A/N: I apologize if this chapter seems a bit out of sorts. Honestly, this was supposed to be chapter 11, but I realized that for some reason I hadn't even wrote chapter 10. And this chapter was so good that I couldn't even think of what to put between 11 and 9, soo...this is now chapter 10!

WARNING: THERE IS "DRUG" USE IN THIS CHAPTER. I always imagined James Potter as a stoner, honestly.

Well, let me know what you guys think, please!

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Chapter Ten

NEWT's came some weeks later and Lily felt as if she breezed through them without a hitch. It was about three weeks from the end of the school year, and while she was confident that her NEWT's had gone well, her stomach was in knots about having to leave for the summer.

Lily Luna Potter was currently sitting outside near the lake. Lysander, Al, Scorpius and Rose were sitting around her. Albus was sprawled out on his back, head resting just below Rose's feet. Rose herself was resting her head upon Scorpius chest.

"What are you lot doing after school?" Lysander voiced, biting at a hangnail.

"Lot's of partying!" Al replied loudly, grinning up widely at Scorpius. Rose, who was resting her head on Scorpius chest, kicked Albus in the head.

"Uh uh! Not this time. Fuck all, if I gotta jump through hoops just to see my boyfriend!"

Albus pinched Rose's ankle viciously, causing her to curse and kick Albus harder.

"No!" she said hotly, once their fighting was over.

"I think this year Scorpius will be mine. I'm planning on taking a break from schooling-"

"That's what parties are for!" Albus interrupted hotly, but Rose ignored him and tried to talk over him.

"-I'm not sure that I want to go to Uni right away and-fucking hell Albus, will you bloody shut up?"

Lily rolled her eyes at Lysander as the fight began to unfold again.

Lysander himself sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry for asking, truly," he muttered before lying down to stare at the clouds.

Lily tuned her family members out and stared wistfully at the boathouse. She was sure he was there, just waiting for her.

The last two weeks of school, the Headmistress suspended all classes for Sixth and Seventh Years (mostly due to the stress of NEWT's for Sixth Years. As for the Seventh years, they just couldn't concentrate period).

Lily spent nearly every day at the boathouse, only breaking away for lunch and dinner. She also spent most evenings in the Shrieking Shack, fucking Severus as much as possible. At this point Severus had given up trying to justify reasons not to make love to her, and Lily was happy.

This all ended so fast, it seemed. Graduation was held for the Seventh Years two days before school ended. Lily attended with her parents. She was surprisingly excited to see her oldest brother James who had picked her up and spun her around.

With him was a tiny, deeply tanned brunette who introduced herself as Reggie. She was extremely short compared to the rest of the Weasley and Potters, but also extremely nice. Her voiced held an accent that Lily had never even heard on American muggle tv.

James himself had changed. He seemed to be a bit more mature, but also more laid back. Less likely to prank you and more likely to tell you a joke.

He informed Al and Lily that he and Reggie would be staying with them during the summer, and part of Lily suddenly felt a bit better. She had never been terribly close with James, but seeing him this way-all grown up, scraggily beard and long hair pulled back-it made her trust him more.

They had the end of the year feast, which James and Reggie shared next to Albus and the rest of their little group. Reggie seemed to be astounded by every single thing in the Great Hall, from the ceiling to the food appearing.

"What is American school like?" Lily asked, dumbfounded.

"It's not a thang lahk this! I can't git over how all this werks! My high school pretty much suucked compared to this place!"

Lily had stuffed her mouth full of mashed potatoes to keep from laughing.

The night before the trains were to arrive for the students to take home, Lily snuck down to Hogsmeade and made her way to the Shrieking Shack.

She found Severus in the room he was always in, yet instead of struggling to get up or lying against the wall as he normally had done, he was pacing the length of the room.

"Hey..." Lily said quietly, entering the room. Severus immediately stopped pacing and started towards her.

"I have to go tomorrow," she said, looking down at the floor sadly. Severus said nothing, only lifted a hand to her face. They said nothing more for quite some time. They became caught up in each other on the lone couch in the room.

Lily left early in the morning for the castle. When she entered her common room, the place was bustling with the noise of students saying goodbyes, dragging trunks. A few were even crying.

Breakfast wouldn't be for another hour, and after that, the train would arrive.

