Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or anything of the like…

A/N: I know it's been quite a while. A very long while. But I still get reviews on this story now and then, so I thought I would finally finish it. Hope you enjoy! I think I've been reading too many romance novels, because this is full of romantic cheese. Ah well…Also, if you have read this story before, and just want to read the end, you may wanna brush up on the last couple of chapters, because there are a lot of references to them, humor wise.

Seeking You

Together At Last

Friends with Lily again. He couldn't believe it. It was like air, like water, like food to a starving man, like-

"Toadstools!"

Toadstools?

"Oi, James! You're burning the toadstools!"

"Sorry, Padfoot. I guess my mind wandered." James lowered the flames on his cauldron. The Marauders were sitting in Potions the Monday after James' little Quidditch accident.

"Well keep your eye on the quaffle now, yeah? Or soon I'll have to start working." Sirius glanced glowered darkly at James, as if he couldn't believe his friend's audacity.

"Oh, and that would be tragic." James added a pinch of powdered snake fang to his potion and watched it turn a deep orange. Orange, like Lily's hair. Lily who missed him...as a friend. Or maybe more? He glanced over at her to find Lily staring at him through the steam of her cauldron. He caught her eye and winked before she turned away, blushing furiously.

Oh yeah, definitely more.

Not that he was going to do anything about it. Nope. That had not gone over well in the past. They would just be friends.

"James, stop staring at Lily," Sirius scolded.

"I'm not staring! Because we're just friends, Padfoot. Friends."

"So you no longer have romantic feelings for her?"

"Well, I mean…that is to say…" James muttered. "No…"

"So you're going to focus on your potion instead of on the red head across the way?"

"Yes," James spat defiantly.

"Not on the way she runs her fingers through her hair when she's frustrated?"

James felt his eyes itching to look over at her tousled locks, but instead stared fixedly down at his cauldron, his imagination already in overdrive.

"Or the way she bites her lip when she doesn't know the answer?"

"No," James croaked, grabbing a measuring cup in an attempt to waylay his more than friendly thoughts at the mention of Lily's lips.

"So when she's sitting down and her skirt comes up just a little…"

Against his will James found his eyes roving over Lily's exposed legs.

Sirius shook his head. "Easier said than done, eh, mate?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Lily!" Gwen called catching up the Head Girl on the way to dinner.

"Oh, hey, Gwen. What's up?"

"When are you going to put James out of his misery and ask him out?"

"Shh!" Lily reprimanded, pulling her friend into a deserted classroom. "What are you on about! Trying to let the whole of Hogwarts onto my love int--…my feel—my…"

"Oh, just say it Lily. Your love interest. And all of Hogwarts already does know."

"What?" Lily sputtered. "How?"

"Well, the staring is a bit of a give-away…"

"I don't stare! I just glance a bit…perhaps too often…"

"You stare. But it's okay! Who wouldn't stare at such a hot dish? If Remus hadn't stopped being such an oaf and told me about his lycanthropy, you would have competition!"

Relieved to have something to talk about other than her own love life, Lily pounced on this fact. "So Remus told you! That's great! You guys really are perfect for each other, you know."

"Yes, we are," Gwen said dreamily. "And he told me how you knocked some sense into him about telling me. Thank you. Now I'm returning the favor. Ask James out, Lily. Talk about the perfect couple. He's hoof over horn in love with you, and you can barely restrain yourself from throwing yourself at his lips every time you see him. So put the rest of Hogwarts out of their misery and give the guy a break!"

Lily sunk onto an overturned bucket, defeated. "You're right, I know…but how! I've been rejecting him for so many years, I can't even imagine how to approach him! And after that love letter disaster…"

Gwen sunk down adjacent to her friend. "I see your dilemma. Hmm…Well, write him one, then."

"I'm sorry, did you just say to write James a love letter?"

"Yes."

"Are you mad!"

