Summary: It all started with a simple love letter, for James Potter, from a lovely admirer. Love letters led to friendships; friendships led to confusion; and finally confusion, slowly led to love. With just three meaningful words, it brought joy to young Potter's heart: Love, An Admirer.

Disclaimer: Anything familiar isn't mine, and unfortunately belongs to the oh-so-brilliant JK Rowling, whom I salute to. Creations of mine are : Piper Valentine, Fiona Caldwell, Jemima Richards, Carissa Andrews, Emily Hart, Dennis Front, Walter Reese, Winston Reese, Marie Lodge, Yvonne West, Gerald Wills, Kurt Randall, Isabelle Frall, and the Fairy and the portrait society.

Reminder: Full italics are flashbacks.

Love, An Admirer

Chapter 16: Bona Fide Rarity

Lily was fidgeting in her seat. She couldn't sit still, and she didn't like it one bit. The Hogwarts Clock Tower chimed and she turned her head to sneak a glance at the time. She bit her lip nervously, wondering why time was passing so slowly. The crowd next to her erupted in laughter, and not wanting to feel left out, she laughed along - not very convincingly, if you ask me.

She was in a world of her own, and did not seem to be aware of her surroundings. For one, Sirius and Jemima had mysteriously disappeared ever since the outburst that caused a ruckus quite a while ago. It had even reached the point where Peter Pettigrew piped, "Maybe Sirius apparated and Jemima wanted to track him down to circumcise him!" which resulted a very haughty Emily to fire back, "How many times must I remind everyone to read 'Hogwarts, A History'!"

Secondly, the teachers – who weren't exactly old and grey as predicted by Amos – had begun filing into the hall to catch up with old students to find out who's-doing-what and who-ended-up-with-who. Professor Flitwick hadn't grown an inch – this time, pointed out by Dennis Front. Madam Hooch was still a hardcore Chudley Channons fan, through and through – which disappointed Gerald Wills.

Everyone was equally excited to see Professor Dumbledore again, and speech bubbles like "I wonder whether his beard is another shade of grey this year" and "What do you think he's giving us? Graduates last year were given free trips to France!" floated around the hall.

'What's clouding your mind, Lily?' said a voice from behind.

Lily was shaken from her reverie and whipped her head around instantly. Her eyes began to twinkle and she squealed, 'Remmy!'. She engulfed the pale man in a warm hug and ushered him to sit in the empty seat on her right. Sandy-haired Remus Lupin did not hesitate to do so.

She observed one of her most cherished friends and smiled fondly. Remus was the one who calmed her nerves when rumors were spreading that James Potter was seen canoodling with Regina Brown. Remus was the one who helped Lily pick out the perfect Christmas gift for James in seventh year. Remus was also the one who led James to Lily on the night of the Yule Ball in sixth year, too, ironically. (James gave this piece of information, of course)

'It was the time of the month last week... How are you, Remus?' Lily looked at Remus, her eyes filled with concern.

Remus played with his food. 'It was alright, I guess,' he said quietly. 'I'm pretty used to it by now, Lily. No need for your concern,' Remus managed cheerfully. 'Besides, I'm still taking the potion Professor Dumbledore prescribed to me when we left Hogwarts. It's a little heavy on the galleon pouch, but it's all worth it. I'd mix my own, but you of all people should know for a fact that I didn't exactly ace Potions,' Remus said nervously.

'Do I?' Lily teased.

Seventeen-year-old Remus Lupin bit his lip in confusion, not knowing what to do. Beads of perspiration formed on his forehead and were trickling down his face. He was currently mixing a potion, which was going to determine his NEWTs grade. His absence due to his "frequent visits to his mother" resulted in him knowing absolutely nothing about the Wibbygib Potion they were asked to prepare.

He turned to his right, and saw the confident Lily Evans cutting her ingredients carefully and casually mixing the juice in the bubbling cauldron. On his far left, however, Remus saw James and Sirius deep in concentration – a first - as they had made it a point to pay attention. The failures of this potion could cost their NEWT grade, and they were keen on becoming aurors.

