Where Life Leads

Chapter Four

Lily sat at James' desk in his room, writing a letter to her parents. Down the hall she could hear Sirius, Remus and Peter continuing their game of shooting soap bubbles at each other in an effort to get clean, making more of a mess than anything else, Lily thought. Marlene had gone home to talk to her mum and said that she would clean up while she was there.

Finished writing, Lily read over the letter once more and then stood to tie it to Comet's leg, laughing silently to herself over the owl's name, whom James had said he had named after his first broom.

Lily sat down on his bed, which was covered in a red and gold bedspread, and leaned back against the headboard. She looked around the room, waiting for James to finish showering so that she could take her turn.

The room was huge, at least twice the size of Lily's bedroom, and surprisingly neat. The only disarray was of the books and parchment piled on the desk, presumably from last minute homework. There were Quidditch posters on the walls and a framed photo on the nightstand featured the four boys standing in the Great Hall at Hogwarts covered in colour-changing paint. Lily laughed aloud when she saw it, remembering when they had tried to charm the magical ceiling to mimic the weather physically instead of just visually. Needless to say, the charm had backfired, although how they had managed to get covered in paint, Lily had no idea.

She grabbed one of the many Quidditch books that James had piled on the nightstand and thumbed through it. She didn't have much interest in the sport, although anyone living in the wizarding world was practically required to have an understanding of it. She had just started reading about the Holyhead Harpies when the bathroom door opened and James came striding out, clad in a robe and towelling his hair dry.

"I thought you didn't like Quidditch?" he asked, seeing the book.

"I was bored."

James rummaged around in his chest of drawers. "Here, you can wear this until Marlene gets back," he said, glancing at Lily's singed and ripped clothing, handing her a pair of shorts and a long sleeved t-shirt with 'Quidditch Captain' written across the back.

"Your Quidditch practice gear?"

"It's from two years ago, so it should fit you well enough."

Lily took the offered clothes with a shrug and went into the bathroom. "Use the yellow towel," James told her before she shut the door.

Lily set the clothes on the marble sink counter. The bathroom was almost as large as the other room. The house looked much smaller from the outside, but then immediately she realized that it was a wizarding house, there must be expanding charms on all the rooms. That would explain it.

It wasn't nearly as nice as the Prefect's bathroom at Hogwarts, but Lily hadn't expected it to be. The bathtub, which took up an entire wall, was a reasonable size and had several taps located around the rim. The shower was next to the tub, beside that was the sink and across from the sink was the toilet. There was a plush red and gold rug covering most of the floor and several towels were hanging on the wall.

She was about to undress when she caught sight of her hair in the mirror. She grimace and opened the bathroom door, sticking her head out. Spying James she called to him, "Do you have a comb I can use?"

He stood up and grabbed a comb off the top of his chest of drawers and handed it to her.

"Thanks," Lily said, shutting the door in his face. She went back in front of the mirror and tackled the monstrosity that was her hair.

Once her hair was untangled, she undressed and opened the shower door. She didn't see anywhere to turn the water on as she stepped into the stall, but as soon as she closed the door, water came streaming down. Lily let out a small shriek of surprise.

There was a knock on the door. "You alright?" James asked.

Lily blushed even though she knew he couldn't see her. It was weird talking to him while she wasn't wearing anything. "I'm fine, the shower startled me, is all," she called back.

"Let me know if you need help with anything."

"I think I know how to take a shower by now."

"But you might need your back scrubbed."

"In your dreams, Potter," she called, smiling wryly and very glad that he couldn't see her.

"Ah, and what dreams they've been ..."

"Potter!"

"Yes, Evans, my dear?"

"Bugger off!" she called, trying to keep the amusement out of her voice.

She could hear him laughing over the running water.

Shampoo, conditioner, and soap were on a self in front of her and as Lily lathered her arms the spicy scent of his soap wafted around her. She inhaled deeply before she realized what she was doing. "... snog him and get it over with." Marlene's words rang in her ears. She shook her head, forcing herself to ignore what deep, deep down, she knew to be true. She quickly set about finishing her shower.

