Summary: He thought she hated him. She thought she was just bragging rights. He kept missing his chances. She was running away scared. A story of love that follows Lily and James from 6th year until graduation. R/R!

Disclaimer: So no one sues me, I'm not JKR, I could never compare to JKR and you all know that. She is the almighty goddess of all things Harry Potter/magic. Her riches are not mine. Enjoy!

April…

"I have a detention with Slughorn, but it shouldn't take too long," Sirius said as he handed James the Marauders' Map which he had last used. "I'll just peek my head in the common room when it's time to go and you'll grab Peter, right?"

James nodded, grinning. "Yup. I know it's wrong, but I do enjoy Remus' furry little problem." Sirius grinned back in agreement and walked out of the dorm with a small wave. James finished stuffing the Marauders Map and his Invisibility cloak in his robes before heading down the common room to relax with a new edition of Transfiguration Today for an hour.

Peter joined James soon after he had settled into his favorite chair by the fireplace; only Peter had brought a stack of Charms homework to busy himself for the next hour. Repeatedly James was forced to stop reading and advise Peter on what to write next and to demonstrate the proper charms for Peter to analyze.

"You know," said a voice behind James as he was trying to explain the properties of Cheering Charms and how they are common in other advanced spells, "I think you should look into tutoring."

Turning, James saw Lily standing behind his chair, her Potions book in her hand. James' hand twitched, it was trying to run itself through his hair, but James resisted the urge since Lily hated it. "What's up?" James said, grinning slightly.

"Well I was supposed to be tutoring someone in Charms," she nodded to Peter's open book and essay, "but he had something else to do I suppose. Rita and Aurelia are busy and I didn't want to be bored out of my mind, so I was wondering if you needed any extra help."

As usual whenever Lily was friendly, James' heart leapt. Would he ever get used to it? James didn't think so, but he pushed the euphoria down slightly to tell her apologetically, "Actually, I can't, sorry."

Lily bit her lip and surveyed him. "That's funny, because I checked with Gina and she said there's no Quidditch practice tonight and it doesn't look like you are doing anything that will have you committed for the rest of the evening."

Smirking, James said, "You sure went through a lot of trouble to see what my plans were for the night." Lily blushed and something that must've been victory sounded in James' body. "But I really am committed to something else for the evening, I'll have to leave for it soon."

"Do you mind me asking what?" Lily said, flinging her hair from her face and grinning.

"I really can't say, sorry."

Lily surveyed him once more, then brightened. "You don't have to leave yet, are you up for a small session?" James opened his mouth to spit out another excuse, he didn't even know why he kept trying to produce them, but none came to his mind. Lily saw his consternation and leaned over the back of the armchair, giving him puppy dog eyes.

It took a lot of willpower for James to not look down her shirt, which gaped open slightly. Instead James looked to Peter, who tried to give an encouraging smile that quickly turned into a leer. "Alright," James said, standing as Lily straightened. "There's a table open over there."

They sat and James Summoned his Potions book from his dorm, opened it and began looking for anything that he didn't understand. It took a very short amount of time to find something and Lily began to teach. But James only heard parts of what she said for his gaze flitted fitfully from Lily to the darkening sky outside to the common room entrance.

"James? James? James…" Lily repeated and finally James snapped his gaze from the grounds to her face. "Have you heard anything I've been trying to teach you?"

"Er," James began intelligently, "You were talking about the, er, properties of moonstone?"

"Ten minutes ago," Lily said, shutting her book. "If you didn't want to learn anything, why didn't you just say so?"

"It's not that, it's, well, I really want to tell you Lily but…" James searched his brain for some way to get around telling her why he was so distracted and where he was going. "Okay, you know how when I asked what was wrong with Aurelia and you said 'it's not my place to explain'?" Lily nodded slowly. "It's like that. It's not my place to explain, but it's something for a friend in need and I have to help him through tonight."

Lily glanced out the window the same way James had been doing all night and saw the outline of a full moon against the setting sun. A friend in need…Remus? Lily thought to herself and instantly began wondering how in the world James Potter could help a werewolf without getting mauled. Of course James had no idea Lily knew about Remus and she didn't want anyone to know she knew. All Lily could do was accept his explanation with a nod. "That's very noble and sweet of you," Lily said simply. "When do you have to help this friend?"

