for him and he had charmed her.

"James, I -" she began, but was interrupted by the sudden action of James wrapping his arms around her legs, clinging to her with his head in her lap, pleading with her.

"Please, Please, Please!" He almost sounded as if he were about to cry.

"James, yes, I'll be your girlfriend," she said giggling at him.

"Really?" he said, surprised lifting his head up, his eyes full of adolescent hope and awe.

"Yes, yes, I was going to say yes, even before your little begging thing," she said chuckling.

"Oh my god, thank you. You have made me so happy. I love you," he said pulling her into a hug.

"Your welcome, James. I do love you," she whispered softly in his ear. He pulled away slightly to observe her face as he kneeled.

He cupped her face in his hands as if he were memorizing it and said, "Really?"

"Yes" she whispered. She then leaned in slowly to him and felt her lips press to his lightly, and almost magically, into a lovely kiss. James kissed back with the same love and delight that always seemed to take her breath away. It was possibly the best kiss she ever received. James pulled away when they both heard the faint melody of soft romantic music.

"Do you hear that?" he asked her.

"Yeah, where's that coming from?" she asked.

"Oh, I think I have a hunch of where that came from," James said as he looked toward the kitchens and gave a little wink to his friends. They gave him thumbs-ups, wiggling their eyebrows expectantly.

Lily smiled, utterly whole as only a girl newly in love could be, as James stood up holding out his hand and asked, "May I have this dance?"

"I would be honored," she replied, still grinning uncontrollably as she took his hand and stood up. James placed a hand around her waist and she placed her hand on his shoulder as her other hand rested in his while they danced and swayed gracefully, skimming across the kitchen floor. This would be considered the best date Lily Evans had ever experienced.

11

Later that evening, after that breathtaking date, Lily lay back on her bed, gazing at the ceiling of her dorm. Her feet dangled freely off the end of the bed and she stretched out in her light blue strapless satin nightgown that fell to her knees. Her long red hair flowed around her like a halo across the feathery softness of the comforter as she sighed contentedly. Her emerald eyes twinkled as she couldn't help but smile when she thought about James and how they were now a couple.

I don't even remember hating him. I can't even imagine hating him now, she thought to herself as she smiled happily. Her heart felt so light, free, warm, now that things were all right.

Love is a wonderful thing. I'm so glad I told him. I should have told him weeks ago, she thought as she sat up and took her brush and began to comb her hair some more. James was now her very first boyfriend. She would have had a boyfriend sooner, but James always threatened to hurt the poor fellows if they ever came near her, so most men kept their distance. This was one of the reasons Lily didn't like James back then, but now she was happy that he did it. If he didn't, she might not have had this wonderful chance to be with him. As her brush ran through her hair smoothly, she heard the voice of her new boyfriend.

"You seem awfully happy. Has a handsome young boy stolen your heart? Should I beat him up?" James said standing in the doorway connecting their rooms with one of his eyebrows raised playfully. He was dressed in a muggle tee shirt with his plaid boxers underneath as he came closer to her.

"Yes, in fact, a very handsome man has swept me off my feet and stolen my heart," Lily said as she pretended to swoon, falling back on her bed.

He crawled up on the bed next to her, taking the brush out of her hand and setting it down on the bedside table before saying, "I'm jealous. Who is it, my darling? I want to make sure I'm the only man that has a place in your heart." He said this remarkably delicately as he bent over and swept a loose hair away from her forehead.

"Only you," Lily whispered back softly as he sat next to her. He then kissed her fair lips softly. She sighed into his mouth as her arms instinctively wrapped around his neck while the kiss grew deeper. He nibbled slightly on her bottom lip and she willingly parted her lips to welcome his hungry tongue. It slipped in to mate with hers perfectly making her pull him tighter against her body. Lily's eyes shot opened at the realization to what he was doing as his tongue moved inside her mouth. She panicked as she pushed him away and he tumbled off the bed to hit his head on her nightstand.

"Oh my god!" she said as she jumped off her bed to help James, who was lying on his stomach on the cold hardwood floor.

"Urgh!" he groaned as he rolled himself onto his back to grip his face in pain. Lily saw the red mark she had made across his cheek as she gasped at what she had done. He was also sporting a bump on his forehead that was swelling slightly.

"I am so sorry James. I didn't think I pushed you that hard. You just scared me when you well . . ." she said as knelt down next to him and kissed his uninjured cheek lightly.

"It's okay, Lily. I sort of deserved that," he said as he slowly began to sit up.

"Well the least I can do is let you stay with me tonight," Lily said as she helped him get under the covers of her bed. He slipped under the silk white sheets as Lily followed him.

"Thanks," he said as he took off his tee shirt and threw it on her floor.

"You're welcome, but you better pick that up in the morning," she said as she laid her head on his chest. He laughed as he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the top of her head.

"Of course, whatever you want. I love you," he said.

"Why do you love me?" she asked curiously as she tilted her head up to meet his eyes, and wincing, seeing the horrible bump on his head.

"How can I not? You're smart, beautiful, kind, and absolutely perfect. What more can a man want?" he said pulling her tight into his warmth.

"But I'm stubborn, tough as nails, and I'm a universe away from being perfect or beautiful," Lily said shyly.

"I love your stubbornness and the fact that you're opinionated. You're different than any other girl I've ever met. And I mean that in a good way. And I'm telling you, you are perfect and the most gorgeous girl I've ever met, and if anyone says any different I'll hurt them. Beat them into a slimy pulp," he said strongly to her, as if this was a big debating competition. She blushed several shades of red, as she was completely flattered. Nobody had ever given her compliments like this before.

"My hair is way too red. I stick out like a sore thumb."

James laughed and said, "Your hair is lovely. I like the way it stands out. I love the way it stands out. No one else has this shade of red except you. It's the color of rose petals or an autumn sunset. Plus, it's so soft and smooth. I don't even think there's a split end anywhere."

"I do have split ends," she said defensively, blushing even deeper. She grabbed a lock of her hair and searched the tips. "Ok, I can't find one now but I assure you I have them," she said cuddling up to James some more as the blanket wrapped around their waists.

"I'm so short. Every one here is at least 5'7 and what am I? A short 5'5," she said as James combed the ends of her hair with his fingertips.

"To tell you the truth I don't like girls that are very tall. They're kind of intimidating and I can't carry them as easily," he said.

"You? The stalwart James Potter cannot carry tall girls?" she said in mock surprise. She then lifted her head up to kiss him lightly on the lips.

