A/n: I don't on Harry Potter and Co.

Chapter One

Life as I Know It

Lily

All I had ever thought about since second year was the shiny, euphoric badge. It hung on your robe like a mighty wand- to hold peace and equality throughout the halls of Hogwarts.

Except now, that badge seemed rusted and a joke, considering who I was and what I was up against. The Marauders.

They were some secret, student group, 'The Marauders' causing all types of trouble- and of course, it would happen when I finally get a badge.

So many victimized kids- the first and second years- were walking around in utter tears. I could tell that Olivia and Oliver Flowers- the Head Girl and Boy- were beyond frustrated. Olivia, a Gryffindor with long golden hair and bluish eyes always had her fingers on the bridge of her nose, while her twin brother, a Claw, always mumbling about something. Right now, it was all of the prefects, and The Flowers in the meeting room- a classroom that never gets used for much besides this.

"You all, please, tonight, let this be a smooth run," Oliver said exasperatedly. "If the Marauders strike let out the signal first,," His hands were large- a Quidditch player- and if you didn't see the badge glittering on his robes, you would have though that he was the one causing trouble. Oliver also had the habit of being a bit of a flirt- many many girls have fell into the disastrous 'L' word with him. And honestly It was kind of hard not to. He seemed to have the trait of actually caring about a girl, until he got bored.

"And please- Rose, don't sit and cry if you can't do something okay? Make sure you stay with your partner!" Olivia, or Liv as I called her was the opposite of her brother. She was a Gryff like I was, and a complete well….bitch. With right though—standing barely at five feet, it would be hard to take her seriously. But she was unbelievably strong and smart, thus, she got Head girl. Liv was in a way my mentor- when she was prefect, she looked out for me.

She looked out for me even when she wasn't a prefect.

I could reminence about the things Liv has pulled me through, but I wont go down that road. She was the sister Tuney never was, and I would miss her when this year was over.

"I know Olivia!" said a squeaky voice, and I gave a cringe at the sound of it.

For The Puffs there was Rose Peartree and David Shingletop as prefects. They both were sitting next to each other by the window, Rose's head on Dave's leg. You'd think they were in a relationship- but it was family like, as far as I saw.

But the school said other wise.

Rose claimed she was a red like me, though I though she was really more blond. She was pretty- really pretty but a bit airy in the head, if I say so myself. She wasn't really Prefect material either, but since I wasn't the one handing out the badges, I guess it doesn't matter. Dumbledore knew what he was doing.

Dave on the other hand was a sixth year, and quiet. He was very nice guy and probably headed toward Head Boy status. He was always careful about how he said things to people; he could tell you that you smell like dragon dung and you'd thank him for it. He was tall and handsome with Darker chin length hair and matching eyes. He often looked out for us girls; the school says its because his father beat on his mother.

But I don't know Dave personally enough to ask him the details though.

"Don't worry. Rose is my partner tonight, so Ill be keeping watch on her."

That softer but resonant voice belonged to none other than good old Andorra Maniaci.

She was tall for our age, and if I must say myself, a very memorable person. She was Italian, from somewhere in Tuscany, and her olive colored tone showed it. Her hair was long thick and a inky black; hereyes however were the strangest blue. They seemed to almost glow against her skin and hair.

Andy has a soft accent, but was more like Liv: unmovable and daring. For a Ravenclaw, I swear she had all the traits of a Gryff like Liv and I- She was courageous and brave and adventurous. She was unbearably witty. But, her most memorable trait was her intelligence- she could get the truth out of anyone, not to mention she was very resourceful. Out of all the girls in the room, I would say she was my biggest competition for Head Girl in a few years.

"Thanks Andy. " Liv said tiredly.

"Oh Maniaci you'll have to be careful. You know Peartree scares easily," drawled a voice, and I narrowed my eyes to the far wall by the door. It was Vane- James Vane. To say I hated him was an understatement, but I guess I was just being…prejudiced.

Vane and Elizabeth Barone were the Slytherin house prefects- if only in title. They were utterly lazy and in a relationship. Both were idiotic with the blood purity thing; both had the aristocratic features. Vane was blond and green eyed, and Elizabeth, or Liz as she insisted I call her, was brown haired with green eyes. She was attractive, or she would have been is she let her mouth out of that permanent frown.

It was no secret between us in the room that Vane left Rose to be with Elizabeth- hence the reason she cried, since as I said before, she isn't cut out for this.

The only reason Liv didn't tell Dumbledore is because, well, he already knew.

Somehow Dumbledore just knew things- and they were both reprimanded for the little tryst last week. However I think they should have gotten worse.

