A/N: Sorry, I wanted to update faster, but I had a bit of writer's block with setting up story, so I took my time to perfect it a little ;). Thanks the reviewers, I appreciated the feedback, and I always try to answer your reviews personally.

Enjoy!

Chapter Two:

Lily leaned back against an armchair in the Head's common room, shaking her head with a dejected sigh. Susanna sat across from her, leaning her back on the table, their homework forgotten on top of it. Susanna tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked at Lily, chewing the end of her quill.

"Do you think Mulciber did it then?" Lily asked quietly, plucking at the thick carpet next to her. Susanna sighed and dropped her arm heavily to rest on her raised knee, and gave a small shrug.

"Well Mulciber's no angel, but Mary McDonald's not a godsend either. I don't know what to think. If she says he raped her, I hate to doubt that, but she just lies so much…" Susanna trailed off, twirling the quill around in her gingers and watching it. "We've only been back three weeks, why would he do something so heinous right off the bat? Not that it'd be okay if he did it at all…then again, Mary's parents believed her if they withdrew her this early. Ugh." Susanna gave a grunt of disgust and turned her head to Lily, her eyes asking for the redhead's input. Lily was silent for a minute longer.

"It's a big thing to accuse someone of." She said softly, uncertainly, stopping her pulling at the carpet to give Susanna full attention. "But…Sev-Severus wouldn't…he's not…I just don't think…" Lily broke off and groaned, trying to find the words she was looking for. "I know what kind of person Mulciber is, but I just can't see Severus going along with something that…abominable." She bit her lip, watching Susanna anxiously. Susanna snorted and Lily saw her stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"He's always been into the Dark Arts Lily, too into them. You know he's one of them, or will be. Why do you keep trying to convince yourself otherwise?" Susanna asked, almost pleading. She gave Lily a sad look.

"I know. I know. You don't how he's got it at home though—"

"It's not an excuse. I'm not saying he had anything to do with Mary's allegations, but we've been telling you for years, Lils. Even Sasha and she thinks everyone's wonderful. You don't even call him a friend anymore, not since he started throwing around the 'M' word, but you still give him this weird…benefit of the doubt."

Lily frowned slightly, knowing Susanna was right. She tilted her head back to rest it on the seat of the chair and rolled her head back and forth, sitting back up taller and sweeping her thick hair back behind her. She wrinkled her nose at Susanna in a way that signaled defeat.

"Hey, if it helps, I don't think Mulciber did it. Maybe he ran a pass at her that she didn't like, but I doubt he actually raped her." Susanna offered. And it was the truth. She hardly believed that Mulciber had had the opportunity to snatch up a student and pull off rape, especially with his friendsinvolved—as Mary accused—and it not get discovered. Lily nodded and gave a huge sigh, crawling back to the table on all fours and dragging a Transfiguration paper towards her with a distasteful look. Animagus: a Process. Transfiguration wasn't a subject she had difficulty with, but McGonagall was a tough grader and the animagi process took some careful wording. She was getting nowhere. She and Susanna had started their work during their free period after lunch, while Sasha had a class; Lily was eager for the calm company of her pragmatic friend, and when Susanna had noticed Lily's distraction they'd stopped working to hash out the subject of the Mulciber rumors.

The world out there was getting worse. Sure, she'd gotten the Daily Prophet all summer, but although there were plenty of depressing things, there were also too many other stories that journalists used to distract people from how bad things really were. But when she was back in her world, living it, it was hard to turn a blind eye to the dismal goings-on. This Dark Lord, who'd started off as a little mentioned gang leader, was drawing followers by the numbers, preaching spine-chilling things that spelled out danger for people like Lily. And worse, people were listening. The Slytherins, always so snobbish towards the rest of the houses, were almost isolated now, and those who weren't already declaring their allegiance to 'you-know-who' certainly weren't speaking out against him. It was as if suddenly everyone had to pick a side or perish. People like Mulciber, Avery, even Sirius Black's little brother had come back to school cockier and eerily troublesome than ever, seeming smug. And now, this gossip about Mary McDonald and Mulciber. It was hardly something a girl who'd been over the moon about her last year of school wanted to return to.

