Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. Only the plot.

Beta by: ilovethedotgame

Chapter Twelve: Secrets Revealed

James Potter

Sirius Black

Remus Lupin

Peter Pettigrew

All text in bold italic is the author. So you don't confuse me with anyone else in this story!

What do you get a girl for Christmas?

That question alone is hard enough, but what do you get a girl who you happen to be head over heals for, but is also your friend?

The answer is quite simple.

I have no clue.

And, not only do I not know what to get for Lily, but I don't want any suggestions from anyone else. I want to pick out her gift all by myself.

Good luck to me.

Did you like the Quidditch poster I made for you?

Why did you feel the need to make a gigantic poster of me playing quidditch to display for the entire school to see?

I'm the head of your cheering section. It's my job.

Lily probably thought it was an ego inflator.

She helped me with the charm work on the poster.

Really?

Really.

I'm fair to bursting with news! I was just in Dumbledore's office for setting off dungbombs outside of the Ancient Runes classroom. Over the last five years, visiting Dumbledore's office has been a rather common occurrence, so naturally I've come to know the headmaster quite well.

Ever since first year, I've known Lily was an exceptional witch, and everyone has always assumed that she'll be Head Girl next year. So, while I was there, I took the opportunity to ask Dumbledore about Lily's chances at being Head Girl.

I can safely say that unless Lily suddenly decides to become a rule breaker, which is as about as likely as penguins flying, she's going to be Head Girl.

I envy the lucky bloke who gets to work as Head Boy with her.

Today I told Lily something that only my friends know: I'm going to be an Auror when I leave of Hogwarts.

She was surprised; she expected me to play quidditch professionally. I do love to play, but I can't save lives flying around on a broomstick. With an evil wizard named Voldemort on the rise, the ministry is going to need plenty of Aurors.

Even though I'm pureblood, I don't think that I'm better than others. There are numerous muggleborns who are extremely talented. Muggleborns and half bloods have just as of a much right as anybody to study magic. And what does blood have to do with anything anyway? It doesn't make you a better witch or wizard or a better person; the Slytherins are living proof of that.

When I told Lily my feelings on the matter she had the weirdest look on her face. It's difficult to explain, but the best I can do is to say that it was a combination of shock, curiosity, and happiness. She seemed…almost proud that I want to help people and fight evil.

The conversation turned to how well acquainted with the headmaster I am and I took this opportunity to tell her what Dumbledore said about her chances at Head Girl. She looked pleased, so that made me happy.

Someone just needs to "avada kedavra" me and put me out of my misery.

Lily and I were heading back to Gryffindor Tower when for some inexplicable reason I brought up the subject of Hogsmeade. I asked her what she was doing, and since she was just going to do Christmas shopping for her friends, I suggested that she go with me.

She seemed to consider it for a moment, but then asked if I meant as friends or as more. Of course, I said as more, but if I couldn't go with her as more, then I wanted to go with her as a friend. (Because I am her friend!)

It's depressing. She told me that she doesn't see me as anymore than a friend and basically asked me to forget about any feelings I harbor for her.

As if that's going to happen anytime soon. One can't just forget a girl like Lily Evans. She might as well have asked me to forget how to breathe.

I laugh at James' misfortune. A plant with teeth bit him in Herbology. It's his own fault though.

He heard Stephan Perks asking Lily out and dropped the pot, which shattered, letting the plant escape. In the process of trying to capture the fanged plant, he got bitten and is now is the hospital wing.

His hand is now a rather nasty shade of green and he has to spend the night there to let it heal. Maybe I'll take him his journal to help cheer him up.

It is not a journal! It's an idea notebook! Merlin, how many times do I have to tell you?

I can't believe it! Stephan asked Lily out. She must have said yes. He's athletic and good looking and nice, what girl wouldn't go out with him?

How could she do that to me? She's knows how much I like her… I thought that even though she only sees me as a friend, she might be more considerate of my feelings.

How dare Stephan ask her out right in front of me? Everyone in the whole bleeding school knows how I feel about Lily. It's not like I've made a big secret of my feelings for her.

If he weren't such a nice bloke, I'd hex him when my hand heals.

I've realized that I'm being stupid. I don't have any sort of claim on Lily; she's entitled to go out with whomever she chooses.

And as for Stephan, he's a perfectly nice bloke, and I think they'll make a good couple. I hope they have fun at Hogsmeade.

I'm going to go drown myself in the shower.

She said no! She said no! Lily told Stephan no!

Oh, that just made my life! I think I'll go down to the kitchens to celebrate with some food.

Oh- dear – Merlin.

I have nothing to say, and yet I have everything to say.

I can't believe Sirius, that after all these years he would pull a stunt like this. He's my best friend, but right now I can't even look at him.

You see, Remus is a werewolf. He has been since he was a little kid. Sirius, Peter and I have been a friend to Remus in times of need. We even became illegal animagi so that we can be with Remus when he transforms. It's safe for us to be around him in animal state and when he's with us, he becomes saner, less aggressive.

