A/N: There was a pretty good turnout, I think, when I posted this new story. I'm glad I had people tell me the liked it! I do want to mention, this so my second story on the go, and therefore won't be updated as often.

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LILY EVANS and the UNANTICIPATED FAWN

Chapter 2

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September, 1977

… *** …

As studious as Lily was, she had always found History of Magic class boring. Professor Binns had been droning on from the previous class, not stopping or even realizing the seventh years had arrived, still describing some barmy war between two drunken wizards they'd learned about in fourth year. Still, the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws took their seats and books, and immediately most of the class drifted off into sleep. The Marauders were all asleep in their chairs, bar Remus, who couldn't seem to fit his lanky body comfortably enough to doze off. Marleen, who was seated beside Lily, was currently drooling on Lily's shoulder.

It was another twenty minutes until the tone went off, signalling the end of class, and Professor Binns looked up, his ghostly face looking confused for a moment, "Oh, when did you all get here? Never mind, please open your books to the Battle of —"

"Sorry Professor, class has just finished." One of the Ravenclaws seated near the front of the room said, packing his bag and turning to leave with the rest of the class. Professor Binns still looked confused, but his features cleared and he waved them off, blissfully drifting off to wherever he went to between classes.

Lily left the classroom as quickly as she could, catching up to the sleepy Marleen, who was currently being harassed by Sirius.

"Come on, McKinnon, one Hogsmeade weekend?" Sirius skipped in front of her, his wide grin stretched so far he looked like a wolf.

Marleen gives Sirius a droll look, hiking her bag strap up her shoulder, "Black, the last time I went with you to Hogsmeade, you left me in Honeydukes while you showed off to a Hufflepuff seventh year in Zonkos."

Peter muffled a snort, receiving a sharp elbow to his side from Sirius. Remus pointedly ignores the ordeal, while James comes up next to Lily, draping his arm around her waist, "In his defense, Pad's was distracting you so I could sneak Evans away." James grins at Marleen, giving Lily a kiss to the side of her hair.

Lily leans away, "Is that why Peter and Remus were out in the snow the whole time? They were your lookouts?" James flounders, but Lily smacks at his shoulder, well aware that was exactly what had happened.

The group of Gryffindors continue down the halls, towards their next classes. The boys split up; James, Sirius and Remus going to Potions, while Peter had decided to skip Potions this year, and had a free period. Lily had Potions as well, so stopped to say goodbye to Marleen before leaving her friend's side. Marleen snatched Lily's robe sleeve before she could say anything, ducking her head down to whisper so as not to be overheard by the Marauders.

"So, you and James are pretty tight. Just how much did you two see each other over summer hols?" Marleen wiggles her eyebrows at her friend, delighting in the red blush Lily shows on her cheeks.

"We only made it official in June…" Lily whispers fiercely, uncomfortable with having this conversation with the boys a few feet away.

Marleen grins, "Right, so lots of time to get busy when your sister's taking up your parent's attention."

"Mar!" Lily squeals, trying to smack her hand over Marleen's mouth, but the other girl skips back laughing, heading away from the group with a jolly wave at Lily. Face burning, Lily turns around and begins heading off to Potions, ignoring the snickering from Sirius.

James skips around his mates, taking Lily's hand in his, swinging it carelessly between them. They were receiving quite a few looks from younger school mates, a few girls were spotted by Lily whispering excitedly to one another.

"Potter, you're becoming a spectacle." Lily scolds him, but can't bring herself to pull their hands apart.

James grins at her, wagging his eyebrows at her, leading Sirius to pipe up, "The only thing left to do is have a good snog in the corridors. That'll stop all the chin-wagging." Lily leans back to give Sirius a good smack on the shoulder. Unfortunately, this happens just as Professor Slughorn turns the corner, about to enter the Potions dungeon classroom.

"Miss Evans!" his exclamation jolts Lily, her hair whipping around her face as she faces her teacher. The portly man had always had a bit of a soft spot for her, encouraged by her wonderful capabilities in his class 'even though she was a muggle-born witch'.

"Professor! I—" Lily stuttered to explain herself, redness spreading over her cheeks for the second time within the hour. Sirius was chortling behind his hands, James was chuffed next to her, grinning madly at their teacher, while Remus had casually stepped back, as if to distance himself from the coming retribution.

"I'm very looking forward to this coming year, m'dear. I've decided to start up our annual Christmas party plans earlier this year. I'm going out to the Americas over the holidays, and can't possibly be here to host. What do you think, m'dear? Shall we fancy a meeting for Halloween?

"Oh! Er, yes sir, that sounds splendid." Lily says quickly, beaming a smile at the kind professor, hoping it doesn't look as forced as it feels.

