. . . bullied into silence . . .

The next fortnight was uneventful, just homework and more homework. Most nights Mary stayed up until midnight finishing essays and charts and diagrams. McGonagall was not the only professor loading them down with work. Slughorn, the Potions master, had gone crazy with assignments as had Kettleburn, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, and all the others. There was no rest for fifth-year students. And with Lily's prefect duties and dinners with Slughorn added to her homework and classes, Mary saw little of her friend. She was limited to the companionship of her other roommates. What was more, Remus had been talking to her quite a bit. He had only once mentioned what had happened with Mulciber, and right after what had happened with the Marauders, Remus had tracked her down and apologized. Remus was easy to talk to, and Lily didn't seem to mind him at all. All this was not bad in Mary's opinion. The only downfall was the upcoming detention Mary had. Now that was going to be a problem, for more than one reason, but only one stuck out as the most sirius. Though Mary tried not to notice, Sirius Black had not once looked in her direction since the incident. Only two weeks ago was he staring at her like there was nothing else to think about. Now, she was back to being nonexistent, insignificant, mousy Mary. He was currently sitting inches from her eating a breakfast of toast and sausages. For all he noticed, he was sitting next to an empty seat. Lily was on the other side of her; she was catching up on a bit of Arithmancy homework. That left Mary to listen to the Marauders conversation. Oh joy, thought Mary.

"What was that, Mary?" asked Remus, who was sitting across the table from her. He was spreading butter on his toast.

"Erm. . . . what?" she inquired.

Remus frowned. "You said something about joy, I think." After a moment he added, "Did you not know that's how it works?"

"What on earth are you talking about, Remus?" asked Mary, quite bemused.

"Talking—words comes out of a person's mouth to convey their thoughts," he stated very seriously. "Did you know that, or are you nutters?"

Mary laughed. "You're the one who's nutters. I haven't the slightest—"

Mary was suddenly shoved sideways into Lily as Sirius stood and angrily started shouting at a younger Gryffindor sitting near them. On the other side of him, James was shouting at the poor boy, too.

"Oi!" shouted Lily, who was on the floor with her breakfast on the front of her robes.

"I'm so sorry, Lily—"

"It wasn't your fault, Mary, don't apologize—Potter!"

James whipped his head around in Lily's direction and immediately closed his mouth to keep from laughing at the sight of her. Sirius turned around as well and roared with laughter. The boy at which they were yelling scurried away.

"Here, Evans, let me help you," said James, reaching a hand out towards her. She ignored his gesture and stood up, a piece of egg sliding down her shirt and plopping to the floor. Egg was in her hair, too. She crossed her arms but immediately put her hands on her hips after finding food all over her front.

"Why are you yelling at that poor boy?" she asked angrily.

"As you can see, Lily, we are no longer—"

"Is your name now Potter, Sirius?" Lily interrupted.

Sirius frowned and opened his mouth, but James cut him off this time.

"Evans, it's none of your business who I yell at—"

"Whom," muttered Mary as Remus helped clean up the mess.

He snorted a laugh and looked up. "When it has to do with Lily, all brains fly out of James's — Peter, can't you help?" demanded Remus as his focus switched. Across the table Peter was continuing to eat and enjoying the show, stuffing a piece of bacon into his mouth and smiling.

Lily and James were now inches from each others' face; James was jabbing a finger into Lily's chest.

"—no right to talk to me or anybody else like a child!" barked James.

"Don't you start with me about how I talk to anyone," said Lily nearly shouting, "when you were just screaming at a poor, little first-year—"

"Poor?" James said incredulously. "You don't even know what that little bugger said, Evans! He was ranting to his friend about how they let just anybody in Gryffindor—"

"He was probably talking about you, you great toerag!" said Lily.

"Evans, I swear to Merlin's saggy pants if you don't listen—"

"Exactly what are you going to do? Put me in detention for not listening to you?" inquired Lily smartly.

"That's a brilliant idea!" exclaimed James.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, and then I could inform you that that boy was going off about Sirius being a traitor—"

"And you took him seriously?" asked Lily as if James was mental. This took the two into a more outrageous argument.

"These two!" stated Sirius as he joined Remus and Mary, who had resumed eating. "Don't they have anything else better to do? Of course I don't mind them arguing over me, but it does get tiresome—"

"Do you just like hearing yourself talk?" interrupted Mary, finding herself speaking without thinking. Again.

"Excuse me?" asked Sirius a bit surprised.

Mary bit her lip, and Sirius laughed in her face.

"So timid, you are" he said.

And something clicked in Mary's mind.

"You should never have been sorted into Gryffindor," said Mary quietly. Sirius abruptly stopped laughing. When she looked at him, his face was drained of color. Her heart was beating furiously, and she had to force herself to continue. "You're not worthy of being in a house that stands for everything you're not."

Mary gathered her bag and walked out the door holding her breath and her tears back and leaving Sirius sitting all alone except for Remus, who had nothing to say except,

"Touché, Mary Macdonald."

A/N: "Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself." -Harvey Fierstein.

The quote could go both ways, methinks….

What did you think? I'd absolutely, positively, most definitely LOVE to know what you thought, but of course, you know that by now :) This chapter is dedicated to ladydisdain91. You are amazing (I know there's not a lot of Sirius goodness :( I'm sad, too.)

P.S. I didn't really do a grammar check. I'm too pooped!