Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish readers and Happy December!

So... you'll never believe it... but my words got away from me! So this is now the second to last chapter before the epilogue :) Hope that's okay. I wasn't going to write another smut scene, but then realized another one would very nicely help show their evolution, but SERIOUSLY, it's the last one for this story ;p You've been warned.

**Also disclaimer, I don't agree with Lily's thoughts and she's not my mouthpiece, just want to make that super clear — she's her own baddie.

ALSO: This story has been nominated for FIVE JilyAwards on tumblr *dances for an eternity* and that's just really fucking cool. Thanks guys ^.^

Guest: I love that you're invested and LOVE that I can still keep you on your toes this many chapters in! :D missck: Yay! Whoooo knows what just happened ;p Poor Remus indeed, he didn't deserve any of this :( Guest9: Yes. Yes he did! O.o Haha about it leaving you unable to chat about anything else! Yup, and his very first witch murder too... Guest: Me too :( Alas. It had to end sometime... siiiiiigh. Thank you! atthetouchoflove: Yayayayay! I love throwing out twists! And yes, she totally did him dirty :( Lexiscribbles: sdiofjadsijfa! Haaaa to reading this on the train and having to contain yourself ;) I don't know why, but knowing someone is reading my story on the train is like oddly romantic to me, probably because it's so European, and everything is sexier in Europe, LOL. (Watch. You're not even in Europe, since basically every country but America has trains...) Anyway. Cheers! Nina: You know we love the DRAAAAAMA! So dark of her indubitably ;) I mean, turning a dark mark into something else takes the work of two geniuses, SO IT IS HOT. Definitely no biases detected here :D Euphie was awful and I'm glad she's gone! (Good boy, James!) Ooo, so I'm gathering you think Dumbly dies. Interesting interesting... And you know it! Dark love never dies ^.^ Ranila12389: Oh no to bad feelings :( But yes! I'm glad James got humanized a little bit! Obviously it's not an excuse, but hopefully it's a bit of an explanation! shivani: Ready to think about something else? ;) Not sure if I'll help in the suspense department though :/ BuzzKilldrin: The most serious! Well. I guess the threesome was the most Sirius. Hardy-har-har :D TanglledThoughts: :( Remus. The true victim of this story :'( Yes! I thought I was so clever with the name of that law, haha. She really is the most evil! Thank you! ferfeita: :D :D :D I LOVE THAT! :D cscs01: Can't blame Remus at all :( He's like the only sane character left! Lol. And yepppp... the Hat did want her in Slytherin after all :) OMG, can you imagine if she'd have come in while they were shagging? *Barf* And yes! That is exactly the reason. They just call him Elf, it's completely a lack of caring. Umbridge equivalent for sure...! No Azkaban for him, he's too smart for that ;) annabellestiles47: Go James forever! :D Moon'zelle: He isn't wrong! That's the most heartbreaking part :( And yeaaaaa, ppl always write her as perfect! I figured it was even more startling to put that image of her on its head that way ;) Don't be a mess! Be HAPPY! :D Breanie: Damn right back :* Herdawness: He DID! Dianne: It wasn't how he should have found out, but then again, she never should have done it to him in the first place either! Poor guy :( Hahahaha, they never stop having sex. Like bunnies. Extremia indeed! And the way I'm ending things, there IS a possibility, but I'm not writing it! So I guess that's more of a hint than anything ;) Funbunnypotter26: He did chose torture over her friendship :( But... I think rightfully so. What she did was unforgivable as a friend! They DID have a marathon (good for them, haha) It was the final straw, and his DE side definitely came out. I think it was good for Lily to see that switch in him too. She saw it and she understood him instead of running away. (Progress!) AND I TOTALLY AGREE! I have a little line like that myself, bc villains ALWAYS give themselves away by being so chatty, lol. Cold never bothered us for sure ;D Love fics: Woot woot for surprises! And haaa, I mean, I think you're right: it is sweet in their own little fucked up bubble ^.^ Thank you! Nerwenn: Crazy is the word for it :) Ha, and how they were all casual proves Lily's point to Remus that it really WAS just sex, but still. That doesn't help. Haaaa, a happy little foursome. You know, theresthesnitch is actually writing that!? :O But no, sadly (or good for him?) Remus is too much a beacon of light in this fic to go bad... so bye bye their friendship :( Oh, and I love that about James. Haaaaa he just can't be anything other than HOT :D Heehehe. Yeah, sorry about not writing the animagus scene. I have this thing where I don't really want to write the same specific scene twice, even in separate stories, and I did an animagus scene for Whatever You Say, Professor so that's why :/ Sorry as a reader. Yay for hating her right away! Lol. What she did to James truly was so unforgivable. Thank you! Shaniso: Yes! Her and Walburga totally are besties ;) And I'm only too happy to challenge :D Interesting, interesting. Spoiler: they can't :( Domestic house bliss at its finest! ;) Hopefully no nails were harmed while you waited! Emerald Doe: Rut roh for what you hoped for :/ Hopefully you can forgive me... or James. (More importantly!) theresthesnitch: :'( And haha, I don't know if I can ever write a parent walking in on their child (I know you did!) because I can literally imagine NOTHING MORE HORRIFIC and I think I would break into hives just plotting it out! LOL. Nope, nope, NO! *monkey covering eyes* He DID take care of the problem O:) chefdaa: Haaaa, yep. That's the kind of character development I wanna see! ;p Cheers! pottinglilies: /3 :( Poor baby Remus. I concur. He's the real victim. Yes! You and Shaniso agree that those two would be beastly bitchy besties! No trolling for that one... she gone gone ;) Thank you! Lunane: Remus got the short end of the stick :( The only voice of reason... And don't worry, I was wrong. We still got another chapter now, haha

Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry Potter. Art work by the super talented blvnk-art (tumblr) aka potterbyblvnk (insta)

Song: Dangerous Woman by Tom Evans

The Ascension

Unfortunately for Lily, the rest of winter holiday didn't go quite as awesomely as the first half had. After Lily had finished packing up her belongings that were strewn about James' room, he had come upstairs to collect her and silently Disapparated them to his cozy little cottage in a town called Godric's Hollow. He'd placed her bags in the master bedroom, grabbed her face for a fierce kiss, told her to wait for him, and then left with a loud pop.

It had gotten dark by the time he'd come back. His boots were covered in soot and he looked absolutely exhausted, refusing the soup Lily had just made in favor of going straight to sleep. Lily had no idea how to help and hoped he would feel better in the morning.

He didn't.

Right after dawn, Sirius stormed in through the Floo, positively yelling his head off, calling for his best friend, and engulfing him in a massive bear hug as soon as he found him half risen out of bed.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again, you massive git," he exclaimed, muffled into his shoulder.

Lily gathered from the rest of the conversation, still half asleep herself, that the Potter estate had burned to the ground and it was all over the papers that morning. Two bodies had been found, but not yet identified.

"It's okay, Pads, it's all right. I'm right here," James had soothed, hugging his best mate back.

"The article said two bodies, Prongs. It said two…"

Sirius barely left their sides after that. The Aurors later reported that the bodies belonged to the lady of the house and her house-elf, and they ruled that it had been a politically motivated arson. Lily got the feeling that the Aurors hadn't put too much work into the case considering the victim was a woman whom they had tried to arrest twelve years prior and had caused them nothing but grief with the terrible policies she'd helped spitefully implement ever since. 'The Lily Act' died with her as her vote had been the deciding one, but Lily still watched Euphemia become an overnight martyr for her party. This wasn't over. The anti-Muggle-born laws were only just beginning… unless someone put a stop to them.

She knew that they could be that someone. Together.

It was this knowledge that kept Lily from regretting practically asking James to kill his own mother with her mind. It was what had to be done. And not just because Lily didn't like her (after all, the woman was a frigging monster, so really, they'd been doing the world a favor by getting rid of her). Euphemia had simply been too dangerous to keep around — not only for Lily, but for both of them. For our future. That Lily was now the only woman in James' life was a happy side effect.

James would get back to being his usual self again soon — he has to — he just had to get over having murdered his first witch. From all the evidence Lily had seen, Euphemia had been an abuser, both emotionally and physically, and those people needed to be stopped by any means necessary. Lily really wished James would stop beating himself up for having defended them and having the balls to do what was right.

