Chapter II - A New Friend

Sirius came to see her the next morning with a bouquet of wildflowers. He placed them on her nightstand table and grinned at her before taking a seat in the chair. "So I started a rumour that Peeves tripped you and you fell down the dungeon stairs. If anyone asks, that's why you're in here."

Lily smiled at him. Sirius Black had always been very talented at making up stories. She had never appreciated it before. "Thank you. That saves me the trouble of trying to come up with something."

He grinned. "I'd like to take credit for those flowers but they're from James."

Lily scowled at him. "You promised you wouldn't tell!"

"Hey, give me some credit! No, he just heard that you fell and I was coming this way and he asked me to stop by and visit you and to give you these flowers as he was concerned. He said if he brought them in himself you would probably rip them into little pieces and toss them in his face just to spite him. So they're from James, keep them, moon over them, whatever." He explained, leaning back in his chair.

"Oh," she said, twisting her hands together in her lap. "I'm sorry."

He nodded, eyeing her carefully. "No skin off my bones. Listen, Evans … are you alright?"

She shrugged and wrapped her arms around herself. How was she supposed to answer that question? She was still a little sore. Madam Pomfrey had told her that would probably last a week or so. It was something she would have to endure until she healed properly. Since Malfoy hadn't had a chance to finish, she didn't have to worry about pregnancy but the matron had given her the appropriate potions just to be safe after promising not to mention anything to Professor Dumbledore. She had only slept as long as the potion let her and then she had spent the night staring at the ceiling, terrified that one of them would return and start over again.

But then she had heard Slughorn talking in the hallway. Apparently, Malfoy and Snape were missing. They had snuck out of the school and were thought to have gone home early. No one had been able to find them. Dumbledore had answered and told Slughorn that they would find them, as having two missing members from Slytherin House was definitely something that needed to be addressed.

Madam Pomfrey had wanted to intervene here and tell Dumbledore what they had done before their escape but Lily had begged her not to. The matron had explained that it was her job to report this to the Headmaster, but Lily's insistent begging had stopped her. At least for now.

Lily had closed her eyes, breathing a deep sigh of relief. Tomorrow she would get to go home and she wouldn't have to worry about facing either one of them again. That was all that mattered to her.

She took the water next to her bed and took a small sip before she spoke. "I will be. It's really all thanks to you. I have no idea if I would have managed to get out of that … situation if it hadn't been for you showing up when you did. Why did … I mean … what were you doing there and by yourself? I mean, usually you guys are like the four musketeers or something?"

Sirius grinned and crossed his ankles. "I don't know what that means, but coming from you I'm going to assume it's not a compliment." When Lily smiled at him he continued. "I was looking for you, actually. Remus told me that he figured I had a better shot if I went looking for you without James. Good choice too."

She glanced up at him quizzically. "Why?"

He grinned at her. "Well, I know that you really hate my best mate, which is a shame, because he's great, but if James would have witnessed that … those two would be dead."

She closed her eyes. "They … they said that they did it to get back at … Potter."

Sirius nodded and took her hand in his again. "I know and that would kill him more than directly trying to hurt him. It was sneaky and evil and thank Merlin he's not going to find out about this."

Lily bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes. Why did they think raping her would get back at James? He liked her, she knew that, but he didn't really like her. He just kept asking her out because she was the only girl in school who had ever been asked out by James Potter and had said no. That was all it was.

She pushed the thoughts out of her mind and turned back to Sirius. "So, why were you looking for me and why did Remus think that you would have a better shot without James?"

He grinned at her. "I was kind of hoping that you might put a good word in with Tia?"

Lily laughed. The sound made her feel good. It made her realize that her life wasn't going to end with this disaster. "I owe you my life, Sirius. Putting a good word in with Hestia is the least I can do. Besides, you already have a foot in the door. She thinks you have a great bum and she's always checking you out when you walk away."

His eyes lit up at that. "Ree-ally? Interesting."

She grinned. "Go for it. You don't even need me."

"Well, honey, I knew I didn't need you, I mean look at me! But, I just wanted you to pump her up for it. I like girls who are waiting for me."

Lily rolled her eyes. "You are something else."

He stood up and squeezed her hand gently, his voice becoming very befitting of his name. "Listen, I know that we're not friends and that we don't know each other very well except that you apparently find me very annoying and hate my best friend but … if you need anything … ever … I'm a good listener, okay?"

Lily smiled at him, surprised and little touched by his gesture. "Thank you."

