The Christmas Punch (Part 2)

The next day she met James in muggle London, finding him staring in front of Fortnum and Mason, gawking up at their Christmas decorations.

"You'll catch flies," she said, coming up next to him. James turned, grinning at her.

"It's smashing," James replied, gesturing up to the store's many lights. "Almost like magic."

Lily nodded, pulling the paper from Madam Rosmerta from her bag.

"I've got a better lead for today," she said. "Maddie has a reservation at the Three Broomstocks tonight."

"How'd you get that?" James asked, walking down the street with her.

"Can't reveal all of my tricks," Lily replied, smiling up at him. "I'm going to take the Knight Bus up there and wait for them."

"I'll come with you," James said. Lily bit her lip, finally asking the question she'd been itching to ask for the past few days.

"Why do you have all of this the free time?" she asked as he met her eyes. "I thought you'd be spending every moment with your mates this break."

"My life's not as exciting as you'd think," James revealed. "Peter's in Tanzania with his parents, Sirius is out in the country at the Black's Manor and his parents aren't fond of us spending time together before their annual Christmas Ball, given that we blew up their tree last year."

Lily's lips twitched up and he chuckled.

"What about Remus?" she pressed. He hesitated, looking up to the sky before shrugging.

"He's got this furry little problem," James said.

"Like a mean rabbit?" Lily pressed, not following his logic.

"Yes," he answered. "Nastiest little bugger in all of Devon. Bit me last year."

Lily brushed off the weird comment and shrugged.

"Sure I suppose you could come up then," she said. "It'll be a long bus ride."

"We don't need to take the bus," James replied, leading her towards the direction of Diagon Alley. "I can apparate."

Lily raised a brow.

"We haven't started lessons," she noted.

"Martha taught Marlene and me ages ago," James explained. Lily shook her head, still baffled at how purebloods were able to skirt so many of the regulations.

"Right then," Lily said. "If you splinch me and I die I'll haunt you."

"Have a little faith in me," he said, guiding her towards Diagon Alley so they could apparate to Hogsmeade without setting out any alerts. When they reached the street, Lily recognized some of their classmates milling around.

"Here," James said, leading her into an empty alley quickly. Lily noticed that he was avoiding looking at the people in the street. It made sense that he wouldn't want to be seen with her, considering the reputation she'd acquired in the last six months.

James looked around before coming close to her, bringing his arms around her waist. Lily stiffened at the close contact and she suddenly felt a tugging sensation at her navel. They landed, Lily stumbling with her head spinning and falling back into a snowbank.

"You okay?" James asked, leaning over her to help her up. Lily nodded gingerly.

"Spiffy," she replied, feeling soreness in her bum. She saw that her purse had opened and her belongings were scattered around. She quickly reached for her stuff and James helped. Lily looked over and saw that her notebook was open, James reaching for it. "Wait!"

But it was too late, James lifted the notebook and frowned at it.

"What is this?" he asked in a low voice, flipping through the pages of notes she had on Marlene's case. Lily took it from him and anxiously met James's gaze. "You're still looking at Marlene's case?"

Lily sputtered for an answer and James scoffed.

"Of course you are," he said sarcastically. "Wasn't enough to accuse our cousin was it? Have to go after everybody then?"

"I told you before," Lily finally said. "Everybody connected to Marlene is a suspect."

James smiled coldly at her.

"At least my alibi holds," he scoffed.

"You were with Gwen Jones," she said softly, recalling the official report. "All of her roommates saw you two and heard you… It's an airtight alibi."

"Peter," James said bitterly, looking at it. "Sirius are you fucking kidding me? He dated her!"

"She was my best friend." Lily returned, her voice rising.

"Can't you just let this rest?" James demanded. Lily shook her head.

"I loved Marlene," she said in a defeated voice. "I can't stop James. I know in my heart that Dante didn't kill her."

James looked at her bitterly, anger flashing in his eyes but he shook his head.

"Whatever," he said. "You want to torture yourself be my guest… Let's just focus on helping Maddie."

He strode off in the direction of Hogsmeade and Lily watched him, sighing before following James. Both of them charmed their appearances, entering the Three Broomsticks right as it was growing dark. James remained tense, not teasing and conversational as he usually was when they were staking out.

