A/n: sincerest apologies to the unlucky friend and test reader of mine whose name I stole for a certain potions master and turned into an evil character (

"Ros, I'm going to the toilets," Lily says the moment we escape the nightmare that was the last hour of double potions. The whole class was perfectly silent after Professor McShane took away the points he promised.

"Want me to come with you?" I ask. Lily looks like she's about to cry.

"No, I'll manage." She runs off into the crowd leaving me alone with my thoughts.

* * *

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. I can't believe that Sirius Black lost us five hundred points. All to protect stupid Potter and "everything he's worked for." According to "Hogwarts, A History," no house has lost more points than it earned since 1683. So what if Potter gets expelled? He'd deserve it. Professor McShane tries to catch him in a lie, and gets Black's wrath, totally undeserved of someone who works so hard.

A sudden push pulls me back to this planet. The offending oaf, a fourth year boy shouts, "You're not going to get away with this!"

In a flash of fury he jumps onto the back of a third year boy and starts punching. The third year is by no means helpless, and begins fighting back with more fury than I've ever seen in my entire life.

"Get him!" Some one shouts. I need hardly mention that fighting is against school rules.

"Stop it! Now!" The boys don't listen to me. Instead one puts his hand into his robes for his wand and shouts "furnunculus!"

Even as enormous tentacles burst all over the victim's face, he manages to properly perform the jelly legs curse amidst cheers from his supporters. I need to stop this. It's my duty as a prefect.

"Impedimenta! Accio wands!" I shout. The boys slow down as each of their wands fly into my hands. Now who's bad at charms, Lily? I think to myself. "You two know fighting is against school rules," I admonish.

The Impediment curse doesn't last as long as I'd like it too, and as it begins to wear off the boys lunge at each other again.

I jump between them. "Enough!" One of the boys punches me instead of his fiend. "Yowch!"

"That-" fill in another word I don't say, "stole my-"

"Save it for the headmaster!" I snap. I grab them each by the ear (just because I've always wanted to do that to somebody) as I march them to the stone gargoyle. "Blood lollipop!"

"Is this where Dumbledore lives?" one of the boys asks as we step on a moving spiral staircase that takes us up and up.

"Of course," I say haughtily. They aren't aware I've never been here either. We reach a door. I raise a hand to knock, but voices from behind it stop me.

"Professor, he shouldn't have done it at ALL!" The voice is Black's.

"Now, Sirius, I'm sure things will be rather unpleasant for Mr. Potter when he regains consciousness, but I have every confidence that Mr. Potter is more than capable of repairing relationships. I admire your loyalty to your best friend, but you've had a history of overreacting to-" Dumbledore says rationally.

"Professor, it's not about James at all!" Black bursts in. "McShane asked James what he was doing last night. You know what last night was! He couldn't have stopped himself from mentioning it, it's veritaserum! I stopped him right before he betrayed-"

"Ouch!" One of the boys whacks me in the head as he starts to fight again. The door to the headmaster's office snaps open, and I get a glimpse of a beautiful room with whirling magical contraptions before Professor Dumbledore pokes his head out.

"Miss Perry! What's the meaning of all this?" he demands "I wasn't even aware you knew where I lived." The boys stop fighting.

"There was an - erm - disagreement in the halls. So I felt you could deal with them better than I could, as I have sustained quite a bit of personal injury." I explained.

Professor Dumbledore sighed. "Unfortunately, I am tied down with other students at the moment and I'm afraid I won't be able to talk to you this afternoon. However, Miss Perry, since you feel this matter is of great importance, please see Professor McGonagall as she is the deputy headmistress. Be sure to tell her I sent you."

* * *

"I don't really know what to think!" Lily wails at Hagrid the gamekeeper's hut several hours later. "Sure I was embarrassed out of my wits, but I'm flattered too. He fancies me, and I do fancy him. I don't drool all over him some girls, but he's not the repulsive slug you think he is either. Not by a long shot. In all of that today, did you notice that Professor McShane never succeeded in making James look bad? You know, he's rather sensitive. Did you notice when he was talking about Veronica, he was always kept a civil tongue? Pretty impressive considering Veronica."

"Speaking of which. Remember last night? Well, when I went off to the library after I left the dormitory, I had your cloak, so Veronica thought I was you," I grumble.

"Really?" Lily says with a small smile, "That was thick of her, what did she say?"

"That I was the b-word, and I stole her boyfriend," I say bitterly. "Then she took Renée."

"She DIDN'," Hagrid growls indignantly as he sets down a pan of rock cakes that I'm sure will live up to their name. "If you were in the library, why didn't yeh tell Madam Pince? SHE woulda done summat about it."

"I did try, Hagrid," I explain. "Stupid Veronica decided to say that I filched it from her before I could explain SHE took it from ME. And do you know what? Now Madam Pince thinks I'm a thief."

