Disclaimer: All JKR’s…

James scowled. He was sitting in the Three Broomsticks with Remus and Peter, glowering at everyone that walked by. He had grudgingly agreed to come to Hogsmeade with them, only, as was their final argument to get him there, because he didn’t want her to think that he wasn’t coming because of her.

Sirius had offered to stay with him, but James knew he had a date with Hazel Marchfox, so he waved him off. He didn’t want a pity party. Well, not a big one, at least.

“So,” said Peter, a little too cheerfully. “Want to go to Zonko’s next?”

“No,” said James.

“How about Honeydukes?” tried Peter again, only to be shot down once more by James.

“Oh, stop feeling sorry for yourself,” said Remus irritably. “So Lily’s going out with another guy. It was bound to happen some time. Get over it and stop sulking.”

James was slightly surprised by Remus’s outburst. He knew Remus was right, but he wasn’t in the mood to take advice, and, frankly, he wanted to sulk. “Sorry if I’m ruining your afternoon. I’m going to go take a walk. Bye.” He said, getting up and leaving, without waiting for a reply.

He heard Peter mutter, “Good job, Moony.”

But Remus just replied nonchalantly, “If he wants to mope about all afternoon, well, fine. But he’d do well to realize that it’s not going to do any good.”

James scowled even more fiercely as he stormed out the door.

He wandered aimlessly around the village for a few moments, not paying attention to where his feet carried him. When he finally stopped, he was slightly surprised to find himself at the Shrieking Shack. But not as surprised as who he found there.

“Evans?” Lily Evans was leaning against the rickety fence, gazing at the shack listlessly. She jumped when he said her name. He held back a grin, expecting he had spooked her.

“Oh! Potter. Hi.” She was watching him rather cautiously, as neither of them had easily forgotten their little argument earlier.

“I thought you were coming here with McKinnon.” He tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

“Yes, well, he got hit by a bludger during practice and is in the Hospital Wing. I was going to stay with him, of course,” she added hurriedly, “but really, he was out cold, and I needed some school supplies…”

James tried to repress a snort at the thought McKinnon being hit with a bludger. He failed.

Lily looked offended. “Oh, don’t you even --”

“Sorry,” said James quickly, not wanting another row. “Look, I’m sorry about earlier -- I shouldn’t have…”

“What?” Lily had an odd look on her face.

“Er,” said James, nervously running a hand through his hair. “What, what?”

“What did you just say?”

“Sorry?”

She stared at him for a moment, blinked, and then shook her head slightly. “Right. I’m sorry about earlier too. I shouldn’t have yelled. I lost my temper.” She gave him a rather sheepish grin, as if acknowledging that this was not an uncommon event for her.

Still slightly confused, James just said, “Right. So … that’s over with.”

“Right.”

“Right.”

They both turned back simultaneously to gaze at the Shrieking Shack. James always had a morose pleasure in viewing the Shack as an outsider. It was an odd feeling, knowing that the next full moon he would be in there, watching his friend rage through the house, a different being.

“Are you scared of it?”

“Sorry?” asked Lily, looking over at him.

“Of the Shack. Does it frighten you?” He was curious, since most people believed it was haunted.

She shrugged. “Not particularly.”

He raised an eyebrow. “No?”

“Nah. The villagers say there are awful noises…but it does seem to have calmed down slightly in the past few years, hasn’t it?”

Because of me, Padfoot and Wormtail, he added silently. “You sure looked spooked when I came over.”

She gave him an exasperated look. “I wasn’t expecting someone to be here.”

“Yeah, most people steer clear of it, because it’s,” he lowered his voice to a loud whisper, “haunted!”

“Oh, stop being ridiculous,” Lily snorted. But to James’s amusement, she cast a sideways glance at the Shack.

James shrugged, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “I suppose you haven’t heard the stories, then?”

“Of course I have. That rubbish about violent spirits.”

“Well, yes,” agreed James. “There’s that, but what about the people?”

“What people?” she scoffed.

“The people who went in, of course.”

“Right. And how do you expect anyone to get in there?” Lily asked, motioning towards the boarded up building.

“It wasn’t always boarded up, you know. People used to dare each other to go in there, and see what they found. Well, one night someone did go in. He went at night, probably lost a bet, or something. It’s said the shrieks were even louder that night, excited. No one ever saw him again…”

“Oh, that is the stupidest hogwash I’ve ever heard!”

“And then there are the people who never even went in! They were just standing here like us, and then they just…” James apparated behind her and said, “disappeared!”

“Don’t do that!” Lily squeaked.

James caught sight of Sirius coming up the hill. He inwardly grinned. Then, giving Lily a very serious expression, he said, “But you’re probably right. Load of hogwash. None of these stories are true…Not even the one about the girl who…”

“Heya, Evans,” said Sirius, tapping her on the back.

Lily yelped. It was just the effect he was looking for. Unable to keep a straight face any longer, James burst into laughter.

“Oh, you think your funny!” Lily gave him a very irritated look.

“Just a bit of fun,” agreed James, smiling at her. Sirius looked confused.

“You’re stupid, you know that?”

James gave a small bow.

“Oh, for goodness sakes!” she huffed. “Well maybe if these ‘stories’ are so true, the house will swallow you up, and then I won’t have to deal with you!”

