Looking for Robin

[James Potter]

"I'll go with you because I've got to pick up dress robes. I will not be stuck with frilly ones." James shook his head at the thought. "And whatever dress you pick out, I'm sure that you'll look nice in." He smiled at Robin, and then laughed. "I guess I kind of feel bad for the guy. Although, I don't think I've seen anyone as stuck on himself as Gilderoy. I don't remember Malfoy being that bad when he was here, but that's not saying too much. I feel bad for the girl who might actually just tell him yes to get him to stop asking."

[Robin Slater]

Robin blushed again. She wished she had a closer girl friend who could go dress shopping with her, but it did sound nice to go with him. "Thanks. And I'm sure you'll look great in your dress robes."

Getting back to the subject of Lockhart, she laughed again. "He really is stuck on himself, isn't he? It's a shame, really, because if he wasn't, he actually might be kind of cute. Not my type, of course, but still. He's not bad looking. But I'd never admit that to him!"

[James Potter]

James raised an eyebrow at Robin and shook his head with a laugh. "Still, I wouldn't say that too loud. There's no telling who's listening, especially in these paintings. Sometimes, they like to repeat things that are said among the halls." Some of the boy's pranks were ruined because they had planned them while in the halls.

Once they reached the Hufflepuff portrait, James stopped and looked to Robin for her to open it.

[Robin Slater]

Robin's eyes widened. "Oh, good point! Yeah, I can't have Gilderoy knowing I said anything like that... he'll never leave me alone!" She giggled, then looked up at the entranceway to the Hufflepuff common room. "Do you want to wait out here, or do you want to come in for a minute? I don't think the others will mind, as long as you're only here for a few minutes. It's not like you're a Slytherin or anything."

[James Potter]

"Then I would have to fight Gilderoy off for sure," said James laughing. He didn't mind if he had to fight for Robin anyway. "I can't stand him and I don't understand how in the world he can be the way he is." James shook his head at the thought. "I don't mind coming in and waiting patiently for you." He smiled at her and followed her into the common room.

He handed Robin her books back, only to see staring girls sitting around the common room. James felt just a little bit awkward standing there because of the way they were just staring at him. He offered them a friendly smile and put his hands in his pockets while he turned his attention back to the staircase and waited for Robin.

[Robin Slater]

Robin blushed at the idea that he would be willing to fight for her. That made her feel really good. She was tempted to kiss him on the cheek, but she refrained, just in case that wasn't what he meant. "I'll be right back," she said, and dashed up the stairs.

Up in her dorm room, Robin put away her books, then quickly turned to the mirror to check her appearance. Her hair was looking a bit limp on one side, she noticed with dismay. Grabbing a brush, she did her best to restore it, then put on a dash of shiny lip gloss that tasted like strawberries.

Then she hurried downstairs, to where he was waiting for her. "OK, let's go," she said brightly.

[James Potter]

The girls in the common room seemed to continue to stare at him, making him feel even more awkward than he first did. James did his best to ignore them as he waited on Robin. He kept his hands in his pockets and he was still slightly nervous.

He smiled when Robin reappeared. "Alright then," he replied. James took her hand as they left the Hufflepuff Common Room. After they were in the hall, he let out a sigh of relief. "Those girls back there were kind of creepy. I thought that they were going to jump at any moment." He shook his head. That would have been a scary situation.

James continued to hold her hand as they walked down the hall. "Thanks for coming to the dance with me," he said smiling. "I sort of thought that you would have said no because maybe someone else asked you first, but I figured that I would try it anyway."

[Robin Slater]

Robin shrugged. "We don't get a lot of Gryffindors in the common room," she said. "Maybe the occasional Ravenclaw, but that's about it. I'm sure those girls were just curious. I don't really know most of them. I find a lot of the other girls in my year and house to be kind of silly. I wish I'd been in Gryffindor. I mean, I have the red hair!" She laughed.

As they walked down the hall, she looked at him sideways. "I was actually surprised you asked me. I kind of thought you might ask... well, someone else. But I'm glad you asked. I think we'll have fun."

[James Potter]

James laughed along with Robin. "Well, that's true. Although, I like the idea of you being the only red-head in Hufflepuff, that I've noticed so far. I can pick you out from the Hufflepuffs easily whenever I look for you." He grinned widely.

"I already knew that answer before I ever thought about asking her," he said with a shrug. "I'm not really worried with that anymore." James knew that Lily was going to continue to reject him, so why continue to put up with it? He could attempt to take a break from thinking about her and focus on what was going on right now. "In all honesty, you were the first person I thought of whenever they said we were going to have a dance. I was determined to ask you and I hoped that you weren't going with anyone else." James smiled again. "And of course we'll have fun! We'll dance all night and just be ourselves."

[Robin Slater]

Robin's face turned a pretty pink color. She had actually been his first choice? She really hadn't expected that. Despite her red hair, she never really thought she stood out at all. She was just an ordinary girl. She wasn't self-conscious or shy, but she didn't really expect people to think of her like that.

"Thank you," she said. "And for what it's worth, there's no one else I would rather go with than you."

