February 18th, 1977

Following afternoon Transfiguration, Severus Snape fancied himself a nap. A true rarity. He was in no mood to study and in absolutely no mood to hang around Mulciber and Avery. Plotting the downfall of muggleborns was rather drab recently, and if they were smart, they would stop. Ever since Meadowes dropped, the Professors have been following strict policy to ensure the safety of their students. Both Connor Greyson and Bijal Gupta insisted on earlier curfews and often broke-up students gathering together past seven o'clock at night. It was becoming a rehabilitation center for troubled youth rather than a school.

As he filed out of the classroom behind other students, Severus let out a tired yawn. How he longed for his bed. But, it would have to wait apparently.

Lily Evans waited with her arms crossed over her chest, along with her bitch of a best friend, Marlene McKinnon. She looked highly displeased with her furrowed brow and pressed lips. She beckoned him with her little finger, and truthfully, that's all it took. All ever Lily Evans had to do was beckon him, and he was at his knees.

"Her Highness calls for me?" He asked dryly. He would never compromise his pride, not even for the Lily Evans.

Marlene peered down at her friend and said, "Give me one reason to not punch him in the throat."

"Scary," Snape murmured.

When Marlene wound back to throw the punch, Lily put a hand on her friend's shoulder. She kept her green eyes locked onto Snape's; he disliked when she'd look at him like that. Towards the end of their friendship, she'd give him that glare regularly. "Because Snape has to use his vocal cords to tell us why he was after Dorcas," she said simply.

Snape scoffed, "Oh, so she's Dorcas now. Had to find a replacement Slytherin to pity?"

"I don't pity, Dorcas," Lily said shortly. "I care for her. She's a good person, unlike the other Slytherin I once chose to befriend."

The students stared at each other, neither one wanting to be the first to break the stand-off. Snape eventually had to blink and rubbed his eyes. "Did you try and kill Dorcas Meadowes?" She asked.

Snape sighed, "No, I did not."

"Liar," Marlene spat.

"Say what you'd like, McKinnon, but I did not try and kill Dorcas. Nor did Avery or Mulciber - I can see prejudice oozing from your skull."

Marlene scoffed, but said nothing as she leaned against the courtyard wall.

"Then who did?" Lily asked.

"I don't know," Severus said dully. "But cheers to them. One less mudblood in my House."

Lily closed her eyes at the word, holding herself back. "You're disgusting," she said quietly, "and a bullshitter. You definitely know, and I will tell Dumbledore that you were responsible for the other attacks."

"You don't have the evidence to make a convincing argument," Snape said.

"Honestly, you and your gang's past history is enough of a convincing argument."

"Evans," Snape said shortly, causing the two Gryffindor girls to raise their eyebrows at the formality, "I saw you watching me at the Match. You saw my face then. I was just as surprised as you were to see Meadowes floating in the air, like she was hanging on the cross."

"Again, good bullshitter," Lily said in an impatient tone.

"Say what'd you like, but it wasn't me or my friends. Truthfully, we had planned to attack Meadowes that night." Marlene and Lily exchanged quick glances, but remained quiet to let Snape continue with this intriguing anecdote. "We were going to concoct a potion for her at the celebration party after the game."

"You expected to win enough to plan a party?" Marlene asked rhetorically. She let out a snort.

"Yes, we did. It was a good plan too, which we were counting on. But, it wasn't us. We were thrown off when Meadowes had her attack. But, not displeased either."

Lily had a few inclinations in the moment. She wanted to punch Severus in his nose; run to Dumbledore to tell him of the news; and possibly sit down with a butterbeer to properly absorb all of that information. She chose to glare at him longer and asked, "Is that true?"

"Do you really think I would've just told you that as a lie?" Snape asked, a bit hurt by her incessant disbelief.

Lily looked him up and down once. She took Marlene's hand and brushed past him. "I don't know," she said honestly without looking back and shimmying past students.

James Potter shimmied up his trousers, jumping a little to get them over his bum. He nearly his his head on a shelf trying to do so. There never was much space in a broom cupboard, but that being said, he was a bit excitable right now.

A faint giggle filled the cupboard. James looked down at the girl in front of him. Camilla Henley was tucking her blouse into her skirt and peered up at him coyishly. "Post-Sex Potter is an amusing one," she smirked.

James shrugged, "Any Potter you'll meet is amusing."

