Chapter 13: Memories

Lily sat in her room staring out the window at the ice-covered ground. An ice storm had just hit last night. James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus had gone out to a pub, no doubt they were drunk. Well, maybe not Remus, Lily reminded herself. She shook her head as she remembered the last time the marauders got drunk. It was in their last year. The first Quidditch game of the season and they had won the game against Ravenclaw.

"We won!" Karen shouted doing a little gig.

"Stop that!" Lily snapped. "You look like an idiot."

"So?" she asked.

"So you're annoying," she told Karen.

"Aw, there you two are," Sirius said walking over to them. "Having a good time, are we?"

"You're drunk," Lily stated.

"Naturally," Karen added.

"Oh, come on, Evans, have some fun," Sirius said.

Lily rolled her eyes and moved father into the common room. Suddenly she felt arms around her waist a husky voice in her ear, "Where are you going, Evans?"

"Hello, James," Lily said, removing his arms from around her waist and turning around.

"Go on a date with me," James said.

"You're drunk," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"You didn't answer the question," he replied.

Lily turned and walked away. She found Karen snogging some blonde bloke. "Ahem," Lily said.

Karen pulled away. "Lily!" she yelled over the music.

"You're not even in Gryffindor!" Lily shouted at him. She grabbed him and pushed him out of the portrait hole.

"That was rude," Karen said.

"Well, he's not in Gryffindor so he shouldn't be in here," Lily told her.

"Lighten up," Karen said, pushing a drink into her hand.

Lily smelled it, then put it back down on the table. Karen rolled her eyes. "You know, this is why you and James are prefect for each other," she said.

"Not this again," Lily said. "We're just friends."

"It's true, you should give him a chance," Karen replied.

"Well, it's never going to happen," she replied.

"Whatever, you'll eat your words sooner or later," she said, before walking off.

Later that night, Lily was one of the few people still sober. She rolled her eyes as she watched Sirius and Karen having a drinking contest. "Hey, Lils," James said, falling face first into the couch.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Lily said turning James over. "Really? Are you really that drunk?"

"Maybe, doesn't matter," he said. "I came over to ask you...to ask you...I forgot."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Come on, you're going back to your dormitory," she said, slipping her arm under James and pulling him up. She almost fell with his full weight put on her. She half dragged, half carried James back to his dormitory, then laid him on the bed. Lily was out of breath by the time they got there.

James stared drunkenly at the canopy of his bed. "Thank, Lil," he mumbled.

"No problem," Lily said turning around.

"Stay, please," she heard James say quietly.

Lily turned around to protest, but once she saw the pitiful look on his face, she sighed. "Alright, move over before I change my mind," she said.

She laid down next to James, but kept a considerable distance between them. James slung his arm around her, then buried his face in her hair.

Lily smiled at the thought. The next morning hadn't been so pretty.

Lily opened her eyes slowly. She looked up at the canopy over her bed. Closing her eyes, she tired to go back to sleep. Deep inside of her she knew something was wrong. Suddenly, she felt something around her waist. Her eyes popped open. Lily turned her head slowly and saw James sleeping peacefully. She cursed herself a million times over for staying up here. The good thing was that everyone in this room was drunk so she could probably get out without being noticed.

Slowly she tried to slip out from under James' arm, but he only tightened his hold on her until she was pushed up against him. "Darn it," she mumbled.

James mumbled something incoherent. Oh no, he's waking up, Lily thought. Ok relax, you just have to think of a plan. "Lily," James mumbled.

"That's disturbing," she said.

James' eyes suddenly opened. "Lily?!" he nearly screamed. He shot straight up then grabbed his head. "Ow!"

"Are you ok?" Lily asked, sitting up.

"Yeah," he mumbled. "Hand me that potion in my nightstand."

Lily reached over and opened the door of his nightstand and pulled out a clear potion. She handed it to James and he drank it in one gulp then turned to Lily. "Did we..."

"No, I was sober, thank you very much," Lily snapped. "And if you hadn't noticed, you're still wearing your Quidditch robes."

"Just asking," he mumbled. "Then we are you here?"

"Can't you have a girl in your bedroom without bedding her?" she asked.

James blushed and looked down. "Sorry," he said. "So what are you doing here?"

"Well, you were drunk and I brought you up here," Lily explained. "You asked me to stay with you and I did, that's it."

"That's it?"

"Yep."

James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Well, I'm going to go," Lily said getting off the bed.

"Wait!" James said grabbing her wrist.

Lily sighed and counted to 10. "What?" she asked.

"Why did you stay?" he asked her.

"I don't know, I just did," she said annoyed.

"Thanks," he said releasing her wrist.

Lily smiled at this. That was when she started falling James. She remember how she denied it.

"You're in love with James!" Karen said in a sing-song voice.

"I am not!" Lily shouted, annoyed.

"Then we did you stay with him?" she asked.

"Nothing happened! How many times do I have to tell you?!" she yelled.

"Sure," Karen said. "Keep telling yourself that."

About two weeks later, Lily walked into the common room to see James with his tongue shoved down Maria Corner's throat. "Ahem," Lily said loudly.

"Oh, hi Lily!" Maria said sweetly.

"Hi," Lily said. "Don't you two have homework?"

"No, I'm finished," James said.

"More like Remus did it for you," she retorted.

"Bye, James," Maria said, before standing up. She leaned down and kissed James again. Then she flipped her hair and walking up to her dormitory.

"Bye, James," Lily said mimicking Maria's hair flip and stomping out of the common room.

"What's your problem?" James asked following her.

"Her!" Lily yelled.

"She didn't do anything!" James yelled back.

"Yes! She did!"

"What did she do?!"

"For one thing, she's a slag!"

"So?!"

"So, you could do so much better!"

"I don't think it's any of your business!"

"Yes, it is when she's kissing my boyfriend!" Lily covered her mouth as soon as she said it.

"Your what?" James asked, stunned.

"Nothing, I didn't say anything," Lily replied, trying to cover up her slip up.

"No, you said boyfriend," he said smirking.

"I did not," she said, before turning around.

"Where do you think your going?" James asked grabbing her arm and spinning her around to face him.

"Look, I didn't mean to say that," Lily started. "It was accident. Slip of the tongue. I just saw her with her hands all over you and it just annoyed me. I can't explain it so please don't ask me to. It's defiantly not because I like you. Not that you're not cute or anything like that. Actually, you're gorgeous, but that's beside the point. It's-"

She was cut off by James' lips on hers, kissing her furiously. Lily stood there, frozen, for a moment, then she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. After a while James pulled away. "It's the only way I could think to shut you up," he said, leaning his forehead against Lily's.

"Good idea," she said.

"So does this mean you're my girlfriend?" he asked.

"Do I really need to answer that?" she asked.

Lily smiled and laid down in her bed trying to get some sleep.