AN: Long chapter alert! Also, this chapter has a bit of implied homophobia, one use of the c*nt word, and 3300 words of smut at the end. If you don't want to read the smut, you can hop out after they start kissing in bed.

Chapter 29: In which it's hats off to friendship and pants off to bigots

The next few weeks passed without major incident. There were pranks and arguments and secret excursions, points lost and detentions given, but nothing out of the ordinary for the students of Hogwarts. Lily had to take points from Gryffindor after she found out that two second-years had locked a Ravenclaw in a broom cupboard for being a "Swotty McSwotface"; James confiscated a Fanged Frisbee from a Hufflepuff fourth-year after its snarls caught in another girl's hair during free period. Nothing noteworthym . It was comforting, really – having been nearly killed by Snape, James was grateful that the worst thing he encountered on rounds lately was a couple of students snogging in an empty classroom.

Things continued that way until a seemingly normal Wednesday morning in mid-November, when breakfast was disrupted by a chorus of shouts emanating from the front corner of the Great Hall.

"Oi!"

"What in the name of Salazar—"

"Who did this?"

"I swear to Merlin, if my robes are ruined—"

Nearly all the students in the room sat up on their benches and craned their necks to see what was going on at the Slytherin table, where the yelling had originated. All along the bench closest to the wall, seventh-year Slytherins were swearing and tugging at each other, their movements jostling the table. Several had picked up their wands and appeared to be pointing them at each other's bums, snarling the incantations for various charms and counterspells.

"What's going on over there?" Dorcas asked.

James raised himself half out of his seat to get a better look, then shook his head in bewilderment. "No clue."

Remus shrugged. "Pass the pumpkin juice?"

As James and others continued to stare, Professor Slughorn rushed over to the Slytherin table. James couldn't hear what he was saying, but the students were still yelling and gesturing wildly. He could see Snape on the end of the bench, clutching his wand, his face malicious as his black eyes swept the room. Those eyes briefly caught James', and Snape's lips drew back from his teeth in an expression too nasty to be called a smile.

"Ugh." Lily wrinkled her nose and shuddered. Seated right next to her as he was, James felt the shiver roll through her body. He resisted the urge to put his arm around her and pull her into a hug, but he did rest his hand on her thigh under the table.

"You all right?" he asked.

"Yeah. Snape was staring at me again."

James chuckled drily. "Funny, I thought he was looking at me." He lowered his voice. "Wishing he'd done me in after all, you know."

Lily's hand squeezed his under the table. "Don't even joke about that."

"Sorry." He squeezed back, then turned to face the Slytherins again. Professor Slughorn was standing behind Snape now, blocking much of James' view, but James saw him wave his wand. The gesture didn't seem to accomplish anything. After a moment, the Potions master shook his head. Mulciber, Avery, and others continued shouting and cursing as Slughorn hurried up to the head table and began conferring with the Headmaster and other professors. Soon, Dumbledore and Flitwick rose and followed Slughorn back to the Slytherin table.

"It appears that you all have been subjected to a prank," Dumbledore announced, addressing the Slytherin students. "The bench was enchanted with a permanent sticking charm meant to secure your robes to your seats. However, it appears the perpetrator added something to the charm that is preventing the counter spell from working here. Professor Flitwick and I will inspect it further and see what can be done."

Flitwick barely had to bend to peer closely at the surface of the bench. "I think they've added...a Muggle adhesive? Some sort of epoxy?" He frowned. "There's a thin layer of something on this bench that isn't magical at all, but it's holding quite firmly."

"Savages," Avery growled. "They know they can't compete with us magically, so they're bringing in Muggle weapons!"

"For Merlin's sake," Lily muttered, stabbing at her eggs with a fork. "Glue is hardly a weapon."

James laughed. "Anything's a weapon if you're creative enough. Look at you with that fork."

"Too right," Remus agreed, without looking up from his plate. Lily rolled her eyes as she bit back a smile.

"Come on, Duckie, this is brilliant," Sirius said, his teeth on full display. "That lot, bested by a basic Muggle concoction! Not so superior now, are they?" He threw back his head and laughed.

Over in the Slytherin corner, Lyssa Burke slapped her palm on the table and scowled at Dumbledore. "You see?" she snapped. "This is what happens when the school gets overrun with people who don't share our wizarding values. A mudblood did this, I'd bet my life on it."

James, Sirius, and Marlene leapt to their feet and began shouting, and they weren't alone. Several other Gryffindors, along with dozens of students from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, had stood up and were denouncing Lyssa's use of the slur. Many of the older Slytherins shouted taunts back at them and vowed revenge on whoever had dared to pull such a trick.

"Enough! Everyone, sit down!" Dumbledore did not have to yell for his commanding tone to be heard over the din. He glared down at the students closest to him. "That will be twenty points from Slytherin!"

"What?" Mulciber bellowed. "That's not fair! We're the victims, here!"

