Saturday morning arrived peacefully. Being the first Saturday of the Hogwarts year, most students were taking the opportunity to sleep in. Not the Gryffindor Quidditch team! Or the rest of the Gryffindors, who were awakened by the captain, Olivia Wood, screaming at the top of her lungs for them to wake up and meet at the Pitch.
Remus shook his head and glared at Sirius. "You just had to be Beater, didn't you?"
"Hey, it's not my fault! Jamie's a Seeker!" Sirius protested, pulling his uniform over his head.
"Yes, but James wakes up early because he has work ethic!" Peter grumbled.
"He doesn't have that much more then me!" Sirius pouted.
"Sirius, everybody has more work ethic compared to you. Sagi has more work ethic then you!" Remus said; referring to Sirius' owl, who was so lazy it took him two extra days to deliver letters.
"It's not my fault!"
"Technically, it is, and Olivia says to get down because tryouts are in a few hours and she wants us to warm up before we try everybody out. We do need a new Beater, and three Chasers. I can't believe we were dumb enough to have all our Chasers in seventh year. It's starting from scratch, no person to show them the ropes!" James said, entering the room, grabbing his goggles and leaving the room.
"When he's Captain, he's going to go nuts." Sirius grumbled, storming out.
"Nice of you to grace us with your presence, Black." April spat, putting on her Keeper's gloves.
"What's got your panties in a line, Zelan?" Sirius asked angrily.
"I got attacked by Alice's cat." She muttered.
"Archie attacked you? Why?" Olivia asked, familiar with Alice's cat.
"Alice threw her at me after you screamed a second time." April sighed.
James hopped from one foot to the other. "Can we please GO?"
Olivia laughed. "You can go to the washroom anytime you want James. We'll be at the Pitch. Come on, guys."
"You KNOW thats NOT what I meant!"
An hour after they left, there was a stampede of students, years 2 to 7, to go tryout for the team. Some of them weren't even trying out, just supporting friends going for the team or friends on the team. The first years, during that time, decided to take over the Common Room.
Evan and Juliet sat a table playing Wizard's Chess, Tristan was throwing around pick-up lines with Jordan and Alex, other first-year boys, Charlie and Samantha, a first-year girl who liked books rather then friends, were working on homework. Annie and Owen sat on a sofa and stared into the fire, which was odd, because it was 9 in the morning in September and there was no need for a fire.
"Why is Quidditch such a big deal?" Annie asked.
Owen stared at her. "Quidditch is the most popular wizarding sport EVER! You should know that, your brother was on the team, wasn't he?"
Annie nodded. "But most of the tower went to go see the tryouts. Why?"
Owen shrugged. "A quarter of them, to try out. Another quarter, to stare and drool over the players. The rest were really bored or supporting friends."
"They drool over the players?"
"Yeah. My brother used to complain about a seventh-year who was supposed to be Captain, but he came in September and resigned from the team altogether. They got creamed. Mitch was on the team, he was a fifth-year then."
Annie's face reddened and she got off the sofa, and sat next to the fire. "That seventh-year WAS my brother. He came home on Christmas, and told me it was the hardest thing he had ever done. But... he did promise me. And I promised him."
Owen crouched next to her. "Why did he quit? What did he promise?"
Annie shook her head, and turned away from him.
"C'mon Annie, tell me!"
She stood up, eyes tearing, and ran from the Common Room. Samantha ran out after her, followed by Juliet, then Charlie.
Owen was shocked that she reacted like that.
Evan scratched his head. "What did you do, Owen?"
"I have absolutely no idea."
"What were you talking about? I saw her get a little tense right after you started talking. " Alex asked.
"Why were you watching her?" Evan asked.
"She's pretty cute." Alex shrugged.
Owen clenched his fists. "We were talking about Quidditch. Just Quidditch."
The room dissolved into silence.
"Why is there only four Gryffindor girls in first-year?" Tristan asked.
"Shut up, Tristan." The other boys echoed.
