Author's Note:

Hooray for Christmas, and Lily's surprise. Really exciting, I hope you like it!

Ch. 6 Hearts at Christmas

10:53 pm, December 24th

"Lily!" James hammered at his bedroom door. "I know I'm not supposed to come out but I sort of have to…"

"How come?" Lily asked, preoccupied with the task at hand and only half listening.

"Well I, kind of have to use the bathroom," James muttered in response. He thanked God Lily couldn't see him blushing behind the door as she began to laugh hysterically.

"Hmmm. I believe I told you to go before I locked you into your room," Lily laughed as she spun her wand between her fingers. He couldn't open the door with alohamora because she'd used aromahola, a new spell she found in Spells for the Overly Avid Witch or Wizard.

"Pleeeaaassseee," James begged.

Lily laughed again, and stood, brushing her hands on her pants. "Alright, just give me a sec," she told him. Picking her way between various boxes full of packing peanuts. She switched off a light and unlocked the door, opening it a crack. "Now," she told him seriously through a slightly opened door, "I'm going to guide you across the room and you may not try to look at anything."

"Okay, that's fine," James answered eagerly. Lily reached her hand through the small opening and covered his eyes; then she opened the door. A strange electric current began as soon as Lily's hand touched James's face. She was acutely aware of each time his arm brushed hers as they walked.

"Don't peek, you'll ruin the surprise," Lily asked in a sweet voice James couldn't help but listen raptly to. He nodded and Lily smiled to herself at his submission. James wouldn't have dreamed of moving away from her, in fact he would have preferred if she hadn't had to remove her hand from his face when they reached the bathroom. The electricity, however, didn't stop when Lily's hand left James face.

"Okay, I'll wait for you to come back out," Lily told him seriously, "Remember you can't open the door without telling me first."

"I got it," James sarcastically pretended to be insulted.

Lily chuckled to herself but chose not to comment. In a moment James knocked to come back out again and Lily just barely opened the door again to cover his eyes. "My escort awaits once again," he commented.

Lily laughed at him and shook her head. The problem with jokes is that one often forgets one's surroundings, as Lily did. Within milliseconds James had stubbed his toe from Lily's poor direction and bent over double at the sudden pain in his bare foot. Lily started to fall over but James caught her. They wobbled for a moment, almost steady but just when they thought they were balanced they tipped and crashed into a box full of packing peanuts. They hit the ground hard, the little bits of Styrofoam slowly drifting down to land on top of them like snowflakes.

"This seems vaguely familiar," Lily commented from underneath James for the second time that vacation. She couldn't see his face in the darkness but felt sure he could hear her heart beating faster and faster. The electric energy seemed to be pulsing now, James half expected to see light coming off the invisible rays of power.

"Just a bit," James answered with a tint of laughter in his voice as he sat up and brushed the Styrofoam off his sleeves. He started to glance around the darkened room but only saw the silhouettes of a few things before Lily dove at him and covered his eyes. She pulled him to his feet and pushed him into his room before following. Once the door was securely shut behind her she turned to face him.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" she demanded. "You made sure we fell over so you could look around to see what I was up to!"

"No, no, no. I didn't, no," James begged, panicking, "Lily I'll swear on anything you want! I promise I didn't! It was an accident!"

James stopped when Lily started laughing, falling back on the door for support. "Of course you didn't" she gasped. "You couldn't of, you didn't know where anything was for you to trip over!" Lily tried and failed to curb her laughter. "You should," laugh, "have seen," laugh, "your face!" she barely got the words out.

After staring at her like she was insane for a moment James began chuckling himself, then laughing, then practically crying from laughing so hard. "You're right," he told her, "I thought you were going to kill me."

The two just laughed for a full minute, cracking up again every time they caught each other's eyes. "Okay," Lily took a deep breath to get herself under control, "I have to finish up." With a fresh burst of giggles she backed out the door. Lily leaned against the door for a second but when the laughter dried up all she felt was complete happiness and a deep longing. She sighed to herself and waved her wand to relight the room.

oOo

James woke with the sun the next morning. He lay in his bed for a moment, just staring at the ceiling of his room. He felt inexplicably happy. It was like a dream he couldn't quite remember, each time he got close the memory slipped through the fingers of his mind like smoke. All he knew was that it was an incredibly good dream. He stood and pulled back the curtains of the window. The sight of the snow sparked his memory and he recalled the "dream" that was really a reality.

