The first day of school dawned gray and rainy. Lily groaned. This was not a good sign. Down in the Great Hall, most students were eating breakfast before class. Lily sat down next to her friends and looked at the ceiling. The clouds swirled. Lightning flashed, and the low boom of thunder reverberated around the Hall. Lily grabbed some toast and jam.
"How are you all this morning?" Alice had her head resting on her arms and didn't answer. Emmeline smiled and gave a thumbs up as she chewed her cereal. Dorcas groaned and imitated Alice. Lily smiled and looked around for Jame- Potter. She hadn't seen or heard him that morning. She found the Marauders, but James was not with them. She frowned and went back to her toast.
Just then, Professor McGonagall walked by with the seventh year schedules. Looking at her schedule, Lily smiled. History of Magic, double Potions, Arithmancy, and double Defense Against the Dark Arts. Perfect.
The first class of the day was History of Magic. To Lily's surprise, James was there on time. Actually, he was early. He was already there when she walked in. He ignored her wave and her "Good morning" as she passed. Frustrated, Lily shot him a look and went to sit by Emmeline. Towards the end of the class, Lily started daydreaming a bit. Looking around, she noticed James taking notes. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. He was up to something.
But double Potions and Arithmancy passed without incident. Although Lily didn't know what James was up to during Arithmancy, as he didn't take the class. Lunch was also fine. James came in, ate, and left. Defense Against the Dark Arts was where it all got a little strange.
A witch with short, blonde hair and grey eyes stood at the front of the class.
"Hello, I'm Professor Chandler and I'm the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. I wasn't at the feast last night, which is why none of you saw me. This year is critical. I'm going to be blunt with you. NEWTS are hard. But even harder is the world we live in. Right now out there," she gestured to the grounds outside Hogwarts, "people are dying." There was a shocked silence. "Every day, a few more are killed. Why don't we hear about it, you might ask. Because they are Muggles. Granted, a few Wizards have died too, no disrespect meant if you know of anyone who has died, but Muggles are making up the majority of the deceased."
One boy in the front of the room raised his hand.
"Mr…"
"Wood. Mike Wood. Why are they dying?"
"Good question. Because there is a man out there who calls himself the Dark Lord. His followers are called Death Eaters. Evidently Mr. Potter knows what I'm talking about, don't you."
James nodded sharply, jaw clenched. Lily looked at him, confused. Another student raised her hand.
"Yes Miss…"
"Cranston. Rachel Cranston. But why don't we hear about the Muggles? I mean obviously, a wizard is doing the killing. Doesn't that make it worthy of wizarding news?"
"Very good. Yes, one would think that it would be newsworthy, I believe. What about you? Yes, you in the front."
"Well, um, I don't know. I mean, sure Muggles are dying, but wouldn't publishing it in the paper cause mass hysteria or something?"
"But," another student broke in, "people need to know. And those Muggles have a right to be recognized. I mean, they're dead because of something a wizard did."
"But the government is a bit more important then some Muggles. They need to maintain control, especially if some psycho is on the loose," someone else said. Suddenly, it was a full-fledged class discussion. Professor Chandler watched it all with a satisfied expression. She just listened as the ideas flew around the room. Some thought people deserved to know, others feared chaos. Some mentioned government control, others the fact that the government is of the people. So intense was the discussion, that no one heard the bell signaling the end of the first period. Professor Chandler simply let the debate go on. At times, it faltered, and she would chime in with a comment or a suggestion. The students were alight with knowledge. As the second bell rang, Professor Chandler interrupted.
"Very good. No homework, just remember what we talked about. We will be having class discussions often. We will be reading the paper. We will learn about what's happening out there. We will learn to duel. We will learn spells. After this, you will be prepared. Not just for the NEWTS, but for the rest of your lives." She paused. "Class dismissed."
Lily stuffed her textbooks into her bag and walked out of class with Emmeline. She headed to the library to write her potions essay and solve her Arithmancy problems. Several hours later, she emerged weary and slightly bedraggled. Her hair was falling out of its messy bun, and her robes were slightly wrinkled. Her hands were spattered with ink.
