A/N: Hey guys! Guess what? You'll never guess so I'll tell you. TODAY IS OUR ANNIVERSARY! (We've been writing Interesting Notion for a year today) so… we decided to give you a bit of fluff to put you in a festive mood. ( I know I am)
Hope you like it!
Professor McGonagall looked out across the classroom, "I have decided that today you shall be transfiguring one object into a mask. In this case," here, she summoned a box full of pillows, "These pillows."
She looked around at the students, who were staring, incredulous, at her, "None of that," she snapped, "These are to be for your own use. They shall also be graded, so make them nice! Points will be given for the quality of the mask and the workmanship."
"Excuse me, Professor," An insolent voice said, "But why are we creating masks?"
Professor McGonagall smiled thinly, "Because, Mister Black, you shall be wearing them."
An outburst of excited whispers followed this like an angry breeze whipping around the room, "What!" Sirius sat bolt upright in his chair, "I am not wearing a mask! What a poncy thing to do! I am not wearing some crappy mask!"
Professor McGonagall looked sharply at him, "Then you will have to make sure that your mask is not crappy, won't you Mister Black?"
James looked across at his friend, warning him to be silent. Luckily, Sirius got the message. The next question, however, came from an unexpected source.
"What is the event for wearing these masks, Professor?" Remus Lupin asked mildly and the Professor turned to him.
"You shall be wearing your creations at a ball tonight." She said.
Voices broke out around them again:
"A ball?"
"What!"
"She said a ball."
"Do we have to dance?"
"How do you dance?"
"Is it a masked ball?"
Professor McGonagall raised her hand, "Yes it will be a masked ball," she barked, "Hence the masks. And I know you can dance." She turned a fierce eye on the students, "If you can't… Learn quickly."
The class gulped and divided quietly into pairs. James walked over to Sirius, grinning. Sirius grumbled quietly, but selected a pillow from the box, taking it back with him to his desk. James watched him for several seconds, wondering why he had given up so quietly, half-turned to start Transfiguring his pillow. With a battle-cry, Sirius swung his pillow, James ducked and the pillow sailed past him, thwacking Remus. Remus toppled off the back of his chair. Peter, thinking that there was a new trend, did the same.
A pillow fight erupted among the class, but it stopped with the words, "Sirius Black!" he looked up, the only one outside of the destruction, "Detention. Now."
Sirius grinned and walked out of the room, "And Mister Black…" Professor McGonagall's voice floated after him, "You still have to create a mask."
"Drat!"
"Alice!" Lily called, "What am I going to wear?"
Alice poked her head around a pile of dresses, "I don't know, Lily. Wear something that will go with your mask."
"But it's got to look nice," Lily complained, starting to look through Alice's stuff with her, "I only brought school robes."
Alice shrugged, "Transfigure something." She suggested, "Merlin knows your good enough to."
Blushing, Lily stood up again, "Thanks, Alice," she said, "Will you need any help?"
"The mirror ought to tell me what looks nice," Alice indicated a mirror she had conjured into the room.
Lily turned around and started walking out of the room, "Okay," she said, "But call me if you need me. The owls should find me quickly."
Swiftly, Lily walked out of the Griffindor Common room and along the passageways to the Head's Dormitories, going into her room and putting on a fresh pair of school robes, she started to modify them...
James strolled around the ball in his dress robes. He looked around, pretending to admire the decorations, but was looking for a glimpse of red hair.
He was waiting for a sudden hush to fall over the Hall and heads to turn around. Then he (as Prince Charming) would know where Lily was. It never crossed his mind that people wouldn't look as she came in. Lily was the most beautiful girl in the year.
But he waited and no hush came. He gave up and started looking around.
There were several beautiful girls, but none of them seemed to be waiting without a partner. Waiting for him. .
Slowly, he walked through the throng of couples, swaying to the music that flowed around them all. He peered around them all, hoping that he wouldn't find Lily in someone else's arms.
James froze, couples twirling past him, and stared. His heart clenched as recognised the figure in someone else's arms, the flash of red hair beneath a pale gold mask. That better be Sirius he thought, cause if it's not I'm going to kill him. James wasn't sure whether he would forgive whoever it was even if the person dancing was Sirius.
