The week of Lily's OWLs exams came and went in a flurry of last minute late-night study in the library and tense pre-exam cram sessions outside classrooms. Lily soon realized that the stress of it all was causing her to unintentionally perform magic at a greater frequency than she ever had before. Having Scorpius by her side to calm her down in such moments helped immensely, and so he took to walking her all the way to the door of her classrooms for each exam. As Lysander had similarly taken to picking her up after her shifts at the Three Broomsticks, Lily was privately relieved that there was slim chance of her running into Carrow alone again.

With the exception of an unfortunate incident in which she inadvertently turned Montespan's desk into a hippo during her transfiguration exam, Lily managed to muddle her way through the week relatively unscathed. Though admittedly she wasn't feeling as confident as Poppy, who had begun singing as she walked through the halls, Lily felt on the whole that she had done her best.

Once the week finally came to an end, it was Scorpius's suggestion that they all go and get a drink of butter beer at the Three Broomsticks to celebrate. It was a Friday night and Poppy had been planning to be there anyway, as she had a gig scheduled with Trocar's band.

Scorpius insisted that he would fetch the drinks, arguing that Lily did enough of that during her shifts, and so she stayed seated with Lysander at one of the booths by the windows.

Once Scorpius was gone Lysander leant over the table towards Lily with an uncharacteristically serious expression.

'Carrow's not said anything to anyone…'

'Of course he hasn't' Lily muttered moodily. 'If he's the one to bring it up he won't be able to deny it and if he's not able to deny it he could be expelled; if he's lucky enough to live long enough after James and Albus find out that is…'

'And you're sure you don't want to tell anyone?' Lysander asked anxiously.

'He's a coward' Lily said firmly. 'The only person he wants to know that it happened is Scorpius. That's the only reason he did any of it- to get at Scorpius. But he's scared of telling anyone himself. He was hoping I'd do it for him, and that Scorpius would find out that way. But I'm not going to let that happen.'

'I'm a witness' Lysander pointed out. 'If he tries to deny it I can tell the Headmistress I saw it happen'

'And then he'll realize that you were the bear and tell everyone you're an illegal animagus and you'll both be expelled' Lily retorted bluntly.

Lysander shrugged at her as if to indicate that wouldn't bother him so much, causing Lily to immediately shake her head.

'He's not worth it. Lysander, please believe me, I'd feel much more satisfied if his attempts to get at Scorpius through me went completely ignored' she told him emphatically.

But her curly haired friend continued to look back at her with worry in his eyes.

'Besides,' Lily flashed him an affectionate smile, 'now he knows I can conjure up a grizzly bear to come to my rescue out of nowhere, I'm sure he won't be trying anything like that again for a good while'

The sound of footsteps approaching their table caused Lily to quickly turn around. She put on a smile to greet who she thought would be Scorpius coming back with the drinks. Instead it was Nicholas sauntering over to their table with a somewhat bashful grin. He was fully clad in leather today and had his long white hair tied back in a loose pony tail.

Lily let out a groan.

'What do you want?'

Ignoring her rude welcome, Nicolas slid into the booth seat beside Lysander and smiled across the table at her.

'Just thought I'd say hello, see how you were, perhaps clear up any confusion over what you saw in the common room the other day'

Lily rolled her eyes and sighed. This was the last thing she wanted to talk about and not exactly a great segue from her previous conversation with Lysander. But it was hard to stay annoyed at him when Poppy had been such a willing participant in the affair.

'Just don't do it again' Lily told him grumpily.

There was a pause. Nicolas blinked back at her in confusion.

'Well I'm not sure I can promise that…' he said slowly. Lily bristled.

'What happened to 'I know how to control my urges'?' she shot at him scathingly.

'Well you see we've become something of a thing' Nicolas pouted defensively. 'That is to say; we're going steady now, so you can't really expect us to-'

'You're going steady?' Lily snickered. 'Merlin, I knew you were from the 14th century but I didn't realize your vocabulary had stopped growing in the 50's'

Lily had obviously touched a nerve because Nicolas's expression darkened and he opened his mouth to argue. But Lysander jumped in first.

'So that's why Poppy's been singing all week. She's got a boyfriend' he noted dreamily.

'No, she's been singing all week because she's been doing so well on her OWLs' Lily retorted quickly. But then, thinking back on Poppy's bright smile and glazed over eyes, she lost all confidence. 'Hasn't she?'

'Look, I know you're concerned about the age difference' Nicolas brought the conversation back on track. 'But technically, physically I'm only four years older than her. And mentally, well Poppy's very mature-'

'I've not doubt she's more mentally mature than you, but I'm not sure that makes up for seven centuries of life experience' Lily said folding her arms.

'Who's more mentally mature than you?' Scorpius asked Nicolas. He had just arrived holding a round of butterbeers in his hands, which he set down on the table before taking a seat next to Lily.

'No one' Nicolas muttered.

'Everyone' Lily countered snidely.