"Lily." He couldn't recall later if he'd actually spoken or just thought the word.

"Hey Lily!" he yelled as he ran to the door. He paused for a second then covered his eyes and opened the door. "Lily!" he ran blindly across the room, luckily not tripping over any of the furniture. He banged on the door but there wasn't an answer. He turned suddenly at laughter behind him, remembering at the last second to cover his eyes.

"I didn't think you'd be up so early," Lily told him as she stood to walk over, "Come here." She grabbed his arm by the elbow and led him across the room. The electric waves started up again, but they were stronger, mingled with magic as well. "Okay, open," she commanded, removing her hand.

James didn't have a response to the sight in front of him. A huge Christmas tree towered up to the ceiling of the room. Strings of popcorn and cranberries wound their way around the branches. Little translucent globes in various colors dangled elegantly from the branches. Each had a living pixie inside that appeared to be yelling but James couldn't hear them. He suspected Lily must have put a silencing charm on them. Real candles flickered lightly. James looked quizzically at Lily when he saw one flame wrap around a tree branch but no smoke was produced.

"Flame freezing charm," Lily told him. She beamed as she watched his face as he turned, taking in each little bit of the room. It hardly looked the same at all. Garlands of holly hung from the rafters and wreaths hung on each of their doors. She had put slipcovers on all the pillows with snowflake, holly, and various other Christmassy patterns.

He walked a few steps but Lily stopped him. He turned to look at her, not bothering to say anything. She nodded her head towards the ceiling, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. A little sprig of mistletoe hung there, appearing almost, James searched for a word, innocent. When he looked towards Lily again she was right next to him. She slipped her hand into his. Lily stood on her very tiptoes to reach James who was several inches taller then her. The electricity seemed to be humming now, drowning out all though. She kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Happy Christmas," she whispered into his ear, her other hand at the nape of his neck. And then quieter she continued, "I'm sorry."

James wasn't sure what Lily was apologizing for; for rejecting him so many times, breaking his heart, ignoring him, or for all of those things. "Lily, don't—"

"Shhh," Lily put a finger on his lips, half surprised a spark didn't flash at the contact. She smiled a flirty crooked smile, "You're completely killing the mood."

They just stared at each other for a moment, lost in each other's eyes. Lily had to crane her neck to see into James's eyes. They were warm and adoring. Hers, in turn, were both apologetic and thankful. James thought he detected love somewhere in their depths but he couldn't be sure. Neither knew how long they stood like that, just staring. James began to lean down towards her; a strand of hair fell into his eyes but he didn't bother to brush it back. Lily tilted back her head, unable to think of anything but those perfect eyes gazing lovingly into hers. The humming became louder a song, the sound too high for a human voice, lilting through their minds. Lily's breath caught in her throat—

At a tap at the window they both sprang back from each other like startled deer. Ari, Serena's owl hovered there, demanding Lily open the window and let her in. Lily rushed over and opened it, glad James couldn't see the blush on her face. She grabbed the parchment and opened it.

Hey Lils,

Hope you're having a good break. I would have sent Ari sooner but I completely forgot. Everybody in meeting up at my house and then we'll all flu to Hogwarts together.

Happy Christmas!

Serena

p.s. We're bringing all out gifts from each other so that we can open them together so don't open yours yet.

"Who's it from?" James asked from behind her.

"Serena," Lily turned and smiled, pretending to forget their "moment" a few seconds before. "That's the other part of the surprise," she told him as she walked towards the table before the fire, "Everybody's coming for the afternoon. Now, breakfast is served." She gestured to the table in front of her.

"How'd you get breakfast up here?" James asked as he sat. If she was going to pretend nothing had happened then so would he.

"What do you take me for?" Lily asked, "The kitchens obviously. I had to practically bar the door to get the house elves to let me cook."

