It Won't Happen Again

A/N: Sorry about the long update. :( Longest chapter yet! Thanks to all the reviewers, favoriteors, and followers. You're the best! Hope you like Truth or Dare and the other game oracle987 recommended. (Great idea, btw!)

Disclaimer: Jo-Ro! Who else?

September ended, bringing October, it's orange leaves, and frosty weather. And October passed just as James and Lily passed each other in the hallways- quickly and silently. Lily only spoke around James if someone asked her a direct question, and James only spoke around Lily if someone asked him a direct question. When they were traveling alone, they skirted around each other, taking different routes to avoid the other as much as possible. If they traveled with their friends, going to opposite classes, they kept their eyes downcast and faces hidden.

Only Sirius and Marlene really knew what happened, but James and Lily kept it so all the others didn't suspect so much as to what was going on. It really wasn't a big deal, or so Sirius and Marlene thought. Marlene took Lily's side on the matter, but she did get tired of Lily's complaints after a while. Sirius was confident that they would be fine if they just kissed and started going out, until Marlene pointed out that James had a girlfriend, which dampened Sirius's confidence, however slightly.

But however small the matter really was, they both blamed the other. James blamed Lily for overacting and sticking her nose in business that wasn't her own, and Lily blamed James for being irresponsible and careless, not to mention the fact that he was a liar. The jealousy might have been another reason, too, but of course Lily wouldn't admit that in a million years… well, actually never. And although James didn't want to admit it, even to himself, the main reason he was upset was that he finally realized (or convinced himself, or thought, or lost hope, or whatever it was) Lily would never return the affections he felt for her through the years.

So as Halloween drew closer, Lily dreaded the first traditional activities game (Truth or Dare) even more so than she first anticipated. Lily hated spilling her secrets, so nine times out of ten she kept them to herself, or if not that, it was Marlene who got them out of her. Or Remus, but that was even a smaller chance than it already was.

Lily changed the patrol schedule and left a copy under James's door. She now patrolled with Remus (who, thankfully asked no questions) or a nice girl named Brooklyn, the Hufflepuff Marlene had mentioned before. She knew that Dumbledore had told the Heads to patrol together, but Lily really didn't want to put up with James right now. James let it be for a week, but Lily had purposely put him with some Slytherin. The Monday after Lily had changed the schedule, Lily found a different one (changed by James, no doubt) and found that they were to patrol together again. A note in James's untidy scrawl at the top said, "Dumbledore said we are to patrol the together." The days were changed however, to Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, so the weekends were free. The day before Halloween, the Monday Lily found the new schedule taped to her door, was guaranteed to be a "James day" since it was expected for the Heads to set up for the first activity, and Lily had to patrol with James. Lily knew she had no choice but to do what was expected, and although she thought about faking sick, she decided that wouldn't be very becoming of the Head Girl or a Gryffindor.

So when Monday morning came, Lily dragged herself reluctantly out of bed, showered, dressed, and slung her book bag over her shoulder, which consisted of her Potions, DADA, Herbology, and Ancient Runes textbooks. Sadly, three out of four of those classes she shared with James.

It really was going to be a James Day.

Glancing at her reflection one last time in the mirror, Lily went down her dormitory steps and out the portrait hole.

On her way down to breakfast, Lily heard heavy footsteps following her. Glancing back, her heart sank. Why did he have to bother her? Especially now, when she had no patience. Ignoring him, Lily picked up her pace, slipping through a shortcut behind a lonely tapestry to the Great Hall, trying to lose him. Suddenly, Lily tripped, sprawled on the ground. Of course. A tripping jinx, she thought bitterly. Good start for his Death Eater career, then. Scrambling up, and grabbing her wand that had fallen out of her pocket, she pointed it at Snape, her patience little to none.

"I already told you to leave me alone," Lily said, glaring. "Do you not understand English?" He smirked.

"Don't talk to me like that, Mudblood." He was walking toward her, and Lily was backing up, about to hit the door that led her to the Entrance Hall.

"Don't tell me what to do, Death Eater." This Snape was so different from the last one Lily had seen. Faster than lightning, he pulled out his wand.

"Sectum-"

"Protego!" Lily shouted. Then she used the jinx that was on the tip of her tongue. "Impedimenta!" Knowing it would only give her seconds, she grabbed her fallen bag, spun on her heel and opened the door to the tapestry, slipping her way past people coming from breakfast. When the jinx wore off, Snape followed, two things on his mind: Get Lily alone. Prove to Bellatrix that I am worthy of becoming a Death Eater.

Rushing out of the tapestry and shoving people behind him, he caught a glimpse of red hair. Lily glanced back, and their eyes met. Lily stopped, slowly turning around. Anger and hatred coursed through her veins. This boy, if he could even be called that, was mad. Completely mad. If he thought that it was cool to join Voldemort and become a Death Eater and torture people for the sake of torturing them or just because of their blood status, he was an absolute idiot. And Lily hated him.

It was as if time had stopped and Lily had forgotten where she was, that there were people around her, and that she was a witch. People moved to the side as Lily came striding forward toward Snape her face red, her eyes flashing with unmistakeable fury. Her fist found its mark on Severus's nose, blood splattering onto her hand. But that wasn't enough for her, and she began punching every bit of him she could. The Hall was now silent. Severus tried to pull Lily off, but failed. And then someone was pinning Lily's arms to her sides, pulling her away. Lily struggled and kicked at her captor, finally finding a spot that made him go "ouch" and lessen his hold, which was enough for Lily to get loose. Fumbling for her wand, she shouted,

"Levicorpus!" Snape was yanked into the air by his ankle, and Lily had satisfaction in knowing that James had used the hex to embarrass him, and she hoped with all her heart that he was embarrassed again, ashamed that he was beaten (in a quite literal sense) by a Mudblood Gryffindor girl. Yes, Lily thought, I'm a Mudblood but I'm proud of it. I'm a Prefect, I'm at the top of my classes, I'm Head Girl, I'm a fighter, and that's what matters. And I'll show them all one day!

"Miss Evans!" came McGonagall's shocked voice, not three seconds after Snape had been hoisted up into the air. Lily turned around, but kept Snape in the air. Remus was standing beside her. No doubt he had gotten to get someone once he had seen the fight. "What are you doing!?"

"I'm teaching him a lesson, Professor," Lily said boldly. "A lesson that involves a Mudblood girl teaching an absolute jerk a lesson in which that same aforementioned absolute jerk should never mess with that aforementioned Mudblood girl."

