"I'm gonna say what I need to say,
And hope to God that it don't scare you away.
Don't want to be misunderstood.
But I'm starting to believe that
This could be the start of something good."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To say James Potter was excited would be a vast understatement.

Today was the day he'd been waiting and hoping and praying for, the day Lily Evans had been delaying for years: they were going on a date. The sky was bright, the breeze was light, and the midday sun was warm. James hummed the Hogwarts anthem cheerfully as he offered Lily a hand up into the carriage that would take them to Hogsmeade. She was wearing jeans, a Beatles t-shirt, and a red sweater, and James thought she looked beautiful, like always. Sure, she'd looked real nice the night of Slughorn's party, but he had to admit he preferred her this way. It made him think she was comfortable enough around him to dress leisurely on their date, and to James, that was a very good thing.

For the first time all year, they could open the windows and not feel cold, so James did so on one side and Lily did the other. When he turned back, he noticed how close their hands were on the seat between them and he laid his over hers. She didn't protest, and James was glad to see how her lips tugged up a little bit into a small smile. Those emerald eyes of hers, that he could never get enough of, were watching the scenery pass by as the carriage rumbled down to their village destination; so he could get her to turn her head and let him gaze into them again, he drew her into a conversation about Quidditch. 

"And the Beaters are the ones that keep away the Bludgers, so their own team isn't hurt."

Lily wrinkled up her nose and James thought it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

"And you have, what, third years and up playing this?"

"Yep."

She shook her head and shrugged. "I would say that's not exactly safe, but then again, we're at a school with a Forbidden Forest, a 'curse' on the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, and a lot of stories about dangerous things that have happened in the dungeons alone, not the mention the rest of the castle."

James smirked. "Lily, have you ever heard of Creaothceann?"

She blinked. "No..."

"It's a game in Scotland." James waved his hand. "Well, was a game. It's illegal now. If you think Quidditch is dangerous, you don't even want to know about Creaothceann." He paused. As he expected, Lily waved for him to go on (though she'd narrowed her green eyes at him), and he grinned.

"It was a game where people would strap cauldrons to their heads and fly around on brooms trying to catch falling rocks and even boulders in the cauldrons."

Lily's eyes were quite wide by the time he finished and her brows were at an almost-comical level of concern. "By Merlin-" She gave a huff of air and cut herself off, shaking her head. She paused for a moment, and a small smile grew on her face. "How did you know that?"

"Quidditch Through the Ages."

Lily grinned. "I didn't know you could read!" James nudged her side and they squabbled for a moment, but when she leaned her head on his shoulder and muttered, "Alright, alright," he went silent and enjoyed the moment until they arrived at Hogsmeade. The sunshine glinted off of something around Lily's neck as she climbed out of the carriage and James couldn't have stifled his smile if he'd wanted to- she was wearing the necklace he'd bought her the last time they were here, and now that he thought about it, she hadn't stopped wearing since that day, either, not even after the, ah, dispute at Slughorn's party.

"What?"

James realized he'd been staring at Lily and winked at her, offering her his hand. "Just glad we're here. Together. On a date." She blushed, but took his hand, and they started down the street as the carriage rumbled away behind them, a pair of fourth years running after it and shouting for it to wait so they could get a ride back to the castle.

"Me too."

James beamed. He couldn't have asked for a better response at that moment, and his heart was soaring and singing as he offered to buy them butterbeers. Into The Three Broomsticks they went, and their usual booth was empty, so they claimed that. James remembered how, last time they were here in town, Remus and Persephone had ended up kissing in the parchment-and-quills aisle of Gladrags Wizardwear and he smiled. Lily seemed to think of the same thing as she sat down, judging by the little smile appearing on her own face, and James scooted around the booth as close to her as he dared. Madam Rosmerta sauntered on over and tilted her head at the pair.

"Honey, you had better tell me you two are finally on a date."

Lily blushed and James slipped his arm around her shoulders. "Indeed, Rosie, we are."

The proprietor of the popular establishment grinned and fanned dramatically at her face. "By Merlin, I never thought I'd live to see the day." She winked at them. "A butterbeer for each, or are you sharing one?" They decided to have one each and when Lily reached for the coins in her pocket, James shook his head and handed over the money for both of them. She thanked him and he smiled teasingly at her.

"Well, I offered to get us butterbeers, so naturally, I'm paying." Lily opened her mouth, probably to protest, but James went on before she could. "And, Lilyflower-" His smile turned sweet. "-I'd pay a million galleons just to be here, right now, with you."

Lily blushed and, though she tried to keep it down, smiled softly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The butterbeers were quickly consumed by the couple, but they remained in the booth for another half-hour or so, just talking like they usually would, but just the two of them. This morning, Lily had decided to pay attention to how James acted today, and so she was more aware of the little things he did, but certainly for the better. There were all these moments she noticed that she didn't think she usually would, and her seeing them made this day all the better. Most of all, she saw that he really, genuinely cared about her, and it warmed her heart to know that all these years of his mooning and being caught staring at her came from a true feeling.

