Almost finished :-D :-D … thanks to all my reviewers!! I appreciate your feedback as it motivated me to keep updating… check out my other stories after this one… I've only done one chapter for each but those are the ones I'm focusing on once I've finished this… anyway we left off with some more bad news for Lily and Sirius …poor things!! It'll all be over soon though…
Hope you enjoy this chapter…
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"So she's dating James now?"
"I have no idea what that girls doing. I'd really like to know what goes on in that pretty little head of hers. One minute she hates him, the next she's pashing him off in the middle of a packed corridor. It's so weird."
"What about Sirius and Shauna? Didn't she have a boyfriend not too long ago?"
"Probably just another one of Sirius's conquests. He has a different girl every other day. You should know that, considering you've been there."
"Shh! I know that, it's just I thought he and Lily were gay now, you know. Didn't they pick up their best friends at that Ravenclaw party on the weekend."
"Yeah they did. Maybe they swing both ways. Well, we'll see what happens at the school dance this weekend. They'll hook up, and we'll get to see who's with who."
Lily scowled, listening in on the two girls in whispered conversation as she stood waiting for James on the grand staircase. Both of them were hiding behind one of the bottom banisters and she doubted they had noticed her standing there. Hurry up James, she thought, tired of having to hear murmurs constantly speculating her sexuality and dating life. All she wanted was for the following night to come so the whole ordeal would finally be over. Of course, there were still more complications that made the switch back seem even more convoluted, but she felt it would all be worth it in the end.
Finally, Lily let out a sigh of relief as she saw James rushing towards her from the entrance of the Great Hall.
"What did Dumbledore want?" Lily asked.
"The head boy and girl have to supervise the decorations for the dance," James said, looking disgruntled. "Meaning me and Sirius have to stay here after dinner."
"Ooh, at least you'll get to see what it looks like," Lily said excitedly.
"Like I want to waste my time down in the hall tonight, I'll see it all finished tomorrow," James said.
"True," Lily nodded. "But at least you'll have Sirius to entertain you."
"Yeah I suppose," James agreed. "And I guess it'll all be worth it tomorrow night. It's the switch back right?"
"Oh fuck yes," Lily breathed. "I've never been more excited for a dance in my life."
James chuckled. "So, how are you going to switch back?"
"Oh … uh … nothing too hard," Lily began awkwardly. Lily was contemplating informing James of the circumstances but thought against it. He had been brought into the whole situation and received a lot of blows to his ego at no fault of his own, and she didn't want anything else upsetting him. What he doesn't know can't hurt him, she thought. She cleared her throat. "Uh … all we have to basically do is drink a potion under the full moon, and yeah, then we go back."
"Is that all?" James asked happily. "I thought it would be way more complicated then that."
"Yeah … coz another complication would be just too much wouldn't it?" Lily said uncomfortably, plastering a fake smile on her face. "So uh… where's Sirius?"
"Oh, I think he went into the grounds with Hailey and Alison for the rest of our break," James said. "So Lily, have you thought about after the switch back? What's happening with us? I mean do you want a relationship or what? We must've had this conversation at least a hundred times and you've never given me a straight answer."
"Oh … uh, yeah I've been thinking and um…" Lily hesitated, trying to choose her words carefully. "I … umm… well, I think, after the switch back … we should, maybe… just be friends … at least for a while."
James bowed his head and nodded. "Yeah … I-I would like that."
"Really?" Lily asked in surprise.
"Well yeah," James said brightly. "You're an awesome chick. So great, we can be friends. I'd like that a lot better than all those snide comments you used to give me."
Lily gave him a grin, as they slowly walked through the corridor. "So who are you taking to the dance?"
"Dunno, do we need dates?" James asked.
"Well everyone seems to be taking one. There was this big group of sixth year girls in the Great Hall at breakfast who were fretting about who they were going to take."
"Oh well, would you mind if I took Sirius … you know in your body? Just as friends you know, I definitely won't try anything, especially when Sirius is in there," James assured her.
Lily smirked. "I guess that would be okay. But you both aren't dancing. Sirius will probably start a crump off with someone and make a fool of me. And I'll have to take him some time during the night for the switch back."
"Oh that's okay. I won't even be there for that long anyway; I've got other stuff to do tomorrow night," James said.
"Stuff?" Lily asked curiously. "What kind of stuff?"
"It's nothing important. But out of respect for the people involved, I can't tell you what it is," James said.
Lily narrowed her eyes. "If it's not important then why can't you tell me?"
"Because I promised I wouldn't tell a soul. Sorry Lils, a promise is a promise," James said.
Lily pouted. Her pout then changed into a sweet smile. "Nah kidding, of course you don't have to tell me, but what time do you have to leave?"
"Around eight thirty I'd say, maybe earlier," James said.
"Eight thirty!?" Lily yelped. "Wow, it must be important."
"Not really. It's no big deal. It's actually something I have to do quite regularly," James said.
"Beat off?" Lily asked mockingly.
James chuckled. "Well besides that," he said sarcastically.
At that moment the bell rang for the second last period of the day.
"C'mon, better get to Herbology," James said.
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The charms lesson, being the perfect setting for nice long sessions of gossip, was filled with the incessant chatter of students discussing dates for the following nights dance. Hailey was in a particularly jittery mood, having been unable to acquire a date at that point in time.
"The dance is tomorrow night, and I don't have anyone to go with!" Hailey said frantically.
"What are you talking about?" Alison asked confusedly. "You've had like twenty offers."
"All them guys were scum Ali!" Hailey snapped. "Do you want me to turn up with a guy I picked from the reject pile?"
"I thought most of them were really cute," Alison said.
"Well you go with one of them and I'll pick someone that won't make me look like a loser," Hailey shot back. "Or are you already going with someone?"
"Well no… but Samuel Davies asked me," Alison smirked embarrassedly.
"And you held that from me!? Oh he is so hot! Are you going to go with him?" Hailey asked, looking thrilled.
"I dunno, I said I'd think about it," Alison said slyly. "It's just I don't know the guy really well."
