Lily Potter left Hogwarts like a prisoner freed from Azkaban: she never looked back. Seventh year, the pinnacle of student life for most, had been the worst for her. She'd felt like an actress playing the part of a light-hearted teen. If she could have used her career as an excuse to leave, she would have, but the Siren corporation had scheduled photo-shoots around school holidays when she'd become the face of Siren's Secret's Hot Pink line last summer.

She put on a smile for friends and acquaintances from other Houses who milled around saying last goodbyes. Several waved to her and called out that they'd owl and make plans to get together in London. Lily waved in return, nodded, and kept walking toward the lead carriage.

Hugo was already inside, fingers drumming against his knee. "What's the point of a special carriage ride for seventh years?" he asked. "Most of us can Apparate to the train station."

"Tradition." Lily slid across the front facing bench to sit beside him. "With the bonus of torturing anyone who can't wait to get the hell out of here." She eyed his shaggy hair. "Want me to cast a Styling Charm? Or is this another bad hair, don't care day?"

He shrugged off the hair comment, and then his gaze narrowed. "How far can you Apparate?"

"To get the hell out of here?" She liked the way he thought. "Once we're past the boundary wards, I can get us to Inverness. We can take public Floos from there. The school will ship our trunks home." She grabbed his arm to drag him with her as she moved away from the window. "After I cast an Unlocking Charm, we might only have a few seconds before the Safety Charms reset. Be prepared to jump."

"We're not Apparating from Hogsmeade Station?"

She smirked. "And miss our chance to make a grand exit?"

A grin spread across Hugo's freckled face. "Mum used to ask if I'd jump off a cliff if you told me to."

Lily laughed for the first time in ages. Back when they were six, they'd bounced after jumping from Fred and George's old room at the Burrow. She'd perfected Levitation Charms since then—the better to sneak in and out of upper storey windows. "This time we'll float, not bounce." She cast an Aversion Charm on the door. "We don't want company."

Hugo's smile faded. "What about Lorcan?"

As though the name acted as a Summoning Charm, the door opened and a boy who had grown to resemble his Nordic ancestors climbed into the carriage. She groaned in disbelief. He shouldn't have been able to reach the door, much less open it! "Speak of the Viking," Lily said, shooting a warning glance at Hugo.

Lorcan braced a hand against the padded back cushion next to her shoulder. His knee bumped hers. "Scoot over."

And ruin her plan? "We saved you the window seat." Lorcan Scamander could loom over her with a glint in his eyes that said he wanted to throw her over his broad shoulder and carry her off like a marauder, but she refused to move.

Ravenclaw that he was, Lorcan assessed the determination on her face and made his countermove, sitting directly across from her. "You're wearing my favourite colour."

Hugo snorted. "Last trip your favourite colour was green."

That was because she'd worn a green top. Lorcan claimed that any colour she wore was his favourite. She hid a reluctant smile. If any other boy had pursued her as long and as hard, she would've given him a chance, especially if he was as fanciable as Lorcan. Third year, when he'd kissed her under the mistletoe at the Burrow, the heated look in his ice blue eyes had practically melted her insides. And then he'd spoken.

"That means you're promised to me now. I heard our parents talk about a double wedding. You and me. Lucy and Lysander."

Lily had shouted, "Never!" and bolted upstairs to lock herself in a water closet until the Scamanders had gone home. Mum and Dad finally coaxed her out with promises that none of their children would be forced into arranged marriages. They'd been joking. Lily had pretended to laugh the whole thing off with the rest of her family, pretended history wasn't repeating itself, but she knew better. Lorcan wasn't just a childhood friend anymore. He was a threat. One she was determined to keep at arm's length.

Right now, since his attention was fixed on the skin on display beneath the hem of her yellow sundress, she crossed her legs and let the skirt ride up. Something he wore must have had a permanent Shield Charm cast upon it. How could she get around its protection? The carriage rocked slightly; the Thestrals had begun the journey to Hogsmeade Station.

"What are you plotting?" Lorcan asked. He sounded amused when he should have been wary.

Lily uncrossed her legs and scooted forward until she perched on the edge of her seat. She leaned toward him. "Who, me?"

"No one else."

Lorcan had a talent for making accusations sound like declarations of affection. She licked her lips. "I am thinking about doing something naughty." It was his fault for not taking the hint to kiss her. She was flashing cleavage, most of her legs, and probably her knickers, for Merlin's sake!

"Yeah?" He sat like a Viking statue, eyes glazed, face flushed.

Lily's own face burned as she left her seat to press her lips against his. He didn't open his mouth. Stubborn, suspicious git. She traced the seam of his lips with her tongue and when that didn't work, she sank her fingers into his dirty-blond hair and nipped at his lower lip. When he inhaled in surprise, Lorcan took in her silent Body Freezing Spell along with the gasp of air. He froze. She kissed him in triumph, drew in a breath, and kissed him again.

"Uh, I think he's stupefied," Hugo said.

Lily pushed away from Lorcan and snatched her white leather bag off the seat. The cross body strap freed her hands.

When she jumped out of the moving carriage, a Levitation Charm kept her suspended in air beside the road and Hugo, holding onto her hand, floated with her. They waved to the students who gaped at them or hung out the windows to cheer as their carriages passed by.

Hugo let go of her hand to grip her upper arm. "Uh oh. Lorcan must have countered the spell and pulled the emergency stop switch. The Thestrals are slowing."

