Laurel POV

The first few notes of Party Rock Anthem were what woke me up today. I'm glad that Viper, Sharpeye, and I decided to get jobs for our iPods. I hate how regular alarms wake me up with that annoying BEEEEEEP! I shut off my alarm and checked the time. 5:30 am? Why is my alarm set to five thirty in the morning? I whipped my head around to the only person who I know would do that. In retaliation, I crept up to her bed and started hitting her with my pillow. When she was up, I started tickling her. She caught me by surprise with a pillow to the face, knocking me off the bed. It was the start of an all out pillow/tickle war when our roommates began to complain.

"Guys, I'm sleeping!" Alice Perri complained.

Dorcas Meadowes just chucked a pillow at us. Lily didn't say anything. I looked over at Sharpeye and gave her an evil smile. 'Want to get everyone up?' I signed. She smirked and nodded before gathering our pillows. She handed me a pillow and we charged. I took Alice and Sharpeye took Dorcas. We hit them with our pillows as hard as we could. Thank Merlin that the pillows aren't feather pillows. They would have left a huge mess! We (somewhat) successfully got those two girls up and turned to the girl softly snoring on the bed. We almost took pity on her. Almost. We jumped on the bed and bombarded the redhead with pillows. It's too bad that she didn't wake up. Dorcas and Alice laughed.

"Good luck with her. She could sleep through the apocalypse," they stated.

I took that as a challenge. I transfigured a few quills into water balloons. Raven didn't want to be on the receiving end of Lily's rage, but I was having too much fun to really care about that. I banished the balloons so that they flew at Lily's head.

"Ahhhhh! Who did that?" Lily screeched.

I paled and ran into the bathroom. Raven, who knew that this would happen, handed me one of my uniforms as I ran past. I muttered a thank you over my shoulder. On the bright side, I would get the first shower. I spent a quick fifteen minutes in the shower before throwing on the uniform and brushing my hair. As soon as I opened the door, Alice rushed inside. I chuckled at her before moving to my bed.

I glanced at a still wet Lily. The red head was still soaked, but she looked extremely calm. I was a bit wary of her temper, but I walked over anyway.

"Lily, I'm sorry that I soaked you," I hung my head, waiting to be chastised. Instead I felt the soaking wet girl hug me.

"Eeeek!" I squealed.

Lily smirked, "Now we're even Laurel."

I sighed. I should have expected that. I noticed that Alice came in and sat down next to Raven. Dorcas went into the bathroom. I groaned. If I wait for all of the girls to take showers to get redressed I'll be wet for an extremely long time. I saw Lily look all dry all of a sudden. I nearly smacked myself on the forehead. Am I a witch or not? I muttered a quick drying and warming charm before grabbing the shortest book in my personal library, "The Giver."

I plopped onto the bed and began to read. A little while later, I felt someone flop onto my bed I looked up to see my best friend reading her astronomy textbook with her hair still dripping wet. I gave her a small smile and dried her hair for her. She muttered quick thanks and used a spell that would brush her hair and put it in her usual hair-do. It was her hair down while a small part was in a braid and clipped back. The dorm was pretty quiet; I guess it was because it was still around like six thirty. I decided to put on some music to fill the silence. I put my iPod on shuffle and turned it up as loud as possible. I sat back down on my bed and began reading again as "Just Dance" came on.

Someone gave a gasp. It was Alice. She obviously had never seen an iPod before. I heard Dorcas explaining it to her, so I went back to my book. I barely read another chapter before someone plucked it out of my hand.

"Nope, you are not going out with your hair like that," Dorcas stated.

"What's wrong with my braid?" I asked while playing with the braid that was draped over my left shoulder.

"Your hair could look so much prettier! Please let me fix it up. If you don't like it you can put it back in a braid," she pleaded.