She dried off (using the yellow towel) and pulled on the clothes he had given her. The shorts were a bit loose and the sleeves of the t-shirt were too long but it was warm, soft and extremely comfortable. She towel-dried her hair and combed it out again. Gathering her ruined clothes in her arms, she hung her towel on a hook and exited the bathroom.

James had dressed and was sitting at his desk reading from a textbook. He closed the book and stood up when he saw Lily.

Surprising Lily by not commenting on the clothes she now wore, he said, "I'm starving; let's get something to eat. Sirius, Remus and Peter are in the kitchen already. Just throw your clothes on the bed. We can take care of them later."

Lily did as he said and followed him downstairs.

-()-

An hour later Lily sat comfortably on a sofa sipping a mug of warm butterbeer. Sirius had made sandwiches for everyone, and to Lily's surprise they were better than the ones the House Elves made at Hogwarts.

Marlene had returned in time to join them, bringing clothes for Lily, though the red-haired witch didn't bother to change out of the clothes James had given her. This was a fact she refused to think about, as they sat around the comfortable room chatting about everything and nothing.

Time flew by and before Lily knew it the sky outside had grown dark and clock on the wall was chiming a quarter to eight. James stood and walked across the room to turn on the wireless. "The evening news should be on soon," he said. "I bet they'll mention the explosion in Diagon Alley."

Remus, Peter and Sirius sprawled out on the floor in from of the wireless and James sat down in front of the couch Lily and Marlene were sitting on. Lily studied the cozy room while they waited in silence for the news to start. There were several portraits on the wall above the fireplace. Most were of older witches and wizards in dress robes, but one featured a small child who curled up on a sofa, a stuffed owl wedged under one arm. His mouth was open and his eyes were closed. He appeared to be sleeping peacefully, but every once in his eyes would open and he would stick out his tongue and make a face, breaking the illusion.

"Is that you?" she asked James, pointing to the portrait.

"Yeah."

"You were so cute when you were younger," she said deviously. "What happened?"

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh. "She has you there, Prongs."

"Why do you call him that?" Marlene piped up.

"Well, we're the Marauders; we had to have nicknames for each other."

"Yeah, but what made you decide on them? I mean, you call James Prongs, Remus, Moony, you're Padfoot, and Peter, of all things, Wormtail. It makes no sense."

"Erm ..." Sirius looked over at the others. "They just sort of fit, I suppose."

Marlene pursed her lips, not quite satisfied with the answer he had given her.

"The news is starting," Remus stated quietly. The group grew silent once more as they listened to Jacob Barnaby report the evening news.

"... luggage shop in Diagon Alley today. The appearance of You-Know-Who's dark mark has lead Aurors to believe that this is the work of his Death Eaters- previously known as the Knights of Walpurgis- but they can not find anything that could have caused the explosion. Investigations will continue through tomorrow and though Diagon Alley will remain open, people are strongly advised to take precautions when leaving their homes and, it is suggested that for the next several days, citizens only go out of doors when extremely necessary. In other news-"

The broadcaster's voice abruptly ended as Remus reached over and turned the Wireless off. "They didn't say anything," he said. "At least nothing helpful that we couldn't have figured out for ourselves."

"It almost sounded as thought he wasn't sure of everything himself. Did you hear how hesitant he was to report what happened? It was almost as though he neglected to say something," Lily said.

"You right," Sirius told her. "I bet you anything the Aurors discovered something and the Ministry didn't want anyone to know about it. We'll find out though. I bet you anything Moody will come by to talk to us tomorrow. We'll have him tell us."

"Do you think he'll tell us anything?" Peter asked.

"We were there," Sirius said angrily. "There's no reason for him to keep anything from us. We have as much right to know what going on as the next person."

"We're just kids in his eyes, Sirius," Lily argued. "And even though we're all of age, we're still in school."