Lily headed upstairs and stuffed her cloak into her trunk, then magicked everything else she owned into her trunk. She sat there for some time, staring at the years worth of roughly drafted essays, a library book she had forgotten to return ("Potions: A Guide For The Advanced Witch or Wizard"), half broken quills and empty ink bottles. A strewn out stack of parchment paper, a bit of glitter from her Halloween costume. The map and the cloak.

Lily sighed heavily and closed her trunk with a thud. She then sat on her bed, elbows on knees and head in hands. She could already feel her eyes tearing up.

It always hurt, leaving.

The train ride home was boring, for the most part. Lily and Lysander played a game of Exploding Snap, but quit after a bump in the train tracks caused the cards to explode prematurely, nearly singeing every one in the carriage.

She felt tired, yet restless. As soon as she would try to fall asleep, she would start thinking of the studying she would have to do for next year, all the time she'd have with Severus. Her mind kept bringing him up, and Lily finally had to give up on sleep.

She was more than happy to get off the train when it finally pulled into King's Cross. She spied her mum and dad, along with James and Reggie, on the platform. They were all looking anxiously for her and Al. Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron were standing next to her mum and dad, looking just as excited for their own daughter and son.

After several minutes of waiting for other students to get off the train, they finally had their own chance and took it. They exited the train and Lily was engulfed by her mother in hugs and kisses, her own father ruffling her hair and kissing her forehead. Ginny almost burst into tears when she saw Al, commented on the fact that her baby boy had grown up, and then hugged him tightly.

Lily couldn't help making fun of Al for being mums baby boy.

They all apparated (aside from Lily, who never got the time to take her apparition classes. She apparated alongside her father) into the living room of the Potter house. An hour later, her aunt and uncle, Rose, Scorpius and Hugo all showed up.

They proceeded to have a very large dinner, accompanied by the usual arguing and yelling ("Oi! James! That's my roll, lay off, will ya?"), the stories of how their year went so far and such. Reggie seemed to be even tinier than she normally looked once dinner started. Lily coughed into her hand to cover up her laugh. Reggie had never experienced the Weasley-Potter household before. She could only imagine how daunting they looked as a family right now.

"Oi, Reggie!" Albus said loudly, and the tanned woman looked over at him, startled.

"Y-yes?"

"How does Jamey do over there, in the States? Do they know who he is?"

Reggie's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Um...he does good in his classes, Ah guess? Ah mean...what do ya mean when ya say 'do people know who he is?'"

The table quieted down just a bit, the same thought seeming to occur to every one seated. Al's own brows were furrowed in confusion as well.

"I mean," he said, glancing over at Lily, a look of almost disbelief on his face, "He's a Potter..."

Reggie looked more confused than ever now, and she shrugged. "Uhm...Ah know his last name...and so do a lot of other's in school..."

The table nearly exploded in sound, causing the tiny American to jump. Every one was talking at once ("She doesn't know?" "They're American, what do you expect?" "Come on, he only nearly died-!") until her father stood up and yelled for them all to shut up.

Albus was sitting there, shaking his head.

"Are you bloody kidding me? Our father is Harry Potter? Hello? The Boy Who Lived? Come on, doesn't that ring a bell?" he demanded, and Reggie was frantically shaking her head no.

"Al, give her a break. In America, you're lucky if a witch or wizard has even heard of the name Voldemort, let alone our father. That ugly dick rarely set foot outside of the UK," James chided, taking a drink. Ginny hissed something about language, but James ignored her.

"It's quite refreshing, y'know. I don't have to constantly explain to people that yes, I am the son of The Boy Who Lived. Blimey," he muttered.

Reggie was still looking around, confused. James looked over at her and smiled. "Ay, don't worry Reg. I'll tell ya later. To serious for dinner time, you know?"

Reggie just nodded and Al sighed in exasperation. Dinner ended fairly soon after that.

Lily was sitting on the roof right outside her bedroom window. The sun was setting, and while it was a beauty to behold, she found she couldn't actually focus on or study it. She was thinking to much of him, of her soon to be last school year.

She heard the sound of a window being slid open, and looked to the right of her. The room next to hers had been her older brother James room. She watched as he and Reggie both stepped out onto the roof and sat down. Neither seemed to notice her and she suddenly felt as if she was watching something illicit.

