Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling. The characters
Christine Cavan and Aurora Nowell are purely of my own invention though.
A/N: Hello fellow Potter-aholics! This is my first fic. I'm sorry that Peter is asleep during the whole thing, but I didn't feel like wasting my time on developing his character. Sorry if that bothers you. This is the result of April Fools' Day and a lot of chocolate. Please review. And now, on with the show.
1 Pranks
It was a beautiful spring day at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Students were spread out across the grounds enjoying the good weather. A group of sixth year Gryffindors sat on the grass at the edge of the lake. The four boys in the group were stretched out, talking animatedly. The three girls accompanying them were all sitting up with books in their laps.
"I don't know how you three can ruin this perfect day with studying. It's Spring Break, you should be relaxing!" Said Sirius Black from his spot on the grass. "Aurora, why don't you give the studying a rest and we'll go for a walk?" He shot his most charming grin at the girl with golden blond hair and blue eyes. She didn't even look up when she responded.
"Maybe later Sirius. All of the teachers gave us loads of homework and I want to get it over with." She replied.
"Ah come on Auri! It's the first day of vacation, can't that wait until tomorrow at least?" he persuaded.
Aurora cast a sidelong glance at the girl with red hair next to her. Her friend was looking at her and seemed to know what she was thinking.
"Aurora Nowell, you promised me! We get everything done today and tomorrow and then we have a full week to ourselves. I knew we should have locked ourselves in the library." Aurora laughed at that.
"Okay Lily, I promise, I'll keep studying. I'm afraid our walk will have to wait until Monday, Sirius." She gave him apologetic grin. He sighed and glared at his best friend, James Potter.
"This is all your girlfriend's fault you know!" James laughed.
"Yeah, but the sad part is, the girls are right. We should be doing homework." He replied. At that, Christine Cavan spoke up.
"Don't say 'the girls' I wouldn't be studying if I hadn't been tricked into it! You guys should enjoy yourselves." Her voice was distinctly Irish and she had curly brown hair and brown eyes.
"Chris, if we didn't trick you into studying, you'd fail." Lily Evans joked.
"Well at least I'd be having fun!" she huffed, but went back to her book anyway.
Sirius looked over at the pale boy with brown hair and gray eyes.
"I'm surprised you aren't studying, Moony." Remus Lupin shrugged.
"I felt like relaxing today. I'll study tomorrow." Sirius nodded and looked over at the fourth boy, Peter Pettigrew. The boy seemed to have drifted off to sleep. He cast his gaze out to lake in front of him. He sat there thinking for a few moments until James interrupted him.
"What's up Padfoot?" he asked, curious about his friend's thoughtful look.
"Do you guys remember the first day we all met?" He asked the group in general.
"How could I forget? It's not every day I get bowled over by a human wrecking ball." Aurora commented dryly. The group laughed as Sirius frowned at her.
"Oh, I didn't hit you that hard, and besides, I said I was sorry." He said.
"I know, but that was how we met. And what started our little 'war'." She told him. Sirius grinned happily at that memory.
Sirius' dad had told him to run through the barrier. So, being Sirius, he ran as fast as he could, stopping only when he collided with a loud crash with another first year. The girl had fallen at the sudden impact and looked thoroughly shaken. He reached down and helped the girl up.
"Sorry 'bout that. Are you all right? I'm Sirius Black, what's your name?" He grinned at her.
"Aurora Nowell. You should be more careful, you know. We could have both been hurt!" the girl replied, shock turning into anger.
"Well, we're both fine, so you don't need to worry." He shrugged at her.
Aurora scowled at him and pushed her cart towards the train. Sirius shrugged again and started towards the train as well. He tugged his trunk towards the last compartment. All of the rest were full. He knocked and opened the door to find Aurora sitting by herself.
"Can I sit with you? All of the rest are full." Seeing that she didn't look like she was going to accept, he added, "I promise not to knock you over again." He thought he saw a smile flit cross her face, but it was gone as quickly as it had come.
"Okay." He entered and sat across from her.
"So, are you a first year?" he tried to make conversation, but only got a nod in response. "Which house do you want to be in?" he tried again.
"I don't know. My mom was in Ravenclaw, but my dad was in Gryffindor. Everyone says I'm a lot like my dad, so I guess Gryffindor." She replied, finally willing to talk to him.
"Both my parents were in Gryffindor. They both say it's the best, so I want to be in there." He told her.
The door opened and two girls poked their heads in. Sirius inwardly groaned. He was going to be in a compartment full of girls. The two girls introduced themselves as Christine Cavan and Lily Evans. Lily was a muggle- born and Christine had helped her get through the barrier. Sirius was just about to resign himself to being the only male there, when two boys came in. The tired looking one introduced himself as Remus Lupin and the one with messy black hair said he was James Potter. Sirius' eyes lit up.
"James Potter? Our dad's are friends! I'm Sirius Black." James and Sirius shook hands happily. Their parents had shared complaints about their respective exploits.
"Did you really blow up your kitchen?"
"Did you really make your dog walk backwards for a week?"
They asked at the same time then laughed.
"Yep!" they both said at the same time and laughed again. The girls and the boys separated into two groups and had their own conversations. The lunch cart came and everyone was feeling a lot chummier. Sirius got the idea to play a prank on the girls, fully backed by James, and reluctantly by Remus.
