All disclaimers apply; I only own my characters =P

Chapter 7:

Sirius lay on the floor on his back for a long moment; staring idly at the ceiling as he tried to calm his heart down. Arella had really thrown him for a ride, and definitely not in a good way. It was a shocking reminder of what Arella was truly capable of.

"Bloody hell woman," Sirius muttered as he glared over at Arella. "For your information, I came here because I don't have a date anymore and I thought you'd like the company. And before you misinterpret that I mean that in a non-sexual sort of way."

"Really? So all of this isn't some elaborate plan of yours to get in my pants?" Arella stated bluntly, for some reason unafraid of what she was saying. Any other day she might have been more cautious but having a guy fly up to her window and scare her put of her wits seemed to have put mild mannered Arella on the back burner for the moment.

"No, it's not. I just want to be friends and quite frankly I'm not good at being just friends with a girl," Sirius replied as he sat up; silently shocked by Arella's bluntness. "You're practically Remus's sister, it would be wrong of me to try that."

"Practically Remus's sister?" Arella echoed curiously as she walked around Sirius. Sirius shook his head as he rolled onto his stomach and got to his feet. He stumbled a bit; still a bit unsteady from Arella tossing him around.

"You know what I mean," he grumbled irritably. "I'm not even sure why I'm bothering with this."

"Join the club Black," Arella muttered as she glared at him.

"I meant it Arella," Sirius emphasized her name as he spoke. "Not here to shag you; just want to be friends."

Arella scowled; unsure what to do. Normally it was no effort to simply reach into a person's thoughts and learn their motives but Sirius's mind was impenetrable to her and for once Arella had no idea what to do. He threw her completely off balance.

"How can I trust you…"Arella murmured aloud without thinking.

"Remus does," Sirius huffed. Arella looked up at him realizing that he had heard her.

"I am not Remus; unlike him I do not walk blindly into something and that's exactly what you're asking me to do. I can't see your thoughts Sirius and I can't guess at your motives; that frightens me," Arella explained honestly.

"Look, if I just wanted a shag or a snog Danvers I wouldn't be putting this much effort into it. You know that," Sirius commented. "Trust actions then, if you can't trust my word."

"Trust your actions?" Arella repeated softly.

"Friends," Sirius held out his hand and he stared directly into Arella's eyes. Arella looked back into them; there was a challenge in his grey eyes. They dared her to take a leap of faith and be friends with him; to not over think her decision. She stared back into his grey eyes not sure what she hoped to accomplish.

"I will not hesitate to hurt you if you hurt me," Arella finally vowed as she took his hand into hers. "It'll be painful; you'll definitely cry." Sirius couldn't help the smirk that formed on his lips; he had no doubt that she would keep her word about that.

"And I'll do everything in my power to not hurt you," Sirius promised.

"Good….now get out of my dorm room," Arella quipped as she released his hand and walked over to her trunk.

"Huh?"

"Well I can't exactly change into my costume if you're standing there," Arella explained; opening her trunk and unshrinking her costume.

"Right…." Sirius grabbed his broomstick and went to the still open window. "I'll see you downstairs."

The walk down to the Great Hall was a quiet one; Sirius had taken the time to straighten out his own costume before going to the Common Room to wait for her. When the Gryffindor girl had finally come out of her dorm room and into the Common Room Sirius was utterly stunned. The dress she wore was simple and utterly elegant on her. She had kept it to Gryffindor colors with the main color being a crimson red and adding in accents of gold. She also added alstroemeria blossoms to the ends of her elbow length sleeves and to the left side of her simple gold mask. Her hair was swept back from her face and held with the clip Sirius had given her. The ends of her hair flowed freely from the clip and added an almost exotic look to her. Now as the pair walked Sirius couldn't help but think just how well they looked together. His black dress robes had been accented with gold to match the accents on hers.

"You're awfully quiet," Arella commented as they neared the Great Hall. Sirius glanced over at Arella and smirked.

