Ella Longbottom let out a sigh of relief as the door swung shut behind her, the quiet of the kitchen a welcome change as the sounds of a rather lively party were deadened by the solid oak.

"I don't know why you let me talk you into this," she said with a sigh. The kitchen's only other occupant let out a chuckle as she moved to stand next to him. "We're out of butterbeer, Fred's threatening to pull out that horrible karaoke machine, and a few of your teammates are drunk enough to think indoor Quidditch isn't the worst idea in the world."

James laughed, pulling his attention from the platter of cheese and crackers he was refilling to smile at her. "I'm just glad that you remember this was your idea," he said a bit teasingly. "That way we can blame you if the house gets destroyed."

Ella gave him a playful shove as he chuckled at her scowl. "You should be the one out there doing damage control," she pointed out. "This is your house, not mine. And I seem to recall you saying once upon a time that the future Mrs. Potter would be the only woman allowed to play hostess in your home."

She smirked at him, but James just grinned, setting aside a now empty sleeve of crackers. He moved to stand in front of her so she had her back against the counter. Her smirk turned into a smile as he placed his hands on the smooth, granite surface on either side of her, trapping her between himself and the counter.

"I did say that, didn't I?" he said, his voice low and soft as his eyes sparkled with delight. "Good thing you are the future Mrs. Potter."

Ella beamed at him, her hands going up to rest on his chest and her eyes unable to ignore the simple diamond that sat on her finger.

"I guess a week isn't long enough to get used to that," she said, continuing to smile as he took her left hand in his. He kissed her palm, causing Ella's smile to grow impossibly brighter.

"You've known for a year now that it's what I want," James pointed out.

"I know," she said, her arms going around his neck. "The whole ring on my finger just makes it that much more real."

James smiled and rested his hands on her waist. It had been a year full of Ella constantly realizing just how thankful she was that she'd finally seen what had been right in front of her for years. It still felt almost too good to be true that she'd fallen in love with her best friend, made even more astonishing when she considered the fact that he'd fallen in love with her as well. And while it still felt new and exciting and hard to believe, it also felt like the most natural thing in the world to be standing in his arms.

"Want to help me with this and then face the chaos again?" asked James, nodding his head towards the half filled platter of food. Ella nodded, but he didn't move away. All it took was her quirking her eyebrow at him in a mix between a challenge and a question before he was leaning down and placing a soft and loving kiss on her lips.

Ella let out a sigh of contentment, her hands moving from his neck and into his hair as he pulled her closer. It was as their embrace started to drift into the realm of inappropriate for public settings that Ella heard the sound of the party grow louder as the door banged open and someone stormed into the kitchen.

James let out a disappointed groan as he pulled away from Ella, forcing her to detangle her fingers from his hair as he looked over her shoulder with a less than pleased look on his face. Ella turned around and followed his gaze, sighing in resignation when she saw Hugo, a look comprised of pain and frustration on his face as he braced himself against the counter. He was breathing heavily, hardly paying James and Ella any mind as he stared down at the countertop.

"I shouldn't have bloody come," he eventually said, his words strained as he shook his head in resignation.

"I'm sorry, mate," said James, truly sounding like he was. "It wasn't like I couldn't invite my own teammate to an end-of-season party."

"It's not your fault," said Hugo, waving his hand dismissively. "I knew she'd be here and I came anyway. I honestly didn't think it would be this bloody hard."

Ella felt an ache in her chest for Hugo as he hung his head and took a deep breath. One of James' teammates had retired after the previous season, leaving a spot open for a new Chaser to be recruited. It had been a surprise to everyone when James informed them that the replacement they found was transfer Celine Baros, a tall, slender girl with black hair and a bubbly attitude that had been playing for the American Quidditch League since she'd left Hogwarts. She also happened to be Hugo's ex-girlfriend, and it was obvious to just about everyone that he was still in love with her. Even if he had put off seeing her for almost a full year.

"Have you talked to her?" Ella couldn't help but ask. Hugo shook his head, which was still bent as he attempted to compose himself.

"Maybe you should," James suggested. "She was really pleased when I mentioned you were coming."

Hugo's head snapped up and he glared at James. "Why the hell did you even tell her I would be here?"

"She asked," said James with a shrug. His words managed to get Hugo to stop scowling, an unconvinced frown appearing on his face instead.

"Why?" he asked suspiciously.

"It came up that my family would be here tonight, and she asked if that meant you'd be attending as well," James said smoothly. Ella bit her lip to keep herself from grinning, knowing that what James had just said was only partly true. James had mentioned his family would be there, and Celine had asked if that meant his cousins as well. While she'd never specifically mentioned Hugo by name, James had sworn to Ella that he'd seen hope in her eyes when she'd asked, and a nervous excitement grow in her when he rattled off which cousins would be in attendance. Which had included Hugo.

