Lily awoke to the sound of birds singing and a clear blue sky. 'Beautiful,' Lily thought. But too soon she remembered her argument with James the night before and cringed at the painful memory. She quickly got up and had a shower to help clear her head and relax her. The bathroom was absolutely gorgeous, with gold plated taps and stylish cream tiles covered with simple, but elegant patterns lining the edges. Once again, she found herself thinking how lucky she was. 'How could my problems with Potter ever make me unlucky?' she wondered.

How wrong she'd find herself to be.

Lily walked down to their shared common room, once dressed and ready for class, to find James traipsing around with only a hand towel draped around his waste, dripping wet.

"Oh," Lily gasped. She was quite taken aback. Not only had she never seen this much of a man exposed before but she had never seen a man with a physique like James Potters- muscular and well-toned. It was enough to shock any girl. It was becoming a habit for Lily's jaw to be hanging towards the floor. One that she tried to control, but sometimes it was just so difficult.

"What do you think you're doing?" she cried, exasperated.

"Looking for my school tie," was his honest reply.

"I meant why are you walking around half naked?"

James smirked. "Is it a problem, Miss Evans?" he questioned.

Lily blushed profusely, "YES!" she screamed. "It's just not acceptable behaviour. People might start to talk," she was clearly worried.

James was getting annoyed now. "Don't be like that again. It's not like we were doing anything...wrong."

She hated his tone. Blushing furiously she couldn't stand the fact that he'd had this affect on her. What made it worse was that he obviously knew it, if his cocky smirk was anything to go by.

He loved to see her nervous, even more than seeing her angry. Stepping closer to her he said, "Maybe one day, I'll be able to see you in a similar ensemble." With that, he gestured towards his lack of clothing.

Lily had had enough. "Right," she bellowed, "that's it. I can't live with you anymore. It's just too much. Eurgh!"

James was shocked to say the least. "It's always one thing after another with you Lily, isn't it? All you ever do is find something bad to complain about. What about the good things? They deserve equal attention!"

"There are no good things here James," Lily sounded hurt. If James had wounded her he knew not how. Wasn't she the one who decided to move out? He should be hurt. She continued, "As soon as possible I'll sort out with McGonagall new sleeping arrangements for the two of us."

James was silent. Eventually he simply sighed and said, "If that's what you really want."

"It really is."

It was nearing the end of lunch, and on the way back to the heads dorm to collect her Charms homework Lilly spotted Cara sat alone on a wall in the castle courtyard. It was too awful what Cara had already been through and Lily couldn't even imagine what it must be like to live with it everyday. Realising that she hadn't really spoken to Cara since her parents had been murdered, Lily decided to find out how she was. It was important that her approach didn't seem forced. The last thing she wanted was to remind Cara of her loss, ultimately making her feel worse.

"Hi Cara," Lily spoke, barely above a whisper. She didn't want to startle the girl. She was already fragile enough.

To say Lily had failed was an understatement. Cara was definitely shocked. It wasn't everyday that the head girl came to talk to her. In fact, it wasn't very often that anyone talked to her.

"Er...hi...Lily," Cara replied, clearly uncertain of the situation.

"Are you ok? I was worried about you sitting out here alone." Lily tried to tread carefully on unstable ground.

"Oh. I'm ok. Really. I was just thinking about things. It's nice to have some time alone. I'm fine by myself, honestly," Cara argued. She was definitely on edge.

Lily wasn't sure whether to believe her or not. "Well if you're sure you're alright I'll leave you alone. But if you ever need to talk, just come to me. I'm available almost all of the time and if, for some reason, I'm not, I'll make myself available."

"Thanks Lily," Cara replied, genuinely pleased.

Lily was just about to turn around and head back inside when she had an idea. "Hey Cara?" she inquired.

"Yes?" Cara responded when she realised that Lily hadn't left.

"Do you want to come to Hogsmeade with Rachel, Jess and I next weekend. You know, it might be good fun. We can go to Zonko's joke shop and than buy a few Butter beers. Are you up for it?" Lily asked.

"Erm...I don't think so Lily."

"Come on," Lily knew she was pushing it but she didn't want Cara to be depressed forever, "It'll help take your mind off...other things for a few hours. In my opinion, there is nothing better for stress, or whatever may be bothering a person, than a little retail therapy."

