Generations: Waves of Times

Part II

"Leshia!" A wet iciness broke through the darkness of Leshia's unconscious. "Leesh! Wake up!"

The teenager groaned and opened her eyes to find Rachel hovering over her with a glass full of icy water in her hand. Katie was stood nearby, her brow furrowed with worry.

"What are you doing?" Leshia asked groggily as she struggled to sit up. Rachel let the glass drop and quickly helped her best friend onto her feet.

"You were lying passed out on the beach Leesh. What happened?" Katie asked concernedly. Leshia rubbed the back of her head and frowned at the fuzziness of her memories.

"I'm not sure…"

With a frown the girl looked down at her fingers. She was holding onto a strange stone pendant attached to a thin strip of leather. In a flash the memory of those pale eyes returned to her. Without a word to the others she darted over to the bushes and started roughly inspecting them for intruders. Katie and Rachel exchanged a worried glance, before they rushed to catch up with their friend.

"Uh, are you feeling okay?" Rachel asked. "I mean, did you hit your head or anything when you fell over?"

"I'm not going mad if that's what you're wondering," Leshia's voice came from behind the bushes. "There was someone over here, someone who threw the pendant at me and then disappeared."

"What did they look like?" Katie asked curiously.

"Well that's the thing, I only saw their eyes. They were grey, just like my grandfather's."

Leshia reappeared with a deep frown set into her forehead while Rachel and Katie pushed against each other with worry, their eyes darting around the beach for signs of Lucius Malfoy.

"It's okay," Leshia told them grimly. She seemed crestfallen. "He's not there."

She glanced at the pendant a few times before lifting it up for the other two to inspect. Whoever the interloper had been, they were long gone now.

"It's really beautiful," Rachel mused aloud. "Look at the way it sparkles. What are you going to do with it?"

Leshia glanced at the pendant once more and after a shrug she reached out to attach the leather cord round her neck. The moment the stone touched her bare sternum she felt the skin beneath it start to tingle. Katie and Rachel eyed the girl as though something magical were about to happen, though they were soon disappointed to find that Leshia merely shrugged once more and started back down the beach.

"Come on, let's get back to the dance floor. I feel much livelier now," the blonde girl called after her friends. They grinned and rolled their eyes.

"Too late Leesh," Rachel replied happily, though she did start following her friend towards the hotel. "The music's finished. Everyone's heading back to their huts."

"What? But it's only like…" Leshia paused and frowned. In truth, she had no clue what time it was. "Midnight or something?"

"Try three o'clock," Katie told her with a broad smile. "You've been gone hours. If we don't get some sleep soon, we'll be gutted tomorrow morning. Our portkey's one of the earliest ones back to London."

"What, we won't even have time for breakfast or anything?" Rachel piped up sounding outraged. Katie giggled and shook her head.

"That depends on how early you can drag yourself out of bed. The portkey leaves at ten."

Rachel scoffed and strode ahead of the other two confidently,

"Ten? No problem! I'll be up way before that. By the time the pair of you crawl out of bed I'll have had breakfast, gone for a dip in the pool and had a shower."

XXX

Leshia sat on the edge of the double bed she had shared with Rachel with a broad grin. Her alarm clock had just woken her up at quarter to ten. Woozily, in the moments before sleep had claimed her, the girl had decided to forego breakfast for a few extra hours of sleep. Expecting Rachel to be long gone and enjoying the luxurious island by the time she crawled from her bed, the blonde girl was deliriously happy to see her best friend sleeping heavily.

Katie's bed had been made and the girl was nowhere to be seen suggesting she at least had managed to get in a good breakfast at the newlyweds' expense, but here lay Rachel, dead to the world and dreaming happily. Leshia's grin broadened as she reached out and tickled the redhead's foot.

"Gerrof," a sleepy mumble escaped Rachel's mouth, before she rolled over and buried herself under her fluffy blankets.

"Rach," Leshia called loudly, forcing her voice through her friend's happy dreams. "Rachel! You'd better get up you know, we'll be going in ten minutes or so. Rachel?"

"Hmm?"

"Rachel it's nearly ten o'clock!"

This did the trick. As though the bed had suddenly become electrified the sleepy flame-haired girl leapt up and stared wildly around the room making Leshia bend over double and crack up.

"What time did you say it was?" Rachel stammered.

"Time for you to get out of bed Miss 'I'm-going-to-get-up-long-before-the-pair-of-you-so-ha-take-that'! We'll be catching the portkey home any minute now," Leshia explained gleefully.

"Bloody hell! Where's Katie? What did she do to me?"

"Excuse me? What do mean what did she do to you?"

"Well she must have done something. There's no way she'd be up before me. Not in a million years! She must have stolen my morning person-ness," Rachel accused wildly as she climbed out of bed and started hurriedly changing. At her side Leshia was still laughing hysterically, but managed to contain herself while she too started changing into some casual clothes to travel back to London in.

"I don't reckon even Katie's that clever," the blonde girl uttered through her laughter.

"Ah hem!" Both girls turned to see the third member of their trio was standing at the door with a croissant in either hand. Her expression was steely and the way in which she had just cleared her throat suggested she suspected her best friends of gossiping about her behind her back.

"Oh Katie you star!" Leshia cried out and she ran forward snatching one of the croissants from her friend's hand. "I was just telling Rachel here even you're not capable of taking her morning person personality away from her."

"Oh, was that what it was?" Katie asked with a smirk and she seemed to deflate slightly, the angry tirade that had been on the tip of her tongue skulking away until it was needed again. "Would it make you feel better Rach if I told you I did put a spell on you last night to make sure you'd sleep in?"

Rachel and Leshia paused and stared with wide eyes at their friend.

"You never! Did you?" Rachel gasped eliciting a snort of laughter from the raven-haired girl by the door.

"No! Of course not. But would it make you feel better if that's what I told you?"

"Oh ha ha, very funny," Rachel grumbled and she started pulling odd socks onto her feet. "Help me pack will you? Or we'll be here till sunset at least."

The girls managed to pack and scramble out of their hut just as Draco was walking up to their door, his knuckles held up and his expression impatient. Katie was the first one out and she let out a little cry of surprise at the sight of Draco's fist coming towards her face.

"Oh," Draco uttered in surprise and he quickly dropped his hand to his side. "You're up. Let's get going, the portkey won't wait you know."

