Disclaimer: Same as before, same as before. Oh, one thing I caught- Harry started Hogwarts in 1991, not 1990. My bad.

The next morning at breakfast, the Marauders sat at their usual spot. James had told them about the events of the previous night, and, almost instantly, Sirius had the solution.

"Well, mate," he said, spooning more and more corn flakes into his mouth at an alarming rate, "I don't get that girl at all. She's a tough one to break, if you ask me."

"But I don't get it!" James said furiously, startling a second year. "She was even calling me 'James!' She never calls me that!"

Sirius was about to open his mouth when an ugly, old barn owl landed at the Gryffindor table. It glared at Sirius and flapped its wings, sending a shower of feathers in Sirius's cereal. In its beak it clutched a large, red envelope.

"Oh great," Sirius muttered. "My dear old Mum's sent me a Howler."

The barn owl began pecking furiously at Sirius's hand, which lay stationary, not about to pick up the letter.

"I'd pick up that letter, Padfoot," Wormtail said, seriously. "You don't want it to burst into flames. The table might catch on fire! And I have my Charms essay in my bag, and it took forever-"

"Wormtail," James sighed, "don't wet yourself."

"Open it, Padfoot. It'll be over with faster," Lupin said.

"Fine," Sirius grumbled, and snatched the now-smoking envelope from the beak of the barn owl. "And I don't have anything for you," Sirius snarled at the owl, and tore open the Howler. Instantly, the letter started shrieking at Sirius.

"VILE BLOOD TRAITOR! GOING OFF FRATERNIZING WITH THE ENEMY! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO HAVE THE BLACK FAMILY NAME! YOUR BROTHER IS A DECENT BOY, IN SLYTHERIN! YOU, ASSOCIATING YOURSELF WITH FILTHY MUGGLE-LOVERS, HALF-BREEDS, AND HALFBLOODS! YOU'VE STAINED THE FAMILY NAME!"

"Oh, give it a rest, Mum," Sirius sighed, and jabbed the Howler with his wand. Instantly, it stopped shrieking. Several people along the table snickered, and Sirius turned a deep shade of crimson.

Lupin was reading the Daily Prophet when his face fell slightly. "Full moon tonight," he sighed.

James's face brightened up. "Good. At least we won't be bored out of our skulls."

"You might think so," Lupin said darkly. "But I don't."

"Hey, at least it's better than getting your head bitten off by Evans," James said.

"Or getting a Howler from your Mum once a month," Sirius said brightly. He jabbed his wand at the barn owl. "Go away, Hades, before I transfigure you into a mouse. Then why don't you go up into the Owlery and bother other owls as a mouse?" The idea seemed highly amusing to Sirius, so he flicked his wand, but Lupin grabbed the owl and tossed it in the air, watching it fly off.

"Really, Padfoot… Just because he gives you a Howler once a month, you don't have to transfigure it into a mouse. Besides," he said with a laugh, "the Head Boy might take points away from you."

"Come off it," James said seriously. "When you were Prefect, Moony, you didn't go taking away points from me. So now that I'm Head Boy, why should I take points away from-"

"The irresponsible Head Boy might not take away points from Sirius Black, but the Head Girl might. So, Black, don't even think about hexing that poor owl."

"Evans, quit meddling," Sirius said.

"She has good intentions, guys," Lupin said. Lily beamed at him. "Anyway, I have to go- I lost my Charms book-"

James grinned. "Let me get it." Whipping out his wand with a flourish, he saw Lily looking at him again. Instantly, his insides seemed to melt away when he saw her. "Accio Charms Book," he said, grinning stupidly, and instantly, hundreds of bags split open as Charms books flew towards the Marauders and Lily. They all ducked, and the books collided with each other. When the books stopped flying, there was a dull murmur of Summoning charms, and the books flew back to their respective owners. Hundreds of heads glared at James.

"Eh, sorry," he said weekly. Lily rolled her eyes.