"Lily?" Susanna interrupted her thoughts, her voice a bit hesitant.

"Hmm?" Lily murmured, still coming back to the present. She dipped her quill in the inkpot, glancing up at Susanna. Susanna's back was still turned against the table, her strawberry hair hovering just about the surface. Susanna shifted a little and turned around, her face solemn. She paused a minute, until Lily looked up in expectation, wondering why she hadn't spoken.

"What?" Lily asked, a little impatiently. Susanna wasn't usually one to draw things out. Susanna looked at her for a second longer and got up, walking over to sit in the armchair Lily had been leaning against. She perched on the edge, her hands on her tightly pressed knees. Lily looked at her quizzically, getting an inkling that something serious was up with her best friend.

"You okay, Suze?" she asked, tapping the tip of her quill absently on the table. She'd scourge away the ink blots later.

"I've gotta talk to you, Lily." Susanna replied earnestly, still sounding a little chary. Lily raised an eyebrow at her worriedly.

"Sure, Susanna. What is it?" Lily asked gently, genuinely concerned now. It wasn't often Susanna acted in this uncertain way; she was usually on Lily's side, with the uptight advice, or her own personal brand of advice: sarcasm and irony. She looked at Lily for a moment, pressing her lips together so her face looked severe. Lily knew she was doing this to stop herself from crying; Susanna hated tears. She tossed her head back and laughed a little, the laugh sounded like a disbelieving snort.

"I slept with Sirius Black." She said heavily, looking at Lily with collected eyes. Lily stared back, not sure if she'd heard right. She barely kept her mouth from dropping open but she still didn't effectively hid the shock that spread over her face when Susanna spoke the words, because Susanna gave a tiny, half smile and looked down at her lap for a moment. When she looked back up, Lily had composed herself a little.

"You slept…" Lily faltered for a minute, and took a deep breath. She really hated to be blunt, but she figured there was no way to avoid that when speaking on the subject they were. "You mean you had sex with him, Susanna?" Lily asked, knowing full well what kind of reaction she was going to get. She wasn't wrong.

"Yes, Lily. I had sex with him." Susannah answered tersely, her knuckles turning white in her lap. Lily nodded, treading carefully. She sat back on her heels and dropped her quill on the table, homework again forgotten. Susanna had seemed a little quiet at first, before she'd gotten Lily to talk about what was bothering her. Lily hadn't thought anything of it at first, but now it seemed Susanna had been a little off since breakfast.

"Oh, Suze." She sighed, not sure whether to by sympathetic, or what sort of emotion was required here. "What happened? When did this happen?" she asked delicately. She watched her friend carefully. Susannah raised her shoulders and laughed oddly again, and then put her head in her hands, shaking it slightly. When she looked back up, her eyes were red and watery. "What were you thinking, Suze?" she asked, slightly urgently. It wasn't the principle but the person who scared her. She didn't want Susanna to get hurt.

"A few days ago." She laughed; Lily guessed she kept laughing to stop herself from crying or screaming. "I don't know…what happened. I was upset, about something, my dad…we were alone; he saw me burning the letter…I don't know. It happened so fast." Susanna didn't seem to want to elaborate anymore than that and shook her head, looking to the ceiling with her sardonic smile. Lily watched her silently, her arm still stretched out over her homework, her hand resting idly in her lap.

"Are you okay?" Lily asked quietly, her voice concerned. She wasn't sure what she could say to help, it seemed Susanna just wanted an ear for her secrets, but she was so upset and Lily hated to see her hurting. "He's not—he's not telling people?" Susanna ran her palms up and down her jeans, blowing air out through her lips.

"He hasn't. I mean, no one's said anything. Not yet." She answered, mumbling for the first time in a long time. "I'm okay. I'm…just…" Susanna stopped short, pressing her lips together. Lily got up swiftly and sat on the edge of the armchair, slipping her arm around the other girl's shoulder.

"You regret it." She said, a mix of a question and a statement. Susanna was still busy trying not to burst into tears; Lily didn't expect an instant reply. Finally, Susanna seemed to gain her control back.