The four of them hurried along to the hotel foyer where the newlywed couple were hugging guests goodbye. Leshia and her friends quickly pushed in front of the queue and earned themselves two firm hugs for their troubles. Ryan held onto Leshia for a bit longer than he should have and when they separated the youngster could see he seemed slightly emotional.

'Must be all last night's booze,' Leshia thought to herself as she watched Ryan open his mouth to speak with trepidation.

"I want you to promise me something Shorty," the young man spoke seriously. "I want you to keep out of trouble this year. There're a lot of people who care about you you know."

"Yeah Lofting, I know," Leshia cut in shyly, rubbing the back of her neck and dropping her head to hide her crimson cheeks. Ryan smiled broadly and nudged the girl gently to reclaim her attention.

"I know you know, but I think you need reminding sometimes Malfoy. My little sister's going to be starting at Hogwarts this year and if she gets her way then she'll end up in Gryffindor. She'll look up to you Shorty, like most of the younger ones at Hogwarts. You're in this incredibly powerful position, where you can affect not just your own life, but those of other people as well." Leshia looked up again, her grey eyes meeting Ryan's kind ones. "Just promise me you'll remember that when school starts again."

"Come on Leshia! Let's go!" Rachel's voice cut in through the poignant moment between the blonde girl and the only brother she would ever know. Nodding firmly Leshia reached out took hold of Ryan's hands.

"I promise Ryan," she said firmly. "I promise I won't go looking for trouble this year."

The tall man frowned for a moment, but Leshia had released his hands and was running towards the gold invitation that the rest of her party were clutching onto.

"That's not what I meant Leshia!" he finally called after the girl, but she had reached the portkey now and was jostling with her friends for space. The last he saw of her was the same cheeky smile he'd come to dread these last four years, before she was gone.

XXX

Laughter echoed round the Leaky Cauldron. In the corner, squeezed into a small booth, were at least half a dozen youngsters, who seemed more than happy to be squashed up against the friends they had missed over the long summer months. Their get together was earning them several glares from some of the tavern's regular punters, but this didn't seem to disturb the teenagers, as they were too busy listening to Rodeo Holsson's humorous re-enactment of his summer exploits.

Rodeo Holsson had long been the heartthrob of Leshia, Katie and Rachel's year group at school along with his best friend Parys Jackson. Long ago, in the first few hours of their first year at Hogwarts, when the pair of excited boys had met on the train they got talking due to their peculiar names. Time had passed and Rodeo and Parys were now the best of friends. Together they were now easily wielding the attention of their female friends. Indeed, it seemed as though Katie, Rachel, Leshia, Nicola and Ashley couldn't get enough of their stories.

This however, was about to change.

"Move up Malfoy."

Rodeo stopped mid sentence and looked up with a scowl to see who had interrupted his story. His eyes fell on a tall lanky boy, who was unfortunately growing more and more manly with every passing day: Owen Gabriel. Where once this prodigal seeker in the year above had seemed awkward and gawky, time was definitely turning the once plain boy into a heartthrob within his own right. How Rodeo hated him and the way Leshia's face lit up when he was in her presence.

"Owen!" Leshia cried out and she jumped to her feet and threw her arms around the tall boy's shoulders. She hadn't seen him for many weeks. "When did you get back?"

"Yesterday."

"What are you doing here? How did you know we were here?" The words were falling out of Leshia's mouth quicker than her mind could control them. To the teenagers sat around the table she seemed a jabbering fool, but to the young man smiling charmingly at her she seemed divine. Suffice to say, Owen Gabriel had missed Alecia Malfoy the most over the long summer.

"I was just passing through to get my books when I heard your cackling. What's so funny?" Leshia turned her adoring gaze from Owen to look at Rodeo, who at this moment was glaring darkly at the pair of them. The girl hardly noticed.

"Oh, Rodes was telling us a funny story. Have you got time to join us for a drink?"

Owen shrugged his broad shoulders and reached over to get a chair from the neighbouring table while Leshia dropped down beside Rachel once more. Her grin had spread from ear to ear.

"When do you have to get back to the shop Leesh?" Katie asked pointedly, feeling pained by the bitter expression on Rodeo's face. In years gone by she had secretly harboured complete love and adoration for the young man and even though she felt she had moved on from her childish crush, he was still a valued friend. She hated to see the pain in his eyes.

Leshia flicked her pale eyes onto her bespectacled friend and shrugged her shoulders.

"Later," was the only response she gave before she looked back to the newly arrived youngster at her side. "So you'll never guess what I found out the other day."

"You've been made Gryffindor captain?" Owen replied easily. Leshia's smile faltered for a moment, before she reached out to shove the boy firmly.

"Hey! Who told you?"

"Mila," Owen replied with a shrug. "She sent us all letters telling us why she picked you. To tell you the truth, none of us were surprised."

Leshia blushed and hung her head slightly. She wasn't the oldest or the most experienced member of the team. That title was shared by Luke and Tom Weasley, cousins of Rachel and Katie, who were entering their seventh year at Hogwarts. They'd been on the team since second year and privately the girl felt that the honour of wearing the captain's strip should have gone to one of them.

"Well you'd better prepare yourself Owen," Leshia finally spoke up, feeling her cheeks return to their usual hue. "Because Gryffindor's not going to know what's hit it when I take over!"

Owen grinned broadly and looked away from the girl to see the rest of the occupants of the table were watching them. He nodded to the group of soon-to-be-fifth-years, noting with some glee that Rodeo, his archrival where Leshia was concerned, seemed severely put out.

"Had a good summer boys?" Owen asked casually, earning himself a sneer from the younger boy.

"Yeah, pretty good," Parys spoke up calmly, ever the peacemaker. He could feel Rodeo trembling at his side and wanted to divert an explosion of emotion if possible. He'd been having a great time catching up with friends until now. "How about you?"

"Wicked mate, absolutely wicked," Owen replied cheerily and for the next hour he regaled the youngsters with stories of his holidays, which soon had them in stitches of laughter once more. Leshia felt she could have stayed all afternoon listening to the young man speaking, but time had been ticking along and she still had her final shift at the shop to finish.

The girl waited patiently for a pause in Owen's never-ending monologue until finally he paused for breath after a particularly hilarious tale. Leshia jumped at the chance and leapt to her feet.

"Sorry guys," she told her friends happily. "But I'm going to have to love you and leave you. I've got go put my last hours in at the bookshop."

"I'll come with you," Owen spoke up easily and he too climbed to his feet. "I've still got to get my books."