James, who had been uncommonly quiet, spoke up with an unfamiliar gleam in his eyes. "We'll just have to ask someone else then."

"Like who?"

"Dumbledore."

"What makes you think Dumbledore will tell us anything?"

"Because," his mouth curling into a half-smile, "as Head Boy and Girl, it's our job to help protect the students among other things. And we can't do that unless we know something about what we're protecting them from."

Lily's mouth was open in shock. She was speechless. James Potter was Head Boy? Impossible.

"You're Head Boy?" Marlene asked him incredulously. "Why haven't you said anything until now?"

James shrugged. "Didn't feel like it." Marlene looked over at Lily, who shrugged as nonchalantly as James had, making sure to keep her face carefully blank. It was a shock to find out that he was Head Boy. He was the last person she would have expected Dumbledore to choose, but she supposed he must have had his reasons- James had been a bit more behaved last year. She was so confused. This time last year she would have been furious and it would be so easy to hold on to all the anger she had felt towards James in the past, but somehow now... after all that had happened today, she just couldn't. There was no reason for it. She had seen a side of James that was very different from what she had known at school, and she had to admit, however grudgingly, that she sort of liked it.

"Congratulations, I suppose."

Everyone in the room stared at her.

"What?" she said defensively. "Well, it's not as though I can change the fact that he's Head Boy," she told them. "I may as well accept it." She stood up in a huff and left the room, calling behind her, "I'm going to bed."

Marlene came in as Lily was getting under the sheets of the bed she and Marlene were given to share. Marlene changed into pyjamas and crawled in next to her. She turned on her side and propped her head up on one elbow to talk to Lily. The pose was familiar and Lily did the same. They often talked like this in their dorm room at Hogwarts.

"I can't believe you're so calm about him being Head Boy," Marlene said quietly. "You're acting- I don't know- different. What's wrong?"

Lily felt her eyes prickle. This was Marlene, she told herself. Marlene who knows you so well. "My sister's married."

"Yes, I know."

"She hates me."

"Lily-"

"No, she does. And I don't know why. I don't know what I've done, so I don't know what can be done to fix it. Ever since I got my Hogwarts letter ..." Lily trailed off, lost in thought. She sighed deeply and shook her head. "But I've decided that it's her choice and I can't do anything to change that as much as I might want to." She turned onto her back and stared at the ceiling. "And now, with everything that's happening- I mean, he's not so bad is he?"

"Lily, what-"

"James, he's not so bad. He was acting different last year- did you notice? He mostly stopped messing his hair up and he didn't hex or prank as many people for no reason. He actually behaved fairly normally. And," she gave a short laugh, "it's sort of fun arguing with him all the time. He's not so bad, really."

"First Hogsmeade weekend." Lily heard the teasing note in Marlene's voice and knew she understood.

"I know ..." Lily turned out the lights with a flick of her wand and smile into her pillow. "And I think I might actually be looking forward to it," she whispered into the dark.

-()-

There was a thump as Marlene fell off the bed and onto the floor.

"Sirius!"

The bed bounced.

Lily squinted in the morning light. James, Remus and Peter were laughing from the doorway and Sirius was jumping on the bed. Lily threw her pillow at him. "Go away, Sirius. I was sleeping."

Sirius laughed at her and threw the pillow back at her, smacking her in the face.

Then, before she knew it, Lily was wide awake and participating in the most outrageous pillow fight she had ever seen. From the bedroom where she and Marlene had slept, to Sirius' room and into James', feathers were flying and it was everyone for themselves. They all collapsed onto James bed and lay there, panting. Then James grabbed a fistful of feathers and shoved them up Lily's t-shirt, starting the fight up again.

A few minutes later, Lily lay in the hallway, clutching an empty pillowcase to her chest and groaned, "Truce."

The others nodded in agreement. They stood up and, using their wands, cleaned up the mess they had made of the second floor. They changed into clean clothes and they headed downstairs to the kitchen for breakfast.