"That's the thing, Lil." She said hoarsely. "I'm not sure…if I do. I do, but it," she hesitated, and swallowed hard, pulling back a little and turning to look at Lily. She blinked a couple times, clearing her eyes. "It," she tried again, and closed her eyes with a frustrated noise. "I'm just confused." She muttered. She watched Lily for a minute, looking every bit as conflicted as she sounded, and tilted her head to the side with a grunt. "I feel like…It wasn't a big deal, we're not dating, but then…then I can't decide if I'm upset , and I regret it, but I don't, and I don't want to talk to him. You think I'm insane." She finished, snorting.

Lily shook her head, frowning, her eyes solemn and wide.

"I don't know what you're going through, Susie." She said honestly, using the nickname Susanna's mother called her. Susanna smiled a little. "But I wish you hadn't—I mean, you. Ugh. I don't want you to get hurt is all." She said awkwardly, not wanting to sound like she was judging, and knowing that it sounded that way. "I'm not judging you." She clarified, exasperated at her sudden inability to be articulate. "But you can't take it back now."

"I know that." Susanna said tensely. She relaxed again a moment later and muttered an apology. Lily shrugged and clasped her shoulder, ignoring any shortness in her friend's tone. Susanna looked at the table for a minute, and when she looked back at Lily there were tears on her face, falling slowly. Lily was careful not to say anything, privy to how Susanna hated any reference to her crying. "It felt good to do it. Like I was getting back at my dad." She said shakily, her eyes angry. "The letter I got—he finally left."

"I'm so sorry, Suze." Lily said softly, her lips pulling at the corners. Susanna's dad wasn't much of a father, he was strict and a little rough, and he constantly cheated on her mother and was very judging towards Susanna, always pointing out her flaws. Susanna wiped her tears and leaned back against the couch, slouching down in the chair and taking a deep breath.

"It's a stupid reason to sleep with someone." She muttered darkly, Lily turned from her perch on the armrest to look at her, and she was staring at the wall to the left blankly. "And it didn't fix anything." Lily pressed her lips together in a sad grimace. She started to speak when Susanna turned her head back and smiled, not her usual clever smirk, but a smile all the same.

"It's better now. That I told someone." She laughed, more lightly this time. "I don't feel like a closet whore."

"You're not a whore." Lily corrected sharply, narrowing her eyes at Susanna. Susanna shrugged; she hadn't really meant it. She put her hand up to her mouth and bit her pinky nail, already looking back in character.

"Thanks for not freaking out." She said. Lily let herself smile. Practical Susanna. Typical of her to accept that she couldn't change it and start looking forward to see what would have to be done.

"At least it was the good-looking one, if it had to be a maruader." She said slyly. Susanna giggled and pulled her nail out of her mouth.

"You're the best to talk to, Lil." She said with a grin. Lily shrugged.

"Call me Dr. Evans." She sighed dramatically, sliding off the arm rest and leaning against the table with her arm propped on it. Susanna sat up and ran her fingers through her hair, shaking it out and sweeping it up into a messy ponytail, managing to look carelessly gorgeous. Lily swept her quill off the table and held it up dejectedly.

"Homework seems so uninviting after all this gossip." She said matter-of-factly. Susanna nodded, and groaned, still not looking completely herself. She took her quill from Lily and spoke again.

"Don't tell anyone, okay?" she asked, a little insecurely. Lily blinked. As if her blabbing about that had been a possibility.

"Don't be ridiculous, Susanna." She said sharply. Susanna nodded, her lips twitching. Both of them knew very well Lily wasn't going to be gossiping about sex with anyone. Especially Sirius Black's sex life. "Let's get to this homework. Then we can lie around and tease Sasha while she suffers through hers." Lily suggested. Susanna smirked and slid off the couch, reaching out and dragging her thick charms book across the table.

They took the next hour and a half working on their homework, chatting about the start of school and petty little things, both staying away from any hard subjects. Lily thought Susanna's mind must still be swimming around her faux pas with Sirius and she herself was still stressing out over Mulciber…and Severus, as a result. When she was finished with her grueling Transfiguration essay, she pulled her want out from her schoolbag and began practicing some spells she'd gotten rusty on over the summer holidays. Susanna was muttering to herself about a theoretical paper on ancient runes, something Lily couldn't help her with, and they passed the afternoon quietly. At one point, Lily lowered her want from levitating a fireplace poker and looked to a small clock on the small side table in the corner.

