Chapter One

James and Sirius made their way back to the Potter household. They were laughing and talking while James carried a dark haired girl on his back. Her hair was wavy, and mixed in with his dark hair. They looked alike in a small bit of way, dark hair, tan skin, hair looked like a mess. They had just finished playing Quidditch with the other kids that lived in the area. It was a Wizarding town, although some Muggles lived there, it was because they were married to a witch or wizard and knew the ways.

"Do you think that she'll finally join this year?" James asked his friend, Sirius.

"Hopefully, although you know her Mum won't approve," shrugged the taller of the two. He ran a hand through his dark mane as he looked around. It was near curfew, and although he was seventeen, he was use to being under-aged still, "she'd be the best Keeper in years with the way she plays out here."

"To bad she can't tell her Mum about it," James sighed, "although if she went home with bruises from the Quaffles, she'd be dead."

"Good thing her Mum doesn't know she went to the Quidditch World Cup with us either," Sirius laughed, "and also a good thing that her Mum said it was okay for her to stay the rest of Summer with us."

"With much convincing from my Mother," James told Sirius as they reached the two story house, "we have to be quiet, my Mum hasn't been feeling well..."

"Hrmph..."

James and Sirius looked to see Cassia to be letting out a small yawn before tightening her grip around James' shoulders. James shifted her up more into a comfortable position on his hips while they went up the stairs. Once they arrived in the guest room that had been turned into Sirius' room since he moved in, but was currently being used for Cassia while she stayed with them, and James set her on the bed.

"Your parents always wanted a daughter, didn't they?" Sirius asked as they left the room, closing the door behind them as they walked to James' room.

"Yeah, and Cassia has become like a daughter to them since you explained to your Mum that she wasn't Lily the first time she came over," Sirius laughed at the memory of Cassia walking into the Potter's kitchen her third year, and Mrs Potter flipping out, thinking it was Lily Evans, the girl that had stolen James heart their second year.

"That was a great Holiday," James laughed as he kicked off his shoes and pulled his Gryffindor jacket over his head and tossed it carelessly on the ground, "may this year be just as great as any other."

Sirius turned off the light with a flick of his wand and the two fell into a mindless sleep.

.:X:.

Sirius was bombarded with a great thump of what he was hoping something that was not breakable, but in his state of sleep, he wasn't to awake to find out. He merely rolled over and pulled the blankets back over his head. Then that's when it hit him, literally.

She had a pillow in her hands and she was using it against him as she beat upon his head. He could hear James laughing as he watched in amusement from his own bed. Sirius rolled over, knocking her off his bed and onto the ground as he grabbed his pillow and began to fight back. The three were in a rage of laughter as they fought with pillows.

Suddenly, Cassia disappeared and a black and white creature, the size of a cat had scurried off from where she had lied a moment before. Sirius tore after her, sliding down the banister and jumping over the side of it, chasing after the creature. Once secured out of the kitchen, a large dark dog hurried after the small animal like it was it's prey.

Cassia was part of the Aesalon clan, and as such, she was taught at a young age the way of her ancestor, the first animagus. When she had caught Remus in the library looking up animagus, and the way to become one, she had become interested. James and Sirius didn't tell her why they needed to be animagus, and she never pushed them to tell her.

The black and white creature disappeared up a tree before returning to the human state of Cassia while Sirius barrel rolled into his human form and pulled himself up into a tree. James flew out on his broom from his balcony window before landing in the mix of branches himself.

"Nice wake up call," Sirius cooed as he leaned against one of the vertical sticking branches as he looked up at the dim lit sky.

"James' idea," Cassia said dejectedly as she looked up to the sky, "hey!" she looked to James and Sirius before looking back up to the sky, "do you think anyone will ever be able to leave the Earth?" she smiled, "like, into outter space? To the Moon, or anything like that?"

"They'd die, love," Sirius laughed, "unless they could use magic and use a perfectly indestructible bubble head charm, they aren't going anywhere."

"I suppose that is true," Cassia sighed looking over to James, "breakfast should be ready soon, ay?"

"Yeah," James nodded and the three left the tree and headed to the back of the house.

"I have to head home around noon time," Cassia told them as they sat around the table, "your family is actually coming over tonight for dinner, Sirius."

"Oh?" he looked questioning at her, "what's with the torture?"

"Keaira suggested that I should get close to some pure blood families since I'm not fifteen..."

"They want to prepare you to keep the Aesalon line pure, aren't they?" Sirius sneered, "in all honesty, I swear you should just tell them you'll marry me or James, then run off and find the man of your dreams," he shrugged as James nodded, "as long as James and I approve of the guy, of course."