James choked on his bite of pancake. "You made this?" he asked, "It's incredible."

"Of course," Lily hid her pride as she shook her napkin out, "The house elves really aren't that good of cooks. The food's tainted with magic. Although you wouldn't know since you've been eating magically prepared food your whole life, it tastes different."

"You're right, this is amazing," James told her as he shoveled another huge bite into his mouth.

"Thank you," Lily responded naturally. The electricity was pulsing again, almost as though it was angry for the interruption. It urged her to reach over and stroke James's cheek. She grasped the leg of the table out of sight to stop her arms from acting of their own accord. She didn't realize James was doing the exact same thing. The whole room hummed with the magic and electricity. Get yourself together Lily! She commanded herself silently; you look like an idiot.

She took a sip of orange juice and studied the grains of wood in the table, glancing up she met James's eyes and flushed, returning her eyes to their familiar beat. She reached over too grab the sugar bowl to discover James's hand already there. An actual spark flared when their hands touched and Lily flushed again, jerking her hand back as though it had hurt her. They sat like that for a several minutes, in silent tension, afraid to look at each other but afraid not to. The seconds ticked by on the old clock on the mantelpiece… 11:56…11:57…11:58… 11:59…

Finally James couldn't bear the stress any longer. "Lily, " she reluctantly met his eyes, "Lily I—"he faltered, "I—"

Whoosh!

"Hey guys!" Delia spun into the room and brushed ashes from her shoulders. "I love the decorations. I assume you did them Lils." She gave Lily a big hug and walked over to get a better look at the Christmas tree.

Whoosh! In came Remus.

Whoosh! And Sirius.

Whoosh! And Serena.

"Merry Christmas guys!" Serena beamed at the heavily decorated room, "This is so cool. I feel like we're in the North Pole."

"Exactly like the North Pole," Sirius agreed. "But I don't like the pixies on the tree very much. Imagine what would happen if they got loose…"

"Don't even think about it Sirius," James warned quietly.

"You don't have to be so rude, I wouldn't dream of freeing them," Sirius batted his eyelashes innocently. "Is that food?"

"We lost him," Remus foretold, as Sirius began "grazing" at the table.

"Wow, Remus," Delia said sarcastically, "You'll be the next big seer. Now tell me, will I wear a purple or a blue sweater tomorrow?"

"Oh blue definitely," Lily told her. "You hate purple."

And thus the banter continued. Sirius quickly finished off the last of Lily and James's almost uneaten breakfast and then they all sat around the tree to open presents like they were eleven again. James had been unable to decide what to give to Lily. She played him hot and cold constantly; he never knew what to expect from her. In the end he had settled for a pair of dark green leather gloves. He had wanted to buy her a wedding ring but he knew that at least wouldn't be graciously received.

Lily couldn't believe her eyes when the gloves fell into her hands. They were soft leather in a perfect dark green holly like color. They even smelled a bit like holly berries. No one had seen her open them; the box had been so small and plainly wrapped. She looked up and her eyes met James's. He was smiling so sweetly at her and her apparent joy that she couldn't help but grin back at him oblivious to the rustling papers around them. She sighed to herself, who could be sweeter?

The hours drifted by quickly and the topics flew from one side to another. No one had ever thought of any day in which they enjoyed their self better. At one point, the topic drifted to muggles as Sirius couldn't imagine living without magic and more importantly, without broomsticks.

"What do you do for fun?" he asked exasperatedly.

"I don't know, hang out with friends," Delia told him. "Watch TV, read a book, oh yeah, some of us actually work."

"Hah," Sirius scoffed, "I worked once, wasn't worth the effort."

Delia snorted in disbelief. "Or you can play cards," Lily suggested.

"Play cards?" James asked, "What's that?"

Lily sighed, "Has anyone here not from a muggle family even heard of playing cards?" Serena and Remus raised their hands. "I'm not surprised that you did, Remus, you actually pay attention in muggle studies and I told you Serena so that hardly counts."

"Better then them," Serena nodded towards James and Sirius who were staring at Lily as though she had sprouted an extra head.