The preparation of a Wibbygib Potion wasn't easy – in fact, in involved the most trivial steps. If any unnecessary ingredient was added – an extra dragonfly wing for example – it could backfire immediately. Even the mixing procedures were crucial, and one extra clockwise turn could ruin everything. Remus was carefully reading his textbook, but the tips provided didn't help the slightest bit.

'Lily,' Remus whispered, 'How many hooves do I add?'

'Well in order for it to turn –' But before Lily could reveal the desiered amount, Professor Kirnoff cut them off.

'MS EVANS! I would classify whispering as cheating. Since you are a grade A student, I would pass this off, but ten points off Gryffindor for attempting. Get back to your work, Mr Lupin,' Professor Kirnoff barked.

Lily bit her lip, and mumbled, 'Sorry, professor,' and mouthed an apology to Remus, knowing all too well of his "condition".

Remus mumbled a reply, but sighed in frustration. Pushing his luck, he turned to his left to seek the one half of the Marauders' help.

'James,' he whispered. 'Padfoot!' he tried again. They were too far away to hear his plea. The cauldron on his immediate left, however, unfortunately belonged to greasy Severus Snape.

'What's the matter, Lupin?' sneered Severus. 'Found yourself in a pickle?' He cackled.

Remus ignored his taunts and concentrated on scraping a pass for Potions. He had no idea what he was doing, and by this rate, he was probably going to fail. Just as he was wallowing in his misery, Professor Kirnoff, their Potions Master, was doing his rounds and was a cauldron away.

'Ah, Mr Snape. Your potion's very impressive. You have truly outdone yourself – no one else would have thought of using an octopus' brain. You are without a doubt getting an A on this one,' Professor Kirnoff praised. He moved on to Remus' cauldron. 'Well, well well, Mr Lupin. It seems as if you're having trouble with this task?' he asked. 'Your presence in this class alone surprises me,' he continued, and began inspecting Lily's concoction.

Thinking he was bound to lose anyway, Remus did the irrational – he dumped all the ingredients into the cauldron without skinning the rabbit's foot, washing the snake's tail or cutting up the cypress roots. Ever so slowly, the mixture began bubbling angrily and spitting hot foam everywhere. The cauldron was shaking vigorously, and Remus gulped, wondering what apocalypse he had just unleashed.

Professor Kirnoff from the other side of the room glided all the way to Remus' cauldron and shouted, 'EVERYONE EVACUTE THE DUNGEONS, IMMEDIATELY! I REPEAT, LEAVE YOUR CAULDRONS AND EVACUATE THE DUNGEONS, IMMEDIATELY!'

The uproar in the dungeons was deafening as girls began screaming. Everyone began filing out of the dungeons, pushing anyone in their way. Remus turned a shade paler and began apologizing profusely at the Potions Master, while he was relentlessly shouting jinxes to put out the mess Remus had created.

'OUT, LUPIN! OUT! I WILL HANDLE THIS!' Professor Kirnoff barked, pushing Remus out of the way. 'NOW GET OUT BEFORE I REMOVE 100 POINTS FROM GRYFFINDOR!'

Not wanting to upset the Potions Master, Remus left the dungeons immediately, regretting what he had done. Seconds after he left, Remus heard a loud explosion and his eyes widened. A few moments later, he heard ka-PLAT and he shut his eyes tight.

The door swung open, and the whole class stepped back, leaving a defenseless Remus in the front-line. He gulped, and prepared himself for what was to come. Out stepped Professor Kirnoff, drenched in green slim from head to toe.

'You,' Professor Krinoff sneered, through gritted teeth. He pointed at Remus with a slime-coated finger. 'Headmaster's office – NOW.'

'I'd just like to apologise, Professor, I didn't mean to –'

'NOW!' Professor Kirnoff boomed.

