Disclaimer: I own nothing. See Chapter 1's disclaimer.

Chapter 2: Down to Business

Gay?

Remus?

Advice columnist?

Photo shoots?

…

Too early.

Coffee! thought a very baffled James. He had managed to bustle the "ball of blonde hair" out of his apartment without a name, phone number or explanation. That's the way he preferred it to be. No complications; it made everything so easy.

James Potter didn't do romance. Nor did he do relationships. Nope, a shag here and there was fine by him. He didn't need the whiny complaints of "Why don't you pay attention to me?" or "Do you think this robe makes me look fat?". He could apparate away in a millisecond if he wanted to, no strings attached.

Which is why I don't understand where Remus got this idea of me playing an advice columnist to women!, thought James as he distractedly poured himself a cup of coffee. What James didn't understand even more was the fact that Remus was gay. One of his best friends. A Marauder. He had spent 7 years in the same bedroom as him! They had been through thick and thin, and yet Remus felt that he needed to hide this little fact!

Well, Sirius and I were both assholes back then…thought James briefly before being brought out of his brooding by a loud and abrupt bang in his living room.

"Hey James," said Remus quite timidly.

"Hey Moony," greeted James in a cheerful manner, thinking that he shouldn't make Remus more uncomfortable than what he already is.

"Well, I brought by a few things that you're going to need to read before you start this whole publicity thing. In case you get asked questions about previous pieces of advice I'd given, I have all of the things I've written with me now," said Remus as he dropped a very large box, filled to the top with dozens of A Touch Of Magic's magazines and a myriad of books, onto the floor.

James gawked at the box. "You… expect me… to read…all… of those… whiny complaints? It'll take me years!"

"They're not whiny complaints. On the contrary, many of these women have suffered a lot throughout their lives, more than what they need to. Usually, it's caused by men like you," Remus scolded, watching James grimace at the last sentence.

"And no, I don't expect you to read all of the magazines," continued Remus. "Usually, that's where you can slip in a promotion for A Touch Of Magic. But the books, yes. They have the more…value to my readers, because they contain the more memorable letters I've gotten. Most of the questions will most likely be focused on other things, besides my writings. More on 'my' good looks, I suppose," he chuckled.

"How about skimming the books? Please?" pleaded James, adding a puppy dog face for effect.

"No, I'm sorry. If you don't understand the advice you're supposedly giving, Lily will have my head, if she won't already," stated Remus.

"Lily? Who's Lily? I thought you were GAY!" shouted James suggestively .

"Lily is the publicist from A Touch Of Magic. And yes, I'm still gay, James. I haven't changed from the last time you asked me. Lily is quite apprehensive about this whole thing as it is, and we can't ruin her career because you don't want to do the research," said Remus while stacking all of his books on James' living room table.

"Oh."

"Well-put. But you will meet Ms. Evans soon, since we are supposed to meet her tonight for dinner at her house to discuss the 'game plan', so to speak."

"Oh."

"Yes, again, well-put. We'll leave around five-thirty, so be ready. Wear something somewhat casual, but still nice. You, especially, need to make a good impression on her."

"Alright, Moony. Pick me up around five-thirty, then, sweetheart," joked James while playfully batting his eyelashes.

"I'm gay, James."

"Oh."

LILY'S POINT OF VIEW

Lily nervously rearranged every napkin and straightened every utensil on her table. She tugged at her black two-piece business suit and ran her fingers through her hair. They would soon be here, two men that she had never come face-to-face with in her entire life. The two men that held her career in their hands.

"It's been a rough couple of days, huh, Moll's?" Lily asked her quiet, yet lovely, sheepdog, Molly. Her father had gotten Molly for her once she moved out, saying that "every woman should have their own protector". Lily chuckled at the memory, remembering that she was thoroughly insulted that her dad thought that she couldn't find a man to protect her.

Lily had begun to toy with Molly's fur when the doorbell rang. Well, here goes…my career, thought Lily. She gave herself a quick once-over before walking to the door.

As she opened the door, she didn't see two men. She saw two gods. One man was the epitome of a muggle model. He had sandy blonde hair that was windswept across his left eye. Lily had to hold back a gasp when she saw his electric blue eyes. His skin was a pale cream color that accentuated the captivating color of his eyes. Currently, his facial features were shining with a mix of nervousness and sheepishness. He was a little over six foot, with toned, but not bulky, muscles.

