Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Harry Potter or Harry Potter related copyrights.

"Morning mum," said James cheerfully. It was his policy to pretend that nothing was wrong, so that if she didn't know something was wrong he wouldn't incriminate himself.

"Good morning James," replied Marilyn warmly. "Have some pancakes; they are particularly good this morning. Your father had four before he left."

"When did he leave?" asked James casually.

"About twenty minutes ago. It was surprising that he was able to eat so much because he left in an awful hurry. He and the team were setting out this morning on a mission in the south."

"When is he going to be home?"

Marilyn smiled softly, "He'll be home for the Gala honey, don't you worry. He wouldn't miss it for the world. It's only Wednesday, lately these missions haven't usually lasted more than a few days."

James sighed in relief. His mother thought that he was glad that his dad would be able to attend his big celebration, but really he was just relieved that he wouldn't have to deal with his dad for a few days, and that his dad had been in too much of a hurry to talk to his wife about James sneaking out.

"So what are you boys going to do today?" asked Marilyn as Sirius joined them at the table.

James and Sirius exchanged glances. "Maybe some Quidditch or a trip to Diagon Alley," remarked Sirius casually as he poured himself some orange juice.

"Sounds like fun," said Marilyn cheerily. "If you go by Diagon Alley be sure to pick up your dress robes; that will be one more thing off of my to-do list."

"Sure mum, we can do that." After an encouraging glance from Sirius, James interrupted his mother while she went over her list. "Um, mum? I have a big favor to ask."

"What is it honey?" she asked as she looked up from her long scroll.

"CouldLilycomeandstaywithusforthesummerandhopefullyforeverbecauseIdon'twanthertogoawaytoschool?" asked James in a rush.

Sirius put his face in his palm and just shook his head.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Mrs. Potter laughed.

James took a deep breath and rallied his Gryffindor courage. Then calmly he said, "Lily doesn't want to live with her family anymore and she needs a place to stay; can she possibly live here?"

Mrs. Potter's face glowed with excitement and her eyes shone with happiness. "Of course! That would be wonderful! That poor girl; tell her to come as soon as she would like! I'll tell the house elves to prepare her room. Oh I can't wait! It will be so nice to have another girl in the house!

"Have a good day boys! I have to talk to Elsa about airing out Lily's room!" called Mrs. Potter as she piled her papers together and flounced out of the dining room.

"Look how happy you made her," said Sirius.

James let his head fall to the table with a dull thump and mumbled, "But just wait until my dad gets home."

"But you already have your mum on your side, and she's so thrilled about Lily coming to stay that she'll be sure to fight for it to happen. Plus, your dad can't deny her that much happiness," reasoned Sirius.

"I don't even know when Lily's leaving her house. She said not to visit her today but tomorrow I could. I need to talk to her," moaned James.

"She still has your mirror doesn't she?"

"No," sighed James. "She was afraid Petunia or the she-devil would take it so she gave it back to me on the train."

"Let's send owls to Moony and Wormtail and see if they can meet us at Diagon Alley; that will get your mind off of Lily and all of your many issues," suggested Sirius.

"I suppose," mumbled James as he allowed himself to be dragged off toward the family owlry.

-----

After assuring the "distressed" Clarice that Lily was perfectly fine, Albert led his daughter to his study.

"Now Lillian," said Albert calmly as he settled himself in his plush leather armchair. "You were always such a good little girl. Why did you sneak out of the house tonight?"

Petulantly Lily replied, "I sneak out of the house every other night; tonight was nothing special."

Albert viewed his teenaged daughter carefully. He remembered a similar situation with his eldest daughter, but Lily looked nothing like Violet in this moment. Violet had seemed to shrink into her chair looking mortified and penitent. Lily was also reclining in the armchair, but she looked bored, not at all embarrassed or worried. She looked haughty and unaffected.

Albert scoffed, "Honestly Lillian, no need to be dramatic; I think your mother and I would notice if you left every other night."

Lily sneered. "You really think so? That's funny because Clarice sends me to bed at nine every night so that I can sneak out. She thinks that will help me find someone to whom she can sell me."

