Chapter Twenty-Three - Unmasking
Lily awoke the next morning, Saturday morning, the day of the masquerade morning, wondering vaguely where she was. She was abruptly reminded when Selene appeared over her head and said loudly,
"Oh finally- she's awake."
"Looks a mess too," a voice said from her right, and Lily turned to look at Kristen. She sat up slowly, rubbing a hand over her hair.
"Good morning, Lily. We've got quite a bit of decorating to do, so I hope you're in the mood," Kristen smiled softly and seated herself on the end of Lily's bed.
"Oh wonderful…" Lily groaned. If there was one thing she hated, it was being woken up early and knowing that she couldn't go back to sleep.
Selene pulled Lily out of bed. "Come on, the longer you think about it, the worse it gets. Besides, we shouldn't need to stay for all the decorating; we can just tell everyone what to do." She winked at Lily and threw a clean pair of clothing at her.
After the early start, the day was rather monotonous, in Lily's opinion; at least until after the "early dinner," when they could finally begin decorating the Great Hall. They had wished for the decorations to be a surprise, and so they had decided to wait until after everyone had finished eating.
There were only a few hours left before the ball would begin, and Lily found herself staring at the walls, where James and Peter were attempting to string a shiny banner that had been the Marauders' creation. Lily wasn't quite sure what to do around James, or anyone else of that matter. She was feeling more collected than she had in weeks, but that didn't stop her disorientation, especially when James was around.
Kristen was grinning next to her, and Lily had the faint impression that she knew why. She leaned over and asked, "Have you talked with Remus lately?" Kristen blinked at her, and replied, "Well of course, we've been trying to work on the book as much as possible and-"
"No, I mean have you talked to him lately?"
"Oh! Er- well, he did say something to me about making sure that I saved a dance for him…"
Lily nodded in satisfaction. Her eyes moved across the room and met Remus's. He grinned and waved at her, not noticing that he had pieces of shiny silver in his hair. James snickered and sprinkled some of Selene's carefully folded snowflakes onto his head as well. Lily smirked as she waved back at Remus.
She could still appreciate James's antics, right? Even if she didn't deserve him? Heaving a sigh, she turned towards the rows of long tables. She grabbed her wand from her pocket and muttered a spell, waving her arms about. The tables immediately began scattering, forming many smaller, round tables and chairs. They arranged themselves in a semi-circle, facing a large area that Lily kept open as the dance floor.
Selene narrowly jumped out of the way as a table scooted past her. "Hey!" She glared at Lily. She then surveyed the scene, and with a wave of her wand, sent white tablecloths fluttering over the tabletops. Kristen, who was standing next to her and observing, said, "I think we should probably go get ready now. The guys won't need nearly as much time, so they can finish up here."
Selene, who had approached Lily from the other side, snorted. She gestured towards Sirius and Remus, who were attempting to hang ornaments on the giant Christmas tree Hagrid had lugged in, cursing each time they dropped something or poked themselves.
"It's alright, it looks good already. I think we can trust them with the last few simple tasks," Kristen stated quietly, and Lily nodded.
The Great Hall was rather attractive, mostly thanks to Clover and her sister, Mariana. Lily was very thankful that Clover had kept Mariana away from her as much as possible. The Head Girl really appreciated all of the enthusiasm that the third year exhibited, but she didn't think the girl should be looking up to her, of all people. Kristen was the better role model any day.
They had decided on House colors. Though it was Christmas, this masquerade ball was about bringing the Houses together and breaking the Cavillors and Auscultos apart. But of course they had planned for much Christmas music and Selene had absolutely insisted upon decorating the walls with paper snowflakes. Dumbledore had effectively dimmed the candle lighting more than usual, making the whole Hall look more like a dance floor. There was a decidedly mysterious feel to it, Lily reflected, which was very fitting. She glanced up and surveyed the sunset above them. There were already a few stars appearing here and there, and Lily was thankful that it was a cloudless night; the night sky added to the mystery and had always comforted her for some reason.
She was startled from her reverie when Selene grabbed her arm and tugged her towards the door. "You daydream too much, Evans," she smiled.
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It wasn't until they reached their dorm room and began digging through their clothes that Lily realized who had been missing from the decorating session. "Do either of you know where Levent was today?" Lily asked, glancing carefully at her friends.
