James walked behind Sirius through the palace doors. He had crossed this threshold several times in his life, but never with the intention of staying more more than an evening. Thirty days, he told himself. He only needed to pretend for thirty days and then the Princess and he would likely never meet again.

There was a large lump in his throat. He nervously ruffled his hair and adjusted his tie as he turned to face his fate.

Sirius was greeting the Queen with, all charm and schmooze. Judging by her carefully constructed smile, the royal was none too pleased to see him.

The Princess had yet to notice him, as she was busy giving Sirius a look of undisguised disdain, and James took her ignorance as a chance to drink her in. She was in powder blue, her red hair down and straight. It was a striking different from the curly updo he had experienced the last time he saw her. Both suited her well. Her green eyes, while currently squinting suspiciously at his cousin, were still a bright as he remembered. A splay of freckles danced across her cheeks.

"M'am, may I introduce my cousin, Lord James Potter." Lily's head snapped to attention, and her eyes widened for a moment before narrowing tightly. Queen Minerva held out her hand, and James bent forward to kiss it just as Lily let out a shocked scoff.

"James," she ventured, seething.

"We are delighted to make your acquaintance," said the queen as he released her hand.

"I assure you, the pleasure is all mine," he countered, attempting to ignore the deadly look Lily was shooting in his direction, "And thank you so much for inviting me to stay at the palace."

The queen smiled gracefully and turned to her granddaughter, who had become a petulant child in the last moment, turning away from the group snottily.

"And may I present my granddaughter, Lily." The princess refused to acknowledge his presence, still staring pointedly in the opposite direction.

He smiled in spite of himself at her insolence, and bowed deeply. "Your highness."

She did not move.

"...Lily, would you care to welcome our guest?" The Queen prompted, smiling but firm.

Lily turned her head slowly, drawing a smile that bared her teeth unfavorably. James gulped.

"Lord… James." She chuckled hollowly, stepping closer to him. Placing her hand in his outstretched palm. She sighed, causing James to relax just before she lifted her foot and stomped her heel down on his toes. He bent over, using all of his focus not to curse in front of the Queen.

Everyone else in the room stared, dumbfounded, at the turn of events.

He turned his grimace into a smile and motioned towards the Princess' retreating figure. "She always does that," he laughed, wincing slightly when his injured foot hit the ground.

The Queen stood at a loss for words. She fumbled for a moment, looking for the diplomatic answer before announcing she would personally gather some ice for his foot. The housekeeper who had greeted them outside allowed James to lean on her as she led him to the sitting room.

Sirius shot him a knowing grin as he passed, at which James rolled his eyes. Bode walked to the viscount and leaned in. "An accident, I'd imagine," he quipped. The dark-haired man gathered his composure. "Of course," he replied as he moved to join his cousin, "She's training to be a flamenco dancer."

Lily was beyond distraught. That bastard, her mind kept repeating. How could the man who had danced with her, saved her from her disastrous partners and flirted with her be the same man intent on stealing her crown?

She shoveled another scoop of Vanilla Bean into her mouth, the cold doing nothing to help her rising rage. And she had flirted, for christ's sake. She had fantasized. The audacity of it all. And to be living with him, on top of everything. There was no escaping the man.

She heard footsteps nearing the kitchens, and by the click of her grandmother's heels knew she was in for it. The Queen entered the kitchen without greeting.

"Would you care to explain what was going on out there?" She demanded, pointing up to the main foyer.

Another level of shame rose within Lily. "I'm sorry," she remarked genuinely, placing the spoon back into the ice cream, "I, uh, have met Lord James, actually. Yeah, at the ball- didn't know who he was, so we danced, and… I flirted."

She waved the spoon around nonsensically before placing it in her mouth, hoping the sugary dessert would quell her embarrassment. When it didn't, she placed her head in her hands. "I just feel so… stupid right now."

"I see. Well, as your Queen I absolutely cannot condone it," Minerva began taking a seat beside her, looking much less angry than previously.

"But as a Grandma I say, right on." The two smiled at each other, "Now. If you'll come with me, I have something to show you."

Lily rose, still holding her ice cream. The Queen reminded her of that fact, and she placed it on the counter, disappointed.

"Thank you culinary people!" The Queen called as she exited the room. Lily mouthed a quick "I'll be back," before following her grandmother upstairs.

"The renovations for your suite are finally finished. They should have been ready for you when you arrived, but we hired Rupert's cousin to do the bathroom. It's a good lesson, dear. Nepotism belongs in the arts, not in plumbing." Minerva finished just as the guards opened the double doors, revealing the most splendid room she had ever seen.

