A/N: Sorry for the delay with this chapter - it was oddly hard to write, and is extremely Lily-centric, but it does have my favourite moment so far in it.

I hope it's worth the wait.

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3rd May 1977, 11.20am

Lily couldn't help but laugh at the frustration on Sirius' face at the silvery vapour coming out of the end of his wand.

'This is a stupid bloody spell.' He grouched loudly. 'What kind of magic depends on your mental state at the time? I mean, if a dementor is charging its way towards you you're hardly going to be thinking about birthday cakes and first kisses are you?'

Emma lowered her wand in surprise. 'Are you thinking about your first kiss Sirius? That's actually surprisingly sweet.'

'I didn't say I was thinking about my first kiss did I?' Sirius scowled at her. 'I just meant that's the kind of sappy rubbish people are bound to be using for a spell like this, and it's hardly the easiest thing to bring to mind when some creepy-ass monster is bearing down on you.'

'Aww, Padfoot was being all sentimental!' James leaned back from his perch on the edge of the desk so he could rest his head on Sirius' shoulder and bat his eyelashes at him. 'You're such a softie.'

'Piss off Prongs.' Sirius cuffed him across the back of the head. 'I'm not soft. You're soft; in the head that is.'

'Boys, boys!' Professor Flitwick's high-pitched voice interrupted them. 'Let's focus a little more shall we? Producing the vapour of a Patronus is extremely difficult in itself; many students will never master a corporeal. I would have been astounded if any of you had managed one today Mr Black. Keep trying, hmm?'

He moved off towards the other side of the room to break up an argument, leaving Sirius with his arms folded across his chest. 'Bloody stupid subject.'

Remus tried the incantation again and was rewarded with a burst of silver light that nonetheless failed to take shape and slowly faded. 'Damn. I wouldn't say that; charms are incredibly useful.'

'I agree. Expecto patronum.' Lily twirled her wand, then huffed in frustration when she failed to produce even a puff of vapour. 'I know this is a difficult one, but think how important it could turn out to be.'

'Expecting to face a dementor at some point then Evans?' Sirius asked, his eyebrows raised questioningly.

'Better to be prepared.' James cut in. 'Never know what's out there mate.'

There was a snort to his right and James twisted his body to see where it had come from; he was met with the grinning face of Mulciber. 'It'll take more than a patronus to save your sorry skins from what's waiting for you out there Potter.'

'Oh really?' Remus spoke coolly, even as his hand landed on Sirius' shoulder in an obvious effort to urge him to remain calm. 'And what, precisely, do you think is waiting out there for us Mulciber?'

Mulciber's grin turned ghoulish. 'Oh, I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise. Let's just say; I wouldn't bother making too many plans for your future.'

Sirius and James both clenched their wands a little tighter in their fists, but a warning look from Lily stayed their hands just in time as Flitwick walked past again, this time hurrying Mulciber away from them and back to his own group.

'Smug little shit.' Sirius muttered. 'I don't know who he thinks he is.'

'He's creepy.' Lily shivered. 'I've always thought he was creepy, and after what he did to Mary last year, that multiplied by ten.'

'Well, I think what him and his friends did to you this year was bad enough.' Said Emma, eyebrows furrowed as she stared after him. 'There's something very wrong about that boy.'

'It runs in the family.' James spoke quietly. The others looked at him curiously, and he beckoned them a little closer as he cast a muffliato charm around them. 'His older brother and his dad are both suspected Death Eaters; they're being investigated for involvement in a few murders as well as a couple of other crimes. I imagine they've spoken to him a few times about it, and he's told them a few things that have gone on in school as well.'

'Hold on a minute.' Emma looked positively horrified. 'Are you suggesting that when he was talking about what was waiting for us, he meant You-Know-Who?'

Sirius snorted at her. 'Don't get your knickers in a twist. I doubt he meant Voldemort would be after us personally.'

