A pair of hands hovered over the sleeping girl, her short hair spread out into a brown halo around her head. Another pair joined the first and the two boys locked eyes with a grin. The girl muttered and tossed in her sleep, unaware of the plotting going on above her head. She should have been smarter that this, sleeping in on the day before school, but Kit had had a late night thanks to the boys standing by her now. James smirked down at the petite girl before nodding at Sirius. It was tradition after all. In unison, they each grabbed a leg and tugged Kit from her bed. Her eyes flew open and an unearthly shriek came from her lips and she landed on her floor. When she opened her mouth to yell at the two boys, Sirius held a hand up.

"It's tradition. You never go against Marauder traditions." His eyes bulged a moment later when a heavy Charms textbook collided with his gut.

"Think of this as a new tradition." Kit huffed before turning to James. He looked around for an escape, but the door had slammed shut. Kit could hear laughing from the other side and recognized it as Peter's. She'd thank him for that later, but for now her attention was focused on James Potter. She took a breath before charging at him, arms wrapping around his middle. The two went flying into her bookcase and she slammed a fist into his gut.

"You're much to violent for a lady," James wheezed as he held his stomach.

"I blame you for that. You taught me how to throw a punch." Kit rubbed her sore hand and looked at James' stomach. "What have you got under there, bricks?"

"Careful," Sirius warned. "You'll make his head big."

"I didn't know it could get any bigger," James smacked her head for the comment and ducked before she could retaliate. "Now, scoot. I have to shower."

James and Sirius pouted at her. "Can't we stay for that?"

Kit spun, amazed to hear that from Potter's mouth. "I would have expected that from Pads, but really?" She fixed James with a sad look and as she passed Sirius on her way to the bathroom, she said, "Merlin, you're rubbing off on him." She rolled her eyes at the pair of them and locked the door behind her. She had her own bathroom attached to her bedroom, something she was grateful for given how often she had the guys over at her house. Turning the water on, she could mentally see everyone in her kitchen. Peter would be eating whatever the elves had made, Remus would be sitting at the table, drinking his tea. James and Sirius would amble down the stairs, grab something hot off of the stove and shove it into their mouths without chewing before gorging themselves on whatever else they could find in her house. Luckily, she knew Remus would save her something.

Kit stepped into the steamy shower and realized that this was a big year for her at Hogwarts. Her sixth year at the famous school, she'd already made a name for herself. She was the only girl to be considered a Marauder and that had been by complete chance. Nine years ago when her family had moved to England from Moscow, they moved in down the block from the Potters. They were a lovely family and seven year old James had introduced himself to Katherine by shoving her into a puddle of mud. Instead of crying like most other girls, she stood and pushed him right back. Needless to say, their friendship was a concrete one.

She'd met Sirius only a few weeks later, at a dinner for all the rich, pureblood families. Of course, Kit had just seen it as a night of torture since she'd been forced into a flouncy dress that itched like hell. She and James had been seated at the children's table and there found a sulking boy of their age. Truthfully, Kit never would have talked to him if they hadn't been forced to dance together. Grudgingly, they'd been pushed into the ballroom and danced a waltz together. All the while, Sirius grumbled about having to dance with a girl. Kit felt equally uncomfortable and complained about getting cooties. The two, despite saying they hated each other, stayed with James for the rest of the night.

She hadn't met Remus and Peter until they actually arrived at Hogwarts. They didn't even sit in the same compartment as them, despite what some people thought. She couldn't blame them, at times it seemed like the five of them were attached at the hip. But the trio had met Remus and Peter at the Gryffindor table after being sorted. Remus was reading Hogwarts: A History and Kit was curious to learn more about the school. Peter had tagged along that night and was placed in the same dorm and James, Sirius and Remus. Kit, for obvious reasons, wasn't in the same dorm as them and was instead put across the hall with the other girls. Being in that room had been nerve wracking the first time since she'd only ever been friends with guys since moving to England. And it was on that faithful night she'd met Lily Evans. Kit had been unpacking her things and Evans scoffed that she didn't own a single dress or skirt, save for the one that was mandatory with the uniform. When Kit asked why it was a problem, Evans said that she wasn't a proper lady. That was the beginning of a five year lecture of what was lady-like behaviour, of which Kit apparently had none. By the third year, she just tuned her out and fought back when she said something particularly insulting. There was one thing that Lily did say that Kit took to heart, though she'd never admit it. Kit developed a fondness for dresses after buying one on Lily's request. (It had been before she stood up to the prude of a ginger)

