Author's Note:

It's taken me weeks to finally write this, but here it is, the sequel to Taking Care of Business. (If you haven't read TCoB I wouldn't recommend reading this; you've missed a lot.) I won't be updating as often as I did in the last story since finals are coming up and I'll be studying my ass off, excuse the language.

Disclaimer: If you recognize the character or anything else from anywhere in a Harry Potter book, it's not mine. If you don't recognize something, either I created it or you have a horrible memory.

Ch. 1, Surprise

Lily Evans wiped her sweaty palms against her Bermuda shorts and forced a calm smile on her face as she stared at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. She tucked a strand of flaming hair behind an ear and walked straight at it. The strange thing however, is that when she walked into the brick wall she didn't fall over and rub her head; she went right through. Lily wasn't a normal girl, as her shorts and flyaway hair might suggest, she was a witch, and a good witch at that. She was on her way to the best wizarding school in Europe and possible the world, Hogwarts.

Lily stuck her hands in her pockets and hid in the shadows on the magical platform she had reached, watching the crowd for one specific person, all the while denying that she was. She fingered the Head Girl badge in her pocket as her eyes flicked back and forth through the crowd. Spotting her friend, Serena, she smiled and walked over, giving up the fruitless task of spotting James Potter. "He's probably surrounded by a crowd of girls all complementing him and further inflating his head," she muttered ignoring the twinge of jealousy she felt tug at her gut.

Little did Lily know, James was actually standing on the other side of the platform watching her, trying to determine if she was looking for him, her brother, or Serena. He still couldn't believe the summer she had had, and further more the life. James scuffed his shoe on the ground and wondered how she could love anyone after the pain and betrayal she had felt countless times from family, friends, boyfriends and who knows who else.

As James watched, his best friend walked up behind Lily and gave her a huge hug, James smiled as Lily twisted around and hugged Sirius right back. At the end of the summer, Lily had discovered her mother had had an affair with Sirius's father and that they were half siblings. Lily laughed at something he said and appeared oblivious to the surprised stares of her classmates. Lily was known for hating the Marauders, James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus; suddenly she was best friends with one of them.

With a sigh James lugged his trunk up the steps into the train and strolled to the Head's compartment, certain he would see Lily there in a few minutes. He picked dirt from under his fingernails and listened to the muffled laughter of kids in the train hallways. The door creaked and he heard a gasp. Looking up James met the shocked eyes of Lily Evans and smiled, "Surprise."

o0o

Lily studied the woodwork of the Gryffindor table as the sorting concluded. She had been avoiding James's eyes for the past half hour. Their meeting in the train had been nothing short of spectacularly uncomfortable. The no-words-needed communication they had built over the summer had shattered somehow and had left only awkward silence in its place. Neither would bring up the topic of the events of that summer, but both were acutely aware of them at every moment, especially that kiss.

The nudge from Sirius was more then welcome to shake Lily from her daydream. "Do I know her?" he asked gesturing towards the front of the hall.

"We have a new student this year, she will be in seventh year and will be sorted now as we have finished with the first year students," Dumbledore smiled at all his students.

"How the heck do I know if you know some girl, Sirius? " Lily asked as she turned to look at the girl, "You probably hooked up with her on vacation some ti—." Lily stopped when she saw the head of wavy, dark brown hair she knew quite well.

"Namorn, Delia," Professor McGonnagall announced as Lily's supposedly muggle friend sat on the stool, not showing the slightest bit of fear. After a moment in which Lily was sure she didn't breath the hat called, "Gryffindor!" triumphantly.

Delia strode over to the table Professor McGonnagall directed her to, Lily's table, but stopped across the table from Lily when she saw her supposedly muggle friend.

"Ummm, surprise?" Delia cracked a half amused smile.

"Surprise is right," Lily answered and smiled back.