The Headmaster's expression made it clear that he sympathized with the potential prankster far more than he did his bigoted students. Still, he nodded seriously. "And if I determine who committed this act, they will be punished accordingly. But I will not permit intolerance and hatred, including the use of slurs related to alleged blood status, to go unchecked at Hogwarts."

There was enough yelling from the Slytherin table and buzzing from the other students that James almost didn't hear Remus mutter, "Intolerance, no. But Dark Magic? That's all right."

He whipped around to look at his friend. "What?"

Remus' answering smile bordered on cherubic. "Nothing at all. Just agreeing with the Headmaster." He shoved a whole sausage into his mouth.

James frowned suspiciously as he lowered himself back into his seat. When he turned back to the scene at the front of the Hall, Lyssa was still complaining. "What about hatred for purebloods?" she whined. "We're being discriminated against right now!"

"For the love of Godric, they can't be serious," Dorcas muttered.

Marlene snorted. "You know they are."

"Yeah." Sirius shook his head. "Purebloods like her think if they're not being worshipped, they're being persecuted. Back when we were first years, Orion wrote a screed to the Daily Prophet calling Hogwarts a disgrace because we weren't required to learn about the Sacred Twenty-Eight as part of History of Magic. He said Muggle-lovers like Dumbledore were trying to erase us from history."

"But it's disputed whether the Sacred Twenty-Eight is even an accurate list of pureblood families!" Dorcas exclaimed. "There are some families listed who have certainly married Muggles, and there are some so-called purebloods who aren't even on the list!"

"And half the families on there haven't done anything of note, anyway," Marlene added. "What is there to learn about them?"

Remus chuckled without humor. "'Who controls the past, controls the future; who controls the present, controls the past.'"

"What?"

He shook his head. "It's a quote by a Muggle author. While we're in school, Dumbledore and our professors control what we learn, right? So, they get to shape our understanding of wizard history. And if we're not taught that the Sacred Twenty-Eight are more important and powerful than all the other wizard families…"

"Then they lose their place in society. They lose control," finished Dorcas, a note of awe in her voice.

"Yep. They don't care about the accuracy of the list, they just want to make sure their names mean something in the wizarding world. They think everyone should fall at their feet just because of their family name," Sirius said. He grinned at Dorcas and shot Lily a wink before continuing, "But if no one teaches you half-bloods and Muggleborns which names are important, how will you know where to bow?"

"That's about the thrust of it," Lily murmured. "They don't really mind if we're here as long as we recognize that they are superior."

"And as long as you don't prove better than they are at something, or accomplish something they haven't," James added bitterly. "They want you to know your place."

Lily smiled wryly. "I ought to become Minister of Magic, just to spite them."

James gave her thigh a squeeze. "That's the spirit."

The Slytherins were still complaining that they were victims who had been targeted for their blood status, saying they no longer felt safe at Hogwarts because Dumbledore was refusing to protect them. The Headmaster listened to their complaints calmly, seemingly having decided to let them yell until they were satisfied they'd been heard. But when Avery proclaimed that had a prank targeted Muggleborns, Dumbledore wouldn't be so lax about finding out who did it, Professor McGonagall rushed to Dumbledore's side.

"This prank targeted Slytherin students, not purebloods!" she declared. "Not everyone at this table is a so-called 'pureblood,' and every house has students of every possible background! If Professor Dumbledore had a reason to think this was about blood status, he would do whatever it takes to put an end to such behavior. But that's not what's happened here. If anything, this appears to be a bit of inter-house rivalry."

Professor Dumbledore nodded. "Indeed. This is more likely related to Quidditch than blood status." He turned slowly, his gaze roving the room. James would have sworn his eyes lingered on the Gryffindor table before he looked back at the Slytherins. "Or perhaps it is the result of a personal grudge?"

Snape, one of the few half-bloods who had been targeted by the prankster, glowered silently at the table. The other Slytherin students grumbled and swore, but none admitted to a rivalry with any other students. James wouldn't have expected any different—in their position, he would have done the same.

Flitwick beckoned for Dumbledore to bend down so the shorter man could share something privately. The Headmaster did so, then glanced at Professors McGonagall and Slughorn and motioned for them to join the conversation. All four professors stepped away from the Slytherin table and back towards the dais and spoke to each other in low voices. After a moment, Dumbledore straightened and looked around the room. James would have sworn he saw amusement in his eyes as he cleared his throat.

"Attention, please!" he called. "I am going to ask all the students who are currently able to do so to leave the Great Hall!" A murmur swept through the crowd. "Go on, now," Dumbledore continued. "I'm sure some of you have classes to attend. But whether you have a lesson now or not, I need you all to exit the Great Hall while we deal with this…delicate situation. Move along!"

All the students who could rose from their seats – albeit, reluctantly – and began to leave the room. The corridors buzzed with speculation as to how the professors would deal with the dilemma.