"Just soaking in what a pair we make. Just to warn you some of my admirers are gonna be jealous of you," Sirius volleyed.

"Please, I can take 'em," Arella retorted with a small and very unlady-like snort.

"Oh I know that Danvers, just giving you a fair warning," Sirius laughed. They reached the doors of the Great Hall and Arella balked for a brief moment. It wasn't brief enough for Sirius not to notice though.

"What's wrong?" he asked concerned.

"Crowds," she responded simply. "I can already feel all of the excited and emotional thoughts of everyone in there."

"Ah…" Sirius muttered before adding. "Well focus on my mind, you said before you can't read me right?" Arella nodded in conformation before Sirius continued. "Use my mind as a retreat, focus on it and maybe the other minds will fade away." Arella tilted her head to the side as she thought about Sirius's suggestion. It wasn't a bad idea actually. So she tried it. Her mind focused solely onto Sirius's and the familiar emptiness came and the normal buzzing Arella always felt in her mind faded away. Arella couldn't help but close her eyes as she allowed herself to bathe in the silence her mind held for the first time in years. A silent mind was a luxury she hadn't felt for most of her life. When she opened her eyes the silence remained as her mind clung to Sirius's.

"It's working!" she breathed excitedly. She smiled brightly, a true smile that not only reached her eyes but her skin seemed to even glow with happiness. It made Sirius smile as well.

"Shall we then?" Sirius asked as he held out his arm for Arella to take.

"We shall," Arella giggled happily as she took his arm and the pair walked into the Great Hall.

From where she stood on the other side of the Great Hall Susanna di Orcus saw the whole exchange between Sirius and Arella through her Seer's vision. A small smirk adorned her exotic features.

"You seem rather amused Professor di Orcus," the Headmaster commented as he approached the Divination teacher.

"Yes, the young Phoenix Blessed is growing up Headmaster," she answered as she focused her eyes onto the Albus Dumbledore. "She even glows tonight." She then moved away from the back of the Great Hall and wandered into the crowd of students. Albus watched her go curious by what she had meant. He sighed; Susanna di Orcus loved her cryptic words and leaving people more confused than they already were. He could truly learn a thing or two from the Seer about that.

Together Arella and Sirius walked through the crowd of students as they took in the sight of the Great Hall. Floating high above the students were a mix of candles and jack-o-lanterns. The traditional tables had been removed and replaced with several smaller round tables. A buffet table sat along one of the far walls and provided students with food and refreshments. The school ghosts had even joined in with the festivities and danced merrily overhead in a somewhat creepy manner. Through the crowd Arella saw Mina and Adam dancing together with Alice and Frank nearby. All four were completely oblivious to the fact that Arella had shown up. A large part of Arella was kinda of glad they hadn't noticed her; she wasn't sure she wanted their attention.

"Hey, James and Pete are over there," Sirius pointed to where the two Gryffindor boys sat. The table was off to the corner and gave its occupants a clear view of most of the Great Hall. James sat there with a glare adorning his face and his arms folded across his chest. Peter sat next to him looking a little bored as he stuffed his face with sweets.

"They look a little bored," Arella commented as she glanced over at them.

"Well Miss Danvers we should probably go save our compadres from their boredom," Sirius proposed with a gallant smile. Arella smiled back as she turned to look back at Sirius. "Yes we should Messer Black," she beamed. Together they weaved through the crowd to their friends' table. Once there Sirius detached himself from Arella and pulled out a chair for her to sit down.

"Why thank you Messer Black," Arella smoothed her skirts as she sat down.

"Of course Miss Danvers," Sirius chuckled.

"You two look like you're having a blast," Arella commented as Sirius took the seat next to her.

"And I thought you weren't coming," James retorted with a nod to Arella.

"Well I guess I changed my mind," Arella replied with a shrug. "And stop glaring at Amos and Lily!"

"Well tell them to stop having fun and I will," James grumbled childishly; glaring once more at Amos and Lily as they danced together.