He grinned and leaned down to kiss her forehead again. "Be more careful too. By the way, I found your wand. I just put it in the drawer of the nightstand there. See you around."

She nodded as she watched him go and then she curled up on her side, her eyes on the flowers and she drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face.

She was woken up a few hours later by the sounds of her two best friends arguing.

"What do you mean, Peeves doesn't physically hurt people?" Hestia demanded angrily, her long straight black hair dangling over Lily in her movement. She had dark brown eyes that were staring at Alice in amazement. "What do you call chucking an ink pot at my head? I had a bump the size of a Snitch there for two weeks!"

Alice, a pretty round-faced girl with soft brown hair and green-blue eyes shook her head. "Tia, look at her. She is way more beat up then she should be for falling down the stairs! I think something else happened."

"Alice! It's Lily! First of all, she has that frickin' alabaster skin and she bruises like a peach! She could so look exactly like that from falling down the stairs! Second of all, Sirius is spreading the rumour so let's wait for her to wake up and see what happened. I can't imagine Sirius lying about something Peeves did; that is just backwards logic thinking."

Alice sighed. "Fine, you win, for now!"

"Will you too shut up, some of us are trying to rest here?" Lily replied, smiling a little as she opened her eyes.

"Lily!" Alice exclaimed, sitting on the edge of her friend's bed. "We've been so worried!"

Hestia nodded, sitting on her other side. "We only just found out like an hour ago! We were hoping maybe you and Robbie did make up and had gone off somewhere, which is why you weren't in your bed. Or maybe you decided to teach that dick-wad a lesson after all!"

Lily chuckled a little. Robbie Sampson had been her boyfriend for a good portion of the school year. Despite his intentions to win her back the afternoon before by the lake, she was definitely not going to make up with him. Not to mention that she really wasn't in the mood right now to try to teach him a lesson. They had broken up a few weeks ago because he had wanted Lily to have sex with him. She hadn't been ready and when she realized that he was only going to continue to pressure her, she had dumped him.

She closed her eyes. Maybe she should have gone through with it just so last night wouldn't have … She turned back to her friends, hoping that her eyes were not betraying her.

"No, he was a jerk. I was definitely not with Robbie."

Alice pursed her lips as she eyed her friend carefully. Lily was the worst liar in the world. Her eyes clearly stated every emotion she had and right now they were yelling: fear. Alice wasn't sure what to make of that. "Did Peeves really push you down the stairs?"

Lily hesitated. She completely agreed with Sirius' story. It took the pressure off of her for having to come up with something but at the same time, these were two best friends. She looked up into their concerned faces and she decided against it. She didn't want to remember it. She wanted to push this memory back as far into her mind as she could and seal it closed. Maybe she could do a memory charm on herself? She shook the thought from her head, that would just be too dangerous.

"I guess so, to be honest, I don't remember much."

"What do you mean, you don't remember much?" Hestia demanded, taking her friend's hand in hers. "You didn't hit your head, did you?"

Lily smiled at that. "No, I mean, Sirius caught me, but I fell down a lot of stairs. It's kind of a blur. He saved me anyway, I could have been really hurt."

Hestia grinned broadly at that. "He's such a hottie. I wish he would catch me."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Tia, we have more important issues at hand right now!"

Lily chuckled a little. It was nice to hear normal conversation. It was exactly what she needed if she was going to put all of this behind her. "Actually, Sirius caught me because he was looking for me. It seems he's interested in a certain roommate of mine and was hoping I could give him some hints as to how to make her interested in him."

Hestia's mouth dropped open. "Really?"

"How do you know she's talking about you, Tia?" Alice said, smirking. "Dorcas is definitely one of the most beautiful girls in school."

It was Hestia's turn to roll her eyes now. "Pul-lease, Sirius shagged her last month! So is it me?"

"Yes."

Hestia jumped up and did a little happy dance. "He is so fine! I would so love to let him get into my pants."

"You are so crude." Lily said, smiling. "Speaking of Dorcas, though, where is she?" Lily asked, thinking of their other roommate.

Dorcas Meadows was one of the most beautiful girls in the whole school. She had shoulder length bright blonde hair and big blue eyes. She had a body most girls would kill for and to top it off was one of the nicest people you could ever meet. Emmeline Vance, a tall, lanky brunette with glasses and blue eyes was their last roommate. She and Dorcas, for some unknown reason, had hit it off and become the best of friends. Lily, Alice and Hestia had always been friendly with them but they had never been as close to them.

