Killed Her Personally

by adoeinthemeadowes

"That's Dorcas Meadowes...Voldemort killed her personally" Dorcas 'Doe' Meadowes didn't intend to have a screaming match with Sirius Black in the Great Hall, or watch Lily and James fall in love, and she definitely didn't intend to face Voldemort alone. From Hogwarts to Death, follow Doe's story through the first Wizarding War. CANON DM/SB JP/LE Dorius Marauders Era

33. The Dangers of Dating in Hogsmeade

33

The Dangers of Dating in Hogsmeade

The first years I passed in the hallway must have thought I was deranged as I barreled past them towards Gryffindor tower. But I didn't care. All I cared about was finding my friends and filling them in on everything that happened in the last few minutes. Gideon had asked me to Hogsmeade. Gideon Prewett. The boy I had liked for years. Handsome, kind, Head Boy Gideon. He liked me. Enough that he had worried someone else would ask me. I had hoped for years that this would happen. But I never actually thought it would. Not after everything that had happened last year.

I passed Fabian in the corridor as I jogged through a group of Hufflepuff fifth years and noticed him giving me an entertained little smile. Did he know then? He must. Gideon said he told him to do it. From the look on his face, I could tell he did. He was smirking. Slightly embarrassed, I returned the smile without stopping to say anything. I had to find Lily and Marlene.

I didn't stop until I made it all the way to the Portrait of the Fat Lady. Still damp from the lake, and sporting a fresh nervous blush on my cheek, I climbed quickly through the Portrait hole the moment it started to swing open, at the annoyance of the Fat Lady.

"Impatient, aren't we?" she huffed in irritation, adjusting her crown of fruit haughtily. She hated when we climbed through prematurely.

"Sorry!" I called quickly, not bothering to stop as I tore into the Common Room. I heard her sigh loftily behind me. "These kids," she complained, before the portrait swung shut. The Common Room was decently crowded tonight. Full of students who had finished lessons and were waiting for dinner to begin. I scanned the room for any search of my friends, itching to tell them, and growing anxious the longer it took.

The Marauders had commandeered one of the nice couches in the corner and looked rather bored. Peter and Remus had books open in front of them, and James and Sirius were chatting lazily. Just behind them, curled up in front of one of the wide windows, was a pair of familiar heads, one red, one blonde, pouring over the newest edition of Witch Weekly. I headed for my friends without hesitation, ignoring Sirius as he called "Oi, Meadowes! Who you running from?"

The sound of my surname made Lily and Marlene both look up from their reading material. Lily's face lit up as she saw me. "Oh, hi. Doe! We were wondering where you'd gone too."

"Why are you wet?" Marlene asked, scrunching up her nose as I plopped down on the thick carpet beside them.

"Because someone jinxed me into the Black Lake," I said waving it off. "But listen, I have something important to tell you." I could hardly hide my smile, just thinking about it. My friends looked at me like I was barmy.

Lily's eyes bugged out of her head. "More important than someone jinxing you?"

"Measurably," I added. "Guess who has a date for Hogsmeade?"

Behind them, James and Sirius' heads turned swiftly in our direction, going unnoticed by any of us. I was still smirking at my friends. It seemed to take them both a few seconds to process what I said and then Lily let out a high-pitched squeal of joy. "Gideon asked you, didn't he?"

I nodded quickly and Lily clapped her hands together. Behind her head, James shot Sirius a furtive look.

"Finally," Marlene stressed, looking very relaxed. "If he didn't do it soon I was going to have to knock some sense into that boy."

"Oh, I knew he would," Lily said, a dreamy look on her face. "Anyone with eyes can see how much he likes you."

"Well I had no idea," I said, wrapping my arms around my knees. I was still having trouble hiding my smile. It seemed to be permanently fused to my face. I just kept thinking of Gideons kind face as he asked me. He liked me.

"I told you he would," said Marlene, looking especially content, flipping through the glossy magazine in front of her with confidence.."Why do none of you ever listen to me? I know everything."

"Yeah, yeah, Marls. You're all-knowing," I said as Lily harmlessly rolled her eyes beside her.

"What can I say? When it comes to blokes, I'm never wrong," Marlene said shamelessly. "Merlin, I'm proud of you, Doe. Gideon is really good-looking."

"Are you excited?" Lily pressed, ignoring the happy dance Marlene was doing as she flipped through the pages.

I nodded, "And nervous."

"Well that's to be expected," Lily said brushing it off quickly. "I wouldn't worry. He clearly likes you. Now come on, tell me everything. How'd he ask you?"

Still unable to stop the blushing, I spent the next thirty minutes filling the two of them in on everything Gideon and I had done and said by the lake, not noticing that Sirius had stormed off towards the boys dormitory as I did.

---

By the next morning, Lily, Marlene and I had filled Mary in on every detail of what happened yesterday and the three of them were anxiously discussing everything from what I'd be wearing to where we might go. I participated for the first hour or so, but after that I couldn't take any more. Lily and Marlene, however, never seemed to tire of the subject.

"How were you thinking of doing your hair?" Lily asked me at the breakfast table, as I attempted to eat eggs and read my defense textbook at the same time. I was deep into the chapter on Dementors and so completely absorbed by it that I didn't even hear her.

"Down of course," Marlene added before I even looked up. "Right, Doe?"

"Huh?"

"Doe," Marlene chastised sternly. "We're trying to make sure you are properly prepared for tomorrow." She was giving me a look that reminded me vaguely of Professor McGonagall.

"Prepared?" I asked, raising a blonde eyebrow at them. "It's a date, not a job interview."

Marlene sighed into her cereal. "Doe, do you or do you not want it to go well?"

I rolled my eyes, pulling myself from patronus charms. 'You know I do," I said, blushing slightly.

"Then you have to actually think about these things and participate," Marlene stressed. She looked very exasperated with me as she twisted her long golden hair into a knot on the top of her head, securing it with her wand.

"If I want it to go well, shouldn't I not worry about it?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That's true," Lily mused. "She should just be herself."

"No one's telling her not to be herself," Marlene said firmly "But she's liked Gideon for ages. I want to make sure it goes well."

"But no pressure right?" I whispered nervously, resting my head on my hands. I was so excited by the prospect of going out with Gideon that I never considered the possibility that it wouldn't go well. The idea sent my stomach into large knots. I looked down the table to where the seventh years sat and saw Gideon sitting beside his brother and Otto, his head thrown back in laughter. It made me smile. I watched him for a second, and then he caught my eye. I felt the blush creep back onto my cheeks and I moved to look away, but not before Gideon flashed me a wide smile.

"I think you two are making her unnecessarily nervous," Mary warned them, serving herself some pancakes. "Doe is going to be fine. Gideon already likes her. Tomorrow will go perfectly. Now let her read."

"Thank you, Mary," I told her, flashing her a smile, and turning back to my book.

Beside me, Marlene sighed. "Oh you're just trying to be her favorite."

"I already am," Mary teased, avoiding the biscuit that Marlene lobbed her way. From the staff table, Professor McGonagall eyed her with displeasure.

"Are you prepared for the defense exam?" Mary asked Lily and I, swiftly changing the subject as Marlene prepared a piece of kipper to toss. Marlene frowned, her perfect lips forming a pout.

"As prepared as I can be," I said, giving up on the textbook and turning back to my breakfast. "I really want to impress Professor Sayre."

"She really is interesting, isn't she?" Lily bemused. "She's taught us so much already. Makes me wonder what she taught at Ilvermorny."

"Especially since she said Dumbledore's curriculum is tamer than theirs," I said, my mind racing at the possibility of what she wasn't teaching us. I bet whatever it was would definitely help prepare me for an auror program.

Marlene frowned. "Yeah but then you'd have to go to America." She shuddered as if this was the worst thing imaginable.

"That doesn't sound like the worst thing in the world," Remus said quietly, as the four Marauders joined the breakfast table across from us. "They don't have problems like You-Know-Who there."

All four of them looked exhausted, and were later to breakfast than they usually were. I scoured my brain to try and remember if last night was a full moon and remembered quickly that it wasn't.

"They did have Grindelwald though," I pointed out, as the four boys dug into breakfast, loading their plates with three times what we had.

"Very true," Sirius said, agreeing with me as he spooned breakfast onto his plate. "Grindelwald may not have been as blood-thirsty and maniacal as You-Know-Who but he tried to do the same thing. Rule over muggles."

Lily and Mary gave tiny involuntary shudders, Sirius noticed and caught my eye, raising an eyebrow. I gave him a knowing look. It was hard to explain how much talk of You-Know-Who worried Lily and Mary. As Muggleborns, they had the most to lose. As a Pureblood, it was hard for Sirius to imagine. He always thought they were being a touch dramatic.

"But He isn't going to actually get away with it," James added quickly, his eyes locked on Lily's tense face, his expression strained as if he could feel every ounce of her pain and worry. "Just like with Grindelwald. Voldemort is going to be caught."

Lily's eyes flitted up to James, and the corners of her mouth turned upward into a small genuine smile. For a moment, no one wanted to say anything, terrified to disrupt the rare peaceful moment between Lily and James. Eventually, after a minute of silence, Sirius seemed incapable of sitting quietly any longer and turned to me.

"So I heard you may not be in need of my services in Hogsmeade this Saturday after all," he said evenly, raising an eyebrow. "Or did I hear incorrectly about you and Prewett?" His voice was even and relaxed, but his eyes were harder than normal.

The blush that had faded from my cheeks minutes ago filled them again as Sirius' bright gray eyes poured into mine.

"Oh," I said quickly, biting the end of my lip. "No, I guess I don't." It felt strange to be talking to Sirius about this. While I felt overjoyed at the idea of talking about it with my other close friends, bringing it up with Sirius felt wrong somehow. I was very aware of everyone's pairs of eyes on me now, watching the interaction with mild interest,

"I'm a little surprised," Sirius said biting into the end of the piece of toast, his eyes locked on mine. "You never go out on Hogsmeade dates."

"Well I can't be Don'tkiss Meadnos forever now can I?" I asked him sarcastically, and James snickered beside him. Lily sighed. "And anyway. It's not that big of a deal."

Sirius' expression was unreadable. He simply took another sip of Pumpkin Juice without saying anything.