Lily Apparated.

.

She took Hugo to the place she and her dad always stopped at on their father/daughter trips to see Uncle Neville before Lily became a student at Hogwarts. The Rendezvous Café was in the old city and used to be a dance club. She pointed to the turquoise sign proclaiming "The Beatles Played Here" on their way inside. "Remember our re-enactment of Maxwell's Silver Hammer? Granddad Weasley was so proud."

Hugo scowled. "I'm the bloke. I should've played Maxwell."

"You can't sing." She picked a booth and waited for the server to hand them menus and leave after taking their drink orders—raspberryade for him, sparkling water for her—before confessing, "And no one's better than you at death scenes."

His expression lightened, probably at the memory of all the April Fool's days he'd pretended to break his neck after "falling" down a staircase. At Hogwarts, with all those stairs, his record was six times in a day.

Hugo decided on the warm chocolate fudge cake and ice cream. Lily chose an empire biscuit. She'd resume eating healthily tomorrow. Today, she was celebrating freedom with enormous rounds of shortbread filled with jam and topped with icing and a glace cherry.

She picked at her food.

"Some Weasley I am, refusing to gorge on sugar, damn the consequences," Lily said.

"You're half Potter," Hugo replied. "Your mum threatened to put a feed bag around your dad's neck like a horse if he didn't stop skipping lunch."

"He forgets to eat because he's in charge of the Auror department," Lily said. "I'm—"

"Hormonal?"

She flipped him off. "Tired of being treated like a little girl. We're eighteen. We can make our own decisions. Live where we want. Date who we want."

Hugo tapped his can of raspberryade against her bottle. "I'll drink to that."

.

In London, they stopped by the Owl Post Office to message their parents that they'd Flooed instead of taking the train.

"I need sleep," Hugo said around a yawn. "The seventh years' party lasted all night."

She'd retreated to her dorm at eleven. "Enjoy your nap." While you can. His parents would both leave work early to interrogate him, Lily was sure. She gave him a hug goodbye and Apparated.

Her destination was the alley next to a stately grey building with windows etched with the S logo of the Siren Corporation. Inside the lobby that showcased sea green marble, she approached the centre desk. "Good afternoon, Iridescka."

The model-thin receptionist's expression of fashionable indifference transformed. "Miss Potter! It is lovely to see you! Mr. Zabini was not expecting you to drop by before Monday."

"I skipped the train."

"Nyet!"

Iridescka had gone to Durmstrang. Anyone who tried to leave there without authorisation was stopped with torture curses. Lily said, "Da," before peering at the magical appointment book lying open on the desk. "Will you tell Mr. Zabini I'm on my way up?"

"Of course." Iridescka pushed a button and an opening appeared in the back wall.

Lily walked inside the mirrored lift. By the time she'd reached the top floor, she'd smoothed down her long red hair and added a touch of honey-coloured gloss to her lips. When the doors opened, Blaise Zabini stood waiting. The phrase tall, dark, and handsome didn't do justice to his cheekbones, his sculpted mouth, or his elegantly muscled body. The man was beautiful. He even made wizard robes look hot. She gave him a cheeky grin. "I'm here to take my pen friend to lunch."

Blaise joined her in the lift. "We exchanged business-related correspondence."

They'd traded letters two or three times a week for a year. "And now we're going to discuss business over a meal." She gazed up at him through her eyelashes. "Don't you want to hear how I jumped out of a moving carriage?"

His eyebrows rose. "You bypassed the Safety Charms?"

She fluttered her lashes. "It's one of my talents."

Blaise's mouth turned up at the corners. Lily felt a thrill of triumph, which reminded her of kissing Lorcan in the carriage. She scrunched her eyes closed. Those kisses didn't count. They. Did. Not. Count!

"Something in your eye?" Blaise asked.

Images of an annoying Viking. "Maybe an eyelash." She opened her eyes wide. "See anything?" Lily's mouth went dry when he bent to look. His expensive cologne smelled so good, and when he brushed a fingertip across her eyelashes, she shivered.

"Nothing," he said. He leaned in closer. "You aren't wearing Siren extension mascara, are you?"

Lily shook her head. She got her thick, dark eyelashes from her father. "Is that a stipulation in my contract?"

Blaise's flashing smile proved that even his teeth were perfect. He said, "Only during photo shoots."

The lift doors opened. She slipped her hand into the crook of Blaise's arm. He escorted her across the lobby, nodding to the wide-eyed receptionist.

"Iridescka thinks you're breaking your mother's rule against dating models," Lily said as they walked around the side of the building to Apparate.

"My mother is the Head of the Siren Corporation. Her rules ensure professionalism."

"Aren't some rules worth breaking?" Lily's tone was playful, but her eyes asked a question. He didn't answer. Were all men stubborn gits? "I'm declaring our lunch a celebration," she said. "Your favourite pen friend isn't a schoolgirl anymore." She tightened her hold on his arm and Apparated.

They drew curious stares as they strolled down Diagon Alley. Lily pretended not to notice. Most people weren't trying to be rude. It was natural to stare at faces recognised from magazines and newspapers. The customers of the new restaurant across from Gringotts were harder to ignore; conversations stopped when she and Blaise walked in.

