It was terrible. The look on his face when he had spoken that name, and the way his mouth felt as it wrapped itself around those three syllables. He felt almost diry, because that word was one of the worst he could have spoken.

It was terrible. The look on his face when he had spoken that name, and the way his mouth felt as it wrapped itself around those three syllables. He felt almost dirty; because that word was one of the worst he could have spoken.

He stared around the circle at the others faces, and noted the disgust they all had. It was almost like someone had taken a quill and written it upon their foreheads.

Those three syllables. Innocent while apart, but when they were put together, they became a name he did not want to hear, see, think or speak. But he had. He'd spoken that word, and he'd felt awful as it came out of his mouth. He felt almost like having a shower. He felt a kind of dirtiness, something that just made him want to stand under the rushing for water for hours, until he was sure the mark of that word had left him.

He was only 21 years old when he said it, young and innocent. Well, not really innocent, but well, innocent in the ways that count. He looked around the circle of friends and thought about the story behind each one....

*  *  *  *  *

"Hello, um, I need to get fitted for my Hogwarts robes, please."

"Yes dear. Right this way."

He went and stood on the stool she had indicated. There was another boy there. Long curly black hair, a huge grin on his face and a wicked kind of glint in his eye.

"Hi," The other boy said. "My name's Sirius Black. What's yours?"

"James Potter," He replied and grinned back at the boy.

"Great to meet you James," Sirius said, and stuck out his hand.

James reached out and shook it. " Good to..."

BZZZT.

"OW!" He cried, jerking his hand away. "What the...?"

Sirius grinned even wider. "Joy buzzer," He said, showing James his hand. "Muggle invention."

"Oh... cool!" James exclaimed.

Madam Malkin walked over to the both of them and handed them both a large brown parcel. "There you go boys. You may go now."

They jumped off the stools and raced outside, where Matthew Potter, James' father, waited. He was talking to another man, a man with the same grin as Sirius, and the same messy hair.

"Ahh, Boys!" Lake Black, Sirius' father, cried. "Great to see you! How about we go for an ice-cream?"

"Sure!" Both boys replied eagerly.

"Oh yes. Joel, my son Sirius."

Sirius grinned and stuck out his hand....

*  *  *  *  *  *

Sirius and James walked into the train station. They both held owl cages, with an owl in each. Sirius had an Eagle owl and James owned an Australian Powerful owl. He'd gotten it as a birthday present from his parents, the year before he started at Hogwarts. Today would be his first day, and he couldn't wait.

The Blacks and the Potters directed the boys toward the Barrier. Sirius and James went first, followed by the adults.

They burst into a noisy platform, full of witches and wizards. There were hundreds of children standing around, saying good-bye to parents, struggling to get their trunks aboard, and greeting old friends.

"We'll see you later ok boys. Don't forget to send an owl every now and then."

"Sirius, if hear a single word, about you using that damned joy buzzer on a teacher... ON second thoughts, give it here. I don't trust you an INCH my boy."

Sirius' smile fell. "Aw, common dad!" he pleaded. "I won't use it on a teacher, I promise. I'll only use it on the students! PLEASE?!"

"No absolute way Sirius. No! You're not getting back the damn buzzer. Now go get on the train before it leaves you behind!"

Sirius grinned again and hugged his mother. He held his and out to father, who shook it, knowing he wouldn't be shocked this time!

BZZZT.

Mr. Black gave out a shout and began to chase Sirius toward the train. Sirius laughed delightedly, and leaped onto the train. His father stood at the stairs shaking his head at his son. "I was just like you as a boy..." He muttered, then handed the trunk up to his son. "Please stay out of trouble!" He begged.

James jumped up beside Sirius and helped him pull his trunk inside. Then he pulled his own into the compartment.

The train began to move away. They leaned out the window and waved to their parents.

It pulled out of the station.

"Excuse me guys, but you could you um, help me move this trunk please? It's WAY to heavy. God, my parents bought me SO many books."

They turned around and saw a wizard their age behind them.

"Yeah sure." Sirius replied and helped him move the trunk.

The boy smiled at them both. "Thanks," He said gratefully. "I'm Remus Lupin. Who are you?"

James stuck out a hand. "James Potter." Remus shook his hand then turned to Sirius.

"Sirius Black," He said, and grinned widely. He stuck out a hand. Remus reached for it.

"Great to meet..."

BZZZT.

*  *  *  *  *

They entered the great hall. James, Sirius and Remus stood together in the line leading to the sorting hat. They waited in heavy anticipation, desperately wanting the hat to tell them they were in Griffindor... It was the house they craved. The house they needed. They all belonged there and they knew. But one thought terrified them. What if the hat didn't think so? Imagine if they ended up in... Slytherin?

James shook his head. No way would that happen... He knew where he had come from. He didn't only deserve to be in Griffindor, he was Griffindor... The blood of his house passed down through his father. He belonged to that house and that house belonged to him.

Professor McGonagall began to call the names. Sirius was one of the first. The hat thought hard... then the rip opened. "GRIFFINDOR!" It cried. The Griffindor table exploded into applause.

The line began to get shorter, and then it was Remus' turn. The moment he sat down the hat screamed out, "Griffindor!" The table exploded once again.

The person before James was a short, pudgy boy, who looked extremely nervous. James looked at him kindly. "Good luck! Hope you get the house you want." The boy smiled back at him, but before he could say anything McGonagall called his name. "Pettigrew, Peter." The boy went to the seat and sat down. He pulled the hat over his head and waited. To James' surprise he began to hear a voice in his ear. He turned but no one was there. The voice seemed to be talking to someone about something important.

