Under strange circumstances

Chapter 3

2021 EDIT: TW brief mention of sexual assault.  I would also like to mention that I do not like the way I wrote James, Sirius' and Remus' reaction to the event - it feels glossed over, and the wrongs things are focused on. I'm leaving the story as it is because I wrote this at a different point in life but I would like to preface the chapter by saying that if someone you care for and who cares for you has the bravery to come forward with their experience and leans on your emotionally or physically for comfort, it is not the time to flirt or undermine their experience by thinking about something else entirely. Thank you.

*****

James

At first, the four of us are sitting in a sort of circle, with slight distances between each other, but by the time Lily's halfway through her story, Sirius is lying down on the floor, his head in Remus' lap, and I'm sitting so close to her that our crossed legs are touching. It's been over an hour, but not because the story is particularly long; it's more that Peter keeps making noises in his unconsciousness (scaring Lily), and she keeps pausing when she gets to the embarrassing parts of what happened to her. Also, Sirius and I keep asking her to repeat bits because we're both getting distracted by other things (Sirius, by watching Remus, and me, by watching Lily.)

'...and then, he sort of, well....threatened me.'

'With what?' Remus seems to be the only one of the three of us who is paying full attention to Lily's story. She plays with the hem of her jumper, and doesn't answer. 'Lils, what did he threaten you with?' The fact that Sirius isn't calling her 'Lily-flower' or 'Daisy' or any other flower name makes it clear that he's paying full attention now (for once.) 'Lily?' I reach out and take her hand, which is freezing. 'Shit, your hand is cold as ice. D'you want a warmer jumper?'

'Nah, I'm fine.' For a minute we're all silent. Then, Lily suddenly mutters 'he threatened me with an unforgivable curse,' so quietly that I barely hear it, even though I'm right next to her. 'He did what?' Sirius beats me to the phrase.

'Lily, did he actually use one on you?' Remus has somehow heard what she said, even from where he is (wolf hearing?), and is sitting forwards with a sense of urgency.

'No, no, of course not... I think he was bluffing.'

'Wait, wait, wait.... You still haven't answered my question.. What did he do to you? I was asking a question before, not making a statement.' Sirius is looking at Lily earnestly, while Remus rolls his eyes at him (it's a somewhat loving gesture, I notice.) Lily sighs, but she's smiling slightly at Sirius' obliviousness. 'He threatened me with an unforgivable curse.'

Sirius' eyes widen, 'which one?' She rolls her eyes at him, in true Lily fashion. 'He didn't say which, you numpty.' Sirius lies back down in Remus' lap sulkily; 'well how was I supposed to know that?' A laugh escapes me as they glare at each other, and I squeeze Lily's hand, which I'm still holding. 'Ignore him Lily.. what happened after he threatened you?'

She looks at me and her face goes back to the nervous expression she's had for the past hour. 'I said that he couldn't do anything with Dumbledore here, and he said that Dumbledore had just left with all the powerful teachers on some business do to with Voldemort, so no-one would know if this happened. And then...' She trails off and her face goes bright red, making her eyes seem greener than they actually are. She lets go of my hand and plays with her hair, whilst self consciously crossing her other arm over her chest. I look over at Remus and he nods at me, then I look over at Sirius and he smirks and winks. Feeling slightly more confident with their "encouragement" I move my arm so it's around Lily's shoulder. She seems to sink into it, and leans her head on my shoulder. Then she reaches for my other hand and holds it in both of her own, turning it over and tracing her fingers over her palm. This seems to give her more confidence so she breathes in through her nose and then continues the story, still playing with my hand. 'He...came over to me and he grabbed the sides of my chest.. And then he, well, he kissed me, really forcefully, and unbuttoned my shirt.' The three of us stare at her in shock and she continues to play with my hand, swallowing hard. I bring her in closer to me and she lets go of my hand, and wraps her arms around my waist, burying her face into my shoulder. I feel her start to sob silently, and then move my other hand to stroke her hair comfortingly. I don't know how long we stay like this for, but eventually she starts to calm down and moves her face out of my shoulder, wiping her tears with her sleeve. 'I'm sorry-y, James,' her voice is quite nasally, and she keeps sniffing. 'Your shirt is all wet n-now.' I smile down at her and move my hand to her face, where I wipe some tears away with my thumb. 'It's okay, Lily; fuck my shirt. What's important here is that you're safe with me now.'