"Don't make me smack you," Arella warned. James shrugged and mumbled something that Arella couldn't hear but Sirius could. Whatever it was caused Sirius to smack James for her.

"What about you Pete? I thought you had a date with some Hufflepuff girl," Sirius asked; turning to the other Marauder.

"She ditched me for an older bloke and a broom closet," Peter muttered as he stuffed a chocolate frog into his mouth.

"Peter you need to stop moping and go mingle. Try the far wall where all the dateless girls are sitting," Arella suggested to Peter. Her words caused Peter to perk up just a bit.

"You think it'll work?" Peter questioned hopefully.

"It's worth a shot," Arella encouraged. The boy smiled as he stood up. He quickly straightened his dress robes, dusted off the few crumbs that had gathered and placed his mask back on his face. He glanced at each of his friends for a moment before leaving for the other side of the Great Hall.

"Go get 'em Petey!" Sirius called out to his friend. Peter turned back and flashed a smile while giving Sirius a thumbs up before disappearing into the crowd.

"Yea good luck Peter; hope you don't fall in love only to have her smash your heart," James mock cheered quietly to himself.

"Stop that!" Arella snapped. "This mopey version of you is annoying."

"Look mate Diggory'll be outta here starting next year and Evans will forget all about him," Sirius tried to cheer up his friend. "Besides you're way better than he is."

"Not according to Lily," James muttered unhappily; his body sinking further into his chair.

"She's only infatuated with him; it won't last," Arella stated plainly as she glanced to where she had last seen her red haired friend.

"You really think so?" James perked up a little as he looked over at Arella. Arella turned to look back at James and simply tapped the side of her head with her finger. James brightened immediately and then seemed very pleased; if Arella knew they wouldn't last then Amos and Lily wouldn't last. Soon all would be right in the world of James Potter. A slow song suddenly began playing causing James to smile evilly as he looked between his two friends.

"Oh Ella, Sirius!" he practically sang. "I do believe it's customary for couples to dance during slow and romantic songs." The glasses looked at the pair expectantly, a manic grin on his face. Getting those two to dance together would be the perfect way to get Mina to help him with Lily.

"We're just friends James," Sirius reiterated, although he did glance at Arella as if to assure her of that.

"So, you two came together; you should go dance together," James argued. "Besides you two should have fun for me." He added the last part to get some sympathy from the pair.

"Have fun for you?" Arella questioned.

"Please!" James whined as he gave Arella puppy dogs eyes; hoping they worked on her the same way they usually worked on his mother. Arella gave him a hard look; knowing full well that he was using this look to get his way. She was tempted to read his mind and find out why but truthfully she was enjoying the solace she was finding in Sirius's mind. "Fine," Arella huffed after a moment.

"Come on Danvers, it won't be that bad," Sirius said as he stood and held out his hand for Arella to take. She looked at him for a moment before placing her hand into his.

"Just be advised I can't dance Messer Black," Arella warned as she stood up.

"You just need the right partner Miss Danvers," Sirius smirked.

"Have fun you two!" James called out as the pair walked away from the table. Arella glanced back and smiled at the glasses wearing Marauder; the boy returned it with a goofy grin of his own. He watched the pair weave their way to the dance floor quite pleased with himself. Sirius led Arella to the middle of the dance floor between several other couples. Arella couldn't help but be nervous; she'd never danced before. At least never with a partner.

"Put your left hand on my shoulder," Sirius instructed as he placed his right hand chastely onto Arella's waist. He then took her right hand into his left.

"I wasn't kidding about not being able to dance," Arella reminded Sirius nervously.

"Just follow my lead and relax," Sirius reassured her as he started to lead into the dance. He used his hands to gently pushed Arella into the right steps. "One, two, three," he murmured softly. Arella kept nervously glancing down at her feet; afraid that she would step onto Sirius's. The glances in truth were the reason Arella in the end stepped on Sirius's left foot twice. Sirius couldn't stop the grimace as Arella did so.