"Now you're just being ridiculous." Albert removed his glasses and rubbed his face tiredly. "But I want you to know that your mother and I don't blame you; we blame that wizard kid and that school for leading you astray."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Can I go now?"

Her attitude threw Albert for a loop. "We haven't discussed your punishment yet," he replied sternly.

"How could I forget?" asked Lily sarcastically. She crossed her arms over her chest and challenged him to punish her.

"I think that you should not be allowed to go on the trip to the spa with your mother and sisters on Thursday," said Albert victoriously.

"Oh darn," said Lily as she snapped her fingers emphatically. "And I was so looking forward to the trip I wasn't invited to go on in the first place."

"What?" spluttered Albert. "Why weren't you going to go?"

"Don't worry, staying here with you for the day will be punishment enough," said Lily cynically.

"If I wasn't so tired I would yell at you right now," stated Albert, his temper rising.

"Oh no! You would yell at me! How horrible; I'm so scared," mocked Lily. "Well this has been a great little chat, but I believe it's past my bedtime."

Albert was speechless as Lily actually stood up and walked toward the door.

When he regained his verbal abilities, jumped up from his seat and yelled after her saying, "You can't leave! I'm not finished yet!"

"Don't worry, you'll berate me plenty on Thursday," said Lily dismissively without turning around. She waved her hand and then exited.

Albert fell back into his chair with a dull thump. He sat there for a long time wondering what happened to his sweet little red head who used to put bandages on her sisters' scraped knees, iron his shirts, and pay all the bills. She used to be so cute when she woke up at five to make him coffee, breakfast, and pack his lunch. He fondly recalled walking into the kitchen around midnight to find her head resting on a plastic pail, the sponge she used to wash the floor still clutched in her hand. Where had that little girl gone?

-----

"I'm not coming home this time Daze," Lily said tearfully. She was sitting on her sister's bed Wednesday afternoon as Daisy packed for her trip.

"You always come home," Daisy countered as she continued methodically folding her clothes.

"Not this time; I can't take it anymore."

"Why can't you just stay for the rest of the summer?" asked Daisy as she continued to refuse to look at her older sister. "You've done it before."

"I know Daisy," said Lily as tears streamed down her face. "But I can't. I can't take it anymore."

"Stop saying that!" burst Daisy as she violently threw a blouse to the ground. "You can do anything! If you really loved me you wouldn't leave me alone in this horror house!"

Lily melted when she saw her young sister crying. She stood up and went to her sister, gently pulling her into a hug.

"I miss mum," Daisy blubbered into Lily's comforting embrace.

"Me too," whispered Lily.

"She's gone, Violet's gone, Dad's gone, Petunia's gone… you were all I had left!" cried Daisy. "And now you're leaving me too!"

Lily could feel her heart breaking, but she knew she couldn't survive another summer.

"I'm going to talk to Dad, and I think things will change around here," soothed Lily. "I won't leave you alone I promise. You'll see; things will be different. You'll see."

"I love you Lily," cried Daisy as she tightened her hold on her sister.

Lily shut her eyes and concentrated solely on the feel of her sobbing sister in her arms. "I love you too, more than you will ever know."

-----

At exactly nine the following evening James was at Lily's front door. The previous 48 hours had seemed impossibly long to him; he couldn't imagine what it was going to be like when they were in separate schools in different countries. He rang the bell, but no one answered. He waited another minute, but he wanted to see Lily so badly he decided to just let himself into the house.

He had been in Lily's house once before, but that was for her birthday party and Sirius had led him through the halls. Also, at that time James was utterly frustrated at Lily, so he hadn't really bothered to look around. Now he was observing the horrible house that had imprisoned his girlfriend for years; he wanted to know what made her so desperate to leave.

The foyer James found himself in was very normal for an expensive mansion; the floor was white marble tiles, mirrors hung from the walls in golden frames, a polished and ornate mahogany staircase wound its way down the center of the room, and large vases perched delicately on spindly end tables. It was a beautiful and spotless room that oozed wealth and a conservative sense of style. There was only one thing that distinguished this house from the Potter home, warmth.

