Disclaimer: I do not own the awesomeness that is Harry Potter

Since school starts tomorrow, I thought I would get at least one more chapter out before my doom begins. I wish I went to Hogwarts, at least then I'd be excited. Stupid school.

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"I'm fine!" Lily exclaimed for the thousandth time. It had been a day since Lily's fight with the Slytherins and she had been able to hide the bump, which had swelled so big that it almost poked out from her hair, until after dinner the next day, but they all found out when everyone had returned to the common room. Louis had patted Lily's head patronizingly when they were discussing a Muggle Studies question she had gotten wrong. Her flinch had instantly caught Hugo's attention and he dropped his book to walk over to Lily and examine her head. The others had been none too pleased when they had found out what happened.

Rosalie, Louis and Phoenix all looked as if they were plotting the deaths of the Slytherins while Alice frantically comforted Lily - even though she was not worrying - and Katrina and Hugo dug out their notes to see if there was a spell that could bring down the size and amount of pain of Lily's bump.

"Fine?" Rosalie snapped, outraged. "Lily, that thing is huge! Oh! Those damn Slytherins - I wish I could kill every single one of them!"

"Wait, who was it that stopped them again?" Phoenix asked, standing up.

"Darren Clowes," Lily said. "But why do you -"

Phoenix was already striding out of the common room, dragging a willing Louis along with her even though he didn't seem to know what she was doing either.

Hugo sighed and placed his notes down on the table. "I think we're going to have to take you to the hospital wing to get this fixed. Apparently we haven't learned a de-swelling spell yet."

"No!" Lily stood, pulling herself away from Hugo. "I don't need the hospital wing, it'll go down in a few days, just leave it alone."

"Stop being so proud," Hugo said. "and just let me take you there."

"I'm not being proud! I'm being reasonable. There's no need for this. I don't need the hospital wing. I'm finishing my homework upstairs."

"Who doesn't need the hospital wing?"

Lily groaned as Jacob, Hunter and Aiden entered the common room, Alex Gilbert following behind them like he had been for the past few days. She sent a sharp look to Hugo and he rolled his eyes but nodded. Katrina, however, completely ignored Lily's warning as she looked up at the four Gryffindors.

"Lily. She got into a fight with some Slytherins and hurt her head." Katrina only shrugged when Lily looked at her. "It's best that they know. More people will be able to watch you now in case the Slytherins try it again. I'm only thinking strategy. You're Quidditch captain, you should understand that."

"What I don't understand is why you had to tell him," Lily said, nodding her head at Jacob. "This isn't going to end well now. For me or the Slytherins."

"Who?" Was the only word that Jacob suddenly seemed capable of forming. Lily gathered up her stuff quickly as she took in his stance: his fists and jaw clenched, his shoulders stiff, blue eyes narrowed. As she darted towards the girls dormitory stairs, Jacob seemed to know that she was going to for when she was on the fifth step he placed his foot on the first one and the stairway immediately flatten itself into a smooth slide that Lily slide down - right into Jacob's chest. He grabbed her arm before she could try to escape again. "Who was it, Lily?"

"None of your business, Winchester!"

Jacob looked irritated now as he glanced over his shoulder at Hugo. "You said she needs to go to the hospital wing?"

When Hugo nodded, Lily felt her bag drop out of her hands in shock as she was lifted directly off her feet and thrown over Jacob's shoulder.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Lily shrieked, throwing her hands back over her bottom and almost losing her balance on his shoulder. "Are you trying to flash the whole common room my underwear? Put me down you Neanderthal!" One of her hands came back around to pound Jacob on the back, but it seemed to only hurt her fist as it hit his strong back.

"Calm down," Jacob said, his voice oddly quiet and stiff. "Hunter, get the door for me."

"I'm coming with," Rosalie said, catching up to Jacob quickly as he exited the portrait hole and began walking through the halls of Hogwarts, Lily still yelling and kicking on his shoulder. "I'm sure she can walk, you know."

"Then she'll try to run up to the common room again rather than admit that she's hurt," Jacob told her, adjusting Lily heavily on her shoulder which made her stomach hit the rounded part of his shoulder and her breath was knocked out of her for a moment. "Sorry, Potter.

"No you're not," Lily gasped, cuffing him around the head. "And put me down!"

In the hospital wing, Madam Edona examined Lily's head with pursed lips. "Really! You've gone a whole day with this thing throbbing and growing when you could have just come to me and I would have had it fixed in a matter of seconds? Oh, you Gryffindors get on my nerves sometimes - you're all too proud to admit that you're hurt. Especially you, Mr Winchester! Don't give me that look, every time it's the same thing from you! Next time, I want you to just lay down and shush while I heal you - got it?"

Rosalie laughed as Madam Edona ranted at the two, enjoying herself as she sat on the bed beside Lily's. Lily, the pain in her head receding quickly after she had taken the potion Madam Edona gave her, instead was staring at Jacob. It was hard to read the look he had on his face as he stared at Madam Edona, listening to her rant while also seeming like he wanted her to shut up right now. His blue eyes were dark and cold.

