J A M E S  P O T T E R

It had been an absolute miracle that they had gotten away with what had happened in Hogsmeade. Both Sirius and Remus remained none the wiser.

"How is Sirius?" Ophelia asked as they stretched after their run Christmas morning. "I know Remus is still not one hundred percent."

"He's...adjusting," James replied with a frown. If adjusting was playing You Take My Breath Away on repeat as loud as he could. Peter had thrown the record player out the window but Sirius just got another one.

"I really do hope everything sorts itself out," Ophelia informed him. He knew she was being honest but he also knew that Sirius was convinced Ophelia and Remus were more than friends. Anytime James even said a word that started with the letter 'o' he lost it because he was convinced he was going to talk about Ophelia. It made him have to be overly careful when it came to talking to the boy.

"Oh, I have something for you," he announced and she grew confused at this. She stood up straight and raised a questioning eyebrow, "It's a Christmas present."

"You got me a Christmas present?" she asked in surprise. "You didn't have to do that."

He rolled his eyes, "Walk with me to the Gryffindor common room and I'll get it for you."

She frowned slightly as she followed him, "I didn't realize we were-I didn't get you anything."

"That's okay," he replied. "I have everything I need." He stood outside the Gryffindor common room, "I'll be right back." He entered as soon as the portrait opened and made his way to his room.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Sirius grumbled as the boy entered.

"It's Christmas, Pads," he reminded the boy, patting him on the arm rather enthusiastically. "You love Christmas."

"Not this year," he muttered but before James could reply, he had left the room.

"Hmm," James huffed as he opened the drawer in his side table and pulled out the poorly wrapped gift for Ophelia.

He made his way back downstairs and left the portrait quickly to find Ophelia waiting for him. She turned around to face him and smiled, "Took you long enough."

"I ran into Sirius," he replied as he handed the gift over to the girl. "But let's not talk about that right now." He gestured to the gift, "Open it."

She unwrapped the box and James took the paper from her. She opened the box to find another box inside. "A box?" she questioned. "How'd you know that was exactly what I wanted?"

He rolled his eyes and gestured for her to sit down on the step. "Keep going."

She had opened two more boxes before she started to grow agitated, "Okay, I quit." She shook her head and James grinned at her reaction, "I'll take the boxes you can keep the gift. I've been needing more storage anyway."

"But you're so close," he informed her and she raised an eyebrow.

"Am I?"

"It's the box after the next."

She opened the box and pulled out another one before proceeding to pull the next one out. Inside was a velvet rectangular container and she pulled it out before looking up at the boy, "What is it?"

"Open it," he suggested.

She did as told and opened the box. She stared at the contents inside and James began to grow wary. Was it not a good idea?

Ophelia looked up at him, "Spectrespecs?"

He nodded, "You had stopped wearing your so I wasn't sure if they broke or you lost them so I got you new ones."

She smiled at this and he relaxed significantly, "I love them."

"Good," he replied as he removed them from the box and placed it on her head. "I like them on you."

O P H E L I A  L O V E G O O D

He brushed the hair that fell out from her ponytail behind her ear, his hand resting on the side of her neck. Her breath hitched in her throat when the portrait opened. She quickly turned forward and his hand dropped.

"I will see you later?" she asked him. "For patrolling before the ball?"

"Yeah," he agreed as he stood up. He reached down and helped Ophelia stand up. He pulled her up and she smiled at him, "I will see you later than."

She nodded before walking away leaving James to himself, or to those leaving the Gryffindor common room.

"Ophelia," Reggie greeted as he approached the girl, slinging his arm over her shoulder. "You smell just lovely."

She wiggled out from under his arm, "Wow, I wonder why. It couldn't possibly have to do with the fact that I just went on a run."

"I thought I got rid of these," Reggie inquired as he flipped the Spectrespecs down so they rested on her nose. They had gotten into an argument not too long ago about how she should stop pretending to be someone she's not. And then he took the glasses and disposed of them in the fireplace.

"James got them for me for Christmas," she explained as she took them off her face and tucked them in her hoodie pocket so he couldn't touch them. "And I swear if you do anything to them, I will end you."

"You keep up this whole facade of being a sweet girl but really you're the devil in disguise," he accused and she rolled her eyes.

"Are you going to the ball tonight?"

He snorted, "Of course not. I will be in my dorm, drinking firewhiskey away from everyone."

"Sounds about right," she rolled her eyes. "Why is it that you're up so early?"

