"James, I have… erm… I have something to tell you," Emmeline began awkwardly.

James held up a hand to silence her. "I already know, Em," he told her solemnly. "And while I can't pretend to understand why, I'm not mad."

Emmeline breathed out a sigh of relief. "You're a good friend, James," she mumbled, echoing Sirius' previous sentiments. She had expected James to yell, at the very least, and instead – the look in James' eyes was impossible to read, but it definitely wasn't anger.

James shrugged. "Well, Lily wouldn't be angry, and its really not me you have to explain yourself to, Em," he said frankly.

Emmeline nodded, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "I know. I was wondering… if you'd come with me?"

James shoved his hands into his pockets. Lily needed to hear what Emmeline was going to tell her… and Lily probably wouldn't be very happy with Emmeline. He thought about her, curled up in that big bed of hers', looking fast asleep and peaceful as she had that morning, unable to comprehend why anyone would ever wish to hurt her. She looked so… well, innocent.

And he had intended to check up on her…

James expelled his breath slowly. "Ok," he agreed.

Emmeline looked surprised, again. "Thanks."

They made their way back to the Head's Tower with relative speed. The corridors were deserted, as everyone was at lunch, although the portraits eyed them suspiciously.

The Carved Witch smiled uncertainly as they approached.

"Oh good, I was wondering when you'd be back… I'm afraid the Head Girl is in a bad way," she murmured as James muttered the password.

James and Emmeline exchanged looks of apprehension and set forth into the Head's Tower with caution.

"JAMES!"

Lily stood in the middle of the common room, smiling lopsided as she wandered forward to give James a hug. Bewildered, James hugged her back awkwardly, patting her back and glaring at Emmeline over Lily's shoulder. Since when did Lily call him James?

"Er – hi, Lily."

"And EM!" she cried, more or less leaping onto Emmeline. " I love you, Emmeline Vance."

James watched her, frowning. When the Carved Witch had said she was in a bad way… well, James had expected tears. But looking at Lily, he couldn't shake the deep suspicion that she was… well, there was no other word for it… drunk.

Emmeline was harbouring similar suspicions – something that appeared to be confirmed when James groaned, raced upstairs and returned moments later, frowning.

"You," he accused, wiggling his index finger at Lily," stole my Firewhiskey."

Lily giggled. Giggled!

James ran a hand through his messy black hair, and Emmeline was very curious to notice that two red blotches were appearing on his cheeks.

"What were you doing looking through my underwear draw?" James' voice sounded positively strangled.

Emmeline's eyes widened. She coughed, reminding them that she was still there. Lily giggled again, and opened her mouth to give a reply – a reply that in Emmeline's mind, anyway, was definitely going to include way too much information.

"Lily, how much exactly have you had?"

Lily bit her lip, looking thoughtful, then grinned. The way that her eyes lit up was positively child-like.

"Almost the whole bottle, I think!" she told them proudly.

James groaned.

"James Potter, you are such a nice boy. I don't know why I don't like you," Lily mumbled into James' hair several hours later.

James had sent Emmeline back to class: it was only Potions, and Emmeline was to tell Slughorn that they were in a Head's meeting. Slughorn, being his normally jovial, Lily-worshipping self would undoubtedly accept that without question.

"Nor do I," James murmured back, resettling her upright for the umpteenth time that afternoon. Lily simply giggled and leaned against him once more.

"It's silly. I'm probably in love with you, you know. Because I'm such a prude."

James really didn't see how Lily had come to either of those conclusions, but this seemed irrelevant.

"You're not a prude, and you're not in love with me," he told her firmly.

Lily rolled her eyes, and grabbed the back of his neck, drawing his face closer.

"I know one way to tell," she grinned, adding in a singsong voice, "Kiss me please!"

James blanched. Had Lily just asked him to kiss her?James' head spun. This was what he'd been waiting for… a chance to prove to her how much he cared. Another voice interrupted his thoughts. She was drunk.

"No," he told her flatly.

Lily frowned. "Why not?" she whined, gazing up at him through her lashes in what could only be classed as an attempt to seduce him. Attempt, being the operative word.

