The Party, 3:14

Five different splashes followed those of Lily's, Marlene's, and Harley's as the rest of the group, laughing, jumped into the lake as well.

"It's cold in here!" came Zoe's shocked voice.

"It's the middle of November," Remus pointed out.

"We sh-sh-should get ou-out," Lily suggested.

There was a mass exodus from the lake as all eight of them - slipping, shivering, and laughing - climbed out of the lake and back onto the dock.

"Ugh, I'm so wet," Harley said with disgust, wringing her long hair out into the grass.

"Blimey," Sirius said. "Didn't know it was that easy with you, Pensky."

"Bite me, Black."

"Do you dare me?"

"I do!" Marlene exclaimed.

"Save it for later," James said, grabbing onto Sirius's collar.

"I think James wants Sirius to bite him," Marlene said slyly, giggling behind her hand and wobbling slightly on the spot. "Sirius, I dare you to bite James."

"Would you rather have James, or James Bond?" Lily asked them without warning.

"Which one?" Sirius asked suspiciously.

"Connery."

"Bond," came his immediate answer.

The group considered this, and then they all nodded.

"Bond. Definitely."

"Sorry, James," Peter said.

James shrugged. "It's all right," he assured him. "I'd go for Bond, too."

"You should be him next Halloween," Lily suggested.

"Only if you're a Bond girl," he said, winking flirtatiously.

Lily smiled and looked away. The Firewhiskey was making her cheeks turn red. Yep. The Firewhiskey.

"Look at the stars!" Remus exclaimed suddenly, his head tilted back to see the sky. All seven heads immediately went north.

"Wow," Zoe said softly.

The eight of them lay down on the grass in a circle, their heads in the middle and just looked up.

With no electricity inside of Hogwarts, there was little light to obscure the night sky. It was free of clouds and thick with stars, and Lily felt as if she was seeing the entire universe folded out for her visual pleasure.

Marlene, on her left, grabbed her hand and squeezed it tight. Lily saw that she'd also taken Remus'. To Lily's right, she grabbed James's hand.

His eyes snapped to her questioningly, but she just grinned and looked back up to the sky. In her peripheral vision, she saw James's soft smile.

"Happy birthday, Sirius," Marlene said, and Lily felt a rush a warmth for their little group. Ditzy and intoxicated though they were, she was overall very happy.

Sirius laughed. "Happy indeed. Although, credit where credit is due, it would not be this good without the permission of the Head Girl."

"It's impossible for birthdays to be happy if there's no alcohol present?" Lily asked.

"Well," Sirius said, "I suppose not. But they're certainly better."

"You're going to be a crusty, old drunk, Sirius Black," Harley predicted.

"I shall wear the title with honor." He confirmed such a statement by getting up and passing out the remaining bottles of Firewhiskey.

"You're welcome, I suppose," Lily said, as they all sat up and took a bottle.

They were silent for a few more minutes, until Sirius spoke up.

"I bet I could finish my bottle before any of you."

Which was how, two minutes later, they were all giggling uncontrollably on the ground, red in the face and set off by the littlest things.

"And - and then the beagle," James tried to explain to the girls, "it - it - Padfoot-" and then he started laughing again, clutching his stomach, as did everyone else. Zoe was literally rolling on the ground, while Peter attempted and failed to stand, crashing on top of her. This just caused more laughter.

"I - I can't - my stomach hurts," Marlene slurred through her laughter. "But I'm out of Firewhiskey!"

"Me too," Harley said, proving it by throwing her bottle on the ground, where it hit a rock and broke on impact.

The group laughed while Harley mourned the loss of her bottle. Lily took out her waved and waved it once. The shards from the bottle flew together, but her intoxication made her charm work sloppy and one of the pieces caught her arm and gave her a little nick.

"We need to celebrate properly!" Sirius announced. "Who's up for the Three Broomsticks?"

"It's three in the morning," Remus protested.

"The best time for shenanigans!" Sirius exclaimed.

With many hurrah's and little arguments, the group stumbled their way across the grounds of Hogwarts before finally reaching the front gates, admittedly exhausted from lack of sleep and such a long walk. Neither, however, could keep them from reaching their destination.

