Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters...except for a few. So I do own some of them. The story belongs to J.K Rowling.

For the remaining weeks at Hogwarts, James, Lily and the rest of their friends tried to figure out why the Slytherin's wanted them to stay apart. They wanted to know why were Lily and James so important to keep separated?

The Slytherin's did try to separate them, by having decoys try and push their way into either Lily or James's arms, but they had no such luck doing so, Lily and James were to much in love to fall to their petty little plots.

"Perhaps when you're together, your stronger, and something for them to fear?" Alice suggested. It was their last night at Hogwarts, and they were all gathered around the Head's fire, just talking and soaking in the reality that they would not be coming back for next year.

Lily let the idea roll around in her head for a minute, then shook her head. "Why would they be so fearful of us?"

"We are the top in our year," James replied smugly, liking the idea very much. She smiled modestly.

"James, that doesn't mean that Death Eaters should fear us, for the seven years I've been here it's taken mad studying to get this far. I shouldn't be feared just because I remember a few spells in a book."

They all mulled this point over, glancing in the fire.

"Love is the strongest kind of magic in the world," Lily said dreamily a few moments later. James looked at her and smiled, then took her hand.

"It is," Alice agreed, thinking of Frank with a huge grin on her face. She was excited, as soon as she was back home, they would be married. She couldn't wait.

Marlene and Remus sent each other lovey-dovey looks too, and moved closer so they could cuddle.

"I feel like this is a Kodak moment," Sirius joked. Ellie pouted, a little upset that Sirius wasn't making any move to kiss or hug her. No sooner had she thought that, then did Sirius lean over and give her a huge, sloppy kiss. "I call that my love kiss," he explained. Ellie laughed and whipped the slobber from her mouth.

"Ok enough of that guys," Peter moaned, still raw from when Ledaria dumped him, having found him no longer useful. Now she was all over Lucus. It disgusted him every time he saw them together, but watching his friends all practically make out also disgusted him. Didn't they understand at all what he was going through? How lonely he was? He looked away in disgust.

"Sorry Peter," Lily apologized. She sighed.

"I can't believe it's our last night," Marlene said, her voice full of a strange sort of fore belonging. It was as if she feared the future completely.

"I know," James replied, "But think of everything that's ahead of us!"

"Death," Peter mumbled, thinking of the dark times that lay ahead. "Not something I'm looking forward to."

"You're not going to die Peter," Ellie said, waving the idea away.

"Well, maybe not me. But some of us will," Peter said sulkily. "Especially if we join the Order."

"You don't want to join the Order?" Lily questioned, slightly taken-aback by Peter's sudden dark outlook on life.

"Of course I'm going to join it, I just don't really want to die," Peter replied.

"If I do die, I will die protecting what's right. I will die protecting my friends and family," James told him, sending him a hard look. Peter shrunk against it, feeling very cowardly.

"Me too," Lily promised, and the rest all nodded in agreement.

XXXX

It had been a long trip home, and Lily was so relieved to see her mother waiting for her near the family's car.

"Where's Petunia?" Lily questioned, letting go of James's hand so she could hug her mother.

"She has a house now with Vernon," Mrs. Evans replied, hugging Lily closely to her. "Please say your going to stay for dinner tonight, James," she added once she let go of Lily.

"If that's alright with you, Mrs. Evans," James answered, smiling at her.

"For Heaven's sake, call me Maragret!" Mrs. Evans laughed. They all piled into the car, and drove to the house that Lily grew up in.

"Petunia and Vernon are coming over for dinner tonight too," Mrs. Evans explained as she unlocked the door to the house and walked into the hallway. James set down Lily's trunk, as well as his own, near the foot of the stairs while Lily let Simon out of her cat carrier. He had certainly grown a lot, now he was almost an adult. He meowed once at her before racing off somewhere.

"Did you tell her I would be here?" Lily asked, hopefully thinking that Petunia knew and missed her.

"No," Mrs. Evans replied, her smile faltering. She glanced at James. "I thought having James here would lighten the mood a great deal," she added. Although she didn't say the words, Lily could hear them loud and clear in her head, because her father wouldn't be there. He always used to make things easier on everyone, it was just his personality.

