Disclaimer: I do not own HP or anything to do with it. It's all J.K.Rowling's!

::AN:: This fic is a prequel to my "on hold" fic It All Depends On How You Fly The Broom. If you've read any part of that fic (thank you if you have), then I'M SORRY for not updating! It's just that I have so many things going on in my head at once! (THANK GOODNESS they all tie into one thing, though… or else I'd probably be a loony by now.)

Anyway, with all these things in my head, I had to get them on paper (err… the computer…). I've already finished (totally and utterly COMPLETE) another prequel to It All Depends On How You Fly The Broom, called Sorcha, and it's about Severus and…. WHATEVER! Check it out if you want, please!

ANYWAY! This fic is another prequel to IADOHYFB. (That's what I'm gonna call it from now on… maybe.) This is about Sirius! It's his seventh year at Hogwarts! And you're expected to have read HP books 1-5 (or AT LEAST 1-3), as I won't be going into detail about how the Marauders became animagus… lol (yay!) I hope you like it, and PLEASE review! (Sorry for the long, excruciating author's note!) And special thanks to randomblinx for helping me figure out how to introduce… who I shall introduce… muahaha

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"Padfoot!"

"Hmmph?" Sirius Black grumbled from underneath his pillow.

"Come on, Sirius!" James Potter insisted, giving his best friend a nice hefty kick before turning back to the mirror to give his hair one last rumple. "You didn't spend the last week of the summer holidays at my flat just so you could sleep through our first day at Hogwarts."

Sirius sat up abruptly, looking around as if he had never seen the Potters' guestroom before. He grabbed his watch off the nightstand and gasped. "We're gonna miss the Hogwarts Express!" He yelled at James while standing up and pulling on a pair of jeans over his duck-decorated boxers.

James chuckled and studied his face in the mirror again. "Do you think I'd miss the train? I mean, come on! This year is my last chance to woo Evans before we all go off to… where ever." He puckered his lips slightly, raising one eyebrow. He grinned and nodded his head to Sirius. "How was that? Think she'll go for that?"

Sirius just stared blankly at his friend. "James, we've been over this. That Evans girl hates you."

James rolled his eyes. "No, she doesn't."

"Aha!" Sirius scoffed, looking around on the floor for a clean-looking shirt. "That's why she's made it a point to say it at least twice a day every day since our first year! Right, Prongs, that girl is mad about you." He picked up a white shirt off the ground, checking for stains and sniffing it. "Besides, if you want a girl to go for you, don't make that eyebrow-face."

"Why?" James asked, his eyes shooting back to the mirror.

"Because it's my face. And if you use it, how am I supposed to score with the ladies?" Sirius said sarcastically before opening the bedroom door. "Is that… Do I smell…? Mrs. Potter!" He shouted down the stairs. "Are you making bacon? You know how much I love bacon!"

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The four marauders sat in their seats, bored out of their minds. "I thought our last ride to Hogwarts would be a little more… productive." Remus Lupin said flatly, looking up over his book.

"What did everyone do over the summer?" Peter Pettigrew asked, trying to make conversation.

James groaned. "Oh come off it, Wormtail. You know what we did over the holiday. You were at my house for the first two weeks!"

Peter shrugged. "Yeah…"

"Maybe we should go see if anyone else is up and about." Remus suggested. "I have to go check in with the prefects in a little while, but-"

"Whoa, Moony!" Sirius exclaimed to his sandy brown-haired friend. "Did you forget something?" He asked incredulously, nodding in James's direction.

"Shuddup Paruuf." James said through a mouthful of chocolate.

Remus's eyes widened. "Prongs! That's my chocolate!"

Peter giggled as James made an innocent face. "Sorry, Rem," James said sarcastically. "I seem to have forgotten that you're codependent in the chocolate area." They all shared a good laugh as they recalled Remus's slight addiction to chocolate, which he happened to eat a lot around the time of the full moon, and used it as a "cure" for everything.