The farewells were subdued as Leshia and Owen wandered off into the crowds of the Leaky Cauldron. They would all be seeing each other on the train the following day and Rodeo's foul mood seemed to have put a dampener on everyone's spirits.

"What was up with Holsson?" Owen asked genially as Leshia led the way out into the backyard of the pub, her wand out and ready to give them both passage into Diagon Alley.

"You know what was wrong with him," Leshia complained amusedly. "The pair of you have got to get over this rivalry you have." Owen scoffed loudly earning himself a sharp elbow to the ribs from the girl at his side. "I'm serious! You're both as bad as the other and sooner or later it's going to get really tiring. I'm not going to choose between you you know."

"Oh come on," Owen chuckled as the wizarding street materialised in front of him. Leshia led the way through the busy jostling crowds. "If you had to, you'd choose me right?"

"Owen!"

"Yes dearest?"

"So what NEWTs did you decide on in the end?" Leshia asked forcefully, changing the conversation before she could start to get annoyed with her dear friend. Owen raised his eyebrows at her abrupt change in conversation, but replied nonetheless,

"Boring ones," he grumbled. "If I want to get on the Auror programme then it's got to be Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfiguration, Charms and Ancient Runes."

Leshia grimaced. She too had the intention of trying to get on to the difficult training programme at the ministry, but had no idea it would constrict which subjects she took in her sixth and seventh years at school.

"You're joking," she complained. "You have to take all them?"

"Well, there's a little wriggle room, but it's pretty bleak," the boy explained grimly. "It's going to be a tough two years I'll tell you that."

"Hang on, you've already got a contract with the Wimbourne Wasps. Don't you start playing for them when you turn seventeen…in like three weeks or so. Hang on…."

"No, I'm not leaving school Malfoy if that's what you're thinking," Owen quickly cut in. "That's what they wanted me to do, but I need to get my NEWTs."

"What do you mean?" Leshia gasped and she grabbed the tall boy's arm firmly. He stopped in the busy street and looked at his friend with a thoughtful expression. "You could leave school and be a professional quidditch player next month if you wanted to, but you're choosing to stay and take five really really tough subjects at NEWT level instead? Are you bonkers or something?"

Owen laughed and wrapped his arm around Leshia's shoulders genially, dragging her towards the bookshop that was looming in the distance.

"Yes Malfoy, that's exactly what I'm doing."

"But why?"

"Look, as soon as I leave school I'm going to try the quidditch thing…"

"Huh! Quidditch thing?" Owen ignored her interruption.

"…but if that doesn't work out then I'm going to need to fall back on something aren't I? Let's say my arm falls off, what will I do then if I don't even have any qualifications?"

Leshia gazed up at the tall young man with a betrayed expression. This didn't sound like her Owen. What had happened to the young man to make him look upon his future with so bleak an outlook? Owen noticed her glaring.

"Oh get over yourself," the young man laughed and he wrestled Leshia into the crook of his arm. "It'll happen to you one day too you know."

"Owen!" Leshia cried in mock outrage from his armpit while she struggled to escape.

"You'll have to choose between school and quidditch, I just know you will…" With one almighty shove Leshia broke free and stared up into Owen's serious eyes with a shaky smile. "And when that day comes Leshia, you'll be surprised at how scary it all becomes…the future I mean."

"I don't believe you," the girl finally replied and after shaking her head she walked through the crowds towards Flourish and Blotts with a grinning Owen in her wake.

"You'll see," he called after her. "You're going to do some pretty serious growing up this year Malfoy. You might just surprise yourself!"

XXX

Leshia leaned back in her chair with her hands resting on her bursting stomach. It had been a glorious meal, the very last of Hermione's home cooking before school took over. Despite the fact that the Houselves of Hogwarts had always put on a magnificent spread for the castle's diligent young population, Leshia still adored her mother's home cooked meals. There was something so homely and cosy about sitting around the grand dining table in the kitchen with her mother and father either side of her. It all harked back to the years Hermione had been away; obliterated and living under a false identity in South America unaware she had a family missing her deeply back in London. In her first year at school Leshia had helped bring her mother home and since those early days every basic family event was cherished dearly by the girl.

Take this evening for instance. After arriving home from the bookshop Leshia had spent an hour playing with her baby sister in the 'muggle room' while Hermione chatted to her best friend Ginny on the phone. Draco had arrived home shortly before seven and had dropped down beside his daughters to join in their game leaving Hermione to stare at them all adoringly and take a few photographs. Baby Evie had been put to sleep and the three older members of the family had then happily devoured Hermione's delicious cooking to a soundtrack of amusing anecdotes from each member of the table. It had all been so simple, yet so valuable to the close family. They lived always under a shadow of fear and danger, but to look at them sitting lazily about the table you wouldn't have believed it.

That is, until they all heard the crash from upstairs.

"Draco!" Hermione cried out in panic as all three members of the family leapt to their feet and went running up the creaky stairs.

"Hermione watch Leshia," the man of the house warned as he darted into the nursery where young Evie had been put to sleep a few hours earlier. Leshia struggled against her mother, who grabbed her with surprising strength and prevented her from following in Draco's footsteps.

"Mum!" the girl complained, but her mother's face was set firmly in defiance.

"Shhh darling," Hermione warned while she strained her ears to hear what was happening in the nursery. Within seconds the door was wrenched open and a thunderous Draco stepped out with a very sleepy Evie wrapped up safely in his arms. Behind him both mother and daughter could see glass littering the floor beside the crib. One of the windows had been smashed. Hermione exhaled heavily and took the baby from her husband's arms.

"Both of you, stay here," the tall dangerous man warned his wife and daughter while he stormed downstairs, his wand out and his brow set in fury. Leshia entirely ignored his command and ran after him.

"Leshia! Listen to your father!" Hermione called after her daughter, before she ran after the girl, carefully trying not to upset her youngest child too much. The teenager was well ahead of her mother, but not quite quick enough. As she reached the back door the girl felt her body turn sluggish.

"Mum!" she managed to cry out before even her mouth froze under the power of the spell her mother had silently commanded. Hermione quickly caught up with Leshia at the door and pointed her wand at her oldest daughter.

"Do you promise not to follow your father out there?" The powerful witch indicated the black sticky night. Leshia was unable to nod or speak, but managed to convey her agreement through a particularly annoyed guttural sound. "Good girl."