"Maggie!" Sirius yelled, pounding on the front door of The Three Broomsticks, ignoring the shushes from the rest of the group.

"Blimey, Sirius, it's a bar!" Lily said, reaching past him and opening the unlocked door. "I don't think they close."

It might have well have, as no one was in except Maggie, who had obviously just been awoken from a deep sleep.

"What's going on?" she asked blearily, sitting on one of the bar stools. Her curly brown hair was plastered to the side of her face and her normally kind face was scrunched in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"We're here to celebrate!" Sirius said in a tone far too loud. The walk over had caused the group to grow tired, but not Sirius. "I'm eighteen today, Maggie!"

"Yesterday," Remus corrected.

"Congratulations," she answered, rubbing her eyes. "I still don't see what that's got to do with me."

"We require alcohol."

"Not at this hour."

"But-"

"No buts!" The brunette exclaimed, getting off her stool and stretching. "I'm cutting you off, you're all pissed."

"Aw, but Mags-"

"No buts!" she repeated. "Look at poor Peter, he's asleep on his feet."

Sirius turned and indeed saw that Peter was swaying slightly on the spot, eyes half closed.

"Why don't I just get you all some water?"

"That sounds good," Harley slurred, sitting down in the expansive corner booth. Suddenly, she was very thirsty.

The rest followed suit, realizing their thirst.

"Blimey you'll have to tell me the whole story," Maggie said, returning from behind the corner with a tray covered in mugs full of water.

"It's a great story," Zoe giggled, hiccupping.

"Clearly."

"Lils?" James suddenly reached for Lily's arm as she approached the table. "You're bleeding!"

"Oh," Lily looked down at her arm, "I just got scratched from Harley's bottle earlier, nothing to worry about."

"That's not a scratch," James said, pushing up her blood soaked sleeve. Underneath, her arm was covered in more blood. "How did you not notice this?"

"I don't know," Lily said, starting to feel hazy.

James grabbed a bar cloth and pressed it to her arm, using it as a makeshift bandage. "We should take you to someone – unless you know any healing charms?"

"I'd probably take off my own arm instead of fixing it in this state," Lily pointed out, poking James in the chest.

Impatient, James took her wrist in his and started leading her out of the bar. "We'll be back," he told the room, but everyone was preoccupied in retelling the night's events to Maggie.

James led Lily to Honeydukes, instructing her to keep pressure on her arm. They snuck into the cellar and through the secret passageway to the castle, James feeling like he had a toddler in tow.

"You lot have so many secrets," Lily said, tugging on his sleeve with her free hand. "How long have you known about this passage?"

"We found it in second year," James answered.

"That's how you got into Hogsmeade before third year!" Lily realized.

James couldn't help the guilty smile that lit up his face. It wasn't, but James decided not to tell Lily that.

"You were the Marauders before you were the Marauders," Lily slurred. "Say, how come you're so clear headed? Hardly seems fair, you drank more than me."

"I, however, can hold my liquor far better than ninety pound girls who barely even take sips of wine at formal parties," James pointed out.

"I am far heavier than ninety pounds," Lily said.

"'Don't look it."

"Well, thank you. Unless you are insinuating that I look unhealthily skinny, than I kindly request that you go sod off-"

"Christ, Lily, I should get you drunk every day," James said through his laughter.

"Well, if I'm only amusing when pissed, I dunno why you keep me around at all," Lily said.

"Oh, Lils," James sighed. "I would always keep you around. You're the most attractive and amusing bird I know."

"Oh," she blushed. "Likewise. Boy though, not a bird."

"Yeah?" James glanced at her, then quickly looked ahead before his own flush gave away his feelings.

"Yeah." Lily, however, did not have so much self-control in that moment and studied him for a few seconds. In her life, Lily felt like it always came back to him, back to James. "In fact-"

"I think we should go to Bailey," James said quickly. He was scared of where this conversation was going. Of course, it was heading straight towards his wildest dreams, but he didn't want it to happen like this, both of them drunk and on their way to seek medical attention. "You know how she is."