The rest of the Gryffindor's returned around three, having finished tryouts a bit late. The room was a bit chaotic, because the second-years were fuming on how badly they did, fifth-years were already collapsing under the pressure of OWLs, seventh-years were trying to get good chairs by the fire, and well, the Marauders were planning things. And the Marauder's aren't famed for being quiet. Especially not Sirius Black.
"BUT ANNIE'S PLAN WAS SOOO GOOD! WE SHOULD USE IT BEFORE WE FORGET!" Sirius exclaimed, pounding his fists on the table. "SNIVELLUS DESERVES IT!"
"How can we do it, though, Sirius?" Remus muttered, looking over Hogwarts: A History at the not-very exact map of Hogwarts. "The only way is to prank all of them!"
"Thats genius, Remus!" James said a little loud. "Pranking all the Slytherins! They do deserve it, after all!"
"Oh really, Potter? What did they do to deserve it?" Lily asked, frowning.
"They were born!" James said plainly, like there was nothing as obvious in the world.
"I can't believe you! Why can't you give them a chance?" She asked.
"Because they hate everything! They hate muggleborns! Did you not notice how they tried hex you on Tuesday?"
"I don't need you to protect me, Potter! If you didn't notice, I DON'T LIKE YOU!" She spat, and turned and walked away.
James stood up and stopped her right before she got to the stairs.
"Lily, why do you hate me?" He pleaded.
'Because you a heartless arrogant toerag!" She screamed, and turned and walked up the stairs.
"But... but I... I..." James fumbled over the words.
Peter put a hand on his shoulder. "Let her go, James."
Sirius grinned. "Want to go cruising tomorrow?"
"Cruising?" Remus asked.
"For chicks. Single guys only. Sorry." Sirius said.
"It's okay," May said from behind Remus. "Single guys don't get snogs at random intervals during the day." She laughed, and walked out of the Common Room.
"She's pretty hot, when you see her without the books and stuff." Sirius remarked.
"Go near her, I kill you."
Sirius squeaked. "Got it."
Sunday passed pretty quietly. Sirius and James, however, did not go Cruising, because they had to finish an essay for Potions, which was due on Monday. Their prank was in action- sneaking the potion which they had put into the girls' shampoo (altered, for the tutu and blonde effect) into the Kitchens, and telling the House-Elves to put the potion in all the Slytherin's food.
Monday morning came, and everybody was seated in the Great Hall. All of a sudden, there was a loud popping noise, and all of the teachers had lond blonde curly hair and were wearing ballerina tutu's.
Let's just say, Proffesor McGonagall wasn't all that happy.
"POTTER! BLACK! PETTIGREW! LUPIN! DETENTION FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS!" She shouted, as Dumbledore and Proffesor Slughorn chuckled.
"That potion was amazing, though, you must admit, Minerva. " Slughorn said. "Finite." He whispered, and everybody was back to normal. Or as normal as you can get at Hogwarts.
Lily was laughing so hard she was almost crying. April and Alice were supporting eachother so they wouldn't collaspe. May and Remus looked at eachother and burst out laughing.
"Bloody House-Elves." Sirius muttered.
"Hey Sirius." Annie said, sitting down across from him, Owen next to her.
"Hey, Annie." He nodded darkly to Owen, who bit his lip and stacked his plate with pancakes.
"Oi, Owen, save us some!" Evan said, walking up with Jordan and Juliet.
Annie forked some sausages onto her plate and drowned them in syrup.
Jordan turned to Annie and asked, "Excited for flying today? First lesson!"
"Why didn't you get one last week?" James asked.
"Hooch was sick." Evan said. "It'll be my first time on a broom, ever!"
"Mine too." Jordan said. "Josh loved his broom- good thing he got Chaser this year or I wouldn't even go near it. 'I don't want you ruining this baby until I'm on the team!'" He imitated his older brother, and made a face.
"Not mine. Daddy took me out flying all the time." Juliet said.
"Not mine either. Mitch needed Quidditch practice, so he lent me his old broom." Owen added.
"It won't be mine... Rich took me out flying after he won the cup in his sixth year." Annie stabbed one of her sausages.
"So guys are you excited or what?" Jordan asked, evidently trying to pump everybody up.
"I am!" Evan and Juliet said together.