"So, you're telling me you like my skin too. It's so pale. I look like I've never been in the sun before even though I go out all the time."

"I love your skin. It's so much more different than mine. I have tan skin that burns too easily and I have freckles on my back. Yours is smooth, clear, and not an imperfection in sight. Plus the paleness of it makes your lovely eyes stand out so clearly. Your eyes are my favorite part of you. Did you know? When I first met you your eyes are what caught my attention. I couldn't help but think how lovely they were, so green like a precious jewel of sea. I love you Lily, every part of you. So, no more talking about how you dislike yourself, because I love you enough for the both of us." James shifted in his position to get comfortable. Lily's head remained on his chest as her arms stretched across his body to hold him close.

"I love you too, James. You know why?" she said as James put his glasses away.

"Why?" he humored her.

"Because I realized you really cared for me. Not many people care about me like you do. You would risk your life for me. I also found out that you're not the arrogant snob I thought you were. You're really a kind person that loves. There are few like you and I never want to let you go," she said hugging him close.

"You don't have to worry about losing me. I'm never leaving you. Not for anything," James said kissing her forehead.

"You promise?" she asked hopefully looking up into his eyes.

"I promise, with all my heart and all my soul, I'll never leave you, never hurt you, I'll be with you always and I will love you always. That, I promise, my dear Lily," James said softly, with pure sincerity and love. He held her close kissing her face gently as tears of happiness spilled down her cheeks. She had never had someone love her quite like this, so beautifully and unconditionally. Her parents loved her, but in a different way, and her sister hated her with a passion, as well as many of the students here at Hogwarts. She was a black sheep, a loner with few friends and when she met people who cared for her she'd hold on with both hands and never let go.

"I love you, James," she said as she looked up as him with her eyes that shone and glimmered with her newly shed tears. "I love you so, so much."

He lifted his hand to wipe the wetness of her cheek away and whispered softly, "Kiss me." She willingly obeyed and kissed him with all the fervor in her heart, showing him how much she loved him and giving him a silent thank you.

12

Lily instinctively woke up the next morning around 7 o'clock. She felt James' naked chest pressed against her back and his strong arms wrapped carefully around her body and his leg was placed protectively over hers. She shifted and turned in the blankets and sheets until she was facing him. He was sleeping blissfully and evenly by the expression on his beautiful, slightly tanned face.

Lily gently whispered in his ear, "James wake up," but he wouldn't wake. All he would do is mumble something that sounded like

"Mmmmmm. Lily I'm ticklish there you silly red head," and then shift and turn on his stomach. Lily stifled a giggle as she started to shake him slightly. James groaned and grabbed a pillow, putting it over his head as she reluctantly continued to shake him.

It wasn't until Lily whispered, "James, I'm naked. Come get me, handsome," that James woke with a start making Lily jump about a foot in the air.

He sprung up, his eyes wide-open saying, "Naked? Where? What? Huh?" Lily began to get into a fit of giggles doubling over and laughing at him as she was still tangled in the sheets.

"Hey, you tricked me," he said, grabbing his glasses and looking down upon her giggling body. She continued to laugh as he came over top of her with his hands next to her head balancing his weight. "So you think it's funny do you? Do you think this is funny too?" he said as he took one of his hands and began to tickle her in the stomach. She squeaked and laughed harder, writhing around in the bed while being tickled by James who was now also laughing.

"James, stop, James, Ahh, stop," she said between laughs. Finally she found her strength and flipped him over on his back to climb on top of him. He looked up at her as she looked down on him. The look in his eyes seemed to be admiration as he took a hand and reached up to stroke her hair and her face gently.

"You're gorgeous. And your hair messy is really quite desirable," he said giving a flirtatious little wink at her. She suddenly realized how intimate the position must look and rolled off of him blushing a pleasant shade of red.

He sat up and kissed her of the cheek gently whispering, "I love you Lily. Meet me in the common room in 45 minutes, ok?" She nodded and kissed him on the cheek as well while he climbed out of bed. She must admit he looked incredibly irresistible in only his boxers as he walked around in her dorm, running a hand through his hair. His chest and abdominal muscles were now very distinct in the daylight and she could see every line the firm muscle made on his soft skin. As he bent down to grab his tee shirt, Lily also noticed how incredibly gorgeous his backside was, so gorgeous she couldn't help but stare.

"Now I know why all those girls like him so much," she thought as she gawked.

"What are you staring at?" James asked suddenly.

She blushed as she was snapped out of her dreamlike state to turn her eyes away and say, "Nothing," as innocently as she could. He didn't seem to believe her but walked into his room without another word while a huge grin was plastered on his face.



Lily stood in the common room nervously as she paced around, checking her watch every five seconds.

"Where is James? He said 45 minutes and it's already been an hour. Classes start at nine, and if we don't hurry all food will be gone at breakfast and the desks at the front of the class will be taken," she said to Felicia who was reading a copy of Teen Witch while sitting in an oversized arm chair.

"Well, what did you expect, Lily? He's always late," she said calmly while flipping the page.

"Not while he's my boyfriend," Lily said.

"Hey, if I were you I wouldn't say that too loudly. Some of the girls here at Hogwarts will get pretty nasty with you since you took away their god," Felicia said.

"God? Was someone talking about me?" James said coming down the stairs from the dorms.

"You're so egotistical James. And why were you late?" Lily said with her arms crossed.

"Sorry, honey, but I was in the shower," he said as he gave her a small peck on the lips.

How long could a shower possibly take?" she asked.

"Quite awhile actually. See what happened was I was thinking about you Lily and then I kind of started daydreaming a bit, and of course I always want to look good for you," he said giving a little wink at her.

Lily blushed deeply as she quickly said, "Ok, let's go to breakfast before Sirius eats everything." James bent down and kissed her again as they walked hand in hand down to the Great Hall with Felicia following behind them.



"Oh, that bitch, I cannot believe she's now going out with James."

"I know. James was mine. He's been flirting with me forever now."

"No, he was flirting with me until that slut slinked over and finally saw what a hottie he is."

"I absolutely hate Lily Evans, and her hair that looks the color of ugly rotten apples and the fact that her skin is like bleached porcelain."

"Ugh, and her eyes, they're so creepy. Way too green to be natural."

"I bet she charms them."

"Ugly whore!"

Lily had been over hearing comments like that all day. She didn't think the news would be slipping around school that quickly, but everyone knew James Potter so she shouldn't have been surprised. Plus, James was all for public displays of affection, so every time they were together, he would hold her hand, put his arm around her shoulder, kiss her softly, and carry her books for her.

