Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or the characters which you recognise in this story.

A/N: Wow! Thanks you guys for the reviews!! *mwah* *mwah* I really enjoy writing this story now, and I'll hopefully be updating quite regularly but no promises cuz I got loadsa homework and revision to do!! Anyway, don't forget to review!!

Never Love Again

Chapter Five: Unexpected Company

James stirred in his sleep as a crack of sunlight crept through the slit in the curtains. He had no choice but to open his eyes, though rather reluctantly. An unfamiliar sense whirled around him and he glanced at what it was that was making him ache.

He smiled as he saw Lily resting, well sleeping, next to him. Actually, she was sleeping on top of him. Although Lily wasn't very heavy, bearing a normal person's weight on you all night was considerably strenuous.

James let out a small groan, but this was enough to wake the sleeping angel lying on top of him.

"Huh? Where am I?" her voice murmured dreamily, her eyes were still closed.

"Well, you're on top of me for one thing," James replied, amused.

"ARGHH!!"

Lily had just realized she was sleeping on top of James Potter. She had quickly jumped up, which had caused James to groan loader, since this had caused more impact to the ache he already had.

"I'm sorry!" Lily said apologetically.

"That's okay," James said smiling, "though, you know, you sure weigh a lot!"

Lily looked indignant and folded her arms across her chest.

"I DO NOT!"

James chuckled at her cute attempt to look mad.

Lily's glare softened when she saw James laugh and she didn't have the heart to be angry anymore, so she too joined in with the laughter.

James broke from his laughter when he suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, what day is it Lily?"

"Um. . . Saturday, why?"

"Good! It's just I remembered that it was a Hogsmeade weekend!" James exclaimed while he got lost in his mischievous thoughts for a while, dreaming about all the pranks supplies they needed, before he drifted back to reality. "You're coming right?"

Lily's face fell. In the previous Hogsmeade trips, she was always alone, except for the devil of despair, who always accompanied her, making sure her life was miserable as miserable could get.

"I don't think I can actually, I've got loads of homework to do," she said uncomfortably and suddenly she found the specks of dust lying on the floor very interesting.

James glanced at her, confusion occupying his mind. He knew she was lying since they didn't get any homework yesterday, and that was the first day of school. (a/n: apparently September 1st was on a Friday that year!)

"Lily," James began, "If you don't come, Sirius, Peter and Remus are gonna miss you!" he finished cutely.

Lily smiled, glad that he didn't ask her why she was lying.

"What about you? Will you miss me?"

Her response took James and herself by surprise. James gulped, and blushed while trying to think of what to say.

"Aww is our lil Jamesie getting embarrassed?" she said teasingly.

James grinned at her, and his charm immediately came back.

He smiled at her handsomely, while adding, "Of course I'll miss you."

Lily smiled. She had seen him use his charm against other girls in the past, but had never expected him to ever use it on her.

She smiled flirtaceously and continued to play the game.

She moved closer to James, so that their faces were only centimetres apart, her face resembled a sly vixen.

James gulped, the liquid slithered slowly down his Adam's apple and his breathing hastened before he remembered that he, was one of the most popular guys in the whole school. A legendary marauder. No one beat him at this game, he thought contentedly.

She winked at him, seeing him ponder, but James stood up to make his move.

"You wanna play dirty? Bring it on!" James whispered huskily.

Meanwhile, he placed his hands on her cheeks, and enclosed her face softly, staring intently in her eyes. He had to bend down slightly since he was much taller now that he was standing. Lily's heart began to race but calmed down when she saw his eyes were sporting a mischievous glint.

She took his hands off her face and intertwined them with hers. Then, abruptly she pushed him back down on the sofa.

He sat up, amused at what she was going to do next. Lily was also wondering the same thing, but refused to show any signs of defeat.

She smiled seductively and James returned the same smile. Next, she positioned herself softly on his lap and tilted her head back so he could see her smiling face.

James smirked, and spun her around so she was facing him; their eyes were locked once again. Both were entranced in gazing at each other's features: the perfections and the flaws.

Their faces no longer displayed signs of competitiveness, but were filled with passion and tender. James leaned in . . .

"So this is what you've been doing all night!" A voice said behind them.

A yawning Sirius appeared on top of the stairs, sporting a playful grin.

Lily immediately moved away from James' face, her usual innocent expression replacing her passionate one.

"We weren't doing anything!" She said, slightly embarrassed and discomforted.

"Sure sure!"

"NO SERIOUSLY we weren't!"

Sirius glanced at James and James caught his eye, they seemed to understand each other and soon James was returning the same smirk Sirius had on his face.

"Lily, it's okay, but I've got to say, I always knew there was something going on with you two!" Sirius said, smiling handsomely.

