A/N: Don't you just hate writers block? It sucks. And so does having an amazing idea and then realizing it's been used already. Well, that's happened to me so many times you wouldn't believe it. It's also hard to believe what you can think of on a three hour drive for a school field trip to Connecticut. *sigh*… so I guess there's one more thing to say: REVIEW! (please)

Chapter 2: Beaches and Boys

The next days were filled with filling Lila in on the events of the year. By the weekend, we had all forced her into watching episodes of Glee, Katie showed her Miranda Lambert's newest (and most violent) album, Sierra had showed poor Lila pictures of her newest crushes, Anna told stories of the changes in the city, and I took to the topics of celebrity gossip and fashion. On Saturday, Mom drove us all to the coast, a rare treat, because we lived so far away. The car ride was a little tight, since there were five of us and she wouldn't let us use the front seat, but we managed to make it out alive.

Mom left us to our own devices soon after we stepped onto the boardwalk, leaving to talk to a couple, a woman with fiery red hair and a man with messy black hair and glasses.

"Race you guys to the water!" I screamed, whipping off my white sundress and flip flops and sprinting through the sand toward the ocean waves. The girls followed close behind, laughing and screaming.

SIRIUS'S POV

"Sirius…Earth to Sirius…Anyone home in there?"

I shook my head, snapping out of my tired state and looking at James's wide eyes.

"Whaaa…?" the rest of my question was cut off in a huge yawn.

"Wake up already! It's been two hours since you got out of bed!" James snapped his fingers in my face.

That didn't wake me up. But something else did.

"Race you guys to the water!"

I know, I was only twelve, and so was she, but hell, she looked amazing. Her hair was gold and probably waist length, since it reached the small of her back in a high ponytail. She was really tan, and… well, she made me want to do some things that I never should have been thinking about at twelve years old.

"Hey, isn't that that Lila girl? The Ravenclaw?" James whispered. "She looks hot. What do you say, Remmy? Remmy? Remus?"

"Oh, umm, sure," Remus mumbled, keeping his eyes on 'that Lila girl'. It was obvious that he had no idea what he was agreeing to.

"Oh, you're no help," James said. "What 'bout you, Sirius?"

"The blonde one's hot. Really hot. The one in Slytherin colors."

James paid no attention. He was blabbing about how, of course, he wouldn't date the Lila girl because, of course, he loved Lily and only Lily, so, of course… well, I lost him the second (or maybe fifth) time he mentioned Lily. But fuck, the blonde was really hot!

"Hey, how 'bout we go down there? To, maybe, you know…"

"Get their attention?"

"Exactly."

"Fine by me," Remus said, staring at Lila.

LIAH'S POV

"You girls wanna have some fun?" A boy called at us from behind. He wasn't American, I could tell. The British accent in his voice made him sound adorable, and even though I hadn't seen his face.

"The Marauders. What are you doing here? Why aren't you at home, devising more ways to terrify first years?" Lila turned around, crossed her arms, and stared skeptically at the four boys that were standing side by side, smiling mischeviously.

"My dear, even pranks deserve a break sometime. Though, of course, the fun never ends," The boy in the middle said smoothly, smiling at his companions. He ran a hand through his messy hair and pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose.

"You want fun? We're up for it," Katie said, her voice suddenly carrying a drawl of the deepest South.

"Oh, really? We may have very different opinions on the definition of 'fun', missy," The boy to the right of the messy haired boy said. He smirked and threw his long black hair back out of his face.

"If it's fun to me, it's probably illegal. Sound familiar?" Sierra stepped forward, flinging her glossy midnight black hair behind her shoulders.

"I think we would get along very well. And you two? The messy haired boy pointed to me and Anna.

"I think," I started; my voice, like Katie's, contained a drawl that a Louisiana native would be proud of, "that that is yet to be determined. Join in and I'll give my opinion later. But be warned: us Southerners have a fiery streak that even ice can't tame. You start a fight, your ass will be beat."

The boy with long black hair let out a low whistle. "Fiesty… I like it. I'm Sirius Black," he said, and held out a hand. I hesitated, knowing not to trust a prankster when it came to shaking hands. But he looked sincere, so I took his hand. I knew I should have expected it, but suddenly, Sirius was pulling me into the ocean.

"Why you little— I'm gonna kill you!" I screeched.

"Come and get me, then!" He dove underwater, with me following close behind.

I caught up easily, grabbing his leg and pulling him farther out, being careful to stay near the bottom. When I ran out of breath, I resurfaced to find a smiling Sirius, ready to splash me. I took a deep breath and dove back down. Halfway back, I resurfaced with the biggest splash I could, getting Sirius's face. It bought me time to look around. Lila was engaged in a splash war with one of the boys, one with honey blonde hair and hazel eyes. Katie was chasing the messy haired boy, weaving in and out of the waves. Anna preferred to play spectator, sitting on the shore and talking to the group's smallest; he was blonde and had watery blue eyes.

"Distracted, sweetheart?" Sirius whispered in my ear. Taken by surprise and still wanting revenge, I ducked under and pulled a special clip out if my hair. I flicked my wrist once and it turned into my wand; I pointed it at the surface and thought, 'Reducto!'

Immediately, the water rose up and the mini wave engulfed Sirius; I turned my wand back into a clip and resurfaced. He came up a minute later, looking very much like an extremely surprised and waterlogged dog.

"H-how did you do that?"

I smirked. "I don't know. I guess it was magic."

His eyes narrowed for a second, then he raised his eyebrows and his eyes widened to the size of pennies and I knew he understood. "You're a witch?"

"I'm surprised your brain can process such advanced thoughts," I rolled my eyes. "I think we should go before they kill each other."

"Agreed." At his consent, I dove under with a giggle.

"So, guys, why are you here anyway?" Lila asked again.

"Mum decided to take us Marauders on a little holiday. Oh, I forgot. I'm James Potter." The boy with messy hair said after we all got out of the water.

"I'm Remus. Remus Lupin." The honey blonde boy raised a hand in greeting.

"And I'm Peter Pettigrew." The small boy squeaked shyly.

"One question, Potter. Ever heard of a hairbrush? Very useful invention. Try using one sometime."

At Katie's tease, Sirius snorted. "They don't work."

"It's in his genes," Remus said, smiling.

"We even tried Professor Flitwick," Sirius said, "but not even a charms master helped."

"I'm cursed. Doomed to have messy hair for all eternity!" James said over dramatically.

"Don't worry. You may be a dork with glasses but the ladies love you," Sirius said, dodging James's smack.

"Git."

"Yeah, say it all you want, but I'll always be the ladies' man."

"Girls perfer the deviants."

"Then they'd be off snogging Malfoy."

Lila made a gagging noise.

"Awwww, Lila, you don't like Luscious Mouthful?"

"Ugh. Marauders and innuendos go hand in hand."

"That's what I'm proud of."

"You're crazy."

"We know."

Wow. Only took me four hours…

Now…

REVIEW! (please)