Emma wasn't the only one who flinched slightly at the name, but she was certainly the one who hid it least well.

'More likely he means that anyone who's not on the Death Eaters side will automatically be a target for them. It's becoming a "you're with us or against us" kind of thing; people can't really sit on the fence anymore.' James spoke calmly. 'Dad can't tell me much, but there are some nasty things happening out there. We'd be naïve to think that it's going to be any better by the time we graduate.'

'Well, aren't you a chirpy little soul these days.' Lily spoke dryly, and James flashed her a quick grin.

'Just being realistic. Things are bad, no question. Just because I acknowledge that doesn't mean I don't think they'll get better. We've got Dumbledore and all the aurors on our side, and the Ministry won't cave to him. He'll lose in the end.' James delivered his words so confidently that it was almost impossible not to believe them.

In the short silence that followed, Remus flicked his wand and tried the incantation again; a silver wolf shot out of the end of his wand and leapt across the room, and his eyebrows rose in shock.

James and Sirius gave each other brief, appalled looks, obviously thinking of Remus' secret and whether this was incriminating, if such a word could be applied to the situation, and the horror on their faces was enough to have Lily crease over with laughter, even as Professor Flitwick rushed over to congratulate Remus.

Fighting her giggles back, Lily focused her mind on the laughter and tried the words again. 'Expecto Patronum.'

A stream of silvery vapour poured from the end of her wand, and she tried to be pleased with that, since it was the first time she'd managed to produce anything from the spell at all, but it didn't give her much hope for a corporeal patronus; if that kind of uncontrolled laughter wasn't good enough, then she didn't think she'd ever find the right memory to focus on.

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8th May 1977, 9.45pm

The unmistakable sound of female giggles had Lily opening the cupboard door; she closed her eyes and looked upwards with a sigh. 'Come on you two. Out of there.'

She ignored Remus' amused snort from behind her, and turned her back on the now open closet to give the two students a moment to sort themselves out. They tumbled out of the cupboard behind her, looking more than a little sheepish.

Lily made eye contact with Remus, who lifted an eyebrow and shook his head ever so slightly in response. She sighed again, and turned back to face the two pupils. Apparently it was her turn to deliver the lecture.

She folded her arms and glared at the now subdued fifth-years standing in front of her; this may have been her second year as a prefect, but she still found this part of the role mortifying.

'I'm sure you two are aware of the school rules? More specifically the curfew?'

She waited for nods from both students before she continued. 'Good. Then I won't have to explain why you're losing ten house points each and you're both getting detentions on Saturday. Separate detentions.' She added quickly, noticing the slight grin that had appeared on the boy's face. It disappeared as quickly as it had arrived. The pair of them nodded again, keeping their eyes lowered so they didn't have to look either of the prefects in the face, something Lily was profoundly grateful for as it meant they couldn't see how horrifying she found it to have to do this.

'And really, a cleaning supplies cupboard? Try and have some class will you? Not only is it a dreadful cliché, I can't imagine it's comfortable. Find somewhere a bit more suitable to snog next time. Back to your common room.'

They practically sprinted away, and Lily kept her eyes fixed on the wall in front of her until she was sure they were gone before she turned back to Remus. He was grinning widely, and the sight of her embarrassed face was apparently enough to send him into hysterical laughter.

'It's not funny!' Lily protested, her cheeks flaming. 'I hate it so much; I hate the fact that I've probably seen more of the girls in this school without their shirt than most of the boys put together! I hate the fact that whenever I see people I've caught I get flashbacks to them groping in enclosed spaces. There are people in this school that I can never look at the same way again.'

By the end of her little rant, Remus had gotten a grip on himself and was straight-faced as he stood opposite her. 'Sorry. It was the way you told them to have some class. I swear, it was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.'

'Yeah. Hilarious.' Lily deadpanned, making Remus' lips twitch again. They resumed their patrol route, their pace slow but steady as they made their way along the fourth floor corridors.

