Hey you guys. This is the last chapter. I'll post my A/N at the end.
Anana553- Ha-ha Disney songs ARE awesome, as are the movies. Enough said. I'll talk to you on the sequel, you know, if you read it (: Please do!
JUST WANT TO SAY how everyone associated Lily's graduation speech with the speech in Eclipse…yeah I haven't watched that movie :p I thought the movies ruined the books so I didn't watch after New Moon. So I guess it's just a strange coincidence then (:
Disclaimer: For the last time (literally), I do not own Harry Potter…like at all.
Previously:
They graduated
"Mum!" Lily squealed throwing herself into her mothers' arms after the ceremony was over.
"Oh, my baby, you graduated!" her mother sobbed into her shoulder. Her father came up and put his arms around both of his women, hugging them.
"Daddy you're squishing me!" Lily squealed, and Andrew chuckled a watery chuckle, "Daddy, don't cry!" Lily whined, and Andrew coughed.
"Who's crying?" he said in a manly, deep voice.
"I believe you are Papa E," Sirius grinned, walking over to them. Andrew narrowed his eyes at Sirius.
"I was not," he said.
"You sound like dad," James grinned, walking over to them. Jane squealed and hugged James, and Lily rolled her eyes, "Told you your parents like me better," James teased Lily over her mother's head, and Lily stuck her tongue out at him.
"Well, your parents like her better," said Emily, putting her arm around Lily. Daniel walked over and grinned at Lily, and at his sons 'hurt' expression.
"You graduated!" he said, looking at all of the Gryffindors who were gathered together. Alice's mother, Remus's parents, Hestia's parents, Peter's mother and Frank's parents were also there, "How the bloody hell did that happen?" he asked, looking around at the children he'd watch grow up, the Marauders. James shrugged and grinned at his dad, who turned his back to them.
"What is he doing?" Lily asked, and James sniggered.
"He's crying." Lily looked at James sternly, and he grinned.
"Crying is expressing that you're comfortable with your manliness," Daniel said in a choked voice, turning around and wiping at his face, "And I'm sorry I get emotional that my son and his stupid crazy friends have graduated," he said defiantly, sticking his chin out, and Lily grinned at how he looked exactly like James when he did that.
"Anyway," Helen said, trying to ease the poor man of his pain, "Congratulations boo!" she squealed, hugging Hestia, who turned bright red and looked at the snickering Sirius.
"Mum!" Hestia whined, pushing her mother off her and walking over to hug Lily, "Everyone's embarrassing me," she cried to her best friend, who hugged her sympathetically.
"I know the feeling," Lily said, glaring at her parents, who shrugged.
"Anyway, we're off now," said Emily, clapping her hands together, and James raised his eyebrows
"Where are you going?"
"The Evans's," Daniel said excitedly, grinning at Lily, whose jaw dropped.
"Why?" Lily shrieked, looking at her father, who grinned at her.
"So dad can play with the muggle stuff," James said cheekily, looking at his father, who glared at his son, flushing slightly.
"Because we have bonding to do," Jane said, smiling at her daughter, who looked over at James, who looked just as dumbstruck as she felt.
"Pumpkin we're going anyway, you might as well get used to it," Emily said, grinning at James. James flushed slightly at the use of his nickname, and Lily giggled. Emily smiled down at Lily and Andrew sighed as he realized Lily was truly a grown up now.
"No baby pictures," Lily said, glaring at her father, who grinned.
"Scouts honour," he said, holding up his hand
"You're not a scout," Hestia said, and Andrew turned to narrow his eyes at her as his wife and daughter laughed at him.
"I missed out okay?" Andrew said.
"What's a scout?" Daniel asked excitedly. Emily rolled her eyes and squeezed Lily's shoulders, causing Lily to giggle.
"Bye!" Emily said, changing the topic before Andrew could explain it, or her husband wet himself out of excitement. She pulled Lily in for a hug, "I'll see you soon," she said, before heading over to hug the rest of the kids. Lily's parents followed suite, as did Hestia's.
"Bye sweetheart," Jane said, holding her daughters face in both her hands, "I'll see you at Kings Cross." Jane kissed her daughter on the cheek before turning around to hug Sirius, who was grumbling because Hestia's mother had ruffled and messed up his hair on purpose.
"Take care flower," Andrew said, kissing his daughter's forehead, "Try not to murder Sirius?" he chuckled, as Lily narrowed her eyes as Sirius swung her mother around.
"I'll do my best," Lily promised, and Andrew laughed.
"See you in two days petal,"
"Bye daddy,"
"BYE!" Daniel said, jumping over to Lily and hugging her. Lily laughed, "Is there a television at your house? And a fellyphone?" he asked excitedly, and Lily grinned.
"It's a telephone," she said, and Daniel frowned and nodded.
"Thanks you just saved me a lot of embarrassment," he chuckled, and Lily laughed. Daniel smiled and pulled her in for a fatherly hug and she hugged him back.
Emily, who had been having a tearful (on her side) goodbye with her son, sighed and rolled her eyes at her husband. She walked over to Jane, who was now hugging her goddaughter Hestia. Jane let go of Hestia and grinned up at Emily, who was slightly taller than Lily, who was taller than Jane. Emily smiled happily and gave her husband, who was chatting with Lily excitedly about air-conditioning, a look. Daniel stopped talking instantly and looked down at the floor, wearing an expression that was appropriate at a funeral, "So we're off," Emily said.
"NO WAIT!" they jumped and looked at James, who had yelled out. James walked over to Andrew, and grabbed his arm, "Come on!" he said excitedly, and Andrew, who genuinely liked James and trusted him, grinned and allowed his daughters boyfriend to pull him off.
"James Potter where are you taking my father?" Lily yelled after him, and theyall heard James laugh, "I'm going to go make sure he doesn't scare dad," Lily said, and Emily laughd, "It's possible!" she said, and Emily chuckled, but nodded in all seriousness.
"If he permanently scars your husband, I want to apologize in advance," Daniel said, looking at Jane, who giggled. Lily rolled her eyes, honestly her mother was such a sap around attractive men. Lily sprinted after James and her father.
"Where are you going?" she asked as she caught up to them.
"Evans are you following me?" James asked cheekily, and Lily stuck her tongue out at him.
"Yes James, I missed you," she assured him sarcastically. Andrew, who was watching his daughter, grinned, "Hi daddy," she said cheerfully, and Andrew chuckled, "So James where are you taking my father?" Lily asked, and James grinned.
"It's a surprise"
"Bloody hell James you're so irritating," Lily muttered, and James shrugged.
"Mr. Evans will like it," he said, and Andrew frowned.
"Name's Andrew son. Mr. Evans is my father," he said, and James laughed.
"Sorry Andrew," James said awkwardly, and Andrew grinned happily.
"So where are we going?" Lily asked again, and James huffed.
"Evans you're so irritating!" he said, and Lily giggled.
"Why do you call her Evans?" Andrew asked curiously, and James laughed.
"Back when she hated me, she used to call me Potter, so I called her Evans," he shrugged, and Andrew laughed.
"I cant believe you used to hate him," Andrew chuckled, and Lily flushed.
"No she didn't," James said happily, and Lily sighed, "She's like me since her second year. She just didn't know it," he said, and Andrew frowned.
"How did you know?"
"Petunia," Lily said, her heart aching at the fact that she hadn't used her nickname for her sister.
"Why is she Petunia?" Andrew asked, and Lily closed her eyes. James shook his head slightly and Andrew nodded in understanding.
"Because of Vermin," Lily said, and both men froze, before bursting into laughter.
"I've always hated vermin. They're disgusting. And they're everywhere," James said, and Lily giggled. Andrew smiled at the fact that Lily had found someone who could cheer her up. They rounded the corner and Lily rolled her eyes, of course, "Andrew, welcome to the Quidditch Pitch," James said, gesturing to the large field in front of them. Andrew squealed like a little girl and looked around the stadium.
