This chapter is sweet. Might I recommend fetching some tissues? I think you'll need them. Many thanks to my dear beta's, Snowlily and Reine Dansante. Review, my loves.


The Story of Lily

Sweet misery you cause me
That's what you called me
Sweet misery you cause me

And in my heart I see, oh
What you're doing to me
And in my heart I see, oh
Just how you wanted it to be
Sweet misery

~Courtesy Michelle Branch's "Sweet Misery"

Chapter 12: Sweet Misery

"Gwen! Gweeennniiieee! Get up! It's CHRISTMAS!"

Lily snapped awake at the sound of Sirius' voice. She moaned and rolled over, only to see his face a few inches from Gwen's.

Smack!

"Jeez, Gwen, your no fun," Sirius complained, rubbing his cheek. Gwen sat up; hair tousled, and kissed him.

He stumbled backwards, a dazed look on his face, and waved to Lily, slightly cross-eyed. "Morning, Lils," he said, and grinned blissfully.

Lily laughed in spite of herself and looked at Gwen, who smiled and stretched. "Morning, Lily. Happy Christmas," she said sleepily.

"Morning, Gwen. Sirius," she turned to him and frowned. "As much as I know you would like to stay, you need to leave so we can get dressed."

"Oh, do I?" he said sadly. Lily grinned and nodded, mock-sadly.

He grinned at them wistfully and then slumped out of their bedroom.

The girls dressed quickly. The ache that had first rendered them unable to move from skiing had passed the more they got used to it. They walked downstairs and into the grand living room where a huge Christmas tree stood, gleaming majestically because of its sparkling ornaments.

There was an enormous pile of gifts, and already Mrs. Lupin and Mrs. Watson were attempting to separate them into piles. It was a fruitless task, however, since Sirius would grab and open every gift that was placed into his pile, until Katharine jerked the wrapped gifts from him and placed them beside her.

Lily and Gwen watched this from a distance, giggling until their stomachs hurt.

"Sirius, you sit!" Katharine cried, fed up with his attempts to steal back his gifts. She spotted Lily and Gwen and stood up and hugged them. "Happy Christmas, my dears."

From there, it was hugs and Christmas greetings from everyone. The girls and adults ate breakfast while allowing James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter first dibs on the gifts. Lily caught James's eyes and stood up, motioning him over.

"I want to give you your gift later," she whispered as he kissed her forehead.

"Yeah, me too," he whispered back, smiling.

They gazed into each other's eyes until Sirius interrupted them.

"Oi! Lily! C'mere, I want you to open my gift to you!" he boomed.

Lily sighed and tore her eyes away, pulling James with her as she walked to Sirius and sat down next to him.

Sirius stood up shortly after, calling for quiet. The room's noise level died, and he pulled Lily up from the floor next to him.

"I found this while I was searching your attic, Lily. It belongs to you. I don't know how it got there, or why it was never found until me." His voice was serious and kind. "Maybe it was fate." He smiled gently at her and handed her the package. "Here, open it."

She hesitantly pulled the ribbon and wrapping paper off. It was a white box. She opened it slowly, and gasped. "I had it polished for you," Sirius added modestly.

"Oh," Lily gasped, tears filling her vision.

It was a silver locket in the shape of an oval. On the front it had a carving of an iris and a violet intertwined. On the back it said in fine script: Iris and Violet: Best Friends Forever.

She opened the locket with trembling hands and a picture of a woman with strawberry-blonde hair and vivid green eyes smiled up at her, face unmoving. On the other side, a woman with true blonde hair and crystal clear blue eyes also smiled at her, slightly younger than the first.

"Oh, Sirius," she whispered, tears pouring down her cheeks as she hugged him tightly, the hand holding the locket limp. She pulled back, sniffling, and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, you have-no idea how much it means..."

The locket was passed from person to person, Mrs. Watson, Gwen, Mrs. Lupin, and Katharine crying silently. When the locket was passed back to her, Sirius fastened it around Lily's neck and the room was silent for a moment, until Mr. Potter broke it by handing Lily his handkerchief. She smiled at him gratefully and said, "I'm all right, really I am."

Christmas resumed, and it turned out to be Lily's best one yet, even without James's gift, which she was waiting anxiously for. She received a charm bracelet from Remus and Peter as their joint present which nearly made her cry, what with the lily, violet, and iris flowers on it, along with a tiny wand that shot gold and scarlet stars out of it. Gwen gave her a gilded silver mirror that had her initials and an elaborate carving of a lily on the back. All you had to do was tell the mirror what you wanted done to your face or hair and it was done in seconds.

