A/N: So, let's skip ahead a bit because I don't want to have to write out five months, so we'll summarize them, kay? Oh, and sorry about this being a really short chapter in comaprison.

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The next three months were spent doing nothing but planning. Lily and James were able to convince Dumbledore to let Claire and Sirius help with the plans as well as Tanya and Remus. They were the only six that were going to be doing anything for this ball, and it was going to be amazing. Claire was in charge of picking out decorations; Tanya was working on the guest list. Remus was up to the task of food. Sirius had to endure the commands of Claire on where all the decorations she put on hold in stores went in the room, drawing up a plan for it. James and Lily were, as they called it, supervising. They told the others what they were doing that was wrong and helped them to fix it. James claimed it was a very hard job! During this period of time, Slytherins were wandering into the hospital wing daily, with no recollection of how they had broken some bone or been hexed some way or another. I wonder who could have done that? It even seemed like the bruise under Lucius Malfoy's left eye would never go away.

When the preparations were complete, they relaxed, having a full two months before the end of term, and the Quidditch final looming ahead. Gryffindor was in first place, tied with Slytherin. They had to win by at least three hundred points in order to win the cup. Claire was definitely up to the task. James seemed much less cocky than usual, playing Slytherin, they had never won by that much before. Sirius was confident, as always, but he was guarded as well, worried about Claire. He couldn't spend the entire match flying next to her or following her, she would be offended, and she was an amazing flier, sick or healthy.

The fact remained though, that she was sick. Her face became more sallow as the days passed and her cheekbones were becoming visible as she talked. She was still the ravishing and beautiful Claire though, nothing would change that, especially in Sirius's eyes. Claire would be ravishing no matter how wild hr hair got and how dark the circles under her eyes were, how pale she became, and how thin her body becoming. She went to every Quidditch practice now, she was still the superb and amazing flier she had always been, but it seemed like she used more effort for it.

The next Hogsmeade weekend was looming ahead, the day after the match. Claire, they hoped, would be in good spirits when they went shopping for their gowns. As the weather became warmer, the storms began to blow in more frequently, constantly reminding poor Lily about her night in the common room, when it had truly sunk in the first time that Claire was going to die.

Moving On

Claire woke up feeling incredibly invigorated. She rushed to the mirror, her cheeks were slightly flushed, no longer the pale sour skin she had acquired from the poison. She was getting tanner from the months of preparation for this last Quidditch match. This was their last chance for Gryffindor to earn the cup, and she wanted to make it count. She ran to the bathroom, showering in incredible haste and pulling her wet hair into a ponytail after drying it with her wand. Lily was the first to stir in her bed by the time Claire had pulled on her crimson and gold Quidditch robes.

"Is it today already?" asked Lily, seeing the look of pure exhilaration on her best friend's face. Claire nodded, her grin spreading from ear to ear. Term ended June thirtieth – June fifteenth for the seventh years - and today was April thirtieth. There was only a month left and a half. Lily pushed this from her mind and threw her pillow at the sleeping Tanya, who rolled so far over that she hit the hard floor, falling out of her bed. Tanya shrieked in surprise when she hit the ground, having still been half asleep. The other two girls got dressed soundlessly. Claire was rushing them, definitely.

When they made it into the common room, the boys were already there waiting, Peter looked positively exuberant.

"What's got your knickers in a bunch?" asked Sirius, looking to Peter with one eyebrow raised.

"A really pretty Ravenclaw asked to sit with me at the game today," he squeaked. Lily couldn't help but feel proud of Peter for having is very first date.

"Who is she?" asked Sirius.

"Jenny Lawkins," he piped. Sirius turned around and cringed. Jenny was okay, a bit hefty (In other words, she was fat, like Peter, and really lazy and got really bad grades) for her age, but had a cute face. Sirius had never dated her in his years of trying to get every girl in the school to go out with him.

"Well, come on, we should probably get to the locker rooms," said James with some authority in his tone. Claire nodded, but Sirius looked worried, not about the match, but Claire, what if something happened today? His arm coiled protectively around her waist.