Still, he couldn't stop watching them. Girls came up, asking him to dance. He waved them away absently, focused on the couple that had torn his heart in two.
He did not know how long he stayed at the ball, watching them. Feeling like a stalker, he followed them into the garden when they left. He felt betrayed. The man she had been dancing with was tall and graceful with dark hair. It could be Sirius, but would Sirius do that? Perhaps: as a joke. He had to know.
He followed as they wandered through the bushes, ducking behind random bushes for cover as they half turned, talking to each other. They reached a fountain in the middle of the bushes. The water tinkled, falling in crystal perfection before it smashed into the stone of the fountain itself, shattering.
Watching as they talked, he burned to burst out of the bushes and hit Sirius. James growled when Sirius laid a hand on Lily's shoulder.
Suddenly, a head popped out of the bushes beside him. James turned, "Hey Sirius." He said. Then he froze, "Sirius?" he asked, "Are you Sirius?"
Sirius frowned, "Prongs, who else would I be?"
James gaped, "If you're you… then who is…?" he turned back to Lily and 'Sirius'.
Sirius shrugged, "Joe Bloggs. Ravenclaw."
James, torn between running out there to start a fight and astonishment, chose astonishment, "How the heck do you remember his name? How do you even know of the guy?"
Sirius gave him a very superior look and ignored the question.
James tried a new tactic, "What are you doing here?"
With a shrug, Sirius said, "Finished detention and decided to check this ball thing out. And I came admire our friend here."
James spluttered, "You like Lily!" he gasped.
"No." Sirius laughed at James's expression, "Idiot. No, I don't like the guy either. I wanted to find you, so I found Lily. I knew you'd be somewhere near her."
James laughed himself and punched Sirius on the shoulder. Soon they were play-fighting. Eventually Sirius gave up when James go him into a headlock. Sirius sniggered and sat next to James again.
When James looked up again, all was silent. Lily was glaring at the bushes, alone. She looked furious, "Alright," she snapped, "I know your in there: you made enough noise to be a rampaging hippogriff. Show yourself."
"Ooops," Sirius said, "Time for me to bugger off." Quickly, he vacated the premises, only pausing to push James into Lily's sight.
She glared at him, "James," she said, "Why am I not surprised?" she turned away, "Why are you here?"
James was quite taken aback, "I wanted to tell you something." He said and cursed, "I mean… To see you… To be with you…" He paused, "I'm making a fool of myself."
"Yes, you are." Lily agreed, but her words were slightly choked.
James hesitated, and then asked, "Where's Joe Bloggs now?"
Lily gazed at him, dumbfounded, "Who?"
James shuffled his feet, "You know, the guy you were with."
"Oh. Him." There was bitterness in her voice.
"You don't like him, do you?" it was asked quietly, almost fearfully, as if he didn't completely want to know the answer.
Lily frowned, "No, not really." She said, "We danced, but he has some flaws. I couldn't like him: not truly. I could never love him."
James swallowed hard, "What do you mean?"
Lily took a deep breath, "He doesn't have a calming voice to sooth away my worries or lull me to sleep. He doesn't have a kind heart, or a brave spirit. He wouldn't protect me, or his friends. He wouldn't," here, her voice broke, "he wouldn't love me for who I am: what I'm capable of, not my blood."
Unconsciously, James stepped forwards and put his arms around her. But she continued, sobbing into his shoulder, "He doesn't have hair that I want to smooth down, or a gorgeous smile that makes smiles contagious. He doesn't have beautiful hazel eyes that smile with him and reflect the light to become gold. But the biggest problem about him is," Lily looked up into James's eyes, "He's not you."
Slowly, James gathered Lily into his arms, kissing her forehead gently, "I love you too."
"Oy! Stebbins!" Sirius hurried across the Great Hall to the Ravenclaw table.
A dark-haired boy looked up, "What is it, Black?" he asked.
Sirius grinned, "I'll give you ten Galleons if you introduce yourself to James Potter as Joe Bloggs."