Thank you to all who reviewed the filler chapter! This chapter is loads better and I think well worth the wait. Some of you have guessed and some of you are correct. I'm not saying who is correct or what mystery you are correct on. All I am going to tell you is that everything will be revealed in time. As usual list of answers and comments to your questions and comments follows. Enjoy the chapter!
Do you update late in the night or is it just the time in my country? (from Liadan Sevenwaters) – I try and update in the afternoon on the days that I say I will update. Sometimes it varies because I get caught up in something else, I'm not always writing or working on the plot, haha. Real life is more important; I just have a passion for writing. It can also depend on when my beta's get back to me with their corrections. And then the site sometimes doesn't update until 24-hours after I post the chapter. But I found a trick. Sometimes it'll say that there is a new chapter but you go to the little dropdown menu of chapters and it's not there. But if you go to chapter 2 and then to the dropdown menu the new chapter should be there. Hope that helps!
Is the Challenge modeled after the Triwizard Tournament? (from Anon) – A little bit. It's kind of the same idea, but very different. Challenge has more competitors in groups instead of three solo competitors. And Challenge will have nine tasks, not three. Thanks for the chapter-ly reviews; they definitely help me to keep motivated. Glad my story could help you forget about your migraine! I get them too and I'm miserable with them, so I feel your pain.
Challenge
Chapter 8: Bubbling Jealousy
October came and with it came torrential rain and winds. The corridors and classrooms became so dark and drafty that extra torches and lanterns were lit and fires took up permanent residence in the grates. The rain lashing against the windows was so loud that Lily practically had to shout at the prefects to be heard. "Are there any problems that need to be brought to our attention?"
A blonde sixth year Ravenclaw raised her hand, "There's a portrait in our dormitory that has started yelling obscene comments whenever anyone—well girls pass it."
"What kinds of comments?" James asked curiously.
The girl blushed, "Their bra sizes." The other Prefects laughed.
"Correctly?" James asked with an impressed grin. Lily gave him a stern look. James cleared his throat, "We'll get Mr. Filch to take a look at it."
"There's something living in one of the walls of our second year boys dorm," a Slytherin fifth year boy with black spikes spoke up.
Lucius Malfoy turned to him, "Why wasn't I informed of this?"
"Because they're terrified of you?" Rachel offered dryly.
Lucius glared at her and the fifth year with black spikes spoke again, "I ran into one of them this morning when I was exiting the loo and he asked if I could bring it up at the next meeting," he replied and looked back at the Head Girl and Boy, "It's oozing under the walls and it smells awful."
Lily frowned, "It sounds like a Bundimun. We'll have Professor Kettleburn take a look at it." They boy with black spikes nodded. "Anything else?" No one spoke up.
"Okay," James said looking down at a piece of paper in front of him, "Next order of business is Hogsmeade weekends. The first weekend has been postponed…"
"Why?" A Slytherin 6th year asked rudely.
James looked at him then out the window and back again, "Have you looked outside lately? Rain, mud, flood. Get the picture?"
Lily fought back a laugh, "Professor McGonagall has assured us that when the weather clears she'll arrange for a Hogsmeade weekend. It's not safe to go down right now. Several stores have taken on water and are closed for repairs. Now, the last thing we want to discuss is Halloween."
James nodded, "Lily and I came up with a different idea this year as a treat of sorts for older students. We presented the idea to Dumbledore and he loved it."
He paused and Lily took over, "So, we're going to have the Halloween feast just like every year for all students. Afterward, all students from fourth year and up will be invited back into the Great Hall for a costume ball."
"A costume ball?" Penny repeated.
"Yes, you know, where you dress up to look like someone else and then dance with a date if you can get one," Rachel replied speaking like she would to someone who was incredibly dim. James snorted.
Penny's eyes narrowed, "I know what a costume ball is," she replied snidely.
Lily fought back a smile, "Okay. Dumbledore has left it up to us to plan. We need decorations, snacks, announcements, music, maybe a contest or two. The floor is yours for ideas," Lily told them.
By the end of an hour, Lily had several feet of parchment filled up with ideas to turn into Dumbledore to look over. She and James had listened through all the ideas the Prefects had come up with, nixing the overly complicated or inappropriate ones and keeping the good ones.
"Well, that went well," James said, flicking his wand at the chairs so that they rose in the air and settled on the desktops. "Better than I thought."
Lily nodded in agreement, "Yeah. I wasn't sure if the Slytherins were gonna go for the idea, but can't say I'm complaining at their cooperation. For once."
