Monday July 18

- Lily -

Lily was walking down a corridor on prefect patrol. It was dim, quiet and deserted – it was clearly after midnight. She should be getting back to her dorm soon, but something felt odd. Some of the windows must have been left open – a dream-like fog was drifting around the edges of the corridor. And where was Lily's patrol partner? She glanced around and, instead of seeing Remus, Lily noticed a different figure appear at the end of the corridor.

Lily felt her heart leap as she recognised the tall figure walking towards her, with his messy black hair.

"Evans," James called, a swagger in his honey-warm voice.

"Potter," Lily replied at once, her tone the usual brisk no-nonsense reply. "You shouldn't be out of bed after curfew."

"But I was looking for you." Smooth as ever, James sauntered over to where Lily stood near the corner.

"Why?" Lily said, hands on her hips.

"You know why." James' voice was softer now, and he'd stopped much closer to her than was appropriate for a pair of acquaintances. Lily could see the swirls of brown and green in his hazel eyes. His long perfect nose was only inches from hers. Lily should take a step back – James always left her a way out if she wanted it – but she didn't.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lily whispered, a hitch in her breathing.

James stared deep into her eyes for a moment, then sighed, took a step back, ran a hand through his hair in frustration, and turned to go. "Whatever, Lily. I won't wait forever, you know."

As though this thought had never occurred to her, Lily's heart clenched in shock. A sudden wave of terror washed over her.

"James," she said quickly. He turned back to her, that hopeful boyish grin now on his handsome face.

"Ye-es?" he said, stretching out the word and quirking an eyebrow.

Lily had to squash a return grin. It was her turn to saunter up to James Potter. He stood stock still, eyes drinking her in and she moved closer – too close for a pair of acquaintances. She stopped near enough to hear his breathing, so close she had to tilt her head up to see his warm hazel eyes.

James just smiled down at her for a moment, a soft contented smile this time – with none of his usual arrogance.

"Lily," he said softly, as though her name was sweet on his lips. He tucked her hair behind her ear, and then his hand slid to cup her neck. Lily's heart skipped a beat. James just waited, as though content to stand here, drowning in her eyes, all night. He was waiting for her to make the next move. Heart hammering, Lily leaned up, on tiptoe. Her lips met James' as he angled his head towards her.

The kiss was warm and soft at first. James' hand massaged her neck and his other hand wrapped around her lower back. He pulled her closer to him. Lily's hands were around his neck, one drifting to his messy black hair, pressing closer still. The kiss deepened, an intensity rising in both of them, and they-

Bang!

Lily woke with a start, her head bouncing off the window she'd been leaning against. She gazed around, dizzy and disoriented at first. Where had James gone? Things were just getting good. But then, as the huge windscreen and the seats around her came into focus, she remembered where she was.

Lily Evans was on the Knight Bus, headed to her friend Greta Catchlove's house to spend the remainder of her summer holidays. Lily's heart jumped again at the thought – not of her holiday with Greta, but with the fact that James Potter lived next door to the Catchloves. However, Lily reminded herself (and her heart – which was still beating with traitorous excitement after her dream), she and James were not dating.

Despite their frequent forays into broom cupboards at the end of last year, Lily still didn't trust James enough to commit to being his girlfriend. They'd agreed that, for this holidays, they would remain label-less, and catch up if it suited them. Lily wasn't sure how she felt about this arrangement – except that she was eager to see James again. Rather more eager than she felt was wise, but one can't control the heart.

To Lily, who liked to be in control of everything in her life, this was a constant source of irritation. Ironically, she'd spent years wishing she could control James' heart, and turn his attentions away from her. Now, as her dream had exposed, she would feel lost without his warm affection. Lily sighed at the complicated mess and looked out the window.

They were rolling through a bleak marshland. The Knight Bus had not been anywhere interesting (that Lily had seen) since she had boarded it – she checked her watch – two hours ago. No wonder she'd fallen asleep. That and the fact that she was awake most nights – worried about her father's failing health, her mother's rising anxiety nervosa, and her sister's complete lack of empathy. If Lily's father's days weren't numbered, she would have been grateful for the reprieve of disappearing to Greta's house for the summer.