"I'm glad I reserved a table on the terrace," Lily said once they were seated in the shaded back corner and the server had rushed away to procure their drinks. She touched a leaf of the gingko tree trained to grow flat up the bricks of the neighbouring building. "Charmant."

"Parlez-vous français?" Blaise asked.

"Mostly bad words, thanks to my cousins. What about you?"

"Lugha moja haitoshi. One language is never enough. I speak English, French, and Swahili."

"Show-off." She dropped her mock glare to ask, "Did you enjoy your holiday on Zanzibar? The postcards you sent were gorgeous." She would've preferred photographs of him on the beach, but she'd had no problem imagining the contrast of scrummy dark skin against white sand.

"It was relaxing."

The server returned with the French mineral waters Blaise had ordered instead of the champagne she'd suggested. Lily told the server her lunch choice and took a drink of water. "Mmm . . . ." she said when the server went to take their orders to the kitchen. "I feel so hydrated."

Blaise chuckled. "The Siren Corporation has a vested interest in the health of your skin."

Pleasure over making him laugh warred with irritation over his pretence that they only had a business relationship. "Then I shouldn't tell you about jumping out of a moving carriage. It might be a contract violation."

"Tell me anyway."

She did, dramatizing the leap with Hugo and minimising Lorcan's role to nameless Body Freezing Spell victim.

"Beg pardon," the server said as he interrupted her retelling to place a baked goat cheese salad in front of her. He served Blaise his lunch of saffron salmon and turned back to Lily. "I just wanted to say it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Potter."

"Thank you." Behind the man's retreating back, she grimaced. "Does anyone over thirty know me as Lily Luna instead of Lily Potter?"

Blaise lifted a sardonic brow.

"You don't count because you're ageless," she said. "Is that because your mum's an actual siren?" It would explain why his looks were so alluring, and why several of his mother's husbands tragically died at sea.

His lips curved. "Thank you for the compliment, but I make business deals based on profit, not flattery."

Lily sipped her water to keep from throwing it in his face. Had she called his fixation on business irritating? It officially drove her spare. "What did you think of my proposal?" She'd studied and worked hard over the past year, and he'd given positive feedback on all her sketches.

Blaise finished his salmon before replying, "You don't have enough name recognition as Lily Luna to design your own line of clothing. You'd have to expand your youth marketing to attract a wider demographic."

Wider? "Who's buying all the Hot Pink knickers and clothes?"

"Girls twelve to seventeen."

Lily ate a bite of crisp, slightly bitter lettuces. She avoided the baked goat cheese. It might not slide past the knots in her stomach. "And I need to expand my demographic to include . . . ?"

"Women eighteen to thirty-four."

"I can do that."

He inclined his head. Was he agreeing? Being polite? She couldn't decide. He glanced at his watch. "Would you care for dessert?"

"I already ate it." She told him about the giant empire biscuit, making it sound as if she'd savoured every decadent bite.

Blaise insisted on paying for lunch since he could write it off as a business expense. Lily's emotions roiled, and by the time they'd walked back to the Leaky Cauldron and Blaise said goodbye on the pavement outside, she couldn't hold them in any longer. She clasped his hand. "Invite me to your flat for dinner."

"I can't." He didn't pull away.

She said, "I want to taste the wine from your new vineyard. I want to see the London Eye from your terrace." Blaise had shared so many personal details in his letters. He wouldn't do that if they only had a business relationship. Was he too Slytherin to admit his feelings? She wasn't. "I want you."

His fingers tightened around hers, and then he released her hand and took a step back. He averted his gaze. "I apologise if I've given you the wrong impression."

Lily stared at him like she'd never seen him before and then Apparated.

.

Kreacher opened the front door of Grimmauld Place even though she hadn't knocked. Lily curled into a ball on the top step; weeping tears of gut-wrenching misery interspersed with angry mutterings of "Fuck you." She accepted the handkerchief he conjured and blew her nose.

He patted her shoulder. "Miss Lily did not take the train?"

She burst into another round of sobs. Her parents were going to have kittens, and if pictures of her and Hugo ended up in the Daily Prophet or National Intruder . . . . She stiffened in horror. What if photos of her and Blaise ended up in the papers? She'd been so wrapped up in the fantasy of leaving school and becoming a fashion designer with a supportive, amazing boyfriend who could have any woman but chose her that she hadn't cared who was watching.

Lily's stomach heaved. She vomited down the steps. "I'll die," she moaned as Kreacher cast spells to clear the mess. "I'll die."

"Miss Lily is unwell and needs rest." Kreacher cast another spell and she closed her eyes.

Lily awoke in bed. She didn't smell vomit or taste bile, so Kreacher must have cleaned her up too. She called his name, and he appeared next to her holding a tea tray. "You are the dearest, sweetest friend in the whole world," she said. Her eyes misted. "I'm sorry to be so much trouble."

"Miss Lily is no trouble. Kreacher is always happy to serve." He set the tray on the duvet. "Tea and toast will settle your stomach."

She glanced at the clock on the bed side table. Hours had passed. The Hogwarts Express would be pulling into King's Cross Station. "My parents—"

Kreacher tilted his head as if he strained to hear. His sympathetic gaze met Lily's. "They is coming upstairs."

She hurriedly ate a bite of toast and washed it down with a gulp of tea. "I don't suppose you could tell them I have a contagious stomach virus."

"No, Miss Lily."

He looked so regretful she had to smile. "Oh, well. I love you anyway."