"Prewett seems to think it is," James chuckled. "He keeps looking over here and I don't think it's Moony he's looking for."

"Oh can't you just mind your own business?" Lily implored. Apparently all the good will from a few minutes ago was gone. But I didn't mind James' words. I looked back towards where Gideon sat and found he was looking at me again. This time, he blushed. The color drifted across his freckled nose and cheeks.

"Oh I don't know about that. Remus really is something to look at," I teased, feeling particularly lighter now. Remus went scarlet and smiled at his breakfast.

Sirius chuckled. "See Moony?" He said lightheartedly. "I told you that new haircut is working for you. You've even got Meadowes swooning."

I winked dramatically and Remus' blush deepened. Sirius grinned.

Before anyone could say anything else. A rush of wind and chorus of hoots interrupted the breakfast conversation, dropping letters, parcels and newspapers into the laps of the waiting students beneath. Large packets from home appeared in front of Marlene and James, and a brown Daily Prophet Owl dropped a copy of the newspaper in my lap.

"Merlin, Gran made more of those cookies you all love," Marlene said, taking out a heavy wooden box and passing out a collection of frosted sugar cookies, designed with magical creatures. The one I got had a pretty white owl on it. "I do love these," Lily sighed as she bit into a Grindylow decorated one.

"Remind me to thank her," I said as the cookie melted on my tongue, leaving a delicious almond aftertaste.

Marlene nodded and passed the box with the remaining ones over the table to the boys who were eyeing them enviously.

"You four are savages," I said shaking her head as the Marauders playfully shoved one another out of the way to get their choice of the dragon, hippogriff, unicorn and newt. Unsurprisingly, Peter ended up with the newt.

"Tastes delicious though," James said, munching the head off the hippogriff while Lily rolled her eyes across the table.

Ignoring my desire to do the same, I flipped open my copy of the prophet and observed the headline. I sucked in a tight breath, my chest constricting as I read the headline; Muggleborn Family Murdered in Surrey

"How does this keep happening?" I demanded, scanning the article that detailed the atrocities. Five people dead at the hands of Death Eaters. For the simple fact that they were muggleborn.

"Because unfortunately, people dont change," Sirius said, reading the headline of the paper over my shoulder. "And there's quite a bit of bigoted people in our world."

I dropped the newspaper on the table so I didn't have to look at the faces of Voldemort's victims any longer. Seeing their faces reminding me far too much of what had happened to my parents.

"It's disgusting," Lily agreed, seeing the look on my face.

I could see her analyzing every movement I made, wondering if this was the article that would send me to hysterics. But I wasn't going to let it. It was disgusting. Everything that Voldmeort and the Death Eaters were doing filled my stomach with intense dread.

Thankfully, I didn't have to think about it for much longer. Marlene pulled Lily back into a conversation about her hogsmeade date that managed to diverge her and James attention and provided the rest of us with a suitable distraction until breakfast was over.

We were slow and lazy that morning as we made our potions, quietly dreading the next hour and a half, no one, besides Lily, particularly enjoyed Potions as a lesson anyway, but now that we were paired with Slytherins, it was becoming something we started to dread.

"I really don't know how you deal with that," Sirius asked as we entered the dungeon classroom. He nodded in the direction of my table, where Snape sat, sneering into his open textbook.

"Patience?" I suggested half-heartedly, knowing full well it took every ounce I had not to hex Snape during every one of those lessons.

Sirius glared across the room at him. "You must have a lot more than me, Meadowes."

I didn't know if patience had anything to do with it really. After our first lesson, Snape said very little to me. Usually, we worked in absolute silence doing our best to pretend the other was not there. I didn't hate him necessarily. I didn't waste my hatred on people like him. Spineless people. There were bigger worries in my mind at the moment. Snape was just a bi-weekly annoyance.

I didn't say a word to him as I sat down in my seat, and took out my things for the lesson, and he didn't make any moves to greet me either. Across the room, Mary seemed to be doing the same, pretending she wasn't sharing a desk with Mulciber, and James was already talking Lily's ear off. The only people who didn't look absolutely miserable were Sirius and Imogen. He was telling her a very enthusiastic story, that had her giggling like mad. Their voices were some of the loudest in the chamber. Something about the exchange bothered me, though I didn't quite know what it was. When we made eye contact, Sirius beamed at me, so I decided not to let whatever I was feeling affect my mood.

The lesson today was not a particularly challenging one. It was a calming draft, that had a lot of steps but wasn't particularly hard. After a ten minute lecture, Slughorn had released us to make the potion and disappeared to his chambers to finish an important letter. The moment he left the room, the class relaxed and the topics of conversation began to flow more easily, and students talked over desks to the people they really wanted to be sitting with as they chopped salamander tails and lacewing flies.

Snape and I said nothing to each other. I was surrounded on most sides by Slytherins and distracted myself by rereading each step twice and thinking about Saturday in Hogsmeade. Something that was becoming increasingly more difficult as the Slytherins gossiped louder. The only other conversation in spitting distance was Sirius and Imogen which had turned to what I could perceive as mindless flirting so I tuned it out.

"I mean my parents went of course," Narcissa said across the edge of her table to Mulciber and Rosier. "And Bella. But I didn't go, no. Wish I did though. "

"You missed out," Evan said enthusiastically, "It was amazing. Mum and dad took me. I had to beg them a bit, but eventually they gave in. After my brother talked to them. Merlin, it was so fun."

Elizabeth let out a haughty little laugh. "I didn't have to beg my parents at all. They were thrilled I wanted to go. Dad even closed the shop for the day. Knew there was no point in staying open when all our customers would be there anyway." Her voice began to adopt an adoring dreamlike quality to it. "And the way He speaks. It's no wonder he's so accomplished." She began to twirl her wand in her hand, staring off into the distance.

Narcissa pouted. "That's what Bella said too. She went on and on about it. I really should have gone." She rested her head on her hand in disappointment.

"Why didn't you?" Jonas Avery asked from behind her. "I would have thought it would've been the highlight of your summer?"

"Well," Narcissa stuttered, sounding a bit nervous, "I just didn't think that many Hogwarts students would be going. I thought it was for adult wizards."

Jonas shook his head. "No not at all. Half the house was there, Cis. Even like… first years. It was packed. Standing room only."

Narcissa let out a little breath of surprise. "Really?" she asked in a tone of surprise. Her high pitched voice raking through the dungeon.

"Honestly. Even Hufflepuffs," Jonas said quietly. "I was surprised by the people who had pledged their allegiance. Some of those people who showed up, I'd have never guessed. I mean Hufflepuffs at a Voldemort rally?"

My wand slipped from my hand at the sound of this, clattering loudly against the heavy wooden table and fell. Gold sparks shot out of one end of it as it collided with the stone floor.

I didn't move to get it yet, I was still so stunned by what I had just heard. The rally.

They were talking about You-Know-Who's rally so casually I had thought they had been talking about a concert. How they had wanted to go. How some of them had gone. About how it was fun. It was enough to boil my blood.

Swearing under my breath, I dove under the desks to fetch my wand from the ground. As I did, I saw Lily and James were both white-faced listening to the Slytherins.

My eyes found Sirius' then and was pleased to see he was listening too, his eyes narrowed in the direction of Elizabeth, who was now so loud all of the classroom could hear her.

I tried to focus on my potion, doing my best to drown the sound of them out. But it was getting more difficult.

"... honestly Narcissa, it was huge. Like the size of a Quidditch World Cup. Full of witches and wizards. Like Minded ones you know?" She grinned, looking pleased by this. "So many people. Foreign and domestic. You have no idea how many people actually support him. And of course it was nice to see the people who were quiet about it. Some of them did surprise me. A lot of ministry people. Although I personally think they should be more vocal about it. It's not as if thats not the direction the wind is turning anyway. But anyway, when he spoke, everyone listened. He had such good ideas you know? He didn't just say things. He knew things. He outlined this whole plan for the wizarding world that put Purebloods and Magic the best part? There wasnt a single fucking mudblood there." She cackled and Narcissa smiled, looking interested.

I winced at the sound of the slur and Snape sneered.

"Don't you think that's a bit dramatic?" he hissed, casting me a dirty look. Beside him, his potion bubbled, the perfect shade of pumpkin. I had the sudden urge to knock it off the table.

"No." I snapped in his direction. "I don't like hearing that word, Snape. I know you don't have a problem hearing it, or saying it, but I do."

The insult had the desired effect on Snape. He went rigid. His entire body, somehow growing paler than it already was. His eyes darkened too, to the color of onyx as he glared at me, his upper lip pulled tight to bare a set of yellowed teeth.

"If I were you, Dorcas," he said in a tense voice, just barely raised above a whisper. "I'd watch what you say, and to who. One of these days someone is going to get tired of your blood status crusader act and your endless little tirades about equality."

I didn't know if it was spending the last ten minutes listening to Narcissa and Elizabeth prattle on about the very rally that had sent the fear of Merlin into my all summer, or my frustration at being partnered with Snape, but suddenly I felt all of my anger spill over at the greasy haired, spineless person next to me.

"Yeah?" I raised an eyebrow at him "and do what? If you're going to threaten me, you might as well do it properly. It will give Lily another reason to hate you. Well, more than she already does."

It was below the belt. I knew that. But so was what he had said. He couldn't scare me the way he and Mulciber scared the muggleborns. I wasn't going to let the Slytherins just say whatever they wanted without any recourse. I'd fight back. I didn't have anything to lose.

The corner of Snape's mouth twitched, and he moved his wand arm. I knew enough about him from what Lily had told me to know he was experienced with non verbals.

"Well that was quite the letter," Slughorn said striding back into the room, smelling slightly of crystalized pineapple and Brandy as he did. "How did we make out with the potion, my hungry pupils?"

Narcissa, and Elizabeth who had been in the middle of talking about the rally, silenced, sitting up straighter as their Head of House passed

The ghost of a smile fell from Snapes lips as the Potions Master interrupted what I was sure was going to be a very well placed hex. He made sure to flash me a very dark look before giving his attention back to Slughorn.

I was in such a foul mood that I barely listened to the end of Slughorn's lecture. I turned in a vial of my potion, and the was out of the dungeon the moment we were dismissed.

