Wasn't the ending of last chapter adorable? Well, get ready, the story of these two little lovestruck idiots isn't over! And this is a loooong one too. :) Review!

Promises

Lily didn't sleep until much later. Her and James talked for almost the rest of the night. He'd abandoned the chair to rest comfortably next to Lily in her creaky hospital bed, stroking her hair and making shadow puppets for her. Since he only had one hand free, they were terrible. Lily adored it. They kept the conversation light.

"You know, I'd never given up on you, not really." James murmured. "Even when you were saying I should jump off the Astronomy tower..."

"I suppose I was rather cruel sometimes, wasn't I?" Lily bit back regret.

"Nah, I deserved it. I was a moron for a while there." James shrugged, "I just never knew how to talk to you, you know? Every time I saw you I fell to pieces."

"Some of your stunts were impressive." Lily conceded, "But I always thought you constantly asked me out as a joke or something."

James ran a hand through his hair.

"I suppose I wasn't that serious about it at first. But then, when I was chasing you, I began to learn a lot. About you, your temper and stubbornness, your lovely kindness..."

"I'm ignoring the fact that the first two descriptions of me were insults," Lily said dryly "How'd you figure out how to talk to me? What changed?"

"It's embarrassing."

She looked at him, and his ears were pink. It was rare for James Potter to be so flustered.

"Come on, tell me."

James sighed, "Okay. So my mum's always spoiled me beyond belief. You know, get me all the newest Quidditch gear, dote on me for getting good marks, turn a blind eye when letters from Dumbledore about me being a pranking genius would come to the house."

"That explains a lot about your ego."

"Exactly." James laughed. "Anyways, I know she loved me, it was right obvious on that. But, one day this summer, I just kind of woke up with a different thought in my head. Was she proud of me? Had I done anything in my seventeen years of life to make my mum truly proud. And, really, I didn't know the answer."

"You're top of the class." Lily objected, "You're Head Boy."

"And that's what she said when I asked her. But it's more than good grades in school, isn't it? Dumbledore gave me this position as a challenge. I think he saw, somewhere deep down, that maybe I had potential to not be a wanker. So he figured he'd force the not-wanker part out of me."

"So that's it?" Lily asked.

"Well, I guess it had been a long time coming. Something I should've realized before I got Head Boy, before I'd asked my mum. I wanted to be a better person."

Lily smiled to herself. That was as good of a reason to change as any. And it wasn't as if James's whole personality shifted, he just plucked out the parts he liked, the loyalty, the leadership, and worked on them. Lily kissed him lightly on the temple.

James changed the subject.

"I'm sorry I didn't kiss you. That night on the Quidditch field." He whispered. Lily blinked in surprise.

"I, well, it's alright. Just made me bloody confused, is all."

"It's stupid, I know." James said. "Part of me was scared, and I wanted you to be sure about me. I'm not proud, but it felt kind of good to turn you down for once, after years of you doing it to me."

Oh. Lily didn't know what to say. "That's not a very kind thing to do."

"I know." James said quickly, "I regretted it almost immediately after. And then I got nervous, and worried, and I saw you with Huxely before the match."

"When I hugged him?" Lily asked dumbly. "James, you can't be jealous-"

"I just thought maybe you'd changed your mind about him." James replied, "And now, it's stupid to even say I thought that, but I did. You're the girl I've been dreaming about for years, Evans. It can mess with a guy's head."

"I suppose we were both idiots." Lily agreed, laughing softly. And it was true. She'd done hurtful things to James, avoided him, slapped him, all because of her feelings as well.

James snorted. "After the match, I even asked Meadows for her help, I was so desperate. I think that's why she took pity on me long enough to listen instead of threatening to hex me like she normally does if I approach her."

So all the pieces were finally in place. Lily felt relief, but only briefly.

"We got into a horrible fight." She whispered. "Dorcas and I. I said some very cruel things. And James, she didn't know about us before that."

"Huh." He said after a beat, "Well, I'm sorry I told her first. I just thought, since the two of you were so close, she'd know."

