-Stella Hart-
"Lily, can I say that you look ravishing today?"
"No, you can't."
"Even though I saved your life?"
"You're also the reason my life needed to be saved."
"But I did save it."
Sigh.
"Fine."
It was a week and three days since the first task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament and five days since Lily was released from the hospital wing.
They had wanted to keep an eye on all three people that were posioned, through their recovery as it wasn't a tame poison and they needed proper time to rest and heal. Lily fought every single second, of course. She claimed that she was fine and she just wanted to forget about the whole thing and move on.
I didn't see much of anything except the inside of that hospital wing in those five days. None of us could tear ourselves from her side, especially James. He joked about it but I know that it haunts him. I saw it. In that moment when she appeared infront of him.
Now, we were in the common room. Lily and I flicking through a magazine that my mother had sent in the post and Peter peeking over our shoulder. Remus was reading in the sofa opposite us and James and Sirius had just waltzed in.
"What are you guys looking at?" Sirius asked and I flashed him a demure smile.
"A magazine." I told him.
"What kind of magazine?" He pressed.
"A playboy magazine." I replied with a straight face.
Lily snorted and Peter danced away, his cheeks red.
"Well, in that case..." Sirius squished onto the two seater sofa despite Lily and I's squealing.
Once he was finally settled he took a good look at the magazine. He let out a doggish wine.
"Aw it's a bloody dress catalogue!"
Lily and I burst out laughing.
"Not just any dress catalogue!" I gasped theatrically.
"It's from Paris!" I sighed in his ear and he huffed and lauched himself off the sofa only to flop down beside James.
Now that the first task was complete, the whole school was abuzz with the next exciting thing and it just happened to be the thing that I had been dreaming about since I was eight years old.
The Yule Ball.
The school that hosts the Tri-Wizard Tournament throws a Ball on Christmas Eve where the girls dress up in gowns and the boys in dress robes and you dance the night away.
And Hogwarts is known for throwing legandary Balls.
There was roughly two weeks until the ball and my mother had sent a box full of catalogues and fabric swatches to me a couple of days ago. Lily was taking full advantage.
"Oh, this is definately your colour." I took out a sweet blue swatch and pressed it against her porcelain skin. It made her look heavanly.
"I agree." James piped up.
Lily glowered and threw the swatch back into the box. Remus and I shared a look, a thing we often did when Lily and James were like this.
"I was thinking maybe this?" I grabbed a deep emerald green and pressed it against my skin.
"Oooh. That's lovely." Lily hummed in appreciation.
"You girls are ridiculous." Remus stated.
"You better believe that you'll be doing the same with dress robe swatches, Remus." I taunted and he rolled his eyes.
"Guys, we have to be in the Great Hall in 3 minutes." Peter spoke up causing a flurry of activity.
I shoved the rest of the swatches back into the box, Remus shoved his books into his book bag. James and Sirius took their sweet time, getting up and stretching. Peter was first out the door followed by a chettering Remus and Lily. James strolled out, pretending he wasn't hanging onto their every word.
I marched out the door dreaing of Emerald silk and ivory chiffon when a shoulder bumped against mine. It was Sirius with a secret smile and strange look in his eyes.
"I like this one."
He pressed a stolen swatch into my hand before marching off to join James. I stared after him, bewildered for a moment before I looked down at the swatch that he's given me.
It was beautiful.
It was a silver that looked as if It had been made from a star with it's irredescent chiffon that glimmered in the afternoon sun. How had I missed it?
When I looked up the others were disappearing around the corner so I stuffed the fabric into my pocket and raced to catch up with them. I didn't look at Sirius, because if I did I just knew that he would be able to tell how fast my heart was racing.
Instead I linked arms with Lily as we strutted into the Great Hall.
The Great Hall was looking different. The long tables that we sat at for the feasts had disappeared, as had the teacher's table. Instead was a record player with a huge brass megaphone. McGonogal stood beside it with a small smile on her face.
