Sometimes James just loved Dumbledore. He really was a great man. Fought Grindewald, scared the piss out of Voldemort, gave him the perfect opportunity to get back on Evans' good side. There were so many reasons to love the man.

James had been trying to get round Evans for two and a half weeks. 18 days. More hours than he would like to think about. And he hadn't even gotten close. He meant this literally. She had started petrifying him whenever he got within three feet of her. And the girl was surprisingly hard to sneak up on.

He had been seriously considering using his cloak to bring it off when Dumbledore came through in the clutch. The Headmaster wanted them to run a Defense Club together. He felt it would promote unity and teach students how to protect themselves against the ever growing threat. James felt it would give him a good shot at softening Evans up. All he needed to do was get close enough to touch her. He knew if he could get his hands on her, she wouldn't be able to hold up. He just had to get past that three foot bubble.

He helped her move tables, making a point taking off his robes, so she would have the chance to watch his muscles flex in the black t-shirt he was wearing. He and Sirius had found them in a muggle shop. They were a bit snug, but the shopkeeper had said the girls went mad for the look.

Right when James was starting to feel ridiculous, he saw Lily glance at him. He was fairly sure he'd spotted speculation in her gaze. He pushed a table across the room manually.

"You have a wand, you know," she said.

It took him a minute to process her meaning. Her voice drove him mad. Anytime she spoke, he heard echoes of her breathy moans in his head. He tried to pull off a nonchalant shrug, hoping it looked extra good with the tight shirt. One side of her mouth curled up the tiniest bit. Merlin, he loved her mouth.

He was relieved when students began filtering in. He was close to throwing his whole plan out the window and just begging on hands and knees for her to forgive him. He hadn't even done anything. She was punishing him because she thought he would have done something had they skipped a bloody class together.

He had tried explaining the injustice of it to her, but she had just given him her best 'you're the scum of the earth' look and asked if he could honestly say he wouldn't have been an arse to her if his friends suggested they'd skived off together. He thought it was best not to lie, but she seemed to be just as irritated with the silence he gave her.

No matter. Soon all that would be behind him. He would be back in her bed in no time. His frequent trips to the shower were not helping, and his half-hearted attempts to find a substitute had not produced anyone worthwhile. And they left him paranoid that Evans would find out and be even more difficult.

He pulled his robes back on and proceeded to help her explain the purpose for the club. Quite a few students had shown up. Unfortunately, his friends had decided to come too. It made it harder to make up to her, because he figured they would just remind her why she was mad in the first place. He made certain not to insult her in any way, though.

He focused on helping the younger kids. He figured it could only earn him good will. Several times, he caught her watching him out of the corner of his eye. He was feeling better and better about this plan.

He didn't start to get nervous until they were walking back. If he messed it up, there was no telling when he'd get another chance to fix it. He walked very close to her, careful to be within the bubble when they walked through the portrait hole.

"Well that went –" she tried calling over her shoulder and heading toward her room. Only he caught her hand, pulled her around, pushed her back against the wall, and cut her off with a kiss.

He expected a protest, but instead felt her respond immediately. She must have been suffering as much as he was. He felt a sharp satisfaction at the idea.

When she would have pulled him down to the floor, he shook his head. "No," he said, "I want you in bed." Grabbing her thighs and hoisting her up so she could wrap them around his waist, he walked her back into her bedroom.

It was a while before they went to sleep, but he recognized – just before he drifted off – that this was the first time in weeks he had felt at peace.