A/N: I am exhausted after my first week back at school, but I managed a little bit of James and Lily lovin' in there for all you beautiful people. It's one of my longest chapters ever, but I'm not really sure whether I'm pleased with it. I tried to resolve the tension between Lily and Snape that I know has been absent for a while now. The idea was that I just couldn't end the story without giving you some reason for why Snape's such a weirdo around our Little Miss Evans, but I think I only succeeded in adding even more unresolved stuff.

Just a tiny thing before I get on with the story – I got a record amount of reviews: 18 (although I don't really want to count that Mr Pickles one, Adelaide and Alex)! Thanks to you all, and I know that many of you are frustrated with the lack of kissing between James and Lily. I'm sorry! I did write a fluffy little one shot as a result of all that, called Damn That Mistletoe! (if that doesn't give you a clue about what's in it I don't know what will!) and so if you're wanting a bit of James/Lily action there's plenty there. Unfortunately, there isn't a kiss in this chapter either – please don't run at me with pitchforks screaming bloody murder! Don't let it put you off, because the next chapter is Christmas, and I promise there is something for you all to squeal at in there. And look at that, I've finally finished my rant, and now for something I've never done in this story before. It's a disclaimer!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. And unfortunately I don't own James either. What I do own, however, are the Jackson Twins and their song You're Meant For Me. Any similarity to the band The White Stripes is purely coincidental.

In our last chapter:

'The Harmony Ball will present the students of Hogwarts with some fun, and will stress the importance of trust, love and overall happiness.' He beams jovially at us. 'How does that sound?'

I smile at him, turning my head to look at James. 'I think it's going to be a great Christmas this year.'

Dangerous Affairs (Pt II)

also known as

Who Knew Siblings Could Marry In This Day and Age?

Dumbledore puts James and I in charge of the Harmony Ball. He says it will be the perfect match: James being the guy that he is, always interested in having a good time, and me so involved with the management of things. Dumbledore tell us he wants it held on Christmas Eve, with a large feast and dancing, but leaves the rest up to us.

I'm surprised at how involved James is – usually it's a struggle to get him to come to any Prefect meeting, which the Heads have to chair with Professor McGonagall. But he's usually the first one to the Harmony Ball meetings every single time, and the one that throws the most ideas out. He's responsible for convincing Dumbledore to hire the Jackson Twins as the band for the night, which everyone meets with great approval.

'It'll cause everyone to stay at school this Christmas!' Noëlle says.

'So, why will the Jackson Twins cause everyone to stay at school this Christmas?' I ask James as we do a quick patrol around the corridors after our most recent meeting.

'Well, they're only the biggest wizarding band in Britain,' he tells me absently, charming a cupboard open. 'Oi, you two, stop eating each others' faces and go back to your dormitories. Curfew's up.'

'Yes Dad,' the sixth year Hufflepuff mutters, and before James can reply he and his girlfriend are hurrying down the hall, still holding each other's hands tightly.

'Why are they the biggest wizarding band in Britain?' I ask, as James strides confidently past me to the next cupboard, which is empty.

'Don't you follow wizarding bands?' he asks, now opening the Transfiguration classroom door.

I shake my head. 'My sister would kill me if I brought anything foreign into the house.'

He closes the door. 'Your sister isn't a witch, obviously.'

'No.' I can't keep the bitter note out of my voice.

He looks at me curiously. 'She hates the fact that you're abnormal, then?'

'Can't stand it.' I don't want to talk about this any more. It hurts too much. 'But I wasn't telling you about my personal life. I was asking you about the Jackson Twins.'

He senses I'm uncomfortable. 'Well, they've got great music, with a fantastic rhythm that has you bouncing in your seat as soon as you hear the first chords. Edwina Jackson sings and plays the guitar, and Henry Jackson plays the drums and the piano.'

'What else makes them so popular?'

He shrugs. 'Well, they're equally attractive to both sexes. I can't believe you haven't heard Sirius moan over Edwina. He's obsessed. He reckons that her songs have all these extra meanings meant only for him. Don't you remember in third year, when he plastered her face all over the Gryffindor common room wall, and whenever he came into the room she'd start to sing You're Meant For Me?'

I laugh. 'That was Edwina Jackson? No wonder Sirius likes her. Dark hair, big eyes, huge boobs…'

He blushes. 'She does have a…sizable bust.'

I giggle, bumping my hip into his. 'Nice attempt at covering up, Mister, but I can see right through you. Is there anything else I need to know about them?'