"So? This is how you get to know him," Hailey said incredulously. "Just say yes alright? His cute."
Alison smiled, her face growing pink. "Alright, I'll tell him tonight at dinner."
"Good, then you can help me pick out a guy," Hailey said. "And I need your opinion too Lily."
"Wha- Oh yeah, he's hot," Sirius replied dazedly. He had just been daydreaming about the switch back, and contemplating what he was going to do first once back in his body.
"Lily, were you even listening?" Hailey asked in frustration.
"Ah no," Sirius said honestly.
Hailey gave him a scowl. "Well, who are you going with then?"
"Uh… no one," Sirius said. "It's not compulsory to have a date is it?"
"No… but you'll look like a dickhead if you don't bring someone," Hailey said. "Why don't you take James? I mean, you've already hooked up with him."
"I'd rather go alone," Sirius informed her.
"Don't be such a prude just go with him," Hailey said. "If anyone asks just tell them that there's nothing going on with the two of you, you're just friends with benefits."
"We are not friends with benefits," Sirius said firmly.
"Well, whatever you guys are," Hailey said carelessly.
The bell rang, cutting their conversation short. The class packed away their notes, excited for the weekend to finally begin. As the Gryffindor's slowly followed the rest of the class towards the exit, the squeaky voice of Flitwick sounded.
"Uh Mr Black, Miss Evans, a quick word, if you please."
Sirius and Lily rolled their eyes simultaneously, both expressing a sense of foreboding for the oncoming conversation. Neither of them felt they could cope with anymore bad news. Their dread must have shown on their faces, because Flitwick gave a light chuckle.
"Don't worry, I'm not here to deliver more bad news," he said. "I'm just here to ask if you have any enquiries concerning the task ahead."
"What task?" Sirius asked.
"The- er… switch back," Flitwick said.
"No professor. All we have to do is drink a potion and quickly kiss, right?" Lily said.
"Yes under the moonlight of course," Flitwick added. "I'm terribly sorry about the uh… kissing aspect of it, but there is no other way. Are you both handling it alright?"
"As good as I'll ever be sir," Lily shrugged.
"As long as I get my body back in the end," Sirius said.
"Well that, Dumbledore and I can almost guarantee," Flitwick stated.
Sirius spluttered. "Almost? Almost? What do you mean Almost!?"
The color drained from Flitwick's face as he stared at Sirius and Lily's faces, riddled with shock. "Well… we concluded that this potion was ninety seven percent effective, so the chances are still very-"
"So what? Three percent of the time it doesn't even work?" Lily asked, looking outraged. "Sir I can't handle this anymore! I thought you said you didn't have any bad news? Next time you have bad news for us sir, please keep it to yourself!"
"Well I thought you had a right to know," Flitwick stated nervously. "But don't worry ninety seven percent is still a very good chance. You needn't worry."
"Well that's easy for you to say! You don't know how bad our luck has been sir! I'd be more surprised if it actually did work," Sirius said, running his hands nervously through Lily's long, red locks.
"I'm sure it will be fine. If not, Dumbledore and I will have to employ different means to switch you both back."
"Yeah, yeah," Sirius said wearily. To think he had actually got his hopes up. He let out a disappointed sigh.
"Well… I guess that is all I wanted to tell you. You both may go," Flitwick said warily, hoping they wouldn't take out their aggravation on him.
Lily and Sirius both left without a word, dragging their feet as they went. As soon as they got outside, Sirius let out a huge groan.
"I can't believe this! I have to kiss you and there is a chance it won't even work!" He said in frustration.
"I know," Lily groaned. "And what if someone catches us. They're going to think I'm a slut. I mean it would look like I'd kissed you and your best friend in just a couple of days."
"Well what about me?"
"What about you? Everyone already thinks you're a man whore," Lily said.
"No it's not that. It's just that if James catches me kissing you he will kill me with his bare hands," Sirius said seriously. "I'll have to tell him."
"No!" Lily snapped quickly, making Sirius jump. "I already talked to him today and I told him all we had to do was drink the potion! He'll know I lied to him."
"And what happens if he comes out and see us? How're we supposed to explain ourselves? He won't believe us unless we tell him in advance," Sirius said gravely.
"Sirius why do we have to tell him? He won't even be there for half the night anyway!" Lily said impatiently.
"What do you mean?" Sirius asked.
"He said he has other stuff to do, but he can't tell me what it is coz he promised someone he wouldn't tell anyone. And then Remus won't be coming because he is really sick in bed. Peter will be sitting in some corner alone. Hailey will be pashing off some guy. Alison will be with some guy who wants to pick her up but she'll be talking away about politics or something. We don't have to tell anyone! We'll just go down to the lake have a ten seconds tops kiss, and go back up and surprise them with our switch."
Sirius, relieved that Lily had not put two and two together with Remus's situation, nodded. "Alright we won't tell anyone. But the kiss had better not go for long."
"Like I said ten seconds tops. Just long enough to get each others saliva."
"Why you gotta talk like that?" Sirius asked disgustedly.
"What?" Lily shrugged. "I know it's not pleasurable, but it's the only reason we're kissing."
"Yeah but there are certain things you shouldn't say," Sirius said.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Fine then. For once you're the more prudish one out of us two. Anyway lets head back to the common room, considering we've finished all of our lessons for the day."
"Yeah okay," Sirius agreed.
"And we can pick out your outfit for tomorrow night," Lily said brightly.
"Alright, but I ain't wearing heels," Sirius grumbled.
"We'll have to see what goes with the outfit first," Lily said.
"Alright, but this means I get to pick yours, which will most likely be jeans, a shirt and no underwear," Sirius said.
"But won't that be uncomfortable?" Lily asked.
"No, besides it means less work for me later. I'm taking a girl up to my dorm as soon as I'm back in my body," Sirius said enthusiastically.
Lily smiled. "I don't care what you do. As long as I'm back in my body, I'll be happy."
