A/N: This is a repost of Chapter Four – I was too eager to post, and made some dumb mistakes. Thanks to all who are reading my silly little story, especially these two reviewers, who read it before I had a chance to fix my errors and as a result may have lost their reviews from the list.

Celi:

Poor Lily...:-/
I'd like the end of this chapter, he really has style! big smile

ThelovelyladyLily:

This chapter was funny and so true, you capture us Lily/James writers to a T. It's funny, I was planning on using some of those plotlines as well, and that was even before I read this! I wish there was more than one chapter left, this is a funny story and it is also helpful. Post soon

CHAPTER FOUR - The Girl is Won

"So do we tell her or what?"

It was a beautiful autumn morning, and James and Sirius were on their way to Hogsmeade to meet Lily. Their mates Remus and Peter were walking ahead with their dates. Sirius had plans to meet three different girls later that afternoon, but James reckoned he would be too busy reliving his time with Lily to concentrate, so he hadn't made any other plans.

"Tell who, what?"

"Tell Lily about Thomas, of course."

"James, I hate to be the one to tell you this…Actually, no. I don't. I rather like it! You sound like a girl, mate! Who cares what we saw Lily's git of a boyfriend up to? It's not like we haven't been in the same spot once or twice ourselves!

"I know, only I don't want her to be hurt."

"You're making me ill, Prongs. Seriously. It is inevitable that Evans will get her silly little heart broken, as we all knew from the day those two became a couple. Get over it, and quit ruining my day!"

"Fine then. I'll just…play it by ear."

Just then, his own ears began to get very red. The boys had just entered the Three Broomsticks, and as his eyes adjusted to the dim room, he saw Lily waving and smiling at them from a booth in the back.

"I can't believe all of the time we're spending on this silly book, but it is rather fun, isn't it?" She prattled cheerfully as they slid into the semi-circular booth, one on each side of her.

"It was much more interesting when she was writing about me, but the faces that the two of you make are entertaining enough, at least until noon, when I have to meet Deena Wilder – three butterbeers, love," said Sirius, interrupting himself to wink at Rosmerta as he gave their order.

"Sophia Romano."

"What, Prongs?"

"You meet Deena at 4:00pm at Zonko's. You meet Sophia Romano here, at noon, and Lucie Whitmer at 2:00pm behind Gladrags."

"What are you? His personal secretary?"

"It's a service we provide for one another," Sirius said smoothly, as he finished thanking Rosmerta for the drinks and poured Lily's for her. "Think of the broken hearts if we should mix up our dates, not to mention the inconvenience for us. There you go, Lils."

"Don't call-Oh, never mind. I don't care anyway. Really though, Black, three dates in one day? How many do you have Potter? Four, Five?"

"No, I'm free after you and Sirius leave."

"Oh." Lily looked confused for a moment, and then brightened. "Why then, you can help me! Thomas had to stay at the castle – detention with Flitwick. Something about sneaking out after curfew last night, can you believe it? So I thought I'd buy his Christmas present today, only I don't know anything about Quidditch and he wants a new…"

"Oh. Merlin. Will you please stop babbling? I have to meet…"

"Sophia."

"Thank you James. -Sophia in an hour and a half. Enough with the preliminaries. Let's get down to business."

"Alright, Black. Don't get your knickers in a twist. May I have the book, James?"

The Girl is Won

This all-important chapter will help the story move into the climactic scene in which Lily and James become a couple. Now that barriers have broken down, sexual tension has built up, and secondary stories have been established, it is time to bring everything to a head.

Arguably the best time for the climax of the story to occur is around Christmas. Christmas is a good time because school isn't in session, and the characters can be placed in many exciting situations. Some of the most popular are:

1. The whole group of friends stays at Hogwarts. Ample opportunities for hilarious hijinks (snowball fights, etc) and puppy love ensue. If the Slytherins stay also, the author can add pranks and a battle between Slytherins and our heroes without teacher interference.

2. Everyone goes home – If Lily and James become a couple before Christmas, Lily can take James home to meet the family. However, while Vernon and Petunia are always fun, it is probably best to wait until Easter (unless there is a funeral – see #3). It's a little early for James to meet the family if you've spun out their relationship realistically.

