Mysterious Ways

"So, all in all, it was pretty much a bust."

It was the morning after the ball. Alice, Lily and Holly were eating breakfast in the Great Hall, and Alice had just finished relaying the details of her disastrous date to her friends.

"Sounds like it was... not fun," Lily said eloquently, tapping her fingers against her goblet of pumpkin juice.

"Yeah, and what did he mean when he told you that you would pay?" Holly said, sounding worried. "I mean, do you think he was seriously threatening you?"

"Probably not. I mean, what can he really do?" Alice said, idly pulling her toast in half and sounding a lot breezier than she felt. "Except maybe send me death glares once in a while -" she glanced over to the Slytherin table - "which I can see he's doing now. What a pleasant guy."

Holly turned to look, then spun back around again with a frown. "I don't know, Alice. I mean, there's been no proof, but there are loads of rumours about the Malfoy family's involvement with the Dark Arts."

"He was probably just embarrassed," Lily said in an obvious attempt to reassure Alice. "I mean, a kick in the balls had to have dented his Malfoy pride for a moment there. He'll get over it."

"I know." Alice shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not worried."

Liar, taunted a voice in the back of her head. Despite what she had said, Alice still couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear as she saw Malfoy's cold eyes on her. Holly was right; his family was involved with the Dark Arts - she didn't know just how deep, but she had heard enough from her parents to know that it was true. They surely couldn't... be involved with Voldemort, could they? Alice tried to push the thought away, but it was overshadowing her mind. They could do something to hurt her - or her friends - or her family.

No, she told herself firmly. He wouldn't be that stupid, to deliberately hurt someone and let everyone know about his family's involvement with the Dark Arts. Just don't think about it. He won't do anything.

Just another thing to add onto her list of worries, along with Voldemort, her uncle, and this so-called weapon, which Alice was really beginning to doubt. How could anything that could fit into an envelope be of any use? Unless it was a wand, of course, but Alice didn't really see how a wand could be their best chance of defeating Voldemort.

"You're not eating much," Lily pointed out. Alice looked down at her plate of shredded toast.

"Not hungry." Alice could sense Lily and Holly exchanging glances over her head, but didn't comment.

"So, it's Hogsmeade today," Holly said brightly, veering off in another conversational direction. "Shall we go? I haven't exactly finished my Christmas shopping yet, so..."

"Holly, it's Christmas Eve tomorrow," Lily pointed out. "You still haven't finished your shopping?"

Holly shrugged. "I've been busy... with other things," she said, blushing fiercely.

Lily grinned. "Other things, meaning Remus?"

Holly smiled shyly. "Maybe."

"How are things going with you two?" Lily asked, resting her chin on her hand.

"Pretty great, actually," Holly said, toying with her plate of scrambled eggs. "He's so sweet, and we get along so well." Alice and Lily waited for her to continue, but it seemed that she didn't want to say anything else, so they didn't press it.

"So, unanimous vote for going into Hogsmeade?" Lily said, raising a hand. Holly lifted hers and they both looked expectantly at Alice.

"Sure," Alice shrugged, pushing her plate away. "Shopping can be very therapeutic."

"Amen," Lily said fervently, and Alice couldn't help but laugh along with Holly.

"OK, so I'm going to get my money," Holly said, swinging her legs over the bench and standing up. "I'll meet you two in the Entrance Hall in about ten minutes?"

Alice and Lily nodded, getting up too. Alice caught Lucius Malfoy's eye across the hall and she could see him staring coldly at her, eyes narrowed. Alice looked away staunchly, arranging her features into a look of absolute nonchalance, but her heart was hammering against her ribs. The look he was giving her - it wasn't just contempt, like the eyebrow-raised one he reserved for Muggle-borns, but one of pure, underlying hate - and it scared Alice.

As the girls left the Great Hall, Alice breathed a sigh of relief. Here she could relax a bit more, without having the nasty feeling of being watched all the time. Wanting to keep her mind on something else, she brought up a new subject. "Sorry, Lily - I've told you everything about my horrible date, and I haven't even asked you about yours yet! How did it go?"