James opened his mouth to explain he wasn't sure when the common room door opened and Sirius poked his head in. Peter immediately jumped up and James turned to Lily. "Now, apparently. I'm sorry if I wasted your time."

Lily shook her head. "No, its fine, good luck with your friend."

"How did it go?" Peter squeaked immediately after James exited the common room.

Shrugging, James said, "She was teaching, I wasn't paying attention, she got mad, I groveled…isn't that how it usually goes?" He reached in his robes and pulled out the Invisibility cloak, the Marauder's Map, and his wand. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good," James whispered as Sirius took the cloak and shook it open with a flourish. James searched for a moment and said, "Okay, no one is around…go around that corner, Pete, and transform."

It had been a long time since all of them could fit under the cloak without their feet being seen and usually Peter had to transform whenever it was used as he could be held by one of the Marauders. Sirius threw the cloak over James and himself just as Wormtail scampered around the corner and squeaked in fear as a hand appeared out of no where to grab him. Then the Marauders set off on their monthly adventure, excitement and anticipation high beneath the cloak.

Yes, thought Snape greedily as he looked through his telescope, not at the sky, but focusing on the grounds. This is it; I will finally catch them in the act. He shifted himself carefully as he was perched on the edge of the Astronomy tower and played with the focus on his telescope. Looking through the lens again, Snape saw Madam Pomfrey striding out of the Whomping Willow secret entrance. Any second Snape would see Potter and his little friends go in after what he knew to be Lupin the werewolf. And then, Snape would finally turn them in and they would have to be expelled – the Whomping Willow was off limits.

Snape had figured it out at the beginning of the school year – he saw Madam Pomfrey escorting Lupin into some secret tunnel, the same way she did tonight. Snape was bewildered, but he stayed awake all night to see Lupin emerge: that didn't happen until early the next morning. Lupin was not in classes the entire day and when Snape snuck into the hospital wing to see if he was there, he finally connected two and two and realized Lupin was a werewolf.

It wasn't until one day a couple months ago that Snape realized Potter, Black, and Pettigrew were somehow visiting Lupin during the full moon. They were making plans in Potions instead of working, talking about the date of the full moon and using code words like "furry little problem".

Snape watched two more full moon antics and, on the second one, he heard voices arguing and a rat scurrying around the tree trunk, disappearing in the secret tunnel a moment later. The voices died as the tunnel closed. Snape knew it had to be Lupin's pals even if he hadn't seen them and planned on confronting and threatening one of them about it.

Sirius Black was the first one to cross his path as he walked to Charms a couple days later, shockingly alone and Snape wondered vaguely where his friends and his loud girlfriend were. Black put on his usual arrogant smirk, but before he could draw his wand Snape said in a carrying whisper, "I know what you and you're little friends do every full moon."

Black's pupils had dilated just so slightly with fear. Quickly he covered up by snorting and crossing his arms over his chest. "What, dance naked and chant wildly around a bonfire? Damn, Snivellus, we didn't want anyone to find out."

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about," Snape hissed under his breath. "Lupin's a werewolf and you, Potter, and Pettigrew somehow get to him under the Whomping Willow. Why Lupin's even allowed in school and how you haven't got clawed to death I don't know, but I can promise as soon as I have enough proof I will go to Dumbledore and make sure you three are expelled for your stupidity – and all this will happen just because you wanted to feel audacious and brave."

Silence rang for a few moments between them as Black analyzed Snape – he could practically hear Black's mind whirring for some way to get out of his accusations. Finally, Black clapped his hands together. "Well done, Snivelly, you figured it out. We are just really thick and love to be around a werewolf for that adventure high. You wanna know what we're up to?" Black advanced on Snape, yet Snape stood his ground. "Prod the knot on the Whomping Willow, you nosy git, and you'll get what you deserve."

Black had stalked off, leaving Snape with the slightest shred of doubt whether or not he should investigate. But after a month of thinking it over, he decided that he had to know what they were getting up to and if any illegal magic was involved to get near a werewolf.

Snape looked through his telescope again and his heart leapt. A barely visible rat in the fading daylight scurried to the trunk of the great tree, skirting its whipping branches. A moment later the angry tree lay still and the rat had disappeared. Snape knew Potter's friends had to be somewhere near the tree or inside of it, it was quite possible rich little Potter had his own Invisibility cloak.

