Ok, this chapter takes place a little while after Valentine's Day… about two months afterwards. So, if you've been following, this puts us approximately 3 months into Lily's pregnancy.

To Emily, you're very welcome for the comment. The editing was fabuloso!

To emily, I shall have a great time on vacation. This chapter might make it before I leave.

Zippy-Wings, thanx for the review, and you're welcome for the cookies!


As Easter drew nearer, James was contemplating his parents' invitation to bring Lily home for the long weekend. He very much wanted to, and then they could discuss a living arrangement for at least until the two of them turned 18. James, while still pranking, was settling down a little more. It was now more important than ever that he passed his NEWT's and got a good job.


The Sunday before Easter weekend, Lily was found thumbing through a catalogue with Leala, looking for bigger robes. She didn't want to make her stomach obvious, as it was beginning to bulge slightly underneath her robes. She'd kissed her flat stomach good-bye about 2 weeks ago.

"Oh! What about these ones?" Leala pointed to a pair of pale green robes. "They'd match your eyes!" Lily looked longingly at the transfigured dress in her closet. It didn't fit her anymore. The robes appeared to be the exact same colour. She was now, however, one set of robes short, and it really made a difference in her laundry schedule.

"No, I don't think so…" Lily said flipping the page. "I just need new Hogwarts robes. In bigger sizes." She added afterwards.

They ended up ordering 3 new pairs of robes for Lily. They sent it off with Anjelita, and went down into the common room. The boys were already there, poking and prodding the miniature Quidditch stadium. It had gotten a lot of use in the past two months. Lily noticed though, that James had a completed pile of homework to his left. She smiled to herself, proud of him.

"Hey," Leala said, sitting herself down.

"There's our Seeker!" said James excitedly. He pointed at a diving figure on the pitch. "I want to go over some tactics with you before our match after Easter." Leala agreed, and they set a time for later that week. James then got up.

"Lily, I need to talk to you," He muttered as he walked past her. She followed him, slightly worried. These words were never good.

He took a breath, as if deciding something.

'Oh goodness… this is it,' Lily thought. Finally –

"Lily, do you want to come home with me for Easter?" he asked. Her eyes widened, and she grinned.

"Of course!" she said with a huge smile. "Your parents don't mind?" she added, her face adopting a worried look.

"Well…" he said. "Sort of. But it has nothing to do with you and everything to do with me. They are annoyed that I would do this to anyone, you know… get them pregnant," he blushed, "But they said they'd love to have you in their home. It proves to them that I'm taking responsibility."

Before this, the pair hadn't discussed living arrangements after Hogwarts. Lily had always hoped that James would take care of it, even though she knew she'd have to face it some day very soon.

"So, is this like… a trial? To see if they like me?" she asked with concern weighing heavily on each word.

"No! Of course not! This has nothing to do with that!" James reassured her, shocked that she would be concerned about something like that.

"Ok…" she said. She turned to go back to the group, but then whipped around, almost hitting James, who was following her. "Thank you," she said softly, "For everything."


That Friday, classes were over at noon. Lily had packed her robes the day before; her new ones had come in. After finding out about meeting James' parents, she had ordered the pale green robes that Leala had suggested, sending the order with a school owl. Anjelita had arrived on Thursday with a bulging package, and Lily had excitedly torn them open. They were all loose still, but she knew that they wouldn't be before long.

Lily met James in the common room a half hour after classes were over. She had a small bag that contained everything she would need for the weekend. She was wearing the green robes, and James thought she looked stunning. His own duffle bag in hand, they checked out with Professor McGonagall, and walked down to Hogsmeade. Lily wanted to pick something up for his parents before they apparated to James' house.

"What do they like?" she asked, as they entered a china shop just off of High Street.

"Mum's favourite colour is purple," James said as they walked slowly through the shop. "Dad likes… well, Dad could care less about china. He's more of a trinket person. He likes things that whir and spin; flashy sort of things."

They passed a beautiful purple vase just as they were leaving. Luckily, it was cheap, and Lily bought it. It was stunning, with tiny painted animals walking through; pausing to eat grass, or leaping and chasing after butterflies and birds. When Lily was pleased with her purchase – 1 galleon, 6 sickles – they set off to a hobby shop down the street.

They entered the cramped, musty shop and were greeted with light glancing off of every surface. There was a loud whirring, as if many helicopters were flying in the distance. It was silent under the whirring, and their footfalls were loud. In a case right near the front, a tiny silver instrument was puffing smoke. A little card beside it read:

Dream Catcher: This newly developed instrument will catch the dreams of whoever's in the room, and interpret them in clear colour pictures. Watch as it puffs your dreams into the air.

Indeed, this tiny instrument was puffing a family photo into the air, everyone smiling and happy. Lily and James were grinning at a tiny baby, with everyone's parents all around. Lily blushed as she recognized her dream of everyone smiling and being happy; even Petunia was in the picture, cooing at the baby.