The tips of Kreacher's ears reddened. He Disapparated, and a few moments later, her door flew open. Her mum stormed in, followed by her dad. If Lily could sketch them to capture the moment, she'd title the drawing Anger and Disappointment.

Join the queue. I'm first in line. Lily bit off the end of one of the triangles of buttered toast. She'd draw her mum later with flames of fury dancing in her eyes and sparks of irritation shooting from her fingertips.

Her mum stopped a few paces from the bed. "You have a lot of explaining to do, young lady."

Lily drained the rest of the tea in her cup to force down the toast. "Did you go to meet the train? I sent messages."

"We received them," her mum ground out.

As hard as she tried not to show her relief, Lily couldn't keep her body from relaxing a little. Her dad, used to dealing with criminals, immediately asked, "Why didn't you want us to go to the train station?"

Her mum answered, "She knew we'd be even angrier if we'd waited there for nothing while she was lazing around at home."

"Is that right?" her dad asked.

Lily kept her eyes down in case he decided to break the family no Legilimency unless practicing Occlumency rule.

Her mum inhaled sharply. "What have you done that you're afraid to look at your father?"

Once her mental defences were in place, Lily met her dad's concerned gaze. "I talked Hugo into making a grand exit."

Her parents exchanged a worried look.

"We didn't cause property damage," Lily said. "We just left the carriage and waved goodbye to friends before Apparating. I took Hugo to the Rendezvous Café in Inverness. Remember all the times you took me there, Dad? It still has the Beatles sign and empire biscuits."

Her dad smiled a little: not out of nostalgia. He knew she was trying to distract him. He asked, "When did you leave the carriage?"

Her mum added, "Was it moving?"

"Yes, it was moving." Lily clutched her stomach. "I'm not feeling well. I might start vomiting again. Can we talk about this later?"

"I grew up with brothers who pretended to have stomach aches to get out of chores," her mum said. "I told them to go ahead and vomit. They could clean the floor and then do the washing up."

Lily swayed a little. "Kreacher cleaned up after me earlier. I don't want him to have to clean another mess." She told her dad, "He does so much for us."

"Notice that she's turning those puppy-dog eyes on you, Harry," her mum said. "She doesn't try to manipulate me."

"OK," Lily snapped. "I used Levitation Charms after we jumped out of the carriage."

Her mum's face lost all colour. "You could've broken your neck."

"I'm ace at Levitation Charms."

Her mum didn't seem to have heard her. She clenched her fists. "For a stupid stunt!"

"Yes!" Lily cried. "It was stupid. Everything I've done today was stupid. I admit it. Happy now?" She rushed past them into the ensuite bath and locked the door. "Leave me alone!" Hot tears splashed her cheeks. She sat on the rug and hugged her knees, wishing she could disappear.

Tap-tap. "Come out and talk to us, sweetheart." Her dad's tone was gentle. "We promise not to raise our voices."

Not tonight, they wouldn't, but tomorrow, if photos of dining with Blaise made the papers, her parents would lose their shit. "I need some time," she said, keeping the door between them. "I feel awful. I want to shower and change clothes."

Silence. Her parents were talking. Lily bet her mum wanted to stay in the room while her dad argued to give their daughter some space. "All right," her dad finally said. "Come down to the kitchen when you're ready."

"Thanks, Daddy."

A sharp knock rattled the door. "He didn't make the decision alone."

"Thanks, Mummy." Lily pressed her lips together. If they heard her crying, they'd use a Vanishing Charm on the door. She counted to one hundred twice before standing to face her blotchy reflection in the mirror. I look as bad as I feel. She cast a Complexion Charm, turned on the shower in case Kreacher was listening, and returned to the bedroom, gathering clothes and shoes from the wardrobe before stuffing them in a carryall. She left a note on her desk.

I'm going to spend the night with Granny and Granddad. We'll talk tomorrow.

If the photos in the newspapers were as bad as she feared, the family and friends gathered to celebrate Lily, Hugo, and Lorcan leaving Hogwarts would be a much needed buffer between Lily and her parents. Not to mention Lorcan. Merlin, he'd hate her. Publically slut shame her for trying to seduce two men in one day.

Lily blinked back tears and slipped the long carryall strap over her head to rest atop the strap of her white cross body bag. She turned the water off in the bathroom and opened her bedroom window. James and Albus, being older, had been given first and second choice of bedrooms. They'd preferred views of the back garden, so she'd ended up with a room overlooking the street. Once they'd grown old enough to want to sneak out of the house, both had tried to bribe or threaten her into switching with them. She'd tattled, kept her bedroom, and practiced Levitation Charms in order to do her own sneaking.

Once her feet touched the ground, Lily Apparated.

She'd planned to Apparate to the Floo Station and hire a Squire Cab when she reached Ottery St. Catchpole. The place she longed for most, however, was the Burrow. After stepping into nothingness, Lily stepped onto the field of tall grasses and flowers that served as both a habitat for wildlife and her grandparents' front garden. She needed one of Granny Weasley's everything-will-be-all-right hugs more than anything. Including consciousness, it seemed, as her eyes rolled back and she fainted.

.

"She's starting to wake," said a kind, brisk voice. Aunt Audrey's voice.

Lily opened her eyes. She was lying on Granny and Granddad's bed. They stood gazing down at her from the foot of the bed while Aunt Audrey, wearing a summery top and trousers instead of her Healer's robes, perched on the side of the mattress.