A short amount of time whilst Cara gave it some thought. "Ok. That will be nice," Cara said. Lily was glad to see that she'd managed to convince her.

"Excellent. Well, I'll see you later." And with that, Lily finally head back inside.

Ten seconds had barely passed when a voice came out of the shadows. "So you do have a heart after all."

Was it a question or a snide remark? Lily settled for a bit of both. "What do you want Potter?" she said, sighing into her speech.

James looked cocky as usual but there was something else in his eyes. Was it hurt? Annoyance? It was hard to tell. He decided to answer Lily's question with one of his own, "If you can be nice to Cara, why can't you be nice to me?"

"Not this...again." Lily couldn't believe he hadn't dropped this yet. "You've been a nuisance to society for at least six years James, that's why. Plus, Voldemort hasn't just murdered your parents!"

"But I've changed," James was really struggling to hide the desperation he was feeling as Lily started to walk away from him. He'd been in love with her for six years and he couldn't keep pining away, waiting for her love in return. It was tearing him up.

"No you've not!"

"I have and I can prove it." James was adamant. "Will you give me a chance?"

Lily was really annoyed at him, but she didn't want to hurt him, for some reason. "No," she put it bluntly. "I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"Simply because, I just don't trust you," she explained.

For once in his life, James Potter was lost for words. How could she not trust him? He was the most trustworthy person around, known by all for his unbreakable loyalty to his friends. Obviously all but Lily. How could she not know this about him? He prided himself on it.

Lily waited for a response, hoping for James' resignation from pursuing her but it never came. What happened was much more disturbing and painful to them both. She searched his face to find any hint of what he was thinking, but it was blank. His eyes, once again, gave him away. They had started watering. Initially Lily thought that he must have got some dust in them, to cause such a reaction; Just simple dust irritation. But he turned form her and walked away. Lily watched his back as he walked. Getting no response from James Potter was so unusual that she felt unnerved. Then she saw something that made her heart sink. James had raised his right arm to his face as if he was brushing something away. Something like tears, perhaps? Was he crying?

"So it's a full moon tonight my fellow Marauders," Sirius reminded.

"Yeah," Remus didn't seem too enthusiastic.

James caught on to his friends worry immediately and tried to calm him down, "Don't worry Moony, we've been doing this every month since fifth year. Nothing is going to go wrong."

"Yeah," Peter chipped in, "we won't let it. And if anything does go wrong we'll make sure that no one can link it to us."

"Wormtail's right, Moony," Sirius confirmed, "We'll go through the same drill that we do every month and have the best time doing it. I mean, it's not every wizard who can do what we can."

"What? Lead two completely different lives if we want to?" James added. "Run around the castle grounds whenever we want? Have the freedom to have fun?"

"Ok, ok. I get it. All your points are valid and I will take them into account as I attempt to cheer up."

The four were currently in the deserted Gryffindor common room after having left dinner in the great hall early. They did this once a month to plan for Remus' transformation into a werewolf. It had been James' idea for Sirius, Peter and he to become animagi- wizards capable of becoming a chosen animal at will. It had taken years of preparation after first discovering their best friend's condition, but in fifth year they had finally cracked it. It was illegal of course, as they weren't registered, but their friend was more important to them then legislation. James had chosen to become a stag developing the nickname Prongs, Sirius a black, shaggy dog, becoming Padfoot, and Peter a rat, adopting the name Wormtail. Remus, as a werewolf, had become Moony.

Lily had left dinner early to go and find James. It was so confusing. She was sure that finding James should be the last thing that she wanted to do, but it was the only thing. 'What's wrong with me?' she wondered, 'I shouldn't care, so why do I?' She'd been to see McGonagall about the heads dorms but it hadn't gone too well. Their head of house had simply told her they'd have to talk about it after breakfast tomorrow. A Saturday. The weekend. Lily couldn't help but feel annoyed. Couldn't they do it tonight?

She'd checked the heads dorms but James wasn't there. She wanted to let him know about the meeting tomorrow and organise a time to meet for rounds tonight. 'Eurgh...rounds,' she couldn't help but remember what had happened the previous night. She head to the Gryffindor common room to see if James might be in there.

