Penelope stared at Valetine as she freaked out. Patting her slightly on the shoulder, she tried to comfort her friend. "Shhhh sweetie. What you're doing right now is making is so much more obvious than you just calmly talking to me." She told her, hoping that her best friend would lift her head from the table. "And besides, Remus isn't looking over here anymore!" She said, raising an eyebrow and noticing Remus's little catastrophe over at the Gryffindor table. Is it me? Or does he looks very tired or stressed? Penelope said, thinking to herself. Better not mention this to Valentine, or she'll freak out.

Seeing James Potter walk into the Great Hall and take a seat, Penelope returned her attention to Valentine. "See. Potter is here. Remus will be too busy talking to him to notice us. Sit up." She said, taking her hand back from her friends shoulder and pretended to be busy cutting up her breakfast, in case a few Gryffindors did happen to glance over.

Hearing her worries about how she looked, she looked Valentine over. Yes, she did have dark circles under her eyes but they weren't too noticeable. "I can't even see them." She said, waving a hand of dismissal. "And besides, even if they are there, I bought some makeup at this beauty store at Hogsmeade. They'll be gone in minutes!" Penelope said, giving her friend a bright smile.

James looked passed Remus as Yasmin spoke.
He sighed, deeply annoyed with her now. "Yasmin, could you find someone else to bother? How about those lovely girls over there?" James said, pointing to a group of Gryffindor girls that had just walked in; that was the crowd she was usually seen with.
Though, it probably wasnt the best idea to be rude to Yasmin. She had a much better chance of getting Lily to turn even futher from him, seeing as they were aquaintances.

ooc-Hey... I know this isnt my RP but please dont post one liners... there extremely hard to reply to... and this is an Advanced RP... so I dont think there really aloud anyway... sorry to bother...

Valentine sighed, lifting her head from the table and spooning a bit more beans to her mouth and swallowing it quickly, not caring if it burned her mouth. She quickly adjusted her posture, squaring her shoulders and sighing a little. Good. If James was there, he'd take Remus' attention off of herself and onto James. She adjusted the edge of her white sweater and played with the collar of her grey silk blouse before deciding not to fidget anymore.

She twirled her hair in her finger, still sending nervous glances towards Remus. He was engrossed in a conversation with the Yasmin girl and James. Good. She sighed a little and replied, "It's okay... I have my own stuff here." She tugged on the edge of her black tote bag, carrying all her school books and nessecities.

She pulled out a small compact from the bag, dusted a light powder under her eyes and after checking to make sure the circles were completely gone, shut it and stuffed it back into her bag. "Do I look okay?" Valentine asked panickily, her eyes wide with fear that she didn't apply enough.

Remus groaned loudly and hit his head lightly on his bag in desperation as James began blabbering about Valentine and feelings.

"James, how many times do I have to tell you? There's a very fluffy reason why stuff like that would never work!"

When a moment later he was confronted by questions about Lily and bombarded with questions about Severus, Remus wondered absently whether he'd ever actually taken a moment these past few days to just blissfully enjoy the absence of these almost ritual questions.

"I am unsure whether Lily will or will not be attending my entirely-stressful dance lesson; but what I do know, however, is that Severus (who is perchance sitting over there by an extremely crowded Slytherin table--least you try to 'ambush' him), asked Lily whether she would--and I quote--'honour him with her presence at his side when he attends the upcoming Ball?'... And she (and I am so sorry that I have to tell you this, but rather it me than him)... Accepted."

Remus bit his lip slightly, a worried expression passing over his features as he waited for the outburst he was almost 100% certain was sure to come in haste.

ooc--Okay, just a note... I know I've quoted another character in this post, which can be viewed as RPing another character, but the character in question (Severus), is also under my 'command' ( ), I don't think this really poses a problem--so this information is just here for further reference and to clear up any possible preconceptions that could be made in future.

"Okay okay Moonies! Ill stop. For now." James said smirking at his friend knowingly.
James was tied to his seat as Remus told him what he knew about Lily and Severus. The more he said, the angrier James's face had become.
"WHAT!!! That greasy little..." James began, half getting up from his seat. But, Remus was right, Severus was surrounded by Slytherins younger and older than himself. He would have to have a death wish to approach him with the curses he had in mind.
He sat back down slowly and brought his voice back down to normal.
"But... how could she? Doesnt she remember what he said to her? Doesnt she know..." James stopped, too upset to talk anymore.
He grabbed a large piece of bread and stuffed it in his mouth. His cheecks were so full he looked like a squirrel getting ready for winter...

Penelope wiped her mouth with a napkin and set it aside. Hearing her question, she turned in her seat, ignoring the first years that were still gabbering away to each other about the 'hottest' boys in the school. "You look fine." The blonde reassured her. It was true. The circles were gone and Valentine still looked as pretty as ever.

