I Never Gave Up

Disclaimer: I own nothing except a few characters you don't recognize. The rest belongs to the great genius, J.K. Rowling.

Note: THANK YOU so much to my readers and reviewers, seventeen reviews is the most I've gotten for any chapter for any story I've ever written, ever. It means a lot to me that you got me past the 100 review mark, thank you once again. Now, this is the last chapter, I hope that you will like this one.

Chapter Fifteen

A Perfect Ending

"You're WHAT!"

This was the dumbfounded sentence that came out of Lily's mouth as she stared at her boyfriend, James, in utter disbelief one March morning. It had been two months since everything had happened, and the two had already settled comfortably, until James dropped a bombshell on her.

"Yes, Lily, I'm resigning as Head of the Criminal Law Department. Moody wants me to go back to being a full-time Auror, and I accepted," James explained from his desk, looking very calm.

"Bu-but, why didn't you at least tell me before you passed your resignation to Tyler?" Lily walked over to him and glared, folding her arms.

"Because I knew that you'd be upset about it. Look, Lily, calm down, we'll still get to see each other every day," James reassured her, standing up and fixing her with an assuring glance.

Lily sighed in defeat and said, "Alright, I know, I know, it's just that….I'll never get to see you anytime I want, and for all I know, you might be gallivanting off with some leggy blonde when I'm not around".

The corners of James's mouth quirked upwards as he said slowly, his grin turning into a smirk, "Lily, are you saying that you're jealous?"

"Yes, maybe," Lily grumbled, refusing to meet his eyes. James burst into uncontrollable laughter, which made her glare at him even more. "What is so funny?" she demanded, placing her hands on her hips.

"Nothing," James said amidst gales of laughter. "It's just that I've never seen you jealous before, it's a side of you I've never seen. But," his laughter subsiding into a grin as he walked over to her. "I like it". And with that he gave her a hug.

"It's our anniversary this Saturday," Lily murmured as she pulled away somewhat reluctantly from his embrace.

James turned to look at her. "I know, I haven't forgotten. Two months of being together, the longest I've ever held onto a girlfriend". When Lily playfully punched his arm he winced and said, "That hurt, you know".

"And I'm supposed to care, why?"

"Because you hurt that spot on my arm where the Death Eater shot me with a spell," James told her, grimacing. Instantly, Lily looked concerned and guilty.

"Sorry," Lily said, looking apologetic. James merely waved off her apology as he sat down.

"No need to worry," James said. "About my arm and about our anniversary. I've got it planned, down to the last detail".

"Really?" Lily quirked an eyebrow. "Please tell me that you didn't buy tickets to a Quidditch Match, because, even though I love you, I cannot stand watching people fly in the air to look for some flying balls for more than an hour," she begged him, groaning.

Her boyfriend grinned and replied, "Nope, I didn't, although that does sound like a good idea". At her glare, he quickly added, "But I can't tell you yet, it's a surprise. But I know that you're going to love it". Lily merely gave him a suspicious glance but said nothing.

"Hey, I've got to go, I have a meeting with a new client in fifteen minutes," Lily suddenly said as she checked her watch. James nodded and leaned in to steal a kiss when the door suddenly opened and, as usual, Sirius walked in.

"Hey James I---okay, this is the……fifth time I've walked in on both of you in two months, so as usual, I'm just gonna go. Meet me later," Sirius said in an obviously disgusted voice.

James and Lily laughed as Lily said, "Stay, Sirius, I was just about to leave anyway".

"And see the both of you lip-lock before you leave? Urgh, no way, thanks. I'll wait outside," Sirius said as he left, closing the door behind him.

The couple laughed again and James kissed his girlfriend on the cheek. "Bye," he said as she walked out the door. Once the door closed he gathered some files and went outside as well, walking towards the front of the office until he found Sirius.

"Hey mate," James greeted to his best friend. "What's up?"

"Moody and Tyler want to talk to you, something about your transfer, I think," Sirius said. The two walked to the Auror department, talking. "So mate," Sirius asked him. "All set for this Saturday?"

"Yes, of course, everything is all planned and ready," James said in a firm voice. Then his tone faltered as he said to Sirius in an undertone, "Now the only question is whether the outcome will be favorable or not".

Knowing exactly what he meant, Sirius simple nodded as they finally arrived at the Auror department.

..------..

"You cannot be serious, please tell me that you're joking," Lily said, looking at James with an incredulous stare for the second time that day. James had just gotten back from his audience with Moody and Tyler, and he was there to break some news to her again.

"I'm afraid I'm perfectly serious, Lily," James said, looking calm yet wondering why Lily didn't look very happy. "They are promoting you as Head of the Criminal Law department. You're taking my place". When she said nothing, he asked, "Lily? Aren't you happy?"

As Lily staggered into the nearest seat, she said, "Of course I am, I've wanted to be promoted for some time, but….I'm just in shock. I mean, everything is happening so fast".

