Author's Note:
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I'm going to keep this note short cause I'll probably be updating again very very soon as I've already got the next chapter done :) But I really hope you all enjoy this one and as always please please please keep reviewing and letting me know what you think!
CHAPTER 18
A CHANCE AT LOVE
James wasn't sure how he'd managed to get Sirius down to breakfast the next morning but somehow he'd done it and he found himself grinning as his best friend groaned loudly at the sight of so much activity.
"Bloody hell James, why couldn't you just let me rot in peace?" He growled irritably.
"Because, you need to have Remus make you a hangover remedy and then you've got to get to class and help me make it through the next twelve plus hours before Lily and I have to patrol at ten."
Sirius scowled at him. "And why may I ask are you going to have trouble making it until then?"
"Because she gave me permission to ask her out tonight on patrol and I'm damned close to not making it 'til then." He responded as nonchalantly as he could.
"Oh Merlin I think I'm still drunk." Sirius moaned grabbing his head in his hands, marching more determinedly toward their friends. "I thought you just told me Lily gave you permission to ask her out."
James chuckled as he followed his friend to the Gryffindor table where everyone was already seated. He dropped into his place next to Lily and did his best not to just grab her and ask her right then.
"Moony I need…"
"I already have it right here." Remus said interrupting Sirius as he handed over his hangover remedy.
Sirius downed it and sighed in relief. He gave Remus a thankful look as he turned back to James who was wolfing down mass portions of food at a record pace and doing his best not to look at the red-head seated next to him.
"Oh Merlin you weren't kidding earlier were you?" Sirius said realizing James was extremely frazzled.
James paused long enough to shake his head no at Sirius before devoting his attention to his food again. It was a moment before he caught sight of what Lily was eating for breakfast.
He began to choke violently as he accidentally inhaled sharply. Sirius was thumping him on the back rather forcefully a moment later as he felt like he was coughing up his lungs.
"For the love of Helga Hufflepuff James! Get a grip…" Sirius muttered, his hand hitting his friends back with a loud 'thwack'. "I can't be rescuing you from yourself all day long…."
As James recovered enough to take a long drink of water, Lily's voice reached him.
"Alright there Potter?" She asked her tone slightly worried.
James nodded and turned to her suddenly. He looked down at the plate in front of her to be sure he hadn't imagined it…sure enough there was a huge stack of pancakes smothered in strawberries in front of her. He grinned madly.
"Pancakes Lils?" He said excitedly.
Before she could answer he leaned forward and kissed her soundly on the mouth. It was quick and over before she could really react but he'd done it none the less. In the Great Hall for any one who happened to be watching to see.
James jumped up from the table and grabbing a random assortment of muffins and apples and throwing them in his bag he pulled Sirius up by hooking an arm around his chest and dragged him away from the table, shooting a significant look at Remus and Peter as he began to march away, leaving a stunned Lily behind.
"Proooongs…my bacon!" Sirius whined pathetically stumbling along backwards as his friend towed him away. "Moony grab the bacon!"
Remus rolled his eyes but grabbed up a napkin full of bacon before he and Peter stood and made to follow their friends from the Great Hall.
Lily looked at after them in shock as the foursome disappeared through the huge double doors.
"What on earth…" She muttered thoroughly confused by James' behavior.
She looked around to see that a few people had seen him kiss her and were even now staring at her and whispering to the person next to them. She nearly groaned aloud at the sight.
"Care to explain what that was all about?" Alice asked curiously, her eyes alight with interest.
Lily sighed as she thought it over. Before long she was fighting a smirk.
"I think James is nervous."
Her friends all looked intrigued and Lily smiled as she bent down to explain what had happened the night before, minus a drunken Sirius.
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"Prongs!" Sirius growled as James towed him into the nearest empty classroom. "Couldn't you have gotten a hold of your sanity long enough for the rest of us to enjoy our breakfast? I was just about to….Oh sweet Merlin Moony I love you!"
Remus chuckled as he handed over the large handful of bacon he'd brought along to his friend.
As Sirus sat down on the nearest desk to enjoy his food Remus and Peter turned to James their looks expectant.
