Note: I am missing the important pages from my GoF book, the ones where everyone comes into the Entrance Hall and Harry sees Hermione in her dress robes, which I seem to recall were light blue. So this part here I had no references to look in on. :(

It's nearly five in the morning as I finish writing this chapter… O.O I'm doooomed…

She thought her life was over – but fate gave her another chance, in a world of magic. Now, running around Hogwarts with James Potter and his friends, she's about to make choices that will change the future in ways she never thought possible…

Marauder's Phase

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SIX

Green And Silver

In my hand I held a mirror.

With my back to a stone wall, I cautiously inched the mirror around the corner, until I had a semi-perfect view of the Entrance Hall. My hands were shaking, and I suddenly had cold feet, which had nothing to do with the hardly-insulated shoes that Maggie and Reginald had sent me. Making sure that I did it inconspicuously, I used the mirror to scan the Entrance Hall.

It looked very different and a little bit odd to see something that wasn't the usual sea of black. People were clustered in groups, and it was impossible to tell the Hogwarts students apart from each house, without the usual indicators of house scarves and certain air of snobbery.

The Beauxbatons students stood out because they looked more stunning then everyone else in the room. And it was easy to tell the Durmstrung students apart too, as they were more robust then the other students. I spotted Brunilda in rich, blood red robes that made her look proud, standing toward the front of the room, with her partner. He was a Ravenclaw boy in bright orange (what the hell..?) robes, dwarfed by Brunilda's size and dominance. Their dissimilarities made them look odd, but not at all out of place.

Apolline and her partner, however, told a different story.

If it was possible for Apolline to look more beautiful than sheer beauty, then she did it. Glowing in a non-existent light, and gliding gracefully toward Brunilda and her partner, Apolline wore robes that shone, glimmered and sparkled, and seemed to switch between spun sugar pink and softest lilac. Her hair was done up in a golden crown on her head, and I wouldn't have been at all surprised if she'd suddenly sprouted wings that were pearly and white. Well, of course. She was half-Veela…

There was no way in hell you could've mistaken her partner for being one, though.

At first, I thought that he was the man who would one day become her husband, because I had read that he was no prize pig at all. But then I recognised the boy as being a Hufflepuff, and I wondered where Apolline's future husband, somebody Delacour, was. The Hufflepuff she was with was taller than Delacour was, taller than Apolline even. He towered over her, and was no oil painting, really. And his olive-coloured dress robes clashed as horribly with Apolline's robes as Brunilda's robes did with her partner's. But, then again, Apolline looked good enough for both of them and, when she joined Brunilda and the Ravenclaw boy, they immediately began looking around, probably for yours truly.

But I wasn't finished people-watching yet.

I saw Severus Snape standing next to Bellatrix Lestrange. Snape had on black robes that made him look like a vicar, because of their high collar, and Bellatrix's robes were black too. I thought they were all black, until she moved her arm to wave to somebody, and I saw that they were red on the inside.

Bellatrix the vampire.

I spotted Umbridge in the crowd too, short and squat and in robes of bubblegum pink that made me want to disown the colour pink forever. She was talking to Professor Repleh, who was wearing pretty powder blue robes with a gold trim.

Madam Maxime looked tall and impressive as she walked through the crowd in silk lavender robes. She was one of the first to enter the Great Hall, and then the teachers began shepherding the students in there as well.

I noticed Professor McGonagall, in maroon dress robes, approaching the other Champions and their partners. Well, I guessed that it was time to make my move then.

I withdrew the mirror, and was about to walk around the corner, when something made me flinch back reflexively, and hold my hand to my heart in panic, as I pocketed the mirror. Shaking at the near miss, I peered cautiously around the corner, and watched as my best friends entered the Great Hall. Peter was wearing the same dark grey dress robes I had seen him wearing in my dream back in Forks, and he was walking at the front with Lily and James. Lily looked glamorous in her deep green dress robes and James, wearing very smart black dress robes, held her arm proudly and seemed to walk with a new spring in his step.

Behind them were Tonks and Remus…my heart gave a thud as I watched them go in. Tonks, with mousy brown hair, was wearing canary yellow dress robes and looked cute. She didn't seem to mind being the only first year there, and Remus didn't seem to mind being the partner to the only first year there. I took that as a good sign, as I appreciated his shining gold dress robes.

And behind them walked Sirius, all by himself, and looking so handsome in deep blue dress robes that it took my breath away. And it also made my heart ache horribly as I watched his head turn from side to side, scanning the crowd. Because I knew he was looking for me.