"Am I allowed?" he asked, gesturing to the grass, and the students nodded. Andrew walked onto the field happily, absorbed in his own little bubble of fascination. Lily turned to James and grinned up at him.
"Thank you," she said, and James turned to look down at her. He gave her a small smile.
"I didn't do it for you," he said, nodding towards her father, who was grinning and looking up at the goal posts. Lily grinned and turned back to her father, "You want to try flying?" James called out, and Lily jumped.
"He can't fly!" Lily hissed, and James snorted.
"I meant with a broom," he said cheekily, and Lily rolled her eyes but felt a giggle bubble up her esophagus. Andrew's eyes had widened and James left Lily, to walk down onto the field with him. Lily sighed and pulled out her wand. She waved it and three brooms flew towards them, "Oh, thanks," James said, as Lily walked onto the field, "You're going too?" he asked, and Lily snorted.
"No the third one was for Nearly Headless Nick," she said, and James grinned.
"He doesn't need a broom," he said cheekily, and Lily sighed. There was really no point trying to use sarcasm on James sometimes.
"Yes James, it's for me," she said, and James grinned, knowing he'd won. She pulled out her wand and produced her patronus.
"Lily that's pretty!" her father said, walking over to the doe. Lily smiled at him as he admired the doe.
"It's my patronus," she said. She opened her mouth to explain what it was when her father nodded.
"It's what protects you right?" he asked, and both Lily and James looked at him, shocked, "I told you I read your textbooks, I was serious," he said, and Lily grinned as James chuckled. Lily shook her head and then her doe ran off.
"Where is it going?" James asked.
"I'm telling everyone where we are, we might be here a while," she said. James nodded happily and then turned to Andrew.
"So, you're going to learn how to fly!" he said, and Andrew grinned excitedly, "So, for starters, step next to a broom," he said. Andrew stumbled in his attempt to get to the brooms faster. He stopped next to one of them and Lily and James stood next to the other two, "Now, put your right hand out above the broom, and say up," James said. Lily was shocked to see her father's broom fly up after the first call, "Now mount it," James said, "like this." He swung one leg over the broom. Andrew followed suite and Lily threw one of her legs over the broom, and almost fell over in her attempt. She looked down and remembered she was wearing a strapless dress and stilettos. Lily put the broom down and walked away to observe.
"Lilykins aren't you going to fly?" Andrew asked excitedly, and Lily smiled at her father. He looked like a child.
"I can't in this daddy," she said, gesturing to her dress. Her father nodded and looked down at the broom. James, however, was looking at the dress, in a way that made her feel uncomfortable. His eyes moved down, and then up, and slowly met her eyes. Lily flushed as she met James's eyes and looked away quickly, to her father. James chuckled under his breath and turned back to Andrew.
"HELLO!" they turned around quickly to see Sirius skipping, yes, skipping, over to them, followed by everyone else.
"What are you doing here?" Lily asked, walking over to them. Sirius guffawed and sauntered over to her, throwing his arm around her shoulder.
"You think I'd miss out on Papa E's first time in the air?" he asked, and then looked down at the third broom, "Who's is that?" he asked.
"It was mine, but I cant fly in this," she said, gesturing to her dress, and Sirius looked down at it appreciatively.
"I like it," he said. Lily saw James turn, mid-sentence, to glare at his best mate, who winked at him, "I'm sorry your girlfriend is attractive," he said, and James rolled his eyes, as Lily flushed. Andrew flushed at this comment and cleared his throat; how do you respond to someone calling your baby attractive? Sirius seemed to notice and smiled at Andrew apologetically, "Well I'll do it," he said happily, grabbing the broom.
"Sirius Black if he falls off because of your instruction I'll kill you," Emily said sternly, walking over, along with everyone else, to stand next to Lily. Jane looked at her husband on the broom warily, and Emily smiled at her, "I was kidding, he'll be fine," she said, and Jane nodded, reassured. She trusted the Potters.
"Alright Papa E let's do this!" Sirius said, walking over to be on the other side of Andrew.
"Padfoot I'm still explaining!" James said, and Sirius rolled his eyes.
"I've always thought the best way to learn was by trying,"
"I don't want him to die!" James said, and Sirius grinned.
"Right, I forgot about that," he said, and James rolled his eyes.
"Go fly Pads, I'll get him up in the air in a second," James said, and Sirius saluted, much to everyone's amusement, and took off. Andrew looked after him in wonder and turned to James.
"I want to do that!" he said excitedly, and Lily saw her mother snort.
"You will," James said patiently, "We're getting there. Now, you know about how to sit and how to accelerate and decelerate right?" he said, and Andrew nodded enthusiastically, trying to ignore Sirius, who was doing loopty-loops right above his head, "Now we're going to try actually getting off the ground," he said, and Andrew's eyes widened, "So you're going go kick off the floor gently, and hover for a few seconds, lean forward, and touch back down," he said, just as Hooch had taught them seven years ago. The students smiled at the memory. Andrew nodded and kicked off the ground, so he was hovering a foot off the ground.
"JANE I'M FLYING!" he yelled excitedly, and Jane grinned at her husband. Andrew had always wanted to fly. Back when they had been dating, he'd tried making plastic wings, which had resulted in him with a broken leg. James turned around to wink at Lily, who grinned at him, and Emily smiled at the two of them.
"Alright, now touch back down," James said. Andrew put his feet down, albeit reluctantly, "We'll be up in a second I promise," James assured him, and Andrew grinned, "just a few things. If you're falling, yell out. We'll get you," he said, gesturing to himself and Sirius, who had come down to hover next to James, "and I'm going to put a cushioning charm on the floor, so even if you do fall, you wont get hurt," James said, and Andrew frowned.
"Dad it'll be like falling onto a large cushion," Lily said, and Andrew nodded, relaxing. James turned around and mouthed 'thank you' to Lily, who rolled her eyes. Honestly that boy.
"You ready?" James asked, and Andrew nodded excitedly. Lily waved her wand and cast the cushioning charm, "Thanks," James grinned, and Lily shrugged, "Ready, set, kick!" Andrew kicked off from the ground and flew straight up into the air, a large grin on his face. Lily watched as her father flew around in the air.
Next to her, she could hear her mother talking to Emily and Daniel about Andrew's flying attempts, and rolled her eyes. She remembered one time when he had jumped off the roof and landed on cushions just to feel the wind in his hair. He had had a sore hip for days.
Out of nowhere, James came flying down and stopped in front of Lily, who screamed and jumped back as he scared her, causing him to smirk. He gestured behind her and Lily shook her head stubbornly, "James I cant I'm in a dress," she squealed, and James shrugged, "You're so irritating," she mumbled, crossing her arms. Emily, Daniel and Jane turned to watch the little couple, loving and amused smiles on their faces.
"Lily just get on the broom," James said, and Lily shook her head stubbornly, "Don't make me make you," he said in a low voice, and Lily felt a tingle flow through her body.
"Like you could," she challenged, and James sighed.
"You always make me do this," he said, and Lily shrugged. James, grumbling, flew into the air. Lily immensely satisfied with herself, relaxed, that is, until she felt an arm around her waist. She screamed as James's arm, which tightened around her waist, threw her over his shoulder, fireman-style, and he flew into the air. Lily watched as the ground became further and further away, and as the amused parents grinned after them.
"JAMES!" she screamed, and she felt his shoulders shake as he chuckled, "I'LL SIT ON THE BROOM! I PROMISE!" she screamed, and James, satisfied, put her down in front of him. He leaned over her, grabbing the broom, and continued to steer them. Lily giggled and allowed James to maneuver them around in the air.
