A/N: EARLY CHRISTMAS GIFT (I know I was supposed to update over a month ago, but forgive me? HEH?) It's really a Christmas Miracle that I'm updating.

Now, thank you all for your lovely reviews as always they brighten up my day.


Chapter 50

Lots and lots of Gryffindors

The seventh year slides down against the wall, hugging her knees to her chest and resting her head on top of them.

"I've ruined everything," she tells me, voice muffled, but I can hear how broken she is.

"It's going to be okay," I promise, taking a step closer to her.

At that she looks up, eyes puffy and red and she stares at me. "You're wrong." she replies.

"I would know ruining everything if I saw it." I respond, giving her a look. "You know that, everything can be fixed."

"How come you're so positive?"

"Well I got-"

The last of my sentence gets cut off when the door to the classroom is opened and we both look at the person entering and my throat tightens.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me-!" Sirius is definitely livid.

Roughly 12 hours ago

Mary Macdonald

"Mare, when are you going to make up with Marlene?" Lily questions me during breakfast.

Frowning, I look at her over my toast. "You make it sound like it's just a given thing that we're going to make up."

"Well, isn't it?" she wants to know.

"I don't know." I respond. "I'm mad at her, and it might stay like that for years to come." I stubbornly cross my arms and she gives me a look.

"I'm having trouble believing that, to be honest." she tells me. "You guys fight all the time, you fought over nailpolish just the other week."

"This is not a fight over nails!"

"No, I know. But you haven't told me what it's about so I'm just assuming-"

"Stop assuming then." I bite out at her.

She opens her mouth to add something, but is interrupted when Alice slams her newspaper down in front of us, causing my pumpkin juice to spill, I'm about to snap at her when she speaks.

"Have you seen this?"

MINISTRY REPORTS FOUR DEAD AURORS AND NINE MUGGLES

"What?" Lily gives away a strangled noise and snatches the article towards her, I try to snatch it from her, wanting to read it too.

"What does it say?" I demand as her eyes run quickly over the paper.

"Last night a muggle bar in Oxford was attacked by Death Eaters,-"

"I cannot believe they're calling themselves… that…" whispers Alice.

"-At least six were already dead once the Aurors arrived. At least fourteen Death Eaters were spotted, two of them dead and have been identified by the Ministry of Magic. Minister of magic, Peasegood refused to speak with our reports but will be speaking publicly about this attacks and others at the Ministry next weekend-"

"They're having what… A protest?"

Alice shakes her head. "Not quite, the Minister is simply going to be explaining what they're doing to work against the Death Eaters and I don't really know, I doubt they're going to give us any names."

"Nine muggles, though." Lily said, looking up from the newspaper. "Four aurors and, what? Two Death Eaters? Together that's thirteen people that all died yesterday."

"This is not a nice thing to hear about over breakfast," I tell them.

"It's not a nice thing hearing about ever." says Alice. "I wonder if Marlene knows yet, didn't I hear that her Dad's going for a job at the Ministry?"

"I've no idea," admitted Lily and both look at me.

"How should I know?" I ask them. "I doubt even Marlene knows. She prefers not talking about her Dad."

"Have you two made up?" Alice wants to know.

"No." I respond as Lily frowns.

"Are you going to?" prods Alice.

"What I'm going to do is stand up and get to class." I tell them, frowning.

"It's only half past-"

"Goodbyeee!" I tell them, standing up and ignoring the looks they're giving me.

I get it. They want us to make up. But I'm not the one making deal with future rapists like fucking Avery. So she can come to me.

James Potter

I'm getting the vibe that there's something going on. From everyone.

Remus broke his leg, yesterday. Which I personally do find hilarious, though Remus didn't appreciate me laughing about it, so I pretend it's terrible.

Sirius agrees with me though, so we'll have a laugh about it later when Remus is not whining. Seriously, everyone's gotten whinier, even Peter whines more.

But not Lily.

Or well, Lily doesn't whine around me. But I've no idea if she whines around her friends.

Oh, Lily. I cannot believe I kissed her. I cannot believed she kissed me back. I mean, years and years spent on pining after her it was starting to feel just like a joke.

And honestly, I felt like I was getting over her. I mean, she's beautiful and she's fiery and she's everything I'd want but she loathed me and the mates always told me to just let it go. So I tried.