Remus hung his head and proceeded to Professor Dumbledore's office and the class cheered, thinking it was some sort of prank but they were soon silenced by Professor Kirnoff upon the threat of removing five points off every student, regardless of the house.

'I can still smell the slime from the dungeons, Remmy!' Lily laughed. 'I still can't believe you mixed all the ingredients at once, without even preparing them!'

'I was desperate, Lily,' Remus said, sheepishly. 'And you know I'm hopeless in Potions. I was surprised myself when I passed my OWLs.'

Lily couldn't help but contain her grin. Everything was coming back; stories were being retold, experiences were being shared again, and flashbacks were occurring ever so frequently.

'Anyway, Lils. I promised I'd help Peter with... stuff... so I'll see you later, okay? Say hi to your family... and James,' Remus finished, with a smirk.

'REMUS!' Lily squealed. Before she could say anything else, he had disappeared, and Lily was left all alone, once again.She turned her head to catch a glimpse of the clock. Her heightened anticipation was replaced with content when she realized that both the minute and hour hands were pointing at 6.

In exactly thirty minutes, Lily was going to the Hidden Room for the first time in six years. She was going to see James for the first time in four months – too long a time to be separated from a lover. It had been too long since he had twirled her loose strands of hair. It had been too long since he had given her butterfly kisses. It had been too long since she had felt warm and secure in his warm embrace. It had been too long since she had felt his touch.

Not wanting to be over-excited, she sipped her goblet of pumpkin juice, and neatly dabbed the corners of her mouth with her napkin. She turned to her left and was about to ask Jemima when the Ball was going to start and was surprised to see her empty seat. Lily tapped Fiona, who was sitting across her, on her shoulder and whispered, 'Hey, have you seen Jem?'

Fiona creased her eyebrows and replied, 'Come to think of it...' She took a look around the hall and continued, 'I haven't. Pity Sirius, though. She was last seen storming out of the hall, looking ready to skin him alive. Did you see the shade of her hair? It was as if she was a leprecauhn, or something. For all we know, she might be drowning him in the lake or something, teehee. Remember the last time that happened?'

Lily giggled remembering what had happened the night Sirius enchanted Jemima's skin to glow bright pink whenever Sirius was around to "prove that Jemima had the hots for Sirius Black".

The birds were chirping, the sun was smiling, and the clouds were rolling; it was definitely a perfect day for a stroll on the Hogwarts' Grounds. Lily, Jemima and Fiona thought fresh air would help circulate their blood flow ever since they witnessed the horrifyingly graphic image of Severus Snape in boxers.

Fiona hugged herself tightly, shivering, and began mumbling to herself.

Jemima stared at her and said, 'Are you chilly? The last time I checked, the sun was scorching!'

'It's not the weather, Jem, it's the image of Snape stripped to his boxers!' Fiona cried.

Jemima groaned and buried her face in her hands and Lily laughed out heartily.

'I was lucky enough to have been in the infirmary. The nasty headache wasn't a curse, after all!' Lily bellowed.

Jemima tried to bite back her smile but whispered, 'You have to admit, Fi, it was funny.'

Fiona glared at both Lily and Jemima and quipped, 'Yea, funny in a sick and twisted way!'

They had stopped by the lake and sat on the soft grass, the wind blowing in their hair. Lily and Jemima continued laughing and saw a figure running towards them from a distance. It was unmistakably –

'Black,' Jemima gritted.

'Oh come on, Jem. Remus is off sick, Peter has detention, and James is at the pitch. What's wrong if he wants our company?' Lily reasoned.

Jemima folded her arms and continued to mutter to herself.

Sirius Black halted and rested his palms on his knees and slouched. 'Been looking for you everywhere, Jem, my love! Couldn't stay away from you,' Sirius finished with a wink.

Jemima groaned in frustration and pushed Sirius to Lily. 'You deal with him, Lils.'