They both stopped what they were doing and looked up. "No, why?"
"I dunno." Lily shrugged. "I haven't seen him at all lately, I was just wondering."
"He's been acting really strange lately," Kristen commented softly.
"I mean, he's been sitting near Snape and Malfoy in the Great Hall and he never looks your way in class anymore."
Selene nodded, indicating that she had noticed the same thing. "Rotten Slytherins. I swear, if I see either Snape or Malfoy smirking again when they're reading the morning news, I'll bash their heads in."
"D'you suppose they're really Death Eaters?" Lily asked carefully, trying to forget about the fact that Levent had indeed been talking to them a bit lately. But he hadn't seemed himself, either…she didn't know him all that well, but she could tell that he was different.
"I dunno. Probably." Selene rolled her eyes. "Let's not talk about them now, we have a lot of work to do." She held a long gown up and ran her fingers over it. "So what do you think?"
Kristen gasped; it was the deepest blue she had ever seen on a dress. "It's gorgeous," she breathed, "it goes perfectly with your eyes."
"What?" Lily pulled her eyes away and stared at Kristen. "Her eyes aren't purple."
The two girls stared at one another in confusion and Selene burst out laughing. "It's form-changing fabric. It becomes whatever the person looking at it wants to see." She paused. "I'm so glad you like things to go with my eyes, Kristen. And Lily- do you really see me as a purple sort of girl?"
They both flushed slightly. Kristen stared at the dress a moment longer, stating, "But that must have cost a fortune."
Selene smiled ruefully. "Yes, well, that's one plus of being born into a wealthy family, I suppose…"
Lily nodded; the Kelehans did have a good deal of money, possibly even more than the Blacks. And from what Lily had heard, the Potters weren't far behind. None of those three people really flaunted their wealth, and Lily was glad for it, because she couldn't stand people who did. Like Malfoy.
Kristen laughed, "Well, either way it's a beautiful dress." She glanced down at what she was holding, earning the other girls' attention.
"Well hold it up," Lily instructed.
It was a pale purple color, one that would have looked awful with Lily's hair but would look great on Kristen with her blonde hair. The front was cut a bit low, but not low enough to raise any eyebrows, and the bottom widened out to where little purple flowers were embroidered into the fabric, only noticeable if one looked closely.
"It's beautiful," Lily commented, fingering the silky fabric. "And very comfortable, I imagine."
"So what did you pick out, Lily?" Kristen asked, setting her dress down on her bed for a moment.
Lily smiled softly. "Nothing as nice as yours. She reached down onto her bed and pulled the dress up against her body. It was two layers; the top layer being a transparent sort of green and the back layer was a solid, darker emerald. When the two layers were against one another, they created a feeling of depth and it had held Lily's interest for this reason.
"I always did like the color of your eyes, Lily," Selene announced, grinning.
"But- I didn't pick it because it matches-"
Kristen held up a hand. "Doesn't matter," she said, "we need to get a move on so that we're not late."
When they were finally finished dressing and after much struggling with their hair, the three Auscultos grabbed the remaining piece of their costumes; the masks. They surveyed one another and noticed that their masks all matched the colors of their dresses (apparently Selene's mask also changed to accommodate her dress).
"This feels a bit like Halloween," Lily commented, grinning. There were holes for their eyes and mouth, and of course their hair could be seen, but that was the only form of identity left.
Selene suddenly sounded serious. "Let's make an agreement that tonight we don't think about anything. That we just have fun, forget about our respective problems and go with whatever happens."
"Agreed," chorused Lily and Kristen. They were more than willing to comply with that idea. While the purpose of the masquerade was to unify the groups, they couldn't help but feel that it was the perfect opportunity for an escape from reality, something that Lily was not sure she had ever done in her life.
The three girls descended the stairs together, giggling as other Auscultos passed them and they realized that even though hair and eyes were visible, they still couldn't tell who many of the people were and it would be even more difficult to discern once they were all in the dimness of the Great Hall.
Lily began wondering what James was going to be wearing. Not that she would be looking for him, especially if she was going to comply with this forget about everything agreement. She need not see him at all tonight. On the other hand, forgetting about her problems could include going along with her feelings for James, right? She sighed internally when she realized that he, however, would not allow that interaction. And she was trying so hard to forget about their encounter in the broom cupboard; she had decided that while she knew it was more than lust on her part, it had only been hormones for James. He cared nothing for her anymore; Remus had only been trying to comfort her.