"You know my dad used to say something," James said after an hour of near silence. Lily looked at him from her butterbeer. "Question everything. Learn something. Answer nothing."

Lily's lips twitched up.

"That was actually Euripides," she said. "Caradoc said his uncle used to say that to him."

James chuckled, running his hand through his hair and looking around the bar.

"My dad was his uncle," James supplied. "He, Doc's mum, and Marlene's mum were siblings."

Lily nodded and he swallowed some of his drink, finally looking at her.

"You'll never get over her death if you keep questioning the facts of it," he said. Before Lily could respond, she heard the door open and looked up. Maddie had entered, her face flushed and a smile on her face.

"Incoming," Lily said in a low voice, inconspicuously watching as Maddie went over to speak with Rosmerta.

"When's your lad coming?" the barmaid asked Maddie. Maddie giggled.

"I dunno he said it'd be a surprise," she replied with a warm expression. Lily wanted to scoff at the line.

"You gonna introduce him to your family and stop sneaking around?" Rosmerta continued. Maddie removed her cloak and Lily leaned closer to listen.

"I don't want to tell my parents yet," Maddie replied. "But he is going to be at the Black's annual Ball tomorrow so I'll see him again."

The door suddenly blew open from the harsh wind.

"Lily!"

Lily looked away suddenly, her eyes going all over the room. She'd heard Marlene's voice coming from outside.

"Lily!"

"Excuse me," she said abruptly to James, grabbing her cloak and making a beeline for the door. She stumbled outside, looking around in the snow with surprise.

"Marlene?" she said cautiously. No one answered and Lily sighed, knowing that staying up for most of last night to write her Charms paper was a bad call. She moved to reenter the restaurant but paused, seeing a figure in the distance with a head of copper-red hair.

There weren't many redheads she knew in the wizarding world, besides herself, the Prewitt siblings, and the Mulciber brothers. Lily squinted her eyes, recognizing Demetrius Mulciber walking in the direction of the Hog's Head.

He was Dante's older brother, having graduated last year. Lily hadn't seen him in person since Dante turned himself into the aurors. But something compelled her to walk after him. She followed him at a distance, hesitating when he went inside of the establishment. Lily trailed around the building, stopping by one window and peaking in. She saw that Demetrius had taken a seat at a booth and was speaking to someone. She moved along the bar's walls, reaching the window next to his booth and hitting the glass with an eavesdropping charm.

"It's not enough!" Demetrius snarled in a low voice.

"We've met all of your demands," the other person answered. "Don't overstep."

"My brother's rotting in Azkaban," Demetrius returned. "My family wants more money."

"Your brother is going to die either way and we've been more than generous."

Lily frowned, lifting her head from the side to peek inside and see who Demetrius was talking to. Before Lily could catch a glimpse of who he was speaking to, someone jerked her back.

"Are you mad?" James demanded, pulling Lily away from the bar. She squirmed against him but James's grip remained tight on her waist. "Why are you skulking outside of the Hog's Head? Do you know what type of people go in there?"

He looked livid and Lily broke from his grip right when he pulled her to the main street.

"I thought I heard something," she said. He looked at her like she was deranged. "It was nothing."

"You've got a death wish," James noted.

"Why did you leave Maddie?" Lily demanded.

"She got an owl and left," he explained. "Turns out her mystery man couldn't make it."

"Shame," Lily replied, watching as James started to pace. "You don't need to get so worked up."

"Worked up?" he repeated. "You run around the castle like you're untouchable but Lily you're making yourself into a walking target."

Lily snorted.

"That lot is the least of my problems," she said. "Lestrange couldn't tell the difference between a pile of hippogriff shit and his wand."

"I'm serious," James warned. "You're giving them more reason to go after you."

Lily shook her head.

"I know what I'm doing," she answered. "I'm not a rookie at this."

"Clearly," James said sourly. Lily rolled her eyes at his petulant tone.

"Look we're done here tonight… Our best bet is you trailing Maddie tomorrow at that ball," she explained.

"We'll be trailing Maddie," James answered. "I can bring a plus one to the Black's Christmas Eve Ball."

Lily grimaced.

"See attending pureblood Christmas balls is at the top of my list of activities to avoid," Lily answered. "I prefer events where people wouldn't want to flay me."

