Hi, so here is another chapter and I hope you enjoy it, this adds more bones to this story and therefore I hope you enjoy it. Next Chapter does get into the action a little bit more.

This story won't be a day by day account of Lily and James's last year so be aware that in one chapter it might be September and then in the next it might be Halloween.

Disclaimer-Nothing here is mine but the OCs I created who admittedly are little more than background characters.

Please Read and Review and let me know what you think.

The Beginning Of The End.

Chapter 2-Everybody Wants Something

James and Lily begin their Head Boy and Head Girl duties with the new first years. Sirius and Marlene banter back and forth and Dumbledore has a warning for his students.

Hogwarts had never changed over the course of the year. It still smelt the same and as she sat down at the table she saw that the sky was dark and overcast. If that wasn't an omen for the year to come then Lily Evans didn't know what was but as she sat down at the table she was more distracted by a dark haired figure further down though she refused to look at him for more than two seconds because something truly terrible could happen if she did.

And that simply would never do.

But there was something about James Potter this year that was making her pause in her tracks, there was some kind of maturity almost that made her want to pay attention to him and she did not know why. She had managed to do six years of education at this school and throughout all of it she had managed to maintain some kind of distance between her and James Potter. Since sixth year though, though she had been loathe to admit, something had changed.

And it had come crashing down upon her in this, this final shocking moment when she had gotten on the train and see him and his friends for once not causing carnage on the train.

She'd gotten on early. Petunia didn't care when she went to school only that she went and her mother was getting frail now. That had been the excuse for Lily's arrival on her own but in truth she didn't mind it that much. Her relationship with her mother had diminished over the years in the aftermath of their father dying of cancer when Lily was eleven. Her mother had been enthusiastic in the beginning of having a witch in the family as had her father but then somewhere along the lines…somewhere between Petunia going from loving her to hating her, her mother had given up trying to keep the peace between them and so Lily had arrived on the platform early and had curled up with a take-away cup of tea and Pride and Prejudice and had waited until the doors had opened and the kindly porter had taken her trunk.

She'd watched James Potter and his mother with curiosity. She'd watched as the older woman had folded her son into her arms and had held him close as if she was trying to impart all of the love in the world to him. She'd then watched her fold Sirius Black into her arms with much the same grip. Sirius always wore that expression that spoke of surprise and then a soft look. Marlene had said once that, that was Sirius when he was looking human and almost that was true.

The deep love that was shown in James's family had made her rather emotional and by the time that Marlene and Mary had come and joined her she was rather…impatient to see him.

Again, something else that she had not been prepared for. Granted they were Head Boy and Head Girl and when she had written him that letter over the summer it had been real. She had planned to do whatever she could to get along with him for the sake of their last year together. What she had not expected was the speed of which he had written back and the sense that she had gotten off the parchment that he was serious.

If such a thing was real.

But here she was at Hogwarts trying not to look at him. Marlene was next to her but granted Marlene was looking, Lily loved Marlene she really did but Marlene was a complete and total flirt when it came to one Sirius Black who was utterly incorrigible. Personally Lily though the two of them should just find an empty classroom and end all this eye-fucking before the entire house went mad but…

She was interrupted from her musings on James Potter when the doors opened and McGonagall brought in the first years. Lily found herself relaxing a little. The first years (aside from getting smaller with each passing year) were going to be a big part of her job as Head Girl and she could not stop herself from remembering that over the summer she had surreptitiously imagined some of them coming to her for help.

The ragged old Sorting Hat was there and he launched into his song. It came with it's usual warning—since fifth year the hat had been chanting about them bonding with the Slytherins.

Carefully she didn't think…she didn't think…she had trained herself over a year and two summers in between not to think of her old best friend and how their friendship had disintegrated into the common stereotype that a lion and snake could not be friends.

She was still so conflicted over her thoughts of Sev—much like James and that did nothing to help her with her confusion.

But the sorting had begun.

