Author Note: Sorry for the long wait! Thanks for the encouragement patronousesandpotions, this chapter came faster because of you! Please comment, critic and most importantly enjoy!

Chapter 3: Dirty

The common room is warm with the sound of soft conversations and the occasional burst of laughter from the Marauders, sans Remus, on the sofa, in front of the fireplace. October has just arrived, it's thirty minutes till the end of Lunch, and students have quickly gathered in the common room before their next lesson. Emmeline is trying to get the more handsome Marauder members (aka Potter and Black) attention; By combing, then patting Pettigrew's useful insignificance away with her fingers, her position of leaning behind the sofa is not going to be contested by Pettigrew at the very least. Emmeline gives another extra loud laugh to one of their jokes. Dorcas just sits on the arm rest of the sofa, enjoying the humorous situation. It seems that the whole common room doesn't want me to study. I'm leaning on the window sill, sighing as I look upon the scene and then up at my two best friends.

"I'll try out for the team next year…I know I'll be ready then" Marly says. I nod from the sideline, good on her.

"I'm just worried about all this Death eater activity…" Mary sighs "What if they target my house? What about when we leave Hogwarts?" Her voice starts to tremble. I snake an arm around Mary's waist, whilst Marlene puts her arm around her shoulder, Marlene and I put our heads on her shoulders.

"We'll fight!" Marlene and I simultaneously say in a fierce whisper.

"But I'm not as good as either of you in Defence against the Dark Arts, Herbology, and sharpness and-and Potions, Charms, and practically everything else!" Mary attributes the advantages first to Marlene and then me.

"Oh, Mary-"

"You're good at lots of things!"

"I mean you are very convincing! You could work in magical law enforcement with the way you present yourself!"

"Did you read the front page of The Prophet lately?! Two wizard half-blood and a pureblood attacked, before they were due to put forward their case to introduce the Protection of Half-blood and anyone likewise affected by threat, because they were seen as blood traitors! They had to gloss over the fact that they were really trying to protect muggleborns and muggles and they were still attacked!" Tears began to fall down her cheeks "And y-you want me-ME! A muggleborn to go and try help protect people with the law" She manages a small sarcastic sniff.

"But Mary you can't give up!" Marlene said loudly, lifting her head and attempting to wipe Mary's tears away.

"Here I've got tissues in my bag. Mary! You cannot let them win! If people stop trying to fight, then those evil Death eaters and their headmaster of twisted ideology Voldemort" Conversations around us quietened, probably at the mention of his name. I continued nonetheless. "will win-they will win and people who deserve to learn about what is essentially part of themselves would have it taken away from them due to the cowardice of those who are able to at least try and stop him. He will get you whether you fight or not."

I let out my breath, I must be flushed, but I don't care. I just feel rather disappointed in Mary. I know it's not her fault, I mean I'm scared too, but I also want to fight! I have a feeling it's going to get much worse; With the gang of Slytherins that have already formed, Death Eaters aren't dying out anytime soon.

"I've got to see Slughorn about something. I'll just get to class early-catch you guys later"

Amidst the stares of the common room, I stuff my advanced potions book in my bag and walk determinedly out of there.

About a staircase later I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around.

"You are positively amazing, Lily," Potter says, his eyes earnest and that crooked smile on his face.

I nod letting a small smile form on my face.

"Will you go out with me?"

And in six more words, he managed to wipe it off.

"No, this really isn't the time, I mean did you not just-! Urgh! I don't know what to do with you, Potter. Oh, and its Evans to you!"

"Fine! Fine! Burn your bridges! Watch! One day you'll realise you had the perfect guy and you let him go. Enjoy being a spinster Evans! It will be such a shame, to see someone who looks so perfect in my arms, go to waste!"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" I yell.

I run angrily all the way to the potions classroom. Spinster. Go to waste. His arms. I shake off the blush and the anger and sigh.

I approach the outside of the potions classroom and lean against the door frame. I fish out my potions textbook, when I see a figure standing and motioning as if in conversation. I creep slightly closer and realise the voices are purposefully muffled. Muffliato. Sure enough. Severus and Mulciber are talking, albeit indistinctly, due to the spell Severus created: Muffliato. I think back, to when he wrote down one of my potion improvisations in his battered advanced potions making textbook, and beam with pride at the memory.

Mulciber steps into the main hallway and glares at me. Severus looks back apprehensively, but when he notices it's me he gives a strained smile or it seems that way since he looks unnaturally paler. Mulciber walks closely by me, murmuring 'Mudblood' and spitting near my shoe for effect. I raise myself to my full height, looking to the side, purposefully haughty to communicate indifference.

He loudly yells over his shoulder, "Severus I've got to get a book; I can't stand being around wasteful Mudblood space like her!".

"Oh, because its witches like me who do far better than the supposedly 'superior' wizards like you...pfft," I retort. Mulciber steps back dangerously, I pull out my wand and glare at him.

