It was a hunch. The rising of hair on the back of her neck. Lily just knew something was wrong. It was the same way she had known when her sister Petunia had planned to 'accidentally' spill tomato juice on her easter dress when she was 9. Lily thought when she began to learn magic that these incidents of precognition would either fade or she could train them farther. That's why she had taken divinations. The professor was a crack pot so she had dropped the class after only a week in third year. But the books were helpful and she'd been training herself ever since.

Today she could just feel something in the air. This morning she felt like there was a little buzzing in her ear and now as she sat through her last class of the day it was almost like she was drowning in malevolence. Lily was tense ready for someone to strike at any moment.

She was terrified that one of those letters would come for her today. For the past few months more and more students were getting the red letters from the auror department with condolences. All the students knew that those owls carried news of another family member dead and gone. Lily didn't know if she could take it. Her friend Alice received 3 of those letters in a week and ended up becoming all but catatonic in her long term boyfriend Frank's arms.

The dark lord was growing bolder attacking her well know line. He was picking all those that opposed him. His main target remained the muggleborns and as one and the girlfriend of the Potter family made her and her family a target. On the train this year James had matured so much she could hardly believe he was the same boy from the previous May. He had taken her to the baggage car and told her his father was throwing all his families money and political clout against the dark lord. HE then offered to break up so that she would be safer. Lily had been in tears at seeing him say those words. She told him there was already a target on her back and that if the worst happened she'd rather be by his side.

On the darker side of things Bellatrix and her cronies were more vicious than ever. The halls were now unsafe to walk down alone. Most thought all the dark lord's support came from Slytherin but she was sure the most cunning students were the ones in the other three houses. There had been several times when she'd see the looks some of the puffs and ravens had given her and the other muggleborns. She'd lost one friend to this madness already. Augustus and her had hit it off in first year but as they grew he had become darker and more twisted. The scars on his face a point of ridicule he just couldn't take. She knew this year the first time she'd laid eyes on the seventh year that he was beyond saving. She'd bet the entire Potter fortune that over the summer he'd joined the dark and was now marked as a mad mans slave.

She'd seen the same look on her other friends face and it broke her heart. Lily wasn't sure if she could survive losing Severus too. He'd been an anchor all these years. Through Petunia's cruel teasing and bullies at their muggle school. She'd talked to him about James told him how kind the other boy could be. But there was a deep set rivalry that she feared wound one day make her choose. The boy who'd healed her heart or the one that owned it?

Tomorrow was her sweet 16. She was suppose to be planning what to wear when James sneaked her out of the castle for a moonlit walk. Not worrying about attacks, deaths and losing her life long friend. Lily hoped her uneasiness was a result of the blood moon rising tonight. She wondered if Severus would watch it from the Astronomy tower with her? She's asked James a few days ago and he said he and the boys were planning a big prank. Lily smiled. Even better, the boys could plan their prank and she could get Sev out of harms way. She really hopped in the last two and a quarter years they were at Hogwarts she could make the Marauders see Sev's good side.

With that thought fighting the malevolent air Lily headed to dinner. Just after dinner all 5 of her boys seemed to vanish. It was rather curious and her horrible feelings redoubled. She got a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach that whatever was going to happen wasn't going to be a Death Eater raid or an attack by Bella. No she feared that the Marauders and Severus were going to clash in such a way that there would be no coming back.

As quickly as she could Lily raced to the Gryffindor dorm and dumped her things. She checked for the boys all through the house trying to catch them before they did whatever awful thing they were planning. When she couldn't find them she began to panic. Holding herself outwardly calm as she hunted the castle for ANY sign of any of the five was more stressful than the fast approaching OWL exams.

Just as the moon began to rise she caught sight of Severus' long hair headed out the castle doors. She raced down the hall to catch him. As she exited she saw Sirius opening a trap door beneath an oddly still Whomping Willow. Severus was following the Black Heir much to her dismay. She just knew whatever trap was in under that tree would ruin her life long friendship.

So she called out. "SEVERUS!" She shouted from the doors already running to him.

The boy turned at his name being screamed. Before he could speak though her face drained of color and she let out a shriek of pure terror. Severus looked behind him just as Lily Accioed his cloak yanking him toward her and away from the werewolf's swipe. He was in total shock and lay prone where Lily's spell had dragged him. She stood between her friend and the beast prepared to fight the creature to save him.

Peripherally they saw a massive black dog and buck appear from the tunnel. The two animals tried to get to the werewolf and intercept it but the beast was now focused on Lily who'd hit it was a severing charm. The spell tearing the hair but just barely parting the hide so that a thin line of blood ran from the beast's shoulder. Before the two animals could get to them the werewolf leaped. Covering the distance and clamping it's frothing jaws into the soft tissue of Lily's arm which she had thrown up to protect her face.

Severus was spurred to action when Lily let our a blood curdling scream. His lifted his arm and with every ounce of power he had cast a banishing hex right in the creatures face. While it didn't kill the beast it was thrown several meters and fell unconscious. All he could do was hold Lily as she cried and moaned in pain and fear. Both teens now covered in her blood.

James was on them in an instant shifting back to his human form. "Lily!" He cried dropping to her side.