They walked into the Great Hall in silence and stopped just inside the doors, scanning the finished product. The boys had done a nice job finishing up; it was very fitting for a masquerade ball during Christmas time. There was a large group of people already there- or two large groups would be a better way to describe it, as it appeared that the Cavillors and Auscultos were congregating on opposite sides of the dance floor. It was clear that they had gone against Lily's wishes and they seemed to know who was who – at least where their friends were concerned. Lily was not completely disheartened, however, because she was sure that once they began dancing, nobody would be able to tell.
Selene chuckled. "It looks like some people went all out."
Indeed, there were many dresses and suits that looked like they would fit in very well at a Halloween party. Some of the girls had fluffy or sparkly masks. The boys didn't even look like teenagers in their formal wear. There was a distinct air of excitement; it was palpable and Lily was very inspired by this. She had hoped when she first blurted out her suggestion that it would all work out well, because it could have been a disaster…still could be, in fact.
Kristen mumbled on her right side, "I wonder where the boys are. We may never be able to find them in these costumes."
"Oh, I think we'll manage." Selene laughed. Lily didn't need to look over at her friend to know that she had a smirk on her face. No doubt she and Sirius had already discussed this.
There was faint music playing from the direction of the Staff table, where a lone witch was seated in a rather modest but fitting dress. Lily was sure it was McGonagall and she grinned; she hadn't thought she would ever see her professor in a dress, let alone a mask.
More people had wandered in while the girls were staring about them, and Lily abruptly felt a tugging on her arms as her friends led her over to a table and they seated themselves to watch people come in.
Lily's lips tightened as she realized that nobody was really mingling; there was still that division through the dance floor. She was glaring at a very stubborn boy who seemed to be keeping the people next to him from mixing with another group, when she heard Selene let out a breath beside her.
"Well- there's Sirius," she announced loudly, smiling.
The first thought on Lily's mind was where's James then? She didn't see him near the boy Selene was advancing towards, but she followed her friend anyway to see if James would be nearby.
Selene tapped Sirius on the shoulder as they approached and he turned towards them. His eyes looked confused a moment, but Lily could tell that it was Sirius by the smirk on his mouth. He was staring quite avidly, and not at Selene's face.
"You look hot in leather," he told her, his smirk widening.
Lily's eyes widened and she almost burst out laughing, but Selene beat her to it. "Well- it's not leather, exactly. Just form-changing fabric; it becomes whatever you want it to be." She smirked, gauging his reaction.
"Oh, well that's…I fancy myself in leather, and seeing as we may as well be the same person, that makes perfect sense." He was tapping a finger against his still-smiling lips.
Her smirk widened, almost evilly. "But I'll be sure to wear leather whenever I need something from you."
"Oh no, won't work on me, my dear. I am a wall."
"Sure. Whatever you say. We shall see."
Lily was feeling a bit out of place, but decided to cut in now, before they forgot about her completely. "Do you know where James is?" She couldn't take it anymore; if she was supposed to let go tonight, she was going to at least try to find him.
Sirius turned his attention to her. "Lily! I thought it might be you, but I can't tell y'know…"
"Apart from the red hair, you mean."
"Well I can't see that well in here." He squinted towards her and then stopped, smiling suddenly. "What's that you say? You're looking for James?" He rubbed his chin beneath his mask. "Wait- wasn't it you who kept insisting that we not know who everyone else is?"
Lily groaned. "But-"
He held up a hand. "Nope. There will be no breaking of the rules by this man."
Lily gestured towards Selene and tried to make a suggestive face, before realizing that her face was masked.
He shrugged. "I had nothing to do with that, it was all her doing. She was just attracted towards me by animal magnetism, is all."
Selene grinned and didn't bother arguing for once. Lily shook her head and made a frustrated noise in the back of her throat. She decided it wasn't worth her effort and turned to make her way back over to the table, where Kristen was still seated and watching the door.
When Lily approached, Kristen commented, "Well it looks like we're still missing a bunch of people…do you think there are many who decided not to come?"
"No, probably not. I thought a masquerade would be quite popular, despite the purpose…"
But even as she finished, Kristen was pointing towards the door, where a large group of people was now filtering in. Lily squinted, wondering why they were all traveling together, when she abruptly found her answer. On the right-hand side of all of their costumes, there was a large green pin, complete with a snake forming a large "S". Lily rolled her eyes. She should have known that the Slytherins would try something like this.