'Whats going on with you two?' Scorpius asked with a raised eyebrow. He looked from Lily to Nicolas and back again.

'That's a great question' Lily said sarcastically. 'Perhaps you'd like to explain Nicolas; what is going on?'

Nicolas squirmed uncomfortably. He looked apprehensively over at Scorpius's puzzled expression.

'She's annoyed because I snogged her best friend'

'You snogged Lysander?' Scorpius's voice rose in surprise and his eyes flew over to where Lysander was quietly downing his butterbeer.

'No, the other one' Nicholas said with a flick of his head towards the stage.

Realization dawned on Scorpius's face. He quickly shut his mouth and fell into a contemplative silence. Lily knew Scorpius well enough by now to know that this was his usual reaction when something greatly bothered him. But it didn't stop her from wanting to fill the silence with protestations on his behalf.

'It's completely inappropriate!' she declared, glaring down the table at Nicolas.

'You do realize-' Scorpius said clearing his throat awkwardly. 'You know that she's not… well that she's…'

'I'm perfectly aware that she's muggle-born thank you very much' Nicolas snorted. He was looking at Scorpius with an expression that was half amusement and half incredulousness. 'I didn't think things like that made a difference to you'

'They don't!' Scorpius shot back with obvious discomfort, his cheeks sightly flushed. 'I just thought that might be rather problematic considering your past'

'Oh come on now, that was different time okay? We're living in the 21st century now cousin. Get with the times' Nicolas replied lazily.

'Does she actually know that you tried to murder a muggle with Noirmorter? And that you were part of a cult of wizards vehemently opposed to mixed blood lines?' Lily asked him with narrowed eyes.

'Yep' Nicolas said brightly. 'And if she doesn't care, why should you be so worried about it? I'm a changed man alright? I've had centuries to reflect and better myself'

'Still seems a little iffy' Lysander chimed in serenely.

'If you hurt her, the deal is off' Scorpius said quietly but firmly. A tense atmosphere suddenly enveloped the table at the threatening note in Scorpius's tone.

Nicolas froze. All of the joviality from moments before had drained from his face and he was watching Scorpius's expression carefully.

'I won't help you regain your place in the family' Scorpius looked back at him with an unwavering gaze. 'You'll never be a Malfoy again'

There were an awkward few moments of silence as the pair watched each other gravely. Then suddenly Nicolas's face broke out into a fanged smile again.

'Well, that's settled then. I've no intention of doing so, so you lot will just have to give us your blessings'

Lily, who did not feel at all ready to have the issue wrapped up so neatly opened her mouth to protest. But before she could get a word out, Poppy, who had jumped down off the stage at the end of her set, had darted over to their table and slid into the booth seat, situating herself right on Nicolas's lap.

'Oh good, you're here Nicky' she cooed.

'Remind me why I to be here?' James whined. He was trudging along the cobblestones of Diagon Alley behind Lily and Albus who both had their arms full carrying their new text books for the next school year. Ginny walked up ahead of them carrying their lists and muttering to herself as she tried to configure the fastest route for them to complete their shopping.

'Have you got anything better to do?' Albus retorted. 'Last I remember, you had absolutely zero plans for what to do after graduation'

'Doesn't mean I want to waste my first day of freedom with you lot' James moaned. 'Besides, I thought it was tradition to leave buying all your school supplies to the last minute. Why are we here on the first day of holidays?'

'James stop it' Ginny instructed him. 'We're here because it's far less crowded than going later, and because we're meeting your father and Teddy for lunch to celebrate Teddy's promotion'

'Oh so it's your fault' James said snidely, turning to look at Lily. 'Lily decides to have a fling with a Malfoy, the papers are all over it and now we have to sneak into Diagon Alley at irregular times just to get our shopping done'

'It's not a fling-' Lily shot back. She had plenty more to add but Albus jumped in before she could continue.

'Lay off her James. You know just as well as I do that all the bad press we've been getting isn't just because of her and Scorpius'

Albus's face was tense and Lily knew this was because he still blamed himself for having been caught up in Raleigh's wicked schemes to the detriment of their father's reputation.

'I didn't say all of it…' James muttered moodily. But he took the hint and kept his mouth shut after that.

Lily was relieved when the items on their lists were all ticked off and it finally came time for them to meet up with Harry and Teddy. The pair stood waiting outside the Leaky Cauldron in their Ministry robes. Teddy quickly came forward to take some of the books out of Lily's hands for her. He swiftly handed them to a disgruntled looking James so that he could give her a hug.

'Well if it isn't my most scandalous sister' he said fondly, ruffling her hair. 'How were your dreaded OWLs?'

'I'm your only sister' Lily pointed out with a grin. 'They were fine… I turned a desk into a hippo'

'Did you now? That's some advanced magic for a fifth year!' Teddy remarked proudly.

'Wasn't part of the test though was it?' Albus pointed out with a smirk.

'Well hopefully you get marks for enthusiasm' Teddy laughed.

