A/N: This chapter was somewhat fun to write, I like alternating between the characters, and I've been waiting for a chance to mix Kelly back into the story. I hope you all enjoy it!!!
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"Lily, what the heck happened?" Maren demanded as soon as they were a safe distance from the hospital wing.
Lily shook her head tiredly, a feeble attempt to prolong the inevitable.
"Lil, you're covered in scrapes, James has a bloody bandage wrapped around his head, and Sirius is lying unconscious in the hospital wing!" Maren's shrieks cut through Lily's defenses, causing her to wince with each word. "What happened?"
The tears Lily had tried so hard to hold back burst forth, flooding down her cheeks despite her protests. She needed someone to hold her, to comfort her, to rock her back and forth as she sobbed her sorrows into their shoulder. She had tried so hard to be brave for James that she'd forced her emotions deeper and deeper inside of her, forgetting about her emotional needs, concentrating only on those who needed her, never realizing she needed them just as much. "Oh, Mari," she whispered through her tears, peering up at her friend with tear filled eyes.
"Shh, Lily, I'm sorry," Maren wrapped her arms around her friend, embracing her. "I didn't mean to yell. You don't have to say anything, it's okay . . ." but Lily shook her head, strands of her hair sticking to Maren's robe with the static between them.
"No, I-I need to talk," she mumbled as she slowly began to pull herself together. "Just, not here, okay?"
"All right," Maren glanced around the empty hall uncertainly, "but where? Lil, Andy and Dorcas will most likely be in the dorm . . . and this probably isn't the best way for Andy to find out about her cousin."
Lily sniffled, "Point well taken," she cast her eyes about, trying to gather her bearings. "Mari, where are we?"
"Third floor . . . I think, just outside the charms classrooms."
"Good, turn down the next corridor and head as though you were going towards the kitchens."
"The kitchens?" Maren questioned incredulously, "But Lily-"
"Just do it."
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"I shouldn't have stopped speaking to him like that, I shouldn't have gotten so angry, he left thinking that I hated him . . ."
"Moony, get a hold of yourself," James pressured somewhat bluntly, "It's not your fault. Sirius knew what he was doing was wrong, he knew that if you found out it would most likely escalate to this, don't blame yourself. I was ignoring him too. Lily's the only one who took into account how he might feel."
"But, what if I drove him to this?" Remus fumbled for the words to express his inner pain, even as James tried to convince him he shouldn't be taking the blame, Remus knew he'd never forgive himself if he didn't get this out. He couldn't stop now, he didn't know how to, nor did he want to. "He thought I hated him, he may not have cared anymore . . . what if he was so angry with me, or himself . . . that he just didn't care?"
"Remus," James pleaded, beginning to grow concerned with his friend's dire depression, "It. Wasn't. Your. Fault. Okay? Sirius, did not blame you. He knew what he did was wrong, he knew you were upset, and he knew you had every right to be. He brought your anger upon himself. If anyone drove him to anything, it was me who drove him to starting this whole mess in the first place. I knew that Kelly dumped him, and yet I still spent more time with Lily than I did with my best mate. He felt left out, and he entertained himself without really thinking. You didn't force him into that fight, Moony, he went on his own free will, so don't you ever blame this on yourself again, or I may have to cause you severe bodily harm, okay?"
Remus looked up at James, a shadow of a smile flickering across his gaunt face. "Okay."
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"What is this place?" Awe was evident in Maren's voice as she glanced about the room. Velvet cushions lay on Victorian armchairs, beanbag chairs lay scattered on the plush cerulean carpet, and boxes of tissues littered tables around the room, accompanied with boxes of elegant chocolates.
"The Room of Requirement," Lily murmured, impressed as well with the miraculous change that room had undergone since her last visit. "James shoved me in here once, when there was a bit of a fray in the halls. He says that it only appears to those who truly need it, and that the room is always equipped with whatever items fit that person's needs."
Maren let out a low whistle as she allowed herself to collapse on one of the beanbag chairs, "What I wouldn't have given to have known about this place before my last few months at school."