I sighed. If she can get her hair to be so pretty then maybe she can tame my usually unruly locks. I nodded, and she immediately got to work on my hair. She muttered a charm that got out any knots that I might have missed when I brushed my hair earlier. Then she started curling my hair. It took about ten minutes to get it all curled. She then spayed it all with a lot of hairspray. I looked in a mirror and gasped. My hair was in basic long curls with my side bangs held away from my face (with the help of hairspray). It was simple but very pretty.

"Thanks Dorcas, but why don't we fix up Raven's hair?" I asked.

"Well I thought that her hair was okay, but you are so right," Dorcas replied.

I watched as my friend was lead to a chair. Dorcas was pretty good with hair. She could make my already pretty friend look fabulous. I went back to my book. When I looked up a few minutes later I started laughing. Raven's hair was no longer in its usual style. She instead had her hair in Snookie's hair style.

"What is so funny Laurel?" Raven demanded rather than asked.

I didn't answer; I just guided her to a mirror. The look on her face was priceless. Her eyes widened in horror and her jaw dropped. I could practically hear what she was thinking. It was something along the lines of, 'Snookie? I look like Snookie from Jersey freaking Shore?' Dorcas looked slightly miffed at Raven's reaction.

"You don't like it?" she snapped.

"It's not that," Raven replied."The hair style just reminds me of someone I just really don't like."

"Oh I'm so sorry!" Dorcas said as she made Raven's hair wavy before putting it in a loose side ponytail. She left a few strands out of the ponytail to frame Raven's face.

"It's okay Dorcas. Thanks for styling my hair," Raven chuckled at Dorcas's behavior.

I glanced down at my iPod. Yikes, it's seven 'o clock already. Breakfast starts in ten minutes. I hurriedly put all my books in my bag and made sure that I had extra quills. I saw the other girls start getting their supplies together as well. Raven took the easy way out and used a quick spell to get everything she needed while I just gathered them by hand. I mentally kicked myself when I remembered the spell to do it.

We all headed downstairs. The common room was deserted, so we just went downstairs to the Great Hall. When we got down, breakfast had just started, so we picked a spot at the table to sit and began to serve ourselves. We talked about random things in between mouthfuls of food. Well, it was random until the Marauders made their grand entrance.

As far as pranks go, it was a rather harmless one. Balloons rain down from the ceiling and turned whatever they touched whatever the color the balloon was. When all of the balloons had banished, a message sprung into the air. It said, "Moony, Padfoot, Prongs, and Wormtail welcome everyone back to Hogwarts after a much needed holiday." I looked myself over. I had yellow robes, purple hair, and blue skin. Raven had orange robes, red hair, and purple skin. Lily reminded me of an oompa loompa with blue robes, green hair, and orange skin. Dorcas's once black hair was now red, her robes green, and her skin purple. Alice's brown hair is now blue, her skin is now yellow and her robes are now purple. The Marauders however, got away with only their robes changing color.

"POTTER! BLACK! LUPIN! PETTIGREW!" the oompa loompa, I mean Lily, exploded.

I laughed as the orange clad James bounced up to Lily. The sight of Lily looking absolutely livid with the whole oompa loompa thing going for her sent me over the edge. I saw Sharpeye raise her eyebrow at me. I managed to gasp out the words Lily, mad, and oompa loompa. Raven glanced at Lily, comprehending what I said somehow. I guess that she looked over at Lily because she started cracking up too. Of course our laughter drew attention to us.

"What are you laughing at?" Lily screeched at us, now ignoring the Marauder she was berating before.

I managed to get my giggles under control before saying, "Oompa Loompa," and pointing at her.

Lily looked herself over and saw that she indeed looked like one of Willy Wonka's workers. She started chuckling at her appearance. Then she looked around and started laughing at all of us. Raven and I just grinned at her. I guess that the boys are off the hook.

We all started eating the oddly colored food again. It seems that even the food wasn't safe. Wait, the food is not safe. I stared at the green eggs on my fork. Alice notices this.

"Laurel, what's wrong?" she asked.

I answered her question with one of my own directed at the Marauders, "Did you spike the food in ANY way?"

"No..." they said in unison.

