AN: Now if i remember rightly, this is a pretty funny chapter. But my memory is fairly poor and my sense of humor is lacking...anyway, before i put you off completley, read and enjoy!

Turning her head to the right slightly, Lily squinted and leaned backwards. She squinted her eyes even closer together and cocked her head to the left.

"Well?" Sarah demanded, losing patience.

Lily sighed and opened her eyes, looking back down at her lap. She was currently taking a very important quiz and she didn't like having her attention diverted to Sarah's outfit.

"Do you want the truth?"

"Only if it's nice," Sarah said, turning back to the mirror and pulling slightly on her mini-skirt, which Lily had referred to as an oversized belt just moments ago.

"Ok then," Lily said, sucking on the end of her quill and trying to decide between answers B and C. It was a very tough call.

"Lily!"

"What? I'm busy!"

Sarah strode over and picked up the magazine, wrinkling her arched nose in distaste. "How sexy are you?" she read. "Well, I don't need a magazine to tell me that. What do you think?"

Lily glanced up again at her friend's outfit and frowned. "You do realise it's winter?"

"Hence the stockings."

"I think you're the only girl who can dress like a slut and say the word 'hence' at the same time."

"I'm a smart slut," Sarah said, turning to the mirror and adjusting her knee high black boots. Her shirt was actually quite tasteful: red, long sleeved and collared. The buttons were done up higher than usual as well but Lily was sure that would be fixed soon enough. Sarah pulled again on her black mini-skirt and flicked her shiny black her over her shoulder. To top off the outfit, she pulled on a thick white fur cloak and rubbed gloss into her naturally red lips.

"Well, what do you think?" Sarah asked again as Lily finally decided that she would probably dress for comfort rather than fashion when going out and circled letter C.

"Well, if I was a stranger and I saw you on the street, I would have to say that you are the most expensively dressed prostitute I had ever met."

Sarah threw a pillow at her and said, "You think I should change the shirt?"

Eleanor walked into the room, towelling her hair dry and her eyes almost popped out of her head when she saw her friend. "Woah, who are you dressing up for?"

"It's not the shirt you have to worry about, Sarz," Lily said, silently adding up the points received on her quiz. "It's the barely-covers-your-arse skirt that might be the problem."

"Oh, whatever," Sarah said, pulling out clothes from her wardrobe for Eleanor to try on. "I felt way too overdressed at Slughorn's party last week."

"I wish I'd been invited to that," Eleanor sighed wistfully, taking the clothes Sarah handed to her. "It sounded like so much fun."

"Actually it was lousy," Sarah said, sitting primly on Lily's bed and raising a shaped eyebrow. "What are you frowning about Lily?"

"I might not be sexy, but I'm not frumpy!" Lily said and chucked the magazine on the floor in a fit of annoyance.

"Shit! You're not actually wearing that are you?" Sarah demanded, only just catching sight of her outfit as three other girls from their dormitory wandered in. "Jessica, tell her she can't wear that."

Jessica Hatcher, a small girl with curly brown hair wandered over and grinned at Lily's outfit. "Merlin, girl, what are you wearing?"

Lily glanced down at her outfit and smiled. She was wearing a baggy t-shirt of her father's sporting the words, Manchester United, and a large number seven on the back. She'd also picked out a plaid pleated skirt, which wasn't too bad when paired with the right thing, but looked completely ridiculous with her thick purple tights and yellow Wellington boots.

"James claims he can make any girl fall in love with him, but will he want me after he sees how ridiculous I look?"

The girls all laughed but Sarah just rolled her eyes.

"I reckon James won't be able to keep his hands off other girls for six months. And if he does hook up with anyone, well he loses the bet," Lily explained. "I'm just speeding things up."

---

Laughter and whistles followed Lily as she made her way downstairs to the common room party, but she took it in her stride: smiling and blowing kisses at her onlookers.

"Stunning," Remus muttered once Lily had made her through the crowds towards him. "It is however lost on James. He and Sirius went out to grab some things from the kitchen."