"That bad was it?" Mary asked, as she and Lily jogged to catch up with me. I had left the room so quickly, we were practically in the entrance hall before I started to slow down.

"Did you hear those vile things the Slytherins were saying?" I demanded, still fired up. "Talking about that awful rally like it was a bloody concert."

I could feel my fury at them flooding through me. I had spent the entire summer staring at those hideous green fliers in Diagon Alley, knowing what they meant and what they were urging people to do. To join. Voldemort and his supporters were going to bring about a whole new generation of people who did things like Aubleus. He was going to create more orphans. And people like Elizabeth and Narcissa were excited for it.

I didn't like being reminded of it in Potions of all place. Not here. In this castle. Not home.

"Mulciber was talking about it too," Mary said in a quiet, even voice. She was staring at her shoes, avoiding our eyes and I instantly felt guilty. Mary had it so much worse than I did. While I hated Snape, she had to share a desk with someone who had attacked her. And gotten away with it. I couldn't imagine what it must be like for her to hear those things coming out of his mouth.

I reached out to stroke her shoulder, "Merlin, Mary. I'm sorry."

Her eyes brightened at my touch and she gave a gentle shake of her head. "Dont worry about it, it wasn't too bad. I tried to tune it out mostly. Landon and I are going to the grounds tonight for a picnic. I tried to think about that instead."

"I didn't hear most of it," Lily admitted honestly. "Potter was talking my ear off about the possibility of the Quidditch match. He didn't stop for a second, I swear. As if I care much about Gryffindor's quidditch chances outside of you, of course." She gave a gentle slightly annoyed shake of her head. She was so blissfully unaware sometimes it made me want to pat her head.

Mary shook her head too., "Oh, Lily." She was clearly thinking along the same lines as I was.

"What?" Lily asked, misreading my tiny smile.

"Did you ever consider that maybe James was talking incessantly about Quidditch to distract you from the vile things they were saying?" I asked, an eyebrow raised, as the three of us headed back towards Gryffindor tower.

"No," Lily said quickly, although her eyes had begun to dart back and forth in confusion "I don't think James would have…." she trailed off, her bottom lip parting slightly as if she were thinking.

Mary gave me a knowing look.

"Do you really think that's what he was doing?" Lily asked quietly, her face was wiped blank, she nearly stumbled over a pair of tiny first years as she did.

Why did she look so confused? Did she really believe James was such a horrible person that he was incapable of doing a single nice thing for her? I mean I knew how annoying he could be, but he did love Lily. Sometimes more than I thought she knew.

"I can't really know for sure, Lily. But it does sound like him. He hates the Slytherins and when you're upset."

"He upsets me all the time."

I shook my head, "With little stuff. Not like that. He knows what talk like that does to you and Mary."

Lily scrunched up her tiny nose in frustration. "Maybe. But it doesn't really excuse all the other stuff even if he did do one nice thing." But she didn't look entirely convinced. Her eyes were still moving pretty quickly.

I opened my mouth to ask them both if they wanted to crack open a bottle of pumpkin juice and flip through one of Marlene's copies of Witch Weekly, when the sight of someone leaning against the bannister in green and black robes made my nose scrunch up. Why was it that whenever Slytherins were infuriating me, I always ran into more? When it rains, it pours, I suppose.

"Ugh," Lily noticed him too. "What does he follow you around the castle?" Her dislike for him was almost as strong as mine. She had always thought he was dangerous.

"I wouldn't put it past him," I whispered, slightly annoyed at his approaching presence. "Come on. Lets walk quickly, Maybe he won't notice us."

Mary snorted. "Right. Lestrange not notice you? That's like hoping Potter will stop liking Lily."

"From your mouth to Merlin's ears," Lily joked, as the three eof us quickened our speed down the corridor,

I tried to move quickly enough that he wouldn't notice me, but that was too optimistic. He wasn't reading or distracted. He was standing very still, his eyes searching the corridor with purpose. He was waiting for something. Normally that might have worried me, he had a nasty habit of turning up where I was, but he did look surprised when he noticed Lily, Mary and I trying to usher past him unnoticed.

"Ah, Doe," Rabastan said, looking decidedly more excited now moving from the wall to follow close beside me. "How are you, Pet?"

"Irritated," I said staring forward, trying to ignore the sultry smile he flashed my way. "I was having a perfectly good walk back to the common room until you showed up."

Rabstan grinned. It truly was disturbing how teeth could be that white and straight. Did he charm them that way? Or was it just a relic of those Pureblood genes. Either way, it was annoying.

"You really do have a way with words, Pet. I'll give you that," he chuckled softly. I had to resist the urge to gag. Lily didn't stop herself. Rabastan's eyes narrowed in her direction.

"What do you want?" I demanded. Rabastans legs were longer than mine and we were still a good distance from Gryffindor Tower.

Rabastan frowned. "You're a bit testy today, aren't you?" he purred. "You know what might make you feel better?"

"Pushing you off the Astronomy tower?"

Lily and Mary both giggled. We were only two staircases away from the Common Room now.

He rolled his eyes. "I'm going to let that one slide, Pet. Seeing as you look so perturbed. You really need some relaxation. I know the perfect thing. You. Me. The dormitories. This weekend. Everyone else will be out in the village. I'm sure you and I can find so many creative ways to relieve all of that stress."

This actually made me stop in my tracks as the horror stretched across my face. "That's repulsive."

Rabastan didn't look even slightly phased. His ego was untouchable. "No, it's inevitable, Pet. One of these days, this constant flirting is going to get tiring and you're going to want to get the full experience." One of his long figures reached out to stroke the hair on my left shoulder.

"If this is what you call flirting, I'd hate to see what you call stalking," I said very evenly.

"Stalking," Rabastan rolled his eyes. "You can be so very dramatic. Do you know that?"

It was the second time a Slytherin had called me that within the hour. All of my patience with them was running out. Rolling my eyes I resumed walking. Rabastan didn't hesitate to match my pace.

"Fine, then. We'll take it slow," Rabastan said cockily, sounding more delighted by the moment. "I suppose I'll have to take you to Hogsmeade first then?"

I was ready to snap back a fiery retort about how he would have to kill me and reanimate before that would never happen when Lily beat me to the punch.

"Please," she snorted, to my enormous surprise. "As if she'd go with you. She's already going with someone else."

For the first time in this exchange the confidence faded immediately from Rabastans face and he no longer looked very handsome. His green eyes hardened as they turned to mine.

"You're going to Hogsmeade?" he seethed.

His lips pulled into a hard line that made his already heavily pronounced cheekbones look like they were going to burst from his skin. "With who?"

I stopped again, and so did he. Lily and Mary almost tripped over each other to watch what was enfolding.

Rabastans face was twisted with something I'd never seen before. I couldn't tell if it was jealousy or rage. Maybe something else? It couldn't be jealousy. Rabastan didn't actually like me. Sure he wanted me. Coveted me maybe. But outside of a quick shag there wasn't much he wanted beside bragging rights. He liked to bother me. To scare me. But I doubted he liked me enough to let the idea of being with someone else actually hurt his feelings. No, this was embarrassment. His ego was bruised. I had chosen someone else. He didn't like that. It didn't matter who it was. He was like a petulant child. Rabastan thought they were playing with his toy.

I was enjoying this. Seeing his anger, and knowing I was the one who caused it,

"It's none of your business who I go on dates with," I said evenly, my mouth turning into a cocky smile I had never given him before.

Rabastan snarled, his full upper lip curving over his even white teeth. His smile didn't look so pretty anymore. He looked like an animal.

"Who?" he repeated. His arm had reached out to grasp my wrist, but I kept it firmly out of his reach.

Lily eyed his wand arm carefully and I watched her own wand slip out of her pocket.

"Like I said, it's none of your business," I repeat firmly, "seeing as I won't be going with you."

I turned on my heels, with Lily and Mary, not saying another word as we left Rabastan, standing alone in the corridor looking furious.

"Merlin, he looks so mad," Mary commented, turning over her shoulder to get a glimpse of his face. "Like he could murder someone."

That sent a spike of fear down my chest. I had been enjoying Rabastan's discomfort and anger so much I hadn't thought about what I'd overheard between him and Dolohov. Rabastan wanted to kill someone here. In the castle. And I had just enraged him. Had I riled him up and then sent him off to do bidding for You-Know-Who?

Lily must have read the expression on my face because she grasped my shoulder tightly. "Forget it. He didn't look that mad. He's just got his pride hurt since you like someone else."

"You think?" I asked nervously, chewing on the end of my nail. "He can be dangerous. If he wanted too, I'm sure."

This time Mary shook her head. "Doe, that was nothing more than jealousy. Every time you turn him down he can pretend you like him. If you like someone else. It crushes his little theory. He's embarrassed."

I wasn't quite convinced. Rabastan was possessive. Even if he didn't want me himself. And I knew that somewhere under that obnoxiously handsome face, he was capable of really dark things.

"Why didn't you tell him you were going with Gideon?" Lily asked, searching my face in that familiar way she always did. "I bet that would have made him really mad. Gideon is like the antithesis of him. Except well, as annoying as it is, they're both really handsome."

Gideon was handsome. Tall, unequivocally good-looking with his muscular build and strong jaw. He was even unique. Long red hair complimented by those deep blue eyes. Gideon was too handsome. Too likable. He would have challenged him. Rabastan would have been furious.

Would he have been more or less furious if it was Sirius? A tiny voice asked in the back of my head. It had come so quickly, it had stunned me, and almost made me plunge deep into the trick step on the staircase. I missed it by a second.

It was such a random thought. Why would that even matter? Sirius had nothing to do with this.

"You alright?" Mary asked.

I nodded firmly. "Yeah, just thinking. I don't know why I didn't tell him. Probably so he didn't do anything to ruin it. I'm nervous enough, you know?" That was mostly the truth. Every time I thought about tomorrow, it filled my stomach with a tightness I couldn't explain and talking suddenly became very difficult. It would be easier if Gideon wasn't so handsome. And so nice.

People really shouldn't get to be both.

