Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Chapter 27: The ball

It seemed like in no time, the evening of the ball had arrived. Lily was incredibly nervous. More so than for a regular ball, for she knew that in three days' time she would be sneaking off with some member of the Order of the Phoenix to track down Voldemort before he could get to her because she posed some sort of threat to him…right. Anyway, the point is, she was so nervous, even her friends (who were completely lost in the excitement of getting ready for a ball) noticed.

"Lily, what's wrong?" asked Jenna.

"N –nothing, I'm just nervous. To see who's going to be my date," she said. She hadn't told them about the mission. Dumbledore had said that that would be a good idea – this was a very dangerous thing, and the less people that knew about it the better.

"Well, you better get ready!" said Ylan. "There's only two hours left!"

"Two hours!" exclaimed Lily. "Are you kidding?" She grabbed her robe out of the dresser and dashed into the bathroom. Half an hour later, she emerged, smelling like strawberries. Her legs and underarms were cleanly shaven, her face washed, and acne medication (which was the sole reason she didn't have any) applied. Jenna (who was ready, except for her dress) magically dried Lily's hair and started applying make up.

"Thank God your hair is naturally wavy and beautiful," said Ylan. "There would have been no time for that!" Lily grinned. With 45 minutes left, she cast anti-wrinkle and protective charms on their dresses. The protective charms made it so that nothing could spill on the dress or stain it.

Then the girls majestically donned their gowns.

"Oh my God, Ylan. You were totally right! This dress does make me look taller!" exclaimed Jenna, who was always saying how she wished she was taller.

"Wow, Lily," said Andrea. "You look like…Cinderella." They all looked at Lily. She did, indeed, but not in a bad or overdone way. It was just perfect.

"Yup. Complete with glass slippers," she said, kicking up her leg. They all laughed. "All right, well, time to change our hair color." Lily's first victim was Ylan. She turned her black/brown hair into only a brown chocolate color. Next was Jenna. Lily took a hold of her honey blonde hair and changed it to black. Andrea's blonde hair was changed to red. Not as red as Lily's though – more like orange. And then, came Lily herself. She pointed the wand at her head, muttered the spell, and her hair turned a beautiful blonde color.

"Lily, that looks really good. But auburn's definitely your color," said Ylan. The others nodded in agreement. Lily just observed herself in the mirror. Then she suddenly noticed something.

"Oh my God, you guys! I forgot to change my eyes!" They were still noticeably emerald green. And everybody knew that only Lily had those eyes. "Oh, and they take half an hour to change!" she wailed.

"Calm down, Lil. It'll be ok. Change them now, and just avoid looking your date in the eyes until you know your eyes have changed color."

"Ok," said Lily miserably. Then she cast the spell and felt better. "Oh well. This will still be fun."

"It's time to go!" said Ylan. They had stayed a little late – they wanted a nice entrance.

"Put on your masks, ladies," said Lily.

The Marauders were standing in line impatiently. They were all dressed the same way – black pants with a black shirt, opened at the top couple of buttons, exposing a bit of their bare chests. They also had black boots on. Very 19th century pirate.

"Ugh, why do girls take so long to get ready?" sighed Sirius exasperatedly. He was anxious and irritable – ever since that night with Andrea he couldn't stop thinking about her and couldn't think what he would do if he didn't get her as his date.

He looked into the Great Hall, turned ball room. Couples were dancing on the polished floor or sitting at their little tables. He watched as a newly paired couple stopped at the doorway and as the guy (Toby Diggins) conjured his date a beautiful butterfly pendant.

Finally Sirius felt a tug on his arm. He turned to look. Peter was staring, his mouth open wide, at four girls who had just appeared at the top of the stairs. Everyone in the entrance hall stopped to look at them. Sirius immediately knew which one was who he had been yearning for. She was wearing a strapless blue dress which came down to the floor, just covering her feet. She and the other three walked gracefully down the stairs. But Sirius had eyes only for her. As she came closer they locked eyes. Without a word, Sirius took her hand and led her inside, forgetting about the lines. Immediately their arms encircled one another and they started swaying to the music.

Lily's POV

I watched Sirius lead Andrea off. They were so perfect together. I only wished I had something like that.

