For those of you reading this I just want to say I'm sorry that I am so bad at updating this story, and thanks for bearing with me.

Pick your Battles

Narcissa was staring at James from across the great hall. He was talking to some girl, a pretty thing with big eyes and curly hair who was hanging on his every word. She couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy, not just because James was with another girl, but because they could be seen sitting together without anyone batting an eyelid at the propriety of it. She was a Gryffindor, whereas Narcissa was a slytherin.

Suddenly a presence crashed down in the seat next to her.

"What's up cuz?" Sirius asked nonchalantly, reaching over for a Danish pastry in the middle of the table.

"Sirius you can't sit here, this is the slytherin table," she hissed at him, trying to ignore the surprised expressions of her nearby housemates.

"So, I'm a Black, I'm like an honorary Slytherin," he said whilst chewing the stolen food and, Narcissa thought, resembling some sort of Neanderthal in his newly awoken, dishevelled state. "Besides, I'm here to talk to my cousin about some urgent family business."

Even as he said it, Narcissa was glancing around the table again; besides a few cursory glances people had already lost attention in them.

"So what is this urgent…Sirius stop stealing our food," she said, thumping his arm as he reached over for another Danish. "Urgent family business that is so important?"

"You know Cissy, you care far too much about what people think of you."

"You know I hate being called that…and what would you know? You came down to breakfast looking like the missing link."

"It's nothing a hairbrush won't fix and all I'm saying is that if you cared less you could be over there talking to Prongs, instead of going green with envy spying on him from across the hall."

"I'm not…should I be jealous?"

"Of McKinnon? Nah, she's nowhere near as pretty as you. I'm sure James would much rather be talking to his girlfriend," and grabbing another Danish he stood up and darted towards the Gryffindor table. "Oh by the way, did Dromeda owl you?" he called.

"About what…Sirius come back here!" She retorted. Fine, she thought, shoving her half empty plate to the side and getting up to follow her errant cousin to the other side of the hall. However, as she reached the Gryffindor table she was faced with a wave of suspicious looks I can do this, she thought to herself as she forced herself closer to the table.

"Wrong table slytherin," a voice called out from a group of boys.

Screw this, she thought and turned to stalk out of the great hall instead. Shaking slightly she lent on a wall. Why should I care what some nobody says…how dare they judge me…it's probably some mudblood with no…no this isn't me. Those were her parent's thoughts infecting her mind, not hers. It was just some thoughtless comment that meant nothing. But before she could muster the courage to return to the great hall a hand pulled her into a side alcove and she found herself staring at James' grinning face, with a smile that made her stomach flip.

"What's up Slytherin?" he asked as he reached in to kiss her lightly.

"Nothing, just my idiot cousin being his usual charming self."

"What's he been saying to you now?" James asked, still smiling.

"Oh you know the usual. That I'm useless and need to stop worrying about what other people think. He thought I should have gone over to the Gryffindor table to talk to you."

"Well I wouldn't have minded…but you don't need to feel pressured into anything. Sirius just thinks everyone should be like him."

"Well I must admit I was tempted after seeing you flirting with that girl."

"Then I should do it more often." James said as he pulled Narcissa in towards him, kissing her again, this time more passionately and Narcissa responded in kind, melting into the warmth of his body. It wasn't until a door banged closed down the corridor that they sprung apart, both laughing gently.

"We need to find somewhere more private at some point," Narcissa whispered gently. She didn't really think of the implications of what she had said until she felt James' body straighten.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked, looking at her seriously, for once there was no teasing.

Yes, she realised with a jolt, she hadn't meant it that way, but she wanted to be with James, wanted him to be her first…so that no matter what the future brought they would always be connected, if even in some small way.

"James I love you…and yes I am saying exactly what you think."

James smiled, "Cissa, I love you as well.". Narcissa felt her heart skip, she realised how scared she was that he wouldn't say it back to her.

A rumble of noise let them know that breakfast was finished.

"I really can't face divination" she groaned, leaning her head against James' chest.

"Well then lets skip it, I've only got care of magical creatures…we can sneak down to Hogsmeade and have a second date?

"Hmmm a class of the professor predicting our deaths, or being stuck with you for an hour?"

"Meet me by the statue of the one-eyed witch near the defence classrooms in ten minutes then," James retorted, grinning from ear to ear, before disappearing as a wave of students exited the great hall.

Of course standing around next to a statue was not at all suspicious, Narcissa realised after waiting there for ten minutes. Any minute now a teacher would appear and wonder what the hell she was doing. Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed round, to see James' grinning face…floating in mid-air.

"WHAT THE…" suddenly a hand clapped over her mouth.

"It's an invisibility cloak Cissa."