Let's just say their relationship was very hard to miss. Currently, she was sitting by herself in Ancient Runes scribbling notes on her parchment while the Professor left them be to do their own work. Remus wasn't there today. He was with Madame Antroph and Madame Pomfrey "preparing" for tonight of the full moon. So Lily, being the good friend she is, decided to write some notes for Remus as well so he wouldn't have to make up much.

Suddenly, she heard the noise of squeaking wood on the floor as a pretty but frail blonde haired girl from Slytherin came by, pulling out a chair to sit next to her. Lily noticed her, but didn't say anything as she dipped her quill in the ink well and continued to write.

After a few seconds the girl said, "Hey, you're Lily, aren't you? I'm Narcissa."

"Hi," Lily said suspiciously. It wasn't often she was approached by other girls. They usually thought she was weird and stayed far away from her like they'd catch some disease she had.

"Why are you writing your notes twice?" she asked coyly.

"Well one is for me and one is for Remus. He's not feeling himself today," she said.

"That's nice of you," Narcissa said with a grin and a devious look in her eye. Lily gave her a confused glance as Narcissa asked, "You're going out with James Potter aren't you?"

"Yes, I am," Lily, replied, unable to keep a small smile off her face.

"Well good luck with that," Narcissa said as she patted Lily's shoulder and then stood up and pushed in her chair to walk away.

That was weird, Lily thought as she then began to work on her notes some more. Suddenly she began to hear plenty of snickers and giggles from behind her. She turned around and noticed a huddle of Slytherin girls giggling and pointing at her. Then a few more giggles and snickers began to form all around the room. She didn't know what they were laughing at until she ran a hand through her hair to smooth it out. She gasped when she noticed there wasn't any hair in the back to smooth out as her luscious long locks were now cut down short to just above her shoulder.

It looked ridiculous to have waist length hair in the front and shoulder length in the back. Lily took deep breaths as she calmly acted like nothing was wrong while quickly packing up her books.

I'll just go to Madame Antroph and take a hair re-growth potion, that's all, she thought to herself. Then when she stood up the giggling turned into hard laughter all around the classroom but she didn't know what the cause of this was. Many of the boys began pointing to her so she turned gasping as she saw that the back of her skirt was completely cut off, exposing the white cotton granny underwear she wore underneath. She blushed a bright red as she looked at Narcissa and the other Slytherin girls who were laughing wildly holding up and long ponytail of her red hair and some fabric of her plaid skirt for everyone to see. She was tomato red as she ran out of the classroom as quickly as possible with the echoes of the laughter ringing in her head and anger and embarrassment were clearly written upon her face.

Lily ran and ran as fast as she could through the corridors of the castle toward the hospital wing. She ran so fast that she could barely hear the blurs of people snickering as she went by them. That was her goal. It was torture enough to know that her beautiful hair had been chopped off, but the Slytherin girls had to make her life worse by cutting her skirt up too.

Lily held back the tears as she sprinted faster even with her heavy knapsack pounding at her back. What seemed like an eternity later, but what was really only a few minutes, she hurried and burst through the hospital wing doors. Remus was sitting on the bed grimacing at the horrible looking concoction that was in his goblet.

When he heard the door opened looked up and said, "Lily? What's wr- whoa! What happened to you? Oh my g-! Your hair!"

"Shut up, Remus! You're not helping!" she hissed as tears cascaded down her face. She tried to wipe them away quickly so he wouldn't see but it was too late.

"I'm sorry. Are you all right? Who did this to you?" he said putting the goblet down and motioning for her to come over. She wiped more of the tears and sat down on his bed.

"Some horrible Slytherin girls," she said tearfully.

"Well, I'm sure Madame Antroph can give you some hair re-growth potion. Everything will be all right," he said comfortingly.

"Except for the fact that my dignity and my reputation are now ruined," Lily said. At that moment Madame Pomfrey came in with another goblet of Remus' mystery potion but then dropped it, spilling the liquid on the floor, when she saw Lily and her interesting new look.

"Pomfrey! You're so clumsy! I cannot believe you dropped that! Now I have to make a new one!" Madame Antroph yelled from the back room.

"What happened to you, Miss Evans?" Madame Pomfrey said as she grabbed a towel and began to wipe the floor.

"I don't want to talk about it," Lily said as Madame Antroph came in.

"Dear child. Are you alright?" she said, concerned when she looked upon Lily.

"Yes, Could you give me some hair re-growth potion? And maybe a new uniform too?" Lily asked quietly.

"Of course. I always have hair re-growth and uniforms in stock," she said, heading to the cabinet. As she pulled a little flask out filled with pinkish liquid and a new skirt for Lily. She then snapped at Remus to finish up the drink that he was given. Remus rolled his eyes and gulped the steaming liquid down quickly.

"Blech," he gagged with a disgusted look on his face. Madame Antroph quickly yanked a hair out of Lily's head and stuck it in the potion giving it a good stir as well. Lily then too gulped down her pink drink fast. It kind of tingled down her throat as she then watched her hair grow. It grew about 5 more inches but Madame Antroph still had to cut it a little to make it even.

"There. All better," she said as she finished and Lily had her new skirt on. Lily kindly thanked her and said her goodbyes to Remus as she then bravely walked out into the halls back to the common room. She was no longer going to spills tears for this anymore.

13

It was a cool night as Lily and Felicia sat on the common room couch. Not many people were around because it was close to midnight, so they sat in front of the fire all by themselves. Felicia was in a pair of red plaid pajamas and Lily was in her light pink nightgown as they helped each other do a crossword puzzle.

"Lily? What's a four letter word for a person that nobody likes?" Felicia asked as she chewed a little on her pen, a nasty habit she always did when she was concentrating.

"Lily," Lily said staring absently into the fire.

"Lily, Don't say that. Nobody hates you. Besides, I think the word 'jerk' fits better in the space," Felicia said as she scribbled the letters in the squares.

"Everyone, except for maybe about three people, hates me. You, James, and Remus," Lily said sadly.

"Hey, I'm sure Sirius likes you too," Felicia said. Lily smiled at her friend's poor attempt at cheering her up.

"How would you know?" Lily teased.

Felicia blushed deeper than Lily had ever seen a person blush and changed the subject,.Lily raising an eyebrow circumspectly, choosing not to say anything just then.