As Jenna, Ylan, and I took our places in line, I suddenly realized who I was paired with. I frantically tried to switch with Jenna (who was behind me) and the girl behind her but it was too late. Remus led Ylan to the dance floor and I moved miserably up the line. I was fully prepared for the worst date of my life. But as I looked carefully at him (making sure to avoid his eyes) I realized: he didn't know who I was. He wouldn't try anything. This could be my opportunity – my only chance to see the real James Potter.

With that thought I let him take my hand and lead my inside. I looked around in wonder. Icicles were hanging around the Great Hall and there were little candle lit tables here and there, enough for every couple. The ceiling was alight with stars and a glistening moon hung in the middle.

'This might not be so bad,' I thought and decided to just enjoy my time. I began walking towards one of the tables when James stopped me.

"Wait a second. I still need to give you your gift," he said.

"Oh. Yeah, I forgot about that," I said smiling. He nodded and stepped back. He looked me up and down and finally he snapped his fingers and pointed at my bare neck.

"I got it!" He whipped out his wand and gave it a swift wave. In his hands appeared a beautiful gold necklace with a crystal lily hanging off it. My breath caught in my throat. It was amazing. I couldn't wait to put it on. That is, until I made the connection.

"U – um why a lily?" I asked, fearing that he knew who I was.

"It's my favorite flower," he said simply and moved to put it on me. I didn't stop him. "Do you like it?"

"It – it's beautiful," I answered. He clasped it together and took my hand.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked.

"Sure," I said, but as soon as we started I felt faint. "Actually can we do it later? I think I need some air."

"Yeah, sure, no problem," James said and followed me outside. As soon as I stepped out I gasped. There were twinkling little lights covering everything, and fairies flying around throwing rose petals in the air.

We walked down the pathway until we came to a spot right near the lake. We sat down on a bench and looked out at the glistening water together.

James' POV

We sat in silence for a little while, still hearing the faint sound of music coming from the castle. Finally I needed to talk.

"Can I ask you something?"

She didn't look at me but said, "Sure."

"What year are you in?"

"Sixth."

"Oh. Me too."

We sat silently again until I couldn't take it anymore.

"Do you want to dance?"

"Here?"

"Yeah. There's music," I said, pointing vaguely in the air.

"Sure."

I stood up and gave her my hand. She took it and got off the bench. I put my hands on her waist and hers came around my neck. We swayed together with the music.

"Can I ask you something?" I asked again.

A slight grin appeared on her lips.

"Sure," she said. She seemed to be saying that a lot.

"What's your name?"

She was silent for a little bit. I thought maybe she hadn't heard me. I turned my head to look at her and saw she was looking at the lake again. Maybe it was because the moonlight was making her look like she was glowing, or maybe it was something else- all I knew is at that moment I had the strongest desire to kiss her. I caught her chin and my right hand and pulled her to face me. She looked down quickly but I didn't care. I leaned forward and my lips softly met with hers. It only took a second for her to kiss me back. I slipped my tongue into her mouth and it met with hers. My hand wandered back down to her waist and pulled her closer. Her fingers ran slowly through my hair. After a minute or two she let out a little sigh and I chose that time to pull away. I didn't let her go though. I looked down at her as her eyes fluttered open. And suddenly I was staring into a pair of emerald green orbs.

Lily's POV

James' eyes widened in shock as I quickly pulled away and covered my eyes with my hands.

"L – Lily?" he stammered. And why wouldn't he be shocked? I myself couldn't believe I'd let him kiss me like that – but it had been such a wonderful kiss.

I didn't know what to do. Look at him and admit who I was? Possibly get a relationship I now realized I had been yearning for, for such a long time? Or run away and lose my chance? Maybe that would be for the better though.

I was just about to turn around and leave when I felt a burning feeling in my eyes. It lasted for only a second but I knew what it meant – my eyes had changed their color. They should now be blue.

I raised my eyes to his – and immediately saw the disappointment that came with his gaze.

"Oh. Never mind," he said. I stayed silent, torn between my desire to be with him and the knowledge that I better stay away. "Y – you want to go inside?" he asked.

"Sure," I said quietly and we walked back to the doors.