Professor McGonagall stared at Lily like she had never seen her before. The Entrance Hall was silent, all of Lily's friends standing together at McGonagall's side. Everyone else's eyes were darting back and forth to their Transfiguration professor and their Head Girl and occasionally to Snape. Lily sighed, letting the struggling, still airborne Snape fall to a heap onto the stone floor.

"Put me in detention, Professor, or take away points or write to my parents or take away my badge or expel me, but it won't make me regret what I did."

Professor McGonagall had never looked more shocked. Trying to compose herself, she asked,

"Were you provoked?" Lily hesitated, and James, the closest person standing next to her, cleared his throat.

"If I… er… can say something, I'm sure Lily wouldn't have done anything if he hadn't first." Lily made a noise in her throat that suspiciously sounded much like, "Evans," but otherwise made no comment.

"Is this true, Miss Evans?" McGonagall asked. Lily glanced at Snape. She did not answer the question.

"I'll pay for the consequences of my actions, Professor." McGonagall looked at Lily closely, trying to read her. Lily kept her expression blank.

"Is that all you have to say, Miss Evans?" she finally asked.

Lily nodded. James made a nose as though to protest, but Lily stomped on his foot.

"Detention," the professor said. "Friday night, eight o'clock. My office. And thirty-five points from Gryffindor." Lily's face fell. She didn't mind detention, but she knew she disappointed Gryffindor. Turning to Snape, McGonagall said, "You may go to the hospital wing, but I expect you to be in your first class this morning. You are dismissed." Without a word, Snape walked up the marble staircase, scowling at Lily, his face an unattractive, pale, sallow color, presumably to go get his injuries fixed. When he was out of sight, the professor continued speaking to Lily.

"Miss Evans, I cannot imagine what Mr. Snape might have done for you to do such a thing, but as Head Girl, you must set a good example for other students instead of a bad one." She gestured toward the students, who had begun slowly moving again, the noise level coming back to its normal volume. Lily bit her lip, for the first time feeling ashamed. Here she was, setting a terrible example, selfishly protecting herself, while there was a real war going on outside, with people dying every which way. "If you do something like this again, I will have no choice but to take away your badge. Is this understood?"

"Yes, Professor," Lily said quietly. "It won't happen again."

"You are dismissed." Nodding at the Gryffindor Seventh Years, she entered back into the Great Hall.

Lily picked up her bag and swung it over her shoulder, avoiding her friends' glances. She quickly started toward the marble staircase. James followed her and matched her pace.

"What did you do that for, Lily?!" James said angrily, ruffling his hair in frustration. "You can't just-"

"Y'Know what?!" Lily interrupted. She stopped walking, one stair above him. Her head was almost level with his, but not quite. She took another step up. "I'm sick of people telling me what to do!"

"Oh, and you never tell me what to do!" James matched her tone. "Do you patrol, James! James, you need to stop being so irresponsible! Can't you just do what you're supposed to do? Can't you-" Lily shoved him.

"Stop. Just... stop. You don't understand, do you? Being Head Boy isn't about what you want to do! It's about protecting and helping and-" She broke off. "I was mad. I was beyond angry, alright?"

"Yeah, and just because you're angry doesn't mean you go off hexing other people!" Their voices had risen to shouts.

"Oh, that's all high and mighty of you, James I-live-to-hex-Severus-Snape-and-other-people-because-I'm-a-bullying-git Potter!" Lily cried shrilly, pointing a shaking finger at him. James's expression darkened.

"You don't notice anything, do you?" he asked, his voice dangerously low. "Because I'm selfish Lily Evans, poor me, nothing goes my way, but I should be able to do whatever I want, even though it's me that has the stick up my arse!" Lily's face went slack. Her heart felt as if it had stopped beating.

"You're right," she said coldly. "You might want to stop talking to me, then, if you can't stand me. I honestly can't stand you either. Just leave me alone, why don't you? You'd do us both a favor." She turned on her heel, her vision blurring. A hand caught her arm, gently pulling her around to meet those smoldering hazel eyes that broke Lily's heart.

"C'mon, Lily, you know I didn't mean that," he pleaded.

"No. No, I actually think you did. And you can call me Evans, alright?" Pulling out of his grasp, turning her head away so that he couldn't see the tears silently falling, she began walking away, her silent tears breaking into sobs as she broke into a run.

It was the beginning of an awful day.

Lily should have known.

She hadn't eaten breakfast.

No wonder they always said breakfast was the right way to start the day.

Lily had started it all wrong.

WM~*~MW

Snape was one of the last to Potions that morning. His face showed no sign of the injuries Lily had given him.

Sirius was worried when the bell rang and Lily wasn't at the desk they shared yet. He couldn't remember a time when she was late. But he didn't say anything, although his brow was furrowed as he copied notes down from the blackboard for the potion they would be making that day, usually Lily's job. There was a mysterious pile of toast on the table next to her seat, and one glance at James was all it took to know that he was worried, too. He wondered if they had started talking again. No matter what James said or did, Sirius always knew that James Potter would be in love with Lily Evans.

So when Lily arrived to class, six minutes after the bell had rung for class to start, Sirius watched her cross the room to the side she sat at quickly, her bulky book bag slung over her shoulder. It was as if she didn't want to be noticed, but she was anyway. For those that had not seen the morning's fight between her and Snape, they were quickly informed by those who had. The class was silent as Slughorn stood up and looked at Lily.

"Why so late, m'dear?" he asked.

"Got held up, Professor. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." It won't happen again... She seemed to be saying that a lot these days.

"Of course it won't, Miss Evans. Now would you be able to tell me what potion we are making today by glancing at the list of ingredients?"

"Yes, Professor," Lily murmured, her eyes scanning the blackboard quickly. "Is it Amortentia, Sir?"

"Yes, yes, it is!" answered Professor Slughorn jovially. "Ten points to Gryffindor. Now, who can tell me what it is?" More girls than usual raised their hands.

"Miss McKinnon?"

"It's the most powerful love potion in the world, Sir. And if I might add, I hope you won't take off the lid of that brewed one right over there, Professor, for fear of the stupid things I might do if I smell it." She glanced at Sirius. He winked at her, making her blush slightly.

Slughorn laughed. "Yes, well… hopefully it won't be that strong…" He instructed the class to get the ingredients, and everyone went over to the storage cabinet. Sirius, who usually got them, stayed in his seat.

"Are you alright?" he asked in undertone.

"Of course," Lily said, not meeting his eyes. She pushed the toast out of the way and set her heavy potions book on the table.

"James brought you toast. He said you hadn't eaten breakfast." Actually, James hadn't said anything of the sort, but Sirius had seen him walk into class with toast in his hands.

