Story of So Many Lives

Lily Evans was going to be late for breakfast, again. And, as always, it wasn't her fault. Not that she was complaining, oh no! Sirius Black and James Potter were wonderful people, not to mention her best friends in the world. It was just that their idea of a good surprise wasn't always the same as hers.

Today's had been expected, though, since it was her birthday, October fifth. Last year, they had charmed all her quills to only write birthday greetings all day. This year, she awoke to find her corner of the fifth year girls' dormitory filled with an assortment of brightly colored balloons, every one charmed to shriek "Happy Birthday, Lily!" over and over, beginning the instant she awoke. Sibyll Trelawney, the only other fifth year girl in Gryffindor house, groaned, glared at Lily, and promptly left the dormitory. This wasn't much of a concern to Lily, though; she and Sibyll had never really gotten along. Sibyll had a flare for drama, a love of gossip, and a remarkably irritating habit of acting as though she had the world's most finely tuned inner eye. Lily was actually very glad that she could have one morning free of "Oh, Lily dear, I see terrible misfortune in your near future!" The only problem was that today, misfortune had hit. As she went to dress, she discovered that not one pair of her robes remained.

Lily muttered something her Muggle parents would never approve of, pulled on her bathrobe, and dashed down to the common room. Sure enough, there, chuckling by the fire, sat Sirius and James, telling something, most likely the story of what they'd done to Lily, to their other two trouble-making friends, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.

The four of them were an odd group. The ringleaders were Sirius and James, two of the top students in their class. Both were tall and strikingly handsome, with long, unruly black hair and chocolate brown eyes. Many people thought they were brothers at first, aside from similar looks, one rarely went anywhere without the other. However, Sirius was the taller of the two while James was more athletic and wore a prefect badge, like Lily, and glasses.

Once you got to know them, however, even more differences showed up. Sirius was beyond a doubt the real 'wild child'. He had a passion for all things unusual and eye-catching, not to mention natural spontaneity and an aversion to thinking of the consequences. James was more the rabble-rouser. He always thought of the end result, and often went out of his way to make sure the ending was positive. Many people listened to James when he got it in his mind to change things for the better.

While Lily was always closer to Sirius and James, the other two boys were nonetheless friends of hers. Remus was the bookworm and practical thinker of the group, even though his grades were never spectacular. Whenever James or Sirius would come up with an idea, it was usually Remus who had the patience to think through the details. Also, many people came to Remus with their problems, since he was generally a good listener, and looked approachable. He had gray-green eyes and was fairly tall, keeping his sandy brown hair neatly combed. Howsoever, though Remus knew so much about other people, few people knew anything about him. His aloof, mysterious nature actually frightened many.

The fourth member of this group, Peter, was the follower. He was short and rather chubby, frequently in need of protection from the taunts of Slytherin house. At best, his grades were average, though he did seem to have some talent in Care of Magical Creatures. He was rarely one to think for himself, although he was consequently very good at keeping secrets.

All together, the four boys made up the Marauders. They were pranksters by definition, they were intelligent by nature, they were in possession of Lily's clothes by choice.

James had just finished boasting to his friends about how he'd managed to steal all of Lily's robes when Sirius poked him. "What'd you do that for?" James asked, rubbing his arm. Sirius only jerked his head to the left in response. Following this prompt, James turned cautiously, and what he saw made him grin ear to ear.

"Lily, happy birthday! How does it feel to finally be the same age as us?" James raised one eyebrow inquisitively. Beside him, Sirius was snickering. Meanwhile, Remus and Peter, having seen the look Lily was giving the other two, became very preoccupied with some last minute studying for a test in History of Magic.

"Well, it feels rather embarrassing at the moment, since I am currently WITHOUT ROBES!" explained Lily, exasperated and mildly annoyed.

Sirius gasped, "What? Has someone stolen them from our sweet Lil'-O'-The-Wisp? How dreadful!" James 'tsk'ed in agreement.

"You can stop the innocent act now," said Lily, pleadingly. "If you'd only return my robes we could all go down to breakfast on time and the two of you could gorge yourselves on waffles."

"Waffles? Waffles!" cried Sirius and James in unison, and they both turned and ran out of the common room, leaving behind a flabbergasted Lily. They headed straight for the Great Hall and seated themselves at the Gyffindor table. Soon, each had a stack of waffles in front of him at least a foot high.