Taking another quick glance at the Gryffindor table, she sighed. Where was Sirius? Slumping down slightly, she leaned her head against her arm. How was she supposed to show off her new hair if he wasn't going to be there? Drifing off slightly, she continued to watch the Gryffindor table, until the heard one of the first years mutter something about Sirius Black in their conversation.

Sitting up straight, she glared at the group of young girls. Who were they to talk and analyze about her boy? Than realizing that she was getting worked up about a bunch of first years, her pretty features began to relax. She was not going to get angry at them. Plus, she knew Sirius would never ever go for someone that was that young. Sighing, she turned to Valentine. "Do you know where Sirius is?" She asked, wondering if she was sounding desperate and needy.

Valentine's nose crinkled distastefully as the first years began to gabble on about 'Hotties and dorks'. Didn't they already do this every day? Oh well. She sighed. "Are you sure?" She asked again, checking herself up and down. Her white sweater was perfection, her grey silk blouse still looked fresh, and her black pleated skirt matched it all perfectly. Her white socks, along with black mary-jane, round-toed shoes made it all perfect. It said, "Yes, I had a good night's sleep. I'm ready to take on all the boys in the school and still finish my homework." but if you asked her heart, it would tell a different story...

If she could, she'd drop on the floor, form into the fetal position and roll all the way to a psychiatrist's office. Then she'd bawl her eyes out, explaining about her desperateness of Remus. She was daydreaming now, and she wasn't aware of her surroundings until Penelope asked if she knew where Sirius was. "No." She said flatly, rolling her eyes. Puh-lease. Sirius was over-rated and he acted like everyone loved him. Sure, he was nice and funny... But that was just about it.

Penelope nodded and looked her friend over closely again. She seemed so perfect. Honestly, Valentine looked like she had stepped out of a catalouge and the blonde wondered if her friend even tried this morning. And here was she, getting up an extra hour early to enchant her hair. Sighing, she slumped back down again, looking longingly at the entrance to the Great Hall, waiting for Sirius to walk in.

"Hey!" She said, seeing her friend's reaction to Sirius. Hitting her gently on the arm, she huffed to herself. "He's a nice boy." She said quietly, more to herself. A nice enough boy to still have two other girls after him... A small little voice inturrupted in her head. "Shut up." She muttered.

Now I'm talking to voices inside my head... Penelope grimaced. Maybe she and Valentine really needed to go see Madame Promfrey. This insanity over those two Gryffindor boys was really getting out of hand.

Valentine poked her tongue out. "And you're telling me to watch my posture?" She asked, crossing her arms a little bit. "And if he's a nice boy, why is he with 2 other girls than yourself? Honestly." She tsked, giving her friend a mock-stern look before giggling and uncrossing her arms. Honestly though, she didn't get what her friend liked about Sirius. Sure, he was nice looking and he was funny... But he made fun of people like herself. She shrugged and then sighed. "Why doesn't Remus ever notice me?" She mumbled quietly, shrinking a little bit in her seat.

Penelope laughed. "Sorry." She apologized and sat up straighter, taking another look at the Gryffindor table just in case Sirius sneaked in without her noticing or something. Hearing Valentine talk about Sirius, she opened her mouth to retort back to her and than closed it. She really had nothing to say. It was the truth. Sirius did have two other girls, that wasn't her.

Noticing the conversation turn back to Remus, Penelope joined in happily. She didn't want to think about Sirius and the other girls right now. "That's because you need to go and talk to him!" She said. "Maybe I'll start a conversation with him in class today and you'll just casually join in!" She offered.

Valentine rolled her eyes. "See? Even you can't defend him... He shouldn't be that promiscuous." She never really liked Sirius. He made fun of people like her, anyways.

"Oh please. If I started talking to him, I'd probably flush and stammer and trip over myself." She retorted with a sigh, looking wistfully towards Remus again. She wished she wouldn't be so shy near him or other people, for that matter.

Remus watched with stiffening anxiety at James' sudden mood changes.

Eventually, James seemed to shift into deep sadness and trail on almost incoherently about a certain fiery-haired Gryffindor.

"Oh, James..." Remus sighed sympathetically, gently placing a comforting hand on James' shoulder for a few moments.

"Look... If it's any comfort to you..." Remus began as James stuffed his cheeks with a large piece of bread--so that he now had the demeanour of a ready-to-hibernate squirrel, or a hungry hamster.

"... If it helps... Well, there's always the possibility that Lily only accepted Severus' offer to join him at the ball to spite you... I have the distinct feeling that she still hasn't forgiven Severus... So, uhm... Theoretically, you, uh, may still have a reasonable chance.... As long as you decrease your volume of self-importance! Just... Just... You know, I really should do Chivalrous classes as well as Dance lessons..." Remus trailed off in thought, eyeing James' progress with his emotions out of the corner of his eye; whilst rescuing and devouring a particularly delicious slice of buttered toast.