Lily rolled her eyes at the grinning Sirius and continued. 'Anyway, as I was saying, I was thinking of applying for a job at the Prophet after we leave because you know –' And suddenly, Lily stopped mid-sentence. She stared at Jemima and inched closer towards her to get a better view of what seemed to be puzzling her.

'I know I have freckles, Lily, you don't have to point it out,' Jemima rolled her eyes and continued skipping pebbles on the lake.

'T-that's not it, Jem... You're turning pink!' Lily said, not knowing whether to phrase it as a question or a statement.

Jemima looked at her weirdly and retorted, 'The last time I blushed was in second year when Professor Dumbledore announced out loud in breakfast that my mum requested my presence at home immediately. You for one know that I don't blush.'

'N-no, Jem!' Fiona sputtered. 'You're not blushing... you're turning into the ungodly shade of pink again!'

Jemima narrowed her eyes at them and scowled at Sirius who seemed to be drowning in a giggle of fits. She muttered a spell, which conjured a mirror and looked into it and did not like what she saw. Instead of her milky pale skin, she was –

'I'm PINK AGAIN!' Jemima screeched. 'And it's even WORSE. I'm sun burnt pink – I'm paper hearts pink! Piglet pink! GIRLY PINK!' She let out a bloodcurdling scream and the lake rippled. Jemima began touching her cheeks wondering whether the face cream she applied earlier this morning had expired.

Sirius smirked and commented, 'My patience has finally paid off – you DO fancy me!'

Jemima glared at him, but the look of horror returned to her eyes. 'This isn't funny, Black!' she spat. 'It isn't normal for people to turn pink!

Fiona looked from Sirius to Jemima and back again, and suddenly came up with the most ludicrous observation. 'This may sound silly, Jem, but this is the fifth time you're turning pink today, and it's usually when Sirius is around...'

Sirius immediately stopped laughing.

'Are you trying to imply that I like Black?' Jemima retorted, her hands on her hips.

'No, not really,' Fiona seemed in deep thought. 'It's just that, you turned pink at breakfast when Sirius took a seat across from you. And then, you turned pink again during Potions when he sat next to you. The third time you turned pink, you were nearly strangling him for stealing your treacle tart. Can you see where I'm heading?'

'Yeah, the loony bin!' Jemima replied sarcastically.

Lily began observing them and said, 'Fiona is right you know...'

Fiona rolled her eyes. 'I may not be the brightest of you lot, but I'm definitely observant and –'

Fiona was cut off by giggles coming from the most unbelievable source – Sirius Black.

'What are you laughing about, you prat?' Jemima demanded.

'N-nothing,' Sirius managed.

Jemima turned to face him and her eyes turned to slits. She started edging closer towards him.

'Don't make me scratch your eyes out, Black,' Jemima threatened.

Sirius looked horrified for a second, but visibly relaxed. 'I-It's just that... Well, I've been waiting for you to figure it out...'

'Figure what out?' Jemima asked.

'You know, why you're turning pink all the time...' Sirius said. 'Around me,' he managed to finish.

Jemima cornered him at a tree and scowled, 'YOU DO HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS,' Jemima fumed. 'Now my offer still stands – do I have to gouge your eyes out, or do you tell me what the HELL is going on?'

'Well, I thought it'd be funny, to, you know...' Sirius took in a deep breath. 'Makeyourturnpinkaroundmetoconvinceyouthatyoudohaveextrafeelingsforme!' Sirius blurted out.

As soon as Jemima was able to make out the incoherent phrase Sirius had said, her eyes widened and before you could even say 'Ancient Runes!' Jemima was dragging Sirius by the ear towards the lake.

'Ow ow ow ow ow!' Sirius wailed.

Once they were at the edge of the lake, Jemima abruptly came to a stop. 'Do you know how embarrassing it was for me to speak to Russell Isaacs without realizing OOPS I've turned pink!' she hissed. 'He was THIS close to inviting me to Hogsmeade!'

At the mention of Russell, Sirius bolted upright and said, 'Now look, I'm supposed to take you to Hogsmeade!'

