The Squib and the Werewolf

54. Party Time

Raya was a mess for the next three weeks as she frantically studied inbetween all of her exams.
She found the practical ones very humiliating, as she had to wave her wand in front of the examiners, even though she knew nothing would happen. She just hoped she would get some marks for knowing the correct incantations and wand movements.
But once her and the boys final exams were over, her and the Marauders could prepare for the school dance.
When buying a dress, Raya had been faced with two options, she either wore a dress that covered her scars, or she wore one that showed them off.
In the end, with encouragement from James and Lily, Raya decided to not be ashamed of her body, and picked a dress that made no attempt to cover her scars.

On the day of the dance, Lily and Raya spent several hours getting ready with the rest of Lily's roommates. Since make-up was not Raya's thing, she let Lily apply all of her make-up for her.
They then had to carefully make their way down hundreds of stairs to the great hall, where the boys were waiting for them.
When Sirius saw Raya coming down the last few steps, his jaw dropped.
"You look beautiful" he complimented.
Raya blushed, "Thank you".
"He's right sis, you look great" informed Remus, before taking Mary's hand and leading her into the hall.
"Where's Peter?" Asked Raya.
"Him and Olive are already inside. We should join them, so that you can show him just how incredible you look" answered Sirius.

Raya had chosen a midnight blue, strapless, body-con dress, with black heels.
She wore her hair up in a bun, making no attempt to hide the scars on her neck.
She had picked several pieces of jewellery that Sirius had given her throughout the years, and a black tiara that she was borrowing from the Potters.
"You always look beautiful, but tonight you really do look stunning" admitted Sirius.
"Well, I aim to please" replied Raya.
"I hope you didn't get all dressed up, just for me"
"No. I'm doing this for me and not just for you. I wanted to wear something out of my comfort zone, to show that I am not ashamed of my scars. And if people stare, then so what. Their judgements will not bring me down".

"There's our brave lioness" grinned James.
"I can't thank you enough for the dress and the tiara. I really do feel like royalty in this" admitted Raya.
James waved his hand "It was nothing. My parents don't have any daughters to wear any of their fancy jewellery, which is why they jumped at the chance to have you show it off for them".
"I promise I will get it back to them in one piece" reassured Raya.
"They wouldn't care if you damaged it, because they love you. Anyway, enough complimenting each other. Let's go and have some fun".

As the group stepped into the hall, Raya couldn't help but gasp.
The house tables had disappeared, and instead smaller round tables were dotted around the sides of the room, containing food and drinks.
There were 4 golden statues around the room, one for each of the houses.
And a band were sat in the corner playing music.
"You did all this?" Questioned Raya.
"Yep. Me and Lily have been working very hard" answered James.

Lily rolled her eyes, "Don't take all of the credit, James. The Prefects helped as well, provided they be allowed to attend and bring dates".
"I thought this was just going to be a 7th year party" replied Raya.
"That was our intention. But Dumbledore wanted to be more inclusive. He said the more the merrier, and invited all the Prefects, to reward them for their hard work all year" explained Lily.
"So, there's an extra 16 people, plus their dates"
"Not all of the Prefects brought dates, but yes, there is a lot of extra people here. Which meant we had to double the amount of catering we had originally planned. And Dumbledore only decided to add Prefects to the agenda, last week. So, me and James have been rather busy trying to accommodate them".

"Enough talking, I wanna have some fun. Exams are over, and we finish school in one week. So, let's celebrate" announced James, as he dragged Lily over to the dance floor.
"I wish that were me" mumbled Raya, as she watched the 7th years dance.
"What was that?" Questioned Sirius, who hadn't caught what she had said.
Raya sighed, "You guys all finish in one week. But I still have two more years left of school. I have to come back in September, all by myself".