"Merlin, it's almost six. Where's Sasha?" she asked, looking around to Susanna, who'd just slammed her ancient runes book shut with a relieved look. Susanna glanced at the clock as well.

"I don't know…that girl's is completely unpredictable." She answered, her lips twitching. She shoved her work into her school bag and stood up, stretching. "Maybe she got in trouble again."

Lily snorted at the 'again'. Sasha had been stuck in double muggle studies this afternoon, a class she loved a little too much. She got on Professor Burbage's nerves with her bright questioning and incessant chattering—Sasha ended up cleaning Burbage's rooms a lot. Lily got up from her place on the floor and slid her wand into her back pocket.

"Dinner?" she asked. Susanna nodded, reaching up and jerking the hair tie out of her hair. She preceded Lily out of the dorm, straightening wrinkled clothes as they walked down the corridor.

"How'd we get lucky enough to avoid Potter for so long?" Susanna asked.

"I have no idea. He's always there." Lily answered with a groan. Susanna gave her a sideways glance and looked back ahead with a smirk, steering them towards the nearest connected staircase.

"I can't imagine living with him."

"Ugh." Lily shuddered. "He's so…obnoxious, and all the time. It's like he never runs out of smart things to say." She thought for a moment. "Or lewd things." She added. Susanna snorted derisively.

"I'll never comprehend what got him Head Boy." She said, shaking her head. Lily just grunted and rolled her eyes.

She'd been telling the truth. James Potter seemed to be in the dorm every moment of the day, even when he was supposed to be in a class. And unlike Lily's friends, his—well, okay, Sirius—was always hanging out in there. Lying on the couch. Zooming paper airplanes into the fireplace. Or they were all there; playing exploding snap loudly. Being loud in general. And Potter never stopped teasing her. It wasn't in a way that upset her, it wasn't mean. It was so galling, how she 

couldn't say one word without him construing it into some sexual innuendo or invitation. She spend a lot of time alone in her room, when he wasn't in the Gryffindor common room or out on the grounds.

"Suze! Lil!"

They stopped just before entering the great hall, waiting for Sasha, who'd appeared at the top of the grand staircase. She ran down to them, seeming to skip stairs and managing to look graceful. As usual, a hug smile was spread across her face and her hair was bouncing in a ponytail, the curly escapees hanging around her face. She wiggled in between Susanna and Lily sighed dramatically.

"Where've you been?" Susanna asked non-chalantly, glancing covertly at Lily. Sasha suppressed a giggle.

"Well, I have muggle studies with the Ravenclaws—"

"On, no." interrupted Lily. Sasha nudged her indignantly.

"I'm narrating, Evans!" she said, mock annoyed. "So Ted was across the room, and see, Andromeda was telling me this story yesterday of how he was really adorable when he tried to be dashing and romantic so I had to go ask him about it and Burbage just didn't understand the urgency—"

"We thought something along those lines." Susanna said, her smirking even more pronounced. Sasha raised her shoulders and her eyes to the ceiling, looking angelic.

"What can I say?" she commented, as they entered the great hall. It was fairly crowded, as six was about the time most people came for dinner. Andromeda waved as they came in, but she was busy arguing with the Ravenclaw quidditch captain about something and didn't come to talk. Lily scanned the Gryffindor table swiftly, looking for Potter or any of his crew, but none of them where there yet. She was sitting gown on the bench, some space between her and the group of sixth years, when Susanna nudged her and whispered in her ear quietly.

"Mulciber's here." she said. Lily nodded slightly and didn't look right away, preferring subtlety to the outright gawking everyone else was probably employing. After a moment she turned her head and made as if she were looking for someone, but surveyed Mulciber. He sat near the head of the Slytherin table, looking smug and talking coolly to Avery and the Carrows. Lily swallowed disgustedly, her hatred for the other student rising in her throat. She looked over to the other side of Carrow quickly, where Severus sat. He was looking at his food, but as she looked at him he looked up at Mulciber and said something, to which Mulciber gave him a slow smile and laughed. Lily looked away. She should listen to Susanna.