Silently the spell was reversed and Leshia felt herself freeing up once more. She obeyed her mother for fear of what Hermione might do next and instead jumped from one foot to the other while they all waited for Draco to return.

"Ugh!" Leshia cried out suddenly when a dead bird came into view being dangled delicately by its legs in between her father's fingers.

"False alarm," Draco told his family calmly, the relief clear in his expression. "Stupid thing flew right into the window."

"Oh no," Hermione sighed. "The poor thing."

"Can you save it mum?" Leshia asked worriedly, looking at the bird's wide dead eyes with a deep feeling of unease inside her chest. Draco snorted insensitively and lobbed the bird back into the garden.

"Dad!"

"Draco!"

"The damn thing's dead," the tall man complained as he pulled the door shut and locked it. "There's nothing you can do for it now."

While Draco walked over to the sink in the kitchen and started washing his hands Leshia peered through the windows into the dark garden. Every shadow became an enemy in her vivid imagination and despite herself she shuddered. They would never be safe as long as Lucius Malfoy still roamed the streets. Draco Malfoy's Death Eater father had long been on the run, but in recent years he had started to rally about him the dark following once more.

His vision was to help the Dark Lord to rise again and were this not terrifying enough, to make matters worse he was trying to abduct Evie and kill Leshia and Hermione as a means of penance on his son. Draco had taken everything from his father the day he had turned his back on the Death Eaters and helped the Order of the Phoenix destroy Voldemort and now it was Lucius' intention to take everything from his son.

Until Lucius Malfoy was caught Leshia knew her family could never be safe.

These thoughts trickled through the girl's mind as she tried to find sleep that night, but every time her eyes shut she saw her grandfather's gaunt disfigured face laughing and cackling at her. Every innocent sound that wafted through the old creaky house became twisted and sinister, so much so that Leshia got up several times to check on her little sister in the nursery next door.

Hermione had easily repaired the window, but sadly it was less simple to repair ravaged nerves. On the last of her many visits to the nursery Leshia found her sister awake and sitting up in her cot. She was playing with a soft toy rabbit that had long ago belonged to Leshia herself. Upon seeing her big sister Evie's adorable face lit up in a big toothy grin.

"Lih!" she cried out happily, earning herself a broad smile from the older girl. With ease Leshia dropped down beside the cot and weaved her skinny fingers through the railings. Evie reached out to meet her sister's hand with her own.

"I'm glad you're happy at least," Leshia sighed and she grinned even more when Evie started directing her thumb towards her sticky little mouth. "Ugh! Evie you don't have to put everything in your mouth you know."

Leshia freed her thumb from certain doom and reached out to stroke Evie's soft dark curls. The baby giggled inanely at her sister's touch. For the umpteenth time this summer the blonde girl wondered how she could have ever hated this precious little thing. She had wasted a year of Evie's life hating her and now she regretted it deeply. If only she could claw back the time.

"I'll never hate you again," Leshia whispered and she leaned her forehead against the railings of the crib. Evie dragged herself forward and started pulling herself up beside Leshia's face so that their foreheads were nearly touching through the bars. "I'll never let anything happen to you Evie. I promise."

XXX

Steam billowed through the English valleys like a winding twisting snake. Beneath the white haze the Hogwarts Express steadily made its way northwards bringing with it its bounty of young witches and wizards, ready to start a new year at school. Leshia, Rachel, Rodeo and Parys had found a cabin for themselves and were happily eating their way through a mountain of treats they had bought off the sweets trolley while somewhere along the train Katie was doing her first ever Prefect's Patrol.

"I'll bet she's docked a hundred housepoints already," Rachel mused aloud while she directed yet another chocolate frog towards her mouth. Leshia chortled happily and slouched down in her seat, watching the rolling hills glide past.

"As long as she hasn't docked any from Gryffindor I don't mind what she gets up to," she replied lazily.

"She's not really going to dock housepoints from people is she?" Parys asked worriedly while he brought his feet up and rested them on Rachel's bursting stomach.

"Parys!" the redhead groaned. "I'm stuffed! Shift your bloody feet!"

"You'd better believe it Parys," Leshia spoke over her best friend's outburst. With tremendous difficulty Leshia dragged herself up and faced the dubious boys with a knowing expression. "She's not only going to dock housepoints, but she also says she'll dock them from us if she sees us doing anything wrong."

"She'd never," Rodeo countered firmly. Leshia grinned and shrugged her shoulders.

"That's what I'm secretly hoping too," she replied grimly.

"But this is you guys," Rodeo was continuing, not for one second believing their friend could be so duplicitous. "You're always doing something wrong!"

Leshia and Rachel sniggered, but nodded nonetheless.

"Well we did try to tell her this," Rachel sighed. "But someone's made the grave mistake of handing my cousin some power and boy is she going to use it."

"Even on us?" Parys asked with a wrinkled brow. In unison the girls nodded.

"Even on us."

Before the implications of this bleak revelation could set in there was a fervent knock at the door to the carriage. Rodeo, who was closest, leaned over and peered behind the blind to see who it was.

"Leesh it's those twins from fourth year. Shall I let them…"

"Rodes! Yes, let them in," Leshia complained and she leapt to her feet as the bohemian boy opened the door with a broad grin. In spilled two girls that had clearly been built from the same mould as Leshia. They had the girl's same tiny wiry figure, blonde curly hair and pale probing eyes. Whether this was the reason the three had bonded and become friends was doubtful, but it did seem a peculiar coincidence when you saw the three side by side.

Eliot and Jaime Wood were in the year below Leshia and her friends. They were the only offspring of the Scottish quidditch international goalkeeper Oliver Wood. It had been a shared love for quidditch that had prompted Leshia to befriend the younger twins, but since those days they had become dear allies. And allies were important to Leshia. She needed all the friends she could get.

After the pleasantries had been loudly and spiritedly got over with in the centre of the carriage the girls all dropped down on the benches once more, though arguably, with a little less space this time around. Rachel found herself pressed up against Parys, who was still trying his best to slouch despite the influx of the extra people. The result was a peculiar near-embrace that had both teenagers blushing.

"You could sit up you know," Rachel told the boy coyly, earning herself a charming grin from Parys.

"I could do, but where would be the fun in that?" Rachel grinned broadly and shrugged her shoulders.

'Where indeed?' she thought to herself and tried to force herself to calm down. So Parys was practically lying on top of her? Why did she have to behave like…like…like Katie all of a sudden?

