Chapter 1

The steam from the train was the first thing that greeted Lily when she passed through the barrier that seperated what she once called her world and the world that is apart of her. She smiled, taking in the familiar sights - first years being smothered by their parents before they boarded the train, seventh years reminiscing with each other realizing this is their last year, friends attacking one other with bear hugs and squeals after not seeing each other for a summer. Lily couldn't help but feel comforted by these scenes, especially after the summer's events. Not only had Death Eater attacks increased dramatically the past three months, but her family had their own issues to attend to.

Petunia had gotten engaged during the summer. This would have been fine and dandy if it hadn't been with such a horrible man. Vernon Dursley was a beefy man with beady eyes that judged everything they saw. Lily didn't base her opinion off of his appearance though. He couldn't help but express some sort of opinion on whatever subject the family brought up, and it was always a negative one. This was especially so if it was a subject Lily brought up. Petunia had had to tell him about Lily, and now he could barely stand to be in the same room as her, just like Petunia, not like he ever liked her that much anyway. Needless to say, Lily didn't exact like her future brother-in-law. Her parents, Martin and Rachel, didn't like him either, she could tell. They would never say so, in fear of upsetting their eldest daughter, Lily could tell by the way their smiles and laughs seemed forced out of them, or the way they winced whenever he chewed (or, more specifically, chomped) his food at dinner. She could tell especially when they slid farther down the couch when he sat beside them. To her, after living with them for sixteen years, it was obvious when they liked or disliked somebody. For Petunia, someone who has lived with them even longer, it should be clear that they don't want her to marry him.

Such a disagreement like this, no matter how silent, is certain to cause problems. And it did. Lily couldn't count on her fingers how many arguments she and her sister got into over the summer, until finally Lily grabbed her wand and took the Knight Bus to her friend, Mary's, house and stayed there for two weeks of August until the week before school started to she could leave her parents on a good note, at least, if not Petunia. Of course this upset her parents, but it they knew it was better than listening to the two of them tear each other down with hurtful words.

Lily hated fighting with her sister. She missed being best friends with her, making forts in their bedroom at night when they couldn't fall asleep, but there was nothing she could change about it, because Petunia was determined to shut Lily out permanently. To her, it was an embarrassment to be related to Lily, to such a freak, so she didn't want to have any of it. She was marrying Vernon to get away from Lily, and if that meant leaving her parents too, then she was all ready to walk down the aisle.

Lily shut her eyes and took a deep breath. She didn't want to think about Petunia or Vernon or the wedding. All she wanted to do right now was board the train and find her friends. Once she cleared her mind of anything Petunia, she grabbed the cart and began pushing it towards the train.

"Lily!" Someone squealed from behind her as she searched the compartments for her friends.

She barely had time to turn around in surprise before someone slammed into her, knocking her breathless.

"Gina!" Lily said after recognizing the fluffy blonde hair of her attacker. "I missed you! Merlin, you're tan, girl."

She grinned proudly. "Just spent a month in California. This is the tannest I have ever been!"

Lily laughed. "Well, you look hot! And I mean that as a friend," she said, winking. Then, noticing she didn't have her trunk with her, she asked, "Where's all your things?"

"In the compartment, along with Mary," she said, moving out of someone's way that was trying get into a compartment. "I, er, was just looking for..."

"Hello, ladies," said a smooth voice from behind Lily.

She turned, though she already knew it was Sirius Black. He was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, arms crossed across his chest, eyeing the two obviously beautiful girls with his gray eyes. There was no doubting he was attractive. Sirius Black was Hogwarts' most sought after guy by the female students. At least every girl had had thoughts about him that would make Dumbledore blush. The only downside to his good looks was that he was also a notorious heartbreaker. He was a smooth talker with commitment issues, a horn dog who didn't know how to love. Every girl should put it in their best interest to stay away from him, but, for some reason, every girl thinks she's different somehow and she can be the one to change him. Eventually, a few days later, they realize they were wrong and have to deal with a broken heart while he finds a new play toy.

Lily knew right away to keep away from him, although it was hard. As much as she hates to admit it, she was one of the girls that used to daydream about him in class. That was third year though, and that period of time didn't last long. Now the pompous ass just annoyed her to no end.

"What do you want, Black?" Lily sighed, rolling her eyes at his sudden appearance.

His eyes widened in mock shock at her greeting. "I just wanted to see if my two favorite girls had a nice summer, flower. No need to bite."

