Another chapter ready to be read. I am again sorry for all the spelling and grammar grossness, but my friend was taking too long to get it back to me (I gave it to her 4 days ago!). I will update it and such when she does give me the edited version. Up until then, you will just have to suffer through this one.

I will explain something quickly that might be important, so I suggest reading this. Since my story is AU, Voldermort has not made himself known yet. So attacks are few and far between, especially on Muggles. This will be important later on in this chapter.

Thanks for all the reviews; sorry if I didn't respond to some of yours, I did read them though. All of them (wow 26 on the first chapter!). I will try to get around to responding to them. But in case I don't, Thank you SOOOO much. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. (Edited January 13th 2006)

Rating: M for Mature. 50 percent because I want to cover my behind, and 50 percent because people read M more than T…

Disclaimer: It's late, my usual wit and general completeness of sentence making has escaped me. It's J.K Rowling's. Not mine.

Of Knowing and Hearing

It was the same. Exactly as it had been three years ago when she last visited Flourish and Blotts. Sure there were a few more un-orderly stacks of books here and there, but other than that; the same.

She was lucky that the old owner, Stanly Foruli, knew her well. He was the only reason she had gotten his job. She had no qualifications whatsoever; she was a wizarding lawyer back in Rome. He gave her the job based on, what she thought, the amount of galleons she put into this store. In reality, it was because he would be an idiot not to.

A girl like Lily Evans was not destined to be a bookstore owner based on her marks in school. Oh no, she was much more Chief Healer, Auror or famous lawyer material. She did the famous lawyer thing. Judging by the fact that she is no longer in Rome, it really must not have been for her.

"Have a good time in Sydney sir, you deserve it," Lily said shaking Stanly's hand as he passed over the deeds to the store.

"Oh Miss. Evans, I will now. Knowing that my store will be in excellent hands."

"Of course sir, excellent hands."

Stanly Foruli was a jolly man. A St. Nicholas figure. Large round belly, shiny balding head with wisps of snowy white hair brushed over. A rough, patchy beard that was in desperate need of trimming. A man that needed a good long vacation.

Lily looked around at her new store. It was bigger now that she owned it. Two levels of shelves and the odd table full of books waiting to be bought. Running a store couldn't be that hard. Stanly had for sixty years; he didn't seem that smart, surely she could do it well enough.

It was the beginning of July. She had about a month and a bit to get the store ready, or at least make little changes, until the Hogwarts rush came in. But for today, just for today. She would bask in the glory of her new life.

"Sirius, get the hell off of me. It's three in the morning," Remus mumbled pulling the covers over his head.

"It's my place, I can wake you up whenever I bloody well feel like it." Sirius pulled off all the covers and threw them onto the floor. Remus curled into a ball. "I'll get the water."

Remus opened one eye, stretched out yawning and then sat on the side of his bed.

"Alright, what is it?

"She's back!"

"You woke me up to tell me that? Good night, Sirius."

"No, you don't know who she is."

"She can wait till morning, I want to sleep."

Remus grabbed his previously warm blankets from the floor.

"Moony!" Sirius shouted as Remus covered his head with a pillow.

"Piss off. No girl you shag is this important."

"I never shagged Lily."

Remus stopped trying to kick Sirius off his bed and an eye peered out from under his pillow.

"Lily Evans?"

"You're right, you should sleep. No girl is that important to you."

Sirius got up and walked out of Remus' room, only to be followed.

"Sirius, tell me, is Lily back in London?"

Sirius scratched his chin in thought. After a moment he laughed at Remus expression. A mixture of hope and fear.

"Well she's not in Rome anymore, if that answers your question."

Remus smiled and sat down on the couch.

"Does James know?"

Sirius sat down in the chair across. "Of course he knows, I saw her, he saw her. I danced with her, he danced with Jane. She insulted him, he dragged Jane away."

Remus' smile disappeared.

"She met Jane?"

"Of course, she and James are attached at the hip. Why so glum?"

Remus ran his hands through his hair. "I never told her."

Sirius stared at Remus and then it registered.

"Oh, that's not good. She'll be pissed at you."

