Here's the first chapter - resumbitted using double line spacing as it was requested. :)
Disclaimer: I wish I owned Harry Potter, but unfortunately I don't.

"James!" Lily practically screamed as the quaffle whizzed past a few millimetres to the left of her head. "You're supposed to be helping me!"

James examined his sister with raised eyebrows. She was hot headed and determined just like her mother. Lily was desperate to maintain her position as chaser on the Gryffindor quidditch team. The team had a new captain this year and Lily knew how important it was to train regularly. She had to make it on to the team; quidditch was her life.

"Lil, I've been here three hours! I've not seen anybody else in the family yet," James scoffed as he circled around her on his old Firebolt 2.0, "I can't give you my undivided attention I'm afraid!"

Lily thought it only fair to mention that James visited every day. He no longer lived with the Potters, their parents had kicked him out of the house shortly after his 21st birthday. They thought that he was wasting time and that forcing him to have some responsibility would encourage him to get a job and start a family. James had immediately moved in with Teddy and Victoire. Teddy was thrilled to have a bit of male company. Victoire wasn't ecstatic but the young couple needed help paying the rent so she agreed to have him. James still spent most of his time at Grimmauld Place. Lily suspected this wasn't voluntary on James' part; Victoire dropped plenty of hints about 'needing alone time'. Lily often suggested that James should move back in but he wouldn't as he had too much pride. She really missed him and the company he provided. She had a good relationship with her mother and father but they were often busy with work. The youngest of her brothers rarely spoke to anyone. He hadn't always been so introverted but ever since he was sorted into Slytherin he had become more and more reclusive. His relationship with most of the family had deteriorated.

"James, please. I need to be perfect. I can't lose my place on the team." Lily said, giving her brother what she hoped was a persuasive smile. James chuckled.

"I admire your dedication Lily, I honestly do. But Roxyis the new captain. Surely you can pull some strings."

"I don't wantto James. It's wrong and it wouldn't benefit the Gryffindor team. Besides, I know Roxanne will be fair."

James had nothing more to add to the conversation so he agreed to practice with her for ten more minutes. He would throw the quaffle, she would rush to catch it in one smooth motion. She'd dart forward as James attempted to block her and she'd score marvellously as James tried his hand at being a keeper. When their time was up, Lily ran her hands over the smooth mahogany surface of her Nimbus 9000. It was as though the broomstick was a pet, whom Lily was praising for good behaviour. The siblings decided to fly closer to the house before dismounting, they had trained hard and agreed it would be too much effort to walk.

"So, are you going round to Percy and Audrey's tonight?" Lily asked, making polite conversation.

"Of course I am!" Responded James, his tone filled with mock surprise and offence. "As if I would miss out on a family gathering, Lil! What a preposterous insinuation. Nothing beats family... or free food!"

Lily snorted and threw the quaffle in the direction of her rude brother. It hit him square in the chest and he toppled off his broom. He cast a quick cushioning charm during free-fall and he fell gently onto the long, dewy grass. Lily grabbed his Firebolt and landed on the footpath with grace.

"Bloody hell, Lily," James cried as he stood up and jogged over to her, "are you sure you picked the right position? You'd make quite the beater."

The pair of them laughed and walked up to the front door arm in arm. Lily had raised her hand to knock when the air around her was sucked away, her head throbbed and her body felt as though it was being spun around extremely fast. Lily shut her eyes as tightly as she could and waited for it to be over. Eventually it was; she dared to open her eyes. She was stood in her hallway, she was initially confused but it didn't take long for her to realize what had happened. James was still by her side; the bloody prat had apparated. She felt very sick but she still had enough strength to glare at him and dig her right elbow deep into his ribs.

"Don't everdo that again, you fucking tool!" She snarled.

"Woah, Lil! Language!" James appeared to be genuinely shocked, "and don't worry, I won't. I didn't expect you to freak out so much. You almost tore my arm off."

Lily realized that she was still using most of her strength to cling onto his arm; her stubby nails were biting into his flesh. Lily wouldn't apologize, not after what James had done, so they both walked into the living room without speaking to one another.

"I found this urchin roaming the streets," Lily announced to her parents. Ginny stood and gave James a hug, ruffling his dark curls as though he were still a child. Harry held out his hand to his son and James shook it with a bemused expression on his face.

"I now know I'm finally a man in your estimations, dad." He said. Harry sighed and shook his head but he had a smile on his face.
"Are you going to see Al?" Ginny asked, her innocent hope highlighting her beautiful features.

James sighed and gave his mother a sad, sympathetic smile.

"I can if you'd like mum, though I see no point. I have barely spoken to the boy for five years."

Ginny put her face in her hands and James immediately moved to comfort his mother, he wrapped his arms around her and moved so that they were both sat on the faded brown leather settee. Harry frowned as though deep in thought, his once pale and practically flawless face wrinkled in concentration.

"We don't know what to do," Ginny confided in a small voice, which was highly unusual for Lily's mother, she was normally bold and opinionated. "We are wondering if it might be best to... get him to move out."