Sneering, Snape packed away his telescope and placed it in a pocket of his robes. Now was the time; Snape wanted to get down there before the moon appeared. Bold as he was currently being, Snape was not an idiot and had no desire to meet a werewolf tonight.

Snape hurried through the castle, counting himself lucky that Filch, Peeves, or any other teacher had not blocked his path. He reached the Whomping Willow and levitated a stick to knot. The branches froze and Snape walked timidly through them, reaching a small tunnel at the base of the tree. He climbed in, hunched almost double as he made his way along the long winding tunnel. Trepidation built within him with each step he took. Lupin's friends had to be somewhere near by and Snape had no idea if the moon had shown itself in the sky yet.

Soon the tunnel began sloping upward and Snape heard two voices talking. Snape walked slower and stopped as soon as he saw Sirius and James outside a partially open door. "…just be on the lookout, alright?" Sirius was saying to an angry James.

"What the hell were you thinking, telling Snape how to get in here?" James hissed, pushing Sirius' shoulder slightly.

Sirius frowned and his eyebrows furrowed. "You should've heard the way he was threatening me. Anyway, he's a Slytherin; he's too cowardly to come. Only take care of themselves and if there's anything dangerous they keep their nose clean."

James snorted. "But Snape hates us, he is determined to find a way to expel us and you just handed him the tray filled with all of our secrets. If he finds out – "

"He won't because he's too gutless and won't come," Sirius insisted. "And even if he did come and Remus got hold of him, who cares? It would finish him off and he would stop following us around." James opened his mouth to scold Sirius for lack of tact, but Sirius interrupted. "I'm going inside with Wormtail and Moony, do whatever you want, but Remus needs you." And with that, Sirius edged his way through the door and shut it with a slam behind him. From the brief glimpse of the room beyond and how long the tunnel was as well as which direction it curved, Snape figured the Shrieking Shack was the end of the tunnel.

James ran a hand through his hair angrily and let out a sigh of pent up frustration. He paced in front of the door for a moment, looked to the door and then down the tunnel where Snape immediately ducked out of sight. James sighed again and took out a piece of parchment, muttering something while pointing his wand at it. He looked through the folds of the map and then muttered something else, next putting the parchment away. "Where is he?" James grumbled. He began walking away from the door and Snape walked backwards quickly, still hunched over.

But before James was anywhere close to reaching where Snape was, a great moan of pain echoed through the hall, along with snarls and growls. Terrified squeaks followed and deep barks reverberated against the walls. James paused in mid step and turned towards the door, leaning towards it. "I have to make sure no one finds out," he told himself and began walking down the tunnel path.

Snape stopped backing away and stood up against a darkened portion of wall. When James passed in front of him, Snape whipped his wand out of his robes and pointed it to the back of James neck. "Don't move!" Snape hissed as James froze. "Turn around and put your hands up!" James did as he was told, scowling as he faced Snape. "Now, Potter, I want to know what you are trying to keep from me."

James' scowl grew with more dislike as he looked at Snape. "Listen, Snape, Remus is a werewolf, which I know you know. He is transforming right now and unless you want us both to get mangled to death, I suggest we leave now."

"But how do you spend every full moon with Lupin without getting attacked? How do you get in here without being seen? My guess is your very own private Invisibility cloak, with how rich your pathetic family is – "

"Don't talk about my family!" James yelled, interrupting Snape's interrogation and insults. Realizing that arguing would not convince Snape to leave, James took a steadying breath and said, "Look, I'll discuss it with you rationally once we get out of here and once I'm not at wand point. I don't know if Remus will stay in the Shrieking Shack, he might come down the tunnel."

Sneering, Snape said, "The only way I will leave this tunnel is if you go straight to Dumbledore and confess to any illegal acts you may be committing."

An anguished howl filled the space around them and Snape looked up the tunnel. James took advantage of the distraction and yanked the wand from Snape's grasp, pulling out his own and pointing them both at Snape. "Now, we're going to do this my way," James said, "get up that tunnel or feel a pain like you've never experienced before. Go."