Sasha was sitting on the other side of the table with Alice Willow, talking animatedly about the very subject of Lily's staring. Susanna was watching them over the edge of her goblet.

"But don't you think if it was true, he'd be expelled?" Sasha was asking, cutting up the meat on her plate. Sasha was bubbling with energy, even with this horrible rumor.

"His dad's pretty rich, you know." Alice replied, as if this was an explanation.

"Dumbledore would never take a bribe." Sasha said in response, taking a bit of her food. Susanna put down her goblet. "Besides, why Mary McDonald? She's a Hufflepuff, she's a fifth year, and she's not gorgeous or anything—I mean I like her, but still." Alice shrugged. She was a quiet girl, not one for confrontation, but everybody liked her. Susanna chose this moment to chime in.

"Mary McDonald's a muggle born." She said carefully. Sasha stopped her fork mid bite and looked at Lily before replying.

"So?" she demanded. Susanna rolled her eyes.

"That's what this is all about. This 'death eater' bullshit. It's lineage. And Mary's brother beat Mulciber in quidditch the other day, snatched the snitch out from under his nose." Susanna explained.

"You think he did it?" Sasha asked curiously, interested. Susanna shrugged.

"Lily and I were talking about it. I think you're right, Sash, I don't think he did it. It's farfetched. But her parents think he did, and that's something to look at. Alice's right too, there should be more of an inquiry, but something's been hushed up."

Sasha looked at her thoughtfully and Alice looked tow both sides for a minute before leaning forward.

"Frank's dad works in magical law. He said he heard his parents talking about it. Dumbledore was apparently incensed and believed Mary, but the school board came up with a bunch of proof and stuff. Dumbledore's still advocating Mary, but even he has to admit with her history and the alibi, he can't get anywhere."

"What about the other stuff?" Lily asked suddenly, speaking up for the first time. Alice looked at her expectantly. "You know, the dark magic his friends, Snape and Avery, those guys, used on her? Is that true?"

She felt Susanna looking at her knowingly, and Sasha rolled her eyes across the table but Lily ignored them both. Alice didn't seem to think anything of the question.

"They think that's nothing more than the normal rivalry that goes on between houses, no more than fun spells." She said airily. She, like the others, seemed to think the main gossip was Mulciber.

They were all quiet for a moment, eating or drinking, thinking about Alice's divulgence. The rest of the hall was buzzing, no doubt about the same thing.

"What a way to start a year." Grumbled Susanna, breaking the silence. She tossed her hair back and stabbed her meat viciously. "I wish someone would do something worthy of fun gossip."

Sasha and Lily burst into laughter at this, and Susanna smiled as well. The last adjective their friend would ever use for gossip was 'fun'. She was a bit of a snob when it came to whispers, considering herself above it all. Alice smiled shyly, not sure what the joke was but enjoying the company all the same.

"Well if you want something fun, Maisey Lovegood told me something about Sirius Black—"

Susanna dropped her fork on her plate and Sasha stopped mid-sentence, looking at her in surprise. Lily didn't react at all, and Alice didn't either; she didn't find it odd that someone dropped their fork.

"What, now his name just scares you? You and Lily!" Sasha giggled, shaking her head. She turned her attention back to all of them, while Susanna picked up her goblet and very carefully kept her face a mask. "Anyway, so apparently he—speak of the devil!" she yelled suddenly. Lily swiveled around to see James and his faithful sidekick sauntering up the aisle, Remus Lupin following behind with a parchment in his hands.

"Did someone call?" Sirius asked loudly, looking around. Sasha laughed heartily. She, unlike her two friends, thoroughly enjoyed the antics of the 'marauders' and considered Remus one of her friends. Meaning she rather liked to dazzle him with her ceaseless energy. Lily turned the other way, where Sirius was standing behind the bench between her and Susanna; she wanted her back to Potter. So she got a firsthand look at Sirius when he looked down and saw Susanna sitting in front of him, though she wasn't looking at him. His small faltered for a minute and Lily swore she saw his eyes dart to herself before he spoke, his voice a little more subdued.