"JAMES!" he turned towards the voice, and saw his mother gesturing at him wildly. He flew them down and Lily screamed, thinking they were going to crash into the ground, but James pulled up suddenly.
"Jerk," she muttered, climbing off the broom as James laughed at her. She stumbled over to Hestia, who giggled and threw her arm around her. Lily's hair and makeup was still intact thanks to the charm she'd used before.
"Yes mum?" James said, and Emily sighed.
"It's late, we have to go," she said, and James nodded. He flew up to get Andrew, who took a little persuasion, but eventually flew down.
"Thank you!" Andrew said, hugging James, and then ran over to his wife, "Did you see what I just did?" he asked excitedly, his green eyes, so like Lily's, extremely wide. Jane grinned and nodded, smiling at him. Andrew yelled happily and continued chatting about flying as they made their way back to the courtyard. It was almost empty now, so they decided to leave.
The parents all waved one final time, before walking towards the gates of Hogwarts.
"Boo?" Sirius smirked, looking at Hestia, who groaned.
"Lily!"
"I know," Lily said soothingly, and Hestia pouted.
"I need to borrow you," James said, looking pointedly at Lily. Sirius, Remus, Peter and Hestia snickered, and the couple ignored them.
"Okay," Lily grinned, and allowed James to take her hand and pull her towards the tree.
"Hestia, I need to borrow you as well," Sirius said, winking at Hestia, who laughed, and let her boyfriend pull her towards the clearing by the Dark Forest, while Alice, Frank, Peter and Remus continued to deal with their parents, who were still saying their goodbyes.
Once James had led Lily to a spot of the tree where nobody could see them, he turned to look down at her, holding her face delicately in both of his hands. Lily looked up into James' eyes, and saw her own green ones reflected in his glasses. She reached up carefully and removed his glasses, causing James to blink rapidly. Lily giggled and James shook his head.
"I was trying to have a romantic moment here," he said, narrowing his eyes at his girlfriend, who grinned.
"It's still romantic. It's just got a touch of humour," she pointed out, and James shook his head fondly.
"You're so strange Lily Evans"
"Is that why you love me?" she asked cheekily, putting her hands on top of his. James chuckled and shook his head
"That's not why I love you Lils,"
"Then why do you?" she challenged, and James sighed, taking his hands off her face and rubbing the back of his neck, still looking into her eyes.
"I can't sum it up," he finally said, and Lily shook her head.
"Not an acceptable answer," she said sternly, and James laughed.
"My apologies Evans, I'll make it up to you," he said earnestly, taking a step towards her. Lily took a step back and felt her back graze the tree trunk. James smirked down at her as he realized he had her cornered…again. Git. Lily grinned up at him and, as he leaned down to kiss her, she slid onto her bum, crawling around him and standing up. James dumbfounded, looked at his girlfriend, "How did you bloody escape?" he asked and Lily laughed.
"First time for everything," she grinned at him, and James pouted.
"I like cornering you!"
"You honestly think I don't know how to get away?" she asked, and James shook his head.
"In my mind you will never know how to get away," he said. Lily opened her mouth and James shoved his pinky fingers in his ears, "LA LA LA I cant hear you!" he said, closing his eyes, and Lily laughed.
"James!" she yelled, laughing, and walked over, trying to pull his fingers out of his ears, but James was stubborn and didn't budge, "James!" she yelled again, tugging on his arms. James spun in circles and Lily laughed, trying to catch his arm again. She caught his elbow and James, thrown off balance as she pulled him and slightly dizzy from the spinning, fell over, grabbing Lily in the process. Lily screamed as she was pulled down onto James, who had his eyes opened with a slightly dazed look in his eyes.
"Bloody hell I hate spinning," he groaned, covering his eyes with his arm, and Lily laughed.
"That was entirely your fault," she said, and James moved his arm to look at her and stuck his tongue out. Lily laughed again and James smiled.
"Why are you laughing so much?"
"I'm happy, I just graduated, and I realized how amazing my boyfriend is, why are you so happy?" she retorted, and James grinned, wrapping his arms around her waist, the two still lying in the grass.
"Because I fulfilled the vow I made in first year," he shrugged, his heart soaring under the compliment she had given him and Lily frowned. She stood up and James followed suite.
"What vow?" she asked. James looked into her eyes and took a step towards her.
"I vowed to have Lily Evans before I graduated," he said as he wrapped his arms around her. Lily flushed slightly and then pouted.
"I broke my vow," she sighed, and James frowned, "I swore to hate you for the rest of forever when I was in third year," she said, and James threw his head back and laughed, "I guess I still have reason to hate you," she said matter-of-factly, and James looked down at her, his eyes twinkling.
"And what would that be?"
"Well, other than the six years of pestering that you're going to have to make up," she said, causing James to grin, "I will forever hate you for something," she said, looking up into his shocked hazel eyes.
"What will you hate me for?"
"For making me fall in love with you James Potter. You were the last person I wanted to fall for, and I will never forgive you fo-" Lily was cut off by soft lips on her own, and hers turned up into a smile as they pulled back, "You interrupted me," she said, narrowing her eyes at him, and James chuckled.
"Sorry,"
"I don't accept," she said faux-crossly and James pouted
"How can I make it up to you?"
"You will be my slave for eternity," she said in a stern tone, and James grinned.
"As long as I'm with you for eternity, it's fine by me." Lily grinned up at James and got onto her tiptoes, reaching for his lips.
"No you're not allowed to snog sorry," Sirius said, striding over, his hand in Hestia's. Lily sighed, but James ignored his best mate and put his hands in Lily's hair, leaning down to meet her lips. Sirius huffed at his love-struck best friend and let go of Hestia's hand. He walked over so he was standing right next to the kissing couple, "YOU HAVE TO STOP!" he yelled, and the two jumped apart.
"Hestia!" Lily whined, turning to Hestia, who grinned.
"Sorry Lily, I haven't mastered the art of controlling him," she said, and Lily frowned at her.
"I'm disappointed in you," Lily muttered, and James grinned.
"Nobody's mastered the art of controlling him," James pointed out. Sirius grinned, grabbing Lily's hair and pulling her back from James.
"Damn it Sirius!" Lily yelled at him, rubbing her poor skull.
"Lily-flower we have to have a talk," Sirius said, and Lily giggled; this was how Sirius had been arranging their 'talking times', by making it sound serious.
"Why are you two always having intense discussions?" Remus asked, walking over to them. His folks had finally left, but Frank, Alice and Peter were still stuck.
"Where's everyone else?" Sirius asked, changing the topic hurriedly before James or Hestia could think too much about what Remus had said. Lily grinned at him and he winked, before turning his attention back to the conversation.
"Probably still being slobbered in sentiment," James said, and Sirius barked a laugh.
"'Slobbered in sentiment'? Nice one Prongs," Sirius said, clapping James on the back, and James smiled.
"Well you'll know all about slobbering," Hestia said, and then flushed as Lily laughed, "Oh shut up Evans," she said nastily, turning to her best friend, who only laughed harder.
"Lily?" Lily turned around quickly to see Tyler, Hestia's little brother, standing there.
"Tyler! I thought you all went home?" Hestia asked, and Tyler turned to look at her.
"We were going to but mum and dad wanted to talk to McGonagall," he said in a bored voice, and Hestia huffed
"What about?"
"It's either about me coming to Hogwarts this year or your boyfriend. I don't know, the conversation kept jumping," he said irritably, and Lily saw Sirius beam at the fact that Hestia's parents had been talking about him. Hestia nodded dumbly and Tyler turned back to Lily, who was having a quiet conversation with Remus.
"You wanted to talk to Lily?" James asked, slightly irritably, as he watched the child ogle his girlfriend.
"Oh, right, sorry Tyler I forgot," Lily said, turning to look at Tyler, smiling sweetly at him, "What did you want to tell me?"