"Ditto!" Owen said.
Annie stayed quiet.
"Annie?" Sirius asked.
The bell went off, and Annie shot off like lightning.
"That was odd." Peter said.
"Maybe she's afraid of heights." Evan said. "She did that on Saturday, too."
"I was afraid of heights until my first lesson. I certainly didn't act like that." April said.
"But you're on the team!" Juliet said, shocked.
"YOU! GET TO CLASS, ALL OF YOU!" McGonagall ordered.
April sat boredly next to June in Muggle Studies. Proffesor Tarmad was talking about elitrikidy, or something. Being a half-blood, she should of known what he was talking about, but both her parents were wizards and her mom, a muggle-born, eloped with her dad the minute they graduated from Hogwarts, so April barely knew anything about Muggle life. All she focused on was she was two classes away from dinner and semi-freedom.
"So, Miss April, can you tell the class five things that work on electricity in the Muggle world?" Tarmad asked.
"The television, a computer, uhm, light bulbs, er, a fridge, and a felly- telephone!"
"Correct. Now, Miss June, can you tell me why a fridge works in the Wizarding world?"
"Because they are charmed to work on magic."
"Correct- Yes, Proffesor McGonagall?" Tarmad asked.
April whirled around. 'Thank god Potter and Black's in this class, or I might have to be worried!'
"I would like to borrow Miss April for a bit." McGonagall stated.
June shot her a look that said, What did you do now?
"But.. but I didn't do anything!" April defended, getting up and grabbing her bag.
"Please, quickly." She said, and together they left the room.
"You see, Miss Zelan, there is a first-year who refuses to fly. We've been trying for the past fifteen minutes, but she won't fly! She doesn't seem afraid of heights, but she won't go anywhere near a broom! I know you used to be afraid of heights, so perhaps you can help?" McGonagall explained, and walked towards Dumbledore's office.
"Why is the student in Dumbledores office?" April asked.
"Because he has helped with situations like this in the past." Turning to the statue, she said, "Funnel cakes. This was, Miss Zelan."
McGonagall opened the door and ushered April in, adding, "Good luck" before she closed the door.
Dumbledore looked up and smiled. "Ah, April, come in, come in."
April sat down and looked to her side.
"Hi, April." Annie said, and looked at her hands.
Dumbledore looked back at Annie. "Anne, April was afraid of heights and now she's on the Gryffindor Quidditch Team."
Anne looked at him and quickly looked away, saying, "I'm not afraid of heights."
"Then why won't you fly?" April blurted out. "Flying is amazing! Wind through your hair, great view, unbelievable freedom, it's a great feeling to be on a broom!"
"I know!" Annie snapped.
"Then why won't you fly, Anne?" Dumbledore asked calmly.
"I promised Richard." Annie bit her lip.
"Why would you make a promise like that?" April asked.
"Because he promised me the same thing before his seventh year, and flying was his life. He had to quit the team!" She said, eyes slightly tearing.
"Why did he make such a promise?" Dumbledore asked gently. "Will you tell us?"
Annie bit her lip again, and nodded. "Theres a ten year difference between Richard and me. When I was born, my parents were really happy but a little sad that I didn't have a sibling near my age. A week before I turned one, Robert was born. My parents knew I was a witch because of my, my..."
"You being a Metamorphmagus." Dumbledore answered.
"Yeah, that. Well, me and Rich knew Rob was a Muggle. But we didn't care. We all loved him, and when Richard went to Hogwarts, me and Rob could play and talk. We got really close." Annie sighed. "When Rob was six, he started to show a big interest in trains. He loved them. By mid July, he could name the first railway, and basically anything about the way trains work.
"My parents had a couple of close friends who lived in Canada, where they were from, who owned a railway company. So at the beginning of August, they flew Rob over there on a plane so he could spend a few weeks with them and learn more about trains. Me and Richard were sorta down, because we missed him. But in the meanwhile, Richard decided to teach me Quidditch so when I'm a second-year, I could be on the team. He started to take me out flying everyday." Annie's eyes filled up with tears and one rolled down her face.