"Hey, Susie." He greeted. Alice looked at Lily, mildly surprised, and Lily herself widened her eyes. First of all, he hadn't called her 'Farris Wheel', which was what he pretty much always called her, second of all, he hadn't pulled her hair, something he'd been doing since he first met here when she'd been in pigtails in first year, a hairdo he said was 'asking for a yank'. Sasha just smiled and waited for Susanna's response. Susanna set down her goblet and turned around slightly, as if sizing him up.

"Sirius." She said civilly. He beamed at her, and swung down onto the bench next to her, helping himself to a huge plate of food. Susanna glanced at Lily, and Lily raised her eyebrows. She 

didn't really have a minute to say get anything from Susanna's silent conversation, because James had wedged himself between her and Susanna in the next second.

"Evans, I have not seen you all day! Do you know the agony I've been suffering?" he asked playfully, pouting his lips and leaning close to her. She jerked away, hitting Remus, who was standing behind her, still reading the paper in his hands.

"Sorry," he muttered. Lily replied with the same thing and focused her attention back on the arrogant toerag in her face.

"My day's been lovely." She said pointedly, shoving him back. James gave a mock gasp of despair and gave her the biggest eyes he could, even effecting a bit of lip trembling.

"Oh, give it up." Muttered Susanna on the other side. Alice started to ask her about her Charms work and Sasha was engrossed in a conversation with Sirius about burning down the astronomy tower.

"Lilykins, you're killin' my self-esteem here. Don't you think I'm cute?" he asked. Lily almost gagged on her tongue, and laughed at how ridiculous he looked and sounded. He started to grin, thinking he'd gotten to her.

"Potter, little kittens are cute." She replied sarcastically, laughing derisively. He gave possible the girliest sounding gasp of hurt he could muster and leaned back, shaving Susanna over into Sirius.

"Whoa, Prongsie, stop shoving girls in my lap, that's hazardous!" sniggered Sirius. Susanna's cheeks darkened and she punched James in the side hard. He grunted slightly, but he wasn't done teasing Lily.

"You're just going to have to make up for the insult by going out with me, Lily-flower." He said matter-of-factly, folding his arms.

"I'm going to regurgitate my dinner." Lily groaned, distaste written across her face.

"So many big words, Evans!" whined Sirius; his face appearing around Susanna's back next to James.

"You'll have to explain them to me over dinner." James sighed, his eyes dancing. Oh, he was enjoying this.

"Bugger off, you little berk." Susanna said finally, giving James's head a murderous look. James ignored her.

"Evans, I'm getting tired of this disrespect from you tight-ass friend—"

A huge, resounding, bang and a shout of glee interrupted the insult that would have gotten James Potter killed by Susanna Farris, and all of them, the entire hall included, snapped their heads towards the lobby outside the great hall, where the sound was coming from. People started to jump up, running, and Sasha jumped up, climbing onto the bench and looking over heads. There was a smaller snapping sound and loud, cruel laughter sounded and Lily jumped up, her argument forgotten. Her feeling that something was wrong was confirmed when a girl screamed and someone yelled "FIGHT!" at the top of their lungs. She leapt out of her spot and headed for the hall, looking around for a teacher.

Out in the lobby, tons of students, with more running out of the great hall, were gathered around Mulciber, flanked behind by the Carrows, Avery, and way back, standing with Dolohov, looking grim, Snape. On the other side was Ricky McDonald, with his wands pointed at Mulciber, tears on his red face. Lily felt a pang in her heart for him, as she shoved through the crowd trying to get to the fight.

"Is that all you go, McDonald? Your baby sister could do better!" taunted Mulciber, his cronies laughing jeeringly. "And she did, McDonald, she did."

"Shut UP!" screamed Ricky, flinging a wordless spell at Mulciber. He was too upset to do anything, and the spell, whatever it was, did nothing but cause another bang. "I know what you did to her, you bastard!" Mulciber laughed.