Kit frowned and hoped there would never come a day where she would have to admit that Lily Evans was right. Steam continued to fog up the mirrors as Kit's shower reached the fifteen minutes mark. One of the benefits of being a witch was that the hot water never ran out. But if she wanted any food, she had to get out now. Remus could only fend off his friends for so long. As she stepped out and looked about her room for something suitable to wear, she thought of the poignant day in her second year when Remus had confided in all of them. The night had been dark and stormy, an ominous sign to the Marauders as they converged in the second year boys dorm. Remus had been shaking, he'd been so nervous and he flinched when Kit tried to put an arm around him. James and Sirius sent worried glances at each other as he began talking, Peter sitting silently beside Kit. A moment of silence had hung over the group at his confession and in that moment of hesitation, Remus had assumed the worst. He yelled the them to get out and the boys quickly agreed, all three of the hoping out of the room in the blink of an eye. Kit had never been one to admit feelings or deal with them well, but she could tell how much it hurt Remus. She'd spent the night talking to him, trying to get him to understand why they'd paused. Eventually, he saw the light and thanked her.

Kit stood back as she looked through her closet and realized that it was because of that night she and Remus were such good friends. James, Sirius and Peter where different. She could joke with them and at times, she could turn to James for a shoulder, but it was Remus she went to most often. That new thought bright in her mind, Kit changed into shorts and an old t-shirt of Sirius's before finally getting to the kitchen. Hair still dripping wet, she smiled at her friends and went to Remus. He was loyally guarding a plate of french toast, which he slid to her as she sat.

"How do you manage to stay in a shower for twenty minutes?" Sirius asked around a mouthful of bacon he'd swiped from her plate. "What do you do in there?"

"Never you mind." Something occurred to her and she spun to look back at Remus. He had bags under his eyes, his eyes were red and he looked like hell. "Oh, Moony, this sucks!" Remus gave a tired chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck.

"It's not the best situation, but we can handle it." Remus said and the others nodded in agreement. But they knew why Kit was so upset, even though she wasn't showing it. It was tradition to spend the last night of summer together and it had been tradition since they were eleven. But if the full moon was tonight, it the guys would be out with Remus and Kit would be stuck at home. There had been a strict rule that no one was around when Remus underwent his transformation but when James, Peter and Sirius found out how to become Animagi, they went with him. There was another strict rule that was Kit couldn't come, even if she could transform, which she couldn't. Remus had never been around a girl when he was a werewolf and nobody wanted to take a chance.

"I've done the research," Kit began but Remus cut her off.

"i know you have. There isn't anything to prove that it's dangerous, but regardless of that says, I am dangerous."

"What if I could transform? Wouldn't that make a difference?" Kit pleaded, her eyes hopeful.

"Can you?" Sirius asked.

"Well, no. But I can learn."

"Kit, it took us the better part of three years to learn how to do it." James hopped up onto her counter and sighed. "It's not easy."

"I know that. I watched all of you struggle to do it. Don't you have any faith in me?"

"Not really," Sirius said as he took another piece of french toast from her plate. James gave him a look before turning to Kit.

"We do, I think you could do it. But the point is, this is for your safety, not because we don't think you can do it."

Kit sighed and knew he was right. She just wanted to be there for Remus. "I guess I'll have to find another way to entertain myself tonight," Kit sighed dramatically.

"Why don't you floo the Eric boy, I'm sure he'd be more than happy to entertain you." Sirius wagged his brows at her. Kit rolled her eyes as she ate.

"Oh, sod off." Eric was a year older than them and apparently had a bit of a thing for Kit. The others had quite a laugh teasing her about it the previous year until she finally agreed to go out with him. The date turned out to be quite fun and the two were now friends, but that didn't stop Eric from sending her presents and flowers whenever he could. Then again, he was a bit of a laugh to be around. He was really cute too. Smirking, Kit rose and put her dishes in the sink.

"Maybe I will go over to his. He's got a yard the size of a quidditch pitch and a couple spare brooms." Kit smiled at the group and thanked Sirius for the great idea before running back to her room. Once she was gone, James smacked Sirius and nearly sent him flying.