She narrowed her eyes. "Well, if that's all, then yes, our summers were wonderful. Now you can be on your way," she said, making room for him to walk away.

He chuckled. "Dear Evans...when are you finally going to move past this hate you have towards me?"

"As soon as you learn to grow up and not act like such a first year," she said, glaring. "Oh, and by the way, it's not hate. I don't hate anyone, I think it's a waste of time and energy. You just annoy the hell out of me, Black. Come on, Gina, let's go to the compartment. I need to put this away." She nodded towards her trunk and began walking away from Sirius.

Gina hesitated, glancing between an eyebrow-raised Sirius Black and the retreating back of Lily, before following her friend. Sirius snorted, rolling his eyes, before walking the opposite way towards his own compartment.

He opened the door to find his best friends James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. He threw himself onto the bench next to James. "Dear Merlin, sometimes I question your taste in women, Prongs."

"I'm guessing you ran into Evans?" Remus said, jolting forward as the train whistled and began its journey towards Hogwarts.

"In all honesty, I think she really is mental." Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "I can't say one word around her without her attacking me like a bloody blast-ended skrewt."

"That's funny because I get a completely different impression when I talk to her," Remus said dryly, staring out the window at the passing trees.

Sirius scowled at his friend. "That might have something to do with the fact that you're the only one she respects out of the four of us."

"And I wonder why that is?"

"Oi, whose side are you on?" Sirius snapped.

"Sides?" Remus said with surprise. "There's no sides here, Sirius."

"What's up with you? Why are you so touchy?" James asked curiously, giving his friend an odd look.

Sirius sighed. "Nothing. That ginger just cock-blocked me, that's all."

James nodded in understanding. "Gina was there, too?"

He nodded. "All tan and everything. She would've been the perfect snog to start off the year."

Remus snorted. "You're pathetic, Padfoot," he said, laughing at the sour look Sirius gave him. Then he stood up and stretched. "Alright, I have a Prefect meeting so I need to go. Get me a chocolate frog when the trolley comes around, 'kay? Or a few..." he added, tossing a few knuts to them before leaving the compartment.

James stood up. "Yeah, get me something too," he said, absentmindedly tossing them his bag of money as he also left the compartment.

"She's in one of the first compartments," Sirius said, taking the opportunity to lounge across the entire bench now that James wasn't there.

James stopped, his face reddening a bit. "Who?" he asked, as if it wasn't obvious to the three of them who Sirius was referring to.

"You know who." Sirius grinned.

James merely just made a face at his friend, who began making kissing noises, and left. It didn't escape anyone's notice which direction he was heading - towards the front of the train car.

"Well, Pete," Sirius sighed. The scrawny boy immediately gave him his full attention. "Looks like its just you and me now." Then, noticing the bag of money on the bench next to Peter, he grinned mischievously. The boy followed his gaze and right away shared Sirius' same thoughts.

James Potter strolled carelessly down the train car, glancing in every compartment as he made his way towards the front. Every now and then he would run a hand through his dark mass of hair. It was the infamous habit of James Potter, the very one that somehow made girls swoon. Every girl, except for one: Lily Evans.

She was the only one that seemed immune to his womanizing ways, the only one that could hardly stand being around him. She was the only one James couldn't quite catch. That only made him want her more.

She was absolutely gorgeous, no one could deny it. Her hair always caught your attention, especially in the sun when it brought out the blonde in her fire red hair. It was the second thing he liked most about her because it always looked so soft and perfect, it was hard for him not to just touch it when he sat behind her in class. The first thing he liked the most was her eyes. They were twinkling emeralds that always gave her away. You could literally see her soul when you looked into them, you could see her dreams and her fears. Some say the eyes are the windows to the soul; her's are like open doors that someone forgot to close. Once a man looks into those beauties, he's a goner.

It wasn't just her beauty that fascinated him though. It was her personality that drew him in. She was like a wildfire. No one can control her. And she was incredibly smart. She was at the top of the class, and a complete genius when it came to charms. It was absolutely mesmerizing to watch her work. It drove James crazy with desire sometimes.

She was practically untouchable though, much to James' disappointment. Luckily for him though, there were plenty of fish in the sea to keep him satisfied. One of which was presently blocking his way towards his destination.

"Hey, James," Hannah McLaggen said sweetly, resting a hand on her hip, and smiling up at him through her long, thick eyelashes. "How was your summer?"

