Breathless: Chapter One.

Quinn Finnegan sat at a large Mahogany table in her even larger Dining room. Her mouth was agape and she stared at her father with wide eyes. "You're, you're joking right?" she said slowly, as if she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. Slowly, her father, Seamus, shook his head and she let out a pained laugh. "You can't be serious! No. No, I refuse to go."

Seamus sighed, "Look, sweetie, I know it's not ideal but-"

"Not ideal!" Quinn cried, "Not ideal? This is so far past ideal it is in China right now!"

"It's just a couple days! We have a week until school starts. You used to do it all the time when you were little."

"That was before, the incident. You know, when he called me evil. Can't I just stay here? I'm sixteen now! I can look after myself! Chelsey's seventeen too, she can help!" On Quinn's right, her older sister, Chelsey nodded absent-mindedly, twirling a finger around her ash blonde her

Seamus barked out a laugh, "If you think I can trust you and Chelsey to not burn this house down, you're having a laugh Quinnie."

Quinn pouted, "Please Daddy!"

"No, you're going, and that's final. Like I said, you're only going for a couple days then the Malfoys are picking you up and you're staying with them for the twins' birthday,"

"Well, why can't I just go round there now?"

"You know that they're in Hawaii until Tuesday!"

Quinn huffed and crossed her arms and her little brother, Rory, who sat to her left, patted her arm sympathetically.

"So, kids, start getting packed up, the Potters are expecting you at eight o'clock tonight, and we're Skyping your Mam at seven thirty." Seamus nodded, in a sort of 'this is final' manor before leaving.

Chelsey and Jessica, Quinn's little sister, left immediately excitedly chattering to each other about what they were going to pack.

"Bimbos," Quinn muttered darkly. It wasn't that she hated her sisters. Quinn just hated their personalities. Well, Chelsey's personality, Jessica was fifteen and doted on her older sibling. She just copied everything Chelsey did, for no good reason, actually. In Quinn's opinion, the fifteen year old couldn't have picked a worse role model. Sure, she was a grade O student with lots of friends and the ambition to be a healer, but she was, well, a slut. Chelsey always said she didn't want a boyfriend until she 'found the right guy' but of course, that didn't stop her from sleeping with almost every guy in her house, Ravenclaw.

Jessica and Chelsey were not just alike in 'personality' but they were also alike in looks. Whilst Quinn and Rory shared the light brown hair of their Grandma, the two other girls had sandy blonde hair and oval shaped blue eyes, just like their father's. Rory had his father's blue eyes too, but Quinn had her mother's chocolate brown eyes.

There was one way, however, that Jessica and Chelsey were different, and that was Jessica's boyfriend. Jessica started dating her childhood friend a year ago. Daniel Thomas was the son of Dean Thomas, the best friend of Quinn's father, so, the four siblings often spent time with Daniel and his twin brother Sean, (who was half named after Seamus), along with the Longbottoms, the Scamanders, and the Weasley/Potter cousins or as the wizarding world knew them, the Wotters, just because it was easier to say, well, Quinn used to spend a lot of time with them anyway.

Rory snorted at Quinn's comment and rolled his eyes, following his older sister out of the dining room, "Oh hush, Quinnie. They're not that bad!"

"You're right," said Quinn, there was a beat and then, "They're worse!"

"Alright," Rory chuckled, "I'll let you say that about Chelsey but Jess, Jess is just misguided," He said as they reached the stairs, he motioned for Quinn to go up before him and she curtsied.

"Why thank you kind sir!" She cried cheekily before ascending the stairs, Rory right behind her.

"So what're you gonna do at the Potter's anyway? Albus always has a prank ready to attack you with, so how are you gonna get him back?"

Albus Potter hated Quinn. The two had been at each other's throats ever since the incident.

zzz

Quinn was walking down platform nine and three quarters alongside her siblings and her best friend, Albus Potter. Quinn was usually the headstrong and confident one of the two but today she was scared. It was her first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and she had one thing on her mind. The sorting. She didn't mind what house she went in. Her sister Chelsey was a Ravenclaw and Albus' brother, James, was a Gryffindor and the two loved their houses and said Hufflepuff was cool too but both of the older kids agreed that Slytherin was a massive no.

Slytherin was home to the 'evil' children of the school. All of the bullies, like Brock and Vince Goyle, were in Slytherin along with all the aspiring evil masterminds. Well, according to James and Chelsey anyway. Albus' father, Harry, had told them that Slytherin was fine and they shouldn't worry about being housed there, but the two children shared a look that clearly said, 'it would matter though, wouldn't it?'

"Albus," Quinn whispered,

"Yeah?"

Quinn's bottom lip quivered "What if I do get put into Slytherin?"