James laughed, "Well, it was a good idea that we had."
Lily grinned, "It was, wasn't it?" She shouldered her bag and waved her wand at the torches to extinguish them as James joined her at the door.
They started down the hall and James cleared his throat, "So, about the Hogsmeade weekend-"
"It's cancelled," Lily replied grinning.
'Brat,' James thought smirking at her. "I know, but I had been kind of planning on going there for our date," he said hesitantly.
"Well," Lily said slowly as they neared the unicorn statue, "There will be others," she smiled at him, "Lemon Drop," she said to the statue and entered the Heads common room.
James stared after her a moment. After she'd agreed to go out on a date with him, he couldn't figure out if the whole thing had been a dream. There were several times that he'd wanted to ask her why she'd finally agreed. Was it because she felt sorry for him? Was it because she thought if she finally agreed he would just leave her alone? He'd decided against asking her and making their date the best she had ever been on. He wanted one shot to sweep her off her feet and she'd finally given him his chance.
In Charms the following day, Flitwick had them working on Disillusionment Charms for the second half of the lesson.
"OW! Lil!" Rachel yelped when Lily rapped on Rachel's head a little too hard to make her reappear.
"Was that really necessary?" Rachel asked rubbing the top of her head, "You nearly knocked me out!"
"Quit your whining," Lily said preparing herself for Rachel to perform the charm on her.
"Is this safe?" Sirius asked waiting anxiously as Peter raised his hand to perform the charm on Sirius.
"Here goes," Peter said and rapped his hand hard on the top of Sirius' head. Sirius blended into the classroom wall for a second, returned to his solid self, and back again. This occurred several times before Professor Flitwick noticed.
"Finite!" he squeaked quickly and Sirius returned too normal. "Are you alright Mr. Black?" he asked.
Sirius shook his hair out of his eyes, "I think."
"Do you have all your body parts?" Professor Flitwick asked cautiously.
James blinked, "Pardon?"
"When the Disillusionment Charm is performed incorrectly, like it just was, there's always the small possibility the body part could have been compromised," Lily said.
Professor Flitwick beamed at her, "Five points to Gryffindor Miss Evans."
"Five points to Gryffindor Miss Evans," Bellatrix mocked in a horrible baby voice.
"I'm visualizing spellotape across your fat trap you call a mouth," Rachel mused aloud, and turned to look at Bellatrix over her shoulder, "It's quite entertaining not to mention effective. Want to see?" Rachel asked scornfully.
Bellatrix sneered at her reaching for her wand. "Miss Black. Miss Rabb. That'll be quite enough."
"Well, I don't see anything missing," James said as he and Remus looked Sirius over in case a body part had in fact gone missing.
Sirius' eyes widened with panic and he reached for the junction between his thighs and sighed in relief. James and Remus laughed, "All there mate?" James asked still laughing.
"Yes, and it's not funny," Sirius said glaring at the pair of them.
James considered this for a moment and then said, "Yeah, it is." He and Remus burst out laughing again.
Professor Flitwick began shouting their homework assignment over the din of students gathering their things and exiting the classroom. "Wouldn't want to lose that precious body part would you Sirius?" Rachel asked cheekily heading out of the room with Lily, Alyssa, and Izzy.
Sirius stared after her, "She is so hot," he said under his breath following the girls out of the classroom and down the hall. Andy made a face and cuffed Sirius on the back of the head.
James walked into lunch annoyed. He'd just told off a couple second year Slytherins for bullying a first year Hufflepuff. He was tired, irritable, and hungry, and the last thing he'd wanted to do before lunch was sound like his father.
He scanned the Gryffindor table for the other Marauders and spotted them almost immediately. What also caught his eye made him lose his appetite entirely.
Lily was sitting next to Pacey Adams and flirting. Flirting! He knew that smile that she was flashing him. He'd wanted that smile directed at him since first year. Pacey Adams was Hufflepuff Quidditch captain and very good looking. He was tall, slender and muscled, with a handsome face, longish dirty blonde hair, and dull green eyes. Lily Evans, his Lily Evans, was flirting with that pretty boy!
'His Lily Evans?' Where had that come from? She wasn't his! And if she ever heard him call her that now, she'd kick him to Timbuktu and back again. Not to mention cancel their date. But she was flirting with Pacey Adams!
"Potter!"
James groaned, "What now?" He thought back trying to remember if he'd done anything worth a detention in the last twelve hours.
"Potter!" McGonagall called again coming up on his left.
"Yes, Professor?" James replied trying not to sound annoyed.