Alice shrugged. "Somewhere making out with her new boyfriend I suppose. Actually, I think she's dating Robbie now, Lily. He certainly didn't waste any time considering he was asking for you to take him back yesterday."

"She can have him. I think he's a prat."

Alice laughed and leaned down to hug her friend. "He was. I was so worried about you. I'm glad you're alright. Are you going to make it down for the leaving feast?"

Lily shook her head. The last thing she wanted was to sit in the Great Hall where everyone would stare at her and wonder. "No, I'm still pretty tired. Madam Pomfrey gave me a lot of sleep potion. I think I'll just stay here and meet you guys on the train tomorrow."

"What about your packing?" Alice asked in concern.

"It's mostly done. I can do the few last minute things tomorrow."

Alice smiled. "Well, once Tia gets a hold of herself, we can do that for you tonight."

"Thanks, you two are the best." Lily replied, honestly, thinking of how much of a relief it would be if she didn't have to pack as well.

Hestia grinned. "We already knew that."

Lily laughed. It was nice to have friends that cared. She just hoped that one day she would be able to share with them the burden that she was carrying.

The train ride home was something that Lily had been dreading. It would be the first time she was there in front of everyone since it had happened. Snape and Malfoy had indeed left the school. Dumbledore had apparently announced that they had left at the feast and that anyone who knew anything about the situation was to come forward immediately.

But she found that she didn't feel safer with them gone.

She sat in her spot on the train, nervous and alone. Alice and Hestia had wandered off to find some snacks and she was staring out the train window lost in thought. She jumped when the train door opened and Libby Madison, a prefect from Hufflepuff, poked her head in.

"Hey Lil, are you going to patrol?"

Lily nodded, angry at herself for shirking her responsibilities as a prefect. "Yes, I'm coming."

She carefully put her book away in her purse and took three deep calming breaths before heading out. The hallways were fairly empty but she moved through, peeking through doors to make sure all of her fellow students were behaving. After twenty minutes, she finally reached the end and peeked her head in the last compartment.

All of the colour drained out of her face when she realized it was full of Slytherins.

Narcissa Black and her sister Bellatrix were sitting next to each other with Amycus and Alecto Carrow and Bellatrix's boyfriend Rudolphous Lestrange. This wouldn't normally bother her, but she knew that they were all friends with Snape and Malfoy.

"Well, well, well if it isn't little Miss Lily Evans. Heard you let Malfoy have some fun a few nights back?" Alecto said, an evil grin across his face.

"Gonna let us have the same courtesy?" Amycus asked, her dark eyes leering.

Lily took an automatic step back.

They all knew.

Malfoy must have …

God, she felt disgusted.

She felt dirty.

She felt sick.

"Don't run, Evans. We'll make sure you enjoy yourself a bit - its perfectly alright to be a whore." Bellatrix exclaimed, grinning evilly. "As long as its not with my man. I don't want him to be fucking a Mudblooded bitch! Who knows what kind of diseases he could contract?"

Lily trembled and she hated herself for feeling so afraid. She took another step back and the compartment door slammed shut blocking out the sound of laughter and she felt a person behind her. Arms reached out to steady her as she held back a shriek.

"Hey, wow, sorry, Evans, didn't know you were there." James replied, carefully closing the door to the loo behind him.

She knew it was probably a bad decision. But he was better than anyone else. She moved and threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder.

James' mouth dropped open and a sarcastic comment was just about to leave his lips when he realized that she was trembling … and crying. He picked her up and carried her into the baggage compartment, being the closest room other than the loo. He took a seat on somebody's trunk and he just rocked her back and forth. When she finally calmed down, she pulled back, her face blushing red.

"I'm … I'm sorry."

He smiled kindly at her. It was a look Lily had never before seen on his face. "Don't be sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, honestly."

She smiled a little at that. He was worried his grabbing her had caused this. In a strange way, she found that kind of sweet. "It … I was just … it was something else. Thanks for not being a jerk while I had a baby moment, Potter."

He laughed, pleased to see some colour returning to her cheeks. He knew she was still injured from her fall, but he was still very surprised by her little breakdown. "I don't think crying is a baby moment. My mum says that every sane woman needs to have a good cry every once in a while to stay sane. Are you alright?"

She nodded, thinking that his mother was exactly right. "Yes. Thank you." She blushed again when she realized that she was practically sitting in his lap. "Um … I should …"

He nodded as well and helped her up so that he could stand. "Right … well, have a good summer, Evans."

