Vivian jotted down a few ideas in her notebook. While the dreams had started to come sporadically the last few months she was no closer to understanding Severus. He rarely talked about anything outside of potions. It was also obvious he hated James Potter and his friends. At first she'd thought that the boys had been one sidedly bullying Sev. Before she'd had a chance to confront them about it she'd witnessed Sev and his new Slythrin friends doing an equally horrid prank. As winter had approached the feud had seemed to simmer down a bit. Students were excitedly preparing to head home for the holidays. With only a few days left Sev's normal aloofness had turned down right dreary even when Lily was around. Vivian could sympathize. Her own dreariness had become harder to hide as the weather chill began to fill the school. The hope of having her parents around for the holidays had long since withered and died sometime after her 8th birthday. She hadn't decided which would be more bearable being alone at school or being alone at her house.

"Viv you coming?" Lily called from the Gyriffindor common room. "If we don't leave soon all the good seats will be taken! I don't want to have to sit at the front table!" Vivian quickly shut her book, stashing it under her pillow before throwing on her cloak.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. You just want to sit by that troublemaker with the dreamy eyes." She teased fluttering her lashes. Just a few weeks ago Lily had been paired with James for a class assignment which had slightly changed her opinion of him.

"He is NOT dreamy! He IS obnoxious. All that brains and talent wasted on..on..on barbaric pranks!" Lily huffed. Grabbing Vivian's hand to drug her down the hallway. "Personality matters more than looks! And his personality is the worst!"

"Whose personality is the worst? I feel like they could all tie for first place" Sev chimed in walking up behind them, his head nodding towards James and his friends.

"I could say the same with some of the people you've been hanging out with," Vivian said dryly. She knew most of them from events she had attended with her parents. Several had been very vocal with their approval of the pure blood riots from a few years prior. They were snooty and dumb as rocks. Why he hung out with them she had yet to understand though a part of her worried they'd play a part in him becoming a death eater. He scowled.

"She got you there." Lily added when he didn't refute Vivian's statement as they separated at their tables. The owls started to arrive soon after they started eating. Lily was met with her sweet barn owl and a small package of goodies from her parents. Vivian couldn't help, but be a little envious. Still she managed to put on a smile and act as excited as Lily was. As Lily began to open the ribbon around the brown package Vivian was surprised to see a letter of her own land before her. Her excitement dwindled leaving a heavy weight in her chest. Picking up the dark blue envelope she debated if it was worth opening. Her family's silver crest was impossible to miss. She heaved a sigh, rubbing the back of her neck, before sliding the letter into her bag.

"Want some chocolates?" Lily offered her eyebrows drawn together in offered a half hearted smile. The lack of letters or avoidance of speaking of her family wasn't hard to notice. Lily had once debated asking her family to send a package for Vivian too, but had decided against it. Pity was something no one wanted.

Just then a loud crack echoed in the Great Hall. Several students screamed in alarm while others stood in an effort to run away. Rainbows of lights shot across the ceiling ending in a multitude of small explosions.

"They are like mini fireworks," Lily said in awe, sitting back down after the initial scare.

"Like little shooting stars," Vivian smiled softly, "Who do you think is getting detention this time?"

Lily hummed, glancing over at the boys. "Hard to tell. James looks grumpy. Lupin and Peter look surprised. I'd guess Sirius maybe? He's not watching the lights, which is suspicious," she glanced back up watching as the last lights began to die off, "I mean how could you not want to watch this?" Vivian looked over only to make eye contact with Sirius. Startled, she quickly looked down at her empty plate.

"Two more days…" Lily said. She poked the onions on her plate with a fork. The last time she saw her sister weighed heavily on her mind. It soured the excitement she felt at going home. She had missed her parents greatly, but could begin to imagine how she should act around her sister. Maybe Petunia would regret her words and welcome her back…but if that were true wouldn't she have written a letter?

"Promise me you'll write?" Vivian asked softly. Lily beamed, wrapping an arm around her.

"I'm going to write so much you'll be sick of me!" She may never receive a letter from Petunia, but at least she had a best friend who made the pain more bearable.

That night after helping Lily pack everything but her essentials, Vivian laid in bed for a long time. A light headache had started early and that meant only one thing. Dreams. Closing her eyes she slowed her breathing and did her best to relax her body. Then she focused on what the professor had gone over in history. Surely that would put her to sleep. By the time she'd gone over her history, potions, and transfiguration classes she realized not only was she no closer to sleep, but was even more awake then she had started. Breathing out a sigh of frustration she yanked her blanket off the bed wrapping it around her shoulders. Then quietly made her way down the stairs and into the common room. The warm fire crackled softly from the fireplace. She stood for a moment before deciding on the chair closest to the fire.

How was she supposed to stop Severus from becoming a death eater? It had been months and she was no closer to him. From her dreams she could guess that part of it came from his rivalry with James and the bullying. Would stopping James and his friends be enough? She didn't even know how to go about doing such a thing. Not even the teachers seemed to be able to stop them. A creak and yawn startled her as someone came down the boys stairwell. The clock hadn't yet chimed for 1 am. Sirius yawned again before seeing her. He stopped, his gray eyes widening. Then his haughty smirk was there.

"Too excited to go home and see your family today?" He asked. The floor creaked more as he moved towards the seat across from her. He reclined back propping his feet up on a nearby footrest.

"I'm staying here." She said frowning. "Even if I went home my parents wouldn't be there and I wouldn't want to see them anyways." Sirius raised an eyebrow at that.

"Did you get rejected from your family for being placed in the 'oh so horrible' Gryfindor house as well?"

"Who knows." She said with a shrug. They sat in silence for a few moments before he spoke again.

"I wonder if it's a pureblood thing. Bad parents, I mean. Maybe all that inbreeding caused some mental damage, ya know?" He tried to keep his tone light and teasing, but his bitterness betrayed him in his grimace.

"If only that were true. I don't know much, but I know Severus hates his father and he's a muggle. Whereas Lily's parents are both muggles and she loves them dearly." She almost mentioned Lily's sister, but felt it was a bit too private to share. Both stayed quiet with the fire crackling softly. Vivian's heart beat faster as she debated whether to ask a question she'd wondered many nights since she got to Hogwarts. It felt like sharing a private piece of herself, but she couldn't help hoping that maybe Sirius would understand in a way she didn't think anyone else could. A couple minutes passed as her heart beat faster as if urging her to speak. "What do you think caused it? You know, our parents becoming death eaters? Or anyone for that matter." She added the last question with Severus in mind. She stared the fire, unable to bring herself to look at him as the silence grew longer. Sirius wore a frown, his eye brows pinching together in thought.

"I…never thought about that. I always just saw my parents as they are now. I don't think I've ever considered why. I honestly don't know either. Horrible things happen to everyone though, so I don't think it was some specific event that caused it. Maybe they were simply born that way."

"I think…Severus is headed that way and I don't know how to stop it."
"You think?" Sirius snorted. Vivian forced a quick smile before shifting away from the fire to better see him.

"I know you and James don't like him, but he's important to Lily and I. He's like the obnoxious little brother neither of us knew we wanted." The last part had Sirius frowning.

"I have an annoying brother of my own. He's already starting to follow in my parents footsteps. He boasted about… wanting to be a death eater before I left."

"Well then. We'd better figure out how to stop Severus so we can use it on your brother." She smiled.

"I guess we have all of the break to come up with a plan…" He said.

"Yes we do. Good night."