Disclaimer: I don't own any of the recognizable characters, ideas, places, or other such things to do with Harry Potter. It's unfortunate, but life goes on...and so must the story.
A/N: I got the title for this chapter from the song Love Is All Around by: The Troggs. I had a really hard time choosing a song, as so many coincide with this chapter, but I ended up just narrowing it down. So, what I'll do is put the song with the part of the chapter that it fits best with. Ha! There is a solution. I'll also put one for the overall chapter. I never thought I'd say this…but…there's just too much music to choose from! Also, a warning for LOTS of romance in this chapter. I had to do it though, to get the timeline of events going properly in my head.
Chapter 4: Love Is All Around
Song: Time of the Season
By: The Zombies
-Sirius' POV-
Song: I Just Want to Celebrate – Rare Earth
"No more tests! No more tests! No more tests!" Sirius sang loudly. "We're finally done!" He was so happy; he began dancing a little jig with James.
"WOO HOO!" James shouted. "We have to celebrate. What say we get the other boys and head to Hogsmeade? We'll sweet talk Rosemerta into some butterbeer, get some sweets at Honeydukes, and get ourselves some entertainment from Zonko's. We can celebrate with the girls 'till all hours of the night!"
"Here, here!" Sirius agreed enthusiastically. "I'll get Reggie from the Great Hall."
"Good. I'll get Moony, Wormtail and Frank. Meet you at the one-eyed witch in 15 minutes." James said with equal enthusiasm, now setting off towards Gryffindor tower.
Sirius set off for the Great Hall, which is where Regulus said he'd be for the next hour. Sirius began to think about Rose as his feet led him along a much traveled path to the Great Hall. He had decided that he was going to propose to her after the graduation ceremony. In fact, he'd been thinking about it for a couple months, he just didn't want to move to fast. But now, he felt they were ready. He decided to ask Regulus and James to go with him to a jeweler while in Hogsmeade. Sirius came out of his silent contemplation to find himself at the doors to the Great Hall.
Sirius walked in and immediately spotted Regulus sitting with Holly at the Gryffindor table, he never sat with the Slytherins anymore. He walked up and greeted his brother and Holly.
"Evening brother dearest, Milady," Sirius said in a sarcastic tone, a smile playing on his lips.
"Good evening, my wonderful brother," Regulus said with equal sarcasm. "Can I do something for you?"
"Why yes, now that you mention it, you can. James and I have decided to put together a soirée for this evening. We're heading to Hogsmeade and we'd like you to join us. James is fetching the others. Will you be gracing us with your presence this evening?"
"I don't see why not," Regulus stood up and gave Holly a kiss. "See you later love."
"Milady," Sirius began, addressing Holly in a tone of utmost cordiality Sirius, "would you be so kind as to inform your consorts, our better halves, of this evenings activities. We shall meet you at the Room of Requirement; Rose knows how to get there, at quarter to nine."
"Of course good sir," Holly replied also in a formal tone, "it would be my pleasure."
With that, Sirius and Regulus left for the statue of the one-eyed witch. Once out of ear-shot of the Great Hall, Sirius stopped and turned to Regulus saying, "I've decided to ask Rose to marry me."
"That's great! When?"
"After the graduation ceremony."
"Congratulations mate."
"Thanks. Listen, in Hogsmeade I'd like you and James to go with me to get a ring."
"Of course Sirius, if you need help with anything else just let me know."
"Thanks. I have to tell James yet, so if on the way there you could entertain the others for five minutes?"
"No problem."
Sirius sighed in relief and they began walking again.
-Frank's POV-
Song: Groovy Kind of Love – Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders
Ten minutes before James enters the common room…
"Oi Remus, Peter!" Frank called to his friends, "come here for a minute."
"What's up mate?" Remus asked.
"I need your help with something. I need to go to Hogsmeade and get something for Alice, and I'd like you guys to help me pick it out."
"What is it?" Peter asked, sounding intrigued.
"An engagement ring," Frank stated.
"Congratulations!" Remus exclaimed.
"Wow," Peter whispered. "Congratulations."
"Thanks guys. I don't know when I'll propose, but I want to have the ring ready for the perfect moment."
"No problem-" Remus started, but was interrupted by James coming into the common room.