'Ah, well, it's rumoured that they once married.'

'They once what?' I ask incredulously.

'Married.'

'But…Aren't they siblings?'

'Well, that's the controversy, and perhaps half the interest.'

I make a face. 'That's wrong.'

'Well, you can find out all about them for yourself in only a few more weeks.'

'That reminds me. Have you asked Flitwick about him organising the decorations yet?'

He shakes his head. 'I thought that you were.'

I roll my eyes. 'James, I asked you specifically to talk to Flitwick about it.'

He begins to say something, and then begins to laugh.

'James?'

'Okay, get this. You'll laugh so hard you'll be on the ground. Okay? Ready?'

'You know, build-up to a joke often ruins the expected result.'

'Well, this one's brilliant.'

'Just a forewarning.'

'Okay. About that decorating thing? I thought that you might be able to charm Flitwick into doing it for us.'

'Oh, ha ha, Mr Clever.'

I try to hide my smile but he sees it and points to it accusingly.

'Oh, yes, Miss Priss, was that a smile my ingenious eye just detected? I think it t'was…'

I hit him over the shoulder. 'Shut up, Potter.'

He laughs. 'Never, Evans. And to prove that I never shut up, I am now going to resume our game of Truth.'

'What?' I have to think for a second and then the realisation dawns. 'Oh, no, James.'

'Oh, yes, Lily. We've still got at least five minutes to get to the tower. I'm sure we can fit in at least three questions within that time limit.'

'Do I have to?'

'Stop whinging, otherwise I might pour pumpkin juice over your head.'

I groan. 'You need to drop that, James. I said I was sorry.'

'I know, love, but still. Sirius reckons that I must be rubbing off on you. It was quite a Marauder-esque thing to do.'

'Is that supposed to be a compliment?'

He smiles at me. 'Of the highest order.'

I grin. 'I think you just wasted a minute.'

'Well, I'm not going to waste a second more. So here's my question. Why does your sister hate the fact that you're a witch?'

I roll my eyes. 'Er, no comment.'

'Come on, Lils. I want to get to know you better. Please tell me?'

'You could get to know me without asking such blunt questions.'

'Just answer the question.'

I know I'm not going to get him to be quiet unless I tell him the truth, and so I shrug. 'I honestly don't know. She's the only one in my family who thinks that it's some disaster. My parents are both really proud.' I try to set the facts as simply as I can – maybe that way I can distance myself from the hurt. 'We used to be really close. She's only a year and a half older than me, and although we look completely opposite – she's got blonde hair and was always tall for her age, whereas I'm short with this shock of red hair. Even so, that never stopped us from being really close. But now I hardly know her. She's been going out with a turd for about two years now. The old Petunia would never have even looked at a guy like that, but now everything's different.'

'Sounds harsh.'

'It is. You don't have any brothers or sisters, do you?'

He shakes his head. 'Mum and Dad were both quite old when they had me. I guess they had been trying for a while, or something. They're completely over the top when it comes to spoiling me and I know that inside there, Lily, you think that I'm a stubborn, stuck-up, spoilt rich kid. And it's probably true.' He looks at me seriously. 'But I'm trying to change that. You know, deflate my head a bit.'

I can't help smiling. 'You surprise me every day, James.'

He shrugs self-consciously. 'You never stop learning, I guess.'

I just nod.

He looks away and sighs. 'Okay, next question. Why are you always sticking up for Snape?'

I stop in my tracks. 'What?'

'I think you heard me, Lily.'

'James, are you trying to torture me, or something? What's with all these probing questions?'

He looks at me. 'I just want to know more about you. And he's always treating you like shit, Lily, but whatever he does you just keep letting it go. He's always shunning you whenever you offer help…And when he poisoned you…'

'He didn't poison me, James. I think we both know that.'

'I'm still not sure. When you were in the hospital wing I wanted to ask you why you had done it then, why you had taken that potion. Why you trust him so much when all he's ever done is…But you were still recovering. I didn't want to push you.'

'But now?'

'Now we're playing Truth. And you have to tell me, Lily.'

I look at the ceiling. 'He's a human being, James.'

'He's a human being that happens to never have treated you with any respect.'

I'm not sure what to tell him – what can I tell him when even I am not sure why I keep letting him get away with it all. I look over at the painting on the opposite wall, where three women are playing cards and obviously eavesdropping on our conversation.

'I don't know,' I say quietly.

He keeps pushing it. 'You never blow up at him, Lily. You're the one that will always blow up at me when I call people names, or do anything idiotic to them. For me everything is just a joke, but with him things are nasty. But it doesn't matter to you – whenever he does anything you just let it slide.'

