Can be interpreted Sirius/Lily with some James/Lily, though I intended this to be a fic focusing solely on Sirius and Lily's friendship. It got a bit out of hand at the end though... woops.
Disclaimer: I do not, and will not ever have created Harry Potter. Everything belongs to the lovely J.K. Rowling!
Enjoy! x
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It all started in fifth year Charms, really. Professor Flitwick decided to try seating arrangements for the first time, and Sirius Black ended up getting paired with Lily Evans.
The redhead was greeted with a sunny smile and mischievous grey irises. "Hey Evans!" ¼ of the Marauders plopped down in the chair next to her.
"Black." Lily replied curtly, wondering why she didn't get Marlene instead; her best friend was currently across the room with Alice Prewett, another one of their dormmates.
"Aw come on, Evans! No need to be such a downer," Sirius teased, ruffling the girl's hair, adding onto her ire.
She didn't reply and instead chose to stare steadily at a point across the room.
The professor demonstrated a Silencing Charm to the class and told everyone to practice it on the ravens he distributed at the beginning of class.
"Silencio!" Lily recited the incantation and gave a sharp jab with her wand. The bird stopped squawking, just opening and closing it's beak with no sound coming out.
Sirius, on the other hand, was muttering the charm under his breath and flourishing his wand to no avail. His raven was looking at him curiously as he waved and muttered.
The girl decided to take pity on him, correcting his wand movement and his pronunciation of the spell. It had worked, Sirius' raven looked just as clueless as Lily's when it couldn't produce any noise.
"Thanks Evans," The Marauder gave a grateful smile to the Gryffindor prefect just as the bell rang.
"No problem Black." Lily smiled in return, deciding that Sirius Black might not be so bad after all.
That was the day that Sirius Black made it his personal mission for Lily Evans to be his first-ever female best friend.
-o-o-o-
After a few lessons with one another, the pair started exchanging small talk in Charms class, talking about whatever came to mind; exciting things that happened the previous day, and sometimes, Lily would help come up with spells to help along the Marauders' more harmless pranks.
After casual conversation in Charms, Sirius started talking with Lily outside of class as well, pestering her for help with essays and assistance with spells she mentioned for his group's practical jokes.
"Evans, mind helping me in the library?" Sirius waggled his eyebrows jokingly at the girl.
"Not with that tone, Black." She replied stonily, though he could see the underlying amusement in her eyes.
"Aw alright. Evans, help me with my Potions essay in the library?"
"Sure thing!" Lily hopped up with a smile, skipping out of the Gryffindor common room. With a smile resembling that of an amused older brother, Sirius followed her out, closing the Fat Lady's portrait behind him.
Neither of them noticed the heartbroken, betrayed expression on one James Potter's face as he watched them leave together.
-o-o-o-
Soon enough, 'Black' became 'Sirius' and 'Evans' became 'Lily'.
The pair was practically inseparable; if you could find one, then the other was likely to be nearby.
Most people at Hogwarts thought they were dating, including Marlene McKinnon and James Potter.
Marlene got on Lily's case for supposedly stealing the boy that she knew Marlene crushed on just after mere weeks of being exposed to the Evans-Black-best-friendship. Lily made sure to give her the real story; that Sirius, however unexpectedly, was one of her best friends now and that she was most definitely not dating him.
And she was planning on getting them together, but Marlene didn't have to know about that…
James took longer to approach Sirius about Lily, finally getting the courage after Christmas break: three months since Sirius and Lily had become attached at the hip.
"I'm just saying that I'm glad that you can make her happy and I won't get in the way of you guys if that's what you both really want," James said awkwardly in the boy's dorm when Peter and Remus were out.
"Who're you talking about, Prongs?" Sirius inquired amusedly, though he knew whom his friend had in mind.
"Lily, of course!" James looked confused as to why Sirius was smiling.
The grinning boy took a moment to observe his best friend's clueless (and slightly heartbroken) expression and spontaneously burst out laughing.
"You… think I'm dating… LILY?!" He giggled, falling over onto his bed and hysterically rolling around while James looked on with an even more confused expression.
"Well yeah, mate. You guys are pretty obvious," He replied, mouth twisting downwards.
Sirius recovered from his fit of laughter and straightened out his shirt, "Prongs. Lemme set this straight. I am not dating, or even thinking of dating, Lily Evans. It's always been clear she's yours, mate."
"Really?" James Potter looked truly hopeful for the first time in three months.
"You think I'd lie to you?"
"…"
"Okay, that was once! And I was twelve and it wasn't my fault that last cookie looked so bloody good!"
-o-o-o-
It was the end of fifth year and OWLS were very much over, much to Lily Evans' pleasure.
She walked down the many corridors and passages of the old castle, until she came across the Marauders and Severus. That was never a good combination.
It all went by quite quickly for her: James Potter was dangling Severus upside-down by his ankle, Lily defended her longtime friend, made Potter put him down, Sev refused her help and called her a mudblood, she insulted him in turn, ignoring the hurt clearly displayed in his eyes, and left.