James grinned and ran a finger down her nose. "You've been drinking, Lily," he told her gently. "I don't want to do anything that you'll regret in the morning."

Lily pouted. "You're no fun."

James shrugged, checking his watch. "No, I'm not, and I have to go to class now, so Lily, promise me you'll behave yourself?"

Lily laughed. "So serious, James. Don't take life so seriously!"

"Can you do me a favour?" James asked the Carved Witch.

She frowned, a newly hewn line appearing across her forehead. "I'll do my best," she promised.

"Don't let Lily leave the Heads Tower?"

"You left her alone?!" Emmeline hissed, appalled, slipping into the seat beside him and blatantly ignoring Professor Flitwick, who was attempting to begin the lesson.

James shrugged. In his mind's eye he saw Lily, who was quite possibly once again rifling through his underwear drawer. Her hair was still drawn back into that messy, careless ponytail that he found so gorgeous… And then there was that coy look in her eyes when she had asked him to kiss her. The Lily in his mind's eye picked up a pair of boxers and eyed them quizzically before throwing them away and selecting the next. And then, to his absolute horror, she discovered the second bottle of alcohol he had stashed in there.

"ARGH!" James yelled, clutching his stomach in pain, eyes squeezed tight.

"Mr. Potter!" Professor Flitwick exclaimed, hurrying forward. "Are you quite all right?"

"I don't feel so well, Professor," James mumbled, lying through his teeth. "May I be excused?"

Flitwick nodded absently. "Of course, of course! My, you are pale! Miss Vance, be kind enough to escort Mr. Potter to the hospital wing, will you?"

As soon as James stumbled out of the classroom and Emmeline had closed the door, the Head Boy straightened and began to walk briskly in the direction of the Head's Tower, which coincidently was at the opposite end of the school to the Hospital Wing.

"I thought so," Emmeline intoned darkly, stepping into line with him. "What's wrong now?"

James coughed, and looked away. "I just remembered there was more than one bottle of Firewhiskey in my stash."

Emmeline sighed.

James and Emmeline arrived at the Carved Witch in record time. When she saw who it was, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, I was having so much trouble resisting," she told them kindly. "You do appreciate that as a door, my function is to open and close. Your request went against my very nature."

"Yes, yes," James mumbled, adding the password.

What he hadn't expected was for Lily to tumble out of the doorway as soon as it opened.

James and Emmeline caught her between them, each of their faces mirroring the other's shock.

Lily had obviously found the second bottle, James concluded grimly. If not the third and fourth – and hopefully not the fourth, because that would have meant she had really gone digging through his underwear drawer.

"What are you doing, Lily?" he asked her patiently, gazing down at her with an expression mixed between dismay and amusement.

"Going to talk to Art," she replied promptly, as if this was the most natural thing in the world.

"Oh, no you aren't," Emmeline breathed, her voice gentle. "You don't want to talk to him, really, sweety."

"Yes, I do," Lily insisted. "I want to tell him that I don't like him anymore. Because I was never in love, it was just like, and I can't ever like him like that anymore. Because he smashed my heart into pieces and then stomped all over it," Lily paused for breath. "I wonder if Art's ever seen a trampoline?" she added as an afterthought.

James and Emmeline exchanged quizzical looks over this particular piece of information, before James resignedly lifted her into his arms once more.

"You can tell him that later," he ordered firmly. "Right now, Lily Evans, you are going to bed."

He glanced at Emmeline. "And you'd better get back to class."

Emmeline gave James a lopsided smile. "Take care of her," she murmured.

James nodded his assent. "If you could maybe get the boys to bring me up some food later? I don't think I'll be going to dinner."

Emmeline saluted him. "Will do, Boss. Good luck," she gestured to Lily, who was now squirming in his arms.

With a resolute sigh, James set back off into the Head's Tower.

Lily glared up at him accusingly. "You're a ruiner," she muttered resentfully.

James had to laugh. "And you, my dear, are a nuisance, but it doesn't mean I like you any less."