Transformations and Transfiguration

By: Jasmine

Chapter 11

"Little Black Dress"

Lily woke the next morning to find two bespectacled hazel eyes staring into her own for the second time. She smiled softly, muttering, "Good morning." She giggled quietly, closing her eyes again. Just when she was comfortable enough again to fall asleep did she realize exactly where she was and whose eyes she'd been staring into. Her eyes snapped open and she jumped, hitting her head hard on James's chin. Both bellowed in pain, Lily rubbing her head, James his chin. "Merlin's beard, what happened!"

Just then, Jasmine came running toward them, waving her hands in their air vigorously. "Lily!" She yelled, falling to her knees and shaking Lily forcefully, not noticing that Lily was wide awake. Her eyes were very worried, as Lily had just noticed. "Lily, Lily! You've got to wake up. Jake's freaking out!" She stopped shaking Lily, her gray eyes staring into Lily's emerald ones. "He hasn't slept all night, looking for you because you never showed up again last night. If you don't get away from James, I think he's going to kill him!" She stood, dragging Lily behind her. "C'mon, we've got to get going and calm him down. He's worried sick."

Lily glanced back at James sympathetically, grimacing, before following Jasmine back into the castle. There they took countless secret passageways to avoid Jake and run up to the girls' dorms. Lily freshened herself up and the two girls ran down to breakfast, acting as normal as possible with their magenta cheeks and deep intakes of breath. Only then did Lily notice Sirius give Jasmine a kiss on her cheek before the two nonchalantly began eating. She smirked, forgetting about her own predicament, and said, "Are my eyes deceiving me or did I just see what I thought I saw?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Lily." said Jasmine quickly, waving her off without a glance, though her cheeks did glow a brighter red. Lily gazed on. "We've been going out for a while now, you should know that. Don't you remember when James set us up?" Lily nodded her head, her eyes telling a different story.

They finished breakfast in a hurry and dashed to the Common Room, caring not whom they knocked over or whether they should apologize. They were determined to get to class on time and avoid Jake, for Lily wasn't sure if she wanted to see him in his current state. They arrived just as the bell rang, taking their seats as the Potions master sniffed huffily, warning them not to be late to his class again in his raspy voice. They nodded, rolling their eyes behind his back.

Sirius took his usual spot next to James, who was suspiciously watching him from the moment they'd walked in. Jasmine followed, making Lily groan. She was about to take a seat next to Jasmine when she spotted Jake in the distance. She beamed and ran over, making James frown slightly. "Now, if we're all seated and ready..." The Potions master droned on, writing the directions on the board with an old piece of chalk, almost as yellow as his own teeth. The students cringed at the sound. "You have until the end of class. Begin."

At once all hands grabbed at their potions ingredients, some falling over in their haste. Lily and Jake worked together, Jake having a bit of trouble that Lily marvelously covered up for. The toughest part was not concocting the potion but hiding their whispers from the professor, whose prying eyes seemed to be on the whole class all at once. Only when completed were they informed of what potion they'd been working on. "A truth potion, this is, very strong, coming in second only to veritaserum. The only difference is the drinker is in full consciousness when answering, and it can be programmed, if you must, so the drinker answers only the questions of the one holding the cup within which the potion had just been." A shiver ran through the class, each wondering whom it would be tested on. The professor rubbed his hands together. "Without further ado, who would like to volunteer themselves as a tester?"

Lily looked around the class, wondering who would be insane enough to raise their hand. When none did, however, Lily let out a very audible snort, stopping short and squeaking when the Potions master wheeled around the face her. "Ms. Evans, is it?" He grinned his evil grin, rubbing his hands together once more as his eyes locked with hers. She whimpered as he poured a bit of her potion into a goblet, holding it out to her. "Drink."

Lily put her lips to the cup, tilting it just enough to give the impression that she'd drank out of it, but still able to keep from letting a drop slither down her throat. She wasn't very good at acting, though, because the professor grunted, making her jump and swallow a huge gulp. The second the liquid entered her mouth, she felt an odd short of burning and cooling sensation. Her tongue still felt alive, though she was unable to move it. "Professor? I don't think—"

"Silence." He halted, holding a hand out, his palm nearly hitting Lily in the face. "I shall be the one doing the talking, seeing as you cannot." He smirked again, his eyes now calculating his first question. "Let us start with simple questions to be sure the potion isn't faulty, for if it is, we will have to send you to the Hospital Wing for immediate attention." Lily's eyes widened, a worried expression lighting them up. "Your full name, if you please."