"Tomorrow is going to go perfectly," Lily assured me. "You like him, and Gideon's clearly liked you for ages. So just enjoy it." She offered me a wide smile. "Come on, let's go find Marlene and have her do that spell to make your hair all fluffy."

Lily reached behind her to link arms with Mary and I and as we headed for the Common Room, I let all my fears melt away.

---

I woke up cold. Someone, Rylie probably, had turned off the fireplace in the middle of the night and now the dormitory that normally bordered on stuffy had an unfamiliar chill. The sheets didn't cling to my body like usual, instead they felt like icicles rubbing against my skin, leaving goosebumps in their trail.

I rolled over in my four-poster, teeth chattering, to see the glowing embers of the long burnt out fire. Past Marlene's bed, the windows were fogged from the outside. I wrapped my blankets tighter around me, dreading the changing of season.

It was only October. Did it have to get so cold so fast? I liked Fall. I was in no rush for Winter to fall upon Hogwarts. Sure, the castle always looked picturesque under a layer of snow, but that also meant wearing two sweaters under my robes to stay warm. If it was as chilly as it looked from the window, I'd probably need to wear a coat today.

The thought made me sit up in bed with shock. I was going to Hogsmeade today. With Gideon. I'd almost forgotten. My cheeks burned red as I thought about what that meant, the white-hot feeling of nerves spread over every inch of my body. I certainly wasn't cold anymore. I was just nervous.

Merlin, what was I going to wear? What was I going to say? All I could feel was the nerves. I wrapped my arms around my knees trying to calm myself down. It wasn't a big deal. It was just a date to Hogsmeade. Sure, I really liked Gideon but that didn't matter. I'd spent loads of time with him before. He already knew me. If he didnt like me after a Hogsmeade date, who cares?

"Merlin," Lily shivered from her bed, her voice still groggy, "Did someone blow out the fire?"

"Rylie probably" Marlene groaned from under her pillow, thinking along the same lines as me.

I heard a gentle laugh come from Alice's bed and a sigh from Rylie's. Mary was still snoring quietly.

"Sorry," Rylie said apologetically, rubbing at her eyes. "I dropped a glass of pumpkin juice last night."

From here, I could see the clear shards of glass glistening against the burning coals.

"I couldn't think of a way to repair it or relight the fire without waking you all up," she admitted, slightly embarrassed. "I haven't gotten the hang of nonverbals yet."

I opened my mouth to offer to help her with it, when I remembered what she had said about muggleborns and inter-blooded couples, and firmly shut it. I hadn't quite gotten over it yet, and from the dark look Lily was casting her around her massive red hair, she hadn't either.

Rylie seemed to sense this tension and busied herself with something in her trunk. Alice lept lightly from the bed and disappeared into the bathroom.

Lily stretched, noticed me watching her and smiled kindly. "Excited for today?" she asked.

I mustered a weak smile. "Yeah, sort of. If I ever stop being nervous."

"What do you have to be nervous for?" Marlene said popping out of her bed like that muggle toy, jack-in-a-box. "You're going with Gideon. He practically holds a torch for you." She winked.

"He does not," I said firmly, as a blush crossed my cheeks, hoping for the opposite,

"Does so,"

This seemed to have jolted Mary awake because the curtains of her bed opened and her sleepy face appeared near her trunk.

"Did you pick out what you're wearing yet?" she stifled a yawn.

I shook my head. "And I'm glad I didn't because it's freezing. I shivered as my bare feet touched the floor. I moved towards the heater and with one silent flick of my wand, blue flames illuminated the room, and dissolved the chill.

I spent the next ten minutes scrubbing my face and brushing my hair while Marlene and Mary argued good-naturedly over what I'd be wearing today. I had apparently lost the right to choose when I picked out what Marlene had affectionately called a "stay in the common room and read" sweater.

I kept my hair straight and loose, and my makeup simple. A few sweeps of mascara and a light colored lipstick that Lily had given me the previous year.

"You look nice!" Lily said when I emerged from the bathroom in the outfit Marlene had picked out. Per usual, she looked flawless in an emerald sweater dress and thick stockings. Her red hair was set in waves today and her eyes were lined with a dark, chalky coal. She looked beautiful. Then I remembered she had a date today too, with Kellan. For a moment I felt a brief pang of grief for James. I hoped he didn't see her today. She did look really pretty.

"Thanks!" I said brightly, "so do you, Lils."

She beamed as I bent down searching through my trunk for a coat that would be warm but wouldn't send Marlene into hysterics over ruining my outfit. She had worked hard on it.

It was tamer than I thought she would go, and for that I was grateful. A pair of well-worn jeans, a snugly fitting, but decently warm, v-neck maroon sweater. She'd paired it with a pair of brown booties that she swore were easy to walk in, but had made me raise an eyebrow.

"This one allowed, oh mighty fashion Lord Marlene?" I teased holding up a camel wool coat.

Marlene, who was dolled up to her usual standard, leaned over her bed dramatically and pretended to purse her lips. "I suppose that will do."

Mary chuckled from her bed, where she sat ready and waiting. She was spending the day with Landon, unsure if they were going to go to the village or not. Alice and Rylie were gone already, they headed down to breakfast five minutes before. I snuck my Gryffindor scarf into one of the pockets of my coat in case it was cold. Marlene would hate it but at least I knew it matched.

I was going to meet up with Gideon after breakfast. Lily was doing the same. Marlene however, had promised to meet Dirk at the Three Broomsticks, owing to the need to curl her hair.

"And you're sure you don't want us to wait for you?" I double checked, as I slipped my wand and some gold into my coat pocket.

Marlene didn't look away from her vanity mirror, she just waved a hand in our direction, "Yes I'm sure. Dirk is in his fifth year, he's lucky I'm going at all. He can wait for me to be properly ready. Enjoy your breakfast."

"See you in the village then," Lily said brightly. Marlene smiled, and the three of us trudged out of the dormitory and towards the Great Hall.

"Ironically, she could make him wait three hours and Dirk would still be pleased when she showed up," Mary chuckled as we climbed through the portrait hole.

"Honestly," I agreed, my stomach growling for eggs. "I wonder what it's like being Marlene for a day."

"Blonde, Rich and a Pureblood?" Lily asked with a chuckle, "I'm sure it's great."

"It's a shame really that she's so lovely to be around," Mary added. "Or it would be very easy to hate that girl."

The three of us chuckled as we sat down at the breakfast table and began to serve ourselves. Like any other Hogsmeade day, the Great Hall wasn't very crowded. People got up at all different times to head into the village. Gryffindor's table was decently full. We were the only sixth years but the seventh years all seemed to be crowded around talking earnestly as the younger years watched on with interest,

Mary waved enthusiastically to Landon, I felt the color rise to my cheeks as I noticed Gideon sitting with Otto and Fabian. His back was towards me. Fabian spotted my gaze fist, as I sat down and nudged his brother in the shoulder. Gideon turned around and flashed me a wide smile. He looked genuinely pleased to see me. That was a good sign right? I just managed to return it before turning back to my eggs.

I made sure to eat. Something that was becoming increasingly difficult with my nerves, and the awareness that Gideon was sitting a few feet away. I distracted myself with the prophet.

"Wonder where the Marauders are this morning?" Lily pondered as I flipped the page I was reading. "Aren't they normally here bothering us already?"

She had hardly touched the food in front of her. Mary, who was reading the same article over my shoulder, blinked at her, in surprise.

"Do you miss them?" I asked her in a quiet voice, slightly confused. I hadn't noticed they weren't here, although it was quieter without James and Sirius' ongoing distribes, But that wasn't too weird. They couldn't have left early for the village or were having a bit of a lie in.

What was weird was that Lily had noticed.

"Of course not," she said, sitting up straighter on the bench, "It's just weird, isn't it?"

She fluffed out her hair, which really did look fantastic today, and seemed to strain her neck as she looked towards the direction of the entrance hall.

"Dunno," Mary said carefully, a bit skeptical.

"Hadn't really thought about it, myself," I admitted, thoroughly confused.

Lily sighed and stabbed a breakfast potato. Mary raised an eyebrow at me, and I shrugged. I had no idea what that was about. But if it was about James, then I knew it was probably better to leave it alone. They way Lily felt about James was complicated,

"I should probably go," Lily said abruptly. "I'm meeting Kellan in the entrance hall."

With one more wistful look where the Marauders usually sat, Lily scooped up her purse and stood. Was that disappointment on her face, I wondered in disbelief, or nerves?

"Have a good time!" I called after her, and she flashed us a thumbs up before disappearing through the heavy wooden doors.

"What the bloody hell was that?" Mary asked a few seconds after she had gone. "Am I going barmy or was Lily, our Lily Evans, disappointed the Marauders weren't around?"

"That's definitely what it sounded like," I told her. "But it is Lily. She couldn't have wanted them here could she? She gets so frustrated by them. Why would she want to see them, and before a date no less?"

"I have no idea," Mary said, shaking her head in disbelief. "It's mad, though. The Marauders wouldn't even believe them if we told them"

"Oh don't," I begged, "James will never shut up about it if you do." Mary laughed evilly.

It still didn't make any sense why Lily wanted them here. If the Marauders had been around, James would have been tearing the mickey out of her. He would have been trying to convince her not to go on her date, Is that what she wanted?

It couldn't be. She was excited, wasn't she?

I didn't have much time to ponder that idea. In her absence, a different ginger had taken Lily's empty seat across from me.

"Hiya Doe," Gideon smiled broadly, and it took all of my combined focus not to knock over Mary's glass of pumpkin juice.

"Hi, Gideon " I said quickly, pulling my lips into a normal smile. He looked very nice today. His hair was loose and splayed over a thick cream colored sweater that fit him nicely. His blue eyes sparkled at my words.

"Are you ready for Hogsmeade?" he asked excitedly. " If Mary's is finished with you of course." He smiled at my best friend kindly.

Mary shook her head. "She's all yours. Quite bored of her really."

Gideon did not take his eyes off me. "Bored? Of Doe? Come on Mcdonald, that's practically a crime."

Now I had to be blushing. Under the table Mary gave me a supportive nudge with her foot.

"Punishable by Azkaban, I hear" I joked lightly, rolling my eyes. My smile didn't budge.