He smirked. "It was fun. Too bad I didn't get to see you, though."

"Oh, well, I was busy anyway," she said, flipping her hair back. "It is too bad, though. At least we have the school year to catch up." She winked flirtatiously, giggling a little.

"Well, I'm not busy now," he said leaning in, glad he'd had a breath mint earlier, "So why not catch up now?"

"Why not?" she said, giggling again.

"Excuse me," someone seethed from behind Hannah.

James looked around and was surprised to find Lily standing behind them, tapping her foot impatiently and giving the two a look of disgust. "Excuse you," he said back, matching her annoyance.

She just glared at him. "You're in my way."

"Oh, jeez, I'm so sorry. How could I? How dare I be in your way?" he said sarcastically. "It's not like there's this whole area for you to pass by! How could I be so bloody daft?" He smirked, stepping back for her to continue on her way.

"Bug off, Potter," she muttered, pushing past them. "You're such a prat."

He just snorted, enjoying how easily annoyed she can become. Then, remembering the girl standing beside him who hadn't said a word through the entire exchange, he turned back to her, only to find her not there anymore. Groaning at his loss, he muttered angrily to himself, "She is a cock block," and turned around to return to his own compartment.

When Lily reached the meeting, she took her regular seat next to Remus Lupin. He was the only one she liked out of him and the other three. For one, he knew when to be serious and when not to be, and she respected that in a person. He was also smart. It wasn't like the other's weren't either (other than Peter - he was actually quite daft), but Remus didn't get a big head just because he was at the top of the class. He was also the kindest out of the four, and didn't gallivant through the castle, jinxing anybody who gave him a weird look.

"Hello, Lily," he greeted her kindly. "How was your summer?"

She rolled her eyes. "Same old, same old."

He nodded, understanding what she meant. Another thing that differentiated him from the rest of his friends was that he actually listened to other people's problems instead of talking nonstop about himself. This is how he got Lily to open up about her issues at home with her sister. Other than Mary and Gina, Remus was the only other person she had told about Petunia. It wasn't hard for Remus to understand why that was, either. The things she told him sometimes could just be cruel for one sister to do to another, that it was hard to believe that cool and collected Lily Evans who never seemed phased by anything could actually be hurting more than anyone knew on the inside.

"I hope it wasn't too bad this time," he said, wondering why someone like Lily had to deal with someone as horrible as Petunia, let alone be related to her.

She shrugged. "Not as bad as it could've been, I guess. I left for a couple of weeks to stay with Mary, though, to cool down, you know?"

Remus smiled, and leaned over to give her a hug. After hesitating for a moment, she hugged him back, thankful for some kind of comfort. He was warm, and even though he wasn't as built as James and Sirius, he was just right to make her feel better.

"You're a really good friend, Remus," she whispered, after pulling away when the Head Boy and Girl that year, Alice Prewett from Gryffindor (a good friend of Lily's) and Frank Longbottom from Ravenclaw (a boy Lily was acquainted with, but didn't know very well, other than he was head over heals for the Head Girl next to him), stood up to begin the meeting.

Remus smiled, feeling a tug in his chest as he watched the beautiful red head turn away from him and give her full attention to Alice and Frank. He wished he could do something for her to make it easier, but he knew there was nothing he could do. The good thing was she had Hogwarts and only had to deal with her psychotic sister three months out of a year. Maybe that would even become none after she became of age in a year.

Remus and Lily walked back to their compartments together after the meeting was over, talking about the year ahead of them. They were talking about their classes and how hard end of the year exams would be when they heard a commotion farther down the car. Exchanging looks, they hurried past the other confused students around them to find out what all the yelling was about.

Somehow Lily wasn't surprised to find that James, Sirius, and Peter were involved. She also wasn't surprised to see Severus (Snape, she corrected herself mentally), Avery, the Carrow Twins (Alecto and Amycus), and Sirius' younger brother, Regulus. All wands were drawn, but it was obvious the three were outnumbered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Remus had drawn his also and joined his friends, leaving her feeling obligated to take responsibility as Prefect and end this.

"How does it feel, Snivellus," James said loudly, sneering at the greasy boy, "to know you lost the only true friend you ever had, a muggle-born, for these losers? How does it feel to know she doesn't want anything to do with you anymore?"

Snape glared, noticeably raising his wand higher at the bespectacled boy. "You better watch yourself, Potter! You're messing with the wrong people!"