Immediately the boys started groaning and the girls started whispering excitedly.
This had to be something to do with the Yule Ball.
"Quiet now!" McGonogal called and we hushed into silence.
"The Yule Ball has been a tradition of the Tri-Wizard since its insection. On Christmas Eve Night, we and our guests gather in the great hall for a night of well mannered frivolity." She began and the girls tittered excitedly.
"As representatives of of the host school I expect each and everyone of you to put your best foot forward and I mean this literally because the Yule Ball is first and foremost, a dance." She finished and the hall errupted with murmurs.
We were, as it seems, going to be learning how to dance.
"Silence! The dance is to let the body breathe. Inside every girl, a secret swan slumbers, longing to burst fourth and take flight." She stated and half the girls swooned.
I caught sight of Lily's eye and shimmied my shoulders. She bit back a laugh.
"Inside every boy a lordly lion, prepared to prance." Lily really did laugh then, as did half of the girls. Those boys were something but it wasn't a lordly lion.
"Alright everyone. Partner up!" She called.
We stood there, stunned for a moment but I grabbed Remus and hauled him into the middle.
Growing up, I had to face countless boring dinner parties, formal cocktail evenings and of course the occasional ball. I knew how to dance.
"Uh, Stell I'm not the most graceful dance partner." Remus whispered as people whooped and hollared at us.
"Lucky for you, I am." I winked at him.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw James make a not so subtle beeline for Lily who very sneakily, whisked a red-faced Peter into the middle.
The music swooped and we started to dance.
Remus was a god awful dancer which made it so much better. We tripped and laughed and flourished our way across the hall, earning a stern look from Filch and a stifiled smile from McGonogal.
The best moment was when I caught sight of James and Sirius waltzing their way across the hall. When McGonogal yelled out 'Swap!' we would be flung into someone else's arms.
James and I did more of a tango than a waltz ending with a thirty second freestyle dance party and a full body flourish.
Peter was stumbly and adorable so I took the lead, twirling him all over the hall. By the end of it he was laughing harder than I was.
Lily and I cha cha'd to the point where we were lying on the stone floor crying with laughter.
I had just been spun into Sirius' arms when the music cut off.
"Alright you miscreants. Get to class." McGonogal waved us off and we were pulled apart as Lily hooked her arm with mine, babbling in my ear about the ball.
We all filed out of the door, Remus and Peter talking about dates, James and Sirius whispering suspiciously.
"Can we make a pact, Lil?" I cut her off mid-babble.
"Absoluetly, I'm in." She said without a moment of hesitation. I laughed.
"You haven't even heard it yet!" I exclaimed.
"Don't have to." She shrugged. "I'm in."
"Promise that even if we don't get dates we'll go together?" I asked.
"Hell yeah, we can waltz on the dance floor, I'll lead. It'll be very scandelous." She replied and my heart swelled.
"I love you." I sighed.
"I know." "I love you too."
We had charms as our last class of the day which dragged terribly but no one paid attention. Lily and I had one of the magazines under the table and Melissa Moody was trying to predict who was going to go with who, even though she is as much a seer as I am a muggle.
I was annoyingly distracted by the scrap of material in my pocket. I wanted to ask Lily what she thought about it and what she though about Sirius picking it for me. But a part of me didn't want to say anything, to keep it a secret.
Strange.
Things got even stranger when we were walking to the Great Hall for dinner.
I was arguing with Remus on the best kind of chocolate, Easter chocolate or Christmas chocolate, when a certain boy stopped me in my tracks.
"Hello gorgeous." Mathieu Clement lent up against the door frame flashing me a charming grin.
"I thought I told you to call me Stella?" I said, the corners of my mouth lifting.
"And I thought I told you, gorgeous fits you so much better." He challenged and I rolled my eyes.
"What do you want?" I teased.
He spoke without hesitation, briming with confidence.
