THE POTTER AFFAIR



By: Concordia Black



RATING: For now this fic is rated PG-13 for language and yadda, yadda, yadda . . . however, the rating may go up to R depending on how graphic I feel like getting.



DISCLAIMER: My advice, don't sue because I don't own anything of substantial value. Besides, J.K. Rowling owns everything that you recognize, and I own anything that you don't.



SUMMARY: In seventh year, it was a purely physical relationship. At twenty five, Lily is a Hogwarts Professor and James, whom is engaged, is a Ministry Auror. They run into each other at a night club, and then later that same night at a bar, things get out of hand. A few months later, James is reassigned to Hogwarts. He makes passes at Lily, but she refuses his advances. Someone repeatedly attempts to kill Lily, and the number one suspect is James sister, Jasmin -who claims she is innocent. James is torn between his sister's pleas and the fact that all the incriminating evidence begins to lead to her.



AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is an AU fic. Yes, I know that Lily and James never made it to the age of twenty five, but you know how it is when an idea forms in your head. It just nags and nags until you act on it. Okay, now that we have that cleared up, onto the story!





~CHAPTER ONE~



Finals week was a stressful time for both the student body and the professors alike. Fortunately, for the students, it was Friday evening meaning that finals were over and the pressure was off, until their exam results came back. Unfortunately, for the professors, it meant that grading the exams was still in process, and after a while even grading can become rather tiresome.



Click . . .



Click . . .



Click . . .



Lily set down her quill and strained her ears listening to the clicking sound nearing her Muggle Studies classroom. It was slow, even, steady . . . feminine, someone with heels. The wonderful aroma of chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn filled the almost empty classroom.



Her stomach rumbled and her mouth watered, in response to the aroma growing more potent. Lily looked down at her watch, it was seven thirty in the evening, and she had missed supper.



"Figured, I'd find you here."



The cheerful voice belonged to a colleague, Arabella Figg. Lily snapped her head up from her watch, her green eyes locking with Arabella's blue eyes. Her eyes traveled down to Arabella's hands finding a plate piled with chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn.



"Well?"



"Am I that predictable?" Lily asked.



She looked up at Arabella's face instead of the plate of food and watched in amusement as Arabella's face scrunched up in dramatic concentration.



"Well, now that I've thought about it," she paused for suspense "si, you are muy predictable."



Lily sighed. She had already known the answer to her question. Lily was as predictable as Minerva McGonagall's first year's start of class speech. She couldn't believe how much she had changed since her years as a student at Hogwarts, where she had been so lively, spunky and spontaneous.



Two words, James Potter, that's what happened to her. During seventh year, they decided to be sex buddies, but she had made the mistake of falling in love with him. When she confessed her true feelings, James had told her that she had meant nothing but a good lay to him. Truthfully, those few words had hurt her more than any of the Slytherin's taunts about her being a muggle born witch.



'Damn it, why did I have to fall in love with him?'



"Did I miss something?" Arabella asked confusedly.



"Huh?" Lily asked, snapping out of her reminiscing.



"You said," Arabella paused and shook her head "oh, never mind."



An eerie silence fell upon the two Hogwarts professors. Arabella was looking at Lily as if she was trying to read her, making Lily feel intimidated under her mind-reading stare. Lily shifted uncomfortably in her chair, her stomach grumbled in her search for a more comforting position.



"Anyway, I brought you some cena, seeing as how you weren't in the Great Hall for any of the comidas today."



Lily found it strange, that even after five years of knowing Arabella; she still occasionally threw in Spanish vocabulary here and there. Sometimes, Lily found it hard understanding what Arabella was talking about when she inserted the Spanish words into her English.



"Thanks Bella." Lily replied, as she took the food from Arabella's outstretched hand. She immediately began eating the chicken, and nothing had ever tasted so delicious.



"Don't mention it. Besides, I came all the way up here for an entirely different reason."



Lily dropped her fork full of chicken, which had been half way up to her mouth. Of course, she should have known that Arabella had an ulterior motive.



"Why is that?" Lily asked tensing up.



"Relax, Lily, it is nothing life threatening." Arabella replied, Lily's tension obviously visible. "Mi hermana, Isabella, invited me to go to a club in Hogsmeade, tonight. 'Night Moves,' have you heard of it?"



"No, I haven't." Lily replied, threw pursed lips as she had no intention of going clubbing.