"You take after Harry with your skill at long-distance Apparation." Aunt Audrey kissed her cheek. "There's no harm done, but if you want to avoid passing out in the future, don't Apparate on an empty stomach."

"How did you—" Lily's stomach gurgled before she could finish the question.

Another stomach rumbled. Her granddad said, "I'm hungry too. I'll go help Percy set the table." He winked at Lily and slipped out of the room.

"Percy and Audrey brought over takeaway so I wouldn't have to cook the night before the party," Granny said. "Wasn't that thoughtful?"

"Yes." Lily's face crumpled. She was a terrible, selfish person who hadn't thought of anyone except herself.

Aunt Audrey patted Lily's hand. "I'll owl your parents and let them know you're here and in good health." She stood, and Granny took her place.

Lily threw herself into welcoming arms. "Tell me everything's going to be all right," she whispered.

Granny rocked back and forth. "Problems work themselves out, tempers cool, and broken hearts mend. You'll see."

Lily closed her eyes. "I hope so."

Granny hugged her tight for another moment. "I'm not promising things will sort themselves out instantly, dear. Situations often get worse before they get better."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Lily said.

A voice amplified by a Sonorous Charm announced, "We're going to eat without you!"

"I'll box your ears, Percival Ignatius Weasley!" Granny shouted back the non-magical way.

Muted laughter didn't cover Lily's growling stomach.

Granny kissed her on the cheek. "Let's go eat."

.

Chili garlic prawns, fried Pani Puri filled with spiced mashed potatoes and tamarind juice, and a Parsi chicken dish with butternut squash and lentils more than satisfied Lily's hunger. She set down her fork. All eyes were on her, waiting. She sighed and confessed to using Levitation Charms to make a grand exit with Hugo. Lorcan wasn't nameless in this retelling, although he was only mentioned in passing, as if she'd cast the Body Freezing Spell and immediately left the carriage.

"Mum acted as though I was in mortal peril—I was never in danger, was I, Granny—and we had a row, so I came here."

Uncle Percy said wryly, "You're Ginny all over again. The baby of the family talking her way out of trouble."

Lily shot to her feet. "Did Mum have her stupidity splashed across the newspapers? I'm nothing like her! Nothing!" She Apparated upstairs and hid in the same water closet she'd escaped to after kissing Lorcan under the mistletoe. Bollocks. She refused to think about him. A wall rack displayed a selection of gossip magazines. Lily flipped through a National Intruder, wondering if her face would stare out from their Celebrities Caught on Camera section. A headline caught her eye:

Siren Squad Lights Up Lumos Duo

Photographs showed a group of Siren's Secret models out at a nightclub to celebrate top model Karlie's twenty-first birthday. Nice publicity, that, and "Siren Squad" had a ring to it. Lily dropped the magazine and cast a spell to summon magazines with Siren Squad articles. Only the National Intruder on the floor zoomed into her hands. She listened for the thwack of paper against wood—Granny saved the back issues of her magazines in Granddad's workshop—and heard nothing. The mention was a one-off.

She could change that. Become one of them, get the Siren Squad name out, and use the publicity to further all the models' careers. She shoved the magazine back into the rack and had returned to the corridor when she heard Granny say her name. Lily asked, "Did Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey go home?"

Granny radiated disapproval. "Yes, they did."

"I'm sorry," Lily said.

"Are you?"

Truthfully? "No. I hate it when people say I'm Mum all over again like I'm a clone."

Granny's expression softened. "Of course you're not a clone. You're a special and unique person."

Lily gave her granny a hug followed by a smacking kiss on the cheek. "I have the best grandparents."

"Grandparents?" Granny's lips twitched. "I don't see anyone else up here."

Granddad's amplified voice wafted up the stairs. "I'm guarding the custard apple kulfi to make sure Percy and Audrey don't sneak back for seconds."

Lily headed for the stairs, calling out, "You're the best granddad ever."

.

After the nightmare of a day she'd had, Lily expected to toss and turn all night or else wake repeatedly from dreams filled with Vikings and sirens. Instead, she fell asleep instantly and didn't wake up until a cock crowed at five AM. The thought of the morning papers materialising on the back step jolted Lily into action. She Apparated downstairs.

Granddad Weasley, in his old Gryffindor bathrobe, was making tea in the kitchen. Folded newspapers were stacked on the worktop nearby. "Good morning, Lily love," he said. "That's a fetching nightgown."

She tugged at the Puddlemere United practice jersey. "Don't tell James I actually wear it. Mr. Professional Quidditch Player has a big enough ego already." She edged closer to the stack of papers. "You're up early. Where's Granny?"

"Having a lie in," Granddad said. He added wryly, "Unless Chanticleer flies the coop and crows beneath our window hoping for a second breakfast."

Lily nodded absently. "You subscribe to a lot of newspapers."

"They're always running a special. Molly can't resist a bargain." Granddad handed her a mug.

She sipped the tea, her gaze returning to the newspapers. "You stacked them so the front pages wouldn't show."

"Did I?"

Lily set her mug down on the worktop before it slipped through her trembling fingers. "Are the pictures completely awful?"

Granddad shook his head. "Not from what I saw, although your cousin may disagree." His soft blue eyes twinkled. "You're quite photogenic, but Hugo, poor lad, is not."

