Hey everyone, I was just wondering what a beta was? i'm not sure i keep seeing that term used but i'm not sure what it means. Would anyone like to be my beta? Thanx! just reply in a review.

Last time...

Lily hears knocking on the door downstairs. She gets up. I doubt James will mind if I open it, she thinks, he's busy. She walks downstairs and opens the door. Her jaw falls open in shock. She screams.

"JAMES."

Now on with the show...

"What darlin'? Don't recognize yer dear ol' dad?" the man at the door says rudely. He pushes past her into the house. "Nice place ya got here. Whose is it? The stupid little bastard you've been bangin'? Now Lily, it's time to come home."

"No!" she says firmly. She wants to cry, but won't give him the satisfaction of it.

James is upstairs in the room with Remus and Sirius. He faintly hears Lily yelling. He jumps up from his seat and runs down the hall. Once at the top of the stairs he sees who's there. It's the horrible man who poor Lily must call her dad. He walks down the stairs. Lily's father looks up and sees him as he tries to drag Lily out.

"Who are you Sir and what may I ask are you doing in my house?" James asks him, trying to sound more authoritative than he really is, braver than he is on the inside.

"I've come fer my girl here and I'm takin' her home with me." He says as he grabs her arm tightly. James goes over to them. He's taller than Lily's father by a few inches, he looks down at him. Lily's father lets go of her arm and steps back; it's like he's scared of James, a boy just over two decades younger than himself. Lily backs away from them.

"James, it's ok. I'll go." Lily says quietly, afraid that if she speaks louder she'll cry. She's on the verge right now. James sees this and puts his hand on her shoulder. She flinches as he does this.

"Boy, remove yer hand from my kid and we'll be going. You heard her; she said she's coming with me." Mr. Evans says.

"No, she's not going. Maybe in the summer, we're only here for a few days and my parents will be home any minute now. My father will not be very understanding if you are here trying to take Lily. My parents have grown to like Lily very much." James tells him.

"So the little slut..." Mr. Evans starts.

"Stop right there. Get out this house now." James tells him strictly.

"I'll be back son, count on it." Mr. Evans says as he starts to leave. Before he walks out the door he slaps Lily across the face. It happened so quickly that no one could stop him. He got out before James could do anything to him. James walks past Lily and shuts the door; he locks it tightly. Sirius and Remus had been standing at the top of the stairs since Mr. Evans had grabbed Lily's arm and tried to drag her out. Lily hasn't seen them; James notices that they are there and motions for them to go back to the room.

"Lils are you ok?" he asks her quietly. He notices she's crying. "Lils it'll be ok. Why don't we go sit down in the living room and I'll look at your face, see what that idiot did to you."

"He's not an idiot." She says wiping her eyes. They go into the living room and sit down on the couch.

"You're right he's a stupid bastard."

"No, James he's not!"

"Lily, stop sticking up for him. He doesn't deserve it. We'll get back to school and everything will be fine. You can stay here or I'm sure Jenna's parents will let you stay with them for the summer." James tells her. Lily looks up at him and smiles. He reaches up to her face. He touches where her father hit her, she flinches. He chuckles; Lily looks at him as if he's insane.

"What?" she asks angrily.

"It's nothing really. It's just that you'll have a nice bruise there. We can fix it though. I'll get the slave my mum used on you before." He tells her. He yells for one of the house elves, "Betty". She's there in no time at all.

"Yes master James?" she asks him in her high squeaky voice.

"Betty, get the slave for us, will you?" he asks. Betty runs off and is back in a flash. She hands it too him. "Thank you Betty."

"It was no problem sir." She squeaks before she runs off. James opens the container; Lily tries to take it from him. He keeps it from her.

"I can put it on myself." She pouts.

"No, let me Lily." He asks her. She doesn't stop him as he starts to apply it to her face. This feels really nice, she thinks to herself. How does this bloke always come to my rescue? Why does he always come to my rescue...James has really soft hands for a bloke. He's very gentle too, this bloke is one of the best I know...wait a second did I just say that about James Potter? What's getting into me? Lily's face softens as she thinks this. James cups her face and leans in as if to kiss her. She closes her eyes and turns her head so that he can't see her face. He falls back into the couch.

"James..."

"Don't Lily, I'm sorry. You've been through so much in the last two days. I shouldn't have done that. I'm being a huge prat, aren't I?"