Lily continued to watch as James whispered something to her and pulled out what looked like a hand rolled cigarette. Lil cocked her head to the side, frowning.

What is that, she wondered and watched as James lit the tip of the cigarette with his wand. But when the wind picked up and blew the smoke her way, it didn't smell like any cigarette Lily had ever had the displeasure of smelling.

She couldn't hold her curiosity in any longer and finally asked loudly, "What is that you're smoking?"

Both James and Reggie nearly fell off the roof, the sound of Lily's voiced startled them so bad.

James looked at her wide eyed before glancing back into his room anxiously. Then he narrowed his eyes and hissed, "What the bloody fuck, Lils? You tryin to get me caught? Fuck!"

Lily said nothing, only rolled her eyes. He didn't answer her question, either. After several minutes, James hissed her name again.

"What?" she bit out.

"Come over here, and hit this. I promise it isn't anything bad..."

Lily shook her head no, but got up anyways and went back into the house. She padded quietly to the room next over, opening the door to James old room. She shut and, at the instruction of James, locked the door.

When she was finally settled upon the rooftop between her brother and Reggie, he handed her the item.

"It's a...joint," he whispered, grinning.

Lily shrugged and said, "Okaaay...?"

James huffed and took it back from her.

"Look," he said, bringing the joint up to his lips and sucking in the smoke. He held it for a couple of seconds before breathing it out.

"It gets you high. And there's no side effects-well. Aside from getting super hungry. And it doesn't kill brain cells or anything like that. In wizarding America, this shit's all over the place. It's illegal in the muggle world though. Apparently they're having a "War" on drugs. Ha!" he laughed bitterly and handed it back to Lily, who nervously took a hit.

She coughed a bit and blew it out before trying again. After trying to hold it in for a couple of seconds, she breathed it back out harshly, handing it Reggie.

"If there's a war on this stuff, isn't it bad? What's in this, anyways?" she asked, but both James and Reggie shook their heads.

"Naht at all, hun," said Reggie as she passed the joint to James.

"This is Marijuana. Purest form of grass you can get. Commonly referred to as weed," James replied, taking his hit.

"The reason there's ah war on this stuff," Reggie stated, "is because of the muggle pharmasutical companies-the people who make mugs medsins. The companies make massive ahmounts of munny off of people dyin' from cancer. That's a mugs disease that kills you slowly and painfully. A disease that weed can actually cure."

James handed the spliff to Lily, who took a hit off of it. This time was better, since she didn't choke. She was starting to feel funny, a bit lightheaded. Yet alert.

"The pharmaceutical companies feel threatened by marijuana," James continued from where Reggie left off.

"The muggle American government understands how well marijuana works with cancer, glaucoma, that sort of thing...yet because of the propaganda that the drug has received in past years, they don't want to have to take the time or even make the effort to try and use this pretty little plant for good. Instead, they try to make it out like it's the worst drug in the world."

"Wow," Lily said. "Is this what you've been doing in school, then? Getting...getting 'high'?"

James and Reggie both laughed, and Lily grinned at her brother. He slung his arm around her and shook his head.

"Nah, nah, this isn't ALL that I've been doing. But it is involved quite a bit in my day to day life," he said.

"You said this stuff is illegal in muggle America," she prompted, watching as Reggie blew out a smoke ring. Lily poked her finger through it and watched as it curled around her finger before disappearing on the wind.

"Does this mean it's legal in wizarding America?" she finished, but James was already shaking his head.

"No, no. It's...complicated. In muggle America, possession of this substance is punishable depending on the amount you have. Trafficking-selling it, basically-can result in jail or even prison time. But," he said, taking one last puff before incinerating the roach.

"And this is a big but," he continued, "in wizarding America you are allowed to posses and sell marijuana-but only as an ingredient to potions making. Even then though, no one in the magical world really cares if you smoke it. A lot of people do it."

Lily perked up at this. "Really?" she asked.

"I've been thinking of taking a Potions Master degree after school...what kinds of potions does it work best in?"

James shrugged and cracked his neck.

"I'd only assume that people would use it for pain killers, relaxants. Could be used in a variety of potions, I guess. Potions Master degree, huh? Good luck; I knew you were great at potions but I never thought you'd want to take it as a career path."

Lily smiled, cheeks warming.