"Wonderful news! Well, shall we begin class, Miss Evans?" Slughorn gestures for Lily to step inside. Lily ducks her head in, stopped by James jumping in front of her to hold the door open. Giving him a little smile, Lily steps in with Sirius curtseying at James before rushing in after her, before the door can be closed on his toes. Professor Slughorn watches the boys trail in, his head quirked to the side as it's prone to do so when puzzled, waiting until Mr. Lupin had walked in as well before following in last.

…***...

The rest of the day dragged on, eventually leaving Lily alone after lunch once the boys had gone off to their next classes, and Lily to her free period. She'd set up camp in the library, in a dusty old corner no one seemed to remember when it came to book collecting. The table she sat at had piles of books towering higher than was safe, but it created a cozy spot where the light could only reach her from between the cracks of book piles. The windows couldn't distract her, nor could a passerby notice her and try to start conversation.

Her head was bowed over her work, and lowered with each passing hour she sat there, the afternoon sun threatening to dip into evening. Without noticing, Lily missed her last class of the day — Care of Magical Creatures — as well as dinner in the Great Hall. Her work had begun to spread across the whole table, essays and other scrolls tossed about in a messy organization.

Lily barely moved this whole time, giving good reason to why she jumped so high when James came over, placing his hand over her hand, stopping her quill.

"Merlin! Announce yourself!" Lily slapped at his hand, stopping herself from chucking the ink filled quill at his head.

James chuckled, dragging a chair over to sit next to her, his knees bumping against the side of her leg, "I did, twice."

"Oh," Lily brushes her hair over her shoulder, trying not to get embarrassed by her lack of perception. James grins, leaning in to leave a kiss to the apple of her cheek.

"You've been in here for hours, my dear." James says lowly, still near her cheek. Huffing, Lily sits back in her chair, her eyes burning in frustration and stress. James gives her a startled look, "Lils, I didn't mean that to come off like I was taking the mick."

"I know, I'm just," a sob got stuck in her throat, but she forced it down, "I feel like I'm so behind in everything, and it's only the end of September."

"Lily," James coos, leaning into her to collect her in his arms, giving her a massive bear hug. Lily sunk into his arms, feeling silly but needing this from him. "Love, maybe it would be a good idea to talk to McGonagall, see if she could help you. Maybe she'll let up with some of the workload."

Lily sniffles, nodding into his shoulder, though she doesn't think McGonagall would do that. But it was nice for James to try and fix the problem for her, "I really do hate this library." Eyes dry, Lily pushed herself up from James, giving one last sniffle, rubbing at her eyes. James smiles gently, helping wipe the last tear track from her cheek.

"I've got an idea," James says as he begins to shovel Lily's things into her rucksack, "Sirius and I are heading out to the Quidditch pitch. Why don't you come out and sit in the fresh air? It'll be a nice difference from hours in this stuffy place."

Lily purses her lips, but nods soon after, agreeing she had been breathing in book dust for too long. They each grabbed a few books, James waving his wand at them to have them return themselves to their rightful spots in the stacks. As much as Lily may despise the place sometimes, she hated clutter more. Once they left the library they began walking to the Gryffindor common room to collect their things, when Lily grabbed James' arm, stopping him in the corridor.

"Wait, where are Remus and Peter right now?"

Names gave her a confused look,"Er, I think they're in the common room."

"Ok, good," Lily began walking faster, dragging James behind her with her grip on his elbow not letting go. They reached the Fat Lady's portrait quicker than a usual stroll from the library would take. Lily practically spat the password — "Pig feet" — in her rush, stumbling over the portrait hole. The few students lounging in the room turned to see who was making such a ruckus. When they spotted Lily Evans, pulling a befuddled James Potter along with her, most turned back to their books or friends, but there were quite a number of nosy watchers, their eyes following the infamous couple of Gryffindor. Of the many heads turned towards them, Remus and Peter were not among them.

"I thought you said they'd be here?" Lily asked, but James could only shrug. They were meant to be here; Peter needed Remus to help him with his Defense homework. "Maybe they're in the dorm room."

James could only smile and be taken along on the ride, being dragged up the stairs by Lily towards the room he and the Marauders shared. Neither noticed the noise of chattering following them up the stairs, the gossip immediately starting up once their Heads disappeared up the same stairway.

Lily burst through the seventh year boys dorm room door, startling peter so badly the portly boy squeaked, falling off the end of his bed. Remus roared with laughter, clutching his belly as he, James and Lily watched Peter scuttle up from the floor.

"I'm sorry Peter, didn't mean to startle you." Lily apologized, but Peter's face only went red in embarrassment.

"Y-you didn't. D-don't worry, Evans." Peter stuttered out, but kept his shoulders straight and his nose up. James chuckled, clapping Peter on the shoulder as he moved past him.

