Chapter Six: A Night On The Town

Lily and Marlene enjoy a night in Muggle London.

A/N: Please let me know your thoughts! I hope you enjoy!

If Lily Evans was described as graceful, poised, and collected, Marlene McKinnon could be described as the exact opposite. Marlene was high-spirited, lighthearted, and care-free. She lit up every room she walked into; she was the life of every party. She was young and beautiful, and she knew it.

Lily and Marlene bonded during their first year at Hogwarts. Since Lily's only friend was a Slytherin (and a boy), she found herself spending more and more time in Marlene's company, much to Snape's displeasure. While the two girls couldn't be more different, they were also exactly the same. They were both fiercely loyal, wicked smart, and not afraid to stand up for themselves and their friends.

Lily still remembers the first time she met Marlene. It was Lily's first night in Gryffindor Tower. She was scared, lonely, and shy. She hadn't spoken a word to anyone during dinner and was feeling a little lost without her only friend. Marlene approached her while she was unpacking her clothes.

"Hi, I'm Marlene McKinnon," even at eleven-years-old, Marlene was strong, confident, and bold; it was evident in the way she presented herself.

"I'm Lily Evans," Lily answered.

"Excited to be a Hogwarts? I've only been dying for ages!"

"I'm more anxious than excited right now," Lily admitted.

"Why? You're in Gryffindor; we're brave and strong!" Marlene joked.

"I don't feel brave or strong right now," Lily said sheepishly. "What if I'm in the wrong house? What if tomorrow, I wake up, and they realized they made a big mistake letting me in?"

Marlene sat down on the ground next to Lily. "The sorting hat put you in Gryffindor, and the sorting hat never makes mistakes. You must be pretty tough, I reckon."

"Really?"

"Of course," Marlene patted Lily on the back reassuringly, and the girls smiled at each other. They had been friends ever since.

During their time at school, Lily and Marlene continued to grow closer, while Lily and Severus started growing farther apart. Marlene was always there for Lily, and she always knew the right thing to say to make Lily feel better. She also never once judged Lily for her background, warmly embracing all of Lily's Muggle culture. Marlene loved Muggle stuff. Lily had introduced her to Muggle music, bicycles, scotch, and Doctor Who.

Severus would always be Lily's introduction to the wizarding world. He was the first person to tell Lily she was a witch and helped prepare her for Hogwarts. But he was always trying to diminish the Muggle side of Lily, which upset her to no end. Lily was proud to be a Muggle-born, and Marlene helped Lily merge her two worlds. Marlene introduced Lily to Quidditch and the Holyhead Harpies, Firewhiskey, and Chocolate Frogs.

Over the years, Marlene helped Lily become more confident in herself, and Lily helped Marlene become just a little more level-headed. They complimented each other perfectly. Marlene was there for Lily after her first break-up, after her falling out with Severus, and after her parents died. She was Lily's best friend, and her only family right now (as far as Lily was concerned).

Lily and Marlene were known for getting into trouble together. The few detentions Lily had served were usually because of some scheme Marlene came up with. So, when Marlene suggested they go out in Muggle London, Lily was a little hesitant. But she ended up caving to Marlene's whims (like she always did), and that's how she found herself sitting at a bar in a pub a few blocks away from the Leaky Cauldron, nursing her fourth pint.

"Can you believe we leave for our last year of Hogwarts tomorrow?" Marlene asked Lily.

"No, it still doesn't seem real to me," Lily answered. "Does it all seem silly to you sometimes? Going back for another year of school when there is a war happening right now?"

Marlene was silent for a moment. "Sometimes. But we have to finish school. If we want to be any help."

"You're right," Lily admitted.

"Also, I'm scared," Marlene whispered. This reminded Lily so much of her first conversation with Marlene. Except for this time, it was Marlene admitting she was scared, and Lily's turn to comfort her. "I'm scared to leave Hogwarts."