There was a lump in Lily's throat. "She should have. But it's hard, you know, she thinks you're..."

"A toerag." James supplied, not seeming surprised at all by this information. Lily nodded.

"I suppose that's another girl I'll have to incessantly bother until I win her affections."

"Maybe don't try charming her water goblet into a flock of doves this time." Lily suggested, "I had feathers in my teeth for a week."

James kissed her once more at that, just a peck on the lips. Still, a touch as simple as that sent her thoughts spiraling. She had to stop herself from losing all sense and climbing on top of him right there. Not to mention, with her bulging black veins all over her body, she probably wasn't the most desirable or kiss-worthy at the moment. Lily examined her arm once more.

"I hope those wankers get expelled." She murmured, "But I highly doubt it. You know how Dumbledore is with second, third, fiftieth chances."

"No matter what, we'll take care of them." James said darkly. Lily looked at him, suddenly worried.

"James, you know you can't do that." She said forcefully.

"Why not?" He snapped, "They'd bloody sure deserve some punishment."

"You're Head Boy!" Lily said, "And we can't start an all-out House war. More people could get hurt."

"Well I'm sure as hell not sitting idly by while those bastards terrorize the school." He shifted away from Lily, arms crossed. Lily wasn't surprised he wanted revenge, but his conviction alarmed her.

"You know I don't want to sit by either, James, and we won't. But retaliation isn't the answer. We have to work as Head Boy and Girl, keep the school safe. And what will the underclassmen think if we're doing exactly what they do?"

"We wouldn't be using Dark Magic. We wouldn't be racist fuckers. I don't care about getting in trouble, I won't let it go just because I want to save my own skin." James muttered, not looking at her. Lily swallowed hard. On the one hand, she agreed with him completely. But she knew the violence would only escalate if they attacked the Slytherins directly, and things could go from dangerous to deadly real quick.

"What if you did it for me?" She asked quietly. He looked at her. "What if you let it go because I asked you to."

James's eyes softened. "Lily..."

"No, James, please. I, I don't want you to get in trouble, I don't want you to get hurt. Or any of the other Marauders, since I'm guessing you've already talked to Sirius about this."

James cracked a guilty smile. "We may have discussed some tentative plans."

"And I get it, but before you jump to action, just listen to me, okay? I'm not saying don't fight back. I'm saying don't go looking for a fight. If we see Flint or Mulciber or anyone harassing someone, you bet your arse we should defend them. But don't charge into the Slytherin common room full of piss and vinegar and give them a reason to come after us."

James was quiet, brooding. But, Lily saw his anger diminish reluctantly from his face. She put a hand on his cheek.

"In time, James. After we graduate we can fight. It'll be different."

He sighed bitterly. "I s'pose you're right Evans, as usual. Fine. If you wish, I promise not to retaliate." Lily smiled in relief and leaned over to peck him on the cheek. But James turned at the last second, and her lips found his instead. Warmth spread through her body instantly, and Lily hummed with satisfaction. His lips were soft and delicate on hers. She wanted to stay this way forever. Unfortunately, it would not be so.

"Potter!" A screech erupted from the other side of the room. The two jumped back, to se an enraged Madame Pomfrey holding a vial of what Lily supposed was her antidote. Lily felt mortified, but James took it in stride.

"Ah, morning Poppy!" James said with a broad smile. "Come to heal up Miss Evans, I see."

"You're here without permission... No visiting hours..." Madame Pomfrey seemed beside herself. It's no surprise, as James did have a history of putting students in the wing due to his pranks over the years. Lily couldn't help but find the whole situation a bit amusing.

"I just needed to see your... er, fresh face this morning!" James supplied. He'd stood, gathering his cloak into his bag quickly. Lily supposed he didn't want it taken away from him. He jumped out of the way as Pomfrey hurried over to Lily's side and began fussing over her.

"The nerve! Bothering a sick student... Get out. Out, Potter!" She hissed.

