A/N: Alright, so I had to adjust a few things to make this story work. For one, I really wanted all of the marauders (except for peter, sorry peter) to have a girl, or at least a crush, plus besides Lilly the Gryffindor girls are never mentioned, so I had to invent a couple of characters. Also I do realize that Sirius probably didn't play Quidditch, but I though it'd work better if it did. Hope you don't mind, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: Okay this is getting old…I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS OR SETTINGS! Happy now?

Challenges and chances in the Gryffindor House

The seventh year Gryffindor students were an interesting bunch. The first two names that came to mind when the Gryffindor seventh years were mentioned, were Sirius Black and James Potter. The two boys had been best friends since before anyone could remember, and had become well known as the professional pranksters of Hogwarts. Sirius was the tallest of their group of friends, nearly reaching 6'3. His dark hair brushed into his eyes and made all of the Hogwarts females swoon. His eyes were dark and glimmered almost constantly with mischief, and upon his face was just a shadow of hair which he regarded as his 'secret chick magnet'. He had a smooth personality, but was well known to act quite irrationally in cases. James was similar in appearance, although a few inches shorter, and was cleanly shaven. His eyes were a smoky grey, and he had rather a habit of running his hands through his hair in order to attain that 'just off the broom' look. Both boys somehow kept up their grades, although homework was the last thing on their minds. They claimed that they were just blessed with luck. These two were not only known for their pranks and looks, but also for their plentiful supply of women. Since their first year at school, girls flocked to them. James was never without a girlfriend, although in fifth year he mysteriously dropped holding onto girlfriends and was more known for his occasional flings. Sirius was rarely seen without a girl on his arm, or two for that matter. They wouldn't dream of admitting that neither of them really liked this lifestyle anymore. But in truth, Sirius had been asking the same girl out since second year, but claimed he only did it because she refused to accept his offer. James had been infatuated with a certain girl since fifth year, and like Sirius, he asked her out daily, but it was sadly not hard to tell how much he actually wanted her, even if he denied it. The two other Gryffindor seventh year boys were rather less noticed by the girls, but still widely praised as fellow marauders. They were Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. Remus was a usually quiet type, known to have his nose buried in a book and was the most sensible of the pack. Peter was the last, and usually the last to be noticed. He was a chubby and stout little fellow, who fit in oddly with the other four, who were widely respected among the school. However his small popularity was enough for him, for he was able to be seen with the school's brightest student, and two of the best Quidditch players.

But of course, the marauders would be nothing without the girls, and the seventh year Gryffindor girls are certainly worth mentioning. First there was Lilly Evans. She was easily one of the most beautiful girls in all of Hogwarts. She had a slender figure, and porcelain skin all the girls envied. But most deserving of recognition, was her hair. It was a deep red, like fire. Her eyes shone like emeralds, and combined were a stunning sight. On most occasions, she was a kind and cool tempered person, but her patience wore thin with a certain person; the formerly mentioned James Potter. She hated him with a vengeance she didn't know she was possible of having. Or at least, she thought it was hate. For the past few years he had asked her out daily, and had not yet gotten the point. Not to mention she had no room in her life for 'annoying, perverted, and pig-headed pranksters'. She was less than a fan of his joking skills. Being a prefect had its advantages though, and this was one of them; a perfect excuse to land him straight in detention almost every week. Lilly's best friend was Rebecca Davis. They had quite a few differences though, in almost every way. Lilly hated Quidditch, while Becca was a chaser on the Gryffindor team. Lilly was skinny, tall, pale and had wavy flaming red hair, while Becca was short, well fit from Quidditch, tanned and had loads of thick, straight hair that was somewhere between brown and blonde. Lilly hated pranks, and Becca actually found them highly entertaining, although she would never admit it to Lilly. Lilly was almost at all times calm, cool and collected; but Rebecca had a surprising temper, short patience and a sharp tongue for anyone who got on her bad side. Lilly was a hard worker at heart, and Becca, while grades were important as well, really liked to have fun. But together, they balanced each other out; Lilly kept Bee within the boundaries, and she in turn made sure Lilly remembered to enjoy herself. The other girls that shared their dorm weren't really much of friends with the duo. Amy Bergstram was a tiny little thing, with long dark hair and an obsession with a bit of a 'rebellious' side. She didn't exactly believe in color and preferred chains to belts. She hated authority and Quidditch alike, so that narrowed out her possibilities of being friends with either Lilly or Bee. The fourth girl was very quiet. Her name was Peyton Locke. She rarely spoke to the other girls, and most of her friends were in other houses. Despite constant attempts at conversations by both Lilly and Rebecca, she chose to keep to herself. So while Amy was usually found with her boyfriend in a dark corner of some forgotten corridor; and Peyton was usually in the library with the Hufflepuffs; Lilly and Bee basically had the dorm to themselves.

