So here's the second instalment, I hope you like it! I' love to know what you're thinking of this story so please leave a review! Any feedback is welcome x

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story apart from my OCs.

Girls Chase Boys who Chase Girls

The first week back was already in full swing and it hadn't taken long for the teachers to impress upon the seventh-year students how much work they would need to put in this year. Harper knew that NEWTs were important but May was still a long way off and right now she just wanted to enjoy being back with her friends.

"So how's it going with Potter? Is he living up to his reputation?" Harper asked; she was intrigued as to how Lily was coping having to work together with the boy she had long since disparaged as arrogant and conceited.

"Can't really comment, I haven't had that much to do with him to be honest," shrugged Lily, not bothering to look up from her timetable.

"But he's Head Boy," frowned Harper.

"I know."

"And you're Head Girl," she continued, not really grasping how it was possible for the two not to have crossed paths.

"I know that too."

"Don't you have patrols together?"

"Not the way the rota's worked out," she shrugged.

"Who makes the rota?"

"Me," she smiled sweetly, finally looking up from the piece of paper she had been studying.

"OK, making a lot more sense now," laughed Harper. James was going to have to work a lot harder than she thought.

"I thought you were going to give him a chance."

"No, you said I should give him a chance, I didn't agree to it," she smirked.

"You're impossible," laughed Harper, shaking her head.

"I know, are you going to eat that?" Lily asked, grabbing the piece of toast on Harper's plate and swinging her legs of the bench.

"Thanks, got to run, I've got Charms. I'll see you at lunch."

Yes, she thought, James definitely had his work cut out for him; even after a six year pursuit, that redhead was not going down without a fight.

Later that day James and Sirius took themselves off to the library with the vague intention of starting their Charm's essays but mainly to give Moony a couple hours quiet time in the dormitory. The full moon was only a few days away and they knew Remus needed as much rest as possible in the days leading up to it. Besides, they would have their fun roaming around the castle soon enough.

"So how's it going with Evans?" Sirius asked, lounging back in his chair.

"If I'd spent any time with her I might be able to tell you," laughed James bitterly, not even attempting to mask the disappointment in his voice.

"That good, huh?"

"She still hates me," he sighed, running his hand through his hair, clearly frustrated.

"She'll come round, mate," assured Sirius.

He knew how much James liked Lily and how much he genuinely cared for her. She was not a project or a challenge that he would lose interest in if she ever succumbed to his determination. For James, Lily was the only girl that mattered and while this was not a feeling that Sirius could empathise with, he could at least sympathise.

"Yeah and what if she doesn't?"

"She will and as a testament to my faith, we'll make a bet: if you two aren't together by the end of the year, I'll give you … ten sickles."

"Ten sickles. Really? That's all my romantic future is worth to you. You're heir to the Black fortune and you bet ten sickles," he challenged incredulously.

"I was heir to the Black fortune and she did choose the Giant Squid," Sirius joked, referring of course to the infamous James and Lily showdown following their Defence Against the Dark Arts exam.

"If the intention of this discussion was to comfort me you've completely failed," James snorted, fixing his glasses on his face.

"Well, I tried," Sirius shrugged, stretching his arms as he leaned back further in his chair, tipping it back onto two legs.

"So what about you and McKinnon?" James asked.

He knew that Sirius had never been interested in having a girlfriend; he was just interested in having a good time and that didn't include a committed relationship. Nevertheless, James had a feeling that Marlene was different. The question was whether or not Sirius would screw it up before he figured it out for himself.

"What about it?" Sirius demanded.

"Is there anything going on between you two that I should know about?"

"It's just harmless fun. No strings," he shrugged.

"Does she know that?"

Sirius was his best mate, there was no question, but he cared about Marlene as well and he didn't want her to fall prey to Sirius' fear of commitment; she deserved a lot better.

"She knows I'm not good at the whole relationship thing and she's cool with that. She understands."

"If you say so," sighed James, entirely unconvinced.

"I do," nodded Sirius.

"She's a great girl."

"I know that."

"I just don't want you to ruin any friendship you have," he continued.

"You can't ruin a relationship with sex, James. That's like trying to ruin apple pie by adding ice-cream," laughed Sirius.

"Well you still need to be considerate … ice-cream aside," he joked, but Sirius could still detect the hidden warning and he couldn't blame him. After all, James was just looking out for her.