"Ok Lily, What's a 5 letter word for someone you adore?" Felicia said. Lily shrugged her shoulders in defeat. She really didn't feel like doing a crossword puzzle right now.

"How about 'James'?" a deep manly voice whispered in her ear. She jumped slightly in surprise.

"No, 'James' won't fit in the boxes. I think the answer is 'lover'," Felicia said.

"Potato, Poe-tah-toe" James said jumping over the back of the couch and landing next to Lily.

"James, you scared me," Lily said gazing into James' attractive face.

"Sorry, Lily. I heard about what happened today," he said sympathetically.

"You did?" Her face drained its color.

"Yeah, Are you alright?" he said, kissing her on the cheek.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she lied.

"Anything I could do to make you feel a bit better?" James asked, detecting the falsehood.

"I don't know. No ideas are coming to my mind," she said with a dejected sigh.

"Would you like me to go ambush the Slytherin common room?" he said, his eyes lighting up with anticipation of the thought.

With a slight giggle Lily said, "That won't be necessary."

James looked slightly crestfallen by her answer, but said, "Oh, ok." Lily leaned against James' shoulder and breathed in his scent as he wrapped his arm around her. He smelled nice, sort of like citrus and grass mixed together. She closed her eyes and got lost in her own little world that consisted of nothing more than herself and James.



"So, Lily, I was thinking that maybe tomorrow we could go out. I don't know do something together. Maybe that will get your mind off of what happened today," James said kindly to Lily, but she didn't say anything back. He looked down at her curiously and found that she had fallen asleep.

"Hey, Felicia. I think I'm going to take Lily up and put her to bed. She's already asleep," James whispered quietly. Felicia only nodded her head as James then put his arm under the bend in her knees and the other arm went around her back. He made it look easy as he picked her up and walked up the stairs to their dorms. Truly, she didn't feel like she weighed much to him. His schoolbooks seemed heavier than she did. Once he reached the top of the stairs, he opened her door and walked in. He then carefully placed her on her neatly made bed that was illuminated by the blue tint of moonlight and pulled some blankets up to keep her warm.

My god she's beautiful, he thought wistfully. Her hair was shiny and smooth in the moonlight, as her skin seemed to glow with radiance. The one thing that seemed to stand out tonight though was her lips. They were a dark pink color and were full, just begging to be kissed.

He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry, I have to go Lily. Remus needs me, but I'll be back soon. I don't know if you'll want me in your room tonight so I'll be in my room. Just go there if you need me. In the morning we can talk about our date thing. I love you, my sweet, dear, Lily." He gently, slowly, softly kissed her on the lips. Not hard enough to wake her but enough to get the sweet taste of her. He pulled away and left the room before his inner manly conscience could beg for more of the woman he was so addicted to.



Halloween morning. It was one of those mornings where a witch or wizard wakes up happy. A day of indulging in sweet and celebrating magic and witchcraft. Lily stretched casually in her bed as her eyes fluttered open. She was kind of tired, but who isn't in the morning.

Blinking a few times to get her vision back into focus, her arms probed out for her boyfriend. She offered a confused look when all she felt were sheets. Sitting up in bed, she grabbed a hair scrunchie, tying up her messy locks, and started to primp herself for James. She didn't know why but she seemed to start to really adore James more and more. There was something about him that she hadn't noticed before now. Something lovable and irresistible.

Plus, he seemed to get better about his arrogance. He seemed to really want to be her dream boy. The only problem was he had an unusual way of showing his love. Besides writing it in rice pudding on the ceiling and serenading her off key, that morning he seemed to have left a peculiar gift by her bedside.

In bundles, there were several locks of different colored hair including a long platinum blonde ponytail that was tied on the top. Next to the hair was a bunch of Slytherin skirt fabric covered in what looked to be chocolate pudding. There was also a little sign that read, For you, From me. P.S. guess about what I have done with the chocolate pudding. With a smile, Lily got up from her bed to go to James' room. She had to go thank him.

James was sleeping like a rock in what looked to be a very uncomfortable position as Lily quietly sneaked into the room. He was snoring softly, his head was buried in the pillow, he slept on his stomach, and his legs were awkwardly tangled in the blankets.

How can he sleep like that? she thought to herself as she sat on the bed next to him. Besides his position, she had to admit he looked adorable. She bent down and kissed him softly on the cheek. He stirred and turned over on his side and their eyes met.

"Happy Halloween, James," she said.

"You too, Lily," he said back, stretching and yawning. He patted the spot next to him, motioning for her to lay down with him. She crawled under the covers and was at his side in an instant. His arm came over around her shoulder to tuck her in.

"Did you like the gift?" he asked.

"I did, I still can't believe you did that. What happens if you get in trouble?" she asked.

"Me? Get in trouble? Never. You must be thinking of another James," he said teasingly.

"I have to admit, I'm glad you did it," she said bashfully.

"I had to. You're my girl and they totally humiliated you, and your reputation is in shambles. Plus your honor and dignity is ruined. That cannot go without punishment," James said, kissing the top of her head.

"How did you do it?" she asked curiously.

"A master never reveals his secrets," he said, winking at her. She smiled and giggled.

"Do you think that everyone will forget about yesterday?" she asked.

"After they see what I've done to the Slytherins, they are sure to forget it," he said. She kissed him softly then they both got out of bed to get to breakfast. Lily wanted to see if the day would reveal what James actually did.

14

Breakfast was, well, interesting. As James and Lily sat together eating their special Halloween pumpkin pancakes, the Slytherin girls sauntered into the Great Hall with their pajama bottoms on and hats on their heads. They got quite a few quizzical stares, but they walked in, seemingly dignified. James and Sirius were conferring about something in hushed voices with their heads put together, and next thing you know, the Slytherin girls' hats were floating five feet above their heads, exposing their near bald haircuts.

The whole Great Hall was bursting out laughing as the girls shrieked and began to jump on the tables in a vain attempt to get their hats back. It was quite a sight, and it sure did make Lily feel a whole lot better. After breakfast, Lily and James walked in the cool fall air out to the big tree Lily loved so much. She had another muggle book in hand while James was playing with his little golden snitch. They sat underneath the tree as the leaves rustled above them and the breeze blew the clouds slowly by in the sky.

Other students were also outside, enjoying the weather. As Lily read, she could hear the faint sounds of conversations going on behind her.

"You want to go back to the common room, Narcissa?"

"No, Chocolate pudding is still on the ceiling. Who do you think put it up there?"