She thought about this. "Good point."

It was dark in the cupboard the two Gryffindors chose. There was enough light streaming in from the light from outside which created created a glow surrounding them. James thought she looked pretty right now, maybe beautiful with her warm olive skin and tousled hair. He kissed her forehead before opening the door. "After you, m'lady,"

"M'lady?" Camilla repeated, sliding out the cupboard. "Is this Butler Potter?"

"Yes, Darling," James replied, closing the door quickly behind him. "He grants your every wish, but only in your dreams. I'll see you later, yeah?" He glanced at his watch and then at Camilla, like the Alice's White Rabbit.

Camilla noted his rushed actions and raised an eyebrow. "Yeah," she murmured.

Without another word, James passed by Camilla, already trotting to his destination. She watched as he dodged past students and ran through the courtyard. That was the first time she had witness him run - he looked like an ostrich. What could possibly make James Potter run like a bird?

"Stop running around like a chicken with its head cut off," Robert Vance called after his girlfriend, or ex-girlfriend. He wasn't quite sure which one as of now.

"Don't reprimand me," Emmeline Kim snapped, piling her books together. She had been studying peacefully with Mary when Robert intruded her space. The moment she saw him approach, she was packing her bags. She couldn't bare to look at him even.

"I'm not… I'm not trying to reprimand you," Robert tried, following after Emmeline. "I'm trying to understand you."

Emmeline spun on her heels to glare back at the dark-haired boy. She hated that just the sight of him could make her heart beat uncontrollably. She loved the way his lips curled when he spoke to her. But, she hated that those lips touched another's, especially by the likes of Lucinda Talkalot. "Understand me?" She repeated, outraged. "Now you want to understand me?"

"I always want to understand you, Em, but sometimes you make it ruddy difficult," he countered hotly.

"Me make it difficult? You're the one off snogging and shagging other harpies!" She cried, clutching her books so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

"Mr. Vance! Miss Kim!"

The two students snapped their head in the direction of Madam Pince's shrill voice. The librarian put her long finger to her lips and then pointed out the door. "Take it elsewhere," she hissed.

"Of course," Emmeline said haughtily, leaving Robert in the dust. He called out to her again before leaving. "Just leave me alone, I want nothing to do with you!"

"You're mad at me for something you don't understand," he said, grabbing her wrist.

"Now, we're questioning my capabilities as a seer. This is a smashing conversation, Robert, it truly is."

"Em, you know that's not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?"

The former couple caused a rather notable scene. Students tried not to watch for the sake of privacy, but it was hard not to be absorbed. It was such a small castle.

Robert noticed this fact and cleared his throat. "You've told me that the future is always changing and is subjective," he continued in a softer voice. "I haven't touched Talkalot. And you're punishing me for something I have yet to do. Tell me where the sense is in that, aye?"

Emmeline narrowed her dark eyes at Robert. Although he did prove some good points, she still felt irritation course through her veins. "On Sunday, I foresaw Dorcas Meadowes fall from the bloody sky hours before it happened during the Quidditch match. My visions come true, and I'll be damned if I just wait to be cheated on. Especially if it's with a nosy superficial bird like Talkalot."

Emmeline turned around and walked away without thinking twice about it, leaving a confused Robert in the halls.

"Now that's a fit bird," Sirius Black agreed with Peter's assessment of Tanya Pine. "Wonder if she plays for both teams?" He added with a wink.

"Unlikely," Remus Lupin commented off-handedly as he aimlessly skimmed the Daily Prophet. He was barely paying attention to the nine injured in Godric's Hollow after a cursed fire spread through an entire home. Naturally, his focus was on another bird.

Peter Pettigrew laughed in agreement, clapping Remus on the back. He earned an unenthusiastic smile return.

"You know who is also fit?" Sirius asked as he caught James' squirmy snitch.

"Don't even say it," Remus said as he turned the page.

"Who?" Peter asked excitedly.

"No, Sirius-"

"Marlene." Sirius sang her name as if he were a formidable opera singer, making each syllable as angelic as possible.

Peter's eyes widened, rubbing them as if that would somehow change the answer. When he was met with nothing but silence, Peter gulped. "Don't do it."

"And why not?" Sirius asked indignantly.

"Because, it's… it's…"

"It's Marlene," Remus finished, setting his paper down. "And you know where this conversation ends."