As if reciting a memorized statement, Lily tonelessly replied, "Lily Mary Evans." She gasped, throwing a hand over her mouth in shock. The rest of the class was quiet as death, most having never seen such a thing happen. "How—"

"Seems it isn't faulty after all. Good, good." the professor interrupted yet again, his voice louder. Lily frowned at the touch of bitterness about his tone. "Now, let's see if the strength is at the correct level. Time for a more personal question." His eyes gleamed as his malicious voice spoke up, "The Halloween Ball this coming up Friday. Who are you taking?"

"Jake." said Lily, sighing at sigh of relief.

The Potions master noticed her tension level lessen because he automatically inquired, "Whom do you wish to take, then?"

Lily's eyes widened again, her apprehension returning. "Ja—" The bell rang loudly, signaling the end of the class. It drowned out the rest of her response, fortunately. She quickly threw all her things back into her pack and swung it over her shoulder, rushing out of the classroom before he decided to ask her another question.

Lily was in a horrible fix. She'd looked up the potion and learned that it lasts for two hours. It hadn't been programmed so she'd answer only the one holding the goblet, so for the next two hours she would be forced to answer every and any question asked of her truthfully. Thus, she placed a strong silencing charm on herself, writing a note to Jasmine explaining her reasoning. Jasmine nodded, saying she'd take it off at around lunch time, which is probably when the charm would wear off. "Evil, he is." She'd said nastily, cringing her nose at the memory. Sirius, who hadn't left her side all day, nodded in agreement.

"I can still kiss you, though, right?" Jake said mischievously, his chocolate brown eyes glinting, as was his smirk. Lily grinned in return, tearing off a piece of parchment and scratching across it with her quill. She handed Jake the paper, who read it and quickly put an arm around Lily's waist, pulling her close. "Excellent." He then placed a sweet kiss on her lips, Lily returning it full blast. The paper fell to the ground, the word 'definitely' flashing, the ink still wet.

"Oh god." said Jasmine, shielding her eyes with a nearby book. "None of the mushy gushy stuff, I've told you two before!"

However, before she could say anymore, Sirius had wrapped his arms around Jasmine as well, his smirk making her thankful she had his arm's support because she would've fallen over. "Why not?" he said, kissing her passionately. Jasmine pulled away, giggling madly, though in a low tone. She pointed a finger at him before turning and strolling off without a word, her smile never leaving her face.

Lily and Jake had broken apart as well and were smiling at the pair of them incredulously. Lily shook her head before following her friend out, levitating their bags behind her. Sirius put an arm on Jake's shoulder, muttering, "Finally." His tone gave the impression that he'd been waiting for the moment he could do that without feeling the stabbing pain of a slap across his face. It felt very good.

Lily let out a long whistle, Jasmine having just removed the silencing charm. They'd forgotten about it all day, ironically, and they were sitting in their dorms after classes had finished, just before they made their way down to dinner. Jasmine chuckled softly. Lily turned to her trunk, heaving the top open with a creak. "Now, about what I'm going to wear tomorrow." She dug through the contents, her progression becoming more forceful with time until she turned to Jasmine without a worried look. "It's ruined!" She pulled out her silvery dress robes to reveal three thing, long scratches going across the front. "Ebony got to it!"

"Don't worry about it, Lils!" Jasmine calmed, taking the robes from her and folding them again, making sure the cuts were inside. Lily stared in disbelief. "It was just announced during lunch today. Tomorrow's dress code is muggle clothing. We're to wear muggle dresses." Lily, however, buried her face into the palms of her hands, plopping onto her four poster. "What?"

"That's even worse!" she cried, hugging a pillow tightly. Jasmine came and sat next to her. "How am I supposed to get a muggle dress by tomorrow? Things were supposed to go perfectly. This is horrible." She whined into the pillow, the rest of her words unable to be made out. Jasmine rubbed her back softly, opening her mouth to give Lily words of comfort, but Lily interrupted, "Let's just go down to dinner. I won't go to the dance tomorrow." Then, she left, giving Jasmine no time to say anything in return. She just groaned, rolling her eyes, before following her out.

Once downstairs she was met by a very disgruntled, yet still worried, Jake, who immediately questioned, "What's wrong with Lily? She just walked right past me." Jasmine put a hand up, walking away as well. Jake blew out a long breath before muttering, "Girls." and heading out to dinner as well.

