A.N: Well, my first year of high school is finally over. While it was still happening, every day seemed so long, but now that it's over, all those months of late night study sessions and gulped-down Starbucks seem to have gone by so fast. Actually, school ended a few weeks ago, but I had to attend my older brother's graduation (he's going into college) and a family vacation. I just got back from a 5-week summer school program, which is mostly why I haven't updated. Now I'm back home, and hopefully that means more time to write!

James felt himself being tugged back and the next thing he knew, he was standing in Dumbledore's office again, Sirius next to him. His head was reeling, and even the usually flippant Sirius was blinking in shock. Dumbledore peered at them over his glasses, eyes grave. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, do you see how serious the situation is? I went to speak to the house elves, and they confirmed that the lemonade they gave Ms. Evans was simply normal lemonade – definitely not orange. We have good reason to suspect Ms. Evans of trying to poison Mr. Snape."

James opened his mouth to protest. "Professor, Lily wouldn't – "

"We also have reason to believe she was under the Imperius Curse."

James' mouth snapped shut as he stared at the headmaster. "What? L-Lily? Under the Imperius Curse?"
Dumbledore nodded. "I recognize the signs. Usually, it's near impossible to know if a person is under the Imperius Curse, but towards the end, before she ran out, her expression was one of someone who was trying to fight off the Curse. I suppose the caster of the Curse also decided that since the task was already done and Mr. Snape had already drank the lemonade, that it was safe to remove the curse. Normally, it is not so easy to shake off the Curse."

James' mind went blank as suddenly, Lily's face flashed through his mind and he saw the last few months between him and Lily.

James and Sirius sauntered into the Dining Hall, heading over to where Remus and Peter were sitting at the Gryffindor table. As the two approached the table, Lily closed her eyes and groaned. Taking a deep breath, she rolled her eyes up to the heavens, as if praying for patience. James walked by and Lily tensed, obviously waiting for a confrontation of some sort. And for once, it never came.

James sat down next to Remus, nodded a greeting, and began filling up his plate with food. Lily and her friends stared at James, eyes wide and disbelieving. They received no attention from the Marauders, except a smirk and a wink from Sirius. For the first time in years, James seemed to have had absolutely no reaction to seeing Lily.

Class. Lily was tense the entire time, half-turning in her seat a few times but always jerking herself back to the front. It was as if she was bracing herself for the inevitable passed note, or whispered suggestive comment from the Marauders behind her. Nothing came.

By dinnertime of that first week, Lily looked absolutely dreadful. Her hair was a mess, looking truly Trelawney-worthy. There were bags under her eyes and for the first time, she – Lily Evans! – had not been first in her classes. She entered the Great Hall at dinner, banging the doors open, her head swiveling around. As her gaze locked on James, she marched to him, and all but snarled at him.

"Potter! What is going on? What disastrous little deed are you planning?"

James calmly finished eating his spoonful of mashed potatoes, before glancing up to look at Lily's wild eyes. "Evans. Why would you assume that I was planning something?"

"Because you haven't been – well – you know perfectly why!" Lily cried, hints of pink blossoming on her cheeks as her friends smirked knowingly behind her.

James sighed and put his cutlery down, turning to fully face Lily. "Listen. If you really want to know why I haven't asked you out, or bought you roses, or bloody worshipped you like I have for the past few years, it's because I've given up. All right? I have spent every day since I have met you hoping that you would see something in me, something worth giving a chance for. But obviously, that hasn't happened, and I doubt it will ever happen. So I'm not going to waste my time chasing someone who can't even stand to look at me."

By the end of his spiel, James' voice was the only one heard in the Great Hall, and his eyes were narrowed dangerously. All the other tables were fixated with the conversation, and even the teachers had wide eyes and slightly ajar mouths. James Potter? Give up on Lily Evans? Yet, nobody looked more stunned than the girl in question herself. Opening and closing her mouth a few times, she swallowed hard before inhaling raggedly and spinning around to run out of the Great Hall. James turned back to his plate, glaring as he viciously stabbed a piece of turkey. Sirius cleared his throat and stood up. "Alright, thank you all for being nosy little buggers. Now, if you're all done staring, there's nothing to see here."

Months passed. Lily had been cold and stiff to James, as always, with a wary air to her whenever he was around. The tension between the two had relaxed, and they spoke courteously to each other when they had to, saying no more than what needed to be said. True to his word, James stopped paying Lily extra attention, and began seeing other girls – much to the delight of the Hogwarts female population. Lily seemed to be moving on as well. James distinctly remembered walking into the Gryffindor common room one night, to see Lily on a couch flirting with another boy in their year. He had raised an eyebrow when her eyes flicked to him, gave her a nod of acknowledgement, and walked over to join Sirius in a game of Exploding Snap. It seemed as if all was well.