Sirius pouted. He tapped his fingers against the grass. The three friends sat outside on this mild winter day. The weather had been decent in the past week, enticing students to go outside more. The gang thought it would be a nice day to take a stroll into the woods with a half bottle of Firewhiskey. Sirius and Peter were already two shots in while Remus decided to act as babysitter.

"I don't know," Sirius shrugged, releasing the snitch into the air again. "I think her voice is rather sexy. I reckon it's even raspy." Remus grimaced while Peter giggled like a school girl. "Fantastic vocal nodules," he added, "I mean, the bird can sing too, but even when she yells at me…" he trailed off dreamily.

"You like it when she yells at you?" Peter asked curiously.

The dark-haired one snapped his head towards his critical friend. "I am the prince of oedipal complexes, my dear Peter. It's what I do."

Remus guffawed. He turned away from his paper and said, "Okay, that was a good one."

Sirius beamed a white-tooth smile at him. "And she's even hotter than Walburga, so cheers to me."

"I reckon you hush up, Sirius, for several reasons," Peter whispered. His eyes were on James running down the hill.

Sirius snatched the snitch and decided to take Peter's advice, at least for now. He was aware of how protective James was of his favorite cousin. They were more like brother and sister, and James let the school know it. Starting in their fourth year, James would prank the students interested in Marlene, and Lily Evans. Now, even though James let go his more interesting-hobbies (only Sirius refers to this as such) in the last year, he still glared at anyone looking at Marlene for too long or throwing up suggestive gestures. Sirius didn't like the thought of being on the receiving end of one of those.

"Oy," James panted once he reached his mates. He bent over, holding himself by leaning onto his knees. "She's not here yet?"

"Whose she?" Peter asked.

"Did you just shag?" Remus asked.

"Why were you running?" Sirius asked.

James plopped down and wiped his glasses. "Lily," he panted, as if it were obvious.

The three others exchanged glances. "Evans is joining us?" Sirius asked curiously. He let out a loud laugh before asking, "Did you Imperio her?"

"Sod off," James laughed. "I don't know. She seems down lately. So, I asked her if she wanted to join us. And she said yes."

Remus scoffed. "Of course, she's bloody down, James. She's probably more than that."

"Everyone grieves differently about Dorcas…" James murmured, suddenly feeling rather defensive.

The prefect narrowed his eyes. "I'm talking about her breakup."

James froze. He didn't blink for an entire minute before muttering, "Come again?"

Sirius let out a low whistle, while Remus suddenly looked back to his newspaper. Peter began picking grass idly. No one said anything.

"All of you knew?" James asked again. "Why am I the only that doesn't?"

"Because it's none of your business," a curt female voice spoke.

James felt a familiar tingle run up his spine. He turned slowly to be met with Lily Evans' irritable glare. "So, did you break the Headboy's heart?" He asked, attempting to play off everything with some humor.

Lily stiffened as she gulped. "Something like that," she said softly. She pulled out a bottle of Firewhiskey and asked, "When do we begin?" She gave the bottle a wiggle.

Sirius clapped his hands together and even bent over to bow regally before the ginger. "Oh, thank you, our Goddess, Onenotropae! Bless us with liquor!"

"She was the Greek goddess of Wine," Lily teased as she took a swig of the liquor. She tossed it at Sirius and jokingly said, "Get your Greek Goddesses right, Black."

Sirius stood up and wiped himself of dirt. "I should be credited for knowing at least the most important," he said with a wink before taking his own swig. He let out a satisfied "ah!" and then clapped. "All right, Mates! Up and out we go!"

Lily, Remus, and Peter followed Sirius into the Forbidden Forest. James followed slowly behind, watching the back of Lily Evans. She played her game well, trying to seem as if everything were going normal. But, he could see her slower step, her fake smile, and distracted gaze. Lily Evans was far from all right.

"Well, do you feel all right?"

Dorcas Meadowes looked up at her Headmaster as if he were the dumbest man on the planet. "Oh, yes, just smashing," she deadpanned. "One-hundred-and-ten percent."

It had been two days since the Slytherin girl woke up from her unconscious state. She had not attended classes since her revival due to painful headaches and never-ending voices. Dumbledore allowed her to catch up on her school work in privacy of the Hospital Wing. She had been there since, under the watchful eye of Madam Pomfrey. The old hag wouldn't even let Dorcas out of her sight for a smoke, which made the young witch incredibly agitated.