A slightly raspy voice that had a familiar air of command rang out from the staff table. "Please, if you would, students, remove your pins. Nobody is allowed to have an identity tonight and I believe that you are breaking the rules."
Lily laughed when she looked up and saw Dumbledore's costume, complete with planets and half-moons moving across a deep blue robe. "Nice costume, Professor Dumbledore," a student near the middle of the Hall announced loudly.
He pulled off his mask and laughed softly. "What gave me away? It was the beard, wasn't it?"
Lily looked back at the Slytherins, who even with masks covering most of their expressions looked none too pleased. They were all reluctantly removing their pins and sticking them in pockets or purses. Lily had the distinct suspicion that Lucius Malfoy had had something to do with the pins. Actually, Malfoy had probably instructed Snape to make them. He rarely executed his own ideas.
Dumbledore seemed to be reading Lily's mind as he said, "Well, we should be getting started. If the boys would form a large circle on the outside, and the girls a circle on the inside, Professor McGongall and I will start the music without further ado."
The circles, inevitably, were mostly Cavillor on one side and Ausculto on the other, prompting Dumbledore to say, "No, no, mix it up a bit," in a cheery voice. There were a few groans but the students complied, many of them dragging their feet. Lily found as she arranged herself in between two other girls that she had lost track of her friends. She looked around her and realized that she didn't recognize anyone. Sirius was right; even hair color was proving very elusive unless one was extremely close to the other person and squinted, and Lily did not think she should do that with this many students just to locate her friends, even if they didn't know who she was.
She stopped staring around as the music began, and the students around her began to dance with the person across from them. It seemed that much of the suspicion that was previously thick in the room was fading away into excitement, and no one much cared about which group the person across from them was in. If there was nobody to watch and tell them it was wrong, and in fact they weren't sure if it was wrong or not themselves, then why not go ahead and do it?
Lily grabbed the hands of the boy in front of her, feeling rough palms sliding against hers. Immediately her mind began speeding, hmm…probably a quidditch player. She began to go through a list of quidditch players she knew – but these weren't James's hands, she had felt his just last night after all…her face flushed and she was trying to look into the eyes of this boy in front of her when she heard a loud,
"Change partners!" And girls moved to the right, boys to the left.
Well, she had asked Dumbledore to make sure they switched quickly, but honestly, wasn't this a bit fast? Lily shook her head to clear it as she grasped the hands of the next boy. Ugh- what awful teeth. Maybe it's a Slytherin…But then he grinned at her and she dismissed the idea. Slytherins were not famous for their grinning faces. But then again, Levent was a Slytherin, and he grinned all the time…but he also had perfect teeth…
"Change!"
Lily stumbled slightly and caught the next pair of hands.
"Hello Lily," a small voice said, and the boy smiled at her. Her eyes had probably reflected confusion, because he added, "It's Peter. Sirius told me what you were wearing."
Lily nodded and smiled at him, forgetting to be irritated with Sirius. She'd been seeing less of Peter lately, it seemed. "Oh- well hello Pete." They danced for a moment longer before an idea occurred to her. But if Peter knew what she was wearing…" Wait- did Sirius tell J-"
"Change partners, please!"
Peter shrugged and moved off before Lily had a chance to finish. She sighed and reluctantly placed her hands into the next pair offered to her. And she felt it almost immediately – how the slightly rough surface gave just the right amount of friction against her palms. How his grip melted against hers in a way she was very comfortable with, in a way that she had felt many times before…She looked up and met his eyes. They were already staring into hers, prompting her to shiver slightly and tighten her grip on his hands. She scanned over his mask, wishing for some reason that it wasn't there anymore, because it felt like a barrier. Her eyes ran over the pieces of raven-black hair that stuck out from behind his mask, reinforcing her suspicion that this was definitely James.
His costume was a forest green and complemented the color of her dress very well, she noticed. She tried to memorize what he was wearing, his mask – everything that might identify him later so that she would not lose track of him. After all, they would not be changing partners all night, it was only an idea for the start of the masquerade to ensure they the students mingled a bit and forgot where their friends were amidst all of these masks. It was working, too.