"I've got some Filibuster's fireworks in my trunk. They're not paying attention right now, I'll get them out and we can give them a good scare." Sirius told them.
Stealthily, Sirius grabbed three and handed one each to the other boys. He waited until Aurora raised her pumpkin juice for a drink before lighting it with his wand. She jumped and dripped the juice all down her front.
Lily looked terrified at the fireworks going off above her head. Christine looked like she couldn't decide whether to laugh or be angry. Aurora was livid.
"Sirius Black, you jerk! Get out of here! You can stand in the hall for all I care, just get out!" She shouted, pointing at the door.
Sirius barely heard her; he was laughing so loud, as were James and Remus.
"Oh come on, you haven't even changed into your school robes yet. It's not that bad." He reasoned.
"You frightened Lily and probably ruined my favorite sweater!"
"Lily's fine. It was just fireworks. And your sweater will be fine. I promise I'll be good for the rest of the trip." He put on his best innocent face.
"Oh, let him stay Aurora. The rest of the compartments are full. Besides, we can always get him back later." Christine's eyes glinted mischievously. Aurora considered it for a second, then nodded.
"Okay, but another prank and your trunk's getting thrown out the window." She gave him a look that let him know she meant it.
"Firs' years, firs' years over here." Aurora looked up to see a giant of a man beckoning the first years towards the edge of a lake. She suddenly grinned wickedly. She turned to Christine.
"Chris, I've got the perfect idea for our revenge." She whispered.
"Oh?" Chris raised an eyebrow.
Aurora nodded towards the lake, then made a pushing motion. Christine grinned too and nodded emphatically. They explained their plan to Lily, who agreed after a little persuading. Just ahead of them, were the boys; in front of them, it was clear to the water's edge.
They waited until the boys were almost at the edge, then ran as fast as they could, knocking the boys forward and into the water. With a giant splash, Sirius, Remus, and James all landed in the water. They couldn't help themselves, they burst out laughing. The boys tried to look angry, but soon gave into the laughter and were helped out of the water by Hagrid, the large man who had called them over there. Hagrid turned to scold the three girls, but they had already gotten into a boat. Instead, he shook his head and got into his own boat to take them across the lake.
Professor McGonagall looked sharply at the three wet boys that walked into the entrance hall.
"What happened to you three?"
"We fell in the lake." Remus told her. She shook her head and led them into the Great Hall.
Aurora looked up in wonder at the enchanted ceiling. The sky was clear and she could see all of her favorite constellations. She spotted Orion, then Canus Major. She nudged Sirius, who was next to her.
"Hey, there's your star." She pointed up at it.
"Where?" He asked, craning his neck up at the ceiling.
"Right there. In Canus Major, next to Orion." Aurora clarified.
"Oh, cool." He still sounded clueless.
"You have no idea what Canus Major is do you?" She asked dryly. He shook his head with a smile. Aurora sighed. "Forget it."
"Black, Sirius." McGonagall called. He stepped forward and put on the hat. He didn't have to wait very long before it declared him a Gryffindor. Aurora waited nervously as Christine, Lily, and Remus were also sorted into Gryffindor. She didn't pay much attention to the other names. Finally, her name was called and she walked forward to put the hat on. She heard a raspy voice whisper in her ear.
"Well, my dear, you have a great mind. You would definitely do well in Ravenclaw." Aurora felt her hopes plummet. "Oh, you were hoping for something else. Well, you do have a great deal of bravery. Yes, definitely a GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted the last word to the hall and she joined her new friends at the table on the far right. She smiled happily at Chris and Lily as she sat down. They all cheered when James and Peter Pettigrew, a boy they hadn't met before, were both declared Gryffindors. They sat across from the girls, along with Sirius and Remus. Peter looked at the other boys curiously.
"How come you're all wet?" he asked.
"Didn't you see?" Remus asked. He gestured towards the grinning girls. "These three pushed us in the lake." Peter looked slightly scared, but said nothing.
Two days later, after a completely prank-free day, Aurora woke up earlier than the other two girls did. She groggily dressed for school, then made her way to the large mirror by the window. She looked into it to find a very tired looking girl, with bright green hair. She nearly screamed, but changed her mind and calmly woke up her two roommates.
"Oh my, Aurora, what happened to your hair?" asked Lily. Christine just stared in disbelief.
"Sirius Black is what happened to my hair." She said calmly. "But here's what we're going to do about it. Rather than get back at him with another prank, we're going to do something that will bother him even more."
"What's that?" Chris asked.
"Act like nothing's changed. And if he points out that my hair color's changed, I'll say I like it like this. By the end of the day, he'll have gone nutters with not getting a reaction." Aurora explained.
"Can we still play a prank on him after this?" Chris asked hopefully.
"Of course! I was thinking purple skin or something." They both grinned wickedly. Lily was still staring at her, wide-eyed.
"So, you're actually going to walk around all day like that?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm not embarrassed by a weird hair color. Besides, we have Potions with the Slytherins first thing. Should be interesting." They finished getting ready, then went down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
They sat down cross from the boys and started to pile food on their plates. Sirius was staring at her in disbelief, the others in barely controlled amusement.
"Is there something different about your hair, Aurora?" he asked in mock- politeness.
"Yes Sirius, it's green." She responded, taking a bite of eggs.
"Oh. Do you like the color green?"
"Actually, I'm more partial to blue, but green is a nice color." Sirius, seeing that he wasn't going to bother her like this tried another route.