'So, I should tell Prongs to avoid cupboards then? Just cleaning supply ones, or is it all cupboards?'

Lily gave him a curious look. 'What are you on about Remus?'

He gave her a distinctly lopsided grin. 'Just trying to establish which places you consider it appropriate to snog. Apparently closets are out, but you obviously have no issues with the kitchens. How about empty classrooms?'

Lily couldn't stop the blush reappearing in her cheeks. 'Remus Lupin, I am not having this conversation with you. And my snogging preferences have nothing to do with James, thank you very much.'

That crooked grin made another appearance. 'You keep telling yourself that Lily.'

He tucked his hands in his pockets and began to whistle quietly as they walked, occasionally stopping to open doors and check empty rooms. They were just walking past the transfiguration rooms when Remus spoke again.

'So. I have to ask. Tripped and fallen onto James' lips recently?'

'Remus!' Lily glanced around quickly, then realised how absurd that was given that they were in a deserted corridor, at night, after curfew. 'No I have not. And I can't fathom why you'd ask me such a ridiculous question.'

'Riiight.' Remus drew the word out. 'Because it's not like you study with him most nights, or sit with him for meals, or go to his Quidditch practices. You never hug him or sit on his lap, or hold his hand or do anything that would suggest that there might be some affection there.'

'Of course there's affection. We're friends.' Lily scoffed.

'Friends who've snogged.' Remus corrected.

'Friends who kissed once; on New Year's Eve.' Lily responded. 'New Year's Eve doesn't count.'

Remus laughed. 'Is that some female rule that I'm not aware of?'

'No, it's just true. New Year is one of those weird anomalies when everybody feels the urge to kiss someone, and it's totally acceptable to kiss someone that you wouldn't normally…kiss.' She finished uncertainly, thinking back over her garbled sentence. Satisfied that it made a certain amount of sense, she gave Remus an emphatic nod.

Remus looked unimpressed with this argument. 'So you're saying that you always kiss someone on New Year's Eve?'

'Well, no…'

'But you were in the kitchens with James and you felt an urge to kiss him?' Remus prodded.

'No, not until he kissed me!' Lily protested.

'But he did kiss you; and then you kissed him back because you wanted to, and now you spend about half your time with him. So I'm curious here Lily: What exactly are your intentions for my best mate?'

'Oh Merlin.' Lily rolled her eyes heavenward and prayed for patience. 'I repeat: I'm not having this conversation with you Remus.'

'Why not?' He asked, cocking his head to one side as he looked at her.

'Because there's nothing to say!' Lily knew her exasperation was coming through in her tone. 'James and I are friends. We haven't kissed since New Year's Eve. I'm really not sure what else I'm supposed to say except: you were right.'

Remus somehow managed to look both astonished and confused at the same time, and Lily felt compelled to elaborate.

'You were right about me and James. I don't hate him, and I never did. I hated that he could be such an enormous git at times, but he's better now and he was never as bad as I sometimes said he was. He's a good friend now, and I care about him a lot. But if you lot have been conjuring up some grand romance in your minds, you're well off.'

Remus looked at her appraisingly before nodding. 'Okay. Just curious. I care about you both.'

Lily softened instantly. 'I know you do. But you have nothing to worry about; James and I are friends, and we're staying that way. I don't think either of us wants to mess that up.'

'Okay.' Remus said quietly before gesturing for her to lead the way. They carried on along the corridor in silence for a little way, until Lily tucked her arm through Remus' and asked him a quiet question about the Potions homework.

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15th May 1977, 3.00pm

It was always a strange experience, watching James play Quidditch. Lily mused on this as she watched him intercept a sloppy pass between the Hufflepuff chasers and then fly his broom at what she considered to be a ridiculous pace towards the goal. Still, she joined in the cheers for him anyway, regardless of her personal opinion of his recklessness.

