"I wasn't sure what he meant at the time," Lily confessed as she tried to make some sense of what James revealed. "Do you think, perhaps, that jealousy was involved? The fact that he told you that you had me to put first, and then Harry... it almost sounds like he felt that he became less important in your eyes."
She sighed quietly. She was starting to think that James had no idea how he affected the people around him.
"That's similar to what I said. Neither of us could even guess what Dumbledore might be planning." Lily muttered. "We had no control over Dumbledore, and his decisions shouldn't be held against us. Of course I feel terrible about what happened to the Longbottoms, but it's not like it was our fault." James' presence was helping her to remain mostly calm as she did her best to help him relax a little as well by gently kneading his shoulders.
"It does seem that way," she murmured, the bitterness in his smile making her heart ache. "I'm somewhat better at not reacting off the cuff, but I'll admit that there were a few times where I couldn't help it."
She gasped when he pulled back, looking up at him with wide eyes. "I'm not mad," she assured him. "Sirius and I get on quite well now... although as you said, at the start things were a bit rocky. We both love you, and while at first that caused some tension, we worked things out for the most part."
It helped that she and Sirius found things to bond over that didn't include James or the others, things that were unique to them and their relationship. She had figured out long ago that what Sirius felt towards James wasn't just brotherly or friendly, but Lily hadn't thought it was a potential issue until recently.
"You have nothing to apologize for, love. How could you have known? You have a way with most people, they either fall in love with you or aspire to be like you. It's part of your charm."