Lily felt the heat of his eyes still on her and realized that she had become so comfortable with his hands in hers that she hadn't noticed the way his arms had pulled her closer and how she had been losing her mind to all of the bright colors around them. She needed to stop this daydreaming…
"Change!" Dumbledore interrupted her suddenly.
She pulled away very slowly and they shared a lingering glance. Now what did all that mean? I'm so confused.
She was sure that she didn't know the next boy, at least he felt completely unfamiliar to her, so she didn't attempt to guess who it was, instead opting to act perfectly polite.
The changing of partners continued for a long while, and Lily was beginning to feel quite weary near the end of it. She wondered if they had gone around more than once. The circles were very large, so it was unlikely, and yet it felt as if they had been dancing for hours.
"And one more time – change partners!" And Lily felt that her hands were being taken into a firm grip. She thought these hands felt familiar and glanced up. A dark green costume again. James? She supposed they had gone around more than once, in that case. Where had her mind been? Yes, these hands were definitely familiar to her, but she wasn't feeling that same spark. She guessed it had something to do with her tiredness, and perhaps she was gaining back some of her practical nature. Not bloody likely.
Suddenly Dumbledore's voice once again rang out across the Hall. "Alright then! You no longer are required to change partners; you may dance with whomever you choose. But no removing masks yet! Punch and snacks are available on the long table next to the Christmas tree, so feed to your own liking! Now, don't be too alarmed if you find an old man dancing among you, as I'm afraid the music is calling me."
Lily pulled away from the boy in front of her – James, she supposed – because she suddenly had an urge to get something to drink. Her throat was feeling very dry. She noticed on her way over to the table that there were many couples dancing, and that nobody seemed to be separating themselves, except perhaps for that group on her left side that had to be Slytherins, judging from their cocky demeanors. She hated how overconfident they were lately, because she knew it correlated directly with all of the recent attacks.
Trying to shake her head of these thoughts and abide by the agreement she had made with her friends earlier, she finally reached the table and grinned. There was a pitcher of pumpkin juice laid out next to the punch, and for some reason she felt that it was a safer bet than the punch; she didn't suppose she could ever trust Sirius Black again.
She grabbed a cup and began to drink quickly. Her face was very warm beneath the mask and she wondered vaguely how long they had been dancing. She heard a laugh off to her right and recognized it as Selene's. As her eyes followed the noise, she spotted Sirius near her and in the process of snapping some poor soul's mask against his face.
"Oh dear," a voice on her other side said.
"Oh, hey Kristen." Lily grinned, turning towards her. She gestured towards Sirius and Selene. "D'you suppose they can do anything except annoy other people?"
"Dunno, but I have to admit it is rather amusing."
"Sometimes…" she trailed off. "Danced with Remus yet?"
"I think so, but I couldn't really tell. We went all the way around the circle, right?" Kristen scooted out of the way of a boy who was stumbling about.
Lily answered, "I think we may have gone a bit more than all the way around, because I thought I danced with a few people twice." Namely James…because she probably wouldn't have noticed anyone else.
"Oh. I hadn't noticed," Kristen mumbled, taking a sip from her drink.
Lily grabbed her hand, holding her cup in the other. "Let's sit down for a bit…I'm feeling a bit tired."
Kristen nodded and they made their way over to the table near the doors, where they had been seated before. As they sat down, Kristen remarked, "Well the ball can't be lasting much longer, because the plan was to unmask at midnight…"
"But what time is it?"
Kristen pointed up at the ceiling in response, prompting Lily to stare upwards. The moon was nearing the center. "Oh- almost midnight then, I suppose." She was feeling a bit surreal; there were so many things happening at once. She wanted to get up and dance more; she didn't want to waste this freedom. But at the same time, she was strangely exhausted. She figured that they must have been dancing for a long time, however, if it was almost midnight, which would explain her tiredness.
"Care to dance?" Lily blinked and looked over to see a boy standing before Kristen, extending his hand. His voice sounded quite like Remus's and as she stared, Lily noticed him wink at her. A grin spread across her face.
"Go on," she encouraged Kristen, "I'm just going to sit here and rest a bit, I think."
