The first notable thing that occurred during the seventh year of what has been deemed the "Marauder Era" was the breaking of Sirius Black's nose.

It was a crime, truly, to note how perfect the nose had been prior to the breakage—not too straight, but not oddly crooked either. The tip was not too rounded or too pointy. And one cannot forget that it was beyond incredible when it came to sense of smell.

It was, all in all, an excellent nose.

But as life would have it, Sirius Black's nose was to be horribly mangled upon the infamous Platform 9 ¾ as he waited to board the Hogwarts Express that morning. And what a scene the loud crack and stream of blood caused upon the bustling station. The already tearful mothers shrieked and gasped that they could not possibly allow their children to go to school with such vagabonds, protective fathers tried to look intimidating as they stood in front of their wives to take the first blow if necessary, and the children—the students that is—looked on in utter confusion.

The "what" of the situation wasn't the confusing part—Sirius Black's nose was broken. And the "how" was fairly self-explanatory as a punch followed by a crunch undoubtedly signifies a breaking of one's nose. We have already discovered the "when" of the situation and as for the "who" well, anyone that knew right from left could see that Sirius Black had his nose broken by none other than a punch from his best bloke, James Potter.

That really only left "why" as the cause for confusion.

Why would James Potter feel the need to break his best mate's nose?

Some people reckoned the tall, messy-haired boy had gone insane with grief after the recent murder of his sister. Others thought that maybe he was trying to lose his Head Boy badge before even getting to Hogwarts. And a small number assumed that this was all some sort of joke and there was a hilarious prank to follow.

There wasn't.

Save a handful, the onlookers would never learn the reasoning behind the rift between the seemingly inseparable duo. They would simply see James turn his back to the crowd and walk stubbornly onto the train while his best friend stood motionless, blood streaming down his face and onto his school robes, with a look of pure shock on his face.

Sirius Black would stand there, broken nose and all, until two other boys—one with sandy-hair and the other small, but squat—would drag him onto the train several minutes later.

It was the first notable thing that occurred during the very notable seventh year.

"I don't suppose you care to explain what the bloody hell that was all about?"

James Potter looked up from the letter he had been determinedly staring at, but not really reading. In front of him stood Remus Lupin with a look of utter bewilderment etched upon his face.

James sighed, "Staying after the Prefects' Meeting? That's low even for a suck-up."

"Oh sod off," Lupin replied, but despite the icy tone, he embraced his friend warmly. "I wish I could have been there earlier."

"I still would have punched the git."

Lupin cut him off, "I didn't mean on the platform—Padfoot could use a good knock every once in awhile and I've already fixed his nose. I should have been there for you two weeks ago."

James' stony demeanor seemed to fade as he clasped his friend on the back, "Don't be thick. It was full moon… People at a funeral might not have taken lightly to your furry little problem."

"Blimey, Prongs, it wasn't just any funeral—it was your sister! I felt terrible about it," Lupin sounded frustrated. "Your mum got the flowers?"

"Yeah, thanks—she couldn't believe you remembered her fascination with Irises," James shifted uncomfortably. "So, errr, how many people do you reckon saw me punch him?"

Remus smiled slightly, "I'd say a good half of the student body and their parents" (James groaned) "But don't worry, I think you might have escaped Evans narrowing eyes although I'm sure she's heard about it by now so enjoy that confrontation. Anyway, I'm off to the compartment… You coming?"

"Nah, Moony," James sighed, "I think I'll stay here."

"Right mate, see you at dinner then." James could hear Remus talking even after he'd closed the compartment door, "Oi, Evans—Potter's in this one here if you're looking for someone to yell at."

James sighed. Remus could be a right git sometimes.

"Lo, Evans," he said as she entered the compartment, "Have a nice summer?"

Lily Evans forced a smile and replied that her summer had been enjoyable, but James could tell by the look in her eyes that she had also suffered. She knew it was rather pointless to ask how his summer and so an awkward silence ensued. James turned away and began to aimlessly arrange his books that had been carelessly thrown into his trunk earlier that morning.

