Chapter 13: I'm Not Dead Yet

"I think we ought to talk." I said plopping in the chair next to Wood's later that night.

"Yeah, you're right." Spencer Wood looked miserable.

"What's up? You look… well you aren't looking or acting up to par. Is everything okay?" I asked.

"Yes, everything except for you," Wood sure wasn't talkative this evening.

"Um, okay then. I have no idea what you're talking about. But let's look at this rationally. You can have any girl in the school, why me?" I looked closely at his handsome face.

"It's because I can have any other girl in the school. You could have any guy in the school. Most of them practically worship the ground you walk on, especially after today. You drive me absolutely crazy, but I get a strange feeling whenever I talk to you. It's weird, I know, but you're the only one I really do care about." Wood looked at me for the first time throughout the conversation. My stomach did a weird sort of flip as I made eye-contact. I quickly looked away.

"I don't know exactly what to say. I haven't been able to trust you fully all year. I've got to build up that trust before anything else. We're going to have to just be friends for a while." I stood up but before I walked away I turned and quickly kissed him again.

It was his turn to be completely shocked. I walked off to join the party that the Gryffindor students were having. Everyone was talking and laughing. It was agreed that I had definitely made history that day.

"See you're not dead," Greg said laughing.

"Yeah, I almost got barbequed though! I thought I was going to die at the beginning and then reflexes just kicked in I guess." I shrugged.

"Do I still get your broom?" Greg asked.

"I'm not dead yet!" I exclaimed. "I said you could have it when I died."

"Well get on with it then, that broom is going to be worth a lot of money!" Greg replied laughing.

"You'll only get it if you don't die before I do, keep that little fact in your mind," I went up to the dormitories and went to bed. It had been an exhausting day.

Chapter 14: The Prank of the Century

"Things have been so boring lately," I was sitting in the best chair in the Common Room. Ah, life was good, yet I was bored.

"You didn't already finish your homework!" Celeste exclaimed.

"I finished like an hour ago. It was a piece of crumpet." I said.

"Isn't the expression piece of cake?" Lauran asked from where she was sprawled across the floor doing homework.

"Whatever. I have to go do something. Wait, Celeste don't you have a date?" I grinned mischievously.

"Oh, crap, you're right. What time is it?" She threw her junk in her bag and dashed up the stairs to the dormitory.

"What are you thinking?" Lauran asked, eying me suspiciously.

"Why, whatever are you talking about? Oy, Wood, do you want to come to the library?" I shot him a look that clearly said 'you come or else'.

"Uh, sure, I need to look something up anyways," He followed me out of the portrait hole and down to the library, "What's this about?"

"Nothing," I said, "I just thought maybe you'd like to be in on the prank of the century!"

"What are you going to do?" Wood sounded immediately more cheerful about being here.

"Well," I whispered the plan to him.

"You wouldn't!" He said aghast.

"Want to bet?" I asked, "Let's go through the vent in the library. Operation tickle-Lily-pink has commenced." I pulled out a vial of liquid that I would put in her bath soap.

"Wouldn't it be better if we had the invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map?"

"No, what fun would that be?" I replied pushing open the door to the library. "Mother of Macaroni it's hot in this school!"

"No kidding." Wood said as we struggled to open the vent without alerting the librarian to our presence.

"Boost me up." I whispered to Wood. "I'll pull you up when I'm in."

"I'm not going in there!" Wood exclaimed.

"I'd never think that Spencer Wood was chicken!" I taunted.

"I'm not; I just don't want to get stuck."

"You won't get stuck because they keep this school so dang hot you'll be sweaty enough to slide through the vent anyway. Now get boosting!" I scrambled into the vent and then reached down to grab Wood and pull him up.

"This is such a bad idea." Wood groaned as we started through the vent system.

"It is not; it's brilliant!" I replied scooting through the vents. We followed the twists and turns until we got to the vent in the 2nd year Slytherin girls dormitory.

"I hope nobody's in here," I hissed, "That could be disastrous."

I pried open the vent and dropped into the room. "Stay there!" I called back up to Wood.

"Where else am I going to go?" He asked. I decided the question was rhetorical so I ignored it.

