1Lily slept longer than she had intended. James was headed out of the door for his morning practice by the time she awakened.

Shelby had been fed and was momentarily occupied with a baby doll.

"Dad'll pick her up in about an hour. I'll be back by noon," James lazily recounted. He was usually okay on little sleep, but not today.

"Okay," Lily commented as she placed some energy bars into James' pack. "Don't forget we have to go up to Hogwarts tonight."

James nodded and headed out the door.

Jonathan arrived just after James left. He sported a bandaged arm.

"Sorry I'm a little early," Jonathan apologized, "but I got off sooner than I'd expected. I had hoped I could have a quick talk with James before I headed back?"

"He's already left for practice," Lily apologized.

Jonathan nodded but looked disappointed.

"I'll tell him you want to talk," Lily offered as she gathered the rest of Shelby's things. She handed the bag to the suddenly old looking man and timidly regarded him.

"What's going on?" she asked him.

Jonathan smiled, "Nothing for you to worry about. Just some old family stuff...I'll probably need to talk to him tonight. Do y'all have any plans?"

"The Hogwarts faculty Christmas party is tonight," she told him, trying not to allow herself to become offended, "but we won't stay long. James didn't get much sleep last night."

She gave him a significant glance. He ignored it.

"Okay, Shelby. Let's go," he lifted the child onto his shoulders and was gone.

Lily ran to the bedroom and quickly took a shower. Then she dressed warmly and scribbled a note to James.

'I'll be back soon. There are sandwiches in the kitchen. I love you, Lily.'

She sat the note on the bedside table, wrapped her flyaway hair into a scarf, and headed off to see Professor McGonogall. She needed to talk.

"Good Morning," she greeted the woman as she took a seat in the Quidditch stands.

Professor McGonogall smiled at Lily. "Come to watch the match? Where's James?"

"He's at practice. They've got a big match on Christmas, and they've gone to two practices a day," Lily explained. "And actually, I wanted to talk to you, although the match is a bonus."

The old professor looked surprised.

"It's nothing especially bad," Lily sighed. "James is just bugging me."

Lily then proceeded to tall the older woman about James' behavior towards Jonathan. She hated that James was willing to talk to Sirius about everything, but when she asked what was going on, she was told that it was family stuff.

"I am not unable to handle what is going on between James and his dad," Lily fumed.

McGonogall didn't need anymore explanation. "Lily, this is an old feud. James and his dad have the best relationship, except when it comes to Jonathan's work. James hates it, and Jonathan won't retire unless James takes his spot. He doesn't trust anyone else. And James won't work for the Ministry. You know all of this."

"No, I didn't," Lily admitted.

The professor raised her eyebrows.

"Why do they treat me like a second rate family member?" Lily wondered aloud. Then a realization struck her, and she was even more frustrated. Would this worthiness stuff never leave? She knew James hated all of this profiling. For some reason, she found herself mad at Snape.

During her ranting, she had neglected to notice that Professor McGonogall was not alone. Professors Sprout and Binns were with her.

But Lily didn't care anymore. She was too upset. Tears threatened to fall as she turned to watch the match.

The three teachers exchanged glances. The Potters were a truly powerful family, and they made a stir by standing by what was right. But they realized that, quite possibly, Lily was not what they had had in mind for their James.

But James was one of their all time favorite students, and whatever their faults, his parents were good people.

Lily seemed to spot someone in the stands below. She pursed her lips.

"I'm just going to leave," she abruptly stated as she stood.

Professor Sprout looked at her sympathetically, "You should have married Remus, dear."

Lily slightly smiled at the longstanding joke.

The three teachers began to discuss Lily as soon as she was safely out of hearing distance.

"I don't think there's anything to worry about," Professor McGonogall shrugged finally as a tall man took a seat beside her.

"What aren't you worried about?" James asked his former teachers as he chewed on an energy bar. "And where's Lily? I saw her up here and I thought she saw me."

"Maybe you should go and talk to her," Professor Sprout suggested. All three of them looked guiltily at their feet, as if they'd invaded his privacy.

"Okay," he slowly answered, silently questioning them, but none of them would look at him, so he stood up. "It was nice talking to you guys. I'll see y'all tonight."