He held up a bag, "Retrieving the goods."

Her nose wrinkled, "Lovely."

"You can join us," he reminded her. "Unless you're still going undercover or whatever it is you are doing."

"I promised him one dance."

"Does this ever get confusing to you?" he asked the girl as they entered the Ravenclaw common room. "Because you, Ophelia, are friends with James in real time. And then there is you, Ophelia 2.0, who James doesn't know is you but you know you're talking to him. Do you ever mix up what each of you is supposed to know?"

"He's told me essentially everything he's ever told her," she replied simply.

"Then why keep it up?"

She frowned at this. Why was she still doing this?

J A M E S  P O T T E R

"You confuse me," James announced and Ophelia looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "You're like..." he trailed off, contemplating how to explain, "You're like two completely different people."

"I am?" she asked and she appeared to be slightly alarmed.

"It's just, when it's just us, you seem so much more relaxed and different but around everyone else, your...well..."

"Loony Lovegood?" she inquired and he grimaced at the nickname. "Relax, it doesn't exactly bother me. Most of the time."

"Why aren't you just yourself all the time?"

She faltered at this, "It's complicated."

"Is it?"

"My brother is two years younger than me," she explained. "He's not exactly what one would call normal." She hesitated, playing with her hands in front of her. "I didn't want him to get made fun of so I made it seem that I was just like them. If not more so."

"So you've been faking it?" he asked in confusion. "To protect him?" She nodded. "Does he know?"

"I honestly have no idea," she replied. "Maybe? He's never said anything. Reggie and Coralena seem to think I should stop but I've been doing it for so long there's no point."

"I mean, maybe they're right," he shrugged. "Not that there's anything wrong with you being different from the normal but if it's not you, you shouldn't keep doing it."

"I think a part of it is me," she explained. "You fake something long enough, eventually it becomes real. Even if it's just a little." He opened his mouth to say something but she spoke quickly, "The ball is going to start soon. We should head back to our houses so we can get ready."

"I'll walk you," he suggested and he moved to go with her but she shook her head.

"I'm okay," she replied. "I'll see you later."

O P H E L I A  L O V E G O O D

Telling him she, the girl from the table, would be at Yule Ball had been an awful idea. She had contemplated the idea for a long time but then decided what harm would have been done if she promised him one dance. The issue she hadn't realized had been if he ever looked for her as Ophelia, not the girl he had been talking to.

She just had to hope that he was too distracted because he was finally getting to talk to her in person to realize Ophelia wasn't there. And that she didn't do anything he would recognize.

"One of these days, all the lies will catch up to you," Coralena reminded the girl. Ophelia looked up in the mirror to see the girl was watching her with a frown. They hadn't been on speaking terms since the fight they had in the Hall and things had been rather uncomfortable.

"I haven't been lying," she pointed out. She looked at herself in the mirror. She used her powers to make her hair a dark brown. Her eyes were brown as well and she changed her features around so that there was no way he would recognize her, mask or not.

"I'm just saying be careful."

"I will be."

Coralena frowned slightly before she left the room along with the other girls in their room. She placed her mask on her face and took a deep breath. What could possibly go wrong?

J A M E S  P O T T E R

"What do I do if it is her?" James asked as he and his friends got ready.

"Tell her you know?" Remus suggested although it came out as a question rather than an actual suggestion.

"And if it isn't?"

"Then say nothing and she'll be none the wiser."

"Right..." he trailed off, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "This is going to be fine. Everything will be okay."

"What exactly is it that you're so nervous about?" Sirius asked from behind his curtain. He had been hiding there since Remus returned to the room. James suspected it was because the boy didn't feel like seeing his ex in a suit.

Peter and him had come with a plan. Well, something of a plan. Peter would leave Remus and keep him as far away from Sirius as possible. That's all they had come up with. It was better than nothing.

"I'll meet you guys in the Hall," James informed Peter and Remus. "I have to find my tie."

"We can just wait," Remus suggested.

"No, that's okay," he replied quickly, possibly too quickly. "I'll be down soon."

Peter opened the door and urged the rather confused Remus out the door. Sirius emerged from his area and James turned to face him, "I can't do this."

"Yes you can," James countered as he pulled his tie out of his pocket and put it on while looking in the mirror. "Because you are a hot badass hunk of a dog." He glanced back at Sirius who looked amused, "Did that work?"