She watched him pass off to Frank, who did some kind of dive and turn manoeuvre so quickly that she could barely follow it, before flinging the quaffle straight into James' path. He caught it without looking; he knew where it was going to be, because the team practised hard under his leadership for precisely that reason. It dropped through the far left hoop before the keeper had even had time to realise that the threat had changed direction.

The voice of Jonathon Boot echoed round the pitch as he kept up a lightning speed match commentary. 'And that's another goal by Gryffindor Captain James Potter! Gryffindor now lead by eighty points to thirty; Hufflepuff are putting up a strong fight, but the Gryffindor team are working seamlessly together this afternoon. Rumour has it that Potter has been drilling his team hard, and it's certainly showing today!'

James flew directly past their seats in the Gryffindor stand and saluted as he went by, earning an even louder cheer from some of the younger years and an exasperated shake of the head from Lily. She laughed at Marlene's shouted comment, but found herself missing the rest of her friends' conversation as she was again drawn into watching him fly.

He'd always been good at Quidditch. More naturally talented that most she supposed; you probably had to be at least a bit exceptional to be recruited onto the team in you third year, when most people didn't get in until their fifth year at the earliest. And it wasn't just the flying, though he was a natural at that; it was the strategy, the teamwork. She hadn't appreciated that in the past, hadn't noticed that he probably helped set up as many goals as he personally scored until she'd really started to watch him during matches, until she'd attended some of his practices as Captain and watched him run plays over and over with everyone in different positions each time, so no one person carried too much responsibility.

He wasn't just a great Quidditch player she realised, watching him swoop over to speak Richard Benton who was carefully circling his posts, he was a great Captain. Funny she'd never consciously realised that before. James turned from Benton to scan the rest of the pitch, then he signalled for a time out once he'd caught the eye of Professor Oakshot the match referee.

Alice leaned towards her. 'What do you reckon they're up to?' she asked, watching the Gryffindor team land and gather into a huddle.

Lily shrugged. 'No idea. I've discovered that there is very little point in trying to predict what James is going to do, and that applies extra when it comes to Quidditch. It doesn't help that Frank and Sirius are so quick to encourage his more loopy ideas either.'

'Hey, loopy or not, they must work. Look how often we win!' Marlene put in her view as she leaned forward before sticking her fingers in her mouth and whistling as the Gryffindor team took to the air again.

They moved up into position and Oakshot sat on his broom holding the quaffle, exactly halfway between James and his Hufflepuff counterpart. The whistle blew, the quaffle was thrown up, and was swiftly snatched from one side by Anthony Jordan, the third Gryffindor chaser. The Hufflepuff chasers were completely thrown off, having fully expected James to take up the ball, and now their beaters were fighting a rear-guard action against the Gryffindor attack as James and Frank followed Anthony towards the goal. Less than a minute later Anthony fired the quaffle through the centre hoop, and Lily could just about make out the self-satisfied grin James aimed at the Slytherin's watching from directly behind the Hufflepuff goal. She couldn't quite stifle the giggle that bubbled up her throat.

Half an hour later and the pace had slowed a little. The score was 120 – 60 in Gryffindor's favour, but Frank had taken a nasty bludger to the knee and was wincing as he flew and Matthew Gregory, one of the beaters, had blood streaming from his nose. James pulled him to one side and aimed a quick spell at him; the bleeding stopped, but his obviously broken nose was crooked on his face. He and James had a quick conversation, accompanied by much arm waving and gesticulating before James shook his head and flew off.

Jonathon Boot's voice rose in both volume and pitch, and Lily realised that she'd been neglecting the rest of the game as she'd watched James and Matthew by the side-lines.

'I think Dempsey, seeker for Hufflepuff, has spotted the snitch! She's certainly speeding up, and she looks very focused on something! Davies isn't taking any chances anyway, and the Gryffindor seeker is flying hard as he tries to catch up with her.'

