Disclaimer: These two characters belong to me. Most of the rest are Rowling's, as is Hogwarts. ;P

"Watch your step," the voice warned, cutting through the peaceful night air. This was followed by a scuffle and some snickering.

"Very amusing. Where would you and your telescope be if I fell to my death?"

"Nowhere different than where we are now," said the girl, peering through the lens and adjusting a few knobs. "But watch your step all the same." Ivy Smith cautiously felt around for the heavy quilt on the gently sloping barn roof and sank down next to her friend.

"Watch the elbows, Stretch," the boy cautioned.

"Watch your own," she retorted, somewhat lamely. Indeed, both of them looked as if all their teenage growth had started in their arms and legs. They'd both grown up, but not out yet, so the sight of the two of them sprawled side by side was like two marionets abandoned on a playroom floor. Ivy's mother said that she was a "late bloomer" Gary's brother, less kind but probably more truthful, said that Gary would snap in a strong wind.

"I guess I'd better since you'll be watching the meteor showers. What's the assignment again?"

"It's not an assignment, " she said. "Just an extra project I'm doing. I like astronomy." She dabbed at the sweat on her hairline and gazed upward.

"Ugh. I knew that school was addling our brain. It's settled then. No more Pigpimples for you."

She frowned. "Hogwarts," she said, impatiently. "And don't be bitter just because I'm a boggling genius and you barely passed literature."

He pulled a face that was blurred by darkness so she couldn't tell if he was amused or not. "Good to know Boarsbreath hasn't dulled your sense of humor." Then he rattled off along sentence in some other language. Italian, possibly, or Spanish. His subtle reminder that while Literature wasn't his strong point he was as gifted a linguist as one could ask for. "Speaking of school," he added, brightening, "My dad said I can use the car Saturday if you want a ride into town to buy school supplies."

Ivy hesitated. School was a touchy subject with Gary. Some of it probably stemmed from a slight jealousy that she had been selected to attend a "school for the gifted", but mostly it was irritation with the fact that his best friend disappeared for months out of the year to a school he could not call, write, or find much information about. Of course, they exchanged letters, but always through her parents. Her excuses ("It's cheaper! Saves me the trouble of writing down two addresses! My parents get to keep an eye on you this way!") were feele at best and she knew it. When they were young Gary's curiosity was one of the main draws as a friend. It was how they'd learned to play chess, examined the insides of watches and radios, and seen everything from bird to turtle eggs hatch. But when it came to keeping it a secret that she was in fact attending a school for young witches and wizards, she sometimes longed for a friend that was too consumed with pretty girls and new albums to worry about where she was going for school.

"Actually, I've ordered most of my supplies already, " she said, because that was easier to explain than "Sure, I need wood treatment for my magic wand and the flying broom I'll be renting. Oh! And do you know a place to pick up diluted bubotuber pus?"

She felt rather than saw his shoulders droop. "Special order supplies for the school so mysterious that I can't call it," he muttered.

"Gaz," she said, draping an arm across his shoulders. "Don't get so down. Two more years and I'll be out. It's not the longest wait. Anyway, just because I've bought my supplies doesn't mean that I don't want to hang out with you tomorrow. Actually, I was hoping you'd let me pick out your wardrobe. I saw the most darling yellow jumper I thought you might like…"

"Get stuffed," he said, now laughing again. The rest of the night was peaceful enough, Gary humming to himself and Ivy staring through her telescope, occasionally scratching out notes, regretting that she couldn't scrawl them directly onto a scroll.

Author's Note: Starting with a short chapter. I just always wanted to look in on the life of a muggle-born student going to Hogwarts, what their friends back home think, what their summers are like, etc. I promise we'll get to where you actually want to go in a Harry Potter fanfic soon (Hogwarts).