As it was, Lily alternately cursed Bellatrix Black for threatening Lily's safety, and herself, for getting involved in the whole messy plot last term. If she'd kept her nose out of it, Bellatrix wouldn't be looking for revenge. But if Lily hadn't intervened, James and the Marauders might have found themselves in more trouble than they could handle. It had certainly looked that way when Lily had arrived with help.

While Lily would be safe in Godric's Hollow for the summer, she would miss precious time with her family. Still, her father's health rose and fell in waves – he might be doing better by the Christmas holidays. As he'd pointed out to Lily before he left, he'd been spending most of his time lately sleeping – he was hardly good company at the moment.

Still, Lily savoured every moment they had together. Even when he fell asleep watching one of the old movies they both loved, Lily would leave it on, sharing the couch with him as it ended, sometimes even slipping up to put on a new movie, just so they could be in the same space a few minutes more. There would come a time when that was no longer possible, and Lily dreaded it with every fibre of her being.

"Right, next stop, Godric's Hollow," announced the driver.

Lily Evans was almost thrown out of her seat as the knight bus lurched with a sudden bang. When Lily sat up, pushing her long red hair out of her eyes, the bus had appeared on a narrow lane in a quaint village. Cottages lined each side of the road, several of them jumping abruptly backward as the bus mounted the pavement.

"Careful Ern!" chided the matronly conductor, waving the black umbrella she used as walking stick.

"Settle down, Mrs Shunpike," the driver replied, calm as a canary cream despite nearly hitting the local church. "It's all under control." Ernie Prang, grey haired despite his middle age, turned his owl-like gaze on Lily.

"Now, whereabouts in Godric's Hollow, Miss?"

"Er-" said Lily, gazing around at the tidy little lanes with their white-washed cottages. In truth, Lily had never been in Godric's Hollow before. Her green almond shaped eyes, normally bright with intelligence (or a flare of temper) were furrowed in confusion.

"Who are you visiting, dear?" said Mrs Shunpike kindly.

"The Catchloves." Lily was to be staying with her friend and yearmate at Hogwarts, Greta Catchlove.

"Who?" barked Ernie, causing an entire stone wall to dodge out of the way as he turned in his seat to look at her. Mrs Shunpike shook her head in dismay.

"Er, next to the Potters?" Lily tried, becoming rather worried now. Why hadn't she asked Greta for directions? All she knew was that the Catchloves lived in Godric's Hollow, and that Greta sometimes saw James Potter practicing quidditch – or showing off, more likely – from her house.

"Ah the Potters," said Ernie, turning a very sharp left that put the bus up onto two wheels as it squeezed into the narrow lane. Squawks of disapproval rang out from the upper level. "Old family, them. This'll be the one you're looking for then."

The knight bus screeched to a halt in front of a large sandstone gateway. A decorative iron gate with the name 'Catchlove' woven into the metalwork, was standing open. To the right was a simpler wooden fence, like one might see in a farm yard. A letterbox made from an old milk pail read 'Potter'. Behind that was a stone cottage, two stories high with roses climbing over the front wall. Lily couldn't see James, or anywhere he might have the space to practice quidditch, in the cottage's tiny yard.

"New residents, these are," Ern said, indicating the white stone gateway with his thumb. "Only moved in fifty years back. What did you say their name was?"

Lily was jolted away from the window and back into the conversation. "Catchlove."

"Looks like someone's waiting to meet you, deary," Mrs Shunpike said.

Putting her attention back into the correct driveway, where it belonged, Lily saw a willowy half-Indian girl with a long black plait. Beside her stood a lanky house elf, looking imperiously up at the bus.

"Right," Lily said, grabbing her backpack. Mrs Shunpike levitated Lily's trunk down the stairs, deposited it beside Lily, and the knight bus was off again with another lurching bang.

"Lily!" squealed Greta, flinging her arms around her friend in a hug.

