A/N- I am SO SO SO SORRY. It's been so long since I've updated. I have no excuse other than I just didn't get any time. It wasn't writer's block or anything. I just didn't get any time. I've been writing little bits whenever I got the chance so that's why it's taken so long to get one chapter done. I apologise if it reads a little disjointed, but it's only because I've written it over a long period of time. I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story, including the multiple guest reviews asking me to update. It's finally here, and I hope you like it. This is an important chapter in the story. A bit of character development and stuff. It might not make a lot of sense as a standalone, but more chapters in the future will relate to this.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Back at the Potters, things were off to a rollicking start. Mrs. Potter had arranged for the most extravagant meals for her son and his starving friends. Similar to the charm used in the Great Hall at Hogwarts, the plates at the Potters' kept refilling themselves. Dany had never met James' parents before and she took an instant liking to both of them. Euphemia Potter was a woman in her early 50s, streaks of grey lining her brown curls. Her voice was one of the most soothing sounds Dany had ever heard, and her quiet disposition did not take away from the affection she had towards all of them. Fleamont Potter was nearing 60, his salt and pepper beard contrasting with his jet black hair ("It's one of my secret hair color Potions!" he said, winking at Dany). It was clear that James got his charming, jovial nature from his father. Mr. Potter was quick to make everyone at ease, effortlessly creating a warm atmosphere in a matter of minutes.

"I'm very happy to finally meet you girls," said Mrs. Potter, once dinner was over. "I've heard a lot about you all. Marlene - James and Sirius can never stop gushing about your Quidditch skills. And Lily, I'm so glad James found someone like you. Even after hearing all the wonderful things my son had to say about you, I wasn't expecting such a lovely person."

Lily's face had turned the same shade as her hair. James was awkwardly scratching the back of his neck while Sirius nudged him suggestively.

"And Daniella." Dany felt her breath catch for a second. What would Mrs. Potter say about her? "James has started talking about you more recently. I hope you stay friends with my boys for a long time."

Dany couldn't help the smile growing on her face. Her eyes strayed to Sirius, who appeared to be beaming at being called Mrs. Potter's boy. It was rather adorable. In fact, Sirius looked so happy in the company of the Potters. It made you wonder about the home life he had been used to.

"Alright, we'll be retiring now," Mr. Potter said, picking up his reading glasses. "Don't stay up too long."

They were all laid out in the Potters' living room, munching on chocolate frogs (Remus) and sucking Sugar Quills (Lily and Peter). The discussion slowly progressed to Quidditch and Lily had started dozing. Remus had picked up a book from the table beside him, and was flipping through it casually. The rest of them talked about the match which had just concluded.

"That block by Hartmann near the end of the match was one of the best I've seen!" Dany exclaimed. "She's such a great player. Got a lot of raw potential. And the fact that she works with her instincts will only help her in the future."

"Gone a bit technical, haven't you Dany?" Marlene smirked, crossing her legs beneath her.

"Comes with the years of flying experience she has, Marls," grinned James, joining in the teasing.

"That's right." Dany played along good naturedly.

The teasing continued for a while. Dany was used to it. She was the only one who was both very teasable and took the teasing very well. But there was something off that night. Maybe it was how Marlene's words had a slight edge to them. Or how it seemed like James was ganging up on her.

Her smile faltered slightly, wondering if she was just imagining the change in tone. But it wasn't. It seemed that Remus had sensed a change in tone as well.

"You know that's not true," he said lightly, although his gaze conveyed a warning of sorts to James.

"Dany's so easy to tease," continued Marlene. "She never gets upset!"

Something inside her snapped. The jabs at her poor athletic abilities, the casual mockery of her difficulty making friends, the apparent hilarity that she had, only recently, acquired friends of the opposite sex, and the all too familiar comment on her love life.