"Quiet James. We don't have time for the bullock," Brown had said. I'm pretty sure Brown's name was Eric…or Xavier. He wasn't a really talkative person, but he was effective. He had dark hair like Andy, but his eyes were a regular brown. He was Andy's best friend besides me, and the girls.

People said they were together, but …. I think not.

Brown, was a Claw that had a bit of a temper- he often was the one to cut into Vane when he stepped out of line. He was in my year and dependable. He was probably going to be Head Boy when the time came.

I was looking back and forth as the verbal spat went through the usual. I was dead bored, and I gav ea big sigh, looking to Remus, who too, looked a bit bored about it all. Remus was the male counter part to my position.

He was kind of tall, with sandy blonde hair. His eyes were kind, and had a nice smile. He was really smart- almost as smart as I was. He, out of his little group of friends, was actually a person. He was the voice of reason between us two. Remus did have this frail look about him though- like he was just a bit sick.

Whenever I asked him about it though he seemed to brush it off. His clothes were kind of second hand; more than once I have mended the holes in his robes from rips, when he wasn't looking of course. I didn't want him to think I thought he wasn't able to take care of himself.

"Evans what are you huffing for? Sucking up all of the air like a muggle-"

Okay. So Evans was me.

Or maybe by now, you knew that.

My whole magical life- Vane, and all of his little lackeys have made my life miserable when they could. Except over the years I have grown a backbone- Adelea, one of my best friends says I just have an out of hand temper.

So now, when he says something like that- referring to me being a muggle-born, I find it hard to keep in control of my emotions.

"Vane, do not talk to me. Why don't you just go into the broomcloset and continue what you and Elizabeth were doing last week? I think you are just the most agrreable person when your tounge is down her throat, especially because then I don't have to hear her either. Then again, she;d probably scream when you two shag, well unless your smaller than a-"

"Lily!" Remus said my name in a strained way, his eyeslit up, though his mouth was in a frown.

"Evans you don't know anything-"

"So lets go over the list for the month about partners," Oliver said quickly cutting Vane off and pulling out a piece of parchment.

"Maniaci and Peartree, Dave and Barone, Lupin and I, Vane and Evans, Liv and Brown,"

Liv said, and Oliver nodded smiling. Those two worked together like they were really one person sometimes- it was kind of scary.

I huffed realizing I was stuck with this creature until November.

Pairing up, I huffed again, lingering around Andy while she waited for Rose to pull away from Dave.

"I can't believe I'm stuck with him-"

Andy, flicking her mane over her shoulder, shrugged. "It can be worse. At least vane gives you some type of stimulation…."

Looking over I saw how rose was receiving words of encouragement, and I rolled my eyes. "At least she wont try and take you off the map," I mumbled.

Giving a wistful smile, Andy tugged on my red locks, winking. "See you in the morning Red."

XoXoXoXoXoXoXoX

Last night was an utter disaster.

I wont give you the details, but, Ill just say they strike again.

And made right fools of us as well.

All I could remember was the scar on the of the neck of the guy who ran strait past me.

That, and the ceiling. There was also the fact that the thing that bugged me most was the fact that when I called Remus, he looked away. He bloody looked away.

Shaking my head, I decided on not thinking about last night. Blocking out last nights events were easy- compared to everything else, the surreal ness that was last night was easily packed away.

It was early morning- right before breakfast actually, and I was still in bed, staring at the ceiling .The room the girls and I slept in, was the standard room in Hogwarts. That is, until Marlene and I decided that we wanted something better. Now our beds were king-sized and have flowing silk from the tops of the posts, the floor a soft carpet like, and a blazing fire- though we haven't used it yet. Our things were hidden well enough were it almost looked as if the beds were floating in ribbons of red and gold.

Partly because I was just sick to my stomach about the fiasco last night, partly because Dela was curled up on me0 I just laid there a second longer. Not to mention Del wouldn't be a nice person is she didn't sleep until fifteen minutes before breakfast.

Adelea Clearwater was about 5'2" and looked just like a doll. She had soft brown skin, with wide big brown eyes- her lips were full and had a button nose. Her eyelashes were thick and framed her eyes, and her smile reached from one side of her face to the other. She was chubby in a cute kid way, though not because she was lazy.

In fact she was on the Quidditch team as a Beater, and was damn good at it if I say myself. The only thing is that she slept a lot- she struggles to stay awake even in class after a full nights sleep. It was unusual not to see her yawning and stretching, or taking a short nap whenever we stayed in one place too long. Usually her thick, very soft and curly hair framed her- it was down past her waist, and she never let anyone touch it. Right now it was in a long braid, with wisps of it coming at.

"Adel, lets get up—come on, lets go."

Adelea frequently had nightmares. She hardly ever used her bed- she was always slept with Marlene, MJ or I; when she first came, it wasn't unusual that she would cry or scream. She never let on what the fuss was about, but Like Marlene suggested- unless she wanted to tell us, we weren't ever going to know.

