A Siriusly Good Prank (Marauders/Jily/Wolfstar)

8-Serpentis

It was officially what would have been Ask Out Lily Evans Week, and James was finding it difficult to restrain himself from telling her his feelings. Moreover, Sirius and Remus were always whispering, and he felt left out of the loop. And as if that wasn't enough, he was behind Sirius by sixteen points after a well thought-out prank involving Devil's Snare, Veritaserum, and an umbrella.

But James, despite being irritated that he had no idea if Sirius and Remus were snogging, and Lily giving no hint whether she was warming up to him, had a brilliant idea. 

But he was going to need help, and he had no idea who to ask.

He couldn't ask Sirius, because this prank was being pulled on Sirius...and someone else, to an extent. He could ask Remus, but Remus would try to talk him out of it, and the presentation of the prank would be ruined, besides. So Moony was out. James didn't even consider Peter, as he had a yearly habit of ruining his best prank.

And that left one person, who might be easy to convince, but might also be impossible to convince.

James took a deep breath as he swung into the seat next to Lily in Charms. "Morning, Evans."

"You okay?" Lily asked.

"I need your help," James said, without preamble. 

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Pranktober?"

"Naturally." James glanced at Sirius, but he was deeply engaged in conversation with Remus, as usual. "I'll need your help with spellwork...we'll probably have to do this in the middle of the night...and our first obstacle is, we need to break into the Slytherin dormitories."

Lily's jaw dropped. "James..."

"This will be brilliant," James promised.

Lily sighed. "How would we get the password?"

"Espionage," James said.

Lily shot him a dubious look. "They'll see you. It's a long, empty hallway, and you know no Slytherin will say the password with a Gryffindor nearby."

James winked. "Leave that bit to me."

Lily sighed. "Fine. Say you do get the password. We can't just walk into the Slytherin dorms, we'll be spotted instantly."

James shook his head. "I've got a way around that, and it's better than a Disillusionment Charm. Just assume we won't be seen at any time."

"What are you planning, then?"

"I'm going to nick Sirius's Gryffindor stuff and swap it out with one of the Slytherin's."

Lily narrowed her eyes. "Which Slytherin, Potter? Which Slytherin?"

"A random one?" James tried, but Lily shook her head.

"Not Severus." She looked thoughtful. "But Avery is about Sirius's size..."

"Fine." James seized the name. "Avery, then. But Lily, are you in?"

Lily hesitated, glancing over at Sirius's table.

"Lily," James pleaded.

Lily shook her head. "You are so immature." But she was smiling.

James grinned in relief. "You'll help me!"

Lily playfully shoved him. "Yes. Yes, I'll help you. But if we get caught, be it on your head, James Potter."

............

Lily slipped down to the common room at 1:00 in the morning, dressed in dark jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt, feet clad in black boots. 

James had said 12:45, but it had taken Marlene ages to fall asleep, and James wasn't even in the common room anyway.

"James?" she whispered, scanning the room. Then, louder. "James!"

A low chuckle sounded. Right in front of her.

Then James suddenly appeared out of thin air, whisking a bit of fabric over his head. Lily shrieked, stumbling backwards.

"Shhh," James hissed. "Don't blow our cover. Come on, under the Cloak."

"The...Cloak?" Lily lifted it, fascinated. "An Invisibility Cloak! James, do you know—"

"Shush! Move now, gasp later!" James dropped the Cloak over them, scooping up the pile of Sirius's Gryffindor ties and scarves. "Let's go."

Lily was very, very aware of how close they were under the Cloak. Another inch and they'd be pressed together. She took a deep breath as they slipped through the portrait-hole, catching James by the elbow as he tripped.

"Thanks," he muttered.

"No problem." Lily tried to swallow her fear—they were out of Gryffindor Tower after hours, and the chances of getting caught...

But then again—they had the Invisibility Cloak.

Isn't he just full of surprises?

Like ghosts, they glided silently through the halls. Left. Right. Staircase. Staircase. Right. Right. Left. Staircase. Right. Staircase. Left. Left. Right. Staircase. Staircase. Staircase. Right. Staircase.

And they were in the dungeons.

"What's the password?" Lily hissed.

James paused in front of a seemingly random section of wall. "Serpentis," he breathed, and the wall slid open.

The common room was deserted.

"Thank God," Lily whispered. 

James reached for her hand.

Together, they started forward into the Slytherin lair.