"Seven long years and I can't believe that it will soon be over," said Peter Pettigrew softly. "I'm going to miss you guys." A tear could be seen in the moonlight as it slid down the man's cheek.
Everyone nodded and sat in silence for long moments. None of them knew what to say. James looked from each of his friends to the next, opened his mouth as if to speak, and then shut it for he knew not what to say to the people who had gathered around him. Their very last month together… James shook his head and swallowed hard as his arm groped for Lily's shoulders. Once it found its mark, James wrapped his arm around her shoulders and sighed softly. He didn't know what to say.
It was Lia who spoke, a beautiful girl with lightly tanned skin, black hair, and blue eyes. "Seven long years, indeed… but seven years we won't ever forget." She smiled and her teeth shown brilliantly in the silver thread of moon light that cast down upon the friends from the sky. They had broken many rules in their day but this was the one that was continuous. They knew the penalty for being caught so near the Forest, but they knew that the Lake was not classified as part of the forest. They were sitting in a clearing near the lake, the forest at their left side.
"Let us remember the times we shared together in this place we have come to know as our home," said Remus softly. They nodded and Sirius still hadn't said a word for he was too amazed that it would soon be over. Then he smiled and looked at all of his friends.
"Remember our first year…?" He laughed heartily and the friends soon laughed as well.
"Oh yeah… I remember," said James mischievously.
It was all so new, the train, the large school. It was so overwhelming too for the young James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, Lily Evans, and Lia Edwards. Neither of them had met, well James and Sirius had. They had shared a compartment in the train on their way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. None of them knew that they would become friends in a matter of hours nor become part of the biggest war ever to exist in the wizarding world. None of them knew what part they would play in it...
They walked into the Great Hall, all of the first years in a mass of robes and looks of bewilderment and confusion. The headmaster stood up and gave a speech about another year of Hogwarts, the mischievous first years hadn't been paying attention but were too busy gawking at the magical ceiling that reflected the sky. At last, names began to be called each of the six children that would become closer then family were all sorted into Gryffindor… However, that's not where all the fun began.
"Hi, I'm James Potter," he said to Remus who smiled and shook James' hand.
"I'm Remus Lupin, and this is Peter Pettigrew," Remus replied softly.
"Sirius Black," said Sirius. Thus the strongest friendship that Hogwarts would ever see was forged. Lily and Lia soon found a place beside the four boys and smiled.
"Lily Evans," she said to James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter.
"Pleasure," all of them had said.
"Lia Edwards," she said with so much energy that it threw the four boys off balance for a moment.
The fun would begin in Potions class. The six friends sat together and stared at their professor. On the other side of the room was a young Severus Snape who seemed to be so deep in note taking that nothing could draw him away from his incessant scribbling. Sirius saw Snape and snickered before glancing at James and throwing a muggle noise cracker under Snape's seat when the professor's back was turned. Five… four… three… two… BANG! Snape leapt out of his chair and James bit down on his lip trying to keep from laughing as Sirius looked ahead as if nothing happened. Lily glared at him coldly and looked over at Snape whose notes were now ruined. She glared at them and said softly, "You are so immature!" Then she stalked off towards Severus and tapped his notes with her wand, cleaning the parchment of the ink that had spilled over his notes.
"I didn't ask for your help, mudblood!" he said in agitation. Lily looked at him as if she had been slapped.
"I was only trying to help!" she said painfully.
"Did I ask for it?" he snarled bitterly and sneered at her before she turned away and walked towards her table. It was then at that point that Lily would make it her life's goal to befriend Severus Snape and defend him from the cruelty of James and Sirius.
The group of friends laughed hysterically as they remembered that day. All except Lily who looked at them in disdain. "Oh lighten up, Lily!" cried Lia when she finally had control of her breath.
"Why should I? That was such a mean and rotten thing to do," she said angrily.
"Nonsense," said Sirius and James.
"It was classic," said James happily.
"Humph!" said Lily. "I still can't believe how mean you were to him when he had done nothing to you!"
"That was nothing," said Sirius as he tried to control his laughter. "What about that time in our fifth year?"
"What? When I nicked the snitch?" asked James casually.
"No," replied Sirius.
Remus chuckled as he remembered their fifth year. "Wonderful question on the O.W.L.s. Five signs describing a werewolf…"
James smirked. "Oh yeah! Now I remember!"
So did Lily apparently for her face darkened in anger. "I didn't find that in the least bit funny that day!"
"How come? It was so classic…"
Remus then frowned and said, "Yes, it was classic… but still not right of you to do that."