She didn't look angry, much to James' relief, "I just wanted to let you know that the announcements for the Halloween Ball have been posted in all common rooms."
"Great," James said, "Thanks."
"Will you inform Miss Evans please?" McGonagall asked.
James nodded, trying to ignore the fact that Lily and Pacey were flirting only feet behind him, "Will do."
"Are you alright, Potter?"
"I'm fine," James said and turned to head over to lunch, hoping he could stomach at least a sandwich to get him through the rest of the day.
"Oh, and Potter," McGonagall called after him.
"Yes?" James asked turning around.
McGonagall walked up to him again, "I'm not sure if you're aware of this or not, but you and Miss Evans are to attend the costume ball, or any ball for that matter, together, as Head Boy and Girl."
James could have kissed her. McGonagall's words were music to his ears. He never thought that anything she had to say would provide such sweet music, but it had, right then.
He couldn't help the huge grin that spread across his lips, "Thank you!" he exclaimed and without another word sprinted toward the Gryffindor table leaving behind a very bewildered looking McGonagall staring after him.
James stopped several paces from where Lily was sitting talking with Pacey so that he could overhear part of their conversation.
"So, Lily?" Pacey started looking down at his hands. "I was wondering if anyone had asked you to the costume ball yet?"
Lily looked up at him in surprise, "How do you know about that?"
Pacey raised his eyebrows, "I had a free period before lunch and I saw the notice appear."
"Oh."
"So," Pacey pressed, "Has um anyone asked you yet?"
"Well, n—"
"She has a date, Adams," James replied striding over.
Lily and Pacey looked up at James in surprise. "Potter," Pacey said coolly.
Lily blinked up at James in shock, "I-I do?"
James nodded, "The Head Boy and Girl are expected to attend all events together, including balls. McGonagall's just told me."
"Oh," Lily said and turned to Pacey and smiled apologetically, "Looks like I'm taken." James couldn't help but smile at her words, "But I'll definitely save you a dance," she said putting her hand over his and flashing him a flirty smile. James' smile fell.
"I'll hold you to that," Pacey said, leaning over and kissing her cheek, "I'll see you later, Lily," he said getting up and heading back to the Hufflepuff table.
Lily turned to James, "Well, I bet the girls are going to be crushed when they learn you've been promised to me," Lily said with a teasing smile.
"Yeah," James said with a weak smile, "I'll see you in Transfiguration," he said and walked away toward Sirius, Remus, and Peter.
He threw himself down beside Remus and slapped a spoonful of Shepard's Pie onto his plate and dug in angrily. Remus, Sirius, and Peter stopped eating to watch James for a moment. James was too angry and dejected to notice.
Rachel crept down the girls' dormitory stairs. It was very late and everyone was in bed sleeping. She envied them. She'd gone to bed early in the hopes of catching a few more hours of sleep, only to toss and turn for nearly two hours because sleep wouldn't come. The common room had long since been deserted after people had given up on their last vestiges of homework.
Sirius stumbled down the boys' dormitory stairs, blinking to get his eyes to adjust to the darkness. He couldn't sleep and Peter's obnoxious snoring was not helping. He figured that if he could get away from Peter's snores he could actually get in a few hours of shuteye.
The common room was dark and clean, uncommon during the day. The usual bits of scratched out parchment, broken quills, and empty bottles of ink that usually littered the common room were cleared away. The fire had long since died and the house elves had probably extinguished the lamps when they'd come through to clean.
Rachel hit the bottom step at the same time Sirius did, and she turned for the corner table she'd been sitting at earlier doing homework. She didn't get very far because she collided with a body that was a lot taller than hers and much harder.
"AAH!" she yelped in surprise.
"AHH!" Sirius yelled in shock.
"SHH!" They chastised the other at the same time.
"You'll wake the whole house!" Rachel hissed.
"Me?" Sirius yelped hoarsely, "You yelled too—wait, what are you doing down here?" he asked, finally realizing that they were both in the common room at two in the morning.
Rachel's eyes narrowed. "Not that it's any of your business, but I couldn't sleep. I thought I'd finish up the reading for Potions."
Sirius made a face, "That'll definitely put you to sleep."
Rachel snorted and a giggle escaped her lips, "Yeah, my thoughts exactly," she said softly gazing up at him. He looked back at her. She shook her head slightly, "What're you doing down here?"
"Oh, uh—" Sirius said trying to remember why he had come down. His brain was having trouble functioning. Even without make-up and her hair all a mess from obvious tossing and turning, she looked beautiful and sexy as hell.
