To make things a little different...

Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series. The woman who does is a literary genius, and I am but an avid admirer of her work.

Author's note: Yay, chapter 5! I had to dothe laundry today,but I think I'm so into it right now that I'm going to write 6 as well. Again, 5 didn'tturn out quite like I wantedit to. I keep planning more action, more action, but it's mostly sentiment and conversation. Grrr, but I know there's action comingup because there has to be becauseI said so. Haha. (Ok, that sounded real mature.) On a great note, however, walking home from work, I was able to formulate the last chapter of the story, or at least part of it, so that I now know where I'm headed. Yay!

To all the readers - Thanks for reading. I know you're out there, I know you're silent, but the fact that you are reading goes a long way for me!

Now for the reviewers - Thank you so much for the input!

DoomonasticK - I'm glad you picked up on the tiny smudge of suspense I put in there.And happier that youliked Chapter 4.And, of course, thank you for the compliment!

NJ MacReiley - I'm thinking I'm going to try my best to update every day until I finish the story, although I am tempted to start work on my other story that has about ten chaptersdone, but, like I wrote in my profile, it's in need of a bit of work. Anyway, that way, no one'll have to go back and re read everything. Yay!

WeirdNot Boring - I also find this story depressing. Chapter 4 depressed the caca out of me too,with a bit of YAY for Lily. I'm super thrilled that youfind it canon. I'm trying my best to stay on track (though obviously, with the lack of information concerning these people, it is very difficult). Keep reading!

Hazelocean -There you are, another chapter! Hurray!

nora17 - I continued from there (roughly), so I hope it suits your liking. School is startingSept. 1st for me too, and I hope that by then, this story will be up and finished! And also, thankstomy courageous white blood cells who have been fighting incessantly to keep me perky, I have triumphed over my sickness (whatever it was). Yahoo! Oh, and James' POV stays. I likeJames. He's a very confused person...and confusing...methinks...

teresa hughes - I had no idea I was going to use that. None whatsoever, but I do that sometimes, leave things that are perfect to go with other things, and I love it when I do! Your compliments flatter me, and there's nothing else I can do but grin foolishly and say, as James said at the end of last chapter, "Thank you".

Ugh! That was long. Maybe next time I'll put the thanks and stuff at the bottom, what do you think?

Chapter 5 - Manly Wizard

That day, Gwendolyn Potter did not move from the master bedroom. James, half worried for her, half angry with her, had decided to leave her alone for the day, sending up their house elf with food, and to check up on the state of things. For their part, Lily and James had actually spent the day in separate rooms (except during mealtimes) and spoke of useless things when together (as forced conversation usually led to).

The day after The Argument (James had christened it himself), he had brought his mother breakfast. They hadn't talked much, only saying 'good morning' to one another, but for the rest of the time, James had sat on the couch where Lily had slept, watching his mother eat (and noticed for the first time what a remarkable appetite she had).

Lunch brought James to sit beside his mother's bed. She had inquired on the state of the house, on whether or not he had made plans for the summer. They chatted a while after they'd finished their soup and tuna sandwiches and James had left the room in search of Lily, to tell her of his mother's progress. She had shown genuine happiness for James, and as they had settled outside (to "tan" she had informed him, though that only meant falling asleep lazing around outside to him – such an unproductive thing to do) James had invited her to join them in the master bedroom for dinner. "I'd rather not," she had replied all too quickly. James had expected it, but still felt slightly put out.

Before supper that evening, James found his mother out of her bed wandering the upstairs corridor. When he questioned her with a slight raise of his eyebrow, she responded casually, "My legs were stiffening up, and I believe my behind has officially made a permanent indent in my mattress." She had turned into the bathroom and smiled proudly at James. Little did she know that the foolish grin eating up three quarters of his face was also one of pride.

At fifteen minutes to seven, James snuck into his room (leaving Lily and his mother in the main lounge to sort out their differences) and dug out, from underneath a loose floorboard, a little mirror. Sitting on his bed, he looked deep into it and spoke the name "Sirius Black" with clarity.

And sure enough, moments later, the familiar grey fathomless eyes he had spent so many detentions with appeared behind the glass, along with his (handsome, though James would never admit it as wizards did not make a habit of complimenting their best mates' good looks) face, his dark hair that fell with elegance over his eyes (rather than the sticking up on ends look James had lived with his entire life).

"Heya Prongs!" Still alive, I see," smirked the boy. James chuckled slightly. Obviously, the Marauders had seen Lily Evans come home with him and his mom. But he didn't feel like talking about Lily to Sirius right now and so he moved on to change the subject.

"Mom misses you, mate! Worried sick about you actually."