As soon as the last non-Champion/Champion's-partner student had gone in, McGonagall looked around in annoyance. "Where on earth are they?" She said, her voice echoing in the now nearly empty hall.

I sighed. I knew she meant me. I stepped out from around the corner. "Here I am." I called to her, but I wasn't the only one who had said it.

At the opposite end of the Entrance Hall stood Regulus, and I drew in a breath when I saw him, because…and I don't know why I was scared to admit it to myself, but…he looked perfect.

In robes of green that reminded me instantly of Slytherin green, he walked across the hall toward me steadily, and I walked toward him.

"Hey," He said, greeting me with his familiar smile.

I felt my face pinken slightly with a blush, and ducked my head slightly. "Hi yourself…you look…" What was the right word for it? If I said he looked perfect then all hell was going to break loose. "Nice." I finished awkwardly, and then cringed when I heard my fellow Champions and their dates laugh.

To my relief, however, Regulus just laughed quietly, and said, as he took my left arm in his right one: "You look 'nice' too, Em." And, somehow, as the doors to the Great Hall opened, I was sure that he understood exactly what I had meant to say instead.

No One's P.O.V:

Sirius Black was standing on tip-toe as the doors to the Great Hall opened and the Champions and their partners followed McGonagall into the Great Hall, but the trouble was that everyone else was standing on tip-toe too. "This is no good!" Sirius complained under his breath, deciding to push his way to the front instead of suffering. He just had to see Emma, and this partner of hers. He would then decide on the course of action to take, judging on who said partner was.

"Padfoot, wait!" He thought he heard Lily call to him, but there's no stopping Sirius Black once he decides on a course of action. Unless, of course, you happen to be Lily Evans.

She grabbed his arm. "Padfoot, hold on a minute!" She exclaimed. He turned to look at her in annoyance. Her green eyes looked troubled.

"Red, what?" He asked, using her nickname.

"I…"

"Whoa…" Someone from nearby said, cutting Lily off. He was tall enough to see over the crowd of students, and seemed to be fixated on something. "The Beauxbatons girl is beautiful, but Pax is too!"

"Yeah, she is!" His equally tall neighbour agreed.

"Those robes suit her," A sixth year girl said admiringly. "And they match her boyfriend's robes so well."

"I don't think that's her boyfriend…" The first boy pointed out. "He's in our year, remember?"

"Then why's he holding onto her so tight?" The girl countered.

"So she doesn't trip again?" The second boy suggested. "You saw her nearly fall coming into the hall."

"Look, he's practically having to carry her now." The first boy noted.

"Those shoes are really impractical," The girl tsked. "But at least he looks happy."

"I'd be happy too." The two boys said in unison, and the girl rolled her eyes.

Sirius, frustrated, attempted to make his way to the front of the crowd again but, by that time, everyone was heading for the tables, sitting down and preparing for the meal.

Lily practically forced Sirius into a chair at a table with herself, James, Peter, Remus, Tonks, Serilda, Molly, Arthur, Alice and Frank and, to his complete annoyance, Sirius found that he couldn't see to the Champions table at all.

'Where ARE you, Emma?' He thought.

The method of ordering our food was done in exactly the same way as it was in the book, and Regulus and I both ordered the steak, cooked medium-rare (I found out later that Remus ordered the same thing) and it came with mashed potatoes on the side, much to my delight.

The Champions and their partners were seated at the same table as Dumbledore, Poliakoff, Madam Maxime, Sean Durmish and Lyle Huttsworth. I found myself sitting at the end of the table with Regulus, and across from Apolline and her partner. Apolline seemed happy to talk to all three of us, and somehow we got into a discussion about Quidditch.

"I 'ave 'eard zat your school 'as four teams, one for eech 'ouse?" (For the sake of the fan fic, I'm going to stop writing in Apolline's accent, since we all know that she's French). "You fly very well, so...are you on the Gryffindor house team, Emma?"

I nodded. "Umm, yeah…last year and the year before…"

"Really?" Apolline's eyes sparkled. "What position do you play?"

"I'm, uh…reserve seeker…" I glanced around the Great Hall again, glad that none of my Gryffindor best friends were listening in, as this was a slightly touchy subject.

"One time," Apolline's partner, whose name I didn't catch, suddenly spoke up. "Emma and Regulus were playing against each other – he's seeker for Slytherin, you see – and they crashed right into each other, catching the snitch at the same time!"

"Really!" Apolline smiled her dazzling smile. "Were you hurt?"