"But don't they always say that love heals?"

"Out!"

James winked at Lily and waved, before a bedpan came hurtling at his head.

"Bye." Lily giggled as he legged it out of the room.

"Foolish boy." Pomfrey muttered, forcing Lily to lie down. She gave Lily the vial, instructing her to drink half now and half when she wakes up.

"Now for the love of Merlin, get some sleep." And Pomfrey, as quickly as she'd came, left. Lily was alone. She took a second to steal herself, before gagging down the disgusting potion and sinking into her pillows.

What a night.

xx xx xx xx xx x xxx xx xx xx x xxx x xx

"Psst. PSST!"

Lily groaned, wondering who could possibly have the gall to bother a sleeping sick person.

"Evans, you once woke up because Mary was swishing her wand 'too loud', I know you can hear me."

Lily's eyes popped open to see Dorcas standing in front of her. She looked like she'd been pacing, and worrying at her lip.

"To be fair, it was like the girl was trying to conduct a bloody marching band." Lily said lightly, voice hoarse from sleep.

Dorcas cracked a small smile, before hurtling herself at Lily like a deranged niffler.

"Hey!" Lily called in muffled surprise, as now her friend was basically on top of her.

"I'm so sorry." Dorcas murmured. Lily instantly scooted to make room for her on the bed, and hugged her tightly.

"No Dora, I'm the one who's sorry." She said. Dorcas looked at her.

"Stop, I was terrible."

"No, I should've told you-"

"I should've told you-

"And the stuff with James, well-

"I don't care! Really."

They both stopped their rambling for a second, looking at each other and smiling sheepishly. Even though her friend was near crushing her stomach, it was as if an enormous weight had lifted from Lily's body.

"Can we never fight again?" She whispered. Dorcas scoffed.

"Two stubborn kids like us? That'll be impossible."

Lily sipped her cat-sick tasting potion, and the two talked for a bit about the attack. They examined her arms and legs, which weren't bulging with veins anymore, but one could still see black trails on Lily's skin. Apparently, Lily had gone down on the floor, writhing like, as Dorcas so lovingly put it 'an eel on cocaine'. But Lily could tell Dorcas was actually very worried, and she seemed rattled by what happened.

"If I was a second later to getting you to the hospital wing, or if I didn't catch you in time..."

"Don't think about it." Lily soothed. Dorcas shook her head.

"Flint's going to find a stump where his neck connects to his body that's for sure."

"Not you too!" Lily groaned, "I'd finally managed to talk Potter down. There will be no homicide in my honor." Dorcas looked at her curiously.

"You've seen Potter?"

Lily bit her lip. "He snuck back in to see me last night. I, well I don't know if we're together so to speak, but we're definitely..."

"Something." Dorcas supplied neutrally. Lily nodded.

"I just don't want that to make you upset, or any-"

"Lily." Dorcas cut her off. "I get it. You can't stop your feelings for a guy, no matter how much of a tosspot he is." She laughed when Lily looked about to object. "No, seriously Lils, it's okay. I just didn't want you to get hurt. Potter may have changed this year, but that doesn't erase the past."

Lily looked down at her hands, knowing this had a bit of truth to it. "I'll be careful." She promised.

"Good." Dorcas said. "Now, I have to tell you something." Lily looked up, wondering what it could be. Her friend looked unsure, as if she wanted to get something out but couldn't. It gave off the impression that she was seriously constipated. Lily would tell her that, but knowing how hard it was for Dorcas to open up, she waited.

"I'm sure now that you and Potter are together you'll find out eventually, and I'm sure Potter knows, since those mates can never hold a bloody secret, but it was Sirius." Her friend finally said. Lily stared at her stupidly.

"What was Sirius?"

"The secret boy. The one I'd been in Snogsville with." There was a beat of silence as Lily put it all together.

"Of course!" She smacked her forehead. "Ow."

Dorcas laughed quietly, but she looked rather sad. "See, now the only problem is I've apparently lost all common sense and actually developed feelings for the wanker."

