A/N: Hello! I have long loved Marauder and Lily/James fics, so I've decided to try my hand at it. I've done my best to keep it as cannon as possible, at least in regards to the books, but with some consideration to other material that has been published by or with the approval of JK Rowling. I have much of the story already written, so I can guarantee weekly updates for the foreseeable future. And with less than half the story written, I have already passed the 100,000 word count, so the finished product will be quite long. Ideally, this story will be the first part of a trilogy which I am calling Born of Ashes that will trace the rise and fall of the first Order of the Phoenix. Please enjoy this first installment and review with thoughtful feedback if you feel compelled to do so.

Disclaimer: While the story is mine, most of the characters and world are not. They come from the work of the incomparable JK Rowling. Also, I would like to point out that I am American and was not alive in the time period of this story, so while I've done some period research and included some British slang/phrasing, I am not confining myself to 100% accuracy on those things. Hopefully that does not detract from the story for you.

August 13th, 1977

The corner of his mouth turned up in a slight smirk as he watched her. He wondered if she knew she was mouthing the words to the song that was playing on the radio while she wiped down glasses. She gave a light turn in time with the music as she reached under the bar to put the last glass away.

Yes, tonight was the night.

He could have made his move much sooner. He'd seen those frequent little side glances, heard that ever-so-slightly too-loud laughter, smelled the new perfume she'd started wearing to work after a couple of shifts with him.

She'd been flirting for a while now.

But that wouldn't do. Sure, it'd be fun for a few days. A week, tops. But then what? The inevitable would happen, and he'd be stuck with the sullen looks and passive aggressive comments for the rest of the summer.

But now, well, she'd be going back to school in a couple weeks. And they were closing together tonight. It was perfect.

She looked up from her broom for a moment to smile and wave as the last customer shrugged on his jacket and made to leave. It was unseasonably cold. Had been for a few weeks, actually. A bit odd, he mused.

He followed the man to the door and locked it behind him before returning to the register.

"Hey," he said nonchalantly as he counted a stack of bills. She nodded without looking up from her sweeping, though she did stop humming. "You want to grab a drink when I finish cashing out?"

She stopped sweeping.

"A drink?" she asked skeptically.

"Yeah, you know, that thing you pour into glasses all day?" He gestured to the row of liquor bottles lining the wall.

"Hmm" she said with raised eyebrow.

"There's a place around the corner that's usually open for another hour or so. Or, you know, we could just…" He picked up two of the freshly dried shot glasses.

"Better not" she said, but there was a hint of laughter in her voice that suggested she might be interested after all.

"What's the matter? Afraid old Schmitty will fire ya? You're leaving for uni soon anyway."

"It's not that, I just don't want to have to carry you home when I drink your ass under the table," she fired back.

He grinned and filled the glasses to the brim with whiskey.

"Cheers," he said as he handed one to her.

She rolled her eyes, but raised the glass and shot it back anyway. She placed the empty glass back on the bar with authority, as if to challenge him. He poured again.

"To old Schmitty," she said as she raised the second round.

"Old Schmitty," he agreed, and they drank.

She put the glass back and continued sweeping under the stools.

"What, had enough already?"

"No, I just think you should finish cashing out while you can still count above ten." He laughed, filled the glasses once more, but went back to his stack of bills without taking the shot.

"And…seven," he finished with a flourish, reaching for the glass. It was empty.

He looked up. The other glass was empty too.

"You, my friend, need to catch up," she said from across the room.

"How did you…never mind," he shrugged, as he poured two more shots and knocked them back succinctly. He felt a ripple of warmth as the last one went down. Maybe he shouldn't have been filling them quite so full. He watched her a few more moments. She showed no signs of intoxication yet, save for swaying slightly more deeply to the music than before.

He came up behind her and spun her around, continuing the dance. He leaned in for kiss, but she stopped him. "Alec."

"Yeah?" he said impatiently.

"The broom is jabbing me."