Lily shot daggers at Sirius while trying to convince him, which she found was not a successful approach.

"Look, you can ask James!" She said suddenly, her smile returning.

They turned to James.

"C'mon baby, they had to find out some time!" James said lightly.

Lily glared at James, while he just shrugged and tried to look casual. Lily was just about to clamber off his lap, but he was too fast for her. He held her firmly in place and smirked.

"Since well now I know-" Sirius began.

"Know what?" another voice interrupted from behind him.

"Oh morning Remus!" Sirius greeted.

"Yeh morning! And morning to you to James." Remus said, casting a curious look at the two on the sofa.

James waved and Lily smiled at Remus.

Remus caught Sirius' eyes like James had done and he was promptly informed about everything through just a simple stare.

"So what's going on with you two?" Remus asked, smiling.

"NOTHING!"

"A lot!"

They both replied in unison.

Remus put on a face of confusion, though he knew perfectly well what was going on inside.

"Well basically, these two were here all night, and they've been um.. yeh, but Lily trying to convince me otherwise," Sirius pretended to explain.

"So, you two were together all night?"

"Yes, but-"

"And you say nothing's going on when you're sitting on James' lap?"

"Yes, but-"

Lily's voice was exasperated and her expression was desperate.

To everyone's surprise, James took Lily in a heart-warming hug. Lily, who was really confused didn't protest.

"We're only kidding," he whispered softly in her ear.

His soft breath tingled in her ear, but she liked it.

Lily snuggled closer to James and rested her head on his shoulder. She smiled and for one second she hoped that the world would just stop, so their hug could last forever.

But you know the saying, good things never last.

A voice broke the sweet silence and Lily pulled back from the hug to see where the voice came from.

. . .

"I'm hungry!" Sirius wailed.

They all laughed and shook their heads at him, while smiling appreciatively at each other. Their eyes filled with immense bliss and all were glad that they were blessed with such incredible friends.

***

"Hurry up and eat Wormtail!" James directed.

They were in the Great Hall and eating breakfast.

"Chill man, we're not gonna be late," Sirius said reassuringly.

Peter quickly threw all the food left on his plate in his mouth, and began chewing like mad.

Remus sighed knowingly. He knew James was anxious to get to Hogsmeade; it had been a long time since they explored the village (because of the holidays) and Sirius had been ever so subtlety hinting about getting some more prank materials!

James eyed Peter as he took a long gulp of water, while Peter felt self-conscious.

He said he was done, so they all scrambled off, led by an eager James.

***

"Ahh, there's nothing like a tongue twisting toffee sundae!" Sirius said while licking his ice cream with pleasure.

"What is it with you and food anyway! We just had breakfast!" Lily said, laughing.

"Well, I'm a growing boy, I need lots of food!"

Peter snorted.

"I think you've past the growing stage," Peter said smirking.

Sirius pretended to glare at him, before stating another reason, "Fine, I'm the best player on the Quidditch team, so I need all the food I can get to keep up with this fine body!"

Lily laughed.

"You don't believe me?" Sirius said seductively.

"Well, we'll see my friend!" Lily said, flirting innocently.

"Hold it!" Remus interrupted. "If you keep talking Lily, he's gonna wanna strip right here!"

They all laughed at Sirius, who had already turned back to his sundae, pretending not to have heard Remus.

"You okay James?" Remus asked. "You've been really quiet."

"No, I'm fine Moony. I was just thinking."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Nope."

Then he smiled to show he didn't mean it in a bad way.

Remus understood, for he was the analytic one in the group and usually didn't pry in his friends' businesses if they didn't want him to, though most often than not, he knew already.

"Hey, shall we go to Zonkos now?" James asked.

Sirius who had just licked clean the cup the sundae had came in, looked up, shouting, "YES!!"

James grinned at his friend. The one who was in many ways so similar to him, yet in many ways, so different.

Just before they were about to leave, an unexpected visitor joined the table.

"Hey guys!"

"Uh, hi Scott." Peter said unsurely.

James and Sirius' faces showed the same expression: utter hatred.

"Hello Mager." Sirius pronounced in an icy tone.

Lily glanced at James and wondered why they were so angry. Even Remus looked disdainful.

"Uh, we were just about to leave," Peter spoke, rather quietly, and rather scared.

"Oh, where are you going? Maybe I'll join you!"

"Maybe you won't." James said in a hostile tone, matching Sirius' completely.

He got up the same time as Sirius did, and Remus stood up about a second after, followed by a frightened Peter, who scrambled off his chair so fast, he knocked it over.

Lily was uncertain of what to do, but she was friends with the marauders, and she guessed there must be a reason for their dislike of this guy. But dislike seemed to be an understatement.

Before she could rise, Mager's eyes had already diverted to her.

"Hey, aren't you Lily Evans?"