"You could easily get a boyfriend if you put in some effort, Dany. That frosty exterior isn't helping your case one bit, you know. In fact-"

"Are you quite done?" Dany was struggling hard to keep her voice level. "Or is there something else you'd like to add?"

James had stopped grinning at this point. He looked unsure of how to react. Marlene, on the other hand, frowned and tilted her head to one side.

"I'm only telling you what I feel, Dany."

"Well maybe you shouldn't. As much as you think that you know better than most of us, there's no need to talk like that."

Marlene closed her mouth, looking uneasy for the first time. The room had gone quiet, and Dany could feel all eyes on her. Unlike other times when she felt overwhelmed by any kind of attention, this seemed to egg her on.

"I know everyone has this fetish for superiority, but it's just fucking terrible. Your lack of empathy and utter inability to understand someone else's point of view isn't something to be proud of. So don't lecture me because of your misguided priorities!"

"Being charming and cocky isn't something to be proud of." Dany had now turned towards James. "Because underneath that charm you judge people for not being as clever as you, or as athletic as you, or as popular as you. You may not be a blood supremacist, but you really have no fucking right to judge people."

"Try being nice. And drop the high-handed tone. You aren't superior. And even if you were, it makes you an arse for being condescending."

Dany stormed out, leaving everyone very confused and slightly worried. This wasn't a normal reaction. Especially since Marlene and James had only just been teasing her.

...

She sat by the window, letting the cool air touch her cheeks. She hadn't felt this unsettled in a long time. Her hands were still trembling slightly.

"Hey."

Sirius walked over to her, his steps soft, reminding her of his Animagus form. She nodded her head slightly, indicating that he was welcome to sit down. Silence enveloped the room, descending on her like a hand choking her throat. Soon, it got too much for her, and she looked outside deliberately, finding that her words came easier when she wasn't looking at someone.

"I've always been scared of this happening. That I would become like my father."

He didn't say anything but let her continue. He wasn't particularly sure of how to deal with her at this point. So letting her speak was probably the best idea.

"All my life… I've tried so hard. So unbelievably hard. It's exhausting. And after all that? I still end up behaving just like him. What's the point of it all…"

"He's a good man. But when his anger takes over, nothing else makes sense to him. No, no. It's never anything physical. Just really harsh words. Words that sting much longer than any hex or curse. Mum always said that I'm nothing like him. But I know that's not true. As uncomfortable as his anger makes me, I understand the reason behind it. I understand the irrationality. I-I-I feel the same anger inside me. The rationale behind it, haunting me like a sick dream. As much as I've tried to shut it out, it's always been there. Sometimes quieter than others. But always there. My anger surfaces in the same way his does. We have similar emotional pathways. That's always scared me. And now, my fear has been realised."

Her voice was thick with emotion at this point, the words shaking in an attempt to control the tears that were probably waiting to escape. Sirius knew at that moment that she was scared. Not of anyone or anything. But of herself. She disliked this part of her, but couldn't escape it no matter how hard she tried.

"Don't be scared." His words were few and simple, but it held an odd comfort for her. She nodded her head jerkily, her lower lip trembling slightly. Sirius realised that she was probably holding back her tears because she didn't want anyone to see her cry.

"I'll see you in the morning. Sleep well."

He left her by herself, hearing a soft sob echo through the air just as he reached the stairs.

The next morning, Dany woke up feeling very disoriented. She wasn't used to crying or losing her temper like this. It made her feel unsettled. On top of that, she had apparently spilled everything to Sirius.

Her face grew slightly warm at the thought. Sweet Merlin! What had possessed her to do that? This is why she didn't like being around people too much. It somehow ended up with her being vulnerable and not knowing anything about the other person. She hated that - feeling exposed.

It looked like everyone had already assembled for breakfast, the smell of Mrs. Potter's freshly baked bread wafting through the air. Dany gulped slowly, not knowing how to approach everyone. However, that was taken care of when James came bounding out of the kitchen, coming to a stop in front of her.