"I'll bear that in mind, Prongs," he nodded. "Do you want to head down for dinner? I'm starving … it's probably all this studying I've done" he smirked.

"Yeah that must be it," laughed James, shaking his head as the two friends stuffed their parchment and quills into their bags and headed off to the Great Hall.

It was hard for Sirius not to open up to his best mate but right now he really didn't fancy getting into the complexities of his relationship with McKinnon; he couldn't exactly speak about his feelings to James when he didn't even know what he was feeling himself. For right now though they were just friends and that was the way it had to stay, for her sake as much as his own.

The seventh years had been back for a week now and in order to start the year right the Marauders had decided to organise a party in the Gryffindor common room, excluding the Slytherins of course. Earlier that day, James and Sirius had a paid a visit to the kitchens and roped the house elves into supplying enough food and butterbeer to keep the party flowing well into the night. For the stronger spirits, however, they had to rely on the help of a certain barmaid who luckily had a soft spot for the pair.

By half eleven the music was blaring, the drink was flowing and it was safe to say that the party was in full swing. Casting yet another furtive look in Lily's direction, James noticed that, for the first time that night, she was finally alone. Knocking back one last shot for a bit of Dutch courage, he made his way over to where the redhead was standing, flipping through some record sleeves that were lying next to the record player.

Totally engrossed in the Beatle's album in front of her, James cleared his throat awkwardly so as to alert her to his presence, smiling as she looked up to see him standing there.

"Alright, Evans?"

"Fine thanks. You?"

"Good yeah, you look nice," he nodded at her outfit, shoving his hands in his pockets to stop himself from running his hands through his hair like he usually did whenever she was around. It was a nervous habit he had once hoped would impress or at least endear him to her, instead it just seemed to make her really angry.

"Oh … thanks," she smiled, taking a sip of her drink. "It's a good party. Definitely up to your usual standard."

"Yeah, had to make it count. Considering it's our last year and everything," he added, taking a look around the party before returning his gaze to the redhead in front of him.

"So … I haven't seen you much … on patrols."

"I know, guess it's just the luck of the rota," she shrugged.

"I know you make the rota," he smirked, laughing as he watched her cheeks flush in embarrassment.

"Oh."

"It's OK, Lily. I know you probably would have preferred Remus and I honestly didn't lobby for the position but we can try and make the best of it, can't we? I know I'm not exactly synonymous with responsibility but I promise I'll put in a good effort … solemnly swear," he joked, laughing as she rolled her eyes at him. This was probably the most amicable conversation they had ever had.

"I also know there's alcohol but I'll try and moderate it," he continued. "Can't make any promises with Sirius around though," he added, nodding at the direction of his best mate who currently had his tongue down the throat of some Ravenclaw in the year below.

His hands were resting firmly on her hips as they broke apart briefly for Sirius to whisper something in her ear to which she blushed and giggled, only to resume snogging his face off. Poor Marlene. This was not going to end well.

"Not sure McKinnon's looking much better to be fair" James laughed.

Lily followed his gaze to the sight of Marlene, giggling at a story Dirk Cresswell was telling. She was leaning against the table and filling up her cup with a bottle of what looked to be Firewhisky, knocking back the drink like it was pumpkin juice.

"Oh that's not good. Is that whisky?"

"Mr Ogden's finest," he grimaced.

"Oh sweet Merlin. I'm going to go deal with … that," she groaned, gesturing to her friend. "I'll see you around, who knows maybe we'll bump into each other on patrol?"

"I'd like that," he smiled. She nodded, turning to walk away.

"And, Evans?"

"Yeah."

"If you need a hand carrying her upstairs, you know where I am."

"Thanks, Potter," she smiled, surprised at how nice he was being; maybe Harper was right and she should give him a chance.

"I'm pretty strong … you know … because of all the Quidditch," he smirked.

"And we're back," she sighed, rolling her eyes.

He almost had her fooled.

Setting down her own cup, Lily squeezed her way through the crowd of party goers to help her friend. Harper had obviously noticed the boozy blonde's antics as well and was shepherding her away from the drinks table and setting her down on the arm on one of the Gryffindor armchairs.

"Having fun, Marls?" Lily grinned.

"Heaps," slurred the blonde sarcastically, topping up her cup with the bottle of Firewhisky Harper had failed to pry from her hands.

