A/N: I don't know why this chapter took me so long to write! I worked on it every day, and still I got it out so much later than I expected. Thank you all so much for sticking with me! School has started and my schedule is crunched. I won't be able to write the weeks before the SAT, but other than that I hope to continuously write.

This chapter in particular marks a lot of turning points in the story. It's not really lengthy but it does the job. As to the question of liking it, I'm alright with it. It's not a favorite, but I hope you all enjoy. And I apologize again for the wait!

Once again, many, many thanks to give. Thanks so much Hahukum Konn, Cappygal116, Phanthom, Nietta, Suicidal Duck (wow, thanks!), DSK, LovePadfoot5867, CarmenElizabeth (hey, Gus!), living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, Kendra-the hyper one, Leah, brona, elise bentwin, glory boots, Padfootz-luvr (yep, you were 500!), Young Prewett, Kates Master (Three times!), and Jenwah (thanks so much!). You people are sooo awesome.

By the way, 500 reviews! Thanks so much!


December, 1977


New Directions

Remus was running through a forest as quickly as possible, breathing heavily, struggling to carry on. He looked back over his shoulder with apprehension, and saw no one there. He breathed a sigh of relief. "I think we lost them," he said to himself.

"There he is!" somebody suddenly growled. Remus spun around in terror to see a huge pack of werewolves gaining on him, teeth bared and smiling a twisted smiled at him. Remus groaned and kept running away from them. Suddenly, he reached a beautiful clearing, with the sun shining brilliantly through the holes between the forest leaves. The clearing looked strangely familiar, and then he remembered. It was the place where he and Faye first kissed. As he stopped to admire the scenery, suddenly he saw Faye in front of him.

"Faye?" he said, puzzled, leaning forward cautiously to see her face.

And suddenly, her face blew up ten times its original size, and she was screaming hysterically. "YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!" she cried in an anguished voice, the sound carrying clear across the forest. "YOU KILLED HIM!"

"No!" Remus protested. "I didn't!"

But Faye kept on screaming, tears pouring down her face, and behind him Remus could feel the werewolves closing in, and they laughed and laughed their mirthless, merciless cold laughter that never ceased…

"Remus, wake up!" he heard the voice of Sirius say loudly. "Wake up!"

"Give him a moment," he then heard the voice of James say.

And Remus's eyes shot open. "What's going on?" he said loudly.

"You had a bad dream, mate," Peter said quietly. "We heard you thrashing around in your bed, screaming 'No!'."

"Oh," Remus said, groaning. Sharp pains came shooting in through his arms and legs, and as he looked around, he finally remembered that he was in the hospital wing. "How long have I been in here?" he asked quietly.

"Three days," James said, forcing a smile.

Remus looked carefully at his friend for the first time, and saw that James and Sirius were covered in so many bruises and gashes that they looked like they had just been mauled. "Oh God," he said hoarsely.

"We're okay," Sirius said impatiently.

It was by far the worst full moon night the Marauders have ever had. James and Sirius didn't dare lead their friend outside the Shack, not that they could have. Moony didn't let up one single bit. The ordeal with Faye seemed to bring out the worst transformation ever. The werewolf scratched and bit with increasing strength and accuracy, much to the dismay of both Padfoot and Prongs, who were losing energy by the second. Remus never regained control that night, and James had a sinking feeling that the ordeal had left him hopeless, and he was trying very little or not at all.

By the time the sun rose, bruised and bleeding, James and Sirius dragged themselves to an obscure corner instead of upstairs, because they did not have the strength. They feared of going to Madam Pomfrey, for it seemed way too coincidental that on a day that Remus was badly hurt, they to would be badly hurt. So instead they bandaged themselves up and slept the Sunday away in their dormitory, extremely tired.

"I should have tried harder," Remus groaned. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," James said firmly. "We got through it alright. And even if you did try harder, I don't think it would have made that much of a difference. The wolf was simply too strong that night. Rest, Remus. We'll be fine."

Remus looked gratefully up at his friends. "Thanks," he croaked.

"Is Madam Pomfrey going to let you out for Christmas break?" Peter asked anxiously.

"Yeah, we're leaving tomorrow," James said. "Are you going to be out?"

"I think so," Remus nodded. "I don't think she can force me to stay in here all winter break, at least."

"Good," James said.

