A/n; Ok, I promised no more sad chapters (for the meantime) and I think I'll keep my promise! Again, thumbs up to my readers! Lets push for 200 reviews, ok?
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With Misty's death slowly fading out of the picture, life getting back to normal and school starting up again, Lily had a lot on her plate. There were those small occurrences of sleepless nights and a way to hide the fact that she and James were unofficially seeing each other, which needless to say complicated things a bit more.
Of course her friends (and his) suspected something was up: James hadn't dated a girl since before Christmas break and Lily seemed uncharacteristically cheerful around him.
"You're sure nothing happened over break?" Arabella asked Lily after lunch one morning. Lily was busy sticking some mints into her bag and pretended not to hear the question.
"You won't get anything out of her remember? She stopped answering it after we'd asked her over dinner last week!" Sabrina complained.
Lily smiled. Pretending to be blissfully unaware was the easiest task in the world.
"Ugh. Herbology. Could there be a more muddy, disgusting subject?" Sierra asked as they all walked across the grounds, coated with freshly fallen snow.
Happy they were off the subject of James, Lily piped up: "I like Herbology! It's so wonderful; it's like working in your own magical garden!"
"Not to mention those stupid plants bite you," Sierra commented sourly.
"That was your own fault, you forgot the fact they like to be sung to," Lily said in a lofty voice.
"Misty had a lovely voice," Arabella said completely off the topic. Lily sent her a death glare: anyone who ever mentioned her deceased friend made Lily shut up.
"Ooh you guys, hold that thought, I have to go ask Sirius something," Sierra said quickly and ran to catch up with Sirius, who was nearly at the greenhouse door.
Sabrina kicked a bit of snow up into the air, watching as tiny particles of it floated back down to the ground. "I wish it wasn't so bloody cold out here!"
"I know," Lily said with her cheeks red and her teeth chattering, "lets run. We've only got a short way to go!"
And the four of them, looking ridiculous holding their hair so it wouldn't mess up, ran all the way to the greenhouse and closed the door behind them. It was warm and slightly humid in the greenhouse, as they were studying Fwoopers.
Lily removed her cloak and scarf and set them neatly on her chair and went to go socialize before the professor came in. She didn't see James, much to her disappointment but he came in a few minutes later.
All the girls immediately put on their sugary sweet smiles and swarmed over to him like bees on honey. Lily rolled her eyes: even if she was 'unofficially' dating him, she couldn't get over the fact there were a lot of girls at Hogwarts who still thought he was available. James pushed past the haggle of girls, apologizing profusely and flashing off one of his 'incredibly charming sorry I gotta go' smiles.
"God, do you ever get tired of being Mr. Celebrity?" Lily asked grinning.
James shook out the snow in his hair, grinning as well. "Nah. You kidding? I love getting this many admirers!"
"Even me?" Lily asked.
"You're special Lily, you didn't have to chase after me," he said quietly, wrapping his finger around his favorite tendril near her face.
Lily's lips curved into a dreamy smile. "You of all people, should've learned your lesson a long time ago. Rule Number One of Falling in Love: never chase after what you want. Let it come to you."
"Who made up that rule?" James asked.
Lily shrugged. "Just a philosophy I've adopted."
"Guess we both got what we wanted," he said leaning in closer to her. Surprised, she pushed him back.
"What're you doing?" Lily asked looking at him as though her were crazy.
"I was… going to kiss you?" James replied confused.
"Not in public, remember?" Lily hissed, looking over at everyone else in the humid greenhouse to see if they saw anything.
"Lily, they're going to find out sooner or later," James said irritated. Why does she want to hide it any longer? James didn't know if he wanted to keep it secret for much longer.
"Just – understand that I have my reasons, ok?" Lily said apologetically.
James nodded mutely, his jaw set firmly. It was to be interpreted as his mad stance, as Lily had found out.
