Author's Note

Ah! Hi guys! So yes, I know I'm uploading two chapters in one day. And I know that is TOTALLY CRAZY, but oh my goodness, I just cannot help myself. I had this one done (spring break from high school and all), and figured I might as well just put it out there.

I love this chapter. It's long, it introduces a brand new plot element, and oh man, Sirius and Addy...

Well, you'll see :)

BY THE WAY, I put pictures of Adeline and Lily's dresses on my profile! Check them out!

Anyway, I'm totes proud. And I would absolutely, positively, it-would-make-my-heart-sing-with-everlasting-joy-ly, love some reviews on it. Please? Pretty, pretty please?

It's weird, for some reason the website isn't allowing me to see how many hits this story has gotten in the past two days. Is this happening to anyone else? It's kind of freaking me out. Like, at least one person has read this story in the past 48 hours, right?

Right?

Oh. My. Gosh. Please review before I go crazy! (and read and enjoy, of course!)

Disclaimer: I don't own HP!

19. Dancing

"I'm nervous." said Lily, as she stood in front of our dormitory's full length mirror, fiddling with one of the straps on her dress. "Extremely, frantically nervous."

"Oh Lils," I said, coming up behind her and putting my head on her shoulder. "You look gorgeous. James will probably dislocate his own jaw, he'll be so shocked when you come down the stairs."

"Maybe pink isn't my color, though." she said doubtfully, frowning at her reflection. We had been spending an embarrassingly long time getting ready for tonight—the Spring-time ball. Though it was very unlike us to dwell on appearances, Lily and I had decided, after much debate, to ignore our own better judgment and submit fully to romantic whimsy.

Now Lily stood, hair gracefully curling over her shoulders, in a pale pink dress that reached just above her knees. A tiny butterfly charm hung on a delicate golden chain around her neck, and she had allowed me, after much persuading, to add a little make-up around her green eyes, making them stand out brighter than ever.

I smiled at my best friend and confidante because—despite Lily's own last-minute insecurities—she looked breath-taking to say the least.

"Pink is your color." I told her seriously. "You look like a million bucks."

She narrowed her eyes at me, apparently trying to decide if I was just humoring her, or if I really meant it (I did), but eventually she just shrugged and flashed me a brilliant smile, turning us around so that I was the one now revealed in the mirror.

"Not nearly as gorgeous as you, mademoiselle." she said, grinning, her hands on my shoulders.

I smiled as I surveyed my appearance in the mirror. My dress was blue, one-shouldered, with a silvery, flowery detail around the waist. My hair, in an attempt to switch things up a bit, had been pinned-up (courtesy of Lily) on the top of my head, leaving the milky-white skin of my shoulders and neck exposed. I had on a bit of eye-make-up too, but hardly more than usual.

Eventually, Lily and I ended up in front of the mirror side-by-side, and we leaned our heads together, taking a mental snap-shot. "You think tonight's the night we snag these boys for good?" I asked, eyebrows raised.

"Better be, with as much effort as we put in today." She grumbled, but then became more serious. "I hope so. I can't believe I'm saying it, but I am so ready to be James Potter's girlfriend."

I laughed, because as soon as Lily said those words, she blanched, visibly. While she muttered, "oh my god. I have officially gone insane." I glanced at the clock, then whirled around, grabbed her hand, and pulled her towards the door. "We're late!"

"Oh, here they finally come," I heard Sirius say, as Lily and I descended the stairs in a dramatic fashion.

"Bloody long time it took them," muttered James as we prepared to round the bend, and I glanced over at Lily, who rolled her eyes.

"I don't see why girls need so much time to get ready for these things, it's not like—"

And then there was silence, as Lily and I turned the corner, and the boys got a look at us. I smirked, not even trying to hide my amusement at their comic reactions.

They were standing there, slack-jawed, staring at us as though they'd never seen a girl before.

"Shut your mouth, James," said Lily charmingly, walking right over to him and gently pushing up his chin. It snapped closed with an audible click. "Don't want flies to get in."

