This one is pretty long, just for the record and I've just lost the game. Damn it! I literally lose the game every day, 3-5 times a day, and that is no exaggeration by any means (sadly).

XXXXXXXX

"Hi Potter," Lily said to James when she reached him. His eyes lit up when they fell on her as his hand shot up to his hair.

"Lily, hi! How are you?" he asked cheerfully. She shrugged indifferently.

"Fine. You?" she asked, and he grinned.

"Perfect, now that you're here," he replied. "Ready for our first date, Flower?"

No. "Sure. Since we're already at Honeydukes, let's go in here," she suggested.

"Good. Padfoot ate all of my candy last week and Moony doesn't let anyone touch his chocolate," James told her as they entered the bustling shop. It was Lily's turn to grin now.

"Must've been hell for you, wasn't it?" she asked. James nodded fervently as his eyes poured over the mountains of candy before him.

"It's really bad, especially after quidditch practices," he told her. Lily almost laughed at his solemnity, but kept quiet for the sake of public peace. She paid for chocolate frogs and some sugar quills while James bought half the stock of sugar quills, cauldron cakes, and pumpkin pasties. Lily was about to ask James if they could leave when a large counter caught her eye. She gave a squeal of delight, running at it.

"Fudge!" Lily cried, rushing over to the counter where blocks of fudge were displayed as James followed behind her. "Do they have Belgian fudge? Please tell me they have Belgian fudge!"

"Merlin, woman, you're happier to be here that I am," James commented.

"Shut up, and tell me if you see it," she ordered. Her eyes lit when she saw the Belgian fudge, but her face fell when she saw the price. "Twenty galleons per block of Belgian fudge? That's a rip-off! Sirius said that Belgium just upped the price on their chocolate, but not that much! I only have ten galleons with me, and I brought those for the chocolate! Those crazy Belgians, what are they trying to do to us, buy us broke?"

"Calm down, woman. It's only fudge," James laughed. "How many blocks were you going to buy?"

"Two, but I don't have 40 galleons with me," she replied sullenly. "I don't even know if I own 40 galleons!"

"Can I help you, madam?" a man from behind the counter inquired of Lily.

"We'll be taking the Belgian fudge," James answered before Lily could even open her mouth. She turned to look at him, confused.

"How many, sir?" the man asked, taking out a Honeydukes box from the self behind the counter.

"Three," James replied, reaching into his pocket as Lily's eyes widened.

"Wait, you're not going to spend 60 galleons on me, are you?" she wanted to know. James pulled out a bunch of golden coins from his pocket, counting them out.

"It's no big deal," he said, shrugging. "If you want the chocolate, I'll get it for you."

"That's so much money just for a bit of fudge though," Lily protested. "Honestly, you don't have to buy me anything." James looked at her with a grin as he handed the money over to the man.

"Of course I do. We're on a date, remember?" he responded. Lily stared at him in surprise. He was willing to spend what would buy five pairs of shoes, just to let her have a bit of chocolate?

"Thank you," James told the man, taking the box with fudge and handing it to Lily. "Ready to leave?" She nodded, awestruck, and followed him out of the shop.

"You know that you really didn't have to buy me anything," she told him as they walked down the street. "Merlin, I can't believe you just did that! Twenty galleons for some fudge, what are they thinking? This stuff had better be worth what you paid for it!"

"It's alright, Flower," James assured her. "I really don't mind."

"But still," she whined. "I don't know if I can pay you back."

"I don't want you to pay me back. I'm glad to spend money on you. I'm glad that you even let me," he said, shaking his head and chuckling. "You're funny, you know that?"

"Thanks, but I wasn't trying to be," she replied. She looked at the shops lining the streets. "Where next?"

"I don't know. How about we stop at the Three Broomsticks?" James asked.

"Alright," Lily replied, shivering slightly as a particularly strong breeze blew on through the streets. When they entered the Three Broomsticks, Lily almost clapped and squealed with delight. The pub was just like she remembered, bustling and happy and warm, working just as well as any cheering charm. Soon, Lily spotted Madam Rosmerta, the friendly lady whom she had befriended during her third year. She looked just the way Lily had remembered, with her short curly blonde hair, low-cut dress that slid slightly off her shoulder, and the same bright golden hoop earrings that could easily be confused with bangles. She had always reminded Lily somewhat of a gypsy, but a very kind and pretty one.

"Hi Rosmerta!" Lily called over to the bar. Madam Rosmerta looked up and grinned when she saw the redhead approaching.

