Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.
"Halloween party?! We're gonna have a Halloween party?" Treasure asked excitedly.
"A Halloween Ball. Professor Dumbledore told us about it today at breakfast. If you had been there, you would know. It's in about two weeks, and everyone has to have a costume!" Lily said.
"Oh, that's so exciting! We never had a Halloween party before. Kind of odd, considering we attend the school of witchcraft and wizardry. You'd think that Halloween would be bigger than Christmas around here," Treasure said. They were on their way to the library to catch up on homework, hurrying through the halls.
"It's not so different," Lily said thoughtfully. "We always have the feast. Just, this time we have to get dressed up and dance. I think its exciting."
"Exciting! It's brilliant!" Treasure shouted eagerly.
"So, tell me, where'd you go so early in the morning?" Lily asked. Treasure shrugged.
"To the Forest," she said. Lily dropped her books. "You went to the forest?! Treasure, don't you know its dangerous in there?" she asked, stopping short.
"Whoa, watch it, Evans," James said, crashing into her. Lily whirled around.
"If you are the one who crashed into me, I think you're the one who should watch it, James," she said angrily. Treasure grinned, watching as James bent to help Lily pick up her books.
"Here you go, Evans, maybe you should get more sleep or something. You're really high-strung," he said. Treasure bit her cheek to keep from laughing at the furious look Lily threw at him.
"Well, that was nice of him," Treasure said.
"Nice of him?! He almost bowls me over, expects me to apologize and then insults me? I bet he only helped me pick up my books to try to look up my skirt or something!" Lily said disgustedly, smoothing down her skirt anxiously.
Treasure shrugged, "To each her own," she murmured.
"So what did you do in the…" Lily lowered her voice, "…in the forest anyway?" she asked. Treasure shrugged distractedly, "Nothing really, just walked a bit to let off some steam. Then Sirius and I - "
"Sirius? Sirius was there?!" Lily exclaimed, with a suggestive grin. Treasure bit her lip. "Well, he followed me. It wasn't like I asked him to come. Don't start getting ideas - you're nearly as bad as Violet. He said he saw me walking down to the Quidditch field, so he followed me - to apologize - and he followed me into the forest. Apparently he was afraid I'd get hurt," Treasure said.
"That's sweet," Lily said.
"Sweet!" Treasure yelped, mimicking Lily's tone from just a moment before. "He humiliates and insults me one day, and the next he follows me around like some little lovesick stalker - that's not sweet, Lils!"
"Oh, do shut up, Treasure," Lily grumbled.
"Oh, come on Belle, don't tell me you think I'm stalking you," Sirius said, causing Treasure to turn around quickly with a gasp. "Well, now I do, don't you know it's rude to eavesdrop?" she said, glaring at him. He grinned, nearly making Treasure's heart stop. Idiot boy, she thought, frustrated.
"Well I'm not eavesdropping now, am I? I'm stalking," he said.
"Well, that is not only rude, but also illegal, now go away before I make you," she said half heartedly. Go away, go away, go away before I do something incredibly stupid! Lily regarded Treasure with a grin, as if she could read her best friend's thoughts. Of course she cant, don't be so ridiculous, Treasure thought, ignoring her.
They made it to library without a homicide, Sirius walking along side Treasure once again. It was starting to make her uneasy, mostly because she felt thrilled, but she pushed the thought away. "Oh, and we played Quidditch. Remus and Laurel won, though," Treasure thought wistfully. "And only because my stalker decided to race me for the Snitch, costing us valuable time," she said.
"I almost caught it!"
"Yes, well if you had let me fly after it, I would have caught it, and then we would have won," she answered, grinning.
"Remus? Laurel?" Lily asked.
"Laurel is Remus's, a-and my, er, our, friend," Treasure said, stammering a bit. She wasn't sure if Remus wanted everyone to know about Laurel; after all, he didn't even tell his closest friends.
"So what's this about a Halloween dance?" Sirius asked, sitting next to Treasure as usual. Treasure decided not to notice this and wondered instead if it was necessary to have a date to the dance.
"It's not a dance, it's a Ball," Lily said.
"Oh, well excuse me…"
"Yeah, Lils, so what about this Ball?" Treasure prodded. "Well, Professor Dumbledore said that everyone has to have a costume, and that whoever wears a uniform shall have a detention! Can you believe that?" she said.
"So, costumes are mandatory then?" Treasure asked excitedly.
"Dumbledore says its to show school spirit and solidarity."
"Excellent!" Treasure beamed.
"You mean we have to get all dressed up?" Sirius moaned.
"Hey, Evans, Belle, Padfoot, what are you doing here? Feeling quite boring today?" James asked, sauntering in lazily. Madam Pince clucked her tongue loudly.
"Excuse me, Madam Pince, but this is a library. It's supposed to be quiet," James said cheekily. Treasure snorted and Sirius barked a laugh, but Lily looked unimpressed. Treasure could see right through her friend, and how the corners of her mouth were lifted up ever so slightly. Treasure wouldn't push it, but she reckoned that Lily was really quite fond of James underneath it all.