Two people mailed Lily in the wake of the fire: Remus and McGonagall, although she supposed the latter had just never stopped owling her to begin with. Remus wrote her a succinct little note saying, 'Are you okay?' Lily had spent an entire day pouring over a reply, agonizing over every little word and detail, but he never responded. She supposed that her writing back had been proof enough of her continued existence, which was all he wanted to know. She also finally opened one of McGonagall's letters eventually, curiosity getting the better of her, much to the exhausted owl's infinite gratitude. It looked as though her professor really, really wished to speak to her in person, but Lily figured she could just wait until she returned to Hogwarts for that.

The rest of Lily's time was spent trying to cheer James up, but so far, nothing seemed to work. She also wasn't crazy about how he had to go to more and more meetings for Voldemort the closer the new year got, his forearm always burning so acutely, but she knew the routine at this point. Every morning after he was away, she avoided The Prophet like it was the plague; some things were just better left unseen. There was no point upsetting herself with the nitty-gritty details of his life as a Death Eater, especially now that she knew there was an actual point to all of this.

"Lily… you're alive," one of her roommates said dumbly as she stepped into her dorm room in January, dragging her trunk behind her.

"Yeah," she shot her a skeptical glance, "why wouldn't I be?" She opened her stuff and magicked it all into its correct drawer.

The girl looked at her other roommates for help, all of them staring at Lily like she was a ghost. "Um, just the articles I guess."

"Interesting." Lily kicked her emptied trunk under her bed. "And yet no one here owled me to double-check, eh?" She hadn't been surprised, and truthfully, she hadn't really cared. If she'd heard a rumor that any of them had died that break, she wouldn't have lost any sleep over it.

Smoothening out her skirt, Lily left for McGonagall's office without a backwards glance at any of the girls awkwardly gaping in her wake.

She knocked on her professor's door before entering, really just wanting to get this over with so the woman would stop stalking her. "You wanted to see me, Professor?"

McGonagall looked simultaneously startled and thrilled. "Yes, please, Miss Evans, have a seat." She eagerly pointed to the chair in front of her desk. "Would you like a biscuit?"

"No. And I'd rather stand," Lily responded stubbornly, interlocking her fingers behind the small of her back.

"Very well," McGonagall said, determined to stay unruffled as she too got up to her feet to match Lily. "I'd like to start off by offering you the most heartfelt of apologies."

Whoa. Well, Lily hadn't been expecting that. "Apology, Professor?"

"Yes. Only recently has the prophecy Dumbledore has been acting upon come to my attention — and as a woman, I must say I was absolutely mortified."

Her face looked sincere, but Lily knew her actions spoke otherwise. "As a woman, but not as an Order member?" Lily questioned.

McGonagall's posture faltered slightly. "I beg your pardon?"

Lily pushed on. "You said you were affronted as a woman, but you are still a member of the Order, are you not?"

"Well, of course there are some—"

"So you couldn't have been that mortified, could you have been?" Lily tilted her head slightly to the side, scrutinizing her former mentor's every move.

McGonagall was getting a little flushed. "Miss Evans, certainly you must understand that in the grand scheme of things—"

"Someone like me's autonomy doesn't matter."

"I never said such a thing!" McGonagall bristled, her hat nearly trembling off of her head. "I'm merely pointing out that we all have our part to play in this war. I cannot let my own personal feelings for certain matters cloud my judgement of the movement as a whole."

"I suppose not all of us can so easily turn off our emotions, Professor," Lily said with a note of finality, starting to turn around.

That was when McGonagall truly showed her hand. "Lily, wait—!" The use of her first name actually stopped Lily in her tracks. McGonagall continued more softly, desperately, "It's not too late you know. To come back." Lily looked over her shoulder and noticed a few grey hairs framing her teacher's face that she hadn't seen before. "Whatever he has on you, whatever reason you're staying with him… we can protect you." The lines around her mouth deepened. "You can always come back. We—" she must have clocked the twitch on Lily's face, because she amended, "—I want you back."