"Great job, you dolt."

"What? What did I do?" Sirius yelped, but fixed James with a look, a grin spreading across his face. "No. You don't, do you?" James busied himself with the hem of his shirt and tried to stop the red from creeping up his face. "Merlin, you do like her!"

"Shut up!" James hissed. "Yes, alright, I do. I have for a while." He admitted quietly, for once his bravado gone. Peter gaped at him while Sirius doubled over laughing.

"I don't see how this is remotely funny," James said as Sirius gasped for breath.

"I bloody hilarious! You go around with every other girl-"

"Pot calling the kettle black, don't you think?" James interjected, earning a laugh from Remus.

"-But you're afraid of putting the moves on Kit."

"Listen, just because you see every girl as nothing more than a shag buddy doesn't mean that's how I think! I happen to realize that there is more to a girl than what's between her legs!" James gave Sirius a shove before storming out of the house. Hearing the door slam, Kit ran down the stairs and poked her head into the kitchen.

"What happened?" Kit looked at Sirius and saw how confused he looked. He shrugged and went back to eating. "What did you do?" She sighed. More often than not, Sirius was the cause of trouble within the group. Sure, he and James were best friends, but Sirius had a startling ability to say things without thinking.

"Nothing! Why does everyone always assume it's me?"

"Experience." Kit rolled her eyes and turned to Remus and Peter. "You guys can stay here for the day, if you want. My parents won't be home until tomorrow so you've got free reign while I'm out."

"You're actually going over to Eric's place?" Sirius asked.

"Is that such a surprise? I'll be back tonight to see you all off, of course." She realized Sirius's look and scrunched her face up. "What am I supposed to do for the rest of the day. One of you has already driven James off, Remus will be stuck with his head in the loo for most of the day, Peter will be valiantly by his side. And you," she looked up at the Black sitting on her counter with a sneer, "will be up to no good. Precisely why you aren't to leave Moony's side. I don't want any girls in my guest room, got it?" Sirius looked offended for a moment but Kit patted his cheek with a grin.

"Behave!" She called as she tugged a stray hair into place and stepped into the fireplace. Houses blurred past her, each one gone before she could recognize it. When she stopped spinning and took a step out, she was met by a nice looking young man. His hair was fair and curled around his head loosely. Sparkling brown eyes were startled at seeing the petite Beater in his house, but they crinkled with warmth as he embraced her.

"Katherine! To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" Eric held her at arms length and looked down at her. She really was uncommonly pretty, with her bright smile and that mop of hair atop her head. Her own eyes gazed back at him and he could see the fierceness within them, something he'd come to adore about the little woman.

"Nothing to do at home and I knew I could come to you for a good time." Kit bumped him with her shoulder as they walked through the foyer to the back garden. A grand expanse of greenery sprawled out before them, a forest just visible on the horizon. As they settled into the soft, warm grass, Kit wondered why she'd never given him a chance. He was really nice and a lot of fun to be around. And she'd always been tempted to play with his hair.

Eric caught her looking and put a hand out to her. "Knut for your thoughts?" Kit accepted the hand and settled against his chest, the warm summer breeze playing with her hair.

"I'm wondering why we only went out once." Kit had never been one for subtly. Behind her, Eric's chest vibrated with laughter.

"I've been thinking that since we went out. You really are a great girl, Kit. I'm just surprised I got there before someone else did." Kit turned to look at him with a grin.

"Can we save that sort of talk for a few months from now?" she asked, laughing when his face lit up at the prospect of being together for a few months.

"Sure, sure." Eric chuckled and settled back into the grass, gently toying with Kit's short hair. She couldn't fight the shiver that passed down her spine when his fingers trailed lightly against her head. Suddenly, Kit sat up and looked out into the field.

"You up a Quidditch match?" Eric had been a chaser on the Quidditch team but hadn't done it the past year because of a detention he'd received at the beginning of the term. "I promise to go easy on you."

"I reckon I'll be a bit rusty," he teased, rising and flicking his wrist to get the brooms.

"Just to warn you, I'm rubbish at chaser or keeper." Kit mounted her broom, quaffle in hand.