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Remus' clammy hands grasped the edges of his mattress, as he let out a groan of pain. Water trickled onto his forehead from the cloth Peter was dabbing him with. Sweat dampened his pale face and his breath was ragged. Full moon was fast approaching.
James towered over his ill friend. "How are you feeling Moony?"
"Like shit James, what do you think?" Remus rasped. "Does Lily suspect anything?"
"No I don't think so," James said. "You've done alright."
Every time Lily entered the dormitory Remus had to subdue his feelings of sickness, to hopefully pass his condition off as a temporary malady. Fortunately Lily, though very concerned for Remus's well being, felt the illness would subside and did not question it too much.
"So Remus, how does this sound? We sneak you into the shack at around eight to eight thirty. Then I will go back out to the dance at around midnight to collect Sirius. They should be er… finished dancing then. You and Peter will be fine by yourselves in that time. You should be. I just hope the night will run smoothly," James said. "Anyway, I'd better go down to dinner. Coming Peter?"
"Uh yeah sure," Peter said. "Want me to bring you up some food afterwards Moony?"
"Yeah," Remus croaked. "As long as it's meat."
Peter smiled and nodded.
"Be alright by yourself?" James asked.
Remus slowly nodded. "I was all day anyway."
"Awesome. Well catch you later Moony. Try not to bite anyone," James said sarcastically, as he led the way towards the exit.
He and Peter made their way down to the Great Hall to meet Hailey, Alison, James, Sirius and Lily; all who had went down earlier. They finally made it to the Hall and entered the chatter filled room. They saw the group segregated from the rest of the house at the far end of the table closest to the entrance. Peter and James walked towards them and sat down on the bench.
"Hey, what took you so long?" Lily asked.
"Needed to comb my hair," James smiled.
She snorted in response. "I'd honestly be surprised if you've ever run a comb through your hair James."
"Well then be surprised Sirius," James winked. "Maybe I'm doing it so I can ask a special girl to the stupid dance thing tomorrow night."
Lily grinned. James turned to Sirius. "Lily? Wanna come to the dance with me?"
"Nup," Sirius replied, slurping down a spoonful of soup.
James scowled. "As friends of course."
"Do I have to?"
"Yes," James smirked.
"Fine then, but I'm not holding your hand," Sirius said firmly.
"Talk about frigid," Hailey murmured. She then groaned in frustration. "And I still need a date! I'm not taking one of the dickheads who asked me, definitely not. Wait, I know! Sirius, how about you come with me?"
"What?" Lily asked in shock.
"Why not?" Hailey asked excitedly. "You don't have a date, I don't have a date. You're not an ugly piece of shit. I'm not an ugly piece of shit. Plus neither of us wants it to mean anything. It's the perfect plan!"
"Uh??" Lily looked enquiringly at Sirius, who in return gave her an approving nod. "…Sure!"
"Yay!" Hailey yelped excitedly. "Ooh, how exciting. Now that that's worked out, have you said yes to Samuel Davies?" she asked, turning to Alison.
Alison shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "No… not yet."
"Well hurry up girl, before he's taken!" Hailey said encouragingly.
"I dunno," Alison said hesitantly.
"Why are you so unsure? It's just a stupid dance, but also a perfect way to get to know him," Hailey said brightly.
"Go for it Alison," James smiled.
Alison looked around at the group staring at her, feeling quite awkward.
"Alright fine," she announced suddenly. "I'll go over there right now and say yes."
And with that Alison bounded from her chair, and went over to the Ravenclaw table where Samuel Davies was sitting.
Lily smiled happily. "Now Peter needs a date?"
"No that's okay Sirius, I don't want a date," Peter stated embarrassedly.
"You sure? We could get someone really good for you," Lily smirked.
"Seriously Sirius, I'm fine," Peter said a tad more assertively.
"Okay but-"
"His fine," Sirius said firmly, not appreciating Lily's sudden urge to play matchmaker in his body.
The rest of dinner was a relatively uneventful affair, aside from the fact that Alison had come springing back to the Gryffindor table excitedly, telling the group of her plans to meet with Samuel. The occupants of the Great Hall were dismissed early, in order for the decorations to commence. Sirius and James remained as the others made their way to Gryffindor tower.
The decorating of the hall was a process that took about two hours (to the great displeasure of James and Sirius) and was aided by various teachers, including Mcgonagall and Flitwick, and the group of Ravenclaw students who had organized the event. James and Sirius passed time by throwing neon lights at each other and having mini duels when the teachers weren't looking.
When James was called over to help Mcgonagall hang up some silver streamers, the primary planner of the dance approached Sirius: Marjorie Waterhouse.
"Hi Lily!" She said beaming. "The decorations are looking great, aren't they?"
"Uh yeah…" Sirius replied awkwardly, wanting to turn around and walk in a different direction.
"I am so happy how it's turning out! I was expecting it to be a complete disaster. I mean it was really ambitious of me to have tried organizing a dance for tomorrow night. But we managed to find materials from various classrooms and Hogsmeade had some really nice stuff," she said happily.
Sirius' smile was fixed. "Yeah, it looks great. Um… so if it's all being done tonight, it won't be much of a surprise tomorrow night, I mean, everyone is going to see it at Breakfast won't they?"
"Well not all of it," Marjorie said smugly. "Some of us are coming in just before to put up all the special, sparkly stuff. Trust me if I'd had my way we would have put it all up tomorrow just before it, but they said it made more sense to do the bulk of it tonight, and finish it off tomorrow."
"Oh okay," Sirius nodded, trying to look like he actually cared. As he glanced over Marjorie's shoulder for something to distract him from their conversation he saw Dumbledore, gesturing for him to go over.
"Oh Dumbledore wants me I think," Sirius said suddenly, as Marjorie opened her mouth for another topic of conversation. "I'd better go."
Sirius walked past Marjorie and moved towards the headmaster. Dumbledore smiled as Sirius stepped in front of him.
"How do you enjoy the decorations Mr Black?" Dumbledore asked.
"Uh they're er… very nice," Sirius said confusedly.
