Marlene was standing in front of her mirror in her room the evening of the midsummer ball. She had on the dress that her and her mother had eventually decided on. It was dark blue, a colour she normally avoided however it did bring out her eyes. Her mother insisted it looked beautiful, the dress was satin, and it came from a muggle store in London. It was sleeveless with a high neckline and a deep open back. She wore a shimmering silver pashmina over her shoulders which hid the open back, and shoes to match. Her hair was up in a complicated bun, with a strand pulled out, dangling elegantly to frame her face. She remained subtle with her makeup, opting for a more natural look. Lily was meeting her here and then they would go together, her parents had already left.

She sighed as she looked in the mirror, for some reason she was feeling nostalgic, but it wasn't of anything in particular. She couldn't understand why she was feeling this way, but for some reason looking in the mirror always seemed to awake something deep within her consciousness. It was as though the memories had been forgotten, or repressed, but when she looked into her eyes sometimes she felt like somebody else was staring back at her. A stranger. It felt like these weren't her eyes, hair, or looks at all. She felt like they belonged to somebody else. And at times like this, she wished she were that person again, even though she didn't know who that person was.

She knew part of the reason she felt this way. Marlene never knew her real parents. She had only just turned eleven when she was formally adopted by the McKinnon's, but she cannot remember who her real parents were. The memories from her childhood always feel hazy, as though they're not quite real. She assumed, as she heard they sometimes do, that something traumatic had happened and they tampered with her memories so that she wouldn't remember any of it. No matter how awful it was though, she still wanted to know. She wanted to talk to her parents about it, but she kept putting it off. She and her mother didn't do serious conversations unless they were about potential suitors, and then her father wasn't the most approachable man with this sort of issue either.

She heard the floo downstairs meaning Lily was here, she grabbed her evening bag from the bed and ran downstairs to greet her friend, trying not to think so hard about the unknown.

"Marlene?" She heard Lily call from the hall,

"Lily!" Marlene ran into the room and stopped in her tracks when she saw her friend, "Fuck me, you look gorgeous!"

Lily had her hair down, cascading in loose ringlets to frame her face and delicate make-up drew attention to her emerald eyes. She was wearing a strapless burgundy gown, with a full skirt, and the colour looked beautiful against her hair and pale skin.

"Erm thanks," Lily said, face turning the same colour as her hair, "But you look amazing too, I love your dress!"

Marlene did a mock twirl and they both embraced,

"So, we already know who I'm trying to impress," Marlene began, "but who are you trying to impress? Because I'm pretty sure James is gonna blow his load as soon as he lays eyes on you,"

"Marlene!" Lily said, hitting her arm, "Stop being so vulgar!"

"Well?" Marlene asked again, not letting Lily change the subject, "You're blushing and that's a dead giveaway,"

"Ugh," Lily complained, "Stupid skin giving everything away. Ok, so maybe I've started to see something in.. erm_ well don't tell anyone about this will you? Not even Alice, it's pretty embarrassing,"

Marlene made a motion to lock her lips and throw the key away,

"It's Potter." She confessed,

Marlene gasped, before bringing her friend into yet another embrace, "Ohmygoodnessthisisthebestnews" She blurted out, "Lily! Why didn't you say anything? When did this happen?"

Lily shrugged, "Well, I suppose it was bound to happen eventually. I don't know he stopped being such an arrogant knob last year and was nice to me. I saw a different side of him." She shrugged,

"And tonight's the night you're going to seduce him?" Marlene asked,

"No, tonight's about you and Black. I'm just your wing woman." Lily shrugged.

A/N Super short chapter, I know, I'm sorry but next chapter we have the midsummer ball!