"Let's hope they don't try a Slicking Solution," Remus said cheerfully as he and the others walked slowly to the Charms classroom. There were still about thirty minutes before class started, and Flitwick was still in the Great Hall, anyway. "You might think it would help, but when mixed with Muggle adhesives, it has corrosive properties. Might even burn the skin. And a Dissolving Solvent would certainly ruin their robes. Permanently."

Sirius laughed. "When did you become a potions nerd, Moony?"

Remus shrugged. "Oh, just some things I picked up along the way."

This time, James wasn't the only one to give Remus a funny look. But Lily didn't say anything to him, either.

In the end, the professors didn't use either of the potions Remus mentioned to remove the glue from the Slytherins robes, although their methods yielded similar results. Unable to separate their robes from the bench, Dumbledore had offered the stuck Slytherins two options: shucking their robes entirely – if they were wearing proper clothes underneath – or cutting around the clothing that was stuck, leaving a gaping hole in their robes right over their backsides.

It may not have been a big deal if so many Slytherins weren't obsessed with preserving wizarding traditions. But they were, and so most shunned standard trousers, although the current Hogwarts uniform did require a collared shirt so that one could wear a tie. Thus, while all of the Slytherins were wearing shirts underneath their robes, almost none were wearing bottoms meant to be seen in public. Several of them – Snape among them – had to let Flitwick cut a large hole in the back of their school robes, exposing their underpants to the world. For a group that considered themselves so dignified and powerful, the epitome of high society and class, this prank was the ultimate humiliation.

In the Common Room that evening the Gryffindor seventh-years rehashed the day's events to general delight.

"Did you see them? Avery caught me laughing and tried to threaten me, but how threatening can you be with your underwear exposed, really?" Sirius was bent at the waist, his eyes full of tears as he roared with laughter. He straightened and wiped at his cheeks, then put on a somber expression. "On the other hand, that's the second time I've been forced to look at Snivellus' pants, and they looked just as dingy and pitiful as the last time."

Peter shook his head. "You'd think he'd learn!"

"And Slughorn did use a Dissolving Solvent to get what was left of their robes off the benches. So, they won't even get scraps back to patch up their robes!" Lily giggled sheepishly and added, "I do feel a bit guilty for laughing about it, though."

Sirius scoffed. "They use Dark Magic all the time and drop slurs like loose change. Gluing them to their seats hardly comes close to the sort of stuff they get up to."

"Just think of what Snape did to James!" Marlene chimed in. "You know it was a Dark spell, it left scars!"

"Absolutely." There was a harsh note in Remus' usually mild tone. "They got off easy with a bit of glue. They deserve to be met with violence."

James wished he could disagree, but it was hard to be magnanimous towards someone who had tried to murder you. Far too often these days he woke up in a sweat, his side throbbing, his mind muddled by dreams of blood and more blood.

Unfortunately, more blood seemed to be exactly what the Slytherins wanted. Attacks against Muggle-born students and those who sympathized with them increased tenfold in the week following the Glue Incident. "Mudblood" was tossed around any time the professors were out of earshot, and the nastiest of the pureblood students began shooting off Stunners at anyone who so much as looked at them sideways, claiming that they felt threatened. On three occasions, someone hit Lily with a silently-cast Tripping Jinx as she was leaving the Charms classroom, and Warrington cut Mary's forearm during Defense Against the Dark Arts, claiming he mixed up the severing charm "Diffindo" with the warding spell "Defensio." As Peter tended to Mary's arm, Sirius challenged Warrington to a duel. Professor Pearl broke it up quickly, assuring Sirius that it was just an accident and warning Warrington to be more careful.

"Accident my arse," Sirius muttered, but he lowered his wand.

Still, the Marauders and others fought back as best they could without going Dark. Peter hid balloons full of undiluted bobtuber pus in Snape and Avery's school bags during Charms class – their hands immediately swelled with repulsive-looking boils when they reached into their bags for a book and popped one of the toxic balloons instead. Lily took House points for every slur she heard and, if that didn't shut them up, occasionally employed an Endless Slug-Vomiting Curse against the foul-mouthed bigots. Some industrious Hufflepuffs figured out a spell to turn the floor to ice beneath would-be attackers' feet, sending them tumbling to the ground, and Ravenclaw prefects Diana Hodges and Eddie Bones were always ready to duel Slytherin bullies. Sirius even managed to get ahold of the Slytherins laundry (as he had wanted to do for months), and added a hefty dose of Shrinking Solution, ruining yet another set of robes for the junior Death Eaters' league.

After a week of this madness, and despite one vague but ominous lecture from Dumbledore, the junior Death Eaters raised the stakes. Marlene was walking from the occamy stables back to the castle when Avery and Warrington ambushed her. Avery Silenced her and blinded her with a Conjunctivitis Curse, and Warrington bound her in magical ropes and slapped her across the face for good measure. They were dragging her into the Forbidden Forest when they were noticed by Jacob O'Malley and Carolyn Price, who had been snogging in the woods instead of completing their rounds. With the element of surprise on their side, O'Malley and Price ambushed the boys much like they had Marlene. They hit them with Tripping Jinxes and Full Body-Bind curses, then released Marlene from the Incarcerous spell that held her. Carolyn and Marlene rushed back to the castle while Jacob stood guard over the prone Slytherins. While Carolyn promised she would return to Jacob with help as soon as she could, Marlene ran straight to Gryffindor tower.

