Word had gotten around the next morning about James Potter's latest attack on Snape, and stories of how he'd dunked him into the Lake were spreading like wildfire. Even Lily found the story amusing once she'd cooled down a bit, though she flat out refused to laugh about it in front of James.

"If he knew I thought it was funny, he'd do it 100 times over." Lily explained to Rowan on their way to breakfast. "And even though Severus and I are no longer friends, it still feels wrong to give people permission to pick on him like that."

Winter was quickly taking it's toll on Hogwarts and the surrounding landscapes, and the following morning everyone awakened to about two feet of new snow piled outside on the dormitory window and the Hogsmeade trip canceled for that day. Sadly this meant Lily and Rowan couldn't purchase any more joke items, but they weren't exactly complaining. Saturdays were always the worst days to waste, but it seemed as though everyone in the castle was in an incredibly warm, lazy mood, even the teachers. McGonagall didn't even bother to tell off Rowan as she and Sirius skidded down the corridors after James in a completely immature game of tag, but instead merely cautioned them to slow down instead of writing three detentions. Peeves blew wet raspberries as usual but even he stopped when asked, which was very uncharacteristic of the poltergeist. By the time darkness settled over Hogwarts, Rowan thought the atmosphere would be perfect to discuss the newest matchmaking plan with James.

"Are we up for another painful year of matchmaking, James?" She asked, cornering him that night in a deserted section of the library. James's eyes shone beneath his glasses.

"When am I never up for a little romance? Where's the pen, sign me up!"

"Okay, okay," Rowan giggled, dropping her bag to the floor and seating herself on a long wooden table. "I've got a few new plans for you, and I even went so far as to draw them out in red ink. Just for you Potter." She winked.

James rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Excellent. You have the papers, I assume?" Rowan fished them out of her bag, waving them in front of his face. With his Seeker reflexes he snatched the papers right out from under her nose, moving them to a dim oil light where his eyes skated over the pages greedily. After a few minutes he looked up at Rowan, his eyes wide.

"Rowan…" He whispered excitedly, his eyes flashing from the paper to her and back again, "These are epic!" Rowan smiled.

"I try."

James was beside himself.

"I swear, Watkins, it would be a real scummy thing to do since I'm after your friend but I could kiss you right now, these are amazing!" Rowan blushed as James stuffed the papers into his bag, carefully folding them into the tiniest pocket. Sirius was always stealing things from James's bag, and the last thing he needed to see was these romantic game plans from Rowan Watkins.

"Glad you like them." She muttered, trying to set herself straight. Why did she always have to be like this around him? It just wasn't fair. Wasn't fair that he didn't even notice her flustered cheeks as he bade her goodnight, didn't have eyes for anyone but Lily Evans…

Rowan slung her bag over her shoulders and stomped out of the library, knocking a few first years out of the way in her hurry. Stupid, perfect, emerald eyed Lily Evans with her long red hair. She didn't even like the boy, and yet he fawned over her every chance he got. Rowan came to a huffy stop in front of the Fat Lady.

"Nymphs." She said sulkily, crossing her arms. The Fat Lady looked at her.

"Now what's got your knickers in a twist?" She asked loudly, causing several nearby boys to snicker loudly. Rowan shot them a glare and tossed her curls out of her eyes.

"None of your business. Nymphs." But the Fat Lady wasn't going to give up that easily.

"Oh come on, you can tell me. Who've I got to spread the secret too, I'm a portrait for heavens sakes!" Rowan rolled her eyes, impatient with the questioning.

"Oh, I don't know, how about every bloody Gryffindor that has to pass you every night? You just might decide to slip something to them!" The Fat Lady narrowed her eyes and swung forward on her hinges to admit Rowan, but just as she was halfway through swung herself shut, sending Rowan flying backward into the heavy stone banisters.