"You're such an idiot. Obviously, Evans and Potter did along with Potter's brainless posse. I mean who else would chop of all our hair and write: Lily Evans is the most beautiful girl in the world on the ceiling?"

"What shall we do about that?"

"I don't know, but be sure, we will definitely do something." Lily glimpsed behind her and saw the two girls coming towards her and James at the tree. James didn't seem like he was paying attention as he caught the flying ball once more in his hand. As the girls walked in front of her though James then automatically pulled her into an intense, fiery kiss that took her breath away.

Lily blushed and pulled away. The girls, with extreme jealousy in their eyes, ran off holding their woolen hats as they did so.

"James, why did you do that?" she asked, stupefied.

"I wanted to make sure everyone knows you're mine and nobody else's. Nothing will change that," he said kissing her softly again. She felt weird. As if those Slytherin girls were planning something in store for James and herself.

"What's wrong?" he asked probing into her eyes.

"I don't know. I have a bad feeling about those Slytherins," she said.

"Don't worry. Remember, I'm the master of killer pranks, and such. They couldn't possibly be stupid enough to compete against me. Worry not, my fair lady, I'm right here and nothing will happen," he said.

"Promise?"

"Promise, he guaranteed, kissing her once more.

"Want to go somewhere? Take your mind off those Slytherin prats?" he asked.

"Where did you have in mind?" Lily asked hesitantly.

"I don't know yet, but go upstairs and get ready, and by the time you're done I'll know where to go," he said, standing up and helping her up too.

"Ok, meet you in the common room?" she said.

"Yes, now hurry; before I get an idea," he said shooing her along. She kissed him on the cheek and quickly ran off while James walked slowly behind her, deep in thought.

When she got into her dorm, she quickly stripped off all her clothes and ran into her private shower. The Head Girl showers were huge and had beautiful skylights for a roof. It wasn't so much of a big deal, because the Gryffindor tower was one of the highest towers in the whole building, besides the Astronomy Tower. Lily turned on the knob and hot sprays of water fell down upon her body. It relaxed her as it began to massage her every muscle. She then grabbed the soap and began to wash herself quickly. She was very excited about her date. She then rinsed her body clean and then turned off the water. She could have sworn she heard a faint clicking sound in the distance but ignored it assuming it was the old pipes in the building. She walked over and grabbed a warm towel to wrap her body in and then went out into her dorm.

~Moments before in the Slytherin Common Room~

Narcissa was sitting on the black leather couch of the common room, completely depressed. Lucius, a boy with a handsome face and long blonde hair noticed, and came to sit beside her.

"Hey, What's troubling you?" he asked her.

"It's just that Potter and Evans are getting on my last nerve. Its obvious that they sabotaged the girls and the common room, and no one is doing anything about it," she said angrily.

"I've got an idea on how to get them back," Lucius said. How? she asked eagerly. Let me get my broomstick and you get your camera, and meet me back here, he said. Immediately, a smile broke out on her face, as she understood his plan completely.

I'll show that Lily Evans, she thought to herself as she grabbed her camera from her purse.



Lily sat in front of the mirror, combing her hair for about the hundredth time, preparing for her mysterious date with James. She didn't know what he had planned, but the suspense was thrilling her.

"Lily? You ready?" James said knocking from outside her room.

"Almost," she called setting down her brush and slipping on her sandals while brushing the legs of her jeans off. They were dark in the color while faded on the thighs. Along with them she wore a white top with a pink cardigan over it. Lily looked in the mirror one last time, smiling in satisfaction, and then opened the door. James stood patiently on the stair and smiled once his eyes met hers. She smiled, walking over to him with her hands in her pockets. He gently pulled one of her hands out of the pocket and cupped it in his own.

Kissing the top of it lightly he said, "You look lovely, as always. Are you ready?" She blushed slightly and nodded. He smiled and led her down the winding stairs with their hands cupped together. His long legs strode quickly down the stairs, through the common room, and out the portrait hole. She had to jog slightly to keep up with his pace as he went through the dark candle lit corridors.

"James, what's the hurry?" she asked.

He didn't answer; he just stopped and said, "We're here." Lily eyed James in suspicion as they stopped in front of a broom closet.

"James Potter! I am not snogging you in a broom closet," she announced in a huff, folding her arms in front of her chest.

He laughed. "Don't worry. That's not what I planned at all, but it is a very good idea for next time." He winked, and then paced in front of the door a few times with his eyes closed.

Excellent, I'm dating a nutcase, she thought to herself as she watched in curiosity of what he could be doing. He then stopped, took her hand while opening the door and led her inside. She gasped, as she saw, not a bunch of cleaning supplies, but a huge room with books scaling the walls from floor to ceiling. There was also a roaring fireplace and next to it was a comfy oversized couch with a blanket folded up next to the pillows. To make the setting even more perfect, milk and cookies were warm and looked delicious upon a small table by the couch.

Lily couldn't believe her eyes, as she had never imagined so many books at her disposal before. She loved books and they loved her back, never disappointing her with a good story. She could go through them as quickly as she went through clean socks.

"Do you like it?" James asked hopefully as he quietly closed the door behind them.

"I love it James. You're too sweet. I feel like I don't deserve you sometimes," she said as she turned around and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.

"No, Lily, it's the other way around. I don't deserve you. So, I'm going to, for once in my life, be a gentleman and maybe I'll deserve you afterwards," he said as he led her over to the couch and sat down with her. She grabbed a cookie and laid her head down on his lap as he draped the blanket over her legs.

Seizing a little blue book that lay next to the cookies he said, "So, I'm going to read you a story Lily. Written by yours truly. I hope you like it, love," he said as he bent down, laying a kiss on her forehead. She smiled with sweet anticipation as she snuggled against him and nibbled on her chocolate chip cookie.

He cleared his throat and began, "Once upon a time; there was a beautiful angel, the loveliest angel in heaven. She had long red hair, green sparkling eyes, skin like fragile porcelain, and wings of gold that only the sweetest angel could receive. Her name was Rose. All the other angels were completely jealous of her, saying that she never deserved her gold wings. But she ignored them and kept to herself. For being so beautiful, she was very shy and liked to be by herself, she never had many friends.

"One day, as she sat upon a cloud looking down on Earth, she saw a very handsome young wizard. She glimpsed he was tall, tan, and muscular, as he flew around on his broomstick. She watched curiously as he flew higher into the air. The higher he flew the clearer his features became. She thought he was the handsomest man she'd ever seen, even if he wore glasses and had a messy mop of untamable black hair." Lily giggled slightly as James grabbed a cookie and continued.

