Chapter Twelve: Black Family Drama

Sirius and Lily bond over family problems. Lily makes a threat. James and Lily have a fight

After Remus left, Lily continued to smoke for a while longer. She was stressed and hungover, so she felt like she deserved it today. Part of her wanted to check up on Marlene and make sure she was doing alright. Part of her wanted to find James and snog the crap out of him. Part of her wanted to take a nice, long nap. She decided to do none of those things, and just sit and contemplate for a while longer.

She couldn't stop thinking about her conversation with Remus. What if it does? His words were repeating in her head like a mantra. She had never considered that it could actually work out between her and James. She had been so consumed with simply admitting her feelings for James that she had never given much thought as to what might happen if he reciprocated those feelings. But, if there was even a sliver of hope that James had feelings for Lily, she had to know. To find out, Lily knew she would eventually have to tell James how she feels about him. But can I take that risk?Lily wondered.

Lily had never been considered what one would call a "risk-taker"; that was more Marlene's department. Lily was calculating in her actions. She liked to examine situations from all angles, consider every possibility, and make rational decisions. It was one of the reasons Slughorn always insisted she would make a good Slytherin; she was cunning and clever, two qualities that are greatly valued in Slytherin House.

But she was also courageous, headstrong, and prideful. Lily never hesitated to stand up for herself or her friends. Even when she knew the battle was lost, Lily would never stop fighting for a worthy cause. A true Slytherin would know when to save their own skin and wave the white flag. A Gryffindor would always keep fighting until the bitter end. And that is what sets Lily apart from Slytherins. That is what makes her a Gryffindor.

Lily was dragged away from her thoughts by the sound of footsteps approaching her. She was surprised to see Sirius Black walking up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower. He seemed to be even more lost in thought than Lily. He didn't even notice her sitting there, walking right past her while mumbling under his breath.

"He doesn't even know what he's talking about," Sirius hissed. "He's a fucking child!"

"Well, that's no way to talk about your best friend when he's not around," Lily joked, causing Sirius to jump at her voice. "I know James is immature, but is he really a child?"

"Evans! I didn't see you there." Sirius said, running his hand through his hair.

"Obviously," Lily smiled at him. Sirius gave her what she could only assume was an attempt at a smile but came across more like a grimace. "What are you doing up here?"

"James said this was a good place to come think," Sirius answered.

Lily rolled her eyes. "That bastard. I told him about this place!"

"Ahh," Sirius chortled. "That makes sense now. He said something about trying to come up here more to 'enjoy the view.'"

"I'm sure he didn't mean me," Lily blushed.

"Well, I don't think he was talking about Hagrid's hut," Sirius sat down next to Lily.

She wordlessly offered him a cigarette, which he gratefully accepted.

"So, let's hear it," Lily prompted.

"Hear what?" Sirius questioned.

"Why did you come up here to think?" Lily smirked at him. "Or did you just come for the view?"

Sirius scoffed. "No offense, Evans, but you're not exactly my type." Lily sent him a glare. "Alright, it's just family stuff."

"I see." They both sat quietly for a moment and continued to smoke. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Sirius snorted. "I don't think you could handle it."

"I think you'd be surprised," Lily challenged.

"What would perfect Lily Evans know about shitty families?"

Lily glared at him. "Well, Sirius, both of my parents died before I was even finished school. My father fought a long and hard battle with cancer and died when I was twelve. My mother was killed suddenly by a drunk driver when I was sixteen. My only remaining family is my shitty stepfather and my sister. Both of whom would rather pretend I was dead than deal with the fact that I'm a witch. Oh, and I'm basically homeless now since I left home."

Sirius was silent for a few moments. "I'm sorry. I had no idea."

"Well, I don't exactly go around advertising it, do I?" Lily snapped. "Now, why don't you stop being a shit, and tell me what happened?"

"It's my little brother," Sirius answered.

"Regulus?" Lily clarified.

Sirius nodded. "I'm worried about him. He's been hanging around those shit Slytherins lately. Avery, Mulciber, Wilkes… Snape."

Sirius cast a nervous glance at Lily at the mention of Severus Snape. A flash of something that resembled pain lingered on her face for only a moment before she once again bore a concerned expression for Sirius.

