Author's Note:

I have a very busy week ahead of me and won't have time to post this weekend, so in lieu of waiting a week, I am instead posting early! Hope you enjoy the chapter!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the scene from JKR, just tweaked it a bit.

Reviews and Comments: To alix33: Even little eleven-year-old Peter creeps you out? But he's so sweet. Thank you! To Tonirae: Thank you! I like the idea of Peter being Remus' first friend too. It really shows how much it hurt Remus when he was ultimately betrayed. To LHNB: Thank you! We will definitely see more of little Remus! To scrappy8: Thank you! To ellyann13: Yes, two lonely frightened boys. It's sad that their friendship ends in betrayal. Thank you! To Sara: Thank you! Remus is very mature for his age, which has a lot to do with how he was raised and the trauma he's suffered in his life. Peter was very sweet in the beginning. They loved him which makes the betrayal that much worse. Thank you! To wolfjinx15474: I agree, it does make the betrayal hurt more. Well, as you know, Peter was coerced into turning but yes, we will see more of it. He was a Marauder and I wanted to include that. Thank you!

To EnigmaticEmperor: Thank you. Little Remus is so cute and mature! He's reigning champion for himself LOL. I think magical parents like to let kids experience the wonder of Hogwarts in every way possible. Thank you! To darkhk: Thank you! I like that as well as that they each found a friend before blending together to become the Marauders we know and love. To marauders_mowopapr: Complicated feelings about Peter are acceptable. I love showing Remus having parents who love him, he deserves that. He deserves the world! Thank you! To PurpleLotus: Thank you! I'm glad you still see the excitement and possibilities of a new friendship blooming, despite the darkness we know will come. Thank you!

My posting schedule: Weekly.

Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.

As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!

CHAPTER SEVEN:

The One Where Lily Meets James

1st September 1971…

Severus Snape was standing nearby watching out for Lily with his dark intense eyes. His greasy black hair was in his eyes and he was holding onto his trolley so tightly that his knuckles had whitened in their grip. His mother Eileen, a rather plain looking woman, stood behind him with a severe look on her face.

He didn't see his friend anywhere, but his eyes fell on a small scrawny boy standing nearby with his parents. He had black hair sticking up in every which direction and round glasses. He was practically bouncing up and down on his feet.

"Look Mum! There it is!" James called out, turning Snape's attention away from the platform where he had been looking for his friend Lily.

Euphemia shook her head in amusement. She couldn't contain the ball of excitement that was her eleven-year-old-son. "James, come here!" she insisted, attempting to tame his messy hair. "You could have at least combed your hair this morning!"

James maneuvered out of her grip, grinning broadly. "Nah, looks better this way! Don't you think so, Dad?"

Fleamont only grinned widely, hands in his pockets as he danced on the heels of his feet. "You'll change your mind when you get older. Leave him, Fee, he's fine. Another strong Gryffindor!"

"Monty! You don't know that he's going to be in Gryffindor! He's a smart young man, maybe Ravenclaw is his house," Euphemia insisted, shooting her husband a look of despair.

Fleamont winked at his son. "Gryffindor," he whispered making James laugh. "Got to make your granddad proud."

James laughed when his mum elbowed his dad playfully in the ribs. "The hat always knows what's best, James; don't listen to your father."

Fleamont winked again. "Little secret, Jamie, the hat takes your opinion into count, but any house would make me proud if it's what you wanted."

Euphemia was picking lint and dog hair off of the back of James' shirt. "Jamie! How did you get so dirty already, we just left the house?"

"Mum," he said in exasperation, wiggling out from her grasp. When she only stared at him, he sighed and wrapped his arms around her. "I'll be fine, Mum! I'll make friends and study hard and play lots and lots of Quidditch."

Euphemia hugged her son close, kissing his cheeks. "What am I going to do without you hanging around the house all of the time?" She kissed his forehead. "I love you, my darling boy."

James blushed in embarrassment and moved to hug his dad. "I love you too, Mum! Geez — it's not like you're never going to see me again!"

Fleamont laughed and hugged his son close. "Behave yourself." He kissed his son's cheek and then held him close for a moment.

"There's your friend Lily, Severus," Mrs Snape said, tearing Snape's rather jealous gaze from the boy hugging his father to watch Lily with her parents and sister. He moved closer so that he could hear what she was saying. He watched as Lily bit her bottom lip and squeezed her father's hand tightly. The big red steam engine bearing the words 'Hogwarts Express' flashed before them.

"I see Severus over there, Lily. He's not worried about going off on the train," Deacon Evans said, pointing over to where Snape was hovering, eavesdropping on the conversation with her family.

Lily smiled up at her father. "I know, Dad. I see him."

Deacon knelt down in front of his daughter, gently tucking her long red hair behind her ears. "Are you nervous, sweetie?"

She nodded, stealing a glance at her big sister of three years, Petunia, who was standing next to their mother, arms crossed in annoyance in front of her. Her mother, Cecilia, caught her glance and smiled warmly at her and Lily swallowed carefully. "Tuney is still cross with me."

Deacon glanced back at his eldest daughter and sighed. "Petunia is a very stubborn young girl, like someone else that I know," he added, making Lily blush. "But today is about you, Lily, not Petunia. You have been given a wonderful gift. Something that no one else in this family has ever before been given. The gift of magic." He kissed her forehead, smiling when she threw her arms around his neck to hug him tightly. "I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you, Daddy," she whispered, her face buried in his shoulder.

When he stood up, patting her gently on the head, she turned to run into her mum's arms. Cecilia hugged her close and kissed the top of her head.