Albus grinned, "You won't, you're too nice!"

"But, but what if I do?"

Albus grabbed the brunette's hand and look directly into her eyes, "Then I'll still be your friend," He said, "Will you be mine if i get put into Slytherin,"

Quinn stared down at their joined hands in shock, she had a tiny, okay, massive, crush on Al, and was rather overwhelmed at the fact that he was holding her hand. Quinn looked up into Albus' bright green eyes, "'Course I will!" She whispered, and the two carried on down the platform like nothing happened, hands still joined.

zzzz

"Finnegan, Quinn" called Katie Wood, the Quidditch teacher, who stood at the front of the East Hall, next to a stool, holding the sorting hat.

Quinn nervously glanced at Albus who gave her a thumbs up and she quickly made her way to the stool.

Professor Wood placed the hat carefully on her head and Quinn was quite surprised when a deep, rumbling voice echoed through her head.

Ah, a Finnegan child! Interesting, the hat drawled out, you're nothing like your sister. You've got ambition, albeit a rather odd ambition, but ambition none the less. A muggle west end star? That's what you want to be? I can see you being far greater than that! Now, the hat seemed to be concentrating rather hard and Quinn daren't speak lest she say something to jog it's concentration, Now, you're not too brave and I don't believe you will do too well in Gryffindor. You do not seem to be all too clever, so perhaps you will not be a Ravenclaw...but I see loyalty and cunning. Maybe the way of the snake is best for you. Quinn's eyes widened, 'Not Slytherin!' she thought to herself. Not Slytherin? the hat cackled at her, The last person who said that was Harry Potter himself and I still stick by my decision that the war would have gone better had he been a Slytherin!

"Slytherin!" The Hat Called, it's cry echoing around the great hall. Quinn looked to the Ravenclaw table to see her sister staring back at her wide eyed, she glanced at Al to see him also staring at her, mouth agape, she also looked at the Gryffindor table to see some of the oldest Wotters staring at her with odd looks.

Quinn rushed towards the Slytherin table and kept her head down for the rest of the sorting, looking up just long enough to hear Potter, Albus get sent into Gryffindor. She didn't look up through all of Headmaster Longbottom's Speech and she didn't look up during the feast, either.

zzz

It had been three weeks since the sorting and Albus hadn't spoken to Quinn once. She was rather beat up about it, his voice echoed through her mind "I'll be Your Friend." What a lie that was. He hadn't even looked at her.

Quinn had finally had enough, however, and she cornered him in the library. "Al, what is with you? You haven't talked to me since the sorting. You, you said you'd be my friend!" She exclaimed, earning a 'hush' from Madam Pince.

Al looked up at the girl and glared, "I didn't think you'd actually get put into Slytherin. You heard James, that's where the bad people go."

"Are you calling me evil, Al?" Quinn asked dangerously.

"If you're in Slytherin then yes, yes I am." Al pushed past Quinn, who bit her lip and fell to the floor, tears freely falling down her face.

zzz

An hour later Quinn was found by three girls she recognized as the first year Slytherins she shared a dorm with. "Hello, are you alright?" asked a brunette girl who seemed to be the leader of the group, "I'm Narcissa Malfoy, and this is Kazia Woolfe and Becca Wrothers, what is your name?"

"I'm Quinn," Quinn said shyly, "Quinn Finnegan"

"Well, Quinn, Quinn Finnegan, are you alright?" Quinn looked the girl up and down, she was small and looked quite timid, Her chocolate brown hair fell to her ribcage in curls and her warm brown eyes stared back at Quinn with genuine worry. Quinn quickly decided that Narcissa Malfoy was someone who could be trusted and shook her head.

The blonde, Becca, furrowed her eyebrows and asked, "What's wrong?"

So, Quinn told them, she poured her broken little heart out and when she was done, the latino, Kazia, whistled, "That's tough, but don't feel too bad," The girl smiled warmly, "You have us now."

zzz

Quinn swallowed down her sudden urge to cry and smirked at her brother, "Well I was thinking that I could…" The smirked dropped from her face, "Dude, I don't got nothing!"

Rory raised an eyebrow, "first of all, 'don't got nothing'? Yeah, that isn't proper english,"

"Damn Ravenclaw," Quinn teased.

"Second of all, you seriously can't think of anything?"

"My mind is blank my friend," Quinn paused for a second as the two reached the door to her room, she pulled it open and dragged Rory inside, "Well, except..."

"Except..." Rory echoed as he sat on his sister's bed.

Quinn looked thoughtful, "Nah, I still got nothing!"

"You mean you're blanking?"

Quinn nodded, "I'm talking major blanking here Ror', like, I've been there, I've done practically all of the pranks in the book! I'm getting too old for this!"