There was a moment of silence. Remus looked up at them apprehensively, not daring to ask the question that's been gnawing on his mind the entire time.

"No, I'm sorry, Faye has not spoken to us," Sirius said quietly, as if he could read Remus's mind.

Remus sighed sadly. "I guess we're done then. I don't blame her. I'm a werewolf…and a werewolf killed her little brother…"

"You're not blaming yourself for it, are you?" James asked shrewdly.

"No," Remus said defensively, but James could see him lying.

"Remus, it's not even close to being your fault," he said steadily. "You didn't kill her brother, and you can't blame yourself for this."

"But I understand now," Remus said quietly. "I understand why…"

The four sat in silence for a while.

"So is it over between you two?" Peter asked.

Remus sighed. "I don't know. I really don't know. I guess it's not official yet, but considering what happened…"

He closed his eyes and opened them again. "I can't choose my battles. I have to accept them as they come."

Madam Pomfrey suddenly appeared behind them. "Out!" she screeched. "This boy needs his rest, didn't I say a limit of ten minutes?"

"We forgot?" Sirius said charmingly.

"Out! Now!" she said loudly.

James, Sirius and Peter looked over one last time at Remus, then obeyed her and walked out of the hospital wing.


"It's our last patrol before Christmas break," Lily said, smiling happily. "I think we should, I don't know, celebrate or something."

"With what?" James said, laughing. "Want to go dance with Peeves?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "No way."

James smiled. "I didn't think so."

"Anyways, I'm looking forward to Christmas," Lily said.

"I thought you didn't like holidays," James said.

"Well, mainly because of my sister, I don't," Lily shrugged. "But Mum told me that Petunia would be bringing, er, her boyfriend home for Christmas…again. My God. That man is going to eat our entire house up."

James laughed.

"So, to keep myself properly amused, I will simply watch Vernon eat," Lily smiled. "It should be fun."

James grinned. "I'm looking forward to Christmas too, although I'll miss you."

"Aw," Lily said, grinning as well. She put her head on his shoulder. "I think I'll miss you too."

"You think?" James laughed, pretending to look extremely offended.

"I think," Lily said, smiling. "You know why?"

"Why?"

"I want to invite you over to meet my family for Christmas."

James stopped walking abruptly. "Whoa, Lily," he said, shocked.

"What?" she asked.

"Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, this is a huge step," James said hesitantly.

"Is that a no?" she asked, frowning.

"That's not it at all," James said. "It's just that it's a pretty big step." He paused. "Do you think we're ready for this?"

"I think so," Lily said, smiling.

James paused for a moment. "Well, I'm sure my parents wouldn't object to you coming over as well," he said, a smile spreading across his face.

"So is that a yes?" Lily laughed.

"If it's a yes for you, then it's a yes for me," James grinned.

"Well then, I guess I'll just have to say yes," Lily grinned happily.

"Great!" James said enthusiastically. "I can't wait!"

"You might want to curb that excitement," Lily laughed. "Petunia and Vernon aren't going to like you very much."

"What?" James said, pretending to be shocked. "Everybody likes me."

Lily laughed. "Sure. Whatever you say."

The truth was, Lily had been shocked at how well her dates with James had turned out. He was quite honest with her, but he was also sweet. Lily could tell that he was trying extremely hard not to mess anything up, and that made her appreciate him even more, knowing that he had put effort, real thought into going on dates with her. Lily admitted to herself that she was a bit demanding at times, and broke up with a few boyfriends because she thought she deserved more. James went above and beyond to try to make her happy, and she could tell that he wasn't messing around. He really liked her, and that made her happier than anything.

The rest of the patrol passed happily as the two of them planned out what they were going to do for Christmas. Before James knew it, patrol was over.

"I never thought I'd say this," James said. "But I think I'm actually going to miss patrol."

"Yeah, me too," Lily said. "Though I enjoy it. Well, I do now, anyway."

James smiled. "I know what you mean. Should we head back up to the common room?"

"I guess," Lily said reluctantly. "Eh, and once again, nothing happened."

James laughed. "I think we should consider ourselves lucky."

"I'm actually kind of hungry," Lily said.

"D'you want to go down to the kitchens? I know where it is," James said.

"Oh, I know too," Lily smiled. "I don't really want to bother the house elves, though."

"Oh," James said. Then, a sudden idea came to him. "Hey, Lily, d'you want to go somewhere special?"