"Sure she didn't, Pete. Moony, do you know know where my extra scarf is?" James asked in passing, already digging through his trunk. Remus winked over at Lily, who had by now taken a seat on the corner of Sirius's bed.

"I think I saw Padfoot with it." James freezes, looking over his shoulder at Remus. Seeing his friend was not joking, James leapt over Remus's bed, landing next to the one Lily sat on. She watched with a cocked brow as her boyfriend tossed open Sirius' trunk, riffling through his possessions, occasionally throwing something over his shoulder.

"James, what do you think you're doing exactly?" Lily finally asked, just as James found what he was looking for, thrusting it in the air with a loud crow of delight.

"This, my dear sweet Lily, is the proof I needed to finally show my mother that I'm not the one who eats all her sweets." James threw what now looked like his bundled scarf onto Sirius's bed, upending it to reveal the mess within. Hundreds of sweeties wrappers unfolded themselves, spilling out of the folded scarf and onto the red bedspread.

Everyone stared, except for Remus, who smirked over their shoulders. James let out a loud whoop, and bolted out of the room. Lily stared after him before looking back at Remus in complete bewilderment.

"James has been trying to find his candy since we arrived. He's been blaming Sirius since day one." Remus was still grinning, giving Lily the idea he knew something the others didn't.

"Ok… and this proves it then?" Lily asks dumbly, still not catching on.

"It does… at least, it proves James is gullible enough to realize that wasn't Sirius's trunk." Remus grins wider. Lily looks at him in astonishment, looking at the trunk next to Sirius's bed. She squints at it, suddenly realizing the initials are completely wrong.

"Remus! You switched your trunks just to blame your friend?" Lily burst out, unsure if she should laugh or yell, only really wanting to congratulate her friend. Peter's laughter chatters through the room, Remus's grin not leaving his face.

"He deserved it. Git wouldn't return my Defense homework."

Lily only laughed, standing from the bed feeling lighter than she had all day. Laughing with the Gryffindor Marauders always helped. "Come on you two, James and Sirius are going to the Quidditch pitch to fly around. Care to join me? I'm going to enjoy the fresh air in the stands."

Remus agreed immediately, grabbing his own scarf and another holey sweatshirt, layering it over the two he already wore. Peter fidgeted a moment, looking longingly at his chest for some reason, but agreed to tag along before either Lily or Remus could question him. The trio went down the staircase together, Lily striking up conversation with Remus about their Charms work, while Peter followed behind. They landed in the common room, not noticing all the curious looks from everyone there, walking past them all and stepping out of the portrait hole. Peter however had noticed the attention, giving the common room one last nervous look before closing the portrait behind them.

Their travels to the Quidditch pitch took about ten minutes, after avoiding a ghost in the halls, and getting stuck on one of the moving staircases, Lily, Remus and Peter were outside and on their way. From their position, they could spot two shadowy figures zipping up and down along the pitch.

"Seems Prongs has forgiven our resident filcher. Suppose he's already planned a retaliating prank?" Remus asked casually, his smirk much more resigned than it had been in the dorm room. Lily rolls her eyes but does not disagree with the sentiment. James and Sirius were as close as brothers, acting more like siblings than Lily ever had with her sister. The idea of them pranking one another was not an uncommon occurrence for the boys, and would more than likely happen within the week.

They reached the Quidditch pitch as James swooped down to collect the falling Quaffle Sirius had chucked through the opposing rings. Peter cheered the catch, catching James and Sirius' attention. Both boys swooped over them as they reached the peak of the lower level stands, seating themselves into a corner to hide from the nipping wind. James dismounted his broom, stepping over the wall in front of the first row of seats, making his way up to the group. Sirius took another lap first before coming to join them.

"Enjoying yourselves?" Lily asked pleasantly, smiling when James swooped down to place a kiss to her lips. Sirius chose this moment to come up behind them, pretending to gag at the show.

"Very much. Cold?" James asked, seeing Lily's hands stuffed into her coats pockets. Lily shrugs, but James tugs her hands out and slips his flying gloves over her fingers.

"Well that's not very smart, what are you going to do when your fingers fall off on your broom?" Lily mutters, but appreciates the effort.

"I've already put a Warming charm on the handle; the gloves were becoming a hindrance."

Lily snorts indelicately, "Don't let your mother hear that, she spent a fortune on these silly gloves." James sticks his tongue out at her childishly, retracting it when Sirius lunges forward as if to yank it out of his mouth. This results in a small tussle between the boys, only broken by Peter's small screech of pain when they elbow him in the gut.

"Alright you two, are you still flying around?" Remus says, sounding very parental in his weary underhanded way of making his friends leave. Sirius nods, prodding James to the broom hovering over the stands. James gives Lily a look that she takes as a pout, but she waves him away, knowing he really does want to fly around more.