"It's hard to say," Tyler said, twirling his toe into the grass, and she saw Sirius snicker and clap an irritated James on the back, "Basically, I think you're really pretty," he said to the grass, and Lily flushed.
"Thank you Tyler," Lily said sweetly, slightly embarrassed, and Tyler grinned at her.
"Are you going to come stay at our house again?" he asked, and Lily turned to look at Hestia, who was turning red in her attempt to hold in her laughter.
"I don't know," Lily said honestly, and Tyler frowned.
"Well I'll be at Hogwarts next year, so you can only visit during the holidays," he said, and Lily nodded.
"TYLER!" they heard a distant yell, and Tyler jumped.
"See you later," he said to everyone, "Bye," he waved to Lily, before running over to his mother. Once he was gone, Remus and Sirius started to snigger, loudly, and Hestia burst into a fit of giggles, while James just looked after the child, amused.
"Don't be so mean!" Lily squealed, smacking Hestia in the arm, and Hestia shook her head, laughing so hard it was coming out silent.
"OOOOOOOOOOH Prongs you have competition," Sirius taunted James, who grinned and looked over at Lily, who was still flushing.
"Well it's not as if he asked her out or anything," James pointed out, and Remus sniggered.
"She would've let him down easier than she ever let you down," Remus pointed out, and Lily laughed.
"You have a point." James narrowed his eyes at his girlfriend, who blew him a kiss. Sirius jumped up and 'caught' the kiss
"INTERCEPTION!" he yelled, and then stuck his tongue out at James, who grinned and rolled his eyes, "Do you want it?" Sirius asked, waving his closed fist in front of James's face, and James laughed.
"Nah that's okay mate, you can keep that one," he said, and Sirius smiled, and placed the 'kiss' in his pocket.
"Finders keepers," Sirius shrugged, and then blew a kiss back to Lily, who didn't move, "EVANS YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO CATCH IT!"
"Too much energy," Lily said, pretending to be exhausted and Sirius pouted.
"Prongs she's being mean to me!" he whined, and James shrugged, "Moony!" Remus shook his head and Sirius pouted even further, "Hest!"
"Sirius you stole her kiss," Peter pointed out, walking over to them, and Sirius stuck his tongue out at Peter.
"Well I was giving her one back AND SHE WOULDN'T TAKE IT."
"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she just didn't want it?" Frank asked, as he and Alice walked over. Their parents had been discussing the wedding, which had exhausted them both.
"EVERYONE wants a kiss from Sirius Black," Sirius snorted, and Lily rolled her eyes, "LILY-FLOWER YOU'RE HURTING MY FEELINGS!" he yelled, and Lily huffed.
"Oh for the love of Merlin," she muttered, reaching up and grabbing the 'kiss'. Sirius grinned happily and turned to look at James, who was wearing an amused expression.
"She wants me," Sirius said, and they all laughed.
"Sirius she only took your kiss because you were irritating her," Hestia said, and Sirius shook his head stubbornly.
"No, she wouldn't take it because our love is forbidden," he pointed out, and they all sighed together, knowing it was a lost cause
"How is it forbidden?" Peter asked, and Sirius exhaled loudly as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Because Lily-flower is currently dating Mr. Prongs, who is my best mate. Also, I am currently dating Hestia," he said, and then turned to the girl in question, "We need to get you a nickname," he said seriously, receiving a lot of chuckles, before continuing his theory, "who is Lily-flower's best friend. So as you can see, if the two of us were to go after our love, and follow that path, it would substantially upset everyone."
"Wouldn't it just upset James and Hest?" Alice asked as she played with the tassel on her hat.
"No!" Sirius said defiantly, "Prongsie and Hest would be the most emotionally hurt, but it would hurt our whole group dynamic. See, if we did follow that path, then Lily-flower and Hest, as well as Prongsie and I, wouldn't be talking due to the feelings being hurt. If we weren't talking, you would all have to choose who to hang out with, and then it would separate us all FOREVER," he said dramatically, and Lily snorted, "What is it Lily-flower?"
"You forgot how McGonagall would be torn," Lily said, and Sirius's eyes brightened as everyone laughed.
"OF COURSE! MINERVA!" he yelled.
"What is it Mr. Black?" they turned to see McGonagall, who was walking around the grounds looking for people who were still outside of the castle. After all, it was late. Lily looked up at the sky and was genuinely surprised to see stars.
"MINERVA LOVE!" Sirius said happily, throwing his arms around her. McGonagall stumbled under the sheer enthusiasm of the hug and carefully peeled Sirius's arms from around her.
"Mr. Black control yourself," she sighed, and Sirius grinned at her.
"I thought you liked me out of control," he winked, and McGonagall's mouth twitched as she shook her head.
"I have to say, Hogwarts is going to be especially dull without the lot of you," she said, looking at the Marauders, who grinned proudly.
"Will you miss me?" Sirius asked, getting down on both knees in front of her, and McGonagall pursed her lips.
"I'll miss Mr. Potter more," she said, and winked at the laughing Lily and Hestia. James, Remus and Peter snickered at Sirius, whose jaw was hanging open.
"MINERVA! IT CANNOT BE! FAIR MAIDEN LET IT NOT BE SO!" he said, taking her hand in his and getting down on one knee. Dumbledore, who was also looking around the grounds for students, looked at the source of the noise and chuckled, walking over to his favorite Gryffindors, "MINERVA! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU FOR ALL THESE YEARS AND YOU'VE SECRETLY BEEN IN LOVE WITH HIM? HIM? HE WHO HAS NOT EXPRESSED AS MUCH AS A SMIDGEN OF INTEREST TO ANYONE OTHER THAN LILY-FLOWER? HE WHO DOES NOT POSSESS EVEN A FRACTION OF THE LOVE I FEEL FOR YOU? HE WHO IS NOT NEARLY AS SEXY AS I?" Sirius yelled. By now, all the Gryffindors were on the floor, or clutching their sides due to the sheer force of their laughter. McGonagall was grinning, laughing, and sobbing as Sirius Black attempted to woo her for the last time, "WHAT HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE THIS?" he yelled, standing up so that he and McGonagall were only a couple of inches away from each other. McGonagall let out a sob, and wiped her eyes, before finally letting him go.
"Mr. Black, it is you whom I have loved for all these years, but our love still remains forbidden, as you are now dating Ms. Jones, and you are leaving me," McGonagall choked out through her tears. She was going to miss Sirius Black so much more than anyone could think. Hogwarts wouldn't be the same without his constant pestering of her. They all chuckled watery chuckles and Sirius grinned down at McGonagall
"Minerva, my love, we will always be together in our hearts," he said, smiling sweetly down at her, and McGonagall nodded stupidly, crying. Everyone knew McGonagall enjoyed having Sirius taunt her, and they all looked at the two sadly as they realized this wasn't going to happen again.
"I will miss you Sirius Black," McGonagall said, "Look after yourself," she added, smiling at him, and then at all the others, before walking up into the castle. Sirius smiled after her and then winked at Dumbledore, who chuckled, wiped his eyes, and followed McGonagall into the castle.
"You should be getting in now," Dumbledore said over his shoulder, and the seventh years looked at each other, and then at the night that surrounded them. They all looked at each other, and silently made the decision to walk up to the castle.
"I have a question," Sirius announced, his arm around Hestia, as he looked around.
"Merlin help us," James breathed from next to Lily, holding her hand, and Lily giggled.
"What is your question?" Remus asked, amused.
"Why is the sky down here?"
"Excuse me?" Lily giggled, and Sirius frowned.
"No I'm serious," he said, and then threw his head back and laughed loudly at his own joke and they all laughed along with him. When they calmed down, Sirius continued, "The sky. It's everywhere! I mean, right now, it's right here," he said, waving his arm at the air next to him.