Before we became animagi to help him, Remus would bite and scratch himself. He still has a scar on his upper right arm from an incident in second year that Sirius, Peter and I weren't there to prevent.

We've had some really fun times roaming the grounds at night. We've discovered hidden passages and all sorts of fun things like that. That's how we came to write our map.

And thanks to Sirius's poor choices Snape now knows about Remus's condition.

Sirius, prat that he is, thought that it would be great fun to tell Snape how to get past the Whomping Willow, which has a tunnel underneath which leads to the Shrieking Shack where Remus is taken to transform every month.

Snape may be the bane of my existence – always sneaking around and trying to get me and my friends chucked out of the school – but I don't wish him dead. After Hogwarts, I don't care if I never see him again as long as I live, but for all that, I don't want him to suffer the same fate as Remus.

If I hadn't stopped Snape from going all the way down that tunnel, he'd have been bitten or killed. As it is, he saw Remus as he was transforming and now knows his secret.

Dumbledore has sworn him to secrecy, but I'm sure that he'll drop hints right and left and find some way of letting people know without actually saying the words.

What possessed Sirius to do such a thing? Does he have any idea how this will affect Remus? If Remus had harmed Snape in any way, I know that he would never have been able to live with himself.

I'm already so mad at Sirius that I could hurl him off the North Tower right now. And not only does Snape know, but Lily heard me yelling at Sirius in the common room. It was more like Sirius trying to apologize and me refusing to listen, but that's not the point.

The point is that Lily is a smart girl. I might not have come right out and said what Sirius did or what Remus is in the common room, but she can put two and two together.

I think I scared her a bit, but I was desperate. I have not spent the last five years of my life keeping people from finding out Remus's secret just to have it all fall apart now.

Would Lily tell? I'm infatuated with the girl, but can I trust her with my friend's secret? I should be able to trust her, I just…I'm being paranoid I guess.

Lily knows. I intercepted her on her way to the library to look up information on werewolves.

I would have stayed and tried to stop her from going to the library, but my fellow Quidditch players came and carried me off since it was time for practice and it wouldn't do to have the captain be late for a practice he scheduled. At least that's they told me.

Not that I went willingly, mind you. I put up a pretty good fight, but in the end they won since my wand was in my pocket and they had theirs in their hands.

Of course, now I know that I didn't need to bother to try and stop her at all. Remus's secret is safe with Lily. She was a tad miffed that I didn't trust her, but when I explained that it wasn't her personally knowing that worried me, she seemed to accept that.

Since she heard me yelling at Sirius the night of the accident, she knows the role Sirius played in the whole ordeal, and while she seemed genuinely distressed about it and the effect it's had on my friendship with him and Remus, Lily told me to forgive him.

Lily is truly one of the best people I have ever known. She told me that, "While Remus needs you to vent to and to be able to trust right now, Sirius needs you to help him through his guilt. He's not a bad person; just a little reckless. Everybody deserves a second chance."

That's deep, that is, and so utterly true. I was too wound up being angry and unwilling to forgive to even consider for a moment how Sirius must feel. I know that Sirius is a basically good person, he just made a mistake.

I can only imagine the guilt that he must feel. How could you live each day with the knowledge that you betrayed a six year confidence and friendship? That your actions could have led to someone's death? That your actions have allowed a horrible secret to be revealed to your enemy?

I need to talk to Dumbledore.

I went all the way to Dumbledore's office to have him tell me the same exact same thing that Lily said. I'm getting the feeling that they're right.

I just don't want Remus to feel as though I'm condoning Sirius' actions, because I'm not. Nothing could be further from the truth. I simply want to be a friend to both of my friends, because that's what they both need more than anything right now.

Well, it's done. Sirius approached me outside the portrait hole after classes, looking for me to forgive him, which I did. I feel so much better, like a weight has been lifted off of my chest.

Remus has yet to forgive Sirius, but I understand why he can't just yet. Sirius didn't bandy my secret to Snape and almost have me kill someone. I know if I were in Remus's shoes, forgiveness would be a long time in coming.

It will come though, in good time. If there's anyone who's ever believed in second chances, it's Remus Lupin.

I am so sorry for the wait, but as you can see, my computer and internet are fixed, so the next chapter will be here much quicker than this one!

As stated in my bio, I've started work on another Lily and James story called, "Just One of Those Things". I'll probably be posting it at the end of May or beginning of June. I was re-reading what I have done the other night and decided that I needed to foreshadow some events a little sooner. So watch for that story!

To all who reviewed, thank you! Sadly, I somehow, some way, I managed to delete all of the chapter 11 reviews from my e-mail, so I have no responses for you. :-( I promise next time, you'll get a response, but for now, thank you, and yes, James is sweet, and yes he is learning!