Harry nodded solemnly in agreement. The room was silent for a minute.

"Your thoughts, if you wish to spare them?" Harry eventually spoke up. He was generally interested in what his children had to say on the matter. James furrowed his brow; his look was very similar to the one his father had worn earlier.

"Let him stay," said James, "he is still at school and seventh year is tough enough without the stress of not having a home. I say you give him until the end of this year, if he has not improved then, yes. Let him move out, it's in his best interests."

"I agree," Lily added, not afraid to voice her opinions, she rarely felt inferior around older people, especially her family, "when Al has gained his qualifications he will be more likely to find a job and move out. It seems unnecessary to kick him out now, he is only seventeen."

"You make a fair point," said Harry, pondering all they had voiced, "yes. I think I rather agree with you. Ginny?"

Harry turned to his wife, even after all these years the love and admiration he had for her was still evident in his eyes. He would not make a decision without her consent.

"That sounds fair." Agreed Ginny.

No more was said on the gloomy matter of the Potter's youngest son and the family, minus Albus, had a more pleasant chat about Lily's return to Hogwarts this year. Lily soon decided that she had better go and get ready for dinner at her Aunt and Uncle's house. She informed the room of where she was going and they all gave her odd looks.

"Do you really need three and a half hours?" Ginny asked, her expression conveying her amusement, "blimey, Lucy is having an impact on you!"

Lily's head snapped round speedily and she gaped at her mother's comment; she resented it.

"I'm nothing like Lucy!" Lily insisted, astonished that her mother would even suggest such a thing. Lucy was a vain, annoying and clingy Slytherin; everything Lily wasn't. Nobody agreed with her so she scowled at them all and stomped off to her room. It only occurred to her later on that it was a very Lucy thing to do.

A short while later, Lily was downstairs looking presentable. James was long gone and she was quite perturbed to discover that her mother was dressed up to the nines in a lovely emerald cloak which really complimented her hair. Lily herself was wearing a plain cream cardigan and some straight leg black trousers. She decided to put on her school shoes to add a little more formality to the outfit.

"Albus, honey," Ginny called tentatively, "we're leaving now."

Albus came down the stairs slowly, offering his anxious mother a small smile. He wasn't dressed up either, he just wore plain black clothes. Lily decided that her mother was only trying to impress Audrey; her aunt was very glamorous after all. Lily grabbed her fathers arm tightly. She hated apparating but sometimes it was necessary. Lily closed her eyes as that all too familiar sickening feeling spread though her stomach.

"You okay Lil?" It was Harry's voice. Lily opened her eyes and looked around the family were all inside a large bush in the park opposite the house. It was too risky to apparate right up to the door in a muggle neighbourhood and Audrey wouldn't allow apparition – or any other magic – inside her home. She was a muggle and she'd accepted Percy's way of life because she loved him. She was less than happy to discover that both her daughters possessed magical talent but she accepted them too, of course. Audrey's one demand was that no magic should take place in her home. Lily thought this was perfectly reasonable but other family members... didn't.

The Potters emerged from the bush, earning them a few strange looks from passing muggles. They tried to be careful but they couldn't guarantee the emptiness of such a lovely park. They crossed the road and were almost instantly stood before the large white house. The walls were pristine and gleaming, the windows were clean and the door handle was polished. The house was undoubtedly beautiful but Lily didn't think she would like it as a home. It just didn't have the character that 12 Grimmauld Place had. It was almost too perfect. Ginny raised her hand and gently rapped on the door with the brass knocker as though she was afraid she would break it.

Audrey opened the door within seconds. She looked as lovely as ever in a long black evening gown. Her short blonde bob stayed perfectly still around her shoulders and her red lips stretched into a wide smile.

"It's been too long," she squealed, "it's lovely to see you all!"

She held out a box for the family to put their wands in. She liked to be certain that nothing was going on behind her back. The family placed their wands in the shoe box. Harry was uneasy about doing so. As an auror, he believed in constant vigilance and so he hated being unprotected. Audrey then led the down the hall to the huge conservatory where the rest of the family were congregated. Ginny sighed at the sheer perfection of Audrey's home. Everything was tidy and the cream carpets were spotless. Even if she had Kreature scrubbing for weeksshe'd never get her house looking this nice.

"Here's the bitch that nearly killed me earlier!" James called pleasantly as Lily took a seat on the overstuffed sofa next to him. Lily snorted and slapped his arm.

"Language, James!" Victoire snapped from the other side of the imbecile, shaking her blonde curls in annoyance.

"Lily doesn't mind, do you Lil?" James said, nudging his little sister playfully. He was clearly shocked at Victoire's biting his head off for no reason. Lily shook her head.

"I mind!" She hissed before turning her back on him to start a conversation with Molly.

"It must that time of the month," James whispered with raised eyebrows. Lily giggled and announced that she was going to see if Audrey needed help in the kitchen.

She walked towards the kitchen at quickly as she could. Lucy hadn't been in the conservatory with the others so she was most likely lurking around elsewhere, waiting to pounce.

