Hi guys! This is a new fic I thought of. Here's a few things you should know about the fic before I begin:

-It's a multi-chapter fic about Jily, starting off in the beginning of their seventh year, in the first week of October.

-Any flashbacks, letters, journal entries, thoughts, and note-passing will be in italics.

-This entire story will be told from Lily's point of view.

-If you've checked out my other multi-chapter fic, The Oxymorons, you'll know that an important rule of the Heads' Tower is that nobody can enter the tower except the professors and the Head Boy and Girl. Howver, this rule was enforced AFTER the Marauders Era, so anyone can enter the Heads' Tower if they know the password.

DISCLAIMER: Instead of doing a disclaimer every chapter(because that's boring), I'll do a disclaimer now that counts for the rest of the story. There's also a disclaimer on my page.

I, A.E. Seaflame, most definitely do NOT own Harry Potter. JK Rowling is the lucky lady who owns that brilliant series. I only own this storyline, because it came from my head. If I owned Harry Potter, there would be a prequel series about James and Lily, Dramione AND Scorrose would be canon, and there would be a series about the next generation of Potters and Weasleys.

Okay. I now present to you: "Seven Ways To Woo James Potter" :D

Can I let you in on a HUGE secret, if you promise to keep it?

Ready?

Okay, here we go.

I, Lily No-Middle-Name Evans, am madly in love with James No-Middle-Name Potter. The problem is, the one year where I can spend quality time with him outside of class is the one year he decides he is completely over me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, James Potter is over me. Not just over me, though. He hates the mere ground I walk upon.

What a wonderful year this will be.

"Evans? Do you agree?" The sharp voice belonged to none other than James Potter. His hazel eyes regarded me coolly, and I cursed myself again for spacing out in a prefects meeting.

Dumbly, I asked, "Agree with what?" At this, the prefects snickered, and I felt my cheeks heating up.

James rolled his eyes at me, obviously not amused. He never is. "Well, Evans, if you were listening, you would have known, wouldn't you?" he sneered.

No shit, Sherlock. That's why I'm asking.

I felt my face turn completely red and I glared at him. I opened my mouth to retort, but another voice interrupted. Remus.

"Lily, we were discussing the matter of shortening curfew. These times are dangerous and we want everyone to be safe," Remus told me. His light brown eyes were begging, telling me not to start a row with James now. Not today, his eyes said.

I shot him a grateful smile and nodded. Without hesitation, I turned to the prefects and told them firmly, "I don't think we should shorten curfew."

The prefects gasped, clearly not expecting that answer. Whispering began, and a pair of curious hazel eyes flitted to me. I ignored it all.

"Shortening curfew won't change the number of students that sneak out. They'll just be more careful in making sure they don't get caught. Shortening curfew won't increase the safety. Hogwarts is already extremely safe, and I believe that a mere two hours of freedom after dinner instead of three hours won't make Hogwarts any safer." I explained.

"But there are Death Eaters-" a fifth year Ravenclaw piped up.

I cut her off. "We do not know who in Hogwarts is a Death Eater. We do know that they strike whenever they want to, and curfew does not limit them."

Immediately, arguing began among the prefects. The whispers broke out into full-on hollers and I slumped down in a brown armchair, my head in my hands. This was exhausting. I couldn't do this. Not today.

"Evans, get your arse up there and settle the riot," a voice demanded. I looked up to see James, who looked extremely pissed. His arms were crossed and he looked like he, too, was having a migraine from all this ruckus.

A year ago, I would have demanded he did it himself. I would stamp my feet, roll my eyes, and cross my arms definatly. I might have even stuck out my tongue at him, and he would obediently listen because he cared about me.

This year, however, the roles were reversed. I would listen to him, I would be the obedient one, because I cared about him.

Wordlessly, I walked to the podium and cast Sonorus on myself.

"Alright," my suddenly booming voice said. "Settle down or I will give detentions. Don't think I don't see you back there, Avery. Get your hands off him right now."

Avery backed away, glaring at me. The room became silent as they all looked up at me expectantly.