"So come on then Leesh," Jaime Wood was saying loudly, tearing Rachel's attention away from her happy predicament. "Out with it, who's the captain then?"

Jaime Wood had been a chaser for Gryffindor team for two years now and though she hadn't received a letter from Mila letting her know who the new captain was, she was sure she already knew. Everyone already knew. You could tell by the way Leshia's face lit up at the mere mention of the word 'quidditch'.

"Well, I was going to wait and tell you when we got to…"

"Congratulations!" both Eliot and Jaime crowed loudly and despite everyone just having found a comfortable spot the carriage was filled with hugs once more.

"That's great news!" Jaime exclaimed jubilantly once she'd found her seat in the corner beside Parys once more. Leshia hung her head slightly, but the silly grin still remained on her pretty face.

"Thanks."

"When do tryouts start?" Eliot asked curiously.

"You thinking of trying out for chaser are you?" Leshia asked curiously eliciting a hearty laugh from the small twin.

"Yeah right, it's keeper or nothing at all and seeing as you've got that one nicely covered with that giant quaffle catching machine I think I might pass thanks."

"Only one position going this year?" Parys piped up interestedly, his steely gaze boring into Rodeo, who was avoiding his gaze.

"Yep," Leshia replied happily. "Mila's the only one who left last year. You should try out Parys and you too Rodeo. You never know, you might get lucky."

"Yeah," Rachel laughed. "If everyone else catches flu the day of the tryouts!"

"Oh yeah?" Rodeo jeered in return, his face alight with happiness and mischief. Fluidly he reached up to the luggage rack and pulled down Leshia's pride and joy: her broom. "Come on, I'll take you on right now. Who's got a quaffle?"

"Will this do?" Parys piped up, lobbing a pumpkin pasty at his friend.

"Nah. A pasty's too small, this is more like a quaffle…" Rachel complained and she pulled off one of her shoes and threw this to the boy with the broom instead. While Rodeo struggled to hold onto the shoe and the pasty the others rolled around laughing until finally the handsome young man gave up and let the pasty fall on Leshia's head in order to grab the shoe firmly.

"That's it!" Leshia cried out in feigned annoyance. "Dropping a pasty on the captain's head? Immediate disqualification."

"That's not a rule!" Rodeo complained happily.

"Too bad Rodes. I'm captain, I can make it a rule!"

Their gimmickry could have continued all the way to Hogsmeade had Katie not chosen this exact moment to walk in the cabin. For a moment everyone stared at the girl, as she looked Rodeo up and down in surprise. He was still standing on the bench, Leshia's broom between his legs and Rachel's shoe dangling from his hand. Behind Katie the sharp features of Charlie Dotton, one of the boys who shared the Gryffindor fifth years dormitory with Rodeo and Parys, lingered in the corridor. He had a shiny prefect's badge attached to his cloak the same as Katie's.

"Um," Rodeo mumbled, frantically searching for something to say to the two law enforcers. "Hi?"

Rachel sat up sharply, she could tell by the look on her cousin's face what was about to happen and she wouldn't let it ruin their first few hours together of the new school year.

"There's no rule against riding brooms on the train is there?" she asked urgently. Katie glanced to the red-haired girl and nodded tremulously.

"I'm afraid there is Rachel. Brooms are not to be ridden indoors by any means," Katie replied firmly, lifting up a small maroon leather book as proof of this fact. It had the Hogwarts crest emblazoned on it in gold and read clearly: Prefects Manual. "I'm going to have to…"

Everyone stared at the girl while she fought the two facets of her personality. To be a good friend or to be a good prefect? She couldn't be both in this moment.

"Rodeo," she said slowly, while everyone held their breath. "That's five points from Gryffindor."

The words hung heavily in the air for a moment before one by one the children in the cabin exhaled heavily. Last to do so were Rachel and Leshia, who merely shook their heads at their best friend. Having done the deed Katie dropped her head and shuffled out, shutting the door carefully behind herself.

"That ruddy harpy!"

"Rachel!" Leshia complained. "She's just doing what she thinks is best."

"Well she should think a little harder next time," the flame-haired girl countered, but her heart wasn't in it. She knew who her cousin was and she knew Katie would be giving herself a far harder time than they ever could for her treacherous act just now.

"Come on Jay," Eliot spoke up to break the awkward silence that had ensued. "We're nearly there, let's go change into our robes."

Indeed, the environment outside the window had been changing and everyone could see they were nearly there. The fifth years pulled their robes over their uniforms and half-heartedly cleared away their rubbish into the bin. By the time the train rolled to a halt at the station everyone's excitement had reached fever pitch. So much so that as soon as a grim faced Katie met up with the others they instantly forgave her and dragged her along between their arms towards the horseless carriages.

Once up at the castle the Great Hall of Hogwarts was awash with the chatter and laughter of its many pupils and teachers. Leshia, Katie and Rachel dropped down beside Ashley and Nicola, the remaining girls from their dormitory and happily looked around the room to catch sight of friends from other houses.

"Hey look!" Rachel cried out loudly. "Isn't that Gareth Dackshaw and Laura Figreed in Huffepuff feeling each other up right there in front of the teachers' table?"

Everyone's heads swivelled round and then quickly swivelled back with gleefully disgusted expressions on their faces.

"Look at the colour Professor Snape's cheeks have gone," Leshia pointed out quietly to Katie at her side. The raven-haired girl sniggered and nodded.

"They'd better watch themselves or they'll find themselves scrubbing the potions dungeons before the first night's even through."

"I say good for them," Rachel butted in from across the table. Leshia and Katie looked up amusedly to see their friend's eyes glinting mischievously. "Someone ought to teach the old dog a few tricks. Lord knows he's not getting any good gropage around here. He's probably forgotten how to give a good grope."

While Katie rolled around in hysterics Leshia arranged her face carefully into an expression of disgust.

"Yuck Rachel. Just…" The girl paused and shuddered. "Yuck!"

The girls lulled into silence while they listened in to the loud conversations going on around themselves. There was a heightened state of excitement while everyone waited for the first years to be led into the hall and sorted into their houses. Anxious older brothers and sisters chattered louder than most and those without siblings seemed to be enjoying the chance to wind up their friends.