"Sorry!" he stepped back and the broom clattered to the floor. "Well that killed the mood."

"Did it?" she asked slyly, picking up the broom and beginning her sweeping dance anew. He watched her hips move back and forth as she cleaned, and reached an arm around her waist.

"Finishing cashing out first," she scolded.

"Anyone ever tell you you're way too responsible?"

"All the time."

Sighing, he went back to the register and scooped the money into the envelope. This might be a little more difficult than anticipated, he thought to himself as he walked to the back office. Or perhaps more fun. She had been full of little surprises all summer, and he was eager to find out if there were more. The jingle of the door opening drew him out of his pondering.

"Or maybe she'll just runway…" he muttered out loud, stuffing the envelope into the box a little more aggressively than usual. But he froze when a deep voice called out.

"Shot of Ogden's Best, please."

"I'm so sorry, Lily!" Alec called as he ran out from the office. "I could've have sworn I locked the door."

"Not to worry," Lily replied, not breaking eye contact with one of the four teens that had just entered the pub. "Go make sure the back door is locked. I'll take care of these strays."

The tallest of the group let out a bark-like laugh.

"Oh, come on Evans, a drink for the road at least. I did promise Sirius, here," said the one who'd been holding Lily's attention since Alec had entered the scene. He took a step toward Lily, but Alec was there faster. There was a flash of light, and Alec felt a strange numbness in his limbs. He stumbled back a step. That whiskey had hit harder than he'd thought.

"James," Lily hissed in warning.

Lily and James stood frozen for a moment, until finally James sighed and flicked his wrist. The numbness went away.

"How did you find me?" Lily asked.

"You know we have our ways," teased the tall one—Sirius, apparently, whatever kind of name that was.

Lily glared at the one on the left. He had a slightly sickly look about him and seemed to be edging behind that Sirius fellow.

"Sorry, Lily. They, uh…they got it out of me," he explained.

She let out an angry sigh. "Oh, Remus. I trusted you."

Alec didn't know who these blokes were, but he did not like their weird names or their attitudes, especially the way that James guy was looking at Lily. Alec's muscles flexed as he stepped back in front her. "Well, gents, we're actually closed, and I'm not really sure you're of age anyway, so I think you better…HIC," he let out a loud hiccup before he could finish his threat. He collected himself. And then he let out another.

"Sorry, mate," James said. Alec continued to hiccup uncontrollably. "It's a little hard to take you seriously when you're making those noises."

"And besides," the short, round one spoke for the first time, "I don't think you can really fault us for our age, considering who you hired." He gave a pointed look at Lily.

"You're not even…HIC…EIGHTEEN…HIC?!" Alec cried in disbelief.

"Well, not exactly," she said. "But I will be in a few months!" She added quickly at his horrified look.

"You said…HIC…you were…HIC…of age…HIC! I thought…HIC…you were…HIC…twenty at least…HIC."

"Well, no, but I didn't lie exactly. You see, in my world, I am of age."

"Your…HIC…world…HIC?" he asked, face contorted by confusion and hiccups.

James gave a grunt, indicating he'd had just about enough of this line of conversation.

"Un-jinx him, Potter," Lily said coldly.

"Wasn't me!" James crossed his heart with his finger, the picture of innocence.

"Sirius," she growled. He growled back in a mocking manner, but Alec's hiccups ceased.

"I can't believe I was going to shag a seventeen year old…" he muttered, giving Lily a betrayed look. He was perfectly comfortable being a bit of a scumbag on occasion, but not that much of scumbag.

"You what?" James challenged.

"Nothing. Listen, I think you all better go, before the owner gets wind of any of this." He stepped out from in front of Lily and gestured to the door to show that he really meant everybody.

Lily gave him a pleading look. "Alec, I'm sorry, I didn't mean…" There was a loud crash before she could finish that thought.

They all stood dumbfounded for a minute, coated in the shattered glass that had been a window only moments before.