All my life, this is what I wanted. To be respected, to be looked up to. To be treated as an equal, not like a freak. Not like a mudblood. I wanted to be somewhere I belonged. And this? On this stage? This is where I belonged, as Head Girl. A place where I'm a leader, not a mudblood to be pushed around. A place where I can handle myself, and calm a riot.

"I suggest we take a vote," my calm voice said. The Sonorus charm was gone; there was no need for it. I conjured enough stones for everyone in the room, including myself and James, as well as two buckets. "The blue bucket represents shortening curfew. The red bucket represents keeping curfew the same. Please drop a stone into whichever bucket you agree with. If there is a tie, we will vote again at the next meeting. That is all. Good evening." I gave them a stiff nod before turning away to grab my books.

I took my stone and dropped it into the red bucket on my way out. I could see the back of Remus's head among the crowd of prefects and yelled, "Remus! Wait up!" For a second, I worried he didn't hear me, but then remembered that he could hear rather sharply because he was a werewolf. I almost ran into Remus in my hurry to catch up with him.

Taking a deep breath and steadying myself, we began to take the long walk to Gryffindor Tower. I had to speak with Alice, too. There was a comfortable silence between us, until I broke it. "Are you alright, Remus?" I asked, glancing at the worn-down face of my friend. He had seemed a bit off today.

He shrugged. "Could be better," he replied nonchalantly. I arched one perfect eyebrow at him, and he lowered his voice as I impulsively leaned closer. "Full moon tomorrow night," he whispered. He let out an exhausted sigh.

I patted his back comfortingly. I knew how much he hated transforming on Sunday nights. He always preferred to start the school week feeling well, not stuck in the hospital wing for rough injuries.

"You'll be fine," I reassured him. Yeah, because the Marauders are with you, I thought, but didn't voice it aloud. Nobody knew that I knew their secret, especially them. I shuddered as I remembered how I found out.

FLASHBACK

It was the beginning of sixth year, the second week of September. Only half an hour ago, Severus had tried to confront me again, apologizing for what had happened at the end of fifth year. This time, however, he was quite annoying. I remember him blabbing on about he just acted on impulse. Sick and tired of his words, I snapped. "Oh, so you had this sudden impulse to call me 'mudblood'? I doubt it was only what your friends told you that created the impulse. I bet you believe it yourself, don't you, Severus?"

Flustered, he had replied, "So what if I do?" Realizing what he had said, he clapped his hands over his mouth in shock. His coal black eyes widened. His words sunk in, and I burst into tears and ran off.

So here I was. Weeping underneath a small oak tree, not too far away from the Whomping Willow. Rain had begun to pour, and lightning crackled. Clouds covered the sky, and you could barely see the glistening white of the full moon hiding behind the smokey gray storm clouds. I didn't care, though. I was too distraught with his words, too frustrated with everything that Severus has done. My only comfort was my pale white cloak that, despite the heavy rain, remained warm. Well, warming charms have always been my specialty.

My eyes were suddenly drawn to a queer sight. I gasped as I saw a rat, a dog, and a stag head to the Whomping Willow. What a strange trio. And they weren't even getting thrashed by the willow! How could they do that? Perhaps the Whomping Willow only harms humans?

But then I shook my head, remembering Hestia's owl that had gone too close to the Whomping Willow and died a tragic death. I shuddered at the memory of the snowy owl tangled in the branches, a mess of guts and blood. The sight could never be erased from my memory.

The rat, the dog, and the stag all of a sudden slipped inside the tree. How the hell did they do that? I couldn't help but notice, as the stag paused and looked around before entering the tree, that its movements were quite unnatural. It was almost like a... like a human. Its eyes had depth and intelligence that I was sure no normal animal ever had, and what type of animal checked its surroundings like that? Almost as if it were being watched.

At this revelation, a chill went up my spine. Goosebumps appeared on my skin, and they grew larger as the stag met my eyes. Its eyes seemed to grow wide and looked shocked... but how was that possible? How could a stag look shocked?