"And you're full?" Gideon asked. "Don't need a refill on Pumpkin juice or eggs? It's quite a trek," he joked. "We may have to walk for a whole ten minutes."

"Ten minutes? Well that's absurd. I cant go now," I grinned and got up from the table. "I think I've had enough eggs for twelve. I'm definitely ready."

"Excellent" Gideon beamed, and followed my lead.

"Have a good time!" Mary called as we left the Great Hall, and made our way towards the grounds.

I smiled as I noticed the coat slung over Gideons arm. He had switched out his normal leather bomber for a short coat almost the same shade as mine.

"We match," I said, indicating to it.

"Oh yeah, We do," Gideon said brightly. "Thought this occasion warranted nice clothes. You know maybe a jacket without a hippogriff scratch down the arm."

Did I imagine the blush that crossed his cheeks?

"Well it looks nice," I told him firmly. "Although for record. I like a jacket with a good hippogriff scratch on it."

"Oh do you?" Gideon asked as Filch checked our names off the list, the cold fall air biting at our noses. The caretaker sneered at us.

I nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah. The more beat up, the better. If you have one with a dragon burn I may swoon."

"Hmmm." Gideon pretended to frown. "What about a tshirt with a fire-breathing newt burn?"

"Even better."

He grinned.

We began our walk down the sloping trail towards Hogsmeade. The air was cold, but not unbearable. It was nicer than the oppressive heat I dealt with all summer in London.

"You look incredible by the way, I don't know if I said that before," Gideon blurted as we walked. "But you do."

"Thanks, Gideon," I said, a slight spring in my step as we walked. "You're not the only one who tried to look nice, you know"

"Well don't I feel special." His dimples became even more pronounced.

As we approached the village, I noticed more Hogwarts students milling about down the cobblestone streets than usual. A few sixth year Ravenclaws eyed us with particular interest.

"So what are the rest of your foursome up to today?" Gideon asked as we passed the first cluster of squat vine covered homes. "Are they furious with me for stealing you away?"

"Hardly," I chuckled. "Mary is spending the day with Landon as far as I know. Lily is on a date with that Ravenclaw fifth year Kellan Broadmoor, and Marlene is meeting up with Dirk in a little while."

"Cresswell?" Gideon asked with a raised eyebrow. "Really?"

"I know I was surprised too, " I told him. "I like Dirk, but they do seem like an odd pair."

"Guess you can't always explain attraction, huh?" Gideon asked.

I shrugged, "It's not always about attraction for Marlene. She likes uh…" I struggled to find a polite way to phrase it. "...variety, I suppose." I smiled sheepishly.

Gideon grinned in understanding. Another slight blush crossed his face. "Ah, I see. Fabian can be like that a bit sometimes." He looked a little embarrassed.

"So he's the tarty twin?" I joked.

Gideon nodded eagerly, suppressing a laugh. "Oh yeah. Always has been. He's just quiet about it. In the summers, his favorite activity is charming any muggle girl we come across."

"Sounds eventful," I chuckled.

"A bit yeah." Gideon shrugged. "I always thought he liked Hestia, but when I asked him about it, He denied it. Then again, He used to pester me all the time about you, when we were younger and I used to tell him I didn't like you either, which is so clearly a lie."

He winked at me and it took me a couple seconds to register what he meant. Merlin. My stomach fluttered.

"Hmm. I guess I'll have to keep in mind that you're a liar then, huh?" I teased.

Gideon held his hands up dramatically. "I was young and nervous. In my defense, I was trying to plan this whole thing perfectly, and even with all that planning I still ended up asking you out in the Black Lake."

"You want to know something?" I told him honestly. "I really didn't mind. It was loads better than asking in front of the whomping willow. That would have sucked."

He grinned. "So my second date plan of having a picnic in front of it is a no- go?"

"Damn it, Prewett, you were doing so well!" I joked with a deliberate sigh.

He smiled. "I'll try and come up with something else then. If you decided to grace me with a second date, yeah?"

"It's a plan."

The two of us chatted mindlessey as we entered a few of the shops, talking about everything from my obsession with becoming an auror to his summer in the Amazon searching for some kind of hybrid skrewt he wasn't sure existed. It was easy to talk to him. Gideon had a friendly nature and the two of us seemed to have good give and take. I was actually enjoying myself more the longer we talked. The more stories and jokes we exchanged the easier it became to talk to him without getting nervous. Of course, he was still incredibly handsome, and when we were poking through the dragon leather store and I looked up suddenly to find him watching me with an easy grin on his face, I almost knocked over an entire display of hide jackets. The shopkeeper looked embarrassed for me.

"Fancy a trip to honeydukes?" Gideon asked after we both finished trying on the latest hats they had for sale.

"Only like I want air to breathe," I said excitedly, heading for the door. Gideon and the shopkeeper both let out a laugh. A group of pushy third years were entering the room at the same time we were leaving and almost bounded straight into us. Gideon held the door open wider for them, and placed his other hand on the small of my back to keep me from being trampled. My heart started to flutter again.

"Merlin, were we ever that young?" Gideon asked, as the door closed behind us. The group of third years did look particularly tiny. Their arms were full of Honeydukes bags, stuffed to the brim, and their faces were full of excitement that only came from a first ever Hogsmeade visit.

"Doesn't seem like it," I said, shaking my head. "Third year seems like a lifetime ago."

"You're closer to it then me," Gideon teased. "I can't believe it's my last first Hogsmeade trip ever. Where did the time go?"

"For you?" I asked. "Probably spent all of it on the grounds."

Gideon smiled. "Yeah I did spend a lot of time out there. It was fun, you know, I love the creatures, and Hagrid's a great person to learn from, but you know that. He thinks the world of you." he paused, blushing again despite the crooked smile. "Not that I blame him."

Another flutter. I smiled through it.

"Oh Hagrid's brilliant," I agreed, "And he's quite fond of you too, you know."

Gideon raised an eyebrow "Is he?"

I nodded eagerly. Then a blush crept along my cheeks. "He sort of suggested that you might be...a... good choice."

He grinned, looking thrilled. "I should thank him then. If it's a reason you agreed to go."

I snorted. "Right, because I just detested you before that." That made him smile too.

As we crossed the street towards Honeydukes, I noticed there seemed to be an abundance of couples everywhere. Riley and her date were walking a good distance from one another down one of the cobblestone streets. Otto Bagman and a pretty hufflepuff girl weren't too far behind them, walking hand in hand. From the foggy, heavily-decorated window of Madam Puddifoots, I could see Lily and Kellan engaged in close, quick conversation. I wondered how that was going. They seemed very interested. I couldn't wait for details later.

Even Mary and Landon seemed to make it down to the village, wrapped around one another, snogging on a bench.

"Well I found Mary," I chuckled, she didn't notice as we passed, engrossed in what she was doing.

"They do seem to have found a way to keep warm." Gideon joked as the two of us passed.

As we entered Honeydukes, I wondered idly if Marlene had made it down to the three broomsticks yet. And if she and Dirk were as comfortable as Mary and her brother.

Honeydukes was packed. As usual, it was full of Hogwarts students both trying to get warm and try everything new they have to offer.

"Alright Prewett, what's your poison?" I asked, gesturing to the sweet-lined shelves as we entered, practically pressed against each other from the hordes of passing students.

"See, that's easy. No question," he replied holding up a box of exploding bon-bons.

"Really?" I asked in disbelief, trying to stifle a small laugh.

"What?" Gideon asked, raising a cocky eyebrow. "Cant handle a little snap with your candy, Doe?"

"I like my sweets edible, thanks," I teased, reaching behind him to grab a packet of Pumpkin Pasties.

"Pumpkin Pasties?" Gideon demanded in surprise. "And you question my tastes."

I raised an eyebrow. "I have never seen anyone but you ever even pick those up before," I said nodding towards his hand.

"They're for unique individuals."

"Unique? That's a fun way to pronounce weird."

Gideons booming laughter filled the tiny aisle we stood in and something about it seemed to make him even more attractive. A couple of fifth year Hufflepuff girls, including Amara Selwyn eyed him with interest, sizing me up as they did.

"Merlin you make me laugh," Gideon said, grinning at me. Over his shoulder, I saw Emmeline and Hestia staring intently at us. The former looked strange. I'd never seen that expression cross Emmeline's friendly face before. She looked irritated. Hestia whispered something to her, and she scowled. At me. What had I ever done to Emmeline? Surely nothing that could have her looking at me like that.

Desperate to get away from her unfriendly gaze, I ducked into the next aisle.

,where a giant display for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans dominated the wall.

I stopped to peer at the sign that announced they were getting three new flavors; apple pie, mustard, and smoke.

"Smoke?" Gideon asked, reading it over my shoulder. "That'll be brutal."

I scrunched my nose up in agreement.

"My friends and I play a game with these," I told Gideon, not looking up. "Where we try to guess the flavor. It gets quite intense."

Gideon stopped reading the sign to eye me, looking slightly amused. "Oh, I know," he grinned. "All of Gryffindor knows about 'Guess the Flavor' Maybe even the whole castle. It's legendary."

That made me pause, slightly delighted. Did everyone in the castle really know about it? Or was Gideon just very aware of what I did.

"I didn't know everyone was so aware of my past times," I chuckled, slightly embarrassed.

"It's a great idea," Gideon rationed. "You know at some point I might like to see it myself."

"I could arrange."

"Yeah? I'd like that."

We wandered the shop a bit more before it became too crowded, and decided to try a box of their newest "Accio Accent; Chocolate Truffle Balls" that boasted it would change your accent the moment you bit into it. We purchased our loot and decided to bring it down to the Three Broomsticks to wash it all down with a warm butterbeer. The streets were even more crowded now, as it seemed most of the castle, third year and above had made their way down to the village. I started to recognize the faces, and as I did I noticed their eyes lingering on us too. People were definitely staring at us. That made my hair stand up on end. Usually when people stared it was because of something bad. Dead parents. The orphanage. The only time I'd ever been looked at like this was when I started hanging around with Sirius last year. This was weirder though. Everyone seemed to be looking at us, there eyes gliding from Gideon to me. Even Slytherins narrowed their eyes in our direction.

Walden McNair made sure to sneer at Gideon as we passed.