I quickly found Lily's trunk and opened it. It was the work of a moment to empty the vial into her soap and close the trunk up. But before I could get out of the dorm I heard the door knob turning. I dove under Lily's bed and prayed nobody would look at the vent.

"I need a shower. I'm going to grab my bath things and go get one. You stink, you should get one too!" Lily spoke to someone from up and to my left.

I watched Lily's feet cross to the trunk and I heard her digging around in it. Then she and the other girl left, presumably to go take a shower. Score one for Riley!

"Riley, they're gone," Wood called from the vent.

"I know. I have a pretty good view of the room from under the bed." I crawled out from under it. "Gross, I'm going to tell Dobby to clean under the beds next time I see him. Pull me up please." I reached up and grabbed Spencer's outstretched hands. He pulled me up into the vent.

"Which way now?" he asked me.

"Um, we go this way." There was a loud whirring sound. "What the heck was that?" I asked wide eyed.

"Oh, snap! I think the air conditioning just turned on!" Wood looked at me in horror as the rushing wind hit us at full speed.

We were swept down the duct as the air flowed through twists and turns. I realized we were going in the completely wrong direction. We neared a vent opening. I realized that unless the air shut off at that second we would go barreling out of the ventilation system. I peered out the slots in the vent to see where we would come out.

What I saw almost made me laugh, it was so ironic. Celeste and Colby were getting ready to kiss, closer, closer…

WHAM!

Wood and I hit the vent opening and went barreling out straight into Celeste and Colby.

I pulled myself out of the pile of people and said to Wood. "Next time you want to go into a ventilation system, do me a favor. DON'T!" I thought it was a good cover story.

"Next time you get the bright idea to pull that kind of a prank, do me a favor. Do it by yourself!" Wood said rather loudly as we walked down the hall back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

I didn't think Celeste and Colby would know who had run into them; we had vacated the room pretty quickly.

"Oh, come on. You know you love flying through ventilation systems as much as the next person. I'm sure it really swept you off your feet!" I said and Wood groaned.

"That was an awful joke," Wood complained loudly.

"I got a million more," I replied, "But you have to admit THAT was the prank of the century!"

Chapter 15: Luckiest Girl in the World

We were sitting in the Great Hall that night eating dinner when suddenly the room went silent. Then everyone started laughing.

"Riley Potter, what did you do to me?" Lily screamed, "I'm PINK all OVER!"

"Lily," I said turning on the bench to see her better, "next time you decide to turn yourself a color, don't chose pink. It's not your color. I think you're more of an autumn tone. And it completely clashes with your hair!"

"WHY YOU INSOLENT SPAWN OF SATAN!" Lily screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Why tickle me pink, little Lily has discovered insults. You do realize that you just called yourself 'spawn of Satan' since we're sisters and all that." I replied calmly.

"Wow, I thought it was funny that Mum turned Snape's hair pink. That's nothing compared to day glow Lily!" Wood was sobbing he was laughing so hard.

"Mother of Macaroni and all things Cheesy, your mum turned Snape's hair pink! I knew someone had! I'm coming for Christmas if you don't mind," I had completely forgotten about Lily.

"Sounds good to me," Wood replied between laughs.

"What is going on here?" Professor Delacour had come up behind the outraged Lily. "Miss Potter, why are you pink?"

"Ask the Spawn of Satan," Lily replied pointing at me.

"I can honestly say that I did NOT turn her pink. And Lily, must I explain this 'Spawn of Satan' thing to you again? You're really just insulting yourself since were twin sisters." I said in a patient tone.

"Miss Potter," Professor Delacour was addressing Lily, not me, "Did you see your sister turn you pink? No, then I believe you owe her an apology. You don't refuse to apologize do you? Yes, well then you get a week of detentions. Now go and turn yourself back to normal coloring!" Professor Delacour followed a pouting Lily out of the Great Hall.

"What do you mean you didn't turn her pink?" Wood asked, "I was there when you put the dye in her soap."

"I added the dye but I didn't turn her pink. She did that when she decided to wash using the soap full of dye. Detention anyone?" The entire table laughed. This would be the subject of gossip for weeks on end.