"Why don't you go for it?" Lily asked. Sirius wasn't attached, and though he could be a bit of a flirt, he'd had reasonable girlfriends in the past.

"He only sees me as a fling." Dorcas dismissed. Lily sensed she needed to drop it, and only made a small noise in the back of her throat. Inside, though, her mind was brewing. As soon as she saw Black she'd do some digging.

"I guess you really can't stop your feelings for a guy, no matter how much of a tosspot he is." She murmured. Dorcas cracked a smile, but then looked at her watch.

"Bugger. McGonagall will have my hide. You know she's damn near a prison guard when it comes to punctuality."

"Go." Lily said, waving her off. "Before she verbally destroys you for being late."

Dorcas gave one last hug, before running off.

"Don't even think of making me bring you your homework, Evans! You're not allowed to do school when you almost died the night before!" She called over her shoulder. Lily closed her mouth, as she was just about to ask.

X x xxx xx xxx xx xxx xx xx xxx xX

Lily figured it would be a quiet day, but it would not be so.

Of course, she had a slew of visitors. First, Frank and Alice, who were both talking a mile a minute in tandem about how worried they were. Remus came in with one of her comfiest sweaters, probably since Lily complained to Alice that the hospital wing was freezing. Sirius and Peter came in and played exploding snap with Lily on her break, but it ended when she singed her sweater and Madame Pomfery deemed the game too dangerous for Lily's condition. Mary and Beth gave her chocolates before Herbology, Severus tried to talk to her, but Lily pretended to be asleep. The only absence was James, which made Lily a bit uneasy; though it was probably selfish, she'd expected him to come in at least a few times that day.

"He's probably too busy swooning over you to his mates." Emmaline said, mouth full of chocolate.

"Oh, stop it." Lily shoved her friend, who'd come after class and proceeded to stuff her face full of Lily's chocolate gifts. Lily felt partially uncomfortable, as she'd brought Marlene. Though the blonde showed no sign of being upset, Lily wasn't about to rant and rave about her and James getting together in front of a girl who, to Lily's knowledge, still had a crush on him. Of course, she had to tell Emma about their night spent together in the Hospital Wing, but she did so briefly and in generalities. Still, Emmaline was clearly over the moon.

"So you haven't seen him today, then?" Lily asked curiously, "I mean you two have Ancient Runes together, don't you?"

"Didn't show." Emmaline said, picking at a hair absentmindedly. "You know, he's probably sleeping, since you two spent the night together." She waggled her eyebrows.

"It wasn't like that!" Lily moaned, knowing that this was only the beginning of her friend's teasing. She couldn't help but smile a bit.

"Well, I'm really happy for you Lily." Marlene said suddenly. Lily looked at her.

"Y-you are?"

Marlene nodded. "Really, James and me were never meant. And now that you're with him, and we're friends, it'll be easier for me to let him go."

Lily smiled tentatively. "Alright."

The two left shortly after, Emmaline making kissy faces all the way, and Lily was alone for approximately five minutes before being visited by Professor Dumbledore.

"I'm glad to see your recovery is quick, Miss Evans." He greeted warmly. It was true, as Lily's skin was almost completely back to normal.

"Thank you Professor." She said, a bit awkwardly. It wasn't normal for her to have a private conversation with the headmaster. "Er, is there something you need?"

"No, no." He hummed, helping himself to one of her chocolate frogs. You and Emmaline should get together Lily thought sarcastically.

"It is of a bit of a unpleasent matter, I'm afraid, that of the nature of your attack. And your attackers."

"It was Flint and Goyle sir, I'm positive. And Regulus was in on it, but they only used him so-" Dumbledore held up a hand to stop Lily's speech. She bit her tongue hard.

"I'm aware of your quarrels, and I'm also deeply inclined to believe you." He sighed, "However, the only evidence we found was the book in the bins and an abandoned cauldron thrown, out of fear I'd assume, behind Hagrid's hut. Therefore, it's impossible to pin the blame on any one student, however substantial the circumstances be."