The bell rang, and Snape strode over from the Slytherin table. "Nice going, Potter," he snarled. "Perhaps you need to concentrate harder." Snape muttered a curse under his breath, and James instantly had a horrible headache.

Glaring, he whipped out his wand, and snarled at Snape. "Expelliarmus!" Snape's wand flew into James's outstretched hand, and Snape flew backwards. "Impedimenta!"  Snape was instantly frozen on the ground. Sirius let out a bark-like laugh.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Lily cried, and James was instantly on the ground.

"Potter, can't you grow up? You're always cursing Snape!" Lily said, furious.

However, James was incapable of moving. Sirius quickly muttered the counter-jinx. James jumped up. "He hit me first! I was unprepared, and I still have a horrible headache!"

"What's going on here?" came McGonagall's shrill voice. Her eyes quickly swept over the scene. "Potter! Miss Evans! Explain yourselves!"

"Snape cursed me, Professor!"

"He didn't leave any grounds for Snape to defend himself-"

"You didn't leave any for me!"

"ENOUGH!" McGonagall shouted over the two. "Potter, Miss Evans, I'm afraid I'll have to give you two detention!"

"What about Snape?" James asked furiously.

By now, the Impediment Jinx had worn off, and Snape leapt up. "Very well, Snape, you will serve detention with Potter and Miss Evans as well," McGonagall snapped.

"Thanks a lot, Potter," Snape hissed once McGonagall left.

"You're welcome, Snivelly," James smirked back.

After dinner that night, Lily and James headed up to Professor McGonagall's office, walking on opposite ends of the corridor. Snape was making sure that he was walking directly in between the two. James went into McGonagall's office, and Lily and Snape followed.

"Well, now that you three are all here, I am going to tell you this at once- Hagrid needs your help with something. I'm not sure what- but you all are to meet him by his hut in ten minutes.

Sighing, James led the way down to Hagrid's hut; he knew the way there practically by heart, considering all the times he and Sirius had tried to sneak into the Forbidden Forest before their fifth year, and then, once he became an Animagi, the Marauders explored the forest almost as much as they had Hogwarts.

When they knocked on the door to Hagrid's hut, Hagrid's Crup, Claw, bounced out of the house and leaped on top of James, and began licking his face. James managed to push the dog off, laughing. He got up, dusted himself off, and then Hagrid stepped out the door.

"So, yeh've got ter serve detention wi' me, now," he said, grinning. "Well, then, I'll tell yeh what we've got ter do; there's a troll roamin' round in the forest, and we've got ter round it up."

"Trolls?" Snape asked, drawing in a sharp breath.

"Yes, Snape, a troll. Yer all seventh years, an' they're 'ead Boy an' Girl. I think yeh'll be able to handle yerselves."

"How would we defeat it?" Snape asked, apparently irritated that they had to go search for a troll in the Forbidden Forest at night.

"Stun it, then shoot sparks in the air. I'll see 'em, and come to yeh."

"I wa-"

"I want to go with Claw," Snape said defiantly, cutting Lily off in mid-sentence. She shot him a scathing look.

"All righ', then, Snape. You can use Claw. James, Lily, you two go ter the north end o' the forest, Snape, you go ter the sou' end, an' I'll go ter the east," Hagrid said, matter-of-factly. "I'll see yeh when we catch the troll." And with that, Hagrid lumbered off to the east end of the forest. Snape sighed, and snapped his fingers, signaling Claw, who went bounding ahead of him, towards the south.

That left Lily and James, standing there. Lily whipped out her wand, and muttered, "Lumos." James did the same. "Well," Lily said, "come on."

James laughed and strode casually into the forest. This was his turf; he knew what he was doing. Lily walked behind him. James expected her to be slightly afraid of the forest, but she strode through with grace that none of the Marauders had when they walked alone in the Forbidden Forest.

You're thinking about her again. Stop doing that! You know it messes up your spell work! James thought furiously. He kept his eyes decidedly riveted on the path they were walking on.