When Lily had opened all of her presents from her friends, Mrs. Watson and Mrs. Lupin summoned two boxes from another room and presented them to Gwen and Lily.

Looking curiously at each other, Gwen and Lily opened the boxes and gasped. White graduation robes were folded neatly inside, made of fine satin. "Oh, Mum," Gwen said to her mother.

Elizabeth Watson smiled. "Yes, George, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin, and I thought they were very fitting. Now you two won't go through the hassle of trying to pick out dresses when it's time for your graduation."

"Thank you!" Lily and Gwen said at the same time, grinning at them happily as they held the robes up to their bodies. They were satin and looked to be loose yet form-fitting.

"We'll have to try them on upstairs!" Gwen said excitedly to Lily.

"Yes!" Lily agreed, then looked around at the others. "Unless, you want to see them," she said politely.

"No, no dear, surprise us," Mrs. Lupin said, smiling at them.

"Hey, speak for yourself," Sirius said eagerly.

"No, that invite did not stretch to you boys," Gwen said slyly.

"Wait, girls, before you get too excited!" Katharine burst, summoning two much smaller packages from another room.

Lily and Gwen carefully folded the robes and put them back into their boxes. Then they eagerly took the packages from Katharine who looked just as anxious.

Inside Lily's box was tissue paper. She carefully removed the paper and then gasped. It was the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen.

It started with a silver chain, and that chain, like a spider web, broke off into smaller chains in a beautiful pattern. Lily's was studded with emeralds the exact color of her eyes, while Gwen's was studded with sapphires the exact color of her eyes.

"Oh, Katharine," Lily gasped, touching the gorgeous necklace with trembling fingers.

"We – we can't," Gwen said weakly, and Lily nodded emphatically in agreement.

"Of course you can!" Mr. Potter said, grinning at them. "We had them specially made. There's no way to return them, so you might as well keep them." His eyes sparkled. "They will look a lot better on you than me, and Katharine has enough jewelry to sink a ship."

"Thank you," Lily breathed, and hugged both of them tightly.

"We made your dresses sort of immodestly cut to go with the necklaces," Mrs. Watson smiled. "You two are going to be the bells of the ball!"

Lily closed her eyes for a minute, déjà vu taking her over. Ella had said the same thing, all those years ago, when Violet and Lily had been leaving for the Ministry Ball…

"Lils?" A deep voice sounded in her ears. She smiled and opened her eyes to face James. "Are you okay?" he asked, a tint of worry in his voice and face.

She smiled again. "Couldn't be better."

"Okay," he said, grinning suddenly. "D'you want your present?"

"Sure!" Lily exclaimed excitedly. They sneaked out the back door and hurried up the stairs. Lily went into her room and grabbed the flat parcel from inside her drawer, quivering with anxiety. They met in the hall, James carrying a large package, and together they walked into the common room and Lily held out her package to him. "Open mine first."

"Okay," he said, smiling curiously. He opened the package carefully. "Oh, Lily," he murmured, studying it.

Lily had gotten him a large picture frame that was silver with `Lily' engraved in fine script at the top and `James' engraved at the bottom. The frame was a collage of pictures of just the two of them, taken throughout the year by Gwen and Sirius. The pictures included them in various shops in Hogsmeade, drinking butter beer in the Three Broomsticks, lounging in the Common room at Hogwarts, kissing in the hall, having a snowball fight on the lawn, and other things. But Lily's favorite was perfectly centered in the middle, the largest picture of all. It featured a silhouette of them outside in the moonlight, looking over the Hogwarts lake. James had his arm around Lily and she had her head on his shoulder.

"It's great," he said, his eyes shining. "Thank you, Lily," and he kissed her gently on the forehead.

She smiled happily. "I'm glad you like it."

"Do you want yours now?" he asked, bringing the package out from behind him.

"Yes!" she squealed, taking it from him. She opened it excitedly. It turned out to be a wooden box that split in half horizontally and was held together by a gold clasp. On the top, carved into the wood, was a stag holding a – Lily squinted – a tiny lily in its mouth! "Oh James! It's beautiful!"

"Lily," he said, chuckling, "You have to open it! That's the best part!"