In the seventh-year boys dormitory, she sat on Sirius' bed rubbing at the red marks left on her arms by the ropes, her mood alternating between giddy disbelief and utter outrage. Dorcas knelt behind Marlene with her arms wrapped around her, her face buried in the crook of Marlene's neck.

Sirius and James were pacing, a pair of Muggle wind-up soldiers patrolling the short path on either side of the bed. "Those bastards," Sirius snarled. "We use a Bat-Bogey Hex or a bit of Shrinking Solution, and now they're dragging you off into the Forbidden Forest to do Merlin-knows-what—"

James' hand flew to his hair. "Don't think about the what." He veered away from Sirius' bed and stalked the length of the room, where he stared out the window. "O'Malley and Price found you in time, that's all that matters." He gripped the windowsill so hard it hurt. Don't think about what they could have done.

"Dae ye think it was random? Them attacking ye, I mean," Mary asked worriedly. "You're a half-blood, and yer family's ne'er been loud aboot politics. I cannae see how come they'd pick ye."

"I dunno." Marlene shrugged. "I'm a Gryffindor, and they know where I stand as far as that blood-supremacy rubbish. And my granda was a Muggle, you know. Maybe that's enough."

Peter's shoulders folded inward, his posture mirroring the discomfort on his face. "I didn't know that. About your grandfather, I mean. I don't think there's been a Muggle in my family for five generations now."

Marlene snorted. "Brill, maybe you'll be all right then, Pete."

"I didn't—that's not what I meant!" Peter exclaimed. "I just meant, do you really think that's why they attacked you? Most wizards have a Muggle somewhere in their family line. If that's all it takes, none of us will be safe!"

"I really don't know." Marlene shrugged again. "They called me a dirty, traitorous cunt, so it could've been anything, couldn't it? Maybe it was about my Muggle ancestors, maybe it was because I'm gay, maybe it's because I'm friends with Muggleborns. Maybe it was just good-old-fashioned racism. Could've been anything, really." She smiled sardonically and kissed Dorcas' forearm, which was currently wrapped around Marlene's neck. "I am the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, not to mention a half-blood lesbian dating a half-blood black girl, after all."

"It's not funny!" Dorcas exclaimed, squeezing Marlene even tighter. There were tears in her wide brown eyes. "I never thought—" She shook her head and inhaled a shaky breath. "Everyone here has been so lovely since we started dating, I sort of forgot how many people won't accept us being together! I don't want you to get hurt because of me."

The anguish in Dorcas' voice reminded James of the way Lily had sounded when they finally talked after their fight, and then again when she thought he might die. He knew Marlene would never trade being with Dorcas for some false sense of safety, just like he would never trade being with Lily for anything. But he was starting to understand the terror and pain that came with the idea that your mere proximity to someone you care about might cause them harm.

"If it was because of you, it's worth it, love," Marlene said. "They're the ones who are wrong. Not us."

Dorcas shook her head but couldn't seem to speak as tears spilled down her cheeks. James suspected he wouldn't be able to convince Dorcas that it wasn't her fault, that people like Avery and Warrington would target people they perceived as enemies for any reason or none at all – but he would try. It wouldn't do for her to pull away from Marlene like Lily had tried to do to him. None of them could afford to let fear drive them apart.

He turned back to face his friends, ready to impart this very message, but Remus spoke first. "It's my fault."

Remus' face was ghostly pale, and his fists were clenched so tightly in his lap that his knuckles were white. "It's because of the glue incident. I should've known they would retaliate, and that whatever they did would be far worse than a bit of glue, but I couldn't fucking stand that Snape attacked you with Dark Magic and faced no consequences, Prongs." He glanced at James, his expression grief-stricken. "But they've only gotten more aggressive since then. They can't know for sure who glued them to the bench, but I know they suspect it was one of us. What if that's why they chose you, Marlene?"

"We have no way of knowing if it was about gluing them to their chairs or something else, like the bobotuber pus," Marlene said reasonably. "It could've been anything."

"Sorry!" squeaked Peter.

"No." Marlene's voice was firm. "The point is, none of you should blame yourselves. Not you, not Remus, not Dorcas."

James nodded in agreement. His lips quirked with a grin he couldn't quite suppress as he said, "I knew it was you who did that, Moony! It was brilliant. The perfect way to get to that lot—hurting their pride, not their bodies." He walked over and clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "But just because you royally pissed them off doesn't mean that's why they attacked Marley."

"No, it doesn't," Lily agreed. "They don't need a reason to be vile and hateful."