"It was... nice," Lily shrugged. "You know, I really didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. David's quiet, but he's got a great sense of humour, and we have a lot in common. And he's so considerate, too - all night he was constantly asking me if I was OK, or if I wanted anything. It's nice to finally meet a guy who cares about me for a change, and not just himself."

Alice raised her eyebrows slightly at the obvious barbed comment, but didn't say anything. She had to admit, when she had started the whole matchmaking thing, she had done it purely to help out James. But over the past couple of months, she had found herself actually rooting for Lily and James to finally get together, and when it hadn't happened, she couldn't help but feel disappointed. But if Lily was happy, then there wasn't anything she could do.

"Speak of the devil..." Alice muttered, seeing David approaching them. Lily's face immediately broke out into a smile.

"Hi, Lily," David said, in a sort of embarrassed voice. Alice rolled her eyes. David was a nice enough guy, but his awkwardness was beginning to grate on her nerves. Lily obviously didn't mind it, though, from the way she was smiling.

"Hi, David," Lily said warmly. "Thanks for taking me to the ball last night - I had a really nice time."

"Oh, no problem," David said with a blush. "Listen, Lily... I was wondering if you were going to Hogsmeade today?"

"Oh -" Lily looked at Alice. "Well, I was, but I was supposed to be going with my friends -"

"It's cool," Alice chimed in. "You two go together, it's no problem."

"Are you sure?" Lily searched Alice's face anxiously. Alice rolled her eyes with a grin.

"Yes, I'm sure! Holly and I can go, and then we could maybe meet you guys later on in the Three Broomsticks. Don't worry about it!"

"Well... OK," Lily said, giving Alice a quick hug. "You're a great friend, you know that?"

"Yes, I do," Alice said smugly. "Remember that the next time I want a favour!" Lily laughed as she strolled away with David.

Across the hall, Alice could see that she wasn't the only one watching Lily and David walk away; James' eyes were following them too, a look of fury on his face.

Alice wandered over to him. "Getting jealous?" she teased.

"What does she see in him?" James said bitterly by way of reply.

"Well, he's nice, he's kind, he's humble, he treats her well..." Alice said, ticking the points off on her fingers. "Oh, and he's good-looking. Do you want me to go on?"

"Do you think he's good-looking?" James asked, turning to her with a disgusted expression.

"I guess," Alice shrugged. "I mean, if the like the tall, dark and silent type, anyway. He's not really my -" but James interrupted before she could finish.

"He's so dull," James continued, glaring at David's back as he and Lily disappeared out of the doors - hand-in-hand, Alice noticed. "Why do girls like that broody type, anyway? Alice, have you ever heard him speak before he asked Lily out?"

"Well... no," Alice admitted. "But that doesn't mean he's boring, James. He might just be shy. You've never even spoken to him before, so how do you know what he's like?"

"I know that he's all wrong for Lily," James said, folding his arms.

"Ah, a classic case of the green-eyed monster," Alice sighed. "One of the worst diseases known to the teenage wizard."

"Jealous? Of him? You've got to be joking," James sniggered.

"You're not jealous of him," Alice said, rolling her eyes. "You're jealous that he's going out with Lily."

"Are you going to Hogsmeade?" James asked, abruptly switching topics.

Alice glanced at her watch. "Yes, as soon as Holly gets here. Are you?"

"Well, I wasn't going to," James said, a sour expression on his face, "but I think I will now, just to keep an eye on them... make sure he doesn't try anything funny..."

"Oh, and that's going to make Lily fall head over heels for you," Alice said sarcastically. "First you don't ask her to the ball, then you start stalking her. Way to go, James."

"Well, what do you think I should do, then?" James turned to her.

"Nothing!" Alice stressed. "You're not Lily's babysitter, James. If David isn't the right guy for her, she'll realize it in her own time and break up with him. If she likes him, though... you've got to just leave her alone. Don't you want her to be happy?"

"I guess so," James muttered sullenly.

Alice spotted Holly waving her over. "I've got to go. Now, don't do anything stupid, OK?"