As James and Sirius began devouring their breakfast, Lily grudgingly stole into the boys' dormitory and "borrowed" one of James's robes. She was less than pleased at the idea of spending her birthday in oversized clothing, though it really was nice to know that her friends had been thinking of her, in a twisted sort of way. Sending one last disparaging look at the mirror ("Honey, you look like you're wearing a sack! Are you sure that's what you want to wear today?"), Lily headed as quickly as possible towards the Great Hall. This was no easy task as she continuously tripped over the hem of the very long robes; James easily dwarfed her by more than half a foot.

Eventually, she managed to arrive and take a seat near where the Marauders were making complete pigs of themselves. Only a minimal amount of staring came from the other students at her strange apparel. The Marauders took no notice of her, however, as the solid wall of food surrounding them seemed to take their complete attention. Typical, thought Lily, rolling her eyes, before proceeding to eat her own normal-sized breakfast. Sometimes, I get the feeling they'd be completely insane if it wasn't for me; no one else would stop them from living in their own crazy world all the time.

Lily was used to James and Sirius' odd behavior. When it was just the three of them, they could almost pass as human. Admittedly, it was very hard to make the two of them act calm, but they were much closer to it when not around the rest of their gang. The Marauders were not four individual people; they were the four codependent parts of one unstoppable force. When they were on a mission, be it to jinx the desks in Transfiguration or to convince the portraits to come back from their strike and live peacefully in Hogwarts again, Lily would be the last to stand in their way.

For her part, Lily was perfectly happy sitting back and watching their antics. This was the fifth year she had known them, and it never ceased to amaze her how they could communicate everything without ever saying a word. Sometimes, she was jealous of Remus and Peter, since they took so much of Sirius and James' lives. However, Lily had learned long ago that taking time for herself, whether it was to read, tutor younger students, or simply sit back and think, was the only reason she wasn't completely overwhelmed by their high energy level. In all honesty, she knew she could never replace Remus nor Peter. Not that she didn't wish she could, though...

Severus Snape eyed the Gryffindor table contemptuously. The fifth year boys, the ones who coined themselves the Marauders, looked ridiculous, piling far too much food on their plates even though they would never eat it all. And that Mudblood, the Lily girl! She would be beautiful, even Severus had to admit, if she would only wear clothing that fit her properly. Dressing like that, though, that took some bravery; it was no wonder the Sorting Hat put her in Gryffindor. The Gryffindor lot were all very courageous, there was no doubt about it, but they spent all their energy on the wrong things.

Take the Marauders, for example. The school's female population revered them. Sure, with the exception of Peter, they were notably intelligent. But what was their crowning glory? They could have fun at the expense of others while retaining a sort of hero status for stepping in to aid with the trivial problems of life. Soon, soon they would see the error of their ways. Severus knew it, even if he would never reveal why to anyone. Both of his parents were Death Eaters, and they told him that the day was coming when all wizards would bow to the Dark Lord, and the scum of the Earth, like the Gryffindors, would see their place and fill it dutifully.

Nearly every head in the Great Hall turned upwards as a swoosh of feathers announced the arrival of today's owl post. Among the multitudes of owls, Severus immediately spotted the barn owl that brought him is copy of the Daily Prophet every morning. He opened it nonchalantly, not expecting anything out of the ordinary, but as he read the headline on the front page, it was all he could do to suppress the malicious grin that began to creep onto his visage.

James deftly grabbed is copy of the Daily Prophet from the talons of the delivery owl just as it had begun to land, and rewarded the bird with a torn-off corner of waffle. James liked to be the first to learn of the happenings in the outside world, making it his personal duty to assure that all important news was swiftly handed down to the rest of the students. These past few years had been interesting, to say the least, as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named grew steadily more powerful and attracted more and more followers. It depressed James to know that there was very little he could do to aid the world, being only a fifth-year student, but he still liked to keep an eye out for any opportunity that might show itself.

As James began unfolding the paper, he noticed that Lily was seated to his right, anxious glancing over his shoulder. Much to his chagrin, he also realized that the robes she wore appeared to be his own, but it still made for an amusing picture.

"Lily, dearest, happy birthday! However, I don't remember buying those for you," he commented in a tone that alternated between annoyance and outright laughter.

"You haven't given me anything," responded Lily hurriedly. "But if you wouldn't mind letting me see that..." She snatched at the paper, only to find that she held nothing in her hand.