"Merlin, I hate that guy," Gideon said shaking his head with disgust. His eyes, which normally shone bright and kind, held no trace of friendliness as they surveyed McNair "The other day in COMC, he ripped the wings off of a pixie. For fun." Gideon shuddered and a cold shiver ran down my spine as I took in McNairs yellowing smile.

"Sounds like something a Slytherin would do," I said, my eyes narrowing in his direction.

"They really aren't a friendly lot overall," Gideon agreed. "I'm sure some are better than others but McNair is awful. He likes to torture things. Creatures mostly. But still, what kind of person does that?"

"It's sick," I shuddered again. "But is it all that surprising? Imagine the things that get said in that common room. Think about what they say about Muggleborns."

This time, Gideon was the one who shuddered. "Blimey, I'm glad I'm in Gryffindor. I can't imagine what it's like to hear stuff like that all the time."

As if summoned by the words, and determined to ruin my excellent mood, Elizabeth and Narcissa passed by us on the street. When they noticed us, Narcissa's eyes went wide and Elizabeth scowled.

"Oi! Prewett!" She called loudly, her hands placed on her hips as she flashed me a cruel smile. "Surely you can do better than Meadowes?"

Narcissa sniggered beside her. "I mean honestly, if you're going to date a blood-traitor, they might as well be a Pureblood."

They both smirked, waiting for my reaction. Gideon was pointedly ignoring them, waiting to see if I'd do anything. I didn't let it get to me. I strode right past them without looking in their direction. I was not in the mood for that today.

"Lovely girls, aren't they?" I said under my breath, with a trace of malice still noticeable.

Gideon smirked. "Want to go back and hex them?"

I shook my head and smiled. "I can't. If I'm hanging around with the head boy I have to start rising above it all, don't I?"

Gideon grinned. "Merlin, I hope not. I like watching you take down the Slytherins. Don't let the badge fool you."

"Figurehead," I teased.

The closer we got to the pub, the more crowded the streets became and we were jostled through throngs of students and residents. A Hufflepuff fourth year had amassed a crowd near the entrance with a venus flytrap that he was controlling with his wand. It was interesting magic.

Gideon and I managed our way through the people, and at one point, I felt one of his hands on the small of my back, gently leading me through the people.

"Better get you out of here quick," he chuckled, eyeing the plant. "We all know how you are around plants."

I let out a loud laugh before I could stop myself, Gideon looked like he was going to join in but stopped abruptly as he grasped the handle to the Three Broomsticks.

"What is it?" I asked, unable to read the blank expression on Gideon's face until one corner of his mouth upturned into a cocky smile. I followed his gaze. Rabastan and Dolohov were leaving Zonkos and had stopped in the middle of the street to stare at us. Dolohov looked bored, but Rabastan, there were no words.

"Oh," I said, disappointed. "Him."

His face was whiter than usual, drained of any life or color. Just a smooth pearlescent mask of fury. His brows were sculpted into an furrowed arch, and his full lips stretched over his teeth so tightly it disappeared. His wand twitched.

For the first time, in a very long time, I found myself actually frightened of him. He looked like whatever hex was waiting on his tongue could cause real damage. But it wasn't me he was looking at. It was Gideon. And Gideon didn't look frightened at all. He turned away and placed his hand on my shoulder, leading me into the pub.

"Seems he might be a bit put out," Gideon said, and it looked like he was doing his best not to appear smug.

"Good," I said, shedding my coat. "I really hate it when he's happy. It usually means I'm about to be miserable."

"Well we can't have that," he said, as the two of us took a seat at an empty booth near the middle of the room. It was quite warm in there, full of Hogwarts students and staff, and older witches and wizards enjoying a mead. There was a hum from all the voices too that kept the room at a volume that was loud enough not to be overheard.

"He's not the only one you know," Gideon teased. "I bet there's at least ten blokes in this pub right now who want to hex me into next week because you've come out with me instead of them."

I snorted, thinking him crazy but when I looked ahead I noticed several pairs of eyes watching us, including Odie Macmillans, who looked equal parts interested and annoyed, boring his attention to Gideon. It was the same look Emmeline had given me.

"Maybe there just so dazzled by seeing their Head Boy," I joked.

Gideon snorted. "Right, Doe. I'm sure that's it."

Madam Rosmerta flitted by and took our drink orders and while we waited for the butterbeers, we decided to dive into our Honeydukes spoils. We started with the Accent truffles, testing each of them out.

"Vat do u vink of dis vone?" Gideon asked, his voice twisted into a strangely unfamiliar russian accent. "Do I sound like I attend 'Urmstrang?"

"Oh, you like totally do," I said, my voice turned into a high-pitched, girlish american accent. "That one is like really fun."

Gideons eyes popped. "Merlin," he said, sounding very british again. "You sounded like Professor Sayre there."
"Did I?" I chuckled, still too shocked to bite into any of the Spanish ones.

Gideon nodded. "Yeah it was weird. I suddenly felt like I was on a date with my Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

I grinned, ignoring the tight pull in my stomach at the word date. "Might not be the worst thing in the world," I said, my cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so much. "Sayre's not bad looking. And she knows her stuff. She might be the best defense teacher we've ever had."

"Sayre's fantastic," Gideon agreed. "The problem is I really the girl I'm already out with."

It was a lucky thing that Madam Rosmerta had stumbled back at that moment with our butterbeers because I had been stunned silent. I had spent the entire last year stumbling over my speech in front of Gideon, thinking there was no way he even liked me and now, he was being so forthright. Honest.

"Two butterbeers. Enjoy!"

Madam Rosmerta flitted off and I brought a huge sip of butterbeer to my mouth. It was warm and the perfect antidote to the frigid weather. The moment I had sipped it I had felt a warm, relaxing presence float over me. It relaxed me.

"Good?" Gideon asked, looking amused.

I gave a slightly embarrassed nod. "Delicious, actually."

"I'm glad you're enjoying it," Gideon said, joining me with his own drink. He liked the foam, using his straw to scoop it out, and sheepishly when I caught him doing it.

"So how's the training going for the match?" he asked. "Are you excited to represent Gryffindor and secure us the House cup?"

"But no pressure right?" I joked lightly, and he smiled. "I am excited. A little nervous, but at least I'm prepared. Probably overly prepared, actually."

"Fabian mentioned James is a bit enthusiastic," Gideon offered.

"James is like a drill sergeant on the pitch."

"That bad is it?"

"You have no idea." I shuddered thinking of our last disasterous practice. "James doesn't like to lose and especially not to Slytherins. He wants to make sure we're perfect, which I understand, but the practices can go on for hours, it's giving me callouses."

"You're kidding," Gideon said and I shook my head.

"Well come on then, lets see them, these callouses," he teased. He gestured for my hand and I thrust it forward.

"See?" I said, indicating the forming callus on my palm. "Evidence of hours of broom handle gripping."

Gideon reached out hesitantly and traced my palm with his fingers."Hmm, seems you're right."

He didn't pull his hand back, instead he slowly grasped it, his fingers hesitantly lacing through mine."It'll be all worth it when you win though, right?"

My breathing stopped. Gideons hand was large and just as freckled as his face, although it was much rougher, probably from traipsing through the woods with creatures for the last seven year, But it was warm too and felt really good surrounding mine. The feeling made my chest feel ridiculously light.

"From your lips to Merlin's ears," I managed.

Gideon was surveying me now, a cheery smile plastered on his face as he rested his hand on the table, still holding mine. I smiled while my brain raged inside my head. Gideon Prewett is holding my hand.

"You'll be fine," Gideon assured me, "I've seen you at the matches. You love Quidditch."

"It's hard not to love,"I told him. "I don't know how Lily and Mary get bored of it. I could watch it for hours. I used to go to matches with my dad all the time."

Talking about my dad brought up a tiny ping of had taken me to a match every weekend he was able before I started Hogwarts. He would love that I was playing for Gryffindor. If he hadn't died he probably would have made me try out years before. The thought made my eyes feel a little swimmy.

I didn't want to be sad about it now. I did my best not to let it cross my face. I didn't want to think about his death.

"Did he love Quidditch too?" Gideon asked.

I nodded eagerly. "We were a Puddlemere United house. Never missed a match if we could avoid it. I miss it."

"We're a Cannon's family at the Prewett house," Gideon said eagerly. "But maybe I can make an exception sometime and you and I can go to Puddlemere United match together."

My smile widened thinking of the Chudley Cannons pin that never left Fabians robes.

"Your brother may murder you for saying that," I whispered. "You know the Cannons and Puddlemere are rivals."

Gideon grinned, leaning slightly closer to me. "I think it's worth the risk, don't you?"

He was close to me now. Much closer than he was a second ago. He was still holding my hand tightly, only a few inches from my face, close enough to smell the delicious scents of butterbeer and chocolate that lingered on his mouth.

Gideon was still looking at me, smiling. His lips parted, and suddenly I realized with a start that he might be about to kiss me. Then he straightened up slightly

"Alice," he said, his tone slightly different, now a much more respectable distance from me. My head swung around and found Alice standing in front of our table. She was wide-eyed and pink-cheeked as if she had run all the way here from the castle.

She looked sheepish, biting her bottom lip as she looked from Gideon to me.

"Hey Alice," I said brightly, still a little dazed, and still very aware that Gideon was holding my hand. I was surprised to see her without Frank, they were practically joined at the hip these days.

"Hi, Doe. Gideon!" she said in an attempt at sounding normal, but her breath was quick and breathy. Not like usual.

"Hi Alice," Gideon said warmly, with a smile and a tilt of his head. She brightened for a moment, it was hard not too around Gideon, and then the smile fell from her lips.

"I really hate to interrupt you guys," she started, and she looked it, throwing me a regretful look, "But..um..it's Marlene. She needs you, Doe."

"What happened?" I choked out, my body going rigid with fear. "Is she in the village with Dirk?"

I knew that had been her plan for today. She had told me just this morning. I thought of our last trip to the village, where someone had been killed. My stomach filled with dread as my mind began to race. Please let her be okay, I silently begged.