"Only a little," he replied. "Let's just get this over with."

O P H E L I A  L O V E G O O D

At least seven people had come up to her and asked her to dance and she declined. Nothing against them but she was just here to satisfy James's need to meet her and then get out.

Her eyes flickered over to the center of the dance floor where James stood alone. Where she had told him to meet her. She crossed the room and stood behind him, "For someone who was so eager to meet me, you would think you'd actually look at me."

He turned around and he took in the girl's appearance. He stuck his hand out, "Can I have this dance?"

She placed her hands in his, "Don't say I didn't warn you. I'm not exactly smooth on my feet."

"I'll lead," he announced and she placed one hand on his shoulder while the other rested in his hand. He placed his free hand on her waist and she ignored the tingling sensation from his touch.

"I've never heard this song before," he informed the girl as the pair began to dance.

"It's Paul Anka," she told him and he still appeared confused despite the mask covering half of his face. "Put Your Head On My Shoulder?" she continued and he shook his head. "Wow, you really don't listen to muggle music do you?"

"That's not entirely true," he countered. "Sirius plays Queen all the time."

"I can work with that," she nodded. "Favorite song?"

"Bohemian Rhapsody."

"Always a classic," she grinned.

"What about you?"

She thought it over, "Somebody to Love." He watched her for a moment as though he were trying to figure something out, "Have you listened to their new album?"

He shook his head, "Not yet, no. Haven't had the chance to get it."

"I have it on vinyl. You can borrow mine," she informed him. "I'm sure Sirius will enjoy it."

He seemed to smile a little at this, "Does that mean I get to know who you are?"

"Nice try," she replied. "I'll leave it on the table for you to grab."

"And if someone takes it?"

"I'll disguise it as a quill," she shrugged. "If they take it then I'll just get a new one."

"Or," he countered, "I can walk you back to your house and you can run in and grab it."

"You're just trying to deduct who I am."

"Guilty."

"Moving on from you trying to find out my identity," she suggested and he rolled his eyes playfully. "Tell me you've at least listened to the Beatles." She could tell from the look on his face that he had indeed not. "Oh, come on! What about The Beach Boys?" He shook his head, "How is that possible?"

"In my defense, I didn't really spend much time in the muggle world until Sirius moved in," he explained on his behalf.

"We need to revamp your musical knowledge," she tutted. "You will be receiving a stack of vinyls from me and I will be expecting you to listen to every last song."

"You want me to write a report on them too?" he mused and she wasn't sure if it was the look on her face or what but he shook his head. "I wasn't being serious."

She rolled her eyes as the song came to an end, "I hope you got what you wanted out of this."

He eyed her for a moment, "I think that I did." He looked around for a moment before his eyes landed on whatever he had been looking for. "I have to go. It was nice talking to you."

"You too," she agreed in confusion and he was off. She watched him as he made his way across the room and her eyes widened as she realized who he was going to talk to. Coralena.

She followed after him quietly and hid behind a table. "It's Coralena, right?" James asked and she turned around in confusion. Understanding flashed across her face. "I was just wondering where Ophelia was."

"Ophelia?" she repeated and her eyes flickered over to where she was hiding behind the table. "She's in our room," she explained as she looked back up at the boy. "She wasn't feeling well."

"Oh, okay," he nodded in what seemed to be understanding. He smiled tightly, "Tell her I hope she feels better soon."

"Will do," Coralena replied and the boy walked off. As soon as James was out of sight Coralena walked over to the table and crouched down, "I thought you knew what you were doing?"

Ophelia threw her arms over the girls neck, "Thank you."

Coralena appeared surprised by the gesture but hugged back nevertheless, "Did you think I was just going to out you?"

"With the way things have been between us, I did," she agreed as she pulled away. "I miss you."

She smiled, "I miss you too." She glanced behind herself, "You should get out of here, it looks like James is heading your way. And by your way I mean he's leaving the Hall and I don't know where else he would be going without his friends at his side."

Ophelia's eyes widened and she quickly shot up, sprinting toward the Ravenclaw common room.

J A M E S  P O T T E R

It had to be her. There was no way it wasn't. And when he showed up at the Ravenclaw common room and she wasn't there, he would have his confirmation.

Getting into the common room was another story all together. He grabbed a hold of Remus' arm once he found him in the hall and pulled him through the corridor, "I need your help."

"With what exactly?" Remus asked in confusion. James released the boy's arm and the pair made their way through the school. "Earth to James."

