The fifth-year girls' dormitory cleared out for dinner, leaving Lily alone to get ready for the party. Alice had tried to get her to come down and eat first, and Marlene had offered to do her hair, but Lily waved them off. Slughorn always made a fuss if everyone didn't eat enough—and really, the food was usually better than whatever the Great Hall had on offer, though of course no one would ever admit as much to the elves. And as for her hair… well. Lily frowned at it now. Perhaps she should have let Marlene help after all. She sighed, muttered a few spells, and nudged her auburn waves into slightly more robust curls, trying to get them to look more like ringlets than accidentally-air-dried-and-shoved-in-a-bun. After a few minutes, she decided it was hardly worth the bother and just braided the front bits back, resulting in a half-up, half-down style with the ends fluffed enough for some volume. Glancing at the time, Lily bit back a quiet curse and reached for her makeup bag. Of course, there were magical ways to do this, but… good as she was at Charms, she still hadn't forgotten the time she'd stained half her face red in an attempt at a blushing spell. So she swiped mascara onto her top and bottom lashes, dusted some shimmer in the inner corners of her eyes, and finished the whole look off with some peach-toned blush. She glanced back up at the mirror and nodded. Good enough for a party. She glanced down at her outfit (a knee-length gold-green dress that swirled when she moved too quickly, with a neckline that plunged almost too low), picked up her brown-and-gold leather sandals from the floor, and tucked her wand in her pocket.

She met up with Severus at the bottom of the stairs to Gryffindor Tower.

"I could have met you by the dungeons, you didn't half to walk all this way," Lily admonished.

"You look beautiful." He told her after a pause, offering his arm.

"Thanks," she replied, trying not to feel the way his eyes skated over her from head to toe. She shoved him in the side, pushing him slightly off balance. Like friends do. "You look nice, too. A definite step up from sweaters and getting twigs in our hair by the swings back home."

He laughed at that, and they were back to normal. They chatted about classes, about common room gossip—apparently Bertha Jorkins was trying to run an advice business out of a bathroom stall, but Moaning Myrtle had proved to be enough of a distraction that Bertha had to offer the ghost commission just to stay out of the way—and finally made their way down to Slughorn's little suite. They were on time, but the party was evidently on its way to being in full swing. Music played from a little radio in the corner, a buffet table was nearly sagging underneath the weight of the food and drink it carried, and fifteen or twenty people were gathered around tall tables.

"I'll go get us drinks," Severus offered. "What'll you have? Not butterbeer, I assume."

"Soft cider if it's there?" Lily wrinkled her nose at even the mention of butterbeer. It had always been far too sweet for her tastes.

Severus nodded and disappeared. Lily looked around the room, trying to gauge whom she knew or didn't out of the clusters of adults and students who were networking under the guise of casual conversation. Sure enough, the usuals of the Slug Club was there— Narcissa Black, quietly sipping a gillywater on the arm of Lucius Malfoy, who had graduated a year or two prior. Marcus Avery. Theodore Wood. Pandora Quinn, dressed in floating layers of tulle that could only be described as diaphanous. Dirk Cresswell, who seemed to be there with Gwenog Jones, but Lily suspected that Gwen would be more likely to leave with Dahlia Fawley, if previous club events were anything to judge by. As for adults… well. Lily didn't know everyone, but she did see Theodore Nott and Abraxas Malfoy off to one side of the room and immediately made a mental note to steer clear. Lucius Malfoy had been a seventh-year during Lily's first, and she knew enough to know that his father ran in political circles that Lily wanted nothing to do with. Adrian Finch, the photographer, was there as well.

"There she is," a voice sounded from behind her. Lily turned in surprise at Remus Lupin, who was dressed in an unusually nice set of robes that seemed to have a hastily charmed patch on each sleeve.

"Remus?" Lily raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think this was quite your scene…"

"Eh." Remus shrugged. "James insisted that Slughorn has the best hot cocoa in the castle. I had to come see for myself."

Lily nodded. "Biscuits, too. Though I don't think Potter would know about those, as I've never seen him at one of these things before."

Remus looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue. "Chocolate biscuits?" he asked hopefully.

Lily let out a light laugh. "With little scotch caramels in the middles. You'll like them." Remus's sweet tooth was quite well known in Gryffindor Tower.

