The announcement came late in October, just a few days before Halloween. It should have been a nice, enjoyable day (it was the first Hogsmeade weekend of the school year) but instead it started with a newspaper article and ended with a fight.

And, suffice to say, neither were particularly pleasant.

(Fred)

Shacklebolt Resigns: Will Evermonde Bring a New Hope?

It is undeniable that Minister for Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt has had a successful run as Minister, overlooking the end of a thirty year long war, and a complete reform of the Ministry of Magic. However, it has recently revealed that after his fourth term, his time as Minister for Magic has come to an end.

Reports of the Minister's ill health has been dogging the Ministry for months; now, in the early hours of the morning of the 27th it has been announced that Shacklebolt will be resigning from his position in the April of next year, meaning that he will become the second longest serving Minister for Magic at twenty three years, after Faris Spavin's thirty eight year run, and arguably one of the most popular Ministers to date.

However, the rather bitter last few years of Shacklebolt's run will undoubtedly dog his otherwise excellent performance. Unhappiness across the nation has been prevalent for the last five years, a result, many believe, of a dramatic surge in the magical population. It has long been thought that there is little hope of recapturing the golden years experienced immediately after He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's fall by the hands of Harry Potter, and so many of us will surely now be asking the same question: If Shacklebolt cannot help us, who can?

Many heads are turning towards Hector Evermonde, Shacklebolt's Undersecretary for the past seven years. Just hours after the Minister's announcement, Evermonde spoke to reporters stationed in the Atrium, announcing his own hopes to replace Shacklebolt.

"The Minister's ill health is very unfortunate indeed. I'm sure that all of us here can agree that he has done much to support the Wizarding community since those troubling years of war. However, there was only so much he could do. I have a plan that could be infallible for saving Britain from collapse once again. It has long been said that the cause of this unhappiness - this unemployment, these riots, these fights - is the result of restrictions forced upon wizards by the Statute of Secrecy. I believe that by abolishing this quite frankly old fashioned regime, Wizarding Britain can be great once again!"

Evermonde's claims are indeed shocking; the Statute of Secrecy has been in place since 1692, and has been agreed upon by over forty countries, including France, Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom…

"Bollocks," commented James Potter, throwing the paper onto the Gryffindor table. "Fucking bollocks. Hector Evermonde? If he's anything like his bloody nephew then Britain'll go to shit."

"Why? What's happened now?" Aaron managed to ask in between shovelling mouthfuls of breakfast down his throat.

"Kingsley's resigned, Evermonde's campaigning to takeover, and he wants to get rid of the Statute of Secrecy."

"Oh. So nothing much, then?"

"Not the time, mate…"

The Great Hall was abuzz with excited chatter as a result of the aforementioned article, even more so than usual, but as his two friends bickered Fred found that he couldn't bring himself to care all that much about the article. Not right then, anyway.

He had good reason to be distracted. That Saturday marked not only the first Hogsmeade trip of the year but also his first date with Vera Summers. Actually, his first date ever.

It had taken Fred three attempts to ask her out. Once in the library, where he had run over to where Vera had sat with her housemates, panicked, stared at her for ten seconds, then ran away again. The second was outside Charms. He had actually managed to say 'hello' that time before being spooked by the arrival of Henry King and Isaac Selwyn.

The third attempt took place in the middle of the Great Hall during dinner, with James, Aaron, Oscar, and Gus all sat watching and spouting off useless advice. A week later and he still winced with embarrassment at the memory. He had slunk over to the Hufflepuff table where Vera was surrounded by countless giggling girls; he had stuttered and stammered and eventually stammered out the question, and although the ensuring few seconds had seemed to drag on for a lifetime, finally she had smiled and nodded happily; he had walked back over to the Gryffindor table to cheers and catcalls from James, Aaron, Gus, and Oscar. All in all, the entire thing had been mortifying.

But still, she had said yes. He had a date to Hogsmeade who was kind and pretty and clever (although not quite as kind and pretty and clever as Alex Morgan) and for that he should be completely and utterly ecstatic. And he was, a bit. It's just that he was also completely fucking terrified.

"Fred? Oi, Fred!"

"Huh?" He jerked out of his reverie and stared at James.

"I said, why do you think Kingsley actually resigned?" He smirked. "God, you were thinking about Summers again, weren't you?"

"No," said Fred indignantly. "I was thinking about… the weather."

"Since when did we start using the weather as a euphemism for Vera Summers' tits?" Aaron asked.

"And you wonder why I won't let you meet up with us later," Fred marvelled.

"You two talking about Vera Summers?"

It was Oscar and Augustus. As usual it was the former that had spoken whilst the other took a seat with his trademark grumpiness.

"Yep," said Aaron grinning. "Fred here was just telling us that we're not allowed anywhere near him or Vera today."

Oscar leant forward and swiped a piece of James's toast. "Nah, fuck that. Me and Gus are planning to ambush you two later."

"Don't you fucking dare!" said Fred at once, panicking. "I don't want any of you shitheads ruining this for me!"

"So suspicious," said James solemnly to the others, shaking his head. "It's heartbreaking to see at such a young age."

"James Sirius Potter…"

"I dunno why you're looking at me," he said, a bit sullenly. "I'll be stuck with Maya all day, listening to her complain about this knob." He punched Aaron's shoulder. "It's Gus, Oscar, and Aaron you need to look out for, none of them have dates."

That was true but only Oscar looked put out by it; Augustus just shrugged and looked as grumpy as ever whilst Aaron positively beamed.

"And why would I want a date exactly?" he wanted to know. "I was asked out by five girls this week and I told them all to buggar off. It's too much agg going to Hogsmeade with a girl. They get all clingy afterwards."

"My heart bleeds for you," said Fred dryly, prodding a sausage with his fork. "Also, you can't even afford to take a girl on a date! You had to ask me for two sickles this morning so you could buy a drink later!"

"I already spent it," Aaron said guiltily. "I gave it to Sam Mason on the way to breakfast. Bet him that the Arrows would win against the Tornado's next week."

Fred snorted. "Are you insane? No way are the Arrows beating the Tornado's, their offence is shocking-"

"You done with that?" Augustus asked James, nodding at his discarded paper.

"Yeah, take it," he shrugged. "Just another lunatic spouting bollocks though."

"You mean that Evermonde lark?" Oscar guessed as Augustus took the Prophet. "Yeah, I read about that earlier. Completely mad, getting rid of the Statue of Secrecy…"

"Nah, there's no way in hell they'd do that. It must just be a ploy to appeal to old people and all the unemployed lot," said Fred confidently, and he almost believed it.

Aaron indulged him. "Yeah, maybe. I mean, there's no way that people would go for that, right?"

But looking around the Hall there seemed to be just as many students talking eagerly about the article as there were complaining.

"Not everyone would," said James uneasily. "But some maybe. If Evermonde plays on people's fears…"

Oscar glanced at him, blue eyes curious. "What's your dad been saying about it?"

"Not a lot to me. We haven't exactly been seeing eye to eye lately." He shifted uncomfortably and didn't elaborate any further, and was saved answering any inquiries by Augustus.

"William Morgan," he said, looking up with a frown. "Isn't that Alex's dad?"

Fred looked over at once. "William Morgan? Yeah, that's right. Why?"

"He's mentioned in the Evermonde article."

Desperate as Fred was to forget about that particular chestnut-haired witch (Vera not Alex) he couldn't help but snatch the paper away from Augustus's hands.

"What does it say?!"

"Hey, I was-fucking hell, alright. There's a bit in there asking high up Ministry officials their opinion of it all. Looks like Morgan's an Evermonde supporter, he was praising him quite a bit."

"But this makes it seem that Morgan's right in the middle of this!" Fred stared up at James and Aaron in a panic. "It says here that he's quoted as saying that Evermonde's ideas are revolutionary! He can't be involved in this, right?"

"Revolutionary?" James mused, stroking his chin. "Fucking hell. Be interesting to see what the she-Morgan knows about it all."