"Well I'm glad you like them. But as you have probably deduced I did not signal you over here to discuss the decorations," Dumbledore said. "I am here to explain to you more thoroughly what the switch back entails."
"Okay," Sirius said excitedly.
"Now I know that Professor Flitwick has informed me that he told you the odds of the switch being entirely effective. He also told me that you and Miss Evans did not take the news entirely well. I just want to say that even though there is a chance of it not working, the odds we concluded are merely estimations. There may be more of a chance, or even less. This is the first time this potion has been used, so we can only give approximations," Dumbledore said. He then reached into his sapphire colored robes and extracted to corked bottles half filled with a transparent yellow liquid. "I think the most appropriate time to drink this potion would be around midnight."
Sirius nodded as he was handed the bottles.
"Make sure you both drink these at the same time and make sure you drink every last drop. And also uh… make sure you exchange your DNA straight after you have drained it," Dumbledore said. "Will you pass this potion and the instructions on to Miss Evans?"
"Yes sir," Sirius nodded, pocketing both the bottles.
"Excellent," Dumbledore said smiling. "And don't worry, the potions will not do you any harm whatsoever. I hope you enjoy the dance. Now, if you'll excuse me I think Flitwick is wanting me to aid him with some decorations."
Sirius nodded as Dumbledore walked away. At midnight tomorrow, he was almost sure to be back to normal. He felt the small bottles in his pocket and couldn't help but smile. It was almost over. At that moment he heard footsteps walking toward him. He turned around to see James approaching him.
"Man that Marjorie girl is a pain in the ass. She was talking to me about the decorations and shit and how she got a good band to play in such short notice. Like I give a fuck," James smirked. "So what did Dumbledore want?"
"He gave us the potions to help us switch back," Sirius grinned.
"Oh that's fucking awesome," James said. "What time to you reckon you'll be back to normal?"
"I'd say around midnight," Sirius replied. "Why?"
"Because I'll come get you around then so I can take you to the shack for Remus, is that okay?"
"Damn it, I was going to have sex that night," Sirius said disappointedly.
"Well that'll have to wait till the next night won't it?" James said.
Sirius sighed. "Ah well, at least I'll be a bloke again."
"Yep, and Lily will be a girl again," James said happily.
"Do you know what's going on with you two after the switch?" Sirius asked.
"She said she'd like us to be friends," James said happily.
"And you're okay with just being friends?"
"Well yeah, for now. She said it was for just a while," James said. "Who knows it may become more. I mean she let me be seen kissing her body and she's allowing me to go to the dance with her body."
"Okay that sentence sounded really weird," Sirius smirked. "And you still 'love' her?"
"Course I do," James said smiling.
"Okay, and you don't think it's a tad early to call it love?"
"Nope," James replied.
"Well if that's what you want," Sirius shrugged. "Anyway, let's get out of here. I think they can handle the rest of the decorating by themselves."
"Good idea. Oh and Sirius, thanks for coming to the dance with me tomorrow night," James said sincerely.
"Hmm… you're just lucky I'm such a good friend," Sirius said.
"I know, I owe you," James said.
"Yep, you owe me big time," Sirius said.
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Lily and Alison sat in front of the Gryffindor fireplace discussing what Sirius (in Lily's body) was going to be seen wearing at the dance. Hailey was already up in the dormitory rummaging through her trunk for an outfit.
"I'm trying to think what clothes I have," Lily said.
"Hm…" Alison sighed. "What about that nice green top you have. The one you got for your birthday."
"No, not formal enough," Lily murmured.
"Okay… well what about that nice white dress, you know the cocktail one?"
"No that's too formal," Lily replied. "It's a dance not a ball, but it's not like a casual party either."
"Hm… well I dunno," Alison said. "Maybe Hailey is better at this sort of thing."
"I would go to Hailey… if I wanted to look like I'm into sexual slavery," Lily said. She then gasped. "I know! What about that silver party dress I have. You know the one I tried on last year but didn't end up wearing?"
"Oh yes, that is hot!" Alison said.
"Yay! I know what Sirius is wearing," Lily said excitedly. "Now what are you wearing?"
"I already know what I'm wearing," Alison said in satisfaction. "My skinny leg jeans with my red top. You know the one I'm talking about?"
"Oh yeah that's nice," Lily nodded.
"Yeah, so now that we know what we're wearing, on to a different subject. You're switch is tomorrow night right? And you drink some potion to change back?" Alison asked.
"Yep," Lily nodded.
"What time do you reckon you'll be back?"
"I dunno," Lily shrugged. "Hopefully before midnight."
Alison smiled. "And are you and James going to, you know… hook up?"
"No, at least I don't think so," Lily said awkwardly. "I told him I wanted to be friends."
"And he's okay with that?"
"Yeah, he took it surprisingly well. Didn't ask for anything more," Lily said.
"Well I think you have met the newly reformed James. The nice guy, rather than the womanizing jerk he used to be," Alison said.
Lily smiled. "I think so too Ali. So you think it's a good idea, being friends with him?"
"Oh course, like I said, I really do like James. I'm becoming friends with him too, since we've been hanging out in the last week," Alison said.
Lily nodded. "Yeah… Maybe… maybe… I-I could give him more of a chance. You know give him one date and see how it goes."
"What are you saying Lily?" Alison asked.
"All I'm saying is… maybe after the switch, I could, you know… ask him out, as a thank you for being so nice to me in this last week," Lily said awkwardly.
Alison laughed. "Are you serious? You want to date James?"
"One date couldn't hurt," Lily shrugged. "It'd be a nice twist wouldn't it?"
Alison giggled. "Yes it would, instead of him asking you out all the time! Oh Lily I'm so proud of you!" She said happily, leaning in and giving Lily a hug.
Lily smiled. "I guess I've reformed a bit too. Into a person that could date James Potter."
At that moment, the portrait hole opened, and in came Sirius and James. Alison quickly pulled away and Lily stopped talking.
"Hey," James greeted.