"HEY!" Sirius shouted, grabbing the attention of his three friends. "I was trying to say something about James!"

"Oh, sorry." Peter apologized.

"Don't worry about it." Sirius laughed it off. "Anyway, as I was saying! You all remember that the great Prongs was titled Head Boy, right?"

Remus and Peter grinned appreciatively. "Of course!" Remus exclaimed, standing up. "That completely slipped my mind! We need to go check in over-"

"Alright, alright…" James grumbled. "Let's take our things, though. It'll probably take awhile." He turned to Peter and Sirius. "We'll try and catch a carriage with you two if we can."

"Have fun!" Peter called as James and Remus exited.

"So, seventh year." Sirius sighed, leaning his head against the window.

"I know." Peter agreed, pulling miscellaneous candies out of his pockets and opening one with a fluorescent green wrapper. "It went by real fast."

Sirius's eyes shot open from the half-asleep look he was beginning to obtain when he heard the compartment door slide open. He turned quickly to see a delicate auburn-haired girl in Hogwarts robes. "Oh." She said flatly when she saw Sirius.

"Yeah, 'oh.'" Sirius mocked her, smiling. "'Sup, Lily? Head Girl, huh?" He nodded at her badge, pushing back the urge to make a sly comment about James. He knew that his best friend would never forgive him if he ruined his chances with Lily Evans.

"Yes." Lily smiled, trying not to come off as bragging.

"That's great, Lily!" Peter exclaimed. "I knew you'd get Head Girl! You're the smartest girl in the whole school! I thought Rem would get Head Boy, but James is no surprise, either."

Lily smiled kindly at Peter. "Thanks, Peter. That's really sweet of you to say that."

"Did you already go to check in or whatever it is you needed to do?" Sirius asked, stalling for time. Maybe if they talked to Lily long enough, James would come back and see her. He'd like that.

"Yes." Lily replied. "I've actually been sent on an errand to look for someone, but I'm not having much luck."

"Who are you looking for?" Peter asked, shoving another candy into his mouth.

"I'm not quite sure." Lily answered, her brow furrowing. She leaned against one of the bench-like seats and ran her hand along the wall. "Your cousin is outside, too." She nodded at Sirius. "She and some other Slytherins are playing some sort of game. It takes up a lot of space, so my search was cut off quite a bit."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Bellatrix, huh?"

Lily nodded and turned to Peter, desperate to change the subject. "Did you have a nice summer holiday, Peter?" She asked politely.

Peter nodded, but didn't speak. Instead he pointed to his mouth as if to say, "I refuse to talk with my mouth full" and continued chewing on his candies.

Lily giggled and turned back to Sirius. "And you? You didn't get into too much trouble did you?"

Sirius grinned and shook his head. "Not that I can recall. Willingly, I mean." He smiled when Lily raised an eyebrow, trying to hold back her giggles. "Nah," Sirius continued, "I hung out at James's place most of the time. Rem and Pete were there for awhile, too."

Lily just nodded and glanced out the window. "Almost there." She gathered, standing up straight. "You two should probably change into your robes." She said, walking towards the compartment door.

Sirius grinned at Peter as Lily turned her back to them, about to leave the compartment, when suddenly the door slid open and in walked a laughing Remus and James. "Hello." Remus said to Lily, walking around her to sitting down beside Peter.

James stood in the doorway of the compartment, staring blankly at Lily. "Uumm…" He mumbled. "Evans." He always called her by her surname.

"Potter." Lily replied, nodding her head.

After a few moments of complete silence, Lily rolled her eyes. "It would be really great if I could get by here…" She said to James.

James ran his hand through his hair and stepped aside so Lily could pass through the doorway. "See ya later, Lil!" Sirius called after her as if they were best friends. He suppressed a laugh when James gave him his famous I'm-going-to-kill-you glare.

Lily turned around briefly in the doorway. "Bye." She smiled, closing the compartment door.