“That’s not very nice,” said James pleasantly, as Lily headed down the hill.

“What was that all about?” asked Sirius. “Convincing another one the Shack is haunted?”

James grinned. “A bit of fun. Plus, the more people that believe the Shack is haunted, the less people believe that it’s Moony haunting it…”

They both laughed. Neither of them noticed Lily Evans standing at the bottom of the hill giving them a very peculiar look.

James saw little of Lily for the rest of October, save Prefect and Head meetings. Of course, they had classes together, but studies for N.E.W.T.s were especially rigorous, and there was little time for small chatter. Much to his dismay, she continued going out with McKinnon, and, it seemed, they were quite the item. James had taken to eating breakfast especially early, so not to see them together.

The Quidditch season had begun, and James was pleased to say that Ravenclaw suffered an astounding defeat. Most unfortunately, Mick received another bludger injury -- but hey, that’s Quidditch. Even more unfortunately, Madam Pomfrey fixed it faster than you could say “bloody git.” Lily had given him a rather skeptical look as Mick had been taken off the field, of which he was deeply offended. Really, just because he was Captain. It wasn’t as though he had told his Beaters to go after McKinnon…

Soon it was Halloween, and the entire school was a buzz. Talks of pranks and sweets inundated the corridors. James was reluctant to give up the Marauder’s Annual Halloween Prank, but he was Head Boy, after all. (He felt a twinge of guilt as he said this, for hadn’t he recently pulled one on Snape? Surprisingly, though, he had heard nothing recently from the git.) He did promise his friends, though, that he wouldn’t give them a detention if they pulled one.

Sirius just gave him a dark look at this, and said, “We’re not doing a prank without you, Prongs. Then it will be like you really have left us.”

James wasn’t quite sure what to make of this remark, but by the feast Sirius seemed to have cheered up, so he disregarded it.

The feast was a great success, and most all the students went to bed that night, content and with full stomachs.

James was sitting propped up against some pillows on his bed, curtains drawn. He was examining the Marauder’s Map, as he had taken to doing before falling asleep. It proved an effective tool for catching rule-breakers …though he had only put it to real use, once or twice, landing a few Slytherins in detention.

Tonight, he was pleased to see several students whose names he didn’t recognize heading towards the kitchens, no doubt looking for some leftover sweets. He focused back onto the Gryffindor Tower. It was late, and everyone was in his or her dormitories -- Almost everyone, that is. His eyes landed on the small dot labeled, “Lily Evans.” What was she doing up so late? Against his better judgment, he silently crept out of bed and down the stairs.

She was sitting on one of the windowsills, her small body illuminated against the black night sky. She was gazing out into the stars, a letter in her hand. Although she was turned away from him, it was obvious: She was crying.

He fought with himself for a moment, trying to decide whether he should butt in or not, but finally said, “Lily?”

She turned her head around slowly, not her usual jumpy response. She didn’t look surprised to see him, if anything; she looked as though she hardly acknowledged his presence. Her shoulders shuddered and she turned her head away again.

He went over and sat next to her, well aware that he was prying into business that was not his own. “What’s -- what’s wrong?”

They were silent tears, but they flowed incessantly. He thought for a moment she was going to just ignore him, but then she set the letter in her hand softly between them, her hand hesitating as if thinking better of it.

It was from her sister.

I have only just been able to write you. There has been much to do. Doubtlessly, you know why. The funeral has already happened, so don’t bother asking when it is. I did not see why you should be invited.

Can you imagine my shock on returning from my date with Vernon to find the house half-destroyed and swarming with…with your kind? No, you probably can’t. You never did think much of others, did you? Some freaks tried to …what was it? Oh yes, ‘modify my memory,’ but some old man convinced them that I knew you and was therefore allowed to know of such ‘happenings.’ Freak laws and whatnot.

James was speechless for a moment. Then, without thinking, he put his arms around her, and pulled her into an embrace. She tried to pull away, but he held her there, and soon the tears came faster and more furiously.

Her face buried into his chest, she sobbed and sobbed, emitting a sound not unlike a wounded animal. He didn’t know how long he held her there, crying in his arms, but after a while, she seemed to calm down. She pulled away and wiped her eyes.

“Being ridiculous,” she muttered, hiccupping. “Foolish …”

“You’re allowed to mourn, Lily,” said James fiercely. She looked away. “I don’t think you’ve ever properly let yourself. It’s okay to cry.”

“But she’s right,” Lily whispered, still not looking at him.

James felt something inside of him clench up. At that moment, he hated Petunia Evans as he had hated no other person before. “This is not your fault, Lily! Don’t let your sister make you think that. What does she know?”

Lily didn’t respond. The tears started coming. “I just -- I feel so alone. I haven’t been able to talk about this with anyone before. Not Mick -- and … Marlene would never understand …”

“I’m here,” said James. “I’m always here.”

She was crying again. “Why did this have to happen? Why did He attack my parents? I hate him … I hate him!”

James didn’t know how to respond to this, so he just held her tightly, while she sobbed. He had reason to believe it was one of the first times she had truly mourned for her parents.

He heard a sound from the girls’ dormitory, and looking towards the stairs, he saw Marlene McKinnon, sitting there. He was quite sure she had been there for some time. And she had a very ugly expression on her face.