"I am, too," Lily said. "We all are. Honestly, I'd consider you a fool if you weren't. But Mar, you're the bravest person I know. You are a brilliant and talented witch, and Merlin knows we need more people like you fighting for the good guys. Besides, we're Gryffindors. We are strong and brave, remember?"

Marlene laughed. "Right. You're going to fight, aren't you?"

"With everything I've got," Lily said fiercely.

"That's my girl," Marlene smiled. "I'm going to fight, too."

"I know you are," Lily said. "I feel sorry for the Death Eaters that cross wands with you."

Marlene laughed. "Right back at you."

Lily had so much respect for her friend. Marlene was a pureblood, and therefore had nothing to worry about after Hogwarts. By choosing to fight in this war, she was opening herself to attacks and danger. But Lily knew Marlene was sick of the injustice of it all and would fight until her last breath if that's what it took. It was one of the many things Lily admired about Marlene.

"This is our last year at Hogwarts," Lily started, trying to break the tension. "We have a few more months, so let's enjoy it. Make it count."

"I'll cheers to that," Marlene said. The girls clinked their pints together and finished off their drinks. "I think we need something stronger than this."

"I couldn't agree more. Bartender!" Lily yelled. The man at the bar looked up. "Two scotches."

"Coming right up," he said. The girls were quiet for a moment while they waited for their drinks.

"What are the chances that Sirius and I finally hook up this year?" Marlene joked, changing the subject.

Lily rolled her eyes. "I don't know, Mar. Your sexual tension is infamous at Hogwarts."

"You're right," Marlene sighed. "Probably second only to you and James."

Lily nearly choked on her scotch. "Me and James? We do not have sexual tension!"

"You're joking, right? You and Potter are all anyone has been able to talk about since fourth year. You two just need to shag."

"Marlene!" Lily exclaimed.

"It's true!" Marlene defended. "He's been publicly declaring his love for you since fifth year, and I know you've liked him for ages."

"Not ages, Mar," Lily corrected. "Just a few months.

"Lily, sweetheart, you don't have to lie to me," Marlene said seriously. "I know you've fancied him longer than you have let on."

Lily didn't respond. She knew Marlene was right. If Lily was being honest with herself, she had fancied James since third year.

"How long?" Marlene asked.

"Since third year," Lily admitted sheepishly. Lily had never told anyone that before. She had always been attracted to James Potter, and she tried for a long while to pretend otherwise. "He's just always been so arrogant and was such a bully to Severus. I couldn't go out with someone who treated my best friend like that. But then I stopped being friends with Severus, he stopped being such a bully, and he deflated that big head of his."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Marlene asked. "I could have helped you work through some of these feelings."

"At first, I was trying to protect Severus," Marlene winced at this, she had never been a fan of Severus Snape. "I know, I know. He and James hated each other from the moment they met, and James was always picking on him. I knew Severus was jealous of James. I felt like if I admitted my feelings about James, I would be betraying Severus. Then after our friendship ended, I worried that James was only after me because I seemed to be the only girl not throwing herself at him. I didn't think he actually liked me; I thought he just enjoyed the chase. So, I didn't say anything because I figured he would move on soon enough, and my stupid crush would be irrelevant anyway."

Marlene thought about all this while she sipped her scotch. "I agree with you that Severus has always been jealous of James. I mean, he's everything Snape's not: handsome, charming, effortlessly talented, well-liked. He's the whole package. But I don't agree with you that James is only interested in you for the chase. It's never been about the chase for him."

Lily was quiet for a moment. "I just don't want to get hurt again."

Marlene wrapped Lily up in a warm embrace. "I know, sweetheart. But I also know that James isn't like Andrew. He's a good guy, and I think you know that, too."

Andrew Goldstein was Lily's ex-boyfriend. They dated for a few months when Lily was a fourth year, and Andrew was a seventh year. They broke up after Lily found out Andrew had been cheating on her. She hadn't dated anyone seriously since.