Bailey had earned herself a reputation of being a sort of underground healer. Hangover? She had a stock of the cure in her trunk. Cramps? She had pain medication by the bottle and chocolate by the pound. Cut your arm during a wild, drunken night that would definitely land you in detention? She could patch you up without raising the suspicion of anyone.

"Oh," was all Lily said.

James wanted to punch himself. She had been about to say something! Fucking hell, Potter, pull yourself together!

They soon reached the end of the tunnel and he helped her up the passage into the corridor.

"We were supposed to be on duty tonight, weren't we?" Lily whispered to him. James only nodded, gesturing for her to be quiet.

Silently, they had an uneventful journey up to the Gryffindor Common Room. They whispered the password to a very crabby Fat Lady, but finally made it to the safety the Common Room provided. Thankfully, it was deserted and only the party decorations remained.

"I think it's stopped bleeding," Lily whispered, removing the rag from her arm, which now had a lovely dark red stain. Maggie would probably chew them out for that, but for now James was worried about finding Bailey.

Lily ran quietly up the stairs, and James could just barely hear the knock on the door.

Fortunately, Bailey was the one who answered. "Lily?"

"I cut my arm," Lily said, lamely holding it out for evidence.

Bailey rolled her eyes. This was not the first time she'd been awoken in the middle of the night. She was surprised, however, by the strong smell of alcohol coming off of Lily.

"Go back downstairs, I'll bring some stuff. I don't want to wake anyone up."

Lily complied, carefully walking back down the stairs and to James. "She's coming."

And soon Bailey did, carrying a bottle of liquid, a soaked rag, and her wand.

"Drink some of this. Both of you," she added, after seeing James's bloodshot eyes.

"What is it?" he asked suspiciously.

"Something to sober you two up. Honestly," she clucked as she inspected Lily's arm. "This isn't that bad. It's not even that deep." She pressed the rag to the cut and Lily hissed, jerking her arm away.

"The bloody hell is that soaked in? Acid?"

"Peroxide," Bailey said in a sing-song voice. "You don't want an infection, do you?"

"Can't you just – I don't know – magic me?" Lily asked.

Bailey rolled her eyes. "I just know how to stitch you up, not clean you."

"I should give you detention."

"I think you're the one who's more deserving of that detention, love," Bailey pointed out. "But I'm just assuming your night was full of illicit activities."

"Oh it was," James said before downing half of the bottle's contents and shuddering at the taste. Immediately, however, he felt his head clear. It appeared he'd been a bit more intoxicated than previously thought.

"Hmm," Lily said, stilly hazy from alcohol. "You're right. James, we both have detention. In fact, we all have detention. You, me, Sirius, Harley, Zoe, Remus, Marlene, and Peter." She rattled off the names, counting off her fingers. "For being up at two in the morning."

James rolled his eyes. "You sure you aren't going to regret that order in the morning?"

"I'm Head Girl," Lily argued. "I have to practice a 'sense of civic responsibility.'" James cracked a smile as she quoted a phrase McGonagall had written in their Head Girl and Boy letters. Trust Lily to remember something like that, even drunk.

Bailey finished with the rag and waved her wand over Lily's now clean arm. She was right, the cut wasn't deep at all, but since she cut it on the glass shards, it had gone unattended and just kept bleeding until James had noticed in The Three Broomsticks.

"Thank you," Lily breathed in relief. She took the bottle from James and finished off the contents and handed the empty vial to Bailey, who stowed it in her pocket.

"Now, I know you will ignore this, but try not to do anything too stupid for the rest of the night," Bailey told them. Lily laughed, and felt the potion take effect. A small headache started to settle behind her eyes, and she suddenly felt very, very tired.

"Good night," Bailey said, turning around and making her way up to her dormitory.

"Thanks for your help, Bailey," James said.

With a final wave, the Sixth Year disappeared.

"What do we do now?" James said, turning to Lily. "We could go back to The Three Broomsticks – you all right?"

"No, I'm good," Lily said, swaying slightly. "I'm just – blimey, I'm so tired. I think I've been awake for twenty-four hours."

James checked his watch. "Nearly. It's just past five."

"Merlin," Lily muttered, rubbing her eyes. She collapsed into the sofa in front of the fireplace, and James quietly sat beside her. She snuggled into his chest and fell into a light doze.