She started to reach for a newspaper and stopped.

"Perhaps it would be best to treat them like Muggle sticking plasters," Granddad said. "Quick removal is less painful. Close your eyes." While Lily obeyed, he cast spells. "There. Not so bad, is it?"

Lily stared at newspapers spread across the homey farm table. Granddad was right; the photos of her and Hugo weren't bad. Yes, they'd made a spectacle of themselves, but no one got hurt and it was all in fun. The photographs of her and Blaise were a different story. The Daily Owl, a trashier rag than even the Intruder, had managed to scoop the other papers with a shot of her and Blaise holding hands and another of her staring at him before Apparating.

Her mum and dad only subscribed to reputable newspapers, but Aunt Luna read the Daily Owl's Creature Sightings column fanatically. Although she might skip the front page to see what new creature had been sighted, Lorcan wouldn't.

"I'm dead." Lily covered her face with both hands. "Kill me now and save him the trouble."

"Him?"

She peeked through the spaces between her fingers. "I said, 'them'."

"Ah. Must be time for a new Hearing Aid spell." He picked up the Daily Owl. "Do you think anyone will miss this if I use it to line the rubbish bin in my workshop?"

"Not if you cast an Anti-Summoning Charm to keep Granny from finding it."

Her granddad winked. "I'll take care of it now, shall I?"

She gave him a squeezing hug. "Thank you." Lily helped her granddad fry bacon, sausages, eggs, and toast. Granny bustled in, dressed for the day in a casual floral dress.

"No baked beans or grilled tomatoes?" Granny asked. She glanced at the table.

"I'm on a reducing diet," Granddad replied.

Lily giggled nervously. Was Granny looking at the bare spot where the Daily Owl had been?

There was a knock on the back door, and then it opened. Lily's mum strode into the kitchen, followed by her dad.

"Good morning, Ginny dear. Harry. Would you care for tea? We were about to sit down to breakfast," Granddad said.

"Yes, please, Arthur," Lily's dad replied. "I didn't get a chance to enjoy a cup before Ginny dragged me out of the house."

"Merlin forbid I want to talk to our daughter more than sleep in and have Kreacher serve us breakfast in bed," Lily's mum shot back.

"I was teasing, love."

"I know." Her mum's tense posture relaxed until she noticed all the papers on the table. She jabbed a finger at the National Intruder. "Those pictures weren't in the Daily Prophet."

"Why don't you three have a look at the different papers while Lily and I finish making breakfast," Granddad said.

Mum, Dad, and Granny were already leaning over the table.

Lily hurried over to her granddad. "What else is there to do?"

He glanced toward the table. "Heat baked beans and grill tomatoes."

.

No one objected when Granddad collected all the newspapers and dumped them in the recycle bin. The kitchen was eerily quiet while Lily set the table. When no one moved to grab a plate and serve themselves from the buffet of dishes on the worktop, Granddad said, "Eat while it's hot."

Lily's dad handed her a plate. She dutifully went down the line, taking a bit of everything. Her dad sat next to her on the bench. Mum sat across the table, the better to stare her down.

"Try the sausage. The butcher said it's Paleo," Granddad said. "Imagine that, a sausage recipe from the Palaeolithic Era!"

"Paleo means gluten free," Lily's mum said. "Cavemen didn't eat sausage."

Granddad's face fell, and then his expression brightened. "Gluten free is slimming. I'll have another link." He rose from the head of the table. "I'll bring one for you, too, Lily love. Models are always on diets to keep slim."

The word "models" crackled in the air like a static electricity. Tiny hairs on the back of Lily's neck rose. She crumbled a piece of bacon over her egg. When Granddad placed another sausage on her plate, she sliced the gluten free meat into precise rounds and then cut her grilled tomato into minute triangles.

Her dad's elbow nudged hers. "You're supposed to eat your food, not play with it."

She kept her gaze on her plate. "Do the wizards you bring in for questioning ask for food before the interrogation starts?"

"If they're drunk."

Lily looked up. "Ha ha."

"This isn't an interrogation," her mum said. "We simply want you to tell us what happened yesterday."

I kissed Lorcan and had a go at seducing Blaise. "What do the papers say happened?"

"Lies and fabrications," Granny burst out. She slapped a hand against the table top. "The same 'witnesses said' and 'a source close to the family' rubbish they always use to cover slander."

"Accio National Intruder," Lily said. She caught the tabloid mid-air. The pictures were a mix of shots of her waving to schoolmates and her dining with Blaise. The headline leapt out at the reader in three-dimensional black letters:

What Will Harry Say?

Merlin, it hurt. It shouldn't, because she'd grown up seeing her picture captioned with "Daddy's Girl" or "Potter's Little Princess." This was just another reminder that Harry Potter's name sold newspapers throughout the Wizarding World, while the name Lily Luna sold knickers and loungewear to twelve to seventeen year old girls.

Her dad said, "I don't give a damn about gossip. I'm proud of my daughter."

A short, harsh laugh burst from her throat. "That's my problem, Dad. No one outside Hogwarts knows me as Lily Luna. My only interest and value is being your daughter, and the Siren Corporation isn't going to invest in me as a designer when tabloids would call it the Potter Princess Collection!" Her dad stared at her helplessly. She looked at her mum. "I went to lunch with Blaise to discuss my business plan. After he'd encouraged me to work at it for an entire bloody year, he told me I didn't have enough name recognition and needed to widen my demographic." Lily tore the newspaper in half because she'd left her wand upstairs and didn't think she could conjure a small enough fireball to burn only the paper without it.