"Yeh I am."

"I heard about your family, I'm so sorry." Mager said sincerely.

"Oh, um, thanks."

Lily felt unsure for a while and didn't know what to say. She knew that this Scott Mager was a guy in their house and in their year, but apart from that she was pretty clueless.

"Lily, let's go." James said quietly, though his voice was demanding.

"Well I guess I'll see you later then!" he said, flashing her a smile.

Lily returned the smile half-heartedly and left with the marauders.

James, Remus and Sirius were silent all the way to Zonkos and Peter kept sneaking glances at them nervously.

Lily didn't feel in the right place to intrude on their matters, so she walked quietly, humming to herself, trying to free herself from the scene they had just encountered.

When they reached Zonkos, everyone wasn't in the same mood as they were in the morning. A one too familiar atmosphere of dejection to Lily, filled the space around them, making it hard to breathe.

"I don't feel like going in. Sorry guys." James said, stopping at the door, expressionless.

Sirius and Remus nodded in understanding, feeling quite the same way themselves, but they still had to stick with the plan they had made earlier.

"C"mon Peter, let's go in. Lily, why don't you and James go somewhere else. We're meet you back at school." Remus said orderly.

James smiled at his friend, which was all the thanks Remus needed.

~~~

"So where d'ya wanna go?" Lily asked.

"I don't mind really, how about over there," James replied, pointing to the welcoming forest ahead of them.

"Sure!"

Once they entered the forest, their minds emptied out, while their free spirits soared about. It was a refreshing feeling, which both James and Lily needed.

"This feels so great!" Lily said, smiling, while inhaling the mixed scents of the wild flowers.

The sky was a clear blue, and the trees were of an earthly green. Flowers blossomed at every angle, while wild creatures hid behind the moving bushes, showing small specks of their wondrous fur. Their surroundings were perfect, magical in a magical way.

"Um, Lily, I just wanted to apologise for how everything was back at the ice cream parlour," James said.

"Oh. No it's fine," Lily said softly, "But maybe you could tell me why?"

"Um, sorry, I'd rather not talk about it"

Lily felt a bit crestfallen, she thought they trusted her, but she respected his privacy, and nodded to show she didn't mind.

Meanwhile they spent their time unleashing their inner selves in the great outside.

At one point they were sitting on a branch on a tall tree, watching the sun set. Brilliant shades of red, and pink covered the sky, painting an incredible picture.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Lily said dreamily, having seen nothing so beautiful before.

No reply.

"James?'"

No reply.

She turned her head and saw that James had disappeared.

"JAMES?" she called louder, starting to get worried.

She heard a small laugh and looked up to see a grinning face countless branches above her.

"That's not funny! You had me worried!"

James didn't reply.

"James? Are you okay?"

The grinning face had now disappeared. She waited patiently for a reply.

"Hey come up, it's amazing up here!" a voice called.

Lily looked hesitant, she wasn't the best climber, but didn't want to let James down. She balanced herself carefully and began climbing.

James was watching her, hidden behind a branch, studying her every move, making sure she didn't get hurt. One time, a branch flung back and hit her square in the face.

"OW!!"

James laughed hard, which caused Lily to glare at him.

They were now only a few branches away, but Lily was already exhausted.

"You had to choose the highest branch, didn't you?"

"Well, you know me, I like a challenge!"

"A challenge for me more like," Lily muttered.

"WHAT? I didn't hear you."

"Oh, I didn't say anything."

"Are you sure?"

"YES, I'M SURE!"

"Positive?"

"Yep." Lily said, getting annoyed.

"WHAT?"

"I SAID YEP I AM POSITIVE!"

"You absolutely sure?"

"JAMES!"

"Okay, okay, I'm just kidding!" James laughed. He had heard what she said from the beginning, but liked to tease her.

"Okay, there's only one branch left, hurry up!"

"Easy for you to say! You're taller than me, you have longer legs, so you can climb quicker!"

"That's the worse excuse I've ever heard!"

Lily glared at him.

"Fine, I'll help you," he shot out his arm, "here take my hand"

Lily narrowly missed his touch, and began to wobble.

"ARGHH! HELP!"

James immediately leaned further and grabbed Lily's hand.

But just then, Lily lost her balance and dragged James down with her.

They were falling so quickly, none of them had enough time to mutter a spell.

They landed with a massive thud, which cause a couple of birds to fly away in terror.

"Ow!" Lily groaned.

"Shouldn't I be the one saying 'ow', you on top of me!"

Lily grinned sheepishly and got off him.

"And for the second time today!" he added.

Lily grinned, before changing the subject.

"So what did you want to show me anyway?"

"Well, nothing really, I just wanted to see you climb!"

Lily couldn't bear to be mad at him, since he had suffered most of the fall, so she just laughed along with him.