The cheers and taunts from all areas of the ground grew louder as everyone watched the two seekers race towards the area behind the Gryffindor goal. Lily could hear James roaring at the rest of his team to focus on their own part of the game and leave the seeking to Davies as he shot towards the Hufflepuff end with the quaffle clutched tightly under one arm. Sirius arrived alongside him just in time to see off a well-aimed bludger, and Lily found her eyes darting from one end of the pitch to the other as she tried to watch all the action at once.

Boot's voice was still ringing around the ground as he too tried to keep up with everything that was happening. 'Potter has the quaffle and is heading towards the Hufflepuff goal, but there's a tremendous battle between the seekers here. Dempsey's smaller size is certainly helping her with speed and manoeuvrability, but Davies has a much greater physical presence and he isn't afraid to use it!'

Lily was listening to the commentary, but her eyes were focused on James and his fellow chasers at the other end of the pitch, and she drew in a sharp breath as James executed a quick barrel roll to avoid a bludger; unfortunately he wasn't quite quick enough and the ball caught him a glancing blow on his left ankle as he twisted his broom back to the upright position.

He waved Frank and Anthony on, Sirius flying above them, while he dropped down and to one side of the pitch. Lily could see him tear a strip of fabric off the bottom of his robes and tie it around his injured limb and she mentally cursed him for his insane dedication to the team; most people would have called a time out to get treated, would get that injury checked out, but no, not James Potter.

She tasted a metallic tang in her mouth and realised that she'd bitten her lip so hard she'd drawn blood; she stood rooted to the spot for a few more moments as she watched James test out his jury-rigged bandage, wincing when he tried to steer too sharply, but he aimed his broom back out towards the field of play just as Jonathon Boot's voice reached new levels of excitement.

'I can see the snitch, and it is directly in front of the two seekers who are neck and neck in the race to grab 150 points and win the match! Dempsey has the edge for speed I think, but Davies' has more experience as a seeker, and they're both so close now, and they're both grabbing for it, and…and…'

The screams in the Gryffindor stand were almost deafening now, and Lily felt her head turn to watch the two seekers almost of its own accord; even the other players in the air were just going through the motions now, all of them only half-focusing on the rest of the game as they watched the two seekers try to out-manoeuvre each other as they raced the length of the pitch.

'Davies has it!' screamed Boot. 'It was so close, but Davies had the longer reach and he snatched it just ahead of Dempsey; it's a Gryffindor win!'

The stand erupted into cheers, and Lily found herself swamped by enthusiastic Gryffindors, her view of the pitch fully eclipsed by a sea of red and gold.

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16th May 1977, 00.20am

The night air was cool on Lily's face as she leaned further out of the window, her red hair lifting slightly in the breeze.

She jumped and gave out a little muffled shriek when a warm hand landed on her lower back, then a familiar voice spoke to her.

'Not jumping I hope?'

Lily gave her heart a moment to resume its normal rate, then she tilted her head back until the smiling face of James Potter came into view, hazel eyes fixed firmly on her face as his lips curved up a little further.

'No, not jumping, but startle me like that again and there's a strong possibility of falling.' She spoke caustically. He just grinned a little wider and put an arm round her waist as he squirmed his way into the window nook alongside her and hung his head out alongside hers.

'Needed some air?' she asked quietly, looking at his profile as he leaned over a little further. His hair was as messy as it always was and his glasses sat askew, as they often did by this time of night; at some point during the day he just stopped bothering to push them back up the bridge of his nose and straighten them up. He turned his head slightly to look at her and smiled easily.

'Yeah. I like a party, but Merlin that common room is crowded.'

'I thought you liked crowds.' Lily's voice was quiet as she looked out over the grounds, the lake and the forest illuminated only by starlight.

James laughed quietly. 'I'm a sociable sort it's true. But…I don't know, it's just all a bit too much tonight. I felt…a little claustrophobic in there.'