The two of them made their way to the buffet table. Lily wasn't particularly hungry but took a few slices of cheese—a blue brie, a gouda, and something sharp that smelled like cheddar but tasted more like manchego—and some fresh fruit, as well as a mini-quiche the size of her thumb that was swirled with herbs and dotted with what smelled like bacon.

"Where is Potter, anyway?" Lily asked, laying a slice of brie atop an apple slice and putting it in her mouth.

Remus looked up from his own plate, which he was stacking with a few varieties of biscuits (the chocolate-scotch ones among them). "He's here with his grandfather, somewhere. They disappeared a few minutes after I got here."

Lily's forehead scrunched in suspicion. "Define disappeared."

"They…" an odd look passed over Remus's face. "They ducked into a corner for a quick discussion, I suppose. They'll be back out soon enough, I'm sure."

"Ah," Lily rolled her eyes. "Planning something nefarious, I'm sure."

Remus's eyes twinkled. "Define nefarious."

"Something that I'd rather be aimed at the two gentlemen over there than at myself," Lily answered dryly, gesturing surreptitiously at the Lords Malfoy and Nott.

"Gentlemen seems a bit generous," Remus muttered darkly, causing Lily to roll her eyes, though she didn't exactly disagree. "But if that's your definition of nefarious, then… well. I've no doubt that James won't disappoint, not if his grandfather's here."

Lily cocked her head to the side. "Hm?"

"Oh." Remus waved a hand vaguely in the air. "James or Sirius could explain it better than me, it's one of those pureblood things that goes back longer than any of us have been alive and involves a family feud and also apparently a series of pranks and a potions lab explosion? I'm really quite fuzzy on the details."

"Huh. Well, I suppose Potter had to get his chaos from somewhere other than being an overly indulged only child." She glanced back up at Remus, whose expression had gone from amused to mildly disapproving, and reconsidered. "Okay, you're right, that was unkind. I just meant…"

"He can be an arsehole when he wants to be, I know." Remus said. "And sometimes when he doesn't. But he's also a better friend than you tend to give him credit for."

Lily sighed. "I'm sure he is. But… ugh. The thing with the hair and the snitch…"

"And the bullying your dear friend from before Hogwarts, I know." Remus nodded.

"Yeah," Lily took another bite of cheese. "That."

"I know." Remus agreed. "And I put aside James's faults much the same way I suspect you do Snape's, or from what I gather, your sister's. That's what family is." He glanced down at his plate. "You were right, by the way."

"I was?" Lily frowned.

"The biscuits," Remus flashed her a grin, startling and fleet and gone in half a second. "They really are excellent."

"Ah," Lily couldn't help smiling in response. "Yes, that they are."

She was just trying to figure out what to say next when Severus appeared at her elbow. "Lils," he said in greeting. "I was trying to find you, I couldn't see where you'd gone.

She looked over at her longtime friend, just long enough to see the look of disapproval on his face, just long enough to feel like she was doing something wrong, and by the time she looked back Remus was gone, slipping into the crowd, presumably off to find Potter.

"What were you doing with him, anyway?" Severus asked, edges of his mouth turned down in distaste.

"Just… talking." Lily took her drink from him and took a sip, the usually sweet cider turning sour in her mouth. "He's really…"

"He's friends with Potter." Severus sneered. "And besides that, he's dangerous, you know."

"Hey." Lily's voice came out more sharply than she'd intended as she set her drink down on the nearest surface. "I know what you think about him—about them—"

"But you swear he's not so bad, I know." Severus sounded almost as bored as he did frustrated. "I just know what I saw, all right?"

"All right." Lily set her plate down too and held both hands up in resignation. "I'm sure you did. Now, can we please just—"

"LILY, MY DEAR!" Slughorn's booming voice interrupted her. The rotund Potions master approached from the other side of the room, towing along a taller man with distinctly messy gray-streaked hair in his wake. "I've got someone here I'd like you to meet—"

"Go," Severus muttered quietly. "I'll watch the plates and the drinks. Like always."

"Sev—" Lily looked back reluctantly.

"Go." He snapped.

She sighed, picked up her cider, and turned to Slughorn with a just-barely-too-bright smile. "Professor! Thanks for the invite this evening, it's a lovely party."