The next day Lily spoke to no one purposely, and if asked a question, she'd snap back a curt answer. She was in an overall bad mood, feeling she'd been snatched of a great opportunity. Jasmine had finally told Jake what was the bother after he'd pestered her for the whole day, Sirius and James among the audience as well. "That's not so bad." Sirius said finally after a long pause.

"Oh, Sirius, you just don't get girls." Jasmine huffed, rolling her eyes. "She's been looking forward to this dance since before even you knew about it. She chose and bought that set of robes especially for that night, and when it was ruined, so were her hopes. Then, when she found out that she'd wasted her money on something that was to be used as a scratching post for her cat later on, it just made her mood reach an ultimate low. Get it now?" Sirius nodded, though his eyes told he was completely lost.

"Oh." said Jake and James in unison, each looking just as dumbfounded at Sirius. Jasmine sighed, rolling her eyes, and strode away to find Lily. Boys never get anything. she thought to herself exasperatedly. Stupid gits.

James threw his trusty invisibility cloak over his head that night, concealing himself from view. He checked his pockets one last time, feeling the bag of floo powder and the marauder's map. Once sure he had everything necessary, he made off to Hogsmeade, where he would take a fireplace to the Leaky Cauldron. From there he would make his way to the muggle part of London. He was praying that stores were open that late. "I feel like an idiot." he said to himself as he creaked open the portrait hole.

"Obviously." said a voice from behind, making James jump. How did someone see me! was the first thought that crossed his mind. I'm invisible! Then, spinning around to find the owner of the voice, he sighed, and even let out a quiet laugh. "Thought you'd go wandering about without your best mate, eh? Well, you thought wrong."

"Sirius." said James, half relieved and half unbelieving. "I'm not going out to wander. I'm going to London to get Evans a dress for tomorrow. I can't stand to see her looking so gray."

Sirius let out a bark of a laugh before blindly coming toward the sound of James's voice, feeling around for the invisibility cloak. He took hold of it and instantly pulled himself under as well. "Even better. Let's go, then." James shook his head, knowing there was no way of denying Sirius something. When he had his mind set to it, it would be done, as he'd proven countless times over.

Once in London, they inconspicuously removed the cloak, James pocketing it quickly, before the began running about, looking for any women's apparel shop. Only one was still open, and James had to sweet talk his way in for they were readying themselves for closure as well. Once inside, they went straight to the women's department, receiving odd glances as they set off to find the perfect dress. "What d'you think she'd like?" Sirius questioned, bemusedly picking out the most peculiar of dresses.

"Something simple, but still elegant." said James at once, not even looking up from the rack of dresses. Sirius stared before grinning and returning to their quest. Sirius asked a few more questions as to her size and such, James replying instantly as well. However, the best question asked by Sirius was how they were to pay for this. James finally looked up, this time worried. He reached into his pocket to reveal a handful of galleons. "Here. Take these and run over to Gringotts. Ask them to convert them into muggle money. They'll be grumpy, but demand it."

"Ok." said Sirius, wondering how on earth James knew they'd do it. He disappeared into the night, James still searching. A few times he'd wondered why he hadn't just brought a polyjuice potion and transformed Sirius into Lily for the time being, but resigned his thoughts, telling himself that one, he didn't have the time, and two, that would just be disturbing.

Sirius returned twenty minutes later. "Hurry, Prongs. I'm getting sleepy." he said hastily. James nodded, his eyebrows quirked. He wasn't about to find what he was looking for anytime soon unless he intervened.

Sirius rolled his eyes before running over to a stand nearby and pulling out a lonely dress, different from all the rest. He thought it reminded him slightly of Lily, her being the oddball but still able to fit in and conceal herself until needed most. He waved it in front of James's face, which lit up as he muttered, "Perfect."

A thin ray of sunlight shone through a magically clean window as James plopped onto a comfortable couch as Sirius wrapped the dress in a thin box, his skills surprising James as he watched. "There you are." said Sirius, cutting off extra bits of string as he put the finishing touches on, fluffing the small bow he'd tied on the corner. He reached out to the nearest table and picked on a quill, holding it out to James. "Sign it on and everything now." James bent low, writing on a small bit of parchment Sirius had cut out. He, however, was only able to scratch on the first two letters of his name down after the word 'From' because a rustling from the girls' dorm's staircase signaled the arrival of an unwanted guest. Sirius and James hurried under the invisibility cloak, standing very still in a corner.

Jasmine and Lily appeared at the bottom of the staircase, Lily playing with a loose strand of hair dejectedly. Jasmine, however, spotted the present, its bright red ribbon standing out compared to the white box. She strolled over, taking hold of the parchment. Then, she squealed, turning toward Lily. "Lils, it's for you!"