"Come on James, I want to tell people about us just as much as you do," Lily said trying to coax him into saying anything, "but don't you think we should wait a little bit?"
"What good will it do to delay the truth a few more days?" James asked.
"Look I just don't want to tell anyone right now. Can we talk about this later?" Lily said desperately.
"Sure," James said shortly and went to go sit down with Sirius and Remus and Peter.
Lily breathed out deeply, frustrated at this new situation. Sure, she wanted to exclaim to the whole world at the top of her lungs that she and James liked each other but what would they think? Her professors would probably die of heart attacks, her friends would tease her to no end and it'd be awkward as hell kissing in public in front of the whole bloody school.
"Morning class! Bit chilly outside, don't you think?" Short Professor Gallegos said, wiping snow off herself.
"Yes Professor Gallegos," the class said in a monotonous voice. Lily could feel herself starting to perspire in the warm temperature and put her hair into a high ponytail, rolling up her sleeves as well.
"Certainly is hot in here isn't it? Mister Filch must've been in here," Professor Gallegos said suddenly noticing the temperature.
"Like Hades, Professor!" Remus piped up.
"Thank you for your input, Mr. Lupin," Professor Gallegos said sternly, "you can remove your robes if you want. No one's going to see us."
(a/n; it's getting hot in herre… so take off all your clothes… haha)
Lily gratefully took off the heavy black garment and hung it on the back of her chair. It was the Gryffindors and the Hufflepuffs in Herbology today so the Hufflepuffs were dressed in their uniforms and the Gryffindors were wearing theirs.
"Mister Potter and Mister Black, would you please refrain from turning my classroom into a male strip club? Please just remove your robes and sit down!" Professor Gallegos said blushing slightly. James and Sirius were standing on their desks doing an elaborate show of taking off their robes. They sat down, but only after they'd thrown their robes to the gaggle of girls who happened to have flocked to their desks and two girls fought over Sirius'.
Lily rolled her eyes, irked. She was unofficially (that means MORE THAN not being his girlfriend) his girlfriend, yet he still acted like he was single and living it up. She made a mental note to tell everyone single person in the Great Hall at the next meal that James wasn't single.
"Well, thank you for heating things up a bit more gentlemen," Professor Gallegos said sternly, "if it gets any hotter, I'm sure Professor Dumbledore will cool things down. In his office."
James and Sirius high-fived each other once Professor Gallegos had turned around to get the class roster.
"Ok, ok. Settle down class," she said, "we're going to be working in groups today!"
"Hoorah," Sierra said morosely, flicking a piece of parchment off her desk.
"I've already assigned partners," Professor Gallegos said, accompanied by groans, "so I'll just read off your names and partners."
"I hope to God I'm partnered with Sirius," Sierra commented looking slightly more gleeful.
"Potter and McPherson." James looked over at a slightly nerdy girl with thick glasses. Sirius laughed and elbowed James hard in the ribs. The McPherson girl looked pleased with herself.
"Lethesine and Mason." Sierra groaned; one of the Hufflepuff Chasers was her partner.
"Evans and Black!" Lily was astounded and yet at the same time amused that the Professor had put them together.
Once all the names had been read out, there was a noise of great scuffling across the floors as people scrambled to get with their partners.
"So… Lily! We're partners!" Sirius said brightly.
"FanBLOODYtastic," Lily said in a bored tone.
"Aw, we'll have none of that! We're friends, right?" Sirius asked merrily, mussing Lily's hair.
Lily scowled and went up to Professor Gallegos to get their Fwooper. She sat down with the strange-looking bird (it's plumage was lime green.)
"Argh. Dad brought one of these home one time, got him from a shoddy owner. Wouldn't stop with his bloody song and it nearly drove us all insane!" Sirius said with a look of distaste on his face.
"Don't worry, it's got it's Silencing Charm on it," Lily reassured him.
"So what're we supposed to do with it?" Sirius asked blankly.