Lily snorted. Unbelievable. They'd thought she was an idiot while they were using her for a fake mission, and they still thought she was an idiot now that she'd gone off and made her own informed decisions about what to do with her life. They thought she was an idiot for loving James. She doesn't see any possible way that I could be with him if he weren't blackmailing me.

McGonagall's use of emotional warfare — trying to tug on her heartstrings and softer side with the quiver of her voice, the motherly glint in her eyes — wouldn't sway Lily anymore. She wasn't the girl she used to be; she was stronger and smarter and no longer so amenable to manipulation. Lily saw right through this woman — the memory of her in the infirmary that faithful interrogation was an impossible one to forget. "Goodbye, Professor."

Lily snapped the door shut behind her, feeling like she was truly closing a chapter in her life.

It took a few more weeks for James to return to his usual mood, and no one was more excited about it than Lily. Although, his sullen yet menacing aura did have its perks while it lasted, she had to admit. It had been a little too fun to walk down the halls with him, hand in hand, and watch all her peers part like the ocean for them, gossiping and staring as though they were strolling by in slow motion. No one had ever wanted to fuck with James, period, but when his eyes glowed gold the way they did while he was still recovering, emitting both power and wickedness? Yeah — literally no one else stood a chance. Lily couldn't lie, people looking at her with respect, even if it was laced with a hint of fear, felt good.

But now that he was back to normal, they felt like a team again, an indestructible unit, and the world was starting to feel like their stage, all lit up for them and them alone.

"You know, for your birthday," James whispered to Lily after he'd dragged her behind an ancient tapestry on the third floor, "I was thinking we should go somewhere tropical. Just you and me on a beach. How's that sound?"

Truly anything sounded amazing when James was breathing it into her neck as he loosened her tie, but this especially so. "You mean like we're gonna Apparate to the southern hemisphere?"

James pulled back a little bit, giving her a cocky 'What, like you've never done that before?' grin. "Sure. Pick an island. Any island."

Lily only groaned, pulling him back up against her, wanting to feel his body push her into the wall as tightly as possible. "Fuck, you're so hot."

James chuckled but heeded her urgency for him, breath warm on her throat while his fingers nimbly plucked open her buttons. "Duly noted, but I still need a destination."

Lily shrugged off her shirt and threw her arms around his shoulders, practically hopping onboard. "Surprise me."

He picked her up, kissing her roughly. "Whatever you want, baby. Always whatever you want."

Although he was back to normal, mostly, Lily couldn't help but notice that James had gotten a little more paranoid, or perhaps just protective of her, but she wasn't quite sure why. I mean, sure, his mother had threatened to kill her, but… she was gone now. So what gives?

The day before her birthday, Lily had woken up to a new dress that James had bought for her, and she hadn't been able to wait to show it off. Obviously, this meant she was going to classes breaking school uniform, but it was nearly her birthday her last year of school! She figured she was allowed to live a little.

When Slughorn approached her in the hall, looking ready to reprimand her, she was prepared to have to use her charm to get out of trouble, but out of the blue, Mulciber had walked up to stand right behind her, cracking his knuckles. The move was so random and just, well, obvious, that she nearly laughed at his complete lack of tact.

"Miss Evans, I think you know what I'm approaching you to talk about," Slughorn began a tad unsurely, eyes flicking between Lily and the fourteen stone man shadowing her.

Lily smiled ingratiatingly, flipping her hair back, all but showcasing her midnight blue minidress. "You were about to wish me a happy early birthday, Professor?" Another line, another sickening crack of knuckles. Honestly, he better watch it before he gives himself arthritis.

Slughorn patted his belly as he laughed. "Always a clever one, Miss Evans, so so very clever." He threw one more furtive look over her shoulder as he leaned in. "Only this once because it's your last year." He gave her a fatherly wink before shuffling away in a hurry.

Lily spun around, ready to grill Mulciber. "Okay, spill. Did James put you up to this?" she asked.

Mulciber looked at a loss for words — but slightly more so than usual. "What do ya mean?"