"I can't believe pock-face is still here," Rachel mused loudly through the din of the great hall. Leshia glanced up to the teachers' table and instantly saw who her friend was referring to: Professor Tripper. In their previous year at school the foul teacher had made their lives miserable. That he had been under the imperius curse and under Lucius Malfoy's control seemed not to matter now. All that mattered was that the wretched man was still allowed to stay at school and teach Ancient Runes.

"Now your mum's back, she should be teaching Runes again," Rachel complained. Leshia shrugged her shoulders.

"She's still looking after Evie loads."

"Well couldn't she bring her to class though?" the flame-haired girl asked with a cocky frown. Leshia shrugged her shoulders.

"Not my decision to make I'm afraid. As much as I'd like them to, my parents don't always do what I tell them to."

"Shhh you two, here come the first years!" Katie's sharp command came, silencing both Leshia and Rachel. They stared along with everyone else in the hall as the small frightened looking first years were led through the aisles between the house tables to the front of the hall where the Sorting Hat awaited them.

"They look terrified," Leshia whispered to her friends, who nodded in agreement. Rachel had gone very still as she followed one particular red-haired young girl through the crowds. All in all the fiery young girl was the oldest of five sisters and one brother and though she did get on with almost all her siblings there was one who she was closer to than all the rest: Ria.

It had all rather snuck up on Rachel that Ria would be coming to school this year. She had long got used to the fact that Hermia was now in her fourth year in Slytherin and Emelia was entering her third year in Gryffindor, but for some reason it had come as a surprise to her when Ria got her letter this summer. She seemed far too little to be joining the older girls on their train journey to school. Part of Rachel was expecting the Sorting Hat to tell the young Weasley girl that she had come too soon and should try again in a few years.

"Any surprises this year?" Pary's soft voice came from the other side of Nicola.

"Well that's Ashley's sister for starters," Nicola spoke up, pointing at a scared mousy-looking thing walking behind a pair of tall identical twins.

"Yeah and that's Ryan Lofting's little sister Taylor," Leshia added, indicating the confident girl walking beside Ashley's sister. The girl seemed beside herself with excitement to have finally arrived at the Sorting ceremony. Leshia grinned when she remembered how confident Taylor had been when they first met at being sorted into Gryffindor.

"What sort of a name is Taylor for a girl?" Parys sniggered. Leshia rolled her eyes and leaned round Nicola to land a gentle punch on the boy's arm.

"Yeah? Well what sort of a name is Parys for a boy?" she countered cheerily.

"I'll have you know that Paris was the name of an ancient muggle hero. That's who I'm named after," the boy scoffed with a broad grin.

"Isn't there a famous muggle tart called Paris too though?" Rachel now butted in, her eyes alive with mischief. Parys met the girl's eyes steadily, before he smiled charmingly at the girl. His rebuttal never came however, as at the front of the hall the Sorting Hat had started singing its annual song. Everyone craned their necks to see the raggedy hat singing proudly. By the time it came to a close everyone in the hall burst into tumultuous applause.

"That hat gets better every year," Parys exhaled contentedly. Rachel and Leshia sniggered.

"Yeah and you say that every year too!" the blonde girl teased. Up at the front of the hall 'Al-Sharif, Mamood' had just been called forward. A small boy crept nervously up to the stool while the ancient hat was lowered over his ears. Almost instantly it bellowed,

"Gryffindor!"

Leshia and her friends leapt to their feet and started cheering along with the rest of their table, but then went silent as ten children were sorted into the other houses. Their attention was beginning to wane until Professor McGonagall read out a name that instantly caught Leshia's attention,

"Gabriel, Claire."

The blonde girl glanced up the table to see her good friend Owen sit up sharply and watch as his youngest sister made her way up to the stool. Leshia had met the girl only once before, but knew her to be a partner in crime to Owen's other younger sister Sophie, who had been sorted into Gryffindor the year before.

Owen swore on the fact that his sisters were possibly the most irritating people he had ever met, but so far Sophie hadn't shown any sign of a manic tendency to make her older brother's life miserable. What would happen if her partner in crime joined her in the Lion's house?

"Gryffindor!" the hat bellowed. Leshia grinned wryly and looked up through the cheering Gryffindors to see Owen was smiling proudly. Shortly after Claire had been sorted into Gryffindor a very excited Taylor followed in her footsteps. With a broad smile Leshia climbed to her feet and wandered over to the latest Gryffindor addition.

"Taylor! Congratulations!" she called out to the girl and ruffled her hair fondly. "Your brother will be pleased."

The young first year turned a beaming smile on Leshia and nodded. She seemed stupidly proud of herself and leaving her to her fellow first years Leshia gave her one last smile and wandered back up to her friends.

"Leesh," Rachel called out the moment Leshia returned. "Look who it is."

Leshia turned two curious eyes on the stool at the front of the room and found it to be occupied by a funny looking boy with bright green spiky hair. The hat was being lowered onto his head and as it did so his nose turned into a flapping elephant's trunk. The great hall burst into applause as the cheeky boy offered them a broad grin.

"Horatio," the trio of fifth years back at Gryffindor table told one another amusedly. Horatio Lupin was the metamorphagus son of Tonks and Remus, who had inherited his mother's ability to morph his body into different forms. Over their years of growing up side by side with their parents' friends' children, Leshia, Katie and Rachel had had little to do with the Lupin boys. They were too young to be considered good friends, but they had always enjoyed the tricks this little boy played on his brother and the younger Weasley children.

"I had no idea he was old enough to go to school," Rachel exclaimed as she studied the boy carefully. His hair was slowly changing from green to his natural brown colour as clearly he and the hat were undergoing a rigorous private conversation.

"I hope he's Gryffindor or Ravenclaw," Katie whispered. "It would be handy to have a Metamorpagus on our side."

"What? You mean with the Blue Lions?" Rachel replied curiously. Leshia jerked her head onto her friends for a moment and met Katie's gaze. Yes, that would be useful!

For a long time young Horatio Lupin sat beneath the hat, his appearance becoming more and more normal, until finally his expression turned to a deep frown.

"Gryffindor!" the hat decided loudly. Up on the stool the new Gryffindor first year let out a visible sigh of relief, before he darted to his feet and went to take his place at the end of the loud cheering table.

"I reckon the hat wouldn't sort him until he showed his true appearance," Katie told her friends quietly, as around them the din died down. One by one the pupils' attention started waning, as the line of expectant first years dwindled to the last few. Finally, Ria's moment arrived.

"Weasley, Ria!"