"And like he actually cared for that filthy Mudblood," Avery jeered. "He's better off now, than he ever was before now that he finally got rid of that filth!"

James' eyes flashed. "Take that back," he said in a low voice, gripping his wand tighter.

Avery smirked. "Who's going to make me?"

Lily's eyes widened as she saw James raising his wand, getting ready to make the first move. She had to do something now before anything bad happened and before anyone got hurt.

"Stupe-!"

"Protego!" Lily cried, sending a shield between the two parties and effectively deflecting James' spell upon himself. He fell to the floor unconscious, while the Slytherins, though they were surprised by the sudden protection, laughed at James' failure to stun Avery.

Lily hurried over to James, feeling somewhat bad for knocking him out. "Rennervate," she whispered, bring him out of his unconsciousness. He blinked a few times, then when his eyes focused again, they widened, surprised to find her face only a few inches away from his. She shook her head and stood back up, facing the two parties once again.

Giving them all a good glare, she spoke, "I suggest you all return to your compartments now before I give you all detention."

Avery snorted, but didn't protest. He turned his back on the Gryffindors, and, with his posse of Slytherins, left the area. Lily watched them as they left, making sure they actually did leave, but as she did, Snape caught her eye. To her, he looked almost regretful. He stopped when he locked eyes with her, as if deciding whether he should try to talk to her or follow Avery back to their compartment. Shaking his head, he broke their stare, and turned his back on her to catch up with the others.

Lily sighed, but didn't put much thought to it, and turned back to the four boys. James was standing up now, apparently feeling better from his stun spell. All of their wands were back in their pockets, and they all stood in front of her sheepishly.

First she made eye contact with Remus, he shrugged apologetically to her, but said nothing. Then she looked to James who was already staring at her. He opened his mouth to say something, but shut it. This happened several times before he finally decided to spit it out.

"They started it," he blurted.

Lily narrowed her eyes at him. "You're pathetic, Potter. You're still acting like you're a second year! It's this thing called growing up, and everyone else is doing it except you!"

He glared. "You weren't even here, you didn't hear what they were saying."

"I heard enough," she said, "to know you were egging them on. I heard what you said to Snape."

He snorted. "Oh, so that's why you butt in? Afraid that slime ball would get hurt?"

"I butt in because you were obviously about to do something stupid that could get others seriously hurt!" she said, exasperated. "I was thinking about all the other students on board, not just me, not just Snape. I was thinking about everybody, something else you seem completely incapable of doing."

"That's funny because you talk about me like you actually know me," he said, sneering.

"It's not that hard to figure you out if you see the way you act, Potter," she said, her voice raising.

Remus, not exactly caring for the way this argument was turning out, decided to step in before things got too messy. "Er, Lily, we'll just go back to our compartment now. Right, guys?"

Sirius grinned, always loving a good James and Lily yelling match, and stepped back with Remus. "No, no," he whispered to his friend. "Just watch."

Remus rolled his eyes, but what else to do other than watch.

"And that's supposed to mean what exactly?" James said, matching her volume without fail.

"It means," she said, doing her best to let her anger get the best of her, "that you're an arrogant prat that has zero respect for people around him and thinks that just because he's James bloody Potter, he can do whatever the hell he wants!"

"You know what you are?" he said, practically yelling now along with her. An audience had grew around them, unbeknownst to them, watching their row in silence. Their fights were infamous throughout Hogwarts. "You, Evans, are uptight. You think that just because you're Lily Evans and a Prefect that that gives you the right to boss everyone around and act like you're better than people like me. You say I walk around like I own the school, you should see yourself! You think you're so bloody amazing but in reality, you're just a bitch!"

Absolute silence followed his rant, with the two shooting daggers at each other with their eyes. Nobody had ever heard James go as far as calling her a bitch, even though they all knew that she could be, but hearing it out of his mouth? That was unheard of.

Even Sirius knew he had gone too far, and was shocked himself, especially when he saw how shiny Lily's eyes were from restrained tears. Gulping, he stepped forward and grabbed James' shoulder, pulling him away from the scene. Remus helped pull their friend away, but not before Lily got the last word.

"I hate you, Potter," she said quietly, before hurrying away back to her compartment.

James froze, his mouth dropping slightly. He could literally feel something breaking in him. Lily Evans hated him. That is another thing unheard of in an Evans-Potter match. Throughout all the years of name calling, not once had either of them ended one this way.

Well, wasn't this just the perfect way to start off the year?