As soon as the door shut with a soft click, James was next to Sirius on the seat. "Tell me everything!" He demanded.

Sirius laughed, clutching his stomach. "She came here looking for someone, supposedly. She said that Bella and her friends were taking up too much space outside, so she had to stop her search, or whatever it was."

"You talked to her?" James questioned, dumbfounded. "How long was she in here?"

"She's real nice." Peter chipped in. "She asked us about our holiday."

"Who was she looking for?" Remus asked.

Sirius shrugged. "Don't know. She didn't seem to really care that she hadn't found whoever it was, though. It was probably just some errand she was sent on or something."

"She even laughed at Sirius jokes." Peter said happily, convinced that they hadn't heard him the first time he had complimented Lily.

James's eyes widened and he glared at Sirius again. "What did you say about me? If you said anything bad about me, I'll… You better not have said ANYTHING about me!"

Rolling his eyes, Sirius began opening one of his bags, pulling out his Hogwarts robes. "We didn't even talk about you, Prongs. The only time you were mentioned was after I pointed out her badge and then Peter made a comment on how she was really smart and that it was 'no surprise' you were Head Boy." He pulled on his robes slowly. "Then the only thing I said about you was after she asked about our holiday and I said I spent most of my time at your place."

James sighed. "Why didn't you put in a good word for me?"

"We're here!" Remus exclaimed as they felt the train come to a halt.

"Hurry!" Peter squeaked, pulling out his robes. "I haven't even changed yet!"

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"We were never that short, were we?" Sirius whispered to Remus as they watched the first years get sorted into their appropriate houses.

Remus chuckled. "Shorter." He whispered back.

Sirius grinned when the last first year was sorted into Hufflepuff. He peered over at the staff table to watch as Dumbledore stood up, clearing his throat to silence the students. "Speech time." Sirius whispered to the people around him, causing two first year girls to giggle madly. He winked at them before turning back towards Dumbledore.

"Welcome!" Dumbledore said proudly. "Another year at Hogwarts has just begun! I had a speech prepared for tonight, as it's such a special night for many of you. It was quite the page-turner… Alas! I've misplaced it, and therefore am forced to think on my feet. The rules are posted outside the caretaker's office… There was something else I was supposed to say…"

The Hall erupted in soft laughter, as Dumbledore looked around, slightly confused. "His speeches get weirder every year." James whispered to Sirius.

Sirius turned back to his friend and was about to comment on how Dumbledore did it on purpose, when he saw the Great Hall doors opening slowly. He squinted slightly to see who had arrived late.

"AHA!" Dumbledore exclaimed. "Come in! Come in!" He called.

The Great Hall doors opened a little wider and in walked a slim figure in a tattered brown, hooded cloak. The figure walked past the house tables and up to the staff table, where Dumbledore leaned forward to speak with the newcomer. He stood back up straight and motioned for the students in the Hall to be silent once more.

"This year," the headmaster began, "we have a new student who has just recently transferred here."

There were several murmurs throughout the Hall. Sirius turned to Remus and James, who shrugged. "I don't know what he's talking about." Remus objected to Sirius's nod at his prefect badge.

"Silence, silence." Dumbledore ordered and the student's voices began to die down. "Everyone meet-" He paused and glanced at the figure. "Go on, take off your cloak."

Sirius watched as the cloak slid off the figure's shoulders and was wrapped up in the girl's arms. Sirius nudged James when he realized he was staring at the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She seemed to be about sixteen or seventeen, and had shoulder-length chestnut brown hair, except for two thick strips of hot-pink hair that framed the front of her face. Her eyes were brown, large and almond-shaped. She wore her Hogwarts uniform, without the robe, so that the sleeves were rolled up to her elbows and the skirt was rolled at the top so that it became shorter, with the hem falling in the middle of her thigh. She looked around wearily and placed her hands behind her back, looking at the ground.