'That's probably got something to do with the enormous crowd of girls that were trying to get as close to you as possible. I'm surprised they haven't started scratching each other's eyes out yet.' Lily worked hard to keep any trace of rancour from her tone, but she was sure a hint of resentment crept in. She hoped he didn't register it, because if he called her on it she couldn't explain it; she just didn't like the idea of him spending time with other girls. He was her friend. She'd never thought of herself as possessive, but apparently it was a dormant quality until provoked.

'What girls?' James sounded only vaguely interested and his response belatedly called her attention back to him. 'I didn't notice any girls.'

Lily ignored the fact that something about that statement made her feel instantly happier, and smiled at the sight of him sitting on a windowsill with her instead of at a party full of people who wanted to talk to him and be seen with him.

'Oh, they were there.' She assured him. 'But they'd probably eat you for breakfast anyway.'

He grinned at her. 'Yeah, I know the type. There's always a few when you're rich and pureblood. They like the… what's the word I'm looking for?...cachet of dating a Potter.'

Lily laughed. 'I'm sure that's true for some of them, but it's not just your name. You know that don't you?'

James raised an eyebrow at her, and she sighed dramatically. 'James.' Her tone was somewhat disbelieving.

'Lily.' He responded mockingly.

With a huff of exasperation, she squirmed out of his grip and sat back so she was leaning up against the wall in their quiet window nook; she spoke quietly, her eyes firmly avoiding making contact with his.

'James, you're a Quidditch Captain, and you're clever, and popular, and your bloody pranks are famous and…oh Merlin, you're going to make me say it aren't you?'

James didn't move an inch; he stayed half hanging out of the window, his torso twisted as he inclined his upper body towards her so he could look at her as she spoke.

She drew in one deep shuddering breath and spoke the next few words so quickly he barely caught them. 'Well, you're not exactly unattractive are you? I think you can safely assume that your looks are pretty high on the list of reasons girls want to date you.'

James tilted his head slightly as he observed her determinedly not looking at him; he reached out a hand and caught her chin, using his index finger to push her face up until she met his eyes. 'Are you actually embarrassed saying that to me?'

He sounded incredulous, and Lily made sure her eyes were downcast as she muttered a quiet 'Yes.'

He sighed and pulled his body back in to perch on the edge of the windowsill next to her. 'Well that's ridiculous.' Her eyes rose back to meet his almost of their own accord, and he looked at her for a second before he carried on. 'I think you're beautiful; I'm not embarrassed to say that to you because it's just true. Why should you be too self-conscious to say you consider me attractive? I also think you're clever and kind and sweet, and I have no problem telling you that either.'

'Yes well.' Lily managed weakly. 'I think we've established that you've always been a bit better with emotions than I have.'

'Only in terms of expressing them.' James smiled at her flushed face and, taking pity on her, allowed the subject to drop. 'Want to go for a walk?'

Lily was more than a little startled by that. 'A walk?'

James grinned at her. 'It's a warm night and I could do with a proper breath of fresh air. Besides, there's something about the grounds at night, and you've never been out there have you?'

Lily folded her arms. 'With good reason James. I mean, I know we're breaking curfew just being out of the tower, but it's a whole different kettle of fish to go strolling around the grounds don't you think? There are Merlin only knows how many creatures in the forest for a start.'

James' grin spread a little wider. 'I never figured you for a chicken Evans.'

Low blow and he knew it; calling a Gryffindor out on their bravery was a cheap shot, but it had the effect he wanted.

Lily had only half believed him when he'd suggested the walk, but it took him less than fifteen minutes to guide her out of the castle - under the protection of the invisibility cloak – and out onto the grounds. The castle disappeared out of sight behind them, and James removed the cloak from the both of them, assuring her that they could no longer be seen from any of the windows.