James pointed out the fading flowers on a slender cherry tree as they strolled down the streets of Hogsmeade and Lily's heart warmed when he mentioned they were her favorite color, right? "Right." He climbed up and picked one for her and she let him tuck it behind her ear. And when she mentioned how her sister was soon getting married to a putrid man named Vernon Dursley and how she didn't much want to go to the wedding, he cheered her up by promising he'd suffer through it with her (if she'd let him). Lily thought that if he was there, the wedding wouldn't be so awful, and when she mentioned this aloud, James' grin made her heart flutter.

When they passed the storefront of Gladrags Wizardwear, Lily mentioned Remus and Persephone's kiss. She wanted to see if her would make a 'Why don't we do the same' joke, but to her surprise, James didn't, and instead, he fell quiet as they walked by. She let the silence go on for a few more moments, then turned an eyebrow up at him and asked, "What's wrong?" 

James didn't look at her, and Lily knew something was definitely up. "Nothing's wrong." He offered her a small smile, but she narrowed her eyes and him and it weakened. "Why would you think something's wrong?" He looked back at the road ahead and Lily grabbed his hand. She moved to stand before him. "Nice view from here, huh?" They were standing by the edge of the Forbidden Forest, the Shrieking Shack on the horizon. No, it was not a nice view. Lily gave a cough of 'ahem' and James finally looked at her.

"James, just tell me."

A slight smile slipped onto his lips. She guessed that he liked that she'd been calling him by his first name all day, and that brought her a little peace. "It's nothing. I've just been... thinking."

"About?"

"About things."

"Such as?"

James sighed. "There's no way out of this, is there?"

Lily shook her head. "Hey." She raised her eyebrows just a little at him and smiled. "We're on a date, remember?"

James grinned, just like she knew he would. "And you asked me out on it." His smile widened. "Six years of being turned down, and now we're here."

"Exactly." Lily felt James' hand brush the one of hers that wasn't holding his and she let his fingers entwine with hers. She squeezed his hands. "So if there's something wrong, I think I have a right to know about it."

James gave a huff of laughter. "Well, I am at your beck-and-call, Lilyflower." He took in a deep breath and Lily forced back a frown. Her heart was trembling. She'd been more focused on making sure he was alright and having a good time that she hadn't fully registered how worried she was that something did seem to be off. His hands holding hers gave her comfort, though, and when she studied James' eyes, she could tell he wasn't disappointed or stressed, just nervous. She wondered why, and the answer came in only a moment's time.

"I love you."

Lily blinked. Her heart gave a long sigh. So many emotions ran through her mind that when she tried to put names to them, they were already gone and new ones had flooded into their place.

"I know I've said it before, teasing and joking and whatever, but I mean it, Lily, I really mean it." James' hands shook a little. "Every time I've said it, there's been truth in there, and I-" He swallowed like his throat was dry. "I think you already knew it, that moment at Slughorn's party, but that time I didn't even say it out loud and it scared you away. And I don't want that to happen again." His hold on her hands tightened just a little. "But I can't not say it." He let out a quick, low sigh. "And that's what I've been thinking about, Lily Evans." James braved a smile. "I've been thinking about how much I love you."

All that time, Lily had just stood before him, their hands clasped, listening to all he had to say. 'I love you'. It was a phrase that could either hold a lot of weight or mean so very little, and it was most certainly the former in this case, she could tell. He meant every word of what he told her, and so she resolved to answer with the same honesty and vulnerability he'd just shown her. It was now or never.

"James- I don't know if I love you-" He tensed up, but she squeezed his hands and he relaxed a little. "-yet. I don't know yet. But I think I could- I think I will." His smile, which had faded after he finished speaking and a short silence fell before she replied, started to reappear. "It will take time," she went on, heart all in a whirl in her chest, "but this is something good, and I want it to move forward. I want to love you." He drew her into a tight hug and she held him close. They stayed like that for a long, long moment. She could hear his heartbeat as her head leaned against the front of his shoulder. It was going quite fast, and she was sure hers was, too. This whole relationship thing was something new and, frankly, scary, but like she'd said, it was good, and she really did want to see it bloom.

"Lily?" She leaned back a little, but didn't move her arms from around James, and he didn't pull back much either, just enough to see her face. He winked at her. "As much as I love this, we've got to head back to the castle. It's getting late, and tonight is..." James tilted his head back and forth for a moment. "Tonight, there's something I have to do with a few friends that I can't miss." Lily nodded. She understood. This evening, the full moon would rise. She hoped Remus had gotten some rest today. He'd looked very weary this morning, and she knew he'd be even more tired tomorrow, so a nap or two would have done him good. A smile came to her face as James took her hand again and they headed back into Hogsmeade, a companionable silence falling between them. She was glad Remus had Persephone in his life. Lily knew she would insist that her boyfriend get some rest, even though she didn't know why he was so fatigued, and the redhead thought that was very sweet.

"James?" He looked at her with a small, sweet smile. Her heart swelled and she ran her thumb along the side of his hand. "Stay safe tonight, alright? And make sure everyone else is safe, too."

"Of course, Lilyflower." His smile faded a little, but he squeezed her hand reassuringly. It seemed she wasn't the only one who felt something would go wrong tonight. The last full moon, Sirius had ended up in the Hospital Wing. Lily hoped that this time, things would go smoothly, but she had an ominous feeling they wouldn't.

"We'll all be fine."