"Potter…" Lily sounded nervous. "I'm terribly sorry. I read about it in the Prophet—it was horrendous what he did to them. If there's anything I can do… I'm so so sorry."

Hearing the grief in her voice and noticing the tears welled in the emerald eyes, James felt a lump of emotion rise within his throat. Unable to speak without letting his guard down, he nodded appreciatively. She seemed to understand that he wasn't trying to blow her off and awkwardly patted his shoulder in what he assumed was supposed to be a comforting gesture.

In fact, inhaling her vanilla scent and the cool touch of her skin did help to soothe his overwhelming heartache and he managed to regain control of himself.

To be certain, this interaction was nothing notable—James Potter and Lily Evans had managed to come to a truce of sorts last year after they'd both matured past the constant screaming at one another—or rather he'd matured enough to stop acting like a prat and she'd learned to control her temper. The two were most certainly not friends, but they also definitely weren't enemies either. In other words, they could be within ten feet of one another and not have an all-out war threatening to break loose. And at times like this, James sincerely appreciated their ability to at least act like civilized individuals. This was most certainly not a notable moment in either of their lives… It was completely and utterly normal.

"I'm not trying to be nosy or get you into trouble, but ummm…what happened with Sirius?" Lily asked timidly.

James immediately tensed, but seemed to realize that her question was valid, "He didn't come to their funeral," he said flatly. "They treated him like part of the damned family and he couldn't even…" James didn't continue.

"Maybe it was too hard for him," Lily said softly.

"And it wasn't hard for me?" James' temper flared. "Voldemort murdered my sister, brother-in-law and six year-old nieces. He stamped their foreheads with BLOOD TRAITORS and hung them outside of their house to be an example for all. They DIED—they aren't coming back. And fucking Black didn't even care enough to say goodbye—"

Lily interjected, "He does care… Can't you see how much he is struggling too? Sirius doesn't seem like the type that would feel comfortable at a funeral—"

"HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE FOR ME," James roared. For a moment, Lily thought he might throw the book clutched in his hand, but he managed to gain control of him and continue in choked voice, "But he wasn't… I needed him and he wasn't there… And I know it's bloody fucking selfish of me, but that's what hurts the most."

Lily, sensing that James was embarrassed to have admitted the weakness, had absolutely no idea what to do. Like most of Hogwarts, she only knew the seemingly carefree James Potter that was too busy pulling pranks on people to show emotion. Unless it was anger involving quidditch or Slytherin, of course. Therefore, she replied with her usual bantering tone. "It's not selfish, Potter—if it was, believe me, I'd be the first to tell you. Never miss an opportunity to comment on your egotism."

James gaped at her in clear astonishment. Was she seriously going to comment on his egotism at a time like this?

"What's the matter, Potter?" Lily taunted. "Didn't you miss my complete immunity to your overwhelming idiot charm?"

James continued to stare. People had been constantly trying to comfort him in the last weeks and quite honestly, he was sick of the meaningless bullshit—nothing could bring back his family members. But this… This was completely normal. Something he hadn't felt in three weeks. He almost found himself smiling.

"Well ya know, Evans… We are alone in our compartment and if you're feeling particularly sorry for me, I wouldn't mind—"

Lily punched him lightly on the shoulder, "Don't push your luck there, Potter. I'd have to poison your pumpkin juice later."

"Mmm forget I said anything," James shooed her away from him, "I reckon pumpkin juice tastes much better that Evans' slobber."

Lily crossed her arms angrily, but her eyes were all smiles as she retorted, "I guess that's one thing that the great James Potter will never know for sure…"

"Touche," James smiled, feeling his spirits lifting marginally.

Meanwhile back in the usual Marauder compartment, the dead silence was neither notable nor normal. It was just…weird. Remus tried to read through his History of Magic textbook, Peter nibbled on the various snacks he'd purchased from the food cart and Sirius numbly sat trying to replay the scene on the train platform in his head over and over again…

Sirius Black felt his stomach drop.

"James, mate, I…" But meeting the icy stare of James Potter, Sirius couldn't continue.

"Well?" James barked, "You what? What could you possibly have to say to me, Black?"

