A/N: New character intro!! :)

* * *

Lily, Amity, and Macey were chattering away happily as they ate their breakfast. Sirius, Remus, and James were farther down the table, muttering something quietly while Peter tried to find a place to listen. Suddenly, Amity's younger sister Janelle came and plopped down next to them.

"Hey," she said perkily.

"What are you doing here?" asked Amity, "Shouldn't you be with your friends or something?"
Janelle sighed sadly, "They're having a big fight but I don't want to get involved so I decided I'd hang out with you guys until it's done. I hope it's alright- and if it isn't, I'm still saying." She grinned; Sirius looked over to see who this newcomer was.

Macey laughed, "There's no way to get rid of you, is there?"

Janelle shook her head happily.

Lily shrugged, "Well I don't mind."

Amity groaned, "Sure- I have no choice. These two have left me alone."

"Who are you?" asked Sirius suddenly, having been to far away to hear the conversation; James and Remus turned to look.

"I'm Janelle, Amity's sister," she said, but Sirius still looked confused, "I'm in Gryffindor, too, but a fifth year so you probably don't see me around much. Too bad," she added slyly.

Sirius grinned mischievously, "Guess so."

* * *

"Padfoot, what was that?" James asked when they reached the almost empty common room.

"Huh?"

"That thing during breakfast, mate- what was up?"

"Oh, the fifth year?"

"You mean Janelle."

"Yeah- Janelle- she was cute," he said.

"She's Amity's sister. She will kick your ass if you do anything- only girl that ever did it to you," he said warningly.

"Relax, Prongs- Padfoot has it under control. As always," he finished calmly.

James mumbled uncertainly, but dropped the subject anyways.

* * *

Lily, Amity, and Macey were sitting awkwardly with Janelle in the packed common room when suddenly they heard piercing shrieks from a group of seventh year girls. They were all huddled around the bulletin board and now were giggling and jumping merrily.

Amity raised an eyebrow, "I wonder what that's about."

Suddenly two of the seventh years came closer and Lily heard them whisper,

"I can't believe McGonnagall agreed to your idea!"

"I know, I almost died when I found out- it's going to be so fun!"

"Of course- what's not fun about a masquerade ball?"

They then scurried away laughing, and Lily felt trouble coming.

"Masquerade ball," she said warily to her friends.

Janelle squealed, "Brilliant!" but then she looked crestfallen, "I hope Hailey and Victoria aren't fighting anymore by then. I'm going to go check when it's being held!"

Amity rolled her eyes, "Fantastic. A ball- I don't even have dress robes."

Macey was looking longingly at Remus who was quietly reading a book to himself.

"You should ask him," said Lily encouragingly.

"Oh, I don't know," said Macey, blushing, "He wouldn't want to. It's not his thing, I think."

Lily smiled sympathetically, "Well, if not, we'll go together as a group."

Suddenly a gorgeous seventh year boy came up behind Amity and whispered something in her ear, Amity nodded and smiled in response; then he left to his friends who all started talking animatedly.

Macey and Lily looked at her dumbfounded.

"What?" asked Amity defensively.

"Who was he?" asked Lily curiously.

"Oh," said Amity, smiling naughtily, "His name is Drake."

"He's one of your dates," said Macey.

Amity nodded and took a sip of her water, a smile creeping up on her face.

"When are you ever going to get a serious boyfriend?"

If Amity was hurt by this comment, she never showed it, "Look- I like dating a couple guys at a time. It gives me options- I like options. And what if I do get a serious boyfriend? What happens if he- I don't know- is bad! How does that leave me? Without options."

Macey sighed, "Not all guys will leave you alone, Macey- you just have to find the right one."

"I don't have the time," she said, "I think it's better my way. You just think that because you want that- especially with Remus."

"Can you not say it so loud?" Macey whispered viciously, but when she turned to look at Remus, she caught him looking at her, but he turned away. Macey reddened and looked horrorstruck. "He heard, Amity, he heard!"

She ran up to the dormitory, to embarrassed to be seen. Lily shot Amity a dark look, and went up stairs to help her friend.

When she entered their dorm, she found Macey being comforted by Nadia, who looked up- her eyes said she didn't know what else to do.

"Thanks, Nadia," said Lily, "You can go back down if you want to."

Nadia smiled, took one last sad look at the distressed Macey, and went down the stairs.

Right when the door shut closed Macey dug her head into Lily's shoulder.

"Macey, it's okay. I'm sure he didn't hear Amity- and don't be mad at her, either, it's not her fault completely."

"Oh, Lily," she groaned, "I really like him, so much. I just don't want him to hear it from anyone else but me."

"Are you ever going to tell him?"

Macey stood up straight and put her hands through her hair, "I don't know, Lily. I don't know what to do."

"But you're a great person, I'm sure he'd take you hands down."

"It's just," she said, "I've always felt like the guy should make the first move. Like in those romance novels- it's always the guy who does it first, isn't it?"

Lily shrugged, "Not all the time. The real powerful women who fight for what they want do it first sometimes."

Macey shook her head, "But I'm not powerful, Lily. I'm too shy- I'd freeze if I even got near him."

"But you talk to him all the time when we're around."

"That's why, Lily. You and Amity area always there with me, and if I ever do decide to tell him how I feel, well, it's just going to have to be me."

"But we'll be there if you'd like," said Lily reassuringly.

But Macey shook her head again, "It has to be just me. That's how it has to go."

"Well then you can't doubt yourself so much Macey, you really can't. Come on; let's go downstairs, I'm sure nobody noticed anything."

Macey went reluctantly and took her place on the couch next to Amity, who spent no time in waiting to apologize.

"It's okay, I just overreacted."

Lily smiled at her friend.

"So did you find out when it is?" Amity asked her sister, who surprisingly had just gotten back from looking at the board. Her hair was a bit more tousled than before.

"Er, yeah- it's on Halloween."

"That's in what, two weeks?"

"Yup."

"Do you think your friends will have made up by then?"

"I don't know," she said, almost dismissively. Lily became slightly suspicious.

"Hope so, that way you don't have to tag along with us during the dance."

"Oh! Well I won't be!" she said, and ran up to her dormitory.

Amity shrugged, "I never know what's going on in her head."

* * *

"So," said Sirius, "Who do you plan on asking, Prongs?"

"I don't know, mate, I just might go solo this year."

Sirius almost fell off his chair, "Solo? Prongs, you can't go solo!"

"And why not?"

"Because you have fifty billion girls waiting in line drooling, and you're not going to take any one of them?"

"I didn't say I wasn't going to get a girl with me in the dance- I'm just not getting a date. Too much restriction. I'll get there- I'll find one- and, well, you know the rest."

Sirius grinned proudly, "Ah, Prongs, you have the best ideas. Bloody sucks, though, since it's too late for me."

"Why?" said James curiously;

Remus leaned in to listen, "Did you already ask somebody?"

Sirius nodded, "Oh, yes."

"Who?" asked James and Remus at the same time.

"Not telling."

"What? Why?" James was hurt.

Sirius shrugged, "I like cliffhangers."

A/N: Mwahaha- and so do I :) Review please!