"Who are Vernon and Petunia?"

"King and Queen of the muggles. Or they will be, once they get married. They're my sister and her fiancé. They are not fun. This Daisy Pennifold has obviously never met them. They'd be evil, if they weren't so boring."

3. Someone's parents/other close family member dies. This can be family of a secondary character, or if the story is a bit darker, the parents of the hero or heroine. (Lots of opportunity for good comforting time, cuddles, etc.) If it is the parents of, for example Lily, James's parents are usually already dead, and he is the only one who can understand her pain. This works both ways. Also, if it is Lily's parents, there can be a confrontation between Lily and Petunia, causing the falling out that we know happens later on. Petunia can blame Lily for the death of their parents, as it is her fault that Voldemort is aware of their existence.

4. The Potters throw a party at their manor for Christmas or New Year's Eve, and James invites all of his friends. After much seesawing, Lily decides to go, providing many romantic opportunities. In darker stories, Voldemort and the Death Eaters often crash the party, giving James a chance to rescue Lily. If he is injured, so much the better for the story, as Lily will feel compelled to nurse him back to health, maintain a constant vigil at his bedside, etc.

"Oh, that's nice! Now this bird wants me mortally wounded! Remind me to take her off my Christmas card list."

"Not to mention the fact that our parents are dead."

"Don't worry, Prongs, Lils will nurse you back to health."

"Don't hold your breath on that one. Anyway, since you all flunked that Dark Arts exam last week, it looks like I'll have to save you."

"Well, we were tired," James defended, as Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Up all night studying, I suppose? Black, you passed out with your nose in your inkwell!"

"We were up all night, love, but hardly studying," Sirius smirked. James raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"How sweet! I didn't know that you two were a couple! Now be real here… let's see…possible animagi, your best friend is a werewolf, and the test was the day after the full moon. Hmmm…what could that mean?" Lily pretended to ponder the situation as the boys' faces changed from crimson to ghostly white.

"Evans, you aren't going to tell anyone, are you?" Sirius's voice was low and urgent, and James had little beads of sweat on his forehead. He kept patting his hair down nervously over his brow.

"No, love, I'll keep your little secret. After all, if …uh, you two are together, who am I to interfere?" Lily winked, but pressed Sirius's hand in a reassuring manner at the same time.

"Where were we, anyway?" James hastily grabbed for the book, but Lily smoothly slid it towards herself, and began to read. A slight smile played on her face as she noticed the boys' worry subsiding.

All other relationships should be formed and flourishing by this time, although you can use some petty bickering or "Three's Company" style hilarious misunderstandings to draw out the story longer. This is especially easy to do with Remus and his girl, as he is usually reluctant to tell her that he is a werewolf, but because all four of the boys tend to keep secrets from their girls, any couple can be used in this capacity. Valentine's Day is a good time for make-ups to happen.

The Argument

At this point, the friends can actively step in to help Lily and James get together. This can add a lot of comedy to the story, as the friends usually manage to make things worse for James as he pursues Lily. Even if Lily is starting to come around, there is usually a plan gone wrong that makes Lily very angry. The resulting argument, however, is a very important plot point in any Lily/James story, if you are attempting to make the story true to canon in regards to their characters.

James is typically portrayed as a laidback, easygoing guy who dislikes arguments, and worships Lily so thoroughly that he will say anything to make her happy. Lily, conversely, tends to be fiery and argumentative, and rather bossy. In this climactic argument between them, James needs to finally lose his patience with Lily and say something that she absolutely can't argue with, because James is so obviously right.

At this point, Lily is completely thrown off course in her feelings for James, because he makes her see something about herself or about him in an entirely new light. This makes her spend a lot of time alone or with one good friend, talking through her emotions until she finally realizes that she cares for James. She will also be devastated when she becomes aware that James is actively avoiding her, and she will discover how much she values his company.

James will be slightly angry at Lily for being so obtuse, but he will actually be terrified that he has damaged their friendship beyond repair with this argument, and avoid her simply so that she won't be angry with him any further. This misunderstanding on his part will do more to further his case than anything else.