"Yes, well… I was otherwise preoccupied, if you hadn't noticed." She stood up. "I'll just go get the ingredients, shall I?"

Sirius sighed and watched her go. His efforts were hopeless. Maybe he should try teasing her instead of seriously interrogating her.

When she returned with the ingredients, Sirius and Lily began cutting the ingredients and adding them to the cauldron. They worked in silence, Sirius glancing at Lily every so often. Finally he asked,

"Were you crying?" Lily's head snapped up.

"Excuse me?" she said icily.

"Were you crying?" he repeated.

"No, I was not. It wouldn't be any of your business, anyway."

"Oh, yes, I forgot. Friends don't care about their other friends, and they don't care if someone hurt them, so they wouldn't care if they were crying," he said sarcastically.

"Snape didn't hurt me. I got him, and he barely touched me."

"No, Snape didn't hurt you, not even in Fifth Year and you were crying after you talked to him outside the portrait hole," Sirius continued in that annoying-sarcastic voice. Lily's eyes widened.

"What? How did you-"

"James saw you. Said he was going to apologize but he's afraid of crying women. But never mind that…"

"Fine, then, Snape didn't hurt me this time. I'm fine, alright?"

"Fine, fine, fine," Sirius mocked. "You were crying; I know it because your eyes are red. Did you and James have a fight again?" Lily's eyes narrowed and her skin flushed.

"I think we forgot the moonseed," Lily said quietly. She turned her back and got the moonseed they really didn't need from the Potions cabinet. Taking her time going back to the desk she and Sirius shared, she sat down and began the next step of the Potion. Sirius leaned over and caught her eye.

"You know you can always talk to me right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Lily said. "I know."

WM~*~MW

Lunch was quiet. James sat with his girlfriend at her house table and Lily, although hungry, stabbed at her food moodily. It wasn't just jealousy, anymore, though. It was more of a heartache that constantly reminded her that she had lost her chance. Lily was angry at herself because she realized that all the things James had said were true, but most of all confused. Why would he pretend to like her if he thought that was how she was?

James was present at the Gryffindor table during dinner. Lily was not looking forward to the time she had to spend with him afterwards, because one: he was mad at her, and two: the smell of what had been in her Amortentia smelled very strongly of him. Lily almost wished she could be less stubborn so she could apologize and James would get over it, but it wasn't just her fault.

"Lils?" She jumped.

"What?" Sirius nodded toward her empty plate.

"I'll walk you up, yeah?" Everyone glanced at Lily. She cleared her throat.

"Sure," Lily replied, trying to think nothing of it. She swung off the bench. Sirius followed her. Lily made her way toward the marble staircase, but Sirius steered her toward the big doors that led outside.

"Hold on," he said. "I want to talk to you for a minute." Lily bit her lip.

"I have to meet James in a few minutes," she said. "For the Heads' meeting." Lily avoided his eyes, accidently tripping over a small hole in the ground.

"Looking forward to that, are you?" Lily was silent. "Listen, Lily… James likes you, alright? A lot. And-"

"I wish people would stop telling me that!" Lily cried furiously. "Since it's obviously not-"

"And," Sirius said, speaking louder, "to be honest, I think you like him, too." Lily reddened slightly, looking away from Sirius toward the Forbidden Forest. They were standing by the Great Lake now, near the beech tree on the shore.

"You're being stupid," she said at last. "I don't like him; I never have, and I never will." Sirius sighed.

"I think you're the one being stupid. You can't deny it, Lils. It's hard to deny anything when you're in love. And I used to think you were in love with him without noticing it, but I know now that you know."

"I'm not denying anything. And I think I know myself better than you, thanks."

"It's true, isn't it?"

"It's not bloody true!" Lily yelled. She would tell Marlene, but never Sirius.

"I wouldn't tell him," Sirius said, hurt. "James is being an idiot right now. He's messed up things for himself. But really, have some trust Lils!"

"You wouldn't tell your best friend about something he's gone on for years?"

"Not when he doesn't deserve it."

"But you're his best friend!"

"So? Yes, I'm his best friend! I do what's best for him!"

"Well, it's just… I would've told Marlene. I mean, when you tell someone you'll keep their secret, there's always the exception of your best friend."

"I think that's my answer, hmm?"

"What?! Sirius, I don't like him!" she said, her voice panicky.

"Okay," he said. "Keep on trying to convince yourself that." He turned and strode away from her. Lily stared after him. Then she too turned and stared out at the lake, hugging herself, a lone tear sliding down her cheek.

WM~*~MW

Sirius ran into the rest of the group when he came inside. James was first to speak.

"Where's Evans?"

"Lily is out by the lake, you prat," Sirius snarled. James crossed his arms.

"Well, she'd better get inside because we have a Heads' Meeting! You know, the meeting where she always insults me!" he said childishly.

Sirius stared at him.

"Why don't you go get her, then," he said coldly. "You know, since she's always having to get you." He started up the marble staircase. The rest of the group followed him. Remus stopped by James.

"You can't fool us, you know," Remus told her quietly. "We all know you're in love with her."

"I know," James said. "I just wish she liked me back." He knew it was a lame excuse, he knew that he should have never reacted like that when she found herself a boyfriend, but it hurt. It hurt to see her on someone else's arm, it hurt to look in the future and see his Lily marrying someone else, loving someone else.

But James had eventually realized that loving Lily was wanting what she wanted, letting her do what she pleased. Even if it hurt.

Because loving Lily was about her, not himself.

"You might want to continue showing her how you can really be, then. You're getting nowhere in your current… circumstances."

"Yeah," James said. "I'm going to go fix that." He turned away and turned toward the hallway that took him to the Hufflepuff common room. through the doors. Remus shook his head and hurried to follow the others.

WM~*~MW

"Kristen?" James called her name, jogging up to her and her Hufflepuff friend, Maria. Kristen gave him a smile.

"Hey, James," she said, straightening her posture and batting her eyelashes.

"Um... d'you mind having a word?" She smiled widely.

"Of course," she said, whispering a word to her friend, who turned and walked down the corridor.

James led Kristen into a near empty classroom.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I know this is all my fault, and I'm sorry for doing this to you." He took a deep breath. "I think we need to break up." Kristen stared at him.

And then she burst into tears and leapt at him, her fists pounding on his chest. He grabbed them easily, holding them tight.

"I'm sorry," James repeated, talking loudly over her sobbing. "I shouldn't have even started this relationship, I am an idiot and you are a great girl who will find another guy that won't do this to you. I just think… no, I know that we aren't right for eachother." Kristen pulled away from him, an angry look on her face.