The boys mount their brooms, taking a few warm up laps before Sirius picks up the Quaffle again, and they beginning playing a small one-on-one game. Lily sighs, leaning back into her seat and removing the book she'd stuffed into her pocket. Tapping it with her wand, the book grow back to its normal size, and she continues reading, sticking her wand into the bun in her hair. Remus slouches down, continuing his conversation from earlier with Peter, who was having trouble multitasking between Remus and watching the brooms zipping over their heads.

It's another hour before James calls it quits, landing on the pitch with his broom in his hands, with Sirius not far behind them. They disappear to replace their brooms in the cupboard, joining the three in the stands once they've cleaned themselves up. Lily closes and shrinks her book, replacing it in her pocket and slipping her wand into the same spot. James takes the spot next to Lily, leaning into her until she lifts her arm, allowing him to lay his head on her lap. Sirius tries the same with Remus, but is shoved to the floor with a large grin, barking out a laugh.

"So, now that we're out of earshot…" Peter suddenly brings up, and everyone gives him looks varying from confused to intrigued, "what did the Headmaster want with you two last week at the feast?"

Lily looks down at James, unsure what he'd already told the boys. James looks back up at her, his eyes boring into hers. Lily realizes he must have kept quiet, and a small burst of pride erupts in her chest. Her boy was the loyalist of them all; if Dumbledore told them to stay silent he would — unless Lily wanted to say something. She gives him a small nod, but speaks for herself, "Dumbledore wanted to speak with us about a new initiative he wants to start."

"Like what? A cheerleading team?" Sirius grins, "those muggles I tell ya, they know how to do some things right."

"No, Padfoot, shut it and listen." Remus smacks at Sirius's head, landing a solid slap to his ear, "go on Lily."

Lily bites her lip, unsure what she should be revealing. James continues for her, taking the responsibility onto himself, "It's not a Hogwarts task." The rest of the Marauders look at them more seriously now, Sirius sitting up from the ground.

"What's that mean?" Sirius asks, his brow lowering.

"He's asked up to join this team he's making, rebels that want to diminish the 'Dark Lord'," James spat the pseudonym, "he's asked us to join, and we think he's hoping to use us as swaying factor over students as the Heads."

"Perhaps to keep them safe?" Remus asks, his focus so strong Lily thinks she sees a flash of yellow take over his eyes, but she blinks it away.

"We're not entirely sure. Dumbledore just wanted us open to the idea, but we haven't given him out answer yet." Lily says, looking down to make sure this is correct, and receives a nod from James, agreeing with her completely. Neither had really thought about the meeting since then, the first week of school taking over their thoughts.

"But you'll do it? Why wouldn't you?" Sirius asks, receiving a glare from James.

"As much as I like to take Volde— He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, I need to think about this from a different point of view than a martyr." James made eye contact with Sirius, who apparently received the message he was trying to send, ducking his head down immediately, nodding.

Lily gave them both a confused look, "What do you mean, James?"

James looked back at her, the tops of his cheeks growing redder than the wind had already made them, "I'm not just thinking of me, Lils. We'd be in this together, and I don't know if that's something I'm willing to do."

Lily felt hurt, "You wouldn't want to do this together?"

James hurried to correct himself, "NO! I mean, I can't agree on my own! This wouldn't be a fight for me to run head first into, since you'd be there with me. And…" he lost some steam, also realizing his friends were surrounding them, listening to every word, "well, and I don't want to be part of something that could put risk to a future together."

Lily was shocked into silence, staring down at her boyfriend. Her wonderful, thoughtful, renowned prankster boyfriend, "Oh James," she sighed, not sure now what they were meant to do. The thought hadn't occurred to her that agreeing to help Dumbledore would essentially ruin a future life they could have.

"Is it really that serious?" Peter squeaked out, breaking Lily's focus on James. James nodded at his friend, sitting up to face them all head on.

"Dumbledore seemed to think so."

"Then we'll join you." Sirius's voice was more serious (no pun intended, though Lily refused to ever say the same to his face) than any of them had ever seen it. He was staring into James's eyes with determination. James met his gaze head on, their staring contest lasting a full minute before James nodded.

"James! You don't know that Dumbledore would even need him! Don't make him agree to something that could end up being dangerous." Lily pleaded, but one look at Sirius cemented her belief that Sirius would follow James, especially if it was dangerous.

"If you and Lily do it, I'm doing it too." Sirius reiterates, including Lily in his stare his time, and she admits to herself she would be doing the same thing if their roles were reversed.

Remus didn't say anything, and neither did Peter, but Lily noticed Remus nod slightly at Sirius. And she realized Dumbledore might be receiving more than he bargained for.

… *** …

Sorry this was so late after the first chapter, but like I've said, this is my second story. And on top of school, it won't be fast coming. But, I've mapped out this whole story, and have ideas for the eventual sequel already :)