Disclaimer- All of the potterverse characters and magical themes in this storybelong to J K Rowling, without whom i couldn't have had so much fun writing this fanfic. Go Jo!

AN: Ok, so this is the final chapter. I'm so sorry that it has taken solong to write this concluding paragraph. It's been a long, jam-packedfew months, where i've had much to do and to adjust to, and i've been waiting for the perfect inspiration to complete this. I hope this final chapter lives up to your expectations. I know it hasn't met mine fully, but i thought it was about time that i delivered on my promise to finish this. So here it is. Please read the story as a whole now and give me some positive feedback.Your encouragement may result in me writingof asequel to this fic :). This chapter is deditacted to my Grandma and to Chemz- are you happy now? Haha. Thanks to everyone who has read this fanfic and found some enjoyment in it.

Chapter 9- Beauty on Fire.

"What the hell are you thinking, Lily?" James demanded.

It was now late in the evening, on the day that Lily had announced her resignation as head girl. In a week, Alesha Mignon would take up the role. She was a cold-hearted, Slytherin prefect, and Lucius Malfoy's on/off girlfriend.

"I will not let you do this," James continued. "Not only do I refuse to work with a Slytherin like Alesha, but you're good at the job, Lils. Why quit?"

Lily paused for thought before responding. "I can't function under these conditions, James. I can't be around you 24/7. I need space and as long as I'm living in these dorms and carrying all of these Head's responsibilities with you, how can I ever get away?"

"So you're reverting back to disliking me again?" James asked. "I should have known that our friendship was too good to be true. You know, it's a real shame, because I thought we could have been great friends. Best friends if you'd only give us a shot."

"I did give you a shot!" Lily confessed, angrily, "And it didn't work. Things are different between us now James, but they're not better. I care more about you now then I ever did before and that makes things harder- too hard."

"What do you mean?" he asked. He was clearly confused. How could her caring for him and his friendship be a bad thing?

"Let's just call it a personality clash or something," Lily simply stated.

"Well, I disagree," he retorted. "I think out personalities compliment each other."

"Well then, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree."

James sighed in frustration and headed off to his dorm room. Lily on the other hand, sighed out of relief; Relief that he hadn't sussed out exactly why she was pushing him away- the fact that he was perfect for her and she couldn't have him.

The next morning, things were no less awkward. Sat in the Great Hall for breakfast, James moodily sipped his pumpkin juice. Lily was still avoiding him, having gone down for breakfast before he left his bedroom, presumably in an attempt to avoid any more confrontations. His looked over to her, to see that she had barely eaten anything, and the joke that Rachel was telling didn't appear to be funny at all to Lily. Looking towards Malfoy, his soft stare turned to an angry glare. What he would do to make that scum pay for what he'd tried to do to Lily, for what he might one day try again. Trying to forget his anger he turned back to Lily and continued to stare.

"Cut it out Prongs," Remus said. "Staring at her won't change anything. And stop scowling at Malfoy. Remember what Lily said and don't get involved."

"I know, I know," James replied grumpily.

Sirius piped up at this moment and said, "Seriously mate, let it go. Evans said you shouldn't get involved. However, she said no such thing to me. If you want I can teach Malfoy a lesson for you."

James thought about this proposition for a few seconds and responded. "Nah, it's ok Padfoot. Don't bother. If you did something to him, Lily would somehow link it back to me."

"Well if you change your mind…"

"…I know where to find you?" James finished.

"Yep," Sirius confirmed.

"I think I'm just going to talk to her again and make her answer me truthfully. There's something she isn't telling me and I need to know what it is."

"Good luck James," Remus said sympathetically. "You're going to need it. Getting Evans to open up when she doesn't want to is like getting blood out of a stone. Luckily you're both as stubborn as each other."

Lily was quietly studying that evening when James returned from his Quidditch practice. It wasn't long until the Christmas holidays and she wanted to make sure that she was well on top of her homework. Unlike the last time she'd encountered James after his Quidditch practice, he was freshly showered and prepared to find out the truth behind her hostile behaviour. Surprised by his sudden appearance she gathered her books together and prepared to head to her room.

"Wait," James commanded.

Lily stopped suddenly in her tracks and turned slowly to face him.

"I've got a lot to do, James. Can it wait?" she asked awkwardly.

James looked annoyed. "No, it can't wait," he responded.

Worried, she quickly said, "Well it will have to."

She began to walk briskly towards her doorway, longing for the sanctuary of her bedroom. Noticing this, James ran ahead of her, effectively blocking the doorway. Lily just sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. Have it your way. What do you want?" she asked.

"I want to know why," James stated.

"Why what?"

"Why you really don't want to talk to me anymore," James elaborated.

Lily was getting annoyed now herself. "I told you before," she began, "It's a personality clash."

"One so severe that we can't even work together anymore?" he asked.

"Pretty much, yes," Lily answered.

"Well, you know what?" James started, "I disagree. And maybe I should be the one who's resigning. Why should you have to do it? After all, you're the perfect head girl. Why should the school suffer because our 'personalities clash'?"

"What? James, don't be so stupid. You're better at this head stuff than even I am. The school will be much better off with you then me. I'll resign," Lily said, trying to stay calm.

"Will the school be better off giving Alesha more power in this school then she already has as a prefect?" James retorted.

