Chapter one

Faye POV

I'm not exactly your average girl. Well, not to Muggles anyway. But that's not everything weird about me. You see, after successfully completing my first year at Hogwarts, the only school I've ever enjoyed being at, I found myself falling for a certain trickster with a dirty secret and a passion for books. I can't tell you how much time I've spent my whole life giggling and spying on him and his friend with my friend Kai, practically swooning as the sight of them met our little mischievous eyes. That's another strange thing about me; the startling amount I have in common with my best friend Kailani.

We're both cursed with a height problem, as some politely say. Basically, we're short. In fact, we're an inch below an even five feet tall and we're pretty sure we'll stay that way. Kai and I are weird because we're alike in almost every way possible! We have the same skin color, almost the same eyes, the same taste in literature, and even our not-so-secret crushes are best buddies! We do everything together, from homework to pranking to even just sitting around reading. It's like we're long-lost siblings. Did I mention we can both be hyperactive after having sugar? Sure, it takes more than Pumpkin Juice, but not much. A couple Cauldron Cakes has us skipping to the other side of the lake and back! Still, that's about our only flaw, at least in our eyes. We're pretty quiet, though. We'd rather just sit and read, enjoying each other's company than never stop talking like some people we know.

The real story starts in our third year. I had just crossed into Platform 9 ¾ when a familiar voice came to my ears.

"Faye!" Kailani yelled, pouncing on me and knocking the wind out of me, the force sending us toppling over. Kai's the only one that calls me by my real name. Everyone else just says Kitty or Faye-Faye, the former from my cat-eared cap and the latter from two Hufflepuffs who think I'm the cutest thing under the sun. I like the fawning, but it starts to get to you when you have no respect from anyone.

"Kai! Oh my God, how are you?" I practically yelled, pulling her up to her feet. We exploded into giggles. Sure, we had just seen each other last weekend, but we didn't care.

"Is it me or is everyone in our class a little…taller?" she asked, looking around. Sure enough, we found ourselves still level with the first and second years and discovered that we had to look up at our old school friends, more so than usual.

"Don't those two first years look somehow familiar, mate?" we heard a boy in our year, and even in our house say to his friend as he walked by. We saw him scratch the back of his head, then move his hand back over it messing it up.

"I wonder why that would be, James!" Kai and I yelled in unison at the offending air-head. I saw the idiot swivel around to look at us, his friend Sirius doing the same. I heard him swear as he walked over. We put on pouting faces when they were standing before us. Everyone in their little gang was a head taller last year, but now it seemed like we were looking up at Hagrid! Okay, so it wasn't that much of a height difference, but it felt like it.

"Kitty and Kai? Is there any family history of midget did you forget your heels?" James said coldly, but he was smiling warmly. He reached down to ruffle my hair as I glared daggers at him. The only flaw in my 'looks can kill' plan was that I'm told how puppy-dog cute I am, so instead of looking like a tiger on the hunt I resembled a defiant kitten.

"Aw, how cute." Sirius said in a mocking ditzy voice, poking Kai's nose.

"Already tormenting younger pupils?" asked a new voice as my secret crush, Remus Lupin came into view.

"Not the younger students, Remus, simply poor 'vertically challenged' Kitty Kellen and Kailani Melani. Doesn't the sight make you want to pinch their ickle cheeks?" Sirius said once again using his mock ditzy voice as he pinched the side of my face, quite painfully I might add.

Mere seconds later…

"She bit me!"

"Nice work, my 'vertically challenged' friend." Kai said through her laughs. I paused laughing to glare at a passing Slytherin that just happened to be my ex-best friend. I stuck my tongue out, then turned back to Kai. I was surprised to see fake tears rolling down to her chin. I knew this was fake, because Kai simply doesn't cry unless someone's dead, or if they're tears of mirth. I caught on and started the waterworks.

"You don't know how hard it is being short!" we shouted together, pretending to sob, and succeeding perfectly. So the Oscar goes to Faye and Kai for their outstanding 'trick the tricksters' performance. So with one final wail, we stormed off and found our normal compartment on the train.