Aaron grinned. "And we're all such good friends now after catching Rigby and Selwyn…"

Good friends was perhaps an exaggeration, but it was true that Alex had stopped rolling her eyes at them for every slight transgression and now referred to them by their first names rather than Potter, Weasley, or Peters.

Nevertheless, Fred threw down the newspaper and said firmly, "No. You two are not to ask Alex about her dad under any circumstances. Clear?"

James and Aaron merely exchanged devilish smiles, and the latter said innocently, "Oh look, isn't that Summers waiting for you over there? It'd be rude to keep her waiting, Frederick."

Fred looked over and sure enough there stood Vera by the doors, looking very lovely indeed with her yellow and black scarf wrapped tightly around her to combat the merciless Scottish winds and her dark hair pulled back into a messy bun.

"I mean it, you two," warned Fred, getting up. "You'll only end up annoying her. You won't get any answers."

"Good luck, mate," the four boys chorused and, desperately trying to ignore the butterflies exploding in his stomach, Fred huffed and left to join his date.

He didn't have a good feeling about this.

"I love Hogsmeade," Vera sighed as she strolled through the crowded street hand in hand with Fred Weasley. "Especially in October. I know there's something to be said for the winter and the snow and all the christmas decorations, but you've got to admit, there's something magical about the Autumn."

Fred looked at his companion with amusement.

"But there's nothing magical about Autumn," Fred pointed out. "Actually, considering there's a pile of newspapers stacking themselves over there and a wizard right ahead selling Ever-lasting roses, Autumn's the least magical thing here!"

Vera shook her head, smiling. "That's the problem with purebloods. You have no appreciation for magic."

"You were raised with magic too."

"Well, yes, but my father's a Muggle—I've had a healthy mix of both worlds."

The date, much to Fred's delight, was going well. Vera had laughed at all of his jokes, there hadn't been any awkward silences, and as of yet she hadn't given even the slightest inclination that she wanted to visit Madame Puddifoot's teashop.

"So where to now?" Fred asked, looking around the crowded high street. "Zonko's? Honeydukes? I suppose we could try the Three Broomsticks, I reckon Madame Rosmerta will have forgotten that ban she gave me, James, and Aaron by now..."

Vera looked shocked. "Ban? What on earth did you three do?!"

"Oh, it was nothing really," Fred said, enjoying Vera's reaction. "Not for James and Aaron, anyway. It's just last time we were there together, we sort of started a riot. We made a bet with a couple of Australian wizards- you know what, it's probably best not to go into the details. But Aaron can charm his way around any witch, annoying bastard that he is. I'm sure he'll have sweet-talked Rosmerta around it by now."

"Of course," Vera said, not sure whether to be concerned or amused, but smiling nevertheless. "Shall we try there, then?"

He gestured towards the tavern. "Lead the way."

Of course, Fred should have known better than to take Vera to such a popular haunt for Hogwarts students. It only took five minutes for his friends to track them down.

He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised. All he was doing was sitting there innocently listening to Vera tell a fascinating story about her Hufflepuff friends arguing (it wasn't really that fascinating, but she told the story so enthusiastically that it was impossible not to find it at least slightly endearing) so of course someone had to come and ruin his perfectly good time. Surprisingly it wasn't Aaron (Fred suspected he was still harbouring some guilt over the Alex incident the other month) but Augustus and Oscar.

"Oh my God, Fred!" Oscar explained, feigning complete surprise. "What in the name of Salazar are you doing here?!"

"I-" But Fred couldn't even get a word out before Oscar had plopped himself down opposite them. Even Gus, normally so quiet and grumpy, was unable to contain his amusement as he pulled up a chair.

"Oscar Kettler," Oscar announced loudly to the bemused Hufflepuff. "Slytherin. Tell me, Vera, did you ever hear about the time when Fred got trapped in the Astronomy Tower with Clio Smith and a goat-"

"Vera, I am so thirsty," Fred broke in loudly. "Do you mind getting some drinks? Here, take this…"

He shoved some galleons into her hands and although flummoxed, Vera nevertheless got up obediently. "Oh. Okay."

Fred beamed at her. "Thanks, Vera. So, what have you guys been up to? Been to Honeydukes yet..." She moved out of earshot. "Alright, listen here you fuckheads, you have to go, alright? Things are actually going well at the moment, you can't just come bowling on over and pulling up chairs! You're going to scare her off!"

Oscar and Gus stared at him, quite unperturbed.

"Oh look, isn't that Morgan and King over there?" Gus commented, nodding over to one of the crowded booths.

Fred looked and saw that it was. He couldn't help it. "Oh. Yeah." He turned back around and saw their sceptical expressions. "I don't care."

"If you say so," Oscar shrugged.

Fred slumped back. "Y'know, James is on a date too," he said sulkily. "How come you're not annoying him?"

"Because James would probably be happy if we crashed his date with Maya," Gus reminded him, his finger tracing years worth of markings carved into the table.

"Yeah, what's the deal with that anyway?" mused Oscar. "One of the fittest girls at Hogwarts and he acts like he'd rather be with anyone else. He must either like someone else or be guy. Or both, I guess. What do you reckon, Fred?"

"You know what I reckon? I reckon that you two are the two biggest bastards in this place. If you tell that goat story, I swear to God-"

"She's coming back."

"-So, the Wimbourne Wasp's lost last night then?" Fred smiled at Vera as she lowered four butterbeers onto the table with her wand. "Oh good. Drinks for Gus and Oscar too."

Oscar took his happily. "Vera Summers, you are an absolute lad and entirely too good for Fred Weasley."

"It's nothing." Vera beamed, settling down next to Fred. "So, what were you boys talking about?"

"You won't believe it, but we were actually talking about goats-"

"No, we weren't-"

"Fred? A word?"

Fred recognised the voice and groaned inwardly as Molly Weasley appeared. Tall, red-haired, and bespectacled with a severe lack of social skills, his older cousin was every bit Vera Summers' opposite and whilst the date was going fairly well, he certainly didn't need any of his more peculiar family members intervening at this stage.

"Hullo," she said briskly, nodding at Oscar, Augustus, and Vera before turning back to her cousin. "Fred. We need you. We're having a family meeting."

"Now, Molly?" he said weakly. "I'm on a date here."

Molly stared at him uncomprehendingly. "So?"

"So, I'm busy right now, and it would be rude to leave Vera here when I've asked her to spend the day with me. Oh-Vera, this is my cousin Molly. Molly, this is Vera. She's a Hufflepuff."

"Nice to meet you!" Vera chirped, stretching out her hand. "You're head girl, aren't you? Congratulations. I'd never make head girl in a million years."

Molly ignored both the hand and the compliment and just stared at her. "Merlin, you're actually quite pretty. What are you doing with Fred?"

"Hey!" cried a nettled Fred whilst Gus and Oscar laughed. "Molly, go away."

"No. I want the whole family together and you're the last one."

"Well, what about James?"

Now Molly pulled a face. "I tried James outside of Zonko's," she admitted reluctantly. "He gave me the slip with that girl of his."

"Of course he did". Fred rolled his eyes and turned to his date. "Vera, I'm so sorry. I swear, I'll just be five minutes…"

Molly cleared her throat. "Well, actually…"

"Oh, don't worry, mate," Oscar jumped in with a wide smile, slinging his arm around Vera. "Gus and I will look after her for you."

Vera smiled sweetly. "Oh, that would be nice. I'd like to get to know your friends."

"They're not my friends. They're just people I've met who are intent on ruining my life."

"So, a friend?" Augustus surmised as Vera looked on with polite bemusement.

Molly huffed. "Fuck this," she said, with all the authority of a head girl, and she seized Fred's arm. "Let's go. He won't be long, Veronica."

"Vera."

"Yeah, yeah."

And so Fred was promptly dragged out of The Three Broomsticks by his older cousin, and although he asked her several questions about what was going on she did not engage in conversation. He was fine with the silence, until they reached a fork in the street.

"Molly," he began as instead of turning right into the Hogs Head as he expected, his cousin marched on up ahead towards the outskirts of the village, "Molly, tell me we're not going to that fucking cave Hagrid told us about."