Sirius opened his mouth to say something—anything—but there were simply no words to describe what he wanted, and needed, to tell those blistering hazel eyes.

"They fucking called you Uncle Sirius," James snarled.

"I know," Sirius' voice was shaky. "I just… I couldn't—" his voice broke and he could say no more.

James was immune to the obvious pain in his best friend's voice, "I waited in the pouring rain—thinking that you would be there and, when you weren't, that something might have happened to you."

"James, you're like my brother. Believe me, I never meant—"

WHACK.

Sirius felt his nose crunch under the force of James' punch and knew immediately that it was broken. But the physical pain was nothing compared to the pure contempt radiating from his best friend's glare.

"I am no brother of yours," James said, his voice wavering between hatred and devastation. And without a single glance back, he turned his back on Sirius and boarded the shining Hogwarts Express alone.

For the first time, Sirius noticed that several students were staring at what had just taken place—no doubt wondering what could have possibly transpired between the inseparable duo. Though it was none of their business, he couldn't necessarily blame them. He had never seen James lose his cool in that manner—not even when he had nearly 'accidently' murdered Snape.

"C'mon," Sirius vaguely recognized the voice and felt a strong hand grip his arm, "The train's going to be leaving any moment and I'm not letting you stand here feeling sorry for yourself all day."

Remus Lupin steered Sirius into one of the few remaining empty train cars where the latter immediately threw his body into the seat and buried his face in his hands. Lupin noticed the blood still slowly dripping between the clasped hands and wordlessly handed a clean shirt to his friend.

Time passed and yet not a word was spoken between the two. Sirius, finally having lifted his face from his hands, looked as though he wanted to say something but could do nothing more than numbly look out the window.

"First Years this way! First Years this way!" Lily yelled over the crowd of students rushing off the train. She motioned for James to lead the kids while she looked around for any stragglers.

James—putting on a cheery composure—gave her a mock salute and turned towards the lake where Hagrid was waiting with the boats.

"James! Head boy, are yeh? Always knew Dumbledore liked yeh," Hagrid reached out a warm hand. "I'm glad yer here, James, and I'm awf'ly sorry. Been thinkin' of yeh a lot and hopin' that yeh doin' aright. I kno' it taint the same wit' out them, but we'll set the world right here soon. Good people like yer family don' deserve things like that. A shame."

James nodded appreciatively knowing that Hagrid's words were sincere, "Thanks Hagrid. It … It means a lot."

Hagrid clamored down into the water as James helped the anxious looking first years into the boats. He tried to ease their apprehension by keeping them laughing and reassuring them that the sorting was that bad—as long as you were in Gryffindor of course.

Lily brought up the last of the group, "You're good with them," she said. "I always feel like I'm bossing them around, but you've really got a knack for putting them at ease."

"I like kids," James said, a faraway look crossing his face. He raised a hand to her, "Head Girl Evans, if you please. Allow me to escort you to the castle."

"Aren't you a charmer," She gave him a smirk as she clamored into the boat. "Can't believe this is our last year here…. Seems like just yesterday that I was in their place, trying to figure out which house I wanted to be in."

James scoffed, "Don't be ridiculous, Evans… Obviously everyone wants to be in Gryffindor unless they're a mangy prat."

"Not everyone is as narrow-minded as yourself, you know."

"Can't help it if my mind is a one track route of intelligence," James replied with a cocky grin. "But it is hard to think that this is our last year here… Which might I remind you, Evans, is also your last opportunity to become one of my adoring admirers—"

"You really shouln't test my patience seeing as how we're in the middle of a lake, Potter."

"Oh now, you wouldn't do that Miss Head Girl," he said. "Besides, I think you're becoming rather fond of me."

"No… But you might have become more fond of yourself if that was even possible," Lily retorted. "And don't think that being Head Girl would stop me—I have enough dirt for blackmail on you to keep you in detention for the whole year."

James laughed, "As if I wasn't already planning to spend most of my time in detention and still get better marks than you in everything."

Quicker than James though possible, Lily had whipped out her wand and knocked him into the lake, several feet from the boat. She chuckled, feeling quite proud of herself, and yelled to Hagrid that everything was alright—Potter had just fancied a swim.