I quickly shoved my plate away from me. Alice was doing the same; unfortunately, the other girls hadn't been listening. We soon got to see what the guys spiked the food with. Within minutes of the Marauders answering my question, the Great Hall was filled with...snakes, lions, badgers, and eagles in robes. Alice and I screamed in fear. I saw a lioness in orange robes walk up to me and butt its head against my side. I automatically knew that it was Sharpeye. I think that we both realized how ironic this was. I never thought I would see the hawk of the group on four legs.

I saw a viper slither around the Slytherin table, and I felt a pang in my heart. Viper would have loved this. Five minutes later, everyone was back to normal but not touching the food. There were no oompa loompas or animals. Sadly, the Marauders cost us twenty house points. I guess that we are going to have to make them up later. At least it wasn't fifty or something like that. That would have been ridiculous. Raven and I didn't take any more chances with our food. We cast spells at our food just in case there was anything else in it. We ate our food without anymore interruptions until we all got our schedules. I looked mine over and paled when I saw the final class of the day.

"Sharpeye?" I stuttered.

"I know," she cut me over with a quivering voice.

I thought that we ditched that class. It used to be one of my favorites. In fact, it was also Raven's and Alexis's. That is why we dropped it; there are too many memories. In Salem Academy, the Huntresses were notorious for cross-breeding different species of plants. Our plants were often used in Herbology. Some (well, a lot) were examples in what not to do, but we fixed our mistakes. We learned about plants in Herbology then drew up plans for new plants. Professor Harris let us do it during class and counted it as extra credit. We goofed off a lot though, and spent most of the time signing different things to each other. We liked to breed plants that had funny pranks; we used them from time to time when people got stressed for midterms and finals. I remember our last Herbology class together.

Flashback

Viper, Sharpeye, and I bounded into the greenhouse. We had our arms linked together and Viper and I had a hybrid that we all bred in our free hand. They were our best crossbreeds, and we wanted to show how far we had progressed in breeding plants. Professor Harris was all for it. She was ecstatic. Me, I was just happy that our project was fun AND a success. We set the plants on a table and started talking to pass the time.

"We're early, aren't we?" Alexis asks.

I smile and mock-glare at Raven, "I told you that we had plenty of time to eat!"

Raven holds her hands up in surrender, "I'm nervous! This is the first time one of our plants goes public."

Alexis snorts, "So what do you call it when we use our plants for pranks? Undercover secret agent work?"

Raven rolls her eyes, and I laugh lightly. I notice that people were coming in. 'They're here' I signed. They nodded in acknowledgement of what I signed. Our conversation flowed into plans for the summer and things like that. Professor Harris took attendance then cleared her throat.

"Okay class, today we are not going to do anything with hands on work. Instead, we are going to listen to Alexis, Laurel, and Raven report on a few plants that they have crossbred. Listen carefully and don't interrupt them."

We took the two plants up to the front of the room. After a quick debate, (by debate I mean rock paper scissors) it was decided that I was to go first. With a sigh, I pushed one plant to the front of the desk that was placed there.

"This plant is called Dittany Aloe. Its parents are a mundane plant called aloe vera- a type of cactus- and the magical plant dittany. It takes some magic to get this plant because these two plants are extremely different, one being magical and the other mundane. This plant has inherited extremes from both of its parents when it comes to caring for it. From the aloe vera side, it has inherited the need to be in constant sunlight, it has to stay in dry soil, and it must be placed in temperatures that are between ninety and one hundred degrees or else it will freeze to death. That is from sunrise to sundown. From sundown to sunrise, it is different. It must be kept at temperatures ranging from sixty to sixty-two, and it must be in soaking wet soil. Mud suffices as well as long as it doesn't dry; it is easier to have to pots with different types of soil that best suit its needs and keep repotting it twice a day."

Raven started, "Dittany aloe has amazing healing properties that it inherited from both parents. It is also easier to collect the essence of this plant than dittany. Simply make a small incision in one of the leaves no bigger than a few millimeters and collect the essence in a small vial. By the time the essence finishes pouring out; there should be enough for a large scrape about the size of a hand. Unlike dittany, the plant doesn't wither or die, it simply makes more essence."