But trust her to ruin even that.

Kissing me like that, how am I supposed to get over her if she kisses me?

I think I fancy her more than I did in first year, and believe me I fancied her hard back then. If an eleven year old can do that.

I really want to just scream it out that I've been snogging Lily Evans. I really need to tell Remus, Peter and Sirius. I really need to tell everyone.

But I doubt shouting 'I've been snogging Evans!' is going to make adjusting to all of this easier for her, she might end up hitting me.

Merlin, is it attractive when she's angry.

"I think I've gotten Moony in a better mood," Sirius grins as he enters the room, I give him a disbelieving look back but his grin doesn't falter. "He's playing chess with Peter now and hasn't whined about his leg, Blaire Vandever, werewolf problems or anything in," he pretends to check a watch on his empty wrist. "Ten whole minutes."

I make a small 'wohoo' sound as he plops down on his bed.

"So," he starts, folding his hands under his head and staring at the ceiling. "No Head Boy stuff tonight?"

By Head Boy stuff he doesn't realise he actually means 'Lily Stuff', but I play it cool, shrugging. "Nah. I decided it was time to spend some time with my mates." Its true, this thing with Lily's fun and all and I enjoy spending time with her (and snogging her), but I feel a bit bad for neglecting everyone else. Especially now that Sirius keeps telling me how depressed Remus has been acting.

"By spending time with us, you do mean blowing something up, right?" Sirius grins. "And not doing homework. Because I don't really want to do homework. At all. Ever."

"You're going to be a seventh year forever."

"Hey, if I lived through first, second, third, fifth and sixth, I can handle one more year."

"You forgot fourth."

"I did?"

"Yup. Unless you never did fourth year."

"I definitely did fourth year," SIrius furrows his eyebrows. "Fourth year was back when me and Vance were mates and then, the summer after fourth year was…"

"The Marlene thing."

"Yep."

"But there's no more Marlene thing? Cos, mate. You've been through a lot with her."

"She's not interested."

"Are you?"

Sirius falls back on his bed. "I'd say you sounded like my mum, but my mum would never question me about my romantic life. Actually, my mum would never talk to me."

I roll my eyes at him, but figure he wants me to drop it. "So, what's been up then?"

Sirius shrugs. "I don't even know. Everyone's acting so glum, if you haven't noticed. The girls are fighting."

"Again?" I raise my eyebrows.

"Yeah, Prewett came to me yesterday to ask me to talk to McKinnon about it, because apparently she and Macdonald are having a fight over something."

"Did you?"

Sirius shakes his head. "I haven't. But I might, normally I wouldn't give a damn about some girly bickering but Alice made it sound serious."

"So you're worried?"

Sirius frowns at me. "No, I'm curious."

"I thought you were serious."

"That's the worst joke you've ever made."

Marlene McKinnon

I stare at the piece of paper in front of me.

Library. 6 pm.

- A

This is it then. There's no question who 'A' is. Avery has decided what he wants from me. And I don't even have Mary with me to calm me down.

I never realised I'd be this stressed for it, but truthfully I'm terrified.

What is he going to want? Sex? Or something… more valuable.

But I have to suck it up, don't I? It's quarter to six and I doubt I'm allowed to be late.

It strikes me that Mary might have been right when she told me I shouldn't have made the deal with Avery, who really does seem to be the devil incarnate.

I look around the empty dorm, it kind of feels like Lily and Alice are siding with Mary. Even if they've talked to me when I've been around them, but they're not here with me, are they? They're probably at dinner with her.

Honestly, I hope she gets over it soon. I'm not going to apologise for doing nothing.

But knowing Mary, she probably won't apologise either.

With a sigh, I get up from my bed and rip the paper to shreds and let it fall to the floor. But I know it doesn't change anything. I still don't have a choice.

James Potter

"So, I was thinking," I stroke a stray of hair away from Lily's face.

"Yes?" she asks me, smiling a little up at me.

I never thought I'd find myself in a broom closet with Lily Evans, but things do truly change. It does feel a little cheap though, if I'm to be honest, but then it's a snog. With Lily. So who am I to whine?

"Maybe we could sit together at dinner."

