Disclaimer: Ask me no question's and I'll tell you no lies…(roughly speaking, I don't own HP, but let's not talk about it…)
A/N: Alas, I am going to update…that must be a new record…I deserve a cookie….(munches on chocolate chip cookie)…Thank you all for the grand total of four reviews. Disheartening, yes, but am I giving up? NEVER! ;)
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Chapter Eight: Have A Nice Day (Why? Because a date should be nice!)
: Attention Students:
This weekend will be a Hogsmeade weekend. It will only be open to third years and up, so please, to all the 1st and 2nd years, there is NO way you will be permitted to join, so please refrain from asking your Head of House for permission. Your efforts are futile.
All third years MUST have the permission form that was sent to them along with their letters on their person and signed by their parent or guardian. There will be NO exception, as stated above.
Thank You,
M. McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress and Gryffindor Head of house
Amaya stepped back from the billboard to allow the rest of the students that were clambering for a peek to get through. She walked over to where James, Remus, Sirius, and Lily were seated in their favourite armchairs beside of the fire and sat down.
"It says that this weekend is a Hogsmeade weekend. What's a Hogsmeade weekend?" she asked no one in particular. Sirius took it upon himself to answer.
"That, my lovely lady, is a field trip to the local wizarding village. It's the best thing this school gives us to do besides meal time."
Amaya smiled. "Oh, and what of other activities? Is this village better than those?" she asked, raising a playful brow to him.
Sirius' eye's grew wide. "Well…I….uh…." he stammered.
"That's what I thought. I mean, honestly, how could anything be better than flying?" Amaya said, sitting down in the seat that Sirius had saved for her and admiring his stricken expression.
Remus laughed. "In all seriousness, it's rather enjoyable. That's where I get my fix. Honeydukes is my heaven."
"Yes, and Zonko's Joke Shop. That's where we get our supplies." Sirius said, finally having regained his composure after Amaya's little tease.
"Not to mention that you can ask a girl and make it a date. There's this little tea shop…and all the couples go there….to, well, you know." James said, looking at Lily with an evil glint in his eye.
"Well, Mr. Potter. It seems that you know far too much about this tea shop for my liking. There'll be no time wasted there this trip." Lily said, earning a pout from James.
Amaya smiled and sat back in her chair, taking a deep relaxing breath. These past few weeks had been hectic on her. She had finally caught up with the rest of her classmates, thanks to all the late night tutoring sessions with Remus and Lily. She was very tired and had a good excuse. The bad part of her achievement, however, was that she had barely had any time to spend with Sirius. It seemed like every time he asked her to do something, she always had more and more work to do. She really hoped that he asked her to Hogsmeade with him. It would be the perfect opportunity to get their still new relationship back on track.
Her thoughts were broken as Remus suddenly stood up and stretched. "Well, I am going down to dinner. Are you lot coming?" he asked, receiving nods from all of them.
Sirius stood up and looked about the common room. "Where's Peter?" he asked.
Remus shook his head. "I don't know. I haven't been seeing him around outside of classes and out of the dorm's lately."
"Hmm." Sirius said, turning and offering Amaya a hand up.
James did the same to Lily. "You know, I could have sworn that I saw him in the library yesterday with Severus Snape. Can you believe that?"
Everyone stopped in their trek to the portrait hole and looked at James with wide eyes.
"I know. It's weird, huh?" he said.
Remus chuckled and patted his friend on the shoulder. "Yes. I find it very weird you being in the library for no apparent reason."
"As do we all." Sirius said, smiling at Amaya. Amaya had noticed in the 3 months that she had been at school here that the Marauders, as they liked to call themselves, rarely ever spent time in the school library. Well, except for Remus, but he was a lot different than the other two.
"What? Can't a guy want to learn something for a change?" James asked.
"James, all you have to do is tell us that Evan's sent you there to fetch a book. We'll understand." Sirius said, grinning at the girl in question who was trying to hide her smirk.
James face went red. "I..uh….well, it's not the only reason!" he said, feebly trying to defend himself. "I can read, you know, contrary to popular belief."
"Books on quidditch tactics don't count, I'm afraid." Amaya threw in. She found that it was rather fun giving the boys some hell when the hell so readily presented itself to be given.
"Oh, hardy har har. That was a good one. Now if you lot don't mind, I am hungry." James said, attempting to look mad and storming past the rest of them and out of the portrait hole. Everyone laughed at his retreating form and knew that James was most likely doing the same on the other side of the door. The good thing about being a marauder or a marauder's friend meant that you could really learn to appreciate a good mickey. Especially if you are the unfortunate soul receiving the harsh blows.
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The day of the Hogsmeade visit was upon them at last. Amaya had been asked by Sirius, James had asked Lily, and Remus was going with some mystery girl and refused to tell them who she was. He did, however, promise to tell them, or show them, rather, who it was when they all met up at the Three Broomsticks for butter beers before they headed back to the castle.
Amaya was nervous. Not that she had any reason to be. She had been dating Sirius for 2 months. The problem was that she had rarely saw him alone during those months and they were still getting to know each other.