She made her way back to the Head's common room and sank down in a chair. Just then, she heard a noise. Across the room, a letter appeared on a small table. She walked over and picked it up. The handwriting was loopy and unfamiliar. On the envelope it read, "To Lily and James." Opening the envelope, she slid out a piece of parchment. Unfolding it, she read the letter.
Dear Miss Evans and Mr. Potter,
I am writing to inform you of your first official Head duty. On October 31st will be the annual Halloween feast. I would like for the two of you to collaborate and come up with ideas for a ball on Saturday the 29th of October. The planning will require finding a band, decorating, arranging food and drinks, setting an age limit and a dress code, and setting up and cleaning up. Good Luck!
Sincerely,
Albus P. W. B. Dumbledore
As she finished reading the letter, she heard the portrait open.
"James," she called. He ignored her.
"JAMES!"
"What?" He looked annoyed. Her temper flared.
"Dumbledore sent us a letter," she said tightly. "He wants us to organize a Halloween Ball."
"Fine. Let's just get it over with. What does he need?"
She handed him the letter. He read it and pulled out a piece of parchment and a crumpled quill and sat down. Lily sat down in the other chair.
"All right, ages? Fifth year and up?" James asked.
"I don't know, I think fourth year is ok too."
"Fine, fourth year and up. Band? How about the Wild Wizards?"
"No. I hate them. Mystic is so much better."
"Evans…"
"What? They are?" James sighed and his jaw clenched.
"Fine. Decorations?" he spit out between gritted teeth. "I was thinking-"
"How about pumpkins and-"
"Have fun, Evans," he said.
"WHAT?"
"I said, have fun Evans."
"But, but," she spluttered. "How DARE you. This is OUR job. One we're supposed to do TOGETHER! You're HEAD BOY! That means, whether you like it or not, you actually have RESPONSIBILITIES! DEAL WITH IT!"
He glared at her.
"Well obviously none of my ideas are good enough, so why don't you just do it yourself?"
Lily's eyes began to itch with tears of fury.
"Fine then, I'll just go to Dumbledore."
He smirked again, nastily.
"He won't care. He'll think I'm just having trouble coping, but he'll never rescind his decision."
Lily breathed heavily. "What?" Her voice cracked, driving it up an octave. James winced slightly. She opened her mouth to yell something else, but he cut her off.
"Later Evans. Some of actually have better things to do. Enjoy being an anal retentive." James threw the list at her and stalked out of the portrait hole.
Lily gritted her teeth, eyes welling with tears. It had happened again. Why couldn't they just have normal conversations? Of course, because Potter was too stupid to carry on a normal conversation. She shook with rage and the tears spilled over. And Lily Evans sat with the crumpled list James had thrown at her and cried.
&
The first week of school all followed the tone set on the first day. Lily loved Charms, Transfiguration, DADA, and Arithmancy, and tolerated Herbology and History of Magic. She was also attempting to plan the ball, although this caused her a significant amount of stress. It was in an attempt to relieve some of this stress that Lily found herself lying on Dorcas' bed. Dorcas was sitting against the headboard. Emmeline, Alice, and Mary were sprawled on the floor. Lily rolled over and let her hair hang over the end of the bed. Alice sat up and began braiding her hair.
"I can't believe James is making you do all the work. Just for the record, he did say that, right?" Lily groaned in exasperation.
"Yes. That's exactly what he said."
"But why?" Alice asked, mystified. Lily sighed and sat up. All the girls laughed as her braid was sticking straight out of the top of her head. Lily shook the braid out and looked at them all sadly.
"I have no idea."
"What exactly did he say?" asked Dorcas. Lily looked at the ceiling, thinking back.
"Something about me being obsessive and not thinking any of his ideas were good enough. When I got angry and told him that regardless, it was still his job and I'd tell Dumbledore, he got angry and said...said something about Dumbledore thinking he was just having trouble coping." Lily glanced at them all, mystified. "Coping with what?"
The girls all looked at each other.
"No idea," said Emmeline. "Wouldn't he be most likely to tell you, since you're co-Heads?"
