This is how it starts. This is how it always starts. He couldn’t stop looking at her. Everything about her intrigued him. He stared in awe as he scrutinized every detail. But still she was unaware of how captivating she could be. Everything made her more interesting to him. The way her chocolate hair fell in perfect waves around her face. Silky tresses curling down to her shoulders. The way her mouth was curved with determination and her lips were slightly parted, inviting. The way her eyes examined the teacup in front of her. Her eyes were a vibrant green, just like Lily’s. But hers were even more stunning as they looked out beneath thick lashes. The way her face crinkled in frustration, trying time after time to turn her teacup into a cat. The way her slender fingers gripped her wand with tight enough to turn her knuckles white as she flicked her wrist. The way her voice was melodic and flowed like water as she muttered to herself. He strained his ear to listen to her voice, as if it were the tune to his favorite song that would never be played again. The way her soft laugh sent a warm feeling through him, like fire whiskey, as she finally turned the teacup into a cat. The way she looked complacent as she realized that she was the first one to finish. But she couldn’t be sure until she looked his way because it was he who usually won this non-existent race. His eyes connected with hers. That warm feeling soaked through him. But she turned away and looked smugger than ever, now sure that she had won.

“Checking out Amanda Lively, Remus?” Peter asked as he snuck a glance at her.

“No… No, I wasn’t,” lied Remus. He took one last look at Amanda and reluctantly turned to face his friends.

“Oh yes you were! That’s the same look James has on his face when he stares at Lily!” Sirius smirked.

“So that’s what I look like?” James asked. The others ignored him.

“Remus, this class is called Charms. Not ‘Look at the Charm-ing Amanda Lively’!” Sirius joked.

“Or ‘Try to Charm the lovely Lively’!” laughed James.

“Um, Sirius? We’re in Transfiguration. Not Charms,” Remus retorted.

“Well it wouldn’t have worked then. Think if I’d said ‘Look at the Transfiguration-ing Amanda Lively’. It doesn’t work!” whined Sirius.

“Remus? Are you ever going to try to transfigure your teacup? You haven’t yet so I think you should before the end of class,” Peter advised. Remus waved his wand at the teacup in front of him. The teacup transformed into a purring cat. The other Marauders stared in disbelief. They turned back to their pitiful half-correct results.

“Just flick your wand, rotate your wrist clockwise once, and flick again,” Remus suggested. With two flicks and a roll of their wrists, the other three had cats also. At the end of the class the Marauders set off to the common room to retire for the night. Once claiming their favorite armchairs by the fireplace, the boys began to talk. Remus looked over at Amanda who was giving a first year directions. Amanda was a prefect, just like Remus. James’ voice called for Remus’ attention.

“You know it can never happen, Remus,” James said gravely.

“We’d just have to push her away in the end,” Sirius sighed.

“Like we always do,” Peter added smugly. Peter was just glad that another Marauder didn’t have a girlfriend, even though there was a huge difference in the reasoning behind it. Remus was a werewolf. Peter was… well he’s Peter.

“We’re sorry, Moony. We really are. But we can’t let you get too attached to someone. What if she didn’t like what you are?” James sympathized.

“What if she followed you out at that time? When you change, you become a whole different person. You don’t recognize us. You lose control over yourself,” squeaked Peter, trying to keep control over the Amanda Lively situation, as it was called.

“It’s not your fault. But what if something happened to her? You wouldn’t be able to live with yourself, knowing what you did. We wouldn’t be able to live with ourselves, knowing that we let you,” Sirius said solemnly.

“That was deep, Sirius. Seriously deep,” sighed James.

“Puns…” Sirius growled loathsomely as he threw a pillow at James.

“We never knew ‘deep’ was in your short range of capabilities, Sirius!” Peter joked.

“Shut up,” snapped Sirius at Peter. Peter squeaked in terror under Sirius’ piercing gaze. But Sirius released him and turned to Remus. “But really, Remus.”

“I know…” Remus breathed. “I just wish.”

“You just wish what, Remus?” Amanda asked as she sauntered over to put the fire out. Sirius noticed Remus looked as if he was asking for a miracle in a lost cause. Remus knew that he couldn’t ever tell her what he had wished, because he knew they could never be together. Sirius turned his handsome face to Amanda.

“He just wishes that you’d go to Hogsmeade with him tomorrow for the first Hogsmeade trip of our last year,” Sirius grinned. Amanda turned to the fireplace and waved her wand. The flames extinguished into smoldering ashes. She faced the anxious Marauders and smiled at Remus.

“I’d like that, Remus,” she beamed.

“Really?” His eyes brightened.

“Of course,” Amanda walked up to the girls’ dormitories as she talked, and then she was gone.

“You’re welcome,” smirked Sirius.

“Remus, you look shell-shocked,” James laughed.

“Come, friends. Let’s sleep so that we don’t look tired when spying on Remus!” Peter yawned as he rose from the chair.

“Yeah…” Remus breathed in disbelief. He kept on structuring conversations in his head, so as to not look at loss for words. Remus’ mind exploded with excitement at the very thought of tomorrow. But deep in the darkest corner of his mind, he knew it wouldn’t, no, couldn’t last.