They all sat at the round table eating fluffy pancakes that Sirius and James had made (Lily still amazed that they could cook) and drinking crisp pumpkin juice.

They were almost finished eating when an elderly witch, with hazel eyes, rosy cheeks and silver-grey hair arranged in an elegant knot at the top of her head, entered the room. Behind her was a man of around the same age, with brown eyes and thick, dishevelled salt and pepper hair. It was obvious that they were James' parents. They were much, much older than Lily had expected, though this did explain why James was and only child.

"Mum! Dad!" James exclaimed standing up to greet them.

His mother swept James up in a hug. "Darling, we came home as soon as we heard. I'm so glad you're alright."

"It was smart to have your friends here, too," his father said, hugging him as well.

Mr. and Mrs. Potter greeted Sirius as though he was one of their own and then said hello to Remus, Peter and Marlene, as well. When James introduced her to his parents his mother's face lit up. She looked at James with wide eyes. "This is the Lily?" she asked him.

Lily looked at James in shock as he nodded his head sheepishly, blushing faintly.

"Forgive me, dear," Mrs. Potter told her. "I've just heard so much about you. Ever since third year whenever James came home from Hogwarts, he never failed to mention you. It's a wonder we haven't met you sooner. And he told me that you'd be sure to be made Head Girl this year. Was he right?"

Lily nodded. "Yes, I was."

"Oh, wonderful! I'm so happy that James will be working with someone he likes so well. It would have been terrible if someone else had gotten it. Why he was saying that if it wasn't you, then he didn't want to be Head Boy, either."

Lily eyed James with raised eyebrows and blushed. It didn't escape his mother's notice. "Oh, dear, I fear I've embarrassed you. Well, your father and I will just go on upstairs and freshen up." Her voice became serious and was touched with worry. "When we get back down you'll tell us about all that went on yesterday. Yes," she added, eyeing James and Sirius.

"Yes, ma'am," they replied.

After his parents left the room, Lily turned to James, grinning. "You tell your parents about me," she couldn't resist teasing him.

He sat back down at the table and glared at her, shoving the rest of his pancake in his mouth as the others laughed at him cheerfully.

-()-

Boom!

"I told you not to play that card."

"Shut it, Remus. I'll beat her this time."

"You said that last time, Sirius. And the time before that, and the time before that ... In fact-" Remus grinned. "-you've been saying it since Marlene beat you the first time two hours ago."

Lily leaned back against the headboard of James' bed and laughed. Marlene and Sirius had been playing Exploding Snap ever since the Aurors had left earlier that afternoon. They had stopped by shortly after the group had eaten lunch. They hadn't had any other questions besides the ones they had already asked the day before. James had asked Moody and his partner what had caused the shop to blow up, but they had refused to answer him. Lily had felt they were hiding something, but she held James back when he continued to badger them about it. She knew that they could just ask Dumbledore about it when they got to school. She and James were going to be Head Girl and Boy this year, after all. Dumbledore would have to tell them something.

There was another round of cheering from Peter, Remus and Marlene, along with a loud groan from Sirius. Lily looked over at James, who lay on his stomach next to her using his arms as a pillow, wondering how he could be sleeping with all the noise. And Lily knew for a fact he was sleeping since he was snoring softly. She doubted even he could fake that.

She grinned and glanced at her watch. It was already four in the afternoon. She ought to be getting home soon, but she was having too much fun. It helped that Potter was asleep.

Sirius threw his cards down. "I give up. You're obviously cheating. There's no way you'd be able to beat me otherwise."

"If you had listened to Remus you might've done better," Lily told him.

Sirius stood up and flopped onto the bed. James groaned and pushed Sirius off his feet, where he had landed.

"Sorry, Prongs. I thought you were asleep." Sirius ruffled James' hair.

"Keyword, was."

Lily snorted. "That was so lame, Potter."

"So?"

Sirius ruffled James' hair again.