"THat'll teach you to sass off to me, Missy!" She chortled, her chins wobbling in her frame. "I may be a portrait but I still have feelings!" Rowan brushed dust off her skirt, trying to ignore the burning in her face as the group of boys laughed openly at her expense. On her way through the portrait hole she stopped, and turned to face the Fat Lady.

"Just so you know, I have easy access to the kitchens, and last time I was in there, there was a very nice, very sharp set of cutlery that would be perfect for ripping something soft, like canvas, for example, to shreds." The Fat Lady gasped as Rowan's frown spread upward into a twisted, evil grin.

"You wouldn't dare!" She shrieked, raising a hand over her mouth. Rowan stumbled through the portrait hole, her temper flaring.

"You have no idea what I would and would never do."

*****************************************************************

That night Rowan didn't feel like talking to Lily…or anyone else in the dorm, for that matter. After Lily had failed in asking Rowan to join three games of Exploding Snap she gave up trying and instead of persuading her to join (or forcing, as she normally would have done) gave her a sorry look and allowed her to sulk in her bed, curtains tightly closed. Long after the lights had gone out Rowan slipped out of bed and into her slippers, quietly taking the purple pump from under Lily's bed and propping it between the door. Shivering, she wrapped her robe tight and set one foot on the cold tile, gasping a little at the sharp coldness through her sock. Cautiously, she padded down the stairs, stopping to pause at a creak or crackle of the burning Common Room fire. She didn't quite know where she was going. All she knew was that James and his boys were probably out late tonight, and she was keen to find them.

The Fat Lady yawned, licking spittle off her crimson lips when Rowan roused her from her deep sleep, but thankfully she didn't catch a glimpse of her as she slipped into the corridor. The Fat Lady swung shut with a defining click and Rowan was alone…again.

In no time at all she found herself heading towards the kitchens, keen on slipping one of those long knives in the pocket of her robe and heading back upstairs, but she decided against it last minute and instead roamed the hall. The flickering torches cast eerie, shadowy shapes that swayed and darted against the cobbled walls, and from a tall window she could see a black, empty stretch of canvas, upon which fresh flakes of snow fell. I was peaceful, in a strange sort of way, and Rowan curled up in a corner by the window, leaning her head against the wall. She closed her eyes, listening to the still silence, and smiled. She was insane, sitting here on the floor in the dark, enjoying the solitude. All she needed was to rock slightly and have some poor soul stumble upon her to be admitted to St. Mungos. Her curls, weather tossed and stringy with December sleet, hung about her face and her hands were ice cold. Ignoring her bodies plea for warmth she stuffed them into the pockets of her robe and ambled down the hall a little farther, letting the light of the full moon guide her way. She wondered where the boys were on this starry night. Probably nicking food from the kitchens. Rowan imagined the elves swarming around them, thrusting biscuits and chicken legs into Sirius's outstretched palms. If left alone at mealtime that boy could probably devour all the plates on the Gryffindor table in record time, then belch, annouce he was still hungry, and shovel down Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs next. He wouldn't dare touch the Slytherins food, declaring it "contaminated and therefore unsafe for consumption." That was just the nature of Sirius Black. And people thought he was such a charmer… Rowan chuckled softly in the darkness. Well, she had news for them.

"Who's there?"

It was Filch. Carrying a lantern and bobbing slowly down the hall, with ever faithful Mrs. Norris on his heels, he stopped in his tracks, his cat doing the same, and listened. Rowan slipped down another corridor, peering around it's stone wall to keep a watchful eye on the enemy.

"Eh? Could'a sworn I heart summin', my sweet…" He mumbled to his cat, scratching his oily head. "Sounds like a wee student out of bed to me. Come, the moon's still bright. If we 'eard them this close, they can't be far…when its light they can only hide so many places." The sounds of his loafers echoed around the halls, and Rowan was thankful she'd listened to her instincts and worn socks as the light of Filch's lantern cast a light glow around the corner of her corridor and she broke into a run. She didn't stop until she saw a large oak door at the end of the hall and she skidded inside, her fingers shaking and clumsy as she rummaged around her pockets for her wand.