"Yes. Can't risk being overheard."

"That's a half an hour walk! You said this meeting was only going to last ten minutes!"

She shrugged. "It wasn't a lie. I just didn't account for how long it would take to get there."

It was such a Molly answer that Fred couldn't bring himself to argue against it, and so he allowed himself to be dragged further along the jagged path leading to the cave.

They were, Fred saw, the last ones to arrive; Lucy and Roxanne were perched together on a large rock, Albus, Rose, and Louis sat on the ground by their feet, and Dominique stood by herself with her arms folded at the edge of the cave.

"No Lily or Hugo?" he asked Molly.

She shook her head. "Too young. That's why we're doing this in Hogsmeade. They're not around to be nosy."

"You didn't drag Fred away from his date, did you, Molly?" Albus called out, looking exasperated. "I told you to leave him alone."

"Yes, well, your brother proved a lot harder to get a hold of than I thought, and we need at least one of them here."

"Let's make this quick, Molly," said Dom impatiently, tapping her foot against the rock. "I said I'd meet Maya in a bit..."

Molly looked as though she cared as much about Dom's meeting with Maya as she had Fred's date with Vera.

"Right, whatever. Now that we're all here finally-"

"We were waiting for you!" went Roxanne indignantly.

"Hector Evermonde," Molly said, loudly enough to smother any more grumblings. "We've all read the paper today, right? You've seen his proposals?"

"It's just an article in a newspaper, Molly," said Dominique, rolling her eyes. "Nothing to get worked up about, as far as I can tell."

"Use your head, Dom," barked Molly. "It's not just an article, it's a campaign! It's not a coincidence that Kingsley's just resigned-Evermonde's trying to get support to become Minister!"

"O-kay..." went Dom, rolling her eyes.

Roxanne and Louis and even Rose were also looking sceptical, but Albus piped up: "I'm with Molly. Dad's been acting weird for ages, and at first I thought it was just because of James, but this makes sense. He never talks about work anymore, and all summer he was disappearing into his office for hours with Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione. Something's going on."

"But how much could we do?!" Dom said in exasperation. "Molly, we're teenagers! What impact could we possibly have upon something going on at the Ministry?"

Molly pushed her glasses up. "Oh, you'd be surprised," she said staunchly. "After all, Dumbledore's Army was formed by a bunch of fifteen year olds, and Uncle Harry had defeated Voldemort four times by the time he was fourteen."

"Yes, but none of us are the Chosen One, Molls-"

"So what did you have in mind, Molly?" Fred said loudly, silencing Dominique with a look.

"We need to find out more information. Our parents won't tell us anything concrete, so we'll have to resort to more underhand methods to get it. Louis, Dom, I'm putting you two in charge of Uncle Charlie. He comes round your house the most and you know how much he likes to drink-get him drunk on firewhiskey or port or something and he should start talking. And Roxy, you can work on Uncle George. He absolutely dotes on you, it should be easy to get him to let something slip. Albus, get yourself some Extendable Ears and find out what's going on in these meetings at your house-Fred, that goes for you too, you spend enough time round there. And Lucy, you and I will do some snooping in Dad's office over Christmas, he's bound to have some work stuff hidden in there. Everyone got it?"

There was a murmur of agreement and Rose piped up, "What about Evermonde? Tiberius, I mean. He's Hector Evermonde's nephew, he must know something. Though I guess with James and Fred harassing him every second of the day he's never going to tell us anything..."

Molly frowned. "Mmm. Good point. Fred, you keep on eye on Evermonde junior, alright? Make sure James don't rile him up too much-he's another one we could do with more information on."

"Ri-ight. You have met James and Aaron, right Molls?"

Her eyes flashed. "I'm serious. I'm telling you, I don't have a good feeling about this. Our world's changing; our name doesn't mean what it used to. We can't just go around acting however we want and expect to get away with it because we're Weasleys or Potters. James needs to start keeping his head down and stop antagonising Tiberius, alright?"

Fred sighed; he had a feeling that she wasn't far off. "Yeah, yeah, alright. Listen in at the Potter's. Reign in James and Aaron with Evermonde. Got it. Is that all? Are we done?"

He looked hopefully at Molly, who rolled her eyes and nodded. "Yeah, we're done. You can run off back to your date."

"Excellent!" Fred jumped to his feet and saluted. "Been a pleasure you lot. See you at Christmas."

Roxanne shouted something at him but he didn't hear as he was already several strides out the cave. Vera had been left with Oscar and Augustus for at least an hour-plenty of time for them to reveal several embarrassing stories and secrets.

Well, it turned out he needn't have worried. After sprinting down the mountain path at a record-breaking speed (he was suddenly very grateful for James's fanatical Quidditch practices) the first thing he saw as he came out onto the Hogsmeade high street was an admittedly distressed looking but otherwise quite alone Vera Summers some distance away; Oscar and Gus, thank Merlin, were nowhere to be seen.

"Fred! Oh, Fred, thank goodness, you'd better come quickly! Something's happened…"

Fred stared as Vera came running up to him. It couldn't have been more than an hour since he'd been gone. What could have gone wrong in that time?

"It's Aaron!"

Ah. Of fucking course.

(Alex)

It wasn't that Alex didn't trust Henry. In actuality she trusted him a great deal more than the average sixteen year old girl trusted her boyfriend, especially considering they lived in such close proximity to hundreds of other hormonal teenagers. She never got angry when she saw him talking with other girls and he always made sure to never mix up being friendly with outright flirting. Not once had she suspected him of cheating or lying.

Alex certainly trusted Henry, but sometimes she got the feeling that he was keeping things from her.

It was early on Saturday morning. Alex had eaten a leisurely breakfast with Martha at around nine and chattered about perfectly trivial things, and just before ten the Prophet came. She saw the mention of her father in the Evermonde article, and although it troubled her she did her best to put it out of her mind. Luckily Martha, who had more of an inclination for gossip rather than politics, proved very useful in this.

"So, Alex," she said with a knowing smile, "are you looking forward to your date with Henry?"

"Oh, absolutely," Alex said, and she meant it. "We've both been so busy lately it's been ages since we've had some time alone together. Apparently he's got something special planned."

"Lucky," Martha said enviously. "I was hoping Aaron Peters would ask me today but no such luck. Still, Zoey invited me to go with her, Keiran, and Isaac, and Isaac has gotten much fitter this year."

"I'm sure you'll have a good time," Alex told her encouragingly, and she checked her watch. "Sorry, Martha, I'd better go. I said I'd meet Henry at ten."

Martha bid her goodbye and Alex made her way to the Entrance Hall. Predictably her boyfriend was already there waiting for her-he was always remarkably punctual-but what was rather less predictable was that he appeared to be engaged in conversation with Tiberius Evermonde.

The pair were stood at the side of the hall, away from the crowd of students, their heads bent low together as they spoke at breakneck speed to each other. Whatever they were discussing it looked serious.

As she approached Tiberius looked up and noticed her and Alex caught the low words, "We'll talk later, Henry."

Henry didn't seem entirely satisfied but nevertheless turned to Alex with a beam as he greeted her.

Now Henry was always happy to see Alex of course, but just then the smile seemed too wide, the tone of voice slightly too chipper, to be completely genuine.

"What was that about?" Alex asked curiously as he took her hand and began to lead her through the castle doors and out into the grounds.

"What? Oh-back there with Tiberius?" said Henry, unconvincingly casual. "Nothing. We're Potion partners. Just going over some homework."

Which would all be well and good, except that sixth year Slytherins shared Potions with the Gryffindor and thus Tiberius was in Alex's Potions class, not Henry's.

Yes, Alex definitely got the feeling that Henry was keeping things from her.

He smiled again, and tried to change the topic. "Hey, isn't that Fred Weasley and Vera Summers up ahead? Are they are thing now?"

Alex looked up, and sure enough there was Fred and the pretty Hufflepuff walking further up the path, holding hands.

"I did hear rumours," she admitted, and as she said it she felt an ever-so-slight twinge of jealousy in her stomach. Merlin. Did she actually miss Fred Weasley fancying her? "Augustus Smith and Oscar Kettler mentioned the other week that she fancied him."