"You've been tailing me for days between classes. What's up with that?" Mulciber opened and closed his mouth like a guppy for a few seconds before Lily took pity on him. "He asked you to keep an eye on me, didn't he?" He looked so pained that Lily put him out of his misery. "It's fine, don't deny it, I know it's true, but just tell me why."

Mulciber shuffled awkwardly side-to-side and Lily understood what the problem was: he didn't want to be disloyal to his master, but he also was a dumb person who didn't know how to lie effectively. "Ugh—"

"It's okay. Just if you don't tell me, I'll have to tell James that you were failing at your task, and that I felt very unsafe today, and then who knows what he'll do in retal—"

The panic couldn't have read more clearly on Mulciber's face. "Potter heard what happened with Malcolm in the halls," he supplied hastily.

Fuck. Okay, so that was something she'd probably have to deal with. She was pretty sure that she'd seen the kid walking around that morning, so he wasn't dead yet, but still. It would probably be a good idea to check. Potter had been able to cover his mother's murder with a fire, but Lily suspected it wouldn't be that easy with offing a fellow student in school. Although, if Malcolm gets killed, he'd only have himself to blame. Lily hadn't told anyone about the whole spitting incident, so it was only his gossip that had gotten around school, and was now causing both of them grief.

"He didn't want to step on your toes, and imply that you couldn't take care of yourself, but he also didn't want you to get hassled anymore. He only asked us lads to keep an eye on you."

"You lads?" Lily clarified. "Like… all of the Death Eaters?"

Mulciber nodded. "Yeah."

"So why have I only noticed you?" Mulciber's blush answered her question. Right. Because he's the only one who's really bad at it, just like with memory charms.

"Please don't tell him," he begged. It was amazing how a man who could have passed for a half-giant suddenly seemed reduced to a prepubescent boy. "He gets so mad sometimes, and I don't want to—"

"Don't worry, I won't throw you under the bus. Thank you for telling me, Mulciber." He nodded frantically, looking thankful. "But I'm gonna need a favor from you in return for my silence."

Mulciber took on a serious face, making him look slightly constipated. "Of course. Name it."

"I need you to give James and I the room tonight — from you and everyone. I don't care how you do it, but I want James and I to be the only two people in your room at midnight. Do you think you can manage that for me?"

"Of course… Li—" he fumbled, clearly not knowing how to address her. "Of course. I'm on it."

"Thank you, Mulciber, I appreciate that." Lily gave him a genuine smile before she slipped off to class.

"So I heard something interesting today," Lily chimed that night in James' room as he was stripping from his Quidditch kit. Miraculously, they were alone.

"Did you now?" James asked, throwing his jersey into his laundry basket.

"Uh huh." Lily made herself comfortable on his bed, stretching out her legs before crossing them at the ankles. "I heard you have your friends stalking me in order to keep me safe."

James froze, eyes narrowed with one hand in his hair. "Who told you?"

"Mulciber."

James let out a big exhale as he rolled his eyes, his spine bending backwards with the force of his frustration. "Fucking hell. They weren't supposed to tell you. That guy can never do anything right."

"What did you expect, love?" Lily giggled, linking her fingers behind her head. "He can barely spell his own name, of course he's not a master of espionage."

"Fuck," James sighed as he pushed off his trousers and joined Lily on his bed, flopping down onto his stomach. "So. Are you mad?"

Lily's eyes trailed from his shoulders, down his chiseled back, landing on his narrowed waist. "Depends. How much are you willing to grovel?"

James chuckled, leaning in and grabbing her chin. "For you? As much as you want."

Lily smirked as she jerked out of his grasp and closed the gap between them herself. "That's what I like to hear." She kissed him and waited until he groaned at the way she swirled her tongue before pulling back. "So why'd you do it?"

"Lils," James whined, trying to catch her mouth again in order to keep going with how beautifully they'd just been snogging, but Lily only pulled back farther. "You know why."

"Nah, explain it to me," she teased. "Explain it like I'm some hapless ingenue who needs you to do everything for me."

James growled frustratedly. "That's not fair, and that's not it." He readjusted himself to his side, and she mirrored him so they could fully stare at one another. "I know you can handle yourself, it's everyone else I'm worried about."

"Oh really?" Lily taunted.

