A/N: The usual disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter franchise, J K Rowling does.Thank you for the reviews! We're up to ten reviews which is fantastic and 15 followers (which is correct when I wrote this) and that is magical. I hope you like this chapter. Not much longer until seventh year! Thank you for sticking with me.

FIVE HOURS LATER

JAMES' P.O.V

I've been sitting by Evans' bedside in the Hospital Wing for the last 5 hours. It sounds creepy, watching her sleep, but it's not. Not really. She hasn't stirred yet.

Madam Pomfrey looks over at me suspiciously, but she doesn't tell me to leave. She gave up trying to get me to leave four hours ago. I reach out and hold Evans' hand, giving it a small squeeze. I swear her eyes opened for the briefest moment.

I think back to last summer and how great it felt then, watching her laugh at my jokes and that light-hearted humour in her eyes instead of the weary, dark and exhausted look she's been wearing recently. I look toward the window and see the night sky repaint itself with yellow, orange and pink. Thank Merlin it's Saturday today, I'm so tired. I've had no sleep in 26 hours and the Full Moon was yesterday, or rather the day before yesterday, seeing as it's now 1 am.

"James…"

I turn quickly to see Evans' eyes open. And that's it. It's like falling in love with her all over again. She didn't say Potter, she said James. My name. I can't explain it, the sudden rush of love and adrenaline all at once.

"Where am I?" she says, craning her neck but desisting almost immediately because of the pain.

"You're in the Hospital Wing."

"What happened? Was it Bellatrix again?"

"What was Bellatrix again?" I say anxiously.

Her eyes widen completely.

"How long have I been here?"

"About five or six hours."

"Shit. I have a Potions essay."

I almost laugh. She's been unconscious for almost six hours and her first worry is homework. She then starts to drift back into a heavy sleep and I instantly miss her, even though she's right there. Madam Pomfrey comes over.

"Was she awake?"

"Yeah, she seemed a bit confused."

"Ah, she will be alright, I am certain."

"She talked about Bellatrix."

Madam Pomfrey's face warps into sympathy and anger.

"She should be expelled, that one. Of course Professor Dumbledore refuses to do anything about the racism here. The amount of times Evans has been here on account of that girl, I don't care to count."

Madam Pomfrey bustles over to Lily's side and places her hand on Lily's forehead. She sighs and adjusts the few cards on the bedside table to so that they are all lined up straight. She then looks over the Hospital Wing which is next to empty and sits down opposite me.

"I felt I should do something but you know how Gryffindors are, with their honour," she sighs. "I respect Evans' need for secrecy but she keeps coming back, even worse than before."

"What sort of stuff does Black do to her?"

"I do not wish to divulge that information, thank you Potter. If Evans wants to tell you, then I'm sure she will," Madam Pomfrey says curtly, getting up and walking back to her office.

I turn back to Lily.

"Oh and Potter, when she wakes up, let her rest. Rest is crucial at this point in recovery, if she starts sitting up, alert me."

I smile, Madam Pomfrey has always been sure that rest is the best cure for anything. I can't help wishing that she's wake up, even if it would delay her complete recovery, I just need to hear her voice again.

THREE HOURS LATER

I'm awakened with a start. I hadn't realised I'd fallen asleep.

"Prongs! We haven't seen you in days!" Padfoot sits down next to me, cheerily.

"Evans went unconscious, so I stayed with her."

"We figured as much," Moony drops his bag on the floor and pulls up a chair.

"How?"

Moony exhales, impatiently.

"You may have forgotten that I'm her friend. If she's not with Marlene and Alice, she's not in the library and not in the Great Hall then she's in the Hospital Wing."

"Oh and we had the map," Padfoot says helpfully.

"Why would you assume the Hospital Wing?" I ask.

"I never thought I'd say this, Prongs but have you not been paying any attention to Lily? She's been in the Hospital Wing almost all month!"

"I didn't –"

"No, you've been horrible to Lily for the past few months, would it be too much to ask that you helped her out once in a while?"

"What? So you've been fighting with her then?"

"Yes! Along with a few others, but I won't expect you to have noticed," Moony says huffily.