"Smith and Kettler?" he repeated, sounding amused. "When were you talking to them? Aren't they mates with Potter and that now?"

"They've always got on," said Alex. "But yes, I think they're quite good friends now."

He snorted. "Oh, Merlin. I always knew that Kettler was an idiot, but I thought that Augustus at least had some sense."

And there it was. The constant niggling at Alex's housemates, the condescending tone regarding everyone that wasn't in his direct circle of friends.

Suddenly the prospect of a whole day in Hogsmeade with Henry didn't sound quite so appealing as it had an hour earlier.

"Go on, have another one."

"No, no, no, I've already had three, and you keep on refusing to let me pay-"

"Too right. If I can't buy my girlfriend a drink then what can I do?"

Alex smiled. They had been chatting quite merrily in the back of the Three Broomsticks for nearly two hours, joined occasionally by one of their Ravenclaw friends, and as it came up to three o'clock Henry had noticed that Alex's drink was almost empty again.

"Come on, just one more," he reasoned.

"You don't have to," she said, conscious of how much Henry must have spent that day.

"Rubbish. I'll be right back," he promised, kissing her forehead and he left for the queue. However, he hadn't been gone two minutes before she was joined by another handsome sixth year. James Potter wore a broad grin as he slipped into the seat that Henry had vacated.

"Alex Morgan!" he greeted, seizing her drink and tipping it down his throat.

"Hey!" she cried, trying to swipe the tankard back but he had already drained its contents.

"Christ, Morgan," he exclaimed, slamming the empty glass onto the table. "That's sure as hell not butterbeer."

"It was mead," Alex told him crossly. "And I paid three sickles for it!"

"You can afford it," James shrugged before peering at her over the menu. "Anyway, I'd've thought that holier-than-thou King would be paying for his girlfriend's drinks, no?"

He had her there.

"Well, technically yes…"

"Ah ha!" James looked triumphant. "Of course he did. If the bloke was anymore boring he'd be asleep."

"He's a gentleman!" said Alex defensively.

"Not that much of a gentleman," James mused. "He's getting you drunk on mead, isn't he?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "For your information, we've had an absolutely lovely day. He's bought me lunch, taken me to Honeydukes, given me this bracelet…"

"Yeah, I noticed that," James said, nodding towards the bracelet dismissively. "Very impressive, buying you expensive jewellery, booze, flowers… Here's a question for you, though, Morgan: do you actually like any of the classy, classy things that's King's got for you today? I bet that he didn't even ask you what you wanted to drink."

"I…" Alex's cheeks flushed red. How could he have possibly known that? "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with my cousin?"

"She's in the toilet, doing things I'd rather not know about. Anyway, I wanted to ask you something."

Alex arched an eyebrow. "Oh really? And what makes you think that I'm going to answer, Potter?"

He considered this. "Tit for tat. I want to know something from you, and I'm ninety per cent positive that there's something you want to ask me as well."

Now how the bloody hell did he know that?

"No, I don't," she insisted, folding her arms. James grinned.

"If you say so. Now, Fred says I shouldn't ask you this-"

"History dictates you probably shouldn't then…"

"...but I want to know. I dunno if you've read the Prophet at all, Morgan, but I'm betting you heard about that article this morning. Shacklebolt's resigning, Hector Evermonde taking over, the Statute of Secrecy being gotten rid off-ring any bells?"

He looked at her and for once he seemed serious, without a trace of amusement in those hazel eyes and a frown replacing the trademark grin.

"I…" She faltered, if only for a second. "No-I mean, yes I did read the Prophet this week, but I don't see what that's got to do with me."

"Your dad was in the article."

"Barely."

"Uh huh. So I guess you skipped out the part where he was quoted then?"

Alex's cheeks flushed red. "He was debating the pros and cons of it, that's all! That doesn't mean that he's friendly with Evermonde or anything."

"Uh huh," James said again, in that same disbelieving tone. "Seems to me like he was taking a hell of a shine to the pro side."

"Are you accusing my father of wanting to overthrow Muggles, Potter?"

Only then did James hesitate, although why she didn't know. James Potter wasn't exactly famous for his tact.

"No-oo," he said carefully. "Not that, exactly. But he's high up in the Ministry, right? I just thought, since he seemed to be pretty opinionated in the Prophet, maybe he might know something about all this. Has he said anything to you about it? Or been acting weird lately?"

Alex didn't entirely believe her housemate, but shrugged all the same. "Well, he hasn't told me anything and I haven't been home at all since this whole thing started, so I can't speak for any change in his behaviour. But honestly, Potter, I know my father. He may be very traditional in his views but he would never propagate an idea like this."

James nodded, seemingly accepting this. "Alright. Fair enough." Another swipe of Henry's drink. "So, you answered your question. Anything you wanna know from me?"

Alex toyed with her sleeve. "Alright. I suppose there is one thing I'd like to know," she said hesitantly, hating herself for it.

"I stole the Map from my dad. My grandfather and his mates made it when they were at school years ago."

She gaped at him. "How did you know I'd ask about the Map?"

He shrugged. "It's an enchanted map showing everyone's movements in the castle. Anyone would want to ask about it. But I was serious about not telling and that goes for the cloak too. Promise not to tell, yeah?"

"Promise," Alex nodded, and she shook his extended hand just as Henry returned.

"Potter. Who invited you here?"

James looked at him with a delicate mixture of disdain and annoyance. "Oh sorry, King, I forgot you own The Three Broomsticks. Next time I'll ask your permission before I have a drink."

He frowned at him. "Obviously I meant why are you here with Alex? What are you two talking about? "

"Celibacy meeting!" Alex burst out.

Maybe there were things she kept from him too.

"Celibacy meeting?" Looking sceptical, Henry turned to James for confirmation.

Alex had a feeling that it was only the opportunity to annoy Henry that caused James to go along with her. The confused look was only there for an instant before it was replaced by a beaming smile, the mischievous glint oh-so prominent in his eye.

"Better to be safe than sorry," he quipped, drumming his fingers on the table. "I've actually got a picture of you by my bed, King, to put me off shagging when I'm feeling particularly weak-willed."

"But-" Henry looked at her with apparent distress. "Wait, are you saying you're not-?"

"Shut up, Henry!" Alex hissed, but it was too late; James's face had already lit up.

"Oi, you're not telling me King's already gotten lucky, are you?" He shook his head in mock disappointment. "Oh, Alexandra, we'll have much to discuss in the next meeting..."

"James?"

Maya had returned from the toilets, arms folded and tone wry, and Alex had never been so happy to see anyone in her entire life.

"About time," remarked James, entirely relaxed as he leaned back in his chair. "C'mon, have a seat. I was just having a lovely chat with Morgan here."

Maya managed to conceal her grimace, but barely. "We can't, James. We promised we'd meet my friend Leila and her date at Honeydukes, remember?"

Judging by the appalled look on James's face, Alex was certain that this was a lie but in a another rare moment of tact he seemed to think better than to reveal this to the rest of the group.

"Alright," he said wearily, getting to his feet. "But if she compares my hair to a birds nest one more time I'm leaving."

"Wonderful," beamed Maya. "Let's go. Bye, you two."

As the pair walked away (though in his case it was really more of a saunter) James called over his shoulder: "Enjoy the mead, Morgan," accompanied by a cheeky grin and a wink.

She fought a smile at Maya's annoyed look, and Henry huffed beside her. "What's his problem, anyway? Just barging on over here like that? Is he that big-headed that he just assumes that everyone's just dying for a chance to talk to him?"

"He was just bored waiting for Maya," Alex said, running her finger over the rim of her glass. "I was the first one he ran into that he knew. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah. I suppose you're right." He shrugged and smiled. "How's the mead? That is what you wanted, right?"

Damn James Potter to hell.

They sat in the Three Broomsticks together for a good while, and for most of that the names 'Potter', 'Peters', or 'Weasley' weren't mentioned at all. Alex counted it a great success.