"Says on the paper we're supposed to study its eating habits and how it… survives in its surrounding environment," Lily said pointing to the parchment with notes written on it.
"Great! Um… you give it whatever the hell it eats and we'll just talk while it eats," Sirius said tossing the Fwooper some lettuce-like food.
"Great," Lily said unenthusiastically.
Sirius yawned, raising his arms above his head and stretching. "So… how've you been holding up?"
"Just fine, thank you," Lily said shortly.
"Just fine? That's good… you know, you haven't said a word about what happened during Christmas break…" Sirius said letting his sentence drop off suggestively.
Lily froze up for a minute. "Wha – where are you getting at?"
"Nowhere!" Sirius said inspecting his nails in an unconcerned sort of way, "just… wondering."
"It was wonderful. I spent a lot of time in the library reading some of my favorite Muggle books," Lily said with her teeth clenched.
Sirius tapped his nose knowingly. "And what else?"
"There was nothing else. I breathed some air!" Lily said irritated, "why do you want to know?"
"Lily! Why do you even ask me that?" Sirius mimicked being stabbed through the heart, "all I want to know is what happened to my best buddy over the holidays."
Lily began to wonder about her and James' secret relationship. "Did James say anything to you about vacation?"
"He could've…" Sirius said mysteriously.
"Out with it, Black!" Lily snapped.
"All he said was that you talked to him a few times during dinner and I, being the nosy little bugger I am, was wondering if anything else happened to you guys," Sirius said smiling.
"You're bloody impossible, you know that? You're like a bloodhound or something!" Lily said finding to her horror to be blushing.
"So I take it nothing happened?" Sirius asked, knowing perfectly well what was happening.
"Nothing. Happened," Lily said flatly.
"All right then!" Sirius said back to his usual chipper mood, pretending like nothing had happened.
The Fwooper had finished its first meal and Sirius was recording it down on a piece of parchment. While Sirius' back was turned, a note came flying onto their desk. Looking around to see who'd sent it, she picked it up cautiously.
Lily, it said in a fancy script. Intrigued, she opened it up.
Lils ~ (she HATED when he called her that)
Sorry if I've been giving you a lot to handle… I know you're still reeling about Misty. But Lily, I've got to know about us… and this is going to sound like some cheap, cheesy innuendo but would you mind meeting me at the Astronomy Tower tonight at midnight? I'd go somewhere else but that's the only place I know my friends won't follow me. Sick, isn't it?
James
Lily smiled, pocketing the note. Stupid bugger, trying to lure me up to the Astronomy Tower…
"Ok, the Fwoopers trying to regurgitate its last meal," Sirius said looking disgusted at the lime-green bird.
Lily turned around, looking disgusted as well. "Wait until it's done."
"Ew no! I'm not picking it up!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Ugh! How can you even suggest that I pick it up?" Lily asked in revulsion.
"Dump it out outside," Sirius suggested. The Fwooper was done with it's little… episode and was now trying to sing, which didn't go off very well considering the fact that he couldn't make any noise.
Lily gingerly took the tray with food on it and ran to the door, dumped the contents and ran back, dropping the tray with a loud clatter back onto the desk.
"Ok ew," Lily said emphasizing the EW.
"Yeah," Sirius said also looking nauseated.
"Professor Gallegos! We're done!" Lily said waving her hand around.
Professor Gallegos, who was making the rounds around the classroom, came over to inspect their work.
"Hmm… and he ate all of it?" she asked.
"Yes," Lily said shortly.
"All right! It looks like you did a wonderful job, lovely notes by the way Miss Evans," Professor Gallegos said smiling proudly at Lily and walked off with the tray and their notes.
"Lovely notes by the way Miss Evans," Sirius said, mimicking her in a high-pitched voice.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Sorry I'm perfect, Sirius."
Sirius laughed. "You're not perfect!"
"Oh, I so bloody am! Ask anyone!" Lily said in a fake arrogant voice.