"Well, as he came higher up, she got scared and tried to hide in the cloud before he saw her. What she didn't know was that, she was on a very small cloud. So she slipped off and fell. She screamed as she plummeted. She tried to flap her wings as fast as she could but they began to shrink as she entered the normal atmosphere. She screamed again as she fell faster and faster. She closed her eyes as soon as she thought she was going to hit the ground, but instead of hard cold dirt, she felt warm, strong arms catch her safely. Immediately, she fainted, as a blur of colors seemed to swirl around her." James closed his little notebook.

"You're not going to stop are you?" Lily asked.

"I need some milk," James said, pouring himself a glass.

"Oh, sorry, she said, blushing faintly.

"It's all right. I'm glad you're anxious to hear the rest. Must mean I'm a good writer," he said, raising his eyebrows.

"You are a good writer. I'm not used to people reading to me. I like it. " Lily smiled.

James opened the book back up and continued. "Rose woke up in a hospital a couple hours later. She was in a tall bright room upon a small bed. She sat up and felt her body underneath her white robe to see if she had all her parts. Everything seemed okay, except she had no wings.

"She then remembered what the head angel told her.

'If you're stupid enough to fall off a cloud, your wings disappear until you see a pink sunrise.' Suddenly there was a rustled behind the curtain and the tall man with glasses appeared. She gasped and scooted back as far into the bed as she could.

"'Whoa, Wait! Don't be scared. I'm not going to hurt you. My name is Jake. I'm just here to see if you're all right,' he said. She nodded her head as she still gripped the sheets close to her in fear.

"'What's your name?' he asked. She tried to say, Rose, but all that came out was a beautiful voice that sounded like a gentle opera song. She then realized what happened closed her mouth and covered it with her hand. The head angel did say that mortals could not understand angel talk.

"What?' Jake asked in disbelief as he looked at her warily. She bit her lip as she then tried to find something she could communicate with him with. She then saw a rose in his hand. She pointed to it.

"'Rose?' he said. She nodded her head and pointed to herself. He looked slightly confused but then he said, "Oh, I get it. Your name is Rose. That's a beautiful name."

"She blushed a little as her shy side took over and she looked at her hands to avoid his eyes.

"'I got this rose for you actually. I was worried I hurt you when you fell. Here,' he said as he handed it to her. She gave a weak smile and took it. She then looked at its red petals and felt the silkiness of it on her fingers. It smelled sweet. She never appreciated the simple rose when she was really on Earth. She looked up at him, and tried to talk to him through her eyes, gazing upon him in silent sweet, thank you.

"He gave sort of a small gasp as he turned away and said, 'You don't need to thank me. I'll see you around." He walked away quickly.

Did I scare him? she thought to herself as she then fell back on her bed and pondered the flower some more."

~End of James' story~

"It was a pink sunrise that morning as Rose laid with Jake in his bed. His arm was around her waist as she wore her white robe and he wore a regular tee shirt. She felt her gold wings stretch and move as she woke. She was about to leave bed when she looked upon Jake once more. He was calm, sleeping happily with her in his arms. She then thought about the amazing kiss they had shared the night before, when he said he loved her. She truly didn't want to leave the man she loved, but her instinct called her. She looked upon the pink heaven above, it was beckoning to her.

"'Give me another chance. Let me live again. Let me love again,' she prayed. She gasped as she felt her wings begin to flap and try to carry her away. She held Jake's hand tight, not letting go as she slowly was lifted off the bed.

"No, No, NO! I wont leave him. I love him, she thought hard, praying with all her might as tears slipped out of her eyes. She then squeaked slightly as she fell upon the bed with a thump.

Jake gasped and said, "Oh, god, Rose! Are you all right?"

"'Yeah I think so,' she said.

"'Did you just speak?' He asked.

"She put her hand to her throat and said, 'Oh my gosh! I spoke.' She quickly looked behind her. The beautiful golden wings were gone. She had become mortal again.

"The next words that came out of her mouth were, 'I love you Jake.' He then came over and kissed her passionately and lovingly.

"They lived happily ever after. THE END," James ended the story, closing the book.

Lily had small tears in her eyes. "James, that was so sweet. I'm going to cry."

James set the book down. "Well, I'm glad you liked it. I worked hard on trying to make a story that you liked.

"I loved it. Thank you," she said as she sat up and kissed him softly on the lips.

"You're very welcome. We better get back to bed," he said, standing up and holding her hand leading her out the room.

They walked a few corridors, hand in hand, hers in his, perfectly molded to fit each other, when abruptly they turned a corner and saw hundreds of flyers stuck upon the walls. They eyed them curiously. Lily pulled one from the wall and looked carefully. She gasped when she saw it was none other than her bare, naked self in the shower. She dropped the piece of paper on the ground as her hand clamped over her mouth. James picked the paper off the ground.

He gave it one look and then said, "Oh, god." He peeked at Lily and saw in her eyes, tears were forming.

"Hey, Potter. Like my little photography project? Lucius said from behind a column. James had a look of sheer rage in his eyes when Lily stole a glimpse of him through her tears.

Lucius walked up towards them slyly. '"Our little Lily is very photogenic, don't you think," he said evilly and coolly. Lily couldn't control herself. She was too furious and pained to be so exposed. She slapped him right across the face as hard as she could. The sound echoed, bouncing off the walls. Her red handprint seemed to be burned on his skin temporarily.

"You filthy little mudblood, he said as he then lashed out and slapped her hard knocking her to the stone floor. James immediately whipped out his wand, pointed it at Lucius, and stepped in front of Lily protectively.

"Don't you dare come near her," James said furiously.

"What would the great Head Boy do? Beat me to a pulp?" Lucius said in a daring manner.

"I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to tell Professor McGonagall, then Professor Dumbledore. It won't take long until you are expelled," James said coolly.

"No one will believe you, James Potter, the great troublemaker" Lucius sneered.

"When you're packing your bags, Ill stand by and laugh," James said as he swirled his wand around and the flyers caught aflame. Lucius just smiled as the red light reflected upon his eyes menacingly. He took his wand and gave it a wave as the flyers appeared again. James gently bent down to help Lily back to her feet and they ran toward the Gryffindor common room.

