Hello, all!
I'm not J.K. Rowling, in case anyone was fooled...ha.
Due to massive amounts of schoolwork, my brain currently does not want to function. So if this chapter a little disappointing...I'm sorry.
On a totally unrelated note, my ballet teacher has decided to make the our advanced class wear white leotards and pink tights with no skirts so we can't "hide anything". How we're hiding anything in our current skin-tight clothes, I have no idea. But I am entirely uninterested in looking like a dancing marshmallow.
Ahem. Sorry.
Thank you to all my reviewers! I enjoy every one of your reviews. :)
Also, thank you especially to Super Cara for pointing out my potion misspelling mishap in the last chapter and also for being a consistent reviewer! :)

"Wow."

The marauders grinned at me.

I stared down at the old scrap of parchment that had just transformed into a detailed map of the entire school and its occupants. I found my dot and shook my head at the small script that read Lily Evans. "This is brilliant," I glanced up at the boys, "you did this in fourth year?"

"Instead of our homework, naturally," answered Sirius.

"This is NEWT level charm work!" I exclaimed. I was probably feeding their already large egos, but I couldn't hide how impressed I was.

"Well, we had to put our amazing brains to some use," James grinned, "and since we were determined not to apply ourselves in classes..."

I raised my eyebrows. "So this is why you never get caught."

"That and the cloak," piped up Peter.

Sirius groaned. "Really, Wormtail?"

"What cloak?" I asked suspiciously.

"Look, Lily," warned Sirius, "you have to promise not to tell anyone about this stuff."

This was so against the rules. I mean, I was Head Girl. I was supposed to stop-not enable and abet-troublemakers. Oh, well. "I promise."

The marauders looked at each other. "We've never told anyone else about all this," admitted Remus.

"If I can keep your 'furry little problem' a secret, I think I can manage to keep my mouth shut about a map and a cloak," I said, realizing too late that I had never told Remus I knew about his monthly transformations.

Remus blanched. "You know about that?"

"Er, yeah," I said, flushing at my lack of tact.

"How long have you known?" He questioned cautiously.

"Since the beginning of sixth year, when we had to do the lunar chart in Astronomy," I answered sheepishly. "Your symptoms and absences matched up."

"You don't...mind?"

"Well, as a muggleborn, I wasn't raised with all the stigma and prejudice against werewolves," I admitted, "but no, I don't mind. I mean, you're only a werewolf once a month. The rest of the time you're just Remus."

The color had returned to his face. He crossed the room and hugged me briefly. "Thanks, Lily," he said gruffly.

I hugged him back, sighing in relief. I hadn't meant to bring that up. "So," I coughed awkwardly. "Are you going to tell me about the cloak?"

James leaned over to dig through his trunk and pulled out a mass of silvery fabric that seemed to flow like liquid from his fingers. "Invisibility cloak," he explained, draping it over his arm.

Would they ever stop surprising me?

"Lily, about Remus," Sirius said quietly.

We were in Potions again, still working on our Veritaserum, as it took an entire lunar cycle to complete. "What about him?" I whispered back.

He gave me a half smile. "I just...it means a lot to him, your acceptance, you know."

"Oh."

"It's a difficult secret," he continued, adding a few drops of Acromantula venom carefully to the simmering potion. "He can't be up front with it if he doesn't trust someone yet, but if he waits until that trust is developed, their relationship can be destroyed by such a large secret."

"When did you all find out, then?"

"Second year. It never really caused any problems for us-relationships are a lot simpler when you're twelve," he said ruefully. "All of life is, really."

I smiled briefly at this. "We all have to grow up eventually, complicated or not."

"Yeah," he muttered, looking suddenly weary. He brought his hands to his face and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

Confused by his sudden depression, I fell silent and concentrated on the potion.

Six stirs clockwise. Three counter-clockwise...nine clockwise...

"I think Regulus is a Death Eater."

I jumped at the quiet sound of Sirius' voice, then wondered what to say. What couldyou say to that?

"I want to hate him," he continued bitterly. "But I can't, y'know? He makes me sick-yet I can't manage to hate him. Not like I can the rest of my family. I hate Bellatrix, I hate Narcissa's husband, Malfoy. I hate my parents for trying to instill their blood prejudice in their children. But I can't hate Regulus. He's still my little brother. I always thought he might be different...I even thought he might end up in Gryffindor like me. He looked up to me when we were kids. But then he went into Slytherin...and now he's just like the rest of my family. Evil."

I felt like crying for the boy beside me. My petty rivalry with Petunia seemed so trivial now. "Not everyone is as strong as you," I said softly. "It takes a strong person to go against their family, I think. You're a Gryffindor-you had that courage. And, you know, not everyone has a James."

He smiled slightly at this, glancing at the untidy black head a few desks over. "True."

Impulsively, I reached over and gave him an awkward side-hug over our cauldron. He tightened one arm briefly around my shoulders before pulling away.

"Sorry to bother you with my family problems," he said to me. "Thanks for listening, Lily. I've always wanted a sister," he added, winking at me and reached for his schoolbooks.

I smiled at him and silently gathered my own books, following him out of potions to join the other boys, contemplating the man that was Sirius Black.

Dear Lily,

I could kill my parents right now. You are at Hogwarts and I am stuck at Beauxbatons. I'm sure you're rather upset that both Alice and me are both gone, but at least you're in familiar surroundings. And you're not trying to decipher the mysterious language that is French. Merlin. Oh, and our school uniforms here are powder blue. Powder blue, Lils! I miss plain black robes and pleated wool skirts.