"I admire your enthusiasm." James grinned down at her, the Prophet dangling from his hand over his head. With his free hand, he tugged at the sleeve of her robe, amending his previous statement with "AND your quick-thinking. What would McGonagall think, if she only knew you, a prefect, had been sneaking into the boys dorm?"

Lily glowered and remained silent for a moment. Finally, she said abruptly, "She would agree with me that it's time we read the paper."

"Bit temperamental, aren't we," James asked, pouting and bringing the paper down so they both could read it. Suddenly, James's mouth dropped, and he elbowed Sirius to get his attention. The three crowded together, drawing the attention of Remus and Peter who came to stand behind.

Emblazoned across the front of the Daily Prophet were the words "Dark Wizards Strike With New Vengeance".

DARK WIZARDS STRIKE WITH NEW VENGEANCE

Recent attacks have left the entire magical community in a state of panic. It is said we are dealing with the forces of the most powerful dark wizard in over a century. Those who lived through the reign of Grindelwald may find this hard to fathom, but the horror we currently face is very real.

It seems that this wizard, whose very name is said to give him power to destroy, seems currently to be targeting those of Muggle heritage. Just yesterday, five such individuals were discovered dead in their homes, with the terrifying Dark Mark looming over each house and the words "Mudblood, you never deserved to live!" written in blood across the floor.

Not only does these events bring the frightening reality of our situation into clear focus, but it also shows us the popularity He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named seems to be gathering. Each of these attacks took place in completely different and distant locations, as far as Bulgaria.

All wizards should consider taking measures to protect themselves and those they love. The victims this wizard is choosing now may not be the same victims he chooses tomorrow. In the words of the Auror who is leading the investigations in this matter, Alastor Moody, we all need to practice "constant vigilance."

-Jonathon Gellery. Friday, October 5^th, 1973

The reactions of each person varied significantly. Peter grew visibly more skittish than usual, glancing over his shoulders every ten seconds, no doubt checking for anyone suspicious who might be trying to do him in. Remus sighed, a faraway look gradually appearing on his face. Sirius looked excited. Not excited in the happy way, but excited in the manner of a person who suddenly has lots of things they NEED to get done. He looked ready to jump out of his seat as he exclaimed, rather too loudly, "I need to write to my parents. They'll know more about what's going on, being Aurors and all. Maybe they can tell us where these attacks took place, so we could go investigate on our own. I can't tell them we're planning on going of course. No one would allow us to and..."

He was cut short by a meaningful glance from James, who shook his head sternly. "We don't go anywhere. We stay here, where we're safe. Everyone knows that You-Know-Who has never and will never dare try anything under the nose of Albus Dumbledore. We stay here and learn more." James surely would have continued his speech, which was rapidly becoming a lecture on why education was important and how you could have fun while learning, if a loud THUMP hadn't interrupted everyone's thoughts. Most ungracefully, Lily Evans had fainted into her plate.

The next thing she knew, Lily was lying in a bed in the hospital wing with an incredibly foul after taste in her mouth. She could hear Madame Pompfrey in the next room arguing with two people. Some part of her mind wondered how she got there, but she was mainly thinking about the reason she had fainted in the first place. He's targeting people like me! she reasoned despairingly. I'll never feel safe again. I - I could be the next one to die! With one choking sob of panic, she rolled over and buried her head under the covers.

"Lily! Lily! Are you alright?" someone was asking her, obviously worried. She sniffled, lifted her head to stare at the pillow, and tried to breathe properly.

"We brought your robes, if that makes you any happier," another voice added pleadingly. Her head dropped down again.

"You wouldn't understand," Lily tried to say, but the pillow muffled her words. It ended up sounding more like "Shoe wooden under sand" than anything else. Apparently, her visitors did not comprehend her plea for solitude, seeing as they rolled her onto her back and pulled her into a sitting position. She stared straight ahead of her, trying not to let her face betray any emotion, and staring back at her with expressions of utmost concern were Sirius and James.

After James and Sirius and rushed off, carrying the unconscious Lily between them, Remus and Peter were at a loss for words. A silent agreement passed between them, and they finished their breakfast quickly and without conversation. Neither was very anxious to bring up the newspaper article or its disastrous effects on Lily.