"You want me to go find some Muggle boy, don't you?" Cassia laughed as she cut into her eggs that were on her plate.

"As long as he not slimy, Slytherin, a prat, or my brother, then we'll be on good terms," Sirius said seriously before chuckling with Cassia's devastate expression, which the three knew was all in mockery. James laughed as well. "Promise me, Cash, don't fall for my brother or any other Slytherin."

"I promise," Cassia smiled as she met Sirius' gaze. He gave a nod as did James before the three continued with their dinner.

Mrs Potter took a seat at the table, setting more food down and sitting at the end. James looked around before saying, "where's Dad?"

"He went into work early today," Mrs Potter explained, "Mr Conroy flooed over saying that a disaster happened and he needed back-up."

"I wonder what happened," Sirius said, curious.

"Maybe someone let lose a Hippogriff in the elevator!" Cassia said quickly, looking at the two boys and Mrs Potter wide-eyed and darting between the three. "or worse, what if someone charmed gnomes to fly?!"

"You have to much free time," James snorted as Sirius took a sip from his pumkin juice.

Cassia stayed for lunch, and promised to be back the next day to tell them how horrible dinner was, and tell them all the juicy Slytherin slimy gossip. She hugged each Potter and Sirius before flooing home. She walked out of the fireplace and into the sitting room where Keaira, a tall dark haired witch with nearly white-blue eyes that flickered quickly to Cassia as she entered.

"You're late," Keaira sneered, closing her book and flicking her wand to send it back to the shelves where it once stood, "Mother and Father are not pleased."

"You never stated when I was to return home, dear Keaira," Cassia said hiding her smug smirk, "do you wish for me to tell them that?"

"I stated clearly to arrive at noon-time," Keaira sneered as she tightened her grip on her wand, "and don't test me, Cassia."

"Noon-time is any time between eleven thirty and one o'clock in the afternoon."

"Trying to be smart does not suit someone so low," the two girls turned to see Keaira's father walking into the room, his tall, aristocratic figure holding himself higher than Keaira did, "Mirach and I want the best for you, Cassia, since your mother cannot make the choices for you, we were kind enough to offer our home to you. It is best that you be raised as a true Aesalon daughter."

"How is an Aesalon daughter raised any different than what I have been raised thus far?"

"An Aesalon daughter doesn't talk back to Father," Keaira sneered before looking to her father approvingly.

"That is correct, Keaira," smirked her Father, "second, an Aesalon daughter is expected to marry once out of Hogwarts. Although you failed to be placed in Slytherin, the blood is still pure, and can be fixed of it's taint once a suitable marriage is ensured."

Cassia thought for a second about what James and Sirius had said about saying she'd marry one of them to please her family but then be able to make the choice for herself. She took a breath before speaking, "I have all ready found someone."

"Oh?" Keaira and her father both said, Keaira's eyes narrowing suspiciously on her cousin.

"Yes, his name is..." she paused for a moment before continuing, "James... James Potter."

"James Potter!" Keaira hissed through clenched teeth, "that pratty Quidditch player? Isn't he in love with some Mudblood?"

"We've spent a lot of time together, Keaira, and he's given up hope on the girl. He knows that he needs to keep the Potters name clean, and as an Aesalon daughter, I must do the same," Cassia said heatedly to Keaira, "just because I don't scare away boys doesn't mean I'll have to be forced into some marriage to some git that I don't even know."

"I'll have you know that Arius and I doget along," Keaira spat.

"Is that because he's under the imperius curse?" shot Cassia, "so he hasto obey anything you say?" the two cousins glared at each other before Keaira's father cleared his throat, "sorry, Uncle..." Cassia said lowering her eyes to the floor.

"This Potter boy will not accept some snot-nosed girl who talks back," he said sternly, "we have a lot to work with for you."

Cassia gave a forced smile at the thought before rolling her eyes mentally. "Does this mean that the Blacks aren't coming any more?" Keaira asked.

"They will still come," he said, "maybe you will prefer Regulus over this James Potter."

"Maybe..." Cassia hissed under her breath, "if the world ended."


Just to let you know. This is not a James Potterx OC story. JUST TO MAKE THAT CLEAR! haha. =) I love James... well, not really, but oh well. Also, Cassia's name is pronounced CASH-UH, not CASS-E-UH. Just thought I'd make that clear.

Oh, and I own nothing but the Aesalon family, but the actual name belongs to JKR. =)