"Oh and I got all dressed up for nothing," she said which made Remus laugh. "You look very nice by the way," she said, and he nodded his thanks.

"I try my best. I like the boots. Nice touch."

"Thank you," Lily said gazing down at her large yellow boots and grinning. "I hope James appreciates all the trouble I went to."

An uplift of noise caused Lily and Remus to turn towards the portrait hole where James and Sirius where climbing through, their arms full of food, refreshment and Butterbeer.

"Good," she murmured. "I could really do with a Butterbeer right now."

"Hello ladies, Moony," James said as Lily, Remus, Eleanor and Sarah approached James and his table of food. "You all look exquisite," he said, barely batting an eye at Lily's ridiculous outfit.

"Thank you," Lily said, speaking for her friends as well. The room had gone slightly quieter and she had the horrible feeling that everyone was watching her and James. "How much for the Butterbeer?"

"Free for the ladies," James said, smiling and handing a bottle to Sarah and Eleanor. "Except for you, Lily."

"What?" Lily demanded.

"Oo," Eleanor whispered. "A hint James, the way to Lily's heart is through her stomach. Just give her a bottle and back away slowly."

"Really?" James asked, winking at Eleanor and making her blush. "Is that so?"

"I'll pay if that's what you want Potter," Lily said, her arms crossed.

"Of course not, my dear," he said sweetly, still smiling. "No, I think we should make this interesting. How about, I'll give you a Butterbeer if you give me a kiss?"

Lily laughed. "Thanks, but I'd rather share with my friends." Lily turned but Sarah and Eleanor had disappeared into the crowd.

"Just a little kiss," James said, waving the bottle in her face. "Everyone knows how much you love Butterbeer."

"Not enough to kiss you," Lily replied, turning as gracefully as she could in her wellies and stalking off.

"Nice try," Remus said, taking the Butterbeer from James' hand. "Maybe next time."

James scratched his head then took his own bottle and popped the cap. "How is it possible she manages to look completely gorgeous wearing that?"

"Oh so you did notice then."

"You know, I think that's the first time anyone has said no to kissing me."

Remus grinned. "Actually you asked Sirius in fourth year when you were completely wasted. He said no."

James glared at him. "And I thought we weren't going to mention that…ever." Remus just laughed and clapped him on the back.

"Where is Sirius anyway?" Remus asked, his eyes searching the crowded room.

"Probably off moping somewhere. You know he gets depressed for days after he speaks to his brother," James said, sighing and taking a swig from his bottle. Remus had told him the night before of his encounter with Lily and their discussion. James had even got past his outrage that Remus had seen her naked once he told his friend about Sirius' unfriendly conversation with Regulus.

"Do you want me to go and find him?" Remus asked, his eyes still scanning the room.

"Nah, I'll go. He'll be upstairs. Keep Peter distracted, ok?"

Remus nodded and watched his friend glance at Lily with a sigh and head upstairs. Poor James, he'd been planning on this night to make an actual move on Lily, maybe ask her out on another date, but if Sirius was upset, Remus knew James would stick by his side.

Sighing, Remus wandered over to Lily who was talking animatedly to a group of girls in the sixth and seventh year. Maybe he could put in a good word for James, so the whole night wasn't a total waste for him.

"Hi," she said once he'd ambled over and stood beside her. "Want to sit down? My legs hurt."

"Sure," Remus said, allowing her to take the bottle out of his hand and take a long drink from it. "James has gone looking for Sirius." He wasn't too sure why he told her, but he felt as if he owed it to her to know. She seemed a part of it now that she knew Sirius' stories. He felt she had the right to know what was going on.

"How is he?"

"Sirius?"

Lily blushed and shook her head. "No, how's James?"

"He'll be ok. He's a good guy, James." He nodded at the bottle now empty in her hand. "You owe him a kiss for that."

-

"Sirius?" James opened the dormitory door cautiously and peered around. The room was empty but that didn't fool James. He grabbed his cloak off of his bed and strode over to the open window, climbing out and onto the roof.