"Relax— there's going to be people from the Ministry there. Walburga invited over 400 people," he assured.

"What if I don't want to go?" Lily questioned, chewing on her lower lip. The idea of a night with the creme de la creme of society didn't appeal to her.

"Please," James said quietly. "It'll be two hours at most and you'll be plenty entertained. Last year, Cecily wore a set of robes that had fairies flitting around it."

"That sounds like a rights' violation."

"Oh, it is," James assured. She hesitated, James practically pouting at her.

"Fine, I'll come," Lily sighed, watching James grin lopsidedly. "But only to see Cecily's monstrous dress."

The next evening, she knocked on the entrance to the McKinnons' house apprehensively, having agreed to meet James there. The door was yanked open and Lily watched as Frida McKinnon's eyes widened.

"Lily," she greeted, her tone guarded. "What a… pleasant surprise."

"Hi Mrs. McKinnon," she greeted. "Is James around?"

"He is, but we're about to leave actually," she answered, not moving to let Lily in. Lily hadn't seen her since Marlene's funeral, the beautiful older woman sobbing into her husband's arms. Mrs. McKinnon was stunning as usual, dressed in a pair of ice-blue robes that clung to her athletic body. Marlene had joked with Lily that her mother grew up swimming in glacier bays.

"You're here!"

Lily spotted James over Mrs. McKinnon's shoulder. He was gorgeous, dressed in a set of black robes that resembled a suit. His tie was a rich shade of green, making his warm tawny skin glow and his hair was as ruffled as usual.

"Lily's my plus one," he explained to Mrs. McKinnon. The woman's eyes widened as she stepped aside, letting Lily inside. James frowned at her. "You're rather underdressed."

"They won't let her in if she's not wearing a set of dress robes," Mrs. McKinnon tsked. Lily felt a flush lick at her cheeks, realizing that her jeans and sweater wouldn't suffice. Mrs. McKinnon eyed her with interest. "You know Martha's left a few older robes behind and you two are probably the same size…"

"I'll help her," James said, carting Lily up the stairs. She hadn't seen the interior of the McKinnons' townhouse in nearly a year. It was decorated warmly, with photos of the family along the walls of the grand staircase. Lily smiled at a moving photo of Marlene on a broom as a kid. "Way to dress for the occasion, Evans."

"It's Lily," she replied, recalling his distaste for her calling him Potter. James paused, turning to face her, raising a brow.

"Is it now?" he joked. Lily broke his gaze and he led her to the second floor. They headed down the left-wing, each of the rooms serving as one of the McKinnon children's bedrooms in the order of their age.

They passed Martin and Maddie's rooms and Lily fought the urge to stop at the door to Marlene's. It was shut and she didn't press it to James as they walked past his room, Martin's, and finally arrived at Martha's. He pushed the door open.

"Martha's not touched anything in here in ages," he explained, gesturing to the closet. "Pick anything."

"How's married life treating her?" she asked casually. She'd been supposed to attend Martha McKinnon's wedding. But the grand society wedding had been canceled after Marlene died. She heard that Martha and Richie Cattermole had a quiet wedding in August with just family.

"Brilliant… She never comes by though. I suppose I wouldn't either if I were married to the best pastry chef in England."

Lily reached inside, grabbing the first set of robes she found. It was a black dress with beaded thin straps.

"Turn around," she said. James obliged, facing the wall while Lily took her sweater and jeans off, wriggling into the robes. She looked at Martha's mirror and noticed that the dress was skin-tight, made of a silky material with a cowl neck that revealed her cleavage and a back that dipped low. "I dunno if I can go out in this."

James turned and she heard him suck in a breath.

"I don't know if you can either," he said, coming up to her. Lily noticed him in the reflection of the mirror, James's eyes wide and dark. "Cressida might hex you if you show up looking this beautiful."

She blinked at his words and James chuckled behind her.

"Vexing Cressida is always a pleasure," she replied, quickly using a few cosmetic charms she'd learned from Marlene. She preferred muggle makeup but wizarding charms had the bonus of not fading off. Lily watched as her hair straightened into a silky sheath and light makeup appeared on her face. She quickly transfigured her sneakers into a pair of heels. "I think I'm ready to go."

"You know Maddie's still getting ready," James noted, leading Lily into the hall. "She's been at it for hours."