"Shhh, did you hear that?" Lily said abruptly.

"No, what?"

"It's some kind of creature I think,"

"Great!" James said sarcastically.

They traced the noise and followed it and it led them to a hurt creature.

"Oh my god, look!" Lily said, pointing at the hurt fox that was trapped on a metal catch.

James saw the creature, and his heart melted. He proceeded to the creature, and asked Lily, "What is this thing anyway?" indicating to the metal trap.

"Oh, it's a Muggle trap used to capture wild animals," Lily explained.

James was about to touch it, before Lily warned, "NO! Don't touch it, it will only get tighter."

They pondered for a while, before Lily suddenly gleamed.

"I know just the spell!"

With a wave of her wand, the metal clasp opened, but the baby fox remained in its position, whimpering.

"We need to find it a home," Lily said tenderly.

A few minutes of silence crept by.

"Oh I know!" James said excitedly. He knew just the place. He and Remus had discovered it on one of their adventures during the full moon.

James led Lily who was carrying the fox to a small hut further along down the forest.

"Great, this is perfect!"

They used a spell, to bandage the fox's hurt leg and sat down in the cosy hut, cherishing each other's silent company.

After a while, Lily broke the silence.

"I think we should name it!" she said excitedly.

James looked at her weirdly, before replying.

"What? Name a fox?"

"Yeh! Why not!?"

James shrugged, thinking Lily was the strangest girl he'd met, but he loved how she had a zest for anything or everything.

"Okay then, any suggestions?"

"Well, we need to know if it's a girl or a boy first!"

"Oh it's a boy," James said.

"How do you know?"

"Just trust me, I know!"

Lily looked at him, wonderment displayed on her face.

"Fine, okay, how about John?"

"John! That sounds so human . . . and old!" James teased. "Besides it's only a baby, we should give it a cuter name!"

"Now look who's enthusiastic!"

James shot her a mock glare, before thinking of a name.

"How about Marvin?"

Lily stifled a giggle.

"James, it's not a wizard you know!"

"Fine, you think of something!"

"Um, how about Ken?"

"Yeh, all we have to do now is find a girl fox and name her Barbie," James spoke sarcastically.

Lily glowered at him, "You think of something!"

"Harold."

"Harold?!" Lily repeated uncertainly. "Nah, too old, how about Harry!"

"Hmm. . ." James wondered.

"Right! Harry it is then!"

James didn't have enough time to protest, and he thought the name was okay, so he agreed, "Harry it is!"

They played with Harry for a long time, making a fuss over him, and laughing when he made a cute face.

Time flew by like seconds, and soon it was getting dark.

"I think we should go back now," Lily said to James who was still playing with the fox like an excited little child.

"Huh? Yeh, actually it is getting late,"

He put down the fox, reluctantly and made sure it was comfortable on the table. Lily smiled at this.

"You really are unpredictable, you know?" Lily said smiling

"How d'ya mean?"

"Oh, it's just I would have never thought that you would care-that you could love-I mean like-"

"That I'm a sweet person inside," James finished for her, stating it as if it was a known fact.

Lily smiled. "Yes exactly! Though you're not very modest!"

James grinned, "Well, no one's perfect!"

Lily stared at the boy in front of him; she contradicted his words in her mind, he was perfect to her.

***

"Hey you two are a bit late aren't ya?" Sirius said.

Lily and James had just arrived in the common room, two hours past curfew. Sirius was sitting in an armchair near the fire, while Remus was reading a book next to Peter.

"Yeh, something came up," Lily said, not wanting to share the miraculous time she had spent with James with anyone. She hoped he wouldn't either. She like the feeling of having something that belonged only to him and herself.

Sirius and Remus smiled, they knew it was something good.

"I'm really tired, I think I'm gonna go to bed," Lily said, while yawning, "I'll see you guys in the morning!"

"Night."

"G'night."

Lily passed James on the way, and whispered in his ear, "Thanks for today, I had a great time!"

James smiled at her, and watched as her shadow was consumed in the darkness

~~~

Lily flopped on her bed, truly exhausted from their adventure.

She felt something for James; she felt that he was someone very special to her.

Then The Voice spoke and questioned her, are you falling in love? Lily wondered if she was. You don't want to do that again, remember the pain! Pain child, can you handle the pain again? It spoke sternly.

Lily's eyes burned with tears, the pain. It tore her heart in pieces, could she let that happen again?

She tried hard to convince herself, saying that James was different from her family, but her family had caused such an effect on her that it shadowed her from others.

She came to her decision.

No. I can't let this happen.

A/N: I wonder what will happen! Hehe.. well, please review and I'll update asap!

Luving you guys for all da reviews! Each and everyone of them mean a lot to me! Thanx! xx