The only time Dorcas was not followed by the Healer was currently. She sat in her warm robe and pajama pants with her arms crossed, looking like a petulant child. At least, Dumbledore was a formidable occulmens, so for once, she felt at peace in her own head.

"Dorcas," Dumbledore said in a fatherly voice. "What can I provide for you to make your recovery more pleasant?"

Dorcas let out a huff. She hated when he did this, play nice when she was being a prat. "I want to be able to smoke a bloody cigarette."

Dumbledore let out a quiet chuckle as he took off his spectacles. "Maybe this recovery is good for you in more than one way."

"And maybe I know far too much about Madam Promfery's personal life now because she's tailing me twenty-four-seven, Professor," Dorcas said in a short tone, exasperated by the past two days. "I can't breath with her around, and I don't want to be in her head! I shouldn't be in her head."

Dorcas now knew far too much about the Healer. She knew about Madam Pomfrey's dear cat, Whiskey, and her love of the Chudley Canons. She also pitied Madam Pomfrey, whose youngest daughter nearly died in the most recent fire in Godric's Hollow. The daughter, Patricia, was currently in St. Mugno's, getting treatment for severe burns. Dorcas wasn't supposed to know this much her professor; no one was supposed to know this much about anyone.

Dumbledore folded his hands together. "I presume that the wall reconstruction is moving slowly."

"You presume correctly." And that was putting it nicely.

Dumbledore thought about this for a moment. He looked to the portraits of past Headmasters, trying to remember what they would do in such a situation. Natural ligilems were rare in form, and it was even harder when they were adolescent students.

"I suggest that we get you a tutor."

Dorcas raised a brow and narrowed her eyes at him. "For my wall reconstruction?" She asked, clearly skeptical, "Why can't you teach me?"

"Oh, I will help you with that, of course," Dumbledore said, waving her off. He began skimming through his notes, searching for something. "A different tutor."

"For what?" Dorcas inquired.

"Someone needs to teach you occulemency," he revealed. "And it has to be someone proficient in the art."

"Why would someone need to do that for me?" She asked carefully.

Dumbledore stopped searching for whatever he was looking for and peered up at his tired student. He let out a long breath before saying, "Get comfy, Miss Meadowes. We have much to discuss."

"So, was it like a discussion?" Sirius asked Lily. "Or did you just leave him a note? Like in Austen novel? Dear Connor, I am hurt to let you know that I must break your goody-two-shoes Heart-"

"Bugger off," Lily hissed, punching Sirius in the arm before taking another swig. She grimaced before adding, "I'll be damned if I break up with someone over letter. If I respect you and want to break-up with you, hopefully, I'll have enough respect for you to say it your face."

Sirius clapped his hands. "Brava. Moral Evans as always," he said dully.

Lily made a face and then turned to Remus. "Where's his off-button?" she asked sharply.

Remus shrugged, "Been searching for it for years. Must be near of his nether regions."

"Oh, you can check those out tonight," Sirius said as he wrapped his arm around his friend's lean waist.

Remus was the one to make a face this time but allowed his besotted friend to hold onto him. He motioned for Lily to pass the bottle to James instead of Sirius when she was finished with her own swig. He made a mental note to also keep the Firewhiskey out of Lily's hands. The girl's balance was definitely off, even coordinating the hand-off.

James took another swig. He felt tingly all over, little pins and needles with a warm rush of heat. With the contrast of breathing in the cold air, he felt high. Everything looked so clear in the forest and enjoyed the way tree bark felt against his fingertips. He also enjoyed the way Lily's hips swayed, but he tried not to focus on that too much. He took another swig for help.

Peter trotted behind with his wobbly legs. "I… I… see it!" he shouted. He nearly lost his balance trying to point at the incoming open field. "It's Heaven!"

"Far from it," noted James. He watched as Lily stopped at the field, gazing at the sight of the broken-down Shrieking Shack.

"I never realized how close it was," she murmured. She shivered as a gust of wind passed them and bundled further into her jacket. She had never gotten this close before, but often looked at it from a far during Hogsmeade visits. Being this close made it that much more eerie. "How'd you find it?"

"Shrieking Shack was never really haunted," Remus explained as he removed Sirius' limbs from his waist. "The yells were from students pranking Hogsmeade."