Snape tried to hastily think of way out of the situation. He could try to physically wrestle the wands out of James' hands, but Snape knew that James was much stronger than he, even if he hated to admit it. He could make a run up the tunnel toward the Shrieking Shack and find out for himself what's going on, but James would most likely hit him with some sort of jinx.

The moment after this thought passed through his mind, Snape saw a mane of brown crash through the door that led into the Shrieking Shack and a snarl later Snape settled on the regrettable fact he had no choice but to obey or else he would join Lupin for his time of the month. Snape led the way out of the tunnel, James no more than two steps behind him with two raised arms holding wands at his back.

They ran as fast as they could and Snape heard the thundering of paws behind him. Chancing a look over his shoulder, Snape saw the werewolf, saliva dripping from his mouth and snout. A second later something large and black darted in front of the werewolf, pushing it back so Snape and James could escape to safety.

Once they emerged, James muttered quickly and quietly under his breath and the tunnel sealed. Next he prodded the knot on the tree so the branches wouldn't attack them. They moved out of range of the possibility of rampaging twigs and James, panting, threw Snape his wand. "What…gasp…was…gasp…that?" Snape wheezed, hands on his knees.

Holding a hand to his chest, James said incredulously to Snape, "A werewolf."

Glaring, Snape replied, "Not that, the black thing that stopped it."

James took a few more deep breaths then cleared his throat, eyes darting away from Snape to the full moon in the sky. "N-no idea."

"Are you two alright?" a voice said behind the boys. Both turned, wands raised, but lowered them instantly and shamefacedly as Albus Dumbledore strode toward them. They nodded and Dumbledore analyzed them over his half moon spectacles. "Good, very good. Would you mind – "

But before he could finish his sentence, Sirius ran towards them, huffing. "That was bloody hard, James. You sealed the tunnel very well…Remus was about to break through the barrier I put up. Wor – " Sirius stopped talking immediately as he realized Dumbledore was standing in front of him.

"Did you re-seal it?" Dumbledore asked.

"Er – yeah," Sirius said, stowing his wand in his robes to give his awkwardly limp arms a task.

"Good. As I was saying before, would you mind accompanying me to my office?" Dumbledore asked kindly, but James and Sirius shared anxious looks. All three nodded and followed Dumbledore in an uncomfortable silent walk across the lawns and through the castle.

"Let us begin," Dumbledore stated once they all had found a seat. "Why were you three trying to go to the Shrieking Shack tonight? I assume you know that Mr. Lupin is a werewolf…"

Snape spoke first. "Well, sir, I saw Lupin go out with Madame Pomfrey to the Whomping Willow at the beginning of the school year and the next day I put it together. A few months ago I heard Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew talking about the full moon and, from the conversation, it sounded like Lupin's friends were planning on going with him into the Willow. I started watching the next few full moons and heard disembodied voices arguing loudly one month and it sounded like Potter and Black. Tonight I decided to investigate to see if they were involved in anything illegal that could be potentially harmful to themselves or other students of the school."

James and Sirius shared looks of disgust. Snape's voice was just as greasy as his hair and both boys hoped Dumbledore saw through the fake display of concern Snape was putting on.

"Once I got down there," Snape continued, "I saw Potter and Black arguing. Then Black went inside a door and Potter spotted me and attacked me – "

There were cries of injustice coming from James and Sirius. Dumbledore held up a hand to silence them and said, "If you have any disagreement with what Mr. Snape is saying, then you will have your turn to discuss it. For now, just let him talk."

Snape simpered and continued his tale. "As I was saying, Potter attacked me, but before he could hurt me Lupin, as a werewolf, came charging towards us. We barely escaped and you know the rest."

Dumbledore nodded. "Thank you Mr. Snape, although I find it quite hard to believe that you went down there in concern for the safety of your peers, especially such loathed enemies like James and Sirius." He then turned away from Snape's glower to James and Sirius. "So, what did you not agree with?"

Scoffing, Sirius started. "First off, a couple days after the last full moon, Snape confronted me and threatened me, wanting me to confess that I was committing horrible crimes against humanity or something."

"And I didn't attack him," James added. "I was walking down the tunnel to head him off and he pointed a wand to my face and threatened me the same way he threatened Sirius. Remus howled and Snape was distracted, so I took his wand and tried to get him out of the tunnel before Remus could break through."