"Don't be ridiculous!" The portly man beamed back at her. He turned to the gentleman he'd dragged along. "This here's Lily Evans, she's the brightest witch in the castle, absolute dab hand at potions. I thought it'd only be right to introduce you—"

"Pleased to meet you." The man extended a hand to Lily, who shook it. "I'm Fleamont, though most just call me Monty. I'm a bit of a potioneer, though really more of a business owner—I've actually heard quite a bit about you."

"ECXELLENT, I'll leave you to it! Ooh, fizzing limoncello." Slughorn clapped Lily's shoulder and then hurried off in the direction of the aforementioned beverage.

Lily tilted her head to the side, taking in the potioneer's messy hair, height, and a scar that belied evidence of a once-broken nose. "What you've heard wouldn't happen to come from a certain Quidditch player in my year and house, would it?"

"Ah." Fleamont—Monty—grinned ruefully. "So you do know my grandson. I wasn't sure—he's been known to exaggerate, especially when it comes to pretty girls."

Lily let out a somewhat unladylike snort. "I… well, yes, we've crossed paths."

Monty chuckled. "I know the Lupin boy is the one who keeps him out of detention, so I'm assuming you're the prefect who occasionally chucks him in it?"

Lily blanched at first, but then relaxed at the twinkle in the much older man's eye.

"Don't worry," Monty grinned, and in that grin, Lily suddenly did see James in all his reckless teenage glory. "If he's anything like what I was at that age, he needs someone to keep him on his toes."

"Well, I do my best on that front, sir." Lily permitted herself a small smile. "I must confess, by the way—I'm quite a fan. Your work on Wolfsbane variants and on humidity control potions is nothing short of genius."

"Ah, you actually know my work." Monty's eyebrows rose a bit, and the corner of his mouth twitched upwards. "So dear old Sluggy wasn't kidding, you are a bit of a prodigy."

"I just like to read." Lily demurred. "And with potions… my mother's quite the chef and my father's a Muggle chemist, the shift was fairly easy."

"Chemistry!" Monty exclaimed. "Ah, what a wonderful field. A shame that magic sends the instruments all wonky half the time. But the texts! It's changed the way I differentiate between copper and steel stirring rods, believe it or not."

"I'd absolutely believe it," Lily grinned. "Dr. Granger's work on the subject—it all adds up. I've always liked Potions as the bridge between worlds."

"Indeed." Monty nodded. "And—"

"Oh, dear." A voice drawled from behind them. Abraxas Malfoy had somehow wandered across the room without Lily noticing, with his son and Narcissa Black close behind. "Lord Potter, you can't possibly be discussing this with that."

"What, proven alchemical principles with a clever student?" Monty replied sharply. In that moment, gone was the easygoing (if a bit manic) man with whom Lily had been engaged in discussion. In his place was someone who stood a bit taller, who could look down his nose with every bit the aristocratic background that Lily regularly forgot the Potters possessed, who could stare down even a Malfoy.

"You know what I mean," Lord Malfoy said loftily, not even sparing a glance down in Lily's general direction. "In our day—"

"It is still our day." Monty glowered. "And I didn't sit on the Wizengamot or fight to keep dark magic out of the classroom to see you repeating your bigotry in front of your son. Your future daughter in law."

"It is because of my son and my future daughter in law—"

Lily felt a tug on her elbow and turned to see James Potter appearing from seemingly thin air. "Come on," he whispered. "You don't need to hear what he's about to—"

"I'm fine—" Lily hissed back, but not before hearing the last bit of invective hurled from Malfoy's mouth. "—Mudbloods like that into our classrooms, into our world, into our—"

Lily didn't hear the rest. Numbly, she let James lead her away from the conversation, past the table where she'd left her plate with Severus, all the way to a back corner of the room. Then he was gone, but a moment later he was back, handing her a new bottle of cider and a plateful of chocolate and caramel biscuits and salty pretzel-and-dark-chocolate bits that were shaped like mushrooms and occasionally changed shape on the plate. Any other day, Lily would have found them adorable. Tonight, she just stared at them because doing so was easier than looking up at James Potter, and took a sip of cider, as Remus quietly joined them, snagging a chocolate mushroom from Lily's plate.

"I really don't have words… I'm so sorry you had to hear that. I'll go and punch Malfoy out if you like," James offered.

"I'd have heard it any other night, it sounds like." Lily sighed. She poked at the chocolate bits on her plate, picking up a biscuit but not biting into it. "I… this has been an ongoing fight for a while, hasn't it. Not just between your grandfather and the Malfoys, but…"

"But bigotry's been alive and well for a long while." Remus agreed. "I know. Trust me, I know better than most."

