Just a note, bad things are heavily implied in this chapter. Mentions attempted non-con, underage drinking, and underage flirting/dancing dirty.

Willow was not ready to go home. The school year had been unexciting and seemed to fly by. Severus was in a hazy bliss dating his sister, and when they fought, Severus was a sulking mess. It left little for Willow's amusement and he found himself bored more oft than not. Even Potter and his gang were quiet that year, more focused on whatever that blanket fort had meant than on taunting him. He hated it. At least he could talk to his rat, who he had spent more time around than anyone else outside of class. Scabbers even fell asleep next to him, sometimes, and would still be there when he left for class. Putting the rat into the cage before leaving the room for class became a daily habit.

However, on the last day of school, when Willow woke, it was a different story.

Willow looked around the room frantically, but he couldn't find the rat anywhere. A feeling of dread filled him and he felt like crying. He ignored the small feeling of relief that passed briefly through him.

"Are you okay?" Severus asked, looking down at the boy on the floor. Willow looked up at him, refusing to allow the tears to fall.

"Scabbers is gone," Willow spoke with a crack in his voice. Severus looked down at him with a sad look.

"I'll help you find him, he couldn't have gone far, it's not like rats can open doors." Severus got dressed and the two of them searched every room in the commons, but they couldn't find the rat.

"We're leaving today Severus," Willow told him sadly. "I don't think we'll find him again," he admitted.

Severus offered him a shoulder to cry on and he and Lily refrained from referencing the small creature on the ride back.

Willow was quiet during the summer and alone for most of it. Lily and Severus spent most of their time together, Petunia had gotten married during the winter hols—which had been a wonderful wedding, but meant that she didn't live in the house anymore. His father got a job as a night watchman, which pretty much meant he slept all day and was gone all night.

Walking to London hadn't ever been a possibility before, mainly because he never wanted to get himself or Lily lost, but on that night, with nothing else to do and Lily gone with Severus on one of their dates, it seemed like a good idea.

Walking into a gay bar is never a good idea, especially when you're sixteen and bored. Convincing the bouncer that he was old enough to enter was easier than he thought it should have been and getting drunk was harder than he imagined. The bartender wouldn't give him anything too strong, so he was stuck with watered down shots, which left a horrible taste in the back of his throat.

He spent the better part of the night on the dance floor, grinding into other half dressed, drunk patrons, letting the music flow through him, filling him with a sense of calm that he'd never felt before, the dim lights hid away the fears and insecurities that he felt while the atmosphere allowed him to be himself without the interference of social norms and expectations of family and friends.

And that's when bad decision number six came around. Not going into detail about bad decisions one through five, Willow allowed the older man to pull him flush on the dance floor, their bodies twisting together into a mesh of pale skin and sweat. The man's dark hair was well kept, long and silky, tied at the nape of his neck, a few long dark strands got loose and were sticking to both of them with sweat, the image making Willow moan as the man physically moved the younger male around so their chests were pressed together. Willow lost himself completely in number six.

In hindsight, when someone invites you to their flat after buying you vodka, they're expecting things from you. What they want may be something you don't, and there is a high possibility that they'll be just as drunk as you. Another note: some drunks are angry and forceful, and don't take 'no' lightly.

On a lighter note: the night bus is a godsend; rarely does anyone on the bus ask questions when you get on with blood on the front of your shirt.

Lily, on the other hand, asks questions, lots of questions. Avoiding her is also impossible when you've been missing for over twenty-four hours and come home with blood on your shirt and red-rimmed eyes.

"What the bloody hell?!" Lily screeched, rushing to him to check him over. He knew there was a bruise on his face.

"It's not mine," Willow slurred, though it sounded more like "ishnomy", and tried to back away. Lily didn't let him and dragged him to the bathroom. He mother-henning made him feel guilty and she soon got him to spill.

He told her how he got to London and got into the club, how he was having a good time, how he met a guy who bought him vodka, how the guy dragged him home and tried to have his wicked way with him only for Willow to panic, how the guy hit him and tried to force him, how Willow panicked even more and sent a cutting curse at the man (that's how he got the blood he swore to her), and, finally, how he ran and got on the night bus.

They both cried after that, with Lily promising to be there for him more frequently. Willow agreed for her to tell Severus, after very little cajoling. Willow was afraid of what Severus would say, but in the end, Severus was his best friend, and he wanted him to know, if only because he hated keeping things from him. After Severus had been informed, the three spent all their free time together, sometimes it would be just him and Lily or him and Severus, but for the most part, it was all three.

He felt guilty that he manipulated their time like that, and told them so, but both of them waved him off and ignored his prompting that they go on a date without him.

He was feeling crowded by the time he got on the train back to Hogwarts for his sixth year, but then again, it was sort of his fault.

"Why are you so sulky?" Willow inquired after he managed to slip his sister and best friend. He found the sixth year Gryffindor sitting alone in his cabin with a pout as he glared out the window.

Black jumped at Willow's voice, turning to glare at him instead.

"None of your business, Snake," the boy hissed, quite like the insult he just sent. Willow smirked. He sat across from the boy without asking, earning a squawk of indignation from him.

"Did something bad happen over summer break?" Willow asked, ignoring the boy's protests and demands to leave.

Black deflated at the question, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah," his grumbled, but didn't elaborate. "You?" he asked, almost as an afterthought, when he saw the dark look flash across Willow's features. The bruise was gone by now, but Willow still felt exposed, on display, like everyone would know that he screwed up just by looking at him.