Her eyebrows rise at me. "We often sit together at dinner…"

"And I mean, not bicker."

"We don't always bicker-"

"We're bickering now."

"No, we're-Okay, fine, we are."

"I meant like, side by side, you and I. Together."

"Together-Together?"

"Don't you think it's time yet? It's driving me crazy to hide stuff from Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail."

"James…" she pulls away from me, giving me the look she always gives me when I bring these kinds of things up. "I don't know… I think there's too much drama going on at the moment with all of us girls and this would just be… too big. Too much for them to deal with."

"Lily, we're dating. Not moving to Hong Kong and getting married and adopting dragons."

"James,"

"What is it Evans? What are you ashamed of me or something?" My voice isn't supposed to sound as hurt as it is. But, I've been thinking about it, why else wouldn't she want to tell anyone about us?

"Don't call me Evans, Potter." She gives me a teasing smile but I'm already pissed off, so I can't meet it with a playful one.

"Right. I'm going to dinner then." I turn around and open the door again.

"James, common-"

"Are you coming with me or not?"

I look at her again and she gives me an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I just can't-"

"Goodbye then."

Marlene McKinnon

The Library seems colder when it's just me and a Slytherin. Almost everyone else has already made their way down to the Great Hall to get some dinner.

"I'm here," I announce when I notice him. In a corner in the back, of course.

"Sit down," it's more of an order than an offer, but I don't do as he tells me. Time to stop being so bloody scared of some bloke.

"I like standing."

He laughs at that, sitting down himself. "I'm going to make this quick." He tells me, a smirk spreading over his face. "We had a deal, did we not?"

"Just tell me what you want already."

"I wan't you to have sex with Severus."

I'm sorry, what the fuck? "What?"

Avery looks victorious, he's knocked me off my feet definitely. "He's busy tonight, but I'm sure tomorrow would be great for him. Just drop by around eight?"

He's kidding, right? This is the sickest thing I've heard in a long time.

Avery gets up, smiling brightly at me. "Nice doing business with you, McKinnon, I'm sure I'll see you around."

I stare after him, long after he's gone, trying to look for the words that refuse to form. He wants me to sleep with Snape?

Lily's ex best friend Snape?

Slytherin Snape?

Slimy Snape?

Snivellus?

Sirius Black

It dawns on me that I might be the most selfish person in the world. And believe me, for me, that's a big realisation. But I can't help it, I don't want to admit it, even to myself, that now that things between me and Marlene seem to be over. Or well she's trying to make it very clear that she doesn't want to fall back into our old pattern, and I have to agree with her, it's become a little boring.

But I can still see her face, after I asked her to tell me… That she loves me. I don't even know if she does, I don't even know what I will do if she does, I don't even know why I asked. But now that I have, I can't stop. I need an answer.

Still, I've decided to be as nice as I can possibly be to her today, mostly because I wan't to find out why she's fighting with her friends, once again.

Since when did I start caring so much?

"Brother,"

My mood darkens as soon as I hear his voice and I turn around. Leave it to my brother to be always lurking about in the dark corners of Hogwarts, waiting for the perfect opportunity to come and annoy me.

"What the fuck do you want?" All civilities of any kind are thrown out the window, the second I see him.

"It's nice to see you too," he laughs and steps out from the shadows. He looks a lot thinner than he was last time I saw him, thin enough for me to notice a difference. He looks tired too, with bags under his eyes and his lips are faded red. "We have to talk." He tries to look normal, but there's something uneven about his voice, like he's nervous.

"About?" I raise my eyebrows. Last time I talked to him, he ended up screwing up things between me and McKinnon.

"There's only one person I dislike more than I dislike you," Regulus starts, cracking a smile. "Besides, this might destroy your happiness too." He shrugs a little.

"Spit it out. I don't have time for this."

"It's a bit of a long story. Or well, that depends on how much you know."

"About what?"

"McKinnon and Avery."

"I'm sorry, what?"

Marlene McKinnon

I'm still not over Avery's demand when I make my way down to the Great Hall. He can't be serious. This is got to be his version of a sick, sick joke. There's no way I'm sleeping with Severus Snape.

But I'm afraid what will happen if I don't. I've already gotten the information I needed, so technically I could walk away from everything, but I doubt Avery would let me do that.