"Well, why is it green?"
"I don't know. I woke up and it was like this."
"Well do you know who did it to you?"
"What makes you think that someone did this to me?" She asked, feigning ignorance.
"Well someone obviously charmed it!" He couldn't believe this wasn't getting a reaction out of her.
"Really? Well, I wonder why someone would do that." That's when he caught on.
"Maybe it was Snape. He's a Slytherin. You know, making your hair green to show who it was or something."
"But how would a Slytherin get into Gryffindor Tower?"
"Maybe he threatened a Gryffindor and made them tell him the password."
"No, that's not likely. Gryffindors are brave remember? We wouldn't give into some Slytherin. Well, whoever it was, I don't mind. It's just hair after all." Aurora shrugged. Sirius shook his head and gave up for the moment.
"We should get going to Potions. I hear the teacher is really mean." Peter said. They finished their breakfast, then headed towards the dungeons.
Aurora noticed that the Slytherins were already there and all of them sat on the left side of the classroom. She set up at the second table on the right side with the other two girls. The teacher, a tall, unpleasant looking man with brown hair wrote his name on the chalkboard. Professor Atrus. He turned to face the class and narrowed his eyes at Aurora's hair.
"What is your name?" he asked her.
"Aurora Nowell."
"And why is your hair green?" Aurora thought fast. The "I woke up with it like this" excuse wouldn't work with a teacher. It would just get Sirius in trouble.
"I wanted to see what I'd look like with green hair." She said with a perfectly straight face. Atrus raised an eyebrow.
"And do you like it?"
"Not really. I think blue would look better." The Gryffindors were having a hard time keeping straight faces and the Slytherins had busted up long ago.
"Silence!" They sobered instantly. "Miss Nowell, you are to come to my class tomorrow with your normal hair color, or serve detention. Understood?" She nodded. The rest of the class passed by without event. Atrus obviously favored the Slytherins, but he couldn't deny the fact that Christine's potion was the best in the class.
When they left the class to go to Charms, Aurora pushed Sirius against the wall.
"Sirius, I don't care what color my hair is, but I am not serving detention for your prank. This had better come out." She said it calmly, but was obviously mad. He gulped.
"It'll come out, I swear!" she nodded and they continued on to Charms. He cast a sidelong glance at her. "So how did you know it was me?" Aurora burst out laughing, but didn't answer.
"Yeah, those were good times." Sirius sighed happily. Aurora snorted.
"Speak for yourself, Star-boy. As I remember, you couldn't turn my hair back and I did have to serve the detention." Sirius looked indignant.
"Hey, I made up for it. I confessed and I got detention too." Aurora rolled her eyes at him.
"Well, that wasn't as bad as what happened to Remus the next week."
"You're the one who gave me the idea, Auri. I just changed who it was directed to." Chris piped up from beside her boyfriend. He turned and looked at her.
"But why me? I hadn't done anything!" Remus exclaimed. Chris shrugged.
"That's just it, you were too passive."
"I don't do anything and I get purple skin? I shudder to think what happens when I actually do something." He said. Lily laughed.
"But you already know. You got her with a Tickling Charm and she put hot sauce in your pumpkin juice." Remus blanched.
"Ugh! That was awful, how could I forget?"
"Yeah, but that's not nearly as bad as what James did to Lily in fourth year." Sirius said. James cocked his head to the side and thought for a second, then a slow smile spread across his face.
"Oh, that was brilliant!" Lily glared at him.
"It was awful! I don't know why I ever forgave you for that."
"Because, he's James." Remus said simply.
"Sirius, I've got it. The most brilliant prank ever. Well, maybe not that good, but it's good." James said one day.
"Well, spit it out!" Sirius said impatiently. He was trying to finish his Potions essay, which was due in ten minutes.
"A love potion." James said simply, as if Sirius was supposed to know what he was talking about.
"Those aren't allowed at Hogwarts!" Peter exclaimed.
"Neither are Invisibility Cloaks or unregistered animagus." Remus said quietly. James continued.
"We slip it into Snape's drink and he falls in love with the first girl he sees for a week. He'll act like a total idiot for a week!" James explained.
"James, Snape acts like an idiot every day." Sirius pointed out.
"Besides, think of the poor girl!" Remus said.
"But that's the beauty of it! It'll be at the Slytherin table, so it'll be some Slytherin. We distract him, pour it in, and he falls for some Slytherin troll." Sirius thought about it for a second.
"Sounds good. When do we do it?"
"The potion should take about a day to brew, so tomorrow night at dinner." James said. Sirius nodded and went back to his essay.
James and Sirius entered the Great Hall the next evening and walked straight to the Slytherin table. They saw that Snape was sitting by himself and sat on either side of him.
"Snape, you've got something gross on your face." James said.
"No, that's just his nose James. You know, I'm surprised you're able to walk upright with all that extra weight on your face." Sirius quipped from his other side. Snape turned his head to address Sirius and James quickly poured the potion into his goblet.
"Bugger off, Loser." Snape spat.
"Ooh! Brilliant comeback Snape! How long did it take you to come up with that one?" Sirius retorted. Snape took a drink from his goblet and James had to fight not to smile.
"Probably all day." James answered. Just then, they heard a voice from behind them.
"James, Sirius? What are you two doing over here?" Lily said. James and Sirius looked at each other in horror, but it was too late. Snape had already turned around and seen Lily.