"Where?" Lily asked. "I think I've been everywhere around the castle."

"I don't think you've been to the place that I'm thinking of," James challenged.

Lily smiled. "Well then, you're on. Lead the way."

"Okay, follow me," James said. Then, he suddenly stopped. "Wait a minute. No, we can't by the time we get there we'll be past curfew."

"So?" Lily said.

James stared at her. "So… we'll risk getting caught when we're heading back up to the common room, won't we? I mean, even though we're the Heads, we still have a curfew, and security's ten times tighter."

Lily shrugged and grinned. "Eh, just this once."

James kept on staring at her.

Lily burst out into laughter. "Weren't you the one that once told me to have a sense of adventure? Well, I'm going to loosen up for once, so are we going?"

"Of course!" James said, beaming. "Let's go."

James led her through a series of obscure passages. By now he knew the ways to avoid prefects and the places of patrol, and navigated through the castle with ease. "We're here," he finally said.

Lily stared at the place, and then stared blankly at James. "We're where?"

"I'll show you," James said, smiling mischievously. He started to pace back and forth in front of a blank slab of wall.

"This picture is relatively disturbing," Lily said, smiling a bit at the picture of the dancing trolls.

"I know," James said, grinning. Lily turned around and suddenly saw a door appear on the wall which James had just passed.

"What's this?" she said curiously.

James beckoned her over. "It's called the Room of Requirement," he said easily. "It's pretty self explanatory. You just pace back and forth in front of it three times concentrating hard on what you need."

"That's amazing," Lily said, beaming. "I never knew about this!"

"Surprisingly, more people do than I thought," James said. He reached for the door handle.

"So what did you wish for?" Lily said, smiling.

James paused, and grinned. "I think you'll see."

He held the door open for her and ushered her in. Lily gasped in delight at the sight. The room was a sight of red, with rose petals scattered everywhere. Comfortable couches lined the wall, and in the middle of the room was a round wooden table on which two plates of food, two glasses of drinks, and one single rose sat.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" Lily said. "Did you wish for a dinner?"

"Sort of," James said. "I was wishing for a romantic, quiet, comfortable place where we could have dinner."

Lily looked at him in surprise. "I didn't peg you to be the romantic type."

"I'm not," James said truthfully. "But I try."

"I see that," Lily laughed. Just then, her stomach rumbled loudly. "Oops," she said, grinning sheepishly.

James laughed. "Let's dig in, then."

"I wonder what it is," Lily said as she walked over. James pulled out her chair for her. "Thank you," she smiled as she sat. Suddenly, she laughed. "Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?"

James looked at the plates, and grimaced a bit. "I've got to be specific with the food next time," he muttered out loud.

Lily shook her head. "No, I love it," she said earnestly. "It's so simple but elegant."

"Let's hope the jelly isn't sloppy," James grinned. He sat down in his chair. "Shall we dig in?"

"Let's," Lily said.

They both bit into their sandwiches at the same time. "I guess this could be considered a date," James said, laughing once he swallowed his sandwich.

"I guess," Lily said. "And I wanted to be the one that took you out for a third date."

"I guess I fail miserably, then," James sighed.

"Not even close," Lily laughed. "I love this."

After their casual midnight dinner they relaxed together on one of the couches. "This year seems like it went by so fast," Lily sighed, reaching for James's hand. "Well, this half-year anyway. It kind of feels like yesterday that I was yelling at you for hexing Snape."

James laughed. "True. I'm really glad we got to know each other."

"Me too," Lily smiled. "I was wrong about you, James. And for the first time I'm ecstatic that I'm wrong."

James laughed. "Little miss perfect."

"Not even close," Lily laughed. She put her head on his shoulder. James felt a chill up his spine.

"Can I ask you something?" Lily said quietly after a moment of silence.

"Of course," James responded. "Anything."

Lily paused, then looked straight into his eyes. "Would you change for me?"

James looked surprised. "Of course," he said. "Of course I would. Why?"

"Because I don't want you to," Lily said.

Now James was confused. "Wait, what?"

Lily turned away from his and stared blankly at the opposite wall. "You've already changed enough."

"Huh?" James said, still confused.

