Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters you recognise in this fictional story belonging to Joanne Kathleen Rowling, Warner Bros., and whoever else…Bloomsbury and Scholastic. Some characters are based on childhood friends, I made them into this fiction therefore I own them. I also own the plot. And the dates… coz they're terribly wrong. I also don't own the pretty song… *looks down* ('Weir' – Killing Heidi)

Old friend of mine, we will never lose the time that we've shared all these years, all these years.
Old friend of mine, we will never lose the time that we've shared all these years, all these years.

Will you?
Will you make it in the end, through all the twists and bends?                                                                                                                                                           Will you fulfil your dreams-not as easy as it seems.

Lover friend of mine, we will never lose the time that we've covered in our tears, in our tears.

Will you?
Will you make it in the end, through all the twists and bends?                                                                                                                                                   Will you fulfil your dreams-not as easy as it seems.

Floating in the weir, and you think you'll never
sink, so you forget all your fears, your fears.

Chapter IV- [Ambition]

"James… James! Over here, mate! OI YOU DAFT BOWL OF RICE! COME ON!!"

James peered over the crowd to see Sirius jumping up and down in the breakfast rush. He fought his way over to his best friend and they walked into the hall together, as they entered Sirius swung his arm over James and said, "Well, Jimmy-boy! This is our last breakfast here at Hogwarts! Man, am I going to miss this place or what?"

James sighed and sadly smiled, "I never want to leave this place!" he said as they reached the Gryffindor table.

"Should I take your word for that James; staying at Hogwarts forever? We could always find a way to trap you inside of one of the portraits? Maybe you can share a frame with the Fat Lady?" Lily said grinning from her toast.

James grinned back and replied, "Oh! But only I you were there by my side, my love…"

Lily froze and choked on the piece of toast, Sarah carefully slapped her on the back. Lily glared at her, "Thanks…"

James laughed and sat down beside her, "All right, there?"

She nodded and smiled, "All right…"

Sirius exchanged a grin with Sarah, they unsuccessfully muffled her exaggerated girly giggles behind their empty plates. Sirius nudged Peter and Adele to join them but Adele politely explained why they didn't want to get throttled before their graduation. Sarah looked around and asked Remus and Calista to join, Calista carefully turned down their offer and asked what their point was. It made them slightly miffed.

James glared at the plates and turned back to Lily, "So… how about it?"

She blinked, "What?"

"You've forgotten already?" James asked her, clutching his chest like it hurt, "You pain me…"

"Oh! Right…Dream on, Potter…" She grinned and hit him on the back and it almost made him choke on his juice. "Oops, sorry…" 

"I can't believe you said 'no'… I asked you to marry me- uhh…" He paused as he saw Lily choking on her toast again. James sat up and gave her his most charming smile, "All right…" and he banged his head on the table and pretended to sleep and snored loudly.

When the giggles got excruciatingly loud, Lily got the bread rolls from the plate in front of her and skilfully aimed them at each plate.

"OW!"

"Hey…"

That was the last morning; he would ever see her fresh sweet face in the morning… he had always had a crush on her, and seven years being with her, it grew. Sure, he had gone out with other girls, but he didn't want to wreck their friendship if it didn't work out and besides, she wouldn't even like him in return. He was always strangely shy thinking or talking about relationships with Lily more than friends. There were plenty of times when he wanted to tell her, when he almost felt that he needed to tell her… But he just never told her.

That afternoon, the graduation ceremony began…

"Bell, Calista!"

James watched his blue-eyed brunette gal pal get her scroll; she looked like a nervous wreck, hands shaky and all but she had a smile on her face. She was one of McGonagall's favourite students; it was a rare moment that McGonagall gave her a warm smile as she shook her hand. Then she shook Professor Dumbeldore's "Aww…the poor darling!" He heard Adele say to Lily as they school gave her applause.

"Black, Sirius!"

Sirius walked up the stairs with a wide grin on his face.