It was saying: "Well I don't know. You're not a Hufflepuff. Oh no. Defiantly not Hufflepuff. And no, not Ravenclaw either.... hmmm. I can see Slytherin in you. Yes, Slytherin seems almost right."

He heard another voice then. "NO! NOT SLYTHERIN! PLEASE!"

James realized with a start that he could hear the sorting hat talking. He had heard it before, but mistook it for the noise in the hall. But now he could plainly hear the sorting hat, and what it was saying to Peter Pettigrew.

The rip opened. "GRIFFINDOR!"

Then it was James' turn. He sat down and put the hat on his head. Instead of hearing a voice in his ear, the hat shouted out very loudly to the entire hall. The students gasped. They hadn't seen the hat do that before.

It seemed to be shouting for joy. 'Weirdo,' James thought. 'Sort me will you!' The hat stopped crying. He heard the voice in his ear and in the hall this time.

"THE HEIR! THE HEIR! Griffindor! THE HEIR HAS RETURNED!"

The entire room collectively gasped, then began to whisper to themselves. Dumbledore smiled to himself, then swept over to James and the hat. He quietly took the hat from James's head and smiled at him. "The hat seems to have made his choice," he murmured. "You know where you belong." James smiled back and stood. He began to walk to the Griffindor table. They exploded into a huge round of screams and shouts. The noise rung in his ears. He could hear people shouting. They were all so happy. He could hear so many voices, but they all seemed to be saying the same thing. "WE GOT THE HEIR! WE GOT THE HEIR!!"

James sat down with Remus and Sirius and smiled at the boy next to him. It was Peter. "Hi. I'm James."

Peter smiled back and said pointedly, "I know."

James grinned. The noise died down and the hat went on sorting. It finally finished and Dumbledore allowed them to begin eating.

Remus and Sirius leaned around James to introduce themselves to Peter.

"Hi, I'm Remus" he said, and stuck out his hand. Peter shook it, grinning widely.

Sirius reached out his hand. "I'm Sirius."

Peter reached for it. "I'm Pet..."

BZZZT!

*  *  *  *  *

Two Years Later

*  *  *  *  *

James and Sirius walked down the hall. They were waiting for Remus to finish talking to Professor Dumbledore. They were walking backwards and forward in front of the stone gargoyle that marked the entrance to Dumbledore's office, when a girl came running around the corner. She crashed right into James and fell over. Her bag went flying out of her grasp and her books fell out.

James reached out a hand to help her up while Sirius reached for her books. She grinned. "Thanks."

"No problem," replied James, smiling back at her. She was pretty.

"Do you know where Dumbledore's office is? I can't find it."

In there, but he's talking to our friend Remus at the moment. You'll have to wait for them to finish." Sirius said, handing her books to her.

"OH! Sorry, I didn't introduce myself," She grinned again. "I'm Lily Evans."

"James smiled back at her again. She was getting prettier the longer he stood there. "I'm James Potter."

"Hey I know you! You're the Griffindor Heir! And the Quidditch Captain! Wow! Great to meet you!"

"That's my pleasure," James replied.

'I'm sure it is,' Sirius thought at him, with a mischievous grin on his face.

"I'm Sirius Black," He said and she turned to shake his hand. James eyes widened when he realized what Sirius was about to do. He shook his head over her shoulder. 'NO!' He mouthed at Sirius. Sirius just grinned.

Lily reached out and shook his hand.

BZZZT!

"OW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" She squealed at Sirius. He smiled and showed her his hand. "Joy Buzzer."

She grinned. "I used to have one of them when I was little."

James realized at last that she didn't have an English accent. She sounded so different. Not like anyone he'd heard.

"Sorry, don't want to be rude," James said apologetically. "But I was wondering. How come we've never seen you before?"

"OH! Yeah!" She grinned again. "I moved to England about two weeks ago. I went to The Farstill School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

James and Sirius looked at her blankly. "Where?" They asked.

"In Australia."

"OH! Isn't that where your dad went?" James asked Sirius.

"Oh yeah. Cool!!"

The gargoyle sprang to life and jumped to the side. Remus came walking out, followed by Dumbledore.

"AH! Miss Evans! Right this way." Dumbledore said.

She followed Dumbledore through the gap in wall.

James followed her with his eyes. The gargoyle sprang back into place. James sighed and leaned against the wall. 'You are SUCH and IDIOT!" He said to Sirius. He laughed and flung an arm around his friend.

"She's mine ok. I saw her first."

Sirius laughed. "Sure. Whatever you say!"

The three of them burst into laughter and walked down the passage to the Great Hall.

*  *  *  *  *

VOLDEMORT. That was the word. That's what had made them so afraid. That word. Some that was relatively new to them all, but promoted a huge fear into them. They were scared. This was a wizard bent on power. He wanted all the power and wouldn't stop. But they'd all fight. They'd never stop fighting.

James especially. He had a wife and a baby to protect. Lily was two months pregnant and she stood next to Sirius with a small frown on her face. She looked like she was going to cry.

A single tear rolled down her face and she flung herself into James' arms. She buried her face into his arms and began to sob.

"What are we going to do?" She asked, raising her small scared face to his.

"I don't know," James said. "I wish I did."

And it began to rain... the rain fell like Lily's tears and they went inside.

They didn't know that one day that house would be reduced to nothing but rubble, with a tiny baby boy trapped inside.

That it wasn't what they didn't know that scared James. It was what he knew about Peter. That hat... he would never forget what the Sorting Hat had said into Peter's ear. And one day he would wish he had never met that short, pudgy boy in that line on the first day of school.