"Yeah you really look it," she smirked, eyeing the red cup in her hands.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm fine," insisted Marlene, swaying slightly.

"You don't look fine; you look sad and mopey and several other similarly depressing synonyms that could also pass as Snow White's dwarves," joked Lily, not bothering to explain the Muggle reference which Marlene was unlikely to understand.

"Is it because James' record collection doesn't include anything by the Stones? Because I get that."

"No I think that's your complaint, Lils, not mine."

"Is it because Sirius is with another girl?" Harper asked, wary of the blonde's reaction to the insinuation that her feelings towards the eldest Black brother were more than platonic. Marlene sighed, picking away at the rim of the paper cup in her hands.

"Sirius is at perfect liberty to spend his time with whoever he wants. Like I said, we're friends, there are no feelings and now that he's … enjoying himself, so can I. I mean just yesterday Benjy Fenwick asked me to go with him to the first Hogsmeade trip and I didn't give him an answer because …"

"Because you wanted to go with Sirius?" Lily interrupted.

"Because I didn't want to step on anybody's toes, but his … amorous and … rather public display of affection with that Ravenwhore has highlighted that obviously I didn't need to worry," explained Marlene, her voice becoming slightly shrill as she shot a pointed look in the direction of the Marauder.

"Maybe I'll try and speak to Benjy tonight or not, you never know, there are other options. Hogsmeade is three weeks away, plenty of time for another invitation."

"Exactly. I'm sure your Prince Charming is just waiting to sweep you off your feet," nodded Lily, blocking Marlene's view of Sirius.

"That's sweet, Lils, but life's not a fairytale. In real life the prince goes off with the wrong princess or you know … gets off with her in a broom closet. I'm not Cinderella," she sighed, taking a big gulp of her drink.

"Yeah I know, Cinderella didn't drown her sorrows with Firewhisky," frowned Lily.

"It's a new game I invented; it's called every time I'm depressed I take a shot," Marlene joked bitterly, raising her cup in an imaginary toast.

"I'm pretty sure that game already exists."

"Yeah it's called alcoholism," Lily deadpanned.

"And it's not cute," she added, taking the cup from Marlene's hand and pulling her up off the chair, slipping an arm round her friend's waist to steady her.

"Come on you, let's take you to bed and get you some water … or coffee … in a drip. There we go, that's it, one foot in front of the other," she chuckled as Marlene draped herself over Lily's shoulder as they made their way up the stairs, Harper following on behind.

The next morning Lily and Harper were sitting at the Gryffindor table having breakfast when a sleepy and slightly dishevelled-looking Marlene slid into the seat opposite. She looked as rough as Harper assumed she felt, although in fairness to her friend, there were a few other seventh years dotted around the Great Hall who were also looking decidedly worse for wear.

"Good morning, sunshine!" Harper chirped, smirking as Marlene winced slightly. She was definitely paying for last night.

"Go away!" she groaned.

"Not feeling too chipper this morning?" Lily asked innocently.

"My head hurts," she grumbled, leaning her forehead on the table.

"I'm not surprised. Eggs?"

"Ugh no, get them away," she moaned, closing her eyes and wrinkling his nose.

"You look an attractive shade of green," remarked Harper.

"I'm never drinking again."

"Till the next party anyway," Lily laughed.

"You can spare me the lecture, Lils. I can assure you that the pounding in my head is punishment enough." She took a sip of the water in front of her and picked up a slice of dry toast, nibbling tentatively at a corner.

"What happened, Marls?" Harper asked softly. She knew that Marlene's reaction last night was due to Sirius and while her friend had insisted she knew what she was doing, Harper was not prepared for another repeat of last night.

"I drank too much," she shrugged.

"I know, but why?"

"I don't know, I was just having fun and trying to act like I didn't care and then Sirius walked in with that blonde bitch and it all kind of went to hell," she mumbled, embarrassed that her usual composure had crumbled to betray the sincerity of her feelings towards Sirius.

"So you're admitting that you do like him?"

"Maybe … I think I'm still drunk though so you can't take anything I say seriously," she added quickly, laughing as the two friends rolled their eyes at her. "It's stupid, it's not like I don't know what he's like but I just thought he cared … obviously I was wrong. I'm sorry I got in that state."

"Thanks for looking after me," she added, reaching for another piece of toast.

"It's fine," Lily assured.