Lilly and Bee sat in the Gryffindor common room, enjoying sitting by the fire and watching the terrified first years shuffle about, not knowing what to do. It was the first day of their last year at Hogwarts, and both were determined that it was going to be a good one.

"Did you see his face? It was priceless! That one goes down in history!"

"Yes I do agree this one is going to be remembered for quite a while." Both girls winced as they heard these voices that they recognized only too well. They looked up to see the marauders happily coming through the portrait hole, with Sirius and James clapping each other on the back, Peter jumping up and down with excitement, and Remus pretending he hadn't heard what they were saying; being a prefect and a marauder was a difficult task. The boys approached the fireplace and Lilly groaned as they sat down. James, Peter and Remus all took up places on the couch opposite them, while Sirius sat in an armchair beside Rebecca and put his feet up on her lap. She sighed disgustedly and pushed them off; only to have him put them right back up.

"Get your filthy feet off of my new robes you disgusting freak." She said irratatedly while pushing them back to the floor.

"You know you love my 'filthy' feet." Sirius responded proudly.

"You know what's sad? I'd have to say I mind your feet the least. They're a whole lot better than looking at the rest of you." She said smugly. The others just sighed, their bickering was nothing new, it was a way of life.

"Now please remove your grimy shoes from my lap."

"My feet are not grimy! Take that back!"

"Hell no, of course your feet are grimy, everything about you is."

"No, not my-"

"Will you guys please relax? It's only the first day of school." Remus pleaded.

"Fine, if Davis agrees to go out with me" Sirius said coyly.

"Wow, original." Bee said without even bothering to change her expression. "Are you going for a new record? Because that is the 12th time today, and it's only the first day back from vacation." Sirius only grinned at her, and put his feet back up.

"No, I think my record was my 37 times last Valentines Day." He said grinning.

"You know I really don't understand you. I DON'T WANT TO GO OUT WITH YOU, YOU PATHETIC UNORIGINAL EGOTISTICAL PIG!" she said in a huff, throwing his feet off with such force that he nearly fell out of his chair. She stood up and marched to the girl's staircase.

"Ah, so it's originality you want? I can do that!" he called after her. She turned back and glared, but then actually broke into a grin and rolled her eyes. He was horribly annoying, but she couldn't help but enjoy the death glares she was getting from envious girls around the room.

"Good luck then." She said with a sigh, and went up the staircase.

"That will never get old." Sirius announced. Peter went into a fit of giggles, clearly thinking Sirius was an unbelievable comedian, until James elbowed him sharply in the ribs.

"Now how about you Evans, wana go on a date with a Potter?" James asked, fluttering his eyelashes.

"No, I don't want to go out with a Potter; frankly, I'd rather date a potted plant than a Potter." She said smoothly. Sirius burst out into loud barking laughs, and Remus slapped a hand over his mouth. Peter nearly peed his pants with giggles, or maybe he did; no one really wanted to know. James just looked at her in shock. It wasn't hard to see his hurt, although Lilly was always oblivious to this. And without another word she stood up and followed Becca up the stair case.

"I think she's getting even better with her comebacks, mate." Sirius managed out between laughs.

"Yeah well at least she didn't call me a pathetic egotistical pig, mateee" he said back smiling.

"Hey she was joking, you saw her smiling. Plus you know she wants me" Sirius said grinning. "Besides, it's like a game; we've done this since second year." He said, trying to convince himself more than anyone else. "At least I'm not madly in love with a girl who would rather date a plant." James flushed horribly at this; all the marauders knew that he was actually crazy about Lilly. He did his best to make it look like a big joke, like Sirius and Bee did (or so they thought) but Sirius had seen through it instantly. James loved Lilly, and Lilly apparently hated James. In 5th year he had sworn off girlfriends, hoping Lilly would then see that he was waiting for her, but he couldn't stop girls altogether now could he? He opened his mouth to talk when two rather attractive sixth year girls walked by. Both they had dated the year before, but James couldn't quite remember if they actually broke up, or if they even technically dated for that matter. Despite this, Sirius and James both pulled a girl onto his lap.

"Who needs the ice queens anyway?" Sirius asked as the girl on his lap kissed his neck.

James nodded, but both seemed a bit hesitant to fully accept that.

"I think we all know who needs the 'ice queens' Remus said under his breath.'

"Of course we know! THE ICE KINGS!" Peter said excitedly, proud that he may have gotten an answer right. Remus looked at him with surprise in his eyes, then sighed and rested his face in his palms.

"What? Wasn't I right?"