You sunshine, you temptress

My hand's at risk, I fold

Fine Line, Harry Styles

"Mar"

"Yes Lils?"

Marlene was lounging on Lily's bed, sprawled out on her stomach , flicking through the newest issue of Cosmo. Lily had paid for a years subscription for Marlene's birthday a few months ago, knowing how much she loved to immerse herself in muggle gossip and sex tips.

"How many people have you slept with?"

Marlene's eyes quickly flashed over to where Lily was sitting. Lily had sat herself on the edge of the desk in her room, her legs were crossed and her palms were leaning behind her. She had a thoughtful look in her face.

"You already know that answer"

"How many has Black slept with?"

Marlene narrowed her eyes and closed the magazine in front of her. The conversation was turning drastically more interesting than the article she had been reading about pleated skirts versus trousers.

"Why?"

"Just wondering"

"Why would you want to know that?"

Lily narrowed her eyes at Marlene's inability to humour her.

"I was just wondering what the normal number for a guy our age would be"

"Well it definitely wouldn't be Sirius' number" Marlene scoffed.

"Right, so I was wondering what number is a lot then?"

"Well Black doesn't tell me things like James does, but from what I actually know, well from eavesdropping, it's probably around 7 at this point"

"7? I thought it would have been more" Lily admitted.

"Probably is, but he wouldn't tell me would he?"

Lily nodded thoughtfully.

"How many girls has Potter slept with then?"

This made Marlene sit up.

"Why?" she grinned.

Lily noticed the way Marlene's posture straightened with excitement.

"I dunno, I was just wondering what the normal amount is, like I said" she shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant.

"He wouldn't want me to tell you"

"Ok, that's fair enough"

Marlene grinned knowingly.

"How many have you slept with?"

Lily's eyes widened. She hadn't actually told the girls the details about what happened over the summer.

"One"

"But it sounded like it was more than one?" Marlene was careful with this conversation, Lily wasn't usually so open about her relationships.

"Well I had sex with one guy and I did...uh other stuff with another" Lily's pale cheeks were now quickly flushing with a pinkish red.

Marlene grinned and clapped her hands onto the bed beneath her excitedly.

"Oh I've always wanted to talk like this with you!" She gushed.

"What? You can always talk like this with me?"

"Oh c'mon Lils, last year you weren't really in the mood to be talking about boys and sex" Marlene explained quickly.

"Right"

"So what 'other' stuff did you do?" Marlene's blue eyes were wide.

"Uh fine"

As Lily described in detail her escapades with the two boys she had gotten intimate with over the summer, Marlene gushed and laughed in all the right places.

"Hey, it's all practice right? We don't all become experts overnight?" Marlene offered, as Lily had just finished her explanation of the first time she had gotten on her knees for a boy.

"But I don't think I enjoyed it?" Lily awkwardly admitted.

"This is why I like girls," Marlene winked.

"Well I like boys...a lot but I don't know I just didn't feel that rush you're supposed to feel. I was drunk most of the time as well!"

Marlene laughed at this.

"You'll find someone that will make you feel that way one day Lils"

Her thoughts automatically went to the way James had squeezed her shoulder just hours ago when he squeezed past her in the hallway before Potions. The heated pulsating spike she felt when his hands clasped round her shoulder still sent shivers down her spine. She hadn't felt such a reaction from someone touching her before, she couldn't even imagine if he touched her skin to skin.

She quickly shut down her thoughts before they tumbled tragically into something else.

"Who are you thinking about?" Marlene smirked.

"No one" Lily said rather too quickly for someone innocent.

"Yes you are! That's what all this is about!"

Marlene could read people fairly easily and she was almost always too honest to bypass the subject.

"I mean I don't think so anyway. It was probably nothing" Lily muttered.

"Who is it? What does it feel like?"

Lily pondered this question for a second. She wasn't one to express herself so openly and optimistically. She usually kept her thoughts private, and if she had to tell someone it was always short and to the point.

"It feels like you chest constricts when they're close to you, like a tightness winds around your body and your waiting for something to snap"

"Woah"

"Yeah, it's intense and sometimes you can think of anything else but how close they are"

"You really like this guy"

This made her snap out of her little trance.

"No, I don't. It's just physical probably, I'm probably just I don't know, horny" Lily laughed awkwardly.

"You said probablya lot there," Marlene grinned.

"Whatever, it's nothing. It will go away"

"Well I have Quidditch training soon, you want to come watch?"

Lily subconsciously looked to her bedroom door, the door in which just outside was probably her co-head, James Potter, also getting ready for Quidditch training. When Lily returned her gaze to Marlene, her best friend had a devious sparkle in her eyes, she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively before pulling Lily up from her spot on her bed and pushing her over to her full-length mirror.