"Faylinn Tatum!" Dumbledore cheered, introducing the girl. Everyone clapped politely and then McGonagall stepped forward with the Sorting Hat. Placing the old hat on top of Faylinn's head, the professor stepped back to wait.

After what seemed like an hour, the Sorting Hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

The girl waited for Professor McGonagall to remove her hat before she walked towards the Gryffindor table. As she continued walking, many of the students began conversing loudly again, mainly about the new girl with the pink hair.

Sirius's eyes darted around the table frantically. "Over here!" He shouted and waved towards the new girl. She walked over hesitantly and sat across from him, in between Remus and Peter.

"Thanks." She said awkwardly. "Um, I'm Faylinn…" She said, looking around out of the corners of her eyes, revealing the fact that the whites of her eyes were severely limited, her irises huge.

"I'm Sirius." Sirius said, grinning. He gestured to his friends. "This is James, Peter, and Remus."

"Hi." She greeted them with a smile.

Remus smiled back. "You're just transferred here?" He asked.

She nodded and shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah… It's a long story." She said as the food appeared on their plates. She picked up her fork and began eating immediately.

Peter continued to stare at her, though. "Are you human?" He whispered loudly.

Sirius snorted. "Nice… You're really one with tact, huh Pete?"

Faylinn looked up from her plate, studying Sirius. "No, it's alright." She said, then turning to Peter. "My Dad was a wizard." She said, as if that settled the entire matter.

James glanced at her briefly before shoving another spoonful of peas into his mouth. "Wha abour your rum?" He asked through a mouthful of food.

Faylinn giggled at the sight of James and shook her head. "It's a long story." She said, picking her fork back up to pick at a piece of chicken.

"Indulge us." Sirius suggested.

Faylinn shook her head. "Nah, maybe some other time…" She was about to place a piece of chicken in her mouth when she sniffed. She set down her fork and inhaled through her nose repeatedly.

"Are you okay?" Peter asked, his eyes wide in confusion, trying to sniff like she was.

"It smells like…" Faylinn trailed off, her head turning to the right as she sniffed. She leaned closer to Remus and sniffed the air. Suddenly, she grabbed the cloth of his robe on his arm and held it up to her nose, sniffing once more.

"What are you doing?" James asked, his eyebrows wrinkling.

Faylinn released Remus's robes and sat up straight, still staring at the sandy-haired boy intently. She smirked. "Never mind." She said and turned back to her plate.

The four boys exchanged a look and then they burst out laughing. "That was priceless!" Sirius exclaimed, clutching his stomach. He gazed at Faylinn, waiting for her to look up when she felt someone watching her. When she did, he grinned. "What year are you in?" He asked.

"Seven…" She said slowly and then straightened. "What year are all of you in?"

"Seven." Sirius said then proceeded to nod his head down the table. "See that red-headed girl down there? Green eyes?" He continued when Faylinn nodded. "Make sure you get a room with her. She's in our year, too. Real nice. She'll help you out." His grin widened. "Plus, you can put in a good word for my buddy James over here."

James flicked a pea at Sirius, scoffing. "I can get Evans on my own." He protested.

Faylinn smiled. "How long have you liked her?" She asked, her eyes shining in the light.

"Since first year." Peter filled in, gulping when James gave him his death glare.

"Don't worry." Faylinn reassured the messy-haired boy beside Sirius. "I won't say anything."

James sighed a breath of relief. "Thank you." He mumbled.

"How do you expect to catch Evans if you never speak to her?!" Sirius shouted, grabbing the attention of every single Gryffindor.

"Padfoot!" Remus hissed lowly.

"Even!" Faylinn exclaimed as all eyes turned to her. "'Catch Even' right?" She asked loudly. "That's some new Quidditch term in South Africa, right? It means Snitch, huh?" She turned to James dramatically, making it aware that she was now speaking to him. "You play Quidditch?"