"I need to get into the Ravenclaw common room," he explained simply, confusing his friend even more.

"Why?"

"Ophelia's there," he replied. "Or she's supposed to be."

"So she's not the girl you've been talking to?" he asked.

"I didn't say that," he pointed out. "That's why I need to get into the common room."

"And I'm going to help with that?"

"I am not smart enough to figure out the riddle," he explained, "You are."

They arrived at the portrait and stopped, waiting for it to speak.

"I have cities, but no houses. I have mountains, but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I?" the portrait asked.

James turned to Remus expectantly, "What is it?"

"I don't know," he replied. "I don't have the answers to everything." He turned back to portrait, "Can you say it again?"

The portrait rolled it's eyes, "So much for Ravenclaw's being clever." And then it repeated itself.

O P H E L I A  L O V E G O O D

She sprinted through the halls quickly, her heels making it overly difficult for her to do so. She kicked them off and left them in the hall as she made her way to the Ravenclaw common room, taking every shortcut she could think of.

She skidded to a haunt in front of the portrait, "I need to get in."

"What is seen in the middle of March and April that can't be seen at the beginning or end of either month?"

She groaned, "Stupid riddles." She shook her head. In the middle of March and April but not at the beginning or the end. "I got it!"

"Then say it."

"The letter 'R'!"

"Yay, you got it," the portrait announced unenthusiastically before swinging open. She ran in to find Reggie alongside a few other Ravenclaw's sitting at the center of the room.

"Hi," she greeted quickly before she bolted straight for the stairs.

"What's got you in such a rush?" Reggie asked in confusion as he got up and made his way to the bottom of the stairs.

"James is coming here, I think," she explained quickly. "If he shows up and somehow gets in, distract him for me. I just need five minutes." There were voices from outside and Ophelia's eyes widened, "Please."

"Yeah, I've got it," he nodded as he watched the girl. "Go."

She nodded gratefully before making her way up the stairs.

J A M E S  P O T T E R

"I got it!" Remus exclaimed. "It's a map."

"Don't tell me, tell the portrait," James suggested quickly as he gestured ahead of them.

"Oh, right," he nodded before facing the entrance. "It's a map."

The portrait groaned, "Took you long enough." Then it swung open.

Inside were about five Ravenclaw's, including Reggie, Ophelia's best friend. They all turned to look at Remus and James. One of the girl's groaned, "Of course it's two Gryffindor's."

Reggie stood up and crossed the room to where the pair stood, "What are you doing here?"

"We're here-Well, I'm here to see Ophelia," James explained quickly. "Coralena said she wasn't feeling well and I wanted to check on her."

"She isn't feeling well," he agreed but that's all he said on the matter."

"Okay..." James trailed off before glancing over at Remus for help but he just shrugged. "Can I talk to her?"

"I don't know, can you?" Reggie inquired and he rolled his eyes.

"Is she here or not?" James asked, growing irritated.

"She's here," he nodded before looking behind him. "Sammy, could you get Ophelia? Try not to be too loud, I think she has a headache or something like that."

A girl, who was no doubt Sammy stood up and made her way to the girl's rooms. Reggie turned to look at Remus, "Want to join us?"

James raised an eyebrow at this but said nothing as Remus appeared to grow flustered. The door at the top of the stairs opened revealing Sammy and Ophelia. He left the two alone and made his way across the room.

Ophelia made her way down the stairs and looked up at James, "You wanted to see me?"

He looked her up and down and saw that she was in sweatpants and a shirt, nothing on to indicate she had been at the ball.

"Yeah, uh," he began, shaking his head. "I just wanted to see how you were doing."

O P H E L I A  L O V E G O O D

"Oh," she smiled at this. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little headache is all." She stepped down so that she was off the stairs, "You didn't have to come here."

"I wanted to," he replied as he watched her curiously.

She raised an eyebrow, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he nodded as he glanced behind him briefly to find that Remus had joined the others Ravenclaw's. "I should go before Sirius starts to wonder where I went."

"Right, yeah," she agreed as she glanced over at where he had looked. From Ophelia's understanding, when Reggie and Remus disappeared in Hogsmeade, they had gone to do a little more than hide but she wasn't going to tell James that. "I'll see you tomorrow morning?"

He nodded in agreement before making his way from the room and she couldn't help but note the frown on her face. It's better this way, she reminded herself. It's better he doesn't know.