About ten minutes into the forest, he turned abruptly behind an oak tree. "What d'you think you're doing, Potter?" Lily asked. "You and I both learned in our first year that it's senseless to go off the path."

"I know what I'm doing, Evans," James said irritably. "You don't think I haven't been in here before?"

"Only a complete idiot runs around in the forest at night, Potter," Lily said coolly, staying on the spot. "But I know that you and Black and Pettigrew and Remus-"

"Why d'you call Moony Remus?" James asked, poking his head out from behind the oak tree. "We've always called him Moony."

"Well, when we were Prefects, he asked me to call him Remus, so I did," Lily snapped.

"Moony never told me that…" James said quietly.

"Why would it matter if he never told you that or not?" Lily asked.

"Because, Evans, I'm his best friend, like you and Reynolds are," James replied. "I see you two, sitting over in the common room, jabbering on and on like you've just drunken a Babbling potion!" James shouted.

"Just because we talk doesn't mean we tell each other everything!" Lily shouted back. "I think Remus is a-"

"Evans, get down."

"What?"

"Get down! The troll is close to you!" James hissed. Lily let out a gasp of horror, and darted behind the tree.

"How can you tell?" she hissed back.

"Can't you hear the grunting, and the snorting? Evans, stay back. I'll handle this," James said seriously.

"Oh no you won't, James Potter. I'm not going to let you suck up all the glory."

James turned to her, and his face held no trace of arrogance. "Stay back, for your safety. Please- Lily," he said. "Oh, and hold my wand."

"What?" Lily asked, bewildered, as James unlit his wand. "What d'you plan on doing without a wand?"

"Don't worry- just watch." James paused for a moment, and then, in the flash of an eye, turned into a stag. Lily gasped.

"You're an Animagus?" Lily asked in wonder.

The stag nodded its head, and bound out towards the troll.

Merlin's beard, this is exciting! Fighting a mountain troll, saving Lily Evans, and, of course, impressing her along the way.

James bound out towards the troll and snorted, stamping his hoof impatiently. The troll turned around stupidly, and grunted. It lumbered towards James, who was ready for it.

The troll was a Forest Troll, so it was smaller and smarter than other trolls. But, James Potter was smarter than most wizards, too. As soon as the troll parted its hands and ran towards him, James bucked his head up, and his stag horns forced the troll back. Very slowly, James was pushing the troll back. He was quite a strong stag.

Then, suddenly, it all went wrong. The troll found a fallen tree limb and picked it up, and started beating the stag on the head. James was slowly become disoriented, but kept on pushing with all his might.

Then, a voice rang out from behind the oak tree. "STUPEFY!" Lily shouted, and sent a stunning spell hit the Forest Troll in the chest. It blinked for a second, as though wondering what happened, and then toppled over backwards, snoring loudly.

James turned back to himself, panting slightly. He walked over to Lily, who had already sent some gold sparks into the air. "Th-th-thanks, Evans," he panted.

"Potter, that was the most reckless, arrogant, and foolish thing that a student at Hogwarts- let alone the Head Boy- could do. What possessed you to do that?" she asked, furious.

"I was just-"

"Just trying to play the hero, rescue the girl, and run off with her as your girlfriend?" Lily asked. "And furthermore, you're an unregistered Animagus! I could have you arrested, or at least make you tell the Ministry of Magic!"

"Listen, Evans, don't tell-"

"You want me to keep it 'hush hush,' do you, James Potter? Well, I won't! Who else knows your little secret?" she shouted, scathingly.

"Moony, Wormtail, and Padfoot. Where d'you think we got our nicknames from?"

"You're all unregistered Animagi?" Lily asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Well, Moony isn't. He's a werewolf."

"A werewolf? You, Black, and Pettigrew go running around with a werewolf?"

"Padfoot and I keep him under control. He's a big black dog, and I'm a stag. Wormtail's a rat," James confessed.

Lily opened her mouth to say more, but she was cut off by Hagrid bursting through the brush. She glared at James, and, once more, James was left standing by himself, wondering how a girl's mind worked.