Thanks to: Lady Isabelle Black, Tessa, Girlwholived27, HPFan, Potterhorse-Spirit, SouthernBelle82, Kurohane Ookami, rosiehorgan7, MiraclesHappen94 and CookieSpells4 for your reviews.

Songs for this Chapter: (There's a lot!)
Isabel's Theme [See Tumblr]
Isabel and Remus' Theme [See Tumblr]
Isabel and Sirius' Theme [See Tumblr]
On Top of the World by Imagine Dragons
Diet Mountain Dew by Lana Del Rey
Home by Michael Buble
National Anthem by Lana Del Rey
Rescue Me by Rogue Traders

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter

I went through my whole entire trunk, just to find one suitable dress to wear...but there was absolutely nothing. The Opening Ball was only a few days away, and at the moment, I'd turn up looking like an absolute fool. I sighed as I threw clothes from my bed, back into my trunk. At that moment, Lily and Alice walked in. I turned around to see them laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"Honey, if you haven't got anything to wear, you should have just told us!" Alice laughed. I closed my trunk and sighed. I did feel a little embarrassed. "C'mon Lily, we need tot take her to Hogsmeade." There was a dress shop at Hogsmeade? It had definitely gone out of business before I had gone to Hogwarts. Lily and Alice pulled me up and took me downstairs, where Remus, Sirius, James and Pettigrew were all studying, a sight I had not seen since I had arrived here.

"Where are you ladies going?" James asked, noticing that we were leaving.

"Out. And you needn't know where," Lily replied, giving her boyfriend a curt nod. Lily left, Alice pulling me along behind her. Once we had left Gryffindor tower, Alice and Lily burst out laughing. "And that is how you deal with a man," Lily said with a grin. I even laughed myself. It felt weird, being a teenager again and having friends, and even though I was missing home terribly, I found myself enjoying my time with Lily and Alice.

Alice, Lily and I walked into the dress shop. It was seemingly empty, that was until a witch appeared from behind a curtain, a huge smile on her face.

"Lily Evans and Alice Marshall! What a pleasure it is to have you back here!" She exclaimed, walking over to them and hugging them quickly. "But, I thought that I would not be seeing you again as you have already purchased your dresses for the Opening Ball!"

"It is not us that we come for, Mrs Winter, it is out friend," Alice told her, gesturing to me. Mrs Winter turned to me, looked me up and down, and suddenly a huge smile appeared on her face. She walked over to me and circled me, like a bird would circle their prey.

"What is your name?" She asked, standing in front of me, placing a hand on my shoulder. I was quite intimidated by her. Fancy that, intimidated by a seamstress.

"Isabel Fairfax," I told her. I almost started to believe my name was Fairfax, not Snape or Weasley.

"Miss Fairfax, you are indeed one of the more special girls that I have worked with. You are a veela, are you not?" I was shocked. How could she tell? I looked over to Lily and Alice, who also looked shocked. I had forgotten to tell them about that one little detail. I looked back to Mrs Winter and nodded my head once.

"Quarter Veela," I told her.

"Well," she said, taking out her tape measure. "This shall be fun. I am especially excited for this one. All the boys of Hogwarts will be simply drooling over you, my dearest Miss Fairfax, once I have finished with you." I put on a fake smile, but I knew that wasn't exactly something I wanted. I would've preferred for them to stay right away from me. I looked back to Alice and Lily who were grinning. I guess I just had to enjoy it while it lasted.

I stared at myself in the mirror. I never remembered looking this fantastic at age seventeen. I twisted and turned to get a good look at myself. I thought for a moment that I looked wonderful, but then I realised, the real me in 2017 was probably lying in a hospital bed, looking half way close to death. All negative thoughts aside, the dress that Mrs Winter had made for me was absolutely, the most stunning dress I had ever seen in my life. It was a beautiful beige and silver sequined gown, and I had fallen in love with it at first sight. My hair was up, and my makeup was simple. I didn't want to distract from the incredible dress. Lily and Alice walked into the room, their jaws dropping at the sight of the dress. Their dresses were beautiful too - the fashion in the Wizarding World was definitely ahead of the fashion in the muggle world at this time.'

