AN: The long awaited Ch. 7 is FINALLY here!!  After much writer's block, The King and I, and a LOT of geometry homework, I have finally managed to add this chappy!!!  I hope you REALLY like it, considering you've had to wait, oh, a/b SIX MONTHS for it.  And I seen my deepest apologies for that.  Neway, what you're here for—

***Chapter 7***

            Lily giggled silently to herself as she tiptoed of the stairs to her dormitory. She struggled to keep her several notebooks and finished script of the play in her hands, as well as an open inkbottle and a peacock feather quill. She swore, that boy had a SERIOUS problem. Dumbledore must have either been high on butterbeer or just really have liked James to give him the title of Head Boy.

She paused as she arrived at the door of her room and glanced down at her watch. 1:45 AM. Geez, she didn't realize James had kept her so late, making her read one particular scene over and over with him until he figured out a missing word that, according to him, "made the story." She laughed again; even though she DESPISED James, he was rather hilarious.

Well, she might as well go on and enter; its not like they would be up anyway.

Quietly unlocking the door and pushing it open, she emitted a sigh, glad to see that they were all asleep. She closed the door behind her, and began to make her way over to her bed.

"Oh, come on, you didn't think we were going to let you get away with not telling us every detail THAT easily, did you?!"

Lily dropped her contents as she jumped ten feet in the air and swerved around to see Liv sitting up in bed, reaching over to light the lamp.

"Merlin, Liv, did you REALLY have to do that!?" Lily asked, still shocked, as she kneeled down to pick up her things, noticing that the Chrissie and Twila were awake as well.

"Of course!" She replied simply as she hopped out of bed to drag Lily over to her bed, "Tell, tell! And don't leave out any details, you hear?"

Lily rolled her eyes as Chrissie and Twila joined them on the bed as well, "Okay, well, we read over a couple of scenes, finished the play, and totaled up the number of people that were going to need in the cast." She finished sharply and began to leave.

"Nah-ah-ah!" Twila shrieked as she grabbed Lily's arm and drug her back to the bed, "We mean JAMES details."

"Oh, all right!" Lily exclaimed like she understood, "Well, he helped me do all of that."

"No, not like that!" Chrissie groaned, "Like, how did he look tonight? Was he nice to you, or super mean? That kind of stuff."

"James looked the same that he's always looked," Lily began, "Hot—I mean ugl—stupi—he was fine."

Liv grinned a grin so wide it reached from ear to ear, "Aw, Lily has a little crushy wushy!" She squealed as she pinched Lily's cheek happily.

Lily shoved Liv's hand away while trying to hide an enormous smile, "Oh please, Liv, don't be ridiculous.  James is just a—friend.  That's all.  A close friend."

"Lily!  Do you think we're DENSE?!" Chrissie snorted as she tugged on Lily's Hogwart's robe as she tried to escape yet again.

"Come on, give it up!"

"Give what up?" Lily asked nervously.

Twila rolled her eyes, "That you like James!  I mean, it's so obvious.  You're always hanging around him; you're constantly talking to him, I mean, how more obvious can it be?"

Lily slumped her shoulders in defeat, "Fine, fine, you win.  SO maybe I do like James a LITTLE bit.  But JUST a little."

Liv emitted a tremendous squeal, "Ooh, Lily, that's so cute!  I always thought you and James were cute together!  Just think about it…we can go on double dates, Sirius and I and you and James…to the Three Broomsticks, then we can go se a film, then maybe go to that cute little coffee shop…"

Lily rolled her eyes and muttered, "I'm going to bed."

Praising herself for being able to make it over to her side of the room without being bombarded by her friends again, she quietly slipped off her school robes and threw on her fuzzy dance pants and a long sleeve shirt.   Tying her hair in a messy bun, she slipped under her covers and closed the hangings, Liv's dreamy voice carrying threw the covers to her ears.

Lily groaned and slammed her other pillow on top of her head as to block out the noise.  After making sure she couldn't hear anything, she concentrated on the thing that was bothering her the most: James.

Gosh, he was so hott!  She couldn't really say that she had ever met someone so hott before in her life.  A smile crept upon her lips—she couldn't help it.  She was falling in love.  She was falling in love with the most popular guy in Hogwarts.