'So that's what it's all about.'

'What?' He looks puzzled.

'This isn't about Snape, James, it's about you.' He just stares at me. 'You're really asking why I seem to treat you differently to Snape. Because that's what you honestly want to know.'

He shrugs. 'Then why?'

'I want Snape to grow up. He needs to realise that he's evil and that he has to do something about himself in order for people to like him. He can't treat people like they're beneath him and expect to have friends all around.' I look down at my feet. 'But he'll never be able to change if somebody doesn't believe that he can.'

James looks at me doubtfully. 'You honestly think he can change?'

I shrug. 'Yeah. I hope so.'

'So you believe that slimy git can improve. But you don't trust that I'll change?' His face becomes hard. 'You just think that I'm an immature prick who'll be that way forever? Is that why you're always yelling at me?'

He looks hurt and I shake my head. 'No. Of course not. I guess it's…it's just easier to be angry at someone you love.'

As soon as the words are out of my mouth I want to scramble them and stuff them back down my throat, but now they're out in the open, floating around for James to make of them what he will.

He watches me for a minute, completely still. And then, slowly, he comes forward and hugs me tightly, his head resting in the crook of my neck. I close my eyes, feeling his chest rise and fall rhythmically with his breathing. But just as I can feel our hearts beating at one together, I hear footsteps and drag myself away from James to see Snape come round the corridor. Above us, the three women scream dramatically.

'If it isn't Potter and Evans,' he snarls.

James turns around quickly to face him.

'Snape, curfew's over. Go back to your dormitory.'

Snape folds his arms and smirks.

'I thought patrolling meant busting the people sneaking around to canoodle. But here are the very Heads doing that exact thing.' He shakes his head. 'What an example you two are setting.'

'Snape, go to your dormitory. Now.'

He glares at James. 'Be quiet, Potter. All I want is a small chat with Lily here.'

'You can do that later. Get out of this corridor now.'

'No.'

He waves his wand and James is struck silent. I groan inwardly and flick my wand at James to remove the spell.

'Snape, please go.'

He shakes his head. 'You can't tell me what to do.'

'I think you'll find that she can,' James retorts, rather unhelpfully. Snape glares at him and turns back to me.

'You can't tell me what to do and you can't try to change me either.'

I frown. 'Snape…'

'You pick up a lot of interesting conversations when you're wandering around the corridors,' he sneers. 'Thanks for the compassion but I don't need it. I don't need any of your filthy Mudblood help.'

For a minute I think that James is going to throw himself at the boy standing across from us but I hold out a hand and my hand whacks into his chest as he begins to move forward. I shake my head. 'Don't.'

This time Snape's glare turns to me. 'Don't try this game again, Evans. Don't stand up for me. Don't try and be my friend.' He spits the last word out as if it is painful and his black eyes narrow. 'Keep the hell away from me.'

I maintain eye contact. 'If that's what you want.'

His eyes get even darker, if that's possible, and before I can blink he's pulled his wand out of his robes.

'Dirusaum!'

The curse never reaches the intended target – me. James leaps in front of me and the jolt of yellow light hits him squarely in the chest. He falls on the ground and begins to jerk, clutching his chest and struggling for breath.

'What did you do to him?' I scream at Snape, dropping to my knees and pushing back James' hair. His eyes are wide and unseeing as he convulses. It seems to be getting even worse, and I begin to get scared. His hands are shaking and he's sweating uncontrollably. Each breath is laboured.

I look up at Snape desperately. He smirks at my fear.

'I thought you were the smartest witch in the year. Can't you remember the counter-curse for this little spell? Maybe I was right all along – you'll never be cured of that Mudblood streak.'

'Why do you do this? I cry. 'Why is it always me?'

Before I know it he's flicked his wand and I have hit the wall behind me hard. It winds me and I try to bend over but it seems as if Snape has glued me there. I stare at him as he comes closer towards me. I've never been honestly scared of him before, but now I feel the terror clamber hastily up my throat. He edges ever nearer until our noses are almost touching. He brings his hand up to my face and as he caresses it my stomach turns over. I get shivers down my spine, not like the ones I get when James touches me – these are full of dread. I see him close his eyes, his lips lingering just inches from mine. I turn my face away, and his eyes flick open. I wait, feeling his eyes bore into mine, and he withdraws his hand slowly.