"You would think that," muttered Lily dully. "But he hasn't said anything to me all week. I think he hates me and I don't know why."
"I don't think he hates you," comforted Alice, "He's probably just having a tough time coping with whatever it is. Actually, I'll help you plan the ball. We'll let him be moody until when?"
"How about mid-November?" said Lily. "That's when we need to plan the winter ball."
"Ooh! We're having two balls?" Lily rolled her eyes.
"Yes Alice, we're having two balls. And no, you're not allowed to invite older students. Sorry."
"But what about Frank?"
"Frank will just have to wait until Hogsmeade." Alice pouted.
"Anyway, what about this ball? What are we going to do?"
"How about a masquerade?" said Dorcas.
"Good idea!" exclaimed Emmeline. "We can do old-fashioned, ornate decorations. Think Phantom of the Opera!"
"Think what?"
"Honestly," said Lily. "Aren't you three cultured at all?"
Alice, Dorcas, and Mary shook their heads.
"Apparently
not," said Mary. "Now what is Phantom of the Opera?"
"We'll
have a movie night tonight and I'll show you. It's about a woman
who becomes an opera star with the help of this strange, mysterious,
slightly scary phantom."
"Sounds good." The others nodded approvingly. "We'll start it at seven which is in…one hour. Until then, back to ball planning!"
"Ok, so we decided masquerade. And I thought maybe fourth years and up?" said Lily.
"That's fine, but let's start the feast at five, so first through third years can come to the feast for two hours. Then they could maybe have a scavenger hunt in their common rooms?"
"Ok, music?"
"Mystic," said Emmeline. "They're the only way to go. And I'm not being biased. In my fairly extensive musical experience, Mystic has a great blend of genres and tempos." The girls laughed.
"We concede to the musical genius," laughed Dorcas.
"At last! A-at la-a-ast!" sang Emmeline. "You admit my genius!" Dorcas raised an eyebrow.
"Temporarily. Tomorrow the world shall return to order and I will reign once more."
"Anyway," broke in Lily. "Last few things. Food?"
"We can talk to the house elves. Simple, regular dinner food, but heavy on the desserts."
"Great! I love chocolate." Lily sighed dreamily and fell back onto her bed in a dramatic fashion.
"Well," said Alice, "that sounds like a plan." Now, how about we go raid the kitchens? I want some food before that movie."
So, the girls hauled themselves to their feet and headed down the stairs into the common room and out the portrait hole.
&
Up in the boy's dorms, James was lying on his side on his old bed, facing the wall. Remus sat on his own bed, looking at James with obvious concern. Sirius sat on the floor with his head in his hands.
"James, please. What's going on?" No answer.
"We're your friends, James. We can help." Still no answer. Silence ensued. Finally the response came, so softly they could barely hear it.
"No one can help."
&
The next few weeks continued to be very busy for Lily. James was seen everywhere, holding tryouts for the Quidditch team, planning practices, going to class, doing homework, and hanging around the grounds. By contrast, Lily was hardly ever seen. She attended meals and classes, and could be found after school in the library. She often entered at the end of classes and didn't return until ten when the library closed. She looked increasingly exhausted and was often seen to have bags under her eyes and ink everywhere, due to the fact that she was taking eight NEWT classes and handling the majority of Heads work on her own. The prefect meetings were conducted solo, and any work that she really needed James to do, she left on his desk in the Heads' Common Room. He always got it done, and it frustrated her to no end. Here she was constantly working and revising, and although he participated in tons of activities, he always seemed to have spare time.