Young McGonagall looked tense and suspicious as she passed his scroll to him.

Sirius grinned took his scroll and shook the professors hand, so far so good now. He grinned at the audience again, looking really proud of himself. He vigorously shook the headmaster's hand, James just laughed. He waved to the crowd and calmly walked back down again. And so did the others when they realised Sirius wasn't going to do anything. He had been making threats all their Hogwarts years, empty threats. "Attention seeker!" he muttered.

~Some names after…~

"Chase, Adelaide!"

James noted that his usually loud friends was also quite nervous as well, there would be some teasing after this. Adele had blonde hair, dark brown eyes and was in one word: moody. But she was one of them, she fit in and she was cool.

"Evans, Lily"

He saw her walk up to the platform, receive her scroll and walk back down grinning, he grinned back at her, he gave her his biggest applause.

"Lupin, Remus"

James watched his werewolf friend go and get his scroll, all that time James knew Remus was some what nervous and a tad bit scared, for if it weren't for Dumbledore, Remus wouldn't of been able to attend Hogwarts. Therefore not being able to graduate and become a licensed wizard. Which was what everyone wanted to be. He felt only happiness for his sandy haired and blue-green eyed buddy.

It was up to the P's and James knew he was up soon, after Peter got his scroll; he almost felt as nervous as when he first got sorted into Gryffindor. But after they called out his name, he would finally be able to say he was truly a responsible adult who knew pride and honour. And that was all his father ever wanted from him…

James remembered the way she grinned at him, the way she had told him animatedly like a ditz about straightening her hair after Sarah had cut it short just for today just to spite him after he had dated a d- when he had dated a not-so-bright girl back in 5th year. Lily looked great with the new hair; her normal curly long hair was now a layered straight medium cut. James thought she just looked pretty, in all simplicities.

They liked each other -- a lot, but didn't know each other did. But for some reason never said a thing about it, their friends had tried to match make them since 5th year but they were just too stubborn…and shy. It could have possibly been said that there were times when Lily Evans and James Potter had definitely flirted, but it was never said. They had never really hoped to take their friendship any further than they had already had. Maybe that was their problem.

James eyes walked up the stairs with her, up to the stage. He felt a swell of pride for her she stood there, shaking Professor Dumbledore's hand with her emerald green eyes filled with happiness and pride then walking back down the stairs ever so gracefully, James adored her. Even when she fell or tripped…which she rarely did, he would still have adored her. But somehow, he knew it was something more than adoration, it was a great fondness. He wouldn't be easy to get over her, if James had planned to. But he hadn't. What he wouldn't give to see her again…

He traced his fingers over her in the picture, "I…I love her" he muttered. Why didn't he realise this before? Why didn't he ever have the guts to ask her out? Did she love him back? What made her go? Would she ever come back? Was she even alive?

James put down the photo firmly, he clutched at the frame unwillingly letting it go, "Blast it all…"

*~~~*~~~*

"Oh, Sarah! You're OK now, we promise…"

"Thank god James found you! That nephew of ours Lara… he's a good boy." John Potter said.

Lara Potter snorted, it gave the Sarah a slight shock, "You weren't saying that when we heard he went off with Sirius Black in mischief."

Sarah's head was aching like never before, she thought her head was going to burst, she faintly heard her mother cry out but the machines beeping out loud. Her head was pounding and the machines just wouldn't stop beeping out loud. She wanted to thrash around but found herself too weak to. She wanted to die right there and then, she didn't want new responsibilities… It was all too much for her. Her head and limbs ached in agony and she whimpered in sorrow, she had to find Lily…

Sarah felt her cheeks wet, she was crying. She could hear others crying in the vague background, her head was still pounding and the sound of the machines was blaring at her ears…

*~~~*~~~*

"That's it Lily, come on! Only 6 more laps to go now!"

Six laps to go? Great! Christian'll be happy when he drags my limp corpse out of the water…

Lily kicked her legs and turned her body to the side to breathe…One, two, three and BREATHE! one, two, three and BREATHE!