"I am so sorry!" Arella winced as she apologized quickly.

"Stop looking down at your feet," Sirius said. "Just trust me to guide you." Arella looked up to see Sirius staring at her intently. Blue eyes met grey and a light blush burned Arella's cheeks. For the first time Arella truly saw Sirius Black. His grey eyes held a myriad of emotions; concern, hope, happiness, fear. In that moment Arella felt as if she were the only girl in the world.

"Just follow my lead," Sirius reiterated softly. Arella could only nod; she was unused to this soft side of Sirius Black. They began moving again; this time Arella allowed Sirius to take control. Their steps smoothed out as they danced; Arella's eyes now never left Sirius's face. Sirius couldn't even begin to describe what he was feeling as he and Arella danced. She felt tense at first but after a moment she gave in and allowed him to lead them. The world around them faded away until only they remained. Gently Sirius led Arella through a slow spin; she was hesitant for a split second before she allowed the move.

"See this isn't so bad," Sirius commented as Arella returned to his arms.

"No, I guess it isn't," Arella agreed. "You're a good teacher Messer Black."

"I know,' Sirius smiled wickedly.

"Whose ego needs no further enlargement," Arella rolled her eyes but smiled as well. For once she was truly happy. The slow song soon ended and a faster song began to play. Sirius led Arella off of the dance floor. Waltzes were the limit of his dancing skills.

"Don't you two make a cute couple," Mina's voice drifted in from Arella's right. Both Sirius and Arella turned to see Mina and Adam joining them. The golden haired duo made quite a pair with Adam's gladiator costume and Mina's goddess costume.

"So you ready for tomorrow's match?" Adam asked Sirius. The golden hair Ravenclaw was the Keeper for his House's Quidditch team and was predicted to take the current captain's place next year. Adam was well built and very quick; he'd been a challenge to the other teams' Chasers since he joined the Ravenclaw team in his third year.

"Definitely, Barnes already vowed that we're to be back in the dorms by ten tonight," Sirius grinned. The Gryffindor Captain, Matthew Barnes, was quite zealous in his desire to win the Quidditch Cup this year. The Gryffindor team was primed this year with all experienced players. Barnes had been made Captain last year, his sixth year, after the departure of the previous Captain. Sadly, Gryffindor failed to win the Quidditch Cup and it went to the Ravenclaw team. Both James and Sirius along with Alice were on the Quidditch team. James and Alice were both Chaser while Sirius was a Beater.

"Slytherin looks like they might be a challenge this year," Adam commented idly. Like Gryffindor, the Slytherin House team had all experienced players. During last year they had soundly beaten Gryffindor.

"Not this year; we've got a plan for Slytherin," Sirius shook his head; he and James were a little bitter about the Slytherin game.

"Well why don't you two go sit with Potter and talk Quidditch while Ella and I get some refreshments," Mina suggested to the two boys. Mina loved to watch Quidditch matches but got bored easily when forced to talk about the mechanics behind it.

"Not a problem love," Adam kissed Mina lightly on the side of her head, knowing exactly why she wanted to run. "Come on Black." He gestured for Sirius to follow him. Sirius gave Arella a quick glance, as if asking if it was okay; Arella simply smiled and nodded. Beside Arella Mina gave Sirius a shooing motion; clearly wanting Sirius to leave. Sirius gave Mina a quick scowl before following Adam. Once the boys were out of sight Mina looped her arm through Arella's and led her to the refreshments tables.

"So…what brought you out of hiding?" Mina asked as they weaved through the other students.

"I decided I wanted to come," Arella intentionally kept her answer vague much to Mina's annoyance. The blonde's scowl was a testament to that.

"No you didn't," Mina retorted. "So spill it, what did Black do?"

"Why do you care?" Arella demanded, a little irritated. "Just yesterday you were telling me the guy only wanted in my pants so what gives?"