"The day Rob was supposed to come home, we all went to the airport early. I was seven, I was excited, because it would be my first time in an airport. My parent's friends were going to fly over with Rob to visit, because they were my godparents.
"We got to the airport, and my parents asked somebody where we should wait. They asked us what plane his was, then when Daddy told the person, they ushered us into some lounge that was filled with a bunch of confused people. Then the person who we had spoken to came in the room and asked for our attention." Annie's face twisted in pain and she burst into tears. Hiccuping, she said quietly, "My brother's flght crashed half an hour before it landed. There were no survivors."
April jumped up and hugged Annie tightly. Dumbledore frowned slightly.
Pushing April away slightly, Annie said, "Then and there my brother told me that he would never fly anything again, and we made a pact that as long as we both lived, we would never fly. My brother threw away his life because my baby brother lost his. That's why I don't fly."
June tapped her fingers on her desk in Potions, while May took notes on the Moonlight Potion, a potion that, if drunk during a full moon, would enable you to see in the dark for a week.
"June, can you go get me a few Glowslugs? It says you need to drain the juices from them. June?" May poked June hard in the ribcage with her quill. "What's wrong with you?"
"April got called out of class in Muggle Studies and I havent seen her since." June said simply.
May rolled her eyes. "Muggle Studies was last period. I doubt she's been eaten by a troll." She said as she walked to get the Glowslugs herself.
Remus was there picking out a few. "What is it?" He asked, seeing her face.
"June. Worrying about April."
"Sirius has been harking about her since this class started. He thinks that she shouldn't play innocent to the teachers. Personally, I think he fancies her."
"I know. Nobody talks about who they 'hate' that much, not even Lily!" May laughed.
"Miss Zelan, Mr Lupin, please stop talking and get back to your potions!" Slughorn said, wagging his finger.
"What took you so long?" Sirius growled as Remus walked back. "The potion's almost orange..."
"Then add the dragonfly wings!" Remus said, throwing in the wings and putting his Glowslugs on the cutting board. Picking up his knife, he crushed the slugs and collected the juices in a small vial.
"I don't see how Zelan could not know that she's in trouble. I mean, she's always caught with guys." Sirius continued to talk, but Remus started to block him out.
Twenty minutes later, the doors of the classroom burst open, revealing April, holding her bags and gasping for breath. Walking up to Slughorn, she handed him a note, saying "Proffesor McGonagall, Dumbledore, First-year, flying." and then right before she sat down, the bell rang, indicating the end of class.
"OH COME ON!" April shouted, shaking her fist at the ceiling.
"Breathe, Zelan." Sirius said. "Wouldn't want you popping a vein." He added sarcastically.
"Go be an insensitive prick somewhere else, Black." She snapped.
"Uhm, guys, can't you just get along?" James asked.
"Shut up, Potter, nobody cares what you think." Lily spat.
May and Remus shot eachother a look and walked out of the class holding hands. Peter shot a hopeful glance towards June, who said, "Dont even think about it, Pete."
"So April, did you find out why Annie hates Quidditch?" James asked later in the Common Room.
"Yeah."
"Can you tell us?" Peter asked.
"Fine." April sighed. "Annie's younger brother died in a plane accident when she was seven and her brother 'threw away his life because her baby brother lost his.'"
Owen, who was walking by, turned on his heel and bolted out of the Common Room in search of Annie.
Sirius shot him a glare.
"So thats what the promise was?" James asked.
April nodded.
"Not to fly?" Sirius asked, shocked.
Alice, who was doing her nails by the fire, said, "Yeah."
"Really?" James asked, earning him a smack on the back of the head.
Preview of Chapter Five:
Remus held May's hand over the table and smiled.
She smiled back, saying, "I love The Three Broomsticks. It's such a nice place. I mean, even April's in here. Snogging, yeah, but she's in here."
Remus laughed, asking, "Who's she with?"
"I think it's... oh my god."
There you go!
leprauchan: Yes it will, it's going to continue until James and Lily's death. (Actually, it goes on a bit after that. I might need a sequel.)
Missy369: Thanks, and I'm updating, I'm updating!
Melora: Thanks for the luck, I might need it!