Lily smiled a bit. "I really like you, James. One of the reasons that I wanted to go on a date with you was because I saw how you changed for the Head Boy job, and I was hoping, wishing that maybe you would change for me." Now she looked back at him, stared straight into his eyes, and she seemed a bit ashamed. "But I like you. You. I don't like who you could be. I don't want to change you, because the more I think about it, the more I realize that without your humor and pride and pranking streak, you wouldn't be James. You wouldn't be so dynamic, and you certainly wouldn't get on my nerves as much."

James smiled.

"And as much as it hurts me to admit it, I kind of fall for it," she smiled. "You've made me look at life past grades, and enjoy the little things that make my day."

"Wow," James said, taking a deep breath. "Am I awesome or what?"

Lily rolled her eyes and socked him playfully in the shoulder. "Cocky."

James laughed. "But you love it."

Lily laughed too. "I guess I do."

They looked deep into each other's eyes. "Now I have a question to ask you," James said, not taking his eyes off of hers.

"Of course, anything," Lily said.

Their faces seemed to magnetically move closer together. "Do you believe in taking chances?"

Lily smiled. "I didn't," she whispered. "But you make me believe."

And with a courage she didn't know she possessed, Lily leaned closer and kissed him.

James knew as soon as their lips touched that it was meant to be. He thought back to his first kiss with Rachael in Hogsmeade. He had wondered where the fireworks were, and he realized that he had held out this long for just this one moment, when his heart was full and he felt nothing but pure love. He had waited this long for something that felt right.

And it was worth it a million times over.


Lily and James got back very, very late from the Room of Requirement, so late that both Remus, Peter, Sirius and Marcella were waiting for them in the common room when they came through he portrait hole.

"Thank God!" Marcella sighed in relief. "Where were you two? We thought you two had died while on patrol!"

"Aren't you guys supposed to be asleep?" Lily frowned.

"We should ask you the same question," Sirius said slyly.

Both James and Lily flushed.

"We were-"

"We just-"

"I don't need to hear an explanation," Remus laughed.

"Where'd you guys go?" Peter asked interestedly.

"We don't want to know," Sirius said firmly. On the side, he shot James a wink that only James could see. But when he turned back toward the group, Remus thought he saw a flicker of a shadow behind his eyes that was both dark and angry, but in the next second, it was gone.

The next morning, Remus, Peter, Sirius and Marcella went for a nice stroll on the grounds before they had to pack to leave Hogwarts. Lily and James were too tired to get up.

"This is so nice," Marcella said, looking appreciatively at the dewy morning grass. "It's hard to think that half a year from now, we'll no longer be students here."

"Please don't say that," Sirius groaned. "I don't want to think about it."

"Isn't that why we're outside?" Remus shrugged. "To enjoy the last Christmas vacation we'll ever have while still at Hogwarts."

"Don't say that," Sirius said again through gritted teeth.

"Alright," Remus shrugged.

The four were eagerly engaged in conversation and Sirius occasionally planted a kiss on Marcella. Suddenly, Peter went sprawling forward.

"What the-?" Sirius said, spinning around. Then, his face became stony. Snape and Regulus were walking right behind them.

"We thought your friend needed a little push. He was in our way," Regulus sneered.

"You watch it," Sirius growled, pulling out his wand. Snape and Regulus instantly pulled out theirs as Remus and Peter whipped out their wands as well.

"Sirius, what's going on," Marcella said, looking confused.

"Step back," Sirius snapped.

Marcella didn't move. Sirius shoved her to the side, a little more roughly than he had meant to. "Sirius!" Marcella said angrily.

"We seem to be missing a member of the pack," Snape said, interrupting Sirius and Marcella's exchange. "Aah," he said slowly, sneering. "Where is Potter?"

"Asleep," Remus said testily.

"Couldn't drag his pride out of bed this morning, could he," Snape spat.

Something flickered in Sirius's eyes.

"Sniv-Severus, stop," Remus said stonily. "We're too old for this."

"We're not too old for this," Regulus snarled, and shot a spell at Remus, knocking him off his feet.

Sirius let out a growl of rage and flew at Snape, who stood closer to him than Regulus did. Remus and Marcella both made a grab for him, but it was too late. As Sirius tackled Snape and knocked him on his back, Regulus aimed at his brother. The next second, Sirius was blasted off of Snape and landed on the grass a couple feet away.