"No James. You're not being a prat at all. In fact I don't think anyone has ever treated me better. You have no idea how much you've helped me. First in the summer, then last night, and just now too. You've saved me from other blokes how many times?" she tells him.

"Why don't you go upstairs, get some rest?" James asks. She gets up and grabs James' hand.

"Come up with me?" Lily asks shyly. She doesn't know what she's doing. The only thing she knows is that it seems right to ask James this. James gets up.

"Lily, why do you want me to come with you?" he asks her. He wants to understand what she wants from him. She bites her lip and shrugs. Lily leads James up to her room.

"How do you feel about me, James?"

"Lils you know the answer to that question. Why?"

"Well...I'm not sure actually. Umm...James..." she starts. Lily sits down on the bed.

"What?" he asks gently.

"I feel like I need to repay you in some way. You've done so much for me. And well...I think I might be falling for you Potter." She confesses. James stares at her in shock. Lily! Lily thinks she's falling for me! This is great; she's starting to feel the same way I do. Oh god what do I say to her though? Umm....

"There's no need to repay me Lils. Well you could always..." he jokes. Lily knows he's joking but when he sits down beside her she leans over and kisses him. Every time they kiss it brings these feelings up in him, feelings he's never had with anyone else before. He never wants these feelings to stop. It's like they are meant to be with each other. He's read about things like this in books like Romeo and Juliet. Star-crossed lovers, he thinks. Breathless, James pulls away. "Lils I was joking."

"I know, don't you want this though? You want me and I'm ready." she tells him. She tries to kiss him again, but he pulls away and stands up.

"Lily..." James starts, but he does know what to say to her. He does want this, but he doesn't want to take advantage of her in any way at all. "Lily...you know the answers to all the questions you're asking me. I'm not going to take advantage of you. I can't do that to you Lily."

"You're not doing anything to me..." she tries to tell him.

"I can't Lils" he states. He starts to walk out of the room, when he hears her whisper.

"I'm sorry." He turns back and looks at her. Lily is curled up on her bed crying. It tears at his heart to see her like this. He watches her for a few minutes; he goes over and sits on the bed beside her.

"What are you sorry for? You haven't done anything wrong Lily."

"It's all my fault." She whispers so quietly he can barely hear her.

"What is?" he asks. James gathers Lily up in his arms, she cries into his chest. She looks up at him.

"My mum leaving, my dad acting like he does, you being here instead of in Paris. Everything is my fault." Oh god, she blames herself for that stuff, James thinks. No one should blame themselves for stuff like that. Those are no one's fault.

"Lily, don't do this to yourself. It is not your fault that your mum left or that your dad acts like he does. And I would much rather be here with you than in Paris with those people I call parents. It is no one's fault that your mum left with your sister 'cept your mum's. And your dad is a bastard, no matter how much you say he isn't. It's his own fault that he act's like he does. If he can't control weather he drinks or not then that's his fault. He doesn't deserve your love Lily." James tells her, he tries to make her understand that it's not her fault.

"But..."

"No Lily, it's not your fault. Say that over and over head. Let me hear you say that Lily. Say 'it's not my fault'."

"It's not my fault." She says slowly and quietly. She wipes her eyes on James shirt; she sits up. "Oh look, now I've got your shirt all wet."

"That's all right" he tells her. She looks so innocent, like an angel staring up at him. James can't resist leaning down t kiss her. He kisses her gently. At first she lets him kiss her, not realizing what's happening. As he starts to pull away, thinking she doesn't want him to do it, she realizes what's happening. James is sitting with his back against the headboard; Lily is almost lying down, with her head on his chest. She sits up a little and pulls his head down to her. Lily kisses James. Their lips meeting causes sparks to fly between them. Lily slowly moves positions, only letting their lips leave each other's for a second. Lily is sitting beside James now. This position doesn't last long though as James shifts them so that Lily is underneath him. I shouldn't be doing this, I mean I did say that I didn't want to take advantage of her...but she doesn't seem to want to stop. I mean she did pull me into the kiss. I'll ask her, if she wants to, not if she's just doing this to repay me. I don't want to do that to her, he decided. James suddenly forgets about asking Lily as she starts to unbutton his shirt. He can't think about anything but Lily. He shrugs off the shirt, Lily takes off her shirt at the same time.