Eventually they were also joined by Isaac, Kieran, and Zoey. That was less of a success.

"Oh dear, Alex," Zoey said as Isaac wedged himself between Alex and Henry, and Kieran helped himself to her drink in a very James Potter fashion. "That skirt with that top? Your mother would be horrified."

"Yes, thank you, Zoey," Alex replied dryly; Isaac grabbed a handful of her chips. "Hey!"

"What? I haven't eaten yet," he sprayed back at her.

"So, Alex," said Zoey snootily, "where's your pet?"

Alex raised her eyebrows as Henry looked away uncomfortably. "My pet?"

"Mmm. You know-you're little pet Flynn that you give treats to and take out for walks sometimes."

"Terrible chat, Zabini," Isaac said, rolling his eyes.

"Henry seems to find it funny," Zoey shrugged. "That's what he always calls Flynn after all."

Alex turned to Henry sharply. "You said you liked Sarah!?"

"I do!" he insisted quickly, throwing Zoey a dirty look. "I haven't called her that for ages… Stop shit-stirring, Zoey."

"Whatever," said Zoey, bored. "Where's her royal highness, Miss Sarah Flynn, then?"

Kieran shifted uncomfortably and Alex said icily, "Somewhere with her brother, I'd imagine. They always go to Hogsmeade together."

"Lovely. So I assume that they'll be blowing up the Shrieking Shack and stealing from shops?"

"Still sounds better than being at Hogsmeade with you..."

"Alex!" Henry childed as Zoey glowed with anger and Isaac hid a smirk. "Zoey, don't listen to her, she doesn't mean that."

"Yes, well…" Zoey shrugged (although nothing could shake the annoyance from her eyes) and Kieran tactfully decided to change the subject.

Alex didn't listen. Instead she sat there fuming about Zoey. At least, she thought, Sarah would have laughed at what she had said. Come to think of it, James Potter and Aaron Peters probably would have gotten a kick out of it too. Surprisingly, the thought pleased her a bit.

"Hey, Alex," Henry went, breaking her out of her thoughts, and she turned to him. His eyes seemed to be trained on someone on on the other side of the tavern, though it was impossible to see exactly who amongst the sea of Hogwarts students. "Do you mind if I nip off for a bit? I've just got a couple of things I need to sort out."

"Well… yes, I suppose so," began Alex reluctantly but Henry cut off any possible questions by kissing her on the cheek and saying: "Great, I knew you wouldn't mind-I'll just be a few minutes."

And he bounded off, leaving Alex in the company of Isaac, Kieran, and Zoey.

"Where's he going?" the former frowned, straightening up in his chair at Henry's departure.

Alex shrugged. "He didn't say. To meet someone, I think."

Now Kieran looked interested. "Did he say who?"

"Who cares who Henry's gone off to meet?" Zoey asked irritably, flicking a crumb from lunch off the table. "

"Very true," Kieran agreed, but Alex thought she saw him exchange looks with Isaac.

"He was talking to Tiberius Evermonde earlier," she said suddenly. "I know that they've always known each other but they've never been that friendly."

This time they definitely exchanged looks.

"Oh, you know how things are at school," Kieran said unconvincingly. "You become friends with different people as you get older."

"Yes, but Tiberius Evermonde-"

"So anyway, what's up with you, Morgan?" Isaac jumped in quickly and unsubtly. "You look like someone just pissed on your pygmy puff."

The truth was that Alex was pissed off with Henry's suspicious behaviour and his defending Zoey, but she could hardly say that in front of his best mates.

"James Potter knows about my sex life," she said instead, folding her arms.

"Hardly newsworthy," Zoey remarked. "Everyone knows about your sex life."

Alex stared at her. "What? What do you mean everyone knows?"

Zoey looked rather amused. "Oh, I would have thought it was quite clear."

Her cheeks burnt bright red; fear bubbled in the pit of her stomach. "You mean he-Henry's told everyone?"

"No, no, course not," Kieran injected hastily, glaring at Zoey. "I mean, yes he told us that it… it happened, but I'm sure he hasn't told anyone else. And he didn't give any, uh-details or anything."

Alex nearly laughed. "Oh, he didn't give any details, how lovely of him, what a bloody prince…"

Zoey rolled her eyes. "Sarcasm's very unattractive you know, Alex. You're spending too much time with Flynn. Besides, it's probably just the Ravenclaws and Slytherins that know. Well, and the Gryffindors, I suppose, now that James Potter knows-"

"Shut up, Zoey!" snapped Kieran. "Look, Alex, Henry didn't mean anything by it, okay, it's just what guys do…"

"No!" said Alex furiously, standing up. "Accidentally letting it slip to Potter is one thing, actively going out of your way to tell everyone is another-"

"Oi, guess what?!"

Oscar Kettler appeared by their table, looking thoroughly excited. "Morgan, you might wanna step outside-your bloke's just got into a fight with Aaron."

Alex whipped around. "What?! What happened?"

"Went over to King and Evermonde and started-well, you know what Aaron's like. He was looking for a fight, to be honest, and they've given him one. Just stepped out into the alley behind here. No magic."

"You mean they're fighting him two on one-?"

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Isaac looked as annoyed as Alex felt, and he and Kieran both stood up in one fluid motion just as another flustered figure joined their mist: Vera Summers.

"Alex! Oh Alex, have you seen Fred anywhere? He left about an hour ago with Molly Weasley, but I have no idea where he went, and now Aaron's gone and got himself into a fight with Tiberius and Henry, and I have no idea where he is and I'm starting to get quite worried now because fighting someone two on one isn't really fair and James Potter isn't anywhere around here either-"

"Vera, it's alright, calm down," Alex interrupted. "I haven't seen Fred since this morning."

"I would have thought he'd be with you, Vera," said Zoey archly. "Hasn't given up on you for Alexandra here already, has he?"

"Shut up, Zoey!" fired Alex, Kieran, and Isaac all at once.

"I'll go and find Fred," said Vera with distress, and she dashed off into the crowd.

Isaac scoffed. "Oh, brilliant, what a perfect solution. I'm sure the presence of Fred fucking Weasley, who Henry fucking hates, will calm everything down."

"But Aaron doesn't hate him," Alex reminded him. "Look, go and try and talk some sense into Henry. I'll be as quick as I can."

Isaac frowned. "And what are you going to do?"

"Get back up."

Now it wasn't that Alex doubted Fred Weasley's capabilities (she knew, despite everything, that he was the most efficient student in the school in reining in his loony best mates) but for this particular situation, heated as it was, she just had a feeling that this was a job for James Potter only.

Not that she would ever admit that to Isaac or Kieran.

Maya had said Honeydukes and sure enough that's where she found him. Looking sullen and incredibly sorry for himself (a combination that was very common for the Quidditch captain these days) he leant against the sweet shop window display watching whilst his girlfriend chattered away to Leila Popplewell.

Alex had never been more grateful to see anyone in her life.

"James!" she yelled, so loudly that all heads in the vicinity turned to her, including his.

"Morgan," he went with surprise, straightening up and coming towards her; unfortunately Maya followed. "What's the matter?"

"A fight," she gasped as she came to a halt, more than a little out of breath. "There's a fight outside the Three Broomsticks."

"Oh Alex, can't that wait?" asked an annoyed Maya. "We're in the middle of a date here, and you've already interrupted once!"

Alex neglected to remind her cousin that it had in fact been James who had interrupted her own date and instead ignored her and focused all her attention on her housemate.

"It's Aaron," she said quickly, and James perked up at once. "It's all so stupid-he's got into a fight with Henry and Tiberius. They're in the alley behind the Three broomsticks-I don't know how it started, but-"

Maya folded her arms. "Honestly, it doesn't take much brainwork to figure it out, does it? Aaron's obviously just got bored again and is stirring up trouble for the sake of it..."

"And I'm sure Tiberius Evermonde was completely innocent in the whole thing," she snapped back. "Look, I don't know what happened exactly, but it's two on one and Aaron doesn't have anyone backing him up. I know Henry wouldn't do anything awful, but Tiberius-"

"The alley behind the Three Broomsticks?" clarified James. She nodded.

