The train ride home was the most depressing one yet for the Marauders. Even worse than the time they were forbidden to sit in the same compartment as each other. James sat weary eyed, looking at the floor. He would hardly present a fake laugh at some of Sirius's best material. It was also horrible for Kat and Melody. They had to listen the whole way home to the angry ranting of Lily. If either of them tried to defend James at all, she would get angry with them. They soon learned that saying nothing was their best option.

"Prongs…" Sirius poked James hard on the shoulder, "You really need to let go. Move on from Lily. I mean…maybe go after some other girls."

'Maybe he's right. I have been pining for Lily since fourth year. I'll be in seventh at the end of the summer. If she won't give me the time of the day then maybe we aren't meant for each other at all.' James sat up a little straighter, but did not offer a response to his friend. Sirius just shrugged at Remus, unsure what else to do. They started on a new subject, but James wasn't listening. 'I have to de-Lily-tize myself. This summer is a perfect opportunity for that. I'll date new girls. I'll find someone better…Is there anyone better?'

Near the end of the trip, James announced, "You know what…you guys are right. From now on, I will not care about Lily. I will find some other girl."

"Alright!" Sirius cheered. "You aren't as dead as I thought! I can introduce you to some of my old gals."

"I don't think James really wants your rejects, Padfoot." Remus said.

"I do!" Peter said eagerly. "I haven't had a girlfriend since…"

"Ever?" Sirius filled in.

James laughed. It felt good not to care and just enjoy this time with his friends. 'I wonder what she's doing now…' He thought, but then quickly made a mental note to not think about her.

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"Lily!" Kat interrupted finally after a lonnnng rant about Potter's many faults. "He can't be all bad. I mean," She added quickly seeing the look on Lily's face, "He must care about you a lot for you to be his biggest fear."

"Tell me...how exactly is me being his biggest fear, flattering?" Lily snarled.

"No, no. Didn't you see what his boggart turned into at the Defense Against the Dark Arts exam?" Mel corrected.

"No, why would I bother?" Lily frowned.

"Because, his boggart turned into you! A dead version of you!" Kat finished off.

Lily looked surprised, but quickly scowled. "So what…."

"So! He obviously cares a lot more than you give him credit."

"He just wants me because I don't want him. It was probably a fake fear that he just made seem strong to try and impress me." Lily's logic seemed to make perfect sense to her, but why couldn't her friends see it?

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The Hogwarts express came to a slow halt at platform 9¾. Students filed off the train, and everyone began waving goodbye ad hugging a lot more than necessary. Lily waved goodbye to her friends, before any one else had a chance tosee her off. She waved eagerly to her awaiting mother, and was slightly disappointed to see that her sister had not bothered to show up.

Kat had some time to say goodbye to some other students before spotting her dad. She gave a weak smile at the man who raised her. They weren't very close, but they got a long alright. Melody was one of those who liked to hug everybody goodbye. Even if she didn't really like the person. After twenty minutes of excessive hugging, Mel walked through the barrier to go meet up with her muggle parents.

Peter dashed off before any of the Marauders had a chance to say goodbye. The three remaining boys stood in a clump glancing around the station for their parents. Several girls giggled and glanced at them hopefully as they walked by the Marauders. Several did little hair flips, and swayed their hips more than natural. Sirius gawked, and James pretended to be interested, but his heart wasn't really in the mood. Remus just rolled his eyes at his friends' antics.

"There's my dad." Remus said pointing to a shabbily dressed man amongst the crowd. "I'll see you guys over the summer, right?"

They nodded and waved goodbye. James spotted his parents, but didn't leave his friend's side.

"You don't have to wait with me…" Sirius grumbled.

James shrugged, "Too bad, Padfoot, I'm staying. Besides, your parents just happen to love me!" He added in a very sarcastic tone.

"Yeah well, you are a blood traitor, Prongsie! What do you really expect? A Black and a Potter just don't mix." Sirius laughed.

"Does this mean the wedding's off?" James asked in a sarcastic sad tone.

Mrs. Potter spotted the two boys, and jogged right up to them. "Sirius! So nice to see you! You know, you're always welcome in our home, honey." She added with an affectionate wink. She grabbed James's trunk and stared expectantly at the young men.

Sirius just smiled at James's mother. He liked them so much better than his own. The Potters were an older couple, and had James much later than most families did. Thus, James was an only child. Growing up James had been spoiled with expensive toys and trips to fantastic places, but his parents had always tried to keep him from being a snobby brat. However, as a child, James often did not see his parents as they were once skilled aurors, who were always in demand. As they got older, they became less valuable to the force and now remained only as auror trainers. To Sirius, the Potters were the family he never hated.

"You better go, James. Don't worry about me. I've lived there my whole life. I can handle it." Sirius said.

James stared at his friend questioning his opinion, but then shrugged and turned to leave. Mrs. Potter waved goodbye, and reminded Sirius to drop by at anytime. Sirius smiled and watched their figures leave through the barrier. Then Sirius waited.

And waited…

And waited.

The station was now almost empty, but there was no sign of the Blacks. 'Maybe they're on the other side of the barrier?' Sirius grumbled to himself as he picked up his trunk to leave. He walked through the barrier separating the muggle platforms, from the wizarding platform. He looked around, but still no sign of his family. 'Great,' He thought, 'I've probably been blasted off the family tree after all these years of being a blood-traitor son.' Sirius knew he didn't have enough money to purchase his own place yet, and he certainly didn't want to go home where he was unwanted. He knew exactly where he should go.

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James had just sat down at the kitchen counter to enjoy his dinner, when a familiar voice rang out.

"Hello? Anyone home?"

James looked slightly surprised to see his friend crawling out of the living room fireplace. Neither of his parents would be home that evening, as they had 'important Ministry business'. James rose from his chair and bounded over to help Sirius with his trunk.

"Er...hi?" James peered at Sirius questioningly.

"They didn't come." He answered to the unasked question. "And, I'm never going back. Mind if I stay for a while?"

James grinned. "This is great, you should have done this years ago! You can have your usual room. Hungry?" He pointed to the kitchen.

"Do you really need to ask?"

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"It's good to be home." Lily gave a sigh of relief and then smiled at her mother. "Um…where is Petunia?"

Her mother frowned slightly, "She's at her boyfriend's house. Vernon is his name. Despicable boy, but Petunia seems to like him quite a lot."

Lily was surprised to hear her mother disliking someone, but was happy to know that Petunia was finally seeing someone.

"What about you dear? Anyone new in your life?" Her mother probed anxiously.

Lily blushed, although there was no reason for it. "No…"

"What about that nice prefect? Remus, I think you said his name was."

"He's just a friend."

"For now…"

"Mum!" Lily's blush darkened. "I don't like him that way. Besides he's friends with P…"

"Who dear?"

"Ugh, let's just forget about this. I need a nice nap." Lily avoided saying his name and headed off to her room before her mother could ask anymore.

She didn't really feel sleepy, so Lily lay on her single bed and stared at the blank ceiling. 'Just thinking of Potter makes me want to strangle something. No…Just strangle him!' She giggled to herself. 'Why does Melly insist that he is a "nice guy". Even Kat started defending him on the train. Am I really missing something? He is always showing off, and he always picks on Snape. I feel bad for Severus. Even though he's called me a mudblood on occasion, he's really smart and he seems to have no friends. Maybe I'll try to be nicer to him next year. That ought to really bug Potter…' Lily soon found herself to be drifting off to sleep. 'Maybe I am tired afterall…'

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