They often passed each other entering and exiting the Head's Dormitory, but they never spoke. Once or twice Lily thought he looked briefly concerned, but he never said anything. In fact, he hardly ever looked at her anymore. It was strange, she reflected one day. It was the first day of October and she was spending a blessed hour out by the lake. It was just before dinner and the sky was turning purple, pink, and orange as the sun began to set. The leaves were starting to turn, and now and again, a leaf fell next to where Lily was sitting on the edge of the lake. She had her shoes and socks sitting next to her and one foot in the water. Looking across the vast expanse of blue, she had let her mind wander and was mildly surprised to note that it had landed on James. He had changed, she reflected. He participated in several activities, but he never seemed happy. At least, she didn't think he seemed happy. She wouldn't really know, she decided, since he never spoke to her anymore. In some ways, it was a relief. She hated being publicly humiliated, and publicity seemed to follow James everywhere. She was always surprised at the end of one of their arguments to find herself the center of attention. It had always seemed to her that their arguments were their business and their business alone. Apparently the rest of the school didn't agree. It frustrated her, how people passed judgment without knowing what they were talking about. People believed that they fought because she was a stuck-in-the-mud who was incapable of having fun, and who might bring James down just by being near him.
In the beginning, she thought, she had been young and idealistic and serious, and he just liked to have fun. It irritated her how he got good grades, yet didn't seem to care while she worked so hard to achieve what few accomplishments she had. He was effortlessly brilliant and she had hated him for it. So at first, she reflected, she had been overly serious.
Over the next six years, she had worked incredibly hard to become a prefect and then to become Head Girl. She faced adversity on both sides of the line. Her sister hated her for being magical, while the wizards hated her for being Muggle. It was a difficult situation, especially with Petunia. As children, they had been as close as it was possible for sisters to be. They constantly played together and laughed together. They could have been twins. Then, Petunia went away to school. She had returned a more serious, less spontaneous person. But they had still been close. Petunia told her all about the different classes and teachers and helped her with her homework. When Lily was scared, it had been Petunia that she'd turned to for comfort. Petunia had been her rock, her protector. And at the tender age of eleven, she'd had all that snatched away.
The arrival of the brown owl had brought with it the greatest joy Lily had ever known, and with it, the greatest sadness. From the moment Lily had stepped through the archway into Diagon Alley, Petunia had ignored her. On the one hand, Lily had suddenly had all of her dreams come true. It had been better than a Disney movie. Suddenly, she was powerful, magical. On the other hand, she never spoke to Petunia now if she could help it. Magic had ripped away the best friend she'd ever known.
Stepping onto the platform her first day, Lily had been in awe. In fact, she noted dryly, she hadn't really ever stopped being in awe of the magical world. But she'd learned to hide it. All because of the Purebloods. Slytherins especially had looked down on her as inferior, as mud beneath their feet. Their name for people of her birth proved it. Mudblood. She'd heard that slur more times than she cared to count. Dirty blood. They thought she had dirty blood. Even now as Head Girl, the highest student position in the school, they still looked down on her. Still called her Mudblood.
With a rueful laugh, she remembered a skinny, eleven-year-old James stepping in front of her and yelling at the Slytherins in his tiny, pre-adolescent voice. She might have liked him, she thought, if he hadn't been so arrogant. Always showing off with his wand and his broom. One time he even did both at once, although that hadn't been one of his finer moments. Madam Pomfrey hadn't been too happy when he'd come in with his broken skull and had to stay in the infirmary for a week. She gave a small smile. But then he'd turned fourteen and started asking her out. The smile faded. He always chose the most embarrassing ways of doing it, too, as if he needed an audience to show them all that it was funny. It was all a joke, him liking her. If he really liked her, he would have understood when she said no. And he wouldn't have consistently publicly humiliated her. He could have realized, he should have realized, she thought with sudden anger, how hard it was for her to have him constantly trailing her. He was the type of person who lived to break rules. She lived to follow them. He loved to have fun; she hated his type of fun. He was athletic; she was bookish. He was brilliant, she thought bitterly. And she was not.
She stood up and began walking back to her dormitory in a fit of angst. Looking back out at the lake one last time, she finished her reflection. All she wanted was to love and be loved in return. She wanted someone…someone who would take away her fear, someone who would protect her from the sorrows of life. But she wasn't an invalid. She sought an equal. Someone I need, she thought, but also someone, she hesitated, someone who needs me.
&
After a long week of classes, Lily had gone to bed early on Friday night. Her friends would have laughed, she thought, had she been with them in Gryffindor. Going to bed at nine on a Friday was unheard of. But as it were, she was exhausted. She pulled on her pyjamas and climbed into bed with a book to read to help her fall asleep. She didn't even make it through three pages.