Sirius' grin got larger as he replied, "Tell her I miss her like hell! And then give her a great hug for me. Moony's mom's driving me up the wall here!" James laughed, knowing full well that Mrs Lupin was nowhere near as bad as Mrs Pettigrew, but that she could still get over protective of her 'handsome Remus'. "So, er, Prongs, listen, I finally learned that I'm inheriting my uncle's cash, so I er, think I'll be able to live on my own now, actually, planning on buying a place next winter."

James' smile vanished. Sirius was going to leave him and his mother a lone for Christmas, and then forever after. He was sad, really, that his best friend would want to leave the Potters' home so quickly. Yet, it had always been difficult to keep Sirius in one place – especially if there was an authority figure in close proximity. Sirius Black was definitely made to live alone. So, without further pause, James made an effort to seem unaffected by it. "We both know you'll drop by every meal, Padfoot, so it's really no big difference, is it?"

"Wanker," Sirius retorted, a look of false hostility on his face. "So on with the meeting! My best guess is that Moony'll make head boy this year, which means – "

"No," James interjected, "I told you, Dumbledore won't give it to him. Remember? He knows about his Hairy Little Problem too!"

"So?"

James sighed. Sirius could aggravate him so much at times. They'd been arguing about this ever since Remus had gotten the Prefect badge. That fateful day, Sirius had launched himself into a never ending planning session on what they could do during seventh year, as having a Head Boy in the group would definitely prove itself extremely beneficial. Especially with the more risky plans.

"So, how can he expect to rely on Moony patrolling the corridors when he's stuck in a haunted house or in the hospital wing?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "The who, O Wise One, do you suggest we make Marauder now so that my plans – "

"Our plans," James corrected, for it had become routine for all four to gather in the room of requirement every Wednesday evening (Quidditch was on Tuesday and Friday, with occasional Saturday morning practices, so Friday was out of the question, and Sunday was usually reserved for homework they had been putting off for a little over a week) to contribute to the massive plan book.

"Fine, fine, OUR plans, can see the light of day? Or rather, darkness of night?" The idiot laughed at his own joke which really wasn't a joke. Oh boy, James thought.

"No one. We wait. Although honestly, I think he'll be Ravenclaw…you know that chap there with the crooked nose and the –"

"Bushy eyebrows?" Sirius nodded his approval. "You're probably right on that one. IF Moony doesn't get it. But…Prongs I don't know if we can convert him – he's such a stiff git, that one is. He'll never be good enough to – "

"I know," James' spirit started to soar as he thought of trying to lure the next Head Boy into becoming a Marauder strictly for productivity purposes. He blamed it on Sirius. There was something about his best mate-turned-brother-slash-accomplice-in-crime that got his testosterone flowing, something that made him want to roll around in the mud, stick twigs and leaves in his hair and grunt. It was quite the feeling too, to be sneaking around at night, hidden underneath a blanket of clouds, adrenaline pumping through his veins as his mind flirted with the idea of getting caught in the act. No one ever evoked that feeling to the same degree as this young wizard staring at him in the mirror did.

Still, no matter how much fun it was to cause havoc around the school with Sirius and Remus and Peter, at times, James simply wanted to lay back, relax, chat about brooms or something else that didn't involved the possibility of major punishment. With the Marauders, more specifically, with Sirius, serious discussions always led to pranks. James didn't mind, though, not any more. He had long ago accepted his friend's need to rebel, his outright refusal to accept boundaries, and his carefree (often careless) ways. At times, yes, it was difficult to keep up, as James' parents had managed to drill in some respect for rules and for others. Whenever James would reject one of Sirius' ideas, he often felt as though, to make up for his "'weakness" (as surely Padfoot saw it as such), he would have to do something extra cruel, extra rebellious. So he did, but it doesn't mean he felt good about it. Although, when Padfoot would slap him heartily on the back, he would argue otherwise.

"Master Potter, Sir." James hid the mirror behind his pillow, throwing his head on top of it, and called to the house elf to come in. "Dinner is served, Sir."

"Yes, thank you, Rhett, I'll be right down." With a bow of the head, the blue eyed green skinned creature backed out of James' dim room.

"Retch!" Joked his almost brother as James peeked into the mirror again. "See ya next time, Prongs."

"Sure. And keep working on that thing with Moony and Wormtail, you know the Big One, and I'll try to fix our Head problem." He really had no idea what to do, but he felt that if anyone had the slightest chance to come up with a logical answer, it would be him.

"Will do. Bye then," and with that, James found himself staring at his own reflection.

