A/N: NEW CHAPTER, WOOOOH. :) I want to say thanks to the people who reviewed, and to the dozens of people who put this story on their alerts/favorites! It means so much to me! I would really really really like to get 10 reviews on this chapter, it would be awesome! Think we can make that happen? We made it happen on my other story, so it's totally possible on this one! Right? Right! :) - Jen Riddle.

Late Nights at The Leaky Cauldron
Chapter 3

Lily Evans awoke the next morning with pain searing through her head. She groaned at the bright light pouring through the open windows, and silently cursed the birds twittering joyously outside. She grabbed the pillow beside her and pulled it over her face.

What happened last night?

A soft snoring noise was heard from beside her. Her eyes popped open into the pillow. She carefully took it off, and looked next to her... the bed was empty. But then where was that noise coming from? Lily rolled over, and looked to the floor. Sleeping softly on a cot was James Potter. His glasses were skewed, still partially on his face, and he was drooling slightly. Lily had to stifle a laugh. She got up from the bed, ignoring the pain in her head, and pulled his glasses off of him, putting them on the bedside table. She then made her way out of the room and down the handsome staircase to the bar.

"I could really use a pick-me-up, Tom." She asked politely as she reached the bartender. The man smiled his tootheless grin at the girl and left to fetch such a drink. She turned around in her bar chair as she waited, and peered at the patrons. It must be nearly afternoon, as the bar was fairly busy. Most of the witches and wizards Lily had never seen before, but a few she recognized by face, and one, by name.

Tom set the drink next to Lily on the bar. She picked it up and walked towards where Drake Rockwell sat.

"Goodmorning." He cleared his throat as she approached.

"Goodmorning." She replied quaintly.

"So this is where you've been, hmm?" He questioned.

"I suppose." Lily sipped at her drink.

"And you've been gallivanting with your ex boyfriend?" He accused. Lily sat down her drink, and peered into the mans dark gray eyes. His brown hair was piled perfectly around his face, and Lily knew he was on his Lunch break from work due to the robes he was wearing.

"That's none of your business. Have you been having me tailed?" She asked suspiciously.

"I suppose it is some of my business, Lily." He smiled almost too casually for the conversation.

"Oh, is it? If I recall, Drake, it stopped being your business when I returned home to see you and miss Penelope Applerow at our kitchen table - clothes and hair askew." Lily replied cooly.

Drake cleared his throat. "I thought we discussed this."

"I wouldn't call what we had the other night a discussion, as much as I'd call it a fight." Lily crossed her arms.

The man sighed. "Please come home."

Lily tried hard not to laugh. "You expect me to come home after that? I'm a forgiving person, but not to acts so vile."

"Lily, I'm sorry."

"I'm sure. And tell me, Drake, does miss Applerow still work for you?" She raised an eyebrow.

Drake said nothing, but instead stared at his thumbs as if his fingernails were quite amusing.

"Well then, Drake. I'll be seeing you around." Lily made to stand from her chair, but Drake stopped her, catching her arm.

"Please, Lily! The Leaky Cauldron is no place to live! And all your things are still at home! You've been wearing that outfit since you left!" Drake pleaded quite loudly.

Lily pulled her arm away as abruptly as possible, and stormed from the room. She could tell eyes were bearing into her, trying to figure out what had just happened, but she ignored them, and carrying her drink, made her way back to Room 8. She had a large lump in her throat that she tried hard to ignore as she re-opened the door.

James Potter was awake when she returned. In the hustle and bustle of what had just happened, she had forgotten he was sleeping in her room.

"I'm sorry, Lily, I couldn't get another room, Tom was already asleep and-"

"It's fine, James." Lily cut him off quietly.

"Oh, well... alright." James ran a hand through his hair. "Blimey, my head hurts."

Lily handed him her half devoured glass of whatever sort of hangover-cure Tom had given her. It certainly seemed to be helping. "Here. Tom made this for me."

James took it, and downed the half full glass in one gulp.

"James... what happened last night?" She asked simply. She couldn't remember anything besides a dozen fire whiskeys pouring down her throat.

James ran his hand through his hair again. "All I recall well is Sirius dancing upon one of the tables. Oh, and you poured an ice water over my head."

"You deserved that."

"Yes, probably." James laughed. Lily smiled half-heartedly at him.

"Shouldn't you be at work?" James inquired after a few moments of silence. Lily shook her head subtly.

"I'm working the night-shift tonight." She answered. James gave a quick nod, and then rose from his bed.

"Well, I'm off." He smiled briefly at Lily, brushed the wrinkles out of his pants, and left the room in an abrupt exit. Lily didn't even bother to ask where he was going so suddenly.

Lily sat on the egde of the old bed, the springs creaked under her weight. She stared at herself in the dusty mirror in front of her. She really aught to find something new to wear. No way could she make it a third day in the same outfit.

James ran a hand through his hair, taking in a deep breath of the mid-morning air as he did so. Why had he left so suddenly? Lily was being so nice to him, and she had the entire day with nothing to do. He had the perfect opportunity to have Lily in the palm of his hand, and he let her go. A paining guilt was nabbing at James chest. He cursed having things to do.