Warmth, delicious warmth. And safety. Broken by a cry. A soft wailing. A groan.
"I got it." A rush of cool air. Lily rolled over, burying her face into the pillow. She breathed in the woodsy scent. Unable to sleep without her companion, she tiredly swung her legs out of bed. The wood floor was cool. The moonlight left silvery streaks where it touched the floor. Through the door. The carpet was fluffy and warm. Her feet sank into its depths as she padded softly down the hall. A doorway on the right. She stopped, leaning a hip against the frame and watched.
A lone figure stood in front of a window with his back to Lily, rocking a baby.
"Shh Harry. It's ok. Daddy's got you." A pause. "Look out the window. See the moon? It's so pretty. Moony doesn't think so but that's a different story. Mommy and Daddy like it. In fact Mommy and Daddy had their first kiss in the moonlight. Yes they did." A glance at the baby and a soft sigh. "Now a bad man is after us. But Mommy and Daddy will protect you. He'll never get you while we're alive."
Unable to bear any more, Lily stepped into the room, tears ran softly down her face. The man spun around.
"Lily?" She nodded.
"It's me. I just…" He nodded.
"Come on, let's go back to bed."
They walked down the hallway, his arm around her shoulders, her hand clutching his. They climbed into bed.
"Love you Lily."
"Love you too James."
A ray of sunlight cutting through her curtain called her back to the land of the living. Opening her eyes, she rolled over and looked at the clock. It read 9:00. Lily groaned and struggled to remember what day it was. Was it Monday? Was she late for classes? No, she decided, she'd have set an alarm. Lying on her back, she felt vague flutterings of panic as she struggled to remember what she was doing. Slowly, it came to her. Today was Saturday. It was also the first Hogsmeade trip. She'd gone to bed early last night and…had a dream? She groaned. Of course. The dream. And James Potter was…her husband?
Rolling out of bed, she made her way to the bathroom she and James shared. The tag on the handle read available, so she opened the door and let herself in. Hopping in the shower, she let her mind wander as the warm water ran down her back. A few minutes later, she heard a musical chime. That meant that James must have tried to get into the bathroom. She got out of the shower and went into her room to get dressed. Five minutes later, she heard the shower turn on, and knew that he was up and getting ready. She turned back to her closet.
Standing in the middle of the large closet, she laughed at how her wardrobe barely took up half the closet space. Pulling on dark jeans with a slight flare and a green turtleneck, she grabbed her brown jacket and scarf and headed out of her room. She almost stopped in the common room to wait for James, until she remembered that they weren't talking. On her way down to breakfast, she scolded herself. James has never been my friend. Why did I stop to wait for him? The thing that worried her was that she hadn't meant to, it had just happened. His face flashed through her mind, illuminated by moonlight. She sighed. Stupid dream.
"Lily!" Lily was jolted out of her reverie by the sound of her name.
"Where are you going?" Lily looked around and saw Emmeline standing in the entrance of the Great Hall with Dorcas. Lily realized that she had walked right past the Great Hall.
"Um, nowhere. I just wasn't paying attention." Dorcas shot her a strange look and said quietly,
"Are you ok?" Lily nodded.
"Are you guys ready to get stuff for the ball?" The two girls nodded.
"Is Hestia coming?"
"Yep," said Emmeline. "She said she'd meet us in the Entrance Hall at about ten."
"Ok. Alice is late as usual, I assume," Lily said with a smile. Dorcas smiled back.
"Of course." The three girls walked into the Great Hall and sat down. Lily grabbed some toast and began to butter it. Just then, she noticed James walk into the Great Hall. She watched him sit down alone and grab a muffin. She wondered where the Marauders were, and why James wasn't with them. She also wondered what was going on with him. He'd been so quiet and so angry, and not just because of their fight. Shaking her head, she tore her gaze away from James and met Dorcas' eyes. Giving a pained smile, she busied herself with her toast. She didn't look up, but for the rest of the meal she could feel Dorcas watching her.