"James, could you please tell 'Padfoot' to stop following me around. It'd be easier to get rid of a little starving puppy dog," Treasure said, and wondered at the rather significant look that passed between James and Sirius. James shrugged.
"He fancies you, my dear. What would you like me to do about it?" Treasure glanced at Sirius, hoping to see him flustered, but to no avail. She stared nonchalantly, and was annoyed to see how he copied her expression perfectly. Now that their initial awkwardness was passed, it seemed that Sirius had resolved to be the very picture of Pureblood haughtiness and pride. Treasure wanted dearly to ruffle his feathers and bring back that slightly awkward Sirius that she had glimpsed in the Forbidden Forest.
"Sirius, what's this, you're stalking the girl now? Don't you know that wont work?" another voice said, and they all looked around to see Remus and Laurel enter, holding hands. Treasure smiled, almost wistfully. There were times when she would admit to herself that it would be nice to have a boyfriend. She'd had one over the summer back in the States, and it had been going well, but she had broken it off when she went back to school. She didn't want to tie him down, and didn't want to be tied down in return.
she said, but that would be just awful. And I wouldn't know if he did anything either, and that would be worse, Treasure thought with a smile, looking up at saying hello to Laurel. Remus and his girlfriend sat down next to James, who was sitting next to Lily, who was sitting across from Treasure, who was sitting next to Sirius and was at the end of the table. That said, the group started to chat excitedly about the upcoming Ball."So, what is this about some Halloween dance?" Remus asked. Laurel glared at him. "It isn't 'just some dance'," she said loudly.
"Shh!" the librarian said, looking up from a huge leather bound book entitled How To Be Lusted After When You're Not At All Lustrous, a Collection of Beauty Charms and Love Spells. Unfortunately, she was about forty five, looked about sixty, had huge glasses and graying hair that was held back in a tight bun. "It's a Ball," she informed him, and Remus nodded slowly, as if afraid to make any sudden movements.
They were now only missing the last member of the Marauders, who arrived slightly out of breath, his thin blond hair sweaty and sticking to his forehead, his face flushed.
"Did you hear? They're going to have a bloody dance," Peter Pettigrew said.
"IT'S NOT A DANCE!" all three girls bellowed.
"Good Heavens, if you can not keep your voices down, then I must insist that you leave. All of you! Now do shut up, I am trying to read, like one would assume would be done in a library!" Madam Pince said, highly agitated.
"It's not a bloody dance, it's a Ball," Treasure hissed.
"Just back away, mate, slowly," Sirius advised.
"So, what are you going to come as, Treasure?" Laurel asked, shooting a glare at Sirius, who grinned back.
"Maybe a veela," Lily said, "So Sirius will stare at you, eh, Treasure?" she said, noticing how her friend was sitting with her arms crossed over her chest.
Treasure looked traumatized. "Now why would I want that Lillania, dear?" she asked, warning Lily silently that if she said anything at all, she would be so very dead so very fast. Not that there was anything to say. While Sirius might have resolved to follow her around all day, sniffing around her skirts like some dumb beast, didn't mean that Treasure felt any similar sentiments.
Lily shrugged, "Dunno," she said, smiling in the most irritating way. Treasure bit her lip and promised herself that in the future she wouldn't give Lily such a hard time about James. Clearly it wasn't worth it.
"Why don't you come as a pirate with me?" Sirius asked suddenly.
"A pirate?" Treasure said skeptically. Sirius grinned, draping an arm around her shoulders, to Treasure's utter dismay, Lily's utter amusement, and everyone else's utter shock.
"Yeah, and then you could be my wench," he said, as calmly as if he was discussing the weather. Lily wondered if he even knew that he was an inch from death.
"Sirius?" Treasure asked.
"Yeah?"
"Do you particularly favor that arm?"
"Yeah, its my wand arm…"
"Then I suggest you move it," Treasure said flatly, James, Remus, Lily, Laurel and Peter all burst out laughing, quieting down when they heard Madam Pince snap her book shut.
"You wouldn't do anything, Tres, not with Quidditch coming up the first week in November," Sirius said. Treasure raised an eyebrow, he was taking far to many liberties with her, perhaps she should have stayed mad at him longer.
"Try me," she said dangerously, and he decided not to, taking his arm away from around her shoulders. "What about you Lily? Laurel? What are you coming as?" Treasure asked. Lily looked thoughtful, but Laurel already knew her answer.
"A veela," she said. Treasure looked confused.
"But you already are a veela," she said.
Laurel shook her head, "No, I'm am only a quarter veela, and I don't wear the veela garb," she explained.
"What's the veela garb?" Remus asked interestedly.
"It's a surprise." Sirius wolf-whistled and James hooted but Laurel only gave a small smile, and remained unruffled. Now there's talent, Treasure thought.
"Lils?" Treasure asked.
"I have no bloody idea!" Lily answered frantically.
"I think you should come as…a siren. One of the tropical sirens, like the ones Odysseus studied…" Treasure suggested. Lily bit her lip thoughtfully.