Sirius sighed as the Gryffindors slowly began to talk loudly again, ignoring the four boys and the girl with them. "Nice save." He mumbled.

Faylinn stared at the dark-haired boy before her. "Wouldn't have had to 'save' anything if you'd keep your voice down every once in awhile." She whispered.

James chuckled and swatted Sirius on the arm. "Yeah, man. What she said."

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"Can I room here?"

"Sure! Hurry and claim that second bed, though. There are more girl first year's than everyone thought, so our usual room assignments are all messed up."

Faylinn slid her robe off and tossed it on the bed opposite Lily's. "I'm Faylinn Tatum." She said to the girl, outstretching her hand. "What's your name?" She asked, even though she already knew the answer.

"Lily Evans." She said, shaking Faylinn's hand. "You're seventh year, too?"

"Yeah." Faylinn answered, smiling and pulling a small, leather-bound journal out of her bag and placing it on her nightstand carefully. "I checked the other rooms a second ago." She whispered to Lily. "Really, they're cramped for space. I think this is the only room that only has two beds."

Lily laughed and sat down at the edge of her bed, facing Faylinn. "I know. I was given privileges to have the more spacious room since I'm Head Girl, but ever since I was in first year I've had to share with five other girls."

Faylinn raised her eyebrows and whistled lowly. "That's horrible!" She exclaimed, pulling out a quill and opening the leather journal in her lap as she sat cross-legged on her bed and began to write.

Dear little book that I write in once a day… sometimes more… sometimes less,

Me again. First day here at Hogwarts. I was late, since I lost track of time and I had to change real fast. I think I may have hurt something. So, I had to run as fast as I could and by the time I arrived at the Hall, everyone was already there and some lady stuck an old hat on my head and it started talking inside my head. It was very weird.

The "Sorting Hat," or so it was called, said to me, "Oh… tricky, tricky, tricky… I see intelligence… Yes, very smart… Wait! Not that smart… Ravenclaw's out! You don't seem like the Slytherin type, however. You're loyal, giving, and kind. Maybe Hufflepuff? Oh, but I see bravery! We'll shove you in-"

"GYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted and I walked over to the Gryffindor table. I was actually afraid that no one wanted the new girl to sit with him or her, but I was saved!

A really attractive boy called me to go sit near him, so I did. His name's Sirius and he's pretty funny, from what I've seen of him, anyway. His friends were okay, too. Peter asked if I was human. Such a silly question! James was all right, he fancies my new roommate Lily Evans. Remus is the last of Sirius's friends that I met.

Lily's just asked me where I've transferred from but her trunk fell over sideways and all her clothes got onto the floor, so I figured she was a bit too preoccupied to hear my answer. She's cleaning up her clothes now. She uses her wand for everything, even to pick clothes up off the floor. Very cool.

I've just asked Lily if she knows the boys I sat with at dinner, but I didn't say their names. She just smiled at me from her spot on the floor and said, "Sure. Potter and his friends. Everyone knows them."

Well, James, I tried. Really. Won't hurt to try again, right. "Which one's Potter?" I asked.

"Oh." She said as she tossed a schoolbook onto her nightstand. "James. James Potter. Then there's Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. They didn't tell you their names? You five seemed to get along pretty well, what with that whole South African Quidditch thing."

I'm deciding not to tell her that I don't know anything about South African Quidditch. I don't even know if they play Quidditch in South Africa. The only reason I said that was because Sirius made that comment about Lily very loud, and I figured it was either sit there quietly while everyone found out that James has the hugest crush on Lily, or pretend we were talking about something else.

Instead of saying all of that to Lily, I just said, "They didn't say their surnames, no."

Now Lily wants to go down to the common room to "hang out" so I'll have to write later. Well, I have a few minutes. She's brushing her hair and doing other such grooming techniques.

He's a werewolf, by the way. Remus, I mean. I could smell it all over him.

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::AN:: Thanks for reading and please review!