At that moment, Lily stirs and wakes up.

"James," she says and my heart explodes.

"Lily, how are you doing?" I ask.

"Okay, my head hurts a bit. What happened and why are you here?"

"Hey Lily!" Moony perks up instantly.

"Remus," she smiles and I feel a twinge of jealousy.

"How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. What about you? How are the Slytherins?"

"Same old, they're not trying that hard. Frank got Mulciber with a Stinging Hex right in the eye."

Lily winces but smiles.

"What about Mar? How's she?"

"Fine, they're all dreadfully worried about you. You're never gone this long, we all thought you'd been ambushed or something."

"Why aren't they here?"

"Mar's suffering from hangover and Alice is still in bed."

"What time is it?"

"Only 7 am and it's a Saturday."

"So why are you all here?"

"Prongs was gone, so we knew something must have happened. I'm just glad you didn't kill each other," Padfoot says.

"I don't hate James," she laughs.

Padfoot falls off his chair.

"James? Oh sweet Merlin, what did you do to her, Prongs?" Padfoot asks, in utter shock.

"Nothing," I say giving him a forceful look which meant: I'll tell you later.

Madam Pomfrey bustles out of her office wearing a frown.

"Come on all of you, out. Out you go! OUT! No complaints, Evans needs her rest."

Moony, Padfoot and Wormtail leave. Madam Pomfrey gives me a cautious look before giving Lily a potion.

"You need to spend the rest of the day here but after that, you'll be right as rain," she says.

She sweeps out, narrowing her eyes at me as she goes.

"Why am I here James?" she says seriously.

"You fell, don't you remember?"

"No, not really," she shakes her head, frustrated. "I said some bad stuff, didn't I?"

I don't say anything, because she's right and because I also said 'bad stuff'.

"I did, didn't I?" she persists.

"I did, too."

"I'm sorry, James. I really am, I wish I could take all of it back and I wish I'd never lied about the kiss last summer –"

"Lily, don't, it doesn't matter –"

"No! It does matter. That kiss made me feel like nothing ever has done before. It felt amazing and I was stupid for not acting on it. I didn't think you were responsible enough and you were still picking on other children and bullying Severus," she says, bitterly.

"I'm sorry about that," I say, meaning the Snivellus incident. She did like the kiss, I knew it.

"Don't be, he deserved it. I'm sorry James, you were right, I am a bitch. I want you to know I'm sorry."

Her eyes get red and her voice catches. I look anxiously toward Madam Pomfrey's office.

"Don't get yourself worked up, okay? Pomfrey will have my head. I'm sorry for all the stuff I said, as well. I shouldn't have said all those things and I should have helped you out with Bellatrix," I watch the sudden change in her face once I mention Bellatrix.

"How did you find out?" she says in a small voice.

"I don't know much, just that she was picking on you and sending you to the Hospital Wing," I feel the anger rise immediately.

"She can do a lot worse than that," Lily gives a hollow laugh.

"Do you want to tell me about it?"

"Not really, I know you'd try to do something and that's the last thing I need."

"So full of it, Lily. What makes you think I'd stand up for you?"

She cracks a smile. As she shifts in her bed, I notice a scar on her arm.

"What's that?" I say, my eyes never leaving the part of the scar I can see.

She pulls down her sleeve instantly, the effort draining her.

"I'm fine."

"Let me see," I insist.

She shakes her head.

"It's embarrassing."

"I'm not going to judge you, Lily. I'm your friend."

She raises her eyebrows at the word 'friend' but doesn't correct me or disagree. She carefully pulls up her sleeve to reveal a large scar across her upper arm, Bellatrix has clearly taken her time with the cut, and it reads: Mudblood. I feel my blood boil, how dare she. How dare anyone, of any background, dare hurt Lily?

"James?" Lily's voice brings me back down to Earth.

"What?"

"I don't want you to do anything; I need to handle this on my own. This is my revenge."

I sigh before Madam Pomfrey walks out of her office.

"I'm sorry Potter, but Evans really does need her rest, out."

I splutter protest but she ignores me, I give Lily one last smile before leaving the Hospital Wing.