"I agree," James said heartily and immediately.
"You only agree because the sirens didn't wear clothes, Prongs," Sirius said. Lily turned a delicate shade of pink, and her eyes flashed. Treasure bit back a laugh.
"Also true," James acknowledged, risking a wink in Lily's direction. Lily responded with the best impression of a basilisk that Treasure had ever seen, and James wisely turned back to Sirius. "That Odysseus was a wise wizard, mate. Imagine just deciding to go off to 'study' the sirens?"
"I'm sure he learned loads, Prongs," Sirius said sarcastically.
"Yeah," James responded dreamily. Treasure rolled her eyes.
"It's still two whole weeks away…" Laurel said, clearly oblivious to the current conversation and thinking instead of her "veela garb." The group was silent for a while, and turned around when they heard two more people walk into the library.
"A bloody dance. It's foolish," third year Regulus Black muttered. He was accompanied by Bellatrix, a fifth year, and Narcissa Black, in her seventh year.
"ITS NOT A BLOODY DANCE, IT'S A BALL!!!" everyone at the table, including the boys, all shouted.
"Good God, Reg, don't you know anything?" Sirius asked, a mocking smile on his lips. Treasure's neck prickled - she knew that Sirius wasn't on good terms with his family, which was made up of the oldest line of Purebloods in the wizarding world. They were nearly as narrow-minded as their family tree was famous, which was saying something. All the same, Treasure didn't want to be caught in the middle of a messy family feud - she didn't trust Regulus, but she liked the looks of Narcissa and Bellatrix Black even less. Regulus glared at his brother. Narcissa's eyes ticked over to Lily and Treasure, and finally to Laurel.
"What a mess Hogwarts is turning into. First it's the Mudbloods, then it's the Americans, and finally it's veelas? She's not even human!" Narcissa said nastily, nodding towards Laurel.
"What's next, werewolves? Vampires? Giants?" Bellatrix asked with just as much venom in her voice. Madam Pince said nothing, she didn't even look up from the book she was reading. Treasure couldn't help but notice how Remus stiffened when Eva said 'werewolves' or how Laurel grabbed his hand, or how James and Sirius and even Peter stiffened and all had the same looks of fury on their faces. Lily noticed it too.
"And what are you going to be for Halloween, Evans? Pureblood?" Narcissa asked, a cold smile twisting her pretty face. Bellatrix laughed cruelly as Lily blushed. Treasure stood up angrily. "It all depends on what you're gonna be, Cissy. Decent? Likeable?" Treasure sneered.
Bellatrix stepped forward. "You better watch that fat mouth of yours, Belle," she said dangerously.
Treasure rolled her eyes. "Or what, Black? We'll duel? Because you must know that if I crossed wands with your ugly hide, there wouldn't be enough of you left to make the mist in a Remembrall," she taunted.
"Big words, Belle. I wonder how long you'll be able to hide behind them," Bellatrix seethed.
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't you know? A change is coming - it's been a long time coming - and all you blood traitors are going to regret your treason. Stick close to your little Mudblood friend, Belle, she'll need all the help she can get!" There was something more than mere cruelty in Bellatrix Black's dark eyes. Treasure wanted to shudder, but repressed it.
"That's enough!" Lily said harshly, her face flushed and angry.
"Shut your mouth, Mudblood. I'd curse you even sooner than I would Belle!" Bellatrix said haughtily.
"I'd like to see you prove that," Sirius snapped, pulling out his wand. Treasure could hardly believe her ears, or eyes.
"Would you now, big cousin Sirius? Even though you know how very angry your Mummy would be?" Bellatrix simpered in a baby voice.
"Sirius, just what in the hell do you think you're doing?" Treasure snapped, also brandishing her wand and moving slightly in front of Lily. James stood up too; so did Laurel, and Remus.
"Aww, look, you're her knight. Mother would be so proud," Regulus leered sarcastically at his brother who, not to be upstaged, had placed himself in front of Treasure. Oh, of all the ridiculous acts of bravado... Treasure felt the color rise to her face, knowing that the Slytherin wouldn't waste any time spreading rumors. And the last thing that Treasure needed was more rumors.
But Regulus saw that he was vastly outnumbered and Narcissa put a calming white hand on her sister's shoulder. Apparently whatever threat was coming, it wasn't worth a detention in her book.
"This isn't over," Bellatrix said, glaring at Sirius and Treasure. Treasure raised her chin at Bellatrix and didn't say a word, but rather tried to perfect the look of utter boredom that Sirius was so adept at assuming.
"What was that all about?" Laurel asked, as the Slytherins left and a sense of fractured peace settled on the group once more.
"My family is barking mad, that's all," Sirius said angrily, and he remained moodily quiet for a long time. His disposition only improved when Treasure laid a companionate hand on his arm and tried to entice him back into the conversation. If Lily hadn't been so troubled about the prior interruption, she would have shot Treasure an irritatingly knowing look.
The group of seven sat back down and continued talking about the Ball as if nothing had happened, but the amiable and excited mood never returned precisely as it had been before.