"DID YOU JUST BREAK MY WINDOW," Alec raged at James, although James had been nowhere near the window.

"Shhhh," James hushed him impatiently, cocking an ear toward the empty windowpane. "I think we better go," he said, turning back around.

WHAM!

James fell back, stunned. "Did you…did you just hit me?" He touched his hand tentatively to his nose and inspected the blood now dripping down his fingers.

Maybe it was the whisky. Maybe it was the shock that he'd been trying to get with a girl nearly ten years his junior. Maybe it was this punk's cocky demeanor. Hell, maybe it was just the bad weather. But Alec was itching for fight in a way he hadn't since his younger days as a schoolyard bully.

"What of it?" he asked flippantly.

"Oh, mate, you've just made a big mistake," Sirius grinned.

"Not your mate," Alec shot back. There was silence. Alec slowly looked down, realizing that all four of them had pulled out long sticks, which they were now pointing squarely at his heart. He turned in confusion to Lily, only to realize she had drawn out a stick too, only hers was pointed at James.

"Don't," she warned. James glanced at her, scowling. There was a tense moment, then he nodded, and the four boys pocketed their sticks. Alec was utterly perplexed, but the urge to fight was still thumping strongly in his chest.

He took a step forward, messaging his bloodied fist, but he paused when a scream echoed from down the street.

They all ran to where the window had formerly been and looked out. The street was obscured by fog. Or was it smoke? But they could still make out flashes of light from a couple of blocks down.

"I think there was an explosion!" Alec said in shock. But they all ignored him.

"How many are there?" Lily asked James, true terror reflected in her eyes.

"Looks like a dozen or so," James replied, pulling down the blinds to hide them from view. "That's why we came. We heard a rumor there might be Death Eater activity in the area tonight." He closed the blinds over the new hole in the wall.

"And you wasted time picking a fight with this meat-headed Muggle, because…?" she said in exasperation.

"Excuse me?" Alec asked, his momentarily quelled anger surging forward again. But they were still ignoring him.

"Wormy, have you got the hang of apparating yet?" Sirius asked. The round boy shook his head.

"We've got a Muggle here anyway," pointed out James.

"We can go out the back, it lets out into an alley," Lily whispered.

"No good, we'll be trapped," Remus replied, equally hushed and anxious.

"Is there a fire place?" James asked.

"In the book store next door, but what about him," Lily jerked her head at Alec, all affection she'd previously displayed toward him completely gone.

"He can survive one floo ride," said Sirius, sounding a little less nervous and a little more amused than the others.

"He could, but you forget that Muggle fireplaces aren't on the network," Remus chided like an overworked teacher.

"Whatever we're going to do, we should do it fast," said the one Sirius had called Wormy, clearly panicked at the ever-nearing bangs and shouts coming from the street.

"Well what's your bright plan then, eh Pete?" James snapped.

The boy whimpered as though struck. Lily placed a reassuring hand on his back and glared at James. "Don't worry, Peter," she turned to James, "There's no need for that tone, Potter."

"Well, we need a way out, and his whining isn't helping anything." James said sulkily. He did not like when she scolded him. Or when she called him 'Potter'.

"Told you we should have brought our brooms," said Sirius. "Or my bike! Or a…"

"Car!" Lily exclaimed suddenly.

"What?" asked James.

"Alec, did you drive to work today?" Lily turned to him excitedly.

"Now you acknowledge my existence," he pouted.

"Alec, this is serious. Did you bring your car today?"

"Yeah, it's out back. But if you think I'm going to let these clowns step foot in my…"

"Confundo," Sirius said lazily. A dazed look washed over Alec's face.

"Was that necessary?" asked Lily.

"Yes," all four boys responded in unison.

"Do you know where his keys are?" Remus whispered urgently. There had been a bright flash of light across the street.

Lily shook her head.

"Accio keys," James said, and no less than six different sets of keys shot at them from various nooks and crannies of the pub. James pulled Lily down forcefully just in time as the keys embedded themselves in the wall behind them with a resounding thud.