"For you to go to the ball to me."
Wait. What?
My lips parted in suprise before I let out a breathy laugh and looked down at my shoes.
"So...?" He smirked at me expectantly and I raised my eyes to his daringly.
"What's in it for me?" I challenged.
He laughed.
"Well I have been told that I am an incredible dancer." He grinned.
"You're gonna have to do better than that." I whispered in his ear before marching off towards the guys that were not so subtly listening in.
Before I could reach them a hand grabbed my hand and whipped me around so that I spun into their arms and before I could breathe they dipped me so low my hair brushed the floor.
Mathieu Clement's smirking face was inches from mine. I could hear people around us hooting and hollaring.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
He swung me back onto my feet and I let out a small squeal. He grinned at me and I gave him a demure smile, lowering my lashes flirtatiously.
"Top of the grand stairs, 7 o'clock. Don't be late." I told him, slightly breathless and strutted off whilst people around us clapped.
Once I caught to Lily, who was trying not to squeal, I gave the group a warning look that said 'don't say anything' until we rounded the corner and exploded.
"Oh my god he literally dipped you! I almost swooned!" Lily cried.
"I almost swooned!" James agreed.
Remus clapped me on the back and Peter giggled. Sirius looked at me with a raised eybrow.
"I thought you said you wouldn't date anyone who would love themselves more than they love you?" He asked.
"Um, have you seen him? He's the exception." I gushed and Lily nodded furiously.
I barely even spoke to the boys at dinner, I thew myself into dress hunting with a new sense of vigor. I sneakily sat at the Gryffindor table so that Lily could help me and we gushed over Mathieu the entire time.
I had almost finished my chocolate pudding when the third strange thing of the day occured.
James god damn Potter got up on the table.
Lily was in the middle of talking about the potential design of the decorations for the Yule Ball, they were keeping it a secret, when he got up on the table.
"I wonder if they might go for some sort of snow-globe effect- oh my fucking god."
"What the hell is he doing?" I hissed at Remus who had a knowing smile on his face. All the boys did.
"Everyone! Everyone!" His voice boomed out over the hall. The noise hushed.
"I've got something I need to say and I'm saying it ontop of this table so that a certain someone can't run away." He elaborated.
Oh.
"You can't run away, Lily."
My.
"James..."
Fucking.
"Let it happen, Lily. It's inevitable."
God.
"Will you, Lily Evans do me the honour of accompanying me to the Yule Ball?" He finished with a childish grin.
Lily's mouth opened and closed like a fish. A very ginger, very flustered fish.
"And I know that right now you are dreaming up ways to get out of this but, you see, I saved your life and I think that means you owe me a date." He continued and I swear I heard some first years sigh.
Lily was blushing furiously and Remus and I's eyes met just like they did in the Common Room earlier today.
"Don't fight it Lily, it's destiny, you and me. Destiny." He cried and this time my eyes met Sirius'. I couldn't place the look behind his silvery eyes. We both looked away at the same time.
"I promise I will-" James started but he was cut off.
"Okay." Lily said quietly.
James froze.
"What?" He asked amazedley.
"I said, okay! I'll go to the stupid ball with you, just get off the table!" She cried, throwing up her arms in exasperation.
"Say it again." James whispered his mouth stretching into the biggest grin you have ever seen.
"Say it again!" He crowed pumping an arm up to the roof.
"Don't push it Potter, get off the table." She growled and he hopped down immediately squishing in between lily and I.
"Yes mam." He said in a atrotious american accent, tipping an imaginairy hat.
The hall errupted in cheers.
Holy hell.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
I absolutely adored writing the end of this chapter and I think you know why ;) Even though this is a Sirius Black story, fetus Lily and James still are the most beutiful thing ever!!!
Next chapter is going to be a big one so hold onto your knickers gals.
Don't forget to vote and comment because it means the world to me!!
*loves*
-J xx