"And even if they said that was the reason," Marlene added, holding up a hand to halt Remus' protests, "if I'd gotten hurt, it would be no one's fault but Avery and Warrington's."

"Damn right," Sirius muttered. "Think it's funny to drag a girl into the woods, do they? We haven't done any real violence against them yet, but maybe it's time that we do."

"No! You can't do anything to them!" Lily said, jumping to her feet. "They're obviously willing to do unspeakable things, and it's only going to get worse! Anything we do will just escalate it further. We've got to leave it to Dumbledore, like he told us before."

"But we can't just let them get away with it!" Dorcas exclaimed.

"I know." Lily looked fearful but determined. "We just have to be smarter about how we fight them. We need to coordinate." She glanced at James, and he wondered if she was going to tell the others about Dumbledore's plans. He wasn't sure if she should; they barely knew what he was planning, themselves.

"I dinnae want tae fight them at all." Mary had a haunted look in her eyes. "They're evil."

James raked a hand through his hair. "Yeah, but you know what they say: Call for light to drive out the Dark."

Sirius barked out a laugh. "Not in my family, they don't."

Mary frowned. "What're ye talking aboot?"

"I think that's only a wizard expression, Prongs." A half-smile briefly graced Remus' lips. "My mum would've said something more like, you shouldn't turn a blind eye to evil."

"Ohh," Mary and Lily said in unison. But where Lily was nodding, Mary was shaking her head.

"I suppose that's right," she said uncertainly. "But most folk dinnae care enough tae fight these Dark wizards. We're just barely adults. Why should we lead the way?"

"There are more people willing to fight than you think," James said. I hope. "We just have to find them. If people see that others are standing up to the Death Eaters, they'll join us."

Mary shook her head. "Nae, I'm sorry. I just want tae finish school and find a job and live my life in peace. If I have tae go back tae the Muggle world for it, I will. I've no desire tae stay in the wizarding world if it dinnae want me anymore."

The friends dispersed soon after that, and Lily and James climbed the stairs to their shared quarters at the top of the tower. Lily sighed as she closed the door behind them.

"I can't believe Mary is talking about living as a Muggle," she said, shaking her head. She looked up at James with a sad, thoughtful expression. "I see why you were so frustrated with me before. It's hard to hear her talk like she doesn't belong here."

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. "Yeah, well you came around, Evans. Maybe she will, too."

"Maybe so." She slipped her arms around her boyfriend's waist and laid her head on his chest. "Ugh, I dunno. I'm absolutely knackered. I keep thinking about Mary, and Marlene, and how we're telling everyone to leave it to Dumbledore when we're not even sure what he's up to, and I start to feel like I've lost the plot a bit."

"I know what you mean," James muttered. "Maybe we should talk to him again."

"Yeah, maybe." Lily rose up on her toes and kissed his jaw. "Not tonight, though. Let's just go to bed."

"Brilliant idea. My bed or yours?"

They ended up in James' room, which had become their default. Lily went to her room to change into her pajamas, and James stripped off his jeans and jumper and put on a record by a wizarding band. When Lily returned, they climbed directly into bed.

"It's strange," Lily said, once they were settled on top of the mattress. "Usually, I dread going home for the holidays. I had my dad, and he was wonderful, but Petunia is so bitter and I can't use magic and I just feel…out of place. And this year will be worse, without my dad there." She snuggled into his side. "But this year, these last few weeks have been so insane that I'm actually looking forward to getting away from Hogwarts for a little bit. I've never felt that before."

"Yeah." James stroked his hand down her arm. "But we've never had a year like this before, have we?"

"No." She shook her head as much as she could with her cheek pressed to his chest. "Voldemort's war feels closer than ever."

"It is. But that's why we're getting ready to fight."

She sighed. "I just hope Dumbledore's plan to oppose the Death Eaters is better organized outside than it's been in here."

James hoped so, too. The way Voldemort's supporters were practically flaunting their ties to Dark Magic and their lust for violence around the castle did not inspire confidence in the Headmaster's alleged resistance. Still, James knew Dumbledore was right that if they were going to have any chance against Voldemort at all, they would have to band together. He was speaking to himself as much as to Lily when he said, "I may not understand him, but he's no fool. We've got to trust him."

"I'm trying." She sighed and offered him a small smile as she echoed his unspoken thoughts: "Whatever we're doing, I'm glad we'll be doing it together."

"Me too, Evans."

James wasn't sure who started it, who whispered the first soft kiss into the other's lips or whose fingers first grazed the back of the other's neck, but that first intimate gesture was followed by another, and another, and another. They teased each other with sweet brushes of lips and hands over cheeks, eyelids, hair, ears, and throats. Lily swept her tongue along the base of his jaw; James threaded his hands through her hair and dropped sweet kisses on her forehead. She nuzzled her nose against his cheek; he turned and tilted his head lower, catching her mouth with his and sucking gently on her lower lip. She hummed in response, and he pulled her closer, enveloping her body in his.