"Yeah, you too." She said, meaning it. He had been there for her when she needed him, even if it was just a shoulder to cry on, she really appreciated it. She felt a little better now that she had cried as well. It would help her hide what happened from her parents.

He flashed that grin at her, the sexy smirk and it put her back up before the words even left his mouth. Leave it to Potter to ruin the moment. "Maybe when we come back we can have us a date?"

She rolled her eyes but it pleased him because he had truly been concerned with the fear he had seen in them. "I don't think so."

"See you, Evans."

Lily watched him start to leave and she reached out to grab his arm. As pitiful as it made her feel, she realized that the walk past the Slytherins' compartment on her own was too far to do by herself. "James, wait!"

He turned, surprised that she had grabbed his arm and that she had called him James but his comment died in his throat when he saw that the fear was back in her eyes. "Yes, Lily?"

"Can you … can you please walk with me back to my compartment?"

He glanced at her quizzically. Her almond-shaped green eyes were wide and fearful, her perfect bottom lip was trembling slightly and she had paled a bit again. Something else had definitely scared her out there and he wondered what it was.

"What's out there, Lily? What are you afraid of?"

Lily's eyes widened. "I … I … please?"

James took her hand in his, rubbing his fingers over the back of it in reassurance and surprising Lily when it sent a thrill through her system. "Of course, come on."

He led the way back to her compartment without another word and Lily followed gratefully; confused, bewildered, and surprised.

James Potter was definitely a mystery. And she was grateful to him.

James wistfully watched Lily get off the train and head towards her parents. The tall man with the dark brown hair that had a hint of auburn engulfed her in a big hug and he sighed. The fact that he was jealous of her father was downright ridiculous. Not to mention that he could still feel the way she felt wrapped in his lap, in his arms. He was pathetic.

"She really didn't throw out the flowers, Padfoot?" James asked for the fifth time as his friend rolled his eyes at him.

"No, she kept them and she said thanks."

James grinned. "I'm starting to grow on her."

Peter snorted. "Like a fungus!"

Sirius laughed and high-fived with Peter, ignoring James' glare.

"She was acting weird on the train though, I didn't get to tell you guys."

Sirius' eyebrow rose slightly as he snuck a glance back at Lily. He hadn't spoken to her since yesterday in the hospital wing. "What do you mean by 'weird'?"

James shrugged, hoisting his trunk up onto the wheels. "Well, she was patrolling and walked into this compartment with some Slytherins in it. I came out of the loo just as the door closed and I could hear them laughing and she practically walked backwards into me. I kind of teased her a bit and she threw her arms around me and she was shaking like a leaf and started to cry like she was scared or something."

"What did you do?" Sirius asked. He knew he should have checked on Lily. Being the only one who really knew what had happened to her was hell. How was he supposed to make sure that she was okay if she didn't tell any of her friends so that they could help her out?

"Well, I took her into the baggage compartment since it was there and I just held her and she cried. Then she apologized and I flirted and made her smile. Then she asked me to walk her back to her compartment - that's when the fear returned to her eyes. So I did and then Alice came in so I left. What do you think that's about?" James asked, looking thoughtful.

Sirius shrugged. The last thing he wanted was to cause James to suspect he should worry. The bloke was Lily-obsessed as it was. "I wouldn't worry about it."

They headed off in the direction of James' mother and before James could ask another Lily question, Sirius moved forward.

"Gwendolynn my love, I've missed you!" Sirius declared, kissing her in a loud smacking kiss on the mouth.

Gwen laughed and pinched his cheek. "Smart ass! You're lucky you're so damn cute!"

Sirius grinned sheepishly and then pretended to look outrageously hurt when she shoved him aside and tugged James into her arms.

"My, you've grown again, darling!" She replied, kissing her son's cheek and hugging him close.

James smiled and hugged her back, squeezing just a little tighter than normal. He really needed a hug. "A bit, yeah. How have you been, Mum?"

Gwen smiled and kissed his cheek again, framing his face with her hands. "Well, you would know if you wrote home more often, now wouldn't you?"

He grinned and draped his arms over her shoulders. "I missed you. Where's Dad?"

Gwen sighed. "There was a Quidditch disaster. I didn't get all of the details, but something about an injured seeker and the possibility of being a chaser short - the finals start this week and you know how crazy your father gets."

James laughed. Since his father was a coach for Puddlemere United, he definitely knew how crazy his father could get when it came to Quidditch. "I'm sure he'll have some interesting stories when he gets home."

He glanced back to where Lily was still embraced in her father's arms and he sighed before turning back.

"Let's go home."