She was pacing back and forth in her rooms wearing nothing but a towel when Lily walked in.
"What on earth are you doing? We're leaving in ten minutes and you aren't even dressed yet!" the red head demanded, her hand on her hip much the same as when she was chastising one of the boys.
Amaya gave her a pleading look. "I have nothing nice to wear!" she said, thumbing through her clothes again and throwing many of the items out of her trunk and onto the floor.
Lily smiled. "Don't worry, I went through the same thing. Here, I'll help you." she said, walking over to Amaya's trunk and looking into it. She grabbed out a black shirt and a pair of Capri pants. She then selected matching flip-flops and a jacket.
Amaya stared at her friend in indignation. "Lily, it's November! I can't wear that!" she said frantically, throwing more clothes out of the trunk.
"My dear, you are a witch and therefore know a proper warming spell, do you not?" Lily asked in amusement. Amaya just stood there for a minute, clearly dumbstruck.
"Oh my gosh, you're right! How could I do this without you, Lils?" she said, smiling and sitting down on the edge of the bed, finally able to relax.
Lily sat down next to her. "You couldn't." she said, hugging the exasperated girl. "But I would say that you had better hurry or my efforts will have been in vain."
Amaya hopped up off the bed and grabbed her clothes. She ran into the bathroom and got dressed quickly. She then performed a drying spell on her hair (taught to her by Lily) and did the fastest make-up job ever. When she walked out of the bathroom, Lily was no longer there. Amaya assumed that she had went down to meet James. So, grabbing her purse, she followed suit and went down the girls staircase and into the common room where her date would be waiting on her.
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"So, where do you want to go first?" Sirius asked Amaya as they made their way along the street in Hogsmeade.
Amaya stared at the many shops thoughtfully. She then spotted a shop called 'Honeydukes' that she'd heard Remus mention before. "Oh! Let's go there!" she said, grabbing his hand and leading to the door eagerly.
Sirius laughed and allowed himself to be tugged into the shop by the enthusiastic witch.
-The lady at the counter looked up at them and smiled when they entered. Upon looking around, Amaya noticed many people that she recognized from school standing around the shelves and holding bags full of candy. She made her way to the first shelf and stared wide-eyed at the many candies.
"Cockroach Clusters? Please tell me that those aren't real…" she asked, looking at him with a horrified expression.
He smiled. "A spell, my darling." he turned to another shelf. "Here, these have the same sort of enchantment on them only they are much more…friendly looking than those." he said, handing her a packet labelled 'Chocolate Frog'. She took it and put it into one of the small sacks that were provided above the shelves. She moved along to the next display. This time it was of a lolli-pop type thing. They were called 'Acid Pops' and she could only guess what they did. She passed them up and went along.
"Here. Why don't you let me get you a bunch of sweets that I think you will like and save us the trouble of having to see the pretty sick stuff?" Sirius asked her as she eyed the stand of 'Blood Flavoured Lolli-Pops' with trepidation.
"Thanks. I think if I saw anymore like this I might lose my appetite all together." se said, handing him her bag and standing by the wall, watching him go to various shelves through out the store and grab various sweets.
When he returned, the bag was nearly full to the brim. "Wow." she said. "I don't think I could possibly eat all that!"
He laughed. "Fine. We'll eat it together." he told her, offering her a roguish smile as they made their way to the register to pay.
---After they left the sweet shop, Sirius suggested that they go to the quidditch shop to look around some. He also mentioned needing to pick up some broom polish for James that he owed him as he used his last can for a prank on some Slytherin first years at the end of last school year. By the time they finished in there, it was past time to meet everyone at the Three Broomsticks, so they headed in that direction, hands entwined.
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"Come on, Lily! Are we going to spend all day in here?" James whined to his girlfriend who was currently sitting Indian style in the aisle of some book shop.
She finally shut her book and looked up at him. For the last hour or so she had been looking through all the books in the shop eager to find one to her liking. James had been patient…in the beginning. But now, he was growing very antsy and she didn't blame him one bit. If he had taken her to the quidditch shop and left her to her own devices for an hour while he looked at some broom or some equipment or something, she would be bored out of her mind.
"Oh, alright then. Let me just pay for these…"she said, picking up the three books that she had decided upon. James stopped her, however, and took the books from her arms.
"No, you go wait outside. I will get these for you." he said, motioning towards the door and sending her a look that said 'I'm not arguing about this'.
"If you're sure…" she said unsurely. She hated having other's buy things for her. It always made her feel so dependant.
"I'm positive, now go. I'll be out there in a minute, ok?"
She nodded at him and went outside. She saw a bench by the door so she sat down, taking a deep breath and looking at all the happy couples around her. She was very happy that she didn't have to spend yet another Hogsmeade trip on her own.
A few minutes later, James came out of the shop looking harassed. Lily jumped up and walked over to him.
"What's the matter?" she asked him cautiously, taking the bag from his hand and noticing that there were a few more additions to the books that she had picked out. "What're these other books?" she asked, peering through the bag.