Lily was still in her school uniform, drab grey skirt paired with the usual grey knitted jumper. Lily scowled as Marlene inspected her in the mirror, tutting and awing as she pulled Lily's skirt up an inch and magically lengthened Lily's socks so they were knee-high.

"What ARE you doing?" Lily tried to shove off her friend's pawing.

"Making you look hot" Marlene tutted, coming around to stand in front of her and ripping her tie off her neck while undoing a few buttons of her school shirt. Her friend had no qualms at pawing at Lily's body, and enthusiastically cupped her boobs and pushed them up so her cleavage showed. Lily slapped her friends hands away.

"Seriously, what are you doing?"

"You're coming to watch me train and we're going to nab you a chaser, like that quiz said" Marlene smirked.

Marlene stepped away from her so Lily could get a glimpse of her reflection in the gilded mirror. Her best friend had only made a few adjustments, but she had to hand it to her - they really worked. The knee-length socks drew attention to her legs and with the low cut of her jumper, her cleavage was showing quite effortlessly. Lily had more curves than her friends, something she normally felt made her look wide and unattractive at times but Marlene had done quite the job in showing how to really show her curves off in a way that made Lily feel sexy.

"Why do I need to nab a chaser?" Lily quirked an eyebrow.

"Oh Lily, don't be glib with me. I know you fancy Potter"

Lily snapped her head towards Marlene standing next to her, shock rippling through her body.

"What!?"

"We've all seen you ogling at him during class, and with all those questions right now about sex, you've totally been thinking about fucking him"

Marlene loved this type of talk and Lily felt nothing but awkward and embarrassed.

She had been battling with her newfound outlook on James for weeks now. She was torn between being in awe of him and slapping him around the head for being a tosser almost daily. She had moments of self-assurance and tried to conjure up the confidence she had clung to in the summer. Those moments she thought of Ella, her brightness and blasé attitude. She would normally let her gaze linger on James on those days, let herself indulge in her hormones.

"Merlin" Lily groaned, feeling caught out and idiotic.

"You two would make a hot couple" Marlene grinned.

"I don't know if I fancy him or just want to shag him" Lily groaned, pulling her eyes away from the mirror and looking at Marlene for answers.

"Both?" Marlene shrugged.

"Fuck"

"Ok, don't panic. He's bloody obsessed with you, drools all over the place when you lounge about with your skirt riding up your thighs"

Lily looked at Marlene quizzically.

"I'm gay Lily, I also notice these things about girls. But no worries, you are safe from my clutches!" She winked. "So plan of action?"

Lily raised one eyebrow.

"I don't even know if I like him Marls"

"Well then flirt with him, get his attention a little, have fun!"

"Won't that hurt his feelings, if I end up not fancying him?" Lily didn't want to hurt James, he was probably the only person she knew that loved as deeply as she possibly did. The difference between the two of them was that she never let people love her, she had boundaries and fences and all sorts of barbed wire around her heart. James on the other hand, loved exclusively and loudly and let others love him also.

"Maybe. It might be best to keep the flirting fun and light hearted then. I'll keep an eye on James, don't worry." She smiled sweetly.

Lily shook her head.

"This won't end well."

James Potter was trying to make Lily's life difficult.

She had walked down to the Quidditch pitch with Marlene and Mary. Normally, she would sit in the stands but as they were just training, the two girls decided to take advantage of the lingering autumn sun by sprawling out on a picnic rug they brought with them. They quickly starved off the cool autumn air with a warming charm and spread their legs out to bask in the sun. Unfortunately this meant, Lily got a front row seat to James Potter being effortlessly confident in the air, showing off and dripping with sweat.

The team had dropped down from their brooms and were currently pushing through a rigorous routine of conditioning on the cool grass. James, being the captain, was shouting encouragement and guidance as they went through a circuit of sprints, sit ups, press ups and burpees. Being a chaser meant Marlene had to build up muscle on her arms and abs and was currently conveniently positioned in front of her two friends struggling through her twentieth press up.

"Lils" Marlene whispered, trying to get her friend's attention.

Lily had taken to lying down on the picnic rug, strategically closing her eyes so she didn't have to watch James huff and puff through his exercises. Mary had cleverly brought a book to read.

Lily opened one eye and found Marlene only a few feet away from her, her blonde braid had started to become loose and beads of sweat were dripping from her forehead.

Lily arched an eyebrow in response.

"We gotta do sit ups next, watch Potter" Marlene winked and laughed, causing Mary to wake up from her book-induced coma.

"What's she talking about?" Mary asked Lily.

"Haven't the foggiest," Lily mumbled.

She had propped herself up on her elbows, to get a good look at the team exercising. This was always the most boring part of Quidditch training, when Lily came to watch. She enjoyed it more when they were all on their brooms and she could watch them play out the tactics and strategies.