We sat down and started talking about what trouble our friends might have gotten into over the summer. Yet as the words rolled off my tongue I found my mind on a totally different subject, namely the object of my affection. Someone the chat turned to the subject of boys, so we enjoyed ourselves for a while thinking of all possible romantic situations with the guys of our dreams. Kai had just gotten into a long rant about Sirius blossoming into a hot young guy, but I rolled my eyes a little. Sure, Sirius is nice and all, but there has to be a group of girls in every house fantasizing about him! Still, I didn't have the heart to tell Kai this. A few moments later, we were both immersed in books already. The compartment door opened and four very terrified-looking boys stepped in, practically slamming the door behind them. I set my book down and glared, but it was still more cute than threatening.

"You don't want to know what just happened." said a very out of breath Peter as the infamous Marauders took their seats. Kai and I pouted huffily. I winced a little, my cheek still hurt from when Sirius had pinched it not ten minutes before.

"Oh, come on. That didn't hurt!" he said, looking at me incredulously as I hesitantly touched the spot.

"Now, I wouldn't say it ranked as low as 'hurt'. This was somewhere between 'stung' and 'Oh God, my face is being ripped off!'" I replied scathingly, glaring to the best of my ability.

"Jesus, what's got your knickers in a knot? Sorry!" he said defensively. James elbowed him in the side.

"What ever happened to not picking on fellow Gryffindors?" he asked in a chiding tone. I giggled in spite of myself. We sat in silence for a minute or two before the witch with the food trolley came around to our part of the train.

"Alright, candy!" I exclaimed, digging in my pockets for an extra Sickle. James beat me to it, and he predictably bought enough confections to last the whole of Hogsmeade for a good few days. Of course, Hogsmeade didn't have Peter Pettigrew as one of its occupants. James tossed Kai and me a stack each of candies.

"As an apology." he said simply. We didn't need more than that. After two Chocolate Frogs and a Cauldron Cake each, we had enough pent up sugar to burst into a childish song. Stumbling over the tune with the frequent giggle messing with the tempo, we finished and shouted the last word, receiving stares from everyone else in the room.

"Well, you're only young once.." Kai started.

"But you can be immature.." I said.

"Forever!" we finished together, punching the air and laughing again until we were literally on the floor rolling around, tears streaming down our faces. After around ten minutes, we quieted down and took our seats, Kai on one side of the compartment next to the window with James and Sirius next to her, and me on the other between Remus and Peter. We acted as if nothing had happened. I yawned, lying on the seat using Peter as a footrest and Remus as a pillow.

"Sweet dreams, Miss Vertically Challenged." Remus said teasingly, looking down at my head on his leg. I smiled back goofily and fell asleep almost immediately. What seemed like five seconds later, I was awoken violently as I smacked my head against the wooden edge of the seat, the only part not covered by cushion. I mumbled swears as a headache started up. In the doorframe stood none other than Snivellus, the one person who managed to be hated by absolutely everyone except a few people in his own house. I had hit my head amazingly hard, so I was beginning to black out. I saw Kai storm over and knee Snivvy where no guy ever wants to be kneed. Doubled over in pain, he left, and the last thing I saw was someone's worried face before I fell unconscious.

"Is she dead?" came Peter's voice, disturbing my good dream. I felt him poke my shoulder. I groaned and slipped open my eyes. I blushed beet red when I noticed I was snuggled up to Remus, and was using hugging his arm as if it were a teddy bear. Then it hit me. My hand went to the back of my head where it had been so wonderfully smashed. I had one hell of a headache. I looked around the room, glaring at Peter who looked relieved that I didn't die in my sleep. Kai was reading (big surprise), Sirius and James were having a whispered discussion, and Remus was staring at me, blushing a bit. I flushed deeper, releasing his arm. My embarrassment was forgotten, however, when I remembered my headache. Soon I found myself mumbling curses and was in the middle of a long rant in which headaches died and went to hell as Kai danced on their graves.

"Bad headache?" Remus asked kindly, gently wiping away a tear that had forced its way out of my eye. I nodded, groaning softly and lying back against him again. If I could have seen myself, I would have slapped me. I guess headaches steal my ability to think right.