"But, sir!"

"Innocent until proven guilty, Miss Evans. The younger Black, however, will be serving detention until the end of term." Dumbledore looked at her sympathetically over his half-moon glasses. Lily stopped herself from shouting a retort. Anger boiled in her gut, but she wasn't very surprised. In fact, she felt partially guilty, as Regulus was probably solely a pawn in all of this, and deserved the least amount of punishment out of the lot of them.

"I suppose if that's what you decide to do." She said dully, crossing her arms. Dumbledore sighed.

"It is. Though, I shall say, you took this news much more amicably than your partner."

Lily frowned. "Partner?" Oh Merlin. "James?"

Dumbledore nodded. He seemed to mean 'partner' solely in the professional way, aside from a tiny knowing twinkle in his eyes. Lily's gut twisted.

"Mr. Potter had been quite, shall we say, persistent in convincing me of Flint and Goyle's guilt."

"Oh." Lily said in a small voice. She hoped James wasn't going to any extreme measures. He had promised her, after all.

"Don't dwell on it." Dumbledore advised, "Focus on healing yourself, and in the meantime, I will have a serious talk with the professors on tightening security. For now, I will have to bid you farewell." With a slight bow, Dumbledore left Lily alone to her thoughts.

And she was alone for a long time after.

Longer than she had been that entire day. And the longer she went without a specific visitor's presence, the more she worried.

She watched darkness fall over the grounds from her hospital bed. The frigid winds of late autumn had made few students inclined to venture outside, and the only figures Lily had witnessed was that of Hagrid and Fang, the former tending to his garden and the latter chasing crows. The peacefulness of her view only made her inner strife more pronounced. James should've been here. She knew him, knew that he would do anything to protect his friends and those he cared for. Dumbledore had said he'd taken the Slytherin's punishment, or lack thereof, badly. The fact that he'd been absent all day, even as classes had ended, made Lily feel that there was something distinctly wrong. And all she had to do was sit in bed and eat chocolate and worry. It was driving Lily mad.

"I'm sure he'll come back dear." Madame Pomfrey's voice startled Lily out of her reverie. She was carrying dinner, and more vile potion, on a tray. Lily didn't bother to be embarrassed at her assumption, it was true after all.

"Has dinner been served downstairs as well?" Her voice was hoarse from not talking. Madame Pomfrey nodded.

"Finished up an hour ago. I saw you eating all that chocolate and-"

An explosion of voices filled the room. Lily nearly jumped out of her skin as the hospital wing doors flung open, unintelligible shouting following.

"Should have known much better than-"

"He was trying to protect-"

"YOU!"

Lily squinted in the semidarkness as one of the figures came hurtling towards her.

"Ah!" She shrieked as the warped face of Samuel Goyle came into focus. She didn't even have time to fumble for her wand before the boy grabbed the front of her dressing gown, pulling her up towards him. His face was covered in enormous red welts, open and weeping. One of his eyes was bloodied and the side of his head looked like the hair had been plucked off. That, coupled with his look of pure hatred, was terrifying.

"You think you can set your blood traitor boyfriend on us, huh?" He screamed. No. Lily blinked, but set her jaw.

"Goyle, if I'd wanted you dead I would've done it myself. We all know I'd come off better in a fight." She replied softly. Goyle gnashed his teeth before he was grabbed roughly and pulled off of her. It was Professor Slughorn, looking dazed and irritable. Lily saw that behind him, Professor McGonagall and Madame Pomfrey were arguing quietly to each other. Behind them still, looking unsure of himself, was Sirius Black.

"Now that's quite enough." He snapped. "Mr. Goyle, get yourself to a bed! Fifty points from Slytherin for threatening a student."

"The Mudblood was the one who started it!" Goyle cried, but, before he could say another word, Sirius grabbed his collar.

"Don't call her that, or I'll put you in a bed myself." He said lowly to Goyle, shoving him in the opposite direction of Lily.