"Can I talk to you for a second?" Sirius asked Lily.
"Uh yeah sure," Lily said, rising from her seat and walking away with Sirius.
"Wonder what those two are talking about?" Alison asked.
"No idea," James shrugged indifferently.
"I got the potion off of Dumbledore," Sirius informed her.
"Okay great, did he give you other instructions?" Lily asked.
"He said that the best time to drink it would be at midnight. We have to drink every single drop of the potion and kiss straight away after we finish. Now I reckon we should do it by the lake. We'll be in the moonlight, and it's a fair distance away from the castle so we won't get caught," Sirius whispered.
Lily nodded. "Okay then, cool. Well I'll meet you at the front doors at a quarter to then?"
"Yep, sounds good," Sirius smiled. "Anyway I'm going to turn in. I have a feeling I'm going to need the rest."
"That sounds like a good plan actually," Lily said. "I'm feeling a bit tired too."
And with that Lily and Sirius bade Alison and James goodnight and went into their respective dorms. The other two followed soon after.
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Rumors were circulating the castle like wildfire the next day, speculating who was going with whom and what the entertainment for the night was likely to be at the dance. Breakfast and lunch were very exciting affairs as the students had a glimpse of the silver banners and streamers hung high on the walls. The breaks in between meals were devoted to the dorms, where people were choosing their outfits for the dance.
At five o'clock Hailey and Sirius were becoming frantic. Hailey still hadn't decided what she wanted to wear and Sirius didn't want to wear heels.
"You have to Sirius!" Alison hissed, as Hailey was throwing clothes unceremoniously out of her trunk.
"I won't be able to walk in them, let alone dance," Sirius whispered back angrily.
"Okay Lily told me the ground rules today, and she said no dancing!" Alison said.
"Aww c'mon, what if James wants to dance?"
"Too bad, he'll have to dance another night with the actual Lily," Alison said.
Sirius groaned. "This is going to be shit."
"Don't complain, at least you guys are switching back," Alison whispered. "Now these," she said, holding up two white padded circles, "are for support. Lily's dress is strapless and is therefore worn with no bra."
"Awesome," Sirius nodded. "Can't I just leave them?"
"No… because you need support. Lily will kill you if you don't wear these, so just put one on each boob and they will help… hold them in place," Alison shrugged.
"So I'll be touching Lily's boobs?" Sirius smirked.
"Good point," Alison nodded. "Uh Hailey do you want to help Lily put her fillets in?"
"Fillets?" Sirius asked with raised eyebrows.
"That's what we call them," Alison shot back.
"Can't you see I'm a little busy here!?" Hailey yelled hysterically.
"Alright fine I'll do it," Alison groaned. "Now take off the bra you're wearing and hold still."
Once Alison had helped Sirius she dragged him over to the bed. "Now I'm going to curl your hair and do your make up, so don't move."
Before Alison could start on Sirius' hair, Hailey let out a scream of delight. "I found it, I've found the outfit."
"That's good for you Hailey," Alison said. "Will you stop being evil bitch now."
"Yes, I'm so excited!" She said happily, jumping on her bed and pulling back her hangings.
"Get ready to be seen with someone every guy will be after tonight Sirius," Alison whispered.
"Sounds good to me," he grinned.
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Sirius and James stood with Peter in the common room, which was occupied by only a few other Gryffindors who had not already gone down to the dance and who were under fourth year. James looked at his watch; it was five to seven."Man girls take a long time," James murmured to Lily. "How long do you need?"
"Ages James, how do you expect half the girls in Hogwarts to look as good as they do. It's so guys like you will sleep with them," Lily whispered.
"Well the ones I slept with I didn't have a lot of respect for, coz most of them were whores," James said.
"I'm not another whore to you am I?"
"What do you think?" James asked with raised eyebrows. "I chased you for ages for a relationship. All those girls were just for sex."
Lily nodded. She smiled at James. She had to admit, he looked good. He was wearing slightly baggy jeans with white runners. He was also wearing a long sleeved gray t-shirt with a black, hooded shirt over the top. His hair was as unkempt as ever, just the way he liked it. Lily admittedly had developed affection for his tousled hair as well.
Lily on the other hand had dressed Sirius in jeans and a button up brown shirt, making him look casual and cool. Peter was not going. He had decided he was going to remain in the dorms and look after Remus. Another five minutes passed before the two girls and Sirius had finished getting ready. Alison came walking down in black, open toed heels and skinny leg jeans, taut against her long legs. Her scarlet colored top was loose and flowed nicely over her torso, the silky sleeves draping her pale shoulders. Her blonde hair was dead straight, and fell to the bottom of her neck. Hailey looked stunning in a tight white dress, which reached the middle of her thighs. It was long sleeved and enhanced her bust. The plain dress was accessories with large hoop earrings and a brown belt around her hips. The outfit was completed with brown high heel boots. Her hair was pulled back into a very high ponytail, with a quiff at the top of her head. Sirius walked down the stairs carefully and quite unenthusiastically. James gaped as he looked at the silky, silver baby doll dress he was wearing. A ribbon was tied around the part of his waist just under his chest. The dress was relatively short, a few inches above his knee, exposing his slender legs. He was also wearing strappy heels, which wrapped around his small ankle. Soft curls framed his pretty face and a light coat of eyeliner emphasized his gorgeous green eyes.
Hailey walked over to Lily. "Hey Sirius, you look great."
"Thanks, you look really good too," Lily smiled. "Should we go down?"
"Sounds good to me," she said brightly. "C'mon Ali."
The three then made their way out of the portrait hole.
"You've never looked hotter Sirius," James whispered.
"Oi! Shh! Don't make this more uncomfortable for me then it already is," Sirius said angrily.
"Fine let's go. Sure you'll be alright Wormtail?"
"Yeah, I'd rather look after Remus than go to the stupid dance anyway," Peter shrugged.
"How is Remus anyway?" Sirius asked as they exited the portrait hole.
"The usual. He's not too bad though. And Lily doesn't suspect anything so that's good," James answered.