James grinned. "She was having pancakes. Do you know what that means?"
They both shook their heads, looking at James as if he'd lost his mind.
"It means she's going to say yes." He stated as if that were obvious, and then added slightly less enthusiastically, "I think."
"Yes to what?" Peter questioned in confusion.
"To me." James said leaning back against the large desk at the front of the classroom. "When I ask her out tonight."
As their friend stared off into space as if it were a dreamland Peter and Remus exchanged amused glances.
"And how does Lily eating pancakes mean that she's going to say yes to going out with you?" Remus put in chuckling lightly.
"Because they are mental." Sirius said through a mouthful of bacon. "Nothing either of them does ever makes any sense."
James smiled at him still overly euphoric from the happenings at breakfast.
"She's going to say yes. I'm almost sure of it. First she told me to ask her, and now she is eating pancakes. All signs point to yes. Now I just have to figure out how to ask her." James said his expression suddenly turning worried.
Sirius chuckled. "I know exactly what you should say."
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By dinner that night Lily was nearly freaking out. James had huddled up with Sirius in all their classes and while they had exchanged a few words here and there they mostly kept to themselves that day. It had turned out to be the worst situation Lily could have created for herself. It gave her all day long to think about the fact that she'd basically told James Potter he should ask her out that night. Who did that? She was a complete idiot. You didn't just tell the guy that you decided you liked that he should ask you out. You were supposed to let him make that decision. So that you could act all shy and surprised and excited and…
Shit this was bad. She was very near to hyperventilating. What was he going to say now? 'Hi Lily so here I am asking you out like you told me I should!' Merlin help her she had been daft to come up with this.
"Are you alright Lils? You've gotten rather quiet." Dorcas noted as they took their seats at the Gryffindor table.
"No I'm not. I'm rather light-headed and sweaty and I don't feel so…" She trailed off as she noticed the Marauders arrive.
"Shit." She breathed softly and her friends exchanged amused glances as they followed her line of sight.
Lily was flat out panicking by the time James sat next to her. She wanted to take back what she'd said the night before and then again she didn't, that would just make it worse. She had no idea how to handle the situation and now he was sitting next to her and she was…going to faint.
"Lils!" Alice said suddenly snapping her out of her panicked thoughts and forcing her to remember to breathe.
"Huh," she mumbled lamely.
"I swear I've been trying to get your attention for…"
"Don't do it!"
Lily wasn't really aware that she'd turned to James and shouted loudly at him until after she'd already done it. Everyone around them had fallen silent as anyone within twenty some odd feet of them had heard her scream at him.
He looked at her in complete confusion, "Don't do what?"
"What I told you to do!" She said shrilly.
"What?"
"Last night!" She blurted. "Don't do what I told you to do last night!"
He frowned at her before his eyebrows went up suddenly as he realized what she was talking about.
"You don't want me to?" He asked softly, very aware that her volume level had created an audience for them.
"Yes…I mean no…I mean I want you to because you want to not because I told you to, because you should do what you want when you want to and not when I tell you to." She rambled reaching out to grab his left hand and grip it tightly.
"Lils, don't you think this is what I want? We've talked about this." He said reaching out to take her other hand into his. "I've been excited all day thinking about it. I…"
She stopped him by blurting out suddenly. "Then ask me."
"What?" He looked at her obviously baffled beyond belief by her behavior.
"I can't take how nervous I am. I'm a wreck. I can't focus, or breathe, or feel my toes. I was fine this morning…looking forward to it even but the closer it gets the more panicked I'm getting." She explained her voice shaking in response to her frazzled state. "So just ask me. Please."
"Here?" He said awkwardly noting their rapidly growing audience as more and more people fell silent around them.
"Here, somewhere else, I don't care just ask me now please. So I can say yes and…"
James stood suddenly and pulled her up with him, wrapping his arms around her and crushing her to his chest. "Are you saying yes then?"
"To what? You haven't asked me anything." She stated looking at him as if he were the crazy one.
James was grinning like mad and Lily couldn't understand why he seemed so ruddy pleased.