"It's about Lily Evans, isn't it?"

"No… no, this has nothing to do with Lily Evans."

"Whatever you say," she snapped. "Stay away from me." And she walked out the door. James sighed. It was over, but what exactly had gotten himself in this big mess? Himself, of course.

WM~*~MW

Sirius said Lily was out on the grounds by the lake, so that's where James headed. He hoped she would still be there, and he hoped he could fix the mess he had started. Turning the corner into the Entrance Hall, James ran into a very vivid red head of hair. He placed his hands on her shoulders and took a step back.

"Lily?" Her breath visibly caught in her throat.

"Time for our Heads' meeting, then?" she asked in what she hoped would be a casual tone.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you…" He took her small hand in his absentmindedly, and she flinched.

"Sorry," he muttered. Lily looked up at him. Her cheeks were wet, stained with tears.

"Were you crying?" he asked softly, longing to take her into his arms.

"No, I just- will you give me a moment?" He nodded and took a step back. Lily's intent was for him to go away, and James very well knew that, but he refused to let her run away from him. Lily did turn her back and wipe the tears as discreetly as she could, cursing herself for ever crying in the first place.

"Okay," Lily said, turning toward James. "Let's go, yeah?" He gave her a look. She sighed.

"We can have your surely-not-really important conversation after we're done, 'kay?" He chuckled.

"Yes, mum." Lily rolled her eyes.

"Wait-I just have to say something first. It won't take long," he promised catching sight of the look on Lily's face. "I feel like I keep saying this, but it needs to be said. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything I said this morning and I know I was probably the one who made you cry, when you came in late to Potions and just now. I know you don't like to have people mad at you, and I'm sorry I made you upset. I- never mind, I'll tell you the rest after Head Duties."

Lily shoved him.

"I can't believe you, James Potter!" she said. "Lying to me like that! 'It won't take long,'" she imitated in a high voice. "And the worst part is, I actually wanted to hear you keep talking." He laughed.

"Well, you'll just have to wait until we're done, won't you?" he asked smugly.

Lily rolled her eyes again, and pushed him to start walking toward the library. Her hand lingered on his back for a fraction of a second longer than it maybe should have.

Once they were seated at Lily's favorite table at the back against a dark window, Lily began, shuffling her papers.

"So… We have to find four separate places in the castle for all the houses to play the game, get the Veritaserum from Slughorn, firewhiskey from the kitchens…"

"You think you're going to use the firewhiskey a lot? If you don't want to do something, you know..." asked James.

"Not really," responded Lily. "I think people won't really know what to tell people to do after a time. Anyway, you can only use it for two turns. Dumbledore gave me the official rules here…" She shuffled her papers and pulled out a folded pamphlet from the bottom of the stack, pushing it toward James. He opened it, scanning the rules.

"Dumbledore doesn't want us getting too drunk, I suppose," he said, chuckling.

"It'd be nice to get drunk sometime," Lily said absentmindedly, reading the directions.

"What? You- get drunk?"

"What's wrong with me?" Lily asked self-consciously.

"It's just- you- you're-" James struggled with words. Beautiful, kind, feisty, headstrong, smart, soft-hearted… and perfect, perfect, perfect…

"A goody-two shoes? Yeah, right… Maybe you forgot I punched someone today." James laughed.

"Good point. And that's not what I was going to say, but it's just hard to imagine you drunk. Now, let's see… how about the dungeons for the Slimeballs since they're always slithering around down there…"

"James!" Lily reprimanded, but she giggled. "Actually, that's a good idea… the Potions classroom would work just fine." She wrote it down. "And maybe the library for the Ravenclaws?" Lily said it as a question, asking James, who nodded.

"What about the Astronomy Tower for the Hufflepuffs? I dunno, maybe they're loyal to the stars or something…" Lily chuckled at James.

"What? It's a good place for snogging, too…" Lily thought of Kristen and James, their lips glued together on the Astronomy Tower. Her smile faded.

"That's fine," Lily said, trying to keep her jealousy reigned in, but her voice was rather cool toward him. "And now us…" They stared at nothing in particular, lost in thought.

"Well… once there was this place-" James began.

"Was this place?" Lily asked incredulously. "You mean to say it isn't there anymore?"

"Let me finish! It's still there… not many students know about it. It's called the Room of Requirement. On the seventh floor corridor, you have to think about something you need, really hard, and a door will appear, full of all the requirements you need. Most people just stumble upon it when they need someplace to hide or something, and they're never able to find it again."

"Interesting… wow. Maybe we shouldn't use it though, just because Dumbledore might not be able to find us or something if there is a bad situation… It's a really good idea, though." She seemed bad about turning down his idea.

"Yeah, that's true. Hmmm…"

"Maybe just an empty classroom… or what about our common room?" Lily suggested.

"Sure. Let's do that… that way we can just relax in there at the same time."

"Okay, well that's done," said Lily happily, standing up.

"Wait," James interjected quickly. Lily sat back down, looking slightly confused. "Let's- er... agree not to change the patrol schedule unless we agree on it first."

"Okay," agreed Lily. "That was my fault," she admitted, looking down and blushing crimson. She wished her hair was down.

"No it wasn't- well you could have had better judgement," he added, catching sight of her eyes roll.

"I'm sorry," Lily said. "I was being stupid."

"I don't think you ever could be stupid," James told her. "You've only ever been smart."

"Thanks," she whispered. Her eyes flickered up to his. Lily bit her lip, standing up. "The Kitchens, then?"

"Yeah, unless you have something to add," James replied. Lily shook her head no, and they packed up to set off to the kitchens. They asked the House Elves for enough goblets and portions of firewhiskey needed for the whole Seventh Year, which included about two big bottles of the alcohol per house. Thanking them politely, they levitated all the objects and with Lily's help, charmed the objects to follow them wherever they went.

Their next stop was Slughorn's office, who had the bottles of Veritaserum ready. Also thanking him, Lily and James made their way to Professor Dumbledore's office.

Giving the ugly gargoyle the password, the moving staircase led them up to the Headmaster's office. Knocking on the door, they were admitted inside with a quiet "come in".

"Ahh… yes. Miss Evans and Mr. Potter, if you could please put everything here…" he gestured to his desk. Surveying them closely, he thanked them, and assured them that, no, nothing else could be done, and yes, everything would be set up in the areas they had suggested.

"You've done very well," he said. "You may go." Lily and James exited the office, descended the stairs, and went to the Head's common room to wait until it was time for their patrol. Plopping down on the couch with a loud sigh, Lily pulled her Transfiguration essay toward her, only to eye it with distaste and push it away again. Smiling at her reluctance to work, James sat at the other end.