Sirius stood up on his desk and immediately everyone's attention turned to him. James grinned up at Sirius and then looked at Lily, shrugging.
"Who here thinks that Lily Evans is Little Miss Perfect?"
Lily's jaw dropped, embarrassed. "SIRIUS BLACK! SIT DOWN!"
"Relax Lils… one, two, three, four – " he started counting hands.
Hot tears of embarrassment stung her eyes. "Sirius, you really don't have to prove that –"
"35!"
James looked a tad peeved as well and tugged Sirius down. "What the hell was that?"
"I was just wondering how many people thought Lily was perfect," Sirius said honestly.
"Stupid git," James said whacking Sirius over the head, "she's not perfect."
"And of course you'd know this," Sirius said winking.
James had to fight very hard to keep a straight face. Perfect, naïve, innocent Lily Evans wasn't so perfect, naïve or innocent as everyone thought.
"Well – I mean, I wouldn't but… come on Si, no one's perfect," James reasoned.
"True!" Sirius said brightly.
"Now go apologize to Lily for making that ridiculous comment," James said firmly.
Sirius gasped. "You think she was hurt by what I said?"
James hit his forehead comically with the heel of his hand. "Sirius, for someone who knows a lot about girls… we have to teach you more."
"LILY! I'm SORRY!" Sirius yelled running over to Lily and giving her a massive hug.
Lily looked positively mortified and tried to pry herself out of Sirius' death grip. "It's fine… but can you please stop trying to suffocate me?"
"I didn't mean to say it meanly! It was all a bit of fun," Sirius said with an apologetic smile.
Lily smiled back. "Hey, it doesn't bother me: I don't care if people think I'm perfect or not."
"Well, you kind of are – "
"SIRIUS!"
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Her watch read 11:45 as she slid out of bed, grabbing her cloak on the way. Lily's breaths came out in puffs of vapor as she hurried to get to the Astronomy Tower on time. Her slippers made no noise as she crept along in the shadows in between the dim lights of torches lit in the long corridors. She had brought along her wand… just in case.
Reaching the door of the Tower, she pulled the door handle open slowly. Creaking, the door swung open and Lily slipped in.
James wasn't there yet (or so she thought) but she couldn't see anything anyway.
"Lumos," she whispered, the tip of her wand glowing brightly.
"Lily?"
Lily shrieked slightly. "James? Bloody hell you scared me!"
"Sorry," he said with a smile. He was sitting calmly with his legs crossed on a chair.
"Why's it so dark in here? Doesn't Professor Sinistra keep candles up here?" Lily asked not bothering to notice why it was barely lit.
"Yeah, but only when she's got a class," James said.
"Oh," Lily said in a defeated voice, "so we're just going to sit here in the dark?"
"Sure, why not?" James said brightly.
Lily's teeth started chattering rather loudly and James could see her face out of the dim wandlight.
"Cold?" James asked.
"Just a little," Lily said shivering.
"Can I warm you up?" James asked in a perfectly normal voice.
Lily looked at him like he was crazy. "Are you trying to seduce me?"
"That depends… are you seducible?"
"Oh…" Lily said blushing furiously, "no, I don't think I'm easily seducible."
"Then we should work a bit harder at that, don't you think?" James asked with a sexy smile.
With a snap of his fingers (and Lily wondering how in the world he did that) the room was illuminated with candles.
"Wow," Lily said dumbfounded, "so this is what you practice in your spare time?"
James snorted. "Yeah, I practice snapping my fingers and making candles appear."
"Sounds fascinating," Lily said playing along.
"This room… once no one uses it, is me and Sirius' masterpiece," James said.
Lily raised an eyebrow. "It's quite nice… a bit cold for any snogging though, don't you think?"
"What, you'd rather go back to my bed and do it?"
"Stop doing that!" Lily said smiling and blushing even more.
"Stop doing what?" James asked innocently.
"Stop – dropping hints!"
"I think you're just taking my hints a bit too seriously," James said winking.