There was a shout of excitement from across the street. "Grab them all!" James yelled to Remus, as he pulled Lily back to her feet and began dragging her and Alec to the back door. Peter was already half way there, but Sirius stood by the broken window, peaking through the blinds, wand at the ready.

Lily dug her heels in just before they reached the door to the back office. "Come on!" James urged.

"My purse," Lily explained as she darted behind the bar and grabbed a red woven bag. Then they were gone.

Remus wrestled the keys from the wall as quickly as he could, but the last set proved too deeply lodged. A shot of red light tore through the blinds. "Sirius," he said through clenched teeth.

Sirius stopped sending hexes out the window and looked at his friend's predicament. "Go, Moony, I got it." There was another blast of red light and a voice could be heard frighteningly close by. They froze.

"I think this is where that mudblood works. My son told me. Heard it from a friend. Pettingforth, or something."

"Damn, they know we're here," Sirius hissed.

"Well your blasting spells out the window certainly didn't help with our inconspicuousness," said Remus.

"Are you sassing me?" Sirius cocked an eyebrow. The walls rattled as a spell hit the door, blasting it open. "Go!" he yelled, shoving Remus toward the back.

Remus glanced back at his friend, who was digging at the stubborn key in the wall, before slipping through the door into the back room. As he pushed through a heavier door into the alley a different kind of yelling met his ears.

"No way I'm letting you drive, Evans! I've seen you on a broomstick! You can hardly get it off the ground!"

"Yes, but Potter, which one of us has actually driven a Muggle car before?!"

"You have not!"

"Have to! My parents have been teaching me all summer!"

"Yes, but, but…you're a girl!" James said, clearly out of arguments.

"Nice one." Remus said to James, wrenching open the back door and tossing a fuming Lily all the keys. He slid in beside Peter, who was cowering in the middle. Alec looked at him dazedly from the next seat over.

A defeated James flung himself into the front passenger seat as Lily slid over the hood of the car and popped into the driver's side. "Always wanted do that," she beamed.

James rolled his eyes at her. "Is this really the moment?" But Lily was already trying the first set of keys in the ignition, to no avail.

She dumped all the keys into her lap. "This is the only car key in the lot!" she said, attempting once again to force the key into the slot. "Why isn't it working? James, can't you transfigure it or something?"

"Oh, look who needs my help now!" he said, grabbing the key from her and inspecting it. He took out his wand and prodded at it experimentally.

"We don't have time for this," Lily cried. "Mobulus!" And the engine roared.

"Not sure that should have worked," Remus mused.

"Well, it did," said Lily. She threw the useless keys into her bag and tossed it into the back, throwing the car into gear.

"Wait!" Remus yelled. Lily jumped and the car stalled. Lily turned to glare at Remus. "Sirius!" he reminded them.

There was a crash as the alley door flew open. "Keys!" Sirius yelled, sending them in arc of blue light through the driver's window and into Lily's outstretched hand. He was running full force to the car with three masked figures hot on his heels.

Lily tried to put the keys in the ignition, but her hand was shaking too badly. James grabbed it, holding it steady. "You've got this," he said as they slid the key in together. The car reared to life once more. "Drive!"

"But Sirius!" she said.

"Drive!" James said more insistently. Sticking his head out the window, he yelled, "Sirius, bumper!"

"Oi!" Sirius called back in affirmation.

James called out a spell that Lily couldn't quite hear as she revved the engine once before accelerating down the alley. She looked in the rearview mirror to see Sirius gliding toward them gracefully as if he were on… "Rollerblades?" Lily asked incredulously. James gave her an impish grin. They were at the end of the alley; Lily had paused to survey the options.

The car reverberated as Sirius slammed into it. He pounded the trunk twice. "Let's go!" he yelled, grabbing onto the rope James had conjured onto the bumper.

"Left!" Remus called from the back seat. Lily punched the gas and tore out of the alley.

