Hello everyone here at long last is chapter seven. I'm so sorry for not getting this chapter out soooner but my muse ran off then my lovely beta had to go all the way to england (Thank you cath btw) BUT i have chapter 8 nearly done so you will not have to wait as long. Sorry again. Please review.

Kerrie x-x-x-x-x

Chapter 7

Lily couldn't help it, she started to laugh. "A what?" she cried.

"A Vampire." Remus answered stiffly. She took one look at his grim face and stopped abruptly .

"Remus Lupin, how many NEWTS did you get again?" she asked mockingly.

"But it all adds up," Remus insisted, counting the things off his fingers "The letters, the glasses, going out at night, the sweets."

"But—"

"Lily, you can always talk to me, you know that. I'm mean, for God sake. I'd be a hypocrite to judge you like that. And… if you don't want to talk to James… well, it's up to you…" He trailed off.

"Remus," Lily breathed. "Honestly, I swear I have nothing to tell you. If I did I would."

"But why would you have blood flavoured lollies? You don't accidentally pick up Blood flavour instead of raspberry?"

"Unless you're Sirius." Lily insisted.

"Unless you're Sirius," he agreed, nodding. "But even so… Lily." He looked straight at her and she couldn't stand to have his eyes locked on hers and quickly averted her gaze. "I always thought you and me had something special between us. That we could tell each other anything…"

"Remus." She started. Lily couldn't cope, she needed to tell someone. Alice was right; it was stupid to hide it. And Remus was listening –unlike James— he actually cared enough to listen to her. "I'm-" She stopped. It was only one word. So why was it so hard to say?

Where has he been? She asked herself. How do I know he isn't the spy?

"I'm not the Vampire. It's Patrick." She hated herself for saying it.

Opening his mouth in disbelief, Remus couldn't utter a word. "But don't tell anyone. Promise."

After a short while, Remus managed to find his voice again and agreed. "But…"

"He didn't know which way to turn." Lily said quickly. "He remembers how after Snape," -she spat his name- "exposed you and that I was the one who helped you. He didn't know what else to do…" She started to cry. Why hadn't she been able to bring herself to say it?

Remus seemed to take her crying to do with Patrick and started comforting her. "Lily, don't worry, everything will be fine." And this, if anything, made her sob louder.

----

It was ironic to think that this was the best she had slept in months, Lily thought. So all she had to do was get accused of being a Vampire and cry her guts out….

But really she felt worse. Deep inside her stomach there was a nagging pain (that had nothing to do with the baby.) she shouldn't have lied – shouldn't have brought Patrick into all this mess that was her life. It wasn't fair.

Lily was so emerged in worry that when she stepped out of the bathroom (her morning-sickness had at last subsided), she didn't notice the atmosphere in the house had changed.

She could hear whistling coming from the kitchen as well as the sounds of someone attempting to cook. And as Lily approached the sounds of this unnatural domestic bliss, she noticed that the house seemed much tidier than it had been the previous night.

Lily stopped when she entered the Kitchen as she couldn't believe what she saw before her eyes. James was stood at the stove wearing an apron with the a picture of a French maids body on the front. Cooking.

A larger bouquet of flowers had been arranged at the kitchen table and the table had been set for two. Lily rubbed her eyes and gingerly sat down. She picked up the Daily Prophet that was also on the table, unfolded it and began to read.

More deaths. In fact she was so interested in it she didn't look up until she heard someone deliberately coughing. Looking up, she saw James stood right in front of her with a huge smile on his face.

"Morning ," he said cheerfully, and he bent down to kiss her. "Do you want kippers or a fry up?" he asked.

"I'm not really very hungry." She answered, rather perplex at James' change in attitude.

James shrugged, turned and buttered some toast and laid in down in front of her.

Lily was about to point out that she didn't want anything but before she could open her mouth, James interrupted, " Happy Valentines, love!."

Her mouth formed a 'o'. James seemed to noticed this because he said rather meekly, "We are still going to celebrate today aren't we because—"

"Yes, of course." Lily said in a high pitched voice, cutting across James. "I've got you a present it's um…. It's upstairs…"

James raised his eyebrow seductively "Really?" He said in a deep masculine voice.

Jumping to her feet Lily made her way quickly out of the room before James could follow her with his sex-driven thoughts. In actual fact, Lily had completely forgotten what the date was. Maybe it was because she had been having a bad time as of late or it could have been her denial that her marriage was once again "fine" and they had nothing much to celebrate. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to help her now.

She found a pair of slippers that she had meant to give to her father for Christmas but had somehow forgotten and quickly snatched them up. It was James' turn to be surprised when Lily handed him the brown slippers made of carpet-like material.

"Err…Wow Lily, they're great!" He smiled quickly. "Your present is a surprise. Just be ready to go out a one today, ok?"

"James, I've got work!"

Looking mischievous, he answered, "I flooed in sick for you."

Lily gave him a questioning look but he just shook his head and rumpled his hair. He them proceed to shout "CRAP!" as he turned around and saw that the kitchen stove was on fire and a large amount of thick black smoke was filling the house.

---

"Hey Prongs, liking the slippers," joked Sirius, as he sat down next to James. The said slippers were on the coffee table.

"Shut up! Anyway, I thought you said you were bringing Moony with you."

Sirius shrugged, "He said something about not wanting to impose and all."

Waving the information away, Sirius started to examine the slippers more closely. "He's not still worried about what happen last night?" James asked.

Sirius shook his head, "Nah. Did he say anything to you about what happened?"