"No it's not Sirius. The sky is up there," Frank said, pointing to the sky, "this," he said, waving his arm, similarly to Sirius, "Is just air."
"TECHNICALLY it's still the sky because the sky has no limits, so it extends all the way down here," Sirius pointed out, and Frank chuckled. There was really no point arguing with Sirius.
"Wow Padfoot, infallible logic," James said, looking at Sirius.
"Yeah Pads, you're a genius," Remus said, looking over at Sirius, who was smiling proudly.
"I know." James caught Lily's eye and rolled his eyes. Lily giggled and James put his arm around her, kissing the side of her head.
"You ready to enter Hogwarts, no longer students, for the first time?" Alice asked, looking at the stairs in front of them, which led to the Entrance Hall. They all looked at each other and at the castle quietly. James and Sirius took their arms away from around their girlfriends and held their hands instead. Hestia and Lily, who were in the middle, held hands. Gradually, they all held each other's hands, and entered Hogwarts for the first time as graduates.
"This doesn't feel any different," Sirius announced loudly, as they stood in the Entrance Hall, looking around Hogwarts. They all burst into laughter. Sirius Black was never going to change.
"Sirius Black, where are you taking me?" Lily whined, as Sirius dragged her out of her bed the next morning. She was wearing short shorts and a spaghetti top, and her was in a mess on top of her head. She turned to look at the clock to see that it was 8.
"LILY-FLOWER IT'S OUR FIRST DAY FREE!" he yelled, and Lily jumped at the sheer volume. People should not be allowed to yell in the morning.
"So we should be allowed to do whatever we want," she said, and Sirius nodded enthusiastically
"Exactly!"
"And I want to sleep, so I should be allowed to do that," she sighed, rubbing her eyes, and Sirius shook his head vigorously.
"No, I don't allow it. Not only is it our first day free, it's our last day at Hogwarts, and damn it you are going to enjoy it," he said sternly, and Lily yawned, and nodded. He was right after all. She didn't want to sleep through her last day of Hogwarts, "Good girl, now, go wake up your boyfriend. I'm going to make sure everyone else is awake," he said, and Lily frowned at him.
"Why did you wake me up?" she whined, "Why not him?"
"Because you're harder to wake up, it required a professional," he winked, and Lily giggled, "Now go wake him up!" Lily nodded sleepily as Sirius pushed her in the direction of James's staircase. Sirius watched her walk lethargically up them, and chuckled to himself, before running out of the Heads dorm to wake everyone else up.
He hadn't mentioned that Lily had been the first one he had woken up. He had also forgotten to mention that he'd turned her clock three hours ahead. Oh well, he smirked to himself, walking to Gryffindor Tower.
"James wake up," Lily said lazily, as she walked into James's room.
"Lily?" his voice mumbled from somewhere in the large bed. Lily frowned at it and saw random bumps, making it hard for her determine where James was. She walked over and started to poke near the headboard. She poked something squishy and James squealed, and something rose up near the foot of the bed. Lily frowned and pushed away the covers to see what she had poked, and found herself looking down at the bottom of James's large feet. She laughed walked over to where the thing had risen near the end of the bed, pushing the blanket away to see James's mop of messy hair.
"How did you get like this?" she giggled, referring to how he was upside down on the bed. James frowned and looked around, seeing a different view.
"Where am I?" he mumbled, burying his face back into the mattress.
"In your room?" Lily said uncertainly, "On your bed?"
"Why does everything look different?" he whined, his voice coming out muffled as his face was buried in the bed. Lily giggled.
"Probably because you're upside down."
"What?" James yelped, sitting up quickly. He fell back over as he lost his balance, from having sat up to quickly, and Lily laughed, "How did this happen?" he whined, lying down on his back and looked up at her. Lily smiled at how cute he was being.
"I don't know," she said, getting down on her knees so that her head was level with James's. He turned onto his stomach and rested his chin on his forearms, looking into her eyes. Lily looked into his eyes, sans the glasses, and smiled.
"You're all blurry," he said childishly, squinting his eyes, and Lily frowned.
"I'm right in front of you. Your eyesight's not that bad is it?" she asked, and James shrugged.
"First off, even if my eyes weren't that bad, and I still had glasses, you would be blurry. And to answer your question, my parents say I have the eyes of an old man," he grinned cheekily, and Lily shook her head.
"I don't want to have children with you," she said, and James's eyebrows shot up, hurt, "They'll all be blind"
"They'll live," he grinned, pushing forward to kiss her. Lily chuckled against his lips and kissed him back, before pulling away.
"Get up," she said, and James shook his head stubbornly.
"I want to sleep."
"Join the club," she mumbled, "Your stupid dog woke me up," she said. James frowned, trying to figure out what she was saying, before grinning.
"Why did he wake you up?"
"We're enjoying our last day in Hogwarts," she shrugged, and James smiled.
"Sounds legit"
"Exactly," she nodded, sitting down on her bottom and crossing her legs.
"What time is it?" he asked, sitting up and stretching.
"It's about 8," she said, and James nodded. He was slightly shocked that he hadn't woken up sooner. He crawled over to his bedside table, ignoring Lily's giggles as he did so, and grabbed his glasses. He pushed them onto his face and looked around at the suddenly clear room. He grinned down as he saw just how tired and disheveled his Lily was, and she smiled back at him.
"You look a lot prettier now," he grinned, and she rolled her eyes, but James could see her fighting off a grin. He chuckled quietly and reached over for his watch. He looked down at it and then choked, "Lils what time did you say it was?" he asked, looking up at her, and Lily frowned.
"I said 8-ish," she replied curiously, and James snorted. Lily, curious, got onto the bed and crawled over to her boyfriend. James, pleasantly surprised that she had done that, and was now leaning against him, put his arm around her. Lily looked down at his watch and shrieked, "WHAT? BUT MY WATCH SAID-AND SIRIUS-" Lily's eyes narrowed, and James bit back a laugh, "Sirius," she hissed, and James grinned, "That-that dog turned ahead my clock!" she yelled, and James nodded; it sounded like something Sirius would do. "How dare he!" James laughed and kissed his confused and sleepy girlfriend on the side of the head.
"We should get up regardless. It is our last day at Hogwarts," he said, and Lily sighed.
"I'm still going to kill him," she said, and James nodded, humoring his sleepy girlfriend. What he knew was going to happen, would be that Lily would go down, fuming, and Sirius would say something ridiculous, and she would try not to grin, but fail, and then not bring it up. James held his hand out to her and Lily took it, allowing him to pull her out of bed. Lily, who was still unstable on her feet, crashed into James's bare and well-toned chest, and her eyes widened.
"Yes Lily?" James asked, amused, and Lily shook her head. She traced her finger from the dip in his throat, down in between his pecs, and down to the strap of his boxers. James felt a shiver pass through him and his Adams apple wobbled. Lily grinned up at him and then took a step back, the line her finger had traced leaving tingles on James's skin, "What was that for?" he asked in a dry voice, and Lily shrugged.
"I'm going to go get ready," she said, and sauntered out of his room, leaving James frozen by the side of his bed. Once she was gone, James shook his head, and made his bed before changing his clothes, muttering to himself the whole time,
"ARE YOU WEARING HOGWARTS ROBES OR MUGGLE CLOTHES?" he heard her scream, and laughed to himself.
"MUGGLE!"
"OKAY THANKS!" James chuckled fondly and continued getting dressed.
When James came down the stairs, dressed in dark jeans and a black t-shirt, it was empty. He frowned and walked up to Lily's room, to hear banging. Curious, and a slight bit worried, he threw the door open.
"What are you doing?" he asked, as he watched Lily run around her room opening drawers and cupboards.
"Checking," she said, pulling open the drawers of her dresser.