"Oi! Evans!" James sputtered as he attempted to swim back towards the boat. "You could have at least let me take my robes off first."

"Mmmm yeah, because that's an image I wanted imprinted in my mind."

James smiled, still trying to paddle his way towards the boat, "Don't play that innocent act with me—I know you fancy a glimpse of me in my boxers."

"Do you ever learn to just shut your trap?" Lily snapped as she watched him attempt to get back into the boat.

"But then the world would miss my charming personality," James grunted as he tried to lift himself. "I don't suppose you fancy giving me a hand here?"

Lily sniggered, "Not in your lifetime, Potter."

James eventually gave up his futile attempts and ended up clutching onto the back of the boat, allowing the magic to pull him through the murky waters until they reached shore. Of course, it wasn't until then that he realized Lily had placed a drying resistant charm on him and, as he couldn't remember the counter-charm, he remaining sopping wet from head to toe.

"Evans… I swear you are going to pay for this," he muttered as he attempted to dry himself for perhaps the thirtieth time as they ushered the First Years to the castle.

Lily, feeling quite proud of herself, flashed him a wide, fake smile, "Believe me—you can consider the fact that I have to work with you for an entire year as Head Boy as punishment enough for any wrongdoings in my entire lifetime."

"How long are you going to continue to pretend he doesn't exist?" Remus Lupin groaned as James blatantly ignored Sirius' attempt to get his attention after potions class.

James snarled, "For as long as the lousy scum manages to live," he retorted.

"Can't you see that you're driving him mad, mate?" Lupin said softly, "He can hardly function without you by his side—it's like watching a fish trying to breathe outside of water. He won't talk, won't eat, doesn't flirt with girls, takes notes in class and does his homework, doesn't pull pranks, doesn't break the rules, doesn't smile… Bit like hanging out with a statue really."

James raised his eyebrows, "I'd think you were in high favor of some of those changes… You have been chiding us for years about rules and classes—"

"Yeah, but I obviously didn't care too much now did I? Don't tell him I said this, but I kind of miss the old Sirius Black."

"Well I don't," James said briskly. "I don't care if he's acting all moody—he did it to himself. He's a bloody git and deserves to be treated like one. Am I just supposed to forgive what he did to my family?"

Lupin stared at him, wide-eyed, "Well yeah. He's practically your brother. He would have jumped in front of a killing curse for them if he had had the chance. But he didn't."

"I'm not blaming him that they're dead Moony," James said flatly. "I'm blaming him for ditching my family in their time of need after everything my parents have done for him."

"James, this is ridiculous. You know that Sirius is rubbish at that sort of thing—he would have been a mess at the funeral. Look, I'm sorry he didn't come, but honestly I think you're being a bit harsh on the guy."

"My family was murdered and suddenly I'm the bad guy?" James hated how non-chalant his voice could say the word 'murdered.'

Lupin shook his head, "What happened to your sister was tragic, James and I'm not asking you to forget your grief. But just try to consider talking to Sirius again—it's killing him."

"Good," James spat, "Tell him I won't be at the funeral."

And with that, James stormed into the opposite direction of his friend. He knew that his retort had been extremely childish, but he couldn't bring himself to consent to forgiving Sirius. It had been three weeks since the beginning of term and James had surprisingly only talked to his best friend twice during that period—once to ask for salt at dinner and another to tell him quidditch tryouts would be on the last day of September.

"I don't care if he's suffering… Does he think I'm not suffering? The bloody git," James muttered to himself.

"Talking to yourself is always the first sign of insanity," a soft, familiar voice said from behind him.

James turned and beamed at the small-framed girl behind him, "Hayden! Blimey, I never understand how you're always so quiet when you walk."

"I suppose it's because I don't have long, gangly legs that feel the need to run on a constant basis."