"Alohomora!"

With a soft click the door locked and Rowan fell against it, resting her head on her knees. How long could she keep doing things like this? With Filch weezing outside it would be three in the morning before she even got to the portrait hole, and when she didn't wake up the next morning for lessons what would Lily do? She'd have to be trapped in Potions with James Potter all by herself. At this thought Rowan envisioned them cuddling over a simmering love potion, inhaling deeply while staring into the other's eyes. Well, if that's what would happen, let it. Lily had proved herself on more than one occasion-if Rowan missed Potions Lily could handle it. She wiped sweat from her brow, turning to sit in a vacant desk when he spoke.

"Rowan?!"

Rowan jumped so high she believed someone unseen had to have muttered Levicorpus behind her back. She came back down (painfully) to the small wooden seat then slid off it in shock and onto the cold floor. He moved closer.

"Are you alright?"

"Yea…." Rowan muttered, dusting herself off and taking Sirius's hand, "Just…. Frightened me a little." Sirius let out his sharp, bark like laugh.

"Evidently. What are you doing out this late?" Rowan raised a brow at him.

"What are you doing out this late?" He shrugged, smirking slightly.

"Touche. I'll tell you what I was up to if you tell me what you were doing."

"Not on my life Black." Rowan said, moving to stand by the window. "I'd sooner swap my wand with a goblin than tell you what I was doing out of bed."

"Such harsh words, Rowan." He said, moving to stand beside her. "There's no need for such anger." He placed his hands in the pockets of his robes and bobbed a little on his heels for a minute before turning to Rowan and saying, quite conversationally, "The moon's bright tonight." Rowan crossed her arms. What had started out as a pleasant night had taken a turn for the worst.

"Yea, I guess." She answered, staring out at the sky. Black smiled.

"Hope James and the gang are having fun." This caught Rowan's attention.

"What?"

Sirius's onyx eyes went wide and he looked away from her, realizing he'd said something wrong.

"Nothing…it's…nothing." He said, his voice faltering.

"Why aren't you with them?" Rowan asked, leaning against the windowsill. Sirius Black was almost never seen without James Potter. If you came across one you came across the other, it had been that way ever since first year and wasn't about to change anytime soon. After a moment of silence, during which Sirius pondered her question, he deemed it safe to answer.

"I had some work to do…detention, see." He said, noticing the confused look on Rowan's face. She laughed.

"That makes sense. Isn't detention the only time you do any work?" Sirius laughed, his black hair falling into delicate spirals around his eyes.

"Right on that one, Watkins." He admitted, snatching a piece of parchment from a nearby desk and lazily transforming it into a paper airplane. He leaned back on the windowsill and offered it to Rowan, who took it and aimed for the dustbin on the other side of the room. They both watched it glide through the air, where it landed just a little outside the bin.

"Nice one." Sirius said, snickering. Rowan smiled.

"Why're you spending your night in the Charms classroom?" She called across the room as she retrieved the plane and handed it back to Sirius, who tossed it towards the desk.

"Just strolling…" He said, taking the crumpled plane from the floor and making it glide back to Rowan, who caught it. "Almost got into a scrape with Filch like you did."

Rowan tossed the airplane towards the bin again-it missed.

"He's patrolling this corridor? Why?" Sirius smirked mischievously.

"Well, let's just say he had a tip off from a certain red haired someone that a few rule breaking prats would be up to something on this very floor." He tossed the plane at Rowan's target, and it soared with perfect precision into the dustbin. Rowan scowled.

"James was stupid enough to tell Lily where we were preparing our prank, so you can guess how that played out."

"Yea, I can." Rowan said darkly. "The little snitch went straight to McGonagall like a good little girl, didn't she?" Sirius laughed.

"Easy there, Watkins." He chortled, crumpling the plane in his hands. "Isn't this girl, you know, your best friend?"