Per request of je suis une pizza(Cheers by the way!):

This could be thought of as a series-no it has no name really. The word Thorn repeats, but that was just a bit of fun. Anyways, This is the second installment. I wrote a first story, entitled 'Thorns' (which should be viewed before reading this story, but is not absolutely required) which describes how Ava and Sirius met, Lily and James got over the egos, and other juicy marauder fun. But the reason for this fic, continuing the story, is because I wanted to fill in the holes the JK left(which I'm sure she will fill in later) I just wanted to take a crack at it. Thorns was very fun to write, and hope you read it and it might explain anything that might wander in your head of why I wrote something. Ok, I'm tattling on…common, I know….

::As if I need to tell you that I do not own these characters. Well, accept my dear Ava. But I'll let Sirius keep her instead. When last we left, they had just come together to realize their true feelings for each other. I had intended to write more, but it is truly a different story. That was such a splendid ending for that one. One big long one would be a mess I suppose. You didn't think I would just leave them hanging in a beautiful moment untouched? Unscathed? No drama? Ha!

Life is a constantly moving chaos that can sometimes, if not rarely, make sense. Those times are few and far between though. The rest, as they say, is a crapshoot. But what fun it is. Ava assured herself of this at least. Life wasn't a game that could be placed on pause while a lass ran out to the loo. If there was one thing she had learned from life, it was to enjoy it while you could and not have any regrets. But having said that, she never thought she would find herself in this predicament ever again. In love. Or at least in the prefix to being in, well, the "L-word".

Not that she was in love of course, she told herself. True, the feelings could be there. But having said that, the feeling could come from getting to know anyone. The possibility was always there for anyone. She laughed at herself for getting so worked up over such thoughts, must be the stress.

She shook herself out of her thoughts. Love? Love was not one of her worries. What she and Sirius had was something fun, great, wonderful, anything they wanted. Why bog it down with the blasted word love? That was Lily's doing, it must be she mused. She looked over at the girl sitting beside her and gave her a gentle push.

"What was that for?" Lily said, giving her a weird look. Ava just stuck her tongue out at her to lighten the mood. It did get Lily to laugh. "Silly girl."

The N.E.W.T.s were mere days away. Tension was running rampant all over the school. Ava fell back against her chair taking a break from her study and her stupid thoughts. Lily followed suit, closing her book. James, hearing the shut, got up from his own chair and walked over and started rubbing her back. He welcomed a break as well. The two had agreed to study separately as to not get distracted, which they would. The whole room seemed to take a break as they noticed the marauder up for a stretch. Sirius walked behind Ava, very similar to James. Ava craned her neck to look up at him, knowing he wasn't going to rub her back, and kept her eye on him. He flipped her long hair in front of her face, laughing as he did so.

She tsked at him as she pulled it back, trying to brush it with her fingers. He brushed her hands away so he could continue playing with her hair. Rolling her eyes, she surrendered to him. She just hoped he wouldn't jinx it this time. Once he had jinxed it to knot and she had spent time trying to get them out, and then more time looking up the blasted counter spell. She almost thought it was cute the way even she wasn't immune to his pranks, almost. She heard him mutter something under his breath and she yanked her hair away, glaring up at him. "Don't even think about it."

"Oh luv," He assured her, "Where do you get these silly ideas?" he gave her a very innocent and quite adorable look.

"I wonder…" She raised her eyebrow in speculation. He sat down next to her placing his hands on the table in front of him, open. He blinked his eyes at her innocently-nothing in them. He gave her a silly grin.

"Enough talk," Lily said getting Ava and Sirius' attention again. "Back to studying." She shooed the boys away. She cracked her book back open and dove right in. The rest seem resign themselves to reading as well.

"Some break." Peter whinged.

Ava walked down the corridor, books in hand. It was getting dark the back of her mind told her, she could tell by the torches being lit. She left the library and took a less traveled path back to the commons. The mainstream was quite busy and hectic lately, student running around in all directions. The quiet passageway was so nice that she could read slightly as she walked. She didn't even seem to notice the dim lights. It wasn't until she heard footsteps behind her that she stopped and looked up from her book. Turning she saw someone she didn't want to. Bellatrix. And co.

"What?" She raised her eyebrow at them offhandedly. She didn't have time for Bellatrix's crap tonight. Her hands were on her hips as she waited for the Slytherin to jump into whatever nasty remark she had planned. Ava was sure it took her all night to think it up.

"Narcissa here wanted to see what a half-breed looked like." She sneered. "I said why take Care of Magical Creatures when you can see a freak right here."