James laughed loudly and surprised the girl by enveloping her in a hug. Hayden Cooper had been his childhood best friend ever since she'd tackled a boy twice her size for calling her a shrimp, and after their time together at Hogwarts, she was now like a little sister to him. A year younger than James, Hayden was just over five feet with long, tousled black hair and soft facial features. He large piercingly blue eyes were curtained by incredibly long lashes gave her a childlike innocence, but the overly large grin that nearly always graced her face suggested a mischievous side.

"Errr—James, I can't breathe," She gasped.

James dropped his tight hold and grinned sheepishly, "I always forget how tiny you are!" Seeing her scowl, he quickly continued, "Not that being tiny is a bad thing—I've seen you take down men three times your size and Merlin knows you're my best Seeker. Anyone that wants to give you hell for being a bit vertically challenged will have to answer to this guy," he pounded his chest, "Head Boy AND Marauder."

Hayden smiled, "Marauder first though, right?"

"Of course!" James scoffed, "A Marauder never turns his back on the Marauders."

"And what you're doing to Sirius isn't turning you back on a Marauder…?" She questioned him.

James sighed, "Bloody hell, does everyone want to talk about that bloke today?"

"I just want you to be happy, James."

"And the guy who didn't come to my sister's funeral after she was murdered," he said, putting special emphasis on the last word, "is supposed to make me happy? Right. Because that makes sense."

Hayden smiled and ruffled his hair—a feat that she had to stretch and stand on her tiptoes to accomplish, "Of course he is—he's Sirius. You're sister loved him like her own brother… I hardly think she would be happy to know that you've thrown him to the dogs."

"Can we talk about something else?" James pleaded and Hayden gave him a look that he knew too well—the 'changing the subject doesn't mean you aren't being a prat' look. "I'm a little bit worried about you against the Hufflepuff seeker this year—he's supposed to be fantastic."

"Don't lie, lovely, it's so unbecoming," Hayden told him. "You and I both know that I will beat McCormick if it's the last thing I do so I'd suggest, Captain, that you focus on getting a new keeper instead. Now then, I just want you to stop being so moody all the time—you hardly ever laugh anymore and there has yet to be a prank this school year. It's a bit depressing."

"I've been the troublemaker for six years now, its somebody else's turn."

Hayden rolled her eyes, "Right, as if you suddenly don't want to have anything to do with being the funny guy. You'll have to work on a better lie for me, Potter. Anyway, I've got Transfiguration in ten minutes and you're supposed to be at Potions. Do me a favor and think about what I said on the Sirius issue. Say hi to Remus for me and grimace at Peter."

James bemusedly shook his head as the tiny figure took off in the other direction—he wished for the millionth time that she had been in his year so that they could have the same class schedules. Hayden was the only female that seemed to understand his lesser-known personality attributes and he swore that she could read minds at times. Although he wished that she and Remus both would just leave him alone about the whole Sirius situation—it was his decision if he didn't want to talk with his best friend ever again. The reasonable part of his brain nagged that he was only irritated with them because they had a point—he did miss Sirius.

Merlin, how he missed Sirius. Certainly, he missed his sister and her family; there was no denying that he was overwhelmed with grief at their death, but knowing that they weren't ever going to be there again at least gave the situation closure. With Sirius, the prick was everywhere in his everyday life—they even slept in the same bloody room. Part of him longed to have his best friend back while another part was so disgusted by the boy, he could hardly stand the sight of him. Suddenly, a voice broke his self-pitying trance.

"Potter? What have you done?" Professor McGonagall asked him sharply.

"Err—nothing, Professor," James stuttered.

McGonagall looked at the wall that he had just been dazedly staring at as if expecting it to explode any moment, "You haven't done…anything?" She asked, sounding incredulous.

"Oi—I'm not always causing trouble, you know," James felt a smile fighting its way onto his face. Honestly, he could be a good kid on occasion.

"Yes, well, I suppose that depends on how you might define trouble," She gave him a reprimanding look.

James wasn't sure if she was joking or serious, "If you'd like Professor, I would be more than happy to throw some dungbombs in the corridor just to rile up Filtch and make the situation feel more natural. I've got some stashed in my robe right here."

"That will not be necessary, Potter," McGonagall said severely, although he could tell a smile was trying force its way onto her strict face. "I would prefer not taking away house points from my own house if possible although I'm sure that you will give me due reason in good time."

