Disclaimer: I don't own anything, but that's alright. I like the way things are currently panning out.

Last chapter. EHHH!

Also, peanut m&ms are gross when eaten with orange juice. Blech! And we are so close to the end. I can physically see the finish line.

Okay, enough stalling! Proceed to the chapter!

"Potter?" Lily asked in bewilderment.

"Are we back to nicknames, then?" James flashed his cocky smile, though Lily could see panic reflecting in his hazel eyes. "Because if so, I do believe I will return to calling you Flower."

"Sorry, I was surprised to see here." Lily said, feeling a lightness in chest. She hadn't spoken, really spoken, with James since the night of their breakup, save the awkward hellos when the passed each other patrolling or the meetings with the prefects. It was like some cosmic force had locked them together in the cupboard, forcing them to finally speak. Lily felt happier than she had all week, because the opportunity she had been hoping for was finally presenting it's self. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh," James ran his hand through his hair, rumpling it further. Lily had always found that gesture annoying, but locked in a cupboard, it seemed adorable. "I dropped Lizze off at the Hufflepuff common room and was heading up to bed, when suddenly, I was shoved into this closet with you."

Lily felt disapproval rise in her throat like bile. "You do realize it's past light's out, and Elizabeth should have been in bed already."

"I know, but she needed some extra help with charms and since she's my girlfriend," He spoke the word like one might say slug or flesh-eating illness, not like one should say girlfriend. "I decided to help her. She's so keen to learn."

Hearing the tone, Lily instantly perked up. While being locked in a closet had frightened her before, having James, who did sound all to pleased with Elizabeth, there made the dingy gray walls seem brighter and the cold stone floor seem warmer. The wood of the door no longer looked rotted, and the mops and brooms no longer seemed as disgusting and unhygienic.

James, however, seemed eager to leave. As soon as he finished his explanation, he turned and reached for the knob.

Lily laughed, despite the situation. "James, it's locked. You think I haven't tried opening the door? I've been in here at least fifteen minutes."

"Well, I didn't know that." He said, pulling out his wand.

Lily shook her head. "I've tried that too. Honestly, I've been in here for quite a while. What did you think I was doing? Sitting here and panicking? I've tired to open the door. I can't imagine who would be juvenile enough to lock the Head Boy and Girl in a cupboard, but would think to place a anti-unlocking charm on the door."

"Well, I don't know what you've been doing. I wasn't here." James said, a look of exasperation on his face. "For all I knew, in your frightened state you could have forgotten to check the door."

"James, I am not emotionally controlled. Even in a state of emergency, I can still think reasonably and rationally. It's not as if I am stupid, unlike Elizabeth." She added under her breath, though she knew he heard her.

"Really?" He mumbled, ignoring her comment and sitting on the ground across from her. "That's certainly not what I have experienced."

Lily didn't know whether or not she was supposed to hear the statement, but she was offended.

"Excuse me, Potter," She asked, anger rising in her chest. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means," He looked up at her, and spoke so his voice was loud and clear, though he was not shouting at her and he did not sound angry. He voice was levelheaded, and he looked calm. "that, based off of what I have experienced in the last year, when you are placed into a situation where emotion is evolved, you tend to shy away from what's reasonable and rational. You don't think, you simply say whatever comes to mind and do whatever you think is proper. Though, I suppose, emotional states are when we get to see who someone really is, wouldn't you agree?"

The words cut deep, and she knew exactly what James was speaking about. She knew that he was making reference to the night when she had broken things off with him. Something told her to leave it alone, leave James alone, at least for the time being, but she couldn't.

"No, I do not agree!" She sat up and stared at him, hazel on green, indignant. "I think that when confronted with emotions you don't particularly want to deal with, you might do something rash, but it doesn't make you a unreasonable or a cruel person!"

"Huh?" James said, glancing off to the side. "I would argue with you, but you do have this incisive need to be correct all the time, so I suppose it wouldn't really be worth anything."

"I do not have an incisive need to correct!" Lily said, turning away from him. "I enjoy being correct. I enjoy being knowledgeable. Those things are important, and I see nothing wrong with that."

"You wouldn't." His voice was ice cold and bitter, hinting at hurt and angry Lily hadn't imagined would.

Lily's face fell, and she couldn't believe what she was hearing. After seven years of stability and continuality, he changed at the drop of a hat. Her heart was heavy, and she spirits discharged. Even with both of their wands filling the room with bright light, they silence that hung on the air made the small space feel empty, cold, smaller and lonely. It was if her actions had covered the room by a dark cloud and created a barrier between them.

James voice filled the space, and Lily felt her heart soar.