Inevitably, Lily will force a confrontation between the two, typically somewhere private (the initial argument is often quite public, such as in the common room). After the misunderstandings are cleared up, the first kiss generally occurs.

"I have been waiting so long for this part."

"You can be such a berk, Potter."

"Really Prongs, cool off. I want us to finish this before I meet Lucie."

"Sophia."

"Right."

The Kiss

The Kiss is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of any Lily/James story. No matter what your reviews say, this is the event that your readers are waiting for, and the description needs to be just right. Nearly every single kiss (and this is not limited to Lily/James fiction, it goes for Hermione/Snape, Draco/Ginny, and just about every other pairing as well) is described using one or more of the following phrases, seen here in italics:

"Wait a minute."

"What now, Black? I thought you wanted to finish this."

"Evans, you just read 'Hermione/Snape'. Does this author want us to believe that some bird will actually snog Snivellus?"

"Is Hermione even a girl's first name? It seems kind of odd to me. Maybe it's another last name."

"Maybe Snape named his pillow."

"Maybe – "

"Maybe we could keep reading?"

"Right, Evans. Prongs, stop interrupting."

1. James rushed to Lily, capturing/caressing her lips with his own.

2. Lily began to protest, but James covered her mouth with his. She was too startled to pull away, and without realizing she deepened the kiss.

3. James started to walk out of the room, but a small sound from Lily made him turn back to face her. Her eyes shining, she reached up to touch his face, fireworks exploding as their lips met.

Yes, these are remarkably redundant and trite, but guaranteed to give good reviews. By no means should you keep the details of the kiss completely private, (such as Harry's kiss in OP) because this is, after all, primarily a romance story. Some stories get quite graphic as descriptions can get out of hand, and the author should be careful to rate his/her story accordingly.

After the kiss, Lily usually feels exceptionally guilty, especially if she is still with her boyfriend. This is a good time for her to discover his character flaws and for the break up to occur, although allowing him to dump her after finding out about the kiss is a fun twist.

In the final chapter, "The Relationship", we will see the characters through to the end of the school year, including the maintenance of sexual tension between the characters, a final showdown with various evil characters, and set up for the future.

"Only one chapter left. How sad."

"I think I'll manage to live without it. What was with that part about the kissing and Thomas dumping me?" Lily had very red cheeks as she slammed the book shut.

"Inevitable in my opinion." Sirius dodged Lily's upraised hand just in time, and said with relief, "And there's Sophia! See you tonight, kids."

As he left, James turned to Lily with a hopeful smile on his face. "Do you still want me to help you shop for Thomas?"

"Uhh, I don't think so." Lily rose from the table, expression stony, all color gone from her face. She marched over to where her boyfriend sat, feeding candies to Sabrina Devore. James hurried after her, in case he was needed. He looked around for Sirius, but he had already left.

Lily crossed her arms and glared at the two. "Wow, Thomas. Your detention looks really brutal."

"Uh…Lily! Uh…Flitwick let me out early! I was just looking for you when I ran into Sabrina here." Sabrina smiled coquettishly up at Lily, then winked at James standing behind her.

"Sure. Let's just end this little farce now, OK? I could make a big scene, but I don't think I want to give you the satisfaction. We both know who is the bigger fool here." Lily coolly turned, and quietly walked out the door. Thomas started to get up, but a firm hand on his shoulder forced him back in his seat.

"Why don't you just stay here, Mallon? I think you've done enough damage. Besides, why would you leave the lovely Miss DeVore stranded here alone?" James kissed Sabrina's hand before strolling out the door after Lily.

"Man, I can't stand that guy!" Thomas glared at the table as he shredded candy wrappers, trying to ignore the smirks, catcalls, and applause that followed Lily and James out the door.

"I know, darling, but you have to admit he has style." Sabrina leaned back in her seat and smiled to herself as she slowly sipped her drink.

Thanks to Phineas Nigellus in OP for this awesome line. He is the coolest Slytherin of all, in my opinion.