And that was all he needed to know. Without so much as a glance at Maya he took off down the street, leaving the two cousins facing each other.

"Just to clarify," Maya said, "you're here trying to get back up for Aaron Peters, of all people, rather than your own boyfriend who's also involved in this fight?"

It was a valid point and Alex didn't have an answer for it so she didn't try to give one. Instead she turned on her heel and ran after James Potter's rapidly disappearing figure.

It was starting to rain.

(Sarah)

Sarah's morning didn't start off well. She woke up late for a start, far later than she had intended to get up. The dormitory was completely empty when she finally stumbled out of bed (twenty two minutes past eleven) so the only plus of her slipping on the wet wooden floor as she went to the bathroom was that there was no one around to witness her crash to the floor.

She had no clean clothes, it took her ten minutes just to find her wand, and she accidentally trod on a lost ink bottle rolling around on the floor; so, when the dormitory door opened half an hour later, of course it wasn't Alex or Hilary or Fliss or someone that Sarah could mildly tolerate that walked in, but Grace Marshall.

The two stared at each other for a moment, exasperation mirrored in their expressions, and then Sarah gathered the rest of her belongings and Grace went to her bedside.

She was nearly out the door before Grace called out, bitterly, spitefully, and with no ability to stop herself, "You're being selfish, you know."

Now, Sarah didn't know this, but Grace had also had a bad morning. She had slept in late (not as late as Sarah but late still), was the last one to get in the shower, and waited two hours in the Entrance Hall for her date with seventh year Donald Finch before realising that she had been stood up. If Sarah was more perceptive, she might have noticed the other girl's red eyes, or the sag in her shoulders, or even her smudged mascara.

As it was Sarah wasn't very perceptive and so she turned around, rolling her eyes, and went, "What the fuck are you going on about now?"

"I said you're selfish," said Grace forcefully. "And I don't care. I don't care that James Potter let you onto his Quidditch team, or that Aaron Peters talks to you in lessons now, or even that I met Alex first and we've been best friends for over ten years and you're trying to steal her away from me. I don't care about any of that, because I know that you, Sarah Flynn, are a selfish, sneaky, little thief-and you'll get what's coming to you."

Sarah gaped at the fuming girl, who stared right on back defiantly. If she weren't so astounded, she would have been furious.

"Oh, fucking do one, Marshall. I'm sick to fuck of your Goddamn moaning every five minutes. You think I'm selfish? Fine. I couldn't give less of a shit either way. But I'm not the one throwing tantrums every time Alex fucking takes a breath, okay? You want some advice, Grace? Grow up. 'Cus eventually Alex is gonna get sick of your bullshit and sack you off altogether. And considering that she's about the only thing you've got going for you, I'd fucking reconsider the way you go around acting."

With a final disgusted look Sarah turned on her heel and stalked out of the room without a second glance, meaning that she was unable to witness Grace kick the side of her trunk angrily and burst into tears.

"You shoulda seen it, Chris. His face-I thought he was gonna cry!"

Davey Corner was positively jubilant as he told Christopher Flynn in what his mind constituted an epic tale, the slightly mad glint prominent in his eyes as he did so.

In reality, it was actually a rather pathetic story-one involving Davey and Tobias cornering little Liam Pipps in the Charms corridor and hexing him until Alex Morgan came across them and intervened.

The group (six of them, with Chris and Davey leading the way whilst Sarah trailed behind) were nearing the end of the long walk from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade, and everyone was listening to Davey with rapt expressions.

Everyone except Sarah, that is.

"And then, Chris, get this-Morgan came, y'know, Sarah's best fuckin' mate, and she starts fuckin' screaming at us. Bloody psycho, that one is… Anyway, she was there having a right tantrum, so me and Tobias, we look at each other and we make a run for it. She didn't even put us in detention or nothin'!"

He grinned, looking around for some sort of sign of approval; Chris seemed distinctly unimpressed but forced a smile anyway whilst the other Hufflepuffs lapped it up.

"Oh wow," sighed Charlotte. "And you left without even a scratch on you."

"Yeah, very brave," Sarah remarked. "Attacking Liam Pipps two on one, then running away as soon as he gets some back up. Very impressive."

Davey stopped and glowered at her.

"Oh, fucking shock that you would have a problem, Flynn," Tobias bit. "S'pose you're too good for that sorta thing now, are you?"

"Shut it, Gump," Chris warned, eyes flashing. Tobias backed down instantly, a sulky look on his face, but Davey glared at his leader. The whole group had stopped now and all eyes were on Chris and Davey.

"Dunno what you're defending her for," the latter said spitefully, jerking his head towards Sarah. "It's not like she gives a shit about you either way. Not now she's got her precious Morgan…"

"Yeah, that's right, Davey," went Sarah. "I'm actually only physically incapable of maintaining one relationship at a time."

"Leave it out, Davey," Chris said impatiently, sending his sister a pointed look. "I'm sick of your Goddamn moaning all the time. If you've got a problem with Sarah-"

"Well shit, it's not like I'm the only one…"

"Davey!" Edmund hissed, glancing at Chris. "Look, let's just go to the Shrieking Shack, alright? I've got some fireworks from the Weasley place, we can blow the place out-"

"I'm not going with her," said Davey furiousing, pointing at Sarah.

"Alright, fine. Don't fucking come then," Chris told him shortly.

There was a tense silence as Chris and Davey stared each other down. Several moments passed and then Davey averted his gaze.

"Fine," he muttered, though hardly appeased; Chris nodded.

"Let's go," he said, and with murmurs of agreement they all started on the trail that led to the Shrieking Shack.

All but one.

"Sarah?" Chris glanced over his shoulder and saw that his sister hadn't moved. "You coming?"

Sarah hesitated then shook her head. "Nah… I don't think so."

"What? Why not?" he frowned, standing back as the others carried on up the path.

"I just don't really feel like it. You go though. I'll see you later."

Chris stared at her. "Is this because of what Davey and Toby did?" he wanted to know.

"Nah, course not," lied Sarah, knowing as soon as she saw his narrowed eyes that he didn't believe her. When had she ever gotten away with lying to Chris?

"Oh c'mon, Sare, they're idiots, you know that! Most of the time I'm surprised they know which end of the wand's the right way up. You can't pay 'em too much attention."

"That's not the point," she found herself saying. "They attacked Liam Pipps two on one, and I know he's a pussy but it's not fair."

"Well, it's not like we've never played dirty before," Chris pointed out. "Look, I'll talk to 'em, alright, make sure they leave Pipps alone. But it's just Davey being Davey, I don't know why you're kicking up a fuss about it. You never have before."

And just like that Sarah found herself irritated with her brother and his need to defend Davey Stone.

"Look, forget about it," she said petulantly. "Just go. I'll see you at dinner."

Chris frowned at her and opened his mouth to argue, but then Davey yelled out: "C'mon, Flynn!" and he closed it again.

"Fine then," he said reluctantly. "I'll see you back at the castle, yeah?"

"Yeah," she nodded and, still looking rather confused (and more than a little annoyed) Chris ran off to where Davey and the others were waiting impatiently.

She looked after them, just for a few seconds, before turning around and setting off back to the village.

She felt oddly uneasy walking into Hogsmeade on her own. She was used to it at Hogwarts-during lessons, in the Gryffindor Tower, at mealtimes-but she had always, always gone to Hogsmeade with Chris by her side.

She hoped he wouldn't be sulking with her later. Normally the thought wouldn't even cross her mind, because it was Chris and he usually didn't do that sort of thing, but now…

She continued on up through the village deep in thought, and although she spotted a few people that she recognised there was no one that she knew well enough to stop and chat to.

Maybe she should look for Alex-but no, she'd no doubt be with either Henry or Martha or one of those other Ravenclaw bellends that she hung out with. She didn't know anyone on the Gryffindor team well enough to hang out with any of them, and her dormmates Hilary and Fliss were stuck in the castle in detention that day for not doing homework. Which left her with precisely nobody.