"What on earth are you smiling about?" She said breathlessly, scowling up at him. "You shouldn't be so bloody happy and composed. I'm near to fainting because I've worked myself up into a state of absolute panic because I was stupid and told you that I want you to ask me what you used to."
"I didn't think that was stupid." He said still smiling down at her with a look of pure happiness.
"Well it was." She replied, so focused on James that she had yet to notice that they were making a spectacle of themselves in the Great Hall. "It was stupid because it gave me all day to dwell on the fact that girls shouldn't tell guys to ask them things like that. They are supposed to just wait and let it happen. I'm an idiot though and I have no idea what I'm doing. So now I need you to ask me…that is if you still want to…because I can't wait any longer or else I'll probably hyperventilate and then I'll have to do this all over again tomorrow because I passed out."
James chuckled suddenly and grabbing her right hand up again he began to tow her quickly out of the Great Hall. Their friends called out disappointedly as they moved away and Lily shot them a look of complete confusion having forgotten they were even there.
"Damn it Potter! That was just getting really good!" Marlene called out as they made their way toward the big double doors.
"I'll owl you the details McKinnon." James called back teasingly as he disappeared still towing a flustered Lily out of the Great Hall.
"Damn. She must really be falling for him." Dorcas said smiling at the whole ordeal.
"Oh she is." Sirius said matter of factly. "They'll be married before we know it and producing ridiculously talented children."
"You really think so?" Marlene asked him eyeing the spot where their friends had disappeared curiously.
Sirius nodded solemnly. "If I know anything about James it's that he won't stop until he gets what he wants or dies trying. And what he wants more than he's ever wanted anything, is Lily Evans."
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James towed Lily through one passageway after another taking every short-cut he knew until they reached the portrait of Sven the Strong-hearted.
He muttered the password then began to shove Lily up the stairs ahead of him.
Once they were in the dormitory he forced himself to take a moment to collect his thoughts. Lily had, after stumbling into the common room ahead of him, turned about and pinned him with a look that was both anticipatory and worried at the same time.
Looking at her James couldn't help but be momentarily lost for words. She was so damned beautiful it made him ache. The collar of her white school shirt was flipped out a bit and the gray sweater vest she had on over it was slightly skewed. Her hair was down but uncharacteristically tousled looking as if she'd been running her hands through it in frustration all day. Her full bottom lip was between her teeth and her hands were balled into fists at her sides.
It was her eyes that had him pinned to the spot however. He took a deep breath, realizing that he was moments away from asking Lily Evans to go out with him for what could possibly be the last time.
He took an uncertain step toward her and then suddenly his feet were moving swiftly and he was in front of her.
"Lily Evans…" He breathed trying to remember all the things he'd planned on saying. In the end all he managed was, "…I've waited ages to be able to ask you this question again and I swear to do my best to be everything you'll ever need if you give me the chance. It would make me incredibly, ridiculously happy if you would agree to be my girlfriend. Will you go out with me?"
There was an incredibly full moment in which he realized the words had been said and she processed them.
"Are you sure this is what you want?" She asked shakily. "You're sure about me?"
James nodded his stomach doing a serious of strange somersaults as he waited for her to answer him.
Then suddenly she was in his arms.
"Yes James." She breathed roughly. "Yes."
It felt rather dreamlike as he laughed happily and picked her up to carry her to the couch. He placed her on his lap and just savored the moment for a little while.
"So we are Lily and James now?" She said breaking the silence and smiling at him.
He noticed she looked rather relieved now that the whole asking ordeal was over with.
"Yes." He said grinning widely back at her. "It doesn't really feel real yet though."
"I know what you mean. All day long I began to dread you asking me out and now it seems rather silly of me. It was so easy to say yes."
James felt warm at her words. He squeezed her waist lightly and realized suddenly that he could. That he was now allowed to hold her and kiss her and…his brain had frozen on the idea of kissing her and his grin turned impish as he leaned forward and captured her lips with his own.
He smiled against her mouth when she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back warmly. It was all the invitation he needed. Cupping her head in his hand he kissed her deeply.
The most amazing thing he'd ever experienced was kissing Lily Evans. The feelings it caused in him, the way it made every inch of him flare to life, he'd never known anything like it and he didn't think he ever would.