The entrance hall of Potter Manor was comprised of the same cold materials, marble, glass, and gold, but it was colorful and inviting. Family portraits adorned the walls, Persian carpets softened the harsh floor, and flowers brightened up the vases. Stateliness and formality still pervaded the Potter foyer, but somehow it didn't come off as sterile like the Evans's entrance hall.

The echo of James's footsteps on the marble was the only perceptible sound in the house. It seemed as if the mansion was completely abandoned; there wasn't even the soft swish of a feather duster to signal any human presence.

"Lily?" he whispered feeling nervous and slightly silly.

He peeked into every room, but none of them showed any indication that Lily had recently occupied them. After he ended back in the foyer he decided to explore the second floor. Due to his many years in large mansions, James quickly figured out where the bedrooms were located and went in the opposite direction; he didn't need any temptation.

He was idly walked down the hall, hands in his pockets, and looking at the boring seascapes and pastel flower paintings, when he heard a sudden crash and yelling. Curling his fingers around his wand, he quickly padded over to the double doors from whence the sound came and listened.

-----

"I'm leaving Dad," Lily told her father. "I'm never coming home again, because frankly, this isn't my home; it never has been."

"What?" asked Mr. Evans snippily. It was only nine at night and already he had consumed more than enough alcohol to warp his personality.

"Tomorrow morning I'm going to leave; I already have all my things packed."

"You ungrateful brat!" he spat. "You have no possessions! Everything you have I have given to you! How dare you even think of leaving and taking anything with you!"

"I'll leave it then," said Lily casually as she shrugged her shoulders. "I would be willing to leave everything behind just to be away from you and this house."

"What is your problem?!"

"You Dad, you are my problem!" screamed Lily with more emotion than she had expressed in front of her father in years.

"Me?" asked Mr. Evans quietly. He was taken aback and his anger dissipated as quickly as it had originated.

"Yes you," seethed Lily, her chest heaving. "You married that wretch Clarice without even asking me; I just came home from school and then it was 'here's a new house Lily, away from all your friends and everything you have ever known, and by the way you have a new mother to go with it!'! In fact we're going to pretend your mother never even existed! Except for those rare days, like her birthday and today, when you remember her by drowning yourself in alcohol!

"And who has to clean that mess up?! Me! That new wife of yours won't even stay in the same house with you when you're like this! No, she leaves me here to make sure you don't hurt yourself or burn the house down! So remind me again, why did you have to marry her?" she concluded rhetorically.

"You needed someone to take care of you girls; I couldn't do it by myself," Mr. Evans explained.

"You can't do it at all!" accused Lily. "You just let Clarice rule our lives! She doesn't know anything about us, but you do! Yet, you let her tell you that I shouldn't go to the school that I love, that I shouldn't talk to the people I love, that I should go on dates with men I hate. You knew better and said nothing! Nothing!" shrieked Lily as years of pent-up hurt rushed out.

"I thought some mother would be better than no mother."

"You thought wrong! It is because of you and that mistake you call my mother that I push away the man who loves me. He is a kind, wonderful man, and all I do is hurt him because my heart is so mangled and scarred it can't commit, can't love fully. I can't trust anyone because I will always be afraid that they will leave me, betray me, disappoint me, just like you did!"

"I never knew…"

"You never wanted to know!" yelled Lily spitefully. "You buried your head in your books, your work, your social life! You are an ostrich you sticks his head in the sand when danger comes! A turtle who sticks its head in its shell when it doesn't want to see! You are a bloody coward!"

"What could I do?" cried Albert. "I couldn't raise you girls; Daisy was only six, Petunia was only thirteen and you were only sixteen. You were too young to be worrying about bills, nutritional intake, and taxes. You should have been out having fun with your friends, going to parties, watching movies. I knew the day you sat me down and told me that I had exceeded my alcohol budget for the month that our family needed some help."

"We didn't need any help! I was managing! I took care of everything! Every time Petunia followed your example and drowned her misery in booze, I cleaned up the vomit! Daisy never once missed taking her medication or vitamins because I made sure she didn't! There was not a single bill that wasn't paid on time or early, even when I was away at school! For two whole years we were fine! And then I come home from my third year of school, and found out I had been replaced?!"