"For what?" he asked curiously, entering the eerily empty room.
"If I've left anything," she said, turning around to look at him, "I'm finishing up my packing," she said, and James frowned.
"We have another night you know," he pointed out, and Lily nodded.
"I know, but I don't want to pack last minute," she said, and he shrugged.
"You realize you can round up your things magically right?" he smirked, and Lily flushed, "Honestly, it's like dating a muggle," he chuckled, and Lily stuck her tongue out at him.
"It's how I was raised," she said, crossing her arms, and James grinned, "Oh shut up Potter," she said, flushing, and James chuckled. He walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her, and kissed her cheek tenderly
"I still love you"
"You better," she muttered, and James pulled back, raising his eyebrows at her, "After pestering me for six years to go out with you, if you dump me now, I will cut your manliness off with a machete," she said, narrowing her eyes, and James laughed.
"What, in the name of Merlin, is a machete?" he chuckled, wiping his eyes, and Lily grumbled.
"You ruin all my threats," she mumbled, and James laughed, kissing the corner of her mouth.
"I love you too, shall we?" he asked, gesturing out the door. Lily, who was fully dressed, in tight jeans, orange spaghetti and a short sleeved, thin white shirt through which you could see the orange spaghetti, followed him, "I like what you're wearing," he said, eying the white shirt, and Lily flushed.
"Thanks,"
"Although I'd prefer if you weren't wearing the orange thing," he winked, and Lily flushed even deeper.
"Shut up Pervert Potter," she chuckled, and James gasped.
"Pervert Potter?"
"I used to call you that," she giggled, as they made their way down to the Great Hall.
"When? Why?" James asked, his voice jumping octaves.
"Why is James squeaking?" Hestia asked. She and Sirius were coming down the stairs of Gryffindor Tower at the same time, and she swung her arm around Lily's shoulders.
"A more important question, is do you want to keep your boyfriend?" Lily asked, and Hestia's expression turned bewildered.
"Er, yes, why?"
"Because I want to kill him,"
"Me too, he woke me up bloody early," Hestia grumbled, looking at her boyfriend with an expression of loathing. Sirius grinned at her and winked.
"You know he turned my clock three hours forward?" Lily hissed, and Hestia laughed.
"Ah Lily-flower, you still love me," Sirius shrugged, swinging his arms around. His flying hand accidentally smacked into a suit of armor, which jumped to life and started to shake its fist at Sirius menacingly, "Oh shit, run!" Sirius yelled, as the suit of armor began to chase after the laughing seventh years, waving its axe thing. They made it to the Great Hall, before breaking down into laughter.
"Sirius you absolute prat!" Lily gasped, and Sirius laughed.
"I can't believe that just happened," Hestia breathed, clutching her side, as they walked to the Gryffindor Table, where they could see Remus, Peter, Alice and Frank.
"You can't believe what just happened?" Alice asked, as they all sat down.
"We just got chased by a suit of armor," James explained, and Remus raised his eyebrows, amused.
"What did you do?" Peter chuckled, putting marmalade on his toast.
"Sirius was talking, as usual, and he waved his hand about, and it smacked into a suit of armor," Lily explained and they all snorted, "Which then decided to chase us." By this time, they were all giggling, and Sirius took a small bow.
"So, what are we going to do today?" Frank asked, looking pointedly at Sirius, who had rudely awoken them all.
"Well I was thinking-"
"You were thinking?" Tonks said, walking over to sit down next to Remus. She looked slightly irritated, and Lily and Remus frowned at her.
"Oh ha-ha very funny," Sirius said, as everyone, sans Lily and Remus, laughed.
"What's wrong?" Remus whispered to Tonks, who shook her head, and bit into a piece of toast rather violently. Maria sat down next to Tonks and Remus frowned at her. Maria shook her head and rolled her eyes, going back to her food. Remus turned to Lily, who nodded slightly, and Remus smiled.
"Hey Tonks," Lily said, and Tonks looked up at her. Lily nodded towards the exit, and Tonks sighed and nodded. James, who had also noticed Tonks's weird state, let his girlfriend go. Lily walked by Sirius, who promptly decided to smack her butt as she walked by, "Sirius Black what the hell!" Lily squealed, as Remus, Peter, Hestia, Alice, Maria and Frank roared with laughter. James, however, was glaring at his best mate.
"Sorry Lily, hand spasm," he said, grinning at her innocently, and Lily rolled her eyes, before walking out with the laughing Tonks.
"What's wrong?" Lily asked, turning to Tonks and Tonks flushed.
"Was it that obvious?"
"Yeah," Lily shrugged, grinning, and Tonks giggled.
"Sorry,"
"No need to apologize, what's wrong?" Lily asked gently, and Tonks bit her lip.
"I don't want you guys to leave," she said quietly, and Lily felt her heart melt, "I'm going to miss all of you. Plus, he's leaving and…and…" Tonks stopped talking, and shrugged, and Lily grinned.
"It's alright, I understand. This isn't good-bye Tonks. We're going to see each other again," Lily promised, and Tonks nodded sadly.
"I'm going to miss you guys at school though," she sighed, and Lily nodded.
"I'm going to miss you too,"
"Really?" Tonks asked, her eyes twinkling, and Lily grinned and nodded.
"I have to ask you something though," Lily said, and Tonks nodded vigorously, "Hestia's little brother is coming next year, would you look after him?" Lily asked, and Tonks grinned.
"Sure!"
"Good," Lily said, knowing that Hestia was genuinely worried about her little brother. She had been so upset when she realized she wouldn't be able to watch out for him in his first year, "Let's go back?" Tonks nodded and they made their way back to the table, where Sirius was holding three boiled eggs.
"Sirius what are you planning on doing with those?" Lily asked warily, watching him and Sirius grinned.
"Watch and learn," Sirius said. Lily walked over and sat next to James, who smiled at her, before turning to watch Sirius. Sirius stood up on the table, holding all three eggs. Everyone turned to look at him, and Lily rolled her eyes, obviously if you stand on a table everyone is going to look at you, "NOW LILY-FLOWER," he said loudly, so nobody would have to strain to hear him, "WATCH. ONE OF THESE IS NOT BOILED."
"Why does he always have to embarrass me?" Lily whined, and James grinned, kissing her on top of her head. Sirius straightened his back, and began to juggle the three eggs. The Great Hall clapped and Lily snorted, unimpressed. Sirius then caught one of the eggs in his mouth, and ate it. Lily giggled, that was pretty cool. Sirius caught another one in his mouth as well, and the Great Hall clapped. He held the last one up and squished it on Peter's head. Peter yelled as yolk dripped down. Sirius took a bow as the Great Hall clapped, and sat back down on his seat.
"How did you know which one it was?" Alice asked excitedly. Sirius winked and grinned at Lily.
"A magician never reveals his secrets," he said, and Lily laughed. She had told him that quote back in their third year when they took muggle studies together, "Impressed Lily-flower?" he challenged, and Lily shook her head, "LIKE YOU COULD DO ANY BETTER!" he yelled, and Lily grinned, causing James to raise his eyebrows; Lily never took on a challenge unless she was sure she wouldn't make a fool out of herself.
"Sirius I'm more talented than you may think," she said, and Sirius growled.
"Prove it!"
"By doing what?" she asked, exasperated, and putting her toast down.
"Juggle!"
"Easy," she shrugged, and James, along with Remus, snickered as Sirius's eyes widened.
"How many can you juggle?" Sirius asked, and Lily grinned.
"How many do you suggest?"
"four," he said, and Lily shrugged, "no wait I mean five," Lily grinned and shrugged.
"I can do that"
"You're bluffing!" Remus said, fascinated. James, also, looked slightly abashed. Lily shook her head and Sirius narrowed his eyes.