The air was warm for May, and the grounds were silent but for the sounds of animals in the forest; there was no moon, but the clear skies meant that the stars cast enough illumination to see by. Still, despite the feeling of peace there was an uneasiness to being outside in the dark and quiet like this, so Lily reached her hand out until she touched James' warm skin; she slid her hand into his and felt him squeeze back reassuringly.

They walked in silence for a few moments, enjoying the peace, and – whether either of them would admit it or not – each other's sole company. It was eventually broken by James.

'You know I meant it right?'

Lily looked up at him quickly, but she couldn't make out his expression in the dark; she could see the planes of his face and the outline of his hair but none of his features. 'Meant what James?'

She felt a sharp tug on her hand and realised that he'd stopped and was pulling her back towards him; she stumbled slightly as she allowed him to pull her a step or two back and her hands came up instinctively, landing on his chest as his hands came to rest on her hips and gripped to balance her. Her heart was pounding painfully behind her ribs at the unexpected contact, the feel of his chest under her hands and the touch of his fingertips on her waist, and she was grateful again for the dark because she could feel her cheeks burning red and could only be happy that he couldn't see them. At some point she was going to have to confront these strange feelings he could apparently stir in her these days, but she really wasn't up to it right now.

'I meant it when I said that I think you're beautiful.' His voice seemed huskier, a rough edge to it that wasn't there previously, and it took her by surprise because his face was so much closer than she'd expected it to be. Close enough that if she stood very slightly on her tiptoes she'd be able to feel the heat of his breath mingle with hers, brush her lips across his, taste the butterbeer on his tongue.

Before she could question whether she wanted to do those things or not, she felt his mouth cover hers and she lost her breath, and her thought process, entirely.

It started as just a gentle pressure of lips against lips at first, then she felt her hands slide up his chest to grip his neck and pull him a little closer, and she was sure she hadn't consciously decided to do that, but it didn't matter because the conscious part of her brain had less and less say about what was happening here. His fingertips were still resting lightly on her sides, his thumbs gently rubbing over her hipbones and she was rising on her tiptoes to press a little closer as her tongue touched his, and she heard him moan quietly in response. The blood was rushing through her head, and the hammering in her chest was almost painful now as his mouth worked across hers, his tongue meeting hers over and over again even as the touch of his skilful lips coaxed her into pushing her body closer to his until there wasn't an inch of space between them.

Their lips finally broke apart on a gasp, but Lily's hands were still linked around his neck and his still rested on her waist.

'Okay. Well. I'm not really sure what to say now.' James' voice was little more than a quiet, almost breathless rasp. 'Except…I'm sorry if that was…if that wasn't something that you wanted.'

Lily laughed weakly. 'I don't think I have any grounds to complain. No complaints here.'

'Are you sure?' Lily felt his lips press gently to her hairline, and for some inexplicable reason she felt tears prickle at the back of her eyes. Appreciative once more for the concealing darkness, she pressed her face into his chest and nodded, her hands still clinging to him.

'I'm sure. Just… don't expect me to know what to do about this.'

She felt James' warm breath in her hair. 'S'okay Lil. I don't expect anything from you. It doesn't work like that.'

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22nd May 1977, 2.15pm

Remus' silvery wolf patronus trotted happily past them, and Lily could privately admit that the sight irked her; she was good at charms, but she absolutely could not get this, and the fact that other people could was irritating, damn it.

Sirius had been the second to produce a corporeal patronus, and for one shocking moment Lily had thought his was a wolf too, but an instant later she had realised that it had a number of distinct differences. Once she'd had opportunity to see it up close she had to admit that a shaggy, somewhat disreputable looking dog was probably the perfect representation of Sirius. She had, however, been rather surprised when James had finally produced his patronus in the shape of a stag.

She couldn't quite put her finger on why she found it odd, she just did. She even tried to think about which animal she would have guessed for him if she had put her mind to it beforehand, but she drew a blank. She just…couldn't think of any animal that could accurately represent James Potter. But a stag…that nagged at her for some reason. Mind you, quite a few things had been nagging at her recently.