"You like him," Mina said bluntly. "And he definitely likes you."

"And your point behind that is?" Arella asked.

"You two would be great together," Mina confessed. "I want you to be happy." Arella sighed; of course Mina wanted her to hook up with Black.

"Mina…" Arella scowled. "I don't want nor need a relationship right now. Black and I have agreed to be just friends and that's all I want." Mina gave Arella a pointed look; one that clearly read 'I don't believe you.'

"Okay, fine. Yes, Sirius Black is attractive and yes I have a minor crush on him and yes, having him be all attentive is great but right now I don't want a boyfriend," Arella explained. "So please drop this."

"Alright, fine I'll let it go," Mina held up her hands in surrender. "But I still find it strange that he's the only person you've met whose mind you can't read."

"I question that too but right now I just want my pumpkin juice," Arella shook her head before turning and grabbing herself a drink. The two girls grabbed themselves enough drinks for the table; Arella had to levitate some of them and headed to where Adam, Sirius and James were sitting. The boys had been joined by Alice and Frank; Alice had also joined in the Quidditch conversation while Frank simply observed. There was an amused look on his face as he watched Alice talk so adamantly about her favorite sport. Mina and Arella passed out drinks before sitting down next to their respective dates. Unconsciously Sirius draped his arm around Arella's shoulders causing Arella to scowl and Mina to giggle softly. Arella shrugged Sirius's arm off of her shoulders; he didn't seem to notice as he began making gestures as he talked. The rest of the night went by quickly; Mina was able to get the Quidditch lovers off the sport and into telling funny stories. James had a story about Sirius that had the whole group rolling. The Gryffindor heartthrob had been given a box of candies that James had spiked with a love potion. The potion made him absolutely in love with Flitch for three hours. It would have lasted longer but three hours was the point when it became to disturbing and Remus made James cure the love potion.

Just before ten, as previously warned, Matthew Barnes came up to the table ordering the Gryffindor team members up to their dorms and off to bed. As Barnes left the table to find the other team members James leaned over to Sirius and handed him to a gallon.

"You betted on that?" Alice asked the two boys. The two boys smirked at Alice but just shrugged in answer. Sirius stood up and held out his hand for Arella to take. She did and stood up as well. "Why wouldn't we?" Sirius asked with a devilish smirk and a shrug. James nodded, his grin widening. Alice just shook her head; she should have expected that answer. She and Frank stood up and left; they wanted to have some alone time before Alice headed to bed. James looked around for Lily as he stood, wanting to see her one last time. His brow creased when he didn't spot her but he also knew she could be on the other side of the hall where he couldn't see her.

"Ready James?" Sirius asked his friend, intentionally wanting him to come back to the Common Room with him and Arella.

"Yeah," James muttered and the trio headed out of the Great Hall. Arella, however, had noticed what James had been doing and removed her mind from Sirius's so she could locate her friend. The moment she was out of the shelter Sirius's mind had offered she was bombarded with various thoughts, but one was calling her name.

'Ella! Ella! Help! Please STOP! NO! ELLA!' It was Lily's voice and as Arella focused on it she felt panic and fear rush through her, Lily's panic and fear. She immediately stopped walking and looked around for Amos. Now that they had moved towards the front of the Great Hall Arella could see Amos with his friends laughing jovially but Lily was not present. Quickly she entered Amos's thoughts and knew exactly why Lily wasn't with him. Amos was drinking fire whiskey and his mind was muddled from it.

'Lily! Where are you?' Arella called back with her mind as she tried to focus on where Lily was. She was suddenly bombarded with images; a lavatory stall, a boy with light brown hair and dark brown eyes, a hand on a pale arm and a mirror with an image of a horror struck Lily Evans looking back while the brown haired boy held her against the wall. Anger and fear filled Arella, the boy was assaulting Lily, but where.