"Don't worry, I won't," James said with a grin, but Alice noticed a little gleam of mischief in his eyes as she dashed over to her friend.

xxxxxxxxxx

Assorted gifts and many, many shops later, Alice and Holly stood outside Honeydukes, laden down with bags. Alice was munching a Chocolate Frog, having decided that she deserved a bit of chocolate after the marathon shopping session she had just embarked on.

"So, where do you want to go now?" Alice asked, shivering as she pulled her scarf tighter around her neck. It wasn't snowing any more, but a thin layer of frost glittered across the ground and the wind was bitterly cold.

Holly's teeth were chattering. "I don't know about you, but I'm ready for a Butterbeer. Shall we go to the Three Broomsticks?"

Alice nodded gratefully. "Lily and David might be in there; I said we'd catch up with them later."

When the two girls entered, Alice saw that she was right; Lily and David were in there - and at a table nearby, so were James, Sirius, Remus and Peter. James was glowering in Lily and David's direction, but Lily was staunchly refusing to look at him.

Alice groaned. "I told him to leave them alone," she said, turning to Holly in exasperation. Holly didn't seem to have heard her, though - she had caught Remus' eye and was blushing madly.

Alice sighed. "You can go over there, if you want - I don't mind."

"Oh, no, not while the rest of them are there," Holly said quickly. "I don't mind it when it's just me and Remus, but I don't really want any teasing from his friends. No offence," she added hastily.

"None taken," Alice shrugged. "Believe me, I know better than anyone what James is like. Look, Lily's waving us over."

The two girls wove their way through the crowded pub and seated themselves at Lily and David's table.

"I can see you two have had a productive day," Lily joked, nodding towards the mountain of carrier bags that Alice and Holly had plunked down on the table.

"Shopping is an art, and should not be sneered at," Alice replied haughtily, taking off Belinda's voice to a T. Lily laughed outright at that.

"Well, I got all of my presents for everyone, anyway," Holly said brightly, pushing some bags aside to make room for their drinks. "Anyone want a Butterbeer?"

"I'll go and get them," Alice said, jumping to her feet and heading towards the bar. On returning to the table, though, she found that Remus had taken her empty seat.

Alice raised her eyebrows. "Any room for a fifth wheel?" she kidded, as she set the drinks down on the table.

Remus looked embarrassed. "Sorry, Alice." He jumped to his feet. "I'll get another seat."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, Remus, sit down," Alice sighed, pulling up another chair. "I was joking." Well, half-joking, anyway.

There was silence as everyone sipped their drinks. Wedged in between Lily and Holly, Alice began to feel more and more like an intruder on a double date.

"So... did everyone have fun at the ball?" Remus asked awkwardly. Alice groaned inwardly. Oh, please, not another bloody excuse to talk about that...

Lily, David and Holly nodded, Holly blushing as she did so.

"You went with Malfoy, didn't you, Alice?" Remus attempted conversation again.

"Yes," Alice said shortly, swirling the Butterbeer around in her mug. Lily's eyes darted over to Alice; Alice didn't look at her. Remus waited for Alice to say something else, but she didn't, and everyone lapsed back into silence.

What must have only been five minutes, but felt more like five years, passed in which nobody spoke. Frustrated and feeling like she was the one getting in everyone's way, Alice gulped down the rest of her Butterbeer and stood up.

"I'll see you guys later, OK?"

Holly looked distraught. "Where are you going?"

"I still need to get presents for my parents," Alice lied. "I just want to get it out the way now, and then everything's done."

"We'll come with you," Holly said, looking at Remus for approval. Before he could say anything, Alice cut in.

"No, it's OK - I don't want to drag you guys back outside, it's freezing."

Alice began gathering up her bags and caught Lily's eye; in a moment, she knew that Lily knew the real reason why she was leaving. Lily was the one person who had always been able to read her like a book.

"Alice, you don't have to -" Lily began.

"Yes, I do," Alice said staunchly. "If I don't get them now, I won't have time to send them." She eyed Lily pleadingly, not wanting her to say anything aloud.

Lily sighed and nodded. "We'll see you at dinner," she said.

Alice nodded. "Have fun."