Before Lily could hiss back at Marlene to ask her what she was looking at, James called out time and the team shifted to their backs. Most of the team got into a sit up position quickly but James took his time by stretching upwards and reaching behind him. In one effortless sweep, he dragged his training jersey up and off. Lily felt her mouth go dry as she watched him screw his shirt up and wipe his forehead with the sweaty fabric.

James Potter was shirtless.

James Potter was shirtless and dripping with sweat.

He had the type of abs that weren't obvious. Well-defined but lean. His olive skin stretched over his muscles as he clenched and crunched into a sit up.

Lily heard a muffled laugh and shot her eyes towards Marlene. Marlene had stopped in her attempt at her sit ups and taken to watching Lily drool all over a half-naked Potter.

"Oh shut up" Lily hissed.

She could feel her cheeks burning and she subconsciously clenched her thighs together. She shuffled and tried to pull her skirt down. This however, didn't work and instead the picnic rug seemed to just pull her skirt up higher. Before she could quickly redeem herself, she heard a loud choking cough.

She looked up to find James staring at her legs, paused in his journey upwards in a crunch.

Heat flooded her extremities and she quickly crossed her legs and irritably tried to pull her stubborn skirt down.

He only stared at Lily's long bare legs for a few seconds before he snapped himself out of his stupor and continued his sit ups in a flustered daze. She could see from where she was, his cheeks were bright pink, his eyes luckily shielded by his glasses but she could probably guess correctly that his pupils were blown.

Mary was laughing quietly beside her and she could tell Marlene was trying to control her laughing as she failed to complete one sit up.

"Merlin, you're not even trying to not stare anymore" Mary whispered excitedly beside her.

Yes, Lily was still watching James. He had continued his sit ups in earnest, and her eyes were glued to the muscles in his abs and arms contracting. She was in a smutty, sweaty dream and she couldn't snap herself out of it.

"Lils" Mary whispered.

Before Lily could effectively respond to her friend, a gruff voice interrupted Lily from her lust-filled fever.

"Keep your pants on, Evans!" called Sirius Black from James side.

As if in slow motion, Lily watched James gaze flick towards her, her eyes were still pointedly watching his shirtless state and that was the first time James Potter caught Lily Evans red handed. Sirius laughed so heavily his reaction did not go unnoticed by the whole team. Marlene chuckled with him and Lily felt the need to dig a hole and bury herself in it.

She glared at James' best friend before flickering her wand in his direction and zapping him with an uncomfortable shock. She let herself revel in the way Sirius Black girlishly squealed and clutched his left side. The whole team chuckled and teased Black in his squeal and Lily chose that opportunity to look back at James. He was still staring at her, awe evident in his eyes. Only James Potter would be in awe of a girl checking him out.

He knew he was attractive, he knew he was fit but he never ever thought he could get Lily Evans to recognise that.

He was probably dreaming.

There was no way that his Lily was sitting splayed out, long legs and all, perving on him during his quidditch training.

She had come to watch them train before, but she usually spent it chatting to Marlene in breaks and shouting words of encouragement at her. Never had she even spared a glance at James, and he would know. He had Remus and Peter come to countless training just to check if Lily ever watched him. She never did.

But right now, Lily Evans was shamelessly checking out his shirtless torso. Her green eyes were raking over his body with desire, just one look like that from Lily had him hard and he had to shuffle on the ground so no one could see his obvious reaction.

He looked to his side to find Sirius squirming on the ground. The rest of the team had given up on their sit ups and started to tease his best mate for his girlish sounds.

"Alright team, that's enough for today. Next session we will focus on cardio" James dismissed them, bringing his knees to his chest in an attempt to look like he was stretching.

"Was she really looking at me?" James hissed to Padfoot.

"Mate, she was fucking salivating" Sirius groaned as he picked himself off the floor.

James couldn't believe his ears or his eyes, he was in a state of severe skepticism.

"Fuck Prongs, are you seriously hard right now? All she did was look at you?" Sirius laughed as he pointedly looked at James lap.

James quickly stood up and turned away from where Lily was sitting. He faced the empty field as he tried to subtlety fix his erection.

"Fuck off, did you not see her sitting there? Her skirt was so fucking short" James groaned.

Sirius rolled his eyes at his mate but nodded all the same. .

"Girls are a fucking tease"

"Fuck I can't believe Lily was actually checking me out"

"Dude, she was more than checking you out. She was eye fucking you the entire time"

James couldn't take it anymore. He needed to get away from Lily before he tossed all his chivalrous manners aside and jumped her.

"I need a cold shower" he muttered, making his best friend howl with laughter.

Authors Note:

Please note that I don't believe that any number of people you sleep with is 'too much' or 'too little'. This story is about Lily's journey in regards to sex and relationships.

Also you can find me on tumblr: arianatwycross-fics :)