"Shall we?" asked Remus, holding out both of his arms. The two remaining girls took his arms. He smiled slightly. "Poor you, James, your girlfriend seems to want to come with me more," he joked.

"Ha, ha!" said James dryly. They left through the portrait hole. James kissed Lily on the cheek as she waved and wished him good luck in the game, He smiled a beautiful and perfect smile before heading for the pitch. Lily, Tanya, and Remus went the other way, the way that didn't lead through the locker rooms. They climbed the stands and sat down, watching the field. The game was starting in any second.

Gryffindor had won, won by two hundred points. Claire had flown beautifully, scoring one hundred of their points. Sirius scored about fifty of them, and James caught the snitch at the end. The score was 400 to 200, seeing as their other chaser had managed to score a bit too. Claire was exuberant, so excited about the victory and the Quidditch cup that was now held in James's hand that she kissed Sirius so hard that Sirius felt like collapsing under the pressure of it. Lily was so happy for James that she couldn't help but run onto the field right after the end of the game and plant a huge kiss right on his lips. It had felt like five minutes before Madam Hooch pulled them apart. Claire and Sirius, of course, were dancing happily around the field, their optimism unmatched by anyone but Professor Dumbledore who was smiling his usual serene smile.

"Claire I love you!" Sirius yelled over the crowd in the Gryffindor common room. They were all toasting with the Butterbeer that Dumbledore had allowed them just this once. It had been like a century before Gryffindor had won the Quidditch Cup.

"What?" she yelled back.

"I love you!" he said louder.

"Me too!" she yelled back.

"Huh?" asked Sirius. Claire threw her arms around Sirius's neck and jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. He held her there, a perfectly serene look on his face. Lily and James were next to them, James was running his fingers through Lily's vibrant red hair. The room had gone quiet and then someone tapped a glass with a fork. Lily looked around the room. Tanya had an innocent expression on her face, too innocent. Then, the rest of the room started tapping their glasses.

"What do you expect me to do?" asked Lily loudly.

"Kiss him!" came a voice from a fourth year. "Claire and Sirius too!" Claire and Sirius kissed for about five minutes, taking breaths in between. Their love was pure, but it was so much more physical than James's and Lily. Lily kissed James quickly, looking away, slightly red. James looked at her, eyebrows raised. She didn't look at him. He placed her face in his hands and turned it so that she was looking at him, and the, pulled her face to meet his and they kissed for a moment. When both couples had pulled away, everyone was clapping. Lily rolled her eyes and Claire laughed slightly, finally jumping out of Sirius's arms.

"Hey, everyone, shut up!" yelled Sirius loudly. Everyone was immediately quiet. "Alright, I just want to say that I think our captain should get a nice round of applause." James shot a thankful glance at Sirius as everyone in the room clapped.

"Alright, alright," James calmed the room by standing up on the table to get everyone's attention. "A captain is nothing without his team, everyone deserves a round of applause, including our amazing fans!" Everyone in the room screamed happily and shouted their approval. The common room was cleared of first through fourth years in a few hours, and then the fifth years began to disappear, and then the sixth, and then the group were the only people left (except for Peter, no one really knew where he was). Lily had fallen asleep, her head resting against James's chest, his arms wrapped around her as he kissed the top of hair.

Claire and Sirius were too excited to sleep, though, and were jumping up and down on the couch high-fiving each other as James, Remus, and Tanya looked at them with disapproval. Of course, the two didn't care one but. James was just worried about Lily waking up.

Tanya was sitting on the floor in front of Remus, his arms around her. She seemed at ease at least. Sirius and Claire didn't settle until all of the sugary cnady had disappeared, and it took a while for Claire to eat her half. When the sugar-high was over, Claire and Sirius collapsed on the very couch they'd ben jumping on. She fell asleep in his arms. In the end, all of them ended up falling asleep in the common room.

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A/N: It was a good day for them, I'm sure. Next chapter everyone gets to see the dresses! Yay! Of course, they are beautiful and way more formal than last time.