Snape dragged himself back up and aimed his wand at Remus, who thought quickly and spotted Professor McGonagall talking to a fellow teacher across the yard. "Hello, Professor McGonagall!" Remus called out loudly.

Both Snape and Regulus paled a bit as McGonagall nodded back.

"Let's go," Regulus muttered. He and Snape quickly swept away.

Marcella quickly ran over to Sirius and knelt down beside him. "Sirius," she said loudly. "Sirius, can you hear me?"

Sirius groaned and moved a bit on the ground. He sat up slowly, hand on his head, and then immediately sprung up as if nothing had happened. "Where's Snivellus?" he growled, holding his wand up on top of his head.

"Easy," Remus said, pulling Sirius's arm down.

"They left," Peter said.

"They left?" Sirius roared. "Where did they go? I want to destroy them!"

"Sirius!" Marcella said, alarmed. "Alright, let's look at this rationally."

"Rational?" Sirius laughed bitterly. "Rational? I'm not a rational person, Marcella. You don't know anything about me."

"I'm trying to," she snapped. "Can't you see that?"

There was a long moment of silence.

"I think we should go," Remus said, edging away. "Come on, Wormtail. Let's get out of here."

"Don't," Sirius said in a voice that had a hint of pleading.

"Sorry," Remus said, shooting a small smile at Sirius. He turned away and Peter followed him into the castle.

"Sirius, talk to me," Marcella said at length.

"I don't want to," Sirius snapped.

"Well, I'm confused," Marcella pressed on. "I've seen you and Snape fight, but I've never seen so much hatred on anyone's face. I don't think even Snape can make you do that. Who was that other guy? The guy with Snape?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Sirius said testily.

"I do!" Marcella exclaimed loudly. "Why do you do this, Sirius? Why can't you just talk to me? You're so closed, that I feel like I know absolutely nothing about you!"

"I'm not an open person," Sirius snapped. "Alright? There. Now you know something about me."

"Well I know something about me," Marcella said stonily. "I won't stand for this. If you don't talk, Sirius, we're done."

"God, what is it with girls and talking?" Sirius exploded, thinking back to Nora. "Why do you all feel the need to talk everything out? How the hell do you know it'll make things better?"

"Have you tried it?" Marcella challenged.

Sirius paused.

"Then how do you know?"

Sirius glared at her, but his face softened a bit. "I don't," he said roughly. He looked straight at her, and saw in her eyes that she really did care, and wasn't there to condescend or berate him. He waited for her to say something, but she didn't. She waited it out. And Sirius realized that he had met somebody special.

"Why are you so patient with me?" he asked.

"I like you," Marcella responded.

"Why?" Sirius said.

Marcella paused. "Right now, I don't know."

They stared straight at each other

"That was my brother with Snape, did you know that?" Sirius said finally. "A little brother whose idiot head found its way deep into the dark arts, the hole I've spent my life trying to stay out of."

Marcella said nothing. She waited.

"We used to be close." Sirius let out a bitter laugh. "Do you know how hard it is to see him with Snape? I don't know who I hate more right now-Snape for being a greasy git or Regulus for being a full-on idiot."

"You can't hate your brother," Marcella said, voice warbling for the first time.

"Maybe you can't," Sirius snapped. "I can. Maybe you come from a tight, loving family, but I don't. They hate me, I hate them, except for Uncle Al and Andromeda."

"Hate is a strong word," Marcella said carefully.

"You can't tell me that you haven't hated anyone," Sirius said in surprise.

Marcella shook her head. "I haven't."

They sat in silence.

"I know we're different," Marcella said at length. "You hate your brother. My brother almost didn't come with us to Mexico. He would have died along with my mother and sister. I'm close with my dad. I heard you stuck a wand in your dad's eye." She turned to look at him. "But it doesn't matter, Sirius. I just need to know anytime something's bothering you. You can't bottle it up. Maybe you wouldn't want to confide in me, but you need to confide to somebody. Please talk to me once in a while, even if it's about the most trivial things. Can you promise me that?"

Sirius took one look at her pained face and nodded. "I think I can do that."

She smiled. "Good. That's what I want to hear."

They leaned in to kiss each other. As their lips touched, Sirius couldn't help but marvel at the situation. For the first time, a girl had really made him talk, even if only for a bit. However, Sirius had the sinking feeling that James was right, and that Marcella was looking for a long-term relationship. Deep in his heart, he didn't want that…did he?