"But…" Lily shook her head. "I don't know if I'm meant to be angry or sad or left out or just tired."

"All of the above?" Remus suggested. "Or just find yourself some really good friends, and some excellent chocolate, and…"

"And just forget it happened?" Lily shot back sarcastically. "No, that's… I won't sit idly by while he just—"

"No one was asking you to." James cut her off. "Was that really your first assumption?"

"It's what Severus usually suggests." Lily said flatly. "Let it play out, then just beat them with the high exam marks, and—"

"And that would work fine if you were a Slytherin," Remus pointed out. "But your first impulse isn't to back off and let things play out."

"No." Lily agreed. "I want to do something. I can't just…"

"Pick a fight in the middle of a party hosted by a professor who's trying to help you network for the future in the middle of our OWL year?" Remus glanced over at James. "We might be able to figure something out."

"No." Lily sighed. "I mean, I can't do anything right now. But I…"

"You will." James reached out to grasp her arm. "Perhaps not right in this moment, but you'll show them all. I'm sure of it."

"Thanks," Lily murmured, taking a sip of her cider, which was cool and sweet in her mouth.

James cleared his throat. "Where is Sniv—Snape, anyway?"

"He's…" Lily scanned the room for him. "I'm actually not sure."

"Ah. Over there. With Avery." Remus pointed.

"With Avery?" Lily dropped the half a biscuit she was holding in surprise. But sure enough, there was Severus, clearly engaged in conversation with the sixth-year Slytherin and… was that Narcissa Black, all blonde hair and angular, sharp features?

"Come on." James muttered quietly. "Let's get you home, Evans."

"But I can't—I cane with Sev, and he's—"

"Preoccupied." Remus said the word softly, but it echoed in Lily's head nonetheless.

"Fine." Lily glowered. "I should at least… tell Slughorn I'm leaving?" even as she said the words, she knew she wouldn't do any such thing. Any conversation with the host resulted in being cajoled into staying for another forty minutes, which Lily really didn't want to do, despite her protests to the contrary.

"Come on." James repeated. "Let's go back to the Tower, we'll get some cocoa from the elves, come up with a plan to unleash hell on the Malfoys and Notts of this world, maybe play some Exploding Snap. It'll be great. An afterparty, of sorts."

Lily drew in a shaky breath. "I think I'll pass on the afterparty. But leaving's not the worst idea. Your grandfather won't mind?"

James snorted, already clambering to his feet and extending a hand to help Lily up. "Mind? I think he'll offer you an internship the minute he gets home tonight, I'd be expecting an owl if I were you."

Lily took the proffered hand, and together the three of them made their way up the many stairs to Gryffindor Tower. They didn't speak, but the quiet was oddly lacking in tension. The common room was empty when they arrived, and Remus offered Lily a quick side hug before heading up the stairs to the boys' rooms, leaving Lily left alone to stare at James.

"What?" he asked, running a hand through that horrendously messy hair.

"I didn't expect…" Lily shook her head. "Thanks for the company on the walk home, that's all."

"You thought I was going to stand here and rail on and on about how Snape isn't fit to be by your side at events like tonight." James crossed his arms.

"I don't know that I'd have phrased it like that," Lily hedged. "But yes."

James shrugged. "Actions speak for themselves."

"That's oddly mature of you," Lily remarked dryly.

James winked in return. "I'm sure I'll do something stupid tomorrow, just to balance it out."

"I'm sure." Lily tried to smile, but she couldn't manage to muster up more than a faint sort of grimace.

"Hey." James grabbed her arm as she started to turn away. "You're sure you're all right?"

Lily pressed her lips into a flat line. "I'm fine. Good night, Potter."

There was an odd pause, a moment of quiet full of unspoken words and drifting thoughts that would remain kept secret in the dead of night.

Finally, James took a step back, withdrawing his hand from her arm. "Night, Evans."

Hi all-

Sorry about the radio silence! i graduated from my university and have been in a mad shuffle of moving and packing and unpacking and preparing to start grad school; it's been a bit chaotic. I hope a 3500-word chapter is penance enough for y'all! I'm hoping to update this weekly or biweekly for the considerable future, as I'm planning to take this story through 5th, 6th, and 7th years and a bit beyond. Please don't forget to review!