Author's Note: Okay, I know I said I would post every weekend, but I don't know if that's going to happen. I have so much work to do so this story might be on hold for a while, or I might just post chapters at random times a few weeks from each other. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I just have a lot to do, and a lot of big stuff is happening. My parents are getting divorced, I'm just about to go to high school, and it's just been a long year, and years. I'm happy to have shared them with you. Anyway, enjoy this one!

Chapter 2: This Year

September 2

Lily P.O.V.

I got up on the morning of the second wishing I could just stay in bed. The worst part of coming back from summer: you and your alarm clock becoming reacquainted. Another one of the non-magical objects I had charmed, if you were wondering. Another thing was, I really did not feel like facing the day. School, along with the other things that come with it, is tiring. Schoolwork and essays usually come naturally to me, but despite common thought, social situations do not. I make it work, and I do it well, judging on how my peers treat me, but it doesn't mean I have to like it always. With my family, the Quidditch team, and Lilac, I felt more myself. I wasn't like the fake girls I gossiped with at school. They weren't really bitches or anything, but they weren't very real, or very deep. I felt like there was a lot more from some of them than I had every discovered, or they themselves had. We just weren't right for each other.

I missed sharing a dorm with Lilac, though. Getting ready in the morning just wouldn't be the same without our sarcastic jibes at each other. Oh best friends. Treating each other like shit since the age of dinosaurs. But not really, I'm kidding. We don't really treat each other like shit, we just have a special relationship, like all friends do. We're actually very similar, but somewhat different, as well. I don't like relationships with opposites. They don't usually work.

Speaking of getting ready, I groaned and rolled myself out of bed and onto the floor. I was safe with time, because I always got up considerably early. First Quidditch practice was tomorrow, so I didn't have to worry about that either. I got up from the carpeted floor and ran my hands tiredly through my hair. Looking around, I spotted the bathroom I had found yesterday, and went inside, looking in the huge mirror that accompanied the sink. Frowning disappointedly, I ran my hands through my slightly limp hair. Oh well, it was the first day of school, what could I expect?

After showering and quickly and hastily drying my hair magically back to it's silky, straight, and very red state. My hair is one of the parts of my appearance that I felt very good about. It was always straight, I didn't have to straighten it, and it tangled only rarely, and it never frizzed. It was great, and it looked good. I liked my eyes, as well, I thought as I looked in the mirror. I'm not jealous of Albus because he got Lily Potter's eyes. I love the eyes, but I love my mother's as well, and green isn't really my color. I already stand out for the hair; I don't think it's necessary I get the eyes as well. I think they would probably look better on Al by comparison. One of the things I didn't like about my face is the breakouts and sensitive skin. That's never good. I got out my cleanser and other things from my bag. I had a very complicated routine, in my opinion. I'm a little obsessed with my appearance, to be honest, but I like the finished look, makeup and all. I can tell that other people think I look good, too. Another perk of being an empath. Knowing exactly how attractive you are. That was a joke, by the way.

I was glad all of my older cousins were gone from Hogwarts, finally. Even though it was only one year, it was a great feeling of freedom not to have them breathing down my neck all the time. James was fine, but Albus and Fred were a nightmare. Guys that were interested in me might as well pack their bags, because they would find some way to get them expelled, for example: offence: being attracted to sister.

I was almost done putting on my makeup as I looked up at the clock to see it was almost seven. This was good, because classes started at nine, and I liked to eat breakfast early then go upstairs to pack up my bag for classes, and, later in the year, do some cramming of schoolwork. Lilac and I always met in the Great Hall at 7:15 for breakfast, so I was on track. I lightly lined my eyes with black liner—only on the top, so as not to make them look smaller—and headed into my room to choose what to wear. I know what you're thinking, Lily Luna Potter is way too high-maintenence, but it really didn't take me long to do all that. I'm just more vain than most of my cousins.

Down the stairs, I tiptoed in the naïve hope that if I was as quiet as possible it would make it less likely for Lorcan to be awake and bother me. Thankfully, if he was awake he was not down in the common room, so I left without conflict. Conflict of the opposite gender, Lilac would call it. What she meant when she said that was sexual tension, but I didn't exactly agree with her on that account.

I ran on the points of my toes down the long staircase to the Entrance Hall. When I entered the Great Hall, Lilac was there, her arms crossed, waiting for me. When I came into her line of vision, she raised one eyebrow, smirking playfully.

"You're late." She said. Everything about Lilac screamed city girl. She wore relaxed, hipster clothing that would be associated with San Francisco: edgy and glamorous all in one. Her hair was big and all on top of her head, a dark chocolate brown a few shades darker than her caramel colored skin. She carried herself with an air that said she really didn't care what people thought of her, a trait which I envied.

"I'm ever so sorry." I said mockingly.

"Thank you so much for that sincere apology, it means a lot to me." She said, pretending to sob. We both laughed when I got to where she was standing. She threw her arm over my shoulder as we walked into the Great Hall.

"New day, new term." She said, sighing as she looked around at the sparsely populated tables.

"Don't even remind me." I groaned, sitting down and helping myself to breakfast. Lilac rolled her eyes.

"Okay, I know you're still feeling sorry for yourself because of the whole "being Heads with your 'worst enemy'" thing, but seriously, that's not what this year is all about. Just ignore him and poof, problem solved!"

"Easier said than done. But I'll try." I sighed. She grinned.

"That's the spirit!" she said sarcastically, and I hit her over the head, rolling my eyes.