"I hope you don't mind if I sleep it off…" I all but whispered, snuggling up next to him. I felt him hesitate, then snake his arm around my waist, pulling me closer.

He lowered his head to whisper in my ear, "If it helps," as he took my hand in his own in a soothing gesture; I had just noticed I was shaking with silent sobs from the pain. I hate headaches. It felt strange to be lying against someone like that. I was short enough that my head was level with his chest and I could hear every rhythmic beat of his heart. I fell into a peaceful sleep, snuggled up against my crush. It's strange how people work. Before, the infamous Marauders couldn't be seen within fifty feet of us, but now it was like we were old friends. Perhaps after we set foot in Hogwarts, they would go back to thinking we were just classmates, not even remotely friends? What if Remus didn't even say 'hi' to me after this? I awoke with these thoughts going through my mind.

"Wow, they already hit it off?"

"Aren't they cute together?"

My eyes shot open as soon as I realized what they were talking about.

"And the bride awakens. Any comments from the happy couple?" came James's teasing voice.

"Kitty, help me out here. I've been trying to convince them we're not an item since you drifted off!" Remus said with an irritated tone. I turned to the others in the room.

"You guys know us well enough to guess we don't go that fast in relationships. I mean, come on." I said groggily, still half-asleep. I sat up and stretched a little. That seemed to satisfy them, because they went back to what they were doing. James and Sirius had started a staring contest, Kai was playing with her cat, and Peter was staring out the window. I picked up my book from its discarded place on the floor and began to read, one hand still laced with Remus's. I heard the train come to a stop, so I finally let go of his hand and stood up, marking the place in my book and throwing on my cloak. Kai and I called "goodbye" as we rushed outside to meet some friends. As cheesy as it sounds, my hand felt a little cold and there was a teeny ache in my heart. I shook my head as I climbed into a carriage after Kai; Remus wasn't my boyfriend and probably would never be. He simply took pity on me when I had that headache, it wasn't hidden love. So with a heavy feeling in my chest, I chatted with Kai and two other friends, Lily and Katherine, as the horse-less carriage made its way to the school.

"Don't tell me you still have that ridiculous thing!" Katherine said wearily, tugging on one of the ears of my cap. By far, this is the strangest thing about me. I have special permission to wear my furry yellow cat-eared cap, but that's because the ears are actually mine. When I was younger, my older cousin had just graduated, and was paying me a visit summer after first year. He wanted to try out some Transfiguration, and so I told him I wanted to be a kitty. Well, the spell worked a little. I have cute little yellow/tan cat ears sticking out of my head, and spots like freckles that used to be whiskers before my little cousin played tug-of-war with them. My mother was furious and wanted him to reverse the spell, but it only made the little ears slightly smaller.

"I know, isn't it great?" I said mockingly back. About once a week, Katherine tells me to dump that little hat, but then my secret would be ruined. So far, only the staff knows to let me wear it. Well, Kai knows too, but that's beside the point.

The carriage came to a stop, and we clambered out, stepping back into the halls of Hogwarts. The feast went as it usually did, and Dumbledore's usual speech was as it always had been: short and slightly cryptic. We ate our fill and began walking lazily back to our respective houses. I don't remember much, because before I knew it, I was in bed fast asleep.

The first few days went by without anything too notable taking place; a small fight between a Gryffindor and Slytherin, but they were simply first years who couldn't do any real damage. My three new classes, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and Arithmancy were interesting to say the least. While I did do pretty well, I'm not sure about Divination. Sure, it's pretty interesting, but I find it hard to concentrate in class. It's strange, because a lot of the time I turn my head and see Remus staring at me. It's quite unsettling. I can't chat with Kai here, because she thinks I'm wasting my time with "this bullshit." Yes, all of this coming from a girl who won't stop talking about a comic-book character she's head-over-heels for.

Shaking my head, I focused on the teacher again. I began feeling a strange prickling feeling on the back of my neck. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him looking at me again. The teacher, a dumpy woman named Professor Otra, was telling all of us to get into pairs. There was a shuffle of movement around the class, leaving me and one other partner-less. I groaned, realizing who it was and how clichéd this all seemed.