"Greta!" Lily squeaked, her own excitement dampened by her inability to breathe.

A whip-crack announced the departure of the house elf and Lily's trunk.

"Lily, it's so good to see you!" Greta announced, grinning at Lily as though they'd been apart for two years rather than two weeks. Greta's enthusiasm was kind of nice. Before Lily had become best friends with Greta last year, her closest friend had been Severus Snape. And while he'd been loyal (up until he wasn't) and he'd shared Lily's interests (apart from his unfortunate obsession with the dark arts), Severus had never been exactly overjoyed to see her – not in the bouncy, bubbly way Greta was.

"Its good to see you, too," Lily said, extricating herself from the hug.

"Come on, I'll show you everything," Greta said, linking arms with Lily. They set off down the long pebbly driveway.

"Those are our new goalposts," Great said proudly, pointing out a set of very tall quidditch goals visible to the left of the driveway. "The Potters got some last year and Dad and I convinced Mother we needed some, too." Greta flashed Lily a pleased grin.

This gave Lily an excuse to stare at the Potters' estate some more. The high sandstone wall dividing the Potters' and the Catchlove's had changed to a low wooden-railing fence and Lily could see that, behind the quaint cottage, the Potters' yard continued a very long way. In the far distance Lily could see what looked more like a small castle than a house. In between stood a lake, a small wood, a lot of manicured grass, and a full-size private quidditch pitch. Lily could make out three figures on brooms zooming around the closest goals.

"Wow, you really can watch James practice from here," Lily said, surprised and secretly pleased.

"Yeah, but I hope you don't spend all summer doing it," Greta joked, giving Lily a playful shove with her elbow.

"I don't spend my time watching James Potter," Lily retorted. "I don't even like him."

"Liar," Greta said simply, still grinning. "But if you want to watch quidditch, you've got to see Marcus. Man can he fly. One year with the Chudley Cannons and he's like a rocket. He's going to teach me all the tricks he learned – if you don't mind, that is?"

Lily could tell that Greta was desperate to spend as much time in the air as possible. And Lily knew Greta's brother Marcus from Hogwarts – he was two years above and a good guy. He'd be a patient teacher. Lily didn't want Greta to miss out because of her. She smiled reassuringly at her friend.

"I don't mind at all. I've got lots of reading to catch up on." A half-truth. Lily would be happy to spend the summer reading, but it would be re-reading. Her family only had so much money for new books and Lily's appetite for reading material was voracious.

"Good," breathed Greta, clearly relieved. "And here we are."

They had finally reached the end of the long driveway. A three-storey white stone building stood before them. With is multitude of windows, pillars and archways, it looked more like a palace than a home. Standing in front of the two oak front doors was a man and a woman – clearly Greta's parents.

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Greta?" called the woman. She was clearly Indian, also willowy, with long glossy black hair flowing over her shoulders. She wore emerald green robes and a welcoming smile, but the look she gave Greta was sharp. Greta took no notice, ambling up to her parents with Lily in her own sweet time – classic Greta.

"Mum, this is Lily Evans. Lily this is my mother, Diya Catchlove."

"Lovely to meet you, Mrs Catchlove." Lily smiled, but was unsure whether to shake hands, curtsey, or something else. Mrs Catchlove seemed friendly but formidable.

Mr Catchlove was almost the polar opposite. He was blonde, a bit tubby, and had pink dimples, emphasised when he grinned, which he hadn't stopped doing yet.

"Lily, so glad you could visit our little Greta," he boomed, taking Lily's hand and shaking it merrily. "Now, has Greta shown you our newest addition yet?"

"Really, Lars!" Mrs Catchlove turned a disapproving gaze on her husband. "Let Lily settle in first, before you drag her off to see those silly goalposts."

"It won't take long," Greta grinned, dragging Lily off.

"Don't be late for dinner!" Mrs Catchlove called, a stern warning in her tone.

"Don't mind Mother," Greta said under her breath, as she steered Lily past the huge house to the grassy lawn to one side. "She's a bit uptight, but she's alright underneath. Oh look, Marcus is out here."