He nipped her bottom lip once more before releasing it fully with a sigh. "I love you," he murmured, his thumbs skating along her spine. Now that he was allowed to say it, now that he knew she felt the same, he wanted to tell her all the time.

"I know. And I love you." She slid her hand along his neck and then into his hair, mirroring the way he held her. "So much. So, so much." Her last words were muffled by the kisses she was pressing to his lips, urgent, forceful kisses as if she were desperate to share something important but feared she would run out of time before she could make him understand.

She needn't have worried – he understood perfectly. He returned her kisses with equal fervor, his hand in her hair angling her head so he could better traverse her mouth with his tongue. His path was familiar at this point; he had already discovered when to tease, when to pull his tongue back and let hers chase it, where to nibble and lick that would have her moaning and pressing herself against him. The knowledge only made kissing her more exciting, not less. He would never tire of pleasing her.

Lily's hands drifted downward until they reached the hem of his t-shirt. She made a questioning noise and tugged, and James obliged by separating from her long enough to pull the shirt over his head and drop it on the floor. She did the same with her own shirt, then pushed her duck trousers down her legs and shimmied out of those, as well. James rolled on top of her, propping himself up on his elbows with his chest pressed against her soft breasts, one of his thighs resting comfortably between hers. She wiggled and rolled her hips against him, her arms snaking their way under his and around to his back, where her hands alternated squeezing and stroking the muscles there.

"Hmm." He brought his hands between them and rubbed his thumbs back and forth across her nipples, loving the way she trembled at his touch. She was so beautiful and sensual and she loved him.

Warmth spread through his body, a different kind of warmth than the passion already thrumming through his veins. The passion made him want to cover her breasts with his mouth, spread her legs apart and bury himself in her wet heat; this new warmth made him want to wrap her in his arms and feel her heartbeat against his, letting the natural rhythm lull them both to sleep. He told himself he was compromising when he kissed her belly, delighting in the lusty murmurs he drew from her lips. Her knickers were pink with a little bow in the center of the waistband; sliding them over her hips and down her legs felt like unwrapping a gift. Best gift ever, he thought, as he sat back on his heels and admired her perfect form.

"Merlin, Lily," he whispered.

"Hmm?"

"You're so fucking beautiful. I love your body."

"Thank you." She preened a little bit, twisting her thick red hair over her shoulder and arching her back, and he loved it. Her cheeks were flushed red and her hair was a bit wild from where he'd tangled his hands in it, but she looked comfortable and confident – almost smug. She had a right to be, since James would gladly orbit the Earth on his broomstick, if necessary, to give her whatever she wanted.

And if the next words out of her mouth were any indication, she knew it, too. She raked her fingernails gently down his thighs and smiled coyly. "So show me."

He bit back a groan. "With pleasure." Her answering giggle turned into a gasp as he pushed her knees apart and leaned forward. His lips ghosted along the sensitive skin of her inner thighs, goosebumps appearing in their wake. He nipped at the soft flesh near the crease of her hips and then sucked, laving his tongue over the spot in a soothing motion, and Lily let out a low, rumbling purr. James laughed against her thigh before repeating the biting-sucking-licking routine.

"I don't think I've heard you make that sound before," he murmured between nibbles. "I like it."

"Me, too," Lily breathed. He licked and kissed her legs and hips some more, his mouth drifting closer and closer to her center with each press of his lips. Now she began to squirm, but not with shyness. This wriggling and whining and opening herself to him – literally and figuratively – was pure pleasure, laced with need. When he reached that prized area, he let his mouth linger over the spot, not touching her, but hovering close enough that he knew she could feel his breath against the wetness flowing from her core. She whimpered, but when he continued to hover there, just staring and breathing in her scent, that whimper became a growl. She propped herself up on her elbows so she could see him. "Why'd you stop?"

James chuckled again. "Easy, Tiger," he crooned, raising his eyes to meet hers. He grinned at her adorably furrowed brow and pouty bottom lip. "I'm just admiring the view."

She laughed and let her arms slide out from underneath her until she was flat on her back again. "I suppose I can understand that, I like to do the same to you."

His smile faded into a look of concentration as he slid two fingers between her folds, parting them to expose the soft pink flesh inside. She looked like a flower, and now all he wanted to do was taste the sweet nectar dripping down her thighs. "So pretty," he mumbled. He circled his fingers around her opening, then bent his head and replaced them with his tongue.

"Ohhhh," Lily groaned as his tongue thrust inside her. "Yes, James."

Pulling back just a bit, he licked up her center until he reached her clit. He flicked his tongue back and forth over the sensitive bud, and Lily's hips bucked against his face.

It was so fucking sexy to watch her lose control. James grunted and ground his own hips into the bed, the soft sheets better than nothing, but still a poor substitute for Lily's hands or her mouth.