"Hi Lily, everything alright?" Audrey asked, looking away from the stove.

"Yes," said Lily, smiling at her favourite aunt. "I just came to see if you needed any help."

Audrey opened her mouth to reply when a high pitched squeal came from behind her.

"Lil!" Lucy called, running up to her cousin and throwing her arms around the startled girl.

"Oh, hey Luce," Lily said, trying her hardest to compose herself. "I was wondering where you were." It wasn't exactly a lie.

"Of course you were!" She cried, oh-so-modestly. "What are you doing in here? Come on, I need to talk to you..." Lucy grabbed Lily's arm and tried to drag her away.

"I was going to help your mother with dinner, actually Luce..." Lily feebly protested.

"Urgh, don't bother," she snarled, "if mum just let us help her with magic, she wouldn't need to be slaving over our mediocre dinner all day." Audrey was clearly hurt but she came round pretty quickly and glowered at her daughter.

"Oh, go away you horrible girl," she snapped, "Lily, I appreciate the offer honey, but you'd better go with her. Have fun."

With that, Lily let Lucy pull her out of the room. She shot one last sympathetic smile at Audrey. Lily very much doubted that she would have fun with Lucy. The girls went into Lucy's bedroom. It had to be the untidiest place in the house. Rugged posters covered the pale pink walls. Most of them were of the popular wizard boy-band, Boys Who Live. Harry had considered suing them many times. Make up covered every counter and clothes were strewn across the floor. Lily took a seat on her cousins king sized bed as the aforementioned girl checked her appearance in the mirror. Lucy was a perfect example of why you should never judge a book by its cover. With short blonde hair and pale blue eyes, she was the picture of innocence. Lucy knew this and frequently used it to her advantage. It was no wonder she was a Slytherin. After applying some more mascara, the petite girl took a seat next to her cousin.

"So, Lil..." Lucy started in a hushed tone. "You're going to Scor's party tomorrow, right?"

"I wasn't planning to." Lily answered honestly. She couldn't imagine anything worse than a party at Malfoy Manor and she couldn't standScorpius Malfoy. Lucy looked as though Lily had just done the cruciatus curse on a fluffy kitten.

"Why not?" she demanded, placing her hands on her hips in a very diva-ish way.

"I don't know anyone who's going," Lily whined. Lucy glared. If looks could kill...thought Lily and she shuddered.

"I'm going!" She snarled, an incredulous look spreading across her face. "And Scor tells me that Albus is too." Lily blushed, she'd spoken without thinking and she doubted she would be able to get herself out of this one.

"Fine, I'll go," Lily groaned. Lucy looked highly satisfied and she gave her cousin a quick hug, which Lily returned unhappily.

"Great!" Lucy grinned, "it will be so much fun!" Somehow, Lily didn't think It would be.

At that exact moment, the girls were called down to dinner. The whole family (including Teddy Lupin) were stretched out along one table. It was quite remarkable that the table hadn't been magically stretched to fit them all; Lily struggled to see from one end to the other. She took one of the remaining seats next to Hugo. He grinned at her and she smiled apologetically for having not seen him previously. She quickly glanced at Lucy, who was sitting down next to her. Hugo's raised eyebrows told Lily that he understood.

Audrey brought out the starter, melon for Lily and prawn cocktail for the others. Lily was a proud vegetarian. She'd gotten the concept from muggle studies and she had agreed with it. She was fascinated by muggles, that was probably why she was so fond of Audrey. Her family weren't accustomed to her dietary habits. Ron went as far as to call it Lily disease.

The huge family ate their way through all three courses happily, making mindless conversation when necessary. Lily caught up with Hugo and Rose who had been in Egypt for the past week and Victoire and Lucy debated which brand of muggle clothing was the nicest. Before they knew it, the evening was coming to an end. George and Angelina made their excuses and left. Evidently, Lucy saw this as her opportunity to attack.

"Do you want to stay over tonight, Lil?" She asked, leaning away from Victoire and towards the younger of the two girls. "You might as well, seeing as we're doing stuff tomorrow."

Damn! Thought Lily. It was no wonder this girl was a Slytherin. She knew that if she asked in front of everyone, Lily would not be able to refuse without sounding rude.

"Yes, that's a lovely idea!" Audrey enthused, "I've bought some new classic DVDs, I know how much you like them Lily. We can have a girly night in, you, Lucy, Molly and I!"

Molly was pursing her chewed lips in an aggressive manner, but she had too much decency to say anything to her mother, unlike Lucy who groaned loudly. Molly gritted her teeth and looked around.

"Actually, me and Vic are going out tonight," she lied smoothly. Victoire's face showed that this was news to her but she nodded her head in polite agreement nonetheless.

"Lil and I shan't be watching boring shit either," Lucy stated rather rudely. Audrey looked as though she might cry. All she wanted was for the rest of the family to accept her like Lily did. Lily was forced to save the day.

"Sure, I'll stay Lucy," she said, attempting to smile, "but we're hanging out with your mum!"

Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! The story will pick up pace soon, I promise.
Please R&R! :)