Remus let out a nervous laugh. "Why would she be? She should be mad at James if anyone, or even you. You probably dragged her over."

"Don't try to pin this on me Moony. You made an unofficial promise to myself as well as you that would keep the Lily updated on James. Without being obvious about it, of course."

Remus sighed in defeat.

"Did Lily like her?"

"It's hard to say, you know how difficult it is to read that girl. But she knew."

Remus shook his head. "Anyone who knows James well enough can see that Jane loves him."

There was a silence.

"She looks amazing."

"I bet."

"James looked like he was going to jump her."

Remus nodded.

"As disgusting as that would have been, I sort of wanted it to happen. I don't like Jane."

Remus laughed. "We all know you don't, with the exception of James."

"She's too…"

"Yes Sirius, we know. I'm going back to bed. We'll owl Lily in the morning."

"No need to mate, we're meeting her for lunch tomorrow at some café. She gave me directions, but I said that you knew where it was."

"Looks like someone got lucky last night," Frank smiled as he sat across from James in the conference room.

A smiled played across James face. "One could say that."

Frank laughed. "And who is this fine lady that allowed you, of all people, to spend the night with her?"

"Jane."

"The Jane?"

"The one and only."

Frank leaned back on his chair. "Lily's out of the picture then?"

"Gone."

This seemed to satisfy Frank for the time although he shot James a rather nasty look when his head was down. Alice would be none to happy about this recent development.

James shuffled his papers as the other Chief Aurors and their assistants walked in.

Alastor Moody sat at the head of the table, and James took his seat beside him. Being an assistant wasn't the greatest job in the division, but it got him the experience needed to become a full field Auror. He wasn't entirely sure how, but the ministry was corrupt in his opinion anyway.

This did not mean, however, that he was not an Auror. He had gone through his two-year training course; in fact he graduated last month. And once he learnt the ins and outs of paperwork for Moody, he would be able to start on his own missions. A couple of months of playing messenger boy for the top Auror was really a small price to pay for a fine education.

Moody leaned over to James.

"Potter."

"Yes sir."

"Get out of here."

James looked taken back until he saw the gnarled smile on Moody's lips.

Frank gave a small smile to James as he left.

Jane sank down on the couch holding the letter tightly in her hand. This was unheard of, non-existent, completely unorthodox. Being a future lawyer, Jane should know. No one, as far as Jane or James has known of, has been promoted to a Chief Auror right out of graduation. James Potter would be the first in the history books.

Jane was over-reacting, he was hardly on the same line as Alastor, but one-step closer. As of today, he was Chief Auror of Field, Division M. In plain English it meant that James was in charge of the Field Aurors responding to Muggle Attacks caused by Wizards. It's not a prestigious job, not to mention virtually payless and extremely boring, but it was a Chief position that therefore landed him in the daily meetings where he was not long ago an assistant.

"He got Chief," Remus said in disbelief.

"Chief? What happened to Moody?"

"Not Chief Chief, a Division Chief, Muggle Attacks."

"No shit."

"Who got Chief?" Lily took a sip of her coffee.

Sirius and Remus exchanged looks.

"James did," Remus said simply, stuffing the letter into his pocket.

Lily nodded and smiled. "I'm fine, you know. I'm over him."

There was no persuasion in Remus' eyes. "Sure you are."

Sirius drummed his fingers on the table.

"So Lily, what changes are you going to make to Flourish and Blotts? It's historical, be careful or you might have Diagon Ally after you. "

Lily laughed. "Nothing major. It just needs some organizing, everything will stay the same."

The boys nodded and began to look nervously around the café.

"Is unemployment still working out for you?"

Sirius glared at Lily. "Yes. And for your information, I have no need for work. Uncle has set me up for life. Plus, when or if I run out, James has plenty to share."

Lily laughed. "You should know, you can't always depend on James. He has his floozy to look after now."

"She's really not that bad."

"I know, but you can't expect me to respect a girl who puts up with James."

Remus smiled.

"Don't go there. I fully regret what happened between us at school, and so does he."

Again, silence.

"They are together now, aren't they?"

"That was mentioned in the letter, yes."

"What a floozy," Lily mumbled taking another sip of her coffee.