Lily gave her a wry smile, sitting gracefully on the sofa across from Maren, helping herself to one of the many chocolate boxes before fixing her gaze on her friend. "So," she paused to swallow a caramel chocolate, "You're sure you want to know what happened?"
"Only if you want to tell me," her friend answered softly.
Lily considered this, tilting her head to the side as she helped herself to another chocolate. "Well," she shrugged, already much more composed than she'd been minutes ago. "I suppose I'll have to tell you eventually, it might as well be now." She took in a deep breath, searching for a place to start. "We overslept this morning and barely made it to the train station in time. We could have apparated, I suppose, but the Potters were sent out somewhere and had made us promise not to use magic while they were gone. Once we got to the station . . . I suppose we would have avoided the battle completely if Sirius hadn't stopped and debated not returning to school. He and James talked about what a waste it seemed to be, but I was insistent, and we'd just turned towards the barrier when we heard the crack of someone apparating." She shuddered, as she spoke Lily saw the events play over in her mind, each time more horrendous than the first. She saw all the opportunities she'd missed, the chances where she could have saved Sirius. She shook the memories from her mind, continuing on with her monologue. "We turned and saw the hooded figures, and . . . I don't know, we all made a silent pact and rushed into it. I don't think any of us were thinking very clearly. I was fighting one Death Eater, James another, and the next time I looked around, James had four after him and Sirius was lying sprawled on the ground." She shook her head in disbelief, "I still don't know how we managed to hold our own."
Maren's eyes were wide in wonder and fascination as she stared half-horrified at Lily. "Was, you know, he there?"
Lily shook her head numbly, even without the name, Lily knew who Maren was talking about. She didn't even want to think of what would have happened if he had been there. "No," she whispered, "I think it was just a bit of fun on the Death Eater's part, torturing the Muggles." Both she and Maren shivered at their disgusting idea of fun. Both having grown in Muggle families, the girls were horrified with the thought that a similar thing could have happened to their parents or siblings.
Lily's head nodded gently on her shoulder, barely registering the awkward silence filling the room. She was exhausted; the day had been far more than long enough, she couldn't believe that just 24 hours before she'd been comforting James in his bed, and now . . . now Sirius is lying unconscious in the hospital wing. She thought bitterly.
"Lil, Lily," Maren shook Lily's shoulder gently, "C'mon, you're exhausted, let's head on upstairs. You need a good nights sleep."
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"Oh, my god." The terrified whisper filtered into James' head, stirring him from his restless sleep. Blinking against the bright sunlight that danced throughout the Hospital Wing, James gave a slight groan as he stretched his cramped muscles. He'd fallen asleep in the chair beside Sirius' bed, how, he couldn't even begin to imagine. It had to have been one of the most uncomfortable sleeping positions he'd ever experienced, but he supposed the day's events had finally caught up with him. Eyes searching the room for whatever had wakened him, he caught sight of Remus curled up in a ball on the adjacent bed. James couldn't help but smile as he observed his friend, sleeping loyally in the curled position of a docile wolf. No matter how humane he appeared, the wolf always lived within Remus, even if it was only released once a month. Shaking his head, James continued his search around the room. His eyes narrowed menacingly as they landed on the slim frame of a tall Ravenclaw, her honey blond hair separated into two braids at the sides of her head.
"What do you want, Kelly?" He whispered, his voice lined with warning.
The girl jumped, and James realized she hadn't noticed anyone in the room other than Sirius. "I – I just, I heard that Sirius was h-here, and . . ." she trailed off, her eyes falling back to Sirius.
James allowed his gaze to wander over toward his friend as well. Despite his unconscious state, Sirius looked a great deal better than yesterday. Color had returned to his sunken cheeks, and though the bruises were a deep purple, all cuts seemed to have healed over night.
"Can I talk to him?" She whispered, her eyes searching James' face for permission.
"What do you have left to say to him?" He snarled, more bitter than he had intended.