James tapped the correct brick on the back wall and watched as they all crumbled away to reveal a bustling street full of midday shoppers. Children ran around their parents, looking excitedly into store windows and begging for objects. Adults walked along merrily carrying large packages and small bags. James tried hard to contain his smile - There was nowhere in the world like Diagon Alley, and he was glad to have returned. His thoughts of the red-headed girl disappeared entirely.

He made his way through the crowds, excusing himself when he'd accidentally bump the elbow of a busy shopper. The street was more crowded than usual, it seemed - or maybe it had just been a while since he'd been there.

James made his way to the wizarding bank, Gringotts, and paused as he skimmed the inscription on the door - he'd always adored the poem, and rolled his eyes at the thought of someone attempting to rob this overly protected establishment. He slightly marveled in the fact that his and his parents wealth was more than enough to support any child he would have. They, certainly, would never have to attempt to rob Gringotts.

He pulled open the giant doors to Gringots, and stepped inside to see the bank was equally as busy as the street outside. Spotting the only free Goblin, he made his way to the desk. The creatures eyes squinted up at James expectantly.

"I'd like to make a withdrawl." James cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses, feeling slightly awkward.

"Name?" The old goblin asked in a croaking voice.

"Potter." James replied.

"Senior or Junior?" The Goblin requested.

"Junior." James answered.

"Key?"

James fished through the pocket in his jeans and pulled out the shimmering golden key from his pocket. He handed it to the old goblin who took it eagerly in his bony fingers. The Goblin inspected it for a moment, and then jumped down from his pedestal. James followed the creature - who was very very significantly shorter than him - and they made their way to the doors near the back, where a line of patrons were already waiting.

"Busy Day, huh?" James asked, trying to make conversation with the old goblin.

The Goblin looked up at him. "Hmph." Was all he replied.

James awkwardly ran a hand through his hair, and then observed the familiar-looking couple in front of him who were bickering quietly.

"That is the stupidest thing you could do!" Chocked the boy, hissing in the woman's ear. He narrowed his eyes on the woman next to him.

"This is infuriating!" The woman, a stocky being with short black hair pulled back into a ponytail, growled in a low voice.

"Do you want to make yourself known?" The boy raised his eyebrow at the girl.

James felt curiosity bubble in his chest as the girl refused to answer the boy. He had to bide himself not to react - he was no longer working, he wasn't following these people, and not everyone was a death eater. James shrugged it off, and forced himself to ignore the conversation in front of him.

"Mind sharing a cart?" Asked the old Goblin. James looked up from his thoughts to see that the bickering couple was waiting impatiently in the cart with just enough room for another person. James shrugged and climbed in.

The cart took off in a zig-zagging, up and down, side to side pattern that made James Potter feel slightly woozy. He was about to ask if they could slow down a bit when the cart came to a smashing halt in front of a darkly lit vault with the numbers 754 plastered on the front. The couple jumped from the cart, again whispering eagerly to each other, and waited for the goblin to open their door. Inside, from James Potters point of view, it looked nearly empty. The with and wizard entered anyway, and left a few moments later with something encased in a black bag. James looked the other way when the woman met his eye, and pretended he hadn't been watching.

"Did you go to hogwarts?" James asked curiously as they got back into the cart.

"Yes." snipped the girl quickly.

"When did you leave?" James pressed, ignoring the girls obviously rude tone.

"About four years ago." Answered the boy with a yawn.

"Ah! I left five years ago." Smiled James.

"How nice for you." Sneered the girl.

"What house were you in? Maybe we knew each other!" James continued.

"Slytherin." The boy replied with a slightly sinister smile.

Before James could continue, the cart came to a second screeching halt. He hopped from the cart, knowing vault 633 was his, and waited as the goblin opened the cell. Inside sat enormous mounds of gold, silver and bronze, shimmering at him and begging to be spent. James scooped a small bit into a pouch, but that wasn't what he was here for.

In the far corner, situated behind the money, sat a stack of scrolls, small diaries, and maps. James gathered these into a bag and threw it over his shoulder. These were what he was here for - his notes from while he was gone. He had owl'd everything to Sirius, and just as he had asked, Sirius deposited them in his Gringots Vault.

James found his way back to the cart, noticing that as he entered, the others quieted immediately. James smiled subtly at them, and the cart was off again. There was definitely something curious about these two, he thought to himself.

When they reached the surface again, James couldn't investigate his suspicions, however, as the two were immediately lost in the throng of people. James urged himself to forget about them, and made his way down a side street titled "York Road" He made his way to the very end, where a building was situated, looking out of place among the houses around it. He opened the glass double doors in the front, and walked towards the elevators. He jabbed the button for floor 3, and up he went.

Once on floor three, he followed the hallway to Apartment number 32, fished another, this time silver key from his pocket, and jammed it into the hole. It clicked opened, and James pulled open the door. Dust floated around the room - but it looked just as it had when he left.