My thoughts are interrupted by a long, heart wrenching sob coming from the classroom I'm walking past. And I stop in my steps.

After being friends with someone for as long as I've been friends with my friends, you start to recognize everything they do and connect stuff to them. And that's how I know that this sob belongs to one of my own. Lily.

"Lily?" I barely knock before I open the door and slip in.

Lily doesn't answer, but she looks at me. She's standing, pushed against the wall, with her hands covering most of her face. Another sob slips from her lips and she looks down at the floor.

"Lily… What's wrong?" I close the door behind me and make my way over to her.

She looks up at me and opens her mouth, but all that comes out is another sob.

"Lily-" I reach out for her but she moves away.

"Please don't-" she starts, but her voice breaks. With another sob, the seventh year slides down against the wall, hugging her knees to her chest.

"I've ruined everything," she tells me, voice muffled, but I can hear how broken she is.

"It's going to be okay," I promise, taking a step closer to her. Though, I have no idea what I'm promising.

At that she looks up, eyes puffy and red and she stares at me. "You're wrong." she replies.

"I would know ruining everything if I saw it." I respond, giving her a look. "You know that, everything can be fixed."

"How come you're so positive?"

"Well I got-"

The last of my sentence gets cut off when the door to the classroom is opened and we both look at the person entering and my throat tightens.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me-!"

His voice makes me jerk up and I take a step back, walking straight into Lily, who covers her face again.

"Sirius, what are you doing here-" how did he even know where I was?

"You-" he points a finger at me. "You made a deal with Avery?"

My heart skips a beat. How does he know about that?

Lily looks up. "What?" she manages out.

"This is not the time or-"

"Are you going to sleep with Snape?" I can't even try to describe Sirius' voice. Everything seems to stop for a moment and then I can feel both pairs of eyes on me and Lily gives away a weird strangled noise.

"Can we please not talk about this-"

"You're going to sleep with Severus?" Lily's voice is as broken as before.

"I- It's a long story Lily-"

"You're actually considering it?" Sirius demands, and I avoid his eyes.

"Sirius, can you just please leave us alone-"

He gets a hold on my hand and yanks me towards him, forcing my eyes to look into his.

"You are never ever, ever going to sleep with Severus Snape, McKinnon."

I swallow. "I told you, this is not the time or place for this conversation! Lily is-"

"Leaving,"

I turn around and see that Lily's gotten off the floor and is straightening her clothes.

"Lily, please-"

"No, Marlene. I don't want to hear it right now."

"It's not like you think-"

Lily holds up a hand to cut me off. "I'm leaving. Let me leave. Please." And with that she does just what she says, and leaves and I don't stop her.

There's a silence, after the door closes, leaving me and Sirius alone.

He releases my hand and steps away from me.

"I think I'll-"

He spins around, looking at me again and with a loud sigh he grabs my shoulders again.

"Why do you have to make me so angry?" he demands.

"Why do you have to pretend to care?" I bite back at him.

"You think anyone in the entire world would want you to make a deal with Avery of all people and then sleep withSnape!"

"But why, Sirius, why does it bother you so much?" I push him, releasing that this is my chance. My chance to pushhim for the answer he keeps wanting from me.

He goes quiet at that, probably not able to find an answer.

"Because," he starts, but goes quiet again.

"Because?" I prod him.

"You know why."

"No." I look up at him. "Tell me why."

And for a second I think he will. He opens his mouth and his fingers squeeze my shoulders. "I…" he trails off.

"Yes?" my voice is too hopeful.

He lets go of me and moves back. "I'm done with this," he mutters under his breath and turns away.

"You know what?" I call after him, before he can reach the doors.

He turns around and looks back at me, eyebrows slightly raised but the angry look still on his face.

"I'm done with this, too."


A/N: THIS TOOK ME SO MANY HOURS TO WRITE AND DAYS AND WEEKS ANDANO$RER. I'm sorry, I'm really tired. I hope it was okay! MERRY CHRISTMAS! And happy new year too! I hope you all enjoy your Holidays and that you enjoyed the chapter! I'm really sorry I didn't update on November 21st (my birthday), like I promised some of you! I'll try to update again before the year is over, but you all know I wont