"Right everything's sorted for tonight," James said.

Lily had just entered the common room but the Marauders had yet to notice her presence even though she was only about thirty metres away. They were getting careless. 'What's tonight?' she wondered.

"Are you sure?" Remus inquired.

"Relax," Sirius commanded, "we're Missirs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs. No one can harm us or stop us."

'They're who?' Lily was getting more and more confused by the second.

"Besides, even if we're not ready it's a full moon so we've got no choice but to get on with it," Sirius concluded.

"Right, let's go," James said.

At this point Lily had no choice but to make herself known. She stood right between them and the portrait door. "Go where?" she butted in.

The marauders couldn't look shiftier if they tried. They were clearly worried about how much Lily had over heard. James was the first to find his voice, "How long have you been lurking there, Evans?" Evans. It was conclusive. He was still pissed at her for what happened earlier.

"I just walked in now," Lily lied. She couldn't let them know that she was suspicious of their behaviour. 'Full moon, but what had that got to do with anything?' she wondered. "Why? You're not trying to hide something are you?"

"No," Sirius jumped in, a little too soon, "erm, I mean, of course not. Stop looking for trouble Evans, you won't get any from us."

Lily wasn't going to give up that easily. She wanted to see how far she could push it, "A little cagey aren't we? You know, for four teenagers, famous for mischief making, who assure me they're not causing trouble."

James could restrain himself no longer. "Oh, just leave it, will you?"

"Excuse me," Lily complained, offended by his sudden outburst.

"You heard me Lily, Get over yourself. I'm sure you've got enough problems of your own so stay out of ours." He paused. "Why did you come here anyway?"

"I was looking for you, but I don't know why I bothered. I'll see you later to do rounds...unfortunately," Lily spat.

"You won't," James grinned as he saw Lily's temper rise, "I'm not coming. My friends need me, not that you'd notice. Loyalty to my friends is important to me. They trust me to be there for them. Not that you'd notice that either."

"Is this really about your friends James?" Lily inquired.

"We'll just be outside mate," Remus whispered. James hardly noticed. He wasn't going to break eye contact with Lily. He refused to let her beat him. Not this time.

"Or is it about me and what I said this morning?"

"Oh my God...eurgh...once again it's all got to be about you. When it comes to my friends Lily you no longer even register in my mind. They are the most important people in my life and I'm proud of that. The trust and the loyalty that we share is too great for most people to even attempt to understand. And clearly, you're one of those people."

"Why are you treating me like this?" Lily sounded wounded but she soon recovered. "What happened to the love sick fool who followed me around like a lost sheep," Lily fired back.

He chose to ignore her last sentence. "I'll tell you why, Lily? Could it be because you continuously put me down, thinking that you're above me? Or could it be that you refuse to believe that I'm capable of being a better person? Or maybe it's because I'm sick to death of seeing you everyday? You know what; I'm feeling generous, so let's say it's all three."

The next thing James felt was Lily's hand slam against his cheek. She just couldn't listen to him insult her anymore. Lily stood, silent and shocked at her violent behaviour. Regaining some of her previous composure she said, "Meeting with McGonagall after breakfast tomorrow. Don't be late."

"Goodbye Lily." And with that he left her standing in the common room alone.

She burst into tears and for the first time in her life it was because of James Potter. She was sorry that she'd hurt him, now not only emotionally but physically. What had she become? And she was sorry...so, so sorry that she'd let her temper get the better of her. Again.

It was 9:00 p.m. and Lily was sat with Rachel and Jess in the girl's dorm room. They'd been playing cards for an hour and Lily's mood had lifted a little as she relaxed. The memory of her full blown argument with James had not left her but she'd pushed it to the back of her mind. Instead, she'd been thinking about what the guys had been talking about before they'd noticed her. What did their strange nicknames relate to? What did the full moon have to do with anything? And then it hit her. Werewolves. Werewolves had a lot to do with a full moon. But it couldn't be. Could it? Was one of the Marauders a werewolf? Yes. That was it. But which one? Well, Remus had been a little nervous about whatever they were planning.

"Hey Rach," Lily continued once she had Rachel's attention, "Do you remember what Remus' boggart turned into three years ago in Defence against the Dark Arts?"