"Good evening, my fellow Gryffindors. Sirius and I have planned a trip to Hogsmeade if you would like to join us. We're gonna get stuff for a party this evening to mark the end of N.E.W.T.S. Would you lot care to join us? Sirius is already getting Regulus." James told his friends.
It was Remus who replied, with a wink in Frank's direction, "yes; we'd love to come with."
-James' POV-
Song: Midnight Confessions – The Grass Roots
After telling the guys about the plans for that evening, James went to get the Marauders Map. It was originally Sirius' idea because they kept getting caught by Filch, but Remus was the creator of their most prized Marauder possession. While going through his trunk, he also pulled out the ring he'd bought to propose to Lily with. He decided that he would pop the question tonight. James hoped that Lily would say yes, he really loved her.
He grabbed the map and the ring and went to collect the other three from the common room. He tapped his wand on the map and said 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good'. When he said this, he saw where Sirius and Regulus were on the map. They were almost to the one-eyed witch. "Let's hurry up guys." He said this on his way out the portrait hole. "They're gonna beat us to the statue."
-Sirius' POV-
Song: Candy Man – Sammy Davis, Jr.
"Ok," James said. "Frank, Remus and Peter; you go get the butterbeer and the Honeydukes. I think that a bunch of Choco-Balls should suffice as the house elves will provide us with more stuff. Sirius, Regulus and I will go to Zonko's and stock up on Filibuster's Fireworks. Sound good?" Everyone nodded. "Ok, we'll meet back at Honeydukes in an hour."
Normally they wouldn't take that long, but when Sirius had asked James for his help they agreed that an hour would be best. They were going to head to Silversmith's, the jewelers, first in case the others went to Zonko's when they were done. They took the long way round to make it look like they were going to Zonko's.
When they got there Sirius went to speak to the manager in his office, he waved for James and Regulus to follow him when he saw them hesitate. Once in the office, they sat down and waited. Five minutes later and Mr. Silversmith himself walked in.
"Good evening gentlemen. I'm Mr. Silversmith. I hear one of you is looking for something special. How may I be of service?"
"Mr. Silversmith. My name is Sirius Black and these are Regulus Black, my brother, and my friend, James Potter," he said pointing to Regulus and James in turn. "I'm looking for an engagement ring. I'd like something special, though not too extravagant."
"Well, lets see here…" he pulled out a box made of a velvet-like material and opened it. It was lined with satin and inside sat about twenty or so rings. "…Ah…Yes…Here we go." He held up a simple silver band with a triangular diamond on it. The band was wide on the left and thinned on the way to the right. On the left side, encrusted in the thicker part of the band, were three smaller diamonds. "Now then, this ring is enchanted to fit the wearer's finger perfectly. The stones can change color if the wearer so wills them to. It is a one of a kind ring and the band is made of sterling silver."
"It's perfect. I'll take it."
"Alright Mr. Black," Mr. Silversmith said, beginning to box the ring in one similar to the box holding the other rings, "that will be 100 Galleons."
Sirius gave him the money and took the now boxed ring. "Thank you Mr. Silversmith, you've been most helpful." And with that the three boys got up and left his office. When they were about to exit the store they spotted Frank, Remus and Peter looking at something on the other side of the store so they made a quick detour to talk to their friends.
"Hey guys," Regulus said. "What're you doing here?"
"We could ask you the same thing," replied Remus.
"I was buying something for Rose," Sirius said cautiously.
"Oh, well I was just buying something for Alice," Frank said, equal caution in his tone.
"What'd you buy for Alice?" James asked Frank.
"What'd you buy Rose?" Peter asked Sirius.
Sirius sighed and said, "I bought an engagement ring. I'm planning on asking her after graduation."
"Oh. Well, I was doing the same. Except, I don't know when I'll ask Alice."
James then shocked everyone by saying, "I'm going to ask Lily tonight."
"What?" Sirius asked. "Since when?"
"This morning. I mean, I've had the ring since our last Hogsmeade trip, I was just waiting for the proper time to ask."
"Right, well, I may as well say then that I've also got a ring for Rina. But like Frank, I'm not sure when I'll propose." Remus stated bluntly.
"Wow, we're all going to be getting engaged soon. This is weird how, even though we didn't tell each other, we ended up going for it at the same time." Frank said this with awe in his voice.
"So Regulus," Sirius began with a grin and lots of sarcasm "have something to share with us?"