"Miss Kellen, Mr. Lupin, if you please." the professor said in a strict tone. I was about to stand up and move when Remus sunk into the pouf next to me. Otra went around placing tea cups before each of us, telling us to do some ridiculous thing with the tea leaves. I passed my cup to Remus in silence, and he did the same. We were still a little awkward after the 'train incident.'

"There's a heart in your cup, now that can only mean love. Now there's something that looks like a cross between a tree and a spoon." I said dumbly, flipping through the pages of my text. "Tree means 'revelation'. Oh, that makes sense. You're going to have a revelation about love!"

"Yours has a weird-looking triangle. Oh, wait, it says it's a fang, and that means 'serious injury'. And there's a little heart here, too. And that looks like a bone, for 'betrayal'. So you're going to fall in love and get betrayed and become seriously injured… sorry 'bout that." he said jokingly, turning the cup upside-down and frowning. He had opened his mouth to speak again when I swept the cup from his hands.

"If you're quite done, I'd like to see for myself what misfortunes await me in this mystic cup of sorrow." I said in a fake mystical voice, forcing a laugh. As I stared into the cup, the dark lumps of tea started forming into shapes. I could clearly see a heart, bone, and fang, just as he had said. I was relieved when the bell rang, signaling lunch. I stuffed my book back into my bag and set the teacup down on the round table. I made my way down the ladder from the trap-door, and was setting down the stairs, following a small queue of students from class. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts as I walked into the Great Hall that I didn't notice the figure walk up to me. I snapped out of my thoughts when someone shoved me forcefully backwards. I closed my eyes, waiting for my body to hit the marble floor. But the collision never came. Someone had grabbed me by the shoulders, and was now helping me up.

"Alright, Kitty?"

My heart skipped a beat when I recognized that voice. "Don't worry, I'm okay." I said reassuringly to, who else, Remus who smiled in return. "Thanks!" I called, practically running to my usual spot at the table next to Kai.

"Think it's time to open up shop again?" she asked, spooning potatoes on her plate. I looked at her confused for a second before it clicked. In our first year, a friend of my older brother's had gotten into a fight with his girlfriend. It was a pretty nasty affair, too. Soon, people were starting to take sides. Kai and I got up the courage to go talk to both of them. We convinced them to finally kiss and make up. Apparently, word got around that it was us and for a couple days people were congratulating us. Our fame was pretty short-lived, though it wasn't until someone asked us for help that we had an idea. And that's where our little business began.

"Of course, you know that tragedy can strike over the summer." I said in a grim but joking tone.

"Right you are, like the tragedy of our vertically-challenged-ness." she replied, giggling.

"That's not a word, is it?"

"Nope, but it describes us perfectly."

"Too true, my friend. Too true."

"Oh, what a shame it is that term started on a Wednesday. A day and a half sure went my fast." a new voice cut in. I looked up to see Emily smiling at us. She sat down in between us and helped herself to my untouched piece of chicken.

"I know, it seems like just yesterday the week had started!" Kai said mockingly.

"Well, we have the rest of the day off. What do you guys want to do?" Emily asked, tucking a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear.

"Fruit tree by the lake?" I suggested.

"You read my mind." Kai replied, swinging her leg over the bench. I saw a haughty girl in the year above us scoff angrily as if we tainted the air she breathed. I giggled and followed my friends outside. We made it to our favorite tree in almost no time flat, and were in a rush to climb the winding limbs. We sat in our own favorite little places; Kai on a curved branch that served as a seat, Emily on a thick limb reclining against the trunk, and me on a higher branch sitting in a catlike manner. The reason this is our favorite tree is that our carefully chosen spots are covered on all sides by foliage, so unless someone climbed the tree themselves they would never see us. Kai struck up a whispered conversation involving the painful death of homework. I giggled and added in the bonus of killing off Slytherins as well.

"You're hopeless, mate. Just up and ask her already!" came a voice from down below. Instinctively, we stopped talking and listened intently.

"I agree, the worst thing that could happen is a simple 'No' after all." came another one.

"That's really reassuring, Peter, thanks." I heard a familiar voice say dryly. My mouth formed into a perfect 'O' as I bent my head slightly and confirmed my suspicions. The bloody Marauders were sitting under our tree!