The apartment was dark, all the lights were off and the blinds closed. Lily crept towards one of the windows, careful not to trip over any boxes, and ripped the shades apart. The sun gleamed in, reflecting off of her auburn hair. She squinted into the night, and then turned to her partner.

He grinned back at her, amazed at how he managed to get ahold of such an amazing girl. "It's a little dusty, but it'll do." He joked, wrapping the girl in his arms.

"It'll do?" She giggled, her face centimeters from hers.

"It's home, as long as you're here." He kissed her gently, tugging at her soft lips with his teeth.

James shook his head, forgetting the flashback, and set his belongings on the coffee table in the center of the living room. He had work to do. He pushed the memories from his mind.

As James pried open one of the diaries, scraps of paper flew out from between the pages. James chuckled to himself, remembering how he'd circle bits in newspapers, or scribble notes on scraps of paper and simply stuff them into the books. He began to pick up the fallen scraps when he found one that simply said "ALBANIA." in a harsh, crude writing. He knew it was his, but he couldn't remember what significance Albania had been at the time, nor why he wrote so crudely. The piece was crumpled as if it had been jammed into his pocket before kept in the book. With one last quizzical glance at the scrap, he tossed it back inside the book, deciding he'd start with that particular diary later. This would be a long, tedious task, and he needed some reinforcements. He grabbed a spare piece of parchment and began to address a letter to his best, most trusted friend.

The last thing Lily Evans needed after a day like she'd had was another night at The Leaky Cauldron with James Potter. She pulled off her lime green healers robes and dumped them in the hospitals laundry basket. Why had she ever agreed to cover one of her co-workers shifts? Talia hadn't even been there to keep her company, and it was the busiest night she'd seen in a while. She'd even been forced to help out in the Creature - Induced Injuries ward, which mostly contained stomach-upsetting injuries which Lily had a hard time handling.

Deciding it best not to return to the 'Cauldron, Lily apparated to York Road, not entirely eager to enter her long-time empty flat that she had once shared with James. The sun was rising over the building as Lily went in. While in the Elevator, she fished around for the silver key that she had been ignoring for years. There it sat, at the very bottom of her purse with all the other abandoned objects - spare change, receipts, etc.

She unlocked the door to Apartment 32 and flicked on the light. Everything looked exactly the same as she'd left it. Too tired to inspect the old apartment, Lily made her way straight to the bedroom, dropping her purse on the kitchen counter in the process, and swung open the door. The morning sunrise lit up tiny bits of the bedroom, and instead of even turning on the light, Lily shed her clothes and jumped into the bed.

It was just as comfortable as she remembered. The pillows fit around her head just perfectly, the blanket was warm and soft, the bed simply nestled her body, and James warm body slept peacefully next to hers.

Lilys eyes shot open, and she jumped from the bed.

Not Again!

James eye's fluttered open at the sound of Lily jumping from the bed and landing on the ground with a thud.

"Lily? Be quiet and come to bed." James muttered quietly, still half dreaming.

"Get out of my bed!" She shrieked.

James sat up and rubbed his eyes. "What are you doing here?" He asked, finally.

"Trying to sleep!" She complained.

"I thought you were staying at The Leaky Cauldron?"

"I was! But so were you!"

"I had no intentions of living at a pub, Lily. Especially with the news that I had my old home waiting for me." James yawned, putting his glasses back on finally.

"You're infuriating, James." She huffed, crossing her arms.

"I'm not the one interrupting her ex boyfriends sleep, half dressed. Trying to be promiscuous, Lils?" James smiled mischievously. Lily's mouth dropped as she remembered she was in just her under garments. She snatched up her pants and shirt and pulled them on as quickly as possibly.

"I'm going to sleep on the couch." She replied.

"You'd rather sleep with Sirius than me?" He laughed. Lily turned to face him, halfway out the bedroom door.

"What?"

"Sirius fell asleep on the couch."

Lily leaned her head against the door frame. She was absolutely exhausted. "These past few days have been a dream, haven't they? Please tell me I've been dreaming."

"Do you dream of me often?" Questioned James.

"Let me rephrase that. They've been a nightmare." She closed her eyes for a moment, feeling completely and absolutely drained. "I'm going to go back to The 'Cauldron."

James sighed at her obvious exhaustion. "You can't, you'll splinch yourself if you try to apparate, and you'll never make it if you try to walk. Just come to bed. I'll go sleep on the reclining chair."

Lily turned to face him. "I can't ask you to do that. This is your apartment just as much as it's mine."

James gave her a knowing look, and stood from the bed.

"Sleep!" he ordered. Lily yawned again, knowing it was pointless to argue with him. She stumbled over to the bed and fell face-first on top of it. She was nearly immediately asleep.

James paused in the doorway, and looked back at her. Her chest rose and fell in a steady, slow progression. Her red hair was sprayed across her face. He smiled to himself, and then pulled the blanket over his ex-girlfriend. He brushed back her hair, closed the blinds, and left the room.

"Thanks, James." She muttered quietly.

Jen Riddle
August 19th 2010

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