"I don't care much for this," Lily said, gesturing to her done-up face. He was staring at her. "What? Do I look like a cow?"

"No," James said quietly. "Quite the opposite."

Lily rolled her eyes at his smarmy tone.

"You clean up well too," she said. James's lips twitched up. Lily heard a door open and watched as Marcus McKinnon appeared. He was Marlene's youngest sibling, still small and with the same lively blue eyes Marlene had.

"James I need help with my tie," he said. But the first-year paused at Lily, his eyes going wide.

"Hi Marcus," she greeted.

"Hi Lily," he greeted in a squeak, his cheeks turning red. James leaned down, helping him with his tie before ruffling his hair.

"Your parents are waiting downstairs," he said. "Go meet them."

Marcus stumbled off, looking back at them and Lily waved as he tripped over his feet. James made a grunting sound next to her.

"Little bugger still has a crush on you," he revealed. Lily's lips spread up.

"Really," she mused. "Well, he's gotten terribly handsome."

"Aren't you a little old for him?" James muttered. Lily laughed lightly, following him downstairs. Most of the McKinnons were down there, including Mr. McKinnon who was fixing his cuff links.

"Lily," Mr. McKinnon greeted, his tone strained. "How are you?"

"Great," Lily answered awkwardly, seeing that Martin and Marcus were downstairs too. Martin eyed her warily and James coughed next to her.

"Lily and I were going to head out a bit early," he said. "See Sirius and all."

"Don't drink too much," Mrs. McKinnon warned, appearing and straightening James's tie. "And for Merlin's sake, you could have put some sleakezy's in your hair."

"Frida," James whined. Lily's lips twitched up and he dragged her from the entry hall into Mr. McKinnon's office. Lily paused, seeing a massive pensive in the room.

"That's new," she commented. James followed her line of sight and shrugged.

"He bought it for Frida," he said softly. "As some type of therapy... They use it to look at memories of Mars."

"That sounds like torture," Lily replied immediately. She winched but heard James make a noise of agreement as he strode towards the fireplace.

"Just say Black Family Manor and it'll take you to the fireplace in Sirius's room," James instructed. He went first and Lily followed, stumbling out of the fireplace. They flooed out, Lily landing in one of the Black Manor fireplaces. She stumbled out, coughing on the dust.

"Hello there."

Lily whirled around, seeing two older men standing by a desk. One was the spitting image of what she imaged Sirius would look like in thirty years, with the same aristocratic face and elegant black curls. The other strong resembled him but had a pair of blue eyes instead of Sirius's stormy grey eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said, setting her dress right. "I must have flooed into the wrong fireplace."

The man resembling Sirius laughed.

"Happens all the time," he said with a charismatic smile. "You must be one of my son's friends."

"Er yes," Lily answered. She stiffened, feeling his eyes slide over her form appreciatively. "If you just point me in his direction I'll be out of your hair in a tiff."

"You haven't even told us your name," the man said in a drawl, raising a brow at her. Lily was distinctly uncomfortable, about to speak when the door tore open.

"There you are," James said, striding inside and coming to Lily's side. "I was scared you'd ended up lost in the floo system."

Lily immediately relaxed as he brought a hand to her side. James nodded at the pair.

"Orion," he greeted. "Cygnus."

"James," Orion greeted. "I haven't had the pleasure of meeting your…"

"Friend," he finished. "This is Lily. Lily, Orion's Sirius's father, and Cygnus is his uncle. But we should be off, Sirius is also looking for her."

James seemed antsy, practically bouncing next to her as he turned her, quickly pulling Lily from the room.

"They didn't make them like that in our day," Cygnus said behind them as they ducked out of the door. Lily turned, locking eyes with him but James tugged her out of the room and down the hall.

She recognized his voice.

He was the person Demetrius Mulciber had been speaking to at the Hog's Head.

"You somehow flooed directly into Cygnus Black's study," James said with a scoff. "Trouble finds you doesn't it?"

Lily couldn't respond, distracted as she tried to piece together the relationship between Cygnus and Demetrius. James led her down a corner and straight into Sirius.

"Found her in your uncle's study," he said. Sirius grimaced.

"Hope you didn't mention her blood status," Sirus quipped before louring at Lily. "What's Lovely Lily doing here?"