Lily raised a skeptical eyebrow, something hard to identify since she was bundled so well. "Soooo, you lot?"

James unravelled his scarf and plopped it unceremoniously on Lily's shivering head. "Give us more credit than that, Evans. We have some morale. There are children in this village," he said.

Lily looked at the wool Gryffindor scarf before throwing it back at him. "I'm fine, thank you," she snapped.

"Alcohol makes you colder," he said calmly, pointing to her shivering knees.

"You should worry about your own knees… you… Gigantor," she said weakly. The Firewhiskey was making her head foggy so her comebacks were not up to par.

The Marauders laughed at her attempt, while Sirius took the bottle out of his friend's hand. He leaned against a tree beside Remus and pulled out a cigarette. "All right, kiddies, have fun," he smiled, waving them off.

Lily and James gave Sirius the same bewildered look. "You're not coming?" Lily asked as James gave his friends a look that combined horror and anger.

"I'm too scared," Peter said weakly before reaching out to the bottle.

"I'm not interested," Remus said simply.

"And I'm not a third-wheel," Sirius added before snatching the bottle out of Peter's grasp and taking a long drink. "I'm a unicycle, and a proud one at that."

Lily's face flushed and it wasn't because of the alcohol this time. She looked to James wearily before clenching her teeth together. Spending time with James Potter sounded like a bad decision, especially while inebriated. Or, it could mean the best thing. It would prove Connor wrong. This little moment could mean everything for her self-esteem. Since the break-up, Lily wondered if it had all been her fault: Connor's insecurity, that is. Maybe she couldn't see something that he could about James, or maybe Potter still did have underlying feelings for her?

But, if they could manage sneaking into a haunted house alone with no physical contact, this might be the big relief she's been waiting for all week.

Or it may be the cause to her own downfall. Who knows?

"Then give us the bottle," Lily said, beckoning for it.

Sirius gave her a devious look with the corner of his lips turning up. He passed her the smaller bottle and said, "There's two of you, and three of us."

James deadpanned. "Remus isn't drinking."

Sirius nudged him the prefect immediately, but still looked at James. Remus frowned and sighed, "I may take a shot or two."

"Who'll be babysitter than?" Lily inquired.

Remus smirked as he picked up his bottle. "It takes more than a couple of shots to release the monster, Lily," he said in a knowing voice.

Peter let out a gigantic laugh as he fell back onto the ground, before nearly passing out with sleepiness.

"But here," Remus insisted, passing her along the smaller bottle. He waved off James and Lily to go towards the Shack. "Go and show her, so that we can go back. I have to finish an essay, as do all of you."

There was a collective groan as Lily and James walked away together.

Mary MacDonald and Caradoc Dearborn sat together in an empty classroom. He stared at her soft gaze as she scribbled down an outline for an upcoming essay. She had the most beautiful skin that just always shined and the most delicate features, like a doll.

"You're staring," Mary sang softly as she peeked up to look at her boyfriend.

"And you're noticing," he winked.

Mary let out a little tinkle of a laugh, something that he cherished. How could he have not noticed her all of these years? She tilted her head, noticing something either on him or about him.

"What?" He asked.

Mary shook her head and returned to her outline, resuming her scribbling. The one con may be that the Hufflepuff had terrible hand-writing, like that of a six year old.

"Mary, what's wrong?" He tried again, pulling her closer to him by her hips. She gave him a reluctant look, but let him hold her. "You can tell me, y'know?"

Mary scrunched her nose for a moment before turning to him. She put a hand to her face and asked, "Will you forget about me?"

"Hard to forget a girl like you, Mary," he smiled.

Mary pushed him in the shoulder and whined, "I'm serious, Caradoc."

"And no one is laughing."

She made another face and pushed her glasses back over her head. There were rare times that Mary MacDonald showed her serious side, and Caradoc Dearborn had only seen it twice. "You're about to graduate," she said in a clear voice, as if she were about to give a lecture, "and you are going to do important and great things."

Caradoc did not like where this was headed.

"And while you're doing those great things, when the world is going to crap," she continued, "you'll have a hard time… managing your time."

He understood the intention of this talk immediately, recognizing her hesitation. "You don't think that I'll have time for you once I graduate," Caradoc finished, nodding his head.