"I'm nervous," James moaned to Sirius. "I'm so nervous."

Sirius rolled his eyes slightly. "What do you have to be worried about?" he said impatiently. "I mean, honestly. You're only going to see her family. It's not a life or death situation. You'll be fine."

"I feel like I'd rather duel with Snivelly," James sighed. "Or get in ten million detentions, though I haven't been in one for a while."

"More like the entire year," Sirius muttered.

James didn't seem to hear him. "I'm afraid I'll mess up, Padfoot. I really like her."

I know, Sirius said vindictively inside his head. He didn't say that. Instead, he smiled. "I know," he said calmly. "Maybe you should lighten up a little bit. I'm sure if you're all stiff they'll notice."

"Yeah," James said absently. "I would take on Snivellus instead of doing this any day."

Sirius glanced at James. There was no lack of emotion in his face, but he seemed solely concentrated on Lily. Lily. It was all Sirius heard these days. Good people don't get jealous of their best friend's girlfriend, but Sirius couldn't help it. He never thought he was a good person anyway.

"Did it ever occur to you," Sirius said quietly. "That you'd rather duel Snape because it's a battle you know you can win?"

James stared at Sirius and realized with a mixture of both pride and shame that they were growing up. He sat silently for a while, contemplating this. "You're right," he said finally. "I choose battles I can win."

Sirius saw a shadow of doubt in James's eyes. "You'll be fine," he said knowingly as if he could read James's mind. "You can win this one." His tone was oddly encouraging. It sounded distant even to him-not fake or superficial. Just distant. "Lily's parents can't be that hard to charm."

James grimaced. "I don't know about that. I probably shouldn't be worried, but I am. I'm not worried about them hating me. That I can handle. I'm worried about disappointing Lily."

Sirius looked at James and realized that on normal days in the past six years, James would have recognized Sirius's distant tone and realized something wasn't quite right. He opened his mouth to make an angry comment, but couldn't do it. Instead, he plastered on a grin, realizing that in the past six years James would have realized that it was fake as well.

"Charm the heck out of them," Sirius said lightly instead, barely hearing his own voice.

James grinned too. "Yeah."

A couple of minutes later, Sirius watched his best friend walk down the stairs to go to a girl that he liked, maybe on the verge of loving. And he felt in his heart a sense of loss deeper than the sense of hate that had been spent on his brother. And he realized just how much of a brother James really was to him.

James was literally shaking as he walked toward the fireplace. His trembling hand reached into the pot that held the floo powder.

"James," he heard his mother call out. "James!"

James quickly withdrew his hand from the pot, secretly glad for the distraction. "I'm here, mum," he said.

Mrs. Potter walked into the room. "Oh there you are, dear," she said happily. "Were you getting ready to go to Lily's?"

James nodded. "Yeah."

"Well you don't sound so excited," Mrs. Potter said shrewdly.

"I am," James said defensively. "I'm just… scared."

"It's the first time that I've heard that in a long while," Mrs. Potter mused, smiling. She put her hand on her son's shoulder. "You're my son, James. I know how you are. It's great to be brave, but…sometimes it's okay to be scared too. It doesn't make you weaker. In fact, I think it makes your relationship with Lily stronger."

James smiled. "Thanks, mum."

"No problem," Mrs. Potter said. "Oh, by the way, when is Lily coming over for dinner?"

"I'm going there today," James said. "I'll probably bring her tomorrow. Is tomorrow good? Dad doesn't have anything to do, does he?"

"I hope not," Mrs. Potter said, smiling weakly. "We only have two days off, but I would love to meet this Lily, and I'm sure your father would too. She sounds like a great girl."

"She is," James nodded. "She is."

"Well, go on, then," Mrs. Potter smiled. "You don't want to be late."

"Thanks, mum," James said as his mother walked back toward the kitchen. He refocused his attention on the fireplace and the floo powder, steadying himself. Then, he sighed, thinking back to what Remus had said in the hospital wing. "Remus was right," he said out loud to no one in particular. "We can't choose our battles. Not anymore."

Then, James took a longing look at the fireplace and saw a brilliant red brick that reminded him so much of Lily's hair, and he grinned. "I'm coming, Lily," he said quietly. Then he took the floo powder, flung it into the fireplace, and disappeared among a swirl of green flames.