By now, my tears were dry on my face. I stared back at the stag, but with curiousity and pure wonder, not defiance. He - or was it a she? - stared back at me, confused and astounded by the sight before him. Well, what is it looking at? I'm just a girl, after all.

The stag suddenly bounded towards me, very fast and very gracefully. I should be scared, but it was a stag, and stags were normally peaceful, innocent creatures. I held my breath and stood up as the stag stood before me. I regarded its warm hazel eyes, and the way it held itself. Yes, this certainly was a strange stag. The stag's antlers nudged my cloak, and I couldn't help but smile at the playfulness.

But my smile turned to utter shock when the stag, quite suddenly, turned into James Potter.

Well. That was an extreme plot twist.

"Evans," he gasped. He seemed angry, but extremely concerned. He took his face in my hands, his eyes searching mine. I didn't complain about how close we were. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same of you, Potter," I retorted, squirming from his touch.

He pulled his hands away from me, looking angry. "It's dangerous out here, especially tonight!" He stopped suddenly, and looked ashamed at his outburst.

I casually flicked a piece of dirt off my nail before responding. "Again, Potter, I could say the same for you. Especially since you're going to the exact place where you can possibly get killed, or at least bitten, by a werewolf."

His eyes widened. "You-you know?"

I snapped, "Of course I bloody well know! I'm not an idiot, I've known since third year." I glared at him, slightly offended that he would think I'm so stupid.

"What else do you know?" he asked carefully.

"Every full moon, he goes to the Shrieking Shack, and there's a passageway there through the Whomping Willow. Of course, I didn't know until tonight that you're an illegal Animagus, trying to get into that passageway. I like you better when you're a stag, by the way," I told him.

Usually, he would have smiled at this compliment, but tonight, he was grim. "Evans, you can't tell anyone about this."

I rolled my eyes. "I can't exactly say anything if I don't know the whole story." I eyed his fingers that were subtly taking his wand out. "And if you try to Obliviate me, I have a handful of nonverbal hexes just waiting to be used." His fingers released his wand. "Good. Now, sit down and explain."

He sighed and grudgingly sat down. The boy was shivering now, without his fur to warm him. I took pity on the boy (after all, I can't let him die of hypothermia before telling the story) and cast a nonverbal warming charm on him. He smiled at me gratefully, before clearing his throat and beginning.

"We found out about Moony in second year. Throughout our entire second year, we researched ways to help him but he told us there was no point. When third year started, we realized we could become illegal Animagi. The thought hadn't struck us before. Keeping Remus company during the full moons, we realized, would be enough help. It required hard work, yes, but we had this strange determination that we could do it. So for months and months, we worked on it, until we finally achieved our first, perfect transformation at the end of fourth year. Padfoot was a dog, Wormtail was a rat, and I was a stag. Starting in fifth year, we began to keep Remus company. As animals, he couldn't turn us into werewolves, and we helped him from harming himself. In the beginning, he injured us plenty, but his werewolf soon grew accustomed to us." I remembered the countless injuries the Marauders had gotten in fifth year. I realized the names of the Marauders, and how cleverly chosen they were. His explanation made perfect sense.

Potter paused to take a deep breath. Quietly, he continued, his voice now taking on a serious tone. "You can't tell anyone, Evans. I don't care how illegal it is, we will not stand by while Remus suffers on a monthly basis. His injuries were worse before we came along. If we don't help him every month, who will? He needs the comfort of his friends during his transformation. He needs his friends to stop him from injuring himself. He can't be a lone wolf, we won't let him." His voice was now passionate, and I was surprised at how much he cared.

"Potter," I replied, just as quietly, "I'm not going to tell."

His eyebrows rose up so high, I wondered if they would fall off his head. "Evans, I-I don't know what to say..."

"I care about Remus, too. I know he was in terrible shape third and fourth year, and I know that he's improved since then. A thank you would be fine."

He grinned from ear to ear, and threw his arms around my neck. I stiffened, even though his embrace was warm and comforting. "Thank you so much, Evans," he whispered in my ear. "I owe you one."