"Helping James with a case," Lily replied quickly. Sirius raised a brow, looking at her body.

"If you dress like this for every case then I'll have to request your services," he drawled. Lily rolled her eyes, following Sirius down the hall into another room.

"Next time you decide to come over might want to avoid my father's company," he said ominously. "He has a weakness for cheating on my mum with younger witches. Caught him shagging Felicity Selwyn in a bathroom study last year."

"Noted," Lily replied, recalling the unsettling way his father had stared at her. She hesitated at the door, seeing several of their classmates milling about and drinking.

"Wormtail," James said, moving behind her to greet a very sunburned Peter. Lily remained awkwardly in the door, feeling people's stares on her.

"So you're the reason Prongs has been turning down all my invitations," Sirius said in a mocking tone.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she scoffed. He tsked at her, tapping her nose and Lily blinked at him in shock.

"Sure you don't," he noted, before looking across the room where James and Peter were speaking. "I'm sure you've managed to solve the great mystery of what color Prongs' boxers are."

"No, but I'm sure I can transfigure yours into a nifler," Lily said with a grin. Sirius winced and moved away from her, muttering something about her being a shrew. Within minutes, Regulus Black appeared announcing that the Ball was starting. Lily followed her classmates into a massive ballroom filled with people decked in their finest.

"So that's how the other half lives," she said under her breath, watching an older witch display a shining, massive gold necklace.

"Lily?"

She looked up to see Frank standing next to a woman who had his matching tousled brown hair. The woman was also wearing the most bizarre hat Lily had ever seen. Lily gaped openly at the stuffed vulture on it.

"Lo Frank," she greeted, embracing her friend. The woman next to him coughed and Frank looked at her.

"Mum this is Lily," he said. "Lily this is my mum, Augusta Longbottom."

His mother's eyebrows shot up.

"Lily Evans," she repeated. "I've heard quite a lot about you."

Lily was prepared for the woman to sneer at her but to her surprise Augusta extended her arm, taking Lily and firmly shaking it.

"Saved my son's grades now have you," she said with a smile. Frank made a whine of a complaint and Augusta laughed. Augusta left after a moment, giving Frank the opportunity to pounce at her.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded. "Pureblood society gatherings aren't your usual forte."

"What can I say? When I heard you were going to be here I couldn't resist," Lily replied teasingly. Frank chuckled.

"Distance makes the heart grow fonder," he said, before looking around and smiling. "I see Alice by the bar."

Lily found herself socializing with Frank, Alice, and Alice's two brothers. Both had graduated the previous year and were fitter than ever from their auror training.

"Lily Evans you certainly age like fine wine," Fabian Prewitt said, taking her hand and kissing it. Lily smiled flirtatiously at him.

"Likewise Prewitt," she drawled. Fabian got her a drink and, handing it to her.

"Sirius Black might be a git," he joked. "But the bloke knows how to make some brilliant Christmas punch."

Lily nodded, recalling that she'd witnessed Sirius and James make the punch in previous years, the pair plying it with five different types of alcohol. She finished her drink and Fabian supplied her with more as they spoke with the group. Lily looked around for James and saw him speaking with a pretty witch she'd never seen before.

"Didn't know the Blacks invited the French too," Gideon quipped, following her line of sight. "That's Abilene Legoff-Lestrange."

"Not related to..." she asked.

"Rabastian and Rodolphus's cousin," Gideon said with a wince. Lily watched as the witch let out a peeling laugh at something James said and turned back to Fabian.

"Wanna dance?" she asked. He smiled at her, leading her to the dance floor where couples were dancing. Lily followed his lead, Fabian's arm straying lower than she'd typically allow. But with the soft buzz of the Christmas punch she drank, she was willing to oblige.

"That's rather obscene," she noted, eyeing Regulus dancing with Cecily. The two were practically dry humping. Fabian chuckled.

"These events are so boring eventually everybody gets drunk enough that they turn into a pseudo orgy," he admitted. Lily laughed at that.

"Who would have thought that alcohol could take the sticks out of their arses."

Fabian snorted at her comment, his smile spreading.

"You never fail to surprise," he noted. "By that, I mean pleasantly surprise."