'SHUT UP, BLACK,' Jemima demanded.

Sirius cowered and mumbled to himself.

Jemima was about to release her clutch of his collar, but tightened her grip. 'What did you say, Black?'

Sirius smiled sheepishly and said, 'At least now I'll have you all to myself.'

'ARGH!' Jemima screamed in frustration, and began drowning Sirius' head underwater as bubbles resurfaced.

Lily and Fiona tried helplessly to save Sirius from dying but nothing stood in between Jemima and redemption.

'...oh and did you remember when Sirius faked his death!' Fiona began laughing hysterically.

No noise escaped Lily's lips but she was clutching her stomach and her face turned red. 'Well, obviously! I can still vividly remember how white Jemima's face was when she thought Sirius really drowned.'

'If I'm not mistaken, Jemima was even prepared to resuscitate him. And just as she was leaning in to give him CPR, he seized the opportunity to kiss her!' Fiona erupted in laughter.

'Ahhh... I can still picture Sirius choking when Jemima began strangling him,' Lily wiped her eyes dry. 'Good times, good times.'

Fiona smiled wryly and said, 'Has it really been that long, Lils?'

'I'm afraid so, Fi,' Lily smiled faintly. 'It's amazing how these memories are still fresh in mind. I can still remember the time...' Lily's eyes widened. 'TIME!' She looked around frantically and asked, 'What time is it, Fi?'

'It's only a quarter to seven. The ball doesn't start in another hour!' Fiona responded.

'Oh crimeney, I'm late!' Lily wailed.

'Ohh... It's the meeting with loverboy, isn't it?' Fiona nudged Lily, winking. 'I haven't seen him in ages, you'd better go then, pet! Wouldn't want to be late, now would you?'

Lily blushed and grabbed her purse. She rushed to the dormitories prepared specially for the Headmaster's honored guests and hastily changed into the gown she had worn seven years ago to a night similar to this. It was remarkable how magic and pins helped her squeeze in and yet she still managed to look fabulous.

She waved her wand and make-up began applying itself and with another twirl of the magic stick, her hair was setting itself to a pretty little bun on the top of her hand, and wisps of hair magically fell into place. She glanced at the clock in the dormitory and cursed inwardly. It was already 7 and she wasn't ready.

Just as she was ready to leave the room, she dived into her suitcase to locate the engagement ring James had given to her and carefully slipped it onto her ring finger and kissed the gemstone crowned on it. Lily carefully picked up her dress, and ran as fast as her tiny feet could take her. For a moment, Lily felt as if she was Cinderella, but instead of running away from her Prince Charming, she was running into his open arms.

Author's Note: As promised, a new chapter! The title of this chapter has nothing to do with the content – in fact, it's a line from one of my favourite Incubus songs – Southern Girl. I had no clue what to put, so yea, go figure. :p I didn't get that many reviews for the previous chapter, and I really don't blame any of you. :p It was my fault after all for being gone for a very long time, heh. I just hope this time, many of you do leave a review, because it is your encouraging comments that keep me writing. I know James isn't here, and there's even more Sirius/Jemima, but everything else will be in the next chapter. Even the Remus bit was last minute, seeing how I promised to mention him in this chapter.

Depending on how things go, I might finally introduce James in the next chapter, or I might elaborate more on Remus. I think Sirius/Jemima has hogged the limelight for quite some time. What do you think? If you have any requests, do not hesitate to include them in your reviews, and I shall try my best to answer every one of them.

Do point out any grammatical/spelling/technical errors if you spot any, as I don't have enough time to proofread this.

Also, happy fasting to all the Muslims in this holy month of Ramadhan around the world:)

Much love,

Amirah.

Thanks to: Iona, LilMzHeartbreaker, alie, FuNnY cIdE, mystikalolo, june, JillZee, WhiteLiliesWithAScar, starlover88 and anonymous.

PS: I just noticed the Harry/James error in Chapter 15. Silly me:P