He turns to go and the spell breaks, causing me to slide down the wall to huddle in a ball, shaking uncontrollably. I hear rasping and remember James, scrambling over to watch with horror as his chest almost stops moving.

I see Snape turn around and quickly fumble for my wand, but he doesn't have his drawn.

'Just so you know,' he says cruelly, 'I didn't poison that potion. But sometimes I wish I had.'

And with that, he sweeps out of the corridor.

I stare back at James; my mind battling with trying frantically to think of something to help James while still shaking at the memory of Snape's face so close to mine. My heart almost stops when I see James lurch and then lie still. I reach for my wand hastily, and, unsure of the consequences, point it at his heart. I murmur, 'Rescero.'

He begins to fit again, but slowly the shakes lessen, and within seconds his eyes come back to focus. He's still shaking slightly, although I think that's from the shock. He looks up at me, his eyes worried.

'Are you all right?' he croaks.

I nod, trying not to let him see how scared I am. 'What about you?'

With wobbly arms he pushes himself up into a seated position, leaning against the castle wall. 'What happened?' he asks.

I shake my head. 'Don't worry about it now.' I look up at the painting above him, where the three women have deserted their cards and are huddled underneath their table. 'I need you to find Molly Weasley,' I tell the tallest of them. 'She should be in the hospital wing. Bring her back here, now.'

She nods and scrambles out from underneath the table, disappearing from view out of the corner of the painting. The other two women look at each other nervously, still clutching each other in fright.

'What did happen, Lily?' James asks quietly.

I look back down at him, but I don't want to answer. Instead I put my hand to his forehead. It's burning and I slowly withdraw it. The action makes me remember Snape's similar motion and I shiver involuntarily.

'What did he do to you?' he whispers.

I close my eyes. 'I'm not going to be sticking up for him anymore, if that's what you're wondering.'

'It wasn't, actually. I know I can be superficial sometimes, Lily…But this time he's done something to you and I want to know whether you're okay.' He takes my hand. 'Are you?'

'Okay?' I shake my head. 'I'm not sure. He…'

'He what?'

I narrow my eyes. 'I think that maybe you weren't the only one secretly – well, in your case, not so secretly – in love with me.'

He registers what I've just said, and he flushes with anger. 'What the hell did he try to do?'

'I'm okay,' I say quietly. 'Can you just…hold me? Just for a little while.'

He pulls me into his chest and I feel like I've come home. I sigh and close my eyes, breathing in his smell that is so comforting to me now.

'I'm sorry,' I whisper.

He takes my hand. 'It's okay.' He rubs his fingers over my palm for a while, and then pulls away to look at me. 'I never did get to finish those questions,' he murmurs.

I shake my head. 'It doesn't matter, James.' I smile. 'And besides, you already asked two questions in a row. What about my turn?'

'But this was important. Please, just hear me out.'

I can't resist. 'Okay.'

He grins. 'Would you like to go to the Harmony Ball with me?'

I raise an eyebrow. 'No, I wouldn't like to.' His face falls and I manage a weak laugh. 'Jeez, Potter, never heard of a cliché before?' I move even closer to him, if that's possible, and smile. 'I'd love to go with you.'

Acknowledgements: Okay, it's a very clichéd ending, but I happen to love fluff and will keep writing all this sweet goodness until all of you guys tell me to stop. If you were still wondering about what happened between Lily and Snape, I think that Snape was always in love with Lily but hated the fact that he was. He was tormented by his contrasting desires to have her and to hurt her. But we're not going to be seeing much more of him, because when she was against the wall, and he touched her and she turned away, he realised she would never have him. Then he just gets bitter, hating Harry because he had secretly wanted to be the father etc. Meh, if it's implausible I don't really care, it's how I thought it all out. But the point is, if what just happened didn't make sense to you, I hope I cleared up some stuff.

Now onto my long list of thank you's. All 17 of them! (I am NOT going to thank Mr Pickles.) Thanks go to: popkornchicken; embracing; PurpleLight; Eve1980; shmokey-bear; shay; mean-girl123; Leigh A. Sumpter; Ilana Potter; girl from across the bridge; danielradcliffeisreallyhot; mauraudersminuspeterarehot; Burgirhig; Lily Witchcraft; Whitelight72; mrspadfoot4eva and Julia. Also thanks to ohsnap its potter, who would've reviewed if her computer were working. I had so many new reviewers last time and if other new people reviewed I would love it (to all my oldies: please keep writing those brilliant little comments too!). You have no idea how happy I get whenever someone takes the time to tell me they liked it. Thank you all so much and I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can!