"Thank god," Sirius replied. He then almost stumbled as he rolled his ankle. James tried to help him but Sirius shooed his hand away. "No touching!"
James snorted. "I'm just trying to help."
"You can help by not touching me!" Sirius hissed.
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James and Sirius sat at one of the round, white draped tables as soon as they entered the hall. They looked around rather unenthusiastically, observing the crystal centerpieces arranged in the shape of flowers. A large disco ball hung from the ceiling, which exposed the considerably cloudy heavens. Space had been left in the middle of the Great Hall for people to dance to the music of a rising band called "the wonder warlocks". A heavy beat played as people danced away. Sirius watched Alison drag Samuel onto the crowded dance floor, bored out of his mind. All James was anticipating was the time when he would have to collect Remus from the dorms. Sirius just wanted the switch to come around quicker than it was.
"Wanna dance?" James asked Sirius offhandedly.
"No," he replied.
"Me neither," James shrugged, turning to watch the dancers again.
Lily and Hailey were seated at a nearby table also watching the various couples enjoying the dance.
"Are you going to ask me to dance or what?" Hailey asked with raised eyebrows.
"Er… sure," Lily replied. "Would you like to dance?"
"Finally. Yes!" Hailey exclaimed, bounding off her chair and dragging Lily to the dance floor.
The beat from this unknown band was fast and very loud. Hailey led Lily to the middle of the dance floor where she immediately wrapped her arms around Lily's neck and began grinding her hips against Lily's. Lily looked around awkwardly at the couples dancing, finding it so strange she was dirty dancing with one of her best girl friends. She moved her hips awkwardly, hoping not to seem too reserved. Hailey obviously sensed Lily was uncomfortable because she then asked, "What's wrong?"
"I'm just not a very good dancer," Lily said loudly over the music. "I'm sorry."
"It's fine. All you have to do is relax. You're thinking way too much. Who cares if you're bad, as long as you have fun, right?" Hailey said.
"Yeah I know. I guess I'm not in much of a dancing mood," Lily replied.
"Oh okay," Hailey nodded. "Well I'm not going to force you to dance if you don't want to, I'll just find someone else. Is that okay?"
"Yes, absolutely," Lily said, relieved Hailey was not offended.
Hailey smiled and continued dancing by herself, but not for too long because as Lily left, two more guys approached her. Lily made her way to the snack table. Only to be ambushed by Marjorie Waterhouse
"Hey Sirius! Having fun? I know you're a party animal, so tell me what you think," she said enthusiastically. "Is it going alright?"
"Oh uh yes… it's very good," Lily said quickly. "Oh shit look my friends calling me, sorry can't stay and talk. Excuse me."
Lily quickly walked away. No friend had called her; she just didn't feel like conversing with anyone especially Marjorie Waterhouse. She found she was just too nervous and excited about the switch back. At that moment, another familiar face approached her. It was Shauna.
"Sirius!" She exclaimed excitedly, rushing up to Lily and giving her a big hug. "Thank you so much for kissing me! The plan worked, I'm here with Jared! We had a huge talk yesterday and he apologized for everything! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! Well i'd better go, otherwise he will get jealous."
And with that, the pretty blonde, with the tight curls in her hair gave Lily a wink and ran towards her narrow eyed boyfriend, who was watching her intently.
The dancing finally ended around eight o'clock, when Marjorie interrupted the band and announced that dinner would be served. The procedure was simple: just choose what you liked from the menu and yell the name of the meal into your plate. James chose a simple meal of chips with prawn cutlets; he was almost due to get Remus and Peter to take them to the Shrieking Shack. Also at the table were Sirius (who had ordered two meals), Lily, Alison and her date Samuel Davies. Hailey was off at another table filled with boys.
The scraping of cutlery and chattering voices filled the Great Hall as dinner commenced. Sirius bolted down his meals of crumbed steak and spaghetti. Samuel Davies laughed as he watched him.
"Damn you can put it away Lily," he chuckled.
"Yeah stop it, you look like a pig," Lily said angrily.
James forced down his small meal in a manner of minutes, and got up from his chair. "I'd better get going."
"Already?" Samuel asked.
"Yeah, I've got piles of homework to do," James invented.
"You can do it tomorrow," Alison said. "What about Lily?"
"You're a big girl aren't you Lily? You can take care of yourself."
Sirius however was not paying any attention to the conversation. He was too busy attempting to swallow a mouthful of food. James smirked as he waved good-bye and exited the dance. Once in the Entrance hall he began sprinting up to the boy's dorm to get Remus, in his pre-transformed state, Peter and his invisibility cloak.
The corridors were completely empty as he rushed through them, his quick footstep reverberating off the walls. He reached the Fat Lady within minutes and croaked the password. She allowed him entry and he rushed inside, up the spiral staircase and into his dorm.
"How is he?" he asked a very taken aback Peter.
"Not good," Peter replied. "I think he's getting close to changing."
"Alright then," James said, striding to his trunk and extracting his cloak of invisibility. "We'd better get going."
"Okay," Peter nodded, gently pushing an exceptionally clammy Remus into the sitting position. James swiftly wandered over to aid Peter. They both lifted him onto his feet, as James covered the three of them with the cloak.
"Okay, easy does it," James said. "Let's go."
The journey to the Whomping Willow was a long one. It took quite some time to navigate through the castle under the cloak, with a close to transforming werewolf. They finally made it out onto the grounds and quickened their pace as Remus let out a groan of pain. Fortunately the full moon was hidden behind the clouds.
"Okay quick Wormtail, do your thing," James said, struggling to hold up the faint Remus. Peter quickly made the transition into his rat form and ran to press the knot at the base of the Willow. The violent tree froze, which allowed the trio to slip through the hole at the bottom of the trunk.
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"Where's your date baby?" a tall spiky haired blonde boy asked Sirius.
"He'll be back soon," Sirius grumbled, as he sat with his arms folded watching the people out on the dance floor.
"He's that James Potter kid right? I haven't seen him for a while. You sure he's coming back?"