"So… do you think you're going to win this Truth or Dare game?" Lily rolled her eyes, resting her head on her arm on the table.

"There is no winner, James. And to be honest, I'm not really good at coming up with Truth's or Dare's for other people." She yawned.

"Why not?"

"Well… whenever I tell them to do something, I realize that I would never want to embarrass myself like they would. I like to keep things to myself, so for me, I hate Truth's more than… and why did I just tell you that?" She smacked herself on her forehead. James smirked.

"I'll make sure to tell the others that."

"Please don't," begged Lily.

"What do you not want to tell everyone?" James asked her. She rolled her eyes.

"Do you really think I'm going to tell you?"

"It was worth a try," James said, shrugging.

"Worth a try? Not really."

"I won't tell them," he said. "Unless you make me mad." She gave a small smile and shut her eyes. Lily soon fell asleep, her head resting on her arm. James watched her for a while, savoring the moment when he could stare at her without anyone else looking.

At 10:30 PM, James shook Lily awake, whispering in her ear that it was time for patrol. She groaned, mumbling some nonsense about "if you want me to patrol you have to carry me". James chuckled, scooping her up into his arms. Her eyes flew open. "Put me down!" she gasped.

"You not up high!" he said. "And you told me to carry you!"

"Put me down," she ordered, her voice louder than before.

"Alright, alright, down you go," James said. He gently set her down on the ground, and Lily glared up at him.

"Let's do our patrol," she said firmly. James grabbed her wand off the table and handed to her, and they walked out the door. Heading down to the kitchens, around corridors, and up to the Astronomy Tower, they broke up a few lovebirds, lecturing them on curfew and safety, taking away house points and giving them detention when needed.

The top of the Astronomy Tower was peaceful and silent. James and Lily walked around the perimeter, Lily staying as far away from the edge as she could, before they heard voices. They stopped walking. Something felt off, like the wind had stopped and time had frozen.

"...only can stay for so long. He wants us back before midnight."

"Of course," another voice said, joining the conversation. "I honesty can't wait to get out of this wretched place. It's a waste of time."

Lily glanced up at James. She knew that voice. He took her hand, but she shrugged it off. They faced forward again, listening.

"...tired of all those Mudbloods thinking they can do whatever."

"I heard Lily Evans was made Head Girl. Dumbledore doesn't know what he's doing. I meant to kill her, after I did things to her no one would have known about. It's a shame. She could have made my job a little more enjoyable."

Lily's blood boiled. She pulled out her wand and cursed the first person she saw.

"Furnunculus!" she shouted. Snape's body broke out in boils. Snarling, he pulled out his own wand.

"Stupef-"

"Expelliarmus!" shouted James. Snape's wand flew over the Astronomy Tower ledge. He turned toward Avery and Mulciber, who were locked in a fierce combat with Lily. She was putting up a good fight, her wand slashing through the air. James disarmed and stunned Avery, his wand also disappearing over the ledge when his attention was on Lily. A glance at James was all the time Mulciber needed to disarm her, leaving her and Snape scrambling for the wand that had fallen near the door to the rest of the castle. Lily kicked Snape with as much strength as she could muster, and not bothering to see where she hit him, she grabbed her wand lying on the floor. Snape lay, groaning, on the floor. Lily's heart was beating frantically and she pressed herself against the wall, attempting to hide from Mulciber, who would surely seek her out. She knew she had to get Dumbledore but James was stunned by Mulciber and it would be impossible to take him with her or come back in time without him getting hurt. Suddenly a hand was over her mouth and a wand at her throat. Her own wand was taken away and tossed carelessly aside.

"Stay quiet, Mudblood," he sneered. "I'm going to teach you a lesson." But before he could do anything at all, he was kneed by Lily and his wand was kicked from his hands. She grabbed her wand once again and turned to point it at him, but he was already scooping his own back into his hand and taking the wrist of Avery. Leaping on the broom, they soared off into the night, only pausing to get their wands from the ground, getting farther and farther away. Lily ran toward James and muttered the simple countercurse. He awoke and stood up.

"Where did they go?" he asked blankly.

"Brooms," she said. "Snape is still in that corner." She jerked her head in his direction. Lily was shaking. She took the steps to stand in front of her ex-best-friend, her wand held out. Snape just stared at her. Already disarmed, he was nothing up against Lily Evans and James Potter. Immobilizing him, Lily looked into his eyes.

"I don't understand you, Severus," she whispered. "What are you doing? This is the worst choice you could ever make. And I'm going to stop telling you to stop what you're doing, because they're just wasted words. For what you're doing, I hope you burn in hell." She then muttered the counter curse, only to stun him. Lily glanced toward James, whose face was impassive. Levitating Snape into the air, Lily led the way down the Astronomy Tower toward Dumbledore's office. It was now after midnight, the end of their patrol, and Dumbledore would most likely be asleep. After being admitted by the gargoyle onto the spiral staircase, they walked up the stairs and knocked. Just like a few hours ago, there was a simple, "Come in."

James opened the door for Lily while she brought Snape on and dropped him softly on the ground. Pocketing her wand, she glanced at James anxiously. Dumbledore crossed his hands and surveyed them over his half-moon spectacles.

"Please explain." His voice was calm, as always. Lily took a short breath and spoke.

"We were doing our normal patrol. We were up on the Astronomy Tower, finishing our rounds when we heard voices." She swallowed.

"Professor, we heard Avery and Mulciber and Snape talking about something I suspect has to do with Voldemort and Dark Magic. We saw them, and we dueled, and both Avery and Mulciber escaped on brooms." She glanced at Snape. "I stunned him, maybe we should take him to the hospital wing."

"Nevermind that, Miss Evans," Dumbledore said gently. "You have probably noticed the recent deaths in the newspaper and as smart young adults like yourselves, you probably know, for the most part, what is going on. However, I must ask this event to remain only within the group of you and your Gryffindor friends, as there is no evidence besides your word that it has occurred. Since you only have suspicions, I cannot expel Mr. Snape-" at this James made an angry noise in his throat- "...but I can assure you that he will be punished for being out of bed after hours and dueling with another student." Dumbledore's bright blue eyes bore into each of Lily and James's. "Thank you for telling me this," he said quietly. "I appreciate you taking your Head Duties seriously, especially at this current time. I will make sure Mr. Snape receives his punishment." He paused. "If there is not anything else you would like to add, you may go." Lily and James wordlessly shook their heads and turned around to walk out the door. Reaching for the doorknob, James paused as Dumbledore cleared his throat. They both turned to look at him.