It's not like he would ever like her back or anything.  In fact, she KNEW he wouldn't.  So it was hopeless to waste her time on something that was out-of-reach.  Right?  Right.

Snuggling deep under her covers, she fell asleep, pictures of a tan, messy haired boy flying threw her head.

***

          "Get up!  Get up!  Everyone get up!"

James groaned as the covers were thrown off him.  He yelled a few words as Sirius danced away, kicking the empty pitcher over, throwing James' toothbrush in the toilet, and tossing Remus' knitting out the window.

"Hey!" Remus roared as he ran over and practically threw himself out of the window after his knitting. "I was making that for someone!"

"Oh really," Sirius acknowledged as he quickly put on a pair of jeans a t-shirt, "For who?"

"Umm…well…" Remus fumbled as he muttered Accio Scarf, the knitting flying back up to his hand.

"Uh huh." Sirius laughed as he grabbed his jacket and ran out the door, "Well, come on, it's Hogsmeade today!"

James' head perked up.  Hogsmeade?  It was December already?!  Yes!  Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!  James hopped over to his trunk and drew out jeans, a t-shirt, and he jacket with his Head Boy badge pinned on it.  Soon, Christmas break would be here, and he would have the whole castle to himself…with only Lily to keep him company.

Lily.  James muttered the word as if it was delicate, and afraid to be touched.  He couldn't believe that this was happening to him.  It couldn't.  There was no way he could be falling for his archenemy.

But I am, he thought, and that's all there is to it.

He smiled as he threw on his cloths and skipped down the steps, pictures of a certain red head popping into his mind.

***

          "Liv, have you seen my red sweater?"

"Umm…what red sweater?"

Lily's head popped up from behind her trunk, attiring only a pink shimmery bra and tight jeans.  She glanced over to Live who was, for some odd reason, hiding behind her bed.  Lily crossed to the closet and began shuffling through it, "You know, the burgundy one with the little slits on the side and the poof balls…wait a minute," she muttered as it finally clicked, "Liv!  You didn't!"

"Well, I did, "Liv gulped as she tried her hardest to keep hidden from Lily, "But we can just as easily say I didn't."

"LIV!" Lily shrieked again, "I was planning on wearing that!"

Liv stood up, since there was obviously no reason in hiding the truth anymore, "I know you were.  But don't you agree that it looks better on me?"

"No!"

"All right, what's going on here?" Chrissie asked sharply as she stepped out of the bathroom, her dark hair partially dried.

Lily swerved around, the color of her face almost matching her hair, "This little squirt stole my sweater!"

"Little squirt?" Liv queried.

"Shut up!" Lily practically yelled.

"All right, all right, all right!" Chrissie roared, drawing out her wand to appear as a "threat".  She turned to Liv, and asked sweetly, "Now, did you ask to borrow her sweater, Liv?"

Liv had to think about this one, "Well…no…but that's not the point!"

"Oh, it's exactly the point!" Lily retorted.

"Lily, for goodness sake, shut up, I'm handling things!" Chrissie, finally losing her patience, stomped her foot out of frustration. "Now, Liv, look at it reasonably, sweetie—if you didn't ask to borrow it then you shouldn't expect Lily to allow you to wear it."

"AMEN SISTAH!" Lily proclaimed, throwing her hands in the air.

"What was that now?" Twila remarked as she stuck her head out of the bathroom, only one eye adorned with eyeliner.

"Nothing, Twila, now go back to your vanity." Chrissie snapped, running an angry hand through her locks. "So why don't you do the nice thing and give poor little Lily here her sweater back."

"But—" Liv whined.

"No buts!" Chrissie asserted, shaking her wand in Liv's direction, "Lily wants her sweater back and you are going to give it to her."

And with that, Chrissie swerved on her heel and marched back into the bathroom.

"All right, hand it over, Olivia," Lily spat, adjusting the straps on her bra.

"But—"

"No!"

"PLEASE!"

"NOW!"

Grunting, Liv moved to remove the sweater.  But it was at that exact moment…

"Hello ladies, are we ready to leave?"

Sirius, accompanied by James and Remus, burst through the door, flinging his hands in the air and looking incredibly cute. (Well, at least according to Liv.)