Kristen nodded, "Alright." With a smile, she took the hand offered her, and the two of them disappeared into the crowd. Lily sighed and leaned back against her chair. She was happy that there had been no disastrous results thus far. In fact, everything seemed to be coming along quite nicely…
A spot of green invaded the corner of her eye and she rose from her chair, despite her body wishing for rest. Something was telling her that she should take advantage of the situation and dance with James. She was sure he would know it was her, but if neither of them could know for sure, it would be alright, wouldn't it? She consented internally and advanced towards him, making sure to keep the green costume in view so that she would not lose him.
When she reached her destination, she captured his hands from behind, slipping hers inside. She leaned close to the back of his neck and whispered, "Dance with me." He turned around and complied, taking her hands into his and leaning his head over her shoulder, so that she couldn't look into his eyes. She was a little sad to find that there was not the same chemistry that she had felt earlier. But she supposed that had only been the excitement of the moment. She pressed her hands against his back and leaned into his shoulder, sighing as they danced around in a circle. Nothing had been said beyond her initial offer, and she was almost thankful. She didn't want to argue, just to feel like everything was okay. Even if she didn't deserve him.
Suddenly, he pulled back. "I'm not who you think I am."
Confused, she squinted up at him. His eyes seemed to be pleading with her from beneath his mask. She suddenly saw a glint of green flash from his eyes and pulled back. Oh no – it couldn't be. She then noticed a bit of blonde hair sticking out from the side of his mask and her stomach felt like it dropped. Her confusion deepened. But if this was Levent, then where was James? And who had she been dancing with before? How had Levent known, anyway? His eyes were still pleading with her, but she didn't understand what he was asking her. Nor did she care much at the moment, as her eyes were busy scanning the rest of the very crowded Hall. And there – she saw it – there was another man in a green costume, that had to be him!
Or maybe he had not been the first person in green she danced with either…Lily emitted a very frustrated noise and squinted harder. But no, that had to be him, it just had to. She watched as he leaned down, closer to the girl he was dancing with. She was pulling away, pushing his hands off her green dress…Lily marveled at all of the green even as she was horrified. She was sure that was James, so what was he doing kissing another girl? She felt herself choking up once again on an emotional overload- what was wrong with her these days?
And then he looked up and she knew for sure that it was James, because his eyes met hers from across the room. Well, that is, he was looking in her direction and she certainly felt like she was being stared at.
She knew they would be unmasking any minute, and she really wanted to see the results of this masquerade. She knew so many things at the moment, but the embarrassment of having mistaken Levent for James was killing her, and she wilted under the gaze of both. Knowing that her face must be flaming under her mask, she turned and quickly fled through the doors of the Great Hall. She could do with a bit of air, and perhaps to hide from James for the rest of the night. She couldn't explain her sudden need to get out of the crowded room, but her feet led her out. Nobody seemed to notice her leaving, and the doors did not even sound loud as they shut behind her.
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Kristen took Remus's hand – for she was sure it was Remus by his demeanor – and allowed him to tug her towards the dance floor, her pale purple dress swirling about her hips. For a moment she turned her head to glance back at Lily, feeling slightly guilty for leaving her friend alone at the table, but then she noticed that the chair was already vacant. Blinking, Kristen strained her head to search for any flashes of red among the sea of masks but was interrupted by Remus's hands at her waist. She turned her brown eyes upon his face and felt herself blush beneath the mask. She was thankful that something was covering her face for the moment; it gave her an extra scrap of confidence. Kristen bit her lip to stop herself from laughing nervously and slowly moved her hands around his neck.
"Are you comfortable?" He asked her softly, pushing at her back to close the distance between them.
"Yes…"
She failed to notice in her nervous state that Remus's hands were shaking and his voice was not altogether steady. The only thing that registered in her mind was the fact that they were standing very close together and she could feel his warm breath on her neck. She took another step forward and sighed at the contact with the whole length of his body. Slowly and carefully, he began to sway to the now softening music. It was nearing midnight; Kristen was sure that it must be. She wished this would never end, but she knew that when they unmasked at midnight the moment would be broken in the inevitable chaos that would follow.
She sighed and leaned her head against his chest, feeling his hands tighten on her waist. Her eyes were just beginning to slide shut when she spotted that flash of red that she had been searching for several minutes ago. Her head snapped up and she turned sharply, causing Remus to move his hands a bit lower on her waist to keep them steady.
