Disclaimer: Anything relating to the Harry Potter stories belongs to J. K. Rowling. She can have my characters and ideas as well.

CHAPTER 6

Nina looked down and saw two tiny arms around her waist. What the heck, she thought. A squeal of a giggle then followed and Nina knew who it was. She removed the arms from her waist and turned around.

"Hey, Leena." She said. Leena was smiling so widely Nina was afraid her cheeks were going to pop.

"Hi, Nina! Did I scare you?" she giggled, "I saw you come in but you didn't look up."

"Oh, I must've been thinking about something." She said distractedly. "So, what's up? How are your classes going? Do you like them?"

"Yeah! They're great! I'm having fun here. The only thing I don't like is that I don't get to see Sara or you guys that much. You guys are too busy for me." she said with a mock puppy face frown.

"Aww, don't say that." Nina felt bad for forgetting about her. "I guess we just have a lot of work to do this year, you know?"

"Yeah, I guess." she said shrugging her shoulders, and then she took a small package out of her pocket, "Oh, can you please give this to Sara? I found it in my trunk. I think it's a pair of earrings or something that accidentally got mixed up with my stuff." She handed it to Nina. Nina took it not sure of how exactly she was going to give it to Sara, considering she probably didn't want to talk to her at this time. She didn't want Leena know anything that had just happened so she told her she'd pass it on to her sister.

Leena left her to rejoin her new friends and Nina put the package into her pocket. She walked out of the common room and started heading towards her next class, praying the whole way there that Sara didn't make it inside before her. She wanted to sit somewhere first so she wouldn't have the awkward decision to make of whether or not she should sit next to Sara. Sara can make that decision, she thought.


Meanwhile, back outside where Nina left them, Lily and the boys were conversing over what had just taken place.

"Well, that was awkward." Remus said. "I've never seen Nina and Sara have a row like that before."

"Well, they didn't exactly fight." James corrected him. "Nina didn't really say anything."

"It was more like you and Sara had a row." Lily added.

"Me?" Remus said looking genuinely taken aback.

"Yeah, Nina just got stuck in the middle because of your stupidity." Sirius answered him dryly.

"What the heck did I do?" Remus asked him indignantly.

"Well what do you think Sara got all worked up about?" Sirius asked him back.

Remus answered him like it was obvious, "The fact that Nina didn't want to go to the dance?"

"Wrong! Guess again." Sirius then asked him intently, "What do you think you said that made her upset?"

"Did I say something? I don't know." Remus said and then added unsurely, "I suggested that Nina go with someone she knows?"

"Yes, someone in particular…" Sirius was leading him on.

"Oh. You mean me?" Remus asked in a slightly confused voice.

"Exactly."

"I don't get it." Remus looked at James for some support, but James was just shaking his head in disbelief.

"Oh please, are you that daft?" Sirius was getting annoyed by Remus's ignorance.

"Er…maybe." By this time, Remus looked highly uncomfortable. "Why would Sara get worked up about that?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"What?" Remus was getting anxious for an answer.

"Hmm…you know what Sirius," Lily began to say after some thinking, "I think you're right. I don't know why I never noticed it before."

"Noticed what?" Remus now looked truly desperate.

"Ha! If you're too stupid to figure it out on your own, that's your problem." Sirius was not in the mood to help out his friend. He seemed to be enjoying himself immensely.

"What the hell!" Remus cried in frustration. He looked at Sirius's smug face and said angrily, "Why won't you tell me? Okay, and where the heck do you come off? You've suddenly found your voice or something? You've been sitting around in La La Land all quiet and moody the whole time, and now you're all happy watching me suffer."

"What does that have to do with anything we're discussing right now?" Sirius asked him.

"I dunno." Remus answered dejectedly. "I'm just trying to divert the attention away from me for a while."

"Well, that's not going to happen." Sirius loosened his tie and reclined himself on the tree behind him.

"Okay that's it," Lily said while getting up, "I can't sit here and wait for Remus to get enlightened. I might be here forever. I'm gonna go and look for Nina before I head to class. Let me know his reaction when he figures it out."

"Oh wait, Lily," James got up to talk to her, "What time is the meeting tonight?"

"After dinner. Around eight."

"And we're proposing the dance idea, right?" he asked her.

"Yup."

"And the whole thing about girls asking the guys?"

"Sure." she said while checking something off of her parchment.

"Okay one more thing. Since we are the Heads, do er…we have to go together?" he asked uncertainly.

"No, I don't think so." Lily answered thoughtfully.

"Alright cool." James said with a smile of relief.

"Why? Was there someone else you wanted to go with?" she asked him curiously.

"Maybe." He said matter-of-factly.

"Oh." Lily looked surprised for a second, but then recovered herself. "Fine. Good. Okay see you guys later." She left quickly. James thought he had heard a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Is there really someone else you want to go with?" Remus asked him perplexedly.

"Nope. I just wanted to see her reaction." James said with a grin and plunked back down on the grass.

"So Moony," Sirius began again, "have you figured it out yet?"

"Figured out what?"

"The fact that Sara likes you." James couldn't take it anymore; he had to tell Remus what they were all thinking. Sirius looked slightly miffed at James for his betrayal of silence.

"Oh…What?" It took Remus a few seconds to register what James had just said.

"Yes, dimwit. It's pretty obvious." Sirius had to add.

"No." Remus said shaking his head in disbelief. "No way. How is it obvious? Are you guys mental? Why would she like me?"

"Because you're so sweet." James replied in a high-pitched voice.

"And devastatingly handsome." Sirius added with a sigh and one hand on his heart.

"Ooh, and you have such soft hands." James continued.

"Hmm, yeah my hands are pretty sof—oh please guys." Remus said stubbornly. "Don't be ridiculous. She doesn't like me. She's extra mean to me."

"Yeah, I think that's Sara's way of flirting." James said.

"You guys must be reading it all wrong." he said still shaking his head.

"Oh don't be so modest, Remus." Sirius was getting impatient again. "Girls like you, you know."

Remus looked at his friends somberly. "Okay, but if you guys are right, which I don't think you are, what am I supposed to do?"

"Well, first of all," James asked, "do you like her?"

"Of course he does." Sirius butted in. "She's smart, pretty, and he enjoys flirting with her."—Remus looked like he was going to refute the last fact and Sirius wagged his finger at him—"Yes you do, Remus, don't deny it."

"Oh man." Remus looked down, his face turning a little pink. He raised his head up and said resolutely, "Well, it doesn't matter. I can't do anything. I can't start a relationship with secrets. If I tell her about my problem, she'll freak out. I don't want her to think I'm a monster and hate me. I'd rather just stay friends. At least we'd still be able to hang out."

"I don't think Sara is the type that would freak out." James said seriously, making sure not to betray the fact that he knew that she was already aware of his problem. "She's a really nice and understanding person. She just acts tough and pretends to be mean sometimes."

"Yeah I know that but…I dunno, man. I have to think about this." He looked sad for a minute but then his expression lightened up a bit with a thought. He and James stood up. "So…you guys really think she likes me?" he asked them with a wry smile.

"Well," Sirius said getting up and putting an arm around his friend's shoulder, "Why don't we just head to class and ask her?"


A/N: So…send me a review and tell me what you thought of this one!