"I know," James sighed as he remembered something else. "Listen, Lily, I have something else to tell you. About this Saturday…….I…well, Moody wants me here on that day to work on something, and I won't be released until the afternoon, so probably the only thing we'll get to do is have dinner. I tried to reason with him, but he wouldn't relent".

Lily gave a disappointed sigh. "Oh. Too bad, I was looking forward to spending the day with you. But I understand, it's no problem". She gave him a half-smile.

"Don't worry, if it's any consolation, dinner will be wonderful. So I'll meet you at seven at your house, okay?" James said. Lily nodded as she stood up and left, leaving James to ponder on the minor setback.

..------..

The sunlight streamed into the room as Lily Evans awoke that Saturday morning. Still yawning and stretching her arms, she sat up in bed. She was immediately stunned by the sight before her.

Her room was covered with hundreds upon thousands of rose and lily petals and in the table in the corner was a big bouquet of lilies. Soft music from an invisible violin played her favorite love song in the distance. But the thing, or rather, person, that she found standing in the doorway brought a smile to her lips the best of all.

"James!" she cried, jumping out of the covers and rushed over to her boyfriend, putting on her robe in the process. "Wha-what are you doing here so early? I thought we didn't have plans until this evening".

"Who said we needed to have plans just for me to see you?" James grinned as he engulfed her in a hug and kissed her cheek. "Happy Anniversary, Lily".

Lily smiled up at him. "Same to you too. James, this is so sweet but, you really shouldn't have. Aren't you supposed to be at the Ministry today? Didn't Moody want to see you?"

"I do have to go to meet with him, but I couldn't resist seeing and surprising you," James replied, staring into her emerald green eyes.

Lily didn't say anything. She extracted herself from his embrace with some hesitation. "You sure do know how to flatter someone. Go on; I'll meet you in the kitchen in a couple of minutes". James nodded, and went. Lily then proceeded to head to the shower.

Around twenty minutes or so, she came out of her bedroom and headed to the kitchen to find, much to her surprise, an entire breakfast of pancakes with syrup, bacon and eggs, fresh fruits, and other foodstuffs, as well as a pitcher of orange juice.

"James," she said, unable to hide the surprise from her voice, "First the flowers, and now this? Did you make all this? I didn't know you could cook".

James threw her a grin. "Actually, I didn't. I let Ellie, my parent's house- elf, cook this since I can't cook anything this good to save my life. I just unpacked everything".

Lily gave a mock-sigh of dismay. "Oh well. So much for you being sentimental and sweet. But it's probably best since I might be sick from eating your so- called 'breakfast', if you had made it". She gave him a teasing smile.

James replied, looking insulted but amused at the same time, "Hey! I will have you know that I am just about to perfect the art of making pasta!"

Lily simply shook head, an amused expression set on her face. "So," she said, changing the subject, "What are we doing for tonight?"

James merely smiled in a mysterious way. "You'll see," was his vague answer. Lily frowned a bit but said nothing.

He just smiled at her as they continued their breakfast. Once they were over, Lily did a quick cleaning spell on the dishes and with the wave of her wand, they went back to the shelves.

They both stood up and James said, "Well, I'd better go, I'll see you at seven, okay?" Lily kissed his cheek and nodded.

"Bye," she said softly as he apparated out, leaving her to think. The entire time he was there, she couldn't help but feel a slightly nervous aura coming from him, and she couldn't understand why. It wasn't like him.

Shaking her head to rid herself of those thoughts, she went back to her bedroom to choose her dress, anticipating the night ahead.

..------..

It was a quarter to seven, and Lily was in a flutter of excitement. She had combed through her wardrobe and settled on a royal blue dress with a gossamer covering. It had a small jeweled lily-of-the-valley broach pinned to the side. After taking her wand to twist her hair into an elegant bun held with pearls and small rosettes, she took another look at her reflection and left her room.

Lily waited anxiously for him to arrive, pacing back and forth, not able to keep still. She was excited, because she wanted out find out why James looked and sounded a bit nervous, and because she just wanted to see him again.

After ten minutes of waiting, her doorbell rang and she practically skipped to the door. Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and opened the door to reveal James, who was holding a bouquet of pink and white roses in his hand.

"I thought that lilies were a bit cliché," James said as he walked inside and handed the roses to her. "What with the name resemblance and everything".

"They're lovely, James, thank you," she said softly as she placed the bouquet in the nearest vase she could find.

"Well, we'd better go," James said, taking a small matchbox out of his pocket. Lily was about to touch it, but James stopped her. "Wait, first, I have to blindfold you. To make it more surprising". Lily rolled her eyes but still allowed James to slip a blindfold over her eyes.

That being done, he took Lily's hand in his and they both touched the small matchbox. In a sudden swirl of blue light, there was a strangled noise, and they were gone.

..------..

Lily stumbled onto something powdery as she arrived at their destination. She could feel arms pulling her up, and she figured that it was James helping her to stand properly. Straining her ears, she could hear a nice, calming swishing swaying sound, and she smiled.