Kristen watched as a tall boy with strands of messy black hair jutting out from behind his mask followed Lily out of the Great Hall. Sighing in exasperation, she quickly turned to look at Remus before realizing that he had also leaned over to look past her and, as a result, their faces were very close. Nervously, she leaned back a few inches and whispered, "Do you suppose we should make sure everything's alright?"
After a long pause, Remus shook his head. "I had a talk with Lily and…well, they're big kids now. I think they can handle this themselves."
Kristen frowned, confused with his sarcasm. "But – I just don't want Lily to be upset tonight and James – has been through enough."
Remus shook his head firmly this time, tightening his hold on her waist when she tried to turn away from him and causing her to stare up at him with wide, searching eyes. "This is their problem, not ours. Is it so wrong for us to want a moment to ourselves? I wanted to talk to you…" He trailed off and stepped back from her slightly. "I'm sorry, I guess I'm being selfish-"
Kristen silenced him by sliding her arms back around his neck and pulling him close to her. She whispered against his mask-concealed cheek, "It's not selfish of you…and I wanted to tell you anyway. I don't care about your condition. I was shocked, is all. And…" She blushed and cleared her throat nervously. "and if you still want me, if you ever did, I-"
"Of course I do!" He said loudly, causing the couple next to them to glance over.
Kristen felt herself beaming despite her best efforts. She had never been so embarrassed and so ecstatic at the same time. The smile still broad across her mouth, she buried her head against his chest and clutched his arm with one hand, the other draped around his neck. They swayed to the music together, neither really caring to get the steps right. After a moment, Remus wrapped his arms protectively around her waist, holding her tight as if she was the only thing keeping his balance.
Dumbledore's voice abruptly cut through the unruffled atmosphere, announcing, "Students, it is now midnight and time for the unmasking to begin. I ask that you do so without any shouting or obscenities of any kind, please. This is meant to be an enjoyable event."
There was a long moment of silence until students began shuffling their feet and a few of them unmasked. Kristen noticed out of her peripheral vision that Sirius Black was one of those students; he unceremoniously flung his mask off to the side while simultaneously pulling at Selene's. Remus chuckled beside her at the display and pulled his own mask off. Kristen followed suit and their eyes met, causing Kristen to realize that it did not matter if their whole faces were covered; they could communicate well enough using only their eyes.
That was when the chaos began to surround them. Kristen felt the energy drain out of her as she watched the tension begin to build. Masks were falling to the floor with some mouths quickly following. It was as if a sheet had been lifted and reality descended upon them all at once, only it was a confined reality; not one that anyone had truly desired to return to despite all of their protests. Cavillors dancing with Auscultos! They had touched one another and it was – it had been – the confusion drowned out all thoughts and speech only came a few minutes later.
Kristen had feared that there might be automatic physical conflicts and she was slightly uplifted to see that there were not. A few nasty words were exchanged, but for the most part, everyone was in disbelief; it was like having hundreds of deer caught in the headlights. She laughed silently at the image, but her laughter fell silent in her head when she caught sight of two boys who had yet to unmask and did not appear to have any intention of doing so, as they were very busy conversing privately.
"Levent was just an experiment. This will be much better," said the cool voice of the first, who Kristen was now sure was Lucius Malfoy. He smirked towards Severus Snape, who even with his mask on, seemed smug. Kristen made a sour face and turned back to Remus.
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Lily leaned against the wall adjacent to the doors to the Great Hall, pressing her forehead against the cool surface as she pulled her mask off. This was crazy- just what did she think she was doing? She took a few deep breaths to steady herself and decided that she should go back in; she really did wish to see everyone unmask, after all.
Just as she turned away from the wall another figure moved out into the hall. A figure clothed in green…a distinct groan arose from her throat as he pulled off his mask, revealing very messy and yet still very desirable hair.
"James – I thought you were him!" She blurted out, not quite sure what else she was supposed to say.
He stared at her, his eyes questioning. "Huh?"
"Why did you have to wear the same color as Levent? You know I don't pay much attention to details – at least not those kinds of details."
"Well it isn't as if I planned to match him," James snapped. "Speaking of which, why the hell did you wear the same dress as that girl?"
"What girl? I wasn't wearing the same dress as anyone!"
"Well it looked the same to me!" He was very flustered and running a hand through his hair, his dark eyes ready to bore a hole through her.