Things between her and James had felt a little…odd…in the last few days. She supposed that was only natural when someone kissed you until your head span, then acted as if nothing had happened the next time you saw them. The thing was, she'd lain awake that night worrying that things between them had changed, since she had no idea how to deal with it if they had, and she was almost grateful when he greeted her the next morning as if everything was the same as it had been the morning before. They were still friends and everything was okay; she was relieved they hadn't messed it all up.

But the real problem was that now she couldn't help but look at him a little differently. That hadn't been a brief, almost friendly kiss like the one they'd shared before; it had been an all-consuming, overwhelming, melt the skin from your bones full on snog, and for some reason it played on repeat in her head whenever she let her mind wander.

'Excellent work everybody!' Professor Flitwick interrupted her musings as he beamed at his class from the front of the room. 'I think everybody has at least produced vapour now, last few minutes to practice now before we move on from the subject of patronuses.'

Lily scowled at that. Yes, she could easily produce vapour now and yes, that was good enough for her NEWT requirements, but it went against her every last nerve to leave a topic before she'd fully mastered it. Especially when other people had managed it.

She closed her eyes and tried to find a memory that was happy enough to produce a full patronus; she settled on her tenth birthday party, the last one she'd ever had. She tried the incantation and was rewarded with a strong cloud of silver vapour, but it was still just vapour.

She sighed, and racked her brains for a happier memory, something…stronger, more powerful. She was still thinking when James' laughter reached her from across the classroom, and she automatically looked over to where he was standing.

He was perched right on the corner of a desk, his hands gripping the edges and his legs stretched out in front of him as he threw back his head. His hair was ruffled and untidy as ever and his eyes sparkled as he laughed loudly at whatever Sirius was saying.

The memory of that kiss began to run through her mind again; she felt her lips curve up automatically at the sight of him, felt a warm flush run over her skin and almost without thinking she raised her wand again.

'Expecto patronum.' It was only a whisper - nothing more powerful than that - but the vapour than poured from the end of her wand instantly began to coalesce into an animal.

Oh hell, she was in trouble. Thinking about kissing James Potter apparently made her happier than any other memory she could pull from her mind; happy enough to produce a fully corporeal patronus, the embodiment of positivity.

A patronus in the shape of a doe.

Oh, Merlin.

She looked up quickly to see if anyone else was looking at her; to her everlasting relief, everyone else in the room seemed to be too focused on their own conversations to pay any attention to what she was doing. Except for Snape, who was staring at her patronus with what she could only describe as a bizarre mix of horror and hope, but as soon as he felt her eyes on him his demeanour hardened over and he looked away from her with a sneer that strangely enough seemed slightly less disdainful than usual. She vanished the patronus quickly before anyone else could notice and took her seat as Flitwick called for their attention, her mind whirring as she tried to get her thoughts straight.

Okay. Okay. She'd read a little about this. Not much, but a little. It was a sign of compatibility, she knew that much. The patronus was a physical representation of personality. It meant they had similar…souls, for want of a better term. She could probably have worked that much out for herself. She and James were similar in a lot of ways; similar beliefs, capabilities, priorities.

So it just proved how similar they were, how well they complimented each other.

Nothing more complicated than that.

(J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L) (J&L)

A/N: I know, the patronus thing is a cliche, but I couldn't resist. Lily's denial is pretty impressive and she needs a nudge or two in the right direction :)

And I really felt that Snape's reaction to Lily's patronus would be interesting; it might give him a little hope for a moment, until he makes the connection with James' stag. I liked getting that in there briefly.

Also, I usually write Quidditch from James' point of view, but it's hard to write a match well and I thought it would be a nice way for Lily to mull things over, so it got written from her pov for a change; I hope it wasn't weird to read.

Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far, it's lovely to hear your thoughts.