Before Lily could respond, the dance ended and she felt someone tap her shoulder. Lily looked up and her eyes went wide as she met Remus Lupin's robin-shell blue eyes.

"Mind if I borrow Lily for a song?"

Fabian's arms moved from her body and Lily pinched the inside of her arm, wondering if this was some sort of twisted dream. In what world would Remus want to dance with her?

"I'm reluctant to," Fabian admitted with a warm expression. "But I suppose this was inevitable. Can't say I didn't expect someone to try and steal the prettiest bird here from me."

Lily rolled her eyes at his gushing compliments and said goodbye to him before turning to Remus. She awkwardly stared at him as he brought one hand to her waist and the other to her shoulder. They swayed together and she looked down, unable to hold Remus's gaze.

"Fabian Prewitt and Prongs in the same night," he suddenly said. Lily looked up, catching a jaded look in his eyes and the heavy scent of alcohol on his mouth. "Really making some quality entertainment."

Lily scowled at him.

"Should I be thrilled that you finally find me interesting?" she said sarcastically. Remus's brows knitted together.

"What are you talking about?"

"You broke up with me because you got bored of me," Lily clarified, recalling the public story that had spread after their break up. "Who could blame you I was just boring Lovely Lily."

Remus shook his head, his face painted with confusion.

"That's not why we broke up," he muttered with a bitter laugh. Lily felt his grip tighten on her waist. "It's so much more complex than that. Merlin everybody here knows I'm not ov—"

"Moony," James interrupted, appearing at their side. "Mind if I borrow Lily."

Remus narrowed his eyes at James.

"Old habits die hard, eh Prongs," he said with a smile, letting go of her. Lily looked at him in confusion and he shrugged, walking off.

"I thought this was a stakeout," James said, looking at her with a wry expression.

"Had to indulge the ghost of boyfriends past," Lily quipped. James looked at her in confusion. "Pureblood right."

He rolled his eyes, leading Lily in a new dance. She felt her body relax against James's hands, which were splayed out on her hip and shoulder. Lily's mouth went dry as James traced circles over her side.

"Maddie's drinking a lot," he noted.

"You lot know how to make some proper punch," Lily replied, following his line of sight. Maddie was standing with some friends, laughing and drinking the Christmas punch. Eventually, something caught her attention and the witch kept her flute down.

"She's on move," Lily murmured. James nodded, leading her off of the dance floor before they could finish the dance. The pair followed Maddie out of the room. Lily stopping James and applying disillusionment charms to them.

"You've gotten good at this," he noted, looking at his transparent arm.

"We're burning daylight," she answered, pulling him along after Maddie. Maddie walked straight into the library and Lily followed her in. She ducked against a bookshelf, James at her back as they waited.

Lily heard footsteps and pressed her finger to James's lips when he tried to speak.

"You didn't show last night," Maddie said in a pouting tone. A male laugh followed and Lily peaked around the corner, seeing a man from behind, trying to hug Maddie only for the girl to push him off.

"I had to stay late at practice," the man answered. Maddie huffed, crossing her arms and giving him a dirty look. "How can I make it up to you?"

"Don't lie," she snapped. "I flooed all the way to Hogsmeade and you were off with one of your groupies fucking her weren't you?"

The wizard let out an impatient huff.

"Don't be childish," the man replied. "I've told you before that I've got to see other people— I have needs and you're still in school."

"I sneak off to meet you all the time," Maddie protested. "The least you could do is respect me enough not to fuck other people! Otherwise, this is over."

"Madison," the man hissed. "You know better than to threaten me."

Lily frowned, catching a glimpse of the man's curly hair in the light of the fireplace and frowned. She recognized him from behind somehow. She watched as he leaned over her and Maddie's expression changed to one of worry.

"Don't," Maddie said suddenly, her voice going fearful. But the man reached out, pushing her into the wall.

"You're worthless without me," he spat, shaking her.

"Let go of me," Maddie ordered, squirming from him. Lily's wand shot out as the man raised his hand but James beat her to it, having slipped out from behind her. She watched as the man was suddenly shoved to the ground, an invisible force punching him.

Lily sighed, waving her wand at James and herself, removing the charm. James materialized before her, lifting the man and throwing him into a table.

"Think you can hit my baby sister," he roared, anger flashing in his eyes as he kicked him.