"Whaa? Sef-imotan?" James asked, food stuffed in his mouth. He swallowed his food painfully and looked over at Remus, about to fight for his honor.
But, he stopped himself. Every time he was around Lily, she would complian about his attitude toward his flaws; he didnt see them.
James nodded slowly. "Your right..." He said. James put his hands in his hair, thinking about what he could do. There was still a chance for him. He was a good dancer, all thanks to his mother...
"Lily, she listens to you! Please make sure she comes to the dance lesson! But... dont invite Severus... I want to be her partner! Can you do that?" James asked, as usual, not thinking about the already stressed and strained Remus; something he still needed to work on.
"Maybe... You could... Pick Partners!" James said, eating bites of bacon between almost every word.

Remus ran a shaking hand through his hair, his mind suddenly over-whelming him with possibilities.

"No, I... I couldn't, James... I could ask Lily whether she'd wish to attend, but... It's... It's an open-to-everyone class! Any age, any house! There might even be a few Professors attending... Heh. And, uh, no... I don't think... Picking partners... I'm sorry... I could recommend, but... No one else would like me if I... Oh, I don't know... Maybe... Heh. Heh heh heh. Ha ha ha... Heh heh heh... Hee hee hee... HAHEEHEHHAHEEHAHHEHHEEHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"

In a startling spilt-second, Remus had exploded into bouts of insane laughter. He reached into his bag and pulled out fistfuls of paper and books and stationary, scattering them around him--over plates, students, himself... Everywhere.

He continued his laughter that so much reminded one of one who borders at such a moment on the brink of insanity--or a nervous breakdown, if one wanted the more plausible explanation.

Then Remus' frail hands grabbed the front of James' attire and pulled him towards himself so that they were facing one another directly. There was a gleam in Remus' eyes that was that of the wolf residing in his soul--a rare outward occurrence. Obviously Remus' usual defences had been breached and had hence crumbled into rubble.

"H... He... Help me..." Remus' gasped, his face contorting in some sort of internal pain.

"Ma... Madam... Heh heh heh... Pomfrey! Madam... Pomfrey... S-she... Gwaah...! She... Knows... What... To do!" Remus cried out, a small, frightened and animal like sound like background noise to his words.

Tears were at the creases of Remus' eyes, and without warning he suddenly pushed James back onto his seat and whacked his head against the table in the manner if which a man possessed might do--albeit a man wishing to rid himself of the possessor in unfathomable desperation.

And then he was still and silent, head resting upon his arms which lay across the table; vibrating with a soft hidden danger; and a small, shallow, almost unnatural moan and stifled cry could be heard from the currently submerged face of the shattered Remus.

As Remus spoke, all James could say was, "But, but Moony!" Every once and a while in an extreme begging and complaining way.
Then suddenly, Remuse started laughing! He was laughing hysterically on the verge of insanely! James looked at his friend in confusion as he started throwing things around the room.
He was suddenly scared as his friend grabbed his robes and looked into his eyes with a wolf like glaze; but he wasnt frightened for himself, but for Remus. James knew this was serious! Remus needed help!
James heard the words, 'Help me' and 'Madame Pomfrey' and James knew what to do.
He looked up at the staff table with a pleading look on his face. He searched and then he saw the man he needed. Professor Dumbledore was sitting, talking to Proffesor Mcgonagal, until, as if he knew what was happening, turned and looked directly at James. He stood and headed over to them.
James took an arm of Remus and put it around his shoulders, picking him up.
"Yasmin, can you get his things please?" Was all James said, and without a word, James and Dumbledore, now supporting the other side of Remus, exited the crowded, now silent Great Hall...

Penelope sighed. She couldn't explain her attraction to Sirius Black. She really couldn't. It was just one of those things. They were on opposite ends of the spectrum, really. Penelope liked the nice and quiet atmosphere of school and enjoyed reading a book and doing her homework...at times.

And well, Sirius...

He enjoyed causing as much havoc as he could and bother the teachers and students around them as much as possible. It was a wonder that Penelope didn't hate him. But she couldn't now, could she?

She had fallen for him. Fallen hard. And there wasn't anything she could do about it except for this crush to run its course and hope that it would be over soon before one of those other girlfriends of his stole him and crushed her heart.

Tumbling over these thoughts in her head, she was broken out of them when she heard hysterical laughter from the Gryffindor table. Thinking it was James or that Sirius had finally decided to join his friends at breakfast, she was shocked to see that it was Remus Lupin. What had happened? Had he finally cracked?