"You look amazing!" I told them, my hands going to my cheeks. Lily's dress was a gorgeous orange, and Alice's a chocolate brown. I was amazed. Mrs Winter was a brilliant seamstress.

"We look amazing? Isabel, that dress is absolutely magnificent!" Lily exclaimed. I turned around once for them, laughing. As much as I wanted to deny it, I felt beautiful in this dress, like a Princess. "You'll be turning heads tonight, my dear! Now come along, we have to pick up our dates!" I smiled at Lily. I had forgotten that being a teenager was actually fun. We walked down the stairs to the common room, in which most of the Gryffindor students were crowded around, pairing up, preparing for the Ball. Looking at all the other girls in their dresses...they were quite simple compared to mine, and now I was worried that I was standing out too much. We approached the boys, Pettigrew was with some girl that I hadn't met, Sirius with an annoyed Marlene, and the other boy I hadn't met was, I figured, Frank Longbottom. He did look so much like Neville.

"Fairfax, you are absolutely stunning," Sirius said with a smirk on his face, not hiding the fact that he was getting a good look at me. He really was an arrogant git. I would have accepted the comment if he didn't say it with a smirk at the same time, and then proceed to check me out. I walked by him, over to Remus. The seventeen year old Remus looked more than handsome in a suit. He was quite attractive, although I wasn't surprised. He was also quite attractive as an adult too.

"Y-y-you look..." I blushed as Remus couldn't get the words out of his mouth. I looked down, trying to hide my red cheeks, but I couldn't.

"You too," I managed to say.

Remus, who's arm was linked with mine, lead me in to the brilliantly decorated Great Hall. The decorations alone made me wish that they had the Opening Ball each year whilst I was at Hogwarts. At the back of the Hall, a string orchestra, and a big band on the other side, played amazing music. Some of the instruments had been enchanted to play by themselves. I looked around the hall. The boys were handsome in their dress robes, the girls very pretty...apart from a small few. I could see, sitting by himself in the corner of the hall, was Father. He looked like he was having the worst time of his life. I laughed inwardly. I knew how much Father hated parties.

"Ah, Mr Lupin, Miss Fairfax, how lovely it is to see you here! And together! Why, Miss Fairfax, may I say your dress is absolutely incredible," Professor Dumbledore said with a smile. He was very good at lying, I'd give him that.

"Thank you, Headmaster," I said with a bow of my head. "I was quite worried the dress would attract attention, though."

"Well, if you are happy with what you wear, that should be the only thing that matters. Have a fantastic evening." With that, Dumbledore left Remus and I to ourselves.

"You know, it wouldn't matter if you were wearing the most plain dress, you'd still attract attention," Remus said with an absolutely brilliant smile.

"Why's that?" I asked him, beaming back at him.

"Because, you're still the most beautiful girl in the room." I felt my cheeks go hot at Remus' words. I even had to stop myself from giggling. I was a teenager again, after all. "And I can tell you that Sirius was extremely jealous that you chose me to come with you tonight."

"Sirius is a git, and you are a gentleman. It was hardly a choice," I replied. I then took his hand and lead him towards the dance floor. "Come, let's have a dance before this place gets too crowded, shall we?"

Once Remus and I had reached the middle of the dance floor, he slipped his hand around my waist. I looked up at him as he pulled me in closer. I wanted to push away, remembering that Fred was at home, but it was just a dance, wasn't it? That was all it was, no matter how close we were. I placed my chin on Remus' shoulder, closing my eyes as he lead me around the room. This was something I had never thought possible. The slow, beautiful music played in the background. When I opened my eyes, I could see James and Lily moving around the dance floor gracefully, and Sirius and Marlene not so gracefully. Remus held me close to him, and I started to truly appreciate how huge this moment was. I spent so long grieving for Remus, and now, to be back in the arms of my best friend, dancing slowly to such beautiful music...it was such a surreal, incredible moment.