She had come in second year; she looked like a first year, but instead came and wedged herself between James and Sirius on the day of the feast. It was sort of strange, but Adelea, who was actually American had grew up with him, and he was her safe place in our large school.

Even now, James never pranked her- and they both had gotten in affair amounts of trouble when she would sneak to his rooms when she would have the worse of the nightmares. They called their selves siblings.

Hmmph.

"No…Liliana, can I just miss breakfast…? I promise to be in class-"

"No! Up!"

There was a groan and soon we were dressed. Adelea had gotten ready pretty quick and was back on top of my sheets getting a few minutes of sleep in and I hurried, looking in the mirror.

My hair was too red and too long- it fell like a sheet over my shoulder, and contrasted with my skin. Sometimes I swear I was a step from a ghost, but MJ said I lack the transparency part to achieve that. My eyes were vibrant, and soul-searching green; Marlene says how Andy's eyes got information, and strikes fear, my eyes gave friendship and rest.

And I could really see that, because people always came to me for advice. Hey, Ill never know- I don't think they knew how messed up my life really was.

"Are we going or can I sleep?" came the sleepy voice of Del, her eye open now. She was getting spicy, so I guess it was time to get her food before she got worse. Throwing on a smile, and rubbing my face, Adel and I were off and down the corridors, to the great hall.

I hoped I didn't find trouble on the way there.

XoXoXoXoXoXoXoX

So I found trouble on the way there. In fact I found it rather close to the great hall in a despicable form only second to Vane- Well second third and fourth. James, Sirius, Peter and then Remus were all on the edge of the great hall, right before the doors- having it out with some Slytherins. Normally I wouldn't have said anything, because most of the time, they deserved it, but I was early in the morning, and I was a prefect now…

"Lily, Things are looking a bit tight over there with the boys," Adelea said quietly. I stopped by the doors, right in the center- praying that the other prefects would come over to help, but they were all busy, and I knew from the look Liv and Oliver were giving me, they weren't going to ruin their morning by sorting out another squabble between the group.

It was commonplace, anyway and it usually just sorted it self out.

But the look that Del was giving me- the sad little sister- protect-them- their-idiots look- was getting to me, and on a Tuesday morning I decided to ruin my day by going over there.

"Tell Leen and the girls Ill be over there in a minute. Save me a plate, will you?"

Giving me one of her bright smiles, Del moved through the crowd while I worked my ay through another one- the one that was surrounding this little tift.

To be honest, I was scared. Large crowds made me nauseous, and I was really freaking out. Merlin I didn't even know what was really going on. But Crowley, a Claw filled me in quick enough.

"Well Lily, it seems that Vane bumped Pettigrew, and Potter and Black took it personally- however Lupin is trying to get it sorted out though he is leaning more on Potter's side-"

Okay, That all I needed. Steeling my self I looked around at the people, looking for people that would make this worse. Besides the people on Vanes side, it seemed fine so I walked right in the center, between a raging Sirius and Vane wands. I carefully ignored a regretful looking Remus. I didn't want to look at him after the mess last night.

"Hold it! It too early in the morning- Wands away!"

There was a stutter on the side by Sirius- It was James, and he looked a bit flustered. "Flower please, step out of the way. Ladies like you shouldn't see things like this-"

James was handsome. I wasn't afraid to admit it- but it was the fact he was such and arse about everything that made him so unattractive. His hair was messy and dark- the best thing I like about a guy besides his personality, and had hazel eyes that if you stared too long would trap you. That's what the school said anyway-No I have never been trapped, but honestly, I had never looked him in the eyes long enough to know.

He also had this…well young kid look to him- the smooth face and the crooked grin. I had to becareful because he liked me, and you know what happens to boys when they like girls.

They go on dates.

You were thinking that, right? Well I wasn't. But I wont get on that subject now.

Anyway, Sirius of course had his eyes trained on Vane. His eyes were nothing but concentration and he was kind of tense standing next to James. Sirius had the aristocratic features every pureblood had. The good looks, the good grades, the dashing personality- well except for the fact he was in Gryffindor. So in a way he didn't have it all, but when you talk to him, you realize that that is something that he doesn't talk about, so, the school doesn't talk about it either.

His mouth was a strait line and he mumbled something like "Get your bird out of the way," or something along those lines. But maybe the blood rushing through my ears were making me delusional- because I was not a 'Bird' and definitely didn't belong to James.

Narrowing my eyes, I drew my wand, preparing for someone to strike. "Maybe you forgot Potter, but I am apart of authority for safety. And I think its best if everyone put their wands down- especially you Vane and Liz. You two are prefects. Set an Example!"

