GLANCE

Chapter 1-The First One

A scarlet steam engine snaked its way across fields and forests, carrying the kids and teenagers inside to their destinations, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It was raining outside, just a drizzle. Visible inside one of the compartments were four teenage girls.

One had light brown hair and blond highlights. One had dark brown hair down to her waist. One had wavy blond hair. The girl who was talking was also a brunette, with shoulder-length curls. Their names were Cynthia, Erika, Kelsey, and Viola.

"-and then all the water balloons popped on his head!" Viola was saying in the compartment. The other girls laughed. They stopped abruptly when their compartment door slid open.

A girl with long, dark red hair stepped in. "Hi." She said. "Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full."

The girls relaxed. "Sure, Lily. But why aren't you sitting with Marlene and Alice?" Cynthia asked.

Viola and Erika exchanged a glance. They didn't particularly like the super-popular, head-of-everything, sort-of-know-it-all Lily Evans.

"Well, I'm a prefect this year-"Lily started to say. She was cut off by several murmurs of congratulations.

"Well, I'm a prefect this year," she repeated. "And I had to go to the prefects compartment for directions." Her shoulders slumped. "When I got back to where Marlene and Alice were, they were with the Marauders." She spit the last word.

At this, Cynthia, Erika, Kelsey, and Viola all exchanged glances. Everyone knew who the Marauders were. James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. They were (with the exception of Peter) the hottest boys in school. James, with his messy black hair and killer Quidditch rep. Sirius, the prankster, the wild one with the long black hair. Remus, a little more refined, with some regard for the rules. And Peter, who loved to eat.

Viola asked Lily, "Like, they were with them? Or just talking?"

"No." said Lily, sighing. "Marlene started dating Sirius over the summer. And Alice has a crush on Remus."

"Oh." Said Kelsey. "So why don't you go with James Potter? That'd be like so cool!"

Lily's face contorted into a scowl. "I absolutely hate that arrogant, bullying toerag! I would never go out with him!"

Kelsey say back, evidently embarrassed by her comment. Lily obviously noticed her distress, because she said, "Don't worry about it Kelsey. It's just that he's always hexing people in the hallways and getting detention and asking me to go out with him 24/7."

Kelsey relaxed. Cynthia, Erika, and Viola muffled their giggles.

All of a sudden they heard a clap of thunder outside. They looked out the window to see a bolt of lightning flash. They all put their legs up on the seats, curling up for a sense of security.

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Marlene and Alice laughed, at which James and Sirius looked mighty pleased with themselves. But Alice and Marlene were worried. Where was Lily? She had said she would meet them in Compartment 12C after she got her instructions from the Head Boy and Girl.

James was thinking the exact same thing. He could see the worried glances that Alice and Marlene were throwing each other while they laughed at his and Sirius's jokes.

"Um," Alice finally said. "Maybe we should go find Lily. She was supposed to be here half an hour ago."

James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter all stood up.

"We'll find her," said James.

"Definitely. If anyone can sniff her down it will be James." Sirius snickered.

James shoved Sirius on their way out the door.

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Viola, Lily, Cynthia, Erika, and Kelsey's eyes glowed in the darkness when the candles lighting the compartment flickered. They huddled together, scared to go ask someone what was going on.

This is embarrassing. Viola though. We're FIFTEEN!

Then their compartment door slid open. They all shrieked. Two cloaked and masked figures pushed each other into the room. One of them, the slightly shorter one, plopped down next to Lily, who screamed again. The other stood in the doorway, blocking light from coming in.

"Hey Evans!" the one next to Lily yelled. "Miss me over the summer?"

"POTTER!" Lily yelled. She kicked him off the seat. He landed on the floor on his back with a crash that shook the walls. Then she started yelling at him.

"JAMES POTTER, NO I HAVE NOT MISSED YOU! NOT ONE BIT! AND I CAME HERE BECAUSE FOR SOME REASON ALICE AND MARLENE LIKE YOU AND YOUR STUPID LITTLE FRIENDS!"