Except it's not now, James thought as he stared at the ground. Sirius was busy asking Dumbledore questions, and James tried to focus on the matter at hand, but it was proving a difficult feat. All that he could think of was Lily. Somebody had Imperioed her. She could have been hurt. She must have realized what had happened. Oh, no. She would undoubtedly blame herself for not being able to resist the Curse, and beat herself up over spiking Snape's drink. If she was in such a state of mind, that would mean she was skipping meals, hiding in her room, the usual routine she went through whenever she didn't perform her best in an exam or did something wrong. He used to have a chance to be the one comforting her, but he just…let her go. And she didn't mind, he reminded himself. She doesn't like you, and hasn't for the past few years.

"…James…James! James!" Sirius' voice yanked him back to the conversation in Dumbledore's office. James looked up to see Sirius' impatient expression and a slight twinkle returning to the headmaster's eyes.

Dumbledore spoke. "I was simply saying that we should find Ms. Evans, get her side of the story, ask if she remembered anything – maybe the person who Imperioed her, or if the person had said anything else that might give us a lead. While you two question her, I will be meeting with the ghosts and paintings of Hogwarts. Not much happens in this castle without them knowing about it."

James nodded solemnly as the Headmaster sat back down in his desk and shuffled through paperwork, a clear dismissal. The walk back to Gryffindor seemed like hours – James' head was spinning with confusion and anger and concern and just…enough emotion to fill a lifetime. Sirius finally broke the silence.
"What are we going to do about Snape?"

"I don't even…I don't know. He's still enamored, right?"

"Yeah. Crazily so."

James groaned. "I don't need his affections right now. I need to focus on who Imperioed Lily. Just let Pomfrey deal with him."

When they finally reached the Gryffindor tower, James closed his eyes and winced before stepping through the portrait hole and towards the girls' staircase. The Fat Lady wiggled her eyebrows and giggled, "And here I was, thinking the poor boy had given up!"

James stopped a passing third year girl, who looked absolutely petrified that the Great and Infamous James Potter had his hand on her shoulder. "Hey, can you do me a favor? Go upstairs and tell Lily that I need to speak with her about something. Tell her I was sent by the Headmaster."

She nodded, a squeak escaping her before she rushed up the stairs. James ignored the curious stares from around the room, while Sirius watched a busty blonde sashay past. After a few agonizing minutes, the door to the girls' dorm opened and a familiar redhead walked out. James' breath caught in his throat as Lily met his gaze hesitantly. Shaking himself out of his daze, James pulled Sirius away from the rapidly growing group of scantily clad girls and cleared his throat.

"Lily, we were asked by Professor Dumbledore to talk to you about something that happened with Snape."

Lily nodded resignedly, and walked towards the staircase. "Come on, let's talk about it in the room. More privacy."

James nodded and pulled out his wand with an "Accio broomstick." His prized Comet 140 came shooting from the boy's dorm a few seconds later, landing solidly in James' open palm. Throwing his leg over the broom, James nodded at Sirius, who hopped on as well. Lily, who was waiting at the top of the steps, jumped back as the two boys flew up the stairs and into the room. A hint of a smile tugged at Lily's smile. "Dramatic as always, Potter."

He gave a mock bow, before straightening and watching as Lily pulled out her wand. "Muffliato," she murmured, effectively blocking out any unwanted listeners. She plopped down on her bed, crossing her legs. Her skirt rode up slightly at the movement, revealing toned thighs. James swallowed hard and tore his eyes away from her legs, meeting her questioning gaze.

"Lily, are you aware that you were Imperioed last week?"

She nodded, a weary look entering her expression.

"Do you remember what you did?"

"I…sort of. I vaguely remember talking to Severus…something about the kitchens. I know I gave him something to drink, but I don't know what."

"Can you recall when you were Imperioed?"

Lily scrunched up her nose slightly in concentration. "The last thing I remember while I was in my right mind is walking down to the dungeons. I wanted to ask Professor Slughorn something about a potion I read about. I'm not sure when, but while I was walking, I guess I was Imperioed. It's all very blurred and fuzzy in my memory."

James and Sirius exchanged a look. The dungeons…home to the Slytherins. They turned back to Lily. "Did you get a look at the person who Imperioed you? Maybe his hair color, height, voice….?"

She shook her head apologetically. "Sorry, I don't remember anything else that I haven't told you."

"That's alright, Lils. Thanks for your help." James stood up, broomstick in hand, and turned to leave, Sirius behind him. As they reached the door, Lily called out suddenly, "James!"

He glanced back at her. A faint blush settling over her cheeks, Lily looked down at her hands before saying quietly, "Thanks. For…you know, being so nice about all this."

Blinking in shock, James grappled for words before managing a hoarse "No problem." Chuckling, Sirius pushed him out the door. Unfortunately, they had forgotten about the magical staircase, resulting in them sliding down and landing in a tangled heap at the bottom. Sirius groaned and pushed James off of him.

"What now?

There was a small silence before the other boy answered.

"Now…I suppose we pay a visit to the home of the snakes."