"I have to admit, my friend, you have taste. As far as I know, she's got a heart of gold. Not to mention damn fine legs!" James said, and by his tone I could tell me was smirking.

"Perfect legs make the perfect woman. Or, in your case, little girl." came Sirius's haughty reply.

"She's not a little girl…" mumbled Remus defensively.

"Oh, sorry, little kitten." I heard a dull thud that sounded suspiciously like a book colliding with someone's head. I saw Kai double over in silent laughter with Emily. I mouthed They might not even be talking about me! but they paid no mind.

"If you've got your sights set on that girl, mate, you'd better ask her out soon. Didn't you hear a certain Wallace Tender going on about how smart and cute she was in Potions?" James said with a tinge of disgust in his voice.

"'I've never cared this much about anyone before, it's love I tell you!' were the exact words, am I right?" came Sirius's voice.

"I wouldn't worry, Remus. From the way she acted on the train, I'm sure there's a crush." Peter said teasingly. My heart skipped a beat. So it was me he was after! A grin was plastered on my face.

"Will it shut you people up if I just go find Faye and ask her out right now?" Remus asked wearily. My heart gave an unexpected jolt. I loved the way it sounded when my name rolled off his tongue.

"No need to get touchy, mate. Wait a year before talking to her, if you want." James said quickly.

"I'd rather not. Look, there's a friend of hers right now, I'll just ask if she knows where she is." was the slightly apologetic reply. I craned my neck and tried to see who it was. My heart seemed to drop into my stomach as the girl came into view.

"Katherine, do you know where Faye is?" Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!

"I was just looking for her. Apparently she left her Arithmancy book at the table, and I was about to give it back to her, but I can't find her. She isn't in the library or the common room. Sometimes she comes out here to climb the very tree you're sitting under." Katherine you are dead!

"We're in trouble, guys." Kai whispered. I turned around to nod at her, but this was the wrong move. I lost my balance but managed to barely hang on.

"Did you hear that?" came Katherine's voice.

"Hear what? It's just a damn bird!" I let out a sigh of relief and silently scrambled back up to my branch.

"Well, if you're done, I'm going to go check for her around the other side of the lake." Katherine said in a haughty voice to rival Sirius.

"Hey, over by the old willow tree." I heard Peter say softly.

"Snivellus, finally. I was getting bored." James said coldly. I heard a flurry of movement, but stayed put for another moment. I heard a loud bang come from nearby, so I figured everyone would be looking the other way.

Emily and Kai wasted no time following me all the way to our secret little room. It was pretty spooky, I must admit. Cobwebs hung from the walls, paint was peeling, and dust lay in thick layers on the untouched furniture.

"I still can't believe it." I muttered, staring at the floor but grinning.

"This is great, don't you see? Once you start going out, you can tell Sirius how great I am!" Kai said with a dreamy sigh. Emily started giggling at her.

"I wonder what their children will look like…" Emily wondered aloud. I gasped and blushed deep red at the thought.

"Probably a cute little chubby baby boy with chocolate brown eyes and auburn hair." Kai suggested with an evil smile.

"And don't forget to add a certain knack for falling off brooms." Emily added. I snapped back to reality.

"That wasn't my fault and you know it! Someone put an Invisibility Charm on that branch as a prank!" I snapped defensively.

"Just like how the Easter Bunny's my secret love child." Kai said sarcastically.

"Remind me to hold you to that quote in April." I remarked as I stood, beginning to walk to dinner after a glance at a worn-looking Grandfather Clock in the corner. It began to chime six 'o clock behind us as we hurried into the hall.

"Is something wrong? You don't look too well." his voice drifted to my ears. I shook my head and tried to focus. I stared at the tracing I had done of my hand for our Divination lesson in Palmistry. Wearily I looked up to the concerned face of the boy next to me.

"Then I look way healthier than I feel." I said softly. I felt his hand brush my forehead.

"You're burning up, you need Madame Pomfrey." he said firmly.

"Off to the hospital wing, Kellen." I heard the strict voice of Professor Otra say. I simply nodded and grabbed my bag, then slowly made my way down the ladder of the trapdoor. I heard a chorus of "whoo!"'s from in the classroom, so I turned around only to see Remus descending the ladder, blushing faintly.