"Why are you here, anyway?" He spoke soft and low, and with the tone of someone being polite to a stranger. He did not speak as if they had been romantic with each other only weeks before. He spoke as if they were cordial. One of the people you speak with, but you don't actively try and spend time with or really know.

"Oh." Lily seized the opportunity to try and correct her mistake. She needed the chance, and even if it meant to sallow the pride, she was going to take it. "I was in the library studying for my N.E.."

"When are you not in the library?" James chuckled, not a fake laugh, but a real one. Lily felt warmth surge through her body at the sound, and even if he was making fun of her, she felt happiness and joy that had been missing for the past week.

"Anyway, I was heading to up to bed when I dropped my books. I was bending down to pick them up, when something crashing into my side and sent my rolling into the closet."

"Then those books out there would be yours?" He gestured toward the door.

"Oh, good! I was worried that whoever had locked me in here would ruin them." She confessed.

"Lily." James ran his hand through his hair until it was mussed to his content. "Lily. No one in there right mind would take your Ancient Runes book. I tried that in fifth year, if you remember. I must say, I doubt that I've ever been able to throw quite as well." He flexed his right hand.

Lily smiled at the memory. "I've seen you play. I certainly didn't damage your abilities. I didn't think they would be taken, I thought someone might pour water onto them or tear out the pages."

"Oh." James looked down at his leg. "There is a good chance that History of Magic book has a large dent in the side."

Lily stared at him with a bemused expression "What on earth possessed you to kick my book?"

James wrapped his arm around his knees. "Oh, nothing."

Lily smiled at him. "I won't be angry. I think that I probably quote that book word for word."

"It's nothing, alright?"

"James, tell me!" Lily insisted.

"No. Lily, just let it drop." James said, turning away from her. "It's nothing you should be concerned about."

The silence that had been there before reinstated it's self, and Lily silently scolded herself for pushing the matter when she should have just stop talking or changed the subject.

The quiet seemed to stretch an eternity, and Lily couldn't find any words to fill the space. Lily wished for nothing more than a chance to go back to November. Before Elizabeth, before they dated, when they were still friends. They may not have been in a relationship at that point, but they were still speaking, laughing and at least enjoying each other's company. They could stand to be in the same room, they could patrol together. She wished she could just go back to before anything had happened.

After what felt like hours, Lily spoke.

"We should probably sleep in shifts." She stared not at James, but at the wall behind him. Lily didn't want to meet his eyes. "That way, if someone walks by, they'll hear us knocking."

James nodded. "I'll take first shift and you can sleep, if you'd like."

"Fine."

Lily leaned against a mop and closed her eyes, willing sleep to come. However, thoughts of James and Elizabeth kept her awake. Images of them sitting together made her want to cry, and scenes from the night she had broken up with James and the last week played through her mind.

Lily suddenly shot up, tried of sitting the quiet. She glanced at James, who she was surprised to find was staring at her.

"Sorry. I should be knocking." He began rapping his knuckles against the wood. "Go back to sleep, I'll get you up in an hour or so."

"James..." She sighed, "Why are we doing this?"

"Knocking on the door?" He said, raising his eyebrows. "It's because we're locked in a closet, Lily."

"No, not the knocking." Lily shook her head. "This! You and I are sitting in a closet, alone, and we are avoiding each other like the plague. What happened?"

James met her eyes, and Lily was amazed at how James's hazel eyes shone from the light of the wands. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you and I have spent the last week keeping as far away from each other as possible." Lily said, exasperated. "I walk into a room, you leave. We patrol on different nights, we don't look at each other. I can't go into the common room because I think that I'm going to find you and Elizabeth snogging on the couches or something."

James stared at her. "Don't make this about Lizzie. We both know that this is not about Lizzie."

Lily ignored him and continued. "It's like we can no longer be in the same room! What happened to us, James?"

"Do you want to know what happened between us, Lily?" James said, his voice rising. "Do you want to know what happened? You broke my heart, that's what happened."

"James-"

"NO!" He was openly shouting, but neither of them cared. "Lily, I've spent almost seven years chasing after you. SEVEN YEARS. Seven years worth of dreaming, plotting, hoping and waiting and do you want to know what I got out of it? About a month of happiness. I got one month of being with you, and then you just chuck me for no reason."

"James, I did not 'chuck' you for no reason. " Lily felt the need to defend herself, against better judgement. "You pulled a jab at my sister, you do realize?"

"No. No, I was not pulling a jab at your sister, Lily." He voice was choked with emotion, and Lily thought she detected tears in his eyes. "I was pointing out brave, strong and wonderful you are. You heard only a small portion of our conversation, Lily, and you didn't even give me a chance to explain! You thought you had the whole story, since you think you know everything, but you didn't! You didn't give me a chance to defend myself."