Safely outside the pub, Alice breathed a sigh of relief. She could literally feel the tension between the group, and couldn't help but feel like it was because she was there. I guess four's company, five's a crowd.

Still, Alice didn't want to go back to Hogwarts yet. The dormitory would probably be empty - Belinda and the others would still be at Hogsmeade - and for once, Alice didn't feel like being completely alone. Out here, surrounded by people, she was OK, but she didn't think she could bear the silence of an empty room.

Beginning to stride down the street, Alice began to sort out her jumbled thoughts. What with the ball and starting to revise for the NEWTs, she had barely had time to worry about anything other than that; but now she was alone and she had time to think, everything just came screaming back to her.

She had only spoken to Dumbledore once since the night she went back in time to retrieve the weapon - she briefly wondered if he was avoiding her, but then shook that thought away; Dumbledore had always been pretty elusive. The evening she had spoken to him was the night before the Christmas Ball. She had bumped into him on her way to her dormitory, and had plucked up the courage to ask what the weapon was. He had been unusually short with her, and told her that it was nothing she needed to worry about. Alice had felt like snapping back, well, why did you send me back to get it, then? But she hadn't said anything; she didn't like being rude to teachers at the best of times, and she certainly wouldn't be cheeky to Dumbledore. He had then left before she could even switch the topic around to her uncle and whether he knew anything else about his whereabouts.

That was another matter she had to worry about - Cameron Tyler was still at large and "very dangerous", as the Ministry had described him in the latest issue of the Daily Prophet. Alice had caught a few glares aimed in her direction, but she had ignored them; she no longer felt guilty for being affiliated with a murderer - as far as she was concerned, they were no longer family. Her parents had owled her saying that they hadn't been in contact with him and didn't know anything else.

Then, of course, there was Lucius Malfoy... and what, exactly, he had meant when he had threatened her. Surprisingly, that was the thing that Alice was the most worried about - probably because Lucius had got a little too close for comfort the other night. What was to stop him from doing it again?

Alice shook her head, ridding the thoughts from her mind. Jolted back into reality, she realized two things; one, that she had walked so far that she was almost out of Hogsmeade - there were a couple of shops here and there, with a few people milling around, but apart from that, it was empty. Alice noted, with some surprise, that she had never been in this part of the village before. Probably because all of the shops looked as if they had been there for hundreds of years, she thought, wrinkling her nose. She could barely read some of the signs from the thick layers of dust coating them.

The second realization was that it had started snowing again. Well, hailing would be a better word. The wind was howling and blowing the snow harshly into her face, and it was beginning to blur her vision. Alice's hands were becoming numb, even with her gloves on.

Wanting to get out of the snow as fast as she could, Alice glanced at the shops nearby. The closest one was a quill and ink shop that looked as if it hadn't been entered in years; the sign had broken and was hanging off; one was a liquor shop, which Alice passed by with distaste; one a rather seedy-looking pub... Alice was about to give up and turn around when she spied a shop at the end. Compared to the others, it looked slightly more modern - it was a lot cleaner, anyhow. A faded sign proclaimed it Carson's Gift Shop.

Shrugging, Alice pushed open the door. A bell tinkled somewhere in the shop as she slid inside, but nobody appeared. The shop was empty.

The air inside seemed thick - suffocating, almost. Alice pulled her scarf off, fanning her face with one hand as she felt her face immediately begin to warm up. The shop seemed less welcoming inside than it had seemed from the outside. It was dark and cramped, and almost creepily empty.

Alice took a few steps forward, glancing around at the strange knick-knacks that littered the shelves. There was a large crystal ball on her left that was filled with fog; Alice wrinkled her nose - she knew Holly loved Divination, but she had never really enjoyed it that much. Next to it was a large mirror that Alice stepped in front of curiously; when she saw her reflection in it she jumped backwards, her hands clamped over her mouth to stifle her shriek. Her face hadn't been her face - well, it hadn't been her current face, anyway. She had seen herself as an old woman, with sagging skin, thin white hair and drooping eyelids. That wasn't what had scared her, though - it was the look in the reflection's eyes. They looked haunted - suffering and full of remorse, as if she had spent her entire life in pain.