It was a smaller group this year and she noted that it was almost predicable. There was always a Parkinson and a Nott that went to Slytherin, there was a rather nervous looking Abbot who went to Hufflepuff and she took stock of the thirty or so new Gryffindor's as they took their seats trying to learn their names or at the very least learn their faces.

And then Dumbledore was standing up. Lily always felt good when Dumbledore was in the room. He had a way of carrying himself that made whatever was going on outside this room fade into insignificance. And considering the doom and gloom that was filling the pages of the Prophet recently that was saying something.

"Good evening" he said beaming. Oh how Lily hoped this was not turning into a rendition of the school song. If she had to listen to Sirius attempt to do his metal rock-band turn funeral march edition again she would go quite mad.

"I know many of you are desperate to tuck into our welcome feast—"

Here Peter Pettigrew made a little whimpering noise that caused Remus Lupin (who was infinitely more sensible than most of the students in Seventh year combined) roll his eyes heavenwards. For a second his own met Lily's and they shared a smile. James Potter for reasons beyond comprehension did not look very happy at that but Lily didn't care. She liked Remus, Merlin knows without him during last year she would have never have managed to get on top of all her Defence Against the Dark Arts notes.

It had been during that bizzarro time when the Marauders didn't speak to each other. Lily had, had no idea what was going on but all she had known was that one day she'd seen Remus in the library looking like he'd just been through hell and despite her own misgivings she had sat down at the table with him and the two of them had studied the hell out of their homework to the point where Professor Grubble-Smith (DADA Professor who had left at the end of last year because of his constant need to smoke Gillyweed making most of his class lightheaded and giggly for the rest of the day) had given them both full marks.

But Dumbledore was still speaking.

"But I must ask for a few moments of your time. First let me introduce you to our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Wilhelm Smithers—"

"Merlin" Marlene muttered from where she was staring at the guy. Lily thought she might have a point. Wilhelm Smithers looked as if he was one foot in the grave. Harsh considering their headmaster was probably the same age but Dumbledore had a way about him that made it difficult for you to connect your brain to his age.

There was some polite applause.

"And now need I remind our old students and educated our young ones that the Dark Forest on the edge of the grounds is out of bounds for all students, that no magic is to be used between the classrooms and the corridors and that Mrs Norris is a cat, not a muggle football no matter how much you charm her so she doesn't feel a thing"

Lily bit her bottom lip to keep herself from giggling.

"Quidditch trials will be announced as soon as our Captains have co-ordinated the season with Madam Hooch and I look to our new Head Boy and Head Girl—" here Marlene elbowed her with her dangerously sharp and pointy elbows.

"—To look out for our younger students and now…now I must speak to you on a more serious note. As many of you may or may not know a wizard by the name of Voldemort—"

There was a little bit a hushed gasp but Lily rolled her eyes at that. She caught James Potter's eye at the same time and he flashed a grin at her—had he always had dimples?

Dumbledore carried on as if half of his student body flinching at a name (something that was becoming more and more common as time went by and the depths of Voldemort's depravity came to light) was nothing more than background noise.

"Is on the march. I know that many of you are worried about what this means for you and your families. Rest assured you have nothing to fear behind these walls other than fear itself"

"Merlin" Sirius Black whispered in a carrying voice. "Glad to see he's laid back when it comes to being cryptic"

Marlene snorted. Lily couldn't blame her but her eyes had found the Slytherin table. Even when Dumbledore wasn't talking about the rise of their hero many on that table never bothered to listen to the speech but to her alarm Sev wasn't either. She had never asked him much about his view on Pure-Blood supremacy. Until fifth year she had assumed that he was playing a role, he had never cursed anyone in front of her or expressed an opinion until—

Shit…she had to look away. He was invested in his potions book again but she knew that he would be looking for her at some point tonight and she didn't want her to catch her looking.

She wasn't cruel enough to give him any kind of false hope that their friendship could be renewed.

Instead with a superhuman effort she focused her attention on her headmaster who was telling them that they all had to look out for each other.

Lily could have laughed had it not been so tragic.

There was a rumble of thunder then as if Hogwarts to had sensed the coming storm and then Dumbledore was clapping his hands and then…just like magic…the food arrived.