"You were too young for such responsibility; you were getting worry lines."

"What would you know about me? You weren't home ever, and when you were you were drunk! You have no idea what my life was like; you have no knowledge about the person I was forced to become."

"I never forced you to do anything," said Albert defensively.

"But you did!" said Lily violently. "If I had not bought groceries and paid the electric bill, we would have starved in the dark! You slacked off and encouraged Petunia to do the same, so everything fell to my shoulders!"

"Stop blaming me!" yelled Albert angrily as he covered his ears with his hands and shut his eyes.

"Never," spat Lily. "I will never stop blaming you for stealing my childhood!"

When Mr. Evans continued to 'stick his head in the sand,' Lily picked up a nearby decorative vase and threw it against the wall behind her father. It broke with a satisfying crash.

"Listen to me!" screamed Lily. "Stop hiding and running away you coward!"

Mr. Evans's eyes took in the shards of the vase and his livid daughter; then he factored in his own feelings of resentment and shame and fear. The result was anger.

"How dare you call me a coward you disobedient, disrespectful wretch!" thundered Mr. Evans. With each word he took an emphatic step toward Lily. "I have given you everything you have ever asked for!"

Even though her dad was half a head taller than her and his anger made it seem as if he towered over her even more, Lily's years of resentment allowed her to stand her ground. "All I wanted was my father," spat Lily.

Then Mr. Evans did something he never would have down had he been sober, he slapped his daughter. He had never laid a hand on any of his daughters in the many years he had been a parent, never. He was triumphant, smug for a moment. Then he saw fear, horror, and shock on his daughter's face as she crawled backwards away from him. Next he saw half of her face become inflamed. Then shame and misery flooded him. He sank to his knees and put his head in his hands and cried.

"I'm so sorry Lily, so sorry, I didn't mean to, I don't know what I was thinking," he sobbed.

Lily stayed where she was, tears of fear and hurt still streaming down her face.

"My baby, my baby," he whimpered, as he started to crawl over to her as if to comfort her.

Lily scampered away as fast as she could. This only provoked more tears from Mr. Evans.

"What have I done?!" he howled.

"More than enough," said James coolly as he scooped Lily up in his strong arms.

"What are you doing?!" screeched Albert as James carried Lily away. He attempted to stand and go after them, but stumbled over his own feet. "Help me Lily!" he implored.

Lily lifted her head off of James's shoulder and said, "Never again. I don't even care if you burn this place down anymore! I've been cleaning up after you since I was twelve! I was twelve Dad! Twelve, not sixteen! Petunia's older than I am!"

"Come on Lily," said James softly. "I'm taking you home."

With a whimper Lily melted back into James's embrace and let herself be carried out of the house she hated and into the woods where she found solace.

Once there James asked, "Do you want a minute, or do you want me to take you to my house now."

"Get me out of here," begged Lily. "Take me home."

-----

"Lily?! What happened?" called Sirius worriedly as he saw James walking into the entrance hall with the aforementioned girl in his arms.

Mrs. Potter, who was also nearby, ran into the hall when she heard Lily mentioned. "What happened?!" she echoed as she rushed over.

Ignoring both questions James said, "I'm going to take Lily upstairs; she's had a rough night."

Mrs. Potter looked at her son with a glance that said 'I want a full explanation later,' and nodded. Sirius sent James a similar look as he stepped aside so that James could climb the staircase.

James opened the door to Lily's bedroom and smiled. Something about this felt right. The doors to the balcony were open, letting a slight breeze drift in and flutter the sheer white curtains. There was a lit candle on the nightstand that made the warm yellow color of the walls glow, and the coverlet was turned down.

Gently James placed Lily on top of the quilt, and sat down bedside her.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"No," whimpered Lily. Her eyes were puffy from crying and her cheek was swollen and red. She was altogether a pathetic sight.

After a few minutes during which James and Lily simply gazed at each other, Lily broke the silence by whispering, "Thank you."

James smiled softly, "You're welcome."

Several more minutes passed in a similar fashion until James ventured to ask, "Did you know that that was going to happen?"