Feeling just as desperate as Lily looked, James slid his arms under her thighs and dragged her closer to him, at the same time pressing his hands against her abdomen to hold her in place. She let out a desperate whine as he closed his lips around her clitoris, the sound equal parts bliss and frustration at being restrained. He sucked gently, and she writhed and whimpered underneath him. The sound had him pumping his hips against the mattress again, seeking his own release. Lily first, he thought fuzzily.

He released her clit and began licking her again, and she buried her hands in his hair and held him there. Yes. When he loosened his grip on her torso, she began thrusting up to meet him, riding his face. So hot. And when he returned his attention to her clit, his tongue a tornado around the small bundle of nerves, she shattered with a broken cry. Fucking perfect.

As she came down from the heights of pleasure, she sighed. James crawled up the bed and lay next to her, cradling her in his arms. She reached over and stroked her hand over his cheek, a look of wonder in her eyes. "That was so good."

He couldn't keep the grin off his face. "Good. I'm glad." He ran his hands along her spine and over her backside, and she shivered and snuggled closer.

"I can't believe I want more," she said, and the wonder that had been visible in her eyes was evident in her voice, too. She giggled and pressed a kiss to his collarbone. "I feel like I've already achieved a new state of bliss."

"Mm." James kissed her forehead. "I'd like to join you there."

"Yeah. You should." She arched into him, and he could feel the tips of her breasts brushing against his bare chest. Then she forcefully met his eyes, her gaze hot. "I want you inside me. Is that—do you want to? I just…want you."

"Yeah!" Almost unconsciously, he squeezed her tighter, his grip on her bum pressing her belly against his still-hard length. "Yeah, I want to. I want you. I love you." He pulled away briefly to grab his wand and cast a Contraceptive Charm over them both. Then he turned back to his girlfriend and began kissing her, gently at first, then hungrily, licking into her mouth and moaning when she sucked on his tongue. Her hands scrabbled over his body, clawing and squeezing at his back, arms, shoulders, and abs, his skin tingling at every point she touched. As always happened when their snogging got intense, their hips began to rock against each other instinctively, guiding them into place like pieces of a familiar puzzle.

And this time, they would put it all together.

Still kissing her, James maneuvered their bodies so that she was on her back and he was hovering over her. She was looking up at him with an intoxicating mix of lust and adoration, but even through his love-drunk haze, he could tell that she was nervous. Her body was stiff now, her arms rigid by her sides, instead of wrapped around him, and her stomach muscles were tight like she was bracing for impact.

James didn't like that. Without saying anything, he rolled them again so that Lily was on top of him. She squealed in surprise but adapted quickly, rubbing her whole body against his like a contented cat before rising up on her knees to straddle his waist. Even without being inside her, James could already feel her wetness coating his erection. He hummed and ran his hands up her thighs, earning a wiggle and some goosebumps in response. He grabbed her hips as she smiled down at him, and he met her beautiful green eyes with a question. "You all right, Evans?"

A quiet laugh slipped between her lips. "Yeah, I'm all right. Are you?"

"I'm brilliant. Now, come here." He reached up and cradled the back of her neck, pulling her forward again to kiss him some more. This time they kissed slowly, their hands roaming and their hips grinding against each other. James felt Lily's body relax and mold against his, and he reveled in the softness. After a minute or two, he pulled away. "Are you ready?"

Lily sat up, still straddling him, and nodded, but he felt her leg muscles tense up once again. "Just go slow," she said.

He traced delicate circles on her hip with his thumb. "We don't have to do it, you know."

"I know, I want to." She blushed all the way down to the tops of her breasts, the rosy flush beautiful on the usually pale skin. "I'm just nervous that it will hurt a little."

"Oh." James lifted his hand to her chest, stroking her collarbone with this thumb now. He hoped she knew he would never be anything but gentle with her. "Well, if it hurts, just tell me, and we'll stop, okay? I don't want to hurt you. I'm more worried I won't last long enough for you to feel anything at all." His lips curved in a grin.

She burst out laughing, as he had hoped she would. She reached between them and closed her hand around his erection, then raised her eyebrows again. "There's no way I won't feel this."

Now it was James' turn to blush. "I, er—right." He bit his tongue to keep from announcing that it probably looked more impressive than it actually was. "So…what do you think will make it good for you?"

One shoulder rose in a shrug. She rolled onto her side, pulling James with her, and hooked one of her legs over his. "Just kiss me again, and…play with my clit a bit more?" she asked softly. "And then just go slow."

"I can do that," James murmured. He simultaneously took her lips with his and slipped a hand between their bodies to stroke his fingers over her center, swallowing her whine of pleasure. She was still wet – though not as wet as she had been after her orgasm – but James could feel her juices begin to flow more freely as he plied her with his fingers. When she began to rock her hips against his hand, he slipped two fingers inside her, keeping the heel of his hand pressed to her swollen clit.

She gasped, whimpering as she exhaled. "James," she whined. "I want you inside me. Please."