Alice stepped backwards, trying to put as much distance between herself and the mirror as she could. The sign next to it proclaimed it The Mirror Of Erutuf: Look Into The Mirror And See Your Future Self!

Was that really what was going to happen in her future? "Some gift," Alice muttered aloud, trying to make light of the situation, even though her heart was pounding. Spinning around with a shudder, thinking that she'd rather freeze to death in the snow than stay in this creepy shop, she was just about to grab the door handle when something caught her eye.

It was a glass rack full of jewellery, which was strange, since Alice had never really been a fan of jewellery. Strange rings, bracelets and necklaces gleamed dully in the minimal light of the shop. Alice approached it slightly warily. The object that had caught her attention was a bronze cloak fastener, studded with tiny emeralds, with intricate swirling patterns engraved on. Along the bottom, in tiny letters, were inscribed the words: Planto A Votum. Alice recognized them as Latin, but she didn't understand what they meant. Unlike the other pieces of jewellery, there was no price on it. The cloak fastener was a bit too fussy for Alice's usual taste, but it was undoubtedly one of the prettiest things she had ever seen.

"May I help you?"

Alice jumped and spun around. She hadn't even heard anyone come over. Behind her stood a wizened old man. He looked ancient - a hundred years old at least. He was shorter than Alice and his white hair stuck out in tufts all over his head. His eyes were bright green - much brighter than Lily's, which gave him a slightly unnerving look.

"Yes, please," Alice said, getting her breath back. "How much is that cloak fastener?" She pointed to show him which one she meant. A thing like that was probably way out of her price range, but there was no harm in asking.

A look of horror spread over the man's face as his gaze fell on the cloak fastener. "How did that get in there?" he mumbled, before springing over to the object - quite agilely, for someone as old as he looked - and snatching it up.

"It's not for sale," the man told Alice firmly.

"Oh - but - I just thought, seeing as it was on display -" Alice tried.

"It must have been put there by mistake," the man shrugged, cradling the cloak fastener to his chest. "It's not for sale."

"Why?" Alice couldn't help but ask.

The man frowned at her. "This is a very powerful magical object," he snapped. Alice opened her mouth to ask another question, but the man interrupted her. "Never you mind what it does," he said, and Alice's mouth closed. He had almost read her mind.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" the man asked, looking very much as if he wanted to take the cloak fastener and hide it away somewhere.

Alice glanced out of the window and saw that the snow had all but stopped. "No, but thanks anyway," she said with a brief smile. The man nodded at her distractedly before scurrying away to the back of the shop, muttering to himself.

Weird, Alice couldn't help but think as she exited the shop, very weird.

xxxxxxxxxx

"Psst! Tyler!"

It was later on that same day. Alice had returned from Hogsmeade to find that Lily and Holly were both still not back from their respective dates yet, and since it wasn't quite time for dinner, she had decided to go and do a bit of her holiday homework in the library. She was sitting alone, reading an Arithmancy book in between jotting down notes for an essay, when she heard the whisper behind her. Swivelling around in her seat, she saw Sirius Black sitting at a seat on a table behind hers, grinning.

Alice mimed shock. "What are you doing here, Black? I didn't think you knew where the library was."

"Ha, ha," Sirius replied sarcastically. "I was looking for you, actually."

"So you automatically assumed I'd be in the library?" Alice asked, offended.

Sirius frowned. "Belinda told me where you were. What are you being so touchy about?"

Alice sighed, closing her book. "What did you want, anyway?" She couldn't keep a note of suspicion from creeping into her voice. Whatever he wanted, it couldn't possibly be good.

Sirius puffed himself up importantly. "I've got a plan."

"A plan for what? I'm not getting involved in one of your ridiculous pranks, Sirius," Alice said sternly.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "It's not a prank! As if I'd ask you to help me with one, anyway."

Alice let that slide, but felt very annoyed. "What is it, then?"

"A plan to get Lily and James together!" Sirius said triumphantly.

"Shhhhh!" Madam Pince, who was carefully putting books away onto one of the shelves, glared at them over the tops of her glasses.