"Oh yeah," Rachel laughed, "It was so funny. He's got this weird phobia of the moon. How silly is that?"

"Are you alright Lily?" Jess asked.

All the colour had drained form her face. "Yeah I'm fine. I better go do rounds though. I'll seya later."

"Bye," Rachel replied.

"That was weird," Jess stated once Lily had exited.

It was Saturday morning and as far as Lily was concerned it had come around far too soon. She lay in her large bed staring at the ceiling. Never in her life had she felt more regret over an argument she'd had with James Potter and from now on she was planning on avoiding him at all costs. Or at least until the meeting with McGonagall. It was half an hour until breakfast and an hour after that the meeting would commence. Getting out of bed Lily quickly had a shower then got dressed in a blue halter neck top and a comfortable pair of jeans. Breakfast was a definite miss today if she wanted to avoid Potter so she sent her owl down for breakfast in bed.

There were only five minutes until the meeting started and Lily had prepared herself to be, once again, in James' presence. She had concealed her tired eyes with make-up and was ready to show James that what had happened had had no effect on her whatsoever. But last nights had stung her more than even she knew.

Lily went down the staircase from her room to the heads common room to find Professor McGonagall and James sitting by the fire. She quickly sat down across form James.

"Morning Miss Evans," McGonagall said.

"Good morning Professor," she replied politely.

"Let's start then shall we," McGonagall continued, "Why do you feel the need to arrange different accommodation Miss Evans?"

"Things just aren't working out. We're just too different. It's hard enough working together but living together is making it impossible. I think that the less time we spend together outside heads duties, the better we'll do the job."

Lily glanced at James but he was just staring into his lap.

"And Mr Potter?" McGonagall asked. "How about you?"

James glanced up but then looked back down almost immediately, "It's not working. I agree."

"And what do you think should be done?" McGonagall inquired.

"James simply added, "Whatever she wants."

"Right." McGonagall was clearly uncomfortable with the situation.

Lily couldn't understand his behaviour. He should be hating her now, as much as she hated herself, not helping her.

"Alright. I'll talk to Professor Dumbledore about your concerns, but I'm not sure that there is much I can do. In the whole history of Hogwarts living arrangements have never been a problem for the head boy and girl. I'll let you know as soon as possible but in the mean time you two should try to overcome, or at least overlook, some of your differences." She turned to walk out of the heads dorms and Lily heard her mumble, "I was so certain they'd do so well together."

Once she had gone, Lily looked up at James but he still hadn't moved and his eyes remained locked on his knees. She decided to follow McGonagall's advice and got up to apologise.

Sitting next to James she said, "James, can we talk?" but he refused to respond. She tried again, "James please. Come on." But again he refused to respond. There was nothing for it. She swallowed her pride and knelt down in front of him. Taking the same hand she'd struck him with she lifted her arm and rested it against his cheek. Instantly James looked up. "James, I'm sorry for hitting you," Lily sincerely stated as she inspected his face for any damage she might have caused. As she was doing so she began to realise that James had a nice face; a very nice face, with smooth skin, a firm jaw and full lips. Immediately she dropped her hand trying to resist the thoughts she was having for James Potter. But she continued trying to make up for her behaviour. "You look like hell by the way," she said with a friendly smile on her face.

"I didn't get much sleep," James finally replied. "I'm sorry for making you want to hit me," he added.

Lily joked, "Well, you know, you do have a way of bringing out the best in me."

"Very funny," James responded sarcastically, but there was a trace of humour in his voice.

"I'm sorry for what I said about you too," Lily confessed, "You have changed and I do see it. I'm willing to give you a chance."

James grinned then looked down and closed his hands over hers.

'What is he doing?' she wondered.

He looked up into her eyes and gradually leant forwards until his face was closing the gap between their lips. Lily was confused. No longer than a minute before she had been thinking about those full red lips and what it might feel like to kiss them. Somehow her eyes had closed and James was so close she could feel his breath on her cheek. James. James Potter. Lily quickly backed off and reclaimed her hands.

"I didn't mean that James. I meant a chance at being friends." Thoroughly flustered, confused and embarrassed Lily head outside to get some well needed fresh air.

James was left alone.