"Not really." Regulus and I replied in unison, before both reaching for our goblets at the same time and taking a drink.

Apolline's eyes sparkled again. "You two are so cute together! When the weather warms up again, by the way, we must go flying together, Emma. I brought my broomstick with me." She went on, either ignoring or completely missing the stunned look on my face.

When the last plate had been cleared away, and Dumbledore had sent the tables to the sides of the room, the band struck up a chord. I wasn't sure what genre to class them under, but the lead singer was a really cute girl who seemed kinda punk, but the band seemed to be getting ready to play classical music at the time.

That was when I remembered – the Champions and their partners were to share the first dance.

The students and teachers had all formed a circle, and Apolline, Brunilda and their partners were already in the centre of it, waiting for me and Regulus to join them.

I gulped.

"Fashionably late?" I heard Regulus mutter from beside me.

I smiled slightly, as we made our way toward the centre of the circle. "Speak for yourself." I said, and felt his hand tighten around mine as we positioned ourselves on the dance floor, and the band struck up a chord. Regulus' other hand flew to my waist, as I reached up and put my free hand on his shoulder. It was as if we were skating on ice together, and I vaguely remembered such a TV show.

We smiled at each other.

No One's P.O.V:

Sirius was halfway toward the centre of the circle, aware that Lily was calling to him again but refusing to answer her because he was tired of waiting.

Then he heard somebody say: "Is that Emma Pax? With Regulus Black?"

Sirius froze.

"God, they look good together." A tall blonde-haired boy commented.

"I know," Said a fifth year girl. "They look like they were made to dance together like that…Regulus can't take his eyes off her, either…"

Sirius pushed through the crowd then, totally ignoring the protests from the other students, and he finally made his way to the centre of the circle.

There was Apolline, looking glamorous enough for her lanky partner and Brunilda, towering above her date. All four of them were dancing, and all four of them were dancing well. Apolline especially knew how to waltz, and appeared to be leading.

But that was nothing compared to the music-box scene of Emma Pax and Regulus Black.

Dancing together in the very centre of the circle, they looked as perfect together as everyone seemed to think so – everyone but Sirius Black, that is.

"Doesn't it seem like they've danced together before?" Someone nearby to Sirius said, but he couldn't take his eyes off his girlfriend dancing with his younger brother.

To Sirius, no other girl in the entire room could compare to the beauty and elegance that was Emma. She was utterly perfect in every way, from the soft mahogany brown of her hair to the way her silver dress robes glittered. She and Regulus moved in perfect synch with each other, as if they could read the other's thoughts and movements.

As Sirius watched, Regulus picked Emma up unexpectedly and twirled her around, causing her to laugh with surprise. Sirius' fists clenched at his sides when Regulus held Emma against his chest briefly, before they resumed their wonderful, magical waltz.

"I am going to kill him!" Sirius whispered angrily and, as if by magic, Lily and James suddenly appeared.

"Padfoot," James said quietly, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Let it go, for now. You don't want to get in trouble, do you?"

Sirius finally looked away from the scene that was causing him so much pain, and glared at James. "Easy for you to say – that's not your little Slytherin brother putting his hands all over your soul mate out there, now is it?"

"Soul mate?" Lily and James muttered in unison. Lily glanced over the crowd, and made a mental note to tell Emma about this later. To Sirius she said: "Padfoot, please. It's really not as bad as it seems – give her some credit," Lily looked at Sirius carefully. "You do trust her, don't you?"

Sirius looked surprised. "Yeah, of course I do, Red…" (A/N – yeah, she's definitely not cheating on you Sirius…).

"Then let her have some time with her friend for a moment," Lily emphasized. "And dance with Serilda." She seemingly conjured up the blonde via magic.

Sirius looked at Serilda. She had had a crush on him since they first started at Hogwarts, but all that had changed last year when she'd started dating Louis. Sirius looked at Serilda, and realised that she really didn't have a crush on him anymore, and for that he was relieved.

He gave in. "Okay, sure, why not?"

Serilda smiled faintly. She looked very pretty in her pale green dress robes. "Thank you, Sirius." She said.

"My feet are killing me," I realised, two hours later.

"Yeah, mine are too," Regulus and I stopped dancing, as the band started up another song, the same kind of heavy metal rock they had been playing since the end of the first – and only – classical song. "I guess dancing for a hundred and twenty minutes straight isn't such a good idea…"

I groaned, as we made our way off the dance floor and over to some chairs at the opposite end of the Great Hall. With drama, I collapsed into one (a chair).