"She told me to go after you and catch you if you fainted or something. You can imagine what our wonderfully mature classmates thought of that." he said dryly.

"I can only imagine." I said softly. My throat really hurt right about now. He offered me his arm and I took it, leaning on him slightly.

"I get sick too much." I complained half-heartedly, smirking slightly. "It seems like about every three weeks or so I have at least a cold."

"Same here. Every month I come down with something horrible." he said solemnly. We lapsed into an awkward silence.

"Why do you always wear that hat?" he asked suddenly. Well, I hadn't been expecting that question.

"It's my secret." I replied with a smile.

"What a secret, really doesn't stand out at all. No, nobody notices the strange short girl with the kitty-cap." he joked, lifting the mood a little.

"Of course not. Just like nobody notices how shiny the grease on dear Sniv's hair is."

"How true. And like how nobody notices how many slap-marks your friend Lily has given James over these long three years."

"And how nobody notices how many fan-girls Sirius has."

"Exactly how nobody noticed what a nice cream-puff that Frank Longbottom makes." he said, making me giggle wheezily. At dinner a few nights back, someone had floated a large glob of whipped cream smack into poor Frank's face. It was enough to send me into hysterics.

"Or how it's hard to see how much Kai and me laugh."

"Too bad nobody misses how pompous James is."

"Is that a blessing or a curse?"

"Not sure, but it's not something that many people celebrate about."

"Also how nobody remembers how bad we are at flying." I said with a giggle.

"Oh and how Sirius drove his tree into a car! I mean car into a tree! I mean motorbike!" he said stuttering slightly but chortling. I sneezed.

"He probably got that motorbike to impress girls." I said smiling at the thought of him falling off a motorbike and about ten girls running to see if he was okay. Yep, that sounds like him. I was hit with a thought. "Hey, isn't he a bit young to have a motorcycle?"

"You think that would stop him?" was the incredulous reply.

"Fair point. Well, we're here." I announced.

"And you didn't faint."

"Still, I'm glad you came. I don't like the idea of maybe running into Peeves or something when I don't feel too good."

"See you." he said, waving over his shoulder as the bell rang. I walked into the hospital with a fluttering feeling in my heart.

September and October seemed to fly by in my mind. Before I knew it, Halloween was a week away. The scent of pumpkins seemed to drift through the castle, bringing a certain mischievous air to puncture into the minds of the students. Along with it came the anticipation of the year's first Hogsmeade trip. It was all that I could think about as I listened to a first year girl talk about how her friends had deserted her as she sat on the edge of a desk in the deserted classroom I use for my little counseling 'project' as I call it.

"There might be a chance that they feel you don't spend enough time with them, so they're trying to isolate you as a sort of punishment. I'd say confront them about it." I said with a covered-up hint of boredom in my voice. It's not as thought I don't really care, but I've just heard this story too much. "Or perhaps you've become so used to being the center of attention that someone else in the limelight is an unwelcome sight?" I hid a smirk as she opened her mouth to say something, but seemed to think otherwise. With a downcast look, she stormed out of the room.

I smiled as I tucked a lock of golden brown hair behind my ears and started the long trek up to the dormitory. I walked through the portrait hole, waving to a few fellow Gryffindors who hailed me. I walked silently up the girl's staircase and pushed open the door of my dorm. I plopped down in the middle of the floor next to my friends. We were an odd group, I must admit. Kai has this really beautiful pitch-black hair that reaches just past her shoulders without a single curl. Very unlike me; my hair reaches my waist in long golden brown waves. Katherine has chin-length strawberry blonde hair, while Lily, the beauty out of all of us, has this really gorgeous silky orange-red hair. Emily has cute shoulder-length dirty-blonde hair.

I giggled slightly as I joined in the chat, but as usual my thoughts were elsewhere. I looked into each of my friend's eyes. We really were an oddly-matched bunch, I noticed again. While Kai and I are very similar, we're slightly different in subtle ways. I have large chocolate-brown eyes while Kai has strange hazel eyes with a small almost invisible ring of amber around her pupil. Lily has emerald-green eyes, unlike Katherine who's eyes are a light shade of teal. Emily has very strange golden eyes. Most of the time they appear a rich gold, but sometimes you look at her and they've changed to a clear blue just a few shades lighter than the sky.

