disclaimer: the world and (most) characters herein belong to J.K. Rowling, I'm just borrowing them.

Chapter 16

Over the next several days Lily and James carried on with phase one of James's plan (damage control, as he'd so called it), until Thursday morning, when phase two finally arrived.

It came for James during the usual owl post deliveries, tied to the leg of a barn owl; an invitation from Professor Slughorn to attend his Slug Club Christmas party the following weekend.

To Lily's surprise, Sirius also received an invitation.

"You're a part of the Slug Club?" she asked.

"In one of Slughorn's wet dreams I am," Sirius replied, tossing the unopened scroll aside with a carelessness that didn't match his sudden, darkening mood.

Peter gave a nervous giggle at Sirius's crude response, as though he wasn't quite sure if he was meant to laugh at it or not.

"Slughorn keeps trying to recruit him," James explained to Lily. "To no avail," he added unnecessarily.

"He's a persistent bugger," Sirius grumbled. "I don't know why you bother with him," he said to James.

"I reckon it wise to have at least one Professor in my good graces," James responded.

"You should have just kept ignoring him," Remus piped up from beside Lily, speaking from behind his Daily Prophet to Sirius. "But you had to respond…"

"Who knew that pompous old walrus would find it witty?" Sirius groused defensively.

"You're lucky he did," said Remus.

"Why's Slughorn so interested in you?" Lily asked Sirius, curiously.

"No idea," he said, in such a way that clearly conveyed he knew very well why but was not about to share it with her.

Realizing she had (unknowingly) toe'd a line, Lily obligingly stepped back and turned her attention to finishing her breakfast.

"Don't mind him," Remus murmured. "He's sensitive about it. Family stuff."

Before Lily had a chance to assure him she wasn't minding, Sirius, evidently overhearing, interjected, "Don't make excuses for me, Remus."

"It's not an excuse," responded Remus lightly, "It's the truth."

Sensing the beginnings of a row and keen to it head off, Lily broke in quickly, "No. It's none of my business."

Whether it was her words or the the firm finality with which she spoke them, or both, it seemed to do the trick at appeasing both boys.

Momentarily.

"I'm not sensitive."

"Of course not!" James clapped Sirius on the shoulder bolsteringly. "You're a bloke, aren't you?"

"You're the complete opposite of sensitive," Remus agreed wryly.

"You're insensitive," added Lily.

There was a pause as all the boys turned to stare at her.

"Was that supposed to be a joke, Evans?" James finally asked, appalled.

She gave a noncommittal shrug, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.

"I don't get it," Peter said, frowning with confusion.

"Course you don't," said Sirius. "It was bloody awful."

xxx

By midday word had spread throughout the castle that the invitations for Slughorn's party had been delivered that morning. Judging by the influx of female attention James was receiving, it also seemed common knowledge that he was a recipient of said invitation. Which subsequently seemed to mean he was therefore on the lookout for a plus one.

"Could you please acknowledge that girl over there before she does herself an injury?" Lily asked, flipping a page of her book.

James, who was lounging across the couch adjacent to the armchair Lily sat in, smiled when she spoke, but didn't open his eyes.

"Settle, Evans. We're not at that part of the plan yet," he replied at ease.

"I'm not jealous, I'm concerned." said Lily. "She's going to get whiplash carrying on like that."

"If you insist," sighed James, sounding put upon. He turned his head toward the girl, who was a little ways across the Gryffindor common room, and had just finished flipping her hair for the umpteenth time, and caught her eye as she checked back to see if he had taken notice of her yet. He winked, the girl swooned.

"Good grief." Lily rolled her eyes.

James settled back into the couch, decidedly smug faced. Lily, however did not return to her book, but studied James thoughtfully.

"Fancy one too?" he asked after a few moments, apparently sensing her attention, as his eyes remained closed.

"I'm just trying to see what they do," she explained.

"Any luck yet?" he asked.

"I just don't see it," she admitted bluntly.

"You need new glasses," he said.

"It's not a question of looks," Lily snapped with exasperation.

James looked at her.

"I do believe that's the closest you've ever come to giving me a compliment, Evans."

"It was merely a statement of fact," she assured.

"As in: I am, in fact, a handsome devil?" He waggled his eyebrows at her ridiculously.

"Interesting choice of words," she smirked. "But there are several other, far more important things, than looks you know," she added, turning serious.

"I agree," said James.

"You do?" asked Lily skeptically.

"Of course," he replied. "One should never underestimate sparkling wit or boyish charm."

"Or modesty," she added wryly.

"Modesty smodesty." He waved a dismissive hand.

"Was that a sampling of your sparkling wit?" Lily quipped raising an eyebrow.

"My boyish charm, actually," he corrected.

"Mmm...Well, perhaps in your case there is nothing more," she allowed returning to her book.

"Are you saying you don't find me charming?" James demanded with feigned hurt.

"I find you many things, Potter-"

"Handsome," he interrupted in a teasing, singsong tone.

"but charming isn't one of them," Lily finished firmly.

"...But handsome is one of them though," James said with satisfaction.

She ignored him.

xxx

After two days Lily was beginning to feel a bit sorry for James's admirers. Which was putting a damper on her annoyance at them.

Unbeknownst to them, James already had a date for Slughorn's party (had had one all -along in fact). It was time, Lily felt, to disclose this little tidbit.

Not just for the sake of the hopefuls, but also because James was entirely too pleased by all the attention he was receiving.

"I reckon this has gone on long enough now," Lily announced as they made their way across the courtyard, on route to the greenhouses for Herbology.

"Don't be a killjoy," James said, busy returning the smile of a passing girl.