"Oh please, stop being such a party pooper," said James in annoyance. Even as they all spoke, Peter was still sniggering as he remembered that day when they had made such a fool of Snape. Lily was angry though as she remembered.
Lia chuckled slightly, "Yeah, and he promised never to bother Snape again, too, if you went out with him."
"Yeah, and she said no… Now look," Sirius said with a wry grin on his face.
"Oh shut up, Padfoot!" Lily said in annoyance. "Your treatment of Severus still makes me sick, even if he did call me a mudblood."
"Someone tell me the details, I seem to have forgotten much of that day," said Lia with a smirk.
"Certainly," said James. "Let's see Sirius was bored so we decided to play with Snivellus. We ended up immobilizing him as he tried to squirm towards his wand like the filthy worm that he is."
Lily glared at James and snapped, "He never did a thing to you until you decided to go off and bother him!"
James ignored her and continued with the story. "Yes… and then we decide to have him floating around in the air… That got some laughs."
Sirius let out a bark of laughter and Remus shook his head. "I should have stopped you from doing that to him… It was so wrong and so cruel. I can't believe I let you…"
Lia looked at Remus and snorted. "Has no one any sense of fun anymore?"
Peter smiled. "I thought it was very funny."
"Me too," said Sirius and James at once.
Lia snickered, "Yeah… and to think I was part of that group of girls by the lake… say wasn't it this very spot that you two made a fool of him?"
After a few moments of thought James laughed. "Yes, actually. Ah, good memories here, good memories."
Lily said nothing. She couldn't for she was too angry to say anything to him. She still could not forgive him for what he had done and said softly, "I don't understand why everyone was so mean to him… He never did anything except keep to himself and bury himself in his books. A quiet man who only wanted to be left alone and yet you two made him the butt of every prank. Why?"
"Have you noticed the way he is, Lily?" asked James incredulously. "He's conniving, that's all I know."
Lily snorted. "I don't think so. You don't know him!"
"And you do?" he inquired bitterly.
"As a matter of fact I do!" she said angrily. "Severus is actually a very kind man. He's so misunderstood because no one ever takes the time to get to know him and all anyone ever did was make fun of him! At least I got the chance to know him!"
"How? He had stated he wanted nothing to do with a… a mudblood," he said and the word left a nasty taste in his mouth.
"I know," replied Lily coolly. "But I got to crack that cold exterior of his to find a sensitive and intelligent man who just wanted to fit in and to have someone he could trust. It's because of people like you that people like Severus turn to the dark side!"
"The dark side? Oh please, we have nothing to do with that. People like Severus are just evil and will turn to the dark side without anyone's aid," said James.
Lia glanced at Sirius, they knew it was about to get heated. "People like you, James! People don't turn to the dark side for no reason. It's people like you that cause them to do it because no one wants them! Just think how dangerous he could be if he joins the forces of evil!" she said angrily. No one would ever know Severus as she did, she knew he was a good man but also knew that the darkness called to him for the light had done nothing but betray him and cause him pain.
Just as James was about to speak Remus' voice cut across the arguments of Lily and James. "Regardless of how James treated him, it was still wrong to do it and I should have stopped James and Sirius. I didn't so that makes me just as much at fault as either of them. Now both of you stop arguing before a beautiful relationship turns into an ugly one. It's getting late… We should probably head back to the castle as well before we get caught."
They all nodded. None of them had expected the night to end in an argument like this but it did and the friends remained silent for nothing could be said now.
A month later, the six friends were on the Hogwarts Express and news that Lily and James would marry within a few years had spread throughout the compartments. The friends rejoiced and when they stepped off the train, they hugged each other. "I'm going to miss you guys," said Lily through tears in her eyes as she hugged each of her friends.
James looked upon the group of friends that had looked to him for leadership and he smiled at them all. "It has been a wonderful seven years and we will continue to keep in tough, right? No matter what we will always stick together. We're friends to the end."
The friends all nodded as one and echoed his words. "Friends till the end."
"We will be the secret keepers for each other," James said as he locked eyes with Sirius. Padfoot nodded and smiled.
"Aye, mate. And we will protect each other too if these rumors are true. We'll need all the protection we can get from each other if the dark lord is rising in power once again," said Sirius.
Remus nodded gravely. "No matter what happens, we will know what each person is doing and we will brief each other monthly." They all agreed. Lia wrapped her arms around Sirius' waste. Her parents had been killed by the dark lord and thus she would be staying with Sirius and his family.
"Take care, Lily. I see darkness in your futures," Lia said softly. They all looked at her gravely. They knew that divination had been her strongest class in school and knew she would become a great seer. "Fare well my friends, and stay safe," she said sadly. They nodded, exchanged hugs one last time, and went their separate ways.