Frozen in place, James felt as though any movement would disturb her. She looked peaceful, using him as a pillow. Slowly, he brought his hand to her hair and gently ran it through her long red locks.

It was a wonderful moment for both of them. Lily alternated between staring at the fire and dozing off, and James continued to run his hand through her hair.

"James?"

"Hmm."

"Did you mean what you said earlier?"

"Probably not. I was a lot drunker than I thought."

"So I'm not amusing and attractive?"

"Oh," It was James's turn to flush, and his cheeks turned a dark crimson, though Lily couldn't see it. "No, I meant that."

"Really?"

"Definitely."

"Thank you," Lily said. "That was very sweet."

"You of course," James said, "said the same to me. I'm only assuming you meant it was well."

"Of course I did."

"Of course?"

"Yeah. You're James Potter."

A deep chuckle caused James' chest to vibrate, making Lily smile. "I'll be glad to tell every other James Potter in the world that our name guarantees us to be amusing and attractive."

Lily smiled softly. "You're wrong."

"But you just said – "

"It's not that your name is James Potter," Lily interrupted. "It's that you're you. You're… James. Funny, kind, clever… not bad on the eyes."

"Lily Evans, this is quite forward of you."

"I don't care," she answered, surprising James again for the hundredth time that night. Lily sat up and looked James in the eye, some sort of passionate glint in her emerald eyes. "I'm… tired. So bloody tired of not saying what I feel."

"What do you feel?" James asked quietly, feeling a strange sense of role reversal.

"Like… I want to scream," Lily tried to explain. "Less than twenty-four hours ago, I was dumped by my boyfriend. We'd been together for nine months. And I didn't even care."

"Oh, Lils," James said. "I think you cared-"

"No, I didn't," she interrupted again. "I was a little angry. But I think I was more angry at myself."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't realize sooner that I wasn't actually happy in that relationship. It was going nowhere, and you know why?"

"Why?" James asked again, a sense of anticipation in his stomach. He and Lily were very close. So, so close. And during this conversation, with her hair messy and the embers from the fire casting a slight orange glow on her face, Lily never looked more gorgeous to him. The way she was looking at him didn't hurt either.

"Because I think I was in love with someone else the whole time," Lily said, feeling like she was exposing her soul to James.

"The whole time?" James asked, moving ever closer, glancing down at her lips every few seconds.

"Well," she admitted, chewing her bottom lip softly, effectively driving James crazy. "Maybe not the whole time. But definitely a large chunk of it. At least since-"

James pressed his lips to hers, effectively cutting her off. They were both frozen, eyes wide and staring into each other's as though shocked by this turn of events. Soon however, James's hand reached up and cupped her chin, urging her to respond as he kissed her gently.

Lily's eyes fluttered closed, letting James pull her into his lap where she let her hands roam into his hair, nibbling softly on his bottom lip. Her entire body felt wired up and tense with excitement as James' lips glided over her own. They were chapped from the cold weather, but they were also warm and comforting. Lily moaned softly when James moved to kiss her jaw as her hands went lower to feel his chest and stomach. His lips were roaming her neck until she pulled him back up, kissing him forcefully and letting her tongue explore his mouth, with him happily reciprocating.

Their kissing increased in intensity as James slid his hands underneath the bottom of her dress, his callused hands running over her smooth thighs, sending little tingles of pleasure through Lily right down to her toes. She pressed closer to him, now straddling him and pressing her hips into his. James groaned, causing the vibration in his chest that Lily loved so.

Without warning, James wrapped his arms securely around Lily and stood up, carrying her towards the boy's dormitory staircase. Lily welcomed this, kissing his stubbly jaw and humming in agreement. Halfway up the staircase, James set her down and pressed her against a nearby wall, cupping her face in his hands.

"James – dormitory – comfier than wall," Lily said between kisses. James smiled and took her hand, and they ran up the rest of the way before joining back together once in the dormitory.

Feeling as though the ten seconds sprint up the stairs was far too long a time for her lips to be without James, Lily took the initiative and pressed him into the pillows of his own bed, kissing him all the while. James soon flipped them over, however, and Lily took this as a chance to lift his shirt over his head.