When Madam Edona said that Lily only need to remain in the wing for a few more minutes, Jacob stood and nodded to the elderly woman. "I'm going to head back up to the common room -"

"We don't need a play-by-play, Winchester," Lily commented sourly, still miffed about being carried all through Hogwarts.

"- I trust you can walk up to the tower now, Potter." And suddenly, Jacob was acting like himself as he said "See you in the morning." and gave Lily a none too subtle wink before he left, whistling to himself. Madam Edona watched him leave, an odd fondness on her face, then turned to Lily and gently touched the spot where her bump had been and proclaimed her healed.

"Wait, Madam Edona," Lily said suddenly, making Rosalie stop from where she had been getting off of her own bed. "When you were yelling at Jacob - you said that every time he's in here he says he's not hurt. But last time I remember him being in the hospital wing was in fourth year after he was hit by the Bludger during the Quidditch game. He's been in here more since then?"

Rosalie's shocked expression matched Lily's as the Matron paled dramatically and nodded her head frantically. "Of course he has, dear, everyone stops in every now and then when they feel a cold or some other illness coming on. Nothing major, no, nothing like that. Off you go then, you're curfew is coming up and you two do not want detention, now do you?" And she ushered them quickly out of the hospital wing.

"Was that as weird to you as it was to me?" Lily asked Rosalie as the doors shut behind them.

Rosalie pursed her lips, then shrugged. "I don't know, it's Madam Edona - she's just weird overall. Why are you asking about Jacob so much anyways? I thought you hated him? You haven't been helping your case lately."

Lily glared at Rosalie. "It's been two days! So, what? I'm curious is all - I have a right to be. He goes digging into my personal life all the time, now it's my turn."

"You keep telling yourself that, honey," Rosalie said patronizingly, darting out of Lily's reach when she tried to hit her. The half-Veela's laugh was heard all through the halls as she continued to run while Lily lagged behind.

It wasn't her fault she was suddenly so curious. She was naturally a curious, suspicious person - she got it from her father. That, plus the fact that all the professors seemed to know something about him that they were keeping secret was driving Lily insane. She hated being left out of things, but of course, when it came to something big, it just had to be him that it was all about. And his behaviour over the past few years! Lily was getting a headache just thinking about it. He had gone from her best friend, to following her like a puppy wanting to be loved, than acting like an arrogant prat, then to not talking to her at all, and now back to the prat while jumping from it to the cold, closed off person that Lily knew nothing about and back again. It was enough to drive anyone crazy.

And then his eyes. Lily had at first loved his eyes when she met him. They were so blue, but then she had grown to hate them. They always had this amused, cocky, triumphant, happy look in them that made Lily want to curse him until the blue disappeared. But lately, while he had started acting like his normal self again, his eyes remained the same way they had for the past year: distant and cold. The look in them was so empty that they were one of the main things that had been tipping her off about him.

Even if she did hate Jacob Winchester with every fibre of her being, she would most definitely never wish the pain he was obviously feeling on anyone.

"Lily!"

Lily turned at the yell, waiting as Louis and Phoenix waved and moved quickly towards her in a way that Lily knew she was in trouble with them.

"Slytherins are out still," Louis said fiercely. "You shouldn't be alone."

Lily huffed. "Well, I did have Winchester and Rosalie with me, but then they both ditch me so now I guess I'm stuck with you two."

"Whatever," Phoenix quickly brushed away the remark and they began walking up to the Gryffindor tower together. "So, we went down to the Slytherin common room, right? Yeah, that's where we went - anyways, after much yelling and threatening through that wall they call an entrance, we finally got Clowes to come outside to talk to us. We asked him why the bloody hell he protected you - a Slytherin helping a Gryffindor? Unheard of - and he said he just did it because he felt the need to. It wasn't fair that it was four against one so -"

"Basically!" Louis cut in loudly. "What she means is that we've got nothing."

"Didn't think you'd get anything," Lily agree. "It's Darren Clowes. The only thing anyone knows about him is that Willow is his twin. He's weird. He doesn't act like a Slytherin, but he doesn't act like a Gryffindor, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw as well. He's -"

"A mystery," Phoenix finished for Lily. "And I'm intrigued."

"Oh, Feens no, you're going to hurt him if you go after him," Lily said jokingly, nudging her friend. "We can't let you ruin the only nice Slytherin."

"I won't hurt him!" Phoenix snapped indignantly.

"Face it, Lils, once Phoenix has chosen the person they are officially screwed. Remember that girl from last year? She's not here this year. Transferred to Beauxbatons because she couldn't stand to see Phoenix." Louis glanced at the black-haired girl in what seemed to be admiration. "Only the true players can do that much damage. Ah, I remember how shocked the school had been…"

"I think they were more shocked that Phoenix was bisexual, Lou."

Phoenix grinned at the two of them. "And damn proud of it!"

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Oh, Phoenix, if you only knew what I have in store for you...

Anyways! Review please!