It was a stretch, but not much of one.

"She did seem pleased to see you," said Ella, who'd noted the way Celine's eyes had consistently drifted towards Hugo throughout the night, even as he continued to keep his distance from her. A bit more hope appeared in Hugo's eyes at Ella's words.

"Talk to her, Hugh," said James when his cousin failed to move. "You'll regret doing nothing more than you'll regret doing something."

It was only a few seconds later that resolve grew in Hugo's eyes. He gave them a nod before pushing himself off the counter, smoothing out his hair, straightening his shirt, and turning to walk back out the door.

"This should be interesting," Ella said in amusement. James chuckled from behind her as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"He's been an idiot about the whole thing, in my opinion. I can understand her being afraid to reach out to him since she's the one who ended things when she left the country, but I think she would have been thrilled if he'd sought her out sooner."

"I guess we'll have to wait and see if your meddling pays off," said Ella, unable to hide a smirk. James chuckled, placing a kiss on her shoulder, neck, then cheek in quick succession before turning her to face him.

"What was it you said once?" he said. "Think of it as reading the signs and helping the inevitable come about?"

Ella shook her head, unable to be more than slightly annoyed as he grinned crookedly at her. "Smartass," she grumbled, giving him a halfhearted smack on the chest before nudging him back a few steps so she could continue the task of refilling the platter of cheese and crackers.

"I'll Floo to the pub and grab another case of butterbeer," said James, a hint of laughter in his voice. Ella nodded, and he only paused to drop one last kiss on her cheek before walking over to the grate in his kitchen and disappearing in a burst of green flames.

The crowd had somehow grown louder in the time Ella had spent in the kitchen, and she held in a grimace as she made her way back into the party. She took in the commotion as she made her way towards the table full of food by the stairs.

Fred had given up on his karaoke idea and was sitting on the floor in a circle with a handful of James' rather drunk teammates, loudly teaching them how to play poker. Helen and Lorcan were continuing to show pictures of their most recent trip to China to Cassie and David. Lysander and Molly were sitting in chairs close by, the former looking a bit dazedly around the room and the latter sipping at a glass of wine rather stiffly, obviously a bit uncomfortable. It had been a shock to everyone when they'd arrived together that evening, as Lysander was closer to Lucy and no one had been aware that the two even knew each other that well. Not to mention they were about as opposite as two people could be.

Lily was sitting on the couch with Anne and Draco, their four month old daughter in her arms as she tried and failed to listen to whatever they were talking to her about. Ella held back a snigger to see that Lily's attention was almost exclusively focused on the occupants of one of the armchairs by the fire.

Matt was currently sitting with his date for the evening, the short redhead that Ella hadn't met before that night draped across his lap as he laughed and she giggled at whatever Scorpius had just said. Ella's former bartender had gotten into the habit of going on a string of rather meaningless dates. His relationship with Lily had morphed into a surprising friendship after she'd filled in for Ella during her visit to Egypt a year ago, and the fact that Lily still didn't appear interested even after actually getting to know him had finally allowed Matt to pursue other options, which he'd begun doing excessively after he started his full time job as a mediwizard back in the fall.

It seemed, however, that this was what it had taken for Lily to finally take an interest in Matt that appeared to go beyond friendship. The amount of times Ella had caught her staring at him or noticed her pinched expression whenever he showed up somewhere with a girl on his arm were becoming too many to count. Ella just hoped nobody wound up hurt in what was sure to be a rather long game of will they won't they.

Ella's gaze drifted across the room to land on Rose, who smiled at her. She was sitting on the window seat by the front door with Celine, but got up and made her way towards Ella as she reached the food table, her hand moving automatically to the slight bump on her belly as she approached the hostess.

"I swear, the only thing this baby likes is cheese," said Rose, quickly snatching a piece of cheddar off the platter as soon as Ella set it on the table.

"There are worse things to crave," said Ella with a chuckle. "Sarah only wanted pickles when she was pregnant with Henry, so you can imagine how much Al loved that."

Rose laughed, knowing just as well as Ella that Albus Potter despised pickles.

"How's it been otherwise?" asked Ella, pouring herself a glass of water as she nodded towards Rose's stomach. The expectant mother grinned, one hand rubbing over her barely protruding belly as she took another piece of cheese.

"Wonderful," she said honestly. "I was a bit worried since my mum had problems, but we've been fortunate. It's still a little hard to believe that we'll be parents in five months."

Ella smiled. "I have a feeling a lot's going to be changing this year."

Rose let out a soft laugh, her eyes going to the ring on Ella's finger. "Very true. Have you set a date yet?"