"Try and have fun tomorrow," he said, his eyes twinkling. Winking at James, he nodded at them and gestured for them to go on their way.

The way down the staircase was silent except for the sound of their shoes against the stairs. At the bottom, Lily sighed and leaned against the wall.

"James."

"Yes?" She opened her mouth, but shook her head. Pushing off from the wall, she started walking down the corridor, James following her. The atmosphere seemed tense, Lily suspecting that it was only that way because it was the first time she and James were really together, alone, for a long time. Lily took a sideways glance at him, realizing as she did so that he wanted to talk to her about something. Lily groaned inwardly, wishing she could just go to bed. Once they got inside the portrait hole, they both collapsed, James onto an armchair and Lily onto the couch.

"Are you alright?" James asked softly.

"Yeah," Lily said.

"What happened when I was stunned?"

"Nothing, really…"

"Nothing?" James raised his eyebrows, skeptical. "So they just left you alone?"

"No, they just… you know."

"No, I actually don't."

"Well, if you really want to know then just ask me during the game tomorrow," she snapped.

"So that's the only way I'll ever get anything out of you, then? Through force?"

Lily glared. "What did you want to talk about, James?" she asked coldly. "I want to go to bed."

"Right now I'd like to talk about this. Would you really rather tell everyone tomorrow when I ask you than tell just me right now?" Lily bit her lip.

"I didn't think about it that way," she admitted. "But how would I know you wouldn't tell all the others?"

"That's where trust comes in," James said. Lily bit her lip again.

"Alright," she said. "But really, it was nothing. Mulciber just tried to take advantage of me, which I honestly don't understand why, because I would think that since I'm a Mudblood he wouldn't want me to contaminate him. And then he and Avery both flew off after I kneed him." Lily paused. "That's it." James looked furious.

"He tried to-" he began.

"Stop it," Lily pleaded. "I'm fine now, aren't I?" James shook his head wordlessly.

"I saw what they did to you, after they jumped on you last summer, Lily," he said softly. "You didn't like people touching you, you were awfully jumpy…"

"I'm fine," Lily said. "I appreciate you being a good friend, caring this much about me, but… I really am just fine."

"If you ever want to talk about anything…"

"Yeah," Lily said, but inside she knew she would probably go to James last out of the whole group if she wanted to talk. "So what did you want to talk about?"

James shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"First, I want to say that I'm going to take my Head Duties more seriously. I'll work with you and I'll do everything I can to make sure everyone in this castle is safe." Lily nodded.

"That wasn't only you," she admitted. I should have been more companionable to you." James nodded, then looked away. Their legs touched where the armchair and couch met for a brief moment, and then James leaned forward.

"I'm going to say this," he said, looking her in the eye. You may not like it or be comfortable with it, but I think it needs to be thrown out there." He took a deep breath, finally breaking eye contact.

"I like you," James said, his voice deep and mature and honest and slightly wavering because he was sitting too close to her, and he could smell her scent and he wanted to take her into his arms so badly and she was just too damn beautiful for her own good, and she was driving him crazy. "I've liked you since I was eleven years old and by the time I was thirteen I had decided I wanted to marry you. I haven't shown it, or at least not without humiliating you or making a fool of myself. I decided at the end of last year that I was going to show you the good things about me, but so far that hasn't worked." He paused. "I'm not going to ask you out right now. I just wanted to put that out there, and I hope you know that I really do care about you." James looked up at Lily's face. It was stone hard.

"Do you know what I hope? I hope you realize you have a girlfriend!"

"Actually, I don't," he said. "That's over now. It was an immature and childish attempt to make you jealous, and I know it didn't work." Lily looked down, her face reddening. Thankfully, James didn't notice. Abruptly, she stood up, walking toward the staircase that led to her dormitory.

"Okay," she said. "You really didn't need to make that all up."

"I didn't," James said, walking across the room to stand by her. "I promise, everything I said is true." Lily closed her eyes momentarily, taking a deep breath.

"What you have to understand, James, is that boys don't like me. They just don't." James snorted.

"No, they don't," he agreed sarcastically. "Didn't you have a boyfriend or two the past few years? What about Trevor Ghandle, huh?" Lily blushed. She looked down.

"I think it's better for us to just be friends, right now," she said quietly.

"Yeah," James agreed, using two fingers to pull her chin up so that her eyes met his.

"Take your time," he whispered, and leaned down to brush his lips softly against her cheek. Lily's eyes fluttered shut, and a moment later when she opened them, he was gone, his retreating footsteps up to his dormitory echoing in her ears.

WM~*~MW

The next morning, the students of Hogwarts awoke to stormy grey clouds, thunder and lightning, and a huge downpour of rain. Lily thought it was perfect Halloween weather, but others, like Filch, grumbled about the cold and the mud tracked all throughout the castle. The classes ended earlier than usual for the Seventh Years, and for the Gryffindors, they had a fun last class in Charms, where they paired up for a competition of who could pack a trunk the neatest. Folding clothes and stacking books might have seemed difficult without magic, but it was even harder with it. Lily and Marlene won, but the credit was mostly to Lily's talent in the subject.

The Halloween Feast was wonderful as it had been the previous year, and Lily felt an overwhelming sadness when she thought about how this was the last Halloween Feast as a Hogwarts student. Sitting as far away from James, as the memory of him leaning down and brushing his lips close to hers was still etched in her mind, she did her best to enjoy herself. Lily had two large helpings of treacle tart for dessert. At the end, when the golden plates were sparkly clean and clear of every trace of food, Dumbledore stood up and made a short announcement asking all the Seventh Years to head toward their assigned house Truth or Dare places that had been posted in their common room that morning.

The Gryffindors headed to James's and Lily's common room and there they found ten colorful beanbags formed in a circle around a pile of parchment with a heading "Official Instructions of Magical Truth or Dare", a medium-sized vial of Veritaserum, and a bottle of Firewhiskey. A thin purple line circled around the beanbags. Lily grabbed Marlene's hand and dragged her towards two beanbags next to each other. Plopping down in them, they looked at the rest of the group expectantly. They all found their seats, everybody facing everbody else. Lily was right across from James. Catching her eye, he winked. Her face on fire, Lily cleared her throat and began reading the rules.

"It says here the oldest goes first," she said. "So Dorcas, it would be your turn."

Dorcas cleared her throat. "Mary, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"On a scale from one to ten, how in love are you with Weston?" Mary rolled her eyes, which was unusual for her. She reached for the Veritaserum.

"Ten," she answered once she had swallowed. Sirius wolf-whistled and everyone clapped. Mary blushed. "Lily, Truth or Dare?"

