Lily awoke early the next day with a sense of purpose like nothing she'd ever felt before. It was 6am so she dressed with her hungover roommates in mind, pausing at the mirror by the door to make sure she looked the part for today. She was hoping James would be in the common room; he had a knack for being there exactly when she needed him to be, and she knew him to be an early riser.

But he disappointed her, he was not there. She snuck up to the boys' dormitory, determined to act upon her decision without losing any time at all. She had no time to think up a pretext for being there, or to think of a reason why James would take a walk with her. She was somehow sure that fate would intervene to give them some time together.

Creeping into the boys' dormitory, she scanned the darkness for any signs of movement. The smell of firewhisky was strong, and no-one had drawn their hangings. Peter had face planted on the pillow, still in his dress robes, Miriella was in Sirius's bed with the hangings half drawn, Remus was snoozing serenely, looking for once as though he had not a care in the world. James's hangings were back and the bed looked slept in, but he wasn't there.

Panic was nudging at her edges as she made her way quietly back down the portrait hole. If he wasn't in the next location she had decided on to look, then she would assume he was with another girl somewhere. After all, that was what happened the last time she turned him down spectacularly, and in front of everyone. Her stride was quicker than usual as she moved through the Entrance Hall and out into the early morning light. The sky was a brilliant blue, promising a dream-like summer day, as though the sun were smiling on the post-exam revellers who would be out to enjoy its offerings again a little later on.

Through the brilliant blue sky a Quiddich player was moving. A small dot fenced by the enormity of the Hogwarts stadium. Relief flowed through her, as did the knowledge that this was exactly where he would be; to clear his head and work out his anger. She also recognised it as the perfect spot for reconciliation, firmly on his grounds. She seated herself on a lower stand and watched his figure weave through the skies.

She had been there for ten minutes and was beginning to wonder whether to call him. She hadn't dressed for being outside, but the morning air was so warm that it hardly mattered. Just then, James swooped down towards the ground in pursuit of the snitch he had let loose, and noticed a red-headed girl with a front row seat. His heart dropped faster than he had just dived. She's come to apologise for her behaviour and reiterate why we can't be together, he thought. He caught the snitch, feeling the metal in his hands, cool in comparison with the warm air, and steeled his heart for the onslaught.

'Evans' he said tonelessly, tossing his broom to the ground and gripping the snitch more tightly than ever.

'Thought I'd find you here' she replied, turning to him as he took a seat. Not the one next to her but two along.

'Seeking absorbs the attention; you can only concentrate on one thing' he said, by way of explanation.

She nodded absently. 'Look, I've been thinking about it all night, and I've come to my final decision.' She winced at her own melodrama; this was not how she wanted to sound.

He felt a burning in his throat, awaiting the brutality.

'You know why I've been pushing you away recently, it's because I didn't trust my feelings, but I was up for hours last night thinking about it and I think I've made the wrong choice. How I've begun to feel for you over the last six months has scared me – given our history – and I haven't been able to trust myself as I always have before.'

'Ok' he replied, feeling a little alarmed, not daring to hope.

'So' she said taking a deep breath and noticing the wideness of his eyes, 'I'm yours...if you'll have me.'

His eyes widened further, his hands began flattening his hair in his distraction. 'I...well...this isn't what I was expecting.'

She was silent, had she missed her chance, chances? Had she pushed him so far away that he would never come back to her? They sat in silence for two minutes while James looked at his hands.

'I just can't believe it's happening, like it's this easy' he said, breaking the silence.

'Do you want it to be happening?' she asked, eyebrows raised. 'Do you want...this?'

'You know I do, I'm just...in shock. Did Sirius slip you a love potion while you were sleeping?'

'No, but I keeping the door locked from now on' she laughed, averting her gaze from his face and to the Quiddich pitch, and the mountains beyond. This wasn't going how she'd dreamt at all.

She heard him exhale a laugh and wasn't aware of her decision to kiss him until she had bridged the two-seat gap and was kissing him. He was too shocked to raise his hands but he kissed her back, and with intent.

To him, it felt like no other kiss he had shared with her. It felt solid, lacking the dream-like quality it had always had before. It felt real, authentic and true. He felt an understanding from her that he had never felt before, and felt her passion with every breath she took. He understood her purpose and her intent. He felt what she had just said. He felt all of his dreams coming true. Lily Evans kissing him on a Quiddich pitch.

He pulled away and held her face in his hands, studying those green eyes which were filmed with tears. He let out a laugh and she did too, a tear falling down her cheek.

'Hey, don't cry' he said, swiftly wiping it away.

'You haven't given me an answer!'

'Oh sorry, I didn't think you needed one. Yes please... to everything'

She smiled back truly at him now, and they kissed a while longer.

'But' said James a little later on, when the sun had fully risen and the air heated up in mid-July fashion, 'I don't think we should tell anyone. Not yet.'

'Why?' she asked, bemused. She had been looking forward to telling everyone, to seeing everyone's faces as they walked in holding hands, people congratulating them, them spending the evening curled up in his favourite armchair together, just reading, or talking to the group.

'I've been humiliated a lot lately...' he began cutting Lily off as she began to protest. 'It's not your fault, but my pride has been wounded and I've looked a fool on several occasions. If this doesn't work out...' he trailed off.

'Are you imagining this being over before it's begun?' she laughed incredulously, trying to work him out.

'No, but let's be sensible here. There's a lot of pressure on us, what if we don't work as a couple?

'I feel like we could, like we will', she stated simply.

'So do I, more than you know. But why don't we have the summer to trial it out. Be together, be apart, and then come back in September and let the world know that we're together.

'So you're saying wait until September? I thought you told me that you couldn't wait any longer?'

'No not wait for us! I want you to be my girlfriend right now, I want us to be an exclusive couple, but I don't want anyone to know that...yet.'

'I guess that's ok' she replied, still a little put out by it all.

'Lily, I feel like this is so precious that we have to tread carefully. This is my one shot and I am going to do it perfectly, which means taking it slow to start with.'

'James, I see a different side to you with every conversation. Who knew that you were this measured and sensible.'

'Full of surprises' he grinned, taking her hands, 'now kiss me again before the whole school wakes up and we have to start keeping this a secret.'