She was just considering going back to the castle-really, it was just embarrassing trudging around Hogsmeade alone-when her saviour came, in the form of a tall, cocky boy with curly brown hair leaning against the window of Dervish and Bangs: Aaron Peters.

"Well, well, well. Sarah Flynn," he went as she approached. "No brother keeping you on a leash today?"

"No Fred keeping you on yours?" she jibed back.

He gave a broad grin. "Touche. Fred's on a date, believe it or not, and has elected to not reveal his location lest I bother, annoy, or generally embarrass him."

"Fred's a very wise man."

Aaron agreed. "That seems to be the popular opinion. Shame Morgan can't see it. Oi, don't s'pose you could put in a good word for him, could you?"

She snorted. "Mate, I wish I could. She's still stuck on King."

"Gross."

"Right?"

"S'pose it doesn't matter much. She'll come around. Sixteen year old girls always come around."

Sarah raised her eyebrows. "Yeah? How'd you figure that?"

Raising a hand to ruffle his hair (Sarah was sure at least six girls in the vicinity swooned) Aaron smiled knowingly and said, "Never seen a Muggle film?"

"No," she said. "Oh wait-we watched Titanic in Muggle Studies. That count?"

He pulled a face. "Did you throw up from the sap? Fucking Titanic, out of all the films Artie could have chosen? Well, whatever. Point is, you mark my words, Flynn: Morgan will stick around with King for a bit longer, realise he's wrong for her, spend some time finding herself or some shit before realising how right dear old Frederick was for her all along and end up happily in love or something equally sickening."

"So basically Fred's the Jack, Al's the girl, and Henry's the rich knob?"

"Pretty much." He blew his hands to ward off the biting winds and looked Sarah over. "So where you off to, then?"

"Nowhere in particular."

"Seriously? It's a Hogsmeade weekend. You don't have any plans?"

Sarah looked defensive. "I don't see you with anyone, Peters."

Aaron rolled his eyes. "Alright then, you're coming with me. Congratulations, Flynn. You're now tragic enough that you warrant even my pity."

"Oh goody," said Sarah sarcastically, but she still allowed herself to be towed along by her companion along the crowded street.

"Oh, and incidentally…" He glanced over his shoulder and gave a winning smile. "You don't happen to have two sickles, do you?"

Darrell Adler was an interesting girl; a Ravenclaw in their year with wavy dark hair and a fair complexion, she had a boyish figure, with a chest almost as flat as Sarah's, and an upturned nose, freckles, and laughing brown eyes. Sarah didn't know her very well (much like herself, Darrell seemed like the type of girl who was more at home in the company of boys rather than girls) but she had always liked her. Despite their limited interactions Darrell was one of the few in their year who had never treated her differently because of her last name.

"Late again, Peters," she told Aaron reproachfully, slumping in her seat as they approached. "What is this, the twelfth time?"

"You know me," Aaron said lazily, offering her a grin as he took a chair. "I like to make an entrance."

Sarah remained standing, a bit non-plussed. "Peters, have you brought me along on one of your dates?"

Darrell burst out laughing and Aaron looked rather offended. "Oh, he wishes. We're just friends."

"Like you've got the time anyway," he countered. "Too busy juggling all those other boys."

"Oh, don't you slut-shame me, Aaron Peters. At last count we've got with the same amount of people!"

He considered this. "Yeah, fair enough. Oi, are you gonna sit down any time soon, Flynn?"

Sarah did so and Darrell shoved a butterbeer her way. "Here, you take that. I got it for Aaron, but he's never going to be able to fill that fat head of his anyway, so what's the point in trying?"

"Cheers," she snorted, happily taking a gulp. "Ah, don't look like that, Peters. I'm sure your mother loves you."

"I should fucking hope so." Aaron stood up. "Ok well, I'm going to get myself a drink, apparently. I should have known bringing you two together was a bad idea…"

He departed and Darrell turned to Sarah immediately, her eyes bright.

"So," she said, leaning so far forward that her dark hair brushed against the sticky table surface, "what's the deal with you and Aaron?"

Sarah stared at her. "Huh?"

"What's the deal?" the other repeated, more impatiently this time. "I know it's none of my business and all, but fuck that. Aaron never brings girls along to meet his mates and I'm curious. Are you two getting with each other or something?"

"Oh shit, yeah-we're in love, didn't he say? We're thinking a spring wedding…"

Darrell pulled a face. "Ha ha ha. Didn't anyone ever tell you sarcasm is the lowest form of wit?"

"James Potter, actually."

"The best man at this beautiful spring wedding," Darrell remarked. "So I'm assuming that nothing is going on then?" Sarah confirmed this. "Weird. I mean, no offence, but I've known those boys ever since first year and they're not exactly the type to pick up randomers along the way. Tight inner circle, y'know? Though I suppose you are a hell of a lot different to the Zoey Zabini's and Clio Smith's of this school."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Sarah watched Aaron flirt with the pretty barmaid. "So what about you? Peters an ex-boyfriend or something?"

Darrell smirked a bit. "Not really. Well, not in the romantic sense. We're each other's firsts." At the look on Sarah's face she added, "I know, tragic isn't it? We were both piss-drunk at the end of last year and it sort of just happened. Happened a fair bit since then too, if I'm being honest, which apparently I am. Still, we're just mates though. Definitely just mates."

"You are such a fucking cliche, you know that, right?" Sarah went, shaking her head, just as Aaron came back with a drink in hand.

"Oh completely," agreed the Ravenclaw. "Incidentally-I don't really fancy being called a slag behind my back by the likes of Grace Marshall and her bitchy little minions. Don't tell anyone, yeah?"

"Don't tell anyone what?" Aaron asked, taking his seat again.

"Our sordid romantic history."

He grinned. "Why? You ashamed of me, Adler?"

"Oh, of course not, Aaron," she deadpanned. "Who could ever be ashamed of you?"

"My mother."

"And so she should be. I heard what you got up to with Tilda Waltham last week."

"Well, that's nothing to be ashamed about. She'd only let me finger her."

Sarah snorted. "Oh, fucking lovely-"

"Tilda doesn't like me," Darrell lamented. "She always thought there was something going on between me and Oscar back when they were a thing."

"To be fair, Adler, everyone thought that…"

"We're just friends," insisted Darrell. "It's not my fault I get on better with boys than girls. Anyway, Aaron, if you wanted to impress Waltham maybe you should have told her how you caught Rigby and Selwyn."

Judging from the roll of his eyes, Sarah guessed that this was a conversation that the pair had had many times before. She was pleasantly surprised that it seemed as though Aaron had stuck true to his word and not told anyone they were the ones behind it.

"Darrell, my dear, I have no idea what you're talking about," he said innocently. "James, Fred, and I were drinking in the seventh year dorms that night, and Rigby and Selwyn definitely weren't there."

Now Darrell rolled her eyes. "Right, you keep up with that story, yeah? I know Oscar and Gus were involved cause of all the stupid hints they've been dropping, and there's no way they'd catch Rigby and Selwyn on their own."

"I find them clumsily endearing," Aaron agreed, swigging back his drink. "Still, nothing to do with me."

"And I suppose it's just a coincidence that Rigby and Selwyn can't remember anything that happened that night and Fred's probably the only person in the whole bloody school whose memory charms are good enough to evade the teachers? Or that about a million fireworks were used to distract Jenkins and you three have the biggest collection out of anyone I know? Or that I spoke to Sam and Adam the other day and they said that you woke them up that night coming into the dormitory at five in the morning?"

"Innocent until proven guilty," chanted Aaron lazily. "All conjecture, Adler."

Darrell huffed and slammed her tankard down onto the table dramatically. "I don't know why you lot won't just say," she grumbled. "I mean, everyone's just assuming it was you anyway. Embarrassed of actually doing some good in this school, I suppose?"

Aaron caught Sarah's eye and winked, and she said dryly, "Only if you count doing good in this school as fingering Tilda Waltham in a broom cupboard."

Darrell threw her head back and laughed. "Oh, I like this one. Where did you find her again?"

"She joined the Quidditch team."

"Oh yeah. How's that going for ya?"