"Yes I'm sure, and if you don't get away from me soon I will shove my heel up your ass," Sirius said in frustration.
"Bitch, I'm only trying to keep you company," the guy said defensively, as he walked away.
"Hurry up midnight," he murmured to himself.
Lily was currently in conversation with Alison, as her date, Samuel was currently hanging out with his friends. Sirius kept glancing at the clock on the wall at various points of the night: nine o'clock, ten past nine, half past, a quarter to ten, a quarter past ten, twenty to eleven, a quarter past eleven. Finally after many sighs of boredom and toe tapping action, eleven thirty rolled in and enticed Lily to approach Sirius.
A grin spread across her face as she stepped in front of him. "It's nearly time. Screw our plan to meet in the Entrance Hall, let's just go now."
"Sounds great," Sirius smiled, rising from his chair.
All of a sudden, Alison rushed over to the two of them. "Are you switching back?"
"Yep," Sirius said excitedly.
"Good luck," Alison said eagerly. "It shouldn't take long should it, since you're only drinking that potion?"
"No it shouldn't," Lily said.
"Alright well we'd better get out there," Sirius said. He then pulled Alison into an appreciative hug. "Thanks for helping me become more like a chick."
Alison giggled. "No problem."
Lily and Sirius then departed from the Great Hall and walked out into the moonlight coming from the now exposed full moon (not noticing the greasy haired Snape watching their progress). Down the slopes they walked, toward the glittering lake.
They stopped just at the rim, glancing at the rippling water. Lily glanced down at Sirius' watch on her wrist. They had fifteen minutes.
"Sirius, I just want to say… thank you, for not being a… total jerk while in my body," Lily said. "The switch was actually good in the fact that it made me realize you're not that bad a person."
"And Lily, even though you're a pain in my ass, I still think you're a nice girl, with very hot friends," Sirius said. "And I would approve if you ever went out with James."
Lily laughed. "Thank you Sirius, that means a lot."
"And I'm sorry about spilling potion down you're front and for making you look like a lesbian and for looking at your in justunderwear," Sirius said.
Lily giggled. "What was that last one?"
"Making you look like a lesbian."
Lily smirked. "And I'm sorry for being a totally uptight bitch to you and for kissing James in your body."
"Apology accepted," Sirius said.
Lily glanced at her watch again. They had another five minutes.
"Okay it's almost time to do the… thing," Lily said nervously, her heart pounding. "Okay, we kiss for ten seconds and then pull away. Hopefully it works."
"Yeah," Sirius croaked. He pulled out both bottles and handed one to Lily.
"Should we start?" Sirius said.
"I guess so, he didn't say midnight exactly did he?"
"No, don't think so," Sirius said.
They both pressed their bottles to their lips, but then pulled them away.
"Maybe we should wait a couple of minutes, just to be on the safe side," Lily said hesitantly.
Sirius nodded. "Okay. Just a couple more minutes."
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Bits of charred furniture were strewn across the room, as the werewolf ripped and ravaged through the house, purely for enjoyment. The large stag, which was watching over the scene to retain control, felt it was safe to leave a transformed Remus alone for a while. It made it's way out of the trapdoor in the middle of the room and cantered down the passageway. At the end of it, James transformed back into his human form and pressed the knot to immobilize the aggressive Willow.
From there he rushed to the castle to find his friend to come back with him into the shack. He rushed into the Entrance hall. There he spotted Alison running toward him.
"James, I thought you left early?" Alison said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"What, oh just here to see Lily and Sirius," James said quickly. "Did they switch?"
"Yes, they did!" she replied excitedly. "They should be out by the lake. Probably celebrating being back in their own bodies."
"Great! I'll see you later okay?"
"Alright see you!"
James rushed into the Entrance hall and was about to go to the lake when a voice stumped him in his tracks. "I'd hurry if I were you."
James spun around to find that Snape was the source of the voice. "What the fuck do you want Snivellous?"
"Well I just thought I'd tell you it looks like Lily and your stupid friend were taking a romantic stroll by the lake," Snape said. "Seemed like they were sneaking around."
"Of course it would dickhead," James said. "Anyway, I have no time for your shit Snivellous, I've got to go."
And with that James rushed down the slopes to Lily and Sirius.
"Alright we'd better do this now, it's a minute to midnight," Lily stated.
"Alright on the count of three," Sirius nodded. "One, two, three."
Both Lily and Sirius brought the bottles to their lips and drained the contents in a few gulps.
"Okay quick," Sirius gasped, as he dropped his bottle.
His hands quickly cupped Lily's neck and forced her lips onto his. He quickly opened his mouth as required quickening the pace of the kiss, wanting it to work, needing it to work. All of the overwhelming experiences of the week would dissolve if the kiss was effective. The humiliation, the stress, the lying, the testing of friendships would all seem worth it, if the switch back was successful. They kissed for a few moments before either of them broke away.
Just as Lily was about to pull herself away from Sirius, a blinding pain reached the left side of her skull. A fist collided powerfully with the side of her face, throwing her sideways. She did not know whom the fist had belonged to; all she of knew was the throbbing pain in her temple. As she lurched sideways she grabbed Sirius for support, dragging him with her. The two of them stumbled over the edge of the bank and with an all mighty splash, fell into the lake. Lily felt extremely confused as she floated underneath the surface of the water. Using all the strength her legs could muster she forced herself upwards and resurfaced. Her head was still throbbing as she saw James' irate expression, all the colored drained was from his face.
"And to think I ever trusted you," James growled, turning on his heel and stalking in the direction of the willow.
"James!" Sirius yelled, Lily's rasp issuing from his mouth. "James!"
Tears started to well in Lily's eyes as she put her hands in front of her eyes and realized the potion had failed. Both she and Sirius paddled to the bank and pushed themselves out of the water. Once on shore Lily began running after James, in the hope of explaining the situation. She didn't care about the failed switch back, all she wanted was for James to understand.
"James!" she called. "James!"