"Brilliant," he breathed. He removed his fingers from her core and gripped his erection, using the head to tease her clit again and eliciting another lusty sigh. He rubbed his length through her folds, covering it with her wetness, then aligned himself with her opening. Anticipation coursed through him like electricity, making him tremble, but he held himself steady; this wasn't just sex, this was Lily. He had spent months learning her body, and, even though he wasn't very experienced in what they were about to do, he wanted more than anything to make it good for her.

Very, very slowly, he began to push inside her. Lily took a deep breath as his hard length pressed further into that narrow channel, and he felt her clench around him. "I've got you, Lily," he whispered. He let go of his erection and brushed his thumb over her clit. Immediately, her muscles relaxed and her core opened up, drawing him in. He thrust gently, and they both moaned.

"That's it, love," James said, his voice low. He pushed forward a little more. "Merlin, you feel good."

"So do you." As she spoke, she tilted her hips up, welcoming him deeper, and he almost unraveled right then.

"Fuck, Lily," he grunted. With one more thrust, he was buried to the hilt inside her, her warmth enveloping his shaft and her inner walls squeezing him greedily. He withdrew slowly, and it felt like she didn't want to let him go. He rocked his hips forward again and she hummed, satisfied. Slowly, like she had asked him to, James began pumping in and out of her, trying to keep track of each of her little mewls and sighs so he could earn more of them.

They started with her knees bent, rising on either side of his hips, but soon she spread her legs and drew one up higher on the bed, her knee almost near her shoulder. He sucked a sharp breath through his teeth. "Lil, that's so good, love. So good. Is it good for you?" She hummed in the affirmative, and James pulled back a little and held himself still, only the head of his penis inside her, his breathing ragged. "Are you sure? You feel too good. I'm not going to last much longer." He ducked his head and kissed her, sucking on her bottom lip. "Tell me. Tell me what can I do for you." he panted between kisses. "I don't want to finish without you."

"No, It's okay," Lily said, her hands roaming over his back. "It feels so good. You feel so good inside me." She rocked her hips as if to prove the point, and James hissed again. "But I'm not sure I'm gonna have an orgasm like this. And that's all right. I just want to feel you come."

"Noooo," he whined. She smiled and tightened her core around him, and he let out a quiet groan. His control was hanging by a thread, but he could never be selfish with her. "I want you to come, too."

"James, I promise, I feel amazing," she said, her sweet smile and lusty eyes lending truth to her words. "And if I think you're worrying about making me come, I definitely won't be able to. It's too much pressure."

He kissed her then, over and over, soft brushes of his lips over her mouth and cheeks and chin. "Are you sure?" he asked again, his hips already starting to push forward.

"I'm sure. I love the way I feel right now. I want more." She rolled her hips. "Please? I want to feel you."

"Oh, fuck," James moaned, as he began thrusting steadily again. He tried to obey her earlier command that he go slow, but she felt so good, and she'd practically begged for him just now, and it was all too much. He looked down at her, whimpering with desire and opening herself wider to him, her body moving in harmony with his. He'd never seen anything so perfect in his life. With one more deep thrust, he exploded, shouting his pleasure as he did.

Lily wrapped her arms around him and stroked his back, still gently rolling her hips and purring contentedly. He was still throbbing inside her, his seed spent and his erection waning but still unwilling to exit its warm cocoon. She slid her hands lower and took hold of his bum, holding him in place like she didn't want him to pull out, either.

But eventually he went soft, so he slipped out of her and rolled onto his side, taking her with him. He ran a hand down her body, tracing the curve of her breast, her small waist, her soft thighs. "I love you," he said.

She beamed up at him and pulled his face to hers. "And I love you," she said, right before she kissed him.

It was easy to get distracted while snogging Lily, but James had a few questions he needed to ask before he could get lost in her again. He kissed her nose, then tilted his head back to see her eyes. "You're sure it was good for you?"

She nodded, her smile growing. "Very."

"And it didn't hurt?"

"No, not at all. You were perfect."

He grinned. "Good." He was massaging her bum now. He would never get enough of touching her – she felt so good in his hands. "Now, may I eat you out again?"

Lily laughed and pressed her face against his chest. "Not right now." When she looked up, her eyes sparkled. "But in a little while, when you're ready, maybe we can have sex again? I want to try it with me on top this time."

"Ooh." Immediately, James' penis twitched against Lily's thigh. She giggled again as he rolled onto his back, using his grip on her arse to pull her on top of him. He hardened underneath her, and she sighed and closed her eyes, her expression blissful. As ever, he was in awe of her beauty, amazed that this particular dream of his had come true. Still, he managed a cheeky grin as he reached up to pinch her nipples. She squealed in unexpected delight, and moisture pooled between her legs, dripping on his refreshed erection.

"No need to wait, if you don't want to." He ran his thumbs over her nipples again and thrust his hips upward, enjoying the sound she made as his hardness nestled into her warm folds. "I'm ready whenever you are."

AN: We're almost to the end! Thank you all for your amazing support on this journey!