"No, unlike you lads, I'm still in 6th year. However much I might want to, it's not yet that time for Holly and me." Regulus replied, sounding a little sad.
"Cheer up little bro, you'll get there quick enough."
The two groups just stuck together instead of splitting up again. First they went to Zonko's and got some Filibuster's Fireworks. After that they went to get some kegs of butterbeer from The Three Broomsticks. Last they went to Honeydukes as they had to go through the cellar there to get back. There they got some Choco-Balls for the party and Remus picked up a few bars of every type of chocolate to replace what Sirius had eaten, Sirius paid for that of course. When they were done, they snuck back down to the cellar and went back to Hogwarts.
-Lily's POV-
Song: Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
After Holly told the girls about tonight, Rina, Rose, Alice, Holly and Lily had begun to get ready for the evening. It was about 6 p.m. when she told them but the five girls shared a bathroom, thus extending the time spent getting ready.
Lily was wearing an emerald green halter-top dress that went to her knees and complimented her eyes. She wore silver hoop earrings, a delicate silver chain as a necklace, a silver charm bracelet, and some flat green shoes. She put her fiery red hair in a ponytail, leaving down a thick strand on the right side of her face.
Rose had on a similar dress, except it was ruby red. She wore a gold choker necklace, gold dangly earrings, and a gold bracelet from her mother. She had on 2" heels in a deep burgundy color. Her chocolate brown hair was curled loosely and left down around her shoulders.
Alice wore a sapphire blue dress to match her eyes. It had spaghetti straps and a square neckline. It went half-way down her calves. She had on sapphire post earrings and a necklace with a sapphire pendant. She wore blue heels and her long blonde hair was left down straight, but with a slight flip to the ends.
Rina had on an amber colored dress that had thicker straps and a plunging v-neckline that wasn't too revealing. She wore pearl earrings and a matching pearl bracelet and necklace that her grandmother had given her for her last birthday. She put on some elegant and stylish flat brown shoes that were decorated with various sequins and glitter. Her deep red hair was put up in an elegant bun with a few strands of hair hanging down on the sides of her face.
Holly wore a strapless, plum colored, dress that went to just above her knees and flipped out ever so slightly. She put on some pale purple heels. She wore amethyst earrings and an amethyst necklace. She curled her ebony black hair and put it half-up and half-down.
After they were all ready, they put on their robes over their dresses and Rose led them to the room they were supposed to meet at. When they got there, they waited for something to happen. Rose began pacing, Lily guessed from boredom. Then, suddenly, out of nowhere, a door appeared and Rose opened it. When they walked in they heard Muggle music and saw the boys talking while they waited. Then, James looked up and said, "Welcome to The Room of Requirement!"
All the boys went and met their girlfriends, all accept for poor Peter, and complimented their choice in clothing. "That dress matches your eyes perfectly." That came from James, and Lily thought she heard Frank say the same to Alice.
"Thank you."
Then James pulled Lily back out the door, saying over his shoulder that they'd be right back.
"What's up James," I asked confused, "is something wrong?"
"No. Everything's fine, great in fact. Lily, you know I love you, right?"
"Of course I do James, I love you too." Lily said with a smile growing on her lips.
"Ok, this is harder than I thought, best just ask," he mumbled to himself. "Lily," he said speaking up and looking into her eyes. "I love you more than anything. I think we go perfectly together in every way imaginable. I want to spend my life with you. Will you marry me?"
At first Lily wasn't sure she'd heard properly, but then she thought about it and sure enough he'd proposed. She began crying and nodded her head yes. He kissed her passionately then picked her up and spun her around in his joy.
"Here," he said pulling a box from his pocket, "I got this for you."
It was a beautiful ring; simple, yet elegant. It was a white gold band with diamonds encrusted all around the band. It looked too big for her, but once she slipped it on it resized itself to fit her perfectly. "I love you," she finally managed to say. "This ring is beautiful. I hope you didn't go to too much trouble."
"That's not possible." He said, making Lily cry again.
-Alice's POV-
Song: It's So Nice To Be With You – Gallery
When Lily and James came back in and they announced their engagement, everyone cheered and went to congratulate the pair.
"Oh Frank," Alice said. "That's so sweet. Aren't they perfect for each other?"
"Yes, they are. I know another pair that's perfect for each other as well."
"Oh, do you? And who might they be?" She asked with a knowing smile.