"Well, my dad is still pulling for never," said Ella with an affectionate roll of her eyes. It wasn't that Neville didn't want her to be with James, but she'd be splitting her time between London and Tutshill more than she already was. She wasn't giving up the inn, but not living there anymore was something Ella hadn't imagined happening. At least not so soon. James had offered to continue living at the inn most of the time, but Ella had barely given this a thought. He'd still have to spend a few nights a week in Tutshill, and while she could always just go wherever he went like she did now, she wanted them to set up a home, not be constantly hopping back and forth. She knew there would probably be the odd occasions that they did stay in London, but setting up a home with James was what she wanted, and he wanted the same with her.

"At least you won't be as far as Sarah," said Rose with a sympathetic smile. Ella nodded. She still missed her sister every day, but now that she and James went to visit them every few months, it was a bit easier to bear. And Lily had helped fill the void her sister had left. So had Rose, whom Ella had grown closer with over the past year, just like she'd wanted to.

"Look," said Rose after letting out a soft gasp. She gestured towards the window seat she'd recently vacated, and Ella watched with wide eyes as Hugo slowly approached. He sat down next to Celine, his eyes flying around the room and looking everywhere but at the girl a foot away from him. For her part, the Chaser was looking down at the glass in her nervously clasped hands, her gaze only flickering to Hugo as he let out a sigh and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees.

"Is he going to just sit there?" Ella said skeptically after what felt like a full minute of watching them sitting there awkwardly. At least they were at the back of the room, so they weren't really drawing attention to themselves.

"I don't think I've ever seen anything more uncomfortable," said Scorpius as he approached them, his eyes on his brother-in-law and his arm going immediately around Rose's waist as he stopped next to her. "Did you talk to her?"

"Not about Hugo," said Rose with a sigh, all of them still watching as Hugo began nervously bouncing his leg. "Didn't feel like it would be polite."

"Who cares about polite when your brother's heart is on the line!" Scorpius said in shock.

"I think he can handle himself without us interfering," his wife placated, patting him lightly on the chest.

"He did seem rather determined to at least say something to her," said Ella. She briefly filled them in on the conversation she and James' had with Hugo in the kitchen.

"That doesn't look like talking to me," Scorpius commented as Hugo downed the glass of fire whiskey he'd been clutching tightly in his fist.

"We should let them be," said Rose kindly, just as Celine happened to glance their way and her pale cheeks turned slightly pink. Rose turned away from her brother and his ex to face Ella, making Scorpius do the same. "What were you saying about a wedding date?"

Ella chuckled at the pout Scorpius wore and the seamless change of subject. "No, we haven't set a date, but I've always loved the snow, so probably in the winter. James said he likes the sound of a quiet ceremony in an outdoor setting."

"Thank Merlin for warming charms."

All three of them laughed at James' comment as he walked over and placed more bottles of butterbeer in the tub of ice that was under the table of food.

"You really have to put up with so much, don't you," Ella said teasingly. He chuckled as he stood and rested his hand on the small of her back.

"I don't mind it so much," he said with a grin.

"Bloody hell, he's going for it."

Scorpius appeared to have ignored his wife's suggestion that they leave the reunited lovers alone. They all turned their attention back towards the front window just as Hugo sat up, his hands gripping his knees as he stared at Celine's profile. It was obvious she knew he was watching as she took a sip of her drink, her gaze straight ahead as her hands shook slightly.

The party was too loud for them to be able to tell what was being said, but Hugo uttered what appeared to be a single word in greeting, and that was all it took for Celine to snap her gaze to his, a small smile of relief forming on her lips as she responded in kind. Ella let out a pleased sigh as Hugo managed to get out a few more words, his expression still a bit guarded, but also a bit eager as his eyes moved rapidly over her face, obviously taking advantage of being able to look at her.

"Okay, now I feel creepy watching them," said Scorpius, turning back around and grabbing a few crackers and pieces of cheese off the table and handing some of them to Rose automatically, who chuckled at her husband and took the offered food.

"Oh, by the way, we're joining for dinner this week. You both can still come, right?" Rose asked Ella.

"Are you kidding?" said Ella. "We haven't missed dinner and chess with Ron and Hermione in months. I'm not ending my streak yet."

Rose smiled happily as a rambunctious yell sounded from the corner of the room where Fred and three Quidditch players were playing poker.

"I suppose I should do some damage control before things get too out of hand," James said with a sigh. But before he could even attempt to cross the room, Molly Weasley was on the move, her expression reminiscent of her namesake.

Fred gave a yelp as Molly grabbed him by the ear, leaning down and whispering fiercely to him as her arm gestured rather wildly to the room at large. Ella chuckled at the somber expression that appeared on Fred's face as he nodded. Molly gave one more tug on her cousin's ear before standing straight up and glaring at James' teammates, pointing threateningly at them and saying a few more words before walking away, the group a bit more calm even as their intoxicated state had them giggling as soon as she turned her back.