"On the table Evans," he challenged, standing up, and Lily laughed. She stood up and climbed onto the table, "LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, LILY EVANS THINKS SHE CAN OUT JUGGLE ME!" he yelled, and everyone looked at them curiously. Nobody knew much about Lily Evans; she had always been a mystery, "MOONY IS GOING TO KEEP THROWING US EGGS," he said, looking down at Remus, who sighed and pulled the basket of boiled eggs towards him. What choice did he have? "AND THE FIRST ONE TO DROP AN EGG LOSES."
Everyone in the Great Hall was now paying attention, as were the teachers. Would Lily Evans beat Sirius Black?
"GO!" Sirius yelled. Remus tossed him an egg, and he caught it, holding it his hand, "WAIT NO WORMTAIL IS GOING OT HELP ALSO," Sirius said. It would get boring if they had to wait. Peter reached over and tossed Lily and egg, which Lily caught.
Two Eggs.
Three Eggs. Sirius turned to look at Lily, who looked perfectly comfortable, juggling the eggs. James was looking at Lily in wonder; where had she learnt to do that?
Four Eggs.
Five Eggs. Sirius Black was struggling.
Six Eggs
Seven Eggs.
Eight Eggs. Splat. The whole hall gasped as an egg burst on the table, and one of the contestants smirked.
Sirius Black had lost.
The seventh year Gryffindors snickered silently as Sirius, dejectedly, watched Lily, "Should I keep going?" she asked, her voice magically amplified by Hestia. The whole hall yelled yes and Lily sighed. She could go on forever. Peter kept tossing Lily eggs.
Thirteen Eggs.
"Okay enough!" Sirius said irritably, after all, he hated losing. Lily grinned and obliged, slowly throwing eggs back into the basket. She ate the last one and then took a bow as the Great Hall cheered, "Well played Evans," Sirius grinned, shaking her hand, and Lily laughed, climbing off the table.
"Where did you learn to do that?" James gasped, enchanted. He had known she was perfect, but not that perfect, and Lily grinned.
"During the summer once, Petunia and I went to circus camp, I was the best juggler," she shrugged, and they grinned. The boys looked over at Lily's friends, who, however, were grinning into their food. Lily had jugged nail polish bottles whilst Hestia had been cleaning out her makeup case a few years ago.
"You knew about this?" Sirius squeaked, looking at his girlfriend, who grinned and nodded, "AND YOU LET ME HUMILATE MYSELF?"
"I still love you," Hestia grinned, kissing Sirius's chin, and Sirius grinned, feeling infinitely better.
"So why was James squeaking before?" Hestia asked suddenly, when they were all done with breakfast, and were walking towards the Marauder tree.
"Oh right!" James said, turning to Lily, who grinned at him cheekily, "Did you know she used to call me Pervert Potter?" he asked, and both Hestia and Alice burst into fits of giggles as the boys snickered at James's expression.
"I remember that!" Alice grinned, looking at Lily
"Why?" James asked, and Hestia sighed.
"It was after you smacked her ass in the hallway and then promptly told her you wanted her to have your babies," she said, and James flushed as they all laughed.
"That's not fair, that was in third year!" he whined, and Lily laughed.
"That's when she made her vow," Alice sighed nostalgically, and James shook his head.
"I want to formally apologize for that, that was terrible," he said, and Sirius snorted.
"So it wasn't you who went on for days about the feeling of her ass?" he smirked, and James gasped, shoving his best mate, who only proceeded to laugh at him along with everyone else. They spent the whole day laughing, talking, swimming, running around, and basically enjoying themselves next to the lake.
"Lily-flower," Sirius said, standing up, and Lily grinned. She stood up and turned to look at her friends.
"We have plans for right now," she said to all of them, and they frowned at her. Sirius had helped her plan it, so he was grinning from next to her. They had planned it so that it happened an hour before Remus would be called by McGonagall to transform.
"That might be a problem," Remus said, and Lily shook her head.
"I thought about everything," she said, and Remus grinned at her, "now come on," she said, and they all stood up, following Lily and Sirius curiously. They walked into the Great Hall, which was empty.
"What are we doing here?" James asked, but Lily merely shook her head.
"Professor?" she asked tentatively. McGonagall walked out from behind the teachers' table and walked over to them, and smiled at Lily, "Thank you," Lily said, and McGonagall shook her head.
"It's my pleasure Ms. Evans," she said, smiling at the girl whom she considered a daughter, and then cleared her throat, "Please line up and follow me," she said, just as she had seven years ago, when these children were considerably shorter. Lily, Sirius, and their confused friends followed McGonagall, walking down the aisle between two tables. They stopped at the end of the aisle, in front of the few stairs, facing the teachers' table, "Wait here," McGonagall said, and walked away.
"Lily what's going on?" Hestia asked, and Lily shook her head. Remus was grinning, slightly choked, as he realized what was going on. James, seeing his expression, frowned slightly. What was going on? They all looked up as McGonagall walked back out with three items, and James felt his throat clog.
McGonagall set the three-legged stool in front of them, and placed the raggy old hat on it. She then unrolled a parchment, and cleared her throat, trying to hide the fact that she was about to cry. The seventh years were openly crying by now. McGonagall scanned the list for the Gryffindors, and only called their names out.
"Black, Sirius," she called in a clear voice. Sirius walked up the stairs, and sat down on the stool, which had seemed so much higher all those years ago. McGonagall gently put the hat on his head, just as she had seven years ago, and, as it had back then, it drooped and covered his eyes.
"Looks like I haven't learnt much," Sirius mumbled, and they all laughed.
"Ah, I know just what to do with you, GRYFFINDOR!" the hat yelled, and they all clapped. Sirius grinned and pulled the hat off, handing it to McGonagall, before skipping merrily to the Gryffindor Table, earning a few chuckles. He sat down and wiped his eyes, looking back at his friends.
"Evans, Lily." Lily walked up the stairs and as the hat fell on her head, she heard a small voice whisper in her ear, "Ah, Ms. Lily Evans. You have quite a future in store for you. Brilliant mind, yes, lots of courage, bravery, love…"
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat yelled. They all cheered and Lily grinned. She pulled the hat off and looked down at her friends. She had brief flash of Severus standing in there, seven years ago, which vanished abruptly. She ran over and sat next to Sirius. He grinned at her, as he had all those years ago, and she stuck her nose up, scooting away from her, exactly as they had met. Sirius grinned and put his arm around her shoulders, and she giggled, leaning into him.
"Jones, Hestia"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Longbottom, Frank,"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Lupin, Remus"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Pettigrew, Peter" Peter walked up and the Sorting Hat was placed on his mousy head. A small voice whispered to him, 'you have changed my boy. I cannot make the same determination I made all those years ago. However, I will lie for the sake of your friends. Slytherin"
"GRYFFINDOR"
"Potter, James"
James grinned and sat down on the rickety stool. His vision was covered by black material, and he listened to the voice tell him exactly what it had all those years ago.
"GRYFFINDOR!" James grinned, tears flowing down his face. He pulled the hat off and handed it to McGonagall, who gave him a watery smile, and he walked over to the Gryffindor Table, watching the redhead as he had when he had first gotten sorted. He sat down next to Remus, as he had before, and grinned at him, before turning back to McGonagall.
"Prewett, Alice"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Congratulations," McGonagall said quietly, looking over at her Gryffindors, "It's been an honour teaching and knowing you, have a wonderful life," she said, and sniffed, and Lily felt her eyes fill with tears, "May the feast, begin," McGonagall said weakly, before grabbing everything, and, walking out of the hall, "I'll miss you, good luck," she said quietly, before walking out of the hall.
The five dishes in front of where they were seated filled up with deserts, and the Gryffindors grinned at Lily, "Thank you," Remus said quietly from all of them, and Lily shook her head.