Alice was shaking her head. Was this guy crazy? "Sirius, Lily has a boyfriend," she pointed out quietly, after a quick glance at Madam Pince to make sure she wasn't looking.

"So?" Sirius looked at her as if she was an idiot. Which, Alice thought, considering the circumstances, was a bit stupid. "That David's a prat. We all know James and Lily belong together."

"Really? I'd have thought that Lily would have said yes when he asked her out the first time, then," Alice said, raising her eyebrows.

Sirius ignored that. "We can just split them up."

Alice eyed him, wondering if he was insane. "If you think I'm going to ruin my best friend's relationship with a guy she actually likes, you're mad," she said firmly, opening her Arithmancy book again. "Is that all you wanted? Because I've got a lot of homework -" Her words were cut off when Sirius snatched the book from out of her hand.

"Do you mind?" Alice snapped.

"No," Sirius said, holding the book aloft and continuing as if the conversation had never been interrupted. "We won't actually have to split them up - they'll do it themselves."

Alice was tempted to just get out her wand, hex him and retrieve her book, but was stopped by two things: one, Madam Pince was still hovering behind one of the bookshelves, and two - much as she didn't want to admit it - she was kind of intrigued by what Sirius was suggesting. She would never tell Lily, of course, but she was rooting for her and James to get together - and they had come so close before the Christmas Ball.

Sirius could see that she was weakening, and grinned. "Come on, Tyler - don't you want your cousin to be happy?" he guilt-tripped.

"Fine," Alice relented. "I'll go along with you stupid plan. Can I have my book back, please?"

Smirking, Sirius handed her the book. "How do you know my plan's stupid? You haven't even heard it yet," he said with mock hurt.

"Go on then, hit me with it," Alice said flatly.

"Ah, it's a secret," Sirius said, looking pleased with himself. "I'm not going to tell you."

"So how am I supposed to help you if I don't know what I'm doing?" Alice frowned. Madam Pince, who had reappeared from behind the bookshelves, was sending them death glares.

"Look, just meet me on the second floor corridor at midnight tonight," Sirius said, getting up from his chair under Madam Pince's beady eye.

"What? I don't want to get into trouble for being out of bed in the middle of the night," Alice said, alarmed. "Sirius, wait!" Sirius was already striding away, though, and he ignored her.

Alice groaned, stuffing her book back into her bag and hitching it onto her shoulder. She couldn't get anything done now she had this to worry about. As she left the library, Alice thought grimly to herself, What the bloody hell have I gotten myself into?

xxxxxxxxxx

It was one minute past midnight. It was freezing cold, especially when you were only in your pyjamas. And Alice was beginning to wonder if she herself was the insane one, not Sirius.

"Why do I let myself get talked into these things?" she muttered under her breath, pulling her dressing gown tight around her. It didn't help that Hogwarts was a very old castle, with ghosts, caretakers and teachers probably wandering around the corridors, and every creak and groan that sounded make Alice jump out of her skin, wondering if someone was creeping up on her. She didn't know what the punishment was for being out after hours, but she definitely didn't want another detention, especially one with Sirius Black.

Where the hell is he? Alice thought to herself. Glancing around to check that she was completely alone, she illuminated the tip of her wand to peer at her watch. It was already past midnight. "Another five minutes, then I'm gone," she said aloud. It made her feel better to talk to herself when she was in the dark like this - it was less creepy that way.

"Boo!"

Alice almost jumped out of her skin, but by some miracle managed not to scream. Spinning around furiously, she saw Sirius standing behind her, laughing.

Alice clutched at her rapidly beating heart. "That wasn't funny," she said angrily. "What would have happened if I screamed? I could have woken up the whole castle."

"Not likely," Sirius snorted.

Alice looked around nervously. "Why didn't you bring the Invisibility Cloak?" she asked. "I've not got any particular desire to get caught out here."

"James left it in his trunk, and he locked it," Sirius shrugged. "I didn't want to wake him up because I didn't want him to know what we were doing. I've got this, though," he said, waving the map at her. "It doesn't matter anyway. The teachers are all down on the first floor anyway, I already checked."

"Great," Alice said, shivering. "So tell me about this plan then, so I can go back to bed. I'm cold."