"And putting me to bed. I thought I had a pretty good handle on my alcohol but that punch was strong," she joked, clearly trying to steer the conversation away from her feelings for the Gryffindor playboy.

"It was brewed by the Marauders … and the Firewhisky probably didn't help either," Harper smirked.

"Those boys have a lot to answer for, I can't believe James! I mean, he comes back this year and acts like he's more responsible and I think, maybe he's changed, maybe I've been too harsh on him and then this happens!" huffed Lily, gesturing with her fork and causing a bit of scrambled egg to fly across the table.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"That's the first time I've heard you refer to him as James and not Potter," smirked Marlene, taking a big bite of her toast as she smiled triumphantly as if Lily had just confessed her undying love for her long-proclaimed nemesis.

"It was just a slip of the tongue," she shrugged.

"You know you shouldn't be so hard on him, Lil. He didn't pour the drink down my throat, I brought this on myself; I was being stupid."

"I know but he supplied the alcohol," argued Lily. If there was a way for Lily to blame something on James Potter, through hell and high water, she would always find it.

"Not single-handedly and it was a room full of seventeen-year-olds, what did you think they were going to drink? Pumpkin juice?" Marlene laughed.

"No, I guess not," Lily sighed dejectedly.

"Don't worry, Lils, I'm sure he'll slip up soon," joked Harper, checking her watch. "Lily we should go or else we'll be late for Potions, can't have Slughorn's golden girl late on only the second week back. We'll see you at lunch, Marls."

"Yeah see you later, Marls!" waved Lily, slinging her bag over her shoulder as they headed off to the dungeons.

The two girls parted as they entered the classroom, Lily begrudgingly assuming her seat next to Snape and Harper continuing to the back of the class and slipping into her usual seat next to the dark-haired Slytherin. At NEWT level it was not uncommon for the sixth and seventh year classes to overlap and Harper had found herself paired with Regulus on more than once occasion; a partnership that Professor Slughorn was only too keen to encourage.

"And so we meet again," said the younger Black, turning to face her with a small smile that seemed sincere but didn't quite reach the warmth of his eyes.

"Yeah, at least this time I'm not ploughing into you," she joked, returning the smile.

While the family struggles between the brothers were well-known, the recognition of their similarities in terms of appearance was almost simultaneous and while the older brother prided himself on his distinction from his family, he just couldn't shake the aesthetic characteristics which so easily identified him as a Black.

Watching him assemble his cauldron, Harper noted that Regulus' build was slightly leaner than that of his brother's. Regardless, it was still easy to trace the outlines of the muscles on his arms, and, while he may been an inch smaller than Sirius, he was still tall enough to tower over her; although admittedly that wasn't difficult.

"Sorry if I was awkward before, I had a lot on my mind," he apologised. She turned to look at him and he quickly averted his gaze, choosing instead to concentrate on the empty glass vial in his hand. He cleared his throat and ran one hand through his hair quickly; something Harper had noted he often did when he was nervous.

"It's fine, you don't need to explain, but you know … if you ever want to talk, I've been told I'm a pretty good listener." She smiled gently, hoping to coax a confession from the young Slytherin as to why he had been acting so strangely.

"Lacewing flies," he stuttered.

"I'm sorry, what?" She frowned slightly, confused by his sudden outburst.

"We need lacewing flies … for the potion, I'll go get some," he explained.

"Oh … right … OK … yeah you go get the flies, I'll just wait here … and pretend like you didn't just completely ignore my offer to help," she muttered under her breath, wincing slightly at the harsh scraping of his chair as he quickly vacated his seat and made for the supply cupboard.

He returned not long after, brandishing a glass jar and smiling awkwardly.

"Got them."

"Great," she exclaimed, perhaps a little too enthusiastically.

Setting the jar down on the table, Regulus resumed his position on the bench as the two continued to work quietly, pausing only to confer with the instructions.

After several minutes, Harper decided to break the silence: "So, how are your other classes going?"

"Fine," he nodded, not bothering to look up from the cauldron.

"Good thing about sixth year I guess … no exams." She was officially rambling now but she didn't care. He was going to converse with her.

"Yeah, it's good," he shrugged.

"Nice break from OWLs, how did you do? I forgot to ask before."

"Fine thanks."

"Great!"

She opened her mouth, preparing for her next onslaught of questioning when she was interrupted by Professor Slughorn who was now standing in front of them and eyeing them both expectantly.