Lily got the impression that Greta had known this already. Lily could forgive her for wanting to show off her brother's talent. Even Lily, who knew nothing about quidditch, could tell he was an excellent flier, swooping around the goalposts, turning and dodging at breakneck speed. After a minute or so he noticed the two girls looking up at him. Marcus went into a steep dive and landed lightly in front of them.

"You must be Lily," he said, grinning and holding out a tanned hand to shake hers. Like his father, Marcus was blonde and naturally cheerful. Lily liked Greta's oldest brother, who had graduated the year before last. He seemed like a good, honest person.

"You fly very well," Lily said, floundering for something to say.

"Thanks. The coach thinks my cornering still needs tightening up though. Are you going to join us on the pitch tomorrow?"

"Oh no," Lily said at once. "I don't fly."

"Don't fly?" Marcus was clearly at a loss.

"I'm scared of heights," Lily explained.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he said, and looked very sorry for her indeed. Lily assumed that if she met someone who couldn't read, she'd have similar feelings. Think of all they were missing out on. But she didn't feel the least bit sorry for herself over missing out on quidditch.

"Dinner's nearly ready," Greta piped up.

"Excellent. I'm famished." Marcus grabbed his broom and they headed into the kitchens by way of a side door. The kitchens were huge – clearly able to feed dozens of people if required. The space was wide, with a flagstone floor, white stone walls, and lots of cupboards and benches. The imperious house elf was stirring a big pot on the stove, and there was someone else Lily recognised. Sitting at the long kitchen table, reading a newspaper, was Damien Catchlove, the second eldest Catchlove sibling. He was scowling (not so unusual for Damien) and didn't look up when they entered.

"Damien, you know Lily Evans," Greta said, helping herself to the cookie jar that stood beside him. She offered the jar to Lily who declined. Damien looked up when Greta swiped the cookie jar, scowling at her from under his dark hair.

"Yeah, I know Lily," Damien said dismissively, glancing at Lily, then pausing and giving her an appreciative once-over that Lily couldn't fail to see. After taking in her tight jeans and fitted t-shirt he said in a somewhat different voice, "We've met before."

Marcus noticed this too. He walked casually past Damien, and gave his brother an upside to the back of the head, without skipping a beat. Damien glowered broodily at his older brother, but Marcus just shrugged as if to say, 'You deserved it. Keep your eyeballs in your head and have some manners.'

Damien stood up, his chair scraping the flagstones, and left the kitchen.

"Don't mind Damien," Greta said, stealing another cookie before the house elf could remove the jar from the table. "We don't."

"Is dinner ready yet?" said a new arrival, a younger girl covered in feathers. "I've just finished seeing to the hawks and I could just about eat one." She was almost as tall as Greta, and almost as beautiful as her mother. There was a graceful elegance to the way she walked, and the way her hair fell over her shoulders, that Greta somehow lacked. Greta, who dressed and walked like a boy, was unlikely to have ever cared about this.

"Not yet, Miss Betje," the house elf said. "Twenty minutes to go."

"Betje?" Lily said in surprise. She'd thought Greta's sister, two years their junior, was called Elisabeth.

Marcus saw Lily's confusion and explained.

"Dad insisted Larky," Marcus indicated the house elf, "calls everyone by their proper Dutch names. It drives mother mad. If she had her way, we'd all be called Max and Susan. It took me years to stop him calling me Marcellus."

"I don't mind Betje," Elisabeth said. "It's a nicer nickname than Lizzie."

"Yeah, but Lizzie is much easier to spell," muttered the next addition to the room.

Greta's youngest sibling was shorter than Lily, with fair hair and lighter skin than his family members. He was reading a book as he walked and hadn't noticed Lily. He stopped abruptly when he did, like a deer in headlights. The shyest of the Catchloves, Lily had always made an effort to be kindest to Lucian.