"I didn't know that this was going to happen," Lily trailed off as she traced her injury with her fingertips. "But yes, I knew that my father was going to drink tonight and I purposefully poured out years of frustration. I did it because I knew that he wouldn't be able to hide his feelings or hold back because his judgment would be impaired. Also I could say whatever I wanted and there would be a high chance he wouldn't remember any of it."

"Do you feel better?" James insightfully asked.

"Yes and no," said Lily as she traced the lines of James's palm. "I finally told him how I felt, but he's still my dad and ending my relationship with him hurts."

"You were in a lose-lose situation; it would've hurt to stay and it hurts to go," said James wisely.

"It doesn't hurt me as much as it is going to hurt him. I left him a letter telling him not to try to contact me anymore, that I was finished with him. It also told him to be a better father, not to scar Daisy like he maimed me. I told him to cherish the only daughter who still loved him," she sobbed.

James pulled Lily onto his lap and held her tightly. He stroked her hair and rubbed her back and murmured any comforting word he could summon.

Eventually Lily was drained of all tears; she felt tired, wilted, and empty. When James made a motion to lay her back down, she tightened her grip on her neck.

"I need you James," she whispered fiercely. "Please don't leave me."

"This is going to get us in trouble again," he responded maturely.

"Leave the door open," suggested Lily.

As he looked at her forlorn expression that was similar to a kitten who has lost its mother and is now alone on the streets of London during a thunderstorm, James wondered what he wouldn't do to take away her pain. Nothing came to mind.

"Okay," he consented. He laid down beside her and wrapped a loving arm around her waist as she curled into him.

"Did you talk to your dad?" Lily asked him.

"About what?"

"Me."

"No, he's been away on an auror mission since early yesterday."

"Why doesn't he want you to date me?" asked Lily, her voice quivering slightly.

James sighed and tightened his grip on Lily. "This isn't exactly a bedtime story, but I'll tell you if you want."

"Please."

"Well, you know how they say that history repeats itself? Well, when my dad was a seventh year, also Head Boy like yours truly, he was in love with a muggleborn named Eleanor. He brought her to the family Christmas Eve party, and everything seemed fine, but when the couple didn't break up, my grandfather told my dad that he had to break up with her because he was the oldest son and thus required to marry a pureblood and have pureblood heirs. Also like me, he refused and sneaked out to see the love of his life. Somehow his parents didn't catch him… but they did kind of figure it out when he and Eleanor went to my grandparents and told them that they were grandparents."

"Your mom, isn't really your mom?" gasped Lily. "You're not really a pureblood?"

"No, I'm not really an only child; I have a half-sister named Elizabeth. She's fifteen years older than me, lives in France, and is married with some kids. Also no one knows about her existence except my mom, dad, her mom, me, and you. After Eleanor told my grandparents she was pregnant, they sent her away and my dad didn't see her for like thirteen years. My mom found her so that my dad could have closure and stop pining after her; he did, he fell in love with my mom, two years after they had been married. I was born the following year."

"So your dad is doing the same thing to you that his dad did to him?"

"Except we're different; I'm not going to let him come between us," promised James with intense passion. "I love you Lily and I can't live without you."

"Oh, James," sighed Lily as she turned in his arms so she was facing him. "How can we keep going when it seems as if everything and everyone is out to stop our relationship?"

"We've made it this far," rationalized James.

"We have," agreed Lily quietly.

"We'll figure out the rest as we go," James told her. "We'll figure it out together, always together."

"Merlin I love you," said Lily as she snuggled closer to him.

From outside the door Marilyn Potter found her heart swelling with anger toward her husband by forbidding this wonderful relationship, and love for her son who had become the man she had always hoped he would be. Although she had the same morals and values as her husband, she trusted the couple, and didn't even mind that they were sharing a bed for the night. She knew that they needed each other, and she was glad that they had found each other.

A/N. So there wasn't really any musical inspiration for this chapter… but here are some questions!

How do you feel about Mr. Evans now?

How do you think Mr. Potter will react to all of this?

Favorite/ cutest Lily/James moment?

Current favorite or least favorite character?

Thoughts/ hopes for the coming chapters?

Thank you all for reading! Impress me with your reviews and the next chapter is yours!

~AAA