"Yeah, well. I really like it. I don't know why. It just comes easy. And it's fun. Plus, who knows? I could be the first person to invent a new potion. Or I could just as easily discover a never before been used potions ingredient!"

James nodded, and they all sat quietly, each contemplating different things in their minds. Finally, Lily whispered, "You got anymore of that...weed stuff? I kinda...I kinda wanna try it again. It didn't do anything to me..."

James gave her a look, smiled at Reggie and then nodded slyly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sandwich bag full bright green buds.

"Ask, and ye shall receive," he stated with pride.

The summer so far for Lily had been going amazingly well. She spent most days hanging out with Reggie and James, while Albus was off looking for the perfect wizarding Uni (he wanted a party college, is what James called it). Lily was glad she had already decided what to do after school, otherwise she would have been where Al was every day. It looked frustrating.

When the three of them weren't talking muggle American politics, they were taking long walks into the countryside and smoking. When they did this, they would veer off into the woods about a mile and settle somewhere comfortable. Lily found she liked the so called drug. It made her feel pleasant and giddy. Most often than not though, she, James and Reggie would all go home being hungry.

Her mother had gone out to the store more than once that week already.

Her birthday seemed to creep up on her. She didn't even realize the days had passed by that quickly. Suddenly, Lily Luna Potter was seventeen years old.

Her family held a large party for her, and Lily had never remembered having so much fun. There was music, dancing, laughter. Presents and cake. And after the party came to a close, James and Reggie gave Lily a special present.

She didn't know how she made it to bed that evening. She was so high she didn't even remember walking up the stairs, or lying down on her bed. Nor did she remember closing her eyes.

One moment she was awake, and the next moment, she was out like a light.

She received her NEWT's results two days after her birthday. She had actually forgotten about them, but once the heavy envelope was lying in front of her, Lily began to feel nervous.

Yet she had no true reason to be-just as she had suspected, Lily had gotten the highest potions grade out of anyone else in her year. She would be going to NEWT's level potions classes this year, along with NEWT level Charms and NEWT Herbology.

School was starting to creep up on her again, now too. And as much as she wanted to see Severus-she only dreamed about the ghost almost every night-she most definitely didn't want the time she spent with her brother and Reggie to end.

But end it did. Luckily, Lily was eased into James leaving the house. He informed the family on Thursday evening that he would have to be back in America by Tuesday morning. Lily was sad, but James had told her not to worry; he would be sending her some special things in the mail once her school year had started.

She hit Diagon Alley with her mum, dad, James and Reggie (who, once again, seemed surprised that a place like Diagon Alley even existed). It was here that her foot long school list became much shorter.

There were a couple books that she hadn't found however, but her father had just taken the list and disappeared down one of the alleys. It was when Lily was just finishing up her fitting for new school robes that her father returned with the rest of her books in tow.

"Knockturn Alley is a hellhole!" he exclaimed loudly, causing Reggie to gawk, Lily to laugh and James to nod, a grin spreading across his face as he trained his eyes on mum. She seemed to be stuck between wanting to slap their father over the head and a giggle.

Lily made one more stop at the Diagon Alley bookstores, frantically searching for the most advanced potions book they had available.

She found nothing and they left the shopping center with Lily feeling a bit happy and a bit sad.

James and Reggie flooed back to America two days later, and the house seemed empty without the two of them there. She didn't even have Al to keep her company, as he was off gallivanting around Europe, still looking for suitable Uni's.

Lily ended up studying her new potions books for the last month before school started. She wanted things to be fresh in her mind. She couldn't wait for the school year to start again, couldn't wait for her NEWT level classes to take place.

As the days grew closer and closer to September 1st, the dreams she had of Severus increased in intensity.

The day finally came when school was to start back up, and Lily couldn't believe how fast the summer had passed. She remembered her past years at Hogwarts. The summers then had seemed to go by so painfully slow.

Maybe it was because she was an adult now, or just older. Her perception of time had grown with her mind and body.

She didn't know, truly. She was just glad to step back onto the train, even though this time she would be returning to Hogwarts for her last year, and without Al or Rose or Scorpius with her. It felt weird, but good.

She would be starting a new chapter in her life soon enough. All the better for her to savor her last moments as a teenager in her last year of school.

She couldn't wait to see Severus.