All of a sudden, Lily's words were caught in her chest. She could not move any further. A burning sensation was rapidly spreading through her body. She didn't know what was going on. Her body lurched forward. She was fast losing consciousness and didn't know what to do. She lay on the spiky lawn on her front, her vision blurry. The hazy grass was the last thing she saw before she passed out, lying sprawled on her stomach.
James walked passed the front doors and toward the Whomping Willow. Snape watched his progress, looking satisfied.
"I told you something was going on!" he yelled. "You're just pathetic thinking Lily Evans could ever love you!"
James slowly turned around, putting his hand in his jeans and gripping his wand very tightly. "What did you just say to me?"
"She never loved you. You should've got the point from all over those times she rejected you!" Snape sniggered. "She used to talk trash about you all the time to me. When we used to be friends. And now she's run off with your best friend. After all that have you finally got an idea of what she thinks of you?"
James bit his bottom lip, his emotions ranging from anger to extreme sadness. "Hey, I don't give a fuck. Evans is just a slut anyway! You can tell everyone, all your Slytherin mates, even Evans for all I care, that she was just another girl I wanted to fuck! What can I say? I just like the thrill of the chase. I don't give a shit about her, there's plenty more fish in the sea." He yelled, hiding his emotions very well. "Enjoy the rest of the dance Snivellous."
Snape smirked as James disappeared into the darkness, glad that he James and Lily's relationship was ruined and he didn't have to do any of the work. He then turned and went back into the dance, passing Hailey and Alison on the stairs.
Hailey turned and gaped at Alison. "James is an asshole! How dare he say all that shit about Lily! And all this time we thought he genuinely cared for her!"
Alison's face was riddled with shock. "C'mon I think Lily's by the lake."
Hailey and Alison rushed down the sloping grounds towards the lake.
"I thought we came out here to see if Lily and James had got together," Hailey panted. "It was weird coz I didn't see them all dance."
"That's because you were with boys all night," Alison replied. Her face then fell, "Oh my god Lily!"
They rushed towards the lake as fast as their heels would take them and discovered the unconscious forms of Sirius and Lily. Hailey tended to Sirius' body while Alison went to Lily's.
"Wow I've never had an unconscious date before," Hailey said.
"Shit," Alison breathed, tapping Lily on the face. Hailey shook Sirius' head from side to side. After a few moments, both Lily and Sirius began to stir feebly. Lily slowly opened her eyes to see Alison's face leaning over her.
"Lily?" Alison questioned frantically.
Lily sighed. "Yes… Ali- what?"
Alison gasped. "It worked? Oh my god Lily you're back!"
Lily eyes widened. She sat up quickly, not caring that it made her dizzy and crawled quickly to the water. She looked into her green eyed, red haired reflection and gasped. She brought her hands to her face and caressed her skin. Her hand ran through her drenched hair and down onto her saturated dress. She then put her hands on her breasts.
"I'm back? Sirius we're back!!" Lily screamed gleefully rushing over to Sirius' side.
He took one look at her appearance and gasped, sitting up and pulling her into a tight embrace. "I'm a guy! I'm a guy!"
"You guys switched back!" Alison grinned. "I'm so happy for you both!"
"Wait… am I missing something here?" Hailey asked slowly.
"Long story," Alison said quickly.
Lily rushed over to Alison and pulled her into a tight hug. Sirius was rubbing his temple. "Fuck James punches hard."
Lily giggled. "Well you have to deal with it not me ha ha! Oh my gosh Alison I have boobs! And long pretty hair, and I'm wearing heels again and I can kiss guys again and see James and- and… Oh god James!"
"Fuck, James!" Sirius swore, jumping to his feet and sprinting towards the willow. The three girls were left in a state of total confusion.
Hailey quickly spoke, "Okay we can get to… whatever you were talking about before, in a minute but I just want to tell you Lily that James is a prick and not to go for him."
Alison nodded sadly. "He called you a slut to Snape after Snape just provoked him and said that he was only going for you for the thrill of the chase. I'm so sorry Lily."
"Oh god, it's because he saw me and Sirius kissing," Lily moaned.
"What?!" Alison and Hailey yelped simultaneously.
"You guys kissed?" Hailey asked in shock.
"Yes, but it was apart of the switching back process. We had to exchange DNA at the same time, and kissing was the only way," Lily said. "And James caught us and now he hates me and I've screwed everything up!"
Lily's bottom lip trembled and Alison put a comforting arm around her. Hailey just looked confused by the whole situation.
"I'm sure we can fix the James situation, as long as you explain the whole kissing thing. Who knows, maybe Sirius will sort it out tonight, if that's what he's gone to do," Alison said soothingly. "You should be happy. I mean everything's back to normal isn't it?"
Lily nodded. "I guess. It's such a bittersweet ending though isn't it? Sirius and me are back to normal, but mine and James' relationship is ruined."
"You don't know that," Hailey said. "And what I'm gathering is that you and Sirius switch bodies for a while and now you are back to normal? Look, before you didn't even like James that much... so that's something that'll go back as well."
"But it can't go back now that I know what he's really like. I want to at least be friends with him," Lily said.
"Just out of curiosity how long were you guys switched for?"
"Almost two weeks," Lily said.
"Holy shit two weeks! And you knew about it?" Hailey said to Alison. "Well you two played your parts well."
"Sharp as a tack as usual Hails," Alison smirked. "C'mon Lily, lets get you to bed. We will sort it out in the morning."
"I know I fucked it up. Now James is going to be the one hating me," Lily said gloomily picking her shivering self up from the ground and allowing Alison and Hailey to lead her back up to the castle. "I'll have to make it up to James somehow."
"Don't worry, you will," Alison said. "You'll find something."
"I'll do anything to get him back," Lily said sincerely. "Anything."
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:O almost finished!! How was that for a long chapter??! Wayyyy too long but I had a lot to include so yeahh… well tell me what you think… review if you want to find out how James and Lily's relationship holds out… One more chapter to go and Sirius and Lily aren't inside each other's bodies for it:D:D