For a long time she was the only thing that registered. Her lips, her hands teasing his hair, the way she leaned into him leaving her breasts only inches from being pressed up against him. He groaned when his thoughts began to take his hormones into overdrive and pulled away from her slowly.
"You have no idea how happy I am." He said grinning so widely it hurt his cheeks.
"I think I have a pretty good notion of what you're feeling." She said grinning back just as widely.
They sat and started at each other for a moment without speaking both absorbing the feeling of finally being together.
"Is it strange?" Lily asked finally.
"What?"
"Not having to ask me out anymore." She giggled.
James smirked, "You have no idea. It's ridiculously strange to think you actually said yes. I mean this morning I sort of guessed that you would but now that you actually have I'm just sort of…in shock I suppose. I mean I actually get to say you're my girlfriend now. That feels.." he took a deep breath and smiled in wonder, "amazing."
She smiled and began to play with the hair at the nape of his neck. He leaned up and kissed her softly once more before pulling back to look at her intently.
"Lily." He said staring into green eyes that were alive with desire and happiness.
"James." She said softly when he didn't go on.
"My Lily." He said grinning like mad.
She laughed at the look of wonder on his face as he realized that for the first time the words were very true. She was his.
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That night as they returned from doing rounds, Lily found herself feeling as if she'd taken some kind of pepper-up potion that produced extreme euphoria. She was energetic and playful and James was obviously on the same thing she was.
He was touching her the entire time. His hand gripped hers, or he put his arm around her shoulders or he was tickling her as they checked a room full of statuary for out of bed students.
As they entered their portrait hole she made to head to her room but he pulled her to a stop and brought his mouth down on hers. Lily's insides raced with excitement. Kissing James was the most intense thing she had ever felt. It made something inside of her jump to life, some part of her that she hadn't known existed until he'd come along and awakened it within her.
That part of her hummed in happiness as he laid claim to her mouth, exploring her with a newfound intensity that had her knees feeling weak.
"Mmm James." She said, gripping him for balance and pulling away. "This might be a problem."
"What's that?" He said throatily tightening his grip on her waist and moving his lips to her jaw line.
"This. I don't know how I'm supposed to make it through tomorrow when all I can think about right now is kissing you." She admitted her voice trailing to a whisper as he bent further and his kisses moved to her throat.
She felt him grin against her skin after she gasped when his lips connected with a rather sensitive spot.
"I'm sure we'll manage," he mumbled back. "Just think about how nice it will be to be able to do this whenever we get a chance."
"That's what I'm worried about." She breathed back. "Cause I will probably want to do this with you all day."
"Well how about I kiss you senseless right now so that tomorrow you won't be craving it so much."
"So does that mean we don't have to go to bed right this minute then?" She said throatily loving the feel of him against her neck.
She felt him pause slightly at her words and she pulled back to look at him.
He stood to his full height, which was rather impressive and quirked an eyebrow at her as he said teasingly, "It might be a good idea not to mention bed to me right now."
She flushed crimson instantly, mortified at what her statement had seemed to imply and buried her face in the center of his chest.
"I was only kidding." He said chuckling, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. "But to answer your question, no. We definitely don't have to go to…sleep…right now."
He put two fingers under her chin and lifting her eyes to his he said softly, "I for one plan to enjoy every minute of the rest of today with you."
Lily smiled at his words and smirked at him impishly.
"Well I suppose that might depend." She said mock seriously.
"On what?" He said letting her step out of his embrace.
"On whether or not you can catch me." She said quickly, slipping away to run across the common room.
James laughed. "It's not like there's a whole lot of places for you to run to in here Lils. I'm going to catch you before you even get going."
"That would be true…too bad I'm a witch and I don't fight fair." She said grinning cheekily as she twirled her wand between her fingers.
That was all the challenge James needed. He leapt at her.
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"Can you hear anything?" Remus asked quietly.
He looked to where Sirius had his ear pressed against the wall behind which lay Lily and James' common room. They'd performed a complex listening spell that had worked for them dozens of times before when they wanted to hear what someone in the next room was talking about.
"Oh I hear them alright." Sirius said grinning.
"Well what are they saying?" Peter squeaked.