James put his arm around Lily, as if to say he liked the dream. A Quidditch match had just begun to form as they walked away through the cramped shelves. "You know," said James, "That Dream Catcher thing is exactly the sort of thing my dad collects. Go check the price," he said as he admired a tiny silver stabilizer for his broomstick.

'Not bad!' Lily thought as she peered at the cramped price in the bottom corner. '1 galleon, 10 sickles,' it read. She pulled it out from behind the glass and paid for it.

The pair left Hogsmeade out the side of the village away from Hogwarts. As soon as they were out of sight, they apparated. Lily was holding onto James, as she wasn't quite sure where she was going.

They arrived in a wooded area just outside of Godric's Hollow. It was a beautiful place, with a splashing brook to their left that snaked through the woods. Leafy green trees provided plenty of shade, and Lily shivered in the cool spring air. James took her hand, and they walked out of the forest.

As soon as the tree cover vanished behind them, Lily beheld a mighty sight. A huge manor rose up from the land about a half kilometre away from them. Gardens painted the landscape, and a huge, high hedge concealed a Quidditch pitch. The Potter's lived in an area inhabited by Muggles, but wanted to live a normal wizarding life. As a result, James had grown up playing Quidditch, casting simple spells, and brewing potions.

They strolled slowly up to the manor, enjoying the scenery. James pointed things out to Lily as they walked. He showed her the tree he'd fallen out of when he was 8, and had broken his arm. He showed her the flowers he'd planted with his mother when he was 6. He gave her a peek inside the mighty hedge, to see the six Quidditch hoops that were indeed shorter than normal.

As they reached the house – if you could call it a house – they saw two figures dressed in robes of deep mauve and bottle green. James' mother, a gorgeous witch with long, black hair swept first James into a hug, and then Lily.

"How wonderful that you could come, my dear!" she exclaimed as she held the nervous Lily at arms length to admire her.

"Oh, thank you for having me to stay," Lily said, applying the manners that her parents had drilled into her.

"Nonsense, it's our pleasure," James' father said, reaching out to shake her hand. He was a rather small, skinny man with deep, smoky eyes and unruly dirty blond hair that looked as though he'd just gotten off of a broomstick. She shook his hand firmly, and he seemed pleased with her grip.

"Let's not just stand here!" said Mrs. Potter. She offered to take Lily's bag, but Lily shook her head.

"No, thank you Mrs. Potter," she said politely.

"Oh, Mrs. Potter sounds so old," she scowled, "Please, call me Mya."

"Ok, Mya," Lily tried out the name shyly.

They showed her to the guest room where she was to stay. James had offered to let her stay in his room, but Lily had declined. She wanted as much privacy as possible in the few days she had to explore this family.

That night at dinner she presented them with their gifts. They were both delighted with them, and Mr. Potter had even taken Lily into his study to show her his collection of whirring objects. They all seemed to serve a useful purpose.

"Thank you, m'dear," he boomed as he set the trinket on his desk.


The entire stay went rather well. On their last night there, a subject came up that James had managed to avoid the entire visit.

"So where do you plan to go after Hogwarts?" Mya asked Lily, unaware of the in depth conversation she was inviting to the table.

"Well, my mother's requested that I don't return to the house afterwards," she said, trying to keep it as light as possible, "So I'm not really all that sure where I want to go. I was hoping to become an Auror… but I think that the baby will put my plans on hold." She told them honestly.

The Potters seemed shocked that she'd been kicked out. Apparently, James hadn't told them. "Where are you going to live, my dear?" Mya recovered.

"Well," James interrupted, "I was going to ask you if well… if we could maybe stay with you for awhile. Just until we get onto our own two feet," he added hurriedly, so not to imply that they would live there forever.

"Most certainly!" Mr. Potter answered without hesitation or second thought. He immediately went into planning. "We could turn the entire second floor into a living area just for you! Or, perhaps you would prefer the third… yes, more light and less interruption from the rest of the house…" he began to mutter indistinctly to himself.

"Yes dear, of course you can stay with us!" Mya confirmed Mr. Potter's decision.

James was shocked at his parents' sudden agreeability, but didn't comment. He merely said a polite, 'Thank-you,' before returning to his ham.

After the house-elf, Skittle, had cleaned up, James and Lily went upstairs to get their bags. (A/N: I was stumped for house-elf names, so Skittle is what you get! I love Skittles… mmmm…) They said their good-byes, and off the pair went, back into the woods across the darkening grounds. The smoky sky presented dusk in its finest, and was a perfect back drop for Lily's last look at the Potter manor before disappearing into the woods and apparating back to Hogwarts.

Well, that is the last chapter before my holidays. I got the chapter back from my fantastic beta early, so I've posted it early. Hope you liked! Maybelline