"You're worried he's going to start supporting him," Lily stated.

"Yeah," Sirius said. "Well, I know mum and dad already support him, and Regulus always agrees with them. He's a real crowd-pleaser. But I'm worried he's going to start supporting him in a more – ah – official capacity."

"I see," Lily was quiet for a moment. "Sirius, that fucking sucks. I'm so sorry."

"Yeah," Sirius rubbed his face with his hands. "I just don't know how to get through to him."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Lily said soothingly. "You're a smart bloke with a good heart. And you are nothing like your family."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Lily responded. "I mean, it's not your fault you were raised by wolves."

Sirius laughed loudly at this. "I've never heard that one before. That's bloody brilliant."

Lily knew all about the Black family. You would be hard-pressed to find someone at Hogwarts who didn't know about them. Even though Lily grew up in the Muggle world, it didn't take her a long time to understand the power of certain wizarding families. The McKinnon's, the Malfoy's, the Potter's, the Black's; these were all esteemed pureblood wizarding families that could be traced back for generations.

Certain expectations came with being part of a pureblood wizarding family. Some families, like the Malfoys and the Blacks, placed more emphasis on these expectations than the Potter's or the McKinnon's. Everyone was shocked when Sirius Black was sorted into Gryffindor because one of the Black family's many expectations was that their children were sorted into Slytherin. Period. Sirius had continued to take down his family's patriarchal values ever since.

"I know it's hard, but you can't give up on your brother," Lily said ardently. "Take it from someone who has been there."

"What do you – ah. Snape," Sirius looked grim. "Lily, he is such a shit. You can't blame yourself for how he turned out."

"I just keep thinking about what might have happened if I had tried a little bit harder. Could I have stopped him?" Lily contemplated.

Sirius frowned at the pain on Lily's face. "You did everything you could, we all saw that. But you were always too good for him."

They were thoughtful for a few moments until Sirius broke the silence. He offered her a small smile. "You know, James said something similar about me not giving up on Regulus."

"Well, I suppose even Potter can be right sometimes," Lily joked.

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh. "You know, you two are a lot more alike than you realize."

"Is that so?" Lily asked sarcastically.

"Yeah. I mean, you're both bloody brilliant, stubborn as hell, and incredibly fit to boot," Sirius smiled at her. "And you're both pretty great friends."

Lily's heart warmed at the compliment. She and Sirius had only started to get along last year and hadn't really had a proper chance to get to know each other. This was the first real conversation that Lily could recall ever having with Sirius Black. She was surprised at how easy it was to talk to him.

"You're not too bad yourself," Lily said with a slight nudge to Sirius's knee.

"Woah, Evans. Once again, you're not really my type," Sirius smirked at her. "I know I'm devilishly handsome –"

She rolled her eyes. "Shut up." Lily's stomach chose that moment to grumble, and she realized she hadn't eaten yet.

"You hungry?" Sirius asked. "I think we missed lunch."

"Don't worry," Lily grinned. "I know a place."

To say Sirius Black was surprised that Lily Evans knew where the Hogwarts kitchen was is an understatement.

"Lily Evans, breaking the rules," Sirius said while they walked back to Gryffindor Tower after a quick lunch courtesy of the Hogwarts House Elves. "I am so proud."

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me," Lily teased.

"Well, colored me impressed," Sirius said astonished.

"Well, well, well, isn't this cute?" a voice sneered from behind them. Lily and Sirius whipped their heads around to find Snape, Avery, and Mulciber sauntering up the stairs. "The Mudblood and the Blood Traitor," Avery continued. "But, Black, I thought Potter was fucking Evans. Or do you all take turns?"

Just what I fucking need right now, Lily thought. She can't pretend she was surprised. She had been harassed by this particular gang of Slytherin's on numerous occasions. Lily nervously looked up and down the corridor to find they were completely and utterly alone. Usually, she's in a more populated area, and can easily brush them off with a witty retort. I don't think your wit will get you out of this, Lily thought grimly.

"You watch your fucking mouth," Sirius whipped out his wand. At his reaction, the three Slytherins copied him, and pretty soon, everyone had a wand pointed at someone like some old Western shoot-off.