"She's in the dormitory," Alice said quickly. "She's in hysterics actually. There's a boggart in there and it's upset her really bad. I tried to get rid of it on my own, but I couldn't. It's a really strong one. And Marlene just kept crying so I knew I had to find someone to help. I looked for Lily or Mary first but I have no idea where either of them are, and anyway you are the best at defense so I thought ..." Alice sighed, pausing her frantic rant. " I shouldn't have bothered you. I didn't know you were with someone." She looked sympathetically at the table Gideon and I shared, and the proximity of our hands on the table.

"No, it's okay," I assured her. "You did the right thing, If Marlenes really upset-"

"She is," Alice added fast.

"Gideon," I started, but he was already shaking his head fiercely, and let go of my hand.

"Go to Marlene," he said firmly, smiling honestly and dropping some gold on the table. "It sounds like she really needs you. We can always finish this another time."

Beside me, Alice sighed with pleasure, looking very pleased with his response. If I hadn't already liked Gideon, this would have sealed it. He was such a decent person.

"Thank you," I said honestly, dropping from the booth in one quick motion. "You know, I might make it back quickly," I told him as I tossed my coat over my arm. "If it really is just a boggart..."

" A small one," Alice added supportively from beside me, nodding. She was clearly encouraging what was happening between us. I blushed. Gideon beamed, not taking his eyes off of me.

"Tell you what," he said carefully, grinning. "I'll hang around a bit. Just in case you have time. But no pressure okay? Take care of your friend." I could have kissed him right then and there. I certainly wanted to. The desire was repeating over and over in my head like I had been put under the imperius curse.

"See you soon, hopefully," I said brightly. 'And if I don't make it back in time, you can always eat my pumpkin pasty. Really hit me where it hurts." I nodded to the Honeydukes bag I had left on the table. Gideon grinned. "It's a deal."

I flashed one last grin at him, suddenly overwhelmed by how much I liked him. But the feeling was shortlived, Marlene needed me. And my friends came first. I followed Alice out of the busy pub and the two of us started down the cobblestone road at a quick pace. All I could think about was whether Marlene was okay or not.

"So," Alice said after a minute, as we pushed past the crowds heading into the village. "You were on a date with Gideon?"

She was looking at me with a lot of interest. Her kind, delicate face was alive with intrigue.

"Oh, yeah," I said making my way uphill. "I was." I felt my cheeks burn.

"Wow," Alice let out a surprised little noise, but she looked very pleased. "Gideon Prewett. He's...wow. That's great, Doe!"

"Thanks," I said, trying not to smile too hard. "He's really nice."

"Yeah he is," Alice agreed. "Frank has always liked him and his brother. They're nice blokes. Kind, you know? And you two look perfect together."

"Thanks, Alice. He is really nice," I said, thinking back to the warm pub booth and how good he had smelled. I wondered if he had been about to kiss me.

"How long have you two been going out?" Alice pressed as we finally made our way up the sloping grounds back towards the castle. She looked genuinely interested, and a little surprised.

I supposed it made sense when I thought about it. With my reputation. Don'tkiss Meadnos and all that. To suddenly go from nothing to going out to Hogsmeade with the Head Boy. Maybe that's why everyone had stared today. Merlin, that was embarrassing.

"Only just today, actually," I admitted. "I guess it was sort of our first one. Maybe. I don't really know."

"Oh no!," Alice swore, "and I had to go and ruin it. Ugh, I'm so daft."

"You didn't ruin anything, Alice. I promise." I assured her. "You did the right thing, Marlene needs me. It's good you came and found me. It's what I would have wanted. Gideon doesn't seem like the type to be bothered by something like that, and if he is I don't have an interest in going with him again anyway, okay? So don't worry."

"Alright, if you say so," Alice said, and the two of us hustled towards the entrance hall. Filch had disappeared from the entrance of the grounds so it was much quicker back then it was getting to the village.

"Do you mind if I wait here?" Alice asked, stopping at the front steps. "I want to wait for Rylie."

"No problem!" I told her. "See you later, Alice. Thanks for getting me."

She waved and clutched at a stitch in her side as I headed for Gryffindor tower at a bit of a run. The castle was nearly empty now, with everyone in the village, so I was able to sprint the entire way without running into anyone. I was nearly out of breath as I stopped clumsily in front of the Fat Lady.

"Mimbulus Mimbletonia," I told her, panting, and she swung open.

I didn't stop in the Common Room, which seemed to only be occupied by the younger students, and went straight for the staircase, not stopping until I made it to the sixth floor. Even through the thick wooden door, I could hear a loud, terrifying sound. Someone was sobbing.

"Marlene?" I called, suddenly very frightened. I unearthed my wand and yanked the door open. Wand held aloft in front of me, I trampled into the room and stopped short.

Marlene was curled up in a ball in front of the window by Mary's bed. She had her arms wrapped her knees as she cried, rocking back and forth, unable to take her eyes off of the figure in front of her. She still had half a head of curlers in her hair, and eyeliner and mascara running down her cheeks. I'd never seen Marlene like this before. Disheveled. Terrified. She never allowed herself to look anything other than perfect, She was my confident, beautiful, dynamic friend. I never saw Marlene look scared before. That in and of itself should have prepared me.

The thing in front of her turned half in an inch in my direction, and I saw what Marlene had seen.

It was a dead body. That much I was sure. It had to be. The shape was human. With its long tanned limbs and sheath of honey colored hair. But the body had decayed. It was covered in blood and old wounds, things too garish to be seen on any living person. It looked like an inferi. I remembered the pictures from the books I'd seen in the restricted section. A reanimated corpse. It took me a full thirty seconds to make sense of it. Why it looked familiar. Why Marlene was so terrified. It was her reanimated corpse. It was Marlene as an inferi. It was also on fire.

Flames covered every inch of it starting at the beautiful hair and stretching down its shoulders and arms. Marlene let out another sob, and the thing turned to face me fully. I clutched my wand tighter. The thing began to blur as it twisted itself into another shape, reading for my fears. Marlene's sobs quieted as the shape changed.

I waited for Aubleus to appear in front of me. The thing I feared the most. I readied myself. The Boggart stopped quivering and I stopped, sucking in my breath.

It wasn't Aubleus in front of me. It was Rabastan. He was staring down at me with the same look as earlier, that determined hatre. He raised his wand.

"You're a fool, Dorcas." it hissed, in a perfect rendition of Rabastan's sultry voice. He took a step towards me, and I backed into the door. Marlene stopped sobbing, watching wide-eyed.

"Did you really think, I'd allow you to embarrass me like that?" Boggart-Rabastan demanded. "Strutting around when you know I am capable of?"

He looked older. Taller. More Powerful. More beautiful. More terrifying.

"Riddikulus!" I shouted pointing my wand at him.

It did nothing. Boggart-Rabastan just kept coming towards me. He growled, and narrowed his emerald eyes.

"Don't you know what I can do to you, Pet?" it hissed. He hissed. It? It was so realistic. It felt like he was there. But it wasn't him. It was a boggart.

"Riddikulus!" I tried again, faltering slightly. It wasn't working. I knew why. I was scared. I had to force it to take a shape I found amusing. I needed it to be funny.

"I own you," he snapped, and he raised his wand "IMPER-"

I had it then. I pictured Rabastan as an 1800s Victorian woman, dressed in a frilly dress, corset and bonnet.

"Riddikulus!" I shouted, and watched Rabastan appear in front of me, dressed like Rowena Ravenclaw. Marlene and I both giggled. The boggart sneered, I made it twirl. We laughed again.

"Riddikulus!" I choked out, through a laugh, and the boggart in front of me exploded into a puff of smoke.

Marlene was rubbing at her eyes now, stuck somewhere between sobs and laughter. I was still giggling from the sight of Rabastan that way. I was going to picture that every time he bugged me for the next few days.

"I...really...did...try …. to get ….rid of it," Marlene hiccuped, as she wiped at her eyes.

"They're tricky," I assured her, sitting down beside her on the floor. "It gave me trouble too, don't worry."

Marlene hiccupped again. "That was scary," she whispered. "Seeing myself like that. I thought. Merlin, its stupid, but I thought it was showing me how I was going to die." She shuddered, and I reached over to squeeze her arm. "Thank you for coming."

"Marley, of course. Believe me, I know how scary they can be," I told her. "Are you alright?"

She nodded her head, still looking a bit frazzled, but I knew Marlene well enough to know she hated needing help, and hated being afraid even more.

"How long have you been afraid of Rabastan?" she asked me, looking curious.

"I'm not afraid of him, specifically," I told her, shaking off the feeling of the way he had looked at me, and how scary that had been. "More of what he could do if he were given the chance."

"Like the imperius curse?" Marlene asked. She had caught the beginning of the curse the boggart had used. "You don't really think he would? I mean that's illegal."

"No, I don't really think he would," I said, picking at my nail. "Or hope, I guess. He's made jokes before.."

"He'd go to Azkaban," Marlene reminded me.

"Maybe," I whispered. "If anyone caught him."

Marlene shuddered. I wanted to, but I didn't. I didn't want to waste the energy on him.

"Merlin's beard!" Marlene had suddenly sat up very straight and hit me in the shoulder. I jumped back from her.

"Bloody hell, Marlene. What was that for?"

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, crossing her arms. "You're supposed to be on a Hogsmeade date with our Head Boy!"

I scooted further away from her, rubbing my arm. "I was," I reminded her. "I left him at the Three Broomsticks."

"Why in Nicholas Flamel's name would you do that!?"

"Because you were being stalked by a dementor, remember? What was I supposed to do? Let you suffer?"

Marlene frowned. "You shouldn't have left for me."

"I absolutely should have. And I would do it again," I said firmly. "Even though you're barmy."

Marlene grinned. "Sorry for hitting you."

I chuckled. "It's okay, you lunatic."

"Did you have a good time at least?" Marlene asked as we got to our feet. "Tell me you at least snogged him."

"No snogging," I told her and she looked very disappointed in me, "But I did have a good time. Great time actually. I told him I'd try and head back if this didn't take a long time."

"Then what are you still doing here?" Marlene demanded, her hands placed on her sultry hips. "Go snog the hot ginger for me."

"Are you sure you're alright?" I asked. " I can stay if you need me."

"Doe!"

"Alright, alright." I chuckled. I pulled her into a tight hug and patted her head. She practically pushed me out of the door.