Taking a deep breath, Alexis began her part of the presentation, "The next plant," she gestured to the next one, "is a cross between the mundane plant poison ivy, the magical plant devil's snare, and the magical plant bubotuber. It has no name yet because we have yet to find a suitable one for it. It's up keeping is simpler than that of a dittany aloe plant. It prefers to live in shadier areas and more than an hour of sunlight will agitate it, causing it to lash out at people and animals around it. It requires being given water every three days. If given any sooner, it will drown. This plant has to be in soil that will hold about two thirds of the water given. This plant should be treated while wearing a pair if dragon hide gloves."

Raven finished off our report, "This plant is very dangerous and designed to be a line of defense. It can duck under the soil when given an activation phrase. This is so you don't make the area look suspicious. What this plant does is give painful boils wherever it touches that itch extremely badly. If a person grabs another person, they will be infected with boils as well. If the plant is stepped on by someone that is meaning to do harm or is meaning to steal something that the plant is guarding, it will wrap the person around in its long, tentacle like leaves. Depending on how bad the person's intentions are, the plant will either throw the person off of the property or strangle them to death. Those with non ill intentions will not be affected by any of these effects."

The class started clapping. I notice Raven sag slightly in relief and Alexis grin. We are all just glad it's over with. Class was dismissed and Professor Harris informs us that we deserved our extra credit and asks if she can keep our plants for future classes. We nod our heads happily. Then we go out to the quidditch pitch to relax a bit. We stay there looking up at the sky while listening to our iPods for about an hour, then leave to arrange our end of year party.

Flashback end

I was shaken out of my thoughts by Raven. She looked at me sadly. I always wondered if she could read my thoughts, she always knows what I am thinking. She slung an arm over my shoulder, and we solemnly walked to a class that the missing Huntress should have been in.

Raven pov

I slung my arm over her shoulder, giving and drawing strength from the contact. I knew what was going to happen as soon as I saw Herbology on our papers. We would both feel a little more broken. And we do. As Laurel and I followed Lily to Athrimancy, I reminisced about the day that I became friends with my fellow Huntresses.

Flashback

I sighed heavily as my messenger bag began sliding off my shoulder again. I tried to fix the length of the strap, but it wouldn't budge. Suddenly I was knocked onto my butt. As I look up getting ready to scream at whoever made me drop my bag, I saw a redhead with bright brown eyes apologizing rapidly.

"I am so sorry! Are you okay?" the girl asked.

I nodded dumbly. This was one of the few times that anyone has ever apologized to me without being sarcastic. I was shocked to say the least. The girl smiled brightly and introduced herself. She said that her name is Alexis. I introduced myself as well. Alexis admitted that she is extremely lost on her way to herbology and I just laugh. Together, we skip into the greenhouse that held our first herbology class of the year. We were twenty minutes late. The tables held groups of three, so Alexis and I sit next to a lonely looking girl with dark brown hair and forest green eyes. She mumbled a hello and quickly introduced herself before looking back up at the front of the room where the teacher was talking about this year's expectations are. Her name is Laurel. I sigh and start paying attention to what the (boring) teacher was saying.

I had been paying attention to the teacher for all of ten seconds when a piece of paper landed in front of me. I curiously read it.

-R

I'm bored. Hey, do you want to explore the school after lessons are over? =)

-A

-A

Sounds great. Meet me at the dorms at three fifteen?

-R

-R

Sounds goo-

-R and A

Stop writing notes to each other; you are going to get in trouble! We also have to take notes now!

-L

-L

We will be fine. Do you want to explore the school with us?

-A

Laurel never got to respond because at the moment that Alexis was about to pass the paper, the teacher descended on us like a hawk.

"Ladies!" she barked. "What do you think that you three are doing?"

I froze. I didn't know what to say; I just braced myself for punishment. Of all the things that I imagined happening, Laurel coming to the rescue wasn't one of them. She just didn't seem like the type to lie.