"Pity . . . really, you need to get out more, chica." Arabella replied, shaking her head in disapproval or disappointment, Lily wasn't sure which.



Lily's eyes flashed dangerously. She knew Arabella's speech on the-lack-of- her-social-life was fast approaching; and quite frankly, Lily wasn't in the mood to listen to it.



Arabella must have sensed Lily's mood change. "Anyway, I was planning on going to 'Night Moves,' but I don't care to go alone. Seeing as how you don't have any plans tonight, you are going with me."



"I am busy." Lily grumbled irritably.



"With what," Arabella shot back, raising her eyebrow.



"With stuff," Lily replied in agitation.



"Right," Arabella mumbled, after rolling her eyes.



"Bella, I have exams to grade." Lily said in annoyance.



"You have the entero weekend to grade exams," Arabella protested, and then added as an after thought "Chili."



"Don't call me Chili!" Lily spat, threw gritted teeth.



The students had taken to calling her 'Chili' because of her 'icy personality' as they called it. Truthfully, it was a reminder of what she had lost due to James, that being her 'fiery personality.' Lily sighed in defeat. Arabella had hit her where she knew it would have the greatest affect.



"Tell me more about this club."



"Does that mean you will go?" Arabella asked excitedly.



"Depends on what you have to tell me about the club." Lily replied matter- of-factly.



"Well, the club is actually co-owned by one of my hermana's friends, Jasmin Lopez Packer, no . . . Parker, er . . . Porter, maybe it was Patter . . . anyway, it starts with a P. She had lived in Spain with her abuela and made amigas with mi sister. All of her friends, mi hermana included, are surprising her by showing up at her club to celebrate her twenty fourth birthday. The other owner, Kira (ky rah) Spinnet, is only allowing certain people into the club. So, it is sort of an invite thing only."



Arabella finished by looking at Lily expectantly waiting for her answer. Lily weighed the options in her head. She could either spend another boring, lonely night confined inside the Hogwarts castle; or she could take the opportunity, that was being presented to her, to try and find herself again.



"Fine, I will go." Lily said morbidly, it wasn't as if she was going to run into anyone that she knew, but she hadn't been to a club in ages, and that thought was making her feel slightly uncomfortable.



"Geez, you make it sound as if you have just signed your own death certificate, Lily." She paused as Lily snorted. "Be ready by nine thirty."



Lily looked at Arabella in disbelief, as that was less than an hour and a half away. She watched Arabella walk out of the room, wondering what she had gotten herself into. She prayed that Isabella and her friends spoke English, because she hardly knew any Spanish.



~*~



Engaged . . . his grandmother had just told him that he was engaged. James hadn't even had a say in the most important decision of his life. Then again, he had known that his grandmother was the deciding factor in whom his wife would be.



He was engaged to Natasha Volkov from Bulgaria. He would even admit that the woman was gorgeous in a goddess kind of way. She had long sleek sheets of dirty blonde hair, olive green eyes, and a flawless figure. She was truly stunning, in appearance. Her personality, on the other hand, was a completely different matter. Natasha was a stuck up snob, or aristocratic bitch as his sister had often told him.



"Prongs?"



"James?"



"JAMES POTTER!"



SMACK! James lost his train of thought as he felt intense pressure at the back of his head, and then his head collided with the kitchen table. He focused his eyes on the cause of his pain, Sirius Black.



"What the hell was that for?" James growled menacingly, as he nursed the back of his head.



"You need to get ready." Sirius stated stiffly, offended by his best friends attitude towards him.



"Sorry, Padfoot, I didn't mean to take my aggressions out on you." James apologized.



"What's got your knickers in a twist?" Sirius asked in concern.



"I saw grandmother today." James said sullenly.



"What did the old bat have to say?" Sirius asked, taking a seat across from James.



"Brace yourself, Padfoot, it isn't good news. I am enga-eng," he swallowed finding that the word didn't want to be spoken "engaged."



"What?!" Sirius hollered in surprise, as his chair collided with the ground. He had been leaning back in the chair, and the news had taken him by complete surprise, he lost his balance and fell backwards.



"Natasha?" Sirius asked, untangling himself from the chair.



James shook his head affirmatively, causing Sirius to quickly jump to his feet.



"Are you fucking insane!?" Sirius shouted in disbelief.



"I don't have a choice in the matter!" James yelled back.