Lily screamed bloody murder as she ran to grab a shirt to hide her bare stomach.  James' eyebrows rose at this as he glanced over her figure.  Liv, however, didn't seem to care at all that the guys had burst in while they were getting dressed.  Unlike Lily, though, she WAS fully dressed.

"Hey baby," Sirius muttered as he pulled Liv into a long kiss.  As they pulled apart, he rubbed his hands up and down her sides, "I like your sweater."

"It's mine!" Lily spat as she marched across the room, pushing Sirius out the door.  She was still, um, "unclothed" as she was not able to find a shirt, "Now, get out!  Get out, get out, get out, get out, GET OUT!"

And she slammed the door in their faces.

Lily veered to face Liv, the veins popping in her forehead, "What did you do that for?!"

"What?" Liv asked innocently, as she crossed to her purse and grabbed her lipstick.

"You saw how I was hardly dressed!  I was in my bra, Liv, my BRA!  I don't want them seeing me in that!  Especially James!"

"What, afraid he'll stop liking you?" Liv inquired as she pulled on her socks with some difficulty. (Blondes…)

"What was that?"

"I said, 'afraid he'll stop liking you?'"

"I know what you said, but why would you say that?  He does NOT like me!"

"Of course he does, Lily, everyone likes you."

"Yeah, well, not James."

"Whatever," Liv muttered as she jumped up, "Now back to the sweater.  Please?"

"No." Lily stomped her foot determinedly.

"Come on!"

"Absolutely not!"

"Lils…"

"Okay, look, I have an answer to her problem!" Twila screeched as she slid out of the bathroom, a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth, "Neither of you gets to wear the sweater!  Okay?"

"But it's my sweater!"

"I don't care!  It's the only problem to this stupid problem of yours!  Now, can you both agree to live with that?"

"I guess." Liv mumbled.

"Why not?  I never seem to get to wear my stuff anymore anyway."

Twila rolled her eyes as she disappeared back into the bathroom, Liv finally handing the sweater over to its rightful owner.

***

          "That was good, man."

"Yeah, thanks."

James smiled haphazardly as he descended from the girl's dormitory, a goofy smile on his face.  He couldn't help but thinking that Lily Evans really was hott without her shirt on.  Of course, he wasn't intended to see that kind of thing until…well…he wasn't going there.

This is almost too perfect.  He thought.  She has a great personality AND she's beautiful.  Life couldn't get ANY better…

"JAMES!" James swerved around to come face to face with Sirius. "Prongs, you were zoning out buddy.  What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" James replied almost a LITTLE too quickly.

"Ah, yeah, sure, the most common response," Sirius mocked, "Nothin'.  Nothing's wrong, nothing at all.  Everything's fine.  My life is perfect.  Couldn't be any better.  It's just a wonderful day—"

"All right, all right, I get your point."

"James, which girl do you like?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me, James.  Which one?"

"None of them.  You know I'm thinking about dating that Hufflepuff, Molly.  Or maybe it was Holly…"

"Look, I've known you for seven years and I can tell you when you get dazzled by a girl.  Now is it Lily, Twila, Chrissie, or Liv—and you're dead meat if you like her."

"E—none of the above."

Sirius threw his hands up in frustration, "Ah, come on, you can do better than that!  I know you like one of them, and you KNOW I will bother you till the day I die about it!"

"What about after you die?" James asked curiously.

"You can bet your life I will come back and stalk you."

"Fine, fine," James muttered, finally giving in, "It's—"

"You ready to go?"

James and Sirius turned the heads up to where the voice came from to see the four girls descending the staircase.  The two guys quickly glanced at each other and Sirius mouthed threateningly, "We'll finish this later."

James gulped in horror and muttered a silent cuss word as Sirius crossed to Liv, and placing his arm around her exclaimed, "Sure thing, girlfriend."

The other girls followed the two leaders. (Lily looking incredibly gorgeous, James thought impishly.)  Twila and Chrissie immediately began chatting with Remus and Lily offered an encouraging smile as the two headed out of the portrait and into Hogsmeade.

AN: Well, did you like it?  You better have, since it took so long for me to get it up anyway.  Newho, please review a couple of times, and tell me if you like where this is going.  Luv-ya ppls!  Katherine:)