"I'm sorry if we were disrupting class Mrs. Harris. You see, Raven and Alexis don't know what they missed, so I was filling them in on what they had missed. I was also volunteering to help them to their next few classes so that they won't get lost. They don't want to be late again on their first day of school, and in good conscience, I can't let them be late to their other classes," she said in an innocent voice.

"Well...please wait until the end of my lecture to finish your conversation. It is good to help your fellow classmates. However, you should be aware that speaking while I am speaking is not allowed," the teacher responded after a moment of thought.

"Yes m'am," Laurel chirped.

The teacher, who I now know is Mrs. Harris, went back to teaching the class. I sighed quietly. I thought that we were going to get in trouble for sure. I saw Alexis relax out of the corner of my eye; she must have been nervous too. I decided to scribble a quick note to say thank you.

-L

Thanks for getting us out of trouble. Do you want to come exploring with Alexis and me? The offer is still on the table.

-R

I looked over at Laurel. She smiled and gave me a small, timid nod. I allowed a small smile grace my face. These people are my first friends, ever. Bullies can't call me "the friendless birdbrain." I have friends to protect me from the hurtful names and titles. They won't let me down. I'm sure of it.

Flashback end

I was forced from my thoughts when Laurel elbowed me in the arm. I stared at her. There was something in her eyes that told me she can't go through this alone. I squeezed her shoulder to tell her that I'm not going to let her down. She hasn't let me down at all since the day I met her; it's time for me to return the favor. We stepped into the Athrimancy room together. Let the torture begin.

I couldn't be there for my sister today. The memories of Alexis were in the forefront of my mind the entire day. I don't think that Laurel minded though. When I surfaced from my memories for a moment, she seemed to be lost in her own memories. I noticed that we were taking notes almost robotically. I guess I'm going to do some studying later on. The memories occupied my mind once more before I could review what was written. I continued like this until lunch, memories of a happier time dancing through my mind. A flash of a party here, a peek of a study session, a snippet of herbology class; any memory would play in my head.

I had a rare moment where my vision wasn't occupied by the visions of the past. I looked up surprised. I noticed that Laurel and I had grasped one of the other's shoulders. I sighed as I felt the weight of Laurel's hand on my shoulder. She is always there for me, even when she's not mentally here. I groaned as another memory was triggered. The last thing I saw before the memory engulfed my mind was Lily's hopeful face. I wonder why she looks so hopeful.

SMACK!

My face began stinging. I blinked as I was brought back to reality. I saw a livid Lily with a red palm. It didn't take a genius to realize that she slapped me.

"What is wrong with you two?" she all but yelled.

I glanced at Laurel. She had her head down and her eyes open, but glazed over. Laurel was stuck in her own memories. I felt like I had been sleeping for a long time, so I closed my eyes and shook all the cobwebs out of my head.

SMACK!

My eyes snapped open. In front of me, my best friend, my only family in the whole world was on her butt with a hand shaped mark on her cheek. I saw red. No. One. Hurts. My. Little. Sister. EVER. In a blink of an eye, I had taken a defensive stance over my sister. If anyone wanted to hurt her, they would have to go through me first. Lily looked at me in shock. The Marauders just watched the scene unfold.

"What's wrong with me? What is wrong with YOU? Slap me, punch me beat me to a bloody pulp, but don't touch Laurel. She is my only family left. I have no one else in the entire world with Alexis gone, and I can't survive Laurel leaving me like everyone else did. So. Do. Not. Lay. A. Hand. On. My. Sister. Okay?" I growled out threateningly.

Remus spoke up, I forgot the boys were there, "Raven, what do you mean that Laurel is your only family left? Who is Alexis?" he said tenderly.

I froze. Laurel, who was standing behind me, froze as well. I felt my eyes widen slightly before I put on my poker face. In my peripheral vision, I see Laurel's face harden. She isn't going to cry in front of them, neither will I. We share a look and simultaneously mouth 'run!' The Marauders and Lily can only watch as we hightail it out of there.