"I'll just have to teach you, then won't I?" Eric kicked off and chased her around the skies. Their match lasted for the better part of the day, each one trying to out do the other. Eric gave her pointers and guided her through basic chaser manoeuvres. By the time the sun began to sink behind the horizon, Kit and Eric were laying on the field, exhausted. Kit's head was against his shoulder and he was telling her stories about what he'd seen while on the quidditch team.

"I'm personally hoping to be drafted by the Tornadoes by next year." He said, which earned him a scoff from Kit.

"Really? Everyone knows the Magpies are the team to beat. Although, I'm hoping to be picked by the Falmouth Falcons."

Eric rolled his eyes with a laugh. "The most violent team in history, of course."

"Let us win, but if we cannot win, let us break a few heads." Kit quoted faithfully. The Falcons had always been her favourite team since buying a book of quidditch moves and seeing the carnage the Falcons left behind. "But if that dream cannot be, I'll settle for-"

"England," they both said with a sigh. Being on the National team would be an honour, but eveyone knew the best team was Ireland. Eric stuck out his hand.

"I look forward to some friendly competition in the future."

"I look forward to sending half your team to St. Mungo's." Kit laughed, tossing her head back. The dark sky caught her attention and she jumped up. "Merlin, I was supposed to be home ages ago!" She flashed Eric an apologetic smile as she helped him up.

"This was really fun," she said as they rushed back to the house.

"Yeah. Kit?" He asked as she stepped into the fireplace. "Would you like to give this a chance?" Eric asked hesitantly. The last time he'd asked that question, she'd laughed.

"Only if you think you can deal with me." Eric nodded happily and she leaned out of the mantle to press a gentle kiss against his lips. "See you tomorrow?"

"Of course," He waved as she spun in the fireplace and arrived at her house not a moment too soon. Remus was at the back door his skin stretched over his bones. Peter, James and Sirius all stood by him anxiously. Kit could understand their worry; he looked as if he was going to be sick at any moment. She rushed over and pressed and hand against his back.

"Be good," he gave a humourless chuckle before loping off into the night. Sirius and Peter followed after him, but James stayed back, focused on something in her face.

"You're blushing."

Kit huffed to cover her embarrassment, waving at hand at him. "Am not, now go before he rips my backyard to shreds." James' brows drew together and he opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it and ran off after his friends. Once she was alone, Kit pressed a hand against her cheek, annoyed to find that it was warm. How could one guy make her blush? She'd never been one to blush before, finding it much easier to laugh off the embarrassment before she had a chance to colour. She padded through to the living room and kicked her shoes off before throwing herself onto the couch. Her eyes were just sliding closed when something tapped at her window.

Kit groaned and felt around for her wand, her eyes still not open. She pointed it at the window and opened it with a little flick. A familiar black bird flew in and sat on the bat of the couch. It hooted loudly at the little girl, who ignored him as she tried to get to sleep. Apparently, the bird had different ideas as she was woken up by something pecking at the skin of her neck.

"Gerroff Magus!" Kit yelled as she swiped at the bird. Damn creature her cousin seemed to adore. She swore at it as he presented his leg, a note attached. Kit recognized her cousin's neat printing and ripped it open lazily.

Kit,

I don't quite know how to get to the King's Cross Station. Could you meet me at the hotel?

Rosie

Kit groped around for a quill, annoyed when she couldn't find one in walking distance. James was going to kill her when Quidditch season rolled around, she was so out of shape. Her match against Eric had worn her out. She rose and thumped into the foyer, the writing desk open and waiting for her. She didn't bother to get a new parchment as she began to write back.

I'll meet you at the hotel at nine. Completely knackered, see you tomorrow.

Kit

Her messy scrawl looked awful compared to her cousin's neat writing, but Kit couldn't have been bothered to do anything about it. Grabbing the loud bundle of black feathers, Kit attached the note and all but threw it from the house.

"Damn bird," she hissed as she fell back onto the couch. She couldn't wait to tell the guys that Rosalinda was coming to Hogwarts for her last two years. She and Rosie were best friends and one of Kit's few female companions. The only reason she wasn't with Rose twenty-four hours a day was that Rose was back in Moscow. Or at least she had been until recently. She'd finally worked up the nerve to tell her parents that she didn't want to study at Durmstrang and came to England to go to school with Kit. She was proud of her cousin even if she'd waited until the last minutes to tell her parents, but it was still a big change. Abstractly, just on the verge of sleep, Kit wondered if Rosie would adjust alright.