Moments before Cerise, the younger sister of Luke Weasley had been sorted into Gryffindor to a wall of sound courtesy of the large contingent of Weasleys already present in the Lion's House. The young girl stood at the front of the hall glanced over to Gryffindor, her eyes snaking up its length to catch sight of her sisters. Finally she caught Rachel's keen gaze and with a broad smile the older sister gave courage to the younger.

Ria was an almost exact replica of her oldest sister both in appearance and in mind. If Rachel had been sorted into Gryffindor then Ria could surely expect the same?

It would seem the Sorting Hat thought so also, as before the old tattered hat could be dropped onto the expectant Ria's head it bellowed loud and clear,

"Gryffindor!"

Rachel melted into a relieved little heap as the whole table erupted into cheers. Leshia and Katie dragged their friend onto her feet and clapped her on the back.

"Do you remember I told you lot in first year about them having to rename Gryffindor into the Weasley House?" Leshia called over the shouting, her eyes roving over the patchwork of red heads dotted along the table. Rachel and Katie turned broad beaming smiles on the girl. "Well, if they don't do it this year I'm going to put in a request to Dumbledore myself!"

XXX

Leshia stood in the dark. A musky silence enveloped her, encroaching on her fragile mind. The girl strained to see in the gloom, but caught only dappled reflections in the distance. She was cold.

"Hello!" she called out, her voice echoing around the vast chamber she could not see. Other than the sound of her own hurried breathing, nothing stirred in the dank darkness. Leshia placed one foot in front of the other and strode forward towards the flickering dim lights in the distance. As she walked a deep icy feeling started spreading from the pit of her stomach.

"It's only the dark," she whispered to herself as she paced onwards, but the icy feeling had spread to her chest now, crippling her in the shadow. Jerkily, the girl sped up, her eyes never leaving the flickers in the distance. Either side of her shapes started emerging as though from a dark mist.

The iciness had spread to Leshia's legs, slowing her down as she fought to reach the now golden glow in the distance. The objects surrounded her, trapped her, blocked the way…

Leshia sat up in surprise and realised with relief that golden light was streaming through the gap in her bed curtains. For a moment the girl panted, the tendrils of the nightmare lingering in the depths of her mind, before even they were gone. Morning had come and with it a rather fluffy surprise.

It took Leshia a few minutes to realise that there was something heavy lying on her stomach. It was a pleasant warm weight that she hadn't felt since her first years as a pupil at Hogwarts. Reaching down with slender fingers Leshia confirmed her suspicions when they came across silky fur. A little purr escaped the sleeping lump and after grinning the blonde girl pulled back the duvet to find a silver tabby cat looking up at her knowingly.

"Philly?" Leshia uttered happily and she reached out to stroke her former cat under his chin. Many years ago when Leshia had first come to Hogwarts she had brought with her a wild kitten she had dubbed Philleus. The little cat had grown wilder still within the castle walls and had stopped frequenting Gryffindor tower and the girl he had once known as his master. Leshia had heard from the others that a girl in Hufflepuff had wooed him and now he called the dungeons his home.

"What made you come back to me?" she whispered, enjoying the way Philly's content purring reverberated through her stomach. Across the dormitory a startled yelp sounded from Katie's bed. Leshia jumped, dislodging the cat from her stomach. With a haughty yowl Philly climbed to his feet, yawned widely and sauntered off through the curtains leaving Leshia watching him go with a deep feeling of unease.

She didn't have long to ponder this new state of mind.

"Wake up!"

Rachel's overexcited face pushed through the curtains inches from Leshia's face making the blonde girl jump in surprise. The flame-haired girl seemed to think it an unarguable right that she be allowed to wake her dorm-mates in a most unpleasant manner on a daily basis. Certainly for the last four years Katie, Leshia, Ashley and Nicola had suffered the girl's 'worse-than-an-alarm-clock-tendencies' as they saw fit to describe it.

"Bugger off," Leshia replied severely, before she unceremoniously shoved Rachel's face away and climbed out of bed. Her broad smile showed she didn't mean to seem grumpy. Heaven forbid she start being a grumpy morning person like Katie. They didn't need two of them! "You know what? I'm going to ask my mum to give teach me a spell that'll stop people from yanking my curtains open willy nilly."

"Well you see that wouldn't be much use though would it?" Rachel retorted gleefully. "You see I never do anything willy nilly."

"As if," Leshia laughed. "I bet if we pick up a dictionary there'll be a picture of your goofy face right next to the words willy nilly."

"I hope not," Rachel replied quickly. "I don't think I like the idea of my face being next to the word willy in a…"

"Oh shut up! Both of you!" Ashley's furious grumble came from across the dormitory. "Just go get a bloody shower and let us doze in peace!"

Leshia and Rachel exchanged a mischievous grin, before they went about finding their towels and wash bags. Leshia found hers easily enough, but then had to wait while Rachel fumbled blindly in her trunk to get hers. Whereas all the other girls had taken a little time the night before to unpack their heavy trunks, Rachel told them she'd get round to it. Eventually.

"Yeah, by Christmas," Leshia had quipped happily.

Finally they were armed and wandered down to the small queue that was milling around outside the bathroom doors in the common room. It moved quickly enough, the small bathrooms being enchanted to house an untold number of shower cubicles, and soon the girls were making their way down to breakfast.

"Did I just see that cousin of mine lingering at the back of the queue with Nicky and Ash?" Rachel asked with a frown as she and Leshia ambled through the sparkling corridors. It would seem over the holidays Argus Filch, Hogwarts' long-suffering caretaker, had managed to get a satisfying amount of gleam into his floors. No doubt the eager population of Hogwarts would soon put this to rights within a matter of days.

"Yeah, I thought it was. Why?"

"Well wasn't she telling us how she couldn't wait to get to school so she could go and try that private prefects' bathroom?" Rachel pondered with a disapproving frown.

"Oh yeah! Maybe she's being a wuss because she'll have to go on her own."

"Probably. Who else made prefect? Do you know?"

Leshia shrugged her shoulders and tried to think back to the evening before. She had seen a few shiny prefects' badges floating around the place, but for the life of her she couldn't think who they had been attached to.

"Well Charlie Dotton's the other Gryffindor prefect," she finally replied thoughtfully. "And I'm sure I saw that ratty girl in Slytherin, what's her name? Oh yeah, Tamara Beckwaith, I'm sure I saw her with a badge yesterday. She was taking her job pretty seriously and trying to heard their new brood down to the dungeons after the feast."