"What are you all doing in here?" demanded Mrs Catchlove, appearing in the doorway. "Elisabeth, you're covered in feathers. Go and wash up for dinner. Lucian, no books in the kitchen, you know that. Greta, if you steal another cookie I'll turn you into one. Take Lily to her room to change for dinner, she looks dead on her feet. And Marcus-"

Here Mrs Catchlove's rant stuttered to a halt. "See to your father," she finally finished, for want of anything to complain about. "He's looking for something else to buy, after he promised the goalposts would be the end of the quidditch paraphernalia."

Greta snuck one last cookie while her mother wasn't looking, and she and Lily followed Marcus up the stairs. He gave them a wink and opened a door that led into Mr Catchlove's study. Lily caught a glimpse of a large desk and an old leather couch.

Greta and Lily kept climbing until they reached the third level. Everything was white – the walls, the ceiling, the carpet, even the late afternoon sky visible through the many tall arched windows.

"This is your room." Greta opened the door onto a suite that included a huge white bed, a white sofa, and a marble fireplace so clean you could eat out of it. "There's a bathroom through there." Greta indicated a white door off to the left. "I'm so jealous. I have to share a bathroom with Lizzie. You should see how many hair potions she has. I nearly suffocate every time I go in there."

"You could share with me," Lily said at once. The suite of rooms was nearly as big as the first floor of her family's house.

"Nah, Mother wouldn't like it. So, what do you want to do? We've got time before dinner."

"Actually, I would kind of like to wash up, get changed, you know?"

"Er, yeah, sure." Greta seemed puzzled by the idea. "I'll see you at dinner."

"Thanks," Lily said, and gratefully shut the door. What Lily really wanted was a moment to herself. The journey on the Knight Bus, her dream about James, and the sheer size of Greta's home and grounds, let alone her exuberant family, had left Lily feeling a little overwhelmed. Not to mention that Mr Catchlove's cheerful smile and excitement reminded Lily of how her dad had been before he got sick – which was causing an ache in her chest that was hard to ignore.

Lily found her trunk by the end of her bed, pulled out a new set of clothes, and went into the elaborate marble bathroom to wash and change. She brushed out her hair and then returned to the bedroom to flop across the giant bed. Right now, despite the Catchloves' best intentions, all Lily felt was lonely. She wanted to be at home with her family, especially her father, and she wanted the quiet of her own small bedroom. Lily knew she'd have fun with Greta over the holidays, but Greta – a loud exuberant extrovert who was never still – just didn't understand Lily and her love of peace and quiet and moments of solitude.

In fact, very few people understood Lily Evans, perhaps because she never gave people the chance. Between Petunia and Severus, the people Lily had allowed closest to her heart, both had betrayed her in one way or another. Lily didn't trust easily or quickly.

The one person who knew her best happened to be the one she'd spent years pushing away. James Potter had a knack for understanding what Lily was feeling when even she couldn't put it into words – something Lily had discovered last year when they'd played a game of trading secrets. It had been rather comforting to find that one person in the world might actually understand her – until James had told one of Lily's secrets to his best friend Sirius Black. And now Lily was left with a conundrum – did she risk trusting James Potter again?

Lily glanced out of her window at the Potters' quidditch pitch next door. Only one figure was flying around up there now – even from this distance his messy black hair was visible. James Potter must have seen Lily's red hair just as easily. He raised a hand and waved cheerfully. Lily, mortified at being caught starting at James Potter, jumped to her feet and left her room, closing the door more loudly behind her than she intended.

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Author's Note:

Welcome to my new story!

It's a sequel to A Currency of Secrets. This will be a short summer holiday fic between sixth and seventh year. This story will feature all your favourite couples from the last fic.

For those who have been waiting for this story, apologies. Life got in the way. But I'm several chapters ahead and will be posting three or four times a week, so hopefully that will make up for it 😊 The story will last six weeks.

I hope to have the seventh year fic started before the end of the year, and will be returning to posts every day for that story.

I am missing Hogwarts a bit, as well as having all the characters together in one place, but its also nice to have a change of scenery and dynamic. Looking forward to getting back to Hogwarts for the next fic though 😊

Enjoy!