"Are you sure?" James asked.

She gave him an exasperated look in response, and he took this as affirmation.

Soon, they were both nearly naked – Lily clad only in her bra and panties, James in his boxers.

James' hand was on the small of Lily's arched back, pressing her into his chest as he ran kisses from her neck down to her collarbone. Her hands explored his muscular back, the skin smooth and warm. Lily lost ay sense of time that she may have had before, too consumed to pay attention to anything that wasn't James's lips, or the feel of his hair in her hands, or the way he kissed her neck.

It could have been two minutes, two hours, or two days - Lily wouldn't have known. All she knew was that James had his arms wrapped around her waist, and her forehead was pressed to his chest as they both tried to keep their eyes open.

"James?" Lily muttered sleepily.

"Hmm?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"You've been a really good friend."

"Merlin Lily, you strip a man down to his knickers and then you tell him you just want to be friends?"

Lily laughed, snuggling closer into him. "That's not what I'm saying. And I definitely want to be much more than friends with you, James Potter."

"Likewise." Lily could practically hear the broad grin that James was no doubt currently wearing.

"I just meant... thanks for everything tonight. And I had a lovely time dancing."

"I'd have a lovely time with you in any setting, Lily Evans," James said sincerely.

And Lily knew that he meant it.

The Day After, After Lunch

Lily didn't know quite what to do with herself.

After Maggie told them what had happened until Lily and James' disappearance and the waitress' own orders that the remaining drunkards sleep in the bar, her memory slowly restored itself.

What an evening.

She was currently holed up in her dormitory, using the time to think about what happened. James had tried to stop her earlier, but she eluded him and escaped. Where did that night leave her and James, anyway? Did everything that happened still count? Neither of them was technically drunk when it happened.

She'd certainly enjoyed it.

But Merlin, she'd nearly had sex with James Potter in the span of – oh – an hour.

She must've still been a little tipsy. But thinking of his body pressed up against hers left Lily more flustered than she'd have liked.

The bell rang. Lily had skipped all of Defense Against the Dark Arts to avoid James. And now, knowing exactly what had happened had almost made it worse. What if the entire night meant nothing to him? How did she know it even meant anything to her?

It was probably aftereffects of the Firewhiskey. Or maybe the potion Bailey gave them had a weird side effect.

Yes, that was it.

Hardly daring to miss Ancient Runes, Lily grabbed her bag and headed towards the classroom. The Marauders had Care of Magical Creatures that period, and there was no chance of running into them. She slipped into her seat beside Harley just as the late bell rang.

"Skipping classes, are we?" Harley asked immediately.

"I had a few things to think about," Lily replied.

"Do you remember the rest of the night?"

"Yeah."

"Anything good?"

"Depends on your definition."

Harley's reply was cut off when Professor Babbling shot the two girls warning looks for their talking. The pair stayed quiet for most of the lesson. Finally, they were given a few minutes of activity at the end of the lesson and Lily and Harley used this to discuss the night more.

"But, we've done it, haven't we?" Harley asked. "We've figured everything out. We remember everything. Everything can go back to normal."

"Hmm," Lily mused. "Yeah, I suppose it can."

Harley gave her a small smile and returned to their assignment. Soon however, Liam approached them.

"Hey, Lily," he said with a neutral expression on his face. "Professor Connors accidentally handed me your homework. I came here to give it to you."

Lily simply stared at him for a few seconds before extending her hand and taking the parchment without a word. Liam said goodbye to both of them before crossing the room and going back to his friends, not bothered at all by the exchange.

And that's when Lily realized Liam didn't give a single damn about her anymore.

Or, well, maybe he gave a damn - she wasn't a mind reader - but in that moment, Lily felt like dirt underneath his feet. She always had, in a way. She had to be perfect for him. To be at her best whenever in his presence.

That was also when she realized that when she was with James, Lily felt she was at her best no matter what state she was in. With Liam, everything was mechanical. With James, it was passionate. With Liam, it was attraction. With James, it was love.

And it had taken her an insane party and inappropriate amounts of alcohol to realize this.

AN: Ahh, what!? Epilogue next, last Author's Note with that one! :D