'Toilet….NO STOP! Ella Help!' Lily's answer wasn't much helpful but it gave Arella some direction as her mind fully connected with her red haired friend. Arella removed herself from Sirius's arm and took off through the remaining crowd between her and the entrance of the Great Hall. Sirius and James glanced at each other confused but both took off after Arella. Entering into the hallway Arella stopped for a moment before turning and going up the stairs. If her senses were right there was a bathroom down that way and to the right. As she ran up the stairs Arella kicked off her shoes, they were just slowing her down and Lily was already out of time.

"Arella!" Sirius called out to her as he and James followed.

"What the bloody hell has gotten into her?!" James asked as they ran. "And since when is she so fast?" Sirius just shrugged as he and James began to run after the girl.

Arella didn't stop until she got to the bathroom door and burst into it. The door banged loudly, startling Lily's assailant. He glanced back, an annoyed look on his face, to see Arella standing there. Anger turned to rage as Arella used her power to reach out and grab the boy. She lifted her right hand and used her powers to extend her reach. Her power grabbed the boy by his clothes and pulled him back with such force that he flew right into the wall next to Arella. Sirius and James, who had hesitated for a moment, entered the bathroom just in time to see the boy hit the wall. They glanced at each other confused, what was a bloke doing in the girls' bathroom?

"James your dress robes please," Arella asked sharply, her voice even but clearly angry. It was then that Lily let out a gasp and James glanced at her. She slid down the wall slowly; her body hunched over with her arms wrapped around herself. Tears were already trailing down her cheeks as she tried to straighten out her torn costume. Instantly he understood what had been happening. "James your robes!" Arella demanded as she glanced back at Sirius, as if silently asking for his help. Sirius had also realized what had been happening and knew that if he were in James's position that his blood would be boiling. Understanding that they didn't need James to go off the handle, that it wasn't good for Lily, Sirius pulled his friend away and got him out of the jacket portion of his dress robes. He tossed them to Arella, who caught them easily. The boy on the floor groaned as he tried to stand up. The movement had James looking at the boy, who he instantly recognized. The boy was Henry Eggerton and he was a seventh year Hufflepuff who was friends with Amos. Without thinking James stalked over to the boy and picked him up by his shirt and pushed him back against the wall.

"James!" Arella snapped quickly while Sirius grabbed his friend and pulled him away, allowing the Hufflepuff boy to slide back down the wall. "Sirius, take James and go get McGonagall." Sirius nodded as he dragged James out of the bathroom.

"Sirius let me go," James growled as he and Sirius left the bathroom.

"Can't do that mate, beating Eggerton up won't help Lily. Getting McGonagall will help Lily," Sirius reasoned as he let James go. James stalked away rage radiating off of him. "James?"

"I know Sirius, I know," James snarled angrily as he began to pace. "He was hurting her, hell, he was planning on doing far worse! And I have no idea what to do! I didn't prevent it! I didn't…DAMMIT!" Sirius had never seen James like this before and he wasn't sure how to help him get through it. "Stay with Arella and Lily, I'm going to go get McGonagall. I need…I don't, walk it off I guess," James muttered as he stalked off back to the Great Hall to find Professor McGonagall. Sirius watched his friend go for a moment before going back into the bathroom.

Inside the bathroom Sirius found Arella kneeling beside a sobbing Lily while her left hand was stretched out towards Eggerton. Henry Eggerton on the other hand was pinned up against the wall completely knocked out. Sirius's eyebrows rose up as looked between Arella and Eggerton. Feeling Sirius looking at her Arella glanced back and shrugged at his curious look.

"He moved," she said simply.

"Ah," Sirius shook his head. "Let him go and I'll drag him out. James is gone, went to find McGonagall." Arella nodded as Lily looked up. She looked over at Eggerton, pulling James's robe tighter around her.

"Thank you Sirius," Lily rasped out; her voice was rough and scratchy. Sirius looked at Lily, sympathy in his eyes, the girl looked terrible and he hoped that this wouldn't break the young red head. He nodded as Arella released Eggerton from her power, allowing him to slump to the floor. Siruis then used his wand to levitate the Hufflepuff out of the bathroom. Once Sirius was gone Arella turned back to Lily.