She winked at me, then started pulling James along, (who now had a goofy grin on his face, and seemed to be enjoying himself thoroughly) towards the portrait-hole. "You two coming?" she asked.

"Yes," I said, raising my eyebrows at Sirius, who had yet to say a word. "You feeling all right, Black?" I asked, placing the back of my hand against his cheek, checking his temperature.

The initial action was done purely out of maternal instinct (and maybe a subconscious—although strong—desire to touch him), but I felt almost as if tiny shock-waves were racing between us when my skin met his. I was then hyper-aware of Sirius in front of me, looking ridiculously handsome in his dress robes. I realized he must have gotten a hair-cut sometime during the afternoon, because his unruly dark hair was now shorter, covering most of his forehead and ears.

He looked at me, staring blankly, then grinned, his dark lashes framing those brilliant grey-blue eyes that were now twinkling with excitement. I had no doubt in my mind that he had felt that little jolt of chemistry too.

"I'm excellent." he said, his eyes now sweeping over me flirtatiously as he offered his arm, and I took it, feeling as giddy as a thirteen year-old girl with her first crush.

"Lead the way!" I called to Lily, who was smirking at us from her spot near the portrait hole, while James, in his typical, slightly clueless fashion, simply stared at her, love-struck.

The Great Hall had been transformed in such a way that I simply could not believe that it was the same room in which I usually ate my morning oatmeal.

"Wow," I breathed, my hand still on Sirius's arm, stopping dead to take in my surroundings.

It was beautiful. The house tables had been removed, though the ceiling still remained bewitched, showcasing its typical dark night sky for this time of day, though it was filled with stars, twinkling brightly overhead.

A dance floor was visible at the far end of the hall, and where the head table usually took up residence, a stage was set up, some wizarding band playing a peppy melody, couples and groups of friends dancing along to the beat.

Nearest to the entrance, round tables—seating six or so comfortably—were set up at various intervals, with giant bouquets of flowers adorning the surfaces. Above each bouquet was a floating lantern, filled with some kind of bright, glittering substance. A few teachers could be seen sitting at these tables, students at others, chatting or taking a quick break from dancing, drinks of all kinds in hand.

Glancing around I caught the eye of McGonagall, who seemed to be having a pleasant chat with the defense against dark arts teacher, Professor Lark. To my shock, she smiled, waving amiably at me and Sirius, who waved back enthusiastically.

"It looks excellent, Min—I mean, Professor!" called Sirius, catching himself at the last moment and smiling charmingly at McGonagall, who rolled her eyes but nodded in response just the same, looking amused.

"On speaking terms with McGonagall?" I asked him as we made our way towards the towering trays of drinks and refreshments that took up almost an entire wall of the room. Usually the head of Gryffindor house was dragging Sirius and James (and occasionally Remus) around by their ears, assigning detentions on an almost weekly basis.

"Oh, Minnie and I are close." said Sirius breezily, smiling down at me. "She pretends to act all tough and disapproving, but really, she loves us."

I laughed, because I knew that in all truth, Sirius had just as much respect for the severe witch as I did. He handed me a glass of pumpkin juice, my favorite, then looked around, making a satisfied noise when he apparently found what he was searching for. "What?" I asked, following his gaze.

I didn't have to look far, because not 10 feet away from us and approaching fast was Remus, looking slightly nervous but rather pleased with himself. On his arm was a short, pretty girl that looked oddly familiar to me. Though my mind searched for a connection, I couldn't make one.

"Hey Addy, Padfoot." said Remus, smiling and pushing his sandy blonde hair away from his forehead with one long-fingered hand. "This is my date, Jeanette Lowry."

"Hi," said Jeanette, and I suddenly realized why she looked so familiar. It was her eyes. They were blue on the edges, but an almost startling shade of brown near the pupil. There was only one other person I had met with eyes like that.

She's Coraline's daughter. I realized with a start.

Coraline Lowry, wife of Edgar Lowry, had been my mother's closest, oldest friend. Edgar had been a deatheater, a friend of my father's who had, after many years of service to the Dark Lord, been deemed a traitor.