Lily was lying in James' bed, under the covers, hugging him and crying quietly. He held her close, stroking her hair, rubbing her back, as he felt her tears soak through his tee shirt. Lily felt horrible, exposed, basically like a person whose just been rapped, or a celebrity who's been in a porn video. The pain in her cheek didn't help matters either. James warm body was soothing though; she held him tight and didn't let go. She just wanted to hide and go away with James. She wanted a world with just the two of them, nobody else.

She felt James kiss the top of her head as she cried softly. "It always breaks my heart to see you so miserable," he whispered kissing her some more. "If it will make you feel better you can kiss me, snog me, even strip me naked. I'll be happy to oblige. Drown your sorrows in me," he said. Lily giggled a little in the middle of a sob. "And, just to let you know, you look very magnificent naked, it's a shame that society makes you hide so much of your beauty underneath your clothing. That picture could fuel my fantasies for the next fifty years," he said under his breath kissing her gently. It made her feel a little better hearing him say that, but still she cried on in his arms. He was good to her and held her until she cried herself to sleep.

15

The days and weeks after the "shower poster incident" were one of the worst times of Lily's life. Not a day went by where she didn't get death glares, rude comments made about her, hear rumors being spread, and or get hit on by random boys. It seemed that every boy in the school, nay, the WORLD, had a taken a poster to put in their binder or dorm room. Lily couldn't prevent that but anyone who dared flirt or touched her would get, what Lily liked to call, the red hand. When you got slapped across the face so hard, a red handprint will remain on your cheek for hours. James was very proud of Lily's ability to handle herself and intimidate others. That was because he didn't have to be the man and protect her, she could do it on her own. He was glad too because some of those guys were really big. As James promised, Lucius was expelled two days after the incident.

The Malfoys were not happy at all, but thank god they left without much of a fuss. Lucius did say something about revenge but James didn't pay it much mind, as he and Lily were too busy walking away. Lily was thankful and said it often to James along with a soft kiss. James was good to her and loved her dearly, which greatly eased the pain of her now scarred and bruised identity and reputation. Just about every night he would stay with her and sleep next to her in bed.

He didn't mind, for obvious reasons, but one day she had a bad nightmare about the event and kicked him in the crotch, pushed him over the bed, hitting his head on the night stand, and giving him a shiny black eye. She then ordered him that for his own safety he should sleep in his own room from now on. James reluctantly obeyed but enjoyed when she couldn't keep her own promise and came into his room instead to sleep. She always thought that he wouldn't notice her getting into bed with him and then leaving early the next morning, but he sure as heck did. What can you say? A perverted boy, even in his sleep, always knows when there's a beautiful girl nearby.

It was close to the winter holiday as Lily, Felicia, and the Marauders were huddled in front of the fire, warm ciders in hand, while the snow fell onto the ground outside. The guys (excepting Sirius who was "talking" on the couch with Felicia, who was blushing excessively and looking flustered) were playing exploding snap while Lily was just trying to stay warm.

"Haha, Prongs. I won that one. That means you owe me 2 chocolate frogs and 4 sickles," Remus said writing the amount down in a little notebook above his charms notes.

"No way, you so did not win that! I called that card first!" James exclaimed.

"I don't think you did, Prongs," Sirius said, tearing himself away from Felicia for a second.

"Whose side are you on?" James said.

"There are no sides in this game," Sirius said, barely paying attention, completely immersed in Felicia.

"Padfoot is right, you know," Peter said.

"Fine! Everyone just go against me then!" James said, throwing his cards in the air, crossing his arms all in a huff. Felicia giggled as Lily scooted up close to James with a fleece blanket wrapped around her.

"Hey guys. I'm running out of chocolate and money so I'm going to call this game quits for now," James said.

"Otherwise known as, I'm getting sick and tired of Remus kicking my arse so I'm going to go snog Lily for a bit," Remus said even imitating James voice. Lily laughed as James got a small blush creeping on his face. "What Lily? You think that's funny do you?" he said turning to her in mock disciplinary anger.

"No of course not," Lily lied, still giggling a little.

"You're really bad at lying. You know what you get when you lie to the head boy?" James asked mischievously.

"What's that?" she asked.

"This," he said as he suddenly pounced on her, pinning her to the ground, tickling her. She was doubling over, giggling, and laughing, trying to wiggle her way out of James' tickling fest. None of her attempts succeeded. "Ok! Ok! Stop! James!" she said through her giggles.

"I'll stop if you give me a kiss," he said as his fingers fluttered along her sides.

"You perverted loser! Ok! Ok! Ill give you a kiss," she said. James then stopped, supporting himself with his hands next to her head, looking down into her green sparkling eyes and flushed face. She just looked up at him and smiled.

"There's no escape," he said.

"I know, I don't want to escape," Lily said. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down slowly for a soft sweet kiss. He sighed as his soft lips met with hers sensually.

"Good grief! Get a room, both of you!" Remus scolded at them. Lily broke away confusedly, only to find that Sirius and Felicia were also in the heat of the moment. She raised her eyebrows as Felicia slowly broke away from Sirius, dazed.

"Later," Felicia mouthed. Sirius laughed as James turned and stuck out his tongue at Remus. James then crawled behind the couch with Lily coming in behind him. Safely out of view, Lily leaned in for another kiss. She then felt his finger upon her lips stopping her.

"What's the matter?" she asked. "Nothing, I just have to ask you something," he said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Well, I want you to meet my parents," he said.

"Your parents?"

"Yeah, over this winter break," he said.

"Well, I kind of promised my parents Id visit them this winter break," she said.

"Oh that's no problem, I can come with you to visit your parents for Christmas and you can come with me to visit my parents during New Years. That is unless you don't want me to meet your parents, yet, or anything. I know I can be rather embarrassing at times," he said looking down at his lap.

She used her fingers to turn his head to meet her eyes, "Of course I want you to meet my parents. They're going to love you just like I do. And I do want to meet your parents very much. I don't know how they're going to like me though," she said a bit self-consciously.

"Lily, what's not to love?" he said as he then leaned in and kissed her softly.

"I hope you're right," she whispered as she leaned in to kiss him again and again and again.

Snow silently fell from the skies that early December morning as the white light reflected off the flakes into Lily's dorm window. She was still asleep, completely warmed by her sweatshirt and sweat pants, 2 layers of blankets, and not to mention James' practically naked body pressed against hers. Yes, he was sleeping with her as always. Over the last two months, it had seemed to be a habit now.