Harry moved forward to give Lily a hug next. She couldn't help but notice the circles under his eyes and the lines on his forehead. Though he gave her a weak smile, he seemed markedly sombre in comparison to Teddy's chirpy mood.

Once the family was all seated inside and making their way through the house special, which was a roast hog served with a side of 'Leaky Soup', Teddy leaned over the table to ask Lily;

'How's Stubby going then? Doing alright?'

'He's good' Lily grinned back, ignoring the confused looks on her brother's faces.

'Still handsome? Still clever?' Teddy teased her, turning his hair a white-blonde for effect.

'Yep' Lily tried to disguise her embarrassed smile with a spoonful of the soup.

'What's your secret Teddy?' James cut in, quite obviously put off by the current topic of conversation. He had been asking the same question over and over, trying to catch Teddy off guard in order to trick him into telling, ever since he had first discovered that Teddy was harboring some kind of secret the evening that Lily and Scorpius's photo had come out in Witch Weekly.

'It's the blue hair. The ladies go wild for it' Teddy responded with a straight face. James shot him a sour expression.

'And what exactly were you promoted to?' he tried instead.

'Well I was a graduate employee on probation at the Love Potions section of the International Magical Trading Standards Body, but now, after three years, I am officially a Trade Officer' Teddy exchanged a meaningful look with Harry across the table.

'Basically Teddy has gone from being in a training position to being a full-time employee of the Ministry' Harry explained.

'Three years!' James cried. 'That's forever! Merlin, I'd think I'd rather have my eyes gouged out by a Hippogriff than join the ministry'

'Lucky for you, the likelihood of the former is much greater than the latter' Albus pointed out as he took a swig of his pumpkin juice.

'Now now, NEWT results don't come out for another week' Ginny said, shooting both James and Albus a warning look before their argument escalated.

'Even if I can get in, I won't' James announced.

'Well that's grand James' Ginny said calmly. 'but perhaps you ought to start thinking about what you will do, rather than what you won't'

'I'm going to do some traveling' James raised his chin defiantly.

'Oh?' Harry looked up from his meal with interest. 'Where to?'

'Dunno' James said with a shrug. 'We'll see where the wind takes me I guess'

'Are you flying there?' Lily asked perplexed.

'That's one way I could go I guess' James shrugged again.

'So you don't know where you're going or how you're going to get there' Albus observed flatly.

'Yep' James took a bite of his roasted pork, seemingly unbothered by Albus's critical tone.

'Right, well' Teddy raised his glass with a grin. 'To James's travels and to all the trade-related work I'm sure I'll be drowning in from now on'

Harry leaned over to give Teddy a pat on the back.

'I'm proud of you Teddy. It's not an easy thing you're doing'

As Lily watched them exchange another meaningful look, she couldn't help but feel there was more to Teddy's promotion than what was being discussed on the surface.

'Speaking of which,' Teddy looked at his pocket watch briefly before smiling around at them all again. 'I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you all here and get back to the office'

He turned to give James a quick hug. 'Enjoy your travels if I don't see you before you go'

'He'll probably still be here' Albus quipped.

As Lily watched Teddy get to his feet and gather up his coat and briefcase an idea sprung to her mind. She quickly rose up out of her seat.

'I've got some more things I'd like to buy so I'll leave with Teddy and meet you back here' she said. She made to follow Teddy out before anyone could stop her but Harry called her back.

'Lily Luna Potter. Don't think I don't know where you're going' He said sternly.

Lily froze. She slowly turned around to face her father.

'Dad, it's fine, I'm just popping out for a moment then I'll meet you all back here' she said with a strained smile. Teddy stood behind her with his coat over his arm, an amused expression on his face.

'I don't want you going into Knockturn Alley' Harry said firmly. 'It's dangerous and not a place that underaged wizards or witches should be wandering around alone'

'But Scorpius is there all the time!' Lily protested. Harry responded with a look as if to say that he didn't feel that was particularly appropriate either but that he wasn't about to go around commenting on Draco's parenting.

'And if I don't go today I won't see him for two whole months!' Lily cried.

'It's your birthday next week. You could see him then' Harry pointed out.

Lily blinked back in surprise.

'You mean I can invite him over?' The thought had never occurred to her. She had spent so many years hiding her relationship with Scorpius that an endless summer spent apart had simply become the norm.

'If you like' Harry looked somewhat uncomfortable but he smiled at her nonetheless.

'Oh…' Lily's face suddenly brightened. 'Thanks dad!'

She turned swiftly around, grabbing Teddy by the arm as she went.

'I'll just go tell him he's invited then!'

Harry's face fell.

'Lily! No! I said no!' he cried after her.

'I'll go with her' Teddy called back wearily as they stumbled out the door into the street.

A/N: Just a short chapter this time... hope you enjoyed it. Please review! Next chapter will FINALLY be chapter 1 of book 4 (years 6-7 for Lily).

P.S. For some reason I love making the Potter siblings roast each other... I can't seem to get enough of it lol)