Of course it was an invisibility cloak. Of course she had known that. It was obvious. "Don't do that again," she hissed slapping him on the only visible appendage she could see- his arm.

But James just smiled, "Did I scare you?"

"No…just, some warning would have been nice. Now why am I standing at this statue like an idiot?"

"Oh right" and with that James tapped his wand against the statue, revealing a large passageway behind it that they could walk through.

Narcissa had to roll her eyes at the ever-expanding amount of secret passageways James and her cousin seemed to know about and escape through at any moment's notice. "How is it that you seem to know where every hidden tunnel is in this school?" She asked as they climbed through the dark and narrow tunnel.

"Well in first year padfoot and I used to go exploring a lot. The rest we found by following Filch around in my invisibility cloak."

"That was risky" she said, stifling a laugh at the image of those two huddled together following the miserable caretaker.

"Not really, we had released a pack of enchanted mice into the school to distract that cat of his; they were both too busy trying to catch the little buggers to notice anything."

"I remember those mice, they kept changing colours and singing Christmas carols…where did you find them anyway?"

"Hagrid…he's a great man, he wasn't too happy with us though after we let them loose."

"I'm not surprised those things caused chaos for almost a week."

"It wasn't that. He was just annoyed that we had given the cat something to eat."

After traipsing some more down the narrow tunnel they finally burst into a brightly lit storeroom, leaving Narcissa blinking at the sudden sensory overload.

"Where are we?"

"Honeydukes, it's probably closed but we should be able to get out through this side door…which is already open. That's strange."

"So Potter, where are you taking me on our second date?" Narcissa asked as she laced her fingers into his.

"Well I need some supplies from Zonkos and then we could go for a walk?"

"Very romantic, after that I'd like to check out the shrieking shack…apparently people have been seeing some strange things there at night?"

"…Like what?" He hesitated.

"I don't know, someone claimed to have seen a grim. Another one said he saw a giant stag. It sounds ridiculous but I thought it'd be interesting to have a look and see what all the fuss is about."

"Sounds interesting. Let's head over there then," he said, changing direction rapidly, "Besides, I think I just saw McGonagall down there. Don't look back."

The shrieking shack itself looked slightly less remarkable that Narcissa had thought. In the light of day it looked like almost mundane.

"I thought it would have looked…I don't know…more mysterious. It doesn't even look that old." Narcissa finally admitted, perhaps visiting it wasn't the best idea, "James?" she asked looking around.

He was looking down a path leading away from the shack at a group of figures in dark robes. Squinting down the path she started to recognise some faces, Snape and Rosier both of whom were Slytherin students at Hogwarts, MacNair who had recently left and her sister's most recent flame, Rudolphus Lestrange. Narcissa felt a chill down her spine, deatheaters. What they were doing in Hogsmeade at this time was beyond her, but she knew without even the slightest hesitation that it wasn't good.

James had his wand out and was creeping towards the group, "What is that slimy git up to?" He asked.

"I don't know and I don't care, we need to get out of here now!"

"No, we need to stop them, they're up to something. Someone will end up getting hurt."

"Yes us! There's four of them and one of you. James they'll kill us if we get in their way." She had to use her full weight to push him in the opposite direction, "please!"

It was not until she said that, that James finally turned his attention from the group down the path to the girl at his side, she could see in his eyes that he wanted to go after them, stop whatever plan that was being set in motion at this very moment. It was then that Narcissa realised why she would always be a Slytherin, it wasn't just because of her bloodline or the beliefs her parents tried to instil in her but rather it was that she would never rush into a fight. She understood that you have to pick your battles.

"You're right, I'm being stupid. Let's just go back to school." He said, shaking himself. And with one more regretful look back the pair left the scene quietly.

The walk back was a quiet one, both students lost in their own thoughts. It wasn't until they were back at the school that Narcissa decided she had to say something. "I'm sorry for what happened back there but-"

"No, you don't have to be. You were right, I was being stupid. Seeing them there like that, I just got a really bad feeling about it.

"I know, but I know them…know what they are capable of, not one of them would be an easy fight let alone four."

"Against the two of us?" James asked in an odd tone.

"Well I didn't see anyone else standing by our sides."

"No, it's just when you tried to stop me you said it would be four of them against one of me?"

Narcissa could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Would she have fought them? She certainly wouldn't have let them hurt James, but the idea of taking a stand against boys she had known since childhood (with the exception of Snape- who she had never really liked) still made her panic.

"I…I just wanted to get you out of there, had it come down to it I would have fought with you." She said, knowing that it was true but hoping it would never come down to it.

James looked at her as if he was not entirely convinced, but smiled, kissed her lightly and whispered: "I'll see you in charms Slytherin," before pushing the tapestry open and stepping out into the corridor.