"Erm… Truth, I suppose." She might as well answer a harmless one from Mary.

"Let's see… what did you smell in your Amortentia?" Lily glared.

"Oops," Mary said, fighting back laughter.

"Mar-ry!" Lily dived for the Firewhiskey. Sirius smirked at her.

"I think Lils has a secret," he sang.

"Shut up, Sirius!" Lily downed the cup of Firewhiskey in one smooth motion. Sputtering slightly, she asked Frank. The first to choose Dare, he had to ask out the Herbology professor the next time he saw her.

"Lily, Truth or Dare?" She scowled, already realizing she was probably the whole group's target.

"Dare."

"I dare you to pick Truth the next ten times you get asked." Lily shrugged, hoping it wouldn't be that bad.

"Sirius, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Have you ever been in love?" He glared at Lily, making an I'll-get-you-back face. Choosing the Firewhiskey, he, like Lily, downed it in one gulp, but did not cough or splutter at all. Sirius had obviously had practice.

"Lily, Truth or Dare?" Glaring at Frank because it was his fault she had no choice, she chose Truth.

"Who was your first kiss?" Rolling her eyes, she told him it was a Muggle boy named Graham that she had met a few summers ago. Sirius was impressed when she told him that she just thought he was cute, and one day she just asked him to go on a walk. Lily had kissed him quite thoroughly when they hit the woods, and although he wanted to take her out on a proper date, she had declined his invitation. During her explanation, James seemed to be glaring at nothing in particular.

After Lily chose Remus, he chose Peter, who asked Lily.

"How did your relationship with Trevor Ghandle end?" Lily sighed, but answered the question.

"He was under the impression that we were out for a snogging session."

James's head snapped up. His fists were clenched in his lap.

"What did you say?" Lily shrugged.

"I told him I didn't want anything to do with him," she said simply.

The game continued with various Truth or Dare's, Lily being spared by the group a bit. The Gryffindors began to get lazy, and they chose Truth's every time just because they didn't want to get up for a Dare.

It was Marlene's turn to ask someone, and she chose James.

"Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Have you ever been in love?" Taking the Veritaserum, his simple answer was, "yes." Lily pointedly looked at the floor, refusing to see all the looks her way.

"Lily." She looked up, meeting his eyes.

"Truth or Dare?" Not done with Frank's wretched Dare yet, she grudgingly choose Truth.

"Do you remember the last thing you said to me last night?" Thinking back, Lily's face reddened. Taking Veritaserum, she answered yes. The group was thoroughly confused, and James just sighed and said, "I hope I get to ask her before that awesome Dare you made up is over, Frank." So of course when Lily asked Remus, he asked James, who asked Lily.

"Truth or Dare?"

"Truth," she said glaring at him.

"Why did you say that and not completely turn me down?" She immediately reached for the Firewhiskey. He shook his head at her, grinning. "I think you're right, Sirius," he said. "She does have something to hide." Lily asked Alice, and Alice asked Lily the question, not bothering to ask her, "Truth or Dare?" since she had to choose Truth anyways.

"Why did you say whatever you said and not completely turn James down?" Lily panicked, realizing she had no Firewhiskey left. "I forfeit," she announced. The whole group huddled together.

"So," Alice said as everyone returned to their beanbags. She looked triumphant. "This is your forfeit: Why did you say, 'I think it's better for us to just be friends, right now' instead of turning James down?" Lily turned to look at James. She bit her lip.

"You can't do that…"

"Dumbledore said 'be creative', remember?" Alice reminded her. Lily bit down on her lip harder. She was going to leave a mark.

"Do I have to say it in front of everyone?" Lily asked nervously.

"No," Alice said. Lily nodded. She got up from her beanbag and scooped up the Veritaserum.

"Come one, then," she said to James. "You're the one who actually wants to know, aren't you?" James got up and followed her out the door.

Outside, Lily leaned against the wall.

"Why did you have to ask that in front of everyone?" Lily asked, looking him in the eye.

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just thought of it this morning and I was going to ask you before breakfast, but you had already gone down and you were avoiding me the whole day…"

"I wasn't avoiding you," Lily said in a small voice. James chuckled.

"Well now that we're alone…" Lily bit her lip, once again. Swallowing Veritaserum, she said,

"I said it was better for us to be friends because I could see us having a really hard time in a relationship if it were already hard for us to be friends." James nodded, and Lily looked down. Putting two fingers under her chin, he pulled her face up so her eyes could meet his.

"Have you ever thought of it in the way that being friends is hard for us because we both want a relationship so badly?"

"I never said I wanted a relationship with you, James," Lily said fiercely. "Don't put words in my mouth." James looked hurt.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, I just…" She sighed. "I don't get why someone like you would like someone like me, to be honest."

"Why not?"

"Well…" Lily struggled with words. "You're you… and I'm… me."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked quietly.

"You're perfect," she blurted out. "I mean not like perfect, as in making no mistakes, but perfect in like… being perfect." James couldn't help but laugh. Her explanation was absurd. Lily's face turned pink.

"Can we go inside?" she asked pleadingly.

"Okay," he shrugged. They walked back inside the Heads' Suite.

"There you are!" Marlene exclaimed. "We've decided another game we should play!"

"What is it?" she asked warily, sitting back down in her beanbag.

"We were deciding that we should be done with Truth or Dare and we should play Never Have I Ever," Mary spoke up from a periwinkle beanbag. Lily nodded. It was another Muggle game she had played often when she was younger. Mary explained the game to James while Sirius went upstairs to find James's stash of Firewhiskey. Lily followed him. She sat on the chair beside the window.

"Sirius?"

"Yeah?"

"Why would someone like James like me?" He turned to face Lily.

"I think he would be glad to answer that for you himself, Lils."

"You were right, you know," she said suddenly. "I do like him."

"Did you tell him that?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Usually I'm not scared of relationships, Sirius. But I am now because I'm afraid I'll mess it up."

"So you really like him." It wasn't a question. She nodded anyway. "That's good, then. You care a lot. But I'm going to be honest with you, Lils. I don't think you could mess it up."

"Why not?"

"You're in love," he said simply. "The only way you can really mess love up is of you don't show it."

"So you're saying I should go tell him I love him?"

"No, I'm saying you should spend time with him alone, just as friends, and maybe let him know that you care about him as much as he cares about you. And maybe really try to figure out your feelings while you're at it."

"Okay," Lily said. "I'll do my best. But you know, speaking of love…" She waggled her eyebrows at him. He scowled.

"Shut up," he said, and gave her two bottles to help him carry down.