"Not usually. And I really think this is a good idea. Tell him how you really feel through a letter and leave it for him to find after dinner. Tell him to meet you somewhere after he reads it. If he shows, it means he wants you. If not, you don't get rejected in person. Plus, he's not likely to believe any declarations of love that come from your mouth, so…" Gwen finished.

"Yes, I see your point."

"So, are you going to do it?"

Lily pondered for a moment, a determined look crossing her face. "Yes, yes I am. And I know just the place to meet."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

James returned to his room after dinner, utterly exhausted, and collapsed onto his bed. Lily had been acting so strangely. She could hardly meet his eyes, and she left ages before everyone else. She was up to something. Flopping his head on his pillow to ponder this idea further, James was surprised to find a crisp piece of parchment beneath his cheek. What the--?

The envelope was addressed to him, and he opened it to reveal a letter in neat, curvy penmanship. It looked an awful lot like Lily's, but…puzzled, he read the letter.

Dear James,

I always considered myself to be fairly eloquent at composing "fancy words and poetry" as you put it. But as I sit here trying to write this, I can see how you ran into trouble.

As I reread the letter that caused that horrid rift between us, I can't help but smile at it. How I ever doubted its sincerity, I do not know, for it is so clearly James. (And maybe that's why). But I think there's something you deserve to know, too.

You are constantly on my mind. My own dreams are haunted by your hazel eyes and wicked smile. Every nerve cell on my body screams to be near you. And it's not just your adorably messy hair that gets me either. It's the way your eyes light up when you see me, and the way you always try to make me smile no matter how hard I resist. It's because of the way you tell jokes to cheer me up everyone around you, even if you're not having a great day yourself. But mostly, it's because of the way you look at me when I've made you happy. And, well, I don't know about eating Snape's underwear, but I would do almost anything to see that look every day.

Maybe I can predict the future, even though I didn't know it. For my heart, James, belongs to you. Meet me at the statue of Gregory the Smarmy.

Yours,

Lily

James was out the door before he was even aware his feet were moving. The scenery of the castle was a blur to him as he sprinted through the corridors. He rounded the corner to the corridor of Gregory's statue at nearly flying speed, thoughts racing through his head. Was this a joke? Did Lily really have…feelings…for him? He finally spotted her flaming red hair half hidden behind the statue.

"Lily? What's going on! That letter—"

"Shh," said Lily, successfully quieting James when her finger touched his lips. "James…when I saw you fall off your broom I—well, I couldn't imagine life without you—"

"That's why we're friends now, Lils—"

"James—"

"Why would you want to ruin that with a joke letter—"

"James—"

"—or is it a joke? I can never tell—"

But James' words fled from his mind when a pair of soft lips caressed his. In fact, every thought seemed to have left his head except for one. He was kissing Lily. She tasted better than he ever could have imagined. He dared not move, lest this glorious moment was the dream of all dreams. It wasn't until he felt her cherry mouth leaving his that he remembered he should be a participant in the event.

James pulled Lily's form flush to his and her moan of approval spurring him on as he deepened the kiss. It was then his turn to moan when Lily threaded her fingers through his hair, urging him deeper into her sinful mouth.

And gods, was her mouth sinful…Who knew the Head Girl concealed so much passion?

The couple engaged in kiss after mind bending kiss, until after an indefinite amount of time, James felt his passionate partner pull away. He tried to follow her lips, never wanting this passionate moment to end.

"James," Lily said.

She was speaking? Why was she speaking? He willed some of the blood back to his brain and took a step back from her intoxicating scent in an attempt to comprehend her words.

"Does it feel like we're just friends?" she finished.

"Ugh…no," James managed to grunt, still fighting the urge to pin her up against the wall and have his way with her.

"So do you think maybe we should be more? Maybe a…a…couple?"

"Merlin, yes," and with that, James let go of his mental leash and pinned Lily to the stone behind her, letting her know just how great an idea he thought that was.

A/N- Yay, the end! Well almost. I'm going to post a short epilogue, so as not to end it so abruptly. Let me know if you want it!