"I was so hurt, Lily. I don't think you can even imagine I hurt I was. I went patrolling that night in hopes of finding you. I know left you a note saying it would be fine, I understood, but I didn't. I still don't fully know what happened, but it did. I spent the entire night trying to think of something, anything, to help me win you back! I was heading toward you, but I ran into Elizabeth instead. And Lizzie was perfectly content to be help me get my mind off of things. I met her at breakfast again the next day, and from then on, we began to date."

"It's been a great week. I enjoy being with her. She's funny, and clever and interesting and I am happy with her!" James shouted, falling against the wood door frame. "I'm happy with her." He repeated softly, almost to him self.

"Really, James?" Lily said, staring up at him. "Are you happy with her? Because I don't think you are. I think you're settling for her."

"I'm not settling!" He shouted, slamming his fist against the door. "Lily, as hard as it may be for you to accept, Lizzie is not a consultation prize. I like her. Lizzie and I are happy together, and I really like her."

"Do you honestly, James?" Lily said, crossing her arms across her chest and staring at him in defiance. "I don't think you do. Do you want to know why?"

"Yes, Lily, because we all want your opinion on every single subject." He said sarcastically. "Since you just know everything, don't you? Such a smart Lily, such an intelligent Lily!"

She ignored his tone. "I don't think you can love her. You spent almost six years pining for me, and, even if you tried to not fall in love with me, you did. And Elizabeth is nothing like me! We're practically polar opposites, she and I! Where I am smart, she is completely stupid. I mean, she wanted help with Charms? She doesn't care about school, she just wanted to spend the evening with you, past curfew and alone. Where I'm independent, she's clingy. James, have you even spent any time with the Marauders since the two of you began to date? I have not seen the four of you really spend any time together since."

"We have!" James yelled.

"Really? As far as I can tell, you spend most waking moments exploring Elizabeth's mouth!"

"Leave mine and Lizzie's relationship out of this!" He shouted.

"No, James, I can't!" Lily shouted back. "I can't do that, because what do you think this is all about? Do you know what I did after I broke things off with you?"

James opened his mouth, but Lily refused to let him respond. "You accuse me of doing acting rashly when you don't have the full story, but that's the pot calling the kettle black! You didn't wait, or even think, I'm sure, when you and Lizzie were getting together! Do you know I spent that evening? After leaving you, I went to dinner, but I don't think I ate, or listened or talked to anyone. I spent the entire thinking about you, as pathetic as that is! I was worried when you didn't come to dinner that evening, so I went to the library, and I ran into Severus! Even though he's a complete and utter arse, he was the one who set me bloody straight! We talked, James, I came to realize I royally screwed up. I went to find you! At that point, I didn't know if I could salvage our relationship, but I thought I could at least salvage our friendship. I looked for you for hours, James! The only help I got was from Arthur, a portrait whom you had spotted in front of. He told me you'd went looking for some girl. I'll admit, I thought it was me, as self-absorded as that is. Now, though, I must admit it was probably Elizabeth."

"I talked Aira, Charlotte and Ellie that night. I told them everything, and I found you're note, James. I do understand how hurt you were, because I was feeling that same thing only hours later. It broke my heart, because I don't want to be done with you! I don't want you to stop trying. After seven years, seven bloody years, I'm finally realizing that, under it all, you're not just some pig-headed, self-absorded pain in the arse who thinks he is above all administration! You're James Potter. And I love you that way. Then I wake up the next morning, only a day later, fully prepared to tell you exactly how I feel and I find you playing tonsil hockey with a random girl! How hurt do you think I was? And then you just refused to talk to me, look at me or even be in the same room as me! There I was, completely perpared to tell you I love you, and I see you with your tongue down Elizabeth's throat, in complete sight of everyone!"

James, however, didn't respond. An expression of pure joy was replacing the anger, and before Lily could speak, her mouth was covered by a pair of moist, soft lips.

She melted into him, her eyelids sliding shut, unsure of what to do. Her whole body went slack, and she seemed unable to send any commands from her brain to her nerve endings. Even without any feeling in her body, Lily could a million colored lights dancing beneath her closed eyelids to the sound of a thousand violins, each playing to their own tune, but yet in perfect harmony. She hands somehow detached themselves from her sides and had found their way into James's hair, where she began to play with it, wrapping her fingers in the silky black strands. She didn't know how he had achieved it without her notice, but he had managed to switch positions with her and had her pressed against the wall.

They finally broke apart, both gasping for air. Lily took a quick breath, and went to return for more, but James just rested his forehead against hers, his ebony hair falling into her eyes, the cool metal from his glasses send shivers done his spine.

"Why'd we stop?" She breathed.