"How did you know that Mr. Snape was going to be there?" Dumbledore asked.

Sirius and James shared another look. "Er, well, I told him how to get in so he would get off my case," Sirius said.

Dumbledore's eyes widened slightly. "Really? You wanted Mr. Snape to investigate into whatever you were doing?"

"No, I didn't think he would come…" Sirius replied in a low voice.

"Ah, but you were mistaken. Mr. Snape's dislike for you would be sure to give him enough determination to face a werewolf just to find something that could get you both sent home," Dumbledore said wisely. "Why were you in the tunnel?"

A half true lie formed in James' mind and he spoke quickly. "We always go down there to make sure he doesn't get out."

Dumbledore smiled serenely. "But Madame Pomfrey's enchantments should be sufficient, they've worked for years in retaining Mr. Lupin."

James shrugged. "Just to be sure, you know. We worry about him."

"Very thoughtful. Where is Mr. Pettigrew?"

"Dunno," Sirius said, joining in the lie James had created. "Sleeping? He didn't want to come tonight."

Gazing into the troublemaker's eyes, Dumbledore asked suspiciously, "Is there anything else you wish to tell me?"

Sirius broke eye contact immediately and looked at his feet so that if his eyes gave it away, Dumbledore would not know. All James could think about was Moony, in the Shack alone, going through his monthly torture. There was no way they could get back down there tonight. "No, sir."

"Very well," Dumbledore said after a moment. "Mr. Black, fifty points will be taken from Gryffindor for leading another student into a life-threatening situation and you will have two detentions with Mr. Filch. Mr. Potter, you will also have two detentions, but 10 points will be awarded to Gryffindor for your small bout of heroism and care for your foe's well being. Mr. Snape, I think the fact that Mr. Potter saved your life and that you know owe him will be enough punishment for you." He paused, looking at the three adolescents. "That is all, goodnight."

"Care for your enemies well being?" James said a few minutes later when Sirius and himself were almost to the portrait. "I just didn't want him to find out about Padfoot, Wormtail and Prongs."

Sirius grinned. "I know, mate. I hate it when he looks at you like that, though, I feel like he can read our minds or something."

"Yeah," James agreed. "Hellebore."

The Fat Lady swung open on her hinges and James and Sirius' ears were filled with giggling once they entered. Lily, Rita, and Aurelia were sitting on the sofa by the fire, alone in the common room at nearly midnight. "Hello ladies!" Sirius said jubilantly and pranced over to them, James following. "Why are you three still awake? Isn't it past your bedtime?"

Lily and Aurelia rolled their eyes but Rita looked away from Sirius and into the fire. James wondered how she was doing – they hadn't talked since James had confronted her about Sirius after Quidditch practice the previous month. "Well, Calypso is sobbing really loudly up there," Aurelia said, "and it was really hard to get some sleep or talk or anything, so we came down here."

"Is she alright?" James asked and Lily's eyes narrowed slightly.

"She's fine," Lily said coolly. "It's just her current boyfriend didn't wish her sweet dreams before they parted." Lily didn't like James' concern for Calypso Pepin, her dorm mate who she rarely hung out with outside of classes and before bed because she was friends with a bunch of Ravenclaws. James and Calypso went out briefly the previous year and his anxiety over her drama made Lily jealous, although she didn't realize it was that particular emotion she was feeling.

With mock concern, Sirius held a hand to his heart and said, "Oh no! Is she, like, totally going to be all right?"

He grinned at Rita, who looked at him briefly. She gave a weak smile and instead averted her eyes to James. "We saw Remus go down the hospital wing after dinner. He looked sick, is he alright?" she asked, more directly to James than Sirius.

Sirius seemed to notice her snubbing him and stepped in front of James into her gaze. "He's fine. I think he ate something funny."

"Where have you two been tonight?" Aurelia asked, noticing the way Rita and Sirius were behaving and trying to divert their attention away from each other, even if she wanted to hear more about Remus' condition.

"Er," James said, looking at Sirius, "We, um, were out."

Rita quirked an eyebrow. "Out doing what?"

"Ah, it's a Marauder mystery and we don't want to spoil the good fun," Sirius said. Rita rolled her eyes and flipped open the Evening Prophet that was beside her. Upset that Rita was still blowing him off, Sirius plopped down next to her and said, "Anything interesting in there?"