"Hmmmm," Hagrid says. Hagrid's always been someone to got to for advice. He's younger than all of the professors so he seems to understand students better. Every Gryffindor has to have been there at least three or four times, and even some people from other houses have come sobbing over a cup of tea. Even Severus Snape has paid a visit, I've heard. Hagrid never seems to mind. Winnie told me it was Hagrid who helped Potter and Black make up after their famous row last year. Apparently Black came to Hagrid to talk about how sorry he felt, and when Potter came to do the same, Hagrid told him what Black just said. They made up that day. Seeing Hagrid is one of the best things you can do when you're in a bind. He's a great listener and a good friend (apart from his cooking).

"I think yeh oughta talk ter James, Rosalind" Hagrid says at last.

"What would he do?" I ask.

"Well this mess is sorta his fault. He didn' exactly do the job cleanly if yeh know what I mean. He'd bin wantin' ter do it fer a while, James, but he didn' know how ter tell her seein' as she liked 'im so much. He's too polite if yeh ask me. Then again, there aren't too many people who have a heart when dealing with people they don' like. He's a nice boy, Lily, and I'm real glad he likes yeh so much."

"Why?" Lily asks.

"Hones'ly? You and him are two of the nicest people I know. I jus' thought that yeh'd make a great couple. Nice people deserve nice people." Hagrid says with a smile

"I'm nice too, right, Hagrid?" I ask.

"Yer only nice when you want ter be, Rosalind."

I open my mouth to protest, but just then, there is a knock at the door.

"Hagrid, may we come in? It's an emergency," A voice from the other side of the door pleads.

"I'm talkin' ter some students righ' now," Hagrid explains. "But I know I all abou' it so I can' turn yeh away. Come on in."

The cabin door opens with a puff of frigid air and Black, Lupin and Potter walk in, faces bright red from the whipping December winds. Potter gives a small start when he sees Lily, who in turn, turns red. They take off their cloaks, and I can see that Potter isn't wearing his school robes, but the horrid striped pajamas Madam Pomfrey passes out to overnight patients, as they all cram around Hagrid's tiny table. Hagrid offers the boys some rock cakes, and to my surprise, they not only accept them, but begin to eat. There's an awkward silence as Black casts a nervous look around the table. I don't think he wants to talk with Lily and me here, but shucks to him because we were here first.

Hagrid grins at Potter and says, "Rough day, eh, James?" Potter nobs, he looks slightly ill, probably the veritaserum. I feel bad for him.

"You don't even know half of it, Hagrid," Black says.

Hagrid just smiles, "The half I do know is bad enough."

"I don't even recall what I said, Hagrid," Potter says. He looks terrible, like he's about to cry. The last thing I remember is drinking that stuff in potions, and the next thing I know, I'm lying in a bed in Madam Pomfrey's pajamas with her, Dumbledore, Sirius and Remus staring at me. Then Sirius tells me that I've told everyone my family, my feelings, and I almost told everyone about. well I'm glad Sirius was there. I said things that I don't tell people. I didn't want people to know about my family."

"Yeh shouldn't be ashamed of yer family," Hagrid says gruffly. "Yer from a long line of great witches and wizards that yeh oughta be proud of."

"I'm not ashamed of my family, I'm just that. I'm from a long line of great witches and wizards.. I'd rather people think of me as James Potter, and not the Minister's grandson, or Godric Gryffindor's great-great-great- grandson, or Bowman Wright's great-great-grandson or-"

"You're related to Bowman Wright too?" I squeal.

Potter sighs. "Guess I didn't mention that one."

Everyone bursts out laughing.

"People might think I'm stuck-up or I have an in, but I don't." Due to the fact that Potter is in the room, I fail to point out that Potter is already as stuck-up as his hair, which is rather.

"What gets me," Lily says thoughtfully, "Is the fact that Professor McShane never asked you what for permission to do what he did. He just had everyone drink a goblet, then attacked the victim."

"Do you suppose Professor McShane had already chose who was going to take the goblet with the potion in it?" Remus asks. "I was ill, but did he pass them out, or were they there already? Was James' marked?"

"Not that I noticed," Black growls, "but we've all sat at the same tables for the past seven years. It wouldn't be too hard for him to just-"

There is another knock at the door, and Professor Dumbledore enters. "I should have known I'd find our runaway here." He chuckles. "Madam Pomfrey was worried sick. I don't want to know how you got out of Madam Pomfrey's care, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to bring you back. And Sirius, Remus, you should have known better."

Potter puts on his cloak, and whispers something in Lily's ear before reluctantly following Dumbledore out the door.

"We should get going," I say, "Thanks, Hagrid."

"Bye," Lily says.

"What did Potter say, Lily?" I ask the moment we step out into the cold.

"He just wants to talk to me in private about today. Speaking of which, you should follow Hagrid's advice and tell him about Veronica. James would help. I know he would"

"I won't do it. I don't want his help," I say defiantly.

* * *