"What's going on?" She called weakly, tears threatening. Though, she'd already pieced most of it together. Where's James? Where's Flint?

Slughorn gazed at Lily uncomfortably, seeming reluctant. Behind her, Sirius and Goyle were glaring at each other. McGonagall and Pomfrey were still in urgent discussion.

"I'm very sorry all of this grief has had to come on to you Miss Evans." He replied honestly, seeming to be attempting to apologize for more than just the night's events. He paused, blowing out and making his walrus mustache flutter.

"Professor Dumbledore is sorting out the worst of it. Potter and Flint are both upstairs currently. It seems Flint made some, er, remarks, and Potter attacked him. They are upstairs with the Headmaster sorting out their punishments."

It was exactly as Lily had feared.

"There's more to it than that!" Sirius objected loudly, to which Slughorn seemed to grow more irritated.

"Black, you're lucky no one saw the jinxes you threw or you'd be right up there with those two."

"Enough." Madame Pomfrey called. The room grew quiet.

"This girl needs her rest. And as for the boy, I can sort out those boils in a heartbeat. The matter in question is if he should stay the night for monitoring."

He'll kill me in my sleep. Lily gulped. McGonagall seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

"Because of the current circumstances Poppy, I'm ordering you to send Goyle back to Slytherin after he's been treated. I don't want this matter to turn even nastier than it has." Madame Pomfrey looked strongly opposed. "As for Mr. Potter and Mr. Flint-"

"Both will have points taken." Slughorn finished, nodding.

"James was just defending himself!" Sirius said angrily. It was quiet for the first time since their appearance. Lily felt numb.

"Mr. Black go back to your common room." Professor McGonagall said, seeming to just notice his presence.

"I'm here to protect Evans!" Sirius snarled, with a conviction that took Lily aback. McGonagall considered arguing for a moment, before rubbing her temples and sighing.

"Fine, you can stay until curfew. For the time being all wands will be put into Madame Pomfrey's office. Poppy, I think you should come with me. The other two students involved will need attention."

"Is James okay?" Lily called, desperate. McGonagall looked her, expression softening.

"They both will be fine, Lily. Try to get some sleep."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Lily murmured to herself, almost hysterically, as she watched the two professors' retreating forms.

"You heard your Professor." Madame Pomfrey said, grabbing Lily and Goyle's wand off of each of their bed-stands. Sirius gave his up wordlessly, pulling up a chair towards Lily's bed and sitting. The matron went to her office briefly, returning with various bandages and poultices. With one last look around, she followed the other adults out of the wing, clicking the doors shut behind her.

"Prepare to die mudblood." Goyle's nasty voice rose from a few beds over.

"Shut up Goyle." Sirius snapped, rolling his eyes. He gave Lily a sheepish smile, one she met stoically.

"It wasn't all Pron- James's fault Lily." He murmured. Again, Lily gave no response.

"You know, James is more a brother to me than my own brother." He tried again.

Lily sighed. "I will only talk to you if we change the subject." Sirius gave her a salute.

"As m'lady wishes. What shall we discuss?"

Crazily enough, she felt a smirk play at her lips. It was kind of Sirius, coming to her in an obviously dark time. He could be surprisingly compassionate, when it came down to it. Even his defending of James...

"What happened between you and your brother?" Lily blurted, trying to steer her mind away from those thoughts. Her question had a much more visceral reaction on the boy than she'd expected. His eyes darkened, and he seemed to recoil back into himself. Lily bit her lip, fearing she'd been too personal.

"We don't have to talk about that, Sirius, I'm sorry." She said quickly.

"No, no. It's alright. I suppose you're close enough with our little group that you'd find out soon anyways." He tried to wave her off, but she could still see his mind working. Curiosity kept Lily quiet, anticipating his answer.

"I'm sure you've learned least a little about my family tree, right? Seeing as most of my cousins are like old Boil-face over there." He jerked a thumb at Goyle, who appeared to be sleeping. Lily nodded. Though she had a disadvantage growing up Muggle-born, over the years she'd come quite accustomed to the hierarchies that Pure-blood society kept, learning which ones were the most ancient, the most powerful, or the most malicious.