"You can plan on it, Professor."

"Potter, are you even paying attention?" Lily hissed angrily as she watched James attempt to juggle several bottles of parchment ink and failing miserably. He had an annoying habit of goofing off during their nightly patrols that irked Lily to no end.

The inkbottles crashed to the floor. "Awwww, Evans, you made me lose my concentration," he whined before clearing the mess and mending the glass with a flick of his wand.

"Well you're supposed to be concentrating on students breaking curfew, you useless—"

"Tsk tsk," James scolded, a grin still stretched across his face. "Is that any way for the Head Girl to talk to the Head Boy?"

"The Head Boy isn't supposed to be an annoying, egotistical, horrible-at-juggling-prat but that didn't work out either now did it?"

James stuffed the inkbottles in his robes, "My my, someone is a little testy tonight… How many times do I have to explain to you that I have a map that—"

"Potter if this is about that bloody map that you claim shows everyone in the school again—"

"It's true, Evans! How do you think I managed to sneak out after curfew without being caught so many times?"

"I don't know how you've managed it and honestly, I don't care. Unless you actually show me this incredible map that you claim to have in your possession, I'd suggest you start paying attention to patrols before I knock you in the lake again," she threatened.

James sighed and reluctantly pulled out the crumpled piece of parchment. He whispered "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good" quiet enough that Lily couldn't hear him and hoped for the best. Lily looked over his shoulder as a familiar script scrawled itself across the parchment.

Mister Padfoot would like it to be known that you are not at all up to no good, but are in fact being a prat and using our hard work to impress a girl.

James groaned as Lily gasped in indignation, "If this is some prank, Potter…"

"No!" He exclaimed tapping the map furiously as if trying to get it to work. "It just is a little feisty at times… A bit of a malfunctioning in the spellwork…" But he trailed off as more writing began to appear.

Mister Moony would like Miss Evans to be fully aware that there is absolutely no "malfunctioning in the spellwork" but that the map refuses to work for the undeserving, such as those who break Marauders' Rule #17 concerning women.

James ruffled his hair—inwardly cursing at his friends and his own cleverness to leave the Marauder's Map with a bit of their own personalities.

Mister Wormtail would agree with the previous statements and would add that Miss Evans does not like it when you ruffle your hair.

Mister Padfoot would also like to tell Miss Evans that he is extremely sorry that she has to put up with a good-for-nothing Head Boy, extend her a heartfelt 'Good Evening' and comment on how radiant she looks tonight.

Lily laughed aloud at the last two sentences and turned to James, "Well it may be shit for a map, but at least it's charming."

James nodded meekly and wondered if he could somehow convince Peter to punch Sirius for him since they weren't talking—it wasn't likely, but Peter was known for doing something rather stupid on occasion.

Mister Prongs would like to say that if Miss Evans is interested in charming, then she should look no further than the incredibly talented and devilishly handsome James Potter.

"I think you left out 'egotisitical git'," Lily told the parchment.

"That's enough of that," James said sheepishly, stuffing the map back into his robes. "What do you say we just get on with patrols then, eh?"

Lily rolled her eyes and took off down the hallway, staying a couple feet in front of him for the rest of their night. James attempted a few awkward conversations, but neither of them really had much to say to the other since they had never had to interact on cordial terms so they spent most of the night, much like the other previous ones, in silence.

Lily Evans simply could not concentrate—not with his feet tapping against the desk chair at a mile-a-minute rate as if he were some sort of muggle wind-up toy. Usually, she loved noise while she studied, but this was just incessant. And for crying out loud, it was a Saturday morning… She had been one of the ten people that came to the library on every Saturday morning for seven years now and if he thought he could just waltz his way into the regular crowd, he had another thing coming.

"Psssst," She hissed. He didn't flinch. "Pssssst. Sirius! Sirius!"

Sirius Black looked around dazedly, having been too absorbed in his reading to know had called his name. His dark eyes met the stern gaze of green intensity and he shuffled over into the seat next to Lily.

"Morning Evans," he whispered. "Fancy meeting you here."