The other was even more breathtaking, but in a different way. His hazel eyes held signs of amusement and deviousness that gave him his "bad boy" factor. His jet black hair stuck up at awkward angles, but was very sexy, nonetheless. His facial features were very well-defined, especially his cheekbones. His tanned face held signs of a blush, most likely from the cold wind. He was very tall, taller than the other. His muscles were toned as well, but more defined. But all of that was nothing compared to his smile. The somewhat crooked smile plastered on his face was enough to make her swoon, yet she could tell from the arrogance in his posture that he has gotten that reaction a lot. Therefore, she refrained. Barely.

"Lily Evans, nice to meet you both," she said, hoping they didn't realize she had been openly staring at them.

"Hello, I'm Remus, we talked on the phone. This gawking prat is my friend, James Potter. Don't worry, he's housebroken," chuckled Remus. Lily quickly turned her gaze to Mr. Potter. Indeed, he was staring very intently at her. Well, Lily silently laughed. At least he didn't notice that the gaze was mutual.

Once it seemed that he realized he was staring, Mr. Potter abruptly stuck out his hand. "James Potter," he said sheepishly.

"She knows that already, you dolt," said Remus, attempting to hold back his laughter, but failing miserably.

"Oh, sorry," he said while Lily took his hand. She tried desperately to ignore the shock that seemed to course her body when she touched his hand. It seemed that he was trying to do the same, as well.

"Well, please come in. Dinner's almost ready, and we have a lot to go over," she stated in a business-like manner. As she walked them through the hallway and to the living room, she snuck another glance at Mr. Potter. She admired how his face seemed to show every emotion that went through his mind. What emotion it is seems to be the hard part, though, Lily thought.

"Are you pleased with the front, or do you need a rear view, as well?" questioned Mr. Potter with arrogance. Obviously he had caught her staring.

"I could say the same to you from your earlier musings, Mr. Potter," snarled Lily, embarrassed that she had been exposed. She gained some satisfaction from watching him turn pink from embarrassment.

"You can call me James," he said, trying to ignore her comment.

"Please make yourselves comfortable, I'm going to go check on the dinner," she said as they reached her living room. As soon as they both took a seat, she stalked off quickly to the kitchen.

Where does he come off saying something like that? He may look the part of a dream guy, but he sure has the mannerisms of a tainted Prince Charming. This is the kind of guy that these women write about! How is he going to pretend that he's the man to make everything better for them, thought Lily. How they were going to pull this stunt off with a man like that, she didn't know.

She quickly pulled her main dish out of her Muggle oven, only to see that it was burnt, through and through. She refrained from shouting every swear word known to wizard kind, and muttered a few spells to make it look and taste perfectly fine. What they don't know, won't hurt them, thought Lily, using Remus' previous words of wisdom.

JAMES' POINT OF VIEW

James sat in Lily Evans' living room, playing with her dog as he looked at her photographs. He felt as though he was intruding somehow, but he didn't care. Much.

"So, sweetie, do you know if your owner is single?" James lovingly asked the sheepdog. He answered James' question with two thumps of his tail on the floor. "Hmm… I hope that that's a yes," mused James.

"I highly doubt that it's a 'yes' after the stunt you pulled in the hallway. I thought I told you to refrain from your arrogant ways, just if it's only for tonight," said Remus somewhat playfully.

"It's your fault that I did it. You're the one that embarrassed me to begin with. I was just making the score par."

"I didn't embarrass you. You embarrassed yourself. Staring at the poor girl, drool going down your face… would you have rather me let you continue to make an idiot out of yourself?" questioned Remus.

"Can you blame me? Did you look at her? I know you're gay, but I think you can still recognize a gorgeous woman when you see one. Plus, she's a redhead. You know I'm drawn to bright and shiny things," stated James while absentmindedly scratching the sheepdog's belly.

Remus laughed. "Of course, it's gotten you this far."

At that moment, Lily returned. "What would you two like with dinner? Wine, a beer?"

"Have any firewhiskey?" said James. If he had to suffer through a business dinner, why not be sloshed?

Remus shot him a look and said, "Wine would be great."

"Okay, dinner's ready then. Follow me, please," said Lily.

After a cheerful dinner filled with small talk of the wizarding world and recent events, they moved to the living room, now with less tension and a little bit more knowledge of each other. Just a little.

"Okay, let's get down to business," stated Lily.

Author's Note: Okay, sorrythat this chapter's boring, what with very little LJ action and all, but it's just the beginning, so it'll begin to get better! Luckily today I'm in a writing kind of mood, so I might have the next chapter out by tonight. Maybe. I highly recommend Dear Prince Charming to all of you. It's a quick but wonderful romance read by Donna Kauffman. I'd also like any suggestions for another story. I tend to be ADD about things so a side-project might be good. PLEASE REVIEW!