I immediately withdrawed. "You certainly do," I told him. "Now, go back to your friends, they need you," I told him, turning away.

I began the long walk to Gryffindor Tower. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a stag leaping towards the Whomping Willow. At the sight, a soft smile appeared on my face.

That night, I began to look at James Potter differently. I began to see him as someone who had a heart. Someone who cared enough that they would do something to put them in Azkaban.

He's a true Gryffindor.

"Lily?" a voice asked, waving his hand in front of my face. I shook my head, to see Remus Lupin staring at me. He seemed a bit bemused. "Spacing out again?" he asked, somewhat teasingly.

I slapped his hand away playfully. "It's not funny," I told him, but a smile was tugging at the corner of my lips.

"It is, actually. When you space out, you start drooling. You look like Peter, when he sees a pretty girl," Remus said.

I snickered at that, already seeing the image clearly in my mind. I looked up to see the Fat Lady. Apparently I spaced out so long, that we had already reached Gryffindor Tower. Wow.

"Are you coming?" he asked.

I looked at the Gryffindor Tower and a feeling of nostalgia washed over me. I missed this tower. "Yeah, I have to talk to Alice," I told him. He nodded and told the Fat Lady the password("burnt pansies"), and the door swung open.

Before rushing up to my dorm, I turned to Remus. "Meet me tomorrow morning in the Heads' Tower, okay? After breakfast," I said. He seemed a little befuddled, but nonetheless nodded his head.

I went upstairs to my old dorms. Entering my dorms, I found it empty except for Alice Prewett, my best friend.

"Alice! Hey!" I called out. She looked up, and we gave each other a hug.

"Lily, I wasn't expecting you," she said. She noticed the tense look in my eyes that most people would ignore. "Is everything alright?"

I shook my head.

She sighed, already knowing what was up. "It's Potter, isn't it? What did he do?"

I growled. "That's the problem, Alice!" I threw my hands up in the air. "He hasn't done anything. He hasn't asked me out all year, and there's already been one Hogsmeade trip."

Alice arched an eyebrow. As soon as I discovered that I loved James, Alice had known. "What do you want to do about it?"

I began pacing back and forth across the room. "We need to devise a plan, ways to get him to like me," I told her.

"You're trying to woo him?" Alice asked. "And by the sounds of it, Marauder-style."

I blushed, because it was true. I was trying to woo him Marauder-style. "I was thinking of getting Remus to help, because he knows James so well..." I trailed off.

Alice sighed. "Potter is nice enough to me, but I don't like him for the way he's treating you. I'll help you, though. Who else is helping you with this plan?"

I thought carefully. I could ask Hestia and Marlene, but they weren't my close friends and Marlene was a complete gossip. Hestia was trustworthy, but irritatingly obvious when she knew something she shouldn't. Besides Remus and Alice, I didn't trust anyone else to know. I looked up at Alice, brushing my red hair out of my face. "Only you and Remus," I said, flashing her a brilliant smile.

Alice fell to her knees mockingly and held her hands to her heart. "Oh, I'm so honored, Lily!" she squealed, and we burst into laughter. Hestia and Marlene suddenly appeared, and at their confused faces, we giggled even more. I finally calmed down and took a deep breath, trying to hold down the pain in my stomach. Stifling another giggle, I grabbed my schoolbag.

As I left the dorm, I yelled to Alice, "Tomorrow morning, my dorm! I expect you there, missy." With those last words, I raced out of the dorm.

I could hear Marlene complaining loudly about my lack of manners. ("She didn't even acknowledge us!") ("Like we don't exist! How rude!) I didn't give a rat's arse at the moment, because I had to go make plans to win a boy's heart.

And it wasn't just any boy's heart. This is James Potter.

Yep, I've got a lot of work to do.

So how did you like that chapter? This was a bit of an introductory chapter. Sorry if there wasn't a lot of humor in this chapter. There'll be humor in the following chapters, I promise, as we do have the Marauders in this fic.

Review this story, let me know what you think! And favorite and follow, because there is more to come.

~A.E. Seaflame