Ava just stared right at her, not glaring, not anything. Her look said, "Is that it?" Her unconcerned look made Bellatrix slightly uncomfortable as she kept looking at her, waiting for the rest of Bellatrix's tripe. Bellatrix glared back.

After a few moments, Ava just turned around and started to walk off. Bellatrix called after her. "You're not his type." Ava stopped.

"Well, come to think of it you are." Narcissa's slick voice went off. "He'll be done in another week. One month's about his tops." The two Black sisters snickered.

Bellatrix walked up behind her, starting to circle her prey. "You," she drawled, "are not good enough for my cousin." Ava's eyes were now on the girl in front of her, watching her move. "Have you're attention now do I?"

"Yes, so tell me something good." She indulged her.

"Sirius is still a Black, even if he is in the loser house. He might be out of the family, but the family is still in his blood. And we don't," she searched for an appropriate word, "pollute ourselves, with such." She gave Ava a disgusted look up and down. She pulled her wand out and up at her opponent. "I should just do him the favor right now."

Ava eyed the wand, cursing at herself for neglecting to have pulled hers out before now. "Why should you care so much after Sirius?"

"Not that anything of mine is your business," she looked down her nose at her. "But I don't like you."

Ava laughed at the girl. The feeling was more than mutual. There was obviously no love lost between the two, and she didn't need this twit to point it out to her. She took a step to get past Bellatrix. The girl held her wand out further from her body, trying to get Ava's attention that she would use it.

"Go ahead," Ava gestured hands out. Bellatrix just glared. "Didn't think so. If you were going to do it, you would have by now."

She took another step. Bellatrix wanted to hold her hand out to stop her. But didn't want to touch her either. Instead, she took a step into her way. She tapped the wand against her chin, hmming at which hex to use.

Ava sighed, with a glance behind her showed the other two girls blocking that path. She would have to wait for the stupid girl to finish up. She could push past her, but why bother? She wasn't afraid of her, nor was she rude either unless the need arose. She tapped her foot, waiting patiently for Bellatrix to get her power surge out of the way.

"A decent body bind would be good." Bellatrix's lackey called from behind.

"Oh, or a good face changer, she could use that. It would be an improvement." Narcissa insulted. "Warts, no eyebrows, red skin?"

Bellatrix shushed them. Ava was tired and wanted to go to bed, this had been fun and all, but it was quickly drawing to a close. "Go ahead and bloody hex me!"

"Why?" Bellatrix glared suspiciously at her. "Is it going to backfire?" she snickered at her.

"Well, besides the obvious fact you're not going to?" Ava ticked off her fingers. "If you did there are two options. One, you hex me, I go to the infirmary and I mention the fact of what happened and they will know its you- Magical residue and all."

Bellatrix raised her eyebrow at that. Ava gave a resigned sigh. "In class, that big room we all go to together? They teach that magic leaves a residue, which can be traced to its user? And the whole Priori Incantatem spell?"

"I know that." Bellatrix snarled in a rude voice.

"Well, you never know," she shrugged. She wouldn't be surprised if the whole Slytherin house didn't own a book. "Back to option number two, I disappear, someone will notice." She nodded her head exaggeratedly as she talked down to the girl.

Bellatrix glared at her, still. Her eyes narrowed more if possible. "No one would notice if you were gone." Slowly she drew out her the words and sneered triumphantly.

"No one notices that you're here to begin with." She returned in the same rude voice. Sick of the inane battle, she pushed past the girl, her hand holding her out to the side as she passed. Why did she let this moppet get to her?

Bellatrix sneered as she passed, mostly at the fact that Ava was touching her. But she would burn the clothes later. She turned back to the other two to make catty comments. On a second thought, she turned her head and called over her shoulder with half heatedness, "Better watch your back."

Ava walked on down the hallway hearing the rest of their squirrelly chittering. "He'll move on…Always does…someone new…. half blood" "mutant" "worthless" "totally unsuited for him".

She ignored most of what they said. But she did hear it. Was it possible that they were right in saying that she was wrong for Sirius? That she would bring him down? Or even that he would be through with her shortly?

Of course not. She reassured herself. They were just trying to make her doubt herself. And him. What good was it to listen to people she would never have a conversation with on purpose. She was acting stupid, a sure sign it was time to get to bed when the brain started thinking absurd things.

::Perhaps a bit of a slow start, but this isjust the start, have big plans for their future, and sadly it won't be easy as we all know. Bear with me as I try to take facts from the book and work them in with my not existent literary license.