"Yes," James doubled down. "I heard the rumors about Malcolm—"

"Rumors, you say?" Lily teased.

"Yes, and—"

"Baby, you know you can't trust those," she interrupted with a sly grin.

"Okay, so normally I'd agree, but—"

"Like did you know I heard a rumor the other day that you used your Cloak to go down on me in the middle of class?"

James looked half frustrated that she was clearly diverting the conversation, but half really curious about where she was trying to lead them. Curiosity won out. "Is that so? I wasn't aware that my Cloak was public knowledge…"

"Uh huh." Lily dragged a finger along James' collarbone as she bit her lip, ignoring the clear error in her tiny tale. "I mean, gossip is just gossip right, but… it gave me a good idea."

James smiled devilishly. "Let me guess. You want me to do it?"

"Actually," Lily trailed her finger lower over his pec before bumping along the lines of his abs, stopping at the edge of his trunks, "I was thinking I could maybe use it in Potions." She gave him a quick wink as she snuck her hand under his waistband. "You see, the desks there are boxed in, so no one would be able to tell if I've opened your zipper, especially if you're sitting in the back row…"

Lily relished in just how visibly James' Adam's apple bobbed up and down as her grip landed on its target. "Seems like you've been giving this a fair bit of thought." His voice cracked with the last word.

Lily shrugged innocently. "Perhaps. Would you let me do it?"

"Ha," James leaned in to claim her lips once more, "would I ever turn down your mouth on my cock? No. Never."

Lily smiled against his mouth. "Well, then you better practice hiding your o-face, love."

James placed his hand on Lily's hip. "That is a challenge I will oh so gladly accept." Instead of pulling her closer as she suspected he would, he rolled her onto her back, climbing over her. "But today," he withdrew her hand from in his pants and pinned both of them on either side of her head, "is all about you."

"It is, is it?" Lily asked, failing miserably to conceal just how much his words titillated her.

"Oh yes. You see my scrumptious girlfriend is about to turn 18 in," he looked at his wristwatch, "fifteen minutes, so it is my duty to make sure that the entire day is wholly unforgettable from start to finish. Well, multiple finishes if you catch my drift."

Lily tittered beneath him. "Oh, I do. So what did you have in mind?"

"So glad you asked." James used his wand to summon a brown bottle from a drawer, catching it while perching himself on his knees, bracketing Lily's body in between his. Looming over her, he gave her a wicked smile that spelled out nothing but trouble for Lily, and she truly couldn't wait. "First, I gotta get you in your birthday suit." One charm later, and suddenly she was completely naked underneath him.

"Hey!" she laughed. "I like that dress—"

"Good," James whispered, popping open the cap of the bottle, "because that's why we're making sure it stays nice and clean." Without warning, James started pouring some of the contents down over Lily's chest, making her hiss when she realized it was rather warm. "Because you, my love, are about to get very, very sticky."

She laughed at his over-the-top delivery, but that laughter got choked in her throat as he immediately swooped down to catch the liquid dripping along the sensitive outer curve of her breast before it dripped onto his sheets. "What on earth—?"

He answered her question by leaning down and running his tongue along her lips. It was melted chocolate. "How's that taste, baby?"

Lily kept her eyes closed as she savored the flavor, licking her lips herself. "Mm, you got the good stuff too."

James chuckled above her. "Of course I did. I wasn't about to go pouring subpar chocolate onto you."

Lily leaned in for another taste. "Much appreciated."

"Now," James teased breathily while pulling back, and pouring chocolate over her nipple, moving fast to lap it up with a flat tongue, "do you think I should do one drip for every year?"

It was kind of hard to think rationally when James was right there, gorgeous eyes dancing with possessive glee at seeing the effect his mouth had on her body like this. But more than his tongue, what really got Lily going was just that — his expression, his aura, his mood, just everything he was doing to make tonight special for her. She buried her hands in his hair, holding him close. "I think we should lay a tarp down so we don't get chocolate all over your mattress."

He smiled. "You're just jealous because you want some more of it yourself, don't you?"