"I know who's babysitting," said Rose, an impressed look on her face. Scorpius looked at her as if she'd gone mad.

"The kid will never have any fun," he said. Rose merely rolled her eyes.

By the time midnight rolled around about an hour later, James had his hands full with ushering the last few stragglers out of the house. Lily had been the first to leave, doing so in a bit of a huff when Matt and his date started snogging rather obnoxiously. This had led Cassie to storm over to Matt and smack him in the back of the head, causing him to pull away from his date and look at Cassie in shock. Ella wasn't able to make out everything she said, but it was something along the lines of how he was an idiot and that she couldn't believe he was so clueless. He and his date left a short while later, Matt with a conflicted expression on his face.

Everyone else had ambled out in droves, thanking James and even Ella for having them over in celebration of the Tornadoes winning the league, until Fred was about to pass out on the couch at the end of the evening. Hugo was kind enough to Floo him home. Ella had missed how the rest of the party had turned out for Hugo, but he seemed in better spirits than earlier.

"I think it'll be a while before we do something like that again," James said with a sigh. He collapsed onto the couch next to Ella, who giggled as his presence on the couch caused her to roll slightly into him. She rested her head on his shoulder, yawning and wrapping her arms around his waist as his arm came down around her and pulled her close.

"Fine with me," said Ella, closing her eyes and enjoying the stillness that surrounded them. It was silent for a few minutes except for the sound of the crackling fire and James' steady breathing.

"Have I told you yet that I'm proud of you?" Ella mumbled into his chest.

"For what?" asked James, his voice sleepy as his hand trailed lazily up and down her arm.

"You finally won the league," she said as if it were obvious. "You captained a brilliant team to a fantastic victory. You should be proud too."

James chuckled before dropping a kiss on the top of her head. "I suppose I am."

"It was nice having everyone together, wasn't it?" asked Ella. "And I like your teammates."

"They like you too," said James, and she could hear his smile in his voice. "It was also nice seeing you so comfortable tonight."

"How do you mean?"

She felt him shrug under her and then move so she was pressed up against his side as he wound both of his arms around her. "Playing hostess, looking right at home. It was a nice glimpse into what our future will be like."

Ella smiled, pleased to hear that they'd been thinking along the very same lines for most of the evening.

"And, pretty soon, it'll actually be your home."

Ella beamed at the joy in his voice, squeezing him tightly for a moment before sitting up so she could look him in the eye, his hands going to rest on her waist as he gazed lovingly up at her.

She'd always known that James was big on family. It was the most important thing in his life. For a long time, Ella had considered herself to be a part of that, but it wasn't till now, when she was actually on the verge of becoming his wife, his number one priority, and his actual family, that she realized just how much what they'd had before paled in comparison. She couldn't imagine going back to that. She never wanted to. James was her family. He was her home. And it warmed her to her soul to know he felt exactly the same.

"I love you, you know that?" she said, the words coming out in a whisper as her love for him threatened to overwhelm her. He smiled blissfully at her, resting his hand on her cheek so he could pull her towards him. Ella placed her hand on his chest and her ring caught the light from the fire, his close proximity still able to cause her heart to pound and her breath to catch in her throat. He paused when she was less than an inch away, her eyes closing as he brushed his nose against hers.

"Yeah," he mumbled, his lips almost touching her own. "I know."

Ella let out a huff of annoyance that he hadn't said it back, but then he was kissing her, and she didn't care all that much that he hadn't. Because just as he knew she loved him, she knew he loved her too. It was in the way he looked at her, the way he held her, the way he said her name. The way he pulled briefly away a moment later to assure her that he did, in fact, love her too, because he'd claimed on many occasions that he could never say it enough.

As the fire dimmed and they began to doze off, curled up together on the couch, Ella breathed a sigh of contentment, knowing that she was exactly where she was supposed to be, and that she never wanted to be anywhere else if it meant she couldn't be in James Potter's arms. And she knew that none of that was ever going to change.

A/N: *tears* Can't believe it's over! Seriously, it's been so much fun to share this story with you. I've loved every minute of it.

Now, there is a chance that you will see these characters in this universe again. I actually laid a bit of ground work for that in this epilogue. It won't be Jella centric, and it is something that I have only jotted down ideas for, so we will see!

As to why you got this chapter today, well my plan was tomorrow, but seeing as I will be busy with Avengers and Game of Thrones, I figured not only would I not have time, but my emotions wouldn't be able to handle this as well. It's going to be quite the day.

Love to you all. Thanks for hanging with me and Jella, and I hope to see meet up on another story soon.