"I can take points off Slytherin house for assault…such a shame losing it, so close to Slytherin's proud lair…the dungeons".

"Not in the corridor…" Severus adds. He seems to be communicating something else too, as Mulciber grunts although he still hasn't put his wand away.

The Marauders sans Remus come and scowl at Mulciber. Black and Potter simultaneously send a tripping jinx and jelly legs jinx respectively. Pettigrew nods his head towards me in a manner that suggests encouragement, but fearfully glanced at Mulciber hoping his gesture went unnoticed.

"Filthy Bloodtraitor…there's a reason your family isn't in the sacred twenty-four"

"That's right because we aren't scumbags like you!" Potter laughs.

Mulciber stalks off to his dorm. He's going to be late for potions now.

I blush when I catch Potter smiling at me, I put it down to the fact that there are some marks left from the stinging jinx I hit him with a week ago. He didn't tell…Black probably fixed it for him. Maybe he will blackmail me later.

I regain my composure, as Severus nudges me.

"Are you holding a snitch?" I ask incredulously. Complete and utter disregard for school property!

"Well you aren't going to snitch on him are you Evans?" Black quickly quips. I glare at him. Blackmail it is.

"And your hair! Honestly, it's-"

"Messy, ironic too since his dad invented Sleekeazy's Hair Potion" Marly cuts in with a giggle.

More students begin to arrive from either their common rooms or the Great Hall.

I move towards the Gryffindor side of the waiting area outside of the potions classroom, whilst Severus does the same to the Slytherins.

Slughorn comes unusually late. It's later said sixth-year Bellatrix has been confirmed to have hexed some second-year students deemed to have unworthy blood. Her Prefect title was removed along with Lestrange's. Yet they're still in school. The Slytherins comment on the fact that it was only a minor offense. I look at Mary at the height of this conversation.

For Potions, I am partnered with Severus as always. We are easily the best in the class. We have already found a way to quicken the potion making process, allowing us for time to talk.

"I got a letter from Mum today… She sends her greetings." I start

"Oh, well that's nice"

I just look at him. I guess you have to swim at the deep end to truly kick your way up.

"We haven't talked properly about anything deep lately...like the attacks," I begin

"Oh! It's just an over excited group of-" Severus seems so determined to brush off the doings of those insolent oppressive psychopaths-

"Sev!" I reprimand loudly causing members of the class to look at us. Black mimics me in a silly high-pitched voice. I glare at him.

"Come on, Lily, let's-let's talk about something else…you know like…like recycling"

"Recycling?!" I snort out a bitter and then genuine laugh. I can't believe my ears. I cover my mouth trying to stifle the escalation of laughter.

"Really Sev! Of all the things…muggle recycling!"

"I just remember Talkalot telling us about how California started recycling newspapers in 1973…she picked a very interesting topic for muggle studies this week"

"Oh, I remember you telling me that…come to think of it, we waste toilet tissue, or as Americans call it toilet paper, quite a lot…" I replied.

Sev began to smirk.

"Imagine if they went a little further" Sev's voice was getting quieter with mirth "and decide to recycle toilet 'paper' along with newspaper" he finished turning red with suppressed laughter.

"And turn it into what? More newspapers…?" and then a wave of genius struck me "no one wants to read s***, Sev!" I hissed.

We had to be excused from Potions. We had already finished, and we're amongst Slughorn's favourite and most talented students, so it was allowed. We were laughing so hard I couldn't even really see, where I was going or the incredulous faces, due to the tears clouding my vision.

"Now I really want to know what the joke was!" Slughorn commented cheerfully.

The class eventually filed out, giving Severus and I amazed glances as they passed us, in the corridor. Marlene and Mary promised to meet me at Divination.

Naturally, Potter waited to vocalise his shock. His Marauder cronies were of course not too far behind.

"And you reprimanded ME for telling inappropriate jokes-" Potter laughs haughtily.

"This one swears like a dragon keeper!" Black chuckles light-heartedly.

"YEAH!" Peter adds 'helpfully'.

"-nice sense of humour, it'd be lovely if we could share" I frowned, he still continued "our gift for humour on the next Hogsmeade trip!"

"Dream on Potter, I'd rather take the newspaper! Really imagine going on a date with someone who spits out toilet-"

"You may come in MS EVANS" Slughorn interrupts.

I blush, whilst Black and Potter snigger. Peter barks out in laughter.

"Such a shame your precious Lupin is missing…that time of the month again…" Severus says vindictively.

Honestly, I quite believe Remus is a werewolf too, but I wouldn't use it against him. I glare at the thought of what Severus did. There was an assortment of spell flashes I caught from the corner of my eye as I went to retrieve my bag from the classroom. The spell flashes had resulted in Severus eventually coming in after me with soot on his face and singed hair.

Stupid Potter.

Stupid.

Stupid.

Potter.