The appropriate measures had been taken, and Edgar, as well as Coraline—who it had been decided knew far too much to be allowed to live freely—had been arrested by the ministry almost immediately. To my knowledge, they remained in Azkaban to this day.

I had asked my mother, then only seven years old and unable to comprehend this sudden disappearance, why Miss Coraline, her best friend, no longer came to visit. She had refused to say a word on the subject, instead growing quite pale and telling me to run along and practice my reading, or play with one of my toys.

Bewildered but curious, I had gone to Roy, then an ambitious teenager, for answers. He had grown quite serious, kneeling down to my level and grasping me by the shoulders. "Adeline," he had said to me authoritatively, glancing around to make sure no one was listening in on our conversation, "Mr. and Mrs. Lowry did a very bad thing. They betrayed the Dark Lord, and so they had to be punished."

I had nodded at this, because in my naïve, simple mind, this made sense. If you crossed Daddy's leader, the Dark Lord, you were the bad one. "What happened to them?" I asked, eye's wide.

"Father had them sent away!" said Roy, his voice somewhat awe-filled, as it always was when discussing our father. "Daddy has the power to have them put in jail forever, so that they can never betray the Dark Lord again!"

I had not thought much about Coraline after that. She was just another person who had become a victim of the Dark Lord's wrath, someone who had practically ceased to exist.

But never, ever, had I been aware that Edgar and Coraline had a child. But as I looked at this girl, standing there, the spitting image of her mother, and with those eyes that I would recognize anywhere, there was no doubt in my mind that she was their daughter.

I snapped out of my remembrance as Sirius and Remus chatted for a moment, and Jeanette smiled shyly at me. I stared blankly back, shocked by our meeting, the memories it brought back to me, and the questions it raised. Did she know about her parents? How had I not known she existed?

But before I could even gather my thoughts in order to form a coherent sentence to say to the girl, she and Remus were walking away from us, towards the dance floor.

"—seen her around before," Sirius was saying, nodding in their direction. "Fifth-year in Ravenclaw. Grew up in a foster-home, apparently. Don't know much about her, but Moony is absolutely smitten, that's for sure." Suddenly his voice was close to my ear, startling me out of my thoughts once again, "Addy?" he questioned. "Everything all right?"

I looked at him, wondering whether I should say something to him now about this girl and her weird past. But one look at those blue eyes, shining with concern, and I made up my mind.

Later, I decided, grinning at him instead and pulling him towards the dance floor. Right now, I wanted to just enjoy this time with him. Everything else could wait.

"Who knew you could dance." I said cheekily, smiling as we swayed slightly to the music. It was nearing 10 'o clock and the ball was still going full force. Glancing around, I noticed many other couples from all houses of Hogwarts dancing too, happily talking and laughing.

Sirius was looking at me with a rather pleased expression on his face. "Well, you know, I've picked up a few things over the years." he said, waving a hand dismissingly.

I laughed, clapping along with the other dancers as the song—a cheerful tune about a witch's sixteenth summer—ended.

The next song began, slow and romantic, and I blushed slightly as Sirius raised his eyebrows suggestively, a lop-sided grin on his face as he stepped a bit closer to me and placed his hands on my hips.

I wrapped mine around his neck and we fell into step with the music, swaying gently back and forth.

"I love it when you blush," he whispered in my ear, and I felt a shiver run involuntarily up my spine. "It's so pretty. You look gorgeous tonight, by the way."

"Thanks." I said, probably blushing more. "I like your new haircut." I added, steering the conversation towards less dangerous territory and playing with the now short strands of hair on the back of his neck with my fingertips.

"Thanks." he said, matching my own tone almost perfectly, that grin still going strong. I was insanely aware, even more than usual, of his presence. I felt like the air around us was electric, practically crackling with the strength of the chemistry between us. I wondered if he felt it too. "It's weird, but I always tend to keep it short when I'm happy."

"You're happy?" I breathed, smiling up at him. I knew the answer. I was on cloud-nine myself, and the way he was looking at me…

"Are you kidding?" he asked, chuckling, his thumbs making small circles on my hips as he moved them slightly. "I've never been so happy in my entire life."

