Summary of events so far: So Scorpius is running for Minister and all the Weasleys are helping out. Rose and Scorpius are totally going strong but no one else is. Lilyand Daemon broke up after Daemon realised he was still in love with Lucy. James has moved back to England after making large amounts of money playing for an American Quidditch team. He's still painfully in love with Ariana Longbottom but doesn't really want to leave his wife, Sophie either. Sophie's been carrying out her own affair with Albus Potter, and even though the press hasn't found out about it they're really quite bad at hiding it and Lily knows but hasn't told anyone yet. James threw a huge party the night before Scorpius' important fundraiser and everyone got totally wasted. Lily had a one night stand with Scorpius' slightly-loathsome-but-nevertheless-charming campaign manager Lorcan Scamander who has made it very clear that he doesn't want a relationship. James started the night flirting with Ariana but then took waay too long to get her a drink so she went to go find him and instead found Sophie and Albus going at it in a corner. Except she didn't really see Al's face so she thinks its James. She then makes a hasty exit, leaving James very confused. Anyway on to the story.

"You look like death," James said with a tired smile on his face.

"Right back at you," Ariana said, her stomach twisting into knots and not just because of the incredible quantities of alcohol she had consumed the previous night. She still couldn't shake the image of James tangled up in his beautiful blonde wife.

"You ran off last night," he said. "After spouting a whole load of nonsense."

"I wasn't entirely sober," Ariana said carefully. "But I wouldn't say it was a whole load of nonsense."

"Trust me," he said, an odd look on his face. "It was."

"I said we would be a bad idea," she said. "And I'm right. Especially because you still love your wife."

"I do love Sophie," James said, his words stilted. "But I think I love you too."

"You can't have us both James," Ariana said, a sad sort of smile on her face. "And she's your wife. And since you spent most of last night with her it's fairly obvious that you can still make it work. I couldn't live with myself if I got in the way of something that still worked."

"What are you even talking about?" James asked, utterly confused. "I spent most of last night looking for you. And then you disappeared."

"But I saw…" Ariana trailed off, realization dawning. It was that damn hair, she thought.

"Saw what?" James asked. "You must've had more to drink than you thought because I promise you I wasn't with Sophie last night."

"No I believe you," Ariana said, hoping she had drawn the wrong conclusion. "But you have to have a conversation with your wife." And your brother she added silently.

"Look I know the situation is complicated but I don't understand why I have to talk to Sophie now," he said, sounding a little upset.

"Oh James," Ariana sighed, looking at him with a certain amount of pity. "I'm so sorry."

"What are you sorry about?" he asked, sounding entirely bewildered. It took all Ariana had not to pull him into her arms.

"I have to go," she said. "But talk to your wife. Trust me. It's something you want to do."

"I really don't understand what you're playing at," James said, annoyance filling his voice. "Why are you looking at me like that? What do you know?"

Ariana felt oddly empty. This was what she had wanted for a long time. There was absolutely no way James was going to stay with his wife after this. But she had never wanted it to be this way. She had wanted James to choose her. This wasn't him choosing her. This wasn't how she wanted it.

"I'll see you," she said. "After you've talked to your wife."

"You saw her with someone last night didn't you," James said, lowly. "It's fine. I don't-"

"You don't understand," Ariana said, her lips pursing. "You just-"

"Then tell me," he said. "Explain to me what's going on."

"I can't," she said. "I can't tell you this. I just don't have it in me."

"Who was it Ariana?" James asked, his tone almost dangerous. "Who was it?"

"I'm leaving," she said firmly. "I can't do this right now."

"Ariana!" he practically shouted as she walked away, attracting the stares of the people around him.

God, Ariana thought to herself, I should've just told him. He deserves to know. Yes but not from you, a nagging little voice inside her head said. He has to figure his own shit out.

"Good lord are you okay?" Lily asked, as Ariana practically walked into her. "You seem terribly flustered."

"Oh Lily," Ariana said, breaking down into sobs.

"Okay okay," Lily said, awkwardly patting her back. "Lets just get away from all these important people whose money we're trying to take."

She led the sobbing witch to the washroom.

"Nothing to see here," she snapped at the curious onlookers. She put the seat down on one of the pots and sat her friend down.

"Muffliato," she said. "There there, what's wrong?"

"Everything," Ariana sobbed. Lily pulled out a bit of toilet paper and handed it to her. Ariana proceeded to loudly blow her nose.

"Do you want to elaborate," Lily asked. "Just a few details. Maybe I can help."

"No one can help," Ariana said gloomily, her sobs abating a little. "I saw something and now I can't unsee it and it's all just very bad."

"Trust me," Lily said. "I know a thing or two about seeing stuff you don't want to see."

"Okay," Ariana said with a gulp. "Hypothetically, if you were kinda, sorta, hopelessly and stupidly in love with someone and you saw that someone's significant other do something very bad with someone else what would you do?"

"Oh no," Lily said, pressing the bridge of her nose with her fingers. "James."

"What no?" Ariana said, unconvincingly. "It's all hypothetical. No James. No."

"I know what you saw," Lily sighed. "I saw it too. Man are they stupid."

"Oh Merlin you know?" Ariana said. "I thought I was the only one."

"It's a miracle Rita Skeeter hasn't found out yet," Lily said. "I mean in the middle of a lobby."

"I saw them at James' party," Ariana said. "But now you know you can tell him right? I mean if I tell him it'll just be because I want to ruin his marriage, but if you tell him it'll be because you care deeply about your idiot brothers."

"Wow and people call me selfish," Lily said, slightly amused.

"I know," Ariana groaned. "But I can't help it."

"So you didn't tell James anything?" Lily asked. "Nothing at all?"

"Well I did tell him to talk to his wife," Ariana said. "Advice which I think was perfectly justified. Especially since he said he loved me."

"He said what?" Lily asked, her eyes widening. "Merlin my family really doesn't worry about the rampant destruction they cause."

"No they don't," Ariana said.

"Okay I'm going to go talk to Al," Lily said. "You just stay here. I know what it's like to want someone a whole load. You end up doing and saying some pretty stupid things. And trust me you don't want to be that person."

"What did you do?" Ariana asked, temporarily distracted from her plight.

"Told a guy I'd always love him even though he was in love with my cousin," Lily said with a shrug. "Y'know, just your run of the mill I'll-wait-for-you-forevers."

"Ouch," Ariana said.

"So yes," Lily said firmly. "You stay here. I probably need to prevent a murder."

"Wait," Ariana said as Lily opened the door. "Who do you think is going to be killing who?"

"I wish I knew," Lily muttered, as she left.

a/n: So it's been a really long time since I wrote this I hope the summary at the beginning helped any of my old readers who thought i had totally abandoned this story. I'll definitely try to finish it. Anyway please tell me what you think! As always I love getting criticism and feedback.