Sirius went after the redhead soon after James flicked his wand and Snivellus was hanging in the air once more.
"Lily! Wait, Lily! Hey, wait up!" He called after the angry girl.
"What, Sirius?" She halted and whipped around. Sirius stopped a good few metres away from her. Wrath radiated from Lily's small form and barely contained rage was clear in her emerald green eyes.
The Marauder chose his words carefully, for once in his life, and cautiously replied to his extremely angry best friend, "You don't know the whole story, Lils."
Her expression softened a fraction and Sirius took it as a good sign, "He was calling you every name under the sun, Lilyflower. We had to get the greasy git back, he said you were a bitch, a whore, a mudblood!" He spat in disgust at the thought of the scrawny Slytherin boy, looking back out to the courtyard where James was still taunting Lily's former best friend. Not that the git was a real loss; Lily had them now, the Marauders. Reckless and wild, they were, but loyal most of all.
Sirius looked to Lily's face to find it shining with affection, "Thank you all then."
"Anytime, darling."
And he really meant it. This was the first girl that he'd ever loved unconditionally - the first girl he wanted to protect and keep happy. He'd take a curse for her any day; bloody hell, he'd die for her. This was his best friend, the love of James' life. They were a part of his family, a family that Sirius chose to spend his life with.
-o-o-o-
Sixth year was both the best and worst year for Lily Evans and Sirius Black's friendship.
Sirius found Lily crying in the common room at midnight when he was going to get a snack from the kitchens.
"What's wrong, Lil?" He asked, putting an arm around the redhead's shoulders and pulling her into his side.
"It's Petunia," Lily sniffled, waving a crumpled letter. "She's getting married and she… and she said she didn't want me at her wedding."
"Aw, Lilyflower. Don't get so upset, she's just jealous of you, darling." Sirius carded his hand through her hair comfortingly.
"Why does she hate me so much?" The girl sobbed into her best friend's chest.
"Don't worry about her, don't worry. It's all okay," He shushed her, still combing through her soft hair.
Lily cried herself out, finally wiping away her tears as the fire still danced happily.
"You okay?" Sirius asked her, concerned.
"Yeah, I think so," She hiccupped, laughing a bit at the funny sound.
"Well, to tell you the truth, my family's not so great either," He admitted. "They nearly kicked me out in first year for being Sorted as a Gryffindor and actually did last year for being a blood traitor or something."
"That's horrible, Sirius." Lily hugged him, forgetting about her troubles to help her friend with his. That's one of the things Sirius liked most about the girl; she always put others first. He was sure James admired that quality about her too.
"It's okay, darling. It's not like I miss them. I have you all now," He smiled down at the owlish green eyes and wild red hair.
It was the first time Sirius Black had allowed someone to use him as a handkerchief without having an ulterior motive. It was slightly strange, but he was glad that Lily was okay now.
Merlin, he was turning into such a sap. What was worse? Oh yeah, maybe the fact that he actually liked it.
-o-o-o-
Later on that year though, the pair took a turn for the worst.
Somehow, it had reached Lily's ears that it was Sirius that convinced Snape to come down to the Whomping Willow at full moon.
"How could you, Sirius? He could've gotten killed!" Lily shrieked.
"He deserved it," Sirius muttered, ruffling his hair in true James Potter fashion, withering under the prefect's glare.
"You don't say who deserves to die and who doesn't, Sirius Black." The girl spun on her heel and stormed up to her dormitory.
The boy in question crumpled onto an armchair, mussing up his black locks in frustration. "I've really messed up, haven't I?"
In Charms the next day, Sirius came in with bags under his eyes and rumpled clothes, obviously from the day before. His expression was determined though, a rare occurrence for the normally lighthearted Marauder.
He sat down in his usual place, refusing to acknowledge Lily, and she did the same to him.
For the entire class, the pair was silent, waving their wands and muttering the assigned spells. Lily got it on her first try, but Sirius took a few more until he finally Banished his pillow across the room.
Right at the end of class, Sirius shoved a piece of parchment into Lily's hand without sparing her a glance, getting up and slinking out of the classroom before she had even gotten her books and stationary into her bag.
Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at lunch. -Snuffles
Against her will, Lily smiled. He even used that nickname she gave him when she discovered his Animagus was a dog, he'd hated the endearment and often complained that it made him sound like a pansy.
Potions went by quickly; Lily had Mary MacDonald as her partner and they worked efficiently together. As soon as the bell rang, Lily sprung up from her seat and rushed off to the Astronomy Tower, sparing a few seconds to say goodbye to Professor Slughorn.
Panting, Lily finally reached the top of the blasted tower.
"Sirius?" She cracked open the door and slid through. He was gazing out into Hogsmeade and the mountains beyond the small village.
"Hey Lils," Sirius tried to smile, but it came off as more of a grimace. He dragged his fingers through his hair, sighing loudly.