Her the last lap, she hauled herself up and out on to the edge of the 50 metre pool. Her mind flashed to the small cottage between the two large buildings. Then she looked around the pool and was once again amazed by magic.

Her coach clapped happily and told her, "Good Lily! That was 5 seconds off your time from last week. Go take a shower and be out onto the field… in half an hour!"

She looked outside, "But it's pouring outside and by the time I finish running, you'll complain how incompetent I am; being a newly dried cake a mud." She whined quietly.

Her coach frowned, "If that happens, I'll be sure to have a hammer in my hands. Then I can 'crack' some sense into you-"

"No! Stop with the whole fatherly lame jokes! Stop!"

He checked his watch "28 minutes, Lily."

Lily sighed and muttered, "Not like I ever really paid much attention to my pay check, but this pay better be a good fat sum!"

*~~~*~~~*

"Pettigrew!"

Peter weakly opened his eyes, his nose twitched as a foul stench captured his sense of smell. He stumbled up, weak with no food and pure…fear.

"Wormtail. You will serve me now and forever, never straying until one day, by chance, a pure soul might save your worthless life. That's why you'll serve me forever, your friends will find out whose side you are really on once my plan succeeds and I will take over the whole world! All mudbloods and muggles will die…oh yes, they will and the soul of Slytherin will live on!" Voldemort said with such intensity the damp floor shook.

       "Yes, my Lord…" Peter said hoping that his master had forgotten his punishment. But no such luck…

Voldemort looked back down to Wormtail and spat, "But I cannot… trust you."

Peter's eyes grew wide and he immediately shook his head, "N-no master… you can trust me! I promise."

"That's what you said to your Gryffindor friends…there is no doubt about it…I can't trust you. That is why, you will die."

Peter gave a whimper.

Voldemort raised his arms up to the dark ceiling and chanted, "Oh Slytherin, greatest of the founders, give me the strength to perform this art of dark magic you yourself created. Give me strength! Mind! Will! Power!"

Peter's body shook as he saw Voldemort's body give a dim glow of sickly green, he felt the power radiating from his masters body.

Voldemort raised his wand and pointed it to Peter, "Tonight, I will show you real pain!"

Peter screamed out in pain, this torture was truly the worst he had ever felt, he couldn't breathe his head felt like exploding, his body was being stabbed and stabbed again while lemon was felt on his open wounds, the pain just wouldn't stop. He didn't know how his body could take so much-- then its was hot, his body felt like it was on fire then cold, frost bite coldness biting to the bone, hot then cold, then hot! Yet his body didn't give through, just when he thought the pain was at it's worst and finally he would die the pain stopped entirely and his body fell to the ground shaking madly.

He heard a cruel laughter fill his ears, "Had enough Wormtail? Hmm, Wormtail? Why did they ever call you that? Stupid boy, you are ready for the ritual now."

Still shaking Peter was slipping in and out of consciousness, he felt people heave him up and drag him along to where? He would find out soon…

 ~*~*~*~

It was the Thursday after graduation day, 7 days after she had become a real witch, since she was head girl, she had been offered quite a few offers from different departments of the ministry and also several overseas schools, she had been considering a school in Australia, the school had offered her great pay as an advanced charms professor, only problem was that she didn't want to leave her family behind, her dear parents but not Petunia, her sister, they had recently gone into a huge fight and had refused to make up with each other. She turned the offer down.

Lily remembered that Thursdays morning, she was living with Sarah, Adele and Calista, she picked up the paper and read, muggles killed on you-know-who's killing spree Lily felt rage and then considered being an Auror or something, she wanted to protect muggles and muggle-born such as herself. That evening she went shopping for food by herself , she went to pay, and bumped into Sarah walking past, she stopped into the market to help with the food. Together, they had brought the bags home. While the girls were pigging into the food, the phone rang and Lily left her piggy friends to eat the food…

She answered the phone from her room, "Hello?"