"It isn't stupid to try and make your dreams come true," her mum said. The sympathy and understanding in her expression brought tears to Lily's eyes.

"Try starting small," Granddad said. "Little girls love fancy dresses. I'm sure their mothers would buy out the Potter Princess Collection."

Lily choked back a laugh. She'd definitely widen her demographic! "I know Mum would have."

"When I was a girl, maybe," Mum said. "Especially if the dress came with a photo of Harry."

Granny shook her head. "We would have never been able to afford it."

"She can now," Lily said. "I'll design Mum a dress for the Auror Ball that's fit for a princess." Cousin Roxanne loved to sew, and she was dating a Master Tailor. Lily would ask them to help. She told her mum. "I have sketches I can show you when we get home."

"I can't wait to see them."

Lily's appetite returned in a rush. Her dad cast a Warming Charm on her food, and she started eating. Her parents and grandparents chatted about the weather—should be clear for the picnic in the back garden and the family Quidditch match afterward.

"You and Hugo get to be captains," her dad said.

"What about Lorcan? He was Ravenclaw's team captain," Lily replied.

"Luna sent a note this morning that Lorcan wasn't feeling well." Her mum's tone held regret, but her gaze was watchful. "Did he seem ill before you left Hogwarts?"

"No." Lily pushed her plate away. "And he wasn't lurgy in the carriage either."

"He was in the carriage and didn't try to stop you?" her dad asked sharply.

"I cast a Body Freezing Spell." Right before I snogged him.

Her dad frowned.

"He didn't fall over," Lily said, "and it didn't last that long. He recovered enough to pull the emergency stop lever right before I Apparated."

"You hurt his feelings," her mum said.

Lily stood. "Fine! I'll apologise." She went to send an owl.

After three crumpled attempts, she scrawled the first words that came to mind. She regretted her hasty action while she showered, questioned her sanity while she dressed in a red, tie-front sundress, and imagined one dramatic scene after another while pretending to sun herself on a lounger she'd positioned on the shady side of the Burrow in order to have a clear view of the road beyond the front garden. When she heard the rumble of the enchanted Land Rover the Scamanders drove on family trips, near and far, Lily bolted.

The tree house magically perched in an oak at the edge of the back garden wasn't the most ingenious hiding spot. She ducked down to keep from being seen from one of the windows and cast Sticking and Aversion Charms on the trap door. Her breath came in pants, so she waved her wand and cast a Muffliato Charm.

Lily yelled, "Aaahh!" when the trapdoor opened and Lorcan climbed into the tree house. The damn charm had muffled the sound of him forcing the door to unstick!

Lorcan shut the trapdoor and sat on it. He wore the same kind of t-shirt, cargo shorts, and hiking sandals combination he always did in summer. It suited him, although his blue shirt stretched a little tight across the muscles of his chest, and his legs were so long that, even though she'd backed into a corner and pulled her knees up, his toes touched hers. He took a note out of a thigh pocket and tossed it at her.

She unrolled it as if she didn't recognise the message she'd sent to him:

If you want an apology, come and get it.

"I'm sorry," she said. Lorcan raised a dark blond eyebrow. Lily exhaled heavily. "I'm sorry I used the Body Freezing Spell instead of explaining what we wanted to do." She could tell he didn't believe her. She changed her position to sit cross legged. "OK, I knew you'd say no, it was too dangerous, and you'd try to stop us."

He pointed at her.

"You'd stop me." It was one of the scenes that had played like a Muggle film in her mind while she was waiting on the lounger for Lorcan to arrive. She'd imagined a Jelly Legs Curse, some wrestling, and Lorcan pinning her down, snogging her breathless, while Hugo yelled for them to cut it out or he'd pull the emergency stop lever. Lily glanced out the window at all the aunts, uncles, cousins, and family friends that had arrived. She couldn't hear them, which thankfully meant that even if Uncle George had all terrain Extendable Ears, he wouldn't hear her say, "I'm sorry for the way I tricked you, but you asked for it."

"What?" Lorcan growled the word.

"You heard me." Lily looked him over. "Do all your clothes have permanent Shield Charms, or is it just your boxer shorts?" Her temper spiked when he shook his head. "I cast Aversion Charms on the door of the carriage and on the trapdoor under your bum. You couldn't get past them without a Shield Charm. I couldn't cast a Body Freezing Spell without getting past your Shield Charm. So I tricked my way past your defences."

"I don't own anything that has a permanent Shield Charm."

She scoffed. "You Vikinged your way past Aversion Charms?"

"I didn't even notice them." He shrugged. "My mind was set on where I wanted to go." Lorcan stared at her so intently, Lily was glad her mental defences were still in place. Her thoughts and feelings were mixed up; Merlin only knew what Legilimency would reveal. Charged moments passed. He said, "You didn't have to kiss me."

Her blush swept up her chest to her face, a fiery wave of embarrassment. The treehouse was shaded, but not enough that Lorcan wouldn't notice. "I got . . . a little carried away."

"Twice."