"Sorry for being a wanker, Dany," he said, scratching the back of his head.

"Language, young man," Mrs. Potter's voice came from the kitchen.

"Right. Sorry, mum," James apologised, steering Dany away from the area. "Dany, I really am sorry."

"I'm sorry as well." Marlene had popped out of nowhere, looking rather guilty.

"That's alright. I'm sorry I blew up on you guys. It was nothing that serious," muttered Dany, feeling uncomfortable at being bombarded with apologies. "I said a lot of things I shouldn't have. They weren't true and I didn't mean them."

"Come on, Dany. This is a momentous occasion. Let them apologise. It might not happen again in another 17 years," said Lily, grinning at her friend. Dany felt better seeing someone talking in a light tone.

"Like I said, it's okay." Dany's discomfort was apparently not visible to everyone, because James and Marlene continued apologising to her, not realising that she wanted them to stop.

"I'm concerned about your reputation, Prongs," interjected Sirius, putting a halt to the stream of apologies. "59 apologies to a single person in the span of ten minutes? It's going to be hard to recover from that."

An indignant James was left to be dealt with by Lily and Remus, while Marlene defended her Captain's decisions. Dany breathed a sigh of relief and shot Sirius a grateful smile. To her surprise, he didn't smirk or brush off the issue. Instead, choosing to return her smile, and making her insides feel rather warm.

"Are you alright?" Lily sat down next to her, as the boys and Marlene tossed around a Quaffle.

"I'm fine, Lils. Don't worry." Dany was eager to drop the issue as soon as possible.

"If you're sure," continued her friend, uncertainly. "But if you do want to share anything, you know you can talk to me right?"

"Of course, Lils."

But she really didn't want to talk to her. She didn't really want to talk to anyone. Not about this at least. She felt like she had just exposed herself to everyone. And now she didn't know how to explain why she was what she was. It wasn't a nice feeling. It left like she had been robbed of some of her agency, and now stood powerless at the hands of her friends.

"I once burnt off a chunk of my brother's hair."

Dany turned to see Sirius standing next to her. He was looking at the Potters' magical gramophone.

"I was eight. Reg was almost seven. My darling mother had just told me off for wanting to go to the Muggle park near our house. And since she was so much taller and stronger than me, I couldn't do anything but sit and fume. Reg came up to me and said that mother was calling us down for dinner. It suddenly reminded me of how he was always the good one and never ever questioned our mother's terrible actions. It was an accidental piece of magic, but it was powerful enough for my father to 'discipline' me."

"That doesn't sound like chocolates and butterbeer," said Dany with a small smile.

"It wasn't. However," his lips curled up slightly as he continued. "The next time, I managed to burn three of my mother's favorite black gowns. The look on her face was worth it."

"How can you speak so lightly about such things?" she asked with a serious expression.

"How else would you have me speak? Life doesn't give us a long list of reasons to be happy. If there is any way to make things easier, lighter, happier- I would never hesitate. In the end, all that matter is love. Being loved, making your loved ones happy. And I would do anything for that. Anything."

"I think it's important to find out what matters the most to you," he continued. "I don't think anger is a bad thing per se. You just need to be able to channel it properly. And if you know what matters most, it might be easier to channel your emotions."

As Sirius continued talking, Dany realised two things. The first was that, she wasn't quite as alone as she always felt. The second - Sirius had a very beautiful voice.

She looked down at her feet, a small smile gracing her lips.

"You guys! Come quickly! It's not looking good!" They both whipped around at Peter's frantic voice.

"What's wrong Pete?" Sirius asked urgently.

"It's James. He's-"

"What? What happened to James?!"

"He's freaking out! I don't know what-"

"PETE! FOR MERLIN'S SAKE!"

"He just got his Hogwarts letter. He's been made Head Boy!"

"WHAT?!"

SO what'd you think? Was it weird? Please let me know your honest opinions. And hopefully, I won't take so long to update next time.

Cheers xxx