"You're a good dancer," I whispered. I could hear Remus laughing under his breath.

"You are quite kind, however, you are quite mistaken." Remus twirled me around as we both laughed. I was speechless. All I could do was smile and laugh and enjoy what was happening. Over Remus' shoulder I could see Lily and James, dancing very slowly in the middle of the room. I knew how Father felt for Lily, and seeing him stare at her from the corner truly broke my heart, but James and Lily were supposed to be together. I then looked to the other side of the room. Sirius and Marlene just stood there, watching the other couples dance. Sirius had his arms crossed, keeping his distance from Marlene. I tried not to giggle from the sight of them.

"I'm trying incredibly hard not to step on your dress right now," Remus said into my ear.

"I'm sorry," I replied, looking up at him, continuing to dance. "It's a little bit over the top. I'm now regretting the decision to wear it."

"Just know that every man in the room, except for a few, such as James and the like, are finding it very hard to stop looking at you...I'm just honored that I got to be the man they are jealous of." I giggled at his words. It was such a Remus thing to say. The music died out slowly, and the dance had ended. Remus took my hand and kissed it softly before leading us back to our table. He was such a gentleman, it was hard to feel guilty.

"Students, staff, and guests from surrounding areas of Hogwarts, welcome back for another year. And to those of you who have just joined us here, a big Hogwarts welcome to you too." I smiled at Dumbledore's words. He was just as warm as he was when I was here as a young girl. "This year, I am sure, will be a fantastic year." The crowd applauded at Dumbledore's words. This was such a brilliant event. Perhaps when I got home I would start it up again. "Now, enjoy the feast, enjoy dancing, and enjoy the year ahead." The music started to play again, and couples rushed out to the dance floor to enjoy themselves. I looked over at Remus, who was deep in conversation with Marlene. She looked to be angry about something, so I decided to keep out of it.

"Fairfax." I sighed, realising who the voice behind me belonged to. I turned to see Sirius, his hand extended towards me. "Come on, sweetheart, you know you want to." I rolled my eyes at his arrogance. I knew he wouldn't leave me alone until he got what he wanted, so I stood up and walked to the dance floor with him. I could see every girl around us stop and stare at the sight of us together. He was more popular with the ladies than I first thought. Sirius placed his hand as far south on my back as I would let him, and began to sway us to the soft music.

"Everyone is staring," I told him.

"Quite an inconvenience," he replied with a smirk.

"I honestly don't know why these girls continually throw themselves at you when they know they'll never be with you." I decided I would tease him. Every other girl here didn't know Sirius' tricks and what he thought of them, but I did.

"And why is that?" Sirius asked, pulling me closer to him.

"Because I know you only have eyes for me," I whispered into his ear. Sirius twirled me out, but I had other ideas, letting go of his hand and stepping away. "However, Black, the problem is that I have no interest in you whatsoever." I smirked at him then left, leaving him to stand in the middle of the dance floor alone. He must have felt rejected, but I was only making him feel how every other girl he rejected felt. Sometimes you needed to be cruel to be kind.

I walked outside to take a quick break. Fresh air was something I definitely needed. Things had been so overwhelming, I just needed to get my thoughts together. I walked through the Viaduct courtyard, my dress sparkling in the moonlight. I soon stopped when I heard the sound of two voices. I wasn't usually an eavesdropper, but I had to listen to these two.

"I don't understand it, Prongs. The first girl I truly pay attention to and she just completely ignores me."

"Mate, I don't know what to say to you, you've never had this problem...and neither have I, really. It's like Fairfax knows you inside and out already, like she's reading you like a book." I leant back against the wall behind me and banged my head on it. Why? Why Merlin did this have to happen.

