(a/n: Yes, I know that I skipped to February, but if you want to know, nothing happened, all important events will be mentioned sometime, but really they went to lessons, there were no significant conversations, no interesting pranks, and Peeves only managed to hit Lily with six water balloons, three bottles of ink, and get gum in her hair twice)

During the last class on Friday in the beginning of February, Lily sat in the front of McGonagall's

Transfiguration class. She was astonished when McGonagall assigned homework with five

minutes left in class, were they going to get to leave early? No... Mcgonagall seemed to be

getting ready to make an announcement of some sort.

McGonagall: "Class, as most of you are aware of, Valentine's Day is coming up in

February. This year Hogwarts is having a dance that night. All students in fourth year and higher

are invited, however if older students wish to go with a younger one, that is acceptable as well,

you are dismissed."

Lily jumped up and walked out into the corridor, she wondered if she should ask Snape,

but knowing him, it'd be a waste of time. Her thought instead settled on James Potter, should she

ask him? Will he ask her? Her thoughts were interrupted by a male voice: "Lily, can I talk to you

for a moment?"

Lily looked up into a pair of, now familiar, hazel eyes. Smiling at him she nodded.

James smiled back at her: "Want to go to the dance with me?"

Lily's heart thudded against her ribs, she hated James, but she loved him in a way as

well... She thought about all that she'd seen him as, suddenly an overheard conversation coming

back to her.

*flashback*

Lily sat in the common room in the end of her fourth year finishing some Charms

homework, she was the only one except for a group of people discussing things in low voices.

An audible squeaky, whining voice filled her ears.

First voice: "But w-what if y-you-know-who tr-tries to kill me... erm... us?"

A second voice replied: "Wormtail, you fool. I'd rather die than go over to the dark side.

Any decent man would. Look at Padfoot, he's been practically disowned by his family for not

going to the dark side."

A third voice, assumed to be Padfoot: "And Moony, he's practically a dark creature, but

he's one of the least dark wizards I've met."

A fourth voice now, probably Moony: "Quiet, Padfoot."

The second voice again: "You see, Wormtail, the dark side is merciless. If you're going

to be killed by one of the decent wizards or witches they won't save you. Remain with us and

you'll have three friends who would save you. Go onto the dark side and you've got three former

friends who will gladly turn you over. I personally, am going to fight for good in instant I leave

this school, or sooner if I get a chance. Death will be nothing compared to life knowing that I

didn't do anything to prevent Voldemort from taking over." A voice squeaked, probably

Wormtail.

Wormtail: "You spoke he-who-must-not-be-named name!"

Padfoot: "Voldemort. A name is nothing... I am a Black, but I'm most certainly not like

most of the Blacks that have lived recently."

First voice: "You have nothing to fear, Wormtail, remain our friend, help us fight

to overcome Voldemort."

*end flashback*

Lily suddenly realized that the second voice was that of James, talking to his three

friends. Whatever else he was, at least James was a good wizard.

Lily: "Sure" James beamed, this was the James that Lily loved; the dancing eyes, the