"She's got a big mouth, your sissy," he said lewdly, the double meaning behind his words sickening Lily. She yelled over the crowd, but her voice was lost. "Changed her story ten times, at least, I didn't do nuthin to that howling bitch—"

"You messed with her memory!" howled Ricky. He thrust his want and this time Mulciber stumbled backwards, winded. Lily reached the front of the crowd, just behind Ricky, right as Mulciber steadied himself. He looked less amused now.

"STOP!" screamed Lily, stepping out into them, praying anxiously for a teacher to show up. Mulciber turned his attention to her.

"What're you gonna do about it, Mudblood?" he asked cuttingly. "Stay out of it." He growled. He raised his want and Lily lunged forward, reaching for hers. "I said STOP—" she broke off with a yelp in mid-scream, her hand barely to her want. His stinging hex had cut across her face, and she felt an angry welt blossom there.

So quickly, before she even had time to realize Potter had been behind her, he had Mulciber's arms locked behind his back. Potter was smaller than Mulciber, but angrier, and with more concentrated muscle.

"Fucking scum." He muttered, as Mulciber wrenched in his grip. Lily jerked her wand out, ignoring the stinging on her face and trying to focus on stopping the violence.

"Protecting the little Mudblood, eh, potter?" hissed Mulciber, giving Lily a poisonous glare. He smiled lewdly as his eyes raked over Lily, and she suddenly felt like his eyes where burning right through her. "Maybe there's some good in this one, Potter, I'm impressed—just make sure you marry pureblood like a goodbye and fuck the dirty—" James punched Mulciber in the side of the face and Lily flinched, feeling her face get red at the thought of what the rest of his foul sentence might have contained.

"What is going on here?" the cool, sharp voice of Professor McGonagall rose over the crowd of students, and she, too seemed to appear out of nowhere. She took in the scene, and her eyes narrowed as she looked from Mulciber to McDonald, still in attack stance, to Potter.

"Mr. Potter, release Mulciber." She said tightly. James obeyed, letting go with disgust, cursing under his breath, and McGonagall took Mulciber by the collar. She looked over At Ricky, and Lily followed her glance; Susanna and Sasha were behind Ricky, with Alice and the rest of James's friends, looking a bit shaken. "Mr. McDonald, I'll see to you later." She said sharply, dragging Mulciber off with her. The students slowly started to gravitate towards Ricky, jabbering, wanting to know what had happened. Lily caught glimpse of Severus as she relaxed her defensive stance and put her wand back in her pocket; she looked at him tightly, angrily. He looked away quickly. Susanna was the first by her side, but James beat her to the quick, stepping forward anxiously.

"Are you okay?" he asked tightly, still looking white-faced and tense.

"Fine." Lily muttered, turning away slightly. Sirius was still by Susanna's side, Lily barely registered his hand resting on her arm above the elbow, but he looked solemn and hurried away suddenly, both her and Remus muttering to James.

"C'mon, mate calm down" Sirius said. Lily turned to her concerned friend.

"Oh my god." Sasha exclaimed, her face pale. "I can't believe…that was harsh." She said, not seeming to be able to find the words she wanted. Susanna was silent, but her lips were pressed together and she looked livid.

"You need salve for your face." She said generically. Lily had forgotten about the burn and reached up gingerly to touch it. She glanced over her shoulder, but James had walked farther away, and he was gesturing angrily at his friends; she couldn't hear what he was saying. She looked back at her friends.

"I'll go see the nurse." She said quietly, still shaken up. Sasha started talking to her, and Alice, wondering what had gone on, admiring Ricky for standing up for his sister, but Susanna was still looking searchingly at Lily. In the back of her mind, Lily remembered how fast James had attacked Mulciber when he'd raised his wand against her, and the livid look on his face at the insinuation he'd spouted but—"

"You okay, Lils?" Susanna asked quietly, so Sasha wouldn't hear and ask a million questions.

"Yeah." Lily answered, bringing her hand away from her face. She rubbed her palm against her skirt, for something do with her hands.

At the front of her mind, was Mulciber's leering smile and the way his eyes had run over her like she was an object on display for his pleasure. The way he'd looked at her…had frightened her.

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