Sirius chuckled and replied, "Do you really want to know?"
The other two nodded and Sirius laughed harder.
"Right now Lily's going…'Oh James! Please! Uhh!' And James is going 'That's what you get you little minx!' and…Hey!" He said sharply frowning as his two friends shoved past him to press their ears against the wall, looks of complete disbelief on their faces.
A moment later both of their eyes widened and they burst out laughing.
"You are such an idiot," Remus told Sirius chuckling in amusement.
"You've got to admit it was pretty funny." Sirius winked. "I just left out the part about her being tickled."
"So I guess this means she said yes." Peter said his tone odd.
"Duh Pete! Like there was any real chance of her saying no." Sirius said ruffling his friends' hair affectionately.
"Come on boys let's leave them to it." Remus said waggling his eyebrows suggestively at the other two as they set off back toward their common room.
"But I thought he was just tickling her." Peter said confusedly.
Sirius and Remus burst out laughing.
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The morning after James asked Lily out they emerged from their dorm with only breakfast in mind.
Lily laughed and pushed James away for what had to be the fifth time already.
"You can't keep kissing me in the corridors." She said her eyes sparkling. "We have to set an example."
"Oh we will." He assured her. "We'll be a prime example of how two people who have just started dating each other should behave."
She shook her head at him but didn't resist when he found yet another alcove to push her into so that he could kiss her again.
They were rather late to breakfast by the time they actually reached the Great Hall. They entered hand in hand and apart from identical expressions of adoration on both their faces, and the slight flush that covered Lily's skin, they acted as if nothing had changed. Moving to sit in their usual seats, they instantly began to pile food onto their plates.
James grinned cockily when Lily reached for the pancakes yet again. She elbowed him playfully in the stomach when he raised his eyebrows at her and he chuckled and turned to reach for the bacon.
It was suddenly pulled out of his reach by an amused looking Sirius.
"You can't have any until you spill." He said smiling.
"What?" James exclaimed in mock affront. "I never thought I'd see the day when my best mate would use bacon against me to get the information he wanted."
"McKinnon told me she'd give me four chocolate frogs if I did it." Sirius admitted instantly.
"I'll make it five."James threw out just as quickly.
"Eight." Sirius countered.
"I'll give you six and a box of chocolate cauldrons."
"Make it seven and throw a box of Droobles in with the cauldrons and you've got a deal."
James stuck out his hand and the two boys shook on it. Sirius was grinning from ear to ear as he handed over the bacon.
"What the hell was that Black?" Marlene said irritably. "You were supposed to get him to tell us what happened."
"He'll tell me later anyway…and now I get sweets too." Sirius winked at her.
"You're pathetic." Marlene snorted.
"But really fucking adorable." Sirius said smirking.
"Language." Lily scolded him smiling at their banter.
"Come on Lils," Alice pleaded. "We all want to know. We can see you said yes. So just fill in the gaps for us."
Lily shrugged her face flushing slightly with embarrassment. "There's not much to tell. We went back to the common room. He asked me. I said yes."
"How did he ask you?" Dorcas insisted. "We want details here."
"Ooh let's make them reenact it." Marlene cooed, her eyes lighting up with excitement.
Lily began to rapidly shake her head no.
"Absolutely not. I know that look. That's the I'm not going to let this go until Lily does exactly what I want her to face and I'm not going to give in. There is no way you are getting me and James to reenact what happened when he asked me out!"
"So just tell us then." Alice insisted.
Lily sighed and looked at James as if to say 'well go ahead'. He grinned at her and then launched into a story that pretty much stuck to the truth until he got to where Lily said yes.
"And then I leaned down and kissed the daylights out of her for..."
"You did not!" She chuckled smacking him lightly on the arm.
"So you're saying I didn't kiss the daylights out of you last night?" He returned grinning madly.
"Well yes you did but…"
"See." He said stopping her. "Now eat your breakfast so that we can leave early for class."
"Why would we want to…" She began and then turned bright red when all of her friends began to laugh at her.
James leaned over and kissed her softly before whispering in her ear. "There are lots of hidden alcoves on the way to the transfiguration classroom."