"Are you serious?" Lily cried, drifting her hands over the walls and tabletops as the Queen smiled and nodded. There were plush couches and soft carpeting, and a cream-coloured wallpaper. Windows allowed light to stream through, and tasteful artwork adorned the walls.

"Oh, Grandma," she sighed, "This is very nice." She landed on a couch artfully, crossing her legs and leaning back.

"Very good," the Queen laughed, just as Lily noticed the very large bed adorned with multitudes of pillows, and meandered over before launching herself into the pile of softness. She laughed gleefully, announcing "This is so cool!"

"There's more," her grandmother motioned to a remote beside her bed. Pressing a button, Lily saw a pair of sliding doors open. Inside, the lights came on and revealed a closet larger than her entire dorm room at Columbia- and she'd slept in a triple. The Queen chuckled leading her charge inside and showing her which buttons to press to open up which drawers or shelves.

"I have my own mall," Lily said dreamily.

"Now press combination six-five-six," Lily did as she was told, and in the corner of the room, a series of drawers opened. She walked over to them, gasping as she saw row after row of earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and rings, each adorned with any number of jewels or precious metals. Lily leaned in to graze her fingers over a drawer, and the shelves level with her head opened to reveal three glittering tiaras, each more beautiful than the last.

"I had a selection of the crown jewels brought out for you. They are yours to borrow, with great discretion, at the appropriate times." Eyes still scanning over the mass of priceless finery, Lily could only nod. "Now, for the best surprise of all," the Queen pulled Lily over to a set of doors and opened them to reveal…

Some dresses? She turned back to look at her grandmother. "Wow, they're gorgeous, Grandma, but kind of a let down after the jewels I'm not gonna lie" She laughed, and then screamed as a pair of hands tickled her waist. She whirled back around and came face to face with Alice Fenton.

They stared at each other for a moment, and promptly broke out screaming, hugging each other and jumping up and down.

"You're here!" Lily cried, still taking in the sight of her childhood best friend. "You're in Gryffindor!" Alice nodded, smiling brightly. "You're in my closet!"

"Yeah," the shorter girl responded, and Lily hugged her all over again. "I'm so glad to see you."

"Well," said the Queen, removing her hands from her ears, "I think this is as good a moment as any to bow out. I think I'll let you two ladies catch up with each other." She pressed a button and slipped away as drawers closed themselves.

"Oh, by the way," said Lily, as casually as she could, "I'm getting married."

Alice's eyebrows disappeared beneath her bangs. "To who?"

"I don't know."

That evening, Queen Minerva, Mary, Lily, Alice and poor Bode found themselves sitting in the palace's screening room, holding popcorn and looking through potential husbands. Mary clicked through the presentation.

"Baron Johann Klimt," she announced as a man with a red mustache appeared on the screen.

"Not appropriate, he's a compulsive gambler." The Queen dismissed with a wave as Mary loaded the next image.

"I accept, I absolutely accept," Lily declared as Prince William appeared on screen.

"He's not eligible because he's in line for his own crown," said Mary mournfully, handing out another round of popcorn.

"If he's not eligible, why is he included in these pictures?" asked Bode.

"I just love to look at him," Mary sighed, and Alice moaned in agreement, a mouth full of popcorn.

The next slide showed an attractive brunette, holding a cricket bat and smiling jovially.

"Antoine Soussain of Paris- no title, but good family."

"What about the title of husband?" suggested Alice.

"Yeah, he's cute," agreed Lily.

"Yes, his boyfriend thinks he's handsome also," Bode remarked with a knowing smile.

"Right on!" Chorused the girls, Lily and Alice pumping fists in the air.

"No matter, put him on all the invitation lists- he's a divine dancer. Next" bade the Queen.

As the images pulled up, the women quickly passed judgement.

Too old.

Too young.

Arrested too many times.

Minerva sat up in frustration. "We need someone titled, someone who can help you run a country without ego getting in the way. Someone attractive, smart, but not arrogant. Someone with compassion-"

"Someone like him?" Lily interrupted, pointing at the screen. The man had sandy brown hair and a dimple in his left cheek. He wore a pilot's uniform, and his info mentioned an interest in photography. An englishman, too, so there would be no language barrier.

"Good choice, Lily, I wonder I didn't think of him before. The duke of Kenilworth!" the Queen rejoiced.

"Well, he looks… decent." Lily hoped her voice didn't betray her lack of interest. Truthfully, there had been another image in her head as her grandmother spoke. But she would allow no one, not even herself, to suggest that man.

"Sir Remus Lupin, prepare to meet your match."