Though she flinched, Kelly held his gazed. "I deserved that," she murmured, "and I know you think I'm a horrible person. But I really did like Sirius, and I still do, despite what you might think. I just wanted to apologize to him, let him know why I did what I did."
"Easier to do it now than when he's conscious, isn't it?"
"James," both Kelly and James turned towards the other voice, only to see Remus propped up on his elbow, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "Let her speak, she's no more to blame than you or I. No sense taking out your anger on the innocent."
James had to smile at Remus' dry sense of humor and ironic time of recovery. "Fine, but she should know how cowardly her actions are, apologizing while he can't even hear or respond."
Kelly glared at James, "It's hard, all right? Maybe if you let me do this now, I'll gain the courage to repeat my apologies when he can hear, but for now, this is just something I need to do."
The girl has guts, James thought to himself, admiring the determined demeanor that radiated from Kelly. He'd always liked the girl, until she'd dumped Sirius, that is. Maybe she's finally seen the error in her ways.
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Lily rolled over in her bed, her head throbbing with the kind of pain she could only imagine a hangover could produce. At the thought, Lily's stomach gave a horrible lurch and she stumbled from her bed, trying desperately not to tangle herself in her bed curtains as she ran towards the bathroom, making it just in time to retch into the porcelain toilet.
"You've got it too, huh?" A groggy voice questioned somewhere above Lily's head.
Lily glanced up, wiping her mouth off on the back of her hand. "What do you mean, I've got it too?"
Maren shrugged, "It was the same thing for me, I woke up this morning with a horrid headache, and before I knew it I was vomiting into a toilet."
"Thanks for that," Lily muttered, her face still tinged with green. "Ugh, what is this? The flu's not going around again, is it?"
"Nah," Maren shook her head, "those chocolates last night, the must have been filled with some kind of liquor."
"Oh, god, we like finished a box apiece," Lily moaned, turning her face back towards the toilet as a wave of dizziness swept over her.
"Tell me about it," Maren murmured sympathetically, "You'll be over it within half an hour or so though. Unless there's an after-shock type bout . . ." her face turned green at the prospect of reliving the stomach pains. "Anyways, as soon as you're feeling better we should go visit the guys. According to Frank Longbottom they never showed in the dorm last night."
"Right," Lily gave a weak smile, before heaving out the contents of her stomach once more.
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"Is she still in there?" James whispered in an irritated tone to Remus.
"Well, seeing as how she hasn't come out yet, my guess would be yes."
Finally agreeing to give Kelly some privacy with Sirius, the boys had retreated to the area outside the curtains, though it was quickly wearing down on James' patience. "She's been in there for almost ten minutes; can she really have that much to say?"
Remus shrugged unhelpfully, and was about to reply when a startled shriek from inside the enclosure interrupted his thoughts. Glancing at each other, the two boys leapt to their feet, charging inside the curtain. Kelly was standing pressed against the wall, her hands clasped over her mouth as though her scream had taken even her by surprise. Sirius was lying on the bed, hands clasped about his ears, his eyes squeezed shut.
"Ouch, not so loud there, I already feel like someone's pounding my head with hammer, I don't need you're hysterics adding to it."
"S-Sirius!" James spluttered, "You're awake!"
"No, really? What gave you that idea, genius?"
James could have laughed with joy and hugged his friend, but instead he merely grinned, splitting his cheeks in delight. "We thought we were losing you there, mate, what were you thinking, taking on five Death Eaters at once?"
Sirius considered this for a moment, before grinning as well, "Not much."
The three boys laughed, forgetting that Kelly was standing in the corner, forgetting that the last time two of them had spoken they'd exchanged harsh words, forgetting everything except for the fact that they were the best friends that there ever were, and that nothing could ever change that.
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A/N: I was planning on having a bigger part with Kelly in that chapter . . . but the story, as usual, got away from me and I guess I was on a roll. I'll save that bit for next time. Hope you all liked it!! You know, there's no natural high more exhilarating than waking up to an inbox full of reviews
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