"If you weren't such a handsome git, I'd slap you," Lily said.
"Thanks," James said, "but in all honesty, seducing you sounds like a wonderful idea."
"In all honesty," Lily said repeating James, "I'm bloody cold and you still haven't told me why you wanted me here!"
James shook his head slightly, getting up from his chair and crossing the room over to where Lily was standing. He grabbed her icy hands and started to massage them to make them warmer.
"You're like an ice cube," James said softly in a half-joking voice.
Lily laughed quietly. "I should've brought mittens."
He brought his head up to look at her. She was watching his hands as they continued warming her chilled fingers with a concentrated gaze, chewing slightly on her bottom lip. Lily sensed he was watching her and her eyes shifted upwards. James loved her eyes: they were so trusting and warm (yet they could become stormy and passionate as well.) He'd never known any girl with so much spirit and fierceness.
"Lily –" James said abruptly.
"Yes?" Lily asked slightly startled.
"Oh, sod it," he said and kissed her. Taken by surprise, she nearly pulled back. He half consciously pulled her closer to him, his hands staying firmly on her waist. Her eyelids fluttered slightly, being this close to James… feeling him so near… she'd never felt this way before in her life. Feeling the kiss intensify, she opened her mouth a bit and let his tongue slide in. Lily entangled her hands in his hair, feeling the silkiness all the girls talked about. She had to give him credit; he knew what he was doing.
It was James who finally broke the kiss, after exploring every crevice in her mouth, because he was getting a bit short on breath. Lily stood there, gaping like an idiot, her lips red and swollen.
"Why'd you stop?" Lily asked with a pout.
"Had to – catch my breath," James said still trying to regain his breath.
Lily smiled, feeling his heartbeat start to slow down. "Do you always get this way after kissing a girl?"
"No Lily, you really knock the breath out of me," James said sincerely, capturing her lips in another kiss.
This went on for several minutes and eventually Lily forgot that she was cold. The minutes went ticking by, but for them time stood still. She sighed contentedly as she felt his warm lips move from her mouth, to nip at her earlobe and then traveling down her neck to the base of it. She grinned as he sucked slow and steadily on the skin there. And that proceeded to take a few minutes until he decided he was done.
"Uh… so I guess this means we're going out?" Lily asked stupidly.
"Guess so!" James said brightly.
"Great…" Lily said pausing, "this… feels… great…"
"I suppose it's always awkward at first," James said frowning a little.
"Oh, I'm sure," Lily said quickly.
"Well, we'd better get back to our rooms, they'll be wondering where we are," James said getting his cloak.
Lily nodded sleepily. She didn't realize how tired she was until just then.
"Oh! Right! I forgot to give you this," James said running back to the chair and grabbing a dark blue paper box. It said 'Gladrags Wizarding Wear' in gold on the front.
Lily looked up at him, suspicious. She slowly lifted off the top and to her amazement; the beautiful shimmery gray dress robe she'd seen and adored lay neatly in the box.
"Oh, James," Lily said in an awed whisper, tears of happiness welling in her eyes.
"I know you've wanted that robe for a while, so… Merry Belated Christmas, Lily," James said.
"I – I don't know what to say… except thank you so, so much," Lily said quietly, kissing him on the cheek.
"It was no big deal," James said shrugging, "I mean even though they were sold out of that robe the day I went in to purchase it and I had to ask them to specifically make one which meant I had to pay more money for it and it had to be specially delivered to me –"
Lily laughed. "All that for me, eh?"
"You're worth it," he said shrugging.
"Thank you," Lily said, "you've made my life more bearable these past weeks."
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Hahaha… cliffy. Sorry, but ok, it was probably really predictable that he would've gotten her the dress robe… but I had to make him get them for her! It was so cute… and the story doesn't end here… prepare yourself for the most shocking plot-twist – aw never mind you've probably figured it out by now =) R/R!
~IceAmethyst