"Well, lemme start off with: I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry, Lil, I don't know what I was thinking… it was just… I don't even know. I'm just so sorry, forgive me… please. Goddammit I'm so bad at this," He half-laughed, half-choked, falling to his knees.
Lily immediately cradled her best friend's crumpled form, "It's okay, it's okay. I forgive you, it's okay. It's okay, it's okay," She chanted softly into his ear.
It was the first time Sirius allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of anyone. It felt… good. Relieving. Like a huge weight had been lifted from his soul.
"You don't hate me?" Sirius asked after he'd been all cried out.
"I could never hate you." Lily replied, looking straight into his piercing grey eyes.
"Really?"
"Really."
-o-o-o-
For the next week, Sirius Black and Lily Evans took the word 'inseparable' to a whole new level.
Sirius made sure he was always some kind of physical contact with Lily, whether it was clutching her hand in Charms, luckily he was left-handed, laying his head on her lap in the common room or having his arm linked with hers at meals.
Suffice to say, James Potter was jealous, no matter what Sirius had said to him earlier.
And this time, he had no qualms about confronting his friend about it.
"She's one of the best mates I've had, Prongs, and I'm just not willing to lose that." Sirius said forcefully, determined that he'd make his friend see what he did.
"The thing with Sni-Snape happened and I was so scared she'd hate me and Merlin, Prongs, it was terrifying." He babbled, pacing in agitation and running his hands through his hair.
James took pity on his best mate, knowing that it took a lot for Sirius to say all that to him; manly pride and all that.
"Yeah, I get you, Padfoot. Evans is a keeper, that's for sure." He said softly, patting his friend on the shoulder. He knew his friend liked physical contact with his close friends for some reason; always hugging and ruffling hair and patting shoulders and invading personal space.
Sirius shot James a grateful smile and gave him a bone-crushing hug, smiling happily. James managed a groan and an awkward tap on the back.
-o-o-o-
He flew back to the Potter household, alarmed that Peter Pettigrew was missing from the safehouse.
Different scenarios ran through his mind and Sirius hoped for the best, not even bothering to prepare for the worst. Lily and James couldn't be dead, could they? The mere thought was dismissed from his mind immediately. It was impossible, improbable for them to get killed.
They were invincible; with their combined magic and love for one another, they couldn't be defeated. The universe wouldn't, couldn't allow such a thing to occur.
-o-o-o-
As he landed in Godric's Hollow though, Sirius' heart plummeted. The little house emitted an aura of death, murder.
He ran through the front door, internally pleading for James and Lily to be okay. How could Voldemort have possibly gotten in? Has Wormtail betrayed us?
Sirius saw James' body first, dead and cold on the floor, never to wake again. The mahogany wand was missing from his hand and his glasses were lying a few feet away from his body. Sirius choked back a sob, stumbling back a few steps in shock. James… was dead? His mind couldn't process the information. His best friend… he couldn't be…
Sirius ran up the stairs as fast as he could, wanting to escape the hell his mind had obviously created. It wasn't real, was it? Lily. She would be upstairs, she would fix everything and make it okay. She had to, she had to be alive.
The door to Harry's room was ajar and everything was silent. He pushed the door all the way open and was greeted with a shock of violently red hair on the ground.
Lily. Sirius Black fell to his knees for the second time in his life and allowed the howls and sobs to rack his body. It was the first (and last) time he planned on crying over a girl. Her willow wand was clutched in her hand and oh, what he wouldn't do to have that threatening piece of wood pointed at him again, a hex just about to roll off his volatile friend's tongue as he'd brace for impact.
It really hit him now, like a staggering blow to the chest. They were dead, really dead, murdered at the hands of Voldemort... and Pettigrew. That was the only way. The lying rat was Lily and James' Secret Keeper and he had chosen to betray his friends. A well of rage swelled up in Sirius.
Unbidden memories came to mind of Prongs with his crooked smile and laughing eyes and lopsided glasses, and Lily with her happy green eyes and wild red hair and smile that could make everything better. Sirius just wanted them back, he'd give up anything in the world to have them with him again.
"Unca Pafoo?" A toddler's voice came from the crib behind Lily and Sirius' head shot up, eyes wide as saucers. This is what she sacrificed her life to protect.
"Harry?" He croaked incredulously, slowly getting up and making his way towards the little boy.
"Wha Mummy n Dada?" Curious emerald green eyes identical to Lily's stared up at him.
"Mummy and Dada are gone for a bit, little guy," Sirius cooed in as reassuring of a voice he could manage. "Don't worry though, Uncle Padfoot'll take care of you."
"Unca Pafoo!" Harry cheered and Sirius smiled through the tears.
Maybe everything would be okay after all. James and Lily were still here, all anyone had to do was look in the direction of little Harry Potter.
Of course, he had his father's characteristic unruly black hair and his mother's brilliant emerald green eyes.
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Hope you liked it! Please review & favourite, tell me how I did! x