"I take offense to that." The one in the doorway said. Black.

Lily marched over and yanked the cloak off Black, which she then turned into a lasso that wound its way around him and the still masked Potter. She waved her wand again, and the lasso dragged them out of the compartment.

Cynthia, Erika, Kelsey, and Viola all stared at her. They jumped when there was another knock on their door.

"Can't anyone leave us alone?" Viola mumbled.

Cynthia opened the door. Lily's mouth puckered as she saw who it was.

It was Grace Ganzworth, who Viola thought was even more of a know-it-all than Lily. And, seeing as the badge on her chest said "HG" Viola assumed that she was now Head Girl.

Drat. She thought.

Grace pointed at Lily, then at the door, then turned on her high heel and stomped off. Lily gave them an anguished look before hurrying along after her.

The four girls lay back in their seats. Kelsey started playing with her cornsilk-blonde hair with a mirror she had just conjured. Erika flipped vaguely through the latest issue of Witch Weekly, and Viola and Cynthia chatted about the pranks they would pull on the Maruaders this year.

Three hours later, all four of them woke up with a start as the train screeched to a stop. Viola sat bolt upright.

"Merlin!" she gasped. "We're here-and we haven't even gotten into our robes yet!"

The girls quickly shoved their robes on over their Muggle clothes, complaining as they did that it was 78 degrees and they shouldn't have to wear double layers.

They made their way onto the crowded platform, grasping each other's robes so they wouldn't lose each other in the clamor to get seats with their friends on the carriages. Viola saw Lily riding off with Marlene and Alice, though Viola could see another silhouette crouched in the back of their carriage, unnoticed by the three girls. She giggled and pointed it out to Cynthia and Erika, who giggled too. It looked like James Potter was making another totally desperate bid for Lily's love.

Viola hooked a dark curl behind her ear as she searched for an open carriage.

Damn it. Oh, no. Damn it!!!!!

The only other one was with the Maruaders. She knew the other three girls had noticed too, because they all groaned at the same time.

Well, I guess it'll have to do. Viola thought. Here goes.

She led the way over to the carriage. She could hear the others behind her, hissing things like, "What are you doing?!" "I think she's gone nuts." "The MARAUDERS?" and "What happened to Viola?"

She glanced back, muttering under her breath to them, "It's the only one. We might as well sit there or miss the feast!"

She climbed up into the carriage.

Sirius, Remus, and Peter stared in surprise.

"What? Haven't you ever seen girls before?" Viola snapped at them as she sat down across from Remus.

They still just gaped.

For once in all the time that Viola could remember, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew (though she wasn't all too surprised about that last one) were able to stay quiet. In fact, they stayed quiet all the way to the castle.

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"Pass the potatoes!"

"Livvy, I missed you!"

"I wonder what that new teacher will be like?"

Voices called up and down the Gryffindor table. Viola relaxed. It was so nice to hear all their voices again. Friends calling to friends in other Houses, kids chatting, first years wondering what their classes would be like. Viola thought that these were the sounds of home.

She saw the three hotties, James, Sirius, and Remus making their way up the table. James broke off to go harass Lily, but the other two sat down across Viola, Cynthia, and Erika. (Kelsey had gone to join some Ravenclaw boy who asked her out the second he saw her.)

The three girls gaped.

"What-haven't you ever seen boys before?" Remus asked, grinning. Viola glowered. She could not believe sweet, sensible Remus would ever use that on her.

"Moreover, hot boys?" Sirius asked, that all-too-familiar mischievous gleam in his eyes.

Erika smacked him.

"Well, if you don't want us…" Remus said, getting up veeeeeeery slowly.

Sirius did the same, although his ultra-slow movement caused his limbs to wobble, which caused him to knock into the full jug of pumpkin juice, which spilled all over Viola.

He looked down in horror at her, his mouth moving silently like a fish in water. She glared up at him, at a loss for words herself. Then her eyes met his. And all of a sudden she felt like the pumpkin juice that was dripping down her front and onto the highly polished floor.