Mary bit her lip. She said nothing for a moment as her eyes darted around. "I just don't want us to end up like Lily and Connor…"

Caradoc wasn't expecting this one. He had known what the break-up had done to both sides of that party. Connor was dissociating, pretending that it had no affect on him. Lily, on the other hand, ignored her ex-boyfriend. The whole school knew that they had broken-up before either one had shared the news with anyone.

Caradoc took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and leaned a hand on his desk to prop his face up. "First of all, we aren't Lily Evans or Connor Greyson, Mary. We're us, and I like that about us. They had a multitude of things going wrong in their relationship."

Mary looked down at her hands because that was true, whether she wanted to admit it or not. Luckily, Lily had never asked her that.

"And," Caradoc continued, "another simple difference is that I'm not leaving for America, Mary."

She looked up and gulped.

"I love Connor, I do, he's my best mate," he revealed. He seemed a bit exasperated even. "But, he's making a choice by running to America. And I don't think it's the wrong either since he's also a black muggle-born Wizard. I don't blame him, and a part of me wants to do the same, but I'm going to fight. I'm going to stay in England and fight."

Mary listened to his words with caution. He made points that she didn't expect him too. She didn't expect him to think about this so thoroughly; she thought it was her own paranoia. She never had a boyfriend before, and the thought of loosing Connor seemed… well, she didn't want to think about it.

"You can't get rid of me yet, Mary MacDonald," Caradoc smirked.

Mary let out a sigh of relief and kissed him gently on his lips. For once, it felt like everything was perfect.

James had imagined this perfect moment in his head previously: a tranquil walk in the woods, a shag against a tree, or he'd even talk to her kindly. Any of those things would've made this a perfect friday afternoon.

But, Lily Evans had just broken-up with her boyfriend, had one too many shots of liquor, and was set-up by his friends. This was the antonym of perfect.

Additionally, they haven't spoken more than two words in the past fifteen minutes. This was maybe the worst thing the Marauders haver ever done to him. Shit, it was worse than when Marlene had set them up on New Year's Eve.

"So…?" Lily asked, examining the building's depleting entrance. "We just walk in?"

"Yes," James said. "No spells, no charms."

"Do you lot just run into the Shrieking Shack when you get bored?" Lily asked dryly.

"Sometimes, we play with the Giant Squid in the Black Lake," James countered, with equal sarcasm, "depends on the weather."

Lily narrowed her eyes at him before taking a long swig. She tossed it to him before walking towards it. She stomped with determination and a glare on her face.

"Merlin," he whispered, "Evans, if you don't wanna go…"

"I do!" She shouted without looking back.

"What's gotten into you, aye?" James called out, tired of being ignored and tired of being scolded at like a child. He followed her into the broken down house, ignoring the creakiness and the eeriness that somewhat freaks him out every time he walks in.

Lily observed the place, but said nothing. A part of her found it disgusting and petrifying with all of the insects crawling, broken furniture, and loose wood-planks. Another part of her found it rather cool. She imagined the Marauders coming here on late nights, laughing their arses off. It seemed nice.

"You didn't have to come in here with me," explained James. "They're just playing a joke."

Lily froze and turned her head to him. If looks could kill... "What kind of joke?" She asked sourly.

James scoffed. "Stupid pranks that we've done all of our life."

"You prank each other?"

"Naturally."

"It's a prank enough to be in this building," She murmured as they walked around slowly.

James smiled. "I have a lot of good memories here."

She gave him a questionable look. "That's slightly terrifying."

"Maybe mysterious," James smirked.

Lily felt her face flush again, and she fucking hated it. Why did that happen? Why did her body react that way around him? She walked further ahead of him, not wanting him to see her like this. She didn't need a bigger bruise to her ego, thanks.

"Evans, what is wrong? It's not just that you're drunk," James commented. There was a softness in his voice that was not there before.

Lily turned back at him, but only to take possession of the liquor bottle again. However, James lifted it in the air, too high for the Ginger to reach. Gigantor-status had its perks.

"Oh, don't be a prat," Lily growled, hopping to reach the bottle. Instead, she looked like a baby bunny, and it was adorable. James couldn't help but let out a chuckle. "This funny to you?"

"Bloody Hell," James said, pretending to quiver. "Maybe AA would be promising path for you."