She couldn't understand how he could keep warm in this weather while only wearing his boxer shorts. His logic was that she alone was so sexy and hot that he would burn up if he had anything else on. She shrugged whenever he said this and figured that whatever made him happy was good. She did make sure he was warm though by hugging him tight in her sleep and pressing her body up against his, burying them both in the blankets. She had sweet dreams of what the upcoming holiday would be like, full of merriment and joy, especially now that James was with her to share every single moment of it. She sighed in her sleep at the thought. She then opened her drowsy eyes and kissed James on the cheek gently. His arms were still around her protectively as he slept like a baby. He was so innocent and adorable, very kissable.

"James, wake up. Today is the day we leave on the train to my parents' house," she whispered in his ear.

He gave a slight groan as he turned over on his stomach and mumbled, "Just a few more minutes, please." She sat up and began massaging his back slightly. She had figured out with time that he liked that. He gave a soft groan again.

"Please, James, you have to wake. For me, please," she whispered innocently in his ear. He then suddenly flipped her over on her back. She half shrieked and half giggled with surprise.

"You always know how to get what you want from me don't you?" he said as he smiled down on her.

"I'm a fast learner," she said reaching up to kiss him. He kissed her back quickly and then grabbed his glasses from the table.

"Wow, you have really cute morning hair," he said as he kissed her again.

It's amazing how he could still make her blush as she said, "Thanks."

"Wow, you're really cute when you blush too. Everything about you is either cute or beautiful," he said, kissing her again and again. Lily giggled and squirmed underneath him.

"James, we have to start getting ready," she protested half-heartedly trying to push him back between kisses.

"I can't stop. You're so darn kissable. Mmmm," he said as he kissed down her neck.

"James, that tickles, come on," she giggled.

"Ok, I'll stop, but only because you're telling me to," he said as he got out of the bed and bent down to carry her out of bed. He pulled her out of bed and carried her bride style, walking toward her dresser drawers.

"I could have just walked myself," she said.

"I know, but I have to make our last morning of this year waking up to one another worth while," he said.

"Oh, sweetheart, really, it's not so much of a big deal. You can sleep without me fine," she said as he set her down.

"No I can't. I've gotten so used to you I don't know what I'd do without you kissing me awake each morning," he said giving her the weak sad puppy dog eyes.

"Awwww," she said as she kissed him on the lips softly. James then asked,

"Are you sure your parents will like me?"

"Of course, how many times do I have to tell you? You're perfect," she said. She then shooed him off so that she could get dressed. He, as much as he didn't want to left, and got dressed himself so that they could get ready to board the train.



The time seemed to just fly by on the train ride. Mostly because it was filled with nice snogging fests upon the seats of the compartment. What could she say? James was a wonderful kisser. His mouth knew exactly how to move and where to go, unlike her fumbling self who was so inexperienced and clumsy. When they weren't kissing, they were enjoying hot cocoa as James told her funny stories about his Marauder adventures. When they arrived at King Cross Station, it was cold as the Dickens and they had to wear their large ski coats to keep them warm. The snow was still falling pretty hard outside and all. Their noses and cheeks were pink from the cool air as they stepped out of the train, rolling their carts out.

"James, are you coming?" she asked as she grabbed her owl's cage with one hand and pushed her cart in front of the hall with another.

"Yeah, I'm just thinking."

"About?"

"How lucky I am to have you. And I'm also thinking that if your parents hate me, I'll just forget about them and still love you like always," he said looking down at her.

"Oh, James, you're so sweet and good to me. I'm sure my parents won't hate you, and even if they do, I still love you darling," she said as she stood on her tippy toes and kissed him.

"Love you too," he said. They then walked together through the wall of 9 and to the Evans family.



"Lily!" shrieked a middle aged woman with strawberry blonde curly hair and a heavy white coat over her slim form. She had eyes like Lily's.

"Mum!" Lily waved as she parked her cart and dashed into her mother's arms. James could tell Lily had a really close relationship to her parents as she hugged her mom and a man James assumed to be her dad. He was tall with dark brown hair and a black winter coat on and he smiled happily as he hugged his daughter tightly. James just took Lily's cart as well as his own and pushed them slowly over to them, not wanting to intrude on the Evans family's bonding time.

He did notice though, that over to the side of Lily and her parents were two very unhappy people that just didn't seem to belong. One was a girl, rather scrawny and brittle with black wavy hair and the expression of complete disgust as Lily kissed and hugged her dad. The other was an overweight boy with flat blondish hair, eating a hot dog beside the girl. James assumed that was Lily's sister Petunia and her boyfriend Vernon who were supposedly horrible muggles that hated magic folk. He made a mental note to stay away.

"Mum, Dad, I want to introduce you to my boyfriend that will be spending Christmas with us. Remember, like I wrote about in my letter. This is James Potter," Lily said coming over as looping her arm into his. "Pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Evans," James said politely.

"Are you the same James Potter my daughter used to call an arrogant, self absorbed, stupid, loser?" Mrs. Evans said.

"Mum!" Lily scolded with embarrassment as she made the cut it out symbol with her hand.

James chuckled and said, "I am. I was pretty shocked too when she finally said yes to me after I had asked her about a million times."

"Sounds vaguely like you and me, darling," Mr. Evans said as he kissed his wife on the cheek. James wasn't a sap in the least but he had got to admit it was cute. Strangely, James noticed Petunia power walking over to them.

"Lily, aren't you going to introduce me to your boyfriend?" she said smiling and fluttering her eyelashes as James.

"Petunia, James, James, Petunia," Lily said, faintly irritated.

"Hi, there," she said as she took his hand and began to shake it.

"Hi," he said, rather uncomfortably. He honestly didn't like her already. She was way too skinny and had an annoying voice while trying too hard to act sexy with the eyelash thing. Totally uncool, plus Lily said that Petunia hated and abused her because she had magic abilities. James hated prejudice against people, no matter what kind of people they were.

"We should get going, before the snow comes down any harder outside," Mr. Evans said taking a hold of Lily's cart and pushing it ahead. James took a hold of his cart handle with one hand while wrapping the other around Lily's waist.

And no, he did not miss the jealous green look Petunia had spread over her face when he did it. Petunia yelled at Vernon to come along as he was purchasing another hot dog. James could almost feel her eyes burning a hole in his backside too.

This is uncomfortable as hell, he thought but he kept ignoring it as he walked quickly ahead.

"We're going to have such a good time, James. My parents seem to like you well enough so far. By tonight they're going to love you. You shouldn't have worried so much," Lily said wrapping her arm around his waist too.

All James was thinking was, Well, now I have some other person to worry about.