Moonlight
We're gonna fly
Like a white wind on a blue sky
Until we're dancing in the moonlight
.
He is a terrible influence on her, and for the moment, she doesn't care.
The moonlight beams down, inviting, tantalizing. The night air feels cool against her the back of her neck and sends goosebumps along her spine. Perhaps that is his hand in hers.
"If anyone found out we're sneaking out—" she started.
"We do it all the time," he answered, and he twirls her around. "The boys and I."
"Oh, alright," she says, "but just this once."
And so they dance, her hand held tightly in his, and she has never felt so alive. She thinks, for a few moments, that they will just lift off the ground and fly away, far from the Hogwarts grounds and into the sky. He stops spinning, and she looks up at him.
"When we leave Hogwarts," he says, and although it is apparent he wants to say more, he does not. He looks her straight in the eye for a long moment.
"Yes?" she prompts.
"Er—what are you doing? When we get out of here, I mean." He bites his lip.
She is a bit taken aback, but she thinks about it for a moment. "Well, I don't know. I thought about maybe becoming a Healer."
"Hmm," says James. He is quiet for a long while.
"You?" asks Lily suspiciously.
"I'm going into the Order," he says. She can tell he had been trying to find the right way to say this, because he looks so relieved.
She sighs. "I thought you would say that."
"You did?"
"I'm starting to notice that you have a thing for saving people," she says, "and that's exactly what the Order is trying to do."
"You're taking this very well," he says.
"I know," she answers, and he manages a smile. They are quiet for a long while, and he holds her close. She notices, for the first time, that it is a little chilly, and she shivers.
"I have to say something else," he says suddenly.
"Go ahead," she answers.
He looks her in the eye and says, "I love you."
She doesn't know how to answer this, because she doesn't want to disappoint him. She breathes deeply. "Kiss me."
It is not the answer he expects, and perhaps his surprise is what makes him oblige. His lips fall to hers, and they kiss, and she is reminded of why she finally said yes—he is honest, so honest, in everything.
She pulls away. "I love you, James."
He smiles. "I thought so," says he, and he kisses her again.
They resume their music-less dancing, and she feels, somehow, lighter than before. "About the Order," she says after a while.
"Yes?" he asks, spinning her around.
"Why did you tell me?"
He sighs and looks away into the lake. "All four of us are—Sirius, Remus, Peter and I. We're all going. We decided, last night. Peter's terrified, I think, but we're all in. You needed to know."
"You're afraid I'll leave." It is not a question.
"Yes, I'm afraid you'll leave."
She nods, and they continue to dance in silence. Finally, she stands on her tip-toes and whispers, "I'm not going anywhere."
He smiles, picks her up off the ground, and kisses her, and it feels more like flying than anything she has ever felt.