"Lily, dear! How've you been?" she greeted warmly. "And James! How wonderful to see you! I see you aren't bickering like five year olds anymore. Decided to get past your differences for a change?"

"You could say that," Lily replied before James could say anything. "It was nice seeing you again. We'll have to talk when this one's not around." Lily nodded in James's direction, who put on a mock expression of offense.

"Lily, he can handle what we talk about. James is a perfectly nice boy on very many levels. Aren't you?" Madam Rosmerta turned to James ruffling up his already ruffled hair. The teenage boy grinned at her, moving his head out of her reach.

"The sooner my Lily can realize that, the sooner I get to snog her," he remarked. Lily grabbed him by the ear and began to drag him towards a booth.

"I'll see you later," she called over her shoulder before sitting James down in the booth. She sat across from him, setting her things down.

"What do you want?" James asked her.

"Butterbeer," she answered with a shrug. James leaned out of the booth to turn in the direction of the bar.

"Oi, Rosmerta! A Butterbeer and a firewhiskey," he called over to her, then turned back around to face Lily, who was eyeing him disapprovingly.

"Firewhiskey?" she asked skeptically. James shrugged indifferently, running his hand through his hair again.

"It tastes good," he said simply. "It kind of strange at first, but you get used to the taste. "

"Won't you get drunk with an entire bottle of that stuff?" she questioned, her eyebrows knit in worry. James smiled wryly, shaking his head.

"I can hold my liquor. It takes at least five bottles to get me tipsy. Want to try a bit?"

"No," Lily said forcefully. At least five bottles? How much has he had in the past? James held up his hands defensively as someone brought over their drinks.

"It was just a question. Here," he told the serving girl, handing her a few galleons. How much money does he have with him? Lily wondered as the girl walked away, shoving the coins into her pocket.

"It's nice to finally be back here," James remarked airily, looking around the cozy pub. "It's sad to remember that this is the last year we have to enjoy this."

"It's true. I try not to think about it, but it just kind of pops up every once in a while," Lily said, taking a sip of her butterbeer. "And-oh, man! I've just lost the game! Why, of all the random moments?" God, she was just horrible as Alice! James, however, looked utterly bemused.

"Er, Lily, what's wrong? What's the game?" he asked her. Lily sighed, preparing herself to explain.

"Alright," she began. "The game. The point of the game is to not think about the game. You can never win the game. Once you've lost the game, you have to tell everyone around you that you've lost it, and everyone around you has a thirty minute grace period. Once those thirty minutes are up, you're playing it again, and once you hear the rules of the game, you can never stop playing it. Do you understand me?" James's facial expression showed that he clearly did not.

"But, then, how do you play this game?"

"It's the game, and weren't you listening? You have to not think of it."

"But you can never win it then!"

"Exactly. Now that you've heard the rules, you're playing it for the rest of your life."

"Have I lost it though? I'm thinking about it right now."

"No, no, no! I've just lost it, so you have a thirty minute grace period before you can lose it again."

"So, I'm playing this for the rest of my life?" Wow, he was finally making some headway.

"Yes."

"And the point of the game is to not think about it."

"Yes." Lily watched James take a swig of his firewhiskey, contemplating this.

"That's a stupid game if I've ever heard of one!" he exclaimed. "That's bloody idiocricy!"

"Idiocricy?" Lily repeated, giggling slightly. "I think you mean idiocy, and the game is not idiocy by any means!"

"Idiocricy sounds cooler than idiocy!" James retorted. "And that is a stupid game."

"Just wait until you lose it, James, then you'll tell me whether or not it's stupid," she replied. James, who had been taking another sip from his bottle, choked on his firewhiskey. Lily glanced at him concerned as she patted him hard on the back.

"What's wrong? Are you alright?" she wanted to know. "I warned you not to drink so much of that stuff. You're fine, right?" She was confused to see James grinning like he'd just won the lottery. "What? Why are you smiling like a madman?"

"You've just called me James," he said quietly, his eyes dancing happily. Lily frowned, then realized what this would probably lead to. There was only one way of making sure that it wouldn't lead to that.

"Wha-what are you talking about? I said-no such thing!" she lied, hoping that her face hadn't turned red. James cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Really?" he asked flatly, obviously not believing her. "Lily, of all of your wonderful and brilliant talents, lying is not among them." She looked at James, his eyes, critical yet laughing. She sighed, leaning back in her seat.

"I've never been able to lie well," she confessed.

"Well, admittance is the first step to acceptance," James told her, smiling smugly.

