Author's Note: Umm… Well, here you go.

Title: Love and Flashbacks

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Erm… Possibly.

Summary: Lily and James remember the events that led to their romance.

Disclaimer: As much as I'd love to own Harry Potter and its characters, I don't.

Setting: This story takes place when the Marauders are at Hogwarts.

*** = setting change

*~*= begin flashback

~*~ = end flashback

[…] = time

italics = emphasis

~The Confessions~

[7th year]

The Marauders were in their dorm room, planning a prank (as usual).

"Okay," James said, "so we're going to sneak—Padfoot, are you listening?"

Sirius had been staring off into space. He snapped back to reality when he heard his friend call him. "Huh? Oh. Yeah. I heard you. Queer sewing is sleek."

The others stared at him.

"First of all, that sentence makes no sense. Second of all, I said, 'we're going to sneak.'"

"Oh." Sirius looked confused. "Well then, what did I say?"

Remus answered, "You said, 'queer sewing is sleek.'"

"Hmm. That's strange…"

"I'll say," Peter piped up.

"What's wrong with you, Sirius?" James asked. "I mean, not being able to concentrate on a prank? This must be big."

Sirius fell back onto his bed and grabbed a pillow. "It is. I mean, it's not. Maybe—Oh, I don't know."

"What's it about?" Remus asked, settling onto his own bed.

"Well, I was just thinking about Koren—"

"Again?" James interrupted. "You must like her a lot."

"I think it's more than that," Sirius replied, hugging the pillow.

"What?" the others asked together in astonishment.

"I don't know…"

"I see," Remus said knowingly. "I think Padfoot's in love," he teased, drawing out the word 'love.'

"Moony!" Sirius hid his face with the pillow. "You can't tell her," he said, his voice slightly muffled by the pillow.

"So it's true?" James asked. "You really are in love with Koren?"

"I guess so."

*~*

[6th year]

"Do you think I should ask her out?" Sirius and James asked at the same time.

Remus looked from one to the other. "Who should I answer first?"

"Me," they both said simultaneously. The two dark-haired boys gave the same frustrated groan.

"Know what? I don't care. Sirius, ask Koren to go out with you. James, you do the same with Lily. That's all I have to say."

"Okay. When?" Sirius asked. "I mean, there has to be perfect timing and everything…"

"Yeah," James agreed. "Padfoot's right. Wait, how is that possible? Sirius is never right…"

"Don't know. Don't care." Remus was getting fed up with the two lovesick boys. "Just… ask." He walked out of the room.

"What's the matter with him?"

Sirius shrugged in response. "So when are you going to ask Lily?"

"I don't know."

"This year, I hope."

"Shut up."

"Just kidding, dude." (AN: Heh. Haven't used that one in a while… Dude…)

"When are you going to ask Koren?"

"Sometime next week, I guess. You know, I always knew you and Lily liked each other."

James threw a pillow at him. "Again, shut up."

"You just don't want to admit that I'm right."

"Oh my gosh," James said in mock surprise. "Sirius Black being right? Oh look. Hell just froze over."

His friend threw the pillow back at him.

~*~

"Cool. What about you, Remus? How do you feel about Charlotte?"

"I'm not sure. I think it's more than like, but less than love, you know what I mean?"

James nodded and looked at his watch. "Well, I gotta meet the girl I love right now, so see ya." He left the room.

***

[1 week later]

"Lily?"

"What is it, Char?"

"Where do you think Remus goes every month?"

"I don't know. Why don't you ask him?"

"Maybe not just yet. I think I'll give him some time to tell me on his own."

***

[1 week later]

"Sirius!" Koren burst into the seventh year boys' dorm.

"Koren!" James yelled. "What are you doing in here?"

"I was looking for Sirius."

"Look, just because Sirius is in love with you does not give you the right to barge in here."

"Okay. Sorry." She turned to leave, then paused. "Wait, what did you say?"

"About what?" James replied, trying to remember what he had blurted out.

"You said… you said Sirius is in love with me."

James gulped. "Uh… No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did. Don't deny it. I know you said it. He loves me?"

He nodded and smiled.

"Do you know where he is?"

"The library."

"Sirius? In the library?" She gave him a skeptical look.

"Yeah, I know, I couldn't believe it either," James said, shaking his head. "But that's where he is. Or where he said he would be."

"Okay. Thanks."

***

"Siri—Oh, sorry, Madam Pince," the blonde girl said as she entered the library. "Sirius," she said, much more quietly.

"Over here."

"Hi," Koren said, sitting down across from Sirius.

"Hey," he replied, smiling at her. He then looked back down at the book he was reading.

She looked down at the table for a minute, then moved her gaze up to his face. "Um… Sirius?"

"Yeah?"

"Okay, well, I was looking for you just now, and I went to your dorm… And James was there. He said something to me… about you."

"What was it?"

"He—er—said that you're in love with me."

"He said that?"

"Yeah." Koren bit her lip and looked down again (AN: I wish I could think of another way to say it. I only have like two ways to say looked up or down…)

"Then I guess it must be true."

The seventeen-year-old girl looked up in surprise. "Really?"

Sirius just smiled. "What do you think?"

Koren's blue eyes widened, and she jumped up to hug her boyfriend. She knocked her chair over in the process ("Sorry, Madam Pince!"). "I love you too," she whispered in Sirius's ear.

***

[1 month later]

"Charlotte? I need to talk to you," Remus asked. "Alone," he added, looking pointedly at his fellow Gryffindor seventh years.

He led the dark-haired girl outside the castle to an area where people would not be likely to interrupt them.

"So what did you need to tell me, Remus?"

"I have two things to tell you, but one of them depends on how you react to the first one, and well, I don't know if I can tell you that one until you—"

"Remus, honey, you're rambling." Charlotte's dark eyes held a look of amusement.

"Oh, sorry. Well, anyway, what I wanted to tell you was… I'm a werewolf."

The girl's face was impassive. "Is that all?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah." Remus looked down at his feet. "I'll understand if you don't want to be with me any—"

"Remus. I don't care if you're a werewolf. I kinda suspected you were one, anyway."

"You did?"

"Yeah. It doesn't matter to me. I love you."

"Okay. Wait. What? You love me?"

"Yeah." Charlotte smiled.

Remus chuckled. "That was the second thing I was going to tell you if you were okay with the first one. I love you too."

TO BE CONTINUED…

Author's Note: Sorry. I've been a little lazy… But I'm better than some people who don't update for months are, don't you think? And how come this fanfic has 10 times fewer reviews than my other one…?