"Ella…" Lily said softly as she looked over at her friend. "I have never been more glad that you're different. I was so scared and I couldn't stop him. He followed me into the bathroom, said that I'd been teasing him all night when I was dancing with Amos. He pushed me against the wall and started pulling at my costume." Tears continued to stream down Lily's cheeks as she talked. Finally, unable to talk anymore Lily lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Arella's neck and just sobbed.

Professor McGonagall was at a loss for words when James Potter told her that she was needed at the girl's lavatory because someone had assaulted another student. Was even more stunned when he gritted out that it was Henry Eggerton who was the attacker and Lily Evens who was the victim. She immediately informed Professor Dumbledore, who was now fetching Professor di Orcus, after Mr. Potter had explained what he knew about the incident. Now she followed her young student back to the girls' lavatory to investigate the matter further and to see if Miss Evans was alright. In the corridor in front of the bathroom was Sirius Black and an unconscious Henry Eggerton.

"Mr. Black please tell me neither of you have anything to do with why Mr. Eggerton is unconscious?" she asked as she looked over Henry Eggerton briefly.

"I swear Professor neither James nor me are the reason Eggerton is unconscious," Sirius replied just as Arella and Lily came out of the bathroom. Arella had her arm around Lily while Lily was hugging what appeared to be Mr. Potter's missing jacket around her. The girl was clearly shaken and her eyes were puffy and red. The stern look on Professor McGonagall's face immediately softened.

"It would be my fault Professor," Arella said quietly as she glanced over at Eggerton.

"Well then…would the three of you please escort Miss Evans to the Hospital Wing please? And tell Madam Pomfrey to make a copy of everything she finds," the professor said softly. "And Miss Evans…I'll be by tomorrow morning to get your full statement." The look she had clearly said she wanted to say more but was unsure what to say. She nodded to Sirius and James, silently telling them to make sure the girls made it the Hospital Wing safely.

"Come on Lily," Arella urged her friend to keep moving while James and Sirius flanked them. Thankfully the corridors were clear as they travelled to the Hospital Wing. No one uttered a word as they went, although Lily would hiccup a little every now and then which was a testament to the tears she was still shedding. Upon arrival to the Hospital Wing they found it mostly empty; although Remus Lupin was asleep in one of the beds. As if just knowing someone had entered her infirmary Madame Pomfrey came out of her office. The moment she saw Lily the woman ushered her away to the far side of the infirmary and behind a curtain.

"Madame Pomfrey," Arella called as she followed the woman. "Professor McGonagall wants a copy of everything you find please." Arella didn't follow them behind the curtain but stood on the other side; she wasn't sure if Lily would want her behind them with her.

"I'll make sure Minerva gets them," Madame Pomfrey called back as she began her examination of Lily. Arella turned back to the boys; who were standing near Remus's bed.

"You two should go; she might not want to be around anyone when Madame Pomfrey is done," Arella said quietly as she approached the boys. For some reason she just suddenly felt extremely tired; she knew that her dress and hair were no longer looking well put together. The front of the dress had a couple of wrinkles from Arella being on the floor with Lily and her hair was falling out of the clip in her hair. And while she looked rumpled Sirius still found her to look quite stunning. It was that moment that Sirius finally admitted to himself that he may have found Arella Danvers to be extremely attractive. But he would keep his word; just friends.

"We'll go," Sirius said quietly as he put a hand onto James's shoulder. "Come on James." The glasses wearing Marauder gave the curtain that Lily was behind. He had a look of longing; like he just wanted to take her into his arms and make everything better. He didn't say anything as he nodded and allowed Sirius to lead him away. Arella watched them go with a heavy heart; she could feel James's longing thoughts and her heart went out to him; he really did care about Lily Evans.