She was struck suddenly by all of the feelings she had been trying to bottle up over the last week and her voice wavered slightly as she mumbled, "I swear I was not looking for Levent, I really thought he was you and – I'm just really confused now. Please- I never meant to kiss him in the first place and I certainly would never again." She took a deep breath of air. He simply stared at her, taking a step closer and brushing back a strand of her hair, which had fallen out of where it was pulled back.
"I- I believe you." He seemed as equally amazed at this admission as she was. His eyes widened as he looked at her. "I can't help it, I really don't think – oh bloody hell…" He trailed off, his eyes moving across her face.
"Why are we arguing over mistaken identity?" Lily asked softly. "You never kissed her, so I hardly care, and I thought it was you…I-" She knew it made no sense; in fact the whole situation made no sense at all. But he was touching her hips again, in the same place he had a few nights ago in the Heads common room. She found her fingers were running over the mask he was holding in his right hand. He stiffened slightly as she trailed them slowly up his arm and chest, coming to rest on his shoulder. She dropped her own mask and in one swift movement, brought her other hand up to his face, pulling his head down and stretching to reach his lips. Lily was surprised that he did not immediately pull away. They were not in a dark broom cupboard, pressed against one another this time. He could see her and she him; this wasn't hidden and couldn't be mistaken for anything else. She didn't let the kiss deepen, but pulled away slightly, causing him to lean forward. "I've not been a practical person lately, I'm sorry," she whispered.
He brought his lips back to hers and she smiled against them, feeling his hands grasp her hips and maneuver her towards the wall, pressing her tightly between him and the cold surface. She moved one of her hands from his shoulder to his back, pulling him against her. "Do you trust me this time? Will you give me another chance, even though I don't deserve you?" She tried to continue speaking, but was slightly drowned out by his insistent kisses. She sucked in a breath and shuddered slightly as he trailed kisses down to her neck. Suddenly he stopped, simply laying his head on her shoulder and pulling her against him.
She felt the need to say something, so she mumbled near his ear, "You've been nothing but wonderful to me, James. And you're right, you deserve better. Perhaps," she took a deep breath, "perhaps – you should just forget about me."
There was a long moment of silence. He didn't move, but continued to rest his head against her shoulder. She brought a hand up and ran it through his messy hair, afraid that he would pull away and accept her suggestion. She would deal with it, if he did. She didn't want to be the person she had been lately, and if that meant letting him move on to someone better than her…
He mumbled something against her shoulder.
"What?" She whispered, afraid to ask.
"I said before – in your room months ago – that I would wait for you." He lifted his head up and looked at her. "Remember?"
She smiled softly. "Yes, of course I remember…" He couldn't possibly mean that he forgave her, could he? Even she was not sure that she could forgive herself, even with how annoyed she had been with him for not forgiving her.
She could hear the commotion inside the Great Hall behind her and realized abruptly that it must be after midnight now, that everyone must have unmasked, and that she should be inside surveying the results, gauging what else would need to be done to bring the groups together. That was her job, as Head Girl, and James's too. What were they doing out here? Somehow, she didn't care at the moment.
She felt his breath against her cheek as he said, "I would have never thought…"
"Thought what?"
He brought his head up farther and their eyes inevitably attached. "That this would happen."
Her breath hitched in her throat. "You mean…that you would care about an Ausculto?"
"No," he paused. "Anybody, really. Not like this. You're a special girl, Lily. I couldn't help it."
Lily couldn't help the large smile that spread across her face, even as she felt tears in her eyes. "No. I'm just lucky. Very lucky."
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A/N: Thanks everyone, for the comments you left me, and the well wishes. I really do appreciate it. The next chapter shouldn't be so far along, as it's old material (as many of you may notice, I've changed very little lately) and I'm anxious to get to the new.
Shadyday9- I love how has begun putting stars in for what they deem inappropriate words used in reviews. Ah, well :) I found it to be an entirely appropriate reaction to last chapter. It made me smile, although that's probably cruel of me, as I write this…drama, and I know what will happen. So anyway, I thank you for putting up with it.
Laura- Oh dear, we can't put this anywhere near the new book, which I am trying to hold back my excitement for at least until the movie is already out. I was actually talking to one of my friends about that earlier…about how I'll most likely forget to eat, and use the bathroom, and live in general, once I get my hands on that book. Unless going to work must intervene…and that would be sad :( But I really do appreciate your comments, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.
♥Emily