"James! Get off him," Maddie cried, trying to move forward. Lily stopped her, reaching her and holding her back as James turned the man.

"Flint?" he said in shock. Lily looked over and her mouth fell open. She could barely recognize his face, Broderick Flint having graduated when they were third years and gone on to the Quidditch League for the Cannons. He was at least seven years Maddie's senior and James seemed to be having the same realization Lily was having, lunging down and punching him.

"James stop! You're drunk."

Lily held Maddie firmly as the witch cried, her lover crawling away from James's wrath.

"You know I can make a really good Christmas punch," James said, slamming his fist into Flint's face. The other wizard tried to get away but James didn't give him the chance. "She's fifteen you sick fuck," he spat.

"Stop," Flint moaned. But James was relentless, grabbing Flint from behind and throwing him into a bookshelf.

"Get off preying on school girls?" James demanded, punching him again. "Huh."

Lily let go of Maddie who was hysterical at this point.

"James that's enough," she said, moving to him. James ignored her, raising Flint and pinning him into the shelf.

"If you so much as look at her again I'll kill you," James shouted, shaking him.

"What's going on?"

Lily looked up to see Sirius and Orion Black at the entrance to the library, both gaping at the scene.

"Flint's been shagging Maddie," James revealed, throwing him to the ground. "Was about to hit her too."

"You're psychotic James," Maddie shouted, trying to move to her lover. But Sirius stopped her before she could reach Flint.

"He's a predator," he said to Maddie. "Don't go near him."

"Let go of me. I love him!" Maddie shouted, breaking from her Sirius's grip. But James caught her, holding her tightly as she struggled against him. Flint laughed, spitting out blood.

"Hear that Potter," he leered. "She's in love with me. Isn't that sweet."

"You know I don't take kindly to intruders," Orion suddenly said. Lily watched as he strode over to Flint and pulled out his wand, saying the silencing spell and smiling. "Crucio."

Her eyes widened as Broderick's body jerked in pain, the man silently screaming. Lily looked over to Sirius and James helplessly, but James was holding Maddie in his arms, looking away and Sirius merely watched as Broderick continued to spasm in pain. Eventually Orion laughed.

"Enjoy the rest of the party kids," he said, dragging Flint's moaning body out of there. "Mr. Flint and I are going to have a discussion with the aurors now."

"I hate all of you!" Maddie shouted when James let go of her. She looked at Lily, a crazed look in her eyes. "What's she doing here? Paid her to tail me, did you! After what she did to Marlene?"

"Lily hasn't done anything," James said with a frown. "And Marlene would be asham—"

"Don't you dare finish that," Maddie exclaimed, pointing her finger at James. "Marlene was seeing much worse people— people double her bloody age!"

Maddie stormed out of the room, cursing James out and Sirius followed her, trying to calm her down. Lily's mouth fell agape but she gathered her senses, turning to James.

"We should give them some space," she said in a low voice. He nodded shakily, letting her guide him out of the library and into the hall. She stopped suddenly, opening her mouth to speak but froze, seeing the blood leaking from his knuckles.

"Let me heal those," she said, reaching for his hands. But James violently pulled back from her.

"Did you know?" he demanded.

"Know what?" Lily asked.

"That Marlene was seeing someone older?"

Lily hesitated. She knew that Marlene had slept with recent graduates, and even made out with a quidditch player when the pair snuck into a Puddlemere victory party. But she had no idea who the man double their age was.

James caught her hesitation, his eyes turning cold.

"How could you let her do that," he spat.

"She was her own person," Lily protested. James scoffed.

"She would have listened to reason," he exclaimed before looking at her with a sneer. "I shouldn't have expected more from you. You were just her bloody follower, mindlessly letting her dictate your life."

Lily sucked in a breath, looking at James with hurt as he cursed.

"Fuck— Lily loo-"

"I should go," she stuttered, moving back from him.

"Lily wait!"

She could hear James calling after her but didn't stop, breaking into a run as she tore out of the Black family Manor and summoned the Knight Bus to take her back to London.

AN: In the rush to get this chapter out, I'm unable to respond to reviews but know they were read at least twice warmly! Thank you for all the amazing insight into your thoughts and ideas.

Next Chapter: Going to the Library

R&R