Vane only sneered at me, and I huffed. Honestly. He really pisses me off.

"I said put them down!" I yelled, grabbing the end of Vane's wand and forcing it to point toward the ground, I made a face at him. "You know Oliver and Brown will have your head, cut it out-"

Snatching away from me, Vane's eyes darkened, and he pushed me. He pushed me.

Luckily, Potter caught me, and Remus cast a disarming spell. I felt a bit off center- especially since James seemed to like to hold me. There was a flurry of harsh words between the groups, and I had to blink a bit to get everything in focus again. Someone must have jinxed me. The crowd as swimming and I felt nervous.

What would they say? That I wasn't capable of—

"You can let her go now James. I can handle it from here."

The calm, raspier voice of Marlene McKinnon was strong loud and demanding, and often, besides Liz, she was my savior in the crowds.

"Well Marlene I'm just making sure Evans is okay," he said. I felt sick- not only because of my loss of control, but the fact that he was still touching me, and Potter touching me was high on the NO list.

"Get off," I hissed, shoving away from him and went to Marlene who caught my arm.

Huffing, I gave a side look to Leen who have some type of half smile, in a knowing way.

Marlene was average height for a girl our age- though I will say she probably as going to grow a couple more inches. She had golden hair was wavy and shiny, though she always kept it in a ponytail. It reached just under her shoulders. Her eyes were a hazel color- brownish green. That color it took really depended on the season; warmer it was the browner- the colder the greener.

Leen was a player for the Team- She was a chaser, and just like Adelea, was bloody good. She was going for captain next year, and secretly I couldn't wait for her to get it- it would be something exhilarating to say you cheered for the captain because you knew her personally.

Marlene was sort of developed to be fifteen, but she had a good head on her shoulders. She was usually the common sense in the group. And with her reputation of always having things her way, well, it was just nice to have her on my side.

"You looked cozy with Jamesie. Will you finally fulfill Addy's dream of having her to favorite people together?" Marlene teased me a lot about Potters stupid crush, and honestly as flattered as I was, it was more about the fact someone actually liked me that way rather than the person who felt it.

I hated it when she ever talked about it—Id never Date James Potter. Not in my right mind.

Addy-Adelea- seemed to love us both as sister and brother, and seemed fixated on the fact James liked me. Not that it was a really a true crush, seeing as how he dated a lot of girls.

"No. Ugh, Leen, Last night's shift as horrible-" I moaned sitting at the table. My head was aching and I resisted the urge to look down the table at Liz, But I could feel the you dropped the ball stare from her a mile away.

"Yeah, I heard. How did you fall Lils? Is that even possible on a flat plane with nothing in your way?"

Leen gave a chortle, and so did Adelea who was being filled in by MJ.

"So she fell, and Roberts said Lils here just stared at the ceiling. Said Brown, who found her thought she had died for a moment." I stuck my tongue out at them, who gave innocent smiles back.

MJ was a fake blonde- don't worry she knows I call her that- but she really had dark colored hair. It was chopped in some crazy fashion from a regular muggle magazine- inspired when she saw the ones Tuney had in her room when we snuck in to borrow cash over the summer.

Her eyes were larger than Del's, and had a round face- she as really pretty but mostly she was too accustomed to looking in her divination charts to notice the stares guys gave her. She seemed worried that she as gossiping again- though I told her constantly not to, she was damage control hen the school got out of hand. I just stuck my eyebrow up at her.

"Del was curious. Don't be mad. Besides, I wanted you to tell me this morning but Del gave me the stare from under the covers-"

"You were only waking me up MJ. It was rude. You know I need my sleep."

"You sleep all the time Adel. Really!"

Holding my head, I sighed and dug into my plate.

I as burning hot about it all, and Leen was smart enough to not tease about it again. Like I wanted to relive that horrible night.

There was a loud bout of laugher near the end of the table where the boys were and I looked at Black, ho for a moment I swear had a mark right where the guy did last night.

That was when Andy came don the aisle- flushed and un-amused. Her hair drifted behind her in a way that screamed model, and she stopped abruptly to my side.

"Its them Lil, I know it." Andorra's long dark hair fell over her shoulder blocking my stares, and for a moment, her eyes seemed dead set on something. Knowing Andy, she had probably heard them doing something on the shift last night, but like always, they got away.

Her lips, glossed were pursed, and soon all of the girls were looking at me, then the boys.

Like zooming vision, James, Remus, Sirius and peter were right in my sight. They were laughing, carefree and plotting, as usual.

James, who had been the one to notice us, gave a jolly wave, winking and went back to his meal. Giving a sigh, I looked at Andy.

"I know it was them too."

We were just going to have to prove it.