smile, it made him look like an angel.

~~~~~~~~~~~

James's heart pounded in his head as he asked Lily to the dance, he knew that she'd

probably never consider him, but it would be too much torture to wonder if she might have said

yes. He watched her eyes mist over, a good sign or a bad sign? But then they sparkled as she

accepted him. James felt like running around the school singing some song off-tune, probably

bumping into the caretaker and getting tested for having drunk too much fire whisky. He

restrained himself to throwing his arms around her and kissing her cheek.

James: "Thanks, Lily" Lily laughed with James, there was no way not to, his happiness

was contagious. Grabbing his hand she ran through the corridors. They were stopped by

bumping into Sirius, all three of them falling, laughing, onto the floor. Lily and James moved to

sitting on the floor next to Sirius.

Sirius: "What's up, Prongs?"

James: "Guess where Lily and I are going on the fourteenth"

Sirius: "Are you serious?"

Lily: "No, he's James, but he's not going to be prancing around like a fool with me if we

weren't... or at least I wouldn't be."

Three girls walked by, all looking at them strangely to be sitting on the floor laughing,

but all eying Sirius, clearly interested.

James: "So... Padfoot, which girl are you going to chose? I already am going with the

best one."

Sirius: "I'll find someone..." More girls walked by, all of them either looking oddly at

their current position or looking at Sirius.

Lily got up, shaking her hair out of her face. She pulled James up, almost falling over.

Sirius went off in another direction, leaving Lily and James alone again.

Lily: "James... Prongs? Why does Sirius call you that?" James looked at her, as if making

up his mind.

James: "Be in the common room at midnight tonight and I'll tell you..."

Lily: "Not now?"

James: "It's rather... well... secret, if anyone overhears, I'm getting not only myself, but

my friends in big trouble."

Lily: "OK...." She had a small doubt in the back of her mind, but her curiosity was stronger.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lily went downstairs at midnight, apprehensive about what James was going to do, but

too curious not to find out. James was waiting for her, holding a silvery cloak in his hands.

James: "Welcome to the Marauder's Life."

Lily: "What?"

James: "I'm going to tell you things that only four people know, me, Padfoot, Moony and

Wormtail, we are actually currently creating a most useful device, we call it the Marauder's

Map, it's a secret map of Hogwarts, all the hidden passages and every intelligent being will have

a moving dot corresponding with where they are, labeled with their name. We're sneaking out,

I've got an invisibility cloak, we'll hide under it." Lily stepped towards James and he threw the cloak around

them. Opening the portrait hole they crept out through the deserted castle. James smiled at Lily,

she smiled back, she'd never done anything so rebellious as this before. James led her out the

door and onto the dark lawn. He reached for her hand, holding it as they walked to the dark

forest. Just within the shelter of the trees he took the cloak off.

James: "Now that no one can see us..." He transformed into a stag. Lily reached up,

stroking his handsome face, she whispered: "Prongs..."

James, or Prongs, shook his head, prancing about on the edge of the forest. Lily watched

him, entranced by his grace. Walking back to her he transformed back into James.

Lily knew that she was gazing at him totally amazed, but that was probably his intention...

Lily: "You're an Animagus? When did you manage that...?"

James: "Over Christmas."

Lily: "How...?"

James: "We've been researching it. We've been using our nicknames since we decided what to

transform into back in the end of first year"

Lily: "Wormtail... Peter turns into a mouse?"

James: "A rat."

Lily: "Prongs for your stag, and Padfoot... Sirius would be a dog or something along those

lines?"

James: "Big black dog."

Lily: "Moony... What does Remus transform into?" James took a deep breath, almost seeming to want to not go on...

James: "...a werewolf. We befriended him in our first year, but every full moon he would vanish.

We soon discovered that he was, is, a werewolf. We decided, why waste an opportunity to break

more rules, and started researching animagus. We finally attempted, successfully, over Christmas

of this year, and so now we all can transform."

Lily: "Wow..."

James moved closer to her, she watched the slight breeze ruffling his hair, and the small part of

his face visible in a sliver of moonlight. He reached over and brushed her hair from her face.

James: "You could transform into... a red tailed hawk, your feathers the same color as your hair.

You'd be a beautiful hawk, if you want, I can help you."

Lily: "As beautiful a hawk as you are a stag? Impossible..."

James laughed and put him arms around Lily, leaning down he kissed her. Lily was shocked at

first, but relaxed, returning the kiss.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius shook his head impatiently, James was out there, with Lily... maybe he'd go find him... He

transformed into a big black dog and crept out through the deserted castle. Shaking his head he

gamboled across the lawn. Hearing voices in the tree he skirted them, ending up hidden in a

bush. Sirius started laughed when they started kissing, which is a pretty impressive feat for a

dog.

James and Lily both jumped at the odd noise, a snorting, barking, almost laughing sound. Lily

looked fearfully at James, who seemed to be very calm.

James: "Padfoot?" Sirius transformed back.

Sirius: "You could caught me... or I caught you..." his eyes glinted mischievously.

James: "I win! I caught you catching me and so therefore I win..."

Lily: "What are you talking about?"

James: "Padfoot and I have this ongoing... contest... you see, we're constantly trying to sneak up

on each other. I, have superior hearing, usually win... Started as just stuff to make History of

Magic go faster, I'd charm some bit of paper to go bump into him and look innocent..."

Sirius: "try to look innocent... you've got guilty written all over your face!"

Lily turned James's face with one hand on his cheek and looked at him searchingly.

Lily: "He looks pretty innocent to me... well... except that his eyes have this light in them that

makes me hope he isn't plotting against me..."

James: "Plotted against you?!? I love you!! I'd never plot against you... would I, Padfoot?"

Everyone started talking at once.

Sirius: "There was this one ti..."

Lily: "you what?"

Sirius: "...he said that he wou..."

James blushed: "I... I... I love you..."

Sirius: "...and then he said..."

Lily: "I feel the same about you..."

Sirius: "to summerize..."

James: "you don't hate me?"

Sirius: "...he hasn't in a while..."

Lily: "I love the side of you I overheard once in a conversation with your friends"

Sirius: "...but he definitely was..."

James: "about?"

Sirius: "...so you could say that he was, or wasn't..."

Lily: "how you hate the Dark Arts..."

Sirius: "...but you never know what he's thinking under that hair..."

James: "that made you love me?"

Sirius: "...my mum always said that criminals have messy hair..."

Lily: "It make me realize what a good heart you have..."

Sirius: "...but you can't believe my mum, bit of a fool, that one is..."

James: "I do?"

Sirius: "Have you two been ignoring me?"

James raised his eyebrows.

Lily: "Only a little..."

James snorted in laughter: "A little... sorry, Padfoot, we were too engaged in our conversation."

Sirius: "You mean I missed overhearing you guys!?"

Lily: "Probably..."

James: "Padfoot... you know that you heard every word we spoke..."

Sirius: "I'm the innocent one now..."

James snorted: "You? Innocent? Ever since you and that Ravenclaw girl met and..."

Sirius: "You knew?!"

Lily: "James, you don't need to finish that sentence"

James put his arm around her.

James: "Let's go back to the castle"

Lily nodded and smiled at him. Sirius stepped close to the pair of them and James threw the

cloak around the three of them. Lily found that she had to walk rather closer to James than she

normally would have, but found it rather enjoyable. The three of them entered the Gryffindor

common room and Sirius threw the cloak off of them, he immediately went to up his dormitory.

James turned to Lily.

James: "Thank you" Lily reached up, pulling him close into a hug.

Whispering in James's ear, Lily: "And thank you, Prongs, for trusting me, for

giving me a taste for breaking rules, and for being you..."

James leaned forward as if to kiss her, but Lily pulled back.

Lily: "We'll meet in dreamland..."

James kissed her quickly before she could protest.

James: "Good night."