He also believed that the shirt she had on was entirely too small and her shorts, if one could call them that, were much too short and far too tight. Not that he was complaining, but they ought to be illegal. They were far too revealing and as loose as his pajama pants were, he was finding that they were getting far too tight. He hoped she wouldn't notice.
He wondered what Andy would think if he saw his sister wearing that. Then he realized that Andy probably wouldn't want to go rifling through his twin sister's knicker drawer. 'Dear God,' he thought. He would never look at her in her robes the same way without thinking about what she had on underneath. Silk, or maybe lace, or both…he realized Rachel was staring at him with her eyebrows raised.
Sirius cleared his throat, "Pete's snoring like a howitzer."
Rachel laughed. Sirius smiled. "Andy's complained about that over the holidays."
"It's pretty bad," Sirius confirmed.
A somewhat awkward silence followed. "Well, I think I'll head back to bed," Rachel finally broke it.
"Yeah," Sirius said looking at her, "G'night."
"Night," she said with a smile and turned to head back up the stairs.
"Wait," said Sirius suddenly and Rachel stopped. He walked to the table he'd seen her occupying earlier and retrieved her Potions book. "Here," he said walking back to her and holding the book out, "Just in case you still have trouble sleeping."
Rachel reached out for the book and their fingers brushed. Electricity surged through their veins and their eyes locked. "Thanks," she said softly and smiled at him.
"No problem," he replied just as quietly returning her smile.
She turned; the book tucked under one arm, and headed back up the stairs. He watched her go. 'Those shorts really were indecent.' If he thought he had trouble sleeping before, what was he going to do now, since he'd seen her in that?
Rachel closed the door behind her and leaned back against it, hugging the book to her chest. She and Sirius just had an entire conversation, a real conversation, without once getting in the other's face or calling each other names. It was actually the third conversation like that and she liked it and that scared her. It was late and they were both tired, yeah, that was probably why she was feeling like she was. Nothing more and nothing less.
Sirius walked to Potions the following morning with a bounce in his step. Surprising, considering he'd only managed a few hours of sleep on one of the lumpy common room couches. But he'd had an amazing midnight chat with Rachel, however short it had been; he'd enjoyed every minute of it. He felt like finally things were looking up for them. And he thought that maybe she'd agree to going to the costume ball with him as friends.
He rounded the corner and felt his smile slide off his face and his heart fall into his stomach. Rachel was leaning against a stone wall talking and giggling with Nathan Drew, a good-looking Raveclaw bloke.
Sirius couldn't believe his ears when he heard Nathan ask her to the Halloween ball and Rachel accept. He blinked. He couldn't believe it. He really thought they'd made some headway early that morning. 'But you never asked her. He got to her first. Fair and square,' a voice told him in the back of his head.
He was so angry he didn't respond when she'd said hi on their way into class. He didn't know who he was more angry with: Nathan for getting to her first, Rachel for agreeing to go with him to the dance, or himself for not asking her first.
"The Dark Lord will not be impressed by a ridiculous and pointless prank, where the embarrassment lasts for a few measly hours," Lucius growled at Rodolphus Lestrange and David Crabbe, both of whom recoiled under Lucius' glare.
"Of course you have nothing to worry about isn't that right, Lucius?" Bellatrix sneered.
Lucius shifted his icy glare to her, "And what does that mean?" he asked angrily.
"It means," Rodolphus replied snidely, "That you already have in with the Dark Lord. You don't have to work as hard as the rest of us."
Lucius jumped to his feet, his ice blue eyes flashing, "Just because my father is in the Dark Lord's inner circle, does not mean I am handed a spot without working for it."
Regulus snorted and rolled his eyes.
"Problem Black?" Lucius barked.
"No," Regulus replied coolly.
"I am working just as hard as the rest of you. Which is why we have to come up with something that will prove to the Dark Lord we are more than capable of taking on anything, any task, that he will give us."
"Then you should be opening your ears and shutting your mouth!" Bellatrix shrieked.
"Enough!" Narcissa snapped and everyone turned to look at her, "We aren't going to get anything done with all of you bickering like you are. The Dark Lord expects something good from us. Everyone has ideas to contribute. Hear them out and put them together in one plan and we'll be golden," she said regarding each member of the group with a silent cold glare.
"She has a point," Snape spoke up.
"Fine," Lucius said gruffly and turned to Bellatrix, "What did you have in mind?"
Okay, next chapter will have the costume ball among other stuff! Remember: If you read, please review, it only takes a second to let me know! Next update will be Wednesday! Thanks guys!