"Now, you be a good girl, Lily. Study hard and practice your skills."

"I will, Mum, I promise."

Cecilia smiled and gently ran a finger down her daughter's cheek. "And don't forget to have fun, too." She tapped Lily's nose, making her smile.

"I will."

"I love you, Lily," Cecilia said, kissing her cheek.

"I love you, Mum."

Lily turned towards her sister. Petunia's arms were still crossed in front of her and she had a snooty look on her face like something smelt terrible nearby. Lily simply wrapped her arms around her sister's waist, hugging her tightly.

"I'm going to miss you so much, Tuney!"

Petunia snorted, attempting to push her sister off, but Lily only hugged her tighter making Snape snort as Petunia continued to attempt to disentangle herself. "Honestly, Lily! Let go!"

Lily pulled back and looked up at her sister. "Aren't you even a little sad that you won't see me until Christmas?"

"No."

"I'm sorry, Tuney, I'm sorry! Listen —" She caught her sister's hand when she pushed her away and held tight onto it even though Petunia tried to pull it from her grasp. "Maybe once I'm there — no listen, Tuney! Maybe once I'm there, I'll be able to go to Professor Dumbledore and persuade him to change his mind!"

"I don't — want — to — go!" Petunia said, and she dragged her hand back out of her sister's grasp. "You think that I want to go to some stupid castle and learn to be a — a —" Her pale eyes roved over the platform, over the cats mewling in their owner's arms, over the owls fluttering and hooting at each other's cages, over the students, some already in their long, black robes, loading trunks on to the scarlet steam engine or else greeting one another with glad cries after a summer apart. "You think that I want to be a — a freak?"

Lily's eyes filled with tears as Petunia succeeded in tugging her hand away. "I'm not a freak. That's a horrible thing to say."

"That's where you're going," Petunia said with relish. "A special school for freaks. You and that Snape boy… weirdos, that's what you two are. It's good you're being separated from normal people. It's for our safety."

Lily glanced towards her parents, who were looking around the platform with an air of wholehearted enjoyment, drinking in the scene. Then she looked back at her sister, and her voice was low and fierce.

"You didn't think that it was such a freak's school when you wrote to the Headmaster and begged him to take you!"

Petunia turned scarlet. "Beg? I didn't beg!"

"I saw his reply. It was very kind."

"You shouldn't have read —" Petunia whispered. "That was my private — how could you —?"

Lily gave herself away by half glancing towards where Severus stood nearby.

Petunia gasped. "That boy found it! You and that boy have been sneaking in my room!"

"No — not sneaking!" Now Lily was on the defensive. "Severus saw the envelope and he couldn't believe a Muggle could have contacted Hogwarts, that's all! He says there must be wizards working undercover in the postal service who take care of —"

"— Apparently wizards poke their noses in everywhere!" Petunia said, now as pale as she had been flushed. "Freak!" she spat at her sister and she flounced off to where her parents stood.

Lily moved over as well to hug her parents one last time, promising to write home every week and her heart breaking a little as her big sister pointedly ignored her. She grabbed her trolley. She waved goodbye and made her way over to Snape, narrowly escaping a scrawny dark-haired boy with glasses who almost crashed into her trolley in his attempt to get onto the train.

"Sorry!" he called out, stopping to smile at her.

Lily smiled back, trying not to let him see the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. His grin lit up his whole face and it was impossible not to smile back at him. "It's all right; no harm done."

The boy grinned widely at her, adjusting his glasses. "I'm just excited to get on the train. I'm James."

"Lily," she said, accepting his hand. "Have you been to Hogwarts before?"

He nodded, bouncing on the balls of his feet as if he has too much energy to stand still. "Once with my mum, but it was in the summer and no students were there. I'm a first year. I can't wait to be sorted into Gryffindor and to watch some Quidditch games! It's going to be the best year ever! Are you a first year, too?"

Lily found it was impossible not to smile back at him. "Yes. What's Quidditch?"

"Only the best sport in the whole world! You'll see! Come on; you can sit with me if you'd like!" he told her.

Lily pointed to where Snape was standing by awkwardly watching them. "My friend is waiting for me."

"He can come too," James told her, waving at Snape.

Snape merely glowered at him and James shrugged, turning back to Lily.

"Well, if you can't find a compartment I'll save you a seat."

"Thanks, James."

He waved goodbye and carefully lugged his trunk up the steps to the train with the help of an older boy. Lily headed over to Snape.

"That was James. He's a first year, too. He told me about Gryffindor, another house."

"Slytherin is the only house that matters, Lily," Snape told her shortly. "Trust me, you don't want to be in any other house."

"You don't even know if you will be in Slytherin House yet, Sev!"

He shrugged, brushing his hair out of his eyes. "I just know. What did Petunia say to you to make you so upset?"

Lily shrugged as the tears threatened her eyes again. "I know you could hear her, Sev! She hates me and it's your fault! You snooped and found that letter from Dumbledore."

Snape's mouth opened in surprise. "It's not my fault that she left it lying open in her trash bin like that. And you don't need her, Lily!"

"She's my sister!"

"She's only a —" He caught himself quickly; Lily, too busy trying to wipe her eyes without being noticed, did not hear him. "Come on; let's go find a compartment."

Lily gripped the handle of her trunk a little tighter and led the way onto the scarlet steam engine, trying to stop her unshed tears from blurring her eyes.

End Author's Notes:

I made up the names Deacon and Cecilia for Lily's parents.

Thanks for reading and please review!