"I can't tell you, I've got to show you," Sirius said mysteriously. "Down this way." He headed off further down the corridor, and, incidentally, further away from the Ravenclaw tower. Alice sighed and followed.

They didn't have to go very far before Sirius stopped in front of something. "Voila," he said, with a dramatic flourish, and Alice held her wand up to see what they were standing in front of.

It was a broom closet. Alice stood there, one eyebrow raised. "What am I supposed to be looking at?"

"The broom closet, of course!" Sirius said, as if she was mentally challenged. Which Alice was beginning to think she was.

"Uh huh," Alice said slowly. "I don't get it. How can this help Lily and James get together?"

"That's the best part of the plan," Sirius said triumphantly. "We'll have to lure Lily and James here somehow - I'm sure we'll be able to think of something. Anyway, when they get down here, we can lock them in the closet together!"

"And?" Alice asked.

Sirius frowned. "There's no 'and'," he said defensively. "That's it."

For a moment, Alice couldn't speak. She knew Sirius was a prat at times, but she couldn't believe that he had dragged her down here in the middle of the night for this. "That," she said, finally finding her voice, "is the most rubbish plan I have ever heard in my life, Black."

"What?" Sirius sounded injured.

"How will that help them get together?" Alice asked, eyebrows raised. "It's stupid!"

"Well, I thought it was a pretty good idea," Sirius shrugged. "If we lock them in there, they won't have any other choice but to talk to each other. And talking could lead to - other things, if you know what I mean."

"Yes, I do," Alice sighed. "Look, just because you use broom closets for your little escapades -" at this, Sirius smirked - "doesn't mean that everyone does. Even if James might not mind being locked in a room with Lily, I know for a fact that Lily would, and she wouldn't find it funny at all. If anything, it'll just backfire and she'll end up being pissed off with us."

Alice had been talking so loudly that she hadn't heard the soft footsteps coming towards them. Sirius had, though, and he quickly put his finger to his lips to shush her. Alice stopped her rant and listened; she heard a voice mumbling something. The footsteps were getting closer.

Sirius glanced at the map quickly. "It's Filch," he hissed, and Alice groaned inwardly. Of all the people to catch them out of bed at night, it would have to be the grumpy old caretaker. They were going to be in big trouble.

"Of all the nights for you not to have the bloody cloak," Alice muttered, wondering if she could make a mad dash for the Ravenclaw tower. Unfortunately, Filch was approaching from the direction in which Alice needed to go. If she wanted to make it back into her dormitory, she would have to run right past him.

Cursing under her breath, Alice was beginning to get a bit panicky. "What can we do?" she whispered, not sure that Sirius would have any good ideas but deciding to risk it anyway.

"The broom closet!" Sirius said, yanking open the door. Being a bit of a claustrophobic herself, Alice had no desire to get into a cramped broom closet, but it was either that or get caught by Filch. Muttering a, "Why me?" under her breath, Alice jumped inside, followed by Sirius, who shut the door with a soft click.

"I cannot believe this," Alice began grumbling, but Sirius snapped, "Sshh!"

Alice strained her ears to listen. The footsteps were still approaching softly, and they could hear Filch mumbling something to his cat, Mrs. Norris. Alice couldn't stand that cat; she wasn't very fond of them in general, but there was something sly about Mrs. Norris. She half-thought that Filch could understand everything the cat said.

The footsteps stopped just outside the door. Alice held her breath, trying not to move a muscle. Next to her, she could feel Sirius doing the same. It felt like they were stood there for hours, yet in reality could only have been a couple of minutes. There was silence outside the door.

"I think he's gone," Sirius whispered. Alice couldn't see him, because it was pitch black.

"Open the door then," Alice hissed back. She heard Sirius grasp the handle and push the door open a couple of centimeters. It gave an ear-splitting creak.

Suddenly, Alice got the shock of her life. The door was pulled open viciously. "Aha!" she heard a voice say, but she couldn't see who it was. She jumped backwards in shock, and much to her dismay, barreled straight into Sirius, who in turn staggered and fell sideways out of the closet. Alice went tumbling out after him, landing heavily on her knees.