James didn't answer. It was rather odd come to think of it that Remus was avoiding him and wouldn't speak about what had happened last night. "You don't think Remus knows do you?" He said it as if was something dangerous and would explode any moment.

"Knows? Knows what?" Sirius said naively.

"Just knows."

"James." Sirius put down the slipper that a moment before he had been sniffing and looked up with a serious expression on his face. "Lily will talk when she's good and ready and she'll talk to you. Because for some strange reason that is unknown to man, Lily loves you."

"That was rather deep, Paddy." James commented.

"Why yes, Prongs." Sirius dabbed at the corner of his eye with his shirt. "It was."

----

When Lily met James at one o'clock that afternoon, she didn't know why she felt so nervous.

'He's probably only taking me out for lunch,' she told herself. But something made her feel that was not the case.

'I can feel it in my water…'

She had always found this statement rather odd but it seemed fitting now as once again her bladder was fuller to bursting point.

"Woah! Lily?" James asked as Lily dashed passed him towards the toilet.

"Sorry, be right there!" she called.

After a few minutes, Lily remerged from the bathroom.

"Shall we go then?" James checked his watch. "We aren't going to Apparate are we?" Lily asked nervously.

"Don't you want to? Well, we could Floo I guess…"

"I'd rather walk," Lily mumbled.

---

The emerald flames vanished from the fire the instant she stepped out onto the hearth. Lily grabbed onto James for support as the room span around. Never had she really liked travelling by Floo Powder and she was deciding it more every minute. As the room slowly stopped moving Lily looked around.

"James, where are we?"

They seemed to be a reception room of some sort, rows of soft chairs lined the wall and every now and again there was a door leading off into another room. Potted plants stood in huge tubes in random places, but what was the oddest thing was the Wizards and Witches that sat on the chairs some right on the opposite side of the room, glaring at one another in silence.

Making a hushing sound James grabbed hold of Lily's hand as if he was in the middle of a battle zone and cautiously made his way over to two unoccupied chairs. As they passed, one Witch rolled her eyes and another made a tutting sound with her tongue.

"James?" Lily whispered. James started humming to himself as he picked up a pamphlet and started thumbing through it. "James?" she repeated, but before she could say anything else a loud speaker with a high pitched woman's voice said sharply, "Mr and Mrs Potter?" Several of the people flinched nearby at the words Mr and Mrs.

James got up and so did Lily with a puzzled expression on her face. They made there way across the room to the far door. "Good luck, mate," said one of the wizards sat next to a large red-faced woman. James turned to the man and gave him the thumbs up sign, promptly fell over one of the pots of flowers and tumbled head first through the doorway.

"Excuse me, Mr Potter."

James looked up and stood before him was a fierce looking woman, who funnily enough looked like a younger version of Professor McGonnagall. "If you cannot even enter a simple room without falling over it is no wonder your marriage is failing," she said briskly. James looked like he had been slapped across the face. "And you." She said, turning to Lily. "You stand there giggling like a school child as the man you promise to honour and obey is humiliated in front of all and sundry."

"Sit!" she snapped, indicating to two high back wooden chairs in front of what most presumably was her desk.

Gingerly, the pair sat down.

"Right Mrs Potter, you first."

"Me what?" Lily asked, and as she did, in the corner of her eye she caught slight of a brass plaque engraved with the words: Francis Washington-Brown Marriage councillor.

Whispering in the hope that Francis Washington-Brown wouldn't hear her "James darling?"

"Hmm?" he asked, his cheeks turning red. "Why didn't you tell me you were taking me to a MARRIAGE COUNCILLOR?"

Quickly, he muttered something about Lily not going if she knew.

"Of course I wouldn't go, you bloody nob! We have no problems."

"Lily honey, I just wanted you to open up to me. If you've got any issues with anything love, I want to hear about them."

"I HAVE NO ISSUES!" She screamed. "And if I did James, I would discuss them with you in private no here."

"Lily-" he started, but Lily cut him off. "Do you know what he's done?" She said, turning to the woman who had been watching the proceedings as if it was paint drying. "He bloody takes me here on Valentines day of all days - under false pretences. He and his bum chums accuse me of being a Vampire! He dresses in drag! Never cleans! Turns my house into a soup kitchen for any of his hobo fiends. Accuses me of having an affair. HE FLAMING STALKED ME FOR SEVEN YEARS!" Lily was at her feet now, pointing at James. "AND HIS MOTHER-"

"DON'T BRING MY MOTHER INTO ALL THIS!" James said, also rising to his feet.

"AND WHY SHOULDN'T I JAMES? YOU WANTED ME TO OPEN UP SO I AM!"

"Mrs Potter," said the Marriage Councillor. "Maybe Mr Potter should have his say."

Lily sat down, deflated.

"Thank you."

He messed his hair. "Lily, you've been so secretive. You don't get on with my friends. You don't get on with my family. You poisoned me."

"In Third Year!"

"You've cursed me. Hexed me. Thrown nearly every object imaginable at my head."

-----

"Mr Potter. Mrs Potter," said Francis, her lips pursed. "I have heard from both of you now. And all I can say is… Get a divorce. Quick. Here, take his card. It has the number of a good lawyer on it. I cannot understand one single reason that possessed you two to go out. You are completely wrong for each other. You Mrs Potter have been living a life of misery and depression, you can tell that by the colour of your hair. And you, Mr Potter, are gay. That much is clear."

But Mrs Washington hadn't finished. "In my professional opinion, you two should never have got married…."