"Lily! Darling! *Cough cough*"

She froze, what was wrong with the mother, "Mum? Is that you? What's wrong?"

"*Cough cough*"

"Mum?! What's wrong? Are you sick?"

"*Cough* help! Lily! A man's here! *cough* there's smoke everywhere! Remember Lily I love you!"

"Mum!?" Lily cried as she heard her mothers voice fade away, "Come back! Mum! Mum!!" Lily cried.

Lily heard the distinct low voice shout, "Avada Kedavra !"

      

She took a terrified sharp intake of breath, while her hands still gripped on to the phone line. She knew it was too late then; she slid down to the floor. Her shoulder shook with suppressed fear and shock. She took her head into her arms and cried.

How the others didn't hear her, she never knew, but she felt helpless there on the floor, and she vowed revenge. And from that, she began towards the Auror's society. She took the train and her friends had not seen her since.

After hard training in the mud, Lily took yet again another shower at the society and walked home, she had no choice. Christian; her coach forced her to. She had been relocated to another apartment and had received a new name and fake job. She was now a nurse at a muggle hospital nearby just across the street from her apartment. Her new name was Sylvia Newberry.

As she reached her apartment she sighed in sadness, she knew she couldn't keep on going on like this, hiding from hit men, hiding from her past, forgetting her friends, not being able to make new ones, for fear of getting to close, even more, today she had found out that security had gone up a notch and Hagrid's memory of her being with the society was wiped out. She hoped that the Ministry officials were gentle with him.

She was to start her new job tomorrow morning at 6 am. As she slipped into her pyjamas and started to brush her teeth, her mind drifted to the accidental meeting with Sarah at the supermarket.

She hadn't forgotten me, right?

Who was Lily kidding, she knew Sarah would never have forgotten her, at least she hoped not. But Lily was only seen as a stranger… and she did look totally different. But yet…

Sarah had approached her. Why? "Look, do I know you?"

That was what she had said to her, still being the frank Sarah that was her best friend five years ago… Lily must have been doing something wrong. She shouldn't have stared. Lily scolded herself.

Sarah had obviously found it strange, or saw something familiar to her in Lily. Would she tell any of the others about it? Would she tell James?

"Oh James…" She murmured as she lay in her soft covers.

James. The boy who she would always have a soft spot for…When Sarah introduced him to her on the train ride…

"So Lily? What's it like coming from a muggle family?"

"It's basically the same but without magic, which is a lot harder."

       "I figured, but I reckon muggles are cool, they have electricity!"

"How did you know that? The man who took me to Diagon ally said that people from wizarding families rarely know about muggle ways…"

"My uncle taught me what electricity can do last year… anyway, this is our compartment, right here! I think my cousin, James, is probably in here… he's nice enough."

Lily and Sarah entered the compartment, there were four boys and a girl inside, the girl looked rather…grumpy but her face lit up when she saw the two girls.

"James, finally! This is Lily Evans."

James stood up, he has messy black hair and ice blue eyes, but he had a friendly smile, "Hi Lily, I'm James Potter, her cousin." Lily smiled back at him, and sat down with the others.

The girl's name was Adele Chase, and the other boys Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. Sarah had told Lily that James and Sirius were best friends.

        "About time, I thought you were lost." James said.

       "Shut it." Sarah replied.

       Lily didn't know what they were talking about; she didn't really bother much either because she was too nervous.

When the others went to get food, the only two the in compartment was Lily and Sarah, she asked her about the houses and she gladly told her about it. She told her not to let anyone call her a 'mudblood' and to be careful around those in the house of Slytherin. Soon, they were in an animated conversation with just about anything. They became best friends after that. When James and all came back in Lily blushed a bit, no one saw luckily enough.