"Don't be an arse," Lily shot back. "Have some compassion."

"I do, I'll them down easy," he assured, unconvincingly.

"Today," she asserted firmly.

"All in due time," he promised, with all the conviction of a pat on the head.

Needless to say it didn't inspire much confidence.

As the class waited for Professor Sprout to begin the lesson, a very pretty Hufflepuff girl approached James and struck up conversation.

Lily, who sat beside him and was in no mood to hear any fawning, tuned out. Until something caught her ear.

"I heard you got an invite to Slughorn's party," the girl said.

"I did," James confirmed.

"Lucky." She pouted. "I've never been to one of them before…"

"And I'm sure he'd love to take you," Lily interjected, jumping at the opportunity, "but he's already going with someone else."

James stiffened.

"You are?" The girl asked James, face falling.

""Fraid so," he smiled apologetically.

"Who're you going with?"

"Me," Lily answered.

In the pause that followed the girl glanced between Lily and James twice.

"Her?" she finally managed to James, sounding bewildered.

James shrugged.

"She begged me to go," he said in a "what else could I do?" sort of voice.

Lily shot him a dirty look.

"You're taking her as your date?" the girl said slowly, obviously having a hard time wrapping her head around the idea.

"Just as a mate," James explained.

"Oh." This seemed to mollifying her slightly, though she still looked put out.

"I'm sure a girl like you won't have a problem snagging a date to the party," he encouraged. "And," he added, slipping into a low, suggestive tone, "if you were to happen to slip away from said date and come find me…"

Lily promptly tuned out again.

xxx

That night as Lily readied for bed she found herself the recipient of stares and hushed mutterings. Lily's dormmates, who normally kept to themselves, seemed very interested in her this evening and she had a fairly good idea why. Her suspicions were soon confirmed.

"Is it true you're James Potter's date to Slughorn's party?"

Lily paused in mid fluff of her pillow; her dormmates had gathered around the foot of her bed.

Ordinarily Lily wouldn't engage in dignifying gossip with a response, but, given the fact that gossip was a ploy in James's plan she supposed she better had.

Staring calmly back at the four sets of expectant eyes trained on her, she said, "Yes."

"How did you manage that?" demanded Quincy Nesbitt, sounding equally astounded and insulting.

"He asked me," Lily replied simply.

"I heard you begged him to take you," countered another, Fiona Henderson, folding her arms challengingly.

Lily met her gaze unwaveringly.

"You heard wrong. On the contrary," she said, "he pleaded me to go with him."

"Why would he do that?" asked Eugenie Perkins.

"Well," said Lily, "I suspect he went temporarily off his head."

"I'll say." snorted Fiona.

And with that the girls dispersed in a flurry of appreciative titters.

xxx

Stares and talk followed Lily everywhere the following day, from the moment she entered the Gryffindor common room on route to breakfast. Apparently Lily's dormmates were not the only curious ones regarding her accompanying James to Slughorn's party. Nor were Lily's dormmates the only ones bold enough to question her about how this had occurred. By lunchtime it seemed the news had reached the ears of everyone at Hogwarts and Lily's nerves were frayed. She was in a bad mood and it was not improved upon by James plopping down into the seat next to hers at the Gryffindor table. She had been actively distant with him the whole morning, her annoyance at him putting her in this position flaring up again, overriding the knowledge that she should have been keeping up playing nice. James must've picked up on her needing space though because he had left her alone, until now that was.

"I've been warned to watch my step around you," He greeted.

"Have you?" asked Lily disinterestedly, dunking a roll into her soup.

"Seems you're quick with a confundus charm."

"Seems that sarcasm is lost on Wendlyn Giddings," she noted drily.

"What happened to having compassion?" James asked. "They're in mourning, you know," he quipped, selecting a sandwich from one of the towering mountain atop a gold platter in the middle of the table.

"Compassion went out the window 'round the same time people stopped minding their own business!" Lily raised her voice pointedly causing several eavesdroppers to jump.

James snickered.

"This is madness," Lily said, dropping her spoon with a clatter. "If it's like this now can you imagine what it'll be like when - you know…" she finished in a lowered voice.

"Don't run out on me now, Evans," said James seemingly unconcerned, "We haven't even gotten to the fun part yet."

"I'm not running out," Lily grumbled, "I'm just saying is all…And what do the mean we haven't gotten to the fun part?" she demanded accusingly, "You've been having nothing but fun this whole time. Girls are falling over you," she said bitterly.

"Well, they might fall over you too if you weren't snarling at them," James pointed out, around a mouthful of roast beef sandwich.

"Meanwhile they're gossiping and badgering me to no end," she went on, ignoring him.

"Six weeks, Evans," he reminded, "Six weeks and then this'll all be behind you."

Lily grunted.

"Look," said James, finishing the last of his sandwich; he reached for a napkin, "Before you completely set your mind to spending that time miserable and feeling sorry for yourself" - Lily spluttered indignantly - "let me remind you there is the option to make the best of it. Loosen up, have some fun with it. Go a bit mad, as it were. Who knows," he shrugged,"maybe you'll even be able to look back one day and have a laugh instead of just the urge to bat bogey hex me."

"You have some nerve -" Lily started angrily.

"That may be," James interrupted,"But it doesn't mean you shouldn't consider it."

He met her glare with a level look.

"Now would be a good time for you to bugger off," she advised.

"Right," he said agreeably, rising from the table. "See you in DADA. I'll save you a seat."

To anyone listening that sounded like a perfectly casual, friendly thing to say, but Lily recognized it for what it really was.

Her time out was over then. It was time to get back to the game.

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- GoddessoftheMaan