Snape gazed at her in blind adoration. "Lily! Please, sit with me."
"No she won't sit with you!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Shut up! Lily, will you?" Snape looked at her with pleading eyes. She looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Uh, sorry, I can't. I need to talk to Christine." She lied. James nodded.
"Yeah, see? She can't sit with you. Come on Lily. You shouldn't keep Chris waiting." Sirius and James each took an arm and directed her towards the Gryffindor table before Snape could say anything more.
"What did you two do to him?" she asked. She had known them for almost three years and this wasn't normal behavior for Snape.
"Nothing really. Just a simple love potion." James said weakly. She raised an eyebrow.
"And why did you decide to make me the recipient of his affections?" She demanded.
"We didn't. It was supposed to be some Slytherin. But you were the first girl that he saw." Sirius explained.
"How long does it last?"
"A week."
"What?! I have to put up with him mooning over me for a whole week?" Sirius nodded.
"And whose idea as this?" Sirius grinned and pointed at James. She glared at him.
"James, you had better figure out some way to reverse it. I am not going through this for a whole week. Any longer than three days and I'm telling Professor McGonagall." She left the two boys to sit with Christine and Aurora. James and Sirius sighed and sat down next to Remus and Peter.
"He's in love with Lily." James said dully. Remus laughed.
"Oh, poor Lily! She must be really mad." He said. "And poor you James! You might have some competition." James just glared at him.
"Well, she's not exactly jumping for joy. And Snape is competition to no one. Especially James." Sirius said, reaching for a jug of pumpkin juice to pour himself a glass. He raised it to take a drink, when he was suddenly smacked on the back of the head; knocking the goblet from his lips and spilling juice all over his robes. He spluttered and spun around. Aurora was standing with her hands on her hips and didn't look very pleased.
"Does the term 'cruel and unusual punishment' mean anything to you? You two had just better find a way to reverse that potion or you'll know the meaning first-hand. Got it?" They both nodded miserably. She stalked off with Chris and Lily who had just joined her. James looked at Sirius.
"Well, I guess we'd better head to the library." Sirius nodded and they left without eating a thing.
They walked into the common room hours later feeling a good deal happier. They had found a reversing spell and planned to do it the next day at breakfast. James and Sirius walked over to Lily and Chris, who were sitting at a table doing homework. Chris was complaining about having to write an essay for Charms, but stopped in the middle of her tirade when she saw the two boys. She fixed them with an icy glare, but said nothing.
"We found a spell to reverse the potion. I'll do it tomorrow at breakfast." James told them. Lily looked relieved.
"Thank goodness. Snape ran after me when I left the Great Hall and tried to serenade me. I've never been more embarrassed!" she said. Sirius looked anxious about something.
"Where's Aurora?" he asked them.
"She's in the dorm reading." Christine answered. Sirius nodded and started towards the girls' staircase. "Wait, you can't go up there!" she said. He turned and raised an eyebrow at her, then continued up the stairs. She sighed and went back to her essay.
Sirius paused at the door of the 4th year dorm, then silently pushed it open. He saw Aurora sitting on her bed reading a thick book. He went to her and snatched it out of her hands and closed it. But not before glancing at the page number.
"You read to much." He said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"And you act like a jerk too much." She retorted. She reached for her book, but he held it out of reach. She gave up and glared at him, crossing her arms. "What are you doing in here anyway?"
"I just wanted to let you know that we found a spell to reverse the potion. Lily will be Snape-free by the end of breakfast tomorrow." He grinned. She continued to glare.
"That's good." She said shortly. Sirius frowned.
"Then why are you still mad?"
"Because it was mean. Even if it was meant for Snape. No one deserves to have their emotions toyed with. Think of what Snape would do when he found out about the potion. It's only been one day, but he'll still be furious with you when he knows what happened. I'd watch your back if I were you Sirius." She warned. Sirius feigned a look of shock.
"Why Miss Nowell, are you actually expressing concern for my well-being?"
"Indeed Mr. Black. No matter how we act with each other, I like having you around. And no matter what you boys say about Snape, he is good at curses. Just watch out, okay?" She gave him a slightly pleading look. Sirius nodded.
"I promise Auri." He said seriously, patting her arm. He looked down at the book in his hands and opened it to the right page. He handed it to her. "I'll let you get back to your book." He handed it to her and left the room. Aurora stared after him in astonishment, not quite sure what just happened.
James frowned. "Okay, so maybe it wasn't perfectly executed, but it had great potential!"
Aurora just shook her head, not looking up. She shivered as a cool breeze blew across the lake. She looked up and saw that clouds were gathering in the sky. She groaned loudly, earning a curious look from Sirius.
"It's getting cloudy. I wanted to stargaze tonight. Those clouds better be gone by tomorrow." She cast a threatening glare at the clouds. Sirius chuckled at her.
"Don't you wish the weather catered to your carefully laid plans?" he teased. She just rolled her eyes at him. Christine looked up.
"It's getting a bit chilly. Can we stop studying now?" she asked Lily hopefully. Lily sighed.
"Only if you promise to study all day tomorrow." Christine nodded reluctantly. Lily shrugged and closed her book. "Someone wake Peter up and lets go inside." Remus leaned over and shook Peter.
"Wake up Wormtail! We're going inside." Peter sat up and rubbed his eyes. They all started up the sloping lawn towards the castle, walking in pairs with Peter trailing behind.
A/N: Hello fellow Potter-aholics! This is my first fic. I'm sorry that Peter is asleep during the whole thing, but I didn't feel like wasting my time on developing his character. Sorry if that bothers you. This is the result of April Fools' Day and a lot of chocolate. Please review. And now, on with the show.
1 Pranks
It was a beautiful spring day at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Students were spread out across the grounds enjoying the good weather. A group of sixth year Gryffindors sat on the grass at the edge of the lake. The four boys in the group were stretched out, talking animatedly. The three girls accompanying them were all sitting up with books in their laps.
"I don't know how you three can ruin this perfect day with studying. It's Spring Break, you should be relaxing!" Said Sirius Black from his spot on the grass. "Aurora, why don't you give the studying a rest and we'll go for a walk?" He shot his most charming grin at the girl with golden blond hair and blue eyes. She didn't even look up when she responded.
"Maybe later Sirius. All of the teachers gave us loads of homework and I want to get it over with." She replied.
"Ah come on Auri! It's the first day of vacation, can't that wait until tomorrow at least?" he persuaded.
Aurora cast a sidelong glance at the girl with red hair next to her. Her friend was looking at her and seemed to know what she was thinking.
"Aurora Nowell, you promised me! We get everything done today and tomorrow and then we have a full week to ourselves. I knew we should have locked ourselves in the library." Aurora laughed at that.
"Okay Lily, I promise, I'll keep studying. I'm afraid our walk will have to wait until Monday, Sirius." She gave him apologetic grin. He sighed and glared at his best friend, James Potter.
"This is all your girlfriend's fault you know!" James laughed.
"Yeah, but the sad part is, the girls are right. We should be doing homework." He replied. At that, Christine Cavan spoke up.
"Don't say 'the girls' I wouldn't be studying if I hadn't been tricked into it! You guys should enjoy yourselves." Her voice was distinctly Irish and she had curly brown hair and brown eyes.
"Chris, if we didn't trick you into studying, you'd fail." Lily Evans joked.
"Well at least I'd be having fun!" she huffed, but went back to her book anyway.
Sirius looked over at the pale boy with brown hair and gray eyes.
"I'm surprised you aren't studying, Moony." Remus Lupin shrugged.
"I felt like relaxing today. I'll study tomorrow." Sirius nodded and looked over at the fourth boy, Peter Pettigrew. The boy seemed to have drifted off to sleep. He cast his gaze out to lake in front of him. He sat there thinking for a few moments until James interrupted him.
"What's up Padfoot?" he asked, curious about his friend's thoughtful look.
"Do you guys remember the first day we all met?" He asked the group in general.
"How could I forget? It's not every day I get bowled over by a human wrecking ball." Aurora commented dryly. The group laughed as Sirius frowned at her.
"Oh, I didn't hit you that hard, and besides, I said I was sorry." He said.
"I know, but that was how we met. And what started our little 'war'." She told him. Sirius grinned happily at that memory.
Sirius' dad had told him to run through the barrier. So, being Sirius, he ran as fast as he could, stopping only when he collided with a loud crash with another first year. The girl had fallen at the sudden impact and looked thoroughly shaken. He reached down and helped the girl up.
"Sorry 'bout that. Are you all right? I'm Sirius Black, what's your name?" He grinned at her.
"Aurora Nowell. You should be more careful, you know. We could have both been hurt!" the girl replied, shock turning into anger.
"Well, we're both fine, so you don't need to worry." He shrugged at her.
Aurora scowled at him and pushed her cart towards the train. Sirius shrugged again and started towards the train as well. He tugged his trunk towards the last compartment. All of the rest were full. He knocked and opened the door to find Aurora sitting by herself.
"Can I sit with you? All of the rest are full." Seeing that she didn't look like she was going to accept, he added, "I promise not to knock you over again." He thought he saw a smile flit cross her face, but it was gone as quickly as it had come.
"Okay." He entered and sat across from her.
"So, are you a first year?" he tried to make conversation, but only got a nod in response. "Which house do you want to be in?" he tried again.
"I don't know. My mom was in Ravenclaw, but my dad was in Gryffindor. Everyone says I'm a lot like my dad, so I guess Gryffindor." She replied, finally willing to talk to him.
"Both my parents were in Gryffindor. They both say it's the best, so I want to be in there." He told her.
The door opened and two girls poked their heads in. Sirius inwardly groaned. He was going to be in a compartment full of girls. The two girls introduced themselves as Christine Cavan and Lily Evans. Lily was a muggle- born and Christine had helped her get through the barrier. Sirius was just about to resign himself to being the only male there, when two boys came in. The tired looking one introduced himself as Remus Lupin and the one with messy black hair said he was James Potter. Sirius' eyes lit up.
"James Potter? Our dad's are friends! I'm Sirius Black." James and Sirius shook hands happily. Their parents had shared complaints about their respective exploits.
"Did you really blow up your kitchen?"
"Did you really make your dog walk backwards for a week?"
They asked at the same time then laughed.
"Yep!" they both said at the same time and laughed again. The girls and the boys separated into two groups and had their own conversations. The lunch cart came and everyone was feeling a lot chummier. Sirius got the idea to play a prank on the girls, fully backed by James, and reluctantly by Remus.
"I've got some Filibuster's fireworks in my trunk. They're not paying attention right now, I'll get them out and we can give them a good scare." Sirius told them.
Stealthily, Sirius grabbed three and handed one each to the other boys. He waited until Aurora raised her pumpkin juice for a drink before lighting it with his wand. She jumped and dripped the juice all down her front.
Lily looked terrified at the fireworks going off above her head. Christine looked like she couldn't decide whether to laugh or be angry. Aurora was livid.
"Sirius Black, you jerk! Get out of here! You can stand in the hall for all I care, just get out!" She shouted, pointing at the door.
Sirius barely heard her; he was laughing so loud, as were James and Remus.
"Oh come on, you haven't even changed into your school robes yet. It's not that bad." He reasoned.
"You frightened Lily and probably ruined my favorite sweater!"
"Lily's fine. It was just fireworks. And your sweater will be fine. I promise I'll be good for the rest of the trip." He put on his best innocent face.
"Oh, let him stay Aurora. The rest of the compartments are full. Besides, we can always get him back later." Christine's eyes glinted mischievously. Aurora considered it for a second, then nodded.
"Okay, but another prank and your trunk's getting thrown out the window." She gave him a look that let him know she meant it.
"Firs' years, firs' years over here." Aurora looked up to see a giant of a man beckoning the first years towards the edge of a lake. She suddenly grinned wickedly. She turned to Christine.
"Chris, I've got the perfect idea for our revenge." She whispered.
"Oh?" Chris raised an eyebrow.
Aurora nodded towards the lake, then made a pushing motion. Christine grinned too and nodded emphatically. They explained their plan to Lily, who agreed after a little persuading. Just ahead of them, were the boys; in front of them, it was clear to the water's edge.
They waited until the boys were almost at the edge, then ran as fast as they could, knocking the boys forward and into the water. With a giant splash, Sirius, Remus, and James all landed in the water. They couldn't help themselves, they burst out laughing. The boys tried to look angry, but soon gave into the laughter and were helped out of the water by Hagrid, the large man who had called them over there. Hagrid turned to scold the three girls, but they had already gotten into a boat. Instead, he shook his head and got into his own boat to take them across the lake.
Professor McGonagall looked sharply at the three wet boys that walked into the entrance hall.
"What happened to you three?"
"We fell in the lake." Remus told her. She shook her head and led them into the Great Hall.
Aurora looked up in wonder at the enchanted ceiling. The sky was clear and she could see all of her favorite constellations. She spotted Orion, then Canus Major. She nudged Sirius, who was next to her.
"Hey, there's your star." She pointed up at it.
"Where?" He asked, craning his neck up at the ceiling.
"Right there. In Canus Major, next to Orion." Aurora clarified.
"Oh, cool." He still sounded clueless.
"You have no idea what Canus Major is do you?" She asked dryly. He shook his head with a smile. Aurora sighed. "Forget it."
"Black, Sirius." McGonagall called. He stepped forward and put on the hat. He didn't have to wait very long before it declared him a Gryffindor. Aurora waited nervously as Christine, Lily, and Remus were also sorted into Gryffindor. She didn't pay much attention to the other names. Finally, her name was called and she walked forward to put the hat on. She heard a raspy voice whisper in her ear.
"Well, my dear, you have a great mind. You would definitely do well in Ravenclaw." Aurora felt her hopes plummet. "Oh, you were hoping for something else. Well, you do have a great deal of bravery. Yes, definitely a GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted the last word to the hall and she joined her new friends at the table on the far right. She smiled happily at Chris and Lily as she sat down. They all cheered when James and Peter Pettigrew, a boy they hadn't met before, were both declared Gryffindors. They sat across from the girls, along with Sirius and Remus. Peter looked at the other boys curiously.
"How come you're all wet?" he asked.
"Didn't you see?" Remus asked. He gestured towards the grinning girls. "These three pushed us in the lake." Peter looked slightly scared, but said nothing.
Two days later, after a completely prank-free day, Aurora woke up earlier than the other two girls did. She groggily dressed for school, then made her way to the large mirror by the window. She looked into it to find a very tired looking girl, with bright green hair. She nearly screamed, but changed her mind and calmly woke up her two roommates.
"Oh my, Aurora, what happened to your hair?" asked Lily. Christine just stared in disbelief.
"Sirius Black is what happened to my hair." She said calmly. "But here's what we're going to do about it. Rather than get back at him with another prank, we're going to do something that will bother him even more."
"What's that?" Chris asked.
"Act like nothing's changed. And if he points out that my hair color's changed, I'll say I like it like this. By the end of the day, he'll have gone nutters with not getting a reaction." Aurora explained.
"Can we still play a prank on him after this?" Chris asked hopefully.
"Of course! I was thinking purple skin or something." They both grinned wickedly. Lily was still staring at her, wide-eyed.
"So, you're actually going to walk around all day like that?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm not embarrassed by a weird hair color. Besides, we have Potions with the Slytherins first thing. Should be interesting." They finished getting ready, then went down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
They sat down cross from the boys and started to pile food on their plates. Sirius was staring at her in disbelief, the others in barely controlled amusement.
"Is there something different about your hair, Aurora?" he asked in mock- politeness.
"Yes Sirius, it's green." She responded, taking a bite of eggs.
"Oh. Do you like the color green?"
"Actually, I'm more partial to blue, but green is a nice color." Sirius, seeing that he wasn't going to bother her like this tried another route.
"Well, why is it green?"
"I don't know. I woke up and it was like this."
"Well do you know who did it to you?"
"What makes you think that someone did this to me?" She asked, feigning ignorance.
"Well someone obviously charmed it!" He couldn't believe this wasn't getting a reaction out of her.
"Really? Well, I wonder why someone would do that." That's when he caught on.
"Maybe it was Snape. He's a Slytherin. You know, making your hair green to show who it was or something."
"But how would a Slytherin get into Gryffindor Tower?"
"Maybe he threatened a Gryffindor and made them tell him the password."
"No, that's not likely. Gryffindors are brave remember? We wouldn't give into some Slytherin. Well, whoever it was, I don't mind. It's just hair after all." Aurora shrugged. Sirius shook his head and gave up for the moment.
"We should get going to Potions. I hear the teacher is really mean." Peter said. They finished their breakfast, then headed towards the dungeons.
Aurora noticed that the Slytherins were already there and all of them sat on the left side of the classroom. She set up at the second table on the right side with the other two girls. The teacher, a tall, unpleasant looking man with brown hair wrote his name on the chalkboard. Professor Atrus. He turned to face the class and narrowed his eyes at Aurora's hair.
"What is your name?" he asked her.
"Aurora Nowell."
"And why is your hair green?" Aurora thought fast. The "I woke up with it like this" excuse wouldn't work with a teacher. It would just get Sirius in trouble.
"I wanted to see what I'd look like with green hair." She said with a perfectly straight face. Atrus raised an eyebrow.
"And do you like it?"
"Not really. I think blue would look better." The Gryffindors were having a hard time keeping straight faces and the Slytherins had busted up long ago.
"Silence!" They sobered instantly. "Miss Nowell, you are to come to my class tomorrow with your normal hair color, or serve detention. Understood?" She nodded. The rest of the class passed by without event. Atrus obviously favored the Slytherins, but he couldn't deny the fact that Christine's potion was the best in the class.
When they left the class to go to Charms, Aurora pushed Sirius against the wall.
"Sirius, I don't care what color my hair is, but I am not serving detention for your prank. This had better come out." She said it calmly, but was obviously mad. He gulped.
"It'll come out, I swear!" she nodded and they continued on to Charms. He cast a sidelong glance at her. "So how did you know it was me?" Aurora burst out laughing, but didn't answer.
"Yeah, those were good times." Sirius sighed happily. Aurora snorted.
"Speak for yourself, Star-boy. As I remember, you couldn't turn my hair back and I did have to serve the detention." Sirius looked indignant.
"Hey, I made up for it. I confessed and I got detention too." Aurora rolled her eyes at him.
"Well, that wasn't as bad as what happened to Remus the next week."
"You're the one who gave me the idea, Auri. I just changed who it was directed to." Chris piped up from beside her boyfriend. He turned and looked at her.
"But why me? I hadn't done anything!" Remus exclaimed. Chris shrugged.
"That's just it, you were too passive."
"I don't do anything and I get purple skin? I shudder to think what happens when I actually do something." He said. Lily laughed.
"But you already know. You got her with a Tickling Charm and she put hot sauce in your pumpkin juice." Remus blanched.
"Ugh! That was awful, how could I forget?"
"Yeah, but that's not nearly as bad as what James did to Lily in fourth year." Sirius said. James cocked his head to the side and thought for a second, then a slow smile spread across his face.
"Oh, that was brilliant!" Lily glared at him.
"It was awful! I don't know why I ever forgave you for that."
"Because, he's James." Remus said simply.
"Sirius, I've got it. The most brilliant prank ever. Well, maybe not that good, but it's good." James said one day.
"Well, spit it out!" Sirius said impatiently. He was trying to finish his Potions essay, which was due in ten minutes.
"A love potion." James said simply, as if Sirius was supposed to know what he was talking about.
"Those aren't allowed at Hogwarts!" Peter exclaimed.
"Neither are Invisibility Cloaks or unregistered animagus." Remus said quietly. James continued.
"We slip it into Snape's drink and he falls in love with the first girl he sees for a week. He'll act like a total idiot for a week!" James explained.
"James, Snape acts like an idiot every day." Sirius pointed out.
"Besides, think of the poor girl!" Remus said.
"But that's the beauty of it! It'll be at the Slytherin table, so it'll be some Slytherin. We distract him, pour it in, and he falls for some Slytherin troll." Sirius thought about it for a second.
"Sounds good. When do we do it?"
"The potion should take about a day to brew, so tomorrow night at dinner." James said. Sirius nodded and went back to his essay.
James and Sirius entered the Great Hall the next evening and walked straight to the Slytherin table. They saw that Snape was sitting by himself and sat on either side of him.
"Snape, you've got something gross on your face." James said.
"No, that's just his nose James. You know, I'm surprised you're able to walk upright with all that extra weight on your face." Sirius quipped from his other side. Snape turned his head to address Sirius and James quickly poured the potion into his goblet.
"Bugger off, Loser." Snape spat.
"Ooh! Brilliant comeback Snape! How long did it take you to come up with that one?" Sirius retorted. Snape took a drink from his goblet and James had to fight not to smile.
"Probably all day." James answered. Just then, they heard a voice from behind them.
"James, Sirius? What are you two doing over here?" Lily said. James and Sirius looked at each other in horror, but it was too late. Snape had already turned around and seen Lily.
Snape gazed at her in blind adoration. "Lily! Please, sit with me."
"No she won't sit with you!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Shut up! Lily, will you?" Snape looked at her with pleading eyes. She looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Uh, sorry, I can't. I need to talk to Christine." She lied. James nodded.
"Yeah, see? She can't sit with you. Come on Lily. You shouldn't keep Chris waiting." Sirius and James each took an arm and directed her towards the Gryffindor table before Snape could say anything more.
"What did you two do to him?" she asked. She had known them for almost three years and this wasn't normal behavior for Snape.
"Nothing really. Just a simple love potion." James said weakly. She raised an eyebrow.
"And why did you decide to make me the recipient of his affections?" She demanded.
"We didn't. It was supposed to be some Slytherin. But you were the first girl that he saw." Sirius explained.
"How long does it last?"
"A week."
"What?! I have to put up with him mooning over me for a whole week?" Sirius nodded.
"And whose idea as this?" Sirius grinned and pointed at James. She glared at him.
"James, you had better figure out some way to reverse it. I am not going through this for a whole week. Any longer than three days and I'm telling Professor McGonagall." She left the two boys to sit with Christine and Aurora. James and Sirius sighed and sat down next to Remus and Peter.
"He's in love with Lily." James said dully. Remus laughed.
"Oh, poor Lily! She must be really mad." He said. "And poor you James! You might have some competition." James just glared at him.
"Well, she's not exactly jumping for joy. And Snape is competition to no one. Especially James." Sirius said, reaching for a jug of pumpkin juice to pour himself a glass. He raised it to take a drink, when he was suddenly smacked on the back of the head; knocking the goblet from his lips and spilling juice all over his robes. He spluttered and spun around. Aurora was standing with her hands on her hips and didn't look very pleased.
"Does the term 'cruel and unusual punishment' mean anything to you? You two had just better find a way to reverse that potion or you'll know the meaning first-hand. Got it?" They both nodded miserably. She stalked off with Chris and Lily who had just joined her. James looked at Sirius.
"Well, I guess we'd better head to the library." Sirius nodded and they left without eating a thing.
They walked into the common room hours later feeling a good deal happier. They had found a reversing spell and planned to do it the next day at breakfast. James and Sirius walked over to Lily and Chris, who were sitting at a table doing homework. Chris was complaining about having to write an essay for Charms, but stopped in the middle of her tirade when she saw the two boys. She fixed them with an icy glare, but said nothing.
"We found a spell to reverse the potion. I'll do it tomorrow at breakfast." James told them. Lily looked relieved.
"Thank goodness. Snape ran after me when I left the Great Hall and tried to serenade me. I've never been more embarrassed!" she said. Sirius looked anxious about something.
"Where's Aurora?" he asked them.
"She's in the dorm reading." Christine answered. Sirius nodded and started towards the girls' staircase. "Wait, you can't go up there!" she said. He turned and raised an eyebrow at her, then continued up the stairs. She sighed and went back to her essay.
Sirius paused at the door of the 4th year dorm, then silently pushed it open. He saw Aurora sitting on her bed reading a thick book. He went to her and snatched it out of her hands and closed it. But not before glancing at the page number.
"You read to much." He said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"And you act like a jerk too much." She retorted. She reached for her book, but he held it out of reach. She gave up and glared at him, crossing her arms. "What are you doing in here anyway?"
"I just wanted to let you know that we found a spell to reverse the potion. Lily will be Snape-free by the end of breakfast tomorrow." He grinned. She continued to glare.
"That's good." She said shortly. Sirius frowned.
"Then why are you still mad?"
"Because it was mean. Even if it was meant for Snape. No one deserves to have their emotions toyed with. Think of what Snape would do when he found out about the potion. It's only been one day, but he'll still be furious with you when he knows what happened. I'd watch your back if I were you Sirius." She warned. Sirius feigned a look of shock.
"Why Miss Nowell, are you actually expressing concern for my well-being?"
"Indeed Mr. Black. No matter how we act with each other, I like having you around. And no matter what you boys say about Snape, he is good at curses. Just watch out, okay?" She gave him a slightly pleading look. Sirius nodded.
"I promise Auri." He said seriously, patting her arm. He looked down at the book in his hands and opened it to the right page. He handed it to her. "I'll let you get back to your book." He handed it to her and left the room. Aurora stared after him in astonishment, not quite sure what just happened.
James frowned. "Okay, so maybe it wasn't perfectly executed, but it had great potential!"
Aurora just shook her head, not looking up. She shivered as a cool breeze blew across the lake. She looked up and saw that clouds were gathering in the sky. She groaned loudly, earning a curious look from Sirius.
"It's getting cloudy. I wanted to stargaze tonight. Those clouds better be gone by tomorrow." She cast a threatening glare at the clouds. Sirius chuckled at her.
"Don't you wish the weather catered to your carefully laid plans?" he teased. She just rolled her eyes at him. Christine looked up.
"It's getting a bit chilly. Can we stop studying now?" she asked Lily hopefully. Lily sighed.
"Only if you promise to study all day tomorrow." Christine nodded reluctantly. Lily shrugged and closed her book. "Someone wake Peter up and lets go inside." Remus leaned over and shook Peter.
"Wake up Wormtail! We're going inside." Peter sat up and rubbed his eyes. They all started up the sloping lawn towards the castle, walking in pairs with Peter trailing behind.