You rushed to professor Slughorn's class, trying not to be late, because you were caught up in Charms class due to James causing an explosion and you had to clean yourself up. You burst through the door just before class started, causing many students to look your way, including James and Sirius, who sniggered at your late arrival.

You sat down in an empty chair beside your friend, Marlene. You both listened closely as Slughorn told the class that you'd be replicating the strongest love potion in the wizarding world, Amortentia, and then describing what you smell in a paragraph.

He also announced that instead of picking your own partners, he'd assigned his own. Most of the class groaned and rolled their eyes, but he read from his parchment paper anyways.

"Marlene McKinnon and Peter Pettigrew."

"Remus Lupin and Sirius Black."

"Severus Snape and Bellatrix Black."

"Lucius Malfoy and Lily Evans."

"James Potter and Y/n L/n."

You groaned in disgust as James sauntered towards you, smirk on his lips. Marlene sent you a look of empathy, as did you, because Peter is very clumsy and wasn't too good at potions.

"I'll get the ingredients, you can get the instruments we need. Okay?" You told him, and he responded with,

"Bossy, eh?" And a smirk as you walked off to grab what you needed.

You two finished your potion about fifteen minutes ago and were trying to see what it smelled like for your paragraph. So far, all you could smell was James' annoyingly overbearing cologne.

"James, get out of the way! I'm trying to smell the potion but all I can smell is that stupid bottle of cologne you dumped on yourself this morning!" You yelled, having lost your sanity ages ago out of pure frustration.

"Well I can't smell anything either! You must've messed it up." He retorted, anger in his voice.

"That's impossible! I'm one of the best in this class, there's no way I could mess up such a simple potion as Amortentia." You respond, 100% sure you haven't gotten anything wrong. He shook his head before responding.

"Well the only thing I can smell is that blasted shampoo you used! How much did you use this morning, the whole bottle?" You glared at him as you continued to fight with one another.

Marlene went over to Sirius and started talking to him. "She isn't wearing any shampoo, Mary was hogging the bathroom this morning so she didn't shower." She told him with slightly wide eyes and a smirk.

"Yeah, and James isn't wearing any cologne, he ran out of it yesterday morning." As they both came to the realisation, large smiles crossed their faces.

"Dorcas owes me three galleons, Anyways, should we tell 'em?" The blonde asked, watching the pair bicker like an old married couple.

"Mmm, not yet. Dinner time? It'll get more attention." Sirius said with a smirk, causing Marlene to nod her head in agreement.

You sat with Marlene and the girls next to the rest of the Marauders, eating mashed potatoes and some chicken with gravy. You and her were talking with Remus about the History of Magic essay that was due next week, when you noticed Marlene giving Sirius a weird look.

"Y/n," She started. You swallowed the mashed potatoes and looked at her confusedly. "So you remember how you fought with James earlier because you couldn't smell the Amortentia over his cologne?" You simply nodded at her question. "Well, Sirius told me that James wasn't wearing cologne today. He ran out of it yesterday morning."

Not too far down the table, Sirius was explaining the same situation to James. "Marlene was telling me something about yours and Y/n's potion earlier." James gave him a confused look, and with a mouth full of chicken he asked, "What did she say?" Sirius put his utensils down and looked at his best friend. "Apparently Y/n couldn't shower this morning because Mary was hogging the bathroom."

The Great Hall was seemingly quiet, aside from utensils clanging together and against plates and the students' chatter, but it all came to an instant stop when two wizards at the Gryffindor table- who sat not five feet from one another- stood abruptly and screamed, "WHAT?!" They then both looked at each other and Y/n left the Hal and then the castle to go sit out in the cold courtyard, heart beating faster than ever.

James soon followed suit, looking for the h/c haired girl. He soon found her sitting on a bench outside in the courtyard near the fountain, but it was unreasonably cold for her to be outside with the light snowfall and not have her jacket. "You know, it's too cold for you to be out here in just your robes." He voiced his concerns with a smile.

"Sod off, James. I'm trying to think." He made no move to leave. In fact, he went to sit next to her.

"About the potion?" Y/n nodded wordlessly and James sighed. He never told anyone (besides Sirius, of course) about his feelings towards her because he felt it'd be best, considering he thought she didn't like him the way he liked her.

But he was terribly mistaken. Y/n liked the messy haired prankster ever since Second year when Rodolphus Lestrange was trying to get her stuck on the whomping willows branches and James jinxed him. She was able to admit it to herself, but she liked teasing him because it was better than telling him how she felt because he didn't feel the same. They both sucked in a breath and looked at each other, and prepared themselves to finally say what they've wanted to say for so long now.

James looked at Y/n with nervousness and adoration in his eyes, and Y/n looked around before her eyes locked with James'.

"I like you." She blurted out at the same time he did, causing the other to give them a confused look before she laughed a bit.

"James, I like you. Like a lot. And I think I've liked you ever since you jinxed Rodolphus for me, and asked me to be your friend. Once I realised how I felt, I decided teasing you was easier than admitting how I felt, and I thought you wouldn't like me because you're an excellent Quidditch player, you managed to become an Animagus in Fourth year just so Remus wasn't alone, and you're so handsome, and I'm… well I'm just me."

She looked down sadly and James began to speak. "Y/n, I've liked you since the train ride here in Third year. You were mouthing off the trolley lady because she didn't have any more chocolate frogs, but you knew she kept extra in her pockets. You wanted to get some for all of us and when we heard you yelling we started laughing our arses off. You are the most amazing, strong-headed, talented, and beautiful witch I have ever met, and I'll be damned if you thought any lower of yourself."

They looked at each other for quite some time before he spoke up again. "Y/n L/n, will you give me the pleasure of taking you out to Hogsmeade this Saturday?" Your breath hitched quietly and a smile soon spread across your face.

"Of course I will, James." You wrapped your arms around his neck as his arms slithered around your waist, and he lifted you off the ground as you two hugged. Your lips quickly met for a kiss before he put you down and grabbed your hands.

"Now, let's go inside and eat, before a Professor finds us." You smiled and walked inside, not seeing Sirius and Marlene holding a camera with a fresh moving picture of James moving in to kiss you.