She pointed her wand. "Petrificus Totalus!" Lily gasped when Lorcan fell backward against the pine floorboards. It actually worked! She crawled over to run her fingers through his hair. No blood or lumps. That was good. She grabbed the front of his t-shirt and pulled. He didn't move, but the soft fabric bunched up. Her eyes widened at the sight of Lorcan's abs. He'd been seriously working out. She'd have to use a Locomotion Charm to move him off the trapdoor. She bent down to look him in the eyes. "I am sorry."

"Me too," he said.

She fell back on her arse. "You lied about the Shield Charm!"

Lorcan sat up. "No. I cast one silently when your face turned red. I knew what was coming."

She scrambled away from him until her back hit the wall. Her jaw dropped when she glanced out the window. "They're eating without us."

"They're giving us a chance to talk things out."

Hugo was scowling in their direction. Lily flipped him off for being judgmental, not that he could see it. She turned back to Lorcan.

"I set my alarm so I'd be the first to see the papers," he said. "Everyone on the train talked about sending in their pictures, and I wanted to see you levitating." A muscle in his jaw clenched.

"You saw the Daily Owl photographs," Lily whispered.

"I woke my mum and told her to send a note. I did feel sick. That wasn't a lie."

Lily bit her lip.

"Mum brought the paper into my room. I told her I didn't want to talk about it, but she sat down on my bed anyway." Lorcan gave a huff of frustration and affection. "She said I was looking at the photos wrong. They didn't show secret lovers. They showed a girl who held out a hand expecting to hold a flobberworm, only to have it snatched away."

The flobberworm incident had happened when Lily was nine and Lorcan had brought a flobberworm to a family picnic. Hugo had snatched it out of her hand, leaving her slimed with green mucus. "What made her think of that?"

One corner of his mouth quirked upward. "The expression on your face."

"Furious disbelief?" Lily laughed without humour. "I'll bet."

"Did Zabini break your heart?"

She swallowed to ease the tightness in her throat. "No." Blaise wasn't the man of her dreams. He'd enjoyed flirting with her, but he refused to take risks, financially or romantically. "That's why it hurt so bad. I made a fool of myself for nothing." Her smile turned down at the corners. "Some people would say it's karma. I never gave you a chance and Blaise did the same to me."

Lorcan moved to sit next to her with his back against the wall. She slanted a look at him, but he gazed straight ahead. "I scared you off third year," he said. "I told you what our parents said and—"

"I ran away."

His eyes met hers. "You're still running. Why?"

She lifted her chin. "You're still chasing me."

"I've tried to stop." He returned her challenging look with one of his own. "You pointed out the flaws in every girl I asked to go with me to Hogsmeade."

Was he implying that she'd been jealous? Lily said, "I've saved you from at least three potential Ravenclaw stalkers, that Hufflepuff who wanted you to wear matching snowman jumpers, and a Slytherin who poisoned her ex-boyfriend with black market Amortentia Potion. You have terrible taste in women."

"I like you."

"I rest my case."

Lorcan kept his gaze locked on hers. She pressed her lips together, but the longer they stared at each other, the more pressure built inside her until she couldn't take it anymore. "We'd never work!"

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not my mother! I'm not going to spend my life arguing with my partner because he can't make it home for dinner yet never misses a family celebration, worrying that he loves my family more than me." Her parents' rows had led to counselling and a stronger, happier marriage. They put their troubles in the past, but Lily couldn't do the same. She'd gone to Hogwarts, where Professor Binns had warned her and the rest of his students each class that those who forgot history were doomed to repeat it.

"I agree," Lorcan said.

"You do?" Why did that make her chest hurt?

"I agree you're not your mum." He took her hand. "And I'm not an orphan."

Lily tried to wrench her hand out of his. He held on.

"I have a family," Lorcan said. "I'm not looking for a substitute, and I'll skip any celebration you want." His eyes flickered to the window and back. "Including this one."

Hope flared. She slowly nodded. "Let's go."

.

Three months later . . . .

The crowd roared when Myron Wagtail, the lead singer of The Weird Sisters, invited his special guests to come up on stage and sing backup on the classic song This is the Night. Karlie, one of a group of models known as the Siren Squad, clutched their newest member's hand. "You pitched the idea to Myron. You lead the way."

Lily smiled her brightest smile and walked into the spotlight. After the song was over, a reporter waiting in the wings asked Lily who designed her dress. "I did," she said, and followed the other models backstage.

Lorcan was waiting. He was a Viking god dressed like a rock star in black. Lily threw herself into his arms. He kissed her breathless. "Want to hang around for the after party?" he asked.

She twined her arms around his neck. "I'd rather see your new flat."

His arms tightened around her. "Are you sure? There are boxes everywhere."

"I don't want a house tour," Lily said. "I want you."

Lorcan grinned like a marauder. "Let's go."

.

.

A/N: Ever since I wrote the story of how Lily became a Siren's Secret model called Lily Go Round, I've wanted to write a sequel called Lily Go Lightly. She's not Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's, but I imagined she'd have the same kind of secret pain and insecurity hidden beneath a light-hearted façade. The quote from the film that I used for the summary really fit her character. Lily has some "phony junk" that she believes until a reality check and a Ravenclaw Viking put things in a new light. The Siren Squad was inspired by Taylor Swift's "Squad" of pals (Including Emma Watson!) that she likes to bring on stage.

If readers enjoy the story and are inspired to review, I'll appreciate them like Tiffany diamonds. :)