Regulus sat down with a little more grace, and glanced at me curiously. "You okay?"

"Don't talk to me for a minute," I said, holding up a hand. "Maybe I'll go to sleep…how is it so warm in here, anyway?"

"Magic." Regulus said seriously, and I grinned.

Then I froze.

Coming toward us, with Tonks, was Remus. I hadn't seen him all evening but, suddenly, my feet weren't hurting as much anymore as my heart was, because Remus wasn't looking very pleased.

Probably something to do with Regulus.

And, sure enough, when they reached us, Remus said to me: "Can I talk to you for a second, Emma?" He didn't look at Regulus.

I nodded. "Sure. Reg, I'll see you later…" I noticed that he was glaring at Remus, but he nodded, and I allowed Remus to lead me out of the Great Hall.

Once outside, however, I realised two things. One, my feet really were killing me more than my heart and, two, it was freezing.

I shivered.

"Em, why are you at the ball with Regulus Black?" Remus asked simply. "I can't figure it out…"

"I owe him one," I explained, holding my hands up to my arms and trying to keep warm. "And he was the first one to actually ask me to go with him, so…"

"That's all?"

I nodded, not saying anything, because I didn't want to have to tell Remus about the way I felt. About how Regulus was on the borderline between best friend and boyfriend. Instead, I concentrated on keeping warm. I held my arms tightly to my chest, wishing that my dress robes were a little bit warmer, and that my feet didn't hurt me so much.

Remus' expression changed. His golden eyes looked concerned. "Are you okay?" The words were barely out of his mouth when I stumbled. I fell straight into his arms, and he caught me, wrapping his arms tightly around my shivering form and hugging me closer to him, on reflex.

The light from the moon outside shone through the window onto us, reflecting a disc that was a week away from being completed.

"F-full moon in s-seven days…" I said, through chattering teeth, wishing I didn't always have to be so helpless in cold weather.

"Hmm…" Remus' face was pressed to the top of my head. "I thought only people like me were supposed to get sick then…"

"S-says who I'm s-sick?" I asked, though my teeth were chattering.

"You're freezing cold, yet your forehead feels warm, and your skin feels clammy," Remus said matter-of-factly, before he picked me up suddenly.

"W-where are you t-t-taking me?" I protested, but he was very warm and I found myself cuddling up against the warmth and feeling very weird about it, like I should just make up my mind and choose my love life already. I closed my eyes.

"You're coming down with a fever of sorts," Remus said. "I'm taking you to see Madam Pomfrey."

I sighed. "Why's it always me?" I asked nobody in particular.

No One's P.O.V:

"Do you know where Emma is?" Regulus asked flatly, refusing to look at either Lily or James. Sirius was nowhere to be seen, and neither were Emma or Remus.

"Not that it's any of your business," James said coldly. "But she had to leave early. Seems she's come down with something…" He glared pointedly at Regulus.

Lily elbowed him. "Enough," She said, before looking up at Regulus. "I need to talk to you," She added, giving James a reassuring smile, before taking Regulus' arm and steering him forcefully away. He allowed himself to go, because he really had no quarrel with Lily, and she was actually a very nice person if you took away the fact that she was best friends with Sirius.

Now she faced him, an unreadable expression on her pretty face. "I need to know," She said finally, arms folded in front of her. "How you see Emma. Is she really just a friend to you?"

"What do you think?" Regulus asked, narrowing his eyes slightly. Lily was a nice person, but sometimes she was also just too smart for her own good!

"I think you may see her in a way that would get you into a lot of trouble with your brother," Lily said flatly. "And, to a lesser extent, with the rest of us." She meant the rest of Gryffindor, no doubt.

Regulus looked away. "Evans, you don't…understand any of this, do you?"

"I understand more then you think," She said quietly, but with surprising fierceness. "You couldn't take your eyes off her for one second this evening, Black. And, if you think for a moment that your brother is going to take it lying down, then you are sadly mistaken."

"Evans," Regulus finally looked at her, his eyes showing intense fierceness as well. "I care about Emma enough to risk my life to protect her. How can you possibly understand that?" He had risked his life to save Emma that night months ago, to warn her of the Dark Lord's plan. And he'd do it again, if he had to. Just to keep her safe.

"I understand," Lily said again, and her lip trembled slightly. "Because I know someone else who can say the exact same thing." Her voice wavered a little bit on the last word.

"You don't understand." Regulus shook his head.

"We'll see." Lily replied evenly.

Regulus' silver eyes stared into Lily's green ones, and neither one was going back on what they'd just said.