"James Potter is a fucking lunatic, and we practice for about a hundred hours a week," said Sarah frankly. "But I guess it's okay."

And Aaron smiled at that, because he had heard that kind of 'okay' before and he knew what was behind it.

"Well, whatever," Darrell went. "As long as you lot beat Ravenclaw in the final, I couldn't care less."

Sarah looked confused. "You know that you are a Ravenclaw, right?"

Darrell grimaced. "Yeah, but our captain's Henry King, and I'd rather see my house lose than see him win."

"Even his own housemates hate him," mused Aaron. "That's comforting I s'pose. And speaking of…"

He craned his neck and looked across the pub. The girls turned too and saw Henry apparently deep in conversation with Tiberius Evermonde.

"I wonder what those two could possibly have to talk about?" Aaron said, his eyes glinting.

"It's not worth it, Aaron," said Darrell in a low voice. "There's two of them and one of you, and I'm sure as hell not getting involved in your stupid games."

"I could still win."

"That's not the point." But Aaron got up anyway and Darrell slumped down in her chair.

"Well, shit. Don't suppose you could talk any sense into him?" she asked Sarah.

She snorted. "You think I've got any control over that maniac?"

"True. Where's James or Fred when you need them?"

Unfortunately at that moment in time James and Fred were nowhere to be seen, with the former being dragged around Honeydukes by an enthusiastic Maya Fawley and the latter making his way back from a family meeting that had been significantly longer than the ten minutes promised. Thus, there was no one to stop Aaron from sauntering over to where Henry King and Tiberius Evermonde sat, whistling a jaunty tune with his hands shoved in his pockets.

"Well, well, well," he said loudly, coming to a halt in front of them. "Didn't peg you two for an item, I'll give you that. Did you at least buy him flowers, Tiberius?"

"C'mon," Darrell muttered to Sarah, heaving herself up and grabbing her arm. "Join me in babysitting the two year old."

The two girls hurried over to where onlookers were already starting to flock, and positioned themselves by Aaron.

"Don't you have some Hufflepuffs to hex?" an annoyed Henry was saying.

"Mmm. Bit fifth year that. Though I suppose maybe some fourth year Hufflepuffs would pose more of a challenge than you, King."

"Don't push me, Peters. I could curse the shit out of you if I had to."

"Yeah? Have at it," enticed Aaron. "But I don't think you will. You don't have the nerve."

Pride was an annoying thing.

"I can take you anytime, Peters," Henry snarled. "You really think a fucking low-life like you-"

"Henry." Tiberius's smooth voice quietened even the chattiest of first years as he tilted his head and evaluated Aaron in the way one would evaluate a prospective business opportunity. "No need to get so agitated. If Peters wants a fight…" Tiberius smiled, his eyes sly, "then he can certainly have one."

If Aaron was surprised by the Slytherin's words he didn't show it; in his eyes there was a hard glint that Sarah failed to recognise, completely devoid of his usual good humour.

"Evermonde, the only way you two could take me in a duel is if I were wandless."

"Oh, duelling isn't what I had in mind, Peters," replied Tiberius. "You love Muggles so much? How about we do it their way?"

And now Aaron grinned, a full on shit-eating grin, and Sarah realised this was probably what he had been after all along. "You're on."

Augustus Smith, who had been watching the scenario unfold from nearby, stepped forward. "Aaron, mate," he said cautiously, "d'you think this is a good idea?"

"Yeah, I reckon so," he replied, punching him on the shoulder. "Don't you worry, Smith-I can handle these two pillocks."

And so the boys moved out into the back alley behind The Three Broomsticks and at least twenty students followed eagerly as the whisper of 'fight' echoed around the pub, Sarah and Darrell among them. Gus grabbed the latter's arm just as they were about to go outside.

"We're gonna go get James and Fred," he said quickly, indicating himself and Oscar. "Keep a Goddamn eye on him, will you?"

"Will do," Darrell replied with a salute, and he disappeared into the crowd.

It wasn't pretty. It wasn't glamorous or dramatic or anything like what fights are shown as in films. Instead it was three teenage boys who didn't really have any experience in the area throwing clumsy punches and staggering around in the rain.

Although Aaron was probably the most able fighter of the lot, he also had the undeniable disadvantage of both being outnumbered and against opponents who weren't afraid to fight dirty. For every punch that Aaron got in, they got in two more; for every kick, every blow that he sent their way, he was doubled down with even more in return.

Winded and with bruises already blossoming across his face, Aaron stumbled forward, catching Tiberius square in the nose so that blood spurted everywhere, and bowled Henry over around the stomach so that they both hit the floor; Aaron's chin exploded with blood as it smashed into the ground, and Sarah winced when Tiberius turned and smashed his foot down on Aaron's fingers.

"Dirty move," said Darrell angrily. "DIRTY MOVE, Evermonde, you prick!"

Henry heaved Aaron up, pinning his arms behind his back, and Evermonde stepped forward and punched him, again and again, until blood was pouring from Aaron's nose and dripping onto the ground.

"Fucking hell," Sarah said with disgust as around her students cheered and booed and shouted; she shoved her satchel into Darrell's arms. "Here, hold this, will you?"

Darrell looked surprised as she took the bag. "Wait, what are you doing? You're not getting involved are you?"

"Well, someone needs to fucking do something, look at them…"

In the end Sarah didn't need to intervene. At that moment James Potter and Fred Weasley came bursting from inside the pub, wands out and faces drawn, with Alex and Vera Summers followed closely behind. Upon seeing their best mate beaten and bloodied on the floor fury positively radiated from the two boys, and with a bang Henry and Tiberius were thrown backwards as James caught them off guard.

"Good timing," Sarah said as Alex came sidling up to her. "You should really start keeping tabs on your boyfriend, y'know."

"What the hell happened?" she demanded, ignoring the jibe.

Sarah considered this. "Well, Aaron pissed off King and Evermonde and goaded them into a fight, so those two teamed up to beat the shit out of him. King didn't hold back, either."

"Of course…"

Meanwhile, James and Fred helped Aaron to his feet.

"Two on one, King?" James spat. "Really? Don't get me wrong, I'd expect it from the likes of Evermonde, but I thought even a bellend like you was above that."

Tiberius had recovered quicker than Henry, and he staggered to his feet wiping blood from his chin.

"Get off your high horse, Potter," he spat."It was your boyfriend here who started it."

"Shove it up your arse, you twat, I don't give a fuck who started it. Get out of here, or I swear to God this time you'll be the one who's outnumbered."

Evermonde made to argue but then James raised his wand higher and he seemed to think better of it. With none of his cronies around to back him up, he got to his feet and shoved his way past the crowd. As he passed Henry he called out, "Not to worry, King. Next time."

"Oh, really." Alex looked furious as she stalked up to her boyfriend and grabbed his arm. "Come on, Henry. Of all the stupid things…"

The couple departed, both as irked as the other, and Darrell glanced at Sarah. "Wanna get drunk with Oscar and Gus? I reckon these three princesses will be arguing for a while."

Sarah glanced over at James and Fred, who did indeed seem to be exchanging harsh words with their rather worse-for-wear friend.

"Fuck this," she agreed, and the pair returned to the pub as well.

"What the fuck, mate?" James was saying, looking down at his best mate.

Aaron grinned back stupidly, swaying a bit as the two held him up. It had started to rain in earnest now, and raindrops intermingled with the blood running down his face. "Ah, this is nothing. You shoulda seen the other guy."

"We did see the other guys," Fred told him in annoyance. "Why the hell did you start a two on one fight for no bloody reason?"

"I dunno. To ease the sexual tension?"

Fred huffed and James shook his head in disgust. "Jesus, Aaron. Why the fuck d'you do it?"

Aaron wilted and for a moment James and Fred thought they had gotten through to him, but then he shrugged. The crowd had dissipated now and it was just those three left in the alley with the rain splattering down on them. "The hell else is there to do?"

A/N: Okay, I know it's been AGES since I've updated but this chapter is long as balls so hopefully that makes up for it. Apologies for the hiatus there, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chapter!