"I could say the same," Lily whispered back.

To her astonishment, Sirius actually gazed at her with a concerned look on his face as he asked, "I'm not bothering you, am I? I didn't mean to sit so near, but the tables in the back were full."

"Errr—" Lily didn't exactly know how to handle his politeness, "No, its just you've been tapping your leg and well, it's a bit annoying…"

"Right!" Sirius exclaimed, seemingly glad that this was the extent of the problem. "I've got a horrible fidgeting habit while I study. James has even resorted to tying my legs to the table legs to make it stop. But, say, you wouldn't mind helping me with this potions essay, would you? I'm complete rubbish with the differences in the sleeping draughts."

For the next two hours, Lily found herself having one of the most enjoyable Saturday morning library visits of her Hogwarts career as she helped Sirius Black finish his essay and he kept her laughing with story after story.

"But honestly," he continued, "I think the best bit of trouble I've ever seen James wiggle our way out of was this summer. See, I've got my own flat near Diagon Alley and I think James was rather put out that I'd moved out of his house—claimed he'd be bored all summer. So as revenge, he bewitched all of my knives to chase after me anytime I opened the kitchen drawers. Took me almost two hours of running around, screaming and nearly being stabbed to death before the charm wore off. Next time he came to visit, I turned his hair pink while he was napping and the poor bloke didn't even realize it."

"You mean to tell me that James Potter was walking around with pink hair and I missed it?" Lily asked, the disappointment evident on her face.

Sirius snickered, "Oh Evans, it was magnificent—I've even got pictures. So there we were, walking around Diagon Alley and James' hair is flaming hot pink. I dunno how he never noticed, but next thing I know, we see his parents walking down the street with none other than the bloody Minister of Magic."

Lily was now laughing so hard that people at the other tables were throwing the duo nasty looks. "Sorry!" she hissed at them between giggles.

"Of course, James goes marching over there before I can tell him and Merlin, you should have seen Mr. Potter's expression. Real serious bloke he is—nice guy, but the distinguished type, you know… So here comes his prized, top-of-the-class son with pink hair and all. Mrs. Potter—she's just like James—is giggling like a schoolgirl and the minister looks rather confused at the whole situation. Well, Mr. Potter finally has enough of it and asks James what the ruddy hell does he have pink hair for… I thought for sure James might lose it as he caught his reflection in a shop window, but without a blink of an eye, he told them this story of how he broke up a fight between ladies trying to get the latest Pampered Witch Cooking book and he must have been hit with a spell meant for one of them."

Lily shook her head in gleeful disbelief, "What a cocky, son-of-a-bitch."

"I know!" Sirius exclaimed. "And the minister thought it was just brilliant and kept joking that he was going to have to makes James the Head of Disputes Between Middle-Aged Women at the ministry. I couldn't believe it."

"Oh Sirius," Lily gasped, clutching her stomach from laughing so much, "I don't think I've ever laughed so much while in the library."

Sirius grinned and ruffled her hair, much to Lily's surprise, "Ahhhh, well hell Evans, you need to live a little."

"Why are you here and not somewhere off causing trouble?" She asked suspiciously.

"Even the best have to take a break from wrecking havoc on occasion, you know," Sirius told her. He added bitterly, "And James and I normally go flying early on Saturday mornings before everyone gets up, but I don't suppose that works out too well when you aren't speaking to one another."

Lily never thought she'd feel sorry for Sirius Black, but then again she'd never seen him look so dejected. His handsome features, though they looked incredibly less haughty, were so downcast that even stone hearts would melt with pity.

"I'm sorry," She said, not knowing what else there was to say.

"S'okay," Sirius said thickly. "It's my fault—I'm such an idiot. So, anyway, how's being Head Girl?"

Lily had the feeling that he didn't want to talk about his fight with James anymore, "Well, its been going okay so far. Working with Potter so much has been a little bit awkward since we never can seem to talk to one another civilly, but other than that, its been a piece of cake. Its really not as exciting as I thought it would be."