"No problem," James said.

"Well, I'm going to go start dinner," Mrs. Evans told them, taking off her coat and hanging it on a hanger.

"I'll help Mum," Lily replied, "James, you can go sit in the parlour."

James obeyed, sitting down on the sofa. He glanced over at the easy chair were Mr. Evans had sat last Christmas. They had joked around and talked about Quidditch. In the short time that James had known Lily's father, he had grown to like him a great deal, and he missed him too.

After ten minutes, James could not take the silence anymore, and wondered into the kitchen quietly to see what they were up to. Mrs. Evans was doubled over the counter, crying, while Lily held her in her arms, also crying.

"It's just so hard, being here alone," Mrs. Evans was saying. "I can't even describe the feeling I have when I wake up every morning and the reality hits me that he isn't here."

James felt his own eyes begin to fill up with tears, so he went back into the parlour, feeling as though he had intruded on something he shouldn't have saw. But now that he had seen it, it put a lot of things into perspective.

XXXX

Mrs. Evans and Lily were almost finished making dinner when the door opened and Petunia walked in with Vernon. She spotted James sitting on the couch and instantly stiffened.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, crinkling her nose in disgust.

"Hello Petunia, it's been a long time," James said, standing up and offering his hand to her. She looked at it as if he was trying to get her to touch something very unpleasant, and then looked at Vernon.

"Petunia!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed, whipping her hands on her apron. Her eyes where red-rimmed from crying.

"Mother, have you been crying?" Petunia asked, alarmed. She sent James and Lily a look as if to say it was completely their fault.

"Oh no," Mrs. Evans laughed as she hugged Petunia, "I was cutting onions! Dinner is almost ready, just sit down in the parlour with Lily and James, and I'll have it served in no time at all!"

The silence in the parlour was enough to give Lily a headache. She still replied clearly what Petunia had said to her that day, but she still desperately wanted to forge some kind of bound with her. She regretted telling her about what really happened the night their father died, but knew that she wouldn't have been able to live with herself if Petunia didn't know the truth.

"It's ready!" Mrs. Evans called from the dinning room. Petunia and Vernon both got up stiffly and walked into the dinning room, Lily knew that if Petunia had the chance, she would be gone right away. However, Lily also knew that Petunia would not cause their mother any more pain then she already had to suffer. It was clear that Mrs. Evans was still deeply missing Mr. Evans.

Lily tried not to think about the conversation they had in the kitchen shortly after arriving home, instead she took James's arm and smiled up at him.

"This is so pleasant, isn't it?" she whispered.

"Very," James snorted. "Remind me to invite them to the wedding, they're such a lively bunch." Lily's breath hitched, he had mentioned something about a wedding. Of course, Lily knew that James would one day make her his wife; it was just the matter of when. She felt time was running out, and she wanted to spend as much as it as possible with him.

XXXX

Alice's wedding was beautiful. It took place outside, during a very beautiful, warm day. Alice wore a simple yet elegant white gown, and her hair was decorated with white flowers. Her pleasant face was warm and welcoming, and Lily couldn't remember ever seeing them happier.

After Frank and Alice had said their "I do's", the reception began. Frank asked to dance with Lily, and James asked if Alice would dance with him.

"I'm so happy for you guys, Frank!" Lily exclaimed as he twirled her around on the dance floor.

"Me too, this is the happiest day of my life," Frank replied, glancing over to where James was doing a strange jig with a laughing Alice. He smiled. "Sometimes I think I don't deserve her."

"Of course you do, you deserve each other," Lily told him. He looked back at her and smiled.

"James is so in love with you, you can tell. Even when you apart, it radiates off him, you too." Frank commented. Lily smiled, pleased.

"Well, he better," she joked.

After the song ended, Lily went back to the table she was sharing with James, Remus, Marlene, Ellie and Sirius.

"You know, I haven't seen Peter anywhere," Remus commented, looking around.

"I don't think he's here," Ellie told him.

"I wonder why that is?" Lily questioned.