Lily couldn't lie: James was about to make everything in the world sexual to her. Now she wouldn't be able to enjoy dessert without picturing James crawling down her body, kissing and licking every centimeter, chocolate all over his lips. She realized exactly what he was doing — he was taking the opportunity, with chocolate as the excuse, to positively worship her, every little bit all over with a very eager tongue. Lily could get used to this.

Lily slide a forefinger over a dribble he'd missed, running down her ribs, before placing it in front of his lips, her own smirking. "You missed some." He met her challenge, waiting until her gaze locked with his before popping her finger in his mouth fully and slowly dragging it out. His tongue darted out of his mouth and salaciously licked his upper lip clean, looking as pleased as if he'd tasted her too. Lily truly couldn't help the way her cunt clenched at the image. "Fuck, babe," she breathed.

James winked at her before pouring more chocolate, seemingly determined to make as much of a mess as possible on his live canvas. "Just lie back, relax, and enjoy yourself, my sweet girl," he commanded enthusiastically.

He'd moved back up to her neck, the heat along her pulse point sending shivers down her spine even before he started sucking and licking there. "Sweet because I'm coated in chocolate?" she asked.

"Sh," he whispered, dead set on trying to get her to moan some more. "Would you have preferred it if I'd said my dirty girl?"

She bit her lip. "Perhaps."

James groaned before leaning in to free her bottom lip from her teeth's clutches. "Of course you would." His non-chocolate covered hand snaked down between her legs, getting to work on her clit before he slipped a finger inside. "Tell me what you want to do tomorrow."

Lily shifted against his pillow, digging her head in as she spread her legs wider for him. "I want to lie on the beach."

She felt James' lips curl just as his finger did down below. "Naturally. What else?"

"Um…" Lily racked her brain. Truth be told, she just sort of wanted to get lost in this moment right now. "I want to eat something good," she finally answered.

He slipped in another finger, rubbing her clit faster. At this point, it was almost criminal with how much accuracy James could rile her up so perfectly and so fast. "… And?" he pushed.

Whatever, it's my birthday, I can ask for what I want. "Honestly, I just kind of want you to shut up and fuck me, Potter," she snapped.

"Fuck me," James muttered under his breath as he pushed off his trunks, the only stitch of fabric left between them. Of course before he obeyed her, he had to remind Lily that those words were almost the exact same as what she'd told him the first time they'd shagged, but Lily allowed his sentimentality as long as he was still fulfilling her wishes.

Of course, his words did take her back in time. She couldn't believe that it had only been a few months ago that they had shagged in this very bed for the first time, almost exactly like this. It was the same, but it was so completely different. Lily wasn't sure if she would recognize the person that she'd been back then — but James would. Even then, as she'd been actively trying to murder him, he'd seen the good in her, he'd seen that potential, and she was so grateful that he'd never given up until she had seen it too.

It seemed as though he was a bit lost in the romance of it all as well. "I can't wait to give you the world, Lils," he cooed centimeters from her face gently, even as his hips were absolutely wrecking her. "Anything you want is yours. Anything."

"Show me that," Lily moaned. "Give it to me rough, just like I like it, baby, and show me."

James' brows scrunched as he plowed on, his fists clenching into the sheets as he powered through his pleasure for her. Lily could tell that going in and out so fast and deep was making it hard for him to hold on, but he was doing a mighty good job trying to for her.

She loved seeing him like this. She loved pushing him to this in a way that she knew only she could. "I need you to fuck me until I'm raw, James," she taunted between gasps. "Can you do that for me?"

James squeezed his eyes closed, nodding his head and she watched as sweat started to gather along his clavicle, their bodies sticky from residual chocolate. It was like merely being forced to speak could be the straw that broke the camel's back for James right now.

"Look at me," Lily ordered, smirk playing on her lips. "I need you to look at me while you make love to me."

If Lily didn't know any better, she would have sworn that the next sound out of his mouth was a full-blown whimper. "Lils—"

Lily clenched her cunt around him, now enjoying herself more than just sexually. He made her feel so full and powerful and like a queen. "Look me in the eyes, baby, and tell me that you love me, and only then can you come."