"Like hell you do! Tell the old wench to go fuck a tree! You don't need the Potter fortune! Prongs, you are off your rocker, this is complete rubbish, utter nonsense!" Sirius retorted angrily.



"Yeah, right . . . but I could never give up the life style that I live, Padfoot. Besides, the Potter's have always been married by someone of their grandparents choosing." James said rationally.



He wasn't sure if he was trying to convince Sirius or himself. If he refused to marry Natasha his grandmother would disown him and he would never receive his inheritance from her, and that thought scared James to death. He knew he couldn't live without his inheritance, and he had grown up living a wealthy lifestyle. He couldn't give it up now, not ever.



"Why aren't you ready yet, Prongs?"



James and Sirius turned towards the stairwell, finding a small, scrawny man with straw-like blonde hair and watery blue eyes.



"Because, he is either too busy brooding on his grandmother's insane decision; or it could be that he is too much of a pansy to stand up to the old nut. Or it could be a combination of both."



James glared at Sirius, who had no right to judge the situation that he was in. Yes, both Sirius and he were wealthy basically pureblooded wizards. However, Sirius had the luxury of making all of his own decisions; where as, James' important decisions solely relied on his grandmother's consent. Sirius was orphaned without any close relatives at a very young age, and he had inherited his fortune then. James still had his prejudice, pureblooded grandmother around to make his life altering decisions for him.



"Sod off, Padfoot." James hissed venomously.



"I must have missed something important, because I have no idea what you two are talking about." Peter spoke, staring at his two friends in confusion awaiting an explanation for their behavior.



"James is engaged to Natasha Volkov." Sirius replied.



James winced at the amount of disgust Sirius had used when saying Natasha's name. He had enough of the conversation, and he wasn't going to sit around and listen to his best friends talk about him. James pushed past Peter and stormed up the stairwell.



"His grandmother's decision, I assume." Peter questioned, once he heard a door slam from somewhere above.



"Quick one, aren't you Wormtail?" Sirius said sarcastically.



"Quicker than you think, you do remember where we are going tonight, don't you?" Peter questioned.



"What are you getting at Wormtail?" Sirius asked, quirking an eyebrow.



"We are going to 'Night Moves,' are we not?"



"Yes, but what does that have to do with James and his situation?" Sirius asked, wondering where Peter's questioning was leading too. He couldn't understand what a club had to do with James engagement to Natasha.



"Who owns the club?"



Sirius hit his head as realization dawned on him. Jasmin Lopez Potter, James' half sister, owned the night club that they were going to. He knew how Jasmin felt about Natasha, no doubt, she would go on a killing spree once she found out about the engagement.



"This is bad," were the only words Sirius could speak for the moment.



"Worse than bad, you know how Siren feels about Natasha. Something like the 'Aristocratic Bitch of Bulgaria,' isn't it?"



"I have to warn Siren, we don't want to find a dead Potter and Bulgarian at the night club." Sirius said hurriedly, running up the stairs to retrieve his leather coat before running out the door.



Peter heard a motorcycle start up. "Speak for yourself, Padfoot." He murmured, to no one in particular.



Several minutes later James came back down, the two marauders left Godrics Hollow, and apparated to Potter Manor to await the arrival of James fiancé. Godrics Hollow was a place that only the four marauders and Jasmin knew about, as it was a place for Remus to transform on the nights of the full moon. It was a place to get away from the rest of the world, when you weren't ready to face a problem or just wanted some solitude.



~*~





Well this was my first go at a fic, so I hope you liked it. I know in the books it doesn't say anything about James having a half sister. If he had surely Harry would have gone to live with her instead of the dreaded Dursley's. But rest assured, Jasmin will be taken care of (if you catch my drift) and her existence will be explained in due time.



In the next chapter:

-Lily runs into a marauder at the entrance to the night club (not the one you are thinking, I am sure)

-Sirius warns Jasmin of her brother's engagement (we get her reaction to it, along with Remus's)

-Lily meets Jasmin, Kira and the women from Spain

-Lily runs into James

-James and Jasmin fight (not sure if this will be included, depends on how long it gets)



Okay, that was just a little preview of what to expect in the next chapter of this fic. I hate asking, but I don't mind begging: PLEASE, OH PLEASE, leave me a review. Thanks much!



Happy reviewing and reading,

~Cordy~