"You do that again and I'll hex you," James said to him menacingly.

"You're so immature, Potter," Lily stated.

"Like you're any better."

"At least I don't go around hexing everyone that annoys me."

"It doesn't hurt them any. If it did Sirius would be more deformed than he already is."

"What about Peter?" Sirius wanted to know.

"Peter's already deformed. My hexing him has nothing to do with it." Sirius laughed and James added hastily, "No offence, Peter."

"None taken," Peter replied. "At least I don't have horns."

"Antlers," James said in a suffering tone. "They're antlers, Peter."

"Oh... right... sorry."

Marlene shot a questioning look at Lily. "This has something to do with the nicknames, doesn't it?"

"We, er, don't have to, uh, answer that do we?" James stuttered.

Marlene sighed, "No, I suppose not. But I'm going to get to the bottom of this by the end of the year!" she vowed.

Sirius snorted. "You can try."

Marlene raised her eyebrows at him and continued, "I think there's something more to it than a stupid joke. It must be illegal- otherwise you'd have told the whole school by now." She glanced around at the boys and then pointed an accusing finger at Remus. "And I bet it has something to do with Remus' pet rabbit."

"My pet rabbit?" Remus spluttered.

"Yes," Marlene answered decisively. "Your 'furry little problem'. I've heard James talk to you about it more than once. We're not allowed to have rabbits as pets at Hogwarts. So do you lie about a relative being sick so you can go home to your ill behaved rabbit and ask your friends follow you?"

James winked at Sirius. "Yeah, that's exactly right," he told Marlene

"What?" Peter looked confused. "No, it isn- Ow!" He rubbed the back of his head where Sirius had hit him. "What was that for?"

"For being thick."

"Oh. Ohh..." Peter caught on and looked at Marlene. "Yeah, you're right."

"As if I'm going to believe you now, Peter, when you were about to say that I was wrong," Marlene said exasperatedly. "Now come on," she whined. "Tell me what's really up with the nicknames. It has to have something to do with this furry problem."

Lily rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe Marlene hadn't realized what Remus' real 'furry problem' was by now. Then again Marlene often missed things that were right in front of her nose. Lily, on the other hand, had figured it out in fifth year when she and Remus had both become Prefects. She had noticed he would avoid patrolling around the time of the full moon at all costs. In the previous years, she had noticed that he would make monthly trips home to visit a 'sick relative' and that when he returned it had looked as though he had been the sick one. Then, after a trip to the library and a glance in her D.A.D.A. text book, she had put two and two together. It had never bothered her once she had discovered the truth, and it still didn't, but she wished he would have just told her himself. It was rather hard sometimes to pretend she didn't know that he was a werewolf.

"Please? Please, tell me," Marlene was still badgering the boys who were steadfastly refusing to answer.

Lily waved a hand at Marlene. "They might actually be just some silly names they came up with," Lily told her. "I mean- they call themselves the Marauders. They can't very well use their own names. It wouldn't have the same effect as Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs do."

Marlene looked at her thoughtfully. "I suppose you have a point. But I still think there's something more to it."

Lily shrugged. "Well, they can't keep it from us forever." She turned to look at all the boys. "Let's make a deal- if Marlene and I haven't guessed by the end of the year what the story behind the nicknames is you'll tell us yourselves."

"No!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Actually," James spoke up, "I think it's a great idea."

"Really?" Sirius sounded sceptical.

"Sure," James replied with a shrug. He grinned mischievously. "They never guess and by the end of the year we'll have been able to come up with a suitable answer."

Lily smiled. "Ah, but you're forgetting one thing, Potter."

"Oh? What's that?"

"I'm excellent at brewing potions."

"Your point?"

It was Lily turn to give a mischievous grin. "You might find that at the end of the year my hand will accidentally tip some Veritaserum into your tea."

James' face paled and he turned to Remus, who was laughing at him silently. "Remind me to be mindful of what I drink when I'm around her this year, will you?"