"I figure, on the last night of Hogwarts, we should do what we did on the first," she grinned, and they all grinned at her. They ate their feast together, and when it was time for Remus to go, the Marauders looked at each other. Lily and Hestia herded Alice and Frank out of the Great Hall, and, with smiles to the Marauders, made their way up the stairs.
"So boys, it's the last one," Sirius said, looking around at his friends, who looked upset, and whose eyes were still slightly red from the Sorting, "Let's make it one to remember?" They all grinned at each other, and McGonagall walked by.
"Mr. Lupin, last time," she said, and Remus smiled at her.
"Thanks for doing this Professor," he said, and McGongall smiled, shaking her head.
"It's been my pleasure, go to your dorms," she said to the other three, who winked at Remus, before running up to the Marauders dormitory.
"Shall we?" James asked, as they watched the Marauders Map, and saw McGonagall get back to her office. They all nodded to each other, for the last time. Peter transformed, and James and Sirius hid under the invisibility cloak.
"I'm going to miss this," Sirius sighed, as they made their way through the crowded dormitory.
"We'll still transform and run around with Moony, and we can go down in the invisibility cloak," James grinned, and Sirius turned to grin at his best mate.
"You've really been a great mate," Sirius said, and James felt his throat clog.
"We're not doing this goodbye thing mate," James said sternly, "We're getting a flat together, and I'm seeing you over the summer," he said, and Sirius grinned, wiping at a tear that had rudely escaped without his permission, "And you've been the best mate possible," James added quietly, and Sirius chuckled a watery chuckle.
"I love you Prongs"
"I love you Padfoot"
"Ready for this?" Sirius said excitedly, as they stopped by the Whomping Willow, "Come on Wormtail!" The Whomping Willow froze and James and Sirius grinned at each other. They pulled the cloak off and James tucked it into his robes. They transformed and made their way into the tunnel, and met their best mate on the other side. The four Marauders ran around the Forbidden Forest for the last time, enjoying every moment of it. Even the werewolf seemed to know it was the last time, and for a while, the four Marauders walked around the forest, looking around for the last time.
Lily woke up with a lump in her throat. She got out of her bed and quickly waved her wand, making sure everything was packed. She changed into her Hogwarts robes, she wanted to change on the train for the last time, and looked around her room. She bit back a sob and said goodbye to her bedroom, where so much had happened, and closed the door. She dragged her trunk down the spiral staircase, where, on their first night, James had tried to get up. She left it in the Common Room next to James's trunk, and walked up James's staircase. James wasn't there; she figured he'd already gone down to breakfast. She looked around the empty room and her lower lip wobbled. She had had so many experiences in this room; snogging James, getting to know James, getting a letter from James's mum, having sex. She smiled around at the room, and for reasons she couldn't fathom, she grabbed one of the pillows. It still smelt like James. She grinned down at it, and put a charm on it so the smell never vanished, before taking it down the stairs and putting it in her trunk. Now, she would always have a part of the Heads dorm with her.
She said goodbye to the Heads Common room, where so much had happened, and ran out before she could burst into tears. She walked the familiar walk down to the Great Hall, memorizing everything about it. She entered the Great Hall, and looked around, for what would probably be the last time. She slowly walked in, her Head Girl badge pinned to her uniform, and sat down across from Hestia.
"Hi," Hestia said, sounding slightly dead, and Lily knew exactly how she felt.
"Morning,"
"We're leaving today," Hestia said nervously, and Lily nodded sadly, "You ready?"
"I will be," Lily smiled, and Hestia grinned, nodding.
"Me too."
Just then, there was a loud bang, and Lily grinned. The Marauders were going to have their goodbye prank. The Hogwarts Express left in 40 minutes, so they probably should. But she was wrong. Sirius, Remus and Peter walked over to her, and smiled down at her.
"We have a present for you," Remus said, and stepped aside. James walked forwards, holding a lily, and smiled at her. Lily felt her stomach swoop with the sensation of déjà-vu. Oh no, she thought, a smirk creeping over her face. He wouldn't.
"So, you remember how on your first morning in Hogwarts, James Potter sung for you," Sirius said. His voice was magically magnified, so the whole school was listening. Lily grinned and nodded.
"Well it felt only appropriate that on your last morning on Hogwarts, he does the same thing," Peter announced, and all the females of Hogwarts squealed. Lily's eyes widened and she looked at James, who was fiddling with the lily
"We want to apologize in advance for this, his singing voice hasn't improved much since then," Sirius said to the teachers, who chuckled, and James grinned, looking up at the teachers. They all remembered that first morning. James cleared his throat and got down on his knees next to her, just as he'd done all those years ago, and Lily wiped her eyes, grinning like a fool.
James opened his mouth and begun to sing the same two songs he had sung all those years ago. They had been muggle songs, since she was muggleborn, and Lily felt tears escape her eyes as James garbled out the same two songs he had sung to her on her first day at Hogwarts. He started with the first one, that was from the sixties.
"WHY DO YOU BUILD ME UP,
BUILD ME UP,
BUTTERCUP BABY JUST TO LET ME DOWN,
LET ME DOWN,
AND MESS ME AROUND AND THEN WORST OF ALL,
WORST OF ALL,
YOU NEVER CALL BABY WHEN YOU SAY YOU WILL,
SAY YOU WILL,
BUT I LOVE YOU STILL,
I NEED YOUUUUU,
MORE THAN ANYONE DARLING,
YOU KNOW. THAT. I. HAVE. FROM. THE. START.
SO BUILD ME UP,
BUILD ME UP,
BUTTERCUP, DON'T BREAK MY HEART!" he sung, and Lily chuckled out a sob. James grinned up at her and Lily giggled. She leaned down to kiss him, but Sirius held her back.
"No wait there was one more remember?" he asked, and Lily smiled, nodding. The female population of Hogwarts was in tears by this point, and the seventh years were trying hard not to cry of nostalgia. They all remembered when this had happened; it had been the first of many. It had been going on since the beginning of their Hogwarts lives. How could they not get nostalgic?
James cleared his throat once more, completely embarrassed, and sung out a song by one of the best muggle bands, in Lily's opinion, The Beatles.
"OH YEAH I'LL, TELL YOU SOMETHING,
I THINK YOU'LL UNDERSTAND,
AND I'LL, SAY THAT SOMETHING
I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND
I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND
I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND"
James didn't get anything out after that, however, because Lily had slid off that bench and kissed him. James grinned against her lips and put his hands on either side of her face, as the Hogwarts population clapped.
"HE WASN'T FINISHED!" Sirius bellowed, and Lily laughed. She got back on the bench, leaving James on both his knees, and Sirius nodded his satisfaction, as Hestia giggled and wrapped her arms around his torso.
"Evans, will you go out with me?" James asked in a loud voice, and the Hogwarts population laughed. Those seven words, which had been repeated so many times throughout the seven years, had brought tears to so many peoples eyes.
Lily grinned and turned to Sirius, unsure if she should repeat what she did in first year or what she wanted to say now. Sirius winked and she grinned.
"Yes, Potter, I will," she grinned, and everyone cheered. James laughed triumphantly and stood up, cupping her face in both of his hands, and kissing her once more.
"I love you Evans," James whispered, resting his forehead on hers, and Lily grinned up at him.
"I love you too Potter"
Just want to aknowledge the use of the songs:
Build Me Up Buttercup- The Foundations
I Wanna Hold Your Hand- The Beatles
Hey everyone.
That's it! That's the end of this fic! Thank you everyone who read it! The sequel is going to be called Green and Hazel, at least, that's what I think it's going to be called, we'll see, and it'll be up soon. I'll post something here when it's up so you'll all know. Thank you so much for reading this story, I really enjoyed writing it.
Keep tuned for the sequel! Thanks for reading. Hope you liked it (: