(48 : AS I REMEMBER. . .
THIS SHOULD BE)

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THE CLASS OF '78 WERE drinking away their youth for the last time. In a matter of weeks, they would be released into a world at war. Until then, the students continued to live in a state of ignorant bliss as they all celebrated the end of their exams in their separate common rooms. All but two students, that was.

"James, slow down. What are we doing?" hissed Juliet, almost stumbling due to the zeal her boyfriend possessed as he dragged her through the corridors. "What if someone notices you're gone? What if they see Lily alone and —"

"Lily," the boy hastily interrupted, "offered to stay in my dorm the entire time because she is certifiably insane and still wants to study — even with our NEWTs completed! Apparently St Mungo's have introduced a fast track programme since the, uh, war is only worsening and she wants to be a healer, so . . ." James trailed off, uncomfortable at the thought of the war before he brightened once more. "Don't worry about her being alone or anything either. Remus is keeping her company since he doesn't cope well with too much noise around the full moon."

In suspicion, Juliet eyed James. "You still haven't told me what this is about."

     James quickly stuck his hand out to stop her when they reached the Room of Requirement. "I realised the other day that it's been more than a year since we first kissed." He feigned nonchalance, pacing until an arched door materialised. "I know I'm late, but I'm hoping to make up for it."

Before Juliet could interrogate him further, James was holding the door open for her.

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The Room of Requirement had been wholly transformed and looked nothing like she had ever seen it. A large screen rested on the far wall and a cream blanket was laid out in the middle of the room, surrounded by an assortment of beanbags and pillows. Tubs of chocolate and raspberry flavoured ice cream, bowls of salted popcorn and bottles of butterbeer were laid out on the blanket. Twinkling fairy lights adorned the walls, flashing all the colours of the rainbow every few seconds. Her heart leaped at the sight, her lips curving into a smile.

     "You did all of this for me?" spluttered Juliet, too awestruck to say anything else.

     "Well, Lily helped," he confessed, shrugging. "I wanted to do something special before we graduated, but I didn't know what until she started talking about the cinema one day at breakfast. It's this place muggles go to watch movies, which are kind of like our photographs but with sound. Oh, they last a lot longer too!" James struggled to contain his excitement, months of planning having led to that one date. "It sounded really cool, so I decided to recreate it. . . . with some magical tweaks."

      Juliet recalled movies from her stint in Muggle Studies. "Alright, what are we watching?"

     "How I fell in love with you," the Gryffindor replied, grinning. "Just in case you ever feel the need to question my feelings, I thought it was about time you see in yourself exactly what I see in you, Juliet Fawley."

     The redhead blinked rapidly. "Pardon?"

     "This," he tapped an old machine she hadn't even noticed at the back, "is a muggle projector. Instead of putting in a film reel, it's been modified so I can put in my memories. Like a pensieve."

     Overwhelmed was an understatement. Juliet wasn't used to such sentimentality considering physical contact and outward displays of emotions were a rarity in the Fawley household. Yet, she could've sworn that her love for him was tattooed on every inch of her body in that moment. Her usually cold eyes were bright like twin blue flames as she traced the boy's movements around the room, admiring his quiet confidence as he poured a shimmering vial of memories into an empty reel. His smile was crooked, his collar was popped and it was only then she knew that James Potter had absolutely no clue what kind of effect he had on her.

     It took a few minutes of fiddling with the device before James flopped down beside her, shoving a handful of popcorn into his mouth. "Are you ready for the most epic love story since Romeo and Juliet?"

      "Only if you don't spoil the ending," she replied, leaning her head on his shoulder.

     And then the story of how a lionhearted boy fell for the cold-blooded snake began.

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      One dropped copy of Romeo and Juliet. Two figures stumbling up the stairs, one drunk and one dressed like a jester.

"PROETGO!"

A boy protecting a girl, not needing to think twice. A blur of red hair darting through the shadows of Hogsmeade, a gaggle of younger students behind her.

     "Don't tell me you're starting to like me too, Julie."

A secret conversation shared, apologies exchanged. An invitation for Christmas, a traumatised teenager in the rain.

     "Don't you trust me, Julie?"

     Burnt cookies and awkward first hugs. Months of silence without explanation, the heartache etched onto James' face long before he knew what they had was love.

     "I like that I might even love her."

     Pranks gone wrong and drunken declarations. First meetings in the Room of Requirement and first kisses.

     "Do you trust me?"

     "I do."

     The unadulterated fear in those hazel eyes when his best friend almost mauled Juliet to death. The bliss of their first date in Godric's Hollow, the misery of being surrounded by Death Eaters. The agony of their break up. Every single moment that ultimately built up to . . .

     "I'm in love with you and it terrifies me."

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By the time the screen had faded to black, her vision was blurred. James served as a stabilising presence — her anchor — as she clutched his hand, an excess of emotion that she barely knew how to express exploding from her. His memories had included all the moments she had lived and all the moments she hadn't — ones she hadn't been privy to. The letters he wrote but never sent that first Christmas. Sirius reciting Shakespeare until his friend was red in the face whenever Juliet was nearby. How James broke down in Mia's arms after their fight, regretting everything.

     "Sometimes," she untangled herself from him and her voice wobbled, "I wonder how I'll ever be able to repay you for everything. I feel like you've done so much for me, more than I've done for you."

     In a fleeting motion, he pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead. "You love me, that's more than enough. You don't owe me. That's not how a relationship should work," James informed her, oddly serious. "And you are something worth loving, Juliet. I showed you all those moments, the good, the bad and the ugly, to remind you of how far we have come. If something ever happened to me —"

     Her stomach dropped at those words. "Why is this suddenly feeling like a goodbye?"

"I thought you wanted me to be realistic about the war." He laughed, she didn't. "This isn't a goodbye. I don't want to ever say goodbye to you. But, if something ever happened to me, I'd feel like a right prat if I was the only person on the planet who knew what it's like to be loved by Juliet Fawley. You're incredible and I'd want you to find love again." His features softened. "I hope you'd want the same for me, but you've always been a survivor, haven't you?"

"I — I changed my mind," she declared suddenly. "I want spoilers, James. I want you to tell me right now that we're going to be okay."

For all that Juliet was a cynic and fatalist, she couldn't imagine a world without James Potter. It was one of those things that seemed so ridiculous that she never actually considered it. Whilst he might've been rash and prone to putting himself in life threatening situations, he also was the kind of boy that she thought would save the world one day. His perseverance, his intelligence, his courage — he had all the makings of a hero. She knew heroes died, she had taunted him about the fact more than once, but he was different. He needed to be.

     James shifted. Juliet squeezed her eyes shut. Somewhere along the way, he'd turned a realist into a dreamer and now it was a far fall from the clouds.

"When the war is over, we'll go on dates that aren't in broom closets or secret rooms," she told him, lying down on the blanket and staring at the ceiling. "You'll take me to see a real muggle movie. After that, we'll go roller skating and you'll pout when I'm better than you. Sirius will probably third wheel us a lot and I'll pretend to be annoyed the entire time."

The Gryffindor fell back beside her. "When the war is over, we'll have a house, a kid too. Maybe two or three so they'll never be as lonely as we were growing up. We'll go to museums and zoos and theme parks. You'll probably shout when I buy them candyfloss after you've already said no."

Soon enough, it became their little game — listing all of the things they would do together when the war was over. They would finally do everything that a normal couple could do and they would be happy.

Juliet wanted nothing more than to remain in that moment forever.

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It was towards the end of the night when James went to grab both their bags that he stumbled, causing Juliet's belongings to tumble onto the floor. They were both busy putting everything back when his eyes snagged on a book. Henry IV, Part I.

     Interest piqued, he started to flick through the play's pages. "More Shakespeare?"

"I, um, kind of set the other one on fire."

He winced. "Yeah, Sirius mentioned it."

At her previous rashness, guilt festered in her stomach. "I think you'd like Henry IV. It's about a muggle king and a rebellion. Not quite as good as Romeo and Juliet, although —" Juliet stopped, unsure if what she was about to propose was ridiculous. "I know you said you don't read much, but you could borrow it if you want. And it would be with my permission this time. Or . . ."

He lifted an eyebrow. "Or?"

"Or we could annotate this one together. Like a replacement." She dug around in her bag until she found two quills. "It won't be the same, but it might be the next best thing."

James took a quill from her and dipped into the ink. He underlined the first quote he liked on the page he had turned to:

"O, Harry, thou hast robb'd me of my youth!"

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A.N: This chapter isn't late necessarily, but I honestly wanted it up sooner. I've been in the worst mood and I couldn't write them being happy for the life of me. Whoops. The song that helped me get through this chapter without turning it moody and angsty because that's how I felt was Pluto Projector by Rex Orange County for those curious. It's very James to Juliet. Anyway, graduation is next chapter, so enjoy this last glimpse at Hogwarts and them being cuties.

Question, what is the one thing you're most excited to do when the pandemic is over? "When the war is over" reminds me of "when the pandemic is over" and honestly I can't wait to go concerts again.