Banter aside, (or is it banter if you're not actually talking to me?) He-who-must-not-be-named and his supporters have not come to France, yet, and I no longer wake to news of new killings and suspected death-eater arrests each morning. Nice as it would be to forget the violence in England, I can't.

My parents moved us because they think we're safe here. I honestly don't understand how they can be so thick. Don't they realize that You-know-who's not going to limit his campaign to England? They should be doing something, and instead, my mother is sipping coffee with croissants and my father is filing non-dangerous paperwork in the French Ministry's Muggle Relations office.

Bloody hell. I didn't mean for this letter to be so depressing. Tell me about classes. I'm dying to hear about Hogwarts life. Feel free to pass on any interesting gossip. Who's Head Boy? I would guess either Remus or that cute prefect in Ravenclaw. And how is it having only the Marauders as your fellow Gryffindor seventh years?

Write soon, darling. I swear the moment they hand over my diploma I am coming straight back to England.

Love,

Marlene

Dear Marls,
Pitiful as it is, I cried myself to sleep the first night all alone in our dorm. But moving along to more interesting news-James Potter is Head Boy. Yes, the Marauder. He's matured a bit since his days of constantly asking me out and is actually doing a good job with his leadership position. We've even become friends.

As for the Marauders-well, they come as a package, so naturally, I've been spending rather a lot of time with them. Most of my time, in fact. They're actually not too annoying. Of course, I've always tolerated Remus, but tried to ignore the other three.

Petunia's getting married next week. James is actually going to the wedding with me. As a friend, of course. Don't look like that (I can picture your expression!)-I'm not attracted to him at all in that way.

While the war is only getting worse here, I understand your parents decision. Merlin knows if I had a family here I would want to get out. But you're right too, of course. Voldemort's not going to stop with England. I will be counting the days till you graduate and I get to see you again!

Love,

Lily

I tied the letter to a school owl and sent him off. As much as I enjoyed my new-found friendships with the marauders, especially Sirius and James, I missed my female friends. A girl needs a bit of girl-talk in her life, and by the very definition, it was something I couldn't get with the boys.

I wildly grabbed a few dresses and pairs of knickers, stuffing them into the overnight bag on my bed. Catching my reflection in the mirror, I swore and scrambled to find my hairbrush. A few minutes later, looking a little less like something that had just crawled out of the Forbidden Forest, I hurried down the stairs to find James waiting for me, looking amused.

"Wake up late?" He inquired, grinning.

I frowned. "Why?"

"Your jumper's on backwards and you have two different shoes on."

Looking down at my feet, I saw one black and one brown flat. Muttering unpleasant things under my breath, I hurried back up to my dormitory. A few moments later I returned, semi-straightened out.

"Ready to go, then?" He asked pleasantly.

"Ready as I'll ever be to go participate in a wedding I would rather cancel," I grumbled.

His grin widened and he took my bag, despite my protests. "Let's go then. I'm quite eager to get to know your delightful sister and her charming fiancee better."

Professor McGonagall had debated having my fireplace at home hooked up to the Floo Network, but for convenience's sake had decided to allow James and me to walk to Hogsmeade and apperate to my house. We apperated directly into my bedroom. After James took his things to the guest bedroom, we went downstairs.

"Lily! James!" My Mum cried, grabbing us both in a hug. My face ended up smashed against James' shoulder rather painfully. Beaming, she nearly dragged us into the living room to introduce James to my family.

"Remember," I hissed in his ear, "my extended family thinks we go to a boarding school for gifted children."

He grinned. "I'll try not to talk too much, then."

Recalling the night he had been at dinner with Vernon and Petunia, I nodded emphatically. "Good idea."

The next few hours of family-induced torture were filled with many declarations of, "We're not dating," and my attempts to keep James from embarrassing himself in front of my muggle relatives. By the time they left or retired to their respective bedrooms, I was exhausted.

"Merlin," I groaned, collapsing onto the couch, seizing the nearest half-full glass of champagne, and draining it, "If I ever marry a wizard I don't think I can invite my family to the wedding."

James sat down beside me and leaned back, crossing his arms behind his head and closing his eyes. "That's what memory charms are for, of course."

I laughed. "Oh yes, I'll just herd them up after the wedding and Obliviate the lot of them."

He yawned. "Hey, whatever works."

"Hey," I remembered, "we have to get you a muggle suit tomorrow morning." Maybe I could connive my Dad into taking James shopping. I would rather sleep than shop for men's formal wear.

"I have one already."

Wait-what? "Where'd you get one?"

"Borrowed it from Remus. His mum's muggleborn."

I frowned, glancing down at James' long legs doubtfully. "You're taller than he is, though."

"Honestly, Lily?" he pulled out his wand and lazily transfigured my champagne flute into a daisy. "We can do magic, remember?"

"Right..." something about the muggle world temporarily muggle-fied my brain.

He stood and stretched. "I think I'm going to go to bed," he said. "Then I'll have plenty of energy to be my charming self tomorrow for the rehearsal."

"Righhht." I stood up too. "Well g'night, then."

"Goodnight," he replied agreeably.

I waited until he had disappeared upstairs, fiddling with the daisy, before following him and entering my own bedroom. I climbed into bed, falling asleep quickly. That night, I dreamed of my own wedding with a tall, dark-haired, faceless stranger.

I plan on updating this weekend. Maybe more than one chapter, if I get lots of lovely reviews.

The Quirky Quill