"Us," Frank declared. "Alice Smith, I love you. Will you marry me?"
"Yes…, yes I will." Alice's heart nearly burst with joy. "I love you so much Frank."
They also shared a deeply passionate kiss and then Frank gave Alice her ring. It was a silver band with a solitaire diamond and it fit her wonderfully. The also announced their engagement and were also heralded with many hugs, handshakes, and congratulations from their friends.
-James' POV-
Song: Kodachrome – Paul Simon
It was now Saturday, June 19th, the day of their graduation ceremony. A bunch of tables were set up on the quidditch pitch and in the front was a stage for the speakers. The six Marauders and five Moonstruck got a table together.
Regulus and Frank were now fully-fledged members of the Marauders as they had mastered their Animagus transformations. Frank had turned into an eagle and Regulus had changed into a panther. Frank's Marauder name became Talon as his were so long and sharp, easily his most prominent feature in animal form. Regulus had been dubbed Slinky by Sirius because when he transformed the first time, his tail coiled up just like Sirius' favorite Muggle toy. The two had found running, or in Frank's case flying, alongside the others to be exhilarating.
The ceremony was to begin with a speech from Headmaster Dumbledore. Next was each Head of House. Professor Slughorn from Slytherin came up first and complimented Lily's skill in Potions class. Then up was Professor Flitwick from Ravenclaw who praised James and Remus on their talent in Charms. After Flitwick was done, Professor Sprout for Hufflepuff went up and she was absolutely thrilled to talk about Frank's and Alice's star performances in Herbology.
Lastly came who they'd been waiting for, Professor McGonagall from Gryffindor. "In my time as Gryffindor Head of House," she began, "I have seen many students pass through, though never such a close group as this, nor such a troublesome group. My house was home to the Marauders, who I hear have recently expanded to include two more members. Over the years, the Marauders have been a cause of mayhem, chaos and a source of humor in these dark times. These students were top notch at everything they put their minds to, which was usually pranking fellow students or the staff." At this, the Marauders stood up and cheered loudly. They then climbed on their chairs and bowed to the audience and then to McGonagall.
"Our thanks for your compliments Milady McGonagall." James said in a formal dialect.
"They are much appreciated from a lady as talented as yourself;" Sirius added.
"James Henry Potter and Sirius Orion Black, you two sit down this instant or so help me…" they heard Mrs. Potter shout from a distance.
"Sorry mum!" James shouted back.
"Sorry Mrs. Potter!" Sirius also shouted back, at the same time as James. Both had feral grins plastered on their faces.
"Our apologies madam," Remus said to McGonagall, the boys sitting back down, "please continue with your wonderful sentiments."
"Yes well," she continued, "as you can see, quite the handful. My condolences to you Mrs. Potter. However, I must say that Sirius Black was one of my most talented Transfiguration students," cheering from the Marauders table, "as was Lily Evans." More cheering from their table, but McGonagall continued unfazed. "It has been my privilege to teach all of you over the years. And now, the ceremony is to be handed over to the Head Boy and Girl…James Potter and Lily Evans. May Merlin help us." She finished and then left the stage.
Lily and James took their places on stage with much cheering from their table. "Ok, ok, settle down you guys," started James. "Thank you for that lovely introduction Professor McGonagall, we'll try to live up to it. We've decided to hand out a number of awards. As to who won these, we consulted student and teacher alike for their opinion and put it all together. The first award was one of Lily's choosing, so she shall present it. Lily…"
"First award is, 'Most Stressed During Exams'. We spoke with the other houses and determined that the student who was the most stressed out during exams was Remus Lupin!" Remus reluctantly went up and received his award.
"You know, just because I like to study doesn't mean that I'm overly stressed!"
"Sure it doesn't Moony. That's why you woke up every morning panicking you were late for something." Remus had a shocked look on his face. "What, didn't you think Sirius was going to complain to someone about being woken up every morning at 5? Anyway, back to the show. Next up was a tie between myself and another. For the receiving of 'Most Detentions', you know who you are…Sirius Black!" Sirius ran up to the stage. "Now then, since the tie was with me, I concede and give the award to Sirius as he was always a wonderful partner in crime. We always got into the thick of it together!" Sirius accepted with a huge grin and a bow to the audience.
"I couldn't have done it without you mate." He then left the stage and sat back down.