"Acceptance to what?" she asked suspiciously. James smiled triumphantly.

"You love me!" he exclaimed, causing a few surrounding tables to stare at him as he jumped up out of his seat. "You love me more than life itself!"

"I do not! And sit down, you dolt, you're making us look like idiots!" she hissed, pulling him back down to sit.

"You called me James. There has to be some kind of kind feelings for you to address me by my first name," he said matter-of-factly. "Was it my cleverness in thinking up the dare that I did? Or did you finally realize how amazingly wonderful and gorgeous I am?"

"You arrogant little toerag!" Lily accused, despite the fact that she was on the brink of laughter. Why was she on the brink of laughter, though? "When will you learn to deflate your head a little bit? I might consider dating you willingly then."

"Ha ha. Willingly," James echoed, downing about half the bottle in one long gulp. Lily witnessed this in shock, sipping delicately at her own butterbeer. James laughed when he saw her expression.

"What, do you think I'm irresponsible enough to get smashed in the middle of the day?"

"Well, actually…"

"Right, of course you do."

"Come on, you make it sound so mean."

"But it is mean! You shouldn't always assume I'm a moron. Sure I can be one sometimes, but not all the time!"

"You do realize that you've just insulted yourself, right?"

"Anything to make you happy." God, why was he making her feel so guilty? She said she would try to open up to him.

"Alright, hold up a second. What makes you think that I take joy in insulting you?"

"Because you do."

"True, true, but I said I would try and be nicer, so give me a chance to try."

"You're right, I guess." Lily smiled faintly.

"Of course I'm right. That's why I'm Head Girl," she reminded him.

"Why did they made me Head Boy, then?" James retorted. Lily paused for a moment.

"Because-you bribed them?" she offered uncertainly. He simply chuckled.

"This is why I love you, Flower."

"Why, because you bribed Hogwarts into making you Head Boy?"

XXXXXXXX

After leaving the Three Broomsticks, Lily and James simply wandered the streets of Hogsmeade, talking about random things like school, professors, family, jobs, and much more. Lily was surprised at how easy it actually was to have a conversation with him when they both tried. She had never expected James to be quite so mature, and she was quite impressed with him. He had even made her laugh twice, and she hadn't laughed at him, but with him. He had even went out of his way to buy her something to eat for lunch, buying nothing, however, for himself. It was almost awkward in a way, to actually get along with James and have a somewhat civil conversation with him. Of course, they did bicker every here and there, but it was generally nice, intelligent conversation. Wow, James could even have intelligent conversation?

"You know James, I mean Potter," Lily corrected herself quickly, but James smiled anyways. "I'm very surprised with the way this date has gone. I mean, none of us has really burst yet, have we?"

"No, we haven't, and we've been out for at least three hours," he agreed. "It's nice though, isn't it?"

"I'll be honest and say that it's kind of strange, but it is nice for a change," she admitted. "Easier on my vocal chords at least. Do you know what time it is Ja-Potter?"

"Could you please call me James?" he asked. "Please?" Lily glanced up at him, his eyes gazing at her. He had bought her a bunch of things, and he had been quite bearable and discreet to an extent, as well as being kind and amusingly gallant.

"Alright, but don't be all cocky about it. What are you all looking at?" she snapped at a bunch of younger Slytherins who had been staring at the two Head students. They glared at the redhead before scampering away. James laughed slightly at this.

"Anyways, what's the time?" James checked his wristwatch.

"It's ten minutes 'till two. Why?"

"I need to be on the two o'clock train to get back to Hogwarts because I have to regulate a few detentions with some Hufflepuff boys and Filch," she explained. She could see the disappointment in James's face at this news.

"Wait, how come I didn't know about this?" he demanded.

"Because I'm the one who issued the detention," Lily replied.

"Why'd you give them detention with Filch?"

"They were harassing a Ravenclaw first year girl on the third floor. I gave them a week of detention with Filch and I took ten points," she told him.

"Good job. Want me to walk you to the train?" James queried. Lily paused, considering his offer.

"Sure," she replied, and they head towards the train. By the time they reached it, it was almost time for it to leave.

"We'll plan our next one later," James told her as he helped her onto the train.

"Alright. Really, this was a lot of fun, and you didn't have to buy me things," she told him once again.

"It's fine, and this was fun. Bye Lily," he replied as the train began to move. Lily hesitated, before leaning out of the window of the train and turning to face him.

"Bye James!" she called back to him as the train retreated back to Hogwarts.