In Lily's opinion, James was pretty cute, and he was really nice too. Telling her all about Quidditch with Sirius in the background doing sound effects. When he spoke to her , he had this grin…and his eyes were twinkling while telling her about a seekers position, and he smiled even wider when Sirius made funny sounds, Lily admitted it to herself there; she had a crush on James. Even if it was a small one, even if it had originated from his grin.

Lily turned to the other side of the bed, wrapping the doona around her tighter; she remembered when Sirius told the others that James was going out with Patty Wiggens…

Lily walked into the common room with Adele after dinner, they saw Sirius with a wide grin on the couch with the others looking quite confused around him and James with his head in his hands.

Sirius grinned at them, "Good! You're here!"

"What's going on?" Adele questioned.

"Yeah? Some kinda meeting here?" Lily asked.

"Yes, apparently Sirius has something to tell us, and it involves James here, he wouldn't tell us until the whole gang was here," Sarah piped up.

"We've been here for half an hour, how come you guys came back so late from dinner?" Remus asked Lily and Adele.

"Oh! We stopped off at the library from some books for assignments and stuff" Lily replied.

"Ok! May I have your attention now! I have an announcement!" Sirius said. "Sit down… sit down!"

They sat down and Lily noticed James still had his head in his hands. She poked him "James? Ok there?"

He lifted his head up from his hands and ignored Lily's question and turned to Sirius, " I don't see what you have against her, she is a perfectly nice girl Sirius,"

"Eh?" Peter said.

"I'm with Pete…eh?" Remus added.

Sirius put his hands on his hips, "She might be nice, but a doormat has a higher IQ than her, I don't know why you are going out with Patty Wiggens,"

Lily's heart dropped. James? And Patty Wiggens?

"P-patty Wiggens?? Are you crazy James? You're dating #1 ditz of the century!!" Sarah hollered.   

Understatement of the year… Lily thought with a bit of bitterness, but she couldn't let anyone see she was a bit upset about James dating someone else. She was a good actress.

Lily burst out laughing, then calmed herself down, wiping her tears of mirth, "James… do you realise, that if you married her. Her name would be Patty Porina Potter? I don't know about you, people but I find that excruciatingly hilarious…" 

Everyone except for James gave their own appreciative laugh; Peter and Sarah were the only people who went a bit over the top with their hysterical shrieks of laughter. Each time, trying to out-shriek the other.

James got a bit angry, "Just because I'm dating her doesn't mean that I'll marry her ok? Anyway, she is really nice. And as my friends, I expect you all to accept it as it is and ask no more of me!"

For two agonizing weeks, she had to hide her alight envy whenever James and Patty were around, she hid it well though; she just teased him endlessly about Patty being a di- not so intelligent.

If Lily could see James now, she'd tell him that she was sorry for teasing him, but she couldn't now, and probably never, seeing Sarah at the market and seeing her pass her off as a stranger hurt her to bits, all this pain… for revenge on Voldemort, sure her job was great, all the excitement and adventure but the pain and feeling of loss was taking her over, for all this… Lily was going to make Voldemort pay; for all he had done to her and more.

She wiped her tears and turned off the lights…

*~~~*~~~*

"Put him on the stone slab…" Voldemort hissed.

Peter felt the cold stone on his back. He was still slipping in and out of consciousness then finally he was out cold…

"Get up!" a female voice hissed.

Peter blurrily opened his eyes; he weakly turned his head towards the voice, vision clearing slowly.

A cloaked figure with a hood stood beside him, as he was still on the slab. He was shivering with coldness and shook and jerked violently as the cloaked figure slammed a fist into his stomach.

"We've got a weak one, here…" the female voice taunted as she turned up the hood.

Peter's eyes grew wide and gasped, "A-Ad- Adele?!"

-Fin-

A/N- I know… it's a short chapter. But I had originally made the break for the chapter here (the unrevised version) and thought it wise to keep it the same. If I didn't, it would just discontinue the 'flow'… yes, I have a flow…

 Yuck! I'm beginning to feel really disgusted with myself and this story. The things I/I'll detail about… *shudders*