"Well" Marlene said helping herself to roast potatoes. "He's not exactly going for cheerful this time is he?"

"He shouldn't" Mary said seriously already taking a piece of steak and dumping peppercorn sauce over it.

"Not with everything that's being going on"

Lily who had been in the process of debating weather she wanted meat or fish for dinner looked at her friend a bit more closely.

"You alright Mary?"

Mary smiled though it didn't meet her eyes.

"Fine Lily"

Lily said nothing for a second and then decided she was going for the chicken thighs dripping in butter. If she was going to put on weight at this feast she might as well do it thoughally. This was her last Welcome Feast after all. Might as well enjoy it while she was in the moment.

The desert came just as quick as the mains did and Lily helped herself to a huge slice of chocolate cake with some ice cream. She saw out of the corner of her eye James Potter take what must have been half the treacle tart and attack it with a speed that was almost unhealthy but she found instead of it irritating her it amused her if nothing else.

What the hell was wrong with her? How was something that had once been so annoying become amusing?

Soon enough though the tables began to clear. The two Hogwarts perfects for Gryffindor this year were a boy and a girl by the name of Benedict Smythe and a girl by the name of Celeste Francis. Lily who had been a prefect with Remus before made sure that they both knew what they were doing with the first years and then let them go on their way. She knew there was to be a meeting once a month with the prefects and McGonagall to discuss anything that took place during the school year but to be honest the food, her feelings and the sudden sense that everything this year was going to change had come on her and all she wanted to do was go to bed.

The 7th year dorm room was much the same as it was the previous year and she got changed in silence. Marlene had skipped into the bathroom first and come out just as quick and Mary had done the same. The 7th years shared their dorm with two other girls, Beatrix Mason and Tallulah Tsering but last year Beatrix had been taken out of potions to be told that her father and mother had been found dead with the Dark Mark over their house and they had not seen her since. Tallulah shared pleasantries with them but when Lily thought of the close knit bond that James and his friends had she could not help but feel a little bit melancholy that that easy friendship did not happen to her. Her only real best friend had been Sev and that…well…that was just to painful to think about tonight.

And then before Sev there had been Petunia but Petunia hated her now. She didn't even want their mother to come and see her off at the train station. If Voldemort did come crashing through the halls of Hogwarts and Lily got killed she wasn't entirely sure that Petunia would even mourn her.

She got dressed for bed in silence and slipped beneath the covers. The House-Elf's had unpacked for them all and their stuff was out on their desks and side tables and Lily knew that it was gameday tomorrow. She had to have her face ready to deal with this…her final year of Hogwarts, that had been the last welcoming feast she would ever go to.

The world was expecting her to grow up and she was not sure she wanted to.

Typical. After so long wishing to be a grown up now she was and she hated it.

"Lil?"

"Yeah Marls?" she said glad for the darkness as it covered her face.

"You think Mary's right?"

Lily was aware then that she had missed something.

"About?"

"About this year being the hardest we have to face yet? I mean with the N.E. and all that? Surely nothing could be harder than the O. . Seriously I still get flashbacks from that transfiguration one"

"Explains why your not doing it anymore"

"Piss off Mary"

Lily laughed and even Mary laughed and Marlene had to have the grace to fall on her own joke. Tallulah who had been in the process of braiding her hair flashed a smile and then…

"We all ready to turn out the lights?"

"Go ahead Tallulah"

The room was plunged into darkness.

"And yes" Lily said to the room at large. "I do think this will be hardest year yet"

What she didn't say, but what she thought nonetheless before sleep claimed her, was that she didn't think it was going to be the hardest year yet, for the same reasons, that her friends did.

And there you go, now begins this story. I do start work back up again so please be aware of that when it comes to updates, as always your reading this story means the world to me and I will post the next chapter as soon as possible.

Next Chapter-James and Lily begin to get closer as they work together as Head Boy and Head Girl and Sirius and Marlene are rocked by an event that sees one Black brother pitted against the other.