He stopped. Something looked off, and hmmm-ing to himself, he tried to pick out exactly what it was that had changed. It was his eyes, he concluded. The lighting is terrible in this room and it makes them seem weird. Accepting his suspicion as a valid conclusion, James placed the mirror back under the floorboard and ducked out of his room. Making his way towards the dinning room, he did as always; he tucked in his shirt, unruffled the creases from his pants, and slid his glasses up his nose. His mother liked it when he came to the table looking proper, and today, like any other day, James wanted to please her. Then he stopped before turning the corner into the hall. He stared at the carpet beneath his grey socks. Could he hear anything? Any screaming, or snuffling or odd silences? No, then why stop? The answer was simple, he was nervous because he didn't expect anything, yet expected everything to be going on in there between the two women all at once.

Unsure if he made sense, James scratched the back of his head and entered the place where sat one white haired and one red haired witch. They had just finished saying something, what, he couldn't tell, but after he kissed his mother on the head and she smiled again that proud smile at him, he caught her flashing Lily another smile, a private smile that completely blew him off and left him befuddled. Women! He said to himself, and it was that moment that James Potter concluded that to try to fully comprehend women would be futile and instead, he should focus on knowing them. Yes, life would be much simpler that way.

They ate without tension, Lily making sarcastic remarks about how their Potions professor would often try to talk her into changing houses (not that it was possible or anything). Then James found out that his father had been a Ravenclaw and his mother had been Slytherin. "Oh, don't you give me that face, James. We both know you would fit right in with the Slytherins!"

"I would not! Otherwise, I'd be there right now. They're just plain evil, those Slytherins are, Mum, I swear. Times have changed since you went to Hogwarts, Mum, and – "

"Actually, what your son is trying to say but failing miserably to do so is that the Slytherins he notices actually have it in them to be evil, meanwhile, the ones I associate with essentially tend to be just as sweet and charming as any Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Gryffindor." James glared at her. How dare she betray Gryffindors that way? Associating with Slytherins in a civil manner, hmph!

They resumed eating their meatloaf in silence, but James, the energetic teenager that he was, couldn't keep quiet. "You were really a Slytherin?"

"No," she replied casually, "but now I know how important it is to you. Such a trivial thing, too," she mumbled to herself as she took a large bite out of her potato.

James shrivelled his nose. Defeat. He had been defeated. Then, suddenly remembering that he owed his mother a hug on Sirius' behalf, he stood from the table and walked to his mother, wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "JAMES!" she exclaimed, "What in Dumbledore's beard was THAT for?"

James smiled. "I got an owl from him telling me to." She eyed him suspiciously. He shrugged and kissed her forehead.

"And that?"

"Was from me, so that you can forgive me for being a stuck up schoolboy who still uses school houses to differentiates between personalities." While saying this, James was actually looking at Lily across the table. He hoped she would get the fact that he was apologizing to her as well.

"No need to apologize, Potter, well all know boys don't catch on as quickly as witches do!" The two witches laughed together while James smiled in relief. So he'd just been insulted by Evans again, but this time his mother was backing her up. Oh well, he thought. Ah, today was a good day. No, today was a great day. Nothing could ruin this day. He stole a glance at his mother who was looking back and forth from James to Lily with a perplexed expression.

"So what house were you in – JUST for curiosity's sake." He rubbed the back of his head (out of habit) playing as though he was only an innocent young lad asking a harmless question.

"Ravenclaw, James. Your father was Gryffindor and I was Ravenclaw." He knew his father had been Gryffindor. He remembered a time when his father had told him about how he always thought Gryffindor's common room was the best most comfortable looking room he'd ever seen, thus why he had it replicated in the basement.

"Would you mind telling us how you two got together?" Lily asked meekly. James stared at her with wide eyes. She just couldn't keep herself under control, could she?

His smiled as her eyes took on a distant look. "We'll keep that for tomorrow evening." James saw Lily's head drop in disappointment. Dessert was eaten soon after, however, and Mrs Potter had escaped to her study where she was most likely looking through pictures of her and her beloved.

"Do you think she'll actually say?" Lily had asked James before they parted to go in their separate rooms.

It was James' turn to smile mocking at her. "We'll just have to find out, now won't we?" And with smug look, James turned on his heels and walked into the room across the hall – his own room – meanwhile Lily retreated further into the corridor to reach her room.

A/N - Like I said, I believe I'm going to update this once more today, if all goes as planned (which there are no reasons why things shouldn't). I think I'm going to hint at the future something that will happen, but I've realised that there isn't much character development as far as Lily goes...James a little bit, although I can't wait for him to fully evolve. (For some reason, I'm hearing Rupert Grint's "Why spiders? Why couldn't it be "follow the butterflies"? from CoS. Anyway...) So I'm going to concentrate, I think, I'm hoping, on Lily or rather how James perceives Lily.

Also, just a little question: What does AU stand for in fan fiction? Author's Universe? lol If anyone can help me out with that, then great, and thanks!