"That's exactly what she does, and it's starting to get on my nerves. I want her, mate. I want her so badly." I rolled by eyes at Sirius. He only wanted me for one thing and one thing only. I knew the mind of Sirius Black inside out. At this age, a woman was not for company or for love, a woman was for nothing but pleasure.

"Well, you're just going to have to back off."

"Excuse me?"

"Do you not see how happy Moony is around her? He's miserable most of the time because of his furry little problem, and the one time he finds someone that makes him happy, here you are complaining and trying to take her away from him. Let Moony have his time with her, and if it doesn't work out, you can try again." This was exactly like 1995 and 1996. Remus. Sirius. Fighting. Me. I wasn't looking forward to reliving it. I would just have to keep my distance from the both of them.

"I don't know if I can."

"Control your hormones and keep it in your pants, Sirius. She isn't yours. Besides, you're not even trying to get to know her, Remus is. All you care about is the fact that she is the hottest girl in this place." I turned around to leave. I wanted to get out and not hear anymore, Marlene McKinnon appeared, grabbing my arm to make sure I wouldn't go anywhere.

"Hello cupcake," she said with a smile which was definitely not sincere in the slightest.

"Marlene, you look lovely. I'm sure Sirius was quite enjoying your company, dressed as nicely as you are," I told her with a smile.

"Don't play little-miss-sweetness with me, Fairfax. I have you all worked out. You act all innocent, but really you're just a slut." I rolled my eyes at Marlene. I had been through all this before. "You come in here, you take my friends, and then you attempt to take the boy I have had a crush on for Merlin knows how long! It hurts, Fairfax," she snapped, gripping my arm tighter. I pushed her away from me, becoming increasingly angry.

"How dare you speak to me that way! I never did anything to you! In fact, I would have liked to be friends with you, but no, you treat me like rubbish, and we hadn't even spoken! I am not stealing your friends, either. And if you care to open your eyes, it is Sirius who is chasing after me, not the other way around."

"You are such a - " she didn't elaborate on her words, instead she slapped me in the face instead. I held my right cheek, as I heard footsteps come towards her.

"Marlene, what are you doing?" It was James. I presumed Sirius was with him. Sirius knelt down next to me, looking at my cheek.

"Are you alright?" He asked, seeming genuinely concerned. I nodded without saying anything else. Sirius looked to Marlene, who looked like she was about to cry. I couldn't handle this anymore. I picked up my dress and practically ran through the courtyard, towards Gryffindor tower. I didn't want to hear anymore.

The guilt was starting to overcome me. I had not seen my husband, or my children for a month, and here I was, tempted by the fact that Remus was here. Every time I saw Remus it was a struggle to keep my emotions in check. Not only was it because I grieved a lot after he died, but it was because when he died that I still had feelings for him, and always have. I had a husband back home in 2017, but Remus was here. I had always tried to shut my feelings for him off but it never worked. I did love Fred, and I believed that he was the love of my life. But Remus. Remus was Remus. And I was stuck here.

And then there was Sirius. Taken from me the night after we became engaged. Sure, he was different in this time, but he was still Sirius.

I sat by the window and stared out to the grounds of Hogwarts. Why did everything have to be so difficult?

A/N: And there was that chapter! I'm so excited that I'm getting questions from people in my reviews - and I'm always happy to answer them! So feel free to ask more in your reviews!

Where did the idea for an Opening Ball come from?

I would show you, but as it's from Isabel's point of view I can't. He isn't coping very well though. In 2017, they believe Isabel is very sick and has gone into a coma-like state. He's not coping well, at all, but has to keep it together for Teddy, Andie, Amelie and Harry (the kids).

On the tumblr page is Alice's, Lily's and Isabel's dresses for the Opening Ball, the character photos for this story and new themes! Go check them out!
Tumblr: bellabellex . tumblr . com

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