I guess I could be considered a little more than socially awkward. I had never had a best friend, a normal friend, or even a boyfriend. I was sixteen and my life was full of nevers. Never had a sleepover. Never had an inside joke. Never held someone's hand I wasn't related to. Never had my first kiss, or at least anything that I counted (I was kissed by a kid I was dancing with at a wedding when I was four). Some people might call my life a tad boring or empty, but I preferred it this way. Through observation and the frequent story overheard in the Great Hall, I had decided that all boys - or at least, all teenage boys - were gits, and that I wanted nothing to do with them. Of course, I might've been tempted to if I could actually talk properly to one, or in front of one. Boys made me nervous. Whenever I was around one, I would try to impress him. I always ended up looking like a fool, usually trying to say something clever, but jumbling my words. Eventually I just learned to avoid them completely.

*A Girl and an Idea*

I was sitting in my favourite armchair in the common room, a favourite because it was wedged in a little alcove off the portrait hole, so it was generally quiet, and had a good view of the grounds through a round window behind it. This was where I got most of my homework done; my dormitory was usually noisy from my roommates and the Librarian Madam Pince frightened me. I was sitting with Dorcas Meadowes, a quiet girl who I would consider my closest friend, though we were hardly study mates.

We were required to read a book for Muggle Studies - not just an electrical manual of some sort, but an actual book – and Dorcas and I were comparing notes on it when the Marauders entered the common room.

A long sigh escaped me. The Marauders: Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, and James Potter, were always quite noisy. Even in my hideaway I could hear them loud and clear, chortling over pranks and yelling, while their usual gaggle of girls surrounded them, giggling and carrying on. I would never get anything else done with these distractions.

"Umm, Dorcas? Do you mind if we save this for tomorrow?" I asked, gathering my books. She smiled. "The Marauders?"

I left her in the corner and tried to slink off to my dormitory. I bumped into Lily on the stairs. I didn't really know her that well; I had had a few classes with her over the years, but never really developed a friendship (but I hadn't done that with anybody). We knew each other well enough to exchange pleasantries every once in a while.

"Oh, I'm sorry Annie! I wasn't really paying attention." She looked at my textbooks for a moment and her eyes narrowed. "It's them again, isn't it? Honestly!"

"It's fine. I was going upstairs soon anyway," I muttered, hoping she wasn't going to make a scene on my account.

But being the person that she was, Lily nodded knowingly then marched down the remaining stairs with a sense of purpose, and headed straight for the group of people with her head held high and her hands firmly on her hips.

"Er - hello?" she began, and a few looked at her, then turned back around. "Hello!"

She got everyone's attention that time, including James Potter's. He glanced at her and smiled charmingly. "Hello to you too, Evans."

She frowned, but her cheeks obviously reddened. "Don't you think you're being rather loud?"

James looked around at the other people within the group (who were smirking), then back at her with a puzzled expression. "No? Do you, dear Evans?"

"Yes! You are constantly making noise and causing people who have every right to study here leave. It's not fair to them. Look here, Annie trying to go over her homework, and left the moment you arrived because you are such a distraction!" She gestured toward me and I looked down in shame. Did she really have to bring me into this? When I looked up again, I saw that both James and Sirius were looking at me with obvious interest. I quickly returned my gaze to my shoes.

"But like, we're not allowed outside the common room after like, nine o'clock," said a girl, who I recognized as one of the MacDonald sisters.

Lily laughed. "Exactly."

"What do you think of Annie Bell?" I asked as we walked into our dormitory. Sirius responded with a resounding flop onto his four-poster.

"I think we should certainly consider her," was his answer after a moment, followed by a grunt. He was distracted with trying to take off his shirt while still lying down.

I turned to Remus, whose opinion was really the only mildly intelligent one in the group. "Well, I think if you are going through with this awful plan, she's a good choice. She's smart, pretty, and knows Lily well enough. It'll be somewhat believable that you would pick her. I think your main problem here is that Lily hasn't seen you with her at all. I think if you must do this, you should make an effort to talk to her with Lily around."

See? Mildly intelligent.

"Nah," said Sirius. "Don't you want to do this quickly? Ask Annie to go through with it tomorrow. She probably will, because you're handsome and charming and whatnot. The sooner you do this, the sooner you'll be with Evans!"

"Wormtail?"

He shrugged, distracted by a loose thread in his sock. "I like Annie. She's nice."

"Do you think she'll make Lily jealous though?" I asked, sitting on my bed. Maybe I was over thinking this.

"I think so. As Moony said, she's smart and pretty. And Lily is sure to notice you two together. What more can you ask for?"

I made a face. "I don't know! I'm just questioning this whole idea! Is it stupid? Is it manipulative? What will Lily think of it once we're together? Should I even tell her? What if she finds out, will she be angry with me? What if she doesn't end up admitting it? What if she doesn't do anything about Annie? What if -"

"Mate, you just need to calm down," exclaimed Sirius, triumphantly throwing his shirt on the ground. "We all agreed – except for Remus. This is going to work. Lily's friends are going to help too remember?" Remus sighed and picked up the shirt of the carpet, folded it, and placed it on the armchair in the corner.

I took a deep breath. "Fine, I'll ask Annie out – tomorrow."