Chapter 1: Mudblood

James Potter and Sirius Black were bored. It was a warm Saturday and they were lounging next to the Black Lake. The Giant Squid was lazily waving its tentacles above the water and Peter was tossing bits of sausage to it. Remus was lying on his back on the warm grass. He always got lethargic just before a full moon. "Are you okay, Moony?" Sirius asked, poking him in the leg.

Remus nodded but said nothing. Peter threw the last bit of sausage on to the surface of the lake and moved closer to his friends. "Do you want to do something fun?" He asked, his voice quiet. Remus shook his head.

James was about to speak when he noticed a figure, darting from the shadows of a nearby tree. "Snivellus!" He roared, leaping to his feet and drawing his wand. Several other students turned out the sound of his voice. Sirius had risen also, his wand already in his hand. Peter followed them as they ran towards Severus Snape, who was backing against a tree. Remus sighed and slowly got to his feet. By the time he reached them, there was a group surrounding James, Sirius and Snape and he had to fight his way through.

When he got there, James had his wand pointed at Snape's nose. Sirius was looking on joyfully while Peter looked as though he wanted to enjoy the spectacle but secretly felt bad. Remus sympathised. It wasn't always easy, going along with James and Sirius' vendetta against Snape.

"Back off, Potter!" Snape snarled. He pushed away from the tree but James followed, as did the group of students, eager to see what the legendary Potter did next.

"Levicorpus!" He yelled, brandishing his wand. There was a cry of shock as Severus Snape was lifted, by his ankle, into the air. He dangled there helplessly, trying to reach his wand which had fallen to the ground along with his books.

"Who wants to see me take off Snivellus' trousers?" He asked, smirking. The group cheered him on. But before he could utter a word, a mass of bright red hair obscured his view.

"Leave him alone!" Lily Evans shouted, her wand aimed directly at James' chest. Almost immediately, James' expression changed. He frowned and glanced at Snape. For a minute, Remus thought he would ignore her and continue on with his attack. But then, he grimaced, gave a flick of his wand and turned away, glancing sullenly over his shoulder at Lily. She turned to help Severus, who had fallen, very painfully, to the ground.

He pushed her hand away and growled. James, who had seen this, turned back and took aim at Severus once more. Lily slapped his hand, knocking his wand to the ground. "I said, leave him alone Potter!" Lily shouted, her cheeks turning as red as her hair. James picked up his wand and stalked away, the rest of the Marauders followed. Slowly, the audience dispersed.

Lily helped Severus pick up his books. He snatched them out of her hands. "I don't need your help, Mudblood." He growled. Lily felt her mouth drop open and tears stung her eyes. She spun on her heel and marched away.

Severus raced after her. He grabbed her arm and forced her to face him. "Lily, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to call you a... A..." Lily scoffed. "A mudblood?" Severus nodded wordlessly. "But you call everyone of my birth mudblood Severus. Why should I be any different?" Severus tried desperately to think of something to say but just mouthed wordlessly at her. Lily shook her head in disgust and walked away.

Later that night, after dinner, Lily walked down to the Quidditch pitch. She lay down on a bench and looked up at the stars. They were so bright out here and it was quiet and she was absolutely alone with her thoughts. Or, at least, she thought she was. "Hey Evans." Lily sat up in surprise. James Potter was walking over to her, his broomstick slung over his shoulder and his trademark arrogant smirk firmly in place. "Go away Potter." She said, turning away from him. A chill breeze swept over them and Lily moved to pull her cloak over her shoulders but realised that she didn't have it with her. "Damn." She whispered. Before she could move, James had draped his cloak around her shoulders. She was about to throw it off but realised that it was warm and smelled faintly of burning wood and butterbeer. "Thanks." She said. James shrugged. He stretched out on the seat next to her.

"Did I say that you could join me?" She asked, her voice somewhat teasing. James shook his head and grinned at her, his hazel eyes crinkled up at the edges. "Nope. But I figured, if you really didn't want me here, you would've hexed me already." Lily laughed in spite of herself.

James grin spread even wider. "So, what're you doing out here anyway?" Lily's smile faded away. She stood up and slid his cloak off her shoulders. "Woah, wait. Don't go. I'm sorry. Forget I asked." James stood and grabbed her wrist. Lily resisted at first but eventually relaxed and sat back down. The way James had grabbed her was a lot gentler than the way Severus had. They sat in silence for several minutes. Lily's mind was stuck on Severus and how he had called her mudblood. James was probably thinking about Quidditch.

"He called me mudblood." Lily whispered, so quietly James almost didn't hear her. His rage was instanteous and intense. "That bastard! I'll hex him! I'll... I'll turn his fingers into worms!" He stood shaking, his hand clenched tightly around his wand. Lily grabbed his arm. "Don't you dare, Potter. Just leave him alone. You torment him day after day." Lily said, her voice shaking with anger. "You're a bully. You're not better than him or any of those other Death Eater bastards!" And with that, Lily Evans stormed away, her fiery hair blazing behind her.

James stood exactly where she'd left him. He felt as though he'd been slapped. He slowly dropped back to his seat. He sat there for hours; quietly thinking.

By the time he returned to Gryffindor tower at midnight, he was determined. He knew that Lily Evans was a losing battle; but what she'd said tonight had really hit a nerve. From that point, James Potter decided that he would try to be nicer to Severus Snape. But it wouldn't be easy.