"You're right," Lily stood and headed for her room, "I'll be right back." A moment later she reappeared with a beat up old 52-card deck. "Okay, a crash course on learning how to play cards…" For the next half hour they sat in a circle playing Go Fish and Crazy Eights until everyone in the group understood what an ace, a jack and a spade are as well as that a nine and a six are not interchangeable.

"Okay," Lily smiled at her students as they concluded yet another game of 500 Rummy. I think it's safe to try a more difficult game. How about Hearts?"

Everyone in the group looked blankly at her. Or almost everyone, "I love hearts," Delia agreed. "That's by far the best card game out there."

"Okay then. Hearts it is." Lily grinned; hearts was her favorite game too. "I deal out the entire deck and everyone organizes their cards as they see fit without letting anyone see them." (In their first round of Crazy Eights Sirius had triumphantly told everyone that he had two eights and showed them to the circle as well.) "Everyone chooses two cards to pass to the player to their right. You want to pass on high cards, hearts, and the Queen of Spades if you can. Keep in mind you'll be getting two cards from the player on you left." At this point James stood and walked to the other side of Sirius (who had been on his right) and sat down. "Whoever has the two of clubs— that's the shamrock shaped one— puts that down first to begin the 'trick'," Lily continued despite Sirius's maniac grin at a "trick" in a game of cards. "Then the person to the right and each after that puts down a club as well. If you don't have a club, you may put in a card of another suit— spades, diamonds, or hearts. Play continues to the right. The person who begins the trick may not begin the trick with a heart unless hearts have been broken, meaning that someone who didn't have, say a diamond, in a previous trick and put down a heart instead." Serena's brow was furrowed, as she made sure she absorbed each detail. "Who ever puts down the highest card wins the trick and takes all the cards that were put down. If you take a heart it's one point, if you take the Queen of Spades its 13 points. Whoever had the least points wins."

"I'm a bit confused," James admitted, "But lets play anyways."

"Oh wait," Lily added at the last moment. "I forgot one last rule."

"Gosh Lils, get it together," Sirius mumbled but Lily ignored him.

"It's called shooting for the moon," Lily continued as though she hadn't been interrupted. "If a person is dealt a lot of hearts, they may try to shoot for the moon which means they have to get all of the hearts and the queen of spades. If they do this successfully, although it's very difficult, then all the other players are given 36 points."

"Okay, lets play," Delia snuggled down into the pillow she was sitting on and dealt out the cards. The first two rounds were a mess because everyone constantly put down the wrong cards and failed miserably in attempts to shoot for the moon. Remus was by far the best and even beat Lily and Delia in one round. The worst was James. He was determined to shoot for the moon every time and so Lily always ensured that she got at least one heart to stop him from winning.

An hour later they finished up with the score as thus:

Lily: 10

Delia: 11

Remus: 25

Sirius: 56

Serena: 62

James: 217

Everyone started laughing when Remus read off the scores. "James, you have to be the worst player of this game that ever lived," Sirius taunted.

"And I thought I was bad," Serena added.

"Hey, take it easy on him," Remus told them seriously. They all stopped laughing to stare. "He's only 155 points behind Serena." Everyone cracked up laughing again at this ridiculous difference.

Finally, at ten they decided it was time to call it a night. After many more jokes about James incompetent cards skills they all flu-ed back to Serena's house and then to each other house respectively. As soon as everyone had left Lily felt the electric feeling starting again and building strength.

"Well that was exhausting," she told James with a grin. "I'm heading in for an early bed." She gave him a quick stiff armed hug, trying to keep distance between them to keep any actual sparks from appearing again. "Happy Christmas."

"Night," James called weakly to her closing door. He stood there in the middle of their Common Room for a moment, unable to think or even breathe.

"That was interesting," he stated truthfully. He didn't hear Lily stifle a giggle from behind her closed door.

A/N: I rambled a bit in this chapter but I still liked it. Lily is so funny in denial. If you were really confused about my explanation of Hearts, I'm sorry, I haven't played it in a while. Anyways, please review.