He gently took it from her and opened it. She gasped. It was a jewelry box, lined with white satin and dark blue satin trim. Music was playing softly, and in the middle, on a raised platform, was a tiny model of herself, dancing with a tiny model of James. The model/Lily had on white satin dress robes and the model/James had dark blue dress robes on.

Petunia had had a music jewelry box with a tiny ballerina rotating in the middle to corny music, but the figures in Lily's were real. They were moving like actual humans, and she watched as the model/James whispered something in the model/Lily's. She laughed a tinkling laugh. "Oh, James," the real Lily whispered, running her hand along the fabric. "It's gorgeous."

He blushed and looked at his hands. "I thought you would like it, since you've gotten all of this jewelry for Christmas."

"It's perfect," she said honestly, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Thank you. Goodness, I feel like mine is nothing compared to yours!" Lily exclaimed as she hugged him tightly.

"No, Lily, it's perfect. I couldn't have asked for a better present," he said seriously. She grinned and kissed him happily.

~*~*~*~*

After Christmas day lunch, Lily and Gwen raced upstairs with their presents, eager to try on their new robes. Gwen went into peals of delight when she examined Lily's enchanted jewelry box. The same went for Lily when she saw Sirius's present to Gwen- a stuffed unicorn (Gwen's favorite animal) that came to life and loved to be petted.

"Okay," Gwen said briskly after she had looked her fill at Lily's gift. "I need to name my unicorn."

The unicorn was a baby girl, with golden hooves, and a small horn. "Hmm," Lily said, stroking its neck. "What about Goldy?"

"Eww," Gwen said, wrinkling her nose. "No...Aha! I've got it! What about Caterina! Do you like that?"

"Yes, but where did you come up with that?"

"It means 'pure' and if a baby unicorn isn't pure, then what is?"

"Yes, you're right. Maybe we could lend him to Professor Kettleburn! He wouldn't have to catch any baby unicorns for class!" Lily joked, referring to their battered Care of Magical Creatures teacher.

Gwen snorted. "Anyway, I like that name. Come here, Caterina," she cooed to the unicorn.

Caterina walked over to Gwen and licked her palm. "Oh! She came! I think she likes her name! Don't you, Caterina? Yes, you do! Yes, you do!" Gwen put on a baby voice and began rubbing her.

"Gwen, let's try on our robes!" Lily exclaimed, pulling her friend.

"What am I going to do about Cat?"

"Cat…"

"Yes, it's Caterina's nickname."

"Turn her back into a stuffed animal, of course."

"But-" Gwen whimpered.

Lily grabbed her wand off of her dresser and tapped the unicorn. It instantly turned back into a stuffed toy.

Gwen glared at her, but then got excited and grabbed her robes. "Okay, hurry and change!"

They changed quickly and then admired the robes. They were long – the hems graced the floor – and smooth. They were loose but not entirely, and the sleeves were lovely and came to their wrists. The neck was square, and when the girls put their necklaces on, they looked stunning.

"Wow," Lily breathed, admiring herself in the mirror.

"We're gonna knock `em dead!" Gwen exclaimed, twirling gracefully.

"Yeah," Lily agreed, twirling as well.

~*~*~*~*

The rest of the trip passed happily, and all were quite reluctant to leave. But soon, the rented skis were back in the shop, and their bags were packed and much heavier than when they started out.

"Okay, you lot! Quiet!" Mr. Potter yelled over the heads of the people assembled in the common room upstairs. Everyone quieted almost immediately. "Good," he grinned. "Now, as it is polite, let's have ladies first! You all know which house you are going to, and then we're all to meet at George's house at six for the New Year's Eve party! Let's have the ladies up here!"

Lily leaned down and took hold of the handle of her roll suitcase and followed Gwen to the fireplace.

"Ah, Miss Evans, it was a pleasure to have met you, my dear. I do hope we will be working together in the near future." The Swedish Minister bowed to Lily.

"It was nice to meet you too, sir. And thank you for letting us stay," Lily said.

"Oh, think nothing of it! I trust your first time skiing was satisfactory?"

"Oh, yes," Lily said energetically.

"Well, goodbye, my dear." He bowed again.

"Goodbye," Lily said sadly to him and his wife.

"Come now, Lily, your turn," Mr. Potter said, ushering her to the roaring fireplace. "You know to go to the Watson's. Elizabeth is there already."

"Yes, thank you," Lily said, taking the pinch of Floo Powder from the crystal jar and throwing it into the flames. They turned green and Lily stepped in regretfully. She clutched the handle of her suitcase and made sure her bag was securely on her arm. "The Watson's!" she yelled, and disappeared with a whoosh!

Lily was used to Floo travel by now, and she knew better than to have her eyes open. She shut them tightly and seconds later, the dizzying spin stopped and she stumbled out onto the Watson's hearth.

"Mademoiselle Lilee!"

Lily brushed her clothes off and grinned. "Ella!" She hugged her guardian tightly while Mrs. Watson hastily moved her suitcase just in time, for Gwen fell ungracefully out seconds later.

"Ugh, I hate Floo! I can't wait until I can Apparate!" she exclaimed vehemently.

Lily laughed and pulled her friend to her feet. "Me too," she agreed solemnly.

"Gwendolyn, take your suitcase up to your room and unpack," Mrs. Watson said, handing her daughter her suitcase and emphasizing "up to your room" and "unpack". "And, girls, Ella and I decided that tonight you should be in your own homes, or in other words, no spending the night together."

"Okay," Lily agreed, eager to get into her own bed.

"Sounds good. I wasn't really looking forward to sharing a bed with her tonight," Gwen jerked her thumb over her shoulder, mock-disgusted. Lily grinned at her.

"Lilee, do yoo want to go `ome and unpack now, or wait until we go `ome tonight after ze party?" Ella asked, brushing Lily's back off.

"Tonight," Lily said, hoping to prolong the inevitable (packing) for a bit longer.

"Very well. Elizabez, can I `elp yoo wiz anyzing?" Ella offered as she placed Lily's suitcase and bag in the entrance hall.

"No, that's all right, I'll just alert the kitchen that we need something as far as refreshments go. I'll have a glass of wine though, in the living room. What will you have?"

Lily and Gwen trudged up the back stairs and to Gwen's room. They chatted while Gwen unpacked, and soon, the sound of thumping shoes was heard outside and Sirius, Remus, and James burst inside.

Lily jumped and turned. "Where's Peter?" she asked, brows furrowed.

"He said he had to spend time with his family," James said, shrugging as he sat next to her on the bed.

"Yeah, it's kind of strange, though," Remus said thoughtfully, sitting in a chair.

"Why?" Lily asked, leaning forward.

"Well, his family-" Remus broke off and looked at James and Sirius.

"His family is... well..." James said, trying to find the right word.

"Different," Sirius blurted, petting Cat the unicorn's head.

"How so?" Gwen inquired, putting a pair of boots into her closet.

"Well, they don't really act like a family is all," Remus explained. "They've never really been close, and you know, they all thought Peter was to be a Squib."

"Squib?" Lily asked dubiously.

"Yeah, it's a Muggle born into a magic family." Sirius said.

"Yes, and it was quite a shock to them when he got his letter," James said, "and his grades are so atrocious that they've never been very kind to Peter."

"Right," Remus said, looking thoughtful again, "And I've met his parents." He shook his sandy brown hair. "They aren't very nice. Rather stuck up. I'm surprised Peter has turned out the way he is, and he's not nasty like they are. I'm sure his parents are Death Eaters."

Gwen gasped and Lily winced. "Have there been anymore attacks lately?" Lily half-whispered.

"Yeah," James answered. "My uncle was at our house when I got there. You know, the frail one with the knobbly knees?"

"Yeah," Sirius said, looking interested. "What did he want?"

"My dad's not here. He had to go to the Ministry," James looked depressed.

"Well, you're used to him leaving, right? Being an Auror and all?" Gwen asked with concern.

"It's not the leaving part I don't like, it's what he has to do these days," James shook his head. "With Voldemort and his people growing strength..." he sighed and trailed off.

Lily rubbed his back comfortingly. "He'll be okay. He's the best Auror out there!" she said lightly, wanting to cheer him up.

"Yeah," James said, smiling slightly.

"So," Gwen said, searching for another topic. "Oh, Sirius, change please. I want Cat to get used to seeing dogs."

Sirius turned pale and jerked his head in Lily's direction.

"It's all right," she said, a bit upset that he didn't want her to know, "James told me."

"Then you know about…" Remus said in a low voice, not meeting her gaze. Everyone froze, their eyes on Lily.

"Yes, Remus," Lily said, hopping off the bed and into his line of vision. "And I don't care."

Relief spread through his features and Lily hugged him tightly. She released him, her eyes bright. "Yes, please do change, Sirius, I want to see if you're as big as James said you are."

"Okay," he grinned and shrugged, and turned into a great big, shaggy dog with a pop.

"Good Lord, you're huge!" Lily exclaimed, sinking onto her knees and scratching him behind the ears.

He licked her face and James sprang up. "No, bad dog, none of that!" he exclaimed, holding Lily and shooing Sirius. Gwen and Remus laughed, and Sirius placed a large paw up into the air in defeat.

"Come here, Sirius!" Gwen said in her baby voice, and he growled shortly. "Oh, but you are Gwennie's baby, aren't you, sweetums?" She kissed him smack between the eyes and brought Cat up to him.

The unicorn balked, the whites showing in her eyes, but Sirius just sat there patiently. After a while, they managed to get Cat to stand still and Sirius sniffed her. Half an hour later saw the unicorn permanently attached to the great black dog, and was very displeased when he turned back into a human.

"Ugh, unicorns smell so bland!" he said, rubbing his nose. "I mean, they even smell pure and white!"

Gwen rolled her eyes, smiling despite herself.

"Oh, Sirius, you are adorable!" Lily cooed, smiling up at him. "I like you better as a dog, no offense."

Sirius snorted. "None taken!" he said sarcastically. Lily grinned at him, and he grinned back.

Then, Giles the butler entered and told them to come downstairs for dinner. They followed him into the kitchen where everyone was clustered, minus Mr. Potter, around the counter eating pasta.

The rest of the night was spent chatting happily about the trip, everyone pointedly not talking about Voldemort and trying to cheer Katharine up, who looked on edge.

They counted down to midnight and then the adults shot confetti out of their wands, celebrating the beginning of 1977. Everyone Flooed home and Lily, promising Ella that she would unpack in the morning, well, rather, in a few hours, sank into her bed lovingly.

~*~*~*~*

The next day, Lily slept quite late and arose to a nearly empty house. She walked blearily into the kitchen, dressed in her dressing gown and pajamas, where Cookie was feverishly stirring something and trying to dry her streaming eyes. Lily stopped dead in her tracks. "What is it?" she whispered, afraid of the answer.

"Oh, oh Lily!" Cookie sobbed, turning to her.

"What happened?!" Lily asked, her eyes filling. "Tell me!"

"It's James-"

"What?!" Lily cried, grabbing onto the kitchen counter for support.

"No, James's father! Harry – h-he's d-dead!"

Lily felt as though a cement block had slammed into her. "No," she whispered, and then stood up quickly. "I have to go over there."

"N-no, dear, Ella t-told me t-to keep you here," Cookie sobbed, handing Lily a handkerchief.

"That's where she is then, right?" Lily said, exiting the kitchen, Cookie trailing behind her.

"Yes, Lily, but Ella said-"

"No, I don't care, I'm going. I love James, and he needs me. I'm going," she said shortly, climbing the stairs to her room.

"Very well. I knew I wouldn't be able to keep you here," Cookie said, sighing and walking back into the kitchen.

Lily hurriedly grabbed her Floo Powder and yelled, "The Potter's!" clearly. Seconds later she emerged from the grate. It looked like a terrible mess. People were running around, many of them crying; she saw many people she knew, but not the one she desperately wanted to find. She saw Katharine, who looked as if she was experiencing pain beyond words; and she spotted Gwen who was crying by herself.

Lily made her way over to her best friend and Gwen saw her they wordlessly exchanged a long hug, and then she pointed upstairs. "Maybe he'll let you in," she croaked, gesturing to Sirius, who had Celeste in his arms, Remus, and Peter, who all looked helpless.

"Has he isolated himself?" she asked as she hugged Sirius tightly. It unnerved her to see tears pouring down his face.

"Yes," Gwen choked as Lily hugged fourteen year old Celeste, Remus, and finally Peter, before straitening and walking up the stairs.

She turned right and stopped in front of the first door. She braced herself before turning the knob. It was locked. She knocked, and then distantly heard a, "Who is it?"

"James, it's me, Lily."

When she didn't hear footsteps, she turned to go, but the door opened before she could take a step. Lily entered cautiously, and then spotted James in the corner on the floor. She closed the door quietly and padded over to him. He looked up at her, his young face etched with grief, and her will to be strong for him burst. She sank to her knees next to him and flung her arms around his neck. James didn't respond to her embrace. Lily leaned back and looked at him. He was staring dully at the wall across from her.