Rory thought for a moment, "N'aww, you're not that old, sis," He smirked.

Quinn grinned at the fourteen year old, "I love you little brother,"

"Love you too, Quinnie"

"Good, now, get out of my room,"

Rory just laughed and lounged back on the bed, next to Quinn's fat tabby cat, Belle, that she had had since she was three.

zzz

Lavender Finnegan was in Peru, helping the ministry track down young werewolves and stop them from hurting people. After being attacked by Fenrir Greyback during the battle of Hogwarts, it was doubtful that Lavender would even live. But 24 years later she was still standing and married with four children. To be honest, it was a miracle she wasn't turned into a werewolf, but Hermione Weasley - Granger at the time - had saved her life. Lavender was in Hermione's debt forever, so when Hermione gave Lavender the opportunity to work with werewolves and teach them the 'right way' of living as a werewolf, Lavender couldn't refuse.

It turns out all young werewolves need is a positive role model. Lavender knew it was dangerous, but in the long run, she figured it would be better to put herself on the line, than to risk these werewolves hurting a mere school child, much like herself when she was scarred by Greyback. She would forever remember the attack, scars covering her whole body, one drooping her mouth, another cutting her eyebrow in two.

But Lavender was more than happy to help young werewolves, even if it meant that she was hardly ever home with Seamus and her children. They made it work however, with a lot of skype dates and owling back and forth and Quinn supposed it was better than never seeing her.

As Seamus and the Finnegan siblings crowded around his laptop, Quinn couldn't help but giggle as her father tried to set up the call. "Five years, we've been doing this. Five years and you still haven't worked it out!"

Seamus growled, "Muggles make things so complicated!" He ground out as Quinn tapped a couple buttons and her Mammy's bright, scarred, yet smiling face appeared on screen.

"Hi babies!" Lavender cried, frantically waving her hand. Her children replied cheerfully, but her husband was still scowling at the computer screen, Lavender smiled lovingly at him, "Oh honey, did you forget how to use skype again?" She pouted cheekily and her husband grinned.

"Oh shut up you!" He said, "I just don't understand how technology works!"

"Your dad was a muggle, Seamus," said Lavender slowly, "Surely he taught you,"

"He tried at least," Seamus shrugged. "I didn't really understand it..."

Rory snorted, "Probably because you have the attention span of a goldfish!"

Lavender laughed at her son and said, "It's true honey," when Seamus glared at her. "Anyway kids , this is the last time I'm going to skype you until next summer so-"

"Wait," cried Jessica, "NEXT summer? What about Christmas?"

Lavender smiled, "Well, I'm actually getting time off to come home over Christmas!" She paused for a moment as her kids babbled excitedly, "ANYWAY!" She cried over the noise, "Since I'm not going to see you, face-to-face anyway, before school starts, that means it time for the-"

"The Off-To-School Lecture of 2022" The four teens chorused.

"Right!" Lavender smiled, "Okay, have you all got your Hogwarts letters?" The kids nodded, "Chelsey?" The woman said with a grin.

Chelsey pushed the others out of the way so that she was the main focus on the screen, "I got Head Girl!" She squealed and Lavender did a little happy dance on her screen.

Jessica pushed herself into the main focus, "I got prefect!" Lavender cheered and danced a little more.

Rory smiled at his two sisters, but Quinn rolled her eyes, an action not at all missed by her mother. "Quinn? Did you get any news?"

Quinn raised an eyebrow at her mother, "Just the usual. Oh, and Dad is trying to get me killed!"

Lavender looked at her husband in shock, and Seamus groaned, "Not this again, Quinnie! Look, it's in your best interest!"

As the two got into a mini argument, Lavender looked to her other children for help and Rory sighed, "Dad has a work thing to go to and is sending us over to the Potter's house for the week and Quinn is taking it as the end of the world. She's only staying there 'til Tuesday!"

Lavender shook her head, "Y'know you really should get over it, Q."

Quinn scowled, "I would, but he won't so why should I?"

"Don't be smart with me, young lady!" Lavender was in full 'mother mode' by now, Her start of school speech forgotten, "Have you ever tried, oh I don't know, talking to him! You were best friends for Merlin's sake!"

"I don't need a lecture." Quinn whispered before standing up and walking to the door. As she reached it, she turned to her family and yelled, "AND I AM NOT GOING TO THE POTTER'S!" Before slamming the door harshly.

"The 'diva' thing is getting kind of old," Chelsey quipped.

I know I should probably be updating my other stories, but I couldn't help myself! This isn't exactly the best opening but, I promise it'll get better! I have, like, four chapters already written. And I am currently writing the next chapter of 'Stuck with you' if anyone here cared. Please review, I'd love to hear what you think!

~Ammo