Severus curled around her and she clung to him. "How could you do this?!" The boy said in fury. "Do you hate me so much as to sit a werewolf on me?!"

Tears came to the quidditch captain's eyes. "No...NO! I swear Severus I swear I didn't know. When I saw you I tried to stop Sirius. I swear." He sobbed touching Lily's face.

The use of his actual name convinced him more than anything. "I'll believe you for now. Get that beast out of here before someone else gets hurt. I'll assume that's Lupin. The one time his interest in healing would come in handy. I'll take Lily to the infirmary." Severus told him coldly as he shakily got to his feet and began carrying the catatonic girl back into the school.

James rounded on Sirius. "Not only did you revel Remus' secret to both Lily and Snape but your moronic actions got my girlfriend bitten!" He shouted his often dormant rage boiling over. He drew back and punched his best friend with all his might knocking the other teen to the ground with a crack of his now broken nose. "PETER!" He shouted causing the rat to change back right away. "Take that bastard to the nurse. And he better be out of my sight by the time I get there or I won't be responsible for my actions.

Sirius was for once either shocked or shamed into silence as Peter quietly led his away. James used his tremendous magical power to levitate Remus' prone form back down the tunnel and all the way to the shack where he locked him up tightly and cast a heavy sleep spell to make sure there was little chance of anymore incidents. Only then did he go to see the girl he was in love with.

Severus was on her left side holding her hand as she slept. She was in a tank top with her right arm heavily bandaged from the elbow to wrist. Madame Pomfrey didn't even say a word as she walked behind the curtain that no doubt held Sirius. He didn't know or at this moment care where Peter had gotten off too. James knelt beside Severus laying his head on Lily's thigh.

Severus placed his free hand on James shaking shoulder. In a soft voice he spoke. "I believe you didn't do this. Lily wouldn't love you if you were capable of murder."

"My best friend just turned her into a monster. How could she still love me?" He asked desperately. He wasn't even sure if he was talking about Remus or Sirius.

"Because she's still Lily." Severus replied, though as much to convince himself as to reassure James. "And if she can love the both of us when we are at each others throat I think she might be able to handle the one thing to bring us together." He said with dark humor.

James gave a weak smile. "I'm the brave Gryffindor. I'm suppose to be reassuring you." he stated back though there was no bite in his words. His face fell. "Lily's going to need us both to get through this. We're all animagi. I could teach you. While shifted you're immune to the bite and it keeps the beast calmer, more like a regular dog or wolf and less mindless killing machine."

"I believe I've gone momentarily deaf Mr. Potter. What was it you just said?" A well known voice said from the door.

"Oh nothing professor. I was just telling Severus that he's going to have to help me take care of Lily as she gets better." James said looking to the Headmaster.

"As I thought my boy. Now what ever has happened?" He asked. Pomfrey came back out with Sirius in tow. Said boy's head was bowed low and he fell to his knees at James' side.

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I... I never thought." James could hear as he got choked up. "I didn't think of Remy or anything. Honest I just wanted to scare him no one was suppose to get hurt."

"If I hadn't already broke your nose I'd slap you so hard you wouldn't wake up till you were as old as the headmaster." James replied rage back in his eyes. "It doesn't matter who your target was suppose to be. YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE IT." HE said the words slowly and loudly hoping that would help them sink in. Sirius flinched back even though James wasn't yelling. "And I am not protecting you from Severus OR Lily's wrath."

"Or Lupin's" Severus added.

"Or Remus'. You made your bed now you can lay in it."

Sirius looked away but nodded. There was nothing he could really say when the girl his best friend was planning on marrying had just been bitten thanks to him.

"Explain?" Dumbledore ordered with power behind that one word. The boys began telling the whole story of how Sirius' prank had gone way overboard and how Lily was now a werewolf.

"IF she survives." Dumbledore told them once the tale was through.

"What do you mean if?" James asked eyes wide.

"One in three people bitten by a werewolf reject the bite and die a horrible screaming death. There is no pain potion or spell that can be used to end the persons suffering. They must endure unimaginable agony that can last for upwards of an hour before their magical core gives out. With a witch of Miss. Evans power level she would last well over 30 minutes in agony." Pomfrey told them with a sharp glare at Sirius. "I have her in stasis at the moment so the poison cannot progress. If the Headmaster will allow I will now move her to a secure room and as part of your punishment the 3 of you will watch her for the next two hours to see if she heals or dies." The nurse said harshly. Their behavior over the years and senseless attacks on one another had grated on her last nerve. They were polarizing the school and making the whole situation worse than what it was. Not to mention working her to the bone.

"I believe that would be a suitable beginning to the punishments handed out tonight." Dumbledore agreed. "IF Miss. Evans survives, Mr. Black you will have two weeks suspension... With your mother. Mr. Potter you will serve two detentions for striking another student. Same for you Mr. Snape for being out after curfew. Mr. Petegrew will have a weeks suspension for aiding you and the same for Mr. Lupin if I find he had anything to do with this. Otherwise he and Miss. Evans will receive no punishment as victims of this vicious bullying. Mr. Black. I can not express strongly enough the trouble you will be in if you step out of line again."

No one dared ask what would happen if Lily rejected the bite and died. None of the boys could imagine what they would do without her. All of them waited with bated breath as Lily was moved and the stasis charm lifted.