"I was settling, Lily." His hot breath tickled her ears. "I was settling for Elizabeth. I think because she is everything you're not. I was hurt, and I was angry and Elizabeth was there and she wasn't you. She is a complete imbecile, you're intelligent, she's boring, you make the world spin, and she just doesn't have the passion for things the way you do. I thought if maybe I could find something attractive that wasn't you, then I'd be over you. You'd be happy and I would be happy, but it doesn't work."

"That's why I kicked your book earlier. Everything reminds me of you! I can't go into the common room, which was awful, because that's all Elizabeth ever wanted to do. She didn't care for talking to me, or eating with me, or doing anything remotely fun with me. I won't say I'm against snogging all the time, since I am really not. It's good fun, you know. It's just after a while, it gets trivial and your lips begin to get very chapped."

Lily laughed and returned to kissing him, enjoying the taste that was purely James. It was a mixture of musk, most likely from the closet, an avocado flavor, most likely from James's shaving cream and something Lily couldn't place. It was sweet, but tangy, and a little bit sour. Lily smiled against his lips, drinking in James.

After a few minutes, James again broke the kiss. Lily stared up at him, smiling a wide grin.

"I'm cheating on my girlfriend." He said, staring into her forest eyes and playing with her fiery hair. "I'm cheating on my girlfriend."

Lily broke his embrace. "Excuse me?"

"Not you!" James reassured her, pulling her back into his arms. "Elizabeth. By kissing you, I'm technically cheating on Lizzie. I can't say I mind, since I was dating her to get over you, though that didn't really work. It's just I never thought I'd be the guy to cheat on someone."

"I never thought I'd the other woman in a relationship." Lily laughed, but broke from his arms a second time and sat on the floor. "I don't have any intentions to be one. I think, if you don't mind, I'm going to get that sleep we mentioned now and we, sadly, won't resume our snogging session until after you've broken with Elizabeth. Or at least until tomorrow morning."

"Fine." James said, sitting next to her. This time, there was no coldness in his voice. She could almost hear the hint of a smile covering his face. "I'll wake you up in a while and we'll switch."

Nodding, Lily extinguished her wand and placed her head upon his shoulder. She slowly drifted off to the sound of a rhythmic taping and with a whisper of a smile upon her face.

"Lily, wake up." James murmured in her ear.

Smiling at the sound of his voice, Lily replied, "Are you sure you don't want to make this like Christmas morning?"

"What happened Christmas morning?"

Lily eyes snapped open, and she was shocked to find herself staring straight into the faces of Remus, Ellie, Aira, Sirius, Charlotte and Peter, who had asked the question.

She then noticed the open door, and a particularly mischievous glint in Aira's eyes. She could feel her mouth start to open and a quick glance to the others confirmed what she already knew.

"I don't know what you were thinking, locking James and I in a cupboard!" Lily said, standing and helping James up. "It was very juvenile and I honestly cannot believe you did that! It's like you've learn nothing over the past year." She said, mostly to Aira and Sirius.

"Well, Miss Head Girl, you refused to go through with my plan on telling James you loved him in a grand gesture, so we had to improvise." Sirius said, standing with his hands of his hips. "Though, I must admit, Aira was right. Locking the two of you in a closet was much more fun for us."

James smiled and draped his arms across Lily's shoulder. "Sorry, mate, but, if my memory serves me correctly, I'm still head boy, so I'm going to need to give the lot of you detention." The group, however, didn't seem to hear him. They were all staring at Lily, anxiously waiting to see how she would react to James's touch.

Lily, however, was looking only at James. "I don't know..." She said, placing her head in the crock of James's neck and closing her eyes. "They certainly helped us get to this point, so I think we can let this one slide."

James gently kissed her on the forehead and smiled, his hazel eyes shining. "Are you sure?"

Lily opened her green eyes and gave a small wink to Aira, who returned the gesture with a half smile. "Yes, I'm sure."

She then turned on heel, heading down the corridor, with James close at her heels.

"Wait!" She heard Peter shout. "Wait, what's going on?"

Reaching the end of the hallway, she turned to James.

"Do you think we should clue him in?" She asked.

"No." James shook his head. "Peter's pretty thick, but I don't reckon his completely thick. He'll figure it out, or Moony will tell him."

Laughing, Lily intertwined their fingers and began leading James toward the Great Hall.

-fin-

I'll admit, I'm going to miss writing this story.

But never fear! There is an epilogue coming monday, so if you really want more, don't worry!

I have many thank yous to give: all the people who reviewed, your amazing! If you'd like to review this chapter, I would get overjoyed if I managed to get a hundred reviews or more. Katie: for generally being there.

and yeah. that's about it. ok, bye now.