"Course it isn't," Sirius grinned, "Anything that involves following the rules is never exciting. And with James—he really isn't as bad as you think… Don't tell him I told you, but he gets nervous around girls, you especially. I think its because he had a crush on you for so long… But anyway, just talk to him like a normal person and he'll stop acting like a git."

"Potter? Nervous?" Lily scoffed, "You expect me to believe that Potter acts like an arrogant git because he's nervous? We are talking about THE James Potter here, right?"

Sirius laughed, "Yes, Evans—the James Potter. And you've gotta believe me because I know him better than anyone. Just get him talking about something he likes and he'll act like a completely different person."

"Like quidditch?"

"No!" Sirius shook his head aggressively. "Never, ever talk about quidditch unless you want to be there for a century listening to flying techniques. Stick with something simple like…transfiguration."

"Sounds fascinating," Lily muttering, wondering how exactly you were supposed to hold a conversation about transfiguration.

"SIRIUS BLACK!" A loud screech came from behind them, causing Lily to knock half of the books off their table, "I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO NEVER SET FOOT IN THIS LIBRARY AGAIN!"

Lily, her heart racing, couldn't ever remember hearing Madame Prince yell quite so loudly or ferociously at anyone in her entire six years at Hogwarts. Sirius threw Lily a wink and gave his biggest smile to the enraged librarian, his smooth voice saying that he was certain that Madame Prince had only banned him for the remainder of the school year when he'd bewitched all the books to sing Christmas carols anytime they were opened last holiday. Lily was trying desperately, and failing, not to laugh.

"So you see, Madame Prince, I just naturally thought the library would reopen its doors for one of Hogwarts' best students with the beginning of a near school year," he said.

"Out," Madame Prince hissed. "And you too, Miss Evans. You've been quite the giggler this morning and I won't allow it."

Sirius grabbed Lily's books and bag while she gaped at the librarian in surprise—she had never, ever gotten into trouble in the library and here she was being kicked out. Sirius wasn't even bothering to hide his laughter as he guided her out of the room and she couldn't help but notice that several students were snickering as well.

"I—I…She—" Lily sputtered when they are safely out of the library. "I didn't even do anything!"

"Me neither," Sirius reminded her, "I swear that old hag has had it out for me since First Year. And her fingernails just creep me out."

"Her fingernails?" Lily said incredulously, "You just got me kicked out of the library and all you can say is that her fingernails creep you out?"

"Err—yeah. Haven't you seen them? Ehhh," Sirius shuddered and clapped her on the back, "But don't worry, Evans. It's just the library—imagine if it had been somewhere really important like Zonkos."

"Yeah…Zonkos," Lily said sarcastically, but her eyes were dancing with laughter. "I suppose it's a good rumor for the school—the Head Girl gets kicked out of the library with none other than Sirius Black."

Sirius laughed, "Most girls would kill to be in that position, let me tell you. I hope they mention me wiping away your tears like a true gentleman."

Lily rolled her eyes and with a casual flick of her wand, Sirius was bound to a suit of armor.

"Oy!" Sirius squirmed, but couldn't get loose, "I will tell everyone it was me that was crying! Come on, Evans… You don't want to know what revenge from Sirius Black looks like…"

"Oh no," Lily smiled, laughing at having gotten the better of Black. "I would love to see what you can come up with—besides, you did get me kicked out of the library for the first time ever. I figured this is payback. Now hold still."

Lily transfigured one of her quills into a tube of lipstick, which she used to write a big L.E. surrounded by a heart across Sirius' face. It was truly priceless.

"It was a lovely morning, Sirius," Lily drawled while Sirius fumed at having been bested by none other than the Head Girl of Hogwarts. And with that, she turned away, still laughing at her own cleverness and headed back towards the Gryffindor common room.

Yes, it was most certainly true. The first, and so far only, notable thing to happen during 7th year was James Potter breaking Sirius Black's nose.

a/n: Okay, well you know the drill ... Just let me know what you think so far and what needs improvement - etc. I tried out a few different writing styles and had a lot of character interaction just to get into the habit and tone for the story. Don't worry - character development is not forgotten! I would appreciate hearing from everyone :) Even if you hated it! -rogueadvocate