"AA? Oh, look at you with your muggle references," Lily teased as she finally stopped jumping. "Witty as ever!"

"Witty and slightly more sober than you," James beamed.

"You're so frustrating!" She shouted.

"Love, don't I know?"

Lily tried jumping again, this time a little higher, for her alcohol. However, since her sobriety levels were rather low, she lost her balance and tripped over her own laces, falling right onto James.

Now, these were one of those moments. The moment in some romance novel in which the two love interests would stare into each other's eyes and realize that this was in fact their moment.

But, they were both drunk hormonal adolescent idiots.

Their faces were centimeters a part, and their lips maybe millimeters apart. James could feel her hot breath against his, her breasts against his chest, and her knee nudging right between his legs. The part that James couldn't take his focus away from was emerald eyes. James was just drunk enough to notice that Lily was getting off of him either. He blamed that on his ego. And he also blamed it on his ego when he leaned his head off the floor and towards her face.

And by jove, Holy Shit, Lily Evans almost let him do it. Their lips brushed together but it definitely wasn't a kiss. She skittered off of him and away from him, as if he were some horrid monster. Or, if she had committed some unforgivable act.

"No, no, no, no…" She whispered as she crouched to stand up. "Fuck!" She screamed.

"I'm sorry," James said, a bit frightened and confused. "I… I shouldn't have done that-"

"Of course, you shouldn't have done that!" She shouted irritably. "You shouldn't be allowed to do anything, you pompous arrogant turd!"

He stood up and gave her a look. "Okay, okay, no need for for name-calling," he said defensively. "You weren't moving either-"

"Of course, I wasn't moving!" Lily declared. "Because you're fucking James Potter with messy but nice hair, pretty hazel eyes, a sculpted chest, and that stupid stupid smile!"

James decided that this was a good time for him to shut-up and let Lily continue. It seemed like she wasn't near completion.

"And it doesn't help that you've actually become decent in the last few months," Lily continued, grasping onto air whenever her rant would allow it. "You're actually even rather funny."

"Why, thank you," he grumbled under his breath.

"Not a compliment!" she shouted some more. She breathed heavily and for a moment, James swore she was about to cry. But instead she just let out a big breath: "why didn't you tell me that Connor punched you that night?" she asked quietly.

James expected a few things, but this was not it. He began to fumble on his words, but all that came out was, "I… I don't know… my ego?"

Lily let out a loud exhale, a little chuckle of disbelief at the end too. She dropped her hands, which slapped loudly against her thighs. "You've become the perfect version of yourself, James Potter, and that terrified by boyfriend so much that he broke up with me."

The air between them got colder, or maybe the drunkness finally began to leave their blood stream.

"Even though you shag Camilla Henley in locker rooms and Marlene has promised me you've moved on from trying to date me with bad pick-up lines, it's not enough for Connor," she sighed. It no longer sounded like Lily was accusing him, but there was still shakiness in her voice. James wanted to go over and put an arm around her, but he also didn't want to get kicked in the family jewels. "Connor still doesn't believe that you and I can be just friends."

James Potter never really experienced speechlessness often; it was actually a rarity. The last time he felt speechless was a few months ago frankly. He never expected to have such a toll on their relationship, even though there was once a point that he'd be the cause to their end all. He never thought it would actually come true.

James tried to take a step closer, but she took one step back. "No, please don't come any closer," she said softly, gazing into his eyes. It almost sounded like pleading. "You make everything more complicated."

"You know… I'm sorry about your break-up," he whispered, still coming closer to her. "I didn't realize-"

Lily put her hand up to his chest. "Just stop speaking and making things worse, or right, or whatever you're trying to do," she sighed. "I came here today to prove that Connor was wrong. That we could be just be friends. And I failed."

"Why can't we be friends?" He asked, not caring how childish he sounded.

Lily bit her lip. It was her turn for uncertainty. "I don't know. James, I hate you. And I really care for you at the same time. That all makes me feel guilty, and who wants a friend that makes you feel guilty by doing absolutely nothing wrong." And just like that, she picked up the tossed bottle and walked out of the Shrieking Shack.

A/N- Emotions! I hope you liked this chapter, one of my faves. I wanted to also apologize for the all the typos in the last chapter; I put it up hastily and without revisions. This one should be better, but if anyone knows a good beta, please let me know!

Review, Favorite, or Follow! Much appreciated.

Rose