Sitting in their beanbags once again, the Gryffindors began the game Mary had suggested.

"Never have I ever been anywhere outside of Europe," Peter began. Most of the others drank. It was Dorcas's turn next.

"Never have I ever had a crush on anyone in this room," she announced. Lily's mouth fell open. Frank and Alice drank, as did Sirius and Marlene, and James. Lily tried to discreetly drink, like she was supposed to, but Peter caught sight of her and whistled. Lily being next, she attempted to divert the attention away from that particular branch of conversation.

"Never have I ever cheated on a test," she said, speaking quickly. Everybody took a drink, even Remus, even quiet, good Mary. They all looked incredulously at her.

"Never?" James asked. She rolled her eyes.

"No," she said. "It's not such a big deal. Your turn now, James."

"Never have I ever… gone as red as Lily Evans." Lily shrieked in outrage. She punched him on the arm, standing.

"James Potter! That is an insult!"

"I never said it was unattractive!" he retorted, pulling her down in her seat. She opened her mouth to say something, but James just poured Firewhiskey in her mouth. Spluttering, she glared at him, and crossed her arms.

"I hate you," she spat.

"You do," James said interestedly. "I'm afraid I don't believe you, sweetheart."

"Don't call me that."

"Okay. Red fits you better, anyway," he said, trying not to smile, but failing. She scowled.

"I really do hate you, James Potter."

"Just you wait someday."

"I hope I die before I get to that 'someday'. Marley, your turn."

"Never have I ever experienced a broken heart." Remus took a drink, as did James and Lily, and Sirius, although hesitantly.

"Who broke all your hearts?" Marlene asked. No one wanted to answer.

"I think Remus has suffered from a broken heart because people pushed him away when they found out he was a werewolf," Dorcas said thoughtfully. There was complete silence.

"You… know?" Remus asked, not looking at anyone. Lily went over and put her arm around his shoulders.

"It doesn't bother us," she said softly. "Not one bit. We wish you didn't have to suffer from the pain, but you're Remus and just because you have a little… problem doesn't mean we don't love you." Everyone agreed wholeheartedly.

"Remus Lupin is Remus Lupin," declared Alice.

"Definitely," agreed Dorcas. Remus looked up. It was as if he had just been named king of the world.

"I am Remus Lupin, yes," he said. "And all you are the best friends I could ever ask for."

"What about you, Sirius? Why have you suffered from a broken heart?" Dorcas asked curiously.

"When I left home, I suppose. I always wished I had a real family, and when I moved in with James I did. You all are like another family, too."

"What about you, Lils?" Marlene wanted to know. Lily shrugged.

"Why doesn't James tell?" she asked softly, looking at her clasped hands.

"I think everyone knows mine," James said.

"I don't," Lily said. Sirius cleared his throat.

"Moving on… My turn."

"What about Lily?" asked Frank.

"She doesn't have to say," Sirius said.

"It's okay, Sirius, I'll tell," Lily said. "Petunia broke my heart. We used to be best friends, but when she found out I had magic she decided I was a freak." She paused for a moment. "And Snape, too, I suppose, because he was my best friend after Tuney, teaching me about magic and all. But things change, and although sometimes I still hurt, I have wonderful friends like the nine of you." She shrugged.

"Now I feel bad," Peter said. "All those years we tormented Snape…" Lily chuckled.

"I think he did deserve it, at times," she admitted. "But now you understand why I always got mad. Sev was a good friend, but Snape wasn't, if that makes sense…" Remus nodded.

"It does," he agreed. "Sirius- your turn."

"Never have I ever been kissed by James Potter," he said. "Which is a shame," he added thoughtfully. "Because one- he's my best mate, and two- I hear the girls say he is quite a good kisser." Marlene smacked him.

"Hey!"

"I'm joking, Marley. Now aren't you going to drink?" She made a face.

"Does being two count?" she asked.

"When were you with James, at two years old, when he kissed you?" asked Mary.

"Our parents were good friends," she replied as she drank. Lily cleared her throat.

"Did he kiss you on your cheek, or…?"

"Yeah, he did. I don't think I would ever recover if he kissed me anywhere else," she said, shuddering. James scowled at her. Lily drank quickly, but it did not go unnoticed by anyone.

"So, Lily how did you like James's kiss?" asked Peter, sniggering. She glared. A faint blush on her cheeks, she said,

"It was horrible." James chuckled.

"Maybe we should practice sometime, hmm?"

"I'd rather not, thanks," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "In fact, it's past my bedtime…" She eyed her dorm staircase hopefully.

"Not happening," Sirius said immediately. "I, for one, would like to know all about this kiss you and James shared." Lily's cheeks went pink.

"He kissed me on the cheek, Sirius. It wasn't a big deal," she said.

"Well I say it was," said Dorcas, giggling. "Not that he kissed you, but that you didn't slap him afterwards."

"You know James, I think you might be growing on my Lily here," Mary said, chuckling. Alice laughed.

"Quite a bit, in fact," she said. Lily scowled.

They always tease me about lying to myself and James, she thought. Maybe I wouldn't be so inclined to do so if they would just stop badgering me. She sighed.

"I think I'm going to get some sleep," she said wearily. "'Night, all." Lily stood up and walked up the staircase. She changed into her pajamas and sat against the windowsill after brushing her teeth.

Life is so complicated, she thought. She wished sleepwould claim her, but her mind was a large jumble of thoughts and feelings that it wouldn't.

Downstairs, the group feeling slightly guilty, they got ready to go back to the common room. Bading James goodnight, they walked out the portrait hole. James looked after them and sighed. He had wanted to talk to Lily before they went to bed, but she had already gone up. Deciding to see if she was asleep, he climbed the staircase. Unlike the Gryffindor girls' dorm in the common room, this one did not have a trick step. Able to get to the top without trouble, James knocked on the door, but hearing no answer he cracked it open.

Lily leaned up against the wall beneath the window, her head to the side and her hair covering part of her face. Her eyes were closed as she breathed evenly, he chest rising and falling gently.

James walked over to where she sat and carefully picked her up, carrying her to the bed and laying her down. Covering her with the sheets, he squeezed her hand and left the room, leaving the red-haired princess to sleep peacefully behind him.

A/N: Not really sure how I liked this chapter to be honest. I've looked back to the former chapters and realized that when I'd imagined writing a Jily fanfic, it was imagined as a better piece of writing than this. Ever since I've thought that, I haven't really been motivated to write. So I think I'll cut this one short, like write a few more chapters, end it (happily of course) and start another one sometime.

Anyway, tell me what you think. I really appreciate everyone who reviews. ;)