James was leading her somewhere, she just couldn't see where. The air was a bit cold, and the atmosphere was feeling calm. Breathing slowly, she allowed herself to be led across the floor, or whatever it was.

Suddenly, James came to a stop, willing Lily to stop walking as well. "Ready?" James whispered. Lily nodded and closed her eyes for awhile, to heighten her excitement. James untied the blindfold, and once he told her to open her eyes, she did, and once she saw the sight before her, she gasped.

They were on a beach, the beach James took her when they had their first dinner together, to be exact. Only now in front of them was a small table set for two, with a candelabra at the center, from which glowed a soft light. There were also little lights hanging about, looking as if they were suspended in mid air, but in the dark, you could never tell for sure. The soft waves crashing onto the shore, coupled with the slow breeze and an invisible violin that was playing in the distance made for wonderful scenery.

"I….I…..it's beautiful," Lily said softly as she and James sat. James grinned, turned to his plate and said what he wanted to eat. Instantly, his food of choice appeared. Seeing this, Lily followed suit and they began to eat amidst the sea-spraying breeze and lovely strains of music.

Once they were finished eating, James asked, "Want to go for a walk?" Lily nodded and the couple stood up. Taking his offered hand, Lily and James walked across the sand-stretched beach, talking softly, oblivious to anything but each other. After while, they decided to sit down and James placed his arm around Lily's shoulder and she leaned in to his embrace.

"Remember this beach? This was the place I took you to after we had our first date," James said, referring to the time wherein they had their first dinner together.

Lily looked at him with a teasing glance. "I thought you said that that wasn't a date. I thought you said that that just a ….wait, ah yes, a 'dinner between two friends who got involved in a bet'".

"Well," James said, grinning at her. "To put it plainly……I lied". Lily gave him a mock-exasperated glance as she shook her head. They basked in the wonderful silence for awhile, the only sound to be heard being their gentle breathing and the soft lull of the crashing waves.

James was thinking deeply, wondering if this was the right time. Nodding mentally, he reached into his pocket and encircled in his fist a small object. He turned to Lily.

"I love you," he whispered softly, gazing up at her emerald eyes which were still as bright and expressive as ever.

"I love you too," Lily whispered back as she stared into his eyes as well, her heart strangely beating faster.

Knowing that this was the right time, James leaned in a bit closer and whispered, "Do you love me enough to marry me?"

Lily pulled away in surprise. She gazed at him, a ghost of a smile fitted across her lips. "Wh-what did you just say?"

James gave a sigh and showed her his outstretched palm, in the center of which lay a small, blue velvet box. "Lily, the past two months have been the greatest in my entire life. I love you so much, and I can't imagine spending the rest of my life with anyone but you. Will you make me the most elated person on the planet and marry me?"

He opened the box to reveal a beautiful gold ring, with an intricately cut diamond at the center. Lily stared at it in shock as she struggled to find her voice, James waiting expectantly for her answer.

"I….I guess I only have one answer for this, James," Lily said softly, not breaking eye contact as she found her voice, her eyes brimming with light tears. "Yes, yes, I will marry you".

At that instant, James captured her lips with hers, in a kiss that marked everything final, in a gesture full of love and honesty. Once they pulled away from each other, they both smiled as James slipped the ring on her finger and drew her into a hug as they both admired the ring.

It was a perfect fit, just like James and she, and it seemed like they were really both made for each other.

They sat there for some time, talking, contemplating about the life ahead of them, all the while staring at each other, expressing most of what they had wanted to say through their eyes. He took her hand in his, and they both looked at each other with a look only two people who were deeply in love could achieve.

Their future had many to hold for them. They knew of the happiness it would bring, of the hope, of the love. Yet they also knew of the danger they would be getting into, with the impending threat of Voldemort and every other evil thing surrounding them. Both knew that with happiness came pain, and that there would be many more trials and tribulations to come their way.

But they weren't afraid. Let the problems come, they thought, it would be nothing, as long as we fight them together. They were now about to be married, about to share their lives with each other, to fight all of their battles as one. They were about to be together for the rest of their lives, to love and to never give up on each other until they both drew their last breath.

And right then and there, the both of them realized that that was all that mattered.

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There! I Never Gave Up is finally finished! Thank you so much to all the people who have studiously read and reviewed my story, your support and compliments helped and inspired me to give my best in writing.

Now, I have a question: Would you like me to write a sequel? Please indicate so in your review, and if you do want me to write, which one of these plots are more favorable to you?

a. They were now engaged, and everything was perfect. Then wedding plans start getting sabotaged, and that, coupled with personality clashes as they discover their differences make for a bumpy road to the altar. Will they ever get married in one piece, or will their 'I do's' turn into 'I don'ts'?

b. Lily and James were now married, about to start a family, everything was going great. But the shadow of war, of Voldemort looms over them, especially after they learn about the prophecy. Continues until they die.

Which one of these do you like? Please tell me. And thank you again, everyone, it's been a wonderful time writing this story. Now this is angelstarshine, signing off for the second time……..