"We will be holding a Yule Ball for all students the day before we leave on Christmas Break. The Champions will be starting off the dancing. It is an old tradition. Riley, may I see you after class please? The rest of you are dismissed." Professor Delacour had been talking a lot this period and I only heard 'Riley may I see you after class please?' Oops.

"Yes Professor?" I walked up to Delacour's desk pretending that I knew exactly what was going on in class today.

"At the Yule Ball the Champions will be starting off the dancing which, of course, means you must have a date. I suggest you don't put it off until the last minute. We wouldn't want you to have to dance with an old broom!" Professor Delacour chuckled at her own joke.

"Oh, no do I have to go Professor, you see me and the School Balls don't go that well together. Well, you remember last year, not that pretty of a memory." I pleaded with the Professor.

"I'm sorry but you must go. There is no way out of it. I will have to insist. These School Balls are meant to be fun. You'll be fine. You may go now." Professor Delacour's tone was final so I left the room.

"What a load of fun this is going to be," I said sarcastically to myself as I went to charms, "I almost get killed and I have to go to a Ball. I must be the luckiest girl in the world."

Chapter 16: The Storm before the Calm

"Who are you going with to the Yule Ball?" Celeste asked me for about the millionth time.

"I don't know," she got the same answer as always.

"But you have to ask someone, the Ball is tonight!" Celeste sat in out Dormitory doing God knows what with her hair.

"You look like a flipping peacock!" I exclaimed, "What the Hell are you trying to do to your hair?"

"I'm curling it if you must know," Celeste replied a little angrily.

"Why? You just spent an hour straightening it!" I rolled my eyes, "I'm off to find a date. I suggest you don't fry your hair too much longer. I think it's starting to smell singed."

"What's that nasty smell?" Lauran asked as she emerged from the bathroom. "It smells like burnt hair."

"I told you!" I exclaimed as I pulled the door shut behind me.

I went down the stairs and into the Common Room. I spotted a group of 1st and 2nd year guys over in the corner talking and laughing. I made my way over to them.

"Riley, what do you think Celeste wants for Christmas?" Colby asked as I sat down.

"Buy her some perfume; she's going to smell like singed hair for weeks," I replied to uproarious laughter, "Which of you don't have a date to the Ball tonight?"

"We all do except for Greg," Dean shoved Greg playfully.

"Great, I'll see you at 5 'o'clock right here," I didn't even bother to ask if he wanted to go with me.

"You're getting a little bit of an inflated head," Greg replied, "What if I don't want to go with you?"

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," I replied roughly.

"I'll see you at five," he said hastily.

"Awesome, uh, any of you got a nose plug? It really stinks up in the girls Dorms." I made a disgusted face.

"No, did the house elves not clean again?" Wood asked.

"Worse, instead of being the calm before the storm it's the storm before the calm in the girl's dorms. They're all spraying perfume like there's no tomorrow. Not to mention all the singed hair and hair spray. It's not a pretty smell!"

I walked out of their little group to go see if I had to get ready yet. Believe me, Celeste would inform me that I stank- not all of the perfume and that junk- and that I had to get a shower and start getting ready or I'd never be done in time. I prepared for the combinations of perfumes such as Ode De La Violet to hit me full on as Ode De La Make Me Cough up a Lung.

"So who are you going to the Ball with?" Celeste asked calmly from her post in front of the mirror.

"Your brother," I replied shrugging.

"WHAT!" Celeste spun around to face me and instantly burned her hand on the curling iron.

"I'm going to the Yule Ball with Greg," I said slowly.

"FINE, but go take a shower, you stink. And start getting ready for the Ball or you'll never be done in time!" Celeste shoved me into the bathroom and shut the door behind me. Did I know this girl or what?

AN: Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in a while, I;ve been in Indy and Atlanta and at school for weeks on end, or so it seems! I felt bad about leaving you hanging so I decided to give youFOUR whole chapters! yay! Oh, and my sincere thanks to Authoressinhiding, I think you're really going to like the next book! Enjoy your little time before Thanksgiving! Love From, MotherCrumpet