"James, I-" she began, but her voice faltered. She leaned against his chest. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to sit this out with you, and I don't care if you don't want me here. I don't care if you sit here for weeks. I'm going to sit right by you the whole time."

It was a long time before he said anything. Then she heard him say, very quietly, "Thank you."

She smiled slightly and looked at him. His warm brown eyes were trained on her. She suppressed a shudder and hugged him again. This time, his arms went around her tightly and she could feel him shaking with sobs. She began to cry as well, and they sat there for a long time, holding each other tightly, until Lily, exhausted from crying and the events of the day, fell asleep.

~*~*~*~*

Lily stirred and opened her eyes. She was in a strange room and it was getting to be dark outside. She sat up quickly, and went to the door and opened it. She was at the Potter's, but why...

Then she remembered. Harry Potter was dead, and she had fallen asleep in his grieving son's arms. She walked down the stairs and into the living room. Ella, Mrs. Watson, Katharine, Gwen, and Celeste were sipping tea very morosely.

Lily walked over to Katharine, who looked as though she had no more tears to cry, and hugged her tightly.

"Lily, get some tea, dear," Mrs. Watson said, gesturing to the table. Lily made herself tea and sat in between Celeste and Gwen.

"How long have I been asleep?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"A few hours," Celeste answered. "You were in my room, in case you're wondering."

Lily nodded. "Where's James?"

"Playing Quidditch with Remus and Sirius," Gwen answered, a hint of exasperation in her voice.

"Oh. Will you direct me to the Quidditch pitch?" Lily asked, setting her tea down and standing.

"Outside the back door and to the right," Katharine answered quietly.

"Thank you," Lily said, following her directions. She was glad to feel the cool evening air on her face, and hugged her ski jacket closer. The Potter's lived in an all-wizarding neighborhood called Godric's Hollow, so their Quidditch pitch was not indoors. Instead, it opened into the night sky. She entered the stadium to see James and Sirius whizzing around with Remus as a spectator. She walked over to him. "Hi," she said quietly, sitting next to him.

He started. "Hi. You're awake," he said just as quietly.

"Yeah," she whispered, staring up at the whizzing blurs. "How is he?"

"Well, I doubt he will be 'fine' for a while. He and Sirius are just venting for now," Remus answered, also watching.

"Mhm," Lily agreed, wincing as the two boys shot towards the ground and then rose steeply upwards.

Sirius spotted her and landed next to her. "Hi Lily," his normally very dark brown eyes were black, and had lost their sparkle. "How are they in there?" he gestured to the house behind him.

"Drinking tea in the living room," Lily replied, tearing her eyes away from the speeding blur that was her boyfriend and looking at Sirius. "You?"

"I'm – well," he struggled, and finally said, "better than he is."

"Ah," Lily said, looking back a James. He turned in her direction and landed on the other side of her.

He swallowed and looked up at the starry sky. "Lily, will you come with me for a ride?"

"Of course," she responded immediately. She walked over and sat on the back of the broom, fastening her arms around his waist. He took of gently, and Lily immediately remembered how much she liked to fly. She shut her eyes, her lashes wet on her cheeks, and relished the sensation.

"Where are we going?" she called a few moments later.

"You'll see," he answered back.

Soon, they were descending and landed on a rock that overlooked a lake. Lily stepped off of the broom and James leaned it against the rock behind them. "Oh James," she breathed. "This spot is gorgeous."

He half smiled and sat down, pulling her into his lap. "Lily, I…Thank you."

Lily's brows furrowed and she looked back at him curiously. "For what?"

"For being with me. For not leaving me," he answered quietly, drinking in her appearance.

She smiled slightly. "That's what I'm for. I would never leave you."

"Please don't," he said, his voice raw with emotion.

They sat in silence for a while, until James broke it. "Lily, I love you."

"I love you too," she answered.

"And I want to be with you for the rest of my life. Don't interrupt me, or I won't get this out." James said, and Lily obediently closed her mouth. "I know that we will get married one day, because you are the only one for me. I'm not proposing, even though I have the ring – I want to save that for later. But Lily, when we're married and your pregnant with our child, if it's a boy, can we name him – can we name him Harry?" His voice broke at the end.

Tears began making their way down Lily's cheeks. She kissed him softly, tasting the salt from his tears and hers. She pulled back and smiled tenderly. "Of course. His name will be Harry Potter. I promise."

~*~*~*~*

*sobs hysterically* Okay, review, please. *sniffles*