"Sirius, please, it's not worth it," Lily pleaded. She did not want to get into it right now in front of Snape. She could feel Snape's eyes burning into her, but she refused to meet his gaze. The fact that this confrontation was happening at all was horrifying, but the fact that it was happening in front of Snape, correction with Snape, was absolutely humiliating for Lily. She had done her damndest to avoid Severus Snape at all costs the past two years, and with only a few minor unavoidable encounters in class, she had been wildly successful.

"Yeah, Black. Listen to your Mudblood," Mulciber snarled while eyeing Sirius's wand. "Besides, you're outnumbered."

"You might want to count again." Lily would recognize that voice anywhere. Of course, Lily thought bitterly, the only thing that could make this worse is James bloody Potter.

Sure enough, Lily turned around to find James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew walking up, wands already drawn. James walked right up to Lily and Sirius, while Peter and Remus hung slightly back.

"Has Potter come to rescue his little Mudblood girlfriend?" Avery mocked. He tried to maintain his strong front, but it was apparent the addition of three Gryffindors rattled him. Now the Slytherins were outnumbered three to five. Snape and Mulciber exchanged wary glances behind Avery's back. It was clear they were nervous as well.

"You better watch your damn mouth," James threatened, pointing his wand directly at Avery. Lily placed a soothing hand on James' arm, and he looked down at her. She gave him a look that read I've got this. He nodded stiffly and lowered his wand.

Then Lily, who was sick and tired of taking shit from the Slytherin's, marched right up to Avery, so she was positioned directly under his nose. "You better watch out," Lily warned in a harsh voice. "One day soon we won't be in school, I won't be Head Girl, and I won't have any reason not to kick your ass. And you mark my words when that day comes, you are going to rue the day you crossed wands with me."

"Was that a threat?" Avery sneered.

"Oh, absolutely. Was that not obvious?" Lily smirked. The look Avery gave her in response was murderous.

"One day, Evans, you won't have your boyfriends around to protect you," Avery snarled. "So, I guess you better watch out, too."

With a departing glare, the Slytherins turned and headed back towards their Common Room.

"Dammit, Evans! Are you crazy?" James rounded on Lily once the Slytherin's had disappeared.

"Excuse me?" Lily exclaimed.

"Would it kill you to bite your tongue, just once?" James continued. "You were goading them, Lily. You might as well just wear a target on your back."

"I'm a Muggle-born, James. In case you didn't notice, I've already got a target on my back." Lily and James stood there, glaring at each other in the middle of the corridor. The other boys wisely decided to stay out of their argument, choosing instead to watch Lily and James exchange insult back and forth like a tennis match. "I don't always need your help, James. I'm not a damsel in distress."

"Lily, I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm going to get hurt, James. This is war."

"That doesn't mean you have to instigate a battle in the middle of the bloody corridor!"

"Oh-ho, look who's talking Mister I-hex-everyone-who-even-looks-at-me-wrong."

"Dammit, Lily. That's not fair. I haven't done that in years, and you know it, Evans. Now I only start fights if someone really fucking deserves it. Like when they insult my – friend." There was a pregnant pause before James said the word "friend," as though he had wanted to use a different word to refer to Lily.

That's silly, Lily scolded herself. How else would he refer to me? We are just friends… right?

"Sirius and I were handling it fine on our own without our help. You don't always have to play the bloody hero. I can protect myself."

"Lily, you were outnumbered three to two," James deadpanned.

"I had it under control!" Lily fumed. "You are so infuriating!"

"Well, you're not exactly a cakewalk, sweetheart," James responded.

They continued to glare at each other for a few more moments before they turned and stormed off in opposite directions, their friends wholly forgotten.

"What the fuck just happened?" Sirius asked Remus and Peter, as they watched Lily and James abandon them.

"They are both so stupid. Neither one wants the other one to get hurt, but neither one wants to be the one to admit that. So instead, they yell at each because it's all they know how to do. They're in love," Remus explained with a shrug. "They just don't know it yet."

"Why do I feel like it's going to be an interesting year," Peter observed.

"You got that right, Wormtail," Sirius agreed.