When it became obvious that their friends would not be coming back, the two began making their way up to History of Magic with the only ghost instructor at Hogwarts, Professor Binns. Following one rather awkward and time-consuming detour caused by a moving staircase, Remus began desperately searching for conversation to lighten the atmosphere.

"So, have you decided what you want to transform into yet?" he asked, trying to sound genuinely curious.

Peter shrugged. "I was thinking something small. We'll need someone small to freeze the Whomping Willow, and Sirius and James both decided they need to be large animals so that..." he cut himself off suddenly and looked down, ashamed.

"It's okay, Peter. They need to be large animals to keep me under control." Remus sighed and appeared pained. "None of you is at fault. I was a werewolf before I met you, and I'll still be one even if we never speak of it again. Still," he said again after a brief pause, "I rather wish I was also becoming an animagus. It sounds like fun. Of course, it's impossible for me."

They turned a corner into the corridor that held their classroom. Out of the blue, Peter whispered something so quietly Remus had lean down and ask for him to repeat himself. "A rat," Peter said. "I want to be a rat."

Remus looked surprised. "A rat? Why?"

"I've always liked rats, ever since I had one as a pet when I was little. I used to wish I could talk to it, share secrets with it, and now I have the chance. And a rat would be small enough to get us in close to the tree. So, I want to be a rat."

James mentally kicked himself when he saw the glazed over look in Lily's eyes; whatever had made her so upset was doubtless his fault, in some way or another. Cautiously, he sat down beside her on the bed, watching in the corner of his eye as Sirius followed suit.

"What's wrong, Lil'-O'-the-Wisp?" he inquired softly.

Lily sniffled a few times and wiped tears out of her eyes. "I could be next," she said at last. "I'm Muggle born; he- he wants me dead!" Just voicing her fears seemed to tip her over the edge again, and she began sobbing uncontrollably into Sirius's shoulder.

"It's okay, it's okay," Sirius was repeating over and over, but James wasn't focusing on anything. Lily's words kept running through his mind. He wants her dead. How is that possible? He thought despairingly. Somehow, when considering Voldemort and the terror he caused, he always viewed himself and the people he knew as invulnerable. Suddenly, though, his views changed. Perhaps at Hogwarts they were all safe, but what would happen when they left? She can't die. Please, don't come let him come after her! James pleaded in his mind, without knowing to whom he directing his plea.

By lunch time, the three had all managed to regain some sense of sanity and were able to reappear in public. All morning, James and Sirius had taken turns comforting Lily while other thought of ways to keep her safe. Neither told Lily they were doing this, but both boys wanted to do everything in their power to keep her from harm.

As James had pointed out, it was unlikely that anything would occur, yet neither wanted to leave even the slightest chance of mishap.

That afternoon, the only class they had was Transfiguration. In preparation for the study of human transfigurations, this year was dedicated to transfiguring parts of the body. Today, Professor McGonagall had the entire class change one of their legs into a wooden stick. After several failed attempts ending in near disaster, the entire class looked like pirates out of a fiction story. By the time the Gryffindors had returned to the common room to start their homework, everyone's mind was off the depressing occurrences of that morning.

Dinner was a boisterous affair, as usual. One of the Marauders, no one was ever sure which, started a food fight at the Gryffindor table which cost them 10 house points, but put everyone in a rather lively mood. Halfway through the meal, James and Sirius began whispering furiously, eventually including Peter and Remus in their discussion. Suddenly, the four left the Great Hall before dessert was served, a quite unprecedented affair. If she hadn't known better, Lily would have thought they were up to something, but knowing them as she did, she was sure of it and only curious to find out what was so important.

It didn't take her long to find out, however. Upon returning to the common room, she found large banner strung across the room which said in bold, colorful letters "Happy Birthday, Lily". Standing underneath it, with enough bottles of butterbeer for the entire house and a cake large enough that even Hagrid, the huge gamekeeper, would think it a bit much, were the Marauders.

As the other Gryffindors climbed through the portrait hole, their mouths fell open as they took in the sight. Before long, someone brought out their magical radio, and the common room was overflowing with laughing voices and joyful people. Not even the prefects bothered to send anyone up to bed until at least one in the morning.

Lily was still ecstatic as she finally retired for the night. The Marauders had replenished her stash of Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, as well as added two new books to her personal library. Reflecting back on the day, she decided that with friends like these, Voldemort would have an easier time freezing hell than ruining her life.