"Oh, I don't know," Rita said sarcastically, "Would you consider this new Dark Wizard Voldemort slaughtering seven families earlier interesting?"

"What?" James asked, squishing himself in the small space between Lily and Rita and looking over her shoulder and the article with the headline: SEVEN FAMILIES MURDERED IN THEIR HOMES, AURORS LOOKING FOR VOLDEMORT.

Lily started pushing James away with her body in order to get more room on the couch. "Yeah, three of them had muggleborn kids that went here. Didn't you see the big scene a few hours ago?"

"No," James and Sirius said together, still scanning the article.

"It was Nathaniel and Neal Orman, Rachel Abbott, and Geri Duncan's families. Rachel started screaming and crying, it was her mum and dad that were killed. You didn't hear it? All four houses came out of their common rooms…" Aurelia said trailing off as James and Sirius shook their heads.

"Where were you two tonight?" Rita asked skeptically.

James and Sirius jumped up at the same time. "Well, that's awful, but I'm really tired, are you James?"

Nodding, James said, "Yeah, I am," and, as if it would be more convincing, yawned widely. "We're off to bed. Good luck getting sleep tonight, ladies."

"Thanks," all three girls said dryly, all curious about where Sirius and James were tonight and why they were trying so hard to keep it secret.

"I better tell you sweet dreams also so you don't go howling your brains out," Sirius said jokingly, waving and trotted up the boy's dormitory stairs.

Before James followed, he squeezed Rita's shoulder comfortingly. "Sorry about him, you still doing okay?" he asked. Rita nodded. "Okay, if you want to talk just tell me, alright?"

Smiling, Rita said, "Thanks, James." James smiled back at her, threw one last somewhat longing look at Lily, then headed upstairs after Sirius.

"What do you think they were doing?" Rita said once they were out of sight, throwing the Evening Prophet bitterly into the fire.

"No clue," Lily replied, but didn't want to continue this conversation. Even though she was extremely curious to what they were up to, she already accepted James' excuse earlier.

Sighing, Aurelia said, "I hope Remus is all right, maybe I'll go visit him tomorrow in the hospital wing."

"I really think you should," Rita said. "If you like him so much you need to talk to him more."

Aurelia nodded. "I will…I wonder if I should bring him anything. I hope he's all right," she repeated.

"I'm sure he is," Lily said comfortingly, but she thought he was probably the furthest thing from okay as she looked at the full moon shining outside the window.

Author Notes: THIS STORY WILL REMAIN DEATHLY HALLOWS SPOILER FREE!!! But I just have one word about the new book...EEP!!

Ok, moving on. I really procrastinated in writing this chapter. I tried to start the Sunday on what I dubbed Harry Potter weekend but my mind was too focused on the book so I read it again. Then I came up with a bunch of new story ideas based on information from the new book and started planning a bunch of other stuff. Then I decided to upload my favorite Harry Potter fan art and icons onto a new Photobucket page and it's about a quarter of all the HP pictures I have. My friend loaned me the Deathly Hallows audio book and I listened to that while uploading the pictures and then I played a combination of Snood, solitaire, and Live Search games while listening to the rest of the book. Here's the link if you wish to view my procrastination in action (there are really cute and cool pics on there and, don't worry, no Deathly Hallows fan art, although I found a bunch of good ones): http colon slash slash s181 dot photobucket dot com slash albums slash x151 slash LJS4everandAlways2 slash

Anywho, this chapter sucked for me because it was the dreaded chapter where I have to write the "heroic" Whomping Willow scene. In my other story I had Dumbledore finding out about James, Sirius, and Peter being Anamagus and then I realized later that if Dumbledore had known, he would've been on the look out for a black dog in the third book along with Snape. I had to keep re-writing this because there was too many clues that would make Snape and Dumbledore realize that they were Anamaguses.

No clue when the next chapter will be out. My senior year at high school is fast approaching ((sniffle)) and I have to get ready for it. A plus - I'm putting a study hall in my schedule so I will have to time to write more at school instead of doing homework! But the next chapter is getting into a lot of darkness and angsty romance, so I'm excited and it will give me more motivation to get chapters updated. Send me a PM if you wish to discuss Deathly Hallows!