His eyes flew wide open, pupils completely blown, looking at her mesmorized. "I fucking love you so fucking much, Lily Evans," he panted between thrusts. "And I'm going to spend the rest of my life reminding you of that. I'm gonna make you the happiest girl on the planet."

Lily wrapped her legs around his bum, thrusting him in tighter as she pulled his ear down to her lips to whisper, "Now come in me, baby."

James didn't need to be told twice as he twitched and groaned, body partially collapsing on top of hers before he reanimated with soft kisses to her ear and cheek. "Fuck, Lils, that was—"

"I'm not done yet, keep it up," Lily demanded, motioning for him to hurry up and flip them over. He obeyed her, settling himself beneath her without ever pulling out. She knew he wouldn't be as hard at first, but she was willing to get started with what he had going on. She pushed her hair off of both her shoulders, ready to put in the work, riding him. "Perfect."

He grinned at her, looking sickeningly in love as well as sated, his hands greedy as they held on to her thighs and then breasts, wanting to continue his worship any way she'd allow. She found her perfect rhythm, rubbing his cock deep inside of her as she rocked. She loved that she had this beast, this murderer — but in the palm of her hand, he became absolute putty. It made her feel untouchable in a way that nothing else ever had.

Lily slunk her hips back and forth, delightedly watching the way James' eyes took turns tracking her swaying breasts as well as his cock's progress in and out of her. He was a goner for her, and she loved it, she loved it. She felt a singe of pleasure ricochet through her core and dug her fingernails into his pecs. "Now, tell me how we're going to rule the world together."

His eyes snapped to hers as he smirked, the look dangerous and so fucking sexy. "Whenever you're ready, baby." His grip landed on her hipbone and he gave her a big squeeze. She couldn't wait for it to bruise so she could see his fingerprints on her whenever she wanted. "Whenever you're ready."

Lily awoke on her birthday in James' bed ready for a day of playing hooky and adventure. After their midnight celebrations, they'd needed a shower to clean up their sticky, chocolate mess. Of course that was the moment that Sirius had come strolling back into his dorm (Lily supposed Mulciber had at least bought them an hour of privacy) and suddenly it had felt as though it was everyone's birthday.

But Lily couldn't get sidetracked with all of that. She had a brand new day ahead of her to get excited about, and excited she was! James in his swimming trunks, sipping piña coladas, as the ocean licks our feet? She could hardly wait to get started.

Lily rolled over, ready to kiss James awake, but found his side of the bed empty instead. That's odd, but maybe he's off prepping for the day. It wasn't until she opened the bed curtains, to the abnormally bright and empty room, that she really realized that something was very off. "Sirius?" she called out, padding over to his bed.

His bed was empty — they all were, and cold too.

"The fuck?" she mumbled to herself before finding a watch, and nearly jumping in shock when she saw it was nearly one o'clock. She never slept in this late. How the hell? She knew she was planning on skipping classes today, but she'd hoped she'd have been doing it for something worthwhile, like a date with James.

Suddenly a dream — Or is it a memory? — of a gentle touch tracing her cheek flashed through her mind. That was strange. Usually she'd assume that it must have been James' hand who touched her — after all, wasn't that the sappy sort of thing he'd do — but the angle had been wrong. It had been like the man was standing over her as he reached for her. The positioning combined with the fact that Lily was starting to suspect that she'd been charmed to sleep longer was causing a nasty pit to form in her stomach. Also… half asleep or not, Lily felt like her body knew James' at this point — and it hadn't reacted to the caress like it would have if it had been him. But whose hand could it have been? Whose fingertips had skated across her skin as she was barely conscious? Had this touch been before or after she'd been hexed? Probably before, or I wouldn't have had the faintest recollection of it.

Lily tried not to let the panic seep into her psyche the more she thought about it. A whisper of fingers across her face that longing, that haunting, could almost be nothing other than a goodbye. You're being paranoid, no one has any reason to say goodbye to you.

Lily quickly got changed and slipped from the room in the hopes of finding her boyfriend — and answers.

Instead, she saw Nott for half a millisecond before she registered a flash of red light, and then was knocked out cold.

Next Chapter: The Culmination

(But for real this time ^.^) I'm too tired to come up with the song choice for this chapter. Someone help? :)