Lily bounced down the stairs, in a particulary good mood So good, in fact, that all queries about Remus' secret were eliminated from her head. She made herself a cup of tea and sat down. She warmed her fingers on the mug, and watch the steam curl into different shapes and patterns. She had made herself at home in the Potter's house, and was content. Well, as content as someone whoose parents have just passed away can get. The thought brought a tear to her eye, so she stopped thinking about it.

She thought her feeling so happy probably had something to do with the fact that this house had everything she could probably ever want, plus more.

Then she thought aagain. Maybe it wasn't the fantastic facilities, or the beautiful archtecture. She thought about the hospitality, and the kindness of James' parents. She thought of the fantastic support that her best friend Mary had given her. The jokes and comments from Sirius that made her sides split. The interesting and practical thoughts of Remus. The loyalty Peter had shown for the gang. And James. Her James. She imagined the smooth curve of his cheek. She yearned to feel his face. To smell his breath. She thought about him.

Then she realised her tea was getting cold, so she drank it.

She squinted into the distance, "Owls? JAMES! JAMES, MARY, SIRIUS, REMUS, PETER!"

"What is it?" asked Mary sleepily, who'd only been a couple of rooms away.

"The owls are here!"

Lily ran up the stairs and into the bedrooms. She ran up to to Sirius' room and banged on the door.

"Sirius, the owls are here!"

"Do you think I care?" came a muffled voice behind the door.

"Wake Peter up aswell!"

"No!"

Lily ran to James room, which happened to be next to Sirius' room. She found that the door was unlocked, so she pushed it open.

"Hey Lily," James said, showing off his incredibly well-developed muscles as he yawned and stetched his arms up above his head, "What are you doing here?"

Lily didn't answer. She didn't hear him either. Thing only thing Lily actually registered was the fact that James, was in fact, not wearing anything but a pair of boxers.

"I - er - I - I - um - we - owls - you - downstairs. I'll see you downstairs!" Lily stuttered, sprinting down the stairs bursting into the kitchen bright red as everyone turned to stare at her. Jame followed a minute later wearing a t-shirt and jeans.

Remus' eyes were alight, despite the fact that he had only just waken up. Sirius, James and Peter, however, made no changes to their facial expressions, not even to pretend they were excited.

Sirius glanced once at the little barn owl that had just flown through the window and landed on the table. The letter was tied to it's leg at an awkward angle.

"Oh, great. Well, I'd better be going," he yawned.

"Where to?" asked Mary.

"Back to bed. duh," said Sirius.

"Nope," Lily said blocking the doorway. "You are going to open and read that letter and then you can go to bed."

"Fine!" Sirius said sitting back down and taking the letter from the owl. All the others grabbed their letters.

"Yes!" Lily cried jumping up and down. "I'm Head Girl!"

"Big Surprise," James said looking at Lily, a smile tugging at his lips. "I am," James said tipping his letter out, "Quidditch Captain and..."

"What?" Lily asked looking at him as he sat frozen staring at a second badge. "James, What?"

"I'm Head Boy." James said in a small voice. Lily noticed Remus looked just the smallest bit hurt as he tried to hide his feelings with mock shock.

"But James, How? I mean, you're not even a prefect." Lily said looking at him.

"Probably because of last year, when Jamse saved Severus from being eaten by-" Sirius started to say, unaware the Mary and Lily were in the room.

"Shut Up!" Remus said looking at Sirius murderously.

"Sorry." Sirius said looking worried.

"James, when did you save Severus' life?"

"Er, I, haha! Sirius was kidding! Get it?" James said, bracing himself.

"I'm really sorry Lily, it's part of the secret," said Remus sadly

"When does this secret end?" Lily cried, "I mean if you're not going to share it with us then stop mentioning it."

"Ok," Remus replied, "Now come on guys hurry up and get ready and then we can go to Diagon Alley." As everyone got up and started to leave the kitchen, James caught Lily's eye and winked,

"Diagon Alley, again."

"Wow, these school books look pretty advanced," fretted Peter who was reading the book list along with the others.

"Duh, it's seventh grade. What did you expect?" asked James, looking down at his own list.

"Well, I thought they'd give us a break and let us enjoy our last year." Peter suggesting that his assumption was the most natural thing in the word. Sirius laughed loudly and attracted a few stares from passerby's.

"Unfortunately, we have Newt's and I am taking all the advanced subjects and have an awful amount of textbooks that I need to buy," said Remus.

"Same," Lily replied and James nodded as well. The group spit up with Remus, Lily and James getting all their books and Mary, Peter and Sirius getting theirs.

After about an hour the group met up at the Leaky Cauldron and ordered lunch, they were all feeling ravenous after dragging around heavy book bags for quite a while.

"So, we go back to school on Friday," James said, trying to make conversation.

"What!" Sirius said looking ahgast, "You mean I only have four days left of the holidays to hang around with you guys and make out with my girlfriend," He said gesturing to a bright red Mary, "before the teachers ruin our lives with homework?" Sirius cried.

"Yes Padfoot, you only have four days left." Remus said looking at him, blatant amusement, painted on his face.

"You're an idiot Moony, always making school seem like fun, you need a girlfriend. I mean, seriously, James and I have perfect lives with our wonderful babes," Siris ducked as Lily hit him on the head with a book, "and Peter, well Peter's gay,"

"I AM NOT!" Peter said throwing a book at Sirius who winced as it came in contact with his shoulder.

"I was kidding! I promise! Anyway Remus you're a boring person, you're a boring, boring, boring, boring person!" Sirius finished grinning hapily.

"Thanks for that," Remus replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the fact that James was high fiving Padfoot and saying that that had been a brilliant speech, Peter was laughing uncontrollably and Mary and Lily looked like they were trying as hard as they could not to start laughing. "Now what do you idiots think about getting some food?"

"Yes!" Sirius shouted, licking his lips and signalling the waitress over, "We would like 6 burgers, four with a side serving of fries for us strong, handsome and sexy males and two with side serves of salad for the ladies, oh, and six butterbeers." Sirius said.

"Sexy?" Mary asked, raising an eyebrow at Sirius after the waitress had left.

"Or you could say, attractive, smoking, hot, or even delicious." Sirius finished licking his lips suggestively, Mary mimed throwing up.

"That doesn't describe you, I think more along the lines or dumb, stupid, insufferable, wait that's James, idiotic, maniacal and maybe crazy." Lily chimed in listing the descritions of Sirius.

"I'm insufferable?" James asked.

"Always have been, it's one of the reasons I love you." Lily replied, kissing James, hard.

"Ew, mushy and romantic and disgusting PG 13+ scenes happening in front of me! It burns!" Peter wailed.

"I told you he was gay." Sirius jerked his finger at Peter whilst laughing with Mary and Remus.

"I'm not! Leave me alone!" Peter cried.

"Fine," Sirius said and started digging into his burger, seeing as their meals had just appeared on the tables.

Suddenly. Screams. Everywhere. Where had her friends gone, she couldn't find them anywhere.

"GUYS?!" she called over the masses of screaming people. Still nothing. What had happened? One minute they were sitting their drinking their butterbeer, the next they were sprawled on the floor, with people trampling them, all running away. What were they scared of? Lily had a hunch, but she dreaded what she thought was true.

"Avada Kedavra!" shouted a man dressed in a black cloak. Lily knew it. What she thought was right. She had been reading about the occasional attack, but it was one of thoses things that you knew was going on, but never thought it would happen to you. And it was happening, right in front of her, and she was unable to prevent it.