Slowly, Alice raised her head to see Filch standing over them triumphantly, holding a lantern.

"This isn't what it looks like," Alice began hastily. Blindly, she tried to think of some sort of excuse, but couldn't. How were they going to get out of this one?

"Oh, really?" Filch said with a nasty grin. "It looks to me like two hormonal young students meeting in the broom closet for a late-night tryst!"

Alice could hear Sirius sniggering. She wasn't laughing, though - she was horrified. For the first time it occurred to her that it probably would have been better to be caught wandering the corridors rather than in the broom closet. Especially with a serial snogger like Sirius Black!

"This is not what this is," Alice stressed.

"What is it, then?" Filch glared at her.

But Alice couldn't think of anything, so instead just looked at her feet. Filch's smirk widened.

"Mark my words, your heads of houses will hear about this!" Filch said with a cackle.

"What, right now?" Alice said, horrified.

"Of course not," Filch snapped. "I'm not going to wake the teachers up now. I'll go to them first thing in the morning. Now get back to your dormitories. At once!"

Alice was only too happy to oblige and scarpered back to her room, not even glancing back at Sirius. She was far too wound up. She couldn't believe that she had been stupid enough to agree to listen to Sirius's plan, which she should have known would be absolute crap anyway, but to let herself get caught by Filch, of all people!

"That's it," Alice snapped to herself as she entered the seventh-year Ravenclaw dormitory, "I'm never going to break any school rules again, no matter how much I'm tempted - it leads to nothing but trouble."

"What?" Somebody was sitting up in their bed, yawning.

Alice cursed herself for talking too loudly, but then she saw that it was only Emmeline and she sighed with relief.

"Alice, where have you been?" Emmeline asked, raising her eyebrows.

Alice flopped herself down onto her bed. "Believe me, you don't want to know," she sighed.

"OK," Emmeline shrugged. That was one thing Alice liked about her, she wasn't as nosy as some of the other girls in her dormitory. "But if you want to talk about it, I haven't really been able to sleep very well tonight."

Alice hesitated. She couldn't tell Lily about this, of course - then she'd have to admit that she was trying to get her together with James. She could talk to Holly, but she wouldn't see her until the following day, and she did really want to tell someone.

She rolled over onto her back. "I let Sirius Black talk me into something really stupid," she said dully. "And to cut a long story short, Sirius and I got caught in the broom closet by Filch!"

"You what?"

Alice jolted up. That wasn't Emmeline's voice.

Belinda was sitting up in her bed, eyes bright with curiosity. "Alice, did I just hear you say that you got caught in the broom closet with Sirius Black?"

"No!" Alice protested. "I mean, yes, but it's not how it sounds!"

Belinda let out a squeal. "You are so lucky!" she said. "Do you know how many girls would kill to be in your position?"

"What position?" Alice said moodily. "I just said, it's not how it sounds!"

"I guess even hard-boiled Alice Tyler can't resist the infamous Black charm," Belinda remarked annoyingly.

Alice clenched her fists. "Am I talking to a brick wall or something? I just said, that's not what happened!"

"Sure, of course," Belinda said in an infuriating tone of voice that said she didn't believe Alice at all.

"It wasn't!" Alice insisted.

"Whatever, Alice!" Belinda said brightly, as if she were talking to a little kid.

"Just ignore her," Emmeline advised serenely, shaking her head at Belinda's bed. "She doesn't have a clue."

"Yeah, you're right there," Alice mumbled, taking Emmeline's advice and not saying anything to Belinda. "But you know what she's like; it'll be all over school tomorrow!"

Emmeline shrugged. "It doesn't matter, does it? You know it's not true."

Alice just groaned by way of reply and stuck her head under the pillow. "Thanks, Emmeline, but nothing is going to make me feel better now. I'm tired - I think I'll just go to sleep," she said in a muffled voice.

"No problem," she heard Emmeline reply. In a matter of seconds, the dormitory was silent again.

Alice knew, though, that Belinda wasn't going to keep quiet about this. She was the school's gossip guru.

Alice pulled her pillow even further over her head. My life is definitely over.