The awarding went on much the same way for the next little while. The students had voted on Lily and James as best couple, as had the staff. Lily and James met the acceptance of this award with the announcement of their engagement, to a lot of loud cheering from their table. Sirius and Rose were voted the 'Couple Most Likely to Cause Trouble and Mayhem'. Lily was voted 'Most Creative and Resourceful'. Remus got another award for 'Best at Researching'. Sirius and James were named 'Best Prankers' and Snape was voted 'Most Likely To Be Pranked', much to his dismay.
After Lily and James finished, Dumbledore gave another small speech about 'taking care of oneself in these dark times' and 'good-luck in future endeavors'. When he was done it was time for the much anticipated, at least by Sirius and James, lunch.
-Rose's POV-
Song: I'd Do Anything – Simple Plan
Before she could begin eating, Rose was pulled away by Sirius insisting that they take a walk by the Black Lake. They walked over hand-in-hand and sat under the beech tree where they'd first said that they loved each other. Rose was curled up in Sirius' arms and they just sat there looking at the lake for a while.
Then Sirius began, his voice was slightly nervous. "Rose, I love you very much. I can't imagine my life without you in it. I would do anything for you. Would you marry me?"
Rose looked up into his eyes and said, "Sirius, I love you so much. Of course I'll marry you!"
He kissed the top of her head and pulled her closer to him. They sat in their silent contentment for a while before Sirius got up and offered her his hand to help her get up.
"We'd best be going back. Oh, and here, I hope you like it. You can change the color of the stones to any that you might want."
She took the proffered ring and immediately put it on. She loved it! It was beautiful and it fit her comfortably. "Oh it's wonderful Sirius. Thank you so much!"
They went back and told their friends, who congratulated them, and then ate their wonderfully delicious lunch.
-Remus' POV-
Song: Count On Me – Jefferson Starship
Remus had decided on the direct, blunt approach. He turned to Rina, who had been talking to Alice, and began.
"Rina," she turned and looked at him questioningly. He pulled out his mother's ring. It had also been his grandmothers and so on for generations. "Will you marry me?" He noticed that they were being watched intently by their friends.
Rina, in a state of joyous shock, just nodded her head and held her hand out. Remus put the ring on her finger and pulled her into a tight embrace. He vaguely heard clapping and cheering in the background, but he didn't care. She'd said yes!
-Sirius' POV-
Song: Graduation – Vitamin c
Sirius, after seeing all his friends so happy, made a very easy decision. He would make the announcement now. He hoped that they'd all agree to it.
"Attention, attention. In light of recent and not-so-recent events, I have had my thought for the week," mock gasps from James, "and it has grown into a full blown idea," mock clapping from Remus. "Not-so-recently, mine and Regulus' Uncle Alphard died. He left me tons of stuff I don't need and a ton of cash. One thing though, that he left me, was a five bedroom flat in London. It has as many bathrooms as bedrooms. It's close to the many attractions of London; The Ministry, St. Mungo's, and Peter's flat being some of them. I would like to extend an invitation, to all those at this table who would like it, a rent-free room. Just let me know, you'll all always be welcome."
All the couples turned to each other and began conversing. Lily and James were the first to accept, on the terms that they got to have their own room with no teasing about sleeping arrangements. Sirius agreed to this straight away as he would be sharing a room with Rose and he didn't want the mickey taken out of him for it. Remus and Rina and Frank and Alice also accepted under these terms. Holly also took him up on his offer, so long as Regulus could also stay there when need be. As it turned out, 'need be' began this summer as he was planning on not going home this summer. He'd told their mother he'd met a Slytherin who invited him to his summer house for the whole summer, a temporary ploy to get his stuff out of the house, and once he had it…he was going to write her and tell her his true living arrangements. He fully expected to be blasted off the family tree as Sirius had last summer, and he was looking forward to what their mother would do in the face of no Black heir.
-GENERAL POV-
Song: We Are The Champions – Queen
The next day was the End-Of-Term Feast. Gryffindor won the House Championship, as well as the Quidditch Cup. After the feast, the group of friends lingered for a few hours at Hogwarts. They finally went to Hogsmeade to apparate to their new flat in London, and begin their lives outside of Hogwarts.
A/N: Ok, I hope you liked it. Sorry again for so much romance. The next chapter will have more detail about the war and it will definitely have less romance in it.