[James Potter]

He smiled again when Robin blushed. The pink on her cheeks looked adorable. At her comment, it was James' turn to blush. "Thanks," he said. Using his free hand, James rubbed the back of his neck. Robin was sweet and maybe she was just the thing he needed. "I promise that I won't make you think about doubting what you just said. I'll see what I can do to make you enjoy yourself."

James continued to hold her hand as they walked down the hall. "We really need to do things like this more often."

[Robin Slater]

Robin smiled. "I'm sure I will enjoy myself," she said. "I always do when I'm with you."

They were just walking aimlessly down the hall, and Robin thought of an idea. "Hey, aren't there, like, a bunch of secret passageways in the school? Do you know where any of them are? I think it would be fun to explore."

[James Potter]

James glanced at Robin with a mischevious look in his eye. "Of course there are," he replied with a grin. He, Sirius, Remus, and Peter had explored the castle and found several secret passages, however there were still a few more that James was sure of. "And yes. I just so happen to know where a few of them are. It depends on where you want to go though. There's one that leads to Hogsmeade. I've taken that one before. There are a few that just loop around the inside of the school." James thought of one of the secret passage ways on the current floor. "There's one on this floor that will lead you down to the first floor. There's also a secret room on the seventh floor. Room of Requirement. Turns into anything you want, you just have to know how to use it."

[Robin Slater]

Robin's eyes widened. For a little muggle girl, things like secret passageways sounded so exciting and exotic. Even though she was already living in a castle, the idea of secret passages felt like something from ages past. And secret rooms that become anything you want them to be? The idea that there were so many of these things--probably even some that James had yet to discover--was positively mind-boggling.

"That's so cool!" she said excitedly. "Show me one of them, please? I don't even care which one."

[James Potter]

He laughed at Robin's apparent excitement. "Alright. We'll do it like this. We'll go take this secret passage on this floor down to the first. Then we'll go up to the seventh floor and I'll show you the Room of Requirement," said James. He still held onto Robin's hand and led her up the hall a little ways and stepped behind a statue, bring her with him. "If you ever want to use this one, you just tap the wall like this," he said tapping the wall in the upper left corner and the middle. "And there you go." The piece of wall moved to were they had to bend down a little to get through.

James took Robin's hand again. "Ready?"

[Robin Slater]

Robin giggled. "Wow, that's so cool!" she said again. "I wonder if I can use these to get to my classes faster!" She stepped into the secret passageway and looked around. It was dark, and cobwebs seemed to cover every surface. It was definitely creepy, but it didn't dampen her enthusiasm. She felt like a fairy tale princess escaping from the tower using a secret passage.

Taking out her wand, she whispered, "Lumos," casting an eerie white light on the walls and floor. "I guess we just move forward," she said, since there was only one way to go.

[James Potter]

"Sometimes, this is the only way I do get to my classes on time," said James with a laugh. He had used the passage many times before and he could just feel his way around. "Onward we go then." He still held on to her hand and led her through the passage with ease. Not once had he shared the knowledge of where the secret passages were except with Remus, Sirius, and Peter. Although, Robin seemed to fit right in in a way, and James felt like he could trust her with anything.

He finished leading her through the passage and then he pressed against the wall before them and it moved out of place to let them out. "Usually behind statues, there are secret passages," he said. "However, there are some I haven't quite figured out yet." He gave her a smile and then reached over to remove part of a cobweb off her shoulder. The wall closed behind them. "Welcome to the first floor," said James grinning.

[Robin Slater]

Robin's eyes widened. "OK, that is so cool!" she said, laughing. "And fast! I'm definitely going to have to use this in the future." She leaned in and gave James a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks so much for showing it to me!"

Pulling away, she realized what she had done and covered her mouth with her hand, her cheeks flushed pink. She couldn't seem to stop giggling.

"Um, OK... so let's check out the room of requirement," she said, taking his hand.

[James Potter]

"See? It's the only way I can get to class on time," said James laughing, however his laughter stopped whenever Robin kissed his cheek. He knew that his cheeks turned red. "N-no problem." He gave a quick smile to Robin and looked ahead for a moment. James couldn't get over the fact that she kissed his cheek, even if was in a 'thank you' type of gesture.

He didn't really hear her until she took his hand. "Yeah, sure," James said snapping out of his daze. He started to lead her toward the staircases. "The room of requirement can be revealed if you walk by the wall three times while picturing the type of room you want. It's pretty cool actually. Remus, Sirius, Peter, and I sort of discovered it by accident one day." The trip up to the seventh floor didn't take long at all, or at least it didn't feel like it did.

"I'll let you discover the room. I'll just tell you the area you need to walk infront of three times." James led her to the wall and stopped. "Here is where you will pace three times. Picture something in your mind and then walk back and forth three times and then the door will appear."

[Robin Slater]

Robin looked at the empty stretch of wall for a moment, then she looked back at James. "Well, what sort of room should it be?" she asked. "Do we want a place where we can just sit and relax? Or maybe a place where we can dance around and have fun? Oh... or what about a swimming pool?" she giggled. "Would it work if I imagined a swimming pool inside?"