"What?" Lily said blankly, staring at the box. Jasmine thrust it at her, forcing her to open the box. As Lily removed the color, her dull green eyes shone with such exuberance James was sure he'd done the right thing. Lily let out a high pitched sound very unlike her own, taking the dress in her hands and hugging it dearly. "I wonder who got it for me." she marveled, her eyes glowing brightly.

Just as Lily voiced this thought, a deep voice called from the foot of the boys' dormitory staircase. "Good to see you're feeling better, Lily." Jake strode nearer, his chocolate eyes glinting. He stopped short, turning toward the corner, having heard an odd shuffling noise. James had sniffed disapprovingly as Jake made his way toward Lily.

Lily's eyes shone of comprehension. "Oh, Jake!" She cried, throwing her arms around him lovingly. Jake looked taken aback a moment before he set sight upon the little black dress clutched in Lily's fingers. "You're the sweetest." James sniffed more loudly, this time falling over, taking Sirius with him. They were still covered by the invisibility cloak, thankfully, but their feet had come into visibility for mere seconds. Jasmine spun her head around, opal hair flying, turning to see what had caused the sound. She'd seen the shoes but mistook it for a mind game.

"Anything for you, babe." said Jake smoothly, not a hint of apprehension crossing his expression. This made James lose his marbles, all his energy, and most of Sirius's, needed to keep himself from tackling Jake to the ground and hurting, with or without his wand, every bit of him he could reach. He'd risked his neck and time at Hogwarts to make Lily happy and wanted to see her brilliant pearly whites glistening in his own direction. He wanted to feel elated and finally win her over. He'd put hours of thought into his plan, putting care into every little detail down to the way his hair was set, just so it'd be satisfactory. James's anger had raised to an unbelievable height, his entire body shaking.

Jasmine and Lily dashed back up the stairs giggling, whispering something about Jasmine forcing Lily into trying the dress on. Once they were out of earshot and the loud echo of the door slamming had died down, James threw the cloak off him, his face barely inches away from Jake's. "Where'd you get the dress, mate?" he inquired, poking Jake's chest with an outstretched finger.

"Oh, you know. Just saw it in the window somewhere and thought it'd look great on my girlfriend." He replied calmly, no glance coming James's way. He'd stressed on the world 'girlfriend' purposely, making James swell in rage, his face glowing a vibrant crimson. He then raised his eyes, looking straight at James. "Of course, you wouldn't know about getting gifts for a girlfriend."

That last bit had stung a deep wound, as James demonstrated by nearly jumping at Jake, who not even flinched. Sirius grabbed hold of the back of James's shirt, keeping him from making the mistake of his life. "Watch it, mate. No need to be rude."

James pulled free of Sirius's grip, straightening his shirt, glowering at Jake. "Yeah, and don't you go telling me about not having any experience with girls." He paused, Jake's eyes showing no sign of hesitation. "I've had loads of experience in the past, if you must know."

"So nice of you to go boasting about again, Potter." said a cold voice. All three boys' heads spun around to find Lily and Jasmine standing at the foot of the stairs, both glaring at them. Lily was the first to advance, her eyes set on James. "Now, if you don't mind, Jake and I are leaving. It'd be nice if you didn't follow, because I'm in no mood to listen to you or have anything to do with you, for that matter." Lily grabbed Jake's hand and marched off, fuming, Jake staggering behind. Once he'd regained his posture, he turned for a split second, flashing a smirk at James.

James let out a long breath, dropping onto the couch, rubbing the back of his neck. Sirius sat as well, sympathetically grimacing at James. "She'll come round, mate, you know she will." James grunted, pushing into his eyes. He stared at the odd shapes and colors made when he pushed harder or softer. After a while, Sirius left, most likely with Jasmine, leaving James to dwell on his own thoughts miserably.

Well, there you go. Took me long enough, but I got it done amid all the tests and studying and such... Hope you guys like it. I've actually got a plot for this story and I've already started my next story. It's going to be a little more comedic than this. Anyway, review, everyone! And, just a little bit to expect in the next few chapters:

The scene from the fifth HP book (redone, of course, do fit the writing style and not have Harry in it)
- A huge revelation from James about Jasmine.
- A very Jake-free summer break for Lily, but that doesn't mean he isn't going to be mentioned.

That's about all. Hope you guys enjoy yourselves, and I'll try to have chapter 12 finished soon! I'm trying to write longer chapters now, though, so yeah... Well, REVIEW!

Please Review!