Lily sighed and said, "Maybe not. But she can't be that bad. Maybe she'll change under your positive influence, or something. Anyway, students respect you more than they do her. She can't possibly cause that many problems."

James continued, "You'd be surprised what she's capable of. We all know what her boyfriend is capable of. Look what he nearly did to you."

At the memory of Lucius' attack on her, Lily began to tense up a little, tears forming in her eyes.

"I thought I told you to drop it, James. I'm ok. He didn't do anything," she explained.

The look in James' eyes was almost possessive and he frowned in concern. "But do you think that will stop him from coming after you again?" he asked.

Just thinking of Lucius Malfoy leering at her and grabbing her again made her visibly shake.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I just want to protect you. Why won't you accept my help?" James urged.

"Because I don't think I need it. I can protect myself," Lily argued.

James saw that his attempts to show concern for her were pushing her further away and so decided to head back to his earlier attempts to persuade her to stay on as head girl.

"Listen," he began, "you're perfect as head girl, whether you can see it or not, and this school needs you."

Lily started to blush at James' compliments. It was true that she loved her role in the school, but not at the expense of James' position as head boy.

"Maybe I am good at the job but your so confident all of the time. You make being head boy look easy you're so good at it."

"Well, you're really smart. Without you we couldn't have generated half of the ideas that we did for the Christmas Ball," he replied.

Lily looked annoyed. "Yeah…well that was all down to your creativity and passion to make it the best," she paused, "the best night ever."

Once again tears had gathered in her eyes as she remembered James and Laura kissing, the image that had imprinted in her mind ever since that night.

"No, you're wrong again. It was your imagination and your hard work that got that night to be…to be perfect. Look, I'm not going to stay in the head position if you're not with me. I'm not going to work with Alesha. Do you really want to subject the school to that girl?"

"I have to do this, James," she responded.

Again, she attempted to walk away from him but before she could make it two paces he grabbed her wrist into the tight grip of his left hand.

"Will you quit trying to walk away from me?" James demanded.

Lily looked a little unnerved but managed to respond, "Let go of my arm!"

"Promise to listen to what I've got to say," he commanded.

"Ok," she agreed and he loosened his grip slightly before dropping her arm.

"Lily, the school love you. You're so strong and compassionate. They need you. Alesha is vermin and she'll be the worst head girl this school has ever seen. Why settle for the worst when we can have the best? I'll resign," he concluded again.

Lily was really trying to hold back her tears. It was heartbreaking to witness James' attempts to selflessly help her out. She really didn't deserve his affections and couldn't let him do this for her. After all, it was her own fault that she couldn't be around him anymore. She was the one who had pushed him away for so many years, the one who had hurt him countless times, treating him like a bug in her hair.

"You're the popular one, James, and not to mention brave. You're a born leader and that's what this school needs. You see the best in me when often there's nothing good to see. I may have made some positive change in this school since I became head girl, but that's only because I'm working with you. You're the reason we work so well together," she finished.

James looked a little confused at Lily's conflicting arguments.

"You say we can't be friends or see each other as much as we do at the moment, because we 'clash'," he began, "but then you make out that I'm the best head boy the school's ever had…"

"James…"

"Please, let me finish," he continued, "If I think you make the best head girl then how are we different. How could we possibly clash? You just admitted how well we work together, yourself."

"Well, you must have misunderstood me then," Lily retorted. "I simply meant that you make me the best head girl."

With that said, she tried to make a run for it. James, not missing a trick, made every effort to stop her reaching her door. He managed to block her with his arms, his hands pressed firmly against the wall behind her, to either side of her face. The first tear slid down Lily's cheek as she sighed in frustration. She leaned back against the wall, preparing for his next attack.

"Look, Lily. I know that you've been keeping something from me. What's the real reason you don't want to be around me anymore? What did I do?" he inquired sincerely.

Lily let a small sob escape her mouth as a few more tears flowed from her eyelids.

"It's you…it's you who doesn't want to be around me anymore. You were my friend, we did almost everything together, and then you…you and Laura. And I…" she stopped unable to say anymore.

"I was only with Laura because I thought…I mean…I couldn't be around you all of the time. I was…well, I was worried that I'd do something. Something that would spoil our friendship and I didn't want that. I was worried that you'd realise I still had feelings for you. It looks as though I managed to spoil it anyway. I'm sorry," he explained.

Lily sighed deeply and looked at him, slightly bewildered. He had still liked her when he'd been with Laura. He'd broken it off with Laura in pursuit of salvaging his friendship with her, but she hadn't allowed herself to hope, until this moment, that perhaps he still liked her, as he once had. Under his penetrating gaze she started to feel uncomfortably warm. The feeling dramatically increased when he whispered, "Why Lily? Why'd you push me away?"

She slowly let her eyelids close as more tears fell, and swallowed deeply.

Keeping her eyes tightly shut she whispered back, "Because I love you."

A few seconds passed and then she allowed her eyes to open. James had the most surprised look on his face, tears having appeared in his own eyes. His gaze moved from her eyes to her lips. He gently moved one palm off the wall and placed it against the soft skin of her right cheek.

Before Lily could even register what was happening, James moved in for the sweetest, most tender kiss she had ever experienced; a kiss that left her feeling weak at the knees; a kiss that conveyed so much love and understanding; a kiss to beat all kisses, and as Lily hoped, one that would mark the start of many more.

THE END X