"Ah Miss Collins, Mr Black, how are things going over here? Any trouble with the instructions?" He asked, peering into the cauldron and smiling approvingly.

"No Professor, everything's fine. I'm fine, the potion's fine … Regulus is definitely fine," she muttered; her smile forced and her tone falsely cheery. The professor's brow furrowed; his face etched with confusion.

"Err right … well I'll … leave you to it I guess," he smiled awkwardly, nodding at both of them and moving on to the next pair. As soon as he had turned his back, Regulus spun round to face her.

"What was that about?" He demanded, narrowing his eyes as she held his gaze firmly, determined not to back down.

"You. I've barely got a complete sentence out of you since we've been back. Why are you being so evasive?"

"I'm not being evasive, I told you I've …"

"Had a lot on your mind, yeah I got that," she finished, her hands on her hips as she stared at him pointedly. "Look, Regulus, I know we we're not best friends or anything but I think I deserve a little more than the silent treatment I've been getting."

"You're right, I'm sorry," he muttered.

"I don't want to pry," she started, her tone softer this time.

"You'd never know," he smirked.

"It's just that Sirius mentioned that …"

"Why were you discussing me with my brother?" He demanded.

"We weren't … you just came up in discussion, that's all. He cares about you, Regulus," she insisted, her eyes fixed on his, imploring him to believe the sincerity behind her words.

"Yeah he cared so much that he left," he muttered, his tone bitter and full of resentment.

"He left your parents and their ideals."

"Ideals that I share, Collins."

"You don't mean that," she insisted, refusing to believe that Regulus would associate with people who campaigned for the eradication of her existence not only from this world but also her own.

"Look, I don't need to justify my choices to you and my brother rescinded the right to comment on my life the day that he walked out of it." He turned his back to her and began filling a glass vial with the potion, labelling it with both of their names and cleaning the cauldron with a flick of his wand.

"Is this because of Rosier?" She questioned, determined not to let the matter drop.

"What are you talking about?"

"Rosier and his … cronies, Avery and Wilkes … Snape, they're forcing you into something, aren't they?" She demanded.

"Why does no one think that I'm capable of making my own decisions?" He questioned angrily, slinging his satchel over his shoulder as he made his way to the front of the classroom to place the vial on Slughorn's desk.

"I'm not saying that, I just don't want you to get in too deep," she insisted, struggling to keep up as Regulus strode out of the dungeons, clearly trying to curtail any further discussion.

"Regulus, please!"

He stopped suddenly and sighed, refusing to meet her gaze.

"Can you at least look at me?" She implored, smiling as he looked up at her, his hair falling casually into his face.

"Do you want to maybe frown a little less?" She teased, bumping his shoulder with her arm playfully as his gaze softened slightly to betray a small smile.

"I'm going to be late for Arithmancy."

"Regulus, have I done something?" She asked softly.

"You haven't done anything," he sighed.

"Then why won't you speak to me?"

"I can't," he said quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"Those 'cronies' you referred to earlier …"

"What about them?"

"They may have a slight problem with you and I being … friendly," he finished, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"So that's you've been so short with me?"

"They're not people you mess around with, Harper. I don't want them getting the wrong impression," he defended, sighing in exasperation.

"No we wouldn't want that now, would we?"

"I'm sorry."

At least he had the decency to look ashamed, she thought.

"No, it's fine. I get it. Why would a pureblood like you slum it with a mudblood like me?" She laughed bitterly, fixing her gaze on her shoes so as to hide the flushed colour rising to her cheeks.

"Don't call yourself that," he demanded.

"Why? Your friends have no problem saying it to my face."

"It's complicated, you wouldn't …"

"Understand? And you think I'm being the one who's being patronising," she snorted, shaking her head. "You have a choice, Regulus. Don't act like you don't. I hope for your sake you really do know what you're getting yourself into because those people you class as friends don't care who they hurt in order to get what they want. You're just a pawn, Reg."

"Collins, wait!"

She quickened her pace as she rounded the corner, but he caught up with her in a few strides, reaching out for her hand which she quickly snatched away.

"I have to go. I'll see you around … or not, wouldn't want to upset Rosier now would we?" she sneered, turning her back on the younger brother whose hand shot to the back of his head, gripping his hair in frustration.

"Harper!"

She paused but only for a split second.

"Bye, Black."