They met Hestia in the Entrance Hall at ten, like she had said, and waited five minutes for Alice to come tearing haphazardly down the stair case. Laughing heartily, the five girls headed out to Hogsmeade. Alice left them as they arrived, and went to meet Frank. For the other four, their first stop was Honeydukes to get some more chocolate because as Dorcas said, "Emmeline, you ate all of mine during that movie night!" The girls laughed and chimed in with "mine too!" Emmeline looked sheepish.
"What can I say? It was chocolate, and it was available!" Grinning, she headed off towards the back. Lily made her purchases and went to stand by the window, waiting for her chocoholic friends. As the crisp autumn wind blew a few leaves off the trees, she saw James walking by himself. She stepped outside.
"James!" He looked at her, and then kept on walking.
"James!" His back disappeared around the corner. Lily's eyes pricked with tears.
"Must be the wind," she muttered. But she knew the truth. She hated being ignored. And she hated caring that she was being ignored. For six years, all she had wanted was for him to leave her alone. And now that he finally had, all she wanted to do was talk to him. She didn't understand why he was so different. He was still brilliant, but he was often alone now. He didn't hex people and he didn't play pranks, but Lily somehow thought that it wasn't because he didn't want to, it was simply because he didn't have enough energy to care. He also didn't have enough energy to care about her. She felt her insides burn and shook her head angrily. She also hated that he could get under her skin without even trying. She didn't want him there, but she was at a loss at how to make him get out. She refused to acknowledge the thought that maybe, just maybe, she didn't want him to leave.
Half an hour later, Lily, Hestia, Dorcas, and Emmeline walked into a new dress shop that none of them had ever seen. It was called Katie's, and it was fairly small. The four of them seemed like a huge crowd in the tiny shop. Just then, a woman stood up from behind the desk. She was young, mid-twenties, with curly honey-colored hair and blue eyes.
"Hi! I'm Katie. How are you today?"
"We're great, thanks," said Emmeline, looking around.
"Are you ladies looking for anything in particular?" asked Katie.
"Actually," said Lily, "We are. We're having a masquerade ball at Hogwarts and we were looking for some nice dresses to wear."
"Oh, the ball," exclaimed Katie. "I heard all about that from my cousin, she's a second-year Hufflepuff. Desperately wants to go. I told her she could go when she's older." Katie grinned. "But as for the four of you, I'm sure I have something you'd like. Who wants to start?" Emmeline bounded forward, almost knocking into a rack.
"I'll go."
"Great. So, brown hair, brown eyes, fairly pale…"
"Hey!"
"Sorry," Katie laughed. "No offense meant, but I have to make note of this stuff in order to get a flattering dress for you." Emmeline looked slightly mollified and Katie continued, "It's the people who delude themselves about their features who look bad." Katie began pulling dresses off the racks. After gathering about ten, she handed them to Emmeline.
"Try these on." She pointed to the dressing room. "You ladies can wait right here and we can do a sort of fashion show." Lily grinned happily. "Great! Thanks."
The first five were varying shades of blue. Emmeline's audience rejected them all. The sixth through ninth dresses were all black.
"Nope," said Hestia. "That's not quite right."
The last dress was a deep pink, strapless gown. The bodice was structured corset-style, with cream cords running across the back. The front of the bodice was covered in a sheer lace, ending in a narrow strip of cream-colored satin. The skirt fell to just past Emmeline's knees, accentuating her curves perfectly.
"Beautiful," commented Katie. Surveying herself in the mirror, Emmeline agreed. "Done!" she said cheerfully. "Hestia, your turn." Hestia looked apprehensive, but she took the dresses Katie gave her into the dressing room. She struck gold on the first try. The silver dress had one strap, on Hestia's left shoulder. The bodice fit nicely, accentuating her small bust and tiny waist. The skirt fell straight to the floor, but had a very daring slit that went to just above her knees. The silver color brought out her blue eyes and pale skin, and contrasted nicely with her dark hair.
"I'll take this one."
Next, it was Lily's turn.