James looked back at the shop only to see the old shop-witch waving at him animatedly through the window. "Nothing. They're nothing. Come on, I want to go to the quidditch shop before we have to meet the others." he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her down the street towards the other store.
Lily laughed, allowing herself to be dragged down the road. She had seen the old woman in the window and knew from experience that woman always got the guys that went into the shop to buy some extra worthless item. She would practically fling herself on them to the point that they will buy anything to get out of there. Lily would have really liked to see the expression on James Potter's face, though. Perhaps another trip to the book shop was in order during the next Hogsmeade visit.
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"Are you ready?" Remus asked his date, Michella Tomison, a fellow seventh year and Gryffindor.
Michella smiled politely and nodded. She had been looking forward to a date with the one and only Remus Lupin for a while now. It had come as quite a shock to her when he had asked her. She remembered it as though it were just yesterday…maybe that's because it was.
She had been sitting in the library doing her homework when he came over to her table…
:(flashback):
"Hey, uh, Michella." she'd heard a voice say. She was so distracted in her Charms essay that she didn't even look up to see who it was.
"Hey." she said, writing on furiously, her brow furrowed in concentration.
She heard him clear his throat. Thinking he was one of the stupid boys who normally tried to get her attention, she put her quill down and slammed her book shut.
"What the…."she began, but stopped as soon as she looked up and saw none other than Remus Lupin, the guy that she had had a crush on for the past 4 years. Her face was as red as a beat by now, she just knew, and it was suddenly getting very hot in the library. "Ssorry, Remus. I….uh, thought you were someone else." she managed, flashing him an apologetic smile.
His face relaxed and he smiled back at her. "I…uh, was wondering if you wanted to…take a walk with me. By the lake. If you're not that busy, that is."
She didn't know what in the world Remus Lupin would be asking her to take a walk with him for, but she wasn't about to pass up the chance. Shoving her books and long since forgotten essay in her bag, she stood up slowly. "Sure. Just let me drop these off at the tower, ok?" she said, slinging the bag over her shoulder.
"Alright. I'll walk with you."
As they made their way to the tower, there was a silence that Michella wished desperately that she could break, but was uncertain what to say to the infamous marauder.
After her things were dumped into the nearest sofa, they turned and headed out the portrait hole, their destination the Hogwarts grounds.
This time, the walk wasn't so quiet. Remus had taken it upon himself to talk about classes and his cousin from America, Amaya. Michella knew Amaya briefly from the dorm that she shared with her, but hadn't really said that much to her. She normally didn't talk to that many people because she liked to concentrate on her school work and couldn't afford any unneeded distractions. This year, however, she had begun to notice how odd she must seem to others and she had also begun longing for friends like the marauders. Especially Remus J. Lupin (she knew his middle initial as it was printed on his bag).
They barely noticed when they approached the lake. They were so lost in conversation, in fact, that they had barely even noticed when they finished their fourth lap around the large lake. The only thing that alerted them to the present time was the fact that it was growing darker out.
"Well," Remus said, his hands in his pockets shyly, "It's getting late out here and I haven't even asked you what I came to ask you."
Michella's heart leaped into her throat at that moment. In fact, she was sure that if she wasn't worried about making a complete fool of herself, she would have dropped over dead right there. "And that is…?" she asked him, her hands fumbling around in her own pockets.
"This weekend is a Hogsmeade weekend. I was sort of wondering if you wanted to come with me…as a date?" he said to her, looking into her eyes with an innocent expectancy.
She wanted to run, jump up and down, laugh, and cry all at the same time. However, that would fall under the category of 'making a fool of ones self', so she refrained. "Yes. I think I would like that, thanks." she finished lamely. Mentally she was kicking herself for being such a clueless git.
Remus, however, seemed not to notice, as he was now grinning from ear to ear. "Great. Then we'll meet in the common room before the carriages leave?" he asked her. She nodded, and the tow made their trek back up to the castle so as to not get caught outside by Filch.
:(End Flashback):
Now, here she was, with Remus, at the book shop, of all places, arm in arm with him and preparing to go meet all his friends, as his date of all things. Life was good.
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Amaya and Sirius walked into the Three Broomsticks and steered for a large table in the back. Taking a seat, they were only there for a minute or two when James and Lily entered, followed closely by Remus and his date, Michella Tomison.
After they all took a seat, Madam Rosmerta came over and took their order for drinks. While they were waiting, Remus took the time to introduce Michella to Amaya. Everyone else knew her briefly from attending school with her for the past 6 years.
"Nice to meet you." Amaya said politely, a little wary of the girl her cousin had chosen as a date. Not that she doubted the girl was nice, but she hadn't quite accepted the fact that Remus dated yet.
Michella was pretty, though, and it turned out that she had quite the sense of humour, as throughout the little meeting she was constantly joking with all the marauders and laughing at every joke they said. Amaya found herself liking the girl more and more as their visit lingered on, and by the time it was time to go back to school, she was very happy at Remus' choice in the girl.
--They all walked to the carriages together and chose to squeeze into one, opposed to one of the couples taking a separate one. They all were laughing and joking about various aspects of their trip.
Not a one noticed the jealous stares of a little rat from the carriage in front of them.