Sirius let out a whoop of joy as he swung out behind them. "How come we've never done this before?" He ducked just in time as a spell cracked the rear window.

Lily swore, jerking the car around the next corner with a screech of rubber.

"Because we don't have a death wish," Remus called back.

"Speak for yourself!" Sirius called gleefully.

Remus ignored him. He vanished the broken glass and turned around in his seat, wand aimed carefully behind them. "Sirius, to the right!" he called as the Death Eaters rounded the corner. Sirius swung his body to the right of the car just as Remus fired a Stunning Spell through the spot where Sirius had been seconds before. Remus hit his mark.

"Two left," said Peter apprehensively.

"Shit, they have brooms," said James. Lily glanced in the mirror. The Death Eaters were indeed mounting a pair of broomsticks. Alec giggled as a flash of green light whizzed by his head.

"They're gaining on us," Remus said. "I don't think I can get both of them, and Sirius is, uh, tied up at the moment." Lily looked out the window to see Sirius struggling with the rope that had become twisted around his wand hand.

"I've got the ugly one," said James.

"James, they're wearing masks!" Remus groaned, but James didn't hear him. He was already halfway out the window.

"I don't like this," said Lily. "I don't like this one bit." But she kept the car at full speed as James's foot disappeared onto the roof.

There was a volley of spellwork and swearing.

"I got one!" James cried triumphantly from the roof.

"Where'd the other one go?" Remus asked nervously.

Suddenly a robed figure pulled in front of them on broomstick. Lily slammed on the breaks instinctively, sending James rolling down the front of the car, Sirius colliding into the back, and Remus crashing into the seat in front of him.

"Ow," said several voices.

The Death Eater pulled back its wand, aiming at Lily's forehead. Her wand was in the purse she'd thrown into the back of the car, inaccessible.

"Avada Kedavra," the figure said coolly.

"NO!" Peter yelled, pulling Lily down not a moment too soon as green light flashed overhead.

James had regained his footing. "Stupefy!" he yelled. The Death Eater hit the pavement, and James and Sirius jumped into the car, Sirius cramming into the back beside Remus.

"Let's get out of here," James said, no note of victory in his voice this time. He was shaken. They all were.

Lily sat up slowly, tears welling in her eyes. She grabbed her purse off the back floor and began to drive again, shivering all over, not knowing where she was going, just knowing she had to get as far away from there as possible.

"Moony?" Sirius said tentatively, his voice was also missing its usual mirthful undertone. He shook his friend whose head lolled ominously. "Remus!" he cried. Lily turned around to look at her unmoving friend. It was only for a second, but it was enough.

"Lily!" James yelled, too late. They crashed into the fountain at the center of the roundabout Lily had just plowed through. Water sprayed over the wrecked car. They all rolled out, Sirius dragging Remus with him. Lily followed James out the passenger side as the driver's door was blocked by a fallen angel statue. James helped Lily to her feet, and they hovered over their two friends who were entwined on the ground.

"He's not…he can't be," Lily said faintly as Sirius tried frantically to rouse a still unresponsive Remus. She buried her head in James shoulder, unable to look any longer.

This snapped James out of his state of shock. He wrapped an arm around her, saying, "No, I'm sure he just got knocked out when the car stopped. See," he said. She looked up. "Rennervate!" he said.

They all held their breath. Then Remus let out a cough. James laughed. Lily cried. Sirius punched Remus in the arm. "You son-of-bitch," he swore. But the mirth was back.

"Uh, guys," Peter's voice called flatly from the other side of the car, but nobody responded.

"Told ya he'd be alright," James grinned. His youthful sense of invincibility returning with the rush of adrenaline brought on by their death-defying escape.

"You're glasses are broken," Lily observed, she was still shivering, though now the cause was more likely the water raining down on them rather than fear.

"Guys," Peter said again.