Unconsciously, I looked at my reflection in Katherine's mirror on the wall. A slightly olive-skinned girl looked back at me. My eyes traveled back to my friends. Kai's skin was a little deeper than mine due to suntan, while the other three girls were very fair-toned. I stared back at myself in the mirror. I found myself wrinkling my nose in disgust; I had been out in the sun too long a few days ago and now paid the price. There was a splash of dark pink on my nose and across each cheek that stung when touched.

"You know, I think I'll take a little walk while there's still light." I found myself saying as I made my way out the door and down the stairs, carefully making my way across the crowded common room. The portrait hole swung open to allow me and I stepped out into the hall. My feet carried me down the long winding staircases, but I wasn't watching where I was going very well because I turned a tight corner and bumped into someone.

"Sorry." I said automatically.

"I don't want your apology, Mudblood." said a cold voice. Without looking up, I quietly walked away.

I found myself walking back to Gryffindor Tower, but I was so lost in thought that it seemed to only be seconds before I was walking through the portrait hole again. A wave of sound greeted my ears. It was the time of evening when absolutely everyone was in the common room.

"Surprise, kitten." Sirius's voice from behind me said.

I felt his hand grab the hem of my cap, and before I could protest he had tugged it off. I spun around and tried to reach for it, unaware of the tears spilling out of my eyes.

"Kitty, what are those?" he all but shouted, garnering the attention of everyone in the common room as he tentatively brushed his finger over my left ear. Seconds turned to hours as I reached again and again for my cap, held just out of my reach.

"Jackass!" I shouted, now sobbing as I kicked Sirius's shin. He dropped my cap in surprise, and I snatched it before running back out of the portrait hole. Thoughts started pouring in my head as I sat down on the cold marble, hugging my knees to my chest. What if word got out to the whole school? Would more people try stealing my cap just to see if it was true? Would Remus even like me if he knew what a freak I was?

I was snapped back to reality when I heard a strict voice in front of me. "Out after hours, Miss Kellen?"

I looked up to see the Head of Slytherin, Professor Langrisse, staring at me with piercing amber eyes.

"I-I was just trying t-to-" I was cut off when Remus burst through the portrait hole.

"Faye, if you don't come back in and let Sirius apologize, your friends are going to rip him apart." he said urgently. He froze when he saw the scowl that now played across the Professor's face.

"Thirty points deducted each, and if you don't get back to your common room now I will make it fifty." he commanded in an icy tone. I wasted no time in scrambling in after Remus.

I avoided everyone's stares as I tossed my cap into the fire and walked up to my dorm in silence.

The next morning I awoke especially early and, mind set, slowly walked up the boy's staircase and into the Marauder's dorm. I slipped in silently and sat on the edge of Sirius's bed. I gently shook him awake. His eyes seemed to widen as he saw me, but I placed a finger over his mouth and gave him a little smile.

"I forgive you." I whispered. "I was going to let everyone know anyway."

He nodded and in seconds his eyes were closed tight and he was snoring once more.

"Faye?" I heard someone ask groggily. "Something wrong?"

"I just came to tell Sirius no hard feelings." I whispered to Remus, who was now sitting up in bed staring at me. We yawned simultaneously. I felt a blush creep up my cheeks as I felt his hand close around mine. Without a word, I crept over to sit on his bed. I let out a small gasp as he pulled me down to lie comfortably on top of him.

"Faye…" he began, but I slowly placed my index finger on his lips to silence him.

"I know. I do too." I whispered, planting a kiss on his cheek. I squirmed a bit to get more comfortable, and let myself drift to sleep snuggled up next to him with a small smile on my face.

(A/N: Well, did you like it? This is a collab between Meheeners and Surfergurl16. Meheeners writes the odd chapters, and Surfergurl16 the even. Just to let you know, they switch between Faye and Kai. I hope you enjoyed, be sure to review and leave suggestions and opinions! Arigatou!)