Chapter One

"I can't believe you are really going to do this!" said Alyssa Cole, with amazement as she flopped down on the bed in her room.

"Me either," said Lily Evans, her bright green eyes shining with excitement.

"I mean it is our first year at our new school and you want to do this now?" said Alyssa flipping her long brown hair out of her eyes.

"Well don't you think that this is the best opportunity? I mean I have only been talking about doing this since…… well you know." Lily said looking a bit down as she remembered what she now refers to as 'the event'.

Her friend after seeing this look of melancholia decided to try to be more supportive. "Yeah I know but……. Well I guess I have no choice but to help you out." That said they both began to work on the final details for the elaborate scheme that Lily had been concocting ever since 'the event'.

fast forward four years to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where Lily is a top student.

The first night back at Hogwarts since last year found Lily sitting in the Gryffindor common room reading. She was still full from the feast and she wanted to go to bed, but her best friend and dorm mate Alyssa insisted that this year she try to become more social, so agreed to stop going to bed right after dinner every night as she had done for the past four years. She didn't really think that sitting in a secluded part of the common room reading counted as being more social but she had only agreed to stay in the common room later she had not agreed to make an attempt to speak to anyone. She reminded Alyssa of this every time Alyssa tried to drag her away from her book.

Lily was not a social butterfly like Alyssa in the least. She had kept to herself most of her four years at Hogwarts and she seriously doubted if more than five people, not including teachers, even knew her name. Alyssa on the other hand had made lots of new friends. With her long dark hair, her mysterious brown eyes, and her cocoa skin, she was also very popular with the boys. One look at Lily and boys would turn tail and run the other way. She knew that girls and boys alike made fun of the way she looked, but she didn't care. Lily had black greasy hair, pale, pimply skin, she never wore any makeup, and to top it all off she had huge thick glasses that hid her eyes so that most people who saw her couldn't even tell what color they were.

Because Lily was not popular like her friend she buried herself in school work and books. Basically she was a nerd.

I wonder if this year will be different. She thought to herself as Sirius Black yelled across the common room to one of his idiot friends.

Rewind four years to the Potter mansion where 11 year old James Potter and his friend Sirius Black are getting ready for their first year of school

James Potter was like any eleven year old, he liked to get dirty on purpose just to make his mother mad, he liked play outside with his friends, and he thought that all girls had cooties. He and his friend Sirius were packing for their first year of secondary school. They were going to attend Hogwarts along with their friends Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. The night before they were to leave, they stayed out late trying to catch the last fireflies of summer and wondering with each other about what school would be like.

"I'll bet that we get to make loads of new friends," said James as he swept his constantly messy hair out of his face.

"Yes, but not with any girls, 'cause they got cooties!" said Sirius as he too swept his shaggy dark hair out of his eyes.

"Let's make a pact to never be friends with girls, and especially to never fall in LOVE with one," James suggested.

"What's a pact?" inquired Sirius.

"It's like an oath," replied James.

"Oh, well ok. How do you go about making a pact?"

"Well if you want to make it all official like you have to write out the promise and then sign it with blood."

"Okay" said Sirius a bit shakily.

James went into his house and returned with some parchment and a quill. Then he wrote: " James Potter and Sirius Black promiss to never be friends with girls and exspecially to never fall in LOVE with one on account of they all of have cooties." Then they both pricked their fingers and smeared blood on the parchment.

"Sirius, this is gonna be a great year."

"It sure is mate, it sure is."

Fast forward four years to Hogwarts again, where James, Sirius, Remus and Peter are the most eligible bachelors around. Obviously the pact has long since been forgotten. The Marauders as the four of them are now called are the top students aside from some geeky girl who none of them ever give a second glace

"JAMES!" Sirius Black yelled across the common room as he entered it through the portrait hole.

"What mate?" the now 15 year old James Potter answered.

"There is going to be a welcome back ball next week for the upper class students which include us now that we are in our fifth year. It is a masked ball, we have to wear dress robes, and it is a come alone type thing."

"Sounds good. So shall we hit Hogsmeade tomorrow night to get new robes?"

"That work for me, how 'bout you guys?" Sirius said to Remus and Peter.

They both nodded, neither one of them looking up from their chess game.

"So we'll meet in the common room tomorrow at about eight," said James and with that he got up and went to bed not even noticing when he knocked over a pale, dark headed girl's book bag causing its contents to spill out onto the floor.

Lily looked up from her book just in time to see James Potter walk away after empting her book bag all over the common room floor. She shot him an angry glare as Alyssa came over to help her reload her stretched out back pack.

"I can't stand him!"