"Yeah," he answered, turning to look out the window like Black had earlier. The other boy watched him for a minute before turning back to glare out the window.

"What were you doing with the snake?" Willow heard Potter almost screech as he and Black walked across the hall to the Gryffindor table, Lupin and Pettigrew (who had been found over the summer) following behind them. Pettigrew had a funny look on his face when Willow looked at him, almost contemplative, before turning away and refusing to look at him.

Willow flushed, relief filling him for some reason, as well as guilt. He brushed it off and sat next to Severus at the Slytherin table, doing his best to ignore the questioning (angry) glances by the rest of his house.

"What were you doing with my brother?" A small voice asked when Willow was settled in with his food.

Not small, but reserved, Willow noted, when Regulus Black sat in the seat opposite him.

"Nothing," he told the younger boy. Regulus gave him a flat stare, his eyes narrowing a fraction before he stood and left. Willow and Severus shared a bewildered look before going back to their food. Willow could still feel Regulus' eyes on him through the meal, which gave him a feeling of incompetence. He ignored it and tried to go on like normal.

Lily was insufferable during classes, unable to see him between classes thanks to her duties and school work, so during Willow's classes, she tried to keep him as close as possible.

It was getting irritating.

Willow didn't know why he decided potions was a good idea to take this year—he just sort of picked every class Severus and Lily took. He was regretting that decision now. This time though, as the odd man out, Willow decided he was not going to sit with his sister.

Sirius Black and James Potter were speechless when Willow Evans sat at their table, Lupin hissed a question from his desk, and Pettigrew ignored him again.

Willow ignored them all and took out his book, pointedly ignoring his sister and best friend as well. Potter glared at him, but Black looked speculative. He couldn't see Lupin or Pettigrew from his spot between Black and Potter.

Willow and Black had shared a cabin on the way to Hogwarts, and while they didn't speak much, Willow hadn't really antagonized him either. He hoped Black would stop hating him, if only because that guilt would lessen for him.

By the end of the lesson, Potter had stopped him from blowing them all up, twice, and had demanded he not touch the pot while Willow shared a secret smile with Black, who at first gaped at him before chuckling behind his hand.

They left class together, Black and Potter laughing about something with Willow walking between them while Lupin and Pettigrew walking behind them. Willow was shocked when Black threw an arm around his shoulder and laughed loudly in his ear.

The rest of the day was spent letting Black drag him around and show him some nooks and crannies that Willow commented on finding in his first year, potions being his last class and he had no other prefect duties that day.

By the fourth cranny that Black showed him the two of them had lost Potter and Lupin. Pettigrew was following behind them with a smirk on his face.

"I'll just leave you two lovebirds on your own, see you at supper," Pettigrew called before dashing away, leaving Willow and Black alone in what some students have dubbed 'make-out hall', an abandoned corridor that teachers avoid.

Willow didn't know who was redder, but he did know that Black didn't look disgusted when they finally made it back to the great hall (unfortunately kiss-free).

Lily glared at his back when he walked over to the Slytherin table, he could feel it, and the look was mirrored on Severus when he sat down.

"Where were you?" Severus asked, ducking closer so Willow could hear him over the din that started up.

"Nowhere," Willow answered, since it was sort of the truth—he was nowhere and everywhere at the same time, walking with Black through the castle.

"Are you at least okay?" Severus emplored, placing a hand on his elbow. Willow sighed, looking across the hall at his sister to smile reassuringly, which she returned hesitantly, before turning to Severus and nodding, the same smile on his face.

After that both Severus and Lily let him be. Though he spent a good amount of time with them, he was spending more and more time with Black.

Lupin has a few more classes then Willow, Black, Pettigrew, and Potter, so he was in class more often than not, while Pettigrew seemed to pull Potter away at random times.

"What's got your panties in a twist?" Black asked one day while they lay near the lake. Willow turned to look at him with half-lidded eyes. He hadn't been that comfortable since he was a kid, and even then, as a kid, he always had that feeling of 'wrong' that seemed to saturate his childhood.

"While your usual sentence structure leaves much to be desired, I'm afraid you've gotten down to new lows," Willow drawled. Black snorted before turning over to watch him.

"On the train, that first day, you looked like someone killed your puppy," Black said with a frown. Willow sighed.

"Been holding that in for a while, hmm," Willow noted, sighing again and turning over to look at Black.

"I fucked up." Willow stated bluntly. Black let out a startled laugh before stopping dead at the look in Willow's eye.

"Oh Merlin, what happened?" he asked, sitting up and looking down at him worriedly. Willow groaned, turning over to hide his face.

"You sound like my sister," Willow bemoaned. Black laughed again, this time flopping down back onto the grass.

"Yeah, guess I can't get away with 'freaked out girlfriend'," Black grunted. Willow froze, before turning to look over at the other boy. Black had gone entirely red, but he wasn't looking away.

"Excuse me?" Willow asked, his brain short-circuiting. Black rolled over him, looking down at him with his arms on either side of his head and his knees on either side of his legs.

Before Willow could stop him, or decide if he wanted to stop him in the first place, Black leaned down that last inch and kissed him.

Fear, anger, pain, guilt, confusion.

Willow pushes Black off him with a small burst of magic, making the other boy trip back onto his feet with the power behind it.

Willow turned over and ran.

Hey all, sorry for the late update! Good news, I got a new laptop! No guarantees that stuff will get out on time though, I'm just a bad timekeeper.

Mars