"Yeah, I saw that. She looked like she was trying to herd cattle not first years! I saw David Sykes in Ravenclaw doing the same thing, so I bet he's a prefect too," Rachel agreed.

"Oh you're joking. He's a right swot! I bet he wet his pants at the thought of being able to dock housepoints from other pupils," Leshia groaned. The girls happily embellished this scenario until they reached their places down at Gryffindor table. They had worked it into a mini play by the time everyone joined them and Professor McGonagall swept up the aisle with their timetables.

"Please not Ancient Runes, please not Ancient Runes, please not Ancient Runes," Leshia whispered frantically as the formidable teacher approached. Rachel sniggered at her side, but mirrored her thoughts inwardly. Anything but Ancient Runes first thing on a Monday would be a relief!

"What are you twittering about?" Katie's amused voice interrupted their mantras.

"Would you like to spend this morning cooped up with that?" Leshia asked pointedly, throwing her hand in the direction of the teachers' table. Professor Silas Tripper looked darker than a thundercloud as he glared the excitable pupils up and down. He seemed more out of place in a school than a lion would in a pet shop.

"Good morning girls," the strongly accented voice of their head of house wafted over the trio of friends. As one they looked up and granted the old woman beaming smiles. "I'm glad to see you're all in such fine spirits this morning. Let us see how long they last!"

With this she dropped the timetables in front of the girls and swept up the table to deliver the others. The three girls swooped on the pieces of parchment and collectively their faces fell.

"Oh you've got to be kidding!" Rachel exploded. "Damn it Leesh, you jinxed us! Ancient Runes followed by Charms! Could it be any worse?"

"Charms isn't so bad," Katie put in calmly, but earned a foul glare for her efforts.

"Charms isn't so bad?" Rachel echoed in disbelief. "Do you know how bad I am at charms Katie? My wand technique is 'abysmal' as Professor Flitwick said in my last report."

"It's probably because most of the time you're holding it back to front…Ouw!" Leshia clutched at her sore fingers and cast her flame-haired friend a glare. "Just because you're crap at charms doesn't mean you need to maim my fingers does it?"

"Oh shut up the pair of you," Katie chuckled and she leaned across the table pointing to something on the timetable. "Here, look at this. You're not going to like it."

In unison Rachel and Leshia leaned forward and glanced at the timetable Katie was holding up. At first glance, both of them could tell there was something not quite right with it, but it took Katie's patient tapping to show them what was amiss.

"Um, why does it say 'afternoon break'?" Rachel finally asked with a furrowed brow.

"Yeah and why do our lessons suddenly go on till five thirty?" Leshia added darkly.

"Only on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays," Katie tried soothingly, but she could tell by the matching thunderous expressions on her friends faces that they were not best pleased with the new fifth year timetable.

"Only?" Leshia demanded. "Katie's there's nothing 'only' about it! What's going on? Why has our day just become much longer than before?"

"I think it's something to do with these," the calm bespectacled girl replied, her finger tapping on a new part of the timetable. Her friends' eyes fell onto the page where she was indicating and almost instantly their faces lit up.

"Does that say what I think it does?" Rachel asked loudly while at her side Leshia nodded quickly.

"Frees? We get frees in fifth year? I didn't think they started till sixth year?"

"Well they're not technically called frees Leesh," Katie admonished gently. "They're actually called study periods and we should be using them to work in the library…"

"Bollocks," was the general consensus from the other two.

"They'll be used for dossing about, that's what they'll bloody well be used for," Rachel concluded. Katie's brow dipped, but her cousin was shaking her head rebelliously. "No Katie! If they can make us have lessons till five thirty three days a week then what little time they give us back will be used for whatever the hell we feel like all right?"

Leshia sniggered happily at their sides and looked up to see Owen Gabriel sauntering into the great hall. For a moment everything faded into the background (even the blazing row going on between Rachel and Katie at her side) and all that existed was Owen Gabriel and his charming smile. The sixth years had made themselves comfortable beside Leshia and her friends and with a wriggling sensation deep within her stomach Leshia realised her friend was making his way over to the space at her side.

"Morning shorty," the boy called over pleasantly before he dropped down onto the bench at the blonde girl's side.

"Morning," she chirruped loudly, trying to overpower the raised voices at her side. Owen glanced to her friends and then shook his head amusedly. "They're arguing over our new timetable."

"Oh yeah? What's so controversial about it?" Owen chuckled while he reached over to receive the timetable his friend Paul was handing to him with a nod of thanks. Leshia noticed his hair was still wet from the shower and then told herself off for noticing.

"Frees," she replied. "Or not frees as Katie's trying to say."

"Oh right. I remember getting frees for the first time last year. They're better than Christmas they are. Well if you think you've got a lot of free time, take a look at this."

Leshia glanced over the boy's shoulder and looked at his timetable. Her jaw dropped.

"That's mad! Half your timetable is free time!"

Owen shook his head meekly.

"Malfoy if I sat around picking my nose during these frees I'd fail my NEWTs before the end of the first term. In fifth year you should cherish your frees. You've only got them because you're having lessons later now, so they make up for the extra time earlier on in the day. But in sixth year you've actually got to work pretty damn hard during your free periods."

"Sounds crap," Leshia sighed, hoping that by some miracle she might bypass her NEWT years. They sounded awful already and she'd barely started her fifth year. "Hey, what's that? Form Group?"

Owen glanced to the timetable and saw where Leshia's long finger was pointing. Monday afternoons, last thing, Form Group.

"Ah, see that's to make sure we're all doing some work in our own time. You each get a teacher who checks up on you once a week. Guess who mine is?"

Leshia frowned worriedly, as by the grim expression on her friend's face she could see it wasn't going to be the most popular teacher in the school.

"It's not my dad is it?" she asked warily. Owen chuckled and shook his head.

"Worse I'm afraid."

"Snape?"

"Nope."

"Oh God…it's not Tripper is it?"

The tall boy nodded once and glanced up at the teachers' table to see the scowl his new form teacher was wearing. For a moment he actually grimaced.

"Do me a favour Malfoy," he finally spoke, sliding his hazel eyes onto his friend with a charming smile. "Can you try your best not to piss him off today?"

For a moment Leshia's face distorted into a vision of pure mischief.

"Owen," she drawled. "I'm not making any promises."

XXX

I'm experimenting with slightly shorter chapters.

Please review.