"I'm glad." was my response, coming out almost as a whisper, and in a moment of brilliant courage, I stretched up a bit, leaning slightly into him as I kissed his cheek softly, able to feel just the hint of stubble as my skin brushed against his.

To my slight surprise, he kept me close to him when I went to pull away, and our foreheads rested together, instinctually, the air seeming to literally buzz with intensity. All I was aware of was Sirius, as our eyes met, our bodies pressed together, our breath mingling as we stopped swaying to the music altogether and simply stood there, in our own little haven of—to be honest—pure love.

His gaze dropped briefly from my eyes to my lips, and I could tell, without a doubt, that he wanted to kiss me. And I sure as hell wanted to kiss him.

But after a brief millisecond of indecision, Sirius stepped back. For a terrible moment, I thought he had decided against it, and ultimately me, altogether.

But then his hand found mine, and with a powerful sense of urgency he pulled me behind him, our fingers laced together, weaving through the dancing couples on the floor at a quick pace.

I hardly had time to ask where we were going before we had burst out of the great hall and I was being led with great haste up stairs, up and up and up…

We went through a door and I found myself on a balcony, staring out at the most beautiful sight. Stars, all around, even more than there had been in the great hall. The mountains that surrounded Hogwarts loomed up, black against the bright sky, and the surface of the water below the castle reflected the sight overhead perfectly. I felt like I was in the middle of the solar-system itself.

"This is amazing," I breathed, feeling the chilly night air on my skin and almost forgetting for a moment the night's events, and who I was even with, as I looked upon the awe-inspiring landscape.

"I agree." said Sirius from next to me, and that undeniable chemistry, that for whatever reason was stronger tonight than it ever had been, hit me like a wave once more.

Now I remembered. I looked over at him, and felt tenderness wash over me as he stood there, grinning sheepishly and holding out the jacket of his dress robe to me. "You look cold." he said, sticking his hands in his pockets and leaning against a nearby wall. I grinned at him, standing there, with his broad shoulders and tall figure, the sleeves of his white collared shirt rolled up a few times, his Gryffindor tie loosened slightly.

"Well," I said, beaming at him and putting on the jacket, which smelled absolutely wonderful, like Sirius and pumpkins and all things good in the world. "I hadn't been expecting an impromptu expedition to the Astronomy tower."

He gave a nervous laugh, and I saw his cheeks redden slightly as I took a few steps towards him, eyebrows raised. "I uh…"

"Yes, Sirius?" I questioned playfully, looking at him through my eyelashes like Lily had taught me.

He swallowed, but then apparently the bold, romantic Sirius won out, because he stepped forward to meet me, placing his hands on my hips again as I wrapped mine around his neck. It was a movement that already seemed like second-nature.

"I couldn't stand it." He muttered, as he slowly rotated us so that it was now me with my back against the wall of the tower. "Here you are, looking more beautiful than anyone has a right to, and it's been torture for me, not being able to kiss you since that day by the lake." I blushed, and might have said something, but he just kept talking, the words spilling out, his eyes never leaving mine. "And bloody hell, on the dance floor… I wanted to kiss you so badly, but I wanted it to be special, and—"

I cut him off, not with my own words or a raised finger, but with my lips, pressed softly against his.

For a moment he didn't respond, seemingly shocked. But then, almost hesitantly, he was kissing me back, his lips feather-light but almost caressing upon my own.

Our tongues met simultaneously, in perfect sync. Not fighting for dominance, but dancing together, exploring.

It was perfect, utter bliss.

Before long, Sirius was kissing me with great enthusiasm, yet there was something deeper behind it.

Love. Passion. Adoration.

I moved my fingertips lightly, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck again, as our lips and tongues pressed softly back and forth.

He smiled through the kiss, his nose brushing slightly against mine, and I knew at that moment, surrounded by stars and in the arms of this amazing boy who I knew without a doubt would protect me and love me until we were old and gray, that I was the luckiest girl in the world.