"Oh that?" said James, unconcerned, as he took off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders. "That happened way back at the pub when your lovely pal, Alex, was it, saw fit to clobber me in the face."

"Alec," Lily corrected as she pulled the jacket on and gently took the glasses off his face. She murmured reparo under her breath as he continued to rant at her.

"Alec? Whatever kind of name is Alec?" he asked, replacing the glasses. "I mean really, where did you find such a useless, harebrained, no-good…"

"Guys," Peter said once more in the same empty tone as he came around the back of the car.

"Oh, Peter!" Lily exclaimed, suddenly remembering what he had done for her. "You saved my life!" She ran to him and pulled him into a fierce hug. "Without you, we wouldn't have all made it!" But she stopped at the hollow look in his eyes.

"That's what I've been trying to say," he said. "We didn't."

Lily's heart sank.

She shook her head and began making her way around the car.

James suddenly processed what Peter had said. "Lily, no!" He grabbed for her, trying to hold her back, but she wriggled out of his grasp.

Lily's hand shot to her mouth as she beheld the lifeless body splayed on the wet grass. There was not a mark on him. "He's just…he's just knocked out too," she said. "Rennervate!"

Nothing happened.

"Rennervate!" she said again, more desperately.

He lay unmoving.

James was pulling her away now. "Come on, Lily," he said softly. There were pops around them as uniformed wizards and witches began to appear. "Come on. We can't help him now." He began pulling her toward a group in lime green robes he recognized as healers. "Come get a calming potion."

"I don't need a calming potion!" she screamed and pushed away from him, hard, running back toward the wreckage.

"Of course not," he said sardonically. He massaged his arm and looked around.

Sirius was speaking animatedly to a couple of official looking wizards. Law enforcement probably. He appeared to be giving them an excited play-by-play of the encounter. James wondered if his friend didn't know about the death that had occurred or just didn't care. Sometimes he couldn't tell with Sirius. Remus and Peter were already over with the healers getting their various cuts and bruises attended to.

James stood in the center, unsure what to do. The vehemence in Lily's voice had made it clear she didn't want his comforting at the moment. She was kneeling over the fallen Muggle along with several Ministry officials who seemed to know better than to try to bring her away.

He made his way dejectedly over to Sirius and the law enforcement wizards. Sirius was known to embellish stories, so he figured he would be most useful making sure the report was straight.

But he couldn't stop looking over at the bowed head, a fan of wet, dark red hair blocking a tear-streaked face from his view, as he halfheartedly corroborated all of Sirius outlandish claims.

Why doesn't she care about me that much, he thought bitterly. Then he mentally punched himself. You're jealous of a dead guy. Get it together. He tried to turn his attention back to the law enforcement wizard.

But then he couldn't stop thinking about how close they'd all come to being that 'dead guy', who was now being levitated off the ground and toward a wizarding ambulance.

How close she'd been.

He shivered.

He watched as she clutched a limp hand and imagined it was her being levitated and him clinging onto her hand.

No. He'd never let that happen. They'd have to go through him first.

"Well, that about wraps it up," a voice cut into his morbid daydream. The law enforcement wizard was rolling up his parchment. "You kids did a hell of a job getting out of that scrape. It's a real shame about that Muggle, though. A couple more of 'em back there didn't make it either. Real shame," the officer finished lamely.

"Yeah, a real shame," James agreed, and even he couldn't tell if he was being sincere or not.

"Damages are going to take a week to clean up. But at least there weren't more casualties," the man continued inanely.

James reflected on how statements like that had become a fact of life now. The casual prejudice of it; essentially saying, "well, only a few Muggles died, so it wasn't that bad." He had seen firsthand how quickly that sentiment could turn into "only a few Muggle-borns died, so it wasn't that bad." He looked back to Lily still holding Alec's hand as she walked beside him to the ambulance. Bile rose suddenly in his throat. Didn't they realize it was all bad?

"Come on, mate," he said, grabbing Sirius by the shoulder. "I could use that drink I promised you."