"So, needless to say, I'm a lot different than my family. My mother, insane hag, is obsessed with blood tradition and how the house of Black is the superior, while my father, well, he's probably in deep with You-Know-Who if I'm being honest. Growing up, I didn't want any of it, I just didn't know what to do about that until I met Ja...was sorted into Gryffindor." He took a breath, watching Lily carefully.

"I'd always just assumed I'd be Slytherin, my whole family dating back centuries is. Becoming Gryffindor, meeting my friends, it liberated me, showed me there was another option. I'm bloody lucky. Reg, well, he wasn't so. Once my Mum heard where I'd been sorted she set out to rid Regulus of any rebellious thoughts, filling his mind with pure-blood mania. The first two summers I came home she tried to 'save' me, but after numerous disagreements she just locked me in my room most of the time, resolving to keep Regulus away from such a bad influence. Once he was sorted to Slytherin, Mum and Dad were so proud. It was the final nail on the coffin in my eyes."

Lily flinched. She'd always heard that Sirius's home life was a mess, but this sounded horrible. She could see the ghost of those memories haunting Sirius's grey eyes.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered. Sirius shrugged.

"The only thing I wish I could've done was be there for him more. I was too wrapped up in my new friends and a chance at freedom. If I could do it over again, I'd have grabbed him and ran away the second I set foot back in that house the summer after my first year."

Lily nodded. "And I thought me and my sister were bad. Your parents sound... How do you bear it? Going back there?"

Sirius gave her a frown. "Don't you know? I ran away fifth year. James took me in, I've been living at the Potters when there's breaks."

"That's right." James had told her this during one of their patrols together. Thinking of her their late-night chats made her gut twist.

They talked for a while, about family. It was nice to have someone who could relate to her, as Emmaline was an only child and Alice loved her family to pieces. Dorcas didn't say it, but she was right there alongside of Alice.

In the meantime, Madame Pomfrey came back, grabbing their wands from her office. She lectured Sirius on not trying anything until he pretended to fall asleep from boredom. Then she took to attending to the snoozing Goyle.

"Face looked better that way if you asked me." Lily commented mildly. Sirius snickered.

The doors to the wing opened, shedding a slice of light right on to Sirius's face. The look in his eye made Lily know exactly who was entering.

Lily stared at her hands as footsteps neared. She didn't know what to say, do, or think.

"Make it out okay, Prongs?" Sirius asked lightly, probably trying to clear some tension. Lily glanced up for a second. James was standing before them with a hard expression on his face. Lily noticed a dull mark on his cheek, and bandages on his hands. She bit the inside of her cheek so hard she tasted blood, and faced her hands once more.

"Dumbledore's considering revoking my position as Head Boy." He replied stonily. Sirius grunted in indignation.

"Bloody unfair." He muttered, but James didn't reply. Lily felt his eyes boring holes into her head. She looked up to meet them, trying to appear resolved.

"Will you believe me if I said I did what I had to do?" He asked her, biting on every word.

"You promised." She replied softly.

James looked away, raking a hand through his hair. "Sometimes things are more important than that. Sometimes..."

"How can I trust you?" Lily asked to herself, tears stinging her eyes. All the worry of the day had finally revealed itself.

James was quiet for a long time, pacing and fidgeting with his hair.

"You know what? Maybe you can't."

And with that he strode out of the room, yanking open the Hospital Wing door with a squeal.

"You coming Padfoot?" His voice demanded, as Lily refused to look at him. Although, she couldn't stop her stupid tears from sliding down her cheeks. Next to her, Sirius shook his head almost sadly.

"Call me if you need anything Evans." He murmured. She felt something cool and heavy pressed against her arm, and found that it was one of James and Sirius's mirrors. For talking to each other when they had detention. Sirius walked slowly over to the door, as if torn. Once there, it slammed shut, leaving Lily in darkness once more.