She immediately refused all the green dresses, pointing to her turtleneck and saying she already had too much green. She tried on a few black dresses, but proclaimed them too dark for autumn. Finally, she tried on a pale gold dress. At first glance, it may have seemed ugly. It was a strange color, and had a very plain cut. It had a medium-sized band of fabric that clung delicately to her throat. In the center of the band, there was a gold ring. The band attached to the upper portion of the ring, and the top of the bodice connected to the bottom half. The material was cut straight across the bust, under her arms and around her back where it sloped up and reattached to the band with only a small teardrop-shaped hole showing some skin. It was like a halter, but the material was connected at the front and the back, and the neckband closed with a few delicate hooks. There was a narrow strip of fabric just under the bust that tied in the back, and the skirt fell to mid-calf. On anyone else, it might have been a fashion disaster, but on Lily, it was beautiful.
Dorcas' dress was a deep blue, accentuating her blue eyes. It was strapless and fell to mid-calf. It was the perfect dress. Just as Dorcas was changing out of her dress, Alice burst into the shop, out of breath.
"Sorry," she gasped. "I was with Frank, and I completely forgot until I looked at the clock and realized I was late." The other girls just grinned.
"This is Alice," Lily said to Katie.
"She's always late," put in Emmeline with a smile. Lily grinned and continued with the introductions.
"Alice, this is Katie. She owns the shop, obviously, and is a marvel with dresses."
"Nice to meet you Katie."
"Same to you, and I assume you're looking for a dress also?" Alice looked hesitant.
"Maybe. I'm not sure if I'm going."
"Not going!" burst Emmeline. "Of course you're going!"
"But Frank can't go, so I'd have no one to go with."
"You can go with me," said Lily. "I won't have a date either."
"You don't know that Lily, all the boys like you," said Alice mischievously. Lily rolled her eyes.
"Well they don't like me," said Hestia, "so you can be my date." Emmeline grinned.
"Mine too. I'm not going with anyone either."
"I'd go with you, but I already have a date." Said Dorcas. They looked at her in shock.
"Dorcas, you have a date?" asked Emmeline. "Why didn't I know about this?"
"Well, it's Fabian Prewitt, and he asked me last night. I didn't say anything because…I don't know. I guess I just wanted it to be mine for one night."
"Ok," said Emmeline. "Congratulations! But can we finish this discussion outside after Alice gets a dress because we only have twenty minutes until we have to leave." The others looked up in shock.
"Sure," said Lily. "Alice, can you find a dress in twenty minutes?"
"I'll find her one," said Katie. "Let's go."
Nineteen minutes and twenty-seven seconds later, the girls were checking out.
"I can't believe you found a dress that fast!" Alice said in admiration.
"Well, it comes with the trade," replied Katie. "And it was a pleasure helping you ladies. I wouldn't want you to have to leave without dresses!"
"Thanks!" said Alice. "And thanks for helping with my dress, it's beautiful."
Alice's dress was red. It had a flattering cut for her curvy figure and it was floor-length. It looked beautiful with her curly blonde hair and hazel-green eyes.
"Yeah, too bad Frank won't get to see it," said Lily.
"Oh, I don't know. I plan on having this dress for a while!"
The bell rang over their heads as they exited the shop into the crisp autumn breeze.
"So, to continue our discussion from before, you're going with Fabian Prewett?" asked Lily.
"Yes," replied Dorcas. "He came up to me after dinner last night and just asked me if I'd go with him. And I said yes. What about you?"
"What about me? I already said I'm not going with anyone."
"Yeah, but who do you want to go with?"
"Well…" Lily paused. "There's really only one person I want to go with, but I don't think he'll ask me. We don't really talk much."
"Who's that?" asked Hestia.
"Well, it's Gideon Prewett actually. He's really cute. You have good taste Dorcas, going with his twin!"
The girls laughed and continued discussing Gideon and Fabian, and a few other guys. Behind them, James Potter walked quietly, hands in his pockets. Despite the fact that he claimed to be over Lily, he couldn't help but feel his stomach jump as she mentioned the fact that she didn't talk much with the guy she wanted to go with. One hand fisted frustratedly at his side as he listened to the girls shriek over Gideon Prewett.