…..

Hugo P.O.V.

I stretched like a cat as I woke up the boy's dormitory on the morning of the first day of classes. Rolling over, I groaned disheartedly. I really did not want to start school today. First of all, it was the seventh and final year, and we would be taken to the highest standards of the teachers. Secondly, my girlfriend had dumped me at the end of the last school year, and barely anyone knew in the school, so I would be faced with a lot of questions. Thirdly, my cousin was now sharing a common room with Lorcan Scamander, who I didn't particularly mind, but Lily Luna hated, so I would be listening to rants about him for weeks on end. And I use listening in a broad sense. Stretching again, I tumbled off the bed ungracefully. Oh well, might as well get ready now.

About fifteen minutes later, I was standing in the entrance of the Great Hall, bracing myself for Lily's inevitable rant about Lorcan. I made my way over to the place where Lily and her friend Lilac were sitting, talking.

"Morning," I muttered, grabbing the eggs from across the table and serving myself hastily, trying not to be drawn into a conversation.

"Good morning." Lily said relatively cheerfully. I looked up, startled. She looked a little miffed, but she seemed cheerful enough. Guess that was a good sign. Lily looked up and caught my gaze. "Don't look so surprised. I can have good mornings too, you know."

"I didn't realize that included mornings where you share a dorm with Lorcan Scamander." I said sarcastically. She rolled her eyes.

"It's a common room we share, not a bed—although he probably would like that better—and it's only been one night." She said, taking a sip of her hot cocoa. I raised my eyebrows, looking at Lilac.

"Was she like this when she came down with you?" I asked skeptically.

"I gave her a pep talk." She reassured me.

"That explains a lot." I said. Lily gave us a look that shut us both up.

…

Lorcan P.O.V.

It was half past eight when Lorcan finally got up, swearing at himself for sleeping late. Way to start off the first day in the traditional way. I got up out of bed and took a shower, then got dressed, still grumbling to myself angrily. I messed up my hair into its trademark style, then ran quickly down the stairs towards the portrait hole. Just as I reached it, it was pushed open from the other side, and Lily entered, looking as she usually did; calm and put together. As she looked up to see me, her face formed a small cute frown.

"Happy to see me, Red?" I asked, silently laughing at the frown.

"You do know breakfast is just being cleared up, right, Scamander?" she said, raising her eyebrows. I swore and ran out of the portrait hole, her laugh echoing after me. When I reached the Great Hall, trying to catch my breath, I rolled my eyes. Lily had obviously been trying to get me away from her fast, because it was twenty till and the tables were full. I made my way over to where my friends were sitting and sat down next to Jesse, quickly piling food onto my plate.

"What took you so long, mate? We've been here for ages!" Jesse exclaimed. I rolled my eyes.

"Woke up late." I muttered.

"Aw-huh." Jesse and Mark intoned together. I rolled my eyes at them. My friends had the insane idea that I was sleeping with Lily Potter, and had been for some time. Nothing I could say would convince them of the impossibility of that theory.

"Looking forward to first day of classes?" I said conversationally. Mark snorted.

"As if. I'll probably fail everything this year." He said.

"I was under the impression that only girls played dumb, Cooper." I said in a bored tone. He smirked.

"I guess these things come easily to me is all." He said, winking at a girl who was looking at him from across the table. The girl turned scarlet and turned her head away. Jesse and I shook our heads. For someone who gets such good grades, Mark could be the most thick-headed person in the universe.

Nine o'clock was when our classes first started every morning, and although Professor Longbottom, our new headmaster, had already passed out our schedules, Jesse had taken mine for me. Looking at it now, I realized with a groan that we had my least favorite class, Transfiguration, first.

"What do you have?" I asked Jesse, peering over at his schedule.

"Charms, you?" Jesse said.

"Transfiguration." I groaned.

"Too bad. At least you'll be able to get the first scoop on the new teacher, since McGonagall's gone and all." He said.

"Oh yeah, I forgot all about that. Who do you think it is?" I said.

"No one we know. Didn't you hear them introduce him at the Welcoming Feast? His name was something-that-begun-with-a-d Robinson." He finished lamely.

"I guess I'll find out soon then." I said, shrugging.

Breakfast was fast, and before I knew it I was taking my seat in Professor Robinson's class. Students were just filling into the classroom, and although the teacher wasn't here yet, his name was written on the board. Daniel Robinson. I recalled the name from somewhere, and when the Professor stepped into the classroom, I realized where from. He was a student from a few years back, something like Lily Potter's brother James' year. The man made his way to stand right in from of the teacher's desk to address us all.

"As you all should know by now, Professor McGonagall has retired after her long time teaching, and so I have been asked to take over her post. I am your new Transfiguration teacher, my name is Daniel Robinson, and I would prefer if you called me Daniel, not Professor Robinson." The new teacher said. There was a vague murmur of consent mostly from the girls in the classroom. They were all looking at the man in a way that made me half angry and half amused. I exchanged annoyed glances with Hugo Weasley and other boys in the class. If the girls were going to moon over the teacher this whole time, it was going to be a long year.

By the end of the class, we had already been told of the project we would be doing this year: human transformation, and given the assignment to write an essay on the basic aspects of it by Friday. The whole class had groaned at the announcement of this, but Robinson had insisted it wasn't that hard.

"Hogwarts: the place where senioritis does not exist." Hugo Weasley said as they left. We all laughed as we made our way to our next class.