"You're right," Lily sighed. "James is not Andrew. He's so much better. I was with Andrew for six months, and my feelings for him never came close to the feelings I have for James."

"I never understood what you saw in that git," Marlene still harbored resentment towards Andrew and how he treated her best friend.

"I don't know. He was older and handsome and charming. I was young and impressionable. I was much too young to be involved with someone like him. At the time, I was too young to realize that. But he should have known better."

Lily was only fourteen when she started dating Andrew, who was seventeen. Lily dating Andrew had been a big deal back then. Not many seventh years went out with fourth years. People saw Lily differently after that, they started noticing her. Dating Andrew suddenly dragged Lily into the center of attention. Girls saw her as more mature and almost frightening. Even older students were somewhat afraid to approach her. Boys suddenly started realizing that she was a girl, an attractive girl at that.

After they broke up, many new suitors vied for Lily's hand. But because of how things ended with Andrew, she rarely bestowed her favor on anyone. Over the last few years, Lily had been on only a handful of dates, and had not been in another relationship. Andrew had broken her heart and betrayed her trust. It's a big reason that Lily had been so hesitant to share her feelings about James Potter.

"Can we get two more scotches over here?" Marlene called to the bartender.

Lily was starting to feel very tipsy and wasn't sure if another drink was the wise thing to do. Marlene noticed Lily's hesitation and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, Lily. We are supposed to be celebrating our last night of freedom!"

Lily considered this as she watched the bartender pour their drinks. This was her last year at Hogwarts. Her last year before she was thrown into the real world and into the middle of a war. She had promised herself that this year was going to be about her. Screw it, she thought. This might be my last chance to be young and care-free.

"Uhh, you always know how to weaken my resolve. Whatever, cheers!" Lily exclaimed, as two more scotches were placed in front of the girls.

The girls continued to drink for several more hours. Lily had lost track of how many scotches she had drunk and how many boys had tried to flirt with Marlene. With her piercing blue eyes, her long blonde hair, and even longer legs, Marlene was a complete knockout.

"What happened to Benji Fenwick?" Lily asked, as yet another potential suitor walked away from chatting up Marlene.

"Please, I ended that at the end of last term," Marlene said flippantly. "He started to get all clingy."

"How dare he!" Lily mocked gasped.

"Joke all you want, Evans, but this is one bird that can't be tied down," Marlene said.

"Cheers!" Lily clinked her glass against Marlene, and the girls downed the rest of their drinks and signaled for the bartender for two more.

"I actually heard Benji was going out with Mary MacDonald now," Marlene said with a glint in her eye. Marlene loved gossip and was a significant contributor to the Hogwarts rumor mill.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Did something change in the last two months? I thought she was still in love with one of the Prewett twins?"

Gideon and Fabian Prewett were prior Gryffindor students that were a year ahead of them. They had just Hogwarts at the end of last term. Mary Macdonald, a fellow Gryffindor seventh year, had been in love with one of the Prewett twins for as long as anyone could remember. She had been chasing after them for years. She wasn't picky, she always claimed that either one of them would make her happy.

"You know how she is," Marlene waved her hands dismissively. "Besides, she probably needed another source of entertainment since the Prewett twins left school."

"What on earth will we do without the Prewett twins around?" Lily joked. "They were always good for a laugh."

"Yeah, and a shag," Marlene stated.

"Marlene!"

"What like you never thought about it?" Marlene asked. "You know Fabian always had a big crush on you."

"He did not!"

"He totally did. He was just afraid to ask you out because he didn't want Potter to kick him off the Quidditch team," Marlene stated.

"Okay, now I know you've had too much to drink," Lily said. "I think it's time for us to call it a night anyway. It's almost 3 a.m., and we leave for Hogwarts in less than ten hours."

"Hogwarts!" Marlene yelled as she hopped off her barstool.

The two girls stumbled their way back to the Leaky Cauldron and collapsed into bed without even changing their clothes.

I feel like I'm going to regret this tomorrow, Lily thought as she drifted into a drunken slumber.