"You cold?" James asked his friend, sitting down beside him.

"Fucking freezing," Sirius said, taking a long drag on a joint and offering it to James, who took it but didn't raise it to his mouth. Instead he wrapped the cloak around his friend's shoulders and looked up at the night sky.

The evening was clear and thousands of stars winked down at him.

"You gonna have some, or can I have it back?" Sirius asked, gesturing to the joint in James' hand. James raised it to his mouth and took a deep intake of smoky breath before handing it back to Sirius.

"You really think getting stoned will help, Padfoot?"

"I hope so," Sirius said. "It's five years, tomorrow."

James nodded. He knew.

"She'd be eleven," he said quietly, his voice harsh with the pressure to not cry. "She was the most annoying kid ever. Always crawling all over me and sneaking into my bed at night time when she thought I was asleep."

James didn't say anything but took another drag from the joint. Instead of passing it back, he stubbed it out on the roof tiles and let it roll down before dropping over the edge.

"I get worried about you, you know? Think you're going to follow that," he pointed at the path the joint had just taken. "Just give up one day."

Sirius shook his shaggy head and wiped his eyes angrily.

"Promise me," James said quietly. "Promise you'll stick around."

Sirius looked up into James' wide, earnest eyes and nodded. "Yeah, mate. I'll be here. You can't get rid of me."

"Good," James said, and stood. "Don't stay out here too long. You sit on a cold surface too long and you get haemorrhoids."

"Charming," James heard Sirius mutter as he climbed back through the window and made his way down to the noisy common room.

-

"So, I hear you owe me a kiss?"

Lily turned around, her arms crossed. "Oh really, and why's that?"

James grinned. "Moony spilled the beans. Said you took one of my Butterbeers."

Lily opened her mouth in a good impression of incredulous disbelief. "Me? You're accusing me of stealing your Butterbeer? Never!"

James grinned and shrugged. "Well I think I deserve a kiss anyway."

"Oh?"

"Yes, you see I have this reputation which actually means rather a lot to me, and I'm currently ruining it by talking to a girl wearing purple tights and yellow wellies."

"Well, that's your fault. I never asked you to talk to me."

"True, true," James said and flopped down on a couch. "Care to join me?"

Lily shrugged. Her feet were hurting again and her friends had disappeared. It was either talk to James or stand around on her own. She sat. "You smell like smoke," she said cautiously. She knew that smell and it disappointed her to smell it on James' clothes.

James sniffed himself then looked at her. "Where do you know the smell of pot from then?"

Lily blushed and scowled at her hands. Was she actually supposed to tell James that her father drunk and smoked himself into a stupor every time she saw him?

James noticed her discomfort and quickly spoke before she had to. "I was with Sirius. He was smoking."

"Is he ok?" Lily asked, meeting his eyes. They shared a significant look, something she'd never done with James before. She knew instantly that Remus had told him of their conversation for he showed no shock at her asking, and for a moment she realised how much he loved Sirius and that he'd do anything for him.

"He's pretty messed up actually," James said quietly. "I don't know what to do."

Lily sighed and tugged self-consciously on her short skirt. "Listen, James, about this bet. You've got a lot on your plate at the moment. We can just forget about it if that's what you want."

"Merlin's beard, no!" James said with a laugh. "It's barely a week and I've already got you willingly talking to me. Give it a few more minutes and we'll be passionately kissing."

"Doubtful, Potter," Lily drawled. "I don't kiss smokers."

James raised his eyebrows. "I told you I didn't-" but his words were cut off my Lily's mouth pressing against his own, her tongue running across his lips so he opened his mouth to allow her entry but she pulled back and glared at him, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand.

"You were smoking," she said coldly. "Don't lie, it's not becoming."

James watched her get up and stalk off towards the girls' dormitory before the full impact of what just happened finally hit him and he grinned to himself. Sneaky. Very sneaky.

AN: Righto well that's it for three weeks, and i will update wen i get back i promise! Please review! Cya xxx