A quick look at the Common Room clock told me I had more than enough time to head back down to meet Gideon. I wondered if Marlene's assumptions were right. Would he snog me? I felt a nervous lurch near my bellybutton at the thought.

I climbed out of the Portrait Hole and took the back staircase to the Fourth Floor, knowing a quicker route. I was practically skipping as I rounded the corner and ran into Sirius.

He was buried in a letter, reading it so intently, he didn't seem to see me.

"Sirius?" I called out. He looked up, his eyes glazed slightly. A little foggy.

"Meadowes?" Sirius asked, looking confused as he eyed my appearance. "Aren't you supposed to be down in the village with Prewett?"

"I left him at the Three Broomsticks" I told him honestly, and for a minute he looked strangely hopeful.

"Realized it's boring to date someone who follows the rules?" he asked cheekily.

"Marlene had an emergency," I told him, rolling my eyes.

Sirius pursed his lips. "She alright?"

"She's fine now," I said. "There was a nasty boggart in the dormitory. I took care of it. I was on my way back to the village."

Sirius looked surprised. "You left a date to help your mate?"

"Yes," I said firmly. "She needed me. Wouldn't you do the same for James or Remus?"

"Yeah. I would." He smiled slightly. He turned back to the letter in his hands, his gaze faltering again. His eyes almost looked swimmy.

"Are you alright?" I asked him. There was something not quite right about how he was acting or how he was looking at that letter.

Sirius nodded half-heartedly. "Yeah, fine."

"You don't look it."

"You know what I love about you, Meadowes?" Sirius asked sarcastically. "How complementary you are."

"That's called friendship," I reminded him. "We check on each other, and talk it out if one of us isn't okay." Sirius rolled his eyes and then sighed. "Don't you have a date?"

"Is this more important?"

Sirius sighed, and seemed to be weighing something over in his mind. "Do you mind if we go somewhere?" he asked, " I don't want to talk about it here."

He looked exhausted and a little worn. Whatever it was, it seemed to be important. As I looked at his face, and the strange lack of enthusiasm on it, the idea of racing back to Gideon seemed very unimportant.

"Sure," I said quickly, and the corners of his mouth trend upwards into a smile.

I followed Sirius down the length of the corridor in silence, surprised when he stopped in front of a large dusty gold mirror in the middle of the hall.

"What are you doing?" I asked, as he tapped his wand against it. "I thought we were going to the Common Room."

Sirius sighed. "Honestly Meadowes haven't you learned by now, you can never make assumptions when you're with a Marauder?"

"Silly me," I said sarcastically, as he tapped each corner of the mirror with his wand, and it began to shudder. The mirror made a strange clicking noise and slid aside to reveal a dark, but quite roomy stone passageway.

"Wow," I whispered as I followed Sirius into it. "Where does this lead?"

"Just the grounds," Sirius said, taking a seat on the floor and lighting his wand, as the mirror slid shut behind us. "Prongs and I found it last year when we were finishing up some touches on the map."

"Have you ever used it?" I asked, peering around his shoulder to see the long spiraling hallway that crept behind ujs.

Sirius' eyes sparkled. "Depends on for what you mean?"

I rolled my eyes at his insinuation. "Ugh! Merlin. I did not need to know that."

"You asked," he said, looking very pleased with himself.

"Remind me to never ask you anything ever again."

He chuckled and then his face fell again, as if remembering whatever it was that was bothering him.

"Sirius, what's going on?" I asked, concerned by the look of him. He never looked like this.

"What happened to never asking me anything ever again?" he quoted. His smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Well, I suppose I'm a liar then. Now, come on, What gives?"

Sirius stared at me face for a second scrutinizing it before he let out a lofty sigh and reached into his robes and pulled out the letter he was reading earlier. He rested it on his knees.

"Alphard's dead," he said quietly.

"What?" I was shocked. "You're Uncle Alphard?"

Sirius nodded. "Yeah. Apparently he got drunk at some wizard pub in Edinburgh and got into an argument with some wannabe death eater about blood status. They got into a duel, and well…."

He trailed off, his grey eyes suddenly very hardened. He looked years older. He actually looked quite a bit like Alphard when he did that.

"Sirius, I am so sorry," I reached over to squeeze his hand. "I liked Alphard."

Sirius' eyes relaxed, and moved down to look at my hand, still squeezing his. His expression was unreadable.

"He was one of the few members of my family I could actually tolerate," he said in a low voice. I could detect traces of pain in it."Now it's just me and Andromeda versus the rest of them." He paused. "I suppose you know the feeling."

"I do. Doesn't make it any easier, though," I told him. "I really am sorry."

Sirius let out another sigh and then shrugged. His eyes were trained on the wall in front of us.

"He left me all his gold in his will." He said after a few minutes of silence.

"He was quite fond of you," I told him. "That was obvious."

"Handy considering I don't have any of my own money anymore. It's practically his whole inheritance too" Sirius smiled. "Well what he didn't spend on parties, firewhiskey and men."

I couldn't stop myself from smiling either. "Sounds a bit like you. But you know with birds."

"I could do worse."

"Yes you could."

"I suppose I can get my own place now," Sirius said morosely. "Wanna be roommates?"

"We'd kill each other," I reminded him.

"Nah," Sirius shook his head. "We wouldn't."

There was silence again and Sirius sighed, letting his head fall back against the wall. I knew he was more upset then he let on.

"Do you want the silver lining?" I asked.

Sirius raised a curious eyebrow. "Is there a silver lining to a dead relative?"

"Not normally. No," I told him. "But in this case, there might be."

"Alright, Meadowes. I'm all ears."

I grinned. "Just think about how furious Walburga will be when she finds out he's left you all his gold."

Now Sirius really smiled. "Now, that's fun to picture. She's going to be furious. Alphard had even more gold then they did."

"See? Silver lining."

"Thans, Meadowes."

The two of us sat there quietly for a few more minutes and then we began to talk about Quidditch and other random things for a while until Sirius seemed to perk up a bit. By the time we finally left the secret passageway, the sky outside the windows was getting dark, and I realized the Hogsmeade trip was long over.

---

After Sirius and I had parted, he had gone off in search of the other marauders, I had made my way back to the Entrance hall and spotted a familiar redheaded figure standing between Otto and Fabian, heading into the Great Hall for dinner.

"Gideon!"

It was packed in the hall now, everyone famished from a day in the village and even from here I could see my friends huddled together at the Gryffindor table chatting quickly.

Gideon turned around, beaming when he saw me. I felt instantly guilty for not being able to meet back up with him, but he certainly didn't look mad. He looked happy to see me.

"I'll meet up with you guys in a minute," Gideon told his mates happily, and Fabian flashed us a cheeky look.

"Hi Doe," Gideon said brightly, as Otto watched over his shoulder.

We walked together towards the Gryffindor house table, still getting looks as we did.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't meet you," I said quickly. "I feel awful. I-" But Gideon stopped me already shaking his head.

"Don't worry about it, Doe" he told me honestly, his handsome face focused on me as we lingered between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor table. "It's not a big deal. It just gives us another reason to go out again."

"Yeah?" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah if you'd like too," Gideon said, suddenly looking a bit nervous. "I had a really good time with you today, Doe."

I felt a lightness creep through my entire body, and I was sure my face was very pink now.

"Definitely," I said quickly, very aware of the Hufflepuff Fifth and Sixth years that were eavesdropping on this conversation. "I had a really good time too."

Gideon beamed. "Excellent. Let's do something this week. Alright?"

"Sounds perfect."

Gideon smiled again and then looked in the direction of my friends who were actually staring at us now. I followed his gaze.

"Subtle aren't they?" I chuckled.

"At least they're waiting politely. You should have heard what Fabian and Otto said when I walked back into the Common Room today," he said cheekily.

"Maybe you can tell me about it next time."

"It's a date," Gideon said. "No, I'd head back over there before Marlene knocks Lily off the bench."

Marlene was now watching the two of us so intently that she was practically knocking Lily over. They weren't the only ones either. Half the House Table was watching us. And some of the Slytherins. Rabastan was glaring.

"Thanks, Gideon."

I laughed and turned away from him, heading towards my friends who were now wide-eyed with excitement. Gideon took a seat back beside his brother and best mate, who it seems were pestering him too.

"Oh My" Lily said the second I sat down "You're beaming! It went well didn't it?"

"Of course it did," Mary interjected before I could speak. 'Look at the way he's looking at her." Down the table, Gideon was talking to Otto, and still smiling at me over his shoulder. I blushed.

"It went really well," I said trying not to look stupid as I served myself some dinner. "Were going out again sometime soon."

Mary let out an excited breath and Lily began to clap excitedly.

"So," Marlene pressed. "Details! I already told them," She pointed at Mary and Lily, "about the boggart. "But what happened when you went back to Hogsmeade? Did he snog you?"

I stopped, my fork inch from my face and paused. "Well, I actually didn't go back and meet him."

"What?" Mary asked. Lily looked confused.

"Why not?" Marlene demanded, looking very confused. "You had plenty of time!"

They were all looking at me very strangely now and I started to become a bit self-conscious.

"I ran into Sirius," I started, "He-"

Marlene cut me off. "Sirius?" she hissed. "You ditched Prewett for Black?"

The three of them exchanged a worried glance. I was very glad the Marauders weren't at the House Table right now.

I sighed. "It wasn't like that," I assured them, wondering how after all the times I had sworn there wasn't anything like that between Sirius and I, they could still wonder. "His uncle died."

They were quiet now.

"Oh," Marlene said looking sheepish.

"Well I suppose that's different," Lily added, "Is he alright?"

"I think so," I said taking a bite of food, glad they weren't looking at me with suspicion anymore, "Or he will be. I think he just needed to talk about it with a friend."

Marlene still looked slightly unconvinced, but didn't press it,

"How was your trip? I asked, desperate to change the subject from me and Sirius.

"Oh, Doe. Kellan is fantastic!" Lily said excitedly, and began launching a tale of their great first date, and then pestering me with details about mine when she'd finished. We spent the rest of dinner speculating about whether we thought they'd work out, but I didn't think I imagined the look that Marlene gave Sirius and I, when the Marauders finally joined the table.